Browsing all posts in "Parenting".
Nothing Like that Old Time Religion
And by old-time, I mean about five thousand years. Two bar mitzvahs in two weeks. One very Orthodox, with a capital O. Women segregated, not allowed on beama, not allowed to read Torah. Next one mostly Orthodox, mixed congregation, women only allowed on beama for their OWN bat mitzvahs. [Because excluding half the population is [...]
Cartesian Dualism Does NOT Get You out of Chores
Back in the day, Aristotle was “THE Philosopher.” In fact, that is exactly how he was referred to by the Church fathers, from the time of his reintroduction in the west in the 11th century. St. Thomas Aquinas made it his life’s work to put a Christian spin on the old pagan, and by the [...]
The Red Gene
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, they say. [Sometimes it hits someone important on the head, and the theory of gravity is born. Sometimes it just falls on the ground and rots. We all root for the former.] It helps if the tree doesn’t have a whopping set of bad genes to pass [...]
Can You Fit a Full Term Infant in a Warming Pan?
While we might consider this odd question to be a bit of an academic exercise, this was the single most important problem occupying the collective mind of Merry Olde England in June of 1688. When last we left the obstetrical travails of the British Royal Family, James II had just succeeded his brother Charles II, [...]
Alchemy, Anyone?
I kept telling people that the healthcare bill wasn’t the solution. Do we really want to spend a trillion bucks and put an ever-growing layer of bureaucracy between us and our health? What we really need is a cure-all. A panacea. If no one’s sick, no one needs healthcare. I know, I know. It sounds [...]
The Mother’s (2nd Annual) 12 Step, Back to School Program
Last year I gave all the back-to-school advice I know. Since this is absolutely the definitive guide, I’m posting it again, just in case any of you forgot any of these important steps as your kids head back to school. Step #1: Refill the kid’s lunch money account online at least a week ahead. That [...]
The Generation Gap?
It seems like every week someone is decrying, bemoaning, or otherwise pointing to a “generation gap.” Kids, apparently, just THINK differently than adults. Well, duh. But is that permanent? Is it a generation thing or a kid thing? [As a confirmed materialist, I don't believe claims that the next generation is wired differently unless I [...]
I Bet Michael Kors’ Mother Never Had to Put up with This
The Goth has rather, um, eclectic taste in clothes. If one wants to wear poet’s shirts, gothic trenchcoats and Dracula capes (and doesn’t want to spend the ridiculous money that adult dress-up shops charge), one has to make minor accommodations. The Goth has learned to deal by–wait for it–making his own. Having a mom with [...]
Mr. Comstock Knows It When He Sees It
Do you remember Annie Besant? No? Charles Knowlton? Charles Bradlaugh? Edward Bliss Foote? Ben Reitman? Bill Sanger? Ethyl Byrne? Emma Goldman? Margaret Sanger? [You might have heard of the last two. Goldman was immortalized in Ragtime. Sanger is justifiably famous.] What do they all have in common? They were all tried, convicted, fined or imprisoned, [...]
More Parental Nightmares
There are so many, aren’t there? We parents worry about so many things: we worry that our kids won’t be happy, won’t be strong, will be teased, will be misfits, will have problems in school, will get sick, won’t find love… In the eternal litany of things mothers must worry about, a new study takes [...]
