This episode is pure Appalachian gold, the survival skills our people lived by and nobody teaches anymore.

Mandy takes you deep into the mountain knowledge that raised her, reading weather signs, counting August fogs, waiting for the first frost, canning food like security, peppermint and white lightning remedies, hog killin time in Morganton, canning sausage with Danny Man, hand milled cornmeal up on Bear Branch, snappin beans on the porch, catching crawdads for fish bait, and her full rant about the Hellbender salamander and kids losing their wild childhoods.

It is a love letter to the way we were raised, tough, resourceful, rooted, and free.

A reminder that country folks really can survive.

In Episode 2, I’m not starting at the beginning — I’m taking you straight into the messy middle. This is the night everything cracked open. The night I found myself on my knees on the floor, carrying a weight no one could see. Addiction, betrayal, grief, silence, and the moment I realized no one was coming to save me.

I talk about the mountain women I come from, the prayers my mama left behind, and the turning point that made me stand back up. This episode is raw, honest, and the real reason Mandy on the Mountain exists.

This isn’t the beginning of my story —

this is the moment that changed everything.

this very first episode of Mandy on the Mountain, I’m simply introducing myself and the heart behind this podcast. I share why I finally decided to start telling my story out loud and what you can expect from the journey ahead, Appalachian roots, mountain-made resilience, dandelion strength, faith, humor, healing, and a whole lot of truth-tellin’.

This is just an introduction, but it’s the beginning of something I’ve been carrying for years without even realizing it. If you’re here for honesty, heritage, and stories told straight from the hills and hollers of real life… you’re in the right place.