Fifty Years of Sesame Street and the Internet: Which Hurt My Kids More?
OK, so this blog’s title is a little click-baity, but it’s still worth thinking about for a bit. The Internet and Sesame Street are both celebrating their golden 50th. They popped into being back in the fall of 1969 (on Oct. 29 and Nov. 10 respectively). Each required years of planning and hard work. Their […]
What’s Streaming in November 2019 (a.k.a. Disney+ Streams Your Childhood)
The holidays are blowing in quickly—along with snow days, fall breaks and all those outlier relatives who tend to show up for free meals and presents—so your thoughts may have already turned to: How do we keep the kids and my unibrowed Uncle Harry entertained? Well, I’ve got a good news/bad news scenario for you. […]
When Videogames Go to School
It wasn’t that long ago that everybody from parents to clergymen to U.S. senators were all aflutter about the kid-destroying characteristics of videogames. These days, however, its not so much parents screaming at the kids to turn off the videogames as it is parents urging them to sharpen their button-mashing skills. You know, so they […]
Online “Swatting:” A Prank That’s No Laughing Matter
We don’t often think about gaming and online shenanigans leading to anything truly dangerous. But it turns out that in the right situation, those pursuits can lead to jail time and even someone’s death! Say what? NBC News recently reported on a terrible and deadly event that involved something called “swatting”—the tactic of contacting police […]
What’s Streaming for Families in October (2019)
When October rolls around it’s perfectly reasonable to think that your movie streaming choices might be a little limited. I mean it is monster movie season. (Grrrrowl. Arrrgh!) But while there are scores of terrifying demon nuns, wall-crawling beasties and little boys whispering, “I see dead people” to be seen on your movie streaming site […]
Grandma Loves Gaming
We have a love/hate relationship with video games. There’s no mystery on that front. You can’t go a week without seeing a new report on how video games are corrupting our youth and driving them to some form of angry destruction. But this blog is actually about the opposite side of that equation: the love […]
What’s Streaming for Families in September (2019)
Well, it’s September. Football season is once again sticking its pigskin snout into your life and your local team is once again appearing less than ready to live up to your hopes of gridiron glory. (Unless you live in New England.) Of course, if you would rather sit down with the kids for some family […]
Tech Tuesday: The Biggest Problem With Online Gaming? Us.
They say numbers don’t lie. And if that’s true, then the online gaming world may have a problem on its hands, especially in light of a new study by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). Before you throw up your hands and digitally turn away grumbling about studies, let me pile on a whole bunch of numbers […]
What’s New and Streaming for Families in August (2019)
It’s sweaty August once again. The kids are dripping their way through those last desperate days of sunburn, insect bites and freedom before school ramps back up. You’re fuming over the fact that the van’s AC doesn’t seem to be living up to its end of the automotive bargain. Even the grass in your front […]
What’s New and Streaming for Families in July (2019)
It’s July and the livin’ is easy … along with being sun-baked and maybe a tad sweaty now and again. And once you get your fill of all those fun activities in the great outdoors, you might find yourself in the mood for a little air-conditioned leisure with a helping of streaming entertainment on the […]