The Mason Minute

Fifteen years ago today, the first episode of The Mason Minute debuted. I hung up my headphones after leaving the radio business in 2006. But I never imagined taking on a project like a podcast. And most podcasts only last a few years. And I think about that fact often. But in all honesty, I never thought I would do this for even a decade, let alone 15 years. Now, I can’t imagine not doing it, and even though it’s only 60 seconds long, the time it takes to create, edit, and produce each episode is more involved than you might imag...

I’ve always been amused that nearly every fast food restaurant sells a fish sandwich during the Lenten season. I understand why they do it, but I always wondered why they took it off the menu after Easter. Of course, the most popular fish sandwich is also my favorite fish sandwich, the McDonald’s Filet-o-Fish. I always figured they sold the majority of their Filet-o-Fish during Lent. But that's not the case. I recently read that while about 75 million Filet-o-Fish sandwiches are sold during the 6+ weeks of Lent, over 200 million are sold outside of Lent for the rest of the year...

If you spend any time at the grocery store, you’ve likely spent an ample amount of time looking at expiration dates. I understand the need for them, but I’m honestly confused about why some products need one. For example, the other night I was getting ready to put on the nose strip I use to keep my airways open while I sleep. I’ve used them for years, but didn’t realize they had expiration dates until recently. Why? What part of this product can expire? I understand when food needs them. But they’re just products marked with those...

I’ve had many unique experiences throughout my life. But until recently, I’ve never been shamed by a social media platform. Technically, they weren’t successful, but they tried. A couple of weeks ago, when I slowed down the Mason Minute at my doctor's request, Facebook messaged me to say I was now posting 30% less than I normally do. They were trying to make me feel guilty for not posting every day. I’m not sure what they hoped to accomplish. But they tried to make me feel guilty for not posting on social media, which was a first. Now, if...

We’ve had some very strange weather over the last couple of weeks. It’s been both hot and cold, sometimes in the same day. I've had to switch from heat to air conditioning and back to heat in the span of 24 hours. We’ve experienced record highs in the mid-80s, and now, on Monday, it won’t even reach 45°. My body is very sensitive to temperature these days, and it’s been tough for me. I can be freezing one minute and then almost sweating the next. I’m sure climate change plays a role in this. But I wonder if t...

With all of the doctor visits I’ve had over the last couple of weeks, losing weight has been a major topic of discussion. They touch on the typical points: reduce fat, cut carbs, and cut out both sugar and salt. I try to avoid most of those things, but I do admit I enjoy having a bagel with cream cheese every morning. But the doctor wants me to give that up. So he suggested substituting English muffins. And while I don’t mind them, they’re nowhere near as tasty as a bagel from the bakery or even the grocer...

I have big feet. I’m not saying this to be boastful; I’m just stating a fact. I’ve had big feet since I was a kid. But I never thought they would keep growing. My father has worn the same size shoes for as long as I can remember. My feet grew a couple of sizes into my mid-20s. But over the last few years, they’ve continued to grow. Part of the problem is that our feet flatten out as we get older. But this isn’t only a width issue. The bigger issue is that I now wear...

After getting out of the hospital last week, the one thing the doctor wanted me to do was take it easy. I figured that would be a simple thing to do. I quickly found out it wasn’t so simple. Even when I’m relaxing, I’m often multitasking. That’s how my brain works, and I'm trying to slow down. Things have been tough. I joked with the doctor and told him he didn’t have to worry about me running any marathons. But while I could work, and drive, and do most things without restriction, the rules were simple: ta...

When I was in the hospital last week, I got caught between two different departments that didn’t communicate. It felt like the right hand didn’t know what the left hand was doing. And I wondered where that phrase came from. It’s actually an adaptation of a Bible verse. Matthew 6:3 says, Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. And the verse indicates that charitable action should be done in secret to avoid hypocrisy and the pursuit of public praise. Of course, my version is the modern-day version of that phrase. Where one team d...

The Mason Minute is coming up on its 15th anniversary. We’ve done it day in and day out for almost the entire time. When a couple of friends convinced me to grab a microphone again after retiring from radio, I decided to do the podcast three or four times a week just for fun. But within the first week, I knew it had to be a daily thing. And we almost hit the 15-year mark. But if you pay any attention, we’ve missed the last three days at the doctor’s orders, due to some unforeseen circumstances. But what’s...

I know the world is filled with entitled people. Or should I say, people who feel entitled? But have you noticed how the number keeps growing daily? I’ve had my moments throughout the years where I thought I was special. But it didn’t take long to learn that I wasn’t. We used to have a running joke about waiting for people to say, "Do you know who I am?" Sadly, that joke isn’t funny anymore; it’s often true. And this isn’t just enough knock on the world of politics or celebrities. Everyone feels this entitlement...

I doubt that this will shock you. But every time the winter Olympic Games happen, there’s a huge interest spike in winter sports. Things like ice hockey, skiing, ice-skating, and even curling get people hyped. They get so caught up in the games that they want to start experimenting with and trying those sports. But there's a problem we’re starting to face. Climate change is affecting the amount of ice and snow worldwide. That means these winter activities become more costly and offer fewer opportunities. It doesn’t matter whether you can find an indoor or outdoor rink; creati...

We all deal with anger to varying degrees. But somewhere along the way, we’re told that venting our anger can help get past it. I don’t remember when I was first told to find ways to express my frustrations. Of course, we told screaming and yelling aren’t the answer. But the quicker you can let go of it, the better off you will be. But a recent study from Ohio State University says that venting your anger is the wrong approach. Instead, you need to find ways to manage it using calming tactics. The goal is to calm d...

There are many controversial issues in the world right now. And vaccines are definitely included in that polarizing list of subjects. That fact hasn’t stopped Stanford researchers from working on a new vaccine. This nasal spray vaccine could protect against coughs, colds, and flu, as well as bacterial lung infections and perhaps allergies. We’re a long way from seeing it happen, as testing in lab mice is still going on, but this is a totally different way for vaccines to work. For hundreds of years, vaccines typically fought one thing and one thing only, which is why there were...

We all have different reasons to look forward to the weekend. And I often think it has to do with where we are in life that determines why we’re looking forward to it. When you’re younger, you’re just looking forward to getting a day off. Later, perhaps going out on a date, to a concert, or just to hang with friends. Then you get older, and you'll look forward to having time to travel, relax, or even sleep late. I think I’ve reached the point in life where sleeping late is the highlight of the weekend. If you d...

Do you still have a printer along with your home computer? Or perhaps I should ask if you even have a home computer anymore? I got my first printer, a dot-matrix model, back in 1989. And while it was fun to have access to that technology at home, the cost for ribbons and ink kept rising. Over the years, I’ve gone from dot matrix to inkjet. But sadly, the expensive printer I have now is out of ink. It dried up a long time ago. I guess that’s what happens when you don’t use the equipment for a few ye...

As I said yesterday, when discussing the sad hours, any day that you can learn something is a good day. Well, I hit the motherlode by learning two things in the same article. First, the sad hours, and then about cognitive shuffling. For those who have trouble falling asleep or, in my case, getting back to sleep, cognitive shuffling might help. We all have problems sleeping throughout our lives, and many factors contribute to it. Like many, I find that the cause of my sleep issues isn't always the same. But maybe this doctor is onto something… Click Here To Su...

I’ve often discussed my goal to learn something new every day. It doesn’t matter how big or how small, I just love learning, anything. The other day, I was reading an article about sleep, and I learned two things. It was two for the price of one. First, I learned about the sad hours. Now, perhaps for some, they’re like, " Have you been living under a rock? The sad hours happen between 1 and 5 AM, and it’s the time when many people, for lack of a better word, feel sadness, anxiety, stress, and other negative emotions. And those em...

I remember back in 1995 when the Internet popped into everyone's stream of consciousness. Everyone was trying to figure out how to use it and what they could do with it. People were still trying to understand browsers. Well, it didn’t really happen overnight. That perception reminds me of what we’re experiencing with artificial intelligence right now. AI has gone mainstream in just a short time. But for many, it’s still confusing. Most don’t know which tool to use, and when. I’ve been involved with AI for five years, and now use it almost every day at work. A...

Whenever someone finds out I produce a podcast, they ask me to describe it. And if you've listenedto the Mason Minute for any length of time, you know it’s not easy to explain. There’s no single topic or theme. It’s just my view of the world. Well, this week, someone has finally explained the podcast perfectly. The company that hosts my audio files, Blubrry, has named me their podcaster of the month. I’m not sure why, but I’m truly honored. And while they asked for a quick bio and a couple of lines describing the podcast, t...

I’m getting up on my soapbox today, but don’t think this is some old man rant, because it’s not. This is the problem I’ve had most of my life. I talked about this briefly yesterday in my Road Warrior video blog. I realize products change all the time, but I get the feeling that companies don’t want to tell us when this happens, for fear we’ll switch to another product. The face wash I use every day has a new formula. It looks different. It feels different. It smells different. I know have a similar issu...

I’m not someone who’s often accused of having trust issues. And I guess, that’s something I should be proud of. When you’ve been in a relationship as long as I have, you typically don’t think of things like that. Now, perhaps in my younger days, there was a time or two when it was questioned, but that was long ago. But the other day, I found myself in a situation that tested my trust. And, in complete honesty, I called myself out. This had nothing to do with another person; it actually might be considered irrational...

It’s Valentine’s Day, a day that celebrates love and romance. And with that, you normally think of special songs, like love songs. For some reason, I often think of the Love Boat theme from the old TV show. It talks about love, that’s exciting and new. My love is not so new, and to me, that’s actually a good thing. Sure, when love is new, there is some excitement, but as time goes on and love changes, it becomes something more special. Perhaps not as romantic or passionate, but the feelings are much more intense. They're deep. An...

Home shopping channels have been a TV craze for decades. But it looks like the remaining players will be filing for bankruptcy shortly. QVC and HSN's days are numbered thanks to the Internet. They can’t survive. I remember friends who were obsessed with the home shopping channels back in the 80s. They would watch for hours and hours on end. Now that we can shop for anything online, there really is no point to TV shopping channels. In my lifetime, we’ve gone from downtown shopping districts to shopping centers to enclosed shopping malls. And then from TV shopping to t...

The NFL unofficially wrapped up the season yesterday. Sure, the big game was on Sunday, but yesterday the Seattle Seahawks had their Super Bowl parade. But many people throughout the area weren’t able to celebrate. The city of Seattle announced that any student missing school yesterday would be issued an unexcused absence. And while I understand the school system taking the hard line, I’m sure there are many disappointed children. For the last few years, the cities of Kansas City and Philadelphia have looked the other way when students miss school on the day of their parade. I’m no e...

There’s a TikTok video that looks to be going viral. Now that happens often, but the one thing that stood out to me was a video from a father of three here in Nashville. I read about the video online. His premise is that he’s no longer welcome at fast food restaurants like McDonald’s and Taco Bell. He feels restaurants are discouraging indoor dining and are encouraging you to use DoorDash or the drive-through window. Heel pines for the days when McDonald’s was fun like it was in his youth. And I understand his frustration. A lot has...

Long before it was a movie, Groundhog Day always made me chuckle. It’s silly to think that so many people could be upset by whether a rodent sees their shadow or not. And of course, last week, when Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, for some reason, that means six more weeks of winter. Now we all know the season technically lasts six more weeks. But at this point, everybody is tired of snow, or in our case, ice. Most Winters aren’t horrible here in Nashville, but we seem to have one storm of some kind each and every year...

When people ask me how I like my job, I tell them I’ve never worked harder in my life. My careers in radio and the music business could be intense, sometimes frantic, but with both, there was always a lot of downtime. You wouldn’t think that working for an advertising agency would be quite as demanding. But it is. I go nonstop for eight hours a day, and by the time I get home, I’m tired. I grab my dinner, try to relax a bit, and then try to put the daily podcast together. But I find many n...

You know what day it is. It’s the day of that big Bad Bunny concert. I guess "concert" isn’t the right word; perhaps I should say ‘performance'. Bad Bunny, who almost everybody in the world knows, is performing the halftime show at this year's Super Bowl. While I’m not a fan of his music, I have no problem with him performing. In fact, I rarely pay attention to the halftime show anyway. I know for some people it’s a big part of the event. The Super Bowl is more than just a football game. For some, it’s all a...

Let me pose a question. Are nostalgia and history exclusive of one another? No, I’m not talking about feeling nostalgic, I’m talking about nostalgia, the love of things that are old. If people love nostalgia, do they also love history? I don’t know the answer, but I do know that most people who don’t like history aren’t fond of looking back. I love nostalgia. I love old pictures. I love stories of nearly anything from back in the day. I loved history as a subject in school and always enjoyed delving into it in depth to learn m...

Do you ever have a situation where you think the issue is probably more in your mind than it is in reality? Let me explain. For some reason, our house feels colder when it’s 40° outside than when it’s 20° outside. And it’s not like we’re changing the thermostat. During the winter months, we keep our house consistently at 66°. But I find the house feels colder when it’s 40 outside than when it’s 20. Technically, the thermostat reads 66°, just like it should, but it doesn’t feel the same. I like to think that because the heat pump isn’t running when...

When you think of wildlife, you don’t often think of Nashville. Okay, perhaps you think of the wildlife that’s happening on Lower Broadway, but Nashville isn’t known as a rural area. But, as I can attest, we still have lots of animals within the city limits. Within just a few miles of my house, many families of deer, a few coyotes, and even some water buffalo on a nearby farm that do escape every now and then. But I learned just the other day, February is the most dangerous month for wildlife. Because of the weather, the daylig...

One of my old bosses used to say that nobody likes change except for a wet baby. I always knew what he meant and agreed, to a point. One thing I’ve realized is that most change is a slow process. It happens behind the scenes when we’re not paying attention. When we notice, the change seems abrupt. The way we watch sports on television is changing. I should say it’s constantly changing. The regional sports network FanDuel Sports has announced it will shut down in a few months. People are upset because most live team sports are now he...

The Winter Olympics are almost here. They begin in a couple of days, with curling among the first events. I’m not the biggest Olympic fan, but I do keep track of what’s going on. One thing I wondered about recently is why some sports, like figure skating, wait until the last minute to announce the Olympic participants. The figure skaters who will represent the US were announced a couple of weeks ago. To me, that seems like very short notice. I’ve never been a world-class athlete, but I'd want more time to get focused. I would think that w...

Yesterday, I was listening to a playlist on Spotify. And one of my favorite country songs, that many have forgotten, was on the playlist. It was Steve Earle’s ‘I Ain’t Ever Satisfied'.  And naturally, it got me to thinking. As Americans, or for that matter, even as humans, is satisfaction possible? I’ve always viewed myself as a perfectionist. That’s both good and bad. One of the bad parts is that even when something goes well, I’m never totally satisfied. I’m always looking for ways to improve, to make it better. Is this just a problem here in...

I often see jokes on social media, talking about people wearing pajamas when they shop at places like Walmart. Now, I will admit it’s not actually a place where people dress up to be seen. But often times, the people you see there may be wearing what they sleep in, but it’s not necessarily pajamas. But the other day, when we were shopping there, I saw at least two people wearing full winter pajamas as they pushed their shopping cart down the aisle. The meme had come to life. It was apparent that those people didn’t care. Perhap...

I finally got a haircut yesterday. I know it shouldn’t be a big deal, but just finding the time in my schedule is often a challenge. There’s one thing that’s fascinated me about getting haircuts for a long time. And that’s the difference between a barbershop and a beauty salon. While very different, they’re actually very similar in vibe. Does that make sense? Now, I get my haircut at one of those chain locations that caters to both men and women. And the salon talk is kind of a cross between a barbershop and a beauty sal...

The truth is a funny thing. And I don’t mean funny, ha ha. I mean, funny as in peculiar. Right now, we live in trying times. Many people believe the truth doesn’t exist. They believe what they want to believe, and don’t care what anyone else thinks. But sometimes, it’s absolute. It’s been a challenging week here in Nashville. With a severe ice storm over the weekend, many people are still without power, now six days later. Everyone wants answers. And the reality, for many, is that there are no answers yet. Obviously, they don’t like that...

Experts say you can tell a lot about a person by how cluttered their life is. For some, it’s a cluttered office or a messy car. I’m guilty of the former, but not the latter. I don’t know why, but I’ve never liked trash in my car. You’ll never find empty cans or fast food bags on my floorboards. I don’t wash my car often enough, but I keep the interior pretty clean. The city of Hilton Head, SC, has announced a new law that goes into effect next month and fines people for having too m...

I finally decided to venture out yesterday and brave the remnants of the ice storm that is still crippling Nashville. Since I can work from home, I haven’t left the house since last Thursday. But I had a regularly scheduled doctor's appointment to get to. Many of the roads were much better than I expected. As expected, it was a little bit rough getting out of our neighborhood, but one thing that shocked me was the number of cars on the road and the speed at which they were driving. I have years of experience with ice and snow, an...