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Listen to "Spooked in the Woods"
Jonathan Goldstein is the host of WireTap, a regular half-hour radio program on CBC, and is currently writing a book-length re-telling of Old Testament stories.
Goldstein lives in Montreal with his long-time partner, author Heather O'Neill, and her daughter Arizona. Jonathan and Arizona are regular radio collaborators: Arizona is a frequent guest on WireTap, and Jonathan recently played a part in Arizona’s recording of Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events. He played Count Olaf, the villain. This time, they went camping — much to Jonathan’s trepidation. Posey Gruener caught up with him.
So going camping was Arizona’s idea?
Jonathan Goldstein: Yeah, when I was approached to do something for this series, I could have done anything…and maybe I’m inventing this but I think it was suggested that I run with the bulls, or go on an African safari, and I was like no….But Arizona had been wanting to go camping, so we went to this place outside Montreal called Oka, which is famous for its cheese. I believe monks make the cheese.
The monks make cheese in a town called Oka? Or near the campsite?
Jonathan Goldstein: The campsite was actually made of cheese.
Ha ha. Okay, other than that, what was the campground like?
Jonathan Goldstein: Well, there was one point when we got the tent all set up and everything and I was very proud, but for Arizona tent envy set in. There were these guys who seemed like professional campers — professional drinkers, actually — and she was marveling at their tent which was like three stories or something…
Cathedral windows and…
Jonathan Goldstein: Yeah, that sort of thing.
Were there any challenges you had with making the piece itself?
Jonathan Goldstein: Nah. Maybe just the problem of trying to get a 12-year-old to talk to you. Like: "How are you feeling about this?" "Uh… it’s good." Well, actually, the thing that I was most concerned about was that the process of recording the camping trip would somehow eclipse the camping trip itself, but now that I think back on it, "doing radio" took a hind seat to just spending time. Which was cool.
I didn’t notice s’mores on your camping menu. I hope you had s’mores.
Jonathan Goldstein: That’s so true, huh? We didn’t have s’mores. You see, I really didn’t know what I was doing with all of my preparedness.
Jonathan spoke to us from New York City and was mugged, he says, three times during the course of this conversation. The interviewer had no idea. “I didn’t want to interrupt the conversation,” he said. “I’m very professional, I know.”
Nature picture credits: Mark Godfrey/TNC (The Nature Conservancy's Hemlock Draw Preserve, Wisconsin)
