Clockwise 643: Podcast Stretching Routine

Date: February 11, 2026
Hosts: Dan Moren (A), Mikah Sargent (B)
Guests: Shelley Brisbane (C), Jonathan Reed (D)

Episode Overview

This episode of Clockwise dives into four contemporary tech and wellness topics: personal automation on macOS/iOS; expense tracking for work trips; online age verification (with a focus on Discord and emerging laws); and health and fitness apps/devices that actually make a difference. As always, hosts Dan Moren and Mikah Sargent are joined by two knowledgeable guests, Shelley Brisbane and Jonathan Reed, for a fast-paced, insightful 30-minute discussion.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Automations on Mac and iOS

(Starts at 01:40)

• Shelley uses macOS tags and the third-party app Hazel to automate the movement and naming of podcast and work audio files:

  • Hazel delivers tagged files (e.g., "lts" for her podcast, "work" for her job, "guest" for guest spots) to appropriate folders and adds "RAW" if unedited, plus a date.
  • Work files get routed to a public server folder for the radio show. Not new, but “great ways to make sure the audio goes where I need it to go.” (02:01)

• Mikah also relies on Hazel:

  • Automates cleaning his Downloads folder and archiving old Clockwise audio to NAS.
  • Encountered notifications when disconnected from the network: “Hey, I’m trying to move these files but I can’t because I can’t connect to the network…” (03:15)

• Jonathan highlights his favorite Shortcut:

  • Turns off "used listening history" on Apple Music when playing music for his daughter to avoid kid music infiltrating year-end stats.
  • At 11pm, an automation restores proper HomePod volume and reenables listening history: “So, it’s a nice little automation that just resets everything audio-wise on my phone and all our HomePods.” (04:15)

• Dan discusses moving automation from Hazel to Shortcuts:

  • Archives podcast recordings after two weeks to NAS; now replicates this workflow in Shortcuts.
  • Frustrated by insufficient debugging for shortcuts: “I get up and I look at my notifications ... podcast archive took too long to run ... Thanks, Apple, for not making things very clear when it comes to debugging shortcuts.” (05:29)
  • Tried creating an automation for AirPods/white noise at night but finds it unreliable.

Memorable Quote:

“Be great Apple if you could add a little more useful debugging tools for that kind of thing. But I do love automations and I love to hear all of yours, so thank you for that.” — Dan (06:39)

2. Expense Tracking for Work Trips

(Starts at 07:30)

• Shelley is seeking a simple yet effective expense tracking process, ideally an app or workflow.

• Mikah uses a physical approach:

  • Keeps receipts in a color-coded mesh zipper bag (“the little yellow bag") during travel.
  • At trip’s end, scans them with his phone for reimbursement submission. “I’m so sorry to say, there are these beautiful little mesh zipper bags ... and into that yellow bag, I put all of my receipts...” (07:54)

• Jonathan doesn’t track expenses much but shares MacStories recommendation:

  • The app Collections — a personal database that can be adapted to track expenses. “Devon has sung its praises before and he’s really hot on his personal finance.” (09:25)

• Dan relies on a customized Numbers spreadsheet:

  • Has an annual template for income/expenses; logs expenses manually and automates the logging of PDF receipts using Shortcuts with private cloud compute.
  • “I can drop a PDF receipt into my folder. And using shortcuts automation ... it can look at a PDF and be like ... add a line for it into your spreadsheet with the relevant details...” (10:20)
  • Scanned receipts from iPhone can be automatically categorized.

• Shelley concludes it’s more about habits than tools:

  • Prefers the flexibility of a spreadsheet. Also highlights A Better Route Planner (ABRP) app for mileage tracking — especially useful for EV drivers.
  • “Expense tracking is really about habits more than apps … I like the spreadsheet approach as opposed to the app approach, because I feel like it would be infinitely flexible...” (12:19)

3. Online Age Verification

(Starts at 16:03)

• Jonathan: Mixed feelings, recognizes the intent to protect minors but worries about:

  • Overblocking (e.g., sexual education, LGBTQ resources) due to blunt legislative approaches.
  • “It’s hard to argue against protecting children online... But ... I worry about how good these verifications can be...” (16:33)

• Dan: Points out that legislative mandates often lack technical nuance; systems feel like “a sledgehammer.”

  • Highlights privacy issues — past data breaches with age verification firms (70,000 documents leaked).
  • “The system is going to need to work a lot better before you can just start slapping these blanket bans on stuff.” (19:45)

• Shelley (based in Texas, where such laws are emerging):

  • Discusses the “Pornhub law” and the shift as general-purpose sites (like Discord) become affected.
  • Stresses two issues: accurate age verification methods that respect privacy, and overly broad restrictions possibly denying adults access and overblocking for minors.
  • “Now Discord is one of the major players in this ... general purpose environment that also has ... things on it ... that minors shouldn’t have access to.” (20:00)

• Mikah: The lack of agreed standards causes “a mess”:

  • Companies scramble to enter the age verification space without robust vetting, risking user data leaks.
  • “It's very frustrating to see all of these companies getting to just kind of swoop into this space and we don't know who they are.” (21:55)

4. Health and Fitness Apps/Devices

(Starts at 22:57)

• Dan: Nike Run Club app and Apple Fitness+:

  • Praises the Nike Run Club’s structured “get into running” program and coach, and the flexible Apple Watch integration.
  • “Coach Bennett is great. I highly recommend that program if you’re looking to get into running ... it made a difference. Like, I stuck with it.” (23:07)
  • Uses Apple Fitness+ winter series to maintain consistency and motivation (“...it doesn’t count unless I get my rings closed, right?”).

• Shelley: Apple Health hypertension notifications:

  • Uses them as reminders to check blood pressure and collect data for herself and her doctor.
  • “...it's been pretty useful.” (24:45)

• Mikah: Oura Ring:

  • Initially skeptical, but now uses it to detect sickness early by monitoring physiological stress patterns.
  • “It has done the thing I had been waiting to see it do ... give me the ability to catch getting sick before it happened.” (25:27)

• Jonathan: Bend stretching app:

  • Likes its variety of routines and the customizable AI integration that creates routines based on user needs (“...desk routine...which I’d created with their Bend AI feature.”)
  • “I can highly recommend that if you’re wanting to stretch and feel a bit more supple after sitting at your desk all day, like the podcast stretching routine.” (26:19)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Automations:
  Dan: “Be great Apple if you could add a little more useful debugging tools for that kind of thing. But I do love automations...” (06:39)
• On Expense Tracking Habits:
  Shelley: “Expense tracking is really about habits more than apps...”
• On Age Verification:
  Jonathan: “It’s hard to argue against protecting children online...but I worry about how good these verifications can be and how closed off some areas of the Internet are going to be for vulnerable people.” (16:33)
• On Health Devices:
  Mikah: “Over time I’ve been using it and now it has done the thing that I had been waiting to see it do ... to give me the ability to catch getting sick before it happened.” (25:27)
• Podcast Humor:
  Dan: “Like the podcast stretching routine, everybody should limber up before we do the show.” (27:34)
• Recurring Joke:
  Multiple references to Tony (listener/participant) as the “fifth member of Clockwise.” (Throughout)

Bonus Topic: Dream Destinations

(Starts at 27:53)

• Shelley: Everest Base Camp trek (via YouTube inspiration)
• Mikah: Wants to finally see the Grand Canyon
• Jonathan: Fushimi Inari Shrine in Japan (inspired by Shogun), but “anywhere in Japan, really”
• Dan: Aurora Borealis (“...I have to go to Norway or Sweden or something and really, really try to get it there.”)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |-----------------------------|--------------| | Automations | 01:40 – 07:30 | | Expense Tracking | 07:30 – 14:12 | | Age Verification | 16:03 – 22:57 | | Health/Fitness Apps | 22:57 – 27:34 | | Bonus Topic (Travel) | 27:53 – 29:29 |

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