Actress and director Valerie von Rosenvinge juggles theater productions in Hopkinton and Wellesley.

One can assume that certain moviegoers have been violently opposed to movie violence since the first fist was thrown on the silver screen. Degrading, desensitizing, disgusting. Pick a negative adjective, it was uttered with vehemence. On the other hand, one can assume that certain moviegoers have been receiving a visceral thrill from movie violence ever since that first fist connected with that first jaw.

Getaway

If your budget says "staycation" but you dream of exploring the healing mysteries of India, take heart -- the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Center is closer than the airport.

The holidays are the perfect time to teach kids about giving by example.

Fall creates fresh opportunities. Stripped of deciduous clothing, the transparent bodies of trees and shrubs reveal the forest's skeleton. Nests of birds, previously hidden by foliage, come into view. Sometimes we find that bird families grew up unexpectedly near our walks and driveways.

Q: My aunt had surgery just after she was diagnosed with colon cancer. She died a couple of days later from a blood clot in her lung. Was this related to her cancer?

Relatively new territory with no rules to guide behavior or standards for protocol, colleges are just beginning to figure out how to use social networking tools such as MySpace and Facebook in their admissions decisions.

Nowadays, for a craft beer to get any kind of buzz, it has to be high in alcohol, hard to get or full of exotic ingredients.

A miscarriage in the first three months of pregnancy, also called a spontaneous abortion, is not an unusual occurrence.

Want to kick up your training routine. Tell somebody about it. That's what Trainer X did recently, with great results.