Friday Food for Thought: May 6, 2022

Hello Friends, welcome to Friday Food for Thought. Every Friday I’ll help start your weekend by sharing four people, thoughts, or things that are on my mind this week. These may be books or movies, podcast suggestions, interesting people I follow on social media, music, products, or, well, anything. You may find interesting creativity boosts here, some conversation starters, or just a small dose of entertainment. Click here for last week’s post. Feel free to share this with friends, or offer suggestions via the comments. Let’s begin!

1) They’re All Good Dogs:

Recently released research confirms what many dog owners already know: obsessing over purebred status is for snobs and has little to do with a dog’s behavior. This was something I learned as a child, and my twenty-five years of owning dogs and fostering rescue dogs has consistently confirmed it. Behavior varies enormously with any breed. Dog breeding is a toxic business – the idea of an “ethical breeder” is a myth – and the best place to find your perfect dog (or cat) is with your local animal shelter or rescue group. If you are determined to have a specific breed, there are many breed-specific rescue groups with adoption fees often much lower than breeders. I’ve had old dogs, young dogs, a one-eyed dog, a blind dog, deaf dogs, and a chocolate Labrador retriever that wouldn’t retrieve. And they were all perfect.

2) Sounds Good:

Working on an upcoming blog post about ambient sounds, I used an audio editing and recording software called Audacity. Audacity is free, open-source, works on multiple operating systems, has a wide array of features, and, at least for the basics, is easy enough for a novice like me to master. Whatever your proficiency level, if you’re editing audio files, recording a podcast, or simply want to learn a new skill, I recommend giving Audacity a try.

3) More Sounds Good:

Growing up, I loved listening to the radio. My smallish hometown had its own radio station, and I could easily listen to multiple radio stations in nearby Indianapolis. Radio seemed more unpredictable then, more interesting. Maybe I’m too influenced by nostalgia, but most radio stations today seem overly restricted by a very narrowly defined format or are corporate-owned and play the same songs every day. I’m rediscovering radio, however, and all it took was stumbling across Wikipedia’s list of independent stations in the U.S. and Canada. These stations offer a wealth of listening opportunities (be forewarned, I’ve come across at least one right-wing fake news station in the list), and many of them provide a free, Web-based livestream.

4) Ida Seen It Sooner If Ida Known It Was So Good:

The Criterion Channel recently added a collection of Ida Lupino films to its catalogue, which gave me the chance to discover The Sea Wolf (1941) this week. Adapted from a 1904 novel by Jack London, this intense film was directed by Michael Curtiz (who also directed Casablanca (1942)), and, in addition to the legendary Lupino, stars Edward G. Robinson, John Garfield, and Alexander Knox. The Sea Wolf portrays a powerful ethical struggle and is brilliantly acted and directed, with compelling visual effects that were all done on sound stages and with the use of miniatures. The Sea Wolf is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel and is also available on DVD. (Star Trek fans take note: I’m now convinced the final act of The Sea Wolf provided inspiration for the final act of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982).)

That’s all for this week. Have a good weekend!

This post contains NO affiliate links. All suggestions are based on my own personal experience, your experience may vary. Nothing herein is intended to serve as medical, legal, financial, or any other advice for which you should consult professionals and not some random guy on the Internet.