Back when I was working at an invention marketing company, one of the ways we promoted the inventions was the annual publication of a Concept Catalog that was handed out at trade shows and mailed to manufacturers and so on. Each invention got a quarter-page ad, written in a certain format: eye-catching headline, product name, … Continue reading The Concept Catalog
Month: May 2008
How the Cabana Bench Got Its Name
A tale of my childhood, retold in celebration of Mother's Day. When I was in first grade, my mother became annoyed that she kept finding my shoes in the middle of the floor in various public rooms of the house. At first, she dealt with this the way most parents--trying to teach orderly living skills and … Continue reading How the Cabana Bench Got Its Name
To You, They ARE Underwear!
This article is part of my Tastes Like Somebody Loves You! series. I wrote it in 2003, but it falls into that category of things I wasn't allowed to say when I wasn't a parent. Toddlers learning to use the toilet used to wear cotton "training pants" that were just like underpants but made of thicker … Continue reading To You, They ARE Underwear!
When You Care Enough to Send the Very Best
This article is part of my Tastes Like Somebody Loves You! series. My son was 12 days old the first time he received a package with his name computer-printed on the shipping label. "What did you order?" I asked him jokingly. "Did you go online without permission?" Of course he hadn't--the package contained a gift. … Continue reading When You Care Enough to Send the Very Best
Tastes Like Somebody Loves You!
Each photograph showed a smiling child, alone in the foreground of an after-school activity: ballet lesson, soccer practice, etc. The slogan said, "Tastes Like Somebody Loves You!" It was an ad campaign for individual pudding snacks. Well, it may taste like it, but that snack doesn't mean anyone loves you, kid. In fact, nobody loves … Continue reading Tastes Like Somebody Loves You!
Bagel! Bagel! Bagel!
Last winter, one of my Girl Scouts was singing this parody of the Dreidel song traditionally sung on Hanukkah: Bagel! Bagel! Bagel! I made it out of snow. I baked it in the oven. Where did my bagel go? My family found this song hilarious and sang it over and over again. Within a couple … Continue reading Bagel! Bagel! Bagel!
The Earthling's Handbook 