Picking Your Battles
December 19, 2007
I’m staring at my living room wall and notice little brown things sticking to the wall about four feet off the ground. Upon closer examination I realize it’s nose pickings.
I knew the culprit — four year old ‘Howling Mad Murdock.’ — who finds it funny to wipe his nose on my shirt during daily hit-and-run attacks to punch me in the stomach.
So I confront the perpetrator:
Me [Sternly]: “Did you wipe your nose on this wall!”
Howling Mad [Enthusiastically with a glowing smile]: Yeah!
I was prepared to scold. But his response just reduced me to a mild “please don’t do it again.” The older brothers spend so much time denying or blaming others for their bad behavior, so I was tensed up expecting an argument … with a four year old … about boogers.
Remember, it’s all about picking your battles.
Cardboard Boxes Still #1 Toy In Our House
December 18, 2007
My kids are enamored with empty cardboard boxes. Large ones usually end up in the driveway for an afternoon of spaceship flights. Most of the time my wife squirrels the smaller ones away to the garage for me to do my manly disposal duty.
Yesterday, I left an empty 4′x2′x2′ Amazon.com box in the hall. My six and four year olds, ‘Colonel Smith’ and ‘Howling Mad Murdock’ respectively, ran up to me asking what it was for? I said, “Well, we’re going to ship your older brother to Alaska when he gets home from school.”
The young ones were giggly and enthusiastic about that. In fact, they kept pestering me the rest of the afternoon: “When are we sending ‘B.A.’ to Alaska?”
The back story is B.A. tends to be very loud and obnoxious to his younger brothers and occasionally steals candy from them. Other times, he’s sensitive and kind. At the moment, B.A. was actually being a good guy and keeping his Bad Attitude in check. Twin brother Face man was actually the one being a trouble maker. So I kept delaying with excuses like after B.A.’s homework was done, then after dinner, then after his shower.
Meanwhile, the Colonel and Murdock kept hauling that box up the stairs to their bedroom, back down stairs, and back up again — all afternoon — giggling all the way.
Before bedtime, we invited B.A. into his ‘private video game playing room’ (box) and he agreed and played along with our brief joke. He was good spirited about the whole thing.
In the end, B.A. got a reprieve. Sadly, there are many times I thought about how nice it could be for the rest of the family if we could send B.A. away. The junior members of the A-Team really enjoyed the idea of sending B.A. away. Although that was a joke, it’s kind of sad. In hindsight, it makes me feel bad. I’m an ass.
Related Link:
Replace your toys with cardboard boxes
Don’t Drink Too Much at the Office Christmas/Holiday Party
November 26, 2007
eWeek so kindly published a list of stupid things you should not do at your company’s Christmas holiday party: “10 Office Holiday Party Landmines to Avoid.” eWeek even put together a cute slide show to help illustrate their top ten list.
I can distill their essay into the following quick guidelines:
- Don’t be stupid
- Don’t say anything stupid
- Don’t dress stupid
- Don’t do anything stupid
- Don’t bring uninvited stupid people
I would add ‘don’t be photographed doing anything stupid.’
Look, common sense should prevail. It’s not a time to get drunk and cut loose in front of your bosses and colleagues. Be smart, be sober, be polite. Let some other clown make a fool of herself/himself.
To get you in the spirit, be sure to check out the song “I drank too much at my office Christmas party” by The Alice Project.
Have fun!
Holiday Re-gifting Tradition
November 19, 2007
It’s that time again. Your opportunity to re-gift. You know you want to.
Wikipedia cites the following rules of re-gifting etiquette:
- The primary rule is not to give a gift back to the person who gave it to you.
- Similarly, re-gifting to someone who knows the original giver carries the risk of exposing both your lack of attachment to the gift, and your failure to select and purchase a new gift for the recipient. (Made popular on the ’90s sitcom, Seinfeld.)
- One should remove any cards and other indicators that the gift was originally given to you.
- Finally, using the gift before re-gifting it — so that it is no longer “new” — is generally considered inappropriate.
Etiquette guru Emily Post suggests that re-gifting should be done only rarely, and under specific criteria:
- You are certain the gift is something the recipient would enjoy.
- The gift is brand new (no cast-offs allowed) and comes with its original box and instructions.
- The gift isn’t handmade, or one that the original giver took great care to select.
According to results of the November 2005 Re-gifting and Holiday Credit Card Use Survey posted at Regiftable.com:
- More than half of surveyed consumers do not find re-gifting rude
- Nearly 4 in 10 people have practiced re-gifting
- Women 35-54 years old are more likely to regift than men
- Re-gifting is more practiced among those who are college educated
- One third of re-gifters do so to save money
In general, don’t regift the following:
- Used or opened items
- Expired items, such as last year’s Dilbert desk calendar.
- Champagne/alcohol
- Eclectic items the receiver might not be interested in
If your feeling tacky about the whole idea, give your stuff to a charity or resell on CraigsList, Amazon or eBay.
Related links:
(You’ll enjoy this song) Regifting for the Holidays by The Alice Project
MSN 12 rules for regifting without fear
That’s all folks. Let the re-gifting begin!
-BD
Was Your Father a Positive Role Model?
October 19, 2007
Bill at Inside Fatherhood asked an excellent question:
I voted “mixed.” My father has always been supportive of me, but I’ve been uncomfortable with the way he treats my mother. He was also either working or doing his one hobby throughout my youth (and still today). So if I wasn’t working with him (after school, summer vacation, renovation projects), then I wouldn’t see him often. Different generation I guess.
So as it relates to my own children, I try to see my children morning and night. I don’t have any hobbies (other than late night blogging and podcasting), so I’m there for the family during non-work hours/days. I can’t say I’m a positive role model, but I try to be physically accessible/present.
Please go over there and take Bill’s poll. I’m curious to see the votes/comments.
Thanks.
-BD
Happy Birthday, Awesome Mom!
October 16, 2007
It’s my wonderful wife’s birthday.
Karen (aka “Awesome Mom”) keeps our ship afloat. I can’t be thankful enough for what she does for our large family.
I’d really appreciate if you’d leave a comment for her. Thanks in advance.
-BD
BD-022 - Summer’s End
September 21, 2007
Summer is over. I’ve been tardy. Recording too much but not getting it out fast enough. This was recorded in my car in late August for your enjoyment. Sorry for the background noise — I’ve cleaned it up as best I can.
[00:25] What do you call a snail on a ship? (Listen to find out.)
[01:10] For a morale boost, I was nominated runner-up Employee of the Quarter. Check out the perks that go with recognition!
[03:45] Backyard camping fiasco.
[15:35] Homeowner fun. My good neighbor policy. Neighbor turnover is high. Am I to blame?
[17:00] Learn the lifespan of a mail box post.
[18:25] Closing credits.
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