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Christi Diggs
on May 23 2013 - 06:00 AM
A drop of spin, a cup of deception and tsp. politics=Apathy
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Lindsay Metcalf
on May 22 2013 - 06:00 AM
When that tornado siren sounds, I'm in the basement
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mara williams
on May 21 2013 - 06:00 AM
Summer break has this mom on a house upkeep war path.
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- lindsay metcalf - Profile | Pictures | Blog
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Little man's first lesson with money came down to Mickey Mouse, the bank and a vacuum.Mickey was full of coins. Quinn, who is 3, had been collecting them for months, not because he understood their value but because he liked to insert them in the slot in the back of Mickey's hollow head. At every opportunity, Quinn would ask to ride in Daddy's Honda Accord, where he could mine a bottomless supply of change on the floor and in the seat crevices, the console and the wells of the door handles.A full Mickey meant it was time for a lesson in saving, spending and rewards. One recent morning, the boys and I shook out the contents of Mickey and spread it out. A wash of childhood memories flooded me as I spread out the cool metal discs in a single layer, preparing to count the loot. Quinn wasn't so excited, but he didn't understand or care how many Barbie accessories this much change could buy.We talked about the different coins and their worth. We counted out piles worth a dollar for each type of coin, even pennies. Everyone was bored with counting by the time we got to $25, and the remaining pile was massive. Clearly mining Daddy's car is a lucrative pastime. Maybe I could try it, too. I do need a new pair of sexy, non-mom jeans.I explained that Quinn could use his money to buy something that he wants, but relinquishing his booty to the bank in exchange for a modest stack of bills was a hard sell.When he thought about it, though, he decided he could use a new toy: a kid-sized Dyson. A purple one. His best friend had received the toy version of the popular vacuum for Christmas, and playing with it was pretty much the best thing ever.I had resisted this toy for months. So many friends and family members had suggested that my Dyson-loving son needed his very own, but mean Mom had deflected, saying that we had enough toy vacuums in our overflowing utility closet. Plus, he was outgrowing vacuums. We no longer have to leave out the real Hoover and Eureka as toys. And recently, he even told me that he didn't need to see the vacuum aisle during a trip to Costco.At the bank, both boys loved watching the change machine eat up the money. I couldn't believe how much Quinn had amassed -- close to $100! We got the receipt to take to the cashier, and he looked around confused."OK, mommy, where's my Dyson?" he asked.He's still got a lot to learn. Perhaps the next step is taking him to open a savings account. Or requiring him to contribute to something he really wants: a Corvette big-boy bed with working headlights. At close to $300, that one is out of my price range, but with birthday and Christmas money, along with Daddy's car, he might just earn enough to convince me to kick in the rest.
Oh unless he needs to get dog sheddings from high places (...) he neither needs a Dyson nor abandon design...though horse mane bristle brushes are surely a kind of must for the brush end? A parent can lend venturi tube physics (water rockets in summer) and electronics know how (no 20A circuits please, charge this ultracapacitor yourself for suction power) but for the gritty assembly details kids might not throw down on (because heat guns and PETE tolerances, yikes) there is plexiglas craft spec. Plus of course http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2011/05/history-of-pedal-powered-machines.html and the relief that comes from hooking a Kill-A-Watt up to the vacuum and seeing that it does not actually draw 8 (or 12 or whatever) HP (6KW; yep, 60A) all the time. What, when did you give up using the pump vacuum carpet sweeper (yes, it's a small barrel with one end sliding) http://www.notechmagazine.com/2011/02/hand-operated-vacuum-cleaners.html (In case emergency persuasion against it is needed: magissues.farmprogress.com/MIF/MF05May12/mif051.pdf (Ugly metal vacuums were ugly.))
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