KEVIN HENCH, SPORTS GENIUS

My husband is a regular columnist at www.foxsports.com. If you're into sports, check it out -- he's nothing if not opinionated, and -- as I understand from him -- always right.

THE MAY QUEEN BOOK

I love this book! There are no trite, dated suggestions here on how to "juggle" or "have it all" -- these essays emphasize how women can assimilate their many and varied experiences into their own unique patchwork quilt (or is it a melting-pot-stew?) of a life. The word "perfection" is not mentioned, but references to contentment, being surprised by life, and making-it-up-as-you-go-along abound. There's a lot of real, warts-and-all, authentic truth in these pages. Forget my essay on ageism in Hollywood (yawn) and get into the really good stuff about how women stay vibrant and creative after having children. Check with me in a year... I think some of these gals have actually inspired me to (finally) pop a couple out myself. www.themayqueenbook.com.

TREE MEDIA GROUP

My friends at Tree Media design and maintain my beautiful website. They're an amazing company based in Santa Monica, California, whose mission is to use media to support and sustain dialogue in a civil society. They consistently work on projects that disseminate progressive messages and ideas. Tree's work includes content development and production for the web, motion picture development and production, internet websites, digital libraries and workspaces and digital community forums and roundtables. I am proud to work with a company that not only delivers gorgeous, elegant and thoughtful design, but aims to wrap that design around content promoting a healthy civil society.
www.treemedia.com.

RED NAVEL FLMWORX

If you're a Los Angeles filmmaker and looking for reasonably-priced telecine or editing equipment, call up my friend Mitchell Welch at Red Navel. Mitchell executive-produced my short The Suzy Prophecy, and was indispensable in helping me get my telecine done, as well as bending over backwards to find me an AVID to edit on, even though at the time he was swamped. An independent filmmaker himself, he's down with the cause and understands limited budgets and crazy festival-fueled deadlines. Call him at 323-467-7778 -- he's located smack dab in the center of Hollywood.

THE RESCUE TRAIN

We adopted our two dogs from The Rescue Train in Los Angeles. They're a tireless, indefatigable animal rescue organization that takes dogs and cats off the streets and pulls them from city shelters before being euthanized. They have many wonderful pets available for adoption, which you can view online at www.therescuetrain.org. They also have a wonderful gift program called The Gift of Life where you can sponsor an animal's rescue in your gift recipient's name. Which is a lot cooler than a fruit basket.

MIM ADKINS PHOTOGRAPHY

Mim is so talented it's frightening. She took our wedding photos, and I also have a couple of her art prints hanging in our new home. She photographs people and events from Boston to New York, and will travel further for the right project. www.mimspeak.com.

LEANNA CREEL PHOTOGRAPHY

My friend Leanna is becoming one of the most popular baby-and-children photographers in Los Angeles. Also a gifted film director (we're developing a movie together), her ability to get kids, animals and jittery brides and grooms to relax and act their natural best for the camera is uncanny. She photographed our (extremely rambunctious) young dogs, and all I can say is the fact that they sat still for her makes her some kind of magician. She photographs families and weddings all over Southern California. If you visit her website, it may take a while for the quicktime files to load, but be patient -- they will run eventually, and her beautiful trailers-set-to-music are worth it.
www.creelphoto.com.

ERIC MAISEL

I have been reading Eric Maisel's books about creativity (particularly The Van Gogh Blues and Fearless Creating) and find them fascinating. His notion that we must create meaning in our lives by making it up ourselves rather than finding it through the right book, religion or workshop is deceptively simple -- when examined more deeply, it's a truly profound and challenging idea. He also offers creativity coaching and creativity workshops. Find out more at www.ericmaisel.com.

MY BROTHER'S BLOG

My brother John has set up a blog focusing on his beautiful growing family in Jersey: www.thejuergensens.org. In the "Albums" section there's a few of me showing off our new place in Hancock Park.



I'm passionate about the work of the Humane Farming Association, a watchdog group concerned about the treatment of farm animals. If you have read books like Fast Food Nation and Slaughterhouse, you already know how unnecessarily cruel and barbaric the rendering of factory-farmed meat has become.

As a meat eater, I'm deeply concerned that in order to reduce prices and raise profits, the big meat-packing companies have allowed horrific abuses of farm animals to become commonplace. In addition to the cruelty involved, modern agribusiness methods have been found to be the culprit behind many food-borne diseases. If you eat meat, please visit HFA's site, read their pamphlets and books and become aware of legislation, such as the "food disparaging bill" that the meat industry is backing to avoid criticism and continue their abusive practices unchecked. Most importantly, vote with your wallets.

If you eat meat, I hope you'll consider buying it from a grower committed to humane, sustainable methods. A few I like are Petaluma Poultry, Niman Ranch and the retail site Diamond Organics. The best clearinghouse I've found with comprehensive information on growers all over the country is www.eatwild.com. If you have had good experiences with other companies and/or ranchers, I hope you will forward me the information. Since we can no longer rely on the USDA for vigilance in this area, it's up to us, the consumers, and sharing information is a key part.


The Rocky Mountain Institute advises food growers (as well as many other businesses) how to practice Natural Capitalism and increase profits without sacrificing the planet's precious natural resources. As The Nation put it in their review of the book of the same title, "Natural Capitalism is so unfashionably optimistic about the future of the planet -- that I wonder why everyone in public life is not reading it and arguing over the implications."


Brooklyn is my hometown, and I know of no other place in the world with as many colorful, diverse, involved and tightly-knit communities. From the historic brownstones of Brooklyn Heights or Park Slope to the grungy artists' lofts of DUMBO or Williamsburg, Brooklyn is a nurturing home to millions of people of every stripe and color. In addition to cultivating amazing people, the city-within-a-city boasts beautiful natural sites like Prospect Park and the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. For more information on cultural events and what's going on, visit www.brooklynx.org. Click here for a map of the borough (I was raised in the area just below the Prospect Park Zoo).


My friend Yukie Ohta makes beautiful, simple, elegant handbags that I use all the time - because she uses incredibly strong fabrics that can stand up to a bag-abuser like me while still looking pretty and feminine. If you want to see her stuff, visit Eidelon, her boutique in Brooklyn, or go to her website at www.yukinyc.com.


Dave's True Story. This is the coolest, grooviest, jazziest band around. Two of their songs were used in Kissing Jessica Stein (their swinging "Crazy Eyes" narrates Helen and Jessica's "kissing montage"). I highly recommend their CD, which you can find at
www.davestruestory.com, as well as their performance schedule… (they're fantastic live, and played at the New York City premiere party for Kissing Jessica Stein).