Question Everything.

Oh my god.....how many times over the last few years have I talked about discontinuing the blog. I'm not going to because I need the stimulation and I know many of you enjoy it. But, sooner or later people are going to stop reading things like this.

I know it won't be in my lifetime. I would say mark my words, but if I'm right, there would be no point because no one would read them anyway.

Oh, I'm sure there will still be books to read, both print and electronic. There will be folks who have advanced brain power and crave a small amount of diversion aside from television.

This morning I turned on this computer and immediately noticed several items I thought you may be interested in.

Who Cheated?

DNA Testing Exposes Royal Affair: A new round of DNA testing has uncovered a potential royal scandal, with the paternity of at least five people under suspicion. 

Holiday Foods to Keep Away from Pets.

Top Baby Names of the Year.

Is Burt Reynolds Really Broke?

Here I am thinking who wouldn't want to know where Prince Charles got those large ears, are chocolate covered marshmallows really bad for Fluffy, is your grandchild's name on the list and did Burt really blow all his Smokey and the Bandit money on a face lift and toupee.

And all the answers to my questions are in video form. 

Not even still pictures with words to read but video.

I didn't even have the opportunity to decide if I wanted to attempt to assimilate any of the information. This computer is so antiquated it wouldn't load the pages. 

I may as well be watching Frozen.

I'm not going to rag on texts and tweets and instant pictures like I often do. Instinctively I know there will always be those people with a sense of wonder and a need for extraneous, abstract and improvisational thought, reading allows all of this.

Older Daughter Jennifer and Son-in-Law Eric's home is filled with books, real books. Their family room shelves overflow with adventure just waiting to discover. I recently brought home Manhood For Amateurs by Michael Chabon and this man can write. After reading a passage on Lego's I once again questioned my little blog. However, I feel I have important thought provoking things to say.

I'm going to watch Peter Pan Live on NBC tomorrow night. But here in California it's really Peter Pan was live but not now. While in flight if he (she) smacks into a wall will I get to see it?

Is it fair those of us in the Pacific Time Zone can't instant save contestants on The Voice via Twitter?

If your twenty-year-old daughter came home for a holiday visit and told you she was getting married would you be upset if her future husband was a Russian defector who had a large family living in Grozny? 

What if it was Charles Manson?

Over time do shoelaces lose their waxed like outer coating causing them to frequently knot up when united?

When visiting family or friends overnight (or for that matter even at home) is it considered unhygienic to actually touch the top of the paste tube to your toothbrush bristles?

Is there are anything in the Big Book of Eating Etiquette that explains the proper way to eat corn on the cob?  Is eating the corn top to bottom while rotating the cob rebellious? Does eating it from left to right make one a conformist? Do Jewish people eat their corn from right to left? Can people that keep kosher put butter on corn if they're eating it with chicken?

Are people that drape their toilet paper over the back of the roll more adventurous than those who drape over the top and forward?

What side of the foil wrap, the shinny or dull, do you put on the food? And do you think it makes a difference?

When you get dressed do you put on a sock and a sock then your shoes or a sock and a shoe and a sock and a shoe? Do you start with your left or right foot and what; if anything does this indicate personality wise?

Are canister vacuum cleaners antiquated? 

Why are people fighting a ban on plastic bags?

Will the mailing of Christmas cards eventually be a thing of the past?

If Peter Jackson hadn't made the LOTR Trilogy and Warner Brother's not released the extended version what would I do with the 11 1/2 hours I spend watching it every December?

I watch PBS and don't feel guilty I'm not a contributor and member so why do I feel a need to support Wikipedia? 

Is it worth my time selling a pair of 34 X 29 slightly used Levi's on eBay?

And what the hell am I going to do with the thousands of baseball cards I have in the closet?

I wish I'd spent more time talking with my kids and especially now, before it's too late, my grand kids. They know I love them but as time goes on I wish I'd said it more often. I never took the ball out in back and "had a catch" with Nick and here I suppose I should include Jenn and Rebecca but they are, after all, just girls.

Wanda and I will be in Portland in March. I can take Grace out and play ball, it will be 2015 and gender equality is evident in most things. 

Equal pay for equal work is still a ways away. 

I don't know what, if any, influence I had with the girls' upbringing and as for Nick...well I always told Wanda she shouldn't cut the skin off his apples.

"Don't do that," I'd say. "Leave it on or let him do it himself, it'll toughen him up" 

Wanda had to remind me he was three.

Now he's nineteen and wants a knife for Christmas. Nicholas, do not cut the skin off your apples, it's good for you.

I'm glad I got that all that off my chest.

Now I feel much better.