It’s official: Twenty Acre Lake is shutting down, for ever. This podcast never generated any interest, and it was a lot of work for me to put out a quality show time after time. So instead of merely fading away, I’m making it explicit - the Twenty Acre Lake podcast is gone, and I won’t be starting it up again. Thanks to anyone who listened and/or commented.
When we last saw Dante and Virgil on their tour of Inferno, rebellious fallen angels had just slammed the gates of the capital city of Hell right in their faces. After that cliffhanger, we pick up the story again and find out how they solve this predicament. Inside, a vast graveyard of flaming open tombs greets our pilgrim in the Sixth Circle - the punishment of the heretics. Podsafe music at the end of the show from Malcolm Middleton.
Malcolm Middleton at the Podsafe Music Network
Malcolm Middleton on the web
Malcolm Middleton on MySpace
You may already be familiar with Christiana Ellis, podcasting Internet Celebrity and sci-fi/fantasy author. She just today released her “sekrit project”, Space Casey, and it rocks. Space Casey is an original sci-fi comedy audiodrama, and Christiana is the writer and producer.
Space Casey introduces us to a star-hopping sly con-artist who unwittingly interferes with an alien’s human survey mission. It sounds like episode one is kicking off a rollicking space adventure.
I’ve just listened to the first episode of the miniseries. The overarching opinion I have of it is that this new project is impressively ambitious, the performances from the all-star cast of voice talents all hit the mark better than I honestly expected, the production quality is superb, and it’s already my favorite Christiana Ellis work to date.
Christiana’s usual wit and style are present, and in my opinion better than ever because the often sharp edges have been refined. You can expect dry humor with sarcastic bite.
I am struck, overall, by the professionalism of the whole project. The performances (fine characterizations and comedic timing), the writing (Christiana’s most natural sounding prose and dialog yet), the sound quality, the attention to sonic details such as sound effects and music, the web workings of the project like the whole Casey’s Cadets elite club/marketing idea… I don’t know how she managed to pull off such a splashy debut under secret cover, but this lofts Christiana Ellis to another league, in my opinion.
Best of all, Christiana decided to release Space Casey under a Non-Commercial, Share and Share Alike, Creative Commons license. Right on! I wish every artist would use Creative Commons for their works. I use CC on all my Flickr photos and on this very podcast, Twenty Acre Lake.
If you’re interested in a richly-embellished, fun audio comedy, I recommend Space Casey.
This time, it’s all about music. Come listen for my 5 Truths of Music, my opinion of music snobs, and why I think more good music is being made now more than ever. I’ve got a lot to say about music, but this time around I hold it to about half an hour. Future episodes will explore the topic even more. Podsafe music at the end of the show from Diana Rein.
Diana Rein at the Podsafe Music Network
Diana Rein on the web
Diana Rein on MySpace
After a long, long break from Twenty Acre Lake, I finally return. I suddenly got slammed with a lot of work and business travel and an ailing family member, and well the show just had to take a back seat for a while.
I start this episode with a listener comment and some miscellaneous news. Then I swing into the main topic: life in the Mile High City and higher. We take our elevation for granted here in Denver. And we take easy access to spectacular mountains a little for granted, too. The kicker music at the end is a great song from Makeshift3!
I’m still sticking to one main topic per show, and I like how it’s working so far. This week’s topic is only a little related to “design, culture and living”, but it’s not too far off so I don’t feel too bad. 
Kate Havnevik interview on TiFFcast
Talking About Stuff, with Mike and Christiana
Makeshift3 at the Podsafe Music Network
Makeshift3 on the web
I was interested in whether or not anyone else was podcasting about Dante, so I Googled it and guess what? I found this show where someone was talking about going to Florence, visiting some Dante-related sites, and then he talked about exactly why Dante is so important to literature and the Renaissance.
I couldn’t agree more. Dante’s publication of The Divine Comedy in Italian instead of Latin was nothing short of a cultural thunderbolt … scandalous, even. I had made notes to talk about this fact, and about the difficulties of translating the work from that early version of Italian to more modern English while not destroying the beauty of the poetry itself, but in the interests of time those topics had to get whacked.
Please note the new podcast player included on every new episode entry. One click and you could be listening already!
This episode is mostly about Dante’s Inferno, from the Gates of Hell through the swampy Fifth Circle and right up to the walls of the city of Dis. I start the show with some thanks for listener feedback, and shoutouts to some fellow podcasters. And I end the show with a great podsafe tune from progressive rock band Singularity… that just happens to be six minutes long. Sorry!
So yeah, a breezy shuffle into the middle of Hell. Since shifting my podcast to a focus on one main topic per episode, I figured now was a good chance to make some time on Dante’s pilgrimage through the Inferno. I recap the trip from the Gates through the Second Circle pretty quick, but I also add some new tidbits along the way. And then I summarize some of the juicier parts of Circles 3 through 5, right up to the so-called capital city of Hell, the city of Dis. There’s a bit of a cliffhanger at that point, so I figured it’s a good place to stop.
Dante’s Inferno - A Virtual Tour of Hell
Danteworlds
Princeton Dante Project
Singularity at the Podsafe Music Network
Singularity on the web
Submit questions for an upcoming interview with Imogen Heap over at TiFFcast
Please note the new podcast player included on every new episode entry. One click and you could be listening already!
In this episode, I review a few pieces of listener feedback I’ve received - a comment on a prior entry, an email sent to me, a comment left on podcastalley.com, and a review written for me at iTunes.
Most of the time in this episode is spent finishing up the 50 reasons why it’s good to be an American man list from Esquire. Because the original link has disappeared, I’ve pasted the entire list in the Twenty Acre Lake forum. I end the show with some great podsafe music, as usual. This time the band is Reel and the song is called Wishing You Hadn’t. It’s not my usual guitar-driven emo rock, but a down-tempo techno turn, so be sure to check them out.
50 Reasons Why It’s Good to Be an American Man
Reel at the Podsafe Music Network
Reel on the web
Reel on MySpace
Submit questions for an upcoming interview with Imogen Heap over at TiFFcast
Yes, I made it into double-digits, finally. Without going into a long explanation, the podcast is taking its next evolutionary step. I want to slim it down to 1-2 main topics and go deep on them for most of the time, still keeping each show around 30 minutes. Episode 10 is a transition.
This time, I revisit Esquire’s 50 Reasons Why It’s Good to Be an American Man and The Laws of (American) Style. I love these lists because they’re a good mix of funny, true and absurd. I may dedicate a whole future episode to one of them.
I know I promised to get through the Third Circle of Hell in Inferno, but there was no time. The next little ways on this journey really deserves an episode of its own, too. With the Question of the Week gone from the line up, I should have the time.
This week’s design discussion is all about Led Zeppelin’s album covers. The early ones are sort of hit-and-miss, but in the middle of their history they really put out some very artistic stuff that really still holds up today. They really started moving beyond art and into design towards the end. And several covers have interactive features that are not only ahead of their time, but also they represent the peak of album cover design from the end, and the pinnacle, of the 12″ vinyl LP era. Photos are behind the link…
50 Reasons Why It’s Good to Be an American Man
The Laws of (American) Style
Punchline at the Podsafe Music Network
Punchline on the web
Punchline on MySpace
In this episode, I start on Esquire’s 50 Reasons why it’s good to be an American man and also The laws of (American) style. These two lists are written by men for men, so expect plenty of alcohol, meat, hardware, cars, sports and women.
The Question of the Week is also the last Question for a while, as I am making room for other segments. But I remember fondly my 7th grade English teacher, mad libs and—yes—bunny darts. In the other features, join Dante and Virgil across the mournful Second Circle of Hell, where sinners are judged and lovers are windswept, and stick around for Podsafe music from myFlint, a band from Germany.
In this week’s design discussion, I talk about the three different kinds of corkscrews I use to open wine bottles. I guess there are probably only six basic kinds, and have tried at least four of them. Photos are behind the link…
50 Reasons Why It’s Good to Be an American Man
The Laws of (American) Style
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