The Northern Nerd

Ben and I used to work together back in college at UW-Eau Claire at the campus TV station, TV10. We both worked in the sports scene and I got to do color commentary with best friend, Kyle Naber while Ben was a student assistant coach for the Blugolds Men's Basketball team. Since then, Ben has stayed involved in college basketball and is in his second year with the Marquette Golden Eagles as their...

The Hayward Business Improvement District (BID) is once again putting on their annual Shamrock Shuffle on March 18th. I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with Cindy Swift-Kaner of Riverbrook Bike & Ski and James Netz of James Netz Photography to discuss this year's shuffle! We also talked about what makes Hayward's downtown so great and also what makes Hayward a great place to live/vis...

Sailing isn't something that's normally talked about in the northwoods of Wisconsin. Plenty of people go out on their pontoons, kayaks and canoes but very few people have ever sailed out in the middle of the ocean. Jake McCusker and Erin McDade recently completed a journey from Hawaii to San Francisco to deliver a boat along with the rest of their crew. While out in the middle of the ocean, they e...

Jon Kreye is an award winning adventure photographer based in Minnesota. Jon and I first met during the 2022 Birkie and I have been wanting to have him on the show for some time now. Jon has stayed in some of the most unique and highly desired rental properties across the country including shipping container cabins, treehouses, dome homes, private islands, yurts, barn homes, and more. He recently...

On the latest installment in the series "Small Business Nerds" brought you by the Sawyer County/LCO Economic Development Corporation , I sat down with Ethan and Jenn Zimmerman of Studio North in Hayward, WI. We discussed their small business journey thus far, their vision for the future, their core values and the possibility of Ethan making an 80's movie montage while screen printing. It was a ver...

This episode is our first installment of "Small Business Nerds." It's a series that is brought to you by the Sawyer County/LCO Economic Development Corporation and will feature various businesses from the area. Our first guest is a wonderful baker and cookie artist, Tracy Rasmussen, of Simply Sweets Cookie Company . I enjoyed chatting with her about how she got started, how her business has grown...

With the new year here, the After Hours crew had to get back together to discuss our resolutions...or anti-resolutions that is. We also chatted about how partying on NYE changes the older you get, gave some recommendations and talked about our actual goals for 2023. Enjoy!

I got to have a fireside chat with the new owners of Coop's Pizza , Debbi Houston and Samantha Mittlesdorf! We discussed what it’s like to own a business in the northwoods, their favorite pizzas, the giant fish tank, and how they plan to remain a staple of the Hayward area. Enjoy! For their full menu, click here .

Everyone is worried about the NFL playoffs right now, but the real sport of America takes place during Birkie Week on Main Street in Hayward, WI. "The Nimrods" are a group of elite individuals that came come together to form a giant ski super team before super teams were even a thing. Many have likened them to the Avengers and action figures are currently in the works. They have a movie coming out...

On Tuesday, December 27th a “Charlie Brown-esque” community skating party was held at the Tot Lot in Hayward, WI. The goal of the event was to get people together to enjoy a night of skating, conversation, and to truly embrace the beauty of small town life around the holidays. With an estimated over 100+ people in attendance throughout the evening, it’s fair to say that old fashioned events are st...

A Christmas movie featuring both Will Ferrell ( Elf) and Ryan Reynolds ( Deadpool )? Sign me up. Spirited is a different take on the classic Charles Dickens’ story of A Christmas Carol . Now there have been over one hundred different variations of A Christmas Carol over the years, so this begs the question; do we really need another version of this classic tale? Certainly. Sure. Why not? Everythin...

With several streaming platforms out there (Spotify, Apple Music, Prime Music) making listening to any song at any time easier than before, why would anyone in their right mind spend money on a physical copy of music? To have a physical copy of music is rare these days. Many people no longer have enormous CD cases in the passenger seats of their cars. People aren’t rushing out to the stores to get...

The holiday shopping season is here! While this is an exciting time of year for many, let's not forget about our neighbors that are shop owners. Today's episode is dedicated to those small businesses on Main Street all across America. Enjoy and remember to shop local and shop small.

On Thursday, November 3rd I was honored to be the keynote speaker for the Hayward Area Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting & Awards Dinner. It was an experience that I will remember forever. Here is a rerecorded version of the speech that I hope inspires you to keep pushing towards progress here in the northwoods and to pursue your dreams. Enjoy!

It’s no secret that the state of Wisconsin is home to thousands of bars. Of these bars, some are high class with valet parking and drinks that James Bond would sip on. Others are covered in taxidermy (both well done and terrible) and pride themselves in being that dive bar. Regardless, people love to have a place where they can come together for a big game or to swap stories from the past. Since i...

After a two month hiatus, the "after hours" crew was able to get back together. Summer in a tourist town gets busy for everyone, so we spent the majority of the episode catching up, giving best man speech advice, show recommendations and discussed what "the hootie line" is all about. Enjoy!

I had the wonderful opportunity to go to the Dairyland Outdoor Veterans Retreat (DOVR) for a dinner amongst veterans and their families. While there, I was fortunate enough to interview three men that play a significant role in helping veterans. Enjoy! If you'd like to find out more about DOVR, please visit their website at www.dovr.org

Diego Napoles (or Mr. Napoles) is a 4th grade teacher out in Southern California. I started following Diego on TikTok this past school year. He was offering many great teacher resources/tips as well as providing stories from his classroom. He's somebody I have been wanting to get on the show for a while and it finally worked out! We had a great time discussing the differences between teaching in W...

The Rivers Eatery  doesn’t just make pizza, but they offer a unique dining experience in the northwoods that my wife and I have come to enjoy. In this episode, I will discuss our experience at The Rivers Eatery and why you should make it a dining destination the next time your looking to treat your tastebuds in the northwoods. Thanks for listening and be sure to subscribe!

I had the wonderful opportunity of sitting down with Belle Poppe of Selah Mobile Coffee to discuss what it's been like to run her own small business and the impact that it's made on the Hayward community. She was a fantastic guest to have on the show and I think you'll love to hear what she has to say in regards to starting a small business, some of her favorite memories from her first year and wh...

As the youth of America would say, "it's been a minute." We got the crew back together after taking a handful of months off and it felt good to sit down at The Whistle Punk once again to talk about life in the northwoods. There are a lot exciting things happening in the area this time of year (including a screening of "Bloodhook" at the Park Center) amongst many other things. We also wanted to giv...

Your first year of teaching is all about survival. If you make it through your first year; you can do anything. In this latest episode, I take a look back at some of the lessons I learned in my first year of teaching as well as share some quotes from my students. If you're a teacher listening to this, I hope you're able to connect with it. If you're not, I hope you gain some insight on what it is...

A 2nd grade fraternity and sorority? Yeah, they exist in my classroom. They are a far cry from a college frat or sorority (thank the Lord for that) and they have been a great way to build community within my classroom. This is the story of how the Delta Pizza Monster Trucks and the Kappa Rainbow Unicorns came to be and how the power of Tik Tok changed my classroom this year. Enjoy!

I debated for a while on whether or not I would start talking more about faith on my podcast. While it's not something I've done a lot of on this platform, I feel as though it's time to dig a little deeper with it. I'm not here to preach a sermon or to tell you that you're going to hell if you don't get right with the Lord, but I want to offer you some advice on what to do with your faith. As men,...

In this week's episode, I discuss some of my favorite memories from baseball throughout my life and why most of them have take place off the field. I also wanted to bring to your attention a young man by the name of Ashton Strand. He's working with the Sawyer County Historical Society on a fundraising project to help save the museum (think "Back to the Future" with the "Save Our Clock Tower"). Wha...