Christian sex workshops for born again marriages
Christian couples are pumping life into their marriages at church-sponsored sex workshops. Christian therapists say the sessions are born of a need to strengthen marriage as divorce rates soar.
Smoking bans are a boon for entrepreneurs
Cigarette lovers and bar owners may complain about smoking bans, but the new laws mean increased business for some entrepreneurs. From sidewalk ashtrays to $4,000 smoking boxes to outdoor heaters, companies are cashing in by catering to outdoor smoking.
Screw caps: not just for jug wine anymore
Some inveterate wine drinkers miss uncorking the bottle, but, little by little, screw-off caps are catching on and, some say, keeping the wine fresher.
Life for young fashion designers means grit, not glitz
When the competition on the reality show "Project Runway" ends on March 8, the winning designer will get money to start a fashion line and priceless exposure. But the reality behind the runway isn’t so glamorous.
Online diarists beware: Your employer may be watching
College students and 20-somethings should think hard before hitting the send button on online diary sites like Facebook and MySpace. Schools and employers may be watching--and taking notes.
Medical students take lessons from the Far East
Driven by patient interest and medical students themselves, more medical schools are introducing students to nontraditional forms of treatment like acupuncture and Chinese medicine.
Life coaching, a ballooning field with a lot of flakes
"Life coaching" is one of the fastest growing professions and one of the least regulated. How do you know if your life coach isn't just another wacko out to make a buck?
On the road with "vanaholics"
They call themselves van fans, vanners, van addicts and vanaholics, and 30 years after the heyday of the shaggin' wagon, they’re still roving the roadways of America. Van fans see their hobby as a statement about personal freedom, whether they're living a counterculture lifestyle or parked safely in the suburbs.
At the corner of Grinn and Barrett, drivers stop and smile
Fangboner Road in Ohio, Shades of Death Road in New Jersey or the intersection of Bush and Clinton streets in New York--these are just a few of the off-beat street names competing for top honors in this year's First Annual Wild, Weird and Wacky Street Names Contest.
The breakup that never ends
What do you do when you break up, but your ex never goes away? That’s the problem with split-up couples who maintain online profiles, then obsessively track each other’s new lives.
Missing classes to play online games
For college students newly removed from the comforts of home and immersed in a challenging social and academic scene, the lure of online gaming can be overwhelming. Now psychologists are asking: Is gaming a new addiction or simply a mask for other disorders?
Finding faith in the bottom of a glass
Theology on Tap: Sending out priests to pull in young barflies is an old idea but still going strong.
Move over, Cher, TV's "Golden Girls" become gay icons
More than two decades after its debut, "The Golden Girls," the NBC sitcom about four female retirees sharing a house in Miami, has found new life with an unexpected audience: young gay males.
Indie films break out in prison premieres
Award-winning indie filmmakers are looking to bring movies with a social message to a prison or inner-city school near you. The effort is part social outreach and part marketing.
Shooting glitz with a Polaroid, Jeremy Kosta is gracious in a galling trade
He says he's an "anti-paparazzo," shooting celebrities with a Polaroid while still being polite. As such, aspiring photographer Jeremy Kost is building a reputation for being gracious in a galling profession.
MySpace knows what you did last summer
Social networking sites like Facebook.com and MySpace.com are giving school disciplinarians and corporate recruiters a new place to snoop around.
Platform tennis draws winter fans
For thousands of platform tennis enthusiasts, a winter afternoon cooped up inside chicken wire fencing suits them just fine, and the colder the better.
MySpace: the new gay space for teens and 20-somethings
Gay youth find a home on MySpace.com. But even as some celebrate the site, others fear that users may be targeted by predators.
Belly dancing, with a little more body hair
Male belly dancers are stepping into the spotlight normally reserved for curvaceous females, and they are commanding up to $200 a performance.
Carbs, junk food? Now add lack of sleep to the things that can make you fat
Sugar, carbs and fat have long been known as big contributors to weight gain. Now add a fourth: lack of sleep. According to a new study, sleep-deprived people are more likely to choose food that makes them gain weight.
Quirky collections: from coffins to baked beans
When Joni Tosil was a kid, she developed a strange fascination with horror and Halloween. Now she collects coffins. Barry Kirk created an alter ego named Captain Beany from his fascination with baked beans. Collectors are driven by a variety of impulses, some of which are so extreme that they spend time and money they don't have.
Young players get hooked on bridge
Bridge gets a bad rap--it’s an old person’s game, it’s stale, it’s not poker. But for the young people who take up the game, granny’s game is a blast. And with clubs, schools and community organizations around the country adding junior games, old assumptions about who’s playing and why no longer hold true.
Far from home, hurricane refugees find ways to mark Mardi Gras
Some are searching for costumes and king cakes, some are trying to find a way back to New Orleans and some say this is no time for a party. Katrina evacuees are of two minds on how to observe Mardi Gras this year.
Taboo tattoos: putting ink where the sun does shine
More people are getting ever-visible tattoos, images that cannot be covered up by conventional clothing. Why do people do it, and how are these prominent tattoos received in America in 2006?
Is your fit a bust?
Even with more trained fitters showing up in lingerie departments, it’s not so easy for a woman to find a bra that fits.
Recovering alcoholics grab for the mouse instead of the bottle
Recovering alcoholics who can't--or don't want to--attend self-help groups are now finding 24/7 support on their computers, or even on their BlackBerrys. Members say such "virtual" support has saved their lives.
Cylinder recordings from Edison's era find new life in podcasts
Once obsolete, cylinder recordings from Edison's era are finding new life in podcasts and other cutting-edge technology.
Assyrian-Americans reach out to relatives displaced by Iraq war
Georgette Isho and Shamiram Shemoun are Assyrian-Americans who are trying to help relatives who have fled to Syria to escape the violence in Iraq. Now there are about 250,000 Iraqi Chaldean-Assyrian refugees in Syria. And another wave of Christian refugees is expected after the recent bombing of six churches in Baghdad and Kirkuk.
Going to church? See you at the nightclub
In Los Angeles people meet in a nightclub, Oshkosh, Wis., they come together in a barn. Churches today are choosing to meet in places to reach those who otherwise would not think of going to church.
Exclusive Web site keeps out the plebeians
Most online socializing is democratic. But not aSmallWorld, which serves as an exclusive Web club for young jetsetters. Members can only join by invitation and their privacy is jealously guarded.
When cell phones get wet, their owners see red
Tired of customers who get their cell phones wet and then claim the phone broke during normal use, manufacturers have created tell-tale technology built into handsets: paper dots that turn red when damp. If the dot turns red, the company knows that the phone got wet and won't fix it under the warranty.
DVDs come to the rescue as movie box office revenue declines
As revenue at the box office declines, film studios are banking on the lucrative DVD market to turn a bigger profit. With several different editions of a DVD released over a period of time, movie lovers are being forced to ask themselves, "Is what I already own good enough?"
Want to date your office mate? Go right ahead, companies say
Once taboo, workplace relationships are on the rise as Americans put in more hours at the office. Now some employers are discovering that allowing love on the job can actually boost productivity and make for a happier work force--at least some of the time.
Crazy things happen when condoms cross cultures
Americans trying to halt the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa find it takes a mix of creativity, patience and off-beat humor to break taboos and convince people from different cultural traditions that something as cheap and simple to use as a condom can save their lives.
Preventing obesity before birth
As obesity reaches epidemic proportions, researchers are investigating the link between prenatal nutrition in mothers and obesity in children. By Jennifer Phillips.
Social club offers liberal politics and pints
While liberal ideals may be suffering nationwide, Drinking Liberally is celebrating, and with good reason. Since May 2003, the social club has offered like-minded liberals a casual outlet for political discussion and a stiff drink. Now it has grown from a local group of New York revelers to over 130 chapters in 40 states.
Wild parrots find a friend in Brooklyn
It's a jungle out there; can't you tell by the birds? Bright green parrots have invaded America, and one man's heart.
Postponing graduate school and careers for adventure
More and more recent college graduates are postponing their entry into careers or graduate school to volunteer or work at jobs overseas. In the process, they encounter cross-cultural mix-ups, disease, odd food and life-changing moments.
Visitation programs relieve isolation of the elderly
For the 35 million Americans over 65, growing old can be a complicated and solitary journey. But across the country, volunteer visitation programs are relieving isolation for thousands in the elderly community.
Coaching to win on 'American Idol'
Voice teachers are turning into stylists and advisers to help their students get selected by "American Idol" and "Canadian Idol".
Online filmmaking has arrived
Young independent filmmakers are bypassing Hollywood and fueling an online movie explosion by putting their films on new video sites offered by Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft. Some are finding fame, and some are even making money.
High smoking rate seen among Asian immigrants
Although a recent government survey reports the number of smokers in the Asian community is decreasing, many experts say that Asian immigrants living in the United States are still smoking at rates significantly higher than the national average.
Bringing America back to an old favorite: cricket
At first glance, cricket may seem as foreign to Americans as warm beer, driving on the left and socialized medicine. But to the men and women behind Major League Cricket, that perception is nothing more than a failure of marketing.
From terrorism to tornadoes, schools prepare for the worst
Since Sept. 11, 2001, schools have been drilling students for everything from tornadoes and earthquakes to chemical spills and terrorist attacks. And then there are diseases, tsunamis and intruders. School officials say you can’t be too prepared.
Get ready for goat's milk ice cream
Goat's milk yogurt and butter already have their fans, especially among those who can't or won't eat foods made from cow's milk. So why not goat's milk ice cream? It could be coming to a store near you in sophisticated flavors like Black Mission Fig and Chevre Chiffon.
NRA program offers women a different kind of hobby
The NRA's Women on Target program teaches women to shoot and hunt in the company of other women.
Hurdles remain for women in journalism
Women have dominated enrollment in American journalism schools for nearly 30 years, but they still lag far behind men when it comes to jobs in the news business.
I love you ... and you ... and you ... and you, too
The practice of having multipartner relationships, commonly known as polyamory, is certain to be the buzz around the watercooler when HBO debuts “Big Love,” its new Sunday night drama about polygamy on March 12. Does polyamory represent a legitimate challenge to monogamy or is it just an excuse to fool around?
Sorry, champ, the accountant needs the ring now
In metropolitan areas like New York, Detroit and Los Angeles, white-collar boxers now account for the majority of members at many local boxing gyms.
Couples seeking babies turn to hypnosis
Today, more women are turning to hypnosis as a fertility treatment. While medical treatments like in vitro fertilization can cost as much as $15,000 a cycle, hypnotherapists specializing in fertility charge about $150 a session.