It's no one's fault to be born ugly, but, honestly, must it be worn as a symbol of pride?

Every time an article is written about me or any of my contemporaries who's had the fortune and discipline to look good at a certain age, I am struck by the tone of astonishment, and the certainty that something is being done secretively to beat the devil.

My mother use to call me 'Miss Perpetual Motion' because I rarely keep still.

Making each day a mini lifetime - to achieve something and to enjoy something.

I think it is shocking that 15- and 16-year-olds leave school unable to add up and with the reading ability of a four-year-old.

My mother was a domestic goddess and Mother Earth figure. She was sweet and placid - just what the perfect wife was supposed to be and I was determined not to be.

I don't use e-mail; I phone and fax. I think people who are hunched over their computer screens all day should get a life.