Stuff I Learned Yesterday

Winter break came around and my brothers and I had some time on our hands. One day we decided that each of us would choose one of our gifts from under the Christmas tree and open it. We would be very careful, sneek open the box, take a peek inside, and then seal it back up. Our parents would never even know. Since we were all in it together, there was no risk at one of us ratting out one of the others. It was collusion at its finest! I picked a box that was a couple of inches thick, about 10 inches wide, and about 15 inches long. I carefully sliced open the tape and slid the box from the wrapper. I popped the box open and did the dance of joy. Inside that box was my future, my pathway to coolness. Inside that box was a pair of Bugle Boy jeans. In fact, all three of us got Bugle Boy jeans for Christmas that year. Read More... The post 202- Are Those Bugle Boy Jeans? appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Christmas as a child and Christmas as an adult are totally different. As a child I had no responsibilities except to show up, read package tags, shred paper, navigate through all the carefully placed tape, and say thank you to the appropriate person. It was a pretty sweet deal. What made it sweeter was even if I failed at all of those things, I would still walk away with the same stuff. Christmas as a kid was awesome. Once I got to the age where I had a job, I had to start actually paying for the gifts that I was giving and I could no longer depend on my dad to do it. Man, growing up stinks! Not only that, the older I’ve gotten, the less stuff I get every year. Does that mean I’m getting closer and closer to being on the naughty list? Read More... The post 201- Cataloging Christmas appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share a contribution from Bonita. You can participate in Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback Page Read More... The post 200- Friday Forum appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Last week, I was in a mad rush, leaving the house to drop off my oldest at school, then planned to head directly to the gym. When I pulled out, I noticed a large box propped against our front door. It was white and long and not at all inconspicuous, so I realized I would need to make a quick trip back home to pull it inside before completing any more errands. I wasn’t expecting any large packages, but assumed that it must be something for my husband. I announced to my girls the plans that we were going to head back home, to pull the package inside and was immediately swamped with questions about the box’s contents. I explained that I didn’t know and that I wasn’t quite sure. Read More... The post 199- Secret Santa appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

The holiday spirit is everywhere this time of year. People seem to be a little bit nicer, a little bit friendlier and overall more generous. Perhaps it's a last ditch effort to get their names on the nice list, but most likely it's coming from the heart. I experienced some of that on Monday but my day didn't start off that way. The post 198- Donut Delight appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

To: Darrell From: Uncle Johnny, Aunt Susan, & Lacey DeAnn. Merry Christmas 1986. Those are the words inscribed inside the front cover of one of my Christmas gifts from that year. I know those are the exact words, because it’s sitting here on my desk right next to me as I type out this story. The gift was a small 3”x5” photo album. The entire cover is padded and it has a embossed gold frame on the front cover. Most people would say it’s burgundy in color but here in Oklahoma, we like to call it crimson. When the album is opened I see numbers. Numbers like 88, 4, 45, and 44. There on the very first page of the photo album is picture of 4 of my childhood heroes. Number 88: Keith Jackson. Number 4: Jamelle Holieway. Number 45: Lydell Carr. Number 44: Brian Bosworth. Read More... The post 197- Buzzed by The Boz appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Today’s story will take us back to 1983 or 1984. My parents were still married and we lived in a trailer house located in between the town I now live in, Edmond, OK, and the town north of here, Guthrie, OK. My brother was part of the local Boy Scouts group, and that group is the source of this story. My brother’s troop was responsible for a Christmas tree lot here in Edmond. I’m guessing it was some sort of fundraiser for them, but I’m not sure. What I am sure of is that on a cold December night my family and I found ourselves manning the lot and trying to sell evergreens. Read More... The post 196- The Hot Chocolate Meltdown appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share a contribution from Justina. You can participate in Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback Page Read More... The post 195- Friday Forum appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Who here loves mopping? Raise your hands!! I know a story about a mop may not sound like the most exciting lesson, but it did lead me to learn something new and I hope you will learn something too. Last year, mopping was my enemy. I had laminate wood flooring and tile throughout my entire home, and keeping up with the sweeping and mopping was at least a full-day’s job. Not to mention I had a little one that loved to discover whatever I didn’t keep up with and immediately initiate impromptu taste-tests of whatever she found. I am pretty diligent about sweeping up after meals and especially make a point to not miss sweeping after dinner, but mopping was a whole different beast. Read More... The post 194- The Right Tool appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

I’m a dog person. I’ve been living with one or more cats in the house ever since Kim and I first moved in together, but she’s the cat lover, I just happen to live in the same house with one and tolerate it for her sake. Dogs on the other hand, I can get into. The post 193- Decision Averted appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Sometime during the night after we had gone to sleep, Santa would sneak into the very room we were sleeping in, and he would leave special presents under the tree and fill the stockings with goodies. That Christmas morning in 1982 my brother and I awoke to the sight of two Huffy Laredo bicycles by the tree. They were mesmerizing. The Huffy Laredo bicycle had a beautiful padded banana seat, raised handlebars, a chain guard, and cool looking fenders over the wheels. Read More... The post 192- Two Wheeled Freedom appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Since a few of my stories over the next few weeks are going to be centered at my aunt and uncle’s home in Liberal, KS, today I want to tell you about their home and what I learned from traveling there each year during my childhood. Like most kids, I looked forward to Christmas break every year. What’s not to look forward to, right? Two weeks with no school, new toys would soon be in my hands, more time to play with friends, and if we were lucky, we might even get some snow. Those are the things kids love most. Read More... The post 191- We’re Not in Kansas Anymore appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share a contribution from Ana. You can participate in Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback Page Read More... The post 190- Friday Forum appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

This year has been interesting to say the least. It’s had its fair share of ups and downs, but mostly ups. I’m going to share something that’s pretty personal to me, and I ask that you hear it for it’s intent. This year we have struggled more than other years financially. This means we’ve made a lot of changes in our daily life routines and decisions. I never thought I was too materialistic or had a long list of unnecessary “needs”, but as we’ve had to make spending decisions more carefully, I’ve realized how untrue that really was. Even decisions as simple as buying specific brands of dish soap over a generic cheaper one were a little painful for me. Read More... The post 189- Post-It Note Christmas Tree appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

I’m 45 years old, so it shouldn't be a big surprise to hear that I wear glasses. After all, most people’s eyesight will degrade over time so I count myself lucky that I went 37 years with near perfect vision. The post 188- Reading The Fine Print appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

There are some aspects of starting my entrepreneurial journey that have been hard for me to figure out. For example, I’ve had a hard time mentally accepting the value that I provide my clients and believing that I am worth the amount of money that I charge them. I’ve also had a hard time selling myself to new clients because I’ve feel like I have to brag about myself to do that. Read More... The post 187- Understanding Value and Communication appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

A couple of weeks ago I shared an episode titled, “Thankful for My Kids.” In that episode I told you a little about my daughter Addison and how I look forward to meeting her after school each day. Today I’d like to elaborate on that. My studio sits at the front part of our house so I can see and hear cars as they go by each day. Among the traffic that I hear each day is the sound of the diesel engine that powers the school bus. I hear the roar of the engine and immediately look at the clock. Nearly every day it’s the exact same time, 3:54pm. Read More... The post 186- Opening the Door to Opportunity appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share contributions from Mary and Barb. You can participate in Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback PageRead More... The post 185- Friday Forum appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

In November 2002, I was studying abroad in Sundsvall, Sweden. Sundsvall is located on the Gulf of Bothnia, part of the Baltic Sea and is 395 km or roughly 246 miles North of Stockholm, Sweden. As you can imagine, by November things are beginning to get chilly in Sundsvall. In November the average temperatures range from a high of 36 degrees to a low of 23 degrees Fahrenheit. They also have a lot of precipitation owing to their gulf climate, much of which is, of course, snow. By the time Thanksgiving rolled around, the other foreign exchange students and I had been together for roughly 3 months, and begun to know each other quite well. We spent all of our free time together exploring our new home and taking day trips to exotic locations, like Ikea. Read More... The post 184- Best Thanksgiving Ever appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

You don't need to be an expert to succeed. There are plenty of people out there with less knowledge than you that would be thrilled to learn from you. Yes, there are going to be people with better skills and qualifications, but they may not be giving back they way you can. The post 183- Stalled In The Snow appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.