"You do not have to be good," said Mary Oliver

"You do not have to be good," said Mary Oliver

She won the Pulitzer. She spent forty years loving a woman named Molly. She wrote more poems about birds than almost anything else. Hannah + Cleo celebrate Pride Month with Mary Oliver. A quiet queer icon, nature's poet, and the writer who convinced a generation that paying attention is a radical act. 32:10 Mary Oliver conversation starts Music by fknsyd Please listen to this [https://open.spotify.com/episode/4vpOCjCYer5BcP1TpxZ82v?si=fd28202a2b35465c] Sources Primary Sources: * Oliver, Mary. New and Selected Poems, Volume One. Beacon Press, 1992. * Oliver, Mary. New and Selected Poems, Volume Two. Beacon Press, 2005. * Oliver, Mary. Why I Wake Early. Beacon Press, 2004. * Oliver, Mary. Blue Horses. Penguin Press, 2014. * Oliver, Mary. Upstream: Selected Essays. Penguin Press, 2016. * Oliver, Mary. Our World (photographs by Molly Malone Cook). Beacon Press, 2007. * Oliver, Mary. Felicity: Poems. Penguin Press, 2015. (Recommended acquisition for love story section) Academic: * Cardenas, Elijah. "'A Poem Should Always Have Birds in It': Birds in Mary Oliver's Poetry." The Macksey Journal, Vol. 3, Article 64, Johns Hopkins University, 2022. * Keegan, Bridget. "The wisdom of the owls: gender, nature and spirituality in the poetry of Mary Oliver." Journal of Religion and Society, Supplement Series, Vol. 5, 2009. * Burton-Christie, Douglas. "Nature, Spirit, and Imagination in the Poetry of Mary Oliver." CrossCurrents, Vol. 46, No. 1, Spring 1996. * Murphy, Patrick D. "Pollywogs and Polylogues: Material Spirituality in the Writings of Mary Oliver." ANQ, Vol. 33, No. 4, 2020. * Davis, Todd. "The Earth as God's Body: Incarnation as Communion in the Poetry of Mary Oliver." Christianity & Literature, Vol. 58, No. 4, 2009. * Ullyatt, Gisela. "'The Only Chance to Love This World': Buddhist Mindfulness in Mary Oliver's Poetry." Journal of Literary Studies, Vol. 27, No. 2, 2011. * Bonds, D.S. "The Language of Nature in the Poetry of Mary Oliver." Women's Studies, Vol. 21, No. 1, 1992. Biographical / Journalism: * "Mary Oliver: Nature Poet." New Jersey Conservation Foundation. njconservation.org [http://njconservation.org], April 2019. * "Mary Oliver, Acclaimed Lesbian Poet, Dies at 83." The Advocate, January 18, 2019. * "Mary Oliver, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Lesbian Poet, Is Dead at 83." Autostraddle, January 2019. * McDonald, Lexi. "Re-reading Mary Oliver as an Adult Lesbian: A Review of Felicity." Lesbrary, November 2025. * "Felicity by Mary Oliver." Lambda Literary Review, April 2016. * Thibodeau, Amy. "Big-Hearted Poems: A Review of Felicity." Medium, December 2015. * "Mary Oliver on Love and Its Necessary Wildness." The Marginalian, October 2015. * "Mary Oliver's World with Molly Malone Cook." Music and Musings, December 2020. * Library of Congress Manuscript Division: "Mary Oliver Papers Newly Available." blogs.loc.gov [http://blogs.loc.gov], June 2024. * "Mary Oliver: 10 Quotes from the Pulitzer-Winning Lesbian Poet." PinkNews, June 2019. * "On the Overlooked Eroticism of Mary Oliver." Literary Hub, March 2019. * "Epitaph to a Photographer." The Gay & Lesbian Review, 2008. * Poetry Foundation biography: poetryfoundation.org/poets/mary-oliver [http://poetryfoundation.org/poets/mary-oliver] * Academy of American Poets biography: poets.org/poet/mary-oliver [http://poets.org/poet/mary-oliver] * Library of Congress exhibit: "Mary Oliver: Poet of the Natural World," 2025. Documentary: * Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World. PBS American Masters, Season 40, Episode 5. Premiere: August 25, 2026. pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/mary-oliver-documentary/37967/ [http://pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/mary-oliver-documentary/37967/]

A Flamboyance: American Flamingos

A true Pride Parade, an LGBTQIA+ episode, and even the star of our podcast cover art: The iconic American Flamingo! Hannah + Cleo continue their Pride Month celebration by diving into the world of this hot pink bird. Join us as we explore the colorful history and science of American flamingos in this fabulously flamboyant episode. Music by fknsyd 19:30 American flamingos discussion starts Sources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEgACdOetEc&t=457s [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEgACdOetEc&t=457s] https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/grefla2/cur/introduction?login [https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/grefla2/cur/introduction?login] https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Flamingo/overview [https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Flamingo/overview] https://ielc.libguides.com/sdzg/factsheets/americanflamingo/characteristics [https://ielc.libguides.com/sdzg/factsheets/americanflamingo/characteristics] https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Phoenicopterus_ruber/ [https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Phoenicopterus_ruber/] https://krdo.com/news/2024/08/21/same-sex-flamingo-pair-successfully-hatches-an-egg-together-at-a-uk-zoo/?utm_source=chatgpt.com [https://krdo.com/news/2024/08/21/same-sex-flamingo-pair-successfully-hatches-an-egg-together-at-a-uk-zoo/?utm_source=chatgpt.com] https://nypost.com/2024/08/21/science/same-sex-flamingo-pair-hatch-chick-the-parents-are-doing-a-great-job/?utm_source=chatgpt.com [https://nypost.com/2024/08/21/science/same-sex-flamingo-pair-hatch-chick-the-parents-are-doing-a-great-job/?utm_source=chatgpt.com] https://www.southhams-today.co.uk/news/same-sex-flamingo-couple-successfully-hatch-a-chick-712705?utm_source=chatgpt.com [https://www.southhams-today.co.uk/news/same-sex-flamingo-couple-successfully-hatch-a-chick-712705?utm_source=chatgpt.com] https://people.com/same-sex-chilean-flamingo-couple-hatch-and-care-for-chick-8696536?utm_source=chatgpt.com [https://people.com/same-sex-chilean-flamingo-couple-hatch-and-care-for-chick-8696536?utm_source=chatgpt.com] https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/21/science/same-sex-flamingos-hatch-egg [https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/21/science/same-sex-flamingos-hatch-egg] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0376635719303377#:~:text=Both [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0376635719303377#:~:text=Both]male-male and female,irrespective of enclosure size differences). https://bi.org/en/resource/bi-and-pretty-in-pink-bisexuality-in-flamingos/ [https://bi.org/en/resource/bi-and-pretty-in-pink-bisexuality-in-flamingos/] https://otterlieffe.com/queer-flamingos/ [https://otterlieffe.com/queer-flamingos/] Documentary: Queer Planet https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/news/why-are-flamingos-pink-and-other-flamingo-facts [https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/news/why-are-flamingos-pink-and-other-flamingo-facts] https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-one-mans-pink-plastic-flamingo-landed-lawns [https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-one-mans-pink-plastic-flamingo-landed-lawns]

Lesbian Seabirds: The Laysan Albatross

They mate for life, they dance for years to get there, and at least thirty percent of them are female-female pairs. Hannah + Cleo celebrate Pride Month with the Laysan albatross! The seabird that quietly dismantled assumptions about pair bonding, raising chicks together, and currently adapting to survive in our inhospitable oceans. Lindsay Young's 2008 discovery at Kaena Point changed the game. 28:48 Albatross conversation starts Music by fknsyd Sources All About Birds / Cornell Lab of Ornithology — Laysan Albatross Discover Wildlife (Lucy Cooke) — "Hawaii's Lesbian Albatrosses" National Geographic (Carl Zimmer) — "Same-Sex Mothers: Letting Albatrosses Be Albatrosses" / Young & VanderWerf, Proceedings of the Royal Society, 2013 Wikipedia — Albatross (metaphor), Laysan Albatross, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner Audubon Society — field guide, courtship, Wisdom U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service — Midway Atoll NWR, Wisdom updates Earth Sky — Wisdom 2025–2026 season Oceana — conservation profile Taylor Swift — The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology (2024) Samuel Taylor Coleridge — The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798) Seafood watch “app” [https://www.seafoodwatch.org/recommendations/add-seafood-watch-to-your-phone] Ecobricking Info [https://www.youtube.com/shorts/e_UI1PMy-e8]

BoB IRL: Bird Banding

A century of science packed into a single feather. Hannah + Cleo visit a 20-year-old banding station at Chatfield State Park, where four organizations, a lot of whisper nets, and one very informed bird bander are quietly building the data that keeps birds alive. From Hans Christian Mortensen's aluminum rings to hemisphere-spanning genomic maps, it turns out the oldest trick in ornithology is still the backbone of everything. 26:58 Bird Banding conversation starts Sources Bird Conservancy of the Rockies — Bird Banding: https://www.birdconservancy.org/what-we-do/education/bird-banding/ [https://www.birdconservancy.org/what-we-do/education/bird-banding/] Denver Audubon — Bird Banding: https://www.denveraudubon.org/bird-banding [https://www.denveraudubon.org/bird-banding] Audubon Rockies — Bird Banding Start to Finish: https://www.audubon.org/rockies/news/bird-banding-start-finish [https://www.audubon.org/rockies/news/bird-banding-start-finish] USGS — Why We Band Birds: https://www.usgs.gov/labs/bird-banding-laboratory/science/why-we-band-birds [https://www.usgs.gov/labs/bird-banding-laboratory/science/why-we-band-birds] USGS — How to obtain a federal bird banding permit: https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/how-do-i-obtain-a-federal-bird-banding-permit [https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/how-do-i-obtain-a-federal-bird-banding-permit] Bird Genoscape Project: https://www.birdgenoscape.org [https://www.birdgenoscape.org] Bird Genoscape Project - How To Make A Genoscape: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NmCI6z9vYM [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NmCI6z9vYM] Audubon Bird Migration Explorer: https://explorer.audubon.org [https://explorer.audubon.org] Motus Wildlife Tracking System: https://motus.org [https://motus.org] U.S. Fish & Wildlife — Motus Stations: https://www.fws.gov/story/2023-05/motus-stations [https://www.fws.gov/story/2023-05/motus-stations] NA Banding Network — Training resources: https://nabanding.net/passerines/training/ [https://nabanding.net/passerines/training/] History of bird banding: https://www.raptorresource.org/2020/06/10/banding-birds-a-brief-history/ [https://www.raptorresource.org/2020/06/10/banding-birds-a-brief-history/] USGS Bird Banding Lab — Banding records: https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/Bander_Portal/login/howmany.php [https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/Bander_Portal/login/howmany.php] EURING Databank (Europe): https://euring.org/data-and-codes/euring-databank [https://euring.org/data-and-codes/euring-databank] SAFRING (Africa): https://safring.ringing.africa/ [https://safring.ringing.africa/] Flight Paths by Rebecca Heisman

She Walks on Water: The Jacana

She walks on water, runs the territory, and leaves dad holding the babies. Hannah + Cleo dive into the Jacana: the Jesus bird of the wetlands who breaks every rule nature supposedly wrote and somehow ended up tied to the oldest conservation treaty in history. And honestly? She's just getting started. 18:18 Jacana conversation starts Sources: Wikipedia: Jacanidae [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacanidae] Wikipedia: Northern Jacana [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_jacana] Wikipedia: Ramsar Convention [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramsar_Convention] Wikipedia: Wetland [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wetland] Wikipedia: Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wildfowl_%26_Wetlands_Trust] San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants: Jacana [https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/jacana] https://ebird.org/species/norjac [https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Jacana] Animal Diversity Web: Jacanidae [https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Jacanidae/] A-Z Animals: Jacana [https://a-z-animals.com/animals/jacana/] https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/jacani1/cur/introduction [https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/family/jacana1/cur/introduction] https://earthsky.org/earth/jacana-birds-long-toes-walk-on-lily-pads/ [https://earthsky.org/earth/jacana-jesus-bird-walks-on-water/] https://www.birdnote.org/podcasts/birdnote-daily/jacana-aka-lily-trotter [https://www.birdnote.org/listen/shows/jacana] Dimensions.com: Northern Jacana [https://www.dimensions.com/element/northern-jacana-jacana-spinosa] https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/lucy-cooke-2/bitch/9781541674912/ [https://www.basicbooks.com/titles/lucy-cooke/bitch/9781541618244/] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-70480-6 [https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-38871-5] U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service — Ramsar Convention on Wetlands [https://www.fws.gov/program/international-affairs/ramsar-convention-wetlands] UNESCO — Convention on Wetlands of International Importance [https://www.unesco.org/en/biodiversity/wetlands] Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust — Why the Ramsar Convention Matters More Than Ever [https://www.wwt.org.uk/discover-wetlands/blog/why-the-ramsar-convention-on-wetlands-matters-more-than-ever] Hoosier Environmental Council — The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands [https://www.hecweb.org/2025/02/04/the-ramsar-convention-on-wetlands-towards-a-global-wetland-protection-network/] Kayhan Life — Obituary: Eskandar Firouz [https://kayhanlife.com/obituary/eskandar-firouz-founder-of-irans-department-of-environment-dies-at-93/] https://www.ramsar.org/ [https://www.ramsar.org/sites-countries/the-ramsar-sites] Colorado Wetland Information Center (CWIC) [https://cnhp.colostate.edu/cwic/]