My amazing sister-in-law looks much fitter than this woman and has three small kids. She was a contestant on Survivor and is a kickass attorney who graduated with top honors from a top school and just started her own firm. She has never once bragged about any of it, nor made me or anyone in my family feel like we're…

The worst thing about losing weight, for me, has always been the compliments. Because even if they are not of the deliberately backhanded/cruel variety, like you received from your coworkers, they nearly always have the subtext of "you look nice now, you looked disgusting before."

I think the same thing when I see someone bicycling up a long, steep road. They always look miserable. I hike a lot, and fellow hikers always seem pretty cheery, except for me, when I'm climbing never-ending switchbacks. To each her own.

Cute headline, Laura B. And cute doggie in the after (sad doggie in the before). Fat dogs really bum me out, because it's nearly always the result of overfeeding and under-exercising. Unlike humans, dogs don't have much freedom when it comes to what they eat and how often they get to run and play. Like us, they're not…

Also does he buy his flowers from a funeral home?

I kind of love tacky rich people in general. Just goes to show money can't buy class or style. Though probably it can buy you an equally tacky wife.

I love this. I write for a living, and the fact that I am paid reasonably well to do so must mean I have a decent grasp of the English language. However, I am incredibly turned off by pedants. A copy editor once told me I made her job easy, but I know that I make mistakes now and again. I have to look stuff up all the…

They're so efficient in Israel. And that's a place where you don't expect to feel safe. I've had plenty of full pat-downs in other countries and the experience was never remotely humiliating, unlike the time a TSA agent decided to take her my-life-sucks mood out on me because my bra kept setting off the scanner. UGH.…

First of all, I'm not a Size 18. More like an 8. But even if I were an 18, it's not the employee's place to make comments about my body simply because I'm buying a pair of workout pants. I think this thread shows pretty clearly that it isn't one employee at one store, but rather that this sort of thing happens in…

I found Bernadette very amusing because I live in Seattle and I know *exactly* how she feels. Plus I know a lot of architects and was intrigued by Bernadette's past. My friend found the book amusing because she works at Microsoft, and is married to an architect. It wasn't the best thing I've ever read, but I enjoyed…

Totally depends on what you're into, but I've been reading Rise of the Warrior Cop and it's a pretty fascinating look at the history of policing in America and how the war on drugs — mostly marijuana — continues to erode our civil liberties. It's not light beach reading, obviously, but it's very smartly reported. I…

Just yesterday at the dermatologist, a South Korean woman was inquiring about fat injections. She could barely speak English but knew all the plastic surgery terminology. She was absolutely beautiful already, though she had this face and you could tell she was committed to keeping it up at all costs. Granted, a lot of…

Right? All it took was a walk-thru of a rush party to convince me that I'd be better off finding friendship and community elsewhere. Not that any sorority would've had me, as I didn't fit the traditional profile of a sister (the party looked just like the photo accompanying this story). I'm sure there are a lot of…

I've been living under a rock, apparently, and ignored this story when it came up in my feed previously. Then I realized this woman works with Stefan Sagmeister, who built a career on exhibitionism ("wouldn't it be so avant-garde if I cut up my body for a print design?"). She's clearly very talented at her design…

I've written so many articles like that. I always hate myself a little for lying to women. All you have to do is spend X to get Y and you will finally be perfect!

I learned this reality when I was in the pit at MTV's video music awards years ago. Teeny-tiny Christina Aguilera sashayed on stage in itty-bitty shorts and low and behold — so much cellulite! I rejoiced. Kind of sad that she's slim again and on the cover of Maxim, showing off her "new" bod. The LA times calls her…

I had a kitty from hell. He was the sweetest kitten and then morphed into a nightmare who got in nasty fights in our gated courtyard and peed and pooped on everything in sight. I spent thousands replacing furniture and bedding and paying off landlords who were beyond pissed that my cat trashed their rental. He hissed…

I did just splurge on fairly expensive hiking boots ($230), but I expect to get many years of hard use out of them. They're an investment. There is no pair of heels in the world that I'd spend $1,000 to own and probably promptly ruin.

I've worked at home for years now, and it's saved me a bundle on clothes, shoes, and makeup. When I do go out for a work-related meeting or event, I look the part, but I'm out of practice so it takes me a while to get ready. Otherwise, I have become mostly disinterested in all but basic makeup as I've gotten older.…

That's very nice of you. Personally, I probably would gift more to the couple who have a budget wedding because they don't make much, and less to the couple who have a lot of money and throw a crazy-spendy shindig. Reading through the comments on various gift-giving articles from around the web, it's my understanding…