Redheads' extra pain may cause fear of dentists

Another study showing that redheads are more sensitive to pain.

Friars Trudge 300 Miles and Find Kindred Souls on the Way

An interesting story about a modern-day quest for God.

Some thoughts on sin

Love this line from a thought-provoking post on sin:

I don't recall where I heard this, but I have long remembered it. It went like this: We need to stop thinking of sin as the equivalent of stealing paper clips from IBM, and start thinking of sin as the equivalent of slapping your grandmother.

Read the rest here.

"I could never do that"

Some challenging thoughts on a common phrase.

Baby is 20th descendant to be christened in antique gown

Neat story.

Be here now

Some challenging thoughts about not being mentally "somewhere else" thanks to modern technology.

Tips for getting through tough days

Bethany Hudson has some great, practical tips for coping with tough days with young kids. I particularly liked this part:

I also try to make sure I always have one room of the house that is totally organized. Usually, it's my own bedroom, because, let's be honest, I have two young kids. Honestly, my house is normally rather put together, because organization calms me and mess distracts and frazzles me, and this is why I have to have one clean room. On Jonah days, if the living room is in shambles, dishes litter the kitchen counters, and Sophia is having a tantrum, I can put her safely in her room for a few moments, escape to my clean sanctuary and pray until I am in a fit state to serve my family again.

Read the rest here.

What's worse than snakes on a plane?

Scorpions on a plane!

The safety of negativity

A thought-provoking post from Ann at Holy Experience.

Comet hitting Jupiter caught on film

Cool! I've heard that earth would probably be uninhabitable if it weren't for Jupiter sucking in large comets and meteors headed for earth.

A map of where gravity is weaker/stronger on earth

Neat! (Insert obligatory joke about strong spots over household scales here.)

Margaret Sanger in her own words

Some quotes from Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger.

Thoughts on a cultural trainwreck

Darwin has a great analysis of an Atlantic article in which the author suggests that marriage is a passe concept. For example:

I was utterly unsurprised when the one sex-starved woman mentioned her husband heading off into the den to watch his internet porn...In a world in which sex has been totally divorced from its biological meaning, why not retreat into the world of unreality? Why accept a real person with needs and moods and desires and a body which is the product of age, genetics and personal habits when carefully selected bodies can be seen doing anything one desires only a mouse click and a couple dollars away? This is the natural path down which one goes when one separates the mating urge from mating with one's mate.

Read the rest here.

I'm No Super Mom

Danielle Bean, a mom of eight, remembers back to a tough day when her children were little:

"I can't do this," I heard myself mutter.

The words came out of my mouth before I even knew what I was saying, and the fact that I truly felt incapable startled me. Was I capable of being a good mom? Though I loved my children, I had to admit that, at the end of many days, I did feel disillusioned, depleted, and perplexed by my own weakness and unhappiness.

Now that it's been a decade since I pronounced myself a maternal failure, I like to think I have a little perspective on the matter.

Read the rest here.

How psychological biases can make a mess of our financial decisions

Good points.

The Million Dollar Homepage

Why didn't I think of this? See it here.

The origin of laughter

Researches discover interesting stuff by tickling apes.

New Programs Put Crime Stats on the Map

Useful info.

Umm...wow

Bake cookies on your dashboard

Those of us who live in Texas are not surprised that this is possible.

Good idea - nursing bonnet

A unique discreet nursing product. (Not an ad, just something I thought was interesting.)

Sex education and pregnancy rates

Some info that shouldn't be surprising but is.

Ten Things You Didn't Know About the Apollo 11 Moon Landing

Interesting!

The rain in Africa

The beginning of this video is great:

Good idea for summer fun with kids

How to make a friendship bracelet.

10 Most Fascinating Medical Miracles

Wow!

Bear rescued from a high bridge

Neat story with some great pictures.

On patience

Some great thoughts to start the week.

via Elena Maria Vidal (Twitter)

A comprehensive list of social networking sites

Interesting.

via PJ Kaiser (Twitter)

"I am not the mother I wanted to be"

Mary Grace recounts the following exchange when she was out with her four boys"

"Four boys? I couldn't do that. No way. They would drive me nuts."...The woman then shook her head and delivered the jewel: "I couldn't have that many kids. There's no way. I just couldn't be the mother I want to be with that many of them."

Read her response and the rest of the post here.

via Making Home

A secular atheist talks about his discomfort with abortion

Interesting thoughts:

Recently, Sweden's National Board of Health and Welfare ruled that women are permitted to abort their children based on the sex of the fetus. In the United States, a woman can have an abortion for nearly any reason she chooses. In fact, a health exemption for the mother allows abortions to be performed virtually on demand.

If you oppose selective abortions, but not abortion overall, I wonder why? How is terminating the fetus because it's the wrong sex any worse than terminating the fetus for convenience's sake? The fate of the fetus does not change, only the reasoning for its extinction does.

Read the rest here.

via Making Home