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GOT THAT MEH FEELING? Try humming.

It’s simple, takes only a few minutes and seems to promote health and harmony.

Humming turns the body into a musical instrument, creating vibrations that travel through spaces, such as nasal cavities. Like a hall monitor, humming keeps things moving to clear the way.

Recent studies reported in the New York Times show that humming “helps increase airflow between the sinus and nasal cavities, which could potentially help protect against sinus infections.” Mucus build-up leads to infection. That’s when your head feels dull and achey.

The musical aspect of humming may explain why it can be a mood lifter. We connect with another time and place by humming a nostalgic tune. Musicologist Joseph Jordania believes humming may be one of humans’ earliest means of communication, letting one another know they are safe.

As with singing, humming leads to a longer exhalation, which can be soothing. A humming breath sequence used in yoga, called brahmari, or bee breath, is said to deepen breathing and reduce anxiety. Practice the breath alone, where you might feel less self-conscious, or recruit a friend.

When I’ve led brahmari breathing in yoga classes, buzzing like bees proves so fun that people often smile. This exercise can delight children and — if you’re willing to hum like a hive with them—may distract them from a bad temper.

Want to try it? Stand or sit with a neutral, relaxed posture. Take two breaths, feeling rooted in the chair or on the ground. Gently place the thumbs in the ears and fingers over brow bone, closed eyelids and upper cheeks. Lips lightly sealed, inhale through the nostrils and then exhale through the nose and make the sound of the letter “m.”  Carry the sound throughout the exhalation. To sustain the buzzing, the exhalation needs to be intentional, but not forceful. Continue as long as you like, then pause to notice the stillness and quiet. Where do you feel sensation in the body?

A more familiar sound from yoga is “Om.” It should be a three-part vocalization — a-u-m — concluding in the “m” of a hum.

One study used brain imaging to measure the Om sound’s potential to stimulate auricular branches of the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve influences both the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems, touching in with multiple organs, including heart and stomach, as it wanders down from the brain stem through the body.

“Humming’s going to affect your vagus nerve and that’s going to affect your level of anxiety,” said West Virginia-based somatic movement therapist Lauren Wadsworth. She adds that humming may affect tissue as well.

“I use sound sometimes, though I don’t do it out loud,” Wadsworth says of humming silently as she works on a massage client. “I notice it will shift the density of the tissue.”

“Hum” is onomatopoeic—the word formed around the sound associated with it — and dates back to the 14th century. Wordless, humming appears simple. But as a form of vocal activation, it requires collaboration of both hemispheres of the brain, as speech does.

Try simple humming with one hand on the chest and one on the abdomen. Notice the vibrations. Use the senses of sound, touch and feeling to focus the mind for a few breaths.

Humming engages brain and body, bringing a sense of integration that can be calming. It’s as if we are attuned. This may help explain why people with autism are known to hum. When humming becomes repetitive and stereotyped, the activity can signal dementia.

“There’s something powerful about music, sounds and voice,” Wadsworth says. Who, what, when and how people hum taps into personality and biology.

The average adult human body is 50 to 75 percent water. “We know that sounds moves through water, it’s an incredibly resonant field,” Wadsworth points out. “So we become more resonant as we become more fluid.”

This resonance, she believes, can connect us not just with ourselves and other people but with a broader sense of belonging. “Our life on this planet is about water, so as soon as we become more fluid we become more resonant with all of life on this planet.”

Connecting is largely about effective communication which, for humans, means language. Beyond being an end in itself, humming can be used as a vocal warm-up, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology. Begin with the nasal sound “m” and glide from a high to low pitch as if sighing. After speaking, humming can provide a vocal cool down: Focus on a tickling feeling in the nose.

Think there’s something melodious to your humming? Transform it into musical notation. Forbes reported on a smartphone app that scores sounds recorded into your mobile phone, including humming.

Whether you’re humming for health or harmony, consider keeping the crooning on the hush-hush. Like using a neti pot, humming to clear sinus passageways may best be practiced behind a closed door. And humming for happiness —outside of a yoga class—may wisely stay a solitary joy. Leave public humming to the birds and the bees.

—Alexa Mergen
Writer, editor and yoga teacher Alexa Mergen lives in Ely, Nevada.

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OH MY, MERYL. Is there any role you can’t play? A Nazi concentration camp survivor, an imperious fashion editor, an opera singer with a terrible voice. Most recently, the actor crushes the part of Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham, who risks her family business to publish the Pentagon Papers in 1971. Streep’s wardrobe tends to be as varied as her roles. We discuss the good and not so good choices and what’s to be learned.

Streep arrives at the premiere of “The Post,” Washington DC, December 14, 2017. / Photo by Erik Pendzich/Rex/Shutterstock.

JANET: I admire Streep for what I’m guessing is an attempt to go beyond her comfort zone in this Prada feathered coat and pants. But the feathers grab all the attention, unflatteringly. On the runway, the coat was shown with a belt, which controlled the fussiness. Showing a little more leg would make the look less bottom-heavy. I would sub the pants for dress or skirt. Love the sequin clutch (also from Prada).

KATHY: I’m a bit baffled really by where her comfort zone actually falls, having seen photos of Streep in so many truly odd and, in some cases, ill-fitting outfits. There’s no denying her pure, unconventional beauty, so why, I suppose, shouldn’t her wardrobe be unconventional as well? However, this ensemble makes me think Ms. Prada had a few leftover feathers and decided to tack them onto a random coat rather than let them go to waste.

NANCY: I’m afraid I was rather unkind toward this outfit when I first saw it, telling the other LittleBirds there had been a tragic accident when a wrinkled raincoat collided with an ostrich. While so many Hollywood actresses seem to concentrate on showing as much skin as possible, Streep lives in Manhattan, among all those fashionistas. I give her credit for being (in addition to incredibly talented) more daring than most in her fashion choices, though she truly is all over the lot—cropped harem pants sticking out from under a circus tent of a dress one day, short-sleeved coat with blouse sleeves sticking out on another, an oversize geometric Issey Miyake coat that wears her instead of the other way around. Makes me hold my breath worrying what she’ll wear next.

Meryl Streep arrives at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre for the 87th Annual Academy Awards Ceremony on February 22, 2015. / Photo by Mike Nelson/EPA/Rex/Shutterstock.

NANCY: I’m sure Streep doesn’t want to dress like this all the time but . . . why the heck not? She is the embodiment of glamour and sophistication. And the juxtaposition of dark and light showcases the long expanse of her biggest assets, that translucent skin and glorious chest.

KATHY: I love, love, love this look! So sophisticated in its simplicity. And sexy in a slinky, understated way. It’s businesslike, yet elegant and very feminine. It’s a style that would suit almost any figure. There’s not a line nor a hair out of place.

JANET:  Streep nails old-fashioned glam in a tuxedo jacket and long skirt by Lanvin. The V-neck blouse shows off her famous glowing skin. Big earrings provide the bling. And I get that’s the reason she’s wearing her hair up, and I know it’s a formal occasion, but I would prefer her hair in a less severe do. Some loose wisps of hair, maybe.

Streep at “Florence Foster Jenkins” premiere, Rome Film Festival, Italy. October 20, 2016. / Photo by Marco Provvisionato/IPA/Rex/Shutterstock.

NANCY: Easy does it: That’s what I imagine Streep was thinking when she went for this MaxMara ensemble. It’s a better iteration of her blouse habit (see below), and the shimmer of the satin gives it some presence, but on the whole . . . actually, it looks like an outfit that might work for a lot of us. It combines a hint of dressiness but would let us fall back on the idea that it’s just a shirt and pants, right? As for the Marni earrings? Pass.

JANET: A billowy blouse and trim pants in teal look elegantly relaxed and comfortable, an outfit you can rely on not to have a wardrobe malfunction. The earrings are fun and quirky but clunky, and they are not nearly dressy enough for the occasion. The pink clutch is cute but why not choose a black sequin bag or a silver or gold one that would complement what she’s wearing.

KATHY: Funny earrings. I want to like this blouse, but it just isn’t happening. For one thing, there’s that odd bit of material attached at the neckline. Then there’s the neckline itself. Seems a bit too uptight. Too prim. Too meh. The color is lovely, but it strikes me as an odd choice to wear to a movie premiere in Rome. No glam factor at all.

Streep at the “Ricki and the Flash” film premiere, New York, August 3, 2015. / Photo by Gregory Pace/BEI/Rex/Shutterstock.

JANET: Streep hits it out of the park here in a dress with black bodice and black-and-white pleated skirt from Valentino. Although mismatched clothing is a trend, I gotta say I like it when pieces are coordinated—shoes, the clutch, even the earrings (although I’m not crazy about hoops with this dress). Harmony is underrated.

KATHY: Totally, completely, absolutely agree with Janet. I especially like the high waistline here. Seems like that could camouflage a multitude of sins. Not that Meryl has any.

NANCY: I’m the odd man out here. I think it’s too matchy-matchy (I mean, high-concept shoes too?), and I don’t think the line is flattering at all. It just seems bottom-heavy. Oh well, agree to disagree.

Meryl Streep attends the “Suffragette” film premiere and gala opening night of the 59th BFI London Film Festival on October 7, 2015. / Photo by Twocoms / Shutterstock.

KATHY: No excitement here. I’m all for simplicity, but this royal blue number may have gone too far. Plus it appears to be too long and I fear she may trip.

NANCY: Kathy, I always watch the awards shows, heart in mouth, waiting for someone to trip! Streep does have a gorgeous décolletage, which this gown emphasizes, but I don’t think plain shiny fabric is a friend to most women. Even Streep looks a little lumpy.

JANET: Streep likes to be covered up except for showing off her beautiful neckline. This Lanvin does the job.

JANET: The pattern on Streep’s blouse on this Hollywood Reporter cover makes me dizzy, but the style is one she favors with that little bit of a feminine bow of a collar, which playfully hides that pretty porcelain skin. I don’t understand why her blouse appears to be half in and half out. Anyone?

NANCY: Streep certainly likes extra little bits of business, whether it’s ostrich fluff (see the Prada above) or shirts with fabric cascading down the front (the teal MaxMara, also above) or blouses with pussy-cat bows at the neck. The problem with the bows, and those untethered necklines, is that they’re both hard to control, the bow sometimes unreeling in one direction, pulling the neckline out of position. But it’s a look Streep returns to time and again. Maybe most people stare only at that glorious face of hers, but I still think garments with fewer bits to choreograph make it easier to get through the day (or the photoshoot).

In addition, this blouse-over-pants thing doesn’t really seem casual but almost suburban. (No, I don’t know what I mean by that, exactly.) I’d love to know the intention behind it, especially in this recent videoed interview with the editor of Vogue, Anna Wintour, possibly the least casual person on the planet. True, la Streep can wear whatever la Streep wants to wear. But I don’t think I would look regal if I copied her, just dumpy and even old-fashioned in a John Molloy 1977 Dress for Success kind of way.

—MyLittleBird staff

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AS COLD TEMPERATURES turn puddles into treacherous paths of ice, moisture in the nose flows more freely than ever.  And just because your nose runs both when you have a cold and when it’s cold outside doesn’t mean cold weather causes colds.

The nose conditions inhaled air to make it warm and moist when it reaches the lungs.  When the weather is cold, and usually dry, more mucus is secreted by glands in the membranes lining the respiratory system—nose, throat, lungs—and other body cavities to keep those membranes moist. In one study, almost 100 percent of skiers reported runny noses —also called “skier’s nose”—and officially, rhinorrhea.  The colder the weather, the more mucus is produced and the thicker it becomes.

Mucus—of which a healthy nose secretes about 32 ounces/day—not only moisturizes the membranes, but its sticky consistency is designed to trap outside contaminants and prevent them from entering the body.  If the body is fighting a bacterial infection, the immune system will mobilize white blood cells that make the mucus green or yellow; respiratory illnesses like colds and flu provoke less of an immune response, allowing the mucus to remain clear.

In addition to working the mucus glands, cold weather makes tiny capillaries in the nose dilate to bring in more warm blood, which heats incoming cold air almost immediately to body temperature.  Although colder air can irritate the lungs and throat, swollen capillaries can also cause nasal congestion.

And finally, because cold air cannot hold as much moisture as warm air, when warm exhaled breath meets cold air at the end of your nose, water is released to run out or remain hanging there in a large droplet.  This trifecta of physical reactions to cold weather keeps you healthy but also creates a stuffy, runny nose that resembles that of a cold.

One good solution is to add moisture to the air you’re breathing in.  Drench a washcloth in hot water and drape it over your nose and sinuses for several minutes, followed by 30 seconds with a cold cloth.   Humidifiers and bowls of water placed around the house can help moisten the air.  Also, eat hot bowls of soup and take hot showers.  And coping with thickening mucus is one more reason to drink a lot of water.

Outdoors, wrap a wool scarf around your nose and mouth: breathing into the space between your face and the scarf will warm and moisten the air so that your sinuses produce less moisture.  Because cold, dry air can cause a sore throat and cough, avoid breathing through your mouth.

When a cold causes swelling in the sinus tissues, gargling with salt water or using a saline nose spray can help, because mucus liquefies better in salty water.  The nose can be cleared using a neti pot, but the water should be distilled or boiled to avoid a rare amoeba that lives in warm water.

Try to avoid nasal sprays that narrow the blood vessels, such as Afrin or Neo-Synephrine, because they can have a rebound effect that causes congestion and damage to the nasal membranes. And be careful about blowing your nose too often, which can actually push mucus farther into the sinuses.

Sometimes a runny nose and congestion are a true allergic response to cold temperatures, in which case steroid inhalers like Flonase can help. Other prescription inhalers can help with “vasomotor rhinitis,” triggered by smoke, bright sunlight and strong odors such as perfume.

Finally, “gustatory rhinitis” is a non-allergic reaction to certain foods, such as black pepper, horseradish, chili peppers and onions, which can cause sneezing, sniffling and watery eyes, with no itching—symptoms that usually disappear soon after eating the trigger food.

—Mary Carpenter
To read more Well-Being posts, click here. 

SHE’S THE DESIGNER and entrepreneur behind her own shoe line (SJP), the star and one of the producers of HBO’s “Divorce” and mother of three. And, of course, Sarah Jessica Parker will always be remembered as Carrie Bradshaw in “Sex and the City.” The 52-year-old is also well known for her daring—can we say quirky fashion sense?—on the red carpet. But when she’s out and about New York doing errands or shepherding children back and forth from school, she dresses more comfortably and casually.

Sarah Jessica Parker at the 2017 People’s Choice Awards in Los Angeles on January 8. She received an award for her role in HBO’s “Divorce.” / Photo by Jaguar PS/Shutterstock.

NANCY: Somehow, I thought there might be a pre-“Sex and the City” Sarah Jessica Parker and a post-“Sex/City” Parker, but flipping through a timeline of her style evolution I see that SJP lent as much to the Carrie Bradshaw persona as vice versa. Man, this girl has had a lot of “Look at me!” looks. I was thinking this copper lamé number was a rather cartoonish Athena, Warrior Goddess look, but the more I look at it, the more I really like it. (That little flounce of nude chiffon, or whatever, at the hem is a pretty cool touch.)  Can 50- and 60-year-olds learn how to dress from SJP? Only if they have a lotta guts and an incredible figure.

JANET:  When it comes to her fashion choices—at least for red-carpet occasions—Parker isn’t afraid of going for bold and surprising, as in this J. Mendel shiny copper strapless dress. Those detached, lace-up sleeves, though, look as if she’s going to do battle in Westeros rather than get an award in L.A. Parker is rarely seen without super-high heels, her compensation for being “so darn short.”

KATHY: Shades of a modern-day Joan of Arc. It’s a great costume. I’m just not sure I’d call it fashion. While dramatic, those sleeves are just plain silly. But the gown and her perfect little body clearly were made for each other. I just don’t think this is something I could wear to book club.

JANET: Aw, Kathy. Why not?

At the 2016 PEN America Literary Gala at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, on May 16, 2016, Parker introduced J.K. Rowling, who was honored with the PEN Allen Literary Service Award for her battle against censorship. / Photo by J. Stone/Shutterstock.

NANCY: These scattered flowers look a bit lumpy to me, but that doesn’t mean the dress isn’t entirely appropriate to the occasion, which is more Manhattan-literary demure than red-carpet razzle-dazzle. Well played, SJP.

JANET: Personally I wish this infatuation with all things floral would just fade away, but Parker’s retro-inspired floral cream-colored midi dress is appropriate for a spring evening and does accentuate her small waist.  A pair of purple stilettos with jewel-encrusted black bows complements the pale and bright colors of the dress. A matching purple clutch with a long, swishy black embellishment adds the edge that Parker seems drawn to in her clothing choices.

KATHY: The shoes are fantastic! But I can’t help noticing the road map of veins running up her foot. Also was struck by the same in her gladiator photo at top. I worry that years of running through the “City” in sky-high Manolos have done serious damage—though I did admire her speed and athleticism in those scenes. The dress is simply pretty. And there’s nothing wrong with pretty.

In a bright blond wig, Parker on the set of the film “Best Day of My Life” in New York, July 24, 2017. / Photo by Media Punch/Rex/Shutterstock.

JANET: I know you both are going to say I’m boring, but I love this look on SJP. I know it’s a scene from an upcoming film and Sarah Jessica herself might never wear it, but the flowy white pleated skirt with the blue shirt, the cordovan ankle-wrap sandals and hemp shoulder bag is so classic. The shirt’s rolled-up sleeves and undone buttons takes the prissy out of the outfit. It’s not for everyone, but it works for petite figures. Instead of a brown belt and shoes, though, I might sub a nude color for anyone whose goal is to look taller and thinner. (Is there anyone who doesn’t want to look taller and/or thinner?)

KATHY: Au contraire. I’m totally on board with this look. It’s soft, casual and quite flattering. Also versatile and useful—shopping, lunch, a movie, cocktails. I might opt for a slightly crisper shirt however, and one my bra doesn’t show through. Since I buy my bras at Walmart, there’s really nothing worth seeing there.

NANCY: I don’t think this look is boring. Okay, a bit. But it looks fine, not exciting but fine. If she were walking down a city street in real life and not in a movie, though, I’m betting she would button up one more button. Maybe two. That’s a lotta boobage. Just sayin’.

JANET: Agree with Kathy, although I don’t mind a little bra showing through, but not this dark color a bra. And, yep, a little too much boob, Nancy.

Parker wears a Cynthia Rowley dress for the “At Home With Amy Sedaris” TV show premiere in New York, October 19, 2017. / Photo by Gregory Pace/Rex/Shutterstock.

KATHY: I’m with you on this one, Sarah. I really like everything about this dress. I even like the chartreuse shoes! In fact, I especially like the chartreuse shoes.

NANCY: I like the dress, don’t understand the shoes, which at least on my computer monitor show up as neon lime green. The burnout-velvet dress looks demure, I think, because of SJP’s height or lack thereof. On one site where the dress was sold (sold out, was $429), the skirt was above the knee—but of course the model was 5-foot-10! The burnout-ness of the fabric causes a certain amount of “action” in the pattern, not a bad thing for those who want to distract attention, um, upward, toward a well-made-up face.

JANET: Sarah Jessica Parker went wild in this leopard print dress. I like the frills at the hemline. But why these yellow stilettos? There are plenty of other colors in her shoe line.

Sarah Jessica Parker out and about in New York, February 27, 2017. / Photo by Broadimage/Rex/Shutterstock.

JANET: Shopping at Bloomingdale’s. How very “Sex and the City.” But also an outfit (except for the metallic booties) for strolling around Manhattan with kids in tow. SJP ups the ante on casual with that good-l00king moto jacket with horizontal strips of leather.

NANCY: Look, there’s casual and then there’s your mother’s voice in your head telling you to go back home and try again. The moto jacket is great, and I get the shirttail-hanging-below-it look. But something has to be nipped in or it all goes to hell in a hand basket. With the slim jacket, the pants could have been wide, sure, but with the sweatshirt/T-shirt (plus the locks) hanging out all loose, the better bet would’ve been to pair the tops with leggings, something slim at any rate. At any age, I think, there has to be some part of an outfit that tells the viewer where the body begins and ends.

KATHY: Hmmmm, I wonder what she bought.

—MyLittleBird staff

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The digital currency Bitcoin soared in value to $11,000 per unit and then plunged to $9,000 in the past week. Last month Terry Gross devoted the entire hour of  NPR’s “Fresh Air” to talking about the digital currency with New York Times technology reporter Nathan Popper.  The talk show host admitted that when she absolutely doesn’t have to know something, she gives herself permission not to. But she noted when both Bjork and Microsoft are accepting Bitcoin, it’s time to pay attention. So, in case you missed it, here’s the post MyLittleBird ran about it on Aug. 7. 

IS IT AN INVESTMENT or a way to pay for things online?

Bitcoin was created in 2009 by a very smart but secretive person (or persons) who goes by the name “Satoshi Nakamoto.” He invented it as a way for us to make payments and other money transfers without ever having to use banks, credit cards or money wires again.

How? Satoshi Nakamoto invented a “cryptocurrency,” the Bitcoin, a currency with no government backing. Then he cut out the middle man in most transactions (the trusted third party a/k/a the bank).

Then he combined the Internet, a special type of online network called peer-to-peer, a really powerful math program and a shared “ledger” to create a system called the blockchain. This blockchain technology is a new secure way, not only to manage financial transactions but to record and validate records and information, such as a real-estate title, your healthcare records or an insurance document anytime/anywhere. And of course it manages all digital currencies like the Bitcoin—Ethereum, Monero, Litecoin, Stratis and others.

And blockchain technology does all that without any intermediary. (See below for the details of how this works.)*

Forbes magazine recently defined blockchain as  “a digital ledger which both [parties to a transaction] can immediately access,” reducing human error and the risk of the funds being in both accounts simultaneously. “This wire transfer,” Forbes continued, “would be completed almost instantly and the transaction would be added as a new ‘block’ to the ‘chain’ of ledger entries across the network.”

Once the ledger is updated (in seconds), everyone can see the unique ID transaction and direct it where it will ultimately be matched and confirmed. All transactions are tracked and stored in a “digital wallet”; the Bitcoin can be held as an investment or sent to another recipient as a payment for a specific good or service. Bitcoin owners transmit no personal information, and no bank account numbers are required, eliminating the pitfalls of identity theft. Another benefit is that there is no need for fees attached to any transaction, unlike a bank or PayPal payment.

Let me say again, no personal information, no fees, just a generated unique code created by algorithm at the central ledger to authenticate/facilitate the payment to another Bitcoin party. The blockchain, or ledger, becomes the book-entry digital wallet used by the central computers to manage all transactions for Bitcoins.

Certainly PayPal, now in alliance with Venmo, performs a similar function, facilitating online transactions. But there’s one big difference. It does not use a virtual currency but performs a US-dollar-based transaction. And plenty of information is required.

A Bitcoin is not a “fiat“ currency, one backed by a government; it exists in an unregulated marketplace. The Bitcoin’s value floats freely according to basic economic supply-and-demand conventions. In fact, there are currently 800-plus kinds of digital coins in this digital world. Bitcoin just happens to be the most widely traded since its 2009 creation. Some $45 billion worth of Bitcoin is currently traded daily. By contrast, though, $5.3 trillion of government-backed currencies are traded each and every day worldwide. Yes, Bitcoin has a way to go before it reaches that size market valuation.

Even if you’ve ignored all the recent news about Bitcoin’s volatility, you will hear more and more as the blockchain technology expands globally on all industry fronts. Internet experts have forecast that blockchain technology will be the next revolution/disrupter in the financial technology world (FinTech). Harvard research argues that blockchain is most important as a foundational technology that can be used to create new business models and underpin business, economic  and social infrastructures for many decades.

All of us Luddites (and we are many) should know that companies such as IBM, Dell, Microsoft, Overstock.com, and also companies we use daily—Subway, Amazon, Whole Foods, Expedia and Shopify.com—have embraced the blockchain technology, and Bitcoin currency, as an alternative to the PayPal/Venmo and credit-card/bank option because it reduces their bank fees. Also, the innovation wraps their infrastructure around the new shared-data revolution of blockchain processing.

So that’s Bitcoin and blockchain as an alternative Internet payment process. But what about Bitcoin as an investment?

Well, the investment possibility is trickier. Since 2009, the Bitcoin’s value has risen considerably, to one “coin” being worth $2,783 as of July 29, 2017, and can be very volatile day to day, moving as much as 1% to 10% in a day, sometimes more, something that rarely happens with a government-backed fiat currency. So instead of “investing” directly by buying  Bitcoins, with their attendant volatility, you may want to consider two more-conservative investments vehicles in the new world of the Bitcoin exposure and blockchain technology, namely: The Global Bitcoin Investment Trust stock (ticker symbol GBT) and The Global X Fin Tech ETF (ticker symbol FINX).

I am not personally recommending either of these investments, just reminding the reader that with every newly created financial instrument or technology, there comes a new-fangled process that plays out and adoption of either may take some time. And as expected, more people, industries, businesses and governments are considering these alternatives in a very real way to democratize the bank, credit-card and PayPal payment options available currently.

So to answer the original question, the Bitcoin is both a new and improved online digital payment alternative and it is also a possible investment in the dynamic and ever-changing world of blockchain technology. I believe Satoshi Nakamoto would be very proud of his invention.

The final question, How do I buy Bitcoins? There are several companies that make a market in Bitcoins such as Coinbase or Blockchain.info; and a list of digital vendors can be found at this site. Simply pick a vendor, request an amount of Bitcoins in US dollars, enter the credit/debit card and create your very own digital wallet.

But remember, as our good friend David Kotok, chairman of Cumberland Funds, recently cautioned on cryptocurrencies, we should not think of them as money.

Bitcoin “does permit the classic function of money as a medium of exchange,” he writes in his July 26th market commentary. But, he points out, money (at least currency with low or no inflation) also “has a certain ‘store of value’ . . .  and we have price references denominated in dollars or euro or yen. Bitcoin has not yet attained the ubiquity needed to meet those tests.” Kotok sees Bitcoin as a speculative investment, one that will not be in the reserve of any major central bank any time soon.

—Abigail Cook
Cook has been managing director or vice president for foreign exchange sales at BNY Mellon, Westpac Banking Corporation and RBC Capital Markets. She is based in Pittsburgh.

* To make blockchain technology work, Satoshi’s math program essentially generates a unique identifier for each and every transaction, which then gets posted on a decentralized public ledger. The identifier details are then sealed and stored on that ledger with digital versions of keys. This is now a digital receipt known as “block.” Each block is then connected together creating a trail and chain of secured transactions that cannot be altered, and thus the term blockchain! Think of it like a game of Tetris, building those tiles (blocks) into a wall (ledger) through computing power to build, store and keep the histories of those ID records/transactions.

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I’M WAKING up before dawn in Ely, Nevada, still snug in a flannel nightgown under a blanket on the couch, dog in my lap, sipping coffee shipped from Jack Mormon Coffee Company in Salt Lake City. I’m peering at the iPhone in my hand, reading the Washington Post. Steel-cut oats are boiling on the stove.

More than 2,300 miles away in DC, my mom has long ago finished a small pot of French-press coffee, shipped to her in half-pound bags from West Virginia’s Black Dog Coffee, and eaten an English muffin. The disassembled sections of the Post, read through, are stacked by the front door of her apartment, to be carried down the hall for recycling.

The daily rituals of coffee and WaPo tether my mom, Carol, and me across miles, mountains, routines and time zones.

Anne Lamott writes that the newspaper was the religion in her family. And so it was in mine. Raising my brother and me on Capitol Hill from 1970 to 1985, my dad’s daily routine was to purchase the Washington Post from a newsstand. My paternal grandmother, who lived in Thomas House when the building was ordinary apartments at the edge of 14th Street’s then-red light district, was loyal to the Washington Star. From Nevada, my maternal grandmother sent blue envelopes full of newspaper clippings from the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Henderson Home News and the Las Vegas Sun.

The Sunday New York Times was our family Bible, generating discussion, reminding us to be informed citizens, guiding us in decisions through the week. The Post impressed upon my little-kid self that we lived in the nation’s capital and that big decisions were being made in the large white buildings visible from my brother’s bedroom on the third floor of our row house.

College took me to California and I ended up making a home there for awhile, parlaying my undergraduate experience at the Daily Californian and the Toad Lane Review—published by the now-defunct Barrington Hall student cooperative—into a news-clerk position at the Union Democrat. In Sonora, I fell in love with a reporter and also started a love affair with whistle-stops. I married the reporter and together we moved to other towns, as well as larger cities, until we stumbled on Ely during a road trip this past June. The 700-square-foot house we bought soon after is reminiscent of the cabin we first shared in Sonora more than 25 years ago, on a dirt road in town, heated by a robust wood stove and passive sunshine.

When I started buying furniture and kitchen gadgets to fill my new place, my mom signed me up for a digital subscription to the Washington Post. It’s not easy to get news in Ely. The local paper publishes weekly. The Las Vegas Review-Journal is available for purchase Monday through Saturday, but only at a few casinos. Though it’s a morning paper, copies don’t arrive until afternoon, because Vegas is a four-hour drive away. Still, they usually sell out. No other hard-copy papers are available here.

The Washington Post app opens the door to my past, as DC-raised; to my present, doing my darnedest to stay clearly informed in this muddled political climate; and to my future, when I reconnect with my mom through texts and emails. And when I’ll visit home again.

So, first thing in the morning, I check the top stories. What’s happened overnight? Then to the local DC section. Here in the high desert, I can picture rain falling on the Potomac River, and my mom watching the green leaves of Rock Creek Park’s giant trees through her window. TV reviews, book recommendations, recipes—all these provide a common language for us. Opinions in the Post’s View keep me abreast of the macro politics, a balance to the micro of my town. Horoscopes and cartoons? Essential.

Ideas run through DC corridors and avenues, the way veins of silver and copper run through the expansive mountains surrounding me. I need both: theories and facts gathered and printed and delivered in pixels, and trails through canyons so quiet you can hear air rushing over birds’ wings as they fly. One digital newspaper subscription from a conscientious long-distance mom makes it possible.

—Alexa Mergen
Writer, editor and yoga teacher Alexa Mergen lives in Ely, Nevada, but she relies on news from her hometown paper.