Fellow Friends

Pia Hallenberg grew up near Copenhagen and has lived in the U.S. for almost 30 years, 28 of them in Spokane. Benji discovers Pia's story, the story of an immigrant, a mother, and a journalist, at an especially relevant moment when many (most) Americans are hopeful to learn from the social and political principles that underpin her home country of Denmark.  

The holidays prevented us from getting this out on time, but with the recent announcement that HBO was not intending to produce a second season of their hit show, Watchmen, we decided to publish this 2.5 hour series finale and overall show recap and review. (Originally recorded in early January)

Luke talks with transit planner and new Spokie Spencer Gardner about the genius of early cities, the scourge of neighborhood pyramid schemes, and how planning resilient towns is more like gardening and less like playing Sim City. When he’s not helping make your bike commute easier, Spencer writes for strongtowns.org

The penultimate episode of Watchmen has driven a wedge between our co-hosts. Benji loved it (mostly). Autumn (really) wasn't having it. 

If, like Benji, you've had basic and intermediate questions about electric cars, this is your episode. David Ferris has written about energy and the environment for Popular Science, New York Times, and for the last six years, E&E News. Ferris recently completed an 8,000 mile road trip in three electric cars. He shares his many thoughts about that experience and electric car industry in general. 

The plot has thickened considerably as Watchmen enters the home stretch. Only two episodes remain, but many WTFs to tie up. Will Lindelof make good on this show's incredible promise? Benji and Autumn discuss!

Author, journalist, and one of Spokane's very finest, Shawn Vestal sits down with Luke Baumgarten to talk about the recent election, homelessness, and Shawn's career as a journalist and writer of fiction.

Netflix is outspending and outmaneuvering HBO, but when it comes to the absolute best TV has to offer, HBO still reigns supreme. The latest episode, This Extraordinary Being, should just get all the Emmys. Benji and Autumn discuss!

Benji and his friend, Autumn Reed, have been geeking out about television shows since they serendipitously discovered a mutual obsession with Game of Thrones in early 2019. Now, for the remainder of season one of HBO's Watchmen, they will meet weekly to recap and deep dive on the minutiae of this very fine TV show. 

Benji and his friend / business partner Luke Baumgarten take a highly caffeinated journey through a range of conversation topics that includes: upcoming ideas for guests on Fellow Friends, Damon Lindelof and HBO's new supremely prestige TV show, Watchmen. We also rationalize and make excuses for why it's been 6+ weeks since the last Fellow Friends podcast. Also,  NO VIDEO for this one, which is a very good thing. 

He's only lived in Spokane for 1.5 years, but Jamie Rand, Chief Marketing Officer of Visit Spokane, has been busy making a big impact in our community. Originally from Chicago, Jamie started his career as an educator before transitioning to publishing, media, and destination marketing.

There is no more beloved person (or personality) in Spokane than Alison Collins. Benji chats with Alison about the creation of Boots Bakery and what it's like to run a business with her husband. We also talk about how damaging Yelp can be, especially to food service businesses. 

Benji chats with Millie Schnebly, designer and co-founder of design agency, Maker & Made.

We talk with Zach Shallbetter of Cursed Crypt to talk about their most recent kickstarter.