Fly on the Wall

This morning at breakfast:

Quarto: Mom, how many eggs is that?
Me: Ten.
Quarto: Ten?! That's crazy talk!

A Gap in Their Education

The kiddos are trying to fit in as much TV as possible before we cancel the satellite service at the end of the month. Primo's favorite channel is the Bomerang Network. They show classic cartoons from the 60's and 70's with a few earlier ones thrown in for good measure. I think Primo is just amazed that they had cartoons when Frodo and I were kids... heck, she's amazed that television existed when Frodo and I were kids! Anyway, tonight she was absorbed in an episode of Scooby Doo. When I walked into the room, she turned to me and said, "Mom, that's Cast Elliott," indicating a character in the show. "Dad knows who she is. Do you know her? Cast Elliott?"

"Do you mean Cass Elliott? Yeah, that's Mama Cass."

"Yeah, that's it! Cass Elliott. Who's Mama Cass?"

"Mama Cass. She's a singer. From The Mamas & The Papas."

"Yeah, she's a singer on here, too. Who are The Mamas & The Papas?"

"You don't know who The Mamas & The Papas are?! Are you sure you're my child?"

At this point, I open up YouTube. (What would I do without YouTube and Google? I mean, seriously?)

"This is The Mamas & The Papas..."



"And this..."





"And this is Mama Cass. Cass Elliott."



"Oh."

Oh?

Sigh. I can see we have to have a more formal study of "American Folk Music of the 50's, 60's and 70's", aka "stuff Mom listened to when she was a kid" and these kids better learn it if they are going to have a good grounding in American Culture Studies (and be able to get half of the jokes in The Simpsons... when they are old enough to watch The Simpsons, that is). They obviously aren't picking it up properly through casual exposure and are seriously lacking in appreciation of the classics of American music.

Johnny Cash does seem to be sticking with Secondo. She has recently declared him her favorite. So, here is a little Johnny Cash to help diversify your own folk music studies. Here is Secondo's favorite:



And here is mine:






(Hey, I'm impressed I was able to hold myself to two.)

Fly on the Wall

Quarto: [casually, while putting markers away] Dad, what's sharper, a marker or a sword?
Frodo: [slightly puzzled] A sword.
Quarto: [with the tone of a schoolteacher amazed at his young pupil's apparent wisdom beyond his years] That's right!

Book Meme

Heather, over at Stepping Heavenward, "tagged" me for this meme... in a laid-back, non-tagging sort of way. *grin*

From The Equation for Excellence: How to Make Your Child Excel at Math:

A parent gives a child a problem. The child gets the problem wrong. The parent should then just give an easier problem, right?

Share a taste of your most recent read... or at least the one most near at hand. If you'd like to participate, consider yourself tagged and follow these guidelines:

1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages.)
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people. Or not. I'm in favor of just opening up for anyone who wants to play along.