Chick Shit

How does one 'be single'? It can look a million different ways, and about everyone feels like they are doing it wrong. Do you need to play the numbers game with the modern dating landscape being so heavily dependent on apps, or do you focus on a strict list of what is really important to you? Are you thriving with flying solo and plan to stay that way? Figuring all of this out can be absolutely exhausting and overwhelming.  Join LJ and Di as they talk through a fabulous movie with exactly zero plot holes, and Di cannot recommend enough How To Be Single. 

Have you ever moved to a new small town in the northwest as an awkward teenager to live with your mustachio’s zaddy and accidentally fell in love with a sparkly skinned killer? Perhaps you get sucked into the seedy underground of the undead and have numerous enemies of the sparkly skinned stone people attempt to kill you? And maybe you find out you're pregnant with some half human half sparkly killer baby and repulsed by the delicious smell of fresh fried chicken? Yeah, neither has the Chick Shit Pod Squad. But they had a whole lot of fun dissecting the magnificent cinematic library that is Twilight in this "derailed" episode.

Have you ever stuck to something much longer than it actually served you simply because you'd been doing it so long that you felt like you were expected to continue? LJ and Di have. Why do we, as people, do this? Why do we continue to force ourselves to get up and maintain what we think people expect of us long after it isn't fun anymore? Join LJ and Di as they talk through the movie of the year, Barbie. Barbie and Ken both struggle through their respective identity crises, just like LJ and Di did. Are there tears? Yes. Is there a significant breakthrough by one of them? Yup. 

Have you ever gotten the urge to pack a bag, head to the airport, and catch the next flight out of your city for some self-care? LJ and Di have too. Are you also unable to do so because of work, bills, responsibilities, and other stupid things? Samesies. Join LJ and Di as they talk through their bucket list travel locations and some big trips they will take this year while they rewatch a major comfort movie, Eat Pray Love. Bonus points if you can guess who the planner is and who the "I'm packing the morning of the trip" person is.

Lj and Di are child-free by choice; the only mom pressure they feel comes from fur babies. For this episode, we tagged in two moms of actual humans to talk about the pressure they put on themselves and the pressure that society piles on them as well. If you are a mom who has dealt with juggling work, parenting, kids' sports schedules, the judgment of stay-at-home moms, or literally anyone on the internet,  this one is for you. Also, in case you need to hear it...you're doing your best, and when your little gremlins lick public door handles and other surfaces, they will have the strongest immune system ever.

Per LJ, communicating with your partner takes only two words: Microsoft PowerPoint. In other news, no one should take relationship advice from LJ unless they thrive in chaos and want to invest in a very good therapist and psychiatrist team. Communicating with a partner can be tough, any way you slice it. Do you share every single thought and worry with them, or do you pick and choose what you share? Do you hide things to avoid fights, or bear it all and use it as a growth opportunity? Join LJ and Di... and Jack as they break down partner communication with an episode of White Lotus. See how well Jack and Di know LJ's ability to communicate emotions as they play a game called - 'how would LJ handle this?.'

Did you have a great relationship with your mom growing up, or maybe you didn't get close until later in life? Maybe you didn't have a mom, or your mother figure was someone else? Maybe *mother* is just Taylor Swift (and father is obvs Pedro Pascal)? Any way you slice it, it’s a special and fragile relationship that can greatly impact your life. Were LJ and Di close to their moms growing up?  Did those relationships change as they became adults? Regardless, no one will ever compare to THE mother/daughter duo of Lorelai and Rory Gilmore (whether this is good or bad is up for debate). Join LJ and Di as they use an episode of Gilmore Girls to tackle this fun and sometimes very hard subject.   

Do you have that one friend that people understand you’re a packaged deal with? If one of you is invited, the other is automatically the plus one? You probably have the best memories, all the inside jokes, some really petty grudges (or is that just LJ?), and potentially some things that you missed out on because your bestie couldn't go. Join LJ and Di as they use the greatest film ever made, Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, to discuss friendships that blur into codependency. That, and to say you could be a model for Costco— I'm talking the Kirkland brand!

Life is hard, mental health is harder, and finding the right help at the right time can feel damn near impossible. Join LJ and Di and a VERY special guest as they do their best to tackle a difficult topic with as much respect and rationale as possible. Mental health is still so stigmatized in America and it often feels like we’re failing ourselves, our families, and our friends. How can you help someone who is struggling with thoughts, or even attempts, of ending their life? Additionally, how do we move on if it does happen to someone we love?

Join LJ and Di as they break down season one episode one of A Million Little Things. This episode is a love letter from LJ to her best friend: I'll never see a cow and not think of you, and you bequeathed me the most amazing human to get through this with. To the moon, my dear.

Sui*ide and Crisis Lifeline: Dial 988

It's wild how society has trained us to see our body or weight and feel not good enough, panic, and immediately decide we have to start running. Runners are skinny people; hence, if we run...we will be skinny. Not accurate! Go watch a local marathon or half marathon. You'll see a rainbow of body types and sizes, all doing this amazing feat of fitness and are all healthy in their own right. How has the health at every size approach to wellness changed the game? Are we still fighting just to be accepted for having a body that is exactly how it should be? Join LJ and Di and special guest, Eleni (@all.bodies.nutrition), as they use Brittany Runs a Marathon to work through this. To quote the great XTina, "you are beautiful, no matter what they say."