I *love* talk radio. Not the 'talking head' FOX, Rush Limbaugh, Coast to Coast, kind of talk radio though. My love covers funny talk radio.
It started with Mark & Brian on KLOS back in, ohhh, about 1983/84 and carried over to the nationally syndicated Don & Mike Show around 1993-ish. I've been to events and appearances for both and at one time loved them equally but for different reasons.
My nickname for my husband - "The Mike" - originates from The Don & Mike show. Since roughly 2001 I've been a moderator (the first female one at that) for a fansite called Radio Gods Forum. Three of the four show members are named Mike/Michael in real life and I had to figure out a way to talk about MY Mike without confusing all the other members of the website.
Long story short - the Don & Mike Show ceased to exist and then talk radio overall imploded in today's post-Janet Jackson Nipplegate fallout. The talk radio I have loved for so long fell apart and general terrestrial radio meant nothing to me.
I had long ago given up on music radio. The same 5 songs on a station, played in heavy rotation, based on what marketing said should be played . . . No thank you. Even if you picked a different type of station, it was the same story, only a different set of another 5 songs geared to that station's marketing.
Big corporations were getting gobbled up by bigger corporations, and all the corporations had nothing to do with music except it being just another arm of their larger media conglomerate.
CBS
Citadel
Westwood One
BlahBlahBlah
I Could Go On, but
Again, No Thank You
Even Howard Stern. He was probably the biggest name in 'comedy talk radio' a few years ago, and his jump to satellite radio was considered a huge shakeup to the status quo. Huge. But really? In reality he is now just another Name Brand for a large media conglomerate. Don't get me wrong - he absolutely was a pioneer in his day and he most definitely was a major cause of change in the talk radio genre. What most people don't realize though is that he wasn't the first and he won't be the last. I believe his greatest accomplishment at the end was getting people to entertain, and ultimately accept, the demise of radio as we've known it.
Traditional radio in today's world, as a vehicle for people who are mic pros, is dead and I could not be happier. No longer am I, or you, tied to a set schedule in order to enjoy our radio (or t.v. but I'm a radiophile, not a tellyphile, lol).
A few years ago, before iPods and mp3 players were as commonplace as discarded Starbucks cups, some of us had to resort to underground sources for our talk radio show fix. We'd get home, get online and listen to the bootlegged episodes of live shows. Believe you me, it was better than not listening at all and we were happy as hell with the option.
Fast forward to 2009/2010. It has been the best time ever to be a Talk Radio fan and I don't even turn my radio on. At all. Some of my all-time favorite terrestrial radio shows are now only available in podcast form due to layoffs and corporate restructuring and to those corporate douchebags I thank you so much.
Here now is the rundown of the voices I love having in my head:
Every work day I share my commute with Big Fatty. It takes about 20 minutes to drive into work and there is no one I'd rather have kick-start my day. I've learned to roll up the windows at stops though, because his on-air belches may cause streetlights to sway from the reverberation. I hereby request that Big Fatty be the older brother I never had.
Also every day, now that he's back, I listen to 3+ hours of The Don Geronimo Show, aired on KHTK. I know Don HATES hearing this . . . but . . . it's all that is on. Now that I've had several months to check Don out at his latest gig . . . terrestrial radio, 'natch . . . I will always love what he used to be but I do not get why he cannot find a niche outside of the f.m. or a.m. dial.
On Mondays I listen to NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me from the weekend.
Those are my stand-bys, based on their regularity.
Now, in alphabetical order, are all the podcasts I enjoy. Be warned though: some are funny, some are educational, some are knitting-based, some are not safe for work, some are all of the above and some are nothing of the above. I've never been a mainstream gal. I am what I am and I like what I like. Promise you though, I'll give a listen to your list if you make one.
My hope is that someone among you enjoys something I've shared and/or we inspire another person to hit the mic.
Drumroll please:
Big Fatty Online
Big O and Dukes
Blow Hard
California Gold (and the man I hope to become)
CogKNITive Podcast
Don Geronimo Show
Doubleknit
Fiber Beat
Funemployment Radio (a huge favorite)
Jay & Silent Bob Get Old (another big favorite)
Mike O'Meara Show (Best. Comedy. Podcast. Ever. And I mean that wholeheartedly.)
The Nerdist
NPR: Wait Wait . . . Don't Tell Me!
Savvy Girls (best knitting-related podcast out there, hands down)
SModcast
Stitch It (another great knitting podcast)
Stuff You Should Know
Tell 'Em Steve-Dave
We're Mean Because You're Stupid (aka WMBYS)
I listen to 30+ other podcasts but the above list is my hands-down favorite.
Yep. I didn't link the list names. Every single one can be found via iTunes. If you really don't know how to find one of them, leave me a comment. That should be after you've exhausted 10 seconds out of your life doing a Google search after your iTunes search.
Now then. What's on your listening list? I hope you share the voices in your head too.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Tomorrow is my Golden Day:
Tomorrow . . . well, right now, is my first 'vacation' day from my current job.
While I totally intend to sleep in a bit, there's a good chance I will wake up at first light having forgotten I don't need to spring out of bed - and I'll totally spring out of bed with dread.
That's okay because my next thought will be remembering I don't have to be at Soul Suck, Inc. and I'll burrow back down under my comforter in sheer joy.
Man, I hate that place.
I think my next post will be to share all the various podcasts I enjoy, and maybe a bit of my mixed-up musical taste.
I'd much rather do that then spend the day calculating overpaid douchebags' paychecks!
While I totally intend to sleep in a bit, there's a good chance I will wake up at first light having forgotten I don't need to spring out of bed - and I'll totally spring out of bed with dread.
That's okay because my next thought will be remembering I don't have to be at Soul Suck, Inc. and I'll burrow back down under my comforter in sheer joy.
Man, I hate that place.
I think my next post will be to share all the various podcasts I enjoy, and maybe a bit of my mixed-up musical taste.
I'd much rather do that then spend the day calculating overpaid douchebags' paychecks!
Monday, October 18, 2010
7 Legal Years
It was an early celebration, but tonight The Mike and I had our 7th wedding anniversary date night and whooo boy howdy it was really great.
If you follow me on twitter, this will be old news so don't read it if you don't want to get another rehash of my mushy evening, lol.
My boss had recommended The Grill at Avila Beach Golf Resort but I wasn't sold until hubs checked out the menu and gave it his approval. He can be really picky (read 'annoying') about trying new places and things he's not used to (one day I'll tell the story of the first time I took him to Benihana's. It was a fucking nightmare).
The restaurant is very open, with light colored walls and ceiling and tons of uncovered windows. Because we went so early, we had the place to ourselves until just before we left. Score!
Mike had a huge rib-eye steak and fell in love at the first bite. Whew. He was happy and that meant we were off to a good start. I had a stuffed chicken breast but forgot to make sure it was boneless before ordering it. Bones in meat creep me right the fuck out. This one did have a bone but they cut the piece of chicken in such a way that it was only one small bone and I could pretty much avoid it. Another score! My appetizer was their sweet potato french fries and I could not have been more surprised by how absolutely fantastic they were. Salty with a bit of sweet and more mushy on the inside than crispy - just the way I like all my fries and I've only recently dabbled in the world of sweet potatoes anyway. They were truly delicious.
Our view was the little inlet in Avila, where the creek meets the ocean. I've been to that inlet so many times but tonight was my first view from the golf course side. We could even see the Avila pier from our table and it was just as the sun was setting. Romantic, no?
The place was a bit pricey for us - $86 for two dinners, two iced teas and a cone of french fries, including tip - but as a once-in-a-great-while splurge it was completely worth it. I highly recommend them if you have a special occasion you're willing to open the wallet for. The pay-off is well worth the cost.
My only criticisms, and I am saying them for full disclosure, is 1) our waitress was a bit morose. Not mean or abrupt or lacking in helpfulness. Just . . . sad? Like she had gotten bad news and was making the best of it. Now this could totally be her everyday personality, I don't know. I'm just going to assume that usually she's an upbeat kind of person - but tonight just wasn't that night for some reason. And 2) the service was a bit slow at the beginning. This might be tied to #1 - again I don't know. We were the only people in the entire dining room is all I'm saying. Neither minor complaint was anywhere near a deal-breaker. We both agreed that we are looking forward to our next special occasion meal there.
So. Enough about our fabulous food and the fabulous location!
Next, we headed out of Avila and into the Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort for some soaking time in one of their hot tubs. Is it just me or do you guys all say "Hot Tub Time Machine" in your heads too?
When my real mom died and I had to go through her hoarded shit, she had two brand-new-in-original-plastic-casing gigantic terrycloth bath robes from CostCo. No lie, each one weighs over 15 pounds. Their inaugural use was tonight at Sycamore. We felt so decadent and ritzy, lol. Thanks Mom. We'll call these my 28th birthday present, mm'kay?
Anywho. We showed up for our reservation and bought a bottle of wine for our Hot Tub Time Machine appointment. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to buy a bottle before we got there and I ended up buying a bottle of red something. I hate red wine. Like really hate. It tastes like gasoline to me . . . if I had to guess what gasoline tastes like.
So we headed to the *restroom/changing room, did our restrooming/changing and then hoofed it up the hill to our appointed tub.
I had been looking forward to this part for weeks and it didn't disappoint. I'm sure, like with any dimly-lit place, the magic would have been less in the harsh light of day but I gladly entered with blinders on. It was a 104 degree mineral spring jacuzzi out in the open and yet secluded. Sold! For the price ($25 for two people for an hour) and for the location (15 minutes from our house), we will be going there more often. As a local, it's embarrassing to admit that I hadn't been there (as a paying customer) since Jr. High! And that was 100 years ago!
The good points of Sycamore: 1) Maybe we were lucky or maybe they were slow tonight, but the check-in gal gave us more than an hour. 2) It rained just a bit and made it more fun. 3) They have strategically placed the hot tubs to have full privacy without feeling enclosed. 4) We won't forget how close and affordable this place is. Mike already wants to come back next month. 5) You can totally bring in your own adult beverages without issue but FYI, they have a 'no glass' rule.
The bad points of Sycamore: 1) If you choose to look closely, it is very touristy. Some stuff doesn't work properly and some stuff would not get a local's approval in the light of day. *2) WTF on their bathroom/changing room?? It was a weird cross between a port-a-potty and a plunked-down guest bathroom. Incongruous, right? To top it off, there was a light fixture over the sink but we could NOT locate the switch . . . at dark thirty. That room-thing was so fucking weird that I will inquire about it when we go again.
Tonight was super fun and we laughed our asses off several times. While most people desire deep soul-sucking kisses and intense gazes, The Mike and I really enjoy cracking up together.
He's the funniest, sweetest, kindest and truest friend a person could have. He's also the most selfish, self-absorbed annoying jerk I choose to associate with.
That's being married though. The good, the bad and the funny and I know without a doubt he'd say the exact same thing about me.
7 years of being married and 8 years of being together. Most days it feels like yesterday we said "I Do".
If you follow me on twitter, this will be old news so don't read it if you don't want to get another rehash of my mushy evening, lol.
My boss had recommended The Grill at Avila Beach Golf Resort but I wasn't sold until hubs checked out the menu and gave it his approval. He can be really picky (read 'annoying') about trying new places and things he's not used to (one day I'll tell the story of the first time I took him to Benihana's. It was a fucking nightmare).
The restaurant is very open, with light colored walls and ceiling and tons of uncovered windows. Because we went so early, we had the place to ourselves until just before we left. Score!
Mike had a huge rib-eye steak and fell in love at the first bite. Whew. He was happy and that meant we were off to a good start. I had a stuffed chicken breast but forgot to make sure it was boneless before ordering it. Bones in meat creep me right the fuck out. This one did have a bone but they cut the piece of chicken in such a way that it was only one small bone and I could pretty much avoid it. Another score! My appetizer was their sweet potato french fries and I could not have been more surprised by how absolutely fantastic they were. Salty with a bit of sweet and more mushy on the inside than crispy - just the way I like all my fries and I've only recently dabbled in the world of sweet potatoes anyway. They were truly delicious.
Our view was the little inlet in Avila, where the creek meets the ocean. I've been to that inlet so many times but tonight was my first view from the golf course side. We could even see the Avila pier from our table and it was just as the sun was setting. Romantic, no?
The place was a bit pricey for us - $86 for two dinners, two iced teas and a cone of french fries, including tip - but as a once-in-a-great-while splurge it was completely worth it. I highly recommend them if you have a special occasion you're willing to open the wallet for. The pay-off is well worth the cost.
My only criticisms, and I am saying them for full disclosure, is 1) our waitress was a bit morose. Not mean or abrupt or lacking in helpfulness. Just . . . sad? Like she had gotten bad news and was making the best of it. Now this could totally be her everyday personality, I don't know. I'm just going to assume that usually she's an upbeat kind of person - but tonight just wasn't that night for some reason. And 2) the service was a bit slow at the beginning. This might be tied to #1 - again I don't know. We were the only people in the entire dining room is all I'm saying. Neither minor complaint was anywhere near a deal-breaker. We both agreed that we are looking forward to our next special occasion meal there.
So. Enough about our fabulous food and the fabulous location!
Next, we headed out of Avila and into the Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort for some soaking time in one of their hot tubs. Is it just me or do you guys all say "Hot Tub Time Machine" in your heads too?
When my real mom died and I had to go through her hoarded shit, she had two brand-new-in-original-plastic-casing gigantic terrycloth bath robes from CostCo. No lie, each one weighs over 15 pounds. Their inaugural use was tonight at Sycamore. We felt so decadent and ritzy, lol. Thanks Mom. We'll call these my 28th birthday present, mm'kay?
Anywho. We showed up for our reservation and bought a bottle of wine for our Hot Tub Time Machine appointment. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to buy a bottle before we got there and I ended up buying a bottle of red something. I hate red wine. Like really hate. It tastes like gasoline to me . . . if I had to guess what gasoline tastes like.
So we headed to the *restroom/changing room, did our restrooming/changing and then hoofed it up the hill to our appointed tub.
I had been looking forward to this part for weeks and it didn't disappoint. I'm sure, like with any dimly-lit place, the magic would have been less in the harsh light of day but I gladly entered with blinders on. It was a 104 degree mineral spring jacuzzi out in the open and yet secluded. Sold! For the price ($25 for two people for an hour) and for the location (15 minutes from our house), we will be going there more often. As a local, it's embarrassing to admit that I hadn't been there (as a paying customer) since Jr. High! And that was 100 years ago!
The good points of Sycamore: 1) Maybe we were lucky or maybe they were slow tonight, but the check-in gal gave us more than an hour. 2) It rained just a bit and made it more fun. 3) They have strategically placed the hot tubs to have full privacy without feeling enclosed. 4) We won't forget how close and affordable this place is. Mike already wants to come back next month. 5) You can totally bring in your own adult beverages without issue but FYI, they have a 'no glass' rule.
The bad points of Sycamore: 1) If you choose to look closely, it is very touristy. Some stuff doesn't work properly and some stuff would not get a local's approval in the light of day. *2) WTF on their bathroom/changing room?? It was a weird cross between a port-a-potty and a plunked-down guest bathroom. Incongruous, right? To top it off, there was a light fixture over the sink but we could NOT locate the switch . . . at dark thirty. That room-thing was so fucking weird that I will inquire about it when we go again.
Tonight was super fun and we laughed our asses off several times. While most people desire deep soul-sucking kisses and intense gazes, The Mike and I really enjoy cracking up together.
He's the funniest, sweetest, kindest and truest friend a person could have. He's also the most selfish, self-absorbed annoying jerk I choose to associate with.
That's being married though. The good, the bad and the funny and I know without a doubt he'd say the exact same thing about me.
7 years of being married and 8 years of being together. Most days it feels like yesterday we said "I Do".
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Political Annoyances
I've been on twitter for a while now, and I started following our current president as soon as I signed up.
Like everyone else wanting change from the Same 'ol Same 'ol that we'd been suffering through, our vote counted and we created a fresh breeze to blow through the White House.
Or so I thought.
But as a person reading the tweets from our current president (but more likely someone appointed to tweet in his name), I am really fucking annoyed.
I voted for this guy to make change.
I voted for him based on his message of change and non-partisanship.
I planned on whole-heartedly supporting that platform.
A platform of Change and Non-Partisanship. That is the message I got the fuck behind.
I'm not a rube. I know it's a tough sell and that most everyone in power within the D.C. beltway is always scrambling to keep their own power/affiliation/elected appointment. This goes for both sides of the aisle. I think the phrase "both-partisan" should be as equally bandied about, since neither side is innocent of the behavior.
Here's the thing though. I didn't vote for Barack Obama because he's a democrat. I voted for him because he made me believe he was about turning this country around. I voted for him because he was selling a plan that would right what George Bush had wronged. Conversely, I wasn't against George Bush because he is a republican. I was (and still am) against George Bush because he was a puppet president. An entitled idiot that allowed other people to profit off a war, and at the same time allowed our country to tank.
And now we're at the point of this post.
I do not want my president (or his proxy) to tweet me about voting democratic. I want my goddamn president to be our president and focus on a picture bigger than partisan votes.
I want him to be Presidential and above the fray. I want him to delegate this piddly election bullshit to his underlings. In my estimation, all he has accomplished by tweeting about "voting party lines" is:
1) His head isn't in being my president. The job I, and some of you, elected him for.
2) He wasn't truthful in his original platform of non-partisanship.
So, in the end, after being privy to his tweets (and how stupid is it that people take to twitter for serious issues?) I'm disillusioned.
I want President Obama to lead my country and not be a first responder/panderer for democratic votes.
At election time, I will pick those I believe in. Some will have an (R) after their name and some will have a (D).
I honestly want OUR President to lead this country as we elected him to do. No more and no less and without ties to future or past puppet masters.
But with this presidency, I think I'm finally learning that us Americans have been duped by smoke and mirrors for years. Bigger names and bigger money are going on behind the scenes. They (Dems & Reps both) make the choice on who we pretend-elect into office, in order for us to have a false sense of say.
Ironic that this was the president I finally and truly believed in yet he's the president I became so disillusioned by.
Non-partisan my ass.
Like everyone else wanting change from the Same 'ol Same 'ol that we'd been suffering through, our vote counted and we created a fresh breeze to blow through the White House.
Or so I thought.
But as a person reading the tweets from our current president (but more likely someone appointed to tweet in his name), I am really fucking annoyed.
I voted for this guy to make change.
I voted for him based on his message of change and non-partisanship.
I planned on whole-heartedly supporting that platform.
A platform of Change and Non-Partisanship. That is the message I got the fuck behind.
I'm not a rube. I know it's a tough sell and that most everyone in power within the D.C. beltway is always scrambling to keep their own power/affiliation/elected appointment. This goes for both sides of the aisle. I think the phrase "both-partisan" should be as equally bandied about, since neither side is innocent of the behavior.
Here's the thing though. I didn't vote for Barack Obama because he's a democrat. I voted for him because he made me believe he was about turning this country around. I voted for him because he was selling a plan that would right what George Bush had wronged. Conversely, I wasn't against George Bush because he is a republican. I was (and still am) against George Bush because he was a puppet president. An entitled idiot that allowed other people to profit off a war, and at the same time allowed our country to tank.
And now we're at the point of this post.
I do not want my president (or his proxy) to tweet me about voting democratic. I want my goddamn president to be our president and focus on a picture bigger than partisan votes.
I want him to be Presidential and above the fray. I want him to delegate this piddly election bullshit to his underlings. In my estimation, all he has accomplished by tweeting about "voting party lines" is:
1) His head isn't in being my president. The job I, and some of you, elected him for.
2) He wasn't truthful in his original platform of non-partisanship.
So, in the end, after being privy to his tweets (and how stupid is it that people take to twitter for serious issues?) I'm disillusioned.
I want President Obama to lead my country and not be a first responder/panderer for democratic votes.
At election time, I will pick those I believe in. Some will have an (R) after their name and some will have a (D).
I honestly want OUR President to lead this country as we elected him to do. No more and no less and without ties to future or past puppet masters.
But with this presidency, I think I'm finally learning that us Americans have been duped by smoke and mirrors for years. Bigger names and bigger money are going on behind the scenes. They (Dems & Reps both) make the choice on who we pretend-elect into office, in order for us to have a false sense of say.
Ironic that this was the president I finally and truly believed in yet he's the president I became so disillusioned by.
Non-partisan my ass.
It's Been a While
As a long-time blog reader of various people, I know that's not the most impressive blog post title . . .
I've been giving a ton of thought to blogging again, and really, if I'm investing that much energy in the Thinking Of, then it's time to make it the Doing Of.
I have a lot on my mind and this was always the place for me to let it all out.
Lemme gather my thoughts and we'll talk again really soon, mm'kay? Just know, this is the place where I'm gonna be the most me, and sometimes (okay, honestly? A lot of times) my stuff is blue.
That'd be content, not color!
I've been giving a ton of thought to blogging again, and really, if I'm investing that much energy in the Thinking Of, then it's time to make it the Doing Of.
I have a lot on my mind and this was always the place for me to let it all out.
Lemme gather my thoughts and we'll talk again really soon, mm'kay? Just know, this is the place where I'm gonna be the most me, and sometimes (okay, honestly? A lot of times) my stuff is blue.
That'd be content, not color!
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