I'm so thankful I live in Alaska! That's all I can say...

Thanks, but that's a low bar there. :) Don't you know the proper names of landmarks in your home area? :)

Is "Stonor" being sarcastic? If not, then... how? How did this practice help get a girl into college?

Thank you! I'm not pretty though. But life *is* good. :)

What about, how many more minutes can I sleep in if I sprint for the bus? For many blocks can I chase the bus if I miss it? How many bags of groceries can I lug home, before I have to cave in and take my car? :)

Thank you for your kindness in thinking that I sound like I look great, and I do see your point. This lady does look like she works hard for that muscle definition. However, my point was that her fitness is focused on aesthetics and not function, and that she has earned this column based on such. I feel sad that…

I run marathons, and I'm fantastically healthy just from an active and rural Alaskan lifestyle (splitting wood, hauling water, shoveling snow, clearing land, running, hiking, skiing, keeping working dogs happily exercised, etc, etc).

Since when did fitness=visually pretty? All we see are her photos. We don't know how long it takes her to run a mile or a marathon, how much she can bench press, whether she's climbed Denali, or anything like that. Heck, we don't even know if she can open a jar, or if she hands it to the nearest dude.

You can't tell a skinny person they "simply aren't eating enough." A human can only eat so much before they feel ill. Here is a confession—I am lucky in that I love to eat and am a pleasant "medium-sized" so no-one gives me grief about it. However, when I was growing up, every year at Thanksgiving, I'd eat so much…

Good point. It's unkind to imply that people who die after accidents lack sufficient will.

A lot of bad stereotypes in there... this is a Jez recommendation, really? I *did* become the engineer I wanted to be, and my best friend from middle school *did* become the vet. She's married with a kid, too. I'm shacked up, PhD'ed, home-ownered, dog-ownered, and still have long hair. We're both about these women's…

I was speaking as someone who spent 5 years in an abusive relationship before gaining the confidence to walk away. I don't think it's "gross" to say that I am more confident now than I was then, nor am I "tearing down" my past self.

Ironic that she is probably MORE confident than Rihanna. I bet she wouldn't stay with a partner who hit her.

Good point.

Wow that would do me no good at all. When I am emotionally distressed, nothing gives me more comfort than routine—get up, run the dogs, eat a PBJ, go to work, etc, etc. To sit home alone all day feeling sorry for myself sounds dreadful!

Excellent! This pedant toasts you.

I don't think I'm clever. I'm just annoyed when people freak out about "chemicals" without being more specific.

Not dihydrogen oxide, too?!?

Good points!

Thanks for the replies, everyone! I am now edumacated and will never ever ever pee indiscriminately when I am Outside of Alaska!