Stuff I Learned Yesterday

Like many of you, I had a pretty busy weekend.  My Saturday started with my son and I attending men’s Bible study at church, and then I had to set up the drum kit for Sunday’s church service.  While we were doing those things, my wife and daughter did a bit of shopping.  We all met back at our house shortly before lunch and then headed out together to deliver some flowers to my grandma for Mother’s Day. Once we finished our visit to my grandma we had time to grab a quick lunch before heading off to my high school reunion.  Addison had really enjoyed her one-on-one time with Kari earlier that day, and wanted to have a lunch with just the two of them.  Colby liked the idea of just having a lunch with me, so we agreed to split back up for lunch. While Colby and I were alone in my car he said, “Dad, I thought that when you quit your job you were going to get to spend more time with us.”  It was a beautiful sunny day so I had the sunroof open and the windows down.  While having the windows down and the sunroof ope

Today is the Friday Forum!! Friday Forum is your opportunity to Share what YOU’VE learned, so that other listeners and I can learn from YOU.  It can be a message as short as 30 seconds or several minutes long.  It really doesn’t matter just as long as it’s something that will benefit others.  You can participate in Friday Forum by calling and leaving a message at 304-837-2278, emailing an audio file to feedback@goldenspiralmedia.com, or clicking on the Send Voicemail tab on my website, GoldenSpiralMedia.com. In today's Friday Forum we hear Mother's Day contributions from Celina, Bonita, and Mark. Read More... The post 40- Stuff I Learned Yesterday Friday Forum Mother’s Day Edition appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

When I started this podcast nearly 2 months ago I never would have dreamed that I’d be doing any episodes about plants or gardening, but here I am doing my THIRD episode about that very topic. That does not mean that I now enjoy gardening or yard work. That has not changed and I do not see it changing anytime soon. However, I am committed to making sure my flower beds thrive this season and I’m learning stuff through that process. Brace yourself. I see many more garden related episodes in your future! For today’s episode, I want to take you back to that Friday about 3 weeks ago when my wife and I purchased the plants at our local garden center. My wife had been out running errands earlier that morning so we decided to meet at the store. I arrived a few minutes before she did so I took that time to look around and see if anything caught my eye. Since we had cleaned out nearly everything from the beds, we were looking for some good perennials, that is, plants that come back every year, to establish the f

I love Kevin Durant.  Outside of choosing to go to college at the University of Texas, the guy is everything you’d like a guy to be.  He’s funny, caring, athletic, good looking, humble, and has a great attitude.  In case you don’t follow sports, Kevin Durant is a small forward for the Oklahoma City Thunder and he’s one of the best basketball players on the planet.  This year he won his 4th scoring title, and yesterday he won the MVP of the NBA.   For those of us who live in OKC and get to watch Kevin interact with the community and play every night, we know just how amazing of a person he is.  He is selfless, deflects praise to those around him, acknowledges his shortcomings, and is ALWAYS giving of what he has to make the lives of those around him better.  He may have been acknowledged by the NBA as the MVP yesterday, but he’s been the MVP of OKC since he first stepped foot here in 2008. Yesterday afternoon about 3:30 I was starting to panic because I still had no idea what today’s episode of Stuff I Learned

I’m a terrible golfer.  On a regulation course, I’ve only broken 100 one time.  I don’t go very often, maybe once or twice a year, so it’s no surprise that I’m not very good.  Some people are naturally gifted at it and able to at least play near par without too much practice, but I am not one of those people.  In fact, if it is any kind of sport or athletic contest, I can assure you that the words naturally gifted would be the last thing anyone would say about me. But that does not mean that I do not enjoy playing golf.  I really do enjoy it.  I enjoy being outside and enjoying the scenery.  I enjoy the time I get to spend with those I golf with.  I enjoy trying to analyze what I’m doing wrong and trying to improve on my next effort.  I look at it like a puzzle...a very bad golfing puzzle. When I lived in Texas, I didn’t really have anyone to golf with, and I wanted to try out one of the local municipal courses.  My wife is not at all interested in golfing, but she thought it would be fun to get some sun.  Sh

When my neighbors, Allen and Mandy moved in a few years ago, their lawn was kind of lackluster.  It was a brand new house with new sod.  Most of the sod had taken root and was filling in pretty nicely, but it was just an average lawn.  There was one spot in particular that the sod was not growing.  Since it was a new home with new sod, the home builder came back out and laid down some fresh sod in that area. Allen and Mandy watered it, fertilized it, and did all they could to get it to take root, but it died again.  The grass in the rest of their yard was now looking really good.  It was green, thick, and healthy looking...with a very noticeable dead spot right in the middle of the yard out near the curb.  I didn’t really pay too much attention to how it happened or how long it took, but eventually, they managed to get the grass to grow.   My lawn is very average, and I think that is being generous.  It has weeds, there are a few thin spots in the grass, and it’s not very inviting.  When you walk on Allen and

Welcome to Stuff I Learned Yesterday.  My name is Darrell Darnell, I got paddled at school every single year except Kindergarten, 4th grade, 9th grade, and 12th grade, and I believe that if you aren’t learning, you aren’t living.  In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I’m happy to share another installment of the Friday Forum, dedicated to stuff learned from teachers. Read More... The post 35- Friday Forum Teacher Edition appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Really?  An internet video?  Yesterday’s episode tackled big topics like racism, homosexuality, religion, and politics, and today I’m offering wisdom from a YouTube video?  Yep.  That’s how I roll. I have come to the conclusion that I am a sucker for those inspiration audition videos from The X Factor, Britain's Got Talent and the like.  I don’t watch those shows.  I don’t really care for reality TV.  You may not watch them either, but you probably know the videos I’m talking about.  I’m talking about the video of Susan Boyle, who walked out on the stage of Britain's Got Talent a disheveled mess and walked off an internationally recognized name.   I see these videos show up in my Facebook timeline from time to time with a comment from one of my friends that says something to the effect of, “Wow, this blew me away!”  I usually scoff and tell myself that I don’t have time to watch a silly audition video from a reality show...and then I click on it.  By the time the video is over my mouth is open in shock and ey

Today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday is one that I’ve had in mind to do since the beginning, but I’ve been putting it off.  I wanted to make sure that when I did it, I had time to really think it out and choose my words carefully.  The things I’m talking about in today’s episode are the types of things that seem to easily get people get upset.  I don’t know if I’ve chosen the best words.  I don’t know if it’s even possible to choose the best words, but I think it’s time to go for it. The thing that pushed me over the edge to go ahead and do this episode is the recent controversy surrounding Los Angeles Clippers owner, Donald Sterling.  He’s an educated man, successful in business, and well traveled around the world.  A phone conversation was taped that he had with an associate of his, some say girlfriend, other say she’s an aide.  That’s not important really.  What’s important is that she posted a photo of herself with Magic Johnson to her Instagram page and this deeply bothered Mr. Sterling.  He was

I won something yesterday!  It’s pretty cool, really.  It’s a high quality microphone attachment for Apple devices like the iPad, iPad mini, and iPhone.  It’s called the Zoom iQ5. If it sounds like something that you might find useful, you can check it out at www.goldenspiralmedia.com/iq5.  That’s a link that will take you to B & H Photo and Video.   Would you like to know how I managed to win this really cool microphone?  Here’s my secret.  I entered the sweepstakes.  That’s it.  Now, you may not think I’m being serious but I am.  The reality is that if I would not have entered the sweepstakes, I would not have won the mic. And so it is with our goals.  What is your goal?  Lose weight, publish a book, start a podcast, develop a tutorial, learn how to crochet, build a birdhouse, restore that old car in your garage?  None of those things will ever be done if you never take the first step, and all of them can be accomplished if you do. Now, of course, there is a big difference in taking the first step in w

You know what I enjoy?  Well, lots of things, really, but to be more specific, I enjoy sitting at a computer and producing podcasts or building websites.  I can easily spend over 12 hours a day doing that stuff and not feel tired.  You know what I don’t enjoy?  Working out in my yard. As you probably know by now, it was right at a year ago when I left the company I had worked for for 19 years so that I could follow my dream of producing podcasts and building websites full time.  Last year I was focused totally on my business and saw my yard as even more of a nuisance than I normally do.  I kept up with mowing it, but that was all.  Since my wife doesn’t like yardwork either, this meant that our flower beds were totally ignored all year. We hated not giving them any attention and were really embarrassed by how terrible they looked.  We have two flower beds in our front yard.  One of them contained a big bushy plant that must be the most resilient plant on the earth, and the dead stems of a plant that didn’t ha

Welcome to Stuff I Learned Yesterday.  My name is Darrell Darnell, when I was 9 I sat on the front row of the movie The Return of the Living Dead just to prove to my brothers that I was brave, and I believe that if you aren’t learning, you aren’t living.  In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I’m happy to share another installment of the Friday Forum. Read More... The post 30-Friday Forum appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Time sure flies, doesn’t it?  It’s hard for me to believe that 20 years have gone by since I graduated high school.  I’ve mentioned before that I graduated from the thriving metropolis (if you use the word metropolis in the loosest way possible) of Wellston, OK in 1994.  I moved to Wellston before I went into the fourth grade. It was an odd adjustment for me.  I had previously gone to school in a much larger school district and the class structure was quite a bit different.  Of course, like any new kid at a school, I knew no one and had no friends.  I don’t know what it was that brought us together, but I soon became friends with a kid named James, and we were pretty much best buds from then on out. We were a small class.  I can’t find my senior yearbook at the moment, but I think my graduating class was around 36 kids.  My wife finds it hard to imagine what my high school experience was like.  She graduated with a group of over 450.  The thought of a school with that many people freaks me out a bit.  Since w

Welcome to Stuff I Learned Yesterday.  My name is Darrell Darnell, my favorite cookie is oatmeal raisin, and I believe that if you aren’t learning, you aren’t living.  In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share a story of conflict and confession. Friday Forum Friday Forum is your opportunity to Share what YOU’VE […] The post 28- Do You Want to Punch it Out, or Hug it Out? appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

When I was in seventh grade one of my teachers thought it would be good to teach our class a lesson on perspective.  She gave each of us a glass and had us fill it up half way with water.  She then asked us to carefully study the glass of water.  After we had time to study the glass of water she asked us a simple question.  She wanted us to tell her if the glass was half full or half empty.  She asked us to write our answer down on a piece of paper. To me, this question was not as simple as she wanted it to be.  No, I wasn’t one of those people who claimed that it was 100% full because what space was not filled with water was actually full of air.  My problem was that I recognized that the cup was simultaneously half full AND half empty.  The answer I wrote down was “both.”  The teacher asked those who answered “half full” to raise their hands.  She then asked those who answered “half empty” to raise their hands.  She noticed that another girl and I did not raise our hands either time and asked us what answer

I have to admit, I’m pretty excited about the state of Golden Spiral Media.  If you’ve been listening to any of our podcasts for a while, you are probably aware of the work that Golden Spiral Media does.  Just in case you aren’t here’s a brief synopsis.  Golden Spiral Media works in two branches.  One branch is this one, that is, the podcasting branch.  From this branch we record and produce podcasts about TV, Film, family, and life.  This currently includes The Revolution Podcast, Almost Human Podcast, We Have To Go Back Podcast, Triplecast, and this podcast.   The other branch of Golden Spiral Media is the branch I mentioned in the ad earlier.  That branch focuses on helping others with their podcasts.  It consists of consulting, website design, podcast production, custom artwork, and music. It’s been almost one year since I left my regular day job so that I could put my full focus into Golden Spiral Media and both branches are growing nicely.  Yes, I still have some room to grow before I fully make up for

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today's episode I share contributions received from Jill, Ana, and Bonita. You can participate in a future Friday Forum episode by calling and leaving a message at 304-837-2278, emailing an audio file to feedback@goldenspiralmedia.com, or clicking on the Send Voicemail tab on my website, GoldenSpiralMedia.com. Read More... The post 25- Friday Forum appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Time really flies when you’re having fun, right?  The first episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday was released on March 17, so that means that today marks the one month anniversary of Stuff I Learned Yesterday.  This last month has been one of the most challenging and rewarding that I’ve had both personally and professionally.  I’ve learned a lot about myself and some of you in the process.  I don't anticipate that I'll do this type of retrospective episode every month, but I do think there is value in taking time to reflect.  I'll probably take time to reflect when I reach certain milestones like my 100th episode, 1 year anniversary, etc. While Stuff I Learned Yesterday has the smallest audience size of any podcast I’ve ever done, it has already become one of the most rewarding podcasts for me.  In case you’re wondering, Stuff I Learned Yesterday is the 8th podcast that Golden Spiral Media has done.  Portable Orchard will likely not be coming back anytime soon, The Revolution Podcast and Almost Human Podcast

As I mentioned in an earlier episode, my parents divorced when I was 9.  My dad remarried later that year, in December I think.  Sometime after my parents divorced and before the next school year started, my dad moved us into a rent house in a small town.  It was the town that my soon to be step-mom and her two kids lived.   I was going into 4th grade, my step-brother would be in 5th grade, my brother would be in 6th grade, and my step-sister would be a senior.  Once my step-sister graduated high school she moved off to college and we only saw her occasionally.  So for the most part, our home was just the three of us boys, each one grade apart.   During the time of that first school year when my dad and stepmom had not yet married, we were instructed to go to her house immediately after school.  She lived right across the street from the school so this made sense.  We would hang out with my soon to be step siblings and other neighborhood kids.  Our parents would arrive home from work a couple of hours later a

Today’s story begins on an ordinary Wednesday, in an ordinary dorm room in 1995.  I was nearly finished with my first year of college, and as the semester was drawing to a close, I had a few assignment deadlines approaching.  One of the assignments was for a paper I had to write.  I have no idea which class it was or what the paper was about.   What I do remember is that on this particular day I was up early trying to finish the paper before I headed off to work.  It was shortly before 9am.  I fired up the computer and turned on the local radio station.  I sat there typing away for several minutes and didn’t think much of it when I heard a rumbling sound above me.  I thought the guys in the room upstairs must have dragged something heavy across the floor. A few minutes later there was an interruption on the radio.  The morning DJ announced that a major explosion had just occurred in downtown Oklahoma City.  It was now just a few minutes after 9am and 168 lives, 19 of them children, had just been lost as a Ryd