THIS IS NOT A TEST isn’t as pretty as it used to be, but who is? If I can find a workable theme it will be pretty again. MTINATPA (MAKE THIS IS NOT A TEST PRETTY AGAIN!) hats are on the way.

Starring Mary Ellen Mark, Bukowski’s LouJon press books, book art, letterpress, getting your hands dirty, kissing the paper, manual typewriters, nostalgia, home tanneries in Brooklyn, synthesizers, late 50s Les Pauls, craftsmanship, Kalamazoo Michigan, robots, green wood, perpetual motion, Detroit steel, making rich people more rich, buying Bukowski’s boyhood home, gentrification, turning all of Los Angeles…

If you listen very carefully you may also hear me say something about ripping CDs, Google Play Music, The Philadelphia train wreck, the World Trade Center, Hiroshima, Jesus H. Christ, Antonio Villaraigosa, death, The American Journal of Psychiatry, communism, chicken pot pies (oh wait, I didn’t talk about that, I’m just really hungry right now),…

Kickstarter, Patreon, tip jars, donate buttons – some days when I’m bouncing around the web it feels like I’m idling at a freeway entrance ramp and the entire web is a cardboard WILL WORK FOR FOOD sign. I may also mention things like B. B. King, Charles Lindbergh, PayPal, fan sites, scanner bulbs, lyric sites, bots, forums, crime, gauze,…

You may also hear me talking about office chairs, Malcolm Gladwell, technical people not being great communicators, baking pies, fundamentalism, the death of white America, dinosaurs, carbon, Rodney King, living in a cave in the desert, heads on pikes, Mad Max, Goethe, and Mozart. [subscribe] Transcript

I might also mention airport security, the lack of seasons in Los Angeles, VCRs, fish heads, what I would do if I was smart, the Pony Express, Mark Twain, Costco, giraffes, world travel and sitting and doing nothing. [subscribe] Transcript

Also in this action-packed episode: The Podcast Awards, what entrepreneurs do, chickens, gas stations, bars, rock concerts, and room service hamburgers. [subscribe] Transcript

Why do we name things the way we do? How do we come up with the terms we use every day? Language is a funny thing. I’ll also talk about asbestos, pizza, the military, news people, ASMR, scientists, stink bugs, audiophiles (again), Dianetics, being uneducated, Deadwood, artist’s statements, belonging, communicating, and the rise of our evil canine…

This one is about the Podcast Awards (yes, that’s a real thing), but I might also mention Carol’s art show, NMX, NAB, what conferences and trade shows really are, Las Vegas, desperation, The Rose Parade, The Webbys, Smurfs, and a few other things along the way. What can I say, my mind wanders. [subscribe] Transcript

Reality TV. You love it. You hate it. You watch it. Admit it. There’s no shame in it. Really. Stop beating yourself up. [subscribe] Transcript

Marley Natural is a new company created to sell legal herb with Bob’s name on it. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Links mentioned in the episode: Live Talks L.A. [subscribe] Transcript

This is it, the only Oscar ceremony wrap-up you need. Forget the big networks, and even the tiny networks that no one watches, like E! You don’t need them. I cover all the bases, every category, every wonderful minute of Hollywood’s greatest night! You don’t want to miss it. [subscribe] Transcript

The strange and terrible world of unboxing videos, Facebook, the Book of Revelations, Heaven’s Gate, Marketing, Betamax recorders, Internet communities, the discomfort of silence, and more. [subscribe] Links mentioned in the episode: World’s first unboxing video Hosho McCreesh Transcript  

How does one live simply when there is so much junk everywhere? It’s a first-world problem, having too much stuff, I know. But here I am talking about it anyway. On the way to that subject, you’ll also get to hear about how to be an awesome podcaster, landlords, eBay, yard sales, people in the 1920s,…

According to Wikipedia (my favorite source for quasi-truth and hamfisted misinformation), an Internet troll is: a person who sows discord on the Internet by starting arguments or upsetting people by posting inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community with the deliberate intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or otherwise disrupting normal…

Carol: “What’s your podcast about this week?” Me: “Oh, you know, it’s about how CDs sound better than records, stuff like that.” Carol: “What? You’re crazy, I think you’re wrong…” Me: “I know, everyone thinks I’m wrong.” But hear me out. Maybe I’m not completely crazy. It’s funny, a lot of people sold, gave away or threw…

Who am I? That’s not an existential question, though I suppose it could be. But it occurs to me that many of you who are listening to this may not know much – or anything – about me, so you might rightfully wonder why the hell I’m here foisting my views and opinions onto an unsuspecting and…

Wherein I talk about disco, Mad Max, the music business, Louise Brooks, disillusionment, boredom and death metal bands. [subscribe] Transcript  

Wherein I lay the sad tale of the senseless, tragic rape of Charles Bukowski’s ghost by John Martin’s Black Sparrow Press at your feet. Do with it what you will. You can read more about the subject here. [subscribe]

Wherein I introduce myself to you and attempt to explain what This is not a test will be. Or what I hope or promise it will be. No guarantees implied. Set your expectations to LOW and hop on. Glorious. [subscribe]