What I really wanted to say was, “Go to hell, you b****. You don’t know anything.” I didn’t, and I don’t think I ever have directly said that to anyone. Yet that’s my primitive reaction to being chided as if I am the ignorant one: My wrongheaded enemy must die!…
Some of you who have known me for many years wonder where my interest in personal finance (expressed in my Lose Your Money Blues blog) comes from. I sometimes wonder myself. I like to be tacky and mention dollar figures out loud, and I see your shudders when I do.…
Sadly, my visit was several weeks too early. I went to a cold, rainy place for a week. I’m tired of visiting when the UK weather sucks. No more! I’m not coming back until it can be during some lovely summer weather. Or at least solidly, gently spring. Not the…
You’ve heard of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), haven’t you? It’s when people get depressed and miserable, bulk up on carbs, and can’t do their lives well. But only during the months with the least sunshine, and usually when it’s cold. It’s seasonal because it goes away without therapy as soon…
Sometimes, ideas can come from the strangest places. For nearly a year, I’ve been writing a novel of the Tudor court, covering the endlessly fascinating period when Henry VIII broke with Pope Clement in order to marry Anne Boleyn. So far I’ve read more than two dozen scholarly books on…
Shaun Usher has a site, Letterheady, that has letterhead from a wide variety of interesting sources. I’ve submitted a piece of old Wonder Woman stationery I found while working at DC Comics. When I was in the business, I was shocked to see person after person dumping reams–yes, actual reams–of…
Several times recently people have asked me questions that have brought back a key moment with my father. When I received my subscription copy of Hawkman #18, I discovered that in addition to the usual lettercolumn page that I always was eager to read, an entire page was devoted to…
I will never be seen in this blouse. Why? Because even before the first day I wore it, I saw a young woman who must weigh about 100 pounds more than I do wearing the same blouse. I had bought the blouse, which as you can see is in the…
Last night I watched a few minutes of an episode of the TV show “Big Bang Theory,” in which Stan Lee played himself while wearing a bathrobe that he must have stolen from Reed Richards–it had the Fantastic Four symbol on it. Silly stuff. The fanboys desperate for his autograph…
I am an uncertified decluttering expert. I go through old family stuff and newer family stuff, and friends’ stuff, and then of course there’s my own stuff, too. There is a difference between keeping clutter and keeping tokens of memory or hope. If you took a trip to Paris when…
