ArcaMax

A young woman who was several months pregnant boarded a bus. Then she noticed a young man smiling at her, and she began feeling humiliated on account of her condition. She changed her seat and he seemed more amused. She moved again and then on her fourth move he burst out laughing.

She had him arrested for harassing her.

Then the case came ...Read more

There's a quote going around from Erma Bombeck, the late, legendary essayist:

"When humor goes, there goes civilization."

The words circulated amid the news that ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel's show for comments surrounding Charlie Kirk. The comedian's line wasn't about Kirk, but rather his death being co-opted for right-wing political gain. ...Read more

Whenever I go to the supermarket, I have a big decision to make. It has nothing to do with which cereal to buy or what to make for dinner. It's not figuring out the math so I know whether to get 4 = 8 or 6 = 15 rolls of paper towels. It's all about which checkout to use: cashier or self-checkout.

On the plus side for the self-checkout, the ...Read more

The folks behind Tylenol have a rebranding conundrum. Overcoming the lasting harm of recent political stunts will require specificity and vivid description. It's going to take discussion of pelvic floor dysfunction, of discharge, of errant boobs.

In other words, it's time again to gross out the men.

Yes, we must periodically remind them that...Read more

"Are you leaving me?" asked my husband one night as he surveyed the contents of my closet, which were now on our bed.

"What? No!" I said. "Why would you think that?"

"Every single article of clothing you own is laid out on our bed," he replied. "So I have to assume you are either leaving me. Or you have joined the armed services, and if that...Read more

Chores I will gladly outsource to qualified professionals: oil changes, mammograms, colonoscopies, hair color, anything involving shingles, pipes, wires and/or drywall.

And lawn care. Where I live in Florida, the grass is fickle. That gnarly, matted weed bonanza that's either fully snuffed out or spreading like a tight, joy-smothering quilt. ...Read more

After 33 years of marriage, my husband and I have finally figured out why we sometimes have trouble communicating: He can't read my mind.

I know. I was shocked too. But there it was. And the sad fact was, I was enlightened over a bag of garbage.

One morning I came downstairs to find a bag of garbage sitting near the back door, exactly where ...Read more

Another sweaty, storied baseball season is sliding into home, but there's still time to steal a souvenir from the clutches of a wide-eyed child. With that in mind, let's review the lessons provided by a sporting season of televised misdeeds.

There's the so-called Phillies Karen who demanded a man hand over the home-run ball he had just given ...Read more

Superman is able to see through walls.

Spider-Man can detect things with his Spidey-sense.

Me? I can smell something in the next county. Yes, it's true. I am Super Smell Woman (not to be confused with the significantly less appealing Super Smelly Woman). I can detect unseen mold under a bathtub mat. I can sniff out spoiled milk from behind ...Read more

On a rainy Monday, I slid into a seat at Cracker Barrel. The chain's new, doomed logo dotted flatware sleeves, the only sign of its widely mocked brand overhaul.

For the astonishingly low price of $10, I got a hefty bowl of chicken and dumplings with green beans and a basket of hot biscuits. In this economy? I hoovered it among the kitschy ...Read more

There was a time when I was a world-class sleeper. I would go to bed at midnight and wouldn't emerge from my darkened cave until noon the next day. Alarms couldn't wake me up. Firetrucks couldn't wake me up. If there were an Olympic event for sleeping, I would have won the gold. I am sleep woman. Hear me snore.

That was all, of course, before I...Read more

Trying to keep up with the pace of innovation these days feels fruitless. Recent concerns range from "will a sentient hologram steal my job?" to "are digital fashion influencers laughing at my ankle socks?" I do not know either answer.

What I do know is that I've decided to stop worrying so much. Evidence is mounting that society will adjust ...Read more

If I'd had any choice in the matter, I certainly wouldn't have planned to have two kids' and my husband's birthdays only weeks apart. The first two just kind of worked out that way. The third was completely out of my control.

The problem with all these occasions has nothing to do with gifts or parties.

It's about the cake. Or, more ...Read more

When I was 16 and applying for my driver's license, I had to provide my height. No one was behind me with a measuring tape, so I slipped an extra inch onto the form, cementing my official frame at 5-foot-1. That inch, even just on paper, pushed me closer to Jennifer Aniston's height of 5 feet, 6 inches, a factoid I'd read in my mom's "People" ...Read more