Category Archives: personal

Today I launched a new project with some friends — The Unrecorded Podcast. This is the story of what it is and how it came to be.

The first most recent time CJ Chilvers, Dave Caolo, and myself got together for a late night chat, it was not recorded. These chats we had done before as an ad hoc support group. Fellow writers of like mind bouncing crazy ideas and half-cooked schemes off each other in the hopes they might turn into something (or, at the very least, ensure an audience of two to watch the failure).

Toward the end of the call, I half-joked that we should have recorded the conversation. We three get along quite well and are of similar stripes and interests. I had often thought about doing a podcast with these gentlemen. Then again, it was sort of nice to simply be able to talk freely among friends without anyone else listening in. Not everything has to be shared. So, the idea to record it was scrapped.

In a follow up email, CJ had titled our talk The Unrecorded Podcast. This, of course, set my mind to spinning. I wondered how far one might take such an idea. Would such a thing be a live show? Would it actually be recorded and simply have an ironic name? I wasn’t sure. But, I was sure it was an idea that would not leave me alone until we figured it out.

So, for our next conversation we decided to try recording it. Just to see what happened. To see if there was a “there” there. Turned out there was. Too much so in fact. Dave, CJ, and I could chat for hours (and often do) across a iety of topics (and deep knowledge of a LOT of 1980s hairbands). To say we digress into ratholes far and deep is an understatement. And. to limit that would take away the very reason we enjoyed it. To release it as a podcast would mean audio files that measured in gigabytes and an unreasonable assumption of people’s available time.

But then, we started to brainstorm the idea even further. What if we really didn’t record it but treated it like a podcast in every other way? What if it had a schedule, and guests, and show notes? And, what if people got these show notes as a newsletter — a brief description and list of links that, without context, seemed random and mysterious yet strangely interesting? And what if, like any other podcast we had guests on occasionally to add to the conversation? And, what if we picked one the the subscribers to the email list at random to come join us from time to time? Would people get the beauty and the irony or would it break their brains?

The fact is that some of the world’s most famous art is art because of such mysteries: Why is Mona smiling? What happened to Venus’ arm? Why is that tower leaning? What the heck was Dali smoking? In the same way, this would be a podcast that is really a newsletter. A performance that nobody sees performed. A dispatch born of things unknown. We give the answers, you guess the questions. The best art, it seems, is inherently brain-breaking and is worth doing for no better reason than that.

So, this is how The Unrecorded Podcast came to be. You can sign up to enjoy the show notes in your email inbox as new episodes are not recorded. We already are lining up some great guests to come on and chat with us. We’re sure you’ll be happy to not hear them, yet still get lots of important things to take away from what they have to say. Things that could help.

Become an unlistener today. You won’t regret it.

Some Observations On Making Good Coffee

My daughter starts school an hour later now. Also, the last box that I received from Bespoke Post was coffee related and included a lovely French Press. These two events have given me the excuse to try to make better coffee in the morning. I’ve found the results OK so far but have come to realize that good coffee is an art that I need to work at. Which I’m fine with, actually. I’ve been open to suggestions and done some research on this but have come to realize that it is highly subjective and I just have to find the right process, measurements, and ingredients for me. That "good coffee" is a matter of personal taste and there is no right way.

For instance, despite my wife’s graciousness in giving my attempts at making a better cup of coffee this weekend a fair shot, it was discovered (by me at least) that she just plain likes coffee made in our old drip machine. And that is fine. As I said, the best lesson I have learned through this is that people like what they like.

I have found for myself that I never add sugar to good coffee. With coffee I make in the drip maker I almost always do. It’s too bitter otherwise. Because of this, my standard has become "Would sugar make this better?". I’ll know that I have reached a better cup for me when the answer is consistently "no".

This morning, I dug out my Aeropress. I have likely not used it in a couple of years. Yet, inspired by my coffee research and new found time, I decided to give it a spin. Yesterday, I purchased some Honduran beans recommend by the coffee shop I frequent. The results were excellent. A really good cup of coffee. Smooth, rich, and flavorful. No sugar needed.

My friend Garrick once interviewed Twin Cities coffee expert Jeremy Raths of The Roastery for his podcast on the subject of brewing the prefect cup. I find it interesting that, right off the bat, he pretty much summed up the subjective nature of the perfect cup. That one can only judge what seems best to them. That it is not for others to say.

One of the other things mentioned in that podcast is that most coffee is touched by over 80 people before it gets to you. From the planting, to the growing, to the picking, etc. At any point along the way, any one of those people could screw the whole thing up. When it reaches you, you are holding the work of 80 people who did their best. They didn’t screw it up.

That’s all I want from a better cup of coffee. To do my best and not screw it up. I’m getting there.

I’m a writer. Writing is how I make this world better, friendlier, stronger place. If these words improved your day, please let me know by contributing here.