I was thinking recently that thanks to Amazon.com, it’s much easier to live as a crazy recluse than it was even 20 years ago. There was a time when to really be a recluse (the cool kind that keeps the drapes closed, and wanders the house in a silk robe), you needed to be wealthy, like Howard Hughes, but no more!  Now, whatever you need, you can pretty much get from Amazon without ever leaving your house — and without the aid of a manservant (or “valet,” for you Downton Abbey fans).

As evidence: the case of Viva Choose-A-Size paper towels that we received this afternoon from Amazon. (We insist on Choose-A-Size. We won’t be told what size paper towel we need, damn it. The Man — the Paper Towel “Standard Size” Man, that is — won’t keep us down.  Fight the power!)