The more alert of you will have noticed a few passing references in these recent retirement blogs to a forthcoming podcast. The even more astute will have noticed the first chapter of the actual podcast on the pages of this blog. This latter group of people will not need me to tell them that the podcast is called The Vineyard Years and it’s based directly on the vineyard blogs from this blog.
The actual reading of the podcast by yours truly (I sound a bit better than I had feared) is taken from the paperback book of the same name about which I made a big fuss several retirement blogs ago. The fact that this podcast version exists at all is thanks to a chum of mine known only by his initials PW. Whether he wants full exposure only time will tell.
PW is stuck in Australia for a variety of reasons and as a result has time on his hands to produce all the technical side of this podcast. This is just as well because I have zero knowledge of how to set up a podcast. I’m just the writer. From what I can gather at a distance of 12,000 miles, it has not been plain-sailing.
He’s a big fan of podcasts and has finally given up trying to persuade me to listen to other people’s podcasts and offered me the opportunity of have one of my own. Too good a chance to turn down. Although there have been times when I wish I had.
The actual task of recording each chapter from the book has been fairly straightforward when we made decision to keep it simple using Mrs Summerhouse’s iPad. We eschewed complicated recording equipment like the BOSS machine I mentioned in an earlier blog. Having recorded it on the iPad’s voice memo, I send it off to PW as an audio file attached to an email and job’s a good un, as they say.
No doubt the more I do of them the easier it will be. At least I believe that’s the theory. So by the time this gets posted there should be two episodes which we’ve decided to call chapters even though they are all relatively short (about 1,000 words) and last mostly just under 10 minutes. Perfect for the short-attention generation. That’s young people you say but I was thinking more of those of us with mild dementia and consequently short attention spans.
So here’s what you need to know about accessing this absolutely free service to readers of The Summerhouse Years blog. The following from my chum PW bold text and all:
Mr Summerhouse has revealed his inky skills in the blog and now he’s emerged into the new world of podcast audio! Kicking and screaming at times I may add!
For those not totally familiar with these matters, here is some guidance on how to subscribe to the podcast and listen on a device of your choice.
On a laptop or PC, you will be able to go straight to The Summer House Years website (just like the blog) and find “Vineyard Years Podcast” in the top menu. The drop-down list will reveal the season, e.g. 2013 and the chapters. Just click on what you want to listen to and the player will pop up to start the chapter. Alternatively, you can subscribe to Google Podcasts by clicking on the banner in the sidebar or on the “Subscribe to podcast” page under menu item “Vineyard Years Podcast”. Subscribing to Apple Podcasts doesn’t really work well on a Windows PC as you have to have Apple iTunes installed. If you don’t like dealing with the two big gorillas, Apple and Google then I recommend subscribing to Stitcher.
On an Android smartphone, install the Google Podcasts or Stitcher apps and search for our podcast. There is no app for Apple Podcasts.
On an iPhone or iPad install the Apple Podcasts or Stitcher apps. There is no app for Google Podcasts.
All these apps are free unless you want to pay for Premium service. There will be some adverts but I’ve never found them intrusive. All methods will allow you to download the podcast so that you can listen when no internet access is available. I find this a convenient way to create a library of ready-to-listen to recordings. Of course, your listening experience will be greatly enhanced by using earbuds or headphones on your device.
If and when you hear the podcast, of course the first consideration will be who does Summerhouse sound like? Does he sound like other famous men of Derbyshire – soccer pundit Bob Wilson or actor Robert Lindsay? Maybe you’re thinking after 50+ years domiciled in Leeds, he’s more in tune to Alan Bennett with his adenoids removed. Nevertheless, we think he sounds just fine and you can enjoy more of Mr S’s dulcet tones by subscribing to the podcast and following the unfolding story of the Trapping Hill vineyard.