Episodes
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Sex Talking - 303
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Being vulnerable with your partner is fundamental to building intimacy. Communication is a wonderful way to deepen your intimate connection while building trust on the way. Communicating about vulnerable past events or disclosing something that has been weighing you down can build the skills necessary to address sensitive events in the future. Fear from not knowing how your partner will respond may stop some people from sharing things that make them feel vulnerable. But disclosing and seeing how your partner responds can help you determine if there is a long-term future with this person. If they respond dismissively and do not listen to you then that might mirror a future response pattern leading to poor relationship compatible. However, if they respond with love, comfort, and understanding your intimate connection will deepen.
On this episode of the Soul Forge Podcast, Shawn and Gaelyn get serious with sex talking. As the owner of an adult store, Gaelyn is exposed to many different questions. One of the most common is how do couples spice up their sex lives. More often than not, these couples want to bring another person into the bedroom. Gaelyn always asks these people what the ground rules for this situation are. She tells them that problems in a relationship will not be fixed by adding in another person or persons.
Communication is not confrontation. It means that you talk about things that really matter. It means that you are not afraid to say what you really think and feel and that your partner trusts you the same way.
You can communicate in many ways:
Words (what you say and what you do not say in phone calls, in person, in writing)
Gestures (leaning toward or turning away from your partner, nodding your head, showing that you are listening)
Facial expressions (making eye contact, smiling, frowning, looking disgusted)
Touch (hugs, holding hands, sexual intimacy)
Communicating does not mean that you always sit around talking about your relationship. It means that you talk about things that really matter. You should never be afraid to ask questions.
This week's podcast promo: Monkeeing Around
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
More Hair Naturally with Mahryah Shain - 302
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Actor Mahryah Shain drops by the Soul Forge to have a chat about a few things. What are we talking about on this episode? In addition to his company More Hair Naturally, we discuss Disney theme parks, Hot Wheels, toys and mental health. But who is Mahryah Shain...
Mahryah Shain studied at University of Southern California where he completed a Bachelor's degree. In 1999, he started working as an actor, appearing in TV and short films. Through his career, Shain appeared in TV shows like The Handler, Criminal Minds, Bones and Tales. He also appeared in films like Constantine and Babysitter.
Since 2013, Shain has been working as Vice-President of Marketing and Creative Director of the brand More Hair Naturally. He is also a Freelance Graphic Designer that has worked on award season campaigns for films like Vice and If Beale Street Could Talk.
Mahryah is passionate about helping people. Although he is the man behind More Hair, he is interested in a total approach to mental health. He believes that the physical affects the mental. If you take your focus off of your body, you can focus on the world and your impact.
What is More Hair Naturally?
Their mission is to put you back in control of your hair (and life), elevating and raising your self-confidence and self-esteem to the point that you are unstoppable in achieving any goal you set out to achieve. Fighting thinning hair should not be a mystery and comfort should be taken in knowing that answers exist, are easy to understand and are within your reach.
However, it's not just about hair loss (that is just the starting point)...
It's about taking positive actions to change your life, taking actions to improve your confidence, self-esteem, and overall enjoyment in life. The stronger you are as a person, the more likely you are to make a positive impact on your friends, family, the people you encounter and the world at large.
This week's podcast promo: The Flopcast
Thursday Sep 21, 2023
Our First Disney Vacation - 301
Thursday Sep 21, 2023
Thursday Sep 21, 2023
Our first Disney vacation is in the books! This episode of the Soul Forge is a day by day recap of our exciting adventures. At the end of each day, Shawn and Leah sat down and recorded their memories of the excitement. Florida in September is still quite warm. Walt Disney World requires a lot of walking. Here is the story...
The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, or simply abbreviated WDW, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, a division of The Walt Disney Company. The property covers nearly 25,000 acres (39 sq mi; 101 km2), of which half has been used. The resort comprises four theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, and Disney's Animal Kingdom), two water parks: (Disney's Blizzard Beach and Disney's Typhoon Lagoon), 31 themed resort hotels, nine non-Disney hotels, several golf courses, a camping resort, and other entertainment venues, including the outdoor shopping center Disney Springs.
Shawn and Leah tell you about the nightmare that was getting from their Washington layover into Orlando. The weather did not cooperate so the flight was quite late. One common thing on the entire adventure was the lack of comfort in the seating, both on the jets and the buses. The humidity was off the charts. One of the best parts of our first Disney vacation was visiting with friend Jarman and his wife Jolie.
Shawn and Leah went to Icon Park where they rode the Wheel of Orlando. They also visited a wax museum and the Sea Life Aquarium. The Florida Mall still has an operating Sears store! The Disney Character Wearhouse was always busy. The food at most places was decent.
The actual Disney part of the trip was exhausting due to so much walking and the heat. Fun parts include the ferry ride, the Skyliner, Toy Story Mania and Star Tours. The 50s Prime Time Cafe had wonderful food and ambience. We enjoyed Soarin' as well as Mickey's Runaway Railway rides. We got to see dolphins, lizards, manatees and a hammerhead shark. We were disappointed in Woody's Roundup BBQ and the lack of a direct route to Hollywood Springs from our hotel. Getting the park hopper option is a definite must. The Epcot food and wine festival was the favourite part of our first Disney vacation.
This week's podcast promos: Earth Station One, Earth Station Who, Epsilon Three, and the ESO Patreon promo.
Thursday Sep 07, 2023
The Adventure Challenge - 300
Thursday Sep 07, 2023
Thursday Sep 07, 2023
The adventure challenge brings couples closer together. Shawn and Leah just celebrated their birthdays and the adventures are just beginning!
Episode 300 is a huge milestone in podcasting. On this episode, Shawn and Leah talk about travel, growing closer and buying some cool stuff. Leah tells Shawn that since they became a couple, she has listened to many Soul Forge episodes. She has learned a lot of things that she would not have thought to ask. Although Shawn's brother said he should scrap the podcast and delete all the episodes, no harm has come to him from keeping the show going!
Birthdays can be great fun. While preparing for a weekend adventure, Shawn went to Dollarama to get snacks. While checking the pegs for Hot Wheels, he found his first Super Treasure Hunt. These are elusive special editions. This leads to a discussion on northern Ontario and the low stock at most stores. There are few decent buying options in the area.
What were the birthday gifts? Leah got a couple of Funko Pops featuring Walt Disney from Shawn. She also received a Tanzanite pendant. Shawn got a Star Trek Hallmark ornament. He also got the Adventure Challenge Couple's Edition book set. 50 Scratch-Off Adventures! There are 50 challenges that range from $0-$50, but they can all be modified to fit within your budget.
Finally, it's all about Disney and Orlando. Leah got herself the LEGO Disney Camera. 811 pieces of fun. That is just the icing on the cake. In the coming week, Shawn and Leah are going to Disney in Florida. They are looking forward to getting away as a couple. They will meet up with Jarman and his wife. Jarman is the narrator of the Soul Forge introduction.
Leah is a travel agent. You can book her services at www.freetotravel.centreholidays.com
This week's podcast promo: Earth Station Trek
Thursday Aug 24, 2023
Sex Blankets and Kink - 299
Thursday Aug 24, 2023
Thursday Aug 24, 2023
This week's episode is not safe for work. Children should also not listen to this particular episode. But if you are looking to join the kink community, or you are looking for new products, this is the show for you.
Once again we are at Amore, For Your Pleasure...Sault Ste. Marie's premier adult toy store. G, the owner of the shop invited Shawn to chat with a couple of her friends about their specific interests. Get ready for sex blankets and kink on the 299th episode of Soul Forge Podcast!
Rob is a reseller of intimate play blankets. He was tired of doing so much laundry and trying to keep his mattress in good condition. During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic people were spending much more time in the bedroom. It's quite easy to make a mess during intimate playtime, whether due to bodily fluids or spilled bottles of lubrication. Rob found the "No More Wet Spots" blanket. He has been selling them in Amore for some months now. They keep your blankets and mattresses clean and dry. Easily washable, they come in a variety of sizes. Follow Rob's Instagram for more info: https://www.instagram.com/nmws_intimate_blanket
Michelle tells us a bit about the kink community in Sault Ste. Marie. If you are looking for a group to join that has a more open mindset to sex and sex related play, this might be right for you. The most important consideration for this group is keeping the community safe. The group holds what are called monthly munches. These are get-togethers where you are able to talk about your interests such as BDSM, fetish and the like. They also hold the occasional dungeon party where you are able to try out some different aspects of the kink community culture. Much of this information can be found at https://fetlife.com
You can follow Michelle's Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/sinnerssanctuaryssm
This week's podcast promo: Earth Station DCU
Thursday Aug 17, 2023
Moving Parts - 298
Thursday Aug 17, 2023
Thursday Aug 17, 2023
Episode 300 of the podcast is fast approaching. We here at the Soul Forge would love to hear from you. Send in your thoughts, opinions, concerns, reviews, fears, emotional outbursts, or anything else you would like. Anything you send in will be read or played on the 300th episode. An Mp3 would be great, or just a regular email is fine. Send anything you want to soulforgepodcast@gmail.com
On this episode, we talk about a little bit of everything. During the past weekend, Shawn drove to Timmins after work on Friday to visit his son. Although the drive usually takes 6 hours, he found a shortcut that shaved approximately 30 minutes from the trip. Naturally it was a quick trip because Shawn had to be back at work on Monday. Shawn and his son Bishop spent all day Saturday together. They went for brunch and then hunted for Hot Wheels. They also had several great conversations about the future.
Bishop's mom is thinking about moving the family to Thunder Bay. Bishop hates change. He would prefer to remain in Timmins. Because he will soon be 18, and hence an adult, he can make his own choices. Perhaps he will move in with a friend. There is still much to consider such as finances and schooling. Gaming is Bishop's main focus. Nothing else seems to matter at the moment. This will definitely be a challenge going forward.
Current world events include the Hawaii wild fire which is the worst in USA history. The war in Ukraine continues to carry on and the missiles requested from Germany may not arrive. Former president Trump has been indicted for a 4th time, this latest one by Georgia.
In less than a month, Shawn and his girlfriend Leah, and their friend Amanda will be at Disney. Although they have gone previously, this will be Shawn's first time. Georgia and Florida. Plane and train rides. The adventure has many moving parts to it.
This week's podcast promo: Dragon Con Report
Thursday Aug 03, 2023
Weddings & Anniversaries - 297
Thursday Aug 03, 2023
Thursday Aug 03, 2023
Weddings and anniversaries are things that many people will experience in their lifetimes. This may include their own weddings, or those they have attended. Anniversaries can be for almost anything. More often than not, when people think of an anniverary, they are celebrating a marriage. However, you can have an anniversary for almost anything. Some of these things may include a breakup, a promotion, an accident or the date a favourite concert was attended.
This episode of the Soul Forge Podcast is celebrating six years. It was July 31, 2017 that the first episode of the show was released. 6 years later the podcast is still going. There have been so many milestones and events in those years. We have spoken to authors, minor celebrities and have covered so many various topics.
Leah joins me for this episode. We talk about our own weddings and anniversaries. While I have been married once, Leah has had 2 weddings. Her first was very fancy, and therefore quite stressful. She was young and didn't know the logistics. Leah's second wedding was at a camp that she rented for the weekend. This second wedding was more fun. I got married in the backyard with very few people. I have not had the head table with the clinking of the glasses for kissing.
Weddings can be hugely expensive and stressful. If Leah gets married again, it will be a much smaller affair. Destination weddings can be fun, but if you're not careful, that wedding may not be legal in Canada and you will have to do it all over again. Don't forget that money and lack of communication is the biggest cause of divorce.
This week's podcast promo: The Cosmic Pizza Podcast
Thursday Jul 27, 2023
Time Travel - 296
Thursday Jul 27, 2023
Thursday Jul 27, 2023
Time travel is a fun concept to contemplate. When would you go? How would you get there? The questions and thought experiments are endless. There might not be a more exciting concept in all of pop culture.
Speaking of time travel, this episode travels back 9 years. At that time, I was recording the Rusted Robot Podcast with my wife. Episode 32 was all about traveling through time. On this episode, we will all travel into the past to hear that episode that was recorded so long ago.
The bulk of the show references a T-shirt I once owned. On this shirt was a clock and each hour was a different method of pop culture time travel shenanigans. Some travel methods include the T.A.R.D.I.S. from Doctor Who, the time machine from the classic film The Time Machine, and the Delorean from the Back to the Future franchise. Also included is the Guardian of Forever from the classic Star Trek episode, "The City of the Edge of Forever". This leads into a nice discussion of Star Trek.
Later in the episode, we talk about books that include temporal displacement. Stephen King wrote 11/22/63 and Evan Mandery wrote a book called Q. The episode finishes up with a talk about some Doctor Who collectibles.
This week's podcast promos: Cigar Nerds Podcast, and The Con Guy
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