Cotton-Pickin’ Days

Christina’s dog had a litter of puppies! This one’s mine and is named Little Shenny.

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And so we welcome….

continue reading

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This is so cool I had to share it here as well (and not just keep it at Stephen’s Rubbish).

This 30 second video was created at Animoto (aff) for free but longer versions can be had for a one-time fee of $3 or a one-year unlimited subscription of $30.

via Geekdad

PS I know the video is a little too big for my template and may cause some styling issues but I’m unable to resize it.

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Time to get a new printer. Been getting this error message more often lately:

This job requires more memory than is available in this printer.

My discontinued Hewlett Packard LaserJet 5MP has survived five countries and is only on its second toner cartridge since 1994/5. Because it doesn’t have a USB port, I have to network it via an old laptop that has a parallel port. On eBay it sells for around $50. A new Brother all-in-one color inkjet printer wouldn’t cost much more than that. So i guess it’s time to let a piece of history go.

Said good-bye to anything lately?

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Created using Spelling with Elements

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Misery may love company but fatties apparently do not. A study from the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that as the percentage of white females (and only this group, not any other) who are overweight and obsese increases in the population, they face greater wage discrimination.

From The Atlantic:

• In 1981, a woman in the 75th percentile on the Body Mass Index (roughly 165 pounds for a 5-foot-4-inch woman) could expect wages 4.29 percent lower than those of her svelter colleague in the 25th percentile (roughly 120 pounds).
• In 2000, the same hypothetical woman’s wage penalty for her avoirdupois had risen to 7.47 percent.

The authors of the study conclude:

…the increasing rarity of thinness has led to its rising premium.

So I guess if you’re thin, consider yourself a rare gem. Me? I’m more like stainless steel.

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My love for the PG Tips monkey is no secret. In the latest commercial for PG Tips tea, the monkey is wearing a fabulous T-shirt that said: “I facebooked your mum.” Wahahaa.

And here’s the monkey’s short movie on the history of tea.

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My family and I are business expats currently living in London UK. We have a lovely home and although our furniture is rented, it’s functional and comfortable. The one thing I wish we had is a reading chair.

When we finally get the chance to live in our own home and buy our own furnishings, I’d love to have a cushy arm chair to curl up in and read (and sleep) for a few hours. Something that’s comfortable enough for my children to snuggle up in as well.

This Adam reader chair and ottoman from Levenger looks impressive but not particularly comfortable. I’m also not a big fan of leather furniture.

This nobodyandco Bibliochaise is innovative but with hard edges on all sides.

A Bedtime Reading Chair looks very comfy but a bit boring and commonplace. (And probably close to something I would get in the end.)

Crate and Barrel has a big selection of chairs. The Lounge Chair and a Half looks cosy although the arms look hard.

These Thomasville Sunset Reading Chairs are classic looking but not cushy in the least.

Finding a good reading chair could be tougher than I thought! Do you have a reading chair? Even better, do you have a picture of a reading chair to share?

~~~~~
Join The Sunday Salon of readers!

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Like many pregnant women, I’ve been having some very vivid dreams of late. The other night, I dreamt that a flood was headed for our house (strangely, Marv and I were living with my parents and we had no kids). We were frantically stuffing jewelry into our bags and painting some kind of sealant on the window frames.

According to the Dream Dictionary at Dreamota, flooding symbolizes:

The release of emotions from the unconscious; intense emotions that may seem overwhelming. Pregnant women, women on the verge of starting their menstrual periods, and people with lung problems often dream of floods flooding.

What a boring prosaic dream that turned out to be.

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This month’s O, The Oprah Magazine has tips on how to retain what we’ve learned.

1. Space Out – Break up learning into separate sessions rather than cram at the last minute. Learning spread over the long term works better than intense, infrequent study.

   This is definitely a habit I want to teach Stephen. We break up his weekly school homework assignment over three days so it doesn’t seem as overwhelming and we do an additional 30 minutes of mommy-assigned work four days out of the week.

   My personal experience has also been that keeping on top of the work is far more effective come exam time than trying to cram the night or even the weekend before. This generally applies to all things in life, including housework!
   

2. Sleep On It – Sleep after studying helps your brain “solidify memory” by allowing it to fire in a certain sequence without interruption. This apparently works even after a nap.

   I know so many people who pull overnighters with just 2- 3 hours of sleep before exams. They were also typically below the grading curve yet never seemed to learn that their study strategy wasn’t working. I always got close to a full night’s sleep before exams even if I wasn’t 100% ready. I figured that my brain would be able to retrieve material far better if it were actually awake!
   

3. Don’t Overlearn – “Study a lot of material for a little bit of time in one session, rather than a little bit of material for a lot of time.”

   Glad to get this confirmation! I have tried my best to resist drilling Stephen on his weekly spelling even after it’s clear that he knows it. Now I know that I shouldn’t even talk about the spelling the morning of the test. Not only does it put too much pressure on him, but it obviously doesn’t improve long-term retention.
   

4. Keep Your Brain Fit – Regular exercise to maintain cardiovascular fitness, mentally challenging activities like reading, social engagement, education, and perhaps blogging all help to maintain brain plasticity. (More from Time.)

What have you been doing to keep your brain fit?

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