Category: podcast

Hitting It Out of The Park

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“How can you not be romantic about baseball?” – Michael Lewis in Moneyball

Sometimes when my kids and I are looking for something to do on a weekend, I’ll take them to ride the light rail. We ride from our Seattle neighborhood just north of downtown to the stop near the baseball stadium that is just south of downtown. Last year we lucked out with perfect timing on a day the Seattle Mariners were playing. We watched at all the people streaming towards the stadium, bought peanuts from a street vendor, and sat on a bench munching salty goodness as the first sounds of the game started drifting towards us.

This year I’m planning on actually taking my kids to a game but I’m always amazed at how fun just the atmosphere of baseball is. So when Vicki suggested we podcast with her friend and former colleague, Bruce Bohrer, about his post retirement stint as an usher for the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, I was game.

There is something perfectly poetic about Bruce, the former director of admissions at Harper College going on to be in “admissions” at Wrigley field as an usher. And then jotting notes about the marriage proposals, the vendor songs, and all the sights, sounds, and smells of a ball park to write a book about it.

As we recorded this episode, we swung for the fences and Bruce short-stopped a question or two. Ss we were waved on for home, we squeezed in some more of Bruce’s great stories. I could go on and on with the baseball puns because they are so baked in to our lexicon. But I’ll end here with an item on the gratitude list of playwright and author Jack Canfora, from his post Dear Lord, Not Another Post on this Blog About Gratitude:

“For the sound of a bat hitting a baseball and a fastball hitting a catcher’s mitt. Anytime, but especially in early spring.”

Jack Canfora

Doesn’t that crack open a memory or two? If you are up for listening to a podcast, I think you’ll find this one really fun and enjoyable. Search for Sharing the Heart of the Matter on Apple, Amazon, Spotify or Pocket Casts or click here to listen to the episode on Anchor:  Episode 13: The Best Seat in the House with Bruce Bohrer

And for links to Bruce’s book, here are the show notes and more info on Heart of the Matter: Episode 13 show notes

The Hook

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“Just because they are a story doesn’t mean they’re not real.” – H. M. Bouwman

I was talking to Adam, one of Mr. D’s preschool teachers who was a newspaper writer in one of his previous jobs. (I think there’s a whole post I should write of how lucky Mr. D is to have such interesting and experienced teachers). He told me that he once interviewed Jim and Lou Whittaker, the now 94-year-old legendary Seattle mountain climbing twins and entrepreneurs.

So I asked him what his favorite interview was and he said, without hesitation, Ginger Rogers. Apparently, the arts writer was sick the day Ginger Rogers came to Seattle to promote a book she’d written and Adam said he couldn’t get his hand up fast enough to volunteer. His memory of it was that “It was the closest thing to royalty I’ve ever experienced.”

I bring this up because Vicki Atkinson and I did a Sharing the Heart of the Matter podcast interview with Stuart Perkins, of the Storyshucker blog. In my mind, he is part of WordPress community royalty. Part of this is strictly personal because he was the first person to follow me, and most of it is because of his ability as a storyteller. He told us he loves to use a “hook,” something to draw the reader in and it’s a tool he uses to great effect.

Talking with Stuart, we learned about his base – growing up on a plot of land in rural Virginia. His grandmother, “Nannie” had land there and gave each of her 5 kids adjoining plots so Stuart grew up in the rich base of family and garden that he describes so often in his posts. Nannie and that simple life as told in evocative, touching, and rich stories.

A great base, a simpler time, a big family of storytellers – all great hooks. Like Mr D’s preschool teacher, Adam described, I couldn’t have been more thrilled to do this interview with the fantastic and fun Stuart Perkins. I hope you’ll listen and subscribe.

Search for Sharing the Heart of the Matter on Apple, Amazon, Spotify or Pocket Casts or click here to listen to Episode 12: On Storytelling with Stuart M. Perkins on Anchor.

Show notes are on the Heart of the Matter blog: Episode 12 show notes

Putting a Voice To a Name

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“The art of conversation lies in listening.” – Thomas Jefferson

There is so much to love about this blogging journey – the practice of writing down my stories, the delight of being able to read other people’s offerings, and the friendships that evolve over time when we comment.

And my recent foray into podcasting has just amped up this experience because it’s so fun to put real voices to people who I’ve read. To converse and have dialogue about what’s important and interesting from their point of view is so fun!!

I recently got to have a podcast conversation with Edgerton award winning playwright Jack Canfora about Why Theater Matters. I could gush endlessly about Jack. And I often do. I’ve had a writer’s crush on him for forever because he speaks to my heart. Every time I talk with him, read him, or listen/watch one of his plays, I come away smarter and more human. 

For anyone that has read Jack on Wise & Shine or his personal blog, listened to his audio drama in podcast form, Step 9, or just wants to find out what play Lincoln was watching when he was shot, I’d love for you to tune in to this Sharing the Heart of the Matter podcast: Episode 4: Why Theater Matters on Anchor. (you can also find our podcast on Apple, Amazon, Spotify and Pocket Casts by searching for Sharing the Heart of the Matter – and please subscribe)

And here’s a link to the show notes on The Heart of the Matter.