Born between 1954 and 1965? You might be thrilled to learn you're not a Boomer. You're 'Gen Jones.'

These not-quite-Gen Xers share some pretty cool and unique traits.

The Silent Generation. Baby boomers. Gen X. Millennials. Gen Z. Gen Alpha. Social science and pop culture commentators have spent decades grouping and analyzing the different generations, assigning various qualities, habits and tendencies to each age group. But some people don’t identify with their generation, or at least these particular categories of them. Those on the cusp between two generations often feel like neither aligns with who they are.

How my father’s garage and a Chevy Vega helped save my life

As a teenager in the 1970s I struggled with substance abuse. A bad LSD experience put me in the hospital with broken bones and a shattered spirit. My father never gave up on me. "You could use some success," he said to me one day. "How about we rebuild the engine in your car?"

It was a 1973 Chevy Vega GT that burned a quart of oil with every tank of gas. Dad had been a Navy airplane mechanic during the Korean war, and spent his career as a mechanical engineer for John Deere. After my bones had healed we took the Vega apart in Dad's garage, then put the pieces back together again. I drove the car to college a few weeks later, and thanks to the lessons learned I was able to keep it running all the way through graduation.

Twenty-plus years later I was gainfully employed, married, with two children. Mom and Dad often came to visit. One morning as I was leaving for work, Dad said to me, "You're doing good, Richard. Keep doing what you're doing." His affirmation nearly surpassed the gift of kindness he'd made decades earlier. Actions may speak louder than words, but the power of words should not be underestimated.

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Mom is mortified after her kindergartner tells the teacher what she does for a living

"So, this wasn't on my bingo card."

One of the great joys and stresses of parenting is that you never know what will come out of your child’s mouth. When you have kids who are young and inquisitive, they can say really inappropriate things to people without knowing that they were being rude or possibly offensive. TikTok influencer Aurora McCausland (@auroramccausland), known for her DIY cleaning tips, recently told a funny story on the platform about how her son believes she makes a living. The problem was that she heard about it from her child's teacher.

Under or over? There actually is a 'right' way to hang a toilet paper roll.

The debate is settled, once and for all.

Humans have debated things large and small over the millennia, from democracy to breastfeeding in public to how often people ought to wash their sheets. But perhaps the most silly-yet-surprisingly heated household debate is the one in which we argue over which way to hang the toilet paper roll.

The "over or under" question has plagued marriages and casual acquaintances alike for over 100 years, with both sides convinced they have the soundest reasoning for putting their toilet paper loose end out or loose end under. Some people feel so strongly about right vs. wrong TP hanging that they will even flip the roll over when they go to the bathroom in the homes of strangers.