Ramblin' with a red head while pluggin' Eric Himan

I realize this is like, OH MY GOD, so 2005, but I wanted to share something with you that I’ve recently discovered…I figure I’m not the only dinosaur out there that was discovering “new” technology. And no, I’m not talking about my new bag-phone.

Some of you may remember my blog about my new mistress, my Ipod that I posted last year? If not, here’s the link if you’d like to see me making sweet love to my Ipod. And I casually mentioned how I had gotten turned on to “podcasts”. I thought now would be a good time to explain that for the people who live in Arkansas, or are over 20, or both.

When I first got my Ipod and installed that cursed ITunes on my computer, I actually took the time to look through the entire ITunes catalogue. I noticed this link for Podcast, and clicky clicky’d on it. I about shit myself when I learned I could have ALL of my beloved NPR shows downloaded directly to my IPod when a new episode came out. For some of the episodes, this was daily, for others it was weekly. I nearly double-shat myself when I found out I could download Ira Glass’s “This American Life.” I nearly always missed it when it aired on the “real radio”, but now I was able to capture it every week and listen to it at my leisure. How very cool was that?

In the beginning, I stuck to the NPR programming that I loved. But then I was running out of stuff to listen to, so I started clicky clickying around the ITunes again to see what was out there. What I found was a wealth of wonderful independent media out there. I found there were many people out there with just a microphone and a recording device that were putting out some, often, entertaining shows. Some of the shows were solo persons yacking on about random shit; some of the shows were “gang-bangs” of various people all talking about a variety of topics (current, and not); some of the shows were scripted; some of the shows were interviews. The one common theme of these shows were they were all independent “artists” (cuz folks, some of these people really ARE artists!) that were able to have their voices heard on a global scale that they otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity with via traditional media.

Now, on each “shows” ITunes page, there are links that say, “People who enjoyed this podcast also listen to these podcasts”. This was a dangerous thing for me to find. I went from listening to my 8 NPR shows per week, to subscribing to nearly 28 shows a day! I’ve since found a 12-step program and have cut back to a manageable level! So I wanted to take a few minutes out of your day to turn you on to some of the shows that I’ve really come to enjoy…in no particular order!

Ramble Redhead is an interview show. Tom, the ramblin’ redhead, is “The gay Barbara Walters”. He interviews a variety of people within the GLBTQQ community: STOP!

Patience queer people…I gotta ‘splain to the straighties…

GLBTQQ=Gay, Lesbian, Confused, Transgendered, Queer Questioning (seriously??? ANYONE ELSE WANT TO BE ADDED TO THE ROSTER???)

Okay, back to Tom. So he interviews a bunch of folks from the GLBTQQ community. I’ve actually gone back through his archives to catch up with some of his older shows. He’s interviewed some really fascinating people. I’ve also been chattin’ with Tom via GChat lately. Tonight he gave me the surprise of my life. He sent me a chat message shortly after 8 and mentioned he was getting ready to interview “Eric” and asked if I wanted to sit in on his show. I thought he was talking about another “Eric”, so I hesitated. Then he mentioned that it was Eric Himan, one of my favoritest Indy artists, and I nearly shit myself. I seriously got a little light headed. For reals. I said, “YES!” So Tom conference called me with ERIC (hehehehehe) and I got all fan-girlie. And it seriously made my night. Hell, it seriously made my week! So if you wanna hear the voice to put with the (F)reddy name, AND hear a great interview with an AWESOME singer/song-writer, check out Ramble’s link above (or subscribe to him on ITunes!).

I’ve also become a huge fan of We're Mean Because You're Stupid. Hell, the title alone is worth listening to! WMBYS follows Walt, Nessa, and Holly. They’re basically 3 “super-fans” that get together twice a week and talk about random things; guess what various celebrities smell like; and laugh hysterically. You just can’t help but laugh along with them. I fell in love listening to them, because listening to their conversations feels like being in a conversation with my own IRL friends.

Archerr Radio is another one of my favorites right now. Everyday is a new topic for Archerr. I have no idea how he puts out so much media in a week, and still keeps it fresh and entertaining. You can hear him discuss everything from politics to wine to his boyfriend’s weiner. If you’re really lucky, he’ll hit all three topics on the same show!

Big Fatty is not for the faint of heart, nor is he appropriate for the office environment, but he is one sick and twisted mother effer. He will keep you in stitches for exactly 20 minutes most days.

Dial H for Homo is a new podcast that has been put out by a few of the various podcasters that I listen to that is geared specifically for the gay comicbook nerd crowd. I started downloading it for Jed, but have enjoyed listening to it myself too. I know there are a couple of you nerds out there that would appreciate hearing 5 gay guys talking about their gay perspective on comics. Check ‘em out!

Live it up! Is a podcast put out by a little boy in San Diego. His is a relatively new podcast too. His shows are getting stronger, and it’s been interesting to see his progression from virgin to slut…in the podcasting realm, that is. I’m sure he’s very wholesome!

There are others that I listen to, but these are just a couple of my favorites right now. Take some time to check some of these out if you’ve never heard them. You may just find yourself hooked. Oh, and definitely check out Ramble Redhead’s interview with Eric Himan if you want to hear (F)reddy swoon over his idol!