Category Archives: Technology

E029 – Jason “Bison” Morgan: Arbutus Builders

June 6, 2011Business, Housing, Technologysprocketpodcast

Jason “Bison” Morgan of Arbutus Builders joins us to talk sustainable construction and cooperative economics. Also: Take our Listener Survey!

BONUS: two minutes of us discussing the iCloud and laugh tracks.

We discuss: Newport aquarium and migrating eyes, Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area, Cycle Wild at McIver State Park (and free cake!), beard talk, hot Portland weather, sleeping bag liners, “open your f***ing beer, Brock!”, world naked bike ride, Multnomah County Bike Fair, son of a resource extractor, Cascadia Forest Alliance, joining the carpenters’ union, boson, Bark (a Cycle Wild affiliate) keeps an eye on forestry issues, tree sitting stories, the Burro Lady, listener David donates and we laud him, an anonymous listener suggests we interview Dan Price of Moonlight Chronicles, Cheese89 gives us aniTunes review, June is survey month! You could win $10 if you take one!, The Sprocket dispenses pre-recorded interviews like a PEZ machine, workers’ cooperatives, Big Timberworks in Montana, sustainability & remodeling, the Levitt post-war model, remodeling waste, socially responsible business models, the triple bottom line, “is getting a job equal to selling out?”, Western Worker Cooperative Conference, Red & Black Cafe,solidarity economics, capitalism and Batman, cargo bikes and Arbutus’ custom rig being built by Adrian, beer talk

Headlines
Shift2Bikes: It’s Pedalpalooza! June 9-26 will be packed with bikey fun;
BikePortland: Southwest Airlines waives their bicycle fees for June 9-26 in honor of Pedalpalooza!
BikePortland: Industrial designer, boat builder team up to build a plywood cargo bike; BikePortland: Beach School in Portland has a huge bike train that gets kids to school safely;
PathLessPedaled: Can Bicycles Save Small Town America? a national bike route system might help.

Drinks
Brock drinks a Hamms tallboy, Bison drinks an Oatis Stout from Ninkasi Brewing, and Brandon relishes the Mirror Pond Pale Ale from Deschutes Brewery.

Music
Centrevol, “On A Roll,” from their 2010 EP Momentum

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)

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E028 – Memorial Day

June 1, 2011Communication, Downsizing, Technology, Travelsprocketpodcast

This week’s episode is short and sweet since that darned holiday weekend made us change our plans. We are, however, well rested and plan to bring you the next scheduled show without incident. Look for Ryan J. Lane’s interview in an upcoming episode to be announced sometime later in the summer. In the mean time, we discussed our weekends, long-winded wedding toasts, Washington State’s San Juan Islands, ditching your cell phone with RowdyKittens.com, etc.

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Brock appears on “A Jumps B Shoots”

May 31, 2011Fun, Technologysprocketpodcast

Brock Dittus contributed an interview snippet to the A Jumps B Shoots podcast recorded at Wonder Northwest some weeks back – listen for him around the 31:00 mark or so discussing Nokia phones & the Snake game!

The episode we planned for this week ended up not being recorded because of everyone’s holiday weekend travel plans. Look for a short audio update from Brock & Brandon sometime this week, with next week’s show continuing on schedule as anticipated! A happy holiday to you all.

E026 – Michael Andersen: Portland Afoot

May 16, 2011Bicycling, Business, Communication, Technology, Transit, Walkingsprocketpodcast

Michael Andersen, founder of local life newsmagazine Portland Afoot, joins us to discuss his fine publication, transit culture, and transportation politics. And is also a fine, upstanding gentleman. (and he’s giving a discount subscription to podcast listeners! enter the code “sprocket” when you subscribe)

We discuss: Brandon goes to Tacoma, Brock goes to Wonder Northwest, the Star Wars Holiday Special, Muppet Star Wars, Space Ghost Coast-To-Coast, CodeForGood.net,thesprocketpodcast.com, Amos suggests Portland Cascadia Pedicabs, Blayne on Vancouver Island is getting a tandem, National Association of Rail Passengers, Jeff’s excited, Steve in Glasgow’s wee nocturnal cycle, Rate That Beer, “The Dutch Country” (AKA The Netherlands), Michael chooses the gong for his friend Alisa, Swan Island bus story, driver Dan Christensen, ATU, what the media does best, Microcosm Publishing, band name, worst day at the magazine, Eberhardt Press, Alexander & the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, bus people vs. bike people, Unified Field Theory of TriMet (which is actually a special case of his Unified Field Theory of Portland), articulated buses, open data policy & transit apps, texting TriMet at 27299, what makes transit worth its costs (have you heard about the Columbia River Crossing?), bike-curious, student ID bus pass program and its fate, discount subscription, beer talk.

Headlines
SF Gate via BikePortland: more and more people are wearing their office clothes on the bike commute
PathLessPedaled: 5 ways to be a bicycle-friendly business (Brock’s favorite? roll into the rooms)
Oregonian: Transit agency TriMet honors 3 generations of female bus operators for Mothers’ Day
Copenhagenize via BikePortland: nothing could be cuter than little girls riding tiny cargo bikes

Drinks
Brandon reprises the Miller High Life sans skanky pinup girl, Michael drinks the Fearless Brewing Company’s Scottish Ale, and Brock downs a Southern Oregon Brewing’s Woodshed Red.

Music
“Book of James” from the upcoming We Are Augustines project Rise Ye Sunken Ships.www.weareaugustines.com

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E019 – Michael Parziale: Grease Not Gas

March 28, 2011Alternate Fuels, Technology, Transit, Travelsprocketpodcast

Mike Parziale of Portland, Oregon’s Greasebus as well as greasenotgas.com shares about his lifestyle of alternate fuels!

We discuss: fire lookouts, dynamically employed, “the cup floweth over,” two cans ofStack – never again!, little hats, Louis’ gardening update for March, bicycle realtor, Gizmodo: texting teens, Denver Post via BikePortland: coffee cart on a cargo bike, Somerville Patch via BikePortland: compost by bike, transit, or foot, “night soil,” gobicycletouring.org: Toddler on Tour, what is Greasebus?, “smells like french fries, not cancer,” having an office, “I wanted a ski pass,” Hood River route vs. “Govie” route,automatic chains, various cities, carpooling effort, full buses, no more charters, downtown douche buses, plush accomodations, free Mate, cheaper than the other options, real world solutions, conversions, stuff in the grease, “heatant,” crossing the country 17 times, “training wheels” program, living the dream, getting your grease the right way, core samples, rendering and the “giant smoothie of death,” mad cow noises, who pays how much?, environmentalism and grease and being broke, rad camper, ethanol vs. methanol, spreadsheet on the wall, oil is unavoidable sometimes, nearbio.com, converting is easier than making biodiesel, 4 billion gallons, limited supply = upcycle, being on MTV, put a leaf on it!

Drinks
we once again enjoy the Hopworks Brewery Secession Cascadian Dark Ale.

Music
“Number One Rival” from Portland Oregon’s Tango Alpha Tango off of their 2011 releaseDead Wrong.

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E016 – Seth Richardson: Meticon Bikes

March 8, 2011Bicycling, Communication, Technology, Travelsprocketpodcast

Seth Richardson of Meticon Bikes joins us for an engaging discussion on running a bike shop and local bike politics.

We discuss: big words, breaking cogs, Streetfilms: Moving Beyond the Automobile, Travelling Two: The Art of (Not) Planning a bike tour, BTA releases another video on bike lights, featuring Mark Allyn & a klingon, Brandon reminds us to drink, the Hamm’s bear, Zach calls from Ft. Collins about the handbuilt bike show (where BikePortland, The Path Less Pedaled, and Bike Snob NYC also reported), tires, bamboo as an anarchist tool, moving to Portland, Volkswagen Bus in a snowstorm, bicycling in Memphis (that’s a weird take on the Marc Cohn song), bike lanes in Memphis, starting a bike shop, Volkswagen maintenance, hundreds of groupon tuneups, down tube snap, the bicycle is not a simple machine, cycling is faster & simpler, Revolutions in Memphis, bicycles are human-shaped, balanced perspective on vehicle usage, practice fixing flats, utilitarian riding, bike capes, wool, wet feet are the worst, convenience & rain defense, impossibly loaded bikes,Chairman Mao with a Bird on him, Portland’s “50s Bikeway Project,” negativity vocalized, bike infrastructure is good for neighborhoods, bicyclists don’t all know each other, we giggle unexplainably about Mayor Sam Adams, proposed routes and crosswalk kerfuffle,Lents Urban Renewal District, bisected by a freeway, streetcars in the future, those new to cycling shouldn’t be afraid to try, “I navigate by weaving in the general direction I’m headed.” Plus, a BONUS: the explanation of Meticon Bikes & Brandon does Seinfeld, both after the credits!

Drinks
Brandon promotes Central Point, OR’s Walkabout Brewery Worker’s Pale Ale, while Brock & Seth try the Kona Brewing Co.’s Fire Rock Pale Ale.

Music
“Feels Like Rain” from Josh Schicker’s 2005 album “Moonlighting.”

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E014 – Adam Caress: The Great Technology Question

February 22, 2011Communication, Gardening, Technologysprocketpodcast

Adam Caress of mulevariations.com joins us remotely to discuss the methods by which we discern our relationship with technology this week.

We discuss: mixed drink terminology, Boston’s Lower Depths alehouse, drinking with your in-laws, Louis Avden’s gardening update, Sven Birkert’s The Gutenburg Elegiesand the mulevariations.com interview, no cable or television, first text message, before the internet, asking the question, how do we relate to each other?, consequences & morality, generational gaps, “we put people on that shit,” inventiveness and its associated problems, interstate highways, pesticides on plants, the narrative of progress, the unruly virgin that is America, Ray Kurzwiel & singularity, “this shit has aneschatology,” people who upload their consciousness aren’t very happy, death & ending well, denying death is creepy, Aleksander Sozhenitsyn wasn’t afraid of death, inscrutable on iTunes, science fiction grandparents, grandparent telegraph email, pro/anti twitter?, booking bands is easy, myspace is the Detroit of social networks, reminiscing with grandparents, waiting for the Cubs world series win, the Plain Reader, Amish independence, Colt 45 isn’t all that great, wilting boquet, outro cabling issues

Drinks
Brandon drinks the Ninkasi Believer Double Red Ale (6.9%), Brock endures a Colt 45 High Gravity Lager (8.5%), and Adam savors his single malt Islay Scotch Whiskey fromMcClelland’s.

Music
“Falling Stars” by Adam Caress of “T”, which is his band that finally consisted of mostly siblings, from the EP “Plan A”

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E008 – Path Less Pedaled

January 10, 2011Bicycling, Technology, Touring, Transit, Travelsprocketpodcast

This week in a super-sized edition of The Sprocket we present our exciting interview with Russ Roca & Laura Crawford of The Path Less Pedaled (pathlesspedaled.com); see also The Epicurean Cyclist (Russ’ bicycle blog), Russ Roca Photography, andTangerine Treehouse (Laura’s metalcraft site). We disuss: moustache headbadges,hopworks beer, getting into full-time bicycle touring, taking it slow (no rush), working along the way, simplicity & technology, gear, cold winter in the southwest, middle of nowhere, passing the time, eating a ton, hospitality is awesome, public transit to Yosemite, bikes on trains, british cyclists in the past on youtube (cyclists’ special), getting rid of stuff, “they will still be making plates,” Surly Long Haul Trucker, flat pedals article & not clipping in, social connections home & abroad, tough times & bugs, dying by missle fire in new mexico, great campgrounds, iphone travel apps, extension cords, texas was a big surprise, advice: just do it!

Drinks
we all enjoyed Hopworks Urban Brewery’s Organic Survival “Seven-Grain” Stout & theOrganic Hopworks IPA.

Music
“The Realists” by The Carrier Pigeons from their 2009 EP Unfinished Business.

Stories from BikePortland.org featured with permission from editor Jonathan Maus.

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E005 – Hanging In Tension

December 20, 2010Bicycling, Communication, Technologysprocketpodcast

Bicycling in the rain and yelling at nature, friends of barbur blvd., bike registration in Long Beach, bicycle accident fund in CO, SoupCycle job, balancing technology & complexity with simple life

Drinks
Brandon enjoyed the Alameda Brewery Papa Noel’s Olde Ale, Brock drank a Steel Reserve 211 triple export (“among the very best beers in the world”).

Links
Friends of Barbur, Long Beach bike registration, bicycle accident fund, SoupCycle job

Music
The Carrier Pigeons, “www.” from their 2009 EP “Unfinished Business.”

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The Sprocket Podcast

simplifying the good life

Category Archives: Technology

E029 – Jason “Bison” Morgan: Arbutus Builders

E028 – Memorial Day

Brock appears on “A Jumps B Shoots”

E026 – Michael Andersen: Portland Afoot

E019 – Michael Parziale: Grease Not Gas

E016 – Seth Richardson: Meticon Bikes

E014 – Adam Caress: The Great Technology Question

E008 – Path Less Pedaled

E005 – Hanging In Tension