Thursday, December 13, 2012
What would you do or not do if you only had one more week to live?
If you believe all of the doomsday hype surrounding the Mayan calendar, we’ve got approximately eight more days left on this planet. Specifically, prognosticators predict 12/21/2012 at 11:11 p.m. Universal Time (whatever that is) will mark lights off for Planet Earth. Per www.timeanddate.com, “The Mayan calendar finishes one of its great cycles in December 2012, which has fueled countless theories about the end of the world on December 21, 2012 at 11:11(UTC)." One theory suggests a galactic alignment which would create chaos on Earth because of the gravitational effect between the Sun and the Black hole called Sagittarius A, which is located at the center of our galaxy. Another theory involves a 'polar shift', which means a reversal of …
Thursday, November 29, 2012
I constantly read and hear about all of the good things associated with aging. It’s just that I can’t remember any of them right now.
It’s my birthday in a couple of weeks. Not one of the big milestone ones. But, if you look at life as a mountain that offers you 100 years (provided I am being very optimistic), let’s just say I am getting awfully close to reaching the summit. Despite the harsh reality of what confronts me in the mirror every day — especially in direct sunlight (yikes!) — I still regard myself as “16 with 31 years of experience.” Or, as Oakland Athletics’ batting coach Chili Davis once said, “Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.” Harry Styles — teen boy-band (One Direction) heartthrob and rumored current paramour of singer, Taylor Swift had this to say about aging: “Age is a number. But maturity is a choice.” Considering Styles is only 18…
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Who's your favorite OO7? Best Bond villain? Best spy gadget? Best chase? Share your favorite Bond moments.
If a film stars Daniel Craig, I aim to see it. That appreciation started after viewing a past James Bond movie, Casino Royale, in which Craig starred as Agent OO7. After watching him surface from the ocean in fitted, cornflower-blue (which matched the same hue of his piercing cerulean eyes) bathing trunks, I was hooked. On his acting, that is. Sigh. The latest iteration of the James Bond franchise — the critically-acclaimed Skyfall — hit theaters this past Friday and once again stars Craig as Agent OO7. (Read a great review of Skyfall by Patch’s Cinema Siren.) Craig is one of six actors to have portrayed the lead character in over 23 Bond films. In most polls, Craig ranks a OO7 fan favorite, right behind Sean Connery. The British …
Thursday, October 18, 2012
They especially love when I sing and do the choreography to "Gangnam Style" on my carpool days.
Nothing’s more fun than finding innovative ways to embarrass your kids. As the mother of a 13 and 16 year-old, pretty much anything I say or do these days winds up mortifying them. They especially love when I sing and do the choreography to “Gangnam Style” (see #4 below) on my carpool days. So, imagine my delight upon coming across a recent online article offering additional pointers to ensure your kids (actually the article talks about tweens but I think these techniques work on teenagers too) want absolutely nothing to do with you. Here are the author’s suggestions: 1. Forbid it. That's right...forbid your tween to do anything and everything that her peers are doing. Don't ask questions. Don't discuss options. Just forbid it! The …
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Have you ever been pulled over for a speeding ticket and wound up only getting a warning? What did you tell the officer?
Anyone who’s ever driven on Old Mill Road probably knows the feeling. Good tune jamming on the radio, cruising on automatic pilot, pedal to the metal, not really tracking how fast you’re going until, suddenly, fast-approaching, flashing red and blue lights are in your rearview mirror. Nothing stops a reverie faster. What comes next is usually some utterance of a silent or spoken variation of, “Oh, fecal matter.” Your mind automatically skips to the haunting melody of “Bad Boy, Bad Boy, Watcha Gonna Do?” as you guide your car to the shoulder of the road, praying the officer takes mercy on you, wishing you’d worn your push-up bra (kidding, sort of), and hoping that none of your neighbors passes by. Well this very scenario recently unfolded…
Thursday, September 13, 2012
It's that glorious time of year when kids have returned to school and their parents -- in a misguided attempt to support the transition -- start behaving very badly.
It’s that glorious time of year when kids have returned to school and their parents — in a misguided attempt to support the transition — start behaving very badly. At least that’s what a recent blog post has us believing after querying kids and teachers to find out some of the uncool things parents do that they shouldn’t. Excerpted from the blog post are some of the DO NOT suggestions for parents, as offered by kids and teachers: So, tell us Patch readers (especially you teachers and kids out there), what other “egregious” school-year behaviors do you see parents committing? And/or, what's your advice for parents in order to ensure kids have a good school year?
Thursday, August 23, 2012
'Can I take your picture so I can show Santa what I want for Christmas?'
The dating site eHarmony recently conducted a query of its members regarding various aspects of relationships. One of the topics covered was the effectiveness of pick-up lines. Surprisingly (to me, anyhow), 44 percent of the women interviewed thought the technique had merit, even when the lines used were cheesy. For those amongst us who are further removed from the days of pick-up lines, let’s first refresh our collective memories. We’re talking phrases such as: “Hey beautiful -- that is your name, right?” … or … “Can I take your picture so I can show Santa what I want for Christmas?” … or … “I'm not actually this tall, I've got this bad habit of sitting on my wallet.” … or … “I'll make you dinner if you make me breakfast.” Are we starting…
Thursday, August 2, 2012
What do your co-workers or office mates do that you find annoying?
You can pick your friends. But unfortunately, you can’t pick your family … or your co-workers. Because of this predicament, we sometimes wind up working with irritating people. And if the abundance of websites devoted to this topic is any indication, this problem is either really pervasive or we are really intolerant. One such site -- which encourages posters to detail things that their co-workers do which grate -- devoted to this subject is http://www.annoyingcoworker.com. Listed is a sampling of some of the site’s submissions: Comparatively, I feel pretty blessed. I can only recall two past co-workers who possessed aggravating cube-side manners. One was a guy who clipped his nails daily at his desk, and let the clippings drop into the…
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Have you come across any clever boat names recently?
Beyond possessing a couple of jaunty, blue-and-white striped nautical T-shirts and having an affinity for saltwater taffy, I am not much of a seafarer. Even so, who doesn’t relish the idea of one day owning his or her own boat? For now though, I am perfectly content just having FWBs (friends with boats). And whenever one of my FWBs graciously extends a coveted cruising invitation, I eagerly accept the offer, if only to check out all of the ingenious and clever names of the docked boats at the marina. Per the Frugal Mariner, “The name you select for your boat may not seem like an important thing. But, considering the strong feelings many of us have for our boats; the fact that we put so much work, and sweat and money into them; the fact …
Thursday, July 5, 2012
'I survived the 2012 D.C. derecho, even though my freezer contents didn’t.'
So, are you a proud member of the T-shirt-wearing, “I survived the 2012 D.C. derecho, even though my freezer contents didn’t” crowd? Or maybe you’re one of the sweaty, unfortunate few, still waiting for power to return and aren’t quite ready to embrace the lighter side of this storm just yet. If so, you’re justified. After all -- rancid food, trees through bedroom ceilings, kids forced to go Amish (credit my sister, Debbie, who dubbed and utilized this punishment on her brood long before Modern Family did) and no air-conditioning on back-to-back, record-breaking, hot, humid days -- collectively, have a way of stifling one’s sense-of-humor. Many of us still have questions. Specifically, what the heck exactly was that thing that blew into …
Isle D Belle
11:07 am on Friday, November 30, 2012
Beth, you made me laugh about the glasses (why I have a pair in every room), forgetting what I need from the garage refrig (it takes a minute to refocus) and the perils of not making a grocery list (even if it only has two things on it)! But it is true, I no longer care about so many of the things that used to make me crazy years ago. Not sure whether it's confidence or I just can't remember what… more ›