My Daily Smile

Life is short - begin every day with a smile!

Check out this fantastic short video featuring Damascus, Virginia

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I grew up (and currently live) just a few short miles from the small town of Damascus, Virginia.

Back in the day Damascus was pure Americana, just a beautiful and quiet place where the people worked hard, raised their families and lived good, but ordinary American lives.

But over the years Damascus has become a popular destination for thousands of visitors every year due to its prime location on the Appalachian Trail and the many natural and man-made attractions in the area.  [Read more…]

Video: A short (and hopefully interesting) history of AM/FM radio

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As a youngster I became fascinated with what was then a very simple hand-held AM “transistor radio”. That tiny radio didn’t even have an FM band, but it was magic to this young boy nonetheless.

Most radios back then were AM only and the few cars that even had radios in them were AM only as well.

When I was somewhere around 11 or 12 years old I removed an AM radio from a junked car and kept it on a table beside my bed. I would lay awake at night listening to WLS Radio out of Chicago, marveling at how I could listen to a radio station that was roughly 600 miles away from my home in Virginia.  [Read more…]

50 wild (and very interesting) facts about North Carolina

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A few days ago I shared this video revealing 50 absurd (and very interesting) facts about Tennessee, one of the neighboring states that lies just a few miles south of my home in Virginia.

That post prompted a lot of responses and I’ll admit it’s one of my favorites as well.

Today I’m going to share a similar video about another near-by neighboring state, also to my south: North Carolina.  [Read more…]

Think all deserts are hot? If so, you’re in for a surprise.

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When most people hear the term “desert”, images of sand dunes, extreme heat and buzzards flying overhead instantly come to mind.

But truth be told, not all deserts are hot, nor are they hospitable to buzzards.

In fact, the largest desert on Earth also happens to be the planet’s coldest place – and there are no buzzards to be found.

[Read more…]

A bit of nostalgia: Whatever happened to TV repair shops?

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Do you know where your local TV repair shop is located? Well, chances are you don’t because in all likelihood there isn’t one.

Back in the stone age of electronics (i.e. when yours truly was a youngster) you could find at least one radio & TV repair shop in virtually every city and town in America – and they usually had plenty of business.

During my junior and senior years of high school I spent the latter half of every school day at our county’s vocational school learning the trade of radio & TV repair, and during my senior year I worked part time as a TV repair tech at one of our local shops.  [Read more…]