To bank tellers, store clerks and post-office-counter workers:
Don’t ask my children if they want candy. And while you’re at it, and even though it’s far more appropriate, don’t ask me, in front of the children, whether they may have candy.
If it were 1931 and candy were a rare treat I couldn’t afford, it might be cool to get free candy. But candy is cheap, and my children don’t need more.
My children are not deprived of sweets. We have baskets full of Easter candy, stockings full at Christmas, Valentine’s candy, birthday treats, and fat pillowcases at Halloween. I realize that another lollipop isn’t going to tip the scales. But the 13 grams of sugar and Red No. 40 aren’t the only issues; it’s also about the message it sends.
When my 6-year-old daughter slammed the minivan door on her fingers, and I took her to urgent care, I thanked the receptionist who asked me whether she could have a lollipop, and I gladly accepted. But when the children’s only accomplishment is standing in line to watch their mother buy stamps, they don’t need a treat for that. I don’t want them thinking that candy is something you eat all the time. I don’t want them eating treats that, seconds ago, they were fine without, but now that it has fallen in their laps, they suddenly want.
Candy-givers, I know you mean well. But you risk taking well-behaved, happy children and turning them into crabby children on a sugar rush, or discontented children who feel like they’re missing out because mom said no to the free sugar.
The ubiquitous candy bowls and offers of treats are wearing on me. Please, make it stop.
I just noticed that a new satellite image of my neighborhood is on google maps. The area used to be fuzzy and green; it was hard to see the houses clearly. Now we can tell that two people were getting out of my minivan when the image of my house was taken. It was taken sometime this summer.
The photo posted here is the Hartley Nature Center parking lot, not far away. The screen-grab doesn’t look as clear as it does originally. Maybe your house has been updated, too?
A cast of 47 children takes over the Duluth Playhouse for two weekends in “Robin Hood.”
Friday, Jan. 15 at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16 at 1 & 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 17 at 2 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 23 at 1 & 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 24 at 2 p.m.
Tickets bought at the office or by calling are $9 for adults, $7 for ages 17 and younger.
506 W. Michigan St., Duluth (218) 733-7555
Tickets bought online are all $9 plus a $1.50 fee per ticket. www.duluthplayhouse.org
The show runs about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Overheard in Target, 10 p.m. Dec. 22 amid Christmas shoppers. I probably wouldn’t have thought this was so funny before I had kids.
Indignant college-age woman to second indignant college-age woman:
“It’s just so, like, what a freakin’ 6-month-old would say!”
I am looking forward to the movie “2012″ coming out next month. I’m glad they didn’t wait until 2012 to release the movie, cause, you know.
Someone has compiled a list of 22 possible ways for the earth to end in a couple years. My favorites are “Rise of the Machines” and “Time Travel Error.”
While watching the trailer for the movie, I noticed they’re not forgetting to save the giraffes, not something I would have put on my short list to save.
I invite you to consider:
1. What do you think is the most likely way for earth to meet its end in two years?
2. What stupid thing would you try to save if you got a seat on a secret government ship?
Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009
7-9 p.m., Barnes & Noble at Miller Hill Mall
Northland CORE hosts “Homeschooling Information Night” and will lead a discussion with experienced homeschooling parents. Topics will include Minnesota laws, registering students with local school districts, methods of homeschooling, testing, support groups or whatever else comes up! www.northlandcore.org
I posted before about Guys and Dolls Jr. at the Duluth Playhouse, so I want to pass along the info. that the Saturday 1 p.m. show has been canceled because of slow ticket sales. The show will go on Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 4 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.
I heard some people speculate that parents might think this isn’t a show that kids would like, but the “Jr.” versions of Broadway shows are adapted for children to perform and see. It’s cute, funny and musical. Just not at 1 p.m. Saturday.
I was at 26th Avenue East and London Road when I saw these two cars. They’re a little unusual, so I thought it was funny to see two together. The question that lingers for me: Is it possible these people are together? Do friends ever buy the same kind of car so they’ll match?
The Duluth Playhouse presents “Guys and Dolls Jr.,” an evening of song, dance and fun for families! You remember the song “Luck Be a Lady,” right? Well, this is that show! It’s presented by the children’s theater summer intensive camp on the playhouse’s main stage, and the cast is all kids.
Thursday & Friday, June 25-26 at 7 p.m.;
Saturday, June 27 at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.;
Sunday, June 28 at 2 p.m.
Tickets: call 218-733-7555 or visit www.duluthplayhouse.org.
Several years ago I took my kids to the playground at Wheeler Field. We went into the clubhouse for a bit, and I read the signs that explain the history of the place and the Wheeler family. We went back outside, and I got into a time-traveling kind of mood, imagining moving away from the places I know for this vast wilderness, running a pioneer’s household without the help of other women, giving birth to babies here. This mind trip was made easier by looking at the huge, wooded hill behind us. “This is what it would have looked like to her, too,” I imagined.
But that’s not the case anymore. I was there on Tuesday, and saw this house being built. It’s too late for me to take a “before” picture, but I looked it up on google maps. I can’t see where the road to the house would be, but I guess it’s connected to Skyline.
I don’t usually feel like development is bad. My house is on developed land, right? Who am I to tell someone else they can’t have a house, too? But being witness to the first sticking-out-like-a-thumb house on this hill makes me sad. I suppose by the time my kids are grown, the hill will be full of houses.
I saw a preview of the Duluth Playhouse production of “The Full Monty” tonight. It’s really funny! It’s a musical with some interaction with the audience. How naked are they? I’ll never tell, but I will say that I saw Pat Kelly as I’ve never seen him before. Call 733-7555 for ticket information or visit www.duluthplayhouse.org. Shows are Thursday, March 19th to Sunday, April 5th, Thursday – Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:00 p.m.
To bank tellers, store clerks and post-office-counter workers:
