Pausing For Breath

Pausing For Breath for 2006-04-02

Sun, 02 Apr 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Your host quietly reappears after a short break in transmission.

The potential for litigation ... a wedding anniversary ... festivals and fairs ... Dan Brown offends non-fiction writers ... the chance of living to 130 ... country rock from Matthew Ebel ... an Anglo-French word ... long DVDs on my bedside table ... and stuff I wanted - and got - for the studio.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Greetings: So I took a break due to other commitments... so sue me! Oh, wait a minute...
Close To Home: A threat of litigation - an ex-client goes for your host's wallet.; A spontaneous wedding anniversary - and the rebirth of our wedding place; Local arts and festivals - I played some shows and hung out with a Commonwealth Games team, sort of.
Out There: Dan Brown in court - non-fiction authors say he took their name in vain.; Live to 130 - but only if you're now between 20 and 30... otherwise; drop dead, stressy fatboy.
Podsafe Music: From The Podsafe Music Network.; Matthew Ebel - Drive Away.; What's 'Groove Rock' anyway? Country Rock with louder guitars?; The importance - or otherwise - of lyrics.
Word!: The word of the week is a lovely Anglo-French throwback: demesne.
On My Bedside Table: The Corporation - a two-DVD set that puts the fear back into your loungeroom.; Angels In America - wonderful HBO series that takes two Tony Award-winning plays and brings them to brilliant life on the small screen.
Stuff I Want GOT!!!: Lots of exciting stuff for the studio - mics, USB interface, headphone mixer. At last!; And it means that I'm recording the show on my laptop these days.

Pausing For Breath for 2006-02-12

Sun, 12 Feb 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

The pondering of renovations ... cows and trees... Parliament gets decidedly un-funky on the subject of abortion pills... and one Member says something stupid... a song from bill... some Words of the Week... and stuff I want for the studio.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Greetings: I recorded a promo... that was hard!
Close To Home: Home renovation plans afoot.; A sick cow, and tree removal plans... how exciting.
Out There: Disorder in the House - Australian abortion pill conscience vote.; Hotter than ever - the Earth is hotter than at any time in the last 1200 years.
Podsafe Music: The Podsafe Music Network.; bill - Sound Scientist; Website: bill.
Word!: The word of the week is material and materiel.; And a bonus word is logistics.
Stuff I Want: Lots of exciting stuff for the studio - mics, USB interface, headphone mixer

Tales from PFB: Change of Owner

Sun, 19 Jan 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

An original story by Adam Dennis. A carwash, a spectacular convertible with the top down, an angry owner. Unexpected outcomes ensue.

Direct link to the story.

Pausing For Breath for 2006-02-05

Sun, 05 Feb 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Bushfire comes to Highlands... insects and animals misbehave... I go on at length about censorship and reach an unexpected conclusion... more Brother Love... and breathless appreciation of Wonderfalls.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Greetings: I know, I missed a show - but things were afoot.
Close To Home: Bushfires everywhere, tragic losses and brave volunteers.; Birds steal our fruit, a bee exacts retribution upon me.
Out There: Censorship 1 - Google makes a business decision.; Censorship 2 - caricatures of the Prophet; it's about respect.; Censorship 3 - a tool for civilised living?
Podsafe music: The Podsafe Music Network.; Brother Love - Summertime; Website: Brother Love.
On My Bedside Table: Some friends sent me another cancelled TV series to rave incessantly about.

Tales from PFB: Fence People (part 1)

Sun, 22 Jan 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Part 1 of the serialisation of "Fence People" by Dinah Percival and Candida Westney is the latest PFB tale. I don't know how many episodes there'll be. Fence People is a non-fiction book documenting the lives of people living along the Dingo Fence in the Outback of south-eastern Australia.

Direct link to the story.

Pausing For Breath for 2006-01-22

Sun, 22 Jan 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

A lovely new red ute stands in my driveway... I speak of a stranger on a train... wrestle with the concept of death metal in dresses... statistics show that We Are What We Eat... the concept of sleep inertia... I play podsafe Brother Love... my words are obelisk and odalisque... and I sigh about DVDs generally.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Greetings: I'm excited - I've got a book to serialise for the Tales!
Close To Home: The Search for a Ute, a tale with a happy ending.; Strangers on a Train, wherein I praise people with a calling.; I wrestle with the idea of Death Metal in Dresses.
Out There: We Are What We Eat, says the latest research... which is scary, of course.; Sleep Inertia, and why I'm alert after 24 hours' straight work, but you're acting drunk 'cos you just got up.
Podsafe music: The Podsafe Music Network.; Brother Love - There She Goes (from their new album 'Album of the Year'); Website: Brother Love.
Word!: The word of the week is obelisk.; And the other word of the week is odalisque.

Tales from PFB: Silence

Sun, 15 Jan 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

The first of the Tales from Pausing For Breath, Silence is a first-person story about leaving town without a plan, and finding a new way of looking at life. It marks the start of a new side of PFB. Authors are sought to contribute to the series.

Direct link to the story.

Pausing For Breath for 2006-01-15

Sun, 15 Jan 2006 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

The new year is here, and I explain my absence... introduce a new string to the PFB bow... the crazy workload struck again... I relate The Deer Incident... talk about storm damage... the Councillor's in da house... my jaundiced view of the Commonwealth Games... observations of public transport... explode some myths about drinking water... and complain about scientists monkeying around.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Greetings: It's been a long time, but I'm back.; A new approach - the talk sessions and the tales.
Close To Home: The crazy work cycle, navel gazing and the importance of structure.; The Deer Incident, or Why People Point At My Car And Laugh.; Storm damage, no gas, no water - life's little disasters.; The Municipal Councillor I call 'wife'.
Out There: The Commonwealth Games come to Melbourne - my gripes and suspicions.; Public transport successes and failures.; Eight glasses of water a day - the myth.; Why do scientists have to monkey around?
Podsafe music: The Podsafe Music Network.; Bill - Watercolors; Website: Bill.
Word!: The word of the week is hyperbole.; And the phrase of the week is vorsprung durch technik.

Pausing For Breath for 2005-07-24

Sun, 24 July 2005 00:01:00 +1000

Shownotes:

It's Sunday, and this time I'm really getting over my cold... keeping warm in winter... the lemon laptop fails at last... a painful purchase in more ways than one... tragedies and how we relate to them... bird flu, spanish flu... podsafe music and interesting ideas... a couple of words we don't really want to use... Angel and Chocolat.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: After 11 days, I'm back in the chair - been sick.; The cost of keeping warm in winter.; My lemon-of-a-laptop failed at last.; The bizarre, untimely and problematic process of purchasing my new laptop.
Out There: More tragedies... and how we relate to such things at a personal level.; Looking back at the Spanish flu pandemic...; ... and forward to the bird flu pandemic.
Podsafe music: Some feedback on the project song.; The Jordans - Firefly; Website: The Jordans.; An idea about a very different kinda music podcast.
Word!: The words of the week are pandemic...; ... and epidemic.
On my bedside table: Angel (TV series).; Chocolat (movie).

Pausing For Breath for 2005-07-13

Wed, 13 July 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Wet Wednesday, voice returning... PFB on iTunes... a nice letter from a new listener... more mad work... Londoners coping with attacks again... my introduction to Fox News online... arcane bicycle laws... the final version of our song-in-progress... a word or two, a DVD review, and a book too... and some stuff that I really really want.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Another late show due to work and no voice.; PFB is live on iTunes... hoorah!; A very nice letter from one of our many new listeners.; Work madness... and the family back together now.
Out There: Londoners coping once again with attacks.; I learn about Fox News online... and am not impressed.; Website: Fox News Online; Arcane bicycle laws... what you can be fined for.; Website: New South Wales Road Traffic Authority
Podsafe music: Talking about the final instalment of our project song - all done, but a rough voice.; The Jordans - Bow Your Head; Website: The Jordans.; A question about doing more project songs... and about podcasting a videoclip.
Word!: The word of the week is cavalry... hang on, no, it's calvary!; Strange juxtaposition of Google ads in dictionary.com.
On my bedside table: Aimee Mann - Live at St Ann's Warehouse (DVD).; Bill Bryson - A Short History of Nearly Everything (book).
Buzzed and Bugged: I'm very annoyed at spam and a particular trojan horse strategy.
Stuff I Want: Learning of a friend's new Dell, I get envious.; Music DVDs... especially Radiohead!

Pausing For Breath for 2005-07-03

Sun, 3 July 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

A Sunday show... trouble at the PFB mill... and a major disappointment with the new iTunes podcasting feature... aeroplane delays, wild working days, dogs go away... media soap operas... tragedy and community spirited people... Live8 and the status of large companies as potential countries... phase 4 of create-a-song... inspiration... a word... bizarre history and a book review.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Trouble at the mill... why the last PFB was late; Major disappointment with iTunes podcast feature... limited to people who have a localised store; Grappling with aeroplane delays and the new project; Turing visits the kennel... Micah stays with friends
Out There: My conspiracy theory that explains pathetic media soap operas; Wild weather and a tragedy; Community-spirited people... and others who aren't; Live8... and how large companies should be UN members and pay their way
Podsafe music: Talking about the latest changes to our project song - re-recorded just about everything; The fourth instalment of my journey of a song from idea to finished product; The Jordans - Bow Your Head; Some words on inspiration...; Website: Edward de Bono; Website: Sagmeister Inc (this is also where you get the book!)
Word!: The word of the week is scantling... a wonderful old-fashioned word; A bizarre North Country impression of Isaac Newton... reading about sticking a bodkin in your eye
On my bedside table: Sagmeister - Made You Look (see the link above)

Pausing For Breath for 2005-06-25

Sat, 25 June 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Early Saturday show... lots of observations around work and travel, travel and work... and a bang on the head when I least expected it... updates on Corby and Wood, a government minister twisting in the wind, more tracks on our project song, a bit of Jordans news... and some unfavorable film reviews.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Multiple iterations of a project proposal; A trip north by train... the only thing missing was the chickens; Work observations, including a very attractive garment; A childrens' concert, and a coffee guy with a good memory for customers
Out There: Quick updates on Schapelle Corby and Douglas Wood; A tale of a twisting Minister... our immigration woes; Sidetrack: ten minutes at the watchmaker's shop
Podsafe music: A strange old song from the Jordans; The Jordans - This Reputation; Website: The Jordans; Talking about the changes to our project song, and how I came to make them; The third instalment of my journey of a song from idea to finished product; The Jordans - Bow Your Head; A small Jordans announcement - CDs will soon be available online again! Hurrah!
Word!: The word of the week is specificity... the correct word to describe the specific-ness of something
On my bedside table: Our trip to the local Film Society; Jedda - 1957 Australian film - yeeesh!; Y Tu Mama Tambien - 2001 Mexican film - rrrowwwrrr!

Pausing For Breath for 2005-06-18

Sat, 18 June 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Another late Saturday show... work, websites, strange Schapelle Corby appeal strategy, mystery and mayhem surrounding Douglas Wood's retrieval, a long ramble on songwriting, the next step of the song in progress, and some reviews.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Suddenly finding myself filled up to the brim with projects; Moving websites... the interminable project; Bringing up baby Micah, who needs loads of interest
Out There: Schapelle Corby's legal team adopts some strange strategies in her appeal against 20 years in prison; Who really rescued Douglas Wood? Also, new news about a nasty and ill-advised attack on a Sheik; A postscript on G8 debt relief, and a sense of scope of the problem
Podsafe music: Another hot band from our friends at Fat Wreck Chords; The Soviettes - Multiply and Divide; Website: The Soviettes; After a perfectly reasonable request, I struggle to explain how I write songs; The second instalment of my journey of a song from idea to finished product; The Jordans - Bow Your Head; Website: The Jordans
Word!: The word of the week is terrorist... celebrating its misuse by an Australian politician; And the phrase of the week is if worse comes to worst
On my bedside table: A documentary about the creation of SpaceShipOne by Scaled Composites; My questionable attempt to review the movie "King Arthur"
Buzzed and Bugged: Bugged: still in whinge mode, complaining about MS Word and hyper-featured software; Buzzed: a quick mention of openoffice.org software; Website: OpenOffice.org

Pausing For Breath for 2005-06-11

Sat, 11 June 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Late on Saturday night... work, weather, a sick dog, ravenous cows, a conspiracy theory, a boon for poor countries and a song in progress.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Moving on from winning projects to actually doing them; More on winter, plus wind and the risk to Rovers... and my own sick "Rover"
Out There: Fun with governments, cows, horses and the Alpine National Park; A game show crosses the line on a question of law... and I present a conspiracy theory; Tony Blair loses on Africa... but wins on debt relief for poor countries
Podsafe music: A hot band from our friends at Fat Wreck Chords; No Use For A Name - Dumb Reminder; Website: No Use For A Name; The first instalment of my soundseeing tour of the journey of a song from idea to finished product; The Jordans - Bow Your Head; Website: The Jordans
Word!: The word of the week is acronym... which makes a word from initial letters; And we take a look at abbreviation while we're at it
On my bedside table: Triple J's Hack with Steve Kinnane - radio show and podcast; Website: Hack
Buzzed and Bugged: Bugged: back in whinge mode, complaining about ads for smileys and a disturbing command to SHOOT TARGET
Stuff I Want: A new laptop to replace this freakin' lemon!

Pausing For Breath for 2005-06-04

Sat, 04 June 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Losing money in webhosting, snuggling in winter, bad behaviour on the roads, one biography, one magazine and many beverages.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: A business idea... how to lose money in one easy lesson; Winter's truly here... and I'm staying warm in bed!
Out There: iTunes and iPod finally know podcasting exists; News story: O'Reilly Radar; Bad behaviour on the road... and a story with a moral; News story: The Age
Podsafe music: With the Jordans once again... to cheer you up after that last story; The Jordans - People; Website: The Jordans
Word!: The word of the week is synergy... where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts; And we have an incidental word, fantastic, which can be used creatively at parties
On my bedside table: "Billy" by Pamela Stephenson (biography); Website: New Scientist; A rant on bedside beverages... the goes nowhere
Buzzed and Bugged: Buzzed: pure buzzardry this week, on Google and tech discussion board contributors.
Stuff I Want: Quiet, quiet computers; Tiny, weeny computers!; Website: OQO

Pausing For Breath for 2005-05-28

Sat, 28 May 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

A word or two on the subject of public transport, being thrown off it, cancelled TV shows... and much more!

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Being thrown out a train door... and pondering my age; New projects... so maybe better finances; The arrival of winter... the heater and the gas tank
Out There: Avoiding the news and its repetitive nature; Spam, viagra and a potential new side-effect: blindness; News story: Xinhua Daily
Podsafe music: Back to the Jordans, but it's rock, not pop; The Jordans - In Time; Website: The Jordans
Word!: The word of the week is catharsis... which I relate to scratching that itch and how good it feels
On my bedside table: Firefly - the DVD of the TV series; Website: Serenity (the Firefly movie); Cancelled TV shows; Website: Miracles (TV series)
Buzzed and Bugged: Bugged: a big bugfest on the topic of The Interface to Public Transport.
Stuff I Want: Inspiration for gift giving!; Birthday cards, come October

Pausing For Breath for 2005-05-23

Mon, 23 May 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Crisp comment about losing things, family visits, quotes, towers, business vs science... and much more!

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Travelling north to see family... doing the round trip in a weekend; My mum and dad and their new house; An improving forecast on our finances
Out There: Writing quotes for a reasonable sum for the work to be done... and those who over-quote; Donald Trump, twin towers of subtlety, and pathetic namecalling; Goliath takes the upper hand: evil conglomerates versus the under-powered CSIRO
Podsafe music: A promotional tune from a San Francisco label; The Epoxies - Synthesized; Website: Fat Wreck Chords
Word!: The word of the week is miscegenation... which I pronounce dubiously and learn that its meaning doesn't gel with how it looks; And another one like t'other one! It's hegemony. At least I knew what this one meant, even if I have to think twice before I say it
On my bedside table: Books by Tim Powers; Website: Tim Powers fan site; Showdown in Podcast Country; Website: Adam Curry; Website: Daily Source Code; Website: Dave Winer's wiki entry; Website: Adam Curry's wiki entry; Website: Morning Coffee Notes (Dave Winer's podcast)
Buzzed and Bugged: Bugged: okay, I bugged myself when I lost things and needed help to find them; Buzzed: the roads that take us through Victoria and New South Wales; Bugged: the inaccessibility of public transport that should compete with the roads
Stuff I Want: Been too busy to be wantin' stuff ... but ...; A recap: I want that USB audio interface for the laptop!; And a high quality lavalier microphone... but it should be unidirectional too; I need some way to want less stuff ... but still do good things

Pausing For Breath for 2005-05-14

Sat, 14 May 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Clarified mutterings about the weather, water, greed, etiquette, cookies and stuff.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: Our finances again... a potential improvement looms; The fine autumn weather, and what it could mean to the local economy and our water supply; Website: Watermark Australia project; Micah the podcast puppy
Out There: A clearer discussion than usual on greed, you, me, and what we could do better; Website: Fair Trade Association of Australia and New Zealand; Website: CIA World Factbook
Podsafe music: A "summer's ended and winter's begun" song...; The Jordans - Paper Plane; Website: The Jordans; I received some interest in doing a songwriting/production soundseeing tour - look out for that in a few weeks; Website: APRA (Australian Performing Right Association)
Word!: The word of the week is anathema... which I like because you can sound like God when you say it, plus you can make the sign of the cross and ward off vampires; Word of the week junior! It's acerebral. Is it really a word? It means "without a brain" and is an excellent insult - or an adjective when talking of Red Setters
On my bedside table: Japanese Story - Australian movie circa 2003; Website: IMDB's Japanese Story page; The Dawn and Drew Show - podcast, current; Website: The Dawn and Drew Show
Buzzed and Bugged: I'm expanding this segment to include stuff I like along with things that drive me nuts; Bugged: Online ads for smileys; Bugged: etiquette - not necessarily things that bug me, though; Bugged: mobile phone user in Constantine movie; Buzzed: Arnotts Premier Chocolate Chip Cookies - 40% chocolate chips. YEAH!; Buzzed: iSkin and Griffin iTalk
Stuff I Want: I already got stuff this week, so I can't ask too much...; CD: Jack Johnson - "In Between Dreams"; CD: Aimee Mann - "The Forgotten Arm"; CD: Cat Empire - "Two Shoes"; And I want suggestions for my reading matter!

Pausing For Breath for 2005-05-07

Sat, 07 May 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

Deepest thoughts on my finances, depression and supporting your friends in tough times.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: ... in which I speak of matters around my house; The fine weather we've been having, house guests in Highlands; The reality of finances... getting my head around the need to earn an income; "Most individuals could be deemed to be only three paydays away from bankruptcy"; Website for that quote; That my BMI isn't quite in the obese range... yet; Community... and enjoying a dinner with friends to celebrate the descent into winter; a.d. musing on the fragility of life
Out There: ... where I go head-to-head with world events; This week I labour a point about depression and looking out for your fellow man; News article "Something So Wrong" on Paul Hester; Website - suicide statistics (Australia); Website - BeyondBlue - the national depression initiative - practical hints for action when you're feeling blue
Podsafe music: ... this week, a song written and recorded the night before the show; The Jordans - Four Winds; Website; Write to me if you're interested in hearing a soundseeing tour of the songwriting and recording process
Word!: ... showing off my vocabulary (at great risk!); The word of the week is fancy... which I'm enjoying because of Neil Stephenson's latest series in which he uses the historial form, phant'sy; Word of the week 2! It's antimacassar. See Dictionary.com definition
On my bedside table: ... what I'm reading, old or new, borrowed or...; Ze Frank... see his website here; "Code Name Ginger" by Steve Kemper (book also published as "Reinventing the Wheel"); "Dumbo Feather - pass it on" - magazine - Website
Bugged: ... what's getting on my goat this week; How hard it is to invent new words; Authentic Indian Name Generator - Website (note: this wasn't a 'bug'!!); The fact that I need to purchase a second box from the same manufacturer to make my ISDN modem properly serve my network
Stuff I Want: ... fairly self-explanatory, I would've thought; See the previous item... I just want a decent way of accessing the Internet!; And I want 48 hours in every day

Pausing For Breath for 2005-04-30

Sat, 30 Apr 2005 00:00:00 +1000

Shownotes:

The primo PFB show from Highlands, Victoria, Australia.

Direct link to the show.

Segments:

Close To Home: ... in which I speak of matters around my house; This week, a possibly tedious monologue introducing myself at length.; Sorry!
Out There: ... where I go head-to-head with world events; Vertical burials in Victoria.; News article; Obesity and dementia; News article: "Obesity increases dementia risk"; News article: "Study: Child Obesity Rate Triples in England"; Resource: Life Expectancy Calculator; To calculate your BMI: divide your weight in kg by the square of your height in metres.; STOP PRESS: it turns out that my BMI is 28, not 30. I'm not obese... just overweight!
Podsafe music: ... this week, a self-promotional item; The Jordans - Earthbound Angels; Website
Word!: ... showing off my vocabulary (at great risk!); The word of the week is disinterested.; Online dictionary reference
On my bedside table: ... what I'm reading, old or new, borrowed or...; "The Runes of the Earth" (first book in The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant) by Stephen Donaldson; "Japanese Woodblock Printing" - author unknown because a friend just borrowed it!
Bugged: ... what's getting on my goat this week; Telstra wholesale pricing of Wi-Fi access; News article
Stuff I Want: ... fairly self-explanatory, I would've thought; This week, it's a USB audio interface for my laptop. Mmmm... USB audio...