Today's fortune: December 7, 2011

Today's fortune: Beauty in its various forms appeals to you.

More than one fortune lately has dealt with the subject of how I percieve beauty, and usually they refer to beauty in unlikely places. Today, I thought I'd be a little more overt.

I asked friends at work a simple question: What (and whom) do you think is beautiful?

The universal answer I received is that beauty is much more than skin deep - in fact, it has very little to do with looks.

My reliable friend Quincy had this to say: "To me, beauty is the act of showing your true intentions, whether in word or action." When I asked her to name a celebrity she perceived as beautiful, she said Angela Bassett. Hard to disagree.

My buddy Steven said, "I think 'beauty' is someone who is genuine. Someone who doesn't need a lot of makeup, and stands out because of their personality. Also, I think beauty is noticing something that appears in the regular world, but it impacts you in a positive way." His example: Ellen Page, the star of "Juno" and "Inception."

"Beauty is more than appearance," my friend Katie said. "It's a person's heart that makes someone beautiful." The name that represents beauty for her is Rudy Vallee. But she wasn't referring to the late singer; instead, it's the name of a turkey sandwich at her favorite cafe. "Food is a beautiful thing," she said.

Aron came up with a wise little ditty for his definition of the word: "Beauty is when you can't help but smile at a smile." His favorite smile, besides his fiancee, belongs to Mila Kunis.

As for me... well, there's nobody more beautiful than my wife. No more beautiful sound than her laugh. No more beautiful feeling than knowing she's safe.

But since I made everybody else name a celebrity... I'll say a distant second would be Amber Valletta.