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[Clara and Timothy are quietly eating clementines for breakfast.]

Clara (suddenly, pointing): F-HOLE!!

T: …

T: …

T: …

T: …What?!

C: Your clementine peel. It looks like a violin’s F-hole.

T: … Oh! … Yes… Yes, it does. Of course that’s what you meant…

Clara: I love school, and going to sleep. They are two of my favorite things. But I like school best.

(the photos below and more are in a gallery of Oscar photos)

I first met Oscar at a party given by Mary Crinnin. I was playing guitar, and he came up and sat next to me all while I was playing. read more...

[as recorded by Catharine O’Neill, some months ago]

Clara: I’m glad we’re past the snake.

Timothy: What snake? I didn’t see a snake.

C: That black hose. It looks like a snake so I call it the snake hose.

T: Aah, yes.

C: I like you, Dad.

T: Oh, I like you too, Clara.

C: I think I’m going to like you all my life.

[as recorded by Catharine O’Neill, some months ago]

Clara: I found a jewel. When I have my bath, I’ll be a mermaid. You can hide the jewel in the bath. Then I can find it at the bottom of the ocean.

Timothy: OK. I’ll hide it when you’re not looking, or even thinking about it.

C: OK. (pause) It’s time to hide the jewel now.

T: Wasn’t I supposed to hide it when you’re not thinking about it?

C: Don’t worry, I’m not thinking about it.

[Clara is ready to go to sleep. Whispering with Dad.]

C: Dad? I love you [deep breath] two thousand, a million, a hundred, a zillion, two thousand, a million, a hundred, a zillion, two thousand, a million, a hundred, a zillion… dollars.

T: Wow! That’s a lot.

(pause)

C: Um, I’m not actually paying you that money. It’s just how much I love you.

T: Oh, I understand.

(pause)

C: But if I had that much money, I’d give it all…

(pause)

C: I’d give half of it…

(pause)

C: I’d give a lot of it to you.

T: There’s not much left that I can teach you, is there?

(Clara enters, holding a hammer.)

Clara: Dad? Just to let you know: I would never, never hit you on the head with a hammer.

Timothy: That’s… good…?

C: And not even Mom either!

(exits)

Some people are not men (it’s true). Some men don’t shave (or trim their beards in any way). Some don’t use electric shavers (or beard trimmers). All those people may not find this article the least interesting.

Those who do use electric shavers (and I will use that word to include ‘trimmers’ henceforth for simplicity), however, are likely familiar with the dominant shaver design paradigm: the cordless shaver. read more...

If a meteorite didn’t hit Earth, would it be a meteor-wrong?

[preceded yesterday by a discussion of how fast a kiss goes when you blow it, and by lots of instances of Dad looking up facts on his smart phone; Clara’s phone is a non-functional Motorola flip phone that we found in the street]

Clara: Oh, Dad: so I looked it up on my phone, and blowing kisses go at 30 miles per hour.

Timothy: Ah! Good to know. That’s pretty fast. I guess it’s OK, though, because they’re so light.