Kids Stilts

Here's a simple DIY project to build "stilts". You can do this for or with your child - pretty straight forward, check it out:

Materials Needed:
* two 2x2x8' timber beams (e.g. pine)
* one 2x4x 12" piece of wood (e.g. pine)
* two 3/8" x 4" Hex Head Bolts
* one 3/8" Dowel piece 4" long
* two small rubber cups (or table legs floor / carpet protectors)
* cordless drill with standard wood drill bits

Note: It would be nice to simply buy one 2x4x8' and rip it in half, but 2x4 timber will almost always bow after being cut.

Teaching your son how to be a man

Deciding on the ways you should teach your son how to be a man can inspire a great deal of soul searching for any father. Back in the olden days, when a man was seen as the head of the household, sole bread winner and a pillar of physical and emotional strength, this task may have been an easier one. The advice back might have been quite simple "get a good job, work hard, support your family and don’t cry". However things are bit more tricky for 21st century dads. Here are some more contemporary manly things to teach your son:

How to cook
Why is important? Because knowing how to cook is all about self-sufficiency and independence. Is there any skill more important than one that teaches self sufficiency? Cooking is also “still” a pretty easy way to impress girls – so two birds with one stone.

How to manage money

A dad's point of view - is Glee gay?

There's no doubt that I'm really wading into it with the title of this column. I was reflecting on the end of this season of Glee and the only other television series that I watch regularly, Modern Family. I enjoy both show but do wonder if they have an agenda as to the message they want to put across.

Let me be clear on my stance on homosexuality to eliminate any pre-conceived prejudices you may assume I have or may project on me that are not true. I lost a VERY DEAR friend to Aids back in the day when it first appeared. I worked in showbiz for a quarter-century and loved and interacted with people of all stripes, with equal passion, respect, and collaboration. If they were talented and good people, I loved them. If they were not, I didn’t. Simple.

10 Things I wish my parents had taught me ... better

Enough time has passed in my life where I can look back and (mostly) understand the things my parents taught me, or at least tried to teach me, or maybe forgot to teach me as I was growing up. I wish now that I had paid attention and listened to the importance of knowing these things and how they will ultimately shape the person that I have become, or have yet to become. I plan and hope that I will be able to teach these things to my son, so he truly understands the importance of each lesson as he begins his life. Here's my list:

A dad's point of view - ten elementary differences between men and women

For this post I easily could have listed 500 or more, as the number of differences between the sexes is vast. Note that I used the word, “Sexes,” rather than gender. I hate the word, “Gender” almost as much as I hate being Politically Correct! So, a disclaimer: If you are a Professor of Women’s Studies you might want to go visit Gloria Steinem’s web site.

A second disclaimer: This man loves and respects women so this column is not anti-woman at all! What it is, from this one father and husband, is my honest look at our differences with the only guiding principle being the truth, plus a touch of humor.

A dad's point of view - 7 days without my iPhone

I have just embarked on a heli-skiing trip to the Cariboo Mountains. I chose NOT to bring my iPhone. First, I had thought there was no reception at the lodge. Second, every time I go to Canada I incur stupid charges that annoy me. And, third, I thought it would be a great experiment to go without it.

AAARRRGGGHHH!!! It’s been three hours and I’m going crazy!

No, just kidding. It’s been all day and while I have reached in my pocket for my iPhone a few times, the frequency is diminishing. So far, the biggest problem is knowing the time, since I have become used to checking the time on my iPhone rather than wear a watch, much like most kids do these days. My wife is already regretting that I don’t have the phone because I’m asking her the time all the time!

A dad's point of view - my boys would be better off if I abandoned them

I suppose the title of this column got your attention. Of course I don’t mean it in any literal sense but I’ve begun a mantra/rant lately that includes this notion. My older son just got accepted to an expensive private college, The Berklee College of Music. For a number of reasons, he/we do not qualify for any financial aid.

Before I illuminate those reasons, I have to declare that my son did himself and his family no good – as far as getting any scholarships – because of his lousy grades and failure to even take the SAT or other college entrance exams. His outstanding musicianship and showmanship at the audition, required by Berklee, clearly overcame any deficiencies from his report cards and lack of college entrance exams. He shines when he does his music and he worked quite hard preparing for that audition. It paid off when he was one of less than 200 applicants accepted for early admission – to the only college to which he applied.

A dad's point of view - are you a social media addict?

Let's start with the definition of addict (from dictionary.com): ad•dict noun
>> A person who is addicted to an activity, habit, or substance: a drug addict. Okay, that seems simple enough. I’m addicted to many things, thankfully none of them all that harmful. They include skiing, my kids, writing, eating, and maybe, just maybe Social Media.

Here are some questions for you and me:

1. How often a day do you check your various Social Media accounts like Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google +, etc.
2. Do you check your blog comments in bed?
3. When on vacation, do you make sure wherever you go has Internet access?
4. Will you pay for Wi-Fi on a plane ... anywhere?
5. Have you tried to go cold turkey for any period of time? And, if so, how did that work for you?

The Recession Renaissance Man

Living in an area with a high unemployment rate can provide a lot of insight into what it takes to sustain a successful business. This man, to be referred to as the Recession Renaissance Man, is the epitome of making it in hard times. His businesses comprise a fairly extensive list of industries that are thriving right now. By day he's a mechanic who also runs a used car lot, a parts store, and a towing service. A lot of people in the area have old cars with high miles, so he does quite a bit of towing and fixing. Then, when a vehicle finally can't be fixed, he might make a quick sale. He offers financing for the cars he sells, so if someone doesn't make their car payment, he uses one of his tow trucks to repossess the vehicle. Being a repo man can be dangerous, so our renaissance man would do well to visit BusinessInsurance.org.

A dad's point of view - friends

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you see or hear the word, “Friends?” For my younger son it would undoubtedly be the TV-series that aired for a decade on NBC, because he loves it so. For others, it might be that Bette Midler song. Maybe it would be something from Sesame Street? Friends enrich our lives. And, like that famous saying, “We don’t choose our family, but we do choose our friends,” we actually have some control over who is our friend.

That is where the rub is, in my experience. I’ve had many friends over the course of my life. I still have one friend from Nursery School, which is what Pre-School was called in the fifties. We are in regular contact, though he lives across the country.