“It’s not a rotten brain!! It’s a good brain!!”

Yes—Frau Blooker, I'm a little depressed. I listen to a podcast call ??. I find it most enjoyable. The show is two Michigander men quipping back and forth. They possess a good mixture of intellectual and bawdy humor. They often pick up on stories of the strange. They follow the news, and current events and even when I've heard other shows commenting on the same items, I prefer Stereo Radiation’s attitudes and presentation. They do not try to shock. They maintain a “cool” delivery. They are laid back, yet their minds jump from one association to another very quickly. This is my trouble.

My depression started after they mentioned a comment that I made on their forum. They called out my handle “Rotwang” on their feed. This has happened a few times with other shows and I always get a kick out of the small recognition factor (Obviously this is why the hosts do this. To tickle the fans). But joy turned to sadness when they said I was one of their oldest fans. My mind is wary of double meanings lately, and I quickly thought ?? and ?? (the hosts) are saying I'm old as in “age” not as in “long-time” listener. The truth is I'm a bit of both. I'm probably five to ten years their senior and I did find them quite early on in their broadcasting careers.

If I were in the same room with them say at a party, I could understand them, but I don't think I could interject. I think I may be too old and slow. I found that listening to another podcast live (Redbar Radio) that I couldn't think of much to say or type out what I did mean to say fast enough to be apart of the show. (At the time this seemed like fun.) But now at the Stereo Radiation forum (not live), I have all the time in the world and I can't think of much to say. The hosts of ?? aren't as frenetic as Redbar’s Mike D, but they are nearly as unpredictable. I find them difficult to anticipate. Once I think I have a handle on one of their bits— it changes.

Oh well. As long as they are polite to this geezer, I will enjoy what they do.

HI-FRUCTOSE

Hi-Fructose magazine’s masthead description is “Under the Counter Culture.” This cute fusion of the phrases “counter culture” and “under the [store] counter or [drug] counter” is very apt. The artwork inside does have a counter culture-ish vibe, like the real counter culture artists of the 1960s some of who appropriated an older 1930s-40s cartooning style to speak of serious subjects like war and holocaust.

Within its pages, Hi-Fructose artists exaggerate with graffiti and the repurposing of found mast-market images and nick-knacks in a way that is sweet and ironic. The chemically enhanced reference of the magazine’s title is only implied as far as I can tell. I have read no overt messages inside the magazine concerning the talking of drugs, but it probably can be taken for granted that drugs were involved with the creation of the artworks. Much of the art looks like elaborate doodles that would require a level of concentration that, I imagine, might be attainable with a little help.

I was looking at Volume 8, which I picked off the rack at Borders books. You might call this art kitsch, but it is a type of kitsch I found very attractive. The magazine is divided into interviews of the artists along with examples of their work.

I will pass the issue on to my nephew, it may inspire his inner artist.