EATING CROW . . .

Okay, remember my med-school friend, JW, who told me that the good effects of multivitamins were all in my head, and that I didn't need them as long as I ate a reasonably balanced diet? (I don't really know why I didn't believe him. Is that a bad sign that I'd rather believe a column in SELF magazine than a budding family practitioner?)

WELL! It turns out he was right, at least in the opinion of another physician. Another pal, Dr. SMK, has confirmed that as long as I eat right -- which I do . . . or endeavor to do -- I don't need the daily multivitamin, and no, it doesn't really do anything to reduce stress. Is this a vast right-wing medical conspiracy to make me unhealthy, or do JW and SMK actually know what they're talking about?

I was wrong; I admit it. But we have yet to see how long it will take to actually get me to STOP taking the multivitamin. I'm a Scorpio. I'm a lawyer. I'm the oldest child in my family. I'm my father's daughter. I'm stubborn as a mule, and I don't care if it's all in my head . . .