Todd's Top Books of 2014

Just like my music tastes, my book reads list goes from awesome to embarrassing in no time... haha.  But some pretty awesome books below that will probably hit one of the genres you like to read.  No particular order, just my "5 star" list from 2014.  You'll find a lot of these are also movies.  It just happened to work out like that.  I always read the book before seeing the movie.  If you've read any of these, I would love to hear your feedback.  Be sure to follow me on my Goodreads profile.

Lock In - John Scalzi

• This was my favorite read this year.  Anything apocalyptic/new global virus/etc. themed book typically rates at the top of my lists... "Lock In" combines a new viral disease that locks people into their brains... and robots... and a murder mystery!  You can't go wrong here. A must read, even if you're not really into sci-fi.  After reading this, go and read this prequel novella from the author that gives more in-depth background on the virus.

The Martian - Andy Weir

I read this over the holidays.  My last book of the year.  Amazing!  It's a cross between Apollo 13 and Cast Away, set on Mars.  As I was reading, I was thinking, this book has to be made into a movie... so after, I googled movie rights for this.  Sure enough, it's going to be on the Big Screen November 25th starring Matt Damon and a laundry list of 'A List' movie stars.... it's gonna be big.... trust me.  This book gets a little on the geeky side from time to time, but it ties into the story line nicely.

The Monument's Men - Robert M. Edsel

A real life treasure hunt!  The biggest one in history.  You'll be surprised how many of the world's art masterpieces you will recognize that otherwise would have been destroyed by the Nazi's.  As with all books that are turned into movies, a lot of good stuff gets left out and changed.  The movie was good, but the book is so much richer with stories from the WWII servicemen charged with saving the world's art masterpieces.   You couldn't make some of these stories up.  Great background stories on "The Monuments Men" too.  A must for the history buff.

Twelve Years As A Slave - Solomon Northup

Some books you wish you could just unread.  This is my oldest book to ever read, written in 1853.  A true story told by Soloman Northup, a free black man that was kidnapped and sold into slavery.   During the 12 years, Northup tells, in very graphic detail, the torture and cruelty of being a slave.    But this book is also about hope and the human spirit.  Just a warning, this book is much more graphic and detailed than the movie.  I encourage you to read it though.  It's simply incredible.

Wild: from Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail - Cheryl Strayed

Life do-over.  Cheryl Strayed did that as she hiked 1,100 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail.  Her mother died, her marriage was over, and had nothing to lose.  This is a great self-discovery story packed with humor, reflecting solitude, and other incredible moments along her journey.  Just saw the movie tonight.  It follows pretty close to the book!

Old Man's War - John Scalzi

After "Lock In," I went on a search for Scalzi's other books.  This was recommended to me by a friend.  It did not disappoint.   John Perry turns 75... and joins the army!  If you read sci-fi, you have probably read this masterpiece.  It's a must read if you like space travel, clones, aliens, and spaceships.  You won't believe what happens when Perry joins the army... there a little bit of love story weaved in there too.   Go read now!

Safe Haven - Nicholas Sparks

This is part of the program where you're probably saying to yourself, "really?"  Todd just went from sci-fi to chick-lit??  Yes I did... I'm sure you'd find the same type of train wreck in my music playlists.  Ha!  Who doesn't like a good love story?  Ok, so this was on my wife's bookshelf, and the ratings on goodreads were really high.  So I gave it a shot, and loved it.   The movie, however, sucked... just because it was so way off from the book.

The Sun Also Rises - Ernest Hemingway

This has been on my list for a really long time.  Considered one of Hemingway's best novels.  Sometimes I have a hard time with the 'masterpieces' of literature.  I love books, but hard for me to get artsy with it.  This book was brilliant!  Loved the writing style, which I now know has been copied by a lot of the books I've read.   Love the time period (The 20's,) loved the characters, and love the rolling story.  Go read this classic.




If you're into finding great books, I love using Goodreads... it's like a social media app for readers that tracks your reads and offers great discussion.  I also follow BuzzFeed Books.  Lots of great book lists, and other fun articles.

Zombie Mania!

If you told me... not even a few months ago, that I'd be into Zombie books and TV shows, I'd call you a crazy zombie cow.

I'd say that I eased into it:  The whole Zombie thing... you know, The Undead.  From my previous post, I found that I really enjoy apocalyptic stories.  As it turns out, there are books, TV shows, movies, even U.S. government websites about a Zombie Apocalypse.

There is an upcoming movie starring Brad Pitt called World War Z based on the book by Max Brooks.  The trailer for the movie looked great, and a friend recommended the book, so I checked it out.   Turns out I really liked the world ending with Zombies taking over.  Ha!  The book is pretty good... The trailer looks really amazing!

Then a few friends said I should be watching The Walking Dead on AMC. Yep, I was hooked instantly!  Thankfully for Netflix, I was able to get caught up on the two seasons... until I found out there were three seasons!  However, Season 3 isn't on Netflix or DVD yet... Debating on spending the $42 to watch it on iTunes...

Not sure why I'm digging Zombies so much now... It's not like it's a new thing.  Crazy zombie stories have been around forever... Now I'm ready to go to one of those Zombie Conventions!!  Oh!... and if you happen to have the hook up where I can be a 'walker' extra on The Walking Dead, let me know!

The Dog Stars: Book Review

As you read in my previous post, I have started reading books like a crazy wild man.  While I don't have a firm grasp of the English language, I'd love to share my thoughts on books I read and hopefully encourage you to check it out (or stay away)  Would love to get your feedback on these reviews and your thoughts on the book if you have read it too!  Enjoy!

The (real) end of the world isn't always the topic of choice around the coffee table or something you really think about...the what if's... The Dog Stars goes there and visits the aftermath of the near end of the world.  I say near, because this is the story of what happens after the human population destroyed, except for the relative few that made it out alive.

The Dog Stars is anything but a bleak story about an apocolypse, very believable in what could happen if catastrophic superflu ever happened... old gas, solar power, fighting and killing for the world's remaining food and supplies. The story follows Hig and his search for life, adventure and even love.

I found myself ripping through this book, with obstacles that arise, the deep characters Hig meets, Hig's dog and co-pilot, and the struggles of being isolated from everything you used to know.  A very positive experience given the nature of what's going on where the survivors are driven back into the stone ages.

The Dog Stars gets 5 stars and I hear it's going to be turned into a movie... which I could easily see.

2012 = One Epic Ride!

2012... The year the world was supposed to end... I rode this year, like it was my last.  2013's got some big shoes to fill... I'm ready for the task!

It was a year of personal change for me... maybe it was turning 35, or just the experiences that found me and changed me.  Maybe I just wanted to do something different.

I started 2012 at 202 lbs... the heaviest I've ever weighed...  I started feeling run down, slower.  I had enough.   I made a major change in my diet.  Stopped eating fast food, fried food, soft drinks, and cut down on sweets... It wasn't so hard to make the changes... Now, I don't even miss it, don't want it, and prefer my fruits and veggies over Big Macs and salty french fries.  The result: dropped down to the lowest I've weighed since high school:  175.  (178 after Christmas, haha)

Started reading books.  Now I can't quit and prefer reading over watching TV and video games.  I've read more books in the past 6 months than my entire life.  I've got a lot of catching up to do.  Reading nearly a book a week.  My favorites this year:  The Dog Stars, Abe Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, and books about WWII.  Follow me on GoodReads

Got to visit New York, Chicago, and San Francisco.

Celebrated 10 years married to my wife.  As in all relationships, there are the ups and downs, but she has made everything worth it along the way.  Plus, get to see my three kids grow and learn new stuff everyday.

Rebuilt a car... my 1979 MGB.  It runs ok, still lots of work to go.  I can at least drive it to work.

Discovered myself... a new self.



So what's next?  2013's gonna have to get busy to catch up to '12.

• I lost 25+ pounds because of diet, however didn't do any exercise.  So I'm going to step it up a notch and sweat a little.
• Learn to play guitar.  This one has been one of those to-do's that I never get to... 
• Write more.  Not a book, (yet) but back to this blog.  I enjoy writing, but just haven't made it a priority.
• Try to knock off one more item of my bucket list.

Happy New Year to you!  Make it your mission to do something different in 2013...You have 365 new days ...go for it!!

Memo...

It's fun to dig through old emails... I ran across this today.  A memo I sent to my staff when I changed the name of the station back in 2007.  Enjoy!

3/11/07

Mike, Laura, and Nikki,  (the on air staff)
Hope you had a great weekend!  Tomorrow, we'll be back in action and
dropping "Country 105.5 is now 1055 The Wolf" and going straight into
using only "1055 The Wolf!".

Honestly, I was expecting a fair amount of emails saying "What the
heck?,"  But it seems only a few of our really passionate listeners
are despondent to the change.  Not to worry, like most who do not
accept change graciously at first, do eventually come around.  Because
we will still be super serving our listeners to their expectations the
same way we did as Country 105.5.

It's important to stay focused on what you do best, and that's being a
great performer on the radio.  Don't let the politics of the radio
station, a small handful of listener emails, or a name change bog you
down.

Here's some perspective...The name, Country 105.5, as popular as the
physical radio station is, is a very generic name for the product we
serve.  We've known this for years and was a very easy attacking point
if we were to have direct competition, (which we will soon.)  We don't
want to be the walmart cola, when we can be Coca-Cola.   I can't tell
you how many times at the drive-thru getting a burger and asking for a
coke and the guy on the other end asking "what kind of coke?"   When
we go make a copy, we're making the copy on a Zerox machine even
though it may be on a Ricoh.  Or even better, when the noun Zerox
becomes a verb.  How many times have you "googled" something.  The
Wolf is about creating a country music brand here in FWB and achieving
those same concepts as Coke, Xerox, Google...

The brand "The Wolf" will be known for country music, being patriotic,
being a part of the community....  Everything that the Country 105.5
brand was will be what The Wolf will stand for now.  It's important
that we continue to be these things to our listeners and tell our
listeners that too!

When you get on the air Monday, work your magic like always.  Be proud
of 105-5 The Wolf as you were with Country 105.5.  Bottom line is we
will continue to achieve great success because of you, your
personality, and your hard work, not because we changed our name.

See you in the morning!
-Todd

Todd Nixon, 
105-5 The Wolf
Ft. Walton Beach, FL

Make It Count

Drive it like you stole it, and make it count.  I love the premise of this video:  Being asked to make a video from Nike, then taking the cash and doing something else with it.  Cool video about having one shot and making it count... my favorite quote from this video is from Marilyn Monroe.

When You Wish Upon...

The rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated... Instead of explaining my absence, which would be just a boring diatribe of how I work too much, I'm just going to jump back into it.  :)  Welcome back!

Being so close to Orlando, it was only a matter of time that we spend some significant time with the world famous mouse at Disney World.  So, we hopped in the Nixon minivan and made our pilgrimage to the land of Mickey Mouse.  All the kids loved it, of course.  I think I loved it more watching their happy faces after riding Space Mountain, Going on a race track at 65 MPH, or seeing Holli's amazement watching the fireworks show at Cinderella's Castle at Magic Kingdom.  Our little two year old, Kyli, is a pretty big fan of anything Disney.  Her favorite show is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so this was heaven!  Mickey Mouse was everywhere, and she gladly pointed that out everytime she saw the 'ears.'  She got to meet all of her favorites, and wasn't scared at all of giant mice, dogs, or ducks.

A Year In The Eastern Time Zone

After living in the Central Time Zone all my life, it has taking some getting used to living the Eastern Time Zone.  Even after a year, I'm not quite sure I'm completely used to it.

For the most part, everything is pretty normal, until you get to watching TV.

• Watching the news at 11pm here is just crazy!  I rarely stay up that late just to see who got shot in my 'hood

• Most of the people I know are still.... on Central time.

• Letterman and Leno starts at 11:35, I refer back to the news starting at 11pm... No late night funny for me.

• Primetime TV shows start late at 8pm and run into 10pm.  Well, I actually kinda like that, since the kids are in bed by 8pm... No disturbances!

I'm looking forward to the time change this weekend, falling back an hour will be like living on Central time again!  If TV shows would just move back an hour with me.

Life is Short, Have a Bucket

On the 10th anniversary of 9/11, we think about the tragedy of the event...  how horrific it was to lose all those people... all the brave men and women that died to rescue survivors.  We also look at our own mortality, and realize that we have become complacent in our own lives... we haven't loved enough, lived enough, and done all the things we wanted to do yet.  We remember that life is short, that everyday is a gift, and there are no guarantees.

When is the last time you looked at your life with a magnifying glass and asked yourself, 'what do I want?'  It's so easy to get caught up in serving others at work, at home with family and kids, and often forget about the most important person in your life... YOU!  ...and probably have never thought about the things, no matter how off the wall it is... things you've always wanted to do, but haven't yet?   Got an answer?  Then, go do it... solo or share your experience with family, or close friends.

I've kicked around things in my head for years about things I want to do in life, I finally started a bucket list of my own.  ::Check it out here::

What is it that you want to do before it's all said and done?  Have you made that list?  The list of things you want to do before taking a dirt nap?  There are no guarantees for tomorrow... Get busy, and live.

¿Donde Esta Todd?

I ask myself that too sometimes... As a traveling radio guy, you probably thought I ran off to another circus somewhere.  I'm proud to say, that I'm still in the Ft. Myers three ring radio circus and rockin' it!  Here's what I've been up to lately the past month since I blogged last:

Stealing parking spots at concerts...

Making funny faces....

(Trying to) Avoiding speed traps...

Having (adult) beverages with good friends...

 ...and enjoying trips to Walmart with my family...

So, as you can see, I've been pretty tied up... but good news is I have lots of blog ideas ready to go for your reading enjoyment coming soon.

My Buzz (Cut) Is Fading

Me in 1994

Male pattern baldness is a cruel joke given to us by our parents. There is no cure for it, and there is no way to naturally  change it.  I used to have a TON of thick, curly hair, but at 18, and it seemed like it all fell out at once.  It didn't really bother my too much since I wore a ball cap everywhere; not to cover it up, but because working in radio really doesn't have a dress code and it was comfortable.

As I got older, it was time to grow up and lose the hat, and I had figure out what to do with my (lack of) hair.  I buzzed my head with clippers with the '#1' guard on it.  Hey! It was a big step for me!  That was 2007.  My hair continues to thin out and I'm at another cross roads: Is it time to just shave it all with a razor?  

Good Grief!

A couple of 'bald brothers' at work do it, and it looks good on them... but I'm hesitant to do it....and not because I'm holding on to what's left... well, that's a small piece of it, but mostly it's because I have this odd-shaped, Charlie Brown-sized head.   It's big!  What is my big ol' noggin gonna look like without any hair on it?  So I started Google-ing how to shave my head, and came across a few videos that wouldn't work, but I was happy to find a some cool products for those follically challenged.

Maybe I will shave it all, maybe not... but if I do go all the way, I want to change my name to Kojak!

Who Loves Ya Baby?

Caution When Cruising

You could see it in the other parents' eyes... that the 'relaxing vacation' on a cruise ship with their kids... wasn't going to be so relaxing.

My wife and I decided to take a week on a Carnival Cruise with all three kids in tow. Trale 9, Mason 6, and Kyli 22 months. We knew ahead that we would have to tow Kyli everywhere we went because she was under two years old. The age threshold for the Carnival Kids Camp is 2 and up. So for parts of the day, Trale and Mason got to hang out with other kids for some fun activities and have a vacation too away from Mom and Dad!

Anybody with young children knows how easy it is for them to get bored even minutes after doing something fun. Being stuck on a boat, stuffed in a small cabins often sparked the 'bored' phrase more than I wanted to hear. Having to tote a little one around too made it difficult to see any of the adult sit down events which also provoked a 'bored' from me too from time to time.

In that water at the
Pirate Ship Excursion

The excursions turned out to be a nice release from the cruise ship doldrums. Getting to visit Grand Cayman and Mexico was a real treat, but I wanted to spend more time on land seeing the sights. You were whisked away for the excursion as soon as you stepped off the boat, by the time you returned, there was no time left to really experience the true culture of the town and you end up stuck in the port tourist traps with shops and restaurants I can visit anytime back home.

A picture of one of the pics snapped

At every turn, somebody from the ship was taking our picture... even before we took one step onto the ship, we were pulled over and our picture taken. Of course, the cruise ship wants you to buy the picture later for $20!! When we got off the boat, a picture snapped... as we were eating...SNAP... outside on the deck. 'CLICK'...walking back to the ship all sweaty and nasty from the excursion....SNNNAAPPP! I think our picture was taken more times than if we were walking into a bank to rob it.

We did have some fun on the boat, but there were just too many little things that overshadowed the great stuff on board: Cabins that were too hot, spaghetti at the Mexico excursion, too little time at port, no daycare for little babies, $6+ Beer...oh and all the damn pictures... It was just too much.

Me with Nacho and Pancho

There's a towel monkey in our room!

Not saying, not to take a cruise, because for the most part, this trip was a good time.  But for what it's worth...here's my two cents: If you want to see the world and cruise, do it with older children.  Look for cruises that allow more time at port to get the most out of the towns you are visiting, read reviews of the excursions before booking... and don't jump off the boat, even if you really want to.

Click here to see more pics from the trip!

Brain Power! Stay Creative!

It's tough at times for me to free my mind of clutter so I can think clearly and stir up with new, creative ideas. If you use your brain squash between your ears a lot, then this is a nice little exercise with tips on staying creative and moving forward.

Tim the Bouncer!

If you're a Tim McGraw fan and have been to one of his shows, you know that Tim don't put up with shenanigans at his shows... he boots out some really drunk fans at a show in Washington.  It's always fun to see the stars get all riled up... although Tim was pretty calm about things... check out the video below.

Country Jam: The New Cats Of Country

This week, we got to give our listeners a little treat with a free show with a few of the newest country stars.  We called it the "New Cats Of Country" with Thompson Square, Sunny Sweeney, James Wesley, and Steel Magnolia.  It was acoustic, and in the round... for my Texas readers... a la 'Ten Man Jam' style.  It was a magical event like never before in SW Florida.  It was a blast to put together and listeners filled the seats!  Check out a few of the pics!  Special thanks to all the artists on the show and Mike Gilbert for the cool photos!.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Check out even more pics from the New Cats show here!
James Wesley gave us a cool shoutout on stage too... see the video.

Mason Graduates Kindergarten

2 out of 3 of my kids have now graduated kindergarten. Mason, through 4 different kindergarten classes, made it through to the first grade.  Yes... 4 schools in one year.  It's partially my fault for moving cross country, and partially Lee County schools fault for having a jacked up enrollment system.

Sorry buddy for making you switch schools so many times this year.  Good job little man, you are so smart and you make me and Mom very proud.

Don't Mess With Darius

A few weeks back the radio station hosted a country concert with Darius Rucker... we went backstage and got to meet Darius with some of our listeners and noticed this BIG black guy that was never more than a few feet away from Darius... we figured he was the body guard... at one point yelled at some people standing in line.  We all joked that "we didn't want to mess with that guy."   We were right... press play below and see what happens to this guy at a show in Boca Raton that got too close during the show... it all goes down around 1:13 into it.

Phun with my Phone

I spent some time with my little girl, Kyli, outside this weekend and tested out the new add ons for my iPhone app, Hipstamatic... which puts a filter on the photo to make it look retro... and what came through the lens was nothing less than magic!  Click on the pictures for a bigger version.