The Latest Ripoff: Surveillance Pricing

by Charlotte Cowles thecut.com    It’s 5 a.m. and your toddler is crying. His forehead is hot. You remember, cursing yourself, that you are out of Tylenol.    You squint at your phone and order more, selecting the quickest delivery option. Actually, that’s not soon enough. You pay the $2 fee so that it will …

Why Valentine’s Day Is A Fake, And Worse

by Kevin Burton    A co-worker of Jeannette’s told her that he and his wife didn’t celebrate Valentine’s day, calling it a “fake holiday.”    Many people agree. But as it turns out it’s worse than that.    “Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate romance and love and kissy-face fealty. But the origins of …

Here’s What You Gain By Meal-Prepping

by Dictionary Scoop    Are you trying to save money and time? Do you also want to eat healthier and make the process easier and smoother? Meal-prepping will help you achieve all these goals at the same time.    Meal prep is an increasingly common practice that consists of preparing key ingredients of a dish, or several dishes, in …

That Christmas Creep Will Get You Every Time

by Kevin Burton    Our rule about Christmas music is none before Dec. 1.  For Christmas decorations, anything goes as long as it’s after Thanksgiving.    We should perhaps clean up that Christmas rulebook inconsistency.    Also, most years we buy a new Christmas ornament for the tree. We have enough ornaments for at least …

Was This The Worst Idea Of The 1970s?

by Kevin Burton    Pet rocks I remember. Mood rings, yep. Little sawed-off Gremlin cars. Yeah, I remember those.     I was part of the 70s. I was on the scene baby! I watched the Jackson 5 cartoon. Didn’t dance much but I sang a lot of disco. I remember the bicentennial and staying up …

Sharp-Dressed Words From Fashion Industry

by Dictionary Scoop     In this article, we uncover the origins of 10 items from the fashion industry. Even though all of these garments have evolved over time, their unusual names remain. 1-Denim    A couple of centuries before Levi Strauss popularized denim jeans, two cities in Europe were already developing the textile that would become an icon of …

Uber And Lyft Corporations Are To Blame

by Terri Gerstein Slate.com    Last year, former U.S. Circuit Court Judge David Tatel, who is blind, was denied a Lyft ride to court when a driver refused to accept his guide dog.    It should not be necessary to state this, but: People who are blind deserve full access to trains, airplanes, and other transportation …

Despite Upgrade, City’s Website Not Accessible  

by Meg Britton-Mehlisch Wichita Beacon    Staff at Wichita’s City Hall weren’t happy with their virtual footprint. In 2022, they described the city’s website, http://www.wichita.gov,  as “suboptimal,” “outdated” and “confusing.”     So the city spent $312,000 on a website refresh intended to flip that description and create a welcoming and easy-to-use virtual gateway to local …

Science Made These Dreams Come True

by Dictionary Scoop    Humans love to predict the future. None of the things we have been able to create throughout history, from pyramids to airplanes, would have been possible without first imagining them.    During the 20th century, as the turn of the millennium approached, scientists, writers, and illustrators imagined technological innovations that, if …

Six Fascinating Facts About The Telephone

by interestingfacts.com    Most of us are familiar with the story of the first telephone call: On March 10, 1876, Boston University professor Alexander Graham Bell reached for the curious invention on his desk, rang up his trusty assistant, and said, “Watson, come here… I want you to look at this text.”    OK, maybe …