THE LEFT LANE
Plenty of parents prove easy touch

Advertiser Staff and News Services

According to a poll conducted by Parenting magazine and America Online, lots of parents break the rules. Among the true confessions revealed in the poll:

• Fifty-five percent of parents admit they sometimes give answers when they help with homework.
• Forty-one percent say their child spent at least one night in bed with them in the past week.
• Forty percent admit their kids had no green vegetable the day before.
• Thirty-eight percent say they'll give their children dessert even if they didn't eat their dinner.

And you thought you were the only one.

The poop on bringing dogs to the workplace

Check with your boss to see if your dog can join you tomorrow in celebration of Take Your Dog To Work Day.

It's a campaign started by Pet Sitters International — and endorsed by the Hawaiian Humane Society — intended to encourage people to adopt dogs from animal shelters and encourage employers to offer benefits to help pet owners care for their animals.

Don't forget the poop scoops!

Festival lauds long U.S.-Japan friendship

The Honolulu Academy of Arts and Japanese Consul General Masatoshi Muto will present a free Japan/USA Friendship Day Family Festival on July 13, with open admission to the art museum and a variety of cultural activities and entertainment.

The festival begins with a brief ceremony at 1 p.m., followed by performances of traditional Japanese music and demonstrations of the tea ceremony, by an Urasenke grand master. A video program on Japanese culture and arts will be shown.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of relations between Japan and the United States.

Information: 532-8700.

Vacuum specializes in sucking up pet hair

When a garden-variety Hoover won't do the trick, here's a new vacuum with a little more bite. The Dyson's DC07 Animal is billed as "the most powerful upright for pet hair."

It's an eye-poppingly purple vacuum that has a specially designed "turbo tool" to remove stubborn hairs from confined spaces such as stairs and cars.

It's not cheap, though. The price tag is upward of $500. Available from www.Dyson.com, or phone (866) 755-9079.