The Imagine Neighborhood

Latest Episodes:

No Filter: Weird Al - Bigger, Longer & Clean-cut Nov 03, 2022

Show notes

Hey everybody, it’s your pal Count Vacula! I’m super excited because today I get to share a very special BONUS episode of No Filter with you, featuring my good friend, “Weird Al” Yankovic!

He and I met last season, but we had such a terrific time getting to know each other that we talked and talked and talked and talked for so long that not all of it could be in the original show. But Al has a really awesome movie coming out today called WEIRD:The Al Yankovic Story, so I thought it would be a great time to see if Scotty would let me share the rest of our meeting with you—and he said yes! How awesome is that?!

See you soon!

Your pal,

Vac

Sorry Not Sorry Oct 30, 2022

Show notes

Everyone makes mistakes, and that’s okay. What’s important is what we do after the mistake to help make things right! But it enough to just say the words, “I’m sorry”? And do you have to accept an apology even if it isn’t sincere? Evil Billionaire Hamster Tantrumus Maximus sure thinks so! He’s decided that he can get away with hurting people’s feelings and doing unkind things just as long as he says “I’m sorry” afterwards—even if he isn’t the least bit sorry at all!

Will Scotty be able to scrape all the jam and birdseed off himself before the local sparrows decide it’s lunchtime?
Will Princess Donnasaurus have to go live with Harry and Meghan?
Will Tantrumus ever learn about the importance of empathy?

To find out the answers to these questions (and whether we all have to start calling Tantrumus “Your Highness”), sneak past the cream-pie Palace Guards and tune in to this week’s fantastic fable of forgiveness from The Imagine Neighborhood!

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

Re-run: Alakazambra's Halloween Party Oct 24, 2022

Show notes

Here in the Neighborhood, we love to celebrate Halloween with scary decorations and all kinds of spooky fun! But what makes something scary? Is everybody scared by the same things?

Scotty and Vac thought so, until they invited Alakazambra over to see the cool haunted house they made last year. It had monsters, and alien eggs, and bowls of eyeballs . . . and Alakazambra wasn’t frightened at all! It turns out that when you’ve been battling demons for thousands of years, a mummy made of toilet paper just isn’t very exciting.

At first Scotty and Vac were a little disappointed. But when Alakazambra invited them over to visit her haunted house, they couldn’t wait to find out what kinds of chills and thrills a powerful sorceress puts together when she wants to have some frightening fun! Would they discover demons? Hordes of howling banshees? Gruesome ghosts? Or, um . . . is that a kitten?!

Did Alakazambra learn that different people can feel differently about things, and that’s okay?
Did Scotty survive the tiny tot talent show?
Are we sure that not everyone is afraid of Nickelback?

To find out, grab your most ghoulish getup and get ready to revisit one of the eeriest episodes ever of The Imagine Neighborhood!

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

No Filter with Kari Byron Oct 16, 2022

Show notes

Hey there, everybody! It’s me, Count Vacula, bringing you a brand-new No Filter with Count Vacula and a brand-new friend to meet!

I’m so excited about today’s guest! Her name is Kari Byron and most people know her from the TV show MythBusters, where Kari and her friends conducted all kinds of crazy science experiments to learn the truth about things. They tested everything from whether elephants are actually scared of mice (they aren’t) to whether a person can really climb a building on a rope of human hair like Rapunzel’s prince did (they can)!

Kari loves learning so much that she even started a kids’ content platform called EXPLR—it’s full of amazing science videos that teachers and families can use to help 5th–10th graders learn more about the world.

Kari and I have a lot of things in common, including the fact that we both like to eat delicious bugs! I eat them when they fall under the couch, but Kari buys hers specially. She even brought a bag of chocolate-covered crickets to the show! She taught me that eating food made from insects is a great way to help the planet, because they’re full of protein and it’s really easy to make more of them. But you probably shouldn’t eat any bugs unless your grown-up gives them to you.

Kari and I talked about toilet monsters, and cardboard spaceships, and how you need to keep practicing at things if you want to get them right. That’s why I keep practicing my getting-to-know-you skills! Making new friends can be difficult, or even feel a little scary—but the more I keep doing it, the better I get at it and the more confident I feel, even when I meet a TV star like Kari!

It was super fun getting to know Kari, and I think you’re going to have a great time too!

I’ll be back after awhile with another new person for you to meet, but until then, I hope you’re practicing making friends and meeting new people. Is there someone you made friends with who you really like? Write me and tell me about them! I want to know what you have in common with them, and what you don’t have in common with them, but most importantly, I’d love to know—how were you kind today?

See you soon, pal!

Vac

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

Bandersnatch Birthday Bonanza Oct 09, 2022

Show notes

An ALAKAZAMBRA™ episode.

This week, we finally get to meet math wizard (and Alakazambra's beloved boyfriend), Bandersnatch Countyseat! It’s Bandersnatch’s birthday, and a monster surprise party is in the works—but he isn’t really in a party mood. People keep saying his name wrong, and every time they do he fades away a little more. And if the gang can’t fix the problem in time, Bandersnatch may disappear completely!

So put on your party hat and get ready to belt out “Happy Birthday” in today’s transparently terrific ALAKAZAMBRA™ tale!

This episode is supported by a generous grant from the Allstate Foundation. The Allstate Foundation works to empower youth to reach their full potential and build the just, equitable, and healthy world we all deserve. To learn more, visit allstatefoundation.org.

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

No Filter with Dr. Marion Nestle Oct 02, 2022

Show notes

Count Vacula here, bringing you a new No Filter with Count Vacula! Today’s guest is Dr. Marion Nestle, PhD! Her favorite thing (and one of my favorite things, and probably one of your favorite things, too) is food! She has spent her whole life studying food, and her main job is teaching people about the best foods to help keep your body—and even your pets’ bodies—healthy and strong.

Sometimes we choose our food based just on how it tastes on our tongue, but Dr. Marion taught me the word “nutrition,” which is how we describe the ways the other parts of our body react to food. Our muscles and our bones and our hair and even our mood can be affected by what we eat! I think that’s so cool to know about!

Dr. Marion gives lectures about food and nutrition all over the world, and she teaches at colleges, and she also writes books. They’re mostly for grown-ups, but she has one called Eat Drink Vote that’s filled with cartoons we think you and your family might like.

Dr. Marion talked to me about greenhouses, and about how some “junk” food (like her favorite—ice cream!) is ok to eat if you don’t overdo it. She also explained to me that she is uncomfortable making up answers to questions, so instead of giving a silly wrong answer to our science question, she explained the real reason why humans sweat, and that was really awesome! I liked learning the answer, but I also liked that she told me how she was feeling.

It was really fun to meet Dr. Marion, and I think you’ll have fun meeting her too!

I’ll be back in a couple of weeks with another new friend for you to meet. Have you met anyone new and interesting? Tell me about it! Or just let me know—how were you kind today?

Your friend,

Vac

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

The Temple of 'Do Sep 25, 2022

Show notes

An ALAKAZAMBRA™ episode.

Scotty, Alakazambra, and Miss Mamas are on an Epic Quest to snatch the enchanted spellbook The Glamoire from the diabolical Temple of 'Do . . . but it's filled with tricky booby traps, and Scotty falls into all of them! Miss Mamas and Alakazambra take turns casting wizarding spells in each of their own dialects, and together they save Scotty, get The Glamoire, and learnthat the way everybody speaks is magical!

So grab thine magic wand, curling wand, or whatever enchanting accessory reflects your identity, and get caught up in this spellbinding ALAKAZAMBRA™ episode!

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

No Filter with Riley Black Sep 19, 2022

Show notes

Oh boy oh boy!

Hey, friends! It’s me—Count Vacula, starting off a brand-new season of No Filter with Count Vacula just for you!

My first guest is named Riley Black, and she has maybe the most fun job in the world. She’s a paleontologist, which means she studies dinosaurs! And Riley doesn’t just study them—she’s an explorer who hunts for fossils and dinosaur bones in the desert.

Riley loves to learn all about the way the world was millions of years ago, and she also loves to teach other people about it, so she writes articles and books, and she even helped make the movie Jurassic World!

Riley and I have a lot in common, like, we both love dinosaurs (although her neighborhood doesn’t have a Princess dinosaur like mine does), and we both love to taste rocks! Riley does it to help her know what kind of rock it is, and I do it just because I think they’re delicious. (But you should be careful to not lick any rocks unless you ask your grown-ups first.)

Riley talked to me about her favorite dinosaur (Allosaurus!), and about how she loves to be kind to her dog, and she also told me a terrific made-up story about why werewolves love fireworks. I really liked meeting Riley, and I think you’ll like meeting her too!

I’ll be back soon with more new friends for you to meet, and I hope you’ve been making some fun new friends of your own! You can write in and tell me all about it, or just let me know, how were you kind today?

See you soon!

Your pal,

Vac

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

Hastabee Proud Sep 11, 2022

Show notes

In today’s episode of The Imagine Neighborhood, Count Vacula isn’t sure he has anything to feel proud about. And even though there are lots of unique things about his identity, Vac's worried that he needs something else to be special... like superpowers! So when Queen Hastabee kidnaps Scotty to teach him a lesson about how cereal “hastabee,” Vac decides he'd better put on a mask and cape if he wants to save his best pal. Will Scotty finish eating his Choco-berry Marshmallow Bransplosion before Queen Hastabee takes it away from him?... Will Queen Hastabee ever get the Crunchulator sugar frosting out of her Supervillain outfit?... Will Vac learn that his own identity is already full of things to be proud of?... To find out, grab a bowl and spoon and get ready to enjoy your recommended daily allowance of The Imagine Neighborhood podcast!

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

The Poll-a-Keet Sep 04, 2022

Show notes

Princess Donnasaurus has sent her Poll-a-Keet out to make sure that the Royal Records are up to date on important things like everyone’s birthdays, favorite colors, and identity. But when Count Vacula says he’s a boy, the Poll-a-Keet isn't so sure. It’ll take an Epic Quest, sardine pancakes, and macho manicures for Vac to learn that there’s no one right way to be a boy, or a girl, or anything else—and that the person who knows you best is you!

Get more at: IMAGINENEIGHBORHOOD.org

Friend and follow us!

TWITTER, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected