Tana Velen

Writing is a solitary endeavor - except, of course, for all the voices in your own head.  Whether you write in the privacy of your bedroom or in a coffeeshop surrounded by the hustle and bustle of caffeinated humanity, the task itself requires a drawing in, an exclusion of the...

In a time where Change.org has cornered the market on making people feel better about themselves by signing an online petition and then sending it out into the ether never to be thought of again. Of course, there are plenty of Change.org petitions that deserve to be ignored and forgotten...

The Tri-County Humane Society is an incredible organization. It is a 100 percent no-kill shelter that rescues more than 3,000 pups that would've otherwise gone to the big dog park in the sky. The society travels far and wide, going from natural disasters like the Oklahoma tornadoes from last year...

If you grew up on Babar, Dumbo, or Horton, your inner child probably screams with delight every time you see an elephant at the zoo. They are gentle giants, as evidenced by the now-viral friendship between Bubbles, a 9,000-pound elephant, and Bella, a Labrador retriever, that has been making adorable...

Japan is one of those magical places where fashion, technology, animation, and some of the weirdest products known to man converge. Famed pop fashion designer Sebastian Masuda -- AKA the "King of Harajuku" -- hails from Japan and was sent stateside through the generous sponsorship of the Japan Foundation and...