Month: January 2015

A note, before I start: I had to do research and learn what the hell the difference is between Holland, the Netherlands and Denmark before writing this post.  So obviously I am supposed to be writing right now.

Anyway.  This picture’s making the rounds:

Here’s what you’re supposed to do: you’re supposed to look at this picture and go arr wharglebargle kids these days yarr, and be all mad.  In case you don’t recognize it, that painting on the wall back there is Rembrandt’s The Night Watch, which isn’t actually called that officially but whatever.  The idea is that these kids– who look, to my eyes, to be maybe eighth- or ninth-graders, are in the presence of Priceless! Artwork! and instead of reverently gazing upon it they are daring to look at their phones.  Horror!  Terror! Decline of society!  Wharrgarbl!  Facebook is so angry about this, guys.

In a recent letter I received from our favorite Jail-Dino, Rara, she requested any and all glimpses of our worlds that we were willing to share, including: “traffic, skies, coffee cups, buildings, kids, art, snowcones, everything.  I want to see the world!”

And!  To make that super easy, there is a wonderful app called freeBird Cards (available through the Google Play store, and probably through iTunes but I haven’t confirmed that – if someone could and leave that information in the comments below that would be greatly appreciated).

Some of you may have already heard about this app, because Grayson posted about it over on Rarasuar a few days ago.  If you haven’t checked it out, it really is as easy as he made it sound.  I installed the app on my phone, selected a picture, input the correct addresses and a personal message, picked which advertisement I wanted to…

Sure, this sort of list has been hashed out a million times on internet sites, in Men’s magazines and over drinks at a bar. But here’s my take on it (in no particular order):

1. Wash your own laundry:

Wash it, dry it, fold it, maybe even hang some of it up to dry so it doesn’t shrink. You don’t really need to sort it all out, that’s one of those female “myths” that’s been perpetuated for eternity. Well, except for anything red… sort that shit out or you’ll have a real problem with pink underwear. While you’re at it, learn to operate an iron. Then go wash a bunch of dishes. You might get laid.

2. Tie a tie:

I know, I know… I can already hear you saying “I don’t ever wear a tie, why should I need to know how to tie one?” Well, because you should…

“On the road from the City of Skepticism, I had to pass through the Valley of Ambiguity” – Adam Smith

Epilepsy. St. Vitus’ Dance. religious mania. Shaken, not stirred.

We can all superficially agree with that most beloved of common sense skeptic maxims coined by sociologist and CSICOP (Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal) co-founder Marcello Truzzi that “extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof”.  Where we might quibble is on the interpretation of which phenomena are to be regarded as “extraordinary” and which are merely “trivial”.  Were you to tell me that The Back Street Boys were artistic geniuses, I might regard that as an extraordinary statement and demand some sort of incontestable way to verify the truth of your supposition.  Given, I may have a deep rooted bias towards boy bands, and to my understanding we have been led to believe that Backstreet’s back, alright, but…

Welcome to Forest Haven, one of the most deadly institutions in the United States.

This asylum for the mentally ill was built not far the nation’s capital in 1925, hidden in forested acreage away from the busy city center. The campus was beautiful, however care and treatment would deteriorate rapidly as the city’s budget tightened. Understaffing issues were common, and for decades reports of resident abuse and neglect went ignored.

The District treated Forest Haven like a dark secret nobody wanted to discuss. A combination of budget cuts and lawsuits eventually forced the institution to close in 1991 after 80 years.

But before Forest Haven was shuttered, hundreds of residents died and thousands more deteriorated while enduring a horrific quality of life.

Being  a loyal follower of the blog Vampire Maman I can tell you this is not a blog you’ll want to miss. I thought it would be a great kick off my new blog and certainly something I think you might like. Yesterday Marla Todd aka Juliette Kings had this to say about this blog on Facebook. 

 “I write an odd little blog (for almost 4 years) that has gained a nice following. It is a parenting/life blog but with a weird little twist – I write it as a Vampire. I know, it sounds weird. It sort of started as a joke because when I started to blog as “Marla” nobody read my stuff. I told Charlotte that I’d change it to a parenting blog with the view-point of a Modern Vampire. Like a lot of my readers I’m not even “into” vampire stuff. It just seemed like a…