Cast of the Week XXII

Welcome to the 22nd edition of the Cast of the Week Awards.

You can find this week’s nominees can be found at https://ykyz.com/f/cotwxxii.

There were lots of milestones hit these past couple weeks.

Lilith, of Maleficient Gaming brings in her 100th episode discussing Vader Immortal coming to PlayStation VR. Kayla, of Mental Musings, shares a side of math that most probably were not aware of in her 100th episode. 

Our favorite Egyptologist, Life in Ancient Egypt rang in his 200th episode by discussing how Egyptians handled death. Asi the Voluptuous Voyager shares a poem that stands out to her in these hard times called “Do not stand at my grave and weep” by Mary Elizabeth Frye. Poegosi the Poet discusses if the site “live me” is worth using. A Brewtiful Mind lets us all know that beer slushies are a thing just in time for the hot summer weather. Just Thinking Aloud shares his plans on what he wants to do in his next 200 episodes. Lastly, MondragonMMA wants everyone to know that the first MMA gyms are opening back up!

Gem, of Fashionmusings, uses her 300th episode to share the history of why doctors wear white lab coats nowadays.

Addie, of Music and Peace, wants to celebrate on ykyz for hitting the amazing 400th episode milestone.

And finally, Kayla, aka Violaceous Curiosity, was the first user to hit the 500th episode milestone where she finally explains the meaning behind her username.

Congrats to all our milestone breakers.


And now, onto the CotWXXII winners! But first, a quick shoutout:
Shoutout to Practical Magic for bringing in a special guest to help out with her cast, Guest witch of the day.


And now, onto the winners! But first, a few honorable mentions:

Honorable Mentions:
210. Being Brainwashed by Voluptuous Voyager discusses the importance of seeking knowledge on your own and not blindly following everything you are taught. 

328. Thanksgiving in a Pan – Ish by SmartMoney shares some delicious recipes for quick dinner ideas, including a way to have the taste of Thanksgivings Day Dinner without all the work.

And now, on to the winners:

Bleats of the week:
Do y’all actually like coffee? by Claybro931 got a dozen ykyz’er to weigh in on this seeming eternal question and got some good recommendations for coffee alternatives.

Best/worst pick-up line WINS Starbucks gift card! by Violaceous Curiosity picks up the second bleat of the week award with a giveaway of her own for pick-up lines. Congrats to Poegosi the Poet for the win, make sure to listen to his answer.


For our regular microcast awards, we have:

Third Prize:
322. Parkinson’s Disease – Real Stories. What you Need to Know by Doctor Irish explanations what happens to one’s body as they begin to develop Parkinson’s Disease. The main focus is on highlighting how this disease affects real people in their daily lives both mentally, as well as, physically.

Runner up:
200. Death by Ancient Egypt shares all the details on what happens after a tomb is sealed and why the burial procedures were so important to the Egyptians for their journey to the afterlife.

Grand Prize:
197. Robot Bartenders: Yes or No? by A Brewtiful Mind takes home the grand prize with this timely and informative episode about using robots as bartenders to reduce human contact in alcohol delivery, which may be a feature or a bug, depending on your perspective. Also, make sure to check out Micah’s excellent episodes on Beer Slushies and Puppies on Beer cans.

Cast of the Week XXI

Welcome to the 21st edition of the Cast of the Week awards (Breaking out of Lockdown Edition). Got the sick of home blues? Get outside! But first, read on for a double dose of winners and important info.

You can find this week’s nominees can be found at https://ykyz.com/f/cotwxxi.
 
Junior Microcaster Prizes
We will be experimenting with a dedicated Junior Microcaster award and might do a summer program. This would be open to anyone 18 or younger. We hope to offer at least one prize per week in this category, and if we get enough participants, we might offer a Junior Microcaster of the summer award. This is a great way for a teen to launch a career in casting. Note that if you take a teenage caster under your wing, you are eligible for our Mentor program, and will get referral credit for anyone you bring on.
 

And now, on to the CotW XXI winners! But first, some shoutouts:
 
Shoutout to PracticalMagic for episode 73. It is OKAY to rest!  and the reminder that during the pandemic, lowering expectations for what you get done may be the only way to stay sane.
 
Shoutout to Rebekah of the SmartMoney microcast for a solid review of pay-to-play games in episode 318. Paid to Play Apps – Worth It?
 
Shoutout to BorisTheBlade for touching a nerve with the title and content of his 175th microcast episode Fat is not beautiful, Adele’s weight loss and Social Justice Warrior fascists pt. 2.
 
Shoutout to Asi the Voluptuous Voyager for episode 191. Ramblings… and her thoughts about the goal of her cast and reaching out to others.
 
Shoutout to Mistress of the Microcast for fearlessly asking the question no one else dares to ask in her episode 260. What happened to the Bermuda Triangle?
 
A few microcasters had episode milestones recently. Shoutouts to Snippets With Sophia, Doctor Irish, and Smart Money for hitting the big 300. Whoot whoot!
 

And now, on to the winners! But first, a few honorable mentions:

Honorable mentions:
Poegosi The Poet for his intriguing and highly interacted with episode 195. Selling feet pics online strange ways to earn online
 
Snippets With Sophia for episode 302. Food-Based Insults, an excellent overview of the many ways to label another nation based on their food preferences, from Limeys to Krouts to Butter Stinkers (who knew!)
 
ThatbeardedSwede for episode 262. Nordic Walking voice chat debates online! Apparently, this awkward looking activity works not just for the elderly but can be good for fitness if you swap out lightweight poles for ones that weigh as much as mid-sized chickens.
 

And now, and this time we really mean it, on to the winners:
 
Bleats of the week:
This award goes to the most listened to (non-microcast) bleat of the past week. Since two weeks have gone by, we have two winners.
 
Should they be allowed? by Muslim Things
 
and
 
Live now 🔴 Gaming chat at 5 pm Friday! by Maleficent Gaming
 

Quote of the week:
This award goes to my favorite quote taken from a microcast episode or bleat. The two winners this time are:
 
“It’s as if you  asked me what colors I would want the walls of my apartment painted while there’s a gaping hole in the floors and also the kitchen is on fire”, by Just Thinking Aloud in episode 186. Right/Left Wing and Other Pipe Dreams.
 
And
 
“Covid. I blame Covid. The entire last three months I blame solely on Covid. I mean, don’t you?”, by jenagain in episode 87. Ready or Not, pt 1.
 

For our regular microcast awards, we have:
 
Fourth prize:
In episode 242. Street Corn by Black Girl Baker, we get a great explanation of how to debug dense cake as well as a mouth-watering description of how to make homemade Street corn.
 
Third prize:
In Greek mythology, the Titans were pre-Olympian gods. In episode 260. Story Time: The Titans, Astrocast By Diz tells their wild and disturbing story with a mix of drama and delightfully strange detail.
 
Second prize:
Addie, of Music and Peace, gets a silver star and second prize for episode 384. Give Addie A Sticker – Rough And Rowdy Controversy, for her excellent contextualization of Bob Dylan’s latest album. In this packed cast, Addie covers the questions of how to judge new work of an old artist, music in the time of pandemics, and, as the title suggests, stickers.
 
First prize:
A Brewtiful Mind takes top prize for episode 189. Could You Drink 101 Beers in a Week? In it, Micah tells the true tale of a former school track star who drank 101 beers in a week and ran 101 miles in that same week. Mixing self-indulgence, Covid relief (funds were raised), excess drinking, and the return to much-neglected exercise, this cast perfectly captures our current moment.