Go Go Stop Go

9: Jen and Ben Tsai

My in-laws Jen (Chu-Jen) and Ben (Yi-Ben) Tsai moved to the US since 50 years ago to earn advanced degrees. They know my history and my mom but also have interesting life stories of their own to share, including the struggles and dangers of growing up in rural Taiwan and being the first in their immediate families to move to the US. After a nine-year fight with lymphoma, my father-in-law died on January 31st, 2018. With deep respect and appreciation for my in-laws, I share this conversation I recorded in their dining room in July 2017. Additional Notes: Ben Tsai died of lymphoma. If you’d like to contribute to lymphoma research, please send a check to: Stanford Cancer Center Clinic “C” Attention: Dr. Ranjana Advani 875 Blake Wilbur Dr. Palo Alto, CA 94305 We heard about flooding and earthquakes in Taiwan. By one measure, Taiwan leads the world in being at risk from natural disasters, with 73% of its population at risk of three or more types of natural disasters -- more than any other country. See Table 1.1 on page 4 of the World Bank article “Natural Disaster Hotspots: A Global Risk Analysis”, 2005. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/7376 My father-in-law helped instrument Taiwan with hundreds of seismic sensors. That network of sensors was completed in 1996, allowing Taiwan to collect a significant amount of data when the tragic Chi-Chi earthquake struck in 1999. The earthquake measured 7.6 on the Richter scale and, according to a FEMA article, “As a result, at least 2,400 people were killed, 8,700 were injured, 600,000 people were left homeless, and about 82,000 housing units were damaged by the earthquake and large aftershocks. Damage was estimated at 14 billion U.S. dollars. FEMA article on natural disasters in Taiwan: https://training.fema.gov/hiedu/downloads/compemmgmtbookproject/comparative%20em%20book%20-%20em%20in%20taiwan.pdf Early report after the Chi-Chi 1999 earthquake, including a summary of the seismic instrumentation program my father-in-law helped implement: http://www.iris.washington.edu/news/events/taiwan/taiwan99reports/chi-chi1.html

8: Nancy and Bill Pickett

I was inspired to start this show after losing my mom in August 2016. My mom lived in her home in San Diego until she was 80. It made me worry at times because she didn’t have any family there and I was a 90-minute flight or 8-hour drive away in San Francisco. A big reason she was able to stay in her home so long was because she had a network of friends and neighbors who would help her out. Today you’ll hear my conversation with two of those neighbors, who lived across the street from my mom for nearly 40 years and were part of her support structure. Bill and Nancy Pickett are in their 80s and going strong. Bill is a semi-retired engineer who still works 3 days a week. Nancy recently oversaw a kitchen remodel and celebrated her 80th birthday at a San Diego brewery.

7: Rick Richman

I talk with Rick Richman, Founder and CEO of Firepie, about overcoming challenges in his life, including a truly tragic loss and personal challenges few are willing to discuss openly. He talks about his perseverance through all that pain and eventually leaving a high-paying tech job to start his own business.

6: Nancy Hadzima

Nancy Hadzima worked with my mom for many years at a public day care center in San Diego, California. We talk about that and share stories about losing parents, including how the loss of her father made it hard for her to enjoy Thanksgiving for many years.

5: Nancy Lublin

I talk with Nancy Lublin, an accomplished entrepreneur who is now the founder and CEO of the tech non-profit Crisis Text Line. There is some swearing in this episode, so consider listening with headphones if you're around children. press 1.jpg [https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af1740f7e0ab91b226f475/1506624087204-GUUW8BPPXDLRHK25RF8H/press+1.jpg?format=1000w] Links for this episode: Crisis Text Line: http://crisistextline.org (get text-based help in the US by texting to 741-741) Nancy Lublin's TED Talk: http://bit.ly/NancyLTEDTalk Omidyar Network was kind enough to provide Nancy and me a conference room to record in. More about them at https://www.omidyar.com/ Nancy mentioned the work of Good Call (https://goodcall.nyc/), the New Yorker article by Jennifer Gonnerman about Kalief Browder (https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/10/06/before-the-law), and Sarah Lacy, who produces the blog Pando Daily (https://pando.com/).