Tag: parenting
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On the passage of bathtime
There’s a quote I discovered floating around Instagram Reels that people use as narration for clips of their little kids: You have little kids for four years. And if you miss it, it’s done. That’s it. So, you gotta know that. Lots of things in life you don’t get to do more than once. That…
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The best parenting advice I’ve ever gotten
The best parenting advice I’ve ever gotten was from my own parent. Per my mom: When in doubt, lower your expectations. Runner-up is from my other parent. Per my dad: Kids spell love T-I-M-E.
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A cheerful failure
For Filmspotting’s latest poll, they ask which of the provided movie failures you are the biggest cheerleader for. The criteria: “These are movie ‘failures’ that paired well-respected, ‘auteurist’ filmmakers with existing properties—and high expectations—resulting in significant disappointments critically and (usually) at the box office.” Check out the poll for all the options. I’ve only actually…
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Pick up your kid
There’s a post by Jason Kottke I’ve thought about almost every day since he wrote it last year. He links to an animated version of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, then reminisces about reading picture books with his now-older kids: We’ll likely never read any of those books together again. It reminds me of one of…
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Ghost Papas: Fatherhood in ‘The Patriot’ and ‘Interstellar’
I recently rewatched The Patriot for the first time in a long while. I was big into this movie as a lad, so rewatching it as a thirtysomething dad was something of an experiment to see how my adolescent tastes hold up. There’s good (John Williams’ score, Mel Gibson as likeable movie star) and bad…
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The rules are there ain’t no rules
There’s a scene in Grease where Leo, the head of the rival Scorpions gang, says to Travolta’s Danny Zuko before they drag race: “The rules are there ain’t no rules.” It’s one of the many random lines that has stuck in my head from a lifetime of movie watching. I think about it a lot…
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Advice for parents
Generally I take a liberal stance towards unsolicited advice. You never know when you’ll get something worthwhile, and you can always just ignore the bad stuff. We’ll see if that stance changes once people start chiming in about particular parenting choices. So far I haven’t had a problem. In the meantime, Lifehacker’s Offspring parenting blog…
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Going to the movies is a gift
As the due date of my first child approaches, I’ve tried to account for and appreciate things I can do now, pre-parenthood, that won’t be quite so easy soon. Quiet nights reading, hassle-free dining, uninterrupted sleep, and keeping a tidy home come to mind. But chief among these activities is moviegoing, one of my most…