Tag Archives: 3B

The Now Normal Continued or: How A Decade Goes

26 Thursday Mar 2020

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Salutations™!!0001Trey

At least I still get to see The Boy, aka 3B a few days a week. He cut his hair a little, too. He still has more than I ever had and I’m still jealous as heck, but he did cut a bit of it off. I’d say around 8 inches.

A few days ago, one of those memories came up on Facebook and it was from 10 years ago. It was the picture of 3B holding my guitar, in my bedroom, doing his best rock pose. Today, I got him upstairs to hold the guitar again and in the same pose. Wow, time is fun when you’re having flies. A decade passed. Wow, again. Wow.

Until tomorrow, wash your damn hands…
Scorp out!

—
“How did it get so late so soon? Its night before its afternoon. December is here before its June. My goodness, how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?” – Dr. Suess

Proud Papa Moment or: Feel the Burn

08 Saturday Feb 2020

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Salutations™!!

I don’t hold back when I have a “Proud Papa Moment” and this is one of those. So, if you’re not into the doting dad thing, then you may want to skip on this one.

Yesterday morning, at 5am, I took my son, 3B to the Career Center to grab a bus to head to Charlotte to Johnson & Wales University to compete in the state culinary arts competition. When I got to my mother’s house (where he was staying) to pick him up, he had already gotten himself up and was ready to go. That doesn’t happen often. Usually, it’s a fight to get him going. But, not this morning.

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3B wearing his silver medal

He got on the bus and took the trip, competed and came home. He sent me a text at 230pm, on the trip back, and said “silver.” Silver is great! 2nd place, right!? Well, not exactly, but still… He said he would have done better had he not burned his hand. He was basically handicapped the whole second part of the competition. I say not exactly because there were eight teams. Three won silver and five won bronze. So, there was no gold but the team still kicked butt!

He had a kitchen towel over his hand to grab a pan of sweet potatoes but he adjusted his hand and the towel fell off right as he was grabbing the pan. So, yeah, he burned it.

I talked to his teacher, Chef Estep, and as he got off the bus, he pointed at 3B and nodded his head with a big grin. I asked if he did well and he said, oh yeah. Holding up his fingers showing about a half-inch gap said “this close to gold.”

Earlier, I had told Chef Travis Myers how he did and that if he stays on his path he should be really good at what he’s doing. Chef Travis said, “well, we’re building a lab to grow him,” speaking about the newly announced restaurant that he and Ryan Oberle are creating. I told Chef Estep about that and Chef Estep said, “he’s ahead for his age.” I’ve witnessed 3B in the kitchen and he really does know what he’s talking about.

When we got back home, I checked the mailbox and he had gotten a package from the National Society of High School Scholars and he gets to wear a golden cord and has a large diploma-like certificate stating that he has membership in it. He also has a golden medallion to wear, as well.

So, it was a good day for him and a good “daddy day” for me. I love this boy so much and am so proud of him. If he keeps straight, there really is no limit to his opportunities, especially with the contacts in this industry that I have here locally and the network the contacts have. He will go places if that’s what he wants to do. He has dreams and aspirations and I plan to help him get to those however I can but he has to put in the work.

Again, so proud of my boy!

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“The university offers a wide variety of degrees, including Accounting, Fashion Merchandising & Retail Management, Equine Studies/Equine Business Management & Riding, Management, Marketing, Criminal Justice, Entrepreneurship, Hotel & Lodging Management, and Sports/Entertainment/Event Management. The Providence Downcity campus offers two- and four-year degree programs in areas of technology such as network engineering, electronics & robotics engineering, computer programming, biology, health science, and graphic design.” – Johnson & Wales University

A Decade of Decadence or: The Most Desirables?

03 Monday Feb 2020

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Salutations™!!

Today is the 10th anniversary of The Less Desirables’ first-ever episode, both recording and airing. February 3, 2010, was a Wednesday and I went to the area between Reynolda Road, Silas Creek Parkway and Wake Forest Road and picked up Brian from work as his car was in the shop.

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10 Years Old Today (the podcast, not the logo)

I took him to my house only to realize that I didn’t have the right mic or mic cable in my house for more than one person to talk. So, we had to run over to where the bands that I had been in had practiced and grabbed the right mic and cable and headed back to my house.

We sat in the “media room” (what is now 3B’s room) and looked at each other. “What are we going to talk about?” I asked. “I don’t know,” he said. I replied, “I tell you what… I’ll hit the record button and we’ll just see what happens. If we don’t like it, we can try again.”

The point was to have a 20-minute podcast, this newfangled kind of “radio-on-demand” or recorded audio thingy because 20 minutes is about the length of an average commute here in the Triad. Some are longer, some are shorter, but it’s about average at 20. How we were going to come up with something to talk about for 20 minutes was wracking our brains.

I hit the button. 38 minutes later, the first one was recorded. An hour later it was on a web server and I had half-arsed written an RSS feed, the best I could figure, and was ready for people to listen to. I don’t know that anyone did. I still don’t know if they hear them now. I just know that there are plenty of downloads. That first one was a bit rough and I think neither Brian nor myself would argue that.

It wasn’t fascinating stuff. But, you know what? Few people were doing it. We essentially had our own radio program, a morning-type show, and we were proud of that. And, here we are 10 years later and I am still proud of what we did that first day and all 520 episodes since. I am pretty sure Brian would agree with that.

This Wednesday will be the 10th-anniversary recording, number 521. I know that Eugene, Caitlin, Beer Guru Jay Platt, Danielle and Bethany will be there. There is a slim chance that Brian and Bruce will come but I’m not really sure. I’d love to have all of us in a room at once. Heck, it would be great if Superfan Damien could be here, too. But, he’s all the way out in Super Bowl Champion World (that’s Kansas City). It would be great, though. That first show even predates The BCPF by a few months.

Without that first show, there probably wouldn’t be any Fan Interference, any Camel City Dispatch News Hour, Tart & Tangy Triad, The Beer Dads, The Man Who Ate the Town, Apartment 5B, Sipping NC: The Art of Drinking, or Beeswax Vinyl & More. No The Less Desirables Network. No, Rule 1 Podcast, Owner’s Manual, No Mask No Cape Podcast, Forsyth Mags Podcast, Open the Blue Door Podcast, Wine About Real Estate Podcast, Margaret’s SpeakEasy Podcast, Transformative Conversations Podcast, Lunch Link Podcast, Thrive with Dara and Garth, or any of the ones that I should be starting in the next few weeks.

I’m not saying that none of these last group of podcasts wouldn’t be there, I’m just saying that I wouldn’t be the one making them happen if it weren’t for the first-ever recording of The Less Desirables 10 years ago today. I wouldn’t be called “the Podfather.”

When I started this journey in 2010, no one knew what a podcast was. I had to explain around seven times a day what it was. Now, I only have to explain it once every seven days. Now, almost literally everyone has a podcast and when people around here want to start one, they at least come to me first. That makes me feel good. It makes me feel important. It makes me feel like I truly am the “father” of the podcast culture around this area.

All this because Brian and I sat in a room in my house and made stuff up for about 40 minutes. Since that first day, there is only one thing that has stayed constant since the very first show. Not me, I haven’t been on every show. Not Brian, he left in 2014. Most would think it is the theme song (which I wrote, by the way). Nope to all of that. The only thing constant since the first-ever show (which was recorded on that day) is the disclaimer at the very end. It still has Brian’s voice on it, here, five and a half years since his leaving. So, even though he’s not here, he’s here every week.

If you’d like to hear this (very rough) first episode, you can do so here. Listen to that one and then listen to the one this week and hear the difference.

Well, here’s to another 10 years (at least) of The Less Desirables and The Less Desirables Podcast Network. Thank you for listening and reading…

Until tomorrow, same pod channel at some pod time (your choice)…
Scorp out!

—
“The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the contributors and not necessarily those of our distributors or hosting company. This podcast is copyrighted and any use of this product cannot be reproduced without the expressed written consent of Such-N-Such Limited, Inc. So don’t do it…” – The Less Desirables

The Aftermath or: Perfect 2020

01 Wednesday Jan 2020

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Salutations™!!

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No caption needed

The BCPF and I hosted our first New Year’s Eve event at our house last night. It was just a small gathering. The BCPF made a French onion pot roast and brie and fig jam pastries and I made my “breakfast deviled eggs.” It was potluck from there, so Beer Dad Jon and his Pilot brought salad stuff and pie and wine. Beer Dad Paul and his Pilot brought wine, potatoes au gratin, and a corn & green bean casserole. Our Jim Young brought a “hot corn” dish made with jalapenos and spices. It had a kick but was delish. 3B and Nephew CRAJ hung out with us long enough to eat. I even put 3B to work in the kitchen for a few minutes.

I played DJ with an “all request line.” Each guest had their own time to make a request and I told them all, “if I don’t have it, I have something comparable.” The only thing I didn’t have was BD Paul’s initial request for Louis Prima. He was satisfied with a little Dean Martin, though. We talked about music, life, fun, beer, food, it was just good.

Then we pulled out the playing cards. We play a little game we call “shitboots.” Yeah, I don’t usually use curse words on this blog but this is the name of it, so there. It’s a game that my brother-in-law had a hand in making up in his college days. I won’t get into the game right now, but it is a load of fun and Celeste, BD Jon’s Pilot, won both games!

We had the ABC feed on the tele when the ball dropped. But, we all agreed, instead of listening to the trainwreck that is always an NYE program (I am looking at you CNN), we continued with music and the sound “off” on the TV. We had a bubbly that was recommended by our pal Frank at Publix and he was spot on. It wasn’t too sweet and it hit the spot. Good stuff.

Hugs, kisses, smiles, promises of a great year. It was a great way to start.

So, my wish to all my readers and all my listeners of the podcasts that I host/produce, the happiest of new years and let’s have a productive, safe and prosperous year in life, work and everything else. Also, in the words of Bill & Ted, “be excellent to each other!”

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Come, gentlemen, I hope we shall drink down all unkindness.” – William Shakespeare

Christmastide or: Family

25 Wednesday Dec 2019

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Salutations™!!

It’s Christmas Day, which means that The BCPF’s brother and mother come to Ma ‘Rents’ home and we all celebrate together. Then, The BCPF and I head to Chef Travis Myers’ house and along with about 45 other people we have a big family-style dinner. 3B was able to go this year and that was cool. Chef had him chopping and grating. It was cool to watch.

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Chef Travis carving up some prime rib

Anyway, after 24 hours of A Christmas Story, the fam, the food, I need a vacation. I’m taking off until the first of the year. I’ll still be writing the blog, of course, I just won’t be “working” in the studio. I’ll do some stuff from home, though.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and I’ll talk to you tomorrow…

Until then, Merry Christmas…
Scorp out!

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“We prefer booze!” – Chef Travis Myers

The Eve or: Shrimp and Ham and Stuff

24 Tuesday Dec 2019

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Salutations™!!

It’s Christmas Eve and this is when my family has beer-steamed shrimp (mmmmm) and ham and all kinds of treats and goodies. So, from The BCPF, 3B and myself, along with the entire TLD Network, we wish you all a happy whatever it is you celebrate!

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Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

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“Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childhood days, recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth, and transport the traveler back to his own fireside and quiet home!” – Charles Dickens

The Clearing or: Plus is More

12 Thursday Dec 2019

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Salutations™!!

I’m finally starting to really clear up from all my crap the last weeks. There’s definitely a light at the end of the tunnel. I talked a good bit today so I’m a bit hoarse still but that’s getting better, as well. I was able to sing a little today which has definitely been out of the question during my sick time.

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©Walt Disney Pictures/RKO Radio

Today, I had time to have lunch with my son, 3B and his girlfriend. Of course, I took them to Zesto Burgers. I don’t get to do that much any longer since he has Career Center in the afternoons, has a job and has a girlfriend. So, that was a good turn.

I have been talking with two people that I have either done a podcast with in the past or am currently doing a podcast with now and we have a big project in the works and if it materializes, we will have a big announcement coming in the new year. That’s exciting to me.

The latest of the Disney+ watches include Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan and Lady and the Tramp.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“We are Siamese if you please. We are Siamese if you don’t please.” – Si & Am (Lady and the Tramp)

Before We Fell or: We Live On

10 Tuesday Sep 2019

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Salutations™!!

Here we are, September 10. Today, 18 years ago, my ex-wife and I found out that we were going to be parents. We were on a high. The emotions were grand. The world our oyster, now, right?

We told our parents. We relished in the news. This is what we should have been looking forward to. We were going to raise this kid in a world full of hope and promise. And then…

That Tuesday came. Early morning, September 11, 2001. I had just gotten out of the shower and walked into the bedroom where the news was reporting that a (small) plane had hit one of the “Twin Towers” of the World Trade Center. Hmmm, I said. And prepared to go on about my business. I turned the television on in the living room and as I was watching the Today show, a second plane hit the other tower and we all knew at that moment, this was no accident and the world was to never be the same. We knew it the whole time. We felt it. We lived it. We didn’t have to live in New York, or Washington or Shanksville, PA to have our collective teeth kicked down our throats.

This high that we were riding was a sudden crash. We were gonna rule the world and suddenly, why would we ever bring a child into this world? Well, we did, thankfully. 3B was born in May and our lives have never been the same. His mother and I have been separated most of his life, but we’ve remained friends and we make decisions about him together. The BCPF has been with him for most of his life, too. She’s probably more strict on him than anyone.

So, even though the world fell apart the next day, and even though we thought it was a tragic world we’d expose him to, we did and he’s a wonderful young man today. He works hard and sometimes does his school work. But, he’s a respectful dude and he’s a protector of those he loves and cares for. I guess I couldn’t ask for more.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“He who fears he will suffer already suffers because he fears.” — Michel De Montaigne

The Last or: 13th Time

26 Monday Aug 2019

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Salutations™!!

Today was the first day of school in the WSFCS system. That means it was 3B’s first day. I know a lot of people were posting “first day of school” pictures on social media all day. I know some people have a problem with that. I don’t understand what the problem can be. You don’t like it, stay off of social media. That’s what I’d be told if I complained about something, right? Right indeed! It has happened.

I’m not big on posting mine on social media, although I have done it. And, of course, I’ll be adding one in this post and then sharing on social media so, yeah, I too will be adding mine. But, I get how people get tired of seeing it. I don’t care one way or another. We are proud of our kids and rejoice in it. I say this because today was the last “first day of school” that 3B will have. At least for the elementary/primary/K12 school life.

He’s a senior, a twelfth grader, last year. Senioritis kicked in around Third Grade so he has been living that for a few. I’m kidding mostly. I saw him a few minutes ago and asked how his first day was and he said “boring.” That explains what we’ll deal with all year. I love him and am proud of him, but I wish he had more gumption to do better in school. We’ll see what happens.

Anywhat! Here’s his first picture.

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Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Starting a new job is always scary, or at least for me, it’s always scary. It’s like the first day of school.” – Sean Maher

A Dollar Short or: Terrifier

13 Tuesday Aug 2019

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Salutations™!!

To be perfectly transparent, I am writing this on Wednesday and not Tuesday as my son, 3B had me watch a creepy, campy and somewhat funny (read: eye-rolling) “horror” film called Terrifier.

It involves a clown who makes crazy-creepy faces and beheads, mames, mauls and destroys people that get in his way. It’s really kind of dumb but it was kind of fun as I’ve not watched a horror film in a while. Is it worth your time? I don’t know. I don’t know if it was worth mine. But, I did it.

So, take that with a grain of salt. Sorry about the delay.

Until tomorrow (or today)…
Scorp out!

—
“Punctuality is the thief of time, dear.” – Cat Lady