Idea Griddle

Fact Checking with Children

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 23:39:08 -0700

Son: Daddy, are roadrunners blue?
Daddy: No, they're not.
Son: Oh, then I guess "Bugs Bunny" is a lie.

Mind the gap.

Mon, 25 Jun 2012 11:06:51 -0700

Been neglecting your blog for awhile? Writing is a skill that needs to be practiced and improved, but there are times when we just don’t have anything to write about. This links to a very short, well written article about writing when you have nothing to write about. The concluding statement is sound advice: “Just go outside and live a little.”

"You have to be at least 13 years old to use Tumblr. We’re serious: it’s a hard rule,..."

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 10:00:58 -0700

“You have to be at least 13 years old to use Tumblr. We’re serious: it’s a hard rule, based on U.S. federal and state legislation, even if you’re 12.9 years old. If you’re younger than 13, don’t use Tumblr. Ask your parents for an Xbox or try books.”

- From Tumblr’s TOS. It’s always refreshing when writers of such things get a little creative.

Breakfast Discussion

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 12:16:36 -0800

Younger Son: [whispers to Older Son]
Older Son: [laughs quietly] Daddy!
Daddy: Yes?
Older Son: Do you know what [Younger Son] just told me?
Daddy: No.
Older Son: He told me I had to eat all of my food, even my banana peel.
Both Sons: [a bit of giggling]
Older Son: When he told me that, it made me burst into laughter—mostly in my head.
Daddy: [smiles at the vision of laughter bursting inside someone's head]

"…passive voice is better than writing out a humongous number and taking the risk that your..."

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 11:26:46 -0800

“…passive voice is better than writing out a humongous number and taking the risk that your readers’ brains will be numb by the time they get to the verb.”

- Mignon Fogarty, Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing (Quick & Dirty Tips)

I just smiled to myself at the concept of having the power to numb somebody’s mind.

Popcorn by Candlelight

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:20:25 -0800

Today is Valentine’s Day. In the past, that has been one of a handful of holidays that we don’t give much heed. Before you ask, I am still married, for over eleven years, and we do make a big deal of our wedding anniversary—nothing against Valentine’s Day, it’s just not on our to-do list. I don’t mind other people making a special day of it, but nowadays, with the proliferation of social media (that is, Facebook), what everybody else is doing is more apparent. With all the “Happy Valentines” pinging across the internet today, I thought I better check with my wife to make sure this particular heedlessness was mutual. She told me that she is never put off by anything romantic (no surprise there, eh?), but that not having a Valentine’s Day-specific event was all right.

Because I have a [fatal?] sense of humor and a desire to please my wife—and a tight budget, at the moment—I suggested we have popcorn by candlelight tonight. [Popcorn, cooked on the stove and seasoned in any variety of ways, is a popular snack/meal at our house.] As you probably realized, she did not consider this to be very romantic. I was certain of her response before I made the suggestion, but some ideas are just so ridiculous that they must be shared. So, if you’re feeling adventurous, try popcorn by candlelight tonight.

Actors and British Accents

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 17:27:40 -0800

I recently watched a show about an English family, set in the early nineteen hundreds (click here for more information). The cast is almost entirely from the UK (the expected exception being an American actor playing an American character). The show is very well cast, and I enjoy watching the characters play out their roles, whether as lords and ladies or maids and footmen. There is the usual assortment of characters I love and those I love to hate. As I was watching, though, I had the strangest thought: “Those actors sure are pretty good with those English accents.” Naturally, I felt quite silly when I reminded myself that they were, most likely, just speaking normally.

I read about this handgun years ago. It is a fascinating design:...

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:22:53 -0800

I read about this handgun years ago. It is a fascinating design: you have to squeeze the front part of the grip back or it won’t shoot. It was designed in Germany for undercover police officers. They are not readily available, and I didn’t think I would ever have an opportunity to shoot one. Yesterday at the shooting range, a guy waved me over to his shooting lane. I thought at first that he needed help with a jammed gun, but instead he asked, “Want to try it?” Turns out it was an H&K P7. I said yes, of course, and enjoyed shooting it. That was a very memorable experience.

Looking Downrange: Custom Targets

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:44:35 -0800

I started work at an indoor shooting range recently. In addition to gun rentals and ammunition, there are a variety of targets available to purchase. Some people bring in their own targets, which could be anything from a white paper plate to tactical targets. As I watched through the windows, one allegedly sunny afternoon, I almost laughed as I saw a particularly interesting target a customer had brought in with them: a rather large poster of Justin Beiber. I’m not suggesting that this celebrity, both hated and adored by many, should be shot, but I found it amusing that someone would use a poster for a target.

When Is His Birthday?

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:25:00 -0800

Tomorrow is my oldest son's birthday. It kind of sneaked up on us this year, and will be a busy day, with other non-related activities.

Son: Tomorrow is my birthday!
Daddy: Really? Maybe we should reschedule...
Son: Daddy! That wouldn't keep me from being a year older.

Yes, yes I did. by ~KonfuZer

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:54:00 -0800

Yes, yes I did. by ~KonfuZer

HBI: Forgotten Cell Phone

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:35:45 -0800

My boys asked me to take them to the park today. Thinking it would be too cold outside—in spite of the clear, sunny sky—I referred to the weather display on my computer desktop. We had had an ice storm, of sorts, just a few weeks ago and I was surprised to see that the temperature was allegedly 57°F. Well, not having anything else planned I couldn’t very well say no to my boys.

After we parked the car at the park, I parked my cold hands in my [hopefully] warm jacket pockets. Something didn’t feel right: ah yes, I forgot my cell phone at home, which I typically carry in a certain jacket pocket when I am out and about.

This brings us to the point of the story, my half-baked idea (HBI): my first thought upon discovering the empty pocket my cell phone should have been occupying was to send my wife a text message to let her know that I had forgotten my cell phone at home. Happily, I recognized the futility of this half-baked idea almost immediately.

"As the saying goes, you might as well be yourself; everyone else is taken."

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:19:24 -0800

“As the saying goes, you might as well be yourself; everyone else is taken.”

- Robert W. Bly, Getting Started as a Freelance Writer (Culture Tools)

Parenting Decrees: How Can It Backfire?

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:07:20 -0800

In our house, we have certain things our boys must do before being permitted time (limited time at that, with a count-down timer that BEEPS) on the computer, game console, or other similar device (screen time). Typically, this includes finishing school work, cleaning up their room, violin practice, and so on. We let them combine their time to encourage them to play together: instead of each boy playing thirty minutes separately, they can play together for sixty minutes—provided they get along.

These last few weeks the boys haven’t had school. So … I admit that there have been days when I just let them play video games together without making sure they start their timer. Today I had a brilliant idea: the minutes available to the boys for screen time would be equal to the amount of time they spend playing outside. Naturally, being the devious person I am, I wondered what sort of loopholes or exploits the two clever kiddos would come up with.

My wife asked, “What if they play outside for two hours?” After a moment, she followed that up by saying, “I guess if they actually did that it wouldn’t be so bad.”

My youngest son, upon hearing this decree, lit up and asked, “What if we play outside for three hours?” I challenged him to do so, with the proviso that any screen time they wished to use today could not be used to push back their bedtime. At the time of this writing, they have been outside for sixty-seven minutes.

I wonder if they will think to ask if their outside time can be cumulative, rather than having to be outside for one long session.

"There once was a man who stood quite tall. He asked for a story, a favor not small. ~ The thing that..."

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 13:16:00 -0800

“

There once was a man who stood quite tall.
He asked for a story, a favor not small.
~ The thing that he asked,
~ In deviousness masked,
Was tossed to the writer in digital scrawl.

C aught up in the tale, the writer did find
A terrible secret upon him did bind.
~ So he cleverly hid
~ Tight under a lid
T hese clues in the story he carefully twined.

O Long One, you’re clever as ever, I say,
To ask this poor writer to write out this day
~ A tale of something
~ To make my hands wring.
With words shall I craft it, with words not with clay.

So words were assembled and mixed all together
In ways that were strange and caused all sorts of weather.
~ The story was told
~ Of a vessel quite old,
With sails made of canvas and hoses of leather.

The sails were for sailing and capturing wind.
The hoses were handy for sparks that had twinned.
~ The hose on the frigate
~ Attached to a spigot,
Pumping buckets of water where fire could be f’nd.

O Long One, the two things you asked to be found
Are here if you seek them—for I’m honor bound!
~ Look up, if you seek,
~ And there take a peek
In verse two is the first thing—it isn’t a hound.

The second device you had on your list
I’m sure that you saw it, how could it be missed?
~ I thank you, sincerely,
~ For helping me merely
By giving me words to here tumble and twist.

”

- Richard B. Dizney

"“Back in the day” was one way to start A tale of memories straight from the heart. ~ A..."

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 22:04:14 -0800

“

“Back in the day” was one way to start
A tale of memories straight from the heart.
~ A story we’d tell,
~ That made our hearts swell,
And savor the saying of every part.

The older we get, the greater the span
Of ideas that grow where our stories began.
~ And though we don’t see,
~ I think you’ll agree,
Each life is a garden and watering can.

For, though a lad of quite a young age,
No sense had I then of wit or of sage.
~ Each memory tilled,
~ Each moment would build
The “back in the day” part of my storybook page.

A penny for thoughts, or maybe a dime,
To ring the clear bell of memory’s chime,
~ In honor of one,
~ Both serious and fun,
I quote, “I was about twelve at this time.”

”

- Richard B. Dizney

"Though the snow had been falling for hours, And children had piled it in towers, ~ Persnickety..."

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 07:03:00 -0800

“

Though the snow had been falling for hours,
And children had piled it in towers,
~ Persnickety walkers,
~ Those chattery talkers,
Predicted the fall of rain showers.

Outdoors went my boys, there to play.
“Stay warm, and be nice!” I did say.
~ It’s not often we get
~ So much snow we can let
The boys play in the snow all the day.

For, often, our snow (don’t you know?)
Falls down when the temp’rature’s low—
~ But then in an hour
~ The children do glower—
The snow melts away quickly, not slow.

Now I had thought that I’d stop there with three,
For three verses seemed all there should be.
~ But that last word I said
~ Hung with dread in my head.
It’s an adverb, an adverb, you see!

”

- Richard B. Dizney

"His assignment was given, one day, To write this or that—come, what may. ~ Without skills to be..."

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:17:21 -0800

“

His assignment was given, one day,
To write this or that—come, what may.
~ Without skills to be flaunting
~ He found this task daunting,
And had troubles with thoughts gone astray.

This poor fellow would sit and he’d scribble,
‘Til thoughts and ideas would dribble
~ From out of his brain.
~ His ideas did strain,
While on choc-o-late chips he did nibble.

So to write just one thing for the day—
“It’s quite easy,” I hear you all say.
~ But what should he write,
~ When off goes his light,
And his time for the day slips away?

”

- Richard B. Dizney

I like your title!

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 11:05:34 -0800

Thank you! I like to think of it as a “bright idea.”

One Thing Led to Another

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 20:52:00 -0800

Books are a good source for new ideas. I read lots of books, and I like to keep track of what I read on Goodreads. My wife, who reads much more than I do, started using this site several years ago. At the time, I thought it was kind of silly; now I am very careful to record the books I read, either to myself or to my kiddos. I have found Goodreads to be a very useful reference for books I have read. I don’t always write a review, but I usually assign a rating (more to remind myself what I thought of the book, than for the benefit of others).

Goodreads has many fascinating widgets, and because I am a tinkerer, I am compelled to figure out how to incorporate one of these widgets into my shiny new digital journaling experience. Time to brush up on my scant HTML skills.