With 2010 upon us and the Average Joe Show going live online (at http://www.averagejoeshow.com/live Fridays 9pm Eastern) and a lot of new people joining us on the show I would like to get the word out for more people to join us, in some capacity, at the show.

I call this “2 the Fifth Power”.

I’ve been hearing a lot of good things about the show in various ways, now I want everyone who enjoys it to spread the word.  Everyone who enjoys the podcast go out and tell five people about it.  (When I say “tell five people” I mean mention it personally to five of your friends, either in person, via email, whatever. )  Tell them everything about the show and why you like it.  Make sure to remind them about the website and when we stream online.  Then, go back about a week later and ask them if they listened to it yet.  If they did and they like it tell them about “2 the Fifth Power” and direct them to this website, http://www.coreycharette.com/2-the-fifth-power.  Explain to them that they should tell five of their friends about the podcast to help spread the word about it.

So, since you’ve read this post, right now I want you to pick 5 of your friends and tell them about the show.  (You can tell Internet “celebrities” also and posting on social websites, but please don’t count them in your group of 5.)

Well, between time off from the show and ‘comings-and-goings’ on the show things have been put on hold.

We hope to make 2010 a year of changes for the podcast.

The first change that you will notice on the show is comments and emails being read on the show.  We want to have more audience participation on the show and this is the first step into doing that.

The next thing we want to bring to the show is link suggestions.  If you listened to episode 60 of the show you will have noticed that it’s the first time that we had stories given to us to mention on the show.  There are a lot of great stories out there that we don’t get a chance to get to and with your help we can bring some of them to the show.  (If you have any stories that you want us to consider for the show send them in an email to talk@averagejoeshow.com.)

The last thing that we want to have happen to the show is to have it stream live on the web.  Hopefully, you will have caught our live show (December 23 @ 9pm Eastern).  Unfortunately, with the resources we have it might be a long time before we can do this again.  This show is done on a shoe string budget and if you would like us to be able to stream weekly please help out by donating to the show.    By streaming the show we can real time interaction from out fans.  We hope that we can have this implemented on a regular basis by the end of the year.

We want 2010 to be a new year for the podcast.  With your help we know that we can get it to where everyone wants it to be.

I had a conversation earlier this week and it seems like the spirit of Christmas is dying.

Every year I try to get my son (who is 6) to sit down and watch the classic Christmas shows with me.  I get so excited when I see Rudolph showing up on TV and can’t wait to sit there and watch it.  When I try to get my son to sit there with me he gets bored within minutes and wants to flip the channel to Spongebob or some other Nickelodeon show.

And I have to blame the networks, on some level, for this. 

Years ago, when I was growing up there was only three major networks.  If you wanted to watch any shows you were stuck between those networks and didn’t have much else on.  The Christmas shows only appeared on these channels.  And all the shows were made in the ’60’s.  The early ’80’s we didn’t have any new holiday shows to choose from.

Now fast forward to today.  There are dozens on channels out there that creates there own programming.  I have nothing against this, but the problem is that we have over saturation.  ABC Family does the 25 days of Christmas and shows a huge amount of Christmas related shows.  The quality of all these shows aren’t the best, but they do have to fill up a lot of air time with holiday shows.  ABC Family also likes to make their own movies too.  I don’t really want to see some weak storylined movie with some C-list actor in it.  Kids have too much Christmas stuff to choose from and pay less attention to what we grew up with.

The second reason kids don’t like the classics is because of technology.

Nowadays, kids have all these computer generated movies, HD television, and video games.  They have too much technology out there.

Who wants to sit there for 30 minutes and watch some hand created standard definition movie that doesn’t have explosions, silly voices, or where the story ends before the commercial break. 

The third reason is availability.

Growing up, we didn’t have VCRs and if you missed a show on TV – you missed it!  Now you can buy all the Christmas shows on DVD and watch them anytime you want.  This takes away from the anticipation of waiting for that one night a year that your favorite holiday show is on.

If my son doesn’t get to appreciate these shows, what will happen to them in the future?  Will the major networks eventually stop showing them and they will only become a memory to those who grew up with them?

Windows 7, Adam Who?, BYO Bowl, Baseball, and these aren’t the droids you’re looking for.

I did a special episode of Radio Corey covering Halloween.  Go and check it out.  Want to personally thank Ward Miller from Average Joe Show for giving me all the rain on Saturday.  Speaking of AJS, think it’s funny that EPSN has a radio show called that and had to get the .net domain name cause I own the .com!  Feels good knowing that I got to it before they did and didn’t even try.  At work I watched a lady freak out over a ladybug!  I saw a show a few days lady that was almost the same thing.  Funny how art imitates life!  My job is allowing us to wear jeans once a month if we pay to support a charity.  Great idea instead of doing it a few times a year on half days before holidays.  A lady in HR doesn’t like the idea, but glad she doesn’t have any say on this.  When I went to the cafeteria to eat lunch, the cashier was using a pickle to get her fingers sticky to pull the money out of the register.  Interesting idea.  While eating that day say someone brought their own bowl to eat soup that she bought at the cafeteria.  Too much effort to eat soup.  Have to clean your bowl out after.  Just eat it out of their container.  While watching Major League 2 this last weekend was glad that they use real sports teams in the movie.  Gives it more authenticity.  In the middle of reading “And Another Thing….” which is book 6 of 3 in “The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy” trilogy.  Also, I got my class ring this last week.  My 20-year old ring I decided to put a computer on.  Now I’m doing podcasts.  My love for computers have lasted such a long time.  Speaking of school, friend’s kids were out of school on Thursday and Friday last week for autumn break.  I thought autumn break was Thanksgiving.  Sounds like an excuse to take more time off from work.  While taking my son to football practice as the local school one of the other kids had to pee.  So his mom took him by a tree by a main road.  Couldn’t she have gone somewhere else less obvious?  Have you seen those Droid Does commercials on TV?  I found out last week that George Lucas owns the word ‘droid’.  If you look at the commercial it says it in there.  Adam Carolla’s podcast was at Blog World last week and on one of the show’s he was talking to Leo Laporte.  (12:22 into the podcast)  Caught me off guard.  Didn’t expect to hear Leo on there.  Was nice when podcasters collide!  Apple has released new commercials attacking Windows 7.  They aren’t the best ones, but they were ready when Microsoft got around to releasing their software.  Speaking of Windows 7,  Funny or Die released a spoof video of their Windows 7 Torrent Party video.  This a a take off of the awful original video.  Some one has bleeped out that version to make it funnier.  Sticking with tech,  the Ford Taurus 2010 has a new feature called MyKey.  Great feature that allows parents to program the car key so the children can’t turn the stereo too loud or drive too fast.  Helps the parents feel a little bit safer when the kids are behind the wheel.  Speaking of driving, that’s what ticks me off too.  I can’t stand when people drive without he headlights and it’s too dark out to see them.  What fools!

Music from Outside’s “A Radio Transmission of Unkown Origin” and The New Radio’s “Back to the Basics” both available at Podsafe Audio.

Halloween is coming up. I discuss some of the tricks and tips that I use when going trick-or-treating

Halloween is a wonderful time of the year where kids (and adults alike) dress up and go out throughout the neighborhood getting treats.  Being a parent I care about the trick-or-treating habits that my kids learn. I’ve compiled what I do every year for my child.  Trick-or-treating isn’t just going out, hitting some houses and coming home. There is planning to ensure that your child is safe on this day.

Check for sexual predators online

This is the first thing you should do. (In fact, checking several times a year isn’t a bad idea either). You can start by going to Family Watchdog and checking your local law enforcement website. These place have great search engines where you can put your address in and see who lives near you. The websites give you everything you need to know about the person including their picture and address.

Plan the route you are going to take

Now that you know who lives in your neighborhood you can plan your route accordingly. Make sure that an adult or responsible older sibling goes along. Never let your child go out alone.

Make sure the costume is safe

When buying store bought costumes ensure that they are fire proof or retardant. Avoid putting makeup near the eyes as this can run when they sweat and make it hard to see. Eye holes should be large enough to see through allowing for peripheral vision. Nothing should be lower than the ankle, makes it easier to walk and a less chance of tripping.

Ensure you can been seen

Make sure that your child has reflective gear on. Some sneakers have this on them. Wearing the glow sticks or bracelets also helps out. And ALWAYS carry a flashlight and have it on!

Use a sturdy container

Avoid using plastic bags. They have a good chance of ripping if they are poked or too heavy. Pillow cases make great sturdy candy holders. Also bring an extra bag for the parent incase the kids container gets too full or heavy for them to carry.

Teach your child basic safety

Most kids will rolls their eyes at you, but there is nothing wrong with saying this to them again. Kids do get distracted with all the fun and frivolity of the holiday. Remind them never to get into the car of a stranger and to look both ways before crossing the street.

Explain the difference between tricks and vandalism

Kids think that it might be funny to throw eggs at people, but there are consequences that can happen. It’s not funny – it’s wrong.

Manners are still important

Reminding your child to say “thank you” after getting a treat from someone is a good idea too. This can easily be forgotten too.

Set a time your child should be home by

Halloween is an early event in most neighborhoods. Most kids are in their own houses by 9pm due to having to go to school the next day or not to disturb people who want to settle down before going to sleep.

Eat a light meal before treading out

Just like going to the grocery store – don’t go out hungry. The kids already want to eat the candy. Don’t give them another excuse on why they should eat it the moment they get it. A light meal will help them when they are out there. Eating heavy and big meals can make the experience less pleasant for everyone.

One parent should stay home while one goes out

This helps to protect the house from being vandalized and someone can be there to hand out candy to the kids who come to the door. If possible, take shifts, so each parent can enjoy time with their kids.

Be prepared for the weather

Make sure that you have jackets if it’s going to be cold or an umbrella if it’s going to rain. Don’t want to be caught out there without this stuff if something happens.

Stay near your child at all time

It’s dark out there at night even with everyone’s porch lights on. Stay close enough to them so you know where they are. Standing by the road as they head up to a porch that’s 50 feet away isn’t a smart thing.

Always check the candy first

The best thing to do it to take the candy home and spread it across a table. It’s much easier to look at the candy in a brightly light room instead of using a flashlight in the dark. Avoid anything that’s homemade or the wrapper is opens. Inspect wrappers for pin holes or for anything unusual. The best candy bars are the ones where the wrapper is air tight and you can feel the air inside.

Music from Outside’s “A Radio Transmission of Unkown Origin” and The New Radio’s “Back to the Basics” both available at Podsafe Audio.

Roadkill art, the Google mystery, Tara unclothed, why Family Guy?, and where in the world is American Samoa?

What’s up with the Mystery Google website? It seems to be hush-hush, but I’m putting my money that Google is planning something for Halloween.  Does anyone remember the Mousetrap boardgame from years ago?  Did anyone ever actually play the game or did they just set it up the trap and watch it do it’s thing?  Was watching FOX’s Animation Domination and they had a new episode of The Simpsons, The Cleveland Show, and American Dad, but a rerun of Family Guy.  What was up with that?  Didn’t make sense to me, considering that Seth MacFarlane has three of the four shows on the air that night.  I think he fell asleep while working on Family Guy.  If you are a Simpson fan you know that Marge Simpson is going to appear in Playboy, but why in the world would anyone want to see Tara Reid naked in there?  If that makes you sick you can go to WebMD’s Sympton Checker website.  This is a great way to make yourself sick and to spend money on drugs that you don’t need.  Gotta love modern technology.  This week was the first time that I heard of the .jobs domain extension.  I don’t know if it’s going to catch on, but not everyone can buy it so I doubt that it will.  Time will tell.  While driving home from work one day saw a dead deer on the side spray painted.  I can’t figure out why they did it, but it was the first time that I saw that.  On the topic of work, there’s a guy I occasionally see that I say “Good Morning” to and he always replied “Hi”.  Little awkward to me, so I try to avoid him now in the hallways.  Another day while leaving work saw SNOW on the cars going the other way.  It didn’t stay on the ground, but it’s the first official snow for us.  Got a quarter this week with American Samoa on the back side of it.  First one of those I’ve seen.  Had to look up a map to find where in the world it’s located.  And finally, what ticked me off this week are the parents that think they’re the coach of a sport.  All they do is distract the kids and confuse them on who’s in charge.  If you want to coach then you should sign up.  And the guy who wears his jersey from the early 90’s – you don’t play there anymore.  Get over it!

Music from Outside’s “A Radio Transmission of Unkown Origin” and The New Radio’s “Back to the Basics” both available at Podsafe Audio.

Down, North, East, North, new Who, new Pooh, new glue and sitting in the big boy chair.

The BBC released the new Doctor Who logo design for the show when it returns in 2010.  The cast of “Seinfeld” returned to “Curb Your Enthusiasm” last week for a 4 story arc.  I was very excited for last week’s episode and can’t wait to watch this weeks.  Nice to have a reunion without actually doing a reunion.  I saw this link last week of a band that did a song using the walkthrough for the original Zork game from the 80’s as the lyrics.  It’s a really catchy tune and still geeky at the same time.  The first authorized sequel to Winnie the Pooh in book form will be out very soon.  I thought that Disney owned the Pooh character.  Obviously, the book isn’t in public domain since this book is authorized.  I made ice cream pie for my son last week and had extra mini M&Ms.  What purpose, besides cooking, do they serve?  I feel like a pig when I eat them.  Also was wondering what percentage of each color was in a bag of M&Ms.  I found this mailing list FAQ online that answered that exact question.  Speaking of my son, when we went to get him a costume last week there were two versions of Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz available.  Why does that not surprise me?  Speaking of my son, he was happy to tell me today that he is big enough to not have to sit in a car seat.  I don’t know what I am going to do with the seat now.  Got an email last week from my cable company trying to convince people to watch commercials so they can get free samples.  I’m not going to change my watching habits, but I’ll try to get the freebies when they come across my screen.  Speaking of products and placement, was watching the classic sci-fi movie “Silent Running” and noticed the product placement in the movie.  It was amazing that the products shown in the movie still use those logos today.  Not bad for a film over 37 years old, and the film holds up really well for it’s age.  When I went to work last week they were pulling down the old wallpaper to put up new stuff.  I couldn’t figure out why.  The old stuff was in great condition.  The only difference is the new stuff is a lighter shade of gray and the small of glue is all over the hallways.  The fire drill we had on Tuesday was a nice distraction.  Was a little cold outside and the alarm was deafening for a good ten minutes, but was nice to get out and talk to people I usually don’t get to chat with at work.  The thing that ticks me off are the drivers on the highways that slow down way too much when they see a cop car on the side of the road.  It’s not like we’re on the Autobahn.  We weren’t going too fast and we slowed down way too much.  Doesn’t help me get to work any sooner by driving that slow.

Music from Outside’s “A Radio Transmission of Unkown Origin” and The New Radio’s “Back to the Basics” both available at Podsafe Audio.

Roman gets arrested, my son loses his first, life via Twitter, Indiana Jones reincarnated? and thank goodness for Jewish Holidays.

The big story to hit last week was the arrest of Roman Polanski in Zurich after 32 years on the run for molestation charges.  I might talk about my son too much, but if I do, let me know.  This last week he lost his first baby tooth and the results weren’t quite what I expected.  Even though it’s 4-weeks away we went out and picked up a Halloween costume so we could beat the rush at the stores.  Here’s another adventure I had with my son at the miniature golf course.  Thank goodness he was too young to understand what I was talking about.  People keep talking about Twitter ever since Oprah joined the bandwagon.  I found this video online of what life would be like if you could only talk in 140 characters or less.  Speaking of videos I had a conversation of the de-evolution of the music video and the Primus video Mr. Krinkle was mentioned.  While on the topic of work, I saw a guy last week using The Club on his car to protect it from being stolen.  I’m wondering what decade we’re living in!  People still use that stuff and think that their car will still be safe?  Last Monday was Yom Kippur and it was a slow day at work.  Amazing how much a Jewish holiday affected our work flow, amongst other things.  Also, you won’t believe what I saw at McDonald’s.  Let’s just say it’s a fashion statement I’ve never seen before!  And lastly, I complain about people who think that their pets are kids!

Music from Outside’s “A Radio Transmission of Unkown Origin” and The New Radio’s “Back to the Basics” both available at Podsafe Audio.

Now, commercials for “zit cream” & cleansers have been on TV since before I could even get pimples, but now the drug companies are trying to encourage teenagers to go and get their medicine to use for this issue.

It’s bad enough that these drug companies have been trying to encourage consumers to go to their doctors and ask for pills to help cure them of medical problems that they might not even have.  That’s wrong in of itself, but now aiming for the teenage market is just disgusting.  This just shows you how greedy these big pharmaceutical companies are that they will do what they can to get anyone to take their pills.  I wish that these “drink the Kool-Aid” commercials would just go away.

One thing that should be done is to have stricter regulations as to what commercials should be allowed on TV.  I have no problem with any commercial that’s on TV to encourage people to purchase a product, but I think that it should be made unlawful for commercials like this to target teenagers.

If the drug company wants to advertise it’s anti-acne medicine on television; that’s fine.  They should just aim it at the twenty-something audience instead.  Put a college age student in the commercial and avoid using the word “acne”.  To me, the word “acne” refers to something a teenager would get.  Maybe changing it up and using “blemishes” or “outbreaks” instead.

The beer companies are allowed to put their commercials on TV but don’t encourage people that are underage to drink.  Why can’t the pharmaceutical companies not be allowed to target their medicine to minors?

That’s just my two cents.