Michael Tintiuc has a look that is not easily forgotten. Between his trademark long, dark brown hair, doe-like eyes and soft, sensuous features, it isn't a surprise that this young man found himself working hard as the male model whose presence would demand worldwide attention on both the...

I remember once -- it seems like a thousand years ago -- I sat in the audience during a taping of "Saturday Night Live." To give you an idea of how long ago it was, Eddie Murphy was the brand new talent on the show -- not even host material...

There is an unspoken, mostly unconscious rule of thumb that goes on between female friends each time they share an affectionate hug: Where to place your boobs. Will you be fitting your right boob in between hers, or are you a lefty? Because women don't hug each other in the...

Somewhere between abject poverty and those who can afford to go out to dinner (or lunch, or breakfast), there's an invisible little segment of society called, We Who Are Very Broke.

We're invisible because we are not living on the streets, flaunting our lack of funds. We go unseen...

I come from a time and place where the idea of success in any field was attainable and dreams of all sorts were encouraged and pursued. The children of my generation grew up hopeful. Even if our goals and aspirations were not on the level of superstardom (although superstardom was...

One of the perks of being 50-years-old-and-then-some is this freedom-inducing newfound ability to simply not care in the same way you used to when you were, say, a spry 49-year-old. And that's a good thing because caring less about what isn't important saves time and energy. Not caring as much...

We just don't know who to step on anymore, do we? Once upon a time, we loved the curvy, fleshy bodies that belonged to every single model who ever posed for a painting -- the "Rubenesque" women. Then, as time and fashion influenced what little independent thinking we could muster...

From the moment we log in to any number of our social networks -- whether it's to post a status update or blog, share a photo or simply to comment on another person's post, our actions are immediately up for interpretation by all those watching. Our photoshopped pictures, calculated responses...

Originally, the plan was to write an essay on what it's like to be a non-Christian during the holiday season. I was going to call it, "So, an Atheist, a Witch and a Satanist Walk Into a Bar..."

I had my interviewees lined up; two lovely, knowledgeable, kindhearted people...

Is there such a thing as too much freedom?

Welcome to the Internet. True, it's an old stale welcome, as we've now become too jaded and cynical to actually welcome anyone with anything less than abrupt impatience.

So, here's a sour welcome in its stead, a salutation to the...

A few years ago, a woman named Teresa, from Harlan, KY, decided to get online and pose as an autistic man/adult survivor of sexual child abuse who was also dying of leukemia. She used a false name, never revealed her face and when she took her online relationships to the...

As much of a thrill as it is for me to chat with women of great character and influence, my interview with author and TIME Magazine editor Kate Betts left me feeling both thrilled and inspired. As soon as she got on the phone with me, I knew...

I'm not writing as a privileged blogger right now. I'm writing as a mother. I do not know about the "Who's responsible" or the "What agency" needs to step in. All I know is that, as a mother -- as a human being -- I am heart broken over what...

When the Massachusetts Conference for Women asked me if I would like to interview one of their Breakout Session Speakers -- the great Delia Ephron -- not only did I squeak like a little girl who was just told she could eat the whole gigantic rainbow...

It's Pinktober again -- and you know what that means? It means that we the people get to celebrate the sisterhood of the traveling cancer, with pretty pink parades and pinky-pink ribbons. Let's march through the streets, hand in hand O My Sisters, 'cause fighting cancer is a pretty pink...

In the early 1990s, George Michael put out the song, "Freedom 90" which topped the charts and became an instant classic. With lyrics like, "looks like the road to heaven, but it feels like the road to hell," he depicts in song the story of his...

Only a few short days before my high school prom, I underwent a life-changing experience: I was repeatedly raped and beaten by someone I knew.

My parents, who were self-involved at the time, had split up and moved into separate apartments that didn't have enough room for "the kids." So,...

When I first started writing about atheism, I must admit I was coming from a very tolerant, peaceful place. I liked coming from that place, and it was my intention to represent atheism's softer side with a "live and let live, peace and brown rice" type of attitude.

By the...

There's certainly nothing new or shocking about the attachment young people have to their cell phones. They don't actually talk on them though; talking is no longer what cell phones are used for -- unless, of course, a parent calls.

Parents, those relics from a day gone by with...

I do not believe in God or religion, but I am a fanatic for religious and beatific art.

This love of mine started way back in art school when one of my assignments required that I recreate a famous painting from the Renaissance era. It was during the creation...