Storytime with GamerDude

Everyone has some kind of superstition or two (or twelve) that they believe in and GamerDude is no exception. In this week's episode, he talks about the superstitions he's heard about over the years, and the ones that he's accepted as well as the ones he's scoffed at. For instance, he doesn't believe that Friday the 13th is an unlucky day, but he believe that if he "sees a penny and picks it up, a...

GamerDude has always been a fan of language, words and phrases, and the odder the better. He is, for lack of a better term, a "word nerd," and in this episode, he shares some stories about some of the more interesting words and phrases he's come across and enjoyed over the years.  He talks about where "poppycock" and "balderdash" came from, and tells the origin story for his Twitch stream's favori...

The political turmoil in the world, and the battle going on in the U.S. Senate over the Supreme Court nominee in September 2018, inspired GamerDude to talk about right and wrong. In this Episode, GamerDude tells some stories about how he was taught the difference between right and wrong and how the "wrong" things he did always had consequences. He takes on the notion that has been voiced in the wo...

GamerDude has always been a sports fan, and the first sport he loved was baseball. Because the only local channel his family could pick up on the old TV was the Yankees' flagship station, he became a Yankee fan. His fandom started when the Yankees were at their worst, and when his favorite players were Horace Clark, Gene Michael, Roy White and Bobby Murcer. He talks about those players, and his tr...

September is always "back to school" time, and it was no different for GamerDude. In this episode, he talks about preparing for going back to school, from cramming in the last minute shopping and preparations right after vacation to the quest for the perfect lunchbox. He talks about the Snoopy lunch box he always wanted, and how he was only able to use it for three days in the fifth grade. He talk...

As he's talked about in previous episodes, GamerDude is a big fan of the movies. In this episode, he talks about 10 classic movies from the "good old days" that he believes everyone should take the time and add to their "must see" movie list.  Now, these are not the 10 greatest movies of all time, or the 10 best; these are just 10 movies that, to GamerDude, are really good movies that everyone sho...

In another "very special episode" of Storytime, GamerDude talks about growing up as a Christian Scientist, which is a religion that focuses, in part, on healing through prayer. He talks about growing up without medicine and never having gone to a doctor as a child. He explains how his parents were devout Christian Scientists, how he and his siblings were brought up in the religion, and how it impa...

GamerDude has always been a fan of television and in this episode, he has more stories about the TV shows he grew up with. Television changed in the 1970s, right when GamerDude was at his most impressionable. In addition to explaining how all TV in the 1970s was "appointment TV" because there was no way to record the shows, he talks about the changes in television, from allowing married couples to...

Books have always held a special place in GamerDude's heart. For as long as he can remember, he has used books to visit different places, differnt times, different worlds, and has used them both as entertainment and as an escape. In this episode, he talks about the books he read as a kid, starting in kindergarten, when he discovered Sally, Dick and Jane. He moved on to The Hardy Boys and devoured...

GamerDude has more stories about his father, "GamerDad". In this episode, GamerDude tells the stories of the bonding moments he remembers with his father.  He tells the story about the one time his father actually played softball with him and the neighborhood kids, wearing Bermuda shorts and combat boots. He talks about bonding with his father while sorting nails and screws and nuts and bolts in t...

As the end of summer slowly approaches, GamerDude remembers when he first left home to attend college.  He tells the stories about how his parents vetoed his thoughts of attending college at the beach, nixing his plans to apply to the College of the Virgin Islands and the University of Tampa, and explains how and why he wound up at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. He talks about how nervous...

Reading, and telling stories, and listening to stories, has always been a part of GamerDude's life. In this episode, he talks about how his mother used to read to him when he was young, how many of the stories have stayed with him through the years, and how he has passed those stories on to his kids. He talks about the "My Bookhouse" collection he grew up with, and some of the stories his mother r...

GamerDude's passion for cars and driving is well-known. The stories today go back to when he first became aware of the mechanics of driving while driving with his Dad. He talks about when he drove his aunt's Ford Bronco in her field when he was 11, and how that gave him "the bug" for driving.  He talks about driving up and down his parents' driveway hundreds of times, practicing K-turns and parall...

GamerDude's father found out about Chincoteague, Virginia when GamerDude was still young, and discovered it was an answer to a prayer - it gave the family the perfect vacation, at least as far as GamerDad was concerned.  Chincoteague is right next to the Assateague National Seashore, and it gave GamerDude's dad a quiet, undeveloped, non-commercial vacation spot where he could sit on the sand, read...

Independence Day in the US means different things to different people. When GamerDude was growing up, sparklers and the town fireworks were part of the tradition. He tells the stories about how sparklers were THE big thing. He remembers his family's efforts to enjoy the bicentennial of the United States. That involved trying to see the "tall ships" and the biggest fireworks display ever, while his...

When GamerDude was a kid, the family vacation was all about where Dad wanted to go, and it was up to the kids to find ways to amuse themselves. GamerDude tells stories about the many things he and his siblings had to do for entertainment in the days before cell phones and portable DVD players. He talks about license plate bingo and the game of "Horse." He remembers the constant fight for the middl...

For GamerDude, summertime was always the best time to be a kid. No school, no responsibilities; you got to do pretty much what you wanted to do. In this episode, GamerDude takes the podcast outside, just like his teachers used to take class outside during the last few days of June. He tells stories about the day-trips he and his friends took - by themselves - to Hacklebarney State Park, and the si...

Father's Day is coming up, and GamerDude's stories in this episode celebrate his father. He tells stories about his dad, "GamerDad," and how his dad would have never appreciated that nickname. GamerDude talks about his dad's skills at haggling at garage sales, how GamerDude learned to haggle, and about GamerDad's auction techniques.  He tells the story about the family trip to gather tulip bulbs,...

GamerDude always fancied himself as an athlete as a kid - even though, as the fat kid growing up, he was anything but athletic.  But he learned about and played baseball, softball, football and basketball with the kids in his neighborhood, and his stories today cover homerun territory over the creek in left field, and the basketball hoop on the telephone pole (because there was no such thing as a...

When GamerDude heard about the movie coming out called Action Point, and discovered it was inspired by the real-life amusement park called Action Park, which he'd survived in the 1980s and 1990s, he knew he had to share his stories about that crazy place.  If you've never heard of Action Park, here's one of the commercials for it from the 1980s.  It was like no other park, before or since, because...

GamerDude's love for food is no secret, and in this episode of Storytime, he talks about how learning to bake a cake with his father was an important bonding experience with him, and also opened up the roadway to bigger and better things - like homemade chocolate chip cookie dough!. He talks about learning how to frost a cake, and bake cookies, and then moves on to the "regular" food you had to ea...

As Jimmy Buffet said, "Relationships! We all got 'em! We all want 'em! What do we do with 'em?" In this episode of Storytime, GamerDude talks about some of his early relationships, including the story of (as his mother called it) his "on again, off again, in again, Finnegan" relationship that went on for three years. He talks about how he learned how the little things - like being willing to dance...

For Mother's Day, GamerDude tells some stories about his mom.  He talks about her girls' trip to California before she got married and settled down, and her early teaching career. He talks about all of her creative skills, from the art work, to the writing, to the music, all the way to her tap dancing lessons and recital in her 60s. He talks about how everyone has a different relationship with the...

GamerDude's mother taught English and theater and, as a result, was a bit of a "language snob." For as long as he can remember, GamerDude's mom drilled correct pronunciations and correct usage of words into his head, and she passed her "snobbery" on to him. Today's stories involve GamerDude getting in trouble for mis-using the word "nausesous" when refusing to apologize to his sister, and his moth...

GamerDude tells the story about his first real date in eighth grade, which confirms that dating has always been a difficult process for almost everyone. GamerDude tells stories about the "rules" for dating he grew up with, and how they impacted that first tense phone call with the "girl of his dreams - 8th grade edition." GamerDude lays out the rules, which included the boy asking the girl out and...