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The Overtired trio reunites for the first time in ages, diving into a whirlwind of health updates, hilarious anecdotes, and the latest tech obsessions. Christina shares a dramatic spinal saga while Brett and Jeff discuss everything from winning reddit contests to creating a universal markdown processor. Tune in for updates on Mark 3, the magical world of Scrivener, and why Brett’s back on Bing. Don’t miss the banter or the tech tips, and as always, get ready to laugh, learn, and maybe feel a little overtired yourself. Sponsor Shopify is the commerce platform behind 10% of all eCommerce in the US, from household names like Mattel and Gymshark, to brands just getting started. Get started today at shopify.com/overtired. Chapters 00:00 Welcome to the Overtired Podcast 01:09 Christina’s Health Journey 10:53 Brett’s Insurance Woes 15:38 Jeff’s Mental Health Update 24:07 Sponsor Spot: Shopify 24:18 Sponsor: Shopify 26:23 Jeff Tweedy 27:43 Jeff’s Concert Marathon 32:16 Christina Wins Big 36:58 Monitor Setup Challenges 37:13 Ergotron Mounts and Tall Poles 38:33 Review Plans and Honest Assessments 38:59 Current Display Setup 41:30 Thunderbolt KVM and Display Preferences 42:51 MacBook Pro and Studio Comparisons 50:58 Markdown Processor: Apex 01:07:58 Scrivener and Writing Tools 01:11:55 Helium Browser and Privacy Features 01:13:56 Bing Delisting Incident Show Links Danny Brown's 10 in the New York Times (gift link) Indigo Stack Scrivener Helium Bangs Apex Apex Syntax Join the Marked 3 Beta LG 32 Inch UltraFine™evo 6K Nano IPS Black Monitor with Thunderbolt™ 5 Join the Conversation Merch Come chat on Discord! Twitter/ovrtrd Instagram/ovrtrd Youtube Get the Newsletter Thanks! You’re downloading today’s show from CacheFly’s network BackBeat Media Podcast Network Check out more episodes at overtiredpod.com and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app. Find Brett as @ttscoff, Christina as @film_girl, Jeff as @jsguntzel, and follow Overtired at @ovrtrd on Twitter. Transcript Brett + 2 Welcome to the Overtired Podcast Jeff: [00:00:00] Hello everybody. This is the Overtired podcast. The three of us are all together for the first time since the Carter administration. Um, it is great to see you both here. I am Jeff Severance Gunzel if I didn’t say that already. Um, and I’m here with Christina Warren and I’m here with Brett Terpstra and hello to both of you. Brett: Hi. Jeff: Great to see you both. Brett: Yeah, it’s good to see you too. I feel like I was really deadpan in the pre-show. I’ll try to liven it up for you. I was a horrible audience. You were cracking jokes and I was just Jeff: that’s true. Christina, before you came on, man, I was hot. I was on fire and Brett was, all Brett was doing was chewing and dropping Popsicle parts. Brett: Yep. I ate, I ate part of a coconut outshine Popsicle off of a concrete floor, but Jeff: It is true, and I didn’t even see him check it [00:01:00] for cat hair, Brett: I did though. Jeff: but I believe he did because he’s a, he’s a very Brett: I just vacuumed in Jeff: He’s a very good American Brett: All right. Christina’s Health Journey Brett: Well, um, I, Christina has a lot of health stuff to share and I wanna save time for that. So let’s kick off the mental health corner. Um, let’s let Christina go first, because if it takes the whole show, it takes the whole show. Go for it. Christina: Uh, I, I will not take this hold show, but thank you. Yeah. So, um, my mental health is okay-ish. Um, I would say the okay-ish part is, is because of things that are happening with my physical health and then some of the medications that I’ve had to be on, um, uh, to deal with it. Uh, prednisone. Fucking sucks, man. Never nev n never take it if you can avoid it. Um, but why Christina, why are you on prednisone or why were you on prednisone for five days? Um, uh, and I’m not anymore to be clear, but that certainly did not help my mental health. Um, at the beginning of November, I woke up and I thought that I’d [00:02:00] slept on my shoulder wrong. And, um, uh, and, and just some, some background. I, I don’t know if this is pertinent to how my injury took place or not, but, but it, I’m sure that it didn’t help. Um, I have scoliosis and in the top and the bottom of my spine, so I have it at the top of my, like, neck area and my lower back. And so my back is like a crooked s um, this will be relevant in a, in a second, but, but I, I thought that I had slept on my back bunny, and I was like, okay, well, all right, it hurts a lot, but fine. Um, and then it, a, a couple of days passed and it didn’t get any better, and then like a week passed and I was at the point where I was like, I almost feel like I need to go to the. Emergency room, I’m in pain. That is that significant. Um, and, you know, didn’t get any better. So I took some of grant’s, Gabapentin, and I took, um, some, some, uh, a few other things and I was able to get in with like a, a, a sports and spine guy. Um, and um, [00:03:00] he looked at me and he was like, yeah, I think that you have like a, a, a bolting disc, also known as a herniated disc. Go to physical therapy. See me later. We’ll, we’ll deal with it. Um. Basically like my whole left side was, was, was really sore and, and I had a lot of pain and then I had numbness in my, my fingers and um, and, and that was a problem the next day, which was actually my birthday. The numbness had at this point spread to my right side and also my lower extremities. And so at this point I called the doctor and he was like, yeah, you should go to the er. And so I went to the ER and, and they weren’t able to do anything for me other than give me, you know, like, um, you know, I was hoping they might give me like, some sort of steroid injection or something. They wouldn’t do anything other than, um, basically, um, they gave me like another type of maybe, maybe pain pill or whatever. Um, but that allowed the doctor to go ahead and. Write, uh, write up an MRI took forever for me to get an MRI, I actually had to get it in Atlanta. [00:04:00] Fun fact, uh, sometimes it is cheaper to just pay and not go through insurance and get an MR MRI and, um, a, um, uh, an x-ray, um, I was able to do it for $450 Jeff: Whoa. Really? Christina: Yeah, $400 for the MR mri. $50 for the x-ray. Jeff: Wow. Christina: Yeah. Yeah. Brett: how I, they, I had an MRI, they charged me like $1,200 and then they failed to bill insurance ’cause I was between insurance. Christina: Yes. Yeah. So what happened was, and and honestly that was gonna be the situation that I was in, not between insurance stuff, but they weren’t even gonna bill insurance. And insurance only approved certain facilities and to get into those facilities is almost impossible. Um, and so, no, there are a lot of like get an MR, I now get a, you know, mammogram, get ghetto, whatever places. And because America’s healthcare system is a HealthScape, you can bypass insurance and they will charge you way less than whatever they bill insurance for. So I, I don’t know if it’s part of the country, you know, like Seattle I think might [00:05:00] probably would’ve been more expensive. But yeah, I was able to find this place like a mile from like, not even a mile from where my parents lived, um, that did the x-rays and the MRI for $450 total. Brett: I, I hate, I hate that. That’s true, but Christina: Me too. Me too. No, no. It pisses me off. Honestly, it makes me angry because like, I’m glad that I was able to do that and get it, you know, uh, uh, expedited. Then I go into the spine, um, guy earlier this week and he looks at it and he’s like, yep, you’ve got a massive bulging disc on, on C seven, which is the, the part of your lower cervical or cervical spine, which is your neck. Um, and it’s where it connects to your ver bray. It’s like, you know, there are a few things you can do. You can do, you know, injections, you can do surgery. He is like, I’m gonna recommend you to a neurosurgeon. And I go to the neurosurgeon yesterday and he was showing me or not, uh, yeah, yesterday he was showing me the, the, the, the scans and, and showing like you up close and it’s, yeah, it’s pretty massive. Like where, where, where the disc is like it is. You could see it just from one view, like, just from like [00:06:00] looking at it like, kind of like outside, like you could actually like see like it was visible, but then when you zoomed in it’s like, oh shit, this, this thing is like massive and it’s pressing on these nerves that then go into my, my hands and other areas. But it’s pressing on both sides. It’s primarily on my left side, but it’s pressing on on my right side too, which is not good. So, um, he basically was like, okay. He was like, you know, this could go away. He was like, the pain isn’t really what I’m wanting to, to treat here. It’s, it’s the, the weakness because my, my left arm is incredibly weak. Like when they do like the, the test where like they, they push back on you to see like, okay, like how, how much can you, what, like, I am, I’m almost immediately like, I can’t hold anything back. Right? Like I’m, I’m, I’m like a toddler in terms of my strength. So, and, and then I’m freaked out because I don’t have a lot of feeling in my hands and, and that’s terrifying. Um, I’m also. Jeff: so terrifying, Christina: I’m, I’m also like in extreme pain because of, of, of where this sits. Like I can’t sleep well. Like [00:07:00] the whole thing sucks. Like the MRI, which was was like the most painful, like 25 minutes, like of my existence. ’cause I was laying flat on my back. I’m not allowed to move and I’m just like, I’m in just incredible pain with that part of, of, of, of my, my side. Like, it, it was. It was terrible. Um, but, uh, but he was like, yeah. Um, these are the sorts of surgical options we have. Um, he’s gonna, um, do basically what what he wants to do is basically do a thing where he would put in a, um, an artificial or, or synthetic disc. So they’re gonna remove the disc, put in a synthetic one. They’ll go in through the, the front of my throat to access the, my, my, my, my spine. Um, put that there and, um, you know, I’ll, I’ll be overnight in the hospital. Um, and then it’ll be a few weeks of recovery and the, the, the pain should go away immediately. Um, but it, it could be up to two years before I get full, you know, feeling back in my arm. So anyway, Jeff: years, Jesus. And Christina: I mean, and hopefully less than that, but, but it could be [00:08:00] up to that. Jeff: there’s no part of this at this point. That’s a mystery to you, right? Christina: The mystery is, I don’t know how this happened. Jeff: You don’t know how it happened, right? Of course. Yeah, of course. Yeah. Yeah. Brett: So tell, tell us about the ghastly surgery. The, the throat thing really threw me like, I can’t imagine that Christina: yeah, yeah. So, well, ’cause the thing is, is that usually if what they just do, like spinal fusion, they’ll go in at the back of your neck, um, and then they’ll remove the, the, um, the, the, the, the disc. And then they’ll fuse your, your, your two bones together. Basically. They’ll, they’ll, they’ll, they’ll fuse this part of the vertebrae, but because they’re going to be replacing the, the disc, they need more room. So that’s why they have to go in through the, through, through basically your throat so that they can have more room to work. Jeff: Good lord. No thank you. Brett: Ugh. Wow. Jeff: Okay. Brett: I am really sorry that is happening. That is, that is, that dwarfs my health concerns. That is just constant pain [00:09:00] and, and it would be really scary. Christina: Yeah. Yeah. It’s not great. It’s not great, but I’m, I’m, I’m doing what I can and, uh, like I have, you know, a small amount of, of Oxycodine and I have like a, a, a, you know, some other pain medication and I’m taking the gabapentin and like, that’s helpful. The bad part is like your body, like every 12, 15 hours, like whatever, like the, the, the cycle is like, you feel it leave your system and like if you’re asleep, you wake up, right? Like, it’s one of those things, like, you immediately feel it, like when it leaves your system. And I’ve never had to do anything for pain management before. And they have me on a very, they have me like on the smallest amount of like, oxycodone you can be on. Um, and I’m using it sparingly because I don’t wanna, you know, be reliant on, on it or whatever. But it, it, but it is one of those things where I’m like, yeah, like sometimes you need fucking opiates because, you know, the pain is like so constant. And the thing is like, what sucks is that it’s not always the same type of pain. Like sometimes it’s throbbing, sometimes it’s sharp, sometimes it’s like whatever. It sucks. But the hardest thing [00:10:00] is like, and. This does impact my mental health. Like it’s hard to sleep. Like, and I’m a side sleeper. I’m a side sleeper, and I’m gonna have to become a back sleeper. So, you know. Yeah. It’s just, it’s, it’s not great. It’s not great, but, you know, that, that, that, that, that’s me. The, the good news is, and I’m very, very gratified, like I have a good surgeon. Um, I’m gonna be able to get in to get this done relatively quickly. He had an appointment for next week. I don’t think that insurance would’ve even been able to approve things fast enough for, for, for that regard. And I have, um, commitments that I can’t make then. And I, and that would also mean that I wouldn’t be able to go visit my family for Christmas. So hopefully I’ll do it right after Christmas. I’m just gonna wait, you know, for, for insurance to, to do its thing, knock on wood, and then schedule, um, from there. But yeah, Jeff: Woof. Christina: so that’s me. Um, uh, who wants to go next? Jeff or, uh, Jeff or Brett? Jeff: It’s like, that’s me. Hot potato throwing it. Brett: I’ll, I’ll go. Brett’s Insurance Woes Brett: I can continue on the insurance topic. Um, I was, for a few months [00:11:00] after getting laid off, I was on Minsu, which is Minnesota’s Medicaid, um, v version of Medicaid. And so basically I paid nothing and I had better insurance than I usually have with, uh, you know, a full deductible and premiums and everything. And it was fantastic. I was getting all the care I needed for all of the health stuff I’m going through. Um, I, they, a, a new doctor I found, ordered the 15 tests and I passed out ’cause it was so much blood and. And it, I was getting, but I was getting all these tests run. I was getting results, we were discovering things. And then my unemployment checks, the income from unemployment went like $300 over the cap for Medicaid. So [00:12:00] all of a sudden, overnight I was cut from Medicaid and I had to do an early sign up, and now I’m on courts and it sucks bad. Like they’re not covering my meds. Last month cost me $600. I was also paying. In addition to that, a $300 premium plus every doctor’s visit is 50 bucks out of pocket. So this will hopefully only last until January, and then it’ll flip over and I will be able to demonstrate basically no income, um, until like Mark makes enough money that it gets reported. Um, and even, uh, until then, like I literally am making under the, the poverty limit. So, um, I hope to be back on Medicaid shortly. I have one more month. I’ll have to pay my $600 to refill. I [00:13:00] cashed out my 401k. Um, like things were, everything was up high enough that I had made, I. I had made tens of thousands of dollars just on the investments and the 401k, but I also have a lot of concerns about the market volatility around Nvidia and the AI bubble in general. Um, so taking my money out of the market just felt okay to me. I paid the 10%, uh, penalty Jeff: Mm-hmm. Brett: and ultimately I, I came out with enough cash that I can invest on my own and be able to cover the next six months. Uh, if I don’t have any other income, which I hope to, I hope to not spend my nest egg. Um, but I did, I did a lot of thinking and calculating and I think I made the right choices. But anyway, [00:14:00] that will help if I have to pay for medical stuff that will help. Um. And then I’ve had insomnia, bad on and off. Right now I’m coming off of two days of good sleep. You’re catching me on a good day. Um, but Jeff: Still wouldn’t laugh at my jokes. Brett: before that it was, well, that’s the thing is like before that, it was four nights where I slept two to four hours per night, and by the end of it, I could barely walk. And so two nights of sleep after a stint like that, like, I’m just super, I’m deadpan, I’m dazed. Um, I could lay down and fall asleep at any time. Um, I, so, so keep me awake. Um, but yeah, that’s, that’s, that’s me. Mental health is good. Like I’m in pretty high spirits considering all this, like financial stuff and everything. Like my mood has been pretty stable. I’ve been getting a lot of coding done. I’ll tell you about projects in [00:15:00] a minute, but, um, but that’s, that’s me. I’m done. Jeff: Awesome. I’m enjoying watching your cat roll around, but clearly cannot decide to lay down at this point. Brett: No, nobody is very persnickety. Jeff: I literally have to put my. Well, you say put a cat down like you used to. When you put a kid down for a nap, you say you wanna put ’em down. Right? That’s where it’s coming from. I now have a chair next to my desk, ’cause I have one cat that walks around Yowling at about 11:00 AM while I’m working. And I have to like, put ’em down for a nap. It’s pathetic. It’s pathetic that I do that. Let’s just be clear. Brett: Yeah. Jeff: soulmate though. Jeff’s Mental Health Update Jeff: Um, I’m doing good. I’m, I’m, I’ve been feeling kind of light lately in a nice way. I’ve had ups and downs, but even with the ups and downs, there’s like a, except for one day last week was, there’s just been feeling kind of good in general, which is remarkable in a way. ’cause it’s just like stressful time. There’s some stressful business stuff, like, [00:16:00] a lot of stuff like that. But I’m feeling good and, and just like, uh, yeah, just light. I don’t know, it’s weird. Like, I’ve just been noticing that I feel kind of light and, uh. And not, not manic, not high light. Brett: Yeah. No, that’s Jeff: uh, and that’s, that’s lovely. So yeah. And so I’m doing good. I’m doing good. I fucking, it’s cold. Which sucks ’cause it just means for everybody that’s heard about my workshop over the years, that I can’t really go out there and have it be pleasant Brett: It’s, it’s been Minnesota thus far. Has had, we’ve had like one, one Sub-Zero day. Jeff: whatever. It’s fucking cold. Christina: Yeah. What one? Brett? Brett. It’s December 6th as we’re recording this one Sub-Zero day. That’s insane. Brett: Is it Jeff: Granted, granted I’ve been dressing warm, so I’m ready to go out the door for ice related things. Meaning, meaning government, ice, Brett: Uh, yeah. Yeah. Jeff: So I like wear my long underwear during [00:17:00] the day. ’cause actually like recently. So at my son’s school, which is like six blocks from here, um, has a lot of Somali immigrants in it. And, and uh, and there was a, at one point there was ice activity in the other direction, um, uh, uh, near me. And so neighbors put out a call here around so that at dismissal time people would pair up at all the intersections surrounding the school. And, um, and like a quick signal group popped up, whatever. It was so amazing because like we all just popped out there. And by the time I got out, uh, everyone was already like, posted up and I was like, I’m a, in these situations, I am a wanderer. You want me roaming? I don’t want to pair up with somebody I don’t like, I just, I grabbed a camera with a Zoom on it and like, I was like, I’m in roam. Um, it’s what I was as an activist, what I was as a reporter, like it’s just my nature. Um, but like. Everybody was out and like, and they were just like, they were ready man. And then we got like the all clear and you could just see people in the [00:18:00] neighborhood just like standing down and going home. But because of the true threat and the ongoing arrests here, now that the Minneapolis stuff has started, like I do, I was like wearing long underwear just, and I have a little bag by the door ready to like pop out if something comes up and I can be helpful. Um, and uh, and I guess what I’m saying is I should use that to go into the garage as well if I’m already prepared. Brett: Right. Jeff: But here’s, okay, so here’s a mental health thing actually. So I, one of the, I’ve gone through a few years of just sort of a little bit of paralysis around being able to just, I don’t know what, like do anything that is kind of project related that takes some thinking, whatever it is, like I’m talking about around the house or things that have kind of broken over the years, whatever. So I’ve had this snowblower and it’s a really good snowblower. It’s got headlights. And, uh, and I used to love snow blowing the entire block. Like it just made me feel good, made me feel useful. Um, and sorry I cough. I left it outside for a [00:19:00] year for a, like a winter and a spring and water got into the gas tank. It rusted out in there. I knew I couldn’t start it or I’d ruin the whole damn engine. So I left it for two years and I felt bad about myself. But this year, just like probably a month before the first big snowfall, I fucking replaced a gas tank and a carburetor on a machine. And I have never done anything like that in my life. And so then we got the snowfall and I, and I snow blowed this whole block Brett: Nice. Jeff: great. ’cause now they all owe me. Brett: I, uh, I have a, uh, so I have a little electric powered, uh, snowblower that can handle like two inches of snow. Um, and, and on big snowfalls, if you get out there every hour and keep up with it, it, it works. But, but I, my back right now, I can’t stand for, I can’t stand still for 10 minutes and I can’t move for more than like five minutes. And so I’m, I’m very disabled and El has good days and bad days, uh, thus [00:20:00] far. L’s been out there with a shovel, um, really being the hero. But we have a next door neighbor with a big gas powered snowblower. And so we went over, brought them gifts, and, um, asked if they would take care of our driveway on days we couldn’t, uh, for like, you know, we’d pay ’em 25 bucks to do the driveway. And, uh, and they were, he was still reluctant to accept money. Um. But, but we both agreed it was better to like make it a, a transaction. Jeff: Oh my God. You don’t want to get into weird Minnesota neighbor relational. Brett: right. You don’t want the you owe me thing. Um, so, so we have that set up. But in the process we made really good friends with our neighbor. Like we sat down in their living room for I think 45 minutes and just like talked about health and politics and it was, it was really fun. They’re, they’re retired. They’re in their [00:21:00] seventies and like act, he always looks super grumpy. I always thought he was a mean old man. He’s actually, he laughs more easily than most people I’ve ever met. Um, he’s actually, when people say, oh, he is actually a teddy bear, this guy really is, he’s just jovial. Uh, he just has resting angry old man face. Jeff: Or like my, I have public mis throat face, like when I’m out and about, especially when I’m shopping, I know that my face is, I’m gonna fucking kill you if you look me in the eye Brett: I used Jeff: is not my general disposition. Brett: people used to tell me that about myself, but I feel like I, I carry myself differently these days than I did when I was younger. Jeff: You know what I learned? Do you, have you both watched Veep, Christina: Yes, Jeff: you know, Richard sp split, right? Um, and, and he always kind of has this sweet like half smile and he is kind of looking up and I, I figured out at one point I was in an airport, which is where my kill everybody face especially comes up. Just to be clear. TSA, it’s just a feeling inside. I [00:22:00] have no desire to act to this out. I realized that if I make the Richard Plet face, which I can try to make for you now, which is something like if I just make the Richard Plet face, my whole disposition Brett: yeah. Yeah. Jeff: uh, and I even feel a little better. And so I just wanna recommend that to people. Look up Richard Spt, look at his face. Christina: Hey, future President Bridges split. Jeff: future President Richard Splat, also excellent in the Detroiters. Um, that’s all, uh, that’s all I wanted to say about that. Brett: I have found that like when I’m texting with someone, if I start to get frustrated, you know, you know that point where you’re still adding smiley emoticons even though you’re actually not, you’re actually getting pissed off, but you don’t wanna sound super bitchy about it, so you’re adding smile. I have found that when I add a smiley emoji in those circumstances, if I actually smile before I send it, it like my [00:23:00] mood will adjust to match, to match the tone I’m trying to convey, and it lessens my frustration with the other person. Jeff: a little joy wrist rocket. Christina: Yeah. Hey, I mean, no, but hey, but, but that, that, that, that, that’s interesting. I mean, they’re, they, they’ve done studies that like show that, right? That like show like, you know, I mean, like, some of this is all like bullshit to a certain extent, but there is something to be said for like, you know, like the power of like positive thinking and like, you know, if you go into things with like, different types of attitudes or even like, even if you like, go into job interviews or other situations, like you act confident or you smile, or you act happy or whatever. Even if you’re not like it, the, the, the, the euphoria, you know, that those sorts of uh, um, endorphin reactions or whatever can be real. So that’s interesting. Brett: Yeah, I found, I found going into job interviews with my usual sarcastic and bitter, um, kind of mindset, Jeff: I already hate this job. Brett: it doesn’t play well. It doesn’t play well. So what are your weaknesses? Fuck off. Um,[00:24:00] Christina: right. Well, well, well, I hate people. Jeff: Yeah. Dealing with motherfuckers like you, that’s one weakness. Sponsor Spot: Shopify Brett: let’s, uh, let’s do a sponsor spot and then I want to hear about Christina winning a contest. Christina: yes. Jeff: very Brett: wanna, you wanna take it away? Sponsor: Shopify Jeff: I will, um, our sponsor this week is Shopify. Um, have you ever, have you just been dreaming of owning your own business? Is that why you can’t sleep? In addition to having something to sell, you need a website. And I’ll tell you what, that’s been true for a long time. You need a payment system, you need a logo, you need a way to advertise new customers. It can all be overwhelming and confusing, but that is where today’s sponsor, Shopify comes in. shopify is the commerce platform behind millions of businesses around the world and 10% of all e-commerce in the US from household names like Mattel and Gym Shark to brands just getting started. Get started with your own design studio with hundreds of ready to use [00:25:00] templates. 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That was Jeff: Yeah. Cha-ching Brett: they got the chorus, they got the Overtired Christina: You did. You got the Overtired Jeff: They didn’t think to ask for it, but that’s our brand. Christina: shopify.com/ Overtired. Jeff Tweedy Jeff: What was, uh, I was watching a Stephen Colbert interview with Jeff Tweedy, who just put out a triple album and, uh, it was a very thoughtful, sweet interview. And then Stephen Colbert said, you know, you’re not supposed to do this. And Jeff Tweety said, it’s all part of my career long effort to leave the public wanting less. Christina: Ha, Jeff: That was a great bit. Christina: that’s a fantastic bit. A side note, there are a couple of really good NPR, um, uh, tiny desks that have come out in the last couple of month, uh, couple of weeks. Um, uh, one is shockingly, I, I’ll, I’ll just be a a, a fucking boomer about it. The Googo dolls. Theirs was [00:27:00] great. It’s fantastic. They did a great job. It already has like millions of views, like it wrecked up like over a million views, I think like in like, like less than 24 hours. They did a great job, but, uh, but Brandy Carlisle, uh, did one, um, the other day and hers is really, really good too. So, um, so yeah. Yeah, exactly. So yeah. Anyway, you said, you saying Jeff pd maybe, I don’t know how I got from Wilco to like, you know, there, Jeff: Yeah. Well, they’ve done some good, he’s done his own good Christina: he has, he has done his own. Good, good. That’s honestly, that’s probably what I was thinking of, but Jeff: It’s my favorite Jeff besides me because Bezos, he’s not in the, he’s not in the game. Christina: No. No, he’s not. No. Um, he, he’s, he’s not on the Christmas card list at all. Jeff: Oh man. Jeff’s Concert Marathon Jeff: Can I just tell you guys that I did something, um, I did something crazy a couple weeks ago and I went to three shows in one week, like I was 20 fucking two, Brett: Good grief. Jeff: and. It was a blast. So, okay, so the background of this is my oldest son [00:28:00] loves hip hop, and when we drive him to college and back, or when I do, it’s often just me. Um, he, he goes deep and he, it’s a lot of like, kind of indie hip hop and a lot. It’s just an interesting, he listens to interesting shit, but he will go deep and he’ll just like, give me a tour through someone’s discography or through all their features somewhere, whatever it is. And like, it’s the kind of input that I love, which is just like, I don’t, even if it’s not my genre, like if you’re passionate and you can just weave me through the interrelationship and the history and whatever it is I’m in. So as a result of that, made me a huge fan of Danny Brown and made me a huge fan of the sky, Billy Woods. And so what happened was I went to a hip hop show at the seventh Street entry, uh, which is attached to First Avenue. It’s a little club, very small, lovely little place, the only place my band could sell out. Um, and I watched a hip hop show there on a Monday night, Tuesday night. I went to the Uptown Theater, which Brett is now a actually an operating [00:29:00] theater for shows. Uh, and I, and I saw Danny Brown, but I also saw two hyper pop bands, a genre I was not previously aware of, including one, which was amazing, called Fem Tenal. And I was in line to get into that show behind furries, behind trans Kids. Like it was this, I was the weirdest, like I did not belong. Underscores played, and, and this will mean something to somebody out there, but not, didn’t mean anything to me until that night. And, uh. I felt like such, there were times, not during Danny Brown, Danny Brown’s my age all good. But like there were times where I was in the crowd ’cause I’m tall. Anybody that doesn’t know I’m very tall and I’m wearing like a not very comfortable or safe guy seeming outfit, a black hoodie, a black stocking cap. Like I basically looked like I’m possibly a shooter and, and I’m like standing among all these young people loving it, but feeling a little like, should I go to the back? Even like I was leaving that show [00:30:00] and the only people my age were people’s parents that were waiting to pick them up on the way out. So anyway, that was night two. Danny Brown was awesome. And then two nights later I went to see, this is way more my speed, a band called the Dazzling Kilman who were a band that. Came out in the nineties, St. Louis and a noisy Matthew Rock. Wikipedia claims they invented math rock. It’s a really stupid claim, uh, but it’s a lovely, interesting band and it’s a friend of mine named Nick Sakes, who’s who fronted that band and was in all these great bands back when I was in bands called Colos Mite and Sick Bay, and all this is great shit. So they played a reunion show. In this tiny punk rock club here called Cloudland, just a lovely little punk rock club. And, um, and, and that was like rounded out my week. So like, I was definitely, uh, a tourist the early part of the week, mostly at the Danny Brown Show. But then I like got to come home to my noisy punk rock [00:31:00] on, uh, on Thursday night. And I, I fucking did three shows and it hurt so bad. Like even by the first of three bands on the second night. I was like, I don’t think I can make it. And I do. I already pregame shows with ibuprofen. Just to be really clear, I microdose glucose tabs at shows like, like I am, I am a full on old man doing these things. But, um, I did get some cred with my kids for being at a hyper pop show all by myself. And, Christina: Hell yeah. A a Jeff: friends seemed impressed. Christina: no, as a as, as as they should be. I’m impressed. And like, and I, I, I typically like, I definitely go to like more of like, I go, I go to shows more frequently and, and I’m, I’m even like, I’m, I’m gonna be real with you. I’m like, yeah, three in one week. Jeff: That’s a lot. Christina: That’s a lot. That’s a lot. Jeff: man. Did I feel good when I walked home from that last show though? I was like, I fucking did it. I did not believe I wasn’t gonna bail on at least two of those shows, if not all three. Anyway, just wanted to say Brett: I [00:32:00] do like one show a year, but Jeff: that’s how I’ve been for years this year. I think I’ve seen eight shows. Brett: damn. Jeff: Yeah, it’s Brett: Alright, so you’ve been teasing us about this, this contest you won. Jeff: Yeah, please, Christina. Sorry to push that off. Christina: No, no, no, no. That’s, that’s completely okay. That, that, that, that’s great. Uh, no. Christina Wins Big Christina: So, um, I won two six K monitors. Brett: Damn. Jeff: is that what those boxes are behind you? Christina: Yeah, yeah. This is what the boxes are behind me, so I haven’t been able to get them up because this happened. I got them literally right in the midst of all this stuff with my back. Um, but I do have an Ergotron poll now that is here, and, and Grant has said that he will, will get them up. But yeah, so I won 2 32 inch six K monitors from a Reddit contest. Brett: How, how, how, Jeff: How does this happen? How do I find a Reddit contest? Christina: Yeah. So I got lucky. So I have, I, I have a clearly, well, well, um, there was a little, there was a little bit of like, other step to it than that, but like, uh, so how it worked was basically, um, LG is basically just put out [00:33:00] two, they put out a new 32 inch six K monitor. I’ll have it linked in, in, in the show notes. Um, so we’ve talked about this on this podcast before, but like one of my big, like. Pet peeve, like things that I can’t get past. It’s like I need like a retina screen. Like I need like the, the perfect pixel doubling thing for that the Mac Os deals with, because I’ve used a 5K screen, either through an iMac or um, an lg, um, ultra fine or, um, a, uh, studio display. For like 11 years. And, and I, and I’ve been using retina displays on laptops even longer than that. And so if I use like a regular 4K display, like it just, it, it doesn’t work for me. Um, you can use apps like, um, like better control and other things to kind of emulate, like what would be like if you doubled the resolution, then it, it down, you know, um, of samples that, so that. It looks better than, than if it’s just like the, the, the 4K stuff where in the, the user interface things are too big and whatnot. And to be clear, this is a Macco West problem. If [00:34:00] you are using Windows or Linux or any other operating system that does fractional scaling, um, correctly, then this is not a problem. But Macco West does not do fractional scaling direct, uh, correctly. Um, weirdly iOS can, like, they can do three X resolution and other things. Um, but, but, but Macs does not. And that’s weird because some of the native resolutions on some of the MacBook errors are not even perfectly pixeled doubled, meaning Apple is already having to do a certain amount of like resolution changes to, to fit into their own, created by their, their own hubris, like way of insisting on, on only having like, like two x pixel doubling 18 years ago, we could have had independent, uh, resolutions, uh, um, for, for UI elements and, and, and window bars. But anyway, I, I’m, I’m digressing anyway. I was looking at trying to get either a second, uh, studio display, which I don’t wanna do because Apple’s reportedly going to be putting out a new one. Um, and they’re expensive or getting, um, there are now a number of different six K [00:35:00] displays that are not $6,000 that are on the market. So, um, uh, uh, Asus has one, um, there is one from like a, a Chinese company called like, or Q Con that, um, looks like a, a complete copy of this, of the pro display XDR. It has a different panel, but it’s, it’s six K and they, they’ve copied the whole design and it’s aluminum and it’s glossy and it looks great, but I’d have to like get it from like. A weird distributor, and if I have any issues with it, I don’t really wanna have to send it back to China and whatnot. And then LG has one that they just put out. And so I’ve been researching these on, on Mac rumors and on some other forums. And, um, I, uh, I, somebody in one of the Mac Roomers forums like posted that there was like a contest that LG was running in a few different subreddits where they were like, tell us why you should get one of, like, we’re gonna be giving away like either one or two monitors, and I guess they did this in a few subreddits. Tell us why this would be good for your workflow. And, um, I guess I, I guess I’m one of the people who kind of read the [00:36:00] assignment because it, okay, I’ll just be honest with this, with, with you guys on this podcast, uh, because I, I don’t think anyone from LG will hear this and my answers were accurate anyway. But anyway, this was not the sort of contest where it was like we will randomly select a winner. This was the moderators and lg, were going to read the responses and choose the winner. Jeff: Got it. Christina: So if you spend a little bit of time and thoughtfully write out a response, maybe you stand a better chance of winning the contest. Jeff: yeah, yeah. Put the work in like it was 2002. Christina: Right. Anyway, I still was shocked when I like woke up like on like Halloween and they were like, congratulations, you’ve won two monitors. I’m like, I’m sorry. What? Jeff: That’s amazing. Christina: Yeah, yeah, yeah, Jeff: Nice work. I know I’ve, you know, I’ve been staring at those boxes behind you this whole time, just being like, those look like some sweet monitors. Christina: yeah, yeah. Monitor Setup Challenges Christina: I mean, and, uh, [00:37:00] uh, it’s, it’s, it’s, it’s, it’s, and I, I’m very much, so my, my, my only issue is, okay, how am I gonna get these on my desk? So I’m gonna have to do something with my iMac and I’m probably gonna have to get rid of my, my my, my 5K, um, uh, uh, studio display, at least in the short term. Ergotron Mounts and Tall Poles Christina: Um, but what I did do is I, um, I ordered from, um, Ergotron, ’cause I already have. Um, two of their, um, LX mounts, um, or, or, or, or arms. Um, and only one of them is being used right now. And then I have a different arm that I use for the, um, um, iMac. Um, they sell like a, if you call ’em directly, you can get them to send you a tall pole so that you can put the two arms on top of them. And that way I think I can like, have them so that I can have like one pole and then like have one on one side, one Jeff: I have a tall pole. Christina: and, and yeah, that’s what she said. Um, Jeff: as soon as I said it, I was like, for fuck’s sake. But Christina: um, but, uh, but, but yeah, but so that way I think I, I can, I, in theory, I can stack the market and have ’em side by side. I don’t know. Um, I got that. I, I had to call Tron and, and order that from them. [00:38:00] Um, it was only a hundred dollars for, for the poll and then $50 for a handling fee. Jeff: It’s not easy to ship a tall pole. Brett: That’s what she said. Christina: that is what she said. Uh, that is exactly what she said. But yeah, so I, I, the, the, the unfortunate thing is that, um, I, um, I, I had to, uh, get a, like all these, they, they came in literally right before Thanksgiving, and then I’ve had, like, all my back stuff has Jeff: Yeah, no Christina: debilitating, but I’m looking forward to, um, getting them set up and used. And, uh, yeah. Review Plans and Honest Assessments Christina: And then full review will be coming to, uh, to, I have to post a review on Reddit, but then I will also be doing a more in depth review, uh, on this podcast if anybody’s interested in, in other places too, to like, let let you know, like if it’s worth your money or not. Um, ’cause there, like I said, there are, there are a few other options out there. So it’s not one of those things where like, you know, um, like, thank you very much for the free monitor, um, monitors. But, but I, I will, I will give like the, the, you know, an honest assessment or Current Display Setup Brett: So [00:39:00] do you currently have a two display setup? Christina: No. Um, well, yes, and kind of, so I have my, my, I have my 5K studio display, and then I have like my iMac that I use as a two to display setup. But then otherwise, what I’ve had to do, and this is actually part of why I’m looking forward to this, is I have a 4K 27 inch monitor, but it’s garbage. And it, it’s one of those things where I don’t wanna use it with my Mac. And so I wind up only using it with my, with my Windows machine, with my framework desktop, um, with my Windows or Linux machine. And, and because that, even though I, it supports Thunderbolt, the Apple display is pain in the ass to use with those things. It doesn’t have the KVM built in. Like, it doesn’t like it, it just, it’s not good for that situation. So yeah, this will be of this size. I mean, again, like I, I, I’m 2 32 inch monitors. I don’t know how I’m gonna deal with that on my Jeff: I Brett: yeah. So right now I’m looking at 2 32 inch like UHD monitors, Christina: Yeah,[00:40:00] Brett: I will say that on days when my neck hurts, it sucks. It’s a, it’s too wide a range to, to like pan back and forth quickly. Like I’ll throw my back out, like trying to keep track of stuff. Um, but I have found that like if I keep the second display, just like maybe social media apps is the way I usually set it up. And then I only work on one. I tried buying an extra wide curve display, hated it. Jeff: Uh, I’ve always wanted to try one, but Christina: I don’t like them. Jeff: Yeah. Christina: Well, for me, well for me it’s two things. One, it’s the, I don’t love the whole like, you know, thing or whatever, but the big thing honestly there, if you could give me, ’cause people are like, oh, you can get a really big 5K, 2K display. I’m like, that’s not a 5K display. That is 2 27 inch, 1440 P displays. One, you know, ultra wide, which is great. Good for you. That’s not retina. And I’m a sicko Who [00:41:00] needs the, the pixel doubling? Like I wish that my eyes could not use that, but, but, but, Jeff: that needs the pixel. Like was that the headline of your Reddit, uh, Christina: no, no. It wasn’t, it wasn’t. But, but maybe it should be. Hi, I’m a sicko who only, um, fucks with, with, with, with, with, with, with retina displays. Ask me anything. Um, but no, but that’s a good point. Brett: I think 5K Psycho is the Christina: 5K Sicko is the po is the po title. I like that. I like that. No, what I’m thinking about doing and that’s great to know, Brett. Um, this kind of reaffirms my thing. Thunderbolt KVM and Display Preferences Christina: So what’s nice about these monitors is that they come with like, built in like, um, Thunderbolt 5K VM. So, which is nice. So you could conceivably have multiple, you know, computers, uh, connected, you know, to to, to one monitor, which I really like. Um, I mean like, ’cause like look, I, I’ve bitched and moaned about the studio display, um, primarily for the price, but at the same time, if mine broke tomorrow and if I didn’t have any way to replace it, I’ve, I’ve also gone on record saying I would buy a new one immediately. As mad as I am about a [00:42:00] lot of different things with that, that the built-in webcam is garbage. The, you know, the, the fact that there’s not a power button is garbage. The fact that you can’t use it with multiple inputs, it’s garbage. But it’s a really good display and it’s what I’m used to. Um, it’s really not any better than my LG Ultra fine from 2016. But you know what? Whatever it is, what it is. Um. I, I am a 5K sicko, but being able to, um, connect my, my personal machine and my work machine at the same time to one, and then have my Windows slash Linux computer connected to another, I think that’s gonna be the scenario where I’m in. So I’m not gonna necessarily be in a place where I’m like, okay, I need to try to look at both of them across 2 32 inch displays. ’cause I think that that, like, that would be awesome. But I feel like that’s too much. Brett: I would love a decent like Thunderbolt KVM setup that could actually swap like my hubs back and Christina: Yes. MacBook Pro and Studio Comparisons Brett: Um, so, ’cause I, I have a studio and I have my, uh, Infor MacBook Pro [00:43:00] and I actually work mostly on the MacBook Pro. Um, but if I could easily dock it and switch everything on my desk over to it, I would, I would work in my office more often. ’cause honestly, the M four MacBook Pro is, it’s a better machine than the original studio was. Um, and I haven’t upgraded my studio to the latest, but, um, I imagine the new one is top notch. Christina: Oh yeah. Yeah. Brett: my, my other one, a couple years old now is already long in the tooth. Christina: No, I mean, they’re still good. I mean, it’s funny, I saw that some YouTube video the other day where they were like, the best value MacBook you can get is basically a 4-year-old M1 max. And I was like, I don’t know about that guys. Like, I, I kind of disagree a little bit. Um, but the M1 max, which is I think is what is in the studio, is still a really, really good ship. But to your point, like they’ve made those, um. You know, the, the, the new ones are still so good. Like, I have an M three max as my personal laptop, and [00:44:00] that’s kind of like the dog chip in the, in the m um, series lineup. So I kind of am regretful for spending six grand on that one, but it is what it is, and I’m like, I’m not, I’m not upgrading. Um, I mean, maybe, maybe in, in next year if, if the M five Pro, uh, or M five max or whatever is, is really exceptional, maybe I’ll look at, okay, how much will you give me to, to trade it in? But even then, I, I, but I feel like I’m at that point where I’m like, it gets to a point where like it’s diminishing returns. Um, but, uh, just in terms of my own budget. But, um, yeah, the, the new just info like pro or or max, whatever, Brett: I have, I have an M four MacBook Pro sitting around that I keep forgetting to sell. Uh, it’s the one that I, it only had a 256 gigabyte hard drive, Jeff: what happened to me when I bought my M1, Brett: and I, and I regretted that enough that I just ordered another one. But, uh, for various reasons, I couldn’t just return the one I didn’t Jeff: ’cause it was.[00:45:00] Brett: so now I, now I have to sell it and I should sell it while it’s still a top of the line machine Christina: Sell it before, sell, sell, sell, sell it before next month, um, or, or February or whenever they sell it before then the, the pros come out. ’cause right now the M five base is out, but the pros are not. So I think feel like you could still get most of your value for it, especially since it has very few battery cycles. Be sure to put the battery cycles on your Facebook marketplace or eBay thing or whatever. Um, I bought my, uh, she won’t listen to this so she won’t know, but, um, they, there was a, a killer Cyber Monday deal, uh, for Best Buy where they had like a, the, the, the, so it’s several years old, but it was the, the M two MacBook Air, but the one that they upgraded to 16 gigs of Ram when Apple was like, oh, we have to have Apple Intelligence and everything, because they actually thought that they were actually gonna ship Apple Intelligence. So they like went back and they, like, they, they, you know, retconned like made the base model MacBook Air, like 16 [00:46:00] gigs. Um, and, uh, anyway, it was, it was $600, um, Jeff: still crazy. Christina: which, which like even for like a, a, a 2-year-old machine or whatever, I was like, yeah, she, my sister, I think she’s on like, like a 2014 or older than that. Like, like MacBook Air. She doesn’t even know where the MagSafe is. I don’t think she even knows where the laptop is. So she’s basically doing everything like on her phone and I’m like, okay, you need a laptop of some type, but at this point. I do feel strongly that like the, the, the $600 or, or, or actually I think it was $650, it was actually less, it is actually more expensive than what the, the, the Cyber Monday sale was, um, the M1, Walmart, MacBook Air. I’m like, absolutely not like that is at this point, do not buy that. Right? Like, I, especially with eight gigs of ram, I’m, I’m like, it’s been, it’s five years old. It’s a, it was a great machine and it was great value for a long time. $200. Cool, right? Like, if you could get something like use and, and, and, and if you could replace the battery or, you know, [00:47:00] for, for, you know, not, not too much money or whatever. Like, I, I, I could see like an argument to be made like value, right? But there’d be no way in hell that I would ever spend or tell anybody else to spend $650 on that new, but $600 for an M two with Jeff: Now we’re talking. Christina: which has the redesign brand new. I’m like, okay. Spend $150 more and you could have got the M four, um, uh, MacBook Air, obviously all around Better Machine. But for my sister, she doesn’t need that, Jeff: What do we have to do to put your sister in this M two MacBook Christina: that, that, that, that, that, that’s exactly it. So I, I, I was, well, also, it was one of those things I was like, I think that she would rather me spend the money on toys for my nephew for Santa Claus than, than, uh, giving her like a, a processor upgrade. Um, Jeff: Claus isn’t real. Brett: Oh shit. Jeff: Gotcha. Every year I spoil it for somebody. This year it was Christina and Brett. Sorry guys. Brett: right. Well, can I tell you guys Jeff: Yeah. [00:48:00] Brett Software. Brett: two quick projects before we do Jeff: Hold on. You don’t have to be quick ’cause you could call it Brett: We’re already at 45 minutes and I want Jeff: What I’m saying, skip GrAPPtitude. This is it? Brett: okay. Christina: us about Mark. Tell us about your projects. Brett: So, so Mark three is, there’s a public, um, test flight beta link. Uh, if you go to marked app.com, not marked two app.com, uh, marked app.com. Uh, you, there’s a link in the, in the, at the top for Christina: Join beta. Mm-hmm. Brett: Um, and that is public and you can join it and you can send me feedback directly through email because, um, uh, uh, the feedback reporter sucks for test flight and you can’t attach files. And half the time they come through as anonymous feedback and I can’t even follow up on ’em. So email me. But, um, I’ll be announcing that on my blog soon-ish. Um, right now there’s like [00:49:00] maybe a couple dozen, um, testers and I, it’s nice and small and I’m solving the biggest bugs right away. Um, so that’s been, that’s been big. Like Mark, even since we last talked has added. Do you remember Jeff when Merlin was on and he wanted to. He wanted to be able to manage his styles, um, and disable built-in styles. There’s now a whole table based style manager where you Jeff: saw that. Brett: you can, you can reorder, including built-in styles. You can reorder, enable, disable, edit, duplicate. Um, it’s like a full, full fledged, um, style manager. And I just built a whole web app that is a style generator that gives you, um, automatic like rhythm calculations for your CSS and you can, you can control everything through like, uh, like UI fields instead of having to [00:50:00] write CSS. Uh, but you can also o open up a very, I’ve spent a lot of time on the code mirror CSS editor in the web app. Uh, so, and it’s got live preview as you edit in the code mirror field. Um, so that’s pretty cool. And that’s built into marts. So if you go to style, um, generate style, it’ll load up a, a style generator for you. Anyway, there’s, there’s a ton. I’m not gonna go into all the details, but, uh, anyone listening who uses markdown for anything, especially if you want ability to export to like Word and epub and advanced PDF export, um, join the beta. Let me know what you think. Uh, help me squash bugs. But the other thing, every time I push a beta for review before the new bug reports come in, I’ve been putting time into a tool. Markdown Processor: Apex Brett: I’m calling [00:51:00] Apex and um, I haven’t publicly announced this one yet, but I probably will by the time this podcast comes out. Jeff: I mean, doesn’t this count? Brett: It, it does. I’m saying like this, this might be a, you hear you heard it here first kind of thing, um, but if you go to github.com/tt sc slash apex, um, I built a, uh, pure C markdown processor that combines syntax from cram down GitHub flavored markdown, multi markdown maku, um, common mark. And basically you can write syntax from any of those processors, including all of their special features, um, and in one document, and then use Apex in its unified mode, and it’ll just figure out what. All of your syntax is supposed to do. Um, so you can take, you can port documents from one platform to another [00:52:00] without worrying about how they’re gonna render. Um, if I can get any kind of adoption with Apex, it could solve a lot of problems. Um, I built it because I want to make it the default processor in marked ’cause right now, you, you have to choose, you know, cram Christina: Which one? Brett: mark and, and choosing one means you lose something in order to gain something. Um, so I wanted to build a universal one that brought together everything. And I added cool features from some extensions of other languages, such as if you have two lists in a row, normally in markdown, it’s gonna concatenate those into one list. Now you can put a carrot on a line between the two lists and it’ll break it into two lists. I also added support for a. An extension to cram down that lets you put double uh, carrots inside a table cell and [00:53:00] create a row band. So like a cell that, that expands it, you rows but doesn’t expand the rest of the row. Um, so you can do cell spans and row spans and it has a relaxed table version where you don’t have to have an alignment row, which is, uh, sometimes we just wanna make quickly table. You make two lines. You put some pipes in. This will, if there’s no alignment row, it will generate a table with just a table body and table data cells in no header. It also allows footers, you can add a footer to a table by using equals in the separator line. Um, it, it’s, Jeff: This is very civilized, Brett: it is. Christina: is amazing, Brett: So where Common Mark is extremely strict about things, um, apex is extremely permissive. Jeff: also itty bitty things like talk about the call out boxes from like Brett: oh yeah, it, it can handle call out syntax from Obsidian and Bear and Xcode Playgrounds. [00:54:00] Um, and it incorporates all of Mark’s syntax for like file includes and even renders like auto scroll pauses that work in marked and some other teleprompter situations. Um, it uses file ude syntax from multi markdown, like, which is just like a curly brace and, uh, marked, which is, uh, left like a double left, uh, angle bracket and then different. Brackets to surround a file name and it handles IA writer file inclusion where you just type a forward slash and then the name of a file and it automatically detects if that file is an image or source code or markdown text, and it will import it accordingly. And if it’s a CSV file, it’ll generate a table from it automatically. It’s, it’s kind of nuts. I, it’s kind of nuts. I could not have done this [00:55:00] without copilot. I, I am very thankful for copilot because my C skills are not, would not on their own, have been up to this task. I know enough to bug debug, but yeah, a lot of these features I got a big hand from copilot on. Jeff: This is also Brett. This is some serious Brett Terpstra. TURPs Hard Christina: Yeah, it is. I was gonna say, this is like Jeff: and also that’s right. Also, if your grandma ever wrote you a note and it, and though you couldn’t really read it, it really well, that renders perfectly Christina: Amazing. No, I was gonna say this is like, okay, so Apex is like the perfect name ’cause this is the apex of Brett. Jeff: Yes. Apex of Brett. Christina: That’s also that, that’s, that’s not an alternate episode title Apex of Brett. Because genuinely No, Brett, like I am, I am so stunned and impressed. I mean, you all, you always impressed me like you are the most impressive like developer that I, that I’ve ever known. But you, this is incredible. And, and this, I, I love this [00:56:00] because as you said, like common Mark is incredibly strict. This is incredibly permissive. But this is great. ’cause there are those scenarios where you might have like, I wanna use one feature from one thing or one from another, or I wanna combine things in various ways, or I don’t wanna have to think about it, you know? Brett: I aals, I forgot to mention I aals inline attribute list, which is a crammed down feature that lets you put curly brackets after like a paragraph and then a colon and then say, dot call out inside the curly brackets. And then when it renders the markdown, it creates that paragraph and adds class equals call out to the paragraph. Um, and in, in Cramon you can apply these to everything from list items to list to block quotes. Like you can do ’em for spans. You could like have one after, uh, link syntax and just apply, say dot external to a link. So the IAL syntax can add IDs classes and uh, arbitrary [00:57:00] attributes to any element in your markdown when it renders to HTML. And, uh, and Apex has first class support for I aals. Was really, that was, that Christina: that was really hard, Brett: I wrote it because I wanted, I wanted multi markdown, uh, for my prose writing, but I really missed the als. Christina: Yes. Okay. Because see, I run into this sort of thing too, right? Because like, this is a problem like that. I mean, it’s a very niche problem, um, that, that, you know, people who listen to this podcast probably are more familiar with than other types of people. But like, when you have to choose your markdown processor, which as you said, like Brett, like that can be a problem. Like, like with, with using Mark or anything else, you’re like, what am I giving up? What do I have? And, and like for me, because I started using mul, you know, markdown, um, uh, largely because of you, um, I think I was using it, I knew about it before you, but largely because of, of, of you, like multi markdown has always been like kind of my, or was historically my flavor of choice. It has since shifted to being [00:58:00] GitHub, labor bird markdown. But that’s just because the industry has taken that on, right? But there were, you know, certain things like in like, you know, multi markdown that work a certain way. And then yeah, there are things in crammed down. There are things in these other things in like, this is just, this is awesome. This Brett: It is, the whole thing is built on top of C mark, GFM, which is GitHub’s port of common mark with the GitHub flavored markdown Christina: Right. Brett: Um, and I built, like, I kept that as a sub-module, totally clean, and built all of this as extensions on top of Cmar, GFM, which, you know, so it has full compatibility with GitHub and with Common Merck by out, like outta the box. And then everything else is built on top of that. So it, uh, it covers, it covers all the bases. You’ll love it Christina: I’m so excited. No, this is awesome. And I Brett: blazing fast. It can render, I have a complex document that, that uses all of its features and it can render it in [00:59:00] 0.006 seconds. Christina: that’s awesome. Jeff: Awesome. Christina: That’s so cool. No, this is great. And yeah, I, and I think that honestly, like this is the sort of thing like if, yeah, if you can eventually get this to like be like the engine that powers like mark three, like, that’ll be really slick, right? Because then like, yeah, okay, I can take one document and then just, you know, kind of, you know, wi with, with the, you know, ha have, have the compatibility mode where you’re like, okay, the unified mode or whatever yo
This week the boys start off the show with a question from Josh Thompson. We should say it is trivia from Josh Thompson. The boys also discuss the new Soundwave that came out from Robusen. The boys talk about the frustrations early on of not finding the LJN figures. In the news Title Run Toys showed off sketch art for their Danny Davis figure. Figures toy company was back in the news with their next playset. A new company is in the news called “Really weird wrestling”. They are releasing M.U.S.C.L.E style figures. LaToonie announced 2 different Andre the Giant retro style figures. Sticking with Latoonie They announced Everest Demolition figures. Major pod BRG baseball figures were shown off. Mattel announced their lineup for Elite 125. Ringside collectibles announce two different sets of Demolition. As well as Demolition Ring the bell (Remco style) figures. In the nostalgia segment the boys talk about Superbrawl for the SNES. Pre Orders: Big Rubber Guys - Collectmajor.com Big Bad Toy Store - Rush - Dralistico - Dragon Lee Fig Collections - shop.figurecollections.com The patriot Buff Bagwell Zombie Sailor - (zombiesailor.com) - Zombie is also on BBTS La Toonie Wrestling Toonstars KWK Shopkwk.com use code Fullyposeable to get 10 percent off your order. Also KWK's month of November is Dory Funk Thank you to everyone for keeping this show going!
There is some great, weird and just plain crazy news to talk through today. Have Hot Toys jumped the shark? Is Ben about to drop $1500 on a Soundwave? More Mondo, more Blokees and of course, More Todd. Franks TMNT collection lacks a life size element - could this change soon? Then we compare the newly released Origins Fright Zone with the vintage one - which in itself gives Scot the fright of his life! Support the show: http://patreon.com/toypowerpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Tonight, we're diving deep into a topic that has every collector's wallet sweating: TOY REISSUES! Are they a blessing for new collectors looking to fill holes in their display, or are they killing the secondary market for long-time fans?The guys break down how companies like #Hasbro are constantly re-releasing figures—sometimes even on the exact same card—and what that does to the value of rare figures (RIP those $2,000 Ahsoka figures).In this episode, we talk about:• The #MarvelLegends Retro line re-release of #Kingpin, #Rhino, and #CaptainAmerica.• The true meaning of a "reissue" vs. a "re-imagining" (looking at you, #JurassicPark Hammond Collection).• Why big toy companies are leaning on nostalgia and re-molds instead of making new lines for modern movies.• The future of the toy world, including the rise of K-pop, #Labubu, and the unstoppable, eternal power of #HotWheels.• The painful truth that kids don't really play with action figures anymore.• We want to know what YOU think! Is a reissue an automatic PASS or an instant BUY for your collection? Which re-release made you mad? Let us know in the comments below!
On this episode Ed and Rob do a review of this year Dazzling Nights. After that Ed and Rob talk about Mattel waterpark probably coming. Later Ed goes over the wrestling news of the week. NOV 28, 2025 at the WPRK Studios in Winter Park, FL The post Ep. 489- Dazzling Rob appeared first on Orlando Tourism Report .
Live from the Morgan Stanley Global Consumer & Retail Conference in New York, our analysts discuss the latest macro trends and pressures impacting the U.S. consumer.Read more insights from Morgan Stanley.----- Transcript -----Michelle Weaver: Welcome to Thoughts on the Market. We're coming to you live from Morgan Stanley's Global Consumer and Retail Conference in New York City, where we have more than 120 leading companies in attendance. Today's episode is the first in a two-part special focused on the consumer where we'll focus on the K economy and the health of the U.S. Consumer. Tomorrow for the next episode, we'll turn our attention to AI. My colleagues and I are eager to dig into this discussion. With me on stage, we have Arunima Sinha from the Global and U.S. Economics team, Simeon Guttman, our U.S. Hardlines, Broad Lines, and Food Retail Analyst, and Megan Clap, U.S. Food Producers and Leisure Analyst.It's Thursday, December 4th at 10:00 AM in New York. So, to start, I want to go through the health of the consumer. That's of course been a theme that's been on display at the conference today. And 2025 has really been a year of mixed signals. But overall spending has held up while inflation has weighed on confidence, especially among lower- and middle-income households. Arunima, I want to start with you on the macro front as we head into year end. How would you describe the overall state of the consumer? What are you expecting in terms of real wage growth and spending? Arunima Sinha: If we'll just look at the rearview mirror in terms of Q1 through Q3, this year spending growth on a real basis has been holding up. So, in the first half of this year, about 1.5 percent on average. For the third quarter, given the data that we do now have in hand, we're tracking about 3 percent, quarter-on-quarter, on a real basis. But I think it is important to emphasize that this is already a step down than the numbers that we were seeing last year. So, in 2024 on these Q-on-Q numbers, we were running somewhere between 3.9-4 percent. So there already has been some slowdown. The recurring theme that we've had this year is how are the drivers of consumption going to weigh on different cohorts? And so, how is the labor market going away and how are wealth effects going to play out? And that, sort of, tied in squarely with the narrative that we've been emphasizing this whole year, which is that for the upper income cohorts, those net wealth effects have been very, very supportive. $50 trillion in net wealth that's been created just over the last three years. And that has continued for this year as well. And so, meanwhile the labor market has downshifted and that's had a read through into both just nominal wage growth as well as real wage growth. So, for example, on a three-month, three-month basis, that real wage growth, after we've adjusted for the nominal for inflation, has slowed down essentially to stall speed. It used to run, somewhere between 2-2.5 percent, in the first part of this year. And that we think is going to have a read through as we go into this upcoming quarter of Q4, as well as in the first quarter of next year. So just this lagged effect from the slowdown on labor market income is going to weigh; continue to weigh on the middle-income and sort of the upper-, lower- part of the income cohort. So, in terms of our growth forecasts for spending, over this quarter in Q4 and over next quarter in Q1, we are expecting about 1 percent real growth for consumption. That is a two-percentage point step down from where we were in Q3. And then just in terms of disposable income, we're also thinking this particular quarter in Q4 is going to be fairly weak. Michelle Weaver: You spoke a little bit about the different income cohorts there, but I want to double click on that. The K economy has been a really persistent theme as higher income households have benefited from strong market returns. But higher price levels have weighed on lower-income households. What are your expectations for the high versus low-income consumer next year? Arunima Sinha: So next year, we do think that there could be some broadening out in consumption growth. Just overall we have a sequential step up in growth that begins to take place, starting in the second quarter of [20]26. So, we have consumption growth that starts to slowly inch up from about just under 1 percent in the first quarter of [20]26 – all the way up to about 2 percent by the end of the year. What that's going to be driven by, we think that there are going to be some lessening of pressures on the middle-income cohorts. And where is that going to come from? It's going to come from perhaps a still moderate labor market. So, we're not – we don't think we're going to be seeing these big 100,000-150,000 plus jobs being added every month. We're thinking maybe about 60,000 on average per month, for most of next year. But just less policy uncertainty, some boost from the fiscal bill, the fact that monetary policy is going to be heading towards neutral. All of those things should be supportive. Given that the upper-income didn't really slow down this year, we'd also don't think there's going to be a giant acceleration next year. And so, some of that uptick in consumption growth, we think could actually come from the middle-income. And we also think that some of those tariff pressures on inflation are going to start to dissipate after peaking in the first quarter next year. Michelle Weaver: And Simeon, I want to bring the company side into the conversation. What's the early read you've gotten on Black Friday? Expectations into the shopping season were pretty weak. Do you think things could turn out to be better than feared? And are you seeing any differences by income cohort there? Simeon Gutman: The overall take is, it's mixed – to maybe slightly a little worse. I'll answer it in a few different ways. First, the old-fashioned tire kicking that the retail analysts have done during the holiday season. In our hard line, broad line, food retail space mixed to slightly a little worse. In Alex Straton's softline world sounded a little bit better. And then if we combine the takeaways that we've had from companies, at least who presented yesterday, Walmart, Target and some other category killer retailers, it sounded about inline. Underlying trend is relatively stable.I sat on a panel earlier today, with a data aggregator who suggested that the holiday was a little underwhelming. What we don't see; and the underwhelming being at a minus 2 percent run rate for the – I guess, the November to date period, that doesn't include Cyber Monday. What this doesn't account for is the market share shifts. So, one of the ongoing themes across the entire retail landscape has been this big, getting bigger – we say it a lot – but the narrowing funnel of market share. So, the inline updates are probably coming from some of the largest companies, even if the overall holiday was a little underwhelming. Now inline is not anything to write home about. It's harder to get to an inline holiday if you started out below. So inline's okay but not gangbusters. That's probably the right way to characterize it. Michelle Weaver: Megan, same question to you. How is holiday shopping tracking in your space? Have you learned anything surprising about holiday during the conference? Megan Clap: Yeah, I would agree with Simeon relatively inline. I'd say kind of so far so good is what we heard from companies at the conference. We had both Mattel and Shark Ninja product companies that sell into many of the larger retailers that are winning that – that Simeon talked about.Holiday matters a lot for both of them. So, we're still many weeks ahead of us in terms of POS, but Mattel talked about positive POS continuing through the Black Friday season. They left their guidance unchanged today. They're seeing replenishment from their retailers and orders in line with expectations, which was a question just given some of the uncertainty in the landscape. Shark Ninja sells small appliances. They spoke to a strong Black Friday – again, seeing the fourth quarter and holiday play out in line with their expectations. Maybe a couple themes that stood out and one of them was particularly interesting to me. You talked about the K economy, I think, you know, it was very clear the higher end consumer continues to spend and outperform. Value and innovation continue to be things that consumers are looking for. Online seem to do better than in stores. That's what we heard from a lot of companies coming out of last week. And then newer channels like TikTok Shop are coming into the mix and, and brands are seeing, you know, strong growth from those channels as well. Michelle Weaver: And Arunima, I want to wrap this section on Fed policy. How do you expect Fed policy in 2026 to influence consumer spending and recovery, especially for those middle- and lower-income households? Arunima Sinha: We still have the Fed on an easing path into the first half of 2026. So we think 75 basis points and additional policy cuts into next year. But that more or less just takes monetary policy to some estimate of neutral. So, the point is that it's not monetary policy's becoming easier, it is simply just getting too neutral. And so, if we think about the most interest sensitive types of consumption, it's going to come from Housing and it's going to come from Durables. And what our housing strategists are thinking is that given this sort of front end of the curve, our tenure forecast for the middle of next year is still at about 3.75. And so, mortgage rates could dip below 6 percent. So, it's not the front end of the curve. It is that sort of belly of the curve there that's important there. And so there could be some pickup in housing that's going to be important. I think for the middle-income consumer affordability, we think it's still going to be an important concern for housing, but perhaps the middle-income could benefit from some of those lower mortgage rates that are going to come in. Michelle Weaver: Arunima, Simeon, and Megan, thanks for all your insights. And to our live and podcast audiences, thanks for listening. If you enjoy Thoughts on the Market, please leave us a review wherever you listen to the show and share the podcast with a friend or colleague today.
Here are some things the big companies shouldn't be doing. Making previous exclusives non-exclusives just to sell stock. Asking about forums when they're not delivering what people are asking for. Trying to mimic that crazy era of the '90s color schemes on modern toys. Worst of all, creating something that most people would love, but making it so expensive that no one buys it.
X-Force from Toybiz wave 2 is our main event! We talk all about it. We also talk Ringside Fest, Mattel's upcoming New Jack, Ringside's Unsanctioned Classic Superstars Demolition, Zombie Sailor Road Warriors, Regium Godwinns from Hasttel Toy, MLB Big Rubber Guys, Mezco Ninja Turtles and more! Check it out now!Also check out the TB Toycast YouTube channel https://youtube.com/@tbtoycast?si=48_4rAAgXmzpRbgZAlso check out The Saturday Morning Rumble Wheelhttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-saturday-morning-rumble-wheel/id1654659843
The boys welcome Brian from the LJN podcast on. Also AI decided to write our show notes for this week. Wrestling Figures and Personal Updates The hosts welcomed Brian from the Legendary Wrestling Figures podcast to discuss wrestling figures and catch up on his recent activities. Brian promoted his podcast and shared details about his pet cat, Lexington, and the songs he has created for it. The conversation concluded with plans to discuss Brian's recent painting projects in a future segment. Custom Wrestling Figure Paint Projects Brian shared his recent painting projects, including customizing a Ron Simmons figure for Greg from the Man Bull Pod and transforming a Rick Martell figure for Drew's 5-year anniversary podcast episode. He detailed the specific paint and gear changes he made to each figure, emphasizing the challenges of working with different materials. Brian also discussed his excitement about the upcoming release of LJN wrestling figures, including Wave 3, which will make popular figures more accessible to fans at a lower price point. LJN Figure Release Discussion The group discussed the upcoming release of new LJN figures from Mattel, with Brian sharing his excitement about the affordable price point and potential for detailed customization. They compared the new figures to original LJN and Big Rubber Guy versions, noting differences in materials and scale. Brian expressed hope for future releases, including a Mr. T figure and a more menacing Adrian Adonis redesign. Scott suggested adding characters from 80s wrestling teams like the Young Stallions and Boris Zukov to fill collection gaps. Wrestling Action Figures Collectibles Discussion The group discussed various wrestling action figures and collectibles, including Latoonie figures, Road Warriors, and Ringside Collectibles pre-orders. Scott shared his wishlist items, including the Dudley's Ultimate 2-pack and a John Cena figure from the vault. Brian showed off some Jesse and Bundy figures he had collected, which impressed the others. They also mentioned a limited-time offer for Dory Funk Jr. figures at KWK, and briefly touched on a new Matt Cardona vs. Chris Jericho 2-pack from Jazzwares Vault. Ringside Fest Product Announcements The group discussed new product announcements from Ringside Fest, including figures from the Monday Night War series and other releases. Scott shared details about various figures, including Steve Blackman, Sid Vicious, and the New Age Outlaws. They also covered Build-A-Figure releases and confirmed that Rick Rude would be a Build-A-Figure in a new suit. The team noted that some figures, like Cody and Penta, were part of the Defining Moments series. AEW Toy Prices and Closures Jefry and Scott discussed the price point of a new Swerve action figure from AEW, priced at $60, and noted that tariffs were affecting toy prices. They also talked about Super7 closing two stores at the end of the year due to financial challenges, possibly related to tariffs. The conversation concluded with a discussion about a new Road Warrior Animal figure from Latoonie, which has a limited run of 100 units with distinctive Batman-inspired face paint. Macho Man Wrestling Figure Plans The group discussed upcoming Mattel wrestling figures, focusing on potential Macho Man Randy Savage releases. They agreed that Macho Man's return would likely be announced around Christmas, with various looks being considered including his LJN, WrestleMania III, and neon green attire. Brian expressed a preference for a WrestleMania III-inspired figure with white tights and detailed boot stars, while Scott noted that Macho Man would slot into multiple lines including Ultimate Edition. The discussion also touched on New Jack's upcoming figure and the possibility of future releases based on video game appearances. Wrestling Figures and Collecting Discussion Scott, Jefry, and Brian discussed wrestling figures and games. They fact-checked information about a wrestling figure's gear and discussed potential future releases, including celebrity figures and retro sets. They also talked about their personal collecting habits and preferences. The conversation concluded with a brief mention of a wrestling video game. Nostalgic Arcade Wrestling Games Scott and Jefry discussed their favorite arcade wrestling games, with Scott expressing a fondness for WrestleFest due to its nostalgic value and the nostalgia of playing it with friends, despite holding a grudge against it for consuming his childhood money. They compared WrestleFest to its predecessor, WWF Superstars, noting the improved graphics and sound in WrestleFest. They also discussed the release of a modern iOS remake of WrestleFest, which Scott found disappointing. Brian shared his limited experience with both games, noting that neither held the same nostalgic value for him as they did for Scott and Jefry. Arcade Game Nostalgia Discussion The group discussed arcade games from their youth, with Brian, Scott, and Jefry sharing memories of playing NES Pro Wrestling, WrestleMania, and Spy Hunter. They also talked about the potential relaunch of Shakey's restaurants with 500 new locations, which excited Scott who fondly remembered the chain's pizza and games like Ikari Warriors. The conversation concluded with a detailed discussion about the arcade game WrestleFest, including its gameplay modes, critical reception, and its popularity compared to Street Fighter II in 1991. Pre Orders: Big Rubber Guys - Collectmajor.com Big Bad Toy Store - Rush - Dralistico - Dragon Lee Fig Collections - shop.figurecollections.com The patriot Buff Bagwell Zombie Sailor - (zombiesailor.com) - Zombie is also on BBTS La Toonie Road Warrior Everest figure KWK Shopkwk.com use code Fullyposeable to get 10 percent off your order. Also KWK's month of November is Dory Funk Thank you to everyone for keeping this show going!
Super7 just got the “Ultimate” Christmas present: an influx of cash that will hopefully keep the company afloat long enough to deliver that second wave of 2003 Ninja Turtles. Plus, is Mattel blurring the line of good taste, or finally giving hardcore WWE fans what they've always wanted? And don't tell Alfred, but Batman just blue himself! Hot Toys' Flash-inspired Batman in a blue cowl rears its ugly head. It's The Reluctant Adult Podcast. Email TheReluctantAdultPodcast@gmail.com TikTok @TheReluctantAdultPodcast Instagram @TheReluctantAdultPodcast Facebook The Reluctant Adult Podcast YouTube The Reluctant Adult Podcast Paul's eBay Auctions Save 10% with code RAP101 at New Meta Save and get Free Shipping from Entertainment Earth
In this special episode we're marking Diabetes Awareness Month with a range of stories about innovation, advocacy and education -- including a book helping children newly diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. It began as a university project for Lea Leleta Sümer, who's from Bosnia-Herzegovina and has lived with the condition since she was two years old. She wanted to help children like her come to terms with their condition, as well as educate others.Also: The Barbie Doll with Type 1 diabetes - a collaboration from Mattel and the international diabetes charity, Breakthrough T1D. We meet the women who inspired the doll. We speak to Sally TM, of RuPaul's Drag Race UK fame, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes around the age of 10. Sally uses her art and platform to advocate for people living with the condition. As Italy becomes the first country to implement a nationwide screening programme, we hear from the man who has pioneered it. Plus a teacher who's broken the world record for the fastest marathon by a male with type 1 diabetes. And we find out how recent advances in technology have made the daily management of the condition easier and safer, and consider what's to come.Our weekly collection of inspiring, uplifting and happy news from around the world.Presenters: Harry Bligh and Alex Ritson. Music composed by Sarah Warren
This Week on Toy Power Podcast; we once again have Canadian local: Colin Betts present in the studio!! Leaning on Colin's expertise around all things G.I. Joe; we are having another Fun round of THE TEAM! This round specifically targeting The Enemy: Cobra! Narrowing our selection even further, Toy characters released only between the years of 1982 & 1987. Highlighting the Classic Team tributes of: Leader, Muscle, Specialist, Wheelman & of course a Vehicle too. Voting on who makes the cut once all submissions are shouted out. Then we attack our next topic; Toy Catalogues! Another one of Colin's passion projects; & Ben presents him with his own small collection of only Two Australian Catalogues; that funnily enough Colin doesn't own!! A fun discussion around Catalogues in general & what makes them so appealing!Support the show: http://patreon.com/toypowerpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The DCAU Review is taking the week off from their normally scheduled program, but as is the case this time of year, are continuing a tradition of kicking off the Holiday season, The Good Brothers are doing so the only way they know how to: with a special Black Friday Special Bonus Episode! This year, the hosts are talking all about the expansive 2003-2012 Justice League/Justice League Unlimited action figure from Mattel. Hear Cal & Liam's unique list their 8 favorite figures from the line while also discussing what should have been with a trio of figures that were never produced. All of this and more fun on this week's 7th annual Black Friday Special Bonus Episode of the DCAU Review!Please Consider Supporting the Podcast:Become a monthly or one time supporter of the pod at https://buymeacoffee.com/DCAUReviewSubscribe to the pod on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and please consider leaving us a 5-star reviewSubscribe to our new YouTube Channel Support the pod by picking up some merch at our shop https://dcaureview.myspreadshop.comFollow us: Twitter/X @DCAUReview Instagram @DCAUReview
This week, we're talking about the big brands you'll be seeing this Christmas: #Funko, #Hasbro, and #Mattel. We look at their recent sales performance and break down what it means for YOU, the collector, as you plan your holiday shopping and budget. Are the big companies creating a must-buy toy aisle, or is it a sign to hold off?The main event: Funko. Their future looks shaky to some, and we debate whether the mass production of Funko Pops is heading for the same fate as the Beanie Babies craze. Is your collection value at risk?Plus, we get hyped about the return of standalone Toys R Us stores and what that could mean for finding those rare holiday exclusives!Join us every Sunday night for a new podcast topic and every Wednesday night for our "Wins and Wiffs" episode!0:00 Intro0:06:20 The Main Topic: Funko, Hasbro & Mattel Financials0:09:12 Funko Stock0:17:21 Hasbro's Revenue Growth vs. Mattel's Sales Decline0:20:42 Mattel's Limited Toy Stock Strategy vs. Hasbro's Oversupply0:23:00 Toys R Us is Back & Holiday Toy Sales0:29:33 Debate: Is the Funko Pop Craze Dying?0:32:00 The Beanie Babies Parallel0:34:04 The Bizarre Buc-ee's Gas Station Diversion#FunkoPops, #FunkoStock, #toycollectors, #vintagetoys #holidaytoys #ToysRUs, #ToyCollecting, #CollectibleNews, #ActionFigures, #FiveIdiotsTalkingToys, #FITT-----------------------
This Week on Toy Power Podcast; we welcome Canadian local: Colin Betts to our home town; as he celebrates his overseas Holiday trip! Kicking off the episode, we chat towards the Tron HasLab project - that obliviously is drowning. An exciting expansion to our Powers Of Grayskull - Masters Of The Universe Collection - with the addition of the Wolf Character: Red Shadow. Plus an incredible achievement from the crew of 'Yes Have Some' / 'Toy Anxiety' Podcast; as they reveal their much anticipated Kickstarter: Cryptoids - Mothman. The first of hopefully many figures in this unique Toyline. Then we hear directly from Colin about his travels thus far. A interesting comparison on the Retail front of what offerings one finds outside of their own Country too! Then, its a flurry of Gift-Giving! It feels like Christmas Day; with the amount of gifts shared around the table; and we are all incredibly thankful for the genorosity! Thankyou Colin!!Support the show: http://patreon.com/toypowerpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Who doesn't love the goofiness of a Python Patrol Serpentor? Maybe a spatchcocked (thanks Brink) chicken gun with an 8-track tape is more your thing? How about a guy with an engine on his back and wheels for hands and feet? No, I'm not talking about Turbo Teen. The only thing new for Star Wars is old. Talk about pricing people out. Something that went for $35 15 years ago is now $99. Or, the identical thing with a much smaller release was $10 less a year ago.
This episode I talk about Dusty Rhodes and his new Mattel LJN figure before 5 Star Eric joins me to make our NFL Week 12 Picks and "Andre" Karaoke closes the show
This episode I talk about Dusty Rhodes & his new Mattel LJN figure before 5 Star Eric joins me for NFL Week 12 Picks & "Andre" Karaoke closes out the show
Mallory McMorrow is a state senator representing Michigan’s 8th district and also a candidate for the United States Senate in the 2026 election. Mallory McMorrow currently serves as the Michigan Senate Majority Whip and is the first woman in state history to hold that position. A member of the Democratic Party, McMorrow represents the 8th district and previously represented the 13th district from 2019 to 2023. Prior to running for the Michigan Senate in 2018, McMorrow worked in industrial design for design firms and for companies such as Mattel and Gawker. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
When Sharon Price John was a kid, she spent a summer determined to climb a massive tree. After several falls, she reached the top, only to realize she didn't know how to get down. As darkness fell, she jumped into the pine needles below and learned a lasting lesson: tough goals can be fun. Years later, that same mindset guided her as CEO of Build-A-Bear Workshop, a company that was $49 million in the red. Instead of retreating, she climbed again, leading one of retail's greatest comebacks. In this episode, Sharon shares how to face fear with curiosity, lead with heart, and use storytelling to spark transformation in business and life. Sharon Price John is the President and CEO of Build-A-Bear Workshop, where she led one of retail's most inspiring turnarounds. She is also the author of Stories & Heart and Chair of the Toy Association. In this episode, Ilana and Sharon discuss (00:00) Introduction (02:17) The Truth Behind Every “Overnight” Success (03:53) The Tree That Taught Her Courage (07:16) Breaking Into Advertising (13:49) Climbing the Ladder at Mattel (19:41) When Her Startup Collapsed (28:55) Leading a Turnaround When Everything Seems Lost (32:44) The One Rule Every Great Leader Lives By (33:40) Avoiding the Mistakes That Cost You Most (38:12) The Strategy That Saved Build-A-Bear (50:57) Leading With Courage and Clarity Through Crisis(01:04:33) Storytelling as the Heart of Great Leadership Sharon Price John has served as President and CEO of Build-A-Bear Workshop since 2013, leading the brand from a $49 million loss to record profitability. Before Build-A-Bear, she held senior roles at Hasbro, Mattel, and Stride Rite Children's Group, earning a reputation as a turnaround expert. Sharon is the author of Stories & Heart and serves on the boards of Jack in the Box and First Book. She is also Chair of the Toy Association. Connect with Sharon: Sharon's LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sharon-price-john-26239820 Sharon's Website: storiesandheart.com Resources Mentioned: Sharon's Book, Stories & Heart: Unlock the Power of Personal Stories to Create a Life You Love: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1950863441 First Book: https://firstbook.org Build-A-Bear Workshop: https://www.buildabear.com Leap Academy: Ready to make the LEAP in your career? There is a NEW WAY for professionals to fast-track their careers and leap to bigger opportunities. Check out our free training today at https://bit.ly/leap--free-training
It's eggnog season—and not just any nog. We're talking Golden Egg Nog from the old Hood milk mafia, the stuff thick enough to count as a sin. Perfect time for a feel-good movie, right?Johnny Spoiler dives into one of the most unexpectedly uplifting movies of the last few years: TETRIS (2023). Yes, the movie about the video game. Yes, it's WAY better than it has any right to be.The true story of Henk Rogers, Nintendo's ride-or-die dealmaker who bet everything on a block-stacking dream.The real “Tetris Effect” and why the game showed up in players' dreams for decades.How Tetris became the best-selling video game of all time (until Minecraft pulled a power move).The wild rights battle involving Nintendo, Atari, Mirrorsoft, and Soviet bureaucracy.Why Taron Egerton continues to own the “real-guy-in-a-crazy-situation” movie niche.Our favorite retro shoutouts: Game Boy, Ninja Turtles arcade, Mario 3, Chrono Trigger, Star Fox, Final Fantasy VII, and more.And of course: one of the best post-2000 movie mustaches ever filmed.Ansel Elgort & Shirley MacLaine team up for the road-trip comedy Lucy Boomer.An 80s-style action thriller incoming: Trial By Combat from Renny Harlin & Aaron Eckhart.Mattel is making… a View-Master movie?! Let's speculate wildly.Binge Now.Stream it on Apple TV+ (or start that free trial), or hunt down the rumored DVD like it's a secret Soviet cartridge.Shout-out to Nikolaxnick on IG for tracking down our L.A. Story episode—300+ episodes still online!Career OpportunitiesBlackBerryLarry CrowneDrink the Nog.The Golden Kind.Debate The Grinch.Live your truth.$130 OFF Good Chop https://tr.ee/GoodChopJohnny
Scott starts off the show talking about the Kiss event he is attending in Vegas. To tie it back into wrestling figures, he is taking a figure of Chris Jericho to see if he can get it signed. Josh Thompson has a question for Jef and Scott to kick off the show. Also, the boys read off some news regarding Funko. In the news Fanatics gets an exclusive pillow buddy. Which Wrestler is it? FC toys shows off a rendering of a new set of retros. Prowrestling tee's announces their pre sale date for the O-ring wrestling hero's. The next Chyna figure from Mattel was announced for a future series. Also check Mattel Creations for some black Friday deals. And the boys round out the show with part 1 of questions from the wrestling figure message Boards. Steve Ozer answers multiple questions from the Mattel Maniacs. Pre Orders: Big Rubber Guys - Collectmajor.com - Hercules - Andre the Giant Big Bad Toy Store - Rush - Dralistico - Dragon Lee Fig Collections - shop.figurecollections.com The patriot Buff Bagwell Zombie Sailor - (zombiesailor.com) - Zombie is also on BBTS La Toonie Wrestling Toonstars KWK Shopkwk.com use code Fullyposeable to get 10 percent off your order. Also KWK's month of November is Dory Funk Thank you to everyone for keeping this show going!
In honor of 420, its time to look at some of the weirdest, and wackiest toys ever designed. You really have to wonder, what were they on when coming up with some of this stuff. From poorly thought out labels to accidental nightmare fuel, child endangerment and even a pre-cursor to Siri - combined with, water? Then it's another edition of The Team from the wonderful world of TMNT - but ONLY the Turtle variants. And the choices are not as simple as you might think! Support the show: http://patreon.com/toypowerpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In 1979, Mattel entered the console wars with the Intellivision, a machine that promised to outthink Atari with its 'intelligent television' design. This week, we explore how a toy company known for Barbie and Hot Wheels transformed into a technological powerhouse, creating one of the first true competitors to Atari's 2600. We discuss the innovations that made the Intellivision stand out, its 16-bit processor, unique keypad controllers, and focus on realism, and the missteps that led to its fall amid the 1983 crash. Our conversation dives into its visionary add-ons, the Blue Sky Rangers, and the legacy that still shapes console design today. Join us as we plug in and power on the story of Mattel's Intellivision on today's trip down Memory Card Lane.Read transcript
This episode I open up a brand new Hulk Hogan LJN from Mattel & talk about it & the Bruno Sammartino LJN figure from 1986 along with some Bruno repaints. 5 Star Eric joins me for NFL Week 11 Picks & "Andre" Karaoke closes the show
This week on the Toy Power Podcast; we welcome with open arms Mr. DaveyDamaged back into the studio, along with Trent! Yes! We are a Group of Five this round; and we start the show off with many many laughs! Dave updates us all around DvG before we get right into the Latest News! From HasLab Tron numbers to MOTU figures popping up on Australian shores; there is a lot to be on the pulse about! Loyal Subjects Wave 2 of their MASK line as well as Concept HeMan. Marvel Fans rejoice as there seems to be a never ending release of figures from various companies Plus a Lego set from a Different Galaxy, that has Frank very hyped! Thudercats, Mythic Legions, Godzilla & even Garfield are all covered as well. Then we take a trip via Radical Rewind - Back To The Future - with an absolutely awesome crowd, plus more DeLorean's than one can point a stick at! All this & a ton of laughs! Enjoy!!Support the show: http://patreon.com/toypowerpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
We're having internet problems, so no big long post this time. You're welcome.
President Trump announced a deal on Thursday that will lower the cost of some weight loss drugs for certain eligible Americans. CBS News medical contributor Dr. Celine Gounder explains the details of the deal and how much Americans can expect to pay. Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland died by suicide on Thursday. Officials say Kneeland, 24, shot himself after a short police chase. CBS News' Jason Allen reports. A beloved doctor and his family were murdered in their California home. A manhunt led to the arrest of a suspect investigators say was a career con man. "48 Hours" correspondent Natalie Morales reports. "KPop Demon Hunters" has been streamed more than 325 million times since its summer debut. But despite its massive fandom, the merchandise has been slow to roll out. Major toymakers Mattel and Hasbro only came on board after the movie's breakout success. In the series "Kindness 101," Steve Hartman revisits a story from 2020 to reflect on what he learned during a humbling afternoon on the hockey rink. TORO, the mascot for the Houston Texans, is being inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame. Andrew Johnson is the man behind the costume, who chose his career path in the 5th grade and trains like an athlete for his game day role. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Turbulence hits the skies as the FAA warns of widespread flight disruptions amid the ongoing government shutdown. Meanwhile, a new poll finds 59% of Americans blaming President Trump for stubborn inflation, especially the soaring cost of groceries, revealing how kitchen-table economics are shaping voter sentiment. Holiday spending tells a story of two Americas — as toy titans Mattel and Hasbro navigate a shifting market, and big-box rivals Target and Amazon battle for budget-conscious shoppers with bargain Thanksgiving deals.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
"El Rey del Corsé" murió solo y en la ruina, cinco días antes de su cumpleaños. Descubre la doble vida del diseñador de estrellas y el secreto que intentó llevarse a la tumba. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
The FigGuys - A Wrestling Action Figures & Collectibles Podcast
MOC. Loose. Collectors. Forever.It's Tuesday night, and The FigGuys are back in the saddle — Mike and Tom return to their regular timeslot for another action-packed, figure-filled episode that's all killer and no filler!This week's main event? The long-awaited WWE Ultimate Edition SmackDown Ring featuring Jacob Fatu has landed, and the guys are putting it to the test. From build quality to accessories, to that jaw-dropping Fatu Ultimate debut — this one's a serious contender for “release of the year.”But that's just the start…
Send us a textKids are talking to Alexa and seeing AI everywhere before they can even read, but most parents, aunties, and teachers are still trying to figure out what AI actually is. In this solo episode, I share why I shifted from talking about AI with adults to focusing on kids and families, and how that led to AiDigiCards and the ABCs of AI Activity Deck.Back the Kickstarter here!I talk about how I ended up as one of the voices of an AI avatar, what happened when ChatGPT hit in 2022, and why watching my nieces and nephew grow up with smart speakers pushed me to create a screen-free way to learn about AI. I also share how growing up as an Army brat and seeing big gaps between schools shaped my belief that a child's zip code should not decide whether they get to understand this technology.You will hear what is inside the ABCs of AI Activity Deck for ages 4 to 8, including 130 human-crafted cards that introduce concepts like data, prompts, and machine learning through stories, activities, games, and audio, all designed for quick, hands-on play at the kitchen table instead of on a tablet.If you want kids to meet AI in a way that feels safe, playful, and human, tune in and then check out the live Kickstarter to help bring this deck to life for more families and classrooms.Back the Kickstarter here!Support the showHelp us become the #1 podcast for AI for Kids. Support our kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/aidigicards/the-abcs-of-ai-activity-deck-for-kids Buy our debut book “AI… Meets… AI”Social Media & Contact: Website: www.aidigitales.com Email: contact@aidigitales.com Follow Us: Instagram, YouTube Books on Amazon or Free AI Worksheets Listen, rate, and subscribe! Apple Podcasts Amazon Music Spotify YouTube Other Like our content? patreon.com/AiDig...
This week we welcome Lynn Casey, a highly sought after thought leader, brand builder and futurist helping industry leading organizations make the biggest leaps possible. Lynn is known for her unique ability to spot patterns and connect the dots of emerging sociocultural, digital, economic, and behavioral trends and translate those into actionable strategies. She has a unique ability to unpack authentic human stories and use these for connection and creation that has earned her renown as a channel for innovation. Lynn has traveled the world to work with and guide companies as diverse as Mattel, Activision, Facebook, Instagram, Citibank, Estee Lauder, Shiseido, and StockX seeking a more connected and human world. Lynn has keynoted Future Trends and Leadership conferences in Abu Dhabi, Oslo, Prague, San Francisco, and New York, shining a light on critical shifts in post-pandemic behavior and desire and pulling forward a new hunger for belonging. Her work has led to rebrands, rebuilds, and regeneration for major household brands. She is credited with creating bold new thinking and inspiration for employee teams at YouTube, Twitter, Shiseido, Care.org, Dannon, Target, and more. Recently, she has led teams of executives from Fortune 100 companies into the field for embedded ethnographic work, creating new paths of understanding. Current projects include building a youth-helmed portal for a major new Gen Alpha IP brand, deep rethinking and regeneration of a legacy non-profit institution, as well as mentoring young leaders for a number of institutions and organizations including USC Marshall's School of Business, and the Marketing Academy. A sought-after master coach, lecturer, and thought leader, Lynn brings a unique perspective to the Warrior Community.(3:16) Why is Lynn doing this work and why now? (12:12) What makes a brand decide to bring in someone with Lynn's talents? (20:02) Lynn discusses the ‘Curiosity Quotient', and shares a story about her dad saying “Spend one hour a day on ideas”. (25:48) Lynn explores how “an idea is a thought in motion” and if we don't focus on the end result we can free ourselves to explore what is possible? (28:30) How does Lynn want to bring the Curiosity Quotient forward? (33:27) How has our society engaged in “optimization fatigue”? (36:01) What are some of Lynn's favorite patterns that she sees in her work, that she wants to bring attention to? (44:38) How does Lynn see her future and the impact of her work?Connect with Lisa Gralnekhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/lynn-casey-shinescout/ Subscribe: Warriors At Work PodcastsWebsite: https://jeaniecoomber.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/986666321719033/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeanie_coomber/Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeanie_coomberLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeanie-coomber-90973b4/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbMZ2HyNNyPoeCSqKClBC_w
Hasbro goes deep with their latest Spider-Man Classics wave of Marvel Legends action figures. Plus, get your yub nub on this Valentine's Day with Hasbro's Star Wars Black Series pink Ewok. And, Big Rubber Guys are facing stiff competition from Mattel's officially licensed LJN WWE Superstars. It's The Reluctant Adult Podcast. Email TheReluctantAdultPodcast@gmail.com TikTok @TheReluctantAdultPodcast Instagram @TheReluctantAdultPodcast Facebook The Reluctant Adult Podcast YouTube The Reluctant Adult Podcast Paul's eBay Auctions Save 10% with code RAP101 at New Meta Save and get Free Shipping from Entertainment Earth
Today it's Lennons turn in the hot seat as we dive into the world of TV. Lennons takes us through the process of bringing his vision to light and what it means to put the best collectables Australia has to offer onto our screens. From Cards, jerseys, LEGO, Star Wars, Arcade machines, 90s goodness and more, there is something for everyone on this great Australian made show. Trent and Frank have each had a segment, but is there another Toy Power star in the wings? Whats in store for the future? You'll have to listen to find out. Watch Cards and Collectables right now on the 9Go app! To Find out more about Lennon & his TV Series: Cards And Collectables - be sure to check it out on Facebook, Instagram: @CardsAndCollectablesTV & on TV via channel 9 Now app - www.cardsandcollectables.com.au To Find out more from Matt & his business: Sports Card World - be sure to check them out on Facebook, Instagram: @SportsCardsWorldAdelaide & in person at their store in the heart of Adelaide City - Regent Arcade - Shop 5/101 Rundle Mall - Open 7days a week! www.sportscardworld.com.auSupport the show: http://patreon.com/toypowerpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The boys start off the show talking about the Mattel LJN series. The boys go in depth about what the Hogan figure that hit everyone's doorsteps that pre-ordered. For people that didn't pre order, the boys announce when they can expect to see the LJN's on the pegs. In the news, Title Run Toys showed off the sketch art for a new figure.Mat Maniacs drops news and photos for their next tag team in their line. Zombie has in stock figures available as well. Glow in the dark Larry, Hannibal Lecture. La Toonie shows off another LJN inspired Macho Man. Mattel shows off their January pre order figure on Mattel creations. Also Play Mobil obtains the WWE license. Who are the first 4 they go with? For the Nostalgia segment, the boys talk about Rage in the cage for the Sega CD Pre Orders: Big Rubber Guys - Collectmajor.com Big Bad Toy Store - Rush - Dralistico - Dragon Lee Fig Collections - shop.figurecollections.com The patriot Buff Bagwell Zombie Sailor - (zombiesailor.com) - Zombie is also on BBTS La Toonie Wrestling Toonstars KWK Shopkwk.com use code Fullyposeable to get 10 percent off your order. Also KWK's month of November is Dory Funk Thank you to everyone for keeping this show going!
We explore Día de los Muertos as a ritual that nurtures community, imbues loss with meaning, and helps us process grief while also connecting through shared joy.Summary: We investigate how Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, rituals strengthen family ties and cultural identity, and learn about its evolution from a 3,000 year old practice to a global celebration. We look at key elements like the ofrenda and explore how commercialization—like Mattel's Day of the Dead Barbie—raises questions about balancing tradition with modern influences.This episode is made possible through the generous support of the John Templeton Foundation.How To Do This Practice: Set an intention: Begin by reflecting on who or what you want to honor, focusing on connection and gratitude rather than loss. Let this intention guide the energy of your ritual. Create a space of offering: Choose a spot in your home and make it a place of remembrance. Gather meaningful items like photos, flowers, candles, or anything that holds personal or ancestral significance. Invite the elements: Bring in water, fire, wind, and earth in simple ways—perhaps a candle, a glass of water, a plant, or a piece of fabric that moves gently in the air—to represent balance and harmony. Add a personal touch: Offer something that carries memory, like a favorite food, scent, or song of someone you love. These gestures transform remembrance into a living connection. Gather in community: Invite others to join you in building the altar or sharing stories and food. Coming together in this way turns memory into collective celebration and strengthens belonging. Reflect and release: When the ritual feels complete, take a few quiet moments to notice what you feel. Offer gratitude for the connections that remain and carry their presence forward into daily life. Scroll down for a transcription of this episode. Today's Guests:MICHELLE TELLÉZ is an Associate Professor in Mexican-American studies at Arizona State University.Learn more about Michelle: https://tinyurl.com/2ph3can7MATHEW SANDOVAL, a.ka. "Dr. Muerte," is an artist and Associate Professor at Arizona State University. He is a leading expert on Día de los Muertos.Learn more about Mathew: mathewsandoval.comRelated The Science of Happiness episodes: The Healing Effects of Experiencing Wildlife: https://tinyurl.com/bde5av4zWho's Always There For You: https://tinyurl.com/yt3ejj6wHow Thinking About Your Ancestors Can Help You Thrive: https://tinyurl.com/4u6vzs2wRelated Happiness Breaks:A Meditation on Love and Interconnectedness: https://tinyurl.com/ye6baxv3A Meditation to Connect With Your Roots: https://tinyurl.com/ycy9xazcTell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at happinesspod@berkeley.edu or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aapTranscription: https://tinyurl.com/jerruy47
FOR ETERNIA Official Podcast - Masters of the Universe Podcast
Welcome to The Eternia FOUR! We are excited to debut today our sixth episode of “The Eternia Four”, a talk show that features four Masters of the Universe related topics every episode. With hosts: Mike, Jay, Shane, and AJ today they discuss the following: TODAY'S TOPICS: What would be our ultimate dream panel at next year's MOTUNIVERSE He-Man and She-Ra Convention? What do we think of the latest New Masters of the Universe" Movie Reveals? How do you feel about Mattel excluding minicomics from their New Masters of the Universe: Origins "Cartoon Collection" (200X) line and do you think it will impact sales? Is it Good or Bad that the New "Masters of the Universe" Movie director Travis Knight is a He-Man fanboy? Please Support by LIKING, SUBSCRIBING and COMMENTING where able!
The FigGuys - A Wrestling Action Figures & Collectibles Podcast
Moc. Loose. Collectors. Forever.The FigGuys are back — and this week, we're LIVE in color with two of the biggest names behind the WWE action figure line: Steve Ozer and Magic Olmos from Mattel!This is the episode for every collector who's ever stared at a figure on the shelf and wondered, “How do they make this magic happen?”From the return of the LJN line hitting Target to the ongoing Monday Night Wars series, brand-new Elites, Ultimates, and beyond — Steve and Magic open up about the design process, creative challenges, and the passion that keeps the WWE line at the top of the toy world.We go deep on:
The News RundownSteve leads off with the latest tariff turmoil, as trade negotiations between the U.S. and Canada stall amid the Trump administration's response to an ad created and paid for by the Ontario government running in U.S. media whose key auto sector is endangered by Trump trade policies. They also explore luxury corporate earnings, where Hermès continues to shine, while. Gucci owner Kering struggles to regain footing. Meanwhile, Mattel falls short as retailers tighten orders ahead of the holidays.The discussion then turns to job cuts at Target, Amazon, GM, and Nestlé, revealing how automation, AI, and tariff pressures are reshaping corporate structures, before turning to Amazon's plan to replace up to 600,000 roles with robotics. They also cover ChatGPT's meteoric rise to No. 2 in product search, challenging Google and signaling a shift in how consumers discover products.Throughout, they underscore the precariousness of retail confidence heading into the holiday season — from Tractor Supply's cautious guidance to Deckers' HOKA sales slowdown.Blank Canvas Strategy: Finding Retail's 'New Earth'In the second half, Steve introduces "Blank Canvas Strategy"— a methodology for retailers to reimagine their businesses from the ground up, free from legacy constraints. Unlike Blue Ocean Strategy, which focuses on discovering compltey untapped markets, this framework helps brands reinvent their core business models before disruption makes them irrelevant.Steve urges leaders to recognize when their "planet" (current business model and market domain) becomes uninhabitable, and to begin building "Earth Two" — an alternative growth destination. Together, the hosts examine why incremental change doomed once-iconic retailers like Blockbuster, Sears, and Pier 1, and how others like Dick's Sporting Goods and RH (Restoration Hardware) succeeded by boldly innovating their business designs.They close by discussing how executives can carve out time, treasure, and talent for R&D, overcome the fear of cannibalization, and lead with the courage to disrupt themselves before competitors do.After the focused content discussion it's on to the most remarkable stories of the week, including Walmart's massive commitment to deploying 90 million supply-chain sensors to track pallets and fresh-food products.The episode wraps with what needs to be on everyone's radar screens. One recommendation: keep your eyes on "GU" the first U.S. store fromUniqlo's parent company, Fast Retailing. Located in New York's Soho neighborhood, Gu is a bright, energetic space with "eye-poppingly good prices" and strong shopper buzz. About UsSteve Dennis is a strategic advisor and keynote speaker focused on growth and innovation, who has also been named one of the world's top retail influencers. He is the bestselling authro of two books: Leaders Leap: Transforming Your Company at the Speed of Disruption and Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Disruption. Steve regularly shares his insights in his role as a Forbes senior retail contributor and on social media.Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada's Retail Marketing conference with leaders from Walmart & Google. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fourth year in a row, Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail, RTIH has named him a top 100 global though leader in retail technology and Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael's cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.
Justin Brady builds podcasts & DTC content for iconic brands. He has interviewed the founder of Starbucks and Hint, CEOs of Mattel and GoDaddy, Presidential candidates, Senators, US Ambassadors, #1 New York Times best-selling authors, and cable news personalities. He has written for The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and Harvard Business Review, Brady started The Creativity Cultivator podcast nearly a decade ago with early guests like Matthew E. May, David Burkus, Jessica Kriegel, and Dan Pink. The show would go onto be in the Apple Podcast new and noteworthy charts and the top 1% of podcasts per iHeart Media. Today, Brady has interviewed hundreds of A-List leaders, best-selling authors, CEOs, White House cabinet members, Hollywood celebrities, and billboard performing artists. Brady has hosted numerous livestreams as an anchor/interviewer including a Soar.com stream featuring guest like Rep. Justin Amash, and The Global Peter Drucker stream live from Vienna's Hofburg Palace where he interviewed guests like author Edgar Schein, Pierre Le Manh, CEO of PMI, and Bloomberg Editor, Sarah Green Carmichael. Brady talks to groups on communication and how to use trust channels to rapidly scale relationships. He also leads workshops on content and podcasting strategy. Previous talks have been for Boston Techstars, Nashville Entrepreneur Center, the Minnesota AMA, and Knowledge Summit in Colorado Springs. Brady hosted a talk show on iHeartRadio, interviewing guests like Pauly Shore, Mike Rowe, and six USA Presidential Candidates during the Iowa Caucuses. He wrote on creativity, tech, design thinking, and workplace culture for The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Quartz, The Creativity Post, and The Harvard Business Review. Brady owns Cultivate, a referral-only PR company. His clients have achieved hundreds of millions of impressions in Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, TIME, Axios, CNN, and through top influencers and YouTubers like Mr. Beast. To get in touch with Justin: https://justinkbrady.com/ To connect with Tyler: https://www.tylerkamerman.com/
Hasbro & Mattel Look To The Future#hasbro #mattel #kpopdemonhunters Support YHS Toy Anxiety on Patreon - http://www.patreon.com/yeshavesomeYHS Patreon members gain exclusive access to bonus weekly audio and video content, and also receive all episodes in full video format, early and ad free. For more info. and to support YHS, head to patreon.com/yeshavesome.-Follow YHS on Social media - http://www.instagram.com/yhspodcast-Love Toys? Check out Toy Anxiety - http://www.youtube.com/@ToyAnxiety-Want to send us something?YHS PO Box 82024Atlanta GA, 30354
This week on the Toy Power Podcast; we have not one, but two Special Guests join us in studio to chat all things Card Collecting! We have Matt; one of the Owners of Sports Card World - (The longest running Card Store in Australia! - bosting over 30years of Business!) Plus Lennon is present too; but more focus on Lennon, & his Cards & Collectables project on the next episode. As usual we ask our guest Matt some of our routine Get-To-Know-You-Questions. Then we dive into Matt's thoughts & knowledge around the exciting & addictive World of Card Collecting! Plus whilst running a Business dedicated to this very compulsive hobby. From Traveling Overseas & catching various Sports in Person, to arguments around who's going to work in the Store on Finals Day! This was a really Fun episode & was genuinely exciting to hear from another incredibly passionate form of Collecting. Then rounding out the show; we have a round table chat about what we are each Reading, Playing, Watching. To Find out more from Matt & his business: Sports Card World - be sure to check them out on Facebook, Instagram: @SportsCardsWorldAdelaide & in person at their store in the heart of Adelaide City - Regent Arcade - Shop 5/101 Rundle Mall - Open 7days a week! www.sportscardworld.com.au To Find out more about Lennon & his TV Series: Cards And Collectables - be sure to check it out on Facebook, Instagram: @CardsAndCollectablesTV & on TV via channel 9 Now app! www.cardsandcollectables.com.auSupport the show: http://patreon.com/toypowerpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
10-23-25 - Entertainment Drill - THU - w/Dale Hellestrae - Barbie/Mattel Has Released Second Stevie Nicks DollSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
10-23-25 - Entertainment Drill - THU - w/Dale Hellestrae - Barbie/Mattel Has Released Second Stevie Nicks DollSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The NHL has inked an official partnership with Kalshi and Polymarket, marking the first time a major sports league has teamed up with prediction markets. Kalshi co-founder and CEO Tarek Mansour discusses his platform's sports volumes, potential regulatory issues, and competition with sportsbooks. Airbnb has launched new products and features to remake user vacations, and CEO Brian Chesky is just getting started. Chesky discusses the future of his company and the impact of AI. Plus, Netflix streamer numbers missed expectations, Mattel's Barbie sales are down, and Meta has partnered with Blue Owl on a data center. Tarek Mansour - 19:20Brian Chesky - 27:39 In this episode:Tarek Mansour, @mansourtarek_Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Becky Quick, @BeckyQuickAndrew Ross Sorkin, @andrewrsorkinKatie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
KPop Demon Hunters is parntering with Mattel ot release toys. Plus, Kristin Cavallari says where her relationship with Lauren Conrad stands.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
It's a big news week at The Weekly Planet hq! We're getting into the reasons behind the bombing of Tron: Ares, trailers for Wonder Man, Invincible Season 4 and Send Help, Sigourney Weaver returning to the Alien and an update on all things Mattel and movies! Plus we talk the passing of two legends, Diane Keaton and Drew Struzan. Thanks for listening!New bonus book club episode and it's Predator vs Wolverine! Entire back catalogue also available now with let's play videos, exclusive pods, Q&As, ad-free feeds and early access on bigsandwich.co PLEASE be aware timecodes may shift up to a few minutes due to inserted ads.00:00 The Start00:45 Jim Carrey The Jetsons Movie06:37 RIP Diane Keaton & Drew Struzan13:00 Why Tron: Ares Bombed at Box Office28:30 Invincible S4 Trailer33:10 Wonder Man Trailer41:24 Send Help Trailer44:59 Sigourney Weaver ALIEN Return Maybe49:40 The Mattel Universe & Upcoming Movies59:05 What We Reading, What We Gonna Read01:05:48 Letters, It's Time For LettersSUBSCRIBE HERE ►► http://goo.gl/pQ39jNJames' Twitter ► http://twitter.com/mrsundaymoviesMaso's Twitter ► http://twitter.com/wikipediabrownPatreon ► https://patreon.com/mrsundaymoviesT-Shirts/Merch ► https://www.teepublic.com/stores/mr-sunday-moviesThe Weekly Planet iTunes ► https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-weekly-planet/id718158767?mt=2&ign-mpt=uo%3D4The Weekly Planet Direct Download ► https://play.acast.com/s/theweeklyplanetAmazon Affiliate Link ► https://amzn.to/2nc12P4 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
On today's episode of The Kristian Harloff Show, we're breaking down some of the biggest movie news of the week — including the reveal that Mattel's upcoming HE-MAN movie might be even bigger than Barbie! Mattel Studios says the He-Man (Masters of the Universe) sets were massive, with larger-than-life characters and production on a whole new scale. We'll also cover the brand-new Primate (2026) trailer, Jim Carrey's casting in the live-action Jetsons, new updates from the Percy Jackson series, and more! Plus, Kristian shares his thoughts on Andy Muschietti's comments about The Flash, the shocking $600M “Rise of Skywalker” cost, and whether Tron: Ares could be the end of the TRON franchise. Topics include: 1️⃣ “He-Man” Sets Were ‘Bigger Than Barbie' 2️⃣ Primate | Official Trailer (2026 Movie) Review 3️⃣ Jim Carrey To Lead Live-Action “The Jetsons” 4️⃣ “Percy Jackson” Series Casts Its Aphrodite 5️⃣ Muschietti Remains Proud Of His “The Flash” 6️⃣ “Rise of Skywalker” Cost Nearly $600M? 7️⃣ “TRON: Ares” Failure To End The Franchise?