The Retro Dad

Long before cable and satellite companies took over television, local TV networks ruled the airwaves. Outside of the twice-daily news broadcasts and the big prime-time shows from major networks, stations still had a ton of empty airtime to fill. And they got creative. Some stations simply leaned on endless reruns. But many produced their own original programming like morning kids’ shows, mid-morning talk shows, and, the crown jewel for many of us, the late-night hosted monster-movie and B-movie programs. This is exactly the category Big Chuck and Lil’ John fit into. The magic of Big Chuck and Lil’ John wasn’t just the movies they introduced. It was everything that happened around the movies. Right before and after the commercial breaks, the hosts really shined, riffing with each other, interacting with their small studio audience, and introducing the comedy skits they filmed ahead of time. The charm, the timing, the goofiness, it all blended into something uniquely local and unfor...

I’ve always had a tendency to come at things from a negative angle. Not because I want to, but because that’s what I was surrounded by growing up. It got ingrained in me. It’s not hardwired, but it’s been a default setting I’ve had to work really hard to change. A friend recently asked why I always jump to the worst case scenario before I make a decision. I told them it’s because I’m data driven. I play the odds. If something’s gone wrong 80 out of 100 times before, why would I expect anything different? They said something that really hit me.. “You throw that kind of energy out to the universe, and it comes right back.” I actually agree. I’ve known people who constantly talk about being unlucky, being born losers, and that nothing ever goes right for them. And it perpetuates that cycle. It’s like they’re magnetically attracting more of what they hate, just by believing that’s all they’ll ever get. I never went that far, but I did used to live by the motto.. “Expect the worst,...

If you grew up before the mid 2000's, there’s a good chance your morning cartoon lineup was powered by sugar and mascots. And few cereals hit that sweet spot better than Cookie Crisp. Back when I first wrote about the Cookie Crisp mascots in 2019, I had no idea it would take off the way it did. The post blew up with readers reminiscing about that wizard, that crook, that howling dog who made cookies for breakfast seem totally acceptable. So here we are again, a few years later, with a fresh look at every Cookie Crisp mascot from the 1970s through today. No fluff, no filler. Just a nostalgic rewind through the mascots that made us yell “Cooooookie Crisp!” at the breakfast table. Cookie Jarvis — The Wizard of the 1970s Before the crooks, cops, and canines, Cookie Crisp started with a wizard. His name was Cookie Jarvis, and he looked like the cousin of Merlin who lived above a bakery. Cookie Jarvis would wave his wand and turn regular cereal into tiny chocolate chip cookies. It wa...

Today was the day. The start of my new work week. The plan? Eat better. Eat earlier. Ease up on the coffee. Pack healthier lunches every day. Add more good options to dinner, no matter what I’m eating. And then, the old urge caught up with me. It wasn’t planned. I was just running late and didn’t have time to prep a healthy breakfast before leaving for work. And as it goes in modern life, McDonald’s is never far away. Now, I’m totally on board with eating less fast food. But if you know me, you know that the Egg McMuffin has always been my go-to for breakfast on the run. It’s got a decent protein to carb ratio, doesn’t wreck my calorie budget, and feels like the least guilty of the guilty pleasures. Anyway, on to the story. I pull into the first McDonald’s on my route, only to find both menu lanes packed. I could already tell it would be a 10 to 15 minute delay, which I technically had time for, but I wasn’t in the mood to risk it. So five miles down the road, I try another McDonald’s....

As I get older, it’s getting harder to justify a fast-food breakfast. I now skip the fried potatoes and greasy hash browns altogether, and lately, if I stop anywhere but McDonald’s, the sandwiches seem way too salty. It’s like they punch me in the mouth and spike my blood pressure 20 points. My go-to, as I’ve said many times before, is the McDonald’s Egg McMuffin. That got me thinking: I know McDonald’s is the healthiest breakfast sandwich among the major fast food chains, but I wanted to see how the Egg McMuffin really stacks up against other popular breakfast sandwiches (all of which I’ve eaten). Here are the numbers I found: 🥓 How the Egg McMuffin Stacks Up in 2025 When you’re talking fast food from the big chains.. McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, Hardee’s, Carl’s Jr., Bojangles, Whataburger, the Egg McMuffin still holds its own. Here’s a look at how it compares: McDonald’s — Egg McMuffin: ~310 calories, ~770 mg sodium. Simple ingredients, moderate calories, good protein. B...

  A Sip of Nostalgia: Coca-Cola’s Return to Cane Sugar Coca-Cola is bringing back its classic taste with real cane sugar in the U.S., and it’s a nostalgic game-changer for anyone who remembers the original flavor. Here are my memories of the sugary classic and what I think about this major development. The Sweet Comeback: Cane Sugar Coke Returns Coca-Cola has officially announced that it will begin rolling out a version of Coke made with real cane sugar in the United States. For decades, American Coke has been made with high fructose corn syrup, a change that started in the 1980s after a government sugar embargo made cane sugar too expensive for mass production. This new version is Coca-Cola’s answer to growing demand for more natural, nostalgic products. It’s set to appear later this year in select markets, starting with limited quantities in 12-ounce glass bottles that echo the look of the classic Coke many of us remember. Availability will expand gradually as bottlers adjust ...

  🎶 Top 10 Advertising Jingles That Live Rent-Free in My Head  The other day I was driving around running errands, and I passed a Burger King. The first thing that popped into my head? That classic line:  🎵 BK..  Have it your way  🎵 And just like that, I was humming it before I even hit the next red light. That’s when it hit me, there are certain people in advertising who are straight-up geniuses. I have a multitude of jingles from old TV and radio ads that will live permanently in my head, no matter how much I wish I could clear them out to free up some brain space. There’s no particular order here, I’m just plucking them straight out of my data banks. Let’s go. 1. The Big Mac Song (McDonald’s) 🎵 Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun. 🎵 No shocker that this one’s first. Everyone who knows me knows I’m a huge McDonald’s fan, and this jingle is practically part of my DNA. I can’t even think of a...

It felt like 1986 all over again. The Broncos pulled off a comeback for the ages, storming back from a 19-point hole in the fourth quarter to beat the Giants 33–32 in Week-7. Rookie quarterback Bo Nix led the charge with a burst of pure Mile High magic that had longtime fans flashing back to the Elway era. There are certain games that feel less like football and more like a time warp. Sunday’s Broncos–Giants matchup was one of those. A 33–32 finish that felt plucked straight out of the old Mile High highlight reels, back when John Elway used to make the impossible look routine. For three quarters, Denver looked absolutely cooked. Zero points on the board, the Giants cruising along, fans shifting in their seats and wondering if maybe it was time to beat the traffic. And then, out of nowhere, the kid turned into a legend. Bo Nix, the rookie who’s been quietly finding his footing all season, suddenly looked like a quarterback possessed by the ghost of Denver comebacks past. Two rushing to...

The Little Cars That Left a Big Impression The other night, I wandered into a car show in Kissimmee Florida, expecting the usual spectacle, muscle cars roaring, shiny sports cars glinting under the lights, Corvettes drawing crowds. And yes, they were all impressive, but none of them held my attention like something far more humble. I found myself spending a heck of a lot of time viewing a broad assortment of classic Toyotas and Datsuns from the '70s and 80's. It was a really nice surprise and not what you’d expect at a car show, right? But these old Corollas and other Toyota models have a story. They were reliable, affordable, economical, and built to last. In my experience, cars like Toyotas and Subarus give you the most bang for your buck, especially if you’re the type of person who holds on to a car for most of its life. Seeing these old Toyotas brought a flood of memories back to me. It’s funny: cars that were almost invisible in my youth because the...

🍩 The Simplicity of Donuts (and Getting Older) There was a time when I wouldn’t even look twice at a plain donut. As a kid, I wanted the biggest, gooiest, most sugar-packed donut in the case, the custard-filled, chocolate-iced Long John. If there was jelly or filling oozing out, even better. I wanted that sugar rush that made Saturday mornings feel like a party. A chocolate-iced donut with sprinkles? That was “plain Jane” to me. I’d only grab one of those if the case was picked over and the good stuff was gone. I wanted bang for my buck — flavor explosions, sticky fingers, frosting under my nails, and that feeling like I’d just pulled off the best trade in the school cafeteria. But time has a funny way of changing not just our tastes, but how we taste. These days, simpler is better. Ask me what my go-to donut is with a morning coffee, and I’ll tell you without hesitation, it’s probably a sour cream cake donut or a plain glazed cake donut. You know the kind: shiny, rustic-looking, a li...

Readers of my blog have seen many different incarnations of this site over the years. Somewhere along the line, I started listening to all the “experts”, the ones who said I needed to have a razor honed niche, a Twitter to accompany my blog, then an Instagram, a Facebook page, and eventually even TikTok. Somewhere in all that noise, I bought into it all and lost track of what blogging meant to me. It stopped bringing joy to my soul. And personally, when I’m not in a good place mentally for whatever reason, I’m simply not a very creative person anymore. Over a couple of stressful, tumultuous years, my blog slowly fell by the wayside.. quietly drifting off the radar of the World Wide Web. One night this past March, I found myself going through the old archives, scrolling backward through years of posts, trying to remember what used to make me tick back when life felt lighter. And then it hit me, the simplicity of blogging was what I’d lost. I made the decision right then and there to get...

Every old school Denver Bronco fan remembers 'The Drive'. It was the 1986 AFC Championship Game, Denver Broncos vs. Cleveland Browns. The Browns were ahead, the crowd was deafening, and victory seemed theirs for the taking. But then, with 5:32 left on the clock, John Elway and the Broncos took the ball on their own two-yard line and marched 98 yards down the field — cool, steady, and impossible to stop. When Elway threw that touchdown to Mark Jackson, the football world went silent for a second… then erupted. The Broncos had done the unthinkable. Cleveland’s playoff dreams vanished right there on their home turf, and helped Elway earn the moniker “The Comeback Kid.” And that wasn’t the only time Denver ended Cleveland’s hopes. Over the years, it became almost a cruel football tradition. Another season, another heartbreak for the Browns courtesy of the Broncos. The two teams might not be bitter rivals on paper anymore, but their history sure feels like it sometimes. ...

🍕 3 Great Old Shakey’s Pizza Commercials You Can Still Watch on YouTube If you ever went to a Shakey’s back in the day, you know there was just nothing else like it. The smell of the pizza, the wooden tables, the player piano.. it was a scene. Shakey’s wasn’t just a pizza joint. It was a night out, a family ritual, a place you told your buddies about. These old TV spots still do the job: they yank you back to those nights like nothing else. 1. “Shakey’s” — 1980 commercial This one’s pure 1980s energy. Bright, upbeat, and the kind of ad that makes you want to pile the family into the car and go right now. It nails the “fun night out” vibe that made Shakey’s special. 2. “Pizza Keeper” — 1978 spot This 1978 spot (the “Pizza Keeper” box bit) is comforting in a way modern ads rarely are.. honest, simple, and all about the food and family. Those little production touches bring back the smell of hot pizza and the chatter of a lively dining room. ...

You know how some people have comfort foods — mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, grilled cheese? Mine’s always been pizza. Any kind. Any time. I’ve had it in fine restaurants, school cafeterias, and gas stations that should’ve been condemned — and I’ve loved every bite. I eat more convenience store pizza than I probably should admit in public. But here’s the thing — it’s not bad. Some of it’s actually pretty good. We’ve come a long way since the days when “gas station pizza” meant a sad, chewy triangle under a heat lamp. These days, you can grab a slice at a mini-mart that’ll surprise you. Casey’s, for example — they’ve somehow turned “convenience store pizza” into an art form. But if I’m being honest, it’s hard for me to think of pizza that’s truly bad. In my entire life, I can’t remember ever putting down a slice and saying, “Nope, can’t eat this.” Sure, I’ve had better slices than others, and some I wouldn’t waste money on again. But to have a slice so bad I couldn’t eat it? Hasn’t ha...

This is a long overdue update/revisiting of my post:  RIP Hostess Raspberry Filled Powdered Donuts , one of my highest viewed blog posts of all time. Hostess Raspberry Filled Powdered Donuts were discontinued around 2013 following Hostess's bankruptcy and restructuring.  Despite some nostalgic demand, Hostess has not announced plans to reintroduce them. Fans have expressed their longing for these treats on various platforms, sharing fond memories and lamenting their absence from store shelves.  While no plans for their return seem to be on the horizon, I saw something at the store the other day that stopped me in my tracks for a few seconds.. Glazed Cinnamon Rolls are back, but not from Hostess When I first saw Glazed Cinnamon Rolls on the shelves again in this great retro packaging, I got excited thinking Hostess had brought them back. Then it hit me — Hostess doesn’t even own Wonder anymore. If Wonder still holds the rights to these Cinnamon Rolls, could the...