City Fashion New School York

She is teaming up with other celebrities to give back to the community in a wildly popular, annual non-profit event.Jaslene will host The CW Washington DC "Teens Count" High School Fashion Battle, while the judging is handled by singer/actress Taraji Henson of Hustle and Flow fame, and style guru Paul Wharton, whose credits include MTV's "Made", VH-1's "The Agency", The CW's "Top Model Makeover and TV Land's upcoming model show, "She's Got The Look".Teens Count is a non-profit organization whose mission is providing rewarding experiences for local area youth who are interested in pursuing a career in the performing arts.This very popular non-profit produces the annual Fashion Show competition where local high schools compete to win a grand prize that among other things includes a New York City trip to meet Kimora Lee Simmons, model, author and CEO of the Baby Phat urban clothing and accessories empire.The celebrities all see the event as a way to provide incentive for aspiring youth to achieve some of their personal and business goals.

Local musicians strike chord against hunger

Every week, two local meals programs do their part to help combat hunger in the region.

Now, several local musicians are pitching in for the cause. They are volunteering their talents for a Concert Against Hunger on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the main sanctuary at First Religious Society, Unitarian Universalist, 26 Pleasant St., Newburyport.

Flamenco guitarist John Tavano of Groveland, who frequently performs in Newburyport; Byfield cellist Kristen Miller, who is known for turning the classical instrument on its head; singer-songwriter Teresa Storch, and the bluegrass band the Pine Hill Ramblers take the stage for the benefit show.

Chris Hyde of Amesbury and Alicia Robinson-Raddatz of Newton, N.H., teamed up to organize the concert.

"There are increasing numbers of people in our communities who are struggling, and the network of meals programs in the lower Merrimack Valley need all the help they can get to support their mission," Hyde said in a press release.

How Email Brings You Closer to the Guy in the Next Cubicle

Maybe it's because society hasn't wholeheartedly accepted the idea of working remotely. Or perhaps communications technology just isn't all it's hyped up to be. After all, the journalists and consultants who tell us that location is insignificant are biased. Like me, they're the people whose lives have been most transformed by the Internet and cell phones.

But I think the truth is more profound than either of those glib explanations: Technology makes it more fun and more profitable to live and work close to the people who matter most to your life and work. Harvard economist Ed Glaeser, an expert on city economies, argues that communications technology and face-to-face interactions are complements like salt and pepper, rather than substitutes like butter and margarine. Paradoxically, your cell phone, email, and Facebook networks are making it more attractive to meet people in the flesh.