Hiatus

Followers have probably been wondering where I went and why there hasn’t been a season three of Coastal Currents with Aaron Reid.

It has always been my intention since starting the podcast to keep it going. I have thoroughly enjoyed the process of branding and creating my podcast along with the interesting conversations I’ve had and the new people I’ve met.

Season two took a lot to put together in a very short period of time. It was a massive challenge for a new podcaster to schedule, record and edit so many interviews in a really short period of time, especially as a hobby over and above my other life commitments of work, family and billeting with the Powell River Kings. On top of that, I ended up contracting covid during that period and had to pivot on a dime from my indoor space to packing my gear over to my neighbours (thanks, Dan!) covered patio to be able to social distance and continue to record interviews outside.

But, as you can see, I’m updating my blog. I’d like to get season three in the works. I’ve had some excellent feedback from listeners and have been surprised at the places around the world that my podcast has been downloaded. Don’t worry, it doesn’t tell me your EXACT location when you download but it does tell me how many downloads and in which country it’s been downloaded. While I’d love to take credit for being amazing, the credit is due to the amazing people that have agreed to have a conversation with me and share it with the masses.

I thought life felt very heavy in 2020 and 2021 during the height of covid restrictions. However, the world feels even heavier now. There is a lot of division in my community right now, people are hurting - financially and emotionally. I really, truly want to continue working on helping my fellow community members get to know each other on a more personal level and grow that community support and spirit here that I’ve always been so proud of.

Sponsor this podcast or advertise with us.

This podcast is definitely a labour of love.

I also believe it’s a valuable community service. While the community in the qathet area is the target audience, there are listeners all over the world that tune in and listen.

Aaron spends HOURS of time producing each episode and there are out of pocket costs involved for the website, the podcast hosting platform and equipment. She’s hoping to be able to upgrade the mics at some point to cut down even more on any background noise and make the editing process a little shorter.

This is a small, individually produced podcast. Benefits to advertisers and sponsors is getting their messaging out to a local and global audience while also supporting a small home grown podcast. Benefits to the podcast is the ability to survive and thrive without too high of an overhead burden.

Individuals who want to buy a coffee to show support are also appreciated and etransfers are accepted at aaronreid999@gmail.com.

Who would have thought?

When I started this locally focused podcast at the start of 2022, I never would have thought I’d have listeners all over the world.

Believe it or not, this little podcast of mine has listeners from the following countries:

Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Russia, South Korea, Mexico, Argentina, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Norway, Philippines and Virgin Islands, U.S.

What a fun and interesting hobby this has become!

I was excited to start this podcast of mine but I’ve also been pleasantly surprised at how much I’m enjoying it.

Initially, it was hard to get guests to agree to come to participate in an interview but now that I’ve got some episodes out there and people have a feel for what I’m doing I’m experiencing a lot more enthusiasm from potential guests.

Don’t get me wrong - this is a crazy labour of love. Not only do I spend about an hour and a half prepping before an interview, but I spent about two hours on the interview and then another two to four hours editing and putting the episode together before I can post it. Many podcasts outsource the editing and producing for this reason but right now, I’m a team of one.

I hope that listeners are enjoying the show and learning some things about their family members, friends and community while listening to this podcast.

Until next time . . . this is Aaron Reid.

Who do you want to learn more about?

As we get closer to the drop of our first episode, Super Frankie the Wonder Dog asked who people want to hear, and learn, more about.
We’d love to hear your ideas of who you’d like me to have as guests on the show. You can post your ideas here in the comments or you can contact me through the Facebook page or via email at coastalcurrentswithaaron@gmail.com.

Getting closer to launch

Still working through the set up before the podcast is officially launched.

I’ve created my logo/artwork and I’m quite happy with it. A graphic designer I am not. However, I felt I couldn’t go wrong using the beauty of this place I call home.

My intro and outro are currently in progress and I’m still learning the editing side of things and am looking at what start-up equipment I want to implement.

Realistically, you can podcast using a cell phone but I’d like to have some decent sound quality from the beginning. There are a lot of different options and set ups and I’m trying to wade my way through and choose a direction. A techie I am not!

I am also advertising a ring for sale which I have had for a few years but never wear to fund my equipment purchases.

I am very excited for this new adventure. I’m looking forward to conversations with people in our community to learn about them and to speak about issues in our community.

I’d also like to hear from you as to what people and what issues you’d like to hear more about. Maybe you are interested in being a guest? Please reach out and let me know your thoughts and ideas.

You are welcome to comment on the blog or you can reach out via Facebook @coastalcurrentswithaaronreid or via email at coastalcurrentswithaaron@gmail.com.
Please be sure to follow the Facebook page for updates!!

Things are getting started

For the last few years, I’ve had this crazy idea in my head that I would love to start a podcast.

It started with the thought of blog posts but just writing about my own thoughts and experiences felt a little boring. The longer I was a “politician” the more I felt frustrated in the lack of understanding that came through to me from community members with regard to issues and people within this area.

Powell Rumour is a real thing, it has a life of it’s own here in qathet. And it’s often a roadblock for all sorts of ideas, events and developments (and I’m not talking just land-based developments!).

In the past few years - especially the last two, there has been a large influx of “newcomers” to our area. They are trying to get settled and find their place in our community, to get involved and to know who their neighbours and fellow community members are. On the flip side, people like myself who have had family here for generations tend to get taken in by past family histories or the good ‘ole Powell Rumour and inadvertently have predisposed ideas of who people are, what they stand for or what their intentions are.

Of course, these are generalizations and certainly don’t hold true for everyone but those barriers are definitely there - and they are real.

I’m a planner. I want to have a bit of a clue what I’m doing and a solid plan before I get rolling. So to that end, I started a podcasting course through a BC university in September. So far, I have found it to be informative and engaging and I’ve jumped myself ahead a bit (as I often do) and have already created my logo and put together this website.

There’s still lots to do and I still have a lot to learn - but I’m loving this new adventure and I’m looking forward to the growing and learning to come for me - and hopefully you, if you choose to listen.

There are SO many different things we can talk about, so many current issues we can delve into and so many locals to get to know. AND. . . . 2022 is a local election year. Since I don’t have to run a campaign, I’m looking forward to interviewing the local candidates that decide to put their names forward. After all, it’s crazy to turn down free campaign advertising!

So, this is your heads up that great things are to come! And, if you’re interested in being a guest on my podcast, please feel free to reach out!

This is Aaron Reid. Until next time . . . .