Enjoy! And remember, if you have an idea for a Bowl of Cheese podcast, call the talk like at 206-888-2715 or leave a comment on this post. I'd be glad to have another guest host read their submission for the audience. I require you to be clean, well-spoken, fun and relevant. Podcasts are between three and five minutes long. Rants are always welcome.

Enough of that, here's the transcript..

The rainâs coming down in droplets as large as jelly-beans and the windâs got my curtains sticking into the room at right angles to the wall.

I can feel the temperature of the air drop by many degrees. Where it was 80 earlier itâs now about 65. Itâs a welcome respite from the humidity and baking temps of the past few days.

As the thunder alerts me to more unsettled weather, I wonder whatâs behind our aversion to the elements.

Certainly, being struck by lightning, washed away in a flood or a tornado, and smashed to bits by tsunamis and hurricanes isnât anyoneâs idea of a great adventure. But more often than not, we huddle inside when faced with a deluge, blistering heat or high winds.

Is this a condition of our evolution? Did we evolve just to run away from the challenges of our environment?

We canât control the weather yet. So maybe itâs a flight reaction similar to when a Hippo charges us or when we see a gun. Regardless of the reason - genetic coding or learned response - people return to their homes, cars, offices or other sanctuaries for safety when the weather goes bad.

In some ways people remind me of ants. Fill up a watering can and pour it on an anthill and those creatures respond in the same way they would if the skies opened up and water fell from above. They donât know any better and maybe they donât care.

But we have the knowledge that storms move over us. That rain makes us wet and that lightning, while deadly, probably isnât going to strike us when weâre in the city or while walking down the street. So what makes us fearful?

Human skin hasnât been found to melt. Standing in the rain wonât give you pneumonia. Tousled hair is about the worst youâre going to suffer from a summer breeze. Whatâs our problem?

A Livescience.com story published in 2006 told of a study by psychologist John Westefeld at the University of Iowa. He surveyed 130 people about their reaction to weather and a large number of them were affected significantly by storms, wind, rain and other phenomena.

âOf 139 people surveyed, 89 said a good storm sometimes or occasionally gets their heart pounding, and 65 said they panic now and then,â said the Livescience article.

The articleâs author - Robert Roy Britt - wrapped up the article with this...

âOverall, the researchers said 73 percent of the survey participants had "a little bit" or "moderate" fear of weather, while 24 percent had none. Just 3 percent were labeled as fearing Mother Nature "quite a bit."

The results are detailed in the June (2006) issue of the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.â

In many cases, unless you believe in Noah and feel that weâre back on a path that will feature storms lasting a month and a half, the events only last a little while. They might cause some immediate damage to physical structures and to peopleâs psyches, but theyâre over fairly quickly.

Perhaps itâs the spectacular nature of a sudden rainstorm that gets our attention. The sudden onset of black clouds and the chilly wind.

Except for the extraordinary storm, most events just last a little while and soon the status-quo returns. People emerge from their modern caves and go on with their lives.

In fact, the birds have started singing again and the last drops of rain are falling off the leaves. I started this column as the skies began to darken about 22 minutes ago. Now the sky is getting lighter and I guess Iâll leave my cave too.

See you inside the next time we have a storm. Iâm not afraid.

OK, that list seems like it's pretty complete and would cover the majority of people. Not so.

If you're reading this blog, you're still fishbowl-bound. What I mean by that is that you are in the minority of users who read, comment on, get information from, and communicate using newer Internet tools.

There are vast hoards of people who thing twittering is what birds and old women do. They think skype is a type of street gambling in New York City. They cringe at the term facebook because they think they have to pose for something. And they won't even talk about secondlife because they think it's just going to be a boring diatribe about reincarnation.

Don't get me started on SMS, IM, emoticons, YouTube, Flickr and Tumblr.

So why do we (again referring to blog readers and the general technorati) frequently lose sight of our insignificance? Are we projecting our desires on businesses, organizations and individuals in an attempt to lure them into the fish bowl with us? And why is this quest so important?

What's so great about immediate corporate transparency? Is it vital that we know TODAY why Talbot's closed their Men's Store or why Brookstone keeps trying to sell us phallic massagers?

I'm not sure how we got here, but we're being led by some very smart and driven individuals.

Numerous people have commented in technology-centric forums that the members in that forum 'get it', whatever 'it' is. Further, they applaud increased involvement and urge members to spread their knowledge.

Doesn't this sound a little like Sun Myung Moon trying to build an army of followers?

Let's step back momentarily. As I understand it, technology can be defined in two ways. Technology can mean the knowledge that is used to create gadgets. Technology can also be used interchangeably to mean those actual gadgets. For the purposes of my rant, I'm using it to mean the physical tools, not the science behind the tools.

Continuing, how soon will it be before the fishbowl of any technology turns into a fish tank and then a fish pond and then a sea or an ocean?

Maybe I'm asking too many questions, but I challenge the smart techies among us to answer.

When will podcasting really catch on? It's not even flagged by my spell-check software anymore.

And what about GPS and satellite radio and email on phones and so on and so on and so on?

Ultimately, people are going to use what they're comfortable with OR they'll become comfortable with tools and technology that enrich and simplify their lives.

I just wonder if it's simpler to live in the fishbowl and stare out at the distorted remainder of humanity. Or if struggling against the glass day after day to make a difference and enlighten another few people is our role because we get it.

Finally, when do we stop pushing? When we have all the technology we can handle? When we're buried in gadgets and goodies up to our nose?

Technology nose.

Keep reading...

I colored my hair the other day. Really. Itâs a stylish and attractive red that is at once dashing and âinterestingâ. I was trying for blond, but the makeup of my hair and the worry that accompanied putting chemicals on my head probably conspired to limit the colorantâs effectiveness.

Needless to say, now I am supporting the home-town team with the color of my hair. But thatâs not the topic of todayâs postâsharing time is.

Directly related to the hair-color experiment was my anticipation of the reaction to my new hair by people and work and by family. Right now Iâm safe because Mum doesnât read this blog so she wonât know about my hair until she sees it this Friday at dinner. And that will be in front of lots of dinner guests so Iâm predicting she wonât make a scene.

Continuing, I really thought people at work would be vocal and demonstrative when they saw my hair. They werenât.

Maybe this comes from my persona at the office (Iâm freelancing for Brookstone right now, but have other clients regularly where the same image is projected), one where Iâm friendly and open-minded and sharing. People may have stopped being surprised by my stories or actionsâor maybe my hair is hideous and theyâre too afraid to say anything because they care about my feelings.

Itâs probably none of the above. They probably didnât even notice. In the same way it takes people about three months to realize a coworker is pregnant, a simple hair-color change isnât that significant.

Furthermore, people are self-focused to an extreme. They project their feelings and thoughts on others and infrequently stop to take in the whole picture. Iâm trying to be different. Itâs not some sort of kharmatic change, just an occasional reminder to myself that life is going on all around us and we should take notice.

In an effort to do so, I stopped at the beach today and took this photoâ

And better than just taking the photo, I stood and breathed in the sea air and just smiled. I thought about the sun and other people and perceptions and our busy lives. Then I realized that it wasnât the color that I had outside my head that mattered, it was the spectrum of thoughts that were going on inside my skull. And those I choose to share.

More to comeâ

Well, it was gone this morning.

Thatâs right, the spider I worried about all night. The one that had been sitting patiently in the top corner of the bathroom, nestled nicely where the wall and ceiling met. That spider. Gone.

I suppose that he (or she) didnât cruise over to the toilet to ambush my butt. And I am pretty sure he didnât make the trek across the vast expanse of foyer to visit me in the night. But that doesnât mean this spider isnât evil. And it certainly doesnât mean anyone is safe.

Iâm just waiting to wake up one morning this week with itchy bites all over my body. Or worse, a swollen eyelid. Or even worse, a spider in my ear.

These might seem like trivial things to worry about, but as you know from my companion site - thingstoworryabout.com - I am nothing if not concerned about stuff that others choose to ignore.

In addition to the spider that has now taken over my entire house, Iâm angry at the Discovery Channel. Not only have they decided to stop sponsoring a team in the Tour de France, but they have been airing some mini-series, ala Dynasty, on animals killing each other.

Last night I saw lions jumping on a poor elephantom and snacking on its hind quarters. Iâd call it an elephant, except the night-vision cameras didnât make it seem as cute as the chained-up version I usually see at the circus. Or the slightly dazed, short-bus version the Republicans use as their mascot.

It seems that the United States is gripped by the very real situation of animals eating other animals. No more cats and dogs living together. No more hamsters living peaceful lives in plastic tube cities. Nope, itâs survival of the fittest.

I even saw a bird of some sort snatch a rodent or rabbit or burrowing creature from in front of its television while it watched the Masters Golf Tournament. Suffice it to say, even Tiger couldnât save this furry little varmint.

Which reminds me that the word varmint is similar to Velomints which were the first mint I remember that came in a metal tin. And one day when I opened the tin I saw a spider inside. Since that day Iâve been a little skittish about mints and their role in the eventual world-domination plan spiders have hatched.

Similar to the circle of life, this discussion has come back to spiders. And even if killing a spider causes some rain, Iâll take the rain. For the next time I see that spider in the house, itâs going to visit my toilet. I even thought of filming the battle for the Discovery Channel, but I canât afford another sleepless night.

More to comeâ

Iâll wait while you clean the Diet Coke off your blouse or desk or dashboard. OK, letâs continue.

I think the reason I wanted to be Aquaman was a belief that I was going to be powerful and helpful and innately good to people. But also that I wasnât going to be the top hero. I knew, even at an early age, that my weaknesses were real and while I might want super vision or the ability to run faster than light or even the skill to swing from a hair-thin spider web, it probably wouldnât happen.

But I did take swimming lessons and could hold my breath for a long time, so Aquaman it was. *I also wanted to be a blond â mostly because a lot of parents would coo over infants with blond hair and I like to be cooed over.

The other variable that affected my decision to be a superhero like our friend AM was my collection of comic books. I had everything from Richie Rich to Archie to Spiderman to the Flash to Superman and Batman. I even had some Duck Tales and some âClassic Grimmâsâ fairy tales.

Add to this a short attention span (some politically correct people who get horribly offended when I say that white is the new black* might call this ADD) and the ease at which a comic book can be enjoyed, and youâve got a recipe for an addiction to fantasy.

Fast forward about 30 years and look around. Spiderman has his third movie coming out. Batman has his 27th. Superman has died once and come back to life. And Captain America has just bit the dust for good.

According to sources at Marvel, Cap has outlived his usefulness as a hero and he has been written out of the future comic universe. I think this is disgraceful because of what Captain America stands for, and also because I was unable to get my hands on one of the soon-to-be-priceless copies of that final issue.

As you all know, Captain America stands for stem cell research. He was the product of scientific tampering and would have remained a weak and ineffective clerk if not for stem cells and genetic manipulation.

Itâs too bad heâs no longer with us. Perhaps the Wonder Twins will step in to take his place. In the meanwhile, Iâll continue to fly the Captain America flag by periodically putting a bust of Cap on my dashboard, and standing for what I believe in.

Luckily, I think I can do that. I wasnât a genetic experiment success, but as it turns out, I am powerful as a writer, I am helpful as a person and I like to think I toe the line pretty well on the good side. I may not be Captain America or even Aquaman, but I continue to make a positive splash in the ocean of life every day.

More to come...

*Dunkin Donuts White Hot Chocolate is the new trend in beverages and their slogan SHOULD be White is the new Black.

Even though both men are clearly insane, they have retained the mental acuity necessary to rent flamboyant jumpsuits, board a plane, navigate this active city and spread the word effectively to tens of people that Elvis would have been 72 had he lived.

I was in Vegas covering CES (the Consumer Electronics Show) when I ran across Colin and Jonah at the New York New York Casino. We were eating in adjoining booths at the Nathan's near the roller coaster and their appearance and APPEARANCE caused me to stare and to ruminate on tradition.

Too often, people jump on a 'tradition' because it's popular. St. Patrick's Day, Groundhog Day, Talk like a Pirate Day - they're all very popular but they're also 'me too' occasions. Why not establish something that you can do that sets you apart from the masses?

Colin and Jonah, unless there's some evil intervention from their wives or wives to be, should be able to continue their honoring of the King for decades. They do it tastefully and with creativity.

Unlike the cretins who drink green beer or those who continue to think chocolates and flowers need to be handed out willy-nilly on St. Valentine's Day - these friends take a special event and put their own twist on it. They've also created their own tradition, which is really what I wanted to talk about today.

When we're young we effortlessly remain in touch with people we care about and frequently take for granted the time we spend together and the memories we create. Then as years pass, this time gets gobbled up by other obligations that might in some instances be fleeting (first marriages, jobs - don't get me started about people who let work get in the way of life, games and addictions).

When was the last time you called a childhood friend or made time to really send a note to a person you take for granted? It's funny that I mentioned addiction in my earlier paragraph because this little story took place in a venue - Las Vegas - that thrives on people's addictions.

And to further that thought, some of the programs that help people deal with addiction have a cure-all for the nonchalance with which we treat others and for the seeming disregard with which we observe traditions. I'm not sure of the specific naming convention it has in each program, but it's comprised of making amends to those you have wronged in any way.

So while we raise a toast - be it beer, champagne, soda or a jelly-donut cocktail - to Colin and Jonah, let's try to remember the people around us who still matter. The people we still love everyday, no matter what little things get in the way.

Maybe telling these people how much they mean could become a tradition too.

In the meantime, I've been focusing on my trip to France in July which has necessitated a little tightening of the purse strings. Instead of eating lunch out every day I've been occasionally bringing leftovers. And instead of eating each breakfast out - and this is my FAVORITE meal of the day - I have started to cook again.

Today I had my famous spicy eggs. I can't give you the recipe because they were created by mistake while I was distracted by DirecTv TITANIUM.

Titanium is a package for people who don't have enough going on in their lives to leave the couch. For a mere $7500 a year, you can get EVERY SINGLE CHANNEL AND MOVIE that DirecTv delivers. That includes NFL Sunday Ticket, PayPerView (all you can eat), every movie channel, all the adult selections (oooooooohh, still not worth it), and hundreds of regular channels.

In my weakened condition I tried to do the math. I'm paying about $50 per month for a pretty good package. I don't get movies or sex channels, but I also choose to fill a good portion of my day with something other than embossing my couch with my body.

For this package to be worth it, I would have to watch television and movies 31 hours a day. $7500 is more than ten times more expensive than my current bill and I rarely break the 2-hour per day mark, much less the vaunted 3.1 hour barrier.

Well, I have been known to plunk myself down once in a while when there's a Scrubs marathon or NFL Football on the tube. And we're not including July when I regularly watch 5+ hours a day of the Tour de France.

So, my shocked state I put too much pepper in my eggs and realized once again that if television - or any activity - is interfering in your life, it might be a sign. I'm taking this to mean that titanium is too heavy a metal for me to handle.

Keep thinking!