Category Archives: family

Adapting The Decemberists

The 8-yo spends a significant amount of free time drawing comic books (basically, whenever he’s not playing soccer or on his computer). And one of his favorite albums from the past year is The Decemberists’ The King Is Dead. So … Continue reading

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Banning Balls in School

Let’s take it as read that the public schools these days worship a false idol of “safety,” trying so hard to be risk-averse that they often end up spoiling kids’ fun and making it harder for them to learn. I’ve … Continue reading

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I may have watched too much Friends

People who follow me on Twitter know that this week has been contractor week at chez Salt-Box, with the focus of most efforts being the upstairs bathroom.  (You can see evidence on Flickr: “Things That Are Busted in Our Bathroom“; … Continue reading

Posted in connecticut, family, silliness | 3 Comments

Happy birthday . . .

. . . to her: Promoted and tenured a year early . . . not too shabby for [redacted].

Posted in family | 2 Comments

The zoo!

Yesterday we went to the Bronx Zoo for the first time.  A good time was had by all–as you can see here, we got a pretty up-close visit from a polar bear, plus close encounters with red pandas, baboons, giraffes, … Continue reading

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The first science project

Last week, the 6-yr-old’s school–the Holmes School for Science & Technology–had its first science fair. (I know, right?  What were they waiting for?)  Anyway, the boy was *super* excited about it, as you can see in this photoset on Flickr,  … Continue reading

Posted in connecticut, education, family, public schools | 4 Comments

Land of the Lost: in which I suffer for the sake of knowledge

This weekend at GeekDad I have a “10 things parents should know” post up about Land of the Lost, which was almost no fun at all.  That said, there’s always a silver lining: 10.  Well, is there at least a … Continue reading

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Playlist for a 6-yr-old

This is the year-in-review playlist for the boy, who turned 6 this week.  (See this post at GeekDad for background.) 1. “Constructive Summer,” The Hold Steady 2. “3 Dimes Down,” Drive-By Truckers 3. “Livin’ in the Future,” Bruce Springsteen 4. … Continue reading

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A miracle of the Force

I was gobsmacked on Friday when something happened for the first time in 10+ years of teaching: A student produced a reasonable definition of the word canonical.  It was a first-year student, in a composition class. And how did the … Continue reading

Posted in family, higher education, star wars, teaching | 1 Comment

Yet another reason not to like RateMyProfessors.com

Today I found out that my parents check up on A’s and my teaching by reading RateMyProfessors.com regularly. Awesome.

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