What concerns me most right now: the economy in general but in particular Chrysler, GM, Visteon, Metaldyne all declaring bankruptcy.  The economy in Michigan is the worst I’ve seen.

Sonia Sotomayer’s appointment to the Supreme Court.  These appointments have long ranging impact and should be of interest to us all.

Anything interesting that’s happening in the world.  Could be hard news, could be light-hearted gossip.  I have an open and inquiring mind and need to feed it with all aspects of this great life.  This site brings some of it all, along with the fertilizer of other’s opinions.

My digestive track.  When I am stressed, don’t block the way to the bathroom because I’ll be running there and often with little notice.  I make sure I exercise when I’m feeling stressed.  It is amazing how it helps the body cope.  Really get a workout and the muscles just relax.  Sleep is so much easier, too, when the body is even more tired than the mind.

It depends on what you mean by late night.  I usually drift off to sleep to Jon Stewart and my husband is in charge of turning off the TV.  I’m a luddite. Don’t have DVR.  I do have a VCR and occasionally record a show but not regularly.  And then I may never watch it!  Just not enough time for much TV.

I’ve come to dislike all religions that treat women as "other," which most orthodox religions do. — I can relate to that.  Somehow most religions seem to be dominated by men who think they can keep women "in their place".  I was raised Catholic but left in high school when a priest told my class that a woman’s place is serving her husband in the bedroom or the kitchen, in that order.  No questions.  No other options.  (And to the question of what happens if your husband dies, the answer was to go back and live serving your father.)  Tell me a religion that truly values women as equal people and I might consider.

I’m with Margo on Letter Writer 2.  You are not invited to a wedding to grant your approval.  You are invited because you are special to someone in the wedding and they want you to celebrate with them.  I would go and give the bride a special hug telling her that I love her very much.

Baby powder.  And my favorite perfume Byzance by Rochas.  It has a somewhat powdery smell.  It is very light but it lasts a long time.

Least favorite: Charlie perfume. I once worked with a very difficult person.  Had to share a very small cubicle with her for a month and she doused herself in Charlie.  Ever since, I cannot stand the smell.

Also at the very top of the list is cigarette smoke and, even worse, cigar smoke.  Ugh.  Just last weekend I was in a park enjoying the fabulous Spring day with all the flowers blooming and the scents… wonderful.  Then a very large man came by with a very large cigar.  i couldn’t get away from the smell.  It was horrible.  I had to leave.

The most refreshing thing about the Julia Roberts picture is that she looks totally natural.  It seems that most movie stars have those fake round breasts stuck to their chests.  Julia has a great, toned body and is obviously having fun with her family.

I’m with Margie — Lighten up, gals!  This nit picky back and forth is neither interesting nor helpful.

thanks for the light hearted look at the reality of the moment.  Everyone is some place different.  Some are figuring out cheapo hair salons, others are getting food from Salvation Army.  All of us are better off if we can find a way to smile at some point during the day.

You know, not everything needs to be life or death.  Take a deep breath.  Sometimes you need to chat about lighter topics too.  Global warming and world hunger will, unfortunately, still be there.

Wear the dress!!  It’s about time we got rid of the fiction that people wear something new for every event.  Michelle Obama got criticized for repeating her outfits.  I think it’s great that she wears the same things, or the same components, mixed differently.  Let’s get real.  I’ll bet the people writing the criticism aren’t buying new dresses for every occasion.  I always think it’s hillarious that the fashion industry mavens criticize celebrities for their clothes, for repeating outfits, for being boring…and then they are always in all black.  I’m sure it’s the same all black outfits every time. 

I was never physically bulled but yes, mentally bullied at work when I was younger.  My manager was George W Bush-like.  He would tease and torment the people who worked for him.  "But it’s all in fun" was the excuse but every joke was very mean-spirited and always at someone else’s expense.  I only worked for him for about nine months but it was a terrible time.  I kept my head down, did my job as best I could and stayed away from him as much as I could.  I would probably handle it much differently now but back then it was all I could muster.

I have them but haven’t looked at them in years.  I haven’t talked to anyone from my high school in over 20 years.  Those weren’t great years for me and I don’t look back.  My husband has his from high school and is still close with his two best friends from high school.  We both live near the communities we grew up in but people from my school all seemed to move away right after school, contributing to my not keeping in touch.  For whatever reason, many of the people from my husband’s school still live in the area.  We occasionally pull out his yearbook when he runs across someone he hasn’t seen in years.  It’s a hoot comparing what they looked like then with what they look like now.  I am always amazed that he recognizes them!

Wow, Margo.  I love reading your letters because I thank my lucky stars that I have such a normal, boring life.  I adored my parents.  They were married for 58 years before my mom died.  Sure, we had our ups and downs but all in all we got along great and I didn’t mind calling frequently.  I’ve been married for 35+ years so I don’t have any baggage with ex-spouses.  No drunks.  No abuse.  I am blessed.

And I can’t offer any advice because I haven’t walked in either of these letter writers shoes.

I am so fortunate that I work for a large corporation that encourages growth and change.  I have constantly reinvented myself.  I’ve had easily 15 different jobs but all with the same company.  I love what I do.  I’m good at it.  I have no idea what I’ll be doing next because I haven’t invented it yet but I know it will get me excited to get out of bed and go to work.  My personal life has been the same.  I decided I wanted to be more like my father, who was a very happy person with friends everywhere.  I’ve always been very reserved and critical.  I let go of that and try to go with the flow more.  I’ve found that I am much happier (and probably much more fun to be around.) 

I believe in retirement, but only if you decide to retire from your job and not from life.  I can’t wait to retire because I have so many fun things to do.  I can’t cram them all in now, although I dabble.  Having the time and resources to be able to volunteer, take classes, actually try all those recipes I’ve been cutting out for years, go to lunch with friends.  have a quickie with my husband in the middle of the day.  Wow…let’s get started now!!!