Blog Posts by Piper Weiss, Shine Staff

On the football field, Pat Tillman was famous for staying in the game no matter what.

It's a trait he must have learned from his mother, Mary Tillman. In an early interview, Pat, the former NFL star killed by friendly-fire in Afghanistan in 2004, tells the story of his mother running a marathon.
"She came in last. I mean dead last. They were breaking down the race when she crossed the finish line... That's the kind of woman she is."

She may not have had the physical ability of her son, but her sheer will was the stuff of great athletes--and mothers.

The Tillman Story, Amir Bar-Lev's comprehensive and extremely well-executed new documentary about the life, death and white-washing of the fallen Army Ranger, is as much about Pat, as it is about his mom.

Mary never wanted her son to join the army, and when he did she blamed herself for speaking highly of her veteran relatives. But the film paints Pat as a rebel, a free-spirit and a troop leader of a clan of Tillman brothers. It was

Read More »from Mary Tillman: A mother's marathon

These people are happy because they're both from earth and can balance on it like a gender neutral Little Prince. (Thinkstock Images)
Settle down. This is just a theory. But one that's been deduced by a woman with a Ph.D in Cognitive Neuroscience. Cordelia Fine debunks the hypothesis that women and men are hard-wired differently from birth in her new book "Delusions of Gender".

The author runs through the various studies on innate gender differences, from the testosterone level theory to the delicate brain tissue suggestion. One famous study, isolated in the New York Times article on Fine's book, compared male and female reactions in newborns. With findings that showed girl babies looked at faces, while boy babies looked at mobiles, the study implied that females are more empathetic while males are more systematic.

B.S. says Fine. She pokes holes in the research and declares "neuro-sexism" on theories of brain differences between the sexes. The nature vs. nurture argument, to her, is a moot point. It's all nurture.

Another book on gender theory? Yeah. And it's kind of a big deal. If we stop blaming chromosomes

Read More »from Breaking: Men are from Earth, women are from Earth

Things have gotten a little out of hand. Today I got a press release for Dream Yoga Mats. Described as a "calming and serene way to get ones-self prepared for yoga," the email goes on say "these mats are designed with adventure and fun in mind...and a great way to make the yoga lover feel comfortable and stylish at the same time." Intrigued I click on the link to find that they're just regular yoga mats with embroidered peace signs and om symbols. The brand's tag line reads: "Why practice on a blank mat?"

Because yours cost $60.

People have been practicing yoga for thousands of years. Many, on nothing but a slab of stone and dirt. Do we really need to spend a fortune on customized, brightly colored materials to stretch out bodies? Obvious answer alert: NO.

In fact, your own home is equipped with a bunch of items that are just as useful in your "practice" as a Gaiam-certified block. You may have to overlook a sports team logo or a little cat hair, but it's a small price to pay for

Read More »from 5 household items to use as yoga props

The egg recall isn't the only reason many people avoid the breakfast food. (Thinkstock Images)
Like certain foods, some questions really strike a nerve. A few weeks ago, I asked Shine readers to share their biggest food phobias. Responses poured in by the minute. One person wrote: "eggs = dry heaves" another commented: "Onions -- they are slimy & crunchy...........need I say more? They are my food in hell."

The specific items that may have earned us the label of picky eater as a kid are now certifiably "gross" as adults. There's a freedom to not having to like or eat the things we hated as kids. But why don't we like them? And why are some foods so remarkably unpopular?

In the 200-plus comments, these five foods were singled out the most:

• Mushrooms
• Raisins/dried fruits
• Cheese
• Eggs
• Milk

As a member of Team I-Hate-Raisins, I wasn't surprised it made the list. But it was a revelation that the four other items imposed the same kind of gagging and cringing. In particular mushrooms; how could one of my favorite foods inspire such collective nausea? "People Read More »from 5 foods people fear and how to get over it

Metrosexual is a term that describes a man who is physically attracted to women and mentally attracted to musicals, mousse and manicures. Offensive to both homosexual and heterosexuals alike, it implies all gay men are like Jack from "Will and Grace" and all straight men are like Archie Bunker. We're all way over this term right? (Today, The Frisky's Jessica Wakemen actually found a woman who just discovered the trend, possibly because she was living in a deprivation chamber in 2000). But aside from her, we're through with the metro movement. Straight men use hair products and gay men use power tools--big deal.

But wait. I recently stumbled on a breed of man that combines another gay/straight stereotype. A friend was describing her ex-boyfriend in these terms: "He had a vast collection of tea, his playlist was all Ani Difranco, he worked at a food co-op. He was like a hetero male lesbian."

Disclaimer: The "lesbian" she was referring to actually refers to every single

Read More »from Mesbian: The Lesbian Man

Tiger Woods with Teri Hatcher at an even in 2006. Just sayin'. (Lester Cohen/Wire Image)
I give him one month. Look: I made this handy clock to count it down. Anyone want to start a pool? Already he's fielding offers from his coterie of calendar girls. Rachel Uchitel told a friend she'd "give up everything" for a romance with Woods, according to TMZ.com Granted she's hungry for the spotlight but now that Tiger's divorce is final, expect more women to come out of the woodwork. And expect the newly single golfer to single out one of them to settle down with. Stat.

This isn't just the case for the rich and famous. Cheaters don't stay single for long. They rely on relationships for stability, especially when their career is flailing. (Tiger's got his work cut out for him.)
And despite their very best intentions, they need someone to cheat on. It's an addiction with a high that can only be attained when the sex isn't sanctioned. Then there's the theory that they feels so guilty about their cheating impulses, they wants a redo with a new person. Maybe this time, they'll do it

Read More »from How long before Tiger's back in a relationship?

Wilmer with club promoter Noah Tepperberg at NYC's Avenue nightclub (Johnny Nunez/Wire Image)
Still seems to be pretty much the same. A little less famous, a little less au courrant, but still the same playa of 2003. Based on this photo from last week, he's still attending nightclub events with average men, hot models and fancy pizza. Still wearing silly hats and expensively worn in t-shirts. But something is different. Is it a flicker of maturity? No, wait, it's NECK TATTOO. Nice work bro.

More passive aggressive moms for starters...
This is an ad for the new Gucci fragrance "Guilty". (Yes that's Evan Rachel Wood having passionate sex yet again with no apparent backstory. No that's not Marilyn Manson but Chris Evans underneath her). I watched this a few times, like a Where's Waldo, in search of the guilty plot-line. I'm still stupified.Here's the best I came up with:

• Her shoes look painful. Maybe she's guilty for hurting her feet.
• She's parked a car on a construction site, and that's going to make some poor guys work a real pain tomorrow morning.
• She stole that necklace from the guy she was just having sex with. But I'm pretty sure he got it at Hot Topic, so it's not like it's irreplaceable.
• And I guess the two of them are guilty of making people think that sex is a series of neck kisses, hair tosses and blind-shaped shadows--and not the sweaty, humiliating, ape-like pleasure pop it really is. But I'm pretty sure all of that is more

Read More »from What would make Gucci's 'Guilty' perfume commercial guiltier?