All my life, when typing I followed a period at the end of a sentence with just a single blank space before starting the next sentence. It never crossed my mind to do otherwise. But I did occasionally notice that some people left two blank spaces instead of one and on one occasion I was told that it was I who was doing it all wrong and defying the proper convention. I simply ignored that reproof and continued being a one-space writer. [Read more…]

When we got Baxter as a puppy, he learned to up the steps to the next floor quite easily but was scared to come down and had to be carried. One can see why. If anyone of us got down on all fours, it would be easy for us to go up a flight of steps but quite scary to come down head first. I don’t think I could do it, frankly. [Read more…]

One regular reader and commenter wrote in to say that her/his recent comments were not appearing and wondered whether she/he had been banned so I thought I would clarify the comments situation. [Read more…]

I’d like to wish all readers best wishes for the new year, though given that the world did not end on December 21 I don’t see how 2013 could be better.

I am emerging from an enjoyable week of relaxation with family and friends, only interrupted by an outbreak of a vicious stomach flu that incapacitated everyone in the family for a few days.

Regular blogging resumes tomorrow.

I wish everyone best wishes for the holiday season, however and with whomever you choose to celebrate it.

(Update: I had forgotten where this comic originally came from but reader Jorg reminds me that that the original was from Calamities of Nature, which, alas, no longer produces new comics. But you can see the original, larger, version in the archive.)

Blog posting will be sporadic until after the new year. I am going to be taking some time to goof off, or at least goof off more than I usually do.

But I will not be completely silent and will continue to post on things from time to time as and when the mood strikes me.

Ed Brayton is one of the founders of FreethoughtBlogs and a key person who works behind the scenes to keep things running as well as keeping together a highly opinionated group of people. That last task alone is a Herculean one that he fulfills admirably with his good humor and common sense approach. His blog is an excellent source of news and commentary on politics and religion and culture.

He had a major health scare a week or so ago that required open-heart surgery. Thanks to the skill of the medical staff, he is out of the hospital and back on the road to recovery. Unfortunately, this means that he has had unexpected expenses and loss of income.

If any of you can spare anything, please go over to his site where he has indicated how you can help out.

The old adage that photographs don’t lie is no longer valid in the age of Photoshop. Now even amateurs have the technology to manipulate photos and even videos to produce results that look remarkable realistic. [Read more…]

Exactly seven years ago today he came into our lives and immediately captured all our hearts so I could not let this day go by without commemorating it.

This is what he looked like two days after his arrival. [Read more…]

I’ve always been a fan of magic and, being a bit of a klutz myself, particularly impressed by the sleight-of-hand abilities of many of the best practitioners. Here is a great example by Yann Frisch in a variation of the familiar cups and balls trick. You always have to be wary of magic tricks you see on the internet because of the possibility of subtle cuts but this performance is apparently from a live performance at a competition where Frisch won a prize. [Read more…]