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Whether by necessity or choice, a quarter of Americans take at least one vacation by themselves each year. Some solo travelers are single. Some have partners who dislike travel or have different interests or can't get away. Some just crave freedom. But all face the same question: What's the best trip for the person traveling alone? "The key is to know yourself," said Beth Whitman, author of a guide for women traveling alone and founder of Wanderlustandlipstick.com , a website devoted to advice and tours for women on the go. "There are times when you just need to get away, to recuperate.

We were opening Christmas gifts last year when my much better half dropped a package on my lap -- a cold, heavy package. Curious (and suddenly chilly), I opened it. Bacon. Six pounds of artisan bacon, ranging from thick-cut hickory-smoked to jalapeño-spiced and apple-cinnamon, varieties hailing from Virginia to upstate New York, Texas to Tennessee. Now if that's not true love, I don't know what is. I'm a bacon fanatic. In or out of the kitchen, sometimes it's all I can think about: the vibrant red as it cooks, the smokiness, the subtle crunch, the sizzle, the wonderful aroma that will not be denied.

Michele and Russell Poland's credit was shot, but they managed to buy their suburban dream home anyway. After a business bankruptcy and a home foreclosure, they turned to a rare option in this era of tightfisted banking - a subprime loan. The Polands paid nearly $10,000 in upfront fees for the privilege of securing a mortgage at 10.9% interest. And they had to raid their retirement account for a 35% down payment. Most borrowers would balk at such stiff terms. But with prices rising, the Polands wanted to snag a four-bedroom home in Temecula near top-rated schools for their 5-year-old son. By later this year, they figure, they'll be able to refinance into a standard loan.

Périgord, France, many years ago: I sit at the oilcloth-covered table, watching the bee climb in and out of the jam jar as I listen to its buzz. The sun is a shock of gold outside the window. The cicadas keep time, rubbing their wiry legs together, spinning out the afternoon. It is hot at the table, claustrophic inside the cottage. I look longingly at the shade spread out beneath the cherry tree. The bee isn't in any hurry. He somehow knows he has all the time in the world, that the 78-year-old woman who lives in the cottage can't see him. She is blind.

Your choices in San Francisco hotels are overwhelming. The prices can be too. So during our staff visit to the City by the Bay, we looked for reasonably priced hotels that had charm, location or both. We came back with 14 ideas on places to bed down. It's not a complete list, but it is eclectic, like the city itself. Mystic Hotel. This property, which opened in April, stands on a tunnel-adjacent block of Stockton Street that you'll never see on a picture postcard, yet it has style, as do the Burritt Tavern bar and restaurant downstairs.

Ted Vadakan and Angie Myung wanted to outfit their new L.A. boutique, Poketo, with display tables that were not only modern but also inexpensive. Their solution was a cool, custom look that could easily translate as a DIY desk. “I wanted the look to be simple, honest and modern,” said Vadakan, who agreed to share the materials and process with readers. One key, Vadakan said, was a solid-core birch door repurposed as a tabletop. He bought 42-by-80-inch doors, $138 each, from Taylor Brothers Architectural Products in Silver Lake, but stock doors at most hardware stores also would work.

Périgord, France, many years ago: I sit at the oilcloth-covered table, watching the bee climb in and out of the jam jar as I listen to its buzz. The sun is a shock of gold outside the window. The cicadas keep time, rubbing their wiry legs together, spinning out the afternoon. It is hot at the table, claustrophic inside the cottage. I look longingly at the shade spread out beneath the cherry tree. The bee isn't in any hurry. He somehow knows he has all the time in the world, that the 78-year-old woman who lives in the cottage can't see him. She is blind.

SACRAMENTO - Stephen Gass is either a savior of fingers or a greedy monopolist, depending on who's describing a controversial bill making its way through the California Legislature. The Oregon inventor has developed a table saw that can stop a whirling blade almost the instant it comes into contact with human flesh. The machine, known as the SawStop, has been hailed by some woodworkers as a godsend to prevent injuries and amputations that cost their industry and hobbyists billions of dollars a year.

Joan Lester put her finger on exactly what is wrong with the "underpinning for every liberal effort" (Column Left, May 30) when she said "Give me my place at the table" has been their rallying cry. How much better and more supportable would be "Allow me the opportunity to earn my place at the table." DAVID F. TUMA Port Hueneme

The Tidy Table Tray plus Flexi-Diner looks like a giant clipboard, except the clip is on the bottom instead of the top, and it holds food instead of papers. The Tidy Table is a highchair tray, minus the highchair. The large pressure clip on its underside grabs firmly onto pretty much any tabletop. A removable insert fits over the tray, lifting out for a quick washing without having to remove the whole tray. The insert has an extended lip that helps keep spills off your child's lap and compartments in the insert hold a cup and slidable things such as peas and snacks.

MOSCOW - The United States and Russia agreed Tuesday to try to bring together the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad and the opposition for peace talks, signaling a potential breakthrough in long-stalled diplomatic efforts to end a bloody conflict that threatens to destabilize the entire region. The proposed peace conference, announced by Secretary of State John F. Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov after a day of talks, appeared to reflect a softening of Russia's staunch support of Assad.

BALTIMORE - The elements offered Hyun-Jin Ryu an opportunity to observe some American customs. After the start time of his start Friday night was pushed back because of rain, Ryu had to wait almost two hours before he was informed he wouldn't pitch that night. The Dodgers are now scheduled to play a split doubleheader against the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday, with Ryu pitching the first game at 10 a.m. PDT and Josh Beckett the second at 4 p.m. "In Korea, this would have been called much sooner," Ryu said through an interpreter.

Who wouldn't say yes? When the dean of the professional cooking school where I'd enrolled many years ago as a special student in wine realized he wouldn't have the time to tutor me, he proposed something else: studying in Paris. "There's a professional program given through the French Restaurant Union for junior sommeliers already working in Michelin-starred restaurants," he told me. "You speak French, right? I'll transfer your tuition money there. It starts in two months. " I was thrilled.

The Tidy Table Tray plus Flexi-Diner looks like a giant clipboard, except the clip is on the bottom instead of the top, and it holds food instead of papers. The Tidy Table is a highchair tray, minus the highchair. The large pressure clip on its underside grabs firmly onto pretty much any tabletop. A removable insert fits over the tray, lifting out for a quick washing without having to remove the whole tray. The insert has an extended lip that helps keep spills off your child's lap and compartments in the insert hold a cup and slidable things such as peas and snacks.

Los Angeles mayoral candidate Wendy Greuel is turning criticism that she would be beholden to the powerful Department of Water and Power union back on her rival, Eric Garcetti, accusing him of doing the union's bidding during a contentious 2009 ballot measure campaign. At a debate in Sherman Oaks Wednesday night, Greuel alleged Garcetti agreed to help delay a public hearing on a report that raised questions about a solar-power ballot measure backed by the DWP union. The proposal, which ultimately was rejected by voters, would have encouraged installation of solar panels across the city, creating additional union jobs.

WASHINGTON - President Obama laid out his vision Wednesday for $3.78 trillion in federal spending, unveiling a budget proposal for the next fiscal year that aims to reignite cooled deficit reduction talks while opening negotiations over the fate of hundreds of federal programs. Obama's budget would provide $130 million sought by Los Angeles to help extend the subway to the Westside and build a downtown tunnel to link the Gold Line from Pasadena and East L.A. to the Blue Line from Long Beach and the Expo Line from Culver City.

You might not be able to pull together a Thanksgiving table decor à la Martha Stewart, but rest assured you can fold a napkin. And that's really all you need, says Los Angeles food writer and food stylist Denise Vivaldo, author of a new book, "Top 100 Napkin Folds. " Vivaldo says Thanksgiving Day hosts have enough to worry about without feeling the pressure of putting together a table-scape involving tiered floral arrangements, crafty centerpieces or ice sculptures capturing fall leaves in flight (Google it!

  In the essential documentary "A Place at the Table," co-directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush effectively touch on a wide range of intersecting issues that contribute to one startling statistic: One in six Americans is unsure where their next meal will come from. The filmmakers vividly illustrate the power and depth of the long-spiraling problem of "food insecurity" by immersing us in the hardscrabble lives of a cross section of our nation's poor. Whether it's Barbie, a single Philadelphia mother of two; Rosie, a Colorado fifth-grader sharing a cramped home with her parents and grandparents; or Tremonica, an overweight and underfed 7-year-old from Mississippi; they're all products of a sociopolitical system riddled with head-scratching contradiction and conflict over the plight of hunger.

Around the corner from the bustle and roar of Broadway's Jewelry District in downtown L.A., a quiet alley serves as a respite for locals and tourists. Shops and restaurants with colorful awnings and peeling brick facades present a kitschy, Old World scene, complete with a potbellied chef statue, and a Marilyn Monroe perched in a pink Cadillac. On most days, a group of Armenian men can be spotted hunched over a backgammon board, shrouded in cigarette smoke. But the fate of St. Vincent's Court - a California historical landmark - has been thrown into question after a complaint prompted a city crackdown on outdoor seating.

California , Florida and New York dominated the top 100 restaurants in the country in the 2013 Diners' Choice Awards from OpenTable . Twenty-six restaurants in California, 18 in Florida and 14 in New York were selected in the survey based on 5 million reviews submitted by diners between March 1, 2012, and Feb. 28, according to the online restaurant reservation provider. Why did so many California restaurants make the cut? "California is naturally a leader in the hot spot arena," OpenTable's Caroline Potter said in an email.