December 2011
1 post
The Funny Issue in iTunes for iPad
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September 2011
1 post
DDD Launch Party Photo Wrap Up: Photography by...
March 2010
1 post
“After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is...”
– Aldous Huxley
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A Lesson in Love & Loss from My Mother, Teresa.
Sorrow, Mi Madre
Twenty years ago today
Never forgotten
(My mother in the mountains of New Mexico in an outfit she made)
I write about my mother, quite a bit. She passed away twenty years ago today in New Mexico. I suppose the act of writing keeps me close to her. I think about her everyday. When I have a despondent moment in New York feeling utterly alone- I imagine her arms wrapping around...
February 2010
10 posts
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For All of My Women Friends, With you in Struggle-...
“Being a woman is hard work. Not without joy and even ecstasy, but still relentless, unending work. Becoming an old female may require only being born with certain genitalia, inheriting long-living genes and the fortune not to be run over by an out-of-control truck, but to become and remain a woman command the existence and employment of genius.
The woman who survives intact and happy must...
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“No great art has ever been made without the artist having known danger.”
– Rainer Maria Rilke
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“Love consists in this, that two solitudes protect and touch and greet each...”
– Rainer Maria Rilke
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January 2010
11 posts
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I Crave Your Mouth, Your Voice, Your Hair
DON’T GO FAR OFF, NOT EVEN FOR A DAY Don’t go far off, not even for a day, because — because — I don’t know how to say it: a day is long and I will be waiting for you, as in an empty station when the trains are parked off somewhere else, asleep. Don’t leave me, even for an hour, because then the little drops of anguish will all run together, the smoke that...
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Smirnoff Event
At the Smirnoff Event brought to you by the brilliant men Karl & Kimbo of GTM Central. Jermaine Dupri on the decks, Biz Markie on the mic, and the booze is flowing. Thurman is hangin with me taking in the atmosphere (oddly, that Californian man fits in well) I am writing this in an old subway car. Loving the atmosphere. I don’t use this word often- “crushin” (other then when...
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“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.”
– Dolly Parton
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Dear Diary,
It’s January 15, 2010 at 3:45am.
I am up and cannot sleep.
Too much is on my mind and I look to work it out on paper. I’ve been looking at the images of Haiti, and I cannot stop weeping. There are few moments of relief. I see a child being rescued, reunited with a surviving parent. Or, I turn the page to see rescue teams have flown in from Mexico, Taiwan, or Italy to provide aid, rescue,...
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“I want some sugar in my bowl.”
– Nina Simone
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“Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit.”
– Peter Ustinov
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Dear Diary,
It’s January 3, 2010.
I’ve moved to Greenpoint, a mistake I believe, but one that I had very little choice in the matter of. In three short days I’ve already come to remember why I dislike Brooklyn.
I am starving. There is nothing in my refrigerator except coffee, milk, sugar, and inexplicably- relish. The three cups of coffee drank have only left my stomach feeling hollow and so I brave the...
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“Nobody has ever measured, even poets, how much a heart can hold.”
– Zelda Fitzgerald
December 2009
13 posts
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“We waste time looking for the perfect lover, instead of creating the perfect...”
– Tom Robbins
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The Him Book & Eight Weeks of Bruce Now Available... →
You may order your copies of “The Him Book” & “Eight Weeks of Bruce” from Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. Links on maya-contreras.com
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From Boyle to Barack 2009 A Year When We Needed...
On April 11, 2009 a 47 year old singer from a small town in Scotland became an international phenomenon when she sang, “I Dreamed A Dream” From Le Miserables. Her name is Susan Boyle. Millions where in awe of her booming voice, her humble persona, and plain Jane looks. However, it wasn’t long before then the backlash began. Then there is Barack Obama, who brought tears of joy...
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“Love is often gentle, desire always a rage.”
– Mignon McLaughlin
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“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious...”
– Thornton Wilder
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“It is amazing how complete is the delusion that beauty is goodness.”
– Leo Tolstoy
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Winter Layers
The sky and weather has changed in New York to match my mood, steely grey and at times, blisteringly cold. I have found myself exasperated trying to pack all of my items for the day while first trying to figure out how many layers to put on. Undergarments, stalking, boots, pants, or my white petticoat skirt topped with cashmere sweater, silk scarf, wool hat, must find my matching leather gloves. I...
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“Few novels or plays could exist without at least one troublemaker in the group,...”
– Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic’s Notebook, 1966
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Gay, Straight, Black, White, Marriage is a Civil...
Some say same sex marriage is not a Civil Right. I disagree.
What are “Civil Rights”? Most of us, when we think of civil rights, we think of the civil rights movement of 1955-1968 for African Americas. However, there was also the Civil Rights Act of 1866 (to free the slaves after the American Civil War) and the Civil Rights Act of 1991 (employment discrimination based on the...
November 2009
17 posts
“Anybody who believes that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach...”
– Robert Byrne
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Six Healthy Questions for Extraordinary Nurse...
There are new controversial guideline “recommendations” regarding mammogram screenings. Women have now been told that they do not need regular mammogram exams until after the age of 50, pushing back regular screenings by ten years. I myself have been getting mammograms since I was 25 upon the recommendation of my doctors- as I have a family history of breast cancer. My mother lost...
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“To free us from the expectations of others, to give us back to ourselves - there...”
– Joan Didion
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“Anything you lose automatically doubles in value.”
– Mignon McLaughlin
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The Him Book: Excerpt # 3 →
Part 3 of 3 of “The Him Book” Excerpt featured on Melissa Blakes’ fabulous blog “So About What I Said…” Follow her on twitter at @melissablake beso- Maya
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The Him Book: Excerpt # 2 →
Melissa Blake is running a three part series from my book “The Him Book” on her blog “So About What I Said…” Thanks for reading! And of course, check out the rest of her extraordinary blog! Look for Part 3 this coming Tuesday. Beso- Maya
Busy as a Bee: Five Questions for...
To say 2009 has been hectic for Jeremy Simmons would be a profound understatement. His documentary The Last Beekeeper followed the world’s “second oldest profession” from South Carolina, Montana, and Washington bringing a new perspective to the global environmental crises through the eyes of beekeepers.
His popular Sundance Channel series Man Shops Globe brought Jeremy and his crew from France to...
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A Few Precious Questions for Amina Robinson
The newly released and highly lauded film Precious is about a young girl who seemingly has no reason to live, but continues to gather strength from her inner life. Directed by Lee Daniels, and presented by the ultimate in heavy hitters: Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry, Daniels brings performance poet Sapphire’s provocative literary work Push to a scintillating light on the silver...
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“The human soul, as a part of the movement of life, is endowed with the ability...”
– Alfred Adler