The PegLeg Podcast: Parables for the Soul

In this episode I'm very transparent about my faith journey. I might be sharing too much, but I want to get it out of my memories and into audio so that the people I care about can listen and reflect on their own stories. It's intense for me to share it. The death of my faith was as important as its reawakening. Thank you for listening. 

I wanted DeVona to join me on my podcast, because I'm inspired by her story and wisdom. She grew up in a segregated city, experienced intense racism in high school, worked extremely hard to achieve her dreams, and now uses her platform to do a lot of good. DeVona's voice is full of wisdom. We talked about career, race, success, caretaking for a parent, and much more. 

Brian Lammi is an entrepreneur and owner of six companies, including the Founder and CEO of TEAM LAMMI, which represents and has produced events for a wide range of epic athletes and personalities. I wanted to know the story of how he landed his first professional athlete client, and what it's like to navigate that world. I was also curious to know what role he played in Donald Driver (his client, friend, and business partner) winning Dancing with the Stars... 

Craig Counsell is a very successful professional baseball player turned manager. He played sixteen seasons with five different teams, and has now been the manager for the Milwaukee Brewers since 2015. He's had a very impressive career, and he's also a really good guy. I treated this interview like a coffee shop conversation, asking quite a few random questions... all stuff I'm really curious about. There are some special moments in this episode. Craig said some things about ambition that were really helpful to me. 

Keller knows wealth, poverty, failure, success, and the wisdom that comes with it all. She is an entrepreneur, an author, and an artist. This conversation touches a full spectrum of those topics and goes extraordinarily deep at times. Keller shares real wisdom about how to find our way through complex life situations and challenges. This is a special conversation. 

Ava is full of joy. She says the trajectory of her life is happiness. But why is that true when she suffers so much? When Ava was 13 years old she was forced to make a choice between living with extreme chronic pain for the rest of her life or to have her nerves severed to end the pain which would cause her to lose all feeling. Imagine being faced with that decision. And that's just scratching the surface of this 19 year old's struggle. So why is she happy? Where does her joy come from? And how can the rest of us find it? That's what we discussed. 

Antonio is a 24 year old entrepreneur who started his career at the age of 12.  When he was a child, he hid his love for computers because he thought black kids weren't supposed to be good at using them.  Secretly, he started a YouTube channel where he taught people how to use design software (when he was 12). His videos earned hundreds of thousands of views.  At the age of 14, he got his first job as a graphic designer, creating products for the NFL and Disney World.  At age 18 he started the business he runs now with his business partner.I interviewed Antonio because I believe his story will inspire other young people to believe their talent can be activated in powerful ways.

At age 10, Richard Moran came home from school and found trucks emptying his house. They were being kicked out and lost everything. Flash forward to adulthood and Richard was the CMO of Trek, finding massive success, and hanging out with celebrities. His story is impressive, but woven throughout parts of it are alcoholism and passive aggressive leadership.This is a conversation about how Richard came to realize he needed to change, and how that transformation is becoming real. The turning point is unforgettable. 

Is time moving too fast? In this episode, I tell  a story about a girl and a family who changed the way I think about time. They helped me think beyond it. 

This story is about love, saying goodbye, and finding hope. It's about a baby boy that came into our lives and left a forever-mark on our hearts. I'm sharing this story, because it's a beautiful reflection for 2021. How do we make the most of this next year? This story might help us find that answer. 

Jim Taugher is CEO and Creative Director at a creative marketing agency that he started over 25 years ago. This is the story of how he went from dysfunctional teen to extraordinary creative leader. We also talk about our first encounter, a meeting that changed the trajectory of my life. 

The first time I saw someone freestyle, I was in awe. I became obsessed with it. Every chance I got, I freestyled. At parties. In cars. At school. At home. Everywhere.  And I never stopped. I still freestyle as often as I can, even at work. In this episode, I tell some stories about how learning to freestyle impacted my life, and why I teach my daughters how to do it. In addition to personal experiences, I share some research I found that reveals what happens in someone's brain when they freestyle rap.  At the end, you'll get to hear a family freestyle session with my 7 year old, my 10 year old and me. 

Jeremy Bryan, aka Quill the Messenger, has written several hip hop albums for all ages. He has performed for millions of people and won many awards for his music and for two books he co-authored for educators and parents. A couple years ago, Jeremy wrote an intense album called Plight of a Parasite. I re-listened to the album recently and it struck me deep. Its music production and lyrical content are worthy of deeper conversations. So I asked Jeremy to join me for a series of conversations about the songs. This first conversation explores the deconstruction of Jeremy's faith, his rejection of fundamentalist Christianity, and the new questions he's asking. If you're interested in real, deep conversations, this is a must listen. Note for parents who might listen with children: This song and conversation contain some explicit lyrics. 

In episode 16, I talk with Caron Butler, a 15-year NBA veteran, prolific commentator and analyst, two-time All-Star, author, entrepreneur, philanthropist and media personality.His story is being turned into a feature film, and it should be. It's pretty amazing. And it continues to grow. Caron is investing his influence and resources into making positive change in communities. I've enjoyed learning about what he's doing. Some story highlights: his friendship with Kobe Bryant, his encounter with the police as a teenager, and the work he is doing to change the world. 

Calista Anderson is an Advanced Grief Recovery Specialist in Los Angeles. She helps people heal from tremendous loss. One of the reasons she is an expert in this area is that she has lost more than most of us can imagine. Sexually abused as a child. Developed addictions in high school. Lost her mom during the first week of college. Became addicted to heroin. Landed in jail… and then everything changed. How and why? Listen to her story. 

When Laura told me the news, she looked afraid. I could sense that she simultaneously wanted to fall into me for comfort and yell at me with resentment. She did neither of those things. Instead she became distant and stoic. We didn't plan it. I hadn't really even thought about becoming parents. We had only been married a few months, and that in and of itself was kind of hard. We were best friends, but all this change was very difficult for us. This is the story of that time in our lives, and the introduction to our first daughter, Genevieve. It's a story that feels vulnerable to share, but it's important. We learned a lot. Plus, the experience I talk about here inspired a children's song that is shared at the end of the episode. You can check out that children's album (You Come Too by The Figureheads) here: https://music.apple.com/us/album/you-come-too/164361251

Brian Anderson calls play by play for the Milwaukee Brewers on the Fox Sports Network, NCAA Tournament basketball for CBS Sports and Turner Sports, regular season NCAA basketball for FOX Sports and the Big Ten Network, MLB games for TBS and NBA games for TNT... But did you know he was also a breakdancer? In this conversation, we talked about Brian's most memorable mistake as a sportscaster (a mistake in front of MILLIONS of humans). We talked mental/emotional health in his career, and we talked about music, racial tensions and more. Brian is a genuine person, and a good friend. And I believe his wildly successful career is just getting started. You'll be hearing a lot more about him in the future. 

Ingrid was the first black child to attend a white school in Milwaukee, WI. I told her story in detail in episode 11 of this podcast. In this new episode, I have a phone conversation with Ingrid about that school experience and other personal stories from her childhood. As a child she knew and spoke to relatives of hers who were alive during slavery. Those stories are extraordinary. She also talked about her own childhood stories, including the time she drank from a white water fountain, and her father's response to that. There were moments in this conversation when I had tears in my eyes and other moments when we were laughing. This is worth your time. 

One day in 1958, six year old Ingrid Carter was sitting with her father in the front room of their home. I imagine her sitting there, looking up at her dad, wondering why his face was so focused, and why his words were extra gentle yet so firm.  He said, “I promise I will not let anything happen to you.” He was asking her if she would be willing to change schools, to become one of the first black children to attend a white school in Milwaukee.This podcast episode tells Ingrid's story. In 2016 I was asked to produce a short film about Ingrid's experience and her work with a school called Milwaukee College Prep. Meeting her and hearing her story inspired me. Telling her story here is an honor for me.You can see that short film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWdNxXRq9Hk

Within a couple days of George Floyd's death, I received a text message from a close friend, saying, "I would really like to have you over to the house. With this situation in Minnesota and the conversations I am having with my kids and family. I really need them to see us interact. The actual love we have for each other. I don't want them to be jaded towards white people..." This episode is a conversation with that friend (Joel Peterson) and his oldest son (Josiah Peterson, 19). We talked about what it felt like to find out about George Floyd, and how the recent racial tensions are impacting their relationship, as well as my relationship with them. The picture attached to this episode is of our children watching a movie together about 12 years ago. Josiah is on the right. 

One day I was driving out of our alley and I saw a guy standing there, staring at the traffic. I said hi. When I asked him how he was doing, he told me, with tears in his eyes, he was trying to decide which car to throw himself in front of. I found myself in a fragile moment with a decision to make. This is episode 9 of The PegLeg Podcast, a deep reflection on suicide, hope, and how important it is to feel seen. The timing of this story is interesting to me, because I believe there are a lot of people in our nation who ache to be seen and heard right now. Thank you for listening. 

This is by far one of my most favorite memories. Imagine being a freshman in high school and discovering secret tunnels under your school. That happened to my friends and me, and the discovery opened up a world of adventure we'll never forget. We felt like we were living a true-life version of The Goonies movie. Looking back I feel like those adventures we had are like a metaphor for what life should be like. We don't need to settle for what's on the surface. It's possible to go deeper. 

This is a conversation with Dave Olson, a musical genius. We talked about his first record deal, being born with diastrophic dwarfism, navigating a paradoxical rave scene in Minneapolis, and many adventures since. Dave has created the music for every video I've ever produced or directed, including two Emmy winning videos and several Emmy nominations. This guy is a treasure. 

This story is about me meeting a new friend who changed the trajectory of my life. It started with a bizarre phone call, and led to opening for Three 6 Mafia. Not to mention that time we opened for Ne-Yo and performed for thousands of girls who really only wanted to see Ne-Yo, haha. This is an important story. You'll enjoy the narrative as much as the music. 

What can we learn from kids who see the world from a totally unique perspective? You and I are in a global pandemic together. Right now is not easy for a lot of reasons. With that in mind, I want to share three short encouraging stories about three very unique individuals. Each one helped me to discover pieces of wisdom that I/we need right now. At the heart of this episode is this learned reality: wisdom is like a treasure that we find when we're willing to search for it in places that other people overlook. Plus, there's a special song at the end... 

This is a true story about discovering my love for storytelling and the power of listening to other people's stories. In it I nearly die, I lose my shoes, and I give my first speech to a large group of strangers in the light of a campfire. How I got to that campfire and what I learned there is the story.  At the heart of this episode is one of the most important insights I've ever learned. It has to do with our ability to search for treasures in the stories of other people. 

I heard someone on a Moth Podcast say "How people date has changed but how they fall in love has not." Do you agree? Laura and I went directly from being friends to sort-of-engaged. This is the story of how that happened, and how we fell in love. It's also a quick look at the question: What does that even mean?  

This is the story about my lowest point. It's about the time I nearly died, lost the ability to walk, and came to the end of myself. Low points in life can be scary. In those moments we feel very far from the life we thought we'd be living. But when we keep going, allowing ourselves to grow through it all, we find a reward that is a new version of ourselves. I hope this story and reflection will encourage you or someone you love. 

 This is my first episode. It's a story about getting caught stealing, about officer Rodriguez and my dad's terrifying conversation with him, and how my conversation with my dad changed my life forever. This episode is about 13 minutes long. If you take the time to listen, please give me feedback. Did you enjoy it? Is it too long? Too short? I'd love to hear from you.