My youngest son, Chase, just recently lost his other front tooth, making the total number of gaps in his mouth now three. It’s really interesting how his young mind works. After losing his first tooth, he placed it beneath his pillow, as advised, and the next morning woke up to a nice crisp one dollar bill, courtesy of the tooth fairy (who, by the way, my son believes is a man). When he lost his second tooth my wife asked him to repeat the process so the tooth fairy could again make his transaction. Chase simply replied, “I don’t want to sell this one yet.” So, for now he’s holding onto two shares. Apparently he feels his teeth are worth more and is waiting for the market to improve.
Blog
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All I want for Christmas…
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Our plates runneth over
I like turkey as much as the next guy, but have to admit that our bird was a little large this year. The fridge (and freezer) is full of it. Beyond the main event, it’s been turkey for every meal and we’re still dealing with an impressive surplus. I fear what creative form it will take next. Turkey protein shake, anyone? -
Time for a New Tradition
Well, today’s the big day. Will this year’s receipt totals prove that our economy is finally on the mend? Personally, I don’t partake in the consumerist hysteria surrounding Black Friday. Yes, I realize there are great deals out there. Yes, I know that shopping is synonomous with the holiday season. No, I’m not against capitalism. I just don’t get supercharged about rising hours before the sun to feed the gluttonous idea of a materialistic Christmas. It seems that every year, the lists are longer, the budgets more bloated and still nobody’s any happier than they were the year before. In the process people simply end up over-extending themselves financially (isn’t that what kicked off our recession troubles to begin with?). Knowing full well that we don’t really need anything (or have the space to put any of it) we’ve decided to spend half of what we did on Christmas last year and give the other half to a local charity. I don’t know that it will be a huge hit with our kids, but I think there’s a valuable lesson to be learned. Besides, I kind of thought Uncle Sam needed to lose a few pounds anyway, so I’m really not seeing the need for a big piece of cake. -
Happy Thanksgiving
I couldn’t think of a more fitting image for today’s Inkling than the oft reproduced photograph-turned-oil painting Grace by Rhoda Nyberg. One of my childhood friends had this very painting hanging in his dining room. Every time I went to his house I saw it and never gave it much thought. There are so many things that I have in my life that I’m thankful for, but many days, like that painting, I don’t really think much about it. Thanksgiving Day, to me, is a reminder to be appreciative of just how fortunate and blessed I am. So, before enjoying that bountiful Thanksgiving feast with family today, I plan to take a moment to thank God for the abundance of blessings in my life. -
Ungrateful Pilgrim
“The potatoes are lumpy, the turkey’s like shoe leather, the gravy’s cold, I found a hair in my cranberries and, I’m sorry, I don’t see what’s so fabulous about maize. First Thanksgiving?! This will be my last!” -
Mouse Trap
There’s a history of rodent infestation in the building where I work, so it’s not uncommon to see three mouse traps in a single office. I heard rumors that if you listen closely you might even hear them squeaking and running in the ceiling. I’ve seen droppings on occasion, but have never, in all my years on the job, actually discovered a trap victim… except for a dead mighty mouse, which we planted to have a little fun with the custodians. Something tells me, they’ll have the last laugh. -
On the way to Plymouth Rock…
The Pilgrims, while searching for a prudent location to moor the Mayflower, happened upon a large granite edifice. Tragically the vessel caught a piece of the rock and began to take on water. All passengers aboard had to evacuate with supplies via the ship’s cutters. Thankfully all were spared and lived long, fruitful lives in the New World. The following month a pier was constructed to insure such a tragedy never occurred again. #GetAPieceoftheRock -
Inappropriate Choices
I saw the trailer for the new Warner Brothers flick Sherlock Holmes and couldn’t help but feel this way about their choice to cast Robert Downey Jr. in the lead. I think he’s a superb actor, but this choice, in my opinion, reflects Hollywood’s tendency to latch on to the surefire winners for even recycled fare to make it profitable. I believe that WB is jumping the shark…again. They even feature Holmes and Watson escaping death in that infamous hero cliché shot (an explosion sends their silhouettes hurling away from a fireball towards the viewer). Who knows, maybe it will be a hit – a la Michael Keaton as Batman – and children the world over will flock to libraries and bookstores to sponge up every last bit of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s works. Only time will tell. -
Opportunity
The stray balloon seemed to mock Glen, its string waving as it escaped. The nickel-plated nine millimeter was only minutes old, but the magazine was full and Glen was a good shot. Somewhere in the distance a dog barked. -
Early Texting
I’m amazed how we’ve become victims of our own progress. Our efforts to communicate in the most efficient ways have allowed us to become lazy and functionally illiterate. I fear that the generation that has learned to communicate via texting may suffer the worst. Sure, they can peck out the plot line to War & Peace in just seconds using thumbtack-sized keys, but their purposely condensed messaging comes at a significant cost. The 120 character minimum forces them to nix vowels, consonants and any other extraneous characters to get the word out fast. The problem is many of their abbreviated habits and typos rear their ugly heads when they try to express themselves in emails and… <gulp>… professional documents. AFAIK Joe Exec duznt wnt 2 hire u if u rite like ths in ur cvr ltr. ttyl