Best Buys
For as long as I can remember, Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners have been identical: the oven-roasted turkey in the center of the table, surrounded by mashed potatoes, creamed onions, cranberries, and Mom's yams topped with …
This week, I have to reckon with Gladys. Three of my dearest friends and I are gathering for a Christmas party at Chez Kelly, and the e-mails have been flying fast and furious as we …
My sister Meg lives in a 100-year-old drafty home in Massachusetts. Every winter she is freezing. To make matters worse, she is a string bean -- no insulation at all on her bones -- so …
"Oh, and pumpkin pie is out. This year, I want chocolate. Nothing but chocolate." Uncle Max is at it again, ruffling feathers throughout the Kelly family chicken coop. He does love to see the older …
It's been a while since anyone in my social circle had a visit from the stork, but friend Lisa is expecting at the end of November -- her first. She's already had one baby shower, …
Last year's Halloween festivities involved policemen of the wrong sort: instead of water guns and plastic badges, we got the real thing. My dear friend Bernice was summoned down to the station to pick up …
My 82-year-old dad is like a character from a 1950s horror movie. All year long, he's a retired suburban gentleman who goes to church on Sunday, keeps his lawn mowed short, and waves to the …
A mischievous elf has been marking up my leather. First, it was our chair in the family room, a red armchair now graffitied with blue ballpoint pen. Then, a few weeks later, he was back, …
"Feels like another $35 for the chiropractor," said my husband Patrick, rubbing his back. He'd spent the weekend in L.A. on business, stayed at his sister's, and slept on an air mattress. "I'd have been …
My husband is heading off to the high Sierras for a backpacking trip this month. Patrick has done this trip before and was freezing all night. "I bought a cold weather sleeping bag, but I …
My pal Bernice's parents are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this winter. I've been hearing a lot of the planning over our weekly coffee meeting. "It's going to be huge," Bernice said, eyes popping out …
High cholesterol doesn't run in my husband's family, but he has become an exception. Last month he returned from a yearly physical looking glum. "Doc has given me three months to take some weight off …
This summer has been filled with parties. There was husband Patrick's poker party with pals. There was karaoke night with old college friends who have an obsession with Sinatra. An early-July barbecue and bonfire at …