So if you no longer want to pay for housing, apparently Britain is the place to be. I ran across this fascinating story in this morning's Washington PostIt recounts the story of some squatters taking up residence in a $33 million home in London. Apparently all you need is an open window, or an unlocked door and you're in: "In Britain, ( Read more... )

Parents who make a lot of noise insisting their children are special and need to be recognized as so eventually end up getting their way. That doesn't make the kids any more talented or able than they already are. It does, however, reinforce in the parents' minds the notion that their kid is some sort of special gift to be celebrated ( Read more... )

Despite my heroic efforts, it appears the Year of the Book was not a nationwide project.

In fact, according to a new study by the National Endowment for the Arts, the percentage of adults who read any book not required for work or school dropped in 2008. While I knocked out 20 titles, only 54.3 percent of adults finished even one. The Washington ( Read more... )

I think the Year of the Book officially ends with the closing of 2008, but I at least thought about declaring it finished with the closing of the final book. I wrote about my intentions for this personal project on December 18 of last year, wanting to read 20 books during the past 12 months ( Read more... )

"For reasons that cannot be explained, cats can suddenly read at a twelfth-grade level. They can't talk and they can't write, but they can read silently and understand the text. Many cats love this new skill, because they now have something to do all day while they lay around the house; however, a few cats become depressed, because reading forces ( Read more... )

Since I live in close proximity to the District of Columbia, I frequently find myself in the city for one reason or another. Sometimes it's to have lunch with a friend, attend a hockey game or some other gathering. Whatever the reason, I tend to try to find other things to do as long as I'm there ( Read more... )

It's Monday, and apparently that means I should be writing about another book I've read. At least, that's according to statistics I have recently (in the last four minutes or so) compiled about The Year of the Book (one man's quest--mine--to read 20 books in 2008 ( Read more... )

Thanks to the fine folks at the Susquehanna University bookstore, I once purchased a bag of books for $0.50 a piece ( Read more... )

Shortly before the election I wrote about a kid I saw eating grass. I said the future of American surely can't be that bright, especially since the grass was right next to where thousands of horses have surely done their business ( Read more... )

George Orwell's "1984" is a book I'm pretty sure that most people have tackled at some point in their life. For me, this was my second time ( Read more... )