The One Stranger Things Mistake I Made

It’s 2025 and I should know better but the other day I was on Facebook and clicked on a Stranger Things post from some random person (not a FB friend, it was a suggested post, I guess?). Now most of my feed is populated by Stranger Things related content. And I’m not a super fan at all. I definitely shouldn’t have clicked that post, huh?

You might be wondering if I even watch the show since I admitted I’m not a super fan. Yes, yes I do watch the show. I’m up-to-date on the final season with only the series finale yet to air. My take-away is this: So. Much. Talking. I didn’t notice it as much in previous seasons but season 5 has had So. Much. Talking. I’ve probably skipped forward for half of each episode. There’s Eleven in her watery black backdrop scenes, or the Max/Holly Wheeler scenes, Will going on and on about being gay, and I skip forward because of the So. Much. Talking. Did I mention they talk a lot this season?

The best character in season 5 is Delightful Derek and I’m prepared to fight you about that. His retort back to Mr. Whatsit will go down as one of the most iconic lines of the entire show, if not TV streaming history altogether.

Like I said, I’m not a loyal fan of the show but I can still be positive. The graphics and animation work is mind-blowing. The story is entertaining. I just could’ve done without So. Much. Talking.

-Out of the Wilderness

The Apple Watch Chair Bed Commercial – The Song and More!

Apple has a new reminder that we should eat potatoes, not BE potatoes this holiday season. Couch potatoes, that is. The phrase “Run like you stole something” might be replaced with “Run like your bed is chasing you” because isn’t it so nice to have some turkey and gravy, a mound of mashed potatoes, cornbread dressing, then fall asleep watching football? No! No it’s not nice! Get off your rear-end and go for a run, says Apple. There’s one ad with a chair chasing a guy but for now, watch a bed chasing a runner then scroll down for more info…

The Song. Giving the woman a good BPM to run with is a song called “Give Thanks, Give Praise” by Young Franco, General Levy, and Tommy Villiers. Here’s the full track as released in 2025. Also check out Young Franco on Instagram @yngfrnco.

The message is the same across the campaign… “Don’t Give In.” Perfect timing for all of us who make fitness one of our new year resolutions. Take a few minutes to check out my brand new Etsy shop, there are some cool trucker caps up for sale and more on the way!

-Out of the Wilderness

The beginning of the end of 2025

The week between Christmas and New Year’s has become one of my favorites because there’s no stretch of 7 days like it any other time of the year. It’s two of the most popular holidays back-to-back, so there’s lots of celebrating going on. My birthday is squeezed in there, too… and before you ask, yes I love having my birthday so close to Christmas. It makes the whole season even more special for me! Christmas marks the beginning of the end of the year but sandwiched together with my birthday, it’s also the beginning of the beginning of a new year, since now I’m another year older. I’m sure I’ll set up some goals for the year, things I’d like to accomplish or experience, and at the same time I’ll reflect on 2025. I’ll admit these past 12 months have not been what I’d hoped they would be; Some of it’s my fault, other parts aren’t, and then there are always the unexpected and uncontrollable events.

Even with a few bad decisions, being hurt by other people, saying goodbye to my dog, and getting bad news, I’m grateful. There’s a song I heard a few months ago that I’ll probably use as the soundtrack of 2025 in my memories. It reminded me how important it is to be thankful for joy AND thankful for pain. God allows both in my life. Joy is obviously more fun than pain but a lot of times it’s the pain that has me crying out for help, which is a hard, but good, place to be.

I’m sure I won’t look back on 2025 and be super excited about where it stacks up on my all-time favorite years list, but there are still so many great experiences from the year, too. New friends, lots of laughter, special time with family, work success, reconnecting with old friends, participating in sports, learning more about God, such good stuff filling up my life this year.

This week between two celebratory holidays marks the beginning of the end of 2025 so I hope as you reflect on the previous 12 months that there are things you can smile about, even if there were some unfortunate times, too. We need to keep our heads up, our hearts soft, our hands open, and choose joy as much as we can.

Cheers to the next year!

-Out of the Wilderness

The Nike Caitlin Clark “From Anywhere” Commercial – The Song and More

Nike has a new commercial having some fun with basketball star Caitlin Clark. It’s a clever take on her ability to hit deep three-point shots, which delights fans no matter who’s shooting. I won’t say I was the best three-point shooter to ride the bench on my high school JV team, but… yeah, I was the best of the all the guys who never played. Just sayin’. 😎 Here’s the ad, then scroll down for more…

For the older readers out there, this ad might remind you of the Larry Bird and Michael Jordan ad where the pair would shoot the ball around the corner, over the tree, through the window, nothing but net! It had absolutely nothing to do with burgers, but it was a fun commercial from McDonald’s…

Nike uses a song called “Boys Wanna Be Her” by Peaches. Here’s the full track…

Great song choice for basically saying anything you can do, I can do better. Of course, we live in a culture that says if boys want to be her, they can. Not awkward at all. I can’t decide which one I like better, McDonald’s or this new one from Nike. On the one hand, McDonald’s is just silly and I kind of wish Nike embraced the silliness more than they did. They hinted towards the absurd idea of unrealistically long three-pointers but didn’t take us over the ledge. I think if you’re going to dabble with a silly idea, go all in. Just do it, if you will. 🤪 But Nike has us just sitting here wanting to laugh, wanting to be inspired, enjoying the idea of her shooting talent but then waiting… and waiting… and waiting. Then nothing. It’s just a random montage of people with different backdrops (school gym, foreign country, podcast, comedy show, rap concert) asking if she can make it from [wherever they are]. It would’ve been nice to see her prove it, even if it’s still absurd.

Maybe Nike wanted to establish Caitlin as a legitimate star by using a wide array of fans and famous people addressing her skills. They didn’t want the ad to be fun AND funny so then what DID they want the ad to be? Safe? Because as I type, now I wonder if they’re trying to make a silly premise serious. Needless to say, they didn’t inspired me to greatness and even worse, I didn’t laugh either. I’m somewhere stuck in the middle, not hot or cold, just a cup of room temperature water… and thinking about a McDonald’s cheeseburger.

-Out of the Wilderness

From a vegan diet back to the omnivore I was before…

It was around 2013 when my friend challenged me to cut out dairy from my diet as a way to help reduce allergy symptoms because when I have symptoms, they hit hard and last as long as a month or more. I readily said “Yes” and doubled down by removing meat from my meals, too.

Fast forward about 7 years and I changed my diet a little bit. I decided I’d eat fish but only fish caught off my dad’s boat. I figured if Jesus ate fish His dad provided, I could do the same. Plus I was living in Nashville so the opportunity to eat fresh-caught fish was so low already, the adjustment wouldn’t be very drastic.

Then this year, 2024, on Easter Sunday I was sitting in a restaurant having lunch with family after church and everything changed. It wasn’t because of the food served that day, but in a moment of decisiveness, I determined within that I had been sticking with the vegan diet now just out of habit and ritual. I knew it was time to add meat back in. I didn’t change anything I consumed during that Easter meal but within a week or two, being vegan was a thing of the past. I was tired of limiting myself that way.

Another funny part of the story, and maybe it affected me subconsciously, that friend who challenged me years earlier, he was a vegan at the time but I had talked to him earlier this year (2024) and he said, “Oh yeah, I changed my diet years ago and started eating meat again.” I said, “That would’ve been good to know!!” Not that I was doing it for him but there was a sense of camaraderie with both of us being vegan, living in Nashville, etc.

Now we’re both normal again, I guess! I didn’t regret becoming a vegan and I don’t regret ending that era, either. The full picture, though, is that I haven’t added dairy back in very much. I actually love being able to pick and choose what I want from normal food and vegan-prepared food, as well. I see it as being able to enjoy the best of both worlds.

What have I enjoyed the most since going back to meat? Sliced turkey, sliced ham, chicken parmesan, and lots more. What do I still eat from the vegan days? Beyond burgers, Daiya brand cheese, almond milk.

How about you? Have you been vegan or vegetarian then gone back to eating the food you’d been avoiding? How did it make you feel?

-Out of the Wilderness