Letters to the Editors of Women's Magazines

I thought this story [“The Mistake That Nearly Cost Me Everything,” by Piper Kerman] was very interesting, and I can’t wait to read her book. It’s amazing to think that something we may have done 10 years in the past could affect our future.

Kellymusil, marieclaire.com (Marie Claire, June 2010)

It’s amazing to think that when you do something, something else happens. It’s like, “What the?” (Imagine me looking slowly all around, like “Huh?”) (Now imagine I’m holding my fingers over my eyes like binoculars, looking around like I’m on safari. Now I’m pulling out a gun and acting like I’m shooting, like I’m hunting.)

Lee T., Sioux City, IA

Believe in Yourself
I have a lot of goals. Some of them are outrageous, and some are less extreme. People are always raising their eyebrows when I share these goals, and it’s disconcerting. I put your article up on my wall and will remember its advice; it’s just what I needed to hear!

Hilary G., Princeton, NJ (Glamour, June 2010)

I think of my goals as little pebbles, and my life as like the sack I carry the pebbles in. It’s like a leather pouch, actually, like the kind people used to have in medieval times. And the pebbles are actually jewels, and I would also have a gold crown that had little notches in it so that when I poured the jewels out and fit them into the notches on the crown, whoever I was with would be like, “Oh my god!” because they’d know I was a queen, because the same crown went missing years ago, and the legend was that whoever had the crown would be the queen.

Kelly M., Santa Barbara

A weighty decision
I related to “Would You Rather Be Fat & Happy? Or Thin & Sad?” [April, page 136]. … I know from experience that being obese makes me unhappy, not only because I don’t like the way I look but also because it could affect my physical health. Thank you for showing me I’m not alone.

Tierney W., Ottawa (Self, June 2010)

Thin and sad. Or, if it’s an option, extra thin and suicidal. Or, if at all possible, a skeleton that killed itself. Ashes that crumbled off a skeleton that killed itself. A gust of wind blowing through the eye socket of a skeleton that killed itself. A fart seeping from the asshole of a corpse that shit itself to death. In case those are ones I can choose.

Edith Z., Brooklyn

Biological Clock

I enjoyed the article about when a woman reaches her peak [“The Perfect Age,” April]. When I was 20, no one believed my age; most people said, “You’re not 20, you’re 16.” Now I’m 40, and most people say, “You look 20 years old.” Life is good.

Jana C, Longview, TX

I built a papier-mâché woman that has a crotch made out of a rubber flap. Sometimes I’ll put Vaseline on my face and slide through the flap like I just got born. One time I did it at work — I looked so young, my coworkers were stunned.

Lucy T., Raleigh, NC

It’s about time a natural beauty is on your cover. I’m glad Jessica [Simpson] doesn’t care what other people think. We should all be that way.

Sandra N., Long Grove, IL (Marie Claire, July 2010)

It’s so cool that Jessica Simpson doesn’t give a shit what other people think. I don’t either. I’m envisioning us, like, sitting on a porch when a guy walks by and goes, “Hey ladies,” or whatever, and Jessica’s just like, “Shut the fuck up,” and I’m like, “Literally go fuck yourself,” and he’d walk away, and we’d lapse into silence.

Lindsey T., Truro, MA

Support System

I loved “Best New Bras for You” [May]. But there still doesn’t seem to be a size for me: The bras are either too big or too small. How can I find the perfect fit?

S.C., Phoenix (InStyle, July 2010)

Here, I drew a picture of my breasts. Can you please tell me what is the best new bra for me?

Thank you.

Lydia P., Lexington, KY

Previously: “I want to be a button when I grow up.”

Edith Zimmerman still lives in Brooklyn and now works here.