Tag: food

Behind the Microcast:

Tell us about your accounts. You have a few usernames, don’t you?
Yes! I am known as Violaceous Curiosity and Mental Musings on the site now. Funny enough, Mental Musings started out as Snarky Side Dish by Sandrine, went to Babbling Old Bat and has now settled on the latest incarnation

What do your family and friends know you as?
Everyone knows me as Kayla.

Care to tell us where are you from?
Proudly from Monroe, LA.

Do you have any occupations outside of the microcasting world?
I keep myself busy. I see myself as a sociologist and activist, first and foremost. Then there is being a content creator for YKYZ…and a few other things.

How did you get into microcasting?
I started on YKYZ as a content creator, and when we got the opportunity to start microcasting I jumped on it.

Can you tell us a little bit about what your microcast is about?
Violaceous Curiosity is about fighting injustice from the perspective of intersectional feminism, which is the view that all people are equal regardless of gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, religion, class, etc. Mental Musings is my space to speak my mind more like a verbal journal, talking about daily life, random topics that may irk me, and pointing out the ridiculousness of humanity…all with a bit of sass.

What lead you to pick that topic?
As a sociologist and activist, the general topic for Violaceous Curiosity was an obvious choice since it is what I do on a daily basis and have been working on for many years. The other microcast has been an evolution of sorts.

Do you have a favorite thing about microcasting?
The platform on YKYZ allows people to really interact, and you don’t get that with regular podcasts, which takes this to another level. Much of what I am working on centers on starting a conversation and generating ideas, and with YKYZ I am able to do that.

What about a creative process? Do you have one?
I approach the process in more of an academic way with VC since it’s more fact-based, but I always try to find a good quote at the beginning to grab listeners’ attention. With MM I just let my hair down and let it flow.

Do you write scripts?
I have never scripted any episode. I gather my information and my quote, plan an overall idea in my head and let it happen naturally. If I script it I feel it will sound like I am presenting a research paper.

What type of recording equipment do you use?
I use a Samson Q2U microphone that was a lovely birthday gift from a friend.

If you could interview anyone for your microcast, who would it be and why?
Ruth Bader Ginsburg…hands down. She was only the second female Supreme Court Justice, overcame insurmountable odds to get there, and has fought for equality across the board for decades. RBG is fearless, and before Covid-19 hit, I had an appointment to get her initials tattooed behind my left ear.

If you could switch lives with another microcasters on ykyz for just one day, who would you pick and why?
ThatOneGirl– Teresa. She and I are the OGs of the site, so we’ve known each other longer than anyone on there. Plus, I would get to play with her dogs, her cat, AND her chinchillas! Bonus for her and my Dad would be them getting to spend the day together since they are BFFs on the site.

So it’s clear you like animals. Do you have any of your own?
I have 1 semi-inside Tortishelle cat named Southpaw and one full-time outside golden Tabby named Hamilton Jr. After Dad’s back is better we are adopting dogs again.

Let’s talk food. What’s your favorite thing to eat?
This is going to sound really sad, but I really am bored of eating. If I could take a pill every day for my nutrients and be done with it I would. That sounds like I have an eating disorder, which I don’t, but I just am not excited by food anymore.

Can you pick just one color as a favorite?
Purple clearly. I mean I am VIOLACEOUS Curiosity after all. Black and grey are my other favorites.

What are you hiding from everyone? Care to spill your hidden talents?
That I will admit here? Hahaha Well, I was an opera singer at quite a young age, and I have some nerdy talents, like being able to write grammatically correct sentences that are a page long or more and having an unusually exceptional long-term memory (My college communications professor had me tested). Other than those I am quite a medical oddity, and if anyone is curious they should feel free to ask me about it.

What kind of music would people catch you listing to?
Having spent so many years singing opera I now love the male operatic roles, classical, classic rock and folk, and some indie like early Tori Amos.

Do you have a favorite movie or show?
Dead Poets Society and Philadelphia are my favorite movies.

And the last one, What are some of your plans for the future?
I have my sights set on a few things, and continuing to help build YKYZ is a top priority. The past year or so has been a rebuilding process for me since I lost my mother, left the world of academia behind, found solutions to health issues, and discovered how YKYZ and what I want to do with my life work so well together, so I’m honestly just looking forward to working on all of that, getting even healthier, helping my father get healthier, getting more tattoos, and still not having kids…always not having kids. One day down the road I’m determined to have a non-profit in honor of my mother that helps people of any gender with issues of partner and sexual abuse/assault/harassment…but that’s one day.

Behind the Microcast:

What is your username on ykyz?
My username on ykyz is SmartMoney.

What do your friends and family call you?
I prefer to go by Becky.

Where are you from?
I am originally from the Pennsylvania Area. However, I now call Nebraska my home.

Do you have an occupation outside of microcasting?
I do. It’s one of the hardest jobs there is. A stay at home mom!

What got you into microcast on ykyz?
It’s a quick alternative to blogging, and you get to actually interact with people.

What does your microcast focus on most?
I try to focus on saving money and spending it smart. It’s been a passion of mine for quite some time, especially after I got married and we wanted to buy a house.

Do you have any kind of creative process for your episodes?
It depends. Sometimes the topics come easily, other times I really have to think. I try to stay relevant and address topics like investing as well as tips to save money in small ways.

Do you use scripts when recording episodes?
For me, it’s a must. It’s nice to have a transcribed copy in case I ever want to use these notes, and if I talk “freestyle” I say “um” way too much.

Any other facts you want us to know about?
Well sure! I like fries, my favorite color is blue, I can play the clarinet, and I spend way to much time watching clips of Brooklyn Nine-Nine on YouTube. That’s me in a nutshell.

Cast of the Week X

CotW IX
You’ll find all the nominees for this week at https://ykyz.com/c/na?faveOf=cotwx

First, some shoutouts:

Shoutout to Astrocast by Diz for dropping her magic number 100. Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself

Shoutout to Music and Peace for giving ykyz its first serenade (and we’re just going to pretend it was for us). Addie’s episode 197. Take 7 – Original Music, Here’s A Serenade showcases her lovely voice and is a must-listen. Twice.

Careful watchers of CotW will have noticed that while many multi-part episodes have been nominated, none have won a grand or second prize. This isn’t for lack of good episodes that were part of a series, it’s more a reflection of the trickiness of selecting a single episode out of a series, or giving an award to a series that may not be done yet, or whose start or finish date may not coincide with the previous week.

All that said, we want to shoutout several well done multi-part series that are either in progress or done. In particular, we send a Shoutout to Just Thinking Aloud for his episode on End of our Universe pt1 – Heat death, which gives a detailed yet friendly introduction to this fascinating topic, a Shoutout to A Brewtiful Mind for his well-researched series on Monks and Beer, and a giant Shoutout to The Broken Down Starship’s fantastic series on the fake moon landing conspiracy theory. This series by James is a perfect example of using the microcast format to give multiple self-contained snippets that build on each other in service of exploring a single, larger, topic.

And now, on to the winners. But first, some honorable mentions:

78. My Father – A Hero and A Villain  by Voluptuous Voyager
This tightly scripted, emotional yet contained, episode by Asi is a lovely gem of personal reflection.


128. Money Vs. Time by SmartMoney
In this smooth and well-paced episode, Becky explores the tradeoffs between working more (or for more) versus having more money by spending less on “all the things”.


103. MSC Cruise ship crashing into the pier by Dancing Bartender
This detail-rich episode gives a (likely) explanation of what happened in a now-infamous video of a cruise ship docking with full force right into a pier, and another ship, in Venice. We recommend watching the video while listening to the episode.


99. ATTENTION – MERCURY IS NOW IN RETROGRADE by Astrocast by Diz
This innovative episode by Diz begins with a bomb siren alert and warns us of the dangers of Mercury’s movement into retrograde. Diz warns us to expect higher levels of ghosting. If only we had a little more context as to why this truly cosmic event means we shouldn’t update iTunes during the retrograde, which IMO has been solid advice for at least the past five years.


120. Manorial Food Rights by SnippetsWithSophia
Sophia delivers yet another fascinating, well-researched microcast episode with this look at “banal” laws, applied to peasants by lords in the middle ages and lingering until the period when heads began to roll, literally.


And now, without further ado, the winners of Cast of the Week X.

Runner up:
38. Stouts and Porters, Are They Different? by A Brewtiful Mind
Micah takes second prize for this insightful episode explaining the history, and difference, between two interrelated types of dark ales. Framed with the perfect short intro and outro music, Micah sticks the landing right at 90 seconds with just the right tidbit of info.  


Grand prize:
152. Bloodbread by ThatbeardedSwede
In this episode, ThatbeardedSwede is truly at the top of his game. In just 70 seconds, Fredrik gives us an informative look at bread made with animal blood as the liquid ingredient. Fredrik packs in a detailed description of the bread, its historical context, an insightful quote by the late, great food critic Anthony Bourdain, and a personal reflection on eating it as part of a meal growing up.

Cast of the Week VIII

We now have a Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/ykyzHaveYourSay

Feel free to like or follow or whatever it is one does with, or to, a Facebook page.

u/Mattasher writes:

Before we get to the prizes, we have a number of shoutouts this week to those who made our week:

Shoutout to all those who joined the 100-club this week:

Clare with Brown Skin Pearls
Geraldine with fashionmusings
Janet with SnippetswithSophia
Joanie with CatGuruJoanie
Noah with Doctor Irish
Rebekah with SmartMoney

Shoutout to the two established users who booted up new microcasts this week. Joel kicked-off Wrestling with Football (about the new XFL league) and Noah crossed over into new territory with Imperfect Reviews.   

Shoutout to @ndrewSeiner for finding his groove as the microcast equivalent of dropping a tab. Always be mindful of set and setting before tuning in!

One final Shoutout to SmartMoney for launching up my new favorite channel c/dumbcriminals

And now, on to the winners.

But first, some runner’s up:
92. Chapped by Brown Skin Pearls
Perfect for this time of year, Clare goes through the basics of chapped lips and how to handle them.


52. Biscuit Lashes by Black Girl Baker
Somehow the transition from talking about grating butter to a discussion about fake lashes just… works.


104. Adulting…Easier Than a Spreadsheet by SmartMoney
Becky gives us some basic advice on how to manage money without having to plot out every cent we spend. If you have 68 seconds to spare, I recommend spending it listening to this helpful episode.


104. DO NOT NAME YOUR CAT THESE NAMES – very serious by CatGuruJoanie
This very serious episode introduces us to the many bad cat names Joanie has encountered over the years, and Gary, which is definitely the best name, not the worst.


WINNERS:
Runner up
89. The Blank Page by Life Bites Podcast
Conner’s meditation on staring on a blank page takes the runner-up spot this week. This tightly crafted episode introduces us to the enemy and leads us on to victory over the creative void.


Grand prize
93. MM’s And The U.S. Presidents by SnippetsWithSophia
This week’s grand prize winner is Sophia’s well-paced, well scripted, well-researched episode on the one box of M&Ms that recipients will want to keep around for a long time. This delightful episode alone might have been enough to bag the top prize, but Sophia complimented it with several other well researched and interesting episodes about food and the halls of power. You can find them all here:


https://ykyz.com/f/foodinhighplaces

Cast of the Week VII

CotW VII
u/Mattasher writes:

Before we get to the prizes, we have a number of shoutouts this week to those who made our week:

Shoutout to jen.again for kick-starting my new favorite channel, c/ihateitwhen. Jen’s complaint about tissue boxes may be the most gloriously relatable first world problem I’ve ever heard.

Shoutout to Black Girl Baker who’s finding a great groove with her one-two punch of baking and “tea”.

Shoutout to CatGuruJoanie who has been experimenting with YouTube-style quick edits of her audio. Though not right for everyone, this technique is working well for Joanie’s cast.

Shoutout to ThatBeardedSwede for keeping casting alive on Reddit with a dedicated channel to microcasting.

Before getting to the main event, we hereby recognize a few runners up this week:

76. Thoughts on fake pockets? by fashionmusings
Gem clearly hit a chord with this discussion of fake pockets, an endless source of complaints for my own daughter.


79. Baby Steps by Life Bites Podcast
In this thoughtful meditation on moving forward, Conner reminds us that “You can go for miles, just taking baby steps”


69. Chicken McNuggets vs Vegan Nuggets by SnippetsWithSophia
Sophia’s episode about everyone’s favorite finger snack as a kid makes us wonder how much actual chicken is in McNuggets.


And now, on to the winners!
Runner up
54. What is Chinese Astrology? by Astrocast By Diz
In this timely episode, Diz explains the Chinese system of years and animals, including the nifty trick of asking someone’s zodiac animal as a sly (but not foxy, that one’s missing) way to figure out their age.


Grand Prize
86. Attachment by CatGuruJoanie
Joanie, with a hit tip to Violaceous C, brings the receipts for what many a cat owner has long suspected. Namely, their cats actually do love them, they’re just chill in how they show it. With well researched and tightly delivered episodes, we’re quickly becoming “Securely attached” to Joanie’s excellent microcast.