Retro Ramblings
Back When Saying No Was an Entire Program
I can still see myself sitting on that hard gym floor, the kind that always smelled faintly like floor wax and sneakers. Our whole grade was packed in there, fidgeting …
Retro Ramblings
Silver Eagle Saturday Nights
On Saturday nights, I followed Dad to the basement, the crack of the break shot and the hum of country music turning those Saturdays into the safest place I knew. …
Retro Ramblings
A Kid’s Love Letter to American Gladiators
There was a stretch of time when American Gladiators felt like the most intense thing on television. Not just exciting. Not just loud. It felt dangerous in the best possible …
Mickey on Movies
Did Jar Jar Binks Have Jedi Powers?
Jar Jar’s clumsy luck starts looking suspicious when you realize he moves, survives, and influences others with the kind of instinct that feels a lot like hidden Jedi power. …
Retro Ramblings
The Great Jell-O Jiggler Craze of My Childhood
I know Jell‑O Jigglers technically never went away. You can still take any flavor you want, follow the old jiggler recipe, and end up with that firm, wobbly little block …
Retro Ramblings
Growing Up Afraid of the Bermuda Triangle
There was a time when the Bermuda Triangle felt like one of the biggest, scariest mysteries on the planet. Not to scientists or adults, of course. I’m talking about when …
Retro Ramblings
When USA Network Pulled Me Into a Galaxy Far, Far Away
I always knew what Star Wars was, long before I ever actually saw it. That was just part of being a kid in the eighties and early nineties. The characters …
Retro Ramblings
Sting, Flair, and One of the Best Sundays Ever
Clash of the Champions turned an ordinary Sunday afternoon into pure electricity, the kind of childhood hype that glued you to the carpet and made wrestling feel larger than life. …
Misadventures of Mickey Lee
Mickey Lee and the Search For the Missing Brother
Back in the 1980s, Mickey Lee’s Saturday afternoons had a bit of a schedule to them. Morning cartoons carried him through breakfast, and by late morning the television shifted into …
Retro Ramblings
Chasing Willow Through Commercials and Kid’s Meals
Willow became a favorite long before I ever saw it, a year‑long swirl of TV trailers, Wendy’s toys, and childhood longing that made finally watching it feel like magic. …