O, The Oprah Magazine articles from July 2006

O, The Oprah Magazine archives from July 2006

We hear you! Inspired? Incensed? Moved to tears? Readers bounce back with their thoughts on the May issue.(letters)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2006... Oh, Mother I've spent 14 years of my career child-free and two years of it with a child, so I've been on both sides of the tension between moms and nonmoms ["The Mother of All Conflicts," by Lisa Belkin, May]. I, too, used to grouse about...

Correction.(Correction notice)
July 1, 2006... In May we ran a story ["The Medium Has a Message," by Patricia Arquette] on Allison DuBois, the psychic behind the show Medium, in which we cited a murder case she'd worked on. But we got the facts wrong, erroneously melding two cases she'd...

Here we go!(Cover story)
July 1, 2006... SOME OF MY DEAREST FRIENDS have solved murders, broken hearts, and kept entire families going on nothing more than a wing and a prayer. They've been seduced, corrupted, made whole, set free, and loved like nobody's business. Where did I meet...

July.
July 1, 2006... "In every work of genius, we recognize our own rejected thoughts; they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty."--Ralph Waldo Emerson "Through the use of books, I had the whole world at my feet, could travel any where, meet...

Live your best life.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... "The best moments in reading are when you come across something--a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at things--which you had thought unique and particular to you. Now here it is, set down by someone else, a person you have never met,...

Stranger than fiction: surprising stats from the book world.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... 1 Rank of romance among best-selling fiction genres in the United States [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 28 Percentage by which "literary reading"--novels, short stories, plays, and poetry--has declined among 18- to 24-year-olds since...

Moved by Tina.(Tina Turner)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... River Deep, A Tribute to Tina Turner may sound like the name of a jukebox musical, but the cast members of this show never break into a chorus of "What's Love Got to Do with It." Instead, performers interpret Turner's life through abstract...

Body language.(Kiki Smith)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Ever since Kiki Smith started busting body taboos in the early 1980s, her sculptures and prints have focused on the human condition at its most visceral. Smith's work--which recently earned her a spot on Time magazine's list of the 100 "People...

The War Tapes.(Movie review)
July 1, 2006... IN 2004, WHEN FORMER TV reporter Deborah Scranton was offered a spot as an embed with a New Hampshire National Guard unit, she chose instead to put cameras directly in the hands of soldiers. Her "correspondents"--three infantrymen on yearlong...

The short list.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... The House of Sand unites Brazilian Andrucha Waddington (director of the wonderfully strange and sly Me You Them) with real-life mother-daughter team Fernanda Montenegro (Oscar nominee for Central Station) and Fernanda Torres (left). The...

What's playing in Kelly Rowland's ear?(Interview)
July 1, 2006... For more than half her life, 25-year-old Kelly Rowland stood hip-to-sequined-hip with her foster sister Beyonce knowles in the R & B group Destiny's Child. But between recording and performing with the juggernaut trio that's sold more than 40...

Little write lies.(Liebrary)(Product/service evaluation)
July 1, 2006... IF YOU'RE HARBORING a frustrated novelist within, Liebrary ($48; simplyfun.com) may set her free. The new board game is equal parts creativity and chicanery, a bookworm's Balderdash. One player reads aloud a card with the synopsis of a...

Yes, it was awful--now please shut up: poignant, tragic, funny, outrageous--most of us have at least one story we tell (and retell) to explain our emotional bruises. But there's a big difference between understanding the past and being stuck in it. Martha Beck is here to set us free.
July 1, 2006... IF YOU'VE EVER SEEN a nervous flier working a set of worry beads through her fingers or Dirk the neighborhood car freak relentlessly buffing his 1982 Mercedes roadster to a high sheen, then you know the exact kind of fevered pitch I've worked...

Dr. Phil: "your husband could be a complete numbskull who hasn't noticed your weight loss"; Phillip C. McGraw, PhD, on reading your spouse's mind, deciding whether you're ready for a child, and finding room to breather when you're together all the time.
July 1, 2006... Q For most of the past decade, I was overweight. After suffering from health problems last year, I decided something had to change, so I joined Weight Watchers and lost more than 60 pounds. I'm only five pounds short of my goal, and I look and...

Suze: "if you don't come clean about your finances, you can't expect a marriage to work"; Should you reveal to your future husband the depth of your debt? What are your financial obligations to a long-term partner? How can you help a relative avoid bankruptcy?
July 1, 2006... Q My fiance and I have been together for five years. We decided it was better to keep separate bank accounts because we often argued about money. He doesn't believe in carrying a credit card balance; my card is maxed out at around $16,000. He...

The O list.(Advertisement)
July 1, 2006... "A few things I think are just great."--OPRAH Have Library, Will Travel "This portable reader lends new meaning to the phrase 'book smart.' Download up to 80 of your favorites (hundreds more with a memory card), and say goodbye to...

Look what we found! Happy colors. Cute concepts. Play's the thing when it comes to whimsical accessories like these. They're fashion toys for adults.
July 1, 2006... BLUSH HOUR Warm, bright color--at your feet, on your arm--is a happy antidote to a stress-prone life. From top: Peep-toe heels with a Minnie Mouse bow (Moschino, $540) couldn't be more animated. A feathery flower buoys a satin clutch (Kate...

Sweetness and light: gauzy as butterfly wings, these blouses can fly away to play dress-up (with a tiered skirt, say) or give a tender gossamer touch to jackets or jeans.
July 1, 2006... The Naturals Confections in pink, white, and ecru show a hint of skin, but there's nothing exhibitionistic about them. Left: Fabric flowers and leaves sewn onto a simple sleeveless shirt of silk organza (Bill Blass) make it relatively...

Look what we found! A seductive body oil, a frothy body wash (that's no lightweight), three revolutionary lip products, and more. Here's what O's beauty editors--Valerie Monroe and Jenny Bailly--fell in love with this month.
July 1, 2006... You've spent a lazy afternoon on the beach at St.-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, reading an engrossing novel, looking up between chapters to rest your eyes on the wide, undulating turquoise sea. It's time to wander back to your hotel for a bath and maybe a...

Ask Val: your makeup mysteries, hair issues, and skin problems solved! Valerie Monroe, O's beauty director, fields your questions.
July 1, 2006... What can I do about the fine lines around my lips? A: I have them, too (they're called perioral rhytids). And because when I develop something--especially something undesirable--I'm always curious about how it got there, I asked Stuart H....

Spa savvy: a great day-spa experience requires more than just showing up. Jenny Bailly on getting the most bliss with the least stress.
July 1, 2006... How to Get Exactly What You Want (for Less) The average price of a spa treatment in the United States is $75, but it climbs well into the three-digit range in major cities. Here's how to make the most of your investment: [ILLUSTRATION...

Is there anything better than a tomato sandwich? It's the definition of humble (and sublime): tomatoes, salt, mayonnaise, and bread. If it sounds simple, that's the point. Celia Barbour rediscovers one of the great joys of a childhood summer.
July 1, 2006... I GREW UP AMONG TOMATOES. EVERY August and September, the ravishing orbs overwhelmed our Indiana garden and invaded our kitchen, filling the sink and lining the windowsills like holiday decorations without a holiday to commemorate. Tomato...

Book keeping; Your books are your autobiography: they map your history, reflect your tastes, hold emotional moments between covers. On these pages, intelligent designs for sharing space with the literature you love.(comfort zone)
July 1, 2006... Quiet, Please Curling up with an absorbing story is as crucial to your well-being as leafy greens or sunshine. And it's especially restorative if you have a corner dedicated to the printed word, with all the comforts: say, a cool,...

Shelf awareness: do you alphabetize your books, treat them as decorative objets, or live in constant danger of a giant bookslide? How we handle our books speaks volumes about who we are. Deborah Way asks a few writers how their libraries stack up.
July 1, 2006... IN COLLEGE I SPENT A LOT OF TIME with Virginia Woolf, and when I was done, I was done. Maybe it's because I wrote my senior essay on her when I would rather have been out playing. Or because the finished product showed exactly how little effort...

Have we got a deal for you!(Amazon.com Inc.)
July 1, 2006... This issue is so full of books you're going to want that we asked the nice people at Amazon to do us a favor and give you a break. Here it is: Just go to www.amazon.com/oprahmagazine and pick the books you want from this list. Add them to your...

Trainers on demand: you don't have to join a gym, schep to a class, or even get out of your pj's. If you've got a DVD player, a computer, or cable TV, you've just run out of excuses--because star coaches are available onscreen right now to give you a private workout. Bonnie Tsui tunes in.
July 1, 2006... IN THE EIGHTIES, WHEN FITNESS videos entered the scene, suddenly you could get Jane Fonda (big hair and leg warmers included) on your TV. But working out to the same routine every day can get pretty boring. The latest revolution is in having...

Wag the weight.(body wise)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... WHEN FIDO GRABS THE LEASH and looks up at you with butter-soft eyes, he's begging to melt more than your heart. In a University of Missouri-Columbia study, obese, sedentary men and women were paired with dogs and instructed to walk them for ten...

The candy calm.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... IF YOU REACH FOR M & M's or Sara Lee when you're tense, you may be onto a biochemical phenomenon. Scientists at the University of Cincinnati restrained a group of rats, making them anxious, and then measured their glucocorticoids--stress...

Untangle your medical bills.
July 1, 2006... GETTING SICK IS BAD ENOUGH--then the bills arrive. First comes the sticker shock, next the headache of trying to decipher medical mumbo jumbo. But scrutinizing the paperwork could save you thousands, says Nora Johnson, senior director of...

Are you a supertaster?(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... IF YOU CAN'T STAND BROCCOLI or Brussels sprouts, you may be more than a picky eater. Super-tasters--a term coined by Linda Bartoshuk, PhD, professor of ear, nose, and throat surgery at the Yale University School of Medicine--detect flavors more...

How men really feel about breast implants: seriously. After the initial ogle, what's going through the average man's mind? Is anything going through his mind? Is he awed, intimidated, repelled ... or simply grateful for these larger-than-life, attention-grabbing blouse busters? Tom Chiarella gets it all off his chest.
July 1, 2006... FAKE IS A BEAUTIFULLY COMplicated word. It starts softly, in almost a whisper, then quickly gathers strength on the way to its harsh, nasty terminus. It's employed with equal authority by schoolchildren and accountants, jewelers and...

The binge from hell (and back); She needed pain relief: cookies, ice cream, apple fritters. But why did a few tiny nibbles have to turn into a daylong, zillion-calorie pig-out? Racked with guilt and indigestion, Anne Lamott finds the grace to deal with her food (and other) demons.(Fictional work)
July 1, 2006... WE MOVED INTO OUR CURRENT HOUSE SIX YEARS AGO, WHEN SAM WAS 10. IN THE old house our bedrooms had been very close to each other, but in our new place we were separated by two rooms and two short hallways. He started coming into my room in the...

The way to eat: David L. Katz, MD, sorts out the healthy, the harmful, and the hype.
July 1, 2006... Q | Canned food with no expiration date makes me nervous. How do I know if it's still safe to eat? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] --JULIET BOWLES, San Jose, California Other than infant formula and baby food, most packaged goods are not...

Lisa Kogan tells all: after a very bad hair day, our newest columnist figures out what's really messing with her head.
July 1, 2006... AT FIRST, YOU THINK EVERY DEtail will remain forever lodged in your memory. It was a Saturday. I had toast and a tangerine for breakfast. My sweater was cobalt blue. But with time and distance and a perceptive shrink, you begin the arduous...

The dog lovers: the house was always bursting with love--of the face-licking, ear-tousling, "who's a good girl?" variety. What would the two of them do when it was ... just the two of them? Sally Koslow confronts her empty nest.(Fictional work)
July 1, 2006... OKAY, IT WASN'T THE EIFFEL TOWER in June but a humid August evening in Long Island, and my boyfriend pulled his car in to a stranger's driveway. "Why are we stopping here?" I asked. His answer was in a black velvet box. I don't believe he...

A letter from Harper Lee.
July 1, 2006... Dear Oprah, Do you remember when you learned to read, or like me, can you not even remember a time when you didn't know how? I must have learned from having been read to by my family. My sisters and brother, much older, read aloud to keep...

Reading: a love story.(Summer Special)
July 1, 2006... They're so addictive, we forget to eat, sleep, shower, water the plants, nuzzle the cat. Books populate our aloneness, transport us to other eras and other places, and give us face time with characters (Scout Finch! Jay Gatsby! Isabel Archer!)...

Summer made simple.
July 1, 2006... WHEN LIFE MOVES OUTDOORS, clothes get bolder. Here we're juggling two patterns and a dual color scheme: a striped Gap tee and multicolored-bead Old Navy bracelet and, on the grass-is-greener side, botanical print pants and toe-ring sandals from...

The ripe stuff; A perfect, juicy pear: good. Same pear, caramelized and served with a tangy sour-cream ice cream? Oh. My. God. With a few fresh, easy twists, chef Gale Gand turns summer fruits into spectacular desserts.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... "THE GREAT THING ABOUT FRUIT IS that you don't have to do that much to it," says Gale Gand. "It does all the work for you." As the star of the Food Network's popular program Sweet Dreams, and the executive pastry chef and partner at Chicago's...

Breathing space.(Photograph)
July 1, 2006... Walk to the very edge of this slanting dock as first light burns the fog off the hills and the day begins in the rolling countryside near Germany's Black Forest. PHOTOGRAPH BY MICHAEL SCHNABEL

"You fight for what you've got, even if it's only worth a dime".(SPECIAL REPORT)
July 1, 2006... The women of West Virginia coal country are taking on a giant industry they say is killing their husbands, sickening their children, ravaging the Appalachian countryside, poisoning the air, and intensifying global warming. With pathetically...

Almost barefoot: wiggle room for your toes. Real chic for your feet. Today's thongs combine the freedom and fun of their beachy genes with the style power of real shoes.(Fashion)
July 1, 2006... 1. Shell seekers: Beaded circles are a shore thing. Or a city thing. Gap ($40); gap.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 2. Office flip-flop: One-inch heel, summer color, work-friendly style. Talbots ($68);...

The curls of Summer.(Beauty)
July 1, 2006... Even women whose relationship with their curls is harmonious most of the year find themselves at war as the mercury and humidity rise. Here are the best products and some expert advice guaranteed to broker peace with curls behaving badly. ...

The ripe stuff; Sweet dreams are made of this: sour cream ice cream with caramelized pears, a gorgeous lemon and lavender mousse, maple-infused pineapple skewers ... (for story, see page 184).(THE RECIPES)(Recipe)
July 1, 2006... Buttermilk Brown Sugar Panna Cotta with Balsamic Strawberries [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Panna cotta: 1 1/2 cups heavy cream 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (preferably organic) 1 envelope (1/4 ounce) unflavored gelatin 2 cups...

Shop guide (all prices are approximate).
July 1, 2006... COVER Tory Burch cotton tank, $185, and cotton top, $278, Saks Fifth Avenue; 877-551-7257; toryburch.com. Tito Pedrini citrine and 18kt-yellow-gold earrings, $3,300; 212-888-3355; titopedrini.com. Patek Philippe stainless steel and diamond...

What I know for sure.
July 1, 2006... I JUST BUILT A FIRE IN THE FIREplace. What a sense of accomplishment it is to stack the wood exactly right (pyramid-style) and have the flames shoot up, without using a fire starter log! I don't know why that's so rewarding for me, but it...