"He was about to climb in—just for a second, just to see…"

Poor Dave gets himself into some tight situations in both this week’s stories. And Jess explores the snapshots of detail that enrich them.

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“'They tried to stop us,' says the old man. 'But we kept playing.'”

More about the joy of winter sports on this week’s pod. Including Stuart’s ode to skating from Jasper, Alberta. And a beautiful Big Narrows story about a memorable game of hockey from long ago.

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“It was the greatest skate of her life.”

Love is in the air today on the pod, with a Dave and Morley origin story—the one about how they first met. For our second story, we’re bringing back the Vinyl Cafe Story Exchange, with one of our favourite listener love stories.

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“The secret to planting more trees, is to plant more trees.”

We have two hilarious Vinyl Cafe stories for you on today’s pod. Stories of things that happen at work. In the first, Kenny helps Dave out with something at the store. In our second story, Steph experiences a summer job like no other. And Jess digs into the research process behind the stories.

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"Galway began flushing the toilet again in the autumn…"

This week, two Dave and Morley stories that, in hindsight, seem strangely prescient. In the first, a fan favourite, Dave decides to teach Galway the cat a new skill. The second is a story that we haven’t felt comfortable playing in a long time. Jess explains why. 

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"It began simply enough. It began with a phone call."

On today’s episode, two stories about technical difficulties. In our first story, Dave attempts an inventive solution to an ill-considered phone message left for the Turlingtons. In our second, an electric razor causes him problems at the airport. And Jess shares some stories about Stuart’s habits with phones …and airports.

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I resolve to organize upstairs.

Welcome back for Season 3 of Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe! We’re embracing the spirit of the New Year with a show all about resolutions and lists and getting things done. We start with an essay about Stuart’s fraught relationship with his to do list. And Jess has a backstory about her own relationship to lists and resolutions, and how that informed today’s Dave and Morley story. 

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“Family and friends, they sure mess up our lives…”

For our final episode of this season, two classic Vinyl Cafe Christmas stories by Stuart McLean. Dave tries to make himself useful at Mary Turlington’s festive dinner party, with disastrous consequences. In our second story, the family experiences a very different kind of Christmas, special in its own way.

And Jess realizes a surprising theme that links these two fan favourites…something that she hopes will help her unlock the spirit of the season.

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“Come and get me, copper!”

We’ve got to know Dave and Morley’s neighbours well over the years. This week, two stories about the neighbourhood at Christmas. Holiday gift-giving gets a bit out of hand in our first story, while a punchbowl mix-up livens up the party (for some) in our second. 

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