Abundance of Books

In case you feel deprived of book recommendations on this blog (ha), I have more to share this morning. My latest article in USA Weekend magazine highlights books that deal with the topic of self image. Check it out in print or on the magazine's newly designed website.

Let Evening Come

Last month I was in California for a couple days catching up on my compliance hours to keep my law license active (still not ready to let it go). It was the week of the torrential downpours, but California never fails me, and it just so happened that a portion of the conference was cancelled at the exact moment the sun came blazing out. I walked for hours up and down the beach soaking in the rays. Then I stumbled into The One Dollar Bookstore and found a gem. I knew right away it would be my February book pick for this blog.
Let Evening Come by Mary C. Morrison offers her reflections on aging. I love reading books by authors in their 80s and 90s. The writers are at a stage in life where they can offer a unique perspective on a variety of topics. Also, you can't help but walk away with a few lessons.

Lesson #1 ~ No one is ever too old to start writing. Pick up a pen and begin at any age.
Lesson #2 ~ Unlike some professions, writing is a skill you can continue to improve, improve, and improve upon no matter how many grey hairs and wrinkles.
Lesson #3 ~ Our country needs to celebrate the elderly and do a better job of treating them well. I love this Blue Zones video showing how a bar in Sardinia, Italy posts a "Centurion of the Month" calendar on its wall instead of photos of swimsuit models.

Here are some other books to consider:
Somewhere Towards the End by Diana Athill ~ I didn't always agree with her philosophies, but this book, published when Athill was 91, is worth the read.
Rehnquist by Herman J. Obermayer ~ 84-year-old journalist Obermayer recounts his friendship with the late Supreme Court Justice.
Eye of My Heart edited by Barbara Graham ~ in this anthology, 27 women explore the joy and difficulties of being grandmothers.
All of Harry Bernstein's books ~ I love, love, love his stories.

What books do you enjoy that are written by authors in their 70s, 80s, 90s, and beyond?

A New Column: Green Scene

I first got hooked on coffee in law school. I blame Professor Nelson's early morning property class. And those late night study sessions. Also the daily commute, demanding workload and constant stress, stress, stress. Thirteen years later, I'm no longer practicing law, but I'm still addicted to coffee . . . to continue reading this piece, join me over here where I'm the new Green Scene columnist. In my debut column, I talk about my struggle to stay off coffee, and I highlight a number of Earth-friendly coffee spots around D.C. (there are additional locations listed in the print version).

My next topic? Junk mail. As a writer, I wind up on magazine subscriber lists and once that happens, BAM, junk mail galore. How do you deal with the waste that shows up uninvited in your mailbox? Have you tried Green Dimes or Catalog Choice? Do they work? What other tools do you employ to handle your paper mail? I'd love to hear your thoughts, so leave a comment or drop me an e-mail and share your words of wisdom. (I might quote ya. Unless you don't want me to, in which case I won't!)

Food and Fertility

For awhile I believed food could fix my fertility issues. Then I thought maybe food didn't have much of an impact. There are plenty of women who pop out kids without paying attention to diet. And there are women who eat clean "fertility boosting" foods with no luck. Still, I'm now back in the camp of those who believe food can make a difference. I chatted with a nutritionist at Pulling Down the Moon and shared her thoughts about what foods to seek out when trying to conceive (and some to avoid) in my latest article for USA Weekend magazine.

Online

Here's the online version of yesterday's article.

My Sunny Personality

Here's one of the many things I love about writing: I love being at a random event and meeting a random person and learning a random fact and thinking, I HAVE to write about that. That's what happened last summer when I learned of a new website that matches students with colleges based on their personalities (sort of like e-Harmony, but for universities). Turns out there's a whole slew of websites out there that can help students find a good match, so I wrote an article about it for The Washington Post's Express, out today. During my research, I pretended like I was in my junior year of high school and filled out the questionnaire as honestly as I could (based on what I could remember about that time in my life). According to the match, I should've gone to school in . . . drum roll please . . . California.

Over on the Book Blog

It's winter. The tree outside my window is bare. Without intense sunlight, her veins have closed up and she cannot create vegetation. Her leaves have fallen off and died, even the most stubborn ones that held on through much of December. I think about her a lot in the winter. On the verge of going crazy, when I can't stand one more second of the day's heavy cold, I watch her . . . to continue reading about the book "Lives of the Trees" visit the LIME.com blog.