I clearly remember that event! Of all the incidents that could prompt 80s parents to discover that they love the name Jessica, a baby's successful rescue from entrapment in a well is an unlikely one, isn't it...

Topically, I wonder if "Jessica's" popularity is correlated to the Sweet Valley High book series.

You have a right to name your children as you wish, but others have a right to question default, male-preferential naming conventions without anyone implying this is inherently "disrespectful" to men.

My last name will die out if my brother doesn't have kids (he's indicated no desire to have kids, ever), or if I don't name my hypothetical kids Mylastname. (ETA because it's pertinent to this discussion: I'm a woman). All my cousins have different last names (because my aunts took my uncle's names). I will feel…

My grandfather-in-law, widowed at 92 years of age, would beg to differ. He never had to cook or clean in his entire marriage; now he is taken care of by a veterans' cleaning service and meal supply service. As a child of the 80s, I struggled through home economics class and never had to prepare a single meal until I…

My dude, on a couple of occasions, has tried out my concealer to cover the approximately one pimple he gets annually. Unfortunately, my yellowish skin tone is completely different from his very pinkish skintone, so the results were less than subtle. Concealer for men will totally be a thing in under a decade.

Spot on! It's so weird how certain people in the fitness world presume that everyone else should aspire to the same personal fitness goals they hold. I think your analogy is completely appropriate in this circumstance. I've had many discussions with my PhD colleagues on the subject of higher education, and we've…

Kanye has made some artistic choices that have horrified me (like, um, the necrophiliac video he put out a few years ago), but the more I read about him and listen to what he has to say, the more I am impressed with his drive and ambition to pursue excellence in music and fashion. "I am a creative genius" does not…

I agree. It's not that there aren't many people I'd love to have involved in my wedding. It's just that I've seen friends spend ridiculous amounts of money on wedding accoutrements, entitled brides miffed over the lack of two bridal shower gifts plus a wedding cheque, new couples screwed over because three of their…

Boo, I would still be living in Quebec right now if it had been possible for my Anglo partner to find a job. I love Quebec, and my Quebecois friends are awesome people. I don't totally get who must be supporting the nutso quasi-fascist government. I get the need for cultural protection when you are a minority culture…

I hear you. "Partner" just feels so poncy. But as so many others have already said, how else can I properly describe my eight-year relationship with my S.O. when we're both in our thirties? The only solution I feel is realistic is to keep airing out the term until it loses its reek of pretentiousness.

I actually did some research into it after it came up in a novel I'm reading, and there's almost no real reason to be gluten free unless you have celiac's disease.

Yeah, also, what kind of good friend/foodie would not be up for the challenge of making a boneless broth? Bone broth is actually, IMHO, harder to make than veggie broth, because you have to be so careful about not overboiling, and it takes so very long. You're not going to create impurities from overboiling…

I used to look down on picky eaters as if there was something wrong with them, but then was diagnosed with IBS, aka, "we don't really know what the hell is wrong with your stomach but there's definitely something wrong with YOU." Eight years of intermittent suffering, experimental diets and experimental drug dosages…

Count me among the people who need breakfast to feel like a functional human being. I am a hearty, robust sort of person who doesn't mind skipping meals now and then if I'm on the run and there's no healthy food available to buy, but if I push it too far - say, eating breakfast, then eating a light lunch, then working…

"Oh, and my tongue is purple. Is that ok?" Better add that one to the FAQs, buddy.

I know! What are these unfortunate not-at-all-hypothetical souls thinking? "I don't have enough emotional trauma in my life right now in spite of these stressful events, so I'm going to reach out to this judgmental asshole to get me a little more of that good stuff." That must be it.

And this is yet another reason why I'm going to have a small wedding involving immediate family only. I've been to many weddings through my 20s, and when I've had money, I've invested in really nice pieces from Alessi for the couple. For the one wedding where I was broke as hell, I bought a few cheaper items off the…

Hear, hear! Really, anytime puts effort into cooking for me, I am usually grateful even if I am not blown away. My cooking-averse mom can still turn out a decent meal that is pretty tasty, and the one thing she makes that is fantastic is homemade pizza with a beautiful light crust. I've been served store-bought…

Also, I swear I can spell "boeuf en croute." Headdesk.