The Front Porch Podcast

In this long-awaited final installment of the staff spotlight series, Hailey is here to tell us about her new album, Dove. We talk about her artist name, Mr. Marigold, what it has to do with a fish-shaped purse, her creative process, and what it takes to make an album while working full-time at Front Porch. Listen to Dove by Mr. Marigold on Spotify here. Follow Front Porch on Instagram and support us financially. Theme song is by Lifegrid.

This week, on our penultimate staff spotlight, Front Porch's director Joel Drenckpohl hops on the pod to talk about his backyard, how to make radically inclusive space, and where we might find the modern commons. Music on the episode is by QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and our theme song is by Lifegrid, who you can find on Bandcamp. Support Front Porch on our website or on venmo @frontporchslo Keep up to date with all Front Porch happenings on our Instagram, @frontporchslo

For the second installment of our staff series, 2nd-year intern Emily Biekert jumps on the mic to talk about friendship in post-grad life. Where do we find them? How do we make them? When no longer in the controlled college environment where ANYONE in your proximity could reasonably be a friend, it takes a little more intentionality. Music on this episode is by QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and our theme song is by Lifegrid, who you can find on Bandcamp. Keep up to date with everything going on at Front Porch on our Instagram. Support our work on venmo @frontporchslo, or on our website.

This week, we are back after a little hiatus with the first installment of a new series. For the next few weeks, we will be put up some conversations with the staff of Front Porch on things they are passionate about, projects they're working on, or just subjects they think the people should know about. Up first is our Associate Director Dom Floyd on self-care, and the radical potential of incorporating such a practice into our lives. Music on the episode is by QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and our theme song is by Lifegrid, who you can find on Bandcamp. Keep up to date with everything Front Porch is doing this quarter on Instagram @frontporchslo. Support our work here at Front Porch on venmo @frontporchslo.

What's the deal with Easter? Another holiday special with the director of Front Porch, Joel Drenckpohl. Music on the episode is by QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and Lifegrid, who you can find on Bandcamp. Keep up to date with everything Front Porch is doing this quarter on instagram @frontporchslo. Support Front Porch on venmo @frontporchslo, or on our website.

Dedicated to the memory of Kennedy Love, a forever friend of the Front Porch. Why do we put kids in jail? What is restorative justice? Why does the US hold a quarter of the globe's incarcerated population? What does gardening have to do with any of this? Sarah Maloney talks about addressing these issues through her Landscape Architecture senior project, "A Garden Can Cultivate An Inmate: Reimagining Youth Incarceration." Check out her project, and all the terrific work of the graduating Landscape Architecture students, at cplaseniorshow.com Music on this episode is by QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and Lifegrid, who you can find on Bandcamp. Keep up with everything going on at Front Porch on our instagram @frontporchslo. Support Front Porch on venmo @frontporchslo or on our website.

In the final installment of "White Christian Nationalist," we explore what lives on the other side of a church defined by white christian nationalism. Who is reimagining Christianities? Are we allowed to call it quits? What does a road trip tell us about Christianity and the GOP? Our guests this week: M'Lynn Martin David Jackson Mason Mennenga, host of A People's Theology Podcast Matthew Melendrez, host of the Roll Down Podcast Tyler Mitch Nadine and Theo Our music this week is by QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and Lifegrid, who you can find on Bandcamp, and our friend Chris, who used to sit down at the keys in Front Porch and provide delightful ambient jazz to accompany your studies. Keep up to date with everything going on at Front Porch on instagram @frontporchslo. Support on venmo @frontporchslo or at frontporchslo.org/donate

This week in our miniseries, "White Christian Nationalist," we get into the history of the combining of forces of empire and Christianity, and how this fusion of systems has formed the unsavory threads of the Christian tradition that mobilized many of those who attacked the Capitol on January 6th of this year. Our guests: David Jackson, an artist and musician who you can find on Instagram @dayvidya and on Spotify at Day Vidya. Matthew Melendrez, cohost of the podcast The Roll Down. M'Lynn Martin, SLO county local and youth pastor in San Diego. Mason Mennenga, host of the podcast A People's Theology. Our music for the episode is by QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and and

Our first installment of a three-part miniseries on white christian nationalism. Three guests, three stories of christian nationalism from California to South Dakota. What is christian nationalism? How does it show itself not just in those worst cases of an attack on a federal building, but in run-of-the-mill church culture throughout the US? Over the next three weeks, we will be sharing stories and insights from people who have witnessed christian nationalism, how it got here, and how we might see a new sort of Christianity on the other side. Guests this week: Mitch F. Mason Mennenga, you can find him on Twitter, or on his podcast, A People's Theology, wherever you get your podcasts. M'Lynn Martin Music on the show this week is from QKSND, who you can find on Spotify, and Lifegrid, who you can find on Bandcamp. Keep up to date with everything going on at Front Porch on our instagram. Support Front Porch on venmo @frontporchslo or on our website.

If you've been following along, we skipped episode 24. It was a timely one on the holidays with FP alum Sophie Carnevale, and I didn't get around to the edit in December. But here we are, and January already felt like it was 10 months long, so we're basically in the holidays again, right? A belated holiday special. Music on the show: QKSND, who you can find on Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/artist/1KzHzwHQyxsmUgaUDpQkau?si=weWhTQfDRjinUxE-otJdow Our theme song is by Lifegrid, find his music at lifegrid.bandcamp.com

This week, we hear from Lisa Swartz who is running the campaign #DivestTheCSU to get the largest 4-year university program in the US to divest entirely from the fossil fuel industry. We talk university endowments, structural versus individual action, and how to create a new future not dependent on fossil fuels. Their first coalition meeting is open to all on Monday, 2/8, at 6pm. Join via zoom here, passcode is 704842. They will meet every Monday thereafter at the same zoom link. Join Divest the CSU's Slack here. Join Divest the CSU's email list here. Email Lisa at divestthecsu@gmail.com Thanks to Ben Slope for his music on the show, you can find him as QKSND on Spotify. Thanks to Austin Gandler for our theme song, you can find his work under the name Lifegrid on Bandcamp. Support Front Porch through venmo @frontporchslo, or on our website.

Content warning: this episode deals with themes of suicide and disordered eating that may be triggering to some listeners. This week, sophomore Kallie Kidder hops on the mic to talk about eating disorders, what treatment looks like, and the structural causes of mental health crises. You don't want to miss this one. Check out the book Kallie mentioned, Anti-Diet: Reclaim your Time, Money, Well-Being and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating, by Christy Harrison. Available wherever fine books are sold. Thanks to Ben Slope for his music on the show, you can find him as QKSND on Spotify. Thanks to Austin Gandler for our theme song, you can find his work under the name Lifegrid on Bandcamp. Support Front Porch through venmo @frontporchslo, or on our website.

This week, FP alum Erik jumps on the pod to share his expertise in saying "I don't know," navigating the powers that be in Cal Poly engineering, and what the heck the "real world" is. Music this episode: opening track by QKSND, find him on Spotify. Theme song by Lifegrid, find them on Bandcamp. Support Front Porch on venmo @frontporchslo, or on our website here.

Lo-fi beats are made by humans, not robots! This week, we have Ben Slope on the show. Ben makes the lo-fi tunes that are featured on many episodes, and we talk about entering the largely anonymous world of lo-fi music, creating during the pandemic, and some of his inspirations. Check out his music under the name QKSND on Spotify here. Want to know what Front Porch is up to this quarter? Head to Front Porch's Instagram! Want to support Front Porch? Find us on venmo @frontporchslo or click here. Our theme song is by Lifegrid, find him on bandcamp here.

Christmas in the midst of a pandemic--perhaps we can learn a little from the circumstances how absurd Christmas really is, and how it might provide new opportunities for our more rebellious energies. Check out Field Day in SLO on Joel's recommendation! A great book on Christmas is Christmas: A Candid History by Bruce Forbes. Music this episode: beats by QKSND, find him on Spotify theme song by Lifegrid, find him on Bandcamp

This week--if after college is the "real world," then is during college...the "fake world"? What would make it so fake? And Danielle shares what she's learned from her time in start-up culture. Ben and Danielle are a couple of Front Porch alum's learning to navigate the "real world." Check out Weyes Blood on Danielle's recommendation. Support Front Porch on Venmo @frontporchslo, or on our website here. Keep up to date with everything happening at Front Porch on our instagram. Our music: QKSND, find him on Spotify. Lifegrid wrote our theme song, find him on Bandcamp.

Headspace, being (accidentally?) religious in college, and our general inconsistency as people. Mike is a Cal Poly/Front Porch alum, and resident expert on talking ad nauseam about things he knows nothing about. Mike is reading Don't Think of an Elephant by George Lakoff. Find the Flat Earth documentary on Netflix. Find The Root Beer Lover here. For terrific short stories, Mike recommends George Saunders. For everything Front Porch is up to--from free meals, to book clubs, to free coffee, to our weekly worship gathering, and everything in between--keep up on our instagram here. Support Front Porch on our website here or through venmo, @frontporchslo. Music on this podcast is by some lovelies in the Front Porch community--QKSND and Lifegrid. You can find QKSND on Spotify here, and Lifegrid on bandcamp here.

This week--what does depression look like during a pandemic? Among other things, like the Chicago Bean, a visit to Minneapolis, and going outside. Donate to Tabitha's fund to get her a replica of the Bean on Venmo. Her handle is @tabitha-tolsma Book referenced: How To Weep in Public by Jacqueline Novak Keep up to date with all things Front Porch on our Instagram here. Support Front Porch financially here or on venmo @frontporchslo. Music/Sounds: QKSND, find him on Spotify here. theme song by Lifegrid, find him on Bandcamp here. sounds of Minneapolis are from the All Gas No Brakes video of Minneapolis protests.

This week, former Front Porch intern, Ryan, and FP house alum, Sarah, jump on the pod to talk about self-doubt, growth, and post-grad outcome pie charts. What is self-doubt doing to us? How does it get in the way of our growth? Why should we bother with trying something new? What does phenomenology have to do with any of this? You're invited to our Fall Fundraiser! Learn more here. Support Front Porch Keep up to date with everything the Front Porch community is up to every week here. This week's music: - "FEELING LONELY" by QKSND, find him on Spotify. - Our theme music is by Lifegrid, find more of his music.

This week, Michael tells us what he knows about cultures of engineering, specifically at Cal Poly. How can engineers think in a way that takes into account their objects, inventions, and systems' impact on those who interact with them? How can a university with so much funding from the defense industry navigate "public welfare?" Readings from the week: "Do Artifacts have Politics?" by Langdon Winner "Engineering Design for Social Justice" by John Leydens and Juan Lucena "Normal People" from Technically Wrong by Wachter and Boettcher "Culture of Disengagement in Engineering Education?" by Erin Cech Support Front Porch here. find more music by our theme song composer here.

Long time Front Porch-goer Jenna Kintner tells us what she knows about dystopia, particularly concerning the present state of the US. We do some post-utopian dreaming in an attempt to escape the non-place of "utopia" and consider the alternative good-place of "eutopia." References: Hannah Arendt: a video on "The Banality of Evil" Ta-Nehisi Coates: "The Banality of Racism" article rubreddit: r/aboringdystopia "eutopia" versus "utopia" Octavia Butler, XENOGENESIS trilogy and Parable of the Sower, buy on bookshop.org Mike Davis's Los Angeles: City of Quartz, buy on bookshop.org music is by Lifegrid, find his music support Front Porch here

The interns for Front Porch's 2020-2021 year gather around some mics and give the people an update on everything happening at Front Porch this quarter! Hear about our outdoor coffee service, events for the quarter, and our plans to help us all navigate the pandemic safely. Music by Lifegrid, find his work at lifegrid.bandcamp.com Keep up with everything going on at Front Porch at instagram.com/frontporchslo Support Front Porch at frontporchslo.org/donate

This week, what we're learning. The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre: https://www.vox.com/identities/2020/5/31/21276084/tulsa-race-massacre-black-wall-street-protests-george-floyd Andrea Davis's Are Prison's Obsolete? (2003) Seven Stories Press James Cone's Black Theology and Black Power (1969) Seabury Press Some great follows to keep learning on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/for.harriet/ https://www.instagram.com/annika.izora/ https://www.instagram.com/professor_crunk/ https://www.instagram.com/rachel.cargle/ https://www.instagram.com/nowhitesaviors/ https://www.instagram.com/urdoingreat/ https://www.instagram.com/theslacktivists/ https://www.instagram.com/changingwomxn/ https://www.instagram.com/laylafsaad/ Intro music by Lifegrid. Find his music at https://lifegrid.bandcamp.com/ Keep up to date with Front Porch over the summer at https://www.instagram.com/frontporchslo/

This week, we get into, well, this week. Learning in action, gettin' educated, protesting while white, and what "abolishing the police" means. Protest action recorded by Paul Gillis-smith Resources referenced, and some extra ones as a treat: ACLU on your rights as a protester and what to do while attending: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/protesters-rights/#im-attending-a-protest What to do about teargas: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CA0aQRdjus6/?igshid=ku23zhmhzjy0 MPD 150 (Working toward a police-free Minnesota) FAQ: https://www.mpd150.com/faq/ Media for learning how to be an anti-racist: https://www.instagram.com/p/CA8y6RXj1P_/?igshid=3c2csy299yyk "Isn't that public safety?" reworlding toward police-free problem solving by @sloanejett: https://www.instagram.com/p/CA_GUuMjHbB/ "How to Dismantle White Supremacy at Cal Poly SLO by @darianmars: https://www.instagram.com/p/CA-x2D0pCqS/?igshid=gjl4du2n1i3b Black revolutionary texts compiled by @alijahwebb on IG: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/18y0_2wm85L113fVWYdgljq9uuIlmlbl3 Womanist literature compilation by Gold Womyn: http://www.goldwomyn.com/bilphenasonlinelibrary Quoted book: Black Theology and Black Power (1969) by James Cone

Zooming too hard? Try this out. Resources referenced: Zoom's own YouTube video on tools for IT/Management: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGGms1ksUhQ&feature=youtu.be BBC "Why Zoom Chats are so exhausting": https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200421-why-zoom-video-chats-are-so-exhausting NY Times article on zoom fatigue: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/29/sunday-review/zoom-video-conference.html Alternatives to zoom: https://qz.com/1836278/zoom-alternatives-have-their-own-video-conferencing-drawbacks/ Intercept article on zoom encryption: https://theintercept.com/2020/03/31/zoom-meeting-encryption/ NatGeo on Zoom fatigue: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/04/coronavirus-zoom-fatigue-is-taxing-the-brain-here-is-why-that-happens/#close Harvard Business Review on Combatting Zoom fatigue: https://hbr.org/2020/04/how-to-combat-zoom-fatigue Music by Lifegrid, find his work at lifegrid.bandcamp.com Keep up with everything going on at Front Porch at instagram.com/frontporchslo Support Front Porch at frontporchslo.org/donate

This week, Em and Paul talk a little about book club that has started at Front Porch this quarter. We have been reading Glennon Doyle's newest work, Untamed, for the past few weeks and have been learning lots about unpacking the stories we are told about gender and sexuality, and where we go from there after taking these stories apart. Music by Lifegrid, find his work at lifegrid.bandcamp.com Keep up with everything going on at Front Porch at instagram.com/frontporchslo Support Front Porch at frontporchslo.org/donate

This week, our last discussion from winter quarter in our politics of the divine series. What does it mean to be an advocate, and how can we do it well? Keep up with the latest in Front Porch here. Theme song: Lifegrid, find and support his work here. Join us for more politics of the divine live in our zoom worship gatherings here at 5 pm PST, every Saturday. Support Front Porch financially here.

Each week this quarter, we've been gathering on Zoom to discover together the "why" of Front Porch, discussing a talk, message, or video that we share earlier in the week. This coming week, one of the interns at Front Porch, Theresa, shares some thoughts on failure and success, and how failure is just as much a part of our becoming as the rest of the parts of us we label as good or acceptable. Tune in to hear Theresa, and join us on Zoom this coming Saturday, May 16th, for a community discussion on these themes! Join us here at 5 pm PST, every Saturday. Keep up with the latest in Front Porch here. Support Front Porch financially here.

Another feature in the Politics of the Divine series! This week, on money, capitalism, the economic situation of first century Jews, and how might we continue to put questions to the ways we think about and work with money in the present. These issues seems increasingly pertinent in the present moment, as so many of us find ourselves without money in the midst of a global health and economic crisis. Moments like these are the ones where some reconfiguration might happen--where we realize the stories we've told about how money works and who gets to have it could be questioned. Keep up with the latest in Front Porch here. Theme song: Lifegrid, find and support his work here. Join us for more politics of the divine live in our zoom worship gatherings here at 5 pm PST, every Saturday. Support Front Porch financially here.

This episode, we've got some discussion from a worship gathering in February on how the notions of scarcity and plenty affect our worldview and behavior, and some post-mortem reflection from Emily and Paul on how scarcity and plenty seem to be the name of the game in the midst of a pandemic--whether it's tests, toilet paper, or ICU beds. Hosts: Paul and Emily featured in discussion: Joel D, Danielle D, Mikaela M Keep up with the latest in Front Porch here. Theme song: Lifegrid, find and support his work here. Join us for more politics of the divine live in our zoom worship gatherings here at 5 pm PST, every Saturday. Support Front Porch financially here.

This episode, we've got some discussion from a worship gathering in February on visions of utopia in Christianities and feminist movements, and Emily and Paul accompanying this discussion from thoughts on utopia in the midst of a pandemic. Hosts: Paul and Emily featured in discussion: Kallie K, Ben T, Ben C, Joel D, Jenna K, Danielle D Theme song: Lifegrid, find and support his work here. Join us for more politics of the divine live in our zoom worship gatherings here. Support Front Porch here.

On this episode, our third installment of the series on the politics of the divine. Social hierarchy, outsiders, and the God who sees! All that and more. Find out all that's still going on at Front Porch on Instagram and Facebook @frontporchslo and Facebook.com/frontporchslo. Music at the top of the show by Lifegrid, find more of his work here. Hosts today were interns Paul and Emily.

This week, we have an interview with a student from before the time of physical isolation and homestay. Pedro tells us about his family, finding friends that look like him in his engineering program at Cal Poly, and that time he broke his face. Enjoy the corona-free conversation!

This week, we return to our series on the politics of the divine, recordings from our Saturday night worship gatherings. This one is particularly appropriate—a discussion and exploration of the themes of apocalypse, end-times, and heavenly books. Where do our ideas of end-times originate? When we talk about apocalypse, what is it we are really trying to get at? In a time where the end feels like it is just around the corner, perhaps this discussion will situate us historically in a helpful way.

One of our favorite parts of the Front Porch yearly schedule is our quarterly camping trips. This episode captures some conversation around the campfire on our most recent camping trip to Pinnacles National Park.

In our first episode of the new year, Front Porch director Joel Drenckpohl's talk on The Politics of the Divine, introducing some themes and pondering some questions about themes of exile, oppression, and blessing. How could an affluent, imperial country like the US connect with a people group from millennia ago, whose history was marked with being dominated by every empire of the day? Hear these talks and be a part of the discussion when they happen, every Saturday at 5 pm at Front Porch, in beautiful San Luis Obispo, CA. frontporchslo.org

On the first installment of the Front Porch Podcast, we ask the public the question: how much coffee do you think Front Porch drinks in a day?? The answers we found may surprise you. Hear students from all backgrounds doing math in their heads, guessing at cups of coffee per pot, consider student life factors causing such a changing amount of coffee consumed, and why--why are we doing this to ourselves with all the caffeine?? Music by Lifegrid Editing and production by Paul Gillis-Smith find us online at frontporchslo.org, or visit us at 1468 E Foothill Boulevard in beautiful San Luis Obispo, California.