Animal Magic

Lock, Livestock & Barrel

Abraham is remembered as a "good shepherd" - but did his sheep feel this way?  In this episode, we'll explore how livestock herding has helped to shape human history.  Alert: this episode does contain references to Biblical animal cruelty.

The Carolina-dog (A Free Sample Chapter of "Chaos Chaos")

Piling chili and coleslaw onto a hotdog sure is food for thought, inspiring questions like "what is 'food'?"  And "if you are what you eat - what am I?"  This is a sample chapter of the book "Chaos Chaos," a collection of comical personal recollections, silly bits of history, and some idiotic ponderings about what it means to be human.

Naysayers

How did a donkey become the only animal prophet in the Bible?  And how did horses change the lives of Indigenous Americans of the Great Plains?

Hibernating

A bear visits our campsite at Allegany State Park.  Michael nearly learns a valuable lesson.  A Biblical prophet's baldness summons the ursine species into existence.  And we learn what happens when a bear refuses to dance like a chicken.

Groundhog Day Special

What's the Lifespan of your Average Magical Groundhog?  Why is his February message so important?  And how does Groundhog Day relate to Ancient Systems of Spring Predictions?

"Great Snakes!"

A Comical Glance at the Talking Serpent of Eden, Snake-Handling Churches, and some of the Silliest Snake-stories of the Bible.  Plus: Before the Garden of Eden story got so famous (and poisonous) - what did the locals of Israel actually like about Women, Snakes and Trees?

Here Be Dragons

Watching the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings with my Kids I wonder - What's Humanity's great Fascination with Dragons?  Where does the word come from, and what kind of Dragon-lore (good, bad, and ugly) might we find in Greek, Mayan and Chinese Mythology?  And what might our long Multicultural Love-Hate Relationship with Scary Reptiles have to tell us about what it means to be Human?

Everything All of the Time

How did the Human Species Survive in the Chaos of the Jungle?