Self Help Radio 051123: Tilt

Here's a confession: this week's Self Help Radio was not live. I would've loved to do it live. I had planned to do it live. But. We got a new puppy. & the wife is out of town. & he does not like to be left alone. "But Gary," you say, "he probably needs to learn to stay in his crate yadda yadda blah blah." No he doesn't. He deserves every happiness & I couldn't enjoy two hours on the radio knowing he was barking & crying the whole time. There will be plenty of challenges in his future, I will not be one of them.

Anyway, I recorded the show Thursday. While I was editing, he & I were often playing tug-of-war. He needs to stay with me at all times because he is not potty trained. & that's another thing!

What? Radio show? Oh yeah. It's at the Self Help Radio web page (username SHR, password selfhelp). You can listen any time. The theme was "tilt." Lots of folks helped out. You can see their contributions below.

Please enjoy. It was all for the puppy.

Self Help Radio Tilt Show

"Tilt" The Howling Hex _Knuckleball Express_

"Tilted" Kristian North _Passion Play_

"Tilted" Sugar _Beaster_

introductions & definitions - featuring the Definition-O-Tron 3000!

"Tilt-A-Whirl" Leo & The Prophets _Flashback - Volume 4_

"Tilt-A-Whirl" Trapper Schoepp _Bay Beach Amusement Park_

"Tilt-A-Whirl" Glo-Worm _Glimmer_

"Tilt A Whirl" Piney Gir _Mr. Hyde's Wild Ride_

"Tilt-A-Whirl" Alyeska _Crush_

interview with tilt-a-whirl enthusiast Aubrey Tanner

"Tilted Crowd" Packs _Woah_

"Tilt" Scott Walker _Tilt_

"Full Tilt Boogie (Pt. 1)" Uncle Louie _Uncle Louie's Here_

"The Tilt" 7th Wonder _Thunder_

interview with jousting/tilting booster Sir Toby Dwyer

"Don Quixote" Gordon Lightfoot _Don Quixote_

"Tilting At Windmills" Weddings, Parties, Anything _Roaring Days_

"Tilting At Windmills" Tree Fort Angst _Last Page In The Book Of Love_

"Tilting Windmills" The High Llamas _Cold & Bouncy_

interview with Tilt Collective founders Dobbin & Bacon Tyler

"Tilt-A-Whirl" The New Duncan Imperials _Loserville_

"Tilt-A-Whirl Girl" The Push Stars _Meet Me At The Fair_

"Tilt-A-Whirl" Slobberbone _Crow Pot Pie_

"Tilt-A-Whirl" Burnside Project _The Networks, The Circuits, The Streams, The Harmonies_

"Tilt-A-Whirl" Bright Eyes _Down In The Weeds, Where The World Once Was_

a visit from our resident cinephile Chuck
+ conclusion & goodbye

"Tilt" Joe Jackson _Colour Collection_

"Tilt" Edward Ball _Catholic Guilt_

"Tilt You Up!" Enon _Lost Marbles & Exploded Evidence_

"Full Tilt" The Not-Its! _Kidquake_

"Tilt" The Monochrome Set _Charade_

Whither Tilt?

("Dream Of The Rarebit Fiend" Sunday strip by Winsor McCay, March 9, 1913 found here)

Yes, the theme of this week's show is "tilt." Not "tilting." "Tilt" can be a noun, you know. It just feels more like a verb. Oh look! It just now occurs to me that italics is tilted text. Wow. Um. Where was I?

In discussion with someone recently, I breathed a sigh of relief that I don't have to fill three hours with songs about a particular theme anymore. However, I do seem to be choosing themes which might not even fill two hours. & so it is with "tilt." I of course have two hours of songs which involve that word. But I couldn't have filled three hours. Not even close.

Why the theme? You might want to blame Edward Ball, since I was listening to his album Catholic Guilt a lot recently. Or maybe Scott Walker, whose album Tilt kind of haunts me. Or maybe I'll never know why I chose the theme "tilt." I just know it's happening today.

It is? Yes! From noon to 2pm Portland time on 90.3+98.3fm in town & online at Freeform Portland dot org. Lots of music! Lots of talk! Lots of tilting!

Preface To Tilt: Jousting Around

(from the Wikipedia page on jousting)

These past few days I've been a single dad & am trapped in a house with a puppy who hasn't been potty trained. It's been exhausting. So I have nothing to really say about tilting vs jousting, whether they're synonyms, or whether tilting is a form of jousting or vice versa. I do like this, from the Wikipedia entry linked above:

They met each other roughly with spears, & the French squire tilted much to the satisfaction of the earl: but the Englishman kept his spear too low, & at last struck it into the thigh of the Frenchman. The earl of Buckingham as well as the other lords were much enraged by this, & said it was tilting dishonorably; but he excused himself, by declaring it as solely owing to the restiveness of his horse.

If you had to have a subtitle for tomorrow's show, it would doubtless be "tilting dishonorably."

Four Years Ago, In Idaho

Four years ago today, we were on the road from Twin Falls, Idaho, to Portland, Oregon. My wife had a minivan with lots of stuff crammed in it - including three dogs. I had our little Prius with three cats. I documented that drive here on the blog, starting with this post. If you're curious.

So today is the four-year-anniversary of arriving in Portland. I have no regrets. I love it here. I love the people, I really love the food, I really really love the radio stations that let me help out. It's funny, I thought I might not be able to make the drive - we drove five hundred miles a day - but now I really don't think I could make that drive. But it's cool - I don't plan on going anywhere.

At some point outside of Boise - where we stopped & ate - I was falling asleep & my wife noticed & she called me (she was in front I think). It probably saved my life - or kept me from a dumb accident. But look at that road up there! Until we made it to the mountains of eastern Oregon it was a little dull. At least you could drive terrifyingly fast!

The Nicest Thing

We recently adopted a kitten & a puppy. I might have mentioned them already. We have three other animals - two dogs & a cat - all around the age of ten. The old dogs don't like the new cat but have had experiences with cats so don't mess with him. The old cat is fond & protective of the new cat. But the new puppy is generally disliked by all three of the Old Guard. So what happens?

The new puppy (Pete) & the new kitten (Bluto) become buddies, that's what happens. It's the nicest thing. They play too - it seems Pete is a little rough, but when I try to pull Bluto to safety, he goes back to play.

Last night I needed to check on Pete, & discovered him in the living room:

They just like each other. Again - it's the nicest thing! I hope it lasts.

Self Help Radio 050423: Get A Grip

Here's a caveat about this week's show as it appears on the Self Help Radio website: it's not exactly how it aired. There were technical difficulties which caused me to delay the first airbreak. I played an instrumental track while I got help. What I have shared on the website removes that instrumental track (since I talk over it during the first airbreak) which shortened the show, so I added a song at the end that was not broadcast originally.

What was important is that the funny people who add so much to my otherwise bland show got to be heard. I was afraid I wouldn't get to share their contributions. & they were great this week! If you listen at all, it should be for their creative additions.

The show is available to be listened to now at the Self Help Radio website. Remember, you'll need a username (which is SHR) & a password (which is selfhelp) to listen. Below is a list of the songs I played & a brief description of what happened during the airbreaks. For a show whose host barely has a grip on things other than the occasional whiskey glass, it could've turned out much, much worse.

Self Help Radio Get A Grip! Show

"Your Love's Got A Grip On Me" Nick Todd _Rockin' At The Hop_

"I'm Losing My Grip" The Rivingtons _The Liberty Years_

"Devil's Grip" The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown _The Psychedelic Years Revisited_

"Monkey Grip Glue" Bill Wyman _Monkey Grip_

introduction & definitions & focus group flashback # 1

"Don't Lose Your Grip On Love" Brinsley Schwarz _Nervous On The Road_

"Get A Grip On Yourself" The Stranglers _Stranglers IV (Rattus Norvegicus)_

"The Grip Of Love" Tom Verlaine _Tom Verlaine_

interview with martial arts master of many grips Jeff Piper

"Their Grip" Elti-Fits _Messthetics # 106 The Manchester Musicians Collective 1977-1982_

"Get A Grip On Yourself" Pearl Harbor & The Explosions _Pearl Harbor & The Explosions_

"The Grip Of Love" Ghost Dance _Gathering Dust_

"Grip Of Fear" The Blanche Hudson Weekend _Standing On The Lift To The Scaffold: 2009-2013_

interview with Todd Mattel, inventor of the GI Joe Kung Fu Grip
focus group flashback # 2

"Grip It" Trouble Funk _Saturday Night Live From Washington D.C._

"Grip The Mic" Ultramagnetic MC's _New York What Is Funky_

"Break The Grip Of Shame" Paris _Tommy Boy Greatest Hits_

"Grip Like A Vice" The Go! Team _Proof Of Youth_

interview with clinical psychologist Dr. Leonard Dirt

"Grip" Inspiral Carpets _The Beast Inside_

"Thorn In Yer Grip" The Ecstasy Of Saint Theresa _Susurrate_

"Get A Grip" Spectrals _Bad Penny_

"Get A Grip" B Boys _No Worry No Mind_

"The Grip" Chris Knox _Almost_

conclusion & goodbye & focus group flashback # 3

"Get A Grip" A Certain Ratio _ACR Loco_

"Don't Let Go Of Me (Grip My Hips And Move Me)" Mike & Brenda Sutton _Don't Hold Back_

"Thighs High (Grip Your Hips & Move)" Tom Browne _Phat Trax - The Best Of Old School, Vol. 2_

Whither Get A Grip?

(Wikipedia says "OK Grip")

"Get a grip" is one of those themes that says to the hypothetical listener "Is Gary all out of ideas?" To which a Gary might reply, "Oh yes! A long time ago!" But this extremely hypothetical listener might press on, saying, "It's an idea, though, isn't it? Even if it isn't a good one." To which Gary almost certainly will say, "That's the tagline for Self Help Radio!"

While I can't be sure what reason I have for this theme, I believe it began with a Stranglers binge which led me to look for songs that used the phrase "get a grip," which is an idiom that one online dictionary defines as "to control one's reactions or emotions; often used as an imperative urging someone to calm down." Naturally, I didn't find enough songs I liked to make an entire show with just "get a grip" tunes, so any song featuring the word "grip" filled out the playlist. & when I thought I had enough, a show was planned.

That show airs this afternoon 12 to 2pm Portland time on 90.3+98.3fm & online at Freeform Portland dot org. & I had fun making it. That might mean it's worth a listen.

Preface To Get A Grip: (Parenthetical Titles)

(image from Discogs)

It's interesting to me that the original single for the very famous Stranglers song "(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)" (which is pictured above) listed the song title as "Grip." Technically, that's true - if there are words in parentheses in a song title, you don't have to say them - which begs the question, why put them there in the first place?

This article attempts to answer the question of why that is. It points out that the Simple Minds song "Don't You (Forget About Me)" can simply be referred to as "Don't You," which I think is just dumb. Someone did compile a list which they put in their subjective "order of parenthetical charm." I'm sure you have favorites.

What was the first song to do this? I couldn't find out but I suspect it first became common in the 1960s. Some theorize it was a way to draw attention to the song if the title wasn't repeated in the song. Or perhaps it made it easier to find on a seven-inch record sleeve economically - you could just write "Sweet Dreams" instead of "Sweet Dreams Are Made Of These." A time saver of a sort. But what do I know?

One thing that has happened occasionally is that people act like some songs have parenthetical titles when they just don't. As someone who has looked at a lot of playlists over the years, I am a little surprised by this. To take two examples:

A person at one station who regularly played a certain Depeche Mode song always listed it as "(Your Own) Personal Jesus." It turns out they had downloaded the song with that title. They never bothered to check if that were the case.

A person at another station (& I've been told this is quite common) always referred to the Joy Division song as "Control." Apparently they thought the original title was "(She's Lost) Control." This is almost certainly because of the movie of the same name, which doesn't have that song on the soundtrack, but a quick look at the tracklisting of both the "Atmosphere" single (which has "She's Lost Control" as a b-side) & the album Unknown Pleasures (on which the original version exists) will note there are no parentheses in the title of that song. Still, on playlists, that person wrote that they played the Joy Division song "Control."

Personally, I just write the whole song name. Most of the time. I just noticed that last week I wrote the Rexy song as its title "(Don't) Turn Me Away." Probably just copying & pasting. I generally write "Don't You Forget About Me" or "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" without the parentheses. & when I play the Stranglers tomorrow, I won't be playing "Grip." I'll play "Get A Grip On Yourself."

New Intro Time Again Again Again Again Again Again Again Again Again Again Again!

(There's a sample from this movie in this year's intro! Image from IMDb.)

There's a good reason to make an "intro" for your radio show - it automatically separates your show from the previous one. It may also include a legal ID - you gotta have one of those - & it may show off (or cast in a bad light) your audio editing skills. I have a generic intro for the Dickenbock Report, & I play a George Carlin bit at the beginning of Corporate Standardized Programming (which is where the show gets its name) but every year, around the beginning of May, I make a new intro for Self Help Radio.

Why the beginning of May? I think it's because that's when the schedule changed at KOOP - the station in Austin where the show originated - but also probably because when the show was on a college station, like WRFL, it marked the end of the spring semester & the beginning of the summer.  Sometimes I don't get to it at the beginning of May - last year it was the middle of May, the year before that it was June - but I had some time yesterday & here it is - the new intro:

Ta-da! The 2023 Self Help Radio Intro!

Wanna hear the previous ones? No? Oh. Well, here they are in case you change your mind.

You can listen to the 2002 intro (my first!) here.

You can listen to the 2003 intro here.

You can listen to the 2005 intro here.

You can listen to the 2006 intro here.

You can listen to the 2007 intro here.

You can listen to the 2008 intro here.

You can listen to the 2009 intro here.

You can listen to the 2010 intro here.

You can listen to the 2011 intro here.

You can listen to the 2012 intro here.

You can listen to the 2013 intro here.

You can listen to the 2014 intro here.

You can listen to the 2015 intro here.

You can listen to the 2016 intro here.

You can listen to the 2017 intro here.

You can listen to the 2018 intro here.

You can listen to the 2019 intro here.

You can listen to the 2020 intro here.

You can listen to the 2021 intro here.

You can listen to last year's intro here.

It's a little weird to call this final intro on the list "last year's intro" when I played it last week. But I suppose one should think of the intros like television seasons.  That was the 2022-2023 intro; the new one is the 2023-2024 intro. But. It's too late to go back & change everything!

Belafonte

(Image from the Wikipedia*)

Harry Belafonte seemed a larger-than-life performer when I was a child. I remember how delighted I'd be when he showed up on television shows - like the Muppet Show. Later I found out more about him & it turned out he was also an awesome human being. When I was able to find & listen to his records, I loved how much he loved exploring music. As you know, he died on April 25 at the age of 96 - an extraordinary life well-lived.

On Monday nights/Tuesday morning, I have a show on KBOO. I record it over the weekend & it's mainly a chance for me to play lots of music separated from the silliness & theme-focus of Self Help Radio & The Dickenbock Report. It also gives me the ability to celebrate & remember artists we've lost like Belafonte. So for the first hour of the show tonight, I'll be playing some of my favorite Belafonte tunes from his first decade of recordings.

It's on midnight to 3am Portland time on KBOO - 90.7 fm in town kboo dot fm everywhere. I know I cannot really capture his talent in a few songs, but I did want to take the time to play his music. He was, as I've said, extraordinary.

*By Carl Van Vechten - Van Vechten Collection at Library of Congress, Public Domain,

Self Help Radio 042723: Indiepop A To Z # 71

(all images from Discogs)

Here it is! Installment number seventy-one! From Reiner to Riverhead! Lots of groovy indiepop tunes for you!

It's been a bit of a relief (sorry if this is a broken record) to not have to program three hours of this show. Had I stayed in the three-hour block, I would've finished this series sooner (I mean, I probably won't finish, but I could've thought I was moving closer to the goal faster than I will now) but there's a lot of prep & research that goes into this kind of show. The breathing room I suddenly had with filling only two hours was quite welcome.

In any event: show is on the Self Help Radio website. Make sure you note: username is SHR & password is selfhelp. It's downloadable! It's almost all music this week. Next week the dumb interviews return.

Will we finish the letter R next time? I can't wait to find out!

Self Help Radio Indiepop A To Z # 71

"Emily" Kai Reiner _Kai Reiner_

"Autumn" Reinheitsgebot _The Complete R.S.C. Recordings, Volume 1: December 1984_

"If..." The Relations _Patrick._

"My Divorcee" The Relationships _Trend_

"Lovely" The Release Party _The Release Party_

"I Saw Your Eyes" The Relict _Tomorrow Is Again_

"Train Journeys" Remember Fun _Train Journeys_

"Give To You" Remington Super 60 _Happy As We Were_

"Butcher's Daughter" Reserve _The Sound Of Leamington Spa Volume 2_

"She Drives My Train" Resque _Life's A Bonus_

"Flowers In The Sky" The Revolving Paint Dream _Flowers In The Sky: The Enigma Of The Revolving Paint Dream_

"Just Ask Why" The Revs _Buzz EP_

"(Don't) Turn Me Away" Rexy _Sharon Signs To Cherry Red_

"Top Of The Pops" The Rezillos _Can't Stand The Rezillos: The (Almost) Complete Rezillos_

"On Bus #9" The Rhinos _Year Of The Rhinos_

"American Boys" The Rhythm Sisters _Road To Roundhay Pier_

"Stone Heart Blue" Ribbon Stage _Hit With The Most_

"That Summer Feeling" Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers _Jonathan Sings!_

"Drive Blind" Ride _Ride_

"It's Not Easy" Rik Rak _Illuminated_

"Keep Smiling" The Rileys _The World & His Wife_

"Caprice" The Ringing _The Sun Shines Here: The Roots Of Indie-Pop 1980-1984_

"Swallow" A Riot Of Colour _Swallow_

"We're All Trying To Get There" Ripe _Just A Taste: A Summershine Records Compilation_

"Tomorrow's Tears" The Riptides _Tales From The Australian Underground Vol. 2: 1977-1990_

"Let Me Stay" River _...Is The Postman_

"Innocent June" River Roses _Each & All_

"Looking At The Sky" Riverhead _Alpharetta_

Whither Indiepop A To Z # 71?

(image from Discogs)

Hey yeah! We've gotten to the Indiepop A To Z episode where we'll play Jonathan Richman!

But wait Gary! Didn't you also play the Modern Lovers at the Indiepop Ms? Yes I did! But I would argue that solo Jonathan Richman - or when his name was before "& The Modern Lovers" - was a somewhat different beast than the first incarnation of the Modern Lovers. If I wanted to argue. & I don't want to argue.

Listen to the show today on Freeform Portland from noon to 2pm Portland time. On the air in town at 90.3+98.3fm & online at freeform portland dot org.

Even if you're feeling argumentative.

Preface To Indiepop A To Z # 71: Bluto & Pete

There's really not a lot to say about my silly series of indiepop artists in alphabetical order that I haven't already said in seventy other posts (or more) but to share something twee - here is our new puppy Pete (he's almost twelve weeks old) saying hello to our new kitten Bluto (just over six months old). Pete has gotten a chilly reception from our older girl dogs & our older boy cat (all of them are around ten years old) but Bluto & he will play & hang out. So far they haven't commented on my radio show though Bluto does occasionally jump on my desk & rename files now & then. He perhaps fancies himself a poet.

Anyway. The show is tomorrow! I better get to listening!

Mark Stewart

(image from Mark Stewart's Twitter page)

This morning on KBOO I played a couple of hours of music made by Mark Stewart, whom we lost on April 21st. I confess I found myself drawn to his music less because of its fiery left-wing rhetoric & more because I could get lost in it - although surely his lyrics & singing had something to do with it. I loved how voraciously creative he was - & I remember being absolutely thrilled when I played something from Citizen Zombie in the past & he commented on Twitter - probably just to say thanks.

Anyway, it's mainly the music, the first two hours of the show. You can listen here.

Sad he's gone, glad he left so much for us to listen to.

Movies On Another Planet

(image from the IMDb)

If you were off-planet or something, & didn't listen to this week's Self Help Radio, hey, you really should! Do it at the show's website, self help radio dot net! The theme was "planet" & among the guests we had, our resident cinephile Chuck stopped by to talk to us about movies which took place on a planet other than our own. Here are the links he's like you to know about to supplement his segment:

Chuck now has a Substack! Check it out!

Here is his YouTube playlist of films, clips, & trailers for sci-fi films with an alien or aliens (not all are on other planets tho):

Part 1 (1913-1979)
Part 2 (1980s)
Part 3 (1990-2005)
Part 4 (2006-2015)
Part 5 (2016-present)

Here is the IMDb keyword list he used.

Here is the Letterboxd list of sci-fi films with an alien or aliens.
Chuck tells us: "Click on the 'read notes icon - I have put links to the YouTube videos, where the film may be streaming for free, & the occasional bit of other information."

Here are his Letterboxd reviews:

https://letterboxd.com/robotcat/tag/alien-sci-fi-/films/
https://letterboxd.com/robotcat/tag/shr-planet/films/

Here is the IMDb list of sci-fi films with an alien or aliens that are available to stream for free elsewhere.

Chuck continues to tweet about some of the films he watched or may watch in the future - that list is at his Twitter account.

Chuck did a lot of work for this show! Go listen! & then watch some movies!

Self Help Radio 042023: Planet

(Original image by Ella Frances Sanders from here*.)

Apologies for posting this a day late. Since I have a show on Saturday mornings on XRAY (today's show was in honor of Record Store Day if you wanna listen to it) it gets kinda intense & I focus on that instead of posting this week's Self Help Radio. So I guess I'll post these on Saturdays from now on?

This week's show had the theme planet & we had fabulous guests & lots of tunes & all the usual nonsense. I had a lot of fun putting the show together. Almost as much fun as I would traveling to another planet! Oh boy! Will that happen in my lifetime? Nope. Certainly not.

So. Listen to the show yeah? It's at the Self Help Radio website. Remember to use the username SHR & pass the password selfhelp to access it. Everything that happened on the show is below. A show that should've aired on another planet. But was only on this dumb one.

Self Help Radio Planet Show

"Planet Minuet" Tom Glazer & Dottie Evans _Space Songs (From Ballads For The Age Of Science)_

"Story Of The Planets" Sally Starr _Sally Starr's Adventure To The Moon_

"Interplant Janet" Lynn Ahrens _Schoolhouse Rock: Science Rock_

introduction & definitions

"Planet Queen" T. Rex _Electric Warrior_

"Another Girl, Another Planet" The Only Ones _The Only Ones_

"Planet Claire" The B-52's _The B-52's_

"Escape From The Planet Earth" The Continental IV _Dream World_

interview with Dr. Charles Planet, who doesn't think Earth is a planet

"A Visit To A Sad Planet" Leonard Nimoy _Presents Mr. Spock's Music From Outer Space_

"Planet Earth" Devo _Freedom Of Choice_

"Lonely Planet Boy" The Pastels _Comin' Through_

"Planet Rock" Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force _Street Jams: Electric Funk Part 1_

interview with Lemuel, a visitor from another planet

"Planet Of Fools" David Thomas & Two Pale Boys _Erewhon_

"Planet Of Women" Sonny & The Sunsets _Tomorrow Is Alright_

"Red Planet" Alvvays _Alvvays_

"Planets Ain't Aligned (feat. The Freestyle Fellowship)" Nobody _No Categories 2: A Ubiquity Compilation_

interview with Preston Truitt, discoverer of Planet X

"Blues For Planet X" My Favorite _Tender Is The Nightshift: Part 1_

"Planet X" Red Ribbon _Planet X_

"First Day On A Brand New Planet" Urusei Yatsura _We Are Urusei Yatsura_

"Happy People, Scary Planet" Kawaii _If It Shines, We Have It_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops by/conclusion & goodbye

"Planet E" Tiga _No Fantasy Required_

"Fear Of A Blind Planet" Wax Tailor _The Shadow Of Their Suns_

"Planet" Ken Nordine _Wink: Ken Nordine Does Robert Shure_

"Shoot The Planet" MomusMcClymont _Two_

* Yeah, it's fucking arrogant to stick my dumb logo on such a wonderful drawing but fuck I love it so much & it fit the theme so well I hope I can be forgiven.

Whither Planet?

(These planets are too close together!! Image from here.)

As mention yesterday, Self Help Radio has already explored the themes Mars & Venus. It is not inconceivable that the show may one day explore Mercury or Jupiter or Saturn or even Uranus. (Sorry, it's one of those jokes that's just always there, one can't help oneself.) But what about the term "planet" in general? We live on a planet. Aliens visit us from other planets. We'd all like to one day travel to another planet. Starfleet is the exploration & defense arm of the United Federation Of Planets. I want to do a show about planets but not be confined to our solar system or even literal planets! Why can't we hear songs about metaphorical planets? Did John Donne say something about no one being a planet? Or something sort of like that?

This afternoon, from noon to 2pm Portland time, on Freeform Portland - which you can listen to in town at both 90.3+98.3fm & online everywhere at freeform portland dot org - we will explore the term planet while listening to songs about planets of all kinds plus talking to people somehow related to one planet or another. & then the next astronomy-related show can be about Pluto or Neptune. Or maybe moon, sun, or star. Like space, the possibilities are endless! Or at least there's just a lot of possibilities. Like there's a lot of space. A lot of themes about space.

Okay. I'm done now.

Preface To Planet: Three Questions

(image from here)

Question one: Haven't there already been shows about planets on Self Help Radio before?

Answer one: Yes! There's been a show about Mars. & about Venus. But that's it!

Question two: What's the farthest planet to be discovered at this point?

Answer two: According to this article, the melodiously named OGLE-2014-BLG-0124L might be the furthest away. It's 13,000 light years away. It's a gas giant but really who isn't.

Question three: Does Gary have a favorite planet?

Answer three: Ooo, I've never thought about that. I kinda like the Changeling planet in the Star Trek universe with the Great Link, but since I'm not a Changeling, I'd be kinda out of place there. I wish I could wander around all the planets in our solar system, actually. Like Dr. Manhattan on Mars in Watchmen. But maybe I don't have a favorite planet.

Meet Pete

On Sunday we brought this beauty home to our little home. His name is Pete & he's almost eleven weeks old. We've had him for a little over forty-eight hours & we took him to our vet today, where this picture was taken. He's sweet & a bit bitey & the rest of the household doesn't quite know what to make of him. He's very bonded to my wife which is as it should be. He's too adorable for words. I'll probably post too many pictures of him over on the show's Tumblr page if you wanna keep an eye for him there. Or just ask! We've already taken hundreds.

Other Places, Other Spaces

Wow! Look at these incredibly boring logos!

Just a small bit of information about where to find the radio shows I do. This is a question no-one has every asked me. I'm just pretending someone gives a shit.

Every radio show I do is archived for a time at the Self Help Radio website. As a rule, I prioritize Self Help Radio - it's my baby - so the most recent show is at the top of the page. But in-between there'll be episodes of my other shows, so what if you can't wait a week to listen? Luckily they're archived at the web pages of the stations on which they air.

The Dickenbock Report can be found at its page at XRAY dot fm. Although for some reason this past week's show isn't there. Oh well. I'll put it up later this week on the Self Help Radio page.

Corporate Standardized Programming doesn't have a page on KBOO's website yet, but the first two episodes (& tonight's as well) are on the old Self Help Radio page there. There'll be a page for that show at some point but things move slowly at KBOO - the staff are incredibly overworked.

See? A small bit of information. Very small. Mostly unhelpful. Utterly unimportant.