A small on-air shuffle turns into a masterclass in advocacy as we sit down with Nikki, a mom who refused to let stigma define her son’s path. From the first red flags in kindergarten to a game-changing IEP, she lays out the exact steps she took to move from confusion and frustration to clarity and progress. You’ll hear how early signs like trouble with phonics and mounting stress pointed to an auditory processing disorder, and how a supportive teacher, a pediatrician, and thorough evaluations created a clear plan that actually worked.

We get specific about what an Individualized Education Program does—and doesn’t—do. Nikki explains how to push back on retention when it doesn’t address root causes, what accommodations helped most (extended time, read-alouds, fidgets, targeted instruction), and why an IEP is a set of rights you can enforce, not a favor you beg for. Carmen adds her own experience with learning differences and college accommodations, from extended test time to note takers, emphasizing that support isn’t a weakness; it’s the bridge to real performance. Together, we tackle the hard parts—bias from adults, labels like “lazy” or “spoiled,” and the myth that special education means less. The result is a practical, compassionate guide for families and educators searching for answers.

By the end, you’ll have a checklist of next steps: how to start the conversation with a teacher, what to ask a pediatrician, how to navigate evaluations, and where to find help on campus—even without a formal IEP. Most of all, you’ll hear how strategies learned in school become lifelong tools. Nikki’s son carried those skills into college, construction work, and the army, proving that when we tailor education to how a child learns, we unlock confidence and achievement that lasts.

If this conversation helps you see your learner with fresh eyes, share it with someone who needs it. Subscribe for more candid, practical stories, and leave a review to tell us which strategy you’ll try first.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Some weeks, the hardest part isn’t the work — it’s trying to rest while the world keeps shaking. We start with a real check‑in on sleep: one of us finally getting a full night, the other staring at the ceiling at 2 a.m., and how the news cycle keeps creeping into our bodies no matter what routines we try. 

From there, we move into the killing of Alex Pretti by ICE agents. We talk about the footage, the shifting excuses, and the dangerous idea that brutality equals strength. Flawed or not, people are still owed due process. Shooting someone who’s already subdued is a failure of policy and a failure of basic humanity. We also share the concrete actions we’re taking — calling senators, pushing back on Trump supporters excuses, and staying engaged without letting outrage take over our nights. 

Then we pivot to media literacy. A glossy Melania‑focused film is making the rounds, and we break down how it avoids facts while selling a carefully controlled narrative. We talk about why propaganda thrives when people are exhausted, and why clarity and community matter more than ever. And because we all need a place to breathe, we shout out the documentaries and PBS gems that actually inform instead of inflame.

If you’ve been wired, worn down, or trying to balance rest with responsibility, this conversation holds space for both. We’re building boundaries, choosing better stories, and turning that restless energy into steady, meaningful action.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

What if the “right path” isn’t a single lane but a series of smart experiments? Carmen sits down with Juliana, her 17‑year‑old goddaughter, for a candid Gen X–Gen Z conversation about big choices, bigger pressures, and the real work of growing into your own voice. It’s equal parts heart and homework: career dreams, changing majors, family expectations, and how to support teens without smothering them.

We dig into what post‑high school planning actually feels like - four possible routes, clear ambitions, and the fear of picking wrong. Carmen shares how winding roads are normal, even strategic, when you stack skills and let experience refine your goals. Juliana keeps it real about why money matters, how saving builds confidence, and the bittersweet truth that some dream jobs (hello, teaching) don’t pay like they should. Along the way we talk resilience - learning from a tough swim season, naming hidden strengths like karate and skiing, and shifting from comparison to growth.

There’s a message here for parents and mentors: advice lands better when it maps pros and cons, respects autonomy, and focuses on capability over control. We unpack generational differences around work and safety, practical ways to try paths without getting stuck, and the quiet power of giving space after conflict so relationships can reset. If you’re navigating the leap from high school to what’s next - or guiding someone who is - you’ll find a grounded, hopeful playbook: choose a next step, iterate fast, save smart, and keep joy in the loop.

If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who’s choosing their next step, and leave a quick review to help others find the conversation. Your stories and takeaways keep this community strong.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Heads of state, hedge fund titans, and cameras converged on Davos - and we watched a different story unfold: how performative power can’t hide the cracks in America’s credibility. We start with the Greenland fixation and a simple truth most headlines muddled: you can’t “take” what belongs to Denmark. The geography gaffes were loud, but the posture behind them was louder - bravado sold as strategy - leaving allies to quietly plan around us.

From there we examine Davos’ split personality. The World Economic Forum promises global problem-solving, yet the most resonant moment came when Mark Carney called out the myth of a rules-based order that let the powerful break rules at will. If that façade has fallen, then the future belongs to coalitions willing to build new, honest compacts - often without assuming U.S. reliability. That’s not cheering decline; it’s choosing realism so we can rebuild.

At home, the pattern rhymes. Billionaires threaten to flee modest taxes while roads crumble and classrooms overflow. ICE escalates cruelty with family separations and due process violations, targeting the vulnerable instead of cartels. We connect these dots and stay practical about power: voting up and down the ballot to restore checks, calling representatives to put names on pressure, funding legal defense and local organizers who protect neighbors in real time. Minneapolis shows what courage looks like: mutual aid, coordination, and restraint under Arctic skies. That’s the America many of us still believe in.

We end on a lighter note - yes, birding, Hallmark chemistry, and a very smart crow - because joy is fuel, not fluff. The work ahead asks for clear eyes and steady hearts: tell the truth about our past, stop outsourcing blame to the powerless, and design a future where rules mean something because they bind the powerful too. If that vision resonates, hit follow, share this episode with a friend who needs both outrage and optimism, and leave a review to help more people find the show. Your voice moves the needle.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Prices keep climbing, headlines keep blaring, and the advice too often boils down to “budget harder.” We take a different route. Together with writer and author Dana Miranda (You Don’t Need a Budget), we unpack the real drivers of everyday money stress—policy choices, corporate incentives, and a media drumbeat that keeps our eyes on stock tickers instead of the forces setting our bills.

We start with a clear-eyed look at the political landscape and why hope can still be rational. Courts and congressional dynamics matter, and they shape everything from student debt relief to labor protections. Then we connect those decisions to your cart total and your paycheck: how tariffs move through supply chains, why companies pass costs along with newfound boldness, and how the shareholder-first mandate degrades product quality while prices rise. If you’ve felt the “inshittification” of services and tech, you’re not imagining things.

From there, we get personal. Job instability and AI anxiety create a season where savings dip, credit climbs, and retirement contributions pause. Instead of shame, we offer emotional finance: self-compassion, clear priorities, and small wins that restore energy and control. We talk about when stress spending is a signal, not a sin; what truly moves the needle (income, housing, healthcare); and how to build a simple safety plan without turning your life into a spreadsheet. And yes, we make the case for voting as a tangible financial action—because policy, not lattes, is the lever that changes the math for working people.

If you’re tired of being told your coffee is the problem, tune in for a humane, practical reset. Then share this with a friend who needs a little hope and a lot less shame. Subscribe, leave a review, and tell us: what policy change would most improve your financial life?

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

This week, we look at how language shapes power — from the words we use in our own routines to the phrases officials use to blur responsibility. We break down a single news clip to show how euphemisms sanitize state violence, how “plain speaking” can hide distortion, and why civic illiteracy makes people vulnerable to confident spin. Drawing on George Orwell’s Politics and the English Language, we trace how vague language becomes a tool for control, especially in conversations about policing, immigration, and federal authority. Clarity isn’t cosmetic; it’s a form of resistance.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

What if the most radical thing you could offer a friend was a plane ticket out of danger? That one gesture - sent during California’s wildfires - anchors a wider story about music, belonging, and building a life across an ocean. We sit down with Scott MacLeod, a Boston‑raised musician who moved to Spain three decades ago and carved out a career as an oboist and English horn player, and we trace the unlikely path from classrooms with no music program to a symphony seat and a city that knows his name.

We talk about the choices that shape a life: why a second master’s in music made sense, how an orchestra can become a second family, and what it means to feel seen by a neighborhood that says buenos días to everyone who passes. Scott opens up about the realities of living abroad - universal healthcare that shows up when you fall, walkable streets that invite conversation, and the subtle weight of carrying an American accent wherever you go. The cultural contrast is real: manners as a social glue, small businesses as community hubs, and a slower cadence that values people over performance.

The conversation widens to immigration and identity. We look at why people move: safety, work, dignity - and how systems often punish workers while protecting the structures that rely on them. Through it all, joy isn’t a slogan; it’s a practice. It’s the daily repetition of small kindnesses, the discipline of learning a language, and the courage to plant roots where you once felt foreign. If you’ve ever wondered what keeps someone abroad for 30 years - or how friendship can bridge a continent - this story offers a grounded, human answer.

If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who loves travel and music, and leave a quick review to help more curious listeners find us.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Outrage is easy. Accountability is harder. We open with the relief of weekly check-ins and step straight into the hard question: how did a country that once sold hope end up normalizing personality cults and cruelty? We revisit the Obama years with clear eyes—real progress, unrealistic projections—and use that lens to examine why blind loyalty now replaces policy debate, and why standards erode when leaders become untouchable brands.

From there we tackle the news that won’t sit still. A pre-dawn seizure of Venezuela’s leader gets placed in the long arc of U.S. interventionism and resource politics. Then we unpack the jaw-dropping talk of “taking” Greenland, the NATO tripwire that implies, and how a recycled Cold War decree in Denmark morphed into viral disinformation. The throughline is speed and spin: headlines move faster than our ability to process them, unless we slow down, check primary sources, and refuse the fog.

The conversation turns deeply human with the killing of Renee Nicole Good by ICE agents in Minneapolis. We talk about what it means when policy authorizes street-level dehumanization, why masking signals moral bankruptcy, and how online “unmasking” reveals power’s brittleness. Courage becomes our pivot: not just protest courage, but the courage of people with real platforms—politicians, executives, artists—to risk convenience for principle. We shout out watchdogs and litigators holding the line on voting rights, and we share concrete information hygiene: ProPublica, The Intercept, Democracy Docket, The Bulwark, plus a habit of double-checking claims and reading original documents.

We close by defending sustainable joy. Comfort TV and small rituals aren’t escapism; they’re how we keep going without surrendering empathy or attention. If you’ve been feeling furious and fatigued at once, this conversation offers a map: hold leaders to standards, verify before you amplify, and protect enough joy to keep showing up. If it resonates, subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review with one takeaway you’ll act on this week.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Ready for a cleaner feed, clearer mind, and a steadier heart in 2026? Carmen opens the year with twenty unapologetic don’ts that cut through noise and nudge us toward a saner, kinder way to live. We move from civic basics you should know by heart—two senators, your House rep, your governor, your mayor—to the media literacy everyone claims and too few practice. Viral doesn’t mean true; three sources beat one influencer; and when you’re wrong, own it, fix it, and move on. The payoff is real power: you stop being steered by clout and start steering your choices.

We also get honest about pop culture and storytelling. Don’t debate shows you haven’t watched. Comfort TV is valid, shock value is lazy, and breaking the audience’s emotional contract has consequences. From clapping when the plane lands to “discovering” decades-old classics, we unpack why taste police and faux insiders miss the point: culture is an ecosystem. When you respect the craft and the community around it, you get better art and better conversations.

The digital hygiene hits home: stop ghosting and start communicating; skip devil’s advocate and propose solutions; starve bots by not arguing in comment sections. AI gets a grounded take too—use it like a hammer, not a therapist, and keep your eyes on the people and incentives behind the tools. Then we land in the body and the spirit: touch grass, breathe outside air, and build boundaries instead of walls. Most of all, stop confusing happiness with joy. Happiness is external and fleeting. Joy is internal, practiced, and chosen—perspective, gratitude, and aligned action you can carry through any storm.

If this list made you nod, wince, or laugh, hit play, share it with a friend, and tell us which “don’t” you’re adopting first. Subscribe for more candid, hopeful conversations, and leave a review to help others find the show.

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Joy gets treated like a soft word online, but we use it like a backbone. We open with gratitude for the people who made this community real, then map how our small show grew into four connected formats that serve different needs without losing the thread. Friday Night Live brings the weekly neighborhood energy - unscripted, a little messy, and always welcoming. The Private Lounge offers deeper, slower conversations that let real stories breathe. Carmen Talk is where I think out loud, teach when it fits, and process what’s on my mind. And Culture and Consequence with Andrea explores media literacy, politics, culture, and compassion with rigor and warmth, from the Constitution to trans rights to the everyday choices that shape public life.

We also pull back the curtain on the growth playbook we refuse to follow. The algorithm rewards outrage and spectacle, but we’re not interested in manufacturing conflict. Joy here is not denial. Joy is fuel, practice, and a way to show up for each other even when we disagree. That means we hold boundaries around intolerance while making room for curiosity and correction. It also means we track our claims, revisit topics, and leave space for humor—yes, even the running Hallmark homework that keeps us honest about how culture works on us.

If you’re looking for a kinder corner of the internet, you’ll find it across these four shows—one community, many doors. Come for the live hangout, stay for the deeper interviews, pop into a reflective monologue, and challenge your media diet with a thoughtful breakdown. Your presence matters more than you know. Subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review so the algorithm learns to surface compassion alongside critique. What conversation should we host next?

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.