Meghan Daum has been a weekly opinion columnist at the Los Angeles Times since 2005. She is the author of the essay collection My Misspent Youth and the novel The Quality of Life Report, which was a New York Times notable book in 2003. Her articles and essays have appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's, GQ, Vogue, and The New York Times, among other publications. Her her most recent book is  Life Would Be Perfect If I Lived In That House (coming in May 2010), a work of mostly personal nonfiction about real estate, identity, and the endless pursuit of your dream house. She lives in Los Angeles.