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Light the fuse, it's about to get incendiary as the socially conscious, politically-motivated music of the late Tupac Shakur comes into focus this week. Dave and Adam are joined by music journalist Dean Van Nguyen, whose brand new book Words For My Comrades: A Political History of Tupac Shakur is now on shelves in all good bookstores - or you can pick it up online here. And so this week's Top 5 explores the standout declarations of the late rap icon, while examining the contradictions, controversies, and critical thoughts that continue to surround him decades on from his murder at the age of 25. Meanwhile, don't miss the latest episode of Film Club on our Patreon page - it's our first 'versus' face-off in which two beat 'em up giants collide as Street Fighter (1994) and Mortal Kombat (1995) do battle. Sign up to patreon.com/noencore now for weekly bonus episodes!As for this week's edition of NO ENCORE prime...ACT ONE: Nine Inch Nails return to the live stage to kick off the Peel It Back world tour at Dublin's 3Arena. Dave and Adam duly report back. ACT TWO (15:25): This week's news section takes in the making of a Snow Patrol anthem, Liam Gallagher hitting out at a city council, the collision between moshing and smartwear, the tribute band industry, and the militaristic thoughts of one Ryan Tedder. ACT THREE (50:33): Top 5 Politically-Charged Tupac Songs. -Follow Dean on Instagram / LinkedIn Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Writers often get stuck at the transition between Act Two and Act Three—especially when the “all hope is lost” moment doesn't quite fit their story. Is this moment supposed to be the character's lowest emotional point? Is redemption supposed to kick in right away? What if your character is still flailing?In this episode, Zena challenges the conventional “lowest point” terminology and offers a more nuanced, flexible way to think about this crucial plot transition—and how understanding this shift can raise the stakes and deepen your protagonist's arc.Want access to office hours like this one?This episode comes straight from Zena's monthly Office Hours, an exclusive perk for anyone who's ever taken one of her courses. These private Q&A sessions are your chance to get unstuck, get clarity, and get expert feedback—directly from Zena herself.Get in on it: Take any of Zena's courses to unlock lifetime access to Office Hours. If you're ready to deepen your craft and get personal feedback from Zena herself, check out her online courses.Seven Deadly Plot Points FREE TRAINING VIDEO#amwriting #authorproblems #shortstory #screenplayformat #writingtips #writersconnection #christianscreenwriter #StoryStructure #WritingTips #PlotDevelopment #ActTwoToThree #ScreenwritingLife Send us a textSupport the show
It's Act Two of our massive saga-ending crossover, and this time, we'll see you in Hell. Only one episode left in the Death's Door Saga, coming in just three days... There are some MAJOR SPOILERS in the cast credits below, so most of this description is going to be us warning you to stop scrolling. Last chance to avoid cast spoilers. Okay, here we go. FEATURING THE VOICES OF... Julian Ames as Larry Anique Evans as Marya Abe Goldfarb as Jekyll & Hyde Jenna Kass as Caroline Tyler McCall as Mother Victoria McNally as Angela Sarah Norcross as Evelyn and Girl Sam Paxton as Father Joe Stando as Jack Frankie Starker as Ahmanet Andy Webb as Dr. Chapman Kendra Wells as Hunter and Patrick Willems as David TIMESTAMPS 00:00:00 - Start 00:06:03 - Act Two 00:38:25 - Discussion 00:44:15 - Act Two Continued 01:28:01 - Discussion
Here we are, at the end of the line. The final chapter in the Death's Door Saga is being divided into THREE parts. This is Act One, with all of our usual preamble, fan predictions, and some big announcements. Act Two will be released on Thursday, June 19th, and Act Three arrives on Sunday, June 22nd. After that? Oh, we'll get there. But for now... FEATURING THE VOICES OF... Anique Evans as Emily Abe Goldfarb as The Master Sarah Norcross as Evelyn O'Connell Patrick Willems as David and Sam Paxton as Arm Demon TIMESTAMPS 00:00:00 - Cold Open 00:03:23 - Discussion 00:07:38 - Big announcement! 00:11:09 - Fan predictions 00:20:41 - Director Choice 00:21:50 - Act One 00:48:32 - Discussion 01:01:26 - Act One Continued 01:25:03 - Discussion
...and there will be NO ENCORE.As Tebi Rex comes to an end, we are delighted to welcome Max Zanga and Matt Ó Baoill to the NO ENCORE studio; a studio in which they recorded their 2019 debut album The Young Will Eat The Old.Their forthcoming third and final album Fin. will be the final chapter in the Tebi Rex discography, and as such they're here to talk Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan through the top songs on the topic and tell us how they feel about endings.Over on the NO ENCORE Patreon this week, Adam puts his music industry hat back on for a two-hour bonus podcast on the current feelings on the Irish music industry from three people on the ground in the first of what will likely be a mini Patreon series. Rachel Mae Hannon of District Magazine, independent recording artist Melina Malone and founder of Golden Éire Records Odhran O'Brien join Adam for the first edition, available now.This coming Monday, Dave & Andy McCarroll return to familiar territory to choose their fighters in the first 'versus' edition of the NO ENCORE Film Club. It's Street Fighter VS Mortal Kombat, so expect to hear the two film experts test their might on this one.Onwards, however, to this week's agenda...ACT ONE: Tebi Rex tell us about Fin. and reflect on their discography, musical journey and more.ACT TWO (33:02): Snoop Dogg biopic on the cards, and he speaks about investing in Celtic FC (but not in the way you might expect), Scooter Braun tells us about his guilt, Ed Sheeran culturally identifies as Irish and misinformed Miley Cyrus fans get a bit irritable– it's the news.ACT THREE (55:51): Top 5 Songs About Endings-Follow Tebi Rex on Instagram / TikTok / XListen to Tebi Rex Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Throw those horns up high, it's time to rock out.And who better to be leading the ferocious charge this week than former co-host Craig Fitzpatrick, as he returns to school Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan in the finest, most commercially palatable metal songs to ever be released.And if that's simply not enough NO ENCORE for you, over on our Patreon feed you can find our latest Film Club episode where Dave and Andy carefully place Damien Chazelle's box office bomb Babylon under their proverbial microscope. Bonfire of the vanities or overlooked secret masterpiece? Sign up now to hear the boys attempt to make sense of it all. Next up on the Patreon feed this coming Monday, Adam will be chatting about the current state of the Irish music industry as Album Club takes a well-deserved break. Tune in for interviews with industry professionals across a number of disciplines to hear what the feeling is on the ground, what their hopes are for the future and what could be improved.You can sign up to the NO ENCORE Patreon now for a full year and get a whole month free, so get amongst it!But for now, it's time to dust off that Slayer t-shirt that never quite did fit right...ACT ONE (5:25): It's been a whole five years since David Guetta ended racism forever, Thom Yorke finally breaks his silence on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Swedish House Mafia collab with AI to make their way into an Irish MEP's letter to the European Commission, the Bono Box bursts open once more as he sits down with Joe Rogan for a three-hour epic, Pusha T slams Kanye, Haim address their place in the 'rock community', Fyre Festival is back yet again, and we pay tribute to Simpsons composer Alf Clausen in the wake of his passing – it's the news.ACT TWO (56:39): Top 5 Metal for the Masses.-Follow Craig Fitzpatrick on Instagram / XListen to Craig's metal playlist Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It's time for some !Spoilers! for Act Two of Dido, Queen of Carthage by Christopher Marlowe and Thomas Nashe (discuss attribution with footnotes, please only write on one side of the paper at a time). The play was recorded at The White Bear Theatre on Tuesday 12th December 2023. If you'd like more on this play, there are exploring sessions galore on the YouTube. All our rehearsals, dress run, and rough live mix are on the patreon feed from £5 tier or above. The full cast audio adaptation edit of this will follow later in the year. The recording used throughout this episode is a live mix of the performed play – it's clearer than the first rough mix and focuses on the text as writ. The final release will be cleaner and a more entertaining listen. Sojourner Hazelwood-Connell – Dido Kit McGuire – Aeneas Karim Kronfli - Iarbus Alex Kapila - Anna Pamela Flanagan - Ascanius Lynsey Beauchamp - Ilioneus Sarah Blake - Venus Keith Hill - Achates Alexandra Kataigida - Cloanthus Emma Kemp - Cupid Simon Nader - Sergestus The host was Robert Crighton. CW: Discussion of war trauma, deaths, and graphic descriptions of injury detail. Our patrons received this episode a month in April 2025 - over two months in advance. The Beyond Shakespeare Podcast is supported by its patrons – become a patron and you get to choose the plays we work on next. Go to www.patreon.com/beyondshakespeare - or if you'd like to buy us a coffee at ko-fi https://ko-fi.com/beyondshakespeare - or if you want to give us some feedback, email us at admin@beyondshakespeare.org, follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram @BeyondShakes or go to our website: https://beyondshakespeare.org You can also subscribe to our YouTube channel where (most of) our exploring sessions live - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLa4pXxGZFwTX4QSaB5XNdQ The Beyond Shakespeare Podcast is hosted and produced by Robert Crighton.
Act Two of Five: In the deepest darkest basement, the former Mayor has a lead that could go all the way to the top.Coming next on 17 June – Vigil: Shadowfall, Act 3Programme notesThis production contains fantasy violence, gunfire, and references to child abduction.In chapter 3 of Camera Obscura, Matt's actual play of Outliers by Samantha Leigh, the RAs do battle with a dæmon-haunted server.Dramatis personae and other definitionsMelody Bantham: The owner of Melodies, the cosy cafe and vinyl shop on Market Street. Melody is an ageless patchwork person animated by music, who fled her creator ages ago and has owned a music shop on this spot ever since.Harper: A US exchange student trying to sever her ties to the Shadow realm she sometimes enters through revolving doors.Gwynned, the Shieldmaiden: A former shieldmaiden of the triple goddess Morrigan, exiled to live as a duck for the crime of saving a mortal man from her mistress' cruel whim, now freed from her curse and elevated to a third of the godhead herself.Brier: A mischievous shapeshifting púca, the fae guardian of Sherrydown's Rosebrier Forest.Department of Omissions (DO, DoOm): The UK government department tasked with preventing harm to citizens from supernatural phenomena. Severely defunded under Tory austerity policies and currently prioritising major urban population centres.Sherrydown, Brackshire: A historic English market town. One of the first towns to lose its DoOm office.Omission effect: The rejection of certain beings and phenomena by long-term memory. Recently lifted.CreditsCOMPERE: Matt BoothmanSTARRING:Helen Stratton as Melody Bantham, the ConstructedMarta Da Silva as Harper, the SearcherNatalie Winter as Gwynned, the DivineStrat as Brier, the MonstrousROLEPLAYING GAME SYSTEM: Monster of the Week, designed by Michael SandsMUSIC BY: Alexander PankhurstSOUND DESIGN BY: Matt BoothmanSFX AND INCIDENTAL MUSIC INCLUDES: Pigeons taking off by Glaneur de sons on freesound.org (CC BY 4.0); and may include others made available to use without attribution.EDITED AND PRODUCED BY: Matt BoothmanFind usOn Instagram @MerelyRoleplayersOn Tumblr @merelyroleplayerswww.MerelyRoleplayers.com
It's Tony time! Adam Prado-Deremer joins us again to discuss all things Broadway, from our favorite shows of the season, to changing audiences, and award predictions! The Tonys will air on Sunday, June 8th (6:40pm - Act One on Pluto, and 8:00pm - Act Two on CBS/Paramount Plus). This episode is sponsored by Harbinger's Production of "At the Wedding" playing at the Sand Lake Center for the Arts from June 6th - 15th.
Get the 7" record out of the sleeve, or open up that thin jewel case you spent a fiver on for that one special tune you couldn't get off repeat.Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam return to their respective microphones and welcome photographer extraordinaire Christian Tierney to revisit the best commercial introductions that an artist has given us.Elsewhere on the NO ENCORE Patreon feed, you can find Adam's most recent Album Club episode on show faves Touché Amoré's album Stage Four from 2016, and coming this Monday you'll find Dave and Andy's Film Club return to discuss what some regard as an overlooked masterpiece, Babylon from 2022. Where will the two men sit on this particular spectrum? You'll have to sign up to find out.Speaking of which, we now have annual Patreon memberships available! Sign up for the year and you'll get a whole month free, too. Anyway, more about this week's show, if you please...ACT ONE (13:39): The Bono Box is open as he finally speaks about Israel, Lorde does some typical Lorde things, All-American Rejects receive a rejection of their own, a Bruce Springsteen cover band pay for the sins of their idol, Metallica (literally) save lives and Miley Cyrus is warned off recording a new album by... Harrison Ford? It's the news.ACT TWO (1:02:00): Top 5 Debut Singles II-Follow Christian on InstagramVisit Christian's website Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dave and Adam are Young at heart this week as a legendary - and notoriously prickly - troubadour gets the spotlight thrust upon him. Admittedly, neither of your regular microphone fiends are experts on the man born Neil Percival Young, so thankfully they have A. Smyth on hand in the co-host chair, a few weeks ahead of his excellent new album Hello Goliath. That record is up for discussion, alongside a grab-bag of news items, and some thoughtful head-scratching on the runaway success of lore-infused alt-rock sensations Sleep Token. Over on the NO ENCORE Patreon, there's a spirited, additional audio-heavy breakdown of 1995 twistathon The Usual Suspects on a brand new Film Club, while Adam has a fresh Album Club imminent in the days to come - hit up patreon.com/noencore to sign up now! As for this episode...ACT ONE: A. Smyth talks Hello Goliath, sonic irritations, personal inspirations, and more. ACT TWO (38:03): Josh Freese packs his Foo Fighters drum-bags, Donald Trump takes aim at two of his favourite pop culture targets, Lorde makes a strange admission, and what the hell is this Sleep Token phenomenon all about? It's the news. ACT THREE (1:12:21): Top 5 Neil Young. -Follow A. Smyth on Instagram / Bandcamp Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We're off to see the 2024 movie adaptation of Act One of the 2003 hit Broadway musical based on the 1995 bestselling book by Gregory Maguire, based on the 1939 film, based on the 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum. Telling the origin story of the witches of Oz, this Jon M. Chu-directed film saw Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande step into the roles made famous on stage by Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth. Jonathan Bailey, Michelle Yeoh, Peter Dinklage, and Jeff Goldblum round out the cast of one of the biggest films of the past year. It brought in over $750 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing Oz film, the highest-grossing musical film adaptation, and the fifth-highest-grossing film of 2024. It scored ten Oscar noms, including Best Picture, and won Best Costume Design and Best Production Design. A sequel, adapting Act Two of the show, is scheduled for release later this year. But does this musical prequel defy gravity, or does it hit a few flat notes? Join us as we throw a bucket of cold water on Wicked! For more geeky podcasts visit GonnaGeek.com You can find us on iTunes under ''Legends Podcast''. Please subscribe and give us a positive review. You can also follow us on Twitter @LegendsPodcast or even better, send us an e-mail: LegendsPodcastS@gmail.com
Given the Heat of the week's sunshine, it's time to get dramatic, but not in a criminal fashion, as is the style of the main character of this week's show.Brian Lloyd joins Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan as he directs their attention to some of his favourite and some of the most iconic needle drops seen across the filmography of show-favourite director Michael Mann.Over on NO ENCORE's Patreon feed, you can also find the most recent Album Club episode on Turnstile's GLOW ON from 2021, where Adam shares his thoughts having gone into the record completely blind.This coming Monday Dave and Andy McCarroll will also be taking a look at The Usual Suspects on Film Club, Andy's favourite movie of all time, so tune in to see if Dave agrees or disagrees with that one...Anyway, let's roll camera on this week's proceedings.ACT ONE: Brian saw the new Mission: Impossible movie and gives us a preview, and Adam enacts a pseudo-takeover of the Sunday of this year's Forbidden Fruit festival.ACT TWO (9:01): A little rumination on Kanye's latest controversy, Taylor Swift is served, Creed take things faster rather than Higher, Daryl Hall is once again a curmudgeon (this time about yacht rock), Oasis' new album is fake news according to their management, Foo Fighters announce their public comeback later this year and we return to our beloved Kiss Korner– it's the news.ACT THREE (46:23): Top 5 Michael Mann Needle Drops-Follow Brian Lloyd on Instagram Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Giddy up!Join us as Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan saddle-up alongside Clare Martin, contributor at Paste Magazine, to gallop into some of the finest equestrian-adjacent musical numbers the world has to offer.And while we have you, why not canter on over to the NO ENCORE Patreon, where you'll find our most recent Film Club episode on The Counselor, in which Dave desperately tries to make the argument for a misunderstood masterpiece even though most critics - including his co-host Andy McCarroll - prefer to regard the Ridley Scott / Cormac McCarthy team-up as one of the worst films of modern times. We've also got a forthcoming edition of Adam's Album Club landing this Monday for your enjoyment. All for a mere €5 per month - you'd be mad to miss it.Anyway, onwards to the show! Open the stable doors, or something...ACT ONE: Dave shares some constructive feedback from a listener. He's not mad, just disappointed. ACT TWO (12:08): Adam gives a brief F1: The Album update, Lady Gaga sets a new crowd record in Brazil as local police foil a bomb plot, a Timotheé Chalamet appearance at Glastonbury is teased, Rihanna announces an exciting new release, Katy Perry offers up a lot of words to her haters, Lorde also breaks out the purple prose, Gloria Gaynor weighs in on the whole 'feminism' thing, Billy Corgan spills the tea for a second time, and we return to our beloved Kiss Korner– it's the news.ACT THREE (45:25): Top 5 Songs About Horses. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It's time to activate as many guitar pedals as we have and get moody.Let us enter the dreamy, pensive sphere of the shoegaze genre, and who better to be joined by than first-time guest, shoegaze-enthusiast and Cable Boy frontman Semi Olusa to guide Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan through the haze and reverb of it all.That's not all that's on offer though; on the NO ENCORE Patreon, you can find weekly bonus episodes including this week's Album Club where Adam takes a look back to 2001 to discuss Daft Punk's broadly-acclaimed second album Discovery.This coming Monday, you'll also find Dave and Andy McCarroll return to their Film Club antics to break down and discuss 2013 Ridley Scott crime-thriller The Counselor, which includes an all-star cast for the ages including our very own hometown hero Michael Fassbender – oh, and by the way, many regard this as the worst film ever made, not to be missed!But onwards to the show ahead...ACT ONE: Semi tells us about Cable Boy and new music ahead of their headline show in Bello Bar at the end of the month.ACT TWO (40:20): A moment for legendary Irish lighting engineer Conor Biddle who passed away last week, the latest on Kneecap as they continue to make global headlines for their political statements and beliefs, Ryan Coogler talks Irish trad, Ben Affleck names his hip-hop Mount Rushmore and Dizzee Rascal on upskilling – it's the news.ACT THREE (1:18:14): Top 5 Shoegaze-Follow Cable Boy on Instagram / X / TikTokListen to Purple (End of the World)Tickets to Cable Boy @ Bello Bar, May 29Donate to the Biddle-Smyths Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Miskatonic Playhouse presents Act Two of Stage Fright at the Playhouse, by John Hedge and Friends.Arkham, Ma, 1927: mysterious symbols of an unknown language have appeared seemingly overnight, carved into the facade of a dilapidated Arkham theatre. The investigators have been called in, but what foul schemes are really afoot behind the scenes at the Miskatonic Playhouse?--------- Keeper of Arcane Lore: HedgePatty Gillian: Bridgett JeffriesMags Myers: Camille ( @HowWeRollPodcast )Clara WIndu: Don't Stop Me NowHugo ‘Shrimpy' Hargreaves: T.A. NewmanSound and Video Editing: The Cosmic OutpostMusic and sound by Syrinscape (http://syrinscape.com)---------https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/496508?affiliate_id=3500905---------Find us at www.MiskatonicPlayhouse.comSupport us at ko-fi.com/MiskatonicPlayhouse
From NO ENCORE to Numb / Encore.This week we're moving into the world of Linkin Park as Irish Independent multimedia reporter Darragh Nolan graces the guest mic for the first time to take Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan into his favourite five selections from his favourite act.Elsewhere in the world of NO ENCORE, you'll find a new bonus episode of Film Club live now on our Patreon where Dave and Andy McCarroll analyse, discuss and dissect the alleged classic that is 1992's The Bodyguard featuring Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston.Next Monday Album Club returns where Adam will be discussing Discovery by Daft Punk – click here to get amongst all of that weekly bonus goodness as well as early, ad-free access and weekly show previews for as little as €5 per month.As for this week's show...ACT ONE (9:48): Our Coachella round-up including Deadmau5 having a few too many, Kneecap sparking US media outrage and Charli XCX and Green Day starting a new beef, Travis Scott makes his way onto the main event at Wrestlemania, Weezer return to the news section for less violent affairs, Elizabeth Hurley and Billy-Ray Cyrus make it official, Robbie Williams makes some very interesting comments on fan interactions and Grimes is very in-tune with our Top 5 this week– it's the news.ACT TWO (1:13:44): Top 5 Linkin Park-Follow Darragh Nolan on X / InstagramRead Darragh's work on The Irish IndependentGQ: Charli XCX Shouts Out Some Elite Filmmakers At Coachella, Instantly Makes Movies Cool AgainOriginal Movies in 2025: Oops, All Flops!Dave's Drowned In Sound piece on Chester Bennington Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Rise. NO ENCORE is once more among the living as the best damn music podcast in town returns with a jam-packed episode for your Easter weekend. Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam are joined by Mark Conroy, who presents a new spin on the art of the comeback. Also en route and exclusively for patrons is a brand new episode of FIlm Club as Dave sits down with Andy McCarroll to discuss melodramatic 1992 box office smash The Bodyguard, which also spawned a soundtrack album you may have heard once or twice over the past few decades. You can get that and all weekly bonus content including regular editions of NO ENCORE early access and advertisement-free by hitting up patreon.com/noencore for a mere five bucks a month - join us! As for this episode, well, it looks a bit like this...ACT ONE (4:19): Linkin Park finally reach the UEFA Champions League final, Katy Perry returns from her very important #girlboss space mission, Daredevil: Born Again gets a weird TV spot, Hulk Hogan tells yet another obvious non-truth, a significant other of Weezer runs afoul of the law, the fans of Leinster Rugby Club outdo themselves, Sabrina Carpenter enjoys some viral vinyl, Mark Hoppus may have contributed to the capture of Saddam Hussein, and what movie has A$AP Rocky been binging? It's the news. ACT TWO (42:24): Top 5 Resurrection Songs Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Sit back, relax and put your feet up listener, your favourite show is about to begin...NO ENCORE plugs into the televisual arena this week as Sarah McKenna Barry returns to Sonic Architowers to give Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan a selection of her favourite TV themes of the 2020s (so far).Speaking of vivid media, we have some brand new content forthcoming on our NO ENCORE Patreon this coming Monday, as Adam takes you through a career retrospective on Thomas Thierry aka Kartell, a producer close to Adam's heart who sadly passed away suddenly last month.As for this edition of pod, let's pump up the volume...ACT ONE (25:26): Elton John and Madonna finally squash their beef, Ed Sheeran goes below the line, Mark Hoppus reveals his former "witchy" dating life, Katy Perry gets blasted for her space mission inclusion, David Schwimmer details how the Friends theme was never there for him, while the White Lotus drama spills into real life as creator and composer clash - it's the news of the week.ACT TWO (55:03): Top 5 TV Themes of the 2020s-Follow Sarah McKenna Barry on InstagramMeet the silver swans: ‘We haven't got the bodies of 20-year-olds – but ballet is for everybody' Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this installment of Critical Hit, a Major Spoilers TTRPG Podcast: The curtain rises on act two of The King in Yellow. Character sheets and battle map images for this episode are available at Patreon.com/MajorSpoilers Critical Hit on Stitcher Show your thanks to Major Spoilers for this episode by becoming a Major Spoilers Patron at Patreon.com/MajorSpoilers. It will help ensure Critical Hit continues far into the future! Join our Discord server and chat with fellow Spoilerites! (https://discord.gg/jWF9BbF) Contact us at podcast@majorspoilers.com A big Thank You goes out to everyone who downloads, subscribes, listens, and supports this show. We really appreciate you taking the time to listen to our ramblings each week. Tell your friends about the podcast, get them to subscribe and, be sure to visit the Major Spoilers site for more.
In this installment of Critical Hit, a Major Spoilers TTRPG Podcast: The curtain rises on act two of The King in Yellow. Character sheets and battle map images for this episode are available at Patreon.com/MajorSpoilers Critical Hit on Stitcher Show your thanks to Major Spoilers for this episode by becoming a Major Spoilers Patron at Patreon.com/MajorSpoilers. It will help ensure Critical Hit continues far into the future! Join our Discord server and chat with fellow Spoilerites! (https://discord.gg/jWF9BbF) Contact us at podcast@majorspoilers.com A big Thank You goes out to everyone who downloads, subscribes, listens, and supports this show. We really appreciate you taking the time to listen to our ramblings each week. Tell your friends about the podcast, get them to subscribe and, be sure to visit the Major Spoilers site for more.
Hark, for a jocular troubadour draws near. His name is Paddy Hanna, and we're only thrilled to welcome him back to the studio for this week's fun and games. Paddy has a new album in tow, with Oylegate landing on Friday, 11 April. We'll get into that and so much more, including a rare familial-themed Top 5 (Paddy has children, we do not). We've also got plenty of news to wade through, and a preview of our returning Film Club bonus content, with a brand new episode dropping this Sunday! Head over to patreon.com/noencore to sign up - new material every week! As for this episode... ACT ONE: Paddy, Dave and Adam discuss OYLEGATEACT TWO (33:21): Val Kilmer RIP, Dave prepares to become even more insufferable, Adam reacts to a surprise new Skrillex record, those much-talked about four separate Beatles movies finally have an official cast, Sean Ono Lennon has a go at Rachel Zegler, Jessica Simpson offers some eyebrow-raising advice of her own, Machine Gun Kelly and Travis Barker contribute to a niche genre, and Chappell Roan invites some criticism for her thoughts on parenthood - it's the news, and lots of it. ACT TWO (1:05:46): Top 5 Worst Songs About Parenting-Follow Paddy Hanna on Instagram / XPre-order OYLEGATE on BandcampListen to Paddy Hanna on Spotify / Apple MusicSee Paddy Hanna Live Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what's exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here.Musical premiere in Bemidji tackles small-town healingKevin Cease of Bemidji is a funeral director and fan of community theater. He's looking forward to the world premiere of “Water from Snow,” a new musical by Janet Preus, co-written with Robert Elhai and Fred Steele. The show runs through Sunday, April 13. Tickets here.NOTE: The “Water from Snow” premiere has been postponed until April 11.Kevin said: I'm looking forward to the world premiere of local playwright Janet Preus's show “Water from Snow.” It is an original musical play co-written by her and Robert Elhai and Fred Steele of the Steele family. As it is set in a small town on a lake in northern Minnesota, Bemidji seems perfect for its premiere!Important and universal themes drive this story: healing wounds caused by abuse; overcoming racism against Indigenous people; bridging generational differences; valuing elderly community members; and championing women supporting each other. They hope to generate meaningful conversations among audience members, performers and the creative team.The roughhewn nature of the Rail River School venue in Bemidji lends additional character and dimension to the play. The music is diverse from a mix of music from country and blues, to pop, ballads and R&B, even a song from old farts at the setting of the café — there are 22 original songs! The lively local cast has chosen their roles carefully, with a range of characters drawn from the writer's lifetime in rural Minnesota.— Kevin CeaseMacMillan's transformative choral workStephen Kingsbury is a choral director and educator who wrote his doctoral dissertation on Scottish composer Sir James MacMillan. He recommends two upcoming events celebrating MacMillan's music.MacMillan will conduct seven Twin Cities choirs in a free performance called “Voices for a Cathedral” at the Cathedral of St. Paul, Friday, April 4 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. VocalEssence will also perform an all-MacMillan program Sunday, April 6 at 4 p.m. at the Ordway in St. Paul, with both MacMillan and Philip Brunelle conducting. The program features “Seven Last Words from the Cross” and “The Sun Danced,” with soprano Goitsemang Lehobye joining the U of M University Singers and orchestra.Kingsbury describes his first encounter with MacMillan's work over 25 years ago:Stephen says: One day, in deep frustration, I was going through my collection of recordings looking for inspiration. I found a disc that I had no recollection of purchasing. It was of MacMillan's “Seven Last Words from the Cross.” I popped in the player and spent the next hour laying on the floor of my apartment, wrapped in the music, staring up at the ceiling, silently weeping. I had never encountered anything like it. In that hour, I was transformed by a new awareness of what the choral art could be: how it touch the soul in deep and transformative ways. I knew then that MacMillan had to be the topic of my study. Since then, MacMillan's music has served as one of the centers of my artistic and scholarly life. I've since written a number of additional articles about his music and had the pleasure of being able to conduct many of MacMillan's compositions. His music strikes a balance between passion and craft; it is both deeply emotional and thoughtful.— Stephen KingsburyZappa's legacy lives on in Mankato tributePaula Marti of New Ulm is a classically trained oboist and manager of Morgan Creek Vineyards & Winery, where she curates summer concerts. She also has a lifelong love of Frank Zappa's music, and she recommends a tribute concert this weekend.Joe Tougas and his ensemble Joe's Garage return to perform “Joe's Garage, Act Two,” a Frank Zappa tribute concert. The event is Saturday, April 6 at 7 p.m. at the Morson-Ario-Strand VFW in Mankato.Paul says: What's unique about this particular group is because there's so many professional musicians in it, they really have been able to achieve the sound that Frank Zappa attempts to create in his works. He has this diverse sensibility about sound and rhythm. It's integrated in a marvelous way that has this orchestral effect. It's just amazing as a classical musician myself, enjoying what comes out of these interesting themes that Zappa puts together, which are unique, they're cultural expressions of our time and our era. And he does that in a way that's very, very respectful to the instrumentation that has to go on that represents, you know, the harmonies, the diversities and the the challenges of the message of the music.— Paul Marti
Getting repped can seem impossible, but the good news is there are actually many different paths to representation. In this repost from S4, hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman break down what worked for them in their own careers and what they've seen work for other writers. TWIW: Josh finished a pilot with his wife and celebrated with Taylor Swift, Tasha celebrates an Act Two mentee getting repped! Plus, how long does it take to write a feature screenplay anyway? Questions / Comments: ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist
The prodigal son returns to NO ENCORE - let's just hope he's not too big for his boots now, eh? Donegal icon, Football Special enthusiast, and now very much daily 2FM drivetime sensation Hugh Carr joins Dave and Adam to quite literally jazz things up for this week's Top 5 - think big-band, orchestral, 1940s-style reinterpretations of songs you likely already know. We also have plenty of news to go through, and we'd love your most determined prayers ahead of this weekend's Patreon batch recording - seriously, we don't know if we can handle another technical glitch that robs us of our hard work. And remember, it costs just €5 a month to get access to weekly bonus episodes, with new editions of Album Club and Film Club currently in production, not to mention a forthcoming quiz - hit up patreon.com/noencore if you're in the mood! As for this week's breakdown... ACT ONE (12:47): Fontaines D.C. provide a jazzed-up cover of their own, WU LYF appear to be back, Drake says perception is reality, David Draiman gets Disturbed by some household issues, Steven Graham gets emotional about Bruce Springsteen, WWE gets in the ring with some live concerts, KISS Korner makes a comeback, and Adam pays respects to late producer Kartell - it's the news.ACT TWO (1:00:38): Top 5 Jazzed-Up Covers.-Follow Hugh Carr on Instagram / X / TikTokListen to Seansalaíthe Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
From MPR News, Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what's exciting in local art. Their recommendations are lightly edited from the audio heard in the player above. Want to be an Art Hound? Submit here.Resting as resistance Folk musician Emily Youngdahl Wright of Minneapolis admires writer and community-space-maker Amọké Kubat. She wants people to know about the final step of Kubat's ongoing project to honor those who mother children by offering them a place to rest — literally. The exhibit features rocking chairs that were created during a community build and then painted, collaged or otherwise re-created by Minnesota artists. “Rocking Chair (Re)Evolution” is a free, drop-in show at the Weisman Art Museum on the West Bank of the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis. The exhibit is open Friday, March 28 and Saturday, March 29 from 11-5 p.m., with a ceremony on Sunday from 1-3 p.m. The rocking chairs will be gifted to 12 mothers and grandmothers previously chosen with community feedback. Emily said: The whole project itself is just such a beautiful example of thinking about what kind of rest do you need, and what kind of support do you need? The chairs are an example, I think, of tending to the spirit and the heart and the body [in] this work that really doesn't end when you're a parent and when you're a grandparent, and when you are tending to this world that is in so much need of tending right now.— Emily Youngdahl Wright21st century opera Composer Eric Heukeshoven of Winona plans to head to Rochester to watch Hometown Opera Company's New Media Opera performance, featuring scenes of new and familiar works staged in a multimedia format. The first act consists of scenes from Rochester composer Kevin Dobbe's “Tempus Fugit.” The second act centers women's voices with scenes from Verdi, Puccini, Dvořák, Wagner and Strauss. Performances are Friday, March 28 and Saturday, March 29 at 7:30 p.m. at the Rochester Civic Theatre. Eric Heukeshoven said the staging is: As 21st century as I can possibly imagine.It is an opera that explores the human experience and time, and it does this by combining live performances of vocalists and dancers with digital projections, what Kevin calls motion-capture ‘metahumans' and singing projected avatars. I've seen a clip that he sent me recently, and it is absolutely mesmerizing.(He adds that Act Two scenes are “fully staged and choreographed, but also using projections that Kevin has created.”)— Eric HeukeshovenMinneapolis hosts breaking qualifier for national competition Kelly Rabe of Champlain started taking hip hop and breaking classes over the pandemic, and she wants people to know that Minneapolis will be in the national eye this weekend when it hosts the Red Bull BC One Cypher One competition. Local and regional b-girls and b-boys will compete in one-on-one battle style for a spot at the National Finals in Denver. The event will be held in a new venue on the Minneapolis scene: Royalston Square, located in the North Loop. There are open qualifier preliminaries on Friday. The main event is Saturday, starts at 7 p.m. and costs $10. Kelly described her experience: This is probably maybe my third year going to the BC One, and I have to say, it is like the most hyped event I have ever been to in the Twin Cities. I mean, it's better than music festivals. It's better than dance parties. There's just an energy like nothing else. The spectators are really supportive of the dancers. They'll be cheering, they'll be screaming, jumping up and down when they see the dancers do amazing things. It's a really welcoming community. Not to mention they have, like, world-renowned DJs that are spinning the tunes for these dancers. So, I mean, it's a full dance and music action. — Kelly Rabe
We're here to make you an offer you can't refuse, listener. Just sign on the dotted line, and the hefty advance that is our podcast will land in the bank account that is your ears.This week we return to Sonic Architowers where Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan are joined by Alan Duggan Borges of Gilla Band, The Claque and most recently The Null Club ahead of the forthcoming self-titled EP due for release on 4 April (which you can preorder here) to discuss songs that discuss the very industry that is the lifeblood of this podcast– the music industry.Will we uncover the shady secrets of the music world and all of its dealings by the end of the podcast? Tune in to find out...Elsewhere, you can find our most recent Film Club episode featuring Dave, Richard Chambers and Andy McCarroll discussing the absolute edit-fest that is Any Given Sunday here on Patreon, and signing up gets you bonus episodes every given Sunday, as well as weekly show previews and early and ad-free access to all main feed epsiodes, so don't miss out.ACT ONE (6:50): We talk to Alan about The Null Club's forthcoming EP, Gilla Band and more.ACT TWO (35:11): Brian Dobson AKA Snoop Dobb shows off his rap skills, Denis Leary shares his experience meeting Michael Stipe, David Draiman adds fuel to the fire (literally), Nick Cave Clarification Corner, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4 soundtrack revealed and Jim Morrison is apparently alive and well(?)– it's the news.ACT THREE (59:41): Top 5 Music Industry-Preorder The Null Club EP on BandcampFollow The Null Club on InstagramSee The Null Club Live Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It's time to tell our side of the story, listener.And who better to do that with us than this week's guest! Journalist and broadcaster Jenn Gannon returns to the podcast this week to dive into the best that the musical corner of the documentary world has to offer, as well as taking on a healthy dose of music and entertainment news, so let's get the cameras rolling and get right to it.Don't forget, by signing up to our Patreon at Patreon.com/NOENCORE you can get all episodes of the show 24 hours early and ad-free, as well as weekly bonus content. Coming in the next few days is a brand-new Film Club with Dave, Andy McCarroll and Richard Chambers discussing the editing masterpiece that is American football thriller Any Given Sunday – and let me tell you, it's well-worth the €5 monthly cost for that episode alone.ACT ONE (2:05): Fontaines finally wield the RTÉ Choice Music Prize, Steve Wall reveals the pitfalls of the acting business, Fred Durst kind of puts his foot in it at the Limp Bizkit 3Arena show, Los Campensinos give us a very detailed insight into the finances of touring, Tiesto's lawyer tries to throw him under the bus, Grimes wishes for less toxicity on the internet, King Charles shows he's down with the modern times and an apparently very good Prince documentary is shelved by Netflix– it's the news.ACT TWO (50:19): Top 5 Music Documentaries-Follow Jenn Gannon on X / InstagramLos Campensinos! - In The Black Stuff blog post Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Act Two of Five: Gwynned seeks out eyewitnesses (and nose-, foot- and tail-witnesses). Graham and Renko follow their noses.Coming next on 25 March – Vigil: Ill Wind, Act 3Programme notesThis production contains fantasy violence, retching sounds, toxic friendship, and betrayal.The Re: Dracula team's audio drama adaptation of Carmilla, the classic vampire novel by J Sheridan Le Fanu (Sherrydown's namesake), is in progress over on the Re: Dracula podcast feed.Dramatis personae and other definitionsRenko: A DoOm agent assigned to Sherrydown, furloughed since the office closed.Gwynned, the Shieldmaiden: A former shieldmaiden of the triple goddess Morrigan, exiled to live as a duck for the crime of saving a mortal man from her mistress' cruel whim, now freed from her curse and elevated to a third of the godhead herself.Graham: The demon equivalent of an accountant, summoned to Earth in error and now trying to make the best of it. He is destined to bring about the Apocalypse.Peggy Tailor: The prodigal daughter of a local family that dabbles in fey frolicking and organised crime, back in town to lay low after a grift gone horribly wrong.Jess Butterworth: A twenty-something shift worker, Sherrydown born and bred. While working the tarot tent at Amazement Park, she was approached by Kit, a being claiming to be her spirit guide.Department of Omissions (DO, DoOm): The UK government department tasked with preventing harm to citizens from supernatural phenomena. Severely defunded under Tory austerity policies and currently prioritising major urban population centres.Sherrydown, Brackshire: A historic English market town. One of the first towns to lose its DoOm office.Omission effect: The rejection of certain beings and phenomena by long-term memory. Recently lifted.CreditsCOMPERE: Matt BoothmanSTARRING:Vikki as Renko, the FlakeNatalie Winter as Gwynned, the DivineAlexander Pankhurst as Graham, the SummonedEllie Pitkin as Peggy Tailor, the Crookedwith Ellen Gould as Jess ButterworthROLEPLAYING GAME SYSTEM: Monster of the Week, designed by Michael SandsMUSIC BY: Alexander PankhurstSOUND DESIGN BY: Matt BoothmanSFX AND INCIDENTAL MUSIC INCLUDES: pigeons taking off by Glaneur de sons on freesound.org; Virtutes Instrumenti by Kevin McLeod (incompetech.com), licensed under Creative Commons By Attribution 3.0 License; and may include others made available to use without attribution.EDITED AND PRODUCED BY: Matt BoothmanFind usOn Instagram @MerelyRoleplayersOn Tumblr @merelyroleplayerswww.MerelyRoleplayers.com
Let's get avant-garde and abstract - it's time to throw it back to 1970s downtown New York City for this week's Top 5 countdown. Dave Hanratty and Sonic Architect Adam Shanahan know next-to-nothing about this genre, so thankfully they have Dublin-based roustabout Skinner on board to take them through it. The multi-instrumentalist is fresh off tour in support of his debut album New Wave Vaudeville, which gets the official NO ENCORE 'go listen to this right after the podcast' seal of approval. ACT ONE (6:47): Skinner talks New Wave Vaudeville and falls prey to some impromptu quickfire quizzing. ACT TWO (33:02): This week's news section takes in the Oscars, Drake and Travis Scott witnessing John Cena's shocking heel turn, FIFA going full Super Bowl, ultra-brief Choice Prize chat, questionable auction items, and Dave's Sonic Challenge. ACT THREE (1:10:36): Top 5 No Wave.-Follow Skinner on Instagram Listen to New Wave Vaudeville on Bandcamp / Spotify / Apple Music Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Things come to a head backstage at the Purple Guys show. --- Escape the Dungeon is a podcast by Mike Cripps, Zac Brass, Dom Brass, Nate Brass, and Tyler Knittle. If you like the show, please leave a 5 star review on your favorite podcast app. Escape the Dungeon is available on YouTube at youtube.com/@EscapeTheDungeonPod More information and links to social media is available at escapethedungeonpod.com
361Firm Briefing "End of Global Conflicts or Start of Something New?" (Feb25, 2025)SUMMARY KEYWORDSGlobal conflicts, economic uncertainty, UN resolution, Russia-Ukraine war, China-US rivalry, NATO modernization, Trump administration, defense spending, Middle East instability, South China Sea, energy independence, rare earth minerals, geopolitical instability, disruptive technologies, global governance.SPEAKERSStephen Burke, Andrew Fisch, Adam Blanco, Hamlet Yousef, Speaker 1, Mark Sanor, Maxwell Nee, Bill Deuchler, Speaker 2, Michael Hammer, Anthony GordonStephen Burke 00:00Which Putin thought went in quite quickly. It's been about 16 months since you had the attacks in Gaza on October 7 of 23 and you've had a little over a month since President Trump has returned to the and nothing's been the same since any of those days in the world yesterday, we had a good sense of that with the UN resolution, which basically said Russia didn't start the war in Ukraine. So I'm going to basically ask hamly to join to put some clarity into where the conflicts are going, and are we getting close to an end or the start of something new? Last week on our calls, unless nobody raised this question, and we had the view that this started something new Hamlet and I that we're not as close to the end as everyone would hope, certainly as close the end as President Trump was kind of indicating what's going on right now has created a highly elevated economic uncertainty, but also policy uncertainty around the world. This report is takes a look at newspaper mentions of uncertainty. It looks at shifts in government policy. And it looks at surveys of Professional Forecasters, and you can see the economic uncertainty today is higher than it was when the pandemic was going on, and significantly higher was than it was when Russia invaded Ukraine back in 2020, 2022, and what you can see here, this is a survey from an armed conflict survey, which actually looks at the human impact, and they define it by the number of fatalities due to violent events in a specific country, number of refugees originating in a select country, and the number of internally displaced people. So you can see the hardship that the conflicts around the world are extracting. But it's not just Ukraine and Gaza, it's many other places around the world, and that is actually stress and government abilities to deal with is in a spot where they're paddling 02:20free front Stephen Burke 02:22as we get here, I think this really comes down to a very simple fact that China has risen to a level that they are challenging the US for global leadership, and there's a conflict in how they resolve that shift. And I think we're also seeing the fact that United Nations, NATO and other post world war two institutions probably about live there, have outgrown what their original incentive was, and they need to be modernized to deal with a world that's very different than it was, not only post World War Two, but even 20 years ago, with China's rise and the rise of other nations as well. I think we've had a problem with bad leadership. I've talked about that in the past. It, to me, is one of the most scary issues we're facing is weak leaderships, making bad decisions that are short term oriented just about the next election cycle, and not dealing with the pain, the necessary pain that comes with making hard decisions, which has led to significant under investment in critical areas, then the last thing that led to what has us where we are today is really the Trump factor. And if you want to follow and understand what's ahead of us and what's going on right now. All you have to do is look at the 2024 Republican platform. And this is the play book that Trump follows. And whether you like him or hate him, one thing you should know about the Trump administration is he's going to try and do what he laid out in this platform, whether it's good policy or bad policy, in his mind, is good policy, and he's going to push forward with it. So even things that don't make sense, he's going to move forward with. He's also going to create a lot of conflicting statements that are going to be challenging for foreign leaders, for domestic CEOs, and for CEOs and business leaders around the world, and also for people investors trying to make strong investment decision. But understand these 20 points, because this is the play book that he is following right now. Global defense spending is on the rise, and we know that it's been carried over very heavily by the US, China and Russia, and purchasing power parity, you would see Russia and China spending over four $60 billion each last year. Europe combined spent a little less than a third of what the US has spent, and part of what the goal is is to get that increase accidentally. And ease some of the burden on the US, while a lot of people think it may be for them to redirect money to other areas, I think one of the challenges that the US has is there some modernization, rebuild, and to be able to be prepared for fighting on free front, where Russia is fighting on one right now in the Gaza, it's really Ukraine, and I'm sorry, Gaza, it's really Israel, and the US take on Iran and their proxies, and then you have what's going on in the South China Sea. The US cannot afford to fight China and three other than two other battles at once. And that's really what's weighing on the US, because number one on the US is mine, I believe is dealing with China, not dealing with Russia and the Middle East is more of a short term issue. The big longer term issue is the ascension of China, and how do we deal with that? But I think the other issue is because we're fighting in three fronts. Right now we're preparing to battle on three fronts. I think this quote from Finland foreign Prime Minister really is quite true. It's it's not reasonable right now for the US to be able to do this, whether it's not just financially, but practically, can we afford to do it? We don't have the military build up right now, and we've exhausted a lot of our military supplies being at work for most of the last 20 years. So European leaders are facing a very harsh reality right now. What you can see from this chart is defense spending as a proportion of GDP, and it shows how I balance it's been and those closes to the action either with migrants coming through or with being close supporters of Russia, or where the higher spend is, and the lower spend has been not coming through from the rest of Europe. And this is creating a big problem. As you can see, the demands for future spend are going to be much higher. They're talking about 3.7% or 5% and this is what additional spending would look like over the next decade. And this is coming at a time that most of these governments have massive demands from the domestic population that are go well beyond the defense spending that's going to help other parts of the world. But I think it was NATO had said the other day, if they don't get the 3.7% they better start learning Russia and Europe. I think that may be an extreme, but maybe not. This is a problem that chronic under investment has been going on for way too long, and the catch up is going to be the problem. And if we're doing better all along, this would be less of a burden, but it's coming at a particularly bad time, particularly moving up to the 4% level, and we don't have the benefits of free money that we had for the last 15 years. So we're in a tough spot in Europe. We're trying to figure out is, can trump force a settlement in on these people in different in different parts of the world? I'm skeptical of it. I don't think we're close to the end of a war. I mentioned that last week, but I asked Hamlet to join Hamlet, if you could just give a little bit of your background first, and then we'll jump into the Q and A, Hamlet Yousef 08:23yeah, that sounds good. Appreciate it. Looking forward to the conversation here so I could be there in person. My name is Hamlet. You said one of the managing partners at Iron Gate Capital Advisors. We're a defense tech focused venture fund. This thesis was built about six, seven years ago, when we thought that the world was going down a new direction, where the kind of the global war on terror was winding down. That's an issue that we're going to continue to have to deal with. But the near conflicts, or the issue that was going to face us, geo politically, was a re emergence of a second Cold War, or, if not, a much greater conflict. I think it was right after the Ukraine invasion. On one of the calls here with the folks at 360 I talked about how the world is going down, how the path of almost like a three act tragedy. Act one was going to be the invasion of Ukraine, and the destabilizing impact that was going to have in the region and globally. Act Two of this geo political tragedy was the emergence, or was going to be, the emergence, of a very belligerent Iran with a nuclear undertone, trying to destabilize the Middle East. And act three was the emergence that the kind of driving force behind this was a desire by xi and the Chinese Communist Party to become the only super power, not a super power, but the only super power, and supplant Western influence, job, which includes the US globally. Unfortunately, I think a lot of that has been happening just quick. Color again, on background. Prior to running Iron Gate, I had a long career in. In the federal government, in the national security, diplomacy and intelligence area. So this is an area that I've been pretty, pretty keen on and falling for a good chunk of my adult life. So I think Steven's earlier slide, or the opening slide, says very clearly I think this is the beginning of a much greater conflict. I do not think global peace is breaking out anytime in the near future. I think the three main hot wars, or the hot zones you see right now, Ukraine, the Israel, Gaza, Iran conflict, and the South China Sea and Southeast Asia. I think the tenor of those conflicts is going to change in the coming months and year. I think there is potentially, quote unquote, a a grand bargain that President Trump is going to try to strike to stabilize matters to a certain extent, but I think that's going to bring more of a kind of a calm before the eye of the storm, rather than ever lasting peace. So I'll start, I'll stop there. And then, Steve, I guess, let me know in what direction you want to take the Q, a Mark Sanor 11:06Can I ask a question. Steven, can you hear me? Yeah. Long day, Mark, did you see this veto coming and the and the the way the alignment is shifting with Trump and Putin. Hamlet Yousef 11:21Oh, the UN ve though, as far as negating the UN the resolution, yeah, no, I definitely do not see that coming. I think the one thing that is going to be probably very predictable for the next four years is unpredictability, loan or hate him. I think Trump style of governance and leadership is to completely upset the apple cart, create chaos and operate through it, whether that's through willful intent or just that's how he operates. So I'll leave that for another call. So I don't think anybody saw that coming. To be honest with Mark Sanor 11:58you, the questions from from others. Oh, Michael, you're you're on mute. Steve. Michael Hammer, sure, Michael Hammer 12:12more of a comment than a question. I mean, yesterday, I felt like I was in a bizarro world where the US voted with Russia and North Korea against allies of 80 years. This is crazy. So my comment on this is, and I've, I've been speaking with friends in Europe who are involved with government and the military, and some folks here in the States, everybody is in shock. And the sense that I get from the Europeans is we are going to see a schism between the US and Europe, and they're going to be going towards a war time economy. Most folks are denying it these days, but this is huge. And I think China is just sitting there, xi is just sitting there laughing at what's going on, because it all falls in their favor. And I'll stop with that. What do you think you said? That Speaker 1 13:24was actually a question I had. Do you think China wants any of these words to end as Trump Hamlet Yousef 13:32does? I honestly, I don't know. I don't know. I think, I think China benefits through continued destabilization. I think what China wants to do is, he wants to weaken all powers, so a prolongment of a conflict in Ukraine. Kind of help? Help helps. Help does that? It distracts the West and the US in Eastern Europe, and it continues to weaken Russia to a certain extent, which is, I think what G wants, I think Xi's ultimate goal is to expand his influence in southeast China and potentially in the Nepali step. So the weaker your adversaries become, the stronger you become. One dynamic to consider is a good chunk of the first Cold War. The West really try to keep the two communist powers apart in terms of China and Russia. What's happened over the last couple of years, obviously, is you have this formation of an access of authoritarianism between Xi Putin and the regime inside Iran. So almost the exact opposite is happening. But to me, I think this is where xi sees these nations as his quote, unquote, proxy allies in a longer term effort to destabilize the US and the West and to assert their dominance in the region. But I don't think that's going to end well for a whole host of reasons. I'm still, I think, very skeptical on how long. This, this g Putin romance remains, and I want to point to just a couple of anecdotal observations, kind of at the height of the explosion of the Ukraine war. This is going back to September 2023 Xi made a tour, I believe, throughout the the scans the former Soviet states and began courting these, these nations of which a large chunk of them are Asiatic in their in their ethnicity and makeup. I think this is an effort for him to pull those folks away from the Vlad and closer to his ring of influence, the Chinese have a very long memory, and I think they view things almost like you heard this before, in a centuries long optic, not an election cycle like we do in the West. I don't think they fully forgotten or or forgave what happened to them at the back end of the Opium Wars, and that was an effort that they blame squarely, obviously, on Europe. But in 1850 1860 when the war ended, out of Manchuria, better known as Siberia today, was annexed by the Russians away from China, and is now part of the Russian government, or Russia the entity. I don't think it's too far of a stretch to see to say that at some point, Xi doesn't want to look at the lands to his north that are grossly under populated, grossly under defended, and rich of natural resources as an area that he can eventually march into. So he hear the quote that I think McCain, Senator McCain first coined, that Russia is not nothing out of the big gas station for China. I think there's some truth and merit in there. So if this conflict continues, and I think it's going to China actually benefits, now, I do think there's a greater, an increasing probability that we have some sort of a grand bargain or an agreement between Putin in the west and potentially China, where you'll see a near term cease of the firing and the fighting in Ukraine. But that's that doesn't mean global peace is breaking out and the conflict is over. If anything, I think what you see happening is, if that does happen, Ukraine is not ready to give up that land. Russia is not going to retreat and give back Eastern Don Boston in Crimea. So I think what you have is potentially a formation of almost like an East Germany, West Germany that we had at the end of the Second World War. From there, we had a decades long Cold War where both sides are starting to destabilize the other. So if you play this out and Putin does get to hold on to the lands that he sold Eastern in eastern Ukraine, I think he then spends the next decade trying to destabilize Odessa, trying to destabilize Kyiv, trying to put his own proxy, or his own person in charge, and then continue with that Western influence that he wants, in terms of reforming, reconstructing that western border. He's doing the same thing in the caucuses. So that, I think, changes the 10 of the conflicts. It may end the near term direct conflict in Ukraine, but I don't think by any means that's going to be the beginning of the 18:17end. Andrew fish, do you want to ask your question? Andrew Fisch 18:20Yeah, Hamlet, you're involved, obviously, in military acquisition technology, the push for getting Europe to spend more, you know, still kind of a slow, slow move, but, but one of the issues is spending it on what? So I'm just going to give you, like, an analogy, and then what you answer the question. So if you take Poland, Poland has ramped up their military acquisition, and they're not worried where it comes from. They're buying Korean tanks, they're buying American weapons, they're buying anything and get their hands on, I think Jack, I think even Japanese jets, whatever. The point is, they're doing it quickly. The other nations upping their expenditure. They didn't spend any money for so long, their military industrial infrastructure. And you comment on this is not ready to ramp up and and they don't want to just buy American so how much would they have to spend to do a Poland like catch up? And is that even possible? Hamlet Yousef 19:32Yeah, great question. Look, I think, I think you're starting to see the awakening of this defense tech initiative throughout Europe. It's something that I think shock the system in 2016 to 2020 under Trump's first term. I think the explosion of the conflicts on Europe's eastern flank is sending shock waves throughout the continent. You are starting to see all the countries. Us, for the most part, wake up and start allocating more and more dollars. I think there's a bit of a variance in terms of what that percentage of GDP needs to look like, is going up and exponentially for it was 456, years ago. But this is also something that the US wasn't necessarily all that worried about when we first started our fun thes just six, seven years ago, defense tech and defense investing was this kind of back water thesis that nobody cared about. It's all the rage right now here, inside the US, there's, every time you turn around, there's another venture fund or growth equity fund or a private capital source that has Defense Innovation dual use defense tech as part of their thesis. So it is becoming a key area of focus and spend for us here in the US. Well, you seen that same thing start happening in Europe over the last several years, where more and more countries are shifting focus on on the need to drive innovation and technology and and spend in their defense sector. Now, in terms of dollars. You gotta understand the economics of warfare have changed, and this is a thing so the people have not fully grasped and understood. What I mean by that is the wars of having to march columns of tanks and airplanes and ships into a theater to win. That's that's changing, if not, fully ended. And I think the world is starting to realize what does disrupt the technologies mean, and how is that reshaping the battlefield. So examples here, if you look at what happened at the at the beginning of the Ukraine war, you had a column of of arms and in tanks and in armored vehicles that was marching on Kyiv, and this is where everyone thought the key was going to fall within 40 hours and and the war is over, you had a couple billion or billion dollars of armament those, those heading down for Kyiv, and he had a handful of Ukrainian special forces bouncing around on ATVs drones and some explosive ordinances, couple million dollars worth of overhead and cost, and that was able to nullify billions of dollars worth of armaments. Look at what happens in or what's happening right now, in, in, in the Red Sea, you have the Houthis, who have no real economic base, and they're launching hundreds of in expensive drones towards global shipping, and they're shutting down global shipping to a certain extent, in that part of the country or in that part of the world, and they're spending a couple million dollars in the US. In return is deploying a couple of billion dollars worth of ships and airplanes and rockets and knock down a couple pieces of flying lawn mowers, is what it seems like. So that's not sustainable. Look what happened in Ukraine. About six months ago, you had a handful of Ukrainians with a couple million dollars of modified jet skis with explosives put onto them in a remote control device, literally sink and nullify half of the Russian fleet in the Black Sea. So the economics of war are changing, and I think we're starting to grasp and understand what that means to control a battlefield in a conventional war. Two of the things you need to do is you need to control the skies, and ideally, you need to be able to control the seas. In order to do that, you need to field trillions of dollars, or deploy trillions of dollars to create and manage a comprehensive Air Force and a navy. But with where things are going in terms of drone warfare and the collapsing cost of drones, you're starting to get to the point now where nation states that traditionally could not field an Air Force or a Navy are able to basically replicate and recreate that same kind of effect for pennies on the dollar. So I wouldn't necessarily focus as much on on the spend in terms of percentage of GDP and how big that war chest needs to be, because you get to understand the technology and the tools and the platforms that are going to be needed to reshape and kind of win this, this concept of the 21st century is changing because the economics of war, sharing of warfare, completely changed. 24:13Bill, the other question, Bill Deuchler 24:16here we go. Yeah. I was wondering if Hamlet, in particular, if, if you saw the interview with Marco Rubio and Cathryn herring, I think it was just the other day, it was on, I saw it rep posted on The Rubin Report that That, to me, was quite interesting. It seemed almost like not even real politic, but like real economic in terms of that's those are the terms of the deal that we're trying to push through, and at the same time, get peace between Ukraine and Russia. And any thoughts on that one? Well, Speaker 2 24:57I missed that interview or the specific term. They discuss, what so the the top levels that he discussed, yeah, Bill Deuchler 25:03it was, it was fascinating because it really centers pretty much all around the rare earths opportunity and negotiations. Essentially, the way that it boiled down for me is that if, if Ukraine is willing or to to give us a piece of that pie. We will come in, you know, with the full weight of everything that we have, and sort of demand a piece. But the price of that is, is absolutely an economic interest in their rare earth production. Hamlet Yousef 25:39Yeah, like, I mean, there isn't a single piece of modern technology that functions without some some critical minerals or rare earths in China for a better part of 20 plus years, has been slowly trying to monopolize that segment, in that sector. So it would make sense for us to say, Listen, if we come in and kind of help help moderate or help bring about peace, one of the things we want to return is access to those critical materials and minerals. So to strike that kind of a bargain, to me, doesn't, doesn't, doesn't. To me, seen out of the ordinary. But just think about it though. Let's just kind of play this out. If there is a grand bargain and there is, quote, unquote peace between Ukraine and Russia. In return, we get access to we the US and the West get access to rares and critical materials and minerals that basically make our function, or make our society function, not to mention play a key part in basically every piece of modern defense like that's out there. That's a good thing from a stabilization standpoint. But again, it does not mean the conflict is over. I don't think that that Xi broke up one day and decided up to upset the apple car. I don't think Putin woke up one day and decided to mark March westward and kind of light Eastern Europe on fire. I think both of these guys, to a certain extent, have been operating off the same sheet of music, which is expanding their influence in the region and replacing, not counter balancing, but replacing western US influence. So just because there is a cessation of or ceasing in the conflict, direct conflict of shooting each other in eastern Ukraine, I think the 10 minutes that conflict do not go away. That's why I think we are kind of in the beginnings of a much greater conflict. The difference is going to be, it's going to it's going to turn from being a a war where people are shooting each other to a more cognitive warfare campaign, more than a regular warfare campaign, which is exactly what we had in the Cold War. The role that technology is going to play in this is, I think, disruptive technologies. When you're talking about artificial intelligence, unmanned systems, counter, drone technologies, drone platforms, swarms, quantum cyber security, space based platforms and communications network all this, to me, is analogous to what nuclear was in the first Cold War. The West and Russia got to a point of detent because there was this massive arms race around nuclear, and each side began to realize that this thing ever went to war, nobody wins, because the Arsenal on both ends is so debilitating that conflict was not an issue. Conflict was not a solution. And I think what's going to happen now, where we're going right now is we're going through that same kind of disruptive, technology driven arms race, where it is going to be a foundation, where detent is going to be the focal area, where, okay, the US and the West is such an incredible arsenal of autonomous and robotics and swarms, as does Russia, as us as does China, then conflict is not an issue. So if that's the case, then I think what you need, you need to understand you have the foundations for each very sound, strong economic base. Because if you have a foundation for a strong sound economic base, you have a strong foundation for political base. If you have that, then you have a nation. You don't have those two, then you think you see the potential for an erosion of a nation to be able to function. And that's kind of what happened with the Soviet Union, is, is we did not get into a physical conflict. We prolong the cognitive warfare long enough to allow the constructive powers of Western democracy and Western society to prevail, and to allow for the corrosive powers and authoritarian regime, or communism, in this case, to collapse. And I think we're gonna see that same exact thing play out over the next 20 years, Bill Deuchler 29:34if I could follow up just real quick on a point, on a whole bunch of points that you made. You think that that the economics and the political points that you've brought up are driving us and or making it easier to become much more of a multi polar world, as opposed to a unipolar world, which is pretty much what we have now. Yeah. Hamlet Yousef 30:00Good question, if, like, if I became for the day, I think the future of global society is, is almost like an expansion of the original American model, where you have a network of independent states that have agency and authority to do to whatever they want at the local level, and they're working under a set of ground rules that basically puts us in the same sheet of music. That's what the foundation the US was supposed to be. And that's, I think, where we were heading for a good part of our history. And I think over the last probably couple election cycles, we're starting to VA slate of whether we want to go to a form of governance and government that is based on strong, centralized authority, or do we want to revert back to what we were, which is a bunch of Independent States? I think if you look at what's going to happen globally, I think globally, we're facing that same kind of decision, whether it's Europe or Asia. Countries are starting to have to decide what kind of future do they want? Do they want to have a future of independent agency and autonomy, or do they want to be under a bit of a centralized state authority? And this is where I think it comes back into play, which is what the CCP wants, and is desires is they want to be the leader of a movement or an effort where you have a couple of strong centralized states or entities that help drive global governance and all kind of report back into a central authority, or, in this case, Beijing, where I think the opposite is, what, where I would hope, and I would think the West wants to go to, is we can all be a bunch of independent nation states. Nationalism is perfectly okay. We're all going to operate off the same sheet of music. There's going to be some bit of of basic ground rules and norms. We're going to intertwine our economies and our societies to to extent that there's going to be a greater bit of self, a great bit of of a reliance upon each other, where conflict is not an issue, or conflict is not an option. So, and I use that to kind of articulate what it means here in the US. 2020 to 2020 24 is all the rage. All we're getting to a set and we get we're going down a path of civil war. No, we're not. Because, I mean, if you, if you, if you Canvas this room, if you Canvas any room in the US, depending on the part of the world you're on, anywhere from 5050, 6047, 30 people are on one side of the political aisle or the aisle. We may agree and disagree with a great ton of vitriol, but our society as a country, I think, so well intertwined that we're going to find our way to sort our issues out and resolve it and not get into conflict. My hope and my desire is to see the same thing happen globally, where you don't have a central authority that's dictating governance and dictating authority and rule, you have a bunch of independent nation states highly nationalistic doing whatever they want, as long as it doesn't encro on your neighbors, as long as it doesn't come at a level of conflict to get there, I think would require for us to to a certain extent, begin to intertwine our economies, inter society and culture, where there is going to be a reliance on each other, but without authority. Hopefully, that makes sense. Yeah, 33:14no. Thank you. This Mark Sanor 33:17is fascinating. Wait, Bill, I like the art behind you. Three years ago, two days, our community gathered every single day, 7:30am because we came to Ukraine, Ukraine, I'm wondering, because we're just trying to also that was more of like help. I feel like we're adding a moment where a weekly meeting isn't good enough. This is so happening very fast. If you were to form a panel with diverse opinions, I'd like you to think about who would you invite to this next discussion? Definitely on Tuesday, we should be almost meeting twice a week. Steve is like going to prepare for No, no. I mean, we do this anyways, but I feel like we're this is happening very quick. Now you've got the 24 point playbook. We should just read that play book 20 points. But I feel like you're a great resource. I'd like to bring some others to the table in a 360 like style. And I know as a few people, they didn't want to be on record today, that's an issue, so maybe some private gatherings. But we're all here today to figure out how to we all agree on tech transformation, yeah, but geo political context, where do you do that? And but bigger picture, just like mechanically, of how our community should be? Nothing in Hamlet Yousef 35:02each other like I've been I've been tapped to speak to a couple of other groups like this, where it's a syndicate of thought leaders, business leaders and community leaders that began very US centric, but things very quickly morph into an international network of of vested capitalist Michael, better word, I think it's important for us to continue that conversation. I'll go on the record here in terms of my politics. I do not believe in a strong, centralized government. I think government is something that we elect to help kind of manage this enterprise. But I think society should be run in a bit of an open architecture, where industrialist, investors, people of influence, capitalists, are working together to create an open market of free and fair competition, and kind of let the let the winners go from there. So the more engagement, the more dialog we have with stakeholders in the US, but obviously in Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia. I think it's critical, because I wanted to make sure that this concept of We the People, which was the foundation of the US system, is something we export to the world. It's we, the people mindset of we're going to take agency and authority and control over our future and try to create a network of intertwined business, personal and social relationships that allow us all to benefit. If there's conflict, we'll sort our shit out. But sorting that out won't happen through direct conflict of warfare. It won't happen through through engagement and dialog. 36:45We haven't touched on the Middle East. 36:49Yeah, so look the Middle Hamlet Yousef 36:52East. The Middle East is an issue China, China and Russia, to me, represent some significant strategic challenges that we need to we need to fix full bias. I was born in Iran, came here to the US, and I lived through the Iranian revolution. So my comments here are 100% bias against the Iranian regime. I abhor them, but I also view the regime inside Iran as the single most grave threat near term to political, geo political stability and peace in the world, primarily because you have a regime right now that's being run by a very narrow group of people who not only view and want to run it as a theocratic state, but their specific SEC of ideology in Shia, Islam believes in the the ascendancy of the hidden Imam, or the return of the hidden Imam that happens on the region When the region is is under complete turmoil and chaos. That's not who you want to have becoming nuclear power. And I think the failure of the West over the last 20 years is a failure to understand that it is that is who is in charge of Iran. That's not who you want in charge of Iran when the country becomes a nuclear state. On the positive side. I think the Middle East, more than ever, is on the precipice of a significant Renaissance, Geo, politically and economically. I think if you look at the the Arabs, if you look at the folks inside Iran, not represented by the government, you look at Turkey, Israel, demographics are in their favor, and I think you have the potential for massive growth in the region. The issue there, obviously, is the Iran piece, and it's going to be interesting to see what happens over the next, next couple months. I think, no doubt, Trump did not agree with the the Obama approach to Iran, which was, I want to get his assets also recall. But I think he obviously put a max pressure campaign on Iran in 2016 and 2020 I would not be surprised to see obviously a return of that. Because I do think if you look at the regime inside Iran is it is on very thin ice, and actually it's very similar to Putin and Xi. All three are authoritarian regimes that don't have a thick foundation of stability below them, but with Iran, if you do get regime change inside Iran, you're not going to get exactly what we want. You might get more of a Russia style cryptocracy or oligopoly that's going to run the country. But what you do, and what you should get, hopefully, is a removal of of the shia sect that has almost like an End Times view of the world. Now you're stuck with a regime that is not, maybe not ideal when it comes. Of human rights, but is one. It's not hell bent on light in the Middle East on fire. That's the issue I think we're facing near term here with Iran. Speaker 1 40:11And can we shift gears to the South China Sea and your thoughts on where we are there? And what does it mean, given how the US spread sales and fighting these multiple conflict phase, these things resolving themselves over in South China Sea and Taiwan, Hamlet Yousef 40:31yeah. Well, depending who you listen to, the South China Sea is going to turn into a hot war as early as 2025 2026, 2030 the list is pretty wide in terms of where the one of the speculation is going to be. The one thing that gives me a little bit of hope is, is China and generally, is not a a country that likes to fight directly. Their view, I think, is more indirect. So, yes, there's a threat of them, one day, waking up tomorrow, invading Taiwan. It's a real, real threat that we need to be obviously concerned with. But I think one of the things that they've seen, and this has been a lesson learned for Xi, and it's probably why he wanted Putin to go first in terms of a in nation state land grab, is he wanted to see what global cancel culture was going to look like on a geopolitical stage. And he saw that, but he also saw is it's not easy to conquer another country, and this is a flat terrain where you got a bunch of embeds within eastern Ukraine to help you win that war. And Russia has had a pain, and there a lot of difficulty in doing that. Taiwan has been getting ready for this for decades, and it's a it's an island. So invading an island is a lot more difficult than invading a sovereign piece of territory that's flat. So I think what China is probably going to try to do is much more of a longer term campaign in terms of what they've done with Hong Kong, which is the slow as fixation of trying to bring the Taiwanese into their fold. So do I think the South China Sea is going to go hot. God, I hope not do. I think you have a potential for hot conflicts, whether it's with the Philippines or other, other, other, other fires. And the reason, I think that's that's a real concern, the dynamic that would change that, though, is if you have a rapid decline or ascension of challenge to xi, because xi is the Communist Party, is no longer what rules China. I think what Xi has done over the last several years is very quickly consolidate power. This is no longer a country that's run by a single party. It's a country that's run by a single individual. At some point, xi is going to have to deal with some part truths driven by collapsing demographics or collapsing real estate sector, migration of jobs out of China, and real pressures on their economic foundation. At some point, 1.3 billion Chinese people are going to wake up and realize that, though they were on the path to being part of the global economy in a in a major power house, they're facing some significant issues that have been mismanaged by one person in that g1, point 3 billion people. If you look at the Communist Party and the folks that are around g keep it in power. Estimate is estimate. Estimates range anywhere from a couple million to 20 to 30 million people. 30 million people. So if things get really bad at home, that's when I think you have a risk of xi doing something stupid, which is going after the South China Sea. In terms of the conflict, I think there's probably a greater chance that Xi actually marches north and starts constituting land back in his favor in Siberia than he does heading inside into the South China Sea. Hope I'm right on that one, but we'll see. Speaker 1 43:47So we have, we have a hard stop Mark told me at nine. So going to rapid fire some questions. So short questions and a quick answer. So Adam first. Michael, up. Adam Blanco 44:05Thank you. Steven Hamlet, always a pleasure listening to you always while reading your stuff, too. Thank you. My question to you is your thoughts on the negotiations with Putin Trump has literally given away a number of negotiating chips, such as having the discussions with Putin, giving him status as as legitimate leader, inviting him to the g7 How do you explain that? Can you do you have insight on Hamlet Yousef 44:43that? I do not. I'm not going to begin to try to figure out how Trump operates. Like I said, I think if you look at his style, to a certain extent, He probably likes to operate in a world of chaos, doing the unconventional. That's That's who he is. He's not. A refined political savan who's been a political operator for decades. He is what he is. He is a shrewd, hard, charging negotiator who cut his teeth in probably the most brutal fight there is, which is New York real estate. I think he's bringing, he's bringing his style and his 10 minutes to that if I was president, is that the approach I would take? Probably not. I'd probably take a different approach. But he's the guy who's in charge right now, and this is the the style he's taken. And I think to a certain extent, it's, it's, it's, it's unconventional, to put it mildly, is it going to work? Look, obviously, he's betting it is in that kind of a style, though, if you do like to operate through chaos and uncertainty, you can't look at every action and judge it in a vacuum. You got to understand that this is one movement many. So I would think, in his mind, this is a way of getting to some sort of near term physical piece, while allowing us to work on a much greater, grander piece, which is hopefully the removal of these authoritarian misfits in xi, in Putin and in the regime that's inside Iran. And this is, I think, the beginning steps of it. What that means, going back to Stephen's earlier slide, is geopolitical instability, I think, is just beginning. It's not ending anytime soon. Yeah, 46:25I would agree with that. Maxwell Nee 46:29Max, yes. Hi everyone. Max will here from Singapore, really appreciate this earlier call. So you know, feels like Hamlet we've been in, you know, conflicts. I don't know ping pong for just forever, but I remember distinctly there was a period where this sort of stuff just wasn't happening over and over and over again. So I guess my question is like, what do you think you would take for all of this conflict, ping pong, to start to dissipate, and for the war to get back to what some of us might remember 10 years ago? You're Hamlet Yousef 47:15not going to like the answer, more conflict. And I don't more conflict in terms of more war, but I think a conflict in ideology. We're not going back to where we came from, if anything. I think within with the last couple years and the next couple of years represents is basically the end of the world war two era as we've known it. I think world is the world is about to change as we know it, between 1890 and 1950 the world changed. You had the rise and fall as you had, I'm sure. You had the fall the British Empire. You had the rise of the US, the US as a superpower. You had a complete balkanization and factoring of the Middle East and Eastern Europe. You had two world wars. You had a pandemic and you had a global market crash. The world went from the horse and buggy and oil power to lamp to the nuclear age and landing on the moon. All that happened in 60 years. Disruptive technologies were, I think, a key driver that had significant impact on geo politics and global governance. We're going through that same kind of innovation cycle and change right now, but it's not going to take 60 years for this to sort itself out. I think it's going to take probably the next 10 years, which means massive, massive, massive, massive amounts of geo political instability and uncertainty and change. I think we can come through this, but I think it's imperative for private capital and leaders within industry to be attached to hit so we can navigate this as allocators and as investors. If you do the kind of a long term buy and hold approach that had worked in in the prior 67 years, you're not going to do well if you're plugged in and if you're informed, and you're trying to develop information edge and advantage, and you can allocate in a very, very nimble, focused fashion, I think there's an opportunity for significant wealth creation in The next 10 minutes. Thank you. We're 49:22going to, we have to 49:26Anthony Oh, one part question, only one question. Anthony Gordon 49:35Oh, yeah. Well, first, there is no one question, because, as we know, it's extra inextricably linked, content, impetus wise, etc, so I'll ask it, and then just cut me off, etc. So basically, and forgive me if I didn't hear my memory short, I didn't hear talk about energy independence, us. And so I would say that there is a forward during the course of time that you. But you know you described. And so the question is, if I'm correct, does some form of us, energy independence, create a change into this forward mantra Trump as a headline is less or no war, right? And so what does that actually mean? And then how the fact that China has put down its roots into the rare earth minerals in Africa. And then how does that feed from that north up into the south? And then lastly, in that regard, Europe, which is part of the impetus for this, from whether it's Mid East or the gas prom cut off. How does that now play into it. I'm just trying to create these tangible things. Means. And then the other thing I didn't hear is that what I would say is not necessarily a 70 style resurgence, but there is clearly a lot of disruption. 50:58Alright, I love you. I will answer that. I'm Hamlet Yousef 51:04reading lip sir, I think no, but great, great, multi part question. I think it actually answered back and tie a lot of these pieces together. First of all, I think China has some significant issues. I think what China has done over the last 20 years through their Belt and Road Initiative is they put out a lot of money and influence throughout the world to basically to colonize is exactly what they've done, physically and financially. They're taking over nations and resources. That's no different than being a predatory pay day loan provider. And I think what's starting to happen in the Global South and Latin America, particularly as well as Africa, I think you have nations are starting to wake up and read the finer details of the loan docs that they signed and realize that they're royally screwed. But what's starting to happen is, I think you're starting to see and I think you will see more of these nations begin to default and basically tell China to go pound sand. That opens up the opportunity for Western capital, both European and US, to come in and start partnering with local families, local industrials in the global south who want to rebuild and reshape their country and want to bring in that Western style capital. The issue there with China is, if all these countries begin to default, that is going to significantly accelerate the pressures that xi is going to have at home, which, going back to, I said earlier, could be a trigger for Xi becoming more desperate, more violent, if he faces him in a collapse at home. In terms of energy independence in the US, I think, under the under the current administration, and hopefully going forward, energy independence is gonna be a key foundation for the US. I am pretty bearish in terms of geo political instability in the near term, the next 1015, years. I think as a society, we can come out of this, but we gotta sort our own stuff out. If I look at near shore or kind of what's happening in the Western Hemisphere, I think there's a real opportunity for the creation of a super economic base or a super power in close collaboration between Canada, the US and Mexico, and I think eventually that movement can move out throughout the Americas. I don't say I don't care about what's happening, what's happening the rest of the world, or Europe or Asia. I do, but I think there's a real opportunity for there to be almost a bit of self reliance, at least in North America, if not throughout throughout South America. On the European front, I think Europe is going to have to go through their own kind of growing pains here. I think the European model of creating the EU and the EC thing worked on paper. I think it failed in execution. I think they're going to have some some serious issues. Again, they're going to sort through, not only economic but also geo political ly and from a demographic standpoint. So I think Europe is, I think they're probably entering, entering their quote, unquote lost decade, where they're going to have to find a way to soul search and fear or figure out what their form of of self self reliance and self governance is going to be, and what scares the shit out of them is you have a belligerent bear on the Eastern Front that wants to march westward. So Germany, I think, is is deflated. And I think who comes out very strong in this process is, is, I think Poland. I think Poland now is probably positioned to become one of the de facto leaders in Europe, because they're massively spending on their own self reliance and autonomy and defense, and they view themselves as kind of the guardians or the plug that's initially going to prevent that western expansion by by Putin. I think that that address all the questions you had or points you brought up. Stephen Burke 54:47Michael, I'm sorry at the nine o'clock mark, so next week, please, and Hamlet, thanks very much. Any closing thoughts for you, Hamlet, Hamlet Yousef 54:59I'm near term. Near term bearish, long term bullish. And I think the future is in our hands as leaders in capital industry. I think we need to work together and create this, this network of inter reliance of capital. I think the future is very bright. I think the amount of innovation that's going to happen is going to reach reshape the way we live our lives. As a technology investor, I just hope that we continue to invest in technology that liberates and integrates and does not give authority and power to the central agency or central authority to control us, because that's what you have in China, but the future is in our hands at this point. Speaker 1 55:38Thank you very much. Great, great session, and we appreciate your providing the insight. Steve, thank you everyone. Speaker 2 55:47Thanks for the opportunity. We'll see bye you shortly. 56:02Simon, you on your way. Still live. 56:12Very good. You. 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Dust off your finest tuxedo and/or ball gown - we've got OSCAR FEVER this week~!Dave and Adam are joined by Lucien Waugh-Daly, host of the superb Boy Party podcast, to predict the big winners at this Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony, and to celebrate the best songs that took home gold over the years. Despite the fact that Lucien thinks the award should be abolished, by the way. We've also got a busy news section and a particularly lively gig review, plus details of exciting upcoming Patreon projects - remember. it's a mere five euro a month for weekly bonus episodes, just hit up patreon.com/noencore ACT ONE: The preamble in which we ramble. ACT TWO (14:20): The boys report back from Touché Amoré's visit to Dublin, run the rule over this year's big Oscar contenders, assess Stormzy's attempting at clarification, detail why Disturbed frontman David Draiman sucks, and consider AI's ongoing threat to the creative arts. ACT THREE (1:03:47): Top 5 Best Original Song Oscar Winners. -Follow Lucien on Letterboxd / InstagramListen to the Boy Party Podcast Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
He's finally come home. NO ENCORE is only delighted to welcome back Ireland's sharpest surrealistic humourist in the form of Peter McGann~! The boy has been busy, what with a brand new Sky comedy series and a nationwide tour both imminent. Thankfully, he's lost none of his zeal, especially when it comes to celebrating the work of filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, who takes centre stage as the focus of this week's Top 5.Elsewhere, there's all the usual news and views that you've come for. And if you crave even more NO ENCORE content, we have a brand new Film Club with Andy McCarroll all about copaganda cult favourite S.W.A.T., while Sonic Architect Adam is prepping a 'Spotify vs Apple Music' episode to land this Sunday - it's all happening on our Patreon page for a mere fiver a month!ACT ONE: Let's learn more about Peter's present endeavours. Also - Dave won a quiz!ACT TWO (25:53): A not terribly inspiring news week takes in Benny Blanco's horrific Valentine's Day surprise for Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift's Saturday Night Live battle, Adam's Formula 1 concert report, Mark Hoppus' lucrative Banksy pivot, Ozzy Osbourne's farewell show, and the re-opening of the Bono Box.ACT THREE (1:01:42): Top 5 Underrated Martin Scorsese Needle Drops.Small Town, Big Story trailerGet tickets for Peter's tour Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Most people would say that Rhonda Farrah has had a difficult and, at times, scary life. As you will hear, Rhonda had a pretty conservative upbringing. She will tell us that she was in fact surrounded by love from her family and even her extended family of aunts and uncles and grandparents who all lived under the same roof. Rhonda was the oldest of her siblings and many looked to her for strength and knowledge. Rhonda went to college first majoring in Horticulture, but switched to Psychology. As she says, she likes to help things grow and while she loves gardening, she preferred to help people grow and development. Rhonda, as part of her so-called difficult life spent six years in prison and while there discovered that she had a lump on her breast. She didn't address the lump until she was released from prison. She used a combination of Western and Eastern medicine to complete eliminate the tumor without surgery. Also, fairly soon after leaving prison the sentence and charges she faced were completely expunged. While many told her she should litigate she disagreed and turned to forgiveness instead. Today Rhonda coaches and teaches women to grow and learn to look within themselves to better understand how to grow and move forward. Rhonda calls herself a lifestyle empowerment alchemist. As she explains, an alchemist changes materials. She helps women to change by learning to look within for answers. As she says, if we look for answers, the best place to find them is within ourselves. Rhonda offers many wonderful and relevant pieces of knowledge we all can learn to use. I think you will enjoy her story, her progress and her inspirational and unstoppable attitude very much. About the Guest: Rhonda M. Farrah, MA, DRWA, a LIFEstyle Empowerment Alchemist, Coach and prominent figure in personal development, has dedicated her years of insights as a psychotherapist to be a guiding light for women facing unique challenges, helping them embark on a transformative journey of Selfdiscovery and Empowerment. In a world where external issues often command our attention, Rhonda Farrah stands out as a catalyst for inner growth with her mantra, “Fix Your Reflection First.” A beacon of hope for women who find themselves trapped in the throes of personal turmoil, be it in relationships, careers, or daily life. Through her extensive career and profound dedication, Rhonda Farrah has spearheaded the Fix Your Reflection First method of realizing that both the joys and the setbacks in your life can serve you IF you can look past your immediate emotional response and use your Self-awareness to grow instead of pushing yourself down. Farrah's holistic approach centers on Self-reflection and the restoration of Self-love as the cornerstone of personal growth and Change. As a seasoned author, Empowerment Alchemist coach, speaker, entrepreneur, spiritual teacher, and educator, Rhonda has cultivated an extensive toolkit designed to assist individuals in addressing the challenges that hold them back and embracing the joys that propel them forward. Working with clients and companies from International Centers For Spiritual Living to the US Open Wellness Team, Rhonda's teachings emphasize harnessing Self-awareness and leveraging life's setbacks as opportunities for growth rather than obstacles. Rhonda's mission is to Empower women to prioritize their Self-love and Self-awareness, nurturing a profound alignment that positively influences every facet of their lives. Her work fosters a renewed sense of confidence and a hunger for personal growth, igniting a powerful journey of Self-discovery. Having written several e-books, Rhonda has participated as a Contributing Author to America's Heroes, Leaders, Legends, The Power Of The Human Spirit, and America's Leading Ladies Who Positively Impact Our World, featuring Oprah Winfrey and Melinda Gates. Ways to connect with Rhonda: Website: https://helpmerhondanow.com Email: rhonda@helpmerhondanow.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rhonda-m-farrah-ma-drwa-81097b14 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rhonda.farrah Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helpmerhondanow_ About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog. Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards. https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/ accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/ Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset . Leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Transcription Notes: Michael Hingson ** 00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us. Michael Hingson ** 01:21 Well, hello and welcome to another episode of unstoppable mindset. I am your host, Mike Hingson, our guest today is Rhonda. And Rhonda pronounce your last name Farrah, which is what I thought. But I always like to make sure I get it right. Well, Rhonda Farrah is our guest, and as you will learn from her, Rhonda is a lifestyle empowerment Alchemist, and I'm intrigued to learn more about that and all sorts of other things. She especially helps women and helps ground them, I think, to summarize a lot of what she does, and we're going to talk about that. I know she talks and and in her bio, I read a lot about encouraging people to really think and center themselves. And that's something that we talk a lot about on various episodes of this podcast, and it's something that I talk about in the new book that is published in August of 2024 called Live like a guide dog, where I talk about and encourage people to be much more self analytical and look at themselves and take the time to do it, because it will create a lot less fear in their lives if they discover that they don't need to be afraid of so many things, but that's not something we're going to worry about as much today, unless Rhonda wants to talk about it, but we'll get there anyway. Rhonda, welcome to unstoppable mindset. We're really glad you're here. Rhonda Farrah ** 02:50 Thank you so much, Michael, thank you for inviting me to be your guest. I love the name of your podcast, unstoppable mindset, because that's, after all, where everything begins, it Michael Hingson ** 03:02 does. Well, why don't you start, since we talk about starting at the beginning by telling us a little bit kind of about the early Rhonda growing up and all Rhonda Farrah ** 03:10 that stuff. Okay, yes, the early Rhonda growing up. Early Rhonda. I am originally from the East Coast. I grew up in Connecticut in a largely traditional household and family. I had a stay at home mom. I had dad who preferred mom stay at home. And I am the oldest of three brothers and one sister, and during that period of time, largely through grade three. You want to talk about my early days through grade three, I lived in an extended family, and many people know what that is. It was my parents, myself, my siblings, grandparents, at least one set at a time, aunts, uncle, one, uncle and great aunts, and it was a all under one roof, so there was a lot of love and there was a lot of discipline all at the same time. And it was a household primarily women, and my sense of nurturing and nurturing nurturance began very early with that feminine influence there. It's not that men don't nurture but I had an entourage of all that feminine presence around me, and also being the oldest of my siblings, I took on that while everyone's looking to you, Rhonda, that you're the role model so early on growing up, it was, I would have to say, We were a very conservative family, and I had conservative influences around me, and it actually paved the way for me wanting to. Not only to be in service of to others, but to go ahead and do my studies in psychology, counseling and educational psychology, and to help others be their highest and their best self. And that, that unstoppable mind, as you put it, is when we go within and we understand, how are we attending to the agenda of our soul that going within? So that's that's a brief that's a capitalized version of how I grew up. I like to play girls CYO softball. I was raised Catholic, Roman Catholic, later on, rebaptized a Christian. I honor all paths to God. I consider myself spiritual. I've always been spiritual, whether I realized it or not, and that, you know, that helps with that going within once, one says, Once I said, Yeah, I want to, I want to experience what is going within little Rhonda. And as I grew into an adult, and I got better at it, let's, let's put it that way, I got better at going within. Michael Hingson ** 06:16 Well, yeah, and I think that's, that's important, and I think that that development of the brain is something that more people ought to do and and don't do nearly as much as as they should live like a guide dog. Is all about learning to control fear, because when I was in the World Trade Center and we had the emergency that we did on September 11, although I had plenty of fear, fear did not overwhelm or, as I put it, blind me. I used it as a powerful tool to help me focus. And the reason all that happened as I really figured out many, many years later and then started to write about it in the era of the pandemic was that I developed a mindset. I knew what to do because I researched what to do. It wasn't a matter of reading signs. Oh, I can read these signs that'll tell me what to do. That works until it doesn't, and it's not nearly the same as knowledge. And so I learned what to do. I talked to the Port Authority, police, the fire department, emergency preparedness people, and learned everything that I could about what was, what was occurring, or what what could occur in an emergency, and what to do in an emergency. And did it enough that it became a mindset for me, so that when it actually happened, although we never thought that it would, when it did, I was able to function because I had conducted a lot of self analysis and thought about, what do I do in this kind of situation? Realized I know what to do. Yeah, it's always possible the building could have just come down around us, and then where would we be? Well, we wouldn't be here talking about it, probably anyway, but knowing what to do was the issue, and we we, selectively or collectively as a society, tend not to do that. We think we can just read signs or Well, if it happens, it happens. But we don't think about that. But we think about so many other things. My gosh, what? What if one politician gets elected? What if another politician gets elected? What if any number of things happen? What if I go to the store and I get robbed and all sorts of things that we don't have any real control over, and we create so much fear because we don't just focus on the things that we can control and leave the rest alone. And I think that that is probably something that leans right into a lot of the things that you talk about, Rhonda Farrah ** 08:53 yes, and that's you make an excellent point, because there's a point where we need to depend on what's going on within us. We can't depend on the government. We can't depend on the economy. We can't depend on the health care system, the pharmaceutical system. We need to listen to our intuitive self, to our authentic self from within and sure, I've been scared, sure, but with with stuff that happened within my all my own life. However, I wasn't paralyzed by fear. I didn't react. I responded, and that's really important for people to consider. We have so many questions, and especially now in these times, we're in chaotic we're in uncertain times. We're in a mess, basically, but the mess is here for us to learn, to grow and to move forward with that power from within, as I call it, our authentic power from. Then, and we, we all have, it's the power to thrive and not merely survive. Michael Hingson ** 10:06 Yeah, and we all have the power to work together and to create harmony, if we would, but do it right Rhonda Farrah ** 10:15 if we choose to. Yeah, it is a choice. Michael Hingson ** 10:18 But make no mistake, it is a choice, and we can do it if we if we wanted to, and it would be so much more amazing how well people would get along on how much more we would accomplish if we did that. Rhonda Farrah ** 10:32 That's absolutely correct. Michael, we are oftentimes we get caught up in what is different within us. You know, what are our differences? How about, let's talk about, how are we so similar, right? And that's where the strength comes in. That's where the power of numbers come in with that strength, with that power. Michael Hingson ** 10:56 Agreed. So you grew up? Did you go to college? Rhonda Farrah ** 11:01 I did. I attended the University of Connecticut under graduate school. And ironically, I didn't start out in psychology. I started out in horticulture, and was two years it's an agricultural college, actually the University of Connecticut. It was at that time. Now it's in the top 25 in the United States. And I enjoyed school. I enjoyed college immensely, and I always I switched to psychology. And let me tell you why. When I was a kid, I used to watch this show. It was The Bob Newhart Show, and he was a psychologist in this particular part in Michael Hingson ** 11:52 that show, right? Rhonda Farrah ** 11:54 And and for you know, unfortunately, several days ago, he made his transition. But when I heard that, I said, wow, look at how long ago. I mean, I admired him. I admired what he did. And I said, No, that's that's what I want to do. So I started out in horticulture, growing, okay, so I just switched to help people grow within themselves, and I am an avid gardener, by the way, and I like all those things with respect to preparing the soil, with respect to pruning, with respect to weeding so that you can grow healthy plants. And I'm a big advocate in growing where we are planted. We always have something to learn, if it regardless of situation, circumstance or happenstance. There's always something to learn wherever we're being planted or plant. There are no accidents, in my opinion, no coincidence, no happenstance. And we call everything forward into our lives to do just that, to grow when we are we are planted to experience joy, to experience sorrow, Michael Hingson ** 13:05 and a lot of times when we experience sorrow, if we would really stop and think about it, we might find it's not as bad as we think too, right? But that happens, and that's again, it's a growth era and a growth thing to deal with. Yes, Rhonda Farrah ** 13:20 yeah, absolutely. And you know that paved the way in psychology for me to become what I call a lifestyle, empowerment Alchemist, a coach, author and a speaker and alchemy, believe me, I am no left brain person. I alchemy is the precursor to chemistry. I never took chemistry. I opted for, I think it was environmental science. I was safe when there was a science requirement. I was good with that. But alchemy is indeed the precursor to chemistry, and it's the transmutation of one substance into another. So I learned by my own situations and circumstances. I have plenty of credentials, but my biggest credentials are that I came out on the good side, I'll say, On the positive side, on the Empowered side of some not so good situations and circumstances in my life. So that's why I refer to myself as an alchemist, and I am dedicated to awakening those who choose to be awakened, to opening their hearts, their minds, and most especially, their spirit within them, so that they can live their best life ever. Michael Hingson ** 14:36 So in in your case, you you you do change things, what? What were some of the the maybe negative things that you had to work through that caused you to decide that you were truly an empowerment Alchemist, a lifestyle empowerment Alchemist, nothing Rhonda Farrah ** 14:53 is negative unless, unless you think, Michael Hingson ** 14:57 what challenges? Yes, the challenge. Challenges, Rhonda Farrah ** 15:00 the struggles, the the adversity. Okay, six years in a woman's federal prison camp, breast cancer, several divorces, financial ruin was thrown in there, and it was like, wow, this is the not so good stuff that's happening, and it took me a while to understand. I called all this forward. I called all this forward for all the reasons why, whether it was poor choices, especially in the case of prison camp, called it forward to learn lessons and to to actually be in a major time out, because it began there that I began to realize my biggest struggle and challenge was I didn't know myself. I'd lost my sense of self. It I was in there somewhere, but I had lost my sense of self, and I needed to be literally extricated, separated from all that was familiar to me, so I could do something about that. Michael Hingson ** 16:08 Yeah, how long ago was that that you were in the prison camp? No, Rhonda Farrah ** 16:12 would have been. Actually, I was there when 911 hit. Okay, oh yeah, it's been a while, and I began that prison term of being of service to others, as well as myself, service set loosely in 20 in 2002 1000 in 2000 in 2000 and when 911 hit, I wasn't in a place where it was, you know, bars and razor wire or any of that. But when 911 hit, most I know my family and other people that I knew were saying she's probably in the safest place she can be. Yeah. And I said, Wow, this is actually happening. And I remember that happening. I remember I was actually part of a work cadre. I was teaching wellness classes as well to my fellow inmates, 300 women, and that came a little later, but it was part of a work cadre that went to the Presidio five days a week, five of us, five women, and we did Gardening. We did organization within, let's say, the warden's house that was up there on the Presidio. So I was part of the those that were trusted enough to be out five days a week. I mean, we had to go back, but so I experienced a lot. That was a gift and that was a blessing, and that is what got me through that instance. Just as other instances, I found the gift, I found the blessing in particularly like where I was at all times. But I did find gifts and blessings. I'm an avid runner. I had a track to run on. I a strength trainer. I had what was called a weight pile up there with antiquated equipment and everything else. But yet it was, it was mine. It was available to me. And so the gifts and the blessings come in in sometimes unlikely places, if you are open and receptive to them. And it wasn't about until a year after being incarcerated that I stopped banging the phone against the wall saying, Get me out of here. I had an aha moment. It was that period where I surrendered that I really began to peel away the onion skin that was keeping my sense of self, my true sense of self, self with a capital S at bay. Michael Hingson ** 19:13 So you, as you said, started peeling back the onion and went on clearly, what was a journey of self discovery, and you began to realize, and I put it in quotes, I made these choices, and I'm the one that can fix it in the long run, in Rhonda Farrah ** 19:39 the long run, right? But in the short run, I was learning more about myself than I ever imagined. Yeah, because I was separated from all those things that were my comfort zone, I was definitely out of my comfort zone, which is where our life really begins. When you're out of your comfort zone. Michael Hingson ** 20:02 Yeah, and in so many ways and and, of course, that's the whole point that we get so comfortable on our comfort zone that we never really do look beyond it. And that's a problem, because life is all about so many things that we choose not to explore that would be so beneficial if we did? Yes, Rhonda Farrah ** 20:26 absolutely, and I was pivoted right back into being of service to others. Michael Hingson ** 20:35 Okay, by Rhonda Farrah ** 20:36 teaching wellness classes and by you know there was a camaraderie. It was like women would say, Well, what about what should I do in this situation? What I said, I think you should take this time, because you have this time, literally time to explore from within, you can a lot of women that want to lose weight, they want to have better body image and otherwise. And those wellness classes were not just physical wellness classes I was teaching. It was emotional well, because that's how you get to the physical if you're working from the inside out, going within, then you're gonna have better results well being, rather than Ill being. And I would often say, you know, well, they would say, Well, when I get home, I'll get on a program and Michael Hingson ** 21:36 lose weight, and yeah, when I, Rhonda Farrah ** 21:39 when I said, Well, let me tell you what, when you go home, you're going to have to pay your rent, take care of your kids, have a job, and do everything else that you do in the real world without being institutionalized. So I said, there is a gift for being here. It's sad a lot of the times, because we all missed our families, but there is a gift and a blessing if we choose to know that so many women took me up on that some did not, and that's was their right. It's not my right, nor obligation, to want for someone what they do not want for themselves, not at all. Michael Hingson ** 22:25 We are our own best teachers, and no one else can can do that for us, Rhonda Farrah ** 22:30 right? That's exactly right, Michael, and it's it was an interesting time in my life. I actually so I was in my very early 40s, and I just turned 66 last last month, and I I never imagined that my midlife crisis, that was act one of my midlife crisis to be incarcerated to be and actually incarcerated to be liberated. I had more freedom getting to know myself and my true sense of self than I ever had at that point again, it wasn't all roses, it was pain, sorrow, emotional, largely, but I went through it. I felt, you've heard the the phrase, um, feel the fear, feel the pain, and do it anyway. Yeah, because it's subside. It's actually empowering to know that we have that power to feel pain, to feel sorrow, yet it will move us forward, or propel us forward. So Michael Hingson ** 23:49 was that time in prison for you? Kind of the the end of Act One, and then the transition to act two. Speaker 1 ** 23:57 Well, that was act one of my midlife crisis. Oh, you're master of your midlife crisis. That's my midlife crisis. Rhonda Farrah ** 24:03 That that was that. But it was so surreal to me. I've never had a parking ticket or speeding violation, and it was like, What is this? So? Hard lessons, hard lessons when you do not trust your intuition. When you make poor choices, when you try to please people, just remember you, you will not come out on the best side of things, but you must go where you need to go to learn what you need to learn. Yeah, kind of like a college. It's an extra. Was an extra grad school, Michael Hingson ** 24:45 well, and you said something very interesting, because, in reality, if you trust your intuition and you really work and develop that it will help you avoid things that otherwise you might not be able to avoid. But we. Don't tend to do that. And my favorite example of that is the game Trivial Pursuit. How often do you play that game and someone asked the question, and you think, I know the answer, and then you go, No, that can't be the right answer. And it turns out it was the right answer, and you should have answered with it. But, you know, it happens so often in so many ways, with so many things, yes. Rhonda Farrah ** 25:19 So I mean, I took the best of a not so good situation and it was all right. It served me. It served me to empower me so that I could have that like in my that was a notch in my belt, to let people understand, that I could understand what they're going through because I was there. Michael Hingson ** 25:47 So what happened when that time was over? Rhonda Farrah ** 25:51 So I was teaching wellness classes there, and I was supposed to be released in April of 2005 and it got delayed until, I believe it was July of that year. And for 11 months I knew I had a lump on my breast, and I did nothing about it, but go within, meditation, prayer. I was not going to subject myself to the Bureau of Prisons, medical, and I took a risk, sure, but I went within and the intuition said, Okay, you're going to be all right. I call it my godling self, not my mere, earthling self. I didn't run around in this chaotic, chaotic tone and in every area of my life and say, Oh, my God, I got I got to do something about this. And no, I knew, but I knew what I had to do. I had to go within and reinforce that my authentic power would help me get through this? So that act two of midlife crisis is now entering in and I came home. I was living on the Monterey Peninsula, and we had to go to a halfway house for a month or so when they understood I had a lump on my breast, because I told them they couldn't wait to get rid of me from the halfway house. So I went home and I went to my gynecologist. He ordered a biopsy immediately, and in none other than breast cancer awareness month, October, I was diagnosed with nearly stage three breast cancer. And I'm a believer that what happens to us really happens for us. And that's that period incarceration strengthened me to get through this. And I was scared, but I was not in fear mode. I was not immobilized. And of course, biopsy comes back, and everyone's saying, what happened? What was it? And I, my response has always been, well, it's not the best news, but it's not the worst news, right either. And from that point, I met with my friends, would say, we're going to get you another breast. And I go, No, I don't want another breast. I like this one, and I have a nice little war scar right here, and I'm good. I'm good with that. No one has ever complained. So I'm good with all of it, because I'm good with it myself. And I got this feeling that had the best breast dye they called him in the United States, Dr Jeffrey Hyde, and he I was scared because I told my god, I heard about chemotherapy, surgery, radiation. And he said something to me that surprised me from within the Rhonda inside. He said, this can be chemically treated. And I said, What? And I was happy that it could be chemically treated. Okay, so I mean that meant chemotherapy. I was happy, but I was like, How could this be? I'm an athlete. I take care of myself. I don't have any negative vices or anything. And now this is happening and the incidents, so here I am the nurturer. Okay? I nourish others now. I help them be their highest and best self by taking the. The adversity as well as the joys, and making it work for them, if they choose that finding the gift of the blessing. So here I am the nurturer now realizing that incidence of breast cancer in women is due to the fact that women do not nourish or nurture themselves. They're good with everyone else. Okay, they're good, but nourishing others. I wasn't nourishing myself. Couple that with and that had started well before prison. I was a people pleaser. I was a doormat at times, and I just went about my life. And that was that, until I got a major time out in prison camp, and then I got hit with the breast cancer thing, and I decided, well, oh, there's my aha breath. That's my god breath. I decided, well, I'm gonna, I'm going to do this with Eastern medicine. I began the practice of medical Qigong, and I put off going to chemotherapy, and my daughter looked at me as if I was nuts, and she says, I don't know when we're going to get a break. And I go, it's going to be okay. Everything's going to be great. Don't worry, I'm not going to die, because who will be here to run your life? Tell you to brush your teeth and all of that in between. And I mean, I was interjecting some of you into a very serious thing, and that day, I made a promise to myself and to my daughter, I am not only going to live, I'm going to dance at your wedding, and I'm going to see my grandchildren and all that happened. There you go. That happened. I've been cancer free for about 17 or 18 years now, but my point of telling you that is that the medical Qigong professional heat said, go back and get to your oncologist and get an ultrasound, because Western medicine has the best diagnostic tools. I went back to her, my daughter was with me, and she said to me, I don't know what you're doing, but you're shrinking your tumor. And I felt good about that. And then my daughter's head spun around on her neck, and she looked at the oncologist as well as me, and said, Are you buying this shit like that? And I knew then that was another fear of mine. There were enter that fear of surgery, chemotherapy and all of that in between. I knew then, no, you got to go through you go, you'll use Western and Eastern medicine. And I never looked back. I had chemo. They cleaned up the margins a little bit on one of my breasts, and I had 40 blasts of radiation. So I got over that fear. I mean, that's, I'm not a doctor person. I don't I don't like to go to doctors, so I needed to call that forward so that I could understand that I had that power from within me to face even that fear. But once again, I was pivoted right back into being of service to others and doing support groups with women with breast cancer. Cancer. Michael Hingson ** 33:44 So when did you become cancer free? Rhonda Farrah ** 33:49 It was the end of March, 2006 Okay, and so what claimed cancer free? What? Michael Hingson ** 33:56 What did you do? How did Eastern medicine help with that. What? What was involved with the Eastern medicine aspect of it? Rhonda Farrah ** 34:03 Well, even though I started the chemotherapy, I had very few side effects from chemotherapy, because I continued with the medical dig on. I continued with acupuncture and prayer chanting, so I had side effects. I'm a runner. I was, I wasn't running as quickly, but I was, I was moving along with my dog four days, sometimes five out of the week, and I went. I was very diligent on Thursdays at 11 o'clock. That was my chemotherapy. So I come I combined them, but I was glad I combined them, and I was glad I faced that fear of, Oh, my goodness, Rhonda Farrah ** 34:52 I need to do this stuff that I don't like to do. Do. So I could have become a victim and said, Oh, poor me, Rhonda Farrah ** 35:04 we would probably not be having this conversation right now, because it's a little over 35% of women with breast cancer. Yeah, never Michael Hingson ** 35:12 fake it. Well, yeah, go ahead. Rhonda Farrah ** 35:15 I didn't choose that. I chose. I chose my own healing once again, and whether I knew it or not, by helping others heal emotionally, most especially, I was healing, and I was becoming more empowered. And I just took this next scary piece of life, adventure of midlife crisis, and I made it work for me, rather than anything less. Michael Hingson ** 35:46 But that's really the whole point of stepping back and doing introspection in your own life and thinking about it and listening to what you have to tell yourself, because that's where the real solutions come from in most anything that we do, if we but listen. And you know, we don't tend to listen to that inner voice nearly as much as we can or should, and we lead ourselves astray. Rhonda Farrah ** 36:21 I so agree with that. Michael, you know, we, we have so many questions within understand that the answers are within us. Yeah, that's it, and it is an inside job to live the powered life, to live the life that you want to live. Perhaps the life that you dream about, it comes from here, that comes from the heart, space, the heart, the emotions. And I believe there's only two emotions, fear and love, right? Whatever emotion you're in creates your thoughts, and your thoughts create your external world, Michael Hingson ** 36:59 and you have some control over how all that really shakes out in the end, we all Rhonda Farrah ** 37:05 do. We're all our own Guru. That's it. If we only knew that we we all have a godly self, not merely an earthling self. Michael Hingson ** 37:17 Well, I think, in reality, they're they're one in the same in various ways, but I hear what you're saying Rhonda Farrah ** 37:23 the and whether you call it, I happen to call it God, because my upbringing it universe, source, spirit, the divine. Michael Hingson ** 37:31 Well, God's a very powerful word. I have no problem using that. Yeah, Rhonda Farrah ** 37:35 black people are afraid of the God word. I like the God word. Yeah, definitely. Every time, there it is again, the AHA breath, that's my god breath. It's a confirming breath. So we just confirmed that it's great to say the God word, and Michael Hingson ** 37:51 it has nothing to do with any specific religion. Rhonda Farrah ** 37:54 No, it does not. Michael Hingson ** 37:58 So what happened after Act Two in your midlife crisis, world, Rhonda Farrah ** 38:10 I was asked in an interview, and I'll get to act three. Adventure number three, I was once asked in an interview, what was the worst date you've been on? So I was videoed, and the long and short of it was, I said, Oh, I thinking about it. I don't date and meet somebody. We get to know one another. They asked me to marry them, and the rest is history. Enter two divorces. You know, pretty close together, five, six years apart, very short lived divorces. And I'll tell you what prison prepared me for, breast cancer, and prison and breast cancer together prepared me for a lot of people don't think prison or breast cancer would be worse than divorce. It wasn't the divorce, it was the betrayal. It was the trusting of someone and then, like being sideswiped, that was it. Sideswiped and lots of tears. I always say, wherever I was, tears and laughter are signs of growth. If one is not laughing or crying weeping, then you're not growing. And growth is essential if you're going to be your highest, best self, if you're going to be an empowered, your empowered self. So the first one was ugly, the second one was ugly, and but I, I, I know I have a formula for living in empower. Life, and boy, did I use it my formula, because, after all, I am an alchemist, is gratitude plus forgiveness equals living the life that you want to live. So I was, first of all, I was grateful for meeting these people, because they taught me again about myself. I was settling, no disrespect to whomever I was married to, but I was settling because, well, I don't want to be alone, and maybe no one will also come and blah, blah, blah. I mean, I went through these gyrations. I'm no stranger to feeling that way, and I'm very vulnerable. I think you know that by now, and I'm good, you can hold me up to the light, and I'm transparent because I'm okay, whereas I wasn't to begin with, and that's about two years ago. My brand changed to fix your reflection first and live your best life ever, because that's why we're not living our best life ever. It's not that everything must go right for us, it's that we can find the gift and the blessing when nothing is going right. My whole life fell apart only so it all together in better ways. So I went from that people pleaser door map to under to thanking those who I was pleasing and had used me as a doormat. Thank you. I got it now. Okay, I got it so when I look in the mirror now, I see the love of my life. Because unless we are able to understand who we are and our magnificence, we will attract much less. Again, no disrespect to any situation, circumstance or event, to any person that I have been with so and the other thing is, if you treat yourself like the love of your life, 42:11 you will attract the love of your life, Rhonda Farrah ** 42:14 not only in a romantic situation, in every freaking area of your life, you will attract the best of the best, Michael Hingson ** 42:24 and I gather you've done that. Rhonda Farrah ** 42:26 Oh, I'm open to love, but I'm not, I'm not with any I'm single and but I'm not, like, not in any dating sites or anything like that, right? I'm I'm working with myself, Michael Hingson ** 42:40 yeah, well, that's what I'm getting at and yeah, that's Rhonda Farrah ** 42:44 who I'm with. I'm with myself. Because wherever we go, we take ourselves with us, and Michael Hingson ** 42:48 somebody might come along at some point that you develop a relationship with, but you're going to look at it differently now than you have in the past. Absolutely, absolutely, which is so cool. Rhonda Farrah ** 43:06 It's what needs to happen. If it happened to me, then I have the right to say, well, it could happen to you too, Michael Hingson ** 43:15 and it's not an ego issue. To say you're the love of your life. That's That's not it at all, and and it's important, I think, that people understand that it is that you're you're happy with yourself, you respect yourself. Now, my life was different than yours. My wife and I got married in 1982 and she passed two years ago, almost two years ago. So we were married 40 years and lots of wonderful memories, and I don't know what will happen in the future, although I'm not looking for any anything like the romantic kind of thing to happen, although some people told me I'm crazy and I should, but my response is, you know, Karen is monitoring from somewhere, and if I misbehave, I'm going to hear about it. So I got to be a good kid. That's Rhonda Farrah ** 44:05 it. And it works. And it works because it works for you, and this works differently for everyone, exactly, right. It works differently for everyone, but, and I have to say, and sometimes an audience will go up one side of me and down the other when I say, you know, selfishness is the most selfless thing we can do, right? I think, especially as a woman. Michael Hingson ** 44:33 Well, yeah, I would say everyone, but I hear what you're saying, but I hear what you're saying. Well, so what do you do today, what, what is your, your your job, or whatever, or what do you what do you do with your life today? Rhonda Farrah ** 44:49 With my life today, I I have dual duties after divorces. I was heading back to Connecticut. I. All my family's in Connecticut, two grandchildren. And not that I don't love the rest of my family, but, you know, grandkids, yeah, okay, I could do this, and ages 10 and eight, and a friend of mine, that's why I'm in Colorado Springs. Asked me to I've known her for 12 years. I know her through someone else that no longer speaks to me, okay, but that's that's how it happens. That's how people come together to learn lessons and otherwise. And she said to me, I need you to make a pit stop. Here I go, Oh, I kind of knew what was going on. Her mother in law has dementia, and she's totally ambulatory, and she's we high functioning. But as I'm in there somewhere, wherever I was, she's in there somewhere. So I came, I met the woman, and my friend said, Can you give us a year? A year? You want me stay here for a year, grow where you're planted? This is my point of telling you this, and this is why I do what I do. I have another growing where I'm planted. So she said, Can you give us a year? I said, What? It'll be three years, the beginning of October. I'm feeling that this woman and I will make our exit together, because I'm feeling I'm supposed to be here on one direction or dimension. Now I I still do plenty of interviews. I have my own radio television show on transformation network, which I'm inviting you to be on, and you'll hear from me on that. Let me know. Oh, yeah, and I'm catering to several clients. You know, everything is zoom these days, which fine. That's fine with me. So that's what I do. I'm in the process of, right? I've written three ebooks, a contributing author to three books, and I'm writing a book from PTA to prison, my journey in transformation. Now that was just a part of it, but that was the beginning, right? My journey and transformation. We're never too old for transformation. No, I would often joke and say, you know, Moses, he was transformed. He didn't didn't think he could do anything major. That was his mistake. And he did the greatest thing in his late 70s, yeah, the greatest thing for him. And the interesting part is I do mirror work is nothing new. And I go to the mirror every morning and at night sometimes as well, and lots of things developed after I changed my brand to fix your reflection first and live your best life ever. I went, I call it. I came out of the closet with prison and other personal aspects of my life. It's the best thing I ever did, be vulnerable in front of audiences and show them that I'm not immune to anything either. Just because I live and breathe this, which I do and I like it, I'm not stuff still happens to me, happens for me that not so good stuff, but so what I'm doing now is I'm continuing to transmute myself so that I can be A better service to others. That's literally what I'm doing. Michael Hingson ** 49:05 One of the things that I love to say, and it fits right in with what you're discussing, is when I have the honor of doing these podcast episodes, if I'm not learning as much as, or more than anyone listening or whoever to the podcast that I'm not doing my job. And I think that that's an absolute part of it. We we all need to learn and transform. And I look for the opportunities that come along where people may say something like you've said a number of things that make perfect sense. I'm not sure I've heard today too many brand new things, but the reality is, there aren't that many. There really aren't new things in the world. It's just that either we haven't heard them yet, but they're still there, or we. We've forgotten them, and we need to remember them, or we have heard them, and we do remember them, and it reinforces it. But the fact is, there really isn't anything new in the world. We just have to sometimes rediscover it for ourselves. Exactly Rhonda Farrah ** 50:14 it's it's the amount of reading I did in prison camp, and if I make notes on the in the sidelines of the pages, and then I go back and I read the same passages and books and everything else, and I'd read what I've written, and I'd say that was a learning experience. And my measure look how far I've come. That that's when self help wasn't called self help. Yeah, now we have self help, you know, yeah, Bob bought the programs and everything, and then never opened them, because, again, it's an inside job. And I believe that with all my heart, Michael Hingson ** 51:02 right? Yeah, and I think there's, there's merit to that. So you have clients in various places nowadays, yes, Rhonda Farrah ** 51:12 Canada, Australia. I'm actually the final touches on a group coaching program. It is coaching program for women. I'll take 15 women for 12 weeks, 12 weeks, and if they choose to continue with another 12 weeks, at the end of 412 weeks, we've done a year, yeah, together, and we've accomplished what we want to accomplish, but in bite sized pieces, right? We're building on the first 12 weeks, so I'm very excited about that. And my clientele is, I say 45 and over, but like 5850 and over, because we all having those little crises for our benefit. What? Michael Hingson ** 51:57 What made you decide, though, to work with people who are essentially 50 and older, as opposed to younger people, because Rhonda Farrah ** 52:04 I kept getting older. You know, I kept getting older, and my experience has happened to me, and I call it the mid life, and there are so many people going through, maybe not exactly the same thing, but in some cases, yes, the same things. They're going through them, and I, I want to be the light at the end of whatever tunnel they are journeying through, and let them know this is not a train coming at you. Your light is exactly that. It's your light. It's your guidance to move forward, and nothing less. Michael Hingson ** 52:49 Now you you teach women, and that's fair, but if I were to carry it forward, what about men? Not that you that you're doing that, but don't men also really deal with the same issues they do, Rhonda Farrah ** 53:03 but they deal with them in different ways, and in many cases, men have it over women because of the way they're dealing with them. Society has ingrained in men. They're the strong, they're the powerful, they're the empowered. Of course, you look at the state of affairs in this world today and you find that, well, yeah, Michael Hingson ** 53:26 and that's, of course, that's the problem is that it's great to be the powerful and the empowered and so on. But if you will, you let it go to your head, and you're not listening anymore, Rhonda Farrah ** 53:37 right? The what I believe is that that's That's exactly true. If you're not listening to your intuitive self from within, if you're not, you're doing a number on yourself with that whole mindset thing. Yeah, think you can, you're right. If you think you can't, you're right as well. You're right as well. So the I have just had more women approach I've had more women approach me. There's a the they kind of assimilate with me and who I am, you know, I'm Mom, I'm the grandmother, and I'm the sister, you know, the oldest, and I'm in this thing, this gig, called counseling. Now, when I was a psychotherapist, my I turned to right around in 2005 couple things happened. I was released from prison. By the way, my sentence was expunged shortly after that. Michael Hingson ** 54:46 Oh, Rhonda Farrah ** 54:48 and so, and many people will also say, Aren't you mad? Aren't you angry? I go for what? For Michael Hingson ** 54:54 what? Yeah, what good is that gonna do? I forgave Rhonda Farrah ** 54:58 everybody. And. I came that's was part of my program for being my best self ever. Michael Hingson ** 55:04 What were you accused of doing? If I might ask the Rhonda Farrah ** 55:07 money. Money, crime, non violent. Non violent. No drugs, yeah. Money, crime, okay, got it. I mean, I was no milking and all of that. But the interesting part about that is, I served my sentence in prison camp. It used to be a men's prison camp, and Milken was there, and that's where he contracted cancer, and he won his release in $5 million and built the Cancer Center in Los Angeles. So you see, and that's, you know, everyone had me convinced, well, you should sue the government. I go, No, I don't think so. It's like, I need to move on. You know, it's like I'm moving on, and I'm taking the best pieces of that part of my life and this part of my life and these parts of my life, we teach that they can do the same. Michael Hingson ** 56:04 When I was in my mid 20s, something happened. I became blind because I was born two months premature and given a pure oxygen environment, and that caused the retinas not to develop properly, something known at the time as retro enteral fibroplasia. And if we really want to learn to spell it, go buy my book thunder dog. Um, now it's called retinopathy or prematurity, and you can learn that in Thunder dog too. But anyway, um, I think it was in the mid 20s somewhere I read an article about someone who was born around the same time that I was and blind for the same reason, and they sued their medical people, and just, had just won a major lawsuit and got money and all that. And I was talking to my father about it, and I said, What do you think about that? And he he said, probably something that you can really imagine, he said, and what good would suing really do at the time? They probably had just the information that they had, and medical science had started to hear that retro enter fibroplasia was a condition, but medical science hadn't really accepted it yet. But my father said, Sue isn't going to solve anything. And he was absolutely right. And I thought the same thing. And to this day, I think that's true. I think there are times when there is such a thing as doing litigation for some purpose, but, you know, don't do it for the wrong reason, and don't go off and try to mess up somebody else's life, because I'm sure that those same ophthalmologists and so on in the 70s and 80s would never take the same approach that they did when I was born, or if they had to, because it really meant the life of the child, the parents would get an appropriate warning saying this could happen, which is what does happen. But also, it's been proven that it doesn't take a pure oxygen environment, 24 hours a day, every day to keep a child alive, and even just a few minutes a day will prevent the whole issue of becoming blind. So there are a lot of aspects of it. Rhonda Farrah ** 58:34 There sure are. Michael Hingson ** 58:36 But you know, we all are. We're in this same world, and we do need to, you know, to move forward. So what do you think that people can learn from you? We've talked for almost an hour. Summarize some of that, if you would. Rhonda Farrah ** 58:52 I think people can learn from me that, you know, we're all whole, perfect and complete, even in our imperfections, all of us and I am more like others, and others are more like me than we all realize, because we all have that wholeness, that perfection within each within us, and they can learn to get out of their comfort zone a little before they're taken out of their comfort zone, to live an empowered life, to live maybe a little bit of the life that they've been Thinking about, perhaps dreaming about, they can learn that you know, even with everything that happened to me, I mean, I am so blessed. It could have been a lot worse in every situation that we have just talked about again in the last hour. But there was something within me, and it's within everyone. We are not alone. Alone, no one is alone. To take the best to count the gifts and the blessings, to use that formula gratitude plus forgiveness, not a popular topic, forgiveness will empower us if we go within and say, Yeah, that's the that I think that's the biggest thing, and that they're to get passionate about something, whether whether it's garden or whether it's changing lives, helping people fix their reflection first and live their best life ever. That's what they can learn from me. Find something to be passionate about, Michael Hingson ** 1:00:50 yeah, the operative part about that is fix your reflection first, do something that you're passionate about. I would add to that, that doing something for negative reasons is only going to hurt you. It's not going to hurt anyone else exactly that's Rhonda Farrah ** 1:01:06 taking the poison and expecting the other person to die. Yeah, it's not happening. Michael Hingson ** 1:01:12 It doesn't happen. Well, if you were to Well, go ahead. Rhonda Farrah ** 1:01:17 No, that's ask me. I want you to ask me another question. Do Michael Hingson ** 1:01:23 you have a particular one you want me to ask you? No, oh, just checking. Just checking. If you were to to summarize all of this and leave people with one thought that they should take away and remember what? What do you want them to learn from this. I know we've talked about it a lot, and I kind of suspect I know the answer. But if you were to summarize it very briefly, what would you what would you say very Rhonda Farrah ** 1:01:49 briefly? I would say, once again, you're not alone if you are struggling with a challenge, with something that not so good stuff in your life, reach out, whether you reach out to me, whether you reach out to someone else, reach out and go within. If you don't know who to reach out, to go within and listen and listen, and you'll know who to reach out to. And I have to say that wherever we go, and I alluded to this during the interview, during our conversation, wherever we go, we take ourselves. So those of us who are trying to avoid in life, wherever you go to avoid, whatever it is you're trying to avoid, you're the common denominator. You have still taken yourself there Michael Hingson ** 1:02:41 and avoiding doesn't help. Facing is a different story than avoiding. Facing Rhonda Farrah ** 1:02:46 Yes and it's okay. We all have feelings, feels. You want to feel sad, you want to feel angry, feel whatever the hell you want to feel okay. Because if you keep shoving those feelings down, eventually they will erupt at the most inopportune time. And quite frankly, and quite bluntly, I liken it to a toilet overflowing when you have a house full of guests, not a good thing. And finally, I'm inviting our audience to treat life as if it were ice cream and enjoy it before it melts. Michael Hingson ** 1:03:28 I believe life is an adventure. We should all partake of it and not hide. We may not and shouldn't all do it exactly the same way. Everyone is has got their own way of doing it, but enjoy it, as you said, especially before it melts. Well, Rhonda, if people want to reach out to you, and I hope people will. And you know, you may get some, some guys who who email you, but how do people get hold of you? Rhonda Farrah ** 1:03:58 I would welcome any questions. I love to hear what is on the heart and minds of others, and you can get a hold of me. At, Rhonda. R H, O, N, D, A at, help me, Rhonda now.com, Rhonda. At help me. Rhonda now.com, Michael Hingson ** 1:04:18 and as I said earlier, we know what musical groups you grew up with. Rhonda Farrah ** 1:04:24 Yes, we do. Michael Hingson ** 1:04:27 But Rhonda at help me. Rhonda now.com and I hope people will reach out and seek the wisdom that you are providing and the knowledge that you have to offer, what a wonderful treasure trove of information and knowledge you are and you have, and I hope people will take advantage of that. Thank you. Thank you. Michael, well, I want to thank you for being here, and I want to thank all of you for listening and watching. Us today. We really value it. I would really like to hear from you. I want to hear what your thoughts are about today. Please email me, whoever you are, wherever you are. You can reach me at Michael H, i@accessibe.com that's m, I C, H, A, E, L, H, I at accessibe, A, C, C, E, S, S, I b, e.com, or go to our podcast page, www dot Michael hingson.com/podcast, and Michael hingson is m, I C, H, A, E, L, H, I N, G, s, o, n.com/podcast, wherever you're listening, I hope you liked today and that you will rate us and give us a five star review. We value your reviews and your ratings. So very much. Really hope that you will provide us with a five star rating. We love it, but we really, most of all, value your thoughts and anything that you have to say about what you heard today, and I know Rhonda will appreciate that as well. So email Rhonda at helpmeda now.com and communicate with her as well. If you know of any guests Rhonda you as well who might be wonderful people that we ought to have on unstoppable mindset. Would love to hear from you. We're always looking for guests. I found Rhonda through a person who reached out to me and said, I know this great person who ought to be on the podcast. And he was right. So definitely, if you know of anyone, please let us know, but give us rankings, five star ratings, and communicate with us, because that's the only way we get a feel of what you like and what you're interested in and and what you're thinking. So please tell us. And with that, Rhonda, I want to thank you one more time for being here, and we appreciate all your time, and hopefully we'll do it again in the near future, and I'm certainly glad to come on the program that you were talking about earlier. Rhonda Farrah ** 1:06:49 Yes, yes, thank you, Michael, it's been my pleasure to be here. Michael Hingson ** 1:06:58 You have been listening to the Unstoppable Mindset podcast. Thanks for dropping by. I hope that you'll join us again next week, and in future weeks for upcoming episodes. To subscribe to our podcast and to learn about upcoming episodes, please visit www dot Michael hingson.com slash podcast. Michael Hingson is spelled m i c h a e l h i n g s o n. While you're on the site., please use the form there to recommend people who we ought to interview in upcoming editions of the show. And also, we ask you and urge you to invite your friends to join us in the future. If you know of any one or any organization needing a speaker for an event, please email me at speaker at Michael hingson.com. I appreciate it very much. To learn more about the concept of blinded by fear, please visit www dot Michael hingson.com forward slash blinded by fear and while you're there, feel free to pick up a copy of my free eBook entitled blinded by fear. The unstoppable mindset podcast is provided by access cast an initiative of accessiBe and is sponsored by accessiBe. Please visit www.accessibe.com . AccessiBe is spelled a c c e s s i b e. There you can learn all about how you can make your website inclusive for all persons with disabilities and how you can help make the internet fully inclusive by 2025. Thanks again for Listening. Please come back and visit us again next week.
It's Mailbag time! Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman dive into the Act Two inbox and answer listener questions. Don't forget you can always reach out! Follow us @ACTTWOWRITERS Questions/Comments: ActTwoWriters@Gmail.com
Time for the glamorous 2025 Golden Crappies! We've tallied your votes and are here at Town Hall in NYC to deliver the results with a star studded cast. Act Two features Kempire, Margaret Josephs (RHONJ) , Kara Berry from Everyone's Business but Mine, Dylan Hafer from Betches, and Taylor Strecker from Taste of Taylor. To listen to our Traitors bonus episodes, and participate in live episode threads, go to Patreon.com/watchwhatcrappens. Tickets for the Mounting Hysteria Tour are now on sale at watchwhatcrappens.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
HAPPY VALENTINE'S! We're not doing anything romance-themed, sorry. This week, Dave and Adam are joined by freelance journalist Tessa Ndjonkou to celebrate 20 years of YouTube, and to ask - has it been a blessing or a curse for society at large? Throw in a lovingly composed news section and there's a LOT to discuss. And if you want even more NO ENCORE, consider signing up to our Patreon feed @ patreon.com/noencore - just five euro per month gets you weekly bonus content, including the imminent return of Film Club. Next up, Colin Farrell's 2003 ode to copaganda, S.W.A.T.~! As for this week's episode... ACT ONE (5:45): Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl Half-Time show reviewed and debated, Rolling Stone's questionable Liam Payne cover story analysed, and Samantha Mumba versus the Eurosong panel - it's the week in music news. ACT TWO (1:01:54): Top 5 YouTube Videos. Follow Tessa on InstagramFollow Tessa on LetterboxdDave's Trans Musicales festival review from 2013 Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Is it future? Or is it past? One thing's for sure - it's a brand new season of NO ENCORE~!And it wouldn't be The Return of this particular podcast without leaning into some truly tragic news in the form of the passing of visionary filmmaker David Lynch, who shuffled off this mortal coil in mid-January. As such, we're marking the first episode back with a tribute to a man who inspired as much creativity as he did nightmares during his time on this earth. A true original, Lynch cast a genuinely mesmerising spell in his work via a uniquely potent mix of imagination, surrealism, horror, and deep empathy. He deserves to be celebrated, and so we will do just that. Leading the charge is returning guest co-host David A. Tapley; mastermind of Tandem Felix and a damn fine Gordon Cole impersonator - seriously, he went as him for a Twin Peaks-themed night once and it looked and sounded terrific. ACT ONE: The preamble in which we ramble. ACT TWO (9:05): Plenty of news to dissect from weeks gone by, including Nine Inch Nails' very welcome impending visit to Dublin, Grimes saying Grimes things, the jaw-dropping Emilia Perez controversy, popular music artists of the time turning to cinematic endeavours. Ringo Starr's red-hot confession, Kendrick's dominance at the Grammy Awards (and Drake's further public humiliation), Gracie Abrams stans finding new ways to cause problems, the Boyzone documentary, and Billy Corgan stepping onto our turf. ACT THREE (1:09:06): Top 5 David Lynch Music-Follow Tandem Felix on X / Instagram / Bandcamp Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Think you know where your hero's journey is headed? Think again. We're diving into the Ordeal - that gut-punch moment some people still confuse with the Climax (spoiler alert: they're not the same thing, folks). This episode had us playing cartographer through the wonderfully labyrinthine (read: headache-inducing) chapters of Christopher Vogler's The Writer's Journey. Because apparently, writing about story structure needed its own plot twists. After untangling Vogler's literary maze, we tackle the burning questions: When should your protagonist's world implode in Act Two? How do you make readers lose sleep over your crisis scene? We put our hard-earned wisdom to work by dissecting John Scalzi's Kaiju Preservation Society, proving that even giant monster books need their big moment perfectly timed.Remember, we have a Writers Process meetup every Wednesday. Check us out.
In this episode we have the second act of our first miniseries, The Illusion of Unity. In act one, the human race learned they weren't alone in the universe, and our neighbors were on the way for a visit. But these aliens were traveling at sub-light speed, and will take 75 years to reach us. In this episode, we have to decide what to do next.If you have a story you'd like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/Curator: Keith Conrad linktr.ee/keithrconradNarrator: Darren Marlar https://darrenmarlar.com/Man on the Street: Dan LevyWoman on the Street: Leah RamsaySenator Thomas Wainwright: Fred HollandAstronaut Caroline Vega: Amy GuthAdmiral Susan Harrington: Laura FinchDr. Emily Carson: Jen DeSalvoOther shows hosted by Darren Marlar:Weird Darkness: https://weirddarkness.com/Paranormality Magazine: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/paranormalitymagMicro Terrors: Scary Stories for Kids: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/microterrorsRetro Radio – Old Time Radio In The Dark: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/retroradioChurch of the Undead: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/churchoftheundead Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
I am joined live by the current ATOMIC Pro Tag Team Champions and the brand new Wrestling Resurgence Tag Team Champions….ACT TWO (Jack Knudsen & Benjamin Harland)
Dark Legion: Death's Door unleashed Hell on Earth. Now, Dylan & Dalton are exploring their universe's terrifying new status quo with a season of standalone stories packed with new (read: expendable) characters. First up, Dylan is taking a swing at a Dark Universe reimagining of one of the most important horror films of all time: Night of the Living Dead. The last version of this script was killed before it went to air. Can Dylan pull off a resurrection? Our partner podcast for this episode is Your Favorite Bad Movie Podcast, the show that dares to ask "If this movie is so bad, why do you like it so much?" Hosts Chris, Anna, and Greg confront guests about their own personal favorite bad movies, including AYADU's own Dylan Roth and his beloved The Fast & the Furious: Tokyo Drift! TIMESTAMPS 00:00:00 - Start 00:08:17 - Fan Expectations 00:15:37 - Director Choice 00:17:17 - Prologue 00:29:02 - Discussion 00:33:23 - Act One 00:55:10 - Discussion/Fight! 01:06:56 - Act Two, Part One 01:17:46 - Discussion 01:21:52 - Act Two, Part Two 01:33:02 - Discussion 01:53:48 - Act Three 01:59:52 - Discussion 02:02:22 - Act Three Continued 02:17:17 - Post-Credits Scene 02:18:08 - Discussion
A wee flame, flickering in the dark. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription.Prologue: Who's trying to bridge the gap between Blue America and Red America? Ira gets a glimpse of one guy who might be able to do just that. (3 minutes)Act One: A politically divided couple searches for a news source they both can trust. (26 minutes)Act Two: "June" is making a tactical decision about her vote this election. (13 minutes)Act Three: Frank Filocomo thinks people care too much about politics when it comes to dating. His dates don't necessarily agree. (10 minutes)Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.orgThis American Life privacy policy.Learn more about sponsor message choices.
Maddy, Jason and Kirk sit down with guest game master Matthew Mercer to roll their characters and plan out the coming adventure.Listen to Act Two right now by becoming a member at maximumfun.org/join.SCHEDULE:Triple Quest will be told in three acts, along with a "session zero" planning session. All episodes will be published to the members-only feed first, and will hit the main feed a month later. Part One and the planning session will debut at the end of September. Parts Two and Three will debut at the ends of October and November, respectively. LINKS:Join the Triple Click Discord: http://discord.gg/tripleclickpodTriple Click Ethics Policy: https://maximumfun.org/triple-click-ethics-policy/
Bing, Leon, and Key hear from an old friend. A tchotchke seller has an unexpected windfall. Thornhold's friendliest guard makes some new acquaintances.Listen to Act Two right now by becoming a member at maximumfun.org/join.SCHEDULE:Triple Quest will be told in three acts, along with a "session zero" planning session. All episodes will be published to the members-only feed first, and will hit the main feed a month later. Part One and the planning session will debut at the end of September. Parts Two and Three will debut at the ends of October and November, respectively. LINKS:Join the Triple Click Discord: http://discord.gg/tripleclickpodTriple Click Ethics Policy: https://maximumfun.org/triple-click-ethics-policy/
This week, we continue our investigation into Dominick Dunne's real-time reporting from the summer of 1993 from the first murder trial of Lyle and Erik Menendez. Testimony is given by many characters at this time, including the friends and family of the accused, as well as Dr. Oziel and the fishing charter Captain too. Also included are some epic showdowns with the attorneys, and the surprising influence of another infamous crime in California from the 1980s, the Billionaire Boys Club. All sources can be found at doneanddunne.com. Continue your investigation with ad-free and bonus episodes on Patreon! To advertise on Done & Dunne, please reach out to info@amplitudemediapartners.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
"Run Rabbit Run" bursts onto the scene like an audio-cinematic shotgun blast to the senses. This TABLE READ of the first act delivers a whirlwind of snappy dialogue, colorful characters, and enough twists to give you whiplash. We're thrown headfirst into a world where luck is currency and everyone's trying to beat the house. Our anti-hero Roland is a smooth-talking, lady-killing son of a gun who can't drive for shit but somehow always lands on his feet. His partner Monte? Picture a guy trying to go straight but can't shake the stink of his past. Then there's this whole mess with an urn, some psycho brothers, and enough double-crosses to make your head spin. The script crackles with the kind of razor-sharp banter that'll make you wanna 'rewind' just to catch all the zingers. It's got that perfect mix of tension and laughs, like if Guy Ritchie and the Coen Brothers had a love child raised by Lady Luck herself. Buckle up. This ain't your grandma's crime caper. It's a wild ride that'll leave you begging for Act Two faster than you can say "Run Rabbit Run."
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