writing

Forgive the review ramblings

So I’ve started writing formal podcast reviews here. (The first of which will likely be posted just after this.) And in writing this first review, I realized that I’ve never written a real review for something before. I’ve technically reviewed over 50 podcasts over the years verbally, but I’ve never really written any of it down as a coherent blog post with positives and negatives and stuff.

As I was writing I did what, in writing for a podcast is great, but in blogging is troublesome, I wrote the way I talk. And as anyone who’s ever listened to the podcast can attest, I meander.

I know I need to get more practice writing in general. I haven’t done much of it at all since high school. And I need to set aside real time to write both the review blogs, and prep for episodes. After all, I promised to be more prepared. I really think I need to start writing blogs and turn those stories into the episodes. The problem is that I can never bring myself to write what I’m thinking before I talk. I just am able to think out loud better than I can write my thoughts. I realize that I’m writing my thoughts right now, but trust me this bit is tough.

I guess I just have to go back to what I just said. I need to get better at writing. I just have to pick up my laptop and start writing during the day. The problem is, I am really uncomfortable using a laptop or working anywhere besides my office. I can sit down at my desk for hours and just chug away and focus only on the task at hand, but put my laptop in front of me and my whole vibe changes. I just can’t focus when I’m using that thing and I don’t know why.

Maybe I need to, like the writing, just do it more. I’m sure if I spend more time using my laptop to write, and maybe do some editing work, it’ll feel less weird to me. And then maybe I’ll get better at writing. And then maybe I’ll get better at writing reviews…

Wow that’s a lot of maybes that I need to do.

Whatever. For now I’m gonna just try to write my reviews in a way that is maybe a little more coherent but is definitely me. All I can do is work on it and hope I get better at it. In the mean time, forgive me if my podcast reviews sound, well, like I wrote them.

By Odd Dad Out, ago
ODO 97: A Story For Every Story

ODO 97: A Story For Every Story

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

It’s been a fun week around the Odd house. I’ve decided I want to start writing more for the blog. I’m trying to do more with the Facebook group. We took the family to the food truck festival. I got to be a part of the Sunshine Summit 2018 and hang out in the live streams. And it seems that I have some sort of personal story for every news story this week, except for one.

 

(download mp3)

 -WEIRD NEWS-

Scientists in Israel claim to have created a solution of nano-particles that can repair damaged corneas and correct both near and far sightedness. The treatment would include corneal mapping done via smartphone.
  • Homeless Camp Found On Top Of Amtrak Station
Authorities found what appears to be a homeless person’s camp built into a cement structure on the top of a California Amtrak station. Officers found a tent and other amenities in the structure.
An Arizona woman was arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) after causing a three car accident while on the way to her wedding. She was released later the same day.

 -JACKASS OF THE WEEK-

Former ‘Officer of the Year’ Arrested For Drugs and Child Neglect

A Florida sheriff’s deputy and his girlfriend were arrested after neighbors reported screaming and gunshots at his home. When officers arrived, they found cocaine, marijuana, spent shell casings on the floor, and bullet holes in the walls. The couple’s 2 year old child was also in the home. Back in 2016, the deputy had been awarded the Florida Sheriffs Association “Law Enforcement Officer of the Year.”

 -Sunshine Summit 2018-

sunshine summit 2018
https://www.sunshineandpowercuts.com/sunshinesummit2018/
The Sunshine Summit 2018 is upon us, and it’s been a blast getting to be a part of it. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching all the live streams and hearing the stories from all the guests. It doesn’t hurt that I’ve been mentioned by nearly everyone. My experience with the summit has opened up new opportunities for me guesting on other shows, as well as opening me up to new ideas for this show in the future.

 -Promos-

PodernFamily
PreRecorded Live
By Odd Dad Out, ago

Blogging Blogging Blogging…

 So here’s the thing. I am fully capable of writing something in this blog space on a regular basis. If I really tried I could probably write a different post every day. Would it be something of substance? Hell if I know. Would it give a little more of a peek into what’s going on in my head? That’s much more likely. Would it maybe help drive traffic here and get me more listeners? That’s almost certain.

 So why don’t I do it? I’d love to have some really upstanding answer. I’d love to be able to say, ” My children are too important to spend all of their young lives in front of a computer.” Or maybe, “My obligations as a father are simply too crucial to escape.” But really the truth of the matter is, I’m just kind of lazy.

 Now I’m not talking about the kind of lazy where I don’t get out of bed until noon. My younger boys are 2 and 4. That is NOT an option. What I mean is much more a sort of  master procrastinator, lazy. But even that is sort of a stretch. Besides the fact that I am in fact quite busy wrangling my boys during the day, and the fact that I do put my children before other things in my life, a lot of it just comes from not wanting to do it.

 A big part of my ability to continue do my podcast has been my ability to improvise just about everything I do on the show. I don’t want to write it all out. That’s why I do my show the way I do. But here’s the thing; it’s REALLY good for the show for me to write. Google and other search hubs cannot search audio. It doesn’t matter what I say on my podcast, google cannot hear it. In order for anything I produce to be searchable, it has to be in print on a webpage. And the more things there are on that webpage in print for the little robots to search for, the more likely they are to direct things to your (my) webpage.

So, with all that in mind, I am going to try to write more. Maybe I’ll just ramble like this and get thoughts out that I don’t express in the show. Maybe I’ll just take my stories from the show and write them out. I don’t know. What I do know is that I need to be writing more, or at all. What I also know is that it is highly likely I’m just writing this to myself and nobody will read it besides the crawler bots from Google. Hello Google bots…

By Odd Dad Out, ago

The Thing About Writing…

Here’s the thing about writing… You have to actually do it. I think about writing blog posts all the time to get out some of my more ranty ideas. Since I changed my show around to more news/ comedy oriented, there’s less of a place for me just rambling about a thing. But of course, because I’m me, I never manage to put these thoughts down somewhere. I have some rather complex thoughts that I think all the way out and really just need to expel out into the universe. But alas, I never manage to type them out or share them beyond the voices in my head.

I want to write. I don’t really know what to write beyond just getting things out of my head. Originally that’s what my whole podcast was. I would just talk and get things out of my head. The thing about that is that I didn’t always have a thing to talk about. One of the most important things about having a podcast really is some sort of consistency. Maybe that’s where I went wrong in that. I made it a point to have a schedule and a consistency, but that doesn’t really work when the topic is just whatever is happening in my head. I will admit that I had more people listen to know what craziness happened in my head than listen to me talk shit about weird news stories. Therein lies the dilemma. I enjoy producing my podcast. I enjoy sharing weird news crap and making fun of it. I enjoy the simple act of sitting down with my microphone and talking to whoever is out there crazy enough to listen to me. But that sort of show is more pressure to produce. It requires research and prep and planning. Those parts are time consuming and kind of stressful to maintain.

Should I have some sort of master plan? Probably. Should I designate time for prep and research and planning? Definitely! I should also probably put more effort into promoting the show beyond social media posts. Unfortunately, I have this pesky little thing called a family to contend with. I’m not saying my family is in the way of the show. What I am saying is that I can’t take time away from being a full time/ daytime stay at home dad to promote my podcast. There are plenty of people who are parents, who work full time, that also have podcasts. The primary difference between them and I is the schedule they live on. Most all of these people work normal jobs in the day and stay up late to work on their podcasts after the kids have gone to bed. In my case, I stay home with my boys during the day, and work full time graveyards. The free time I have in daylight hours must be committed to sleep. Up til this point I’ve sacrificed my personal sleep in order to produce my show. That isn’t sustainable, not even for health reasons because that’s never stopped me before, but because I have numerous household responsibilities as the parent that is home during the day. Children must be fed, laundry must be done, the yard must be mowed. All of these things a daytime dependent, and those are my tightest hours already.

Where am I going with this? I don’t know. That’s just how my brain works. Pull the string and watch the monkey drive the train off the cliff. That’s me. Even this odd rant has taken multiple twists and turns from the original thought and is ultimately nowhere near where it started. But in all honesty, if I could keep a single focused thought for more than 10 minutes without deviating somehow, I would probably actually be a writer.

By Odd Dad Out, ago