Some Blog Site

No, not someone who posts.

Rather, an informational/inspirational/motivational piece of paper. Although it’s not on paper. Unless you print it.

My two main hobbies these days are running and perusing real estate listings. I forget what caused me to combine the two, but I got to thinking about my waist size and urban sprawl. Here is my conclusion:

Fat cells are like subdivisions – when one is full, a new one grows nearby. But the old one never disappears.

Or, if you want to think of it the other way:

Subdivisions are like fat cells – when one is full, a new one grows nearby. But the old one never disappears.

Normally, I do my book review post in mid July, after we have gone on vacation. That’s because I don’t normally read full-length books until summer vacation – that’s when I make time for that.

Since we had a spring-break vacation this year, I got to read a couple books earlier in the year.

First book: “Legal Fables” by Ray O. Sage.

This book doesn’t quite qualify because it is not a novel. There is no story; rather, it is a collection of short stories. Each chapter tells how someone (humorously named) has or gets into legal trouble and concludes with a moral (usually that one should consult a lawyer in that situation).

The book was amusing and somewhat educational, especially if you want to know about wills and trusts.

Next book: “I Am Half-Sick of Shadows” (a Flavia de Luce mystery) by Alan Bradley.

If you are not familiar with Flavia de Luce, stop reading this blog, go to your library, and check out the whole series.

If you don’t want the whole series, get the first book (“The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie”). I liked all of them except for the second one (“The Weed that Strings the Hangman’s Bag”).

“I Am Half-Sick of Shadows” was good. I recommend it.

Next book: “Speaking From Among the Bones” (a Flavia de Luce mystery) by Alan Bradley.

“Speaking From Among the Bones” was better than the previous book. It would have been my favorite of the whole series except for the ending. I think it’s not a spoiler to say the book ends, but the story doesn’t. In other words, the author may as well just put a giant “To Be Continued…” at the end of the last chapter of this book.

The mystery part of the story is concluded quite nicely and neatly, but the larger themes that run through the series are not concluded. In fact, they become more complicated. I assume it is being setup for a good conclusion in a later book (next book is scheduled for 2014). But it does leave a dissatisfied taste in one’s brain after finishing the book. Your alternative is to wait until the series is done before you start reading it.

Next book: “The Trials of Lance Eliot” by M.L. Brown.

I read this book last year (read my review of Lance Eliot), but I read the Kindle version. Now I finally have the paperback version.

Again, the main problem with this book is that it needs a sequel to resolve some questions. The series is supposed to be a trilogy, but the other two books are not done yet. So you can either order “The Trials of Lance Eliot” now, or wait until the trilogy is complete.

Last book: “Quitter” by Jon Acuff.

I wasn’t originally planning to read this book, but it was a gift so I didn’t want to be rude.

Why was I not going to read this book? Because I’m content. The types of people who want to read this book might call it complacency rather than contentment.

According to the book, I fall into the group of people who believe the “This job just funds my real life” myth. But it works. And I will probably be content until it doesn’t work.

I want to like the book, and I want to heartily recommend it to other people. But that’s because I have a connection with the author, not because of the book itself. The book was fine; I didn’t dislike the book. For people who are not content with where they are in life, this book should be a good help. I’m just not at a stage in my life where I appreciate the book as much as other people do. Sorry for the lackluster review, Jon.

Here I rank one’s chances of regret for various actions:

Always Regret

• reading urban dictionary

Usually Regret

• tattoos

Sometimes Regret

• pressing Send without thinking “how would this look in court?”

Never Regret

• opting for bacon

Here is something else on which to ruminate:
Must you gret something first before you can regret it?

I was going to write an answer to the people who ask “Wouldn’t it be nice if the Christmas season lasted all year?” but it turns out I already did.

Rather than write it again, I am going to link to my previous post about the Christmas season and advise you to read that.

My wife noted that stores are opening for Black Friday on Thursday night. Not only does that not make it a Friday event, it also encroaches on the sanctity of Thanksgiving. Dear stores: please stay closed on Thanksgiving.

Be sure to drive courteously around this guy:

It’s a different take on the usual family stickers.

If they asked me though, I would vote for having an AT-ST silhouette to represent the child.

Good Movie Sequels

• Star Wars, Episodes 5 and 6
• Rocky 2, 3, and 4
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
• Toy Story 2 and 3
• Any Jackie Chan movies made in China

Bad Movie Sequels

• The Matrix 2 and 3 (Reloaded and Revolutions)
• Rocky 5
• Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
• Back to the Future 2 and 3
• Any Jackie Chan movies made in America

The movies on the bad list are not worth your time. If you have an opportunity to see those movies, I advise you to skip them. The first movie in the series may be entertaining, but quit while you’re ahead and do not see these.

Regarding the movies on the good list: If you liked the first movie in the series, I think you’ll like the others that I listed.

For both lists, I restricted the list to movies that I have seen. For example, I’ve heard that Iron Man 2 is not worth seeing, but since I have not seen it, I did not include it.

Any others that I forgot? Or what would you like to add to either list?

Parent Tip: Do not leave a toddler unattended with a banana. Or blueberries. Unless you like cleaning them out of upholstery.

Parent Tip: If you’re carrying a child on your back or shoulders and you accidentally cause a minor injury (e.g. he’s swinging his legs as you walk through a doorway and he knocks his ankle against the frame, or you take a turn a little too wide and bump his shoulder on the wall corner), just say “Ouch!” before he does. This happens occasionally with Gamma, and when I say “Ow!”, he will laugh and correct me with “No, that was me!” and then he will forget that he was supposed to be hurt.

Parent Tip: If your pre-schooler asks for a bowl of Lucky Charms, give him only a dozen pieces at a time. He can get the next dozen pieces after he has eaten all of the current pieces. If you don’t run breakfast this way, he will have had a bowl of marshmallows and you will be left with a bowl of plain cereal pieces.