Though the column name was a sweet coincidence -- a play on the Spanish verb for pain, dolor -- once Ms. Prida took it over in the spring of 1998, it took fabulous form.
"Their sour attitudes change almost immediately into silliness and I inevitably become their favorite target, " said Ms. Pesapane, a 34-year-old from Silver Spring, Md.
John's fourth-grade class in a suburb of Chicago recently invited Ms. Rudnicki to consult with the planning committee for a spring fair to help select refreshments that won't trigger John's allergies.