It must have been a jinx . . . After writing a blog about how men, including (or especially) my husband, react to getting colds and how I never catch them . . . Whoops. I got one. Oh nooo! What do I do now? Well, sneeze a lot. Sleep a lot. Watch a lot of Woody Allen movies. One thing I didn’t do was constantly wonder how I got the damn thing. I know how...

Sorry to disappoint you, but no, not really. I’m just quoting the subject of the email I got this morning, and honestly, how could I not open it? So I figured you’d do the same. Although I suspected it might be X-rated and far too salacious for my delicate sensibilities, I ventured forth and was met with a photo of a very attractive, strong-looking guy...

“Retweet my tweet!” What is this world coming to? Or more important, what is MY world coming to. I found myself writing this bit of deathless prose to someone who’s helping me with PR for my book, which in case I forgot to mention, is called I CAN’T BELIEVE I’M NOT BITTER. Catchy title, no? No? Then help me come up with something better...

When A Man Gets A Cold . . . My husband is always shocked (shocked!) when he gets a cold. This happens a few times a year, and the scenario always plays out exactly the same. He comes home looking like hell and announces that he has a cold. Really? I thought the red eyes, the sneezing and the hacking were an allergic reaction. To what? My advice not to go out into...

Doc Martin is Northern Exposure without the moose. I don’t think they have moose in Cornwall, England, where the TV show is filmed, but the fictional town of Portwenn has more than its share of eccentrics, neurotics, and downright lunatics. Doc Martin himself qualifies in at least two of these categories. Not certifiable, but not exactly . . . normal either....

Dear Reader: These scientific “laws” (some of them mere theories but who are we to quibble) came to me via email, probably forwarded by some guy named Murphy. I’ve added a few comments of my own, so they are now Fortunato’s Laws. There’ll be a short quiz next week, so pay attention: Displacement of WaterWhen the body is fully immersed...

Okay, so it’s the Coffee Pot From Heck (it’s not that terrible), and if you want to be literal, it’s a coffee maker not a pot. But I had to get your attention. So what’s the problem? And what does the Coffee Fairy have to do with it? It’s complicated, as is life itself if you haven’t already noticed. I got the wrong coffee maker...

  Why not? At your next social event, you could prattle on forever (you’ll have to be more succinct on Twitter) about the silky sands, the incredible turquoise water and the amazing cloud formations, all of which look just like the travel brochures even when you just snap a quick photo with your iPhone.   As for the pleasure of reading on the beach, this...