Alter Ego Podcast

Today’s guest changed my view on sex workers. I wasn’t aware of my stigma toward sex work until I had this opportunity to talk with Artemis Simon. Sex work, I learned, is not ALL about primal, disconnected, base needs. Sometimes its about healing, mentorship, education, growth, and vulnerability. Artemis has offered me a new view: Sex worker as mentor. She works in various forms of Miss Monday Jones to offer guidance and healing, and has helped clients lose weight, quit smoking, and even contribute more to the balance of their home life. 

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to walk in the shoes of Marilyn Monroe? Theresa Ireland knows a good deal about that. I have her on the show to share the glitz, glam, and the dirty underbelly of what it’s like to be a professional Marilyn on the streets of Hollywood Blvd. She has been featured on Jimmy Kimmel Live, ABC’s Night Line, Hollywood Reporter, and LA Weekly. Today she’s with us!

She came, she saw something burn, she learned a super important life lesson…she even got a surprise from a white rabbit. What did Michelle bring home from Burning Man? She lays it all out for us here in this candid Post-Burn interview, where Athena and Michelle share some of their favorite takeaways from their adventures to the playa. This is the final installment of a 3 part series where we follow Michelle, who has been Mormon until 2 years ago, to Burning Man. If you haven’t listened to the past 2 episodes, “Michelle Pre-Burn”, and “Michelle at Burning Man”, this episode will make a lot more sense once you do!

Michelle has been Mormon her whole life… until now! Now she’s accompanying me to one of the most provocative places on earth: Burning Man. Michelle never could have imagined coming to Burning Man. This episode features recordings of her experiences taken at Burning Man as her world view shifts beyond what she ever could have guessed. This is part 2 of a 3 part series. Listen in to “Michelle Pre-Burn” for the first installment.

Michelle has been Mormon for her whole life… until very recently. And now she’s coming with me to Burning Man! Today marks the beginning of a 3 part series where I follow Michelle’s journey through the before, during, and after experience of her first trip to the Burn.  We talk about her life, and what has brought her from the place of raising a conservative family in the Mormon Church, to accompanying me to one of the most provocative places on earth. Why?! Year of yessssss, baby!

Monk, Cookie Boy, Chameleon, Unicat, Fin…Burning Man. It’s one of the most talked about communities on the planet. I went again, and took my recorder with me. This year I spoke with people at my camp to talk with them about their Burner Names. Many people adopt a burner name on the playa, usually it is gifted upon you for a variety of reasons. In this episode I hear from some of my favorite burners about their names, why, and what happens for them specifically when they use it. 

Sean badger is OnyX. Moving as a child from the inner city to a small town, Sean found himself as the only black child in a small white neighborhood. OnyX is a persona, an alter ego he’s constructed to help him find balance in a polarized world. It has since helped him cope with his military experiences, and even raising children.

If you like the podcast, make sure to subscribe, and leave a rating and review!!! We read every single one.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @bealterego and Facebook @alteregopodcast. 

Liat Wexler is a trans man, and Glitter Butch!!! Liat’s personal preference is to identify with the pronouns “them, they, and theirs”. To be clear, Liat’s identity as a trans man isn’t their alter ego, it is who they are. But many trans people have had the experience of feeling the need to adopt an alter ego within the context of “societal norms”, and not be the full expression of who they truly are in certain situations. Often these reasons range from ease within the work place, to basic safety concerns. Liat and I talk about these issues, along with what their journey and experience has been with testosterone therapy, body transformation, educating the public, and expression. So much info!! I love you, Liat. 

Val Dufour is becoming superhuman. He’s on a quest to be a breatharian. Val believes that food and water are not necessary for survival, and humans can, through practice, be sustained by vital life force. He shares his journey of belief, desire, and becoming with us.

Miss Anne lives in Victorian times, she wears petticoats, decency skirts, and uses the language of the fan. In modern times, Miss Anne is Anne Osborn; a Historic Reenactress and Costumer. Anne has many alter egos that span from 5k years ago to the present, but the one we focus on is from the Victorian Era. She illuminates subjects from marginalia (historic dirty drawings) to pubic wigs… basically we spend way too much time talking about underwear and the historical context of private parts. Thanks for humoring me Anne!