Pop Cartography

My college bud Karis Rogerson sits down with me and discusses growing up in Trieste as an MK, watching "Lord of the Rings" in Slovenia and why she loves New York. I try my hand at pronouncing Italian words (failing miserably), and Karis explains the difference between American and Italian coffee. We give Hilary Duff our love and discuss our affinity for YA historical fiction. And although Karis wasn't allowed to have a horse in her room, she can rest assured that she could have been an Olympian. And please—no one tell Chuck Norris that his likeness is being used to sell mulled wine in Slovenia. Pop culture recommendations: Karis: TV: "Jane the Virgin"  Books: "Girl Out of Water" by Laura Silverman and "The Girl From Everywhere" by Heidi Heilig  Music: "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi, feat. Daddy Yankee Becca: "Priestdaddy" by Patricia Lockwood Housekeeping: Follow Karis on Twitter: @KarisRogerson And Instagram: @karisselizabeth Find Karis's website: Karisrogerson.com Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

Molly is the amazingly talented illustrator who designed "Pop Cartography"'s logo, and she talks with me about growing up in Knoxville, where she ate mainly "Midwestern poverty food"—but also Buddy's BBQ—before embarking on her vegan lifestyle. We discuss starting a commune on Prince Edward Island (where our beloved "Anne of Green Gables" is set), the Appalachian drama "Christy" and the McElroy franchise. Molly also generously tells me about discovering she was queer in college and falling in love with her wife. Also, remember to buy some Buddy's BBQ sauce at buddysbarbq.com. Pop culture recommendations: Molly: "The Adventure Zone" (a Dungeons & Dragons podcast from the McElroy brothers) and the band Pentangle Becca: "Mad Men" and "Twin Peaks Rewatch" Housekeeping: Follow Molly: @mollyalicehoy Find Molly's website: Mollyalicehoy.com Find Molly's web comic: Stonewaker.com Molly's Etsy shop: Gold and Mean Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy (woo!!)

Kumbu chats with me about having parents from different Zambian tribes and her move to Kentucky for college. She tells me about the cost and effort that goes into her hair (which always looks amazing, BTW) and the importance of looking put-together in Zambian culture. Pop culture recommendations: Kumbu: Zambian author Dambisa Moyo, including her TED Talks and book "Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa;" musician Pompi Becca: "Americanah" and "We Should All Be Feminists" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and "Anne with an E" on Netflix Housekeeping: Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

I talk with my old friend from middle school about moving from Latvia to England to Papua New Guinea and the difficulties of learning English. She corrects all of my assumptions about what Eurovision actually is and differentiates Latvia (a Baltic State) from Scandinavia. And don't forget: EVERYONE'S been to Poland, so don't even bother. This episode also features a guest appearance from a laptop fan—sorry about that! Pop Culture Recommendations: Anna: "The Handmaid's Tale" and Brainstorm Becca: "Twin Peaks: The Return" and "We Are the Best!" (Vi är bäst!) Housekeeping: Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

I talk with Melynda "Lyndi City" Malley about growing up in the Pacific Northwest and her affinity for Stumptown Coffee. We discuss the Seattle-centric TV classic "Here Come the Brides," grunge rock, Macklemore's omnipresence, Twilight's heyday and whether or not Seattleites are always filled with ennui and wearing plaid (hint: yes). Pop Culture Recommendations: Melynda: "The Babysitters Club Club" and everything McElroy related, especially the podcast "Rosebuddies" Rebecca: "Fargo" season 3 and the podcast "Buffering the Vampire Slayer" Housekeeping: Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Follow Melynda on Twitter: @melyndamalley, and Instagram: @lyndigram Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

My high school friend Lena Heupel tells me about moving from Germany to Papua New Guinea in primary school and how difficult it was to express herself in English. She explains the difference between high German and other dialects, and she's also so kind as to translate the lyrics to "Du Hast" for me, but we had to google them first because lol we don't listen to Rammstein. We discuss Julia's and my über-fun visit to Berlin in 2010 and the World Cup final we witnessed between Spain and the Netherlands. We tried some great wine at a wedding, were greeted by drunk strangers draped in German flags and saw some beer bikes, which I was in awe of. Lena, if I come back to visit, we are GOING on one of those.

I talk with self-proclaimed Bad-Hombre-turned-Coastal-Elite Charlie Day about Peru, where he lived on-and-off growing up. He tells me about “Emperor’s New Groove” and its historical accuracy (spoiler alert: it's not) and the horrific flooding in Peru, along with Drake, potatoes, guinea pigs and llamas. We recommend listening to soothing pan flute music in the background while listening to this episode. Pop culture recommendations: Charlie: TV: "Better Call Saul," "Veep," "Silicon Valley" and "Samurai Jack." Movies: "Logan," "Get Out" and "Beauty and the Beast." Music: "More Life" by Drake, "Process" by Sampha and "Chanel" by Frank Ocean. Books: "A Colony in a Nation" by Chris Hayes Becca: "My Brother, My Brother, and Me" (literally AGAIN, but the TV show on Seeso this time!) and PWR BTTM Housekeeping: Follow Charlie: @ohyeah_mamaman Donate to disaster relief here: http://disasterphilanthropy.org/ Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

College roommate Katie Garden describes her childhood in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. She tells me about what her dad accomplished while he was mayor of Point Pleasant, "We Are Marshall" and, of course, the Mothman. If you need to know three things about Katie, they are as follows: Katie loves people, her pomeranian and sales at Kroger. Pop culture recommendations: Katie: "Criminal Minds," "Law & Order: SVU" and "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson Becca: "My Brother, My Brother, and Me" (again) and "The Hike" by Drew Magary (I pronounced his name wrong in the ep.—sorry, listeners!) Housekeeping: Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

Celine Dion, curling, pierogis, whether or not Canadians actually say "eh," poutine—all this and more on this week's episode on Canada. My high school classmate Luke tells me about living in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, which even Canadians assume is right outside Toronto. I chide him for not knowing about Grimes or "Orphan Black," and we catch up on where in the world our parents are these days. Pop culture recommendations: Luke: The Head and The Heart, Angus and Julia Stone, Birdy Becca: "Stranger Things" and "The Get Down" Housekeeping: Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

Mall-walking? Pitbull? Dance movies? Chaffing? This episode's got it all. My amazing guest Kayla Monteiro talks to me about growing up in FloRida, the land of SeaWorld (pre-"Blackfish"), plazas, Ariana Grande and Florida Georgia Line (but Kayla doesn't know her so plz stop asking). Kayla describes being a black woman in Florida and how she has changed since moving to New York. This episode was unofficially brought to you by White Zinfandel and the loud insects that were outside the window while we were recording. Pop culture recommendations: Kayla: "The Read" Becca: "Ghostbusters" Housekeeping: Follow Kayla: @kaylamonteiro Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

I learn how to eat Vegemite properly and where rugby got its name with high school friend Amy Keeble. I try my hand at an awful Australian accent, and we quiz each other on Down Under vocabulary. Grab your Billabong board shorts and a chockie-bickie and get comfy. You'll be DEVO if you miss out on this one. When in doubt, just remember: Hugh Jackman = GOOD. Pop culture recommendations: Amy: "The Office" and "Parks and Recreation" Becca: "Dime Store Cowgirl" by Kacey Musgraves, "Veep" and "Silicon Valley" Housekeeping: Follow me: @BeccaPattonSays Follow the show: @pop_cartography Email me: popcartography@gmail.com Theme song: "How it Goes" by Lauren Mann Podcast artwork by Molly Hoy

Fellow New Yorkers Jason Chang and Diana Park (or, the Charks) sit down with me in my sweltering Astoria apartment to discuss growing up Korean-American. They help shed light on my most burning questions, like: what's with PSY's music videos? Is he cool? Which K-Dramas are worth my time ("Signal") and which are best left alone ("Boys Over Flowers")? Why does Korean girls' skin look so good? And what is up with the demasculinization of Asian men in American culture? All this, plus why Diana loves natural disaster movies.

College bud Isaac Archer and I talk about his growing up years in Argentina. Topics of discussion include our emotional weddings, Argentine boy bands (there is only one, according to Google), the FIFA scandal, Rammstein (DU HAST! DU HAST!), mate vs. matcha tea, Archer's sweet new tat and more. Also, listen in to hear his cat, Crumb, wreak some cute havoc in the background.

Joyce Chu talks with me about growing up in Hong Kong, then moving to the U.S. as an exchange student. We discuss tea restaurants, Hong Kong-style macaroni breakfasts, karaoke, C-Pop, Korean beauty products and the difference between Mandarin and Cantonese. Joyce also tells me about watching "She's the Man" and "Mean Girls" to learn English, her Chinese name and how she started liking avocados. Also, you know that feeling where you walk into someone's messy dorm, and you're like, "Oh no"? Joyce can relate because that was my room freshman year. But don't worry — she powered through and found a place to sit. And the rest, as they say, is HERstory.

My college friend Natalie Hamilton (a.k.a., Natalie Portman) and I talk about her childhood in South America and her summers in the States, where she thought life was a constant pool party. Learn how to pronounce Uber in Spanish, and find out whether or not Uruguay is in Africa (or is it Russia?). We also discuss our weird musical tastes as children, including that time in college when Natalie discovered Christina Aguilera sang in English. Also, spoiler alert: Natalie is weirdly good at remembering all of Brangelina's children and also their birth countries??

Well, bless your heart for listening to "Pop Cartography." I talk with my husband Luke, a native Alabamian, about his beloved home state. We discuss college football, the Gaither Brothers, spaceships, BBQ, Luke's love for Batman and his latest hobby, bread. All that, plus our pop culture recommendations. It's fun as all get out!

In which my best friend and I wax eloquent about our childhoods in Papua New Guinea, the concept of fika and what Swedes think of Americans. If you've ever wanted to hear someone pronounce Swedish words badly (me), you've come to the right place. If you've ever wanted to hear a bona fide Swede pronounce Swedish words well (Elin), you've also come to the right place. Speak friend and enter. Or, as Google Translate tells me, tala vän och ange. Go grab yourself some kanelbulle and kaffe and settle in.