The Bellingham Podcast AJ Barse

Lightning strike fire | Bellingham
Travel Dispatches: 📍Mt. Storm King
Lake Crescent | Olympic National Park

Quality Assurance
Streaming on Apple TV+ https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/still-a-michael-j-fox-movie/

Metrosafe X Anti-Theft 16-Inch Commuter Backpack
Sept. 10 Clean Up Lake Samish - Gone Diving and Bellingham Parks Dept
Come out and help us clean up Lake Samish!
Join us on September 10th to clean up a popular recreation spot on the Eastern shore of Lake Samish. We are partnering with Whatcom Parks to dispose of the garbage we remove. Find more details as well as upcoming classes in our e-news or contact the shop! https://conta.cc/3QTw2yU





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On this July episode, pardon the clanks and extra noise filtering in the episode - we had a guest construction worker fire up a tractor as we started recording from….
New “Scramble Nature Park” at Barkley Village


Diving in and around Bellingham
Cleaning up Lake Whatcom
Cleaning up Lake Samish
Puget Sound Sea Life
Quality Assurance & New Gear
* Bose - Quiet Comfort
* SoundCore - Q45 Space
* Wacaco - Picopresso
* “Unreasonable Hospitality” - Book


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellinghampodcast.substack.com

In this May-June episode, as summer begins to ramp up in the PNW, are you thinking of visiting  Bellingham? Tune in to AJ and Chris' rundown of how to make your way up to the city by the Salish Sea and what to wrap up in your trip. 
Welcome to Whatcom
Traveling to Bellingham
* BLI - Mostly non-stop flights to Las Vegas, Denver, Seattle, Phoenix, Los Angeles and the San Juan Islands.
* Amtrak (King Station to Fairhaven)
* Seattle Lightrail construction expanding north, south, east.
* Airporter - Bellair Shuttles
* Flixbus - Economical tickets from Bellingham to Seattle, eco-friendly, too!
From Bellingham
* Mount Baker Wilderness
* Semi-ah-moo - A casual northwest seaside resort
* Seaside BBQ & Live Music summer schedule
* Theater on the Terrace - free family-friendly performances from Shakespeare NW - Saturday June 10 only
* Vancouver/Surrey/ Lower Mainland
* Squamish
Uniquely Whatcom
* Taylor Shellfish Farms - Chuckanut
* Larrabee State Park
* Chuckanut Drive
* Whatcom Falls/ Lake Whatcom
* Mountain Bike mecca - Whatcom Mountain Bike Club
* Northwest Corner Goods - Bellingham Flag and other souvenirs, on Cornwall Street
Hoteling vs AirBnB’ing
Quality Assurance
AJ - Spring Made Straps

Chris - Live music, dance, and theater performances year ‘round
WWU Music Events
WWU Dance Events
WWU Theater Events
Make sure you are parked in the right area! And have the free Parkmobile App on your Apple or Android phone.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellinghampodcast.substack.com

Chris and AJ are back from travel and have more coming up. Be sure to check the show notes, or consider becoming a free subscriber, on Substack for link and photos.
Observations traveling post-pandemic:
* An economy ticket is just that … don’t expect to keep your overhead bag
* “Juice- Jacking”- Powerstations and security concerns- bring your own plug
* Real ID
* “On May 7, 2025, U.S. travelers must be REAL ID compliant to board domestic flights and access certain federal facilities.”
* Wa DOT
* “Will DOL still offer standard driver's licenses and ID cards?
Yes, we'll continue to offer standard driver licenses and ID cards that can be used by Washington residents to drive, or serve as identification. They don't indicate a person's residency, or legal status. However, beginning May 7, 2025, they will no longer be accepted as valid forms for ID for boarding domestic flights.”

How do we travel?
AJ
* Gear
* Cottopaxi Alpa 42

* Tenba Tools Wrap

* Retroid Pocket
* SoundCore Q20+
* AirTags
* Manta Sleep Mask
* iHome multiport USB-C folding charger
Chris
* Gear
* GoRuck GR1 21L backpack
* Economical noise-cancelling earbuds
* Printed QR code for boarding pass
* $60 in cash, mainly in fives for tipping shuttle drivers and other misc expenses
* Hidden Device detector
* Anker 735 Charger
* Bose Soundlink Micro - approx $65 on Ebay
Turo | alternative “car rental” https://turo.com/
Helena Montana
St. Helena Cathedral
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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellinghampodcast.substack.com

Coming soon, AJ and Chris give their observations of post-pandemic travel from Bellingham. Stay tuned to the feed or to KMRE 102.3fm or KMRE.org



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellinghampodcast.substack.com

Shipwreck - Seattle Times

Chris’ Analog Book Report - Three takeaways
“…the objective of automation is clear - it is to relieve body and mind of the burden of labor.”
Robert Hassan, Analog (The MIT Press Essential Knowledge series) book

“For those companies that went remote in the pandemic, the debts accrued by their surrender to digital continue to mount: a debt of talent and creativity, of ideas, culture, and the interpersonal ties that make a companymuch more than the work it does.”
David Sax, The Future is Analog book

“The analog businesses succeeding today, despite digital competition, are those that have been able to really create and emphasize credibility.”
Arrigo Berni, The Revenge of Analog book

Analog Tools - Fix, Make, Create, Explore
Primer
Earnest Elmo Calkins - OG homie behind planned obsolescence or consumer engineering thorugh consumerism and advertising circa 20s
Maker
* Sewing machine- Got a hole, need a patch?
* Cricut machine
* Drummel “rotary” tool
Household stuff/toys
* Chris’ ubiquitous screwdriver set - Boxer Tool 30-piece precision set
Around Bellingham
* Shoe Stop - Bellis Fair
* Doucet Guitar Works - State Street
* Hardware Sales - Bellingham
Tech
iFixIT- mobile devices
Watchmaking
* Time Concepts - King Street by Lakeway Fred Meyer
* Roldorf & Co - Vancouver
Quality Assurance
AJ - Hodinkee | Watches in the Wild
Chris - Two alternative sites
* LibRedirect - Alternative websites for big tech companies
* FarSide.link - Up-to-date alternative websites for big tech companies, but self-hosted by folks around the world


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bellinghampodcast.substack.com