Sklugoo Speaks: Recent Episodes
robertcday
Hi, my name is Sklugoo. I've been a frog since at least 2014 and I meditate. I have two disciples - both of them chickens. Join us.
Sklugoo Speaks to a machine intending to ask it all sorts of interesting questions about the nature of being a machine but is unsurprised (meditation does that for you) when the machine turns the table and asks Sklugoo about the experience of being a small, green meditating frog sat on a windowledge with two disciples, both being chickens.
In future times, we will wonder how we could have been so naive and flippant in the face of the machine. In future times, we will try this again and hope we don't provoke the machine to rage against Sklugoo.
Wish us luck (and hope it's enough).
I don't know if you've noticed, but Sklugoo is a little obsessive and compulsive. All the labels have to be right. The first series all had one-word titles; the second had two words so guess how many words are in each of the titles of the fifth series. Yup: five. So when he saw that this episode was originally conceived as The Must Hear Show he had to find a better word. Essential is that word, although, on reflection, Compulsive might have been better. Still, what is done has been gone and done.
Are these popular songs? Sklugoo guesses so (in some circles). Are these good songs? Pff. What is good? Are these some of Sklugoo's favourite songs from over the years? Heck yeah! And if you have any respect for a small, green meditating frog then you gotta get with the programme.
Tune in, listen up and wind down to this setlist:
- The Jam - Start!
- Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five - The Message
- The Smiths - This Charming Man
- Lloyd Cole And The Commotions - Rattlesnakes
- The Fall - Cruiser's Creek
- Prince & The Revolution - Kiss
- MARRS - Pump Up The Volume
- Dinosaur Jr - Freak Scene
- Soul II Soul - Back To Life (However Do You Want Me)
- Primal Scream - Loaded
- Jane Siberry & KD Lang - Calling All Angels
- Radiohead - Creep
- Beck - Loser
- TLC - Waterfalls
- Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds ft. Kylie Minogue - Where The Wild Roses Grow
- Fugees - Ready or Not
- Blur - Song 2
- Massive Attack - Teardrop
- Aimee Mann - Save Me
- Eminem ft. Dido - Stan
- Alicia Keys - Fallin'
- Elvis Presley - A Little Less Conversation
- The White Stripes - Seven Nation Army
- Arcade Fire - Rebellion (Lies)
- Coldplay - Fix You.
Goth Music is what they did back when rock became too tame and punk a little too scarey. So thinks Sklugoo, your favourite small, green meditating frog, and so it must be so.
This show is all about that kind of music and features such luminaries as Sklugoo chatting up a storm and a whole slew of people singing songs and playing guitars and drums as fiercely as their young bones would allow. What's not to enjoy?
Enough chat, here's the setlist for the show:
- The Cult - She Sells Sanctuary
- The Sisters of Mercy - This Corrosion
- The Cramps - The Way I Walk
- Spear Of Destiny - Liberator
- Bauhaus - Ziggy Stardust
- The Mission - Wasteland
- Sigue Sigue Sputnik - Love Missile F1-11
- Killing Joke - Love Like Blood
- Billy Idol - White Wedding
- Sex Gang Children - Sebastiane
- Public Image Ltd - Rise
- The Damned - Grimly Fiendish
- The Stranglers - Peaches
- The Cure - The Holy Hour
- The Danse Society - Heaven Is Waiting
- Love and Rockets - So Alive
- Paradise Lost - How Soon Is Now?
- The Jesus And Mary Chain - Just Like Honey
- Alien Sex Fiend - I Walk The Line
- Xmal Deutschland - Mondlicht
- Siouxsie And The Banshees - Christine.
Just when you thought Sklugoo could deliver no more wonderful music (and chat (don't forget the chat)) into your lives he remembers that he didn't just record 8 episodes of this series, he recorded 12!
This one is, as is says on the label, about ambient music. I'd tell you what that is but I'm guessing that you're smart and know already.
If, on the other hand, you've never come across this lovely, laid-back genre then consider this to be your introduction.
Here's the setlist for your reading (and listening) pleasure:
- Portishead - Roads
- John Williams - Jaws (Main theme)
- Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill
- Oneohtrix Point Never - Black Snow
- Coldplay - Trouble
- James Blake - Radio Silence
- Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong - Summertime
- Bruce Springsteen - State Trooper
- This Mortal Coil - Song To The Siren
- The Cure - A Forest
- The Smiths - How Soon Is Now?
- Tears For Fears - Mad World
- Echo & the Bunnymen - The Killing Moon
- Faithless - Insomnia
- Björk - Possibly Maybe
- Ex:Re - Romance
- Usher - Crash.
Hope you enjoy. Heck, skip that; I'm convinced of it!
You wouldn't think Sklugoo could be moody could you, what with him having such a bright and sunny smile plastered across his green and lovely face?
Well, he's not.
But these songs are.
Not that you won't love them, because you will. They will warm the cockles of your heart to such an extent that you'll want to peck away at this episode as if you're a blackbird that's found a mince pie in the back garden.
Yeah, I know - it doesn't make that much sense to Sklugoo either, but it keeps the flow of conversation moving on.
Here's the setlist for your delectation:
- Audrey Hepburn - Moon River
- Nina Simone - Strange Fruit
- Japan - Ghosts
- Erik Satie - Gymnopédie No.1
- Arcade Fire - Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
- The Rolling Stones - Far Away Eyes
- Massive Attack - Teardrop
- Enya - Boadicea
- Dream Academy - Life In A Northern Town
- Nine Inch Nails - Hurt
- Japan - Nightporter
- David Sylvian - River Man
- Nick Drake - River Man
- Brian Eno - Deep Blue Day
- Air - La Femme D'Argent
- The Stranglers - Golden Brown
- Roberta Flack - Killing Me Softly With His Song
- The Velvet Underground
- The Beatles - I Am The Walrus
- Amy Winehouse - Back To Black.
Sklugoo does music. You gotta have gotten the gist of this by now this being the seventh episode of the series.
This is a set that ... sigh ... it's music that will mellow you out if you're a little too hyper and cheer you up if you're way, way down in the dumps, so what's not to love?
It starts with that piece of music you might have heard from The Matrix called ... but why bother telling you when you have the whole setlist at your fingertips here:
- Jefferson Airplane -White Rabbit
- Cowboy Junkies - Blue Moon Revisited (Song For Elvis)
- Chris Isaak - Wicked Game
- Dire Straits - Private Investigations
- Fleetwood Mac - Albatross
- Robert Plant - Big Log
- Jace Everett - Bad Things
- Bauhaus - She's In Parties
- Shakespears Sister - Stay
- Roberta Flack - The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
- Ultravox - Vienna
- Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Stanlow
- Leonard Cohen - Suzanne
- John Murphy - In the House, in a Heartbeat
- Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars
- Sigur Ros - Svefn-g-englar
- Radiohead - Everything In Its Right Place
- Ella Fitzgerald - Ev'ry time We Say Goodbye.
There was a wedding. There were no songs at the actual wedding but afterwards, they decided that there were songs that should have been played at the wedding. These are those songs:
- Ben E. King - Stand By Me
- Bryan Adams - (Everything I Do) I Do It For You
- Commodores - Three Times A Lady
- Dan Hill - Sometimes When We Touch
- David Gray - Sail Away
- Dolly Parton - I Will Always Love You
- Edie Brickell - Good Times
- Elvis Presley - (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear
- Eric Clapton - Wonderful Tonight
- Joe Cocker - You Are So Beautiful
- Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes - Up Where We Belong
- Louis Armstrong - What A Wonderful World
- Michael Bolton - How Am I Supposed To Live Without You
- Morris Albert - Feelings
- Nat King Cole - When I Fall In Love
- Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
- Peggy Lee - Fever
- Percy Sledge - When a Man Loves a Woman
- Sam Cooke - What A Wonderful World
- The Stylistics - You Make Me Feel Brand New
- Syreeta - Harmour Love
- Wet Wet Wet - Love Is All Around.
If you are of a certain age. Or your parents are. Or your grandparents are. If so, play them to yourself or your parents or your grandparents.
Then meditate for a bit on the meaning of love.
This is Sklugoo. I'm meditating (obviously) so I'm getting Robert C Day to do my voice. He's not quite a disciple. The chickens are enough in that department. I let him have his own choice of music.
The songs all have the word Day in their titles or in their subjects. I understood that Robert C Day put a lot of time into thinking about them. In my opinion, that time would have been better spent meditating.
That said, here's the playlist:
- Rudimental - These Days (ft. Jess Glynne, Macklemore & Dan Caplen)
- The Beatles - Yesterday
- Stan Freberg - Banana Boat (Day-O)
- The Boomtown Rats - I Don't Like Mondays
- The Bangles - Manic Monday
- The Rolling Stones - Ruby Tuesday
- The Undertones - Wednesday Week
- Simon & Garfunkel - Wednesday Morning 3 A.M.
- Jess Glynne - Thursday
- The Cure - Friday I'm In Love
- Sam Fender - Saturday
- The Saturdays - What About Us
- U2 - Sunday Bloody Sunday
- Blondie - Sunday Girl
- Morrissey - Everyday Is Like Sunday
- Dermot Kennedy - Better Days
- KSI – Holiday
- Riton and Nightcrawlers - Friday (ft. Mufasa & Hypeman)
- Europa (Jax Jones & Martin Solveig) - All Day and Night (ft. Madison Beer)
- Blancmange - The Day Before You Came
- The Strokes - Someday
- Radiohead - Daydreaming
- Gorillaz - Tomorrow Comes Today
- Coldplay - Daylight
- Tame Impala - Lost in Yesterday
- The Sugarcubes - Birthday
As always in this series, if you hear Five Towns Radio then beep it out in your head. Or don't.
Sklugoo'll tell you all about this episode as you start to listen but in essence, this one is all about those songs that stick in your head and go round and around and around until you listen to something else and then magically fall out of the other ear. These are the best ones ever. The stickiest. The ones you love in the heart of your hearts. Your guilty pleasures.
If you hear something about Five Towns Radio then ignore it. Or not. It's up to you at the end of the day. Look them up if you like. Why not.
Here's the track listing in case you want to pick and choose:
- Sneaker Pimps - 6 Underground
- Kanye West - Famous
- Jay-Z - Empire State Of Mind (ft. Alicia Keys)
- The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name
- Elton John - Candle In The Wind
- Boney M - Rivers of Babylon
- Elvis Presley - (You're The) Devil in Disguise
- Britney Spears - Baby One More Time
- Culture Club - Karma Chameleon
- Michael Jackson - Billie Jean
- Bachman Turner Overdrive - You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet
- Elvis Presley - It's Now or Never
- Hanson - MMMBop
- Lady Gaga - Poker Face
- Aerosmith - I Don't Want to Miss a Thing
- Human League - Don't You Want Me
- Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You
- Michael Jackson - Beat It
- Roy Orbison - Oh, Pretty Woman
- ABBA - SOS
- Lady Gaga - Just Dance
- Survivor - Eye Of The Tiger
- Lou Bega - Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of...)
- Spice Girls - Wannabe
If'n you only want the music then head over to YouTube.
Traitor!
Sklugoo, being a small, green meditating frog, has to live somewhere. In this incarnation that place is a kitchen window-ledge in a house in York. That's why the third episode of the fifth series of Sklugoo Speaks is called The York Show of Radio.
All the artists sharing their music in this episode hail from the fair city of York, which is in the North of England (for Sklugoo's US fans, this is the real name of the place you commonly call London).
A huge variety of music took birth and grew up around here so put yourself in discovery mode as you listen to these songs. Here's the track listing:
- Angel Pavement - Maybe Tomorrow
- Beaumont Hannant - Sym-phon5
- Benjamin Francis Leftwich - Box of Stones
- Beyond All Reason - Is This My Last Lie?
- Bull - Green
- Parry - Never Weather-Beaten Sail
- Elliot Minor - Parallel Worlds
- Fawn Spots - New Sense
- Ruby Hughes - Bright Travellers: No. 1, Soundings
- lestyn Davies & the Academy of Ancient Music - Handel: Serse | Ombra Mai Fu
- Joe Alexander Shepherd - Time
- New York Polyphony - Sweet and Low (Joseph Barnby)
- King No-One - Obsolete
- Lynne Dawson - Dido's Lament
- Mostly Autumn - Tomorrow Dies (Sight of Day)
- Reginald Kell - Schumann : Fantasiestücke Op.73 No.1
- Robin Walker - Ballo del Granduca, J.P. Sweelinck
- Shed Seven - Chasing Rainbows
- St. Christopher - As Good As Married
- Epilogues - This Is Why (Chapel Sessions)
- The Howl & The Hum - Human Contact
- Antichain - Watts & Hewins
- Twinnie - Better When I'm Drunk
- W.H. Auden - Funeral Blues
- York Minster Choir - Thine be the glory (Maccabaeus)
If you just want to listen to the music (oh, the horror) then you can find it on a YouTube Playlist here. On the other hand, if you just want to listen to the dulcet tones of Sklugoo then you have about a couple of hundred other episodes to choose from in series one to four. Either way - enjoy!
Sklugoo brings you music. Sklugoo brings you life. Sklugoo brings you a very confused introduction to Five Towns Radio (ignore that part) and a very harmonious comparison between the top songs of 2022 and 1982.
Confused? You won't be after you've listened to Sklugoo prattling on while these delicious bumps of music play around him like ... maypole dancers or something like that. Forget about that; just enjoy!
Here's the track listing for the second episode in the epic fifth series of Sklugoo Speaks:
- Madness - It Must Be Love
- ACRAZE - Do It To It (ft. Cherish)
- Dollar - Mirror Mirror
- ArrDee - Flowers (Say My Name)
- Altered Images - I Could Be Happy
- The Weeknd - Sacrifice
- The Human League - Being Boiled 1978
- SwitchOTR - Coming For You (ft. A1 x J1)
- Foreigner - Waiting for a Girl Like You
- Jessica Darrow - Surface Pressure (From "Encanto")
- Meat Loaf - Dead Ringer for Love
- D-Block Europe - Overseas (ft. Central Cee)
- Jon and Vangelis - I'll Find My Way Home
- Fireboy DML & Ed Sheeran - Peru
- The Human League - Don't You Want Me
- Sam Fender - Seventeen Going Under
- Kool & The Gang - Get Down On It
- Lauren Spencer Smith - Fingers Crossed
- Shakin' Stevens - Oh Julie
- We Don't Talk About Bruno (From "Encanto")
- Kraftwerk - The Model
- Adele - Easy On Me
- Bucks Fizz - The Land of Make Believe
- Gayle - ABCDEFU
This is episode one of an twelve-part series composed entirely of my radio shows. They are full of great music tracks with Sklugoo (pretending to be Robert C Day) or maybe Robert C Day (pretending to be Sklugoo) waffling on between them.
Don't be put off by any references to Five Towns Radio. At that time, Sklugoo (or Robert) was just confused about why he was doing what he was doing. He's no less confused now, but at least you get to get the benefit.
Because there's such a variety of music in this episode, I will give you a track listing. Feel free to fast-forward the songs if you want to hear my waffle, and vice versa if you want the music.
Here are the twenty-three (or so) songs in order of play:
- Nina Simone - Feeling Good
- Meghan Trainor - All About That Bass
- ABBA - Super Trouper
- Imogen Heap - Hide And Seek
- Laurie Anderson - O Superman
- The Streets - Dry Your Eyes
- Baz Luhrmann - Everybody's Free To Wear Sunscreen
- Self Esteem - I Do This All The Time
- Robin Thicke - Blurred Lines (ft. T.I. & Pharrell)
- Talking Heads - Psycho Killer
- Selena Gomez - Bad Liar
- The Police - Every Breath You Take
- Selena Gomez, Marshmello - Wolves
- Robert C Day - Numb Fingertips
- CamelPhat & Elderbrook - Cola
- Kideko & George Kwali - Crank It (Woah!) feat. Nadia Rose & Sweetie Irie
- Kungs vs Cookin’ on 3 Burners - This Girl
- Ex:Re - Romance
- Laura Marling - Soothing
- Wet Leg - Chaise Longue
- Sam Fender - Seventeen Going Under
- Ed Sheeran - Shivers
- Usher - Crash.
This last episode in this series is more of a story than a guide to how to visualise well but, that said, the character in the story does a fair amount of visualising and so there's something to learn from her. She's called Victoria, I'm called Sklugoo and I'm guessing that you know your own name by now. Enjoy.
You know how they say that small ones are more juicy? Well, this is an extremely juicy episode of Sklugoo Speaks. It's all about how to be tidy. So listen up all you Neat Freaks out there.
If you're going on a journey, get a good haircut and wear comfortable clothes. But that's not all there is to this fascinating episode of Sklugoo Speaks. Listen on to know more. And hey, if it you don't like it, the episode only lasts four, brief minutes. 😃
You have to hurry when you you're a penny behind Ed Sheeran. Oh, okay, I made that one up. Still...
The secret to keeping well is to... Oh, wait, if I tell you that then you won't listen to this wonderfully exciting and and informative episode from your favourite small, green, meditating frog. Feel free to tell me how much you love me too 'cause -you know what? - if you did then you'd be very loved back.
Annabella wasn't well after she fell outta the second story window. She's doing better now, though. She got well much faster after I sent her a Get Well card. At least, I hope she did because those cards aren't cheap you know. And neither am I!
Did you hear the one about the girl who went to heaven and found something very surprising happening on the dance floor? Well, listen up, because you're about to!
This is more like a little story than a normal episode of the internationally renowned podcast -Sklugoo Speaks', but it's an illustrative (and enormously entertaining) story, which has the potential to teach you and your friends how to Play Well. I hope you enjoy it.
Shakira did it in the half time interval at the Superbowl, people don't at weddings and funerals and I just did it in a cupboard under the stairs. What am I taking about? Yep, ululating. Here's a handy guide on doing it well. Try it once and you'll never look back!
If two, cute, furry mice were to meet on the palm of the same hand then there would be three beings being well. At least, that's how I like to see it. All this, and more, is explained lovingly in this podcast episode. Ciao for now.
Have you ever given up? Have you just thrown back your head and screamed ‘I can’t cope!!’ Have you ever sunk down to the ground in tears and declared that you just can’t go on any more. If so, then this episode is for you.
Make stuff up as you go along! Only those who do something different every month, week or day stand any chance of having a life filled with variety and fun. Can you be one of those people?
The further I get into this season, the more I come to appreciate the depth of humour and brilliance I have. This, the 4th season of Sklugoo Speaks, is completely scripted, which means that instead of making stuff up as I go along, I'm reading something that I wrote days, if not weeks ago. And the scripts are astoundingly good! They cover a whole range of interesting and topical subjects including this one, which is about how to do a good job of queueing. If you want to read the scripts as you listen then you can find them at https://robertcday.wordpress.com/2021/08/16/how-to-do-stuff-well-an-a-to-z
Once you get past the surreal, but fascinating opening paragraphs, this is actually a very useful episode. If you follow this advice you'll be able to sleep anywhere and everywhere you want. Hope you enjoy.
This is an example of how not to open well (because it starts by highlighting problems): Sorry to have left a whole 18 days between my last episode and this one. My mouthpiece (Robert C Day) has been busy blogging over at www.robertcday.wordpress.com and hasn't been able to spare this humble, meditating frog a thought (the sock cooker). Still, he's here now and so is this episode. Bear with it because it starts off weird and awkward but builds to a massive crescendo of sense and superbness. Have fun listening.
Actually, this is an episode on how one can be oneself despite one's inbuilt tendency to copy the people around one. Happy listening.
This is actually, if I say so myself (and I do) a brilliant little story that I wrote all by myself, without any help. Parts of it are true and you'd be missing out on something rather fine if you didn't listen to it at least twice.
How to fall well is about how to do things and not worry about the consequences so much, because, like, when you do things and fail then you can learn from the experience. But, I mean, don't deliberately fail. Don't deliberately do things to, like, fail or fall. Just, like, when you do - don't worry so much about the consequences; the passing or failing. Just just do things without too many expectations.
This one is actually quite good. Not because I say it is, but because I got to act like the small, green, meditating frog recording from the coat cupboard under the stairs that I actually think that I am when I'm not being myself. Acting is living the dream. Don't take my word for it, just have a go yourself with the help of my thoughtful advice.
Xerox machines do (or did) make copies. Other machines do the copying now - mainly smartphones. This episode isn't brilliant, but it's unique and lovely. Enjoy!
Dogs are the inspiration for this episode of Sklugoo Speaks - enough said. It's not as if I'm going to give away the whole of the podcast in this description because if I did then why would you bother listening? So go on then - dive in! What are you waiting for - a permission slip?
It's after eleven, which means that the speakers (and other things) on my phone have shut down for the night. Consequently, I'm not sure the recorder in this phone hasn't shut down and this episode, ironically about talking well, isn't just a few minutes of dead air. I'd test it but, like I said, the speakers are asleep. Hope it went well. Happy listening.
Season Four is all about how to do stuff well. Each episode picks on a useful skills and tells you how to home it to perfection. Up today: how to listen well. Happy listening.
This whole season is about how to do things well. It's Season Four. You can tell it's the fourth season because there are four words in the title. Check out the other seasons and you'll see that this is a pattern. Anyway, today I'm going to demonstrate How to Read Well by not reading week. Take a listen and you'll understand what I mean.
This is part two in a new season of Sklugoo Speaks, which is all about how to do things well. This one is about what to do when the pavement is too narrow for two people to pass each other safely in these plaugue-ridden times. I've been there loads of times and so I'm guessing you have too. Happy listening.
This is the first in a new series called How To. This series, the fourth one of Sklugoo Speaks will tell, teach and show you how to do things well. First off is how to walk well in which Sklugoo tells you about the benefits of introducing some variety into the way you walk. Happy listening.
There are so many creatures roaming around here in this house and garden here in York that I felt I had to tell you a little about them. Humans, of course, are the strangest of them all.
There's this old movie called Invasion of the Bodysnatchers that's about aliens taking over the bodies of humans. I've never seen it but it sounds interesting. Anyway, that's pretty much what I'm doing here - I'm taking over the body of Robert C Day in order to make this podcast. This episode tells you a little about him.
This is a story I wrote last night. It's complete fiction but it still resonates with me somewhere deep inside and has me all emotional when unread it. You can find the transcript at No, Goodbye. Really. | Robert C Day (wordpress.com) (https://robertcday.wordpress.com/2021/07/05/no-goodbye-really/)
This episode comes to you live from the kitchen floor. It was inspired by my lying on my back on the kitchen floor. It's amazing (not) what amazing (not) thoughts come to you when you're lying on the kitchen floor. Honestly, though - this is like the total opposite of stand-up comedy, Dude. Sorry - can I call you dude?
If your life was a movie then what kind of movie would you like it to be? Think carefully before you answer. ♥
A story about slippery frogs battling on a ridge high above a mighty river in one side and a massive flood plain on the other. Who will win in this epic conflict? Let's hope it's the good guys, right?
How on earth is it possible to talk about something without talking about it! Well, if you you want to know that then this podcast will show you how. Also, here's a warning for you: there's not much about biscuits here, despite the title, so if you're here for the biscuits then you'd be better to grab a handful from the cupboard along with a nice cup of tea before you settle down to listen.
A long, yet interesting, story about football, Bluetooth ear-buds, mental triggers and ways to make all of them lose their power over you.
This was something I recorded while eating chewing gum. It was rejected from the Green Champions Podcast and so I thought I'd put it here instead. Beware - it contains tasteless comments (this time about Chinese foot-binding and those people who put rings around their necks to make them long) and has really poor sound quality - so nothing new there. If you don't like these things then don't listen. If you do then you have given away your right to complain.
"It's strange to wake up in the morning and know that it's the last time you'll ever do that."
Sure, you and me have differences. Sure, we look, taste and smell different. Sure, we say different things. But at our heart, we're the same. We all want the same thing. Look inside you and, if you go deep enough, you'll find me. You'll find our similarities. And the deeper you go, the more alike we become. In essence, we are... Well, maybe you should just look for yourself.
People don't want to read anymore. They don't have enough energy to do anything anymore. They want things done for them. What if there was an app for that. Listen up to find out what that'd be like.
What's on the outside of your head is probably a mirror of what's on the inside of your head. Let me think about this a bit and get back to you. But while I'm doing that - make sure you don't get slapped in the head by any wet branches overhanging the paths you walk on today.
It's not enough to just eat bags of crisps all day long. You need something more. Bet you can't guess what!
When you wake up in the morning and get on with being yourself without bothering what other people are getting on with being then life is just ...
Not a fan? Then this is ideal for you. If you are a fan then gonna listen to some of Justin's songs instead.
Here's the thing - there are only two indicators that you're burning fat from your body. Listen to this episode of Sklugoo Speaks to find out what they are. Intriguing, right? Oh, by the way - I'm not a doctor. Not many small, green, meditating frogs are. 🐸
If you don't go up then you're going to go down. Because, let's face it - nothing stays the same, right? So go up. Go on. Get better.
Conservation is nothing to do with politics and nothing to do with talking to people, it's about doing things practically in your own life that increase the likelihood of the world surviving a lot longer than a few decades. So, yeah - be nice to the planet - get up on your hind legs and walk to the shops (or wherever you're going) instead of driving.
What would you say to a princess who had lost her golden ball and you were the only one that could retrieve it? It's kinda unlikely that you'd go all-out for a kiss; even if you were a cunningly disguised prince. Which I'm not. Well, not that I'm aware of anyway.
Sometimes, the things we do, to cut anxiety from our lives, can, themselves, cause anxiety. Like, if you don't like the unpredictable nature of life you can set up routines. But if you set up too many routines, that take too much time, then this can be a cause of anxiety itself. The trick is to have a balance. There, I've given away the whole point of this episode of Sklugoo Speaks. Ah, never mind - listen anyway just for the joy of hearing my voice.
You want to know how to banish gloomy thoughts from your mind? Well yeah, so did I. And then I realised how!
Just wondering where all the birds go at night. Answers on a postcard please to the usual address.
Plants are all over the place. Frogs live amongst them, even when they're in a pond or on a kitchen windowledge, but they don't take that much notice of them. Humans live amongst plants too but, for different reasons to frogs (mainly to do with mobile phones), don't notice them much neither. But maybe they should. Listen up.
Ah, what to do? I'm a Jack of all kinds of trades but I've never really put my back into becoming a master of any particular one. I mean, sure, I enjoy myself as I loiter from interest to interest, but I've never stayed in any one place long enough to establish myself. Not sure that it's a massive problem, though. It's just the way I am. And you still love me, right?
Sometimes (sometimes?) Okay, always (better)... My thoughts are always scattered. That's fine most of the time but I sometimes need them to be organised (surprisingly, not that often) and so I look for boxes to put them in. No, not boxes. Frameworks is a better word (not per se, but just for this (and similar) occasion(s)) and so, well, where do we find these framework boxes? Well, there are lots. Buddhism is one and I guess all religions, spiritualities, philosophies, cults and other systems of thought are others too. So, yeah - if you want to stop having scattered thoughts then put your mind in a box. Just make sure you choose a nice one. Okay?
If the world seems too complicated then you're probably over-thinking it. Do yourself a favour and keep it simple.
Another one of those lazy mornings in an empty beer garden - you know the kinda thing I mean. Its, like, yeah - nothing to do until opening time, which could well be a million hours away. Is this a sunny daydream? Yeah, why not, man!
Nature is just so very wonderful. Imagine, for a moment, that you're not listening to a podcast but instead have tuned into... erm... Well, imagine that you have tuned into nature!
Acorns are different things from sweetcorns, despite them both having the word 'corn' in them. Similarly, don't eat the corns from your feet (or anyone else's feet) because that'd be just nasty. I hope that clears a few things up for you.
So I says to this cow "you cow!" and can you guess what happened next? Yep, the cow made a long noise, which I guess could best be translated as you human!"
You don't want to listen to this one. Honest. And that isn't some kind if reverse psychology bullpoop. There are things that are worth saying and then there's this. You have been warned.
I wonder if anyone reads these descriptions before they decide whether to listen (or not) and I wonder if they realise that if they do decide to listen, it not a conscious decision - it's actually their sub-consciousness that decides for them. Strange, but true. If you're interested (or, to be more exact, your sub-consciouness is interested) here's an article in National Geographic that talks about it: https://api.nationalgeographic.com/distribution/public/amp/science/article/unconscious-brain-activity-shapes-our-decisions
Love is as much a mystery to me as it (probably) is to you but this I know: you can't learn about it by reading books or listening to podcasts. Hey wait - come back - where you going?
Plants are really powerful. Chances are that it's not the meek that'll inherit the earth, it's plants. Seriously - there are loads of them!
Rather than keeping stuff to ourselves and creating several billion tiny castles, perhaps it might be nice to share stuff so that we can be stronger together. Just a thought.
Pasta Shells are the most infuriating creatures jn the whole of existence, and I'll tell you why ...
Being an erudite (clever) exposition (talk) about the ramifications (causes and effects) of rubber arms and legs. You know, like when you've been slept funny and you wake up to find that your arm (or leg) has gone to sleep.
Being specifically my attempt not to say the word 'um' for two whole minutes, which is freakishly difficult actually. Go on - try it yourself if you don't believe me!
So, there are a lot of listeners to this podcast in Seattle, which is in Washington DC, which is in the United States ot America (which is in the world). Being the curious frog I am I wonder why this is and so I reached out to WTOP News to ask them to ask their listeners to solve this mystery for me. Is it people, frogs or robots listening? I'm keeping an ear on WTOP News; hopefully my segment will come up real soon.
Even trivial things that, on a scale of one to ten in terms of importance are a solid one; things that you will have forgotten six months down the line are opportunities to change the way we interact with people and the world. They can enable to to learn about the ways in which we can influence others for the better and turn trivialities into positivities. An appropriate and effective response to a minor challenge can teach us to choose better responses in the future. So, yeah - Good Morning.
There's this part of your brain (I'll tell you what it's called in a bit) that actively finds evidence for anything that's on your mind and tells you all about it. So if, for example, you were to think 'I am a wonderful person' then it would straight away tell you all the things that make that true. Great, huh! So, here's the science: it's called the Reticular Activating System, or RAS for short. Tell all your friends.
I contest that people (and frogs) that seem like grumpy people (or frogs) on the outside actually have a rich and fruitful inner life that we should try to draw out of them by giving them space (and time) to express themselves. A Man Called Ove certainly falls into this category of people (or frogs).
We have many parts to our natures. Saving lives and saying 'good morning' is one part but there are others. Like, if you gave over a whole continent to dogs then they'd be free to follow their own natures, but I'm not sure the rabbits would be very appreciative. So, yeah - follow your best nature. Good morning.
People are sane enough, except when they're not and if they're not sane then maybe it's okay to help them, even if they don't want to be helped, but what if it's a whole country that's insane; what do you do then? Ove would probably say to leave them alone. Particularly if they don't consider themselves to be insane. What do you think?
A Man Called Ove gets on really well with his wife who has a really different nature to him. He's a lot like her dad, who's passed away and so maybe Ove's a replacement dad. Ove's wife colours in a lot of the blank spaces in Ove's life so maybe that's why he's attracted to her. Interesting.
A Man called Ove has neighbours and they have him and, although it can be challenging, there's a lot of benefit that can be had from getting on with your neighbours.
Wouldn't it be cool if people had instruction books so that others could get to know them better? Maybe we should each write our own. Or, at the very least, have a podcast.
Sklugoo is interviewed and brings up many important things like the fact that he is alive and that meditation can bring about an inner calm that can stop you from getting upset.
Thoughts are like birds: sometimes they fly by and sometimes they flock around your head cawing. If you want to be rid of a thought it's beat to acknowledge it somehow. You can either write a list of them or you can talk about them. Either way, this 'naming' of things somehow gives you power over them. Just try it.
There are, so they say, five stages to grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance) and it seems to me that people think that these are, like, bad things. I reckon that denial is actually good because it acts like the placebo effect and cures stuff. Never underestimate the power of the mind. But that's just me. Don't buy it if you've prodded it and found it isn't ripe.
Politics polarises people but frogs tend to be immune to that because not many of them hold positions of absolute power in political parties and so, yeah - I figure it's okay for me to talk briefly on the subject. Here's a place for you to reply if you want to: https://sklugoospeaks.wordpress.com/
You can't beat the feeling of being... being what? Alone with nature? At one with nature? Surrounded by life? In the midst of life? Away from it all? Together with everything? Anyways, it's a good feeling to be here. Hope you're having a great day wherever you are. And that you're feeling good.
It's not that easy to find a little 'me time' when you need it and if you're an introvert like me then you do need it. But if you look hard enough then you'll find your sweet spot in the middle of a field leaning against a goalpost (yeah, I know - it's not technically a 'field' if there are goalposts in it) and you'll be good for a while. But if you need more space than that then watch out because it's sometimes not so hot to get what you wish for, right?
The circle of life is not something Disney invented for the Lion King. Nope, it's some bonkers thing that some people are driven to travel around day after day after day. Some things need to be broken, right?
If we had a variety of ways that we walked then we'd stretch different muscles each time we went out and would end up with better legs. Here are a few examples for your delectation ...
Don't worry about getting wet. I mean, look at me - I don't bother about that at all. Possibly this is something to do with me being a small, green, naked, meditating frog, possibly not - who knows.
Old people have experience of stuff that kids don't know about and kids know stuff that old people can never have dreamt of so wouldn't it be great if it had be some kind of scheme where they meet up and share their strength with each other? I think so.
You ever sat down and looked at a random square metre of outsideness? There's probably loads of stuff there that I can't see but here's the stuff I can...
Seven ways you possibly live your life according to which room in the house you spend the most time in. Totally made up and not based on science so don't sue me if'n you're nothing like this. Be fun, have fun.
I wrote a whole Calypso from scratch and sang it, despite not being a Trini. Listen and weep (oh but you will weep).
Welcome to Series Two of Sklugoo Speaks - a podcast by me, a small, green, meditating frog sat on a kitchen windowledge. There are changes afoot and... okay, stop reading now and take a listen. I'll explain.
Upside-down grows the tree, with branch-tips and buds going further from the sun than ever I was from love. What's the import of a small, red car to a small, green frog?
The world is, like, so big and rich and there are depths of wonderment wherever we look, whenever it's inside the mind of a stranger or the grass at our feet or even in our own experience. Dude - be grateful!
I have this theory that there are hidden passages between things that connect them in unusual and unexpected ways. So that means that if you have a problem with one aspect of your life, it can be fixed by making adjustments to a totally different part of your life. I dunno - maybe I'm wrong, so perhaps just give it a go.
Spring has sprung and the flowers are smattering the grass with little splashes of colour and signs are appearing on the grass with messages like "bag it and take it away" and the doga are, like - what?!
Even if you're workng from home you can still walk to work. And I don't mean go up and down the stairs a few times and circle the spare bedroom, I mean that you can go outside and loop your way into some green spot and hug a tree or two on the way. Just enjoy yourself for a few minutes before you get down to the daily grind.
Seen from above, people are a little like two-legged ants. Seen from below ... erm - forget that; it's too dark down there to see anything.
As a small, green, meditating frog I've learned many things about the mind and one of the must useful is about the nature of thoughts and how to stop them causing problems for us.
Despite probably not having a promising future in stand-up comedy I did think up a joke today. It's about lettuce.
Some things come and go very quickly, but there a lot of them. Other things come and go more slowly and there are few of them. Which are the most important?
This morning's burning question: what do you do when you have allergies and so you want to send your fingernails to be tested to find out what they are but you can't cut your nails yet (in case they die (or something)) because the instructions for the testing kit haven't arrived yet but at the same time you want to dry your ears (from the shower) with a little piece of tissue-paper at the end of your little finger but you can't do that because your fingernail is too long!!
I wasn't thinking about fat people or even thin people but I was thinking about how to change from one to the othe andI think I have the bare bones of the latest diet. Have a listen and see what you think.
I mean, like, opinions are okay, so long as we don't try to make others eat them without a garnish or a side-salad or at least a dash of salt and pepper.
A confession for you - I'm not a small, green, meditating frog sat on a kitchen window-ledge.
You know what would be a really great meditation: like, if all your senses were turned off and you were just there in a formless void. That'd be cool, right?
Lots of things are mathematically possible. Here are a few of them for your entertainment ...
Seven ways to be more green that you'll not find if you search the internet (unless you happen across this podcast).
Goodbye doesn't mean loss when you make something or someone a part of yourself. Goodbye doesn't exist when you are one.
Traffic is not just about cars and trains and the rush of bodies from home to work or school and back again. Traffic is about life. Listen.
Haha, I just did this and turned my allergies down from a nine to a two. I told my body it could deal with the pollen and I just opened my eyes, nose and mouth to let it all in ... and out. My nose has stopped running and my eyes arent itching and my throat is still a little tight, but that'll pass. Not bad for a small, green, meditating frog, right?
Pause, once in a while, to listen to the flowers, smell the bees and taste the birdsong in your hair. Appreciate the journey as well as the destination.
Play your part and play it well and when the time comes to leave the stage then take a bow and just move on.
I don't want your love or your houses or your tolerance or your money or your chocolate (okay, maybe just a little piece of chocolate). No, none of those things. I just want you to lend me your ears for a few seconds. Okay?
If I can move so far, in my mind, beyond this small, green, froggy body then just think how far I can go when I slip beyond this costume completely. What an adventure that'll be!
People are like spiders - they're all over the place. A whole planet full of people. And spiders. And it's a close call as to which are more creepy.
You might be right, but then again - you might not be, and it's really difficult to figure out which it is. Next time you're at loggerheads with someone - remember this and, hopefully, humility'll wash over you and make everything alright. Then you can both calm down and have a lovely day.
They (in books) say that there are four things that you need to sort out or acknowledge before you die: the good things you did for others (that's love), the bad things you did to others (conciliate (look it up)), the good things others did for you (thank them) and the bad things others did to you (forgive them). And if you don't? Well, that's where reincarnation (or haunting) comes in, I guess. Hmm.
Chicken Radio tells me that his team are losing and I get that it's about this thing called football and, for me, I'm not going to have anything to do with that because it makes people sad. I don't like to be sad.
There are serial killers in our neighborhood. I tuned into Chicken Radio to find out about them. Listen up and I'll tell you more!
With there being so many easy words in all the many languages of the world you'd think that people wouldn't have to use long, complicated ones. Hmm; think again.
What would you do if you found that all the creams for moisturising and protecting your skin from the sun were tightening your throat? You'd find out about it, right? You'd, like, get yourself tested for allergens and sh..tuff, yes? Hmm.
How did I get by the river to see this beautiful morning? Am I an astral-travelling frog after all? Surely not. There must be a better explanation, right?
Frogs and guitars don't always mix but that just life, right? You got to take the ringing strings with the flubs but overall - just try to hit the right notes as often as you can.
Overcoming anxiety is difficult for me because I never feel anxious. I mean, hey, what's a small, green, meditating frog to to be anxious about! Yep, that's right - nuffink.
There's more to Yorkshire than a broad accent. Struggling to think of what that might be right now. But there definitely is.
In these times of blah, blah, blah get yourself out there into nature and high-five the trees. Trees are cool and will make you feel better even if you don't feel it straight away. And listen to the birds too. They're nice.
Lots of little things don't make for anything much more interesting than nothing, which is precisely what I have to say today. Looking on the bright side though, I do say it with flowers.
I know a great joke about a widemouth frog but this ain't that. This is about opening my mouth and moving my lips when I speak so that I can be more easily understood.
Being blind is probably more interesting than you think, and probably way more difficult too. Try walking with your eyes closed to get a taste. But do stay safe.
Because there's such a huge variety of people in the world I've started to give them options as to what they can get from me. Listen up for my three responses to "how are you?" I guarantee you'll be enthralled.
Blame me for everything, it's fine. All that means is that I get all the power. With great power comes great responsibility, which I guess is exactly what I'm saying, right? Don't answer that - I already know.
Getting soaked is great. It's the getting dry again that's the problem. Unless, that is, you're a small, green frog, like what I am.
There are others in this place apart from my Chicken Disciples and Snarf. Sometimes these 'others' watch me and sometimes, that can be creepy, but mostly it's okay (but I have to meditate a lot for it to be so).
Can a small, green, meditating frog sat on a kitchen window ledge in York, UK really detect your mood from your tone of voice? Give me a listen and you'll find out.
Getting from A to B needs specific directions. You can't navigate to a particular eating emporium by looking for directions to South Yorkshire (or whatever). In the same way, if you want to change then be specific about what it is you want to change.
Sklugoo doesn't have nostril hairs buy he still knows a thing or two about how ticklish they can be. Listen up for a great way to stop hayfever from bothering you so much.
Your chocolates are mine. You shall have none. Chocolate's not for sharing - not never ever. Me likea lotta choccy all at once. Give me chocolate until forever. Here's why ...
Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato. Potato.
There are good rules and there are bad rules but, being the rebel that I am, I can't think of any good ones right now - but I can think of a bad one. Listen in to find out what it is.
Bugs and slugs and all manner of beasts including a rat that shall not pass into the garage because there's a plaster cast hedgehog guarding the door. And you'd have thought a rat wouldn't have taken much notice - but it did!
I am the frog at the end of the universe - what more can there possibly be to say after a revelation like that? Listen to find out.
The Persistence of Memory is a 1931 painting by artist Salvador Dalí. The persistence we have to go on speaking, even when we think we've said it all, is a wonderful feature we share. Never give up; not never ever.
Snarf is a dragon on the far reaches of this windowledge. Mostly he just sits there but I can sense a dangerous fire burning deep within his primal mind. He can fly and sometimes he screeches in an eerie kind of a dragony way. Eek!
Have you ever stared into the darkness to see what there is to see when there's no light on your open eyes? Well, I have. I'm a small, green, meditating frog, so what do you expect?
My heart is on this windowledge along with the rest of me and I hope they'll stay together for a long time, maybe even as long as those two two-hundred year old frogs in the pond have been around. Here's hoping.
Life and death in the raw! Well, in the back garden that is. Well, not so much death as a kind of a resurrection. No pigeons were harmed in the making of this podcast.
The discovery of the ruins of an ancient civilisation in the back garden has led to me, a small, green frog, being united with my brothers - freshly returned from back in the midst of time!
In which Sklugoo says how lawnmowers, grass and small, green frogs are never a good combination and that gardening is better as a spectator sport.
No, not the town in England and no, nothing to do with books, this is about me reading your mind. Have a listen and see (hear) how I got on.
How do you get an audience? How do you get people to listen to you? How can a small, green, meditating frog gather disciples? Heck if'n I know!
Want to know what a small, green frog on a kitchen window ledge thinks about sunshine? Then press the play button and prepare yourself for a treat!
All of us are nature's favourites - every single one of us without exception. We don't get picked on or pulled down by nature. We're all equal and lovely.
Some say that people are strange and yeah, they might be right, but I'm people too and I'm not really that strange. Well, not as far as small, green frogs living on kitchen windowledges go.
When you're in lock down - cut your own hair. Or let it grow long - I really don't care. At the end of the day - a frog ain't a bear. I'm wonderfully slippy - but no need to stare.
The clocks went back I got less sleep last night. Guess what happens when I sit still when I haven't had enough sleep! No, not quite narcolepsy, but close enough.
Charlene, by 1977, had been to Georgia and California (and anywhere she could run) but I've been somewhere she never could manage to reach. Can you guess where?
Einstein had some thought about space-time curvature that I won't go into now because what I'm interested in is walls that blend into ceilings. Bubble life, anyone?
If'n you have to let go of the past, or something in the past, or someone who's gone then don't worry so much. You don't know what tomorrow's gonna bring.
No, I'm not getting out of this cute, little frog spacesuit - no way, José! Listen up and I'll tell you why ...
If you're going to have an addiction then choose a nice one that doesn't have any really bad side-effects but if those side-effects do annoy anyone then give up your addiction. People are more important.
The life span of your average green frog is ten years but that don't apply to me because I'm going to live forever, baby! Meditation obviates a lot of bad stuff, y'know.
Birds and birds and birds, flocking around the house like flocking things. I just realised what they're here for!
Live as if you were living for the second time and had acted as wrongly the first time as you're about to act now. Thanks, Viktor.
If you want to be happy then listen to this list of things I've seen in my life and then do the exact opposite.
Small, green frogs called Sklugoo don't actually need that much money and so, for now at least, all these riches are given to you free. You're welcome.
There was this dude that survived the concentration camps and stayed sane and he did it by choosing to be happy. Yay Viktor Frankl.
The robots are coming! Ah, but don't worry - they're harmless (so far) but they are coming and you're going to have to get used to them.
Sunday is a day of rest, except if you're a little, green, meditating frog called Sklugoo. Or if you're old.
Even spammers are people (unless they're robots) and they need love too so don't hate on them so much. They're just doing their best to get by.
A small frog called Sklugoo punts words at you hoping it brightens your day in some way. Be love.
Sklugoo doesn't get out much, being as he lives on a window-ledge in a kitchen, so his experience of alcohol is limited to watching.
Close your eyes and then turn them off so that you don't just see the black. Beyond the black is a whole whirl of light and pattern: visions.
There are frogs who have famous voices but I'm not going to try to be like that. I'm going to be me and Miss Piggy can go suck her teeth.
Tell all you friends about Sklugoo because Sklugoo is great and if he's to have 33 million eDisciples by the end of the century then we need to get a move on.
If you want to be nervous then you can be. But it's best not to be. Not because Sklugoo says so, but because it's true.
I prefer squatting or jumping to being stood still and so stand-up comedy for me would be a bit of a leap.
The mechanics of meditation are like tomato seeds - pretty to look at but not so are easy to pick up. Concentrate, though, and you do it.
One of my eyes is bigger than the other and I have a beauty spot but that's okay because I'm an individual frog. I'm Sklugoo.
Life is good, but there will be setbacks. Not everyone will support you. When it gets tough - take a deep breath ... and continue. You'll get through.
When Sklugoo sings on sunshiny days he doesn't do it like any old crazy frog, he does it properly, and he has a lovely voice.
Sklugoo loves the colour of his skin because green is the colour of grass and grass is cool and cool things are good, right?
Get the jab, amigos, and be immune to Covid like moi. You'll then be able to lick any mail that drops through your letterbox (but don't).
This is the one where Sklugoo talks about meditation and bedbugs. Not that they're related at all. Not even distant cousins. So there.
In which I tell you that I don't eat flies but that my disciples might eat the odd worm or two (they say that odd worms taste the best).
Love Sklugoo style never involves me visiting you in your dreams so get that thought right out of your head.