By: Mary Fran Bontempo To hear an audio version of this post, click the play arrow below. Every winter around this time, my wheels start spinning. Much to my husband's dismay, after months holed up in my admittedly very nice home, staring at the same walls 24/7, I start to hate everything. And I mean everything, including the furniture, the flooring, the bathrooms, the curtains, the kitchen, the light fixtures, and the walls [...]

By: Mary Fran Bontempo To hear an audio version of this post, click the play arrow below. There was a time when I would have had a different answer to the question. Last Sunday was the Super Bowl, and though it wasn't exactly "Super" for Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos (it was actually a total train wreck), most football fans spent the day and night in full party mode. I was not [...]

By: Mary Fran Bontempo To hear an audio version of this post, click the play arrow below. Every woman needs a line. You know the one--the line you don't have to cross. Ever. Many of us, as little girls, had our heads stuffed with romantic notions of finding our own version of Prince Charming, getting married and living the whole happily-ever-after fanatsy. If it happens, and our white knight comes along, well, we [...]

By: Mary Fran Bontempo To hear an audio version of this post, click the play arrow below. I was hoping for a million dollars. One of the pleasures of eating Chinese food used to be the meal-ending fortune cookie. After gorging myself on fried rice, shrimp lo mein, egg rolls and tons of other stuff that’s bad for me, I was always comforted by a sweet, crunchy cookie containing a slip of paper [...]