Cricket Time Podcast

2020 may have majorly fucked us, but what followed—what was revealed to us—was how institutions operate, the persistent cloaking of racist attitudes, and even how class functions. Take ,for example, buying groceries. When we go to Giant Foods, Whole Foods, or Costco, what are we expecting? Are we expecting a certain standard of cleanliness? How do we react to people that we encounter?We investigate the absurdity of America’s mythologies, by reading Chapter 1 of Kurt Vonnegut’s Breakfast of Champions. Why have we blindly accept strange traditions in flag raising and lowering? What does the symbology on our money refer to? Why has the year ‘1492’ been drilled into our brains?We then detour into ethics. Everything has the potential to be art. Reflecting back on Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus, we discuss creation, existence, and meaning-making. Can every day objects be art? If I place a toilet in a museum, does that make it art?

We try to find an intersection between the poor whites in rural Maryland vs poor blacks in inner city Baltimore. For some, their struggle is seen as valiant, commendable and “American.” While others may see their struggle as a symptom of a system that no longer needs them. Or as Frank would put it, “A foot in two different rivers.” As 2020 draws to a close we begin to look more for solutions to our problems instead of focusing on the issues. Raising awareness of the humanity in both rivers will be our new focus.

Thanksgiving. Conveniently placed 3 weeks after an election, just to remind you of who is still posting 2010 Joe Biden memes on Facebook. Like many of you, it is a day of mass gorging, resting, gorging again, and then holding your stomach in the mirror like a bean bag. We all have fond (or not so fond) memories of Thanksgiving day.In this episode, we share with you our family’s food traditions, our recipes (some of them), and the daunting task of hosting your own Thanksgiving.

Power. What exactly is it, who really has it, and what does it mean? For Kelly, it’s the ability to enact change around himself. For Frank, it’s being aware of power’s corruption, and how we avoid its seduction. We all have our own definitions of power. The question we have for you is How Much Power Do You Give Power?How much time and space have you given to the powers that control you? Or, do you believe that you are your own center of power and nothing can manipulate it? How do you maneuver through this power hungry world? We try to look at how a man's rise to power has shifted and unearthed the entire landscape of America. Blanket generalizations of groups of people will not work to solve these questions. We try to dive deeper into the psyche of the silent powers that run this country. Giving awareness to hypocrisy destroys ignorance. There’s a distinct difference between poetry and just words. As Audre Lorde wrote in 1978,“The difference between poetry and rhetoricis being ready to killyourselfinstead of your children.”

When will it be socially acceptable to not have it all? When will having enough be commonplace? Do all of our actions, economical or political, boil down to an attitude towards our own wealth? We have lived with the hope of living The American Dream, but to what length will we go to achieve it? Would we stab our brother in the back for an opportunity of a lifetime? Would we gamble with other people's money if it was socially acceptable? Under the guise of "Just Doing Business" we have damaged our humanity. We have made it OK to benefit from another's detriment. We have made it OK to exploit the lesser among us, while the richer prosper. Is there a way for us to be a participant in this system without compromising our moral integrity?

Will we finally accept what the evidence has shown us? Will we continue to fight, or are we humble enough to let go? 2020 alone has taught us innumerable lessons about empathy toward ourselves, by practicing self-care, but also about empathy towards people, by communing with others: listening and understanding. Can we really put ourselves in another’s shoes?The Trump presidency has, not only exacerbated racism and inequality in this country, but has snuffed out our basic decency. Our country has revealed its naked underbelly. As the Gospel according to Twitter would read, “Live your life in such a way that the entire planet doesn’t dance in the street when you lose your job”. While inequality grows, so does our lack of empathy. By suspending the ego, we can see the bigger picture; we can see humanity for what it is. Can we feel vulnerable, without fear of backlash or contempt? What would it mean if we could

How much does the Earth cost? Does it have value? If so, what kind? There are many ways to view this question, not just materialistic. Are we prepared to deal with the consequences of our actions on this planet? With more than 7 billion people, it’s difficult to see how our individual actions impact our daily life. While this is a difficult question to answer, it’s important to pay attention to how we treat each other, to be in a safe space of like-minded people where we can shed stereotypes. Ultimately, the cost of the Earth—the cost of living on the Earth—will be the little things that add value to ours lives: eating from a restaurant you haven’t been to in years, or talking to an old friend. Did we really live our lives in the moment?

What does America look like? Why is it considered a “melting pot” of nationalities and identities? At any one moment, we enter new social environments, meet new people, and attempt to identify with them. We recall our own ancestry and heritage when talking about ourselves, but do we know who our ancestors are, and what they did? We get caught up in our own, singular identity. We forget the influence of how other cultures have shaped who we are. How far back can we trace our family line in the United States? Our answer to this will speak to our connection with the land, here. Our ancestors can teach us a lot about ourselves. For some of us, they may even embody our spirituality, shaping our beliefs, norms, and soul. For others, it may be confusing: who are my ancestors and why does it matter? Investigating our family tree may provide answers to who we are and where we come from. It may inform us of where we are going. We are the past and future. We get to decide—regardless of where we come from—how our heritage has shaped us by choosing our proudest and darkest ancestral lines to best suit our narrative. Nevertheless, it is important to learn our history, to not make the same mistakes as our forefathers, to learn the lessons that have come from before.

How do we self-actualize, i.e. what do we imagine for ourselves and the sort of life we want to create? There are many ways to be on this path. Therapy, meditation, the writing process. Yet, we become overextended. We realize that we may need help in understanding key insights about ourselves. It is an act of discovery, a journey. There is no rush. Through the writing process, for example, one arrives at the answer, that the means to create poetry and literature is already in front of us. It is a matter of capturing what we mean and writing it on the page. Picking up the pencil, and beginning the craft, constructing—with our own hands—the sort of life we imagine for ourselves. However, we may attempt to self-sabotage, or play mind tricks with ourselves. We may doubt ourselves. This is all a part of the process of figuring oneself out. Everyone’s process is different.

What does it mean to be human within a culture, and how do we shape it? Big inventions and insights change humanity forever, but it is the persistent day-to-day decisions that invest in our culture. Even everyday attitudes of generosity, kindness, and humility can contribute to evolving who we are. A lot of these small displays of graciousness have been lost; holding doors, listening to one another, even simple compliments seem to have evaporated. What does it mean to be human today, and how has it changed throughout history? We may be surprised to find how culture is radically different, even in our own country, yet alone a different continent. We discuss the mechanisms that divide us as well as what we can contribute, as artists, as laborers, and as everyday people, and how the reverberations of today: politically, spiritually, and intellectually, will shape our tomorrow.

We are not all that different when building community, nor when we are responsible for juggling our finances: two unrelated topics, but seemingly conjoined when discussing what it means to be an adult.Building community is how we form a sense of identity and how we present ourselves to others. It demonstrates how we interact with the world. We both explain our childhood and how, growing up in the suburbs and in the inner city, it has shaped our views of community. Each of us on our own separate paths converge at times, but ultimately never fully understand each other's worlds. Travelling across boundaries, we become tourists observing an alien world. Now as adults, having both lived in the city, county, with roommates and by ourselves, we have come to find that we are all the same. Our only true difference is the zip code that we grew up in. How do we develop community with neighbors? How do we get to know people? This new sense of community development will certainly change our working definition. Also, what role does the internet play?Regarding financial struggles, we are not all that different. There may be different institutions we have to go through, different means to accomplish our financial goals, but we all struggle to get a hold of our own wealth. What is the difference between Charles Schwab Bank and Western Union? The difficulty is, going through the motions with no guidance. We were not taught financial literacy. We will, additionally, struggle to further our economic outlook without knowledge and without assistance. How do we get the help we need?

What is the purpose of entertainment? We attempt to find the balance between pure indulgence and pure learning. Is it possible to learn while also being entertained? On the one hand, we have the pure enjoyment of childhood: being outside with friends, discovering new worlds, experiencing new senses. On the other hand, we have the drudgery of adulthood: being thrust into the unnatural environment of corporate America and taking on responsibilities. Our generation, millennials, were presented with a new outlet: video games. How has the gaming industry shaped this balance? What lessons have we learned from being a part of a digital world? Team player games can show us interesting insights about human nature, while MMORPG’s can show us how a digital world can imitate real life. We also discuss the implications of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death. Should one woman’s death affect the state of our Republic? We discuss how everyone could get involved, not only at the Federal level, but more importantly, at the local and state level. We also evaluate how the two-party system has played a role in shaping our country, and why the two ideologies, though not all that different, have some key differences. How did the Founding Fathers attempt to create a nation separate from British rule? How difficult is it to form your own system of government? As it turns out, having a truly representative democracy is a lot more complicated than it looks.

Why is there no common ground between two opposing thoughts? Can’t both sides be right and wrong at the same time? 2020 has been a roller coaster for us all and Kelly gives his impute on how he views the current state of America. First as an American and Second as a black man in America. He delves into the duality of these two simultaneous consciousnesses and the struggle that ensues. He focuses on controlling his narrative and the power that brings: an individual and finding his own voice. Later in the podcast, we talk about the power of the internet and how it has forever changed our culture: social media, gaming, and business. Has entertainment become more important than learning? Has the internet helped or hurt us? We talk about the pros and cons of living in the age of infinite information and what that means for us. Video games have allowed millions of people to recreate themselves into whoever they want to be: free of judgement from others and brief freedom from the daily stresses of life. Having the ability to be anonymous has given people a voice that they may never have had: good or bad.There will be many unanswered questions. There will be silence. This is Cricket Time.

How do we change who we are—especially if we’ve lived this way our entire life? How do we navigate through our lives in a way that is meaningful to us? This process can be difficult, especially if we work full time, have children, have a spouse, or other things that can take focus away from ourselves and our own priorities. We have to remember that, while we certainly have responsibilities and commitment to others, we have to be selfish sometimes. We have to create a life of our own for ourselves. We have to recognize when we’re being overextended. For Franco, this pathway opened up to him by rejecting antidepressants to confront his own anxiety and depression. This also meant being explorative with recreational drugs—psychedelics—that allowed him to step outside of himself, to see who he really was, and what sort of life he wanted to create. The question, “How do I know what I want to do?” leads to, “I can’t know unless I try.” We must be open and commit ourselves to being life-long learners of ourselves and what we want to achieve in this short life. We can’t know until we actually begin. Thus, we must “ascend the mountain” of our individual struggles—not in order to reach a peak—but to understand that ascending is all there is, and it should be enjoyed. Please share with us your stories about ascending your own mountain, the journey that led you to that moment, and the lessons learned.

Have you ever talked to someone only to find out, halfway through, they weren’t listening? Or, when they’re talking, you’re not listening? We experience it, too. Hence, Cricket Time. Join our weekly conversation, ranging from history, politics, culture—unscripted and off-the-cuff—as we present our authentic selves, and our thoughts about the state of the world. It’s a process of unlearning. We’ll be wrong a lot and admit when we don’t know, but that’s OK: that is how we learn. We’ll research evidence and discuss new findings. We ask that you please join our discussion by commenting on social media with different topics for us to discuss. Each episode is an opportunity for growth. Think critically, be wrong, and laugh about it. In these unprecedented times, let yourself be wrong and question your beliefs to discover who you are, through the art of conversation. Let’s discover together.