My cousin-once-removed asked me about meditation, so here's my story. I started with guided meditation when I was in my mid-twenties. I liked listening to someone else's voice as it led me through a visualization exercise that helped me relax and feel completely...
As of July 24, 2016 I am 50 years old and I feel like I've finally reached my prime. (Cake was yellow layers with buttercream frosting on the outside and mango mousse on the inside. It was from Swedish Bakery in Chicago.)
As I get closer to my 50th birthday on July 24th, I'm getting tired of people trying to tell me I'm not old. They obstinately don't understand that for me old is good. I have always been happy to get a year older because I experienced no great benefit to being young,...
I hardly know why news providers like the L.A. Times do stories like Americans could prevent roughly half of all cancer deaths by doing these four things. We know we should stop smoking, drink less alcohol, exercise regularly and achieve and maintain a "healthful...
It's an extremely American desire to own a home, and often we think the bigger, the better. Americans love large, sprawling pieces of real estate that we can stuff full of physical possessions (and our children's physical possessions) and the ultimate American dream...
I have friends who won't invite anyone over because their place is a mess. As a big party hostess, I know the joy they're missing out on by never having people over, plus living with the anxiety that someone might just stop by unannounced (horror). No one should let...
Next July 24th will be my 50th birthday. It falls on a Sunday, which is actually the day I was born back in 1966. I considerately arrived in the daytime, so my birth didn't wake anyone up or keep anyone awake into the night. I admit that I made my parents miss church...
Last week I got all excited because my period was late and I fantasized that I'd entered menopause and was never going to menstruate again. Anyone who thinks menopause is very uncomfortable and I'm crazy to want it, here are two points: 1. Menstruation with fibroids...
My 28-day cycle ended earlier this week. Wednesday should have been day one of my period, but it didn't happen. It still hasn't happened. It's so wonderful to not get my period! Is it possible that I've finally reached menopause? Oh, I hope so. I would love it if I...
Most of my life I went around feeling afraid of many things: friendship, male attention, physical pain, family members, children, people being nice to me, etc. It made sense for me to try to look intimidating and stand-offish, so people would leave me alone. I kept a...
We Americans grow up with kid-focused holidays such as Halloween and Christmas where everything is for kids: candy, decorations, special clothes, parties and games. Christmas traditions in the U.S. were originally established primarily to celebrate childhood (and make...
Most sexual assault (93%) is committed by a single criminal, but in case you want to be ready for multiple attackers, here's the self defense course for you. IMPACT Defense Against Multiple Assailants October 17 & 18 (Sat/Sun 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) Knapp Center...
Previous post on weight & health: Physical vs. emotional Last November I cut grains, sugar, dairy and caffeine out of my diet. That means that on most days of the week I didn't indulge in any of those things, but periodically I had each of them in turn as the...
I was at a party on Saturday, talking with a group of women who were all over the age of 50. One of them had recently recovered from a terrible bout of food poisoning. It had taken her the entire summer to regain her full health because of complications. She looked...
I'm not talking about arming yourself with a weapon. I'm talking about arming yourself with the physical skills to protect yourself against assault. Here's why it makes more sense to learn self-defense moves than buy a gun: A gun can be separated from you, but you'll...