Do you realize how ignorant that statement is? Doyou really believe that families in bad circumstances really give up their power to try to protect their children?

You may have been to Compton but those of us who are part of the community are even more disappointed than you are that the media is more interested in this story than they are in the other development and reform work that we're doing. Do you really believe that this is national news because parents made it so?

The whole point of Read Across America is to bring in famous people and community leaders into schools. The premise is not that these are voluteer reading tutors but that they're professionals who take time out of their lives to spend it reading to kids to emphasize that reading is important.

My dentist told me that using a sonicare toothbrush is almost (but not quite) as good as flossing - FYI.

Thanks, that's sort of what I thought too. And it doesn't do anyone any good sitting in my drawer for the next month.

I have a sort-of etiquette question. I bought my housekeeper a Target giftcard as a holiday gift. It's for the same amount that I pay her for a day's work (she comes once every two weeks). I was planning to give it to her on her last visit before I leave town (around December 15) but do you think that she would…

You can make condoms available in a way that permits him to explore, experiment, and use them as needed without having to answer for it. When my boys were old enough, I started leaving condoms around in easy-to-find-and-take places and then replacing them without ever asking questions.

It is helpful, thank you. I don't have a boyfriend right now so I guess I feel like this is a good time for me - even though it probably isn't for him.

Yeah, we live on opposite sides of the country and will for at least a few more years. But there's a constant undercurrent of "what if" when we talk. We've both talked each other through breakups and family crises and if we were in the same city, we'd probably be together.

I agree that he's imperfect in many, many ways. And his disrespect of his current partner is clearly a problem - but I haven't been emotionally available for a long time and it's not like he should have been waiting for me or something. But that's part of why I wonder if I should be honest with him. Is he afraid to…

Yeah, I agree. Does it make a difference that he's typically the one initiating conversations about "us"? I brush it off and keep my responses vague because he's got a girlfriend and it makes me uncomfortable.

Every six months or so I reenter negotiations with my ex. We were together for almost 4 years but we've been broken up for about 10. We stay in touch and I guess we're friends but there's always been something morethanfriends about us. I'm the one that broke it off way back when and I don't regret it; it was the…

My favorite is hojicha green tea - it's sweet and toasty and needs just a little bit of honey.

I think that those look adorable!

This reminds me of some state laws that presume divorce when one spouse is sentenced to ten years or more in prison. It's an easy out for the other partner if they want to take it and it's quite simple to refuse it if you'd like to stay married.

I just called it off with a great guy who always came in for a kiss with mouth wide open - even our first kiss! It turned me off so bad that by the time we got to the last date, I feigned illness so that he wouldn't put his face on mine.

Get out. If not for you, for him. If you love him then you know that he deserves to be with someone who adores him and wants to be touching on him all the time. If it's not there, it's no kindness to keep him tied to you.

It's so much fun. I really enjoy the process and I get a little bummed out when I feel like it's finished. When that happens, I redo everything!

Ok - tomorrow will be a new day. For years, my younger brother has been living with me and last year he was arrested and ultimately sent to prison. This weekend, I am finally turning his room into a true guest room. I am packing up his clothes and putting pretty new bedding on - even a little pink rug! He's not…

Google "oil cleansing method." After a lot of experimentation and even more money on fancy products, I swear by my hippie face wash now.