There is weird shit out there for everyone, and students from Japan have just added to the world's long list of odd objects. Created for lonely students, the "girlfriend replacement coat" intends to mimic the satisfaction a wearer can get from receiving a hug from behind by a girlfriend. The lifelike hugging action is accompanied by a female voice that whispers into the wearer's ear through connected headphones. According to online gaming ... Read More

  New York City writing program Girls Write Now, which recently celebrated a 15 year anniversary as the first organization in the US with a writing and mentoring model exclusively for girls, matches high school girls from underserved neighborhoods in New York City with professional female writers. These women not only help students develop their confidence and writing abilities-- they also help the girls get published. Girls Write Now ... Read More

It seems as though Uzbekistan’s public television is trying to help out their ladies when it comes to alcoholism, which is a serious problem among men and women in the former Soviet Union—except a recent program seems to be preaching more about Uzbek women's image than their health. "It is worth saying a lot of pleasant words about females, the owners of grace and charm. However, [alcohol can lead to] an unpleasant situation ... Read More

25-year-old graffiti artist Shamsia Hassani is one of the handful of Afghan “art activists” who have been taking to the streets of Kabul to paint political pieces around the war-torn city. Her motivation is to bring art to Afghanistan and get people thinking. Before graffiti, the self-taught artist served as an associate professor of sculpture at Kabul University. Shamsia has traded traditional art for spray cans and ... Read More

March is the ultimate “blah” month when you spend half of your time cursing the end of winter, hoping desperately for those warm days to pop up sooner rather than later. But the end of the month promises brighter days-- and good times! If you’re looking for something cool to do once spring arrives, the self-described 90’s glam-punk group Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black is playing an all ages (!) show on March ... Read More