Scott “ToyGuru” Neitlich knows and loves toys. If you look around your house, you might have some that he helped bring into the world. Guest host Shai Korman sat down with Scott to learn more about his career, philosophy and why he loves Arbor Day so much. Shai brings over the Friday Night Movie Podcast signature game Buy, Rent, Meh for some tough choices. Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts Follow Shai AKA @pancake4table on Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to Friday Night Movie Podcast Keep up with Scott "ToyGuru" Neitlich on YouTube, Twitter and Spector Creative Show Notes Interview with Scott about Masters of the Universe Staction Figures and Masters of the Universe Star Wars: The Power of the Force 1985 Toy Line Star Wars Vintage Collection New HeMan on Netflix He-Man Wikipedia Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts Updates on Leah's CaringBridge
Rachel Swanson, a Chicago-based creativity coach and yoga instructor, takes us with her on her journey from "weird yoga" to trauma-informed yoga certification. We talk about post-partum depression, Kundalini yoga, body neutrality, and creative classrooms. This is a special Christmas Eve release (because you have a long drive ahead or a chill day without any new podcasts). Follow Rachel on Twitter and Instagram Show Notes Rachel Swanson Coaching Kundalini yoga Vinyasa yoga Trauma informed yoga “Whatever is accessible in your body today” @tiffanycroww on Tik Tok Abuse in kundalini yoga Feetup Jessamyn Stanley Virgie Tovar Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts Updates on Leah's CaringBridge Rachel 0:00 Hello, my name is Rachel Swanson. And my favorite thing is doing embodied yoga practice. Announcer 0:08 Welcome to the Finding Favorites Podcast, where we explore your favorite things without using an algorithm. Here's your host, Leah Jones. Leah Jones 0:20 Welcome to Finding Favorites. This is the podcast where we learn about people's favorite things and we get recommendations without using an algorithm. Tonight, it's a late night. It's not late, it's just *dark* like it's super late. It is 8:30 on a Monday and I'm like it's midnight, we're cozy. I'm here tonight with Rachel Swanson. She's a creativity coach, she works on Creative Technology Solutions. She works with schools and businesses to develop high impact uses of technology and helps people be more creative, efficient, meaningful work. She does one-on-one coaching, creativity jams, visual storytelling. We were introduced by my friend Amy Guth, which means that Rachel is a good person from the get-go. Rachel, how are you doing tonight? Transcripts continue ----more---- Rachel 1:15 I am doing so well. I also am feeling the cold, dark, November weather, but I'm doing very well. Leah Jones 1:26 Yeah, I think -- did it snow today? Did snow for you, today? Rachel 1:30 I think it did. Leah Jones 1:32 I looked outside briefly and I was like, "Do I need to clean my glasses? Or is it snow?" Rachel 1:39 Yeah, it was a sad moment for me, but I'm adjusting slowly. Leah Jones 1:44 How was your fall then? Do you get into spooky season, are you a Halloween person? Rachel 1:50 So , I am a Halloween person, now. As a child, we weren't allowed to celebrate Halloween. So I'm making up for lost time by just going full-on for Halloween -- matching costumes for my family, really getting into all of the spookiness, the witchiness, you know, just the full pendulum swing from my upbringing. Leah Jones 2:15 What were your matching costumes this year? Rachel 2:16 This year, my two sons were Mario and Luigi, and my partner and I were the two sides of a Switch controller. Leah Jones 2:25 Oh my gosh, that's so clever. Rachel 2:30 We wanted to give the illusion that we were in control, even though that's rarely the rarely the case. Leah Jones 2:36 How old are your boys? Rachel 2:36 They're eight and two ... almost three. Leah Jones 2:42 Very fun ages. All I know is that we both know Amy, how do you know Amy? Rachel 2:50 So Amy and I met because we were doing yoga teacher training together. And I saw her in the room and she has such dynamic, wonderful energy. And I was like, "I need to know that woman." And we became friends over the course of our six months or so of weekend trainings. And, I was not wrong, she's one of my favorites, for sure. Leah Jones 3:16 Yeah, she is. She's a blast. We met doing comedy many years ago. Many, many years ago, we went to the same open mics. Rachel 3:26 I could see that. Yeah, that sounds like Amy. Leah Jones 3:29 And then we ran into each other at synagogue a few years later, and I was like, "Wait, don't I know you from the Tequila Roadhouse?" Rachel 3:35 [laughter] I wish that could be how everyone knows me. Leah Jones 3:44 Just from the Tequila Roadhouse, it was a wild, little bar in Old Town a million years ago. And do you teach yoga? Rachel 4:03 Yes, occasionally, but I really took the yoga class, because I wanted to become better at doing yoga. And I like to understand how things work. And I just loved yoga, which is exactly what I was planning to talk about tonight. So it's the perfect segue. But I decided that I wanted to stretch myself and get certified to be able to teach. Leah Jones 4:29 Interesting. Well, we'll just jump right into it. And if we circle back on other chit chat, it's great. Leah Jones 4:44 One of the things I like to know, are people's origin stories. So when did you take your first yoga class or when did it like cross your radar as something you might want to do? Rachel 4:57 So the honest truth is that I hated yoga for a really long time. took a couple of yoga classes at various studios, and it felt like a sort of thing that I should like, kind of like eating healthy. And you know, like doing the right thing. It also felt like something that was for other people, and not for me. As a child, I enjoyed doing some physical activity, I danced in jazz dance classes. And as I got older, I wasn't really into organized sports, I didn't really like working out that much. And it was kind of a revelation that I could enjoy moving my body in any kind of way, because that just generally hadn't been a positive experience for me. PE class was the bane of my existence. I took it as an independent study in high school. And that meant that I just basically had to write about PE and pretend that I was doing the workouts. Yeah, so it's pretty great. Leah Jones 6:02 [laughter] Like, I designed a special workout for myself called laun -- do stair stepping --which looks a lot like doing the laundry. Rachel 6:14 I probably walked like, you know, a mile today, maybe? Leah Jones 6:21 I hear you on that. I think probably the first time I went to yoga, it was kind of the equivalent of like brussel sprouts or broccoli? Like, yeah, I know, stretching is good. But it's such an intimidating activity. Rachel 6:45 Yes. So, I am in a body that is not small. And that's always been the case, but especially as I've gotten older and had children, it also feels like yoga has been inaccessible for fat bodies. So I just stayed away from it, because every yoga teacher, I would go to was very skinny, and could bend her leg, you know, around her head several times. And I have a stomach. So when I fold forward, it doesn't fold the same way. Sitting on my knees is different, everything feels different in a fat body. And when you're only getting instructions from someone whose body is very different from yours, it can feel incredibly intimidating. Leah Jones 7:32 Yeah. And someone who's only ever been in a thin body -- is really hard to take instruction from them. Rachel 7:42 Exactly. Yes. Yeah. Yes. Yes. Leah Jones 7:46 So did you find a teacher who was heavier? At what moment did you say -- what was the a-ha or the crescendo, maybe it wasn't a moment -- where you found yourself in a class that made it accessible to you and your body, or gave you the vision that it could become accessible to you? Rachel 8:12 So I had my first son, and I had had postpartum depression. And yeah, after having my first son, and it was really hard for me to reconnect to my body after that experience. And then, I'd had several medical issues that meant that I had a whole year of surgeries. And so it really was hard for -- even more so then, when you're in pain, and it's chronic pain, the dissociation from your body is easy to do. For me, I just lived in my head, because it was too painful to live in my body. And I was in the recovery process, and one of my friends invited me to go to a yoga class with her. I was like, "Girl, I just don't want to." If I'm going to work out, it was like things that would be like weight lifting weights or something that made me feel powerful and strong. Rachel 9:21 And you know, she's like, "Look, it's really weird yoga, I can't even really explain it to you, but I think you'll enjoy it, you should just come." And this is the like the true testament of my care for this friend, that I showed up to really weird yoga. She didn't remember the name of it. Eventually, I did find out that it was called Kundalini yoga, and that was kind of irrelevant the night that I went. So I went to this class, the teacher, her name was Karampal Kaur and I still take classes with her, she's wonderful. Rachel 9:21 And the class is a little bit different from a traditional like Vinyasa yoga class, because Vinyasa you're moving from pose to pose, it's very much about a flow. Kundalini is about creating energy and working that energy up your spine. And so, there's bursts of intensity, and then you have times of rest, and just sitting and meditating. So I did this class, and it was totally weird. And also, it was a revelation. I remember thinking to myself, "How come no one's ever taught me how to pray with my body before?" Leah Jones 10:40 Yeah, oooh, that's beautiful. Rachel 10:42 It was just powerful, and I felt -- people talk about embodied living and embodied experiences -- I felt like I had moved from my head into my body. Like I was like sinking into my body again, after years of disconnection. It was such a powerful experience for me. Leah Jones 11:06 Wow. And just that first class was that powerful? Rachel 11:10 Just that first class was that powerful. And after the class, the teacher came up, and I was like, "What's going on? Like, I don't really understand what this yoga is." We did some chanting, that felt super weird. And I wasn't sure how I felt about that. And the teacher was so kind, and made everything accessible and talked through everything we had done, and kind of explained the science about it. Which I'm a pretty cerebral person, as we've already established, and so that was really helpful
Greg Lindberg, co-host of Fresh Questions, Air, shares a Hoosier pride with Leah and loves the ABC TGIF anchor show - Full House. Not to be confused with the reboot, Fuller House. We talk about how Bob Saget got the role of Danny Tanner, the confusing layout of the San Francisco painted lady the family called home, and about working as a corn detassler. Follow @EmCeeGreg on Twitter Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts(five stars please) Show Notes Indiana Beach Margo and the Nuclear So & So's Kurt Vonnegut Library James Dean and Jim Davis Full House Fuller House The Secret Admirer The first Danny Tanner How did Bob Saget get Full House Leah's breast cancer stuff is on Caring Bridge.
Kevin Smokler, a San Francisco-based author and filmmaker, loves used vinyl and is here to walk us through how to create a music curriculum at your local record store. You can catch his documentary Vinyl Nation at film festivals across the country or hear the Pointer Sisters wafting out of his windows in the Bay Area. Follow Kevin, aka @weegee, on Twitter and @smokler Instagram Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts(five stars please) Show Notes Kevin Smokler website Vinyl Nation documentary Bike Aid The Vinyl Exam podcast, episode about Headstone & Friends History of Columbia House 2 Live Crew vs Tipper Gore Reckless Records Amoeba Records Dusty Groove Rattleback Records Laurie's Planet of Sound Tone Vendor
Jo McCawley, a Chicago-based ad tech rockstar, has been on a journey to love her body and joins Leah to talk about falling in love with her fat body after years of dieting and body shaming. We talk about body positivity, body neutrality, the pervasiveness of shame in our culture - particularly for women. Trigger warning: Dieting, birth trauma, preeclampsia, medical fatphobia Follow Jo on Instagram for memes and ice cream recommendations @the_ethical_sloth Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts (five stars please) Show Notes Girls Rock Chicago Hello, I'm Fat by Lindy West Fearing the Black Body by Sabrina Strings #Very Fat Very Brave by Nicole Byers What We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Aubrey Gordon Maintenance Phase podcast Day Breaker (sober, morning dance parties) Preeclampsia information Tall camping stool for walking tours Fatness, Motherhood and the medical profession Jennifer Lee (2020) “You will face discrimination”: Fatness, motherhood, and the medical profession, Fat Studies, 9:1, 1-16, DOI: 10.1080/21604851.2019.1595289 Menopause: A Comic Treatment won the Eisner Award for best comic anthology of 2020! Leah has a story included, illustrated by Cathy Leamy, about going to mikvah before her hysterectomy
Jess Krefting, podcaster (on a break) and BookTok creator, has some books for you to read. We go through her current pile of library books and talk about what's important to her raising a young reader. We also talk about ADHD, hyperfocus on different craft projects, the Doughboys and more. Follow Jess as @Reading_with_E on Instagram and TikTok or listen to the archives of How Have You Never?! Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts (five stars please) Books! Books! Books! Rick Riordin Presents (fantasy chapter books with POC writers and characters) The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe The Wonderful Wizard of Oz A Wrinkle In Time Quintet It Feels Good to be Yourself Plenty of Hugs When Aiden became a brother All About Families The Watsons Go to Birmingham Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls 100 Immigrant Women who changed the world When We Are Kind Rainbow Boy Eyes that Kiss in the Corners A Way with Wild Things ABCs of Black History Sugar in Milk
Beth Villafranca, a Massachusetts-based home healthcare provider, spends her days driving across southeastern Massachusetts and listens to podcasts as she travels from client to client. Today she shares her favorite podcast genre - true crime podcasts that don't exploit the victim's family. We talk about the Doughboys, Weird Al, Hamilton and more. Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts (five stars please) Show Links Turks Seafood Doughboys KFC2 with hosts of True Crime and Cocktails The Good Place the Podcast Who Does a Podcast Hamilcast Blue Man Group on Jay Leno, 1992 Buckingham Blues by Weird Al William Pacholski loves The Great Comet True Crime Podcasts Serial To Live and Die in LA The Piketon Massacre True Crime and Cocktails Teachers Pet and Night Driver hosted by Hedley Thomas Someone Knows Something This is Criminal Dirty John
Saul Colt, the smartest man in the world and founder of Idea Integration Company, loves cooking videos and hunting collectibles. In this episode we talk about his COVID cooking inspirations and his favorite flea markets and shops for finding nostalgic collectibles. Funko Pops, Pee Wee Playhouse items, custom sneakers or Be@rbricks - Saul wants to see it all. Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts (five stars please) Follow @SaulColt on Instagram and Twitter. Listen to his podcast We Now Join the Program Already in Progress. Show Links Famoso in Toronto Canter's Deli The Griddle Cafe Claire Saffitz Dessert Person Sam The Cooking Guy Frank and Son Show Bodega in Boston Big Fun Toy Store in Cleveland Dave's Quality Meats in NYC Red Sovine - Teddy Bear and Large Marge Ecentrik 1 Jollibee Funko Pop
Max Pacheco, amateur Disney historian, Twitch streamer and podcast actor, claims that he has the most obscure Disney digital collection in the world and challenges other Disney collectors to prove him wrong. Leah and Max talk about his hunt for copies of 30 Disney movies from the 70s and 80s that seem lost to time. Show Links Sporadic Phantom Jess Lambert: Every Disney Movie Ever Max and Jess talk about The Whiz Kid and the Mystery of Riverton Max is looking for... The Track of the African Bongo Trail of Danger Shadow of Fear The Secret of Lost Valley Strange Companions U.S. Marshalls: Waco and Reinhardt, AKA Line of Duty (UK) Meet the Munceys FOUND: The Absent Minded Professor: Trading Places Just Perfect FOUND: Spies (1993) On loan from the director of Spies FOUND: The Barefoot Executive (remake, 1995) Ladies and the Champ ETA Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts (five stars please) Menopause: A Comic Treatment (Eisner nominated) The Wrong Mans Kurt Russell is a Disney legend Blank Check Podcast Halloween is Grinch Night
Cinnamon Cooper, a Chicago-based writer and crafter, is known among our friends for being an excellent host. In this episode she talks about how she learned to host dinner parties, soup nights and her epic Halloween bash. She is the author of the Everything Cast Iron Cookbook, which is still in print and an outstanding guide to cooking with cast iron. Includes a clip from Brandy Agerbeck's episode and a voice memo from Jacqui Cheng Follow Cinnamon online @cinnachick on Twitter and Instagram and buy her bags at Poise.cc Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts (five stars please) Show links HuffenCooper Halloween 2010 photos and 2012 Photos The Jiffy Pope Jacqui and Jenni - the year with two Bjorks The Card Sharks got Smarter (Ramsin Canon) and me as NasCarmen Miranda Cinnamon's legendary Tomato Soup recipe Six Toed cats in Key West What is Juneteenth? Hungry Cat Daily Jewish-ish Podcast Cinnamon 0:00 Hi, my name is Cinnamon Cooper and my favorite thing is throwing Halloween parties. Transcript Follows ----more---- Announcer 0:04 Welcome to the Finding Favorites podcast where we explore your favorite things without using an algorithm. Here's your host, Leah Jones. Leah Jones 0:14 Hello, and welcome back to Fiinding Favorites. I'm your host, Leah Jones. And this is the official start of year two, season two of Finding Favorites. I am pretty excited to be heading into the second year of this podcast. I don't think I expected when I started that I would -- one, that we would be in the COVID shutdown for sooo long. And two, that I would have it in me to look at year two and and say "Yeah, I'm ready to record some more." Leah Jones 0:49 It is Father's Day in the U.S. So, happy Father's Day to the dads out there, the stepdads, the uncles, the people who are father figures. And also recognizing that Father's Day can be a difficult day for others. I am preparing to drive cross-country to meet my dad in New York to collect some of his sculptures that have been in storage for a few years. So, next week, I will be driving cross-country, stopping in Michigan to go to a memorial for our dear friend Lucy, who passed away during COVID from breast cancer. Leah Jones 1:30 Then continuing on to New York, where my dad and I will have pastramic -- pastramic?? We'll have pastrami, we'll have some steaks, we will maybe go to the Guggenheim. And we will fill a car with sculptures and I will drive back to the Midwest. So, I'm looking forward to that. This last week, you can find me -- I was a guest on the podcast "Hungry Cat Daily," which is a podcast about Garfield. I'll link to that in the show notes. And next week, I will be a podcast on my friend Maria, who you remember from the Cheery Littlebottom episode, she started a new podcast called "Jewish-ish: A Weekly Parsha Chat Show." So, I will be on for the episode about Parsha Pinchas. So, I was recording that this morning, which is why this is coming to you a little bit late. Leah Jones 2:21 I dug into the archives a bit. You'll hear a clip from Brandy Agerbeck's episode on Harold and Maude, a special clip from Jacquie Chang, all about this Halloween party. I know that I've talked about it on other podcast episodes. But because I don't do transcripts, which I must start doing in year two, I can't easily search for mentions of the Halloween party. So even though I know that other people have been to that party, and we've talked about it, I couldn't find the clips quickly enough. So, I have two clips from two wonderful folks in my life. Leah Jones 3:02 This week's episode is with Cinnamon Cooper. She is a cookbook author, a purveyor of handmade purses and bags. And she is also the co-host of a party I look forward to every year, the Huffencooper Halloween party. And she's here to give us lots of tips and tricks about hosting dinner parties, big parties, costume parties, and thinking about re-entry and building our in-person communities again. So I hope that you continue to stay safe, that you are able to reconnect with your loved ones. Have a good week, enjoy your favorite things. Leah Jones 3:58 Hello, and welcome to Finding Favorites. I'm your host, Leah Jones, and this is the podcast where we learn about people's favorite things and get recommendations without using an algorithm. It is year two -- season two starts today. And I am so pleased to have with me today Cinnamon Cooper. Cinnamon is the owner/purveyor/stitcher/designer of Poise, her handbag company, and she is the author of the "Cast Iron Cookbook" and really a girl-about-town, girl-about-the Internet. Anyone in Chicago who uses the internet knows Cinnamon. Cinnamon, how are you doing today? Cinnamon 4:42 I'm doing wonderfully on this Juneteenth holiday. Leah Jones 4:46 Yes, it's Juneteenth. As of yesterday, a federal holiday -- two days ago, yesterday. Cinnamon 4:52 Yeah, yeah. 16 hours ago -- federal holiday. Hopefully, it is just the first start in recognizing all of our African-American and Black citizens and giving them the rights and freedoms that they deserve -- and should have had for hundreds of years. Leah Jones 5:09 Yes. I agree. Hopefully, it is the first step towards greater equity and reparations. So yeah, we're coming to you, live, from a very hot Juneteenth observed in Chicago. How is your summer kicking off? Cinnamon 5:33 This summer has felt very paused and also very explosive, at the same time. I think it's the first one sort of post-pandemic. And we're not necessarily out of the pandemic, if you look at the worldwide map, but Chicago feels like we are on the verge. I think we are at now -- 70% of citizens have had a first shot, which is fantastic, tremendous and makes me feel very, very hopeful, very appreciative. A year ago, I was not in the headspace that I am in this year. And I'm looking forward to spending time with friends and visiting people and having them into my home. Hugs. I want so many hugs, all of the hugs. Leah Jones 6:17 Yeah, I have started -- we have a ton of mutual friends, which we'll really get into during the big topic of today's conversation. So, Jasmine, was in my COVID pod of people -- it was some of my other single, childfree girlfriends were the people that I spent the most time with. But we weren't necessarily even always comfortable spending time indoors unmasked, but we became errand buddies -- I got a car. So, Jasmine and I will go to Target, and then to like a drive-through, and have a picnic in my car all winter, with all the windows open, so we can eat. So yeah, I look forward to eat meals with friends, in more temperature-controlled ways. Leah Jones 7:06 I was just saying that someone last night, you know, there's that whole level of friends --of acquaintanceship, friendship -- that I maintain through -- they're people that come to your Halloween party, that come to my Hanukkah party, and then I'll see them at one summer event. And that maintains the relationship, and then on the internet in-between. And I miss those people. Cinnamon 7:29 I do, too. I do, too. I'm lucky that we had a small pod. We live in a two-flat, so the family who lives below us, we got to spend a lot of time with, which was great. And I'm immensely grateful that we had those people. And that, because we were podded so closely together, we were fully comfortable enjoying meals together. But I'm ready to see some people who aren't them. Leah Jones 7:56 You are such an incredible host, which is one of the things we're gonna talk about. But I mentioned your cookbook, which I have given many times when I find out people don't have a cast iron skillet. They're not expensive. Cinnamon 8:10 No, they're not. Leah Jones 8:11 It *can* be expensive, but they don't need to be expensive. I will often send people a skillet and your cookbook, or if they've got a skillet and they don't know what they're doing, I'll send them your cookbook. But one of my really favorite memories is when you were writing that cookbook, and you were doing parties to test recipes. I came to one and it was in the backyard, and you did an okra, a grilled okra. I don't remember anything else you cooked that night, but that okra is the best okra I've ever had in my whole life, And I think about it a lot. I've never tried to replicate it, because I feel okra intimidates me. But, I think about that a lot. Cinnamon 9:00 I could go deep into okra because I love it so much. I think okra is definitely an underrated vegetable. I live near Devon Avenue in Chicago, which is a very popular Indian and Pakistani and Southeast-Asian strip, so, okra is available to me pretty much year-round for very little money, which is fantastic. And since I love it, it's great. The okra dish that you had is essentially just rubbed in a spicy [mumble} paste and then I put it on to skewers and then stuck it on the grill. I've also roasted it -- put the rub on the okra, toss it in into a skillet with a little bit of oil, and fried it. Smokes up the house a bit, but it's so delicious, I don't usually care. Leah Jones 9:50 I think of okra as being a Southern vegetable. I didn't know it was also an East-Asian vegetable. Cinnamon 9:58 Well, it's also from Africa, which was how we have it in the United States, of course, but also it's very popular in Indian dishes. Leah Jones 10:10 I'll pay more attention. Cinnamon 10:12 I mean, they've got the right climate for it. You need a lot of moisture, and you need a lot of heat, and a fairly long growing season. We tried growing okra here, and it happened to be a fantastically hot Chicago summer. But we got four pods before it got too cold, and the plant died. If we'd had just a bit of a longer summer, we probably would have had some okra. Leah Jones 10:38 So as things start to nudge open, what are some of your near-term plans? Cinnamon 10:48 I feel guilty for saying that I want to get out of Chic
Erika Valenciana, a Chicago-based filmmaker, loves making her own clothes. She joins guest host Amy Güth to talk about documentary films, sewing and more. Catch up with Erika in Mexico City in March for the premier of her documentary La Mitad del Mundo! Follow Erika on Instagram and online with Diverse Voices in Docs, Stowe Story Labs. Erika and Magdelena Hernandez "La Mitad del Mundo" documentary film is going to premiere at Lit Luz in March Amy is the host of Unconventional with Amy Güth and Crain's Daily Gist. She also produces cultural events at 5959 in Chicago. Follow Amy on Instagram for yoga writing prompts and subscribe to her weekly email newsletter. Show Notes "Brewer" and "Birder By The Lake" are both not yet available online, both are in-progress Anu Rana, producer of "Brewer" film Mitch Wenkus, cinematographer of "Birder by the Lake" film Professor Valerie Frizzle, PhD Threadbare TV Host wears same suit Barack Obama wore the same tuxedo for 8 years, nobody noticed Successful people wear the same clothes every day Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts Updates on Leah's CaringBridge
Nick Krefting, a musician and physics teachers, has loved The Beatles since he was 9 years old. We walk through his introduction to the band, favorite books, favorites albums, documentaries that he taped from TV and how Paul deserves celebration as an artist. Listen to Nick's music on Spotify or check out his podcast (on hiatus) How Have You Never Show Notes The Beatles: A Private View by Robert Freeman Forest Gump: The Soundtrack The Compleat Beatles The Red Album The Beatles Anthology (TV) Revolution in the Head by Ian McDonald Screw it, We're Just Gonna Talk about The Beatles podcast Chaos and Creation in the Backyard (Paul McCartney solo) Song recommendations Old Brown Shoe Here, There, and Everywhere Baby, You're A Rich Man
Kristen Carreon, host of HWY to Hell: A Supernatural Podcast, is our guide to the world of Dramione Fan Fiction. What? Stories written about an alternate universe (AU) where Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger fall in love. Whether is enemies to lovers in an office romance or an AU return to Hogwarts for year 8, Kristen tells us where to go for the best stories. Listen to Kristen on HWY to Hell and follow ETL Echo Audio Books on Instagram @etl.echo.audiobooks Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts (five stars please) Show Links Mugglenet.com San Antonio Puffy Tacos 10 places to get puffy tacos Isolation by Bex-Chan Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde Jason Mantzoukas on Dickinson as a bee Eisner winner for best anthology of 2020. Menopause: A Comic Treatment Recommendations For unrequited love and secret feelings in a co-worker environment, read the Rights and Wrongs Series by lovebitca8 comprised of The Right Thing To Do, All the Wrong Things, and The Auction (dark AU version of the two). Part 1, The Right Thing To Do, can be found here: https://archiveofourown.org/chapters/25724661?show_comments=true or through the audiobook shared above. The Right Thing To Do - Chapter 1 - LovesBitca8 - Harry Po... For a dark Voldemort-wins AU involving slavery and Death Eater Draco, read Manacled by senlinyu: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14454174/chapters/33390198 Manacled - Chapter 1 - senlinyu - Harry Potter - J. K. Row... For a light, hilarious historical rom-com involving a co-worker time travel scenario, read Love and Historical Accidentals by Pacific Rimbaud: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21496525/chapters/51233119 Love and Other Historical Accidents - Chapter 1 - PacificR... For a slow-burn romance that's more focused on deep character study and grief healing, read Measure of a Man by inadaze22: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26523892/chapters/64648648
Jocelyn Geboy, a Chicago-based writer, storyteller and Tik Tok creator, loves getting people talking about candy. She's found that asking people "red vines or twizzlers" can start the group down an hour-long winding road of nostalgia and light conversation. People might get wound up, but they won't get angry or have an existential crisis. Follow Jocelyn online - she's @smussyolay on Tik Tok, Twitter and Instagram Show Links Whozeewhatzit vs Watchamacallit Licorice Tubes Reese's Take5 Charleston Chew The mammogram is included in the Affordable Care Act and should be covered by your health insurance. Go get one.
Dave Coustan, an Atlanta-based podcast producer and marketing strategist, picked up trumpet for the first time at the age of 39... because why not? We talk about what made him start playing trumpet as an adult, a 5-hour lesson in Portland from David Monette, and how he became a podcast producer at I Heart Radio. Follow Dave, aka @Extraface, on Instagram, Twitter and subscribe to Three Banana Thursday Folllow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts Show Links Atlanta Local Food Initiative Hrishikesh Hirway on Inside Voices with Kevin T. Porter Stuff You Missed in History Class with Tracy Wilson Stuff You Should Know Wendy L. Klein, Berklee College of Music (Dave's childhood flute teacher) Brass Instrument Workshop Joe Gransden Monette Trumpets Dave Monette on Craft In America Dan Harmon Story Cycle XOXO Fest in Portland Dave's 2008 SXSW business card
Kyle Loder, co-host of A New Low and Who Does a Podcast, has played the tabletop war game Warhammer 40K for most of his life and he is very excited that game stores and tournaments are re-opening this summer. We talk about what's next for his Hamilton podcast (Who Does a Podcast), the life of Warhammer 40K consultants (which he is not), and how to pack for a Warhammer tourney. Follow rate and review Finding Favories - @findingfavspod on Twitter and Instagram Listen to Kyle on A New Low, Who Does a Podcast and dig into the archives of Your Parents Basement Show Links Warhammer 40,000 by Games Workshop Doughboys Warmachine Malifaux Flames of War Dropzone Commander
Caroline Conner, better known as Wine Dine Caroline, is a wine educator based in Leon, France, who loves wine and fantasy books. We dive into how she started her career in the wine trade (spoiler alert - she won the 2009 Varsity Blind Wine Competition between Oxford and Cambridge). Get your Bookshop.org shopping cart ready, because she's got books for you to read. Learn about wine with Caroline (take her online courses, hire her for a private tasting on Zoom) and start with her Food and Wine Pairing Guide. Find Caroline on Instagram and YouTube Follow Finding Favorites on Twitter and Instagram Show Links Varsity Blind Wine Challenge and Wikipedia list of winners Masters of Wine Damn Fine Bookstore in Leon, France Books and Authors to Read Once and Future Witches - Alix E Harrow Priory of the Orange Tree - Samantha Shannon V.E. Schwab Sabaa Tahir - Ember in the Ashes Trilogy N.K. Jemisin - The Broken Earth Trilogy Hugo Awards His Dark Materials - Phillip Pullman Normal People - Sally Rooney Uprooted - Naomi Novik Robin Hobbs - Realm of the Elderlings KJ Parker - Engineer Trilogy Grishaverse - Leigh Barduga
Briana Haas, co-host of the podcast Jobs Blow, loves New York City. No, really, love at first sight, 5th floor Upper East Side walk-up, Balthazar scones, L-O-V-E New York City. We talk about our surprising shared history of stand-up comedy, working together and getting laid off from the same marketing agency, and how she knew that New York was her one and only city. New! Follow Finding Favorites on Instagram and Twitter Subscribe to Jobs Blow podcast and follow on Instagram and Twitter. Show notes Comic Strip in NYC Balthazar Cindy Gallop on Jobs Blow S.E. Hinton on Twitter Legendary Talk Magazine launch party and how it was seen 10 years later Liz Smith obituary Lizzie Grubman crash
Jen Kling loves New Kids on the Block. Jen takes me through her teenage crush on Joey and becoming a fan all over again when the band reunited in 2008. Concerts, meet & greets, and cruises - Jen loves all of it and hopes that one of these days she can sit down with Joey for coffee. Follow Jen on Twitter Peloton Links Wilpers Bike Fitting Peloton Christmas Ad Ryan Reynold's response Ad NKOTB Links NKOTB website Jay Leno Sixth Sense Parody NKOTB on Today Show 2008 NKOTB on Kimmel 2010 NKOTB Cruise 2020 Follow @findingfavspod on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review on Apple Podcasts Jen 0:00 Hi, I'm Jennifer Klang. And I love New Kids on the Block (NKOTB). Announcer 0:05 Welcome to the Finding Favorites podcast, where we explore your favorite things without using an algorithm. Here's your host, Leah Jones. Leah Jones 0:16 Hello, and welcome to Finding Favorites -- it is actually still Saturday, but you'll be hearing this on Sunday. I recorded this episode today, and we'll get it posted before I go to bed because Sunday is vaccine number two day for me. I'll be driving back down to Springfield, Illinois, for my second Pfizer shot. I'd originally thought when I went down to state for the shot, that I would be one and done with Johnson and Johnson. That wasn't the case, and so I am heading back down state for shot number two. I'm very excited, because then everyone in my generation in my family and above will be vaccinated. I feel like it'll be a little bit safer to spend some time together this summer. And I'm very excited for that. ----more---- Leah Jones 1:10 Today's episode is one that I *thought* was just going to be about '80s and '90s nostalgia, but learned quickly that New Kids on the Block have a really vibrant career. And so I talk with Jen Kling all about New Kids on the Block. She is someone that I got to know when I was freelancing. And I was working for SAP for their CX [customer experience] group -- worked on a couple events in Barcelona and Orlando, and met Jen at those, and when I put the call out for people ready to come and talk about their favorite things or things they love, and she was volunteered by our mutual friend Amy, who you'll remember from the Disney episode. Leah Jones 1:52 So, this is just really fun. And after talking to Jen, I'm ready to go on a cruise. Can't believe we're at the point in the pandemic where I am thinking cruises sound like a good idea again. I think anything with a lot of people just having fun and loving the same thing, just sounds really good to me right now. So I'll keep this short -- I need to go to bed and rest up for my long drive tomorrow. So wear your mask, wash your hands, stay safe. Leah Jones 2:37 Hello, and welcome to Finding Favorites. I'm your host, Leah Jones. And this is the podcast where we get recommendations and find out about people's favorite things without using an algorithm. Today, I am joined by Jen Kling. Jen and I met each other for the first time in Barcelona, when I was working on events for SAP. It was called CX Live, and it was one of the nicest convention centers I've ever traveled to. So Jen, how are you doing today? Jen 3:08 I'm doing good. And Wow, it's so funny to talk about doing live, in-person events ... "In the old days ... " Leah Jones 3:18 "In the before time ..." Jen 3:19 "... in the before times when we would travel and see people in person." Leah Jones 3:24 When we would wear like our business clothes with tennis shoes to walk miles and miles across that convention center. Remember the day when we all got up and the rain was coming *through* the convention center? It was like a day before? Jen 3:41 Yes. Oh my goodness, that was crazy -- that was also like we had to -- there was no way -- I think you and I were at the same hotel. There was no way to get to the convention center without walking for a long time outside. Like there wasn't-- even if you did get an Uber for a minute and a half drive, you still had to walk five minutes outside. And so when it was raining, it was not a wonderful experience. But then, you went inside and it was raining. Yeah. Yeah, that was crazy. It was quite a week. Leah Jones 4:20 That was one where I looked at that. And I was like, "Oh, I'm glad I'm just in charge of the speakers and the presentations. That is not a problem I have to solve. But that was so stressful. Jen 4:33 Yeah. It was good times though. I miss that. Leah Jones 4:38 I miss in-person events. One of the things I loved about being on the CX team for those two events because I did Barcelona and then the first CX Live and well, probably the last one because it was actually like October 2019, right? And we were in Orlando, and that was just a few short months before COVID started. Leah Jones 5:02 But, I loved being on a big team working towards a singular goal, getting together in person, making it happen. It was so stressful. But the feeling of pulling that off and getting to do that twice with your team -- I loved. I loved it. Jen 5:20 Yeah, it's the best. I've been in marketing for a lot of years -- for many, many years. And, I've always been attached to events in one way or another. I was an event planner for a long time, so it was on the logistic side. And now, I mostly just kind of participate from like a speaker and doing sessions and things like that. But, I just absolutely love it. There is something about that very last stretch, when you look around and everything is still a mess. And you've got workers everywhere, and things are still being constructed, and you're looking at the clock and you're going "There's no way this is going to come together."and then it does. And it's the most amazing, most satisfying feeling. I love it. Leah Jones 6:12 Yeah. And so you have obviously moved online this year. Jen 6:18 Yes. Yes. Leah Jones 6:20 How has that been? Jen 6:24 You know, it's a different experience. Right? It's, you know, in fact, the group I'm with now, SAP Litmos, has their virtual events coming up now ,SAP Litmos. We're doing this virtual five track, 25 sessions, one day event? It's just a different type of experience. You do cameras on with Zoom, and the technology is great now, but it doesn't really replace that in-person interaction and the networking, right? We'll have like a virtual networking lounge and stuff like that, but it's not the same. It works, and thank goodness, we have the technology we have now. I mean, if we were doing this in the 80s, or the 90, you know, I don't know how we would have done it. I mean, we just wouldn't have, right? It's it's just a different experience. But it works, it works. Thank goodness for technology. Leah Jones 7:21 Having a product where you can quickly call people, you're not looking for their phone number, you're not having to get people -- you know, just having a link to click on. And the chat has made a huge difference. Because even if we just, I don't know, like a month before, we just each had our, our dial-in numbers, even a year and a half ago, how we could have accomplished what we've accomplished. Jen 7:45 You know, it's funny, because I mean, you know, how SAP is -- we're a global organization, we have people everywhere, and teams are made up from people that are spread across the world. And even that even small team, I'm on -- I have people in, I'm in California, half the team's in California, I have people in Birmingham, Arizona, and Australia. And so we were kind of used to always being on a Zoom call or a Teams call, with people and you know, doing camera on a lot, just because it's nice to be able to see those people. Jen 8:19 But I will say that now that *all* of us have been working from home, and there isn't half of us that are together in the office, and the other half of the team, not, I feel like it's in a weird way, brought the whole team closer together. Leah Jones 8:32 Absolutely. Jen 8:34 And, you know, we're all in on something together. And, I have mixed feelings about the office now. I want to go back because I miss the people, and our office is nice, and we have free lunch and I miss the Impossible Burgers. But I don't miss the -- my commute wasn't bad, it was a 35 minute commute. And as Bay Area commute goes, it's pretty amazing. But it's kind of nice to *not* have to have that commute, and *not* have to put makeup on, and be able to work in my sweatsm or whatever. But, I do miss people. So it's gonna be interesting for us. They're saying, you know, they'll support whatever works for any individual through the end of the year. And they're starting to work on a controlled reopening of the offices, but it'll still be very limited. And for me, since I only have a few members of the team in the office, if we all can't be there on the same day because our desks are too close proximity or whatever. It's kind of like well, then what will the point be in going in? So, so we'll see how it goes. We'll see how it goes. Leah Jones 9:37 Yeah, I want to go back if we have -- my perfect vision is Tuesdays and Wednesdays are all-in days. We all go on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. So we've got in-person, but we're all there to really mix with each other. And then, if if you want to come in more days than that, great, but I want like a couple days where we where we all try but right, but then that breaks the safety protocols, possibly. Jen 10:13 Yeah. It'll be interesting. Yeah. We'll see how it goes. Leah Jones 10:16 Yeah. For us, it's been -- we used to only have one member of our team who was in New York. And we'd get into a meeting, I was like, "Oh, man did somebody call Shannon?" Like, we forgot about her all the time. And, now we've never been closer to her, because we were like, all on the same page. And so we'll have to be really mindful that we don't forget about Shannon when we go back in person, you know? Jen 10:47 Well, and I don't think you will. Bec
Pam Rose, an amateur puppeteer in Rhode Island, and I share a love of the podcast How Did This Get Made and improv comedy's favorite bearded fellow, Jason Mantzoukas. Lucky for Pam, she's engaged to Jason, "because of some Greek thing." We know each other through the fandom and spent a couple hours on Zoom talking about HDTGM, the fan group we're in, movie watch parties and the joy in picking a "so bad it's good" bad movie to watch with friends. Find Pam online: @sockgirlie The Dating Game on Thursdays with Rob and Paul (Pam is Burger King and Leah is the cat) Friendzone (Paul Scheer's Twitch channel) Hanging with Paul Scheer (Discord) HDTGM Discord Largo in LA Greg Sestero (The Room) What is Happening for Dummies t-shirt The Baby The Pit Pam and Hanson for On Milwaukee Listen to Sassy