Podcasts about Energizer Bunny

1065: [Part 2] Diet, Lifestyle And Prostate Cancer by Dr. Shireen Kassam at PlantBasedHealthProfessionals.com Diet, Lifestyle And Prostate Cancer [Part 2] In the second half of this episode hear some more specific foods and lifestyle factors to help with prostate cancer prevention and treatment. Written by Dr. Shireen Kassam at PlantBasedHealthProfessionals.com.  #vegan #plantbased #plantbasedbriefing #wfpb #plantbasednutrition #prostatecancer #lifestyle #plantbaseddiet #cancer ========================== Original post: https://plantbasedhealthprofessionals.com/diet-and-prostate-cancer  ========================== RELATED EPISODES: 945: How to Become a Soy Equol Producer https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/945-how-to-become-a-soy-equol-producer-by-dr-michael-greger-at-nutritionfactsorg  755: New Study: Plant-Based Foods Could Improve Men's Sexual Health After Prostate Cancer Treatment https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/743-new-study-plant-based-foods-could-improve-mens-sexual-health-after-prostate-cancer-treatment-by-charlotte-pointing-at-vegnewscom  547: After a Prostate Cancer Diagnosis Spurred Me to Go Plant-Based, I Feel Like the Energizer Bunny https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/547-after-a-prostate-cancer-diagnosis-spurred-me-to-go-plant-based-i-feel-like-the-energizer-bunny-by-michael-andrus-at-forksoverknivescom  502: Meat and Milk Linked to Colon Cancer, Study Confirms https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/502-meat-and-milk-linked-to-colon-cancer-study-confirms-by-nicole-axworthy-at-vegnewscom  494: Milk Drinkers See 60% Higher Rates of Prostate Cancer https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/494-milk-drinkers-see-60-higher-rates-of-prostate-cancer-by-meghan-edwards-at-forksoverknivescom  432: 3 Myths About Soy And Men Debunked https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/432-3-myths-about-soy-and-men-debunked-from-switch4goodorg  148: Fight Erectile Dysfunction and 4 More Reasons to Go Plant Based This Movember https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/148-fight-erectile-dysfunction-and-4-more-reasons-to-go-plant-based-this-movember-by-josh-cullimore-md-at-pcrmorg  94: [Part 1] Cancer and Diet: Here's What You Should Know https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/94-part-1-cancer-and-diet-heres-what-you-should-know  95: [Part 2] Cancer and Diet: Here's What You Should Know https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/95-part-2-cancer-and-diet-heres-what-you-should-know  33: How Not to Die from Cancer https://plantbasedbriefing.libsyn.com/33-how-not-to-die-from-cancer-by-dr-michael-greger-at-nutritionfactsorg  ========================== Plant-Based Health Professionals UK is an non-profit organization dedicated to providing education and advocacy on whole food plant-based nutrition and lifestyle medicine for prevention and treatment of chronic disease. In addition to practicing conventional medicine, they promote health and well-being using a plant-based lifestyle approach. They reaize there is no doubt that conventional medicine has resulted in some astonishing advances in patient care. However, the current model of healthcare in the UK focuses primarily on treating established disease, rather than emphasising interventions that could prevent or reduce the burden of chronic disease. They provide a valuable resource for the education of healthcare professionals and the general public alike and aim to empower individuals to take control of their own health. Dr. Shireen Kassam founded PBHP UK in 2018. She's a certified lifestyle medicine physician and author of the book, Eating Plant-Based, Scientific Answers to Your Nutrition Questions, co-authored with her sister Zahra, was published in January 2022. She has also co-edited the textbook Plant-Based Nutrition in Clinical Practice, published in September 2022. Learn more at https://plantbasedhealthprofessionals.com/  ============================== FOLLOW PLANT BASED BRIEFING ON: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@plantbasedbriefing     Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2GONW0q2EDJMzqhuwuxdCF?si=2a20c247461d4ad7 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/plant-based-briefing/id1562925866 Your podcast app of choice: https://pod.link/1562925866 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PlantBasedBriefing   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/plant-based-briefing/   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/plantbasedbriefing/   

“Making progress is soul-crusher free." "We can control how we react to it." "Assume positive intent."   Episode summary | In this conversation, Tim Leake, founder of Let's Lightbulb, discusses how to make work enjoyable and productive. He shares insights on creativity, collaboration, and the importance of humor in high-stakes environments. Tim emphasizes the need for leaders to be generous and supportive, creating a culture where everyone can thrive. He also highlights practical strategies for overcoming soul-crushing moments in the workplace and the ripple effect of generosity in leadership.   R.O.G. Takeaway Tips | Creativity and speed are unfair advantages in today's fast-paced world. Assuming positive intent can transform team dynamics. Humor and levity can create a psychologically safe environment. Generosity in leadership fosters deeper connections and opportunities. Collaboration requires structure to be effective and efficient. Soul crushers are often invisible but can be addressed through proactive measures. Listening is a critical skill for effective leadership. The more value you give away, the more it comes back to you. Creativity is essential for solving problems in any field.   Chapters |  00:00 Introduction to Tim Leake and Soulcrushers 01:41 The Courage to Create: Tim's TEDx Experience 05:24 The Concept of Soul Crushers and Their Impact 10:25 Empowering Work: Making Work Fun Again 15:58 Practical Strategies to Combat Soul Crushers 19:36 Creativity as a Core Element in Problem Solving 21:30 Leveraging Humor and Levity in Business 24:20 The Multifaceted Benefits of Fun in Work 25:51 The Impact of Fear on Communication 28:30 Creating Psychological Safety in Teams 32:45 The Power of Generosity in Leadership 37:37 Building Relationships Through Generosity 44:18 The Ripple Effect of Generosity 46:43 Sparking Creativity in Teams 48:21 The Importance of Listening in Leadership   Guest Bio | Tim is a founder, facilitator, and crusher-of-soul-crushers at Let's Lightbulb — a consultancy that helps leadership teams accomplish twice as much in half the time, through creative and strategic workshop facilitation. He specializes in running High-ROI Off-Sites and Solution Sprints for executive and leadership teams. Additionally, he's an Executive Trainer at AJ&Smart, often called the world's best facilitation training company. He's been using facilitation, creativity, and innovative thinking to help businesses drive revenue for over 25 years. Before creating a company of his own, Tim spent nearly a decade as the Chief Marketing & Innovation Officer for RPA, one of the largest independent agencies in the U.S. Prior to RPA, he was a global innovation and transformation facilitator and speaker with Hyper Island — helping companies (including General Mills, Target, Ikea and many more) thrive in a constantly changing digital world. He began his career on the creative side of the advertising industry, where he was a Creative Director & Director of Creative Innovation at Saatchi & Saatchi NY, and got his start at TBWA/Chiat/Day, as a copywriter working on world-famous efforts like the Energizer Bunny and Taco Bell Chihuahua campaigns. He's a frequent speaker at international events including the Cannes Festival of Creativity (France), Hyper Island (Sweden), CPH Transform (Copenhagen), Dani Komunikacija (Croatia), AToMiC (Canada), Advertising Week (USA), SXSW (the country of Texas), and more.   Guest Resources:  www.letslightbulb.com Humor, Seriously by Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas Humor That Works by Andrew Tarvin   Bridge Between Resources: 5 Degree Change Course Free N.D.I. Network Diversity Index  Free Generosity Quiz    Credits: Tim Leake, Host Shannon Cassidy, Bridge Between, Inc. Coming Next: Please join us next week, Episode 233, Special Guest, Sydney Cummings Houdyshell.

FULL SHOW with lots of fu*king by Cadbury Bunny, Energizer Bunny, Bunnicula, Thumper, Hocus Pocus, Trix Rabbit, and Bugs Bunny! ⁠FIND ALL THINGS STICKY DOLL HERE⁠(0:00) Show Intro(12:24) Moxee Correspondent P.A.L.™ Call(33:12) Rabbit Orgy Call(35:06) Gilbert Gottfried Stand Up(45:12) Hector from Boyle Heights Call(54:00) M.A.M.™★ STICKY DOLL is a Industrial Punk Band and Funny as Fuck Podcasters "If this video offends you please go to church after you watch it." -El Sancho, STICKY DOLL⁠FIND ALL THINGS STICKY DOLL HERE⁠⁠⁠⁠All STICKY DOLL Music is 100% BASS & DRUMS ONLY - No Guitar.★ ⁠Official Music and Merch⁠★ ⁠Youtube Channel⁠★ ⁠Watch all our Live Stream shows on Facebook⁠ AND listen to our Podcast "In Bed w/ STICKY DOLL" on YouTube Music, Spotify, Apple, or wherever YOU listen!FEATURED STICKY DOLL SONG ⁠"⁠⁠⁠⁠Scary Voodoo Girl⁠⁠⁠⁠"⁠ ORGY = Five or more consenting persons engaging sexual intercourse in the same place over the same period of time. Synonymous with group sex. Common props include drugs, alcohol, toys, etc. but are not neccesary. ⁠FIND ALL THINGS STICKY DOLL HERE⁠#punk #goth #podcast #comedy #cartoon

Tiff and Dana walk through different dental departments and share ideas many practices have used to keep things green, including reconsidering which items actually need to be disposable, reducing paper, reusing plastic, and more. Episode resources: Sign up for Dental A-Team's Virtual Summit 2025! Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:02) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. I'm so excited to be here with you again. You know that I am just always so happy to bring Dana on the set with us and be here with you. We love sharing our tips. We love sharing our tricks. We love sharing our, I don't know, workout gear with you and all of the pieces and just sharing our lives with you. So we are both so excited to be here today. Dana, thank you for always being on board, for hopping on, for jumping in on any conversation. I know I spin you.   and throw you in some directions that you're not always expecting. So thank you for keeping up with me and knowing how to roll with the punches. How are you on this fine, fine afternoon?   Dana (00:42) Doing good. I'm excited to be here. You know you're right. You keep me on my toes. I never really know what you're going to throw at me, but I leave with a smile on my face and having loved it. So I'm excited to be here too.   The Dental A Team (00:48) That's true.   Perfect.   And now clients and non-clients and listeners here, you guys know that this is truly unscripted from our brains. We come up with topics, but we do riff here and we really pick each other's brains and really come up with solutions for things just the same as we do on your coaching calls. So when you guys bring stuff like this to us clients, this is how we roll. And for anyone who is wondering,   We do have conversations like this outside of the podcast world as well, as consultants are constantly talking to one another about things that we're seeing in practices, things we're experiencing when I need something, maybe I don't have an answer for it. Cause you guys, I know this is going to sound crazy and wild, but we do not know everything. I know it's a shocker. It's a shocker, but combined between all of us, we've got it pretty well handled. So if there's something I don't know,   or have questions on, I definitely, definitely throw it to my ladies and get those answers for you guys. So rest assured everyone, we're constantly collaborating just like we tell you to collaborate and we're constantly growing and learning ourselves. So Dana, thanks for being one of those beautiful ladies behind the scenes for me on so many occasions and I'm excited for today's topic. I...   I just barely prepped you with it, but it sounds like you've recently had a conversation like this with a practice and I'm excited for it. So think it's really something that has been coming around the dental scene for probably the past 10 or more even years, but really strong recently. listeners, we're going to talk today on some eco-friendly dental practice methods. And that doesn't just mean dentistry, but really a lot of the products and just what are we doing?   new out there right now to really go green and a lot of the practices and Dana with your conversation that you've just had with your practice recently I know you've got a lot of hot tips and tricks and there are other practices out there we both talked to as well but what do you have for us today on on that like what eco-friendly things did you guys chat about on that call?   Dana (03:04) Yeah, and I think that it is just coming up with ways any ways that we can reuse, reduce and recycle things right When it comes to eco friendly offices And the biggest thing in dentistry is our disposables, right? So what are the things that we have that are disposables? Can we find a recyclable option? Or that we can reduce the number of disposable items that we're using or eliminate them altogether if it is, you know,   The Dental A Team (03:10) Yeah.   Dana (03:31) I'm all about sanitation, infection control, all of those things. But I think COVID put us in a little bit of like a redundancy mode in some of those areas. And so I feel like in the last 4 years, our disposables have gone up a ton. And our infection control, while those standards are great, I think even above and beyond what is really needed. And so I think it's just finding ways to navigate those things. And we tend to like put plastic over everything and just use   things that aren't super eco-friendly to keep like sanitization standards. And so we don't want to give up on those things, but there are a lot of new products and new technologies and things that we can use that aren't necessarily disposable like we're so used to them being.   The Dental A Team (04:19) Yeah.   Yeah,   I love all of that. I totally agree with you and I hope everyone got the 90s child reference, the late 80s 90s child reference there, reduced, recycle. If everyone could see the commercial and hear the song, I would be even happier right now. I think it needs to come back. I agree. I do love the fact that you mentioned the disposable pieces and like the plastics on everything. And it's funny because I've   Dana (04:32) Did you love it?   The Dental A Team (04:50) I've done it myself and I've watched people put the plastics on and then take the plastics off and then like we're scrubbing everything still and so it's like gosh that's that redundancy space that is it necessary and is it always necessary for every appointment too?   know, because my implant placement appointment or extraction or perio surgery or SRP even is going to be a little messier, we'll say. It's going to look a little different than my limited exam with a PA where I'm not actually infiltrating any tooth structure whatsoever and everything's very clean. So are we taking that into consideration too, which I think leads into exactly where you said like, are we taking inventory of the disposables that we're using? Because do we need to   to   do we need to have disposable air water syringes? Number one, is that completely necessary? And do we need it on both air waters for the limited exam because they're both gonna be removed likely and tossed out after that appointment, especially if you've got.   sterile tech or another dental assistant or anybody coming into the room because they don't know what you touched and so they're going to dispose of anything that's disposable. So I think just taking into consideration too what the next appointment is.   what's actually necessary and only putting out the things that are necessary. for doctors listening, this definitely is an overhead situation. It's going to help supply cost immensely. But for everyone who's listening, this is a reduce, reuse, recycle situation of we've got to save the dang planet, you guys. We've got to do what we can to really make sure that we're not filling those landfills with unnecessary debris and that we're really doing the best that we can for the people that are.   the people that are here.   I think I still see Dana when I go in offices, I still see, you know, those dental assistants running around there. And I was this person, they just grabbed, you know, we've got a filling coming up and I just grab a stack of two by two by two. So just grab a stack or the hygienist, right? Just grab a stack instead of like, how many do I actually need? And my doctor, realistically, we only need two. If I'm cleaning off your instrument, you're passing it, you know, you, you pack the composite in there and I need to clean the instrument off before you pack more composite.   it's not going to take this whole stack. I'm never using all of those. And if I do need more, then I can get more. It's available. And same with hygiene, right? When you're going through and scaling, like you don't need a massive stack in most cases. You probably need two to four, I would assume, to really keep your instruments clean. So even just as simple as that. Now, Dana, I...   On the same subject, right, eco-friendly, what are you seeing practices do within the front office with paper? I know paper's always been a big thing. And then COVID happened. And like, I think we got paper crazy again, which was the exact opposite of what I thought would happen, but we got paper crazy again. And what are you seeing offices do now to try to combat that and switch things back around?   Dana (07:58) Yeah, and I think it is. just going back to making sure that they're doing medical histories, like sending those to patients ahead of time and doing them electronically, doing their consents electronically when patients walk in, you know, using the iPads for new patient information, for treatment planning and presenting. So there's a lot of ways and not only, think that a lot of this is there's kind of like another benefit to it, right? We can switch everything to electronic, which is also going to save us a fair amount of time.   I was just in a practice recently and they were like, Hey, we're clocking a lot of overtime. And I'm like, front office, like, what are we doing with our overtime? And I'm not kidding you. They looked at me and said, well, we spend about two hours at the end of the day shredding. And I was just like, wait, what? So not only right, are we being eco-friendly by eliminating paperwork, we're truly eliminating work from our team two hours every day spent on shredding.   The Dental A Team (08:38) Yeah, I knew you were going to say that. I had an office last week that said the same thing.   Dana (08:54) then we're paying a shredding company to come and take our shreddables too. So it's like you said, it helps with supply costs and it helps with costs and it truly also buys us back time while also serving the environment and being really, you know, as eco-friendly in those instances as possible.   The Dental A Team (08:57) Yeah.   Totally, totally agree. I literally had an office just, I think it was two weeks ago now, Trish and I went to an office and they had a massive shred pile and I was like, what are we shredding? Like, what do we have to shred if we're getting insurance verifications, like download it on the PC and then upload it into the document center, like all these different spaces. So being efficient and being innovative is gonna be huge. How can we reduce the amount of paper that we're using, the amount of ink that we're using, because those ink cartridges, they gotta be thrown.   away somewhere and they have to be picked up like it's this whole process just for ink cartridges. One space I know I work with a lot of teams on is route slips because yes yes yes yes to route slips. I want route slips but it doesn't mean it has to be individually printed every time. I have plenty of practices that do that and prefer it. I'm totally fine with it. I don't care what you guys decide to do but I have a lot of practices actually that pre-print   they'll print what they want a route slip to look like and then laminate it and they fill that out per patient. And so the night before or...   day of whatever, they fill these route slips out just the same as they would have printed them and then they're setting them on the counter. Most of the time it's like patient name, type of appointment and any balance that they might have. And then the back office is then filling out that NDTR space, the next visit date, time, re-care. And so there's really not a whole lot of extra that you need on your route slip. They should be pretty simple. If you've got, I have a lot of practices that have a lot of checklists and check systems on their route slips.   and I'm totally fine if you want them there. Again, I don't have a huge preference, but they're not necessary. I do think if you need an appointment check system, then maybe make a separate sheet that's laminated per appointment that the dental assistant or hygienist can keep and check off for that appointment, especially if you're gonna do the laminated version so the front office doesn't feel like they're filling a ton out as well.   route slips, I agree, any kind of forms or documents that you can automate and make them put them online, make sure all of your stuff is on your website, make sure that the forms are being texted and emailed to your patients prior like this is 2025. remember, gosh, I remember way back in like, how to be like 2009 2010. My doctor that I worked for was like one of the first doctors to he was always he's very innovative. So he's one of the doctors that's always got   the next best tech thing. And I remember way back in 2009, 2010, he came to me and he was like, we're doing a kiosk, Dent, a Dentrix has a kiosk, and everyone's going to check in on this little computer on this little desk in the corner. And it's going to automatically put the paperwork into our system. And it's going to be amazing. And I was like, no, it's not. And it was so clunky, and it was so hard, and so difficult. So   to my men and women of 2025 in the dental industry. If you didn't get to experience the pains of getting to where we are today, and you think today's paperwork is difficult, I have stories to tell you. It was ugly. It was so hard. Everyone hated it. It never transferred. It never uploaded correctly. Patients hated it. It was embarrassing. Oh my gosh, the day and age we live in today of automation just blows my mind. So every time   Dana (12:23) Thanks   The Dental A Team (12:37) I walk into a practice and they're like, it's too hard. I'm like, let me tell you and we get it done. So just go get it done guys. Dana, do you remember that? Were you one of those offices?   Dana (12:47) yeah. Yep. Yeah. And you know, I I'm all about like being on top of tech and being but sometimes I'm like, let's let it work its kinks out. Let's let it work its kinks out before we're like, maybe man number one on it.   The Dental A Team (12:53) Yes.   Yes.   Literally, think yeah,   I think that the the rep just got to him and we were like one of the first I swear and I was like, oh for the love doctor and I'm like 20, you know 20 maybe 23 I guess back 23 24 back then but I'm just like baby I felt like like I don't know how to do this. Like are you kidding me? barely I I   was using dial-up in high school, okay? This kiosk, less than 10 years later, is blowing my mind. I can't, I can't with this kiosk, but today it's much different. So there's everyone, in case anyone wanted to know my age or how much of a...   Grandma, I am when it comes to tech, there's your answers. Dial up and kiosks and it was a pain and today I finally feel confident today with Canva and I've been working on that for I feel like two years. So here we are, here we are. But and then.   Dana (13:54) Yeah.   The Dental A Team (13:57) On the space of eco-friendly, I think those are really, really fantastic ways. I've also heard, I don't have all the stats and the answers on it, but I do know that there's been a lot of research by a lot of doctors on different like vacuum systems for the suctions and different, I know there's a dry and a wet and one or the other, right? They both have their pros and their cons, but making sure those two, if you do find yourself in a situation where you need to replace your system, I know I've got a doctor that's working on that right now.   actually making sure you do your due diligence and research on that because there is a way per the stats at least to save a ton of water with the dry system and so I know even down to those pieces or a lot of the new data you might even know a lot of the more stats or whatever but a lot of the new   compressors and things are more energy efficient and lasting longer. It's kind of like the Energizer Bunny, like the batteries just keep getting better. So I know a lot of those spaces as well, and the hand pieces, electric, you know, motorized and all those different spaces. So there's a ton there. And Dana, what about for, I think hygiene department wise for you, what about the   Like the giveaway bags, all of those pieces, like what are you seeing practices do there?   Dana (15:17) Yeah, I've had a lot of offices either nix the bags all together and just kind of like bundle them or switch to like a paper bag versus a plastic bag. Also to there are a ton of eco friendly home care products coming out and I'm not advocating for them. I think do your research, make sure they meet your standards for your patient. But there's, know, bamboo toothbrushes, there are now recyclable toothpaste containers and you can be a recycling center for them. There are also toothpaste tablets that like you just refill you can just get a sachet.   The Dental A Team (15:25) Yeah.   That's cool.   Dana (15:46) fancy words, Hachet, of the little tablets and you put them in your plastic container. So you just reuse that plastic container over and over again. So there's all kinds of eco-friendly home care products too that you can consider switching to. Just reduce waste, you know, from a patient perspective too. So I think all of those things are worth taking a look at.   The Dental A Team (15:46) I do like that.   Dana (16:08) Again, making sure as long as they meet the standards of your office and what you want your patient to utilize them for, if you can opt for an eco-friendly version and it's something that you're wanting to incorporate more of, I say go for it.   The Dental A Team (16:20) Yeah, I love the toothpaste that you mentioned. know I've seen one of the hygienists that's been in my life. does a lot of, she just does a lot of this stuff and she does a lot of posting about it. And she posts the powder that comes in the little jar, right? Like, gosh, that's brilliant because you like the sachet, right? You're refilling that jar. And so it's a glass jar that you're refilling with the powder and you're just getting your toothbrush wet, dipping it in the powder and then brushing your teeth. And you just think about how many   Dana (16:33) Mm-hmm.   The Dental A Team (16:50) tubes of toothpaste run through your household, just your one household, how many tubes of toothpaste are thrown away on average, right? Probably somewhere between two to six a year, I can imagine, right? At least two to six a year for every household. If you can   teach your patients and educate your patients about products like that, that do work, do your research, right? I don't know which product was, I did not do the research on it, right? I did not buy it, I will do more research, but like do your research like Dana said and advocate for something you believe in, but make sure you're educating your patients too. So maybe you've got those things on hand at the dental practice, maybe those companies have disposable ones that you can give out.   Dana (17:18) you   The Dental A Team (17:38) And I've had a lot of practices too that have done away with like the bags and really they each time just ask the patient like, hey, do you use the disposable toothbrush? A lot of our patients, you guys, we've sold them electric toothbrushes. So a lot of our patients aren't using disposable toothbrushes. And I can tell you, most of the time those disposable toothbrushes are used for the guest bathroom for when somebody comes and forgot their toothbrush, right? That's what I did with them. That's what I do with them. That's where they are.   Dana (17:50) That's for sure.   The Dental A Team (18:06) So making sure we're asking those questions and only giving those things out as necessary because eventually they do go into the landfills and all those spaces. So take a look, look at what you can do, how you can make things a little better. Like can we install, I know in the house I'm like use the fans guys, like don't turn the AC on yet. I know it's.   96 degrees today. I hear you. I'm in Phoenix. I get it. But I'm like, none of the fans in the household are on and we're cranking the AC. Come on, like how can we be how can we be more economic and eco friendly in every aspect. So I think there's a lot of space in it for the dental in the dental practice. And then there's a lot of space for us to really educate our patients on how they can carry that through into their own homes. Yeah, Dana.   What do you think, I'm gonna do this to you again, what do you think are some good actionable items, especially because you just chatted with your own practice that you consult, what do you think are some good action items, some easy things that they can consider either watching or switching out or whatever that they can take away from today's chat?   Dana (19:10) Yeah, I think first thing is just review your disposables, right? Is it necessary to use all of the things that you use? And is there there, you know, one that you can sterilize or you can reuse alternative? Make sure we're looking at just paper waste, right? How much have we shifted or can we shift electronically? It'll just help with efficiency too. So this is a win win on both sides. So take a look at paper use in the practice and then do some research on some eco-friendly products and see if your office is a good fit for them.   The Dental A Team (19:39) I love it. I love it.   Thank you, Dana. Thank you for taking this adventure with me today. I was so happy to hear that you had just had this conversation with a practice recently, so that makes it very simple. So thank you. Thank you for your time. Thank you, everyone here for listening. As always, we appreciate, value you. We are here for all of the things and we're here to support you. So drop us a five-star review. Always let us know if there's any topic you wish that we would talk about. Dana and I will get right on it. I promise you that. We need the ideas, you guys. So thank you. Hello@TheDentalATeam.com   Hello@TheDentalATeam.com and we'll catch you next time.  

Send us a text“It starts with a why; if you don't have a reason why you want to make health changes and better lifestyle changes in your life, you're always going to default to what's comfortable.”Feeling like your energy's on a permanent coffee break? You're not alone—and today's guest knows exactly how that feels.In this episode of Have a Seat, I'm joined by the vibrant and inspiring Adrienne Simmons, a health and wellness coach who's on a mission to help us reclaim our vitality as we age. Once known as the “Energizer Bunny,” Adrienne hit a wall in her 50s that left her tired, foggy, and facing a scary pre-diabetes diagnosis. But instead of accepting that as her new normal, she took charge and created a lifestyle reboot that brought her energy—and joy—roaring back.If you've been feeling stuck, sluggish, or stretched too thin, this episode is the wake-up call your body and mind have been waiting for.Connect with Adrienne and reclaim your energy:Energy For Lifehttps://www.facebook.com/groups/1559175091214903/http://www.linkedin.com/in/adrienne-simmons-69087716/Support the showVisit the Have A Seat website for more episodes at: www.haveaseatconversations.com or even better, leave me a quick voicemail at: https://www.haveaseatconversations.com/voicemail/ and let's continue the conversation.Thanks for listening!

9a-10a Morgan Wallen walks off SNL, almost as fast as Vinnie. Jelly Roll brings a woman to tears — in the best way ever. Gen Z knows how old you are @gmail.com. Did the Energizer Bunny slow sales? Sarah believes first class should be earned, and Vinnie is cheating at Game Time — again!

Will Jack use his position of power to play fair or play foul when it comes to the Golf Buggy competition? Andy watched a news story about a house that was built on the wrong block, and the guys have so many questions. Hame is dubious about the validity of a battery ad he saw, and the ‘Up There Cazaly’ song sleuth is back with a major development. 1. Fair or Foul - How many competition tickets for Jack?2. House built on the wrong block3. Proving Up The Cazaly is an Australian anthem4. Energizer Bunny

Marc Thiessen,Washington Post columnist, Fox News contributor, and co-host of What the Hell Is Going On, joined The Guy Benson Show to break down Trump's first two weeks back in office, calling him the "Energizer Bunny" compared to Joe Biden. Thiessen analyzed Trump's tariff strategy with Canada and Mexico, explaining how the POTUS uses superior escalation tactics compared to Biden's passiveness. Thiessen also weighed in on Trump's move to dissolve USAID, arguing that it's a long-overdue decision that dates back to the Clinton administration. Listen to the full interview below! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Trump's display of stamina on Inaugeration Day gains Zig's respect but also fore-shadows the next four years of Good Trump, Bad Trump. Vivek is no DOGE but he could be a governor. Hegseth gets Kavanaughed again. The new and improved LA Times? The CFB playoffs end in a dud. Novak Djokovic demands an apology from the Aussies and gets one. We conclude with the long overdue reunion of John Ziegler and his old friend, former Kentucky Congressman, John Yarmouth.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-death-of-journalism--5691723/support.

Dating Rulesby  musicankane - listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories.Galina gave him a look, "Are you asking me out on a date?"Jake blushed, "Well I mean, no...maybe?"She laughed, "Jake I'm literally leaking your sperm out of my twat right now, I think you should be well beyond being nervous around me." She sat herself in his lap and put her arms around him. "You are very sweet, and very good in bed. But I can't date you, I kind of already have a boyfriend so..."Jake looked at her, "You came over to fuck me when you have a boyfriend?" He couldn't believe it, but then his mind went to that party at GGK with Rachel. What is with these girls and boyfriends but not really giving a shit.  "I promised you I would, and it was worth it." She explained. "Didn't you like fucking me?""Well yeah but what about your boyfriend?"She shrugged dismissively. "He's been ignoring me a bit lately and I was getting horny, you give me a chance to get some relief myself and it was worth it. I think I came three times, but it might have been more my head was spinning for a bit there." She kissed him gently and got off of him. "Jake don't worry about it, all will be well you are bound to find a girl especially with how word has gotten around GGK and other places on campus. Trust me someone might just fall into your lap and onto your dick before you even realize it's happening."Jake smiled at her weakly, "Well that's actually a bit reassuring actually. Thank you."Galina waved, "No problem, and remember I'm down. I gotta go now though I still have to finish an assignment before tomorrow afternoon. Goodnight Jake." She said, heading out his door."Night." He said to himself.Alexis had been incredibly bummed that Jake told her there was no D&D game for an unknown length of time. She'd really wanted to play it again, but more importantly than that she wanted to use it as an excuse to see him again. She felt terrible that even after she'd texted him, he didn't continue the conversation. Just a "no" and a little explaination, then nothing. No "how are you", no "what's up", nothing.It was her fault though, she couldn't really be upset with him. She had every chance to be with him, every chance to just forget her own stupid desire to join some fucking club and persue something meaningful with a guy who was great. Instead she just used him and chased him into the arms or any girl willing. And thanks to her, there were a lot of willing girls.Soon word about Jake would get around campus beyond the walls of Gamma Gamma Kappa sorority. Jake had been seen at the party and he visibly didn't fit in, which meant that rumors would spread especially when and if he was seen with other GGK girls on campus. Once that happened he would be fighting girls off with a stick and she would have no shot because he would long since have no reason to even remember her name.It would e all her fucking fault too.She sat with her textbook open where she was supposed to be doing her reading assignments, but all she could think about was Jake. She kept glancing at the phone every time it buzzed, but it was always just the GGK group chat and never the name she wanted to see.Alexis had thought about texting him again to see if he just wanted to fuck or something. After the party she had remained vigilant on her birth control and according to the doctor and the medication she was perfectly safe to get filled with sperm as much as she wanted. While the idea of just being a booty call for him didn't excite her all that much, it would be a way to remain in his life and on his mind. So it could be at least better than nothing.If Jake had the pick of whomever he wanted, why would he ever pick her though? If he met his needs with other girls whom hadn't seemingly discarded him after they'd used him, why wouldn't he just be with them instead?Alexis heard the door open behind her and she glanced back to see Galina walk in. "Hey Alexis I'm back." She said."Oh hey, what's up?" Alexis asked turned toward her room mate. "You rushed out of here in a hurry, what was that about?" She then saw Galina's state, hair fucked up, skin glistening with sweat, face rosy and flush. "Oh did Joshua summon you for a little romp in the sack?"Galina looked down at herself, and shrugged, "Umm yeah. Yeah he did."As if on queue her phone began to ring and from her seat Alexis could see Josh's face appear on Galina's screen. Galina put up a finger for Alexis and frowned, "Hey baby? No, not tonight. I told you I have a assignment to get done. I know it's early but I don't want my grades to slip barely two weeks into the semester. No...just jerk yourself off then Josh, I'm not pussy you get to just summon whenever you want. No Josh, fuck off." She spat and hung up on him.Alexis raised an eyebrow. "Was that Josh? What, did he want a round two already?" She asked.Galina gave her a blank look, "What?"Alexis gestured to her, "You look like someone fucked your knees weak. If you didn't just come from Josh, who did you rush off to..." Alexis paused and it began to click in her head. "No!"Galina frowned and pouted, "I'm sorry Alexis, I promised him."Alexis jerked to her feet, "Jake?" She screamed, "Really? Of all people, why him?""Well that's a stupid question. What are you so mad about anyway Alexis. He fucked Niece, Rachel, you, me, at this rate he'll be the first guy in history to fuck every active GGK member in a single semester, fuck once other girls on campus learn about him he'll run through everyone that so much as smiles at him."Alexis huffed, "But you know I want him.""Sucks to suck Alexis, you fucked him up. You could have left the party at any time that night to go to him and you didn't. You didn't chase him and he feels used. At least if you are going to use a guy at least have the decency to give him a nice send-off instead of ghosting him like a piece of shit." Galina insisted."Oh fuck you Gal."Galina smiled, "Too late, Jake already did that and my legs are literally dripping in his nut. So I'm gonna shower and you can kiss my ass." She blew Alexis a kiss, turned away and slapped her ass before darting into the bathroom.Alexis growled in a rage and flopped into her chair. She didn't know what made her more angry, the fact that Galina had done what she'd done, or the fact that Alexis knew Galina was right. Who was she kidding? Galina was right, Alexis had fucked up. She spun to the desk and slammed her text book shut, there was no way she was going to get any reading done tonight so fuck it.Alexis sat at the desk and grabbed her phone, flipping it to Jake's number she brought up the text screen and started to type frantically. Before she finished her text she growled in frustration and erased it, then hit the call button she would call him that would be better than just a text. She disconnected the call before it could even ring. No! She couldn't, god what was wrong with her?Jumping out of her seat she slipped into her shoes and ran out the door.Jake showered and washed himself completely clean, feeling really refreshed thanks to Galina. His body wasn't literally shaking with the desperation to bust a nut, and he finally felt relaxed for the first time in several days. He came out of the bathroom, rubbing a towel on his head to get his hair as dry as he could before he climbed into bed. He hated sleeping on a wet pillow.He had also used some baby wipes to clean the little bit of post-coital drip that leaked from Galina before she'd gotten off the bed. He remember the stain that Niece had left behind with him and he learned to clean up after sex so that you didn't roll into a surprise wet spot, or even worst find a dried cum stain randomly in your favorite sleeping spot.He put on a pair of nylon basketball shorts and nothing else to climb into bed with. Jake wasn't big on sleeping naked, so just a pair of shorts was the way to go for him. He never slept in a shirt because it would always wake him up as it would twist or ball up on him uncomfortably. Tossing back the sheet he started to climb into bed when knocking came to the door.It was almost 10pm, who would be showing up this late? He wondered if it was a GGK girl coming to surprise him or something like that, but he doubt it...well maybe?He opened the door and there was Alexis wearing nothing but a pair of extremely short pink shorts which the bottom of her ass stuck out of, and a white thin tank up that not only showcases her cleavage but also allowed him to clearly see her nipples through the thin fabric. Luckily it was dark because there is no way she'd just walk through campus like this. He found himself once again blown away by how fucking incredible her body was. Looking at her like this, it was hard to stay mad at her."Alexis?" He asked looking her up and down, "What are you doing here?"She smiled weakly and shrugged, "I...I just want to talk, can I come in?"Jake sighed and leaned against the door. "Alexis I don't know if that's such a good idea."Alexis frowned, "Please Jake, five minutes?"He pressed his lips firmly together, then nodded and let her push past him into the room. Shutting the door he didn't follow her into the dorm and instead leaned back against the now closed door. "Okay so?" He began.Alexis glanced around the room, not really seeing anything but just trying to find the words to say, something that she could say to even begin to make this right. "Jake I'm sorry, I want you to know that I am unbelievably sorry, beyond anything I've ever been sorry for in my entire life."Jake shrugged, "Sorry about what Alexis? You got everything you wanted."Alexis shook her head, "I didn't get you.""Me?" He spat. "Alexis you Had me, but you were too busy using me for your fucking club!" He held up a finger, "Not once mind you, that first time i mostly understood even though it upset me, I could at least understand, but then you did it again! When you picked me that night I thought that was it, you're in and then we could be normal and together. But no I was ushered out the door without a goodbye and silence for a fucking Week!"Alexis was frowning and hanging her head, "I fucked up. I know." She said weakly.Jake smacked his hand on the door, "Yeah, look Alexis I think you are an amazing girl too focus on social bullshit that means fucking nothing. And it's fucking shitty that you chose that over an actual relationship. You think those bitches care about you? They don't, Galina came over to fuck me tonight at the drop of a fucking hat because they only care about social standing and partying, not you. None of them could give a fuck whether you joined or not, and your place could be taken by just about anyone!"Alexis said nothing and let him just dig into her. Everything he said was right and she knew it. She had been shallow and she'd been greedy even. "I just hoped that...I just thought that I might be able to patch things up with us. If not exclusive or in a relationship at all at least...friends?"Jake shook his head, "Friends? Alexis I can't be friends with you. You were the girl of my dreams, my fantasies, when I was with you I thought I was dreaming. I can't be friends with you, because I'll always look at you and want you more than you could ever know, but I can't trust you to not destroy my heart."Alexis was crying, tears rolling down her cheeks."Now I'm going to take Niece's advice, I'm going to sow my oats and take advantage of life here the best I can." He sighed and opened the door. "I think you should just go."Alexis looked at him, her eyes wet, tears dripping off her chin. "I'm sorry." She cried gently.Jake nodded, "Yeah me too." He told her and gestured her out the door.The next few days were rough for him. Jake didn't like the confrontation with Alexis because it felt final, and it didn't sit well at all with him but he knew it had to be done. He didn't want to be hurt or rejected and Alexis made him feel both. Whether she intended it or not, he felt like this pain would ultimately be for the best.At least with sex he could make it just that. Though there was a part of him that really didn't want JUST the sex. He really wanted to date someone, hang out, study together, maybe game, other shit couples did. As cool as it was that he could have someone beautiful almost whenever at this point, he didn't like it as much as he thought he would.Once he'd gotten over the hump of the, well it wasn't really a breakup because they hadn't actually been together in the first place, but whatever it was it was done. Once that was through with he began to get his shit back on the track to mostly normal. School work, gaming, reading, the normal things in his life. Though he did keep an eye out for other things to do on campus that were a bit more of the social type of activity.There was going to be another party next weekend that actually wasn't being held at GGK. Instead, Delta Sigma Phi, was throwing their Lacrosse Bash. It was a tradition that was supposed to help guarantee the team's success in the coming year and it was a party that was held under a truce with GGK in which GGk would not have a party for the entire week leading up to the DSP party. That way by the time the DSP party rolled around, people would be desperate for a chance to cut loose.While the party wasn't open to everyone on campus, it was far more open than something GGK would throw. They were free with the invites so long as a DSP member vouched for you at the door. The problem was Jake didn't know anyone who pledged DSP, he wasn't into sports and didn't really know anyone that was.So he reached out to the only person he knew who had connections to everything on campus.Hey Niece I have a question, do you know anyone at DSP? He wrote her.Niece got back to him quickly, it was amazing how fast girls could reply sometimes. Of course I do, why?Well I'm trying to take your advice and branch out my social circle a bit more, I know they got a party coming up and I was hoping you might know a way I could get an invite.I'm so proud of you! Don't worry about it, consider yourself invited I will take care of it.Jake smiled at the text. It really paid to have connections. Thanks I owe you one.You owe me nothing. Happy to help. I'll see you there.You're going?I'm Queen Bitch, I am everywhere, never forget that. Followed with a smiley emojiHe never would. It made him feel good to know people, especially people as powerful as Niece. Niece seemed to be able to make anything and everything happen that she wanted, and having her on his side was probably the best possible ally to have.The next step now that he was good to party was to change his look. Something about his nerdy haircut and his Star Wars T-shirts was just not going to cut it. First thing he did was went to a proper barbar shop and got a cut. He told the barber that he was trying to look good for a party and the guy patted him on the shoulder, "I got you bud."Jake walked out with a high fade and short spikey hair that made him look totally different than his usual slicked back and kind of greesy look. He'd wondered how those girls could even stand to look at him before, this haircut alone made him look a hundred percent better. A hairstyle was only the first step though, he needed new clothes and he was lost with what to get or even what would be cool. But he knew someone who might.Rachel are you free by chance this afternoon?Again she was so fast to reply it amazed him. I could be, why you wanna fuck?Always, but that's not what I need. I'm gonna go to a party at DSP this weekend and I want to not look like a twat. I was wondering if you would be down to go clothes shopping with me?Omigod, omigod, omigod! Yes! Fuck Yes!Well she seemed eager. They set up a time to meet up at a nearby mall and Rachel showed up with a frightening smile on her face. She smiled even wider somehow when she saw his new hair. "Oh look at how sexy you look. What has gotten into you?" She asked.Jake shrugged, "Niece suggested I branch out, so I'm trying to shake up the look a bit and do that." He did a spin for her, "You like?"

We all know the classic trope about a genie who grants the wish a bit too literally. Perhaps it's exploiting an interpretive loophole. A middle-aged man asks that his wife become half his age, and he's instantly turned into a 90-year-old. Or maybe the genie isn't dolling out just deserts to wicked men but is victimizing them unprovoked. One commercial shows a man asking for long life who then gets turned into the Energizer Bunny. In other versions, the wisher gets exactly what he wants for, but then his desires change over time and now he's stuck with fame he no longer enjoys. In any case, the old adage warns, “be careful what you wish for.”  These stories resonate because we know that desire is a dangerously powerful phenomenon with an uncanny capacity to ruin lives. After all, “The heart is deceptive above all things. Who can understand it?” Well, the Lord says in the next verse of Jeremiah 17, “I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.” Be careful what you wish for, indeed!  This often leads the more risk-averse among us to bury our desires and lower our expectations. But what if God isn't like that genie at all? What if he's listening, not like a lawyer, but like a Lover? What if he's hearing the core of our longings, the heartbeat underneath even our more frivolous petitions, and interpreting our wishes in their most favorable light? Paul seems to read Jeremiah this way, in Romans 8:  26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. This weekend we wrap up our series, Surprised by Joy, with a look at the longings that lie beneath our most cherished fantasies. We will find that the things we believe will bring us joy are not too extravagant, but instead far too mundane. So, Jesus invites us in John 15 to wish big, and to hang on. The fruit that follows might just look like James' Giant Peach!

Fatherhood is a journey laden with challenges, triumphs, and a multitude of rewarding experiences. For some, it means rewriting the scripts handed down by previous generations and breaking stereotypes. Kevin Riley, a father of three, a Bronx councilman, author, and one of the founding members of "The Dad Gang," epitomizes this transformative journey. In this week's Dads with Daughters podcast, Kevin Riley shared his unique story, shedding light on his mission to redefine Black fatherhood and support other fathers in similar pursuits. The Crucial First Steps: Overcoming Fear and Self-Doubt Fear as a Driving Force When Kevin Riley found out he was going to be a father to his first daughter, Brooke, fear struck him. Having grown up without a father, he was acutely aware of what he lacked in terms of role models and guidance. Reflecting on those initial fears, Riley shared, "I was scared but also excited because it was a journey I could pour so much value into." His primary concern was whether he was parenting the right way. Riley's transparency about his fears dismantles the myth of the all-knowing father. It is okay to be scared, okay to doubt — what matters is the desire to overcome these fears and become the best dad possible. Balancing Responsibilities: The Art of Time Management Striking a Balance in a Busy Life Being a councilman often pulls Kevin Riley in different directions, demanding a delicate balance between public responsibilities and family life. "I bring my children everywhere," Riley explains. From community events to City Hall hearings, his children are often by his side, learning the ropes of civic engagement early on. This unique approach serves dual purposes: it provides valuable bonding time and exposes his children to the concept of public service. Riley's method underscores the importance of integrating children into various aspects of life, making them active participants in their father's world. Empowering Daughters: The Challenge and the Reward Breaking Gender Norms Kevin Riley emphasized the importance of empowering his daughters to pursue any career they desire, irrespective of societal expectations. He makes it a point to connect his daughters with powerful female leaders to illustrate that they can achieve the same heights as their male counterparts. "In a male-dominated society, you have to find creative ways to empower your daughters," Riley says. The lesson here is that fatherhood extends beyond basic caregiving; it's about paving the way for your children to see themselves as capable and equal contributors to society. Sharing the Journey: "Hop Into Life" From Personal Experience to Published Author Riley's book, "Hopping Through Life," co-authored with his children, is a heartfelt narrative aimed at demystifying the complexities of fatherhood. The inspiration stemmed from his own experiences and his nightly ritual of reading to his kids. "Be proud of the journey you've been through because it created the person you are today," Riley advises. The book serves as a beacon for other fathers, particularly those who may have grown up without a father figure. It's a testament to overcoming obstacles and embracing the messy, yet beautiful, journey of parenting. Community Building: The Dad Gang Changing Stereotypes, One Dad at a Time One of the most impactful initiatives Kevin Riley has been involved with is "The Dad Gang." Founded by Sean Williams, this organization was borne out of a single comment that stereotyped Black fathers. "We created this community online, but we really wanted to go deeper," Riley explains. The Dad Gang hosts events like the "March of Dads," which feature public walks and community activities aimed at showcasing the active involvement of Black fathers. The group also organizes healing circles and interactive forums that provide emotional support and amplify the narratives of Black fatherhood. Final Words: The All-Important Advice Make Time, Always As Kevin Riley beautifully puts it, "There's no amount of money that you can earn within your lifetime that would amount to the time you could spend with your children." For dads feeling overwhelmed or questioning their readiness due to financial constraints, Riley offers the essential advice to prioritize time with their children over everything else. His advocacy for this critical aspect of fatherhood is both inspiring and actionable. Through his roles as a councilman, author, and community leader, Kevin Riley is not just rewriting his own narrative — he's providing a new script for Black fatherhood, challenging stereotypes, and inspiring fathers everywhere to be the best they can be. His story serves as a powerful reminder that fatherhood, above all, is a journey of love, patience, and unwavering commitment. TRANSCRIPT (Unedited transcript created with CASTMAGIC) Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:00:05]: Welcome to dads with daughters. In this show, we spotlight dads, resources, and more to help you be the best dad you can be. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:00:16]: Welcome back to the Dads With Daughters podcast where we bring you guests to be active participants in your daughter's lives, raising them to be strong, independent women. Really excited to have you back again this week. This week, as always, I'm on this journey with you. You and I are going along this journey to be the best dads that we can be. And the thing that I love is that you show up every week to be able to learn, to grow, to hear from other fathers, hear from other people about the journeys that they've been on, and some of the resources that they've been able to either create, provide, or just the experiences that they've had that can give you some context, give you some ideas about things that you can do to be able to better engage with your daughters or just be there and just be able to be the best dad that you can be and help them in the journey that they're on as they're moving into womanhood. That's why every week I love being able to bring you different guests, different people with different experiences that come to fatherhood just like you and I, without a lot of resources, without a lot of ideas, because there's no one right way to father. However, we can learn from each other. We can learn from so many others to be able to be that better father that we wanna be. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:01:37]: Today, we got another great guest with us today. Kevin Riley is a father of 3. He is a district 12 Bronx councilman and a soon to be published author and founding member of the dad gang. And we're gonna be talking to him about his own journey, about being a dad of 2 daughters and a son, but also some of the we'll talk about his new book. We'll talk about a little bit of a lot of things to be able to get some of his own perspectives. So I'm really excited to have him here. Kevin, thanks so much for being here today. Kevin Riley [00:02:11]: Thank you for having me, Dr. Lewis. How are you doing today? Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:02:13]: I really appreciate you being here. And I always love starting this these interviews with an opportunity to turn the clock back in time. I know you've got 2 daughters. You got a 9 and a 5 year old. So I'm gonna go back. Maybe it's 10 years. Maybe it's 9 years. Never know. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:02:28]: But I wanna go back to the very beginning. I wanna go back to that first moment that you found out that you're going to be a father to a daughter. What was going through your head? Kevin Riley [00:02:36]: I was scared. I think I was truly scared finding out that my at that time, my fiance was pregnant. She's my wife now. Pregnant with our first daughter, Brooke. Really scared because at that time, you know, I didn't grow up with a father. So as you stated before, we're trying to learn fatherhood techniques, we're trying to learn different tips, we're trying to learn different situations that may, you know, come about within our children's lives from each other. It's so important that we create these communities because at that time I didn't know. I I was really truly scared, but I did know that I wanted to be the best father possible. Kevin Riley [00:03:09]: I know that at minimal. I knew I wanted to be the best father possible. So I would say 10 years ago, man, when I find out or 9 years ago, when I found out that Brooke was gonna be more, I was scared, but I was really excited too because it was a journey that I felt that I can, give so much back and pour so much value Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:03:24]: back to school. You just said that you were scared. And I think a lot of dads are scared to step into fatherhood, let alone being a father to a daughter. And there's some fear that goes into that. As you've gone through these 9 years with your oldest daughter and your other kids as well, what's been your biggest fear in being a father to a daughter? Kevin Riley [00:03:46]: I think my biggest fear, and I'm a be totally transparent with you, making sure that I'm parented the right way. There's no manual into being a father. There's no manual into being a dad. There's no right way of doing things all the time, and I think really there are times when even I'm communicating with my daughter, my daughter's trying to communicate with me or even show affection. I mean, I may be busy as you stated, I'm a I'm a New York City council member, so my job is very, very busy a lot of the times, So I won't be as available to my daughter as much as I will possibly wanna be available to her. So you kinda get that fear of, hey. Am I doing this the right way? Is my daughter going to find love outside of her father because she felt like she didn't get that male love from her father, because he wasn't there for her as much as possible. And then once I was able to kind of fight those different thoughts within myself, I was able to apply, what I wanted to be, because I think it's the fear. Kevin Riley [00:04:40]: The fear always puts doubt within yourself. Then if you really open your eyes, I was always available at her doctor's appointments, I was always going to her shows, I was always showing up for everything for my children. It puts that doubt aside because we have fear, especially when you grow up, and like I stated, I grew up without a father. So that fear of, hey. I didn't get the blueprint. I don't know how a father is supposed to deal with this with their child. I think after I got off that fear and that doubt, I was able to be the best father that I'm actually doing a really pretty good job. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:05:10]: That being a councilman, you have a busy life, and you're pulled in a lot of different directions. Being an elected person in an elected office definitely is something that puts you into the limelight in many aspects. People get to know you. And sometimes your kids don't get that in regard to being that public figure in that way. And they don't always understand that you have to be away to be able to build them the life that they are accustomed to. So talk to me about that in regards to balance because I think that so many fathers have to try to balance their work life, their or or professional life, their personal life, and trying to find what that perfect balance is to be able to show up and to be able to be in the lives of their kids the way that they wanna be. How have you been able to do that? Have you struggled with it? What have you done to be able to get better at it? Kevin Riley [00:06:10]: Yeah. I think I touched, a little bit about that with the fear and the doubt, but then you you mentioned something balance and time management. I am a person that if you know me and the way I govern, I bring my children everywhere. So my children actually attend community events for me. My children actually attend meetings for me. I'll even bring my children to city hall at hearings sometimes because I think it's very important for them to see exactly what their father does and important for them to be civically engaged as well. I'm trying to teach civics to my children at a very, very early age. You do understand that within our country, you know, a lot of children don't get the accessibility or the access to learn about how government truly works. Kevin Riley [00:06:46]: So I get I think my children are seeing that on a day to day basis, and they understand what their father is or what their father contributes, to their community. I do a lot of work with giving back to my community and my children realize that and they really appreciate that. So I think, time management is really important. I have a luxury of bringing my children to work. A lot of fathers don't have the luxury of bringing their children to work. But even if you don't have the luxury of bringing your children to work, I think time management is very important. Even if you take a hour, 2 hours, that's why you go we came out with this book and we're writing this book and I know we're gonna touch on that a little bit later. But just doing activity with your child, reading to your children, going out and playing with your children. Kevin Riley [00:07:26]: We can make time. There's 24 hours in the day. There's always time that you can make to engage with your children and I realized that with time management, I may not have the opportunity to sit down and watch cartoons all day with my children. But in the morning time, when I'm getting them ready for school, engaging, communicating with them, and conversing with them, in the evening time, making sure that I shut my phone calls off at a certain period of time, and I'm able to sit down with my children, you know, watch a TV show, catch up with them, have some dinner with them, things of that nature. I think time management is crucial Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:07:58]: It truly is. For your father. Now one of the things that I wanted to go back to, you were talking about fear and raising daughters. And raising kids is not always easy. There's ups. There's downs. There's every which way. And sometimes days are good. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:08:11]: Sometimes they may not be. So it can be difficult at times as well. What's been the hardest part of being a father to a daughter? Kevin Riley [00:08:18]: I think the hardest part of being a father to a daughter is being able to empower them to do whatever they wanna do within their life. Coming from a male and my wife does an amazing job with empowering our daughters. But coming from their father as a man, they see me doing a lot of amazing dope things, and I don't want them to feel like only men can do this. I try to empower them, and I try to be equalizers to them and let them know, like, hey. As I'm doing this, there's powerful leaders out there doing this as well, so I think it's very important, especially in my field. I always try to connect my daughters to very powerful women leaders alongside with them. Their mother has a very powerful position as well, but other powerful leaders out there who are women and who are doing a lot of dope amazing things, because I want them to feel like this is not male driven. You know, their father, they see the dope things their father is doing all the time. Kevin Riley [00:09:07]: They see their father's always on television all the time, but they also see the Bronx borough president who's the 1st black woman to hold that position. She does amazing things, and when we go to events, they're able to connect with her on real time, and they're able to talk to her, ask her questions. So I think that has been the challenge as a dad with raising daughters because I think in a male dominant society, you really try to find creative ways to empower them and let them know that they could do the same thing that you could do even though it's a male dominant. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:09:36]: You mentioned that you've got a new book coming out called Popping Through Life. And I know that in that book, you are trying to really remind families that family is not just about blood relations or focusing on what it means to focusing on what we may lack in our lives. So I wanna go back to the beginning as you have created this story. As as an author myself, I know how much time, effort, passion have to go into the creation of these pieces that are being put out into the world. What made you decide that you wanted to be an author, and what made you decide that this was the topic for kids that you wanted to talk about? Kevin Riley [00:10:15]: I've always been passionate about expressing my story to individuals. Growing up, my father and my mother migrated to America from Jamaica, and unfortunately, my father, he was incarcerated when we were younger, and I used to always visit him when he was in the criminal justice system. And that's why I thought I was actually going. So that's why when my daughter was born in 2015 and now me being a council member, you can see that was a total different change, you know, in direction in life, and I believe my father did the best that he possibly could. We have a great relationship today. You know, we stay connected as much as possible, and I really strongly feel that the storyline came from me expressing where the challenges that I grew up with, where that came through, and it's really much just hopping through life, like, getting through getting by. I feel a lot of us feel like we're just getting by through life a lot of times, and once I have my daughter in 2015 and I'm learning, then I have my other daughter in 2019, and then my son came in 2022, it's like I learned different things at with each child, and I'm hopping through this thing we call parent look. It's something that I do with my children every single night as I read to my children. Kevin Riley [00:11:22]: Something in New York City and and throughout the nation, we're trying to promote literacy to our children, so I think it's crucially and truly important as parents that you read to your children as much as possible and have your children read back to you as much as possible. But as we were reading these stories and every time I'm reading the story, I'm always reading the author and the illustration illustrator out to the story. And my daughter said one day, like, hey, dad would love if one day we could tell our story. And when she said that, I'm like, wow. That really struck me because as a council member, I'm always verbal. I'm always giving speeches about my story, but I've never written my story down, and I wanted to write it in a sense where a father who has experienced the same things that I've experienced growing up and their their journey of fatherhood and them kind of hopping, they can actually read the story to their children so their children could actually understand as well, like, hey, your father's not perfect. Your father there wasn't a machine that was created. It was just dad. Kevin Riley [00:12:16]: Here's a dad. Here's a mom. Your father has been through stuff. Your father has trauma in their life. Your father is healing. Your father is learning different things, and they are just getting through life the same way that you're getting through life as a child. Our child learned to crawl, then walk, then then then read, then then go to school on their own. They learn different things, and you continue to learn. Kevin Riley [00:12:36]: Learning doesn't stop when you graduate school. Learning continues throughout life, so I think that's where the journey of the book came from. It it's about me telling my story, but also about me giving a platform for fathers who experience things like me. There's a lot of tons of fathers out there who didn't have a father figure in their life, and they're going into this journey of fatherhood. They can actually read a story to their children that could kind of outline that. And we utilize character of a bunny because bunnies are really popular with children, Bugs Bunny. Bunnies are really, really popular with children as an animal, and they're energized. Bunnies are really energized, and that's what we feel like fathers should be in their children's lives. Kevin Riley [00:13:13]: They should be their children's Energizer Bunny. They should energize their children to make sure that they're going out and being the best of their ability. So that's where the book and the journey of the book came from, and I'm really excited that we're releasing it on September 6th on National Reader Book Day. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:13:27]: So you're telling your story, and you're sharing that with the masses. What are you hoping that people are going to take from reading this for themselves and reading to their children? Kevin Riley [00:13:39]: Be proud of the journey that you've been through because the journey that you've been through created the person that you are today, and we shouldn't always shun away from it. I know sometimes people are kind of embarrassed of their upbringing. They're embarrassed of the trauma that they experience through their life, but I think they should kind of look at the good out of that because it made them into a very resilient person. It made them into a very strong person that's able to conquer any challenges that they may embark on, you know, moving forward. And hopping through life really engages and showcases that even though you may have had trauma throughout your life, you could still be a great dad. Even though you may not had a father when you were younger, you could still be a great dad. And also to be sympathetic, you don't know what your father went through. Your father had a father. Kevin Riley [00:14:23]: Your father's father had a father. There has been lineage of fatherhood that's been happening throughout generations, and there's no manual. I think a lot of times when we think of parents, we always circle and and focus on mothers all the time, but fathers are as important as mothers as well. I think fathers don't know that. I know in New York City, I passed a resolution that made June in New York City fatherhood recognition month because we want to recognize fathers throughout the entire month of June. But not only do that, the whole goal is to create centers for fathers. We partner with organizations like the Real Dads Network. I have an organization that I know I'm gonna we're gonna talk about soon, the dad gang, but we really want to create these fatherhood centers that provide resources for fathers to really flourish, that will help fathers find jobs, help fathers connect with their children emotionally. Kevin Riley [00:15:11]: I think fathers, even men, we've been taught to be really, really masculine at times and not really be really comprehensive, really understand our feelings, really be emotionally connected, to our emotional feelings, so we can emotionally connect with our children and understand that. So I think that's why I want people to get from this book. I want people to really understand that, hey, even though you did have a journey that brought you to this day, you should embrace it, and you should really know that it made you into the strong, resilient person that you are in today's society. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:15:44]: Now you talked about the organization that you are a part of and that you founded called Dad Gang. Talk to me about Dad Gang, why you decided to start it, what its goals are, and what you're hoping that people are going to take away from being a part of it. Kevin Riley [00:16:00]: So when you talk about fatherhood, one negative aspect and negative stereotype about fatherhood is black fathers aren't involved in their children's lives. So when we started the Dag Gang, the Dag Gang, Sean Williams, who's the founder of the Dag Gang, who's our fraternity brother, Kappa Alpha Paternity Incorporated. He started the Dag Gang, in 2015 when he had his second daughter, and he was in the supermarket with his child, and, a white woman had said to him, I'm glad you stuck around. It's good that you stuck around. And he was really offended by that comment, but he's like, I know tons of fathers out there that are involved in their children's lives. So we first, we got together and at that time, that's when social media really started picking up. You had Instagram, you had Twitter, you had all these different platforms that people are really looking at people lives on a device. So we want to put out as much positive imagery and visions of black fatherhood. Kevin Riley [00:16:53]: We didn't realize we are creating a community of black fathers that were coming to this page, seeing all the dope black fathers out there, connecting with those fathers because we would add put their username there, connecting with them because they were from their city and towns, and really building this market that, hey. You might have a father like I have, at that time, my daughter, at the time between 2015 and 2018, she just turned 3 at that time. I could connect with a brother who has a 10 year old. So they have a 10 year old daughter. So I know between 3 10 year old what are certain things I should be doing, certain things I should be saying, certain things I should not be doing. It creates this kinda community, so we created this community online, but we really want to go a little bit deeper. So we started to do events where we organize and mobilize in different states, and we do something called the March of Dads. So it started off with calling strolling with the homies, but we changed the name to the March of Dads because we wanted to go to landmarks in different places. Kevin Riley [00:17:46]: So for instance, we went to in New York City, we go to Prospect. In New York City, we just did the Bronx Children's Museum. In Atlanta, we did Ponce City Market. In DC, we marched by the White House, and we wanted to go to landmarks and showcase, and you just see a whole bunch of Black fathers, fathers of color, walking together with strollers, carry ons, older children, grandfathers, fathers. You just see that image and it showcases to you that black fathers are really engaged. But not only do we do that, we host a bunch of conversations and talks. So we do healing circles where we call it the dad house, where we have fathers, just fathers, just speaking. Because sometimes we feel like there's no place for us to just speak and just express how we feel. Kevin Riley [00:18:28]: As men, I go back to the masculinity. We're always taught that we're not supposed to show emotions. We're supposed to figure things out, just kinda go through life and just figure things out. Be tough about things, and that continues to just break us down. And then we get to a point where we break down, and that healing process is so challenging. I read a book called Battle Cry by Jason Wilson. Amazing book, where he talked about that, that we focus so much on the masculinity part about manhood, which is important, but we need to also talk about emotions and the comprehensive part about being the man as well. So the dad game, we really formulated this organization to be a a nest, a safe haven for fathers of color out there to showcase that we are present. Kevin Riley [00:19:10]: We do tons of different other activities. We hand out strollers, diapers, things of that nature in different parts of the city and the, the nation. We're in different parts. We do stuff in LA, DC, Atlanta, where we're branching out to different parts as well, but it's really organization. Tap in. It's the dadgang.com, or you can follow us on the dad gang on any platform. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:19:32]: I love the concept. I love the idea. As a global organization, it is definitely something that's needed to be able to as you kind of were talking about in the sense of redefining fatherhood and redefining black fatherhood or or the masses and to show that what the founder heard in the grocery store is not accurate and it is definitely not something that should be perpetuated. So I appreciate all the work that the organization's doing to engage dads in so many ways. There are so many opportunities for dads to be able to come together. This is one great way to be able to do that. And I encourage people to check out The Dad Gang at the dad gang.com to be able to learn more about their events, their activities, and how you can get involved as well. Now we always finish our interviews with what I like to call our fatherhood 5, where I ask you 5 more questions to delve deeper into you as a dad. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:20:27]: Are you ready? In one word, what is fatherhood? Kevin Riley [00:20:30]: Love. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:20:31]: When was a time that you finally felt like you succeeded at being a father to a daughter? Kevin Riley [00:20:36]: The completion of Hop Into LifeBook. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:20:38]: If I was to talk to your kids, how would they describe you as a dad? Kevin Riley [00:20:41]: Mister Clean. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:20:44]: What about 10 years from now? What do you want them to say? Kevin Riley [00:20:46]: My dad is my best friend. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:20:48]: Who inspires you to be a better dad? Kevin Riley [00:20:49]: My children. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:20:50]: Now you've given a lot of piece of advice today, things that you've learned along the way. As we finish up today, what's one piece of advice you'd want to give to every dad? Kevin Riley [00:20:58]: Make time to be with your children. There's no amount of money that you can earn within your lifetime that would amount to the amount of time you could spend with your children. I talk to a ton of people out there who are interested in becoming a father and they and they always say to me like, 'hey, I just think I'm not financially ready yet.' Yes, having a child can be very expensive, but in the same sense it's more expensive when you're not spending time with your children. Because the time that you're missing with your children is something you can never make up. So I always give the advice to every dad out there, make time to be around your children, whether if it's an hour a day, whatever the time is, just make time so you could truly just connect with them and so you can just see how dope you are and just really showcase your love that you have for them. If the Hop Into LifeBook could order it on hopindolifebook.com. It's going to be an amazing amazing series because there's gonna be some more books that's gonna come out after and I'm really really proud of my children who are co authors of this book, Brook Kate and Caleb Riley. And I would just advise you just find that activity that you could do with your kids together. Kevin Riley [00:22:03]: It will really really make you guys closer and really make them be able to express their creative juices to you as well. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:22:09]: Well, Kevin, I just want to say thank you. Thank you for doing what you're doing to be able to be active in your own kids' lives, but also what you're doing to be able to engage with other dads, to be able to push them to be that engaged father that they want to be as well. And I wish you all the best. Kevin Riley [00:22:27]: Thank you, doctor Lewis. Thank you for having me. Dr. Christopher Lewis [00:22:28]: If you've enjoyed today's episode of the Dads with Daughters podcast, we invite you to check out the fatherhood insider. The fatherhood insider is the essential resource for any dad that wants to be the best dad that he can be. We know that no child comes with an instruction manual and most dads are figuring it out as they go along, and the fatherhood insider is full of resources and information that will up your game on fatherhood. Through our extensive course library, interactive forum, step by step road maps, and more, you will engage and learn with experts, but more importantly, dads like you. So check it out at fathering together dot org. If you are a father of a daughter and have not yet joined the dads with daughters Facebook community, there's a link in the notes today. Dads with daughters is a program of fathering together. We look forward to having you back for another great guest next week, all geared to helping you raise strong empowered daughters and be the best dad that you can be. We're all in the same boat, and it's full of tiny screaming passengers. We spend the time, We give the lessons. We make the meals. We buy them presents and bring your a game. Because those kids are growing fast. The time goes by just like a dynamite blast, calling astronauts and firemen, carpenters, and muscle men. Get out and be the world. Choose them. Be the best dad you can be. Be the best dad you can be.

Send us a textIn this episode, we dive into some fun fake ads, and I offer my take on a few things that just don't sit right with me. First, I judge the folks who proudly display political stickers on their cars—why do people feel the need to broadcast their affiliations this way? Then, we get into the bizarre story of someone jumping off a Taylor Swift cruise ship into the water (and why that might not have been the best decision).We've also got a wild claim about Tom Cruise allegedly getting "intimate" with fish, and how TikTok seems to promote violence and bullying, especially when it comes to the hypocrisy around political discussions. But when you bring up the minerals in North Carolina? Suddenly, I'm accused of lacking integrity by TikTok's standards. What a world.The tragic events in Valencia, Spain are also discussed, as we ask why people ran toward their cars instead of seeking higher ground when the disaster hit. Speaking of questionable decisions, Uber's recent ad promoting teens using their service is downright irresponsible—sending kids into strangers' cars? Not cool.And of course, we can't forget the 2024 Timeline Shift, where the Energizer Bunny may not be the only one hopping around—apparently, there's always been a Duracell Bunny. Oh, and don't forget about the heart-eyed version of Michelangelo's David in this timeline. Yeah, you heard that right. Tune in for all this and more in episode 350!Buy Oscar a coffeebuymeacoffee.com/r2centsR2 Cents www.r2centswoscar.comSubscribe YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/@Racso_Studios R2 Cents Instagram https://www.instagram.com/r2_cents/R2 Cents Tik Tokhttps://vm.tiktok.com/r2_centsProduced by: Oscar R.C.

Send us a textWant to experience more joy in your life? In this uplifting episode of Midweek Motivation, Gabe sits down with Bart Hafeman, Westside's worship leader, to explore the secrets of cultivating irrepressible joy, even in the midst of challenges.Discover:The power of vulnerability and authenticity in expressing joy.How to take risks and embrace spontaneity.The importance of choosing your response to life's challenges.Practical habits for cultivating joy, such as surrounding yourself with positive influences and immersing yourself in worship music.Inspiring stories of choosing joy in unexpected circumstances.Be inspired by Bart's infectious enthusiasm and learn how to tap into the unshakable joy that comes from walking with God.Key Takeaways:Joy is contagious and can transform your life and the lives of those around you.Vulnerability and authenticity are key to experiencing true joy.Choosing joy is a decision you can make, even in difficult circumstances.Surrounding yourself with positive influences and engaging in uplifting practices can fuel your joy.God's love and presence are the ultimate source of lasting joy.Call to Action:What brings you joy? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!#midweekmotivation #christianpodcast #joy #choosejoy #worship #community #westsidecommunitychurch

Dating Rulesby  musicankane - listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories.Galina gave him a look, "Are you asking me out on a date?"Jake blushed, "Well I mean, no...maybe?"She laughed, "Jake I'm literally leaking your sperm out of my twat right now, I think you should be well beyond being nervous around me." She sat herself in his lap and put her arms around him. "You are very sweet, and very good in bed. But I can't date you, I kind of already have a boyfriend so..."Jake looked at her, "You came over to fuck me when you have a boyfriend?" He couldn't believe it, but then his mind went to that party at GGK with Rachel. What is with these girls and boyfriends but not really giving a shit.  "I promised you I would, and it was worth it." She explained. "Didn't you like fucking me?""Well yeah but what about your boyfriend?"She shrugged dismissively. "He's been ignoring me a bit lately and I was getting horny, you give me a chance to get some relief myself and it was worth it. I think I came three times, but it might have been more my head was spinning for a bit there." She kissed him gently and got off of him. "Jake don't worry about it, all will be well you are bound to find a girl especially with how word has gotten around GGK and other places on campus. Trust me someone might just fall into your lap and onto your dick before you even realize it's happening."Jake smiled at her weakly, "Well that's actually a bit reassuring actually. Thank you."Galina waved, "No problem, and remember I'm down. I gotta go now though I still have to finish an assignment before tomorrow afternoon. Goodnight Jake." She said, heading out his door."Night." He said to himself.Alexis had been incredibly bummed that Jake told her there was no D&D game for an unknown length of time. She'd really wanted to play it again, but more importantly than that she wanted to use it as an excuse to see him again. She felt terrible that even after she'd texted him, he didn't continue the conversation. Just a "no" and a little explaination, then nothing. No "how are you", no "what's up", nothing.It was her fault though, she couldn't really be upset with him. She had every chance to be with him, every chance to just forget her own stupid desire to join some fucking club and persue something meaningful with a guy who was great. Instead she just used him and chased him into the arms or any girl willing. And thanks to her, there were a lot of willing girls.Soon word about Jake would get around campus beyond the walls of Gamma Gamma Kappa sorority. Jake had been seen at the party and he visibly didn't fit in, which meant that rumors would spread especially when and if he was seen with other GGK girls on campus. Once that happened he would be fighting girls off with a stick and she would have no shot because he would long since have no reason to even remember her name.It would e all her fucking fault too.She sat with her textbook open where she was supposed to be doing her reading assignments, but all she could think about was Jake. She kept glancing at the phone every time it buzzed, but it was always just the GGK group chat and never the name she wanted to see.Alexis had thought about texting him again to see if he just wanted to fuck or something. After the party she had remained vigilant on her birth control and according to the doctor and the medication she was perfectly safe to get filled with sperm as much as she wanted. While the idea of just being a booty call for him didn't excite her all that much, it would be a way to remain in his life and on his mind. So it could be at least better than nothing.If Jake had the pick of whomever he wanted, why would he ever pick her though? If he met his needs with other girls whom hadn't seemingly discarded him after they'd used him, why wouldn't he just be with them instead?Alexis heard the door open behind her and she glanced back to see Galina walk in. "Hey Alexis I'm back." She said."Oh hey, what's up?" Alexis asked turned toward her room mate. "You rushed out of here in a hurry, what was that about?" She then saw Galina's state, hair fucked up, skin glistening with sweat, face rosy and flush. "Oh did Joshua summon you for a little romp in the sack?"Galina looked down at herself, and shrugged, "Umm yeah. Yeah he did."As if on queue her phone began to ring and from her seat Alexis could see Josh's face appear on Galina's screen. Galina put up a finger for Alexis and frowned, "Hey baby? No, not tonight. I told you I have a assignment to get done. I know it's early but I don't want my grades to slip barely two weeks into the semester. No...just jerk yourself off then Josh, I'm not pussy you get to just summon whenever you want. No Josh, fuck off." She spat and hung up on him.Alexis raised an eyebrow. "Was that Josh? What, did he want a round two already?" She asked.Galina gave her a blank look, "What?"Alexis gestured to her, "You look like someone fucked your knees weak. If you didn't just come from Josh, who did you rush off to..." Alexis paused and it began to click in her head. "No!"Galina frowned and pouted, "I'm sorry Alexis, I promised him."Alexis jerked to her feet, "Jake?" She screamed, "Really? Of all people, why him?""Well that's a stupid question. What are you so mad about anyway Alexis. He fucked Niece, Rachel, you, me, at this rate he'll be the first guy in history to fuck every active GGK member in a single semester, fuck once other girls on campus learn about him he'll run through everyone that so much as smiles at him."Alexis huffed, "But you know I want him.""Sucks to suck Alexis, you fucked him up. You could have left the party at any time that night to go to him and you didn't. You didn't chase him and he feels used. At least if you are going to use a guy at least have the decency to give him a nice send-off instead of ghosting him like a piece of shit." Galina insisted."Oh fuck you Gal."Galina smiled, "Too late, Jake already did that and my legs are literally dripping in his nut. So I'm gonna shower and you can kiss my ass." She blew Alexis a kiss, turned away and slapped her ass before darting into the bathroom.Alexis growled in a rage and flopped into her chair. She didn't know what made her more angry, the fact that Galina had done what she'd done, or the fact that Alexis knew Galina was right. Who was she kidding? Galina was right, Alexis had fucked up. She spun to the desk and slammed her text book shut, there was no way she was going to get any reading done tonight so fuck it.Alexis sat at the desk and grabbed her phone, flipping it to Jake's number she brought up the text screen and started to type frantically. Before she finished her text she growled in frustration and erased it, then hit the call button she would call him that would be better than just a text. She disconnected the call before it could even ring. No! She couldn't, god what was wrong with her?Jumping out of her seat she slipped into her shoes and ran out the door.Jake showered and washed himself completely clean, feeling really refreshed thanks to Galina. His body wasn't literally shaking with the desperation to bust a nut, and he finally felt relaxed for the first time in several days. He came out of the bathroom, rubbing a towel on his head to get his hair as dry as he could before he climbed into bed. He hated sleeping on a wet pillow.He had also used some baby wipes to clean the little bit of post-coital drip that leaked from Galina before she'd gotten off the bed. He remember the stain that Niece had left behind with him and he learned to clean up after sex so that you didn't roll into a surprise wet spot, or even worst find a dried cum stain randomly in your favorite sleeping spot.He put on a pair of nylon basketball shorts and nothing else to climb into bed with. Jake wasn't big on sleeping naked, so just a pair of shorts was the way to go for him. He never slept in a shirt because it would always wake him up as it would twist or ball up on him uncomfortably. Tossing back the sheet he started to climb into bed when knocking came to the door.It was almost 10pm, who would be showing up this late? He wondered if it was a GGK girl coming to surprise him or something like that, but he doubt it...well maybe?He opened the door and there was Alexis wearing nothing but a pair of extremely short pink shorts which the bottom of her ass stuck out of, and a white thin tank up that not only showcases her cleavage but also allowed him to clearly see her nipples through the thin fabric. Luckily it was dark because there is no way she'd just walk through campus like this. He found himself once again blown away by how fucking incredible her body was. Looking at her like this, it was hard to stay mad at her."Alexis?" He asked looking her up and down, "What are you doing here?"She smiled weakly and shrugged, "I...I just want to talk, can I come in?"Jake sighed and leaned against the door. "Alexis I don't know if that's such a good idea."Alexis frowned, "Please Jake, five minutes?"He pressed his lips firmly together, then nodded and let her push past him into the room. Shutting the door he didn't follow her into the dorm and instead leaned back against the now closed door. "Okay so?" He began.Alexis glanced around the room, not really seeing anything but just trying to find the words to say, something that she could say to even begin to make this right. "Jake I'm sorry, I want you to know that I am unbelievably sorry, beyond anything I've ever been sorry for in my entire life."Jake shrugged, "Sorry about what Alexis? You got everything you wanted."Alexis shook her head, "I didn't get you.""Me?" He spat. "Alexis you Had me, but you were too busy using me for your fucking club!" He held up a finger, "Not once mind you, that first time i mostly understood even though it upset me, I could at least understand, but then you did it again! When you picked me that night I thought that was it, you're in and then we could be normal and together. But no I was ushered out the door without a goodbye and silence for a fucking Week!"Alexis was frowning and hanging her head, "I fucked up. I know." She said weakly.Jake smacked his hand on the door, "Yeah, look Alexis I think you are an amazing girl too focus on social bullshit that means fucking nothing. And it's fucking shitty that you chose that over an actual relationship. You think those bitches care about you? They don't, Galina came over to fuck me tonight at the drop of a fucking hat because they only care about social standing and partying, not you. None of them could give a fuck whether you joined or not, and your place could be taken by just about anyone!"Alexis said nothing and let him just dig into her. Everything he said was right and she knew it. She had been shallow and she'd been greedy even. "I just hoped that...I just thought that I might be able to patch things up with us. If not exclusive or in a relationship at all at least...friends?"Jake shook his head, "Friends? Alexis I can't be friends with you. You were the girl of my dreams, my fantasies, when I was with you I thought I was dreaming. I can't be friends with you, because I'll always look at you and want you more than you could ever know, but I can't trust you to not destroy my heart."Alexis was crying, tears rolling down her cheeks."Now I'm going to take Niece's advice, I'm going to sow my oats and take advantage of life here the best I can." He sighed and opened the door. "I think you should just go."Alexis looked at him, her eyes wet, tears dripping off her chin. "I'm sorry." She cried gently.Jake nodded, "Yeah me too." He told her and gestured her out the door.The next few days were rough for him. Jake didn't like the confrontation with Alexis because it felt final, and it didn't sit well at all with him but he knew it had to be done. He didn't want to be hurt or rejected and Alexis made him feel both. Whether she intended it or not, he felt like this pain would ultimately be for the best.At least with sex he could make it just that. Though there was a part of him that really didn't want JUST the sex. He really wanted to date someone, hang out, study together, maybe game, other shit couples did. As cool as it was that he could have someone beautiful almost whenever at this point, he didn't like it as much as he thought he would.Once he'd gotten over the hump of the, well it wasn't really a breakup because they hadn't actually been together in the first place, but whatever it was it was done. Once that was through with he began to get his shit back on the track to mostly normal. School work, gaming, reading, the normal things in his life. Though he did keep an eye out for other things to do on campus that were a bit more of the social type of activity.There was going to be another party next weekend that actually wasn't being held at GGK. Instead, Delta Sigma Phi, was throwing their Lacrosse Bash. It was a tradition that was supposed to help guarantee the team's success in the coming year and it was a party that was held under a truce with GGK in which GGk would not have a party for the entire week leading up to the DSP party. That way by the time the DSP party rolled around, people would be desperate for a chance to cut loose.While the party wasn't open to everyone on campus, it was far more open than something GGK would throw. They were free with the invites so long as a DSP member vouched for you at the door. The problem was Jake didn't know anyone who pledged DSP, he wasn't into sports and didn't really know anyone that was.So he reached out to the only person he knew who had connections to everything on campus.Hey Niece I have a question, do you know anyone at DSP? He wrote her.Niece got back to him quickly, it was amazing how fast girls could reply sometimes. Of course I do, why?Well I'm trying to take your advice and branch out my social circle a bit more, I know they got a party coming up and I was hoping you might know a way I could get an invite.I'm so proud of you! Don't worry about it, consider yourself invited I will take care of it.Jake smiled at the text. It really paid to have connections. Thanks I owe you one.You owe me nothing. Happy to help. I'll see you there.You're going?I'm Queen Bitch, I am everywhere, never forget that. Followed with a smiley emojiHe never would. It made him feel good to know people, especially people as powerful as Niece. Niece seemed to be able to make anything and everything happen that she wanted, and having her on his side was probably the best possible ally to have.The next step now that he was good to party was to change his look. Something about his nerdy haircut and his Star Wars T-shirts was just not going to cut it. First thing he did was went to a proper barbar shop and got a cut. He told the barber that he was trying to look good for a party and the guy patted him on the shoulder, "I got you bud."Jake walked out with a high fade and short spikey hair that made him look totally different than his usual slicked back and kind of greesy look. He'd wondered how those girls could even stand to look at him before, this haircut alone made him look a hundred percent better. A hairstyle was only the first step though, he needed new clothes and he was lost with what to get or even what would be cool. But he knew someone who might.Rachel are you free by chance this afternoon?Again she was so fast to reply it amazed him. I could be, why you wanna fuck?Always, but that's not what I need. I'm gonna go to a party at DSP this weekend and I want to not look like a twat. I was wondering if you would be down to go clothes shopping with me?Omigod, omigod, omigod! Yes! Fuck Yes!Well she seemed eager. They set up a time to meet up at a nearby mall and Rachel showed up with a frightening smile on her face. She smiled even wider somehow when she saw his new hair. "Oh look at how sexy you look. What has gotten into you?" She asked.Jake shrugged, "Niece suggested I branch out, so I'm trying to shake up the look a bit and do that." He did a spin for her, "You like?"She nodded and reached up to run her finger through his spikes. "I do, it looks much cleaner. Good job dude.""Ok but now I need clothes so....try to keep the price reasonable?" He asked.She clapped her hands, "Oh this is going to be so much fun."It wasn't fun, it sucked. It was the suckiest thing to ever suck. Rachel had a fucking blast, throwing all manner of shirts, slacks, pants, ties, shoes, whatever the fuck at him. And he had to try on every single thing. Try it on, come out so she could see, spin for her, go back put on something else, repeat. It was awful and it took HOURS. She never got tired, like a little Energizer Bunny or something.Finally at the end of all of it Jake had a selection of shirts, pants, and a new pair of shoes to wear to social spaces that would help him fit in with the crowd a bit more. Which he was thankful for, but god he wondered how other people handled shopping with their girlfriends or whatever. Rachel was insane.As they were leaving Rachel grabbed his hand, "So there you are, you are gonna look very handsome and people will love you."Jake nodded, "Hey thanks for this, it was....""Torture?" She finished."Kinda. A little bit." He confessed.She slapped his arm and pushed him away. "So who you taking to the party?"Jake looked at her, "What do you mean, why would I be bringing anybody?""I thought you and Alexis were...""No!" He cut her off, "No Alexis and I are not anything. I...she hurt me and I told her I couldn't really handle it."Rachel looked up at him, she was such a petite girl he hadn't realized how small she was even when she'd been riding him at the party. The memory of her revenge fucking him in front of her boyfriend had sent a tingle running through him. "That sucks I'm sorry, I thought you guys would be cute."Jake shrugged, "I would have traded all the sex with everyone for just her. I thought she liked me and maybe she did a bit. But in the end she wanted GGK more so I wish her well but I can't forgive that."Rachel put her arms around him and just hugged him, her head turned and rested against his chest. "I'm sorry, I broke up with Kyle too after that night. So I understand the bummer a failed relationship can be."He hugged her back and smiled, "It's alright, I'm free in a way. You know, booty call freely or whatever. Which is something I never thought I would have the option to do based off my previous social status and skills."Rachel chuckled softly and patted him on the chest, "Well there you go, how many booty calls have you had so far? Been through all of GGK yet?"Jake shook his head, "Nah, just one. It's weird because she told me to call or text or whatever, but it feels weird just summoning someone for sex and not actually have any interaction with them beyond that. But I was really desperate when I called her."Rachel smirked, "Anyone I know?""Of course. You're GGK.""Fair enough, who?""You really want to know?"She just smiled, "Gossip is king.""I don't know if I should tell you then.""Oh come on, don't be a cock tease." She pleaded.He sighed, "Galina."Rachel froze and stared at him in shock, "Holy fuck. You are a cold blooded motherfucker."He gave he a confused look, "What are you talking about?"She put a hand over her mouth, "You didn't know did you?"Jake just looked at her, was she fucking with him. "Rachel, what?"She grimaced, "Galina is Alexis' roommate."Jake's eyes went wide. "No!"She nodded and shrugged, "Yeah."Jake sighed, "Well fuck me.""You want to?" She asked, smirking."Stop it."She giggled. "Hey you were already done with Alexis anyway so it's not THAT big of a deal." She held up her fingers pinched just a little bit apart, "Maybe a little fucked up, but you didn't know so it's not like you did it on purpose or anything."Jake slapped his forehead, "I think Alexis knew anyway."Rachel looked at him quizzically."Well, that night I was getting into bed and Alexis showed up basically asked us to be together and was really upset." He explained, "She must have figured it out, or Galina told her, or something and she came over as I was going to bed. That's when we had our, I guess our final discussion and I haven't heard from her since. I am gonna feel bad about doing anything with Galina again though."Rachel hugged him again, "I know it sucks, I'm sorry." She stepped back and smiled softly, "I'd actually like to ask you out, but I'm also enjoying being single for the first time in a long time. But hey I have an idea." She said cheerfully, "Let's make a deal. If you and I are both still technically single by the end of the semester, then we date."Jake smiled at her, "Sure Rachel that sounds good. Think you can handle dating a dork like me though?"She waved him off dismissively, "How hard can it be, suck your dick while you play video games and make a couple sandwiches?"He laughed, "Okay deal then. But exercise your jaw so you're in shape for that when the time comes."She elbowed him, "Ha, Ha, big dick joke, I get it."The day before the party, Jake was sitting at the library looking through a text book for a economics class. It wasn't an economics book though, it was a business management book so it wasn't a required textbook, but it did have some extra information that applied to the E-con class and Jake wanted to have that extra information.He was at his favorite spot in the back of the library. There was a small corner in the back of the Biology section that didn't get a lot of use as Biology and the related sciences were not popular majors at this school. While Jake didn't understand why, he didn't mind it either because it let him have this little spot all to himself where he could study without the light noise of the library, things like people turned pages or the sounds of pens rubbing on paper, or the click of laptop keyboards typing away.Jake was reading and making notes, lost to the world around him when he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Excuse me?"He jerked and the girl who'd spoken yelped back startled. "Oh sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."She was a beautiful girl with caramel skin, flawless features, long dark hair, wearing a yellow summer dress that hung to just above her knees but clung to her tight little frame beautifully. Jake blinked at her in confusion, taken aback by her beauty. He'd thought she would be easily fit in as a GGK girl but he had never seen her there before. That didn't mean anything, but it meant she was a new face to him.He blinked and shook his head, "No, no problem I get in my head a bit when reading."She smiled at him as if embarrassed. "Yeah sorry, I was wondering if you might be able to him me."Jake sat back in his seat, "I mean it depends, what is it you need?"She blushed, "This is going to sound really stupid, and really out of nowhere." She paused and set a couple of books on the table. A quick glance told Jake they were human anatomy and biology books. An actual biology major? At this school? She was a rare breed indeed. "I need someone's opinions on my life drawings."Jake was confused, "Your what now?"She opened one of her books and pulled out a couple of pages of what appeared to be thick drawing paper. She clutched them to her chest and smiled awkwardly, "Okay this might be a little strange, please don't freak out on me. You see I'm in a life drawing class and sometimes we draw people in the nude, but I totally suck at the..." She cleared her throat softly, "fun parts."Jake raised an eyebrow. "Fun parts.""Well..." She took a quick look around and made sure nobody was looking, then took one of the pages from her chest and set it before him. It was a bunch of drawings of dicks, all kinds of dicks, all kinds of shapes, just dicks everywhere. Jake jerked his gaze away and up at her, her face contorted in embarrassment.He flipped the page over, "What the heck? What am I supposed to help with?"She sat down across from them and tapped the books. "I have a test coming up with a live male model and I have to draw his..." she paused and glanced around then leans forward to whisper, "penis." Then she gestured towards the sheet she'd given him. "But I suck dick and drawing dicks. I've tried copying the images in like anatomy books but the pictures are always too small or not detailed enough so I have to like, fill in the shafts in my head and it isn't working, look." She pointed at her sheet.Jake flipped the page over to have another look, and she was right. They were clearly dicks, but not great dicks. The basic shape was ok enough, but there was only minor shading for detail in the shafts. Some of her shapes were awfully creative to, dicks didn't work like bendy straws. But he didn't understand how he was supposed to help.He flipped the page back over and shook his head, "I mean I see what you're talking about, but I'm not sure exactly how I'm to help."She chewed her lip. "I uh, I was hoping you'd maybe model for me?" She winced as she said it completely embarrassed. "I know it's a weird thing to ask. You don't know me and I don't know you, but I'd pay you if you want. I just didn't want to ask someone I knew because it would be too awkward to draw someone that I knew."Jake looked at her with wide eyes. "You want me to, what pose naked for you?"She shrugged, "If it makes you more comfortable you wouldn't have to be naked, I just need your...bottom parts.""Yo I don't know about that, did GGK send you to me or something?"She frowned in confusion, "Who?"He shook his head, "Never mind. Look I don't know if I'm comfortable with someone just drawing my dick.""I understand." She said dejected, "I don't blame you, I have an art room key the door would be locked and nobody could walk in. It'd be totally private, and I would only be drawing your...thing. So nobody would know it was you. And now I'm realizing how creepy I'm being."She reached out and took her drawing page back, stuffing it back into one of the textbooks. "I'm sorry I bothered you." She said.Jake looked at her and thought for a second. Weird as it was to have someone just approach him for his dick, it wasn't like it was the first time that happened, nor would it be the first time he would just whip his dick out for a girl he barely knew the name of. She wasn't even trying to fuck him, maybe."Wait." He called to her as she started away. She spun back toward him, "I'll help you if you want. I got time and I suppose there is no harm in helping out."She rushed back over with a huge smile, "Really? You will?"Jake nodded, "I have had a bit of recent experience with new people seeing my...you know never mind maybe it'll be fun or something I don't know." He told her."Oh god, I can't thank you enough." She set her stuff back onto the table and reached into her bra through the top of her dress. She pulled out a folding piece of green paper and said, "Here, please take this. Can you meet me in art room 405 in like an hour?"Jake took the paper and nodded, "Okay 4 0 5, one hour. Let me wrap up here and I'll head over."She wiggled her hands in excitement and smiled, "Oh my gosh, thank you so much, I can't tell you how much this is going to help me. Thank you."She darted away and Jake glanced down at the paper in his hand. He blinked when he realized she'd handed him a hundred dollar bill. She had actually paid for his help, by much more than he really expected. "Well I can't back out now." He muttered to himself.To be continued, by  musicankane for Literotica

The next sequel we will be discussing is "Class of 1999". For it, I chatted with SFX Master Eric Allard. Eric talked about the journey to 1st credit, but this one had a stop over becoming a green beret! Then from there, he got a job working at the mill at Universal, he asked for his shot to work in SFX, and the rest is history. We talked Short Circuit and working on Johnny 5, cool camera tricks he did on F/X 2, working with Eastwood on Sudden Impact, The Energizer Bunny ads, his Oscar nomination, and more. Listen/Watch at sequelsonly.com/EricAllard or search "The Good, The Bad, and The Sequel" in your favorite podcast app.   Eric's Website ⁠https://allfx.com/ Eric's IMDb https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0020063/ ⁠ Your homework is to watch "Class of 1999" which free on Tubi! Follow us on all social media @sequelsonly and our website is sequelsonly.com Review, rate, and share us with your friends, enemies, neighbors, exes, and even that annoying supermarket clerk!

In this lowkey episode, host Dr. JPB Gerald speaks on his reflections on suburban police, pre-k, "hard work," and being respected for the way he does things. Buy his book here!

Dating Rulesby  musicankane - listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories.Galina gave him a look, “Are you asking me out on a date?”Jake blushed, “Well I mean, no…maybe?”She laughed, “Jake I’m literally leaking your sperm out of my twat right now, I think you should be well beyond being nervous around me.” She sat herself in his lap and put her arms around him. “You are very sweet, and very good in bed. But I can’t date you, I kind of already have a boyfriend so…”Jake looked at her, “You came over to fuck me when you have a boyfriend?” He couldn’t believe it, but then his mind went to that party at GGK with Rachel. What is with these girls and boyfriends but not really giving a shit.  “I promised you I would, and it was worth it.” She explained. “Didn’t you like fucking me?”“Well yeah but what about your boyfriend?”She shrugged dismissively. “He’s been ignoring me a bit lately and I was getting horny, you give me a chance to get some relief myself and it was worth it. I think I came three times, but it might have been more my head was spinning for a bit there.” She kissed him gently and got off of him. “Jake don’t worry about it, all will be well you are bound to find a girl especially with how word has gotten around GGK and other places on campus. Trust me someone might just fall into your lap and onto your dick before you even realize it’s happening.”Jake smiled at her weakly, “Well that’s actually a bit reassuring actually. Thank you.”Galina waved, “No problem, and remember I’m down. I gotta go now though I still have to finish an assignment before tomorrow afternoon. Goodnight Jake.” She said, heading out his door.“Night.” He said to himself.Alexis had been incredibly bummed that Jake told her there was no D&D game for an unknown length of time. She’d really wanted to play it again, but more importantly than that she wanted to use it as an excuse to see him again. She felt terrible that even after she’d texted him, he didn’t continue the conversation. Just a “no” and a little explaination, then nothing. No “how are you”, no “what’s up”, nothing.It was her fault though, she couldn’t really be upset with him. She had every chance to be with him, every chance to just forget her own stupid desire to join some fucking club and persue something meaningful with a guy who was great. Instead she just used him and chased him into the arms or any girl willing. And thanks to her, there were a lot of willing girls.Soon word about Jake would get around campus beyond the walls of Gamma Gamma Kappa sorority. Jake had been seen at the party and he visibly didn’t fit in, which meant that rumors would spread especially when and if he was seen with other GGK girls on campus. Once that happened he would be fighting girls off with a stick and she would have no shot because he would long since have no reason to even remember her name.It would e all her fucking fault too.She sat with her textbook open where she was supposed to be doing her reading assignments, but all she could think about was Jake. She kept glancing at the phone every time it buzzed, but it was always just the GGK group chat and never the name she wanted to see.Alexis had thought about texting him again to see if he just wanted to fuck or something. After the party she had remained vigilant on her birth control and according to the doctor and the medication she was perfectly safe to get filled with sperm as much as she wanted. While the idea of just being a booty call for him didn’t excite her all that much, it would be a way to remain in his life and on his mind. So it could be at least better than nothing.If Jake had the pick of whomever he wanted, why would he ever pick her though? If he met his needs with other girls whom hadn’t seemingly discarded him after they’d used him, why wouldn’t he just be with them instead?Alexis heard the door open behind her and she glanced back to see Galina walk in. “Hey Alexis I’m back.” She said.“Oh hey, what’s up?” Alexis asked turned toward her room mate. “You rushed out of here in a hurry, what was that about?” She then saw Galina’s state, hair fucked up, skin glistening with sweat, face rosy and flush. “Oh did Joshua summon you for a little romp in the sack?”Galina looked down at herself, and shrugged, “Umm yeah. Yeah he did.”As if on queue her phone began to ring and from her seat Alexis could see Josh’s face appear on Galina’s screen. Galina put up a finger for Alexis and frowned, “Hey baby? No, not tonight. I told you I have a assignment to get done. I know it’s early but I don’t want my grades to slip barely two weeks into the semester. No…just jerk yourself off then Josh, I’m not pussy you get to just summon whenever you want. No Josh, fuck off.” She spat and hung up on him.Alexis raised an eyebrow. “Was that Josh? What, did he want a round two already?” She asked.Galina gave her a blank look, “What?”Alexis gestured to her, “You look like someone fucked your knees weak. If you didn’t just come from Josh, who did you rush off to…” Alexis paused and it began to click in her head. “No!”Galina frowned and pouted, “I’m sorry Alexis, I promised him.”Alexis jerked to her feet, “Jake?” She screamed, “Really? Of all people, why him?”“Well that’s a stupid question. What are you so mad about anyway Alexis. He fucked Niece, Rachel, you, me, at this rate he’ll be the first guy in history to fuck every active GGK member in a single semester, fuck once other girls on campus learn about him he’ll run through everyone that so much as smiles at him.”Alexis huffed, “But you know I want him.”“Sucks to suck Alexis, you fucked him up. You could have left the party at any time that night to go to him and you didn’t. You didn’t chase him and he feels used. At least if you are going to use a guy at least have the decency to give him a nice send-off instead of ghosting him like a piece of shit.” Galina insisted.“Oh fuck you Gal.”Galina smiled, “Too late, Jake already did that and my legs are literally dripping in his nut. So I’m gonna shower and you can kiss my ass.” She blew Alexis a kiss, turned away and slapped her ass before darting into the bathroom.Alexis growled in a rage and flopped into her chair. She didn’t know what made her more angry, the fact that Galina had done what she’d done, or the fact that Alexis knew Galina was right. Who was she kidding? Galina was right, Alexis had fucked up. She spun to the desk and slammed her text book shut, there was no way she was going to get any reading done tonight so fuck it.Alexis sat at the desk and grabbed her phone, flipping it to Jake’s number she brought up the text screen and started to type frantically. Before she finished her text she growled in frustration and erased it, then hit the call button she would call him that would be better than just a text. She disconnected the call before it could even ring. No! She couldn’t, god what was wrong with her?Jumping out of her seat she slipped into her shoes and ran out the door.Jake showered and washed himself completely clean, feeling really refreshed thanks to Galina. His body wasn’t literally shaking with the desperation to bust a nut, and he finally felt relaxed for the first time in several days. He came out of the bathroom, rubbing a towel on his head to get his hair as dry as he could before he climbed into bed. He hated sleeping on a wet pillow.He had also used some baby wipes to clean the little bit of post-coital drip that leaked from Galina before she’d gotten off the bed. He remember the stain that Niece had left behind with him and he learned to clean up after sex so that you didn’t roll into a surprise wet spot, or even worst find a dried cum stain randomly in your favorite sleeping spot.He put on a pair of nylon basketball shorts and nothing else to climb into bed with. Jake wasn’t big on sleeping naked, so just a pair of shorts was the way to go for him. He never slept in a shirt because it would always wake him up as it would twist or ball up on him uncomfortably. Tossing back the sheet he started to climb into bed when knocking came to the door.It was almost 10pm, who would be showing up this late? He wondered if it was a GGK girl coming to surprise him or something like that, but he doubt it…well maybe?He opened the door and there was Alexis wearing nothing but a pair of extremely short pink shorts which the bottom of her ass stuck out of, and a white thin tank up that not only showcases her cleavage but also allowed him to clearly see her nipples through the thin fabric. Luckily it was dark because there is no way she’d just walk through campus like this. He found himself once again blown away by how fucking incredible her body was. Looking at her like this, it was hard to stay mad at her.“Alexis?” He asked looking her up and down, “What are you doing here?”She smiled weakly and shrugged, “I…I just want to talk, can I come in?”Jake sighed and leaned against the door. “Alexis I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”Alexis frowned, “Please Jake, five minutes?”He pressed his lips firmly together, then nodded and let her push past him into the room. Shutting the door he didn’t follow her into the dorm and instead leaned back against the now closed door. “Okay so?” He began.Alexis glanced around the room, not really seeing anything but just trying to find the words to say, something that she could say to even begin to make this right. “Jake I’m sorry, I want you to know that I am unbelievably sorry, beyond anything I’ve ever been sorry for in my entire life.”Jake shrugged, “Sorry about what Alexis? You got everything you wanted.”Alexis shook her head, “I didn’t get you.”“Me?” He spat. “Alexis you Had me, but you were too busy using me for your fucking club!” He held up a finger, “Not once mind you, that first time i mostly understood even though it upset me, I could at least understand, but then you did it again! When you picked me that night I thought that was it, you’re in and then we could be normal and together. But no I was ushered out the door without a goodbye and silence for a fucking Week!”Alexis was frowning and hanging her head, “I fucked up. I know.” She said weakly.Jake smacked his hand on the door, “Yeah, look Alexis I think you are an amazing girl too focus on social bullshit that means fucking nothing. And it’s fucking shitty that you chose that over an actual relationship. You think those bitches care about you? They don’t, Galina came over to fuck me tonight at the drop of a fucking hat because they only care about social standing and partying, not you. None of them could give a fuck whether you joined or not, and your place could be taken by just about anyone!”Alexis said nothing and let him just dig into her. Everything he said was right and she knew it. She had been shallow and she’d been greedy even. “I just hoped that…I just thought that I might be able to patch things up with us. If not exclusive or in a relationship at all at least…friends?”Jake shook his head, “Friends? Alexis I can’t be friends with you. You were the girl of my dreams, my fantasies, when I was with you I thought I was dreaming. I can’t be friends with you, because I’ll always look at you and want you more than you could ever know, but I can’t trust you to not destroy my heart.”Alexis was crying, tears rolling down her cheeks.“Now I’m going to take Niece’s advice, I’m going to sow my oats and take advantage of life here the best I can.” He sighed and opened the door. “I think you should just go.”Alexis looked at him, her eyes wet, tears dripping off her chin. “I’m sorry.” She cried gently.Jake nodded, “Yeah me too.” He told her and gestured her out the door.The next few days were rough for him. Jake didn’t like the confrontation with Alexis because it felt final, and it didn’t sit well at all with him but he knew it had to be done. He didn’t want to be hurt or rejected and Alexis made him feel both. Whether she intended it or not, he felt like this pain would ultimately be for the best.At least with sex he could make it just that. Though there was a part of him that really didn’t want JUST the sex. He really wanted to date someone, hang out, study together, maybe game, other shit couples did. As cool as it was that he could have someone beautiful almost whenever at this point, he didn’t like it as much as he thought he would.Once he’d gotten over the hump of the, well it wasn’t really a breakup because they hadn’t actually been together in the first place, but whatever it was it was done. Once that was through with he began to get his shit back on the track to mostly normal. School work, gaming, reading, the normal things in his life. Though he did keep an eye out for other things to do on campus that were a bit more of the social type of activity.There was going to be another party next weekend that actually wasn’t being held at GGK. Instead, Delta Sigma Phi, was throwing their Lacrosse Bash. It was a tradition that was supposed to help guarantee the team’s success in the coming year and it was a party that was held under a truce with GGK in which GGk would not have a party for the entire week leading up to the DSP party. That way by the time the DSP party rolled around, people would be desperate for a chance to cut loose.While the party wasn’t open to everyone on campus, it was far more open than something GGK would throw. They were free with the invites so long as a DSP member vouched for you at the door. The problem was Jake didn’t know anyone who pledged DSP, he wasn’t into sports and didn’t really know anyone that was.So he reached out to the only person he knew who had connections to everything on campus.Hey Niece I have a question, do you know anyone at DSP? He wrote her.Niece got back to him quickly, it was amazing how fast girls could reply sometimes. Of course I do, why?Well I’m trying to take your advice and branch out my social circle a bit more, I know they got a party coming up and I was hoping you might know a way I could get an invite.I’m so proud of you! Don’t worry about it, consider yourself invited I will take care of it.Jake smiled at the text. It really paid to have connections. Thanks I owe you one.You owe me nothing. Happy to help. I’ll see you there.You’re going?I’m Queen Bitch, I am everywhere, never forget that. Followed with a smiley emojiHe never would. It made him feel good to know people, especially people as powerful as Niece. Niece seemed to be able to make anything and everything happen that she wanted, and having her on his side was probably the best possible ally to have.The next step now that he was good to party was to change his look. Something about his nerdy haircut and his Star Wars T-shirts was just not going to cut it. First thing he did was went to a proper barbar shop and got a cut. He told the barber that he was trying to look good for a party and the guy patted him on the shoulder, “I got you bud.”Jake walked out with a high fade and short spikey hair that made him look totally different than his usual slicked back and kind of greesy look. He’d wondered how those girls could even stand to look at him before, this haircut alone made him look a hundred percent better. A hairstyle was only the first step though, he needed new clothes and he was lost with what to get or even what would be cool. But he knew someone who might.Rachel are you free by chance this afternoon?Again she was so fast to reply it amazed him. I could be, why you wanna fuck?Always, but that’s not what I need. I’m gonna go to a party at DSP this weekend and I want to not look like a twat. I was wondering if you would be down to go clothes shopping with me?Omigod, omigod, omigod! Yes! Fuck Yes!Well she seemed eager. They set up a time to meet up at a nearby mall and Rachel showed up with a frightening smile on her face. She smiled even wider somehow when she saw his new hair. “Oh look at how sexy you look. What has gotten into you?” She asked.Jake shrugged, “Niece suggested I branch out, so I’m trying to shake up the look a bit and do that.” He did a spin for her, “You like?”She nodded and reached up to run her finger through his spikes. “I do, it looks much cleaner. Good job dude.”“Ok but now I need clothes so….try to keep the price reasonable?” He asked.She clapped her hands, “Oh this is going to be so much fun.”It wasn’t fun, it sucked. It was the suckiest thing to ever suck. Rachel had a fucking blast, throwing all manner of shirts, slacks, pants, ties, shoes, whatever the fuck at him. And he had to try on every single thing. Try it on, come out so she could see, spin for her, go back put on something else, repeat. It was awful and it took HOURS. She never got tired, like a little Energizer Bunny or something.Finally at the end of all of it Jake had a selection of shirts, pants, and a new pair of shoes to wear to social spaces that would help him fit in with the crowd a bit more. Which he was thankful for, but god he wondered how other people handled shopping with their girlfriends or whatever. Rachel was insane.As they were leaving Rachel grabbed his hand, “So there you are, you are gonna look very handsome and people will love you.”Jake nodded, “Hey thanks for this, it was….”“Torture?” She finished.“Kinda. A little bit.” He confessed.She slapped his arm and pushed him away. “So who you taking to the party?”Jake looked at her, “What do you mean, why would I be bringing anybody?”“I thought you and Alexis were…”“No!” He cut her off, “No Alexis and I are not anything. I…she hurt me and I told her I couldn’t really handle it.”Rachel looked up at him, she was such a petite girl he hadn’t realized how small she was even when she’d been riding him at the party. The memory of her revenge fucking him in front of her boyfriend had sent a tingle running through him. “That sucks I’m sorry, I thought you guys wou

While Connor plays the role as the Energizer Bunny, Martie Cordaro joins Producer Josh again to talk Union Omaha soccer and the upcoming promotional events taking place at Werner Park.

Mark Alexander Jackson (born 30 August 1959) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Melbourne Football Club, St Kilda Football Club and Geelong Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and for the South Fremantle Football Club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL). Known as "Jacko", Jackson's colourful and enigmatic personality often resulted in clashes with officials and teammates, which tended to overshadow the fact that he was also a capable full forward. Following his football career, Jackson became notable for several television appearances, including commercials for Jenny Craig, Energizer and Nutri-Grain, along with several feature films. Jackson has also written an autobiography, Dumb Like a Fox, which was released in 1986.   Jackson was born at the Royal Woman's Hospital as one of six children to George Jackson and his wife Frances, and grew up in the eastern Melbourne suburb of Nunawading.  Football career South Fremantle & Richmond (1979–1980) After playing colts and reserves football for Richmond in 1977 and 1978, Jackson started his senior career in the West Australian Football League, spending the 1979 season with South Fremantle. Coach Mal Brown employed Jackson as a forward to protect Ray Bauskis, a skillful but lightweight full-forward. Jackson kicked 53 goals in 22 games and Bauskis 66 in 17 games. South Fremantle finished second in 1979. The night before the second semi-final, Jackson returned to Melbourne after being told that the other players had voted him out of the team. He consequently missed out on playing in the 1979 grand final, which saw the then largest crowd in West Australian football history. Jackson rejoined Richmond for the 1980 season. However, with Michael Roach and Brian Taylor at the club, there was no room for another full forward. Jackson spent the entire 1980 season playing in the reserves and kicked 131 goals. Melbourne (1981–1982) Jackson moved to Melbourne for the 1981 season, coached by Ron Barassi. Jackson performed a handstand in front of the Hawks full back, Kelvin Moore, reportedly after Moore had told him he "wouldn't be a full forward while his arse pointed to the floor". Jackson on Open Mike said it was not pointed at Moore, rather it was directed at umpire Glenn James after he disputed a decision. Jackson kicked 76 goals in each of his two years with the Demons, leading the goal kicking in 1981 and one goal less than Gerard Healy in 1982.  St Kilda (1983) In 1983, Jackson joined St Kilda on a three-year contract believed to have been worth $40,000 per year. He played in the first nine matches (in which the Saints lost the first eight matches in a row) and kicked 40 goals, including 10 in Round 5 against Sydney. However, controversy reared its head again when he was relegated to the reserves for "disciplinary reasons" in Round 10, and then returned for the Round 11 game against Collingwood, where he was held to one goal in a high-scoring 16-point loss. Jackson was again dropped to the reserves, and suffered a bruised chest during the Sunday game. On the Tuesday following that game, the Saints had told Jackson his services were no longer required.  It was later revealed that, among other things, he had played a dangerous prank on club legend Trevor Barker by placing a brick behind the brake pedal in his car. He had also placed a lit cigarette butt in the pocket of club chairman Lindsay Fox in the social club. Jackson spent the remainder of the year playing for the Melbourne Harlequins rugby side. However, his 41 goals were still enough to be the Saints' leading goal kicker for the 1983 season. Geelong (1984–1986) 1984 saw Jackson return to the VFL with Geelong. He led their goal kicking in 1984 with 74. In total during his time at Geelong, Jackson scored 115 goals in 31 games. Geelong started 1985 poorly with one win in the first four rounds but improved with five wins in the next six rounds to be in fifth position. But after losing to Fitzroy in Round 11 they would spend the remainder of the season hovering just outside the Top Five, eventually finishing sixth on the ladder. The Round 11 match against Hawthorn at Princess Park was overshadowed by various spiteful incidents, including Leigh Mattews king-hit on Geelong midfielder Neville Bruns behind play, leaving Bruns with a broken jaw. Although this incident was not reported at the time, video footage of the incident resulted in Matthews being charged with assault by Victoria Police and subsequently deregistered by the VFL for four matches. Jackson kicked four goals for the game to be the Cats' main scorer for the day, but was reported four times during the match: by boundary umpire Gower, boundary umpire O'Leary, goal umpire Bill Pryde and field umpire Ian Robinson for allegedly striking Gary Ayres in the final quarter; by goal umpire Pryde for allegedly striking Chris Langford on two separate occasions during the final quarter; by field umpire Robinson for allegedly striking Chris Mew in the final quarter; and by field umpire Robinson for allegedly striking Chris Langford in the final quarter. At the VFL Tribunal hearing on the Monday following the game, Jackson was suspended for a total of eight matches, stemming from outcomes of three of the charges: He pleaded guilty to the charge from four umpires of striking Ayres (two-match suspension). He pleaded not guilty to striking Mew and was severely reprimanded The third charge of striking Langford by goal umpire Pryde was upheld (two-match suspension) He pleaded guilty to the fourth charge of striking Langford (four-match suspension). After kicking six goals in the first round of 1986 and two in the second round, he retired after his omission from the Geelong senior side in the following round. He ended his VFL career with 308 goals from 82 games, leading his club's goalkicking on 3 occasions. He holds the record for the most consecutive games from debut with at least one goal, with 79 games. His first and only goalless game in his career was in his third-to-last game in Round 21, 1985 against Richmond at VFL Park. Jackson gained a controversial reputation for his on-field antics and was regularly reported: twice at Melbourne and four times at Geelong, including an eight-match suspension following a fight against Hawthorn. Later years An autobiography of Jackson's football career was published in 1986 and titled Jacko, Dumb Like a Fox, written with the assistance of Melbourne journalist Jon Anderson. Later in 1986 he played a few games for Brunswick Football Club in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) First Division, the first of which against Sandringham drew a crowd of nearly 15,000 to Gillon Oval; he was sacked from Brunswick in July after missing training. Jackson returned to South Fremantle for the 1987 WAFL season and kicked 45 goals from the opening 10 games. This included nine goals against West Perth in round three. South Fremantle won its opening three games of the season, but then went on an 18-match losing streak to win the wooden spoon – the club's first since 1972. Jackson walked out on the club after round 10, where the Bulldogs lost to West Perth by a league-record 210 points. Despite only playing half the season, he still finished as the club's leading goalkicker. Later in 1987, he went to Queensland and played a game for QAFL club Kedron; he was paid a large fee of $2,000 per game, but his presence drew a large crowd which earned more than $12,000 for the club. He had intended to play more games for Kedron, but was suspended for unbecoming conduct after dropping his shorts several times during the match. Singing career Following his retirement from football, Jackson used his fame and popularity to launch a singing career. His first single, "I'm an Individual" was a hit on the Australian singles chart. A second single, "My Brain Hurts" was not so successful. A 1991 release, "You Can Do This", also failed to make an impression. Jackson combined a rap-like delivery with lyrics based on Australian comedy and larrikinism. Acting career After his singing career ended, Jackson began appearing in advertisements, the most successful of which was his role in Energizer battery commercials during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The commercials ended with a manic Jackson yelling "Get Energizer. It'll surprise you! Oi!". These commercials were shown extensively in the United States, even though few people knew of Jackson, during a period of high American interest in things Australian in the wake of the Crocodile Dundee films. This American infatuation with Australian culture is referenced in The Simpsons episode "Bart vs. Australia" (1995), in which Jackson makes a cameo promoting Energizer. He was the brand's last human spokesman before the emergence of the Energizer Bunny.  There was also a 10 in 1 "Oi! Jacko Gym" action figure toy that could talk, do push-ups, lift weights and ride a skateboard—all battery operated, with Jackson wearing the battery company logo on his singlet. He was also linked with Nutri-Grain amongst other companies, and for a time worked as a professional actor for commercials. Jackson has appeared in various television sitcoms and movies—one of the most notable being as survival expert "Jetto" in the short-lived American action-adventure series The Highwayman (1988)—as well as being on talkback radio and in various children's programs and talk shows. During 2005 Jackson embarked on a tour with author and renowned criminal Mark "Chopper" Read.  In 2014, Jackson was featured on 7mate's Bogan Hunters as a celebrity judge. Boxing Jackson also appeared in a televised Australian celebrity boxing match in 2002 in which he went up against Australian former rugby league centre Ma. Meninga. Jackson was soundly defeated. Jackson had previously beaten Essendon tough man Ron Andrews in a points decision on 10 December 1984 in a six-round boxing match at the Perth Entertainment Centre. 

On today's quirky show, I welcome Jen "Jay" Palumbo, an epic human Energizer Bunny who takes a licking and keeps on ticking. Jen is a freelance writer, Forbes contributor, and women's health advocate, specifically for reproductive rights. In a spirited coincidence, it turns out we both went to the same college at the same time, were both Theater people, and have dozens of friends in common. We are ships in the night for sure. As fellow parents of IVF children, we bonded over the current state of the state. And as fellow Binghamton graduates, we bonded over Wegmans, being Theater nerds, and 1990s dorm life in the southern tier. Jen is a true Long Island: loud and proud. Let the hilarity, dark humor, and GenX Therapy begin. Enjoy the show.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Follow our show on your podcast app of choice: https://link.chtbl.com/JoH0AMKR Episode 87 No matter how exhausted or drained you felt, you kept going. Why is that? Today, we unpack one of the biggest myths surrounding burnout—that it's merely about depleted energy reserves. We explore why the common metaphor of the Energizer Bunny running out of batteries fails to capture the reality of burnout for physicians.   "

If you ever wanted to hear me have a conversation with the Energizer Bunny, then you'll definitely want to tune in to this episode. Jokes aside, you really do need to hear Dr. Alyssa Olenick's story because she simply doesn't stop, and it's fucking incredible. Y'all know I stay calling for MOAR YOU, and Alyssa […]

Get ready to energize your mind, body, and spirit as we welcome back Avital Miller to The MisFitNation Show! Avital, often hailed as the "Energizer Bunny" for her boundless vitality, returns with her dynamic style that ignites hearts and gets bodies moving! As a seasoned speaker, Avital specializes in helping audiences break through limiting mindsets, identify what truly holds them back, and reclaim control over their lives. With a background in both dance and engineering, she offers a unique perspective on life, love, and health, delving deep into topics that resonate with audiences worldwide. Avital is the best-selling author of "Healing Happens: Stories of Healing Against All Odds," and her insightful articles have been featured in Fitness Professional Online, 30 Seconds, and Sacred Dance Guild Journal. An award-winning international keynote speaker, neurolinguistic programming practitioner, healing breakthrough facilitator, and global dancer, Avital brings a wealth of experience and wisdom to every conversation. Don't miss this opportunity to re-energize your life with Avital Miller on The MisFitNation Show, where we celebrate the power of positive transformation. Check her out here: Galactic Experiences Creator: www.avitalmiller.com Visit www.healinghappensforyou.com for a free gift!

Caregiving for aging and dying parents can be tough for anyone, but it's even tougher when it forces you to confront longtime family dynamics of abuse. Sociologist Deborah Cohan blurs the lines between academic research on family caregiving and violence, and her own personal story about a father she calls both adoring and abusive.  Her memoir is called Welcome to Wherever We Are: A Memoir of Family, Caregiving, and Redemption. Transcript DEBORAH COHAN: Time is really strange in a nursing home. People are motivated by the mealtimes. Newspaper delivery is listed as an activity. They're just mundane activities in my life or your life, but they become these big events at these nursing homes. When you're there, and you're well, and you're witnessing that, it's really hard to watch and to do time the way they're doing time. BLAIR HODGES: Deborah Cohan knows there's nothing easy about caregiving for a dying parent. She watched over her father as he spent the last few years of his life in a nursing home. Witnessing a parent's decline into dementia is hard enough, but Deborah's situation was especially complicated because it happened after she endured years of emotional and verbal abuse from her father. What's it like to want abuse to stop, but a relationship to continue? Is it possible to forgive someone who can't even remember what they did? Deborah's answers to these questions might surprise you. She draws on her expertise as a sociologist and a domestic abuse counselor to make sense of her own life after her father's death. Her book is called Welcome to Wherever We Are: A Memoir of Family, Caregiving, and Redemption. Deborah joins us to talk about it right now. There's no one right way to be a family and every kind of family has something we can learn from. I'm Blair Hodges, and this is Family Proclamations. A UNIQUE BOOK ON ELDERCARE (1:50) BLAIR HODGES: Deborah J. Cohan, welcome to Family Proclamations. DEBORAH COHAN: Thank you so much for having me, Blair. It's great to be here. BLAIR HODGES: It's great to have you. Deborah, there are a lot of books out there about caregiving for aging parents. There are also a lot of books out there about what it's like to witness and experience abuse in families. But there aren't a whole lot of books that are about both of those things in the same book. You've written a book here about what it means to care for an ageing and ill parent who also happens to have been an abuser. That's how you introduce it. Talk about the decision to write a book like that. It's a unique book. DEBORAH COHAN: Thanks for noticing that. I guess sometimes we write the books we wish existed so we could have them as our own guide, and as an expert in domestic violence, and also as someone who's studied the sociology of families, it made perfect sense for me to create what I call a "braided memoir." These two stories are very much interlocking in the book, and in many people's lives. Even if there's not actual abuse in someone's family, there's so much relatable stuff in the book because of the different complicated dynamics we all find ourselves in just by living in our families. Most families have some complicated dynamics of some sort. I was really trying to help others to think about that, and to think about how these two things that are happening in the culture are really often happening at the same time, which is the complicated family piece, and also the fact that more and more people are involved in some amount of caregiving. And it tends to be gendered, where women tend to be doing it more. BLAIR HODGES: You're a specialist who's studied family violence as well. You say “family violence is a dynamic process. It's not an event or an isolated set of events.” It's an environment and you say it unfolds and takes different shapes, often over years of time. Now in your own personal experience, you've come to see how it can be lodged in caregiving. Talk a little bit about that. DEBORAH COHAN: A lot of times when domestic violence is talked about, especially in the media, we hear about it as an episode, or we hear about it as an incident—sort of an isolated event. What I learned through working with violent men for so many years at the oldest battering intervention program in the country—which is Emerge in Boston—and also working with survivors, is that these things that are referred to as “incidents” or “events” or “episodes,” they are connected experiences. It usually escalates over time. If practitioners and advocates and others in the field, and even just people's friends, can help people to see the connection and help them connect the dots between this episode and then this one—because I talk about how there's connective tissue, if you will. For example, most abusers don't start being abusive by punching someone or strangling them or any of those sorts of things. These things start out in lots of other ways. They get accelerated through time. I think it's important to see this stuff isn't a one-time thing. These things build on each other. SHADOWS IN SHAKER HEIGHTS (3:46) BLAIR HODGES: Maybe take a minute or two really quickly here to give us the broad strokes of your family. Who is this book about? Where are you from? DEBORAH COHAN: Currently I live in South Carolina. But I was born and raised in Cleveland in a pretty storied suburb, actually— BLAIR HODGES: This is Shaker Heights. DEBORAH COHAN: —Yes. Lots of books, and magazines, and articles, and all sorts of stuff on it. It's an interesting and complex place. I think people who don't live there think of it as this sort of gilded community, upper middle class, et cetera. Lots of other things are happening there, as they are everywhere. The one interesting thing is when you grow up in a community where there is an amount of privilege, and there are resources and things, things like family violence do become even more secretive. It's not until I published the book that I found even high school friends and acquaintances coming out, reaching out, telling me, "Oh my gosh, I experienced the same thing," or, "I had no idea you were going through that in high school. So was I." People are left feeling even more alone in a situation like that. So as I said, I was born in Cleveland and I was raised as an only child, which is a very big piece of this book because of the ways that kind of complicates things. Especially because my parents had also divorced very soon before my dad got sick. Then I wound up as his main person, his caregiver. My dad was someone who was really adoring. He was an amazing dad in many ways, actually. You know, I still, I miss and love him every day. He died eleven years ago this month, actually. But he was also abusive. That's something we can talk about later on, but that's a really big issue to me, is for people to understand the multidimensionality of the abuser, and the fact that, by all accounts, I guess people would say I grew up in a loving home. I grew up getting to do a lot of cool things with my parents. My parents were very successful. All this kind of stuff. But there was also this other side behind closed doors—or not always behind closed doors because my dad also was an expert at public humiliation and stuff. It was a lot to manage. My parents also—and I think this is really interesting, some of the demographic issues and stuff—is my dad had me when he was forty-two years old, and my mom was about to be thirty-five. In 1969 those were really older parents. Most of my friends, their parents were much, much younger. So that meant when all this started with my dad being sick, I was catapulted into caregiving at a time where my friends' parents were playing tennis and golf and retiring and doing other cool things like traveling and stuff. There again, I was sort of alone in this process. They married late because it was a second marriage. They had me later. They got divorced very late in life. They were almost sixty-five and seventy-two. All of these dynamics, all of these demographic trends, if you will—It's actually funny how the book stands at the intersection of all of these trends. And we're seeing them more and more. We're seeing people having kids later. We're seeing people divorcing later. We're seeing people living longer. BLAIR HODGES: Right, and adult kids caregiving for their parents or parent. DEBORAH COHAN: Often while caring for their own children. Then the other thing I talk about is the living apart together, where I'm partnered with someone where we don't live together. My husband lives two hours away. When I wrote the book, I didn't think about all the ways in which my life is sitting at these intersections of demographic shifts and trends and stuff. But it is, and I think some of those are really important to the way the book unfolds and to the way I think about all this stuff. BLAIR HODGES: You do sit at intersections of a lot of things. Just to flesh it out a little bit more, too, I'll mention that, as you said, your family was upper middle class in Shaker Heights. You say you were Jewish-identified but your family wasn't affiliated or practicing. Your parents were politically progressive. Your mom was artistic, an abstract artist. Your father worked in advertising. He wrote the Hawaiian Punch song. Is this true? DEBORAH COHAN: The line, yes. "How would you like a nice Hawaiian Punch?" BLAIR HODGES: Yeah! DEBORAH COHAN: Isn't that wild? BLAIR HODGES: That really caught me off guard. [laughter] Your parents were also married and divorced before they got married. Your father had two children you never got to know, just from this different phase of his life. That also fills out this background. If you have a copy of the book there, I thought it would be nice to hear you read from the Introduction. The first page gives us a good picture of what's to come. Can you read that for us? DEBORAH COHAN: "When I first set out to write about my dad, I thought my book would only be filled with stories of his abuse, his rage, my own resulting rage and grief, and maybe even his grief as well. However, the writing process revealed other emotions. Things that surprised me, disgusted me, delighted me, and saddened me. At moments, I was glad to be reminded of all the love I still feel for my father and reassured of his love for me. “I've anguished over whether in my promise to tell about my father's abuse with integrity and honesty, the story would somehow be diminished by this other story of the great love we shared. It's only now that I see that the one seemingly pure story of his abuse is not even a pure story. And interestingly, I don't think the abuse is even the grittiest or rawest part of the story. “As it turns out, the story would be easier to tell if all I needed to do was report about all the times that my dad behaved badly. You might get angry with him. And you might even feel sorry for me. But that's not what I wanted out of this book. You need to also know and feel the love we shared, the way I felt it. And I still do. “The much harder story to tell is the one that unfolds in these pages. It's the story of ambivalence, of what it means to stand on the precipice of both love and fear, and what it means to navigate between forgiveness and blame, care and disregard, resilience and despair." HIMPATHY (11:37) BLAIR HODGES: Thank you. A couple of things come to mind as I'm reading that. First of all, I wondered if you were presenting yourself as an exemplary type of person who'd experienced abuse. As it turns out, throughout the book, you don't. You don't set yourself forward as "everyone should process abuse the way I did." You don't expect people who have been abused to be forgiving, or to seek all of that. I want to let people know that right off the top. I did want to talk about Kate Manne's idea of "himpathy," because that's what came to mind here at the opening of your book before I knew what was coming. Himpathy as I understand it is this idea of extending sympathy to men who are doing crappy stuff, basically. The guy's the problem, but we tend to side with the guy or try to get inside his heart or his head and extend sympathy to someone who's done terrible things. You have a background of working with these domestic violence survivors and perpetrators. So I just wondered about your thoughts on that idea of himpathy, and how you negotiate with that as you think about your own relationship with your dad and as you were writing this book. DEBORAH COHAN: I have to admit I have not heard of that word or that theory. That would be interesting to read more about. I certainly did worry about that a bit. Here I am, trained in feminist sociology, and have done all this work, and it's almost like I didn't want to let people down or something, or didn't want to seem like I was giving him a pass, so to speak. BLAIR HODGES: Right. DEBORAH COHAN: I also had to write it in that authentic way I feel I did, and just realize the much more nuanced approach is actually the approach I took—which is that no one is purely one thing or another. Neither am I. I come out as pretty flawed in the book too, which I'm glad about because it's the “no one's perfect” thing. I think there are certainly people who might read the book who might say, "Oh, my gosh, I would never still love my dad," or, "I would have stopped talking to him," or "F– you" kind of stuff. I don't know. To me that would be too easy. I think the harder piece is to deal with that ambivalence. And as you say, it's not right for everyone and it's totally dependent on different people's situations. I also think, for some people, it's like some readers have told me, it's very valuable to have gotten to juggle both, so they can see how to juggle both themselves. It's not really that rare that someone who's been hurt by someone still wants a relationship with them. I guess the real essence of dealing with an abusive relationship is you want the abuse to stop but you want the relationship to continue. BLAIR HODGES: You “love” the person. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah. We see that with sexual abuse survivors a lot. There's a lot of research on that. It's complicated. It makes me want to read about this "himpathy" piece. BLAIR HODGES: Look up himpathy. It's this sympathy for men, basically. DEBORAH COHAN: She's critical of it. Obviously. BLAIR HODGES: She's critical, but it's very thoughtful. It resonates well with what you present in your book, which is, you're not giving your dad a pass or excusing his behavior, you're just also recognizing the ways you loved him and why. That's different than saying, "You know what, actually the abuse was okay," or even, "The abuse was maybe beneficial or maybe deserved." Or that all your attention would be focused on protecting your father's reputation, rather than talking about what the relationship really was and processing your feelings for other people to kind of witness and maybe go alongside with you. I think it's helpful. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah. If I grew up in the home my dad grew up in maybe I wouldn't have done anything different either. So it's really hard truths to reconcile, but I think they're really important. WHAT HE DID (15:31) BLAIR HODGES: It's important to think about individual responsibility, but also context. Sometimes it's easier to offload our anxiety that stuff like this happens by just demonizing an individual person. I want to be a strong proponent of justice and of attending to the person who has been abused first and foremost. I think their experience really needs to be attended to. I think if we just demonize an individual person, it excuses the ways we participate in a society that can facilitate stuff like that, basically. DEBORAH COHAN: Exactly. BLAIR HODGES: They're really bad. I can kind of overlook the crappy ways I treat people because here are these evil enemies over here I can identify as the bad people and not think about the ways I might be implicated. It's complicated, though. It's complicated. DEBORAH COHAN: Right. BLAIR HODGES: Let's talk about some abuse examples from your father. You say he was financially generous, but he was also financially controlling. You've seen this dynamic in other families. There comes this moment early on where he makes this comment to you. He says, "You'd make my life a lot easier if you'd just commit suicide." It seems like he wasn't saying that as a joke. It comes across as though he just said this to you as a matter of fact. DEBORAH COHAN: Yes, that was in the context of something that was financially abusive and controlling. It's so interesting to hear that comment restated to me, and I've heard it so many times since the book came out. It was even really startling the first time I saw it on the jacket of the book, and then it's on Amazon. It's like people glom on to it because it's so over the top for a parent to say that to a kid, or in this case a young adult woman, because I was in my twenties. I think that's the comment that makes people say, "Oh, I could never have cared for him. I could have never had a relationship with him." There is something odd about hearing it back and realizing that in a way, at the time, it was really upsetting but it almost—I guess like so many other acts of abuse, things get minimized or forgotten or denied. It's interesting to think of probably how soon after I still was able to talk to him or willing to engage with him, that sort of thing. And at the same time, I wouldn't really tolerate that. It's just one of those things where it's very hard to describe how I know that comment is so searing to readers and anybody hearing it. It's just so disturbing. At the same time, it's such a good example, though, of how his feelings were the priority, as is true in abusive relationships. Where it's like the abuser is so focused on their feelings and the other person's actions. It was such a prime example of where he completely distorted what I was saying and where I was trying to do something that could be helpful—to find out something about insurance and his financial contribution with stuff, and he just jumped into me verbally with this accusation and assuming the worst of me. In a sense, what I would want people hearing this to understand is not just the intensity of what he said, but how it encapsulates so many different pieces related to abuse. Like the threats, the focus on his feelings and my behavior. All of this. The assuming the worst of me is really the key piece of this. BLAIR HODGES: This is the kind of abuse you experienced, this verbal assault. You even say your father never actually hit you, physical abuse, but you did always have the perception he could. There was always a sense that he might, and you say that was its own sort of terror that can give a person trauma. DEBORAH COHAN: Oh, for sure. Because somebody who says something that vicious and cruel and brutal: "My life would be easier if you commit suicide." It is a slap in the face. It is a punch in the gut. It is all of those things, kind of metaphorically. I mean, this is why I think it's so crucial and I always try to encourage my students, and I talked about this with violent offenders, is to not create a hierarchy of what sort of abuse is worse than another. Because right, it's true. He did not pull my hair or spit on me or punch me or throw me against a wall or strangle me or any of these awful things that happen. But the threat of violence, the constant berating, the criticizing, the defining of reality—when someone says something like that to you, what are you supposed to say? I mean, there's no way to respond. It was his ability to try to exert that level of power and control, and that level of silencing me, and putting me in my place in this way. Those are some of the core defining features of abuse. BLAIR HODGES: I learned a lot more about abuse and seeing these patterns of abuse—for example, you talked about how maybe you would be together during a trip and he would freak out. He would scream and swear at you publicly. So not only did it hurt you because your dad's treating you that way, but also, it's embarrassing and other people are witnessing this, which compounds the hurt. This would happen during a trip where he was visiting. Then at the end of the trip you say he had this tactic of minimizing and mutualizing. Talk about the tactic, what that looks like to minimize and mutualize after an assault like that. DEBORAH COHAN: It's comments like, "It's not so bad," or, "Didn't we have a fun time?" Or glomming onto the parts that were fun. “Wasn't that wonderful when we saw the Lion King?” Or, “Wasn't that amazing when we ate at this restaurant?” By highlighting the goodies it forced me—again, it's part of his defining reality, but then it made me have to think, “Oh, that stuff was really nice. That was good. So maybe that's not so bad, the other stuff.” BLAIR HODGES: It doesn't feel like he was really asking, either. It seems like what's happened here is control. He needs to control the story. He's not really looking for your input about how you felt about everything, but really telling you, “By the way, this trip was awesome, you better think it was and if you don't, there's a problem with you.” DEBORAH COHAN: Not just that there's a problem with you, but also that you're insatiable and that you— BLAIR HODGES: That you deserve my yelling and stuff? DEBORAH COHAN: Or nothing I do for you is ever good enough. Then it turns into I'm not grateful enough, which was a huge part of the narrative. **WHEN REDEMPTION ISN'T FORGIVENESS (22:16) BLAIR HODGES: As we said before, this isn't a book of forgiveness for your father. You do repeatedly express your love for him and describe to the reader where that love comes from or what it looks like. But you're saying there's a sense in which you want some redemption for that relationship, but not necessarily forgiveness. That was an interesting distinction I'd never thought about before. Talk about how you see those two things of seeking some kind of redemption versus just forgiveness. DEBORAH COHAN: I love that question because so often people still conclude I've totally forgiven him and then decide, "Oh, I'm not sure I could forgive him." Like I talk about in the book, forgiveness is a bit overrated. As someone who does not identify religiously, forgiveness feels far too rooted in notions of religion. I'm not totally comfortable with that. I mean, I think the redemption is more that now I'm fifty-three years old, I understand people like my parents did the best they could with what they had at the time they did it. So I have more sort of acceptance of the multidimensionality of my parents in a way, and I think their deaths—because my mom has died also—their deaths helped to do that, even though that was something I dreaded for so long. But then it turns out there's something about it now, that I can see the full humanity of both of them in a way that maybe it was harder to see when they were alive. The other piece of the forgiveness thing is that in working with abusers, I remember working with a counselor. We were co-facilitating a group one evening and he was pushing this abuser, really holding him accountable. He kept saying to him, "What are you sorry for, who are you sorry for?" It was like, "Who are the tears for?" Really trying to get this guy to see he still didn't really seem like he was apologetic, really truly remorseful. That it was more about his own saving face. So I guess the reason full forgiveness still feels hard for me is my dad and I never had that full, totally open, me totally exposing all of my thoughts on this, kind if conversation, maybe over a period of months and years, where I could come to that, or where he asked for it in a way that I could give that to him. So I feel the most we can do here is redemption. BLAIR HODGES: How do you define that then? What is that redemption? DEBORAH COHAN: I feel like it's maybe that acceptance of all that imperfection and all the flaw and all the limitations and things, and that there are still these redeeming aspects of him as a man in the world, of him as a father, of him in my life. I mean, I guess I couldn't have the level of loving and missing him every day without that level of some redemption. And then some people have asked me, "Well, it does sound like you forgive him, though." It's almost like people just want to use that word so much— BLAIR HODGES: I feel tempted to that question, too. I wanted to say it's sort of a “brand” or a “genre” of forgiveness or something. [laughs] DEBORAH COHAN: Exactly. It's so interesting, though. I was friends with a couple. The woman has died and the man is much, much older. He's probably in his nineties now. Their daughter was murdered by their son-in-law. I had them speak at my classes and they were often asked, "Do you forgive the son-in-law?" Shirley, the mother, would always say, "No, and he never did anything to ask for it. He really never apologized. There was no authentic anything that would have warranted it and he never really accepted enough responsibility for forgiveness to be possible." I guess I'm still kind of at that piece. BLAIR HODGES: That's a forgiveness that seems like it has to be mutual, like the other person who hurt you needs to get inside your story, show they understand it, and make some kind of reparation or connection there. And for that kind of forgiveness to happen, yeah, you have to have the other— I think what people might be thinking when they suggest you have forgiven is the sense that you still find good in your dad. You love him. But there's also, as you say, there's always that disconnect that's a result of the years of abuse, you can't fully reconcile because reconciliation requires both people to be involved with it. And so it's just not possible. That kind of forgiveness has to be mutual. The other person has to be involved for that forgiveness to even work, I guess. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah, that it's more of a process. It, like the abuse, is not just an episode or an instance or a moment. It's much larger. One of the things that's difficult is my dad seemed to have in certain ways, he softened and almost showed me the possibilities of redemption once he was quite ill. Once he was very needy and dependent. He was in a nursing home, and that's when towards the end of the book he's telling me about his experience growing up and his father being abusive to his mother and witnessing it and thinking it was an outrageous thing. And his empathy went to his mother as a child. Yet he still reproduced this as an adult. But here was a man with dementia and he was totally immobile, and by then incontinent and all these other things. It was just—That wasn't the time to start digging into our relationship. But had he told me all that and had we been able to have that conversation when he was well, I don't even know if that would have been possible. Had that happened, had he been able to show me more, really that actions speak louder than words, really show me in a consistent, meaningful, trustworthy way, "Deb, I can't believe I did that to you." Really showing me through living out life with me that he would never do it again. But we never got there. FAMILY DYNAMICS WITH MOM (28:50) BLAIR HODGES: It was thirteen years before he died—eight of those years, he was very sick in these care facilities. You say you were lodged in an uncomfortably intimate relationship with him, as you mentioned, because you were an adult child of divorce. The family dynamic you grew up with was one where you trended toward being closer to your dad. I think there was probably a protective element to that. Your mom felt sort of sidelined. You really paint a compelling picture of why the divorce happened later on, the way your mom was sidelined, the way your family was this triangle that you felt pressured to make feel whole, which is something no child should have to reckon with. But then later on when they get this divorce, here's a quote from you, "During the years I cared for my dad, my mom's absence felt like a death." I realized, Deborah, how hard that must have been to basically be the only one who could really care for your dad during those eight years because your mom was gone. You're an only child of these divorced parents. DEBORAH COHAN: She kind of would accuse me of being angry at her for leaving. She would say that somehow I thought it was her responsibility to stay. She could tell it was really hard for me. In a certain way, though, she was very compassionate at times about what I was dealt with in those moments. Then there were other times in which she, as I say, almost accused me of being angry about it. Which is a whole other piece. BLAIR HODGES: Was that like a “They protest too much” kind of thing? It seems you were in some senses abandoned to care for him. I'm not suggesting that your mom shouldn't have gotten a divorce or anything. But their child is involved. You were stuck with handling that. It seems like a lot for a child in a family, even though you were a grown up at this point, to manage by yourself. I wonder if she worried if you resented it. It seems like— DEBORAH COHAN: Absolutely. She didn't just worry about it, she accused me of it! [laughs]. And then it was a little confusing. BLAIR HODGES: But did you feel that resentment? Was her charge valid? DEBORAH COHAN: That's a really good question, because I teach this book now in my class, and it's very interesting how I ask my students if they find my mom to be a sympathetic character. The reality is, I guess she is and she isn't. There are a lot of people who come to the conclusion, a little bit what you were just alluding to, of I should not have been left like that. It's kind of like my mom did something wrong, that I got stuck with all of this. What's interesting is, the book came out in 2020. My mom died a few months later. Here I am teaching the book. I can't have this conversation with my mother, which I would really like to have, which is, "Oh my gosh, if only you could hear all the ways in which I stand up for you." You know what I mean? I constantly am saying to students, "No, I don't blame my mom for leaving." In some ways I just wish she had left sooner, so they could have each had their new lease on life. To me it feels very sad that she did this at close to sixty-five and he was seventy-two. I'm not sure what else could have been done, though. I wouldn't expect people to stay in a marriage that isn't good or healthy for them. I can't fault my mom for leaving. It's more, I wish she had been able to do it earlier and I know I was probably part of the reason she didn't, which is a hard thing to deal with at the same time. BLAIR HODGES: Would you resist it if I said something like, “I wish your mom had tried and pitched in a little bit to take some of the pressure off?” DEBORAH COHAN: No, I think that's true. She did in certain ways, but she couldn't in other ways. From a legal standpoint, all this financial stuff, everything. She was certainly financially generous in her own way later and about other stuff. It might have been helpful had she just said, "Gosh, I see you're going to Cleveland again." I wasn't taking trips and doing really great stuff. I was going to Cleveland many times from Boston as I was in graduate school, as I was adjuncting, and teaching in different places, and commuting to Connecticut. I wish in those moments instead of just taking me out to dinner or—because she was living on Cape Cod by then so we were living much closer together. It might have been nice if she had just said, "I'll buy the airline ticket," or, "Let me make the reservation for you at the hotel," or whatever it was. That might have lessened the burden. Although, she did in other ways because then she might have helped fund something else I did need. It was just a very difficult time. AT THE NURSING HOME (33:54) BLAIR HODGES: That is helpful. I didn't have hard feelings toward your mom, I just wondered a little bit about— As you said, your mom was still alive when you were finishing this. It makes sense that some of that stuff couldn't have been processed yet. So that's helpful. I think people that pick up a copy of the book and check it out, that's a really great supplement to it. I'm glad to hear you can talk to people about that as you teach the book, too. The book we're talking about, by the way, again, is called Welcome to Wherever We Are: A Memoir of Family, Caregiving, and Redemption. It's written by Deborah J. Cohan, who is professor of sociology at the University of South Carolina Beaufort. You mentioned this a minute ago—finances. You basically witnessed your father's finances completely collapse. This is something a lot of people are experiencing and will probably be experiencing more and more because the social safety net in the United States is not great, but he went from a sharp dressing, fancy food enjoying ad executive to this man in filthy sweatpants sitting in this dilapidated care facility, living on Medicaid. And he ended up dying with about fifty dollars to his name. So you witness over the time he was there, his complete impoverishment. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah and also I think that's some of the redemption for him too, is just knowing if he was aware of what was left at the end, and what happened—I mean, his dream would have been to leave me with more to pay off my student loan debt, you know, all that kind of stuff. He would have been ashamed and humiliated in many of the ways that breadwinning and masculinity are so entangled with each other. BLAIR HODGES: Ah, that reminds me, there's an excerpt I thought you might read on page twenty-seven. You actually take us to the nursing home with some stories about what it was like when you visited him. It's that middle paragraph there. If you could read that excerpt—it's a list but wow, it certainly evokes experiences I've had. DEBORAH COHAN: "The nursing home: paved driveway. Automatic doors. Cigarette butts. Patients waiting for the next distribution of cigarettes. Orange sherbet and ginger ale and Saulsbury steak. Sticky floors. Dusty roads. Vinyl recliners. Bed pans. Bingo and sing-alongs. Stashes of adult diapers in the closets and drawers. Motorized wheelchairs. Schedules. Forms. Nursing aides and personal attendants. Styrofoam cups. Stale urine. Plastic water pitchers and bendable straws. Hospital beds. Dark, dingy rooms. A small rod for hanging clothes. Non-skid socks. No privacy. Open, unlocked rooms filled with demented wanderers. Whiteboards with washable markers stating the day of the week and the nurse on duty. Dead plants. Almost-dead people. Harsh overhead lighting and overheated rooms. Not enough real light. Tables that roll across beds for getting fed. Call bells and strings to pull in the bathroom. Air that doesn't move." BLAIR HODGES: The stories you tell there, Deborah, visiting there seemed really hard for you, let alone what it must have been like to live there. You felt such ambivalence about it. Because you say you almost couldn't stand being there at the moment, but you also would get really distraught about leaving there. DEBORAH COHAN: Absolutely, yes. And thanks for having me read that piece, by the way, because it's been so long since I've actually read it. It takes me back to the room also. The ambivalence showed up in so many different ways. I think that's so true of people who are visiting people who are frail and dying, or very ill. This sense of, you want to go, like I would be in Boston, I would want to go so badly. I would want to see him. I would want to give him a big hug. I would want to finally bring him food he craved or food that was a special treat instead of some of the things I listed in that piece. Then I would get there. It was like, “Oh, gosh.” I just wanted to flee. I walked in and it was just the chaos and the bureaucracy and just the antiseptic but actually filthy quality of these places that I illuminate in that piece. Then the guilt that totally seeped in in that moment, because then it was like, "Wait, I got here. I'm here. I'm supposed to want to be with him. I'm supposed to want to stay,” and now I'm counting down the time. It's sort of like, "Oh my gosh, I've been here twenty minutes. It feels like four hours." Then when I'd leave it was almost like that, "Oh, but I spent three hours," almost like I did good time or something. BLAIR HODGES: A Herculean effort just to get through the three hours. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah, and time is strange in a nursing home also, as it is in a hospital. People are motivated by the mealtimes. The newspaper delivery is listed as an activity at the place. These things that are just mundane activities in my life or your life, they become these big events at these nursing homes in ways that, when you're there and you're witnessing that, and you're well, it's really hard to watch and to do time the way that they're doing time. BLAIR HODGES: On a bigger scale, too, the cycle that would happen. So you talk about how there would be a medical crisis, things would seem really bad, but then he would kind of rally, show some resilience, kind of recover for a bit, you'd get a little bit of hope, and then it would crash again. And this cycle kept happening. It reminds me of this paragraph I highlighted here. You say, "Perhaps many adult children caring for dying parents deal with this dilemma. How much to let the parent in. How much to keep the parent at bay. It's hard to get that close to almost-death, to anticipatory grief, and when an abusive history is part of it, that push/pull with how to have healthy emotional closeness and distance becomes that much more intensified." You're talking about the already complicated dynamics and then you add the layer of abuse into it, which makes it all the more complicated. DEBORAH COHAN: I appreciate you did such a close good reading of it, because I don't know that everybody picks up some of the pieces and the nuances and especially the contradictory realities that are present. I really appreciate that and what you've read and shared and asked and are revealing to the audience. That's just the hardest part of all, is reconciling those pieces. Okay, I spent most of my childhood really worried my parents would die or my parents would get divorced. As an only child, those two things felt incredibly scary, that I would lose one or both of them, or that they would get divorced. It kind of haunted me up until they died, really. And my dad, like any one of the things he suffered from people die from pretty easily. You know, he had an aneurysm. He had a heart attack. He had diabetes. He had so many different things— BLAIR HODGES:  —He had dementia, yeah. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah. And then at the same time, though, he kept—like you're saying—bouncing back. It was like the Energizer Bunny. It was like nothing's going to get this guy. In a way that's an interesting parallel with the abuse. It was almost like, unstoppable. It was the sense of like, he could be abusive and then quick fix, make it up. Apologize, be really sweet and kind, and then do it again. But it's like… BLAIR HODGES: Another kind of cycle. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah, another cycle. And also the cycle of vulnerability coupled with this omnipotence. That was present when he was ill. Like he was totally vulnerable. There was a time in 2006, I think it was, where I really thought he was going to die. There was no doubt. It just felt like this is imminent now. He was hallucinating and all these other things. He didn't die for six more years! And between those six years he moved to different nursing homes, basically, because of bad behavior. But it reminds me of those inflatable dolls, or those inflatable things on lawns. BLAIR HODGES: Like outside the car dealership thing? DEBORAH COHAN: Like you hit it and it keeps coming back. BLAIR HODGES: Oh, yeah. It falls and then pops back up. DEBORAH COHAN: And it'll keep standing, exactly. And that was my dad in everything. BUTTERFLY EFFECT FIXATION (42:54) BLAIR HODGES: You say nothing could really prepare you for that. There was this moment when he falls at the Cleveland airport, you kind of pinpoint this as a turning point for him, where he seems to be in relatively good health, but he fell and broke his hip. You were involved in that trip too. You carried these feelings about that. DEBORAH COHAN: Absolutely. BLAIR HODGES: You were worried he was about to die then, and you weren't ready. Then again, you were less prepared for what ended up happening, which was years of this cycle of health crises and then recoveries. Nothing could have prepared you for that. DEBORAH COHAN: And the reality is you're never ready. It's almost like you can know what's happening. He was never going to get better. But I also didn't think he was going to die three days before I started my new job in South Carolina, three weeks after I moved here, after just being divorced myself. I didn't really, it was like, “That was interesting timing, Dad.” [laughs] But you just said something that was really interesting and reminds me of the passage I just read from being in the nursing home, and it relates to the moment he fell. So when my dad fell at the airport, he was going there in a limo, being dropped off, got out of the car and fell on ice in Cleveland at the airport. My friend, who's now, I mean he's ex-husband, Mark, he and I were heading to Cleveland to meet my dad to then go to Florida. BLAIR HODGES: With him. DEBORAH COHAN: With him. It was supposed to be this vacation. My dad had packed his red suitcase, and it turns out that red suitcase, which is also featured in the book, that thing was screaming at me every time I would go and visit him in a nursing home. I don't know why I didn't think to trash it. Maybe because I kept hoping we would get to pack it and he could go home. But like, honestly, that suitcase was just—it was like a bully, you know?  It was this sense of like—it was taunting because I felt, and I still kind of do, if my dad wasn't taking us to Florida, he wouldn't have fallen on ice at the airport and he wouldn't have broken his hip, and then he wouldn't have—then his whole life wouldn't have come tumbling down with it. BLAIR HODGES: Butterfly effect moment, right? DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah. But at the same time, that's sort of abuse survivor logic. BLAIR HODGES: Oh, you're putting it on you. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah, like if I hadn't have done this, he wouldn't have done that to me. Or if I had done this, he definitely would have behaved differently and then I wouldn't have been told “I wish you'd commit suicide” or something. It's interesting how even in a moment like that, that has really nothing to do with abuse, the psyche that's been dealing with abuse and those dynamics, is still contaminated by that. There was still that sense of, “God, if only we hadn't gone to Florida! If only we hadn't made that trip!” And the reality is, I was actually very tentative about wanting to go on that trip. My dad really wanted this for us. He really wanted the three of us to go and have this wonderful time and be at this resort. And I was haunted by some of my memories of my dad on trips. I didn't want to deal with that with my husband at the time. BLAIR HODGES: Right. DEBORAH COHAN: And then I also dealt with the guilt and the shame around not really wanting the trip. And then he actually—his whole life tumbled down as a result of a trip he really wanted that I didn't want because I wasn't grateful enough. So it did this whole thing. I mean, I can still feel it. BLAIR HODGES: It recurs. You bring it up throughout the book. This Cleveland airport is a recurring moment you keep going back to. DEBORAH COHAN: Yes. And then isn't it wild that I got the news of his death at a different airport— BLAIR HODGES: Right! DEBORAH COHAN: —as I was about to board a plane to go and see him for the last time, which at that time really I knew was the last time because they called me to pretty much tell me that earlier in the day. So I arranged to leave that evening, and then missed it. Again, at the time it was like, “Oh my gosh, you're such a screw up! You can't even get to see him when…” It was just this… BLAIR HODGES: The reflex of self-blame. DEBORAH COHAN: Criticism, yes. I had internalized that so much, and so it was a process to try to realize like, no. My dad could have fallen anywhere. Something else could have happened. Because of course something else would have happened. But it was so hard to see in that moment. ONE LITTLE EXTRA SOMETHING (47:49) BLAIR HODGES: This reminds me the ways you're very confessional and vulnerable yourself in the book. This isn't a book about Deborah Cohan the hero who cared for her dying father. This is a book of Deborah Cohan who's wrestling with the ambiguity of being someone who experienced abuse, who has really hard feelings about that, and who also has feelings of love. But there was, I think one of the most arresting— Well I probably shouldn't try to qualify it. To me, the most arresting moment in the book is when you're listing all the medications he's taking on any given day when he's in a care facility. There's Ambien, Glucotrol, amoxicillin, mycelium, and even more. You see this one-month pharmacy bill that added up to twelve hundred dollars. Then you add this startling line. You say, "One extra little something slipped into this whole mess would be untraceable." This is one of the darkest thoughts a caregiver might experience, but you're not the only caregiver who I've heard talk about this. So I wanted to spend a little bit of time there about what it was like confessing that, talking about that in your book. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah, I certainly—I hope it's understood in the book that it wasn't about revenge. BLAIR HODGES: Right. DEBORAH COHAN: It wasn't like because of that moment when my dad thought his life would be easier if I committed suicide that I want to somehow poison him or kill him. It was this very deep in my bones feeling of, “No one should have to live this way.” BLAIR HODGES: It was, you were witnessing suffering. And your brain was like what can we do for this? DEBORAH COHAN: To stop it, yes. My parents, as I said, and you identified it as well, they were very progressive. And I still remember conversations when I was growing up where my dad would say, "If that ends up happening to me—” like, you know, he would talk about people who— BLAIR HODGES: Right. “I don't want to live like that." DEBORAH COHAN: “I don't wanna live like that. Just kill me. Do something.” So I think even he would have been compassionate and understanding to the thought I had. But what's also interesting that you didn't reveal in your question though is, when I revealed it to myself, I was also telling it to my husband at the time, who thought I was just totally crazy for thinking it, for saying it. It was almost like I should be ashamed of myself. And then there I go, retelling the whole thing in the book. So I wasn't, I really never wound up being so ashamed of it. It was more the sense of the absolute desperation a caregiver feels. The absolute helplessness to stop the suffering and to also stop witnessing it, too! It was like, how much longer can we all go on like this? It was sort of like this is an untenable situation. BLAIR HODGES: Yeah, this wasn't a revenge plot. DEBORAH COHAN: Absolutely not. BLAIR HODGES: This was a desperate moment of trying to figure out how to make the suffering end. I mean, you talk about how caregiving amplified your childhood instincts, your hyper-responsibility and hyper-vigilance, and what toll that could take on you over a number of years. What was it like being hyper-vigilant, hyper-responsible about your father? DEBORAH COHAN: Well you almost alluded to it in the list of the medications. I was carrying around like, a file box in my car with all sorts of information about his health, with all sorts of papers, with duplicate copies of things, because I don't want to be caught off guard, not prepared. If someone calls me, I want to have it all ready. I always had pen and paper with me. Yeah, it's true that there's a hyper-vigilance that happens when someone's experiencing an abusive relationship or witnessing abuse. That sense of being on guard, of trying to have every base covered. That sort of thing. BLAIR HODGES: Be blameless, really. DEBORAH COHAN: Yeah, you know I did that, I extended that into caregiving. I made a list of—I mean, it was sort of crazy, but I did—I sent a copy to my mother, I sent a copy to the nursing home, I sent a copy everywhere. And actually it was when he lived at home, before that, where I had something on the refrigerator that had his social security number, all of his information—like the drugs he takes, his health history, the dates of surgeries—so that any of the nurses caring for him in his home could see that, could know what was going on, could assist. BLAIR HODGES: You were also on call all the time, expecting any phone call. It seemed like you were just tied to your phone in case there was a phone call that would come in. DEBORAH COHAN: Right. And when he died, I talk about how that night after talking with my friend for hours on my couch, afterwards then I just go and I turn off the phone. And I've done that every single night since. I never leave my phone on. BLAIR HODGES: Right! From that point on. DEBORAH COHAN: It's like he'll call me at three or four in the morning. If I'm up, I'll answer, if I'm not— I could be called at any moment about anything and there was just no boundaries on it. Because again, it's the sense of they have to for different liability reasons, but I was being called about anything and everything. DOES THE CHILD BECOME THE PARENT (53:22) BLAIR HODGES: It took up mental and emotional space twenty-four hours a day. And as you watched all these losses pile up—he stopped being able to drive, he stopped being able to walk, he stopped being able to write, then read, then feed himself, then he lost control of his bladder, he couldn't think straight, he couldn't remember. The dementia took over. And you tell us about a friend of yours called Julie. She's a geriatric care specialist. You said she's actually not comfortable when she hears people talking about a role reversal in this situation. It's common for people to say the child becomes the parent and the parent becomes like the child. You're doing a lot of the same things. They're helping feed them, they probably wear diapers, there's all these things going on. You say Julie is not comfortable with that comparison. But you kind of disagree with her. I wanted to hear your thoughts about where Julie's coming from and how you see it. DEBORAH COHAN: Well I mean, she was so compassionate to me about my dad and about all that has happened. In fact, I remember saying to her, I'm going to be using your name, if you don't want me to use it, I can give you a pseudonym. BLAIR HODGES: It's the risk of being friends with a writer. [laughter] DEBORAH COHAN: Exactly! But I mean, nobody's really talked about in a singularly bad way in the book. Not even my dad. So with Julie I think that's a common thing in gerontology, in her field, is the sense of empowering the person who is being cared for. BLAIR HODGES: Conferring dignity. If you say they're like children that's undignified or that's demeaning. DEBORAH COHAN: Exactly. And that's why these nursing homes will ask families to post pictures of when the person was younger and more robust and vibrant on the door or in the entrance to the room, so when people are going in to see the patient they're also reminded, “Oh, this is really who I'm seeing. I'm not just seeing this person who's only weak and sick and vulnerable.” But you know what's interesting to me about that is I felt that a lot with my father. I felt like I wanted to just scream to [laughs] anybody who would listen or any of the nurses or anyone, this isn't really my dad! This is my dad! Kind of asserting the strengths and the brilliance he did have. At the same time, though, it was very hard for me to give that credit to other people, you know? [laughs] So when I would see other residents who were really bad off, I had a hard time thinking about them in their prior phases of their life. I think that's just something caregivers struggle with. I certainly wasn't unique in that. BLAIR HODGES: Sure, and I'm sympathetic to Julie in the sense of conferring dignity and being mindful of this person as a person worthy of concern and care and not infantilizing people. But you also say, when you're feeding your dad and he's spitting up down his shirt and all these things, you can't help but feel like that role has been reversed. I'd like to find a way to both dignify and honor the parent, and also validate and recognize the experience of the child who is now being a caregiver. I think both things are possible. DEBORAH COHAN: That's why when I talk about feeding my dad birthday cake, there's this point where I talk about it as like a terrible beauty in feeding a parent. That gets at that to me. Again, the ambivalence, the contradictory reality, the sense that we should be there in a certain way. They did this for us. We should do this for them with no sense of negativity. At the same time, this is not really how it was supposed to go. BLAIR HODGES: There was no rehearsal for it, too, for you. You were just there. The cupcake was there. And here you are, you're feeding your dad. DEBORAH COHAN: And he wouldn't have wanted that. The last thing he would have wanted was to have me feed him, I mean oh my gosh. LETTER TO DADDY (57:34) BLAIR HODGES: There's one more excerpt I'd like to hear you read here. You wrote some of this book in your dad's presence there at the nursing home when he would be asleep, and you were at his side. This is on page one 142. You wrote to him in that moment in 2009. If you can read it. DEBORAH COHAN: Sure. It's just funny. I'm laughing only because I feel like I have that page memorized. I have actually read this piece quite a bit when I've spoken about the book. It does feel like a really evocative passage, and not because it talks about his abuse at all, but also because of the writerly technique that I used in it of taking almost like field notes that I wound up using. It's exactly the same, I didn't change anything. But I didn't know I was writing a book at that moment either. "I watch you as you sleep, not unlike you probably watched me as I slept as a newborn baby and as a young girl, and wonder, in awe, in calm, and in worry. A parent watches a child sleep with anticipation of a future. An adult child watches a sick parent sleep with a sense of the past. You are finally still and quiet. You, a man who I know is chaotic and loud. We rest in this calm as you fall in and out of slumber and I grade papers. I need to study your face, memorize it, because I know I'll need it one day. Yet the you now is not the you I want to remember. “In a few days, I'll be back with over a hundred students, giving lectures, attending meetings, going to a concert, a lunch with a friend, a performance of The Vagina Monologues. And in my week ahead, I worry about being too busy, about running from one activity to the next, breathless. “Yet one day, Daddy, you did this too, right? How would you restructure those days now? What did you hope for? What do you look for now? You look tired, though I can't tell if you're tired of this life. Yesterday I brought you coffee from Caribou with one of their napkins that made a jab at Starbucks that said, 'Our coffee is smooth and fresh because burnt and bitter were already taken.' Whenever I see great lines and logos I think of you. Your creativity still shines through as we leaf through metropolitan home and marvel at minimalist spaces. Your stained sweatpants are pulled up halfway toward your chest and your stomach looks distended. “Earlier today I saw as you put imaginary pills to your mouth with your fingers, something I assume to be a self-soothing ritual you performed after the nurse told you it was not yet time for more medication. Being in Cleveland, I'm surrounded by childhood friends hanging out with their dads, younger men than you in their sixties and early seventies. Robust, athletic, energetic men vigorously playing tennis and golf, working, traveling and chasing after their dreams, not figments of their imaginations in thin air. “Oh, Daddy. Your eyes open suddenly, and you ask, ‘What are you writing?' I quickly respond, ‘Oh, nothing really, it's just for school.'" LATE-STAGE CONFRONTATIONS (1:01:06) BLAIR HODGES: That's Deborah Cohan, professor of sociology at the University of South Carolina Beaufort. She earned her PhD in Sociology and a Joint Master of Arts in Women's Studies and Sociology at Brandeis University. That excerpt is from her book, Welcome to Wherever We Are: A Memoir of Family, Caregiving, and Redemption. You mentioned a little bit about this already, Deborah, but maybe just take one moment and talk about the ways your father maybe tried to reckon with the abusive dynamics of your relationship later in life. If there was any indication that he came to regret how he treated you. You talk about, for example, when he tried to volunteer at a domestic violence clinic. Even in that context, it didn't really come up. It doesn't sound like you had many opportunities, or that you felt safe enough or whatever, to straightforwardly confront him and say this was an abusive situation. DEBORAH COHAN: I certainly tried. There was a time when I was doing the abuse intervention work and I was working late into the night and our groups ran from 8pm to 10pm, after men had worked their jobs and then came to this program, and then I was leaving Cambridge—This was when I was in Boston, and leaving late at night, 10:30, 11 o'clock, and walking into a parking lot by myself and driving home. And I remember this one day my dad and I were on the phone, he was so concerned for my safety. It really upset him that I was doing this, and doing it late. And I did in that moment really try to question his fear and to try to help him understand, though it didn't really work, but to really try to say, ‘Dad, the things that these guys do are no different than things you've done. I'm not afraid of them. That was not an issue for me.' I guess he didn't want to also see me driving around late at night. But the reality is had I been afraid I wouldn't have been an effective counselor for these guys either. I had to try to help my dad understand that I was working with them in as fearless and compassionate a way as possible, but I guess in that moment I also felt fearless and compassionate in the conversation with him, of trying to say, ‘Dad, you're labeling these guys as monsters, as demons. And actually, your behavior is on a continuum with theirs.' And that's disturbing to hear from your daughter, obviously. But it was important for me to say. So I'm really glad I had a moment to tell him that. It didn't lead to a very productive conversation because he, like many men in the program, still wanted to minimize aspects of their behavior or rationalize it, or it was like this—"But Deb, I never hit you. Deb, I never did this. I never did that. Like that would be horrifying. But what I did wasn't as bad." I didn't really let him get away with that, and that's another reason why, for me, writing this book was critical. Because there really is not enough out there to highlight the damage of verbal and emotional and psychological abuse and threats. There's so much out there around physical abuse, and also sexual abuse. Movies and books and things like that. And those are really important cultural documents we have in the world. But the thing that also has happened is, people don't understand enough about the damage of the emotional abuse and the verbal abuse. And as a result, with so much less written about it, I really felt this tremendous ethical responsibility to write the book. SEE YOU AROUND (1:05:06) BLAIR HODGES: You talk about how much your dad is still with you. You close the book by saying you see him in so much of life. I wondered what's an example of that? And whether you think that fades over time at all? DEBORAH COHAN: No, I don't think any of this fades. I definitely don't think time heals everything or any of that stuff that people say. No, I do—I see him in so much, I guess in the past six years or so I have gotten much more involved as a public sociologist, translating ideas and concepts and theories and things for the larger public. So getting quoted in major news outlets and doing a lot of writing and things like that. That's probably the part where I so miss my father, because he would get such a tremendous kick out of the fact that I wrote for Teen Vogue, or that I, you know, was quoted in Time magazine, or I wrote a piece for Newsweek recently. I mean he just, that was his bread and butter. That's what he loved. I mean, he would have loved that I was on this podcast. He would probably be really angry and humiliated about some of what I'd be talking about. But he definitely had this overwhelming pride and interest in my accomplishments. And that has been a really hard thing to deal with because my career really took off since I've lived here, and that's when he died. And he always dreamed of living in the Carolinas, or in New Mexico, or Arizona. So sometimes I feel like I'm sort of living out something he really wanted that he didn't actualize. I think he would be pretty over the moon about the fact that I moved to South Carolina and have made a good life for myself here. I'm a lot happier as a person than I ever was before. Some of that is probably healing from abuse. It's being in a new relationship. It's so many different things. Like, I wish he could know me now. I wish I could talk to him and know him now. It's just such a strange thing, you know? But I do feel like, hopefully somehow, he knows. I had him for a long time. I'm partnered with a man whose dad died when he was ten years old. I'm often thinking to myself, "Man, I wish he knew Mike." I mean, he really missed out. He really missed out, and Mike missed out knowing his father. And I didn't have that. But instead, I had this very torturous, very complicated relationship. It's really tricky. But it's interesting because the conversations I grew up having with my dad that were really fun and provocative and helpful to me were often conversations around advertising and marketing and all that kind of stuff. Funny enough, my partner, Mike, that's his thing! He's a Director of Media Relations. So here I am still having those conversations at dinner. It's a little bit bizarre. **REGRETS, CHALLENGES, & SURPRISES (1:08:19) BLAIR HODGES: In some ways, that circle continues to close. DEBORAH COHAN: Exactly. BLAIR HODGES: Well, Deborah, let's conclude with the segment Regrets, Challenges, & Surprises. This is when you can talk about anything you regret about the book now that it's out, what the most challenging thing about writing it was, or what kind of surprises you encountered as you created this book. You can speak to one, two, or all three of those things. Regrets, challenges, and surprises. DEBORAH COHAN: I would say I don't have any regrets, which I'm so pleased about because of the nature of the topic. And the fact that surviving abuse and dealing with caregiving are riddled with regrets, the fact that I could write a book and not have regrets about it is pretty remarkable to me. BLAIR HODGES: You didn't even find any typos or anything like that? [laughs] DEBORAH COHAN: There might be I don't know— BLAIR HODGES: I didn't notice any. [laughter] DEBORAH COHAN: There might be, I don't know, but I'm kind of crazy about that kind of stuff though. My dad was too. Oh my gosh, I inherited my spelling and all that craziness from him. BLAIR HODGES: Funny. I didn't notice any. So no regrets. Alright, well, challenges and surprises? DEBORAH COHAN: I mean I don't have any regrets! I don't feel like there's anything I revealed in the book that I wish I hadn't revealed. There's nothing I wish I had included that I didn't include, that kind of thing, which feels really good to me. Yeah, I mean I actually have been thinking about this a lot as I've been writing this new book I'm working on, because it's that sense of, you just really don't want to forget something. You want to make sure that whatever you wanted to say is in it. BLAIR HODGES: Once it's out, it's out, so. DEBORAH COHAN: Right. And at the same time, though, I've started to grow more comfortable with the fact that writing itself is a process and that I will come to think about things and know things in new and different ways. And I guess, when you ask what's surprising, I will say it has surprised me that the thing I was most afraid of—which was the death of a parent or both parents—has been also freeing. It's been a pretty startling revelation I guess you could say. BLAIR HODGES: Is it hard to talk about that? Some people might say,

Lots of talk about f**king during Easter Brunch with Cynna and El Sancho's sister/brother(?)...our special desert rabbit trans PolyEster Von Cameltoe! Celebrity Guests - A shit ton of Rabbit Superstars: Cadbury Bunny, Energizer Bunny, Bunnicula, Thumper, Hocus Pocus, Trix Rabbit, and even Bugs Bunny! Hear a fun version of "The Bunny Hop" and also a "Desert Doom" rendition. Of course...the evil spirit of Randy "Macho Man" Savage enters into the set again and takes over the festivities. Thankfully, El Sancho and Cynna from STICKY DOLL are now trained in Exorcisms! FIND ALL THINGS STICKY DOLL HERE https://linktr.ee/stickydoll (0:00) Show intro (9:45) Moxee Correspondent P.A.L.™ (22:28) "Bunny Hop" Live Performance (24:35) "Bunny Hop" Desert Doom style (32:50) Easter Orgy w/ Celebrity Rabbits (38:00) LIVE Exorcism! (50:47) Danny Blaze C.U.N.T. SONG (55:05) M.A.M.™ (Mr Announcer Man) "If this video offends you please go to church after you watch it." -El Sancho, STICKY DOLL ★ STICKY DOLL is a Industrial Punk Band and Funny as Fuck Podcasters. All STICKY DOLL Music is 100% BASS & DRUMS ONLY - No Guitar ★ Official Music and Merch: http://stickydoll.com ★ All Videos: https://youtube.com/stickydoll ★ Watch all our Live Stream shows at https://facebook.com/stickydoll AND listen to our Podcast "In Bed w/ STICKY DOLL" on YouTube Music, Spotify, Apple, or wherever YOU listen! FEATURED STICKY DOLL SONG "Uncontrollable Urge (Devo redux)" from the upcoming EP "Killed the Desert." #punk #goth #podcast #comedy #cartoon #animation

Apple's "1984" commercial, the Energizer Bunny, and the launch of Air Jordans all have one thing in common. They're all creations of legendary ad man Lee Clow.As creative director of Chiat/Day, Lee spent decades making work that transcended advertising and became cultural icons. He shared a close relationship with Steve Jobs, and his Think Different campaign revitalized Apple, transforming it into the brand we recognize today.As someone whose career started in advertising, Lee's a hero of mine, and I was thrilled to sit down with him. He shares the entertaining stories behind his most iconic work and some insights into Steve Jobs's leadership, his rare ability to fearlessly embrace creativity.This...is A Bit of Optimism.For more on Lee and his work, check out:Apple's "1984" Macintosh commercialLee in the Creative Hall of FameSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peter just spent a few days at the 2024 International Pizza Expo, where he sat down with the "Energizer Bunny of Pizza," and frequent guest, Scott Wiener, who seems to know everyone in the pizza mega-verse. Together, they cover everything from emerging trends (based on this year's pizza competition at the Expo, where Scott was a lead judge), the growing impact of Slice Out Hunger, the non-profit hunger relief program formed by Scott a number of years ago, the ever-popular pizza tours that first put Scott on the map 20 years ago, Scott's Guinness World Record Pizza Box collection, and most important, the upcoming three-day pizza intensive course that Peter and Scott will co-teach at Pizza University, May 13-15. Get all the details here, in this week's latest episode of Pizza Quest.Click here for the video versions of Pizza Quest. If you count on HRN content, become a monthly sustaining donor at heritageradionetwork.org/donate.Pizza Quest is Powered by Simplecast.

There's a lightbulb that's been burning for a whopping 120 years straight, like, non-stop! They call it the "Eternal Light" because, seriously, it just won't quit. Started shining back in 1901 in a firehouse in California and, man, it's still going strong. Folks are scratching their heads, wondering how on earth it's managed to keep the party going for so darn long. It's like the Energizer Bunny of lightbulbs—just keeps on glowing! What is its secret: could it be the material that makes it never-ending? #brightside Credit: Xenon short arc: Atlant, CC BY 2.5 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/..., https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi... Animation is created by Bright Side. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music by Epidemic Sound https://www.epidemicsound.com Check our Bright Side podcast on Spotify and leave a positive review! https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD... Subscribe to Bright Side: https://goo.gl/rQTJZz ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook:   / brightside   Instagram:   / brightside.official   TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.of... Stock materials (photos, footages and other): https://www.depositphotos.com https://www.shutterstock.com https://www.eastnews.ru ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New Study: Plant-Based Foods Could Improve Men's Sexual Health After Prostate Cancer Treatment by Charlotte Pointing at VegNews.com   Original post: https://vegnews.com/2024/2/plant-based-diet-sexual-health-prostate-cancer  Related Episodes: 547: After a Prostate Cancer Diagnosis Spurred Me to Go Plant-Based, I Feel Like the Energizer Bunny by Michael Andrus at ForksOverKnives.com   502: Meat and Milk Linked to Colon Cancer, Study Confirms by Nicole Axworthy at VegNews.com   494: Milk Drinkers See 60% Higher Rates of Prostate Cancer by Meghan Edwards at ForksOverKnives.com   148: Fight Erectile Dysfunction and 4 More Reasons to Go Plant Based This November by Josh Cullimore, MD at PCRM.org Launched in 2000, VegNews is the largest vegan media brand in the world. They have a best-selling plant-based magazine, and they create amazing content from food and fashion to travel, celebrity interviews, beauty and health info, a meal planner, and vegan travel excursions. Their Guide section on their website is full of great information and they have an online shop where you can find cookbooks, foods, kitchen tools, vegan meal delivery services. They also have a website, VeganWeddings.com. Please visit www.VegNews.com for a wealth of resources.    How to support the podcast: Share with others. Recommend the podcast on your social media. Follow/subscribe to the show wherever you listen. Buy some vegan/plant based merch: https://www.plantbasedbriefing.com/shop    Follow Plant Based Briefing on social media: Twitter: @PlantBasedBrief YouTube: YouTube.com/PlantBasedBriefing  Facebook: Facebook.com/PlantBasedBriefing  LinkedIn: Plant Based Briefing Podcast Instagram: @PlantBasedBriefing #vegan #plantbased #plantbasedbriefing #honey #wildbees #pollinators #beekeeping #ethicalhoney  

Back with another episode. Work shenanigans, per usual. Formula 1 is two races into the season and it already seems like the Max Verstappen show. Is this good or bad for the sport? George learned to drive stick shift. He apparently also just keeps going and going and going. A history of Tequila is mentioned. March Madness is upon us so we do our own bracket; choosing the best energy drink. All this and more. Tune in to find out. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thegoodtalkspod/message

Do you drink coffee? When I posted the video "Why I Quit Caffeine (and you should too!!)" on YouTube in 2017, I quickly realized just how passionate folks are about their coffee rituals. Fast forward to 2024 - and I still don't drink coffee. Not a drop. Not even in ice cream! But I'm not entirely anti-caffeine. I do, however, still have a cup of tea every morning, but I tread carefully because too much caffeine turns me into the Energizer Bunny with insomnia. Many of my experiments start with a curious "I wonder what would happen if…" and giving up coffee was no exception. The result? No regrets. Waking up is a breeze, falling asleep is a dream, and that notorious 3 pm crash is a distant memory. And before you scroll away - hear me out - coffee affects the adenosine receptors in your brain. Drink coffee, create more receptors, crave more coffee—it's a deliciously vicious cycle. Stay caffeinated (or not)! ☕️ You'll learn: What adenosine is and how caffeine works in your brain Why you need more coffee to feel awake And how to be more energized without having to rely on coffee All the links: [Why I Quit Caffeine (and you should too) Video] Join me for the next Movement Mavens Retreat! www.aewellness.com/retreat/ 30 days to more strength + flexibility with the Mobility Mastery Toolkit www.aewellness.com/podcast - Show notes, links and more. Come hang out with me on Instagram @hollaformala : https://instagram.com/hollaformala/ TikTok @ aewellness Bodywork Starter Guide - learn the 6 places you need to roll right now for quick relief, plus the reason why what you've tried so far has only given you a temporary fix. Download the guide for free now at www.aewellness.com/bodywork 818-396-6501 is the Body Nerd Hotline - how do you build consistency and/or where are you getting stuck? Drop me a line and let me know your body nerd hacks - you might just hear your voice on a future episode! Today's episode is brought to you by Mobility Mastery Toolkit. Forget icing and stretching - and get a simple program you can do on your own that actually works. The Toolkit includes 30-days of exercises so you know exactly what to do to improve the mobility of your hips, lower back, feet, neck and shoulders. With video demos and a full-body mobility workout calendar, you're just 15-mins a day from feeling stronger and more flexible. Get $20 off when you use the code MASTERY at www.mobilitytoolkit.co

You know that feeling when it's the day before your next podcast episode is supposed to air and you find yourself staring at the keyboard wondering "Omg... what on earth am I going to talk about?!"I used to HARDCORE STRUGGLE with coming up with fresh content ideas on my topic when it felt like I'd already talked about everything under the sun — multiple times.I had no clue that I was approaching it totally the wrong way, though. Too often, podcast hosts (our clients included) think they have to resign themselves to the fact that coming up with content ideas after you've spent 142 episodes talking about everything there is to know about your topic is gonna be a soul-sucking slog from there on out.When, really, your case of podcaster's block is actually caused by something else altogether (and once you realize what it is, you're gonna be like "Oh OKAY I can't believe I didn't see it before.”)Trust me: creating a podcast that's FUN for you + interesting for your listener is about to get a whoooole lot easier. And once you see it, you'll be cranking out podcast episodes like the Energizer Bunny on steroids. Or with the peak energy of my six year old at 5:30 am every morning.If you want to know my secret sauce for obliterating podcaster's block anytime it tries to rear its ugly head, hit play and let's dive in. Liked this episode? Share it on social and tag me @thecourtneyelmer Love the show? Leave a 5-star review and let me know!Want to launch a Top 100 podcast of your own? Join me for our next free, no pitch, LIVE WorkshopJoin 1500+ entrepreneurs and get access to the weekly Own Your Voice digital newsletter with insider tips on how to start and grow top-ranked podcast so you can create the greater influence, income, and impact you deserve. Connect with Courtney: Website Instagram Linked In

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit smokeempodcast.substack.comAmerican Nightmare is a docu-series on Netflix that has everyone talking. Sarah and Nancy are no exception! They discuss the case of the “real-life Gone Girl” who became a 2015 media sensation after her boyfriend reported a home invasion and a kidnapping with details so bizarre they couldn't be real … or could they? (Conversation contains spoilers.) Also:* AI Nancy: Nicer and prettier than IRL Nancy?* Glamping in a cave* Nancy is the Energizer Bunny of air travel* Sarah recommends Nancy's writing from Israel, though she's read none of it* Matt Welch interviews Bill Maher, need we say more?* High-functioning daily pot smoker: Hot or not?* Sarah's least favorite Taylor Swift song* Taylor Swift's boyfriend is named … Chad?* Knockers, milkers, fun bags, “cowboy pillows”* Fight! Fight! (Not really a fight, but a debate about journalism)* Lie detector tests: Mostly accurate or junk science? Yes!* Take it from a detective: Cops do not throw chairs when questioning suspects* Swiping right on that serial rapist* Wait, which college scandal?* Sarah's journey to learn more about Vince McMahon other than the detail that he might have pooped on a woman's head during sexPlus: Super Bowl speculation, Michael Jackson's moonwalk, Ben Affleck rescues hostages — and more!

Katherine, (Kat), Magnoli grew up in New York and definitely has an unstoppable New York attitude. At birth it was discovered that Kat was born with Spinal Bifida. As a result, she is a paraplegic and uses a wheelchair. Unlike many, Kat's parents fully embraced Kat and the many gifts she has exhibited over her 39 years thus far. In grammar school Kat experienced a number of bullying events, but worked through them with the help of her parents. Those childhood experiences and others Kat will describe shaped her decision to advocate for persons, especially children, with disabilities. She works a great deal to advocate on behalf of children with autism. As we learn during our conversation, we share in our own ways many similar experiences especially concerning how people react to disabilities. Also, both of us are authors. I leave it to Kat to tell you about her books which you can procure. If all her advocacy and writing work aren't enough, Katherine is Miss Wheelchair Florida for 2017. Is that cool or what? I believe you will enjoy our conversation during this episode and I hope you come away with a deeper understanding about disabilities on all levels. About the Guest: Katherine Magnoli is an inclusion advocate. She began her journey of advocacy by writing and publishing Children Adventure Books about a super hero in a wheelchair . Her books are titled The Adventures of KatGirl. Over the years, Katherine has read her stories to thousands of children. Since then, Katherine has expanded her advocacy by participating and being the title holder of Ms. Wheelchair Florida 2017. During her time Katherine developed the Abilities Program, whose activities were used during Disability Awareness Month and Inclusion Week in 2018. She, also, created beach access in Sunny Isles Beach, Bal Harbour and Surfside. After this, she joined Miami Inclusion Alliance to help bring awareness to the epidemic of Abuse against People with Disabilities. In 2021, she was awarded the Idelio Valdez Advocacy and Leadership Award by the Florida Developmental Disability Council and became the representative of District 11 for the Commission of Disabilities Issues Board. Which, she is now the secretary, as well. In addition, Katherine is the Founder, and President, of KatGirl and Friends Inc. It helps educate children about inclusion through her book series. Finally, Katherine has recently begun disability etiquette training and has had the privilege of training students at University Level and prestigious Organizations such as American Civil Liberties Union. Katherine is currently very active on social media helping educate the masses on inclusion of people with disabilities. In the near future; Katherine will take part in the Family Cafe in Orlando, Miami Dade County's ADA Celebration and will be a virtual panelist for the Space Coastal Progressive Alliance to discuss issues pertaining to services for people with disabilities. Ways to connect with Kat: https://katgirlandfriends.com/ 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 also subscribe in your favorite podcast app. 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 ** 01:20 Well, hi and welcome once again to unstoppable mindset. Today, I get to have the honor of chatting with an author and a person who was Miss wheelchair in 2017. I've never met a miss wheelchair before, although my wife of 40 years was always in a wheelchair. So wheelchairs are not new to me. But a miss wheelchair is a new experience and an author. I have written books and love to talk to people who are authors and Kat Magnoli is definitely an advocate and a very prolific person in a lot of different ways. And we're gonna get to all of that. So Kat or Katherine, whichever you prefer, whoever you are. Welcome to unstoppable mindset. **Kat Magnoli ** 02:05 Thank you so much, Michael, for having me today. This is such an honor to be with you. And let's get it started as you'd like. **Michael Hingson ** 02:15 Well, we got introduced by Sheldon Lewis who also like I do works at accessiBe. And Sheldon had was interviewed on our podcast a long time ago. Well, we had a great conversation. And he's been kind enough to tell us about other people like you ever since. So, well. Let's start. Tell me a little bit about the early Katherine growing up or the early cat growing up, you know, a child and some of the early the early stuff about cat we should know. **Kat Magnoli ** 02:44 Okay, well, first off, I am the youngest of seven children. I'm the only person in my family with a disability. And that was an interesting way to grow up. Because, you know, I was kind of sheltered. My parents were both very protective of me. But my siblings, you know, they never treated me as if I was in a wheelchair growing up, they always wanted me to be a part of the games that they were playing. And they made sure that they adapted it to my needs. They never were like, oh, you can't do this, you know. And so I felt very accepted in that way. And I also at the time, was going to a school just for children with disabilities. So I really never experienced at a young age, you know, any form of bullying or discrimination or anything like that. That is until I was eight years old. And I was put into the public school district in a small town in New York called Yorktown Heights. And they, you know, I was the only person with a disability throughout all my schooling. And that was when I really got to see how people without a disability, treated those with a treated those of us with a disability. I went through a lot of bullying, a lot of ostracizing a lot of, you know, oh, you're a liability. So you can't come on this class trip. Or you can't come on the camping trip or not being invited to birthday parties. actually remember this one story that you know, my neighbor had a birthday party, and it's a pool party and I wasn't invited. And she was in my class. And all my classmates were there and so they actually saw that I live next door and they walked over to my house. And the mother of the little girl was like What's going on? Like, Why did everyone leave? And my mom was like, Well, you didn't invite my daughter. So now her classmates are coming to say hello. And the mother tried to fix the situation by inviting me. And my mom was like, No, like you're not going. So that's one of the stories that I like to tell because it shows how great of a mom I have. And speaking of my mom, I just want to tell you this one other story about her. You know, as I said, I grew up in a large family, and I was the only one with a disability in my family. And I asked her why that was. And she told me this beautiful story about the spine being like a magical tree. And she told me that it had these little magical leaves called nerves that help you move your arms and legs, and I'm missing some of my magical leaves. But then she went on to say that even though I can't walk, that I can do anything else that I put my mind to. So that just gives you a little bit of a glimpse of the good and the bad of my earlier years. So **Michael Hingson ** 06:13 to skip around a little bit. Oh, I don't know how long ago. How long ago was that? Roughly? That may be giving away your age, but I'll ask anyway. **Kat Magnoli ** 06:24 How long ago was which one? Well, **Michael Hingson ** 06:29 so sorry. So let me do it this way. How old are you? **Kat Magnoli ** 06:34 I am 39 years. Okay. **Michael Hingson ** 06:37 Okay, great. Yeah, so, so now, so the birthday party and all that stuff took place? Roughly 30 years ago, **Kat Magnoli ** 06:45 about 30 years ago. Okay. So here's, here's **Michael Hingson ** 06:49 the question. Do you think that that kind of behavior would still be exhibited today? **Kat Magnoli ** 07:00 Um, I can't speak for all parents. So I don't know. But I can say this. I think that there's a really wonderful movement going on in society, where the media, and literature and all that is really starting to embrace the disability community more than they did, let's say, 30 years ago? No, I think that there's more education about the disability community out there. And I think that that's helping make bullying maybe less, hopefully, I mean, I don't know, I can't really say, Yeah, **Michael Hingson ** 07:45 you know, I think things from my perspective, I think things are better, but, and the but is that it's all about education. And there are a lot of people who still really haven't decided that disabilities are not something that makes us less than they are. And so it does depend on the individual. I think that there has been some progress. But we have, I think, a long way to go. Yes, I agree. And so that's something that we we have to work on. I know that as a person who is blind, I continue to see lots of challenges. And I think that the reality is that we emphasize eyesight, so much in our lives, that we view people who, who don't have eyesight, or whose eyesight is less than perfect. We view those people as less than we are, we still haven't dropped the expression visually impaired. And that's got so many negative connotations, because visually, we're not different, because we're blind. But the professionals adopted that long time ago. And we continue to see impaired, well, we're not impaired, you know, you're not mobility impaired, you use a wheelchair, you're in a wheelchair. But as your mom pointed out, that doesn't make you impaired or less than anyone else. Because while you can't walk, there are short people who can't do the things that taller people can do. And even tall people can't necessarily do all the things in the same easy way that some short people can do because they have to fit into smaller places sometimes, or whatever the case happens to be. And what we don't really understand is that disability is not a lack of ability, but rather it's a characteristic. And we all have it in one way or another. **Kat Magnoli ** 09:39 I am 100% on board with what you're saying. And another thing that I like to reiterate, it's kind of in the same sense of what you're saying is that the disability community is actually a community that anyone can join at any time because someone can wake up and they can be blind or someone can wake up and get into an accident, and then be in a wheelchair or someone can go dead, you know, maybe listening to too much loud music throughout their life, whatever the case may be it or just like a gradual thing that happens as you get older, you know. And so it's it's not something that's so taboo as maybe society has made it out to be throughout the years, because it really is like the most common thing that it's it's the only minority that anyone can join, you know? **Michael Hingson ** 10:39 Yeah. Well, and I would submit actually, something slightly different. I agree with you. But what I also would say is that the reality is, every person with eyesight has a disability. And I've talked about it on this podcast before, the issue is that in 1878, Thomas Edison invented the electric light bulb. While Why did he do that? He did that so that people with eyesight would have light on demand and would be able to function when it would otherwise be dark at night, or whatever. And so over the years, we've put so much emphasis on developing the technology, that light is around us pretty much all the time. But the but the other part about it is until it's not like if you're in a building, and there's a power failure, you have to go scrambling whoever you are for a phone or a flashlight or something to turn on the light. And if you can't find one, you're in a generally a world of hurt, because of the fact that it's dark, and you can't see what to do. So every sighted person has the disability of being light dependent, whether they like it or not. And technology has mostly covered it up. But it doesn't change the fact that the disability is still there. We just as a society don't like to acknowledge that, because light is so readily available most of the time. **Kat Magnoli ** 12:04 That is fascinating. I never really even thought of that. I definitely got Wow, that's amazing. See, that proves my point that you don't even have to go through an accident or anything that I just mentioned, like, just take away. Something that helps you enhance that sense. And that sense is no longer there. So it's really interesting what you just said, I'm fascinated by it, **Michael Hingson ** 12:37 we've got to get to the point where we recognize that disability does not mean a lack of ability. You know, people say well, but disability starts with this well, so does discretion. So it is it mean, a lack of question, whatever that is, or, you know, any number of things just doesn't need to be a negative term. And we've got to grow up to recognize that as a as a society, I understand that people with eyesight do have advantages, in some ways, because the world is being created around what they have access to that a lot of us don't, but that doesn't mean that we're less than they, whether it's a wheelchair or whatever, **Kat Magnoli ** 13:19 of course, of course, 100%. And actually, just to keep going on this topic for a second, I read an amazing book called no pity. I don't know if you've ever heard of it. **Michael Hingson ** 13:32 I haven't. But that's okay, go here. One of the things **Kat Magnoli ** 13:36 that they stress in the story, and it's not only a story, it's actually like a it's a book that talks about the entire history of the disability rights movement. And one of the things that they stressed in it is that disability no longer exists when you make things accessible to us. So for example, me, if, if there's a ramp, and there's a button for the door, I no longer have a disability because I can get into any building, if those things make it accessible for me. For for instance, for you, if there's Braille, your disability goes away, because you're able to understand and communicate in a in a better way by being able to read, you know, the bumps, and the Braille signage. So you can know where to go in a building, let's say like the elevator. And so I think that that's a really cool concept that disability is kind of like perception only because if you make the world more accessible, then no one really has a disability. That's the flip side of it all. And **Michael Hingson ** 15:02 that's the real point. Right? Yeah. Yeah. And that's and that's that way. So are you, quadriplegic or paraplegic? paraplegic? So So you see, you can hit people upside the head if they start getting too and setting them up people with disabilities write to you. **Kat Magnoli ** 15:23 I tried to be very nice and to educate first. Yeah. But if they don't listen, then I might have to run over a tower to my **Michael Hingson ** 15:33 wife, when sometimes we've gone to places even like Disneyland, although it's been a while. Got so very frustrated, because being in a chair, and she also was a para. We could be talking and sitting somewhere or just walking along and people just jump over the foot rests rather than having the consideration to walk around. Because they're in such a hurry to get somewhere. People are people are amazing. **Kat Magnoli ** 16:00 Yeah, yeah, I that's one of my biggest pet peeves. Another one is people just wheeling me up a ramp, like as I'm wheeling, and then someone of total stranger will come up behind me and think that they're doing a kind gesture. Yeah. And you start pushing me up the ramp, and it's scary, it startles me, you know, it scares me. So I always flip it out, you know, to the other side, where I'm like, How would someone feel if I just like started pushing them on their backside, and like toiling them to essentially walk faster, you know, like, that's not very nice, I wouldn't be able to do that I'd probably get arrested if I did that. Because you can't just put your hands on someone's backside and start busting them. So it's the same concept, people think that they're doing something nice, or that they're, you know, you know, not bothering us by like asking us to move over or whatever, I'd rather you say, excuse me, then push me or jump over me. You know, I'd rather you acknowledge me and be like, Excuse me, I need to get through, like, find a way to do it? Or **Michael Hingson ** 17:13 do you need help? I'd be glad to push you up the ramp if you would like I mean, but the point is to ask **Kat Magnoli ** 17:19 exactly the point is to ask, it's really not that hard. No, **Michael Hingson ** 17:24 it's not that hard at all. So I'm curious. What do you think of the truncated domes, all the dots that go across driveways, and so on to warn people when you're at the bottom of a ramp or, or going into a street? They've put those out saying blind people need to have those warnings and so on? What do you think of that as a person in a wheelchair? **Kat Magnoli ** 17:53 Well, let me say this, if it is good for people with blindness, then I think it's necessary. However, for a person with a disability. Again, it can be kind of a hazard almost, I will say, because, let's say one of my wheels, you know, gets stuck in between one of the bumps, I could fall forward, if it's a quarterly made structure, you know, I could fall forward. So for me, it can sometimes be a hazard. And it has been in the past. However, if it's good for people with blindness, then I'm all for it. And I'm accepting of it. And that's all that I'm gonna say about it. **Michael Hingson ** 18:40 The the place where it becomes valuable is not so much on ramps, or even in train stations, because if a blind person is using a cane properly, they'll be able to detect the edge of a train well of a train track or if the tracks are dropped down, like in a lot of subway stations or whatever. The the comment is where you have to have it so blind people know that they're coming to the edge. That's what the cane does. Although a lot of people don't necessarily use their canes well, so the compromise was to put those those dots in, but I know my wife hated them because it just shook her violently every time we went over them. **Kat Magnoli ** 19:30 Yeah, I definitely have noticed with my friends who have spinal cord injury that tend to have spasms below the waist, that it does trigger, you know, well for her more shook her neck and very sad and you know, yeah, well, it's **Michael Hingson ** 19:48 it's it's one of those things that that there are places where where they can help if you've got a very flat curb, not even a curb cut or a ramp but you It's such a gradual ramp down that you don't really notice it and the curb is, or the entrance to the street is flat so that you don't really have a noticeable demarcation between the sidewalk and the street. There is a place where it's relevant to put something but yeah, it's it's interesting, everyone has different challenges and some people love the the dots, and some people don't. And it's always a matter of trying to figure out the best way to make it as accessible and usable by the most or by most everyone and people have to adopt and adapt to different ways of doing stuff. **Kat Magnoli ** 20:40 Well, I'm actually going to flip the question and ask you something now if that's okay. **Michael Hingson ** 20:47 Oh, sure. This is a conversation. **Kat Magnoli ** 20:51 What is your opinion about ramps as a person who's blind? Does it hinder you or help you in any kind of way, not affect you at all? Well, **Michael Hingson ** 21:02 if it's a ramp, that's why I'm mentioned the very flat curbs. So from from my perspective, I can go either way ramps or stairs. However, it is my belief that ramps are very important. So I don't mind at all having ramps, but I don't believe that ramps enhance my ability to walk around. Because I'll use a cane or a guide dog and I will go where I need to go. And if there's a ramp, it's fine. If there are stairs, that's fine. And I realized that stairs generally take up less room than ramps. But having been married to a lady in a wheelchair for 40 years, I totally value ramps and have never had a problem with ramps so ramps don't bother me at all. **Kat Magnoli ** 21:53 Okay, that's interesting. **Michael Hingson ** 21:57 So on I am a firm believer that that ramps need to be available not just in the back of a building or whatever, but they should be readily available. So that people in chairs are people who need ramps. people with strollers just older people can walk in the front entrance of a building just as easily as I can. Even though I can walk up the stairs, so I'm fine with ramps. **Kat Magnoli ** 22:27 Okay, well, thank you. That's, that's very interesting to hear. **Michael Hingson ** 22:31 So it is kind of one of the things that that we we all do deal with. But I think I'm what I'm really surprised that is and we watched. We watched my wife passed away last November. So it's just me now. But as I tell people, she's up there somewhere. And if I misbehave, I'm going to hear about it. So I gotta be a nice guy. **Kat Magnoli ** 22:56 Well, I'm so sorry for your loss. **Michael Hingson ** 22:58 Well, it's been 40 years. And as I say, the spirit sometimes moves faster than the body and her body just finally kind of gave out and it is what we have to deal with. But, you know, the, the other the other side of that is that, you know, I learned a lot from her and having 40 years of memories and marriages is a good thing. And it it helped broaden perspectives in a lot of different ways. So I certainly have no complaints about it. **Kat Magnoli ** 23:33 That is so beautiful. Oh my goodness, you're gonna make me cry. **Michael Hingson ** 23:39 Well, like I said, she's somewhere and if I misbehave, I'm going to hear about it. So I will, I will continue to just be a decent person and behave well. **Kat Magnoli ** 23:50 That's all. That's all that all of us can do. **Michael Hingson ** 23:54 Yeah, that's about all there is right? That's all we can do. Yeah. So tell me a little bit more about you. You grew up did you go to college? Yes, **Kat Magnoli ** 24:06 I did. I actually got my AAA degree. My associate's in arts degree for exceptional student education. I really wanted to be a teacher for children with disabilities. However due to my health that ended up not being the case. But I still have my degree which is great. **Michael Hingson ** 24:35 What do you think of the the terminology Exceptional Children? **Kat Magnoli ** 24:41 Um, I think a lot of the time we spend too much time nitpicking. Yeah. At terminology. I think whatever a person is comfortable with is very like subjective. Like there are some people that don't like People First language they don't like the term, people with disabilities, they like, disabled **Michael Hingson ** 25:07 disabled person. **Kat Magnoli ** 25:08 I personally do not I like people first language, I want to be seen as a person that has a disability. So I think it's just all it's very subjective. It's however you feel. But, you know, the school district felt like it was a better transition to go from special ed, or special education, to exceptional student education. **Michael Hingson ** 25:37 And, you know, the only thing I would say about that is that, and I agree with you about People First, by the way, but I also think that we have to look at terminology in the light of what is it conveyed to people about us, like I mentioned, visually impaired. The fact of the matter is that continues to promote the concept that we're less. So a much better term such as like, happens with people who are deaf, it's not deaf or hearing impaired, it's deaf or hard of hearing, and that is what the deaf community likes, with good reason. And so, visually impaired isn't nearly as progressive and as helpful attitudinally and socially as blind or low vision. And so I think there is some relevance to recognizing that terminology can be part of the problem, rather than always being part of the solution. **Kat Magnoli ** 26:40 I 100% agree. And that's why I think that as a person within the community, when someone approaches you, whether it's you or AI, it's our obligation to educate them and let them know how we want to be referred to. Because again, there might be some people in your community that don't mind the term visually impaired. Maybe that's how they refer to themselves. There are and there are. And so I again, I think it's really about how we educate others on how we want to be addressed. Well, **Michael Hingson ** 27:22 that's part of it. And the other part is, and I've had discussions with some people say, I don't I find visually impaired, I'm impaired, I'm visually impaired, until they think it through, or until somebody talks with him about it. And gets them to really explore what they're saying, when they say impaired, for example. And that's part of it. And so in the blindness world, we haven't grown up yet, nearly as much as, say, people who are deaf have in terms of not being hearing impaired, but rather hard of hearing. So the fact is there there are people who are blind, and I've had discussions with them who say, No, I'm visually impaired, and I point out the issue. And if I get them to think about it, they usually come back and say, I never thought about it that way. Just like we talked about earlier, every person on this planet has a disability. And the fact is that most people are light dependent. And that's his disability, too. **Kat Magnoli ** 28:30 That's so true. Yeah. And actually, it's interesting, because a few years ago, I had the privilege of making friends with a man named Daniel Ruis, who is a big advocate for the ADEA, which is, for all of you that might not know is the Americans with Disabilities Act law. And so he makes places accessible, so on and so on. And one day, we got into a discussion about the word handicap. And I never knew what that term actually means. And I don't know if you know, either. Maybe you do. But for all your listeners, I just want to say that handicap actually means hand in cat, which was, which is a symbol of saying that people with disabilities are needy, and we're beggars and we're, you know, it's just it has such a horrible connotation to it. So that's one term that I will not accept to be called. Whenever someone says, like, oh, handicap parking, I'm like, No, it's accessible parking. You know, like I make that's the only thing that I'm like a stickler on, is handicap and also crippled. I don't like the term cripples. I think that that is something that degrades me. Again, I go by people first language and that just really is, you know, the case for me. **Michael Hingson ** 29:57 Well, and I think it's a matter of of really people just accepting that we're as equal as they. And unfortunately, though some of the language doesn't necessarily imply that and that's what we really have to deal with, which is why anything that utilizes the word impaired is a problem. But people have to grow to deal with that in their own way. And that's something that we just will have to work on over time. And hopefully, people will come to recognize it is a problem, just like when we talk about race. You know, we talk about African Americans or our people who are black, as opposed to other terminology that nowadays, it is frowned upon to say that, in most cases, although black people sometimes use that terminology amongst themselves, but by the same token, we need to recognize that there are words that promote negative and less than stellar attitudes in a lot of different ways. So it's, it's a challenge. Well, **Kat Magnoli ** 31:11 going back to something I had said earlier, when you asked me Do I think that the same kind of incident would happen now in relation to you know, how I grew up? I think the more and more we are exposed in the media, in a positive light, through books, through movies, through TV, through songs, whatever the case may be, I think, through politics, I think that the world will kind of shift its perception, the more they see what we can do. **Michael Hingson ** 31:49 I agree. We need to be more involved in the conversation. And I think more people need to help bring us into the conversation and talk about us or talk with us. And it's a slow process, because changing a societal attitude like that is is not a simple thing. And is a is a challenge for a lot of people because they've grown up thinking something totally different. And now we're saying no, you really need to change that. That just doesn't happen overnight. **Kat Magnoli ** 32:24 Yeah, it's interesting when Coda won in the, in the Oscars, I asked my friend, same as Mark McGwire. how he felt about it, because he's a person living with deafness. And he was like, so I didn't win. He's like, I don't care. I thought it was like such a tremendous thing. The disability community and someone living with deafness was like, okay, you know, like, he didn't acknowledge it as like this huge thing as maybe I did. Well, but **Michael Hingson ** 33:03 I spoke. First thing, I spoke at a conference later that same year, a conference on inclusion here in California for one of the county departments of education, and had occasion to interact with several people who are very active in the deaf community. And of course, needless to say, they loved it. So, yeah, it's different for different people. Yeah, exactly. So you got an AAA degree, and then what did you go off and do with yourself. **Kat Magnoli ** 33:34 And then, like I mentioned, my, my health kind of took a turn for the worse that I had developed kidney failure and was on dialysis. And this was actually during the time that I was still going to school. So when you're studying to be a teacher, you have to do what's called clinical hours, which means that you go into a school and you kind of shadow the teacher, and you learn from her by interacting with the kids grading papers, doing things like that. And one of the places that I did this was at a school called cacher LD, which is a school for children within the autism spectrum, and other learning disabilities. And that's really what inspired me to become an advocate because one thing that I didn't mention earlier is that with all the bullying that I had endured at a young age, it kind of actually depleted the message of the magical tree for me, and made me feel like maybe there is something wrong with me. So when I got the chance to be around these kids with disabilities, and really see their inner strength and see how amazing they were, it helped me re accept my own disability at the age of 2420. 85 So that's when I started to think, Okay, if this teaching thing is not going to happen for me, because, you know, my health is not allowing me to dedicate the time that's needed for this, how else can I help the disability community? So one day, I'm sitting in a pool, and I'm noticing that there's two children who are quote, unquote, able bodied or non disabled, whatever term you like. And they were staring at me, they were trying to figure out how I got in the pool for my wheelchair. And one of the kids actually said that he felt sorry for me. I was so sad that he would feel sorry for me that it dawned on me how I could help be an advocate. And I thought, like, after much thinking, I was like, I want to educate children about disability, because they're the ones most curious about it. So how do I do this? And then I thought about something that I've always loved to do, which is write. And that's when I decided to write a children's book called The Adventures of cat girl, which is about a superhero in a wheelchair, and she helps kids who are being bullied. And **Michael Hingson ** 36:21 you've written several books now happened to as I recall, yes, **Kat Magnoli ** 36:25 there are four stories in the cat girl series, they each touch on a different kind of bullying. So we have bullying, children and wheelchairs, bullying children who are deaths, bullying children who are overweight and racial bullying. Those are the four topics that I cover in my cat girl series. And then I have another story called Pete, the private eye, who's actually a blind detective, and he uses his magical cane to help him solve mysteries of lost objects. **Michael Hingson ** 37:03 Hmm. Well, you know, all I have to say is that if you ever decide to do a picture book on the disability of politicians, don't worry, they deserve bullying. Just just I love that I love to tell people, I'm an equal opportunity abuser. We don't do politics on unstoppable mindset, because I'll pick on all of them. And rightfully so. But you know, but that's your voice, especially now is right. So do you, do you self publish? Or did you self publish? Or do you have a publisher for the books. **Kat Magnoli ** 37:44 So when it came to the adventures of cat girl series, I went through my grandparents, who at the time had owned an educational toy business called Dexter educational toys. And when I came to them with this idea of my book series, my grandfather was a little hesitant. But my grandmother jumped on the idea. And she really, you know, used her resources of a printing company that she was in affiliation was to help publish the book. And with Pete, the private eye, I used another company called Print ninja, they're in China. And they do a fabulous job with printing as well. **Michael Hingson ** 38:38 That's great. Do you have any other books coming out in the future? **Kat Magnoli ** 38:44 I hope so. I do have a lot of ideas. I have some crossover stories of cat girl and Pete, that I really would love to, you know, have them meet in this story and work together and use both her magical wheelchair and his magic cane. And just kind of have fun, you know? Maybe finding loss items for bullies. **Michael Hingson ** 39:09 Well, there you go. **Kat Magnoli ** 39:12 That can be the crossover story. **Michael Hingson ** 39:16 So you sent me several photos. I'm assuming some of those are the book covers. **Kat Magnoli ** 39:23 Yes, I did send you one photo that has all four cat girl. book covers plus the cat girl puppet. Threes **Michael Hingson ** 39:35 I ask is that all I see are titles that say like img something so I don't. I don't get a description. That's okay. But I'm glad you did because I would have asked you to send them if you hadn't. So that's great, because we want to make sure they get into the podcast notes and so on because I want other people to read the books needless to say, thank you. So that's kind of important to be able to do Who? But you know, so you've written them. So did you. So what did you do for a job along the way? Did you go into teaching? Did you start advocating? To to start your own company? What did you do? **Kat Magnoli ** 40:17 Well, first and foremost, my number one passion is my book. So I've dedicated a lot of the time of my advocacy, to reading to children and selling my books to schools, and at different events throughout Florida, and in other states. And then from there, because I did still have a desire to be a teacher, I did some tutoring for about a year to through a girl that I knew named soudha that I had met in college. So I did get to do some teaching, later on in my advocacy. And then, you know, as I grew as an advocate, different organizations started to reach out to me to do work with them. So for a while, I was working at the Center for Independent Living. And then I worked a little bit for ShakeAlert. Miami, which is a wonderful organization that helps people get with disabilities get the chance to go sailing, and kayaking and canoeing. And so I have had some, like, odd jobs here and there, but all have to do with disability and advocacy in some way. But my main focus is my books and public speaking. **Michael Hingson ** 41:36 You've definitely kept active. Yes. **Kat Magnoli ** 41:40 So calls me the Energizer Bunny, **Michael Hingson ** 41:43 that are you go? Well, so cat girl was in a wheelchair is in a wheelchair, right? **Kat Magnoli ** 41:50 Yes, she is. **Michael Hingson ** 41:51 So did you involve in any way in any of the books dealing with autism? I haven't you since you've had a lot of interest in that and exposure to it. I **Kat Magnoli ** 42:03 have not had the chance to write a story about autism yet. I really want because the children that started my journey into advocacy to fall into the autism spectrum. I want to be as sensitive and correct with it as possible. So I want to do more research and make sure that I do that immunity, that justice that it deserves when I write about it. **Michael Hingson ** 42:34 We've come a long way with autism. I know I've talked to several people on the podcast here who discovered that they were on this they say the Autism Autism Spectrum. But they discovered it in their 30s and in their 40s because we just didn't really know enough about it earlier on to recognize it and diagnose. **Kat Magnoli ** 42:56 Yeah, yeah. And to be honest, you know, sometimes parents are hesitant, even if there are clear day signs, you know that their child is in the autism spectrum. Sometimes parents can be hesitant to get that diagnosis, and then the person will make that decision later on in life to finally get the test that helps them you know, be diagnosed, right? **Michael Hingson ** 43:30 Or it just never came up. And they never no one ever thought about it. But yeah, it is a challenge. And I think that that's, uh, you bring up a good point in general that a lot of times, parents of children with disabilities don't really want to necessarily deal with it either. And it's mostly because they haven't themselves become educated. Your parents were fairly unusual. And same with mine. The doctors told them when it was discovered I was blind at the age of four months that they should just send me to a home and they said absolutely not. He can grow up to do whatever he chooses to do. But parents that are willing to really step out like that are much rarer than we would like to think sometimes. **Kat Magnoli ** 44:17 You know, I've been beyond fortunate to have the mother that I have, and I am grateful for every single day of my life. Because my mother was unaware of my having Spinal Bifida. throughout her entire pregnancy. It did not show up on any ultrasound that she had had during the nine months that she was carrying me and so when I was born, that was the day that her my father had found out that I indeed had spinal bifida. And she always tells me the story because as I mentioned, I'm the youngest of seven So she would read a lot of medical books every time she was pregnant. And she always skipped over Spinal Bifida. It was like, Oh, that'll never happen. And when it did happen, she didn't feel sorry for herself. She immediately when she came home from the hospital, you know, started doing research started calling different organizations like, March of Dimes, and all these other organizations that can help her, you know, raise me in the best way that she could. So I'm just very, very fortunate to have a mother like I do. Yeah, **Michael Hingson ** 45:37 she learned and she dealt with it. Which is, which is great. And presumably, she's still alive and, and helping. She's **Kat Magnoli ** 45:48 72 years old, and she's the one who's truly the Energizer Bunny. She's unstoppable. **Michael Hingson ** 45:56 Well, then we need to get her on the podcast. It's good to have unstoppable people on the podcast. **Kat Magnoli ** 46:01 She's actually sitting right next to me, but she's shaking her head know that Oh, come **Michael Hingson ** 46:06 on. **Kat Magnoli ** 46:10 Can you just wave? Please? **Michael Hingson ** 46:12 Nope, she's, well, I'm not gonna see your wave. So that's okay. **Kat Magnoli ** 46:18 To everyone. Same way? Yeah. **Michael Hingson ** 46:21 Well, it's neat to have a very supportive person. And that goes both ways. Because you give back and I'm sure help her and a lot of different ways. And just the very fact that you do what you do. Totally validates everything that she's done. **Kat Magnoli ** 46:40 Yeah, yeah, I actually just recently got a proclamation from Palmetto Bay, which is a neighboring town from Sunny Isles Beach. And they gave me a proclamation to honor Spinal Bifida Awareness Month, which is within the month of October, and my entire speech was dedicated to my mom, pretty much. I mean, I spoke for like four minutes, and three and a half of it was all about how wonderful she is. **Michael Hingson ** 47:17 And rightfully so no matter what she thinks or says. I agree. Like I said, moms who are and parents in general, who are that much risk takers are very rare in, at least in my experience, and from everything I've observed. So it's great to have that kind of really wonderful person in your life. So that's great. Now did even though you don't you haven't dealt with an autism an autistic person yet, in your books? Did they have some involvement in inspiring you to write the books, they **Kat Magnoli ** 47:59 were 100% the inspiration because while I was having the privilege to teach them, I saw how they were able to handle episodes of bullying far better than I did when I was a child. And it just was so inspiring to me. And I was like, wow, they have a strange that I did not have at 910 11 and 12 years old. And so it just really, it really did inspire me a lot. And they were part of the reason other than the two children in the, in the pool that had the curiosity about me. If I'd put it all together, it was like, a melting pot of inspiration for me, of why I wrote the adventures of capital. **Michael Hingson ** 48:47 I was at an IKEA store in California, once in a young man came up and said, I'm sorry. And I said, why? And he said, because you can't see. So I've experienced the same sort of thing that you did. And we could we didn't get to have much of a discussion about it because his mother dragged him away. Don't don't talk to that man. You know, you shouldn't do that. And people miss out on great education opportunities. Sometimes. Needless to say, **Kat Magnoli ** 49:13 yeah, yeah. And that's another thing that I really try to stress to parents that it's okay for your child to talk to me. It's okay. For them to ask what happened? It doesn't offend me if anything, them staring and the parent pulling them away is what offends me. Yeah, that that hurts my feelings more so then the child's coming up to me and asking me about my chair, you know, and asking me what happened. I would much rather that and so I've actually gotten into the habit of Do you mind like asking the parents do you mind if I tell your daughter or your son what happened? They seem to be Interested in my chair? Yeah. **Michael Hingson ** 50:04 And, you know, I, I experienced a lot of that or, and sometimes actually promote it to get conversation started. A lot of times I'll be walking somewhere with, with my guide dog and parents say oh, don't, don't, don't go up to that man, the dog might bite you and all that, and I'll stop. And I'll almost block their way and said, let me let me talk to you about what guide dogs are. And then I'll also take the harness off, which is the thing that the dogs love the most, because then they know they're not working. And the last thing they want to do is to avoid getting attention, especially from kids. So we get lots of opportunities. And when I go to speak to schools, it's always fun after the speech to take the harness off and let the kids come up. And the dogs have figured out that if they lay down and stretch out every which way they can, as far as they can, and maximize petting space, they'll get more kids to pay attention to them, and they love it. **Kat Magnoli ** 51:06 Oh, that's so cool. Yeah, they, **Michael Hingson ** 51:09 they enjoy it a lot. So it's fun to do. That's wonderful. So do you know you've you've started your own organizations to help with advocacy, right? **Kat Magnoli ** 51:23 Yes, I, within the last two and a half years started, capital and friends Inc. It is a 501 C three that just helps educate people about the importance of inclusion through literature and my public speaking. And it just gives me a chance to reach a larger audience. **Michael Hingson ** 51:48 How far have you traveled to be involved in doing speeches and do public speaking, **Kat Magnoli ** 51:52 I actually went to the American Association school for children who are deaf. And that was in Atlanta. And it was really, really amazing. It was such an incredible experience. All the kids were signing their questions to me, which unfortunately, I don't know, sign language. So there was an interpreter there. But it was just such an amazing experience that I never forget that and I'm so grateful to have done. And I also got to go to New York where unfortunately, I couldn't be at the school because it was during like COVID regulations still. But I did a zoom session for a school in the district that I grew up in, which is Putnam Valley School District. So that was really cool to be able to do. And I've actually done that two times since then, where I've done zoom sessions for them. So I've been able to reach different schools in different states as well as make a pretty good impact in in my community as well. Well, **Michael Hingson ** 53:14 it's, I think, extremely important for us to recognize that one of the best things that we can do is to help teach and educate and I didn't tell you this, but when I was in college, I also went through the University of California, Irvine. College of teaching, so I have my secondary teaching credential as well. So I, I never did teach professionally as a teacher in that sense of the word. But I ended up being very involved in sales. And I believe that that the best salespeople are also teachers as well, because that's what they should really be doing. Rather than trying to force a product on someone, they should be educating people, and helping them come to the best decision for whatever they need. And that's a philosophy that has worked really well. But I love teaching and after September 11. For me, I decided to take up a career of speaking and so on, because if I could help people move on from September 11 and teach them about blindness and disabilities and such then it was a worthwhile thing. And if it changes one person is all worthwhile. **Kat Magnoli ** 54:25 That's such an amazing advice and an amazing perspective. And I could not agree more. I mean, when I first started this, I was like, You know what, I want the whole crowd to hang on my every word. Now it's not so much like that. For me. I just get so excited when I can lock eyes with one child, or one person in the crowd and I know that they're really paying attention and they're really being impacted by either my the stories that I've written or my personal story, whatever is resonating with them is, is so important to me. **Michael Hingson ** 55:07 What's the most interesting question that any child has asked you when you've spoken like that? Um, we all have those stories, I'm sure. **Kat Magnoli ** 55:21 I feel like they ask the same questions over and over again, no matter where I am, which is always, how do you get up in the bed? Like, out of bed in the morning? How do you brush your teeth? How do you take a shower? How do you get in and out of the car? How do you do these things? And I'm just so those kinds of questions I find to be the most fun to answer. The one that I think is so important. Let me rephrase that, because those are important questions to answer as well, because it's educating people about my daily life and how I get around from point A to point B. But the the subject matter that I find to be most interesting when they talk about it is when they start talking about episodes of bullying that they went through, and then we can start opening up that conversation. So yeah, yeah. Yeah. **Michael Hingson ** 56:23 Well, and and it's fun. I love speaking to children, because they are uninhibited. And they don't hesitate to ask questions. Once you start getting them engaged at all, they will, they will ask anything. And if we can have a session and the parents aren't around, it really works out a whole lot better, because they will, they will become engaged and they'll ask questions I remember. And I've talked about it here a couple of times, I spoke to a, an elementary school. And this third grade boy got up after I spoke, because I opened it for questions. And his question was, how do blind people have sex? So there you go. **Kat Magnoli ** 57:11 I have not been asked that by a child. But I have been asked by adults. Yeah. wanted to take me out on dates. **Michael Hingson ** 57:20 Well, there you go. Opportunity Knocks Well, for me when he asked that I am not dumb, right. I just said **Kat Magnoli ** 57:28 for the background noise. **Michael Hingson ** 57:29 That's okay. I I'm not done when I was asked that. I just said the same way everybody else does. And if you want to know more, go ask your parents because I wasn't going to get into that. **Kat Magnoli ** 57:39 Yes, that is a very smart answer. **Michael Hingson ** 57:45 But for as far as you you know, two guys wanted to take you out on on dates. There's opportunity, maybe? Yeah, **Kat Magnoli ** 57:51 I mean, when this was mostly in my 20s, where people wouldn't even ask my name before they asked, Can you have sex? I mean, I just was like, Hi, my name is Katherine. And yes, I can. **Michael Hingson ** 58:09 Yeah. And if you want to know more, that's a different story. Zach. Ah, people are interesting, aren't they? Yes. But you know, we we cope. And we, we learn. And hopefully we do get to help teach them. And that's what's really important about the whole thing. So tell me about winning Miss wheelchair Florida. **Kat Magnoli ** 58:38 It was really amazing. It was actually a funny story. Because I had been in the top three, two times before, I had gotten second runner up and first runner up. So the third year, I actually wasn't going to participate. I was like, okay, clearly, I'm not going to win. I'm just going to take a break from this. But the state coordinator actually reached out to me like a day before the application was due to be a contestant. And she was like, Why haven't I received your application? I'm like, oh, because I'm not doing it this year. She's like, Yes, you are, you have to do it. So I was like, Alright, fine, I'll do it. But if I lose again, like I'm never doing it again. So So I ended up going and it's an amazing weekend, where girls with all different physical disabilities come together. And we do workshops. We do you know, judging with it's just so amazing. And so I was really happy to be a part of it again. But I went into it not thinking that I was going to win or place in the top three or anything like that. So I went in with a different perspective of just enjoying the moment And that's interesting because I ended up enjoying it so much that I ended up Miss messing up my speech. And so I really thought I wasn't going to win. So when they announced the, you know, second runner up and first runner up, and I wasn't called, I was like, Okay, I didn't make it even to the top three. So when they said my name, my mouth dropped, and I started crying for like, a good five minutes. And I was trying to speak because they handed me the microphone. And I honestly couldn't even tell you what I said, because I was that shocked for wedding. And before they said my name, I actually looked at my mom in the crowd, and I shook my head. No, it's not me. And at the same time, one of the judges was looking up at me. And she was shaking her head, like, yes, it is you. And I was just so confused as to why she was smiling and shaking her head. So it was just an interesting situation. And then when I did when I got to meet the governor, the former governor, Rick Scott, I got to work alongside the mayor of sunny isles and the mayor of ball Harbor, which is another town and get more beaches accessible in my area. I got to work with the school district, which is Miami Dade school district to have activities for Disability Awareness Month and inclusion week, I had a podcast so it was a really, really busy time for me. And it was a lot of fun. I also got to do a lot of adventurous things. Like go to I fly, which is indoor skydiving, and I got to, you know, just do some really memorable things. **Michael Hingson ** 1:01:56 So did you do the indoor skydiving? Yes, I did. I would like to do that. I've never done it. I'm gonna have to go do it. Some I would love to do that. Yeah, **Kat Magnoli ** 1:02:05 it's really, really cool. It's a very interesting simulation of what skydiving would be like. **Michael Hingson ** 1:02:13 Yeah, I would like to do it sometime. I'll have to work that out. Well, so what's next for you? What are you doing? What are your plans? And where are you headed? What's your mindset in the world? **Kat Magnoli ** 1:02:26 Well, currently, I am doing a lot of things. It is Disability Awareness Month and awareness month. So I've been making a lot of videos on social media just talking about basically what we're talking about right now, which is all that we can do. So that's number one. That's that's part of what I'm doing. I'm also doing a lot of different events for my books, to have more of an outreach for them. I am part of the Christopher Reeve Foundation where I'm a regional champion for them, which means that I speak to senators within my state about different laws that the Christopher Reeve Foundation is trying to get passed. So that's that's basically what I'm doing. I'm also in addition to it being Disability Awareness Month and Spinal Bifida Awareness Month, it's also Domestic Violence Awareness Month, which, for whoever does not know people with disabilities are three times as likely to be victims of any kind of abuse. So myself, along with my mentor, Debbie beets are going to be partnering for a workshop with the Christopher Reeve Foundation will end of October, where we're going to be talking about the intersectionality of abuse and disability. Wow. **Michael Hingson ** 1:03:59 So you're definitely keeping busy no doubt about it. **Kat Magnoli ** 1:04:02 Yes. Oh, and one last thing. I am working currently with semi owls beach to get even more beaches accessible in my town. So that's the last thing that I'm doing. **Michael Hingson ** 1:04:16 Well, just one more thing, right? Yeah. Well, this has been a lot of fun if people want to reach out to you and maybe contact you learn more about what you're doing and so on. How can they do that? **Kat Magnoli ** 1:04:31 They can actually reach me through my website, kat girl and friends.com **Michael Hingson ** 1:04:37 Kat is k a t. Yes, **Kat Magnoli ** 1:04:39 Kat is K a t girl is G I R L and is spelled just as we know A N D friends f r i e n d s.com.com **Michael Hingson ** 1:04:52 Yeah, okay. Any other contact ways or things that people should know? They **Kat Magnoli ** 1:05:00 can also just email me at Kat that's also K A T Magnoli, m a g n o l i@gmail.com. **Michael Hingson ** 1:05:13 Wow, a Gmail address without any numbers in it. You must be the first one. Yeah, well, cat, this has been a lot of fun. And I want to just say right now that when you have more adventures and you have whenever you want to come back on and chat some more on unstoppable mindset, I would love to do it. So you just know you have an open invitation. We can talk about it at any time, but I really value you doing this and if you know of anyone else. And likewise, for any of you listening, if you know of anyone who we ought to have as a guest on unstoppable mindset. I'd love to hear about it. You can let me know Kat knows how to reach me but for all of you, just so you know, you can reach me at Michael 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 m i c h a e l h i n g s o n.com/podcast. And we'd love to hear from you love to hear what you think about the episode. And as I said, if you know of anyone that you think we ought to have as a guest, I definitely want to hear from you. We would appreciate you giving us a five star rating, we value your ratings very highly. And I really hope that you like the podcast enough to do that. So once once more, I want to thank you Kat for being here. I'm sorry, you were gonna say? No, **Kat Magnoli ** 1:06:38 I was gonna say thank you so much for having me, this has been such an amazing conversation. And I can think of so many people that I know who are advocates that would really shine on your show, really have such incredible stories to share. So I will be reaching out to some of them and encouraging them to reach out to you. Because I think that we all should come together and work together and share stories. I think that's the real way to educate and and build inclusion for the for the world. Last question that I have, when will this be airing. Um, it's **Michael Hingson ** 1:07:21 going to be a little while yet because we've got a number of podcasts that are out there, but we'll definitely be sending you an email, unless there's some need for you to to have it airing at a particular time. But it'll be a little while yet, but we'll keep you posted. Okay, **Kat Magnoli ** 1:07:37 great. Thank you so much. And I hope you guys have a great night **Michael Hingson ** 1:07:46 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.

In episode #628 of Exploring Mind and Body, Drew Taddia brings the energy from his recent live session straight to your ears!

  Listen here:     This week's episode is sponsored by: Ready for some retail therapy with a side of laughter and community? Look no further than Erin.Lane's monthly live sales! Each sale features a fresh theme (think whimsical unicorns, sassy llamas, you name it!), and you'll be the first to snag brand spankin' new fabrics. Who knows, you might just find your new favorite bag too.   Make sure to never miss a minute (or fabric) by signing up for the newsletter, and keep up with us in real time by with our Facebook community, Erin.Lane Bag Buddies. Bag buddies always get first access to new bags and fabrics, because who doesn't want to share the love of their besties?     Have you ever had to frog because you forgot a step several rows back? Or lost your spot because you dropped your magnet board or lost track with your highlighter tape? Instead of wrestling with paper, use the knitCompanion app. It keeps you on track so you can knit more and frog less. knitCompanion works with ALL your patterns and is available for Apple, Android, and Kindle Fire Devices                   Are you feeling dis-GRUNT-eled about your stash? Are you browsing Insta-HAM looking for knitting inspiration? Is color "kind of a PIG deal" in your life? Oink Pigments offers over one hundred forty PIG-ture perfect colorways to make you SQUEAL with delight. For a limited time only, bring home the bacon with code KNITMORE and get fifteen percent off in-stock yarns and fibers at oinkpigments dot com. Shop soon, because these pigs will FLY!   Seismic Yarn & Dyeworks, based just outside of San Francisco, CA, creates color for people who love bold, saturated yarn and fiber as well as for those who might be *a little* afraid of wearing color.   We dye a large range of colorways from neon and black light/UV reactive colors all the way through to deep, rich semi-solid, tonal, and low contrast variegated colorways. Of course, we only use the softest and most exquisite bases!     Seismic Yarn & Dyeworks - color to rock your world! 1 minute Health update  On the Needles:(0:36) - Gigi: FO Meadowlands 8 colorway: Chimera. Rainbow with a lot of grey shades Did not enjoy the colors - Jasmin is working on her Halloween stripe cardigan again, in the leftovers from her Halloween heart pullover (oink pigments sock); sleeve armholes done, need to work some intarsia magic - Gigi asks about construction of a sweet tomato heel in relation to short row increases. - Genevieve hat: Spur hat by Hiromi Nagasawa (only available on Ravelry, sorry) in coordinating wizard school yarn. (Scarf is woven, hemmed and blocked already) Must Stash yarn - Gigi: Started Meadowlands 9 - Gigi is excited about knitting socks in the coming year - We are doing an informal Grinch-along - Jasmin mentions her Alpenglow Swift  - Jasmin picked up her Maxie's top test knit for Ainur Berkambayeva in Lisa Souza's Sylvie Silk in “Ruby"   In Stitches:  Should we keep doing in Stitches? Gigi: socks , Self sewn comfy nightgown,  sleeping hat    Mother Knows Best:(22:44) Roadtrip correction: check PSI on the door of your car, not the tires PLAN for all the fun things that you want to do in December  Christmas lists: are a suggestions, not a shopping list   When knitting attacks:(27:25) Gigi: there was a small hole. Had made a yarn over into an extra stitch. Dropped it. It worked!   Knit more, know more:(27:54) A segment about Persian culture, history, or just generally cool stuff about Persian people. Protests are ongoing. Still. Over a year.   Barekat Inspired by Ainur's new pattern   Holidays with the Knitmore Girls:(33:06)   Naughty List. Children's Krampus book  Straw into Gold:(36:45) Spun on the Daedalus Falcon: Spinning last 4oz of the Lisa Souza squashblossom  Grey Mary fleece, finished spinning Janet Heppler sold her flock to Blair Auclair Jasmin: Found yarn for weaving G's scarf And Sew On:(40:26) - measuring color guard kids - Christmas Fringe dress

Paul Ryan, Mike 'The Pig' Crum, and Brenden 'Fergy' Smith are back to recap the Dallas Cowboys' Week 14 dismantling of the Philadelphia Eagles. After a dominant display, Dak and the Cowboys could do nothing wrong in the first half, but after scoring only 6 points in the 2nd half, does the offense still have questions that need to be answered?  The Cowboys' defense allowed 6 points to one of the best defenses in the league and caused three turnovers, was this a turning point for Micah Parsons and the Cowboys' defense? Dak Prescott has now beaten teams with winning records in back-to-back weeks, did the Eagles' victory put him at the top of the list for the MVP award? CeeDee Lamb is having a career year and Brandin Cooks continues to show up every week, but has Jalen Tolbert been a disappointment yet again this season? A fan of the show and long-time friend of Paul Ryan's has a path to the Super Bowl laid out for the Cowboys, and the guys will discuss it in place of Mike's View From The Sidelines. But, True or False, One Word, and Top 5 will remain the same. Tonight's Top 5 category: Cereal Which cereal do the guys have at the top of their lists? Listen and find out. Paul, Mike and sometimes Brenden will be here every week to keep you updated on all things Cowboys and keep you entertained with original Cowboys Content. You can NOW go live with the guys every week.  Every Monday and Friday Paul and Mike will be streaming their episodes on Twitter. Join the fun! Monday is the flagship show that everyone knows and loves where Paul and Mike discuss and recap the Cowboys game and bring you segments like: Meatless Monday Mike's View From The Sidelines True or False One Word And, of course, everyone's favorite ‘Top 5'  But, that's not all. Every Friday you can join Paul and Mike on their series ‘Offsides with Paul and Mike' A series where Paul and Mike bring on fans of the opposing team the Cowboys are playing to talk about what it's like being a fan of their team, who their current and all-time favorite players are, how they feel about the current state of their team, the matchup with the Cowboys and everything in between. And, now you can listen to even more Cowboys content on Saturdays… The newest member of the Across The Cowboys family Brenden Smith will be live on Twitter hosting Twitter spaces every Saturday with members of #CowboysNation. Be sure to tune into that as Brenden and friends will be previewing the Cowboys matchup of the week.  If you have any insights, or concerns, or just want to share your 2 cents about the upcoming matchup make sure to reach out to Brenden, Paul, Mike, or the podcast account on Twitter and we'll make sure to add you as a speaker! The podcast is growing and big things are coming and we have YOU to thank for it. And, as always. If you enjoy the pod, tell a friend. Be sure to Like, Subscribe, and Review on your favorite podcast app. Any and all feedback on the podcast is welcome. You can find Paul, Mike, and Breden on Twitter: Mike @cdpiglet Brenden @Brenden_Smith26 Paul @Paul_Ryan15 Don't forget to follow the podcast's Twitter page: @ATBCowboysPod You can find us on Youtube  at: https://youtube.com/@acrossthecowboys?si=igZmSl1zxledn7KZ   #AcrossTheCowboys #Year4 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/across-the-cowboys/message

Tracey Moffitt had a rough ride with gut issues in her 20s, but without that experience - she may not have found her passion: to blend. Tracey is the founder of Naked Nectar, a company that makes ready-to-blend smoothies. They're 100 per cent natural ingredients, all pre-blended and packed into cubes then frozen. The simple and nutritious idea led her 'Morning After' smoothie to be a finalist in this year's New Zealand Food Awards. That flavour, along with three others - Macro Muncher, Energizer Bunny and Happy Chappie - all netted bronze at the 2023 Inspire+ NZ Artisans Awards.

Thursday (pt 1 of 2): On today's Late Riser's Podcast, Mad Max has more to say about tipping.. - We reveal John Boy's secret cooling apparatus while on a TV shoot where he played the Energizer Bunny.. - We get a request for Raiford to dump out his liquor.. - and we wrap things up with one of our favorite JB&B Playhouses, featuring the late Dub Starnes in "A Matter of Life or Dub." ℗®© 2023 John Boy & Billy, Inc.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thursday (pt 2 of 2): On today's Late Riser's Podcast, Mad Max has more to say about tipping.. - We reveal John Boy's secret cooling apparatus while on a TV shoot where he played the Energizer Bunny.. - We get a request for Raiford to dump out his liquor.. - and we wrap things up with one of our favorite JB&B Playhouses, featuring the late Dub Starnes in "A Matter of Life or Dub." ℗®© 2023 John Boy & Billy, Inc.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the latest episode of the Wise_N_Nerdy podcast, hosts Charles and Joe kick things off with their signature blend of humor and nerdy musings. This week's episode delves into summoning heroes, dad jokes, and the joys of being a cool dad. As the episode begins, Charles poses the age-old question of the week: "If you could summon any hero to fight for you, who would it be?" Joe wastes no time, leaning into the world of overpowered anime characters, citing Goku and Satou as his top choices. His enthusiasm is met with agreement from Kurt, who chimes in with the mention of the unbeatable Saitama. Charles, however, takes a more unconventional route, jokingly suggesting that he'd summon the ever-charismatic Ryan Reynolds, much to the amusement of his co-hosts. With the anticipation building, the trio decides to let fate decide their podcasting destiny with a roll of the dice. This time, the dice lead them down a humorous path, starting with a bad dad joke about the Energizer Bunny that leaves them all in stitches. The next segment, "Can you dig it?" explores Charles and Joe's experiences as dads navigating their kids' social circles. They share tales of trying to be the cool dad, often resulting in hilariously awkward encounters and misguided attempts to fit in with the younger generation. Transitioning seamlessly into the "Daddy tell me a story" segment, Joe shares his latest adventures as a server administrator. His tales of troubleshooting and server mishaps provide a unique blend of tech humor and relatable work anecdotes that resonate with listeners. In the "What are you Nerding out about" segment, Charles talks passionately about his role as a Chief Technical Officer, highlighting the joys of staying on the cutting edge of technology. Joe, on the other hand, delves into the world of Justice League animated movies, sharing his favorite moments and discussing the impact of these beloved superhero stories. Wrapping up the episode, the trio engages in a lively debate during the "Let Daddy Decide" segment, discussing the level of accommodation a group should offer to a vegetarian member. Their witty banter and differing perspectives keep listeners engaged until the very end. And as always, the episode concludes with their memorable tagline: "Remember: they may not be your father, but they'll always be your daddy." Charles and Joe's unique blend of humor, nerdy insights, and candid dad anecdotes make this Wise_N_Nerdy podcast episode a must-listen for fans of all ages. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/wise-n-nerdy/message

In this episode, featuring our guest host Tony Driven, we're delving into the latest buzz from the car world. Ford is grabbing everyone's attention by claiming that their new Mustang GTD can clear crowds an impressive 36% faster than before. And guess what? Tony is here to help choose between a Porsche GT3 or a Mustang GT3. We're also exploring the intriguing decision by Ford to include the letter 'D' in GT3, which stands for Grand Touring Daytona Class. Shifting gears, we're diving into a discussion about Verstappen's audacious plan to create clones of himself and have them race for every Formula 1 team. Join us as we analyze the dynamics between dominant champions and underdog racers, consider ways to level the playing field, and dissect the technological race unfolding between Mercedes and Red Bull. Buckle up as we also explore Elon Musk's ambitious promise: by 2024, Tesla's electric vehicles will boast an unlimited range inspired by the tireless Energizer Bunny. We also delve into predictions regarding the longevity of Tesla's dominance in the electric vehicle market and explore the implications of upcoming automotive technology. We'll make a pit stop to discuss Nissan's Nismo Z, which is making a comeback after a relatively unnoticed initial release. We'll engage in a debate about whether the car's lackluster sales were truly due to dealer mark-ups or if other factors were at play. The episode takes a deeper dive with an illuminating interview featuring Tony Driven, where he shares insights about his current vehicle collection, racing aspirations, and his journey into the realms of podcasting and media. Adding to the excitement, Tony takes on the ultimate anime challenge titled 'Are You Weeb Enough?' As he attempts to distinguish between real and fictional anime names, we're in for a thrilling ride. With Tony's automotive expertise and a game that will test even the most devoted anime enthusiasts, this episode promises to be one you won't want to miss!

Join our Discord  ⁠⁠https://discord.gg/jDrUtNcRq2  Join Kevin and John as they talk sex mirrors, dick pieces, the Energizer Bunny, Pulp Fiction references, Waldman's long-winded jokes, and what became of Daedalus? This episode covers 48:42 - 1:12:08; the baddies spring a trap, after a flashback Sam becomes Charly, Charly kills (?) Daedalus, Charly is ready to party but Mitch rejects her advances, Perkins' failed hit --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ryan-rebalkin01/message

On today's quirky show, I welcome Jen Palumbo, an epic human Energizer Bunny who takes a licking and keeps on ticking. Jen is a freelance writer, Forbes contributor, and women's health advocate, specifically for reproductive rights. In a spirited coincidence, it turns out we both went to the same college at the same time, were both Theater people, and have dozens of friends in common. We are ships in the night for sure. As fellow parents of IVF children, we bonded over the current state of the state. And as fellow Binghamton graduates, we bonded over Wegmans, being Theater nerds, and 1990s dorm life in the southern tier. Jen is a true Long Island: loud and proud. Let the hilarity, dark humor, and GenX Therapy begin. Enjoy the show.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Would you fly 3000 miles for ‘strange' sex? Kinky, queer, poly sex educator Trixie Lamonte loves anonymous sex, but they're way too social and know too many people - a one night stand won't work at home. So this frustrated extrovert decides to travel across the country to visit a brand new city with a high-ranked queer nightclub, and just to be safe, dons a disguise. Things are working out: Genderqueer hotties on the dance floor? Check. An invite to hook up with a nonbinary supermodel? YES! It's all going well until someone blows their cover…. #GayestOfTheGay #ProstethicVsBio   Song: 'Body was Made' (Ezra Furman)   Queer l Trans | NonBinary | Resilient Identity l Anonymous Sex l Travel l Myers-Briggs l Grindr l Scruff | Bumble l Hinge l Gay Male l Femme l Gender Neutral Bathroom | David Bowie l Lady Gaga l Safer Sex | Roleplay l Bat Mitzvah l Restraints l Body Parts l 90's Music l Queer Nightclub l Spice Girls l Squirting l Nipple Clamps l Bio Cock l Energizer Bunny l Switch l Building Community l   About our Storyteller:   Trixie Lamonte is a rebel in the streets and freak in the sheets: Professional sex educator, workshop facilitator, performer, writer, ritualist, relationship and confidence coach, inspirational speaker, and host of Gender Blender play parties. Trixie is well known for shaking their ass for justice, rebel rousing gender norms, and being delightfully playful. Trixie's work has taken them all over the US and internationally with a focus on intersectionality, commitment to working from a liberation lens, and creating communities across diverse cultural backgrounds. Trixie is proud to be kinky, queer, poly, and fabulous. Trixie infuses joy and creativity into all aspects of life. You can find out more at www.polyexcellent.com    Episode links:   Lume Whole Body Deodorant: As a special offer for Bawdy Storytelling listeners, our new sponsor Luke Deodorant is offering new customers a GET $5 OFF a Lume Starter Pack at LumeDeodorant.com. That's over 40% off your Starter Pack! Lume's Starter Pack is perfect for new customers. It comes with a Solid Stick Deodorant, Cream Tube Deodorant, and two free products of your choice (like their Mini Body Wash and Deodorant Wipes), plus it includes free shipping. It's hot out there but you can Control Body Odor ANYWHERE with @lumedeodorant - you'll get $5 off your Starter Pack at https://lumedeodorant.com/ & tell em DiXIE sent ya! (Use promo code DIXIE - I love this stuff)   Bawdy Storytelling is BACK! We're kicking off Folsom Street Fair Weekend with a 2-Show K!nktacular: A big curated rockstar Bawdy Storytelling at 7 PM (check out that lineup!) followed by BawdySlam at 10 PM - where you can put your name in the hat to tell your own 5 minute K!nky Story for Fun & Prizes.  Spread the word, y;all!

Jump in with Carlos Juico and Gavin Ruta on episode 130 of Jumpers Jump. This episode we discuss: Robots turning on humans, What Youtube will become in the future, Energizer bunny mandela effect, Fergie lyrics mandela effect, Peanut butter jelly time backstory, A.I trend sparks controversy, Being grateful for life, Parents being our first superheros, Social media aka digital clubs, Carlos' love for the zoo, what if there was no evil on earth and much more! Follow the podcast: @JumpersPodcast Follow Carlos: @CarlosJuico Follow Gavin: @GavinRutaa Check out the podcast on YouTube: https://bit.ly/JumpersJumpYT Thanks to our Sponsor: Get 20% off + free shipping with the code [JUMPERS] at https://manscaped.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Trauma? I don't have trauma, right?” Have you said this to yourself or heard others say it? Today, we are going to break it down so you can figure it out. My guest today is Rhonda, a 23-year veteran of the police department from Chicago, Illinois. Rhonda will break down for us how she went from The Energizer Bunny to healing her body's stored trauma after a serious health crash with the help of my 21 Day Journey.    You will learn: The signs of stored, unaddressed trauma What is trauma? The first step to releasing stored trauma How, as professionals, healing begins with us Rhonda went from “knowing” she didn't have trauma to realizing that as a police officer, most of her days were surrounded by trauma, because, as she puts it, “No one is inviting us to their grandma's 90th birthday for cake,” and how they are often seen by people on the worst days of their entire lives with little to no downtime between calls.   We will also talk about the biology of our nervous system and what each part is designed to do and how each presents itself in our bodies through fight, flight, or freeze responses.   Time Stamps: [2:00] Rhonda's story and health crash [6:00] The signs of stored, unaddressed trauma [8:01] Rhonda's realization that she did have trauma [10:59] What is trauma? [14:54] Rhonda's 21 Day Journey [16:57] The first step in releasing stored trauma - Somatic work [19:15] How Rhonda has incorporated the lessons learned in the 21 Day Journey into her work as a police officer [24:11] How, as professionals, healing begins with us Find More About Dr.Aimie: 21 Day Journey How do you know if you have trauma? And if you do have trauma, what is the next step? The good news is, there is a step-by-step process for identifying and healing trauma. Download my step-by-step guide (with a quiz inside!) to see if you have trauma and to identify how to get started. Download your free roadmap here: Steps To Identify & Heal Trauma https://traumahealingaccelerated.mykajabi.com/steps-to-identify-and-heal-trauma-a-roadmap-for-healing   Disclaimer: By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical advice to treat any medical condition in either yourself or others. Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.  This entire disclaimer also applies to any guests or contributors to the podcast. Under no circumstances shall Trauma Healing Accelerated, any guests or contributors to The Biology of Trauma podcast, or any employees, associates, or affiliates of Trauma Healing Accelerated be responsible for damages arising from the use of the podcast.  

The 2002 Iraq AUMF authorized the invasion of Iraq and a variety of U.S. military activities since then, and a large bipartisan group of senators and representatives have decided it's time for it to go away. A repeal bill was passed by the House and is awaiting action in the Senate, but we don't know if there's going to be time for that action before the Senate adjourns. It's a good opportunity to have a conversation about this orphaned AUMF that just keeps on going like the Energizer Bunny through the decades. To talk through the history of the 2002 AUMF, its surprising rebirth, and its dangerous continued life, Lawfare editor-in-chief Benjamin Wittes sat down with Lawfare senior editor Scott R. Anderson, who recently wrote a two-part series on the subject for Lawfare, focusing on the history and practice of the 2002 AUMF, as well as its interpretations and implications.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.