"Where Did I come From" when I was 4. The naked drawing s scared me and I threw the book at my mother sobbing and ran away. We didn't talk about anything until I was 13. And even then I hated it. I cried at the tiniest mention of anything sexually related. I cried for days when I started my period, cried for hours when my pedatrician asked me if I was "growing hair", got violently angry at my mother for bringing up anything about my changing body, and once even kicked a boy in his shin for saying I had no underarm hair. Not exactly sure why I had the hangups, but boy did I until I was about 22.

I think I just refused to acknowledge any discussion of the subject. I was sure sex wasn't even going to a part of my life.

I got over that.

My guess -- totally out of the blue -- is that Harlequins, along with all the rest of that list of categories, fall out of date or out of print quickly and have no collector value.

There's also the issue that there are so freaking many of them. No one drops off one Harlequin - more like seventy. A used book store I used to frequent didn't take them because they would take over the whole store in short order if they did.

I had much older siblings, which took care of the sex conversations for me by the time I was about six. I knew all about it. Mind you, I didn't believe a word of it, until I was able to put together the behaviour of the ranch animals with what my older sister and cousins had said, but I knew it.

I am assured--though I don't remember this--that I came up to my mother one day out of the blue when I was six or so and asked "so what's with this human mating thing?"

I believe it. Sounds just like me, actually. (Supposedly my reaction to a bare-bones explanation was "oh. That doesn't sound so scary, then." And then I wandered off.)

Sorry to interupt the fond chilhood memories of "The Talk". I think I blocked mine out. I remember my mom bringing it up, but I don't remember a thing about it. Except I'm sure I just wanted to go back to whatever book I was trying to read at the time.

I know it's come up here a few time, and I thought I would mention the ABC/Disney's A Wrinkle in Time movie will be shown this Monday, May 10, beginning at 8:00pm.

The bad news: EW gives it a C-. Their review is white-fonted.

This long-shelved take on Madeleine L'Engle's classic children's tale starts out well, with smarty-pants tween Meg (Katie Stuart) and her little brother, Charles (David Dorfman), brooding over their missing scientist dad. Then hottie Calvin (Everwood's Gregory Smith) shows up, the kids are sucked into a secret world, and the movie spirals into cheesy sci-fi absurdity. Wrinkle's crucial fantasy elements never quite blend with its earthier themes, and the result is just plain silly.

Judging from the picture and the description, I think they may have cast Meg too young, but it's been forever since I read it, so I may be completely off.

Katie Stuart

Huh. That's the actress who played Cassie in Stargate for her first two appearances. That's... nothing at all like I pictured the character she's playing here.

I love Katie! She was also the girl in the first Crow, and Kitty Pryde in X2.

My mother gave us the talk because she caught me overusing the word "fuck." I was using it a lot, pretending I knew what I was talking about in hopes of tricking one of the older kids into revealing the dish. I had no idea it was parent stuff.

Eww.

My mom is a nurse and was the only parent to show up for our sex-ed classes. They all were invited, but only my mom came. As if I weren't unpopular enough already!

I don't remember having The Talk with my mom, but i'm sure I did.

As I assured my father when he asked. I was 22.