The World According to Gayle: 7 Things I'm Loving in August
By Gayle King

Photo: Peteski Productions/Ron Jaffe
I've been a tennis fan...
ever since I watched my dad watching the amazing Arthur Ashe play on TV in the 1970s. Ashe was graceful, strategic, and incredibly powerful—he opened doors and then made sure a lot of underprivileged kids got the opportunity to walk through them. This year the U.S. Open runs from August 26 to September 9, and l'll be there as usual, cheering for the players and marveling at the civility of the game.

Photo: Laura Pedgett
I have a meat-and-potatoes mind...
Trapped in a high-cholesterol body, so when favorite daughter Kirby and I went for brunch at Ris restaurant in Washington, D.C., I skipped the burger and decided to go green. With dates, Manchego cheese, hazelnuts, and a port vinaigrette, their beet and spinach salad definitely passes the "taste this now!" test. If you're up for a challenge, check out the recipe.

Photo: Devon Jarvis/Studio D. Blakely: Courtesy of Spanx
I fell hard for a necklace...
that Spanx founder Sara Blakely wore when she was a guest on CBS This Morning. Sara's husband, Jesse, had their son, Lazer, write his name, and Lori Gilman of Love2design Jewelry created a 14kt-gold charm with the signature using pavé diamonds and turned it into the perfect Mother's Day gift. Actually, it's the perfect gift for any mom, whatever the day. Lori also does a beautiful version in sterling silver.
(From $175; Love2DesignJewelry.com)
(From $175; Love2DesignJewelry.com)

Photo: Dana Brewington
Mystery Solved!
I was so charmed by this photo my CBS assistant, Dana Brewington, took that I put it in the May issue to see if anyone knew who the family was. It's a small world after all: A producer at CBS recognized them! Meet Ross and Aaron and their 3-year-old daughter, who had just served as flower girl at her babysitter's wedding.

Photo: Zuma Press, Inc./Alamy
Here's the thing about Taylor Swift...
You'll never see her busted for shoplifting or stumbling out of a limo minus her panties at 3 A.M. Her lyrics—You call me up again / just to break me like a promise. / So casually cruel in the name of being honest—prove she's wise beyond her years. If you can catch her in concert before her U.S. tour ends next month, my advice is: go. I did—twice!

Photo: Anne Marie Fox/The Weinstein Company
If your best friend kisses a guy in the movies...
chances are the guy isn't Forest Whitaker, and she's not doing it for all to see on the silver screen. Welcome to my world! This month, Oprah will have her first major movie kiss in The Butler, which I can't wait to see. And in next month's issue of O, she'll give us her take on this story of a man who served as butler to eight presidents from 1952 to 1986 and had an up-close view of history in the making. What she won't say, but I will, is that this film is getting some serious Oscar buzz.

Photo: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC
"I wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days before you've actually left them."
Ed Helms's character really struck a chord when he said this on The Office's finale. Here's hoping we're all tuned in enough to recognize the ordinary things that make us extraordinarily happy!
Next: 20 ways to find joy in every day
Next: 20 ways to find joy in every day
From the August 2013 issue of O, The Oprah Magazine