Eric Scheske

Supposedly, the coldest in the entire Grand Rapids, Michigan, area (we live 90 minutes from GR) and colder than any place in Alaska last night. It doesn't match 1978 yet, but as an adult, I've never experienced anything like this.

I took my three older boys to see Anchorman 2 last week. It was pretty bad. There were a few laugh-out-loud moments, and a large chunk of it was enjoyable enough, so I don't feel like I completely wasted two hours of my life and $30.

H.I.F. Minus 9, minus 44 windchill, in my town right now. I walked three blocks this morning, occasionally through hip-high snow drifts, and thought I might die. > The Midwest is being hit with the brunt of the cold, with temperatures plunging to 36 below zero -- the

I've become immersed in history the past couple of months. As a youngster, I read a lot of history, and I made it my major in college. I never stopped reading history as an adult, but it often took a backseat to other non-fiction reading. A few

No school tomorrow. I have no idea whether I'll be able to get to work. Just relaxing with Marie and the Seven. > The temperature predictions are startling: 25 below zero in Fargo, N.D., minus 31 in International Falls, Minn., and 15 below in Indianapolis and Chicago.

For the home front: Nifty tips for around the house [http://www.viralnova.com/awesome-life-hacks/].

We give our kids their last Christmas presents today. From Christmas through yesterday, we give them one small present every day. Most of the presents are things we got free or for a dollar or at a garage sale. But today, they get a "legitimate" gift, something kind

H.I.F. Great slice of Catholic history: the true causes of the potato famine [http://cafehayek.com/2013/12/malarkey.html]. > [A]fter defeating James II in 1690, protestants subjected Irish Catholics to harsh restrictions on land ownership and leasing. Most of Ireland's people were thus

From the Bottom Line Personal [http://www.bottomlinepublications.com/]: " "Suicide rates are highest in spring and summer, not during the winter holidays." Related: "Suicide is now the cause of more deaths than car accidents."

H.I.F. Not sure how I missed this news item from last October: Why have young people in Japan stopped having sex? [http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/20/young-people-japan-stopped-having-sex?CMP=twt_gu] The article is about, well, young people in Japan who