Choogle On with Uncle Weed

Catching up after a Heroes’ Day trip to Negril, Uncle Weed discourses about the people, ganja, foods and animals of Jamaica with two pals whilst roasting down around a beachside campfire. Riffs include: handmade charcoal, mutton, ital food, meditation, daily life, kindness, big hearts, evil minds, daily life, community life, neighbourliness, ice cream from a … Continue reading Bush Tiger Beachside Bonfire – Choogle On! Jamaica Scheme #2 →

Arriving in Little Bay, Jamaica into a hammock with a joint and beer, Uncle Weed documents surroundings including cabins, fisherman’s bar, reggae music sound system, eating conch, mineral pool, sea swimming, and drinking all the Red Stripe in Little Bay. Then discusses Heroes’ Day with locals around a campfire + Jamaica family, skills and abilities … Continue reading Hammocks and Heroes Day – Choogle On! Jamaica Scheme #1 →

Coming into Hornepayne with Tracks on Tracks, Chris Ho plays croons out some tunes, while  Shred Kelly shreds on the banjo. Uncle Weed chats up some superfans who agree that Portage and Main have been a highlight of the trip, and Top less Gay Love Tekno Party gets interviewed in their matching onesies. Chantel, the … Continue reading Descending upon Hornepayne – Chooglin’ on Tracks #6 →

As Tracks on Tracks comes in to Winnipeg, Uncle Weed bemoans the rigidity of meal times on trains, and the lack of food that the train station offers. Portage and Main plays an acoustic number on the train, and plugs in for the stop in Winnipeg. When pulling out of the city, Grant Lawrence banters … Continue reading Portage and Winnipeg – Chooglin’ on Tracks #5 →

As Tracks on Tracks pulls in to Melville for a whistle stop, Shred Kelly basks in the attention of the locals from the town while performing. The young and old of Melville come out to listen to the music, with notable (and memorable) guests including the Mayor, who asks for an encore, and Doug the Old … Continue reading Shredding on Melville – Chooglin’ on Tracks #4 →

Continuing east with Tracks on Tracks train journey, Uncle Weed rolls along the Athabasca River and VIA Rail’s ban on smoking in ALL forms is lamented. Uncle Weed chats with CBC R3 superfan @_Rebby as they discuss life on the train (and staff’s bafflement with the unusual people they are encountering), Newfoundland music, her epic … Continue reading Athabasca with Oboes – Chooglin’ on Tracks #3 →

Getting settled in to train life, Uncle Weed and friends ponder the meal schedule, sleeping schedule, timezones, awesome showers, random rules, and what staff must think of them. With Grant Lawrence interviewing Adaline, she shares how she has used road rage for a musical muse. She also fills us in on what Tracks on Tracks has … Continue reading Bottomless Lakes of Adaline – Chooglin’ on Tracks #2 →

Uncle Weed heads east out of Vancouver on a train with 10 bands. Rolling along with Tracks on Tracks, he gets a feel for life on the train with its one-dimensional freedom of movement, CCR-like effect on music, well-matured demographics, and abundance of jam sessions. Live musical performances include acts by Maurice and Portage and … Continue reading Renegades Roll East – Chooglin’ on Tracks #1 →

From the summit of a tiny island in British Columbia’s Howe Sound, Uncle Weed discusses cultural traditions, social contracts and organizational auspices with two local diplomats, plus spiels about a trip to Pelilu, Palau and exploring themes of self-reliance on micro-islands. Topics include: geo-thermal power, deer culling, island trusts, boat access, and families inter-connecting.  Climb … Continue reading Tribes of Barnacle Island – Choogle On! #105 →

On a trail to interesting boulders along Lynn Creek, Uncle Weed enjoys beer, bread and cheese while exploring the impact of bohemian painter Fredrick Horsman Varley on West Coast art culture. Varley, a member of the venerated Group of 7, lived in Vancouver for 10 years during which he moved from Jericho to Lynn Valley … Continue reading Portrait of Varley – Choogle On! #104 →

Continuing on a conversation about Iraq and Afghanistan, Lt. Magnum of the US Navy shares experiences from an assignment helping the Philippines recover from a variety of natural disasters aboard the USS Pelilu (named for the Palauan island). Stories include logistics of engineering, construction projects, diplomatic relations, ingenuity on the ground, pig roasts, helicopter landings … Continue reading Disaster Repair in The Philippines with the SeaBees – Choogle On! #103 →

Just back from New Orleans, Uncle Weed shares anecdotes from a stop on hi-jinks-laden drive-away car delivery journey from Miami to Dallas and recounts recent culinary forays including turtle soup, Po’boy sandies and crawfish ettouffee, along with social observations about the French Quarter and Frenchmen’s street including the joy of brass bands and convenience of … Continue reading Ramble on to New Orleans – Choogle On! #102 →

Geeky discourse about the culture and rituals of the people at SXSW Interactive conference/festival specifically with cyborg anthropologist Amber Case who gamely banters about: human-techno-social-experience within information revolution; how future is created; how geek inherit/acquire power; micro-economics of start-ups; perils of venture capital; survivability of these commercial endeavors; industry-culture power structures; checking-into lines; affection for … Continue reading Anthropological Essay in Austin – Choogle On! #101 →

photo by UW on Christmas Eve at the hotel bar, art’ed up by Bread the Producer who also edited and mixed this episode During the Festive season – holed up at an historic hotel in Nelson BC sampling local hashish – a sloppy Uncle Weed stumbles through stories with the loquacious harmonica master Xomaha who … Continue reading Harmonica and Hash at the Hume – Choogle On! #100 →

Hustling to a bus, Uncle Weed ends the festive period with vaporization session and recounts highlights, hi-jinks and life remixes from 2010 including gut surgery, True North Media House social reporting at the Olympics including Olympic Outsider podcasts, Subpop Records, Hockey Hall of Fame, SXSW, Komasket Music Festival, UW40 party, Halloween at the Waldorf hotel, … Continue reading Festive Flashbacks from Orion to Nelson – Choogle On! #99 →