Martha Mccully

I used to diet, now I "cleanse." Even though supposedly toxins don't exist, I want them out of my body. So if there is a new cleanse, I'm on it. Literally. After all, it's not about losing pounds, it's about being healthy.

The pace of making money in this new world is so different than what I'm used to. When I first left the steady paycheck eighteen months ago, each day that would go by where I didn't make a penny caused a panic.

I'm once again the inhuman dog-less, child-less single lady who for an instant came close to being one of them, but didn't make it.

I'm doing a lot of things differently in my new economy. I'm cleaning my own house, choosing meters over valet, skipping doctors' appointments, living without HBO, avoiding Whole Foods.

A friend in New York calls to say that I MUST see the new movie "I Love You, Man," not because of the hilarity (brief but present), but for the scene...

I've been in Venice 21 days and I am still the New Girl. The simplest and most complex incidents make me feel this way. I don't even know when and where to cross the street.