Soul Forge Podcast
Episodes
Thursday Feb 28, 2019
The Best Guy She Knows - 90
Thursday Feb 28, 2019
Thursday Feb 28, 2019
Are you the best guy she knows? Shawn's best friend from university, Stephanie, comes for a visit and a chat about the old times. Steph tells Shawn why she thinks he is the best guy she knows.
Stephanie came for a weekend visit and guest hosted on Shawn's other show, The Rusted Robot Podcast. To hear her podcast debut, check out episode 235 of that show. Some of her opinions were in direct contrast to those of Shawn's co-host Josh. A good time was probably had by all involved.
Shawn and Steph begin this episode by talking about their past and how age has caught up with them since they were in their 20s. There is some chatter about the history of their friendship, and where they stand with each other now. They remember the good times and the bad times. And they remember the last times they saw each other. Stephanie talks about some of the reasons as to why she thinks Shawn is the best guy she knows.
What happens when you realize you're in love with your friend? You try to hide it. And you write some cheesy love poetry. You wait for cheap long distance phone calls on Tuesdays. And you write letters and wait for the reply. Before the internet and smart phones, communication was a lot more complicated.
Music was a big part of the bonding process for these friends. Some of their favourite performers included Britney Spears and the Spice Girls. Amanda Marshall and her nipples were also a big deal.
This week's podcast promo: Monster Sci-Fi Show
Thursday Feb 21, 2019
What Do You Mean, We're ALL Black? - 89
Thursday Feb 21, 2019
Thursday Feb 21, 2019
February is Black History Month, and for this episode the Soul Forge has a special guest sharing her experience as a black woman living in the north. Deidre is not an ambassador for her race. This is her story - one perspective out of many.
Deidre was born in Winnipeg and moved to Timmins about 10 years ago after a career in Paramedicine. Working as a flight medic allowed her to travel around Canada and the United States, while also exposing her to many different cultures and ways of life. This community involvement not only allowed her to experience other cultures, but also enabled her to see the similarities between these many different peoples.
In her working life, she has seen racism first hand. There is blatant racism, but there is also passive racism, or the kind that is harder to pinpoint, but is real nonetheless. Corporate policies and biases in the workplace and in the school system are still an ongoing concern. From subjective as opposed to objective reports on her work performance, and from schools singling out kids with differences, Deidre has seen her fair share of bigotry.
Other topics discussed in this episode include Jane Elliott's Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes experiment and how this relates to point of privilege. We also discuss various life lessons, what we have taken away from our grandparents, and the role models on television.
We end our discussion with a look at gender and how the black community has received a wake-up call from the LGBTQ community.
This week's podcast promo: The 42 Cast
Thursday Feb 14, 2019
Can't Buy Me Love - 88
Thursday Feb 14, 2019
Thursday Feb 14, 2019
You can buy me flowers, but you can't buy me love. This week, the Soul Forge Podcast explores the commercialization of love in our 2019 Valentine's Day Special.
Let's talk about the kinds of expectations we have of ourselves and our partners on February 14th. Is there too much pressure from society on how we express our love and affection? Do we really need over-the-top displays of affection to prove our love? Why do we put ourselves through this each and every year?
Just who was this Valentine anyway? We will explore a brief history of his life.
We are pounded and pulverized by advertisements telling us how to show our love. It really is no wonder that we are all stressed out and feel inadequate when we compare ourselves to others.
A brief guide on how and what to buy as a gift for a man on Valentine's Day.
So you put a lot of thought and effort into your gift. That's great, except they don't like it. Now what do you do? In this part of the episode, we talk a bit about what to do and how to avoid feeling like garbage.
Remembering the school days practice of handing out Valentine's cards in class, and the trauma that caused us.
Does it matter when the gift was bought? If your lover picked up your present on the way home on the 14th, or has had it sitting in a drawer for a month...does that equate to the value of the love?
Fate! Is love written in the stars?
Should people get engaged on Valentine's Day? Is this a romantic gesture or a great way to get out of gift giving?
This week's podcast promo: The Nerdy Laser Podcast
Thursday Feb 07, 2019
Get Over Yourself - 87
Thursday Feb 07, 2019
Thursday Feb 07, 2019
Sometimes you just gotta get over yourself. What does that mean, and how does one accomplish such a lofty ideal? Glad you asked! That is the subject of this week's Soul Forge Podcast.
We start with a discussion about the nature of existence and who we are as people. Is everyone around us a simulation put there for us to interact with? Are we a simulation in an alien lab? Could our memories be newly implanted and each day we awake for the first time? We feel as if we are the centre of the universe, but this is not really the cast, unless we actually are the only true person in existence.
So, if we are not the centre of the cosmos, but merely one speck among many, it stands to reason that not everything that happens is about us. Everything is not our fault. We have no way of knowing what other people are going through.
With all that being said, Shawn tells the tale of a text from an old friend. They haven't spoken in years. However, the friend has now broken up with his girlfriend and is free to socialize again. Shawn, being Shawn, is having trouble accepting the idea of hanging out again. Tracy's advice - get over yourself Shawn. Not everything is about you. And that is the nature of this week's podcast conversation.
This week's podcast promo: Pop Culture Cosmos