1) Tiny Humans Lost In The Majesty Of Nature
Everyone’s seen this, right? This is the cover pic going round? Lemme see what I can add 🙂
See, if you be tiny human before big old tree (and all the other wonders of God’s creation that have stood the test of time), your problems even tinier to big old tree. Like so:
100 year old tree: So, you were saying your boss back at work doesn’t like you?
Hills: And you need to check your iPhone because……? (We don’t think your iPhone works here anyway)
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2) In Dr Sal Severe’s How To Behave So Your Children Will Too! (yes, exclamation mark included) as seen on Oprah (no exclamation mark), he describes when his daughter Leah was 3. The rule: you get dessert if you finish dinner.
That night in that restaurant when Leah barely ate, they cut her burger in half. That was the only concession. When they were about to leave, Leah relented and pleaded for a second chance to finish, if only she could have an ice cream cone like everyone else. She then ate, it doesn’t say if she finished, but because her time was up she didn’t get to order ice cream anyway.
Dr Severe describes how every parent thinks how their Leah was polite and well behaved anyway and how that is going to go to absolute hell in a hand basket in public when they tell her she still doesn’t get ice cream. He sits with her while everyone else gets their cones at the counter “not because she could still get ice cream – it was too late for that – but because I wanted her to eat more of her dinner. The dead-line for getting ice cream had expired.”
You thinking what I’m thinking? I’m thinking OMG THIS PERSON IS INSANE. This is really why he is on Oprah. Leah’s parents and brother proceed to eat their ice cream in the car going home while Leah pleads and cries and they all want to chuck their ice cream out the window.
As the good doctor her father tells it, “Watching her cry was excruciating.” Which is when I disagree with the former President of the Arizona Association of School Psychologists. (Watching her cry is not excruciating, it’s what lands people in therapy. But then Daddy is a therapist so I guess that’s ok :D)
For real though, I know I make funny and all, but what I really think is parenting seriously gives you a gut of steel. (This highly experienced school/ child/ parenting psychologist – Gut. Of Steel.) Because you don’t want to see your precious child sad. You know in enforcing the ice cream rule you are about to make your child, the love of your life, cry. Scream. Hate you for the next 2 seconds/ 2 days/ 2 weeks. If you can stand up to your child having a full-blown tantrum, you can do anything, people! Where’s your capes? Thought for the weekend…
Oh yeah and let me add: DO NOT LET YOUR CHILD WANT ICE CREAM FOR DESSERT.
Think about it: If they want broccoli for dessert* you can still give it to them when they don’t finish dinner. Exactly. (For real though, remember when I was saying it’s such a win-win if your child wants and enjoys things that are good for them – reading, healthy foods – rather than you having to say “no” to seemingly everything they want, all the time? I HATE having to say no to my child. I don’t want to fight with my kids over tv and candy and all the things people traditionally assume children have to like, which are bad for them.)
(*I was joking about the broccoli vs ice cream, but true story Rockstar recently requested as dessert a lobster bisque and bread roll. After fish ball noodle soup lunch. Yes he was shown a full dessert menu. He was also told he could order whatever he wanted, as a treat for finishing dinner. Well, soup isn’t broccoli, but it isn’t candy either… yes he does eat ice cream, just he can take it or leave it, fingers crossed…)
Anyway here’s some toddlers who ate broccoli for dessert (ahem) and grew up to be 12 Impressive Students Who Graduated College This Year.
Here’s two.
It says in this one, among these inspiring young people, are Abbey Crain and Matt Ford wrote a story about racial segregation in sororities – that was meant to be a triumphant piece heralding the acceptance of an objectively impressive first female black student – who then ended up not getting accepted into any sorority.
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3) Wrong Answer. Seriously long read by the New Yorker that fleshes out the whole ongoing account of Teachers Inspired To Cheat For Their Students Because Of How The Incentives Are Set Up (in the States). No, this is not about Evil Teachers With No Morals, How Could They, How Could They. I liked it because of the broader illustration of the many varying shades of grey that make up living life. For e.g. some of the teachers cheating were in some of the impoverished public schools that might otherwise be shut down/ have funding pulled if they don’t cheat. Some of those teachers were themselves kids people were going to give up on, who grew up wanting to make a difference for other kids who like them didn’t have that many opportunities in life.
For me, it was a story about the many, many shades of grey, and not judging. We may never see the whole picture. I believe a lot in a conscience. Even if no one knows and you “get away with it”, you will know, God will know. We are/ were professionals for 2, 3, 4 decades of our lives, but we are who we are, the choices we make, for the rest of our lives.
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4) Fish have feelings too… Or, at least, more than a 3 second memory. You can apparently train a fish to evade a trap. Why do people think they’re stupid?“…People just don’t interact with fishes in any meaningful way….” “…They had an hour’s training, and they remembered it for their entire lifetime…”
Because I always wanted to type the phrase “Fish have feelings too.” Dones.
Betcha at least a little curious after that…
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5) Bloomberg Markets’ (then summarized by Business Insider’s) 11 Weird Investments Making A Killing Right Now.
Don’t Snort, Dis Issa Good Investment
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6) And the Miss has the skit this week, which is Strawberry Shortcake Feeds Horsie. In honor of new jammies and a grape. Or, in her words, “FEED HORSIE FEED HORSIE FEED HORSIE FEED HORSIE”.
Just so, and good weekend dears…
