Good Questions from The Peanut Gallery

On the futility of parental sleep

Adam had tucked himself in for an afternoon nap on Saturday and was dead asleep when Alice crawled into bed with him.

She put her tiny hands on his face and started patting his cheeks.

"Daddy?" she said. "I have a question. What's a nap?"


I like cashews, myself

My sister Ann has a spunky 2 1/2-year-old named Ellie.

"Ellie," said Ann, after a particularly trying afternoon, "You're making me nuts!"

"Oh," Ellie said. "Do you like nuts?"


Uh-oh

I teach high school students, and some of my favorites have started up their own Internet radio station. They're doing a great job, but sometimes play songs that get them into trouble. Recently, one student played a song with the F-word in it, and I was explaining to Adam that we were working out the consequences of that.

From the next room, Lucy said, "I know what the F-word is, but I would never use it."

Then, after a seven-second pause, comes her voice again: "It's F*CK!"