Carousel of Happiness Podcast

67 Episodes

Reverse

Joy vs. Decadence | Ep. 66

2026-10-2432:49

Sarah Bishop and I discuss why decadence can actually deprive us of joy and how we may be able to reclaim the full dynamic range of life. We took inspiration from an article in The Guardian called “Why Does Everything Feel So Joyless? by Michèle Mendelssohn and Charlie Tyson. It's worth reading in full here: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jul/26/age-of-decadence-pleasure-ai But first, she gave me the rundown on the fall happenings at the Carousel of Happiness. I...

The Wood Wept | Ep. 65

2026-10-0920:58

Today is the one year anniversary of the terrible fire that destroyed the Caribou Village Shopping Center, and about 20 local businesses. It very nearly took the carousel too. We’ll hear what happened that night from the perspective of some of the people closest to the carousel, including its carver Scott Harrision and carousel operator and poet Burt Rashbaum. As you’ll hear, they had front row seats, in addition to important roles to play. Do you have a story to share? Leave us a messa...

Mountain Strong Families with Betsy Epp | Ep. 64

2026-09-2634:50

Fall is in the air and we’re going back to school. Instead of numbers and ABCs, we’re learning about emotions, empathy, about the transformative power of parenting, and how the Carousel of Happiness has an important role to play as "third space" in our community. Our guest is Betsy Epp, my colleague, friend, and parenting mentor. Betsy is the Social Emotional Learning Coordinator at New Explorers Learning Center, Nederland Elementary School, and across our community. You can learn more about ...

Painting & Spinning with CB Miller | Ep. 63

2026-09-1232:10

Not only is CB Miller tied as the youngest paid operator of the Carousel of Happiness... they also hosted our first Paint & Spin. CB and I discussed what it was like to grow up alongside the carousel, how it has impacted their art, the mining history of Nederland, and how it all connects to animals, the environment, and AI. Do you have a story to share? Leave us a message! Support the show The Carousel of Happiness is a nonprofit arts & culture organization dedicated to inspirin...

Songwriting & Catharsis | Ep. 62

2026-08-2938:02

Today, we’ll talk to Sarah Bishop, the carousel’s assistant director and my sometimes collaborator – about how the process of writing and playing songs has helped us both get through challenging passages in our life. You can find more of Sarah's music at https://sarahbankermusic.com/ You can find some of Nick and Josh's music at https://wearenewborn.bandcamp.com/ and https://lamplightlamplight.bandcamp.com/ We would be honored if you would share a personal story of songwriting and catharsis w...

#box-pro-ellipsis-17941851906844{-webkit-line-clamp:2;}Carousel of Happiness Podcast