Slow cooking is a misnomer. Using the inexpensive appliance as a home to tempting economical ingredients that meld their flavors over hours without any work from you means that time is your own to achieve lots of other accomplishments done fast and to still have prepared a delicious family meal. Old-fashioned, plain recipes are no longer the norm when it comes to slow cookers... More >>

...This one is from Julia: "At what point in a relationship is it okay to ask about serious health issues or sexually transmitted diseases?..." More >>

After the busy holiday season, many of us say, "Ho, ho, ho" not only since we were jolly during the festivities, but because we feel as permanently rotund as Santa from all that feasting. Even though it may seem like a Herculean task, weight loss does not have to be a time-consuming affair filled with sophisticated homemade or packaged food...  More >>

People seem very confused about happiness.  Most folks believe that having all they want is the way to be happy.  I don't think so. When I was on the radio evenings in Los Angeles over two decades ago, I reached a "24 share."  That meant one out of four people listening to Los Angeles radio was tuned into me.  I got a substantial bonus.  We took that money and paid off all financial obligations and had some left over. I had always wanted a tennis bracelet - that's a bracelet made of tiny or huge diamonds.  I had enough money for a bracelet with tiny diamonds, but a tennis bracelet nonetheless.  My husband told me to treat myself, and I did.  I felt a swell of joy every time I looked at that bracelet. I did not feel joy because I had a diamond bracelet on my wrist. More >>

To tempt or not to tempt....that is the question.  Whether 'tis nobler to seduce already or ready-to-be overweight children with pop toys to get them to eat more fat and salt than a horse would tolerate OR find a way to combine good business sense and family-friendly nutrition? Apparently, McDonald's would rather just seduce your kids - it makes good profits. Well, that could no longer be the case in San Francisco. More >>

I've been giving something a lot of thought lately, and have decided to share it with you - to influence you (if you're not already) to open up to friendships. Deborah Tannen, the linguist, recently wrote a piece published in The New York Times which discussed some research which indicated that people with sisters are happier than those without them.  Her point of view was it isn't women who talk better than men, it's that they talk more often - even if it's not about problems.  The very act of just communing is beneficial to both. More >>

Cooking can be easy, nutritious, inexpensive, fun - and fast - as these menus of split-second family-friendly sensations prove. They take just  10 seconds each to read and are almost that quick to prepare . The meals are delicious proof that everyone has time for tasty home cooking and, more importantly, the healthy family time around the kitchen table that goes along with it! More >>

As a "family member" and longtime listener, I was touched by the call from a woman afraid to inform her brother of his positive test results for a devastating disease (Huntington's). In your compassionate, firm way, you rightly said her brother must be informed despite the caller's fears of his committing suicide, adding you regret you have no magic wand. More >>

Is life throwing you a curve? Perhaps your husband of 15 years suddenly wants a divorce, although you thought things were going pretty well. Maybe you were surprised by a lay-off and now struggle to get a job, even though you are a great candidate and deserve the positions you apply for... More >>

How many times have you heard an adult say something like:  "I know I'm a mature adult, but I feel like a teenager on the inside?"  Sometimes, there's a real disconnect between what we see in the mirror and what we think inside our heads: More >>