Michael Ann Dobbs's discussions

Yes, typically “intergenerational trauma” has really only been in stories of noble and royal houses. (Don John in Much Ado About Nothing springs to mind: because he was the bastard he stirs up trouble about sexual fidelity). Dune is 100% about the sins of the mother (and the father) being visited on the child. Read more

I know one couple who have a paid off 1-bedroom in upper Manhattan (with two teen boys part time) who bought basically a vacation place. I know another couple who gave up their rental in Brooklyn and bought what had been a vacation place to be their new home (both couples are a computer engineer and an adjunct… Read more

The first time I lived in a dorm I did not have any blankets or top sheet.  I had a fitted sheet to cover the mattress and a sleeping bag.  It was the style of sleeping bag you shove into a stuff sack (I think a biking one).  Maybe sixty seconds to shove it in the bag and put it behind my pillow.   Read more

I’ve seen irradiated hamburger. But can lettuce really hold up to that?  Read more

No bagged salads aren’t the problem. It’s long past time we keep growing food outdoors. Indoor farming means clean (tested!) water, no herbicides, no pesticides, production closer to population centers so less fossil fuel usage, food production year round (ditto the fossil fuels for getting blueberries in January) and… Read more

Oh I hate that stuff. Especially the excessive packaging blind boxes. Read more

Just FYI for the anti-slime folks: white vinegar reacts with the baking soda in slime. You may get food color stains, but the slime itself will dissolve away. Read more

Yeah basically everyone I know who lost a lot of weight on a diet ended up doing something that got rid of a lot of processed foods: being vegan (at least in the early 2000s), cutting out added sugar, going paleo. It’s the processed foods that get us. Read more

The baby gear one is...not right. You should absolutely by used/inexpensive baby stuff! But you’ve got to take your particular lifestyle into account when you do decide what to spend on. Read more

You’d probably be better off with Coast Guard approved life vests, since you can’t fall out of those. A raft or inflatable kayak might be okay for supplies. Read more

Now I want to plant mint edges around kudzo patches and set up a camera.  Who wins? Read more

We don’t believe 14 year olds are smart enough to drive cars, drink or vote. Many of us don’t believe they should be tried in a criminal court of law or imprisoned. She wasn’t saying the word to hurt someone, so yeah, based on blanket beliefs of culpability and age I’m gonna go with she can’t be put in front of a… Read more

Oh no, not a degree! I totally agree with you about that — going to Harvard is a Veblan good.  Read more

Well they can’t tell Harvard.  But we could teach some basic economics in this country so people know what a Veblen good is.  Read more

Elizabeth Warren’s think tank/lawyers seem to think that student loan forgiveness doesn’t require congressional approval. I figured Biden’s keeping that in his pocket in case he hits too much obstruction. It’ll jolt the economy nicely at 10,000 and a lot and 50. If Georgia hadn’t gone Dem and they were fighting for… Read more

Tabletop Role Playing Games are like Dungeons and Dragons with figurines and sometimes maps or terrain pieces and the like. But they can be science fiction based, or like gothic horror or something if that’s more interesting! You can check out Tabletop WitchCRAFT on youtube (my kid’s favorite) or design your own 3d… Read more

My mother’s hobby is decorating/building dollhouses. She’s actually really good — she made a practice beach house and sold it at a charity auction for several hundred dollars. Read more

Isn’t this where you stock up on all the comic books/short novels and tell the kid that as long as I don’t hear you after eight you can stay up as late as you want, but if I come in here I’m taking away (whatever). Read more

Isn’t this where you stock up on all the comic books/short novels and tell the kid that as long as I don’t hear you after eight you can stay up as late as you want, but if I come in here I’m taking away (whatever). Read more

I know several families who had nanny’s when their kids were little and the babies/toddlers were on a 10-10 sleep schedule. The parents loved getting out of the house with no craziness. Kids would just wake up with the nanny there. Parents had hours after work to actually hang out with the kids.  Really easy to travel… Read more