Podcast Ping's Christmas Calendar Day 20

Day 20. Already. The Three Wise Men arrive.



http://www.archive.org/download/PodcastPingsChristmasCalendarDay20/ppcc20.mp3

I've got a few modern renditions of classic carols throughout the calendar. It's interesting to hear how something with which everyone is very familiar can be made to sound new and interesting.

There are many versions of We Three Kings that leave out the third chorus, feeling that it's too dark and grim for the season. But it's what makes it one of my favorite carols. It helps to encompass the entirety of what Christmas means.

Podcast Ping is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0.

My online toy shop can be found at http://patrickjmcnamara.webs.com.

Podcast Ping's Christmas Calendar Day 19

Day 19.



http://www.archive.org/download/PodcastPingsChristmasCalendarDay19/ppcc19.mp3

The song for this episode, "The Wonderful World of Toys," is one that I was mildly interested in the first time listening to but have grown to really like with repeated listenings.

Most podcasts that play music will list the songs in their show notes. I've tended not to do that for a few reasons. For one, I never really got in the habit and it's a little late to start now.

I also like to keep the music a bit of surprise. When one listens to music on the radio they don't know what the next song is until it comes on. But when show notes list the music it tends to be a bit of a spoiler. Just knowing the title of a song can set up expectations as to what the song is about, especially in the case of a cover version.

And I do list all the songs and poems at the end of the show. If a person is listening to the show anyways they can hear the credits. Those familiar with the show know that it would be disruptive to announce the music during the show. It's simply part of the formula to run the music and poetry together. It helps create an atmosphere. Podcast Ping isn't a DJ style show but more of a musical experience.

I have been trying to keep the same order in the credits as the song played, so that the third song mentioned in the credits is the third song in the show. I'm assuming that if someone really is interested in a particular song they'll search for it or the artist. Most of the material is from Mevio, which use to be Podshow. And I try to credit the source if it isn't from there.

Podcast Ping is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0.

My online toy shop can be found at http://patrickjmcnamara.webs.com.

Podcast Ping's Christmas Calendar Day 18

Day 18. One more week until Christmas.



http://www.archive.org/download/PodcastPingsChristmasCalendarDay18/ppcc18.mp3

Now things get busy. I expect the stores will be really busy this weekend.

Podcast Ping is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0.

My online toy shop can be found at http://patrickjmcnamara.webs.com.

Podcast Ping's Christmas Calendar Day 17

Day 17. A week from now it will be Christmas Eve. Or Christmas Eve day. Or the morning of the day of Christmas Eve. Or somewhere in the general vicinity.



http://www.archive.org/download/PodcastPingsChristmasCalendarDay17/ppcc17.mp3

It was two years ago today that I did Bonus 9-A Visit From St. Nicholas. And since it was my first Christmas it was my first Christmas show. I feel it was one of my best shows and sounded the way I wanted the show to. As such I've tried to do much the same thing in the regular shows for this year with classic poetry, although none of them feel as strong as the bonus 9 was. I suspect it's because everyone is familiar with the Christmas poem so the musical breaks aren't as disruptive.

I keep feeling as if I might miss a day, but with a little more than a week to go I doubt I will. But doing a post a day can get a little repetitive and it's easy to forget. And it does take a bit of time since I'm not only posting to the podcast blog but to Mininova as well. So far none of the sites I've used have been down so I've had no trouble in posting, although it re-enforces my decision not to do it again next year.

I usually take December off from writing, so this has changed things a bit this year. Although I'm not doing any novel writing I have had a few poems to write--and of course the postings. It's not demanding, but the main reason for not writing during December is to regenerate my ideas.

I've had an idea for a new podcast but I can't say when I'll get to it. But I'll likely talk more about it on the New Year's show--which I still haven't done any work on. I may even keep things light for the first few months of next year and not do any podcasts--except for the Blue Hot Gossip anniversary show. I skipped the first one (since I wasn't sure about continuing it at the time) so I don't really want to skip the second. Although at this point the one after that might take a little time.

And sometime I would like to do another fan commentary. The trouble is that I need a couple hours I can work uninterrupted to record it. It's been more than two years since I did the Dark Crystal commentary, which happened to come out shortly before a new version with an official commentary. But I would choose some other movie to do, preferably one that is widely available but doesn't have a commentary of it's own. Now that I've got some podcasting experience I think I could do a better job, or at least I would sound better.

Podcast Ping is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0.

My online toy shop can be found at http://patrickjmcnamara.webs.com.

Podcast Ping's Christmas Calendar Day 16

Day 16. Less than ten days left until Christmas. And after today, all but one song is new.



http://www.archive.org/download/PodcastPingsChristmasCalendarDay16/ppcc16.mp3

I see from the calendar that today (December 16th) is a new moon and New Year's will be a full moon. That should make for a fun night. I still have to work on that show but I may wait until after Christmas to do it. It seems just too busy right now. I have an idea of what I'm going to do for the show and it shouldn't take too long to put together. But I sort of want to keep it a surprise.

Podcast Ping is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0.

My online toy shop can be found at http://patrickjmcnamara.webs.com.

Podcast Ping's Christmas Calendar Day 15

Day 15.



This is one of the lighter shows. I initially planned a couple more comedy songs but pulled one or two to use on Blue Hot Gossip. I'll admit that I don't always write the funniest stuff, or if I do I may not properly deliver it, but I do try. Although the poem on this episode isn't mean to be funny, it just happened to go with the song.

I also try and keep all my podcasts family friendly. It's easy enough to control the poetry I use but I can get a bit tricky when it comes to the music, especially with comedy music. There's a tendency in comedy to get "blue" or rude. But that's usually just lazy writing. The good comedy appeals to psychologically mature people as well.

Fortunately, "The Elf Conscription Song" is clean. But I have chosen not to play one or two songs on Blue Hot Gossip on the basis of content. It's not that I'm prudish, it's just that I've decided to cater the show to a certain audience.

http://www.archive.org/download/PodcastPingsChristmasCalendarDay15/ppcc15.mp3
Podcast Ping is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0.

My online toy shop can be found at http://patrickjmcnamara.webs.com.

Podcast Ping's Christmas Calendar Day 14

Day 14. Snow.



http://www.archive.org/download/PodcastPingsChristmasCalendarDay14/ppcc14.mp3

I started on some Christmas gifts today. I've got five to make, although two of them can wait until after Christmas. I should be able to get through one a day, provided I'm not spending all my energy shoveling snow or other things. But I don't expect a problem.

I've been running across a few Christmas songs that would work well for Blue Hot Gossip, although there's just no room for another Christmas show this year. I'll likely save them and use them next year, if I remember. I've also had some business ideas that I've got to work on.

Podcast Ping is licensed under Creative Commons, Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0.

My online toy shop can be found at http://patrickjmcnamara.webs.com.