Kristin Smith is the most recent addition to the Plugged In team. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. When she's not writing or editing, she enjoys traveling the world with her husband, Eddy, and running through Colorado Springs’ Garden of the Gods. She loves coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan), and is eagerly awaiting the birth of her first baby, Judah.
It’s coming close to that time of year again—the time when you smell apple and pumpkin in the air and hear leaves crunching on the ground. It’s fall, my favorite season. There is so much to love. The leaves turning colors, kids going back to school and, of course, Pumpkin Spice Lattes. But fall isn’t […]
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No Sesame. All Street. If you grew up watching Sesame Street, you may be a bit shocked with the new “puppetry” movie, The Happytime Murders. By taking a bunch of puppets who look a lot like those beloved childhood Sesame Street Muppets and making them very adult—this movie aims to shock. But we’ve seen this […]
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I’m a sucker for traditions. Growing up, we didn’t have many of them, and now that I have my own family, we love creating our own. I love Christmas for that very reason. Every year my husband and I decorate our tree while drinking hot chocolate and listening to Michael Bublé. It’s magical. Most of […]
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I really love music. I have special playlists for long runs and cooking, for cleaning and relaxing. Whatever the occasion, I like to have a soundtrack of sorts playing in the background, like my life is connected with a scene in a movie. Cinematic, Owl City’s latest album, shares my affinity for these movie-like moments. […]
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I enjoy the occasional superhero movie like the rest of the world, but I wouldn’t call myself a diehard fan. Good thing—for this vodcast, at least—Bob Hoose is. Well, maybe he hasn’t memorized every detail of the Marvel movies, but hoosetosay he hasn’t come close? That’s why he and I sat down to chat about […]
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I get the chance to talk with Paul Asay and Bob Hoose on the upcoming Star Wars Film: Solo. We dive into the appeal of the “rogue,” the spiritual connections associated with the film and a newly kindled robot romance. It’s all pretty exciting … even when you don’t know immediately know who “Solo” is. […]
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So Spotify just did a thing. According to their new public hate content and hateful conduct policy, they’ve chosen to take R. Kelly’s music off of their streaming playlists. His music will still be available on Spotify, but will no longer be promoted. After nearly 20 years of allegations that the artist has had sexual […]
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In our newest vodcast, I ask Paul Asay about what someone needs to know before going to see the most anticipated film of the year: Avengers: Infinity War! If you’re like me, you may need to figure out the placement of all the characters and their role in this film. But if you’re a nerd, […]
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CBS announced last week that it was pulling its faith-themed sitcom, Living Biblically, off the air and replacing it with repeats from The Big Bang Theory. For television experts, the move probably wasn’t much of a surprise. The show was the network’s lowest-rated programs, pulling around 4.2 million viewers a week. Which, I think, is […]
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In our newest vodcast, I sit down with Paul Asay and talk about my favorite movie genre: Romantic comedies. Paul isn’t a diehard fan, but he did have some things to say about how these sorts of movies have the ability to influence us as children and adults. So click on the vid below and […]
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My first job was as a high school teacher in inner-city Philadelphia. Fresh out of college, I was eager to teach and dying to make an impact. It was a wonderful time in my career that came with many amazing moments. But it came with some moments that were extraordinarily difficult, as well. It was […]
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We have an Instagram account now. Woohoo! It’s the first of many ways we’re trying to reach and serve you. This new Instagram account will be filled with with pretty pictures and some insight into our team. We’re hoping to dive into YouTube reviews (since most kids now live on the YouTube) later this year. […]
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“Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time and always start with the person nearest you.” — Mother Teresa I love to see good things happen. In a day and age when it seems that negativity permeates news and social media, it’s nice to see celebrities, and really anybody else, using their platform to […]
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The other day, as I was shuffling through the papers on my desk and thinking through what I might write about, a colleague of mine (the oldest of the group— born sometime in the early 1900’s) suggested that I write about millennials. So, being a millennial myself, I asked, what could possibly be written about […]
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The internet is everywhere. It wasn’t always so, believe it or not. I remember the days when the centralized home computer was all you had available when logging your Solitaire and Minesweeper hours. Now all you have to do is reach into your pocket, pull out your mini-computer, and browse the world with your fingertips. […]
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