In my literature class at school, we read What is the What by Dave Eggers. The book is a collaboration between Valentino Achak Deng and Eggers, and capitalizes on the strengths of both men to compellingly portray the saga of one the "Lost Boys of Sudan." (Incidentally, the American Association of University Women chose it for their Adelante! Books of the Month Program.) All proceeds from the book benefit Valentino Achack Deng Foundation, which among many things, built and operates a school in Deng's hometown. The school, importantly, encourages girls to enroll. According to the website, "Currently, less than one percent of girls complete secondary school in Southern Sudan. The Foundation is raising funds to construct a boarding facility, to provide female students with a safe learning environment and an alternative to early marriage."

What if a white male single dad had a 10 month-old, adorable baby boy. Say his wife had died tragically and he had no extended family….The dad was in the army, and he was deployed to Afghanistan. The dad had nowhere for his baby to go while he was deployed… what would happen? I bet that baby would not go to foster care.

Not long after I graduated from college, I worked at a government agency. One of my co-workers was in the middle of a bitter divorce. Prior to the divorce, he stayed home caring for his two young sons. Once his wife left him, however, she filed for custody of the children. At the time, he did not contest the filing, as he did not want to upset his kids any more than they already were. However, he was clearly heartbroken and missed nurturing his children.

I visited a friend in London this past weekend. While I was there, I ate lots and lots of yummy chocolate and cheese and baked goods. I basked in the idea that national health care was a given. Even more, the UK National Health Service doesn't rob women of their reproductive rights by allowing religion to dictate what health services are covered; except for in Northern Ireland, termination (abortion) services are covered. After a horrible week in the US, where Democrats sold out women and allowed religious lobbies to impose their beliefs on my health, I thought about defecting. London is perfect! Well, except that even in the UK, women are told that you need set aside your own preferences and needs if you want to get and keep a man.

First they called her "that girl". Then, "madam". Eventually, they referred to her as "sir."

I hadn't realized that this was actually something that real women actually did, but apparently it is: vaginal cosmetic surgery is maybe not as popular as Botox, but women are getting it done. The thing is, according to a British study, getting your hoo-hah snipped carries a lot of risks. More risks than Botox. About the same amount of risk as female genital mutilation.I know. I squeezed my legs together, too. You might as well keep yours squeezed, because this topic doesn't get any prettier.

Whenever I hear arguments about how women perform their jobs differently than men, I cringe. Usually it is meant as a compliment, like the idea that because women are supposedly inherently nurturing, consensus seeking, peacemakers, we are better managers or legislators or whatever. Really, what's important is when women who are able and competent get jobs they deserve. No example is more obvious than that of Ft. Hood civilian police Sgt. Kimberly Munley.

A long time ago I volunteered at a conference for Deaf/Blind participants held at Gallaudet University. It was a lot of fun. There were daily challenges to keep up with the participants who wanted to go everywhere and do everything. I was joyfully run ragged. I have one specific memory, a lesson that sticks with me to this day on expanding thinking beyond myself.

For the past four years, the World Economic Forum has studied the gender gap - that is, the amount of resources dedicated to boys and girls and women's opportunities to fully participate in society - in over 100 countries, then ranked them. (In 2009, the Index included data from 134 nations. At least 12 of 14 indicators used for the Index must be available in order for a country to be included.) The goal, according to the 2009 Global Gender Gap Report, is:

Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn's book, Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, "lays out an agenda for the world's women and three major abuses: sex trafficking and forced prostitution; gender-based violence including honor killings and mass rape; maternal mortality, which needlessly claims one woman a minute."

1 Man, older and less educated than the woman 1 Woman, at least 5 years younger (be sure to check freshness date!) and smarter than the man 0 Couples of the same sex 0 Previous divorces 0 Cougars Place man and woman in same home. Stir. Voila! Enjoy your happy, lasting marriage!

Ever since the HPV prevention drug Gardasil hit the market in 2006, I've been very suspicious. The marketing campaign says that it is the "only vaccine for cervical cancer," but what Gardasil actually protects against are some strains of HPV, a sexually transmitted disease that may cause cervical cancer. This is very misleading, not to mention that it is possible to prevent HPV infections through safe sex practices. What also got my dander was how quickly it got pushed on the public.