LOST IN LOS ANGELES

I think I'm having a "I Hate Valentine's Day" Party for those of us who are single & happy being so! I'm so sick and tired of everyone telling me that I can't be happy unless I'm in a relationship! Anyone interested in joining me may do so!

A language is a system of symbols strung together to communicate thought. Equipped with language, we can share understandings, pass experience and knowledge from one generation to the next, and make plans for the future. In short, language allows culture to develop. Consequently, sociologists commonly think of language as a cultural invention that distinguishes humans from other animals. Yet MIT cognitive scientist Steven Pinker, a leading figure in the biological onslaught on the social sciences, says culture has little to do with our acquisition of language. In his view, “people know how to talk in more or less the sense that spiders know how to spin webs.” Language, says Pinker, is an “instinct.” Pinker bases his radical claim on the observation that most people can easily create and understand sentences that have never been uttered before. We even invent countless new words (including the word “countless,” which was invented by William Shakespeare). We normally deve...

Tallulah Nouvelle Starr was born this morning at 8.09 am! Tally is my goddaughter & I'm so excited to see her (along with my godson, Dallas) when I head home to Alaska for a visit in just 15 days! And yes, pictures will be posted! &hearts

Dear 2011: I just wanted to welcome you to my life. I'm looking forward to the next 364 days or so with you. Hopefully you are more agreeable and fun than your predecessor, 2010. My goals with you include increasing and refocusing my business for sustainable success, figure out what I want in a relationship & then work toward actually having one, achieve personal success in my upcoming pageant in March, be more active both physically and socially, and so much more. I refuse to make those silly "resolutions" like everyone else as they tend to be forgotten easily & broken before the ink is dry. As I think of more things we can do together, 2011, I will let you know. We will have a fruitful year together if you just work with me and help me keep the options open. Yours, Batya Brigitte