The Kid doesn’t like movies with scary parts. He’s a sensitive kid and scary things linger. (I relate to that.) We can occasionally do movies in the park, maybe because the sound is less intense, but even those are a crap shoot. So we don’t watch many movies. Now, I’m not a movie person, but … Read more
It’s my birthday today! Except that mostly, it doesn’t matter. Work, chores, appointments, etc. all happen regardless. Which is fine (and reasonable). The number changing doesn’t make me feel any different. I know quite a few people on both sides of that fence—some who don’t care about the number turning over and some who react … Read more
I hate planned obsolescence. I hate cheap shit. I hate the “everything disposable” mindset. I hate WalMart and the Dollar Store. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t want to pay tons of money for everything, necessarily, but we need to find a way back to well-made things that can be kept for a long time, … Read more
A few years ago, I was driving, The Kid accompanying in the back seat. The weather was nice, the windows were down, and he was singing. It didn’t matter that the windows were down. It didn’t matter we were stopped at a light and the people next to us could hear him. He was just … Read more
The Kid is learning to read. I mean, he’s in the years-long process of learning to read. He loves to read. Part of that is that he reads things that are interesting to him. It doesn’t have to be books. It doesn’t have to be at his reading level. Whatever is interesting. Sometimes, he likes … Read more
Today’s post is full of broad sweeping statements. Of course they are not true for every individual in every category. But I’m not going to make a disclaimer in every paragraph because it’s unwieldy to read. Many companies are introducing (or have already introduced) wellness incentive plans regarding various biomarkers of their employees (with questionable … Read more
So … it’s not anywhere close to Father’s Day. Here’s the story: The Kid and I went to Burst of Butterflies, a local painting place (canvas, ceramic, etc.) where he painted two small identical tiles that said #1 Dad. We were traveling for the actual holiday and picked up the tiles after we returned. We … Read more
(If you missed the original post/project details, you can find it here.) Kids have been off and on with the sticky notes. I have needed to replenish them a time or two, but most seem to have chosen a couple, stuck them in their music binder, and not messed with them again. Earlier this week, … Read more
Apologies. We tend not to be good at them. We tend to force children to mutter them insincerely. We get in the habit of muttering them insincerely, if we mutter them at all. The first place I heard an excellent, clear explanation of what an apology should be was in Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture at … Read more
If you’ve never experienced this, it’s hard to understand. (I imagine chronic pain is similar. I imagine high-functioning autism is similar as well.) Everyone (I assume) occasionally doesn’t feel like doing some task. It takes a little get-up-and-go to get it done. The bit of internal oomph that pushes you over the threshold between doing … Read more