Breadbox Media

#TheCounterPosition Episode 183 - The Revolt of the Machines, Babies vs. Bathwater, and Of Popes, Planes, and the Grateful Dead

In this episode after recounting a full day of everything mechanized in his life attacking him and hence the need for a robot from the future that is also a priest, Andrew looks at the life of figuring out what was good and left behind from his past, then explores the role of the pope in the modern media in relation to the Left, the Right, and people who only listen to the Grateful Dead. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 182 - Of Bugs and Brexit

In this episode, after an extended chatty first segment involving sushi, naps, teachers, fires, and the local church, Andrew explores some ideas about subsidiarity through the lens of an article by his old Latin professor and friend Dr. Benjamin Wiker about Brexit, in which he realizes how affected he was by picking up bugs at Thomas Aquinas College. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 181 - More New Tech, Lorenzo and the Bull, Otto von Habsburg, and Shooting Lasers Out of Your Eyes

In this episode, after obligatory reflection on his evolving tech set up, Andrew explores that bull you always see on the wall of the old caves with the help of the late Msgr. Lorenzo Albacete, then relays a story from Fr. Fadi about the death procession of Otto von Habsburg, and finally looks at his/our characters faults as super powers in need of mastering. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 180 - Lavinia Spirito and Worlds Collide

In this episode Andrew, who recently accidentally met Lavinia Spirito, fellow show host of Unpacking the Gospel and Real Living on Breadbox Media, sits down for a chat and things get interesting. They cover Pope Francis, the myriad strange connections between them that led to this interview, Lavinia’s 17 year bible study project, Catholic Way Bible Study cwbs.org, and how hard it is to pay your bills in Rome. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 179 - Lost Audio, New Toys, Moments of Silence, Boomers at Mass Reprised, National Cell Phone Free Day, and more on the Pope as Pastoral Realist

In this episode, after many mea culpas for messing up and losing the audio of two full days of audio interview with Matt Simmons, Andrew finally bites the bullet and buys big boy microphones. Then, after a nice rant about cell phones interrupting him during his porch time and the promotion of a new cell phone free holiday, he takes another stab at how Baby Boomers act after mass vs. the young and examines the concept  of the “moment of silence” as the iconic prayer of a contentless age. Finally, he can’t help himself and he goes back into musing on Pope Francis in light of Giussani and Aristotle’s version of Plato’s Cave. All while holding a microphone like Frank Sinatra or Wayne Newton. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 178 - Outside the Walls in the Counter Position

Episode 178- Outside the Walls in the Counter Position

In this episode Andrew sits down with his friend Timothy Putnam, fellow Breadbox Media show host from Outside the Walls. Together they tackle the recent comments of Pope Francis on marriage and in true Counter Position fashion it rabbit trails into the way the pope sees the world, academic theology vs. pastoral realism, and living in a world of conceptual artifacts vs. the primacy of the real in Aristotle’s dialogue. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 175 - Leading Financial Institution w/ Jim "Duckie" Laurent

In this episode, Andrew sits down for a raucous and personal chat with his old friend and wingman Jim "Duckie" Laurent. From the struggle of finding God while talking to people who don't understand the internet, to the lessons that reality teaches if you pay attention, with a lot of shenanigans in between, this one is a good time. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 174 - What Your Church Can Learn from a Gay Bar

In this episode, Andrew explores another side of the Orlando shooting through the lens of the role the gay bar plays in gay culture, by looking at an interview with a survivor that called the bar a “sacred space”. Then, after a short explanation of the Catholic position on same sex attraction, Andrew “comes out”! Finally, he looks at your church, coffeehouse, home, set of relationships, etc. though the eyes of someone who goes to a gay bar. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 173 - The Perfect Storm of the Orlando Shooting

In this episode, after the obligatory weekend recap, Andrew looks at how everyone has backed into their ideological corners over the Orlando shootings and only sees what they want to see, which is largely their own agenda writ large. In the process he affirms over and over again that at its core, this was an act of evil, done by a person, who should love, against other persons, due love by the nature of their very being. Then, he explores all the weird false dichotomies, false conclusions, and knee jerk reactions embedded in this horrific act. 

Episode 172 - Deep Sleep, Kicknoses and Felt Banners, The 75th Anniversary of the Weight of Glory, and How Andrew Has Wasted His Life

In this episode Andrew recounts how he finally slept more deeply than any human in history last night and how seeing a modern kid riding an 80s skateboard with no kicknose made him understand Boomers and their love of felt banners and the Gather hymnal. Then, he commemorates the 75th anniversary of C.S. Lewis famous sermon “The Weight of Glory” and praises Lewis’ deep sanity and clarity. Finally, shamed by the fact that Lewis was 42 during that sermon, Andrew bemoans how he has completely wasted his life. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 171 - Paleo Reset Summary, Tax Resolution, Yelp & Meaning, Behind the Counter vs. Netflix, and Trusting Your Experience of Reality.

In this episode Andrew starts with a summary of how his 30 Day Paleo Reset went, tells the story of how he got the State of CA to give him his money back (again), relays getting choked up at an email from a friend and former employee, talks about $10 a month for the new Behind the Counter vs. what else you can get for $10 in streaming media, and then muses on what we experience in ourselves and our encounter with reality as a trustworthy guide and being congruent with the Catholic worldview. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 170 -Tax Rant & Introducing ‘Behind the Counter’

In this episode, a hearty rant about his continuing abuse by the Franchise Tax Board of CA, Andrew unveils his version of the new Breadbox Media concept “Friend of the Show” that he is calling “Behind the Counter”. This new way to support the show will give you access to more of the stories, rants, interviews, musings, etc. that you love on The Counter Position, along with geeky intellectual, hospitality, and culinary content, including videos and recipes, as well extra segments, extra long unedited versions of interviews, and so much more. This will also be a way to give feedback and get more of what you like, even if it isn’t really right for the broader audience of the show. Listen to the show and if you’re in just click https://goo.gl/GUu6bC and pick Andrew Whaley from the drop down menu portion. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 169 - Musings of Friendship

In this episode, after a solid shout out to the staff of Tolle Lege for their shop getting the 2016 People Love You on Yelp distinction, Andrew completely overestimates what he will cover in this episode. What he does manage to do is riff on an article about friendship, looking at relationships in business, how that relates to his projects Calix and Tolle Lege Coffeebar, then briefly look at the role of friendship in marriage, and finally a few thoughts on friendship as a way to think about knowing God. 

http://www.yelp.com/biz/tolle-lege-coffeebar-greenwood-village

http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2016/06/16819/

#TheCounterPosition Episode 165- An Open Letter to Apple, A Blinding Flash of the Obvious, and Skin in the Game

In this episode, after a hearty rant to Apple computer about 39.86 gigs of unfindable audio hogging his hard drive, Andrew goes into one of his more personal and existential shows in which he explores how the recent hope that has emerged in his life has turned to sheer terror at the thought of all the crazy stuff happening in the world becoming much much more real and less abstract if he has a child to raise and protect. One story in this episode is not really for the kids. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 164 - Old People in Hot Tubs, Liberal Education, and The Recovery of Sanity

In this episode, after talking about the deep sanity of the old people who sit in his gym’s hot tub and steam room, Andrew, spurred by a conversation with his old friend and mentor Andrew Seeley of Thomas Aquinas College and the Institute of Catholic Liberal Education, explores the nature and history of liberal education, the deep need for it in K-12, the need to train people for engagement with reality, sanity as the real in you, and the relationship between the use of pop culture forms and these more classical interventions in the life of youth. For dessert, Andrew tells the story of how a cartoon bear taught him the notion of infinite regress.catholicliberaleducation.org

#TheCounterPosition Episode 163 - Swimming as Zen, Byzantine Babies, and Liver & Onions as a Model for the New Evangelization

In this episode a jovial and energetic Andrew gives an update on the diet, then explores the Zen nature of swimming, bringing the “counter position” to the pool, gets his swimming stroke affirmed, and meets both beautiful and strange foreigners in the steam room. Then, after extolling the glories of meat, fire, and quads, he talks about a Byzantine baptism as one of the coolest things he has seen in some time. Finally, after a rant about the “man bun”, he tells the story of why he likes liver and onions, asks whether that matters to the New Evangelization, and, since he can’t help himself, rants about an article at salon.com that is so bad it is worth reading to know how stupid people are and what not to do. 

#TheCounterPosition Episode 162 - Zach Candler (Birthday Boy), Lady GaGa, and Space Toilets

In this episode Andrew sits down with his good friend and space plumber Zach Candler, after bumping into Timothy Putnam of Outside the Walls, his lovely wife, and his freakishly cute and chubby baby, to have a raucous and vigorous dialogue/verbal shindig about everything from space toilets, Lady GaGa, gradualism, Donald Trump, the glory of sidebars, Harvey the Energy Whaley, Moralist Therapeutic Deism, and teenage Andrew’s condom t-shirt. 

Episode 161 - The Only Bacon I Don't Like & Lady GaGa Goes to Mass

In this episode, after the required diet update, an energetic and somewhat ranty Andrew comments on the recent "suggestions" from our glorious leader about bathrooms, locker rooms, and gender in our public schools, tracing the problem to Rene Descartes and Francis Bacon and partially blaming Protestant Charismatics and Pentecostals for making Platonism/Manichaeism popular for the masses. Then, Andrew talks about a great article by Sr. Theresa Alethiea Noble about the Catholic Right's reaction to Lady GaGa posting an Instagram with her pastor at lunch and talking about the Eucharist.

#TheCounterPosition Episode 160 - Patrick Coffin: Why Heathens Make the Best Christian Movies and More!

In this episode Andrew sits down with Patrick Coffin, host of Catholic Answers Live, and talks about how contraception ruined everything, how Patrick met Jimmy Kimmel and won Ben Stein’s money, why heathen make the best Christian films, how Andrew changed his name to Peter Parker, what Patrick would ask Caitlyn Jenner, and so so much more. You will laugh and cry. This is the feel good hit of the summer.

#TheCounterPosition Episode 159 - Update from the Cave, Political Rumblings & Ramblings, Ratzinger Studies Program, and Wisdom from Fr. Gawronski

Episode 159- Update from the Cave, Political Rumblings & Ramblings, Ratzinger Studies Program, and Wisdom from Fr. Gawronski. 

In this episode an insufficiently caffeinated Andrew gives an update on his 30 Day Paleo Reset on Day 4, muses on the meeting between Paul Ryan and Donal Trump, talks (possibly again?) about an article on liberal bias in academia, then turns to a new program at the Patristicum in Rome offering a Master in Joseph Ratzinger/Pope Benedict 16th’s life and thought, and finally, contemplates some wisdom on the life of prayer from Fr. Raymond Gawronski in his book A Closer Walk With Christ.