Steve welcomed the family over for a Bears Monday Night Football party. Pepperoni pizza from Ledo’s was served. The excitement kept Steve awake until 4am. Dag slept comfortably with a belly full of Chinese food. Brendan chilled with Hanks on Steve’s former comfy couch. Steve texts with a mid-air Tom Thayer to get the day-after vibe. Brendan, an unwilling slave to the system, is forced to buy a new phone after his old one simply gives up.

Steve yearns for Global Services status at United Airlines. Tom Thayer is in Seattle in preparation for Monday Night Football. Will he hang with Eddie Vedder? The Jeffrey Simmons acquisition has Bears fan thinking good things. Brendan recounts his early days as a Walter Payton hopeful. Steve feels flowers can help Tom and Jeff through the current rough spot in their brotherly friendship.

Steve and Buzz are not big UFC fans. They still like boxing. Steve went to a boys school where disputes were settled via a boxing match in the gym in front of the entire student body. Hostess Coffee Cakes: Cinnamon Streusel is Buzz Kilman’s gas station treat recommendation of the week. Steve tells us more about his recent disappointing research into Twinkies. Dag and Buzz had entirely different reactions to Abbey Road Studios.

Steve gained a lot of respect for William Contreras, Pat Murphy, and the World Series Champion Brewers. Brendan and Matt had a gas at the Bulls game, while the World Series reached its conclusion. Our best to the fine city of Milwaukee. Dag experiences some heartbreak as “progress” rolls into Marquette, MI. Steve and Janet’s wedding night was full of questions, and It’s Too Early proved foreshadowing with one of its guests.

Steve made a funny grammatical error on our Community Page, which inspired some great visuals. He went back to change it, but only changed half of it. Now he’s wondering if he should undo the fix. There’s a new indie film about a man-made monster in Upper Michigan, just in time for Halloween. Speaking of that, we get our yearly visit from the husky voice of global strife and wrongdoing.

Ed Silha returns as a special guest on Talk to Me Tuesday and is back behind the controls. Steve is back to eating apples and experimenting with grapes, while a debate over breakfast burritos threatens to divide the room. Steve recalls a run-in with a mysterious, uncooperative driver who rear-ended him, and Ed reveals how his bartender connections recently gave him the inside scoop on a restaurant closing. Dag offers some important advice about vanilla extract and French toast, and the phones are packed with listeners ready to join the conversation.

Tom Thayer joins us to reflect on the Bears victory; the good, the bad, and everything in between. The mood in the radio broadcast booth turned sour, and it had nothing to do with the game. Dag turned his lemons into lemonade during a Halloween performance in Michigan. Steve and Janet are discussing the idea of adding a second dog to the household. Well, Janet mostly.

For one miracle college semester, Buzz brought home straight A’s. Steve is still trying to figure out his GED ranking, but there are some promising percentiles within the documentation. Buzz takes delivery on what he feels is a lifetime supply of Irish Spring soap. Brendan encourages us to order up a Slinger at the Diner Grill some late night. Oh, and a mile high gift for the clouds.

After a couple of false starts, the show gets up and rolling. There are two ways to increase the metal content in your body: either get an iron injection, or eat the staple from a carton of Chinese food. Steve is excited for the Bears on Thursday Night Football, even though his Pizza Pizzazz got tossed out. The Pope is recovering, which reminds Janet of her trip to Rome. Steve recalls their honeymoon in Canada.

There’s a new-ish tollway in the area, so new that it has taken us all by surprise. It’s over budget (duh!), but nearing completion. Steve recalls his tollway experiences with Necco Wafers. Steve was a brave patient for his iron infusion, and he feels good overall. Steve is in communication with Larry Wert about his Loop documentary, but has some notes. This is Season 16, Episode 190.

In preparation for the arrival of a more conventional chair, Steve’s fancy recovery chair has been relocated, and along with it, possibly, some of the sympathy associated with it. Raisin bran is the breakfast of choice for Steve, even if the raisins aren’t quite as plump as one might hope. He’s heading out for the first of five procedures today, where he’ll be infused with iron. Tomorrow, he might be talking like Popeye

Brendan comes in hot with a list of demands for the NFL, with the hopes that Tom will march them to the head office. A fairly decisive Bears victory has everyone in a good mood, though Tom remains critical of the officiating. Steve’s emotions ran deep this weekend after watching the Bears movie on the Hallmark Channel. Dag returned from Champaign with designer suits from the clearance rack of an “old school” men’s clothing store.

Our weekend plans are taking shape, but to some among us, staying home and not making plans is the most exiting option. Steve talks about mashed potatoes and LSD and how they figured into his radio career. Buzz, heartbroken by the Bears loss to the Packers, at long last mentions the name of the quarterback upon whom he hung his hopes. Speaking of Buzz, there’s a new coffee brew named in his honor.

Steve is back in his basement studio. Brendan wants to make sure that Steve is aware of all that’s being offered in Western Springs to the pumpkin enthusiast. Janet has Thanksgiving memories of a certain order, and she’s not exactly in love with the holiday. She and her friends appreciate neighborhood bars with good food, however. Despite a critical self assessment, Dag and Expo’76 had a good night at Simon’s last night.

Steve’s back behind the mixing board and his ability to identify sounds remains peerless. Speaking of hearing, Steve’s ready to hear about motorized scooters. Joe’s interested in selling him one. In fact, Brendan happened upon the Lincoln Park Winefest where Joe was getting the word out about this new form of transportation. Steve successfully made his way to his downtown appointment, but shared way too much information with a nurse, via a series of texts.

Janet gives everyone a scare after fainting on the stairs and taking out part of her glass mice collection in the process. She’s doing fine, but Steve’s left to wrestle with the vacuum cleaner while preparing for another medical appointment downtown. Ed drops off some fresh sourdough for Brendan, who wastes no time digging in, while the Chicago Marathon reminds everyone why this city is pretty special. Plus, Kelly Clarkson has a beef with a toy store, and the crew takes a moment to thank Ed for helping keep things running while Steve recovers.

Tom Thayer joins the very early Monday morning crew to make sense of an ugly Bears loss in Green Bay, while Steve wonders if a little pregame bravado tempted the football gods. Tom recalls getting chewed out by Mike Ditka for not winning by enough, while Steve’s headed for a pacemaker checkup. And Holiday Touchdown: A Bears Love Story promises at least one happy ending for Bears fans.

Buzz joins the Friday crew with a few cautionary tales about gravity, including a recent tumble at home and a fence-hopping adventure that didn’t end particularly well. Steve has made peace with the loss of his AirPods and recalls some adventures that involved flying rather than falling. Buzz also remembers a time when his program director ended up on the wrong side of a fall, and the conversation somehow turns to the declining popularity of kidnapping.

Steve finally has a potential date for his next surgery, although it could put a dent in Thanksgiving plans. Until then, he’s under strict lifting restrictions and discovering just how many household appliances he’s never actually used. Ed’s experimenting with new sourdough flavors, giving Brendan an idea, while Steve thinks the White Sox blackout was a little over the top. Janet, meanwhile, is just happy there’s still Chicago baseball being played in October.

Steve survives the traumatic loss of his AirPods while doing his best to take care of Janet, who joins the crew with a post-procedure report from yesterday’s hospital visit. Meanwhile, Lincoln Square’s Apple Fest has apparently become too popular for its own good, with frustrated donut lovers and hipsters complaining about the crowds. And a supposedly friendly encounter at Mariano’s turns into a reminder to keep an eye on your wallet.

With Steve busy serving as Janet’s driver and 24-hour nurse, Dee Snider and Steve Guttenberg step in to help fill the void. The boys discover Ed’s not only a chef, but also a baker of sourdough, Brendan confesses to some creative editing after a few unfortunate mispronunciations, and Guttenberg narrowly avoids getting scammed. Plus, never lie to Pope Leo, even if it’s only about tennis.

Tom Thayer joins the Monday crew to break down another Bears win, with plenty of praise for Ben Johnson and a few teachable moments for Tyson Bagent. Brendan tries not to jinx a Bear who hasn’t fumbled yet, while Steve remembers a trip to Green Bay where the Packers fans were annoyingly gracious in victory. Steve’s also ready to return the favor and take care of Janet after her outpatient surgery.

Buzz joins the Friday crew as the long-awaited Talk To Me Tuesday calls finally get their moment, including one listener with some very specific thoughts about Case Keenum. Steve’s apparently a delight to travel with, Dag discovers the miracle of steaming his stage blouses, and Buzz draws a firm line regarding dogs in a new TV show. Plus, we finally get the origin story of “ESPO 1.”

Steve’s daily walk turns into a neighborhood meet-and-greet with someone who may or may not be impressed by his celebrity status. The Doors and Jellyfish divide the room, Janet gets an unexpected lesson in sausage casings, and Dag revisits some inspired theater of the mind from his radio days.