Cary,

As a person who goes over every critical comment, low grade, embarassing gaffe or error I ever experience, ad nauseum, I can relate to what you are feeling.

When something goes wrong, especially when I am criticized by someone whose opinion means something to me, every success fades into the background. I have been working to move away from this obsessive psychological scab-picking, but it's never going to be easy. This is the hallmark of a perfectionist. And you are a perfectionist.

I love your column and so do many, many other readers. I read it in the morning while I drink tea and get ready for the day. When you go on vacation I check in daily to see if you are back. I will buy your book when I am not so damn broke (1 semester of law school to go!). You are out there, writing, and, people read what you write. Lots of people. You are going to attract heat from assholes who disagree with your advice or simply don't like your persona. But bottom line, they'll be back next week to read your column, because they are hooked.

Focus on those of us who admire what you do (like a previous poster, I panicked when I read your intro because I thought you might be quitting). Take the advice you give, and treat yourself right. Relax for a while and just give in and just enjoy your success as a writer and a human being!

This is harassment, and bad management to boot, but it lacks the element of differential treatment based on gender that is needed to ground a finding of sexual discrimination or sexual harassment.

I don't think that you can take a straightforward case of employee harassment by an employer, and call it sexual harassment just because all of the victims happened to be male or female.

Some here have pointed out that an employer may sexually harass both male and female employees and it would still be sexual harassment. Point taken, but the harassment here did not seem sexual in nature. Then again, I've not read the decision.

A few days ago my roomie and I were discussing young actors that we like, and, though Heath Ledger has never been at the forefront of my movie-going consciousness, I named him as the best of the bunch. I was really looking forward to the new Batman movie (I found the last to be ponderous and over-long) mainly on the strength of Ledger's Joker.

I know what it is to be stressed out, anxious, and insomniac. Mr. Ledger clearly took his career very seriously, I can only imagine what a pressure cooker he was living in. He just seemed like a decent, serious person, and it really saddens me that no one was there to catch him when he fell into whatever it was that led to his untimely death.

The loss of Heath Ledger will no doubt be heightened on the release of The Dark Knight. I've seen the trailer and it looks electrifying.

And I like theatre. But maybe 1 out every 3 or 4 theatrical productions that I've taken in have actually been rip roaring good entertainment. Many plays I've been to have actually made me to cringe with embarassment for the actors and director. On the other hand, a really great play or musical will have me thinking, humming, and talking about it for weeks afterwards.