THROWING ROCKS??? I can't even... I can't. Just can't. What kind of kid - what kind of person - throws rocks at a dog? Throws rocks at anyone? Or slaps a dog? (Little kids who don't know how to be gentle with their touch get a pass on the an accidental slap if the parent isn't quick enough to get in there or…

Ugh. So sad. Totally breaks my heart that idiot parents have no clue and this behavior traumatizes dogs and, were they not met with dogs that were gentle, run the risk of traumatizing their kids, too. Idiots.

My mom refers to my dog as her "granddoggie." When we moved out-of-state for a year, she would call on FaceTime so she could see and talk to the pup. But I'm 34 and have been married for four years, and if this means that my mom never pressures me about having human kids (and she never has so far), I'm 100% fine…

Was just about to reply to say this - and add that about the DC/MD/Northern VA dog parks, too. My dog is terrified of small children who run and stomp their feet because of the kids who have run at him and knocked him over in dog parks. He wasn't afraid of kids before that happened, but he's had a couple of kids run…

He will be missed. Heartbreaking that he continued to struggle so. Sending wishes for his loved ones to find peace.

Uhm... somebody noticed. If nobody noticed and nobody complained, she wouldn't have been asked to leave.

In addition to the actual money being spent to travel, the other difficulty is that these obligatory trips eat up our few allotted vacation days from work (family vacations, weddings/celebrations whose events begin Friday night and go through Sunday, etc.). Some people don't have many vacation days (or have them on a…

This is true. Thank gawd for registries that can be managed online... because as soon as we got home from registering, my now-husband and I looked at what we'd registered for and deleted half of it.

Another of my favorite A.O. Scott reviews was this one, about Gigli. It was ages ago (2003! I feel old) but still makes me laugh to think about it. That was when I first took notice of A.O. Scott's reviews. Just to excerpt the beginning of it, to give you an idea:

Mine too!

Totally with you. Huge Ravens fan, and this was extra disappointing because I was a giant fan of Ray Rice before this happened since he was such a champion for really good causes and did a lot of great stuff for kids around the city (anti-bullying advocacy/events and going so far as to lobby state legislature to pass…

I just snorted ginger ale out of my nose. That was excellent.

... aaaaand I just had this conversation with my mother, who thinks I'm "silly" and "need to get over myself" because "addressing a woman by her husband's name is how it's always been done, and how it always will be." And I'm "being ridiculous" if I might like it if people would acknowledge the doctorate in my name. …

So true. My mom has always run hot her whole life, so I grew up in a house that was set at a constant 65 degrees. So that's what my body thinks is The Temperature The World Should Always Be now. We could tell when I started spending significantly more time at my now-husband's place by the size of his utility bill,…

That's ridiculous. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law are both Doctor, and their mail is always addressed to Drs. Lastname (or Drs. Herfirstname and Hisfirstname Lastname). I don't think they've ever had that problem of her being called "Mrs." that way. Which is good for them. But then it also actually annoys me…

Just had to comment because the "Mrs. Hisfirstname Hislastname" happens all the time with me, too, and it drives me nuts also, partly because my title isn't "Mrs." anymore. Even our family does it, even when they're just addressing something to me alone, but if they're just addressing something to me either alone or…

I realize this is slightly beside the point, but:

Totally, totally, totally with you.

Yes yes yes yes yes. I wish I could star this a million times. Thank you for writing this.

Smooshed ice cream? I think I need to know about this. I've driven through that area a few times but never known where to stop. Does this need to be on my list? Describe please!