Better Strangers

Texans, Vegas, work friends, eating alone in restaurants, and more in this podcast conversation with Mel Payne.

Mel is a contributor at PlopList.com, a blog about comedy podcasts and comedy in general, and she draws a comic blog called Adventures in Solitude. Check out all of these things! But, you know, listen to the podcast too. Probably first, since you’re here already anyway.

Memphis, religion, Shoe Carnival, and Top Chef are the main topics of conversation in this podcast talk with LaTasha Cornett.

Germany, silence, farm life, bitter lemon, politics, and emergency rooms are just of the tip of the iceberg in this podcast conversation with Faye Banowetz.

Listen, enjoy, and share.

Really. Enjoy. It’s a lot of fun.

Kate Gallagher and I have the shortest conversation to date as we discuss mayo, grains, and not dying immediately on this podcast episode. Maybe I should stop calling people at the later end of dinner time.

Goats, North Dakota, mountain women, telemarketing, and graffiti at the Green Mill are all part of this podcast conversation with Heather Meyer. This may be the most action packed Better Strangers episode yet. But, do not worry. We all survive.

Gaining and losing friends, jobs, piercings, and shyness are all part of thisBetter Strangers podcast episode with Amy Salloway. Is it easier to open up when talking to a stranger? Harder? Maybe you’ll find out by listening.

Why not share this week’s episode with a stranger? Not, like, on a bus though. Just tell an internet stranger about it. They are less likely to ask you what the hell a podcast is.

Glee, Wisconsin, and Sex World are all topics discussed with Patrick Rauland in this episode of the Better Strangers podcast. There are other topics discussed too. Don’t worry. But, really, what topics would expect in my first Better Strangers conversation with a man?

This Better Strangers podcast features Manna Simula. Conversation is flowing a bit more naturally this podcast episode even while dinner is being prepared during the conversation.

Taking a look at episode 2 has really straightened out a few conversational quirks. Will it last? You’ll have to wait and see! Take a listen and enjoy.

On this Better Strangers podcast, I talk to Jessica McCormick. This episode is vastly different from episode one. You’ll see some giant conversational faults on my side of things. I analyze it all after the conversation with Jessica is over, so make sure to listen to the end.

If you enjoy the podcast, in some way, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it one iTunes. It will really help new people find the podcast. Oh! And tell people about the podcast. That will help people find it too.

Enjoy!

Hi! My name is Aric McKeown. Welcome to the first episode of the Better Strangers podcast. With this podcast, I hope to explore the art of conversation and what makes me so bad at it. To accomplish this, I plan to have as many conversations with complete strangers as possible.

Each episode will be show you the awkward “getting to know you” phase of meeting someone. This is something that nearly petrifies me. In fact, when hearing the ringtone leading up to this first conversation, my heart was racing like a jackrabbit and I started to feel sick. Like when you’re calling a girl (or guy) that you like in middle school. Middle school. Talk about awkward.

In this first episode, I have a wonderful chat with Marne Gerdes. If this chat had gone horribly wrong, this might have been the only episode of this podcast. But Marne was open and talkative and great.

That doesn’t mean I wasn’t awkward. Oh, was I ever.

To give you the real flavor of these conversations, I am leaving in all the pauses and stammers. This is about seeing what a conversation really looks like. Not one prettied up like that fast talking nonsense on the Gilmore Girls.

Also, I know there isn’t a drinking game out for this podcast because this is the first episode. But you might want to drink every time I say “exactly.” Don’t worry. You will be drunk very quickly.

So, please. Enjoy the podcast. And if you are interested, please consider submitting your information to participate in a conversation with me. Participate in a conversation? That couldn’t sound any more dry if I tried. It’ll be better than that. I swear!