We could all use some advice now and then. When the self-help books just aren't helping, it's time to call in the experts: real people. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Adair Lara polled her readers for life lessons learned through experience, receiving thousands of heartfelt and irreverent responses. The best are compiled here in over 200 bits of priceless counsel. With witty illustrations by Roxanna Bikadoroff, this handy little volume is filled with humor, unconventional insights, and the kind of common wisdom that will always bear repeating. Adair Lara was a long-time columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle . She has written numerous books about families and friends. She lives in Northern California with her husband.