featured book

Censorship is the child of fear and the father of ignorance. -- Laurie Halse Anderson ... read more

Almost half of all action films on Netflix have a variation of this description: He thought he was retired, but has to do One. Last. Job! ... read more

Creativity is not a talent. It is a way of operating. Nothing will stop you being creative so effectively as the fear of making a mistake. He who laughs most, learns best. ... read more

You might be smart with computers, but in real life you are a complete idiot. Programmer, data entry clerk, whatever. How have you not gone insane already!?Put some clothes on! Nobody wants to see that. ... read more

1 potato (about 4 inches long)frac14 head lettuce3 cloves garlic6 green onions1 pound lean ground beef1 cup waterfrac12 small can green chiliesSalt and pepper12 -- 14 white corn tortillasVegetable oil ... read more

In the twenty minutes that Tara and I left Elizabeth alone, she found some (child-safe) scissors and cut off all her hair. At first I thought it was just wet. Then I realized she'd cut it all off. I laughed and said I was just glad she h ... read more

After a nerve-wracking trip to the airport and getting through the airport security we finally made it to our plane. We were told that our Rep, Galina, would be flying with us. We never saw her until we were already on the plane. She was ... read more

I'm wondering about internet access now that we've tentatively planned to stay in a weekly apartment in Astrakhan instead of the hotel the entire time. We'll probably want/need that internet access for the sake of something to do. Normall ... read more

Tara made a good guess earlier. She thinks the orphanage caretakers are telling Elizabeth that we will be taking her away soon. Th ... read more

Where to begin... The original plan was for us to go to the Minister of Education and submit our dossier and then formally receive our referral. What really happened:Galina called the ministry this morning only to find out that they were ... read more

Went hiking with my daughter, Elizabeth, yesterday evening. There's a nice little park in Thompson's Station with fairly extensive walking trails on its south end, near the water tower. We saw an owl, so, with her new birthday-gift SLR ca ... read more

These six daily happiness exercises are proven to make anyone, from a 4-year-old to an 84-year-old, happy, or simply happier. Achor says in just 21 days, the exercises can transform a pessimist into an optimist. Gratitude Exercises. Wr ... read more

... after you remove it, of course. Apparently, they cause cancer. No kidding! Women who wore their bras 24 hours per day had a 3 out of 4 chance of developing breast cancer. Women who wore bras more than 12 hour per day but not to bed ... read more

Something I've always hated about working for someone else (in the corporate setting, at least) is that you're expected to believe (or convincingly pretend) that the people in positions above you are in fact superior to you. It's just one ... read more

Hannah Rountree had not seen her cat Spunky in three years-at least until he reappeared at the animal shelter she had only just started volunteering... . Read, listen or watch the rest here: ... read more

The truth about quantitative easing. I just watched this again and laughed my a$$ off. Now with a ridiculous 5. 2 million views on YouTube. Read, listen or watch the rest here: ... read more

Fish Stories Best when lightly buttered, with just a pinch of lemon. Vol. 6 No. 4June 28, 1994 Tiffany wins awardsTiffany and her horse, Rocky, of Tracy, CA, competed in a local horse show a couple of months ago. See how current this new ... read more

The Holmes Family Newsletter Vol. 1, No. 6a, September 17, 1989Everyone seems to be on a diet these days. Lucy and Jeannie are trying a low carbohydrate/high protein diet. Don's trying good old reliable starvation. Eleanor is on the Nu ... read more

NEWS, ETC. Vol. 2, No. 15, December 18, 1990Christmas Issue Lucy to Host ChristmasLucy will be having Christmas at her house this year. It's a potluck affair. Only those with food will be allowed in. Says Lucy, It'll be very inform ... read more

The Holmes Family Newsletter Vol. 1, No. 4, August 1, 1989 Largest Tri-Weekly Newsletter Circulation in the West! tri-weekly (tri-week'lee) 1. we TRY to get it out weekly) Editor's Note: This will probably be the last issue. See article ... read more

Old stuff, but some of it's still funny ... It's basically the precursor to this website. Click the links in the table of contents, above. Otherwise, just do a search in the home page's search b ... read more

Behind the Eight Ball Who is that behind the eight ball, anyway?Vol. 6 No. 5, Au ... read more