Happy birthday! It’s my birthday too.

I remember our teenage babysitter being terrified of that movie and while she babysat us one night, she sat in the kitchen with a heavy saucepan as a weapon. We lived in a small townhouse with 2 floors. No basement or attic and only one way in or out. (And why she even told my brother and I the plot of the movie I…

As an adult with teenage daughters, that book was a tough read.

Gordon Korman wrote a book called No More Dead Dogs:

I’m a librarian and my mind goes blank when a patron asks, “Anything good to read?” “Nope, we’re all out.”

The best stew recipe I have ever found - in an old cookbook. Sometimes I leave out the potatoes and add some extra carrots and turnip and then serve with mashed potatoes on the side. It’s great for company too with a salad and some crusty bread. http://www.myrecipefriends.com/recipe/12086.html

Dear Learner,

This Harvard University Digital Photography course which has been hosted on the ALISON free learning platform since 2013 has been withdrawn for free access at the request of Harvard University. The course has previously been hosted by Alison under a Creative Commons licence.

As the content is dated…

Randy Travis singing “Amen” killed me dead. I cried and wasn’t ashamed at all. I saw him in concert in the early 90's (Alan Jackson was the *opening* act) and it was one of the best I have ever seen. Funny, charming and the voice of an angel. It breaks my heart to see him like this.

I loved The Little Stranger. Spooked the heck out of me. I have pressed into the hands of just about everyone I encounter.

Yep. One of the police officers conducting the drill came it to yell at my kid’s grade 10 English class because one kid coughed during the lockdown and it was heard from the hallway. The teacher was almost in tears.

Now that Trevor Noah has dispensed with the giggling-oh-my-gosh-I-can’t-believe-this-country act, he seems to be hitting his stride. His commentary has more of a bite than it did even a month ago.

The Middle is so under-rated yet so very good. Laugh-out loud moments (for me, anyway, as a mother of teenagers) and often very poignant without coming across as cheap and sentimental.

My friend just texted me yesterday with screenshots of handwritten notes (how analog!) we left in each other’s lockers or passed in class in high school. I am torn between texting “Burn them! Burn them now!” and “OK, let’s fortify this trip down memory lane with lots of alcohol.”

My cousin and her husband danced to Guns N’ Roses’ Patience. I kid you not. My brother who was a teenage headbanger at the time thought it was the most perfect wedding song ever.

It won the Governor-General’s Award for Literature! Truth. I had to read it for a Women’s Studies/English class in the late 80's.

The same thing happens when your kids get older. Mine were about 7 and 10 when I looked after my 2 year old nephew one day. I went to get him after his nap and I asked, “Oh, did you go poop?” and when he said, “Yep,” I thought, “Oh, sucks to be you. Auntie Librarygirl is waaaayyy past that stage.” :)

I don’t know about that. I quite liked the original Total Recall and thought the remake was completely unnecessary but it really didn’t have any impact on how I felt about seeing the original as a teenager.

Ah. I saw the trailer and it referred to “30 years ago” and “a new team” so I assumed they were a new group fighting an old fight.

Uh-huh. And I’m not sure I understand the premise of the whole my-childhood-is-ruined thing. This isn’t a remake in the way that the US version The Office was a remake of the British one, is it? I thought it was a 30 years later thing - a follow-up if you will - so what exactly does one’s childhood have to do with it…

I was never a fan of the movie but when I watched bits of it with my daughter I was blown away by the flight scenes. They were pretty awesome.