I agree with Cary's advice, but not with some commentors' demonizing of the boyfriend. People fall out of love. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with that. The LW should stay with her child, that is obvious. And the boyfriend, if he is not involved enough in the relationship to want to stay in it, then he is doing everyone a favor by leaving town. The end of a relationship sucks, but I don't like this need to make someone at fault for it. The ending a relationship is the responsibility of both halves. There doesn't need to be anyone to blame.

I omit some of the repetition in this translation.

tarako, tappuri tarako ga yatte kuru

(cod roe, plenty of cod roe is on its way)

tarako, tsubutsubu tarako ga yatte kuru

(cod roe, grainy/lumpy cod roe is coming)

You're just going to have to trust me that grainy/lumpy ( tsubutsubu) sounds delicious in Japanese... it's a descriptive word that explains a bunch of small roundish things that have a liquidy, pop-in-your-mouth kind of quality.

The maker of this pasta sauce is Kewpie, which explains all the Kewpie dolls dressed as cod roe.

That woman was in a terrible situation. She was told that she could not have children. Hence, a committed relationship with a man who wanted them was out of the question. She found a guy who didn't want children, liked him, and thought that there would be no conflict.

And then the miracle. If you wanted a child but had given up hope, would you really be willing to abort the child on the off chance that you would be able to conceive again, and that you would be able to find a man willing to be a responsible father in time? A man who wanted children who would take the risk that you could beat the odds again?

Abortion was not a meaningful option for her. Neither was choosing a better man. Sometimes things turn out in ways we don't expect, and the child shouldn't have to suffer because there was no way for the mother to plan for it. It's just too bad that Matt Dubay didn't have enough empathy for a woman he apparently liked enough to sleep with to step up to the plate.

Simplify your life. I am reading a wonderful book called The Guide to Simple Living, which gives you a lot of practical things to do to help you live less expensively, allowing you to work less. You don't need to make a sharp decision; if your husband is willing to be the primary breadwinner, do what you can to make the money he brings home go farther. Then take advantage of the best gift an adult can receive: the ability to choose a job without considering the salary.

even if you don't like the writer, she makes a good stand-in for american society as a whole. what better description of this country than acquisitive, charming, and shallow? the author's attempt to stop consuming is instructive, because it shows that even people who are thoroughly steeped in capitalist culture can be introspective enough to notice their buying habits, and to feel guilty for the choices they make.

you don't have to like melena ryzik to learn from her, and a fluffy piece that raises an important issue, sparks debate, and provides a window into the "buyer's mind" seems an eminently reasonable piece of journalism.

I wondered too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Roll#B_roll

or are the hooting men that cheer each of her anti-feminist statements just a little bit too enthusuastic? i find the crowd reaction to that clip to be pretty disturbing.

The vegan diet does not necessarily have the lowest impact in all circumstances. You have to consider how much water it takes to raise the crops, and how far those crops or water need to be transported. In some areas, it's more efficient to raise goats or sheep who can forage for naturally occurring vegetation, and live primarily off their meat and milk, than it would be to move enough water to irrigate the same land, or to spend the fossil fuels necessary to deliver vegetables produced elsewhere. I am a vegetarian, but I have no illusions that my diet can be considered eco-friendly... I have too much attachment to delicious things that are imported from far-away places.

he's an alien named "jones" doing a survey on the earth.

he's introduced as a new employee by the japanese guy... but he's thinking:

"the people of this planet seem to be obsessed by work. and (after the japanese guy gives him the coffee) it seems that for them, being tired out is a joyful thing."

wheadley:

artMonster was quoting lkpo's letter, not Mr. Keillor's article. what's wrong with your browser?