Odd Dad Out

https://odddadoutpodcast.com/reboot

(This is the long version of the blog post linked above and written below.)

Time away to think
Being away from the podcast for these last few months has given me some time to think about what I want to do with things. Honestly, the way the world is right now made me seriously reconsider whether or not I should come back to the podcast at all. In the last year I have struggled a lot with, besides just getting content out, coming up with topics to cover on the show. I haven’t listened to a great number of new podcasts lately to offer many new recommendations. Much like Bandrew Scott from Podcastage, I’ve noticed that it’s become increasingly difficult to avoid political topics when covering any type of news. And when I do find news to cover, I get accused of racism because of the ethnicity of the people in some of the stories.

Just as a tangent: I don’t care if you’re black, white, brown, green, orange, purple, red, yellow, blue, or polka dot. (But for some of those you really may want to seek medical attention.) If you do something seriously humorously dumb, I’m gonna make fun of you. It’s not about YOU it’s about the stupid thing that you did. Next time, don’t inject fruit smoothies into your veins and I won’t make fun of your dumb ass, ok? I’m not going to avoid making fun of someone over their race, the same as in not going to choose to make fun of someone because of their race. And if you think I’m being biased or discriminatory based on the news I cover, that’s your opinion, and you’re free to have it. (Unless you live in one of those places where having the wrong opinion can cost you your job or your life.)

But it’s fun and funny to me pointing out some of the completely idiotic things that people do sometimes, and it’s something I intend to continue doing for as long as I can still find news stories of people being jackasses.

Things were getting stale

Honestly, I feel like, in 2020 the show got stale. I covered less news. I featured fewer podcasts. There were next to no guests all year. And, I really didn’t have much to talk about besides home schooling through Covid and gardening.

I don’t really feel like most of the episodes of this year were very good. To tell you the truth, one of my favorite episodes this year was my mini bonus episode for International Podcast Day. Hearing all the podcasting stories from people was just fun. But for most of the year, I was just too tired and stressed to give the show the attention it needed to be entertaining. I neglected the news and the recommended listening segments in favor of just long ramble sessions, and I made no effort to secure my previously regular guest conversations.

Starting fresh while keeping things the same
I don’t have a date yet for when the podcast will be back. But I can say that while some things will be changing, the core of the show will stay the same.

I’ve been working on creating a new original theme for the show. If you’re a long time listener, you’ll have figured out that I like to tinker with different creative outlets. Recently I’ve been trying my hand at making music. I’ve been playing guitar for over 20 years, but have never really tried writing my own music, so this is both exciting and super scary.

Along with the new theme, I’m intending to create new bumpers for the different segments of the show.

At the same time, I’m planning on keeping the same core segments of the show. I’ll be working harder to ensure that every episode has a podcast review/recommendation and at least one news story to make fun of. Although I’m probably going to drop the jackass of the week title. And of course I will still have my personal catch up stories and adventures. But I may also start digging into some parenting articles and giving my snarky assessment of them, just to add a little more “Dad” to the show from time to time.

All of those parts are pretty minor, but I’ve saved the most drastic for last.

The big changes

Around the start of the year, I’m going to be doing a kind of purge of the website. Purge may not be the right word exactly. I’m going to do a sort of reset of podcast features and I may be removing and archiving some of the early episodes from before the format was more established.

With the restart I’m going to start my podcast features over from scratch. Over the years, many of the shows I’ve featured have drastically changed, or ended completely, or I simply don’t listen to them anymore. So I want to give a fresh review to many of these shows for those that may not have heard me talk about them before. With that, I’m also planning to start writing out my podcast feature reviews as a separate post on the website for better accessibility. I may also start doing more traditional reviews for shows that I may not be subscribed to personally but were suggested to me. I may even open up things to review submissions from others. There could even be a rating scale… Or not…

Schedule change
The biggest change may or may not be permanent. For the time being, with the relaunch of the show, I am going to be taking the show to a bi-weekly release. This will give me more time to collect news to “discuss” and to write more complete show notes and those new longer podcast reviews. It also will help reduce the stress of having to do all of this while still working and being a father and husband. (That’s gotta come first after all.)

It’s all for the best
Being away this long has been very difficult, both because I miss doing the show but also because it’s made me question whether or not I should bring it back. Ultimately I love this podcast too much to give it up completely, but I had to find a way to continue with it and still maintain my sanity. (Or whatever passes for sanity from me.) I know I need to take it more seriously if I want the show to grow at all. It’s a labor of love, but it’s still a lot of labor. If the show is going to survive, I’ve got to make it work, and right now these changes can make it work better.

So, long story short, the show is coming back with changes and a new schedule that will hopefully make it better for everyone.

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International Podcast Day is September 30. You can find out more about the full day of livestreams and more at https://internationalpodcastday.com/

This year I reached out to the podcasting community to ask about their favorite thing about podcasting.

Included are clips from Derek Graziano of "Lifeworld" and "Rolling Misadventures"
Tim from "Radio Clash"
Freya from "Your Friend Freya" and "Trashy Romance Pod"
Heather from "Sunshine and Powercuts" and the "Sunshine Summit"

Thank you as always for listening, and if you get the opportunity, tell a podcaster you listen to that you're a fan. Trust me. They'll appreciate it.

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The situation with “distance learning” and the battle over mine and my wife’s schedules has reached a point that we are having to make serious changes. Because of our separate work schedules, it has been very difficult to balance work and our boys’ school lessons. We are now having to look into changing our work schedules to accommodate it all. Ultimately, the issue lies with the need to supervise our younger boys during their school day, my wife working during school hours, and my graveyard work schedule necessitating me sleeping during the day. There’s only so many hours in a week, and I need all of the ones available to get sleep and take care of home business.

With that, I’ve decided to put the podcast on an indefinite break until a time that I will be able to continue producing it without having to sacrifice my limited sleeping hours and potentially my health.

I know I have said this in the past, even as recently as earlier this year. But under the current circumstances, I simply cannot continue the show. The stress of trying to navigate my children’s education mixed with my already questionable work/life balance just doesn’t leave any room right now for podcasting. I have even had to pass up paid podcast editing opportunities due to the current lack of any time to do so. I have to take some time to try to find a balance, and hopefully, before too long, I’ll be able to come back to the show. Unfortunately, I do not know when/ if that will happen.

I would like to say, thank you for listening. Thank you for your support for the last 5 years. I know there are far more entertaining shows to listen to than my ramble fest, and you are an amazing group of people that have continued to motivate me to keep going for all this time. And you are also the reason that I will do whatever I have to do to figure this out and come back with all of the energy I had before the world turned upside down.

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Kind of a follow up to last week's freak out over the upcoming "distance learning" back to school season, this week I'm talking about how it went and how we addressed that pesky issue of when I'm supposed to sleep.

Side note: With Episode 200 coming up soon, what sort of giveaway would you like this time around? Any ideas for what you'd like me to do for the big show? I honestly have no idea. Maybe another livestream giveaway, if I can swing it...

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MERCH and Art https://shop.odddadoutpodcast.com
(I checked, it works)

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Long story short: school is starting back up this week for my boys and it's got me a little freaked out, especially for our new Kindergartner. Add that to not knowing how/if I'm going to get any sleep during the boys school days, how/if I'll have time to manage the podcast, and my half-brained idea to start live streaming the podcast and my art. Yeeeeaaahhh I'm kinda freaking out. Did I mention I'm freaking out?

-SUPPORT THE SHOW-

MERCH and Art https://shop.odddadoutpodcast.com
(I checked, it works)

Leave Me a Voicemail ‪(516) 636-7631‬ (ODO-POD1)
Join the Facebook Group Oddballs: Friends of The Odd Dad Out
https://www.facebook.com/groups/odddadout
Donate on Patreon
http://patreon.com/join/odddadout
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Our boys have one week left before school starts back up, sort of. And I took a step forward in my "art" by buying a digital drawing tablet. Plus a sneaky little news break and a rundown of the upcoming August 2020 Sunshine Summit.


- News Break-
Two Men Arrested After Vehicle Search Finds Drugs in Bag Marked "Bag Full of Drugs"
https://www.policemag.com/541560/troopers-arrest-men-after-finding-drugs-in-bag-marked-bag-full-of-drugs


Promos:

"Run With Me On This"
https://anchor.fm/runwithmeothis/

August 2020 Sunshine Summit
https://www.sunshinesummit.live/


-SUPPORT THE SHOW-

MERCH and Art https://shop.odddadoutpodcast.com
(I checked, it works)

Leave Me a Voicemail ‪(516) 636-7631‬ (ODO-POD1)
Join the Facebook Group Oddballs: Friends of The Odd Dad Out
https://www.facebook.com/groups/odddadout
Donate on Patreon
http://patreon.com/join/odddadout
Follow Along on Social at
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This week I've got a couple stories for you. First off, I got tested for Corona this week. I'm still waiting on the results by the way. That has lead me to part two where I'm spending my evenings reading "Hank The Cowdog" to my boys. Plus, this week's garden update brought to you by Hank himself.

Promos:

Sips, Suds, and Smokes
https://www.sipssudsandsmokes.com/

Your Brain On Facts
http://yourbrainonfacts.com/

Buy the “Your Brain On Facts” Book
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1642502537/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

-SUPPORT THE SHOW-
Leave Me a Voicemail ‪(516) 636-7631‬ (ODO-POD1)
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July 22nd marks the 5th anniversary of the start of this podcast.

Am I feeling a little nostalgic?

Yes.

Did I do an emotional clip show?

HELL NO!! I AINT GOT TIME FOR THAT SHIT


This is prime rambling random train of thought stuff. From show changes caused by the new recording schedule, to binge watching horror movies, a few semi-reviews of some of our recent watches, a rant about the Halloween films, and an impromptu commercial for the new Dr Pepper with Cream Soda.

After 5 years, 269 total episodes, (188 real ones) and over 20,000 downloads, I just want to say thank you for listening.



"Taste the flavor."

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Leave Me a Voicemail ‪(516) 636-7631‬ (ODO-POD1)
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Yeeeaaahh... this is one of those, my brain doesn't know how to brain kind of episodes. I just jump all over the place. That's about all I can say. I think I talked about Angry Birds... What was I thinking? Your guess is as good as mine.

-SUPPORT THE SHOW-
Leave Me a Voicemail ‪(516) 636-7631‬ (ODO-POD1)
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Full Show Notes at
https://odddadoutpodcast.com/changing-plans-and-changing-podcasts:-odo-186

Before you freak out at the title, no I’m not changing up this show. At least for the most part. Rather, this week’s Recommended Listening will highlight a few podcasts that have changed since the last time I talked about them. Not much “Florida Man” in this week’s news, but a whole lot of stupid. And we’ve recently had to make a major change in our plans around the house.

Not A Great Time For a Road Trip
If you’ve been listening for the last few weeks, you’d have heard that we’ve been setting up for our annual summer family vacation. Well, under the current circumstances, it’s really not the best for us to take a road trip right now. Long story short, “thanks corona.” Long story slightly longer, we’ve got a lot of family who are pretty high risk, and we don’t want to increase their risk with our road trip germs.

And now for something a little lighter…

The other night, our youngest decided that he didn’t want to eat his dinner. I had made a pot of pinto beans, (because in a quarantine panic we bought a 25 lb bag of them) and he didn’t like them. And rather than throw a tantrum, like a normal child, he decided that he was going to fart to show how mad he was. Unfortunately for him, all of his pushing did not result in a fart, if you know what I mean…

-Recommended Listening-
"The Untold Hour"
https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/the-untold-hour-1039377

"Brilliant Observations"
https://brilliantobservations.tumblr.com/

"Death Is HIlarious"
https://deathishilarious.com/

-Promos and Links-
Oh No! Lit Class
http://ohnolitclass.com/

The Weekly Cooldown
https://wkcooldown.com/

-SUPPORT THE SHOW-
Leave Me a Voicemail ‪(516) 636-7631‬ (ODO-POD1)
Join the Facebook Group Oddballs: Friends of The Odd Dad Out
https://www.facebook.com/groups/odddadout
Donate on Patreon
http://patreon.com/join/odddadout
Follow Along on Social at
https://www.twitter.com/odddadout/
https://www.facebook.com/odddadout/
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