lifestyle

On my mother's birthday -- her 84th, had she lived -- I called my brother to remind him that he's still her favorite, though he is hopelessly pigheaded.

As if he needs reminding.

Joe never forgets anything. Our mother used to say it was because he was born blind, that God gave him a great memory to make up for his loss of sight.

Can't afford to buy a Gucci or Louis Vuitton bag you so desperately want for an event that could close a multimillion-dollar deal?

How about the perfect pair of shoes to match the dress you plan to wear for a red-carpet event -- a pair you'll probably never wear again?

Making the decision to give up an addiction may seem like a simple act to those who have never struggled with the issue. The truth is that sobriety is a process that, for those who follow the path, will last a lifetime. The great news is that by enduring and eventually embracing the process, you will also have a life. Here are 10 reasons to get started.

I did it again. Racing through the store, I grabbed an item I needed, only to find out I'd paid for less.

In other words, one doesn't want to be around my house when I get up early and discover "fat-free half-and-half" in my refrigerator. Talk about a contradiction in terms and a big "yuck."

Nobody wants you to get a dog the way a dog owner wants you to get a dog.

If you express the slightest interest in dog ownership around someone who owns a dog, you can bet your bottom biscuit they'll offer encouragement for your inclinations. And when I say encouragement, I mean full-on canine evangelism.

Q: I'm writing thank-you notes to my bridesmaids to go with the gifts I'm giving them, but my fiance thinks it'd be too girly if he did that for his groomsmen. Should he do it anyway?

A: True, a groomsman may not save a card forever the way a bridesmaid might, but being in the wedding party still merits a note of thanks, along with the gift.

On a flight from Las Vegas to Sacramento, Calif., while my husband got lost in a book, I sucked on the ice from my Diet Pepsi and tried to estimate the capacity of the average human heart.

How much can it hold? How far will it stretch? How many times can it break and mend?

I think it had something to do with me telling her that it was her turn to unload the dishwasher. Or maybe it was because I suggested she might also want to get out of her pajamas and get dressed since it was well after 3 in the afternoon.

Is that employee preparing the financial report the boss requested or checking out YouTube to see that amazing triple play that was all over sports radio this morning?

Did that tweet just sent out over Twitter close the deal with a key client, or was the sender just chatting up her recipe for blueberry pancakes?

You know times are tough when our government is so broke we can't afford to fly the American flag outside city hall anymore. Might as well just roll over and show the world our soft, pink underbelly, right?

OK, so that's not exactly what happened, though that didn't stop the news from getting the city of Clearwater, Fla., into the likes of USA Today and beyond.