TIme to get back in the saddle. The past few months have seen me slip out of doing my podcast, then out of writing here on my blog, and even finally out of commenting much even at sites like Friendfeed. I’m hundreds of posts behind in RSS feeds, and I just generally feel a bit overwhelmed by my digital existence…I can’t keep up. I could complain, AGAIN, about everything that’s going on, but I’m not. I’ll just knock things out a day at a time, and get back in the groove. (and that’s the last navel-gazing comment, I SWEAR.)

I wanted to make note of several excellent podcasts I’ve listened to recently:

• Dave Slusher at Dragon*Con: Why podcasting matters
• Reality Break Podcast: Episode 5 – Bruce Sterling
• Fora.tv: A Critical Look at the Presumptive Presidential Nominees
• Yog Radio: Episode #30, Dan Harms Interview

Dave Slusher takes the prize here, being responsible for two of the four (hey, I’m an EGC fanboy, what can I say?). Dave was the facilitator and first speaker at the Dragon*Con Why Podcasting Matters panel, and he set the tone precisely as I thought it should be done. Dave and I are of one mind here…low-to-zero cost distribution has brought us podcasting, and set us free from the requirement of publishing for anything other than the joy of doing it and the ability to connect with other people. Profitability runs a distant second for me here; it totally doesn’t need to be the focus. Dave has made this point well before, and he makes it well here (despite some pushback from the other presenters…Dave can hold his own!). Well worth listening to, and for Bob’s sake, subscribe to Evil Genius Chronicles (Dave’s personal podcast) if you haven’t already!!

Oh, and now, since you’ve got your podcatcher open, subscribe to the Reality Break Podcast as well (that is, if you’re into science fiction). Episode 5 is a great example, with a great guest…Bruce Sterling. Bruce is one of the godfathers of the cyberpunk movement, one of my favorite authors, and an excellent interviewee. This interview is from 1996 (Reality Break was a radio show back in the 90s, and Dave is interleaving new and old interviews to create the podcast), and Dave and Bruce are primarily discussing Holy Fire, Bruce’s newest release at the time. It’s high on my list of Sterling-work, and the interview shows off both Dave’s interviewing style, and Bruce’s philosophy on writing and technology. It’s a winner.

Switching to politics, the Fora.tv panel discussion should go in your queue if you’re looking for a broad discussion of the presidential nominees…both as people and as policy standard-bearers. The panelists range from Democracy Now’s progressive host Amy Goodman to the Washington Post’s Jonathan Capehart. The discussion ranges far and wide, and presents thoughts and discussion on both of the candidates from many different viewpoints.

One thing to note is that the panel took place on July 1st of this year…I find reviewing work like this from a few months in the future gives me a way to critically evaluate the veracity of various claims. (Among other notable topics was a discussion of potential VP nominees for both parties; it’s worth listening to and thinking about just for that bit).

And finally, if you’re an RPG’er, and in particular a fan of Chaosium’s Call of Cthulhu, you should immediately go check out Yog-Sothoth.com. The site is a treasure trove of info and upcoming events regarding gaming in the Mythos, and the podcast is simply excellent! I really, really enjoyed it…I often have a hard time with group podcasts, but this one was fun, informative, and left me wanting more. And since I came in on episode 30, I’ve got plenty to go back and check out.