GratitudeLog

Cat Whispurrer "If you want a place in the sun, you've got to put up with a few blisters."~ Abigail Van Buren

Pauline Phillips, better known as Abigail Van Buren, wrote the syndicated "Dear Abby" column for 46 years. She was born in 1918 in Iowa. She had never written professionally when she contacted the San Francisco Chronicle's editor and said she could do better than their current advice maven. Her version was an instant success. Her twin sister, Esther Lederer, became an advice columnist under the name Ann Landers. Phillips retired in 2002; her daughter, Jeanne Phillips, took over her column.

(Ann Landers and Abby were surrogate mothers and mentors to me in my early years, and helped to shape my values, keeping me on the right path for which I have always been thankful. I especially appreciated their honesty, admitting when they had second thoughts on particular advice. Which wasn't very often. Both their columns have withstood the real test of time.)