Shed Dogs

Our latest episode includes a fount of ideas and information that range from interesting and entertaining (like attending a house concert) to borderline apocalyptic (like newly introduced, widely available, simple to use, and highly sophisticated image management software that allows realistic fakes). We try to keep our heads on straight by also discussing what we are watching and enjoying, as well as providing a taste of the nefarious powers of big banks in Canada. All in all it’s 40 minutes that should leave you with things light and things heavy to think about.

Links: Shed Dogs; Undertow Shows (house concerts); All My Friends are Funeral Singers, by Califone; Google’s scary new Reimagine feature; Gemini AI; how Canadian banks create money; The Double; Creating Christ; Krishnamurti documentary; A Trip to Infinity; One Day; plastic surgery in Korea; K-drama clowns; Emily in Paris.

Theme music is Escaping like Indiana Jones by Komiku, with permission.

Happy New Year! As we hurtle toward our 200th episode, the Shed Dogs wish you all a very happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year! Here in Episode 191, we are once again enjoying letters from faithful listeners, thrashing our way towards understanding obscure words and phrases in Snappers, and getting the latest on how the PNE was feeling last September. Spoiler alert: it was feeling pretty good again. We also manage to fit in a surprisingly complicated approach to bifocals from RJ, and a short exposé on several of Ticketmaster’s super-seedy business practices. Just like we hope the New Year will be, this episode is familiar and comfortable but still new and informative, so put on a comfy sweater and settle in!

Links: Shed Dogs; Foster Grant bifocals; Frank Sinatra sings Fly Me to the Moon; we could not care less, seriously we couldn’t, irregardless!; Wikipedia’s excellent list of social generations includes references to other countries; Gene at Home Depot; The Antisocial Network; oblast; John and Jane Doe; haskap berries; Official Stick Reviews; Christopher Hitchens on free speech; the PNE; Ginsu knives live on; Veg-O-Matic (it slices! it dices!); Playland; this year’s Super Dogs (YouTube); news report on Daryl Hall’s aborted PNE show, with footage; the US DOJ’s lawsuit against Ticketmaster.

Theme music is Escaping like Indiana Jones by Komiku, by permission.

Happy Holidays to you and everyone you care about, from us to you! We hope the new year is way better than we expected or hoped. Episode 190 sees us pursuing our normal interests: wasting another golden yet ridiculous money maker idea from PJ, enduring his pontifications about the state of the world, hearing actual valuable advice and concert reviews from RJ, and diving into Listener Mail. But then… what to our wondering ears should appear but KJ responding to Leigh’s remarks about something we said about religion several episodes back. All of a sudden we have a casual yet plausible conversation around whether history indicates that the apostle Paul, writer of letters and founding architect of modern Christianity, was in fact a Roman plant! What…!? So anyway, get ready for that and let us know what you think, we are curious!

Links: Shed Dogs; Preparing for the Trump apocalypse; the Lambo SUV; concert review of Robert Plant & Alison Krauss; dealing with paper in the laundry; the Vancouver Catfé; the JWs weigh in on Jesus's appearance; the Holy Ghost; Paul the Apostle; Masterclass on violin vs. fiddle; the Book of Mormon; party lines; a Reddit thread on shocking kids; Dr. Geoff Lindsey on pronunciation; an article on businesses not accepting cash in Canada.

Theme music is Escaping like Indiana Jones by Komiku, by permission.

This time capsule episode vaults us back to the heady days of the Olympics, particularly the one-time magic of Olympic break dancing. We have a little look at how to watch sports events like that these days, throw in bits and pieces about free will, dealing with special dietary requests, and then find out a lot about “House, MD” (eg., is that even the title? Many of us don’t know). You’ll be relieved to know we’re not pitching our special diet plan that promises success at the geriatric Olympics. Not yet, anyway.

Links: Shed Dogs; keto diet; the keto pancakes RJ cooked (excellent!); 5 tips for talking to your auto mechanic; Inside the Mind of a Dog; Does biology trump free will?; House, M.D.; a Canadian wins the gold in break dancing; 4 Best Sports Streaming Sites In Canada; Fox Sports host on happiness.

Theme music is Escaping like Indiana Jones by Komiku, by permission.

The Shed Dogs finally talk about our very great, hugely enjoyable 50th high school grad reunion: what we thought, what we noticed, and how well we enjoyed it. Spoiler alert: it was just great. KJ then floors us by announcing that he’s nominated for not one but two Leo awards (BC Film and TV industry awards). Realizing again that we are in the presence of acting greatness leads us to talking about what we are watching these days, and “Ripley” on Netflix comes in for some very warm acclaim indeed. Of course we mix in our usual bits of super valuable advice on how to live your lives, and finish by bidding farewell to the AM 730 traffic station, which left without saying goodbye. We look to you, listeners, to help fill the void they left. Okay, done, and thanks.

Links: Shed Dogs; Leo Awards; Ripley (TV show); Extraordinary Attorney Woo; Roy Hennessy reminiscences of CKLG.

On a sunny afternoon in the Shed, your Dogs enjoy great listener mail, albeit with several sidebars. Part of the outcome of that great mail is us taking our first and best shot at offering travel accommodation advice. We are now dying to hear whether it worked. We remember the 1980 cinema classic “Popeye”, and then to remind ourselves that people are decent, we share a great lost and found story. Generally, we recall that it’s pretty great being around and doing whatever it is we each do, which is a recollection there can never be too much of.

Links: Shed Dogs; Northern Cafe and Grill; disability parking; Yum! Donuts (Instagram); TripAdvisor; how to negotiate for better Internet and TV providers; Shed Dogs on FaceBook; Garmin.

Theme music by Voodoo Jazz or is Escaping like Indiana Jones by Komiku, by permission.

[Fill in Episode Number below. Copy the episode duration from Forecast and past it into Episode Duration below. Leave Explicit Content checked so we can not worry about swearing or discussing recreational substances]

We’ve touched on KJ’s painting accomplishments several times over the years, as well as his acting, and we get yet another look into both in this episode, in which he shares his ingenious homegrown approach to painting landscapes, his creation of very special cards for special occasions, and the latest in his acting and video dancing career. We also have a great time with our special friend Leigh of Courtenay as she once again sends us mail that makes all the little neurons fire off in all directions. Throw in a little of our usual grumbling about pronunciation and usage and there you have it! It’s us again, your Shed Dogs, lowest on the totem pole.

Links: Shed Dogs; Airline enshittification; totem poles; steep learning curve; a surprisingly long list of retro cars (with photos); Trivial Pursuit; do automotive sterilizer trays work?; KJ McNulty stars in Jill Barber’s video “Mal de Vivre” (also, KJ’s green International Harvester Travelall is featured at the beginning and end); KJ McNulty’s Leo noms; Lowlifes on Crave; Lowlifes on Tubi; “an historic”; Louie Del Grandé’s head explodes in Scanners (oops spoiler alert).

There are probably caves in France where Stone Age artists depicted the tribe’s appreciation for those who didn’t lead the hunt or strike the final blow, but who showed up and helped out. In this episode we reiterate that some things have not changed as much as old haters might think, and that just showing up was rewarded back in the ’60s as well as it is today. We also unveil wondrous new software for creating music, a little PSA about glasses, a ton of Snappers, and an amazing robotic foosball table, not yet available in Canadian Tire, but amazing all the same. We invite you to listen in… and participate! 

Links: Shed Dogs; the monkey puzzle tree; Costco Optical; participation trophies; the 2024 Tornado World Series Foosball Championships; cap guns; the amazing foosball robot; udio.com (the AI music generation site—create an account so you don't lose whatever you come up with).

Theme music is Escaping like Indiana Jones by Komiku, by permission.

Listener Leigh of Courtenay gives us a lot to talk about in another great email, leading us to into the whole business of clearing out the house for sale, and eventually into the topic of bank money. KJ once again hits it out of the park with a selection of Snappers, which leads quite inevitably to getting some fun facts about the Jewish lunar calendar. The stars and planets align for 35 or so minutes of fun in the Shed, and we’ll be happy to see you there!

Links: Shed Dogs; our YouTube podcast page; Swedish Death Cleaning; banks still create money; the Grizzly-Polar bear; shotgun houses; the Hebrew calendar.

Being in the latter half of one’s 60s isn’t all bad: you have time to learn things like how to make a decent video, as RJ did to celebrate a notable foosball celebrity, or learn how to paint, as KJ has been famously doing for some time now. You begin to feel free to express your thoughts and opinions perhaps more candidly than you ever have, or take an interest in politics, like PJ. You can use the depth of long experience to provide Public Service information about things like Old Age Security, or brake fluid, or leap days. However…this intellectual and temporal freedom can be perilous, as we get a light taste of in this episode along with those positives above. How do younger people change word pronunciations on us, and get away with it? How can they not be reprimanded for their glib and arguably unconscious mimicking of the Speaking Styles of the Rich and Famous? And how did that bumblebee get in here and why can it not just shut up? If you’re too young to find it relatable it’ll at least be educational, and if you can relate…well, misery or even fleeting irritation loves company. Get some company and have some laughs by taking a listen.

Links: Shed Dogs; Geoff Lerner's videos on dropping Ts and vocal fry; should you change your brake fluid?; calendars; what's happening with nonplussed?

Theme music is Escaping like Indiana Jones by Komiku, with permission.