Category Archives: North Carolina

Speaking of character

It seems fitting that among old medical records I found this portrait of Doctor Dave, my comic persona on radio and in print back in North Carolina, forty-five years ago. The artist is Alex Funk, whose nickname at the time … Continue reading

Posted in Art, Friends, North Carolina, Personal | Leave a comment

Where the nickname came from

My given name is David. Family members still call me that. Everybody else calls me Doc. Since people often ask me where that nickname came from, and since apparently I haven’t answered it anywhere I can now find online, here’s the story. … Continue reading

Posted in advertising, Art, Blogging, Broadcasting, Business, Friends, Fun, Geography, history, North Carolina, Past, Personal, radio | 5 Comments

Why fix a problem that doesn’t exist?

We all know what this symbol means: Two people are not allowed to share an iPad. Just kidding. It means the lavatory in the airplane is occupied. Also that it can be used by persons of either gender. Which gender you are … Continue reading

Posted in Culture, Law, North Carolina | 7 Comments

BYSMD

Once, in the early ’80s, on a trip from Durham to some beach in North Carolina, we stopped to use the toilets at a roadhouse in the middle of nowhere. In the stall where I sat was a long conversation, … Continue reading

Posted in Culture, Family, Friends, Fun, Geography, North Carolina, Personal, Places, Strange stuff, Travel | Leave a comment

Free Money!

I’d like to find a way to say “You may be owed money!” that doesn’t sound like spam. But I that’s the message, and it’s true, so here you go. A few days ago a cousin-in-law told the extended family’s mail list … Continue reading

Posted in Business, money, North Carolina, Personal | Tagged , | 3 Comments

What’s up with @TMobile in North Carolina?

Check this out: I took that screen shot at the excellent Oakleaf restaurant in Pittsboro, NC a few days ago. Note the zero bars (or dots) of telephone service, and the very respectable (tested!) data service. To confirm what the … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Family, Gear, infrastructure, Internet, North Carolina, Places, Strange stuff, Technology, VRM | Tagged | 9 Comments

Fun with tropo

Right now every FM and TV station in Santa Barbara and San Diego can be heard in both places. Between them lays more than 200 miles of ocean across a curved earth. I’m not there right now, but I see … Continue reading

Posted in Broadcasting, Business, Geography, infrastructure, North Carolina, radio, Research, weather | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Remembering Uncle Chris

Yesterday was my Uncle Chris’s 100th birthday. When he passed fifteen years ago, I wrote the following, which I just unearthed from the Old Web. Now seems like a good time to expose it to the world. He was the embodiment of … Continue reading

Posted in Family, history, North Carolina, Obituary, Photography, Places | Leave a comment

My Top Ten Talk Radio Hosts of All Time

Here is my short list: Larry Josephson Howard Stern Bob Grant Bob & Ray Barry Gray Bob Fass Steve Post Rush Limbaugh Alex Bennett Allan Handelman And here are my qualifications: a) the performer has to do (or have done) … Continue reading

Posted in Blogging, Broadcasting, history, Journalism, Links, North Carolina, Past, Personal, radio | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

News: Watching Cable Die

Now that Al Jazeera English‘s stream has been killed in the U.S., the only two streaming global news organizations available on computers and mobile devices are France24 and RT. They look like this: In other words, like TV. Talking heads … Continue reading

Posted in Broadcasting, Business, infrastructure, Internet, Journalism, News, North Carolina, problems | 24 Comments