Have you ever been in the grocery store parking lot and watched as a customer parks a grocery cart next to their car, places the grocery bags into their car, and then proceeds to leave the cart a few feet from their car, say in the parking space right next to their vehicle?  Seeing people do this perturbs me a bit.  After putting my bags in my car I always try and place the cart in the cart return, but I’ve noticed at the grocery store I frequent the cart returns seem to be placed for the grocery workers convenience and not the convenience of the customers.  Conspiracy?  I think so, and I’m crying foul. Continue reading »

My daughter has one of the most generous grandmothers.  She has really been a big help to my wife and me when we first made the move to Washington and she continues to help in any way she can.  Many times when we’re all traveling together on an outing or “eating out” she’ll offer to pay, and she will sincerely have the desire to pay when she makes the offer, but she has an uncanny ability to offer to pay and then “accidentally” find herself unable to pay.  She has been able to pull off this maneuver so frequently and in so many different ways that our response has become one of amusement and fascination.  I’m now of the mind that she is some sort of seasoned veteran of this very unique art form; a Jedi master of the “I’ll pay, oh I can’t pay!” slight of hand.  Listed below are a few of the techniques she has mastered. Continue reading »

I was driving the other day and happened to witness a traffic enigma of sorts. I’ve only been a part of one of these puzzles once in all my years of driving and this particular instance was only my second time to actually witness the event; which is not to say that these phenomena happen infrequently. I may just not have been paying attention or I might not live in the right area of town. Whatever the reason is, I’ve only seen two. Continue reading »

"Yeah, I'm pretty successful." - Doug Laser

I had a conversation with a friend of mine several months ago about the significance of a person’s name and whether it has any bearing on how successful that person will be in life.  We came to the conclusion that if you want to become an important person like a President, Astronaut, or Marine Psychologist; you’d better have the name for it.

I think one of the coolest names to have is Doug Laser.  I mean if your name was Doug Laser (doesn’t matter if you’re a guy or a girl), you pretty much are going to succeed in life.  You probably will become a secret agent, a doctor, or a CEO of a multinational corporation.  Basically, if you’re Doug Laser you’re not going to be homeless. Continue reading »