The Free Bin

Cindy and Harrison explore the public domain and beyond in this discussion of copyright, its implications for software preservation, and how to support the wild Pac-Man population! Cindy reads Shakespeare's Sonnet 29. Harrison finds a disturbing Edwardian comic strip. In this episode: Betsy Bouncer and Her Doll Digital Millennium Copyright Act United States Copyright Act Section 108 Internet Arcad...

Harrison and Cindy discuss the interesting case of " Unknown Man E ," the Harem Conspiracy , and what this case can teach us about official records, historical erasure, compassion, and what we each leave behind. 2020 BBC Science Focus piece about the reconstruction of the priest Nesyamun's larynx 2018 article from The Verge about the sarcophagus "bone juice" Oxford online course material on crime...

Cindy steps into Doomguy's armor-plated boots to rip and tear through a discussion of Doom (1993), the evolution of PC game control schemes, and the ways in which cultural knowledge of modern gameplay conventions can affect the retro-gaming experience. Check out our bonus video episode here!

In anticipation of this year's game-centric Summer Reading Program, Cindy and Harrison discuss some notable film adaptations of video games. Cindy is a Peach, and Harrison is a Peachette.   In this episode: Doom (franchise) Ludonarrative Dissonance Super Mario Bros. (franchise) Tomb Raider (franchise) Pokemon: Detective Pikachu (2019) Polybius (urban legend) Prince of Persia (1989)

On the eve of her retirement, Denyse shares some favorite memories with Cindy, Harrison, and you, the listener. We've laughed, we've cried, we've dressed as dementors.

Harrison briefly explains why we've been quiet for a couple of weeks. Short answer: We have a lot of new stuff on the way!

Cindy shares a personal story from her father, detailing his experiences as an airman toward the end of the Korean War.

Content warning: This episode contains weird nightmare stuff. Harrison celebrates National Poetry Month by reading Clark Ashton Smith's 1920 eldritch horror/fantasy poem,  "The Hashish Eater -or- The Apocalypse of Evil." Harrison is now tired.  

Harrison reads a few classic--and rather disturbing--19th-century children's tales from an English translation of "Struwwelpeter" by Heinrich Hoffmann. Music: "Meanwhile in Bavaria" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Cindy and Harrison celebrate Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, and Cindy shares some relevant titles! In this episode: "The Bone Collector" by Jeffery Deaver "The Boy Who Lived" by David Holmes "Drawn to Be You" by Corey and Andrea Landreth with Jefferson Knapp, illustrated by Trent Landreth "Interabled" by Hannah Burcaw and Shane Burcaw "Laughing at My Nightmare" by Shane Burcaw Lincoln...

Cindy, Denyse and Harrison talk about board games, the Library's upcoming teen space, and more! Cindy challenges Denyse and Harrison to a literary trivia game, and they both do OK.

Harrison reads " Time Enough At Last " by Lynn Venable .

Cindy and Harrison discuss some successful (and not-so-successful) book-to-movie adaptations. In this episode: "Black Klansman" by Ron Stallworth "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S. Thompson "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien "My Friend Dahmer" by Derf Backderf "No Country for Old Men" by Cormac McCarthy "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman "Sahara" by...

Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of suicide. Don't try to lay no boogie woogie on the king of rabbit holes! In search of the origins of a favorite song, Harrison leads Cindy on a manic trip down memory lane that begins with a blues singer in England and ends with a puppet show in Portland. Along the way, they encounter Dolly Parton, Sonic the Hedgehog, Rod Stewart, Gul Dukat, and...

Harrison chats with Donna Carter and Karen Fitzgibbon of the Yaquina Fiber Arts Guild to discuss the many facets of their work, as well as some upcoming events! Along the way, they encounter spinning techniques old and new, various sheep, a wandering 4-year-old, a bag of dog hair, "art yarn," and some interesting rabbit tricks. The Yaquina Fiber Arts Guild will be holding their annual "Spin In" th...

Harrison shares a few titles for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  In this episode: "Hellhound on His Trail" by Hampton Sides "The Kneeling Man" by Leta McCollough Seletzky "March" by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin "MLK/FBI" dir. by Sam Pollard "My Life, My Love, My Legacy" by Coretta Scott King, as told to the Rev. Barbara Reynolds

In preparation for the Toledo Public Library's upcoming digital literacy workshops (made possible by the Public Library Association and AT&T), Cindy and Harrison share their personal stories of how they first encountered the digital world, way back in the 1900s! Along the way, they learn and forget how to write code, play online games while the kids sleep, imitate a dialup modem, share medium-hot...

Harrison shares some notable works that entered the public domain on January 1, 2025. The art, literature, music, and films of the 1920s are now in the public domain Dancing skeletons, several famous novels, and a sleazy Mickey Mouse are now free to use and re-use! In this episode: "Ain't Misbehavin'" (Razaf, Waller, Brooks) "Blackmail" directed by Alfred Hitchcock "A Farewell to Arms" by Ernest H...

Santa Claus himself stops by the library to share Francis Pharcellus Church's classic 1897 newspaper editorial " Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus ."  In this episode: The Public Domain Review's write-up of the editorial  "This article was originally published on  The Public Domain Review https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/yes-virginia-there-is-a-santa-claus-1897/ under a Creative Commo...

Richard Fetrow from the Seashore Literacy Ukulele Group (SLUGs) stops by to chat with Cindy and Harrison about the group's origins, activities, and community service efforts. The SLUGs will be performing at the Library December 21, 2024, at 1 p.m. to celebrate the holiday season!

Harrison reads the short, humorous poem " Pumpkin Pie " by Mary Mapes Dodge.

It's National Model Railroad Month again! Lisa Watson, Executive Director of the Yaquina Pacific Railroad Historical Society (YPRRHS), pulls into the station to teach Cindy and Harrison about the history of the model railroad hobby, and how it relates to the history of railroads in general. Cotton candy vanishes. An ancient temple wonder rotates. Napoleon III earns himself a "World's Greatest Dad"...

Get your 20-sided dice ready! Cindy and Harrison sit down with esteemed local Dungeon Master (DM) Thomas Rogers to discuss all things Dungeons & Dragons (DnD). Topics include gameplay basics, the role of narrative, Thomas's tools of the trade, unexpected celebrity players, and DnD's strange cultural moment as a target of the "Satanic Panic" of the 1980s. Harrison can't find the on-ramp, Thomas rol...

Harrison shares a selection of titles for Veterans' Day. In this episode: "In the Company of Soldiers" by Rick Atkinson "Jarhead" by Anthony Swofford "No Easy Day" by Mark Owen with Kevin Maurer "Pain is Weakness Leaving the Body" by Lyle Jeremy Rubin "We're Seabees, Not Regular Navy" by Paul Ferrell "What It Is LikeTo Go To War" by Karl Marlantes

Harrison and Cindy chat with the Lincoln County Library District's hardworking cataloger/integrated library system (ILS) administrator, Christopher Davis, to learn about internet privacy and boldly imbibe a baffling beverage. Below is Christopher's fantastic resource list, with his own annotations: Background information: https://libguides.up.edu/dpc For those of you who like to research- many art...