Find a penny, pick it up; All the day you'll have good luck. I've enjoyed this superstition since I was a child and taught it to my child, but I never seriously believed it was true. The real reason I pick up coins I find on the ground is that they're money, and I figure … Continue reading The Value of Eleven Cents
Month: December 2009
Books That Blew My Mind
UPDATE February 1, 2012: For the past two years, this has been an article like my links page where I keep adding content as I get around to it. Now I'm going to call it finished! Of course, I expect to read additional mind-blowing books during my visit to Earth, but this list now includes … Continue reading Books That Blew My Mind
Two Easy Indoor Games
Here are two games that are easy to set up, use minimal materials, and are fun for kids about 2-10 years old at a party or holiday gathering. (See also these knee-bouncing games for entertaining younger kids!) Pass the Parcel You will need a bunch of small toys, costume jewelry and similar trinkets, coins, and/or pieces of wrapped … Continue reading Two Easy Indoor Games
Award-winning Toilet!
One of the nice things about having two toilets in a home is that you can relax about keeping both of them able to handle everything. As long as one of the toilets has full flushing capacity, the other can limp along in a delicate state, being used only for the easiest jobs, until you're … Continue reading Award-winning Toilet!
7 Neat Things My Kid Has Done
...in his last month as a four-year-old. 1. He packed his own bag. He did this for our Thanksgiving trip with some coaching, but even more impressive was in October when we were packing to go visit his grandparents. While I was choosing my own clothes for the trip, Nicholas was hanging around saying, "Where … Continue reading 7 Neat Things My Kid Has Done
Lazy Composting
This is the composting method that works for me! It's really simple, and it produces rich dirt for my flowerbeds quickly enough to suit me. If you are serious about making really high-quality compost or doing it quickly or being certain it is safe for growing food, then you should seek out instructions from somebody … Continue reading Lazy Composting
Battle of the Bagel Ballads!
Nicholas is almost five years old now and getting even better at making up rhymes. As the Hanukkah decorations appear around our neighborhood, we've been inspired to make up more bagel songs to the tune of "Dreidel, Dreidel". Walking to and from the grocery store last Saturday, we took turns singing them and trying to … Continue reading Battle of the Bagel Ballads!
I got to be a Shabbos Goy!
We live three blocks away from an Orthodox Jewish synagogue and within a mile of several others, so there are several Orthodox families on our street. Some are more friendly than others and occasionally chat with us about children, pets, or gardening, but in general they socialize with each other and don't mix much with those … Continue reading I got to be a Shabbos Goy!
Silk Underlayers
I'm an easily chilled person who hates feeling cold; I live in a place where winter lasts at least 4 months; I commute by bus, which means standing around outdoors for a while each day; I have a desk job, so I sit mostly still all day, and my office isn't always as warm as … Continue reading Silk Underlayers
When Robots Write the Blogs
Yesterday I delved into the settings for my blog software and decided to turn on an option to notify me of "trackbacks"--when other sites link to mine. I thought it would be cool to hear about them right away, instead of just discovering them when I poke around in the "statistics" to see how people … Continue reading When Robots Write the Blogs
The Earthling's Handbook 