Columbia Association (CA) Medical Director Dr. Harry Oken, M.D. discusses some of the most important and relevant health-related topics, connecting you with local resources that can help improve the overall wellness of you as an individual and us as a community.  In this latest installment, Dr. Oken talks with Sheryl Brown, program director of cooper wellness strategies, and  Darrell Gough, personal trainer with the Columbia association, about the new Cooper Tracks fitness program.  

#Coopertracks #Columbiaassociation #fitness #Howardcounty #columbia 

Prepare to spend a lot of time underwater while watching "Avatar: The Way of Water." In this podcast episode, HCC film professors Marie Westhaver and Mike Giuliano immerse themselves in James Cameron's long-awaited sequel. They agree that this 192-minute movie is much too long, but the 3-D is terrific and there are more than enough interesting plot strands to supply additional sequels. Marie and Mike also spent much of their lives watching the 188-minute "Babylon," in which director Damien Chazelle ("La La Land") and actors including Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie indulge in the excesses of Hollywood movie stars in the 1920s. Marie likes this movie and Mike hates it, and so they have a really good time explaining why.

#Avatarthewayofwater # Babylon #movies #films #moviereviews #filmreview #HCC #howardcounty

A passionate professional and certified executive pastry chef, Maria Bell, has done most all things in our industry. Join Tim Banks and find out how Maria has gone from front of the house, to back of the house, to Paris, to wine expert, to professor, and more. 

#HCC #culinaryarts #howardcounty #pastry

Jessie L. Brown, who became the US Navy's first Black aviator in 1948, is the subject of "Devotion." This biographical film has a worthy subject and Jonathan Majors gives a persuasive performance as Brown, but HCC film professors Marie Westhaver and Mike Giuliano observe in this podcast episode that the film itself tends to have an awkwardly slow pace until it gets to scenes of aerial combat during the Korean War. Marie and Mike also discuss another true-life military story in "The Inspection," in which Jeremy Pope plays a young gay Black man who joins the Marine Corps in 2005. The film details the homophobic brutality to which he is subjected. Marie and Mike agree that it is a frustrating film, because so much screen time is given over to boot camp routine that the main character's background is given in a sketchy way. 

#Film #Movies #Filmreview #Moviereview #HCC # Devotion #TheInspection

Director Steven Spielberg's most overtly autobiographical film, "The Fabelmans" is a nostalgic look back at the childhood and teen years of the nascent filmmaker. In this podcast episode, HCC film professors Marie Westhaver and Mike Giuliano admire the attention to detail within a beautifully designed film, while also noting that there is an overly leisurely pace in the first half of the film. The directorial surrogate, Sammy Fabelman, is played by Mateo Zoryon Francis-Deford as a child and Gabriel LaBelle as a teen; Sammy's parents are played by Michelle Williams and Paul Dano. The parents' difficult marriage gives the film's second half some much-needed dramatic tension. Marie and Mike also discuss "Spoiler Alert," in which Jim Parsons and Ben Aldridge play a gay couple whose relationship is challenged by a cancer diagnosis. Although this film is emotionally effective, it never entirely overcomes a sitcom sensibility directly tied into the Parsons character's job as a TV journalist.

#Movies # Film #moviereview # TheFablemans #Spoileralert #HCC #howardcounty

Columbia Association (CA) Medical Director Dr. Harry Oken, M.D. discusses some of the most important and relevant health-related topics, connecting you with local resources that can help improve the overall wellness of you as an individual and us as a community. In this latest installment Dr. Oken talks with nationally-recognized pediatrician Dr. Lauren Crosby about the importance of vaccination and masking with children.

#Vaccines # Fluseason #covidvaccines #health #wellness #howardcounty #columbiamaryland

HCC film professors Marie Westhaver and Mike Giuliano have fun in this podcast episode describing what's on the menu in "The Menu," in which Ralph Fiennes plays a dictatorial chef overseeing the tasting menu in an upscale restaurant catering to well-heeled gastro tourists. Although the plot goes to thematic extremes, what's wickedly amusing is that some of the bizarre dishes are close to what is actually served in such restaurants. Marie and Mike also talk about "She Said," which follows the journalistic investigation by two female New York Times reporters into the behavior of movie producer Harvey Weinstein.  Marie and Mike question some of the choices made in terms of the narrative construction, but they agree that this is an important story that needs to be told; and its importance is reinforced through the strong performances by Zoe Kazan and Carey Mulligan as the reporters. 

#movies #film #filmreview #HCC #Themenu #shesaid

In this episode, Kofi, Sylvia, and Laura share their favorites episodes from 2022, discuss "how to gift books," and look ahead to 2023

#Reading #Bookclub #literature #HCC #Howardcounty

This month's episode of Green Dragon focuses on UpCycled, an organization that takes recycling to a new level by creating benches and other tangible objects you can find around our county at different locations, including HCC.