Lindsay calls them the Pugs: pretty from far away, ugly up close.

It's a miracle I was able to get out of the house today. It's a miracle I'm even wearing pants, a double miracle I remembered to wear shoes.

The old Lena is dead.

I want to know." His words are a whisper, barely audible. "I want to know with you.

The last laugh, the last cup of coffee, the last sunset, the last time you jump through a sprinkler, or eat an ice-cream cone, or stick your tongue out to catch a snowflake. You just don't know.

My parents were pretty liberal, but they were still parents. I definitely had my teenage rebellion.

So are you going to be my knight in shining armor or what?' Kent does a little bow. 'You know I can't resist a damsel in distress.