Kid has classic atopic disorder symptoms. Take him off dairy and the inflammatory autoimmune response will begin to subside. He will be prone to inflammatory responses to other foods as well. Keep an eye on wheat, soy, eggs. Add an omega-3 fish oil supplement if you can trick him into consuming it. Best of luck.

My brother did this for about 10 years. He said the key is that dishes get washed immediately after use. No stacking in the sink. Use, wash, put away. (Crucial that EVERYONE in the home participate in this.)

I just added Susan Wise Bauer's Story of Science to my wish list. We have so many titles to get through before I can spend again but we'll get there! :D

Trying to have a no-spend week after traveling the past two weekends and overspending on a construction boondoggle that we shut down due to code requirements we didn't want to follow. Biggest challenge will be packing meals ahead instead of relying on the drive-through. Wish me strength!

Episode 16 of the [wonderful] Read-Aloud Revival podcast is a wonderful chat with Alice Ozma about how her dad never let there last book until the very day she went to college. Her book The Reading Promise is enjoyable but I think I enjoyed the podcast interview as much or more. You can listen to it here if you'd like to check it out: https://amongstlovelythings.com/12/

I just use my crockpot for overnight oatmeal or "baking" sweet potatoes, but all these ideas are terrific. This is a great thread. Thank you.

I just blew out the safety valve on a vintage Mirromatic. Don't be dumb like me! Luckily no one was in the kitchen at the time because hot bean mush and steam went everywhere. I made three mistakes: doubled the recipe, wasn't hovering and used a food that could foam. The foaming bean mush blocked the regular pressure vent. The safety fuse blew out and did what it was supposed to do, but still scary and very stupid on my part. I love used stuff but have sent both of my vintage pressure cookers to the recycling pile. I'm probably going to ask for a modern stovetop model for my birthday. I love how they cook food, but I have an even healthier respect for them now.

They once had a Sons of Anarchy bit on Sesame Street! SOA is 100 times more violent and twisted than OITNB, but the SS version was just muppets in leather jackets w a nice message about morals or phonics or both. It's fine. Four year olds don't do much intertextuality.

American public-school bathrooms are second only to American public-school lunchrooms in their sheer squalor.

I saw the news on Twitter and already donated to the reconstruction campaign: https://www.launchgood.com/project/rebuilding_of_islamic_center_of_eastside_washington#/

OK, I can contribute a crabby atheist statement to the discussion: If all the human energy devoted to theology and deciphering/proving/analyzing religious texts was redirected to either "doing good works" or literally any other human project or field of study, the world would be a better place.

People decide to believe in things for a lot of reasons besides "convincing evidence." I would argue that atheist>>religious converts may have discovered something they find compelling about being in a faith community that is not necessarily a realization like "Oh yes, this story is true!" The act of faith is very powerful in alleviating a lot of bad feelings through the thought process: "If I trust in a God, I can relieve myself of responsibility, guilt and anxiety all at once, because so much is out of my hands. If I practice the tenets of this religion, I am taking righteous steps toward a good life and good feelings. Etc."

Jewish conversion fascinates me, especially as an American, which is a country with I think an unusually strong tradition of Christian/evangelical/Pentacostal/JW/Mormon evangelizing and relatively easy "conversion." Basically, the Jews are like "Nah, please don't." To become a Jew, you have to go through a rigorous study process. The "intro to casual Judaism" (not real class name) at my local synagogue meets three hours a week for a full year. And it's not even a proper conversion class. It's the, "So you'd maybe like to learn more about us" general survey course at a Reform synagogue that they want you to take before you even decide to ask to start studying for the conversion process. If you are a Gentile woman who wants to convert so your children can be considered Jew by birth (this is what Ivanka Trump did when she married Jared Kushner), you are making a major commitment of study and introspection, one that I admire very much.

I'd say that in my community it's basically considered bad form to push or even discuss religion. I have one friend whose sister really wants her to go (Catholic) church more but that's all I can think of. We have a very polyglot community and very little proselytizing. Our Cub Scout troop is based at a Buddhist temple which apparently counts Jews and Catholics as part of the faith community, LOL. None of our family members are involved in any organized religions. We celebrate a secular American Santa Claus Christmas. I think I would be fine with it if our kids got religion. I expect I would be surprised but not shocked since I understand the value of a "church family" even if I have a hard time with the actual belief systems.

DEFINE SUSPICIOUS. MEANWHILE: Over two million people have died in traffic accidents in the US since you were a young girl. Do you or anyone you know or do any news organizations you follow work diligently to make sure there is a "Zero Traffic Fatality" initiative underway in your town? About 500,000 have died by firearms in the US since you were a young girl. Do you advocate for stricter gun control in your community? Do you discourage family members from owning and operating firearms? If you don't, it's because these are familiar deaths that you have been socialized to accept and are told are normal and correct because the structure of American culture is righteous and so these deaths are just the natural consequence/cost of doing the right things. Deaths that are a consequence of a foreign, unfamiliar culture and lifestyle and religion stand out in your memory and frighten you particularly because they seem so unusual. Everything affiliated with that death morphs into a cohesive but shadowy villain figure, and everyone associated with the causes of those deaths is assumed to be part and parcel of a dangerous syndicate, when in fact the deaths are statistically quite rare and unrepresentative. The Islamic world stretches from Morocco to Indonesia. There are 1.5 billion (with a B) believers of that religion. Every violent Islamofascist is a Muslim, but not every Muslim (or Arab, or brown person) is an violent Islamofascist.

I feel almost certain that it was a publicity stunt. His demeanor in the film made me suspicious even before I learned he was a YouTube star known for pranks. He's an Ali G. (Sasha Baron Cohen) wannabe, IMHO.

I was induced with my first two and induced myself with castor oil the third time. Not being attached to monitors and tubes from the get-go was a huge blessing for us in terms of "birth management." YMMV. Please consult your medical professional. This is not medical advice. Etc etc don't sue etc.

To the mall it is. Thanks guys.

My brother just broke his second-to-last wine glass while we were visiting. Naturally, I shall get him a replacement set for Christmas. But I need help adulting. I have never bought new wine glasses, always just found ours at thrift shops. Where do I buy wine glasses? Crate & Barrel? Any suggestions on stores or types?

This morning it looked like our 4mo baby girl had gotten a bug bite on her cheek overnight, but by this afternoon we realized it was more like a zit. Overall the red spot is about the size of your little fingernail. The spot doesn't quite have a "head" but you can see that the inflammation is within a pore or pores, and the spot feels slightly warm to the touch. This evening I have been putting warm-hot compresses on the spot in hopes of helping the infection come to the surface, and also putting a little breastmilk on the cheek (hoping milk's antibiotic properties will do some good). Baby is now asleep, probably for the night. I'm concerned it's a staph infection and I'm wondering if I should panic. Q's: * How often should I apply hot compresses and/or breastmilk? * Should I take her to urgent care tomorrow? * If this is not currently a big deal, are there any signals to watch for that are bad news? THANK YOU!

I am volunteering in my son's classroom listening to the kids read aloud. There are only three kids who aren't fluent, fluid readers--all three are boys. I'd like to find one boy in particular a book that appeals to his interests. I think right now he finds reading to be a weird chore that fills a classroom requirement. His reading is begrudging and he grabs random books off the shelf without regard to content--he just wants ones with lots of pictures so he has less work. I'm worried that if he never finds books that capture his imagination he'll never get more practice. So...I'm looking for books that would be suitable for the 1st to 3rd grade reading level that are about uniformed law enforcement or military. The kid is interested in the rules and the uniforms and the structure, not really crime-solving per se. If I thought he wanted boy detectives I'd have several places to start, but I think he's very specifically interested in command structures and law and order. He loves badges and handcuffs and ranks. Fiction or non-fiction would both be great--totally flexible. Any ideas?

Here's my super-radical "plan," because after several years of reading about education, I have no idea what the hell to do about the millions of American children who are failing, so let's get crazy, OK? Education is only mandatory until grade 8. After that, if you don't want to do school anymore, fine. You can work or not work or whatever, but by age 14, no one is going to beg you to come get an education. You need to decide that you care and choose to attend. If you would prefer to work a job or self-educate outside the system or merely hang around the mall, that is your choice. Grades 1-8 are on one campus, likely using existing school plants. Grades 9-16 are distributed throughout the city, wherever facilities are available, including existing high schools, junior colleges and state universities. Faculty members rework math and science curricula so they extend over multiple years and really develop subject mastery. Vocational and pragmatic studies are widely available and attached to German-style internship/employment programs. Science labs and libraries are community resources. Auditoriums and gymnasiums are available for rent to the public and not sequestered in school grounds. There is no such thing as truancy and security is handled in the same manner as on college campuses. There are no metal detectors and no chain-link fences. All facilities offer three meals a day prepared in a professional kitchen; the 9-16 cafeteria is open seven days a week to the public.

OK, I'll be the dirty rotten spoiler, forgive the mild snobbery and cynicism that follows, but please take it in the pragmatic light in which it is intended. I also apologize if I offend anyone reading this, it's not my intention. This looks like a list of second- or third-tier American boarding schools, if only as far as public perception, academics and social cachet go. I suspect that these are schools that are generally open to any moderately credentialed international student who wants to join the American academic system before the college level. I expect that they would not be extremely stringent about English fluency requirements so long as the tuition was paid in full. These schools need as much cash as they can get, and international students are known for being able to pay in full. I further suspect that Roger's family is using a China-based educational consultant who has promised admission into an American boarding school. The Chinese consultant likely charges huge sum for "guaranteed access" to American schools, in addition to the future tuition of any of the schools. The consultant is feeding them into these accessible schools, but Roger might be able to do better. I would recommend that he try to find a U.S.-based education consultant, or at least casting a wider net in his applications. You could share this list (one of many available online) if you think it would help: http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/savingandinvesting/the-50-most-elite-boarding-schools-in-the-us/ss-AA8lJW6 Arriving in the States before college allows international students to become more fluent in colloquial American English and more appealing to competitive college admissions directors than an identical kid applying from Chongqing or Nairobi. The whole family doesn't have to immigrate, they can just send their kid to the States during the school year, where he or she gets a nice foothold. My only other comment is that many of these schools appear to be in a smaller or more remote communities. Ojai, here in SoCal, is a beautiful hippie town, but it's a serious drive just get to downtown Ventura or Santa Barbara, much less Los Angeles. It would be hard to "get away" if you needed a mental health break or if you wanted to expand your social circle. For example, if Roger wanted to visit the Chinese-American population in the area, just to speak his native language and eat familiar foods, it would be a 90-minute drive, not including traffic. There are boarding schools much closer to busy metropolitan areas that might be less of a culture shock, depending on Roger's background and personality. Wishing the best for Roger. Please tell him a strange lady on the Internet is rooting for him!