Rutabaga

Even more impressive is that, with our current drought, Colin was intrepidly skiing on rocks. R

Chapter 5 does not, in fact, appear to exist. R

I'm sorry, but this article is full of unbridled nonsense. If anyone thinks that giving the FCC greater control over Internet service is going to improve things by providing better performance at lower prices, I've got a great bridge available that I haven't been able to unload on eBay. R

I remember this too. The "bookends" structure is an interesting one, and the story in the middle is a wild one. I can picture Cole being like Tim, quiet and unassuming, writing away with all this crazy stuff and grinning to himself, "wait 'til they read this!" R

He lit a match To check gas tank And now they call him Skinless Frank. Burma Shave (recalled from childhood) R

So sad. R

Don't know if this story has been a Pick from the Past but it's a sweet and gentle tale that is most heartwarming. R

For what it's worth, I think this lecturer is actually being filmed talking to an empty room, reading from cue cards, and the reverse-angle shots of kids in the room were just spliced in for effect. R

My dad had two older sisters and said he felt like he had three moms (always critical of everything). R

Definitely weren't doing this when I was that age. R

I'm just waiting to hear that this story was lined up to be a Pick from the Past. R

This heartwarming short story is at http://www.awesomedude.com/merkin/americanization_of_alex_s.htm Read it if you need a boost of spirit. R

Since this story has already been a "Pick from the Past" I hope I'm safe in mentioning it again! What a nice tale. What a great big brother (Grant). What a great friend (Tyler). And of course what a great reunion (Connor). I hope Morgan will consider a warmer climate for University. R

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I would never have recognized James Franco -- what happened to him? R

Glad to see chapter 4 up. Young Jado needs some legal help ASAP, among other things to get the trustee off its ass. R

I have yet to observe even a single redeeming quality to the Muslim culture. R

Gives new meaning to the phrase "Suck in your gut." R

Seems like that's where the notion of safety ends and something else takes over. R

See this: https://www.thalys.com/img/pdf/presse/release/en/1426250991_15.03.13.Thalys_statement_EN.pdf R

The biggest complaint I have heard from guys on hookup sites is that they put up listings and get no response at all. Seems like even some of these pests would be an improvement. R

I think "How I Spent My Summer Vacation" might have stretched the verisimilitude concept a touch. R

If they ever start transplanting assholes, I can think of some prime donor candidates. R

It's a very lovely story, and it also reflects a profound change in cultures. I worked a bit with deaf kids in the late 1970s and one of the things that struck me most deeply was how when indoors with friends they would be enthusiastically signing to each other but the moment they stepped outside on the sidewalk their hands would disappear and they would try not to do anything to betray their deafness "in public." We seem to be much more accepting of people using sign language nowadays, and more important, the people using sign language seem to feel much more comfortable doing so in public. (I well remember one day seeing a deaf guy in Starbucks using FaceTime on his iPhone to sign a conversation to a friend at the other end.) It is extraordinarily difficult for someone who is deaf since birth to learn a spoken language. Unlike someone who loses their hearing after a few years, and therefore has the rudiments of the language in their heads from using it and hearing others use it, someone deaf since birth has no real clue how the spoken language of their family works. And it's very difficult to teach. Imagine being in an absolutely soundproof glass booth with people gesturing and pointing, trying to convey meaning. When deaf people use the TDD devices that are available, their communication tends to be fairly crude and ungrammatical, unless they have really worked hard on vocabulary and grammar in a spoken language. Sign language itself is more ideographic, like, say, Chinese, and bears little resemblance to English or a Romance language. Having said all that, it was a very nice story and well worth reading. R

An uplifting short story that is classic Cole. Don't miss it! R