You put the items in the watertight zipper...

I know that I let my kids watch more TV than they should. I know that I should make more of an effort to direct them toward activities that nurture the growth of brain cells and stimulate their artistic sensibilities. Even so, we have our own kind of limits for them. We won't let either of them have a TV in their bedroom, and on school days they usually only watch one or two shows that they like.

That said, I couldn't help but find it disturbing when my 4-year-old son quoted verbatim the narration from a commercial for Space Bags (essentially a large plastic storage bag that compresses its contents greatly when you vacuum the air from it.) For some reason this commercial airs quite a bit when the kids watch Power Rangers on Toon Disney. I've barely made my peace with letting watch Power Rangers in the first place (although it will serve as a nice gateway for them into the Sci-Fi shows that I know and love later on,) and now they have to remind me just how much marketing to which they're being subjected while watching these shows. Yikes!

Truthfully, my wife and I both watched a ton of TV when we were kids, probably way, way more than we needed. We turned out OK, and we're careful to talk to the kids about the things they watch so they can start developing their own media filters. Even so, I don't think I'll be buying any Space Bags anytime soon.

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Flicka

We discovered yesterday that our 3-year-old son's preschool teacher has been "flicking" him and other kids in the class when she has to put them in time-out. What the fuck is up with that? If I'm not going to use corporal punishment on my child, no one else gets to lay a finger on him.

We talked with the school's director today, who said it would be stopped immediately. The school has a no corporal punishment policy, so I know they will take care of it. I really do like the teacher otherwise. She was instrumental in helping Finn potty train. That's why I was so shocked to hear about this happening.

I might even be OK with her staying in the class as long as her misbehavior stopped. I think the school will probably fire her, though. If I owned that business, I'm not sure I would take the risk of keeping her on. I'll feel bad for her if she loses her job, but nobody comes before my kids' well being.