Podcasts about Fire

Send us Fan MailWell met friends! In this episode of the Get Piped Podcast, Adam reads a summertime nightmare scenario .In the segments, Adam ranks three topics in Over Under and Adam and Nick choose between gameshow topics in This or That.Support the showBecome a Paid Piper --> Support us on Patreon.Send us stuff! --> PO box: PO Box 61263, Virginia Beach, VA 23466Purchase Tales of Fire and Briar: https://a.co/d/fvgzP0vWatch Battle of the Briar for FREE on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhU-qE-ZKmg __________Don't forget to subscribe/follow the GPP so you never miss an episode.We want to hear from you! If you have any further questions, comments, or recommendations, send them to show@getpiped.co.__________Follow Get Piped on Instagram. Follow Producer Guy on Instagram.Check out the Get Piped YouTube for more content.Join the Get Piped community Discord here.Check out the Get Piped merch store.GPP is created by Adam Floyd (Get Piped)GPP is produced by Nick Masella (Producer Guy).

What if Sirius decided to stay in England and deliver on his promise to raise Harry instead of hiding somewhere sunny? Changes abound with that one decision...Alternate Universe based on prompt 'What if Sirius hadn't run away to somewhere sunny after escaping Hogwarts but stayed and tried to make Harry's wish of a home come true?' Covers alternative 4th Year/Goblet of Fire and therefore does not follow canon religiously.Pairings: Harry/Hermione is the main pairing. All others are surprises so read at your own risk - although I will say there are a number which follow canon.

Fire up the sports machine! It's time to knock the rust off and get back in gear before the new season begins...We're celebrating the new year by ranking all 32 NFL teams' starting quarterbacks, beginning with 32 through 17• What team has the worst situation under center?• Who will win the undecided team battles?• Who will be the biggest surprise in this group?Thanks for listening... LIVE shows return on Wednesday August 26th, until then go for the win! •Stay connected with all things Huddle Up Podcast at https://linktr.ee/huddleuppodcast•Subscribe to the show on ALL podcast platforms & YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@HuddleUpPodcast)•You can get your Huddle Up Podcast merch on TeePublic at https://www.teepublic.com/user/huddleuppodcast•Follow Huddle Up Podcast on our social channels:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HuddleUpPodcast/IG: https://www.instagram.com/huddleuppodcastinc/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@huddleuppodcastBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/huddleuppodcast.bsky.socialTwitter: https://twitter.com/HuddleUpPodcastTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/huddleupincCreative Commons Music used in this show created by Jason Shaw on https://audionautix.com/

Transcript [Music] Welcome to a special podcast series on wildfire food safety from Washington State University Extension. After a wildfire, where can you find research-based information you can trust about food and gardening safety? In this podcast, we explore resources to help protect food in your kitchen and produce in your garden after wildfire exposure. Start with land-grant universities, including Washington State University Extension, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, Oregon State University Extension and consult the USDA 's Food Safety and Inspection Service for science-based guidance. You'll find free webinars, guidelines, and best practices addressing produce safety during and after wildfires. Visit this podcast's webpage to access these resources, links, and guidance. Reliable information supports informed decisions about harvesting, handling, washing, storing, and preparing food after wildfire smoke and ash. Thanks for listening. I'm Susie Craig. [Music] Resources Oregon State University Extension Service (September 2025). Is Wildfire Ash on Garden Produce Safe to Eat? https://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/wildfire-ash-garden-produce-safe-eat. Accessed online 8/10/26. UC Davis – UC Food Safety. Food Safety After a Disaster: Food Safety after Urban Wildfire Webinar, Post-fire Soil Safety Webinar, Best Practices for Produce Safety after a Fire. https://ucfoodsafety.ucdavis.edu/processing-distribution/food-safety-after-a-disaster. Accessed online 8/10/26. United State Department of Agriculture – Food Safety and Inspection Service. Fires and Food Safety. https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts/fsis-issues-public-health-alert-various-meat-and-poultry-products-containing-fda-0. Accessed online 8/10/26. Washington State University Extension – Consumer Food Safety. Emergency Preparedness – Fires and Food Safety. https://extension.wsu.edu/foodsafety/emergency-prep/. Assessed online 8/10/26.

#317If you own an HMO in the UK and you're managing it from abroad, this episode is for you.Today's guest is Mithila from Ideal Urban Group (Tel: 07300 204451) — an HMO specialist agency covering Surrey, Berkshire, Hampshire, and Greater London.Mithila and her business partner Lisa didn't start the agency because they saw a gap in the market.They started it because they couldn't find anyone good enough to manage their own properties.Check out our shorts on YouTubeOur WhatsApp  groupProperty Engine discounts (Code: EXPAT)Starter: 30 day trialPro: 30 day trial/3 mths 1/2 price, Ultimate: 1/2 price 3 monthsGoalsettingLeave a review37 Question Due Diligence Checklist / Auction GuideOur Sponsors: Finnigan McNeill Property GroupWhy Single-Let Agents Fail at HMOsMost agents who say they manage HMOs are single-let agents who haven't made the leap.Managing a property with six different tenants, six sets of compliance deadlines, and six different personalities is fundamentally different from managing a single let.Mithila handed her own HMOs to one such agent while she was pregnant — and was back on the tools within weeks of having her baby.The agent wasn't documenting inspections, wasn't doing check-ins and check-outs properly, and simply didn't know what the compliance requirements were.How to Tell if an Agent Is Actually QualifiedThe first question to ask is how many rooms they manage — not properties, rooms.Mithila's minimum: 50 rooms under management, enough to be systemised as a business rather than someone doing it on the side.The second question is how often they carry out inspections, and what drives that frequency.The answer should start with fire safety.HMO Fire Safety: What Your Agent Should Be DoingGrade A alarm systems — typically six-plus bedroom properties or mixed-use buildings — require weekly fire alarm testing, zone by zone, logged on site and in a centralised location.Grade D systems — smaller HMOs — require monthly testing as a minimum.Fire doors should be checked monthly to confirm they are self-closing, correctly fitted, and have no gaps.Carbon monoxide alarms must be tested monthly.Fire blanket testing: monthly.Communal area inspections: monthly.Full inspections including tenants' rooms: quarterly as a minimum.None of this is optional — and a good agent should be able to tell you exactly which grade applies to each of your properties.How to Verify It's Actually HappeningThis is the question that matters most for expat landlords who can't just drive past the property.Ask your agent to share inspection reports — with photographs, not just commentary.Mithila's agency uses Inventory Hive, which builds reports around the property's floor plan and flags maintenance issues as it goes.Monthly communal reports are high-level; quarterly reports that include tenants' rooms are more detailed.As Mithila puts it: as long as you know what your property looks like, the report should reflect that.The Software QuestionAsk your agent which systems they use for compliance tracking and tenant communications.Mithila's agency uses Coho — all tenant communications are directed there to create a centralised, evidenced audit trail.WhatsApp conversations with tenants are not an audit trail.Ask specifically: where does tenant communication happen, and can it be evidenced?Questions to Ask Before You SignAsk for metrics on void periods and average relet timeframes.Ask what their revenue yield is across their managed portfolio.Read the terms and conditions — check what's included and what triggers an add-on fee.Ask to speak to a current client directly — not a written reference, a phone call to someone using the agency right now.Anyone doing things well will offer that without hesitation.What to Do If Your Agent Isn't PerformingMithila's advice: document the specific failures, give them one chance to put things right, and if they don't, have the conversation about parting ways.A good agent who isn't meeting your expectations should be able to demonstrate and evidence their performance — if they can't, that evidence becomes your grounds to exit the agreement.The HHSRS Update — June 2026The Housing Health and Safety Rating System was updated on 23 June 2026.It's the tool councils use to assess hazards in rented properties, with Category One hazards carrying significant consequences for landlords.Most landlords didn't know it was updated — and most agents didn't flag it proactively.Ask your agent whether they are aware of it and how it has changed their inspection process.Maintenance: The Landlord-Mindset DifferenceMithila's agency troubleshoots maintenance issues with tenants by phone or video before calling anyone out.Every cost that goes out in maintenance erodes the bottom line, and a landlord-run agency feels that in a way a standard agent doesn't.Ask your agent: at what point do you call a contractor, and what is your approval threshold before you authorise spend?The Rent AuditWhen Ideal Urban Group takes on a new client, they audit not just compliance — but rents.Self-managing landlords and under-engaged agents routinely leave rooms at below-market rates, sometimes for years.Twenty to twenty-five pounds per room under market across a six-bedroom HMO is two hundred pounds a month left on the table.Key TakeawaysA single-let agent is not an HMO agent — the compliance requirements are fundamentally different.The minimum credible agency size is around 50 rooms under management.Fire alarm testing frequency is determined by alarm grade — weekly for Grade A, monthly for Grade D.Always ask to speak to a current client, not a written reference.If your agent can't produce inspection reports with photographs on request, ask why.The HHSRS was updated in June 2026 — check whether your agent has acknowledged this.Not financial or professional advice — always consult qualified professionals.Keywords: HMO managing agent UK, HMO compliance UK, HMO fire safety, HMO property management, Grade A HMO alarm, HMO landlord questions, Inventory Hive HMO, Coho property management, HHSRS landlord 2026, expat HMO landlord, HMO agent vetting UK, UK property podcast

Hey BillOReilly.com Premium and Concierge Members, welcome to the No Spin News for Tuesday August 11, 2026. Stand Up for Your Country.  Talking Points Memo: Did the new communist movement get its first real setback?  Bill explains. Pakistan says the U.S. and Iran are close to reaching “some sort of arrangement.” Which states is the Justice Department suing over tuition benefits for illegal immigrants? Bishop Robert Barron, founder of Word on Fire, discusses the issues surrounding mass migration. Bill looks at poll results on who voters would support if the 2028 Democratic primary election were held today. Final Thought: How the media continues to mislead. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The brilliant Wajahat Ali, author of Go Back to Where You Came From, and playwright of The Domestic Crusaders, had me on The LeftHook to share my new book A Reasonable Guide for Unreasonable Women: 20 Steps to Find Your Purpose and Power in a World on Fire. Watch or listen to the full discussion on how to overcome the very real and urgent threat of fascism. (Side note: In France, Marine Le Pen is campaigning for president wearing an ankle monitor, following in the footsteps of her fellow Russian asset, the convicted felon/Epstein wing-man). Trump is doing to our country what he did to the East Wing of our White House. How do we rebuild from the wreckage? That's what A Reasonable Guide for Unreasonable Women is about. It's for anyone tired of Steve Bannon trying to demoralize us and flood the zone with sh*t. It's about concrete steps to stay grounded and focused in a world of chaos, to align your deepest needs and dreams with a higher purpose, creating world domination for the collective good. My own journey begins with being raised on stories of the government trying to kill you, and blame you for the crime, helped by Western corruption to cover-up the torture and murder. I am of course speaking of my Ukrainian heritage and the Holodomor, Stalin's genocide famine in Ukraine. In all my years of studying my family's history and the two monsters, Hitler and Stalin, who drove that history, I look back on America's own, and see the authoritarianism that established this country. The white supremacy blood lust terrorizing Black Americans, Native Americans, mass discrimination and violence against immigrants, and the list goes on. Trump, Stephen Miller, Peter Thiel, and too many others carry on that violent legacy. That's why they're aligned with the Kremlin, which sees Ukrainians as inferior.  In Ukrainian culture, we're taught to fight for our very lives, our voice, our art, our culture, our language, because no one else will. They want to erase us, so we must do the opposite and shine, shine, shine. In Ukrainian culture, art is literally survival. The coded language of poetry preserves historical truth, our shared humanity, our courage and defiance.  Life is incredibly stubborn. Creativity is how we fortify our resilience. A Reasonable Guide for Unreasonable Women provides 20 concrete steps for women–who are the favorite target of fascists, because they fear the fight in us–and their allies–to dream big for themselves and the kind of world we want to live in. That is how we reset the culture, overcome their darkness with our light, and gather our people to create a better world. We are the alternative to their dystopian vision for our future, a future that belongs to us.  To better get to new my new and most personal book, I put together this Q&A:  Empowerment can be a privilege. Many nonwhite women, especially immigrants, are juggling several jobs just to survive. How does this book make space for different lived experiences A Reasonable Guide for Unreasonable Women is based on my own lived experience of being raised in a Ukrainian immigrant family. My grandmothers both worked as maids to survive. So I take nothing for granted when it comes to the diversity of demands on women today. Throughout the book, I share wisdom and insights from women across history. There's also a recommended reading guide in the book, featuring an incredible list of women authors, like Mikki Kendall and trans activist Raquel Willis. I also share a troubling story about a Black mentor telling me to get a white man to join me for my pitch meetings and just sit there. I'm sad to say it did make a difference.  Planting seeds of hope and change – whether that's through launching a dream project like a film, book, business, non-profit, or some other ambitious goal – can be a grind. Does this book highlight organizations on the frontlines doing that unglamorous work in the shadows, helping us build that collective power?  Yes, absolutely! And I made sure that the blurbs (endorsements) featured at the front of the book included voices from grassroots groups, to promote their efforts to a wider audience. Julie Delaurier of Rise and Resist began as an organizer in ACT UP and helped organize Tesla Takedown and No Kings. She also organizes to track and resist ICE raids in NYC. She read the book and provided a heartfelt endorsement. So did civil rights leader Maya Wiley, President of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and Holley Atkinson of the grassroots group the Media and Democracy Project bringing legal challenges to the existence of Fox News. Isn't self-help ego-driven?  A Reasonable Guide is all about collective action. Individual choices produce collective action. Think of A Reasonable Guide for Unreasonable Women as Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way meets Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny. Self-knowledge isn't the end goal here; it's the foundation for knowing where you can make an impact. It cites women across movements and their advice on how to stay creative and build power in a time of mass destruction.  But isn't this focus on the self just new age nonsense which is a slippery slope to fascism, given reports of new age online movements being breeding grounds for fascist cult recruitment? This book follows an ancient tradition of taking on an empire with the power of ideas. Ideas cannot be killed. And you cannot stop an idea whose time has come.  Know thyself was popularized by the ancient Greeks, most famously by Socrates who was a champion of women for that time. The Greeks were conquered by the sadistic and corrupt Roman Empire. A couple hundred years later, the Greeks conquered them right back through the power of self-knowledge and ideas. Greek became the dominant language of the Roman Empire. Self-knowledge is not ego. The book walks you through steps to think creatively and conquer doubt in order to build meaningful collective action.  I had to produce my film Mr. Jones myself because no one wanted it. Mr. Jones was a film to bring historical justice and truth to a massive genocide by the Kremlin, covered up for generations, including with the help of Western corruption. A former Ambassador to Ukraine called Mr. Jones Ukraine's Schindler's List. A screening was shut down in Moscow, and Memorial, Russia's once largest NGO that dared to screen it, was liquidated. There were death threats and harassment during the making of the film, but still the team and I fought on, holding on to the power of our creativity and voices. That is what A Reasonable Guide for Unreasonable Women is about: remembering the power of your voice in a world that wants to silence you and kill you. It's also a damn good time.  I hope you will consider checking it out and pre-ordering A Reasonable Guide for Unreasonable Women, which helps build buzz in the industry and gets the word out. Thank you to everyone who has supported my work over the years. It means so much.   

Steven Pressfield is a bestselling novelist, nonfiction author, and screenwriter. He published his first novel, The Legend of Bagger Vance, in his early fifties, launching him onto the literary map and leading to a 2000 film directed by Robert Redford. Pressfield's 1998 Spartan epic Gates of Fire became a modern classic of military historical fiction and is widely read in military circles around the world, selling over one million copies worldwide. He is also the author of the 2002 bestseller The War of Art and subsequent titles like Turning Pro and Do the Work, which have made him a key voice on the inner challenges of writing, work, and creative life. Steven Pressfield is a bestselling novelist, nonfiction author, and screenwriter. He published his first novel, The Legend of Bagger Vance, in his early fifties, launching him onto the literary map and leading to a 2000 film directed by Robert Redford. His 1998 Spartan epic Gates of Fire became a modern classic of military historical fiction, widely read in military circles around the world and selling more than one million copies. His newest novel, The Arcadian, published in 2026, returns to the terrain of war and the warrior's inner life in a genre-bending story set in sixteenth-century Spain. Following the mercenary Telamon across time and lifetimes, the novel explores fate, violence, redemption, and whether a man made for battle can ever truly lay down his sword. Pressfield is also the author of the 2002 bestseller The War of Art and subsequent books including Turning Pro and Do the Work, which have made him a defining voice on resistance, discipline, and the inner challenges of writing, work, and the creative life. The War of Art Gates of Fire Tides of War The Arcadian  A Man at Arms The Legend of Bagger Vance ------ Thank you to the sponsors that fuel our podcast and our team: Anthropic ⁠https://Claude.com/tetra⁠ ------ AGZ ⁠https://DrinkAG1.com/tetra⁠ ------ Athletic Nicotine ⁠https://www.AthleticNicotine.com/tetra⁠ Use code 'TETRA' ------ LMNT Electrolytes ⁠https://DrinkLMNT.com/tetra⁠ Use code 'TETRA' ------ Lectio 365 ⁠https://Lectio365.com⁠ ------ Sign up to receive Tetragrammaton Transmissions https://www.tetragrammaton.com/join-newsletter  Follow Tetragrammaton: ⁠https://x.com/tetranow⁠ https://www.instagram.com/tetragrammaton.now Follow Rick: ⁠https://x.com/rickrubin⁠ ⁠https://www.instagram.com/rickrubin⁠

Episode 455: Fire in the midweek episode of Baseball Is Dead! Jared overcomes the flames engulfing his home to talk about the upcoming Baseball Nicknames draft for BID Patreon subscribers, Blake Snell's return, the Dodgers getting healthy for October, and all the questions surrounding Paul Skenes' drop in performance. A BID Feud superfan joined the guys this week as Jon “Boog” Sciambi enters the Thunderdome with Tyler, Dallas, Jared, and Jay Hay leading the charge with help from the BID Discourse. Boog also shares his thoughts on Pete Crow-Armstrong's rise to potentially the best player in baseball. Stick around until the end as Tyler, Jay Hay, and Jared talk about the NL MVP race, Nick Kurtz's season-ending injury, and those sweet, sweet award-winning nugs. 00:00:00 - Jared's House Is Burning Down? 00:03:04 - The Worst Team in Baseball Since August 8th 00:07:01 - Nickname Draft Out Thursday! 00:13:12 - Blake Snell's Return 00:16:55 - Dallas' Final Thoughts 00:20:12 - The Run for October 00:21:53 - What's Wrong with Paul Skenes? 00:41:31 - Family Feud with Jon “Boog” Sciambi 01:17:03 - PCA Passes Ohtani in MVP Odds According to Kalshi Users 01:30:55 - Nick Kurtz Out for the Season 01:34:24 - Award-Winning Nugs 01:36:43 - Final Thoughts Buy A Ticket For Section 10 Night! September 8th, Fenway Park, Be There. https://redsox.com/section10 NEW BID MERCH IS HERE: https://www.baseballisdead.com Trade $25 for the chance to earn up to $500: - https://app.kalshi.com/1r91/BID Sign Up For Our Patreon for more Baseball Is Dead Content! https://www.patreon.com/cw/BaseballisDead Use our code for 10% off your next SeatGeek order*: https://seatgeek.onelink.me/RrnK/BID10 Sponsored by SeatGeek. *Restrictions apply. Max $20 discount Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen to 2 hours of ocean waves gently reaching the shore and flowing back into the sea. The steady rise and fall of the water creates a natural sound for sleep, study, focus, and deep concentration. Let these relaxing ocean sounds cover distractions, calm busy thoughts, and bring a peaceful background to bedtime, reading, meditation, work, or quiet rest.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/asmr-rain-recordings--5347561/support.Lose the AD intros by becoming a subscriber!https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/asmr-rain-recordings--5347561/support

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets' joint practice erupted into chaos with four fights, a wild helmet toss and tempers flaring across the field. We break down Luke Goedeke's role in the madness, the biggest Bucs training camp standouts and what Tampa Bay's defense showed against the Jets.Plus, is it time to worry about Benjamin Morrison's continued absence? Could Chris Braswell be fighting for a spot on the Buccaneers' 53-man roster? We examine which players helped themselves, who is under pressure and what to watch next as Bucs preseason football approaches.

#LFC #PremierLeague #Transfers Ashley, Dylan & Gav have a look around the league at the latest transfer moves and rumours! ALL PATREON PAID MEMBERS CAN WATCH THIS SHOW AD FREE JOIN OUR PATREON - patreon.com/TalkinKopPodcast Subscribe, Like, Hit the bell icon and never miss another show! ** All views on the show are those of the individual and do not represent those of the Talkin' Kop ** lfc fan channel - liverpool fan channel - liverpool fc - lfc - lfc fan reaction - liverpool fan tv - lfc fan tv - lfc fan media - liverpool match reaction - lfc live chat - liverpool live chat - anfield reaction - liverpool live podcast - lfc live podcast - liverpool news - lfc news - liverpool free content - lfc live shows - liverpool analysis - lfc matchday - liverpool matchday - liverpool transfer news - liverpool transfer updates - lfc transfer news - liverpool live - liverpool podcast Training in the Fire by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Artist: http://www.twinmusicom.org/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to a new episode of ASMR Sleep Recordings. In this episode, you will hear a babbling brook running through the forest. Improve your health and happiness.The sound you hear in this episode creates a calm atmosphere and at the same time blocks out disturbing noises. This will help you de-stress, unwind, and rest. Enjoy two hours of relaxing sounds to help you relax, focus, study and fall asleep.About ASMR Sleep Recordings:The purpose of ASMR Sleep Recording is to help you sleep and concentrate better. This particular episode lasts two hours and has no ads in the middle, so you won't be woken up or disturbed while focusing or relaxing. When you listen to ASMR Sleep Recordings, you can lock your phone, so you won't get any bothersome stimuli from notifications and other sounds from your phone. You can switch between apps while studying or working without pausing the ambient sound.About our sounds:Water creates a natural white noise. Infused with the relaxing quality of nature and the sound-masking properties of white noise, listening to running water is an ideal way to turn off all the stressful things life brings, and to de-stress. Some of our most popular sounds include a river, flowing creek, babbling brook, gentle waves on a lake, and a bamboo fountain. Rain also creates a natural white noise. Infused with the relaxing quality of nature and the sound-masking properties of white noise, listening to rain is an ideal way to switch off all the stressful things life brings and to de-stress. Some of our most popular sounds are rain on an umbrella, hailstorms, hard rain, soft rain, gentle rain, wind and rain, rain on a car.White noise helps babies and children to get a better and deeper night's sleep. This is because external sounds are masked by the noise. With white noise in the background, your child will not hear annoying cars driving by or dogs barking in bed. This allows your little one to sleep better. And it also saves you as a parent a lot of hours!Pink noise is more common in nature than you might expect. It can be compared to continuous rainfall or wind. In addition to white noise, pink noise is also increasing in popularity, especially in business environments. Because it can increase productivity, concentration and creativity.Brown noise can be compared to waves of the sea, a river current, strong winds or the sound of thunder during a storm. Like pink noise, brown noise is very similar to white noise. However, the frequencies have been lowered even further and a lot more concentrated. This gives it a rougher/coarse tone than pink noise. It sounds a bit deeper and a bit bass-like. The benefits of brown noise are the same as the other types of noise. It provides relaxation, increased focus and improved deep sleep.DISCLAIMER: Be aware that loud noises can damage your hearing. If you can't carry on a conversation without raising your voice while playing one of our spheres, the sound may be too loud for your ears. Do not place the speakers directly next to a baby's ears. If you have trouble hearing or ringing in your ears, stop listening to the white noise immediately and see an audiologist or your doctor. The sounds provided by ASMR Sleep Recordings are for entertainment purposes only and are not a treatment for sleep disorders or tinnitus. Consult your doctor if you regularly have severe sleeping problems, experience fitful/restless sleep or feel tired during the day.ASMR Sleep Recordings is the white noise and nature sounds podcast to help you sleep, study or soothe a baby. ASMR Sleep Recordings has uploaded more than 400+ episodes in the 4 years that the podcast has been online. You can listen to all episodes of the podcast on your favorite podcast platform. People use white noise for sleep, focus, sound masking or relaxation. This podcast has the sound for you, whether you're using white noise to study, to soothe a baby with cramps, to fall asleep, or to just enjoy a quiet moment. You don't need to buy a white noise machine if you can listen to these sounds for free.

With just a little over a month away from the 2026 Independent Hotel Show Miami taking place, special guest and President of Staypineapple Hotels Inc., Dina Belon, joins the Suite Spot to discuss the Stayepineapple brand, the independent hotel industry, and what she is looking forward to from IHS Miami 2026! Ryan Embree: Welcome to Suite Spot, where hoteliers check in and we check out what’s trending in hotel marketing. I’m your host, Ryan Embree. Hello, everyone. Welcome to another episode of The Suite Spot. This is your host, Ryan Embree. Back for another edition of season two of our independent hotel show series, where we are getting geared up and ready for that annual tradition down in Miami Beach at the Independent Hotel Show. We cannot wait. We’re gonna talk a little bit about it with our guests. We actually met for the first time in person last year at this event. We’re able to spend some time with her. Dina Belon, president at Staypineapple Hotels. Dina, thank you so much for joining me back on The Suite Spot. Dina Belon: Oh, thank you so much for inviting me, Ryan. This is amazing. I’m so excited. We had such a good time in Miami last year, it was a blast and, uh, talking to you felt like I was talking to a friend. Ryan Embree: Well, I appreciate it. I feel the same. Just honored to be speaking with you here. And I can’t believe we’re here. It’s we’re just months away from the Independent Hotel Show. It’s gonna be bigger, better than ever. We’re excited about it. We’re gonna talk about it. But we did have you on for the first time, so we had the opportunity. Usually, I start these episodes by a little bit of a background and kind of an introduction, but I’m gonna start a little unorthodox today. There was a post that I saw on LinkedIn, which by the way, for our Suite Spot listeners, make sure you say, uh, you follow Staypineapple Hotels and Dina. Great follows on LinkedIn. But there’s an, an article called Everything Staypineapple Hotels Dina Belon Does in a Day. And I thought that was such a cool and creative idea and concept. Talk to us a little bit about how that idea originated and give us a day in life. What is it like to be Dina Belon? Dina Belon: Well, I tried to be very honest. Hopefully it was fun too. I, there’s a lot of humor in my day, and so hopefully that came across. Um, the magazine, uh, that’s a local magazine here in, uh, east, the east side of Seattle and Bellevue and Kirkland area of Washington does those highlights of leaders in the area, um, on a regular basis. So it was fun, uh, a little stressful because you had to, like, take photographs and, you know, kind of just walk through your day. Um, I loved, though, really integrating my pets, because they’re a big part of my life. And so it started off with Molly waking me up at 5:45, which is actually what she does every morning. About 15 minutes before my alarm goes off, my little kitty cat starts yelling at me about wanting water. Um, so yeah, all the way until, you know, 8:00 at night and a lovely glass of wine with my husband. And all the shenanigans in the middle. Ryan Embree: Yeah. And I think it’s so cool because I think it, you know, we obviously work in the people business, right? In hospitality. Uh, we host people from all over the world, all different walks of life. Um, but to see, you know, sometimes, uh, I think right now, especially right now, right, when there’s all this talk of AI and technology and stuff like that, it’s really refreshing to see our industry leaders. And I get that. I have the, the privilege of getting that, interviewing some of the industry leaders when they talk to me about their, you know, beginnings and, and how maybe they started as a bellman or a front desk agent or fell into the industry. And I think the more that we can kind of humanize and show that these are people that really have a true passion for serving other people. Um, and then on the other side of the front desk, the guests that come into our lobbies, they are people too, whether they’re on a work trip, where they’re trying to escape. You know, sometimes it, it’s refreshing to take, take a beat and think about that. And that’s exactly what this article did for me because it is, you know, even though we’re hospitality, we’re in it, the hustle bustle, 365, twenty four seven. We’re still people, right? Yeah. We’re still people with our pets and, and, and our, uh, you know, what we like to do. Um, so it was a really cool, I think, uh, refreshing look. I wa – I definitely wanted to bring that in. Br – um, and, and your love of pets, it goes right along with your brand, uh, Staypineapples Hotel. And, you know, I’ve come to know and love through your content, your keynotes at the Independent Hotel Show, uh, following you on LinkedIn. For those audience members that might not be as familiar, uh, share with us, uh, a little bit about what makes Staypineapple Hotels so unique and one of a kind. Dina Belon: Yeah. So we are the opposite of corporate uniformity, uniformity. Uh, we’re really about, you know, a boutique sp – hotel experience with a lot of personality. Um, so one of the things that we’re well known for is the naked experience, um, which is, uh, a little eye-opening to a lot of people, but all it really is, is a fun, cheeky, which we like to do, uh, marketing way to talk about our bed and our bedding and our linen and our terry is so comfy, cozy and amazing, you’ll wanna sleep naked. Um, so it, and we give you an, a big cuddly robe so that you don’t come to the door naked. Ryan Embree: There you go. Dina Belon: Um, so that, that’s, that’s very indicative of the Staypineapple personality. Um, we’re also, um, not just pet friendly, we’re dog obsessed. Um, so we, uh, really go over the top with our pet program. We have a partnership with Soundz, S-O-U-N-D-Z, uh, that is, um, uh, sounds, uh, in music – Sure. That, um, pets like and that calm them when they feel nervous, um, that is available for guests, uh, at no cost, a 14-day, uh, free trial. And then, um, we have a partnership with, uh, an emergency veterinary, uh, service called Veg. Um, of course, you get beds and bowls and treats and, um, water bottles and poop bags and all kinds of stuff when you bring, uh, your furry friend. Although we’re dog obsessed, we also love kitty cats too. I have two kitty cats and two dogs. So, um, we, yeah, we’re, we’re pretty over the top with the pet thing. And then we have a, we have a number of the properties that have, uh, hotel dogs as well. Um, so one of the management staff ha – brings their dog to work every day and has really become a, a core team member. Um, you wouldn’t believe how many reviews we get, uh, with our, our furry, uh, friends being, uh, listed as their favorite part of the hotel. Ryan Embree: Yeah. I’ve seen them at trade show nows at industry trade shows. Yeah. You’ll have, like, a puppy break. Uh, brilliant. Brilliant. Dina Belon: It’s my favorite thing. Ryan Embree: Yeah. It just gets people in, in, in a happy mood. People love it. So, uh, and, and the focus of, of the dog obs – dog obsessed, um, i- i- is, is so smart. I mean, p – you know, people. We always think about how stressful travel is, obviously, from a logistics and s – and people standpoint, but obviously on our pets too. They’re in a place that they’ve never been before. Um, they don’t know that they’re heading across the country or even down the road. They’re in somewhere unnatural. So that’s really, really cool that you can kind of make them feel at ease there. And, and I’m sure the guest feedback, uh, from that has been really, really great to see. Um, now, you talked about, um, Staypineapple being a, a very unique boutique brand. Um, I noticed one word you didn’t mention in there, which is, uh, independent or non-branded. Uh, you prefer the term unchained. And I wanna explore that a little bit. I don’t wanna give you too much, uh, of a question. I, I’d like, like you to kinda run with that. Why do you prefer unchained to maybe independent segment or non-branded? Dina Belon: So to me, independent, non-branded, um, you know, indicates that we’re small or we’re isolated or, um. And, and I think it’s, um, diminishing to 30% of the hotel sector, which is truly unchained in both term, both ways that that term can be used. One, we are not attached to a chain in literal terms, but we’re also unchained from a limitation perspective. I think what is so amazing about the independent or the in – the unchained sector of the market to the guest is the founders, the visionaries, the leadership teams, the hotel teams at these hotels put their lifeblood and their passion and their vision and their belief in hospitality into these properties and into the experiences guests are gonna get. It is not a corporate ownership that is managed by a brand that has 5,000 other w – hotels just like it. And, you know, the onsite hotel team has reams of binders to tell them how to do their job. Um, we believe very much in no SOPs. Um, we have, uh, ultimate SOP. It’s do the next right thing. That’s the SOP for Staypineapple. It’s that simple. Just do the next right thing. We help the team understand that a little bit with kind of some guidelines, which is what is the best thing for you and your colleagues? What is the best thing for the guests? And what is the best thing for the business? And if you frame that question, those questions under do the next right thing, anybody can make the right decision at any moment, at every level of the organization. When we talk about empowerment, it isn’t, you know, we’ve given you a toolkit. I always loved this, because I worked in, in the brands. Um, and we always had a toolkit. You had a toolbox full of things that you could use to solve a problem. Well, I don’t need to give you a toolbox. You are a grown person that is a professional in the hospitality industry and you’ve entered this industry with a passion for people. Why would I tell you how to do your job, um, in every aspect with books of SOPs? Instead, I should get out of your way and let you be who you are in an authentic way. Because that connects with people. If, uh, you know, we put, we put people in our industry in a blazer, a Navy blazer, and a name tag, and tell them, “This is how you answer the phone. This is how you greet somebody. This is how you do this.” Basically, you’re a representation of the brand, so you need to fit in this box. Well, I believe in a different hospitality, in a hospitality that is, um, grounded in, um, real people and real human beings and, and mistakes even, and quirkiness, and stuff that you wouldn’t necessarily, uh, engage in or experience in your normal life. That’s why you’re traveling. You wanna experience different things and new things. You’re going to a new place. And so we don’t have, um, dress. We don’t have uniforms for our front of house team members. We do for back of house simply because we don’t want the back of house team to have to ruin their own clothes because the engineers get their clothes snagged and the housekeepers get their clothes dirty and, you know, so it’s more just to take care of our team. But, um, the front of house team doesn’t have uniforms. They get to wear their own clothes to work. That’s another idea. It’s like, I want you to be you, but wear this black polo shirt that makes you look like everybody else. Or Navy Blazer that makes you look everybody, right? Like the entire concept of what we think is normal and standard in our industry is the antithesis of what we’re trying to create as an experience for a guest. Um, so it’s really important to us, you know, you can have colored hair and ear piercings and tattoos. And I remember early in my career, it was always, um, I love to tell this story. Um, the, the dress code, because I was a manager, so I was allowed to wear my own clothes, but the dress code was, had to have, um, pants or a skirt, uh, a, a jacket, had to have a blazer, and it had to be of solid color. So what I’ve got on today would not have applied. Um, my shoes could not have open toes and an open heel, one or the other. And I had to have pantyhose on. So I lived in Florida. I remember I stopped wearing pantyhose at some point because they were hot. And so I, I actually had an HR person, uh, come up to me and say, “By the way, um, we’ve, we’ve noticed that you’re not meeting the dress code.” And I just turned around and looked at her and I was like, “Those things make me sweat. I have to be out by the pool sometimes. I have to be outside. It’s too hot. I’m not wearing them. Fire me.” Ryan Embree: Yeah. Yeah. Dina Belon: That was the end of pantyhose in our dress code. I was like, “Good luck with that.” Ryan Embree: Right. And I’m sure the person on the other side, you know, it, it, they were just obviously following the guidelines – Right. And the standards of what was put before them. And you’re absolutely right, Dina. You know, the, the one thing that we talk about all the time, and you talk to. Uh, I’ve talked to industry leaders about is, you know, what makes your management company brand property so great? Usually the first thing they say is they’re people. Yet, when you’re putting those people in a box, how great can they actually be, right? Every property is so different because of the individuals that make up that property. Um, so, you know, that thought process is, is so brilliant to, to think of the individualism and the passion can kind of shine through because it’s those stories that you talked about in the unchained or the independent sector that, that reason why I, this is one of my favorite series, because I get to sit and talk to independent hoteliers and, and hear their stories, their struggles, their challenges, but also their successes, their passions, where they built this, this property that has been, you know, where they’ve had these struggles, but they’ve gotten over the hump and they just love it so much and you can just see it come out in that, that, uh, conversation. It’s, and sometimes very different. Nothing to knock the brands, but sometimes very different when you’re talking to a GM of a branded hotel. Um, and it’s m- maybe just a stop on, on their way to the career. So it is one piece of advice I hear all the time is if you’re a hospitality professional out there, you know, maybe explore the independent hotel down the road. You know, get some good experience there. It’ll, you’re definitely gonna learn a lot, that’s for sure. Yeah. Um, you’re gonna get a lot of – Well, it depends on – Yeah. Dina Belon: Yeah, what you like, right? And I agree with you. One isn’t right or wrong. I spent the vast majority of my career in the, in the branded hotel space. Um, and I just found my happy place in – Sure. In the independent space, right? I, because I was always bucking the rules when I worked in the brands. And I didn’t, I didn’t even know what boutique and. I, I though boutique hotels were just little. Like, I literally, when I started at Staypineapple, I love the story too. ‘Cause when I started, I was like, “I’m gonna come in and show them how to write SOPs and, and brand standards, and we’re gonna standardize this, and we’re gonna scale it, and it’s gonna be, you know, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.” I had, I told, because I had spent my whole career in that space. Um, I believed passionately in brand standards when I started at Staypineapple. And I remember, um, our CFO telling me, “Do not say the word brand standard. You will send Michelle off the deep end.” Michelle is our founder. Yeah. And I was like, “What? I don’t understand.” Yeah. “How could you not have brand standards? How do you even operate this place without brand standards?” Right? Right. Um, and, and it took me a couple of years to really internalize what the difference in the business model is. Again, one is not right or wrong. They both have their strengths. But if you’re, uh, a free spirit, if you’re somebody. Like we hire for three things. Authenticity. Like your. First of all, people underestimate the willingness to be authentic. If you have been trained to put on a mask when you go to work and, and almost be an actor and play a part at the hotel, it’s very difficult to take that mask off and, and allow the vulnerability of being yourself. ‘Cause if somebody rejects you when you’re being yourself, it hurts a lot more than if a guest rejects you and yells at you when you have a mask on. That’s a Ryan Embree: Great point. Dina Belon: You’re being somebody else, right? Yeah. So it’s a harder position for our team members, I think, to be their authentic selves. Um, the next is really critical thinking. The ability to problem solve and, and, and be creative and figure out ways to, um. We know to say yes. That’s one of our sayings. We notice. We know how to say yes. Yes is not always a direct yes. Sometimes you have to go around to get to yes, but we know how to do that. And that’s all about creativity and critical thinking. And then really, the last one, um, I think is underserved in our industry, which is emotional intelligence. Um, that ability to read people. And, and it connects to that critical thinking, right? If I can, if I can, uh, connect with you on an emotional level and understand you better, understand your psychographics as a person, which is much deeper than that you like Diet Coke, right? I want to know things deeper than that about you. Then I can use that emotional intelligence to be creative and create, create hyper-personalized experiences for you. That is something that I think isn’t. It. The industry in general, particularly on the branded side, does not foster in our industry. If those things are interesting to you, then go check out the independent or unchained space, because I think you’ll be a lot happier coming from a recovering brand employee. Ryan Embree: Ryan Embree: Yeah. I, I love that. I love everything about that. I mean, those skills are. I mean, it’s, it’s at the core of hospitality, um, especially the emotional intelligence. And I think y- you’re absolutely right. It’s a skill needed now more than ever, by the way. Um, and it’s gonna get trickier to navigate. So we’ll be those, those younger, um, hospitality professionals and, you know, at, at, at any age, really, that invest that time and effort into honing in that skill that are gonna, that are gonna see successes there. Um, I wanna, I wanna take, uh, a step back, Dina, and kinda look at the hospitality landscape right now for independent and, or unchained, uh, uh, hotels. Where do you see opportunity in today’s landscape? And then maybe where are some of the bigger challenges that, that they’re coming up against? Dina Belon: Sure. So I think one of our biggest opportunities I just mentioned, which is hyper-personalization, um, we really look at this, i- if you kinda start at the beginning of the process of how you do hyperpersonalization. Um, it really starts with zero-party data for us. Uh, every brand or every group or every, you know, independent hotel is different, um, in their philosophy on this. I’ve certainly, um, experienced and, um, met with people that do research on their guests online. They look up your Facebook page. They check you out and see what you might be talking about. Um, we have decided to take the approach that we only wanna use data that you have freely and willingly given us. Um, so we communicate with our guests a lot, um, when we can. So there’s a little bit of a differentiator here when we talk about this. Um, if you’re coming in as an Expedia or a Booking.com guest, probably not getting this experience because we don’t have, we don’t have much information about you, and those OTAs don’t like to share. So, but if, uh, you’ve stayed with us before or it’s a direct booking, then we have communicated with you, um, in a way that is fun and cheeky and kinda starts to get you. Um, w- we like to, we like to encourage kind of a pre-arrival experience that is, um, engaging and, and, and gets you kind of primed for what Staypineapple is gonna be like. So you’re not, like, smacked in the fa – you know, you’re expecting a Marriott courtyard and you’re smacked in the face with Staypineapple. Ryan Embree: Right. You got a dog running up to you and yeah. Um, Dina Belon: So one of the things we do is ask a very open-ended question, um, in a pre-arrival email to all of our, uh, direct booking guests. And it says, um, basically in a cheeky way, I don’t remember exactly how it’s phrased, but it’s why you come in to stay with us. And you would be shocked at the amount of information that people share with us and, like, get into deep personal things and tell us all kinds of stuff. That is a trevor – treasure trove of information. Again, that’s stuff that matters. Not whether Jack Daniels is your favorite, you know, liquor. Uh, like, I wanna know that you’re. What, what do you volunteer for? What, what are you passionate about? What do you care about? Are you married? Do you have kids? You know, like, the things that, that you really, really make you who you are, right? That’s, that’s what we really look at for hyper-personalization and allows our team to use their creativity. So that’s just step one, right? Gotta have the information. And then two, you have to have a culture of people that are encouraged and inspired to be creative, to do fun, interesting things, not just deliver a bottle of wine to your room. What? Ryan Embree: Yeah. Dina Belon: Right? Um, like, do something that’s about me, not about you. It, like, that’s what I always say. To me, the bottle of wine in the room is about you buying my loyalty. It’s about you as a hotel. It’s not about me as an individual. So everything should be about the individual and about what makes them excited or happy or feel welcome or feel like they belong, um, there. How many times have you walked into a hotel and you felt like there was a cool club and you didn’t belong? Ryan Embree: Mm. Yeah. Dina Belon: So awful. It is the worst thing about hotels, I think. One of the other things that I just find, um, disheartening about our, our industry is that many people that are not related to the hotel business think you can’t go in a hotel if you’re not a guest. That’s so sad to me, right? Like, there’s, there’s this perception of a barrier, and it’s the opposite of what we should be. Like, we believe our hotels are very much a community hub. And so we encourage the community to come into the hotel. And we don’t even, we don’t have a lot of food and beverage. And some of our properties don’t have any. Some have just limited. We have a few full-service restaurants, but it’s not about us wanting to make money in our restaurants. It’s about us wanting to create an atmosphere in the hotel that is engaging and activating for the guests that are coming. ‘Cause the guests wanna interact with locals. They don’t want to interact with somebody from New York – Right. When they’re in Seattle. They wanna hang out with Seattle people, right? Yeah. So it’s, it’s a real win-win model, but you have to turn, you have to turn that barrier so many people think exists. Ryan Embree: Well, you touched on two things there, Dina, that at the core of this independent hotel show series, it really comes back to, which is loyalty, you know, just fierce, fierce loyalty for inde – I mean, the type of loyalty that I hear from guests talking about independent hotels is very different from the other points or nights that I’m, that I’m hearing in, on the other side of it. And, and it’s a depth that will be word of mouth. I mean, when you talk about word of mouth, like, that is the ultimate s – what marketing can’t buy, right? That storytelling that they’re going to be able to provide you champions of your brand and advocates for your hotel. Uh, the second thing is local community engagement and getting the community on board with what you do. I see it no greater place than Miami when we’re at, at the independent hotel show. And they talk about trying to just infuse that Miami culture into their own properties. And it does attracts a lot of locals. And, and you’re absolutely right. It’s, there’s a parallel where probably somewhere where you, where we talk a lot about reputation and people being scared of those one-star, two-star, or even negative feedback in any sense of it, embracing that and saying, “I don’t want one-star reviews, but I wanna see the negative feedback so that I can fix it, right? I want those, I want those locals to come into my hotel. Um, I don’t wanna put that barrier up because I wanna be that community hub. I love that. So what about any challenges you think right now? Dina Belon: Yeah, I think, um, the, there’s, there’s a number of challenges. I mean, I can, I can talk about the obvious, the headwinds on inflation, the cost of human and financial capital, maintaining service quality while we’re trying to maximize profit. Yeah. I like all of the blah, blah, blah. All of the, Ryan Embree: Yeah. All those talking points. Dina Belon: Yeah. They’re not very fun topics though. Um, honestly, I think the most interesting topic right now is really AI. And I do think it’s our biggest risk, particularly in our, our world of this unchained or independent hotel space. It’s the biggest risk we have, and it’s also the biggest opportunity. And it could go either way. And I think it will probably go hard one way or the other. It won’t be somewhere in the middle. And the reality is, is AI, AI search, which is kind of where we’re at right now, not, we’re not really to the point of bookings starting a little tiny bit. But, um, AI search is focused on very deep, complex, broad data about a hotel. So a, a person, and it really starts with the search parameters. You’re going from keyword search, like, I’m going to Seattle and I wanna be near Pioneer Square, to, I’m interested in a boutique hotel with a cool vibe that has a restaurant and provides a great sleep experience. Those two searches are completely different and is where the threat and the opportunity comes from. The opportunity is, as the hotel owner, operator, you have the best opportunity to create very deep content that is searchable by an AI. Compared to Booking.com and Expedia and all the others, their scale just does not allow them to create that kind of deep content for every hotel on their site, right? So you can create a higher value for the AI search to go to your website over somewhere else that it can go find your hotel. You might still find your hotel, but you’d rather get the booking. Um, direct and get the AI sending the guests to your website to check out the hotel than to booking.com ‘s website to check out. So that’s where the opportunity is. Threat is very real that the big brands and the OTAs have the pocketbooks, bandwidth, the resources to win at this fight and come in and put themselves between us and our guests. And so I think both at a legislative level, all the way down to individual property advocacy and elevating your voice online and everything in between, every hoteler, hotelier needs to be paying attention to. Because in the next five years, you could lose, you could lose the connection to your guests prior to arriving. And that, for us, that would ruin a huge part of our experience. Like we have pre-arrival concierge that helps you curate and plan your experience for your whole trip, not just your hotel stay. All of that would be for naught if I can’t communicate with my guests. Ryan Embree: 100%. Yeah. Uh, seismic shift happening, technologics pl – like shifting beneath us. Uh, I think you’re absolutely where it’s gonna impact everyone from the big brands all the way down to the small independent hotel who, who thinks, “Oh, this is, this isn’t coming for me. It’s gonna have wide ranging effects. It’ll be very, very interesting to see.” But share your concern, but also hopefully that little bit of hope there too, that it, it does go that right way and hospitality stays in, in somewhere where we come to know and, and love our industry. I wanna shift gears. Another thing I’ve, uh, learned about you over the years following your content and your career is your work, uh, inspiring, empowering the next generation of female hospitality professionals. Dina, I’ve seen you on stage at, at multiple panels, uh, a- a- around this subject. Tell us a little bit about the work you do behind the scenes and any tips you would share for up and coming Suite Spot female listeners or just the listeners in general here. Dina Belon: Yeah, I do. I love this topic. I, I love to empower women. Um, I think, uh, uh, we’re, we’re a force in this industry, um, and our voice should be heard. Um, so I, I like to support other women by a couple of things. Um, you’ll, you’ll, you’ll start to notice, I like to simplify things down to like one, two, three points at most. Yeah, I like it. Um, because I think it’s the way the human brain works. Sure. And the best way we can kind of, uh, create change – Yeah. Is by having a very focused, uh, approach to it. I really like self-advocacy, um, and encouraging women to self-advocate, because I think in general, this is a generalization because it’s not all women, but in general, we’re not great at it. Um, men are much better at self-advocacy than women. There’s been all kinds of study and research done on that. Um, and it’s a huge part of why women are paid less, why women are promoted less, because they just don’t ask. They don’t raise their hand. Um, and so I. And then the, the second point kind of ties in, which is leading by example. And so I think I love to tell stories about my career when self-advocacy was a benefit to me and how I got to where I am. And I’m afraid of it too. Let me tell all the female listeners I am not great at self-advocacy. Um, I’ve learned to do it over the years while I’m kind of gritting my teeth in the back of my mouth. Um, but I, there’s been a number of times when, you know, the really, the places where my career really took off, um, I stood up for myself and I raised my hand and I said, “I can do that.” Or, “I can even do more than what you asked me for.” So I’ll give you an example. Um, when I was at Wyndham, um, we, we acquired another company that did the same thing as we did. Um, and we were looking at how to create efficiency and blah, blah, blah. One was in Seattle and one was in Florida. And I was in the Florida office and I was asked, and we were the acquirer, so we acquired the company in Seattle. And so I was asked to fly out to Seattle and check out how my division, which we did all the renovation work and capital improvements and stuff like that, how my division would work with the group in Seattle. And so off I went on a plane and met with them and talked to them and figured out how they did things and figured out how we did things. Um, and so the ask was like, how do we merge the two and how do we create some efficiency? And I came back with a combined team that had me at the top of it with a promotion to vice president. It was really hard for me to do. It was a little bit easier because I gotta do it in writing and send it in and I didn’t have to say it out loud. Um, but it worked. And it was the first VP role I ever had. I was one of the youngest vice presidents at Wyndham. I remember the first time I went to the all leadership meeting, which was, happened once a year at Wyndham. There was 500 people there. This is vice presidents and above. Um, that’s how large the organization is. Um, that’s less than 5% of the employment base of the company. Um, and I was one of the youngest and I was one of the few women that were in the room. And I was blown away by that factor. And I went, “I, I need to work at do- doing something about this. I need to help other women.” ‘Cause particularly 20 years ago probably, um, there was a little bit more sharp elbows among women. There were so few seats in leadership that we were competing for them. And I think women weren’t as good as we are today at lifting everybody up instead of competing with each other. Adding more chairs at the table instead of competing for the one that a woman is gonna fail, fill. Um, so those, I think, are really my biggest things that I recommend younger women focus on is be an example to other women around you, above you, below you, beside you, I don’t care. Advocate for yourself. Advocate for other women and support each other. Um, don’t compete with each other. Ryan Embree: Yeah, I love that. I love that story. And I think we, you know, it’s inspiring to hear those, right? Because it, it can be scary sometimes. Um, but to hear those, those stories, those real life, um, you know, personal, uh, examples in front of you, those are the things that maybe get you that extra bit of confidence there. And it’s, it’s very, very cool to see. So, uh, appreciate your work there. And, um, you know, ex- excited to, to share that with those tips for the audience. Definitely wanted to, to, um, go into that topic a little bit. Um, but this is the Independent Hotel Show series. We might change your episode to say Unchained Hotel Series. But, uh, we’ll, we’re gonna. This is. We’re talking today about the Independent Hotel Show happening this year, September 16th and 17th. Uh, Miami Beach. Remember, listeners, uh, don’t forget to use promo code Ryan26. That’s for a complimentary, uh, registration. Dina, you’re on the advisory board. You’ve been a long time supporter of this show. What inspired you? Take me back to when you were first kind of asked to get involved with the show. Uh, what inspired you to get in, like, first involved with it? And how do you see it supporting independent hoteliers? Dina Belon: Yeah. I was, uh, introduced to it before the very first one and asked to be on the advisory board. And it was an immediate yes, and yes, what can I, what can I do to help? Because I knew that there was a gap in our industry in the independent space for a place for independents to get together and have real conversations and real opportunity to collaborate and learn from each other. We’re so isolated, um, in, in many ways. Like, we don’t have a mothership to create all of the stuff, the, you know, programs or education or philosophy or how do you do this? Or what do you do with that? Or, you know, how do you get mustard stains out of the towels? You know, like, anything. Like, we don’t have a mothership that helps us, that hands us a bunch of stuff and tells us how to do it. Each of us are creating all of this on our own. And that’s part of what makes our sector of the industry so unique and great, is that you get a different experience at every property because they’re all created through a visionary process. But there’s also a lot that we could share best practices and adapt what somebody else is doing to what we’re doing. I, like, I love to talk to, um, suppliers and vendors and tech companies, um, that reach out to me all the time because I learn from them. I learn what they’re doing, um, how one of their customers is doing something. You know, like, we constantly have a need for new knowledge and collaboration in our space that didn’t exist. And so this show is one of the only things that are really in our space focused on us and give us the opportunity to do that. It is an incredibly good show. It’s so well curated from, uh, an educational perspective, from the sessions. There’s multiple stages. Um, everything is in one room, which I love. Um, you can, you know, you can be listening to a panel discussion that’s really energizing, and then you’ve got a 10-minute break and you can run over and see a vendor that you wanted to talk to because you’ve only got 10 minutes. And then you get, you know, it’s not spread out. It’s not like the big shows where, you know, you’re gonna have to walk 10 miles to get to something. And the people that are there care and are focused on the independent space. So you’re also not gonna get the eye rolls and the you’re too small and we don’t care about you, and oh, you’re not part of Marriott, uh, you know, conversation, whether with vendors or with anybody, right? The, the people that are here are passionate about this part of the industry and are ready and willing to help anybody that comes to the show improve what they’re doing. Uh, like, I love helping other independent hoteliers, uh, in any way I can. In any context, talking about distribution, talking about guest service, talking about, you know, any, any part, because there are enough customers out there for all of us. I know we’re competitors, but, um, helping, helping everybody lift is a much better strategy than trying to elbow somebody out. Ryan Embree: Absolutely. We’re all in it together. 100% agree. And it’s funny, you know, you were mentioning at the, at the top of the answer about, you know, how independent hotels don’t have some of these resources that the big brands do. Uh, you know, one of the, one of the common things that big brands do is have an annual conference, right? And they get everybody together and, and share ideas and challenges. This is like the annual conference for independent hotel shows. So it’s a sense of belonging. Um, it’s a different energy. It’s a different. It’s, it’s a different type of, uh, uh, of event. Um, it. So real quick, first, uh, tip for any first time attendees that, uh, might be going. Dina Belon: Yeah. Um, I think two. Again, I love my, my two or three points. Um, be curious. So show up curious, um, and, and open and willing to share. Um, because that’s what your, your analogy to a brand conference is perfect because, um, that’s what we’re there to do is help each other. Um, and being curious will help you just be a sponge and take things in. Um, use, use AI in this scenario, um, and help have an AI assistant help you, an electronic one in your pocket, help you remember all the stuff that is gonna come at you because it’s gonna come like a fire hose and it’s gonna be really hard to remember it all when you get home. Um, I use Pocket for anybody who cares. It’s a little tiny device that I literally keep in my pocket. And I push it anytime I have an idea, I can just talk into it. Or I can push it if I’m having an interesting conversation with somebody and it’ll record that conversation. Of course, I ask the person before I do it. Um, but right? So that it, so that you’re, you’re capturing all of that interesting, cool ideas and, um, vendors and sup – you know, people that can support you. Um, it, walk away from an interaction with somebody and they’ve handed you their business card. Take your little device. It can be your phone too, but however you wanna do it and say, “I just met Ryan with Suite Spot and I really wanna be on his podcast. I need to reach out to him after when I get back.” And then your little AI will give you a to-do when you get back, uh, home. So that’s, that’s my number one tech tip. Um, and then I think the other, the opposite of that, which is a little challenging sometimes, is set the technology down and be present and be aware and pay attention. And don’t be on your phone answering emails from your staff back at your hotel. Like, I know it’s super hard to disconnect and, and be present while you’re at the conference, but you’ll gain a lot more if you’re there and you’re listening and you’re talking. Like, if you go to some of the educational sessions, raise your hand, ask questions. Make a point. Don’t even ask a question. If you’ve got an idea that the panel needs to hear, raise your hand and say it. Um, because it’s a, it’s a dialogue. This isn’t a. There’s, you know, we don’t have the president of Marriott and the president of Wyndham sitting on a panel telling us all how to do things. We’re all collaborators that are telling how we’re doing things and wanting to hear how you’re doing it and figuring out how we can share, share those ideas. So be present. Ryan Embree: That, that’s a great. Yeah, that’s a great mindset to, to enter this show into. My tip is gonna be make sure you see Dina Bellin on stage, uh, because she’s gonna be there once again. You’re gonna be moderating a powerhouse panel. Hospitality is not a department. Um, give us a sneak preview, if you can, of what that discussion might unpack and maybe your thoughts on the topic. Dina Belon: Yeah. It’s really gonna be, you know, about how hospitality is a culture. It’s not a silo. It’s, um, it’s really formed over time through behavior and modeling. Um, it’s not training manuals. It’s not a poster on the wall. It’s values. Um, it’s about, um, really taking everybody in your organization, whether it’s ops, which always seems obvious, but the finance departments, you know, HR, uh, the marketing team. Like, is everybody aligned to your mission and values as an organization? And you as a leader, are you practicing, as a lifestyle, the culture of your organization? So hospitality is not about the ops department. It is about the entire organization following a. Identifying first, have you identified? Right? So, like, our mission at Staypineapple is where stays become stories. Um, it’s a cute, cute way to say it, but it is in very real terms. We want your stay to be so impactful and so memorable that it becomes a lifetime story for you and your family. That kind of connection, that kind of sense of belonging, that kind of emotional feeling, um, is what we’re after, and that’s our mission. And so, if I’m not living that lifestyle every day as the leader of the organization, and our CFO, and our accountant, and our HR, uh, manager aren’t living that lifestyle, how can we ask the hotel teams to live it? Ryan Embree: Yeah. Great point. Yeah, it’s, I mean, it’s hospitality, right? And what we’re always trying to, to try to accomplish, uh, at the end of a guest day is to really, uh, not just, not just feel, feel the, the hospitality, feel the s – the, uh, uh, the, the service that we were providing them. Uh, not just feeling like they, they stayed in, you know, four rooms in a, four rooms in a box, right? That’s, that’s what – Yeah. The old saying. Dina Belon: How many hotels have you forgotten – Ryan Embree: Right. That’s a wonderful point. Wonderful point. And a great segue into our next, because I think you’ve got an unforgettable, um, uh, portfolio over there. So we’re gonna do some rapid fire here, Dina, to get to know you and your, uh, portfolio a little better at Staypineapple Hotel. So, uh, we always like to start with our favorite view from one of your hotels. Dina Belon: Definitely Chicago. So we’re in the loop and we look right at the Chicago Theater sign. And then three blocks down the other way, you can see the edge of the bean. And then there’s this amazing jazz mural, uh, from the corner rooms of the building. The, the incredible view. And we’re an urban city center, so views are not generally our vibe. Um, right? It’s usually another building next door. Um, but that one, that is really incredible. Ryan Embree: That makes for a good one. Uh, favorite fun fact about one of your properties? Dina Belon: Oh, uh, this is personal. Uh, uh, Fetch, which is our recycling program, is, um, all built around our dog obsessed culture. Uh, again, we like to be, you know, funny and cheeky. Um, so Dash, who’s our, um, our mascot, um, the pineapple pup. Um, he helps with waste reduction education, the Fetch program. Get it? Fetch, dog. Ryan Embree: Oh, I love it. Yeah. There you go. Uh, favorite signature dish, um, or amenity? Dina Belon: Hmm. Um, there’s a couple. Oh, goodness. These, this is hard. This is really hard. I, I mentioned the naked experience already, so I’ll let that one go, though that is one of my favorites. Again, personal. So you might start to see, I have a little bit of slant towards sustainability. Um, I am. It’s a, it’s a personal topic that I’m very passionate about. Um, our water bottles. Um, it was a huge lift for us to figure out. So, uh, what, I don’t know, five years ago, we used to have, um, unlimited water bottles available to our guests. Um, it’s part of our health and wellness program. We believe that, you know, hydration is a big part of health and wellness, particularly in en – urban environments when you’re walking a lot, you need to stay hydrated. It gave me a lot of heartburn. We were, we were, we were selling, or not selling, giving away a half a million water bottles, plastic water bottles a year. And it just, it hurt my heart. Um, so we were able to partner, um, with Path Water to do a custom 20-ounce aluminum water bottle pre-filled. Um, and we leave that in the guest room complimentary for every guest. And we put a water bar in our lobbies, um, for, to refill those bottles. Um, and that replaced all the plastic water bottles. And so, so now you see really fun, cute, steak pineapple aluminum water bottles all over the airport all the time in our city. Ryan Embree: Hey, there you go. Great marketing goes along with it. Uh, favorite guest experience? Dina Belon: Um, definitely Surprise and Delight, which is our, uh, strategy around that creative, uh, you know, hyper-personalization for guests. Uh, really creating those moments that create memories and stories. Ryan Embree: And then last favorite piece of art. Ryan Embree: That’s funny. Um, we, we happen to have our owner, our founder, Michelle, is a huge art collector. So that is really hard. We have a lot of original art in our hotels that’s from her personal collection. She regularly emails me and says, “Hey, I just bought a new piece, and can you find a place to put it in one of the hotels?” And I’m always like, “Oh my God, I’m running out of walls, Michelle.” But I think my favorite that she has, um, bought for every single hotel is, um, a Martin Goldstein original dog sculpture. Um, he is famous for creating these whimsical, limited edition bronze dogs that are known as Harvey Dogs. Um, and they’re just super cute. Um, and you can find one at every hotel. It’s, it’s one of those, like, Disney where you have to find the Mickey Mouse and Everything. Ryan Embree: Yeah, like a little Easter egg, yeah. Dina Belon: Exactly. An Easter egg hunt at any Staypineapple is go find the Marty Goldstein, uh, Harvey dog. Ryan Embree: All right. Well, there it, there it is. Challenge, um, put out there for our Suite Spot listeners, uh, visiting Staypineapple Hotels. Well, Dina, thank you. You’ve spent, um, quite, uh, some time with us. Um, thank you so much for sitting down. As we wrap up today, we do like to look into kind of our hospitality crystal ball. Uh, try to predict the future, which is becoming more difficult to do every single day, uh, now with every, the technology and AI. But, you know, as president of Staypineapple Hotels, what’s your vision for the future of, uh, the brand? Dina Belon: Yeah. You know, I think we’re gonna continue to expand on our ability to connect with guests and make them feel like they belong when they’re at Staypineapple, that they’re part of the family. And I know that sounds kitschy, but it’s, it’s a very real emotional, uh, mission for us. And, and in the broader context, what we believe the hospitality’s, hospitality industry’s role and responsibility in society is, and will become even more important as robots take over the world. That human connection that a hospitality industry can create, um, becomes an imperative for us to stay connected as a society. Ryan Embree: I agree. Yeah, that was just gonna echo that same sentiment. I think it’s gonna become more and more im- important. So we need, uh, brands like Staypineapple Hotels to, to keep true to that hospitality mission statement. So Dina, thank you again, uh, for taking the time to join us here on The Suite Spot. Any final thoughts before we wrap up? Dina Belon: Just go out there and be you, you know? Uh, don’t be afraid to, uh, come play in the independent space and definitely come to the Independent Hotel Show in Miami and, uh, let’s have a cocktail. Ryan Embree: Let’s do it. Uh, both Dina and I will have the privilege of being down there in Miami. We hope to see you in person. Dina, thank you so much for joining us here on The Suite Spot, and we hope to see you at the Independent Hotel Show in Miami. Thank you. And thank you for listening. We’ll talk to you next time here on The Suite Spot. To join our loyalty program, be sure to subscribe and give us a five-star rating on iTunes. Suite Spot is produced by Travel Media Group. Our editor is Brandon Bell with cover art by Bary Gordon. I’m your host, Ryan Embree and we hope you enjoyed your stay.  

In this episode, we break down why Christian husbands and wives should pursue godly wisdom before worldly wealth. Money can buy a bigger house, better vacations, and more comfort, but it cannot create trust, intimacy, peace, purpose, or a strong biblical marriage.The Bible tells us that wisdom is more valuable than silver and gold. When you learn to seek God first, develop Christlike character, lead with wisdom, communicate effectively, and build your marriage according to biblical principles, you create a kind of wealth money simply cannot buy.If you want a strong Christian marriage, better communication with your spouse, deeper intimacy, biblical leadership, and a marriage centered on Jesus Christ, this episode is for you.Stop believing that more money will fix what only wisdom, character, obedience, and God can transform.A rich life isn't determined by what you HAVE.It's determined by WHO YOU BECOME.Become a High Level Husband who is on Fire, Free, and Followed!! Click the link!https://www.highlevelhusband.com/bmr-blueprint

No business is safe. No matter where you work, the new business model is to rid the system of its excess weight. Fire, layoff or cut the hours of the employees required to make business a success. Number crunchers don't see eye to eye with the images now tarnished by the American ego and its addiction to employee mistreatment and a bonus check managers will be rewarded with by accepting bad performances for cost cutting accounting numbers. How does the injured employee get back on their feet. It's in the mirror.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/arroe-collins-like-it-s-live--4113802/support.

Dave Gow from Strong Money Australia is back, this time for a two-part series. Part one goes right back to the start: the toxic workplace that lit the fire, the property portfolio he spent years building, and the moment he ran the numbers and realised the strategy he loved would keep him working for another decade. Ana and Dave also get into why "sacrifice" is the wrong word for any of this.In this episode we'll discuss:

Welcome to a new episode of ASMR Sleep.In this episode, you will hear the rain against the window.What sounds would you like to hear next time? Leave a comment in the review

Backstage at XRoads 41 - Rock Detour for real quick catch ups with:-Matty Mullins of Memphis May Fire-Chris Daughtry of Daughtry-Paul McCoy of 12 Stones-CJ Pierce of Drowning Pool-Brandon Saller of Atreyu-Bobby Amru of Saliva-Randy Webb of Saving AbelXRoads 41 - Rock Detour was a one day hard rock music festival taking place in Oshkosh, WI on August 9th. Fingers crossed for a full festival next year!

Welcome to a new episode of ASMR Sessions.In this episode, you will hear a rainy night in Tokyo.What sounds would you like to hear next time? Leave a comment in the review

A devastating fire put one of Hong Kong's oldest building traditions on trial, but the real story runs much deeper. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Training camp hype season is here, and every rookie is suddenly a breakout waiting to happen. On this episode of the Dynasty Nerds Podcast, Garret Price and Andrew Mott sort the signal from the noise with a simple 1 to 4 scale, where one means not buying it at all and four means full blown conductor of the hype train.

True scary stories with calm narration and rain sounds for sleep, insomnia, late nights, studying, and relaxing in the dark.Want ad-free listening? Subscribe on Spotify for $2.99/month:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6EVEYUdrCx4HCa16MZQdF3⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Also listen:Scary Stories and Fire:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/007fyPR3zCdgA7CNPwfNqx⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Scary Stories After Dark:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/4rj44pHfXF2vv7laOQrYZx⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠More horror on Chilling:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://chilling.app.link/chillingall⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram:@scarystoriesrain_podcast@beingscaredstories@dane_petrali

Find him in your local paper. What section? Fire hydrant crimes. This week Nando, DJ, and Diggins take the battle van down to sunny Miami to watch the movie that made everybody go, he'd probably be a good Punisher in something else, 2004's The Punisher. They nitpick the cars, the guns, and of course the shirts.   Recommendations: DJ - The Ultimatum Season 4 (series) Diggins - In My Restless Dreams, I See That Clown: Christophe Gans (video), Millennium Actress (movie) Nando - Kyle Gordon - Mr. Jambo (video)   Plugs Nando on Rolling with Difficulty Mostly Nitpicking on Bluesky The Nando v Movies Discord Roses and Rejections Diggins' Substack - A Little Perspective All of Nando's Links   Mostly Nitpicking theme by Nick Porcaro Logo by Michelle Chapman

Meet Cute Presents: As Is - Part 1. A heartbroken Phoenix sleeps on her best friend's couch until he urges her to find a new place. when she crashes an upscale open house, she meets V, a glamorous older realtor, and is totally taken by her. Story by Savannah Hankinson. Directed and Produced by Adrian Alexander Alea. Sound Editing, Design, and Mixing by Tanya Orlov. Dialogue Editing by Hilary Long. Starring: Brandon Contreras, Gabrielle Filloux, Naïma Hebrail Kidjo, Simone Policano, Jake Robertson, Alyssa Simmons, Nina West. A Fox Entertainment Studios Production. Meet Cute Director, Development & Production: Lucie Ledbetter. President, Head of Studio: Fernando Szew. EVP, Head of Scripted: Hannah Pillemer. SVP, Development: Brie Neimand. SVP, Physical Production: Ani Kevork. VP, Production: Jamie Kellum. Production Executive: Bianca Veiga. VP, Post: Imran Shaikh. Post Lead: Paul Rivet. Production Finance: Michael Anthony DaCampo, Roland Arenz. Follow @MeetCute on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and @MeetCuteRomComs on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Check out our other rom-coms, including KERRI with Pauline Chalamet, IMPERFECT MATCH with Arden Cho, and DUMP HIM! with Minnie Mills. Check out our other dramas, including FIRE & ICE with Chiara Aurelia and Jack Martin, and POWER TEN.  Check out our other fantasies, including A PROPHECY OF INCENSE AND SNOW and I'VE BECOME A TRUE VILLAINESS. Have a crush on us? Follow Meet Cute, rate us 5 stars, and leave a review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire demonic? Enjoy David and Marcus' popcorn discussion and hot takes takes warmer than dragon's breath. We dive deep into the biblical imagery, such as Harry's Christ parallels. We also navigate the maze of the inverted Christian symbolism around Voldemort's return. Remember C.S. Lewis (I mean, uh, Cedric)! Episodes for each Harry Potter film will be released throughout 2026. But for Premium Seating Patreon supporters, you can hear the full series right away! Consider this your owl, inviting you to enroll as a Patron Saint so you can interact, influence, and enjoy exclusive bonus content.  Here is when episodes will release publicly so muggles can enjoy them: Harry Potter: Biblical Symbolism, Alchemy, and The Occult(?) - https://youtu.be/dpzU9OLPuUI  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - https://youtu.be/ovmcjjei9XA Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - https://youtu.be/GfAIujY-tvE Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - https://youtu.be/SjmOcL6MFyM Aug 11: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - https://youtu.be/FFtHUWL1h9U Sep 8: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Oct 27: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Dec 1: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (1-2) Marcus is the CEO of Cornerstone Educational Supply, your source for hands-on science supplies and homeschool curriculum kits. www.cornerstone-edsupply.com Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE and click the notification bell. Follow & connect: https://linktr.ee/popcorntheology Support: https://www.patreon.com/popcorntheology Rate and review to get 2 FREE Popcorn Theology Stickers! Write a 5-star review and send a screenshot, along with your mailing address, to feedback@popcorntheology.com, and you'll receive 2 FREE stickers!  #HarryPotterDebate #Alchemy #MagicAndFaith #HarryPotter #JKRowling #DanielRadcliffe #FaithAndFilm #MoviePodcast #FilmReview #ChristianPodcast #MediaLiteracy #ReformedTheology  Intro Music by Ross Bugden: https://youtu.be/Bln0BEv5AJ0?si=vZx_YiHK3hNxaETA

Spoilers, profanity, Jaime x Brienne. For our 300th Tyrion Dance chapter, we find Tyrion, Penny, and Jorah on the proverbial Ship of Fools. Kids, don't try to ride a dog, regardless of your size. Funny will take a guy a long way even if he doesn't have a nose. A Song of Ice and Fire. A Dance with Dragons - Tyrion IX. Close The Door And Come Here - Episode 647

House of the Dragon Season 3 ended with Sunfyre back from the dead and Rhaenyra executing the High Septon inside his own sept, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day gave the MCU its darkest Jean Grey yet. Frank, Thomas, and Jonathan break down both, plus the Marvel Hall H panel from San Diego Comic-Con and why Ghost Rider got announced with nothing behind it. On the House of the Dragon side: the Episode 7 resurrection that flipped the board, Helaena's tapestry and what it was quietly spoiling all along, where the show splits from Fire and Blood on her death, why Rhaenyra was never built to sit on a throne in the first place, and a final score for the season from each of them. Then a full spoiler conversation on Spider-Man: Brand New Day covering Sadie Sink's Jean Grey and the road to Dark Phoenix, the Hulk and the Punisher as mirrors for where Peter Parker could end up, the ending that made a handshake hit harder than a kiss, and whether Marvel has its footing back going into Doomsday, Secret Wars, and X-Men. Network news and picks of the week close it out. 00:00 Intro: Three Weeks Off, Alaska, and Missing Comic-Con 03:11 San Diego Comic-Con and the Marvel Hall H Fallout 05:53 Project Hail Mary Is the Movie of the Year 07:02 House of the Dragon Season 3: Rhaenyra's Turn and the Finale 18:53 Sunfyre, Helaena's Tapestry, and Book vs Show Changes 25:02 Season 3 Final Thoughts and Scores 28:00 Spider-Man: Brand New Day Spoiler Talk 33:00 Sadie Sink's Jean Grey and the Road to Dark Phoenix 41:02 What It Means for the MCU: Doomsday, Secret Wars, and X-Men 50:16 Network News and Picks of the Week All news discussed comes from GeekFreaksPodcast.com. Follow the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and leave a five star review if this one hit. Share it with someone still arguing about the House of the Dragon finale and tag us with #GeekFreaksPodcast. Instagram and TikTok: @GeekFreaksPodcast Threads: https://www.threads.net/@geekfreakspodcast Twitter: @GeekFreaksPod Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thegeekfreakspodcast Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/GeekFreakspodcast Got a take on the finale, a theory about what Jean Grey becomes next, or a show you want covered? Send it in. We read listener questions and topic suggestions on air. Key Takeaways Rhaenyra spent three seasons trying to be her father and the finale is the moment she stops. Frank frames it as her Anakin-to-Vader turn, right down to killing the realm's holy man and walking back out to claim she is the savior. Episode 7 and the return of Sunfyre lands as the season's biggest swing. Jonathan calls it a genuine plot twist with no setup, and it resets who is actually holding power going into Season 4. Helaena's knitting was spoiling the show in plain sight. Her tapestry lays out everything she has seen, and nobody in the story looks at it until it is too late. Both Frank and Jonathan score Season 3 an eight, with the caveat that Episodes 4 through 6 drag badly. Thomas, who bailed on the season early, gets talked into going back and finishing it. Spider-Man: Brand New Day works as a character study more than a clean three-act movie. The guys argue it is structurally strange on purpose, closer to picking up a random issue mid-run than a typical MCU installment. Jean Grey's power set is used in a much more specific and much darker way than expected, which the guys read as deliberate setup for Professor X's mental blocks and the eventual Dark Phoenix story. Quotes "She's now in her Darth Vader era." (Frank) "She was never meant to actually sit on the Iron Throne. She was always meant to capture it." (Frank) "The dragon fire ripping through a city is going to kill the good and the bad alike. It's not justice. It's just suffering." (Jonathan) "So many parts of this shouldn't work. But it does." (Thomas, on Spider-Man: Brand New Day) "I can't believe how much relief I suddenly felt from a damn handshake." (Frank) Apple Podcast Tags House of the Dragon, House of the Dragon Season 3, House of the Dragon finale, Game of Thrones, HBO, Rhaenyra Targaryen, Sunfyre, Helaena Targaryen, Targaryen, Fire and Blood, Spider-Man, Spider-Man Brand New Day, Marvel, MCU, Tom Holland, Jean Grey, Sadie Sink, Dark Phoenix, X-Men, Punisher, Jon Bernthal, Avengers Doomsday, Secret Wars, San Diego Comic-Con, Hall H, Ghost Rider, Ryan Gosling, Project Hail Mary, The Long Walk, comic books, movie review, TV review, pop culture, geek culture

This week's WeatherBrains episode is all about Hawaii. Joining us tonight as Guest WeatherBrain is the Chief Meteorologist at Hawaii News Now.  She has given over 15 years of service and has provided trusted coverage for the Hawaiian Islands including tropical cyclones, earthquakes, tsunamis, fires, and other natural disasters.  She earned her Bachelor's degree in Atmospheric Ocean Science at San Fransisco State University.  Jennifer Robbins, welcome to WeatherBrains! Tonight's Guest Panelist is the Warning Coordination Meteorologist (WCM) at the NWS office in Honolulu.  He works Statewide with a wide variety of partners and earned his Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Michigan in 1998.  He started at NWS Marquette MI in 1999, and has worked with the NWS Honolulu since 2006, and the WCM since 2017.  John Bravender, thanks for joining us tonight! Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com. Jennifer's early weather background (10:00) John's early weather background (15:30) What exactly is it like to forecast for the State of Hawaii?  (18:00) Difficulties forecasting with Hawaiian microclimates (20:00) Employee organization at NWS Honolulu (25:30) Torrential rainfall and major flooding in Hawaii caused by Kona lows (33:00) What exactly is a Kona low?  (42:30) What happened to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center? (49:00) 1992's Hurricane Iniki (50:00) Introduction of chickens to Hawaii in the wake of Hurricane Iniki (53:30) Fire weather threats and how it has changed in recent years (58:30) Tsunami risks and concerns in Hawaii (01:07:45) Warning protocol in the State of Hawaii regarding tsunamis and severe weather (01:19:30) The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:25:30) This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:27:30) E-Mail Segment (01:29:00) Sneak peak at future WeatherBrains episodes! (01:31:30) and more! Web Sites from Episode 1073:   Hawaii News Now First Alert Weather Honolulu, HI NWS Forecast Office Alabama Weather Network Picks of the Week: John Bravender - Homeowner's Handbook to Prepare for Natural Hazards James Aydelott - Okie James on Facebook: In 1936, the start of a truly hideous stretch of never-seen-since Summer weather in Tulsa Jen Narramore - Dyer County Historical Society Rick Smith - Out Troy Kimmel - Out Kim Klockow-McClain - Population structure and hybridisation in a population of Hawaiian feral chickens John Gordon - LoriGraceWX Monsoon Photography Bill Murray - Out James Spann - Proposed changes to WPC's Excessive Rainfall Outlook The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, John Gordon, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

¿Retirarte a los 30? Suena increíble hasta que te dicen todo lo que tendrías que hacer para lograrlo

In this episode I explore The Rupture of Contact and a New Mythos ; the places where trauma becomes initiation becomes revelation, and the two mythic structures I see coming into view just over our collective horizon. I share some excerpts from Tom Cowan's amazing book Fire in the Head, and wrap it up with some of own original bad poetry. Always a special treat. Enjoy. ***************************************** Dr. Carrie Murphy and I are opening small group coaching spaces called Golden Threads. Carrie brings grounded clarity from ancient eastern wisdom traditions and I share a bunch of stuff NHI taught me. These spaces will be capped at 8 participants. If you're interested, email me at earthalovestory@gmail.com to get on the waiting list. It's gonna be a good time. Show Art - Agony in the Garden by William Blake Buy my book ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Earth: A Love Story⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Our beautiful musical soundscapes are provided by Morgan Jenks. You can support ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠his new album on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bandcamp⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠morganjenks.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Find me on instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@robin_lassiter_honeyheart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@earth_a_love_story⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To join my mailing list or book a 1:1 session with me, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠robinlassiter.com⁠⁠ SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring the anomalous, the luminous, and the numinous. We're a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests and persistent passions. spectrevisionradio.com linktr.ee/spectrevision Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The House of the Dragon Season 3 finale broke Rhaenyra for good — Chanel , Brandon and Sharmane recap the heel turn, Helaena's tragic end, and where Season 4 goes from here.

This week on Salaam Nerds, we're breaking down the House of the Dragon Season 3 finale! Join us for our full Season 3 Episode 8 recap, review, breakdown, Easter eggs, and theories as the Dance of the Dragons reaches its biggest turning point yet.

Nim attends a party where he encounters our mysterious spice merchant, along with his dead? companion. Plots are formed, meetings are had...   Part 2 of session 8 of our Ruby and Fire actual-play using the Exalted game engine  from Onyx Path (Drive-Thru link).    The Cast:     GM/Storyteller: Decurion     Firamar Saelen : Jen     Finn Breakwater: Dave/Sarcastic     Pale Nimbus 'Nim' : Logan (of The Story Told podcast)     Mofid Parviz : (Young) Steve     Wonderous Cyclone : Old Steve   Dec's Reference list -- https://docs.google.com/document/d/14fjSZhwmTiv0N-3zAG5oOQuzswN5ScKR9cRBX0dQFmw/edit?usp=sharing   Also, check out Logan on The Story Told RPG Podcast! -- https://thestorytold.libsyn.com/   *We have an affiliate link with Drive-Thru RPG.  All this does, is give us a small percentage of your purchase cost on Drive-Thru as a "referral bonus".  It does not cost you, as a consumer, anything extra.*   We greatly appreciate the donations of our Patreon supporters: Eric Witman, Jeff McKinney, Joshua Gopal-Boyd, Dave Smith, and Dec!  Y'all make keeping this going possible!   As always folks, have fun, be kind to each other, and go play some rpgs!   Additional audio and background sound sourced from Tabletop Audio -- https://tabletopaudio.com/   Join the conversation on our Discord! Me And Steve RPG Discord  https://discord.gg/5wWNcYW You can reach us at meandsteverpg@gmail.com On Facebook as Me and Steve RPG Podcast On YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpps0vVXLSGrOdM8i4ntFiQ On BlueSky @meandsteverpg.bsky.social Our Drive-Thru RPG affiliate link https://www.drivethrurpg.com/?affiliate_id=2018399 Support us on Patreon:  https://www.patreon.com/MeandSteveTalkRPGs We are proud members of the d20 Radio Network! d20 Radio Discord Server:  https://discord.gg/aj3JdFtSM8 #ttrpg #tabletoproleplaying #exalted #actualplay  

It took until the last half hour to get going but the Chicago Fire found a way to break through and get a win, finishing 3-1 against Santos Laguna in their second game of the Leagues Cup, in a game where seven starters from Thursday rotated, giving 16-year-old Robert Turdean his first minutes and first with the first team.Before digging into all that, though, the duo talk about the state of the Fire's transfer window, with Leon Goretzka still available – for a price. John and Tim talk about the rumored move and the Fire's transfer strategy for the rest of the window, then Tim talks about one of the shortest – and weirdest – press conferences of his career.Finally, they preview the Fire's final challenge of the group stage, with the team set to take on Cruz Azul this Thursday, once again at SeatGeek Stadium, and discuss what all but certainly make this the toughest test the Fire have faced in this tournament.Signup for The Hotline (MIR97's Newsletter) here: https://www.meninred97.com/#/portal/signup

Part 2 - Neville James continues the discussion with retired educator and coach Arthur Solomon and caller Eric Christian, reflecting on education, rising construction costs, community involvement, and the importance of informed voter participation in shaping the Virgin Islands' future. The conversation also turns to music, local history, and shared memories as the guests discuss the Commodores, Earth, Wind & Fire, Virgin Islands cultural influences, and the value of preserving community traditions.

Ode (@thatsod.e / @thatsod_e) and Mo AKA Kid Licorish (@licorishislegit) welcome DJ Sir Daniel and Jay Ray of Queue Points podcast for a bonus crossover centered on Netflix's The Greatest Night in Pop. The conversation traces the recording of We Are the World, covering the roles played by Harry Belafonte, Ken Kragen, Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, and Quincy Jones in assembling the session, along with standout moments involving Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, Diana Ross, Cyndi Lauper, and Al Jarreau. The group also discusses points of frustration with the documentary, including Prince's absence, the treatment of Sheila E., and Patti LaBelle missing the recording the year before her own breakout. Before the review, DJ Sir Daniel and Jay Ray walk through the origins of Queue Points tracing the show's start back to the Salt-N-Pepa Lifetime biopic and the public dispute involving Spinderella. A Time Capsule segment rounds out the front half, with selections including Valentino's 1975 recording of I Was Born This Way, Earth Wind and Fire, A Tribe Called Quest's Stressed Out, and the full catalog of Destiny's Child.The back half of the episode moves into a hypothetical modern version of the recording, with the group debating a 2026 lineup that includes Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, SZA, The Weeknd, and Questlove. Big Mad turns to the impact of the Canadian wildfires on air quality, commentary on Dame Dash carried over from a previous live show, and frustration with anime fans who argue that shows like One Piece, Dragon Ball Z, and Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood contain no political themes. Small Joys closes things out with DJ Sir Daniel's vinyl copy of Black Milk's Ceremonial, upcoming DJ sets at Stereo Atlanta and JB's Record Lounge, and Ode's read of Jessica Cage's Accidents Happen series. DJ Sir Daniel and J-Ray close by pointing to QPoints.com for the weekly podcast and Thursday night Queue Points Live sessions.Queue Points is the Black Podcasting Award and Ambie Award-nominated music podcast and media platform that celebrates Black music history and culture through smart, entertaining conversation. Hosted by DJ Sir Daniel and Jay Ray, the show blends music commentary, music history, and pop culture analysis to explore the evolution, impact, and cultural significance of Black music across genres. Facebook: https://facebook.com/queuepointspodInstagram: https://instagram.com/queuepointspodLinkedin: https://linkedin.com/company/queuepointspodBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/queuepointspod.comYouTube: https://youtube.com/@queuepointspodConnect with the Snerdy CrewWatch, Listen, or Sponsor the show: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://beacons.ai/blackandsnerdy⁠⁠⁠⁠

While a vast majority of Americans favored the establishment of a bi-partisan commission to investigate the January 6th Capital riot, the GOP is only interested in self-preservation. So the whitewash continues with Donald Trump and the usual suspects pumping out a counter narrative where, he not only won the election, but the activities of that day were peaceful and the agitators leftist radicals. If it sounds insane, that's because it is. But 73% of Republican voters polled believe that's the truth. Next, Michael looks at the Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene MAGA hate tour which they've billed the “America First Rally.” Should the GOP retake the House and Senate in 2022, this racist circus will be coming to an arena near you. Finally, CNN's Don Lemon joins Mea Culpa to talk about his new book, “This is the Fire,” the madness of the modern GOP, the death of white supremacy and much, much more.To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.auda...

This is The Briefing, a daily analysis of news and events from a Christian worldview.Part I (00:14 – 12:30)The Confirmation of Attorney General Todd Blanche: Looking at the History of this Crucial Cabinet RolePart II (12:30 – 18:55)The Fires of Spokane: The Arsonist is in Custody, and His Confessed Motivations are a Dark Reminder of the Fall — and a Reminder of the Fire of God's JudgementPart III (18:55 – 26:49)For Israel, This is an Existential Threat: Hamas and Hezbollah and Israel's CrisisCan Iran's Diminished Diplomats Deliver a Hormuz Deal? by The Wall Street Journal (Benoit Faucon and Summer Said)Sign up to receive The Briefing in your inbox every weekday morning.Follow Dr. Mohler:X | Instagram | Facebook | YouTubeFor more information on The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, go to sbts.edu.For more information on Boyce College, just go to BoyceCollege.com.To write Dr. Mohler or submit a question for The Mailbox, go here.

In this episode, we continue our book study on Friendship in the Lord and reflect on the gift of friendship as a foretaste of heaven and a living image of God's love. We talk about how we are meant to journey through life with each other, how God bonds us together along the way, and how these friendships are meant to last forever. We also discuss the gift of praising God for our friends, what it means to behold and not possess beauty, and how focusing on gratitude allows us to hold joy and sorrow in tension.    Announcement: You can buy your copy of Friendship in the Lord from Ave Maria Press (or Amazon).   Journal Questions: Who has accompanied you through the valleys and mountaintops of your life? When do I show up to my friendships from a place of woundedness, deficiency, or insecurity? How is the Lord inviting me into deeper security? What is the Lord inviting me to delight in? How have I turned my unmet expectations into demands in my friendships?   Discussion Questions: What are you grateful for? Where in your life are you experiencing the Lord's presence in the midst of suffering? When have unmet expectations turned into demands on a relationship?  How do you cultivate delight and gratitude in your life?   Quote to Ponder: "Friends in the Lord always turn one another toward the Lord. They are not forever gazing at each other, but together they look to the Lord and to their brothers and sisters in the Lord." (Friendship in the Lord, Page 101)   Scripture for Lectio: "We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people's trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming.  But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,  from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body's growth in building itself up in love." (Ephesians 4:14-17)    Sponsor - Word on Fire's new film, Heaven in Stone and Glass, produced in partnership with Spirit Juice Studios: Beauty has the power to draw us beyond ourselves and point us toward something more. One of our favorite places in the United States is the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. When we are there, beauty has a way of speaking to the ache that we can't name. It is as though our soul knows where it belongs. It feels like a homecoming. Word on Fire's Heaven in Stone and Glass is a new film exploring the beauty, meaning, and evangelizing power of sacred architecture. Journey across France with Bishop Barron as he explores five of the world's most iconic Gothic cathedrals: Chartres, Notre-Dame, Reims, Amiens, and Saint-Denis. Through soaring arches, stained glass, sacred imagery, and centuries of history, Bishop Barron reveals the theological meaning embedded within these extraordinary spaces and explores why their beauty continues to stir something deep within the human soul. Heaven in Stone and Glass invites believers and skeptics alike on a cinematic pilgrimage and asks us to consider what these sacred spaces have proclaimed for centuries: that beauty can reveal something about God and awaken us to the transcendent. Word on Fire's Heaven in Stone and Glass, a production of Spirit Juice Studios, is coming to theaters nationwide on September 20th and 23rd. Get tickets for yourself or a group here: https://heaveninstoneandglass.com   Timestamps:  00:00 Heaven in Stone and Glass 01:38 Intro 02:42 Scripture Verse and Quote to Ponder 05:07 Friendship is Meant to Last Forever 10:13 Faith as the Foundation of Friendship 12:05 Mature Love Gives Deepened Life to Others 13:39 Praising God for Your Friendships 17:20 Beholding Beauty in Others 20:11 Asking God for Gratitude 24:28 Closing Prayer

Rival Somali street gangs “Muddy” and “The Ville” just got the boot. Minnesota AG and Ramsey County are suing to keep them off the State Fairgrounds after years of fights, shootings, and threats of the “biggest battle of the summer.” Meanwhile, scooter madness erupts in the Twin Cities as hundreds of Lime riders take over downtown Minneapolis streets… and even roll onto I-35W. And in Poland's legendary Białowieża Forest, a tourist gets a hard lesson in wildlife etiquette when a massive European bison puts him firmly in his place. John Heidt with the news. Common sense still lives in Gumption County. Fire up the garage and tune in.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

True scary stories with calm narration and rain sounds for sleep, insomnia, late nights, studying, and relaxing in the dark.Want ad-free listening? Subscribe on Spotify for $2.99/month:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6EVEYUdrCx4HCa16MZQdF3⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Also listen:Scary Stories and Fire:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/007fyPR3zCdgA7CNPwfNqx⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Scary Stories After Dark:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/4rj44pHfXF2vv7laOQrYZx⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠More horror on Chilling:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://chilling.app.link/chillingall⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram:@scarystoriesrain_podcast@beingscaredstories@dane_petrali

Learn how five Smart Money listeners changed their money situations after talking with us about tackling job loss, debt, FIRE, and life moves. What really happens after the episode ends? Hosts Sean Pyles, CFP®, and Elizabeth Ayoola check back in with five listeners who came on the show to find out whether the financial moves they made actually paid off. Bri navigated an unexpected job loss and a serious health crisis at the same time. Did a bare-bones budget, a marketplace health plan, and relentless determination hold everything together over 15 months of uncertainty? And what happened when Ellie and her husband actually followed through on their FIRE plan, retired at 44, and moved the whole family to Spain — only to find their passive income took an unplanned hit? Then: Paolo had $3 million saved at 48 and still couldn't bring himself to slow down — could a financial advisor, modeling multiple retirement scenarios, give him the confidence to finally let his money coast? David's cross-country move didn't go quite as planned, leaving him to navigate buying a home in one of the country's priciest markets while managing a long-distance rental. And Delius, who came to the show carrying $100,000 in credit card debt and a Vegas rental property, faced the question of whether selling would feel like freedom — or like giving up a lifeline. Subscribe to our podcast's free email newsletter for bonus content and more from our hosts at https://smartmoney-nerdwallet.beehiiv.com/  Want us to review your budget? Fill out this form — completely anonymously if you want — and we might feature your budget in a future segment! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScK53yAufsc4v5UpghhVfxtk2MoyooHzlSIRBnRxUPl3hKBig/viewform?usp=header Smart Money's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/@nerdwalletsmartmoney To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email podcast@nerdwallet.com. Like what you hear? Please leave us a review and tell a friend. *The show notes were created with the assistance of AI. They have been reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy and quality. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I interviewed Rose Bond about 1968 on Sunday, August 31, 2025 at Venice Immersive in Venice, Italy. Here is the story synopsis for 1968: "1968 is communal VR theatre that explores the transformative power of protest through allusions to 1968 — a year charged with societal, cultural and political unrest. Animated from still photographs of both the iconic and the mundane, the piece investigates international interstices of history, human bonding and power in times of socio-cultural upheaval. Rose Bond's 360° hand-drawn animation interacts with Massimiliano Borghesi's spatialisation of inti figgis-vizueta's original recorded tracks of Seven Sides of Fire to ignite a dynamic, evocative and shared immersive experience. 1968 is a collaboration of international creatives and stands as the first movement of a longer, anticipated work. 1968 is experienced collectively under a geodesic sound dome." Here are the contextual domains that are explored: Power of people and culture [11] to change government [10], but also the modes of violence that are used against them [7]. The Transformative Power of Protest Here is the Elemental Center of Gravity: 1st Center of Gravity of Emotional Presence: Story, Music - Visual storytelling language of abstract animatsion - Very tightly coupled with the patterns of music2nd Center of Gravity of Earth Element / Environmental and Embodied Presence: Spatial Audio via the Dome. There's a lot of void spaces here, and you end up seeing some hand-drawn animations that start to sketch out various scenes of political liberation from the 19683rd Center of Gravity of Air Element / Mental and Social Presence: No words, Poetic Dream Logic to evoke the memories based upon these iconic events from 1968. No explanation or discourse about anything, and so it does require the audience to be somewhat familiar with the specific cultural histories being referenced from both the United States as well as in France. This is shown as a group experience, but you don't see anyone else, and so it also feels like a solo experience that you are parallel playing with others as they watch it4th Center of Gravity of Fire Element / Active Presence: No narrative agency or any embodied Interactions Archetypal Themes and Character Explored: Revolutionary change and upheavel of the socio-political order of the 60s: "investigates international interstices of history, human bonding and power in times of socio-cultural upheaval" - Transformative power of Protest Artist Statement: "'VR, when combined with hand-drawn animation and immersive sound, can articulate complex emotional and lyrical dimensions with rare sensitivity.' Coming from a school of animation that values gesture over spoken word, I regard 3D space as a gift — an expansion from the flatness of film, a place for extended choreography. Sound has long inhabited the space between sense and sensation. This communal VR installation, ensconced in a geodesic dome mounted with fifteen acoustic speakers, seeks a shared experience — one that verges on the haptic, with exquisite spatial precision." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPgr1nul4ro This is a listener-supported podcast through the Voices of VR Patreon. Music: Fatality

AVATAR AANG: THE LAST AIRBENDER MOVIE REVIEW Water. Earth. Fire. Air. 20 years after Nickelodeon gave us one of the greatest TV series of all-time, Team Avatar is back to the beloved animated continuity, catching up with an older Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko as they navigate a world still healing from the Hundred […]

Relax with 2 hours of rain on the window, as steady drops tap gently against the glass in a calm natural rhythm. This soothing rain sound is ideal for sleep, study, focus, and deep concentration, helping to cover distractions and quiet busy thoughts. Let the soft window rain create a peaceful background for bedtime, reading, meditation, work, studying, or quiet relaxation.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/asmr-rain-recordings--5347561/support.Lose the AD intros by becoming a subscriber!https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/asmr-rain-recordings--5347561/support

Elanie Ademokun, Programmes Director at Jigsaw Education Group, joins Mark Taylor to unpack one of the most pressing issues facing schools right now: the rise of the "manosphere" and its impact on misogyny, safeguarding, and school culture.Drawing on over 20 years in education — including 11 years teaching English and PSHE in secondary schools, teacher training with Teach First, and safeguarding work with Frontline — Elanie shares what she's hearing directly from schools: shifting attitudes among boys towards female teachers, misogynistic language creeping into corridors, and growing concern from primary schools too, not just secondary.Mark and Elanie explore why this is happening so fast, how algorithms and online "lifestyle coach" influencers exploit adolescent needs for belonging and self-esteem, and why a whole-school, framework-led approach — rather than a reactive one — is essential. They discuss the balance between universal preventative education and targeted, safeguarding-led intervention, why shame and punishment backfire, and how every child needs at least one trusted adult in their corner.This is a thoughtful, practical conversation for teachers, school leaders, and parents navigating a fast-moving cultural issue with real consequences for children's wellbeing.Takeaways:Elanie Ademokun emphasizes the significance of a whole school approach in addressing sensitive topics within the curriculum, particularly in the realms of personal, social, health education, and religious education.The pervasive influence of social media has dramatically shaped the behaviour and perceptions of students, necessitating a proactive response from educators to mitigate its adverse effects.It is vital to create a supportive environment where students feel comfortable discussing their experiences and questions regarding complex societal issues like misogyny and digital misinformation.Educators are encouraged to focus on building resilience and critical thinking skills in students, ensuring they are prepared to navigate the challenges posed by contemporary online influences.The importance of fostering strong relationships and communication between teachers and students is highlighted as essential for addressing the nuances of modern educational challenges.Awareness and proactive discussions around sensitive issues must begin early in a child's education to establish a foundation for healthy relationships and self-esteem.Chapters:00:02 - Introducing Elanie Adamokun01:12 - Understanding the Manosphere's Impact on School Culture19:03 - The Importance of Early Awareness and Mentoring in Youth Development23:20 - Navigating Conversations with Children about Social Media33:46 - Building Resilience and Empowerment in Educationhttps://jigsaweducationgroup.com/www.facebook.com/jigsaweducationgroup

The third season of the fantasy drama television series House of the Dragon premiered on HBO on June 21, 2026, in the United States, and will consist of eight episodes. The season covers the events of the book Fire & Blood, a prequel novel in the A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin. The season follows in the aftermath of the second season's final episodes, in which the war known as the "Dance of Dragons" between Rhaenyra Targaryen and her half-brother Aegon II Targaryen continues, causing House Targaryen to become further divided. Aegon is supported by the Green Council and his mother Alicent Hightower, while Rhaenyra is supported by the Black Council and her husband and uncle Daemon Targaryen, both sides seeking allies from the great houses of Westeros and fighting for the support of their armies to claim their rightful positions to the Iron Throne.Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

True scary stories with calm narration and rain sounds for sleep, insomnia, late nights, studying, and relaxing in the dark.Want ad-free listening? Subscribe on Spotify for $2.99/month:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6EVEYUdrCx4HCa16MZQdF3⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Also listen:Scary Stories and Fire:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/007fyPR3zCdgA7CNPwfNqx⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Scary Stories After Dark:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/4rj44pHfXF2vv7laOQrYZx⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠More horror on Chilling:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://chilling.app.link/chillingall⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram:@scarystoriesrain_podcast@beingscaredstories@dane_petrali