O, The Oprah Magazine articles from July 2005

O, The Oprah Magazine archives from July 2005

We hear you! Readers high-five us on our anniversary, confess to hoarding back issues, consider their own emotional makeovers, and treasure "What I Know for Sure.".(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2005... Congratulations on five years of O! Thank you for being by my side all that time. In those five years, I lost my mother to breast cancer, turned 40, lost 30 pounds, finished two marathons, left my job as an executive with an international ad...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
July 1, 2005... On page 373 of the May issue ("The Great Suit Pursuit"), we offered a Magicsuit tankini giveaway, but the guidelines were inadvertently left out of Shop Guide. There's still time to win this bathing suit: If you'd like to enter your name,...

Alone ... at last!(here we go)(issue contents)(Editorial)
July 1, 2005... The two of you go way back; in fact, you've known her forever. But lately you feel kind of disconnected--you just don't understand her like you used to. If we were talking about your oldest friend, you'd make a date to spend some time just...

The subject is: the Ahh! of alone.(Calendar)
July 1, 2005... July [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [TABLE OMITTED] "Follow your own path, and let people talk." --DANTE [TABLE OMITTED] "It is only alone, truly alone that one bursts apart, springs forth." --MARIA ISABEL BARRENO ...

Dr. Phil: why you deserve a break today--if not sooner; It's not selfish. It's not irresponsible. It'll send you back to your friends and family calmer, happier, and nicer. Phillip C. McGraw, PhD, on how to grab a little private time for yourself.(tell it like it is)
July 1, 2005... WHENEVER I TALK TO WOMEN about making alone time a priority, it's clear to me that even the thought of it makes them feel guilty. Women have been socialized to be the nurturers, the loving mothers, wives, and domestic engineers. Between...

Suze Orman: "a bad case of misplaced guilt is keeping you from making smarter financial decisions"; A single mom learns to prioritize her retirement over the kids' college education, a woman rebuilds her finances after leaving an abusive marriage, and a recent grad considers buying a home.(financial freedom)(Digging yourself out of debt, one card at a time.)(related article)
July 1, 2005... Q I'm a single parent (it's been ten years since my husband passed away) and a homeowner. Four years ago I had good credit, but I made the mistake of not planning soundly for my children's education. I used most of the money I'd saved to get my...

What's playing in Yo-Yo Ma's ear?(Music)(Chinese-American cello soloist)(favourite performers)(Interview)
July 1, 2005... In the 46 years since a 4-year-old Yo-Yo Ma first picked up the cello, he's produced more than 50 albums, won 15 Grammys, and attracted scores of new fans to classical music. In 1998 the Chinese-American soloist helped form the Silk Road...

Have a drink on us.(Treat)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... What's minty-sweet, bubbly, and pink all over? The O fizz, a cocktail created by Olivier Cheng, president of Olivier Cheng Catering and Events in New York City, to celebrate O's fifth birthday. To mix a batch of this blushing...

Nora Ephron's Aha! Moment: at a crowded, chaotic screening, the Bewitched director learned a bit of magic.(LYBL)
July 1, 2005... THIS AHA! MOMENT IS probably going to seem like no big deal. And there are probably all sorts of Aha! moments I should be writing about instead. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Like the...

Our second-to-last dog story ever.(DVD)(DVD for dogs home alone)(Video Recording Review)
July 1, 2005... LIKE A LOT OF DOG OWNERS, DENISE AND NICK LOREN--who both work in the film industry--felt guilty about leaving Monty, their terrier mix, home alone. So they created Dog-On Television, a new DVD for latchkey canines. Short on plot and long on...

You're invited to Carole King's living room.(In Concert)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Carole King's songs pack such an emotional wallop--try "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" or "So Far Away" on for size--because they feel so intimate and lived-in. King, whose voice was the warmest thing about the 1970s, always thought stage lights...

Our last dog story ever.(Q & A)(What the Dog Did (Bloomsbury))(Brief Article)(Interview)
July 1, 2005... In her laugh-out-loud-funny book, What the Dog Did (Bloomsbury), journalist and O contributor Emily Yoffe chronicles the true story of her entry into the Cult of Dog after being lured by a sweet, devilish beagle named Sasha. We caught Yoffe in...

On the edge of our seats ... rugby on wheels. Courteney Cox Arquette in a thriller--July is full of surprises.(Movies)(Murderball)(The Beautiful Country)(Movie Review)
July 1, 2005... The rugby players we meet in Murderball are a tough bunch: tattooed, profane, and ferociously aggressive. The fact that they're also quadriplegics, with limited use of their limbs... well, that's what makes the film, a chronicle of the U.S....

Nugget.(LYBL)(Excerpt)
July 1, 2005... "Kindness is one of the most undervalued commodities--which is too bad because it doesn't take much of it to turn the day around. I wonder if we overlook kindness because it's so simple. What's really involved? Someone needs something, We...

Something to think about.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... When you're alone, do you wallow in loneliness or bask in glorious solitude? How comfortable you are with being on your own--for an hour or a lifetime--depends on the perspective you choose. Take a moment and consider the following: 1 How...

To be alone or not to be alone? You know yourself: do you need a push to be more outgoing--or to be alone without going crazy? O's life coach says you'll be better off (more balanced, less prone to loneliness) if you try to go against the grain now and then. And she's got a few exercises to get you there.(advice, etc.)
July 1, 2005... MY FRIEND BEV HATES BEING alone. She's surrounded by people at work and at home, but to guard against solitude she uses two cell phones and a wireless e-mail device (sometimes all three at once) when she's, say, driving or taking a bath. I love...

One moment, please.(O to go)
July 1, 2005... Company can wait. Family can cope. Just for now, let these home-alone cards remind you of the hush, calm, restoration, and spacious bliss of uninterrupted and well-deserved solo time. "A soul can create only when alone...." --ABRAHAM...

The O list.
July 1, 2005... "A few things I think are just great."--OPRAH. Memories Are Made of These [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Everybody needs a place to store their pleasures, their sorrows, the thoughts and pictures that run through their heads and...

O's bra intervention: most of us--85 percent!--are wearing the wrong-size bra right at this moment. Expert fitter Susan Nethero shows six women the ABC's (and DEF's) of comfortable, gorgeous support. Join them on an uplifting journey.(fashion)
July 1, 2005... CUPS THAT RUNNETH OVER Vivienne Jurado Actor and producer, 28 BEFORE "It's hard to find sexy support," Vivienne admits. In the back, this bra rides up and makes her look fleshy; in the front, she needs "a deeper, less rigid cup so...

Look what we found! Ultradelicious soaps, luxury for your lashes, and more. Here's what O's beauty editors--Valerie Monroe and Jolene Edgar--fell in love with this month.(beauty)
July 1, 2005... Some of our friends say they do their best thinking in the shower; we like to get in there under the warm, steady spray and dream of lush Hawaiian waterfalls, of sparkling freshwater mountain streams, and now--thanks to these creamy scoops of...

What's going on: noteworthy events & happenings.(Brief Article)(Buyers Guide)
July 1, 2005... Crystal Light On The Go Something really big is happening to water! New Crystal Light On The Go. Just pour a packet into any 16.9 fl oz (0.5 liter) bottled water, shake it all up and enjoy the delicious, refreshing flavor of...

Ask Val: how effective is your sunscreen?... An eyeliner trick ... Summer skincare. O's beauty director, Valerie Monroe, gets to the bottom line.(beauty)
July 1, 2005... Q: Is it true that sunscreens sold in the U.S. don't protect against UVA rays? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A: It is true that the SPF on a sunscreen label measures protection from UVB rays alone. Both UVB and UVA rays are potentially...

For healthy teeth, drink ... coffee?(body wise)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Sports and energy drinks may be even worse for your teeth than acidic coffee and sodas. It turns out that a drink's damage potential is influenced more by the type of acid it contains than by how concentrated the acid is. A study in the journal...

Give yourself a hand.(body wise)(Tibetan meditation exercise)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... For most of us, the word massage conjures up the image of a two-person activity, perhaps with a pricey Swede named Inga (who could probably palm a basketball with ease). But the Tibetan relaxation method called kum nye is a solitary effort...

Is 5-HTP the next magic pill?(body wise)(hydroxytryptophan)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... WHY THE BUZZ: Advocates claim that boosting your levels of 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) is a natural way to ease such chronic problems as depression, insomnia, and migraines. Because 5-HTP is a chemical precursor of serotonin, a neurotransmitter...

The way to eat: goodbye Atkins, hello carbs ... weight and a sluggish thyroid ... thumbs up to a pair of arthritis supplements. David L. Katz, MD, answers your questions.(body wise)
July 1, 2005... Q What's your opinion of glucosamine and chondroitin? How long does it take for them to reach full effectiveness? --LINDA REED, NEW FREEDOM, PENNSYLVANIA [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Both glucosamine and chondroitin are natural...

Diet pills: the next generation; They won't push the plate away for you, but they do promise to quell appetite, boost metabolism, and zap fat cells. Mary A. Fischer reports on possible miracles in the making.(body wise)
July 1, 2005... DEEP IN THE HEART OF SOUTHERN AFRICA'S KALAHARI DESERT may lie the secret to weight loss. For thousands of years, the Bushmen have turned to spiny plants with delicate blossoms called Hoodia to stave off hunger and thirst during long treks...

Table for one; A meal alone is a gift, not a disgrace: use it to clear your head, savor your food, treat yourself like (honored) company. Three ways to set it up.(comfort zone)
July 1, 2005... Sitting pretty: Spruce up the table with chic details (like an unshareable box of chocolates). Your own presence--and Penny's (she played Elizabeth Taylor, Charlotte's Cavalier King Charles spaniel, on Sex and the City)--is reason enough to...

Dinner for one: because you're worth it (and because, frankly, it's no trouble at all), chef Rori Trovato suggests a delicious little dinner prepared just for you, by you. Pull up a chair, shake out your napkin, toast yourself, and enjoy!(great food)
July 1, 2005... IF TWO'S COMPANY AND THREE'S A CROWD, THEN EATING alone is the ultimate one-woman show--and those flittering social butterflies who respond to the very idea of a woman dining by herself with a semicharitable "poor dear" have probably never had...

She couldn't look away.(reading room)(Mary Ellen Mark: Exposure)(photographic book)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... Mary Ellen Mark's soul-baring documentary photographs--of down-and-out American families, preteen prostitutes in Bombay, blind Ukrainian children--reveal the beauty behind grim reality. Mary Ellen Mark: Exposure (Phaidon) presents 134 of Mark's...

The men who loved women: John Irving's new novel is a grand, rollicking, twist-filled ride.(reading room)(Until I Find You)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... He's our modern Dickens--he has Dickens's comedy and color and mind-spinning capacity for plot--and, like Dickens, his imagination is particularly capacious when engaged by the troubles of childhood. If he doesn't have Dickens's flawless...

The girl who fell to earth: a child concocts a charming, dangerous playmate in this precocious debut novel.(reading room)(The Icarus Girl)(novel)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... EIGHT-YEAR-OLD JESSAMY HARRISON has an invisible friend named TillyTilly who is wreaking havoc with Jessamy's life. Child of a British father and a Nigerian mother, Jessamy knows better than to call TillyTilly imaginary, but also knows better...

The private poet: emotionally probing, beautifully wrought--the letters of two towering American writers.(reading room)(potery books)(A Wild Perfection: The Selected Letters of James Wright)(The Letters of Robert Lowell)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... POEMS COME CLOTHED IN CAREFULLY considered lines; a poet's letters are less formally "dressed"--casual, open, often spontaneous. Two new books, A Wild Perfection: The Selected Letters of James Wright and The Letters of Robert Lowell (both...

How happy can you get? An unsettling new book has some surprising answers.(reading room)(Happiness: The Science Behind Your Smile)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... "Happiness is a butterfly, which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp," novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne once wrote, "but which, if you sit down quietly, may alight upon you." And yet, in his provocative and scholarly Happiness: The Science...

Long knives: how people can, and do, commit the unthinkable.(reading room)(Machete Season)(book)(Rwandan men and the 1994 massacre)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... The mystery of what transforms ordinary people into genocidal criminals is the haunting question that the horrors of the century keep raising. Now, in his stunning new book, Machete Season (Farrar, Straus and Giroux), French journalist Jean...

Paging summer! Sweet, salty reads for beach, bathing, and beyond.(reading room)(Bibliography)
July 1, 2005... SUMMER IS A TIME TO STRAY FROM the beaten track, to read books that might elude you in a busier season. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Reading Ellease Southerland's 1979 novel, Let the Lion Eat Straw, savvily reissued by Amistad, is like...

Serious dark circles?[TM].(NEW PRODUCT UPDATE)(Advertisement)
July 1, 2005... "The first product specifically developed for serious dark circles... not the kind that pop up in the morning and are gone by breakfast, but the kind of serious dark circles that stay around forever... making you look old, tired and...

Books that made a difference to Anderson Cooper: the CNN anchor is bowled over by evocative memoirs--diaries of sobriety and war, not to mention two gorgeous reminiscences from his own parents--plus a pair of classic modern novels.(reading room)
July 1, 2005... SOME PEOPLE GROW UP IN HOMES WHERE sports are important; I grew up in a home where reading and writing had great value. As a child, I had a problem reading. I had a mild form of dyslexia where I would see some letters backward, and I had to go...

Love among the ruins: it's been six months since the tsunami swept away their houses, villages, families, livelihoods. How are the survivors doing? Child psychiatrist Lynne Jones, who went to help, reports on children who still wake up crying and grown-ups who are struggling to rebuild their lives and transcend the unthinkable. She's awed by their amazing grace.(special report)(International Medical Corps)
July 1, 2005... Lamno, Aceh Province, Sumatra, Indonesia, February 3-5, 2005 THE STORY MY LANDLORD TELLS IS of the river suddenly draining dry. When it came back, it was full of bodies. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Lamno is a...

Shower friends with fun! Create a do-it-yourself party that's ooh la la!(Hewlett-Packard printers)(Advertisement)
July 1, 2005... As the best girlfriend, you're responsible for throwing the perfect bridal shower, birthday or even breakup party for your gal pals. Don't know where to start? Relax! Celebrate your time with the girls with some decadent pampering. Light some...

Oprah talks to Lance Armstrong.(THE O INTERVIEW)(Interview)
July 1, 2005... The six-time winner of cycling's grueling Tour de France discusses the hills and valleys of a remarkable life (and he's only 33): his fatherless childhood in small-town Texas; his life B.C.--before cancer--and after, his spartan training...

Going Solo.(being who you are)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... This month we're celebrating the bliss of doing exactly what we want to do-no apologies, no compromise. Has it been a while? Do you feel a twinge of guilt just thinking about it? Listen: We're here to say you have the right to a moment--many...

The pleasure of her own company; Nine days in a deserted resort town: Amy Bloom went to catch up on her work--and wound up catching up on her sleep, her reading, her past, her philosophy of life....
July 1, 2005... I AM NOT THE GURU OF ALONE. FOR THAT, read Doris Grumbach's Fifty Days of Solitude or May Sarton's Journal of a Solitude--these are women who know what alone is really about. I'm a dabbler, a toe-in-the-water loner. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]...

My dinner with me: from a baked potato in your pj's to the best table a $20 tip can buy, Amy Bloom on dining solo in style.(A Moment Alone: The Voyage In)(related article)
July 1, 2005... In general, I think, human beings are happiest at table when they are very young, very much in love, or very alone. --M.F.K. Fisher YOUNG IS NOT AN OPTION FOR ME and "in love" is unpredictable.... But you can count on the fact that...

Meet the parent: what does it take to raise a child on your own? Nerves of steel, nonstop energy, and a thing for short, bald people. Lisa Kogan writes one for her baby.(Finding My Place)(related article)
July 1, 2005... THE LOVE OF MY LIFE IS SHORTER than I am, does not have quite as much hair as I'd like, could never be considered a scintillating conversationalist. You're probably thinking this is one of those situations where a whole lot of money or great...

Praying alone together: mourning her father's sudden death, Dawn Raffel found out that one is the least lonely number.(Private Dancer)(The Empty Apartment)(rleated articles)
July 1, 2005... IT STARTED ONE DAY WHEN I walked into a synagogue alone. I'd never been observant and was, frankly, surprised to find myself there. But my impetus was perhaps predictable: My father had just died with mind-blowing swiftness. One minute he was...

Where have I been all my life? After years of blending, chameleonlike, into whichever man she was with, actress Daphne Zuniga retreated and discovered her own true colors.(My Own Private Movie Theater)(related article)
July 1, 2005... I LOVE FINDING MY SOUL MATE! Again and again! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] I'm not married, never have been, but every time I meet my soul mate, I feel in my core, This guy is it. I've met the most amazing men in my life, so many that a year...

Solo Saturday: how loneliness made Valerie Monroe feel a little less alone.(soliloquy)
July 1, 2005... I HAD SPENT THE SUMMER SATURDAY BY MYself, meandering through a part of the city I was still, after 30 years here, unfamiliar with, and it had yielded up a banquet of pleasure. A small, old, redbrick church, and next to it, protected by a black...

Anita Hill's after life.(Interview)
July 1, 2005... In 1991 more than 20 million TV viewers watched as a well-regarded young law professor named Anita Hill accused her former boss, Clarence Thomas, of sexual harassment--and in return was smeared as a pathological liar, a would-be political...

Coconuts: behind that hard-to-crack exterior lies one of the sweetest, nuttiest, most versatile fruits ever to topple from a tree. We've got a lovely bunch of recipes.
July 1, 2005... HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW A COCONUT reproduces? Of course you haven't--why would you? But take a moment to consider the charmed life of this exotic fruit, and you may be surprised by a thing or two. A beach bum by nature, the lazily...

Pool blues; From the cool, lazy world of lounges and floats, an O color alert: clean-lined, refreshingly sexy clothes in deep, chic teal and aquamarine. Dive right in.(Buyers Guide)
July 1, 2005... Leisure class A pool party is not necessarily about getting wet. We're high and dry as a perfect martini in mood-indigo clothes: narrow pants in seventies-style tie-dye (Piazza Sempione, $545) and an upscale chiffon peasant blouse (Alberta...

The big (beautiful) chill.(cooling soaps, lotions, shampoos, and gels)(Buyers Guide)
July 1, 2005... A steamy Saturday, a broken air conditioner, and a chance to experiment: How much relief could beauty editor Jolene Edgar find in her stash of "minty," "tingling," "icy fresh" soaps, lotions, shampoos, and gels? Her (pleasantly) chilling report...

Breathing space.(photographs)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Stand on this jetty at the edge of Little Beach and feel a tropical Hawaiian breeze blowing against your skin. Watch the sun set through pastel clouds and disappear into the Pacific. PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM FITZHARRIS.COM

Too young to kill.(lack of psychological treatment for teenage offenders)
July 1, 2005... They were teenagers when they committed unimaginably horrendous murders--crimes that made you wonder if they were monsters. What do you do with these kids? Lock them up and throw away the key? Try to rehabilitate them? Investigative reporter...

Shine of the times; Slip into something rich: these radiant summer sandals have casual antecedents (thongs, flip-flops) but a new, dressier patina, thanks to colored metallics.(Fashion)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... WE'D BETTER GET USED TO FLATS NOW--they're coming up (or rather, going down) in a big way for fall. These shoes have a low-key dazzle that works with this year's fuller skirts as well as jeans, swimsuits, and cropped pants. 1. Lilly Pulitzer...

Three steps to a safer pedicure: the same tools that soften your feet, smooth your heels, and trim your toenails can transmit some pretty nasty infections. Before you set foot in a salon, here's what you need to know--and bring along.(Beauty)
July 1, 2005... WE'VE RECENTLY ADOPTED a very Gump-ian view of salon pedicures: You never know what you're going to get. Bacterial infections, nail fungus, plantar warts, and hepatitis are a few of the less benign possibilities. But the good news, according to...

Coconuts: they add island taste and tropical zing to Thai-inspired soups, curries, seafood--and oh, that tantalizing cake (for story, see page 170).(THE RECIPES)
July 1, 2005... All recipes make 4 servings unless otherwise noted. For additional recipes, visit oprah.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Coconut-Crusted Shrimp Sauce: 1 cup finely chopped mango 2 Tbsp. Asian fish sauce (nam pla) 1 Tbsp. fresh...

Shop guide (all prices are approximate).
July 1, 2005... COVER/HERE WE GO P.23 Valentino cashmere sweater, $1,250, Valentino boutiques and Saks Fifth Avenue; valentino.com. Ermanno Scervino cotton eyelet skirt, $1,275, Saks Fifth Avenue. Gurhan 24kt-gold earrings, $1,600, Neiman Marcus; 877-447-4692;...

What I know for sure.(Editorial)
July 1, 2005... I USED TO FEAR BEING ALONE. I understood why after John Bradshaw, who pioneered the concept of the inner child, appeared on my show 14 years ago. John took my audience and me through a profound exercise. He asked us to close our eyes and go...