Skip to main content

Renegades: Born in the USA

In this episode - Renegades . . .

You may have guessed by now that I’m a podcast listener. Long ago I discovered that my preferred learning style is listening. Like many bloggers, producing podcasts is my attempt to find my voice.

However, I’ve discovered to delivering a weekly Podcast takes dedication, determination, patience, and inspiration . . . And you never know where that inspiration may come from.

Many of you may or may not know that this Podcast is hosted on Spotify. As a Spotify free subscriber recently we discovered a new original podcast series -  Renegades: Born in the USA.

Former President Barack Obama and celebrated rock musician Bruce Springsteen have launched this podcast exclusively on Spotify.

It’s a series of conversations between the former president and rock star, about their lives growing up, music influences, and enduring love of America - despite its challenges.

Renegades aired on Feb. 22, 2021 - according to an article posted on CNBC news, “it will span eight episodes.”

Spotify said the pair, who first met in 2008, will discuss in addition; race, fatherhood, marriage, and the future of America.

Obama said this in the first episode, “On the surface, Bruce and I don’t have a lot in common. But over the years, what we’ve found is that we’ve got a shared sensibility. About work, about family, and about America.”

“In our own ways, Bruce and I have been on parallel journeys trying to understand this country that’s given us both so much. Trying to chronicle the stories of its people. Looking for a way to connect our own individual searches for meaning and truth and community with the larger story of America.”

“What we discovered is we share a fundamental belief in the American ideal. And why we both felt like outsiders as kids.”

This production inspires me to do more on this podcast - possibly guest interviews. Is that something you would like to see?

Huh, maybe, in our own way, we are all Renegades? If you're so inclined check it out. How you ask?

The easiest way to listen is to download the Spotify app to your phone and subscribe, remember it's free. Or simply ask your smart device, “Hey Google play the podcast Renegades: Born in the USA on Spotify.”

As a Podcast listener, if you come across any compelling Podcasts let me know, email pball@sbcglobal.net.

Won’t you be my "virtual" neighbor? If you enjoy our weekly visits, please share them with a friend.

This is Patrick Ball, thanks so much for listening. See you in the next episode.

Comments

Anonymous said…
c6-5

Most Popular of All Time

Truth for Sale

This episode is inspired  by Elton John & Bernie Taupin On Memorial Day, I took my first bike ride  since the accident , seeking proof that my legs, lungs, and nerves still remembered the road. The morning air carried that familiar Southern California mix of ocean haze, exhaust, eucalyptus, and sun-baked asphalt. My tires hummed across pavement I’ve ridden for years. Somewhere between the steady click of the chain and the rhythm of my breathing, Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s The Captain and the Kid found its way into my ears. There’s a strange kind of magic when the cadence of a ride syncs perfectly with a song you know by heart. Suddenly, the music and lyrics stop being background noise and become a lens. And through that lens, the road started talking. I've been cycling on this road some, Can't help feeling I've been showing my friends around. I've seen it grow from next to nothing, To a giant eatin’ up our town. Called up the tealeaves and the tarots, Asked the...

That Fateful Four-Letter Word

In this episode, A Masterclass in Efficiency. For nearly four months, the western border of our property has stood as a living monument to determination, dubious planning, and forensic-level lumber acquisition. Since February, our neighbor Steve has been conducting what can only be described as a masterclass in deliberate calculation. This was never going to be one of those slick home-improvement shows where a cheerful pair of men installs a fence between commercial breaks, sipping lemonade. No. This was real life in retirement. We scaled the vertical wilderness of our hillside. We mixed concrete with the precision of medieval alchemists. We bled, we sweated, and we fought hand-to-hand with a buried tree stump that had the structural integrity of a Cold War bunker. By this week—May 16th, for those keeping score—the glorious end was finally within reach. The fence stood proudly, the line was straight, and victory practically hummed in the air. Only one major task remained: installing t...

The Eighth Wonder of the Suburban World

Mark your calendars, folks. Update the history books. Notify the Smithsonian. Move over, Pyramids of Egypt. Step aside, Hoover Dam.  Future civilizations will speak of this day in hushed, reverent tones. May 22, 2026, will forever be remembered as the moment humanity reached the pinnacle of suburban engineering excellence. Earlier today, my neighbor Steve and I drove the final screw into what can only be described as the most overbuilt property divider in North County. The Fence! And then there’s the gate. Good grief, the gate. Calling it just a gate is almost disrespectful. It looks like the entrance to a medieval fortress or to Hogwarts Castle. It swings open with the heft of a bank vault and closes with the wave of a magic wand. At this point, we’re considering applying for FAA clearance to install a helicopter pad on top of it. This glorious odyssey began in early February, the primitive era. From the start, we made a sacred pact: we would not become one of those people. You ...

Epictetus, Ego, and Acronyms

In this episode, Destroy Communication, One Three-Letter Acronym at a Time This week, I want to explore a deeply relatable, universally feared workplace character: the "know-it-all." Now, I’m not pointing fingers here. If we are being completely honest, we have all played this role. We've all uttered some version of, "Yes, absolutely, that aligns with our strategic objectives," while our internal monologue is screaming, "I don't even know what the objective is, let alone the strategy." What got me thinking about this was a chapter in Ryan Holiday's book, Wisdom Takes Work . Holiday leans on a powerful piece of Stoic truth from the ancient philosopher Epictetus: "It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows." It's a brilliant quote that strikes right at the heart of the human ego. You can't learn what you already know, and you certainly can't learn what you pretend to know to save face. Though to be ...