My mum, a strange creature from the time when pickles on toothpicks were still the height of sophistication.

I'm attracted to intelligence and creativity and passion - and not necessarily the romantic kind. I want to learn from someone who is greedy for information and light and laughter and the whole world. Someone who celebrates their days and finds inspiration in what other people accomplish.

Exercise is my outlet, the one thing I do during the day that's mine and mine alone. I don't want to work with a trainer, and I don't want to go with friends to the gym. It's my solitude, and I need it.

I remember just lying in the grass, staring at the clouds, wondering where they drifted off to after they floated over Texas.

My brother has two children now, so I've been playing aunt Renee. They're two and four. It's chaos. Moms out there, kudos to you. The cool thing about being an aunt is like, I can leave. No offense to my big brother Drew, but that is slavery. I dare you to take a shower. You can't do anything unless they let you. It's a dictatorship. They're little dictators in their crib.

I wanted to be self-sufficient, I wanted to take care of myself, and I wanted to learn. I wanted to travel, I wanted to see the world and have my eyes opened. I wanted to be consistently challenged, and I knew I needed to be creative in some way. When I got my job in a bar and I could pay for my tuition and go on auditions and sometimes get jobs that I loved and pay my rent, I knew that I would be all right. That's when my dreams came true, long before the telephone rang and someone said, 'Come and meet Tom Cruise'".

I think we underestimate the importance of kindness sometimes. We understand the power of just a little tiny bit of kindness. It could be the catalyst for something so important. Sometimes just a tiny little gesture or an acknowledgment can make all the difference in turning somebody's life around. I think it has a trickle down effect, when you pass on what you receive without even knowing it. We also underestimate our own power to make a difference with the decisions that we make, every day.