A Few Quick Notes 596

-After a few days in the -35 zone we've moved back into slightly more reasonable temperatures.  Though I don't think we actually made it above zero today, with the help of the sun it was warm enough that we actually had a little slush to contend with as we were making our way home from work.    Hopefully this will be frozen by the time I have to head back to work tomorrow morning.

-You know what's great about this time of year?  It's great that when I drive to work it's not pitch black.  It's strangely comforting to know that you're not arriving at work an hour before sunrise.  And it's not bad that the sun doesn't set until about an hour after the workday ends either.

-After work on Friday (at least I think it was Friday) I received a very strange robocall that seemed to be about electoral redistricting in Saskatchewan.  Just about the only thing that I could make out was that the call supposedly came from 'Chase Research.'

Turns out I wasn't the only one in Saskatchewan to get such a call and that these calls have now been the subject of a number of media reports, including this one.

-Somehow, after years of trying, I've finally managed to get Jeannette to listen to a few of my regular podcasts.  The new This American Life has now become a shared Sunday ritual (instead of one I shamefully engaged in alone whenever I could sneak a listen).  And over the past few weeks I've managed to sneak in RadioLab, 99% Invisible, and the always informative Inside Jobs Podcast.  For whatever reason I haven't quite managed to draw Jeannette into my Jordan, Jesse GO!/Stop Podcasting Yourself web.

-I made eight small raspberry tarts tonight.  Now that they're out of the oven I have no interest in eating them.  Maybe by tomorrow morning I'll rustle up some kind of willingness to sacrifice my health so that these guys don't end up sitting on the counter and spoiling.  

What a tough life I lead.

Cameron - 2

Neil - 0

From This American Life to This is That

For a while I have been interested in creating a graphic representation of development of my podcast listening habits.  In particular, I was interested in looking at the podcasts that I have started listening to either directly because of This American Life or because of podcasts that I started listening to because of other podcasts I had started listening to because of This American Life.

Anyway, last night I got around to sketching out a rough diagram (which I then converted into the image below today). 

I'm sure this image will be as helpful to you as it will be to me.

Note: The Sound of Young America has received credit for referring some podcasts that I actually started listening to because of the Maximumfun.org Podthoughts column.  Also, I know that The Sound of Young America is now called Bullseye, but it was the original incarnation of the show that lead me to these other podcasts, not the one episode of Bullseye that currently exists.

A Few Quick Notes 529

-We are in the midst of another beautiful day in Halifax. Amazingly, even though it has been sunny all day the puddle outside my window (which was featured in yesterday's video) has still not dried up.

-I am now down to a shameful 4 for 32 in this year's RUTRTW contest. I guess all of this year's Dal luck when to the girl who won a car the other day.

-I have been spending far too much time following a variety of Canadian politics types on Twitter. The problem is that as reporters are reporting on things from the field one can basically watch stories as they break and as the various parties respond to them. One can easily have an entire day sucked up without really accomplishing more than gaining a familiarity political brouhaha of the day.

-Last night Neil and I attended our final DAGS meeting of the year, and this was after we had already attended our union's AGM. Talk about a day full of large-scale meetings.

-Neil and I will be heading over to our local Yuk Yuk's tonight to see Graham Clark of Stop Podcasting Yourself fame. I am curious to know if I will be the only bumper/MaxFunster in the audience tonight?

Though Neil isn't much of a MaxFunster or a bumper, tonight's show will mean that he is something of a Stop Podcasting Yourself completist in that he will have seen both Dave and Graham perform live in Halifax. Presumably one of the few people in the world to have accomplished such a feat?

-I should either get back to work or start making dinner. Probably the latter in this instance.

A Few Quick Notes 527

-Though today started off being a fair bit above average it seems that things have now turned a little overcast. Hopefully this change in sky colour won't lead to a change in precipitation levels.

-I am now down to 4 for 31 in this year's RUTRTW contest. I have to say, my heart really isn't in it any more. I keep buying rims just expecting to to lose (and then become somewhat comforted by the fact that my prediction turned out to be correct). Maybe I will find a way to get my groove back for next year.

-My Ignatieff rally video seems to gotten a few views, and this is after I deleted the first version to replace it with a higher quality video. I suspect that things will level off shortly, at at least by the end of the campaign.

-Early this afternoon I picked up a few more essays to grade. I suspect that almost as soon as I finish grading these essays it will be time to grade final exams. I can't wait for that to start.

-Yesterday, while we were making our way to the rally, I happened to notice a sign promoting upcoming shows at our local comedy club. Much to my surprise, it seems that one of the hosts of Stop Podcasting Yourself, Graham Clark, will be appearing there this weekend. This is great. I hope to be able to attend the Thursday night show, though I am not quite sure who I will be able to convince to go with me.