Radio program update #8      august 12, 2010

Hi Life Rattlers:

We’re pleased to present a new writer this week:

Tamara Chandon

Tamara has recorded a slew of stories based on summer work experience at a veterinary hospital. Her “Freezer Cats” series begins this week, and will entertain you with the sights, sounds and, yup…the smells of a tough job that somebody has to do.
And:
If you were listening in last week, you’ll know that Guy Allen has returned to the airways. He is at the helm again this week, bringing his talent and insights to the Life Rattle Radio experience.
So:
Pour something over ice, sit quietly in a darkened room, and give us a listen this Sunday night. You will not be disappointed.

Radio program update #7      June 27, 2010

Tonight's show has been pre-empted to allow for coverage of the G-20.

Alternative media will be on the air during our usual time slot with news from this side of the big shiny fence.

See you next week with Life Rattle Episode #1107.

Radio program update #6      June 19, 2010

Hi Life Rattle Sons and Daughters:

Tomorrow night I will air two stories with a “Fathers Day” theme.

We will hear: “Father” by Sarah Ward And “Taste of Banana” by Marie Hoy

These stories take us along as two different daughters describe an opportunity they’ve had, to get to know the models of masculinity they call dad.

After you listen to the stories, I’d like you to get out some note paper and jot down a quick letter to your dad. Whether he is alive or dead, missing, or you never met….just write the note. Send it off in the mail if you can, but if you can not…then keep it in a drawer and read it once a year at about this time.

Radio program update #5      mAy 16, 2010

Tonight, Nadeem Basaria will air the last two stories in Hien The Chu’s Vietnamese Refugee series.

The first story, “The Secret of Boat 52 – 110 Mindanao,” is perhaps the most dramatic and frightening in the entire Life Rattle library. You will be exposed to the worst of human evil, in a calm, reasoned, observational style. Chu does not seek to impose anger, disgust, sympathy, or any other personal assessment of a very bad man. He simply tells the story, and in doing so, we glean all we need to make our own judgement.

This is what makes horror useful. We personalize the experience in our own way, then go forward to more fully appreciate all the beauty that surrounds us. This is what Life Rattle is all about.

Radio program update #4      mAy 6, 2010

Hello Life Rattle MOMS and Friends: This Sunday we will celebrate Mother’s Day with the resurrection of a couple of stories by Ruth Schweitzer. These two stories last aired in 1996! We’ve been trying to lift some of these gems from the past, to make sure they survive into the digital age.

Ruth Schweitzer brings us a young daughter’s view of her mothers tragic past, difficult present and uncertain future, while she, a young adolescent tries to fit into what she considers the normal life of the Queen and Spadina community of the mid 1960’s.

If you are old enough to remember the Victory Burlesque, you will especially enjoy closing your eyes to remember “The Bright Lights of Spadina”, Schweitzer’s first story. Sit Mom down in her favourite chair with a wee glass of sweet sherry, rub her feet and tune in to:

LIFE RATTLE RADIO ON CKLN 88.1 f.m. SUNDAY NIGHTS 9:00 to 9:30

Radio program update #3      April 21, 2010

Life Rattle Radio will showcase another new writer this Sunday, April 25th.

Erika Bailey will take us on an exquisitely paced, intimate and eloquent journey through a marriage. The narrative drops by the lives of “Yan” and “Ree”, for a quick visit every now and then, exposing a snapshot of brilliantly sparse, but evocative prose….all we need to know as we peek through the curtains of their lives.

So brew up a cuppa, sit still and listen in this Sunday night.

Radio Program Update #2      April 7, 2010

We will be airing a brand new writer on next week's show #1097.
That's Sunday April 18th at 9:00 p.m.
You will hear a series of four short stories from new Life Rattle writer Kyle Chin, who will take us through a difficult time in his young life, dealing with the decline and passing of Gung, his grandfather. These stories will resonate particularly with listeners who are facing decisions that arise from the changing family rolls of elders who are now dependent. The narrator is a young boy, observing the spectre of inevitable decline and trying to make sense of it all.
Keep tuned to Life Rattle.
We have an exciting line up of new writers coming your way.

Radio Program Update #1      March 27, 2010

Hello Life Rattle Friends:
We’ve had a great show of interest lately with UTM and Ryerson instructors referring new writers with terrific stories, so you’ll be hearing them soon. I am also working on moving some stories over to disc from old tapes of original shows. The technical quality is sometimes questionable, but there is no question about the quality of the writing.

This Sunday, I will play a couple of stories originally aired in 1995. They are by Hien Chu. These stories are about the writer’s experiences after the end of the Vietnam War. They will take us with him to jail, then out to sea, and eventually into a refugee camp. This is riveting stuff and well worth putting up with a bit of fuzz on the recording. You will be hearing Arnie Achtman reading Hien Chu’s stories.

It has been five years now since we lost Arnie. I think it is wonderful that he lives on through Life Rattle.

I will send out similar e-mails to announce each new writer before we air their stories.

Tune in, and let your friends know about the best bed-time stories in town.