Life | steadily skipping stones

Jun 2

The Mean Mommy Club: Friends and other Zombies

moving the podcast – interview from October 16, 2013

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Mean Mommy Bex and Mean Mommy Suzy sat down with me to talk about their group of “sister-wives”, how they went public, and why they are now a non-profit organization. We also talk about the wild success of their annual Zombie Walk!

“We just can’t keep this funny to ourselves anymore!”

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0:00 ~ “we’re not mean to everybody…”
4:35 ~ becoming a non-profit
8:10 ~ public scrutiny & group dynamics
13:20 ~ charities Mean Mommies support
17:05 ~ the Zombie Walk!
22:45 ~ some amazing costumes
28:15 ~ 2013 expectations

I Didn’t Even Cry At The Zombie Walk (my post about the 2012 event)

Connect with The Mean Mommies:
on the website Fredzombies.com
on Facebook Mean Mommy Club
on Twitter @fredzombies
Facebook Zombie Walk Page

References
Hope House

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May 31

2 Comments

Kim Cox: the Psychology of Clutter and Packrat Solutions

moving the podcast – interview from October 8, 2013

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Kim Cox is a professional organizer who specializes in helping people with emotional-attachment issues. Her educational background is in psychology, and I wanted to find out how she uses that training to help people overcome that emotional pull to hold on to their stuff. We talk about how she became a professional organizer, the psychological reasons we become packrats or hoarders, and how she helps people get their lives back under control.

“It’s my passion to help people get to a place where they know their own system.
It might not look pretty, it may not be the way your family and friends think
you should have it…but it’s what works for you.”

0:00 ~ becoming a professional organizer
4:55 ~ why we hold on to our stuff
10:55 ~ what’s going on in the brain
20:00 ~ using psychology to help packrats
24:20 ~ what it’s like to work with Kim
31:20 ~ “I’ve learned a lot about the brain”

Kim talks about her experience on the tv show Hoarders

Connect with Kim
at Packrat-Solutions.com
on Twitter @packratsol
on Facebook PackRat Solutions
by phone or email
LinkedIn profile

References
Hoarding definition
Hoarders tv show
National Association of Professional Organizers
National Association of Senior Move Managers
American Society of Group Psychotherapy and Psychodrama
Institute for Challenging Disorganization

Kim is the Membership Chair of the National Association of Professional Organizers – Greater Manchester, NH Chapter. You can find them on Facebook as well. Kim says their meetings are open to the public, and they share a lot of great information that can be useful to anyone, not just professional organizers!

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May 29

Jamie Golden: finding Forever Families

moving the podcast – interview from October 1, 2013

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(At the time of this podcast, Jamie Golden worked) for the non-profit Children’s Aid Society in Alabama, tweeting occasionally about the things foster kids and newly adopted kids say to her. The tweets are funny, poignant and sometimes heartbreaking. I talked to Jamie about her job last Saturday, then I told her I was going to go home and cry. I did cry when I recounted some of her stories for my parents and aunt, and I was thankful I had a family to share with over lunch.

But it’s not all sad; there are amazing success stories here as well. Jamie’s excited about her job, and her enthusiasm is infectious and inspirational. Take a listen as Jamie talks to me about kids who need forever families, what happens when they age out of the system, myths and misconceptions about foster care and adoption, and how anyone can be an advocate.

“My passion…is working with families who are interested
in adopting children from foster care.”

0:00 ~ “I do a lot of different things”
3:50 ~ Children’s Aid Society
6:50 ~ aging out of the system
11:00 ~ the science of finding parents
14:25 ~ misconceptions of foster care & adoption
22:50 ~ “my passion has always been non-profit agencies”
28:15~ “you don’t have to be in the system to love a foster kid”
32:05 ~ modern day orphanages

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Connect with Jamie
on her blog Jamies rabbits
on Twitter @JamiesRabbits
on her podcast The Popcast
podcast on Twitter @popcastpod

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References
Ricky Anderson
Knox McCoy
Children’s Aid Society
Heart Gallery Alabama
CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates)
Three Little Words: A Memoir
Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Camellia Network
AdoptUSKids.org

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May 27

Matt Mikalatos: Missionary, Teacher, Servant

moving the podcast – interview from September 17, 2013

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Matt is just a genuinely nice guy. He has a heart for service and Jesus and I think teaching. I wanted to talk to him about his work for Cru, a Christian non-profit that’s active in 191 countries across the globe. We did that, and then we did a little verbal globe-trotting ourselves! We talk about his foreign travels, how he gets paid to go to the beach on spring break, and the importance of being of service to other people.

“Instead of making myself the center of a ministry…I’m coming in as a servant
to other people and the body of Christ, and I’m saying ‘what has the Lord
put on your heart…and how can I help you accomplish that?'”

0:00 ~ writer, StoryMan, huge smiler
6:50 ~ Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ)
13:30 ~ from teacher to Cru missionary
18:45 ~ an open-ended job description
29:00 ~ What are those trips all about?
36:25 ~ life changing world travels
44:05~ two awesome travel stories
50:10 ~ “it doesn’t matter what your role is, it matters what your relationship is”

Matt explains the Atheist Support Group