Podcasts about Excuse

Patrick Bet-David breaks down TMZ's response after employees were caught laughing during the announcement of Charlie Kirk's assassination. Did Harvey Levin cover it up? Pat calls out TMZ's credibility and compares their handling to MSNBC's firing of hateful voices.

Excuse me?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

269. Questions for More Connection and Laughter in Marriage with Casey and Meygan Caston   *Disclaimer* This episode contains some mature themes and listener discretion is advised.   2 Corinthians 1:4 NIRV "He comforts us in all our troubles. Now we can comfort others when they are in trouble. We ourselves receive comfort from God."   *Transcript Below*   Questions and Topics We Cover: Will you share three of the questions from your most recent book, specifically the ones people have told you unlocked the best conversations in their own marriage? You say you're an unlikely couple to help support marriages. Will you share a glimpse of your own backstory? What are a handful of ideas for ways couples can strengthen their connection with one another?   Casey and Meygan Caston are the Co-Founders of Marriage365. Casey and Meygan were perfect examples of what not to do in marriage. Three years into marriage, they found themselves having racked up more than $250,000 in debt, fighting constantly, and were ready to call it quits. Despite the 12 failed marriages between their parents, they knew this wasn't the legacy they wanted for themselves or their children. They began reading and educating themselves on how to do marriage the right way. The result of their journey is Marriage365, where they millions of people worldwide through their books, social media, retreats, and their online streaming service, Marriage365.   Marriage 365 Website Marriage 365 App Marriage 365 Books Marriage 365 Coaching   Thank You to Our Sponsor: WinShape Marriage   Sample of Previous Episodes on Sexual Intimacy on The Savvy Sauce: 4 Fostering a Fun, Healthy Sex Life With Your Spouse With Certified Sex Therapist and Author, Dr. Jennifer Konzen 5 Ways to Deepen Your Intimacy in Marriage with Dr. Douglas Rosenau  6 Ten Common Questions About Sex, Shared Through a Biblical Worldview with Dr. Michael Sytsma 89 Passion Pursuit with Dr. Juli Slattery 108 Anatomy of an Affair with Dave Carder 135 Healthy Ways for Females to Increase Sexual Enjoyment with Tracey LeGrand 155 Sex in Marriage and Its Positive Effects with Francie Winslow, Part 1 156 Science and Art of Sexual Intimacy in Marriage, Part 2 158 Making Love in Marriage with Debra Fileta 165 Mutually Pleasing Sex in Marriage with Gary Thomas 186 Sex Series: Enhancing Female Pleasure and Enjoyment of Sex: An Interview with Dr. Jennifer Degler 218 Secrets of Sex and Marriage: An Interview with Dr. Michael Sytsma Special Patreon Release: Protecting Your Marriage Against Unfaithfulness with Dave Carder 252 Maximizing Sexual Connection as Newlyweds to Long Term Marriages and Recovering from a Sexless Marriage with Dr. Clifford & Joyce Penner   Connect with The Savvy Sauce on Facebook, Instagram or Our Website   Please help us out by sharing this episode with a friend, leaving a 5-star rating and review, and subscribing to this podcast!   Gospel Scripture: (all NIV)   Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”   Romans 3:24 “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”   Romans 3:25 (a) “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.”    Hebrews 9:22 (b) “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”    Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”    Romans 5:11 “Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”    John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”   Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”    Luke 15:10 says “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”   Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”   Ephesians 1:13–14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession- to the praise of his glory.”   Ephesians 1:15–23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”   Ephesians 2:8–10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God‘s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.“   Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.“   Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”   *Transcript*   Music: (0:00 – 0:11)   Laura Dugger: (0:12 - 1:15)  Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, where we have practical chats for intentional living. I'm your host, Laura Dugger, and I'm so glad you're here.    Today's message is not intended for little ears. We'll be discussing some adult themes, and I want you to be aware before you listen to this message.    I'm thrilled to introduce you to our sponsor, WinShape Marriage. Their weekend marriage retreats will strengthen your marriage while you enjoy the gorgeous setting, delicious food, and quality time with your spouse.   To find out more, visit them online at winshapemarriage.org.    Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, Casey and Meygan.   Casey Caston:  Thanks for having us. Excited to be here.   Laura Dugger: So, thrilled to have both of you, and let's just dive right into one of your sweet spots. How can open-ended questions change a marriage?   Casey Caston: (1:16 - 2:33)  Yeah, well, if you think about when we first met somebody that we fell in love with, fell attracted to that first date, as you're sitting across the table, you are looking at that person with so much curiosity. Like, who is this person? What are their hopes and their dreams and their life experiences?   What are they afraid of? Where are they going in life? And that curiosity drove us to ask really good open-ended questions.   Like, tell me more about yourself. It's funny because we were just reading in Proverbs this morning that in a man's heart, he has a purpose, but a man of understanding draws from the deep wells to pull that out. And I just, I always think about how a great question plums the deep wells of a man's heart or woman's heart.   And that attraction, that energy we feel, helps us with asking great questions. But then what happens is when we get married and we move into the wash, rinse, repeat of childcare and chores and, you know, the mundaneness of going to work, coming home, dinner, like, it can really sap all of the romance out of a relationship. And so, what happens is we fall into asking really boring questions.   Meygan Caston: (2:33 - 2:34)  Like, how was your day?   Casey Caston: (2:34 - 2:36)  What's picking up the kids?   Meygan Caston: (2:36 - 2:37)  What's for dinner? Yeah.   Casey Caston: (2:38 - 3:18)  So, we realize that when the well is dry, so to speak, you're not asking those great questions. We need prompts. We need an outside prompt because I don't think naturally we would ask great questions to spark this, you know, connecting conversation.   And I will tell you too, that if you just dropped in and, you know, just ask your spouse, like, “Hey, so, tell me some boundaries we need to set up with your parents.” People are going to be like, “Excuse me, where did that question come from? And what's the question behind the question?   What's your motivation here?” But those are conversations we need to have. We just need prompts.   So, yeah.   Laura Dugger: (3:19 - 3:32)  Well, I love that response. And I'm also curious after working with so many married couples, what have you seen as that connection between these amazing prompts for open-ended questions and emotional intimacy?   Meygan Caston: (3:34 - 4:20)  Yeah. Well, kind of like what Casey was mentioning about, um, just that curiosity of getting to know each other. I think the other part of asking those open-ended questions and having these deeper conversations is really about intentionality.   Like you still care about me. You still want to know about my heart. Well, for us, 25 years later, I still care about you.   I still love you. And I think that of course, as women, we long for that emotional connection. And I don't think that men realize it, but they actually long for that too.   And it's creating a safe place for spouses to share, to cry, to even, um, dream together about their future. And I think, again, if we don't give ourselves those opportunities and we're not intentional with that, we get stuck in the mundaneness of marriage.   Casey Caston: (4:20 - 5:03)  But, uh, and I would add to that, that curiosity, Meygan, I've talked about how curiosity is the pursuit of something. Right. And we all long to be desired to be pursued.   I mean, that is, that underlying communication is so powerful in relationships, because if you think about it, if you're not being pursued and your spouse isn't curious, I mean, that's like the, the heart of apathy. It's like, I don't care. And I know that people aren't intentionally trying to communicate that, but when you feel that, like my spouse doesn't really care about what I dream about or what I'm hoping to achieve this year, they just come home and they just watch TV or they're on their phone.   Meygan Caston: (5:04 - 5:18)  Right. That communicates a lot non-verbally. And so, that's why these open-ended questions are something that we should never stop being a learner of each other and of ourselves.   And that will provide that emotional intimacy.   Laura Dugger: (5:19 - 5:45)  That's so good. And obviously your resources are amazing. I would love, because you have these 365 Connecting Questions for Couples.   And so, I want to just hear maybe three of these questions that come to mind for you guys, especially as you've heard, these are the ones that tend to unlock something deeper in the conversation.   Meygan Caston: (5:46 - 6:07)  Absolutely. So, August 3rd is, are you someone who spends a lot of time in deep thought, processing things before making a decision, or do you tend to make quick decisions? Why or why not?   That question has genuinely sparked so much conversation between us and even like with our kids and other couples. Maybe you can explain why.   Casey Caston: (6:07 - 6:11)  Yeah. Well, I'm Mr. Impulsivity, so.   Meygan Caston: (6:11 - 6:29)  Yeah, you are. Where I, I don't, I wouldn't consider myself a deep thinker, but I definitely like to make pros and cons lists and think through things. But if you think about a dynamic between a husband and a wife, you know, there are so many decisions that you make together, small and large, your whole life, every day.   Casey Caston: (6:29 - 6:30)  Decision-making is huge in relationships.   Meygan Caston: (6:31 - 6:57)  And it's an everyday thing that couples are tackling. And it's important to know that no one is better than the other. It's not that a deep thinker is better than a more impulsive person. It's kind of more just naturally how you are. Have you always been this way? Do you like that about yourself?   Wow. You know, well, when it comes to these bigger decisions, I do spend, make more time, you know, thinking through and pros and cons. Oh, well, with small decisions, I'm more impulsive. I mean, you could just talk about that for hours and hours.   Casey Caston: (6:57 - 7:01) Yeah. But what's interesting is I tend to think more futuristic and big picture.   Meygan Caston: (7:01 - 7:01)  Yes.   Casey Caston: (7:01 - 7:03)  Even though I'm impulsive in the moment.   Meygan Caston: (7:03 - 7:05)  And I cannot, I can't do that.   Casey Caston: (7:05 - 7:06)  You are Ms. Realist.   Meygan Caston: (7:06 - 7:08)  Just tell me today, tell me this week.   Casey Caston: (7:09 - 7:10)  I can't think about this fun sponge.   Meygan Caston: (7:11 - 7:11)  Yes. Yeah.   Casey Caston: (7:12 - 7:15)  Because I'm like, let's dream big. And she's like, yeah, but what's happening today?   Meygan Caston: (7:16 - 7:49)  Yeah. Yeah. Another great question is January 18th.   How can we romance each other during the day in anticipation of sex? Because as we all know, us ladies, we need the foreplay. But again, I think that husbands also enjoy the foreplay.   But I don't think that couples are having these conversations. I think they think a foreplay is, well, once we enter into the bedroom, you know, and what we like to say is it's anything positive is foreplay. So, a thoughtful text, you know, a flirty I'm going to grab your hand to empty out the dishwasher.   Casey Caston: (7:49 - 7:50)  Amen.   Meygan Caston: (7:50 - 7:55)  Yeah. You know, it's those kinds of conversations. But like, I would never think of asking you that.   Casey Caston: (7:56 - 7:56)  Right.   Meygan Caston: (7:56 - 7:58)  Right. Thankfully for those.   Casey Caston: (7:58 - 8:10)  But as you know, Laura, like couples that need to talk about their sex life. And if you don't talk about your sex life, most oftentimes there's a lot of assumptions. And that leads to, you know, dysfunction.   Meygan Caston: (8:11 - 9:14)  Well, and missed expectations. Totally. Yeah. And then I have another question. April 25th is how do our differences help complement each other?   Oh, so, kind of another one of those things, like with making decisions. Every single couple has differences. And we always tell people Casey, and I are more different than alike.   I think people see us online and whatnot. And they hear, oh, we're both extroverts. We are. So, we have some similarities. We're both stubborn, very competitive, both competitive. But in the day-to-day operations of who Casey and Meygan are, we make decisions, we run our lives, run our business, run our business.   We are completely opposite. And what I think it's good to do for couples is to actually own your differences rather than shy away from them or make yourselves feel bad, like, oh, I wish we were the same. I get it.   You know, we actually are attracted to those things when we're dating. That's why opposites attract. But then when we get married, it's like, why doesn't he do everything the same way? I do it because I do it the right way. That's what we think. Right.   Casey Caston: (9:15 - 9:21)  Well, you heard the joke that marriage is about becoming one. And in the earlier years, it's about which one.   Meygan Caston: (9:21 - 10:14)  Yeah. Which one? Which figure out?   Yeah. And so, that question really allows you to identify your differences, but then go, how do they balance each other out? And I think for me, as someone who is organized, type A Casey's very spontaneous.   If we were both type A and structured, we wouldn't have a lot of fun. We really wouldn't. His spontaneity really brings out that side of me.   But if we were both spontaneous, our bills would never be paid, and we'd be broke. So, you know, I'm a I'm a saver. He's a spender.   You can see the balance in that. It's good that we're both those things. Right.   I'm on time. He's late. We could continue going on and on and on and on.   But I think that he's a risk taker. I'm a complete play it safer. And so, those really draw out a beautiful balance in our marriage versus trying to change one another.   So, I hope that question sparks listeners to really ask your spouse that and have fun with the conversation.   Laura Dugger: (10:15 - 11:03)  Well, you chose three great ones. I love it. And they draw out such different parts of our personality.   You highlighted where Casey's more futuristic. Meygan, you're more present. Some people will connect with questions that direct them more past oriented.   And so, our orientation to time comes out and the meta conversations, the talking like having the conversation about your conversation. Just so much goodness. And yes, especially with sexual intimacy.   So, many couples report that it is much harder to engage in conversation about sex rather than just have sex. And like you said, missed expectations can be one of the blow ups there, among many other things. So, you have questions that don't shy away from all forms of intimacy.   Meygan Caston: (11:04 - 11:10)  Yeah. And to also say we have a lot of fun questions, too. Like, tell me about what your bedroom looked like when you were a teenager.   Casey Caston: (11:11 - 11:12)  That's a great one. I love that one.   Meygan Caston: (11:12 - 11:47)  Let's talk couples. If you had a really hard day with the kids or at work, pick a fun question. You don't have to go by the date.   If you don't like the question, it's triggering, then flip to the next one. But going back to that emotional intimacy and connection that you were talking about, Laura, is you have to have those deep questions and those conversations. And you did when you were dating, because if you went on a date with your husband and you were like, hey, tell me, you know, what do you want to do when you retire?   And he was like, I don't know. Yeah, you'd be like snooze fest. This guy's boring, right?   Or if he was on his phone the whole time, there was something intriguing about your spouse.   Casey Caston: (11:47 - 11:48)  I don't know. I don't know.   Meygan Caston: (11:48 - 12:01)  Yeah, there was something intriguing about your spouse when you were dating and you were asking those questions that should never stop. Just like we hear that quote, never stop dating your spouse. Well, never stop learning about your spouse.   It's the same thing. Absolutely.   Laura Dugger: (12:02 - 12:16)  And I love how you two have such a humble approach because you say that you're a very unlikely couple to help support marriages. So, will you let us in on your own backstory?   Meygan Caston: (12:17 - 12:46)  Yeah, well, can I just start off by saying this? We live in a county that has one of the highest divorce rates in the nation. So, it's 72 percent divorce rate where we live.   We also come from there's 12 marriages between our parents. So, we come from so much divorce and trauma. And then we also got married very, very, very young.   So, all those statistics were against us on top of that. I'm just going to start off by saying that. Casey Caston: (12:46 - 13:18)  Yeah, my mom's been married six times. So, when by the time I hit junior high, I had probably like nine different iterations of home life and different dads and step siblings and half brothers. And all of that between both of our parents.   There's just there's some mental illness. There's affairs. There's all this trauma that was really unprocessed.   But then when Meygan and I saw each other, it was like we knew the wounds that we shared. It was like almost like a trauma bond.   Meygan Caston: (13:19 - 13:19)  Yeah.   Casey Caston: (13:19 - 14:08)  Like, oh, I've got abandonment. So, do you. And, you know, let's do it's like, wow.   So, let's make each other happy. And dating was just all the fun stuff, right? It was long walks along the beach.   It was going to street fairs or, you know, going out and having fun. And then we're like, if this is what life could be like, then we should do this forever and ever and ever. And just, you know, we were so doe eyed of like and optimistic about how marriage life would look like.   So, then once we did get married, done, done, done, we had to like work through stuff. Now, I was so conflict avoidant because I was afraid if there was conflict, then that means that there's going to be distance between Meygan and I and she might leave me.   Meygan Caston: (14:08 - 14:24)  Oh, there's another there's another difference. I'm a fighter. He's a fighter.   So, anytime we would have conflict triggers, you know, emotional regulation, I was like, we're going to go for it. Now, of course, my fighting tactics were not healthy. I yelled. I blamed. I was very aggressive, assertive.   Casey Caston: (14:24 - 14:37)  Conflict was very scary for me. Now. Now, Meygan, she's like wanting to deal with issues. And here I am, like trying to run for the hills. And she's like, he doesn't care about me. And I'm like, I'm trying to protect the marriage by not dealing with it.   Meygan Caston: (14:37 - 14:49)  So, you never really resolved anything. We would fight really bad. We broke all the fighting rules.   And then there was no true resolve, no apologies, no remorse. And you just kind of move forward.   Casey Caston: (14:49 - 15:06)  And so, then we piled ourselves like we had over two hundred fifty thousand dollars of debt when we started to try to work on getting pregnant. We we dealt with infertility. We I have ADHD, so that creates a lot of that's fun.   A lot of fun for the marriage.   Meygan Caston: (15:06 - 15:08)  The divorce rate is very high with ADHD.   Casey Caston: (15:08 - 15:10)  My life gets to teach you patience.   Meygan Caston: (15:11 - 15:11)  Yeah.   Casey Caston: (15:12 - 16:44)  But and then we have a child with special needs as well. So, we we had like if there's something that could go wrong, it it went wrong. We had you know, once we got married, there was toxic in-laws that boundaries that were crossed.   So, it just nothing for us came easy. And so, that's why we were the least likely to succeed in marriage. I mean, if we there was a couple doomed from the get go, it was Meygan and I believe a hundred percent that God used those trials, those hardships to create marriage.   Three sixty five. He gave us the strength to, you know, have the courage to say we're not going to follow in our parents footsteps. We're going to change that.    You know, it ends with us literally like we are going to change and break this generational sin because it goes back many, many generations for both of us. Our whole family is littered with divorce. And now like when we approach marriage, it because of where we've come from, it wasn't all flowery.   It was really tough. We have to be practical and very tactical with our advice, because when you're sitting across from a couple that's angry and resentful. We have to sit there and go, we know what that's like.   And here's exactly what you need to do next. I'm not going to give you a platitude. I'm not going to give you some flowery statement or we're not going to just talk through it.    No, we're going to give you a tool and an action step that's going to help you. Laura Dugger: (16:46 - 18:56)  Let's take a quick break to hear a message from our sponsor. Friends, I'm excited to share with you today's sponsor, WinShape Marriage. Do you feel like you need a weekend away with your spouse and a chance to grow in your relationship together at the same time?    WinShape Marriage is a fantastic ministry that provides weekend marriage retreats to help couples grow closer together in every season and stage of life from premarital to parenting to the emptiness phase. There is an opportunity for you. WinShape Marriage is grounded on the belief that the strongest marriages are the ones that are nurtured, even when it seems things are going smoothly so that they're stronger if they do hit a bump along their marital journey.   These weekend retreats are hosted within the beautiful refuge of WinShape Retreat, perched in the mountains of Rome, Georgia, which is a short drive from Atlanta, Birmingham and Chattanooga. While you're there, you will be well fed, well nurtured and well cared for. During your time away in this beautiful place, you and your spouse will learn from expert speakers and explore topics related to intimacy, overcoming challenges, improving communication and more.   I've stayed on site at WinShape before, and I can attest to their generosity, food and content. You will be so grateful you went to find an experience that's right for you and your spouse. Head to their website, winshapemarriage.org/savvy. That's W-I-N-S-H-A-P-E marriage dot org slash S-A-V-V-Y. Thanks for your sponsorship.   I'd love to hear even more into the redemption part of it, because Marriage 365, you had shared before we had recorded that you launched that in 2013. So, just to get the timeline straight, had you already done some work and some counseling before you launched that?   Meygan Caston: (18:56 - 19:26)  Or what was that journey? Yeah, so, we always say we it took us two years to fall in love and get married. It took us three years to destroy our marriage, and it took about four or five years to repair our marriage.   It was, as you know, Laura, it is not a quick fix when your marriage is as bad as ours. And so, our story is unique in the sense where we were both not wanting to get help for our marriage. I love you, babe, but he was resistant.   He didn't want to go to therapy. His family didn't go to therapy. That wasn't normalized.   Casey Caston: (19:26 - 19:31)  Well, my faith background said that therapy is bad from the from the devil.   Meygan Caston: (19:31 - 19:38)  It was specifically your parents. But from the devil. Yeah, because I have a faith background, too. And my parents went to therapy. But that's what I was saying.   Casey Caston: (19:38 - 19:40)  My background was that you don't do that.   Meygan Caston: (19:40 - 21:16)  Yeah. So, I was wanting to get divorced and he wouldn't divorce me. He was like, no.   So, if you're going to do it, you got to do it. And so, I got help for myself. And I had the most amazing woman who a therapist who just walked me through basically how to save my marriage by myself.   And she goes, listen, you know, at the end of the day, if you want to make a better marriage, it starts by making a better you. You have zero control over Casey. You have 100 percent control over you.   He's not here. You are. I can show you how to communicate, how to forgive him even without getting an apology.   I can show you how to bring to his defenses down. I can show you how to create boundaries so he doesn't yell at you anymore. I mean, and that's literally for 13 months I worked on myself. And I believe that that is what genuinely changed everything. And that's really the message behind Marriage 365 is if you want to make a better marriage, it starts by making a better you. Stop waiting around for your husband or your wife to get on board.   They may never. Then you're only going to build resentment while you sit there and wait. At the end of the day, you're responsible for how you show up.   And so, in that 13 months, the hope was, of course, that I would positively influence Casey, which I did. And he saw the change in me. Everything changed.   I mean, like we both used to be yellers, right? We would both yell and scream. And I was like, I'm not going to yell anymore.   Like, I just I don't want to be a yeller of a mom. I don't want to be a yeller of a wife. Like, I don't like this part of me. My mom was a yeller. I mean, oh, yeah, I hate this. And I just remember like one day he came walking in and he was all heated and frustrated and he started yelling at me. And do you remember what I did, babe?   Casey Caston: (21:17 - 21:33)  Yeah. She looked at me and calmly said, you know, I can tell that you're very upset. I really want to have to listen to what you want to share with me.   Why don't you go outside, take a break, come back in? We're going to sit back on the couch. We can talk about it. I'm here for you. And I was like, what a change.   Meygan Caston: (21:33 - 22:07)  Who is this person? I changed the way that we did marriage. I did that.   And I tell people that I didn't do that once. I didn't do it twice. I did that for months because we had habits we had created.   But I was like, that was like a new boundary. I'm like, I'm not going to engage with him when he's angry. It's been triggered.   Nothing good is coming from this. So, it was all of that we started to really adopt and learn together because he's like, you're a different person. Like, it was obvious we were doing the tango.   And now I was doing the rumba and he was over there doing the tango. And I'm like, come join me in the healthy rumba over here because it's way better.   Casey Caston: (22:07 - 22:09)  And so, for toxic tango.   Meygan Caston: (22:09 - 23:20)  Yeah, we went to a marriage. Yeah, we went to a marriage intensive. And we did some therapy.   We did a lot of self-help. But through that journey, this is kind of where we started Marriage 365 is. First off, we couldn't afford therapy.   We needed to pay off all that debt that we had with a lot of student loan debt, a lot of stupid debt. What do you do if you can't afford therapy? What do you do if you don't have a good therapist?   What do you do if you have a bad experience with therapy? What do you do if the books aren't enough? And that was there was a really big hole and missing part in the marriage.   I don't say industry, but in the marriage space, where were all the online resources? Because this was back again in like 2010 when like podcasts weren't even around, social media was just becoming a thing. And it was really hard.   We were really disappointed with the lack of resources there were for marriage. And it felt like every church you go to, there was, you know, the missions ministry and the children's ministry and the youth groups. And all those are great.   Where in the world are all the marriage ministries? Then we found out only 3% of churches have actual paid marriage ministries. And I thought, that's messed up.   That's reverse. It's supposed to be the opposite, because then everything else will work itself out, as we know, with what research shows.   Casey Caston: (23:20 - 23:21)  Same with men's ministry, by the way.   Meygan Caston: (23:21 - 23:22)  Yes, same with men's ministry.   Casey Caston: (23:22 - 23:23)  Men's and marriage.   Meygan Caston: (23:23 - 23:26)  That's like the stepchild.   Casey Caston: (23:26 - 23:33)  Tech guy slash men's guy slash, you know. Children's persons can also do marriage.   Meygan Caston: (23:33 - 23:40)  So, we really just started helping our friends out. Obviously, people could see the change. Then people would come to us. We started helping couples at our church.   Casey Caston: (23:40 - 23:48)  And we had a ghoul pool. Like people were like, we give you guys another like ten months and then we're expecting you.   Meygan Caston: (23:48 - 23:51)  Yeah, everyone that knew us thought we'd get divorced.   Casey Caston: (23:51 - 23:52)  We were messy.   Meygan Caston: (23:52 - 23:58)  We were bad. Yeah. So, to see the complete transformation. And again, I go back to that work we did was on ourselves.   Casey Caston: (23:58 - 25:31)  And I just have to say that if you want to make a better marriage, it starts by making a better you. If you're hearing that. And you're kind of in a one sided marriage right now, I got to just say, I know that message sucks because it's a message that says you have to go first.   And that's not fair. In a marriage, you're supposed to be a team. But I do want to say there's so many couples that are stuck. Waiting for their spouse to join them on the let's get healthy train. So, their spouse doesn't join them. And then what they do is they kind of lean back, fold their arms and go, well, I guess we're stuck.   But I want to say that that's there is a message of empowerment to say you do have influence and the ability to steer your marriage in a healthy way. I have lots of regret that I did not join that train much sooner. But the story is that Meygan, you know, became the hero of our journey.   And that is something that I work actively so that I'm never in that place again, that I am the one that's always actively trying to improve myself, that I'm a better communicator, that I'm not a yeller, which we've ditched that a long time ago, that that I'm considered of Meygan's needs. And I'm even like attuned to like, what is she feeling? And how do I meet her where she's at?   Laura Dugger: (25:32 - 25:54)  Which is amazing that watching Meygan, it was compelling enough for you to join in. And it's admirable on both sides, the work that you've done. And are there any specific areas that you grew in that now you teach couples? I'm thinking specifically under conflict and repair or communication.   Casey Caston: (25:55 - 27:42)  Yeah. So, I remember those early years and every single week was chaos to chaos. Like coming home, it'd be like, what's for dinner?   I'm hungry and we need to make a decision now. Or, you know, it's Friday night or Saturday morning. What's going on this weekend?   Or where's all our money going? It was very, it was very reactionary. And I remember reading through Stephen Covey's, you know, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.   And the first habit is be proactive. You cannot be intentional with your life. You cannot create purpose and meaning unless you are proactive with your life.   So, Meygan and I, you know, I'm working in a company and every single week we get together and we go through what are everyone's goals? What do we need to accomplish this week? We find alignment and the week goes really well.   We've got KPIs. We've got all these like, hey, as a team, you know, work team, here's what we're trying to accomplish this week. And it just kind of dawned on us like, well, why don't we do that in marriage?   Why don't we do that for a family? You got a family of six. You got six people running around the house. All have agendas. And you are trying to find alignment so that, hey, this is what the family is all about this week, right? We've got tournaments.   We've got parties. We've got projects. We've got meals.   And I think for so many couples we talk to, they live. Life with purpose on like building their career or their business or purpose with other areas of their life. And then when it comes to family, they wing it.   Meygan Caston: (27:42 - 27:43)  They just wing it.   Casey Caston: (27:43 - 28:31)  Yeah. And it's like, well, if it's meant to be, it's meant to be. It's the winging attitude creates chaos.   And so, Meygan and I love to teach this tool called the Weekly Marriage Business Meeting. And it is all of the logistics of our relationship schedules, meal plans, budgets, connection time, sexy time, alone time, self-care time. Yeah.   And and we kind of set with intention the week ahead for us. And we go through all the decisions of who's going, what, where, when. And all of that's done.   So, when you walk into the day, you're not like stressed about what's supposed to be happening. There is alignment and there's no missed expectations.   Meygan Caston: (28:31 - 29:27)  Yeah, there's no fights anymore about, well, you said you'd be home at six. No, I didn't. I said I'd be home at seven.   We sync our calendars. And I think, too, a big thing with this is we've noticed we fight when we don't do this now. It's one of those tools that it's prevented most of conflict.   I mean, we say it will on average for the most couples that use it. We have at least over 10,000 couples we know right now currently using it that are our members that they say it cuts conflict in half in half, because what you're doing is you're even scheduling that connection time or date night time where you're like, no matter how busy we are, when are Casey and Meygan going to get to be Casey and Meygan?   And that's so important, because again, if you're winging it and you're just trying to find time to connect, well, you've got four kids, we've got two teenagers. It's never going to happen. Right. And so, the weekly marriage business meeting is definitely one of the amazing and favorite worksheets and tools that we've taught and that we use ourselves because it works.   Casey Caston: (29:28 - 29:28)  Yeah.   Laura Dugger: (29:28 - 29:59)  What a game changer. That is awesome and so practical, so intentional, which we're all about. But then also we had talked about emotional intimacy earlier and emotional intimacy is interconnected with sexual intimacy and communication is the root issue.   And that's what you teach couples. So, what are some conversations that couples can begin so that they can grow in both of those types of intimacy and enjoyment?   Casey Caston: (30:01 - 31:34)  Yeah, so, I feel like I have to start off by saying I got this so wrong when we were first married. It's OK. I forgive you now.   Yeah, because, you know. Let's just let's be we'll be we'll be completely transparent. So, Meygan and I waited to have sex until we were married.   So, now I actually waited till I was married to have sex. And I thought that under that purity guideline, I was promised maybe by a youth group, maybe by a convention, that if you withhold sex and remain pure, God is going to bless you with the best sex life when you're married. And that just simply did not happen.   Like when we first got married, I really got went into the bedroom thinking. I don't know what foreplay is, but let's have intercourse until I come and then we're done. And that's sex. That's our sexual intimacy. And we missed out on so many intimate ways of knowing each other and sex being an obligation and something like I just was demanding of it from Meygan. And. What I've come to discover and what I love to teach other men is that sex is so much more broader than just having intercourse. I mean, there was this total understanding like, well, I feel good during intercourse. This feels very stimulating, which means that Meygan must feel the exact same way while we're having intercourse.   Meygan Caston: (31:35 - 31:35)  Nope.   Casey Caston: (31:36 - 32:35)  Because that's because listen, I never had sex before. But anytime I watched a rom com, you know, the guy threw up, you know, against the wall or they're having intercourse and she's going and he's going and they're having a great time. Like this must be what sex is all about.   And what I've discovered now and I get to teach other men is that emotional intimacy is kind of the birthplace of sexual expression of love, right? That we we create safe places for our wives to to open up. And because of that, they become more willing and wanting that that sexual expression rather than us just coming in and saying, OK, it's time for sex.   Let's go. And so, when we talk about just this book, this 365 Connecting Questions for Couples, I tell my guys, I'm like, hey, if you want to have great sex, start here because that is foreplay.   Meygan Caston: (32:35 - 33:48)  That's start here. It's good to know my heart, not just use me for my body, which can feel like that for a lot of people. And I think going back to the emotional intimacy, I think that, again, you had that when you were dating or you wouldn't have gotten married.   There was no way you were. If the person was boring, closed off, if, you know, your spouse was just completely on their phone every time, you wouldn't have had that second, third, fourth date. So, there was emotional intimacy at some point, which means you can't ever say we never had it.    You can always get it back, but you can have to be intentional. And I think a great way is we call it connection time. I think date night scares a lot of people.    I think it's the idea of. We have to go to a restaurant, we have to spend money, we have to find a babysitter, all these hurdles that you have to go through to make it happen, so then couples just don't even do it. So, we're like, listen, if you if that's overwhelming to you, then try connection time.    And really what that is, it's still undivided, you know, attention and time with you and your spouse. Maybe it's smaller, maybe it's 15 minutes, 30 minutes. And I know for when our kids were little, we played board games and card games and they'd go to bed, you know, at 7:30 or 8:00 PM.    And we would bring out Yahtzee.   Casey Caston: (33:48 - 33:51)  There'd be a lot of trash talking over chutes and ladders.   Meygan Caston: (33:52 - 34:29)  But we would play. We would play games. And it was our time to connect.    And when we didn't talk about the kids, you know, we just chatted about our day and again, going through some of these connecting questions that didn't even really exist yet, but they were in our heads. Taking a walk with the dog and, you know, going to a little local coffee shop, even if it's just 30 minutes and sharing and talking and exploring that emotional intimacy should never stop again. And that's going to give people opportunities to then go into the bedroom, like Casey mentioned, more willing and more excited to be intimate to each other because it's like, oh, that's right.    We like each other. We're still married. We're still friends.   Casey Caston: (34:29 - 35:15)  You bring up a great point. Like I said, I think sitting down over the table, staring at each other can be intimidating for a lot of guys, because especially if this is not a regular habit in your relationship and taking a walk for guys when we're doing something and maybe it's less intimidating because we're not even staring at each other. But that kind of like getting the, you know, oxytocin going, like getting moving, like that kind of adrenaline can actually stimulate guys for good conversations and processing things.    And so, what we hear from a lot of couples that take our book, maybe they'll take a picture of the question and they'll go, Hey, let's take a walk. And then they'll use the question on their walk.   Meygan Caston: (35:15 - 35:15)  Yeah.   Casey Caston: (35:15 - 35:24)  And that gets conversations going. So, if that's like a on ramp onto this, that's a that's a great starting point for a lot of people.   Laura Dugger: (35:24 - 36:48)  Oh, that's so good. And I love how you say just an on ramp, because the goal is more intimacy overall together to know one another, be known. And I love that you're showing this is not a manipulation factor.    This isn't ask these questions so we can be more active in the bedroom, regardless of whichever spouse is the higher desire one. But this is to really enhance all levels of your relationship. And as you talk about oxytocin, it just makes me think such an interesting cycle that the Lord created where I will speak more stereotypically that where women require the emotional connection and then they open up and enjoy sex more.    But then men, once they've had sex and they just have this like 500 percent increase of oxytocin in this neurochemical bath that opens them up emotionally. And we could see it even as we view our differences. You could be upset because they're opposite or we can see it as a gift that they can fuel one another.    And then we get more of a holistic picture of overall intimacy. So, I'll also link to quite a few episodes because we do about one per month where we dive deeper into sexual intimacy. S   o, I can link all of those in the show notes.    But Casey, were you going to say something?   Meygan Caston: (36:49 - 36:50)  I want to say something to it.   Casey Caston: (36:51 - 37:16)  He loves. Well, so, we're talking chicken and egg, right? Like who gets the emotional intimacy, who gets the physical intimacy first?    And I just think that there's if we approach our relationship with selfishness, well, then neither people get satisfied. But if we are in an approach to serve one another and be selfless lovers. So, men would be like, you know what?    I want to meet my wife's emotional needs.   Meygan Caston: (37:16 - 37:16)  Yeah.   Casey Caston: (37:17 - 37:38)  Like and I do believe that men are the spark of initiation. If you're a husband out there listening to this, like that one of your greatest gifts to marriage is initiation. You were the one who asked for the first date.    You were the one who got down one the knee. You are the spark of initiation. And I believe that God's created women as nurturers of that initiation.   Meygan Caston: (37:39 - 37:41)  And to clarify, you're not talking just about initiating sex.   Casey Caston: (37:41 - 37:43)  Well, yes. Just everything.   Meygan Caston: (37:43 - 37:55)  Initiating, just initiating, initiating a weekly marriage business meeting. Women are so turned on by when a husband's like, hey, I don't necessarily know what we want to do for a date night, but I want to take you on a date. Can I get an amen, Laura?   Laura Dugger: (37:55 - 37:56)  Right, sister?   Meygan Caston: (37:57 - 38:14)  Hey, women are turned on. Listen, men, women are turned on. If you say, you know what?    I know that like this has been an issue with my parents and I don't even know how to handle it, but I really want to have that conversation. Oh, my gosh. Just initiating the conversation is all we're looking for.    It's OK that you don't have all the answers.   Casey Caston: (38:14 - 38:14)  Yeah.   Meygan Caston: (38:14 - 38:23)  But for men that avoid stonewall, escape, numb out, busy themselves, it is such a turnoff. It is so not what we want.   Laura Dugger: (38:23 - 39:55)  I want to make sure that you're up to date with our latest news. We have a new website. You can visit theSavvySauce.com and see all of the latest updates. You may remember Francie Heinrichsen from episode 132, where we talked about pursuing our God given dreams. She is the amazing businesswoman who has carefully designed a brand-new website for Savvy Sauce Charities. And we are thrilled with the final product.    So, I hope you check it out there. You're going to find all of our podcasts now with show notes and transcriptions listed a scrapbook of various previous guests and an easy place to join our email list to receive monthly encouragement and questions to ask your loved ones so that you can have your own practical chats for intentional living. You will also be able to access our donation button or our mailing address for sending checks that are tax deductible so that you can support the work of Savvy Sauce Charities and help us continue to reach the nation with the good news of Jesus Christ.    So, make sure you visit theSavvySauce.com.    Okay, so, then continue the conversation with just overall intimacy. What are some examples of de-escalation techniques that you recommend to couples who are in conflict, ones that can maybe help the strained relationships so that they can be repaired?  Yeah.   Meygan Caston: (39:55 - 42:19)  Yeah. So, a big thing that I've learned as someone who's very direct, I can tend to be on that, like I mentioned, fighter side. And I know a lot of women, studies have shown 75 percent of us ladies are the ones that typically bring up the issues.    So, just be aware that there is a gender difference there. And if you're a dude, there's nothing wrong with you if you're in, you know, that 75 percent or 25 percent. But I think the biggest thing I've recognized is to remind your spouse in the very beginning of the conversation, why you're having the conversation.    You know, I love you. I love us. I want to see us be the best people that we can be.    I want to see us enjoy marriage and enjoy life. I love you. Like bring the positivity and the reminder that you're better together than apart.    And really, that's part of what we call a soft startup, right? There's a lot of different soft startups you've heard of. You know, I feel when you I need those work to but I like to take it a little bit deeper to say, remind your spouse how much that you love being married to them.    Or again, whatever the issue is like we have the most. Let's say it's parenting. Casey and I are very different in our parenting styles.    Last night would have been a great difference of how that happened. But like reminder that like we both love our children. We both want the best for our kids.    No one doubts that. We both have made we made two beautiful, wonderful, quirky children. Right.    And so, even you can start the conversation with that. But I wish that more people did that because I think people are are, you know, I'm really upset about something. OK, well, the second you say that defenses, sorry, but defenses are going to go up.    We want to keep the conversations defenses low, guards low, right, de-escalation. And so, use soft startups, use kind, positive language. But I think another thing behind that would be come to the conversation processed.    Do not have these conversations 11 o'clock at night when you're tired or when you're hungry. Do not have these conversations when it just happened and you haven't had the time to just like stop. Think about what do I really need?    Why did that trigger me? What am I hoping to achieve? Why is my husband acting this way?    Oh, is he under a lot of stress? Yeah, we got to give ourselves time to sit and process before we even use those soft startups. So, that would be my advice for de-escalation.   Casey Caston: (42:20 - 43:04)  And mine actually would be an apology. I think that we all make mistakes. And when you think about a couple that's maybe living reactively, just winging it, I doubt that there's ever an apology that's given on either side because it takes a little it takes awareness to recognize, gosh, you know what?    My that little comment I just made that probably had a little zing to it. Or, you know, I really let my spouse down by not parenting the children the way she would want me to. Or, you know, I said I was going to do something and I didn't.    And I let my partner down. You want to de-escalate a tense situation. Apologize.   Meygan Caston: (43:04 - 43:04)  Yeah. Own it.   Casey Caston: (43:05 - 43:12)  When you apologize, you know, you're taking all of the heat out of the fire. They really are.   Meygan Caston: (43:12 - 43:16)  And you're validating your spouse's feelings. Who doesn't want to be validated and seen? Everybody does.   Casey Caston: (43:16 - 43:38)  And then you're taking responsibility and accountability for your actions, which is the trust builder for relationships. So, that's why when you talk about high conflict relationships, there aren't a lot of there's not a lot of trust there. It's not a safe place anymore.    So, to create that safety, we want to we want to build trust back into the relationship.   Laura Dugger: (43:39 - 43:50)  Those are fantastic. And do you guys just have maybe a handful of ideas for ways that couples can strengthen their marriage with one another?   Meygan Caston: (43:51 - 44:09)  Absolutely. I would say, obviously, the weekly marriage business meeting. I mean, I know we talked about it, but the important thing is to schedule it, put it in the calendar because you don't want to wing it.    And that way it's showing, oh, you're prioritizing us. Taking walks has been a big one for us. Playing games is a big one.   Casey Caston: (44:09 - 45:18)  The 60 second blessing is where we intentionally spend time. 60 seconds reminding our partner of how much we love them, using our words to say, like, I saw how hard you work for the family. I love how you take care of the kids and kind of reminding your partner, like I see the goodness in each other.    I think it's really important because. Day to day life, we can just be very transactional, and if we again, we have any sort of criticism or, you know, our words just are not flavored with life, well, proverb says, you know, our words have the power to give life or to give death. Right.    So, the words that we speak, if we evaluate. Are we producing what I call weed seeds? Or are we planting fruit trees?    Because weed seeds choke out the garden. Those sharp, critical words can leave your garden looking pretty shabby, whereas being intentional by speaking positive over each other. It's like planting fruit trees.    And who doesn't like a good, juicy orange? Right.   Meygan Caston: (45:18 - 47:15)  Well, and the 60 second blessing, you know, you start off by writing five to seven positive things you love about your spouse. And so, one spouse shares their list for 60 seconds and then the second spouse shares their list. And it's this habit that we actually started doing after our marriage intensive that we did as we were repairing our marriage because we had yeah, we had we had spoken such mean and harsh words or just a lot of roommate stuff.    And we needed that positivity. And it's a great foreplay tip, by the way, just to sit, sometimes sit down and go, I just need to tell you how wonderful you are. Like, who doesn't want to hear that about themselves?    I think another thing that Casey and I have recognized it is the only thing, by the way, Laura, in our marriage, the only thing that has ever stayed consistent. That's we have fun together. We laugh a lot, even in hard times.    Yeah, it wasn't as enjoyable, but we still had fun. And, you know, again, fun is different for everybody. We don't ever want to judge someone else's fun.    But we are constantly like we we are sarcastic. But that's for us because we have high trust levels. I usually tell couples if you're, you know, in a fair recovery or you have low trust levels, sarcasm is probably not great.    But we're very playful. We have again, we play a lot of fun games and we play ping pong and cornhole and we take our dogs on our dog on a walk. And we, you know, we're going to try to go ax throwing in April.    We've never done that before. Like there are fun that we've taken dance lessons. So, we like to think out of the box and do new things or things that we know that like how many games of Yahtzee have we played?    I don't even know. I mean, we've lost count. Or gin rummy, you know, I mean, we just play Sequence or Rummikub like we play them all.    And for that for us, that's really fun. We dance a lot. We love the 90's music.    Like get out your favorite playlist and just dance and sing and be goofy. Like I think if couples were to laugh and enjoy each other more and be able to laugh with themselves, I think that there would be more marriages that would stay together. Laura Dugger: (47:16 - 47:39)  That is something that I've even experienced in this time together. You guys are so fun to be around. And that's very life giving to others.    But I can see where it starts in that secret place between just the two of you, your best friend. And you share a lot of this goodness with Marriage 365. So, can you let us know all the different things that you have to offer?   Casey Caston: (47:40 - 48:48)  Yeah, I would probably say the number one way that people experience all of the resources that we've created over the years is through our mobile app. So, we have an app that has over a thousand pieces of videos, workshop, worksheet, excuse me, courses, challenges. We even have a checkup so you can actually rate kind of your marriage.    And that is a great way for people to be able to have access, you know, on the spot if they're dealing with an issue, they don't know how to get through and they're looking for a tool or a conversation to help them work through that. That our app provides such a valuable resource. I mean, beyond that, you know, some couples need a little bit more hands on approach.    So, we do coaching. We have a coaching staff actually to handle all the incoming couples that are saying, hey, can you can you help us out? And again, I just want to say coaching is really, really focused on giving action plans and homework and accountability to our clients.    And coaching is really, really helpful if you're like, I just need to know what to do next.   Meygan Caston: (48:48 - 49:17)  Yeah. We do intensives for couples that are in crisis, you know, there that are seriously considering separation or divorce or an affair recovery and that we have an over 90 percent success rate because we went through an intensive when we were struggling and it was something we knew we wanted to get trained on and do. And it's a full two days with Casey and I.    I mean, two days back-to-back. We know you. We get Christmas cards from all of our couples, you know, every year.    We love it. And it's they become almost I mean, yes, they're our clients, but they almost become like our friends.   Casey Caston: (49:17 - 49:45)  Yeah. And then probably personally, one of my favorite things that we do is we host our own couple's getaway. And this is a four-day experience.    It's not your it's not like a typical retreat where you're sitting in a conference room, you're just getting lectured all day. We're actually facilitating tools and then giving couples opportunities to work on them. Then some free time to really spend some time making great memories.    We have a dance party. It is a ton of fun.   Meygan Caston: (49:45 - 49:55)  We make sure. Yeah, we make sure it's fun. It's more it's definitely more for couples who are doing OK or want to do better, not they're not ideal for couples in crisis because it's going to be very uncomfortable.   Casey Caston: (49:55 - 49:56)  I love our retreats.   Meygan Caston: (49:56 - 49:57)  I know.   Casey Caston: (49:57 - 49:58)  I love interacting with her.   Meygan Caston: (49:58 - 50:05)  And of course, we have our social media. You can just search Marriage 365 and then we have our website, too. And we have our books, of course.   Casey Caston: (50:05 - 50:09)  Oh, and I have a men's group. I know I launched a five-week men's reset. . Meygan Caston: (50:09 - 50:34)  Needless to say, Laura, we're really busy. I do a lot. I think that's what's funny, right?    I think that people see us online and they think that we just have an Instagram, or we just have Facebook. And I'm like, we've been doing this for 12 years and we have a staff of 12 people. So, we reach a lot of people.    And we because marriage is never a one stop, you know, one size fits all. It's it's true. There are so many different dynamics, and we want to be able to help as many people as we can.   Laura Dugger: (50:35 - 50:59)  Wow. Thank you for sharing that. We will add all of those links.    I love all these different offerings that you have and that will meet people in whatever phase they're in. But you two already know we are called The Savvy Sauce because savvy is synonymous with practical knowledge. And so, as my final question for both of you, what is your Savvy Sauce?   Meygan Caston: (51:00 - 51:47)  Mine would be I would want every single person to think about becoming more confident. And that starts with becoming more self-aware. I think that that is completely changed who I am.   And I'm we're raising two kids, and I see the confidence that they have. And we're modeling that but also walking them through how to be self-aware. And really, that starts with having to be one with your thoughts, turning off the phone, sorry, turning off the podcast, sometimes turning off the music and just actually sitting and really going.    Do I really know my thoughts, my feelings, my values, my personality, my good, my bad, my ugly? And we don't do this enough. We are busy ourselves.    We're distracted constantly. And I think that it's really harming our mental health. And so, that would be my savvy sauce.   Casey Caston: (51:47 - 52:30)  Hmm. I love that, babe. It's kind of hard because we find so much alignment.    I mean, I would that's exactly what I would say, too. Um, I, you know, my focus in twenty, twenty-five has really been turned towards helping husbands. And there's a quote that Henry David Thoreau says that many men live lives of quiet desperation and they die with their songs still inside them.    And most guys are terrified of stopping and evaluating. And so, for me, creating space too. Listen, I do a 10, 10, 10 practice in the morning.   Meygan Caston: (52:30 - 52:32)  That's what I thought you were going to say.   Casey Caston: (52:32 - 52:32)  Yeah, yeah.   Meygan Caston: (52:32 - 52:36)  Well, I was like, I bet you he's going to talk about it because it's been life changing for you.   Casey Caston: (52:36 - 53:01)  Yeah. So, I spend 10 minutes of scripture reading. So, that's input.    Then I spend 10 minutes of quiet meditation where I'm sitting and I'm in a listening posture. And I mean, I think about everything from lasagna to the last wave I serve to. But there's intentionality about just opening myself like here I am.    I'm ready to be downloaded on like what you have for me today.   Meygan Caston: (53:01 - 53:02)  God be one with your thoughts.   Casey Caston: (53:03 - 53:18)  Yeah. And all sorts of things come up. And then I spent 10 minutes journaling.    And that process is just and that's like the output. Right. So, now I've got input.    I've been listening and now I get to write stuff out. And that's been a huge game changer for me.   Laura Dugger: (53:19 - 53:43)  Wow, I love both of those. You two are just refreshingly vulnerable and such an incredible mixture of intentional and lighthearted. And it has been so great just to sit under your teaching today.    So, thank you for sharing your story and for helping all of us. And thank you just for being my guests.   Meygan Caston: (53:43 - 53:45)  Oh, you're welcome. It was a pleasure to be here.   Casey Caston: (53:45 - 53:49)  Yes, you asked great questions that plumb the deep wells of Casey Meygan.   Laura Dugger: (53:52 - 57:35)  One more thing before you go. Have you heard the term gospel before?   It simply means good news. And I want to share the best news with you. But it starts with the bad news.   Every single one of us were born sinners, but Christ desires to rescue us from our sin, which is something we cannot do for ourselves. This means there is absolutely no chance we can make it to heaven on our own. So, for you and for me, it means we deserve death, and we can never pay back the sacrifice we owe to be saved.   We need a savior. But God loved us so much, he made a way for his only son to willingly die in our place as the perfect substitute. This gives us hope of life forever in right relationship with him.   That is good news. Jesus lived the perfect life we could never live and died in our place for our sin. This was God's plan to make a way to reconcile with us so that God can look at us and see Jesus.

Stupid News 9-15-2025 8am …Excuse me sir, but that's not the bathroom …When a Controlled Meth Burn goes Wrong  …How do you accidently put Firecrackers on a Birthday Cake?

Recapping Tommy's BILLS @ JETS picks (MONDAY 9/15/25)

(Excuse the error I said 38% from 3 I meant to say 28% from 3, also I said 2013 I meant to say 2023 I apologize fans) In this episode, I break down the Knicks' latest move — signing Malcolm Brogdon to a 1-year non-guaranteed deal. I share my thoughts on what this means for the roster, how Brogdon fits into the current rotation, and whether this is a smart low-risk, high-reward signing by the front office. Is this just a depth move, or could Brogdon carve out a real role on this team? Let's dive into it all — tune in and let's talk Knicks!

BT and Sal reacted to the news that Anthony Volpe received a cortisone shot for a lingering shoulder injury, a bombshell revelation that may explain his season-long struggles. Sal noted that Volpe's offensive numbers have dropped significantly since he originally hurt his non-throwing shoulder in May, but stopped short of calling it a full excuse for his poor performance. He questioned why the Yankees and Aaron Boone have consistently downplayed the injury, and he and BT debated whether it's a legitimate reason for Volpe's slump or just another convenient excuse for the team's struggles.

https://www.khutbah.info/misusing-qadr-as-an-excuse/ Among the greatest forms of loss is disputing Allah Almighty's command, and arguing against His ordainments, making divine decree a pretext for disbelief and disobedience. Such… The post Misusing Qadr as an Excuse first appeared on Nourishment of the Soul.

This hour, Scoot expresses his thoughts on Charlie Kirk being shot at an event at Utah Valley University. Then Scoot talks if video games is responsible for real violence.

Geoff and Marie's Good Life: Part 11Going DancingThey meet Mia's mum and rethink their terms and conditions.Based on posts by Only In My Mind, in 15 parts. Listen to the Podcast at Explicit Novels.My name is Geoff. If you are reading my stories in chronological order you will know that my wife and I are both retired and involved, sexually, with several of her friends. One in particular, Angie, is so close to us that we have invited her to be a third person in our relationship and, to that end, we are planning a Star Wars themed ceremony to celebrate our union in front of family and friends.Gone Dancing.This account begins one Thursday, when our grandson had invited a friend's mum to visit us after school. Colin, said grandson, had asked us if he could invite Mia, a school friend, to our wedding as his plus-one. I agreed, on condition that her mum was okay with Mia attending and approved of her choice of outfit. As we were having our costumes designed and made by students at the local university's fashion design faculty, at our expense, I had veto rights and I thought Mia's choice was fine. But still, if Mia's mum thought that her daughter's costume would be inappropriate, they would have to agree on something else. That was why I wanted to meet them both.Mia's mum, well, she had told Colin that she wanted to talk to us because she was a little confused. I assumed that was because Colin had asked her daughter to accompany him to a wedding involving three people, with the participants and guests dressed in Sci-Fi characters' costumes. I respected the lady for wanting to know a little more about us under the circumstances, before she consented.Anyway, that was only one issue I faced that Thursday. The other was that the previous evening Lucy, an unhappily married artist in her early sixties, had offered herself to me as a free-use fuck-toy. Oddly enough, it took the three women to persuade me to accept her offer; I know; You would have snapped her hand off if it had been you; I'm a worrier, so I didn't.The thing is, the girls (their words) suggested that Lucy wanted to help me to explore my inner self. As a retired materials science researcher, that wasn't something that came naturally to me: as an artist, it was what Lucy tried to do whenever she could. Eventually, of course, I caved and the following hour or so found her bound and gagged, tortured with vibrators, nipple clamps, heat, cold and whips before I finally had sex with her, twice. Fortunately, she loved it. Unfortunately Marie, my wife, found my apparent excesses disturbing. That morning, she seemed as though she was still trying to come to terms with why.Marie seemed subdued as we ate breakfast. "Are we okay?" I asked, hesitantly, uncertain as to whether I'd strayed over some obvious boundary the previous evening."WE are fine," she tried to reassure me. "I, on the other hand, am finding that I'm not nearly as sexually secure as I try to try to pretend."I took a leaf out of Ronan Keating's book, or his songbook anyway. Oh, come on; 'You say it best when you say nothing at all'. Surely? Never mind. I sat quietly waiting for my wife to gather her thoughts.Her eyes filled with tears. I stood, took her hand and led her to the living room. I sat her on the sofa and cuddled up next to her. "When you're ready, I'm here for you," I told her. "You don't have to, but I hope you trust me enough to share whatever it is that's troubling you."She gave a brave little smile as she took a tissue from the box on the coffee table. "It's such a long time ago. It felt like it happened to someone else, until Lucy described what you did to her: Then something just felt so wrong. I realized, only this morning, what it was."I didn't feel so flippant now. But she was happy to talk without prompting, so I let her set her own pace.Taking a deep breath, she resumed her explanation. "We were both about ten or eleven. My cousin Paul and me. We were just playing together in the garden one summer and he found some twine. We were comfortable with each other so I let him tie my hands behind my back and he tickled me. It was awful. I cried. Then he touched me, because he could. I couldn't stop him. I was bound and totally helpless. I started to scream and he let me go. I never told anyone and, by the time I met you, he was dead. He had joined the forces; a Para. He died in the Falklands."Marie wiped her eyes. "It was wrong but, if he'd said he was sorry, I'd have forgiven him. We were only kids. But, without realizing it, I've carried that memory, buried, for years." She look apologetically at me. "I'm sorry, Geoff. When Lucy described how helpless she felt, it reminded me of that experience. I don't think I can do it."I shook my head. She didn't understand. "Marie. What I did with Lucy was for her. Yes, I went further than I would usually have been comfortable with, but I made sure that she had opportunities to back out or stop at any time. She didn't." This was important to me. I knelt in front of Marie and looked her in the eye. "If I never do that again, I won't care. If it disturbs you, it will never be repeated. But I will never ask any of you to let me do anything that would hurt you. Lucy wants to do it again. Angie is desperate to try. Sam might enjoy something similar, so might Megan. But you, my love, you don't, so I don't want you to. It's that simple.""You aren't disappointed?" She seemed surprised."Not at all." I thought for a moment. "Well, yes; a little." Marie's eyes started to fill up again so I carried on, hurriedly. "I'm disappointed that you think I'd feel like that. I will never expect you to do anything you don't want to. I will always accept "No" as a complete answer. No need to justify or explain. Are you reassured?""I think so. I think that I feel better for telling you too.""What about the others?" I decided that while we were having this conversation it was the right time to set boundaries.She understood. "I think I was worried that you doing this, with them, would normalize it. That you'd do it to me without thinking, or worse, resent me for rejecting you." She looked at with genuine concern. "You wouldn't; would you?""Never. I know who you are and I think I've come to know what you like. By all means let's test our limits, but never to the point where one of us is unhappy. Are we agreed?"She seemed much happier. "Agreed. And, to be clear, you are free to do anything the other girls ask you to. It was Lucy who bragged about what you did, not you. And she obviously relished every second." Marie pondered for a moment. "Well, afterwards, possibly not during," she grinned.We sat for a little while then went back to the kitchen, where I made us both a fresh cup of tea to replace the drinks that had cooled while we'd talked. We were just finishing the washing up when my phone rang. It was Mike. I'd offered to pay for him to take his wife and sister in law to the pub the previous night to spy on Lucy's fuckwit husband. I'd forgotten that he'd promised an update that morning. I told my wife that I'd explain later and hit the 'Answer call' icon. As Lucy was Marie's friend it seemed only fair she heard our conversation. I switched my phone to speaker."Good morning Mike. Marie is here with me and you are on speaker. Hung over at all?" We heard a snort of laughter."You should know, when you're involved with two women then obviously you get twice as much supervision. So no," he replied.Marie looked enquiringly at me. "Mike, Marie is just finding out that I asked you to do some spying for me. Tell us, was Eddie there?""He was. And the group he was with were an obnoxious crew. Loud, foul mouthed boors the lot of them. Not just the men either."Marie and I shared a look. "So he plays darts with women too?""Darts?" Mike sounded surprised. "Who mentioned darts? They don't even have a dartboard in The Fox and Hounds.""Well," I explained. "Eddie told his wife, a friend of ours, that Wednesday night is now his darts night.""Sorry Geoff," Mike replied. "The only double top your mate was interested in was bulging out of the low cut blouse belonging to the tarty looking slapper he was buying drinks for all night."Whatever vestiges of guilt I'd felt for including Lucy in our 'language classes' evaporated instantly.I needed to be certain. "Are you sure it was Eddie?""I thought you might ask, so I took a photo of my two best girls and made sure that my target was clearly visible behind them. I'm sending it now." A picture of two pleasant looking women in their forties popped on my screen. Marie and I both recognized Lucy's husband in the background. We didn't recognize the plain, big titted woman with her arm around his neck."Asshole!" Marie growled. I was puzzled. Lucy was admittedly at least fifteen years older than the woman with her arm around Eddie but she (Lucy) was slimmer, prettier and, from personal experience, a sexual dynamo. Why the Hell was Eddie rejecting sex with Lucy while he's all over the pooch in the pub?I reminded Mike that he and his ladies were invited to our wedding and suggested that they look on-line for costume ideas. I warned him that some had already been chosen but they had all of the film and TV franchises to choose from, so duplication shouldn't be an issue. He promised to send me images once they'd made their minds up. Becky, his wife, was excited to be invited and wanted to do something similar for their shared lover, Ruth, though Harry Potter was more their style.I reminded him to text his bank details so that I could pay my dues and, after we said our goodbyes, I turned to Marie. "Why?" Was all I said. She understood perfectly."I know Lucy is my friend but; That other woman, she's;” I was impressed. It takes a lot to render my wife speechless.I had to ask. "Has Lucy ever said anything to make you think that there are some er, activities, that are off limits?""For God's sake, Geoff!" She retorted. "Only last night she offered herself to you as a free-use fuck-doll. She's always been sexually adventurous." She looked puzzled. "I can't begin to imagine what that busty blob has that Lucy hasn't."Neither could I, so we shelved that conversation for later and turned our attention to preparing for our guests that evening. After changing the bedding from the previous evening's entertainment, we sat and decided on our menus for the coming week. A quick check to see if any store-cupboard items needed replenishing and we were off to our local supermarket. Marie hit the sea-food counter while I dawdled in the wine aisle. There was an offer on, so I loaded up on some old favorites and added a couple of bottles I'd not tried before. An Alvarinho vinho verde from Portugal caught my eye. It seemed an ideal partner for that evening's seafood dish. Into the trolley it went."What?" I tried to look innocent when Marie caught up with me. "There's twenty percent off. The more I buy, the more we save." She shook her head and guided me gently, but firmly, to the produce aisle. We returned home without further incident.Angie joined us after lunch and we worked happily together prepping for our evening meal. There would be six of us at the table, but we made sure that there would be some leftovers for Linda, our daughter. She was taking the opportunity to use her early finish to get her hair done while Colin ate with us.Short grain rice, seafood, onion, peppers, garlic and peas. Fish stock, tomatoes, chorizo and a pinch of saffron. All laid out ready for Marie to cook. It was her turn, once we'd had a chat with our visitors."Angie?" I asked, to get her attention.She looked up from cleaning a piece of squid. "Yes dear?" We were being unusually domesticated so her mischievous grin was probably warranted.I know you helped me cook breakfast, but you've never invited us to eat at your place. Do you cook or what?"I noticed that my wife was now concentrating very intently on de-veining a prawn, suspiciously so."I can cook," Angie admitted. I could tell that there was a 'but' about to make an appearance. "Quite well, in fact. But." Yes! I knew it was coming. "I get really bitchy if someone is helping in my kitchen and they don't do exactly as I say.""But you're okay doing this?" I persisted."Of course." She seemed to find the question rather ridiculous. "You ask me to rinse this; I'll rinse it. We're fine. But: In my kitchen, if I ask you to brown some onion in a pan, I expect you to use the correct pan, the right amount of the right sort of oil and to produce perfectly sliced onion cooked to precisely the right color exactly when I need it. Otherwise I tend to get a bit cross." She looked a little uncomfortable. "I know. That makes me sound like Gordon Ramsey with tits, but it's how I am."Marie was trying to keep a straight face but eventually surrendered. "I once tried to help her prepare a meal to impress her first husband's boss and his wife. I was slicing some carrots and the julienne were slightly different sizes. She threw them in the bin and we nearly came to blows. In the end I just did the washing up and let her highness rule the kitchen. It wasn't worth the grief." Marie reached across and hugged her friend. "I still love you though. Even after that." They were both laughing as we finished off and tidied up.We sat and watched some more of our Star Wars episodes while we waited for Mia's mum to arrive with the two teens. Exactly on schedule, the front door burst open and Colin bawled, "Hi everybody. We're here!" Marie went to greet our visitors while Angie and I turned off the TV and stood ready to meet Mia and her mum for the first time.Colin booled in first, dragging a tall, pretty teenage girl by the hand. "This is Mia," he informed us. "This is my grandad," he pointed me out to his friend. "And this is Grangie," he said proudly. "They're all really clever, but Grangie is especially smart." He dropped his voice to a hoarse whisper. "She's why your mum wants to meet. I think we're best off keeping out of the way." He dragged her away to the study giving her little chance to say anything but a squeaked, "Hi" before they disappeared.Marie ushered a buxom woman in her late thirties, an amazon, think Brienne of Tarth from Game of Thrones, into the room and they both stood for a moment, presumably wondering where the kids were. Marie collected her wits. "Wendy, this is my husband Geoff." I nodded a welcome. "And this is our special friend Angie." Angie copied my greeting. "Obviously, this is Mia's mum, Wendy."Now the introductions were done, Marie asked if Wendy wanted a drink and we all decided on a cup of tea. Angie was anxious to help, she isn't at her best in situations like this, so it fell to me to entertain our guest. We chatted about the two kids and I took the opportunity to size up our new acquaintance. That was probably a rather Freudian slip. Wendy was a big lady. Not obese, even plump would be a misdescription; it just seemed as though there was a lot of her. She seemed to relax as we spoke. Colin was obviously comfortable in our home, the noises from the kitchen were reassuringly domestic and I made it a point not to stare at her magnificent bosom.She was, in fact, a rather attractive woman. Pleasant, open features, a nice smile, long brown hair past her shoulders and, as I may have implied, spectacularly large tits. I made a mental note to ask Marie what cup size she thought Wendy required: purely for reporting purposes, of course. The other thing of note was that she was at least as tall as me; probably an inch or more taller.Marie bustled in carrying a tray with four cups and Angie followed with a plate bearing biscuits and cakes. Marie excused herself for a moment while she went to remind Colin to make sure his guest was properly catered for. Apparently they assured her that they were fine and would raid the kitchen once homework was done.Marie looked to me. Right; I was elected spokesman. "So Wendy," I began, settling back in my seat to seem less intense. "Colin has invited Mia to be his plus one at our ceremony and you are wondering what's going on. Is that a fair summary?"She took a sip of her tea before she replied. "I'm sure you can see why that is. I don't mean to pry but Mia's welfare has to be my priority."Neither of the girls seemed inclined to contribute yet so I soldiered on. "Angie here has been my wife's closest friend, since before we were married. I've always been fond of her too. But recently," I looked at the girls, they seemed happy with my approach. "Our feelings have intensified and we both regard her as being more than just a friend. We realized that we are both emotionally attached to her, and her to us." I paused to make sure that Wendy was on the same page, or at least not stricken with horror. In the absence of any expression of disgust, I continued. "We want to declare our affection publicly and formalize, as best we can within the law, our new relationship. Marie and I have already had a traditional wedding; so has Angela; twice, in fact. We decided that a themed ceremony might be more entertaining for us and our guests."She seemed interested rather than appalled so I kept going. "Hence Colin's invitation to Mia to accompany him in a costume to fit in with our Star Wars theme." I decided that was a good place to stop for feedback."So this 'ceremony' that Colin has invited my daughter to is to acknowledge you two, a legally married couple, inviting you, Angela, into your relationship?" She paused, gazing thoughtfully at us all. "That's so lovely. I wish more people would open themselves up to their feelings like that." Her smile as she spoke illuminated the room."Does that mean you are okay with Mia attending with Colin?" Marie asked. "They will be the youngest ones there."Wendy was dismissive. "Colin is a lovely polite lad. His mother seems nice and I'm not getting any worrying vibes from any of you. I'm happy and Mia seems keen to be there.""Has she discussed her outfit?" That was me."Her dad was a fan of the films, so I think I've seen them all. Most of the costumes are fairly tame, and the one Mia showed me, the white stretch suit, is no more revealing than the tight joggers and crop tops girls her age wear every weekend to go shopping." She looked a little wistful.I glanced at my wife and got an almost imperceptible nod in reply. "Wendy. If you'd like, we'd be happy to extend the invitation to you too; if you don't think Mia would think you were being a third wheel on their date.""Who would I go as?" She snorted. "Jabba the Hutt? I mean, look at me."We did. She was tall, broad shouldered but proportioned, with an actual waistline. Her long hair and feminine features rather mitigated her size. Did I mention her boobs? She had a lovely complexion too. All in all she was a big sexy woman who didn't see what we did.Angie said what I was just beginning to consider. "Cara Dune," she blurted out. Then, putting her hand to her mouth, she looked to me to rescue her. Wendy seemed nonplussed."We're part way through watching some TV spinoffs," I explained. "Angie and I admit to being Sci-Fi nerds. One of the female characters, Cara Dune, is a powerfully built woman. Let Marie show you the costume she has chosen already while Angie finds some Cara images. Meanwhile, I'll go and check on the kids."I left the three women scrolling through their phones and sought out the two teenagers in the study. I made sure they heard me coming; I wasn't trying to catch them having a quiet cuddle. In reality, they were both reading studiously when I opened the door. I smiled to myself. Colin's book was upside down. I pointed and made circle motion with my finger. He looked puzzled then down at his book and blushed. "Drat! Mia, we've been busted."I shook my head and tapped the side of my nose. "Be sensible and be discreet. That's all we expect. Now do you want anything in the kitchen?"They both declined so I left them to their 'reading'. I left the door open, just to make a point.Back in the living room, the three women were happily comparing notes. Wendy loved the idea of Mia in white and Colin in black. She was amazed at the warrior costume Marie had chosen and how similar in principle it was to Cara Dune's. She was obviously intrigued by our idea."The thing is," Wendy said, hesitantly. "I'm not sure that I can really afford two costumes. Not this intricate, anyway.""Sweetheart, that's not your problem," Angie reassured her. "I'm paying for everyone's costume. We're having them all individually made at my expense. You just have to turn up to get measured."Wendy wasn't convinced. "You don't want

00:04:21 – Trump Defends Google Empire Trump threatens Europe with tariffs after the EU fined Google $3.5 billion, proving his administration shields Silicon Valley monopolies at taxpayers' expense. 00:07:39 – France's Government Collapses Macron's prime minister resigns after another failed vote of confidence—France's fourth PM in 20 months—amid war debt, green policies, and migrant unrest. 00:16:43 – AI Piracy & Billion-Dollar Fund Anthropic admits to training AI on pirated books, forced to create a $1.5 billion compensation fund. Critics argue “fines” are just the cost of theft for elites. 00:23:32 – NYC Socialist's Radical Agenda New York mayoral candidate Zoran Mamdani pushes $30 minimum wage, rent freezes, higher taxes, and city-owned grocery stores—policies critics call Soviet-style economics. 00:52:43 – Media Silence on Train Murder A Ukrainian refugee is brutally stabbed on a Charlotte train by a repeat offender with 14 prior arrests. Outrage grows as mainstream outlets refuse to cover the story. 01:00:24 – Crime as Excuse for Martial Law Commentary warns Trump backers will exploit urban crime to justify military policing, but judges and DAs still enable killers to walk free. 01:36:25 – Melania's AI “Children” Agenda Melania Trump champions AI in schools, saying it must be raised “like our own children.” Critics blast it as technocratic indoctrination for corporate control. 02:30:42 – Trump's Epstein Letter Exposed A birthday note Trump denied writing to Epstein resurfaces, referencing “wonderful secrets.” Critics say it proves years of lies and GOP cover-ups. 02:36:07 – Dershowitz Defends Trump & Epstein Alan Dershowitz vows to sue Trump critics like Rosie O'Donnell, while openly admitting he was Epstein's lawyer. Commentary frames him as shielding elites. 02:39:29 – JP Morgan's Epstein Pipeline JP Morgan processed over $1B in transactions for Epstein, helping him pay Russian banks and Eastern European women. Netanyahu and Gates were drawn into his orbit. 02:46:20 – Epstein Protected by Intelligence Epstein's 2008 plea deal is tied to intelligence protection. Trump later hired prosecutor Alex Acosta, fueling claims both parties shielded Epstein. Follow the show on Kick and watch live every weekday 9:00am EST – 12:00pm EST https://kick.com/davidknightshow Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to https://davidknight.gold/ for great deals on physical gold/silverFor 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to https://trendsjournal.com/ and enter the code KNIGHTFind out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-david-knight-show--2653468/support.

00:04:21 – Trump Defends Google Empire Trump threatens Europe with tariffs after the EU fined Google $3.5 billion, proving his administration shields Silicon Valley monopolies at taxpayers' expense. 00:07:39 – France's Government Collapses Macron's prime minister resigns after another failed vote of confidence—France's fourth PM in 20 months—amid war debt, green policies, and migrant unrest. 00:16:43 – AI Piracy & Billion-Dollar Fund Anthropic admits to training AI on pirated books, forced to create a $1.5 billion compensation fund. Critics argue “fines” are just the cost of theft for elites. 00:23:32 – NYC Socialist's Radical Agenda New York mayoral candidate Zoran Mamdani pushes $30 minimum wage, rent freezes, higher taxes, and city-owned grocery stores—policies critics call Soviet-style economics. 00:52:43 – Media Silence on Train Murder A Ukrainian refugee is brutally stabbed on a Charlotte train by a repeat offender with 14 prior arrests. Outrage grows as mainstream outlets refuse to cover the story. 01:00:24 – Crime as Excuse for Martial Law Commentary warns Trump backers will exploit urban crime to justify military policing, but judges and DAs still enable killers to walk free. 01:36:25 – Melania's AI “Children” Agenda Melania Trump champions AI in schools, saying it must be raised “like our own children.” Critics blast it as technocratic indoctrination for corporate control. 02:30:42 – Trump's Epstein Letter Exposed A birthday note Trump denied writing to Epstein resurfaces, referencing “wonderful secrets.” Critics say it proves years of lies and GOP cover-ups. 02:36:07 – Dershowitz Defends Trump & Epstein Alan Dershowitz vows to sue Trump critics like Rosie O'Donnell, while openly admitting he was Epstein's lawyer. Commentary frames him as shielding elites. 02:39:29 – JP Morgan's Epstein Pipeline JP Morgan processed over $1B in transactions for Epstein, helping him pay Russian banks and Eastern European women. Netanyahu and Gates were drawn into his orbit. 02:46:20 – Epstein Protected by Intelligence Epstein's 2008 plea deal is tied to intelligence protection. Trump later hired prosecutor Alex Acosta, fueling claims both parties shielded Epstein. Follow the show on Kick and watch live every weekday 9:00am EST – 12:00pm EST https://kick.com/davidknightshow Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to https://davidknight.gold/ for great deals on physical gold/silverFor 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to https://trendsjournal.com/ and enter the code KNIGHTFind out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-david-knight-show--5282736/support.

Dr. Len Tau, aka the Reviews Doctor, is on the podcast. With Kiera, he goes into the most critical nuts and bolts of making sure your practice stands out (or at least keeps pace with) online reviews amid AI. He explains jargon terms like ranking power and factors and velocity of reviews, whether or not you should actually be responding to reviews of your practice, and a ton more. Visit SuperchargeYourDentalPractice.com and enter the code RAVING to save $100 on registration for Dr. Tau's annual conference. About Dr. Tau Dr. Len Tau thrives on helping practices maximize their online reputation, marketing, and social media strategies. As a speaker, Len is known for his lively and engaging presentations packed with ready-to-use strategies. He regularly travels the country sharing his marketing brilliance and passion for practice growth with audiences. As a consultant, he offers practice leaders with real-world solutions tailored to fit their specific challenges and opportunities. Len loves to help doctors and their teams understand and implement successful online systems to build their practice. He currently serves as general manager of the Dental for Birdeye Reputation Marketing Software. Selected as one of Philadelphia's Top Dentists by Philadelphia Magazine, he continues to experience growth year after year in his fee-for-service practice focusing on general, cosmetic, reconstructive and implant dentistry. Following his father into the dental profession, Len graduated from Tufts University School of Dental Medicine and continues to pursue ongoing continuing education opportunities. He has had the privilege of serving patients for two decades. He is an active member of numerous professional organizations including the American Dental Association, the Pennsylvania Dental Association, the Academy of General Dentistry, the Eastern Dental Society, the Northeast Philadelphia Dental Implant Study Club, and the American Academy of Clear Aligners. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental Team listeners. This is Kiera and today I am so excited. This is one of my dear friends. We've known each other for several years in the industry. I'm super freaking pumped. I'm going actually be at his event next year in September. Little teaser. Stay tuned. He's got an amazing event he does every year in September. I have Dr. Len Tau. He is one of my faves. He is better known ⁓ as an authority in the dental consulting world, reputation marketing, and a practice growth. He's recognized by dentistry today as a top dental consultant for eight straight years.   He is the author of Raving Patients and 100 plus tips to 105 star reviews in a hundred days. Like this man knows how to do it. He's one of my faves. We really do collaborate on so many fun things. After 20 plus years in clinical practice, he now helps dentists nationwide, increase revenue, case acceptance and visibility. He leads the dental vision at BirdEye, hosts the Raving Patients podcast and runs the Supercharger Dental Practice Conference, which is the one I was alluding to that we're gonna be at next year in September, empowering practices to thrive in today's competitive landscape.   He's truly one of my faves. And today we're gonna dig into like, how do you get online reviews? But Len, welcome. I'm so happy to have you on the podcast. How are you today?   Dr. Len Tau (01:06) I'm good, thanks for having me, I'm excited to be here.   Kiera Dent (01:08) Of course. And this just came about because Len like, let's just do a little teaser. You're prepping full like steam ahead right now for your event that's coming up in September in Florida. ⁓ I love like the last time you and I were on the podcast, we talked about you in clinical dentistry. And then we reconnected after some time and you've left the chair, you're living your best life and you full blown gone into the event space. So just like, I know we're gonna get into like online reviews and how AI is changing that it's going to be just a really, really fun episode today. But tell us a little bit like   How is it going from like full blown dentist in the chair to now full blown events, like running these awesome events that we're super excited to be a part. Just kind of give me a little insight to that.   Dr. Len Tau (01:46) Well, it's been, it's been a lot of, a lot of fun. It's been very different, obviously, you know, for 23 years, I practiced dentistry, um, for about 12 of those, 13 of those who was full time. And then I went part time in 2017 until I sold and retired in 2022. Um, but one of the things I've grew up on in dentistry was going to dental events and, the big, the ones, the small ones, you know, all over the country and as a dentist first, and then as a vendor.   Kiera Dent (02:08) Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (02:15) Um, since 2013 or 14, so a long time in the space. know, one of the things that really hit me was that the events are not really put on very well. They're not, um, you know, whether you, if you're a dentist, there's issues when you're a vendor, there's issues. And I said, you know what? I want to change the game. And, um, one of my goals when I retired from dentistry was to start putting on events. So in 2023, um, in, in September, we did an event in Delray had 208.   Kiera Dent (02:25) Right.   Dr. Len Tau (02:44) Dennis there, 33 sponsors. was, first day was business, second day was marketing. Excuse me. First day was marketing. Second day was business. Had a 13, 14 speakers. It went off better than I could ever imagined. I then moved to the last year in 2024 to Scottsdale. And we were at the Scott Resort and Spa, which is a beautiful hotel and the event was good. It wasn't great. Definitely moving to different coasts.   I felt there was not as much, know, engagement, excitement about the event. So I, my family and my wife and I decided, Hey, we're going to do this. Let's have people come down to me. I live in beautiful, you know, part of Florida. we're having this year's event and the next three of them at super at, ⁓ at pure 66, a brand new hotel, ⁓ in Fort Lauderdale. It's literally half hour from my house, five miles from the airport, easy to get to. So this year event is September 26th and 27th.   Kiera Dent (03:32) Bye.   you   No.   Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (03:45) We've got 14 speakers, ⁓ mixture of business and marketing. So we've got people talking about social media, about content. We have people talking about saving money on taxes. We're talking about how to become a fee-for-service practice. ⁓ So a lot of different great content and top speakers, Steve Rasner, Paul Goodman, ⁓ Jeff Buski, ⁓ Richard, Rich Maddow. So some real, real heavy hitters. And then some people who people haven't really heard of, Melanie Diesel, who's new in the dental industry.   So, but I like to do it differently and my events are very high end. You come, you're going to see things you probably have never seen before. I give a ton of time to the vendors so the vendors love me because they make sure that they get integration or interaction with the attendees. So you're going to be speaking in 2026, same weekend at September 25th and 26th in 2026, same hotel, pure 66.   Kiera Dent (04:28) Sure.   Yeah.   Dr. Len Tau (04:40) We're ramping things up right now. We're literally a month out from the events. still have people signing up. I still have people wanting to reach out as sponsors. And it's, it's, it's, is the fun time for me. Cause when I'm done, I'm, you know, I get a couple of months of break and then I start promoting 2027 again. So ⁓ it's been a good time. I really enjoy it. And I find that I've kind of ⁓ created something that's very different and the attendees really enjoy it and the vendors really enjoy it. So if I can make everybody happy,   Kiera Dent (04:45) No.   Dr. Len Tau (05:09) That's all I'm looking to do here.   Kiera Dent (05:11) ⁓ and Len, I hope the audience, if they can't see it, they can hear it. I think it's so fun because I mean, I've seen you in different spaces in your career, in your life. And there is just this like giddy, like younger version of Len that I feel is emerging of like, it's like giddy boyhood, like excitement of I'm excited to put these on. I'm excited to do these events. And it just makes me so happy for you. And what I think I'm hearing is yes, attendees are happy. Vendors are happy. But I also hear that Len is very happy and to do something   in dentistry is just very, very fun. It's very exciting. And so we're jazzed. I'm really excited. I love good events. I love great time. I love to help. love business marketing. Everybody can take that. That's not Kiera's jam. Like I, that's why I wanted to bring you on. You guys are very good at marketing. You're very good at that space. but to talk about how to help people have their best lives to grow the practices that they want to grow. I think you and I are so synergistic in that. So we're super excited and I love, I mean, I'm not going to highlight the fact that there were   a couple of sixes in that is September 26 at Pier 66. You guys hopefully like, I like the alliteration. Don't put anything weird on it guys, but I do appreciate that you made it easier. September six and nines flipped upside down are a six. Like hopefully everybody can remember September 26, Pier 66. It'll be a good time in 2026. I mean, we got four lines, so we're okay. We've at least got four sixes, not we didn't end on three, but I really hope an exciting step. We'll make sure we put some info for people.   For this year and for next year, I think it'll be a fun time. Dental A Team will be there, so come hang out with us. ⁓ Len, I'm super excited. I will not spoil secrets, but a lot of the things he told me for the events, I will say he does put his heart and soul into it. So Len, excited about that. Thank you for sharing. Good luck for this year. We're gonna be rooting you on this year and next year. And now let's pivot. Let's go into like your jam. You're in BirdEye, you're in marketing, you're on online reviews. AI has come into the scene. Practices are changing.   I also will say, I hope everybody listens to you of their like succession story. You hung up the hand piece, but you are still full steam ahead in dentistry. And so I hope people see that like there is no path to dentistry. Like you just, it's a, it's a beautiful world that you're in. So let's talk though, online reviews, AI, how is this working? How do we make sure that practices are still being visible? Chat GPT is on, on the prowl.   There are clients signing up with us now that have found us on chat. GPT, which is so random. It's changing how people have been doing things. Walk me through. What are you seeing with these online reviews? The importance, how to bring AI in? Like, let's just kind of go in a rift on how practices can still be visible with AIs. Like just showing up to the scene.   Dr. Len Tau (07:43) So I wanna talk about chat CPT for a second. ⁓ I refer to it as my best friend. ⁓ It helps me edit. No, I haven't named it yet. No, I haven't named it. ⁓ you have?   Kiera Dent (07:50) Have you named it? I've got to just ask Len. Have you named? I have! Me and Chet,   I had a name and now her name is Wanda. I don't know why, I don't even know where Wanda came, but people are like, here, are you hanging out with Wanda again? Cause I agree. Like they're our best friends. So go on Len. I can't wait to hear what you name your Chet GPT cause mine is currently Wanda.   Dr. Len Tau (08:06) I'll have to, I   have to name it now that I have to think of something. ⁓ but no, I started using it. I'm like, this is really helpful and it's only gotten better. And, just to give you an idea is, ⁓ my wife and I, and my son, my son just graduated high school. He's literally just started his freshman year at, university of Florida on a free ride. ⁓ smart, smart ass kid. I'm very proud of him. But, you know, and I travel a ton, but I travel a ton for business and I made a commitment. I think I told you that,   Kiera Dent (08:25) Boo? Yeah.   Dr. Len Tau (08:35) during the summer when he was going away for school, I was not going to travel. So from March to literally next week, beginning of September, I haven't traveled at all for business. we did plan some really great travel for our personal lives. And one of the things we did was we had a cruise, a 17 day cruise to Europe. ⁓ And when I decided I did not want to do the excursions to the cruise, cause they're really expensive and you're with all these people. I prefer to kind of just go and tour myself.   Kiera Dent (08:44) It's awesome.   Dr. Len Tau (09:05) So I use ChatGPT in every city. And I said, I'm going to the city. This is what I'm going to get in. This is the cruise I'm going on. It got the cruise itinerary. And I said, I want to set up private tours in every city with different people. And it helped me pick the best tour guides. They referred me to a website called Tours by Local, which is an amazing website that you can meet people who are local that will take you around.   show you the city and it was amazing. It was amazing. So I thank Chachi PT for doing that because I wouldn't have known about half these things if I didn't do it. And in fact, one of the women, and actually the very first place you went to, which was in Split, Croatia, which was beautiful. I told her that literally that's kind of how I went down this road was I asked Chachi PT, what should I do in Split? And they said, you need to use this tour guide. She's the highest rated tour guide and has the best reviews on tours by local. like,   What's towards by local? And that started this whole thing. So she was, she was amazed to hear that. So, ⁓ I have been using Chad GPT for a long time, like I said, and even now it is people I know type in, know, get me to the best dentists in the area. And it's very much based on reviews. So you have to be a highly rated practice. you may not believe in reviews and if you do, think you're not smart, but you know, if, if you want to be at the forefront of where people are looking,   Kiera Dent (09:58) Yeah.   Yes.   Dr. Len Tau (10:25) You have to generate reviews in a significant amount. Velocity now, which is how often you're getting them, is one of the biggest ranking factors on Google, whether you want to believe chat GPT or not. ⁓ But you have to get reviews. You can't, you know, rest on your laurels and say, well, I have enough because you never have enough. Okay. And, ⁓ and you've got to let Google rank you high. And there's been a big discrepancy in the industry, a big, I don't want to say a misunderstanding.   Kiera Dent (10:43) read.   Dr. Len Tau (10:52) But I've been in the review space now since 2013, so 12 years. And in the past, dentists thought that if they get reviews, they're going to rank. And that's not the way it is anymore. If you have reviews, but don't pay attention to the other ranking factors, you actually don't rank well. And that's a problem. So, chat GPT AI is so important, but you still got to dominate Google. You still got to get to the top of the pages.   And that's really where the direction is going. and if you aren't there now and you are ignoring it, you're never going to get there. So I would love to talk to you about our list in instruct or educate the listeners and viewers of these ranking factors that they need, need to pay attention to, or they're going to be left behind when it comes to ranking on Google.   Kiera Dent (11:27) Yeah.   absolutely. And I'm excited for this too, because, I did notice that you've got to like, AI is just crawling the web. That's where it's getting, it's being taught. It's crawls it. It looks through all of it. And so agreed with you. have a lot of clients and like, we want the secret pill of marketing. And I might get your reviews up. Like it is constant and consistent that if you get those reviews up and you bring pieces to the table, that people literally like that's what's going to rank you higher. So I'm excited, Len to, to dig in deeper because it is like how   getting more reviews, but to hear that there's more beyond just the reviews really can help these offices like get the best bang for their buck, help more practices. And I'm like, it used to be when I first started consulting when I used to tell offices get to like 100 Google reviews. It is now I'm pushing people like five, six, 700 reviews that you need to be getting ranked into. And I don't know if you're seeing like a cutoff line or if it matters on that. So I'm really excited to dive into like, what are the rankings? What are the pieces? Is there a difference? But I'm like now   100 reviews, when I look at somebody I'm like, hmm, like if there's another dental practice that has maybe 400, 500 new clients come on, the first thing I do is I go look them up to see how many reviews do you have? And I'm shocked at how many dental practices actually are not showing up when I Google their names and they're like, no, no, care, we're here. And I'm like, but if I'm a prospective new client that doesn't work in your practice and I don't see you all the time and I just tried to find you and I'm looking for you.   How many patients who are not looking for you are not finding you as well. So yeah, take us away, and I'm super curious, very intrigued by this. It's fascinating. And I'll also say, because AI is new, feel like people got like a reset slate. Like, hey, you can actually get back into the game if you haven't been into the game, if you just start playing now. If you don't, I agree with you. I do think that you will unfortunately get obliterated without trying if you don't get into the game now.   Dr. Len Tau (13:28) 100 % so and I couldn't agree with you more. So the best thing to do here is if you're listening to this, I want you to go to a Google search and I want you to type your practice name in. Okay, so that's the first thing to do. Right.   Kiera Dent (13:39) and not in your office. Don't do it in   your office. Go somewhere else. Like try it somewhere else.   Dr. Len Tau (13:44) Right, well, and 100%, that's another thing is that if you're gonna look up your ranking specifically, you do not wanna do that from your office location, okay? Because you're not gonna get real results. You also wanna go into incognito mode or private browsing mode on your phone or your computer if you're doing that to check ranking. But this is not specifically about ranking. This is more about how you appear online. So go to Google and type in your practice name. Not your name unless it's the name of the practice, but your business name, okay?   Kiera Dent (13:52) Yes.   Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (14:13) and it doesn't have to be what's registered with the state board. It's how you, when you answer the phone, what you say, okay? Pennsylvania Center for Dental Excellence was my practice name, okay? So you wanna look yourself up. So these are some of the ranking factors that Google looks at. Obviously one of them is your total number of reviews you have. Definitely a ranking factor, but the total number has not been as important as some other factors as well. So.   Kiera Dent (14:20) Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (14:40) Average number of reviews in the industry right now is about 350. It used to be like 100 was the golden number. Now 350 is the average in the industry. So are you average? Are you below average or are above average? Okay, that's something to look at. The second ranking factor, which is even more important is the velocity of reviews. So how many reviews, how often you're getting them. Okay, so if you're getting once every two weeks, not enough. If you're getting them once every week,   Kiera Dent (14:46) Yes.   Dr. Len Tau (15:10) Not enough. You don't need them every single day, but two or three every single week is ideal. Okay, because you think two or three every week gives you eight to 15 a month times 12 months is 100 reviews a year, which is a nice number. Okay, so you have to have that velocity. All right. Third ranking factor is the total score, your average number of stars. So   I would like you to be anywhere from 4.6 to five stars. Okay. I don't think you have to be only five stars. think there's a negativity related to that. If you're only five star reviews, but I also don't want you to below 4.5. Okay. ⁓ And if you're at 4.3, 4.2, or even 4.1, another better review or two, and you're to be in the threes. And that's really where you don't want to go. Cause you lose a huge percentage of patients who may come in if you're less than four stars. Okay. Another ranking factor.   is the primary category. So how do you know your primary category? If you look under your Google, your name, will say right where the stars is, will say, hopefully dentist in your town or dentist in your county or dentist in your city. Okay. So your primary category should be dentist because we're a dental practice. Okay. If you're an oral surgeon, you may want it to be oral and actual facial surgeon. If you're an endodontist, want it to say endodontist. You don't want it to say dentist if you're a specialist. Okay.   ⁓ That's a big ranking factor and I'll give you an example. I, ⁓ my wife had some plastic surgery over the last couple of years and we were referred to that doctor. So we didn't need to search for him. We were referred to him. went in, we liked him, we used his services. ⁓ And of course, being a plastic surgeon, I talked to him about reviews. He now uses BirdEye, but he had me speak in an event that he holds down here in Boca Raton.   And I talked about this exactly. And I asked everybody, cause it was a small group. What is your primary category? And he goes, he said to me, literally, he says, I'm listed as a nurse practitioner. He wasn't listed as a plastic surgeon. He was listed as a nurse practitioner. So his categories were all messed up. So when you actually typed in plastic surgeon near me, he never showed up because his category was wrong. So primary category is a very important ranking factor as well. Now you also have to make sure your secondary categories are also. ⁓   Kiera Dent (17:15) No.   Dr. Len Tau (17:35) ⁓ under ⁓ are there as well as under the proper categories. So secondary categories, if you're a dentist, dental clinic, teeth whitening services, denture care center, orthodontist, if you're doing aligners, if you're endo, you're doing root canals, you can have endodontist. If you do periodontist, can do periodontist. You want to make sure you have nine secondary categories. Okay, if you don't have them, you want to add them.   Now, how do you add them? It's very easy. You go to Google using ChatGPT or anything and say, how do I add secondary categories to my Google business listing? Okay. It will tell you exactly like a recipe how to do it. You need to add those secondary categories. All right. And if you want help doing it, you can always reach out to me. The last ranking factor, which is really important is making sure that the practices name, address, and phone number is consistent. Okay. So just to be clear, most   website companies do not do local SEO. They do website SEO, which is making sure the website is SEOed so the website ranks higher on the organic rankings. We're talking about getting the Google business page ranking higher, which the website companies are not focused on. So when it comes to the name, address and phone number, is it consistent? You have to be consistent. And this is a Google requirement.   It is not a patient thing. It's not a me thing or you thing. It's a Google requirement that this data is consistent. So the name is obviously important. So if you have the and or the ampersand, you may find things inconsistent. When it comes to the address, if you have, you know, South State Streets, Unit 510, you can have South or S, you can have Street or ST, and then you can have Suite, Unit, Number, or STE.   All these variations need to be consistent. So one of them has to be done and one and stuck with. And then if you are using a tracking number for whatever reason on your Google business listing, you may find your inconsistent there as well. So when you make everything consistent and you get a higher velocity of reviews, guess what happens over time? You rank higher on the maps. And when you rank higher on the maps, you get more visible for patients to find you. So that's where the secret sauce is. And   Not that this is a sales pitch about BirdEye, but that's exactly what BirdEye does. BirdEye does those. We check all those boxes for you. And then what ends up happening is a practices get more reviews. But more importantly, when they ask patients how they find them, they're going to see that they found them because of their ranking online and the reviews drove them to the practice. So that's how this whole thing plays a role in getting a practice more visible and credible.   Kiera Dent (20:06) Thank   Wow. So I was over here like taking a lot of notes, which I really loved. I love the number, the 350 at the average, the velocity, like three to five per week you were saying. It doesn't need to be an everyday, but I do agree like them consistently coming through the total score, the 4.6 to five primary category, secondary category, making sure we have nine. And then you were talking about like the practice name, phone number, all of that has to be consistent. So the addresses have to be the same. And that's going to help you rank higher.   Did I miss anything? Those are my notes, Len. And I'm just curious, like, did I catch them all? Because there was a lot of pieces to consider. And then I have some follow ups as well. So like, did I miss anything in that list?   Dr. Len Tau (21:02) No, I   think you got it all there.   Kiera Dent (21:06) Okay, so hopefully that was a good recap for everybody. If you were listening, I tried to like summarize everything he said, because I really feel that those are super valuable pieces to know. Now, Len, there's a couple of things that happen and I'm very curious of what you've seen. Maybe you know, maybe you don't know. It's just a riff for me genuinely curious over here. Does it impact for the business to respond to the reviews? Because I know there was like a big misnomer out there like for a while, like you have to respond to every single review that helps you rank higher. What's the   What's kind of the lay of the land right now responding to the reviews that come in?   Dr. Len Tau (21:39) So there's been a big push over the years to respond to reviews. And there's also been those naysayers who don't want you to respond to reviews. So I want to make this very clear. When you respond to a review and you acknowledge them as a patient, you are technically violating HIPAA. Okay. Now by the letter of the law, if you do that, you violated HIPAA and can be in trouble. Now in all the years I've been doing this, I've only seen one   Kiera Dent (21:49) Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (22:08) example of a positive review being responded to and the dentist got in trouble. Okay. So if someone writes a review for you and it's five stars and you say, thank you so much for your feedback. We were glad you had a great experience in our practice. Okay. You technically violated HIPAA there because you acknowledged that they came into the practice. I don't think you'll ever run into any problems with that. I don't, I've never seen any instance when a, when a practice has got into trouble. But again, by the letter of the law, it's a violation.   Here's where the person ran into a problem. Okay. So the review in question, the patient wrote, I'm so happy with my appearance after I went to so-and-so's dental office. I think they were in Texas. The dentist responded, we're so happy that you, thank you so much for your review. We're so happy that you loved our magic needles. Okay. So it, from what I understand is the patient had Botox or   dermal fillers placed and that's what they call their magic needles. So the patient wrote, wrote a letter to the practice saying, I didn't appreciate you letting the world know that I had Botox done and asked for the review response to be taken down, which the dentist immediately did. Took it down and apologized, but it really pissed the patient off and the patient sued the dentist and won. Okay. Because the dentist went out of their way to   Kiera Dent (23:08) Mm-hmm.   Right.   Dr. Len Tau (23:33) you know, release private information that wasn't supposed to be done. So in that case, you shouldn't be doing that. Okay. Now on the same note, I would be very careful responding.   Kiera Dent (23:37) Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (23:45) to a review that's left by a negative, a negative review that's written by a patient. I would be very careful responding publicly to that because it's very hard to respond without violating HIPAA. So a simple response like, we're sorry to hear about your experience. Please contact the office to discuss the concerns as we're unfortunately unable to comment due to HIPAA release privacy stuff. That's fine. But.   Again, I just not sure it's the best thing to do. So you have to be careful with negative reviews. What it doesn't do is we really haven't found any relationship between responding and ranking. Okay, so you have to, I always leave it up to the people to respond. I like using AI to respond as well, because I think it comes up with HIPAA compliant and really good responses. ⁓ But you have to decide what you want to do for your own practice.   Kiera Dent (24:16) Mm-hmm.   Interesting.   That's actually really helpful to know. ⁓ Okay, good feedback for people to ponder and decide what they want to do on. The second piece is   some people lose their Google My Business and they're not able to be found. ⁓ And I don't know if you have reasons why. I don't know if it's from like a name change or it's inconsistent. So like a lot of offices have a lot of reviews, but when you go to search them, they're hidden on Google My Business. Like it will show up on the person's side, but nobody externally can find it. Do you have any ideas of like what causes that or what offices can do if they're struggling with that?   Dr. Len Tau (25:11) So I want to clarify that what question you asked there. I'm sorry to ask a question when you asked the question was when you say that you're saying that when they search for their Google business listing, they can't find it or when someone is searching for the office, they're not visible on the maps.   Kiera Dent (25:15) Hey, that's okay.   So when they're searching, so if I just go into Google and I type in like my perfect smile, the website might link, but the Google My Business with all, and they might have like 150 Google reviews, like it might be, like they've got them all and the office can see it when they like log in as like, this is, you own this, but they've lost it and it's no longer visible publicly. Do you know what causes that or how they can get that back? It's okay if you don't, I'm just genuinely curious. Cause I know some offices struggle with this, especially with like name changes of practices.   going through different ownerships. ⁓ Some of them have told me it's like when I changed the name of my practice, it no longer showed up. Like we have all these reviews, but we're not showing up. Do you know what causes that or how practices can get back being visible?   Dr. Len Tau (26:02) Yep. Now that you   asked it that way, so that usually means that your Google business listing has been suspended. And if you can't find it on search, but you see it, means it's suspended in most cases. Name changes, address changes, other things you do can cause it to be suspended. There are, if you look up on use chat GPT, ⁓   and say, why is, why can your Google business page be suspended? There is a list of different reasons why it can get suspended. ⁓ if you're getting reviews the wrong way is a big one. So, like you should not be incentivizing for reviews. And I'm talking about incentivizing the patients. You shouldn't be getting reviews in your physical office space because there's IP address conflicts and location services on the patient's phone. So if you're doing that, not only will you can potentially lose reviews, but you can't get it suspended, but you can look on.   Kiera Dent (26:37) Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (26:55) on chat GPT or Google and just say, what are the reasons that your business page can be suspended? And they're there. So usually you have to ⁓ re-approve it or re-verify that page. And there's certain things you do. You'll have to take a video of yourself in front of the practice, showing the address, showing the name of the business on the door. So there's things you will have to do to get it over to Google. So they'll re-verify you. And then once it happens, there's a good chance they'll unsuspend the listing. But that happens for that reason.   Kiera Dent (27:24) Gotcha. Okay. That's super helpful because I know a few offices have struggled with that. So was just curious for that. All right. This has been so helpful to figure out rankings. It's been helpful to understand. ⁓ My last question as we wrap up today on reviews has been so helpful, Len, is how do offices go about like, what are your recommendations? Yes, bird eye, swell, podium. Like there's a lot of review in Weave. I do, I usually recommend using an external one outside of things. think that they like, if they're just, if that's what they do, they're going to be experts at it.   But how can offices ethically and appropriately, like obviously great patient experience, but how do they increase these Google reviews? What are some of the best tactics you've seen to help these offices out?   Dr. Len Tau (28:04) So being biased, I mean, I'm a true believer in BirdEye because we help with the reviews and the ranking part. ⁓ Swell, which is a great product. know the guys who swell really well. A lot of their doctors don't rank well because they don't focus on the listings part of it or the ranking part of it. ⁓ I'm not a fan of Wee from a review perspective because they swell BirdEye and Podium, make it very easy. Weave doesn't. It's just the way we do it with our three other products. ⁓   I always say this, you can get reviews any way you want. The most effective is gonna be use some software, simple as that. But it all starts with the practice and it all starts with, I like to create a reputation culture in the practice, which means you know that every time a patient comes in the practice, that they're going to be evaluating you and reviewing you potentially. And you've gotta be on your best behavior, you've gotta put a happy smile on your face, you gotta treat them like they're the...   Kiera Dent (28:40) Mm-hmm.   Dr. Len Tau (29:00) king of the world, okay? You gotta roll out the red carpet. And if you don't do that, they may write a bad review, okay? But if you don't create that reputation culture, I think it's gonna be hard to get the practice to really accelerate the reviews. So creating that reputation culture using great verbiage skills. I love calling it feedback, not a review. If you call it a review, it sounds like you're begging for it. ⁓ The feedback conversation is much more comfortable to have. So, you know, it's an interesting situation, but if you don't ask, you don't get.   So you've got to ask. I think if you ask and you combine it with a really good software, you'll get a really good number of reviews. If you don't ask, you don't get. It's that simple.   Kiera Dent (29:30) Mm-hmm.   Yeah.   ⁓ well, that was so great. I appreciate this so much. And it's fun to hear about how AI is helping. It's fun to hear about how you still have to be great on Google. So ⁓ I just appreciate you. I appreciate you being here. I appreciate the knowledge you shared. appreciate for offices. I hope they take action and Len any last thoughts, how people can connect with you if they want more help on this. know ⁓ like truly in my opinion, this is the simplest marketing. Everybody wants to like sexy magic pill of marketing. And I'm like, no, it's like really great experience. Ask for the reviews, ask for the feedback.   like rank so that way people can find you I've had offices that had like three four or five new patients and they're like I need this marketing I need all these things which I'm not here to say not to do it but I will say great reviews will boost you very quickly so Len any last thoughts you've got how people can connect with you because it's been truly just an incredible episode today   Dr. Len Tau (30:26) So ⁓ I'm around the country a lot. So you can always connect with me in person if I'm at some of these events. If you wanna come to Supercharge, you can connect me there. SuperchargeYourDentalPractice.com You can use the code RAVING to save $100 on registration. ⁓ We also have some scholarships available. So if you do wanna come, you can reach out to me personally. So ⁓ my cell phone's all over the internet. The easiest way, if you have any questions, you want advice, you want help, I'm the guy to reach out to. My phone number is 215.   Kiera Dent (30:40) Awesome.   Dr. Len Tau (30:55) 292-2100. And my best email is Len, L-E-N, at drlentau.com, which is D-R-L-E-N-T-A-U.com. And you can email me, you can text me, you can call me, tell me you heard about me here and you need some advice. I'm more than happy to offer it to you. I do it all the time. ⁓ I love when people reach out to me because they know I'm an expert. So I do it kind of as a favor to people. ⁓ But no, you reach out to me, I'm happy to give advice.   Kiera Dent (31:23) amazing. Len, thank you so much for being on the podcast. I'm super excited for Supercharge 2025 and especially 2026. So everybody snag that. And truly, I hope you take action from today's podcast. This is easy ways for you to boost your marketing, be found and seen online. And Len, thank you for joining me today. I truly, truly appreciate you.   Dr. Len Tau (31:41) Thank you for having me, Kiera, I appreciate it.   Kiera Dent (31:43) Of course. And for all of you listening, thank you for listening and I'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team Podcast.  

Nearly all Americans agree that Congress has become a sad joke – a blight of irritating gnats.How exciting, then, that a consultant to top Republican lawmakers has figured out how to make Congress better. Ready? Raise the members' pay!Golly, why didn't I think of that? After all, who wants to work for only $174,000 a year (plus full health care, a really nice lifetime pension, and a flock of personal staffers to do the heavy lifting)? This congressional insider insists that such compensation is way too paltry for the best-and-brightest types Congress needs, so they choose Wall Street or corporate careers, rather than public service.“Ask any corporate leader,” he asserts, and they'll say “talent is everything.” And, he explains, it takes serious bucks to “attract and retain talent.” So, the answer to getting a better Congress is easy, he writes: “Let's start by doubling their salaries.”Excuse me, but let's not.While money is the reason Congress fails to represent the common good of America's workday majority, their paychecks aren't to blame. Rather, it's the corrupting power of the unlimited dollars that corporations and billionaires are spewing into our elections and lobbying campaigns, literally buying the special-interest Congress that Americans despise.The obvious problem with Congress is not that members don't get enough money, but that they take too much. Don't even think about raising congressional pay before outlawing congressional payoffs! Besides, anyone who'll only commit to public service work if their pay is doubled is not committed to the public, to service, or even to work. They're narcissists, committed to themselves – and Congress already has an excess of those.Jim Hightower's Lowdown is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jimhightower.substack.com/subscribe

Data, data everywhere, but not a drop of insight.Excuse my remixing of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, but doesn't it feel that way when staring at a dashboard sometimes.We have so much data – and frankly, our competitors probably have a lot of the same data – but can we turn those numbers into real insights to better serve a customer?Here's one way to do it, that I read in a recent podcast guest application, but you have to close your laptop first – “Walk the market.”To hear the story behind that lesson, along with many more lesson-filled stories, I talked to Katherine Melchior Ray, faculty member and lecturer at the University of California Berkeley Haas School of Business [https://haas.berkeley.edu/], and author of the book ‘Brand Global, Adapt Local: How to build brand value across cultures' [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/brand-global-adapt-local-katherine-melchior-ray/1146174119].Berkeley Haas ranked No. 8 among U.S. business schools in the 2025 Financial Times Global MBA Ranking.During her career, Ray managed teams up to 150 and reported to CEOs in Germany, France, Japan, and the US.Lessons from the things she madeNurture your curiosityHistory is not just for schoolPrioritize relationshipsWalk the marketInfuse a founder's values into the brandCombine audacious risk taking with careOur next eventJoin us for ‘AI Executive Lab: Transform billable hours into scalable AI-powered products' on September 10th at 2 pm EDT. Register here [https://join.meclabsai.com/mec050].Discussed in this episodeCustomer Experience: Great experiences are invisible, but they require relentless alignment (podcast episode #145) [https://marketingsherpa.com/article/interview/customer]An Effective Value Proposition: What it is, why it is so important to business and marketing success, and how to use it [https://marketingsherpa.com/article/how-to/value-proposition-business-marketing%20success]Get more episodesSubscribe to the MarketingSherpa email newsletter [https://www.marketingsherpa.com/newsletters] to get more insights from your fellow marketers. Sign up for free if you'd like to get more episodes like this one.For more insights, check out...This podcast is not about marketing – it is about the marketer. It draws its inspiration from the Flint McGlaughlin quote, “The key to transformative marketing is a transformed marketer” from the Become a Marketer-Philosopher: Create and optimize high-converting webpages [https://meclabs.com/course/free digital marketing course.Apply to be a guestIf you would like to apply to be a guest on How I Made It In Marketing, here is the podcast guest application – https://www.marketingsherpa.com/page/podcast-guest-application

Bills beat the Ravens 41-40 - A recap of Tommy's picks from Friday

If You're a FAN leave me a message :-)Your past is not your prison. Your choices are your escape. Whether you're leading a team, building a business, or trying to change your personal habits, this framework will show you why excuses steal agency, and why radical responsibility is the only path to freedom, growth, and impact.✨ Key TakeawaysWhy excuses feel soothing but silently erode power and growth.The 5-step Zero-Excuse Framework to identify, reframe, and eliminate excuse patterns.How to build non-negotiables that make excuses impossible.Advanced strategies like the Excuse Interruption Technique, Control vs. Concern Matrix, and Micro-Victories Principle.Why ownership of even the unfair moments gives you leverage to lead and live free.

City Councilwoman Marina Alderete Gavito, City Hall reporter Megan Rodriguez and host Greg Jefferson talk about an ordinance to penalize the abandonment of unwanted pets, council members' tense relationship with Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, and more. Suggested reading: Mayor Jones renews fight with City Council members over policymaking City Council members force pet abandonment vote that Mayor Jones stalled COPS/Metro ramps up effort to get voters to nix Spurs arena deal Spurs launch campaign to convince voters to say yes to arena money Sign up here for our ENside Politics newsletter: https://www.expressnews.com/newsletters/ensidepolitics/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This injury report is brought to you by Shenderovich, Shenderovich and Fishman.

"An Appalling Comment": Pierre Poilievre Slams Carney TFW ExcuseBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/radio-baloney-the-richie-baloney-show--4036781/support.

Send us a textHow does someone get saved?How does that apply to those who have never heard a gospel presentation?Romans 1:20 - "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:"https://www.gotquestions.org/invisible-attributes-clearly-seen.htmlhttps://www.gotquestions.org/people-are-without-excuse.htmlwww.LeagueOfLogic.com

Today's word of the day is ‘spit' as in the Eagles as in the Cowboys as in Jalen Carter as in Dak Prescott. Jalen Carter was ejected before the first snap of the game for spitting on Dak. What an embarrassment. Are you kidding me? (17:40) Steve Ballmer did an in-person interview with ESPN last night. He denied, obviously. But it's what he didn't say that's most important here. (32:00) Review: Katrina - Hell or High Water. (35:00) NPPOD. (40:00) Bill Belichick has banned Patriots staff from North Carolina. Excuse me? (43:20) We have our first report on the NCAA and its clearinghouse. There is so much money being thrown around. And a lot of deals have been approved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today's word of the day is ‘spit' as in the Eagles as in the Cowboys as in Jalen Carter as in Dak Prescott. Jalen Carter was ejected before the first snap of the game for spitting on Dak. What an embarrassment. Are you kidding me? (17:40) Steve Ballmer did an in-person interview with ESPN last night. He denied, obviously. But it's what he didn't say that's most important here. (32:00) Review: Katrina - Hell or High Water. (35:00) NPPOD. (40:00) Bill Belichick has banned Patriots staff from North Carolina. Excuse me? (43:20) We have our first report on the NCAA and its clearinghouse. There is so much money being thrown around. And a lot of deals have been approved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

First day of an advanced university-level sex ed class.Based on a post by smalltitslovr, in 4 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Steamy Stories.Hi! My name is Samantha. I'm a 25 year old college graduate. I am about 5' 3", and I'm a very petite girl. I have black hair and blue eyes. My tits are small-ish, but they look larger because of my small figure (a 32 b chest looks more voluptuous than a 38 b does.) My ass is average. But nice and tight, because I work out quite a bit.Today, I'd like to tell you about a class I took in second semester of my sophomore year of college: Advanced Sexual Education. Here's the description from the course catalog: I attended a private research university, in southern California.Human Sexuality 3O1."Everyone takes a sex-ed class in high school that goes over the basics. That class should have covered the basics of each gender's biological systems, and the reproduction system as a whole. This class goes beyond that basic overview, and provides an in-depth study of the sexuality of human beings. The course will include discussions, demos, and lab projects. Students must be 18+ years of age."I really felt I needed to take this class. You see, at my high school, we had a one-week version of the sex-ed class, and I had been sick for the last 3 days that week. Although I had picked up many things since then, I was never quite sure what I missed, and felt that I might be missing something important. I thought this might be a good opportunity to fill in those pieces I had missed.I'd read the description of this class many times, and wondered what exactly it would entail. "Demos and lab projects" and "18+". Those two pieces of the description made me both scared and excited. Of course 18 years was the required age for consensual sex, in our state. Did that mean that we were going to be having sex in the class? Surely we couldn't be required to have sex. That would be illegal. Wouldn't it? Our university did have a few prodigy kids on campus, who were still under-age. They were banned from signing up, or even auditing the sessions. There was no online option, either.After thinking on it for about 3 weeks straight, I decided I would sign up.First Day.The first day of the class finally arrived. I'd been anticipating it since the moment I'd signed up. I'd thought about backing out several times, but reconsidered each time.I'd dressed in a tight, white t-shirt with a decal, blue jean shorts with a white belt, and flip-flops.I arrived at my classroom at 7:55; 5 minutes early. It was a very early class. I didn't see many people on campus on the way there. The class was in the basement of the psychology building. I'd never been down there before. I'd heard that's where some psych studies were held, and a few classes. It was tucked away in a corner of the building where nobody would stumble into it by accident.As I walked in, I noticed several people sitting in seats around the room. There was roughly an even mix of males to females. I found a seat in the second row, and pulled out my phone and checked social media, as I waited nervously for class to start. As I waited, I noticed most of the people in the room seemed a little nervous. Many were looking around, and a few seemed like they wanted to get up and leave.Finally, the teacher arrived; 1 minute late.She was somewhat tall for a woman (maybe 5'10"), in her early 30s. She had blonde hair, put up in a bun. She had black rimmed glasses. On top, she wore a white blouse, which was unbuttoned down to just above her bra, revealing a lot of cleavage as well as quite a bit of her mid-sized sized breasts. Over that, she wore a bright red cardigan. She was also wearing a black skirt that came to about mid-thigh, showing off very long, tan legs. On her feet, she wore 1-inch, red heels, matching her cardigan.She walked to the table at the front of the classroom, and set her bag down on it. She pulled off her cardigan, draping it over the back of the chair, which revealed her slim figure. She reached into her bag, and took out some papers; presumably, her notes."Hello class." she said, once she was ready. "This is Advanced Sexual Education. If you are not here for Advanced Sexual Education, please leave. You're in the wrong place."I looked around. Nobody left. There were 12 guys, and 8 girls, including me. The seats were arranged in 4 rows of 5, with 10 seats wrapped around the outside of the room. Some of the chairs were emptyThe teacher looked around to make sure nobody was slow to stand, then continued. "Ok. I'll introduce myself and go over some guidelines, then take roll. My name is Sharon Gladwell. You can call me Sharon. I've worked here at the university for about 5 years. This is my first year teaching. Normally, I do research for the psych department. My specialty is human sexuality and arousal. I've lead several studies on various topics including stimulation, bondage and exhibitionism."Everyone in the class seemed stunned at how openly she talked about these "behind-doors" topics."Now, some guidelines." She pulled some papers out of her bag, and passed them out. "Here's the syllabus. In there, you will find details on everything I am about to say. If, at any time, any of you feel you are not suited for this class, feel free to get up and leave. No harm, no foul."This class is designed with two goals in mind. Firstly, to educate you all on the details of human sexuality. We will study the specific of how the human body works; specifically, the similarities and differences between males and females. We will also examine how certain stimuli cause certain reactions. We will cover intercourse in detail, both traditional and non-traditional methods. We will cover fetishes of many varieties, pornography, body modification (as it relates to sexuality), and coercion."The second goal is to push your boundaries. Throughout the semester, we will have numerous demonstrations, as well as solo and group projects on the topics and concepts we are covering. By the end of this class, you should all be more open sexually, and you will have experience far beyond many of your peers, measured by both depth and breadth."There will be times during the semester when I ask you do to do things you may not be comfortable doing. You may, of course, opt out, but it will negatively affect your participation grade, which is 50% of this course. The other 50% is broken up into 35% out-of-class projects and homework, and 15% for the final multi-format exam."Any questions so far?" she asked. A few hands went up. "Yes?" she said, pointing to a girl in the third row."You mentioned demonstrations," replied the girl. "Are those going to involve guests? And how involved will they be?"Sharon smiled, and replied, "No, we will normally not have guests this semester, unless we are covering a special topic. The demos will be performed by each of you, as well as by myself. They will be very in-depth, and will usually involve grouping up to get a chance to observe the topic, and get hands-on experience. Hopefully that clarifies it. If not, it should become clear in a little bit, as we'll be doing our first demo today.""Oh; thanks; " replied the girl, quite stunned, and a little confused."Anyone else?" asked Sharon. A boy on the left side of the room held his hand up. She nodded to him."So, when we group up, will we be grouping boy-boy or boy-girl?", the boy asked."Good question. For the start of the semester, we will form groups that include both genders. As each of you have the most experience with your own gender, you will need to study the other gender more thoroughly." Then she counted out how many of each there were in the room. "I was planning on pairs; however, it looks like the numbers don't quite work out for that. If we start with coed pairs, that'll leave four extra boys. So we'll have two groups of 3, with an extra boy in each, and two boys with me."The boy grinned, "Thanks. That's what I was hoping.""I'm sure it was," replied Sharon, with a bigger grin. "Any other questions?" There weren't any. "Alright then. We'll move on to roll-call. Some days, including today, I'll give you a question for the day. When I call your name, you will stand, answer the given question, and strip off your clothes. Normally, you will remove all of your clothing, but since it's the first day, you'll only be required to remove two articles of clothing. Shoes, socks, and jackets do not count."That got everyone's attention. There was no mention before that anyone would be stripping. It was implied, due to the fact that hands-on demos would probably require nudity, but this confirmed it."Today's question is an introduction," Sharon said. "You'll state your name, age, where you're from, and whether or not you are a virgin. We'll start with me. As I said before, my name is Sharon. I'm 32, and I'm from San Francisco. As I'm sure you have all guessed, I am not a virgin."With that said, she unbuttoned her blouse and removed it, placing it on the desk. Underneath, she had a sexy white bra, with black lace accents. Next, she unzipped the side of her skirt, and slipped it down her long legs, revealing a matching g-string.Now that her clothing was removed, I got my first good look at her body. She was slim, in a fit kind of way; she definitely worked out regularly. Her legs seemed to be miles long. She had one noticeable tattoo: some sort of tribal pattern, wrapping around the bottom of her tits. She was very tan; she must sun bathe quite a bit."Now your turn. First up, Tony Baker"A boy on the right side of the room stood up and introduced himself. "Hi I'm Tony Baker. I'm 19, and I'm from Texas. I am not a virgin." He pulled his shirt over his head. He had a tan body, with six-pack abs. Next, he pulled off his shoes and socks, then pulled his pants off, revealing a pair of red boxer briefs, which were tented slightly. Apparently I wasn't the only one who found Ms. Gladwell attractive."Nice to meet you Tony. You may take your seat. Next up, Mindy Hayes"She proceeded to call out each student's name. About half-way through, she called "Christina McCoy"Christina stood, and said, "I'm sorry, but I don't think I can do this." She grabbed her bag and quickly walked out of the classroom."No worries" said Ms. Sharon. "Would anyone else like to leave?" At that, a terrified white boy also left.She continued down the list, and nobody else left. Each student stood, said their name, age, and virginity status, and stripped off their shirts and their bottoms.Here's a summary:· Mindy Hayes - 19 year old white girl from Boston. Virgin. Wearing pale blue matching bra and panties.· Alex Myers - 18 year old white boy from Ohio. Not a virgin. Wearing black boxer shorts.· Dave Evans - 24 year old white boy from Georgia. Virgin. Red boxer briefs.· Darrell Wade - 23 year old white boy from Louisiana. Not a virgin. Grey boxer briefs.· Latoya Gilbert - 21 year old black girl from Chicago. Not a virgin. Red bra and panties.· Filipe Allen - 24 year old Portuguese boy from San Francisco. Not a virgin. Red boxers.· Eric Ramirez - 22 year old Hispanic boy from San Diego. Virgin. Blue boxer briefs· Ken Sharp - 21 year old white boy from Kansas. Virgin. Tighty whities· Billy Daniels - 19 year old white boy from New York. Not a virgin. Black boxers· Barbara Foster - 20 year old white girl from South Carolina. Not a virgin. Pink and black boy shorts, and a pink push-up bra· Roberto Walters - 18 year old Hispanic boy from New York. Not a virgin. Black and white boxers.· Irene Hunter - 21 year old white girl from Wisconsin. Not a virgin. Dark blue sports bra and matching panties.· John Gibson - 19 year old white boy from Connecticut. Virgin. Black boxer briefs· Amy Powell - 18 year old white girl from Maine. Virgin. Purple g-string and a white shelf bra· Sofia Mendez - 18 year old Hispanic girl from Ohio. Not a Virgin. Green g-string and matching lacy bra· Kent Doyle - 23 year old white boy from Colorado. Virgin. Bronco's boxers (orange and blue)· "And, last but not least, Samantha Rivera."I stood up. I was shaking a little. I was quite nervous. I'd been somewhat of an exhibitionist before, and I'd been naked in front of people before, but not in this kind of setting. But the biggest thing that was getting to me was the anticipation. The whole time I watched people strip, I knew my turn was coming. I was also nervous because I had slightly less clothing than all the other girls."I'm Samantha. I'm 19, and I'm from Colorado. I am not a virgin." I paused. "Um. Ms. Sharon; ""Yes, Samantha, is there a problem?" she replied."Er; .well; .I'm not wearing any undergarments. I usually don't. They make me uncomfortable.""Ah. An exhibitionist. I see. Well, it doesn't make much difference. Everyone will be stripping completely, starting tomorrow. You'll just have to do it a day early. If you're uncomfortable with that, this class probably isn't for you. Feel free to leave, if you'd like.""Um. No, I'm okay." I had a feeling she'd say something to that effect, but part of me was hoping she'd cut me some slack. Maybe let me keep my shorts? But, at the same time, I was also hoping that she wouldn't. :)So, I proceeded to strip. First, I kicked off my flip-flops. Then I grabbed the bottom of my shirt, and slowly pulled it over my head. Everyone got a good look at my B-cup breasts, with my arms over my head. I dropped my shirt onto my bag, then continued. I undid my belt, then the button on my jean shorts, then the zipper. I hesitated for a moment, took a deep breath, then peeled my tight jean shorts off my naked body. As I did, I bent over, giving everyone behind me a good look at my ass and a small bit of my cunt. I picked my shorts up, and placed them on my bag. I smiled, and sat down, crossing my legs and my arms, which covered all the important bits."Excellent, class. Now that introductions are out of the way, we'll move on to our first topic: the human body. Today, we'll be going over the non-genitals. You may ask: 'what does that have to do with Sexual Education?'"Well, as we'll find out several times throughout the semester, sexuality doesn't require genitalia, or even nudity. An orgasm can be a achieved in other ways. For example, you can make someone cum just by massaging them in non-sexual places, although I doubt we'll see that today."Now, let's pair up for our first demo. First I'll call out pairs, then we'll see who is left."When I call your name, the girl should get up and move to the guy. First pair. Samantha, you're with Tony."I stood up, and walked to the right side of the classroom. Everyone watched me as I went and I felt like I had 100 eyes glued to various parts of my naked body, although it was really only 34. But that's still a lot! I took an empty seat next to Tony.Sharon continued pairing every girl with a guy. When she was done, she said, "We have four guys left. Two will join me: John and Eric. The other two will join a pair of their choice."The remaining two guys stood and approached Tony and I.Sharon laughed. "I see you are both attracted to the lovely Samantha and Tony here. Unfortunately, we won't get to foursomes until later in the semester, so, since Alex got up quicker, he can join Samantha and Tony, and Filipe can join another group."Filipe looked disappointed, but he walked away and joined another pair. Alex sat down in an empty chair on the other side of me."Now, we'll be covering back massages first. Each male stand behind your female, and rub her shoulders, neck, and back. Remember: no genitals today. For those groups with two guys, each can get one shoulder."She then sat down in a chair, and Eric and John got behind her and started massaging her shoulders.I scooted my seat forward, while Alex and Tony stood and got behind me. They then gave me one of the best massages I've had in my life.After what seemed like an eternity of bliss, but was still much too short, we switched. I first massaged Alex, and then Tony."Ok, class. That's it for today." said Sharon. "Class dismissed. Remember, be prepared to really get in deep with the material, starting tomorrow."Everyone returned to their original seats, and started to dress. I quickly walked back over to my bag, put on my shorts and shirt, grabbed my bag, and left.The second day. Topic: exhibitionism.The next day, I arrived about 5 minutes early again. I was wearing a light-green t-shirt and tight blue jeans. I walked in, took a seat in the same spot, pulled out my phone, and looked at social media.A few minutes later, Ms. Sharon walked in."Hello class." she said, after placing her bag down on the table in the front of the room."Today, we will be covering exhibitionism. I felt like it was an appropriate topic, given that many of you will have some strong feelings about stripping in front of your fellow students, most of which, are still strangers to you."But, before we start, I want to mention an opportunity for extra credit. As I said last class, I do a lot of work on sexuality research. A problem with this type of research is a lack of willing test subjects. If you're interested, you may participate in any number of these throughout the semester, and I will bump your grade up by half a letter grade. For example a B would become a B+. In addition to the extra credit, most studies have a monetary incentive ranging from $50-$1000+ depending on the focus and intensity of the study. If you're interested, let me know, and I'll get you signed up for a study."Now, just like last class, I'll call roll, and you will each stand, and strip completely. Every day from here on out, class will be conducted entirely without clothes, with very few exceptions. Also, I do not want to spend a ton of time on roll call every day, so, starting tomorrow, I will ask that each and every one of you is naked by the time class starts."Just like last class, you will also answer a question. However, today you'll do that after stripping. The question is: how do you feel, given your indecency? Are you uncomfortable? Are you embarrassed? Perhaps a bit turned on? Whatever you're feeling, let us all know. I can assure you that every emotion you are feeling is completely normal."Also like the other day, I will go first." She then proceeded to remove all her clothing. When she was done, she slowly spun around, giving us all a good look at her body. Although her breasts looked quite large before, her bra must have been a push-up, because after removing it, they appeared a bit smaller. However, they were quite perky, and stayed in the same exact shape as before she removed it. She had long nipples that were quite hard. They about half an inch in diameter, and about the same size from base to tip, with her entire areola extending to about 1 inch in diameter.Down below, she had her womanly hair shaved into a small, closely shaved triangle, pointing down. Her ass was large, but not huge, and looked quite firm. Another interesting feature was her tan lines. She had the normal bikini-shaped pale spots all around her "private" areas (which were now quite public), but she had a bit of a tan on both nipples, and in a line leading to her cunt. It appeared she had some interesting swimwear.When she was done with her spin, she stood at the front of the class, with her legs about shoulder-width apart. She didn't cover anything up. "I am feeling a bit horny, as I always do when new people see my body. I'm a bit nervous, but not scared. I know that most people here enjoy what they see, and those who don't are probably insecure in their own bodies."Alright. Now that I've gone, it's your turn. First up, we have the lovely Samantha Rivera. I thought you should go first, since you already stripped naked last class. Everyone has seen you naked already, so you should feel a bit more comfortable than the others in doing so again.Oh great, I thought to myself, sarcastically. I get to be the only student naked, once again.I stood up, and once again kicked off my flip-flops. I pulled my green t-shirt over my head, and pulled my pants off. After the previous day, I knew I'd have to get naked again, so when I got dressed this morning, I figured there was no point in wearing underwear. They just make me uncomfortable anyhow. So that left me naked in front of my classmates, who were all taking a good look at my naked body."Now, how do you feel, Samantha?" asked Ms. Sharon."Well, I feel more comfortable than I did a few minutes ago when I had those restrictive clothes on. I also feel a bit embarrassed, because I'm going first, but not quite as embarrassed as the last class. I also feel nervous. Not because of what people think of my body, but rather because of the topic we're going to be covering today, and the topics we'll be covering for rest of the semester."Then I sat back down."Very good, miss Rivera. I understand what you mean about the restrictive clothes. I much prefer to be naked when possible, which is one reason the rest of the class will be held in the nude. I guess you could call me an amateur nudist, in that respect. As for the material we're covering today, I'm sure you'll do fine. It seems you are already a bit of an exhibitionist." She smiled. "I'm not sure how you'll feel about the rest of the material we'll be covering, but that's part of the point of this class: to push your boundaries."Alrighty. Thank you Samantha. Next up, Alex Myers."Once again, she went down the list of names. There were three people that were missing from the last class (Mindy Hayes, Irene Hunter, Dave Evans). I guessed that they decided the class wasn't for them. Everyone else showed up, and looked eager to learn. As each person's name was called, they stood, stripped completely naked, and voiced their feelings about their state of undress. Most people said they felt embarrassed, and many felt uncomfortable with their nudity, and with the intimacy of the situation. A few people said they felt a sense of thrill or excitement.Once we finished roll, which took about ten minutes, Ms. Sharon said, "Ok. Now that everyone is naked, we will move on with the rest of today's content. Exhibitionism is defined as the act of exposing, in a public or semi-public context, those parts of one's body that are not normally exposed. Many people practice exhibitionism for a variety of reasons, such as thrill, amusement, spectacle, or sexual gratification. You have all now experienced a small part of that. In a few minutes, and throughout the rest of the semester, you will experience more of that."In this setting, with everyone being naked, it's hard to get a real idea of what exhibitionism feels like. In order to really experience this, you must be the only one in the area who is exposed. That is the objective of today's exercise.Ms. Sharon took out two plastic bags with a bunch of pieces of paper in each of them, and started walking around the room, passing one of each to everyone."Each of you will get two pieces of paper; one from each of these bags. On the first piece of paper, you will find a location on campus. On the second, there is an action. Your task is to go to your given location, in your current state of undress, and perform your given action. The actions are fairly simple, such as "do 10 jumping jacks", or "yell: look at me!", or "shake hands with someone". once you've done your action, return here for your clothes and belongings, and then you may leave for today."Between now and next class, I would like you to write a few pages describing your experience. I won't specify a length, but my guess is you'd have at least a few pages of content to write about. Next class period, we will review the outcome of the activity. I will take you on your word for whether or not you do your action or not. Either way, just walking around campus will give you a feel for exhibitionism."Now, does anyone not have a place and an action?" Nobody spoke up. "Good. Everyone follow me. I'll walk you to the front door of the building."She then walked out of the classroom. Everyone stood, and filed out of the classroom door, following her down the hall of the building.I was terrified at the thought of this assignment. When I got my location and action, I red, "Top floor of the library" and "high-five 3 people" Although the library wasn't too far from this building, I had to go to the top floor, which meant I either had to walk up all the stairs, or ride in the elevator, which usually had at least one person.Ms. Sharon escorted us all to the entrance of the building. We saw a couple students as we walked through the halls, and they all looked at us like we were crazy, but at the same time, most of them looked like they wanted to know more."Alright everyone. You have 35 minutes until the end of class. Go to your location, do your action, and come back. I will be waiting in the classroom when you return."She opened the door, and we all flooded out, running in many different directions.I hesitated a moment, before following everyone else. I turned left, and headed toward the library.It was still early, and the sun was still coming up over the buildings as I ran down the alley between two parts of the psych building. As I ran, I could feel the air rushing past me, and between my legs. Because it was so early, it was still quite chilly out. I tried to cover up as much as possible, partly because of my embarrassment, but mostly because I was cold.However, with only two hands, I couldn't cover much. At first, I tried covering my hairless cunt with one hand and my tits with my other arm. After about a dozen steps, I realized that wasn't really working. Although my boobs are small, they sure were bouncing quite a lot. I never really noticed how much they bounced without a bra. So, I switched to covering just my tits with both hands. That prevented them from bouncing so much, which felt much better.I ran as fast as I could, through that alleyway, around another building and down into the area leading to the library entrance. So far, I hadn't seen anyone, although I'm sure a few people saw me from a distance, and from windows that I passed.When I arrived at the entrance to the library, I took a short break to catch my breath. I hid behind a nearby bench, and squatted down. After catching my breath, I hesitated, because I knew there would be quite a few more people inside. I didn't really want to go in, but as I said, it was quite chilly out. So, I quickly bolted to the door, opened it and rushed inside.As I entered, the first person I noticed was the "security guard". The library hires a student to sit next to the magnetic sensors that prevented book theft. They were tasked with ensuring nobody leaving was stealing a book. The student on duty today was a young guy (maybe a freshman?), with dark hair. He was wearing a hoodie and had headphones in. He looked up, then back down at his book. Then he did a double take. His eyes opened wide, and his mouth dropped a bit."Um. Miss; I think you've forgotten something." he stammered."Oh. No, I've left my clothes behind on purpose." I said, and smiled at him, moving my hands back to my original, slightly more modest, position. "This is for a class assignment. I have to go to the third floor like this, then go back to my classroom.""Oh. Okay. Well good luck!" he said.He watched me as I walked through the detectors, and to the nearby elevator. I rapidly pressed the "up" button a few times, and bounced up and down, wishing the elevator would hurry up. As I stood there, a few people walked by. Everyone took notice of me, and many people whispered to their friends. A few girls giggled. Just as the elevator was arriving, I saw a guy hold up his phone and snap a picture."I hope you enjoy that, pervert!" I yelled at him, as I quickly got on the elevator and mashed my floor, then "close door" button. Before the door could close, a 40-something year old male professor came running up, and stuck his arm in the door, and stepped inside."Woo. I made it." he said, before noticing me. Once he did, he looked a bit shocked. "Oh. Excuse me. I'll catch another elevator." he said, starting to leave."No, it's alright, you can use this one." I said."Are you sure?" he replied. "I guess I am in a bit of a hurry.""Yea, it's fine. Just come on." I said, as I continued mashing the button.The door closed, and the elevator started rising. For the first moment, there was an awkward silence. Then he asked "so, what brings you here today, in such a state interesting attire?" He was trying to make small talk."Well, I'm in a class called Advanced Sexual Education. Today, we're learning about exhibitionism, and my teacher had this crazy idea that everyone should have some experience with it.""Oh. That sounds like an interesting class." he replied. He was trying not to make too much eye contact with me, but I could tell he was itching for a look at my naked, nubile body."You know, it's alright if you look at my body." I said. "I can tell you want to, and I guess it's what's supposed to happen in such an exhibitionist situation. Plus, I don't mind. I actually kind of enjoy it when people look at my naked body.""Oh. Well, I guess if it would help you out with your assignment." he said, as he looked over at me. "You have great skin. And your breasts are the perfect size. I'd love to be able to touch them." Just then, we arrived at the top floor."Oh. Well this is my stop." I said, getting off the elevator, into an un-populated area. The man followed me. "I'll tell you what. For my assignment, I have to get three high-fives. If you give me one of those high-fives, I'll let you have a quick touch.""Alright" he said, without having to think about it. "Deal"I raised my hand up, and he promptly smacked it. Then I gestured for him to go ahead. He reached forward with both hands, and firmly grabbed both my titties, and asked "Are these real?""Of course they're real!", I replied, shocked. "Can't you tell?""Well, no. I haven't had the chance to compare the feeling between real and fake.""Oh." I replied. "Well, I guess I haven't either. Mine are real."After a few more squeezes, he pinched my nipples. Then he released them. He thanked me, and he left.Now, how was I going to go about getting those last two high fives? I assessed my surroundings. Nearby, there was a hallway leading to a study area, which usually had a lot of people. In another direction, there was a doorway leading to stacks of books. Usually, they kept the less interesting books up here, and thus, not as many people were in those stacks.I decided to go with the stacks. There was a chance I wouldn't be able to find someone, but there would also probably less chance of people seeing me.I walked through the doorway, weaved through a couple stacks, and found a row of tables against the wall. Unfortunately, there wasn't anyone there. I walked down the row, past the tables, looking down each aisle. Finally, I saw someone, in an upcoming aisle. It was a girl, with black hair, and she was reading a book she had just grabbed off a shelf.Well, I guess this is as good a person as any, I thought to myself.I covered myself with my arms as much as I could, I walked up, tapped her on the shoulder, and said "Hi. Would you mind doing me a favor?""Sure, just gimme a sec to finish what I'm reading" she said, then took a quick glance at me. Just like the security guard, she did a double take, followed by a mouth drop. After a second to take the situation in, she said, "Wow. Um. Why are you naked, in the library?""Well, it's for a class." I said. "We're supposed to go to a place on campus, dressed how I am right now, and do something. That's why I need a favor. I need to get three high-fives. Would you mind giving me one?" As I said all that, I noticed her eyes gaze slowly over the length of my body. It made me shiver."Uh; sure." she said, raising her hand. I reached up, and smacked it. Two down, one to go."So, your professor really had you all walk naked around campus? Does that mean there's a bunch of other people naked around campus right now too?""Yep. There sure are. The class is called Advanced Human Sexuality. If you're interested, you should check it out.""Hmm. Alright. It sounds interesting. I might just have to do that.""Well, I have to get going. Gotta get that last high-five, and get back to class before it ends. What was your name, anyhow?""Nicole." she replied. "Well, I'll see you around.""Yep, see ya!"As I walked off, she took a seat at a table, and pulled her laptop out. Presumably, she was checking out the details for the class. I could tell she was intrigued by my exposure. Perhaps she would join the class? Or maybe I was over-reading the situation, and she was just getting ready to start taking notes on the book she was reading. Who knows?I walked up and down the aisles of books for a few more minutes, but nobody else was around. I decided I'd have to venture out into the study area to find someone. There was another entrance to the area on the opposite side of the stacks from the elevator. I walked over to that entrance, and peered around the corner.As I suspected, there were quite a few people studying in that area. There were 3 large tables, with about 10 people sitting at each. In another part of the room, there were some lounge chairs, with another 15 or so people sitting around. There were also several cubicles scattered about, that gave people a bit of privacy, and from where I was standing, I couldn't tell if they were occupied. However, from experience, I found those were almost always occupied. So, all in all, there were about 50-60 people in that room.Well, I thought, at least I'll have a good chance of finding someone to give me a high five. I'd bet that many of the people would be willing. Maybe I can get some extra credit for extra high-fives.I took a couple deep breaths, and decided it was now or never. I slowly entered the room.Immediately, a group of five guys, to the right of the door, took notice of me. They all seemed very surprised by the sight of an attractive, naked girl, in such a public place. I decided they'd be as good a group as any, and I started to approach them."Hi guys." I said. "Would you mind doing me a favor?"They all nodded, while one of them immediately jumped up and said, "Perhaps, sexy. What do you need?"I was a little put off by this stranger calling me sexy, but it was also a bit flattering. I responded, "Well, you see. I need to get a high five from one of you. It's for a class. Would one of you mind giving me a high five?""Well, I don't know. A high five is a high price. We can't just hand those out to anyone. What would you be willing to trade?""Well, I offered a man to touch my breasts earlier. Would that be enough?" I asked."Hmm, what do you guys think," said the leading pervert, conferring with his comrades.One of them replied, "Do we each get a feel?"At this point, just about everyone in the room had taken notice of the situation. They were all looking at me, and a few people had started to gather around. I wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible, before it got out of hand, so I responded, "Fine. Deal. You each get one squeeze. And high-fives from all of you first.""One squeeze on each tit, and you have yourself a deal", said the leader, raising his hand for a high five.The rest of them stood, and raised their hands. I walked to each of them, and slapped their hands. When I had slapped the last one, I said, "Alright. Now your turn. One squeeze each, on each breast."The leader stepped up, and said "Ok. I think in order for this to go efficiently, you should hold your hands above your head, that way we can each easily get to you easily, and make sure nobody gets any extras."I complied, and raised my hands over my head, showing my completely unexposed breasts to everyone in the room, within viewing distance.One by one, the five guys walked up, and took a good long squeeze on each breast. I could tell they really enjoyed it, because they took their sweet time.The entire time, I couldn't help but get turned on. Here I was, completely exposed in front of a large group of strangers, letting five guys cop a practically-free feel. Plus, it felt pretty good. I was quite wet between my legs, to say the least.Finally, the last squeeze was done. I lowered my arm, thanked them, and left. I had to go between a few people to get by, and brushed my breasts against them.To be continued in part 2, Based on a post by smalltitslovr for Literotica.

Geoff and Marie's Good Life: Part 6An Academy of Coitus.Marie's friends take turns to visit her and her husband.Based on posts by Only In My Mind, in 15 parts. Listen to the Podcast at Explicit Novels.When we heard voices from the other bedroom we got up and followed the others downstairs. Marie and Jo were laughing together when we arrived in the kitchen, so lesbian love hadn't offended Jo too much. Marie looked at Kate as we entered. "Hi babe. How was it for you?"Kate smiled at her friend. "I just need to get laid so much. Now I feel so good that I can't find the words to describe it."Marie looked at me. "And what about you?""A gentleman never tells," I said. "Other than to compliment you on your choice of friends. I have enjoyed this evening immensely; but I'm wondering how you ladies would like to end it. Shall I take a quick shower while you pour me a glass of wine and decide?" And I left them to it.I was back downstairs in less than ten minutes, intrigued as to Jo and Kates' decision. Were they orgasmed out, did they want to play together or did they want to try a foursome?Marie passed me a glass of wine as I joined them. I took a sip as Marie explained that the girls couldn't decide what to do for the rest of the evening. She saw the look on my face and grinned at her friends. "Mr. Smarty Pants here obviously has some ideas." She turned to me. "Go on then. What are you thinking.""It might be better if I showed you," I suggested. I put my glass on the kitchen table and walked across to Jo. I kissed her firmly on the lips and then untied the belt on her dressing gown, allowing it to fall open. I reclaimed my wine glass and, after dipping my index finger into the ruby liquid, anointed her nipples with wine. I bent to lick it off as she stood, mesmerized, as her friends watched me."It's my belief that our Jo is a closet exhibitionist," I explained. "I think that she would enjoy an audience while I fuck her bent over the kitchen table."Jo didn't say anything but her pupils dilated even further and she licked her lips while Marie and Kate considered my words. "Is that true, Jo?" My wife purred as she approached her friend. "Do you really want Kate and I to watch while my husband fucks you over my kitchen table?"I saw a flush spread down Jo's neck down to the top of her chest. Fuck! She wasn't even this turned on while I was actually doing her!"You dirty, dirty girl." Now Kate had joined in. "I bet you even expect Marie to touch you while her husband's banging you. Is that right?"Jo was breathing heavily now. I stepped behind her and slipped the gown off her shoulders and cupped her tits as it fell to the floor. "I think that we all know what's going to happen now," I whispered in her ear. "Lean forwards with both hands on the table and don't move." I looked at the other two women. "Take your seats ladies. The show is about to start."Jo took a single step to reach the table and silently bent at the waist to lean against it. She still hadn't said a word. I stood behind her and slipped my hand between her thighs. I couldn't believe how wet she felt. "You've never done this before. Am I right?" She shook her head. ""How long have you wanted to be fucked senseless while other people have watched you?""I was on holiday in Amsterdam, before I met Patrick. There was a group of us and we got high and found a live sex show." Her voice was soft and wistful. "Everyone else thought it was a hoot but," she paused as she remembered that night. "But I watched that woman on the stage as her lover penetrated her and it was the most arousing sight I'd ever seen. I wanted to be her; to do that; to be so free."Now she sounded sad as she continued. "But life's not like that, is it? I didn't want to be a prostitute or a stripper: I just wanted to be able to do what she did, even just once."I slipped off my own dressing gown. "Will this do, Jo? It's only an audience of two, but they are going to sit and watch you being fucked. Two of your very closest friends are going to watch you take my cock. Will that do for a start? Then you can fantasize about doing it with a different audience next time."She had already come at least three times with me that evening and God alone knows what Marie had done to her, so she was already aroused when we started this game. I also had an agenda of my own that this was playing quite nicely towards. I glanced at Marie and Kate to see them staring at my cock as I placed it at Jo's entrance. Jo gasped as she realized that the game was about to get real.I slipped gradually inside her and used my hands on her hips to embed myself balls deep. Marie decided to help her friend's fantasy as I started to pump back and forth. "Look Kate. Look at how Geoff's cock is slipping in and out of Jo's cunt. Look how wet and shiny he is."Kate was genuinely excited too. "This is the first time that I've ever seen two people having sex in real life," she said, breathlessly. "This is so fucking hot. Jo you dirty bitch.""Is this what you wanted Jo?" I murmured in her ear. Two of your best friends watching while one of their husbands fucks you?""Oh, yes," she groaned. "I've wanted to do something like this for so long.""Ask Marie what it's like, watching you fucking her husband on her kitchen table," I told her."Is it, oh!" She gasped. "Marie. Is it hot watching; Oh!" Another gasp."It's beautiful, babe." Marie reassured her. "I can see his cock slipping in and out of you. It's really sexy. Maybe." My wife paused for effect. "Maybe another time you could let us watch him take you up your bum. Would you like that, you dirty girl?"Jo couldn't answer. It didn't take long before I could feel her internal muscles starting to grip as she approached her climax. She was making cute little moans in time to my thrusts and they were getting louder and more urgent every passing second. Eventually she threw her head back and cried out as she hit a massive orgasm. I kept on thrusting trying to fuck her through it, but she was spent. We helped her to a chair and left her to recover.I smiled and looked at Kate. "You next. Take up the position." Then I turned to Marie. "I don't know what you're grinning at. Line up next to her." The two women looked nonplussed for a moment, then hurried to take up position side by side in front of me. I stood for a moment wondering how this could be. Only a couple of months ago I was convinced that my wife had gone off sex, and off me. Then I had a bit of an episode when she was berating our daughter's sex life, and here we were; she and her friend are bent over the kitchen table presenting their naked backsides to me while a spent friend recovers from yet another orgasm as she watches. I was sure that there was a life lesson in there somewhere but, on the other hand, there were two naked ladies anxious to be serviced, so I decided to put existential angst on the back burner and make the most of it.I decided to take my wife first as she hadn't had any cock at all that evening, unless I counted one of the rubber ones from the naughty shop. Either way she sighed gratefully as I guided my cock into her lovely moist tunnel. "Hi honey. I'm home," I warbled as we moved together. I tried to keep count as I stroked into her. After ten, I dismounted. "I'm just popping next door," I explained as I pushed my cock into Kate. They both giggled. Ten strokes into Kate as I admired her shapely bum and then back to Marie. For the next ten minutes all you could have heard in the kitchen was the sound of my belly slapping into the buttocks of the two lovely women in front of me, punctuated by the moans as we all got closer.I was glad when Kate came first, as I was getting close myself and I really wanted to finish inside my wife. As it happened, I couldn't hold back and I spent my load into Marie before she was ready. Jo came to the rescue though, and while I was trying as hard as I could to keep going before my erection subsided, she knelt by my wife and started to rub Marie's clit. Marie was completely unprepared for it and only lasted a minute longer before she succumbed to the inevitable and gracefully collapsed onto the table giggling quietly to herself.That seemed to be an appropriate moment to bring the evening to a close, so Jo and Kate each retired to one of the en-suites for a shower before they got dressed and joined us back downstairs. It struck me that this should have felt really awkward, but it didn't; honestly. We all kissed, rather chastely under the circumstances and we wished them a safe journey home as they left together.I looked at Marie as we held hands at the door. "Well babe." I said. "Are we still a couple?"She cuddled up close. "Nothing that you did or said tonight made me anything but proud," she said. "I asked you to make my friends happy, and you did. I know that every time you make love to them you form an attachment. That's 'cos you're a big softie really; and I love you all the more for it. Let's go to bed. I want to hold you even if you can't make love again." As it happened, I could.On Thursday we had a bit of a lie in {that's married people talk for having morning sex) and then we had a light breakfast as Marie was meeting Jane for lunch. We chatted about the night before, but didn't break our promise to the girls to keep the intimate details private. I was reassured now that Marie seemed comfortable watching me have sex with her friends and I was relaxed about her lesbian quid pro quo. I admit that I was uneasy about something, though. Everything that I had been brought up to believe told me this was wrong. I was still troubled by this cultural indoctrination even though I had no logical explanation for why I was supposed to feel guilty for making two friends happy. Fuck it. I love my wife, and her friends deserve physical affection.Anyway, we changed the beds and put the soiled sheets in to wash then went to get the weekly shopping. After we'd packed everything away Marie went to meet Jane while I went to the pub for lunch. I'd decided I'd had a good workout the previous evening and deserved a treat.Marie was preparing a tagine for tea when I got home; just the two of us tonight, Colin had football practice. "Hello love," I said as I gave her a kiss. "How was your lunch date?""It was okay," Marie said thoughtfully. "Jane enjoys your flirting and she understands that I wasn't offended by her playing along. But." I wondered what was coming next. "But, I'm sorry Geoff," she said hurriedly. "She's just such an awful gossip. She told me things in confidence that I had no need to know, about people who'd be terribly embarrassed if they found out what she was saying about them. I tried to call her out on it but she doesn't seem to care."There's no way that I can invite her to meet the girls; She'd be forever pestering a solicitor, a nurse and a copper for juicy titbits, and I know your suspicions about Angie's;  activities. And if she ever found out about our language classes, it would be all over town in an hour."I was actually relieved. Yes, Jane was attractive and yes, she was young enough to be our daughter, but there was something comfortable about our arrangement with Marie's friends. Even now, I can't really explain it, but somehow it was okay for me to help my wife's friends, but screwing a friend of mine would cross a line. I think that I may be even more broken than I realized.On Friday Marie asked if it was okay if Angie stayed for the weekend. They had enjoyed our previous dance evening so much that they wanted to do it again, if I was willing. Was I ever! I rang to arrange for a taxi that evening and asked if Ken was free. He'd taken us the last time we went out together and I rather enjoyed his company. I have to admit that I was looking forward to finding out if my companions' behavior that night had any; repercussions in his own marital relations.That afternoon, I picked Colin up from school and we discussed his homework, population dynamics and how women's reproductive choices could affect prosperity and economic growth. It was interesting and we lost track of time until his gran called him for his tea. We sat with him and chatted while he ate. We'd decided to eat out later with Angie. Colin's ears pricked up when we explained why we weren't eating with him. "Oh," he said. "Will mum be acting all weird again on the way home then?"Marie explained to him that she and Angie were very good friends and loved each other very much. But his mum had misunderstood and thought that meant that Gran didn't love me anymore. She reassured Colin that she loved his grandad more than ever and we both wanted Angie to have people in her life that cared for her; so we were happy for her to come and stay and spend time with us both.Colin gave me a very thoughtful look before he went to finish his homework. Marie and I glanced meaningfully at each other, shrugged and went to get showered and changed.Angie arrived just after six, as I was on the phone to Linda. Angie dashed into the study to give Colin a hug while I called upstairs to tell Marie that Linda was on her way home from work and would be with us to collect Colin in quarter of an hour. Angie grabbed her case from near the door to go and get changed upstairs as Marie came down to meet her. Colin came out of the study to show me his homework, and he watched as the two friends met and gave each other a loving hug, and a passionate kiss."Oops," said Colin. "Good job Mum missed that. She'd have seriously got her knickers in a twist." We just grinned at each other and then went to sit in the kitchen so he could show me his work. It was a thoughtful piece that contrasted, in a thirteen year old's words, the importance of women to an economy and their lower status in too many societies. Open minded and empathetic, he was going to be a real catch when he grew up. That decided me: I needed to have a long chat with his mum.By the time Linda arrived we were all downstairs. The girls looked stunning. Marie was in a long dark blue dress with a scooped neck, showing her amazing cleavage. Angie was in a long burgundy dress with a split to mid-thigh. Their makeup was subtle but they glowed.Me? Really? Okay: I was in a blue two-piece suit, a shade darker than my wife's dress. I thought it would be nice to coordinate with both my girls so I put on a burgundy silk tie, with an Eldridge knot, to match Angie's dress. Smart brown shoes completed the ensemble, as though anyone would be looking at me!Linda followed the voices to the kitchen when she arrived. Marie and her friend were raiding my wine rack for a nice white to chill in time for our return home. "Wow! Mum, Angie, you both look amazing."My wife waited for a second, probably to see if there were any judgmental caveats to follow before she replied. "Thank you love. That's very nice of you to say so. Your Dad and I really enjoyed our last dance night with Angie, so we thought it would be nice to do it more often."Colin and I joined them in the kitchen as she was speaking and I stood between Marie and her friend with an arm around both of their waists. "Aren't I the luckiest man?" I gave Marie a peck on the cheek and then did the same to Angie. I looked squarely at Linda. "Two gorgeous women all to myself tonight." Linda flushed and I swear I heard Colin snort behind me.The three women went into the living room to chat, while Colin and I tried to find a nice wine for later. In the end, Colin chose a Pinot Grigio for us;  he said that he thought we might enjoy the white pear and lychee taste;  so we put a bottle in the fridge. Seeing as we were already in the kitchen, I took one of my 'special' tablets, making sure that Colin didn't see me. It was one thing telling Colin that Marie and I loved Auntie Angie: I wasn't about to explain that I was taking an erection enhancing drug so that I could have sex with them both all night!Anyway, Linda and Colin left without any drama just as our taxi pulled up. Marie went through her checklist for me. "Have you got your wallet, door keys, handkerchief?"I probably looked a bit insulted. "Yes dear," I sighed."Have you taken your tablet?" Marie asked. Angie gave me a look; at my groin."Yes dear.""Did you remember the condoms?" She fell about laughing. "Oh Geoff. The look on your face."I smiled. "Come on you daft bat. We're not getting any younger."The girls walked together towards the taxi and, as I locked up, I heard a squeal of joy from Angie. "Geoff! You complete genius. You got Ken to drive us." She all but skipped down the driveway and threw her arms around the poor man's neck. "Ken! You're my favorite cabbie. I'm so pleased to see you again." She demonstrated her sincerity by planting a big kiss on his mouth. I'm as certain as I can be that there was tongue involved.I looked at my wife. "I bet you're pleased to see Ken too." She nodded shyly. "I imagine he's your favorite cabbie as well." She just smiled. It seemed to be my night for sighing. "So go and show Ken how glad you are that he's our driver tonight." To her credit, she gave me a lovely hug first and then went to give Ken a big kiss. He also got the bonus of a lovely bosom pressed up against him, as well as a damn good look down a damn fine cleavage.We set off for the country hotel hosting the dinner dance, with me in the front with Ken and my two ladies plotting in the seat behind us. "Do you remember us Ken?" I asked."Vividly." He replied, apparently surprised that I should even have asked."You mentioned, as you dropped us off last time, something about your wife, er, may perhaps be going to benefit from the experience," I said, rather hesitantly.He looked both embarrassed and rather smug. "Er, well yes. She 'benefitted' twice that night and once again the next morning.""Oh, Ken!" Came a chorus from the rear seats."You naughty saucepot," said Angie. Ken smirked. "So did you do it up her bum?" Angie continued conversationally. It was fascinating watching his satisfied expression morph into a rictus of terror as he recalled how Angie had tormented me the first time that he drove us. "Well?" She persisted. "Do you sometimes go 'in' the 'out' door?""You know you're going to have to answer her, don't you?" I observed, as kindly as I could, when I saw his hesitation. "She's relentless, especially when she's interrogating someone about sex.""N, No," he stammered eventually. "We've never done that.""Me neither," she said wistfully. "She has." She meant Marie. "The luck bitch. Do you think Geoff would do me up the bum, if I ask him nicely?""Do women actually like that sort of thing?" He asked warily."Well I don't know, do I?" She was getting a little testy now. "I just admitted that I've never done it. You'll have to ask Mrs. Smuggy McSmugface here."Marie spared him having to ask. "It was an odd feeling," she volunteered cheerfully. "And it felt very naughty." She thought for a moment. "I did have a massive orgasm though. We're definitely going to do it again, but next time we'll prepare better, so that we can do it bareback." She sat back in her seat and looked fondly at her best friend. "I'm sure Geoff would love to do yours too. Shopping trip tomorrow? To get some enema kits?"Ken looked me helplessly. "Are they always like this?"I gave his question some serious thought. "Individually, no; together, sometimes but together with the prospect of sex; always!"I heard some more whispering behind me and I was sure one of the women murmured, "We'll keep that for the trip home." The dirty laughs that followed convinced me that they were on a hyper tonight and, I'm not sure if you'd noticed, they haven't had a drop to drink yet!We drove more or less in silence for the rest of the journey. It wasn't far. I knew the return trip was likely to be; challenging; but I didn't say anything to Ken. No need to alarm him prematurely after all.When we arrived at the hotel, the girls stayed in the back of the taxi until Ken realized that they were waiting for him to open the doors for them. Angie was sitting on the driver's side so he let her out first. I swear that I saw her rub her hand along the front of his trousers as she got out. She bobbed down and looked across to Marie, still sitting behind my seat, "I think Ken enjoyed our company."The poor man walked around to the passenger side and opened the door for Marie and stood to attention with a look of resignation on his face as Marie stepped out and 'accidentally' stroked his groin too. She grinned across the cab roof at her friend and said, "Perhaps we should talk about something else on the way home. Do tell us you'll be driving us back tonight, Ken.""Er, Yes Madam, The gentleman insisted.""Oh goody! We love our little chats," Marie beamed.I paid our fare, with a generous tip, and clapped him gently on the shoulder. "It's only a ten minute drive," I told him. "It probably won't be too bad. Probably."

Aujourd'hui, Bruno Poncet, cheminot, Emmanuel De Villiers, chef d'entreprise, et Barbara Lefebvre, professeur d'histoire-géo, débattent de l'actualité autour d'Alain Marschall et Olivier Truchot.

Bucs shut out the Dodgers to take the series. Going for the sweep tonight! Let's talk pitching again! Because why not? They're good! Excuse my voice. We'll get it back.https://linktr.ee/bridgetobuctoberhttp://steelcitypirates.com/Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/bridge-to-buctober/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Joel thought his girlfriend Shae was just helping a friend by cat-sitting, but late nights, missing cat hair, and a suspicious Instagram post raised red flags. When The Jubal Show steps in for To Catch a Cheater, the truth takes a shocking turn that Joel never expected. Don’t miss this jaw-dropping episode of betrayal and confession. Think your partner might be up to something shady? The Jubal Show has you covered. In this explosive segment, The Jubal Show helps suspicious lovers uncover the truth by setting up the ultimate loyalty test. We call their significant other, posing as a grocery store’s floral department offering a free bouquet. You know.. a War of the Roses. The catch? Who they choose to send the flowers to—and what they write on the card—could reveal everything. Will it be a romantic gesture for their partner or a shocking betrayal? Get ready for twists, surprises, and jaw-dropping confrontations as we help our listeners get the answers they deserve. Subscribe to The Jubal Show's To Catch A Cheater / War of the Roses.➡︎ Get on The Jubal Show with your story - https://thejubalshow.com This is just a tiny piece of The Jubal Show. You can find every podcast we have, including the full show every weekday right here…➡︎ https://thejubalshow.com/podcasts The Jubal Show is everywhere, and also these places: Website ➡︎ https://thejubalshow.com Instagram ➡︎ https://instagram.com/thejubalshow X/Twitter ➡︎ https://twitter.com/thejubalshow Tiktok ➡︎ https://www.tiktok.com/@the.jubal.show Facebook ➡︎ https://facebook.com/thejubalshow YouTube ➡︎ https://www.youtube.com/@JubalFresh Support the show: https://the-jubal-show.beehiiv.com/subscribeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joel thought his girlfriend Shae was just helping a friend by cat-sitting, but late nights, missing cat hair, and a suspicious Instagram post raised red flags. When The Jubal Show steps in for To Catch a Cheater, the truth takes a shocking turn that Joel never expected. Don’t miss this jaw-dropping episode of betrayal and confession. Think your partner might be up to something shady? The Jubal Show has you covered. In this explosive segment, The Jubal Show helps suspicious lovers uncover the truth by setting up the ultimate loyalty test. We call their significant other, posing as a grocery store’s floral department offering a free bouquet. You know.. a War of the Roses. The catch? Who they choose to send the flowers to—and what they write on the card—could reveal everything. Will it be a romantic gesture for their partner or a shocking betrayal? Get ready for twists, surprises, and jaw-dropping confrontations as we help our listeners get the answers they deserve. Subscribe to The Jubal Show's To Catch A Cheater / War of the Roses.➡︎ Get on The Jubal Show with your story - https://thejubalshow.com This is just a tiny piece of The Jubal Show. You can find every podcast we have, including the full show every weekday right here…➡︎ https://thejubalshow.com/podcasts The Jubal Show is everywhere, and also these places: Website ➡︎ https://thejubalshow.com Instagram ➡︎ https://instagram.com/thejubalshow X/Twitter ➡︎ https://twitter.com/thejubalshow Tiktok ➡︎ https://www.tiktok.com/@the.jubal.show Facebook ➡︎ https://facebook.com/thejubalshow YouTube ➡︎ https://www.youtube.com/@JubalFresh Support the show: https://the-jubal-show.beehiiv.com/subscribeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi listener, in this episode we discuss Shawna the name & a mom from Kenya. (** Please please EXCUSE the Audio and Noise in Background) **

The verbs of the Hebrew root kbl are everywhere: To get, to receive, to be hired, plus things which are just not done and are considered unacceptable. Hear the All-Hebrew Episode on Patreon   New Words and Expressions: Lekabel – To receive – לקבל Kibalti hoda'ah – I received a message – קיבלתי הודעה “Ba-boker kibalit email katsar ve-nechmad” – In the morning I got a short and nice email – בבוקר קיבלתי אימייל קצר ונחמד Kibalta/kibalt et hahodaa sheli? Ken, kibalti. – Did you get my message? Yes, I did – קיבלת את ההודעה שלי? כן, קיבלתי Tagidu, kibaltem kvar heshbon hashmal? – Say, did you guys already get the electricity bill? – תגידו, קיבלתם כבר חשבון חשמל Kibalti – “Roger that” – קיבלתי Kibalti machzor – I got my period – קיבלתי מחזור “Afilu kos mayim lo kibalti'” – I didn't even get a glass of water – אפילו כוס מים לא קיבלתי “Slicha, atem mekablim kartisei ashrai?” – Excuse me, do you take credit cards? – סליחה, אתם מקבלים כרטיסי אשראי  Kibalti/hatafi shock – I was shocked – קיבלתי/חטפתי שוק Hu kibel/hataf makot – He was beaten up – הוא קיבל/חטף מכות Dvarim she-mekubal la'asot – Things which are ‘done' – דברים שמקובל לעשות Ze lo mekubal – It's not done – זה לא מקובל “Be-eropa lo mekubal lalechet lelevaya im t-shirt ve-shorts” – In Europe it's unacceptable to go to a funeral in t-shirt and shorts – באירופה לא מקובל ללכת ללוויה עם טישירט ושורטס “Ze lo mekubal alay” – It's unacceptable to me – זה לא מקובל עליי Ha-mekubalim” – The popular kids at school – המקובלים Ha-hoda'ah hitkabla – The message was received – ההודעה התקבלה Ha-kesef hitkabel – The money was received – הכסף התקבל Lehitkabel la-avoda – To get a job, to be hired – להתקבל לעבודה “Eich lehitkabel lemisra ba-t'hoom hachi nechshak ve-rivchi hayom bameshek” – How to get accepted for a job in the most desirable and profitable field in the economy today – איך להתקבל למשרה בתחום הכי נחשק ורווחי היום במשק Lehitkabel la-universta – To get into university – להתקבל לאוניברסיטה Eich lehitkabel le-mishpatim – How to get accepted to law school – איך להתקבל למשפטים “Hitkablta” – You're hired – התקבלת   Playlist and Clips: Miri Massika – Af Ahat (lyrics) How to get a hi-tech job Shlomo Artzi – Yoter Mi-ze Anachnu Lo Tsrichim (lyrics) Ep. no. 4 about Ima Polaniya HEB Ep. no. 210 about lahtof, to snatch HEB Ep. no. 440 about kabala, reception HEB

_If you understand Italian but find it hard to speak, you're not alone. Here are 5 common reasons and easy tips to help you get better at speaking Italian. _ Learn about our Online Italian School and get a free mini lesson every week: https://joyoflanguages.online/italian-school Subscribe to our new YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@joyoflanguages.italian?sub_confirmation=1 Get the bonus materials for this episode: https://italian.joyoflanguages.com/podcast/understand-italian-but-cant-speak-it Today's Italian words: Scusi, un minuto = Excuse me (formal), one minute Provo in italiano = I'll try in Italian Tutto bene = All good Ci vediamo = See you later

Is ‘Imposter Syndrome' real, or just an excuse leaders use to avoid accountability? Imposter Syndrome is a term that's really taken hold over the last several years. LinkedIn is full of heart-wrenching confessions from those who suffer from Imposter Syndrome.So, what's the difference between Imposter Syndrome, and the natural self-doubt that any well-adjusted leader experiences from time to time?Don't label yourself with the imposter syndrome tag; instead, use your self-doubt as a handbrake to stop you from becoming overconfident or arrogant.If you want to go deeper into how to beat imposter syndrome, have a listen to Ep.229: Confidence, Arrogance, and Self-Doubt. ————————Get the insider edge with the No Bullsh!t Leadership Hub on Skool - completely FREE!Join like-minded leaders who love the podcast and dive into exclusive resources, real conversations, and weekly challenges designed to sharpen your leadership game.Don't miss out, join now!————————You can connect with me at:Website: https://www.yourceomentor.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/yourceomentorInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourceomentorLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martin-moore-075b001/Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@YourCEOMentor————————Our mission here at Your CEO Mentor is to improve the quality of leaders, globally. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why You Don't Succeed and How To Why do so many people fail to succeed while others break through and create the life they dream of? In this episode of the Personal Development Unplugged Podcast, I dive into four powerful questions that can change how you think about success, failure, and the choices you make every day. Are you just settling? Trying to move mountains? Wishing life was easy? Or constantly struggling? Here's the thing — success isn't about either/or. It's about this AND that. It's about striving, celebrating the plateaus, reviewing your values, and then springboarding forward with even more clarity and energy. You'll discover: Why settling keeps you stuck in the “I wish I had” syndrome How moving mountains without balance makes you lose what you value most The secret power of the plateau and why it's not failure but fuel How to build harmony (not balance) into your journey to success The five keys to success that pull it all together If you've ever felt stuck, stalled, or doubted yourself on the way to your goals, this episode is for you. By the end, you'll know how to pause, review, and reignite your path — and you'll be ready to step into the top few percent who actually succeed. Listen now, share with a friend who needs this, and let's make success inevitable. https://personaldevelopmentunplugged.com/459-why-you-dont-succeed-and-how-to   Oh! And if you want to see the video recording as well here's the link https://youtu.be/CyYemcp5nJw Shine Brightly

You're listening to Burnt Toast! Today, my guest is Ash Brandin of Screen Time Strategies, also know as The Gamer Educator on Instagram. Ash is also the author of a fantastic new book, Power On: Managing Screen Time to Benefit the Whole Family. Ash joined us last year to talk about how our attitudes towards screen time can be…diet-adjacent. I asked them to come back on the podcast this week because a lot of us are heading into back-to-school mode, which in my experience can mean feelingsss about screen routines. There are A LOT of really powerful reframings in this episode that might blow your mind—and make your parenting just a little bit easier. So give this one a listen and share it with anyone in your life who's also struggling with kids and screen time.Today's episode is free but if you value this conversation, please consider supporting our work with a paid subscription. Burnt Toast is 100% reader- and listener-supported. We literally can't do this without you! PS. You can take 10 percent off Power On, or any book we talk about on the podcast, if you order it from the Burnt Toast Bookshop, along with a copy of Fat Talk! (This also applies if you've previously bought Fat Talk from them. Just use the code FATTALK at checkout.)Episode 208 TranscriptVirginiaFor anyone who missed your last episode, can you just quickly tell us who you are and what you do?AshI'm Ash Brandin. I use they/them pronouns.I am a middle school teacher by day, and then with my online presence, I help families and caregivers better understand and manage all things technology—screen time, screens. My goal is to reframe the way that we look at them as caregivers, to find a balance between freaking out about them and allowing total access. To find a way that works for us. VirginiaWe are here today to talk about your brilliant new book, which is called Power On: Managing Screen Time to Benefit the Whole Family. I can't underscore enough how much everybody needs a copy of this book. I have already turned back to it multiple times since reading it a few months ago. It just really helps ground us in so many aspects of this conversation that we don't usually have.AshI'm so glad to hear that it's helpful! If people are new to who I am, I have sort of three central tenets of the work that I do: * Screen time is a social inequity issue. * Screens can be part of our lives without being the center of our lives. * Screens and screen time should benefit whole families.Especially in the last few years, we have seen a trend toward panic around technology and screens and smartphones and social media. I think that there are many reasons to be concerned around technology and its influence, especially with kids. But what's missing in a lot of those conversations is a sense of empowerment about what families can reasonably do. When we focus solely on the fear, it ends up just putting caregivers in a place of feeling bad.VirginiaYou feel like you're getting it wrong all the time.AshShame isn't empowering. No one is like, “Well, I feel terrible about myself, so now I feel equipped to go make a change,” right?Empowerment is what's missing in so many of those conversations and other books and things that have come out, because it's way harder. It's so much harder to talk about what you can really do and reasonably control in a sustainable way. But I'm an educator, and I really firmly believe that if anyone's in this sort of advice type space, be it online or elsewhere, that they need to be trying to empower and help families instead of just capitalizing on fear.VirginiaWhat I found most powerful is that you really give us permission to say: What need is screen time meeting right now? And this includes caregivers' needs. So not just “what need is this meeting for my child,” but what need is this meeting for me? I am here recording with you right now because iPads are meeting the need of children have a day off school on a day when I need to work. We won't be interrupted unless I have to approve a screen time request, which I might in 20 minutes.I got divorced a couple years ago, and my kids get a lot more screen time now. Because they move back and forth between two homes, and each only has one adult in it. Giving myself permission to recognize that I have needs really got me through a lot of adjusting to this new rhythm of our family.AshAbsolutely. And when we're thinking about what the need is, we also need to know that it's going to change. So often in parenting, it feels like we have to come up with one set of rules and they have to work for everything in perpetuity without adjustment. That just sets us up for a sense of failure if we're like, well, I had this magical plan that someone told me was going to work, and it didn't. So I must be the problem, right? It all comes back to that “well, it's my fault” place.VirginiaWhich is screens as diet culture.AshAll over again. We're back at it. It's just not helpful. If instead, we're thinking about what is my need right now? Sometimes it's “I have to work.” And sometimes it's “my kid is sick and they just need to relax.” Sometimes it's, as you were alluding to earlier, it's we've all just had a day, right? We've been run ragged, and we just need a break, and that need is going to dictate very different things. If my kid is laid up on the couch and throwing up, then what screen time is going to be doing for them is very different than If I'm trying to work and I want them to be reasonably engaged in content and trying to maybe learn something. And that's fine. Being able to center “this is what I need right now,” or “this is what we need right now,” puts us in a place of feeling like we're making it work for us. Instead of feeling like we're always coming up against some rule that we're not going to quite live up to.VirginiaI'd love to talk about the inequity piece a little more too. As I said, going from a two parent household to a one parent household, which is still a highly privileged environment—but even just that small shift made me realize, wait a second. I think all the screen time guidance is just for typical American nuclear families. Ideally, with a stay at home parent.So can you talk about why so much of the standard guidance doesn't apply to most of our families?AshIt's not even just a stay at home parent. It's assuming that there is always at least one caregiver who is fully able to be present. Mom, default parent, is making dinner, and Dad is relaxing after work and is monitoring what the kids are doing, right? And it's one of those times where I'm like, have you met a family?VirginiaPeople are seven different places at once. It's just not that simple.AshIt's not that simple, right? It's like, have you spent five minutes in a typical household in the last 10 years? This is not how it's going, right?So the beginning of the book helps people unlearn and relearn what we may have heard around screens, including what research really does or doesn't say around screens, and this social inequity piece. Because especially since the onset of COVID, screens are filling in systemic gaps for the vast majority of families.I'm a family with two caregivers in the home. We both work, but we're both very present caregivers. So we're definitely kind of a rarity, that we're very privileged. We're both around a lot of the time. And we are still using screens to fill some of those gaps.So whether it's we don't really have a backyard, or people are in a neighborhood where they can't send their kids outside, or they don't have a park or a playground. They don't have other kids in the neighborhood, or it's not a safe climate. Or you live in an apartment and you can't have your neighbors complain for the fifth time that your kids are stomping around and being loud. Whatever it is—a lack of daycare, affordable after school care —those are all gaps. They all have to be filled. And we used to have different ways of filling those gaps, and they've slowly become less accessible or less available. So something has to fill them. What ends up often filling them is screens. And I'm not saying that that's necessarily a good thing. I'd rather live in a world in which everyone is having their needs met accessibly and equitably. But that's a much harder conversation, and is one that we don't have very much say in. We participate in that, and we might vote for certain people, but that's about all we can really do reasonably. So, in the meantime, we have to fill that in with something and so screens are often going to fill that in.Especially if you look at caregivers who have less privilege, who are maybe single caregivers, caregivers of color, people living in poverty—all of those aspects of scarcity impacts their bandwidth. Their capacity as a caregiver is less and spread thinner, and all of that takes away from a caregiver's ability to be present. And there were some really interesting studies that were done around just the way that having less capacity affects you as a caregiver.And when I saw that data, I thought, well, of course. Of course people are turning to screens because they have nothing else to give from. And when we think of it that way, it's hard to see that as some sort of personal failure, right? When we see it instead as, oh, this is out of necessity. It reframes the question as “How do I make screens work for me,” as opposed to, “I'm bad for using screens.”VirginiaRight. How do I use screen time to meet these needs and to hopefully build up my capacity so that I can be more present with my kids? I think people think if you're using a lot of screens, you're really never present. It's that stereotype of the parent on the playground staring at their phone, instead of watching the kid play. When maybe the reason we're at the playground is so my kid can play and I can answer some work emails. That doesn't mean I'm not present at other points of the day.AshOf course. You're seeing one moment. I always find that so frustrating. It just really feels like you you cannot win. If I were sitting there staring at my child's every move in the park, someone would be like, “you're being a helicopter,” right? And if I look at my phone because I'm trying to make the grocery pickup order—because I would rather my child have time at the playground than we spend our only free hour in the grocery store and having to manage a kid in the grocery store and not having fun together, right? Instead I'm placing a pickup order and they're getting to run around on the playground. Now also somehow I'm failing because I'm looking at my phone instead of my kid. But also, we want kids to have independent time, and not need constant input. It really feels like you just can't win sometimes. And being able to take a step back and really focus on what need is this meeting? And if it's ours, and if it is helping me be more present and connected, that's a win. When I make dinner in the evening, my kid is often having screen time, and I will put in an AirPod and listen to a podcast, often Burnt Toast, and that's my decompression. Because I come home straight from work and other things. I'm not getting much time to really decompress.VirginiaYou need that airlock time, where you can decompress and then be ready to be present at dinner.I'm sure I've told you this before, but I reported a piece on screen time for Parents Magazine, probably almost 10 years ago at this point, because I think my older child was three or four. And I interviewed this Harvard researcher, this older white man, and I gave him this the dinner time example. I said, I'm cooking dinner. My kid is watching Peppa Pig so that I can cook dinner, and take a breath. And then we eat dinner together. And he said, “Why don't you involve her in cooking dinner? Why don't you give her a bag of flour to play with while you cook dinner?”AshOf all the things!VirginiaAnd I said to him: Because it's 5pm on a Wednesday and who's coming to clean the flour off the ceiling?AshA bag of flour. Of all the things to go to! VirginiaHe was like, “kids love to make a happy mess in the kitchen!” I was like, well I don't love that. And it was just exactly that. My need didn't matter to him at all. He was like, “h, well, if you just want to pacify your children…” I was like, I do, yes, in that moment.AshWell, and I think that's another part of it is that someone says it to us like that, and we're like, “well, I can't say yes,” right? But in the moment, yeah, there are times where it's like, I need you to be quiet. And as hard as this can be to think, sometimes it's like right now, I need you to be quiet and convenient because of the situation we're in. And that doesn't mean we're constantly expecting that of them, and hopefully that's not something we're doing all the time. But if the need is, oh my God, we're all melting down, and if we don't eat in the next 15 minutes, we're going to have a two hour DEFCON1 emergency on our hands, then, yeah, I'm gonna throw Peppa Pig on so that we can all become better regulated humans in the next 15 minutes and not have a hungry meltdown. And that sounds like a much better alternative to me!VirginiaThan flour all over my kitchen on a Wednesday, right? I mean, I'll never not be mad about it. It's truly the worst parenting advice I've ever received. So thank you for giving us all more space as caregivers to be able to articulate our own needs and articulate what we need to be present. It's what we can do in the face of gaps in the care system that leave us holding so much.That said: I think there are some nitty gritty aspects of this that we all struggle wit, so I want to talk about some of the nuts and bolts pieces. One of my biggest struggles is still the question of how much time is too much time? But you argue that time really isn't the measure we should be using. As you're saying, that need is going to vary day to day, and all the guidance that's been telling us, like, 30 minutes at this age, an hour at this age, all of that is not particularly germane to our lives. So can you explain both why time is less what we should fixate on? And then how do I release myself? How do I divest from the screen time diet culture?AshOh man, I wish I had a magic bullet for that one. We'll see what I can do.When I was writing this and thinking about it and making content about it, I kept thinking about you. Because the original time guidelines that everyone speaks back to—they're from the AAP. And they have not actually been used in about 10 years, but people still bring them up all the time. The “no time under two” and “up to an hour up to age five” and “one to two hours, five to 12.” And if you really dig in, I was following footnote after footnote for a while, trying to really find where did this actually come from? It's not based on some study that found that that's the ideal amount of time. It really came from a desire to find this middle ground of time spent being physically idle. These guidelines are about wanting to avoid childhood obesity.VirginiaOf course.AshIt all comes back, right?VirginiaI should have guessed it.AshAnd so in their original recommendations, the AAP note that partially this is to encourage a balance with physical movement. Which, of course, assumes that if you are not sitting watching TV or using an iPad, that you will be playing volleyball or something.VirginiaYou'll automatically be outside running around.AshExactly, of course, those are the only options.VirginiaIt also assumes that screen time is never physical. But a lot of kids are very physical when they're watching screens.AshExactly. And it, of course, immediately also imposes a morality of one of these things is better—moving your body is always better than a screen, which is not always going to be true, right? All these things have nuance in them. But I thought that was so interesting, and it shouldn't have surprised me, and yet somehow it still did. And of course it is good to find movement that is helpful for you and to give your kids an enjoyment of being outside or moving their bodies, or playing a sport. And putting all of that in opposition to something else they may enjoy, like a screen, really quickly goes to that diet culture piece of “well, how many minutes have you been doing that?” Because now we have to offset it with however many minutes you should be running laps or whatever.So those original recommendations are coming from a place of already trying to mitigate the negatives of sitting and doing something sort of passively leisurely. And in the last 10 years, they've moved away from that, and they now recommend what's called making a family media plan. Which actually I think is way better, because it is much more prioritizing what are you using this for? Can you be doing it together? What can you do? It's much more reasonable, I think. But many people still go back to those original recommendations, because like you said, it's a number. It's simple. Just tell me.VirginiaWe love to grab onto a number and grade ourselves.AshJust tell me how much time so that I can tell myself I'm I'm doing a good job, right? But you know, time is just one piece of information. It can be so specific with what am I using that time to do? If I'm sitting on my computer and doing work for an hour and a half, technically, that is screen time, but it is going to affect me a lot differently than if I'm watching Netflix or scrolling my phone for an hour and a half. I will feel very different after those things. And I think it's really important to be aware of that, and to make our kids aware of that from an early age, so that they are thinking about more than just, oh, it's been X amount of minutes. And therefore this is okay or not okay.Because all brains and all screens are different. And so one kid can watch 20 minutes of Paw Patrol, and they're going to be bouncing off the walls, because, for whatever reason, that's just a show that's really stimulating for them. And somebody else can sit and watch an hour and a half of something, and they'll be completely fine. So if you have a kid that is the first kid, and after 20 minutes, you're like, oh my god, it's not even half an hour. This is supposed to be an okay amount. This is how they're acting. We're right back to that “something's wrong. I'm wrong. They're bad,” as opposed to, “What is this telling me? What's something we could do differently? Could we try a different show? Could we try maybe having some physical movement before or after, see if that makes a difference?” It just puts us more in a place of being curious to figure out again, how do I make this work for me? What is my need? How do I make it work for us?And not to rattle on too long, but there was a big study done in the UK, involving over 120,000 kids. And they were trying to find what they called “the Goldilocks amount of time.”VirginiaYes. This is fascinating.AshSo it's the amount of time where benefit starts to wane. Where we are in that “just right”amount. Before that, might still be okay, but after that we're going to start seeing some negative impacts, particularly when it comes to behavior, for example.What they found in general was that the Goldilocks number tended to be around, I think, an hour and 40 minutes a day. Something around an hour and a half a day. But if you looked at certain types of screens, for computers or TV, it was much higher than that. It was closer to three hours a day before you started seeing some negative impacts. And even for things like smartphones, it was over an hour a day. But what I found so so interesting, is that they looked at both statistical significance, but also what they called “minimally important difference,” which was when you would actually notice these negative changes, subjectively, as a caregiver.So this meant how much would a kid have to be on a screen for their adult at home to actually notice “this is having an impact on you,” regularly. And that amount was over four and a half hours a day on screens.VirginiaBefore caregivers were like, “Okay, this is too much!” And the fact that the statistically significant findings for the minutia of what the researchers looking at is so different from what you as a caregiver are going to actually be thrown by. That was really mind blowing to me.AshRight, And that doesn't mean that statistical significance isn't important, necessarily. But we're talking about real minutiae. And that doesn't always mean that you will notice any difference in your actual life.Of course, some people are going to hear this and go, “But I don't want my kid on a screen for four and a half hours.” Sure. That's completely reasonable. And if your kid is having a hard time after an hour, still reasonable, still important. That's why we can think less about how many minutes has it been exactly, and more, what am I noticing? Because if I'm coming back to the need and you're like, okay, I have a meeting and I need an hour, right? If you know, “I cannot have them use their iPad for an hour, because they tend to become a dysregulated mess in 25 minutes,” that's much more useful information than “Well, it says they're allowed to have an hour of screen time per day so this should be fine because it's an hour.”VirginiaRight.AshIt sets you up for more success.VirginiaAnd if you know your kid can handle that hour fine and can, in fact, handle more fine, it doesn't mean, “well you had an hour of screen time while I was in a meeting so now we can't watch a show together later to relax together.” You don't have to take away and be that granular with the math of the screens. You can be like, yeah, we needed an extra hour for this meeting, and we'll still be able to watch our show later. Because that's what I notice with my kids. If I start to try to take away from some other screen time, then it's like, “Oh, god, wait, but that's the routine I'm used to!” You can't change it, and that's fair.AshYes, absolutely. And I would feel that way too, right? If someone were giving me something extra because it was a convenience to them, but then later was like, “oh, well, I have to take that from somewhere.” But they didn't tell me that. I would be like, Excuse me, that's weird. That's not how that works, right? This was a favor to you, right?VirginiaYeah, exactly. I didn't interrupt your meeting. You're welcome, Mom.Where the time anxiety does tend to kick in, though, is that so often it's hard for kids to transition off screens. So then parents think, “Well, it was too much time,” or, “The screen is bad.” This is another very powerful reframing in your work. So walk us through why just because a kid is having a hard time getting off screens doesn't mean it was too much and it doesn't mean that screens are evil? AshSo an example I use many times that you can tweak to be whatever thing would come up for your kid is bath time. I think especially when kids are in that sort of toddler, three, four age. When my kid was that age, we had a phase where transitioning to and from the bathtub was very hard. Getting into it was hard. But then getting out of it was hard.VirginiaThey don't ever want to get in. And then they never want to leave.AshThey never want to get out, right? And in those moments when my kid was really struggling to get out of the bathtub, imagine how it would sound if I was like, “Well, it it's the bathtub's fault.” Like it's the bath's fault that they are having such a hard time, it's because of the bubbles, and it smells too good, and I've made it too appealing and the water's too warm. Like, I mean, I sound unhinged, right?Virginia“We're going to stop bathing you.”AshExactly. We would not say, “Well, we can't have baths anymore.” Or when we go to the fun playground, and it's really hard to leave the fun playground, we don't blame the playground. When we're in the grocery store and they don't want to leave whichever aisle, we don't blame the grocery store. And we also don't stop taking them to the grocery store. We don't stop going to playgrounds. We don't stop having baths. Instead, we make different decisions, right? We try different things. We start a timer. We have a different transition. We talk about it beforehand. We strategize, we try things.VirginiaGive a “Hey, we're leaving in a few minutes!” so they're not caught off guard.AshExactly. We talk about it. Hey, last time it was really hard to leave here, we kind of let them know ahead of time, or we race them to the car. We find some way to make it more fun, to make the transition easier, right? We get creative, because we know that, hey, they're going to have to leave the grocery store. They're going to have to take baths in a reasonable amount of time as they grow up into their lives. We recognize the skill that's happening underneath it.And I think with screens, we don't always see those underlying skills, because we see it as this sort of superfluous thing, right? It's not needed. It's not necessary. Well, neither is going to a playground, technically.A lot of what we do is not technically required, but the skill underneath is still there. So when they are struggling with ending screen time, is it really the screen, or is it that it's hard to stop doing something fun. It's hard to stop in the middle of something. It's hard to stop if you have been playing for 20 minutes and you've lost every single race and you don't want to stop when you've just felt like you've lost over and over again, right? You want one more shot to one more shot, right?People are going to think, “Well, but screens are so much different than those other things.” Yes, a screen is designed differently than a playground or a bath. But we are going to have kids who are navigating a technological and digital world that we are struggle to even imagine, right? We're seeing glimpses of it, but it's going to be different than what we're experiencing now, and we want our kids to be able to navigate that with success. And that comes back to seeing the skills underneath. So when they're struggling with something like that, taking the screen out of it, and asking yourself, how would I handle this if it were anything else. How would I handle this if it were they're struggling to leave a friend's house? I probably wouldn't blame the friend, and I wouldn't blame their house, and I wouldn't blame their boys.VirginiaWe're never seeing that child again! Ash I would validate and I would tell them, it's hard. And I would still tell them “we're ending,” and we would talk about strategies to make it easier next time. And we would get curious and try something, and we would be showing our kids that, “hey, it's it's okay to have a hard time doing that thing. It's okay to have feelings about it. And we're still gonna do it. We're still going to end that thing.”Most of the time, the things that we are struggling with when it comes to screens actually boil down to one of three things, I call them the ABCs. It's either Access, which could be time, or when they're having it, or how much. Behavior, which you're kind of bringing up here. And Content, what's on the screen, what they're playing, what they what they have access to.And so sometimes we might think that the problem we're seeing in front of us is a behavior problem, right? I told them to put the screen away. They're not putting the screen away. That's a behavior problem. But sometimes it actually could be because it's an access issue, right? It's more time than they can really handle at that given moment. Or it could be content, because it's content that makes it harder to start and stop. So a big part of the book is really figuring out, how do I know what problem I'm even really dealing with here? And then what are some potential things that I can do about it? To try to problem solve, try to make changes and see if this helps, and if it helps, great, keep it. And if not, I can get curious and try something else. And so a lot of it is strategies to try and ways to kind of, you know, backwards engineer what might be going on, to figure out how to make it work for you, how to make it better.VirginiaIt's so helpful to feel like, okay, there's always one more thing I can tweak and adjust. Versus “it's all a failure. We have to throw it out.” That kind of all or nothing thinking that really is never productive. The reason I think it's so helpful that you draw that parallel with the bath or the play date is it reminds us that there are some kids for whom transitions are just always very difficult—like across the board. So you're not just seeing a screen time problem. You're being reminded “My kid is really building skills around transitions. We don't have them yet.” We hope we will have them at some point. But this is actually an opportunity to work on that, as opposed to a problem. We can actually practice some of these transition skills.AshAnd I really like coming back to the skill, because if we're thinking of it as a skill, then we're probably more likely to tell our kids that it's a skill, too. Because if we're just thinking of it as like, well, it's a screen. It's the screen's fault, it's the screen's fault. Then we might not say those literal words to our kids, but we might say, like, it's always so hard to turn off the TV. Why is that, right? We're talking about it as if it's this sort of amorphous, like it's only about the television, or it's only about the iPad, and we're missing the part of making it clear to our kids that, hey, this is a skill that you're working on, and we work on this skill in different ways.VirginiaI did some good repair with my kids after reading your book. Because I was definitely falling into the trap of talking about screen addiction. I thought I was saying to them, “It's not your fault. The screens are programmed to be bad for us in this way” So I thought, I was like at least not blaming them, but being like, we need less screens because they're so dangerous.But then I read your book, and I was like, oh, that's not helpful either. And I did have one of my kids saying, “Am I bad because I want to watch screens all the time?” And I was like, oh, that's too concrete and scary.And again, to draw the parallel with diet culture: It's just like telling kids sugar is bad, and then they think they're bad because they like sugar. So I did do some repair. I was like, “I read this book and now I've learned that that was not right.” They were like, oh, okay. We're healing in my house from that, so thank you.AshOh, you're very welcome, and I'm glad to hear that!I think about those parallels with food all the time, because sometimes it just helps me think, like, wait, would I be wanting to send this message about food or exercise or whatever? And if the answer is no, then how can I tweak it so that I'm sending a message I'd be okay with applying to other things. And I like being able to make those parallels with my kid. In my household right now, we're practicing flexibility. Flexibility is a skill that we're working on in so many parts of our lives. And when I say we, I do mean we. Me, everybody is working on this.VirginiaParents can use more flexibility, for sure.AshAbsolutely. And so like, when those moments are coming up, you know, I'm trying to say, like, hey, like, what skill is this right now? Who's having to be flexible right now? Flexible can be a good thing, right? We might be flexible by saying yes to eating dinner on the couch and watching a TV show. That's flexibility. Flexibility isn't just adjust your plans to be more convenient to me, child, so that I can go do something as an adult. And coming back to those skills so they can see, oh, okay, this isn't actually just about screens. This applies to every part of these of my life, or these different parts of my life, and if I'm working on it here, oh, wow, it feels easier over there. And so they can see that this applies throughout their life, and kind of feel more of that buy in of like, oh, I'm getting better at that. Or that was easier. That was harder. We want them to see that across the board.VirginiaOh, my God, absolutely.Let's talk about screens and neurodivergence a little bit. So one of my kiddos is neurodivergent, and I can both see how screens are wonderful for them at the end of a school day, when they come home and they're really depleted. Screen time is the thing they need to rest and regulate. And they love the world building games, which gives them this whole world to control and explore. And there's so much there that's wonderful.And, they definitely struggle more than their sibling with this transition piece, with getting off it. One kid will naturally put down the iPad at some point and go outside for a bit, and this kid will not. And it creates more anxiety for parents. Because neurodivergent kids may both need screens—in ways that maybe we're not totally comfortable with, but need to get comfortable with—and then struggle with the transition piece. So how do you think about this question differently with neurodivergence? Or or is it really the same thing you're just having to drill in differently?AshI think it is ultimately the same thing, but it certainly is going to feel quite more heightened. And I think especially for certain aspects of neurodivergence, especially, I think it feels really heightened because of some of the ways that they might be discussed, particularly online, when it comes to how they relate to technology. I think about ADHD, we'll see that a lot. Where I'll see many things online about, like, “kids with ADHD should never be on a screen. They should never be on a device, because they are so dopamine-seeking.” And I have to just say that I find that to be such an ableist framing. Because with ADHD, we're talking about a dopamine deficient brain. And I don't think that we would be having that same conversation about someone needing insulin, right? Like, we wouldn't be saying, like, oh yeah, nope, they can't take that insulin. VirginiaThey're just craving that insulin they need to stay alive.AshA kid seeking a thing that they're that they are somehow deficient in—that's not some sort of defiant behavior. VirginiaNo, it's a pretty adaptive strategy.AshAbsolutely, it is. And we want kids to know that nobody's brain is good or bad, right? There's not a good brain or a bad brain. There are all brains are going to have things that are easier or harder. And it's about learning the brain that you're in, and what works or doesn't work for the brain that you're in.And all brains are different, right? Neurotypical brains and neurodivergent brains within those categories are obviously going to be vastly different. What works for one won't work for another, and being able to figure out what works for them, instead of just, “because you have this kind of brain, you shouldn't ever do this thing,” that's going to set them up for more success. And I think it's great that you mentioned both how a screen can be so regulating, particularly for neurodivergent brains, and then the double-edged sword of that is that then you have to stop. VirginiaTransition off back into the world.AshSo if the pain point is a transition, what is it really coming from? Is it coming from the executive function piece of “I don't know how to find a place to stop?” A lot of people, particularly kids ADHD, they often like games that are more open-ended. So they might like something like a Minecraft or an Animal Crossing or the Sims where you can hyperfocus and deep dive into something. But what's difficult about that is that, you know, if I play Mario Kart, the level ends, it's a very obvious ending.VirginiaRight? And you can say, “One more level, and we're done.”AshExactly. We've reached the end of the championship. I'm on the podium. I quit now, right?But there's a never ending series of of tasks with a more open-ended game. And especially if I'm in my hyper focus zone, right? I can just be thinking, like, well, then I can do this and this and this and this and this, right?And I'm adding on to my list, and the last thing I want to do in that moment is get pulled out of it when I'm really feeling like I'm in the zone. So if that's the kind of transition that's difficult. And it's much less about games and more about “how do I stop in the middle of a project?” Because that's essentially what that is.And that would apply if I'm at school and I'm in the middle of an essay and we're finishing it up tomorrow. Or I'm trying to decorate a cake, and we're trying to walk out the door and I have to stop what I'm doing and come back later. So one of the tricks that I have found really helpful is to ask the question of, “How will you know when you're done?” Or how will you know you're at a stopping point? What would a stopping point be today? And getting them to sort of even visualize it, or say it out loud, so that they can think about, “Oh, here's how I basically break down a giant task into smaller pieces,” because that's essentially what that is.VirginiaThat's a great tip. Ash“Okay, you have five minutes. What is the last thing you're going to do today?” Because then it's concrete in terms of, like, I'm not asking the last thing, and it will take you half an hour, right? I'm at, we have five minutes. What's the last thing you're wrapping up? What are you going to do?Then, if it's someone who's very focused in this world, and they're very into that world, then that last thing can also be our transition out of it. As they're turning it off, the very first thing we're saying to them is, “So what was that last thing you were doing?”VirginiaOh, that's nice.AshThen they're telling it to us, and then we can get curious. We can ask questions. We can get a little into their world to help them transition out of that world. That doesn't mean that we have to understand what they're telling us, frankly. It doesn't mean we have to know all the nuance. But we can show that interest. I think this is also really, really important, because then we are showing them it's not us versus the screen. We're not opposing the screen, like it's the enemy or something. And we're showing them, “Hey, I can tell you're interested in this, so I'm interested in it because you are.” Like, I care about you, so I want to know more.VirginiaAnd then they can invite you into their world, which what a lot of neurodivergent kids need. We're asking them to be part of the larger world all the time. And how nice we can meet them where they are a little more.AshAbsolutely. The other thing I would say is that something I think people don't always realize, especially if they don't play games as much, or if they are not neurodivergent and playing games, is they might miss that video games actually are extremely well-accommodated worlds, in terms of accommodating neurodivergence.So thinking about something like ADHD, to go back to that example, it's like, okay, some really common classroom accommodations for ADHD, from the educator perspective, the accommodations I see a lot are frequent check ins, having a checklist, breaking down a large task into smaller chunks, objectives, having a visual organizer.Well, I think about a video game, and it's like, okay, if I want to know what I have available to me, I can press the pause menu and see my inventory at any time. If I want to know what I should be doing, because I have forgotten, I can look at a menu and see, like, what's my objective right now? Or I can bring up the map and it will show me where I supposed to be going. If I start to deviate from what I'm supposed to be doing, the game will often be like, “Hey, don't forget, you're supposed to be going over there!” It'll get me back on task. If I'm trying to make a potion that has eight ingredients, the game will list them all out for me, and it will check them off as I go, so I can visually see how I'm how I'm achieving this task. It does a lot of that accommodation for me. And those accommodations are not as common in the real world, or at least not as easily achieved.And so a lot of neurodivergent kids will succeed easily in these game worlds. And we might think “oh because it's addicting, or the algorithm, or it's just because they love it” But there are often these structural design differences that actually make it more accessible to them.And if we notice, oh, wow, they have no problem knowing what to do when they're playing Zelda, because they just keep checking their objective list all the time or whatever—that's great information.VirginiaAnd helps us think, how can we do that in real life? AshExactly. We can go to them and say, hey, I noticed you, you seem to check your inventory a lot when you're playing that game. How do we make it so that when you look in your closet, you can just as easily see what shirts you own. Whatever the thing may be, so that we're showing them, “hey, bring that into the rest of your world that works for you here.” Let's make it work for you elsewhere, instead of thinking of it as a reason they're obsessed with screens, and now we resent the screens for that. Bring that in so that it can benefit the rest of their lives.VirginiaI'm now like, okay, that just reframes something else very important for me. You have such a helpful way of helping us divest from the guilt and the shame and actually look at this in a positive and empowering way for us and our kids. And I'm just so grateful for it. It really is a game changer for me.AshOh, thank you so much. I'm so glad to hear that it was helpful and empowering for you, and I just hope that it can be that for others as well.ButterAshSo my family and I have been lucky enough to spend quite a lot of time in Japan. And one of the wonderful things about Japan is they have a very huge bike culture. I think people think of the Netherlands as Bike cCentral, but Japan kind of rivals them.And they have a particular kind of bike that you cannot get in the United States. It's called a Mamachari, which is like a portmanteau of mom and chariot. And it's sort of like a cargo bike, but they are constructed a little differently and have some features that I love. And so when I've been in Japan, we are on those bikes. I'm always like, I love this kind of bike. I want this kind of bike for me forever. And my recent Butter has been trying to find something like that that I can have in my day to day life. And I found something recently, and got a lovely step through bike on Facebook Marketplace. VirginiaSo cool! That's exciting to find on marketplace, too.AshOh yes, having a bike that like I actually enjoy riding, I had my old bike from being a teenager, and it just was not functional. I was like, “This is not fun.” And now having one that I enjoy, I'm like, oh yes. I feel like a kid again. It's lovely.VirginiaThat's a great Butter. My Butter is something both my kids and my pets and I are all really enjoying. I'm gonna drop a link in the chat for you. It is called a floof, and it is basically a human-sized dog bed that I found on Etsy. It's like, lined with fake fur.AshMy God. I'm looking at it right now.VirginiaIsn't it hilarious?AshWow. I'm so glad you sent a picture, because that is not what I was picturing?Virginia I can't describe it accurately. It's like a cross between a human-sized dog bed and a shopping bag? Sort of? AshYes, yes, wow. It's like a hot tub.VirginiaIt's like a hot tub, but no water. You just sit in it. I think they call it a cuddle cave. I don't understand how to explain it, but it's the floof. And it's in our family room. And it's not inexpensive, but it does basically replace a chair. So if you think of it as a furniture purchase, it's not so bad. There's always at least a cat or a dog sleeping in it. Frequently a child is in it. My boyfriend likes to be in it. Everyone gravitates towards it. And you can put pillows in it or a blanket.Neurodivergent people, in particular, really love it, because I think it provides a lot of sensory feedback? And it's very enclosed and cozy. It's great for the day we're having today, which is a very laid back, low demand, watch as much screen as you want, kind of day. So I've got one kid bundled into the floof right now with a bunch of blankets in her iPad, and she's so happy. AshOh my gosh. Also, it kind of looks like the person is sitting in a giant pita, which I also love.VirginiaThat's what it is! It's like a giant pita, but soft and cozy. It's like being in a pita pocket. And I'm sure there are less expensive versions, this was like, 300 something dollars, so it is an investment. But they're handmade by some delightful person in the Netherlands.Whenever we have play dates, there are always two or three kids, snuggled up in it together. There's something extremely addictive about it. I don't know. I don't really know how to explain why it's great, but it's great.AshOh, that is lovely.VirginiaAll right, well tell obviously, everyone needs to go to their bookstore and get Power On: Managing Screen Time to Benefit the Whole Family. Where else can we find you, Ash? How can we support your work?AshYou can find me on Instagram at the gamer educator, and I also cross post my Instagram posts to Substack, and I'm on Substack as Screen Time Strategies. It's all the same content, just that way you're getting it in your inbox without, without having to go to Instagram. So if that's something that you are trying to maybe move away from, get it via Substack. And my book Power On: Managing Screen Time to Benefit the Whole Family is available starting August 26 is when it fully releases.VirginiaAmazing. Thank you so much. This was really great.AshThank you so much for having me back.The Burnt Toast Podcast is produced and hosted by Virginia Sole-Smith (follow me on Instagram) and Corinne Fay, who runs @SellTradePlus, and Big Undies.The Burnt Toast logo is by Deanna Lowe.Our theme music is by Farideh.Tommy Harron is our audio engineer.Thanks for listening and for supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit virginiasolesmith.substack.com/subscribe

This week on Office Ladies 6.0, Jenna and Angela interview Wendi McLendon-Covey who played Concierge Marie on “The Office”! Wendi shares how she got her job on “The Office” and what it was like to be in the episode “Business School” blowing Michael's mind with Marie's knowledge of dry cleaners in Winnipeg. Wendi then talks about acting in “Reno 911!”, “The Goldbergs” and now “St. Denis Medical”. She also talks about her cats! This is such a treat, so “Excuse me, hello. Concierge Marie. Michael Scott. Good to see you again.” Office Ladies Website - Submit a fan question: https://officeladies.com/submitaquestion  Follow Us on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod Follow Us on YouTubeFollow Us on TikTok To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Carlos, Dustin, and Claudia are back with the latest Housewife updates, plus a Love & Marriage Huntsville recap you don’t want to miss. Excuse me, is this thing on? Because Claudia was mic’d and ready at the most recent RHOA on-camera event, and she’s teasing it all. BREAKING NEWS: Karen Huger is set to be released from prison next week. And when it comes to the LAMH threesome allegations… who do they really believe?!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

50 useful Italian words and phrases to know to get around Italy. From shopping and eating out to chatting and getting information. Learn about our Online Italian School and get a free mini lesson every week: https://joyoflanguages.online/italian-school Subscribe to our new YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@joyoflanguages.italian?sub_confirmation=1 Get the bonus materials for this episode: https://italian.joyoflanguages.com/podcast/Italian-Words-and-Phrases Today's Italian words: C'è il Wi-fi qui? = Is there Wi-Fi here? Do un'occhiata, grazie! = Just looking, thank you! Scusi, è questa la fila per entrare? = Excuse me, is this the line to get in? Quanto dista? = How far away is it? Posso pagare con la carta? = Can I pay by card? Ecco qui. = Here you go.

In this episode of The Tuesday Ketchup, we have Matt, Hayden, Nate, and Harley! We talk about cats having herpes, night poops, salsa dancing updates, and.. excuse I, we have our new intro music! Also, what has never taken a beating like this before?? Tune in to find out! This one's a fun one, come ketchup with us! Links: https://www.speakpipe.com/thetuesdayketchup to leave the boys a message https://www.patreon.com/tuesdayketchup for weekly bonus episodes https://www.instagram.com/thetuesdayketchup/ https://www.instagram.com/haydenfcomedy/ #podcast #comedy #funny #entertainment #lol

The person who gives you the best excuse to do (or not do) that thing you wanted to do (or not do) in the first place. The limit of your allergies. Marci's heat wave. The “not fair” files: Documentaries you have to explain BEFORE you watch them. Plumbing, or weather—choose one.

Excuse any sound abnormalities, we were lazy and didn't use our mic stands, and were just lounging around the living room. We'll be back next month in a more official capacity

BachelorClues and PaceCase break down 11 of the juiciest clips from across the reality dating podcast world. From Rachel Recchia's shocking revelations about Clayton's paternity scandal and his infamous “gym girly” breakup excuse, to Rachael Kirkconnell's negotiations with producers and Olivia Rae's near-casting on The Bachelor, the hosts analyze the biggest behind-the-scenes stories shaping the genre. Plus, Wells Adams weighs in on the Jeremy vs. Brian blowup, Nick and Olandria address their relationship status with Keke Palmer, and the GOR pit uncovers what these bombshells mean for the future of Bachelor Nation and beyond.__Join the Pit on Patreon for more exclusive content and shows! : / gameofroses__Want coaching tips? email gameofrozes@gmail.com__Follow us on TikTok: @gameofrosesFollow us on Instagram-Game of Roses: @gameofrosespodPacecase: @pacecaseBachelor Clues: @bachelorclues Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

[01:02:09] Conservatives Back Martial LawOpening monologue criticizes conservatives for supporting Trump's talk of deploying troops in U.S. cities, linking it to the Pentagon's long-term planning for urban control. [01:05:31] Prohibition, Cartels & TerrorComparison of alcohol prohibition to the drug war; warns that attacking Mexican cartels militarily could spark terrorism inside American cities and provide cover for martial law. [01:12:29] Election Rigging & GerrymanderingDiscussion of how both parties manipulate elections through gerrymandering and voting controls; frames Trump as a Pentagon puppet in a larger plan of urban militarization. [01:20:48] Conservatives Cheer MilitarizationChicago carjacking victim opposed National Guard deployment; conservatives attacked her online, showing how Trump has shifted the right to embrace authoritarian solutions. [01:29:46] Normalizing Martial LawAnalysis of how deploying troops in D.C. and other cities is “predictive programming” to normalize military presence and condition officials and citizens for broader martial law. [01:45:21] Democrats Only OppositionClosing reflections argue conservatives have abandoned constitutional limits, leaving only Democrats to oppose Trump's martial law plans—though they oppose for the wrong reasons, focusing only on partisan power. [02:19:39] Texas “Big Beautiful Map” & Election RiggingDiscussion of Texas Senate passing a gerrymandered redistricting bill, Trump pushing to ban mail-in ballots and voting machines, and how both parties manipulate elections. [02:32:18] CDC Launches Vaccine Injury ReviewCriticism of the CDC forming a group to investigate COVID vaccine injuries, framed as a whitewash to protect Trump's Operation Warp Speed and Big Pharma. [02:36:04] Genetic Code Injections & Aluminum RisksSegment highlights concerns over mRNA shots replicating uncontrollably and reviews studies linking aluminum adjuvants to asthma, autism, and SIDS. [02:43:09] Hypervaccination Horror StoriesPersonal accounts of children permanently damaged after “catch-up” vaccine schedules in custody battles; broader attack on CDC and medical industry dishonesty. [02:49:41] Bioweapon Narrative & Military OperationDiscussion frames COVID vaccination as a Pentagon/DARPA military operation, not medicine, with secrecy and top-secret clearances tied to bio-surveillance. [03:08:15] Bayer, Monsanto & Legal ImmunityDeep dive into Monsanto's history with Agent Orange, PCBs, Roundup, GMOs, and Bayer's Nazi past; warnings that Trump and RFK Jr. are paving the way for legal immunity for “Big Pest.” [03:30:29] Greenland Child Seizures & Parenting TestsCase of a Greenlandic mother losing her baby under “parenting competence tests,” framed as government overreach tied to globalist family-erasure agendas. [03:35:02] Miraculous Cardiac RecoveryTeen athlete suffers sudden cardiac arrest and survives after 30 minutes without a heartbeat, presented as both a vaccine injury suspicion and a story of prayer and divine healing. [03:38:13] Legacy of James DobsonReflection on the life and influence of James Dobson—praised for defending families but criticized for Zionism and naïve trust in government institutions. Follow the show on Kick and watch live every weekday 9:00am EST – 12:00pm EST https://kick.com/davidknightshow Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to https://davidknight.gold/ for great deals on physical gold/silverFor 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to https://trendsjournal.com/ and enter the code KNIGHTFind out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-david-knight-show--2653468/support.

[01:02:09] Conservatives Back Martial LawOpening monologue criticizes conservatives for supporting Trump's talk of deploying troops in U.S. cities, linking it to the Pentagon's long-term planning for urban control. [01:05:31] Prohibition, Cartels & TerrorComparison of alcohol prohibition to the drug war; warns that attacking Mexican cartels militarily could spark terrorism inside American cities and provide cover for martial law. [01:12:29] Election Rigging & GerrymanderingDiscussion of how both parties manipulate elections through gerrymandering and voting controls; frames Trump as a Pentagon puppet in a larger plan of urban militarization. [01:20:48] Conservatives Cheer MilitarizationChicago carjacking victim opposed National Guard deployment; conservatives attacked her online, showing how Trump has shifted the right to embrace authoritarian solutions. [01:29:46] Normalizing Martial LawAnalysis of how deploying troops in D.C. and other cities is “predictive programming” to normalize military presence and condition officials and citizens for broader martial law. [01:45:21] Democrats Only OppositionClosing reflections argue conservatives have abandoned constitutional limits, leaving only Democrats to oppose Trump's martial law plans—though they oppose for the wrong reasons, focusing only on partisan power. [02:19:39] Texas “Big Beautiful Map” & Election RiggingDiscussion of Texas Senate passing a gerrymandered redistricting bill, Trump pushing to ban mail-in ballots and voting machines, and how both parties manipulate elections. [02:32:18] CDC Launches Vaccine Injury ReviewCriticism of the CDC forming a group to investigate COVID vaccine injuries, framed as a whitewash to protect Trump's Operation Warp Speed and Big Pharma. [02:36:04] Genetic Code Injections & Aluminum RisksSegment highlights concerns over mRNA shots replicating uncontrollably and reviews studies linking aluminum adjuvants to asthma, autism, and SIDS. [02:43:09] Hypervaccination Horror StoriesPersonal accounts of children permanently damaged after “catch-up” vaccine schedules in custody battles; broader attack on CDC and medical industry dishonesty. [02:49:41] Bioweapon Narrative & Military OperationDiscussion frames COVID vaccination as a Pentagon/DARPA military operation, not medicine, with secrecy and top-secret clearances tied to bio-surveillance. [03:08:15] Bayer, Monsanto & Legal ImmunityDeep dive into Monsanto's history with Agent Orange, PCBs, Roundup, GMOs, and Bayer's Nazi past; warnings that Trump and RFK Jr. are paving the way for legal immunity for “Big Pest.” [03:30:29] Greenland Child Seizures & Parenting TestsCase of a Greenlandic mother losing her baby under “parenting competence tests,” framed as government overreach tied to globalist family-erasure agendas. [03:35:02] Miraculous Cardiac RecoveryTeen athlete suffers sudden cardiac arrest and survives after 30 minutes without a heartbeat, presented as both a vaccine injury suspicion and a story of prayer and divine healing. [03:38:13] Legacy of James DobsonReflection on the life and influence of James Dobson—praised for defending families but criticized for Zionism and naïve trust in government institutions. Follow the show on Kick and watch live every weekday 9:00am EST – 12:00pm EST https://kick.com/davidknightshow Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to https://davidknight.gold/ for great deals on physical gold/silverFor 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to https://trendsjournal.com/ and enter the code KNIGHTFind out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-david-knight-show--5282736/support.

Why does the enemy target spiritual leaders? Listen as Skip's son, Pastor Nate Heitzig, explains how attacks on pastors impact the whole church—and why your prayers matter more than you think.

Why does the enemy target spiritual leaders?Listen as Skip's son, Pastor Nate Heitzig, explains how attacks on pastors impact the whole church—and why your prayers matter more than you think. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/104/29

Trump's military and police takeover of D.C. is in full swing, but people aren't just rolling over. Protests are erupting across the city, and friend of the show, Jolly, is live on the ground bringing you the latest from those pushing back against authoritarian BS. And if that weren't enough, Trump held a truly deranged Oval Office press conference today where he suggested that some people actually want a dictator. Excuse us? Hard pass. We'll break it all down because democracy shouldn't come with cosplay generals and dictator auditions. This episode is sponsored by the Freedom from Religion Foundation. Don't let your rights be rewritten. Go to https://FFRS.US/school or text “DON” to 511511 This episode is brought to you by 120 Life. Go to https://120life.com and use the code, “D-O-N ” to save 20% This episode is sponsored by Ollie. Head to https://Ollie.com/lemon, tell them all about your dog, and use code LEMON to get 60% off your Welcome Kit when you subscribe today! They offer a Happiness Guarantee on the first box, so if you're not completely satisfied, you'll get your money back. This episode is brought to you by Mint Mobile. Get this new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month at https://MINTMOBILE.com/DONLEMON. Upfront payment of $45 required (equivalent to $15/mo.). Limited time new customer offer for first 3 months only. Speeds may slow above 35GB on Unlimited plan. Taxes & fees extra. See MINT MOBILE for details. This episode is sponsored by Shopify. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial and start selling today at https://shopify.com/lemon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why don't we hear more about pastors who faithfully serve? Join Skip's son, Pastor Nate Heitzig, as he highlights the quiet faithfulness of thousands of leaders—and why their story matters more than you think.

Why do all of these rumors exist around Lyme disease? Some people swear it's a secret government bioweapon that escaped from a lab. Others think celebrities drop it as a convenient excuse when they're out of the spotlight. In this episode, I'm digging into all of it - wild conspiracy theories, the celebrity connections, and the very real stories from people dealing with Lyme. Whether you've heard the rumors or just want to know what's true and what's hype, this one's going to be a ride. Check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.squarespace.com/fluently⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code FLUENTLY Elevate your closet with Quince. Go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Quince.com/fluently⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for free shipping on your order and 365 -day returns.