AmeriNZ 401 – The week with missing days

amerinz_podcast_1400x1400-2016I lost several days last week after I hurt myself. Oops. I talk about that first today, and then a bit about the New Zealand General Election because Advance Voting began on Monday. It’ll be interesting to see what happens (which is a nice way of saying no one has any idea what’s going to happen).

Be sure to Like the AmeriNZ Facebook Page for all things AmeriNZ.

Links for this episode
“Brushing away chores” – My blog post about those brushes
“Noting the not everyday stuff” – My blog post about the 400th episode and more
“Springing into stories” – My blog post about Spring with some photos, and talk about my sore back

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AmeriNZ 381 – Royal May

amerinz_podcast_1400x1400-2016Today I have THREE topics! First is a citizenship path (finally!) for New Zealanders living in Australia, then how the rich in New Zealand aren’t paying their fair share of tax (and how the NZ news media didn’t handle either topic very well). Then, the coronation of the King of New Zealand. I’ll be watching, but the oath of allegiance is stupid.

Be sure to Like the AmeriNZ Facebook Page for all things AmeriNZ.

Links for this episode
”Better Australia/New Zealand relations” – My blog post on Australia fixing a grievous wrong toward NZ
”Richest Kiwis pay about half as much tax on the dollar
as the average New Zealander”
Stuff
”Brits asked to swear oath to King Charles from the couch, a royal first”Stuff
”King Charles’ coronation to include three crowns and two carriages, fresh details show”Stuff

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AmeriNZ 365 – So, anyway…

amerinz_podcast_1400x1400-2016There are reasons I’ve been away, and I talk about that today. FIrst though, I announce a delay in talking about the results of the first full year of solar power at my house. There’s a reason for that: I forgot something.

I changed the “theme” used on the AmeriNZ Podcast site to one that’s simpler and less cluttered. Hopefully it’ll also fix some of the problems I’ve had in recent months.

Be sure to Like the AmeriNZ Facebook Page for all things AmeriNZ.

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AmeriNZ 345 – 12 Years Later

Today is the 12th Podoversary of the AmeriNZ Podcast, which is significant, even if the specific number isn’t, because both the podcast and I are still here. I talk about that today, but first I have some updates to last week’s episode first. This episode isn’t really a celebratory episode as such, but at the end I have an audio montage I created for this episode. Wendy made me do it.

Be sure to Like the AmeriNZ Facebook Page for all things AmeriNZ!

There are several ways to send me an audio message—this earlier post lists them.

Links for this episode
“PM Jacinda Ardern says New Zealand will ban all military-style semi-automatic weapons and all assault rifles”Radio New Zealand
”We Are One” – My blog post on the two minutes silence
”A podcast is up” – The original shownotes for the first episode


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AmeriNZ 338 – Still more changes

amerinz_podcast_1400x1400-2016Despite a few obstacles, I’m back. Again. Again. Well, it was one month sooner this time, so, small victories, right?! I start out talking about a new baby, then changes to this podcast and all things AmeriNZ, and to me, too. Lots of things are changing! I have details.

Be sure to Like the AmeriNZ Facebook Page for all things AmeriNZ!

There are several ways to send me an audio message—this earlier post lists them.

Links for this episode
All blog posts about Leo
My Instagram
The NZ Prime Minister had a baby
The Prime Minister’s baby made world headlines
All my posts on my Health Journey
July’s Welcome – The blog post I refer to, the one where I talk about my epiphany


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AmeriNZ 337 – Resolution

amerinz_podcast_1400x1400-2016Despite a few obstacles, I’m back. First, though, I give the end of the story I talked about in the previous episode: New Zealand got a government. Mainly, though, I talke about the several obstacles to my being able to podcast (or blog, for that matter).

Be sure to Like the AmeriNZ Facebook Page for all things AmeriNZ!

There are several ways to send me an audio message—this earlier post lists them.

Links for this episode
It’s a cruel summer – My blog post on some of the obstacles to blogging and podcasting
”A good end to the year” – My most recent health update blog post
”The Tim Corrimal Show” – Tim told me the podcast site was broken, so go check out his show!

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AmeriNZ 320 – Nine Years

AmeriNZ_Podcast_1400x1400-2016This is a very short episode just to acknowledge that today is the Ninth Anniversary of the AmeriNZ Podcast: Nine years ago today I posted the first episode of the AmeriNZ Podcast. It’s been quite a journey!

The second NZ Flag Referendum ended on Thursday, so I talk a little about that, though I’ll talk about it in more detail next time. In the meantime, below are links to two blogs posts I’ve written (so far) about the results.

Be sure to Like the AmeriNZ Facebook Page for all things AmeriNZ!

There are several ways to send me an audio message—this earlier post lists them.

Links for this episode
”The winner is: Status quo” – My blog post on the preliminary results of the second flag referendum
“No one knows, end of story” – My blog post on one of the poor interpretations of the results


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AmeriNZ Podcast is Eight

amerinz_podcast_150x150Today is the eighth anniversary of my AmeriNZ Podcast. On March 28, 2007, I posted the first episode, roughly six months after I started this blog. Despite the odds, both are still going. And, it turns out, the connection between the two has come full circle.

When I first started the podcast, I talked about how I saw it as an extension of this blog. But as time passed, I started to deliberately separate them more and more. Eventually, that process also led to spinning off discussions of US politics into a stand-alone podcast with my friend Jason, 2Political Podcast—a name that was inspired by a negative review someone left on iTunes for my AmeriNZ Podcast.

The separation led, first, to the establishment of a separate site for the podcast, which meant that I stopped using this blog for my shownotes. For a time, I still posted regular updates when I posted new episodes, but I stopped doing that at all many years ago, and the two—blog and podcast—have been sort of separate islands ever since.

Recently, I contemplated starting doing vlogging, too, and I gathered advice from people who were doing that, particularly my friend Paul (with whom I used to do yet another podcast, “Arthur and Paul Talk”) who started vlogging on his YouTube Channel. I planned on doing something kinda similar, but then decided to postpone it for reasons I talked about on the podcast.

The planning process for those videos led me to consider starting a new YouTube Channel rather than using my existing AmeriNZ YouTube Channel. And that turned out to be the turning point.

I suddenly realised that my podcast is, basically, an audio blog. It’s less formal, and certainly more familiar, than this blog usually is, and I talk about things close to me personally: Things I’m doing, life in New Zealand, NZ politics, and so on. Sure, I write about all those things for the blog, but the tone is usually quite different and sometimes I say things I wouldn’t write just because it doesn’t “work” in writing. Besides, as I’ve said many times, there’s something special about stories told with the human voice. I think it creates a kind of intimacy between listeners and speakers that the written word just can’t do in the same way.

So, to put it another way, I realised that my podcast really is an extension of my blog, as I said it was at the very beginning. My YouTube Channel, then, is—or could be—the visual extension.

All up, I’ve spent 8½ years building up the AmeriNZ “brand”, though I now identify myself by name as the creator of all this content (the YouTube Channel makes it a little more difficult to do…). It’s time to start bringing them together more.

The podcast will continue as a separate site, at least for now, mainly because it’s easier for me to host and share the audio files that way. But I’ll again post notices of new episodes here on the blog—not full-on shownotes, just an announcement. I’ll also put together a Facebook page for all things AmeriNZ to make it easier to share the stuff I post (more about that when it happens).

So far, I’ve published over 3200 blog posts, 308 episodes of the AmeriNZ Podcast, and even a few videos (only one of which, from the 2008 election, has me in it, and it was never posted to YouTube). That’s the AmeriNZ ouvre, you could say (though I don’t think I would, actually…). Some of that content isn’t very good, and maybe most if it is “just okay”. But in all that creative output there are some things I’m very proud of, indeed.

And, even after all these years, it’s still fun. That’s really the point, isn’t it?

Footnote: This post—which I’m posting to both my blog and podcast site—was delayed for an unusual reason: New Zealand law. I talked about the Northland By-election in the latest episode, and there’s a media blackout (including blogs and such) from midnight until the polls close at 7pm on Election Day. I posted the podcast episode well before midnight, so that was legal, but I had to be sure that I didn’t call attention to the post in any way, and acknowledging my podcast anniversary might have done so. To be extra sure, I didn’t mention the topic in the shownotes (though I’ll edit them to include it now that the polls have closed). And that’s got to be the oddest reason I’ve ever had for delaying posting something.

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AmeriNZ 301 – Return

Well, I’m back, again. Again. Today catches us up on stuff, starting with things in the New Zealand news. There’s actually quite a lot to go over, and I do. Then, it’s on to some of what I’ve been up to since my last episode. There’s been a bit of that, too.

Well, we’re AGAIN all caught up—shall we move forward? Yes, I think so.

There are several ways to send me an audio message—this earlier post lists them.

Links for this episode
Political surprises – my blog post on the day the Labour Party leadership became open
Who’s on first – My blog post on the history involved
How the day went – my blog post on the day marriage equality arrived in New Zealand
What the day meant for me
– My blog post about what the arrival of marriage equality in NZ meant to me

Please leave a written comment, an audio message using the SpeakPipe widget, or on Audioboo or Skype (user name on both is AmeriNZ), or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com (you can email me an audio file, too, if you want).

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AmeriNZ 297 – Excitement

I start today talking about the recent earthquakes in Auckland. Then, some New Zealand news since I last podcasted. That includes an update on the marriage equality bill, of course. Personal updates follow, and that leads, eventually, to some talk that might get me into trouble. Oh well, there were things I needed to say.

There are several ways to send me an audio message—this earlier post lists them.

Links for this episode
Shaken – my blog post on the Auckland earthquakes
Mondayising bill pleases Kiwi workers – NZ Herald
Gay bill: Another step forward for love – NZ Herald
Asset sales petition arrives at Parliament – NZ Herald
‘Shonky’ sales process means Labour leader signed up – NZ Herald
More than a million complete census online – Newstalk ZB
Drought: “The impact is huge” (video) – NZ Herald
Water restrictions: An interactive map – Stuff

Please leave a written comment, an audio message using the SpeakPipe widget, or on Audioboo or Skype (user name on both is AmeriNZ), or send an email to arthur{at]amerinzpodcast.com (you can email me an audio file, too, if you want).

Get AmeriNZ Podcast for free on iTunes

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