Books & Movies About Unicorns

Hey! We had some great guests on this week's Self Help Radio, including our favorite librarian & our resident cinephile! Let me list for you for what the latter two shared on the show this week - which was about unicorns. Listen to that show at the Self Help Radio website or at the KBOO website - & then explore these links:

(all images from Good Reads)

Carole (our favorite librarian) talked about three books:

The Very Short, Entirely True History Of Unicorns by Sarah Laskow & Sam Beck

Unicorns 101 by Cale Atkinson

& Unicorn Thinks He's Pretty Great ( & its sequels) by Bob Shea

Read them all for more unicorn understanding & then visit the links by our resident cinephile Chuck.

(image from the IMDb)

(Chuck's links are more complicated than Carole's)

Chuck's Youtube playlist.

Chuck's Letterboxd list.

Chuck's Letterboxed reviews.

IMDb list of films available to stream for free elsewhere.

IMDb keyword list.

Chuck on Bluesky.

Chuck on Twitter.

Gosh I hope there's a lot of unicorn enjoyment to be found here!

Self Help Radio 050724: Unicorns

How I hope this show was as magical as its subject! I'm a big unicorn fan from way back - I think maybe the first time I read about them in a creative way was in Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders Of Pern series. But you couldn't really avoid them - & they're so freaking cool.

Luckily my librarian friend Carole was around to talk about books about unicorns & our cinephile friend Chuck was around to talk about movies featuring unicorns. Plus I talked to a unicorn hunter & to a person intimately familiar with unicorns - because (as you doubtless know) there are plenty of unicorns here in the Pacific northwest!

You can listen to the show now at the Self Help Radio website. Use the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access. You can listen also on the KBOO website. It's all magical. Everything that's on the show is listed below.

Please enjoy the unicorn magic!

Self Help Radio Unicorn show

"The Unicorn" The Irish Rovers _The Best Of Shel Silverstein His Words His Songs His Friends_

"Always Be A Unicorn" Helen Austin _Always Be A Unicorn_

"I Was Born (A Unicorn)" The Unicorns _Unicorns Are People Too_

introduction & definitions - featuring Mythos The Historian

"She Was Born To Be My Unicorn" Tyrannosaurus Rex _Unicorn_

"The Last Unicorn" Swirl _The Last Unicorn_

"The Iceberg & Unicorn" Cleaners From Venus _Back From The Cleaners_

"Unicorns" June Tabor & Martin Simpson _A Cut Above_

our librarian friend Carole stops by!

"Unicornio" Mercedes Sosa _Mercedes Sosa_

"Unicorn" 'Weird Al' Yankovic & Wendy Carlos _Peter & The Wolf/Carnival Of The Animals - Part II_

"The Unicorn" Tele Novella _Poet's Tooth_

"Unicorn" The Dodos _Grizzly Peak_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops in!

"Unicorn Man" The Aardvarks _Stax '68: A Memphis Story_

"Behold The Indian Unicorn" Robin Williamson _Mirrorman's Sequences 1961-1966_

"The Unicorn" Donovan _HMS Donovan_

"Unicorn Tolerance" The Mountain Goats _Goths_

interview with unicorn hunter Pete Bachmann

"There Should Be Unicorns" The Flaming Lips _Oczy Mlody_

"Unicorn Song" Veronica Lipgloss & The Evil Eyes _The Witch's Dagger_

"Mr. Unicorn" Brown Hornet _KVRX Local Live Volume One: Cooking By Strobelight_

interview with Patty Birch, who's had many experiences with unicorns

"Hornless Unicorn Anthem" The Mathletes _#$@% You & Your Cool_

"Gay Unicorn" Gay Against You _Muscle Milk_

"The Lion & The Unicorn (BBC Session)" Skip Bifferty _The Story Of Skip Bifferty_

"The Lion & The Unicorn" The Men They Couldn't Hang _The Domino Club_

conclusion & goodbye

"Gryphons & Unicorns (feat. Marjolein Teepen)" Ton Scherpenzeel _The Lion's Dream_

"Unicorn Harpoon" Pink Skull _Zeppelin 3_

Whither Unicorns?

Why is the show today about unicorns? Why does there need to be a reason for someone to do a show about unicorns? Why aren't all radio shows about unicorns?

But of course there's a reason for unicorns being the theme tonight. & it's because I made a mistake.

My mistake was that, while I was planning shows for The Dickenbock Report - the other theme-based show I do - I accidentally looked for themes on the days that Self Help Radio was on. April 9 is Unicorn Day so I planned a Dickenbock Report about that. The problem was, The Dickenbock Report was on April 7, not April 9 - April 9 was a Self Help Radio day. A different show was planned for that day. & I had to find a different day to explore on the Dickenbock Report.

Man was I bummed. Then I thought, hold on. I can just do a show about unicorns on Self Help Radio! Why the hell not? So I planned for tonight's show.

& that's why the theme is unicorns!

Tune in tonight - really Tuesday morning - from midnight to 2am on 90.7fm & kboo dot fm for a radio show about unicorns! Guests galore! & the next intro premieres!

Preface To Unicorns: Who Doesn't Like Unicorns?

(comic by Ellis Rosen)

Is it because people associate unicorns with little girls & with hippies that some people don't like them? I told a couple of folks that I was going to do a show about unicorns & eyes were rolled at me. Imagine that!

While I don't think I went through a "unicorn phase" where I obsessed about them, I was always happy to see them/read about them. But I was very happy when introduced to Lady Rainicorn in Adventure Time.

My wife was so enamored with her that I put that name for her on my phone, which has caused more than one person to ask, "Why Lady Rainicorn?" Or maybe it's just happened once. With our vet in Fort Worth. She had never heard of Adventure Time. It was a bit embarrassing. Anyway.

The story of the unicorn show is good one. Come back tomorrow & I'll tell you it.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: National Lemonade Day

The first Sunday in May is National Lemonade Day. The first Sunday in May this year is May 5. & on Sundays in Portland, it's the Dickenbock Report. Join us tomorrow as we report on lemonade the drink on lemonade the day including musical reports & a special report about allegations of something suspicious happening at Portland's lemonade stands.

Please note that the Dickenbock Report is no longer a morning news program, as we have been moved to later on the schedule. We are now an afternoon news program. Listen to us at our new time, Sunday, May 5, noon to 1pm, on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm & online at xray dot fm.

Be aware that due to inflation, lemonade is far more expensive now that you remember.

This Week In Self Help (April 28 + 30 2024)

Here's a picture of a rainbow I took earlier this year. I like rainbows. It has nothing to do with this summary of the nonsense I got into on the radio this week.

On Self Help Radio on KBOO, I had the seventy-fourth installment of my never-ending, very silly Indiepop A To Z series. I went from Saloon to Scotland Yard Gospel Choir. We will spend a long time in the letter S. Anyway, here's a direct link to the episode. You will need the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access.

If you'd rather listen to the show on the KBOO website, here is that link. No password needed.

The KBOO link also includes this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming (which follows Self Help Radio). On that show, I played a bunch of new reissues by the Guerssen group of labels. If you'd rather listen to it/download it from the Self Help Radio website, here is the link for that. Same username & password for Self Help Radio apply.

The Sunday before all that was The Dickenbock Report, a show about superheroes on National Superhero Day. The show is also on the Self Help Radio web page linked here, or if you'd like you can listen at the XRAY web page.

The Dickenbock Report moves to noon on Sundays starting this next week. Imagine! I can sleep in on a Sunday!

As always, thank you for listening!

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

(Yeah, Columbo shows up. This is a screen grab from a DVD I own.)

It is time once again to make a new intro for my show. I actually have been working on it for a while - all year, really - but now is the time to put it together. I do it every year around this time. No big deal, right?

WRONG! Earlier this year (or late last year) I mustered up the courage to ask Amelia & Rob of the Catenary Wires & Swansea Sound (among other amazing bands) if they might record a new "Self Help Radio" jingle for the beginning of the show. The one I have used for years was recorded by people I worked with back in Austin & I couldn't even remember one of the person's names. They very kindly agreed & they returned with three (3) (!) different versions! I couldn't choose one. So I will rotate them throughout the year. I cannot thank them enough.

The rest of the spots are the same. I wish I could've done three different ones! But I did not. Would you like to hear them? After you listen to the first one, you can stop on the others after the jingle. They are all the same except for Rob & Amelia's lovely singing. I hope you dig.

The 2024 Self Help Radio Intro (Version 1)!

The 2024 Self Help Radio Intro (Version 2)!

The 2024 Self Help Radio Intro (Version 3)!

It would be remiss of me not to say you can hear more of Amelia & Rob's music on the Catenary Wires bandcamp page & the Swansea Sound bandcamp page. Or just freakin' Google them, they are musical heroes of mine & real life musical legends!

(Oh yeah I normally link all my old intros but didn't want to do that this time around. You can listen to all of the previous intros on last year's blog announcement page.)

Self Help Radio 043024: Indiepop A To Z # 74

(all images from Discogs.)

Someone once asked me if I thought anyone listened to these indiepop shows. I said I didn't know. The person said, "It's like if you did a polka a to z." Thinking better of it, the person added, "Only probably more people would listen."

The series has its own momentum & I have a touch of the ol' OCD so I am happy to return to it every four months, even if there's no guarantee it will ever end. I honestly can't believe I've made it to the letter S. I got from Saloon to Scotland Yard Gospel Choir this time around - it doesn't seem that far. Will there be ten or more episodes with the letter S? I am not concerned. It's so far in the future! I have a show next week to work on.

This week you can find the show naturally at the Self Help Radio website. You'll need the username SHR & the password selfhelp to listen tho. Would you prefer to listen to it on the KBOO website? By all means click there! The songs I played are listed below in glorious alphabetical order.

PS - it's our Spring Membership Drive - maybe help us out if you can?

Self Help Radio Indiepop A To Z # 74

"Le Weekend" Saloon _(This Is) What We Call Progress_

"Green Light" Salteen _Pop American Style_

"Bubba Da" The Salteens _Short-Term Memories_

"Black Minds, White Lies" Salty Pirates _The Kids At The Club: An Indiepop Compilation_

"Kate" Sambassadeur _Coastal Affairs_

"The Day Is Mine" Sandalwoods _The Sound Of Leamington Spa Volume 2_

"Turquoise Mini" The Sandcastles _Tales From The Riverbank_

"Hope Springs Eternal" The Sandkings _Welcome To England_

"Klein International Blue" Sandy Dirt _Sandy Dirt EP_

"Summer Blues" Sarah Goes Shopping _Sharon Signs To Cherry Red_

"Mike's Dollar" Sarandon _Kill Twee Pop!_

"Dear Josie Love Robyn" Sarge _Charcoal_

"Alcohol" Saturday Looks Good To Me _All Your Summer Songs_

"California Girls" The Saturday People _The Saturday People_

"Get In, Get Out" Daniel Saturn _The Sound Of Young Sweden (Volume 2)_

"Happy Trails" Saturn V _Skycycle_

"Apples" Saturnine _Pleasure Of Ruins_

"Old Town" Say Sue Me _Where We Were Together_

"Goodbye To All That" Scale The Heights _Goodbye To All That_

"FuturePop" Scarboro Aquarium Club _Poisoned_

"Poor Flowers" Scarlet Drops _Scarlet Drops 1984-1992_

"Golden, It Is, Beautiful" Scarlet's Well _Gatekeeper_

"Do I Love You?" The School _Wasting Away & Wondering_

"Oz Lotto" School Damage _A To X_

"The Sharks" The School Uniforms _Some Oxbow_

"American Standard" Schrasj _Schrasj_

"D.H. Lawrence Wasn't A Mexican" Scissor Fits _Taut? Tense? Angular? & Other British Rail Sandwiches_

"Then (& Not A Moment Before)" The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir _The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir_

Whither Indiepop A To Z # 74?

It hailed in Portland today. In some places it might be considered a sign, but it's snowed in Portland in April so it just was one of those, "Hail, really?" moments. I went outside with my dogs & almost slipped on the deck. That wouldn't be a sign of anything but an example of what a klutzy dolt I am.

Imagine though if I had fallen! Portland would've been spared tonight's Self Help Radio! Alas, I'm probably going to be able to make the show so let me tell you, it's the first of my usual thrice-a-year returning to the Indiepop A To Z series. I have started the letter S. I suspect I will be there for a while. There will be some nice tunes in delightful alphabetical order.

Midnight to 2am. 90.7fm. kboo.fm online. There's not much else to say. Tune in!

Preface To Indiepop A To Z # 74: The Saga Continues

What more can I say? I've done this 73 times already. I'll do it lots more.

Here's a picture of my cat Bluto who's very twee. Enjoy it.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: National Superhero Day

April 28 is National Superhero Day. While Dick Dickenbock believes all radio journalists are superheroes, we report the news in our secret identities. Therefore we are reporting on superheroes tomorrow as well as playing musical reports about various superheroes.

Tomorrow morning, 9-10am, Sunday April the 28th, on the Dickenbock Report on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm & online at xray dot fm.

Stay tuned at the end for a special announcement about the future of the show!

This Week In Self Help (April 19, 21, + 23 2024)

Up there is the picture I used for this week's show announcement, I manipulated it & added the SHR logo, trying to make the image one of delirium. It caused someone on the KBOO web page to say, "That image is visually painful."

Delirium was the theme of this week's Self Help Radio. I was probably too delirious during that show. Here's a direct link to the episode. You will need the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access.

If you'd rather listen to the show on the KBOO website, here is that link. No passwords needed.

The KBOO link also includes this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming (which follows Self Help Radio). On that show, I continued the theme of "delirium" with mostly instrumental pieces that I had collected for the show. If you'd prefer to listen to that show on the Self Help Radio website (please remember the username/password combination above), here is the link for that.

The Sunday before all that was The Dickenbock Report, a show celebrating libraries on Thank You For Libraries Day. The show is also on the Self Help Radio web page linked here, or if you'd like you can listen at the XRAY web page.

But even before that - a week ago! - I subbed the KBOO show The Songcircle & played ninety minutes of new releases. You can find it both on the Self Help Radio page & on the KBOO page.

That was a busy week. Maybe you can find something you'd like. Thank you for listening!

Delirious Films

(image from the IMDb)

This week's episode of Self Help Radio had the theme "delirium" & our resident cinephile Chuck stopped by to chat about a few films in which delirium is featured. You can listen to that show at the Self Help Radio website! (You can also listen at the KBOO website too.)

Chuck has prepared some supplemental links - much more in-depth than his brief appearance on the show. To wit:

The Letterboxd list of movies he watched for the show.

The YouTube playlist of films & trailers.

The IMDb keyword search page.
& the IMDb list of films available to stream for free elsewhere. Chuck has a caveat: "There is duplication with of some on YouTube but quality is usually better, & their availability may be for limited time."

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

Did that make you delirious? Maybe sit down & have some water?

Self Help Radio 042324: Delirium

Among the things that can cause delirium are: sleep deprivation, drugs & alcohol, pain, mental illness, & radio shows. Radio shows?!? But we're just exploring delirium! Damn you Web MD!

It was a delirious show & there was so much music (including some delirium-inspired instrumentals) that they bled into the third hour I was on the air. That's on the website as this week's Corporate Standardized Programming.

Okay. Listen if you're feeling stable at the Self Help Radio website. (You'll need the username SHR & the password selfhelp.) Or if you'd like, you can listen to all three hours over on the KBOO website. Everything that happens on the show is below. Please enjoy.

& if you can help KBOO out during our Spring Membership Drive!

Self Help Radio Delirium Show

"Recitar! Mentre Preso Dal Delirio... Vesti La Giubba (From I Pagliacci)" Enrico Caruso _Historical Recordings 1906-1914_

"Delightful Delirium (vocals, Helen Forrest)" Artie Shaw & His Orchestra _1939_

"Tu Mi Delirio" Astrud Gilberto & Walter Wanderley _A Certain Smile A Certain Sadness_

introduction & definitions

"Delirium Tremens" Christy Moore _Christy Moore_

"Delirium" Gaye Bykers On Acid _The Nosedive EP_

"Delirious Night (Rough Mix) (Vocal)" The Cure _Disintegration_

"Delirious" The Brilliant Corners _What's In A Word_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops by!

"Delirium" An April March _Woke Up Smiling_

"Aerodeliria" The Loud Family _Plants & Birds & Rocks & Things_

"Drug-Induced Delirium" The Cannanes _The Cannanes_

"Lager Delirium" Bad Manners _Heavy Petting_

interview with Carla Davidson, who has an interesting relationship to Prince's song "Delirious"

"Delirious" Guy Forsyth _Do Me Baby! Austin Does Prince_

"Delirium" Case / Lang / Veirs _Case / Lang / Veirs_

"Delirium" Minnie Birch _Delirium_

"Delirious" Sunspire _Delirious_

interview with candymaker Cordelio Delgado

"Delirious" Cindy Wilson _Realms_

"My Delirium" Ladyhawke _Ladyhawke_

"City Delirious" Lionrock _City Delirious_

"Avante Delirio" Saulo Duarte _Avante Delirio_

interview with Delirium Auditorium proprietor Cedric Dial

"Delirious" At The Spine _Vita_

"Delerium" Paul Benoit _Beautiful Lies_

"Delirium Passes" Anand Wilder _I Don't Know My Words_

"Delirious" No & The Maybes _No & The Maybes_

conclusion & goodbye

"Delirious" The Church _Further/Deeper_

"Flash Delirium" MGMT _Congratulations_

Whither Delirium?

(image from here)

Look at that brain up there! Delirium is a complicated thing! Surely that's enough to have the subject deserve a radio show!

But perhaps you expect more from me. I'm sure you don't, but play along. I was listening to Adam Ant a few weeks back. I was kinda charmed by the rhyme from the song "Desperate But Not Serious." He rhymes "serious" with "delirious" - "your kisses drive me delirious," is the line. I started thinking about the word - the adjective, not the noun - which led me to the Prince song. Having recently had to deal with issues with old family members with dementia, I found I had associated the word "delirious" with mostly unromantic - mostly unhealthy - moments in life.

When I find myself thinking of something too much, it's very likely that I'll find a radio show in there somewhere. I started looking around for songs about delirium & feeling delirious. What I've found will be on tonight's radio show.

Which is on KBOO - 90.7fm in town, kboo dot fm everywhere - from midnight to 2am. I haven't had much sleep today so I might be a bit delirious myself. In its unhealthy meaning.

Preface To Delirium: Oh You Just Know I Gotta Talk About The Endless

(from Sandman # 63)

It had been many years since I'd read a comic when a girl I was seeing in the mid-90s turned me on to the new Sandman. I knew Wesley Dodds. But this was different. & fun.

Especially the concept of The Endless. Though I just went to find the link there I tried not to see all their names - can I remember them? Dream, Death, Desire, Destiny, Destruction, Despair, & of course Delirium. Delirium used to be Delight!

This is not something I'll have occasion to mention on the radio, so I'm mentioning it here. It has been years since I've read the original Sandman comics but I have read a few more recent ones & still find the mythology rich & delightful. It doesn't make me delirious tho.

Did Delirium show up on the Netflix series? I don't think so. I liked that a lot too - it took a few episodes though. Death was great.

Anyway, I don't have much to say. I'm an admirer. But the comic wasn't the inspiration for the show. You'll have to come back tomorrow to find out how that came about.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Thank You For Libraries Day!

That picture above, captured from Goober Malps, is a picture of my childhood library. It wasn't my first library - I'm sure that that was in my elementary school, & I loved it lots - but it was the one in my neighborhood from around the time I was ten years old, & it was within walking distance of where I lived. I have memories of carrying books to & from there. & I could walk into it now & find my favorite things.

Except it's closed. It was called the Ridgewood Branch Library of the Nicholson Memorial Library System of Garland, Texas, & it closed permanently in 2009. I hadn't visited it since I was in high school.

But libraries remain important to me & to everyone at the Dickenbock Report so it's our pleasure to note that April 21 is Thank You For Libraries Day. Which is our top report of the show tomorrow.

Yes! Tomorrow morning, Sunday April the 21st, on the Dickenbock Report on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm & online at xray dot fm.

Lots of gratitude for libraries tomorrow!

This Week In Self Help (April 14 + 16 2024)

One website calls this building - the Textron Tower in Providence RI - the ugliest skyscraper in the state.

But it wasn't mentioned on this week's Self Help Radio, which had the theme "providence" which included lots of references to the city & guests who purported to be from there. Here's a direct link to that show. You will need the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access.

If you'd rather listen to the show on the KBOO website, here is that link.

The KBOO link also includes this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming (which follows Self Help Radio). On that show, I played an hour of new releases. If you'd prefer to listen to that show on the Self Help Radio website (please remember the username/password combination above), here is the link for that.

Chronologically first tho was The Dickenbock Report, this week a Spring Fund Drive show about Perfume Day. If you have a little to spare & want to help out you can do so here. If you just wanna listen to the frickin' show there are two options: the Self Help Radio web page or the XRAY web page.

As always - thank you for listening!

Self Help Radio 041624: Providence

(original image of Providence by David Wilson here)

This week's show - which has the theme "providence" - turned out to be more about the town of Providence, Rhode Island, rather than the "providence" that means "divine guidance & care." But of course the founders of Providence, Rhode Island, named it because they felt settling their was part of their god's "merciful providence." Could it be that both meanings apply? Is a show about providence which features mostly songs about Providence still about providence since it was named for that kind of providence?

Does it matter? Naw. It's just something to write about because I got space to fill. I was thinking of counting which songs were about the town & which were about the supernatural stuff. But I didn't. Maybe you can make a game of it?

Listen to the show when you want at the Self Help Radio website. Make sure you use the combo SHR/selfhelp to access. Or you can listen on the KBOO website. Your choice. It's a couple hours long, you can see all the songs & interviews below.

Now I need to go visit Providence again!

Self Help Radio Providence Show

"Providence" King Crimson _Red_

introduction & definitions

"Providence Help The Poor People (with Henry Townsend)" Big Joe Williams _Big Joe Williams & The Stars Of Mississippi Blues_

"Lake Providence Blues" The Harlem Hamfats _Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order, Vol. 1_

"A Letter To The People Of Providence (1648)" Wallace House _The Patriot Plan: Growth Of Human Rights In Colonial America_

"Providence" Sonic Youth _Daydream Nation_

"Providence" Morphine _Postcards From America (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)_

interview with Providence mayor Rene Ingersoll

"Providence" Jack Frost _Jack Frost_

"Providence" The Rosemarys _Providence_

"Providence" The Love Language _The Love Language_

"Providence & Bourbon" Girl Haggard _Country & Eastern_

interview with president of the Providence Chamber Of Commerce Robert Insley

"Providence Girls" The RI Love Song Warriors _Rhode Island Girls_

"East Providence Girls" The RI Love Song Warriors _Rhode Island Girls_

"Providence" Buddha On The Moon _The Last Autumn Day_

"Providence" Snoozer _Winter Stops All Sound EP_

"Providence" Earth Heart _Homesick_

interview with Father Richard Icke of the Providence diocese

"Providence" Duchess _Duchess_

"Providence" The Manhattan Love Suicides _The Manhattan Love Suicides_

"Providence" Pujol _United States Of Being_

"Full Faith In Providence" Villagers _Fever Dreams_

interview with my friend Reggie Innes, who's never visited Providence

"Providence, RI" Nickel Eye _The Time Of The Assassins_

"Providence" Cheerleader _Almost Forever_

"Ghost Of Providence Pt. 1" Bike Thief _Ghost Of Providence_

"Providence Portal" Annie Hamilton _The Future Is Here But It Feels Kinda Like The Past_

conclusion & goodbye

"Providence" Harpeth Rising _Shifted_

"Providence" Purple Ivy Shadows _White Electric_

Whither Providence?

(In Providence, they like to set the water on fire. Image from here.)

One of the things I'm very happy about is that no one - seriously no one - cares enough about this show to ask me, "Say, why is that your theme this week?" Even the folks with whom I make the fake interviews, who improvise based on the theme, wonder to me, "Why is the theme this week that?"

Please don't think I'm accusing anyone of being incurious or apathetic - I'm certain outside of a listener accidentally tuning in or my funny friends being funny, & with them even barely that, there are vanishingly few people besides me who even think of Self Help Radio. 

& most certainly I am not complaining. I do my level best to make as good a show as I can every week & if the best attention or interest my best efforts can garner is virtually no one thinking or caring about the show, what else can I do? Luckily I make the show mostly for me.

But also luckily it means that when there are times when I have a theme - like providence - & don't entirely remember why I chose the theme, I know it will frustrate no one because, as I've said, no one really cares. Did I pick a theme because of a city I visited? Or because of the challenge - are there two hours worth of songs I like about providence? Or something else? I simply don't know. & am not worried about saying so because, after all, who gives a shit? Nobody!

& that's about the number of folks who'll tune in tonight from midnight to 3am on 90.7fm in Portland & at kboo dot fm everywhere, even Providence, Rhode Island, where the river is on fire!

Preface To Providence: Hey, I've Been To Providence!

(a snapshot of Providence from Gurgle Merps)

It's true! In the fall of 1997, I accompanied two folks from KVRX to Providence for the NACB conference there. I believe it was November. It was snowing in Providence. We didn't do much sightseeing. I think we walked over to Brown University - it was closed but what were we going to do, sit in on a class?

We were a little bored so I paid for the three of us to go up to Boston to meet some people I knew from a Usenet group. It was cold in Boston but no snow. I enjoyed the train ride up there, & seeing Harvard, but remember virtually nothing about the experience. Here's a picture of me in Boston:

Look at me, clean shaven (ish) with cigarette in hand!

One nice memory of Providence was, the first night there, bar-hopping near the hotel & the places being packed. & asking someone where we could get something to eat & being told there was a late-night pizza place across the highway, which we went to.

A colleague of my wife lived in Province & hated it. But I'd kinda like to go back.

Is that the reason for the show, though? A memory from 27 years ago? Nope!

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Perfume Day!

(found many moons ago on a Tumblr blog somewhere...)

April 14 is "Perfume Day" so tune into the Dickenbock Report on XRAY for information as well as musical reports about those odiferous concoctions.

It's also the XRAY Spring Fund Drive  so expect some reporting about that as well as pleas for financial support. Should you want the Dickenbock Report to remain a trusted independent source for Sunday morning news, you can donate here.

Again, that is tomorrow morning - Sunday April the 14th - on the Dickenbock Report on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm & online at xray dot fm.

Unfortunately there is no evidence that listening to this show will make you smell better.

This Week In Self Help (April 7 + 9 2024)

(comic from lolein.com)

Here's a brief summary of what I did on the radio this week. It may be helpful with the authorities in coming prosecutions. I'll cop to it! I did it all!

Self Help Radio had the theme "can't wait." The show aired Tuesday morning from midnight to 2am. Here's a direct link to that show. You will need the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access.

If you'd rather listen on the KBOO website, here is that link.

The KBOO link also includes this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming (which follows Self Help Radio). On that show, I played an hour of new releases. If you'd prefer to listen to that show on the Self Help Radio website (please remember the username/password combination above), here is the link for that.

Finally - but chronologically first - The Dickenbock Report this week reported on the awkwardly named International Snail Papers Day. I would have preferred it be called International Newspapers Day as what I played was songs about newspapers. Also, no one uses the phrase "snail papers." No one. You can listen to it on the Self Help Radio web page here or if you'd prefer to listen to the XRAY web page, here is the link for that.

Thank you for listening!

Self Help Radio 040924: Can't Wait

The title of the image above, to which I added the Self Help Radio bear, is called "Can't Wait To See What You Turn Out To Be." It seemed appropriate to use for this show.

This show! So many things people can't wait for! In addition to all the songs, I also spoke with four people who told me what they can't wait for. To say that I was expecting something different would be an understatement. People who want to be on the radio are odd.

Listen to the show now or whenever - no need to wait - at the Self Help Radio website or at the KBOO website. You'll need a username & password to listen. Try SHR & selfhelp. Everything that happened on the show is listed below. I can't wait to hear what you think! Actually, I can. Let's just never speak of this show again.

Self Help Radio Can't Wait Show

"Can't You Wait Till You Get Home" Frankie 'Half Pint' Jaxon _The Rise & Fall Of Paramount Records 1917-1927, Volume 1_

"I Can't Wait" Ray Stanley _The Chess Rockabilly Story_

"Love Can't Wait" Kim Roberts _Let's Go - Joe Meek's Girls!_

"I Can't Wait" Painted Faces _Anxious Color_

introduction & definitions

"I Can't Wait ('Till I Grow Up)" The Boyd Sisters _Girls Will Be Girls Volume 1_

"I Can't Wait To Love You" Jan & Dean _All The Hits: From Surf City To Drag City_

"I Can't Wait" The Mamas & The Papas _The Mamas & The Papas_

"I Can't Wait" Willy McDougal _Don't Turn Away_

"I Can't Wait Until I See My Baby's Face" Dusty Springfield _Where Am I Going_

what Abel can't wait for

"Can't Wait To See You" Arthur Adams _The Complete Motown Singles, Vol, 10: 1970_

"I Can't Wait Till Summer Comes" Martha Reeves & The Vandellas _50th Anniversary - The Singles Collection 1962-1972_

"I Just Can't Wait To Hold You" Petula Clark _Warm & Tender_

"Can't Wait To See You Again" The Buckeye Politicians _Look At Me Now_

"Memories Can't Wait" Talking Heads _Fear Of Music_

what Chad can't wait for

"I Just Can't Wait" Leon Rosselson & Roy Bailey _That's Not The Way It's Got To Be!_

"I Can't Wait Too Long" Barrington Levy _Poorman Style_

"Just Can't Wait" The J. Geils Band _Flashback: The Best Of J. Geils Band_

"Can't Wait For September" Erl Dalby & Pyramid _Their Music Goes 'Round Our Heads_

what Barb can't wait for

"I Can't Wait That Long" The Brilliant Corners _Somebody Up There Likes Me_

"I Can't Wait" Luna _Lunapark_

"Can't Wait For Summer" The Best Wishes _Shoebox Full Of Love EP_

"I Can't Wait" The Sundays _Static & Silence_

"I Can't Wait" Brassy _Got It Made_

what Dale can't wait for

"I Can't Wait" Johnny Tucker _Seven Day Blues_

"Can't Wait For War" Brodka _Clashes_

"Why Can't It Wait" Lou Barlow _Reason To Live_

"I Can't Wait" Ceramic Animal _Sweet Unknown_

"I Can't Wait" Miesha & The Spanks _Unconditional Love In Hi-Fi_

conclusion & goodbye

"Just Can't Wait (feat. Lumi HD)" Sam Redmore _Universal Vibrations_

"I Can't Wait" Ric Ocasek _Beatitude_

"Methu Aros Tan Haf (Can't Wait Til Summer)" Gorky's Zygotic Mynci _Introducing Gorky's Zygotic Mynci_

"Love I Can't Wait" The Sponsors _Sponsors_

Whither Can't Wait?

(One of my favorite Maakies strips - scanned from a book.)

It bears reminding that I've been doing this dumb radio show for over twenty years now. While I don't have an actual count, I think it's safe to say I explore maybe forty or so new themes a year. That means I've explored at least 800 different themes. Probably more. But let's be conservative.

At some point I realized I might get a little bored if the themes I chose were all nouns - trains, weather, whiskey, kisses. Not that I would always prefer difficult or obscure themes - but that I might not want to limit myself in that way. & at some point, I began to have themes that were phrases. Phrases like "can't wait."

You might think this was a conscious thing, a way to open up the possibilities for the show but not really. It just sorta happened. I don't know when. But it seems like it was early on.

A few weeks ago I was at a place waiting to pick up some food & there was a person outside who was on the phone - I assume they were on the phone, you know, nowadays folks don't hold the phone to their head, they just talk so the person might have been hallucinating or something - but the person kept responding to the caller (or the voice only they could hear) "Can't wait!" They must've said "can't wait" a dozen times. When I came home, I found myself responding to things my wife said with, "Can't wait!" She did not seem to notice that was a weird way to comment in conversation.

& then it became an idea for a radio show. Which will become an actual radio show tonight.

Midnight to 2am on 90.7fm KBOO here in Portland, kboo.fm everywhere.

Preface To Can't Wait: Oh, I Can Wait

(from this Twitter account)

The expression "can't wait" - I guess it's an idiom - according to the Collins Dictionary means - well they put it in a sentence - "If you say that you can't wait to do something or can hardly wait to do it, you are emphasizing that you are very excited about it & eager to do it."

As I thought about writing this, I wondered what there was that I can't wait for. At the moment my wife is out of the country, so I think I can't wait for her to get back. But since she's usually here, I don't often feel that way. I don't think I am often in a situation where I can't wait for something.

You might ask, "Don't you get excited about radio shows?" I do, I get nervous even, but I know they're in my future & I know there's a bit of work that is required for them, so I can wait because I need the time.

Is this something that happens when one gets older? One loses the magic of anticipation? As I kid I couldn't wait for some classes to end, for some movies to come out, for summer to come, for the weekend to come so I didn't have to go to school or wake up early. Except for situations like my wife being away like she is now, I honestly don't think there's anything I can't wait for. I can wait.

Waiting is something that one grows used to, really. Maybe not comfortable with, nor happy with. But it's built in to so many experiences that over time one simply accepts that there's waiting involved.

Wow that's depressing. I won't talk about this during the show. Yikes.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: International Newspaper Day!

The official name of tomorrow's holiday is "International Snail Papers Day," which is baffling because no one calls newspapers "Snail Papers." No one except the person who invented the holiday. This person is also the sort who tried to give themselves a nickname when they were a kid & everyone said, "Nope." So at the Dickenbock Report we'll have reports, including musical ones, about newspapers.

Again, that is tomorrow morning - Sunday April the 7th - on the Dickenbock Report on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm & online at xray dot fm.

Tune in for the only newsmagazine on XRAY on Sunday mornings! Or read the paper, which is probably more appropriate.

Tired Films

(image from the IMDb)

This week's episode of Self Help Radio had the theme "tired" & our resident cinephile Chuck stopped by to chat about a few films not about people who are tired but things that are tired. He wanted to showcase films with car chases. You can listen to that show at the Self Help Radio website!

Chuck has a series of links that he'd like you to explore.

Here is the Letterboxd list of movies he watched for the show.

Here is the YouTube playlists of films & trailers. (This is just part one, the other parts are linked to this however.)

Here is the IMDb page from which the list was sourced.

Here is the IMDb list of films available to stream for free elsewhere. He notes, "There is duplication with of some on YouTube but quality is usually better, & their availability may be for limited time."

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

With all the films Chuck watches, how is he not tired all the time?!?

This Week In Self Help (March 31 + April 2 2024)

Although I no longer do three shows on three stations, I currently do three shows on two stations. In case you've missed what I've been up to this past week, here are the most current of those shows.

Self Help Radio had the theme "tired." The show aired Tuesday morning from midnight to 2am. Here's a direct link to that show. You will need the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access.

If you'd rather listen on the KBOO website, here is that link.

The KBOO link also includes this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming (which follows Self Help Radio). On that show, I played twelve songs by twelve artists we've lost recently. If you'd prefer to listen to that show on the Self Help Radio website (please remember the username/password combination above), here is the link for that.

Finally - but chronologically first - The Dickenbock Report this week reported on Eiffel Tower Day with songs & information about that famous structure. You can listen to it on the Self Help Radio web page here or if you'd prefer to listen to the XRAY web page, here is the link for that.

Thank you for listening!

Self Help Radio 040224: Tired

Does a show about being tired make one less tired? It does not. Being tired is not something that decreases with more awareness. It's exhausting hearing about exhaustion. Tired should lead to rest, to sleep, to some kind of relaxation or repose. Unfortunately we don't always have that luxury. Which means that a show about being tired is probably the last thing you'll want to listen to if you're tired. & I'm always tired. Are you always tired?

You can listen to this tiresome show at the Self Help Radio website. Please use the login SHR & the password selfhelp to access the file. Luckily the songs & the guests were excellent so they'll not tire you out. Everything that happens on the show is noted below.

Now I need a nap.

Self Help Radio Tired Show

"Tired As I Can Be" Bessie Jackson _Them Dirty Blues_

"Too Tired" Fats Waller & His Rhythm _1939-1940_

"I'm Tired" Bright Light Quartet _Southern Journey Volume 8: Velvet Voices - Eastern Shores Choirs, Quartets, & Colonial Era Music_

introduction & definitions

"Tired & Sleepy" The Cochran Brothers _Somethin' Else: The Fine Lookin' Hits Of Eddie Cochran_

"Too Tired" Johnny Guitar Watson _30th Birthday Celebration - Blues & R&B_

"Morgens Bin Ich Immer Müde" Trude Herr _Ich Will Keine Schokolade_

"I'm So Tired (Esher Demo)" The Beatles _The Beatles (White Album) (Deluxe)_

interview with herbalist Martin Lerner

"Tired Of Waking Up Tired" The Diodes _Tired Of Waking Up Tired: The Best Of The Diodes_

"I've Been Tired" Pixies _Come On Pilgrim_

"So Tired" Slowdive _Outside Your Room EP_

"Why Am I So Tired All The Time?" Eggs _Eggs Teenbeat 96 Exploder_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops by

"Too Tired" Postal Blue _Weather Sensitive EP_

"Too Tired" DeVotchKa _How It Ends_

"Tired" Guards Of Metropolis _Alligator_

"Tired All The Time" Simon I _Simon I_

interview with blogger Melanie Lowe

"Tired" LCD Soundsystem _LCD Soundsystem_

"Dog Tired" The Tash Mints _Antipodean Screams, Vol. 2_

"Too Tired" Meat Market _Too Tired_

"I'm Always Tired" Joyce Manor _Of All Things I Will Soon Grow Tired_

"Tired Of Being Tired" Descendents _9th & Walnut_

interview with kinesiologist & author Mike Ladd

"Sleep When I'm Tired" Poetica _Poetica_

"I'm So Tired" Deserta _Every Moment, Everything You Need_

"I'm So Tired" Lala Lala _Fader & Friends Vol. 1_

"Wired & Tired" The Speed Of Sound _Museum Of Tomorrow_

conclusion & goodbye

"So Tired In The Morning" Erland & The Carnival _Nightingale_

"Too Tired" Kali _Circles_

Whither Tired?

(a screenshot from the film Umberto D.)

One thing I've not been shy about mentioning is how tired I've been. It's why I recently made a change - why Self Help Radio is back on KBOO now. It's also the reason why I'm doing a show with the theme "tired." If it weren't so obvious.

While going through all the songs I had about tired, I noticed that there was a subset of tired songs which might be considered "tired of" songs. I moved those to another folder - that seems like that could be another show. As well as the songs about being "sick & tired." Those things don't seem to be the same as "exhausted," which is what I have been. Also: drained, fatigued, sleepy, beat, collapsing, consumed, drooping, enervated, flagging, & finished.

But not too tired to go up to KBOO tonight to do a radio show about being tired! It's on midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in town & online at kboo dot fm. You might be too tired to stay up & listen. & I completely understand.

Preface To Tired: Self-Explanatory

My cat Boone is always tired. So am I. Actually, that's not true. I will often wake after being asleep for some ridiculously short amount of time - like four hours - & be wide-awake. This morning I woke at 3am & realized how dumb it would be to stay awake so I forced myself to go back to sleep - which meant lying in the dark for thirty minutes until my brain gave in.

Therefore it's safe to say that I'm not always tired but that I am almost always tired. I will confess, though, it feels like I've been more tired this past year than before. & of course that's why that's this week's theme but you know I'm supposed to explain that tomorrow instead of today so hey! look at the lovely orange cat! just be quiet! If he doesn't get his 22 hours of sleep a day, he's a grump!

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Eiffel Tower Day!

Tomorrow morning on the Dickenbock Report on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm & online at xray dot fm, we're reporting on the Eiffel Tower, which was completed March 31, 1889. From 9-10am you'll hear musical reports about the Eiffel Tower, plus a live remote from the Report's Travel Reporter.

Tune in for the only newsmagazine on XRAY on Sunday mornings!

The picture above is a young couple who were very, very tired, in front of the Tower in early 2005. They didn't quite make it to the top.

Pandemic Daze

It is in human nature I think to repress or try to repress terrible memories of terrible times. Here's a photo taken three years ago of closed-up KBOO. I think I was able to start doing shows live there in the summer but at the time I drove by it didn't feel like that was a possibility for a while. & when I did shows live there - from the summer of 2021 to the spring of 2023 - I was always masked. Having returned this week, I noted it was maybe only the third or fourth time I'd been unmasked in the station since the pandemic began.

This is my way to remember how awful it was to have a radio station closed up like that - to have a town closed up - a nation & world closed up. I know covid is still a thing & people are not only getting sick still but dealing with the long-term effects of getting it in the first place. But a lot of folks are acting like it never happened - & that's a bit maddening.

Self Help Radio 032624: Paradise

Self Help Radio returned to KBOO & a late-night slot this week with a show about paradise. In addition to every single song played on the show (but one) called "Paradise" (one was called "Paradiso"), the show also featured interviews with four folks who had near-death experiences & maybe caught a glimpse of paradise.

This was the first Self Help Radio back in the KBOO studios & I came in pretty unprepared so apologies for all the foul-ups, bleeps, & blunders. You can listen to the show at the Self Help Radio website. Use the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access. I did a couple of sub shows as well as my other shows in-between Self Help Radio episodes - have a look, maybe you'd enjoy listening to them. Meanwhile, look below for everything that happened on the show. Paradise it wasn't.

Self Help Radio Paradise show

"Paradise" Lena Horne _Lena On The Blue Side_

"Paradise" The Temptations _Emperors Of Soul_

"Paradise" The Ronettes _Back To Mono (1958-1969)_

introduction & definitions

"Paradise" John Prine _John Prine_

"Paradise" Buzzcocks _A Different Kind Of Tension_

"Paradise" The Stranglers _Feline_

"Paradise" Mikey Dread _Pave The Way_

interview with Laetitia Clark

"Paradise" Plus Instruments _Trigger & The Thrill Kings Plus Instruments_

"Paradise" Alex Chilton _Feudalist Tarts_

"Paradise" The Bodines _Creation Soup Volume Two_

"Paradise" Cub Sport _Paradise EP_

interview with Luke Connors

"Paradiso" The Chameleons _Strange Times_

"Paradise" New Order _Brotherhood_

"Paradise" All About Eve _The Best Of All About Eve_

"Paradise" Aztec Camera _Love_

interview with Lester Charles

"Paradise" Viva Saturn _Soundmind_

"Paradise" Clinic _Visitations_

"Paradise" Lump _Animal_

"Paradise" White Lung _Paradise_

interview with Larry Carmichael

"Paradise" Swansea Sound _Twentieth Century_

"Paradise" Lily & Madeleine _Lily & Madeleine_

"Paradise" Wishy _Paradise_

"Paradise" Empath _Visitor_

conclusion & goodbye

"Paradise" The O'Jays _Message In The Music_

Whither Paradise?

(painting by Breughel, from the Wikipedia)

For my first show back on KBOO, the theme - which was chosen before I decided to move so it's not any kind of comment about the station - is "paradise." There were lots of songs about paradise, so much so that I think I will be able to fill two entire hours with songs called "Paradise." I've done this a few times before, including with my show with the theme "heaven." Which brings me to the genesis of this show:

The idea came from this book by Bart Ehrman that I had just finished reading:

It's called (as you can see) "Heaven & Hell: A History Of The Afterlife." More information is at the link. It's a fascinating book that almost certainly won't penetrate the minds of those indoctrinated since birth in ideas of heaven & hell, but for those with more open minds it demonstrates how over time people in the more-or-less Western tradition (starting with the Greeks & Jews) came to think there ought to be something more after death, either on earth or in some other place. Since I had already done a show about heaven & a show about hell, the next best thing to do a show about was paradise - often a synonym for heaven.

That show happens tonight oh I better get working! from midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in Portland & kboo dot fm everywhere. It not like anyone at KBOO wanted the show back, but by gum it'll be back tonight!

Preface To Paradise: Paradise Lost

That picture was taken in May 2020, as the pandemic raged. The wife & I had gone for a walk, probably to get some folk & take out the dogs. The streets of Portland were mostly deserted. It's along Division Street, as you can see with the sign. Wish I had walked across the street to take the picture but I did not. But maybe the emptiness makes the post's point.

Was it paradise lost? Portland's never been everyone's idea of Paradise, but just a year before, the streets - especially on a lovely sunny day in May - would have been full of people. Nearly four years later I have yet to see the city as populated as it was when we first go here. But it's getting there.

But it's a fact this is my most favorite place to live at least in the last twenty years. They spoil vegans here, & there are many lovely places, & lots of love for dogs & cats. & of course all the radio. There's just all the radio here. So maybe for me it's a paradise.

My Favorite Warning Sign In Texas

Okay, maybe my second favorite. In Texas. Oddly enough, my favorite also involves railroad tracks. Anyway, I made a cursory check & discovered that (I hope) the yellow signs are called "warning signs" to distinguish them I guess from street signs or traffic signs honestly I don't know. I would often see these signs in more industrial areas of Fort Worth where I lived from 2016 to 2019. That picture was taken on this day in 2019. Probably on the ride home from the airport where I dropped off my wife going on one of her research trips. One of the roads I took from the airport to my home was highway 121 which for a time kinda runs parallel to interstate 30 so when I thought I might want to explore, maybe take some pictures, I would take an exit off 121 & head south, hoping the road might connect to 30. I'm think (?) this road is somewhere near there - tho I just spent some time with Goober Maps trying to figure out which intersection & I can't. I also want to point out that it seems like this picture was taken sometime in the early morning or early evening but since it was March I would suspect it was during the day but there was a storm coming. Storms happened a lot in the Metroplex & they were often loud & scary. Yes, I checked, the picture was taken around 5pm. But looking at the other pictures I also took at the time, I can now say it was definitely not taken between highway 121 & interstate 30. It was most probably taken in Grand Prairie or Arlington somewhere between interstate 20 & interstate 30. I surmise I was driving back from visiting my mother in Garland & I decided to exit off 30 to explore a little in that area, to go to 20 & get back that way to Fort Worth. That's the most likely scenario. Ignore the airport thing. Hey! You might be saying why do you like this sign, Gary? I know why! It's the little lightning bolts shooting out from the truck trailer. Those are the same symbols in comic strips that indicate pain. It says so here. So it looks like the truck trailer is in pain. I like that a lot. Oh wait a second. I didn't divide this into paragraphs. What a mess. It would be too time-consuming to go back now & change that. Anyway, I never reread the stuff I write. If no one's going to read it, why should I reread it? That explains any spelling/consistency errors, if you've ever wondered. No editing. This is the life.

Kids

Nothing really to write about - a week without Self Help Radio has given me the opportunity to sub a couple of shows but I'll share those later - so instead have a look at the two youngest members of our house. Pete the beagle is around one year, two months old. Bluto the grey tabby is about a year & a half old. They are both delightful. I really should be working on Self Help Radio tho.

Reset

(image from here)

It's super dumb but I am a creature of habit & I set the goals & I try to keep up with the goals & one of those goals is this blog. A few years back I thought I should write at least one post a day for five days a week on the show's blog. I then developed a rough outline of what those posts would be like. The first & second posts of the week could be about anything. The third post would be a preface to the theme. The fourth would try to explain the theme on the day of the show. The fifth would be post-show, have a link to the show, have the playlist &etc.

Since Self Help Radio is moving to very early Tuesday mornings, my schedule has to shift. Right now the first day is Monday. The last day is Friday (since the show has been on Thursdays). Now the first day will be Friday, the last day Tuesday. (Yes, the show is on Tuesday but in literally the first two hours of Tuesday.)

This is my way of saying I won't be writing here again until Friday. I'm very lucky so few people read this blog that it won't offend or disappoint anyone. It also helps that I almost always have nothing to say.

The image above is from an article that may well be self-help. I just wanted the image. I didn't read the article.