New Fav Podcast!

Before hitting the road for the 6-hour ride back home from visiting NC with my mother, I searched for a podcast to play. I stumbled upon Wiser than Me and thanks to Julia Louis-Dreyfus (AKA Elaine from Seinfeld) as the podcat host, we has a very enjoyable ride back home!

Each of the Season 1 ten episodes follow the same pattern:
FIrst, Julia tells a little story and then says:
Please welcome a woman who is way wiser than me,

Immediately, Julia asks her: Are you comfortable if I say your age?
Each woman agrees and she simply says: Tell us, how old are you?

Jane Fonda – 85
Isabel Allende – 80
Fran Lebowitz – 72
Ruth Reichl – 74
Darlene Love – 81
Diane von Furstenberg
Gina McCarthy – 69
Amy Tan – 71
Rhea Perlman 75
Carol Burnett – 90

Then Julia and her guest chat. Because each has lived a long, facsinating and successful life, the stories shared are fun and inspiring.

A few questions Julia seems to asks each along the way:
What do you think the best part about being your age is?

Is there something you would go back and tell yourself at 21?

Is there something you would go back and say yes to that you said no to?

After each interview is over, you think the podcast would just end. But no.
Instead, Julie calls her own 89-year-old-mother, Judith Bowles.
They have a sweet, quick conversation which allows Julia to give a little summary of her conversation.

I enjoyed all 10-episodes so much. I even joined to have permission to listen to the Bonus material.
These 5-minute extras always end with the producer saying:
As Julia says, if there is an old lady in your life, remember to listen up.

I have enjoyed listening to these 10 older and wiser than me ladies.
So much wisdom shared!
So I just had to tell you about it – have a listen and enjoy!!

Ed

I started a breakfast routine on Fridays involving the nearby McDonalds. I order oatmeal, an unsweetened ice tea and a hash brown. Then I sit and journal about my week from 6:15ish to 7am. After a few visits, I noticed a gentleman, always in the booth behind me with a similar routine, his golden arches morning meal and the newpaper. He looked of retirement age and sat reading and sipping his warm drink.

One morning, I decided to say hi. “How’s the news today?” I asked as I stood up to leave for work. We chatted for a few minutes, wished each other a good day and I left him to his routine.

Back in February, I said hi again and shared how I’m a grandma now and showed him a photo of Aden. He listened as I explained how she lived in Amsterdam and I’d be visiting her soon. He shared how he used to be stationed in Kenya for work and has fond memories of visiting Amsterdam with his wife. He was excited I was visiting in March.

As soon as he saw me the Friday after I returned from my European trip, he sat down with me in my booth and asked to see all my photos. As we chatted, I learned he has a son living in PA and a daughter about to graduate from Stanford Univerisity’s Medical School. “Then she’ll be moving to Philly for work.” “So lovely to have both your children on the East coast! Is your wife living?” I asked. He smiled and his eyes twinkled as he proudly shared about Doris. “Yep. She likes to sleep in. She’ll be over here in a bit. She’ll sit over there with the ladies from St. Ann’s church,” he explained as he pointed to another area of the restaurant. I told him I’ll have to come later sometime so I can meet her.

A few weeks ago he was telling me how his neighbor is at Virginia Hospital Center and I could see the worry in his eyes. “He’s where he needs to be. I will go visit him later today. I hope the doctors can help him get better.”

Then weeks went by and my own husband was dealing with helalth issues and my Friday routine got interrupted. Yesterday I started it up again and happily Ed was there, too. He kindly sat down, viewed my newest photos of Aden and I listened to his news about Doris, his son and daughter. I asked him about his sick neighbor and I told him about how my husband had his own visits to Virginia Hospital Center recently. He’s still worried about his neighbor who has been moved to a nursing home for rehabilitation care. Again, the worry could be seen in his eyes. “I visit him every day. I believe it is important for him to have a visitor so I keep going.”

As he got up to get his breakfast order, he offered me one more piece of advise. “I know from experience, be sure to take care of yourself as you take on the extra duty of supporting your husband. Let me know if Doris and I can be of any help.”

Ed, a retired Black man who reads the Washington Post each Friday at the McDonald’s on Wilson Boulvard, is now a part of my community, all because we have the same morning routine. As I walked out to my car to drive to school, I felt very lucky. If I am ever in need of a very caring friend, I know exactly where to find Ed.

NOTE: I’ve been listening to the podcast, House Calls by Dr. Vivek Murthy, the US Surgeon General and many of the episodes remind the listener of the importance of making connections with other humans. My story today is such a connection. I recommend listening to this podcast, as well as, being open to making connections with those humans that cross your path.

Empathy Lesson

Choose one and teach the lesson with one of your class. That was my homework. I’m in a district which identifies students as gifted. (perhaps another day I’ll write about this as I think, like Golde Mohammed, that all kids have genius). I’m in a district that requires each teacher to complete gifted professional development hours. Hence, my homework from my Thrivers Book Club leader to earn 30 of the 45 required points.

Just like kids, I don’t like top-down demands. At least this one offered a choice board of options. So I chose Listen to the Podcast and have a class discussion. So glad I did. Meeting Aaron helped clarify for me exactly what empathy is. Before, my empathy definition was more about being in someone’s shoes. His nudge to know the person’s story you are helping and to find someone to help every day who cannot repay me is staying with me.

And it turns out that sharing a listen with my Reading 6 students ended up being a perfect segway into our next Social Issue Book Club Unit. Maybe homework for a topdown PD isn’t so bad.

I recommend meeting Aaron HERE.

I do like Thrivers: The Surprising Reason Why Some Kids Struggle and Others Shine by Michele Borba and recommend for all teachers and parents.

My Response to The Daily Podcast

While listening to the May 8th episode of The Daily, a podcast produced by The New York Times, Rick Steves, of Rick Steves Europe, was interviewed by Sam Anderson, a staff writer for the New York Times Magazine. The episode gave me hope and the ending provided me with a writing prompt.

Sam ended the podcast with these words, “As a favor to everyone stuck at home right now, can you transport us for a few minutes. Bring us to one particular place in Europe and guide us through a perfect meal?”

Rick agreed and elaborated by saying such a story would be a perfect storm of: ambiance, local ingredients, an appetite and good company.

This got me thinking….

Long ago, my husband and I took our two school-age girls to Chincoteague, an inexpensive beach vacation town on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

My favorite meal while there was purchased from the honor code vegetable stand. With my five dollar bill in hand, I walked down to the end of the street where we were renting a house for the week. There on the side of the road, a townie had two picnic tables sitting. One was covered with a large pile of corn husks and a sign, $.50 each. The other had rows of tomatoes, $.25 each and baskets of peaches $2/basket. In between the two tables was a wooden box with a slit on top and the words “On Your Honor” painted on the side. I slipped in my $5, grabbed 4 corn husks, 2 tomatoes and a basket of peaches and walked back to the rental house.

As Brian and the girls took an afternoon nap, I boiled the corn and added a few hot dogs for the girls. I placed all in a cooler, with a few cold beers and juice boxes. Then I hopped into the car and drove to the seafood market. With 2 pounds of seasoned steamed shrimp in hand, I headed back to awake my family for dinner.

Soon we piled back in the car with the cooler in the truck and headed to the beach. We spread out our blanket, sat and enjoyed our dinner as the sun went down. I sipped my cold beer, I peeled my steamed shrimp. I took a bite of the fresh corn and sliced tomatoes. I enjoyed the juicy peach as dessert.

In Rick Steves words, it was a perfect storm.

The ambiance of the waves crashing and the sky turning to shades of both pink and light blues.

The ingredients, just days ago, were still on a vine or a tree or in the ocean we stare at now from our blanket.

Our appetite, large after a busy day of riding the waves and building castle creations in the sand.

And the company, a relaxed husband and two girls, though three years apart, enjoying each others company as friends.

During the podcast, Rick Steves states, “It (the virus) cannot stop our travel dreams.” I would add, it cannot stop me returning to places once visited and reliving, in my mind, a perfect meal.

How about you? Where will you travel? What’s your perfect meal?