PODCAST

What People Do

brendanhoward

A moment to savor intelligent conversation about ONE THING someone else is deeply invested in.

society & culture documentary

All Episodes

01:02:54

Episode 38: Hilal Dogan starts teaching yoga

What People Do ·

2022/06/21

I’ve known Hilal Dogan for years now. She first came onto my radar when I worked for a veterinary publishing and CE conference company, and she was rocking The Veterinary Confessionals Project. She was a veterinarian by this time, although she put the project together during her time in veterinary school (hear more). But that’s not my favorite thing about Hilal. My favorite thing about Hilal is she is a driven, goal-oriented free spirit. She is a paradox, and I love it. Her latest goal, just

01:08:19

Episode 37: John Krygier collects classic reprints

What People Do ·

2022/06/07

If you’ve been to a used bookstore, a thrift store or a house with many, many books, you absolutely positively have seen one: a reprint of another book collected in a series to make great work more accessible to average reader of modest means—and squeeze out the last dollar from books that otherwise would drop out of print. I stumbled onto John Krygier’s online collection of such books as I work my way through the University Library and went hunting for others reading, collecting or studying works

46:56

Episode 36: Hannah Emery was a bookstore manager

What People Do ·

2022/05/24

When I spoke to her, Hannah was a manager at The Dusty Bookshelf in Manhattan, Kan., home of Kansas State University. Her location—there’s another in Lawrence, home to University of Kansas—sells new books, used books, gifts and other sundries and, yes, coffee. Hannah liked the coffee side of things so much, the hustle and bustle, helping folks fast and efficiently, that she was about to run off on a new adventure to manage a coffee shop in downtown Chicago. That’s a big leap for a young lady who

01:06:11

Episode 35: Jeffery D. Long on Hinduism, religious...

What People Do ·

2022/05/10

Jainism, birthed out of the rich religions of India, asks practitioners to be as careful as they can in not hurting a single thing. They step carefully on the ground and wear masks to avoid inhaling and accidentally killing the little things we thoughtlessly murder. Now, that, but writ large: Gandhi, and the nonviolent movement that sought Indian independence from British rule. Well, we don’t talk about any of that, because as a fellow religious convert, I much more wanted to discuss Jeffery D

01:03:17

Episode 34: Portia Stewart is a creativity consultant

What People Do ·

2022/04/26

Oh, that means she does art projects at the local museum? No. Right, well, that means she helps creatives unstick when they’re working on their novels, like, say, Julie Cameron? Well, a little closer. No, Portia (at Mind Full Creatives) is really on the path of helping anyone with unleashing their creativity, but especially those who want to unleash creativity and actually get something done, whether that's a “solo-preneur” or a group of corporate bigwigs or multiple internal teams clashing right

01:06:47

Episode 33: Tania Rodriguez, Leah Ferguson study how...

What People Do ·

2022/03/29

How do you keep learning when you get old? Keep learning when you get old. It’s not a riddle, say Tania Rodriguez and Leah Ferguson (with the red streaks on the left, if you see the thumbnail) working at the Calla Lab at UC Riverside with their inspiring leader, Rachel Wu, PhD. (Stay to the end to hear how awesome Wu is.) Rodriguez is a first-year PhD student in the psychology program studying low-income minority older adults helping them to increase cognitive function and stave off cognitive

54:28

Episode 32: Kelly Main acts

What People Do ·

2022/03/15

Kelly and I used to work together, and she was always very high-energy, a big laugher, a loud, ringing and positive voice. She was in sales, so none of that should surprise. But what I found out later, after I’d worked with her for a while, was she was an actress. Maybe on temporary, busy-life hiatus, but she’d had a whole ‘nother life before this one in the arts, in New York acting school, in New York performing and tryouts. Years before. And she was back at it, trying out for a local this,

58:37

Episode 31: Carol Branson makes whimsy-ponderable art

What People Do ·

2022/03/01

"Whimsy ponderable”: how Carol Branson’s friend described her art. I’d call it child-like, folk-art-flavored found art. You can see the fun, but it makes you think, too. Her online gallery starts with old guitars and goes from there. My daughter is particularly partial, in a major way, to the skateboard art. There’s wood, metal, paint and lighting elements: found objects transformed into feelings and color. Carol shares how she started in art, how theater and art played roles in comforting and

01:06:31

Episode 30: Monica Kirkpatrick Johnson studies...

What People Do ·

2022/02/15

I throw inflammatory questions and opinions about teenagers at Washington State University sociology professor Monica Kirkpatrick Johnson, and she handles them with aplomb. Teenagers have a rough time, and different teenagers have different rough times depending on who they are, where they live, what their parents are like, and how much money they've got. Most interesting, and sounding right, Monica discusses the "package" we're born with: Our rough or easy teenage transition as a life stage usually

01:03:57

Episode 29: Jeremy Black studies war (and talks...

What People Do ·

2022/02/01

Jeremy Black spoke to me Jan. 1, 2022, so he seems the perfect guest to share first in this new season. He talks about one of the most emotionally fraught issues of human civilization, War and Violence(TM), with a historian's pragmatism and a respect for those affected by the war, especially the dead. I start off on some rant here about war being "bad," and he adds nuance and refuses to be baited into black-and-white thinking. One of his most recent books, A Short History of War (2021, Yale

56:41

Episode 28: Jonathon Stalls draws on paper, draws in...

What People Do ·

2021/10/27

I found Jonathon Stalls on TikTok, where @pedestriandignity highlights the ugly, unpleasant and, worst of all, dangerous world of pedestrian travel in today's towns and cities. Sidewalks are overgrown, shoved next to roaring highways, or stop in the middle of nowhere for no reason. And that's just for those who can walk comfortably: What about the strollers? The wheelchairs? The walkers? Pedestrians don't have enough dignity. The commercial and residential world around us ignores them. This episode

56:25

Episode 27: Rachel Rilinger teaches Tai Chi Chih

What People Do ·

2021/10/13

She saw her aunt doing it decades ago and got into it then. This spiritual movement of body and energy is less exercise (Tai Chi) and more moving chi. Do the movements standing. Or sitting. Or visualize them lying down. Rachel (who was my very first What People Do podcast guest ever) swears by Tai Chi Chih (tay chee chuh) and has found such joyous rewards through the movements that she's a certified teacher. Dive in with us ... and check out the originator, the man it came to, Justin Stone doing a

52:13

Episode 26: Ronn Pawo McLane teaches meditation

What People Do ·

2021/08/24

He studied and worked with Lama Surya Das for years. He's got a cool podcast, online courses, a published set of meditations and he's working on an app. This cat has some cool thoughts and a thoughtful and very ecumenical and open-minded approach to quieting the mind. P.S. The picture is my daughter from years ago from, and she learned a little meditation with a counselor in a group in elementary school. But she doesn't do it now. I don't think. She should start again. I mean, she just started

56:24

Episode 25: Adam Clare makes games and teaches game...

What People Do ·

2021/08/16

Educational games get a bad rap. If more of them were made by Adam Clare, maybe I'd like them more. Adam admits some of the things that make bad educational games bad, but then makes interesting distinctions between free play and designed games and delves into how education infuses his views on the environment and, yes, on COVID. I mean, can we escape it? We can't. You should play Dr. Trolley's Problem, if you're curious. While rudimentary in its graphics, wave after wave of consideration,

51:52

Episode 24: Mike built a nice garden ... for everybody

What People Do ·

2021/07/21

I noticed during then pandemic that one of the home owners whose property butts up against a trail at a nearby park started putting up flowers. And signs. And a bench. And nice messages for folks who were being emotionally beaten up by the pandemic. It started with being irritated with a bunch of overgrown poison ivy and a tendency to flood during rain. And it turned into something special. People sent him letters. Park walkers talked to him on days when he was out working on it. Somebody painted

58:11

Episode 23: Gabrielle Roman writes

What People Do ·

2021/07/07

It's been a long time, so we're gonna call this season two, yeah? We're back with a personally helpful conversation about writing: how she does it, how she did it, how she started, and, because I'm self-centered, what I can learn (and by extension, you can learn) from her about my own writing. Find out how the first hit of audience dopamine hit for Gabs with her first fan, what she does to make sure she keeps writing in her busy life, and why she thinks anyone who wants to write should just write

32:05

Episode 22: Ryan Kramer has hermit crabs

What People Do ·

2021/01/05

My friend Ryan is a master of investigating technological problems as well as a beautiful, efficient, brilliant designer in physical media and in the digital world. And he has hermit crabs. So, of course, I skipped right to that in my podcast with him here. They live in his house. His 6-year-old (at the time) daughter wanted them and named them (but then, of course, Ryan winds up caring for them, reluctant-sitcom-dad-style). “A larger pet was never going to get through the parental authorities,”

39:00

Episode 21: Bash Halow writes plays

What People Do ·

2020/10/28

NOTE: Hey. I’ve been gone a while. I’ve got two podcast interviews lined up from before. Now they’re gonna come out. This one, now. Another one, soon. Then … I don’t have any more interviews lined up yet. I’m a firm believer that everyone has something important or fun or relatable to say about something. Who’s next? Also, there’s a grind as Bash’s phone call fell out, but I think the gist of it carries through. “The only thing I know … is how to fail at writing plays,” jokes (not jokes) Bash Halow

29:22

Episode 20: Dr. Shawn Finch chills out with coloring...

What People Do ·

2020/09/30

Dr. Finch and I have sat a few times at veterinary conferences and mused over introversion, work and life stress, and mental health. She’s one of the world’s genuinely good people, so when she talked years ago to me about how she used coloring books in veterinary practice to decompress, I was intrigued. Now, years later, she needed her friend and veterinary technician colleague, Allison Parker, to talk her back into daily coloring again. With the pandemic, “life has gotten more stressful for

53:39

Episode 19: Dr. Robin Downing studies (and teaches)...

What People Do ·

2020/09/09

“Just because we can do something to -- or for -- an animal,” asks Robin Downing, DVM, MS, DAAPM, DACVSMR, CVPP, CCRP, “does that mean we should?” A practicing veterinarian, teacher and business owner, Robin’s interest in pain, animals and caring for living things has translated in the past few years into study of how the field of human bioethics could shape, and be shaped by, the in-the-trenches concerns and situations that practicing veterinarians face every day. She’s now pursuing a PhD in the

99 results

What People Do

All Episodes

Similar Podcasts

Voices of Life

APG Mannheim

Promo Estereo Podcast

Promo Estereo

Talking Timelines Podcast

Talkingtimelines

גיקונומי

ראם שרמן ודורון ניר

Drømmefanger

Drømmefanger