Like many baby boomers, Missy Sullivan is easily enthralled by her own generation-its chest-thumping energy... its "What? Me worry?" optimism... and the way the ground seems to shake, T-Rex-style, every time the massive, 78-million-headed monster takes a single lumbering step. So last year, after taking on the "boomer beat" at SmartMoney, the personal finance magazine of The Wall Street Journal, Missy immediately dove in, covering topics ranging from empty nester spending trends to the difficult market for downsizing to the things other publications failed to tell you about retiring abroad. As senior editor at SmartMoney since 2007, she has also led the magazine's consumer spending coverage of topics including travel, cars, tech, health, education, real estate, green living, collecting and wine, editing numerous award-winning stories and columns. The common thread? Trying to help drive readers to that elusive intersection of quality and value, while reducing the marketing glare.

Generational Issues, Aging, Baby boomers,