Ep. 227: From Rio to LA: Brazilian Dancer Dani Ke'lly on Samba, Survival & Reinvention

Ep. 239: He Talks to His Late Wife Every Day — And She Wrote a Book With Him

Tim Bair is the author of Ever Near, a memoir and spiritual account of his ongoing relationship with his late wife Marilyn, who passed away from gastric cancer in 2017. Beginning just one week after her death, Tim began hearing Marilyn's voice — first audibly during a walk, then through what became a practice of writing letters together. That collection of letters, now numbering over 400, forms the foundation of his book series. In this episode, Tim talks about how their bond transcended physical life, how Marilyn helped him through years of chronic pain from a spinal injury, and what she has shared about her experience on the other side — including teaching classes in the spirit realm on how to communicate with living loved ones. Tim also offers a gentle framework for anyone who has lost someone: starting with grief, moving toward nostalgia, and simply allowing the possibility that connection might continue. Ever Near is available on Amazon. Tim is currently working on his second book in the series. https://a.co/d/08eLmOkq Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com [https://www.sixfoot5prod.com]  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977  [https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 ] Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ep. 238: Surviving My Mother's Cult: Peggy on Escape, Trauma & Finding Your Voice

Peggy is the author of Surviving the Family Kingdom: A Memoir of Growing Up in a Mom's Cult, Escaping and Reclaiming a Life, available now on Amazon. A psychotherapist of more than 20 years specializing in trauma, she sat down with Zach to talk through her extraordinary story — from the violent men and instability of her early childhood, to the gradual systematic indoctrination that began around age 11, to the "domino effect" that finally collapsed the kingdom when she walked away. We get into the four trauma responses (and why children most often "fawn"), the lasting toll of chronic cortisol stress on the body, deprogramming from beliefs about destiny and demons, radical acceptance, forgiveness, and what it meant for Peggy to raise her own children with a voice she was never allowed to have. If you've ever survived a controlling environment — a cult, an abusive relationship, a toxic family — this one is for you. 📖 Get the book: Surviving the Family Kingdom on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Surviving-Family-Kingdom-Escaping-Reclaiming-ebook/dp/B0GMKLM4FW [https://www.amazon.com/Surviving-Family-Kingdom-Escaping-Reclaiming-ebook/dp/B0GMKLM4FW]  💬 Leave a comment and tell us what you think — and please leave Peggy a review on Amazon. Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com [https://www.sixfoot5prod.com]  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977  [https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 ] Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ep. 237: Grant Ginder: New Baby, New Book & Aging as a Gay Man | So Old, So Young

Grant Ginder is the author of six novels, including The People We Hate at Weddings (adapted into the 2024 film starring Kristen Bell and Ben Platt) and his latest, So Old, So Young — a story that drops in on six college friends across five parties over twenty years. A University of Pennsylvania grad and former Washington speechwriter, Grant now teaches in the MFA program at NYU. In this episode: * Welcoming baby Celia via surrogacy — and the woman who made it possible * How Frankie the dog became the world's gentlest big… er, little-sister supervisor * The So Old, So Young structure: five parties, twenty years, six friends * Writing (and wanting to burn) his first novel at 23 after a brutal breakup * The millennial reckoning with homeownership, kids, and the markers of "real" adulthood * Sipping gin and tonics through a Watch What Happens Live taping with Erika Jayne and Elizabeth Perkins * The Long Island Railroad wine binge that birthed The People We Hate at Weddings * Meeting husband Mac (and the handshake that almost killed it) * Phones, performance culture, and why we were "so lucky" to grow up offline 📚 Grab So Old, So Young — https://www.grantginder.com [https://www.grantginder.com]  🏳️‍🌈 Catch Grant at East End Books in Provincetown this September, including an event with John Glenn for his queer Arthurian retelling The Lost Book of Lancelot. CHAPTER MARKERS / TIMESTAMPS 00:00  Welcome — meet author Grant Ginder 00:30  Surprise! A brand-new baby (not a horse) 02:58  The surrogacy journey & their "hero" surrogate 05:31  So Old, So Young — the book 06:00  Getting tipsy on Watch What Happens Live 08:45  Five parties, twenty years: the book's structure 11:35  Laguna Beach to UPenn to speechwriting 13:00  Writing a novel at 23 after his first heartbreak 14:41  "How did I get to 40?" — the passage of time 17:50  Why millennials hit adulthood differently 20:36  The People We Hate at Weddings 21:55  Four bottles of wine & the train ride that started it all 23:48  The 2024 movie (Kristen Bell & Ben Platt) 24:08  Meeting husband Mac — and the dreaded handshake 29:11  Phones, performance & a Swedish Lapland digital detox 31:40  How Frankie the dog took to baby Celia 32:54  What's next: new book + a September in P-Town Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com [https://www.sixfoot5prod.com]  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977  [https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 ] Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ep. 236: Where Did the Rainbows Go? The Truth About Corporate Pride

The rainbow flags are missing this June — and the silence is telling. In this Pride Month episode, Zach goes deep on rainbow washing (a.k.a. rainbow capitalism): what it is, where it came from, how it took over Pride, and why corporations are now retreating in record numbers. From the 1969 Stonewall riots to Subaru's coded 1990s lesbian marketing, from the Bud Light and Target blowups of 2023 to the six-figure sponsorship shortfalls hitting New York, San Francisco, and Seattle Pride right now — this is the honest conversation about what corporate Pride was really about, what we lose when it leaves, and why this painful moment might be the most clarifying one our community has had in decades. Because Pride didn't start as a party. It started as a protest. And it's finding its way back. ⏱️ Chapters  00:00 Where did all the rainbow flags go?  02:00 Stonewall: Pride started as a riot, not a party  03:30 How corporate America got into Pride  07:00 What rainbow washing actually is  09:30 The 2023 turning point: Bud Light & Target  13:00 The 2026 numbers: a staggering corporate retreat  15:00 The community fights back: Twin Cities Pride  18:00 What real allyship actually looks like  19:00 Where this leaves us Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com [https://www.sixfoot5prod.com]  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977  [https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 ] Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ep. 235: Is the LGBTQ+ Community Divided? A Pride Month Wake-Up Call | The Gay Bit

Are we losing LGBTQ+ unity — or do we just need to rebuild what it looks like? In this Friday's Gay Bit, Zach digs into the division he's been watching play out inside the community: gay men turning on trans folks, bisexual and pansexual people getting invalidated, non-binary identities misunderstood, and comment sections full of people who'd rather criticize than get curious. He reflects on the incredible bravery of the people he's interviewed — including a friend who came out at 52 to his wife and three sons, and trans women who transitioned later in life after decades of feeling something was missing. He gets real about why he struggles to ignore the trolls, what this podcast has taught him about respecting trans experiences, and the 650+ anti-trans bills moving through government right now. The big idea: the world still sees us as one community. When we divide internally, we hand our opponents the cracks they're looking for. Unity in 2026 isn't about ignoring our differences — it's about choosing understanding, one conversation at a time. This Pride Month, Zach's challenge is simple: you don't have to be best friends with everyone in the alphabet. Just respect them. Just be kind. In this episode: * The bravery of coming out — and transitioning — later in life * Why Zach can't stop reading (and fighting) the comments * Gay men vs. trans folks, and where the real division is coming from * Bisexual, pansexual, and non-binary identities under the same umbrella * The 650+ anti-trans bills and why "it doesn't affect me" doesn't fly * Hope on the horizon: Hungary, Stonewall, and the moments that prove we can come together 🎧 Listen to Everything & Anything…and a Bit Gay wherever you get your podcasts 🌐 everythingandanythingpodcast.com Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com [https://www.sixfoot5prod.com]  Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977  [https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 ] Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.