Photo: Getty Images

There are a million good reasons to come to work every day at O; one of the best is getting to hang out with editor at large Gayle King. Whether we're kicking around story ideas or reviewing layouts, she is an unbridled enthusiast, finding the gentlest ways to register displeasure on the rare occasions when she feels it. (Confronted with an oblique photo or a confusing headline, she'll sweetly leave it at, "I don't know, y'all....")

A lot of Gayle's work happens outside the office as well, at one of the dozen or so events—private movie screenings, Broadway premieres, glittering benefits—she's invited to each week. At the end of a long day, when the rest of us are feeling a bit bedraggled, it isn't unusual to run into Gayle in the ladies' room, shimmying into some knockout gown (a pile of rejects flopped over the top of the stall) and needing a hand with her zipper. Then there's the next day's download: Whether she ended up losing her BlackBerry at the Drake concert, enduring a hot flash on the red carpet at the Time 100 dinner, or wearing the same dress as Alfre Woodard at the Tony Awards, we find ourselves tearing up with laughter and marveling at the ground she covers. Says Gayle, "A friend of mine recently told me, 'You're the only person I know who in the space of one week could go to a state dinner at the White House, a clearance sale at Neiman Marcus, a Carrie Underwood concert, and Shake Shack with your kids and love it all.' And I really do!"

Photo: Thinkstock

When I was a college senior, I motivated myself bright and early one icy January morning to stop by the rec center before my challenging Creativity Workshop "morning" class at 10 am.  I felt extremely, ridiculously proud of myself. An elderly lady, naked as the long-ago day she was born, sidled up to me in the locker room. "We see a lot of your types in January," she said, cynically. Feeling abashed and overdressed in my bathing suit, I protested, "You'll be seeing a lot of me all year!" My new early morning swimming habit was no resolution-based romp! I was for real!

At least for the next few weeks. And so it goes in the world of New Year's Resolutions. Which is why I was so pleased to learn about the 50/50 challenge. The 50/50 challenge is the kind of year-long-commitment that actually sounds fun and enriching and—what!—like I might actually do.

The idea is to read 50 books and see 50 movies in 2012. (That's about one book and one movie a week, mathematicians.) You can sign up on the website, but don't be scared by words like "commit" and "rules." You don't have to know what you're going to read or watch. They don't even have to be "good." As the website says, "Go ahead, read Kardashian Konfidential, we won't tell."

Photo:Thinkstock

"Our spouses are often our teachers, guiding us in ways that may be clear only in retrospect." This would be a lovely sentiment voiced by anyone, but when it comes from Mark Kelly, it's a tear-jerker. Kelly is the husband of Arizona's 8th Congressional District Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who was almost killed in an assassination attempt in Tucson a year ago. As Kelly writes on Maria Shriver's blog, he and his wife were total go-getters, focused on "the urgency of now."  They were even about to start fertility treatments, hoping to add a child to their super-successful, full lives.

Then came the gunshot that changed everything. In this must-read post, Kelly writes movingly about one of the unexpected gifts of Giffords' long road to recovery. Excruciatingly, this bright, articulate woman has had to relearn how to talk, and, as Kelly writes, "After she was injured, friends and family would often interrupt her, saying the words they thought she meant to say. They were trying to help, but I saw this only added to Gabby’s sense of powerlessness." He admits that he himself had trouble being patient, but was buoyed by remembering his wife's own immense patience. Read the post for the amazing story of their conversation with the renowned astrophysicist Stephen Hawking, a portrait of an incredibly strong marriage, and the sweetest anniversary present ever. Then, apologize to your husband for arguing over who's taking out the recycling next.

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This year, there are few long-term projects that I have been working on that I've seriously been considering abandoning. Number one is cooking. I am not sure if I am better cook that I was a decade ago, despite my experiments with intimidating ingredients like shellfish and kale, not to mention new cuisines like Indian. Why not give it up for 2012 and eat nothing but fast, easy chicken breasts? The same goes for playing the guitar. It takes me months to learn one measly song. I am tired. I have kids. I have a job in the morning. Why not relax at night and watch TV instead?

Then I stumbled this short film by Denis Chapon on Laughing Squid. Every day for the last three years, Denis has drawn 12 drawings, each on piece of leftover  paper he found in his company's copier room. At the end of the 795 days, he had 9,540 illustrations, which, when put in order made this  four minute, two second long film:

12 Drawings a Day - 12 Dessins par Jour from Denis Chapon on Vimeo.

Chapon claims that he didn't write a script for the film. There is no romantic story, thrilling action sequence or stunning  climax. But there is a testimony to the power of chipping away at a larger, unseen goal, adding to the artistic kitty bit by bit, page by page, line by line until you have a body of work that is yours. It's no accident, after all that he called his totally non-realistic film an "animated diary." He may not have recorded his activities each day, much less his love life or dinner choices, but at the same he did record the larger, more beautiful truth of his life—from the dark days when you feel like throwing your refrigerator and desk out the window to the happier one when so-called bombs turn into bluebirds and fly gracefully away.
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Photo: Suzy Poling

When Monica Haslip, then an executive for Black Entertainment Television, moved to the South Side of Chicago in 1991, she was lured by the soul food restaurants and proximity to her church. But she was disheartened to see kids playing on train tracks, gang members on street corners, and an absence of parks.
          
So Haslip—who trained as a painter in her native Alabama—started inviting local kids to her basement for art workshops she called the Little Black Pearl (LBP). "People thought I was crazy," she admits. But she soon received a $466,000 grant that helped her recruit local artists as teachers. Her goal: to help kids imagine a future for themselves beyond their blighted blocks. "I wanted them to see people who look like them, making a living as artists," she says.

By 2005 LBP was so popular that Haslip, aided by the city, opened a 40,000-square-foot art and design center, complete with ceramic and painting studios and a darkroom. LBP now serves hundreds of kids each year (many of whom are wards of the state). Students learn to market and sell their work in the space's gallery; proceeds go to support LBP's programs.

In September Haslip, now 46, realized her latest dream: an on-site high school, which welcomed 175 kids, most of whom are academically challenged or at risk of dropping out. She says she hopes LBP's unique resources will help them "want to go to school again." As she notes, "Art touches kids in ways that other things can't." 

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Photo: Ben Goldstein

I have a confession to make: I hate my arms. I think they're too skinny, and I've covered them up my entire life. (Don't believe me? Try finding a picture of me in short sleeves.) So when women come up to me at weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, even here in the O offices, complaining about their body issues, I can relate. Thanks to makeover shows and Urban Dictionary, we all know the terms: Muffin top. Back fat. Turkey neck. Cankles. And while I'm somewhat startled by the poultry comparison, I do believe it's high time these problems (and more!) were addressed. So I've compiled the complete guide to solving your most pressing body problems once and for all, through strategic use of shapewear, clothing, and accessories. The important thing to remember is that no body is perfect—the trick is learning how to artfully disguise the parts you don't love and highlight the ones you do. With the right wardrobe, everyone can look and feel beautiful. Keep reading to find out how.