Indoor Life

Evening, gang.


The year is coming to an end, faster than I'd care to admit. It's been a huge year for me - getting married, a crazy honeymoon, starting this site, new job, new home. I've done more in one year than I feel I have in the last five. It's been damn good to me. I won't bother you with the typical year-end, best-of lists that are so pervasive this season, though. For me, it's been a time full of office deadlines that demand I keep my head down and just push through, processing invoice after invoice. Super fun stuff, let me tell you. So how do I get through this? By devotedly listening to one of my favorite podcasts - The Indoor Kids, courtesy of Nerdist Industries.

I had long been a listener of 1Up's Retronauts, viewing it in my own mind as a be-all, end-all for gaming. I had a big gap in my video game lexicon, ending in the PS2/Xbox/Gamecube era. I didn't go modern until last summer, and that was only because a friend gave me an incredible deal on a 360. That's the thing about getting older - money is no longer the scarcity; time is the valuable commodity now. Getting married and starting a new job consumed most of my free time. When I could steal a free hour, here or there, I would have to make the most of it. Bit by bit, I caught up on what I had missed out on - Biohazard, Arkham Asylum, Alan Wake. Lots of genre specific, niche-heavy titles. I slowly went modern. When my favorite podcast announced a satellite series, hosted by Kumail Nanjiani, I was wary but excited.


Turns out, my curiosity was rewarded.


I had been a fan of Kumail since I had seen his stand up on Comedy Central. He's hysterical and sweet, the kind of comic who can make you howl at jokes about the depths of the ocean ("It's when God says "...and here's all these mistakes I've made!""). His obsessive, devoted appreciation for the world of gaming is so pure and sincere that hours of fantastic content spring forth from his discussions he hosts, both with friend Ali Baker and wife Emily V Gordon. In particular, hearing the married couple's take on gaming is both endearing and fascinating - you get a glimpse not only at how their relationship as writers and comics work, but how gaming is a force in the course of their lives. 

On top of the great hosts, some of the themes and guests they've had for episodes have been unparalleled. There have been down-the-rabbit-hole discussions on Gears of War with voice actor Carlos Ferro, entire episodes dedicated to the discussion of music in gaming, and the overwrought notion of girl gamers. Tom Lennon lead an eye-opening episode on addiction and the time sink that is gaming. I was agog at how Paul Scheer consistently (and without fail) backed the wrong technological horse. Dan Harmon extolled the virtues of evolution and story telling around the merits of Skyrim as it consumed everyone's lives.

I love this podcast and look forward to it every week. Kumail and Emily are top notch and open minded in a field that too often yields nit picking and negativity. If you have any interest at all in the idea of games as a commodity or cultural phenomenon, or just the guests themselves, listen to an episode. I guarantee you'll learn something.

Larger Universe

C-C-C-C-C-c-c-c-combo breaker!

Spooky Month perseveres but the inherently musical aspect of the week falls, leaving in its wake a hybrid of the spooky and the auditory. Today, instead of emphatically suggesting a song or album for the month of October, I implore you to look at one of my all time favorite podcasts, Mysterious Universe.

I've been listening to MU since its inception, I think. To be fair, it was back in 2006 and I may have been in that hazy, post collegiate phase in which days string together in a seamless fashion while you look for a job to serve as a stop gap before a career takes shape. The internet and podcasting were ascendant, becoming a legitimate cultural presence. I was filling the time not searching job postings by cleaning my apartment and listening to podcasts, distracting myself with the weekly shows. I was enamored with Mysterious Universe, a podcast "bringing you news of the strange and paranormal" that touched on a childhood fascination of mine. I was, I am sheepish to admit, fascinated with anything and everything relating to UFOs, Bigfoot, Cryptozoology and my personal favorite - the Loch Ness monster. As I got older, I studied Philosophy in college, which I've found was basically these same niche subjects, only as they manifest in the mind. Same person, same weird interests, only now it was internalized through logic and self-examination instead of books about Roswell. I still adored a good conspiracy theory, only now more as an intellectual exercise than a serious debate.

I loved having the podcast on while I puttered. I started to accumulate back episodes and would listen to them on long drives to see my parents. At some point I interrupted my internet service and when I finally got my old pc back online, I downloaded every episode of MU from iTunes that had been backlogged. I had a glut of content and I was in rapture. Host Benjamin Grundy, now accompanied by Aaron Wright, intoned with pleasant demeanor about the most outlandish stuff possible. Shadow People. Scientific anomalies. Possessions. Modern relics. Anything and everything you would expect from Art Bell, only without the sinking feeling that you were listening to an elderly relative ramble on about murky memories (not to slight Coast to Coast, but they had their share of out-there guests). Grundy and Wright often take their subject matter at face value, and I love them for it. It makes for an interesting broadcast, if only for entertainment's sake. They also include some phenomenal mood music to break up the broadcasts, creating a fantastic air of peculiarity to go with the subject matter.

That's the real thing here, for me. I know so much of what they cover has little or no basis in reality. It doesn't mean it can't give me a thrill. In fact, there have been quite a few nights in which sleep has eluded me that end in me having to turn off my old-format iPod for fear of never sleeping again - stories of the paranormal and bizarre keeping me up beyond when I should have otherwise drifted off to slumber. Back in the original spate of episodes there's a report of a n investigator who made audio recordings of what supposedly was a Sasquatch in the distance. More than once I awoke from a fresh nightmare at the sounds of mournful howling as episodes played in the night, a strange and chilling sound that I couldn't really identify as a known animal. I eventually had to edit that episode out.

 The point of all this is that if you want to give yourself the willies this Halloween season - listen to a few episodes of Mysterious Universe. There will undoubtedly be a mix of stories harvested from all over the world - some strange, some funny, some undeniably made up. Still, there is just that one story in the bunch that will make you reach for the pause button. Tell you what - download an episode this weekend and wait until it's late at night. Put one on and see if there's something in there that gives you the willies. Mission accomplished.

Web Slinger

Friday, kids. Good gawd.


Took long enough to get here. It's quickly become patio weather here in MPLS and I've even seen more than a share of kids rocking the shorts already, despite the fact it's only 60 at the moment. Considering how cold out it was just 10 days ago, though, I'll allow it. Myself, I can never wear shorts. Just don't care for them, plain and simple. I know that sounds nuts. But that's me, not you. You should enjoy short pants all you want. You should also enjoy your Friday night. If, like me, you're still shaking off the grip of a nasty little virus, you might not be out and tearing it up tonight. That's just fine, I dig. To improve your Friday night entertainment options take a look at this collection of posts I wrote about online content. I put online content in your online content so your online content will...never mind. Just peruse at your leisure.


Webcomics galore - A series of absurd and hysterical webcomics, all highly respected.
Nerdist - The best podcast also has a fantastic site now! Go and see!
Gamespite - A repository for retro/2D gaming with a great community to boot.
The Ricky Gervais Show - Also available in podcast form. Witness the insight of Karl Pilkington.
WTF With Marc Maron - An amazing series of interviews with the best, most notorious comedians alive today.
Nostalgia Critic - Tearing apart the best and worst of your childhood entertainment
Think Geek - Coolest shop I've been on.


I think between these posts you should be able to find something funny or insightful to help you relax and unwind this weekend. Take a look and enjoy coasting into Saturday.

Crazy Insight

Alright, I can admit it.

I'm tapped.

Completely spent. Long, long weekend full of stuff that had to be done, moving bleary eyed through work today, came home to another fantastic dinner my better half had (bless her heart) made before I even set foot in the door. I was washing up and realized in a panic "Oh no, no post!" So here I am, typing through the exhaustion, wondering what I could muster any love for that would propel me through this. Then I realized I knew just the thing - something I have been enjoying immensely, as of late.

WTF with Marc Maron.

Maron has been a gigging, hardworking and above all honest comic for over 20 years. His accomplishments, while too numerous to catalog in their entirety, include over 40 performances on Conan O'Brien's first talk show, hosting his own Air America radio show, three amazing albums and even a book. In short (which would no doubt irk him to be succinctly summarized) he is the definition of the long-standing stand-up, a man whose drive and work ethic has lead him to where he is today, riding high on his critical success and killing it every week in the incredible podcast he produces.

The show itself is, for comedy aficionados, a gold mine. Maron opens each installment by examining his own life a bit, maybe riffing on his travel experiences or just venting about feeling bad about things he knows he shouldn't. It's an interesting look into his headspace from one episode to the next. He can be both brutally honest and refreshingly charming when seemingly riffing on his own life. After the intro, and the obligatory plugs for a sponsor, Maron plays the segment that comprises the meat of his show - engaging, insightful interviews or discussions with other comics. Some are old friends (like the amazing 2-episode installment in which he and the prolific Louis C.K. reconnect after a falling out), some are strangers (like the hysterical Dr. Ken Jeong) while some are controversial. It seems some of his best known episodes are the ones where he starts to take the kid gloves off to really volley back and forth with the guests. His bull sessions with known joke thieves Carlos Mencia and Dane Cook are fascinating glimpses into the much maligned comics and how they justify what they do. Maron insists he wasn't meeting with them just for that reason but the notion is one that is constantly reminded, and he shouldn't shy away from it. He displays a real finesse for handling people and coaxing truth out of them. His discussion with one of my favorites, Jackie Kashian, blew me away with her frank recollection of childhood experiences and tales of parental drama. It made me appreciate the both of them so much more. His recent episode featuring Dave Foley was both cringe-inducing and revelatory, as the Newsradio and Kids In The Hall alum talked about heartbreak and divorce at great length, and how it had lead him to a new phase in his life.

I can say all this dramatic business about WTF and Maron's conversations, but it's not as though it's all doom and gloom. Quite the contrary, he actually makes it very easy and engrossing to hear. What is at times awkward or difficult is fascinating and you don't want to have to stop, like his recent interview with the notoriously temperamental Gallagher. I don't want to rehash what's been said since it happened, but its absolutely worth it to hear Maron hold the aging act storm off when confronted with the reality of his offensive material. Who knew Gallagher could be so crotchety and difficult? All right, I'll admit, it was pretty funny.

Not only is Maron working tirelessly as a regular performer, but he has an amazing relationship with his audience and fans, keeping an amazingly consistent presence online, whether it be the WTF site, his own page archiving his career, or through his as-it-happens twitter feed. To boot, he has been known to barter with fans after shows for his merchandise, accepting (until recently) homemade baked goods, knitted things and other miscellanea in lieu of payment for his content through both Android and IOS apps. The guy is up on the tech, as well.

Seriously, look at how much I just wrote about how great this podcast is, even after that miserable intro about how tired I was. That's how amazing the show is, that it pushed me right through the fatigue and off to the far end of this page. If you're still reading this, go download an episode, starting with someone you're familiar with. It's a great way to get started with this excellent podcast. I"m glad I did.

Mr. Pilkington, I Presume...

Evening, all.


I write this over the counter in my kitchen, having cleaned my apartment from top to bottom. Why the obsessive-compulsive fit of action, you ask? Partly genetics, but honestly it's the damn blizzard again. I know I shouldn't have mentioned it in that post about storms and Warm Fuzzy Viewings, see what happens when you get over confidant? Regardless, here I am, having gone stir crazy and Lysol-intensive, meticulously scrubbing away at phantom spots on my counter while the snow piles up outside. I can barely see across the street, it's that intense. My cabin fever (and a decent bottle of cab) has driven me slightly mad while I clean, so while I don't have a proper column to speak of I can at least impart what has been the saving grace of the day - An Idiot Abroad, with Karl Pilkington!

Karl, one of the regular participants on Ricky Gervais' podcasts and the ensuing Ricky Gervais Show, Karl is the kind of person whose mind you absolutely marvel at while it operates. Gervais' podcast (and the show created from it) rely primarily on Gervais and Stephen Merchant picking his brain and seeing what is happening in his orange shaped head. While it absolutely comes across as cruel or teasing, it is done, as all involved attest, in nothing but good humor and comraderie. Pilkington is either absolutely insane and sheltered or bizarrely insightful - asking questions that will stop the conversation in its tracks or make you question whether you were even speaking on the same subject.


Having tormented Karl for several years and determined he had no interest in leaving England at all, Gervais and Merchant realized a fantastic travel show could be created through sending Pilkington to the Seven Wonders of the World and simply filming his thoughts and experiences. The primary conceit for the show is that Karl is unhappy in his surroundings and often muses on his experiences through his own bizarrely centric view. On seeing the Taj Mahal - "Well, I figure you'd rather live in a hole and see a palace, then live in a palace and have to see a hole." It does make sense in a certain light, but seeing him in action, having crossed all of India and having that be his only remark? Brilliant, as Gervias would summarize. 


A friend of mine had extolled the virtues of this show after I had asked if he had seen the Ricky Gervais show. One good thing leads to another, apparently. Having set the DVR the night before, my better half and I awoke today to a massive snowstorm and no plans to speak of. So, the day ahead of us, we made breakfast, lunch and dinner from scratch, cleaning the entire condo top to bottom in the meanwhile, all with An Idiot Abroad playing in the background. Both painfully hysterical and oddly engaging as a travel show, it was a wonderfully distracting thing to have on while going about a home-bound day. Please, for the love of all that is good and holy, take in the wonder that is Mr. Pilkington - be it through the podcasts, the phenomenal and painfully funny show or the Idiot Abroad. They're all too good to be missed.


I'll give a more proper column when we've shoveled our way out of Hoth.


Till then, stay warm.

For Love Of The Game

Happy snowstorm, everyone! I am beginning to think I should consider a move to Alaska, as I seem to be the only person I know who genuinely gets excited by blizzards. In the interest of fighting community-wide cabin fever and the cooped-up-crazies I want to share a treasure trove of entertainment with you. 

I speak of Gamespite, a blog I follow devotedly yet of which I have never formally become a member. Bear in mind, though, my reluctance is based only on my personal reticence at being a 'joiner', or a fear of being rejected. I probably sound more neurotic and weird than I intend to here, but I digress. It's thoroughly awesome and you should check it out.

Obvious personal nerdery aside, I love the site for both its content and tone. I first became acquainted with it from listening to the (now sadly defunct) Retronauts podcast from 1UP.com/. The host for the show, Jeremy Parish, has been maintaining the Gamespite domain for the last decade, on and off, as a place to write and host honest, heartfelt critiques about games both new and old. It certainly doesn't need an endorsement from me to keep it's momentum rolling; it's a thriving community that chugs along, creating some of the most interesting breakdowns on video games and culture I've read anywhere. Honestly, the driving factor behind my writing this article evangelizing the site is simply that I think Gamespite deserves the accolade and attention. 

The site has become a repository for insightful and detailed articles on everything from psychological profiles on the background players in Nintendo games, to a forum full of some of the most intelligent, kind, and above all witty members, on the internet. Additionally there is the fantastic 'Let's Play!' section, where you can vicariously experience a game, either to relive it or experience it for the first time, most often with incredibly funny commentary that makes the experience akin to a modern MST3K. All of this and more, gathered and maintained by the persistent and prolific Parish. 

While Parish has made no bones about his own passions, among them Klonoa and Mega Man Legends, he has been a well-rounded editor and publishes a broad cross section of the  world of electronic gaming. The lion's share of the posts come from Parish himself, with contributor's columns being collected into themed issues he's dubbed Gamespite Quarterly, available for purchase in both soft and hardcover. Themes for issues go in suites, such as one for Heroes and another for Villains. The varying authors show their love for the overlooked and unsung, writing on sidekicks and bitplayers that they hold dear to their hearts. Other times its heavy, analytical critiques on the nature of choice in the medium, like Bioshock or Maniac Mansion. If all of this sounds way to intricately involved in the culture, try looking for something as familiar and famous as Mario and the impact its had on society.

What I find to be most enjoyable about the collective writings as a whole is the tone of the work - it's approached with both a reverence and light-hearted sense of humor, with little of the typical snark endemic of video game communities. Of course, this is not to say there is a dearth of knowing winks and elbows in the ribs, but the mood is one of appreciation and contemplative study that shows a genuine love of the subject matter. Take, for example, this massive list of articles, freely available for perusing.

If it seems like I'm rambling on in a disjointed matter, it's probably an accurate assessment,. It's most likely due to the over abundance of material that's been gathering over the years. For my non-gaming brethren it may seem like a shot in the dark into a niche community, but to a large part of the internet it's a well known haven, a group of friends and family that just seem to get each other. It's a place for kindred spirits to find people to play online with (Who Don't Suck, according to the thread title, in an inspired stroke of  social networking) or to share their appreciation for heavy metal. It's a massive community that just exudes positivity.


Check Gamespite out, and if you have any interest in ye olden days of gaming, the Retronauts podcast is still available at the site linked above as well as iTunes. Take a look and see what you find. 

Nerd Alert!

Well, hello there!

Today, in a move of geeky self-awareness, I want to tell you about an excellent multi-media presence in our world. The thing I speak of is the Nerdist podcast. The brain child of Chris Hardwick, known for his appearances on G4 and Chelsea Handler (or for those of us who watched MTV in the 90s, hosting Singled Out with Jenny McCarthy), the Nerdist podcast was first made available February 8th of 2010. Hardwick, who had at the time just started hosting Web Soup, a you-tube heavy spin off of The Soup, wanted an outlet for talking to friends and fellow comedians about things they found to be nerdy or worthy of geeking out over. The general idea was to find things that were worthy of obsession and passion to specific audiences and bring it a more public view, be it comedians they felt people needed to know about, or personalities who were changing the landscape of distribution and what it means to have a career being an artist, like Scott Sigler or Jonathon Coulton. Enlisting his friends, fellow comedian Jonah Ray and tech-savvy Matt Mira, they launched both the podcast and a blog to evangelize the world on their nerdist views. 

Each episode is roughly an hour and features a guest of the week, typically recorded in Hardwick's home along with Raye and Mira. Fair warning, there is more than a moderate sprinkling of profanity, just in case your ears are allergic to that sort of thing. Topics and guests range from voice actor extraordinaire Billy West (known for voice work on shows like Futurama, Doug and Ren & Stimpy) to Adam Savage of Mythbusters fame, to Mixed Martial Artist Jason 'Mayhem' Miller (host of MTV's Bully Beatdown) to Rob Zombie (of Rob Zombie fame). Hardwick, Raye and Mira spend the duration of the show  both interviewing and joking with their guests, to great success and amusement. While critics of the show have accused the hosts of fawning over whoever they bring on, Hardwick defends his enthusiasm as just that - he prefers to have guests whose company he actually enjoys and wants to learn about. As he posited in one of the episodes, why would he want to have to talk to someone for an hour, in his own home mind you, whom he can't stand? In several episodes Hardwick relates his own struggles with negativity and how he tries to see the best in everything, and his show's perspective and method of guest selection follows that ideology.

Each interview provides insightful glimpses into the minds and processes of each guest. It's fascinating to hear Drew Carrey talk about what it was like to do the Tonight show with Johny Carson and how it could literally open up your career overnight, or hear Stan Lee (of Marvel Comics legend) talk about where the ideas for characters and plots originated. At one point Hardwick had an opportunity to interview Ozzy Osbourne for an unrelated piece and they hit it off well enough that he put up the whole interview for that week's episode. Who knew Ozzy was a massive Dr. Who fan? In a particular instance of absurdist humor, Hardwick interviews the Muppets, yes those Muppets, and asks questions like they're normal, everyday people. Hearing someone give a straight-faced interview with Fozzy, Kermit and Gonzo is bizarre, to say the least. 

With the podcast updating every week and Hardwick and  Ray tweeting about things in between their respective gigs as professional comedians, eventually the concept started to get too large for just them to run on their own. To satisfy the demand for content and consistency, they reached out to writers they admired and had them take the reigns on the Nerdist blog, which I've had a link to on my own site since it's beginning. It was a stroke of genius for Hardwick, as he wanted to keep up the steady stream of content and writing without it becoming a time-sink for his own life. The result? We get new episodes every week, the blog is updated on a frequent basis and non of the content flags due to disparate schedules or obligations. Anything from bizarre news stories to sightings of the Oscar Meyer Weiner Mobile end up on the blog, which is always a good read. The podcast stays consistently awesome as well. Check out some of the guests they've had: 


Kevin Smith
Ozzy Osbourne
Bill West
Marc Maron
Sarah Silverman
Greg Fitzsimmons
Brian Posehn
Mike Birbiglia
Rain Wilson
Bill Maher
Fred Willard
Jim Gaffigan
Joel Mchale
Andy Richter


See that? See how many awesome, amazing people they've had on? Here's the best part: all these hysterical, entertaining and insightful podcasts are FREE. That's right, no cost! Go for it! Download them on itunes or off their blog. There is something for everyone, I guarantee it.