Garage Logic (Gamut Podcast Network)

Episode: MISCHKE: Blah

Date: January 17, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode features host Mishke (a recurring character in the Garage Logic universe), diving into the theme of the “Midwinter Blahs”—a state of listlessness and boredom that often descends in the heart of winter. Blending dark humor, regional color, and whimsical digressions, Mishke explores the meaning of “blah,” recounts bizarre stories of people trying to overcome their doldrums, muses on the origins and contrasts between “blah” and “meh,” and connects with various callers for quirky on-air conversations.

Main Themes & Discussion Points

1. Shaking Off the Midwinter Blahs

• Mishke reflects on the malaise many feel during the depths of winter.
• Key Story: Confronts a man complaining of the "midwinter blahs" by jokingly threatening him with a revolver to give him a “new lease on life,” underscoring the absurdity of how people try to break their routines.
  • Quote: "Right now, if I were to put this gun away and you felt that new lease on life, how does it feel? Breathe, boy. You're alive. ... But I bet we shook those winter blahs, did we not?" (03:00)

2. Odd Attempts to Escape the Blahs

• Mishke reads a news item about a man in Iowa exposing himself to traffic, claiming he was trying to “create excitement that was missing from my blah life.”
  • Quote: "He thought he'd shake them by dropping his pants and underwear and leaning against his Impala and lifting up his shirt as cars came by. ... That's not the way I recommend to take care of it." (04:50)
• Shares his tongue-in-cheek alternative: get naked in a beauty salon, but only indoors where it’s warm.

3. The Linguistics and Nuances of “Blah” and “Meh” (07:42–11:02)

• Origin of “blah” possibly from the French “blasé” (bored/indifferent).
  • Quote: "Blue is sad. Blah is bored. Indifferent." (09:10)
• Distinction between “blahs” (boredom, languishing) and “blues” (sadness).
• Mishke rants playfully about the modern use of “meh” (Yiddish origin, meaning “so-so”).
  • Quote: “Meh seems to be one of my constant moods. So here is the reading of I feel meh.” (08:10)
• Playful comparison of animal sounds and the expressive power of grunts like “nah,” “ha,” “oof.”

4. Historical Oddities: Unusual Floods (12:00–21:57)

• The Great Molasses Flood of 1919 in Boston: Mishke dramatically recounts how a tsunami of molasses devastated the city.
  • Quote: "50-foot high wave of molasses sweeps through Boston. For decades, people in the area said they could still smell it." (13:40)
• The Dublin Whiskey Flood of 1875: A river of whiskey causes chaos, with 13 dying from alcohol poisoning after drinking from it.
• Modern disaster: pig manure lagoon floods in North Carolina following Hurricane Florence—darkly comic speculation about biblical-scale weird disasters.
  • Quote/Singalong: "If you gotta send a flood, make it Irish whiskey." (20:55)

5. Name Games and Mishaps (26:34–33:32)

• Discussion of a Washington County snowplow naming contest, highlighting Minnesota’s love for whimsical names.
• Mishke’s own family traditions: naming a windshield ice scraper “Margaret Mary Miller” (after a tragic incident involving his grandfather).
  • Quote: "So grandpa always thought we should name our windshield ice scrapers after her. Margaret Mary Miller. She didn't make it, which was tragic. The impact killed her." (31:41)

6. Caller Conversations (22:00–26:09; 34:47–38:53; 40:36–57:57)

• With Debbie (law firm worker/real estate assistant):
  • Light banter about generational labels (Boomer vs. Generation Jones).
  • Playful probing into her job and mental health (in classic Mishke sardonic style).
• With Ty (city employee in Portland, Maine):
  • Describes life out east; ends in comic reminiscence about a failed childhood attempt to free a lobster and a forgotten pet salamander.
    • Quote: “When you buy an animal, one of the things everybody should tell you at the pet store... Remember you bought it.” (38:12)
• With a former radio colleague:
  • Mishke is called “the phantom caller,” and delivers a heartfelt, entertaining origin story tracing his radio life from prankster caller to sidekick and then host.
    • Quote: "I wasn't a delivery truck driver. I was the Phantom caller on AM 1500 KSTP." (43:04)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the impact of boredom:
  "The blah life situation is a bugaboo. I'm not going to lie to you. I've encountered that sensation from time to time in my existence." (06:21)

• On language:
  "Both words, by the way, have an H in them that is silent. ... The H feels blah. The H feels meh." (08:23)

• On disasters:
  "Oh, those were the days when the dam would break and we would die in lovelier ways. Those old fashioned floods, we sure get fewer. They've been replaced by giant waves of hog manure." (19:45)

• On snowplow naming:
  "Washington County is having a snowplow naming contest. ... I was thinking of offering up the names Mark and Stephen for those shovels. We don't need to get nearly as creative when it's old shovels." (28:00)

• On quirky family legacy:
  "So grandpa always thought we should name our windshield ice scrapers after her. Margaret Mary Miller." (31:43)

• On radio beginnings:
  "There's a power, an extraordinary power when you make someone laugh that goes into your bones. You want to do more of it." (44:30) "Now, you don't give a guy a name who you don't want calling back. That might as well have been a giant billboard that said, call often. We enjoy it. That's all I needed to hear." (45:51)

Key Timestamps

• 03:00 – Mishke’s “cure” for the Midwinter Blahs with dark humor.
• 04:50 – Story of Iowa man combating the blahs through public exposure.
• 07:42–11:02 – Deep dive on the words “blah” and “meh,” humorously tracing their meaning and use.
• 13:40–21:57 – Vivid historical accounts of molasses, whiskey, and manure floods.
• 22:01–26:09 – Phone call with Debbie (generational chat, real estate job banter).
• 26:34–33:32 – Snowplow naming contest and story of “Margaret Mary Miller.”
• 34:47–38:53 – Phone call with Ty about Portland, Maine, lobster rescue, forgotten salamander.
• 40:36–57:57 – Conversation with Mishke’s radio colleague, including full “Phantom Caller” origin story.

Episode Tone & Language

Mishke’s narration is sardonic, irreverent, and packed with storytelling energy. The language moves seamlessly from the darkly comic to the whimsical to the heartfelt, never straying too far from the show’s core themes of Midwestern common sense, local color, and the peculiar ways people cope with the ordinary and the extraordinary aspects of life.

This episode is recommended for listeners who enjoy dark humor, regional storytelling, classic radio lore, and oddball takes on linguistic quirks and history. Even without full context, Mishke’s stories and lively delivery provide both laughs and thoughtful moments on getting through winter, making one’s mark on the world, and the strange joy in naming a snow shovel.