Posts

Once upon a time, 30 years ago....

  Is it unusual to know what you want to do for a living at such a young age?   Because I was about 13 years old.   I was obsessed with a radio station called “Hot 95.9, WNPQ.”   I knew the names of all the radio personalities and when they worked.   I occasionally would call in to the request line to request songs.   One DJ put me on the air requesting “Baby, Don’t Treat Me Bad” by Firehouse.   The morning show host was “The Big Daddy” Mike Adams, and I would call in to play games and win prizes.   I was the proud owner of a Nelson cassette tape and a Vanilla Ice cassette tape because I won the “5 In 10” game.   A few years later, the owner of the station decided to “flip” the format and one day I turned on the station and it was playing a Carly Simon song.   I was heartbroken.   I kept periodically tuning into the station hoping it was all just a cruel joke, but sadly, it was gone forever.   Little did I know that I experie...

How to get the podcast with Shannon Beaver

THE LINK is dollabilltre.supercast.tech . It's also in my bio on my IG. You just click the link and it takes you to the landing page. And in case you didn’t hear from earlier podcasts or seen in prior posts, there IS a charge for this podcast. It’s $5. It’s simple to get it, but there are a few extra steps. When you get to the landing page, you click the BUY NOW button to pay a ONE TIME FEE of $5. SUPER safe. It’s all handled third party. Neither Shannon or I will see your name or credit card information or anything. After you pay the $5, you’ll get an email link with the podcast that you can use to play it in the podcast player of your choice: Apple, Spotify, etc. It’s 2 hours long so I feel like you’ll be getting your $5 worth! I also want you to know that I internally debated about charging for this podcast. The last time I actually charged for anything was when I used to mow Mrs. Behringer’s lawn back in 8th grade (she used to pay me TEN whole dollars.) It’s impo...

The Reset Button

When the ball drops tonight at midnight, and glasses are clinking and friends and family are wishing you a Happy New Year, I’m confident that I will be fast asleep.   Believe me, I’m just as excited as you to say goodbye to this wretched, ill-fated year.   I’m an eternal optimist but I’m also a realist.   When the calendar flips to January 1 st , 2021, nothing really will change except for the date on your iPhone.   I’m afraid 2021 is going to look a lot like 2020, at least at first.   Covid cases continue to surge, deaths are still climbing at an alarming rate, and it appears that even the distribution of the vaccine is going to be a giant shitshow.   I wish 2021 was like a reset button that we could hit and have our lives go back to normal in an instant.   Sadly, reset buttons only work for computers and video games, but not in the game of life.   There’s a book that I read a long time ago called “The Blind Assassin” by Margaret Atwood.  ...

What do I have to be thankful for in 2020? Answer: A lot.

Some of the best advice that I've ever received in my life seems to pop back into my brain each and every Thanksgiving.  It usually happens as I'm trying to think of things that I'm most thankful for.  Growing up, when I used to have Thanksgiving dinner with my mother's side of the family, it was a tradition to go around the room and recite some things that you were thankful for in front of all my relatives, so I got into the habit of being prepared with what I was going to say before dinner was served.  However, I would imagine that this year....this demonic, possessed, cursed and evil year.....that people are really struggling to come up with a long list of things to add to their thankful list.   The advice I received was this:  "No matter what happens in our lives, we have much to be thankful for.  No matter how much pain we've suffered, there has been a more than equal measure of joy to counteract it.  The people who don't think so are blind i...
So, I'm starting to think that 2020 just isn't my year.  Am I right, people?!?  I say this knowing that we're all in this pandemic together, and there are so many individuals that are having a way more difficult year than I am.  For starters, I haven't lost a loved one to Covid-19.  My family is completely healthy and happy, although my two sons have a tendency to whine a lot.  But in this completely divided country, I'm fairly certain we can all agree on one thing:  2020 fucking sucks.  However, despite the frustrating moments, I'm determined to keep my perspective. The older I get, the more I realize that one of the keys to surviving in this world is having a healthy dose of perspective. With that said, I'll ask your forgiveness if I lose it anytime in the next 5 minutes. On Monday, November 2nd, 2020, a little more than a month shy from celebrating my 11th anniversary with the "Johnjay and Rich" show, IHeartMedia told me not to come in anymore. ...