Random Linkage

It's a cold, rainy Saturday night, so what else do I have to do? [okay, okay, get your mind out of the gutter - in order to do that I'd have to get Husband to stop watching Redeye, and that's really hard to do].

Anyway, where were we?

Aah, yes, a random assemblage of links to help distract you from the cold front, health care hell, and your brackets going to pieces this early in March Madness.

My Favorite Meatloaf Recipe, by Ina Garten. Made with turkey, no less. It goes well with cold fronts, and is covered with ketchup, making it tangy and sweet. You can't ask for more from something as simple as meatloaf.

A wonderful home schooling current events site, Izzit.org. Actually meant for classroom use, but it looks like a great tool for full-time home schoolers and parents who, like us, supplement our children's school education at home.

Speaking of torturing, er, um, enriching your child's educational experience with a little more challenging work at home - Singapore Math workbooks are our hands-down favorite for this purpose. I could write several posts on this subject alone, but suffice it to say we've found that every school the boys have attended was at least a grade year behind where we wanted them to be in math. Hence, Singapore, done right along with regular after-school homework. They have online tests you can print off and have your child take, so you know at what level they need to begin. We started this in earnest at the beginning of this school year, and One's Stanford scores in math skyrocketed between September and January. Good stuff.

Concordia Language Villages are (among other things) sleepaway summer camps for children that provide language immersion at the same time as a summer camp experience. The villages are organized as a complete cultural experience: campers learn the culture of the country(ies) they are studying at the same time they improve their language skills. I have plans (plans, McGee) of sending the boys away to the Chinese language camp as soon as they are (well, as soon as Two is) old enough to be away from home for two weeks at a time. Waiting ... waiting ... waiting ...

It's been a long time since we've had a Sunday Obituary, and since it's almost Sunday, here's a good one: Brice Somers. A WWII veteran, then a record industry executive, in later life he became an inventor. He is responsible for developing a prefilled retractable safety syringe - something that would prevent many injuries and deaths among healthcare workers, especially in the developing world.

Finally, apropos of nothing, I leave you with a quote from my friend Robert - and I am sad to say I can't attribute it more accurately than that, because I have no idea where he got it (yes, even when I Google):

"On track" does not mean "on schedule." The Donner Party was "on track."

Goodnight, y'all.