Jesse of Montreal completes his visit with the Dogs, discussing how one learns French on the fly, neighbourhood notoriety, and how to engage with believers of all sorts. Naturally we propose solutions for the political problems of the day, and have a bunch of fun receiving and discussing podcast production and content advice from a pro like Jesse. As a bonus we hear a couple of clips from his band Voodoo Jazz, learn who’s behind those classic mid-2000s Canadian Tire Guy ads (spoiler: Jesse), and confirm that the tales of playing cruise ships and jazz venues are true! Long live the Pragmatic Party! Long live the Hockey Party!

The Shed Dogs hold forth with special guest Jesse of Montreal in this first of two fun-filled episodes! This week we cover Jesse’s Karen missive, career non-planning, how to stage a zoom session, life on the campaign trail with Jack Layton, and what life as a cruise ship musician is really like (along with heavy colonialism with respect to some of the other jobs on the ship). Now we know all about those big freezers on board. Ship him to Greece and party on Winifred!

It’s tough to adequately express the relief of leaving 2020 behind and heading into a New Year, but be assured your Shed Dogs are very happy to be giving it a try. We have some fun with PJ’s latest sure-fire money making ideas, offer some solid gold movie and actor recommendations, discuss a modern day Jonah, hear how much KJ is enjoying “Glee”, but what we really do, and bring you along to do, is open our arms wide to welcome 2021! At the same time, we apologize in advance for leaving you verklempt.

In their first ever Christmas Special episode, the Dogs get festive! In the video you can see the costumes and decorations and in the podcast you can feel the warmth as we read listener mail, reflect on a very COVID Christmas, and pick up a couple of fun facts about fake trees. In this episode too, real dogs bark, and the Dogs simply remember their favourite things and then they don’t feel so bad. The Dogs’ dogs are also called out by their mildly disapproving handlers; they clearly don’t know that Christmas in 2020 isn’t the same as all the others. Lucky them.

This episode finds your Shed Dogs grappling with unsettlingly convincing images of human faces that are pure fiction. We are so thrown by the implications that we consider life-affirming work as wedding officiants. Would that make us officious? More reassuringly, we’re able to hear about KJ’s first shoots on his new job and also offer a PSA on how to use subtitles (good) and overdubbing (not good) while enjoying foreign content. RJ tips us to a useful home handy person tool! It’s an existential crisis!

As we recover from the glorious high that was our 100th episode, the Shed Dogs in Episode 101 indulge in a deep stack of fine listener mail on topics such as The Hat, consideration for Karens, social introversion, A19, house prices, condiments, and why the pandemic is the best time to get married. We also take a close look at, and smell of, some ancient Chinese medicine, and of course that conversation made no sense without a discussion of the music player used for PJ’s plaza dancing. RJ then executes an absolutely world-class segue to allow us to review “The Queen’s Gambit” from Netflix. It’s a cerebral yet satisfying, deep but shallow, and appetizing yet revolting tour de farce with the Dogs!

The long-awaited milestone arrives, and we celebrate 100 episodes of Dogfoolery by indulging in more. In this soon-to-be classic episode we walk through the plot of Dirty Dancing for PJ’s benefit, we discuss our latest adventures in entertainment, and we hear RJ asking to see the manager at a Home Depot. We look at how wonderful Facebook Marketplace is, at PJ’s ongoing Plaza Dancing adventures, and we reminisce with KJ about Stu’s Ball Hall in the old home town. We laugh a little (okay, a lot), we cry a little (no we don’t), and we learn a couple of things (true!). Come along with us to Kellerman’s Resort for the laughs, and stay for the tips!

In Episode 99, our listeners will hear the Shed Dogs predict the outcome of the BC provincial election from way back on Oct. 5—how did we do? We also get to hear about KJ’s new Lorne Michaels gig, about why bad movies get made anyway, and about PJ’s appetite to bring Western dance to his plaza group. It’s a topsy turvy past and present time trip that’ll challenge your temporal skills but not your patience!

Hey everybody, we have a special pre-US election episode up on YouTube this morning, with Shed Dogs resident political correspondent, Griffin of Burnaby. You can learn more in these 21 minutes than you can watching hours and hours of cable news. Have a listen!

Faithful listener Garry of Nelson (he sent us underwear—that’s faithful!) sends us a clip from the old Rossland Miner that leads to discourse on curling, on the old local team name and possibly unwoke logo, on Harry Pepper, and on hockey road trips in the old days. We look through the deadliest jobs in the US (NB: podcaster didn’t make the Top 10), anachronistically touch on plaza dancing, and end up talking a bit of politics. That said, the treat is RJ’s encounter with a rock star while at the dog park, of all places! Sign up and lock in!

First, we get the results wrap up on months of work selling a house, right down to heavy action at the bargaining table. Then we’re off into veganism, smoked prime rib, a bunch of great listener mail, the aroma of Beyond Meat burgers, and more! You’ll need to focus, people, focus!

In the midst of a provincial election, we reflect on our just-published interview with NDP candidate Bowinn Ma as well as on our own potential as political pundits. In the usual rigidly logical progressIon, that leads to talking about Thompson Rivers University, the Canucks, giant light bulbs, Facebook Marketplace, and plaza dancing. You probably saw that all coming, but you’ll find it a worthwhile trip. This episode is also on YouTube with bonus content—dance, PJ, dance!

Faithful listeners will know that PJ has been a longtime fan of Bowinn Ma, the NDP MLA for North Vancouver-Lonsdale. In episode 95, we chat with Bowinn about her start in politics, what drives the work she does as an MLA, ranked choice voting, what her future plans may be, and how life would be on a Social Democratic island. Although we think she has a good shot, she is not, for now, planning to rule the world, but is definitely up as incumbent in the upcoming election. As a bonus you get to hear how she’d run her own private island, if she had one. It’s a good personal look at a modern politician that’s sure to take some of the edge off PJ’s political cynicism. The Dogs want to volunteer!

Episode 94 celebrates Shed Dog KJ McNulty winning a Jessie Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Role (Small Theatre) for his performance in The Father! Almost as exciting, we confirm his house has no water pressure reducing valve! Our little doggie heads almost explode over both of these facts, a month and a half later. We then note the Catholics love their C-words, what with communion, confirmation, confession, and many many more, so we try to keep our wafers off the floor while discussing that one. Also in this episode we spend very enjoyable time going through listener mail, and hearing RJ’s Hierarchy of Turn Signal Motivations, which will no doubt also win an award at some point. Did we mention KJ won an award? It’s all very heady stuff, so get set up and get listening!

The celebrated Shed Dogs wax by turns rhapsodic and caustic as we explore a 1972 time capsule home (great bones!) being prepared for sale, and debate whether or not KJ knows what plumbing he has installed, himself, in his own house. We get to go through a lot of fun Listener Mail, and take a quick look at our COVID vigilance—are we being true to Dr. Henry? Is she being true to us? On top of all that poetry, PJ offers another half-baked money making scheme for some not very serious consideration. And finally, just what is a Karen, anyway?

As a younger man, famous actor and Shed Dog KJ McNulty took steps to acquire the professional skills required to become an actor, as we all do when deciding to embark on other, less adrenalin-charged careers: he went to school. In this episode we hear a bit about what that entailed and how it came about. And so we have exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, but not the denouement yet, ladies and gentlemen, not (dramatic pause) yet. Bonus: where to hear Bob Ezrin expound on Alice Cooper and Lou Reed Berlin.

We have offered any number of inane money-making ideas in the past but in this one episode RJ offers real advice on funeral and probate costs that could save you thousands of dollars. Seriously. We also seek suggestions for a new name for our province and we discover that maybe producing a podcast doesn’t have to be this complicated. There is some reflection on evolution, the news we see, and politics, as well as some more politics. All in all, a meaty and informative episode that’s filling yet tasty. Bonus: it’s your turn to go inside the log!

In our 90th episode, we shine our strange light on quadrophonic, direct-to-disk, AND 8-track sound systems. There’s a Twitter recommendation, and unlike the squirrels themselves, we fall all over ourselves raving about their navigation of a supreme obstacle course. The episode is rounded out by an homage to salad spinners and a salute to Mongolia’s fine COVID-19 work. This episode will have you emptying out your storage looking for lost treasures for sure. And RJ, careful with that spatula!

Finding themselves once again in the Shed, the Dogs soon find themselves concerned with how not to walk the dog. We then soothe, nay, assuage ourselves by reading Listener Mail, a sure-fire picker-upper in these gloomy days, and the magic of rambling works again as we end up reflecting on bad 70’s cartoons we have seen. If you’d like to animate a pleasant distraction, this is a great place to start!

We cover how negative oil prices can even exist, consider whether to go back to work as high priced COBOL consultants, and speculate about what’s happening with all the traffic. I mean that's our regular fare, right? Then, in a burst of inspiration, RJ asks KJ about his experiences as a young Catholic in a small town. We learn a lot, have some fun, and understand more about where we’re from. I mean where else will you hear about throwing devil's horns during a funeral service?