When I was a kid we played outside all day. And in summer, all the kids in the neighborhood, (usually at least ten or twelve kids, ages five to fifteen) would gather every evening after supper to play Kick-the-Can. First we'd draw straws from somebody's broom. The kid who drew the shortest straw was "it" and the kid with the longest straw got to kick the can. Any old empty tin can would do. It would be placed in a central location then kicked as far as possible. The moment the kicker's shoe hit that can, all the kids would scatter and hide. The one who was "it" had to chase the can and bring it back to the home base, then cover his/her eyes and start to count. When the counter reached 100, he or she would give a shout, "Here I come!" and strike out to search for those hiding. Usually it was easy to find the young ones, but often the searcher would make the game more fun by pretending not to see them. Older kids could get pretty creative about finding hiding places, and when the searcher was looking elsewhere, they'd move from one hiding place to another, so the searcher would have to check and recheck each potential hiding place. ...more

December 2, 2007

If you're reading this, you've got good reading habits. But your teenager, now that's a different story. ...more

November 25, 2007

This Hollywood writers strike is already so huge, universities are doing studies on it. ...more

November 19, 2007

Ever wonder what happened to that watch, iPod, television or car tire you lost at the airport? ...more

November 3, 2007

Nothing says 'trick or treat' quite like a severed hand and foot roasting on a barbecue grill. And nothing warms the mischievous Halloween heart as much as - Are you sitting down? - a high-tech, remote control whoopee cushion. ...more

October 11, 2007