Welcome to the Dojo

Allow Me To Introduce Myself

Hi there! My name’s Rob. You might know me online as Flack, the alias I adopted back in 1984 when I was a little kid calling bulletin board systems on my dad’s Apple II computer. You might be following me on social media under the name Commodork, which also happens to be the name of my first book. Maybe you listen to one of my podcasts like You Don’t know Flack, Sprite Castle, or Throwback Reviews. Maybe you read my blog, RobOHara.com, or maybe you follow my vanlife content at BigRobsVan.com. I do a lot of things in a lot of places, but right now, you’re here and I’m here. Let’s hang out.

If by chance we’ve never met before… Hello! It’s nice to meet you! Allow me to introduce myself.

Like I said, my name is Rob. I was born in 1973 and was raised, and still reside just outside Oklahoma City. One of my earliest memories is seeing Star Wars in the theater when I was four years old. As a kid, I loved Star Wars toys. And Fisher Price Adventure People. And LEGO bricks. And riding my bike. And skateboarding. And breakdancing. And Dungeons and Dragons. And video games. I loved books, and magazines, and music, and movies. I loved the 1970s and the 1980s. I still do.

This is me in, I think, 1986. That’s my beloved Commodore 64. I still have it, and that disk drive. And that monitor, too. On top of my monitor is Dragoon, a Dungeons and Dragon’s toy, and right next to my monitor is a Screamin’ Meemie Madball. On the shelf behind me is a Yamaha keyboard I never learned how to play and the box for a Commodore modem, which is currently out in my garage. On the corkboard are a bunch of pictures my dad took at a car show and a printed screenshot from a Rambo computer game. You’re probably wondering how I was able to fend off the ladies, what with that sweet Miami Vice-style jacket and Footloose-inspired spike haircut, but somehow I managed to keep them at bay.

I would describe myself as “painfully nostalgic.” One of my problems is that my memory is amazingly good. I remember where in my elementary school library the Bigfoot and UFO books were located. I remember what flavor the cake was at my 10th birthday party. I remember what brand of shoes I wore in eighth grade. I remember where I was the first time I heard Motley Crue. While I don’t technically have a photographic memory, my brain is filled with thousands of these memories that even if I wanted to, I could never forget.

I’m big into vibes. Today, the walls of my home office are splashed with blue and purple spotlights. I always have music playing or old television shows running in the background. Silence is painful to me. There are so many things that come to mind when I think about the 1980s, but two of them are ninjas and neon lights. If you can imagine a ninja poster from the 80s illuminated by some cheap, buzzy neon sign, well, welcome to my world.

I love writing about the 70s and 80s and sharing those memories. I’ve been doing that in various places around the web for many years, but now, I’ll be doing it here. I’m still learning my way around Substack so if you see something I could do better, please let me know. I love comments and feedback. I can’t wait to meet you all, and for you all to meet me.

The dojo is officially open for business.