Not just working class. If you really want to feel like fresh meat, walk around the NYC Financial District. You'll get as many foulmouthed insults shouted from across the street by groups, or whispered in your ear by just one creep, from men dressed in total Gordon Gekko. I first experienced it as a teenager in the…

As a single woman with no romantic prospects on the horizon, I would like to thank you for easing my pain, because just reading the phrase "Nicolas Cage sex pix" will dull my libido for years to come.

The thing about plagiarists, like with other con artists, is that misappropriating isn't just done to cut corners or make money. It's the thrill of getting one over on the world. Stephen Glass went to extraordinary lengths to cover his tracks when he submitted dozens of bogus articles to The New Republic; he probably…

This reminds me of all the times I've moved house and had to drag an enormous suitcase or even a mattress myself. When you absolutely have to, you do it.

And they may not be the sexiest beasts out there, but I love anything Pyrex

When I first moved to Yurp many years ago I thought what the H are these and I'll never use one. Now I need to buy yet another. Smoothies, soups, gazpacho, etc. And a suggestion; don't buy the cheapest, look at consumer reviews. A stronger motor lasts longer and really does a much better job. Also, don't sniff at the…

I know you said no repeats, but I was so into posting this that I didn't scroll down far enough to see that other people had written love letters to Le Creuset cookware. When I moved to my first apartment, I inherited a set from my late aunt, and used them for ten years till I moved overseas and couldn't afford to…

I used to work as a fitting room security clerk in Bloomingdales. There are Upper East Side Ladies Who Lunch who pretty much walk off with the store on a regular basis.

A bit of a sidebar here, but Sara Paretsky's new V. I Warshawski mystery deals with the historical exclusion of women in science/IT. I just read it and loved it.

I think the best thing to do is get the list of 100 most popular names, and don't even think of anything in the top 50. You don't want to name your kid Boogalicious T. Firestarter, but another Madison? No, please....

BTW: there is a way to stop this madness, and it's derived from the idea of civil disobedience. That is, if you don't like the "laws" imposed by Bridezilla, well, just don't go, or go on your own terms. You feel opressed/humiliated/offended by the invented rule of SheWhoMustBeObeyed Barbie??? Well, just don't go to…

Your wedding is your idea, your party and your responsibility. The madness of "everybody shall obey!" is just sick. Hey, if you have a lot of money to splurge on a big wedding, nice for you. If it's just City Hall and a cake, that's cool too. But if you're imitating some loser reality show on weddings, well, get…

When I was growing up in Manhattan in the 60's those old white-brick newbuild (at the time) 15 story apartment houses were considered barbarous, tacky, only for the new rich wannabees. Now they're vintage.

I've been pretty much independent since my early 20's (I'm in my late 50's now), have been working steadily since I was 16, put myself through school with very little parental support, helped a boyfriend through school (who dumped me just as we were about to move to another city together), have lived overseas for…

You've pretty much nailed it, Jessica. When I was finishing my degree in sociology back in the late 70's, an NYPD detective from the fraud squad came to talk to my criminology class. He said that there's a strong resemblence between scammers and rapists, and an equally strong parallel in the shame and self-blame that…

Vichy Catalan is super mineralized soda water, but perfect to rehydrate on a 105ºC afternoon in Spain, which is probably why the national team drinks it. I never liked it much before despite many years of living here, but this summer has been red-h0t and I've suddenly had cravings for it. PS-a lot of the bars in…

Excellent essay. And this* why I despise When Harry Met Sally as a piece of retrogressive tripe right up there with Pretty Woman. *Among many other reasons, starting with the mere presence of Meg Ryan.

Maybe this is just kitty revenge for having to listen to "whooooz a snoookumswoookums. I sez whoooooza snoooky wooky looovy wooowooobug? Iz yoooo, right? Ix my (cat name here). Smooochysmooochysmakcsmakc." et al.

Cultural constraints have so much to do with this (and articles like this are part of those constraints). Lots of people settle down to (at least a first)marriage in mid-late 20's, and kids follow. But then people divorce, re-marry, have a second family, come out of the closet, change careers...I look back at my own…