The Familiar Voices That Have Been Part of My Life for Years

My daughters can recognize Ben Mandelker and Ronnie Karam‘s voices from Watch What Crappens without even seeing their faces.

Not because they’re devoted Bravo fans, but because I used to listen to the podcast while driving them to school.

For years, those two voices were part of our morning routine. My girls probably heard more Real Housewives recaps than they ever intended, and somewhere along the way, Ben and Ronnie became familiar to them, too.

It made me realize something recently. There are people I’ve been listening to for so long that their voices have become part of the background of my adult life.

Some I’ve followed for more than twenty years. I’ve watched them change jobs, start new projects, and build entire businesses around their interests. I’ve celebrated exciting announcements with them, laughed at their jokes, and even met a few in person.

One of them hired me for a freelance project.

That particular experience didn’t go quite as planned.

Rob Cesternino, The Fishbowl, and a Very Orange Website

I’ve followed Rob Cesternino since 2003.

Long before I was listening to podcasts on my phone, I was following Rob’s reality television commentary online.

Back when I worked as a web developer at Pennington Biomedical, I used to sneak over to a website called The Fishbowl.

It was a reality television website with a design that was impossible to miss. I remember it being bright orange.

Apparently, my coworkers noticed.

“There you go again, looking at that orange website.”

They weren’t wrong.

A screenshot of the Fishbowl website. — I recently went digging through the Internet Archive and found an old version of The Fishbowl. There it was, in all its bright orange, early-2000s glory. I immediately recognized the website my coworkers used to tease me about.

The early-2000s internet was certainly something.

That Time Rob Cesternino Hired Me

Years later, I was browsing freelance jobs on oDesk, the platform that eventually became Upwork, when I came across a listing from someone named Rob Cesternino.

I couldn’t believe it.

Was this actually Rob from Rob Has a Podcast?

It was.

I applied, and I remember Rob being surprised to find a developer from Louisiana responding to his listing.

I recently found our original correspondence from June 2012. He was looking for someone to take a Photoshop design and turn it into a working WordPress website.

I got the job.

Unfortunately, I was still learning the finer points of WordPress development.

I made all the necessary customizations directly to the parent theme instead of creating a child theme.

If you know WordPress, you already know how this story ends.

The client updated the theme.

All my changes disappeared.

Every. Single. One.

Needless to say, I didn’t hear from Rob again.

I can laugh about it now, but it was a painful lesson at the time. These days, I build custom WordPress templates and functionality for my own website, and I certainly understand the importance of using a child theme.

The funniest part of the entire experience?

I still listen to Rob.

Apparently, one disastrous freelance project wasn’t enough to end a perfectly good twenty-plus-year relationship between a podcast host and one of his listeners.

My email correspondance with Rob. about a WordPress gig. — The original oDesk message from Rob Cesternino, dated June 18, 2012. Little did either of us know I was about to learn a very important lesson about WordPress child themes.

Nintendo Voice Chat and the Excitement of Being a Fan

Another familiar group of voices comes from IGN’s Nintendo Voice Chat.

I’ve listened to Nintendo podcasts for years, going back to when José Otero was part of Nintendo Voice Chat.

I remember listening through the disappointing Wii U years and then hearing the excitement surrounding the Nintendo Switch. It was fun listening to people who were every bit as enthusiastic about Nintendo as I was.

José eventually left IGN to work for Nintendo, but I kept listening.

Brian Altano has always been one of my favorites. One moment I still remember is watching his reaction to the announcement of the Link’s Awakening remake. He jumped out of his chair and started cheering. It was such a genuine reaction, and I loved it.

That’s what keeps me coming back to Nintendo coverage. These aren’t just people talking about release dates and game mechanics. They’re people who genuinely love the games.

I also follow Nintendo Life and André from GameXplain. Over the years, they’ve introduced me to games I might have overlooked and given me another way to enjoy a hobby I’ve grown to love.

Sometimes the conversations surrounding a game are almost as entertaining as playing it.

Vibrant bubble floating in a digital game environment with blue and green hues.

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Watch What Crappens and the School Morning Commute

If there’s one podcast that has become a regular part of my routine, it’s Watch What Crappens.

I’ve listened to Ben and Ronnie for more than a decade.

If you’ve never heard the show, they recap Bravo reality television with impressions, running jokes, and commentary that frequently makes me laugh harder than the actual episodes. It’s the kind of podcast I can put on while working, driving, or trying to motivate myself to use the treadmill.

For years, it was also part of my daughters’ school commute. I love that they recognize Ben and Ronnie’s voices. It’s such a small thing, but it’s funny how our everyday routines leave little impressions on the people around us.

I eventually had the opportunity to meet Ben and Ronnie at a live show in Houston. After listening to them for so many years, it was genuinely exciting to meet them in person.

They were the sweetest.

I think there’s always a little uncertainty when you meet someone you’ve followed for years. You hope they’ll be as enjoyable in person as they seem through your headphones. Ben and Ronnie absolutely were.

I met Ben & Ronnie from Watch What Crappens in Houston — Finally meeting Ben and Ronnie from Watch What Crappens at a live show in Houston after years of listening. They were every bit as sweet in person as I’d hoped!

The Watch What Crappens podcast live in Houston.

Following the People, Not Just the Shows

What’s interesting is that these creators don’t all cover the same things.

Rob talks about reality television. Ben and Ronnie make fun of Bravo shows. The Nintendo personalities spend hours discussing games, consoles, announcements, and everything else happening in that world.

But the subject matter is only part of why I keep listening.

I enjoy the people.

I like hearing their reactions, their opinions, and their stories. I like that I can recognize their voices immediately, even after years of lineup changes and new projects.

There’s also something fascinating about watching someone’s career develop over time.

I’ve followed some of these personalities from relatively small websites and early internet shows to successful podcasts, YouTube channels, and entirely new careers.

The internet has changed dramatically during that time.

I remember sitting at a desktop computer reading a brightly colored reality television website. Now I can listen to hours of commentary from my phone while doing practically anything.

The technology changed, but many of the voices stayed the same.

Funny enough, Rob, Ben, and Ronnie even did a crossover podcast this summer. After spending so many years listening to them separately, hearing those familiar voices together felt like two parts of my entertainment world colliding.