Taking The Week Off...

Sonovista, my friends... its been a tumultuous 2 weeks... as "the Dude" would say, "lotta ins, lotta outs, lotta whathaveyous"... a huge 'thank you' to everyone who has written or called with messages of condolence... this little community of ours, based around a goofy podcast, is filled with love, and for that i am eternally grateful... my original plan was to do a show today (#20), but i stumbled and sean was back at the dentist and parviz's wife called and asked if she could take another shot at poisoning him... so i figured, we could take a 'buy' this week... plus, since we stopped doing our weekly interviews with Jason Nathanson, he's put an entire continent between himself and the Schnauzer studios... maybe it wasn't Oprah who was f'ckin up Jason's car-ma... maybe we have met the enemy and he is us?!?!?!

(nah...)

In any event, look for the return of Schnauzer Logic next wednesday with our exciting Show #20! Lots of surprises... lots of fun... a little song, a little dance, a little seltzer in your pants... my mom would be so proud!

namaste... robin

California... coming home...

Sonovista, my friends... i'm back home in northern california... i arrived late last night (thursday) after an a totally fucked-up day of travel... what should have been a 6 1/2 hour flight, coast to coast, turned into 14 hour sojorun with the US Airways shuttle from LaGuardia to Philidelphia taking off an hour late, which caused me to miss my connecting flight, which resulted in me being put on an even later flight, which resulted in me getting a broken seat, which resulted in more delays, which resulted in me getting my bags at SFO at around 8pm pacific time (14 hours after i got into a cab in NYC)... oh, and although the people on US Air were very nice, the airline is SHIT... everything is broken and torn and dirty and stained and for this i was granted the privilege of paying almost $500 one way... but god bless sheri, who picked me up and took me out for a nice dinner and strong bloody mary...

And now i'm home and dealing with the moment-by-moment reality of being alone... you know, after my dad passed away about 7 years ago, i started to call my mom every day... short calls, 5-10 minutes, just to touch base... talk about politics or popular culture... it wasn't because she was lonely, but because she was alone... and i told myself i was doing it for her... but what i didn't realize is that the tether connects at both ends, and now i have no one to call when i land after a long flight or get a good report from my kidney or brain doc or score some minor cosmic win... and i keep running into this just days after her passing... i think the buddhist philosophy i've studied and integrated into how i live my life will be helpful in getting through... just pay attention to the thoughts and feelings and see how they're connected...

in any event, a heartfelt 'thank you' to everyone who has written or called with their words and thoughts of condolence... it means a great deal... the memorial service was this past wednesday in NYC and it was very nice and warm and comforting to see how many people loved my mom... my uncle (the rabbi) strong-armed me into saying a few words, so i put together something for her friends and family... its posted below...

and now we move forward... next week, if the good lord's willing, the creek don't rise, and there ain't no meltdown, we'll do our 20th episode of Schnauzer Logic... i need to collect the gang, but it should be a great show with lots of guests and comedy... and then the week after that we'll do show 21... and 22... and 23... week by week, one step, one bad joke, one plumbing update at a time...

see you all there

namaste... robin

---

Mom - Riverside Memorial Chapel - NYC, NY - Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - 11:30am

Good Morning… Thank you all for coming… It’s wonderful to see you all here this morning… I think it would have surprised my mom, though… we all knew how special and wonderful she was, but I’m not sure she always knew.

When I spoke with my uncle yesterday, he asked me if I wanted to speak at the memorial service this morning, and I said I didn’t know… and I said I didn’t know, not because I didn’t think I’d be able to find something to say, but because I was afraid that once I started talking, there’d be no way to stop… My mom was an amazing person… if you met her, even once, you’d never forget her… she was strong and smart and funny and opinionated… she was dedicated to her family and her friends and devoted to her grandson, Jason… and she was passionate about children and education and teaching… I think if the arthritis she suffered with and fought against for over 40 years hadn’t sapped her strength and broken her body, she would have been in classroom, even last week, passing on her knowledge and wisdom in her own unique way… There was nobody like Mrs. Goldstein… Old School, as the kids say today… my mom was old school before it was cool to be old school and she didn’t care about being cool… she was a complete human being, contradictions stacked on top of each other… I’ll give you an example… my mom didn’t like gadgets and wasn’t a big fan of technology… she didn’t have a TiVo… she allowed me to get her, only after a battle royale, a simple cell phone which she kept turned off (“its only for emergencies”), and though we’ve made considerable strides in the last 200 years in heating water, my mom insisted on making coffee by boiling water in a little pan on the stove… and she had an iPod… which she used to listen to books on tape… which she agreed to let me get for her only after I assured here they didn’t cost very much…

As I said, it wasn’t that I was afraid I would have nothing to say, but that one story would lead into the next and the next and the next… which would be fine with mom… she was first, and foremost, a story teller… in the past few days as I’ve met some of mom’s friends down in florida, they’ve all told me how ‘funny’ mom was… and she was funny, and she knew it… but she didn’t tell jokes… she told stories, in the grandest tradition… she was a natural performer with perfect timing… the few times I had her on my radio show she literally stole the show… she could have been a star in the modern world of punditry… she had an opinion about everything and wasn’t afraid or ashamed to let you know it… some of our biggest fights in recent years were over whether the latest season of Monk or Law and Order were as good as past seasons… and if she thought they stunk, she said so… and truth be told, she was usually right…

No, the challenge of speaking this morning is going through my countless memories and seeing what I can find to say about my mom that won’t end in tears now that she’s gone… I’ll tell you what I mean… I flew into LaGuardia yesterday afternoon, from florida, and as I got into the terminal I pulled out my cell phone to call her to let her know I was okay, and realized there was no one to call… when I was younger we used to fight about it all the time… “mom… I’m 20 – or 30 – or 40 –or almost 50… I’m O.K...” and she would say “I’m your mother… I worry”

So I looked for something to say about my mom that wouldn’t immediately start the flow of tears, and one thing came to mind… Pizza… My mom introduced me to pizza… I think she told me it was my first solid food… and some of my very earliest memories are of walking with her pushing my sister Lisa in her stroller, down the street, past the Bohacks, to the Newkirk Plaza, where we’d get a slice of pizza… just cheese and those hot red pepper flakes she liked so much…. i must have been 5 or 6, but I can still remember the sights and the smells and the taste… a little sweet… a little salty… chewy and crispy at the same time… when I think of meals with my mom, I think of pizza… now don’t get me wrong… she was an excellent cook… nothing haute cuisine, but good nutritious meals… veal and beef and chicken and turkey and fish…. The fact that I’m a vegetarian is no reflection on my mom’s pot roast or matzo ball soup… but she loved pizza and so did i… when I got a little older and started elementary school, the biggest treat would be to meet her for lunch at the little pizza parlor around the corner, next to the Leader Lanes on Coney Island Avenue… I still search for the taste of that memory… and when we moved to Central Valley, one of the first things we did was search out the local pizza place… in fact, I can tell you the location of the nearest pizza shop for every place I’ve every lived… and when I worked for Sony and spent all that time in Japan, I even kept the number of a Japanese pizzeria in my wallet… they were the only ones who would deliver, on a little motor scooter, and the hotel thought it was unseemly that I would order pizza on a motorbike, delivered to their fine establishment, so they would make me wait outside, in the parking lot, for the delivery, which I would accept in my broken Japanese, and scurry back to the room to taste a bit of home… and whenever and wherever I had some pizza, I would call mom and she would ask, “what did you have for lunch, or dinner” and I would say “Pizza”, and she would say, “Go On… make me jealous”… so I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the first food I had after my brain surgery, more than 20 years ago, was pizza… or that I’ve broken almost every yom kippur fast with pizza… or that lisa and I shared a pie in florida right after seeing her, the night before she died… or that I had a slice for dinner last night… you see, even though I grew up in a jewish home, my comfort food is a little bread, a little cheese, a little tomato, a little oregano, and a little olive oil… hot and fragrant… crispy and chewy… a little salty and a little sweet… my mom bought me a slice…

So the next time you bite into a slice of pizza, think of my mom and say, “Edna… I’m having some pizza” and you’ll be able to hear her say, “Go On… Make Me Jealous”

Thank you again for coming today… it means a lot to my family and to my mom.

No Schnauzer Logic This Week - My Mom, Edna Goldstein, Has Passed Away...

Sonovista, my friends... just a short note to let you all know there won't be an episode of Schnauzer Logic this week... my mom, Edna Goldstein, died this morning, just 2 weeks shy of her 80th birthday, from lung cancer... mom stopped smoking, cold turkey, 35 years ago, on the back steps of the Monroe Temple of Liberal Judaism, as we were leaving a meeting with the rabbi about my pending bar mitzvah... as we were walking out the door someone told her about a mutual friend who had just been diagnosed with the deadly disease and my mom took the cigarette out of her hand, and the pack out of her bag, and threw them in the temple dumpster and that was that... so if you smoke, please stop... no good can come of it... death from lung cancer is a hideous thing to see... it shakes your belief in any kind of higher power to think that a disease with the power to inflict such devastating pain and destruction on a human being could come from a merciful creator... and yet, my mom lived to be almost 80... so who can know how many ways i wouldn't have been able to disappoint her had she continued to smoke over the past 35 years... and truth be told, if you're almost 80 and you can still give your adult child grief on your own death bed, you've probably had a pretty full life... but there are such better ways to shuffle off this mortal coil (something involving a donkey, a ballerina and a giant sling-shot, for example)... and the sooner you quit, the more days you tack on to the other end, and maybe, just maybe, the donkey (or the ballerina) will get you before respiratory failure does... in any event, if you smoke, please stop.

Here is a photograph of my mom taken earlier this year... that's my mom on the right, and her aide, pauline, on the left... i got to know pauline over the past few days and she is everything you could want a caretaker (or just a good friend) to be... kind, funny, intelligent, invested, she was a perfect sparing partner for my mom up until the end (and no, she did not go gentle into that good night... and she most definitely did rage, rage against the dying of the light). Thank you, pauline.

My mom and I had a complex relationship... the gifts many, the challenges plentiful... but through my relationship with my mom i learned that its possible to hold and acknowledge the genuine hurt that someone may cause you with the unconditional love you can feel for them at the same time... both are real and denying either one diminishes who you are... forgiveness is not a prerequisite to love. I may talk more about this at some point, but suffice it to say, nothing can change how much i miss her (already).

And so, tomorrow (tuesday) i fly from south florida to NYC for her funeral on wednesday and subsequent burial next to my dad out on long island... and, at some point, i'll head back to california and regain my bearings and start all over again... a little sadder knowing she may be out there... i just can't call her to tell her what a great show we just did...

so until we meet again...
show up
pay attention
tell the truth
and don't be attached to the outcome
(and if you smoke, please stop)

namaste
robin

Schnauzer Logic Podcast Episode 19 is Online!!!

Sonovista, my friends!... Did you ever have one of those weeks? Well, today was one of those weeks... two potential guests bagged out, Sean called to say he was having emergency dental work, and Parviz's wife tried to kill him with a turkey... Much Love!... And given all that's been going on in my life, I thought about postponing the show... but then everything would be out of whack and who knows what horrible effect that would have on the universe?!?... Pretzels with cheese inside? Pizza crusts with cheese inside? Irish Wolf Hounds with cheese inside? AAARRRGGGHHH!!!!!!!

So I asked our traveling friend, Jason Nathanson if he wanted to sit in for a shortened show, and voila! All is right with the world and the universe maintains its cheesey goodness!

This week's show is only one-hour... we talk a bit with Jason about his time at KSCO, KGO and KFI, the politics of modern-day commercial/political talk-radio, and do you have to agree with the host in order to be a producer? We also learn that the first rule of computer repair has an almost universal application, to wit: step 1: make sure the computer is plugged in (for a VW van, step 1 is a bit different, but you feel no less foolish when you skip it!)... We also play the Spanish entry in the 2006 Eurovision song contest, and the #1 winning entry from Finland... And we check-in with Bryan Cox and Episode 9 of his award-winning series Real Stories of the Highway Comics... (and if a full hour with Jason isn't enough for you gluttonous bastards, you can hear this week's installment of his intervew on KSCO ::here:: )

Next week is Show 20, and we're hoping everything will be back to normbal... but until then:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome.

namaste
robin

Schnauzer Logic - Episode 18 Show is Online!!!

sonovista, my friends... again i have no time (right now), but this was such a great show i wanted to post some quick show notes:

1. Steve Golson talks about the history of Ms. PacMan (he was one of the guys who wrote it and got sued and then hired by Atari... a classic 80's hacker-turned-hero story)... He then talks about his wife Terry Golson's newest cookbook, The Farmstead Egg Cookbook, and about their 24/7 Hencam.

2. Jason Nathanson tells us how he tracked and killed Oprah using only a large cheese pizza... check out his blog randomshow.blogspot.com for lots more information, and listen to this week's KSCO interview (maybe someday he'll plug our show and blog since we give him so much ink!)

3. All this week's tunes come from the 2006 Eurovision song contest, including the Iranian entry (hint: there -was- no Iranian entry)

4. We REALLY REALLY need your advice to 2006 graduates for next-week's Commencement Address... thanks for those who have already sent yours in... to the other 700 of you, hey! you have the rest of the summer to smoke dope...

more later (maybe)

show up, pay attention, tell the truth, and don't be attached to the outcome

namaste... robin

What Advice Would You Give A New Graduate?

Sonovista, my friends! Being graduation season, here in the US, we're writing a commencement speech to give at the beginning of our next show... the problem is, so far all we've got is:

Drink 8 Glasses of Water Every Day

Never Stare Directly At An Eclipse (Solar, for sure... Lunar, we think)

Be Extra Nice To Hobos... They're Magic!

So you see our problem... Anyway, we're looking for advice to give the new graduate... something you heard at your own graduation that's helped you along the way, or something you've learned that you want to pass down to the next generation.

Post a comment to this entry, or send us an email using the email button at the top of the page... We'll collect all the advice and find a way to incorporate it into our speech!

Thanks in advance and have a great weekend!

namaste... robin

Schnauzer Logic Podcast Episode 17 is Online!

sonovista, my friends... no time for the ShIfT kEy, or detailed notes but, this one was a winner!

as the show opens, we take a call from a credit reporting agency trying to get information about Mr. & Mrs. Robin Goldstein (totally unplanned, and unprofessional, but maybe a little bit funny!)

we then talk with bob lamb, business manager and financial secretary/treasurer of UA Local 582 Plumbers and Steamfitters union... actually parviz does most of the talking

we also talk with jason nathanson, who's still in las vegas

we listen to the next installment of Bryan Cox Stand-Up Comic Road Stories

we listen in as the announce the winner of American Idol

and we toss around the idea of writing a Graduation Speech (send us your suggestions for advice to the graduates we should include!)

we'll add the links and more later

but for now

namaste... robin

Episode 16 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is Online!!!

Sonovista, my friends! The show is up (though the iTunes Music Store seems cranky about listing it, right now), and you can grab it through your usual podcast tools, or listen in your browser by clicking on the MP3 button at the top of the blog.

Time is tight... I'm trying to catch up from being "on vacation" for the last two years by filling in for an Apple attorney who's on maternity leave... so, for now, money trumps art (or at least jostles it around a bit!)... so here's an abbreviated show blog... more later (maybe, if needed).

1. Thanks to Susan Moses of the Talking Tranny for her review of our podcast. Susan's blog is ::here :: and you can listen to her audio review of our show, by itself, ::here ::.

2. Mega Mega Thanks to John DeKoven of Laugh-A-Lot Productions and his friend, Todd Westerlund of the San Ramon California Chamber of Commerce for playing a round of Win John DeKoven's Money... John's record goes unbroken (Todd won). And if you send an email to John , he'll give you a free pair of passes to any if his comedy shows... So check it out! (BTW, I found a really interesting description of the history of Chambers of Commerce on Wikipedia ... it says the earliest Chambers were founded in Europe in 1599 and the first english-speaking Chamber was in Glasgow Scotland in 1783.

3. Bryan Cox is still turning out Road Stories of the Highway Comic. Thanks Big Bry!

4. Like a peanut, Jason Nathanson passed through Salt Lake City untouched, and is now hanging out in Las Vegas before heading off to Texas. Jason has some amazing stories (which apparently he'd prefer you read, rather than hear) on his blog at randomshow.blogspot.com, and some great photos, too! And if you can't get enough Jason, you can hear his interview with Rosemary Chalmers on KSCO this morning by clicking ::here ::.

5. Parviz gave us a shortened plumbing update in anticipation of next week, when we expect to be talking with Bob Lamb, Business Manager, Financial Secretary and Treasurer of U.A. Local 582. (and maybe we'll be checking in, again, with Robin Goldstein!)

6. And we finished with a Glenrothes toast to the 1-year anniversary of my brain surgery. Dr. Michael McDermott and the neurosurgical staff and neuroradiological staff at UCSF were nothing short of amazing.

We've been shorting on the tunes... we know... we're gonna fix it... promise... But here are the amazing bands from GarageBand.com we played this week:

1. Geoff Martyn from Glasgow, Scotland - "All American Dream"
2. Aaron Cheney from Seattle, Washington - "Intimate Strangers"
3. Gadget from Moscow, Russia - "Stupid Love"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

So until next week:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome!

namaste
robin

Episode 15 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is Online!!!

Sonovista, my friends! Episode 15 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is online and the only word you need to remember is: TrainWreck! (smile)... ok, not exactly a train wreck, but after 3 great weeks in a row, it was inevitable that we'd hit a bump, just to remind us that we're only demigods... and just to be clear, our guests, Jason Nathanson and Robin Goldstein (the smarter) were great... the glitches came mostly from your humble hostess, me (the giggler)... but we're already reviewing the game films, looking for holes in the offense and defense, and we'll be back again, next week, with another award winning show featuring an episode of Win John DeKoven's Money, and all of us giving 110%... meanwhile, we come not to bury Episode 15 (The Ides of Schnauzer), but to praise it...

We opened with a goofy discussion about a goofy kids show from 1968, The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, which marked an early directorial effort by later day Omen/Superman/Lethal Weapon helmer, Richard Donner. We also talked about other early kids shows, including the strange/non-existant animation of Clutch Cargo and Space Angel (Synchro-Vox rules!), Soupy Sales, and Brazilian star Xuxa.

We then took a break and returned with this week's update from our good friend, Jason Nathanson, who's taking a journey across America, and chronicling his adventures on our show, and his blog at randomshow.blogspot.com. (btw, jason's theme song is by the group Rockapella) Oh, and if you want to hear Jason's interview from this morning (5/11) on KSCO, you can click ::here::

After our next break we came back with a short discussion on confidence and dating and then got directly into this week's plumbing update (well, not directly... Parviz wanted to listen to more of Ann Zimmerman's wonderful song first, but I think he was just stalling)... btw, we're trying to get a spokesman from the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada.

We then took another break, played Episode 4 of Bryan Cox's Stand Up Comedy Road Stories, and planned to come back talking with travel writer Robin Goldstein from his hotel room in Hong Kong.

that didn't happen...

1010-229 was down (even though i had tested it to the same number at the same time the day before), so we were forced into 'improv' mode...

(i hear the train a'comin...)

and i won't say any more about that effort except to say it was mercifully short (though perhaps not short enough) and it once again showed what a genius Phil Hendrie is!

However, after a quick poll, we decided to bite the bullet and pay "full fare" and we called Robin Goldstein, directly, at his hotel room in Hong Kong, where he's reviewing restaurants and hotels for Fodors before heading back to the US to celebrate the publication of his own Austin Texas restaurant review guide for Off The Map Press. I've known (of) Robin for over 10 years and though we've never spoken, he sounded totally cool and funny and interesting and I think I could kill him (maybe dump his body in a irrigation pipe, like i described to Jason) and take over his life and NOBODY would know the DIFFERENCE... or not... anyway, we're gonna have Robin back again, since he seems to be doing a much better job of being Robin Goldstein than I have!

And with that we wrapped it all up in a nice package, with a pink bow, and started into the tequila...

So, because of the technical problems, the segments were longer than usual (we know... 18 minute segments are boring!), and we only got to 3 songs, but they were terrific and can be found on GarageBand.com:

1. Simple Minded Fools from Hong Kong - "Left To Run"
2. Los Pistoleros from Orange, California - "Road Trip"
3. Thinking Out Loud from Hong Kong - "People"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew... Next week John DeKoven, Jason Nathanson, Bryan Cox, maybe more Robin Goldstein... Sunday, remember Mother's Day (here in the US)... and as always:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome!

namaste
robin

Schnauzer Logic Podcast Episode 14 is Online!!!

Sonovista, my friends!!! Episode 14 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is online and I have to say that it feels like we've hit our stride... great music, great topics, great comedy and truly great guests! We hope you're enjoying the shows... if so, drop us a note and tell your friends (also, would a review on the iTunes Music Store kill ya?... huh? )

Ok... life is jam packed, so here's this week's show blog: short, sweet and to the point...

First, WOW... Ann Zimmerman was a terrific guest... you've heard her music, "The Plumber Is The Man" each week as we introduce Parviz's Plumbing Update segment... Well, Ann is a singer/song writer/lawyer/mediator/teacher/horse-farm-something-or-other and a whole lot more from Salina, Kansas. Two of her albums are available for download through iTunes, or you can get the straight scoop directly from her website. (Plus Ann knows a lot of things about a lot of things, so we're hoping she'll come back and talk with us again)... and if you're interested in folks music, make sure to check out the Kerrville Folk Festival, to be held this year May 25th to June 11th.

We also had our weekly update from Jason Nathanson... Jason is now officially "on the road", mostly going from Indian Casino to Indian Casino, and sleeping in his van in the gas station parking lots... THIS is the reason his jewish grandparents emigrated to this great country. Check out Jason's blog over at randomshow.blogspot.com, and offer him encouragement and some suggestions on where to go next.

After a break we also played this week's installment of Bryan Cox's Comic Road Story (#3 to be exact). And we talked about Stephen Colbert's appearance at this year's White House Press Corp Dinner, next week's scheduled appearance of my doppelganger, travel writer Robin Goldstein, Sean's entry in the IMDB for Kwoon, and we finished with Tales from the Pipe: The Parviz Fathali Plumbing Story. (oh, and in case you were wondering, the little opening bit of audio is our good friend Misha gum-chewing, late arrival as my engineer during the KSCO days of Schnauzer Logic... She's gone one to bigger and better things, which is why i like to keep playing the one mistake she made when she was 17!)

Finally, this weeks music..,. we got to play two different songs from Ann Zimmerman, Absolute Zero from her second album, "Canned Goods" (the one where the Plumbing song comes from), and If I Had Been Beautiful from "Wild Indigo", her latest album... as mentioned above, they're both available on the iTunes music store, or directly from Ann's website... and we had a couple of new tunes from some amazing artists on Garage Band :

1. Spacestation1 from Santa Cruz, CA - "What is Up?"
2. All Hail Me from Toledo, Ohio - "Throw It All Away"
3. Sean Patrick McGraw from Nashville, TN - "Fiona"

And know you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

So until next week:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

namaste
robin

SCHNAUZER LOGIC PODCAST BLOG IS PARTIALLY DOWN - HERE IS A LINK FOR THE ONLINE PLAYER

sonovista, my friends... looks like there's a bit of trouble in river city (or at least at tblog) and the banner and links for the Schnauzer Logic Podcast show blog is down... the folks here at tblog know and are in the process of fixing things, but until then if you want to hear the show with the online stream player you can click ::here::

we've got a great show planned tonight... Ann Zimmerman, the lovely voice behind the song "The Plumber is the Man" will be our guest, as well as our first travel installment of on-the-road with Jason Nathanson... Parviz will be here, and Sean is on the stand-by list... we hope to welcome you, too!

namaste... robin

Separated-At-Birth?

our good friend Jason Nathanson leaves on his round-the-world-in-a-VW-van tour today and posts some photos of his 'bon voyage' dinner on his blog randomshow.blogspot.com while browsing through the photos, i realized that jason reminded me of a favorite friend from childhood, "Wooly Willy", a smiling cherub whose magnetized skull was the perfect anchor for tiny iron 'hairs' (they don't make toys like that any more!) but don't take my word for it... you be da judge:

happy trails, my friend!

namaste... robin

Schnauzer Logic - Episode 13 Shownotes!!!

Sonovista, my friends!... ok... i know... i know... this is the latest the show notes have been posted... my bad... i'm struggling with a sinus infection that's sapped my strength (kind of like schnauzer kryptonite)... plus, the whole work:bills:money thing has been demanding a bit more of my time... AND we've finally had some truly nice weather here in northern california, so i've been dropping the top and taking out the ol' green convertible just to 'soak up the sun, and tell everyone to =lighten up='... but Episode 13 was a freekin greet shoo (said with a faux scottish brogue), so without further ado, lets roll the video tape:

First up, major super Great White North props to Bryan Cox, Stand-Up Comedian and Voice Actor extraordinaire, who deigned to be on the show as a guest, after we had a bit of fun with his Comic Road Story, Episode 1, last week... Bryan's a funny guy, and a great guest, and we look forward to playing the rest of the episodes in the series... Check out Bryan's own podcast, StandUps for Canada ::here:: and if you're looking for an experience voice actor, check out Bryan's production company ::here::.

We also talked with Jason Nathanson, an old friend of ours who's setting off to discover the "real" america in a 1988 VW van (along with a GPS, wireless laptop, digital camera, 180 days of freeze dried food and water, personal masseuse, Labradoodle puppy, and $5000 in gold bullion (no, not the kind you make soup with)... Jason will be with us each week with his own tales from the road, and you can read his blog at randomshow.blogspot.com.

We then had a major plumbing update from Parivz and his near-death experience with an Orbital Welder... funny, funny stuff...

And we finished off with Sean's review of the Wachowski Brothers (?) film V for VENDETTA, from the graphic novel by Alan Moore and David Lloyd...

Plus, while listening to the show in order to prepare these show notes, i noted that we touched on (in no particular order)

Run For Your Life with Ben Gazzara
Mary Worth
Kobiyushi Maru
The North Dakota State Hat
Dick Cavett and his upcoming return to TV
The Banana Splits
The New Zoo Revue
Sid & Marty Kroftt
The Maury Povich Lawsuit
Misha got Married
The Movie United 93
The Movie Snakes On A Plane

(next week, Ritalin for Everybody!)

And on that happy note, here are this weeks Amazingly Talented Musicians, direct from Garageband.com

1. ALVA STAR from Minneapolis, MN - "Unhappily Yours"
2. Becca Kaid from Effingham, IL - "Feel My Fire"
3. Tenpenny Joke from Melbourne, Australia - "She"
4. The Rantings of EVA from Atlanta, GA - "Infrared"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

So until next week:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

And Happy May Day to all the workers of the world, especially those from south of the US Border...

Mi Perro es Tu Perro!

namaste
robin

Schnauzer Logic Podcast - Episode 13 is Online!!!

sonovista, my friends... busy, crazy, kookoo, nutty day, so the blog notes will be coming later on, but for now all you need to know is that Episode 13 is a winner, we have a great interview with Bryan Cox, an acomplished canadian stand-up comedian and Voice Over actor, a second great interview with Jason Nathanson, a young man in search of the American Dream (hint: it may be hidden up in canada), and classic plumbing update from Parviz... plus 4 new tunes that totally rock, dude... i mean like totally...

more, better, gooder, later...
r

Episode 12 of Schnauzer Logic Podcast is Online... The

Sonovista, my friends! Schnauzer Logic - "The Deciderer Episode" is online and ready for your listening pleasure... We understand that bigger isn't always better (I mean, lets face it... of much of us can you take?), so we're going to do our level best to keep the shows to 2hrs each week, or less... This week's episode clocks in at 1:59:08, so we're off to a good start on this new resolution... In addition, I've been getting a lot of questions about the derivation of the term "Sonovista"... here's how I explained it recently:

"Sonovista is a made up word, at least for me, which was suppose to be the name of the show i did on KSCO before they made me change it to AirPlay... in my derivation it was suppose to be a combination of Sonos (the greek root for sound) and Vista (seeing inspirational views), so Sonovista was going to describe a show where you would hear things that would provide a grand inspirational view... When I explained it to the staff at KSCO, they all had that look a dog gets when you blow in its face, so we went with AirPlay and I turned Sonovista into a all-purpose greeting, like mahalo or shalom."

its a pretty good story, don't you think? one you can tell your grandkids...

OK... on to this week's show. First off, just before we were getting ready to go into the studio, we checked out the latest stories on the Huffington Post and found the "I'm The Decider" song parody by Paul Hipp, and figured we had to put it on the show... by the time you read this it'll probably be everywhere (or nowhere, if the Beatles lawyers get involved), but we had it kind of firstiest!... We then moved into the next regular segment, which is the -intentionally lame- joke (yes, its suppose to be a groaner), but i just wasn't able to get it out, and with Sean and Parviz laughing at me, i pushed the button to start the Big Show music... during the intro we gave the joke to Parviz, who managed to get through it... We then got caught up a bit with Sean and talked a bit about listener comments (we love 'em!). After our first break we talked about the 100th anniversary of the famous 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, and our own experiences getting through some earthquakes (Parviz always has an interesting perspective) and took our next break... We then dove into our new weekly Plumbing Update with Parviz and introduced his new plumbing segment theme music, "The Plumber Is The Man" by Ann Zimmerman (folk singer and Harvard educated lawyer!)... If you take away anything from this segment, its this: "Parviz Knows Nothing" (said proudly, again and again)... We then auditioned a new comedy segment from Canadian stand-up Bryan Cox, entitled "Comic Road Story"... To quote a famous (and a bit course) british expression, we could rightfully be accused of "taking the piss" of Bryan's segment, but in an exchange of emails today Bryan proved himself to be a great sport, and more than willing to poke fun at himself, so enjoy Bryan's segment and look forward to more Bryan (perhaps even -live-) in upcoming shows... We then played a bit of the "Boys from Modesto" (no, not really), and took our next break returning with a discussion of James Blunt and his hit, "You're Beautiful" which led to the first, last, and only episode of Schnauzer Idol and on behalf of Sean and Parviz i promise that we will never never never never never never never never never sing on the show again! (and if you're listening to the show as a podcast or on the in-line player, feel free to fast forward and you'll be totally forgiven)... Finally, we took our last break and return with the Question of the Week (Close Encounters of the Celebrity Kind) and wrapped it all up for another week (whew)...

On the tuneage front, apart from the opening parody, the Plumbers Song, and our two karaoke numbers, we were able to highlight the following amazing performers:

1. Desert Radio from Vancouver, BC - "February Day"
2. LIVE 45 from Sedgley, UK - "Love Me When I'm Dead"
3. Ben Park Drive from Denver, CO - "Get Away"
4. Randy Coleman from Los Angeles, CA - "Goodbye Renee'"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

Next week we'll talk with our friend Jason Nathanson as he gets ready to head out on his trip across America... plus more sillyness and great GarageBand music, and maybe a surprise or two... so until then:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

and as you're saying your prayers, could you throw in a good word for my mom... she turns 80 in another few months and they just found some masses in her lungs which is not the kind of news you want to get for your 80th birthday.

many thanks for listening and have a great week!

namaste
robin

Brush with Celebrity - Question of the Week

Sonovista, my friends... hope you are all having a joyous easter/passover/other holiday...

just a reminder that the question of the week, this week, is to share your stories about meeting celebrities (stories involving stalking can and will be used against you in a court of law!)

you can send us an email or an audio file telling your story, or simply jot it down in the comments section of the blog.

btw, sean has resurfaced and all is well... whew!

see you all wednesday... until then, namaste... robin

Episode 11 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is Posted!!! (A little bit louder than Episode 10)

Sonovista, my friends, and welcome to our second decade of shows... A short show blog this week... why read when you can listen!?!

First, we get caught up with Parviz and his new job, his new look and his same-old bad attitude... With Sean MIA, we look to hook up with Mike Lema and Parviz's friend, Ken, who has been emailing like a fiend, but come up lacking (like the hair on Parviz's head)... We then take our first break and return with the details of Parviz's new career... its the story of a spiritual journey that will inspire generations to come... we then take our next break and come back with Part (2)(a) of the Kip Addotta interview, which leads directly into our next break. When we come back we preview the upcoming trip of our friend Jason Nathanson and how we managed to score his new blog site randomshow.blogspot.com from a great guy, Anders Clerwall of Sweden, who hosts his own video blog at www.randomshow.com... be sure to check out Anders site and drop him a note to say "hi" and "thanks!" for transferring the site to Jason... we also talk about opening day with the SF Giants and running into Francis Ford Coppola as I was walking out of the stadium, and come up with next week's question of the week:

Tell Us About Your Brush With Greatness/Celebrity? - send us an email or an MP3 recording and we'll put it on next week's show!

We then take our next break (very jazzy) and come back with a discussion about Grups and a recent article in New York magazine about 40-somethings who are doing adulthood differently from their parents... Then a quick break and back with the last installment, Part (2)(b) of our interview with Kip Addotta, finally closing with an update on my Delta Airline refund (not yet), and some (even more) random ramblings.

And with that, here are this week's amazing artists:

1. Barrelfish from San Jose, CA - "Again"
2. Blinded Canada from Kelowna, BC, Canada - "Cryin"
3. Joe Turley from Nashville, TN - "Like I Doo"
4. Kick The Cat from Chicago, IL - "Blow Me"
5. Lori McKenna from Boston, MA - "Never Die Young"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

So until next week:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

and if you see Sean, tell him to call home... we miss him...

namaste
robin

Episode 10 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is Posted... Plus SF Giants 2006 Opening Day Photos! (Barry... Barry... Barry...)

Sonovista, my friends!!! Sorry for the delay in posting this week's show notes... We did the Big Show on Wednesday night, which i edited and posted into the wee hours of the morning. Then on Thursday, I had breakfast with Rosemary Chalmers of KSCO (who was at the Queen concert Wednesday night with Parviz!) and then went to see the San Francisco Giants 2006 Opening Day game where they topped the Atlanta Braves (thanks, Larry!, for the extra ticket)... then I had some $work$ to do on Thursday night and Friday morning, and then a dentist appointment Friday afternoon and then spent Friday night in photoshop, editing the photos from the game for my Nephew... (whew...)... not that you care about *any* of this!... (although you can see the photos, full size, from the game by clicking on the photo of Barry and heading over to my Flickr site... and notice how all the Atlanta Braves have their arms crossed... i LOVE this game )

So... show notes... right... i almost forgot... we had a GREAT 10th episode anniversary show, and i just wanted to take this opportunity to thank Parviz and Sean and John DeKoven and Rachel Weinstein for taking the second mic over the past 10 weeks, as well as everyone else who blogged or emailed or provided audio or material for the show! Thanks to technology, we've managed to put together a little virtual community of somewhere between 500 and 1000 folks from around the world who get to laugh a little and think a little and listen to some cool toonage every week... We would do this even if no one were listening, but then we'd just be sad and a little tragic... this way we're "Podcasters"! (woo hoo)... and thanks, too, to Ethan St. Pierre of transfm.org for making our little show a part of his network...

And on to the show... Big Ups to Rachel Weinstein for sitting in... We opened with a bit of audio from the old KSCO show where I used to mangle the live spots for American Longevity products... after 2 weeks, the sponsor got so pissed they pulled them, but I think they were the most entertaining live reads for a liquid vitamin ever! Anyway, we'll play some more in the coming weeks. We then moved into the show and talked a bit about relationships and being single at 40 and Qigong and more with Rachel... After the first break we came back with Part 1 (Section A) of our all-new 2006 interview with legendary Stand-Up comedian, Kip Addotta. (Part 2, Section A and B next week)... As you know, I did an interview with Kip almost 5 years ago that didn't end well (!), but he was a gentleman and agreed to a second take... We talked from almost an hour, and its a fascinating discussion about the art and craft of stand-up comedy, as well as some amazingly honest observations about the comedy 'business'. Many thanks to Kip (and be sure to check out his son Victor's webpage for some of the most amazing hand crafted furniture i've ever seen!)

We then took our next break and came back with some Reality TV talk, a discussion about Paris Hilton playing the role of Mother Teresa in an upcoming movie, and more... We then took our next break, so Rachel could leave to get to an appointment, and came back with a discussion about a New York magazine article about 9/11 and "The Ground Zero Grassy Knoll"... Then, moving from something serious to something seriously funny, we played a classic Cranky Dog Spew from Critical Chip of Crankydog.com... PLEASE send an email to the Cranky Dog hisownself using this *link*, and ask him to do a new spew!... We then came back to discuss the Question of the Week and took our next break, after which we dove right into Part 1 (Section B) of the Kip Addotta interview... And finally we attempted to play (no, really!) the band, Nothing Less from Modesto, California, but got the wrong track loaded, and just ran out of time! We closed the show with Sean's broken laptop/mylar tape tale of woe, and my complaint against Delta Airlines.

Big Ups, btw, to all the celebrities who sent their warmest wishes on our 10th show, and to Jason Nathanson for managed to locate a spare spit valve for my Yamaha Flugelhorn... you da' man!

As mentioned, all the toons this week come from previous shows:

1. Casino66 from Malmo, Sweden - "Restarting"
2. Lotte from Oslo, Norway - "When I Close My Eyes"
3. Redwood School District from Montclair, NJ - "Two Guys, A Girl..."
4. BB Chung King & The Buddaheads from Burbank, CA - "Company Graveyard"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

Thanks to everyone for listening! We really REALLY appreciate it! And be sure to tell your friends! And until next week:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

namaste
robin

Episode 10 (Woo Hoo!) of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is Online!!!

going to the ballgame to see the San Francisco Giants Home Opener, so the blog will be updated later today/tonight... but the show is online and intense and funny and sad and thought provoking and hugely entertaining and just a little in a foreign language...

GO GIANTS!!!
namaste
robin

Question of the Week

Sonovista, my friends... here is this weeks question:

You have to give up one piece of technology for a year... which would it be:

a. cell phone

b. dvd player

c. cable tv

d. tivo

e. the internet

f. other

cheers!... robin

Episode 9 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast Posted... (No. 9... No. 9... No. 9...)

Sonovista, My Friends!!! Episode 9 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is online and as we race towards our 10th episode anniversary, next week, we're picking up comedic steam...

First, before we get into the show notes, a great thanks go out to John DeKoven for coming down to the Schnauzer studios and sitting in for the vacationing Parviz, who's off schtupping his wife... John, for those who don't know, is a comedy impresario and the chief yuckety yuck of Laugh-A-Lot Productions, and drove down from Pleasanton in an obvious state of pulmonary distress to co-host and play a round of Win John DeKoven's Money. Thanks also go out to Mike Lema and Erin King who both offered to co-host, and Theresa Benson, who offered to co-host and wrote an amazing review in the iTunes music store. In the coming weeks we'll give everyone a chance to co-host, either in the studios, or on the phones, as time and logistics permit... so many thanks, and if you're reading this and also interested in co-hosting some future segment, just drop me a note and we'll add you to the list.

OK... on to the show notes:

In honor of the upcoming start to the 2006 baseball season (April 3rd) we played a famous outtake of legendary Baltimore Orioles manger Earl Weaver responding to fan questions on The Manager's Corner. I know this is a real recording, but I don't know if it ever made it on the air... if you know, drop us a line...

Starting the show we moved into a show rundown, welcomed back Sean, and learned a bit about John's girlfriend, Helene, who works for Enterprise Rent-A-Car. After the break we got Helene on the phone and played a round of Win John DeKoven's Money, which resulted in a tie (first time ever) and forced us to go to the tiebreaker round, where Helene proved victorious!

We took another break and tackled the question of the week, talking a lot about Hillary Clinton's possible Presidential candidacy and the possible challenge by Condoleezza Rice. We then took our third break and played a song by my friend Fran Bennett (the first tune not from GarageBand.com )

Coming back from the break we ran down the genesis of the "sound" of stand-up comedian Kip Addotta hanging up on me, and played the original audio from 2001. We also played a teaser of a brand-new interview I conducted with Kip earlier this week, which we'll play on next week's 10th-episode anniversary show. For those who want to learn more about Kip before next week's interview, or order his comedy CD's, head over to his web site at www.kipaddotta.com. (and for those who say that no good can come from comedy, be sure to check out Kip's son Victor's master woodworking/furniture business Addotta Fine Woodwork)

We then took our last break and came back with a discussion about FHM magazine's naming of Scarlett Johansson "Sexiest Women". John agreed... Sean was not amused... And we finished with a plug for John's upcoming shows and website (www.laughalotproductions.com )

And with that, here are this week's amazing artists:

1. Dollar Gen from Austin Texas - "Everytime"
2. Genie Dean from Allborg, Denmark - "Wasted"
3. Fran Bennett from San Jose, CA - "Arthritic Rap"
4. Soapbox Paradox from E. Lansing, MI - "Danny!"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

Next week, a big big show... but until then:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

namaste
robin

Question of the Week

Sonovista, my friends! Here it is (better late than never)...

Rank the order in which you think the United States will see:

1. A Woman President
2. A Black President
3. A Jewish President
4. An Asian President
5. A Hispanic President
6. Some combination of the above
7. Other

and why!

see you all wednesday
namaste
robin

New Online Podcast Player!

Sonovista, my friends! Well, i'm not sure what's going on with the very nice folks over at blogexplosion.com, but their online podcast player still hadn't picked up Episode 8 ("the -ocho-") as of 9pm california time, tonight, so i took off my lawyer hat and then my comedy hat and then my psychologist hat and then my podcaster hat and put on my hacker hat and viola! we now have a new online podcast player hosted directly on the schnauzerlogic server, and which should always be up-to-date. major thanks go out to Jeroen Wijering who wrote the underlying flash player code (and is making it available for free under a creative commons license)... please let me know if you're having any problems using the new player... i'm going to see if the player can be modified to permit the actual downloading and saving of the mp3 file (which some of you have asked for)... and if there are any other requests for the online player, just ask.

Have a great weekend... we've gotten a few offers to be a guest co-host, and i'm going to see if i can give everybody a shot (at least for a segment or two, over the next two weeks)... if you're interested and haven't let me know, drop me a line.

And until wednesday (or until something else blows up)... namaste... robin

Episode 8 Not Showing Up in Online Player - Try This Instead...

Sonovista, my friends... i understand that Episode 8 ("the -ocho-") is not showing up in the Blogexplosion online player... it usually take 24 hours for them to update their links, but they're going through some changes, so things may be breaking... i will monitor this and if it doesn't show up by the end of today, i'll look into implementing a different onine player.

In the meanwhile, you can grab the mp3 file, directly, *here* . It should open up in a separate browser window, or in your computer's mp3 player (such as Windows Media Player), depending on your computer.

Any other problems, drop me a note... and thanks for listening!

namaste... robin

Episode 8 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast Posted... Two Months and We're Still Here!!!

Sonovista, my friends!!! Episode 8 ("the -ocho -") of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is online!

Great show, though we once again missed Sean, very much, who was up at UCSF for some more med stuff... If you've got a moment, throw some good thoughts, prayers, karma, juju, or whatever up his way...

OK! Show notes... we've got show notes... This week's opening audio was a little birthday tribute to famed funnyman Jerry Lewis , the original King of Comedy , who turned 80 last week (hey, 80!)... We then dug directly into Parviz's big Dairy Update which turned out to be, there will be no more dairy updates (or so he thinks)... Parviz passed his exams and is going to become a commercial plumber (-insert pipe joke here-) and begins his 5 year plumber apprentice program ("you're fired!") the first week of April... As a result, he and his lovely wife, Melanie, are going to take a much needed vacation, so the next two shows will be sans-Parviz... this means two things: (1) fewer poo jokes (probably) and (b) if you want to be a temporary co-host, send us an email using the button at the top of the page... you can do this by phone and co-host a segment or two... enter the fast-paced and glamourous world of podcasting and impress your friends.

Then we took a break and when we came back we got into the Question of the Week (if you could have any Super Power, which would it be)... lots of listener feedback on this one, with some bizarre answers... worth a listen as it provided a source of rich comedic topsoil! We then dove right into the whole Isaac Hayes /Scientology /Tom Cruise /South Park thing (again) with a LOT of interesting updates, including some audio from back in December with an interview of Isaac on the Opie & Anthony show on XM Satellite Radio ... my take-away: Isaac didn't sound upset back in December and Isaac sounds a little bit nuts... but very entertaining.

More breaks and lots of content. To wit: Jeopardy is offering online qualifying exams next week. If you want to try out (i'm going to!), check out this link *here *. Also some Welcome Back Kotter (the Movie) corrections, a story about a flawed SF Chronicle article on a water taste test, another flawed Reuters article on how Daytime TV makes old women stupid, a brief hint at my letter to the CEO of Delta Airlines in my attempt to get a refund for an expired ticket, and a real non-plumbing-related dairy update, the all new "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!® Squeeze ". Plus other assorted nonsense. Clocking in at 1:49, I think you'll be very entertained.

And with that, here are this week's amazing artists:

1. BB Chung King & The Buddaheads from Burbank, CA - "Company Graveyard"
2. Erik Zai from Pieta, Sweden - "Waters by the Shore"
3. Josh Goode Band from Dallas, Texas - "Spoonful of Thoughts"
4. Tobacco from Copenhagen, Denmark - "France Blues"
5. Bonus Mystery Artist and Song from mmmmphffff ....

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

So until next week:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

namaste
robin

Question of the Week

Sonovista, my friends! This week's Question of the Week (which we'll be discussing this coming Wednesday, 3/22 is:

If you could have a superpower, what superpower would you choose, and why?

(i really wanted to ask, "if you could have the power to listen in to people's thoughts about you, would you take it?", but that seemed too cerebral... but you can answer that one instead)

namaste... robin

Episode 7 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast Posted... Don't Like The Topic We're Discussing? Just Wait 10 Seconds... It'll Change...

Sonovista, my friends!!! Episode 7 of the Schnauzer Logic Podcast is online!

The show is off the 'juice' and we're back to our 'normal' size of about 90 minutes (and the 'bonefish' are swimming again, as Tony Soprano would say), so all is good. Well, not all good... Sean was MIA after a minor medical setback, but he assured us that he'll be back in the saddle next week, so we're all sending our best thoughts out to Sean for a speedy recovery and quick return (or I can't be held responsible for what happens to Parviz.)

And on to this week's show notes: OK... I admit it... this week's show felt kind of 'fractured' during the recording, thought it came out fairly polished... (like those rock tumblers I played with as a kid, while wearing black socks and sneakers - see photo below) enough grit and liquid and it all shines! We discuss some of our own hospital stories and our Question of the Week (which, I never answer... some things even a rock polisher can't handle) and a lot of entertainment stories (the latest Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies, Issac Hayes leaving South Park, John Travolta and his upcoming role in the movie version of the stage play based on the movie of the John Waters story, "Hairspary, the planned remake of the TV show, Welcome Back, Kotter slated to star Ice Cube , and more)... We also promise to discuss Donald Trump and Howard Stern and this week's American Idol and have a Dairy update, but none of that happens... and frankly, I blame Parviz (ok, blame's not the right word, but I'm not sure how to spell cuddle)... I think we planned too much show and should have been slashing topics, but we're just so gosh darned eager to make sure everyone has a good time... Mantra for next week: Less is More

And with that, here are this week's amazing artists (Canada, Utah and Washington state, RePrEsEnT!)

1. Instant Winner from Orem, Utah - "Milkshake"
2. 99 Men from Seattle, Washington - "No Fun"
3. Janet Panic from Vancouver, BC - "Blink"
4. Redshift from Toronto Canada - "Can't Let Go"

And now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

So until next week:

Show Up
Pay Attention
Tell The Truth
And Don't Be Attached To The Outcome

namaste
robin

We're Changing Servers (and a few old photos)

Sonovista, my friends!... just a quick tech update... We're changing the location of the schnauzerlogic.com servers, so for the next few days the graphics on this blog might be a little messed up.

Don't Panic! This will not affect the postings here on tblog.com or the actual podcast stream (or anything else, i hope!)... If you find something isn't working properly, please leave a comment (you can try to email, but that's being transferred too!)

In order to ease you though this transition, here are a couple of pictures of a very young schnauzer...

that's me in the middle, bottom row, third from the left, holding up the sign... i was 14 here and about as dorky as you could be at a jewish upstate new york day camp

in the photo below i'm still on the bottom row, second from the right, a year older (15) and only a touch less dorky (if you look closely you'll see i'm wearing shorts and sneakers with black socks... Mom!!!!!!)

so for everyone who thinks that we only make fun of Parviz... well, we'l, never stop doing that! but you takes your comedy where you find it!

and now you know what you didn't know when you didn't know what you knew!

namaste... robin

Question of the Week (very late, I know...)

Here's this week's *very late* question of the week:

You 'win' a one-year, all-expense paid lottery (food, clothing, housing) so that for one year you don't have to pay for any living expenses and can travel anywhere and/or do anything.

Name six things that you do (or places that you go) and why... these are things you don't already do or places you don't already go!

namaste
robin

Shameless Plug for a Great Artist

Sonivista, my friends, and a Happy Sunday!

Thought I'd take an opportunity to put in a shameless plug for an artist friend of mine. Sandra Spencer is a wonderful artist who specializes in painting stylized portraits of pets and animals and landscapes. Sandra painted an original "Blue Schnauzer Behind The Mic" for me many years ago when I first went on the air, and I still use the image as my AIM icon.

You can see all of Sandra's work *here* .

Enjoy, and have a Great Sunday!

namaste
robin