The Mason Minute
Musings From the Mind Of Kevin Mason; a retired radio guy who just won’t give up the microphone.
Episodes
April 22, 2025 • 1 min
Today is Earth Day. And while many people know that it is, they don't know what it means. Earth Day was an idea that started in the late 1960s. With all the issues we faced back then, the Vietnam War and race relations, the people who came up with the idea had the vision for creating events similar to the sit-in protests that were so popular. The initial idea was for Earth Day to be a teach-in. It was similar to those sit-ins but f...
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April 21, 2025 • 1 min
Insurance rates are going up. I know that's nothing new. Let me clarify: Your auto insurance rates are about to jump. And it doesn't matter if you don't have any accidents or speeding tickets on your record. Your rates are about to jump because of the pending foreign tariffs. The price of insurance isn't based solely on your driving habits. It's also based on the price companies pay to repair vehicles that are involved in accidents...
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April 20, 2025 • 1 min
Today, many kids will get a visit from the Easter Bunny. Many will get candy, chocolate bunnies, marshmallow Peeps, and money. In my day, we dyed Easter Eggs. It was the same thing every year. My parents would buy a dozen eggs, my mother would hard boil them, and then I'd pull out the Paas kit to make them colorful. Then, the Easter Bunny would stop by our house, go to the refrigerator, and hide the dozen we dyed around the house. ...
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April 19, 2025 • 1 min
Diet soda is a big business. It has been for decades. Today, everyone loves Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi. But they weren't the first, not even close. Coke first gave us Tab. Pepsi offered the short-lived Patio. However, the first brand that paved the way for artificially sweetened soft drinks was created by RC Cola in the 50s. It was called Diet Rite. I say 'was", because Dr Pepper/Keurig, the company that most recently owned the brand,...
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April 18, 2025 • 1 min
I'm not sure if you'd consider this an acronym, but I see a slang term on social media almost every day: IYKYK. Often, it's written as a hashtag, but rarely do you see it written in full. It's short for the phrase, if you know, you know. It was cute the first hundred times I saw it in the 2010s. Now, not so much. I spend a lot of time on social media, so I probably see it more often than you do. But this seems like one of those thi...
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April 17, 2025 • 1 min
I've never been a trendy dresser, but I always had my own style. Sometimes the choices were silly, but I don't have many regrets. Back in my high school days, there was talk about instituting a dress code at our public school. I was part of the protests that changed the school board's mind. So when I saw the story the other day, where Starbucks announced that they going to have one for their baristas, I was shocked. I have no probl...
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April 16, 2025 • 1 min
Most of us have the desire to live longer. And we all know that a sensible diet and moderate exercise will help us achieve those goals. But one doctor claims that he has an addition to the basics. Sunshine is one of those, but the other might be controversial. This doctor recommends jump-starting your hydration each morning. We all know that drinking enough water is essential. But the doc feels you can boost your hydration level by...
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April 15, 2025 • 1 min
If you have a 401k, IRA, or any other type of retirement account that relies on stocks and bonds, you're likely feeling nervous right now. With the potential for a recession near and the on-again, off-again tariffs from the White House looming, it only makes sense to worry. The closer you are to retirement age likely plays into your stress level. I just received my quarterly IRA statement over the weekend and enjoyed a slight gain....
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April 14, 2025 • 1 min
If you grew up as a baby boomer, anytime you see a giant ceremonial check, your mind likely drifts to the Publishers Clearing House and their prize patrol. Their contest forms have been found in our mailboxes for decades. The PCH is the latest iconic American company to file for bankruptcy. But they don't plan on going away. Back in the late 1990s, they began pivoting toward the internet. While they continued to use the postal serv...
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April 13, 2025 • 1 min
Domino's is currently running a commercial for their new stuffed crust pizza. The premise of this ad is that people claim that Domino's Parmesan Stuffed Crust pizza is better than their old version. There's only one problem: they've never offered this style of pizza before. But people think they have. When you're the top brand, people often think that a product offered by a competitor is yours. I understand it's best to be the lead...
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April 12, 2025 • 1 min
I read something the other day that surprised me. A candy bar that's been around for over 80 years is no longer made in a full-size version. Hershey discontinued the regular full-size Krackel bar. Actually, it was first discontinued 28 years ago. It never totally went away. You could always find it in the Hershey Miniatures bag. The regular-size bar came back for a brief moment in 2014 but again disappeared. I guess I don't cruise ...
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April 11, 2025 • 1 min
For the last 20 years, you've been told that the Real ID is coming. There have been numerous delays, but the day is almost here. On May 7th, you'll need a passport or one to board an airplane. If you've been putting it off, you want to move quickly. While you don't have to get one, not having one could be a big hassle. If you already have a US passport, there's no rush. The wait times at your local license branch are long. Trust me...
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April 10, 2025 • 1 min
We haven't bought any postage stamps in quite a while. I've lost track of how much they cost. Ever since the debut of the Forever Stamps, they haven't listed the price on the front. The US Postal Service is floating a trial balloon. They want to raise the price of stamps by five cents this summer. That will make them 78 cents. I know that the post office is having problems. They've been in the red for years. Some folks in Washingto...
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April 9, 2025 • 1 min
With the new Presidential tariffs going into effect, many manufacturers warn people that prices will rise. We all know that, but now some toy companies are telling parents they should shop early for Christmas. Yes, it's still eight months away, but companies are worried. With so many toys imported worldwide, they're already worried about their holiday business. Some items may never get shipped, and the ones that do might get stuck ...
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April 8, 2025 • 1 min
When you're young, you don't worry about the future. You're invincible. You can get through anything. But as you get older, you worry about things out of your control. You start thinking about things like Alzheimer's and dementia. They're not things you can easily prevent. However, researchers in Europe recently found that people who get the two-dose shingles vaccine could also be staving off the chances of getting dementia. There'...
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April 7, 2025 • 1 min
We all have pet peeves. I have more than my share. Sometimes, we have things that bother us that we don't encounter often, but when we do, we make a note and add them to our list. I came across this over the weekend. My wife and I were dining at a brunch restaurant, and about an hour before they were to close their doors, they started vacuuming. I also see this happen when I go shopping at the mall before closing time. These busine...
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April 6, 2025 • 1 min
As some say, when feeling nostalgic, happiness comes from very basic and simple things. And while I understand the sentiment, that's hard to fathom in our world today. Is anything simple today? Life is much more complicated than in the good old days. As we get older, we tend to believe our youth was the best of times. It doesn't matter what the years were when you were young; our memories look back and feel those were the best. Kid...
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April 5, 2025 • 1 min
Honestly, there are some things I'll never understand. Why do people leave their keys in the car? How hard is it to remove the keys? I lived in small towns when I was younger. Even back then, people locked their homes and vehicles' doors. But even in 2025, some people in cities like Nashville still have trouble locking their car doors. I know this because I got an alert on my phone the other day. It was from the Metro Nashville Pol...
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April 4, 2025 • 1 min
People often say there's a big difference between watching the game in person and watching it on TV. While I love seeing sports up close, whether it's a stadium, arena, or ballpark, there are some benefits to enjoying everything from the comfort of your easy chair. You can pause the action when you have to go to the bathroom. It's easier to grab a snack when watching from home. Plus, the food costs are much less. But that's changin...
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April 3, 2025 • 1 min
This time of year, many yearn for warm weather and coastal beaches. Spring break is on everyone's mind. But have you ever thought about the sand you want to dig your toes into? We're actually running out of it. Technically, the sand at the beach is worth very little. But there are different types. The kind you buy at Lowe's or Home Depot for building projects differs. We dredge it from rivers, and it's not manufactured. That's the ...
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