Redshirting
It’s been interesting to see all the first day of school pics on Facebook over the past couple weeks. What’s struck me most is the distribution of kids M.’s age. Many are starting kindergarten this fall. Others are, like her, going through kindergarten for the second time. A smaller group is going on to the first grade. This article doesn’t…
Going Through The Bones
I’ve been doing some closet and attic cleaning this week. Digging through old boxes of stuff, looking for things that can/need to be thrown away, or items that can be sent to my sister-in-law for her up-coming garage sale. I dug through a huge pile of Far Side books that I’ll be flipping through in the next few weeks. Those…
More George Lucas Slamming
Early George Lucas collaborator Gary Kurtz finally talks about why he parted ways with Lucas after The Empire Strikes Back. Did ‘Star Wars’ become a toy story? “I could see where things were headed,” Kurtz said. “The toy business began to drive the [Lucasfilm] empire. It’s a shame. They make three times as much on toys as they do on…
First Day
And she’s off! M. started kindergarten today at the school we plan for her to attend for the next nine years.1 She was up early and excited to get her uniform on and get out the door. We walked her to her class, put her things in her cubby, and helped her find her seat. She sat and started coloring…
I Trust This Won’t Affect My Grade
I have a longer Required Reading post in the works, but this link deserves its own entry. Professors: Hot at Their Own Risk examines the challenges that attractive academics face. The idea of appealing educators being harassed by their students seems a little gross as I approach 40. When I was in college, though, there was always that hope at the…
What To Do If You Find An Atheist
I don’t consider myself an atheist; I respect the religious views of others and hope they respect my desire to believe something different. A more accurate way to describe my relationship with organized religion would be to call me a pretty hard-core agnostic. But this still made me laugh. I like the idea of children fleeing as I walk down…
Sports Shorts
A few thoughts on the burning issues of the day(s). Tiger I know everyone wants to flip out on what’s going on with Tiger Woods, but let’s all just take a deep breath and relax. If he’s still shooting +18 next year, then we can start talking about the biggest fall from grace in sports history. But, given what he’s…
Double Standard
We took the girls to their first baseball game last night, an Indianapolis Indians contest. We sat in the outfield grass with friends. The girls seemed more interested in throwing peanuts to the mice that were apparently running through the flower beds near us. Awesome. We stuck it out to the seventh inning, which I thought was pretty good. M. complained…
Six
M. turned six Sunday. That feels like a milestone birthday; a clear delineation between little kid and big kid. Did I say that last year, too? Even though she’s been through kindergarten, she still felt young, something that was reinforced by knowing she would be attending kindergarten again this year. As if last year wasn’t really kindergarten, just practice for…
The Three People Who Tear You Apart
Recently the Associate Press Sports Editors organization bestowed upon Mitch Albom the Red Smith Award. The honor, named after the legendary New York sports writer, celebrates a career of achievement and faith to the principles that journalists are supposed to adhere to. I’m no fan of Albom; I find him just slightly more tolerable than the completely insufferable Mike Lupica.…