Today, I’m going to reverse myself a bit about the value of women’s magazines. No, I still don’t want to read another article on how to organize my closet or kitchen. I don’t want to be reminded of how to spot ovarian or breast cancer or more advice on how to diet successfully

There’s a battered blue mail box, shaped like a bread container, that leans precariously on a post on a busy street not far from my home. For a number of years, I never knew its purpose. One day a friend told me it was a citizen’s lending library — a place where folks leave

James C. Scott, a Yale political science professor, has just published, Two Cheers for Anarchism. In it, he invites readers to consider the possibility that the greatest gains for human freedom have come not from the orderly exercise of democracy but from the “disorderly unpredictab

Last month, my mother celebrated her 97th birthday. As a special treat, an acquaintance, the proprietor of a restaurant, offered to prepare a special meal in honor of the event. I thought it would be a wonderful treat, but as they say, no good deed goes unpunished. When the proprietor

Bestselling author, Elizabeth Berg wrote in an essay, “I don’t believe an online relationship is a relationship – not a real one.” (“The Case for Face,” by Elizabeth Berg, Good Housekeeping, April 2013, pg. 121.) The statement caught my eye because of a recent exchange I�

The actor, Dustin Hoffman, now 75, recently made the observation that “as the body becomes more limited, the soul expands.” Life, he proclaims should be about “finding that thing that the very idea of just fills you.” (“Dustin Calls the Shots. Finally.” By Meg Grant, AARP

Today marks a celebration. Today this blog begins its 4th year. Given that I write 5 days a week (M-F) on the written word and life, that feels like no small accomplishment.  The virtual world is a scary and crowded place. Launching a blog feels like arriving at the Hollywood Oscars

A woman on my Facebook page shared an article on the 7 mistakes a beginning blogger makes. They include believing that writing well will bring readers, or that having a well designed webpage is important, or that writing every day counts. The author also sneers at what he considers an

There’s another book out to tell us how to live happier if not longer lives: Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way by Don Buettner. He lists 10 suggestions which aren’t new but probably bear repeating, though I don’t agree with all of them. They include living in certain

We have a bookstore in my town which, despite the growth of Amazon, has survived. One reason is customer loyalty. Where I live, the natives like to think local. I am not a fan of the store, though I do buy books there. I was proud of them once, when Salman Rushdie was targeted for dea