Columnists

In her book, "Eat, Pray, Love," Elizabeth Gilbert talks about traveling to Italy to experience pleasure, a concept that she finds foreign. During her first few weeks in Rome, she struggles with coming to grips with what "pure pleasure" really is. Gilbert says that "pure pleasure is not my cultural paradigm," explaining that she grew up in a family of hard workers who were not given to idleness.

Every young child has his or her hero -- often a celebrity. That's okay...everyone needs a chance to dream. But at some point those heroes get moved to the back burner and a more realistic mentor/hero takes his or her place.