March 2026 Stockpile

It's been a while since I shared a stockpile post, so here is a list of...things:

Spring Break 101

We've seen a lot of places in this beautiful world, and then I realized I've never seen the Central California Coast. So for Spring Break 101 (hilarious name right?), we headed West, then North, then East, then South – a good old fashioned road trip.

Some highlights:

• We stopped by The Hat to try the new pastrami. It was excellent. We're excited that Las Vegas will soon have its first location for this classic California diner.
• It had been some time since we last stopped at Galco's, the soda champ of the West. It was good to be there again and see it hasn't changed at all.
• I told the kids that we were going to the murder capital of California aka, Santa Barbara, where a murder happens every week for prime time television. There were a lot of familiar places, but we did not see the famous psychic detectives.
• Solvang is a Dutch town planted in the middle of California. It was fun to explore, but I was happy to be there in the offseason.
• We took the slow way up the coast and absolutely loved all the bridges, cliffs, shores, and sunshine. Big Sur, Carmel, McWay Falls, Pebble Beach...just so much awe.
• After the run up the Coast, we went by Yosemite which was absolutely incredible. I know everyone talks about how hard it is to take in all the beauty and that is absolutely right. Again, off season made for a nice and calm walk to see the sights.
• We cut the drive halfway home for a night in Bakersfield. We had a good dinner and then I dominated at bowling.

It was a nice and relaxing Spring Break.

Twenty Two Years Later

I've been writing this blog for 23 years now. That's pre-Candace, kids, callings, and career. That's a long time.

Anyway, I'm resurfacing a post from 2004 just because there is a nice followup. Be warned, there are some free flying middle fingers (not by me) but they are friendly.

Anyway, enjoy the story of Provo's Middle Finger Man.

Some things to recommend

• A previous post showed how having the right charges and cables will let you charge your devices much faster. It's also helpful to be sure you are using a modern HDMI cable. If you have a nice Apple TV and a nice LED TV, you might be losing some of that image quality because you just used your old cable to connect them. I like this one.
• I'm not trying to be a skin influencer or anything, but this lotion is awesome after a day outside in the sun. For me, regular lotion traps all the heat in and makes for a miserable evening and night. This stuff keeps you cool. (And Candace approves and she actually is a professional with this stuff.)
• Alright, here's another thing that an influencer would talk about, but again, that's not me. We do a lot of video calls with Cole while he's on his mission and it's nice to bring in the whole family. It's been so helpful to have a sturdy iPhone stand that is adjustable and easy to snap a phone in. This one has been solid for us.
• If you have kids sharing a room, but they get up at difference times, this bed shaker alarm has been so helpful. (Or, if you just don't like the loud alarm process.) Just set the time, keep it on your bed, and it will shake you awake.

An Evening at Myron's

Candace and I went to see Alex Cuba perform at Myron's and it was so nice.

If you don't know about Myron's, it's a small theater attached to The Smith Center and it's a great place to hear some music. The tickets are usually inexpensive, the room is comfortable, and the food options are pretty good. They usually book small artists with Jazz, Instrumental, and other unique sounds. There are always good shows coming and it's highly recommended for a nice date out.

And if you don't know about Alex Cuba, he's a Cuban born artists who now lives in Canada. It was incredibly entertaining to listen him sing and play. It's all Spanish, but it doesn't matter if you can't understand it.

If you want a little primer, let me share my Apple Music playlist: Simple Alex Cuba

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“Stockpile” is a series where I share observations on random topics all in one post. You can read more of these in the “Stockpile” category.