First of all, Thank You. If you are reading this, wherever you are around the globe, you are probably one of our many listeners or supporters over the years of the Bellingham Podcast.
As the story goes, it was a late winter day in 2016 when Chris Powell and I were deep in our normal lively and gregarious conversations over lunch when Chris stopped me mid sentence; with an idea and a proposition. He had never really had his voice, his actual baritone voice, with his opinions and views on something recorded and out on the internet. So his proposal? What would it take to produce a podcast? Or rather, what would it take to do ‘just one episode?‘
I agreed with a ‘challenge accepted,’ and a caveat. If we did this presumed one-episode, we would go through the process as if we were developing a full show. I had just come off the Lummi Nation Podcast Radio (LNPR) series a few years earlier and had been missing the creative and technical process behind podcasting. We approached starting this show with a bit of a technology angle (we are professional Technologists after all) using this as a tech springboard into exploring the practicality of a mobile and more accessible podcast setup. We wanted to see if we could go, at the time, against the grain and forego using ‘pro’ level recording gear. The notion was simple, podcasts were listened on smartphones; so what would it take to use them as the production method? This also would free us from the confines of needing to be in a ‘studio’ and make us physically more mobile. Aside from Technologists, we are aficionados of coffee houses. And in our minds, how cool would it be to podcast on location from our favorite houses-of-caffeination. Those ideas coalesced into a pilot episode that March in Chris’ cozy living room, then quickly moved to various coffee houses we enjoyed. ‘Just one episode’ quickly turned into 10, then jumped to 40 or so when KMRE 102.3FM offered to air the show weekly, then sprinted to 100 (that particular episode with then Bellingham Mayor Kelli Linville), and now we are settling into nearly 200 episodes this year.
We were, and are still, two gregarious conversational geeks with microphones. We are not authorities on topics, but rather aficionados on topics. Never taking ourselves, or things, too serious keeps us and the show open and open ended. All the meanwhile, talking on the topics of curio that make up the PNW lifestyle; and us by proxy. From the trekking life of the PNW, by yours truly “Captain Get-out[side],” or being practical on Minimalism by Chris “Captain Minimal” Powell himself, we bring our own perspectives and views to show topics our own way. All with an overall mission to keep as much positive vibes and share them here from in the northwest of the Northwest. But with it, we’ve been able to dive in on other niche areas we follow such as the growing community of horological enthusiasts known as the #watchfam, taking folks on an Urban Hikers Grand Tour, and bring a different spin to applying some Word[s] of Note from around the world. All topics that resonates with us, with folks here locally, and to friends and listeners around the globe.
Seriously; Thank You all of you!
A new cover art to celebrate
Looking back those early days of that show, back then Bellingham Podcast Media; Tech (BPM:Tech), it’s been interesting watching the show naturally evolve. Moving away from those early tech days, finding its voice and flow in the variety show nature (as we call it) of the interests we follow and tie to the PNW life and views here in the City by the Sailsh Sea.
To commemorate the last five-years, the show is getting a graphical update with a new cover art and new logo design. Riffing off the Northwest compass rose that has been on our podcast cover for the majority of our show. Of course, the Northwest corner is represented with a little pop of color, as well as our Cascade mountains and Salish Sea still represented in it. This third evolution though, draws inspiration from many walks in downtown Bellingham. Some may remember, when Holly Street had freshly panted, and in-layed in our pavement a white outlined brick like pattern with a simple compass rose evenly and artistically spaced. You can still spot them on side streets, but for most streets the pattern is worn down and faded through to back to black top. This pattern was adapted for our logo, and yes, a small tip of the hat to my interest in horology is woven into it as many friends and listeners in the #watchfam might notice the internal twelve segments around the outer bezel circle.
Full Compass Logo 
Podcast Cover V.3
Our thanks to everyone over the years who have listened, supported, promoted, our little Northwest show over the years. We greatly appreciate all the support.
“As always, from the City by the Salish Sea; I’m AJ Barse….”
April [geek] update;
The first version of the Bellingham Podcast v3 cover logo has been minted into an NFT, a little nod to our podcast’s roots in tech.
