Twenty or so years ago when the world was so full of emotions unspilled, I am guessing the typed pages that flowed on and on were what was in my heart. Funny … they all hold true and bring tears today.

It is the season of divorce. February ends abruptly. Oak trees which have fiercely held their leaves all winter suddenly let go. Our friends tear apart. We married so young I think of pictures of Asian princes bethrothed at five, their enormous eyes accepting anything. In the woods dog nose among emptied burrows, bark at the silence. Don’t leave now. We have almost survived our lives.

Already the talk show hosts are pleading for choice of VPs for both parties who have outgoing, well-spoken wives who will make up for the candidates; wives — women who are far from gung-ho to be living in the White House. They tell us it will attract the woman vote — and who am I to say that it might help get out that vote in the right direction — but aren’t we women kidding ourselves if we think that having a pretty, smart, extrovert woman as mate near the top has anything to do with running the country in these crucial times?? As for McCain’s wife staying in the background to give him space — this is a case where he could use a cheerleader younger wife who loves the limelight and takes some of it off his own image. Everyone knows that — but Cindy is not going to do that and has shown it big time. This is not an act. This is definitely not a plus for him to have her uncomfortable in this role — and we find ourselves feeling uncomfortable for her.

Those who think the oil crunch is a blessing in disguise must be very wealthy because the rest of us are noticably going down the drain with the increased costs that are sapping our own wealth. A supposedly smart country with brilliant people at think-tanks as we have should have sounded the alert loud and clear long before this terrible slide we are in the midst of. Long before. We obviously have to be openly scared before we rise up as one and say “do something NOW” — or it would have been done. Yes, we need alternative energy — but haven’t we been talking about that for so many years that I don’t want to even count back??? All the ways to go about each of the plans are in writing — and it will take years to get us on a new track as well as have our own increase in oil — so tomorrow is not to soon to get moving. But just watch … lots of talk and little action . . . and more and more of our citizens living between a rock and a hard place — or worse. The blessing will be if our politicians stop talking and agree to action as soon as possible across party lines. Let us pray.

Phyllis — first of all, I love how you write and how you put things always. You are a delight. The word “implemented” is great — the key word, of course, in all of this. Unfortunately, that is why things take so long. We are inundated with talk and talking heads that never cease. We are cursed - as always - with a Congress who seems to take pleasure in disagreeing on just about everything. We have the keys - the blueprints - to move ahead now. But there is a vast bog out there that our country seems sucked into — and no concrete plans to IMPLEMENT some doable and brilliant ideas whose time came years ago. Devisiveness at the top levels — except for getting through their own pet projects (if you notice) - is the key that doesn’t turn the door into the future.

Joan, you have expressed my own thinking in a far more concise manner than I could — but our beliefs coincide. Never in most of our lifetimes have we seen anything so scary: a house of cards that is toppling one industry after another with no end in sight. With a family immersed in the oil industry, we know that all those pie-in-the-sky changes proposed will take years and years to go from nothing to fruition - if the members of Congress can ever agree to agree to even one of the solutions. In the meantime, fuel costs have risen to the point that they are eating up dollars otherwise spent on eating out, going on dreamed-about trips, and putting the food on the table. We are seeing “going-out-of-business” sales plastered on windows, restaurants long established closing, and all of us watching the stock market - gritting our teeth as we try to absorb the next shock. And as Joan Cooley said, there is IRAN — one of the list of loose cards in the Middle East and Pakistan that has the (backed-up perhaps) scare tactics that can easily shift our thinking on pulling out there. No part of any of this has an easy solution. If there is agreement, ANY solution will take expertise and it will be long-term before we in our homes will see relief. Call it what you want. I see it as DISASTER in the making. What I don’t see are more than words thrown around. I don’t see A PLAN and a movement forward for any of this multitude of problems by someone who has wisdom and his head screwed on right. Name one that can be solved overnight or in three months or three years to our real satisfaction. I am a positive thinker BUT it has to be obvious to all that “there is big trouble in River City … and every place small and large”. I am scared for us all.

Liza Donnelly, in her own unique style, is able - in her cartoon and her book that I recommend, - to cut to the chase and capture our own thinking in her funny and clever format. Today’s: “Where can we go on a trip where Americans are really liked?” rings true more often than not. More than a few of us - on our sojourns — have given the “rotten apple” image (actually worse) to all of us. . . even you and me for gosh sake. What a shame for us all, as I think women are women down deep the world over and I want to get to know those of my gender better. Sometimes I am lucky, but sometimes the hardly polite responses tell me that other Americans, not as nice, have imprinted our image firmly in their heads. What I find DOES work is going to places for a certain purpose - having a joint interest with someone from another culture. That can not only break the ice (and I mean ICE) but occasionally can result in lasting long-distance friendships that come to something. But back to Donnelly’s cartoons. What can I say? I love them!!!!!!! Thanks!

My first inclination is to say “it is all in the genes” how we age. But NO, you have to factor other things in that are actually more important. Look at others whose age you cannot believe. To me, it is so much in how men AND women take care of themselves — you know, exercise, right food, relaxation. Those that have had tragedies and serious illnesses to handle more often than not look like they have seriously aged — no matter the years. It takes a toll like little else. As to who wins in the youthful Olympics - men or women — it may be a tie, all other factors considered — but Lord! more and more I am seeing “older men” who look mighty delicious.

I love Chile. I love Isabel Allende and read everything I can get my hands on about her. This is a woman I would love to know, to talk to — forever. She not only writes articles, books that cannot be put down — but she is open enoough in real life that she is like us. Honest to a fault — or so it seems — she tells us about her love late in life of Willie — the problems with their joint children - the highs and lows of real life of “a name writer”. I find it fascinating that because she is short, she wears 3-inch heels — and understand when she is in the wolder remote places, she must put on hiking boots - boots we feel are so comfortable if they fit right, but to someone used to high heels, well - extremely UNcomfortable. But somehow there is no whining that WE can hear —- she goes with it. Even bits and pieces of her Memoir — originally written in Spanish - that she tells about in interviews - just make us look forward to hearing the truth about her life - a life that in its bits and pieces is our own lives. Isabel Allende may be unknown to some of you — but watch for her, grab up the books she has written, and know that this woman can take us along on her travels and sometimes, touch our hearts with her honesty. Please, Isabel, come to my city and I would love to meet you!

Being a woman? Being a SUPER woman? Honestly, I have never put a date onto that knowledge — but looking back, perhaps I came into my own about 35 — and never looked back. A door seemed to open - wider with the years. . and the yellow brick road never looked better. Perhaps it was smart gorgeous aunt who was my mentor - though the word wasn’t used at the time. But she made me believe that the sky was the limit — and guess what? She said all it took was solid belief in yourself and your capabilities. THAT part didn’t happen overnight. Something that good never does as you must test the waters, make a few mistakes, but never never look back. Confidence builds, people notice. You begin to glow and I have found it is a beacon for others - men and women. A word of caution: you have to be able to hold your own in your field, in conversation, and yet be one of the guys - or gals. In other words, nice and upbeat, complimentary when it is needed, caring when the bad happens. Would I rather be a man? Are you kidding? I don’t think of them as competition in my walk of life, but I DO like being a woman men seem to like to gravitate to. That is the part of the fun of being a woman - this woman anyhow - and frankly, though I never pinned it down til today, I think it is the “glow” — oh, and some substance that is a bit more than being conversational in a general sense - if needed. So far so good — and I wouldn’t miss a moment of it — even IF was “every woman” for a fair number of years before my aunt gave me the key to a good life! It was worth the wait.

Face it, we are all doing guesswork . . . but we are also pretty bright, savvy, and in touch with how you make moves on the political scene — particularly after the constant parade of rent-an-experts that tell us ad nauseum each night far more than we ever thought we wanted to know. As to Carolyn, being a Kennedy has given her one of the brightest images on the planet for years and years. She was a bit off the radar before her middle years (sorry, Carolyn!) but that does not mean that she has not been a sponge in keeping up with the politics in Washington. What a smart move that was made for the finite maneuver to put her backing to a probable winner. The Obama pot was stirred to boiling on that one, and it was an easy move forward to place her on the VP nominating committee. I hear through the grapevine that she is thorough in talking to others in top positions as to their inside thoughts on the top names to be screened further. And on those phone conversations, she is accomplished over time and - so I hear - warm. She is at the point in her own life where wisdom and maturity are starting to bloom. This challenge done well will open her to a rather wide range of forward movements in the party. Sometimes, we find that enough is enough after working this hard. But when you are good, talked about positively, the experience may be heady enough for her to be expertly moved into larger positions. The Kennedy regime just may be a long one, and one worth watching. So far so good I would say.

No longer living in New York … or another large city . . . I have gotten to the stage where what attracts me is the person themselves much more than if they are wearing the latest in clothes and shoes. I am attracted to those who stand and walk with a confidence that shows him their smile, their look and their bearing. I myself am comfortable “in my skin”, walk with head high, and the funny thing is that men rush ahead to open a building door for me as I also walk fast. I must be doing something right, I think. I admire someone beautifully put together — the kind that we automatically say WOW … or WOWOWOW — and love to look at hair that is gorgeous, but face it, that is stage dressing. What is lasting in a person is what lies within . . so I will forgo the latest look for the warmest person anyday.

First, Mary Wells, I congratulate you for making it to the top, for being such a great example for women in all fields, and showing us that the glass ceiling can be cracked — but that the field of advertising may still one of the most difficult fields to go the distance. The creative end seems particularly hard, but takes women who have vision, are efficient and a certain brilliance that sets them apart almost immediately. They must know it, show it, stand up for their beliefs, and know they are more than equals to the competition. I am a great one in my own life and work to have the belief that I can rise to the top - but don’t want to step over dead bodies to do it. There are ways . . .and ways. By the way, I loved the photos of you then — we looked well dressed (GREAT I would say), and were “put together”. I still feel if you look the part in the first place, your brilliance will be the other piece of the corporate puzzle. If you sense that your own piece does not fit with your present corporation, others should be willing to snap you up. After all, you believe in yourself, don’t you — and that is part of the battle.

In life, it is often a matter of pure luck. There are some places - face it - that you never tire of, provide escape, and are filled with such beauty that you somehow DO find “that other world”. We plan so far in advance — and as it happened, got plane tickets for this weekend (it may be 3 days instead of one but FEELS like one) before the prices zoomed. Where? The Canadian Rockies and a 3 day heli-hiking trip high in the mountains west of Banff. Seeing the world from a mountain top, having a ‘copter drop you for a medium-length hike where you may not see another person — but immerse yourself in pure snow-capped mountain scenery is to me a step into heaven each time. (Once you go, you are hooked!) Yes, far-thinking provided a very reasonable deal for maybe the last time . . but the bags are packed … and the living has just begun!!

In life, it is often a matter of pure luck. There are some places - face it - that you never tire of, provide escape, and are filled with such beauty that you somehow DO find “that other world”. We plan so far in advance — and as it happened, got plane tickets for this weekend (it may be 3 days instead of one but FEELS like one) before the prices zoomed. Where? The Canadian Rockies and a 3 day heli-hiking trip high in the mountains west of Banff. Seeing the world from a mountain top, having a ‘copter drop you for a medium-length hike where you may not see another person — but immerse yourself in pure snow-capped mountain scenery is to me a step into heaven each time. (Once you go, you are hooked!) Yes, far-thinking provided a very reasonable deal for maybe the last time . . but the bags are packed . . . and the living has just begun!!