On The Fly

In this episode, Our Town . . . Like millions from the  Baby Boom  generation, I grew up in a vibrant small Midwestern town with a population of ~1,300. While listening to music on Spotify, I was recently emotionally moved by the 2007 Grammy Award-winning song  Our Town  written for the Disney Movie -  Cars. Lyrics & Music  by Randy Newman and sung by James Taylor. In my imagination, I'm transported back in time. With tears welling up in my eyes, I can see all the storefront businesses on  our  town square, which surrounded a Bandstand on Main Street. In those days,  Our Town had three grocery stores, two cafes', two hardware stores, a National Bank, a Ben Franklin Store, Movie Theater, a Tastee Freeze, Drug Store with a Soda Fountain, a Furniture Store, Men's Clothing Store, Marshalls Plumbing & Heating, Tavern, Insurance offices, Wilma's Pool Hall, Doctors Office, a Newspaper Printer, Post Office, Library, two Barbershops, a Ford De...

In this episode, The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum . . . Baseball fans, Major League Spring Training started on March 17, 2022. ( My Cubs vs. Chicago White Sox ) Opening day is less than one month away. My question to you is this, "Have you made plans which ballparks to visit this year?" How about the American League Central, Kansas City Royals? Casual fans may not realize this, but baseball in Kansas City has a grand tradition. Just ask Johnny. At 18th and Vine, history comes alive at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. A few years ago, while in Kansas City, I met Johnny. A dapper museum docent, seated in the lobby, sporting a fedora, wearing a fine vest, a large turquoise ring on his right hand, and high gloss polished shoes, Johnny took the time that day to share the following tale he heard baseball legend Buck O'Neil spin many times. "It was the grand opening celebration of the museum, 1990. My hero, Buck O'Neil, had invited the stars of black...

In this episode, The Mac . . . While looking for something to share with you today, this article from the How-to Geek Newsletter by BENJ Edwards popped up in my feed. Hello the Apple Macintosh, or The Mac, has been a well-known computer platform since 1984. Have you ever wondered why it's called Mac?  Yes, It's Named after a Type of Apple. Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ron Wayne founded Apple Computer on April 1, 1976. No fooling! After visiting an apple farm while on a fruitarian diet, Jobs decided on the Apple name. The story has it; Jobs wanted Apple to alphabetically appear before Atari in the phone book. In 1979, an Apple employee, Jeff Raskin, began working on Apple's experimental appliance-like computer project. In a 2003 interview with ACM's Ubiquity journal, Raskin described the origins of what he named the project: "I called it 'Macintosh' because the McIntosh is my favorite kind of apple to eat. And I figured that if I was going to have an app...

In this episode, Who Was Dr. Seuss . . . I'm curious, have you ever wondered where the name Dr. Seuss came from? Theodor Seuss Geisel was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on March 2, 1904. Today we celebrate his 118 birthday! After reading The Cat in the Hat for the first time in a previous podcast episode ( Tribute to Dr. Seuss ), we decided to try our hand at his literary style. I'm here to say it wasn't easy. Why Dr. Seuss? Well, remember that children's books series (The Who Was Series) we introduced you to? During a recent visit to Barnes and Noble, I picked up Who Was Dr. Seuss by Janet B. Pascal. After reading that book, I was compelled to order Oh, the Places You'll Go! What a marvelous book. I'll admit I've become captivated with these books; why? If you look carefully, the attention to character detail is outstanding. The facial expressions, the use of colors, the carefully crafted words created to rhyme, and the scope of the implied meaning wi...