Archive for May 2012
How to win at tug of war
Victor Mather of the New York Times proposed 10 Olympic events that should be resurrected for the upcoming London games, including tug of war. Tug of War was an annual competition at Yawgoog, the Boy Scout camp where I spent many of my childhood summers, and my troop, Troop 1 of Blackstone, Massachusetts, was a…
Read MoreA rare glimpse at a master teacher at work
Hans Rosling is an incredible teacher. One of the best I have ever seen. I was completely mesmerized by his TED Talk despite my initial lack of interest in the subject. This is the sign of a master teacher at work.
Read MoreGo to bed!
Our new favorite video. It involves Clara and a book, of course.
Read MoreDeathbed regrets revisited: 2012
Two years ago, in response to a piece listing the most frequent death bed regrets of the dying, I listed what I thought would be my most likely death bed regrets. There were: I did not travel enough. I never pole vaulted again after high school. I did not spend enough time with Clara. I…
Read MoreI don’t like hot drinks. I may be a thermal taster. Kind of like a superhero.
I don’t drink coffee, which places me in an extreme minority, at least among my friends and colleagues. I also do not drink tea or even hot chocolate. For years, I have told people that I don’t like hot drinks, a statement that is often greeted with a furrowed brow and many questions, particularly on…
Read MoreRanking Stephen King’s 62 books: Some minor quibbling on my part
Vulture recently ranked Stephen King’s 62 books. Not an easy task, and overall, I think they did a surprisingly good job. I have read all but one of King’s books (see below), and despite the excellence of Vulture’s rankings, I would like to quibble a bit about a few of their decisions. First and foremost,…
Read MoreA rare moment of recollection
On our brother and sister blog, I responded to my sister’s recent post about our childhood babysitting misadventures and had an opportunity to correct her recollection of an event that took place. This has never happened before.
Read MoreThis is absolutely true for men. Not so sure about women.
I saw this quote on Twitter last week, posted by a woman: “Men socialize by insulting each other, but they really don’t mean it. Women socialize by complimenting each other, but they don’t mean it either.” The first half of this statement is most assuredly true. In fact, I would argue that men often socialize…
Read MoreThree bits of wedding advice at the beginning of wedding season
The wedding season has begun. Last week my DJ partner and I worked our first wedding of the year. As the reception came to a close, I had a few thoughts on wedding receptions that may help you the next time you are planning or attending one: 1. As charming as it may seem to…
Read MoreSmart men thinking stupid things about death
I love both of these guys, but I couldn’t disagree with them more on this subject. “There are so many beautiful things which I will have to leave when I die, but I’m ready, I’m ready, I’m ready.” – Maurice Sendak “Do not pity the dead. Pity the living.” – Albus Dumbledore When it comes…
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