Bellingham Podcast

Bellingham Podcast

Pacific Northwest aficionados, AJ Barse and Chris Powell are your hosts each week talking about their views and interests in technology, travel, gear and watches. Or, put another way, "PNW life and views from the city by the Salish Sea." The Bellingham Podcast is recorded in or on location in or around the City of Subdued Excitement, Bellingham Washington. This show is also available on-air on Bellingham's KMRE 102.3FM. bellinghampodcast.substack.com bellinghampodcast.substack.com

Episodes

November 30, 2025 31 mins

In this episode, AJ and Chris dig into a playful but insightful exploration: What would happen if an outsider spent a weekend in Bellingham guided solely by web searches or AI?

Fresh off a Portland conference with heavy AI themes, AJ tests what “SmackGPT” thinks a weekend in Bellingham should look like across five traveler personas: the Local Explorer, Family Adventurer, Mindful Explorer, Camper, and Lux High Roller (exact output po...

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After more than a year off-air, AJ Barse and Chris Powell dust off the mics, on sticks (more on that next episode) and return to the Bellingham Podcast from their favorite city by the Salish Sea for a catch-up that’s part reflection, part revival.

AJ and Chris share what pulled them away from the mic; from AJ’s medical detours and higher-ed budget storms to Chris’s growing fatigue with all things digital, as always they open up and ...

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October 9, 2024 37 mins

In this episode of the Bellingham Podcast, AJ Barse and Chris Powell dive into October with a discussion on the increasing role of AI, the revival of analog, and reflections on masculinity. AJ shares his experiments with Google’s Notebook LM and expresses concerns over AI’s growing influence, especially in voice replication. The duo then shifts to their love for analog, highlighted by AJ’s visit to Roldorf & Co., a Vancouver-based ...

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October 6, 2024 28 mins

In this episode of the Bellingham Podcast, AJ Barse and Chris Powell catch up after a summer hiatus. They discuss recent personal experiences, including family vacations and changes in their professional lives. AJ shares his summer adventures, including time spent on San Juan Island and managing life as a working parent. Chris recounts his solo trip to Friday Harbor and his enjoyment of tech-free moments. They also delve into topic...

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July 10, 2024 32 mins

On this enlightening episode of the Bellingham Podcast, Chris shares his transformative experience from a recent Silence Retreat in Mission, BC. Meanwhile, AJ delves into his deep connections with silence and presence, cultivated through his adventures climbing mountains and diving in the serene waters of the Puget Sound and Salish Sea. Join us as we explore the profound impacts of quietude and mindfulness in our fast-paced lives.

...

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On this special catch-up episode of the Bellingham Podcast, AJ and Chris are back from their travels with exciting updates! Chris's daughter and AJ's wife both celebrated graduations, and the hosts have some invaluable travel observations and tips to share. Recorded at Casa de Chris, they dive into their Father's Day weekend experiences and offer essential advice for navigating Washington state ferries during peak season. Plus, thi...

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Welcome back to the Bellingham Podcast! We're driving the DeLorean right back into the nostalgia-fueled fun with the second part of our Word of Note of Nostalgia. AJ and Chris pick back up from their first part of their DeLorean adventure, ready to continue exploring the curious realm of nostalgia and its ties to marketing, technology, and personal memories.

In this episode, join us for another nostalgic trip down memory lane as we...

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Welcome back to another episode of the Bellingham Podcast! We were late in this episode as AJ and Chris had to fire up the DeLorean on the ol’ Word of Note series to delve into the realm of nostalgia, exploring its intricate ties to marketing, technology, and personal memories.

Join us as we take a nostalgic trip down memory lane, reflecting on our own past experiences, and the trends we have started to see in marketing to our gen...

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March 18, 2024 22 mins



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
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March 18, 2024 28 mins



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
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January 26, 2024 37 mins
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December 24, 2023 32 mins

Thank you all so much again for another year of supporting the podcast! After a few weeks of sickness, Chris’ sweet baritone voice is back in action just in time to punch out on 2023. From Chris and AJ of your Bellingham Podcast, we hope you have a happy holiday season, a fun and safe new year, and stay warm here in the City by the Salish Sea.

Local Updates:

Bellingham old Terminal Building fire

* Cascadia Daily | https://www.cascadi...

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November 17, 2023 41 mins

Happy Thanksgiving (USA), everyone!

AJ’s dive to the HCMS Annapolis

Chris’ Retirement Tech

* Proton Mail | https://proton.me/mail

* Signal Messenger | https://signal.org/download/

Quality Assurance

Chris- COF& https://colcofy.com/

AJ - Amendment 21 (Hotel Leo) - https://www.thehotelleo.com/dining

Thank you for reading The Bellingham Podcast . This post is public so feel free to share it.



This is a public episode. If you woul...
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October 14, 2023 35 mins

We were offline and off-air for September due to scheduling. Sch-edu-ling, the latin phrase for “life got busy between working, dading, and living.” But Chris and AJ are back for October, or as AJ predicted Doc-tober.

Adobe MAX 2023 session hosted by AJ

VS203

Made Under Pressure Podcast (coming soon)

Guest hosted by the Analog Explorer |

AJ to present Travelogue | October 19

Details here

Belling-home human interest mention

* Bellingha...

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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 sp...

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July 21, 2023 32 mins

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” - ...

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June 2, 2023 30 mins

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 Lightr...

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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 domest...

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April 23, 2023 56 secs

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
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March 17, 2023 38 mins

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 t...

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