I once had a conversation with a very talented and very famous drummer which ended with him strongly believing that hearing was the most important sense, while I on the other hand believed it was sight. Irregardless we came to a consensus that our hands were the most vital in this battle of ear vs. eye, where we often take them for granted. I love my hands, maybe not their aesthetic, but I love that they can paint, draw, type, caress, and cook. It is with this that I feel their power fleeting. Opening a jar or water bottle first thing in the morning has become is problematic, although I discovered this camping during college. This disability has been coined as "Morning Hands." So with this let's celebrate our hands, all they can do, because it might not last forever.

Now that winter is upon us a commonly purchased item or items are gloves. Whether they're gift or for necessity, if you experience winter, you'll need them. They're are a million different types of gloves; leather gloves, suede gloves, etc. There are also so many types of gloves pertient to our existence such as medical gloves, those needed for cleaning rubber dish gloves, those needed for exercise or entertainment boxing gloves, baseball gloves, and last those needed as luxury and status symbols such as driving gloves.

It is certain that gloves were one of the first garments our ancestors created in order to battle the elements. Hiking across what is now known as Alaska into North America must have been freezing. Too bad they didn't have a pair of heated gloves, battery run with the price ranging from $200-$500. Sure these will keep you hands warm in the most extreme circumstances, but maybe that is false confidence when your legs and face become frost bitten. Now there is also HI Call a pair of gloves that adapt to you iPhone and mimic a fake mime-like telephone gesture. You listen with your thumb, and speak into you pinky, very classy as you can see. Then there's massage gloves, that extend a massage like feeling so you don't have too, too bad they hit two birds with one stone and massage the massager's hands. Next up are ping pong paddle gloves, Hander-Pants which are ridiculous purposeless gag-gift, Piano Gloves which sound nice, and then LED finger light gloves which is rather alien or predator like. So this holiday shopping season, think of Palm's and talk to the hand. 

As the the holidays approach, when you begin to spend time with your friends and family, it becomes even more evident how pertinent your parents were or weren't in your development. One by one my friends are moving in together, getting puppies, getting married, having kids, buying houses and cars, in no particular order. The real question becomes what type of parent will you be? 
Are you going to follow in your parents footsteps? Or do just the opposite?  Sigmund Freud spent his life studying or psychoanalyzing human development as a result of early childhood events and parental relationships. As a result Freudian theories believe that adult psychological problems stem from unresolved conflicts phased in adolescence. But are your parents to blame?

Today the world is much more conscientious and subconsciously aware of parenting philosophy, techniques, and processes. Whether it is no spanking or no peanut butter, there are a million different factors. Parenting is one convoluted mix of science, tradition, desire, and what one can only hope is common sense. So whether or not you decide to breast feed or eat the placenta, parents lifelong fear is hurting or loosing their child. Since the dawning of humanity parents have had to care for their children to ensure survival, where one misstep could be catastrophic. One can only imagine what Mother Mary felt watching her own son Jesus die. 

Which is no surprise that inventions like the Owlet and Exmobaby have hit the market, so that a parent can monitor their baby's vital signs, directed from their iPhones. Sure it may seem a bit overkill since baby fatality rates are at a all time low, plus parents could rely to heavily on the device and misinterpret the information. Obviously this is is a given, where the manufacturers actually have to stipulate this is "not" a medical device. But aside from misinterpretation and malfunctions, helicopter parenting has gone to a new realm, a virtual one. 

While these devices might make some sense, is the next step microchips? The recent hoax was that all European babies born would have a microchip inserted into them, but this actually isn't the far off truth for China where on Alibab alone there are hundreds of necklaces and watched to strap to your kid. Either way, at least these parents can sleep well at night knowing their child is safe. But are they, what are the physical and mental consequences of microchips? Will parent rely to heavily on them to not parent at all or will they simply create even more hyper-helecopter parents where their kids can hardly breath without it being tracked. Before considering a bookbag-leash or microchip for your kid, consider Freud's psychoanalysis. Successful parenting is a bit of trial and error by both parties, and nobody get's it right NO ONE. But so long as making a heartfelt effort, allowing your kids to make and learn from their mistakes, you'll see the fruitage of your hard work.  Also don't forget about you, parents need to take of themselves and each other so they can continue to give.

"Our mothers always remain the strangest, craziest people we've ever met.” Marguerite Duras