The West University Buzz - July 2019

2019 Buzz Photo Contest Winners

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On Deck by Patrick Bergin First Place, Sports and Action

AND

JEFFREY RILEY JAMES WATERS

PUBLISHER’S NOTE This issue reveals the winners of our 14th annual Buzz Photo Contest. As The Buzz has grown, so has our contest.

What began with residents dropping off a few hundred photos on CDs has evolved into a contest with more than 1,500 online submissions, judged by a panel of professional photographers.

This year’s winners range from age 11 to 78. Some are serious amateurs who got up before dawn and waited patiently for hours, hoping to capture the perfect shot. Others happened to be in the right place at the right time, some with just a cell phone, but also the creative instinct to see the shot and capture it. Photography fans should also check out this month’s Travel Buzz column, where Tracy L. Barnett shares the remarkable images of photographer Carol Kirshon and her inspiring solo adventures across the globe. michael@thebuzzmagazines.com

Wealth well managed, without the burden of doing it all yourself.

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BELLAIRE • WEST UNIVERSITY • MEMORIAL • TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS Published by Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401 info@thebuzzmagazines.com • p: 713.668.4157 • f: 713.665.2940 Follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter thebuzzmagazines.com Editor Publisher Associate Editors Editorial Assistant Design Manager Staff Writers

Contributing Writer Account Managers

Joni Hoffman Michael Hoffman Cheryl Laird Jordan Magaziner Steinfeld Pooja Salhotra John Duboise Tracy L. Barnett Deborah Lynn Blumberg Sharon Albert Brier Andria Frankfort Angie Frederickson Todd Freed Cindy Gabriel Cathy Gordon Michelle Casas Groogan Dai Huynh Annie Blaylock McQueen Jennifer Oakley Cheryl Ursin Russell Weil Amanda Boffone Andrea Blitzer, Stephanie Goldfield Leslie Little, Jo Rogers

On our cover: Patrick Bergin took this photo of his daughter Emily, shortstop for the Macalester College softball team.

Cover photo by Patrick Bergin The Buzz Magazines has made all reasonable attempts to verify the accuracy of all information contained within. Advertising claims are solely the responsibility of the advertiser. Copyright © 2019 Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of this magazine by any means without written permission is strictly prohibited. Printed on recycled paper. Please remember to recycle.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 4

Your smile can last forever Anna Maria Salas, D.D.S., M.S. Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics

713-481-4885 3642 University Blvd.

Suite 102 Houston, TX 77005 www.westuortho.com

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 5

MAILBAG

Your letters, thoughts, opinions Fond Third Ward memories I enjoyed reading the article about 3rd Ward [Exploring Houston – Hidden gems: Third Ward, by Pooja Salhotra, June 2019]. I lived in 3rd Ward from 7 years old to 18 with my parents, and I attended St. Mary of the Purification Catholic Church and School. [My parents] had a grocery store on the corner of Hutchins and Winbern. The building still stands. It is a red two-story building. All the people in the neighborhood were very nice.

The day I married, all the people in the neighborhood were standing outside to see me leaving. I am happy to read about the area coming back. I look forward to more about what is going on.

MaryAnna Montalbano

Shades of Cindy Kudos to Cindy Gabriel for showing the good, the bad, and all the shades of grey in her geriatric love stories. [Crickets, May 2019; An Old Crush, April 2019; Good Grief, March 2019] Her wit, honesty and finesse for storytelling – no matter how personal and painful – are a breath of fresh air.

On the one hand, I'm hoping Cindy and Stan-the-Man have a future together. But, on the other hand, if they didn't, I can't wait to hear about the other lucky fellas who were next in line (or at least in her online dating inbox). Looking forward to the [next] issue, because – let's be honest – inquiring minds want to know.

Karen Edelman

And another tip on college As a follow up to Pooja Salhotra’s article on “Getting into College” [May 2019], I have one major observation to offer. I have helped kids apply to college for close to 30 years and have specialized in helping them with writing the application essay. Based upon these years of experience, inasmuch as colleges and universities at most levels are similar, one of the best questions to ask a senior is not what school do you want to attend, but where do you want to attend? California is a great place to pursue a collegiate life, but the people and customs there are radically different [from Houston]. New York City is fantastic, but it isn’t Houston. Getting used to life in another city/area is one tremendous – and hidden – challenge of studying and eventually graduating. Because colleges are very much alike, one must ask the student, “What environment would provide you with the best atmosphere?”

Coaching students to pass tests, take part in community service, excel in AP classes, and write a mean essay is only the tip of the iceberg. Most of what any college teaches does not happen in the classroom. We learn about ourselves and life while we are on campus. Those are hard-won lessons.

George F. Hawkins

many events around us that are particularly loud, i.e., gasoline leaf blowers and other lawn and construction equipment just to name a few examples.

All the high level noise is extremely annoying. Concerts are very difficult to attend due to the noise level and restaurants and becoming so loud that when we go as a couple or with a few other people we find ourselves saying "let's find a quiet restaurant so that we can visit." This seems to be a common comment even when we are including younger than 55 guests. Thank you for the list of restaurants that you recommended as quiet restaurants, (we have been to several and agree with your choices) and we are anxious to try your recommendations, especially the lovely hotel restaurants in the article. I would add one to your list – Sorrento – romantic, beautiful atmosphere, great cuisine and beautiful piano music.

Mary Jane Casimir

Adding to the noise [In response to Restaurant Noise] One thing that makes restaurants noisy is pressed tin ceilings. I don't know if they think all the noise makes it exciting or if they are trying to increase turnover. But I won't patronize a restaurant [...] with those ceilings.

Patricia Roberts Send letters to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Please include your name, address, phone number and email address for verification purposes. Letters are subject to editing for clarity and space. Views expressed in letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Buzz Magazines, and The Buzz takes no responsibility for the content and opinions expressed in them.

What’s your story?

We are looking for residents for upcoming articles who: • Know a Buzzworthy neighbor to profile.

• Have interesting travel stories.

• Are passionate about being “green.”

• Have unique hobbies or collections.

• Have funny or unusual parenting stories.

Craving a quiet restaurant Thank you for bringing out the problem of noise level in restaurants [Restaurant Noise, by Dai Huynh, May 2019], as well as conversation/background noise, nightclubs, rock concerts, etc. My family seems to find so WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 6

If this sounds like you or someone you know, please contact us at info@thebuzzmagazines.com or 713.668.4157, ext 12.

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NEIGHBORS

by Andria Frankfort, staff writer

A Sister’s Legacy Saving the blue-throated macaw

B

lue-throated macaws were not always on Dorothy Paterson’s list of passions. But when her beloved older sister Laney Rickman dove deep into saving the nearly extinct birds, Dorothy supported her.

“Laney and I were kindred spirits,” Dorothy says. “We both quit the careers we trained for [Dorothy was a geologist, Laney an executive at The Houston Post] around the same time to go into the nonprofit world. Laney came to my cancerawareness things, and I went to her bird events.”

Laney’s fascination with birds began when a friend gave her one as a gift. In an effort to learn more about them, Laney started volunteering at the Houston Zoo on weekends. Next thing she knew, she had adopted a scarlet macaw named Sam, whose owner had gotten too old to care for her. So began an enchantment with birds – particularly the near-extinct blue-throated macaws (the Houston Zoo had a pair).

Eventually, Laney’s passion grew so big that she and her husband Jack, an editor at The Post, quit their jobs and moved to a farm in Cuero, where he was from, to raise blue-throated macaws. “At one point, she had about 40 birds,” Dorothy says. “She cared for them for over 20 years at their farm and became a worldrenowned expert on parrot-rearing.”

In 2006, Laney attended a conference in Spain, where she met people who were working in Bolivia with artificial nest boxes for the bluethroated macaws, which were discovered in the wild only in the 1990s. “She was so excited, she began a nonprofit called The Bird Endowment, which she eventually used to send money to Bolivia to sponsor nest boxes.

“The birds live in a very small area of Bolivia,” Dorothy says, “and the problem is 150 years of humans living there. These old hollowed-out palm trees where the birds would make their nests and eat their fruit were just not available.

Laney started this program wondering if anyone would participate and sponsor a $250 nest box.

The first year they surpassed their goals and had 34. Now there are people all over the world donating. The LA Zoo, the Sacramento Zoo.” In 13 breeding seasons, 81 chicks have fledged from the nest boxes. Prior to the artifiWEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 8

THE START OF SOMETHING BIG Laney Rickman's love for half-moon conure Luna and scarlet macaw Sam ignited a passion that revived a dwindling population of blue-throated macaws. Recently, the Laney Rickman Blue-throated Macaw Preserve was dedicated in Bolivia in Laney's memory.

cial nest boxes, there were only 200-300 bluethroated macaws in the wild.

Dorothy becomes emotional talking about the success of Laney’s nonprofit. “My tears come from this deep respect and admiration for what my sister was able to do,” Dorothy says. “People described her as the perfect bridge, this incredibly warm person who could communicate with all different sides of conservationists, bird breeders, bird pet owners, zoos. It was this integration of a lot of passion.”

Everyone was shocked when Laney passed away of a heart attack during Hurricane Harvey, most of all Dorothy. “My daughter Audrey, who had helped Aunt Laney on the farm in the summers, helped me brainstorm. We decided to start a separate fund called the Laney Rickman Blue-throated Macaw Fund. We partnered with the American Bird Conservancy, and they manage the fund and send all disbursements straight to Bolivia to help pay for park rangers and whatever they need.”

About the same time of Laney’s death, a ranch in Bolivia, where 55 fledgling birds had been born in nest boxes, came up for sale.

Several nonprofits joined to purchase the property, and in August of last year they dedicated the new Laney Rickman Blue-throated Macaw

Preserve. The once-damaged land is being restored to a natural habitat.

“It fills my heart up to see this organization naming this after Laney and to see the president of the American Bird Conservancy naming the new reserve as the No. 1 ‘Biggest Conversation Win for Birds in 2018!’

“Witnessing all of that,” Dorothy says, “and being part of the fundraising has absolutely shifted my deep dark grief and turned it into this joy of keeping my sister’s legacy alive.”

Recently, an anonymous friend offered to match all donations to the Laney Rickman Blue-throated Macaw Fund up to $100,000, on April 15 – Laney’s birthday. “We surpassed the goal, and the Laney Rickman Blue-throated Macaw Fund now totals over $230,000 and is still growing!” Dorothy says. The money will be invested and interest will ensure that programs are sustainable far into the future.

“I never thought I’d be doing this myself,” Dorothy says. “But feeling the love these people had for Laney now being showered on my daughter and me just fills up my heart and keeps me connected to her in such a beautiful way.

What a gift.”

To donate, see abcbirds.org/rickman-fund/ .

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WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 9

NEIGHBORS

by Pooja Salhotra, staff writer

Pooja Salhotra

When We Went to the Moon Memories from 50 years ago

O

n a warm, sunny day 57 years ago, thenhigh school sophomore Linda Linder witnessed a monumental moment in American history, as she watched President John F. Kennedy boldly declare, “We choose to go to the moon.”

It was Sept. 12, 1962, and President Kennedy was speaking about the Apollo program in front of a crowd at Rice Stadium, trying to persuade Americans to support a national effort to land a man on the moon. Linda recalls that although school was not cancelled that day, she was invited to attend the speech as a member of the drill team at Waltrip High School. “We were just so thrilled because we were getting out of school,” she says.

Only seven years later, Linda watched in amazement as Kennedy’s goal came to fruition on July 20, 1969. Linda had just graduated from The University of Texas at Austin, and she and her old high school friends gathered in a

50th-anniversary celebrations “Moon” installation: Through 2019, Houston Museum of Natural Science, 5555 Hermann Park Drive NASA at Freedom over Texas: July 4, 4-7 p.m., Eleanor Tinsley and Sam Houston parks, 3600 Allen Parkway A Night of Family Stargazing: July 12, 7-10:30 p.m., Houston Museum of Natural Science, 5555 Hermann Park Drive Apollo Anniversary Celebration: July 16-24, Space Center Houston, 1601 East NASA Parkway Family Space Day: July 20, 3-7 p.m., George Observatory, Brazos Bend State Park, 21901 FM 762 Road 50th Anniversary Moon Lecture with Dr. David Kring: July 20, 6:30 p.m., Houston Museum of Natural Science Galveston Community Moon Landing Celebration: July 20, 8 p.m., Saengerfest Park, 2302 Strand St.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 10

Houston apartment to have dinner and watch the live TV coverage of Apollo 11’s landing.

“I just remember it was fantastic. It was so unbelievable that it was happening,” says Linda, now a retired teacher. “I remember that nervous feeling that we had as they were approaching and then actually seeing Neil taking that first step.”

The Houston-based Mission Control Center, located at STUFF OF DREAMS Robert Reichlin and his wife Barbara Reichlin reminisce about the moon landing while going through Robert’s space-exploration scrapNASA’s Johnson Space book, which he started in 1958.

Center in Clear Lake, with anxiety because you don’t know what was critical in the Apollo 11 mission. A team of could happen. It was a mixture of excitement astronauts was stationed there and served as the and anxiety and, as it turns out, was a once in a only people who communicated directly with lifetime experience.” the flight crew. Neil Armstrong famously says, A few weeks ago, Barbara was reminded of “Houston,” before radioing, “The Eagle has the moon landing when husband Robert landed.”

Reichlin found his old scrapbook while cleaning Linda is not the only Buzz resident who out a closet. Robert started that scrapbook in remembers that iconic day 50 years ago. David 1958, when he was only 9. In it, he taped articles Rae, a lawyer, was only 5 years old and living in having to do with space exploration.

Mexico City when the Eagle touched down on the “My father was very excited about the possimoon. Still, he has a sharp memory of that day. bility of space travel, and he passed that on to “I remember sitting and watching a black and me,” Robert says. “I remember Sputnik. That white television of the landing on the moon, was a big deal in my family, so I started a year and then the Mexican television lost the feed later with cutting out these articles and pasting from the U.S. for a couple of minutes,” he said. them in the scrapbook.”

“For it to stand out as one of two memories from Robert stopped adding to the scrapbook at that age, I think I really did understand the magthe end of 1965. By then, he was busy with high nitude of it.” school and preparing to go off to college. Still, David recalls that later that year, lunar rocks he understood the magnitude of the moon landwere brought to Mexico City, and he was among ing and saved copies of The Houston Chronicle hundreds who waited in line to get a peek. and The Houston Post from that week.

While David was 5, Aric Hoek was only 20 “It had never happened before,” Robert says, days old when Apollo 11 landed on the moon. “so it wasn’t hard to figure out it was important.”

But he still watched the coverage.

“I remember being quite excited to hold [Aric] up in front of the TV so he could always See this story at thebuzzmagazines.com for links say he saw the moon landing,” says Aric’s mothto events. er, Barbara Reichlin. “I remember I was filled

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WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 11

NEIGHBORS

by Cindy Gabriel, staff writer

Aimee McCrory

Stan Fans Please don’t feed the ego

I

f there is one thing I have learned in this series on Stan, it’s that a lot of people read The Buzz Magazines. Now that I know that you are reading closely, I will have to be more careful about what I write, lest Stan-the-Man becomes a mini-series, we get rich, we turn to drugs, have affairs, go broke, and it all ends badly.

Stan seems to be the one getting the most attention, with “Stan-the-Man” comments from friends, clients and strangers. On a recent checkup his doctor offered the observation that Stan was becoming “a big deal.”

He seems to be checking himself out in the mirror more and asking questions like, “Are my pecs too big for this shirt?”

This makes me want to say, “No, but your tummy is.”

I’m starting to worry that all of this attention is going to turn us into a couple of bores, and this series will become The Game of Groans.

Back before he was famous, a couple of months ago, this relationship was getting pretty darn nice. There is a total of 130 collective years between his 66 and my 64 years on the planet, mostly in the same city.

The conversation range is limitless. It goes from where we were when Kennedy was shot to childhood memories of Albritton’s Cafeteria.

Our parallel universes, with kids roughly the same age, probably means we were at Gymboree at the same time without knowing it.

We both remember being among the crowd of parents who discovered the very first Lupe Tortilla tucked inside a wooded area where you felt like you were in the country when you were actually a block from I-10 and the Beltway. It was the one place parents could go and drink margaritas while their kids played in a sandbox.

It was so popular, bleachers were added, where we would visit, sip and “supervise.”

For the past year, Stan and I have done the friend meeting circuit. When I thought of my true touchstone friends, outside of the Lupe Tortilla crowd, they are mostly out of town.

What’s with that? Most of the people in my life either die or move.

So, we’ve done some traveling, which Stan likes, especially if you live near water. But even WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 12

I’M THE MAN Cindy Gabriel wonders if she’s created a monster.

if you don’t, he wants to know you. He wants to pepper you with questions. It almost feels like he’s prying if you don’t understand the compliment that he is just interested in who you are.

I’m ashamed I didn’t know some of the things I learned about my friends after Stan’s in-depth interviews. Then, he wants to know how they are doing weeks later, as if I kept up with them minute to minute.

Stan is that kind of friend. His friends go as far back as his early childhood. They rise and fall, like a collective wave, with the ups and downs of Houston sports teams. Sometimes they actually go to the games. But mostly they just text or call in the middle of an inning, or quarter and lament some play or call. Stan may not be watching the game, especially if they are losing.

But he always knows the score.

That’s the thing about Stan. In one way or another, he’s always living in the moment. I have read The Power of Now, and even spent a week in a hut in the woods in upstate New York to listen to the author Eckhart Tolle express the subject in a fascinating way. I fully planned to get around to living in the present moment, later.

But now, Stan is driving me into the present moment, whether I’m ready or not. His whole life is in the now. He makes sure his weeks include lunch with a friend or three. If they don’t

have lunch, he will likely at least know what they had for lunch. By now, I suspect they even know what I had for lunch.

Not to my credit, I don’t care what anybody had for lunch. My friends are well aware that I can dive into a cave and disappear for days, weeks and even months. Stan is making me, I think, a better friend, now.

But as for his friends, some are starting to question this local celebrity thing. A text from his old UT roommate Ronnie Spolane asked him to try to remember who his “true friends” are, warning that “the media will build you up, then tear you down.” To which Stan replied, “Ronnie, if you have anything more to say to me, call my agent.”

Looks like we need to give this topic a rest a while, or I might just find myself back to online dating. On the other hand, we could just go for the mini-series, hit the top and spiral down.

Then I’ll write about it. They say bad decisions make great stories. Maybe I’ll call Stan’s agent.

MORE ONLINE If you missed the earlier installments of Cindy’s odyssey of romance, winding from happy marriage through grief and caving out through online dating and ghosting strategies to, eventually, her Stan-the-Man, you can find the rest of it at thebuzzmagazines.com.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 13

KIDS

by Pooja Salhotra, staff writer

Screenagers How much screen time is too much?

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 14

Photo courtesy of Screenagers Movie

L

ike many of us, rising eighth grader Trevor Casey is addicted to his phone. He says so himself, and though he sees this as somewhat problematic, he says it’s simply the reality of life as a teenager in 2019.

“You just get used to it,” Trevor said nonchalantly while clutching his Samsung Galaxy.

“You’re just always on it, all the time.”

This dismal reality was given life in Screenagers, a 2016 documentary about what it’s like to grow up in the digital age (and it will be explored further in a sequel slated to come out in October 2019). The film presents statistics on young Americans screen use – 13 to 18 year olds are on screens an average of 6.5 hours a day, excluding screen time for schoolwork. The irony of learning about the downsides of screen time while watching a screen was not lost on the film’s directors, who decided to limit the documentary’s release. Instead of watching the movie privately on your personal laptop, viewers can watch it only at organized events in group settings. So far, 32 screenings have taken place in Houston, at schools, religious centers and even companies such as law firm Baker Botts LLP. Trevor, 13, attended a Houston screening in March with his mom, Kathy Casey, a financial specialist at Eaton Corporation. Leaving the screening at St. John the Divine Episcopal Church, Kathy was pleased to hear experts offering parenting tools like creating a contract regulating a child’s phone use, having open discussions about social media and restricting phone use after bedtime. “It made me happy to think maybe we’re doing some things right,” Kathy said.

Trevor, meanwhile, couldn’t help but laugh at how relatable the scenes were. He felt sympathetic towards the 12 year old who disagreed with her mother’s phone rules. And in a scene showing a teenager delete an Instagram photo because she was embarrassed by how few “likes” it accumulated, he thought of his classmates who do the same.

“You have to look like you have fun outside of school,” said Trevor, who received his first phone the summer before seventh grade. “You have to feel important and make your life seem interesting.

It’s kind of not good, but people do it anyway.”

SCREEN TIME According to a report by Common Sense Media, American teenagers (13 to 18) average about 6.5 hours of screen time per day, excluding time spent on schoolwork.

Trevor, like many, feels the constant push and pull of technology. On the one hand, he enjoys using social media to connect with friends instantaneously. On the other, he says he and his classmates use their phones too much. He sometimes finds himself texting friends who are sitting in the same room. “I honestly don’t know why we do it,” he said.

Trevor also knows that platforms such as Instagram can have downsides. Recently, Trevor posted on his private Instagram “story”– a feature that allows users to post videos and photos that vanish after 24 hours. Trevor restricts access to his story so that only four of his classmates who he’s designated as “close friends” can see it.

On his story, he posted that he “liked” a person from his school. Though Trevor thought he could trust his friends to keep this to themselves, someone in the group took a screenshot of the post, and within seconds, something he meant to share with four friends was all over the school.

Classmates were posting it to their personal Snapchat stories, and even the school principal reached out to see if he was okay. “I guess people

thought I wouldn’t see it because I don’t have Snapchat,” he said. “But I have friends on it, so I’d of course find out about it.”

Kathy is grateful that Trevor felt comfortable sharing this situation with her and that he’s learned from it to be more careful about what he posts, even privately. Trevor’s Instagram page features few photos of himself – Kathy tells him to avoid posting anything too personal. Instead, his contains funny memes, photos of celebrities that he edits using the app Facetune, along with screenshots of album covers he likes.

Kathy monitors Trevor’s phone use, and she restricts him from using Snapchat, a photo messaging app where photos disappear (but, in reality, can be saved). Using an app called Secure Teen, she can ensure Trevor can’t access apps after a certain time, and she can also monitor his text exchanges. “From a parent perspective, you can’t just put your head in the sand and say it’s not what it is. They have a full-fledged computer in their hands. I would encourage parents to be more engaged,” Kathy said.

Screenagers brought up another way parents can stay engaged: by modeling (continued on page 16)

Christi Megow

HOW ABOUT A BOOK? Christi Megow encourages her kids – Grace and Matthew – to read instead of always choosing electronics. (continued from page 14) appropriate phone behav-

ior, whether that’s not using phones during dinner, or setting aside screen-free time with their kids.

“Whatever rules are decided, the parents need to abide by them,” said Christi Megow, a parent who organized two Houston Screenagers events.

After each of these screenings, Christi moderated a discussion using questions provided by the Screenagers film team. Young children were the first to voice their opinions, Christi recalled.

Some students commented, “I don’t like it when my parents don’t pay attention to me during a meal because they are busy looking at their phones.” Others said they weren’t so sure they even wanted a cell phone after seeing just how addicting they can be, Christi said.

Lovett Elementary student Ellie Boynton, 11, saw the film and grew weary of video games. The film highlighted a teenager named Andrew, who became so addicted to video games that his health suffered. He had to leave his first semester of college in order to attend rehab at ReStart, a center dedicated to helping people recover from behavioral addictions such as internet and videogame addiction. “I didn’t know that anyone could be that addicted to screens,” Ellie said.

“After the movie, I kind of thought maybe I should spend more time with my family.”

What parents might find most alarming is the effect that children’s screen use can have on their future success. Scientists have known for WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 16

decades that self-control, not intelligence, is the greatest predictor of a child’s ultimate success in life. In the famous “Marshmallow Test” from the 1960s, psychologist Walter Mischel correlated children’s self-control – measured by their ability to forego an immediate reward (one marshmallow) for a larger future reward (two marshmallows) – with success on standardized tests.

Devices like cell phones, the movie suggests, have qualities that make them addictive, precluding kids from developing the willpower and selfcontrol that seems to correlate with achievement.

“When you give kids a device that can be addictive, you’re basically sabotaging their success,” Christi said.

The average age that a child gets a cell phone is 10.3 years old, according to recent surveys.

Christi’s kids, ages 9 and 7, have not gotten their own phones yet, but she was interested in the film in order to prepare herself for the day they do. Already, Christi has witnessed adverse behavioral effects from television time, and she encourages her kids to read and play outside.

“One of my kids has ADHD, and I’ve noticed that when I let them watch a TV show and then I turn it off, all hell breaks loose. That’s not a behavior that I enjoy, and if it’s something I can prevent, I will,” she says.

Of course, there are plenty of advantages to screens too. Using iPads and tablets as educational tools can promote learning – some kids

who struggle to learn to read using books fare better on screens, studies show. Apps such as Skype and FaceTime allow kids to connect with grandparents or other family members who are far away. And even video games, when they promote problem-solving or physical activity, can yield cognitive benefits.

And even if parents worry about their kids’ screen time, many feel safer knowing their child has a cell phone. Kathy uses an app called My360 that lets her see where Trevor is at any time.

When the bus drops him home from school, she receives a notification, giving her peace of mind that he reached home safely. And since she and her husband leave the house before he gets on the bus, she’s happy the app informs her that Trevor woke up in time and made it on the bus.

Between the dangers of internet addiction on one side, and the potential benefits they confer on the other, it’s ultimately about finding a balance. “I honestly think it’s different for each child,” Christi said. “The movie doesn’t dissuade people from buying a smartphone. The director wants you to come to your own conclusions.”

Editor’s note: Join us for a special free screening of “Screenagers,” followed by a discussion about growing up in the digital age, at our Back to School Buzz Night at Studio Movie Grill City Centre Thurs., Aug. 8, at 7:30 p.m. For details and to RSVP, see thebuzzmagazines.com/screenagers.

Presented by

Enjoy a free screening of the documentary Screenagers compliments of The Buzz Magazines.

A panel discussion on growing up in the digital age will immediately follow the movie.

Thursday, August 8, 2019 • Showtime 7:30 p.m.

CityCentre, 822 Town & Country Blvd., Houston, Texas 77024 Complimentary popcorn + fountain soda (limit one per person)

To RSVP, please visit thebuzzmagazines.com/screenagers • Seating limited to the first 100 people WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 17

NEIGHBORS

The Buzz Magazines 2019 Photo Contest

sponsored by

And the ump says..., Grand Prize Winner Claire Zurek, 46, took this photo April 2 at her son’s SBMSA American League Pee Wee game at the Memorial Middle School fields. “While focusing on close plays at first base, I snapped Will Newhouse (Aggies) and Whit Patterson (Beavers) in a full-speed collision while umpire Jacob Graham and pitcher Hunter Edmonds (Beavers) attentively watched to determine whether the play was ‘safe’ or ‘out.’ I love ‘freezing’ outdoor sports action in order to capture players’ expressions and passion while they are giving the sport their full effort. I equally love creating the keepsakes for my kids and others.”

This photo also received fourth place in our Readers’ Choice Contest.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 18

A

fter reviewing more than 1,500 submitted images, we are pleased to present the winners of The Buzz Magazines’ 14th annual photo contest.

Congratulations to all and especially to our Grand Prize winner, Claire Zurek, who will receive a Nikon Coolpix W300 Camera, compliments of Houston Camera Exchange. With any contest like this, the process is subjective. However, there are basic principles of photography that must be met, such as lighting, focus, exposure and composition. And there are personal elements to consider: subject, emotion and storytelling. Judging is “blind,” as the judges do not see names or any information about the photographers.

We also let our readers vote. We posted the 58 finalists on our Facebook page, and the photos that received the most “Likes” became our Readers’ Choice winners. The Buzz Magazines’ annual photo contest is open to all amateur photographers, so keep that in mind as you are shooting pictures in the upcoming year. Watch for next year’s call for entries on our website, social media and in the March 2020 print issue. Thanks to everyone who entered, our judges, our readers who voted online, and our contest sponsor, Houston Camera Exchange.

MORE ONLINE See this story at thebuzzmagazines.com to read the judges’ comments about the Grand Prize Winner, plus a link to all photos included in our Facebook Readers’ Choice voting.

Unknown, Second Place/People Peter Deleef, 47, took this photo in Monterrey, Mexico, in October 2018 at a wedding. He said the family was looking at something outside the window that he couldn’t see. “I was curious and wanted to convey that lack of knowing.” He said he had to set the exposure to blow out everything outside the window but still capture the detail of the family.

Gravity, Fourth Place/People Maya Kanani, 19, took this photo of herself and her boyfriend, Chris, with a tripod and a timer.

She took this photo as part of an assignment for a documentary photography class. The assignment was to take a self-portrait in a way that documents the students’ true selves. “I wanted to include him in the photo because he is an important part of my life and who I am. It's a pretty straightforward image and essentially just features us ‘dancing’ in his kitchen. I wanted to use the vantage point I did because it makes the camera or audience look through the doorway to see the subjects (us).” The photo was taken over her spring break when she was visiting Houston; she attends UT Austin, and Chris lives in Houston. Maya is a graduate of Bellaire High School.

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Sea Caves of Costa Rica, First Place/Nature Morgan Bernard, 25, took this photo of a sea cave off the coast of Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica in the summer of 2018. “The way the cave framed the sea and the texture of the wind on the water made the photo opportunity irresistible. Our boat had stopped on a tiny island that had a keyhole-shaped cave at the end of the beach. I grabbed my camera and went to explore the cave. To get this particular photo, I had to wade through waistdeep water to the other side of the cave. The cloudy sky created a dramatic background, while the wind and cave wall provided a textured foreground.”

World Team Foosball Champions Third Place/People Bradley Sabloff, 50, took this photo of kids playing a game of foosball. His son, Chase (center), was celebrating his sixth birthday while vacationing on a cruise ship in August 2018. “I took the photo in an attempt to capture their sheer joy. As was the case when I took the photo, their happiness is contagious. One can't help but smile when looking at the photo.”

100 Meters, Fourth Place/Sports and Action Timothy Childs, 66, took this photo at the start of the university division high hurdles at the Texas Relays in Austin. The runner in the center is Jerome Butler, University of Arkansas. “The tendency in sports photography is to use fast shutter speeds to freeze the action and blur the background. In this photo, I used a much slower shutter speed and panned on the runner’s head to get the ‘blurred’ effect.”

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Isolation, First Place/Landscapes Darren Inoff, 51, took this photo of a “lone tree isolated in the snow covered mountains” near Aspen, Colo., in January 2019. “We went snowmobiling in the mountains hunting for photo opportunities. I came upon this single tree rising out of the snow and loved the isolation of the tree with the contrast between the light and dark colors.”

Great Egrets During Breeding Season First Place/Animals Ying Chun Jerry Pan, 78, took this photo of a pair of great egrets attempting to build a nest on a dead tree at Smith Oaks Bird Sanctuary, March 15, 2018. “A third great egret is flying by. In the past, nests were successfully built on the tree.

This time, the tree does not have enough branches to securely support a nest.

Eventually, their nest collapses, and they abandon the tree.” He said the breeding season lasts from March to July and the long, delicate plumes on the backs appear only during breeding season. “As a bird photography enthusiast, I frequently visit Smith Oaks Bird Sanctuary to photograph nesting great egrets, roseate spoonbills and other birds.”

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On Deck, First Place/Sports and Action Patrick Bergin, 54, took this photo of his daughter Emily Bergin, shortstop for the Macalester College softball team. “I have had the fun of chronicling Emily's softball career from when she first started playing for WUSA back in 2006.

Generally, I only shoot games using a longer prime lens such as a 200mm or 300mm.

However, I knew I was going to have to shoot through a chain-linked fence..., so I brought along my 50mm lens. I could take photos of the players hitting without the chain-links noticeable to the camera (and the subsequent exposure) by stopping down to f/1.6. When Emily came on deck, I thought, why not get a photo of her standing on deck, watching the pitcher she is about to face. Emily had no idea I took this photo until she came back from school. I put a framed copy of it in her bedroom as a surprise.” Emily is a graduate of Saint Thomas’ Episcopal School.

Into the Deep, Fourth Place/Animals Scott Kinsel, 41, took this photo of researchers from the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy as a shark named Lucy swims by. “She is well known in these areas because of her massive size and injured caudal fin.” The photo was taken off of Guadalupe Island in November 2018. “It has always been on my bucket list to photograph the world’s apex predators.

Great whites are at the top of that list. This particular trip was fairly difficult, roughly a 16-hour journey one way. You don’t leave the boat for 7 days. When it’s time to dive, they send you down in the cages where you wait, sometimes hours, for the sharks to show up.”

Monticello Garden, Second Place/Nature Lanette Johnson, 45, took this photo of wildflowers (Culver’s root) while exploring the grounds and gardens at Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s estate. She was one of the chaperones with the Veritas Christian Academy’s seventh-grade class trip to Washington, DC. “The gardens at Monticello are filled with beautiful flowers. These wildflowers caught my eye as they were all swaying in the breeze.

I waited for the wind to calm down to get a good photo,” she said. She added: “Our boys, Luke (13) and Joseph (11) have both had winning photos in The Buzz Photo Contest. I have entered photos for many years but have never been a finalist. The boys seem to underestimate how difficult it is to be a finalist since you are competing against some amazing photographers and thousands of entries. I am thrilled to have a photo make it in as a finalist.”

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Just between us, First Place/People Matt Bennett, 42, took this photo of his cousins-in-law, Casey and Palmer Whiting, sharing a private moment at another cousin’s wedding, Sept. 8, 2018, at Birmingham Country Club in Alabama. He said there’s a hidden balcony above the ballroom that’s perfect for taking photos of big weddings. He took this shot because it was a pretty environment – and is also the same place where he and his wife had their wedding.

Shall We Dance?, Fourth Place/Nature Mauricio Recinos, 48, took this photo last year. “We decided to take a walk with my mom, and I remember taking my camera ‘just in case.’ In some bushes I saw this pair of hoverflies. They were moving slowly together. I took my camera and tried to get close a couple of times, but they kept moving. Finally I was able to catch them for just a moment while they appear to float in the air. I took a few shots the best I could, thinking the pictures were going to come out blurry. When I looked at the pictures in my computer all of them did, except one. They hoverflies look like they are dancing.

I am glad I took my camera with me, ‘just in case…’”

Red Raider Run, Third Place/Sports and Action Matt Bennett, 42, took this photo of Parker Ford, a second grader at Second Baptist, on the Post Oak Little League Peewee field on April 26, 2019. “Second base on that field makes neat photos,” he said.

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Magnificent Phidippus Jumping Spider, Third Place/Nature Kathy Miller-Fujimoto, 57, said, “In one of the potted plants, on a flower bud, was a small spider, about the size of my ring fingernail, spinning his magic. He was an active little fellow. And handsome, too. Those eyes! Those tusks! I began to snap pictures. At the time I was not well versed in Macro, or spiders, and the resulting photos were as flat as the hairs on the spider’s thinly tufted head. I resolved to do better. I learned he was a Phidippus Jumping Spider. I began looking for ‘Spidey’ every day. He proved elusive, and difficult to shoot as lighting conditions were less than ideal and my techniques were hardly refined. At times I would go long weeks without seeing him. On the morning of July 10, 2018, I spotted him, and all the months of practice came together.

Spidey disappeared forever not long afterward. To this day, I miss his visits. But I’m a better photographer for him having entered my life. He opened my eyes to life’s small treasures so easily overlooked or misunderstood – even feared – and for that I’ll always remember him.”

Surfer in Stride Second Place/Sports and Action Morgan Bernard, 25, took this photo of his friend German surfing in northern Nicaragua in the winter. “I had been surfing all day and took a break to watch the sunset.

German was surfing particularly well, so I grabbed a camera and started to shoot. The sunset had backlit the surf in a way that made every wave glow. German's surfing is a spectacle in itself, so watching him surf in front of such a picturesque backdrop was the perfect photo op.”

Here it comes, Third Place/Landscapes Mauricio Recinos, 48, took this photo last summer at Galveston. “It was a partially cloudy day, and it looked like a storm was coming. I saw a beach house and a big cloud over it. The cloud looked like it was about to swallow the house as it moved with the wind. In the distance a few lightning [strikes] were visible. I grabbed my camera and took the shot. The cloud looked majestic. I converted the image to black and white, and I liked it because it added drama to the scene.”

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Evening Wind, Second Place/Landscapes Matthew Griffiths, 45, took this photo on March 28, 2019 of a “windmill after sunset on a windy evening with clouds racing by” at Seminole Canyon State Park west of Del Rio. “I was camping at Seminole Canyon State Park to take some night star photographs, and the light and clouds were perfect for this blue hour windmill photograph. I have photographed this windmill multiple times, and I will return later this year to photograph it with the Milky Way.” The photo was taken with a Nikon D850 and Samyang 14mm lens at f/2.8, 30 seconds at ISO-800.

Bald Eagles Fighting for a Fish, Third Place/Animals Ying Chun Jerry Pan, 78, took this photo of a juvenile bald eagle (left) and a nearly mature bald eagle (right) fighting for a fish at Conowingo Dam in November.

“Bald eagles congregate at the dam to fish during fall migration. Sometimes, an attempt to steal a fish is made, and the bald eagles perform spectacular aerobatic maneuvers as the fish is contested. As a bird-photography enthusiast, I visited Conowingo Dam to attend Conowingo Eagles Day.”

Bevo, Second Place/Animals Halle Brazda, 20, took this photo of Bevo XV (The University of Texas at Austin's mascot) and a member of the Silver Spurs (a student who takes care of Bevo) at the Tulsa vs. Texas football game Sept. 8, 2018 at Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium.

This was the first year that UT had young Bevo run out of smoke before football games, and this Tulsa game was the first home game of the season. “It was the first time this new tradition took place. I knew that I had to capture the action, so I set myself up right in front of the tunnel where he would be walking out of and was leaning against the field goal post.

He kind of jumped and charged right after the photo was taken, so I had to run away immediately after!

It's one of my favorite pictures I've ever taken. I just love how Bevo is almost appearing out of thin air!”

Halle is an incoming senior at UT and a graduate of The Kinkaid School. This photo also received second place in our Readers’ Choice Contest.

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Sand Dunes at Sunrise, Fourth Place/Landscapes Joe Naccache, 62, took this photo of the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes just after sunrise during a visit to Death Valley National Park, Calif., in January 2018. “This was my first visit to Death Valley National Park. I was struck by the diversity of the park’s landscapes – harsh desert, volcanic badlands, arid mountains, salt flats, and sand dunes.

Winds sweeping across the valley sculpt sinuous shapes in the sand, particularly gorgeous at sunrise and sunset when the light infuses them with color.

I took this photo in the early morning after a couple of unusually rainy days. When I arrived before sunrise, a dense fog blanketed the entire valley. I couldn’t see more than five feet in front of me.

After a difficult 40-minute hike, I made my way through the fog to the top of the sand dunes and waited for the sun to rise and burn off the fog. At last the sun came out, painting the dunes gold. A strip of fog remained trapped on the horizon between the dunes and the mountains. In that moment, a magical landscape stretched before me, rewarding me for the exertion and patience it took to be there for it!” This photo also received first place in our Readers’ Choice Contest.

Thirsty Little Caterpillar, Third Place/Readers’ Choice Joseph Johnson, age 11, took this photo during a photography lesson at school in which students were aiming to capture images in water droplets. “I was capturing the flower in the background in my water droplet. I used a passion vine from the school garden to hold the water droplet. There were several passion caterpillars in the garden, so I chose one to be in my photo. I waited to take the photo until the caterpillar climbed up the vine and looked like it was drinking the water droplet.”

Joseph is an incoming sixth grader at Veritas Christian Academy.

Judges Michael Hart has provided photo images to corporations and design firms for almost 40 years. His work is consistently represented in the International Black & White Spider Awards, and an image appears in its book, The World’s Greatest Black and White Photography.

Michael Hart

Nikky LaWell

Nikky LaWell, Certified Professional Photographer and Master Craftsman Photographer from Professional Photographers of America, holds a BFA in photography and specializes in intimate family portraits with a personal perspective.

Bob Gomel, award-winning former LIFE photographer, has photographed President Kennedy, The Beatles, Muhammad Ali, Mickey Mantle, Marilyn Monroe and more. The Library of Congress and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston have his works in their permanent collections.

Butch Hall has been in the business for 54 years and has photographed more than 1,000 weddings.

His specialties include aerial, forensic, portrait and animal photography. He now teaches and encourages local photographers at Houston Camera Exchange.

MORE ONLINE Bob Gomel

Butch Hall

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See this story at thebuzzmagazines.com for more on the judges.

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KIDS

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by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

Buzz Baby

Eating out

Buzz Baby is a column about life with little ones.

Writer Annie McQueen has three children age 4 and under.

W

ith summer in full swing, longer dinners inside air-conditioned restaurants are a weekly ritual for many Houston families.

On the other hand, long dinners with squirmy, short-attention-span, occasionally loud and rambunctious small children can feel like more of a workout than a relaxing meal for parents.

Veteran parents say to pick a place that’s loud in the first place to cover up any tantrums your toddler might decide to throw (after all, dinnertime means they’re hungry and it’s close to bedtime, so that’s a double reason to throw a fit).

But even that strategy doesn’t always work.

One mom of three (who requested to remain anonymous) will never forget taking her crew to a favorite Tex-Mex place (also to remain unnamed, at her request).

Her kids and her friends’ kids were running around the restaurant’s outdoor patio – yes, running – along with lots of other little kids, while parents enjoyed conversation and sipped frozen margaritas. This is a common Friday night scene at this place.

A table of out-of-towners did not get the memo that this restaurant is running-around-kids-friendly and packed with children on Friday nights.

They requested a table on the outside patio, among the kiddie tables. About an hour into dinner, and after many, many eyerolls and whispers purposely directed towards the parents, one of them stood up and approached the adults.

In front of the children, he started berating the parents, telling them to “watch their kids,” whom they said were “ruining their dinner.”

The kids watched and listened, with wide eyes.

One toddler started crying and ran to his mom.

The parents addressed the angry patron and went home that night with a damper on their evening and a story to tell. They all still dine out, but the mom says she learned to observe who is sitting around their table and keep an eye on their mannerisms. If they seem annoyed, she tells her kids to pipe down and tries to address it before it WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 28

becomes an issue.

Liz Austin and her husband Jeremy take their daughters, Everley and Lucia, to dine out frequently. “Probably 34 times a week with the kids,” she said. “I find that most anywhere is kid-friendly at lunch time but for dinner time, we usually stick to casual places with patio dining, especially if we have a big group.”

Liz said when her girls were babies, it was actually easier to take them to nice restaurants. “But the nicer the restaurant, the earlier we ate,” she said. “We have been known to start family birthday dinners at 4:30 at nicer restaurants out of respect for adult diners that show up later in the evening.”

Liz said now that the girls are older – Everley is 5 and Lucia is 2 – NO RESERVATIONS REQUIRED Sisters Lucia, 2, and Everley Austin, 5, get they almost always ask to go out to eat with their parents Liz and Jeremy at Napoli. for a booth, and they heads to Molina’s (7901 Westheimer Rd.), order their food the moment they sit down so where Lucia even has a favorite booth. the girls don’t get cranky. “[Booths have] more Here are some other Buzz parent recommenprivacy and space for the kids to move around dations for kid-friendly restaurants, many with without leaving their seats,” Liz said. “We bring dedicated children’s play areas. Of course, there quiet activities, like crayons, small puzzles, are far too many good places in Houston to list Play-Doh, and shape blocks. We also bring a them all, but here’s a start: few lollipops to keep them quiet at the end of Beaver’s Westheimer (6025 Westheimer the meal while we finish.”

Rd.), Buffalo Grille (4080 Bissonnet St.), Ciro’s Liz and her family tend to stick to their go-to Italian Grill (9755 Katy Fwy.), Clay’s favorites, although they do venture out to try Restaurant (17717 Clay Rd.), Little Matt’s new places from time to time as well. One kid(6203 Edloe St.), Niko Niko’s (1040 West Sam friendly favorite is Napoli (14743 Memorial Houston Pkwy N.), and The ’401 in Bellaire Dr.). “The delicious rolls and grated Parmesan (6700 Ferris St.). keep the girls busy until their pasta arrives,” said Relax, enjoy the chaos, and pack your patience.

Liz. When they are craving Tex-Mex, the family

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TRAVEL

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by Tracy L. Barnett, staff writer

Travel Buzz

Solo traveler’s lens captures human spirit

C

arol Kirshon didn’t set out to be a worldclass international photographer. But year by year, country by country, it sort of happened.

Captivated by images in her brother’s darkroom as a child growing up in South Africa, she took up photography as a hobby. Her family moved to the U.S., and she got her bachelor’s in psychology at The University of Texas and master’s in education at the University of Houston.

She married Brian, a fellow South African and now a physician at the Texas Medical Center, at 26. When their children were still young, they began traveling together, and Carol began capturing images on their family trips. She began dreaming of travels further afield.

And now, with 157 countries, a catalog of stunning images and two grown children, she paused to reflect: “I’ve always said my greatest journey of all is the journey I’ve had raising my family these past 30 years. My husband and children are my greatest supporters and the wind beneath my wings.”

Once the kids got older, she began venturing further and traveling solo. With Skype and FaceTime, she took them on a virtual journey with her. Now that Layne, 28, is finishing a doctorate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Samantha, 25, is working on a graduate degree in clinical social work at Columbia University, Carol can venture further afield.

A glance through Kirshon’s website makes it clear she knows her way around a camera – and the world, from Armenia and Azerbaijan to Zaire and Zimbabwe. Sunrises over the Sahara, Northern Lights over Lapland, the tea trails of Sri Lanka – the beauty has been overwhelming.

And her most beautiful subjects tend to be everyday people.

“I began to really crave and hunger to go across the world and see what’s out there and photograph it,” she said. “And through that I was able to see the world I believe the way it’s supposed to be. We are so consumed today with all the horror that’s going on the world continuously – on television, in the newspapers – and yes, it’s a reality.

“But through my travels I see it sort of like WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 30

TEA TIME Carol Kirshon spends time with local tea pluckers in the Glenburn Estate of the Darjeeling tea trails.

They strap large baskets to their bodies and each day pluck tea leaves for the farms.

passing through a dark tunnel and coming out on the other side and going – wow, this world is magnificent. And I meet people who have nothing, and they live in these little remote villages, and yet they are so rich in spirit and rich in community.”

That richness has manifested itself time and time again. She’ll never forget a ride in Timbuktu, Mali, aboard a precarious horsedrawn carriage that looked as though it had been made of firewood. People were jammed in, and she held on for dear life as it rattled down the road, passed through a creek and came out the other side on its way to the weekly market.

“I remember standing in that carriage surrounded by all these villagers and I stuck out like a sore thumb – and they all stared at me because many had probably never seen a white woman before. I remember standing next to a man in a traditional robe and he was holding a white goat and getting ready to go to the market to sell his goat. And I was standing there and the wood was very uneven, and clearly you could see that I’ve never been on something like this.

“He was so concerned about me he stopped and showed me how to hold on. And there I was, this white American privileged woman standing there next to a man who was going to the village to sell a goat – who didn’t have much – and yet he cared enough about me as a human being to make sure I was safe on that carriage.

And that to me was unforgettable.

“That experience restored my faith in mankind – because I live in a society where I hop on an airplane and I’m struggling to lift my overnight bag to put it into the compartment on top, and people just look at me.”

Then there was the time she traveled with daughter Samantha to Morocco. The pair got up to see the sunrise over the Sahara Desert.

Walking back, they were struggling through sand dunes, their feet sinking. In the distance, Carol saw a Bedouin man dressed in a beautiful royal blue robe on a camel.

“He came over and helped us up on the camel, and he’s walking back with us – and in his broken language he said to us, ‘You know, at home you stay in five-star accommodations. But

CAROL’S PHOTOS Clockwise from lower left: Girl in Yangon, Myanmar; leopard in Kruger National Park, South Africa; woman from Ibo Island in Mozambique, wearing the handmade sunscreen the women of the region use to protect themselves from the sun; streets and cars of Havana, Cuba; the city of Gangtok in the former mountain kingdom of Sikkim, India.

me – every night I sleep under a thousand stars.

That’s better than any five-star accommodation.’ And it was so amazing when he said that because there he was, this man who had never left the Sahara Desert – and he was so right.”

Carol’s had some close calls – for example, when angry people in Rwanda started shouting “Mzungu” (white person) at her, or when her headscarf slipped off in Iran and she was fingerprinted for breaking the law. “Do I have anxiety? of course I do – you’re going to a strange place that you’ve never been to and you need to be very cognizant of your surroundings. You’re going on a journey – you’re not going on a vacation.”

She always wanted to give something back, but she never knew how – until 2010, when she came across an unmapped hilltop community in Uganda. “It had nothing but a blackboard nailed to a tree – and a man was teaching children who

were abandoned or who had lost their parents to HIV. They were in dire need of schools and land and housing. Slowly but surely I started to work with them and found other international people who were interested.”

Carol founded a nonprofit called the Light Up a Life Project, and began working with the people to teach them crafts, and bringing back the crafts to sell to raise money for the community. She works closely with Girl Scouts at the school her children attended. She began selling her photography in art shows to raise money.

“And nine years later, they have water storage units, housing, dormitories, a brickmaking project – and a project that teaches them to make bricks without water, because water is so valuable – and they build houses with those bricks.

“My whole philosophy is like the saying, ‘You give a man a fish and you feed him for a day –

you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.’ I don’t want to just give handouts, or these kids will resort to begging. Instead, they create crafts and they learn to self-sustain.”

Carol often gets questions about how she travels while prioritizing her family. It gives her a chance to inspire other women to what travel can teach them. She shares lessons like the need to experience solitude and grow from it – and the realization that the people who are poorest on the outside may be the richest on the inside.

She feels that her journeys make her a better mother and wife, and she suspects they have made her children better people, as well.

If she could send a message out there to other women who are holding back: “I would tell them, ‘Know you can face your fears and still do those things you dream of doing, and it will only change you for the better.’”

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by Amanda Boffone, contributing writer

Cooking Buzz

Photo courtesy of the Junior League of Houston

FOOD

Easy party favorites Cooking Buzz is produced in partnership with the Junior League of Houston, a women’s charitable and education organization founded in 1925.

F

or my family, summer always seems to mean last-minute pool parties and backyard barbecues. The lack of schedule during the summer lends itself to these impromptu dinner events as afternoon stretches into evening, and my kids (and my husband and me) find ourselves not wanting fun with friends and family to end.

I don’t fancy myself to be a cook, and life with two active young children makes my kitchen time limited, so I am always drawn to recipes that are easy to execute and great for a crowd. The Southwestern Cheese Dip from Stop and Smell the Rosemary is similar to pimento cheese but with a few additional ingredients that make it stand out on the appetizer table. To cut down on time, I usually swap out an orange bell pepper for the green bell pepper, since the grocery store so kindly now sells bell pepper trios. The recipe calls for topping with pico de gallo, which is delicious but adds prep time; I often skip the pico de gallo and just drizzle raspberry-chipotle vinaigrette over the top for a sweet and spicy combination.

You can serve the dip with sturdy crackers like Wheat Thins, chips or bell pepper wedges.

If I need a quick entrée, the Savory Shrimp with Tomatoes and Avocados from Peace Meals is so simple and takes only 10 minutes to prep and cook. This is a straightforward entrée that goes well with any salad or side, which makes it perfect for a potluck dinner. I am also happy for any meal that doesn’t use my oven when it is so hot out.

For dessert, the Sour Cream Lemon Pie from The Star of Texas Cookbook is a lighter dessert perfect for steamy Houston nights. The sour cream cuts the lemon and makes for a delicious creamy custard, so this dessert appeals to even the pickiest eaters. This pie uses mostly pantry staples, so you can just pick up lemons and sour cream when you are at the grocery store. I keep premade pie crusts in the freezer for emergencies like these. As kids like to say, easy peasy lemon squeezy.

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EASY CHEESY The Southwestern Cheese Dip from Stop and Smell the Rosemary is similar to pimento cheese but with some extra ingredients that make it stand out.

Southwestern Cheese Spread From Stop and Smell the Rosemary 8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded (2 cups) 4 ounces Swiss cheese, shredded (1 cup) 4 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (1 cup) 2 Tablespoons diced green bell pepper 2 Tablespoons diced yellow bell pepper 2 Tablespoons diced red bell pepper 2 Tablespoons chopped green onions 1½ teaspoons minced capers ¾ teaspoon minced garlic ¾ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 1½ teaspoons chopped fresh dill 3 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro Dash Tabasco sauce ¾ teaspoon Cajun spices 2 to 3 Tablespoons Dijon mustard ¼ to ½ cup mayonnaise Combine cheeses, bell peppers, green onions, capers, garlic, Worcestershire, dill, cilantro, Tabasco, Cajun spices, mustard and mayonnaise in a large bowl. Stir to blend. Line a 1-quart bowl with plastic wrap, leaving a 4-inch overhang. Press cheese mixture into bowl and fold plastic overhang over top. Cover with another piece of wrap and refrigerate.

When ready to serve, unfold plastic wrap and invert onto a serving plate. Serve chilled with tortilla chips or assorted crackers. Garnish with pico de gallo.

Pico de Gallo From Stop and Smell the Rosemary 1 cup chopped tomatoes ½ cup chopped onion

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro ½ fresh jalapeño, seeded and minced 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice 1 Tablespoon olive oil Combine tomatoes, onion, cilantro, jalapeño, lemon juice and olive oil in a small bowl. (Can be prepared 4 hours ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Savory Shrimp with Tomatoes and Avocados From Peace Meals 2 Tablespoons butter 4 Tablespoons olive oil 5 cloves garlic, minced 1½ pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined ¼ cup white wine 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh basil 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh oregano 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh Italian flat leaf parsley Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper 1 avocado, pitted, peeled and diced 1 cup rice, cooked according to package directions Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat; add the olive oil. Sauté the garlic for 1 minute and add the shrimp. Sauté the shrimp until pink.

Add the wine, tomatoes and herbs, and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and gently stir in the avocados. Serve over the rice.

Sour Cream Lemon Pie From The Star of Texas Cookbook 1½ cups sugar, divided (continued on page 34)

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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine 1 cup of the sugar, the lemon juice, grated rind, cornstarch, milk, and egg yolks. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick.

Let mixture cool completely. When cold, fold in sour cream and pour into cool pie shell. Beat egg whites with remaining ½ cup sugar until they form stiff peaks. Spread over filling and bake for 10 minutes or until top browns.

Photo courtesy of the Junior League of Houston

¼ cup lemon juice Finely grated rind of 1 lemon 3 Tablespoons cornstarch 1 cup milk 3 eggs, separated 1 cup sour cream 1 baked cooled pie crust

(continued from page 32)

Nine Day Slaw From The Star of Texas Cookbook 1 medium head cabbage, coarsely shredded (do not use processor or grater) 4 stalks celery, diced 1 onion, diced 1 green bell pepper, chopped 1 jar (4 ounces) chopped pimiento, drained 1 cup sugar, divided 1 cup oil 1 cup vinegar 2 Tablespoons salt 1 teaspoon dry mustard 1 teaspoon celery seed In a large bowl, mix cabbage, celery, onion, bell pepper, pimiento and 1 cup (minus 2 tablespoons) of the sugar. Combine oil, vinegar, salt, remaining sugar, mustard, and celery seed in saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

Pour hot mixture over cabbage, and mix. Cool.

Cover and chill for 24 hours. This gets better every day and is still good after nine days, if it lasts that long. Serves 10 to 12.

Tomato and Asparagus Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette From Peace Meals Champagne Vinaigrette: 1 clove garlic, peeled ½ cup Champagne vinegar ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper Coarse salt 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard Dash of sugar 1 cup extra virgin olive oil Salad: 1 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed and cut on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved 4 ounces crumbled herb feta cheese Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper Crush the garlic clove with the side of a knife blade. Transfer the clove, leaving it in one piece, to a mixing bowl. Add the vinegar, pepper and a dash of salt; allow to sit for 30 minutes.

Remove and discard the garlic. Whisk in the WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 34

LEMON SQUEEZY This Sour Cream Lemon Pie from The Star of Texas Cookbook is a lighter dessert, refreshing on hot summer evenings.

mustard and sugar; slowly add the olive oil, whisking constantly to emulsify.

Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan.

Blanch the asparagus for 1 to 2 minutes; drain and rinse under cold water. Combine the asparagus and tomatoes in a medium bowl. Add the cheese and toss with desired amount of the vinaigrette; season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for up to 4 hours. Toss again before serving and adjust the seasonings as needed.

Serves 6.

1 teaspoon dried thyme ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro ½ jalapeno, seeded and minced 1 teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon coarse salt 1 teaspoon brown sugar 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper Juice of 2 limes 1½ to 2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Avocado Tomatillo Salsa From Peace Meals 5 medium tomatillos, husked and rinsed 4 medium avocados, pitted, peeled, and coarsely chopped (about 4 cups) 1 to 2 jalapeños, seeded and minced 2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice ½ teaspoon minced garlic ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro ¾ teaspoon coarse salt

Whisk together all the ingredients except the shrimp in a medium bowl. Add the shrimp to the mixture and marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Place the shrimp and marinade in a skillet, and cook over medium-high heat until the shrimp turn pink, about 5 minutes.

Serves 4 to 5.

Lemon Milk Sherbet Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the tomatillos on a foil-lined baking sheet and roast in the oven for 25 minutes, turning once halfway through. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly. Coarsely chop the roasted tomatillos and combine with the avocados, jalapenos, lime juice, garlic, cilantro and salt. Serve warm or chilled with tortilla chips.

Makes about 4 cups.

Cilantro Lime Shrimp From Peace Meals ½ cup olive oil 3 cloves garlic, pressed

From Houston Junior League Cookbook 6 lemons 1 cup boiling water 3 cups sugar 2 quarts milk or cream Squeeze lemons. Pour boiling water over rinds. Add lemon juice and sugar to lemon rind mixture; let stand until syrupy. Strain syrup and chill. Stir in milk or cream (depending on richness desired). Pour into container of ice cream freezer; cover tightly. Pack with ice and ice cream salt. Freeze until firm.

Makes about 3½ quarts.

Julie Soefer

DINING

by Dai Huynh, staff writer

Chef’s Corner

Christine Ha

Find out about your favorite chefs in our Chef’s Corner column. This month, restaurant writer Dai Huynh interviews chef Christine Ha.

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hat’s the latest sizzle in downtown Houston? Food halls. Five years ago, there was none. But soon, the city will have five.

Conservatory (1010 Prairie St.) switched on the burners in 2016. Finn Hall (712 Main St.) opened last winter. The Lyric Market (411 Smith St.) and Understory at Capital Tower (800 Capitol St.) are in the works. Meanwhile, downtown visitors can sample the sweets and savories at Bravery Chef Hall at Aris Market Square (409 Travis St.). Among them are the creations of Christine Ha, who may look familiar.

The Houston resident is the first blind contestant on British chef Gordon Ramsay’s hit TV show, MasterChef, and the winner of its third season. She beat out more than 30,000 home cooks across the country competing for the title in 2012 and garnered not only praise but a $250,000 cash prize and a cookbook deal. Her first title, Recipes from My Home Kitchen: Asian and American Comfort Food, was a New York Times bestseller. She’s working on a second one.

Ramsay described Ha as having “an extraordinary palate…. And honestly, I know chefs with Michelin stars that don’t have palates like hers.”

Here, the Vietnamese American provides a glimpse of her new eatery, The Blind Goat, and her secret ingredient for chili.

You have a creative writing degree and now, you’re a chef-owner. How do you reconcile them?

I feel creative writing and culinary arts have quite a bit in common. Both require a certain amount of creativity, and both can require a substantial emotional investment. At the same time, both are crafts, and they are both opportunities to express oneself and share oneself.

I think that’s why I’m drawn to both. I was in grad school when I competed on MasterChef, and because I won, my life changed quite a bit.

A lot of my focus has been more on the food since then.

You said that the idea of building a brick-and-mortar from the ground up is kind of scary. Is this less so?

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 36

I feel like this is a great opportunity because I’m able to come into a brandnew food hall, and that’s exciting. All the chefs around me are seasoned, and they can be my mentors. [Atlas Diner chef] Richard Knight will tell me that I have the best-case scenario because CHRISTINE HA Houston-raised Christine Ha won the third season of MasterChef, I’m getting my feet and now, she's about to take on another challenge, opening The Blind Goat in Bravery wet in the industry Chef Hall. by starting with a her cooking techniques and the food she cooked station inside a food hall and not necessarily while I was growing up. building out an entire restaurant. [Chef-partner] She passed when you were 14. So, was cooking Jessica Timmons of Cherry Block Craft a way of recapturing her memories?

Butcher & Seasonal Kitchen, a steakhouse I think so. But only when I was older and in concept in Bravery, has guided me on where I college. I had moved out of the dorm, and I figcan find restaurant equipment at a more reasonured I had to teach myself to cook. That’s when able price and what vendors she has been using I started to think back on dishes my mom cooked and trusts. and remembering their flavors and smells.

When a diner walks up to your station, the Blind Where do you go for Vietnamese food?

Goat, what should they expect?

For pho, I like Pho Dien (11830 Bellaire I would describe the Blind Goat as a modern Blvd, Suite C). For banh cuon (rice rolls), I like Vietnamese gastropub, so most of the dishes, if Thien Thanh Restaurant (11210 Bellaire not all, are heavily influenced by Vietnamese Blvd.), the one across from Hong Kong Mall. cuisine and Southeast Asian cuisine. But I’m Tonight, I’m going to the Crawfish Café taking lesser known street food and making (11209 Bellaire Blvd., Suite C-36) in Hong them palatable for people in Houston, like banh Kong Mall for crawfish. khot, the little fritters that use coconut, turmeric What is the one ingredient you can’t do without, and shrimp. It’s the same batter as banh xeo, but other than salt and pepper? the texture is crispier.

Garlic and fish sauce.

How do you come up with the name the Blind Is there a dish that you use fish sauce that people Goat? may not normally use it for?

Well, the blind part is obvious, and I was born Bolognese sauce and Texas-style chili. Fish in 1979, the Year of the Goat. sauce adds this little bit of umami that you really Any goat dishes? can’t pinpoint if you use it judiciously. It adds Yes. The first one we’re rolling out is a goat dimension to things like stew, but you can’t tell. curry over rice.

Who inspired you to cook?

Editor’s note: Buzz dining columnist Dai Huynh My mom. But it wasn’t until after she died is a James Beard food-journalism award winner and that I thought about cooking. Once I started longtime Houston-based restaurant writer. teaching myself to cook, I thought a lot about

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 37

SPORTS

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by Todd Freed, staff writer

SportzBuzz A

s he soared his way to a jump of 6’6” to win the final event of the meet, Peyton Matocha also secured the TAPPS 6A state track and field championship for the St. Thomas Eagles. “The way it finished was simply awesome,” said Eagles track and field coach Nathan Labus.

The Eagles put forth a spectacular comeback after trailing Dallas Bishop Lynch by a 89- to 29point margin following all of the meet’s running events. Due to weather conditions, the field events, which typically occur on the first day of the meet, were held after the running events, and that’s when the Eagles staged their dramatic come-from-behind victory.

The comeback trail was spearheaded by firstplace victories from Elijah Carter in both the discus and shot put, while Thomas Cooper added valuable points by taking third place in the shot put. In addition, Ian Wheeler and Luke Pane finished in second and third place, respectively, in the pole vault, while Dylan Dixon added to the point total in the triple and long jumps. “It all came down to the high jump, and Peyton had to get first place for us to win state.

He set a new TAPPS state record, and our whole team just went crazy,” said Labus.

There was no shortage of drama at the SPC track and field championships too, with the St. John’s Mavericks winning the final race of the meet to capture the SPC title. The Mavericks trailed Dallas St. Marks by 1.5 points entering the mile relay, but the foursome of Lethan Hampton, Douglas Parsley, Aloye Oshotse and Genson Hooper-Price teamed up for the victory in a suspense-filled final race. Hooper Price, who ran the anchor leg to secure the victory, had earlier also won gold medals in the 100 meter, the 4-by-100 meter relay and even the triple jump.

“It was a gutsy effort for sure by Genson,” said Mavericks track and field coach Richie Mercado. “He tweaked his hamstring earlier in the meet, and we weren’t even sure he’d be able to run in that final race. He told me ‘I want to run it,’ and somehow powered through the race.

He showed a lot of heart.”

The Mavericks benefited from outstanding efforts across the board, including gold-medal

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 38

BIG SPLASH It was a season of great goals for the St. Agnes Academy water polo team, which won district and regional championships while also finishing fifth at the TISCA state water polo championships.

finishes for Hampton and Parsley, respectively, in the 400- and 800-meter finals. In addition, Will Leger scored valuable points in a trio of field events, while Collin Fullen was second in the 100 meters and third in the 200 meters. “It truly was a great team effort,” said Mercado.

For the third time in school history, The Emery/Weiner School is sending a player to the collegiate football ranks. Jaguars linebacker/running back Mitchell Robbins signed to play Division 3 football for Lewis & Clark. Making the signing most notable is that Robbins is a product of a six-man football program at Emery/Weiner. “Despite the difference in the six-man game, the feedback we received about Mitchell is that the six-man game made it easier to evaluate his open field capabilities,” said Jaguars football coach Jason Reimers. “We hope it encourages other players in our program who have college football as a goal.”

Joining Robbins at the signing ceremony was Jaguars senior Jacob Totz, who signed to play Division 3 college soccer for Tufts University.

After beating the Houston area’s best teams to win district and regional championships, the St. Agnes Academy Tigers advanced to the TISCA state water polo championship. St. Agnes then capped off a tremendous season by finishing fifth in the state. “We’re the only girls’

private school in the state that competes in the same division as all the large public-school programs, so that just illustrates the strength and talent of our program. We also brought home our first regional title in over 10 years,” said Tigers water polo coach Kaitlin Kelley.

The Tigers finished the season with a lofty 396 record, with three players earning all-state honors, junior goalie Abigail Shelby, senior Emily Traynor and sophomore Adrienne Grimes. In addition, Grimes and Traynor were named fourth and seventh team All-Americans, respectively. “There were only seven All-American spots allotted for the entire southwestern United States, and for St. Agnes to earn two of those seven positions truly says a lot about our team,” said Kelley. “These girls really are incredible athletes.”

On the topic of St. Agnes, next month’s SportsBuzz column will include a write-up on the Tigers’ newly crowned state-championship softball team.

Editor’s note: Todd Freed is the Emmy Awardwinning co-host and producer of the KUBE SportsZone, which airs Saturday and Sunday at 6 p.m. on Channel 57-KUBE. To submit high school sports news for possible inclusion in SportzBuzz, please email todd@thebuzzmagazines.com.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 39

SPORTS

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by Angie Frederickson, staff writer

SportzBuzz Jr. W

elcome to SportzBuzz Jr., a column spotlighting neighborhood athletes in elementary and middle school.

Brothers and triathletes Brothers Luke and Jack Magnus (top photo, from left) celebrate after finishing the Houston Texans Kids Triathlon. The 2-day event at NRG Stadium attracted more than 3,000 youth triathletes, and is the largest kids’ triathlon in the world.

Jack, 13, competed in the senior category, for kids ages 11-15. After completing a 200-yard swim, 6-mile bike ride and 1-mile run, he finished fifth in his class. He is no stranger to the sport, as this was his 10th triathlon. Luke, 8, tackled the junior category and finished 18th in his class with a 100-yard swim, 3-mile bike ride and ½-mile run. This was his third triathlon. Both boys are students at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School and swim, year round, at Weekley YMCA. Luke and Jack love the competition and look forward to more triathlons in the future.

Victory on the mound The 8U Tigers (middle photo) are West University Softball Association (WUSA) champs. The second- and third-grade girls defeated the Wolves, 1211, in a championship game that went into extra innings. It was a hard-fought game that ended when Violet Vu got a hit down the third-base line that allowed Madeline Spain to score the winning run. Coach Carlos Vaquero inspired the girls at practices with a team motto that contributed to their success: Come early and stay late. The winning Tigers are (top row, from left) coaches Chris Spain, Carlos Vaquero, Brad Loper, Cory Perrin and Michael Scheurich; (second row, from left) Maggie Marshall and Madeline Spain; (third row, from left) Caroline Loper and Natalie Perrin; (bottom row, from left) Isabella Vaquero, Violet Vu, Jessie Whitley, Sadie Gill and Turi Sceurich.

Pandas win it all Pershing Middle School’s 7th/8th grade boys’ lacrosse team (bottom photo) won the Houston Middle School Invitational Lacrosse Tournament. The Pandas were undefeated throughout tournament play and beat the Pin Oak Chargers, 9-2, in the championship game. The tournament, held at Pin Oak Middle School, featured teams from all around HISD. The winning Pandas are (top row, from left) coach Elizabeth Grandich, coach Thomas Kelly, Trepp Grandich, Achilles Glenn, Landon Stuart, Jacob Castillo, Jase Schmalz, Jacob Dotson, Josh Burrell, Brandon Sun, Brian Sanchez, Cole Wakil, coach Demo Kouzounis and Jacob Bronicki; (middle row, from left) James Kimzey, Camden Faseler, Yonni Kouzounis, Mattius Rytting, Tyler Faseler and Harry Tardy; (bottom row, from left) Robert Day, Gavin Bey, Richard Grandich and Aiden McNulty; not pictured: Brennan Stanley.

Editor’s note: Send your best high-resolution photos and behind-the-scenes stories about young local athletes, in both team and individual sports, to SportzBuzz, Jr. at info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Include all contact info, names, ages, grades and schools. Featured athletes must live in Buzz-circulation neighborhoods. Items will be published on a space-available basis.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 40

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 41

READING FOR ALL Claire Pedrick, a rising sophomore at St. John’s School, hosted a neighborhood book drive for Books Between Kids and the Albury Head Start program.

KIDS

by Claire Pedrick, age 15

Buzz Kidz

Books for kids’ homes

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ast year, I came upon an opportunity to do volunteer work at Books Between Kids (BBK). I arrived for my shift at the warehouse one Saturday morning and, after sorting books for two hours, I knew this was what I wanted to do. I loved knowing my efforts of sorting books would help provide books to children who were not fortunate enough to have their own.

Books Between Kids was started in 2012 to give Houston’s at-risk children books to build their own home libraries. The organization accepts gently used children’s books for students from preK through fifth grade. Volunteers sort the books to be delivered to students at designated schools.

I also had the opportunity to work with students at Albury Head Start program this fall. My ninth-grade advisory class was matched with

Albury as part of our community service project.

We read books to the children, planted pumpkin seeds together and enjoyed a lunch together.

I hosted a neighborhood book drive in hopes of bringing in books for BBK and Albury Head Start. I must admit I was hesitant placing bags on neighbors’ doorsteps that I had never met. I delivered bags to over 50 homes with a letter explaining that I was collecting books for Books Between Kids and the Albury Head Start program. I hoped that at least some of my neighbors would donate books. The bags slowly started to appear on my doorstep, many filled to the top with books. I was able to collect enough books for the students at Albury and still had plenty to donate to BBK. I reached out to the director at Albury and set

up a time to deliver the books. I wanted it to be more like a celebration, so I brought cupcakes along with the 77 individually wrapped books. I know one book may not make that much of a difference, but my hope is that each year I will be able to add another book to each of the students’ home libraries. As their libraries grow, I hope their love of reading will also grow.

Want to be a Buzz Kid? Email approximately 350 words, a high-resolution photo and caption to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Or mail it to The Buzz Magazines, 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401.

Join The Buzz Magazines for a free tour at the new Holocaust Museum Houston led by HMH docent and Buzz Staff Writer Russell Weil on Thursday, July 25, 2 p.m.

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Five-syllable words Doctors often seem to have their own language, speaking in scientific medical terms that often confuse those trying to understand them. Even when a doctor says, “I don’t know,” it can come out as, “The precise mechanism has yet to be fully elucidated.” Seriously, I heard a speaker use those very words at a Q&A session at a recent medical conference.

Inside the hospital, it’s especially bad. Did you get sicker after you were admitted to the hospital? Perhaps a nosocomial, iatrogenic case of pneumonia?

That probably means someone didn’t wash their hands and infected you.

In the field of allergy, we describe hives as “urticaria” and swelling as “angioedema.” It’s bad enough that you can’t stop itching, but it adds insult to injury when the doctor’s explanation involves terms such as “eosinophil,” “immunologic” or “idiopathic.” In fact, attempting to use the internet to translate some of these terms can lead an unsuspecting individual into a deeper maze of medical jargon with even more five-syllable words!

Our doctors certainly know all the five-syllable words, but we focus on making ourselves understood, so we reserve those fancy words for the times we’re speaking with medical professionals. Even if there comes a time when patients can use Google Translate or myLINGO in their doctors' office, we will continue to emphasize patient education because we realize there is a lot of confusion about allergies and how they can be treated.

Instead of treating you with “corticosteroids” or “bronchodilators,” we will treat you with medications that decrease inflammation and open up the airway.

Speaking of treatments, another common place to find more five-syllable words is in the package insert that comes with all medications. Patients with

an inhaler often try to read the package insert for guidance on how to use their inhaler. This insert usually has barely legible microscopic fine print with several pages’ worth of instructions and directions.

There is no substitution that can replace one-onone, hands-on training with an inhaler. As boardcertified specialists in adult and pediatric allergy, asthma and immunology, we will also sit down with you and explain how these medications are to be taken and how to operate any medication device, such as an inhaler. We are armed with the latest advances in the diagnosis and treatment of allergies and asthma, balanced with the common sense that comes from decades of experience.

Coming up in next month’s Buzz: Alpha Gal. Alpha Gal sounds like a strong female leader, but it’s a short way of referring to galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose (and you thought five-syllable medical words were bad).

No one nose allergies like we do.™ Note: Information contained in this article should not be considered a substitute for consultation with a board-certified allergist to address individual medical needs.

David B. Engler, M.D., The Allergy Clinic, 7707 Fannin, Suite 100, Houston, Texas 77054, 713.797.0993, *1200 Binz, Suite 180, Houston, Texas 77004, 713.522.9911, www.allergyclinic.com, *Operating as Houston Allergy and Asthma Clinic

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 43

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PETS

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Duke Leight, age 5, Snowshoe Siamese, Edloe St. Greetings. My name is Duke Leight. You may recognize me by my recent stint as the month of May in the Snowshoe Cats 2018 calendar. As a typical Snowshoe Siamese, my favorite activity is playing fetch – I’m quite the athlete. I’m also a loyal member of the Leight family and have two sister Snowshoes, ages 2 and 21. I love to meet new people, dogs or cats, and get along well with them. I was abandoned in a business complex as a kitten. A rescue organization found me and adopted me out to my mother, whose father has been a veterinarian in Houston for 48 years.

We are blessed to have him available anytime we need him. I love snuggling, and I reveal my true feelings by the way my ears and tail respond. I make everyone around me smile, and people like my symmetrical markings.

Perhaps my best trait is that I’m friendly. Hope to meet you soon.

Got a cute critter? Email a picture of your pet with approximately 150 words to info@thebuzzmagazines.com or mail it to The Buzz Magazines, 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401. Featured pets receive two passes to Rover Oaks Pet Resort. Each pass can be redeemed for one day of lodging in a Bunk House Suite, 25 percent off your next grooming appointment or 25 percent off one obedience training class.

Watch Their Smiles Grow

Oral healthcare for the growing & developing child Joel J. Vela, D.D.S. Bellaire Pediatric Dentistry, P.A. 6750 West Loop South, Suite 795 713.661.1100 • www.bellairesmiles.com

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 44

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Estate planning for expats Houston engineers and geologists often take temporary assignments overseas. Before leaving, they should document their domicile, double check or make a Texas estate plan, and consider when, if ever, to make a foreign will.

Domicile. Whether a citizen, permanent resident, or illegal alien, if your home is here and you intend to stay, your domicile is Texas. Leaving temporarily does not change your domicile. If you die abroad, and your domicile at death remains Texas, a probate court here will have jurisdiction over your estate, including Texas real property and any and all personal property, even if located in another country.

Like most states, Texas does not maintain a residence registry. There is no form to perfect your Texas domicile. Instead, before leaving, make sure your personal business reflects that Texas is your home: voter registration, account statements, safe deposit boxes, driver’s license, vehicle registration, credit card accounts, passport, income tax returns, and homestead exemptions should all reflect your Texas mailing address, or at least your county.

The Texas plan. Are you a Texan by choice? Your old will should not recite that you are a resident of California. Do you expect to sell or rent a house while on assignment? Is your business power of attorney effective immediately? Did you confirm it with the bank and title company? Is the named agent still willing and able to help? Where do you bank? Can you make cash withdrawals abroad? If not, switch banks before leaving, not after, and confirm your agent’s power of attorney will be accepted.

Situs wills. Absent foreign real estate, probate abroad of a Texas will

generally is not needed. The situs of personal property, including financial accounts, is determined by your domicile, meaning Texas probate of your Texas will clears title to your worldwide assets, assuming your only real estate is in Texas. If you do decide to buy real estate while overseas, use a local lawyer to avoid probate. If that’s impractical, ask a local lawyer for a situs will, one limited to administration of local assets, so that it doesn’t interfere with your Texas plans. A Texas lawyer can provide simple language to add to the foreign situs will so that it complements rather than conflicts with the Texas plan.

For general resources, visit www.americansabroad.org/. For more on domicile, see www.afsa.org/residence-and-domicile. For tax information, go to www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/taxpayers-living-abroad.

We write wills and go to probate court. We offer no-obligation initial interviews for estate planning and administration, so it costs nothing to hear specific recommendations that suit your needs. Foreign nationals and international families welcome.

Russell W. Hall, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Board Certified – Estate Planning and Probate Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 6750 West Loop South, Suite 920, Bellaire, Texas 77401, 713.662.3853, bellaireprobate.com

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WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 45

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Collaborative “un-coupling”

A unique identifier

While the idea of amicably “un-coupling” may seem like the rage in celebrity divorce, it is actually the basis for the well-established collaborative divorce process.

Collaborative divorce allows a family to come with a unique plan customized to the individualized needs of parents and children. With independent representation, parties are able to openly explore settlement options that might look entirely different than what would happen in court. Information is exchanged with transparency so everyone is fully informed and no one feels like they are negotiating in the dark. When needed, a neutral financial professional trained in the collaborative process can be added to the team to gather and review financial information and assist in evaluating property division. A neutral mental health professional can also be utilized in the process to assist the parents in developing a parenting plan for their family, as well as coaching them on the best way to engage in post-divorce communications.

A collaborative process suspends court intervention so the parties can focus on settlement and resolutions rather than strategy. More information about this creative approach can be found at www.collaborativedivorcetexas.com and www.tindallengland.com.

Angela Pence England handles complex divorce and family matters in both litigation and collaboration.

Tindall England PC, Angela England, Partner, Board Certified in Family Law; Fellow, American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, 515 Post Oak Blvd., Suite 500, Houston, Texas 77027, 713.622.8733, www.tindallengland.com

Remember the days when, as a child, you rode away from the house on your bicycle first thing in the morning only to return as the sun was setting? It was a carefree world with few worries. That is not the world in which we live today. As parents, one of our worst fears is that our child gets lost or goes missing. In 2018, there were 424,066 reports of missing children made to law enforcement in the U.S. alone.

In addition, 161 AMBER Alerts were issued across the country last year.

When a child goes missing, unique identifiers may be helpful in locating them. Like fingerprints, dental imprints are unique to every person.

Toothprints™ impressions record the size and shape of teeth, the position of the teeth within the dental arch, and the relationship of the upper and lower jaw to each other, using a thin thermoplastic wafer that is softened in water and placed in your child's mouth. The wafer also captures the child's DNA and scent, via the saliva. The Toothprint is then placed in a plastic bag and given to you to store in a safe location. At Bellaire Pediatric Dentistry, we encourage Toothprints be taken at ages 3, 7 and 13. Toothprints are a quick and easy way to have some peace of mind.

Call today and ask about Toothprints!

Bellaire Pediatric Dentistry, Dr. Joel J. Vela, 6750 West Loop South, Suite 795, Bellaire, Texas 77401, 713.661.1100, www.bellairesmiles.com

Create a buzz for your biz.

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To advertise in The Buzz Magazines, contact us at 713.668.4157, ext. 11 or advertising@thebuzzmagazines.com WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 46

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A workout minus the workout Everyone is talking about Emsculpt, the first FDA-cleared device to strengthen and tone abdominal muscles and buttocks. Emsculpt is a non-invasive procedure that produces dramatic muscle tightening and body sculpting comparable to what you might get if you put in weeks of time at the gym.

Dr. Olga Bachilo, a respected plastic surgeon in the Houston area, has been providing this revolutionary treatment for her patients at Glamour Plastic Surgery and Med Spa and is seeing exceptional results. “For patients seeking an alternative to surgery that can still produce dramatic tightening and definition of the abdomen and buttocks, Emsculpt is an ideal option,” says Dr. Bachilo.

Dr. Bachilo points out that Emsculpt is not a weight-loss treatment, but rather a body-contouring treatment, and that the procedure is ideal for candidates who are within a few pounds of their ideal weight and maintain healthy, active lifestyles that include a balanced diet and regular exercise.

This means that, while Emsculpt won’t help you drop massive weight, it will tighten and tone muscles, producing a more defined and contoured silhouette and a dramatically slimmer appearance.

How does it work?

Emsculpt is a unique device that delivers high-intensity electromagnetic energy to muscle tissue to trigger supramaximal contractions, producing 20,000 muscle contractions in a span of 30 minutes. “Emsculpt contracts the muscles far beyond the intensity of contractions that may be achieved through normal exercise such as sit-ups or crunches,” explains Dr. Bachilo.

“These supramaximal contractions are extremely powerful and produce extremely rapid body-sculpting results.”

Emsculpt is effective because it not only causes fat cells to break down, typically producing about a 19 percent decrease in fat cells after four treatments, but it also builds muscle fibers, increasing muscle tissue by about 16 percent, which produces contoured abs and firm buttocks.

Results are noticeable after a single visit, but four treatments are recommended to achieve maximum benefits. Improvements become more dramatic after a period of several weeks as muscles harden as a result of the treatment.

Dr. Olga Bachilo is a plastic surgeon who specializes in cosmetic and reconstructive procedures of the breast, body and face. Committed to treating each patient with integrity and compassion, she has a unique combination of competencies sought after throughout the community. Dr. Bachilo graduated from Bellaire High School. She completed her undergraduate degree at Rice University and attended medical school at Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine. She then completed a six-year integrated plastic surgery residency at The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

“I am truly honored when you choose me as your surgeon and always look forward to working with you through your transformation.”

Glamour Plastic Surgery and Med Spa, Olga Bachilo, MD, 6300 West Loop South, Suite 620, Bellaire Texas 77401, 713.766.4643, hello@glamourplasticsurgery.com, GlamourPlasticSurgery.com

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 47

Priscilla Dickson

NEIGHBORS

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by Jordan Magaziner Steinfeld, staff writer

Buzz About Town Some West U Elementary School parents used to meet their kids outside the second-grade ramp for school pickup – a great spot because it was behind the building by the baseball fields so kids could burn off some energy before heading home. About mid-year, some students discovered a huge tree next to the Threet baseball field tucked between the field and houses. Once the bell rang, the students headed straight to the tree to play. One of the parents decided to build steps and make flags and, eventually, the “treehouse” was born. WUES students started begging their parents to pick them up at the treehouse and neighborhood kids started riding their bikes there after school and on the weekends.

Parents began gathering too, donating old furniture to create a place to hang out and order pizza, play board games and enjoy happy hour while their kids played. Since WUES principal Mr. John Threet retired this year, students decided to let him in on the secret, nervously showing him “The Threet Box” by the treehouse. Their former principal jokingly said he wished he would’ve known about it earlier, so he could’ve sneaked over for some quiet time during school days. Pictured are (front row, from left) Landon Lowery, Ford Laird, Cooper

Morrison, Alex Hulsey, Grayson Parker, Bennett Parker and principal Threet; (back row, from left) Timothy Davidson, Finn Parker, Anna Katherine Hulsey, Austyn Laird, Cole Stagg, Ben Stagg and Judson Morrison by the “treehouse.”

Honoring moral courage Holocaust Museum Houston (HMH) celebrated its 24th Lyndon Baines Johnson Moral Courage Award Dinner with 900 supporters at the Hilton Americas-Houston. The annual dinner, one of Houston’s largest philanthropic events, raised $1.1 million. The evening honored BakerRipley and the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS). HMH presents the Lyndon Baines Johnson Moral Courage Award to individuals who have taken a stand against injustice, hatred and prejudice, and used their skills and influence to make a better world for all people. HIAS president and CEO Mark Hetfield accepted the award. Accepting the award on behalf of BakerRipley were BakerRipley president and CEO Claudia Aguirre and BakerRipley volunteer Susan Baker. James A. Baker, III, whose grandmother founded the organization, shared congratulations via video message. Honorary chairs included Lina Hidalgo, Harris County

Judge, Luci Baines Johnson, Lynda Johnson Robb and Mayor Sylvester Turner. Dinner chairs were Mayor Pro Tem Ellen R. Cohen, Lily and Charles Foster, Punkin and Walter Hecht and BJ and Buddy Herz. Nancy LiTarim and Dr. Soner Tarim served as host committee chairs. Pictured are (from left) Tali Blumrosen and Zahava Haenosh.

Movie on the roof Gary Fountain

Hidden WUES gem

Approximately 100 supporters of Camp Aranzazu gathered for a beautiful evening at Houston’s Rooftop Cinema Club. The Rooftop Cinema Club’s open-air theater was the perfect venue to celebrate the start of summer and the arrival of the first group of more than 900 campers. Against the backdrop of the Houston skyline, guests enjoyed cocktails, s’mores and gourmet hotdogs from Good Dog. Camp chair Bobby Hatcher welcomed the guests, and president Virginia Ballard updated the crowd on the camp’s recovery after Hurricane Harvey. Some of the Houston groups that enjoy time at Camp Aranzazu include The (continued on page 50) WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 48

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(continued from page 48) Tuttle

School at Briarwood, the Parish School, Memorial Hermann Children’s Hospital, Texas Children’s Hospital’s Renal Department, Impact a Hero and Aspire Accessories. Pictured (from left) are Cynthia Kinney, Ballard and Dee Boswell.

Camp Aranzazu, located in Rockport, serves children and adults with special needs and chronic illnesses and was founded by Houstonians Holly and Tom Forney.

About 450 guests filled the Briar Club in support of the Center for Pursuit’s Building a Game Plan for the Future Luncheon. Chairs Jennifer Dominiquini, Kevin Kushner and Brittany Sakowitz Kushner were thrilled with the record amount of $360,000 raised. Khambrel Marshall emceed. The Center for Pursuit helps empower people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to live meaningful, dignified lives filled with opportunity. The event unveiled a new logo and plans for a new campus that will expand possibilities for clients on the eastside of downtown. Mayor Sylvester Turner introduced special guest Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, along with a surprise video from Clemson coach Dabo Swinney that brought applause from the crowd and a big smile from Deshaun. Pictured are (from left) Charles Canton and Kaitlyn and Michael Scheurich.

For scholarships

Jordan Scheiner

Houston Alumnae Panhellenic Association and Foundation held its 33rd Annual Scholarship Luncheon at the Junior League of Houston.

Connie Windes Zieba, Alpha Gamma Delta,

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 50

was installed as HAPA president. Merry Adamcik, Delta Zeta, was welcomed as HAPF (Foundation) president. Since 1987, the HAPF Scholarship Fund has awarded 572 scholarships, totaling $983,600, to women for college. In May, $61,300 was awarded to 23 undergraduates from Harris County. Scholarship selection chair Joni Landon, Alpha Chi Omega, and vice chair Liz Arend, Sigma Kappa, conducted the scholarship presentation. Philanthropist and wife of former Houston Mayor Bill White, Andrea White, interviewed Y. Ping Sun, attorney, philanthropist, and wife of Rice University president David Leebron. Ping Sun spoke of her experiences as a scholarship student at Princeton and Columbia universities. The event was chaired by Jennie Baker, Zeta Tau Alpha, and Julie Vowell-Ramirez, Gamma Phi Beta, and vice chairs Susan Fruit Draughon, Alpha Omicron Pi, and Lolita Murrah, Alpha Sigma Tau. Pictured are Alpha Omicron Pi members (standing, from left) Jeanne Davis, Chris Lane, Kim Bainbridge, Jill Smitherman; (seated, from left) Kelly Davis, Pat Baughman, Fruit Draughon, Peggy Clark, Clara Tomsula and Jane Tomsula.

included 2019 Park Lovers’ Ball chairs Jennifer and Scott Allison, Megan and Brian Cushing, Stephanie and Ryan Fleck, and Caroline and Kevin Walter. The annual gala raised $200,000 for West U parks. Mayor Susan Sample presented the awards, and Mayor Pro Tem Mardi Turner and city manager Dave Beach also attended the luncheon at El Meson in Rice Village, along with Susan White, parks and recreation director, Donna LaMond, executive director of Friends, Sami Morrison, Friends chair, and members of the Friends Board.

Pictured are (from left) Beach, White, Sami Morrison, Mitra Woody, Alison Moorhead, Julia Williams, Sample, Turner and LaMond.

Soper sweethearts Morgan Lynn Photography

Daniel Ortiz

Game planning

Star citizens The City of West University Place hosted the 2019 Star Citizens Awards and Friends Appreciation Luncheon, which honored 2017 and 2018 Fathers & Flashlights chairs Alison and Gary Moorhead, Julia and Carl Williams and Mitra and Josh Woody. The two events raised $178,000 cumulatively. Recipients also

Meredith Leigh Crockett and Marcus Perri Soper II were married at Church of Saint John the Divine, with a reception in the lobby of Pennzoil Place. The couple met in seventh grade during SJD Confirmation Camp at Camp Allen. They ended up at Lamar High School together, becoming closer friends, and became best friends during college at The University of Mississippi. They began dating in January 2017 and were engaged on Palm Sunday, March 25, 2018. The bridal party consisted of Meredith’s three sisters, Camille and Evelyn Crockett and Rachel Ortiz, Christiana (continued on page 52)

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(continued from page 50) Harris, Ashley Olmsted,

Hope Dale, Abigail Maddux, Carolyn Garrett, Faith Crockett, Lydia Koch and Adell Anderson. The groom's party consisted of his younger brother, Marshall Soper, Nicholas Kerensky, Gaston Kroneman, Ross Oliver, Charles Peterson, Greg Ortiz and Joseph Anderson, with Cameron Palmore, Walker Agnew, Jr., Greg Davis, Carson Crockett, Covert Anderson and Leo Ortiz.

Happy parents are Cheryl and Barry Heaton, Tim and Anna Marie Crockett and Mark and Marsha Soper.

Singing stars

Roberts reunion

WUES celebrates summer West University Elementary School parent volunteers wrapped up the 2018-19 school year with a party for the students, with a luncheon, Kona ice treats and entertainment from a DJ. Pictured are parents (in front, from left) Sylvia Edward Aviles

These former Roberts Elementary classmates, all 2019 graduating seniors, reunited at Roberts to celebrate graduation. Former teachers, including Jennifer Heemer, Anita Nadal, Carol Rivers and Tom Sharhriari, and administrators Stephanie Walton and Rita Graves congratu-

Burke, Enrica Vagliani Gray, Natesha TamaMadison, Julie Gibson, Rahilla Shatto, Randa Schmitt and (in back, from left) Jaime Titus, Melissa Pierce and Sarah Attia.

Azalea gala Connie Stone

The Strake Jesuit College Preparatory High School Triple Trio Choir sang the National Anthem for the Sugar Land Skeeters vs. Long Island Ducks baseball game at Constellation Field on Mother's Day. Directed by St. Agnes performing arts teacher Kimberly Mendoza, these young men sing throughout the school year, including three weekends at the Texas Renaissance Festival. Triple Trio members for 2018-19 (pictured, from left, with Skeeters mascot Swatson in the middle) are John Baugh IV, Austin Miller, Aidan Hill, Zachary Alonte, Shae McMeans, Jacob Martin, Patrick Jones, Ian Gere and Thomas Donnell.

lated the grads. Students – who attended various high schools, including Lamar, Bellaire, St. Agnes Academy, St. John’s School and The Emery/Weiner School – looked through old yearbooks and caught up. These grads are off to colleges including The University of Texas, Texas A&M, Louisiana State University, Emory University, Scripps College, Trinity University, Stanford University, The University of Texas at San Antonio, Rice University, Texas Christian University, Southern Methodist University, Colorado School of Mines and Elon. Pictured are (top row, from left) Ellie Delgado, Ryan Quenemoen, Jeff de Groot, Nolan Bernes, Jao Mitchell, Sean Lau, Troy Hayes, Carter Hou; (middle row) Daniel Chen, Camilla Manning, Jessica Bonnen, Austin Beebe, Jack Avedesian, Emerson Knapp, Sarah Lai, Terrell Benne, Tate Toole; (bottom row) Evan le Blanc, Natasha Haq, Heidi Li, Andie van Ravenswaay, Kaitlyn Altamirano, Alex Couvillon, Chloe Starr, Juliana Aviles, Celine Waxham, Annabelle Wang and Alex Chen.

More than 500 guests gathered at the Hilton Post Oak to support the Christian Community Service Center (CCSC) and celebrate the volunteer work of Emily Griffin, one of CCSC’s founding volunteers, at Azalea Gala 2019 “A Time to Bloom.” The gala raises funds for CCSC’s six social service programs and included live music, an auction, games and raffles. Emily has served CCSC in numerous capacities over the years, including as a board member and on planning and development teams. Co-chairing the Azalea Gala was a family affair for Sally and Larkin Matthews and the Reverends Elizabeth and Seann Duffin. Elizabeth is the Matthews’ daughter and, like her parents, has a long association with CCSC, and Seann is the senior pastor at Bellaire United Methodist Church, one of CCSC’s partner churches. The 2019 Gala Committee also included Becky Browder, Sandra Buckner, Lori Carper Baker, Cindy Case, Alicia Hartsfield, Andrea Link, Ginnie McConn, Julie Morgan, Karen Nicolaou and Sherri Smeink. Pictured are gala co-chairs Larkin and Sally Matthews (left) and the Reverends Elizabeth and Seann Duffin (right) with honoree Griffin (center).

Be seen in Buzz About Town. Send your high-res photos and community news to info@thebuzzmagazines.com.

Items are published on a space-available basis. Also share your upcoming-event listings on thebuzzmagazines.com.

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 52

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by Andria Frankfort, staff writer

Back Porch

On-the-go podcasts

U

sed to be, everyone you knew had the paper delivered to their home. We’d take time to open it up and read it, often cover to cover, before starting the day.

And we all had our sections, the ones we read first: daily news, finance, lifestyle.

Some of us still subscribe to that daily ritual.

But for many, the fast pace of an electronics-driven life along with dwindling pages in the papers have resulted in a need to grab information when and where we can. On the go, in the car, at our desks.

Enter podcasts.

It all kind of started with the crazy-popular podcast Serial, which launched in the fall of 2014 with its first season investigating the murder case of a Baltimore high school student.

“Everyone was talking about it,” says Lindy McGee, a pediatrician and podcast fan. “So that was the first [podcast] I listened to. We had remodeled our house and were moving back in, so I just stuck it in and listened while I was unpacking boxes.”

After she finished Serial, Lindy was hooked.

Twice a week, she commutes to her office in Pasadena; time in the car becomes time to listen to podcasts. “I like to listen to something serious on my way there and then something lighthearted on my way home,” she says.

Many mornings on the way to work, Lindy listens to Pantsuit Politics. “It’s two women, one from the left and one from the right, discussing what is going on in politics. They talk about all sides of the issue in a very nuanced way,” she says. “I have learned a lot from them.” Other morning favorites include Science Vs. – “the host takes different scientific topics that are discussed in popular media and looks at the evidence” – and Revisionist History. “Author Malcolm Gladwell takes on interesting topics.”

On rides home, Lindy goes with authors she reads and follows. She likes Happier with Gretchen Rubin, where Rubin, author of The Happiness Project, offers “everyday tips and tricks to make your life easier.” And For the Love with Jen Hatmaker showcases the Christian blogger’s interviews with people on topics like “For the love of music” or “For the love of exploring our faith.”

WEST UNIVERSITY BUZZ JULY 2019 54

behance.net/runamokstudios

NEIGHBORS

Lindy’s husband Tom, an executive in oil and gas equipment manufacturing, also enjoys podcasts. “He loves history podcasts,” Lindy says. “One car trip, we had to listen to a whole one about the Punic wars. One child actually loves ancient history, so that was fine.

The other just put her earphones in.”

Tom says his favorite history podcasts are Revolutions, which, as the name suggests, recounts important historical revolutions, Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History and Philosophize This.

“All of them are enterTIME WELL SPENT There’s a podcast out there for everyone, whatever your taining to listen to,” he interests might be. says, “but designed for Getting Curious – Jonathan Van Ness, from history buffs.” Tom also enjoys Macrovoices and Queer Eye, explores whatever he’s curious about.

Hedgeye for financial news and perspectives.

“He’s such an entertaining person to begin Mary Clark Granberry, a mom of two with,” Mary Clark says. “It’s a positive, youthful, teenagers, likes listening to podcasts because “it’s entertaining approach to sometimes hard quesa good way to catch up on current events. I’ll tions.” catch NPR at odd points,” she says, “but the kids Royally Obsessed – two women who are will get in the car or I’ll get out. This way, you obsessed with the royals talk. “A friend told me can go back and get the replay on the podcast. about this when the royal wedding happened, Also, you don’t have to finish one to still get and she said we should have done this! It’s just something out of it. I like the variety and I like a light, gossipy but harmless, fun listen.” all the information.”

The Dropout – investigating Elizabeth Mary Clark’s favorites: Holmes, once the world’s youngest self-made How to Be Amazing – interviews with celebrifemale billionaire, and her fallen company ties. “I loved Ina Garten on that one. Lin Theranos. “This sucked me in,” Mary Clark says.

Manuel Miranda was great, and Tim Gunn.

“Super creepy and fascinating. I knew what I They’re all good.” knew from the news, that she went to St. John’s, Armchair Expert – Dax Shephard visits with but I didn’t realize the whole story.” famous people. “I had [Dax] pegged as a character from his movies,” Mary Clark says. “But he really surprised me. He’s very smart, and I think For tips on how to listen to podcasts and more reche’s extremely self-aware. He’s had a lot of therommendations, read last year’s A World of Podcasts apy and is very open about it, and his takeaway at thebuzzmagazines.com. is so authentic. And he’s hysterical.”

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