This is that time of the year when news stations everywhere start running those safety demonstrations about what can happen if you’re not careful with fireworks. You can probably expect to see clothing on mannequins set on fire in an effort to show how easily clothing can ignite; you might see replicas of human hands being blown to smithereens …

I didn’t realize that they actually had their own name, but those skyscraper paperbacks that have begun appearing in book stores seem to. They’re referred to as “venti,” the same name given to a “supersized” selection at Starbucks.
I’m not a fan of these venti paperbacks. They’re about an inch taller than those traditional paperbacks we all know and …

I was supposed to post these yesterday as part of the latest Round Robin Photo Challenge, but a long, meeting-filled day at work was just enough to make me forget.
In any case, these were taken this past weekend, when I took my parents to Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens here in Richmond. My mom feels that her hair was a …

Found this over at Wil’s “Daily Snooze:”
You Are a German Shepherd PuppyIntelligent, quick witted, and a bit aggressive.You’ve got the jaw power to take a bite out of anyone you choose.
What Breed of Puppy Are You?

Found this over at “Anna’s Crazy World:”

You Are 51% IndieYou’re pretty indie, but you don’t make a fuss letting everyone know.You just do what you …

Are abridgements a good introduction to long, boring classics, or a blight on literature? I don’t care for the concept of abridgements. The reason the work is a classic because it was well-written as is. People who want only a CliffsNotes version should save themselves the time and just go buy CliffsNotes. Sure, they’ll miss out on …

This little story was contained in a marketing newsletter I subscribe to. The source of it is unknown. You may have seen it before, but for those who haven’t, I thought you might enjoy it:
Start with a cage containing five monkeys. Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it. …

My folks are in town this weekend, and we’ve been having a nice visit. They arrived on Friday afternoon just in time for a torrential thunderstorm, one of those sudden downpours that makes you think the end of the world might actually have arrived.
In the aftermath of the storm, there were a few Robins hoping around, trying to fly …

How much do you surf through the web’s top destinations? A site called Web100.com has ranked the 100 best websites in a variety of categories. We’ll use their rankings for this week’s edition of the Sunday Seven.

But first, Carly, of “Ellipsis…Suddenly Carly,” was first to play last week! Congratulations Carly!
On to your challenge — and …

Canon is one of those terms that pops up a lot in discussions of fanfic. At the recent Ravencon, I heard it pop up several times in a discussion of the “Star Trek” universe that had nothing to do with fanfic.
Canon, basically, refers to the history or backstory that the “official” writers establish. It is a kind of …

The most recent “Patrick’s Place” Poll asked you about your feelings on the controversial subject of gay marriage. Voters had three choices:
People willing to commit to each other should be allowed to marry like anyone else. Same-sex couples should be allowed rights of marriage, but it should be called something else. Same-sex couples should not be allowed any legal …

Note: The quiz listed in question #4 featured a link to an old quiz. The link has been corrected, so if you’d like to update your responses, the new quiz is present. Sorry for the confusion.
I saw a preview trailer for the movie “Click” with Adam Sandler. Though the movie itself probably isn’t one I’d see, …

One of my newest readers, Julia of “Aesthetic Vibrations,” recently left this comment:
If you don’t mind me asking, how do you get so many readers to visit your blog?

I don’t mind admitting that it’s a question that I’ve often asked myself! I try to be informative, or entertaining, or amusing, or interesting, or a combination of any of these. …

There’s no real surprise here, as it’s been speculated that today’s announcement was coming for months, but CBS News and Dan Rather have officially parted ways.
Fifteen months ago, amid a controversy over a report on President Bush’s military service record that turned out to contain questionable documents, Rather signed off for the last time on the CBS Evening News, the …

Eden
You have eden eyes. Eden is the color of water. Your eyes symbolize your great flexibility. You are a creative person. You can think of many good ways to get your point across to people as you have very good communication abilities. When someone feels down or is hurt, you have the remarkable ability to help …

The repairman from Verizon just left after finding the problem causing my new DSL service to move as slow as molasses.
When you order DSL service, they send you a connection kit with everything you need. Included in this kit is a wall-mount style filter jack that simply mounts in front of an existing wall-mount phone jack. (Everything that …

It’s been a mildly frustrating weekend. First, one of my cheap bookcases purchased from one of those mega-retailers who shall remain nameless decided to fall apart, sending books everywhere and Zack running for his life. (Zack was not near the bookcase when it decided to fall apart, so I can’t blame him.)
Then, the toilet’s flusher lever snapped. …

On Mother’s Day, I asked you to list the seven fictional moms you’d least like to have. Fathers should get equal time!

But first, Jude, of “My Way,” was first to play last week, for the second week in a row! Congratulations again, Jude!
On to this week’s question!
THIS WEEK’S QUESTION:
Name seven fictional “TV Dads” that you’d least …

Over at “By The Way…,” John Scalzi posted a Father’s Day edition of the Weekend Assignment:

Weekend Assignment #116: Tell about some personality trait or quirk you got from your father — or, if you’re a father, some personality trait or quirk of yours you see in your kids.
I used to think that I was not like my dad in …