Off The Beaten Podcast

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 20 of  my NaPodPoMo series. On this mile of our journey, I talk about the  communities of Logan Square and Bucktown.   This is mile #18 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of 2020 to  "Stroll down Western Ave." as part of National Podcasting Post Month.  We didn't finish i...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 19 of  my NaPodPoMo series. On this mile of our journey, I talk about the  communities of Humboldt Park and Wicker Park.  Did you know that Frank Baum wrote 'Wizard of Oz' while living in Humboldt Park?  Well, tune in to this episode to learn a bunch of other things you may not know!  This is mile #17 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, whic...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 18 of  my NaPodPoMo series. On this mile of our journey, I talk about the  community area of Ukrainian Village, as well as the local cafe and Chicago coffee powerhouse, Dark Matter Coffee! This is mile #16 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of 2020 to  "Stroll down Wester...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 17 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, I talk about the vast community area of the Near West Side, which encompasses a number of Chicago neighborhoods and attractions.  This is mile #15 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of 2020 to  "Stroll down Western Ave."...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 16 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, I talk about one of my favorite independent cafes, Chicago Hope Coffee, as well as one of my least favorite places in the city, The Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. We top off the discussion by looking at their surrounding neighborhood, the Tri-Taylor Historic District   This is mile #14 of our exploratio...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 15 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, I talk about one of my favorite parks in the city, newly renamed Douglass Park, and one of my favorite events that happen there, Riot Fest! This is mile #13 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of 2020 to  "Stroll down West...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 14 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, I talk about one of my favorite neighborhoods in this city, La Villita aka Little Village.    This is mile #12 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of 2020 to  "Stroll down Western Ave." as part of the National Podcasting P...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 13 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, I talk about the McKinley Park neighborhood.   This is mile #11 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of 2020 to  "Stroll down Western Ave." as part of the National Podcasting Post Month.  We didn't finish in November, but t...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 12 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, I talk about the Back of the Yards neighborhood?  How did it get that name?  Let's talk about!   This is mile #10 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of 2020 to  "Stroll down Western Ave." as part of the National Podcastin...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 11 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, I briefly talk about the Fire Museum of Greater Chicago. Have you ever been there?   This is mile #9 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of November to "Stroll down Western Ave." as part of the National Podcasting Post Mon...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 10 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, we explore Gage Park. We also talk Chicago Bungalows and Chicago Gangs.  How do we cover so much ground in one mile?  Listen to find out.   This is mile #8 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the rest of November to "Stroll down We...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 9 of NaPodPoMo 2020. On this mile of our journey, we explore three Chicago neighborhoods; Englewood, Chicago Lawn, and Marquette Park, which has a long history of racial strife here in Chicago.  Did you know that the National Socialist Party of America, aka, The Nazi Party, had a headquarters in Marquette Park?  Well, let's explore!   This is mile #7 of our exploration o...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 8 of NaPodPoMo 2020. Man, we had such an amazing night last night, we had to take a break from posting.  No worries, we still have full confidence that we will hit our NaPodPoMo goal of 30 episodes in 30 days, we just gotta double up.  In this mile of Western Avenue, we start to see the car dealerships pile up, and we encounter a Chicago staple: Harold's Chicken Shack! L...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 7 of NaPodPoMo 2020. So we had to stop and breathe for a moment. If you're like me, you're processing a lot right now.  Today we all received news that we have a new President and VP President elect of the United States.  History was made this election.  Kamala Harris will be the first Black Asian Female Vice President in American History.  More people also voted in this...

Hey Everyone! It's Episode 6 of NaPodPoMo 2020. We're surrounded by all of these beautiful trees, so we might as well take a little sojourn and talk about why there is basically a small forest in the middle of the city.  We'll also be talking about a cool event that starts here every year in December for the holiday season! This is mile #5 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Weste...

Hey Everyone! It's episode 5 of NaPodPoMo.  We'll be working ourselves out of Beverly Hills...however, before we do, we have to talk about 2 places: Evergreen Park, the Chicago suburb right across the street, and the amazing Original Rainbow Cone.     This is mile #4 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave, which spans 24 miles right through the city. We'll be taking the r...

Hey Everyone! It's episode 4 of NaPodPoMo.  We're still in Beverly Hills, but we're checking out two mainstays  institutions of this community for many years: St. Barnabas Catholic Parish and Evergreen Plaza, which technically is not in Chicago but is in the suburb of Evergreen Park.   This is mile #3 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave. We'll be taking the rest of Nov...

Hey Everyone! It's episode 3 of NaPodPoMo.  We've gone from Morgan Park, and entered the wild and crazy Beverly Hills. Did you know there was a Beverly Hills in Chicago?   MIle #2 of our exploration of the longest street in Chicago, Western Ave. We'll be taking the next 30 days to "Stroll down Western Ave." Don't forget we'll be dropping one episode a day for the entirety of November!  Make sure y...

Hey Everyone! It's episode 2 of NaPodPoMo.  We'll be taking the next 30 days to "Stroll down Western Ave." and explore the longest street in Chicago. Western extends 24 miles from Howard Street on the north, to 119th St. on the south.  We will be dropping one episode a day for the entirety of November!  We're starting at the southern tip of Chicago in the Morgan Park community. Make sure you have...

Hey Everyone! So OTBP is participating in National Podcast Post Month. We'll be taking the next 30 days to "Stroll down Western Ave." and explore the longest street in Chicago. Western extends 24 miles from Howard Street on the north, to 119th St. on the south.  We will be dropping one episode a day for the entirety of November!  Let's take a walk together this November and explore this historic s...

Say Her Name! Breonna Taylor It becomes hard to think what to say about yet another miscarriage of justice in America, particularly as a black man. I hope this episode serves to inspire some conversation. I firmly believe we have to demand better from the system, as well as of ourselves.   After listening, please share this episode with your friends, and have some uncomfortable conversations with...

Hello Friends. September 5th was the 1-year anniversary of Off The Beaten Podcast!  It's our Pod Birthday!  I'm so excited to reach this milestone, and I wanted to share my excitement with all of you.  Accordingly, Amazon Studios reached out and asked us to partner with them on a documentary film screening on September 8, 2020 at 7pm CST.  The documentary is ALL IN: THE FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY, and ba...

Hello Friends. We're still in the middle of a pandemic, and it appears new stressors are coming at us every day.  I personally have been struggling with my mental health, so I thought it a perfect time to talk about it, and offer some tips and resources for others who may be struggling also.  If you've been down in the doldrums, this episode is for you.  After listening, I'd love it if you subscri...

Hello Friends...This episode, I finally had the pleasure of talking with Marq Withers, co-host of the new podcast Nerd Cage Live. I've been trying to get my life together and talk with Marq since November. The point of getting together was to talk about Superman, and his relevance as a character in 2020, but of course, we touch on a host of other topics, including Chicago life, The DCEU, The Justi...

Hello Friends...Happy belated Juneteenth!  Did you celebrate?  This week I talk about my Juneteenth, which was great, as well as some of the issues surrounding the holiday.  I start with some audio I took after an amazing rally and march organized by Activate:Chi . Enjoy! After listening, share this episode with at least 1 friend for me, and be sure to subscribe, rate and review on your podcast ap...