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grin and bare it

A blog by Matthew Dicks

Golden Rule, Golden Shmool

By Matthew Dicks | August 30, 2010

The Golden Rule doesn’t always work. I always prefer that people be direct, honest and forthright with me at all times. Brutally honest if needed. No behind-the-back gossip or back-channel suggestions through a third party.…

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Can I survive on even less sleep?

By Matthew Dicks | August 30, 2010

Tell me if this makes sense. I’m thinking about cutting down on my sleep.  Here’s my rationale.  I go to sleep sometime between 11:30 and midnight every night.  I wake up sometime between 5:00 and…

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Merriam Webster’s Top 10 Commonly Confused Words

By Matthew Dicks | August 30, 2010

My most frequently confused word did not make the list. I don’t know be happy or sad about this. For me, it’s peek and peak. Even with the see and peek pneumonic (both have a…

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Dead people’s jerseys

By Matthew Dicks | August 29, 2010

A couple years ago, my friend’s daughter, Katie, played on a softball team that was sponsored by Bailey Funeral Home. I think this is fabulous. Kids running the bases while advertising a funeral home on…

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“Be an unbeatable person and avenge my death.”

By Matthew Dicks | August 28, 2010

I write a daily blog to my daughter entitled GreetingsLittleOne.com. I’ve written every day since we learned that my wife was pregnant and have not missed a day. Sometimes the post is merely a collection…

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Give kids a reason to write

By Matthew Dicks | August 28, 2010

I was on an escalator in the MOMA, and I heard a mother ask her son, “What was your favorite exhibit?” The boy hemmed and hawed and ultimately failed to answer the question. I wanted…

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CAPS LOCK

By Matthew Dicks | August 27, 2010

What is the point of the goddamn Caps Lock button? And why must it be as almost as large as the Shift key. And why did the morons who designed this keyboard put the damn…

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No place like home

By Matthew Dicks | August 27, 2010

As summer vacation draws to a close and my school year begins, I can’t help but think that I am returning home after a summer abroad. After a dozen years of teaching, my school has…

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Skookum!

By Matthew Dicks | August 26, 2010

Elysha rarely calls me by name. Like most couples, we have developed a series of pet names and nicknames for one another. Skookum, a word that means the best (and ironically also means monster) is…

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Did they use straws to empty the pools?

By Matthew Dicks | August 26, 2010

Did you know that skateboard parks began with southern California skateboarders in the 1970’s known as Z-Boys, who would trespass into neighbor’s backyards, empty the pool and use it as a half pipe and concrete…

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