After a hiatus, we're finally back, with the intention to release 1-2 episodes per month. Until further notice, of course. We're keeping it casual, as this podcast is generally less of a narrow subject-matter-based thing and more of a simple-regular-life-lived-by-a-lesbian-couple thing. In this ep, we just "talk story" (the Hawaiian slang for "chit-chat"), catching you up on some of the stuff that's transpired since our last ep.
Christmas music videos we posted on Instagram (@sienaandtoast)
Inauguration Day and our reactions to it
Toast's emotional therapy: connecting with the America of a century ago through music and words (on Spotify) 
Learning to bake bread at home
Siena's emotional therapy: woo woo, self-care, and cats - follow @sienaleetajiri on Instagram for the woo!
Snow, and how Hawaii-raised lesbians deal with it in Portland, Oregon

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

We'll be taking a hiatus from the pod; to stay in touch, please follow us on social media: we are @sienaandtoast on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter and/or join our email list.
This is the final episode in our series about the Preamble to the Constitution of The United States. 
Here’s a short list of things we cover.
John Adams quote from a letter to his wife Abigail in 1780: "I must study politics and war, that our sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. Our sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history and naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry and porcelain."
"self-interest rightly understood." A huge fallacy to correct these days is the fallacy that [individual self-interest] and [the larger community's interests] are mutually exclusive. They're not.
“Good Enough” the song that closes this episode, is on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/2LqWYA015s2uuilLE7hYS3

Apple Music (iTunes): https://music.apple.com/us/album/good-enough/1493576062


The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/120-preamble-series-6of6-blessings-of-liberty
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

We discuss thoughts that come to mind, when the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution says that one of its goals is to “promote the General Welfare.” This is the second-to-last episode in this series on The Preamble. Here’s a short list of things we cover.
positive peace, negative peace
CitizenUniversity.us
how we spent part of Election Night
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: remarks from a Naturalization Ceremony in 2018 – "First, our government has limited power. It can exercise only the authority expressly given to it by the Constitution; and, second, citizens of this country enjoy certain fundamental rights. Those rights are our nation’s hallmark and pride. They are set forth in the Bill of Rights and other amendments to the Constitution. They are inalienable, yielding to no government decree. ... As new, well-informed citizens, you will play a vital part in that endeavor [of achieving a more perfect union] by first and foremost voting in elections, serving on juries, and engaging in civic discourse. ... We sing of America sweet land of liberty. Newcomers to our shore, people like you, came here from the earliest days of our nation to today, seeking liberty, freedom from oppression, freedom from want, freedom to be you and me."
“With All The Stars” the song that closes this episode, is on Apple Music (iTunes): https://music.apple.com/us/album/with-all-the-stars/1525066865

and at Daniel's website: https://danielho.com


The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/119-preamble-series-5of6-promote-the-general-welfare
 
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

We regroup and recount a week for the ages: Election Week 2020. A fun, frank look back at the emotional roller coaster. See video of the furry Biden-Harris floor dance by our cat Bear, and pics of Siena's Pumpkin Spice Two-Layer Latte cake with Whipped Frosting, at the blog post: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/quickcast-election-hangover
 
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

A slightly more serious entry in our series on the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution from a spiritual perspective. Here's what we cover in this episode.
helping your community is also helping yourself…since you can’t help but live in your community, whatever it is
we are all connected, we share this same planet
life is, in part, a sequence of opportunities and invitations to experience healing
the whole world is medicine
“I Won't Shed a Tear” the song that closes this episode, is on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/7qjb66Ge3SdZIlVoCaAO0V

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/i-wont-shed-a-tear/1493576062

and other streaming and music download marketplaces

 
The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/118-preamble-series-4of6-the-common-defense
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

Continuing our series on the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution from a spiritual perspective, here's what we cover in this episode (including asides ;)
Please and Thank You for VOTING!!!
our imitations of Star Wars sound effects
cauliflower pizza crust
overly sensitive smoke alarms
the crucial importance of practicing intentional peacefulness in public spaces during this time
"If uncertainty is unacceptable to you, it turns into fear. If it is perfectly acceptable, it turns into increased aliveness, alertness, and creativity.” ~ Eckart Tolle
thoughts from Shel Silverstein
managing our fight/flight/freeze
essential oils, tapping, and other ways to help our organism directly
this year, especially, it's not Election Day, but Election Week(s)
“Tell Me” the song that closes this episode, is on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/1PYSGsuzkaVl0CIty8nae2

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/tell-me/1493576062

and other streaming and music download marketplaces

The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/117-preamble-series-3of6-domestic-tranquility
 
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

Continuing our series on the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution from a spiritual perspective, here's what we cover in this episode (including asides ;) that have nothing to do with the Constitution).
Also: VOTE VOTE VOTE!!! and help others to VOTE VOTE VOTE!!!
scary movie viewing recommendations from Siena, for Halloween season, in case real life doesn't scare you enough
"Justice is what love looks like in public." – Cornel West
prison doesn't have to be seen as, or called 'punishment'
our cat Bear snoring
the idea of 'letting God take care of it' and 'turning the other cheek' vs. the idea of we ourselves being the instruments and vessels of ‘doing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly’
Spiritual Law vs. Natural Law
the moral obligation and responsibility we have: to live up to, and to fulfill, the ideas of Natural Law (ie: that all people are equal)
“That's Why I Keep Keeping On” the song that closes this episode, is on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/56tos1dnAg5wvJmtREv9yC

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/thats-why-i-keep-keeping-on/1493576062

and other streaming and music download marketplaces

 
The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/116-preamble-series-2of6-establish-justice
 
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

Programming Note: starting next week, we’ll begin releasing episodes on Wednesdays (instead of Tuesdays)
NOTE for anyone listening in the future who won't know what "the fly" is that we're talking about. On 10/7/20, during the Vice Presidential debate, a fly landed on Mike Pence's hair and stayed there for 2 minutes and 9 seconds while everyone watching went nuts on social media. Jokes about: flies on s***, on corpses, on being a sign of the devil, and more. It was probably a ‘you had to be there’ moment, but trust us, it was a hoot. Just another absurdity in the year that is/was 2020.
a weird source of stress-relief for Siena
how the Preamble to the Constitution can help you flatten the COVID curve:
reciting the Preamble takes about 20 seconds (the recommended time to scrub with soap, in order to wash your hands effectively)
E Pluribus Unum = Out of Many, One
the beautiful and amazing diversity of We The People
the precious thing we all have in common, which is
the desire to live a fulfilled life
why “just be yourself” can make you feel worse
how tension between things is at the heart of everything
“Please Believe” the song that closes this episode, is on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/5ED4LF4jiqQhWZeJwK5FvB

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/please-believe/1466673581

and other streaming and music download marketplaces

 
The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/115-preamble-1of6-a-more-perfect-union
 
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

Times have been scary lately, no?
In this episode, we talk about fear.
Siena gives a helpful definition of fear
Toast preaches a 15-second sermon 😉 about Life being non-binary
What Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said about fear vs. courage
Five truths about fear
 
The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/114-on-fear
 
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
 
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com

How the pandemic has changed our relationship to relationships.
Topics include: 
the thing that makes your life good, or not
emotions and experiences that surface after a death
friends and family-of-friends, who have passed away from COVID-19
Siena’s friend on Oahu who passed away from COVID-19
feeling newly wealthy: in appreciation, relationships, memories, insights, and depth of feeling and experience
and more
The blog post for this episode is at: https://sienaandtoast.com/podcast/113-relationships-in-the-age-of-covid
 
Join the email list at https://sienaandtoast.com/emailsignup
––––
Our intention has always been to uplift, entertain, and encourage people, especially fellow LGBTQers and progressive allies around the world, ever since we first started podcasting in 2007.
Over the years, we’ve continued to get messages from listeners who’ve shared how it’s helped them through difficult times, like coming out, rejection from family, dealing with religion, or living in the closet, helping them feel more understood, less alone, and just kept them going, reminding them and showing them, that life is worthwhile.
That’s exactly why we do it.
We managed to self-finance the podcast since 2007. For 13 years!
But now, we’re extending an invitation, and a way for you, the listener, to play a part in supporting it. See all kinds of ways to support the pod at https://sienaandtoast.com/contribute
Thank you for your consideration.
And if you do decide to contribute, thank you for that!
Rate and review the pod at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/siena-and-toast/id100577843
 
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sienaandtoast.substack.com