Everyone should have a hobby. That's what my grandmother said. She believed "Busy hands were happy hands"; and if I didn't keep my hands busy, she'd tell me "Idle hands do the Devil's work".
To prove she had the patients of a saint Grandmother taught me how to knit. Then all I wanted to do was hang out with my friends, but now I understand. When one of my days is turned upside down by a car...
Bargains come in all shapes and sizes. When I was in junior high, a boy gave me a going-steady ring, which I euphemistically called a friendship ring so my mother would let me wear it. Although the ring turned my finger green just about the time we were both ready to move on to greener pastures, Sam had definitely gotten more than he paid for because the ring still smelled like bubblegum.
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An adage is a time-tested truism, but some adages don't ad up anymore. "A penny saved is a penny earned" has deflated in meaning because of inflation.
"Penny-wise and pound foolish" is an English adage. Here it would be more effective as an ad for Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig. Another truism about money is "A fool and his money are soon parted". This one must explain Las Vegas.
Then...
Jenny Craig, NutriSystem and Weight Watchers are all established names in the diet business, but Jenny Craig took a risk. She put her name on her program. Now she has to put all her weight behind her program and none on her hips.
Programs, packaged food, pills - because we do it over and over again, you'd think dieting would get easier. Eat less and exercise more. It sounds easy. Of course,...
I used to think naps were a luxury - one I could afford, but wouldn't make me fat. Latinos take siestas and Japanese have inemuri; but my Puritan heritage made me feel guilty about napping because I wasn't accomplishing anything.
Well, yes I was. A recent newspaper article reported that naps help fight cardiovascular disease. They allow us to recharge our batteries. When we're stuck in...
If you live in Southern California and you're not in therapy, you just haven't realized you have problems. I'm in therapy - self-therapy. Appointments always coincide with my schedule, I can afford it and I have a variety of different therapies to offer myself.
There's the newspaper therapy. I count the number of obituaries and realize being over the hill is a lot better than being under...
If clothes make the man, dressing for success is done one pant leg at a time. A scientist needs a white lab coat. Both male and female executives need to be well coiffed in tailored suits, but the female executive has a chip on her shoulder from hitting her head on the glass ceiling. Politicians, with their hands out and talking out both sides of their mouths, should wear conservative suits...
My grandmother loved familiar sayings and one of her favorites was "You can't have your cake and eat it too". Hopefully, she didn't share that with brides. If a bride puts a piece of wedding cake under her pillow, her dreams are meant to come true. Because I eloped, that wouldn't have worked for me. I didn't have a wedding cake. Even if I did, I wouldn't have dared to put a piece of cake under...
Who knew wines in screw-top bottles would become acceptable to knowledgeable wine drinkers? These are the same people who had to adjust to plastic corks. No wonder they drink.
My husband is a knowledgeable wine drinker. He knows what years produced good grapes and what wineries are best for which wines. I don't. If I like a like a wine, I'll buy it again. If I can't remember its name, I...
"Jobs Americans Won't Do" has been in the news a lot lately; and I admit it - there are jobs I won't do.
I won't be a high-rise window washer. My fear of height overrides my desire to peek in windows.
To the other extreme, I won't be an oceanographer - the kind who explores the deeps in a little submarine. I'm claustrophobic. Even if I weren't, I wouldn't be an oceanographer. Ever since...
