Stuff I Learned Yesterday

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share a contribution from Hanna. You can participate in the Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback Page or calling our voice feedback line at 304-837-2278. Read More...

I don’t know about you all, but one of the ways I deal with fear is through research. I find that I can reduce anxiety by simply researching and getting to know the object of my fear better. This doesn’t always work, of course. I still have major anxiety before speaking in front of a group of people and traveling to New York still makes me panic… but I deal with those stressors in different ways. They are the exception, not the rule. Read more...

My willpower used to be pretty strong when it came to donuts. When I was on a low carb diet during the days when Atkins and South Beach were making the rounds, I discovered it was true what they say about your body chemistry changing. After awhile of sticking to high-protein foods and staying away from bread and pasta, you start to lose your craving for those carb-heavy items - including donuts. Pretty cool! In fact, every month on a Friday, the different departments at the high school where I work host a breakfast for the staff. Sometimes the math teachers would bring in goodies; other times it would be the English instructors treating us to yummy food. Whether there were homemade treats or fruit or bagels or eggs depended on what people signed up to bring, but there were always donuts. And for the year I was doing the low-carb thing - around 2003-2004 - I was able to walk right by that table. I considered myself to have good willpower, ascribing the ability to resist temptation to some mental fortitude rather than the chemistry of cravings. Read more...

Elections are not the only time when we need to do our homework and make an informed choice. We do this every day at work and at home. We do it when we make important decisions, whether it is buying a home, deciding which college to attend, accepting a new job, moving across the country.  Read more...

To say that not much in the way of excitement happened in the small town in which I grew up is an understatement. When you're in a town of about 850 people, there's really not that much that goes on. Life is pretty peaceful and predictable. Did I say predictable? About 2 miles outside of town, nestled a stones throw off of old Rt. 66 was a very unassuming single wide mobile home. Many of the folks that lived in and around my hometown lived in mobile homes and so we never gave them a second thought. One day people around school began talking about this one mobile home and how something special was taking place at this particular home after dark. According to rumors, the homeowner got up one night to use the bathroom. For reasons I never learned or can't recall, the homeowner decided to close the lid of the toilet, stand on top of it, and look out the window. What he saw next was something that he believed to be a sign from God himself. He saw three crosses of glistening light out in his yard. Read More...

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share contributions from Faith and Bonita. You can participate in the Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback Page or calling our voice feedback line at 304-837-2278. Read More...

Pokemon Go has taken the world by storm, and different people seem to view the phenomenon in a variety of ways, both positive and negative. On the one hand, video gamers are coming out from behind their screens, getting up off the couch, and breathing some fresh air and feeling the sunshine while interacting with their community. On the other hand, they’re still staring at their screens and sometimes engaging in unsafe behavior while trying to capture those elusive Pokemon. Read more...

We all have times in our lives that are busy. Some of those times are expected and others come by surprise. I’ve found that the world around me is non-stop and relentless. It is so easy to get pulled in, that I can feel like I’m drowning in busyness and stress. Rest is hard to come by.Read more…

It’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere! This is the time when many families take a summer vacation. It’s also a time to visit family, friends, to explore new places and to make special memories that can last a lifetime.  Read more...

I've been happily married for over 17 years now so it's been quite a while since I was doing the dating thing. That's a part of my life that I hope I never have to do again. I know that the dating experience is different for everyone, but as I look back on that part of my life now, I just shake my head. What I mean is, when I look back at my 18-23 year old self, I shake my head at myself when I realize how dumb I was. Read More...

Today is the Friday Forum!! In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share contributions from Susan and Hannah. You can participate in the Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback Page or calling our voice feedback line at 304-837-2278. Read More...

My parents make up a lot of who I am. Since my dad’s death, I’ve had more people tell me that I remind them of him than ever before. This was a compliment before his death, but now it’s an honor. My dad was not perfect by any means, but he had so many excellent qualities that I have been trying to emulate for a long time. Without him here, I feel like I’ve been able to see his life more objectively than ever before. Read more...

If you’re struggling with perspective today I get it! If you’re too close to the situation at hand it’s hard to see other things that are happening and other people that are influencing you—or that you may be influencing.Read more…

Criticism can be an attack that tears you down or a method that builds you up. So much depends on how you take it and how you give it. You may remember, from one of my prior SILY episodes, I am someone who thrives on clear expectations and goals. But I am also not great at making my own. So I welcome others setting expectations and goals. Based on that, you would think that I would thrive with constructive criticism. Well not really. Read more…

Long time listeners to this podcast know that I am not athletically inclined at all. As a youngster playing t-ball I was sent to the outfield where I'd have the smallest chance of messing things up, as an 8th grader I made the football team but was deep on the roster, as a 9th and 10 grader I never made the varsity basketball team and only made it into the junior varsity teams if the game was a blowout and there was less than 1 minute remaining. I'd like to tell you that it didn't bother me but that would be a lie. Both my brother and step-brother were very athletic so it bothered me a lot. On top of that, I saw the way athletes were treated by everyone at school, and I was jealous. I was a geek before being a geek was cool. I was the guy that girls called sweet and told to never change. It stunk. Read More...