Hazelnut or French vanilla? Iced or hot? Medium or dark roast?
These have always been some of my go-to options when grabbing coffee back home in the United States—on my way to work, during a lunch break, as a Saturday morning pick-me-up. As an avid coffee drinker for years, when I moved to Paris I didn’t think twice about missing these small pleasures. After all, café culture is synonymous with Parisian lifestyle, right?

Another year has passed marked by birthdays, weddings, divorces, taxes, deaths -- and, of course, the release of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees. 

Fanfiction is big -- bigger than you think. For the uninitiated, fanfiction is when fans write their own versions of their favorite TV shows, movies, or books.

Lawrence Lessig, a Harvard law professor famous in Silicon Valley circles, is running for President of the United States. He won't win -- in fact, he was excluded from the Democratic television debate due to his low poll numbers.

Few things are inherently authentic today, few emotions are felt without being posted and shared. We are consumed by sharing. We lie on a tropical beach drinking cocktails and working on our tans, hashtagging #wanderlust in our sandy beach butt posts. And if the photo is not recognized by our peers, it's somehow less gratifying.

Ever since I discovered my passion at a young age, I have had to find creative ways to raise money for causes I support -- especially animals and the enviroment, two issues close to my heart.
Now lets ask ourselves: how many times have we tried raising money for a cause? And how successful were we? Let's be honest. Although money might not buy happiness, it can certainly make life easier and provide services to people and animals in need. That's where social fundraising comes in. 

In college I once tried to give a house party. You know, a booze-soaked soirée where you put on your party dress and dance all night to your favorite tunes in a pulsing living room crowded with all your friends? Well, it didn't quite turn out as planned.

I often hear people give vague and un-researched self-help guidance like, “Happiness is simple. If you want to be happy, be.” This oversimplified advice also frequently comes in the form of obnoxious pictures of sunsets paired with an overlay of inspirational text.

In the past month or so, we have seen Hilary Clinton serving up cocktails, Donald Trump interviewing himself as Jimmy Fallon, and Carly Fiorina singing songs to her dogs. Is this some sort of alternate reality? No, I’m not hallucinating -- I’m watching late night television.

        Living in France today, it's easy to wonder why the United States does not have laws and budgets that encourage more men and women to have families and careers? France is way ahead of the United States in gender equality, childcare benefits, maternity leave, and choice preschools.