Podcast Heaven

I have been walking quite a bit this summer. This is primarily due to the frequency that I was receiving parking tickets. Walking 3-4 miles every day has provided me with more time that I can fill with various podcasts. I am going to list a few of my favorites and try to give some background as well as some of the reasons that I enjoy these podcasts. Feel free to leave me some suggestions for others to check out in the comments.

Honorable Mention: The BS Report - A podcast by ESPN.com writer Bill Simmons, Jay and Silent Bob Get Old - I'm only a few episodes in, but so far I have really enjoyed Kevin Smith and Jay Mewes discussing growing up, Highlands, A Peephole's History - Kevin Smith and friends discuss growing up in a small town in NJ.

5. The Ken P. D. Snydecast

The Ken P. D. Snydecast is a podcast done by Ken Plume and Dana Snyder. Dana is the voice of one of my favorite animated characters, Master Shake, from Aqua Teen Hunger Force. My favorite part of this podcast is the constant bickering between Ken and Dana. They argue in a very entertaining way. This is kind of a strange podcast for me because I'm usually not real interested in many of the topics they talk about. Unfortunately, this podcast has been on a summer hiatus which will hopefully be ending soon.

4. Deadcast

Deadcast is a podcast hosted by Drew Magary of Deadspin fame. The audio quality isn't to the same standards as the rest of these entries, but that is more than made up with the content. The podcast is not released on any kind of regular schedule, but there are usually new episodes before major sporting events like the Superbowl or March Madness. One of my favorite features is the Hater's Guide which basically gives you a reason to hate any particular team in any sport from how they play the game to the color of their jerseys.

3. The Adam Carolla Show

I just recently started listening to the Adam Carolla Podcast. I found it on a list of good podcasts that included SModcast. I was only vaguely familiar with Adam Carolla before I started listening. I knew that he had been on the Man Show and Crank Yankers. I was even aware of the movie he made called "The Hammer." Apparently his podcast follows a similar format as the radio show he was fired from. I had never heard the radio show and I am not even sure any stations in my market carried the show. The Adam Carolla Show is rapidly becoming one of my favorite podcasts. The general format is that Adam will talk/rant for a period of time to open the show. Then Teresa Strasser reads interesting or odd news items. Generally, Adam and Bald Brian (sounds) will jump in with jokes, anecdotes or opinions only tangentially related to the original story. After the news a guest usually stops in and has a short interview or chat with Adam. There are a variety of recurring games or bits. One of my favorites is tivo trivia. In tivo trivia someone reads the tivo synopsis of a movie without naming the stars and the first person to guess the movie wins. They usually will get back into the news with the guest before wrapping things up. I like this podcast because Adam's sense of humor really clicks with me. He can have a real deadpan dry delivery that I really enjoy. He also doesn't hold back his true feelings or emotions on things. If something pisses him off he will let you know. He doesn't seem to censor himself which can also get him in to trouble. I can relate to many of Adam's tenancies and opinions and have a good time listening.

2. SModcast

SModcast is a podcast featuring Kevin Smith (director of Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy...) and producer Scott Mosier. I am a big fan of Kevin Smith and his particular brand of humor. However, I was only vaguely familiar with Scott Mosier before I started listening to SModcast. I have found that Scott can definitely hang with Kevin and he is equally entertaining. The topics on SModcast range from somewhat ridiculous role-playing chats to touching on current events and strange news stories. Regardless of the topic, it wouldn't be SMod if the conversation didn't come around and touch on Hitler or blowjobs. If you're interested I would suggest episode 15, The Pretty Good Worker, in which Kev and Scott give the entertaining but completely inaccurate story of Helen Keller. Episode 52, (c)Rapture, which might be the most entertaining idea for a movie I have ever heard.

1. Tell 'Em Steve Dave

Tell 'Em Steve Dave is a podcast that regularly features Bryan Johnson, Walt Flanagan and Brian Quinn. Bryan Johnson and Walt Flanagan go way back with Kevin Smith. The name of the podcast comes from Walt's prominent line of dialog that first appeared in the movie Mallrats. This podcast is very funny. These guys are extremely funny and they are very quick witted. Quinn felt out of place in the first few podcasts, but now he feels like an indispensable part of the team. A good portion of this podcast is arguing, bickering and in-fighting. Even though there are a fair amount of heated arguments you can genuinely tell that these guys are friends and that the arguments are just part of the way they interact. A major reason that I enjoy this podcast is that I can relate to all of the regulars. Walt can be paranoid and he isn't very big on bullshit. One of his pet peeves is people bragging about things that aren't big accomplishments (i.e. being drunk). I can also relate to Bryan Johnson at times. He can sometimes get in trouble by not censoring himself and by getting a little carried away when he is sure he is right about something. There are also moments where he is insecure and unsure of himself that I can relate to. Brian Quinn became friends with these guys later on in life after he was a fan. He can appear as a bit of an outsider that hit the jackpot and gets to hang out with a group of people he was a fan of before he met them. If you're interested in this podcast I would recommend starting off by trying episode 2 in which Bryan Johnson is basically getting counseling and advice from Walt. Another excellent starting point for this podcast would be episode 12 in which the guys act as investigatory journalists getting to the bottom of the many mysteries of the flea market.

10 years

A few days ago I attended my 10 year reunion. It wasn't exactly what I expected. Then again my expectations are built on knowledge I have acquired by watching reunions depicted by hundreds of movies and TV shows rather than asking or talking to a flesh and blood human being who has attended one. There was not nearly as much lying to impress people or giant revelations and secrets revealed as I thought there would be. I think that the thing that really struck me was how similar the reunion was to some of the parties that happened more than 10 years ago.

Some things had changed. There were several people there who had exceeded my expectations. Several individuals that I predicted would be in prison or dead 10 years ago appeared to be doing very well. In many of those cases I am glad that I was wrong.

However, many things were exactly the way they were a decade ago. For the most part I talked to the same people I would have in high school. I bumped into a variety of people and traded information with them, but I spent the majority of my time trading stories and joking around with the same 5-6 people as I always have. Another thing I noticed is that the crew of people I was hanging out with was constantly laughing and appeared to be having the best time. While other groups of people were chatting quietly we were playing games and gambling on the outcome on the putting green while laughing until our stomachs hurt.

Overall, the reunion was much less spectacular than TV or movies would lead you to believe. However, I did have a great time. It gets increasingly difficult to get all of your old friends together in the same place at the same time as we all get older and this was a fantastic opportunity for that to happen and I am glad that I capitalized on it. The only downer was missing a couple of people that it would have been fantastic to see. With any luck I'll see them at the next reunion.