Almond Joy Pastels and a Muted Spring

As a rule, one anticipates Spring as the rebirth of color in nature, and fashion, sensing our winter doldrums, follow suit. Hmmm! So far, Spring '08 is a bit of a thud. Like last Fall's Spring '08 couture collections, there is a lot of black, white and neutrals. Unlike the shows under the tents, I am not yet seeing the pops of vibrant color that saved the collections from being just plain funereal! Oh well, maybe the fire-cracker colors will emerge for Summer. In the meanwhile, my best advice for Spring '08, so far: unless you like the Jordan Almond muted pastels, pass on Spring and when it is marked down in July-August, buy it for Fall- black, white, neutral and dusty pastels work better in the Autumn.

To heel or not to heel?

Whenever we write about high heels and how treacherous they can be on your feet and joints, we always have several readers who comment that -- pain or no pain -- they'll never give up their heels. Fair enough. After all, we all have our vices and there are worse things to love than shoes. But if you're going to wear them, at least try to minimize the damage with these 5 tips from WebMD: Go for the best fit. Make sure there's plenty of room for your feet, but not so much that your toes slide forward leaving too much room at your heel. Invest in inserts, or better yet silicone metatarsal pads to cushion the ball of your foot. Wear a thicker heel and alternate heel heights on different days. Look for a gradually sloping heel. Choose open-toe shoes to take the pressure of your toes (and corns and callouses). So there you go. Go out and wear those sassy new shoes ... just don't tell your podiatrist we said so. From AOL:Posted: Oct 9th 2007 6:30AM by Bethany Sanders Filed under: General Health, Women's Health

Calling All Cheaters One billboard's message is causing commuter chaos Recently, L.A. drivers faced more than daily traffic jams. "Life is Short, Have an Affair" reads the attention-grabbing headline on a Southern California billboard. The advertisement was posted by a dating Web Site, which caters to married folks. Protesters insist the billboard promotes adultery and are calling for its removal. By now, you know I am all for turning a lot of manners and mores back about 40 years, but here is the question: What do You Think about this?

Five Beauty Sins- From AOL!

Five Beauty Sins From the Editors at Netscape The Five Biggest Beauty Sins Sometimes looking good is just as much about what you don't do as what you do. But if you chew on your cuticles or use a hair dryer every day, it's time to hit the confessional. You're committing a beauty sin! Cosmopolitan magazine has issued a list of the eight biggest beauty sins. We have five of them here. Who among us has not committed at least one of these? Now is the time to repent! Beauty Sin No. 1: Chewing on Your Cuticles It may seem like just a little nibble, but torn cuticles lead to hangnails and that can lead to an infection. Jessica Vartoughian, owner of Jessica Nail Clinic in Los Angeles, told Cosmo the trick is to keep the skin around the nails moisturized. She recommends rubbing a thick cream or oil onto your cuticles daily and massaging them with an exfoliatorevery few days. Beauty Sin No. 2: Changing Your Hair Color Too Frequently It's fine to change your hair color or tint occasionally, but if you dye your hair too often, it will make the strands weak -- not to mention the identity crisis you'll get when you go from blonde to red to brunette in a matter of weeks. Pantene celebrity colorist Rita Hazan told Cosmopolitan that darker shades are less damaging to your hair since you aren't stripping away natural pigment. A permanent dye can be used safely once every four weeks, while an ammonia-free, semi-permanent formula can be used once every three weeks. Just remember to get an excellent conditioner and use it frequently! Beauty Sin No. 3: Going To Bed Without First Washing Your Face Falling asleep with eye makeup on does not only give you puffy bags when you awaken, can also lead to infection. New York City dermatologist Patricia Wexler says layers of foundation, concealer and blush clog up your pores and keep your skin from breathing. Even if you don't wear makeup, you still need to wash your face before bed to rid it of oil and dirt. Here's an idea: Use pre-moistened face wipes. Beauty Sin No. 4: Getting a Fake Tan Do we even have to say it? Those ultraviolet-A rays that are emitted primarily from tanning-bed bulbs are also known as "aging rays." They will actually penetrate connective tissue, which leads to premature aging. And if that's not enough, UVA rays have also been linked to skin cancer. Just get your tan from a bottle. It's safe... and believable. Beauty Sin No. 5: Using Too Much Heat On Your Hair Put down the hair dryer, curling iron and flatiron now and no one will get hurt. These instruments of hair torture will not only dry out your hair, but also leave it dull, frizzy and weak. Joico artist Anthony Morrison, owner of the Londoner Salon in Los Angeles, told Cosmo you should use a medium heat and speed setting when drying your hair and keep the nozzle a few inches away from your head. When using a flatiron, slide it quickly down your hair, and release the curling iron after five seconds. Protect your hair with a moisturizing shampoo and heat protector spray.

Autumn in New York

In spite of cursing my way through the summer and early fall of The Worst traffic I have ever seen in Manhattan, yesterday was the kind of a day that reminded me why I live here. Our Neighbor, the talented Melanie Herman, had produced a new play, Mud Donahue and Son. Not only were Marc and I thrilled by the performance in a small intimate theatre, but then we went to a cast party and met the two leads, Karen Murphy and Shonn Wiley (and his beautiful wife actress Meredith Patterson). To walk home was made all the harder by the fact that 5th Ave. was hosting the annual Polish Day Parade. In a metropolitan population of 12 million+, you would be surprised how many Polish people and organizations there are, so we saw colorful costumes and heard great music. Stuffed from the cast party, i still HAD to stop at the Lexington Avenue Street Fair and buy a Swiss cheese and mushroom crepe for dinner, which was very early, as was bedtime. Even city folk can tire from too much fun! Here is a review for you theatre lovers. October 2007 Review by John Kenrick Despite high hopes, the New York Musical Theatre Festival has become an annual excuse for self-indulgent, amateurish projects with no hint of commercial potential to strut and fret their way across some of this town's least desirable stages. So it was a genuine surprise to find the festival offering something as fresh, heartfelt, and downright delightful as Mud Donahue & Son, a powerful two-hander that gives this writer renewed hope for musical theatre. Although rooted in theatrical history, it is one hundred percent new. What a joy it is to have a new musical worth cheering for! And glory be, instead of making fun of musical theatre, this delicious show actually glorifies it! Jack Donahue was a real life vaudeville hoofer who rose to stardom on Broadway in the 1920s, only to drink himself to death at age 39 just as Hollywood offered him a chance to appear in early sound films. Shortly before his death, he published a collection of letters that he exchanged with his beloved Irish-American mother (his "Mud") during his first year touring in smalltime vaudeville. Those letters form the basis for Mud Donahue & Son, which is essentially a song and dance dialogue between the town-hopping Jack and his mother back home. Jeff Hochhauser has fashioned a tight libretto that converts this interchange into very effective theatre, allowing these two characters to speak without imposing any hint of contemporary pop psychology. He also fits in a solid taste of what a vaudevillian's life was like, and fits in deft references to major performers of that era, including a wry mention of Donahue's future Broadway co-star Marilyn Miller. But fear not -- what could all too easily have been a dry history lesson is instead a first-rate dramatic piece packed with human interest. Composer Bob Johnston provides an ongoing parade of fine, memorable melodies that deftly utilize period styles -- and both Hochhauser and Johnston are credited with the well-crafted lyrics that make every song a key part of the storytelling process. In a two character piece, casting is vital, and one would he hard pressed to find a more gifted duo than this. Shonn Wiley has the dazzling looks and talent to bring Jack Donahue to life with extraordinary flair. One of the best hoofers in the business today, Wiley delivers show-stopping dance routines ("The Shadow" and "Tap Drunk" are standouts) that are surprisingly equaled by the power of his character's ongoing battle with alcoholism. Karen Murphy plays Mrs. Donahue as a life-hardened but loving Irish-American mother, sidestepping any hint of caricature to deliver a believable, flesh and blood character. A gifted Broadway veteran, she gets her own show-stopping moment in "So the Old Dog Has Come Home," a powerhouse ballad that marks the end of her hard-drinking husband's latest bender. There is a warm and moving chemistry between these two performers that makes Mud Donahue & Son one of the real theatrical joys of the year. A heap of praise goes to Lynne Taylor-Corbett for crystal clear direction and glorious period-perfect choreography -- including some socko tap choreography, which is also partially credited to Mr. Wiley. This bare-bones festival production boasts a simple set by James Morgan, colorful costumes by David Toser and sleek lighting by Jason Kantrowitz -- all good enough to make one yearn for a more fully realized staging of this show. Mud Donahue & Son is just plain wonderful! I hope and pray that it lands a commercial run and earns its joyously deserved place in the musical theatre repertory. Oh, what a find this show is for companies in need of an intimate crowd pleaser -- and what a find it is for theatregoers in search of a walloping good time! Back to main page

We're Back!

To call this post 'How I spent my summer vacation' would be to take entirely too much credit for this wonderful book. My husband and I co-wrote it! FINALLY, this afternoon, I get the last cast removed from the left hand surgery that sent me on hiatus in July, so you know Marc did all the typing, most of the writing and listened to me whine about how slowly and badly my hand was healing! OK, I am one of the world's worst patients- pull the stuffing out of casts, unwrap bandages to take a 'peek' at how everything is coming along, and have to re-do any bandage that gets dirty, as in, a drop of spaghetti sauce. But, it is almost 3 months and I am glad to be back. There is so much fashion news, most of it what I hated at the collections, a story in itself. As I sat at one particularly annoying fashion show, I began to get chest pains and thought there was no way they could get the stretcher through the crowds. Imagining the obit, "Fashionista Finds Gottex Show to Die For...", I decided it was heartburn, but I like the story better with a diagnosis of AGITA FASHIONITIS! More later. Writers, friends, relatives, neighbors, can find our book at: writerivetingprose.com

Rumor of Our Death Premature

Hi Everyone. Rita and I have been the two posting slugs, due to a series of things- mostly hatching plans for several spin off blogs due out by Fall. So please accept our apologies. This has been a minor, but annoying surgury six months and Rita had a few bad reactions- she has one abdominal surgury to go and that should be a piece of cake and I have one hand surgery which is really one literally bent out of shape finger, but with a five week cast, guaranteed to make my typing even worse. Then it is clear sailing to our first anniversary and some new formats and markets. Happy summer and is'nt grand that we all survived Paris' trevails. The New York Post, known for their witty headlines rand: PARIS RELEASED; BIMBOS REJOICE!Loved it.

Jamie Lee Curtis Blasts Paris Hilton's Mom, Others

MONDAY JUNE 11, 2007 03:20 PM EDT (People Magazine Online) By Emily Fromm Curtis and Hilton Add another voice to the chorus weighing in on Paris Hilton's latest travails: Jamie Lee Curtis. In an essay on The Huffington Post titled "Mom, It's Not Right!" (which refers to Hilton's outburst as she was ordered back to jail last week) the 48-year-old actress slams the lack of parental guidance given to Hilton and others of her generation. "It was a painful episode to watch," Curtis writes. "A young woman, begging her mother, the person who should have taught her right from wrong, to help her, to teach her the rules of life. It was a little too late. And so she wept as the Universe was bringing the teaching and settling the score." Curtis, who has a daughter, Annie, 20, and a son, Thomas, 11, with husband Christopher Guest, is no stranger to being young in Hollywood: The daughter of actors Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, she made her film debut in 1978's Halloween at age 20. (She's also Jake Gyllenhaal's godmother.) But she says today's celebs are lacking guidance: "The sad paths of the three most popular young women" – Hilton and, presumably, Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears – "have ended in prison, rehab and mental illness. I hope their mothers are worried sick and wondering, 'What could I have done differently?' And our culture should be asking the same question too." Parents her age, she says, are more concerned with being friends with their kids than teaching them important lessons. "We were the generation who applauded every move they made. Every step they took. 'Good climbing, Brandon' was our hue and cry. We were raised by people who didn't 'understand' us and now we don't 'understand' why our children are so messed up." She concludes: "Can we take the wrenching sight of Paris asking her mother, 'why?' and ask it of ourselves? ... Wake up, Mothers, and smell the denial."

Set Your Summer SALES!

Oh Yes, you can almost smell it in the retail air...time to dump all the Spring/Summer '07 inventory and make way for Fall. Usually these sales start around July 5th and Fall comes in in August. But, with Spring having shown in stores in early February snowstorms, and Christmas in July right around the corner, who can imagine what drives retailers to want to show itchy cashmere in a heat wave, but they will. Prediction: Summer Sales will start before July 1 and by late July-early August, you can find steals in the left-overs. Spring suits and dresses are often very nice in Fall and Winter, just more colorful, which is refreshing, and you working people who dress up more will get great buys in this category. Further nifty finds will be available in after-five clothes, where black and white and lace dominated for Spring as it will for Holiday. Here is, however, the big caveat. Do not just go into the store and grab and buy anything that is a steal, for that is a sure way to end up with a closet full of items, and 'nothing to wear'. Think about what you wore this year and what you will be happy to find, brand new, next year. Think if you have things to go with the item, or if you are willing to build a new category, suvch as lemon yellow, my personal true love. Here are some '07 trends that are not one season honeys, but will look good for years to come: - Nautical(R-W-B by any other name- always good) - White - Black and White - Lemon Yellow - Walk shorts - Linen, pique, seersucker, especially if there is STRETCH - Cut-work, eyelet, crochet - Asian - Lace - Spectator - Sheer - Polka dots - Walking shoes Happy Hunting!

THE LAST TIME I SAW PARIS...

...was not long enough. Five days and this dizzy, maybe dangerous dame, slightly brighter than Mme. Tussaud's waxwork of her in stripes, is out of jail. I say dangerous because the entire group of girls and boys behaving badly for endless press attention, seems to have adopted drunk driving as a new sport. Then there is the trial, the expensve lawyers and the aftermath. My personal faves are the stories of the hangnail that led to an oxy-codeine addiction, which upsets the stomach unless followed by massive quantities of tequila. OK...maybe I will start a separate blog for modern manners, but this is 9000th time, and probably not the last time I will say this; WHAT HAPPENED TO GOOD MANNERS, DECORUM AND KEEPING YOUR SEX LIFE PRIVATE? Ms. Hilton did not like the sex-based jokes being told about her at an awards show right before she went to jail and made a haughty, "I'm too well-bred for this trash" face. Did her mother never tell her that well-bred girls do not have naked pictures and the details of their endless love-affairs all over the tabloids? What Greek Jillionaire's Mom and Dad want to welcome that into the family? Duh...there, I said it.

Lindsay Blinking Lohan

What is the hoopla with this 20 year old addict who looks 35? She allegedly hit a photographer with the bumper of her car in March and now has been arrested on a DUI, where the substance of Influence found in the car is cocaine. Yet, I for one, will not be surprised to see her bailed out to continue her spiral of self-destruction until she takes someone else out with her. Her co-stars in her new movie deny reports of endless trouble on the set. Underfed- looking Felicity Huffman says Lohan's performance will make people forget all her 'scrapes'- that will have to be some performance. In the picture on our spinning cube, Jane Fonda looks like she smells something unpleasant- hmmmm- something not macrobiotic, Jane? Bratty girls behaving badly is old news and we are, as a nation, sick of it, if I read the mood in the air correctly!

Call Me Mellow Yellow

In a season of few surprises, Yellow has been a rare exception for Spring/Summer 2007. Predicted to be THE big color for the warm seasons of 2008, Yellow has jumped the gun and been a top seller everywhere. Perhaps one reason is that the particular yellow in question is a soft lemon drop yellow, no the louder golden yellow or duller chamois yellow of seasons past. Anyone who ever glanced at Color Me Beautiful knows that 65%(or more) of Americans are cool seasonal colorings and can only wear the softer lemons, ergo, they sell much better. Ahem. did I mention it is one of my 3 favorite colors? I am a happy camper. Yellow is a color that denotes optimism, openness, cheerfullness and a happy disposition. GO YELLOW!

QVC Fashion Day: Same 'Ole Thing or Big News?

I love a Fashion Day on either QVC or HSN and buy too much. This year, the TSV, a splotchy looking linen long shirt or short dress with tee, was, for me, highly resistible. Further, there were the usual retreads of tee-shirts, cropped pants in summer fabrics and old TSV's that did not sell. Some trends did, however, emerge as new and interesting. Preppy, yellow( expected to be big in '08- it beat the clock), floral, retro 70's, sheer, paisley, lace, cut work/ eyelet,, spectator, Asian, walk-shorts, polka dots, black and white and embellished were strong. Of these, only the few bolded trends seemed really new, and all in all, it is a good season to wait for sales. QVC is not great on sales, however, so buy it now, if you like it, or wait 5 years for a 15% markdown. For me, most interesting are the newest blends of linen and lyocell, silk and cotton sateen with wrinkle and stain resistant treatments and stretch in everything from seersucker and pique to leather and suede! In 2007, the real fashion news is in natural fibers meeting the best of man-made fibers. Fabric, Fabric, Fabric, Darlings!

To Blonde or Not to Blonde- Selma Blair?

Selma Blair is beautiful who seems to like attention from doing things to be less so! Like many brown-eyed Winter-coloring women, she tried to be a blond- this is a JUMBO NO-NO! Two things Winters should avoid like the plague: blond hair and beige clothing. The classic Mediterranean Winter- light to medium olive skin, brown eyes and dark hair, has a beautiful and dramatic, medium contrast coloring. Make the hair blond and you have the ultimate anomaly- a woman without a season. Blonds are either Summers or Springs- Summers are very delicate with ash tones in the hair and light, pinkish skin that sunburns easily. Springs are a warm season with ivory or peach skin, bright colored eyes and strawberry or other warm blond tones. A brown eyed woman with olive skin fits in neither category. Years ago, I read some good advice in Woman's Day: keep your hair within it's natural form, which meant no dramatic color shifts and no straightening or perming to change the complete structure of the hair. A few highlights are one thing, but the above picture is an example of awful vs. wonderful!

Leather Weather

Burnished metallics are a great look this year. Pewter is the new black; bronze is the new brown. Designers are putting together nifty little knockout leather jackets and shirts like the Terry Lewis jacket pictured here. A simple yet elegant style that will give your fall wardrobe a boost. Perk up the metallic by pairing it with a soft sleeveless turleneck sweater in a different color - try one of Mossimo's soft tissue-weight sleeveless cowl-necks in slate blue. A sleeveless turtleneck is a great option to maximize your look without adding bulk under the sleeves, particularly if your upper arms are a bit heavy. Back to main page

Real Trends for Real Women- Summer 2007

Last Fall, we looked at the Spring "07 Collections and tried to pick the few things we thought would translate to real customers. Well, here they are- most of them repeats, with Nautical as the runaway winner for the season. On trend with the season,these are nevertheless classic styles which will not make you look like 'last year' next year! • Nautical • Black & White • Menswear-Inspired • Asian-Inspired • Dresses • Florals • Knee-Length Shorts • Metallics • Glamour and Glitz • Embellishment • Animal Prints/Safari • New Shapes from Denim In Color, while Black and White are dominant again, either White or Black alone are also strong. As a very pale person, I like the contrast of black in the Summer, and like to see the contrast of white on women with darker skin- it is elegant. The Collections' biggest contribution in color is a neutral palette. Yellow has popped out of nowhere as a top seller and will be strong for next year. • Red-White-Blue • Black & White • All Black • All white • RED • Lemon yellow, Pinks and Seafoam • Neutrals like Beige, Khaki, Cream and Taupe • Gray and Silver • New Greens- soft, mid-tone Leaf, Celedon and Loden- less bright yellow greens • Brown • Coral, Turquoise and Hot Pink • Denim, in it's Many Shades

Shoes 2007- The Ugly year

I am going to do a piece on the shoes I actually thought looked comfortable, pretty and flattering, as soon as I find enough of them! However, the shoes pictured above range in price from $28 to $400 and are all alike in one of two ways- unflattering or unwearable. This year's trendiest shoes seem to fall into a handful of predictable categories: - MaryJanes and Ankle straps to make you look shorter and wider - Heels and Soles so high you need altitude masks and a lot of ace bandags - Of Human Bondage shoes that make the foot look like a prisoner of pain - Frumpy shoes that make a teenager look old - Clunky shoes that would make Betty Grable's legs look bad - Overdone shoes that could not match anything you own - Flats so flat, I guarantee you will walk like Charlie Chaplin - Shoes so Retro, you wonder who invited them back What ever happened to sane shoes, pretty shoes, walking shoes good for your feet, leggy shoes, party shoes that do not cause a neuroma from height?????

Five Foods For Weight Loss?????

Remember the old grapefruit diet? You ate 3 protein meals a day, always proceeded by grapefruit. As I recall, 2 meals were 2 eggs and the third meal was a small steak and a half tomato, after the half grapefruit. In 2 weeks, you were supposed to lose fifteen pounds! Well, look at iVillage's Fab Five and read why that diet may have worked. See what you can incorporate into your nutrition scheme- the fact that Summer is around the corner, makes this a big deal for most of us! I do not like tea, but am going to have to drink it- any smart ideas about getting a lot of green tea into my system would be appreciated- does it have to be hot? Can I make a huge amount and chill it? Meanwhile, off to the store for pumpkin and sardines... "Some foods make it really difficult to lose weight. They create their own self-sustaining cravings ("Betcha can't eat just one!") and play havoc with your blood sugar and, ultimately, your waistline. But other foods do just the opposite. You might have heard that broccoli and blueberries can help you shed pounds. Well, here are some other tasty options that will fuel you up and generate weight loss. Make these foods a part of your daily diet and watch the pounds come slipping off. 1) Grapefruit. Ever tried the grapefruit diet? Turns out there may be some good research to back up grapefruit's reputation as a fat fighter. In a recent study at the Scripps Clinic in La Jolla, California, researchers studied the effect of grapefruit on weight loss and found that eating half a grapefruit before a meal can actually help people drop weight. The researchers studied the effect of grapefruit capsules, grapefruit juice and real grapefruit. All three seemed to help, but the folks eating the real grapefruit got the best results. The mechanism isn't completely understood, but the results speak for themselves. As an added benefit, grapefruit contains cancer-fighting compounds like liminoids and lycopene, and red grapefruit has been shown to help lower triglycerides. And half a grapefruit has only 39 calories. 2) Sardines. Sardines might just be one of the greatest health bargains of all time, and they're a boon to anyone wanting to lose weight. First of all, sardines are loaded with protein, which helps stabilize blood sugar, makes you feel full and helps stimulate metabolism. Second, they're a great source of omega-3s, which not only strengthen the cardiovascular system but also are helpful in boosting mood. (And when you're in a good mood, you tend to crave less junk food!) Third, sardines are convenient, easy to find and cheap. And because they're very low on the food chain, they're remarkably free of contaminants. 3) Pumpkin. You may know this vegetable for its central role in Thanksgiving celebrations, but it's also one of the greatest weight-loss foods ever. Plain old canned pumpkin is absolutely loaded with fiber and has a mere 40 calories. Dozens of studies confirm that high fiber intake is associated with a host of health benefits, including weight management. Pumpkin is also the easiest food in the world to prepare. You can sweeten it with Xylitol or Splenda, sprinkle it with blood-sugar-lowering cinnamon and nutmeg for good measure, throw in some healthy almonds and make it one of the best tasting weight-loss treats around. It's filling and delicious. 4) Grass-Fed Beef. I'll be honest with you: Meat is a great diet food... that is, if it doesn't contain antibiotics, steroids and hormones. Eat grass-fed beef and avoid the health concerns that go along with eating meat while getting all the terrific benefits. Buffalo burgers are a good alternative if you can't find grass-fed beef. High-protein diets are associated with weight loss for a variety of reasons: Protein stimulates metabolism, helps you feel full longer and helps decrease the desire to overeat. Grass-fed beef has a high omega-3 content, giving you multiple health benefits into the bargain. 5) Green Tea. This natural weight-loss stimulant might not be a food, but green tea is still a great slimming solution, not to mention that it's rich in antioxidants, promotes heart health, aids digestion and regulates blood sugar and body temperature. It raises the metabolic rate and speeds up fat oxidation, thus helping people lose weight. Drink it daily to boost your metabolism. Some research has shown that five cups a day is the magic number for fat loss. As an added benefit, the theanine in green tea is also a great natural de-stressor." Back to main page

3 Tips to Fight Computer Fatigue

I found this WISDOM on Realage.com, one of my long-time favorites: Does logging on give you headaches, blurred vision, and dry eyes? Fight back with these tips. Make sure your eyes look down slightly when you work. Look away from your screen every half hour, and focus on something 20 feet away. And leave your desk completely once every hour to give your eyes a break from the screen. Here's why. High-Tech Health Syndrome Our ancestors roamed the Serengeti with their sights set on the horizon. We sit at desks all day staring at a computer screen. The result for many: computer fatigue syndrome. It causes eyestrain, dizziness, headaches, low energy, and neck, back, and shoulder pain. Remember the Three Rs Working or playing on the computer for more than 3 hours a day increases your odds of the condition. So remember the three Rs: Readjust (your screen, that is -- so your eyes look down); refocus (your eyes -- on something far away, once in a while); and remove (your whole body -- from your workstation, now and then). And, what the heck, blink once in a while, too, to help keep your eyes moist.

Heroes or Enemies? Courage Has No Line!

A great deal of the earliest and best footage OF THE MASSACRE AT VT came from a very handsome young grad student who was originally from Palestine, and whose notable family had moved to Saudi Arabia to escape the violence, only to see an explosion there. He had chosen Virginia Tech and fallen in love with Blacksburg because it was so peaceful and safe. He filmed as bullets flew, knowing that this nightmare needed to to recorded, in spite of police warnings for his safety. He appears articulate, gentle, grounded and a civilized and compassionate young man. AOL Reports a story of an elderly, heroic professor who willingly died to protect his young students, "Israeli professor and Holocaust survivor sacrificed his own life to save the lives of countless students during the carnage Monday at Virginia Tech. Liviu Librescu, 76, blocked the doorway to his classroom with his body and told the students to flee. He was shot through the door by gunman Cho Seung-Hui, "but all the students lived because of him,” Virginia Tech student Asael Arad said. Librescu was beginning a class on solid mechanics when he and his students heard gunshots in the classroom next door on the second floor of Norris Hall. When the sound of gunfire drew closer, the professor braced himself against the door, holding it shut against the gunman in the hall, the New York Daily news reports. That allowed the students to escape. "Students started opening windows and jumping out,” his son Joe Librescu told the Jerusalem Post. Student Alec Calhoun told the News that the last thing he saw before jumping out the window was Librescu blocking the door. Librescu was sent to a labor camp in Russia as a child and was saved by townspeople. In 1978, his family emigrated from Romania to Israel, and in 1986 Librescu, his wife and two sons moved to Virginia." Yesterday, there was one very disturbed person and many heroes from around the globe. Nationalities were blurred, and the best (and one example of the worst) of humankind was on display. The loss of the brightest of the best of our future is intolerable. Yet our own Constitution, as it sometimes does, precludes us from taking extreme action to weed out such individuals as the shooter, from the onset of the earliest warning signs. After all, how do you know if violent writings are a future killer or the next Stephen King? The only real lesson is that awful things happen and when they do, character is needed to meet the immediate challenges of life. Then, compassion and community and a time to grieve must follow. Taking guns away in other countries does not stop sick people from running through crowded areas with illegal guns or wielding knives, and may leave the criminal element armed and the innocent unarmed. In that rural part of Virginia, almost everyone has a gun by 12! 30+ devastated families and parents may be wishing their child or loved one had been armed and able to self-defend yesterday. Sadly, there are two sides to every complex issue, and this one, guns, is not simple, any more than any other flip-side freedom issue in our society. I live in NYC and have never even touched a gun, but my gentle Virginia cousin has had one since he was a young teen. Owning a gun did not turn him into a killer. Being a killer turns a gun-owner into a weapon of mass destruction! What to do? If I knew, I would be Queen Mary! Back to main page

Maroon & Orange

Sorry, gang. No pictures today. As a mom, as a human being, as an American, as a citizen of the universe, I did not believe that the terrible, blood-soaked events which unfolded at Virginia Tech were really happening. And I admit that as a mom, I was comforted that my daughter was nearby and safe. That this massacre could have happened, much less been allowed to happen is something that still confounds me. Professor N. Giovanni, in whose poetry classes this young man was a student, has herself come forward to state that he scared her and her students, and that she had asked security to check her classrooms at those times, and that she eventually had him removed from her class, because of the dark and troubling aura he exuded. Interviews have disclosed that numerous students believed he could become a "student shooter." And if you read his writings which have been posted on the internet, they reveal an inner persona that was haunted, twisted, misogynistic, perverted, and overflowing with hatred. Yet now the Monday morning quarterbacks are professing how "they saw this coming." Really? Then why didn't any of them do more than talk about their fears? So many people are proud of interventions to get someone into counseling or rehab - why didn't the students and faculty who feared this young man (and it seems many did) insist that the school's administration do more than remove him from Professor Giovanni's course? Yet people worry over Britney Spears, Denise Richards, Anna Nicole Smith's jejeune diaries, Jessica Simpson's love life, Lindsay Lohan, Nicole Richie, TomKat, Paris Hilton - PUH-LEEEEEZ. Stop. Sit. Think. Life is important - not some bratty starlets' hissy fits and life-is-so-wonderful-rehab stories. I shed tears with everyone who has seen this devastating horror. For reasons we'll never know, over 30 students and teachers have been called Home. The majority of us never knew any of them and we will only know of them. Of the teachers who died, there are beautiful tributes to their brilliance and dedication and how they protected their students. The photos of students and teachers carrying the wounded out of the buildings to safety and triage as best they could made my heart bleed for them. I feel the numbing chill of their pain and I am sitting here crying for the parents and families who will never hug their loved ones again. Yet I also wonder about his own family: did something happen within their four walls that spurred this to happen? Their silence is deafening. Why did the campus officials assume the gunman had left because there were no gunshots for a couple of hours after the first shooting? Why wasn't the campus completely locked down for the day, searched, re-searched and re-searched again until security was sure, so this massacre could have been avoided? It is bad enough that the first two people had to die in the first "round" of gunfire - wouldn't vigilance have saved 31 other lives and prevented over 20 others from being wounded. He didn't just spray gunfire - most of the wounded had 2 or more gunshot wounds in them. This was a calculated, cold, cruel act - and again, we will never know what was in this student's mind or what spurred him. Yes, Mr. Bush, we as a nation should mourn together and also deplore what has happened - but tell me this: WHY IS IT SO EASY FOR ANYONE TO PURCHASE A GUN OR GUNS? WHEN WILL WE EVER LEARN? I will wear maroon and orange tomorrow in memory of the fallen. Will you? (Ree: I had to post this for you! m.) Back to main page

100 Calorie Snacks? Get real!

AOL had a piece on good snacks for 100 calories or less and while some of them were good, some of them left me with my tongue sticking out of my cheek! Fresh Fruit with a Tablespoon of low fat Coolwhip? If you are dieting, chances are, you are not good at limiting portions and that will become fruit floating in low fat Coolwhip. 1/2 English Muffin with 1 Tablespoon peanut butter? What do you do with the other 1/2 English Muffin? Raised in the 'Don't Waste Food" generation, I would eat it to save the starving children of the world, making it a 200 calorie snack! Here is my list of 100 calorie or less snacks: - lowfat yogurt (Rita is addicted to the Greek yogurt, I am Dannon Lemon!) - banana or other fruit - 1 cup of cherries- not only delicious, but so beautiful, I have cherry jewelry! - 2 Tablespoons of Peanut butter- really fills you up - 1 hard boiled egg - 1 ounce cheese- like the egg, it is protein and sticks to your ribs - 10 almonds- seal the bag before you eat them - 8 ounces skim milk - beefsteak tomato with a little salt - 2 cups lowfat air popcorn- measure it and seal up the bag. Follow all these snacks with a big glass of water!