Are We Recording?

Mark and Kevin have not recorded, or at least published, any podcast episode of any kind, in a long time. They are rusty. They ramble from Sandy Irvine's foot found on Everest, to nacho cheese machines, the Snurfer, David Lee Roth in Spanish, and more. Andrew 'Sandy' Irvine found on Everest High Fidelity - Barry, the perfect salesclerk David Lee Roth - Sonrisa Salvaje The Snurfer Taco trucks on ev...

Mark and Kevin have been busy, because of kids, but finally get back to recording another episode. This one starts with a rant about gift cars, and why they are "the worst". Things quickly spiral, as it often does with these two. The episode covers: Gift cards Corporate takeover of everything The loss of expertise in retail  Tucker Carlson in Russia Private equity buying up, and ruining, healthcar...

The Israel-Hamas conflict has begun, and countless lives lost. Mark and Kevin discuss it a bit, before segueing into the inability of politicians to compromise, and the consequences for everyone else. Taylor Swift has movie, and Mark doesn't get it. Kevin can't help, as he doesn't get it either. There's a bit about societal norms, why suspenders are awesome, and Camera Obscura, the concept, the ba...

Mark and Kevin discuss the latest drama in Wisconsin, Lauren Boebert's latest incident, rich businessmen who hate their employees and want them to stop feeling empowered, Boss Tweed, some logical fallacies, Donald trump (of course), and a few other items. Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates often speak out on hot topics. Only one faces impeachment threat ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ Lauren Boebert is...

The news cycle never ceases to amaze Mark and Kevin. In this episode it's the billionaire who wants to live forever, otters attacking surfers, rich people's dogs, Threads, and Zuckerber vs Musk, in the battle of two evil billionaires, and Taylor Swift. This billionaire wants to live forever Gunfight at the O.K. Corral Deionized water Zuckerberg Vs. Musk: Everything We Know About The Possible Cage...

A submarine imploded, Biden was blamed for a slow response, and obviously Trump, would have found it faster...probably by himself. The Supreme Court went crazy recently. Some people tie their self-worth to their favorite professional sports team, which Mark and Kevin find odd. The political organization, Moms for Liberty quoted Hitler in a recent newsletter.  Kids and sports, or activities is alwa...

Kevin spent the day of the podcast fixing things, whether broken or not, so that's how the episode starts. Mark has an encounter with a climate change denier who almost utters the words "global warming", but then catches himself in the nick of time. Unfortunately science has become a team sport, with political allegiance taking priority. New cars are too complicated. Kevin likes the old ones that...

Mark and Kevin don't like the sound of their recorded voices, though they do like the sound of each other's voices. Does everyone dislike the sound of their own voice? They realize they're not funny, insightful, or even likely very intelligent, but Mark brings up those who have a distorted self-image.  Kevin went to Europe and didn't want to come home. Mark and Kevin know lots of conservatives who...

Major League Baseball is changing the rules. Mainly, because it kind of sucks. Pesäpallo, the national sport of Finland is kind of like baseball, but different, and cricket is confusing. Golf is even more boring than baseball.  English food is pretty awful, but at least you can get any other kind of food while you're there. Some "sports" are really activities, but they sure pay a lot. Gwyneth Palt...

SpaceX employees feels more calm with Musk focused on Twitter. Elon is like the man behind the curtain , desperately pulling levers. Attention seekers: Musk, MTG, George Santos, Andrew Tate, and others. Elon Musk is focused on Twitter, and his SpaceX employees feel a weight lifted off their shoulders with no Musk breathing down their necks. He and so many others are attention seekers. In his case...

Mark and Kevin were obviously hungry and immediately began the show with a discussion of taco trucks, and food trucks in general. Kevin recalls the time when GOP strategist promised food trucks on every corner. Sadly, that never happened. Somehow the conversation morphs into a conspiracy theory about "Big Hamburger" convincing us to not like salads, then moves on to the Frosty, fast food, and vide...

This is the billionaire take-down episode. Elon Musk is always in the news, as is his intention. It's hard not to talk about him and his purchase of Twitter. New things come out everyday, and Mark and Kevin talk about those things once again. There's also Sam Bankman-Fried, Elizabeth Holmes, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos, who thinks philanthropy is hard. Elon Musk is like a mobster, and Mark and...

Mark and Kevin can't stop talking about Elon Musk. Now he's bought Twitter and now works 120 hours per week. Things don't seem to be going great at Twitter. Kyrie Irving gets in trouble and seems to double down. Billionaires can make their own reality, at least in the eyes of their supporters. Full self driving cars aren't happening anytime soon. The discussion moves back to Twitter, with Musk's f...

Mark and Kevin discuss former British Prime Minister Liz Truss, dumb movies, Alex Jones and his billion dollar penalty, the origin of sin (according to the bible), Catholic night school (or is it Catholic Knight School?), and silly religious movies. There's also some Nickelback, Sharknado, SNL, and more.

With Hurricane Ian in the news, the episode starts with natural disasters. As is typical, the rest of the show is a stream of consciousness discussion of bad movie pitches, fancy restaurants, Red Lobster and seafood, lab grown meat, Maya Rudolph, Cracker Barrel, The Great Outdoors, 80s camp movies, Airplane II, Henry Winkler, Van Morrison and all the music Mark hates, Scott Baio and opportunism in...

Kevin's furnace broke and getting it fixed was a minor miracle. Getting it replaced would have been a major miracle. Also, he's old now, and messed up his back. Mark brings up Covid deaths and comorbidities, followed by gunshot wounds, and abrupt endings to things, such as life. Things get dark for a bit. They also discuss Carrie Fisher and Star Wars. Somehow the conversation turns to urinals, and...

The episode somehow starts off with the Fast & Furious series, moves on to really baggy pants, former skateboarder Heath Kirchart, amazingly evil Orca whales, Elon Musk (of course), the Queen and the Royal Family, Ronald Reagan, and September 11th. Mark and Kevin start with a rant about the Fast & Furious and really baggy pants, but move on the the exploits of former skateboarder Heath Kir...

Mark and Kevin discuss absolutism in just about everything, from gun rights, to sunburns at the Jersey Shore (Whitefish Beach), extreme sports, and the predictable outcome (death). There's also some reminiscing about how the past was better in extreme sports, and how the genre has "jumped the shark". There's also the required discussion of Elon Musk, which was prompted by his and his father's late...

Rich people are moving to Montana and ruining things. Montana is flooding, while the rest of the country has historic heat. Meanwhile, Larry Ellison has bought a Hawaiian Island, and ruins it for all the locals. The rich try to turn every nice place into a gated community for themselves. Don't settle for mediocre cuisine. We can now get good Indian food from a gas station. Kevin reminisces about a...

Mark and Kevin react to the characters in the news today. The attention seekers known as Elon Musk, Marjorie Taylor Green, and Tucker Carlson receive the bulk of their ire.  Elon wants (maybe) to buy Twitter, Marjorie Taylor Greene is sued, and Tucker Carlson believes men are wimpy and should tan their balls.

This episode was originally supposed to be episode 13, but we had some serious technical issues recording the previous two, so this one is now number 11. Is this the end of season 1, the beginning of season two, or just another episode? We don't really know. In this episode we talk about Rorschach tests , Atlas Shrugged, Afghanistan, woolly aphids , politics, cheating, and more.

Just before recording the podcast, the Smithereens, Only a Memory , played on the radio, and Mark and Kevin began discussing music of the era. The discussion carried right into, and begins, the latest episode of Are We Recording? A journey into 80s and 90s rock wouldn't be complete without mentioning college rock, and the college radio stations that played them, or the awesome record stores that w...

The discussion of episode nine is broad and meandering. Mark and Kevin talk about: Awful people who face no repercussions Old presidents Election fraud myth origins People who receive accolades after death/posthumous accolades Resistance to change A tiger in Houston, and dumb criminals Vaccine microchip tracking Freewill, or the lack thereof Economic mobility Pablo Escobar The making of a myth An...

Mark and Kevin talk about the Ever Given, the ship stuck in the Suez Canal, and how fragile our global trade system is. We also give our unrequested opinions on terrible (in our opinion) product design, long term living in hotels, the movie Nomadland, dangerous houses, and Unhappy hipsters, among other things. The Suez logjam shows how fragile our global trade system is Unhappy Hipsters 

Mark and Kevin discuss working too much, burn out, and dying people wishing they had worked more. They also discuss the boom in NFTs, what the heck they are, and what you actually get if you buy one. Next, they briefly rant about ugly websites, talk about unfriendly modern design, and bad ways to die. There's a discussion about some crazy moms that were recently in the news, including a mom who ha...