Doris O'Brien is a retired college Speech teacher and banker. She has published two books of humor (Up or Down With Women's Liberation and Humor Me a Little) and for many years contributed light verse to the Pepper 'n Salt column of the Wall Street Journal. She is an avid writer of letters to the editors.
Doris celebrated her 50th wedding anniversary in the same year she welcomed her first grandchild. She now lives in Pasadena with a great view of the San Gabriel mountains — and the annual Tournament of Roses Parade.
She can be reached by e-mail: witsendob at (@) gmail.com
Memoirs, Biographies, Historical Fiction and Science Fiction: Recommendations from Jane Gitschier's Bookshelf
Jane Gitschier reviews science-related books. "I bow to Richard Rhodes, author of my all-time favorite science narrative The Making of the Atomic Bomb. Do not be intimidated by a little nuclear physics. This book is a lucid page-turner: the story is both magnificent, speaking to the genius and industry of men and women working under the incredible pressure of war, as well as terrifying in its implications, and we feel the tension in it." more »
Are There Enough Doctors for the Newly Insured; A Far Less Attractive Career Choice
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, unless something changes rapidly, there will be a shortage of 45,000 primary care doctors in the US (as well as a shortfall of 46,000 specialists) by 2020. Today nearly 20% live in areas with an insufficient number of primary care doctors; 16% live in areas with too few dentists and a whopping 30% are short of mental health providers. more »
The Metropolitan Vanities Hold A Variety of Beautifying Paraphernalia
In the late 17th C., European high society began commissioning luxurious specialized furniture from craftsmen and furniture makers. The poudreuse in France, and the low boy, Beau Brummel, and shaving table in England served as models for the dressing table. During the 19th C., dressing tables were made in many revivalist styles including the Gothic, Elizabethan, Rococo, Renaissance, and Colonial revivals. more »
"You Think I Should Choose Life?" Asks Lady Mary in Downton Abbey's Season Four
New characters, old emnities, revelations, complicated relationships, romances, London literati, hardships ... where do the the plot twists and infatuations end? Not for a while, as Season 4 begins and beyond that, a planned-for Season 5 lies. more »
