Much female conversation is, in fact, about survival - but in code.

Between sisters, often, the child's cry never dies down. "Never leave me," it says; "do not abandon me."

we perceive silence where, in fact, there is a muffler.

for many people, loneliness was an experience of time. 'Not knowing what to do with yourself' was the way it was usually put.

Much female conversation is, in fact, about survival - but in code.

The illusion of companionship sits waiting in the television set. We keep our televisions on more than we watch them - an average of more than seven hours a day. For background. For company.

Humor tells you where the trouble is.