A Little Buzzed

Mel talks to Subashiny about her love of Adam Driver, how it started, how it's going and engaging with men in general. Subashiny shares her insights on how her early male relationships informed the Adam Driver interest, what she thinks makes a good relationship and how she thinks it looks to interact in a healthy, balanced way.Support the show

Mel talks to Mike from Nihiloceros about their upcoming EP Self-Destroy, being a musician in a pandemic, questioning your superiority, and aliens. They talk about the concept behind the EP, the way that humans destroy, and the art of making music with someone you’ve played with for years and someone new. You can find music by Nihiloceros here or find them on social here.Support the show

Mel talks to Kasey about the challenges of being a teacher during the pandemic, the potential impact to children, and their hopes for the post-pandemic future. Kasey shares her learnings from teaching kids online vs in-person and how different children thrive in each environment, something that can hopefully be incorporated in the future for education. Kasey and Mel also talk about their relationship with creativity during the pandemic and their reflections on how they'd like life to change for the future. To learn more about Kasey, find her on instagram, or follow her band, A Very Special Episode. Support the show

Young Tuxx, frontman for Papi Shiitake, shares his journey for finding self-love and why everyone is worthy of love. He talks with Mel about books, mindsets, tools that have helped him grow into someone who is at peace with himself. The journey never stops, take each step at a time. Support the show

Steve, from The Sharp Shadows and Sorry Darling, chats with Mel on the creative process and how creativity is a form for communicating our human experiences.  They chat about how to define what makes you creative and the broader purpose of creativity for connecting humans to each other.  They also chat about how engaging with creativity has changed in the pandemic and what it might look like it the future. Support the show

Mel chats with the amazing and talented Hillary Lahoma Van Scoy about how she found her stride after moving to New York and the circumstances that brought her there. They chat about her time in Glasgow, as a musician, and now learning the recording business in New York. They also talk about the importance of being surrounded by people who believe in you and cheer you on. And of course, the beauty of dancing.Support the show

Mel talks to Ben about his lifelong decision to be sober, what he observes while socializing sober, songwriting, and what he's seen in his 20 years of NYC. Ben talks about the driving force behind his decision and why he doesn't judge anyone for choosing to drink. He shares the ways he's seen NYC and its music scene transform over the last 20 years and what his process of making music. At the end, he gives Mel one insight into why dating in the city is so tough and she's determined to bring him on again to expand. Be sure to check out Ben's band Onesie and get buzzed on all his insights on society in this episode!Support the show

Mel talks to Bettina about the creation process of her newsletter Make it Delightful which is like a dinner party in your inbox! They discuss their shared love of food, sharing a meal with others, and dining alone. They also discuss has dining has changed in the pandemic, Bettina's winding career path, the need to pay artists and general life. Join them and get buzzed!Support the show

Mel chats with Artur from the Gftd Org about his desire for cultivating community amongst creatives in NYC. Artur shares where the idea for the Gftd Org came from, why he believes you should always support other creatives around you, and starting a podcast. To follow along with Artur, find him on instagram @artursays. To learn more about the Gftd Org, find them on instagram @gftd_Org. And be sure to take a listen to the new podcast, Gftd Conversations. Support the show

Mel talks to Liz, from Body Literati, about her journey learning to demystify her fertility cycle in order to empower herself with fertility options and knowledge on how her body works and what it needs. Liz practices and educated on the Fertility Awareness Method to help others do the same. If you'd like to get in touch with Liz, you can email her at lizwagnerbiro@gmail.com or you can find her on instagram or TikTok @bodyliterati.Some books she recommends:Taking Charge of Your Fertility (this is a great intro to cycle charting and also teaches a method to avoid or achieve pregnancy) Garden of Fertility is another optionA warning note about those books from Liz: They are all gender normative and use "woman" to refer to person with cycles. Support the show

In this episode, Mel talks with her little sister, Andi, about the difference between being a nice guy and being the Nice Guy, why the Friendzone should be rebranded to not be so negative, and how clinging to your identity as a "good person" can make it hard to come to terms with the fact you might have caused harm. Andi shares her experiences with the Nice Guy and how not to be one. Mel talks about learning to let go of her identity as a good person and replacing it with being a human who tries not to harm but eventually does and how that's made it easier for her to hear people when they say she's caused harm. There's even one moment where Mel cries a little thinking about what a jerk she was to Andi growing up. Andi thinks Mel is being too hard on herself, we'll let you decide.Mel and Andi want you to know that they don't hate men, they love them, and they believe in nice guys. Support the show

Mel talks to Natasha Jokic, a British transplant living and writing in New York, about how she came to be in NYC from the UK, her career journey to become a writer for Buzzfeed, and what it's like to have people be able to troll you on a large scale. Natasha and Mel talk about their two years in New York, their brief stint in Alphabet City, the importance of being kind and supportive online, and quarantine, of course. Natasha also discusses learning to toughen up her skin as the responses roll in.  Mel's favorite quiz by Tash, to date, can be found here.  You can also find Natasha on Twitter and Instagram.Support the show

Mel talks with Carlo and Darrell about their excitement for Brooklyn Drum Collective’s Live Album release and missing live music desperately. The Brooklyn Drum Collective (BDC) is a Brooklyn-based network of musicians working together to perform, teach, and build a stronger community. Carlo Minchillo is the Director of the BDC and Drummer for The Planes and Glass Slipper. Darrell Dumas is the guitarist for The Bizarre Sharks, one of four bands featured on the live album, and The Royal They. Mel is, you know, Mel and at the beginning of the conversation she says that Carlo can be found on the episode “Carlo is a Perpetual Motion Machine” but it’s actually called “Carlo Uses Positive Energy & Commitment to Become a Perpetual Motion Machine.” She also says The Royal They's song "Full Metal Black" is her go-to song when she needs to get some frustration out so feel free to take a listen and see if it could be yours.For more about the album: Brooklyn Drum Collective Presents... Live at Our Wicked Lady is in celebration of the Brooklyn Drum Collective’s Two Year Anniversary and will be released October 16, 2020 but you can preorder now on Bandcamp. All presales will support Black Lives Matter and Our Wicked Lady. Recorded July 19, 2019 on the roof of Our Wicked Lady in Bushwick, this album features local Brooklyn bands, True Dreams, Bizarre Sharks, Catty and PowerSnap. Each of these bands selected 3 songs from their set that audio engineer Rich Crescenti recorded, Jeff Berner (Psychic TV) mixed during quarantine and Sam Gelernter (Plaid Dracula) mastered. It was an incredible night filled with garage rock, indie rock, punk and post-punk music and one of the highlights of our 2019 events.Support the show

Mel talks to Vanessa Rock from On the Rocks Podcast all about why she decided to start a podcast where she shares about her life and why oversharing is truly caring. Mel and Vanessa talk about dating, being vulnerable, the importance of therapy, letting your emotions be drafts, and navigating what it means to be an adult. To follow along with Vanessa, check out her podcast's instagram @ontherocks.pod.Support the show

Mel shares what she thinks love looks like with her best friend Casey--how she thinks it can be unconditional but still have boundaries and why it's not a pact. Mel would like you to know the reason she initially did not like Casey was NOT because they liked the same boy. Also, Mel's not sure if she ever truly defined what she thinks love is in a few sentences, but hopefully you get the picture from the conversation. Support the show

Mel talks to Jen Meller, Brooklyn-based visual artist to hear how she came into her career and how she's made it work for her in a gig economy. They talk about the differences in DC and NYC, voyeurism, how taking a great photo requires a great connection and trust, and how to stay sharp on your skills during quarantine. Jen shares about projects she's working on and her passion for creating. If you want to learn more about Jen or follow along with her work, you can find her on instagram on @menjeller or her websites www.jenmeller.comSupport the show

In this episode, Space Sluts joins us to talk about her new single St. V & the therapeutic process of writing music. We do an impromptu AMA (Ask Me Anything, as Mel learns) and talk about dating, how quarantine is teaching us boundaries, the importance of preserving your emotional energy, and the bathroom at The Gutter. Mel shares what she's learned is her ideal partner and everyone gets a little buzzed.Support the show

Juli & Mel interview Amy Friedman from the podcast, Have a Good Cry, to discuss the value of crying, vulnerability, and not being afraid to be your authentic self. We hear where Amy came up with the idea for the podcast and her journey to accepting herself and the power that comes in vulnerability. We discuss crying for happiness, sadness, or just simple frustration; finding your people; how amazing and important therapy is. Get a little buzzed on crying with us. Support the show

Juli and Mel talk about habits and behaviors they developed during quarantine that they'd like to maintain after everything opens up again. They talk about how quarantine has forced them to relook at how they prioritize their time, especially making sure to make time for themselves to recharge. Juli and Mel also talk about how much more present and appreciative the situation has made them, able to enjoy the moment, and how they'd like to keep that. Oh, and to-go cocktails, don't we all want to keep those?Support the show

Rebecca shares her journey of becoming a therapist, working through self-acceptance for both her and her clients, and body acceptance. She, Juli and Mel get buzzed on the enneagram, getting older and learning to not care what people think, and how there's so much more fascinating things to talk about than your body. Support the show