Cath wished she didn't use the word "just" so much. It was her passive-aggressive tell, like someone who twitched when they were lying.

I dare you to call Ask-A-Nurse and tell them you feel a presence in your womb region.

I was in my mid 20s when email finally took off. Until then, the phone was my primary way of connecting with the people in my life.

It's more like you meet someone, and you fall in love, and you hope that that person is the one - and then at some point, you have to put down your chips. You just have to make a commitment and hope that you're right.

All through first and second and third hour, Eleanor rubbed her palm. Nothing happened. How could it be possible that there were that many never ending all in one place? And were they always there, or did they just flip on wherever they felt like it? Because, if they were always there, how did she manage to turn doorknobs without fainting? Maybe this was why so many people said it felt better to drive a stick shift.

A landline is an anchor - busy signals, long distance bills, missed connections and all.

In new situations, all the trickiest rules are the ones nobody bothers to explain to you. (And the ones you can't Google.)