Self Help Radio 021524: Purpose

(Argh! It's purpose not porpoise - never mind - original image here.)

Purpose is a loaded term. People desperately want to find purpose from something outside themselves - from a deity, from nature, from patriotism, etc. At least some folks feel in charge of their own purpose. Though whether that's on purpose or something inside them I can't be sure. For the purposes of a show about purpose though, Self Help Radio takes all comers.

Anyway, if you want to listen to this show about purposes - if listening is not at cross purposes with your plans - unless your plan is to hang with cross porpoises - they anger so easily - you can listen to this show now & whenever at the Self Help Radio website. Use the username SHR & password selfhelp to listen. All the things that happen on the show are below.

Self Help Radio returns to purposelessness next week.

Self Help Radio Purpose Show

"Delphine (With A Purpose)" Trick Mammoth _Floristry_

"For Practical Purposes (I Love You)" Chain & The Gang _Music's Not For Everyone_

"The Purpose Of A Circus" Brute Force _Adam & Evening_

introduction & definitions

"Without Purpose" And The Kids _Friends Share Lovers_

"Purpose" Robert Lopez & Jeff Marx _Avenue Q: The Musical - Original Broadway Cast Recording_

"Dreaming To Some Purpose" The Cavalcade _Many Moons_

"No Purpose In Life" The Chesterfield Kings _The Berlin Wall Of Sound_

interview with author Eric Farmer

"Send Purpose Down" Hoop _Super Genuine_

"Sinister Purpose" The Wave Pictures _Great Big Flamingo Burning Moon_

"Give A Purpose To My Love" Frankie Miller _Blackland Farmer (Complete Starday Recordings)_

"Accidentally On Purpose" Gene Martin & June Stearns _Slipping Around_

interview with criminologist Earl Finger

"Accident'ly On Purpose (vocals, Lynne Clark)" Jack Teagarden & His Orchestra _1940-1941_

"Purpose" Second Sky _Touching The Surface_

"Sense Of Purpose" Breathless _The Glass Bead Game_

"With Great Purpose" Frankie Cosmos _Close It Quietly_

interview with reverend Edgar Foster

"All Purpose Low" The La De Das _How Is The Air Up There? 1966-1967_

"Sense Of Purpose" The Pretenders _Packed!_

"About The Purpose That We Serve" Nana Grizol _South Somewhere Else_

"Cross Purposes" The Silly Pillows _New Affection_

interview with columnist & author Emma Foster

"For A Purpose" Able _Blackbean & Placenta Sampler No. 3 1999-2000_

"Sense Of Purpose" The Sound _From The Lions Mouth_

"Sense Of Purpose" The Pop Group _We Are Time_

"No Constructive Purpose In Society" Absentees _Illegal Listening Device: 1979-2000_

conclusion & goodbye

"The Purpose Of Existence Is?" Ray Manzarek _The Golden Scarab_

Whither Purpose?

(photo by Daniel Arnold, found here)

The main definition of the noun "purpose" is "the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists." That definition is a little unsatisfying on purpose. (That phrase, "on purpose," means "intentionally.") You see, without the definition of "purpose" being a little, well, inadequate, the word might not be as warmly embraced by self-improvement (yes, even self-help) types of all stripes, looking to help you "find a purpose." This includes religious ones -  who seek to define your "purpose" as something given to you by a deity.

You know of course that what we might call tepid words thrive on this program because the looser the definition the more ways at which to approach the theme. Is the word "purpose" such a word? Is it value-neutral? Does it feel much more subjective than your average word? Oh gosh I feel like if I answer any of these questions I give the game away. It might put us at cross purposes - & for all intents & purposes (as well as all intensive purposes) that serves no purpose. Can we talk about it after the show, over something we might enjoy for more than medicinal purposes only?

That show happens today, Thursday, February 15, from noon to 2pm Portland time, in Portland live from the Freeform Portland studios, on the air at 90.3+98.3fm & online at freeform portland dot org. Hope to see you there! & sorry if because of my weird pronunciation you thought the show today was about porpoises.

Preface To Purpose - On Valentine's Day?!?

Happy Valentine's Day! I don't want to beat you over the head with a link to last week's Valentine's Day show (you know where to find it) but I should mention that I helped make a Valentine's Day mix (which will be fine to listen to after Valentine's Day) with other Freeform Portland deejays which is an exclusive recording for you to listen to if you are a supporter of Freeform Portland through Patreon. Can I add that the mix is super cool - eighteen FFP programmers (including me) picked their favorite love song & said why it was their favorite. I liked it a lot - maybe you will too. So how do you get it?

Become a follower of Freeform Portland on Patreon, naturally! It is a good investment in a daring experiment in all-volunteer community radio. Again, the mix will be great for all the other days besides Valentine's Day. I think you'd like it. So join Patreon & help Freeform Portland out!

World Radio Day

February 13 is World Radio Day. To celebrate the day, this morning I played a lot of songs about the radio on my KBOO show Corporate Standardized Programming. If you'd like to listen, you can do so here. It it moves you to donate during our current drive, that would be great. I really love radio. Every day should be World Radio Day.

Falling In Love In Film

(image from the IMDb)

It's Valentine' Day week so you are free to romantically listen to a romantical episode of Self Help Radio - our Valentine's Day episode - which this year is about falling in love.  Listen at the Self Help Radio website! Listen for our resident cinephile Chuck talk about movies in which falling in love is an important part. & then look at this plethora of other material you can explore:

Here is the Letterboxd list of movies. Chuck adds, "I put the links to available videos in the notes for the films plus where they are available to stream for free."

If you'd like to read his Letterboxd reviews, click that link.

Here are Chuck's YouTube playlists of films & trailers:
Part I (1916-1965)
Part II (1966-1995)
He will finish the rest soon!

Here is the IMDb list of films available to stream for free elsewhere.

Here is Chuck's IMDb keyword list.

Chuck posts about the films on his social media sites: Twitter,  Bluesky, & Substack. If you follow him, he'll almost certainly follow back.

Enjoy falling in love - at least in the movies - this Valentine's Day!