Podcasts about winter spring

Random Access Memory or TWIG RAM is our shoot from the hip media agnostic discussion podcast. Join Birdman, Ken, David and Adam as we discuss media we've consumed either off the cuff or with a specific vague topic in mind…as well as a few off topic tangents that might pop into our heads along the way.This time, our full crew of geeks discuss the theatrical films so far this year that stick out to us. And while we do discuss the very obvious features that were highlights this last late Winter/Spring we thought it best to highlight some films you probably haven't seen or some that got lost in the shuffle of the bigger boys. Its a recommendation bonanza this week so get ready to go to streamers and/or premium VOD services cause these are ones that we think should not be missed.Jack into our Random access memories here on TWIG!Check out David on the Do You Even Movie? podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/do-you-even-movie/id1716401646Show Notes:Our LetterBox Accountshttps://letterboxd.com/birdmantwig/https://letterboxd.com/davidswma/https://letterboxd.com/kenreels/https://www.instagram.com/davidswatchingmoviesagain/https://www.instagram.com/doyouevenmoviepod/Your Geekmasters:Mike "The Birdman" - https://bsky.app/profile/birdmanguelph.bsky.socialAlex "The Producer" - https://bsky.app/profile/dethphasetwig.bsky.socialKen Reels - https://bsky.app/profile/kenreels.comFeedback for the show?:Email: feedback@thisweekingeek.netTwitter: https://twitter.com/thisweekingeekBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/thisweekingeek.netSubscribe to our feed: https://www.spreaker.com/show/3571037/episodes/feediTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/this-week-in-geek/id215643675Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3Lit2bzebJXMTIv7j7fkqqCastbox: https://castbox.fm/channel/id2162049Website: https://www.thisweekingeek.netJune 15, 2025

In this week's episode, I take a look at the movies and streaming shows I watched in Winter and Spring 2025. This week's coupon code will get you 25% off the ebook versions of my anthologies at my Payhip store: JUNE25 The coupon code is valid through June 17, 2025. So if you need a new ebook this summer, we've got you covered! TRANSCRIPT 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates   Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 252 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is May 23rd, 2025, and today we are looking at the movies and streaming shows I watched in Winter and Spring 2025. We missed doing an episode last week for the simple reason that the day before I wanted to record, we had a bad thunderstorm that knocked down large portions of my fence, so my recording time was instead spent on emergency fence repair. However, the situation is under control, so hopefully we'll be back to weekly episodes for the immediate future. And now before we get to our main topics, let's have Coupon of the Week and then a progress update on my current writing projects.   So first up, Coupon of the Week. This week's coupon code will get you 25% off the ebook version of all my short story anthologies at my Payhip store and that is JUNE25. As always, the coupon code and links will be available in the show notes. This coupon code is valid through June the 17th, 2025, so if you need a new ebook for this summer, we have got you covered.   And now an update on my current writing projects. Ghost in the Corruption is finished. It is publishing right now. In fact, I paused the publishing process to record this and so by the time this episode goes live, hopefully Ghost in the Corruption should be available at all ebook stores. My next main project now that Ghost in the Corruption is done will be Shield of Power and as of this recording I am 15,000 words into it. My secondary projects will be Stealth and Spells Online: Final Quest and I'm 97,000 words into that, so hopefully that will come out very shortly after Shield of Power and I'll also be starting Ghost in the Siege, the final book in the Ghost Armor series as another secondary project and I'm currently zero words into that. So that is where I'm at with my current writing projects.   In audiobook news, Ghost in the Assembly (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy) is now out and should be available at all the usual audiobook stores so you can listen to that if you are traveling for the summer. Recording of Shield of Battle (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills) is underway soon. I believe he's starting it this week, so hopefully we will have another audiobook in the Shield War series for you before too much longer. So that's where I'm at with my current writing projects.   00:02:17 Main Topic: Winter/Spring 2025 Movie Roundup   And now let's move on, without any further ado, to our main topic. Summer is almost upon us, which means it's time for my Winter/Spring 2025 Movie Roundup. As usual, the movies and streaming shows are listed in order for my least favorite to my most favorite. The grades are based upon my own thoughts and opinions and are therefore wholly subjective. With all of that said, let's get to the movies and our first entry is MacGruber, which came out in 2010 and in all honesty, this might be objectively the worst movie I have ever seen. The Saturday Night Live MacGruber sketches are a parody of the old MacGyver action show from the ‘80s. And so the movie is essentially the sketch stretched out to make a parody of an ‘80s action movie. It is aggressively dumb and crude. Its only redeeming feature is that the movie knows it's quite stupid and so leans into the stupidity hard. I'll say this in its favor, MacGruber has no pretensions that is a good movie and does not take itself seriously and then runs away hard with that fact. For that he gets a plus, but nothing else. Overall grade: F+   Next up is Down Periscope, which came out in 1996. Now the fundamental question of any movie is the one Russell Crowe shouted at the audience in Gladiator: “Are you not entertained?” Sadly, I was not entertained with Down Periscope. This wanted to be a parody of Cold War era submarine thrillers like The Hunt for Red October, I say wanted because it didn't really succeed. Kelsey Grammer plays Lieutenant Commander Thomas Dodge, an unorthodox US Navy officer who wants command of his own nuclear sub, but he's alienated a few admirals, which is not traditionally a path to career advancement in the military. Dodge gets his chance in a Navy wargame where he has to command a diesel sub against nuclear subs. Sometimes parodies are so good that they become an example of the thing they are parodying (Hot Fuzz and Star Trek: Lower Decks are excellent examples of this phenomenon). The trouble is that the movie takes itself too seriously and just isn't all that funny. A few funny bits, true, but not enough of them. In the end, this was dumb funny but didn't resonate with me the way other dumb funny movies like Dodgeball and Tropic Thunder did. Overall grade: D   Next up is Deadpool and Wolverine, which came out in 2024. Unlike Down Periscope, I was entertained with this movie, though both movies reside on the dumb funny spectrum. Deadpool and Wolverine is basically one long meta in-joke/love letter for the last 30 years of superhero movies. If you've seen enough of those movies, you'll find those movies funny, if occasionally rather tasteless. If you haven't seen enough of those movies, Deadpool and Wolverine will just be incomprehensible. The plot is that Wade Wilson AKA Deadpool gets pulled into some Marvel style multiverse nonsense. To save his universe from destruction, he needs to recruit a Wolverine since in his universe, Wolverine died heroically.   In the process, Deadpool stumbles across the worst Wolverine in the multiverse. Together they have to overcome their mutual dislike and attempt to save Deadpool's universe from destruction at the hands of a rogue branch of the Time Variance Authority. This means the movie can bring in a lot of cameos from past Marvel films. Hugh Jackman's performance really carries the movie on its back. Like I said, this movie is essentially one very long Marvel in-joke. I thought it was funny. I definitely think it can't stand on its own without having seen a sufficient number of the other Marvel movies. Overall grade: C   Our next movie is the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which came out in 2024. This is very loosely (with an emphasis on “very”) based on Operation Postmaster during World War II, when British Special Forces seized some Italian ships that had been supplying parts for German U-boats. It was entertaining to watch but it couldn't quite make up its mind tonally if it was a war thriller or a heist movie about Western desperados recruited into a crew. It kind of tried to do both at the same time, which killed the momentum. Like, the first parts of the movie where the protagonists take out a Nazi patrol boat and then free a prisoner from a base were good thriller stuff, but then the plot fused with the heist stuff and really slowed down through the middle forty percent or so. It was also oddly stylized with a lot of spaghetti western-style music that seemed out of place and some stuff just didn't make sense, like at the end after pulling off the mission, the protagonists were all arrested. That just seems bizarre since if anything, Winston Churchill and a lot of the British wartime leadership were enthusiastic about special operations and probably had too much confidence in the effectiveness of covert operations. So I did enjoy watching this, but I can see why it didn't make a lot of money at the box office. Overall Grade: C   Next up is The Gorge, which came out in 2025. This was a peculiar mix of science fiction, romance, and horror. For the romance part, perhaps shooting zombies together is a good idea for a first date. Before I dig into the movie, a brief rant. In one scene, a character is using a chainsaw with no protective gear whatsoever and she's not fighting zombies or anything in a situation where she has to pick up a chainsaw without preparing first. She's trimming branches to pass time. If you're using a chainsaw, at a minimum you want protective eyewear and headphones. Ideally you'd want chainsaw pants as well to reduce the chance of serious injury if you slip and swing the saw into your leg. Since I became a homeowner, I've used a chainsaw a number of times and believe me, you definitely want good eye and ear protection. This has been your public safety announcement for this movie review.   Anyway, loner former sniper Levi is approached by a high ranking intelligence officer giving him a mysterious job. He needs to guard a tower overlooking a mysterious mist-filled gorge for one year. On the other side of the gorge is another tower, guarded by an elite Lithuanian sniper named Drasa. Like Levi, Drasa has a fair bit of emotional damage and they're officially forbidden to communicate. However, they're both lonely and they soon start communicating over the gorge using telescopes and whiteboard messages. Eventually Levi gets emotionally close enough to Drasa to rig a zipline to cross the gorge and speak with her in person.   Unfortunately, it turns out the gorge is full of twisted creatures that storm out and attack and the job of the two snipers is to keep them contained. If Levi and Drasa want to save their lives, they'll need to unravel the dark secret within the gorge. This movie was interesting and I enjoyed watching it, but it falls apart if you think about it too much (or at all). Like the chainsaw thing I ranted about above. The entire movie runs on that sort of logic. That said, I appreciate how the filmmakers were trying something new instead of something like Deadpool and Wolverine. Additionally, this was an Apple+ movie and it's interesting how Apple's approach to streaming is to just make a whole bunch of random stuff that's totally distinct, from Ted Lasso to Mythic Quest to Severance to The Gorge. It's like, “we have more money than most countries, so we're going to make Ted Lasso because we feel like it.” Then again, Apple+ is apparently losing a billion dollars every year, so maybe they'll eventually change their minds about that approach. Overall Grade: B-   Next up is Click, which came out in 2006. Cross It's a Wonderful Life with A Christmas Carol and the comedic style of Adam Sandler and you end up with Click. Basically Sandler plays Michael Newman, a workaholic architect with a demanding boss and increasingly strained relationship with his wife and children due to his workload. In a fit of exasperation with his situation, he goes to Bed Bath and Beyond, where he encounters an eccentric employee named Morty (played entertainingly by Christopher Walken). Morty gives him a remote control that lets him fast forward through time, which Michael then uses to skip the boring and tedious parts of his life, but he overuses the remote and goes too far into the future and sees the disastrous results of his current life choices. Definitely a story used in A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life but effectively told and I was entertained (rather on the crude side, though). Overall Grade: B- Next up is Mr. Deeds, which came out in 2002. This was actually one of Adam Sandler's better movies, in my opinion. It was a remake of the ‘30s movie Mr. Deeds Goes To Town. In this new version, Sandler plays Longfellow Deeds, a popular pizzeria owner in a small New Hampshire town. Unbeknownst to Deeds, his uncle is the owner of a major media mega corporation and when he dies, Deeds is his legal heir. When the company's CEO and chief lawyer arrive at the pizzeria to inform him of this fact, Deeds goes to New York and soon finds himself involved in the CEO's sinister machinations. Yet he happens to rescue an attractive woman from a mugger, but there is more to her than meets the eye. The movie was funny and not as crude, well, not quite as crude as some of Sandler's other stuff. It had good story structure and several great lines, my favorite of which was “he was weak and cowardly and wore far too much cologne.”   Sandler's movies, in a strange way, are often very medieval. Like various medieval fables had a savvy peasant outwitting pompous lords, greedy merchants, and corrupt clergymen. The best Adam Sandler protagonist tends to be a good natured everyman who defeats the modern equivalent of medieval authority figures- evil CEOs, arrogant star athletes, sinister bureaucrats and so forth. Overall Grade: B     Next up is House of David, which came out in 2025 and this is basically the story of King David from the Bible told in the format of an epic fantasy TV series. Like if someone wanted to do an epic fantasy series about Conan the Barbarian, it could follow the same stylistic format as this show. And of course Conan and David followed a similar path from adventurer to king. Anyway, if one were to pick a part of the Bible from which to make a movie or TV series, the story of David would be an excellent choice because David's life was so dramatic that it would hardly require any embellishments in the adaptation. The story is in the Books of First and Second Samuel. King Saul is ruling over the Israelites around 1000 BC or so, but has grown arrogant. Consequently, God instructs the prophet Samuel to inform Saul that the kingdom will be taken away from him and given to another. God then dispatches Samuel to anoint David as the new king of Israel. David is a humble shepherd but then enters Saul's service and undertakes feats of daring, starting with defeating the giant Goliath and leading Saul's troops to victory and battle against Israel's numerous enemies. (The Iron Age Middle East was even less peaceful than it is now.) Eventually, Saul's paranoia and madness gets the best of him and he turns on David, who flees into exile. After Saul and his sons are killed in battle with the Philistines. David returns and becomes the acknowledged king after a short civil war with Saul's surviving sons and followers.   If Saul's fatal flaw was his arrogance of pride, David's seems to have been women. While the story of David and Bathsheba is well known, David nonetheless had eight wives (most of them at the same time) and an unknown but undoubtedly large number of concubines. Naturally David's children from his various wives and concubines did not get along and David was almost deposed due to the conflicts between his children. Unlike Saul and later David's son Solomon, David was willing to repent when a prophet of God informed him of wrongdoing and to be fair to David, monogamy was generally not practiced among Early Iron Age Middle Eastern monarchies and dynastic struggles between brothers from different mothers to seize their father's kingdoms were quite common, but enough historical digression.   Back to the show, which covered David's life up to the death of Goliath. I thought it was quite well done. Good performances, good cinematography, excellent battles, good set design and costuming, and a strong soundtrack. All the actors were good, but I really think the standout performances were Stephen Lang as Samuel, Ali Sulaman is King Saul, Ayelet Zurer as Saul's wife Queen Ahinoam, and Davood Ghadami as David's jerkish (but exasperated and well-intentioned) eldest brother Eliab. Martyn Ford just looks extremely formidable as Goliath. You definitely believe no one in their right mind want to fight this guy.   Making fiction of any kind based on sacred religious texts is often tricky because no matter what you do, someone's going to get mad at you. The show has an extensive disclaimer at the beginning of each episode saying that it is fiction inspired by the Bible. That said, House of David doesn't really alter or deviate from the Biblical account, though it expands upon some things for the sake of storytelling. Queen Ahinoam is only mentioned once in the Bible as the wife of Saul, but she has an expanded role in the show and is shown as the one who essentially introduces Saul to the Witch of Endor. Goliath also gets backstory as one of the “Anakim,” a race of giants that lived in Canaan in ancient times, which is something that is only mentioned in passing in the Old Testament. Overall, I enjoyed the show and I hope it gets a second season.   What's interesting, from a larger perspective, is to see how the wheel of history keeps turning. In the 1950s and the 1960s, Biblical epics were a major film genre. The 10 Commandments and Ben Hur with Charlton Heston are probably the ones best remembered today. Eventually, the genre just sort of ran out of gas, much the way superhero movies were in vogue for about 20 years and began running out of steam around 2023 or so. Like, I enjoyed Thunderbolts (which we're going to talk about in a little bit), but it's not going to make a billion dollars the way Marvel stuff often did in the 2010s. The wheel just keeps turning and perhaps has come back around to the popularity of Biblical epics once more. Overall Grade: A   Next up is Chef, which came out in 2014. I actually saw this back in 2021, but I watched it again recently to refresh my memory and here are my thoughts. I quite liked it. It's about a chef named Carl Casper, who's increasingly unhappy with his work after he gets fired over a Twitter war with a writer who criticized his cooking. Carl is out of options and so he starts a food truck and has to both rediscover his love of cooking and reconnect with his ex-wife and 10-year-old son. In Storytelling: How to Write a Novel (my book about writing), I talked about different kinds of conflict. Carl's conflict is an excellent example of an entirely internal conflict. The critic is an external enemy, but he's basically the inciting incident.   Carl's real enemy is his own internal conflict about art versus commerce and a strained relationship with his son. I recommend the movie. It was rated R for bad language, but there's no nudity or explicit sexual content and honestly, if you've ever worked in a restaurant kitchen or a warehouse, you've heard much worse in terms of language. The movie also has an extremely valuable lesson: stay off social media when you're angry. Overall Grade: A     Next up is Thunderbolts, which came out in 2025 and I thought this was pretty good, both very dark and yet with quite a lot of humor to balance the darkness. Former assassin Yelena Belova has been working as a mercenary for the sinister director of the CIA, Valentina de Fontaine (now there's a villain name if there ever was one). Yelena has grown disillusioned with her life and career and is suffering from increasing depression since she never really dealt with the death of her sister. Valentina promises her one last job, only for Yelena to realize that Valentina decided to dispose of all her freelance contractors at once, which includes US Agent and Ghost (previously seen in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Antman and the Wasp). In the process of escaping Valentina's trap, Yelena stumbles across a mysterious man who identifies himself as Bob, who has no memory of how he got there, but shows increasingly unusual abilities. Yelena wants to deal with Valentina's betrayal, but it turns out one of Valentina's science projects has gotten out of control and is threatening the world. The movie was well constructed enough that it didn't rely too heavily on previous Marvel continuity. It was there, but you probably wouldn't be lost without it. It almost feels like Marvel looked at the stuff they did the last couple of years and said, okay, a lot of this didn't work, but makes great raw material for new things. It helped that the central conflict was in the end, very human and about the characters, not stopping a generic villain from getting a generic doomsday device. Overall Grade: A   Next up is The Hound of the Baskervilles, which came out in 1988. This is a movie length episode of The Return of Sherlock Holmes television series, which had Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes and Edward Hardwicke as Dr. Watson. The plot deals with Sir Henry Baskerville, the American heir to an English manor set in the Windswept moors of Dartmoor. Apparently there's an ancestral curse laid over the Baskerville estate that manifests in the form of a spectral hound. Local rumors hold that the previous holder of the manor, Sir Charles Baskerville, was killed by the ghostly hound and many of the local people fear it. The local physician, Dr. Mortimer, is so worried about the hound that he comes to Sherlock Holmes for help. Holmes, of course, is skeptical of any supernatural explanation and soon becomes worried that an extremely subtle and sinister murderer is stalking Sir Henry.   Jeremy Brett's version of Holmes is, in my opinion, the best portrayal of the character and Edward Hardwicke's version of Watson is a calm, reliable man of action who sensibly takes a very large revolver with him when going into danger. Definitely worth watching, Overall grade: A   Next up is Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which came out in 2024. The 2020s have been a downer of a decade in many ways, but on the plus side, between Super Mario Brothers and Sonic the Hedgehog, people have finally figured out how to make good video game movies, so we've got that going for us. Sonic 3 was an excellent kids movie, as were the first two in the trilogy. In this one Sonic is living with Knuckles and Tails under the care of their human friends Tom and Maddy, but then a dark secret emerges. The government has been keeping a Superpowered hedgehog named Shadow in stasis and Shadow has broken out. It's up to Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails to save the day.   Meanwhile, Dr. Robotnik is in a funk after his defeat at Sonic's hands in the last movie, but then his long lost grandfather, Gerald Robotnik returns seeking the younger Dr. Robotnik's help in his own sinister plans. Keanu Reeves was great as Shadow (think John Wick if he was a superpowered space hedgehog in a kid's movie). Jim Carrey famously said he would retire from acting unless a golden script came along and apparently that golden script was playing Dr. Ivo Robotnik and his evil grandfather Gerald. To be fair, both the Robotniks were hilarious.   It is amusing that Sonic only exists because in the 1990s, Sega wanted a flagship video game character that won't get them sued by either Nintendo or Disney. It is also amusing that the overall message of the Sonic movies seems to be not to trust the government. Overall Grade: A   Next up is Paddington in Peru, which came out in 2024. This is also an excellent kids' movie. In this installment, Paddington has settled into London with the Brown family and officially become a UK citizen. However, he receives a letter from Peru that his Aunt Lucy has mysteriously disappeared into the jungle. Distraught, Paddington and the Browns set off for Peru at once. Adventures ensue involving mysterious lost treasure, a crazy boat captain, and an order of singing nuns who might not quite be what they appear. Anyway, it's a good kids' movie. I think Paddington 2 was only slightly better because Hugh Grant as the chief villain, crazy actor Phoenix Buchanan, was one of those lightning in the bottle things like Heath Ledger as the Joker in the Dark Knight. Overall Grade: A   Now for the two best things I saw in Winter/Spring 2025. The first of them is Andor Season Two, which came out in 2025. Star Wars kind of has an age range the way Marvel stuff does now. What do I mean by that? In the Marvel comics and some of the TV series like Jessica Jones, they get into some really dark and heavy stuff, very mature themes. The MCU movies can have some darkness to them, but not as much because they're aiming at sort of escapist adventures for the general audience. Then there are kid shows like Spidey and Friends that a relative of mine just loved when he was three. You wouldn't at all feel comfortable showing a 3-year-old Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but Spidey and Friends is just fine.   Star Wars now kind of has that age range to its stuff and there's nothing wrong with that. Sometimes you want to see a dark meditation upon human nature. Sometimes you need something kid friendly to occupy the kids you're babysitting and sometimes you just want to relax and watch Mando and Baby Yoda mow down some space pirates or something. All that said, Andor Season Two is some of the darkest and the best stuff that Star Wars has ever done. It successfully shifts genres from Escapist Pulp Space Fantasy to a gritty Political/Espionage Thriller. We in the audience know that the emperor is a Sith Lord who can use Evil Space Magic and wants to make himself immortal, but that fact is totally irrelevant to the characters. Even though some of the characters are high ranking in their respective organizations, this is essentially a “ground's eye” view of the Rebellion and life under the Empire.   In some ways, this is like Star Wars' version of Wolf Hall (which we're going to talk about shortly), in that we know how it ends already, but the dramatic tension comes from the harrowing emotional journey the characters undertake on the way to their inevitable destinations. Cassian Andor is now working for the nascent Rebellion under the direction of ruthless spymaster Luthen Rael. Mon Mothma is in the Imperial Senate, covertly funneling money to the Rebellion and realizing just how much the Rebellion will require of her before the end. Syril Karn, the ineffective corporate cop from Season One, has fallen in love with the ruthless secret police supervisor Dedra Meero, but he's unaware that Director Krennic has ordered Meero to manufacture a false flag incident on the planet Gorman so the planet can be strip-mined for resources to build the Death Star and Dedra has decided to use Syril to help accomplish it. All the actors do amazing jobs with their roles. Seriously, this series as actors really should get at least one Emmy. Speaking of Director Krennic, Ben Mendelson returns as Orson Krennic, who is one of my favorite least favorite characters, if you get my drift. Krennic is the oily, treacherous middle manager we've all had to deal with or work for at some point in our lives, and Mendelson plays him excellently. He's a great villain, the sort who is ruthless to his underlings and thinks he can manipulate his superiors right up until Darth Vader starts telekinetically choking him. By contrast, the villain Major Partagaz (played by Anton Lesser) is the middle manager we wish we all had - stern but entirely fair, reasonable, and prizes efficiency and good work while despising office drama. Unfortunately, he works for the Empire's secret police, so all those good qualities are in the service of evil and therefore come to naught. Finally, Episode Eight is one of the most astonishing episodes of TV I've ever seen. It successfully captures the horror of an episode of mass violence and simultaneously has several character arcs reach their tumultuous climax and manages to be shockingly graphic without showing in a lot of actual blood. Andor was originally supposed to be five seasons, but then Peak Streaming collapsed, and so the remaining four seasons were compressed down to one. I think that was actually to the show's benefit because it generates some amazing tension and there's not a wasted moment. Overall Grade: A+   Now for the second of my two favorite things I saw, and that would be Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, which came out in 2024, but I actually saw it in 2025. This is a dramatization of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall novels about the rise and fall of Thomas Cromwell, who is King Henry VIII's chief lieutenant during the key years of the English Reformation. The first series came out in 2015, but the nine year gap between this and between the second series and the first series actually works quite well since Thomas Cromwell looks like he ages nine years in a single year (which may be what actually happened given how stressful working for someone like Henry VIII must have been). Anyway, in The Mirror and the Light, Cromwell has successfully arranged the downfall and execution of Anne Boleyn, Henry's previous queen. Though Cromwell is haunted by his actions, Henry still needs a queen to give him a male heir, so he marries Jane Seymour. Cromwell must navigate the deadly politics of the Tudor Court while trying to push his Protestant views of religion, serve his capricious master Henry, fend off rivals for the King's favor, and keep his own head attached to his shoulders in the process. Since Cromwell's mental state is deteriorating due to guilt over Anne's death and the downfall of his former master Cardinal Wolsey and Henry's a fickle and dangerous master at the best of times, this is an enterprise that is doomed to fail. Of course, if you're at all familiar with the history of Henry's reign and the English reformation, you know that Cromwell's story does not have a happy ending. Rather, Wolf Hall is a tragedy about a talented man who didn't walk away from his power until it was too late and he was trapped. Anyway, in my opinion, Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light was just excellent. All the performances were superb. Mark Rylance is great as Cromwell and has some excellent “WTF/I'm SO screwed” expressions as Cromwell's situation grows worse and worse. Bernard Hill played the Duke of Norfolk in the first series, but sadly died before Series Two, so Timothy Spall steps in and he does an excellent job of channeling Hill's portrayal of the Duke as an ambitious, crude-humored thug.   Damien Lewis is amazing as Henry VIII and his performance captures Henry's mixture of charisma, extreme vindictiveness, and astonishing self-absorption. The real Henry was known for being extremely charming even to the end of his life, but the charm was mixed with a volcanic temper that worsened as Henry aged and may have been exacerbated by a severe head injury. Lewis's performance can shift from that charm to the deadly fury in a heartbeat. The show rather cleverly portrays Henry's growing obesity and deteriorating health by having Lewis wear a lot of big puffy coats and limp with an impressively regal walking stick.   Overall, I would say this and Andor were the best thing I saw in Winter/Spring 2025. I wouldn't say that Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light is an accurate historical reputation. In real life, Cromwell was rather more thuggish and grasping (though far more competent than his rivals and his master) and of necessity the plot simplifies historical events, but it's just a superb historical drama. Overall Grade: A+ As a final note, I should say that of all the 2024 and 2025 movies mentioned here, the only one that actually saw in the theater was Thunderbolts, and I hadn't actually planned to see it in theaters, but a family member unexpectedly bought tickets for it, so I went along. Which I suppose is the movie industry's biggest problem right now. The home viewing experience is often vastly superior to going to the theater. The theater has the big screen and snacks, but at home you can have a pretty nice setup and you can pause whatever you want, go to the bathroom, and you can get snacks for much more cheaply. That's just much more comfortable than the movie theater.   Additionally, going to the theater has the same serious problem as booking a flight in that you're an enclosed space with complete strangers for several hours, which means you're potentially in a trust fall with idiots. All it takes is one person behaving badly or trying to bring their fake service dog to ruin or even cancel a flight, and the theater experience has much of the same problem, especially since the standards for acceptable public behavior have dropped so much from a combination of widespread smartphone adoption and COVID. The difference between the movie industry and the airline industry is that if you absolutely have to get from New York to Los Angeles in a single day, you have no choice but to book a flight and hope for the best. But if you want to see a movie and are willing to exercise some patience, you just have to wait a few months for it to turn up on streaming. I'm not sure how the movie industry can battle that, but sadly, it is much easier to identify problems than to solve them.   So that is it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show useful. A reminder that you can listen to all the back episodes at https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe, stay healthy, and see you all next week.

本集简介 / Episode Summary / エピソード概要：中文： 这期节目我想和大家聊聊中美学校在放假安排上的不同。比如我现在正在放的春假，是美国学校里常见的假期，但在中国其实并不普遍。我会用北京和我现在所在学校的校历来做一个简单的对比，让大家看看中美两国在假期设计上的差别。你们国家的学校是怎么放假的呢？欢迎留言告诉我！如果您喜欢《五分钟中文》，请订阅、分享、转发节目。描述栏也有支持链接，感谢收听！English: In this episode, I talk about how school breaks are arranged differently in China and the U.S. For example, I'm currently on Spring Break—something that's quite common in American schools, but not so common in China. I compare the academic calendars from a Beijing high school and my own school to give you a clearer picture. How are school holidays scheduled in your country? If you enjoy 5 Minute Chinese, please subscribe, share, and spread the word! You'll also find a support link in the description. Thanks for listening!日本語： 今回のエピソードでは、中国とアメリカの学校の休み方の違いについてお話しします。たとえば、今私が過ごしている春休みはアメリカの学校ではよくありますが、中国ではあまり一般的ではありません。北京の高校と今私が働いている学校の年間スケジュールを比較しながら、両国の休暇制度の違いを紹介します。あなたの国の学校はどのように休みを取っていますか？《五分間の中国語》が気に入ったら、ぜひフォロー・シェア・拡散をお願いします。概要欄にサポートリンクもあります。ご視聴ありがとうございました！发短信给我！ Send me a text!Support the show如果您喜欢我的播客，您可以通过成为订阅者来支持我（链接在下方）。您的支持对我来说是巨大的鼓励。但无论您是否选择捐款，我都很感激有您成为听众。能够每周与您分享几分钟的时间，对我来说是莫大的荣幸。❤️ If you enjoy my podcast, you can support me by becoming a subscriber (links below). Your support is a huge encouragement to me. But whether or not you choose to donate, I'm grateful to have you as a listener. It's an honor to share a few minutes with you each week. ❤️ ☕

In this week's episode, we take a look at marketing for writers, and discuss how it can both benefit and hinder writers. This coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Dragonskull: Fury of the Barbarians, Book #5 in the Dragonskull series (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills), at my Payhip store: BARBARIAN50 The coupon code is valid through May 2, 2025. So if you need a new audiobook for spring, we've got you covered! TRANSCRIPT 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates   Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 247 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is April 11th, 2025, and today we are looking at marketing challenges for writers.   First, let's start with Coupon of the Week. This week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Dragonskull: Fury of the Barbarians, Book Five in the Dragonskull series (as excellent narrated by Brad Wills) at my Payhip store. That code is BARBARIAN50. We will have the coupon code in the show notes along with links to the store. This coupon code is valid through May 2, 2025, so if you need a new audiobook for spring, we've got you covered.   Now let's have an update on my current writing and audiobook projects. I am done with the rough draft of Shield of Battle and its accompanying short story, Raven's Hunt. I am currently editing them and making good progress on that. The book should come out either right before or right after Easter, with right after being the more likely option the way it looks right now. I'm also 14,000 words into Ghost in the Corruption, which will be my main project once Shield of Battle comes out. Audio recording is still underway for Shield of Deception and Ghost in the Assembly. So more updates on that to come. So that's where I'm at with my current writing projects.   00:01:17 Question of the Week   And now let's take a look at Question of the Week. Question of the Week is intended to inspire enjoyable discussions of interesting topics. This week's question, what is the best TV show you started watching in 2025 (if any)? No wrong answers, obviously.   Justin says: Television shows? The TV in my house is used for video games and movies. It has been 18 years since I watched any TV shows. Surabhi says: Nowadays the only non-Marvel series I watch are animes like Doraemon and Shinchan XD.   Perry says: I never watched a lot of TV but I do catch the odd European football or hockey game. That said, I'm enjoying The Wheel of Time.   Sam says: Clarkson's Farm. He might be a love him/hate him chap, but he certainly does make for entertaining shows. It also shows just how fickle the farming industry can be and shines a much needed light on the issues they face.   I would like to second Sam's recommendation of Clarkson's Farm. It's definitely well worth watching if you have access to Amazon Prime. Bonnie says:  I'm totally out of the loop. Haven't really watched any TV since I binged Avengers and Star War when home with Covid in 2021. I read during downtime.   Andrew says: Tracker is okay. Matlock is good, well-written. I want to like Watson, but have given up. Dark Winds is excellent. 1923 got so dark, I quit. Landman started great, got worse when wife character entered the picture. Re-watching Lonesome Dove. Love it.   David says: The Blacklist.   Michael says: No particular series as I don't really watch much on TV, but a shout out to the Japanese NHK World Channel, which is essentially their international service in English available to watch live on their website, at least in my country or via their app. There's so much good content on there, really interesting documentaries, news features, Japanese shows, and of course the highlights of the Sumo tournaments.   Larry says: Starting The Outpost.   John says: My brother has recommended Wolf Hall. My most anticipated series is Andor. I think of what I watched this year thus far my guilty pleasure was Reacher, most emotional was 1923, most cerebral has been Severance, and funniest has been The Residence. No favorite standout yet.   Juana says: Tracker.   William says: Poker Face was enjoyable.   For myself, I think it would be Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light about the downfall of Thomas Cromwell in the court of Henry VIII. I'll have more to say about that later in my Winter/Spring 2025 Movie Roundup post in a few weeks.   00:03:29 Main Topic: Marketing   Now let's move on to our main topic, writing adjacent activities: marketing. This is part of my podcast series about what I call writing adjacent activities. What do I mean by this? I'm talking about the tasks that seem like they're part of the writing process but really belong in a different category. These tasks are important, don't get me wrong, but they can also be a pitfall if you spend too much time on them or don't use that time correctly. In this series, we are focusing on a few of these tasks and how they can benefit or hinder your writing process, even though they seem like good uses of time and may in fact be beneficial. In this episode, we will talk about marketing. For the self-published author, it is an absolutely essential thing to do. Even traditionally published authors are becoming involved in their marketing or hiring marketing firms apart from their publishers to help with that work. Even important tasks can still take time away from the most important one, writing.   First, how does marketing work for writers in the first place? Even as traditional advertising and print media like newspapers and periodicals has all disappeared by 2025, there are still many, many ways to advertise a book. Here are some examples:   Social media and I don't mean ads, I mean posting content about your book or engaging readers on social media about your book. It's become increasingly common in this age of a video-based social media like TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels for authors to post short clips about them interacting with their book or doing things with their book and so forth. And that is, I think, a distinct category from ads.   Ads of course are another type of marketing such as Amazon Ads, Facebook, BookBub, etc.   An email newsletter where you send out an email to your newsletter subscribers when a book comes out   Having an author website   Group promotions where you work together with a group of authors to promote   Doing interviews with podcasts, local media, etc. (though these days podcasts have essentially superseded local media)   Sending out advanced reader copies   Permafree/discounts   I should note that of everything on this list, I've done them all except for advanced reader copies, which I never really bothered to do because I write so fast that it seems to be kind of pointless at that point. Now I got to admit that list seems overwhelming, but you're not going to do them all simultaneously. Most authors pick a few from the list and then focus on them, and then some of them take some work upfront like setting up your author website and then it's less work to maintain it and update it as you go along than it is to set it up to begin with.   For example, making many of my series starters permafree has been an extremely successful strategy for me. For an author who only has two books, that strategy would not be as effective, but if you have a series of nine books then that is a good idea.   So why is it beneficial to market your books? A couple years ago (and I've told this story before, but it bears repeating), I was at a Subway waiting in line to order lunch. The person in front of me was staring at the menu in great confusion. “Does this shop sell submarine sandwiches?”, she finally asked the sandwich artist. Even with 40,000 locations worldwide and millions of dollars in advertising each year, this person was completely unaware of Subway's offerings.   This moment made me realize that marketing must be constant even for big legacy brands like Subway or Coca-Cola because there is always someone out there who isn't familiar with what you have to offer them. If multi-billion dollar corporations like Coca-Cola and Subway have people who haven't heard of them, how much more [work is there for] indie authors like us? There is in my opinion, an erroneous sentiment that getting too involved in marketing as an author somehow cheapens your work, devalues your art, or means that you're not as committed to your art. That sentiment is frankly, in my opinion, self-destructive and keeping a lot of people from reaching new readers or keeping existing ones as new books come out.   Marketing is necessary and needs to be ongoing to work. It's important to remember that readers love new books and want to know more about them. Your goal is to just let them know what's available and how to find your work. You're not being annoying by creating an ad or sending out a newsletter when a new book drops. Even if you have loyal readers, it's likely only a very tiny percentage of them are obsessively checking ebook stores daily for your latest publications. Social media and newsletters in particular are effective ways to let people know when the latest content is ready or can help them get excited for an upcoming release. Just as importantly, good marketing can help you find people who are interested in your genre or read authors similar to you.   So marketing is a good thing and it is in fact necessary if you want to have a career as an indie author or sell books in any quantities. However, it can become a pitfall that takes time away from actually writing new books. So when can it be a pitfall? There are about five different ways it can become a hindrance to writing.   #1: The most obvious pitfall is that time spent working on marketing is time not spent on writing. Although marketing is an essential part of how writers make income, it's only going to go so far compared to creating new books. This is in fact a decision I've had to make many times where if there's only so many hours in the day, and if I have an hour and I have to choose an hour spent fiddling with ads to try and optimize them to sell old books or to focus on writing new books, very often I have decided to focus on writing new books. Or if I have ads that are underperforming, I just shut them off and don't think about them until I have a free moment when the current book is done because writing the latest book is where my attention and priority should be. #2: The second pitfall is that spending too much time on social media or various forums like Reddit can also skew your perspective and give you an unreal view of the preferences of your readership. You'll likely only engage with a small percentage of your readers online. Just because they're reaching out to you or sharing their opinions online doesn't mean that their opinion matches the rest of your readership. An example of this is when Warner Brothers thought there was a massive demand for the Snyder Cut of the Justice League movie based on an online fan campaign and spent a very large amount of money for the recut of the movie, only for it to have a fairly modest audience that didn't recoup the cost. Later it came out that much of the Twitter campaign for the recut were bot accounts, people with multiple social media accounts, or people that ultimately pirated the movie instead of getting an HBO subscription to watch it when it finally became available on streaming. The Internet is a very useful tool, but it's best to take it with a grain of salt and remember that that just because one person is saying something on the Internet doesn't mean there are ten or even a hundred silent people who share their views. As with the example with the Justice League movie, large businesses have run into that trouble where they assume just because a particular audience segment is very loud on social media, therefore it must be a large segment when in fact it turns out to be just a very loud minority that ultimately isn't going to have much buying power. So that is something to keep in mind when you examine [social media], that opinions expressed online may not necessarily reflect reality.   #3: There is also the temptation to get so lost in thinking of how a book will be marketed, that when you write it, you don't try to write a book that is authentic to you or your readers. Trying to piece together a book based on the latest tropes or sales trends will likely mean that by the time the book is ready, social media will have moved onto another one. Writing to market is a form of marketing that sometimes works, but often results in something that feels formulaic or doesn't match your writing style. You can't always tell if the author hated the book when they were writing it, but sometimes you can. And it's sometimes very obvious to tell if an author wrote a book not because he or she enjoyed writing it but because they thought it would sell. And I think deep down, you really have to enjoy the genre you're writing in, which is why many frustrated mystery, fantasy, and science fiction authors saw how well romance doing and so decided to try writing romance only to deep down they didn't enjoy reading romance and so they didn't write a romance book that anyone would enjoy reading. So that is the potential risk of that temptation.   #4: Another pitfall is the urge to market your way out of a book that isn't connecting with readers. If a book doesn't meet reader expectations, no amount of marketing is going to significantly change that. Sometimes it's best to cut your losses with a book or series if it's not performing the way that you expect instead of throwing even more money marketing at it. I'm afraid I have a very recent example for my own life in the form of these Stealth and Spells Online series.   I think the problem with that series is I fundamentally misread what the LitRPG audience wants. Stealth and Spells Online is about a virtual reality game, but what the LitRPG audience really seems to want these days is either Portal Isekai or System Apocalypse Fantasy, which Stealth and Spells Online most definitely isn't. I told the narrator that I intended to write a LitRPG, but what I ended up with was a science fiction espionage thriller with LitRPG elements. So that, as you might expect, has been very hard to market and very hard to turn a profit while marketing it. So what I decided to do was I originally planned for seven or eight books in the series, but I'm going to cut it down to three and wrap up the story in hopefully a satisfying way with book number three this summer. That is a lived experience example of a changing course when some marketing doesn't work.   #5: There can be a feeling that you're missing out if you're not trying a marketing strategy that worked for someone else, so you'll end up stretching yourself thin by trying everything, stretching your marketing time across social media, newsletters, video content, posting the spaces like Goodreads, assembling a launch team, sending out advanced reader copies, going on podcasts, doing interviews with local media, and doing guest blog posts simply is not sustainable. There is a potential value in doing a short-term marketing sprint like that where you do all the things for a few days, but doing that all the time is not a good idea. As we mentioned earlier, it can take away time that should be spent writing. So really the best marketing course is to pick a few tactics that you enjoy and are comfortable using and then do those most of the time and save everything else for special occasions or if an opportunity comes up. For myself, I mostly focus on setting first in series permafree and doing various ad campaigns on Facebook, Amazon, and BookBub. I tend to stay away from TikTok and video marketing and some of the more time intensive things. I prefer things like permafree or various CPC ads where I can set it up and let it run and then check on it every few days to make sure it's working or not spending too much. So how can you balance time spent on marketing with making progress with your writing? The best way to market your old books is to publish a new one. Algorithms on online stores like Amazon and all the others reward fresh books and readers have short memories, so taking years between series risks them forgetting you.   Finishing a series in a timely fashion is crucial now many readers, especially in Epic Fantasy (for a variety of reasons), will only start series that are already completed, having been burned by series that were left unfinished. Having a polished product should also precede your marketing efforts. If your cover looks bad, your money would be better spent on getting a professional looking cover instead of more Facebook ads. Taking the time to make a good cover and good ad copy for your ads is also important before you spend money on marketing. For marketing, it will save you time and money to map out your goals for it each year just like you map out a set of goals for what you'll publish each year. Having a clear set of goals will keep you from trying every new thing that you hear about just because it worked for someone else. It's also wise to be honest with yourself about your strengths when considering how you spend your marketing time. If you hate TikTok, forcing yourself to make videos there isn't going to lead to compelling content that would make people want to buy your book. The authors who have had success with TikTok had that because they were able to genuinely connect with an audience there, not just because they threw a book trailer on the platform and hoped for the best. As with many writing adjacent activities, it is best to have a set block of time to work on marketing and to plan even the time spent checking ads and responding to social media comments so it doesn't take over your writing time. Just like having a plan for each year with some larger goals is a good idea, having a daily or weekly set of goals for marketing can help keep you focused.   In conclusion, the true pitfall of any writing adjacent activity is they need to be kept adjacent to the actual production of new writing. All the tasks we covered in the series are important, but writing should always be the priority if you are a writer.   So that's it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show useful. A reminder that you can listen to all the back episodes on https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave your review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe and stay healthy and see you all next week.

Opening Credits: This week on Live Breathe Film with Doug and Murph...Feature Presentation: Comic Book Characters and IP Cash Grabs Aren't Bulletproof - Fall 2024 was the season of the musical. Ironically the one musical that didn't work was based on a comic book character. Joker: Folie à Deux couldn't strike a chord, alongside other formerly formidable franchises such as Transformers, The Lord of the Rings, and Sony's Spider-Man Universe. Meanwhile, Wicked, Moana, Mufasa, Beetlejuice, A Complete Unknown, and Smile 2 brought the goods when it came to music and money.Mid-Credits: Survive Until Q2 2025 - The Winter/Spring box office has been bleak to say the least. Disappointment after disappointment from January through March. But this is what happens when Hollywood serves nothing but its tentpole leftovers previously scheduled for 2024, alongside a ton of counterprogramming. Can April save the season and finally kick off the year with a string of successes? Fingers crossed.End Credits: Please make sure to Like, Follow, and Subscribe to Live Breathe Film! 

Kaya of the Ocean is a middle-grade fantasy novel by Gloria Lai Huang that explores themes of mental health, the immigrant experience, and self-acceptance. The story follows Kaya, a thirteen-year-old girl who struggles with anxiety and a fear of water, as she discovers her lineage as a descendant of the Chinese water goddess Mazu. This heartfelt adventure combines elements of friendship, humor, and Chinese mythology, set against the backdrop of the beautiful beaches of Hawaii. It has been named a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection and chosen by the American Booksellers Association as one of the best debuts on the Winter/Spring 2025 "Indies Introduce" list, as well as a great read on the January 2025 "Kids' Indie Next" list. www.glorialaihuang.com

The Tribe of the Wandering Shoes | Part Three & Four | Winter, Spring, and the ReturnAfter a summer shining with light and an autumn drizzly but fascinating in its colors, the Tribe of the Wandering Shoes set off again for new adventures—mysterious, surprising, and of course, a little dangerous. More determined than ever, ready to overcome any challenge, they resumed their journey Winter didn't take long to arrive: in December, the first snow fell on the mountains. The Tribe boarded a coach headed to the Dolomites, where the snow-covered peaks waited for them on the horizon. As soon as they settled into the hotel, excitement took over. They couldn't wait to dive into the fresh snow and build a giant snowman! They got straight to work, shoveling pile after pile of snow. With a little ladder, step by step, they reached the height of the face. Two buttons for eyes, a carrot for a nose, a pipe in the mouth, and a scarf wrapped around the neck—it was perfect!“Brrr! It's freezing!” — exclaimed one of them, and they all looked down at their tips and saw they were completely frozen.“We need a miracle!” — declared one shoe with a solemn tone.“Maybe a portable radiator…” — mumbled another, her laces trembling.They decided to call the Alpine Rescue Team, which arrived with a supersonic jet packed with hot water bottles, boiling tea, and thermal blankets. But just then, the weather station—mounted on a space ship at the top of the mountain—reported a severe snowstorm on the way. The Tribe, worried, asked to return immediately to the valley, but the jet couldn't transport them in the traditional way. The only solution? Catapult them down like snowballs wrapped in thermal blankets!“Um… excuse me, but has anyone ever tried this system before?” — asked one shoe, suspicious.“No, but what could possibly go wrong?” — replied another.“Worst case, we'll end up spread across the snow like jam on toast!”The flight was wild: they bounced off a cable car, spun an eagle and a couple of vultures into the air, who, surprised, exclaimed, “Oh! Oh!”Fortunately, the mountain pines gave them a soft landing with their snowy branches. The shoes landed unlaced, a bit bruised, but safe.“I think we just invented the first extreme sport for footwear,” — commented one, still dizzy.The villagers in the valley found them and, touched by their story, brought them to the old cobbler in town. The man, with decades of experience repairing mountain shoes, was initially puzzled to see such a colorful and battered bunch. That night, the cobbler couldn't sleep, wondering how to fix them. At dawn, with determination, he got to work.“No, no, help! You're going to hurt me!” — protested the purple shoe at the sight of the tools.“Oh please!” — said the cobbler with a smile.“I've been bringing mountain boots back to life for years. You'll be brand new, trust me!”And so, with expert hands, he stitched, glued, and brightened their colors, working passionately until every shoe looked spectacular again.The Tribe spent happy days in the village. With Christmas around the corner, they helped decorate the lit-up streets, snow-covered trees, and shop windows. By then, everyone knew their story and called them left and right for advice on decorations, and the atmosphere was magical and festive.Soon, the days grew brighter and you could feel the awakening of spring in the air. Their snowy adventure was behind them, but a new challenge was waiting ahead. The Tribe started to miss the city they had left and decided to go back. They marched in single file and took the right road at the first roundabout. They followed a little stream and, after a long walk, stopped by the bank to rest. They stepped into the shallow water to cool off, when one of them, sharper than the others, noticed something strange beneath some dry branches.“Come here, come here!” — she called out.The others rushed over curiously, and with great effort, they managed to flip over what turned out to be an old wooden boat. They jumped in, nudging each other.“I'm going first!”“No, me first!”They bickered, tripping over their own laces, but since they were a bit tired from walking, each one took her place. Soon, they noticed a problem.“Um… has anyone seen the oars?”“Oh no! Now how do we move?”Just then, a shiny pike and a giant shimmering carp emerged from the foamy waves and, without saying a word, began to push the boat, gliding it along the stream and lifting it into the air.“But… this is magic!” — gasped one shoe, amazed.As the stream widened into a river, they spotted their city in the distance. The two extraordinary fish dropped them off on the shore and, in the blink of an eye, vanished into the golden reflections of the water.“Good gracious, what just happened?” — they all exclaimed.Still stunned and silent, they headed toward the big tree-lined park in the city. Lying in the grass, they looked up at the blue sky and realized just how much they had missed their busy store and the bustling crowd. That's when they noticed something strange.For the first time, they looked carefully at the glowing sign above the entrance: “Sorelle Soletta Department Store”They stared at each other, wide-eyed. The Little Witch Soletta… was the owner of the shop!Once placed back on the shelves, with their laces tied tight and their soles polished, the shoes smiled at one another.“What an adventure, folks…” — sighed the purple shoe.“Oh yeah,” — replied the red one, “but it's so nice to be back here!”“With all due respect to eagles, cobblers, and flying fish… nothing beats the smell of the shop in the morning,” — added the blue shoe dreamily.“And here we've got curtains, changing rooms, and customers who try us on gently…”“…not to mention Little Witch Soletta watching over us!” They all burst out laughing. “In the end,” — concluded the one with golden laces, “traveling is wonderful… but coming home is even better.”And from that day on, every time a child or an adult chose one of them, a new story began.But that one… well… that's another adventure!

The Tribe of the Wandering Shoes | Part Three & Four | Winter, Spring, and the ReturnAfter a summer shining with light and an autumn drizzly but fascinating in its colors, the Tribe of the Wandering Shoes set off again for new adventures—mysterious, surprising, and of course, a little dangerous. More determined than ever, ready to overcome any challenge, they resumed their journey Winter didn't take long to arrive: in December, the first snow fell on the mountains. The Tribe boarded a coach headed to the Dolomites, where the snow-covered peaks waited for them on the horizon. As soon as they settled into the hotel, excitement took over. They couldn't wait to dive into the fresh snow and build a giant snowman! They got straight to work, shoveling pile after pile of snow. With a little ladder, step by step, they reached the height of the face. Two buttons for eyes, a carrot for a nose, a pipe in the mouth, and a scarf wrapped around the neck—it was perfect!“Brrr! It's freezing!” — exclaimed one of them, and they all looked down at their tips and saw they were completely frozen.“We need a miracle!” — declared one shoe with a solemn tone.“Maybe a portable radiator…” — mumbled another, her laces trembling.They decided to call the Alpine Rescue Team, which arrived with a supersonic jet packed with hot water bottles, boiling tea, and thermal blankets. But just then, the weather station—mounted on a space ship at the top of the mountain—reported a severe snowstorm on the way. The Tribe, worried, asked to return immediately to the valley, but the jet couldn't transport them in the traditional way. The only solution? Catapult them down like snowballs wrapped in thermal blankets!“Um… excuse me, but has anyone ever tried this system before?” — asked one shoe, suspicious.“No, but what could possibly go wrong?” — replied another.“Worst case, we'll end up spread across the snow like jam on toast!”The flight was wild: they bounced off a cable car, spun an eagle and a couple of vultures into the air, who, surprised, exclaimed, “Oh! Oh!”Fortunately, the mountain pines gave them a soft landing with their snowy branches. The shoes landed unlaced, a bit bruised, but safe.“I think we just invented the first extreme sport for footwear,” — commented one, still dizzy.The villagers in the valley found them and, touched by their story, brought them to the old cobbler in town. The man, with decades of experience repairing mountain shoes, was initially puzzled to see such a colorful and battered bunch. That night, the cobbler couldn't sleep, wondering how to fix them. At dawn, with determination, he got to work.“No, no, help! You're going to hurt me!” — protested the purple shoe at the sight of the tools.“Oh please!” — said the cobbler with a smile.“I've been bringing mountain boots back to life for years. You'll be brand new, trust me!”And so, with expert hands, he stitched, glued, and brightened their colors, working passionately until every shoe looked spectacular again.The Tribe spent happy days in the village. With Christmas around the corner, they helped decorate the lit-up streets, snow-covered trees, and shop windows. By then, everyone knew their story and called them left and right for advice on decorations, and the atmosphere was magical and festive.Soon, the days grew brighter and you could feel the awakening of spring in the air. Their snowy adventure was behind them, but a new challenge was waiting ahead. The Tribe started to miss the city they had left and decided to go back. They marched in single file and took the right road at the first roundabout. They followed a little stream and, after a long walk, stopped by the bank to rest. They stepped into the shallow water to cool off, when one of them, sharper than the others, noticed something strange beneath some dry branches.“Come here, come here!” — she called out.The others rushed over curiously, and with great effort, they managed to flip over what turned out to be an old wooden boat. They jumped in, nudging each other.“I'm going first!”“No, me first!”They bickered, tripping over their own laces, but since they were a bit tired from walking, each one took her place. Soon, they noticed a problem.“Um… has anyone seen the oars?”“Oh no! Now how do we move?”Just then, a shiny pike and a giant shimmering carp emerged from the foamy waves and, without saying a word, began to push the boat, gliding it along the stream and lifting it into the air.“But… this is magic!” — gasped one shoe, amazed.As the stream widened into a river, they spotted their city in the distance. The two extraordinary fish dropped them off on the shore and, in the blink of an eye, vanished into the golden reflections of the water.“Good gracious, what just happened?” — they all exclaimed.Still stunned and silent, they headed toward the big tree-lined park in the city. Lying in the grass, they looked up at the blue sky and realized just how much they had missed their busy store and the bustling crowd. That's when they noticed something strange.For the first time, they looked carefully at the glowing sign above the entrance: “Sorelle Soletta Department Store”They stared at each other, wide-eyed. The Little Witch Soletta… was the owner of the shop!Once placed back on the shelves, with their laces tied tight and their soles polished, the shoes smiled at one another.“What an adventure, folks…” — sighed the purple shoe.“Oh yeah,” — replied the red one, “but it's so nice to be back here!”“With all due respect to eagles, cobblers, and flying fish… nothing beats the smell of the shop in the morning,” — added the blue shoe dreamily.“And here we've got curtains, changing rooms, and customers who try us on gently…”“…not to mention Little Witch Soletta watching over us!” They all burst out laughing. “In the end,” — concluded the one with golden laces, “traveling is wonderful… but coming home is even better.”And from that day on, every time a child or an adult chose one of them, a new story began.But that one… well… that's another adventure! Each story is currently written and narrated in both Italian and English.The translation from Italian (the original language) to English and the reading of the stories are performed using Generative Artificial Intelligence — which perhaps has a touch of magic... We hope it has done a good job!If you like it, make sure to tell your friends, family, and teachers, and subscribe to this podcast to stay updated. You'll be able to read or listen to new stories as soon as they become available. Visit us On The Official Website https://www.storiesottolestelle.com/

Ruby & Space read fan emails for our Winter/Spring edition. As mentioned from a fan email from Chipper, we have included a link for you all to click on to view some visuals from the emails sent into us.Episode Visuals: https://trello.com/b/y4KUO0CP/fangasms-winter-spring-editionParents of Furries (June 2013): https://tinyurl.com/39f3ze8wWhat is a Furry - FurScience: https://tinyurl.com/2w6t7u7yWhat is a Furry - Anthrocon: https://tinyurl.com/yc3fx38yProtogen's Episode: https://tinyurl.com/wevn9p3sProtogen Links:Protogen Dream Studios: https://tinyurl.com/3raj4ds5Jting-F Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jting-f3237Send us an email: TalkToTheMuzzle@gmail.comFollow Our BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/fromthemuzzle.bsky.socialJoin Our Telegram Group: https://t.me/StraightFromTheMuzzleIntro & Outro music was created by Rare Ear Candy.Follow Rare Ear Candy:Twitter: https://x.com/rare_ear_candyYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RareEarCandy

Women's Fightback 33, Winter/Spring 2025. With Trump back in office, and the far right ascendant across large partsof the world, the challenges facing socialists and feminists are starker than ever. In this issue we hear about the fight for democracy in Putin's Russia, from a military refuser in Israel building the opposition to the occupation of Palestine, and about socialists in the US trying to reorient and rebuild. We explore the 'manosphere' and the alt-right pipeline radicalising young men in the UK, the impact that pornography is having on our sexual horizons, and much more besides – with our usual mix of history, culture, and poetry. Enjoy! Articles: Trump's New World Order Gregg Wallace Building an independent socialist left Organise with us for abortion rights Israel's "fucked generation" takes on the occupation Poland's war on women Trying to make power out of hatred and destruction Dispatches from Ukraine The Manosphere Exposing the realities of pornography Un Violador en tu Camino (A rapist in your path) Trans Strike Back! All Fours The labour of care Organising barmaids and acrobats Acts of creation Hotel Lux More online: https://www.workersliberty.org/wf

Mark Uyl, Executive Director of the Michigan High School Athletic Association, joins once again to discuss how the winter sports season has been shaping up, what's ahead for spring sports, and the process of sanctioning boys volleyball and girls field hockey as official MHSAA sports.  We also talk about the growing trend of multi-sport athletes and what the future holds for high school athletics in Michigan. 

Another episode of Book Club with great recommendations from Susan Prigge for readers of all ages! If you are wondering when you go to the library what are good books for your family and what is safe for your children this is for you! To access the book list of ALL recommended books from every Book Club episode, click here: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2RCLMLEBP73VY?ref_=wl_share

The Other Way – 2025 Winter + Spring Kickoff!

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!Susan Chinsen - the creative producer from ArtsEmerson brought us Arts-Emerson's Winter/Spring 2025 Film Programming schedule.Valentine's Day Round-Up – Perfect Way for you to celebrate in and around Boston! Explore the city's nique events and romantic experiences, and make this Valentine's Day one to remember. With  Maddy McCarthy - Publicist, Brand Representative, Social Media Consultant.Degree in hand, jobs out of reach: Why recent grads are struggling in a competitive market. Brenda Siri - Workplace Expert - the President and CEO of Corporate Connections checked in with Dan.Kansas City & Philadelphia heading to the Super Bowl – thoughts on the big game ahead with Chris Price – Boston Globe Sports Reporter.Ask Alexa to play WBZ NewsRadio on #iHeartRadio and listen to NightSide with Dan Rea Weeknights From 8PM-12AM!

Get your notes app ready because you're going to want to write down the books we're excited for for the first half of 2025. Amanda & Ellyn are breaking down all of the big hitters to be on the lookout for in publishing.  Listen and tell us what you're looking forward to! Ellyn's Currently Reading | The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan Amanda's Currently Reading | Private Rites by Julia Armfield ______________________________________________________________________ Make sure to subscribe and rate the Bubbles & Books Podcast. And don't forget to share it with your friends. Learn more about a Dog-Eared Books book subscription HERE. Follow us on Instagram: @bubblesandbookspodcast Follow Dog-Eared Books on Instagram: @dogearedbooksames Interested in audiobooks? Listen while supporting Dog-Eared Books HERE. Visit us! www.dogearedbooksames.com

Episode 18 - I explore how festive indulgence can imbalance Kapha Dosha and share diet, lifestyle tips, and practices to balance it during the Winter-Spring transition when Kapha naturally accumulates. Disclaimer: Please note that all information and content on the UK Health Radio Network, all its radio broadcasts and podcasts are provided by the authors, producers, presenters and companies themselves and is only intended as additional information to your general knowledge. As a service to our listeners/readers our programs/content are for general information and entertainment only.  The UK Health Radio Network does not recommend, endorse, or object to the views, products or topics expressed or discussed by show hosts or their guests, authors and interviewees.  We suggest you always consult with your own professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advisor. So please do not delay or disregard any professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advice received due to something you have heard or read on the UK Health Radio Network.

Dog trainers Leah, Lori, Melissa and Catherine debrief after dog nativity scene gone viral on Instagram. We fielded questions from friends and listeners and gave an overview of the seminars we are planning to attend in Winter/Spring 2025. Lori describes her experinence with WBZ/CBS News Boston and Leah reflects on mentorship program with pro dog trainer Paul Deschamps.  Need dog training gear reccomendations?  www.fitpetboston.com/store Follow us on Instagram!  Leah @fitpetboston Lori @abcdogtraining   FitPet Boston Talks is a production of FitPet Boston LLC 

Learn More: https://ProfilerTraining.com Joel Mark Witt shares a very personal message highlighting the power and deep insights to be gained from Personality Profiler Training. We are now accepting applications for our Winter/Spring 2025 Profiler Training Class. Profiler Training is a 5-Day Immersive Event Coupled with Deep-Dive Online Course Material to Help You Calibrate and Master the Skill of Being a Personality Profiler. We've taught over 650+ students around the world the methodology, tools, and skills that can set you apart. Learn More: https://ProfilerTraining.com

Welcome to the #ShareYourHotness Podcast episode 149! My name is Katie Bunnell, and I know firsthand the challenges faced by single mothers pursuing education. In 2005, my life changed abruptly when my husband, Byron, passed away. Suddenly, I was left to care for our three-month-old daughter on my own. With everything turned upside down, the dream of providing for my family became even more urgent. Attending college became a vital goal, but it also highlighted the immense difficulty of supporting a family while pursuing higher education as a single mother. Finding scholarships and resources was a struggle, but my determination drove me forward. I managed to graduate from Utah Valley University in just two and a half years. Inspired by my journey, my family and I established Live Your Dream, a 501(c)(3) public charity. It brings me healing and purpose to turn my own hardships into a source of support for others. I am deeply grateful for my family, board members, donors, and sponsors who contribute their time and resources to help single mothers achieve their educational goals.  Our target population is single mothers who are residents of Utah who desire to gain a higher education. These women may attend college, university, bootcamp, or technical school. We believe that by providing scholarships, we are breaking the poverty cycle for single-mother families in our community. According to census bureau reports, approximately 30% of Utah single mothers live below the poverty level. The Utah Department of Workforce Services reports that "Obtaining a quality education increases employment opportunities, increases lifetime earnings, and supports economic stability for parents and their children.” While raising money for our endowment fund, we are awarding scholarships to deserving women during both the fall and winter/spring semesters. We offer tuition ($2,000- $3,000), fees ($1,000), and book ($500) scholarships. Scholarship recipients may receive the scholarship for multiple semesters. We have an online scholarship application located on our website www.liveyourdreamfoundation.org/apply. The scholarship application deadline for Winter/Spring 2025 semester is November 1, 2024. The scholarship application deadline for spring 2025 semester is November 1, 2024. Since its inception in 2010, Live Your Dream has awarded 317 scholarships totaling $508,539.64. Our scholarship recipients become members of our Live Your Dream Family, benefiting from our foundation's commitment to support them in their educational and life pursuits. We partner with local nonprofits to offer year-round family activities. Generous contributions from our amazing donors enable us to undertake diverse service projects, offering valuable opportunities for both the single moms and their children to participate and benefit. We ensure the provision of essential back-to-school supplies for children from single-mother families and extend holiday support through various means, such as Thanksgiving meals, Christmas gift baskets, Sub for Santa, Mother's Day gift bags, and more. Additionally, we offer care boxes to uplift single moms. Each current recipient receives dedicated peer mentoring, fostering personalized support throughout their academic journey. In our commitment to supporting single mothers, we also facilitate connections with local resources whenever they need additional assistance. We measure our impact through various metrics including the number of scholarships awarded (150% increase from 2021 to 2022), the impact of the scholarships on recipients' educational attainment and financial stability, and feedback from recipients regarding the effectiveness of the support provided. Our scholarships have not only increased the chances of higher education for over 650 children but have also bolstered the confidence of the mothers, showcasing the lasting impact of our support. Because of the scholarships we have awarded, over 650 children have a higher probability of gaining a higher education due to their mothers gaining an education, as supported by the research in Honoring Our Mothers by Seeking Higher Education, Madsen, 2022. Support The #ShareYourHotness Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/the-syh-podcast Find out more at https://the-syh-podcast.pinecast.co

Send us a textIn this episode we are introducing another Alternative Stories podcast you may enjoy.  The Writers' Gym features Chris Gregory, Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen and each week we discuss a different writing topic.  Whether you are a writer yourself or simply interested in books and writing you'll find plenty to enjoy.  Covering novels, short fiction, scripts, screenplays, audio drama and all stops in between you can catch the podcast by searching "The Writers Gym" in your favourite podcast app or clicking the links below.Listen / subscribe via Spotify here https://open.spotify.com/show/0myjCJkk2pt6jPfdIa0AAr?si=f18ec34cef764327and via Apple Podcasts here https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-writers-gym-podcast/id1674424465 You can listen to Rachel Knightley's audio drama "Winter Spring" here https://open.spotify.com/episode/2gBu6Bqmc7CiC8zwXTYIPZ?si=b2c423862aaf4438 Emily's drama serial "The Dex Legacy" can be heard here  https://open.spotify.com/show/1aphgDiefw4FdO8EN5LJxy?si=2908e95681354b81 Join the Writers' Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/  Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to: https://www.rachelknightley.com/Find out more about Emily Inkpen and her work by going to: https://www.emilyinkpen.com/Learn more about Chris Gregory and Alternative Stories here https://alternativestories.com/ Follow the Writers' Gym and contact us on Social Media:https://x.com/TheWritersGymRKhttps://www.instagram.com/jointhewritersgym/ https://www.facebook.com/JoinTheWritersGym/ Subscribe to The Writers' Gym in your favourite podcast app to be notified of all new episodes as they are released.Contact us by email at thewritersgym@rachelknightley.comSupport the show

Fall asleep fast to the continuation of The Blue Castle by L M Montgomery. Support the podcast and enjoy ad-free and bonus episodes. Try FREE for 7 days on Apple Podcasts. For other podcast platforms go to https://justsleeppodcast.com/supportOr, you can support with a one time donation at buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppodIf you like this episode, please remember to follow on Apple Podcasts or your favourite podcast app. Also, share with any family or friends that might have trouble drifting off.Goodnight! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this bonus episode we have an interview with the writer of our audio drama Winter Spring, Dr Rachel Knightley.  Rachel talks with co-director Emily Inkpen about the inspiration for her story and the joy of bringing it to life in the studio.   This interview was recorded at Orpheus Studio in London by Richard Campbell.   If you would like to find out more about Rachel Knightley and her writing coaching organisation The Writers' Gym please go to  https://www.writersgym.com/ You can follow Rachel on X at https://twitter.com/DrRKnightleyAnd on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/drrachelknightley/  You may also enjoy The Writers' Gym Podcast in which Rachel, Emily Inkpen and Chris Gregory have weekly conversations about writing topics.  You can listen here https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-writers-gym-podcast/id1674424465Or by searching “the writers gym” wherever you listen to podcasts.   If you would like to find out more about Alternative Stories and our work you can visit our website here https://alternativestories.com/ Or contact us via office@alternativestories.com   And if you would like to find out more about and support The Dex Legacy Season 3 Kickstarter please go to https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/emilyinkpen/the-dex-legacy-science-fiction-audio-drama-season-3  This podcast has been an Alternative Stories 2024 production Support the show

Welcome to Season 8 of the Alternative Stories and Fake Realites Podcast. Our new season begins with Winter Spring, an audio drama by Dr Rachel Knightley.   In Winter Spring by Dr Rachel Knightley you can hearHolly Gillanders as PoppyNic Lamont as AliceSam Kennard as AshDavid Ellis as Harris Adam Rhys-Davies as Kit Nicholas Vince as “Daddy”  Winter Spring was written by Rachel Knightley It was recorded at Orpheus Studio in London by Richard Campbell.  Direction was by Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen.Sound design, editing and music were by Chris Gregory  The script for Winter Spring is copyright Rachel Knightley and may not be reproduced in whole or part except with the written permission of the author   If you would like to find out more about Rachel Knightley and her writing coaching organisation The Writers' Gym please go to  https://www.writersgym.com/ You can follow Rachel on X at https://twitter.com/DrRKnightleyAnd on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/drrachelknightley/ You may also enjoy The Writers' Gym Podcast in which Rachel, Emily Inkpen and Chris Gregory have weekly conversations about writing topics.  You can listen here https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-writers-gym-podcast/id1674424465Or by searching “the writers gym” wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you would like to find out more about Alternative Stories and our work you can visit our website here https://alternativestories.com/Or contact us via office@alternativestories.com  And if you would like to find out more about and support The Dex Legacy Season 3 Kickstarter please go to https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/emilyinkpen/the-dex-legacy-science-fiction-audio-drama-season-3  This podcast has been an Alternative Stories 2024 production presented by Holly Gillanders and Chris Gregory . Support the show

Welcome to the Just Being ME! Podcast, with your hosts Mary Mac and Comedian Margot Evans.Check in each week to see what's going on with us and the world!Sit back and listen to your favorite girlfriends, shoot the sh@+, as we catch y'all up on our week-end; Talk about the goings on in entertainment and the news; Mary might just jump on her Soapbox and drop some knowledge on us; Margot, may need to Rant or Rave about something!; Y'all know that Margot and Mary be sharing What They Be Watchin.Hit us up with all your comments at justbeingmeMargotEvans@gmail.com. We would love to hear from you! Thank you for your continued support. Make sure you tell a friend about us! Remember to Like, Subscribe, and Share us!

Hello patrons! On this episode of The Hum and the Silence, we return to the pages of Canadian UFO Report to find stories of strange humanoids, flying cars, pursuing UFOs and BIGHEAD!  Sources: “Strange Sights in Yukon Sky,” Canadian UFO Report, V 1 N 1, January-February, 1969 “Roadside Visitors” and “Badland Rovers,” Canadian UFO Report, V 2 N 4, 1971 “Strange Case of ‘Flying Cars,'” Canadian UFO Report, V 2 N 4, 1971 “Star Light, Star Bright,” Canadian UFO Report, V 2 N 5, 1972-73 “Agile Humanoid,” Canadian UFO Report, V 3 N 6, 1975 “Strange Voice Heard After UFO Landing” by Graham Conway, Canadian UFO Report, V 3 N 8, Summer 1976 “Flying Alligator Skin,” Canadian UFO Report, V 4 N 6, Winter-Spring 1978 “‘Bighead' Reported,” Canadian UFO Report, V 5 N 1, Winter, 1978-1979 “Humanoids Over West,” Canadian UFO Report, V 5 N 2, Spring, 1979 Theme song: "Ufo" by Floats, available on Soundcloud, iTunes and Spotify Logo designed by Megan Lagerberg

What do you do when you feel stuck between two worlds? How do you navigate the spaces you're in, when you're both part of and separate from, two worlds? This is the situation Kathy finds herself in at the beginning of the book 'Continental Drifter'.  In this episode of the podcast, Joe sits down with author/illustrator Kathy MacLeod to discuss her autobiographical graphic novel about her time growing up in both Thailand and Maine.  Joe and Kathy get into a lovely conversation about navigating spaces and places while growing up to find one's one place in this world. Enjoy! About Kathy MacLeod Kathy MacLeod is the author of Continental Drifter, a Winter/Spring 2024 Indies Introduce middle grade selection. MacLeod is an illustrator and cartoonist whose work has appeared in The Believer, Catapult, The Hairpin, and Lucky Peach. After spending most of her life in Bangkok, Thailand (with a four-year interlude at Wesleyan University), she is currently living in Berlin, Germany. About 'Continental Drifter' With a Thai mother and an American father, Kathy lives in two different worlds. She spends most of the year in Bangkok, where she's secretly counting the days till summer vacation. That's when her family travels for twenty-four hours straight to finally arrive in a tiny seaside town in Maine. Kathy loves Maine's idyllic beauty and all the exotic delicacies she can't get back home, like clam chowder and blueberry pie. But no matter how hard she tries, she struggles to fit in. She doesn't look like the other kids in this rural New England town. Kathy just wants to find a place where she truly belongs, but she's not sure if it's in America, Thailand . . . or anywhere.   Make sure to check out the Dtalkspodcast.com website! Thanks to Empire Toys for this episode of the podcast! Nostalgia is something everyone loves and Empire Toys in Keller Texas is on nostalgia overload.   With toys and action figures from the 70's, 80's, 90's, and today, Empire Toys is a one-stop-shop for a trip down memory lane and a chance to reclaim what was once yours (but likely sold at a garage sale)   Check out Empire Toys on Facebook, Instagram, or at TheEmpireToys.com AND Thanks to Self Unbound for this episode of the podcast: Your quality of life: physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, is a direct reflection of the level of abundant energy, ease, and connection your nervous system has to experience your life!    At Self Unbound, your nervous system takes center stage as we help unbind your limited healing potential through NetworkSpinal Care.    Access the first steps to your Unbound journey by following us on Facebook, Instagram, or at www.selfunbound.com

No matter the genre, when you read a book with a map, you're in for an adventure. This month, we share a YA historical fiction meets fantasy novel; a mystery set in 1920s Bangalore; and a dystopian novel set during a future American Civil War.Don't forget to turn in your bingo sheets for the Winter-Spring 2024 Books & Bites Bingo reading challenge by June 30, 2024! If you still need book suggestions, check out the book lists on our Books & Bites page. Jacqueline's PickDivine Rivals by Rebecca Ross is book one of the YA Letters of Enchantment series. After centuries of sleep, two ancient gods are warring again, using human armies in this fantasy set during World War I. Pairing: Simple Plum Pudding, a World War I-era recipe.Carrie's PickSet in colonial Bangalore, India, in 1921, The Bangalore Detectives Club is the first book in a mystery series by Harini Nagendra. If you like your mysteries on the cozy side and enjoy learning a little history and culture while you're at it, this might be the book for you.Pairing: Lemon rice, the perfect South Indian dish for a picnic. Michael's PickAmerican War by Omar El Akkad takes place over two decades, beginning in 2075, during the outset of the second U.S. Civil War. Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia have seceded from the United States after vehemently opposing the Sustainable Future Act that outlawed oil production. Pairing: Mississippi Mud Pie, a delicious Southern dessert that will take the edge off this sobering book.

Join us to talk 1993 Phish! Check out REPRISE shows — 6/13 Philly and 6/14 Woodstock, RepriseBand.com. For reference, here's our Live Bait list. Please give us a call at (484) 416-0488 and leave us your thoughts and questions! And give us a review wherever you listen to podcasts.  The Helping Friendly Podcast is hosted and produced by Brian Brinkman, Megan Glionna, Jonathan Hart, and RJ Bee. Original music by Amar Sastry. Brought to you by Osiris Media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Opening Credits: This week on Live Breathe Film with Corey, Doug, and Murph...Feature Presentation: Winter/Spring Box Office Recap - Dune: Part Two won the January-April period as predicted, but did its competitors such as Kung Fu Panda, Godzilla x Kong, and Ghostbusters do their part to keep the box office from crashing and burning overall?End Credits: Please make sure to Like, Follow, and Subscribe to Live Breathe Film! Post-Credits: The Summer Box Office Season Has Begun - Corey bet big on this summer's superhero-free kick-off films. How did The Fall Guy and Star Wars perform for him as our Summer Box Office Pool officially begins?

Episode 142: A Conversation with Kara Anderson, Part 2 of 2 We are wrapping up the Winter-Spring 2024 Homeschool Sisters Podcast season and we have saved the very best for last. Kara Anderson is back for a 2-part conversation that you're going to adore! Join the sisters as we chat about everything, from the weird bittersweet season of finishing the homeschool journey, to figuring out what to do when you grow up, to the very best glasses for middle aged ladies, how to stop searching and just BE, perimenopause, morning routines, and more. Kara also shares a personal update on her new writing and podcasting adventure, Where the Beauty Is! Join us for the final installment of this 2-part conversation. We can't wait to hang with you again, sisters! View the show notes for this episode: - Episode 142: A Conversation with Kara Anderson, Part 2 of 2

Celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with books by AAPI authors! It's one of the prompts on the Winter-Spring 2024 Books & Bites Bingo reading challenge. Our suggestions include an action-packed adventure tale, a YA romance, and a comic but realistic immigration story. Michael's PickThe Thousand Crimes of Ming Tsu by Tom Lin begins with Ming Tsu traversing the salt flats of the Utah Territory, making his way to a Union Pacific camp to kill a man. The past couple years, Ming Tsu had been serving his sentence laboring for the railroad, all because he made the mistake of falling in love and marrying the daughter of a railroad baron.This is an action-packed, cinematic adventure tale full of brawls, gunfights, showdowns, betrayal, and ambushes. It also gives a peek at the xenophobia and racism experienced in the Old West by Chinese immigrants and marginalized folks.   Pairing: Pit Beans is a hearty dish that's perfect for any cowboy.Jacqueline's PickEmergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi is about two young people, Penny and Sam, whose awkward meeting results in them exchanging numbers and promising to be each other's emergency contacts because neither of them has a reliable parent. Their friendship grows via text as they find themselves texting one another non-stop.Fans of Jenny Han's To All the Boys I've Loved Before will enjoy this novel. Both novels have fresh Asian American voices and similar story arcs.Pairing: A flat white espresso.Carrie's PickIn The Chinese Groove by Kathryn Ma, main character Shelley is an 18 year old Chinese student eager to seek his fortune in the United States, where he plans to win back his girlfriend by becoming a famous poet. His "foolproof plan" hits some snags as soon as his flight lands in San Francisco.Though the characters, including Shelley, are all grieving, his comic and somewhat satirical voice keep the tone hopeful. Fans of The Wangs vs. the World will appreciate this character-driven and intricately plotted book.Pairing: Steamed Sea Bass with Ginger and Spring Onion, a recipe from Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking by Fuschia Dunlop.

In tonight's episode we meet a couple of beautiful spring flowers with some fearsome reputations and go about spring cleaning a very messy and cluttered boat with the help of Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows.Journal entry: 20th April, Saturday“A ring of coltsfoot heads has been placed In the crevice of an oak-beam used as a picnic table. They lie bleached and desiccated Shrouded in fine cobweb and dust. They look just like the vestige Of some prehistoric ritual.Perhaps some child placed them there On a sunny day of picnic and leisure. It is good to know That we have not grown so far distant From our forebears to have forgotten Our need to be human.” Episode Information:In this episode I read the opening pages of Kenneth Grahame's (1908) The Wind in the Willows republished by Penguin Classics. I also refer to Roy Vickery's (2019) Vickery's Folk Flora, published by Weidenfeld and Nicolson and With special thanks to our lock-wheelersfor supporting this podcast.Chris and Alan on NB Land of Green Ginger Captain Arlo Rebecca Russell Allison on the narrowboat Mukka Derek and Pauline Watts Anna V. Orange Cookie Donna Kelly Mary Keane. Tony Rutherford. Arabella Holzapfel. Rory with MJ and Kayla. Narrowboat Precious Jet. Linda Reynolds Burkins. Richard Noble. Carol Ferguson. Tracie Thomas Mark and Tricia Stowe Madeleine SmithGeneral DetailsIn the intro and the outro, Saint-Saen's The Swan is performed by Karr and Bernstein (1961) and available on CC at archive.org. Two-stroke narrowboat engine recorded by 'James2nd' on the River Weaver, Cheshire. Uploaded to Freesound.org on 23rd June 2018. Creative Commons Licence. Piano and keyboard interludes composed and performed by Helen Ingram.All other audio recorded on site. Support the Show.Become a 'Lock-Wheeler'Would you like to support this podcast by becoming a 'lock-wheeler' for Nighttime on Still Waters? Find out more: 'Lock-wheeling' for Nighttime on Still Waters.ContactFor pictures of Erica and images related to the podcasts or to contact me, follow me on: Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/noswpod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nighttimeonstillwaters/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/NoswPod Mastodon: https://mastodon.world/@nosw I would love to hear from you. You can email me at nighttimeonstillwaters@gmail.com or drop me a line by going to the nowspod website and using either the contact form or, if you prefer, record your message by clicking on the microphone icon. For more information about Nighttime on Still Waters You can find more information and photographs about the podcasts and life aboard the Erica on our website at noswpod.com.

Episode 141: A Conversation with Kara Anderson, Part 1 of 2 We are wrapping up the Winter-Spring 2024 Homeschool Sisters Podcast season, and we have saved the very best for last. Kara Anderson is back for a 2-part conversation you will adore! Join the sisters as we chat about everything, from the weird bittersweet season of finishing the homeschool journey, to figuring out what to do when you grow up, to the very best glasses for middle aged ladies, how to stop searching and just BE, perimenopause, morning routines, and more. Kara also shares a personal update on her new writing and podcasting adventure, Where the Beauty Is! Join us for the first of this 2-part conversation. We can't wait to hang with you again, sisters! View the show notes for this episode: - Episode 141: A Conversation with Kara Anderson, Part 1 of 2

Welcome back to the BackCountry Pa Podcast! In this episode, episode 178, we continue our conversation with Derrick Nace. In this part, we delve into Derrick's strategies for setting himself up for success during the early season or the Rut. We cover a range of topics including finding areas with minimal human pressure, Derrick's preferred setups in different wind conditions, key bedding areas for bucks, hunting rubs, scouting doe activity, and tips on accessing a setup without disturbing any deer. If you're looking to improve your hunting game and increase your chances of success, this episode is a must-listen. Join us as Derrick shares his invaluable insights and strategies for a successful hunting season. We really hope you enjoy this episode & are having a great season chasing after whitetails! Discount Codes Use Code: BackcountryPA15 save 15% at XOP Use Code: BCPA save 15% at Our Grounds Coffee Co. Use Code: Backctrypa Save 20% at Forget Genetics Use Code: BCP18 sace 18% at TideWe Partners: OnX Our Podcast can be found on all major platforms like iTunes, Spotify, and More! Just follow the links in our Bio. We want to thank you for the support and Remember to Keep your tradition & Enjoy the Freaking Process Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jeff and Rebecca talk about notable adaptations coming out over the next few months. Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify. For more industry news, sign up for our Today in Books daily newsletter! 2024 is the tenth year of the Read Harder Challenge! Join us as we make our way through 24 tasks meant to expand our reading horizons and diversify our TBRs. To get book recommendations for each task, sign up for the Read Harder newsletter. We'll also keep you informed about other cool reading challenges, readathons, and more across the bookish internet. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations plus community features, where you can connect with a community of passionate, like-minded readers in a cozy and supportive corner of the internet. Visit bookriot.com/readharder to sign up. Discussed in this episode: Sign up for Better Living Through Books and the BR Pod newsletter First Edition! The Book Riot Podcast Patreon Monsieur Spade Masters of the Air The Taste of Things The Expats Origin (based on Caste) Feud: Capote vs The Swans Argylle It Ends With Us Dune 2 Lisa Frankenstein Spaceman 3 Body Problem Apples Never Fall Civil War LoTR: War of the Rohirrim Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices