Mary Novaria

A viral tweet from a millennial woman has sparked a debate about, of all things, bed linens.  Millennials* have been accused of killing off all kinds of things , including doorbells (because texting) and beer (in favor of wine and weed). Tweeter JesseLynn, a recent college grad has thrown down the gauntlet, laying claim to her generation’s cultural omnipotence, by declaring her cohort has killed off the top sheet. Yes, that smooth, flat rectangle of Egyptian cotton or percale that goes between you and your blanket or comforter has been deemed superfluous. It’s reminiscent of my college sweetheart (now my husband) who eschewed all sheets until I began to, ahem , stay over, and insisted upon a properly made bed. Never mind that the faded brown sheets, with a matching comforter, were a vestige from boyhood. They sported giraffes and zebras, so I dubbed them the “jungle sheets.” Maybe it’s a decent life hack. Millennials are a long way from menopau...

By  Mary Novaria   May 25, 2017                                        (Washington Post Illustration/iStock images) The first time I went to Paris, I was a newlywed. The last time, I was a mother. Both times, I was disabused of any notion that Paris is the most romantic city on earth. When my husband John and I went to Paris two years into our marriage, I thought it would be like a “real” honeymoon, our first having been just two gray days in Chicago. For weeks leading up to our departure, I hummed a calliope of French movie themes while slow motion pictures flickered through my mind: John and I strolling hand in hand along the Seine… gazing into each other’s eyes, whispering Je t’aime over romantic dinners in candlelit bistros… sipping champagne atop the Eiffel Tower as the sun set and the city lights twinkled below. In every scene, I wore a little bla...