"Uh-huh."

"And I bet the last thing in the world you want is for me to bug you about it."

"Uh-huh."

"And I bet you're going to prove to me that I don't have to by going right upstairs and getting started."

"Uh-huh."

And it worked. True, it was barely disguised nagging. Which means it probably wasn't exactly what the good doctor had in mind. But wouldn't he be the first to concede how hard it is for people to change?

Lisa Belkin writes the Life's Work column for The New York Times and hosts Life's Work with Lisa Belkin on XM Satellite Radio.