Cook to Blog or Cook to Live and Enjoy Life? When we cook and have friends and family over the last thing we want to do is document the process (and take photos).   This may sound sacrilegious coming from a food blogger, but it’s the truth.  For us, preparing and consuming food is not about pictures and words but rather about eating […]

(photo: an old door in Pellegrina, Italy)   There’s a certain comfort in all things deemed old: Old homes, old devices, old parts, old countries, old texts, old people, old trees, old clothes, old friends, etc.  The old can be defined as something not made or experienced recently and having a history (or story) or emotive quality.  An old friend […]

(photo: by Piero Morello. getting confirmation on the body of water, but I believe it’s the Stretto di Messina) One of the most satisfying moments associated with the warm weather months is the immense existential euphoria or perception of sun (temperature and sight), wind (hearing and touch), and scent (smell).   Take today, for example, it’s 83°F and sunny in the northeastern […]

How the Physical Environment Can Influence the Quality of Life I remember the first time I visited my then girlfriend at her college campus in the state of Indiana and the thought of my lovely sweetheart in all of her collegiate glory is still vivid in my mind’s eye.  However, I also remember the vast flatness of northern Indiana (specifically, […]

Best Italian Movies – Top 25 One of the most frustrating (yet liberating) aspects of studying philosophy as an undergraduate was the idea that one could construct a logical argument for pretty much anything (such as figuring out the best Italian movies).  So, I spent my University days racking my brain at getting at “ultimate truths” like whether God exists and […]

Recently, a heated food debate has surfaced between the dyed in the wool “food expert” Michael Ruhlman (he’s written some fine books on food, appeared on TV, and speaks at conferences) and the food philosophies espoused by celluloid FoodTV starts such as Rachel Ray and Jamie Oliver.  In a Huffington Post article, Ruhlman argues that people should make the time […]

At times, I think the political and cultural columnist David Brooks has a little bit of Mediterranean blood flowing through his body (regardless of his Anglo-Saxon appearance).  Time and time again Brooks puts together elegant arguments on the paradox of American living, why gun control is necessary, or, say, how most people struggle to find happiness.  While I don’t agree […]

Should I Go To Law School? I spent myundergraduate days studying philosophy, linguistics, and psychology and, as I’ve told many close friends (and anyone else who wants to listen), Philosophy provides an excellent academic and pragmatic (yes I mean practical) foundation for countless careers and professions. One profession that is closely associated with studying philosophy as an undergrad is Law. Philosophy provides excellent training […]

Photo: University of New Hampshire Philosophy Dept. @ Hamilton Smith Hall Reader Question: I’m a student that needs to decide on a Major. Besides my credits being in a complicated mumbo jumbo from transfers and other what-have-you’s I’m a normal student. I was doing some searching about philosophy majors and found your article on “Why I Should Major In Philosophy”. So you have […]

David Brooks has a thought provoking ed-op in the NY Times today called, The End of Philosophy.   Brooks argues that moral judgments are intuitive and not really informed by reason and rationality (as the Western tradition has taught us).  Brooks points to modern research in cognitive science and psychology to argue that, “Moral judgments are…rapid intuitive decisions and involve […]