Cell Phone Advice

To add insult to injury, I need a new Cell Phone. (Of course.) While I initially resisted Cell Phones, I'm starting to get the urge for something a little fancier than the usual dial-text-camera variety. I thought I would stop into the phone store today, but was instantly assaulted with far too many things to choose from, all of which looked identical, and ranged in price from "next to free" to "way out of my price range."

So, what kind of fancy phones are there to choose from these days that are 1.) Durable, 2.) Reasonably Priced, and 3.) Provides Decent Service. All of these elements are variable (and, of course, are up to personal interpretation). Still, it was next to impossible to determine this from the info I saw in the store, and really, they will say anything to sell a phone.

So, I need recommendations. Please.

Thank you.

Homeless

If you have been keeping my address on file, you can now remove it from you Rolodex, as I no longer reside there. The Post Office will forward any mail sent there to a place where I can pick it up for the time being, but no one affiliated with me will be at that address any longer.

As soon as I get a new address of my own, you will be the next to know.

Thank you.

“How fleeting are the wishes and efforts of man! how short his time!” - Charles Darwin, Origin of Species

Guh?

Where do I even begin?

I follow the Planet Money Podcast, mostly because I don't understand anything about Money, Savings, Spending, The Economy, The Housing Market, Where Dollar Bills Come From, Budgeting, How I'm Gonna Pay Off My $25,000 in Student Loans, or anything else that is remotely considered "financial." Not that it's helped at all; I've been listening for a couple months now, and I'm still not quite sure I have a clearer understanding of how a bank works. But I do recognize an educational rap song, and a misplaced dollar sign, when I see one.

Yesterday I finally heard the " 'Yo!' Planet Money Raps" episode, and found myself confronted by a number of strange and confusing things. My questions, for the world at large, are as follows:

1.) Does the world really need a rap song where Friedrich Hayek and John Maynard Keynes duke it out in in a Rap called "Fear The Boom And Bust"?

2.) Why do we need Ke$ha to confirm if the song is "legit" or not?

3.) Why am I obsessed with Ke$ha enough to Google the video for "TiK ToK" multiple times?

4.) Is there a way to prevent NPR from negatively impacting my psyche as they try to make sure my misguided obsessions leaks into their everyday news story podcasts?

I used to think that I could listen to NPR and count on some dry, sobering monotone that would cause me to reflect upon my place in the world at large, and reconsider all the terrible things I've said / done in the last 20 odd years. Why, instead, am I getting the 2010 economic equivalent of the Space Goblin "Stay In School" rap from Space Ghost Coast To Coast?

And, really: why do I love, "TiK ToK"? Is this an illness?

Help!

Temporary Sabbatical

For the next two weeks Blasphuphmus Radio will be absent from KPSU. I hate delivering this news, and in fact, am already trying to figure out if I can whip up a couple of podcasts during the interim. But the sad truth is: I need some time off. As much as I love radio, these things happen.

So, for the next two weeks, you will be hearing extended versions of What's This Called? during the 1 PM hour. This suits me fairly well; if I do have to be off the air for two weeks, I'd much rather have Ricardo Wang pickin' the tunes. His show has been on my iPod for years now, and having more of him to listen to while I pack.

So, tune in February 6th, for the return of Blasphuphmus Radio, and a live performance by the Dead Air Fresheners. Hopefully it'll be worth the wait.

See ya in 21.

Cold Metal Radio

Live? Local? Two hours of audio? But of course. We here at Blasphuphmus Radio love all three, and that's why we were particularly excited to kick off a new year of In-Studio performances with none other than a double-dose of a live and local trio. Ob-soive:

Episode 055: Cold Metal Radio Part I
(Featuring a DJ Set of music selected by our special guests, Cold Metal.)

Episode 055: Cold Metal Radio Part II
(Featuring two live sets of music by, you guessed it, Cold Metal.)

Playlist & Footnotes.

Show's like this are few and far between, and for genuine fans, a wonderful treat. Fire up the .mp3 player of your choice, and rock.

Stay tuned, because in two weeks you can expect a live performance by none other than the Dead Air Fresheners. In the meantime: who knows?

See ya in seven.

The Past As The Present

Going all the way back to the 20th of June, 2007, we bring you a recreation of a show that was lost in the hourglass of time... until today! I bring you appropriately-creepy music to accompany the appropriately-titled show, looking backward while most others are looking forward. Ob-soive:

Episode 054: Recreating "A Boy And His Dog"
(Featuring Experimental and Home Recordings by a variety of people, representing a longish period of musical history.)

2007 Playlist & Footnotes
2010 Playlist & Footnotes

Chances are you missed the original broadcast for this one, but if you're curious about where this show happens to wander to when I let it explore the stranger parts of my record collection, then this is the show for you. Promise.

Tune in next week for a live performance by Cold Metal, only here on Blasphuphmus Radio, and KPSU.

See ya in seven.

Cheap Plastic

New Year. New Decade. Old Music.

Yep, same old Blasphuphmus Radio. Ob-soive:

Episode 053: Vinyl Solution Part II
(Featuring all recordings played from 12" LPs.)

Playlist & Footnotes.

This one is pretty great, and a good way to ring in newness.

See ya in seven.

Live Jive

While I am out of town, and cannot do a live show this week, I was able to piece together a retrospective podcast-only show that I think does a great job at looking at 2009. Ob-soive:

Episode 052: "It's Alive Part IV: 2009 In Review"
(Featuring live performances by artists that appeared on Blasphuphmus Radio in 2009.)

Playlist & Footnotes.

Special thanks to my sister and brother, for letting me record this in their apartment while I'm visiting. Couldn't have done it without you.

Stay tuned for at least one-more podcast-only show. We'll be back to business as usual on January 2nd. See ya then.

The Holidays

I will be out of the Portland area for the next two weeks, visiting family up north. I will still be available via the Inter-Web-A-Tron and by phone if you want to reach me, as per the usual.

Happy Holidays.