Civics

I scored 53 out of 60 on the Civics Quiz making the rounds (hat tips to lynx and tjic). I had Jamestown founded a century too early, the Monroe doctrine exactly backwards, placed the quote in the wrong preamble, had the wrong president warning against foreign entanglements, missed the point on the Gulf of Tonkin, blew it with Plato, and choose the wrong philosopher's analysis of democracy in America.

I will be refreshing some of these long lost facts by watching a lecture series on the History of the United States from The Teaching Company. We got this one and one on Classical Mythology for our homeschool curriculum this year. Both the kids will be watching these if we can chain them to the floor long enough to get it going or slip it in between Buffy episodes.

Chemistry Is Fun.

The boy bounds into the house yesterday evening with his buddy from down the road close behind.

"Hey, Dad. Will you help us do some chemistry?"

"What kind of chemistry?"

"Something that goes boom. Is rubbing alcohol violently flammable? Can we put some in a bottle to light it and see what happens?"

"Boom? Sometimes. No. You have not known Zach long. I do not think his parents would take it well if you torched him so soon. How about something that goes boom with no flames. We don't have any dry ice right now, but there are other things we can use."

Zach: "How about vinegar and baking soda?"

Me: "Yeah, that'd be great! We have some around here somewhere. Keep it on the driveway. Clean up when you are done."

Them: "Yeah! Let's go!"

A few minutes later they pulled me outside to show me the cool boom you get from soda bottles loaded up and slammed into the pavement.

Skip to this morning.

"Hey, Nelson?"

"Yeah?"

"Remember your chemistry experiments from last night?"

"Yeah?"

"You need to write that up today so it counts for a science class."

"OK"