Episode 61: Say Hello To My Little Friend

Episode 66: Mayor Cooper

The summer doldrums kicking in, Chris and I do what we do best: chip away at the boring old rocks of local government in our fair city, hunting for rich veins of silver and gold. We find it in Toomey’s narcissism and lack of institutional memory, in a cross reading of city hall bologna and Thomas Pynchon’s “Vineland” (1990), and how the Galleria never closed so much as spread out around the foundations of downtown, an invasive root network that is by now intractable as it continues its slow work, pulling the thing down into some ruin it can one day swallow. ADU or ADA clip [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osCaxy0vWEs] Bergman doing the Bergmanian Switcheroo [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk_aqy1yNto&pp=0gcJCSgLAYcqIYzv] Weather Star 4000 [https://weatherstar.netbymatt.com/] Worcester or Providence Reddit post [https://www.reddit.com/r/WorcesterMA/comments/1tqix7m/comment/ooi84jd/?screen_view_count=2] Mark your calendars folks: Saturday, June 20 at Steel & Wire [https://www.instagram.com/p/DZDteYohiOM/], celebrating the first SIX years of Worcester Sucks! Free and fun good time!! See you there. And as always please consider supporting this outlet! Subscriptions are a little down right now and it’s a source of anxiety to be quite honest because I’m prone to enter the End Is Nigh Mindset. Nighmaxxing if you will. Subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe] / Tips [https://buymeacoffee.com/worcestersucks] / Merch Store [https://www.billshaner.bigcartel.com/] dAnd help us spread the word! Outro: Warren Zevon “Down In The Mall” [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi5u6T57OB4] Intro: Bill Shaner 6.2.26 Get full access to Worcester Sucks and I Love It at www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Episode 65: Haggler’s Delight

As mentioned quickly in the editor’s note at the start and at length at the end of the program, head to the page “John Cashman Needs A Liver [https://johncashmanliver.my.canva.site/]” if you are someone who’s in the position to donate a liver to save a life, or if you know someone who might be, or if you know someone who knows someone who might be. The widest net possible will yield the best results. Please share any way you can. Again that’s “John Cashman Needs A Liver [https://johncashmanliver.my.canva.site/].” As far as the show’s concerned: a loose round up of the activities engaged in by our fair city’s collection of gross little guys. We go over Joe Petty’s op-ed, the Sturbridge man who runs the public market trying to run for Mary Keefe’s State Rep seat despite not living in the district in a very proveable way, Ray Mariano’s little baby brain, his childlike wonder, his rose-colored glasses, the ongoing insult to the profession it remains that the Telegram lets him “write” a “column” while they have “no other actual columnist.” Local journalism is a hell of a way to try and earn a living, and we’ve got a rare thing going here where we get to do it exactly how we please to the best of our ability. I’ll stress again that is rare. And it’s all due to the people who chip in a few bucks a month to make it happen. Subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe] / Tips [https://buymeacoffee.com/worcestersucks] / Merch Store [https://www.billshaner.bigcartel.com/] “A Sturbridge resident is trying to run for a Worcester state rep seat [https://www.worcestersucks.email/p/a-sturbridge-resident-is-trying-to]” Ray Mariano: “Things I Miss Most In Today’s Politics” [https://archive.ph/20260515110014/https://www.telegram.com/story/opinion/columns/2026/05/15/ray-mariano-things-i-miss-most-in-todays-politics/90050371007/] FIFA may f**k up the US World Cup for fans in even more ways than we could’ve imagined. Will Worcester even have our scheduled viewing parties? [https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/05/13/metro/its-maddening-fifa-licensing-delays-threaten-massachusetts-world-cup-party-plans/] This podcast is available on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/3h18ugRFuHQPxnz1QQf9XM], Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/outdoor-cats-podcast/id1785258649], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYS2GF89VhHz7qjCg6dqtz6M4D8M0Aw4S], Overcast [https://overcast.fm/itunes1785258649/outdoor-cats-podcast], Pocket Casts [https://pca.st/wcs3swbc] others via this RSS link [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/57244/s/168689.rss]. Get full access to Worcester Sucks and I Love It at www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Episode 64: Eureka Street Revisited (Live!)

It was an amazing night at Hunchback Gallery on Friday, the one-year mark of the Eureka Street ICE raid [https://www.welcometohellworld.com/they-dont-need-a-warrant/] that put a mother in various federal detention centers for months, ripping a family apart in the process, as well as two other mothers through nine months of court proceedings [https://www.worcestersucks.email/p/convicted-of-assault-for-getting?utm_medium=email] on the sort of b******t charges that police departments get to file against anyone perceived to have slighted them. Here’s a pic [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eeri!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F15cceb47-ec0a-4849-88a1-a2f5b848a690_5712x4284.jpeg] of the crowd at Hunchback Gallery [https://www.hunchbackgallery.com/] that Chris took. This two hour recording has been left unedited for content (while heavily edited for sound quality, due to the band practicing on the floor below us, hence the delay in getting it up) because we feel it’s worth it to have the entire thing preserved. It is, as Etel put it in a text shortly after we all packed up and left, the first oral history of this event—one I feel will be looked back on as one of the most significant hinge points in the city’s history. Through the course of the show, we move loosely from past to present, starting with a pre-written local political context, up to what people can and should be doing now, as the deportation machine becomes more streamlined, more efficient, more eerily quiet. From ticket sales, we raised $450 for LUCE’s direct support fund in Worcester, which has a specific name that is escaping me right now, but can be found here [https://venmo.com/u/LUCEWorcester] if you’d like to make a direct donation yourself. The “big check” discussed in the episode is currently being commissioned! Updates to come. Thank you to everyone who purchased a ticket, especially those who bought the extra generous tier, which ended up being almost half. For a first live show, it went better than we could have hoped. That’s not to say it went perfect and the flubs and hiccups are left in the tape so that the next time we do a live show, you can marvel at how much better we got at it. Have an idea for the next Outdoor Cats event? Drop it in the comments. And please consider a paid subscription. Outdoor Cats episodes getting put up on a weekly basis is one thing, but this live event? There is no conceivable way I could have booked this event, promoted it, ripped apart my recording desk, schlepped it all to an art gallery, rebuilt it for the purposes of recording and a live mix, ran sound for the event, ran the event, did the podcast, packed up my recording desk, brought it home, rebuilt it, mixed and mastered the recording of the event, which took several days in this case, then wrote this post… there’s no conceivable way any of that happens if this newsletter does not support at least one full time position. So, given our only source of revenue is reader contributions, the question becomes whether you, the reader and/or listener, appreciate having this outlet in your city? Is that appreciation worth the equivalent of a beer a month to you? Subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe] / Tips [https://buymeacoffee.com/worcestersucks] / Merch Store [https://www.billshaner.bigcartel.com/] Something to think about! I can promise you I’ll keep doing this with gusto so long as I’m able. The event was a ton of work, but it was soul restoring in a way I didn’t know how much I needed. I know I’m not the only one. If you feel the same, share this episode far and wide! That helps too! This podcast is available on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/3h18ugRFuHQPxnz1QQf9XM], Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/outdoor-cats-podcast/id1785258649], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYS2GF89VhHz7qjCg6dqtz6M4D8M0Aw4S], Overcast [https://overcast.fm/itunes1785258649/outdoor-cats-podcast], Pocket Casts [https://pca.st/wcs3swbc] others via this RSS link [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/57244/s/168689.rss]. Intro music by Bill Shaner 5.10.26 Outro music: Orgone “Lay Your Life Down” [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmjluV2yrpM] Get full access to Worcester Sucks and I Love It at www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Episode 63: Implied, perhaps, even

There and back again, exploring the psychology of the Kate Toomeys of the city, of which there are hundreds if not thousands and their grip on power is sure as the day is long. Then from there to the heart of all this city’s darkness. Folks we’re just taking it all in! Don’t forget to grab your tickets for Friday Friday Friday first Outdoor Cats Live show [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1988281322960?aff=oddtdtcreator]! It’s going to be a very good and hopefully soul restoring series of conversations. And we want to hear from you as well! Call into our new tip line—508-205-9520—with any thoughts or observations you have on how Eureka Street went down and what it says about the city. Or send us a voice memo at outdoorcats@sudomail.com See you there! So excited. Some relevant links for the discussion… Kate Toomey’s equity argument [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMzwca_DhSA] When a Correction Becomes An Accusation [https://giselleriveraflores.substack.com/p/when-a-correction-becomes-an-accusation] My story on sex ed from 2019 with the Mary Mullaney quote [https://www.worcestermag.com/story/news/2019/04/04/behind-scenes-of-sex-ed-tussle-in-worcester/5522671007/] Former School Committee member Mary Mullaney, one of the key figures involved, is among those with both political influence and a moral opposition to comprehensive sex education. In an email to Binienda last September, Mullaney diagnosed what she saw as the real problem with what she called “urban kids.” “Five years from now the situation will be the same or worse because what is lacking here is strong families, good moral upbringing, fathers in homes, faith in a higher power. We put bandaids on huge problems and feel good that we are ‘trying,’” Mullaney wrote to Binienda. “You know better than anyone in Worcester — because you are the REAL thing when it comes to urban kids — that these children are spiritually and psychologically impoverished, neglected, abused. They need love, guidance, support, alternatives to the crap they see around them. Condoms will not save their souls. I am not sure if they will even help their bodies as they are too young to use them well, but I know for sure that condoms will not heal their soul or solve the loneliness in their hearts.” Mummies in MA [https://www.telegram.com/story/lifestyle/columns/2026/05/03/worcester-county-wonders-the-2000-year-old-local-still-turning-heads/87323567007/] As always please consider throwing us a couple bucks so we can put in the massive amount of time and energy recording and producing a podcast and editing a newsletter’s worth of contributors and coming up with a weekly column that’s good and worth reading and booking and promoting a live show and etc etc etc. None of that happens if this newsletter can’t fund the one full time position it currently does!! Subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe] / Tips [https://buymeacoffee.com/worcestersucks] / Merch Store [https://www.billshaner.bigcartel.com/] This podcast is available on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/3h18ugRFuHQPxnz1QQf9XM], Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/outdoor-cats-podcast/id1785258649], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYS2GF89VhHz7qjCg6dqtz6M4D8M0Aw4S], Overcast [https://overcast.fm/itunes1785258649/outdoor-cats-podcast], Pocket Casts [https://pca.st/wcs3swbc] others via this RSS link [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/57244/s/168689.rss]. Help us spread the word, especially if you’re one of the readers / listeners from outside the city! Be our little evangelists in your hopefully better community. Also if that’s you say hey. Love hearing from “out of towners” and why they read or listen. Outro: Oh for no particular reason, definitely not because it’s related in a million ways to the “we’re governed by stupidest, racist, most colonialist, and most self-assured people you went to high school with, who peaked in said high school” vibe of this episode, here’s “Liar’s Tale” [https://youtu.be/e061Py8MTHg?si=kN-lWkjPOQ1T24ra] by KNEECAP, whose new album dropped on May Day. “Do they not understand who we are/ You were popular way back when/ people did whatever they want/ nobody stood in their way/ Ats colonial cringe/ now we’re lookin back paid/ We want everything back/ The six counties/ And the artifacts/ we’ll be takin all that/ Look mate, the paddies are back/ And your kingdom’s finished/ And that’s a fact” Intro by Bill Shaner 5.3.26 Get full access to Worcester Sucks and I Love It at www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Episode 62: The Rule Of Thirds

We have a major announcement: First Outdoor Cats live show coming Friday May 8 at Hunchback Gallery and since space is limited the event is ticketed and you can get tickets here!! [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/outdoor-cats-live-eureka-street-revisited-tickets-1988281322960?aff=oddtdtcreator] Look at this awesome flyer the lovely Katie Nowicki whipped up for us! As the title suggests we’ll be looking back on a year of fallout after the ICE raid on Eureka Street that opened a new chapter in local politics—one where the bad guys started being a little more honest, let’s say. But we’ll save all that for the event! There’s a stacked bill coming together as we speak. Do not sleep on getting tickets as I imagine this will fill out pretty fast. Ticket link one more time [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/outdoor-cats-live-eureka-street-revisited-tickets-1988281322960?aff=oddtdtcreator]. In today’s show we cover a wide range of topics in no particular order: Big day for the correspondents. ICE [https://www.reddit.com/r/massachusetts/comments/1ssp98u/04222026_worcester_ma_agents_abduct_a_middle_aged/] has been back [https://www.reddit.com/r/WorcesterMA/comments/1slebfr/ice_spotted_just_outside_mcphs_on_lincoln/]. Joe Petty’s flim-flam on rent control [https://www.masslive.com/centralmass/2026/04/worcester-mayor-clarifies-stance-on-rent-control.html?outputType=amp&utm_source=The016&utm_medium=social]. Look out for the whippit squirrel at Big Y [https://www.reddit.com/r/WorcesterMA/comments/1sjedf2/look_out_for_the_whippit_squirrel_at_big_y/]As always please consider supporting this outlet so we can keep doing all the cool stuff we do! It is not, unfortunately, free to make. It takes a lot of time and in the present circumstances time is money. Subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe] / Tips [https://buymeacoffee.com/worcestersucks] / Merch Store [https://www.billshaner.bigcartel.com/] ...and give us a shout out to a friend who might like it that helps a lot! Add this podcast to your preferred player if you like... Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/3h18ugRFuHQPxnz1QQf9XM], Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/outdoor-cats-podcast/id1785258649], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYS2GF89VhHz7qjCg6dqtz6M4D8M0Aw4S], Overcast [https://overcast.fm/itunes1785258649/outdoor-cats-podcast], Pocket Casts [https://pca.st/wcs3swbc] others via this RSS link [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/57244/s/168689.rss]. Intro by Bill Shaner 4.26.26 Outro: “Early Morning” by Takumi Yoneyama off “Relaxation Music For Your Computer Life” (1997) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOh5zHYlJX4&list=RDhOh5zHYlJX4&start_radio=1] Get full access to Worcester Sucks and I Love It at www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe [https://www.worcestersucks.email/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]