Patrick Widdess is back with an all new line-up.  "Two poets, Tim Clare and John Lyons are guesting with lots of music and poetry as usual," according to the man himself.

Tune in to Headstand Radio tonight from 9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. (BST) in Cambridge on 105 fm or on the Web at http://headstand.209radio.co.uk and enjoy the show!  Of course, if you are not in the UK, you'll need to add or subtract the appropriate number our hours.  Here in Tokyo, it will be on in the wee pre-breakfast hours of Thursday morning, 5:00 to 7:00 a.m.

Tim Clair  http://www.myspace.com/timclarepoet
John Lyons  http://johnlyons.org/
Patrick Widdess  http://www.patrickwiddess.co.uk

Posted by Rob.

p.s.  It took a few hours for the 'live' show to be archived.  If you couldn't find it, it's available as an archived file now.

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Bon jour tout le monde,

This is a work in progress.  I'll be back with more links and stuff (stop me, if you've heard that before).

Here's a link to Japan Pod Show, the podcast I mentioned at the start of this podcast:

http://pokya.jp/japanpodshow/

...and here's the "back side" Kihira and Mieko's i-flyer for Saturday night's event.

http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=viewImage&friendID=1000527774&albumID=895496&imageID=10153732

A tiny elephant stands in your heart working a foot pump... according to Patrick Widdess.

...and here's the haiku I forgot to read at the end of this podcast:


Musical outro by Seaholm.

Image:  SLASH i-Flyer.

Posted by Rob.

Tags:  NFTOS, NetworkedBlogs, Japan Pod Show, Bar Bonobo, Kihira Naoki, Mieko, Jingu 2-Chome, RightMind, Pink Cow, Shibuya, Japan, art show, live music, DJ, event, lounge, Japanese

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YouTube Video: Inexplicable crash in the final stage of the Tour of Turkey. Watch for yourself and decide what Theo Bos* might have been thinking when he took down Daryl Impey.**

Audio Podcast: Rob and Hans catch up on the Spring Classics thus far--Tour of Flanders, Ghent-Wevelgem, Paris-Roubaix, Amstel Gold Race, Fleche Wallonne--as well as some of the smaller stage races--Vuelta a Pais Vasco, Tour of Turkey, Giro di Trentino, etc.

Hans picks Damiano Cunego for Liege with Philippe Gilbert and Roman Kreuziger as a spoilers, and Rob picks Andy Schleck with Cadel Evans as his dark horse.

Finally, a sad farewell to a troubled hero of ours. If you follow the sport, you know that can only mean one cyclist.

Intro music by Eric Seaholm.

*(link to Dutch interview)
**(link to English interview on PezCyclingNews)

Posted by Rob.

P.S.  We called this Liège!  Our 4 picks finished 1st, 4th, 7th and 16th.  Hans' dark horse was quite dark--46th!  (reports/results links VN, CN, Pez)

Tags: NFTOS, cycling, bicycle, racing, velo, cyclisme, radsport, ciclismo, bicicleta, mama chari, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan, Maryland, Rock Racing, Tyler Hamilton, Theo Bos, Tom Boonen, Johan Museeuw, George Hincapie, Heinrich Haussler, Stijn Devolder, Davide Rebellin, Urs Zimmerman, Seur, Marco Giovanetti, CyclingNews, VeloNews, NetworkedBlogs, Liege-Bastogne-Liege, Tour of Gila, Giro d'Italia, Midi Libre

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This week at Soho Gallery in Osaka.  Live music on the 18th.  See Charles' homepage for contact info.

Posted by Rob.

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Here is our Top 20 so far this year. For most of the rest of the past countdowns (some of which are scattered among various podcast categories), please check in the folder labeled "what is NFTOS?"

1. Time to Shine in 2009! with Lizze.

2. Bicicleteiros #48: Tour Down Under preview with Hans.

3. Bicicleteiros #51: Boa Idéia! with Hans.

4. Momiji vs El Gringo: My Ex-Girlfriend Walks In (song).

5. Of Gadgets and Nanpa with Lizzie.

6. Bicicleteiros #49: Virtual Winner! with Hans.

7. Bicicleteiros #51.2: Ouija Board, Ouija Board with Hans.

8. Bicicleteiros #50: #50!

9. Rugby in Japan with Ben.

10. Bicicleteiros #54: Ticket to Ride! with Hans.

11. Catching up with Patrick.

12. Bicicleteiros #53: The Clap! with Hans.

13. Panic Living #65: I'm OFF!

14. Rob Interviews Haqq in Sancha.

15. Bicicleteiros #55: Stayin' Alive!

16. Panic Living #67: Snack Forever!

17. Panic Living #66: No! No! No! No!

18. Tokyo Panic Living #64: ¡Viva la Tertulia!.

19. Noticias desde el otro lado con Andrés.

20. Panic Living #68: Sugi to Sakura (杉と桜).

The podcast track was re-uploaded (something was wrong with the file the first time around) and it was uploaded without intro-outro music because of trouble with my 'GarageBand' editing application.  Sorry!

Photo:  Totally random.

Posted by Rob.

Tags: NFTOS, Top 20, podcast, audio, video, .mp3, .m4a, .m4v

This blog post and podcast have been retro-fitted with a title which won't become clear until the 2nd episode of the same name.

In this one, Brian and Rob talk about life in various countries, life on the road, learning languages and trying different careers.

Anyone out there know how to do split screens like on Bloggingheads.tv?

Photo:  Brian and Rob with a friend on the Beijing subway in 2001.

Posted by Rob.

Tags:  NFTOS, Mexico, Latin America, travel, Europe, Asia, deep South, Midwest, hitchhiking, South America, Spain, France, Austria, German, Spanish, French, cycling, bicycle racing, stick shift, automatic, gearshift, manual, transmission, joder, tio, culture, culture shock, La Tertulia, Skype, wiretap, China, Japan, Korea, World Cup, soccer, journalism, NGO, The Mill, Lincoln, Nebraska, Tennessee, Alabama, York, Maryland, Haiti, teaching, Chinese, Japanese, Italian, Latin, based, romance, language, Tokyo, Sangenjaya, Osaka

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This blog post, titled "Sugi to Sakura" (杉と桜), contains a re-edited .m4a podcast file, featuring intro/outro music by John a.k.a. Momiji!  Please scroll to the bottom of this post and click on it!

The links mentioned in the podcast will be up soon, in the meantime, here are some random links I was going to tell you about, but forgot to check my notes ("...'cos I'm a blond, yeah, yeah, yeah!").

Sangenjaya, the place where I live now, is apparently way less cool than was once perceived, while Jiyugaoka, the place I used to work in, is now number one.  If only I knew then what I know now, I could've basked in the glory of it all!  http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2008/11/21/jiyugaoka-is-tokyos-most-desirable-neighborhood/

"They say lightning never strikes twice."  Wait a minute, who says?!  Statistics show the chances to be quite high actually.  Or at least I seem to remember reading something like that somewhere, but don't quote me on it, just say you think you heard it somewhere too.  That's how urban legends get started...

This guy survived not one, but both atomic apocalypses:  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7963581.stm

I find it peculiar how the mainstream media delight in telling racist joke 'news.'  For starters, it shows they can't possibly be as liberal as some accuse them of being, nor as neutral or objective as they make themselves out to be.  Everyone has snickered at an off-color joke at some point in their life--oh, yes, but you were much less enlightened then than you are now--I understand.

They usually start with the news about the uproar, because they would look stoopid if they were just pointing out a joke they found particularly offensive themselves.  So, first they start by pointing out the uproar, and then by reporting on the forthcoming apology and retraction, if they do indeed come.  Finally, what they never forget to include is the joke itself.  You'll never catch me repeating this genre of joke (unless you have a hidden mic), so you'll just have to follow this BBC link for now:  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7965058.stm

You really disappoint me!

Dave Barry once wrote a silly slapstick piece about uncircumcision for those who have suffered having their manhood pared at some stage in life (usually when still and infant).  Well, good luck with that.  Now there are some who are requesting debaptism who are apparently somewhat serious about it.  Good luck with that too!  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7941817.stm

Having so conveniently just brought up the male member, here's a rooftop with a penis on it.  (Who needs tabloids when there's the BBC?)  http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/newsbeat/newsid_7961000/7961224.stm

Photo:  Totally random.

Posted by Rob.

Tags:  NFTOS, hanami, cherry blossom viewing, Sangenjaya, Tokyo, Japan

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Devolder Doubles at Flanders!  Long time no Frank!  Please standby for our audio podcast and our recap of the 93rd Ronde van Vlaanderen pending expert analysis from Hans who is a busy man these days...

In the meantime, VeloNews has a new live ticker, which has a few new features, but didn't really blow me away.  CyclingNews.com though has a regular podcast now, which is great for catching up on all the action while commuting on the train.  You won't want to miss Episode 4 with a great intro of Jens Voigt getting bent out of shape about how much a second of his time was and/or was not.  Do I sense a hint of revenge here on the part of the CN interviewer?

Pez Cycling News has a monthly gallery called Pelo-Pics, which is filling up quickly with stunning images of Spring Classics and week-long stage races, and finally, you can find various Live TV, audio streaming and live ticker links at Steephill.tv, where they are focusing on Vuelta Ciclista al País Vasco now.

Video:  The finale of the Tour of Flanders on YouTube.

Posted by Rob.

Tags: NFTOS, Hans, Rob, El Gringo, cycling, audio, podcast, blog, bicycle, road race, Europe, Stijn Devolder, Heinrich Haussler, Thor Hushovd, Tom Boonen, Frank Vandenbroucke, velo, ciclisme, bicicleta, ciclismo, radsport, Ronde van Vlaanderen, Tour of Flanders, Belgium, hanami, Yoyogi Park, Tokyo, Japan

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