There’s a house in there somewhere, I think…

Fairview 2007

Update 1/1/08: As promised in the comments, here is a link to more pictures of this house:

Crazy Lights

By far the very best light display I have seen in this area is this one near my mom’s house. We visited it twice this year:

Crazy Lights that actually look great

December 28, 2007 | Filed Under Fun Stuff | 6 Comments 

I’m not an attorney…

…and I don’t even play one on TV. However, if I were one, I’d smack the contractor who thinks he has a claim on the money he found in somone’s house.

Contractor Finds Cash in Walls of House

Wouldn’t the cash found in the walls of this house be considered a part of the property that this family bought when they purchased the house? They offered the contractor 10%, which I think was very generous. His honesty in turning over the money to the homeowner should be recognized, but certainly isn’t required.

If I bought a house and found money in the walls, I’d try to find the owner of the money. In this case, the owner of the money was an owner of the house in the 1930s who is now dead and has no heirs. In my limited legal view, I say the money goes with the house. Does this mean that all the prior owners of the house since the 1930s have claim to the money? Will selfish people start coming out of the woodwork?

If I moved out of my house and 20 years later read in the news that there was a fortune in the walls, I’d be pissed that it wasn’t ME who found it, but I certainly wouldn’t lay claim to it. How can this CONTRACTOR think he has any claim to this money? I’m appalled.

December 14, 2007 | Filed Under Rants, Moods and Attitude | 6 Comments 

It’s Official! Homeschoolers Aren’t Weird Anymore

The official word on homeschoolers — not weird. Well, if you believe the Boston Globe they aren’t. I’m still not convinced. I think we’re pretty weird.  In the article, Jack Klenk, director of the Office of Non-Public Education at the US Department of Education, was quoted as saying:

“I call it the hybridization of education.”

Ooooh. Smart man.

Then Bill Heuer, treasurer and executive board member for the 20-year-old Massachusetts Home Learning Association, was quoted as saying:

“Twenty years ago, the public impression of home-schoolers was that they were strange, odd, weird, whatever word you want to use,” said Heuer. “I think people feel a lot more confident, there’s a lot more support groups, there’s a lot more opportunities now.”

Well, I’m thinking that was more like 20 months ago, but who’s counting?

I still think it is nice that more mainstream articles are portraying homeschooling as a valid choice rather than some oddball thing people do that will completely ruin their children and ultimately our country.

HT: COD

December 11, 2007 | Filed Under Homeschool Issues | 7 Comments 

Men are from Mars

As the 6th girl in a family of 6 girls, sometimes I marvel at the things boys do.

We went to Great Wolf Lodge this week for a couple of days with our homeschool group. This is how boys say goodbye to each other:

Pile of Boys

You might think this is a novelty, or something they just chose to do this once. But no. The pile of boys is a regular occurrence with this crew. It seems weird to me — or is it just that I am from Venus?

Boys at Great Wolf

December 5, 2007 | Filed Under Trips and Travel, Fun Stuff, Parenting | 4 Comments