This week Michael Hilby comes on the show to talk about his career in street and stage performing. More commonly known as Hilby The Skinny German Juggle Boy, Michael Hilby has been entertaining audiences all over the world for over 3 decades. A performer who started as a juggler, Michael has evolved his show into a mixture of playful comedy, improv, unicycle riding, guitar playing, and juggle stunts that keep families entertained everywhere from cruise ships to festivals.

In this conversation Hilby shares his origin story from growing up in Germany to fleeing the country in adulthood to find himself while traveling. He shares his chance encounter to learn how to juggle and the manner in which his new talent brought him to Japan to make a living as a street performer. Through a lot of hustle, he talks about bringing his show to the states and the work it took to book gigs all over the US. Digging into the creative process, he dissects the manner by which he adds comedy to his routines and pulls in the audience as characters. He talks about his work at the NYS Fair, touring with Weird Al Yankovic, and the history of the Skinny German Juggle Boy persona. And most importantly, Hilby shares what life is like behind the juggling and the important role his family plays in keeping him on his toes. It’s a great chat exploring the possibilities that lay ahead if you follow your passions.

For more information on Michael Hilby, you can find him @hilbytheskinnygermanjuggleboy on Instagram and Facebook as well as by visiting www.hilby.net.

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, TikTok, and Bluesky, or email [email protected].

This week Ryan sits down with Jason Smorol, the General Manager of the Syracuse Mets. Jason is no stranger to minor league sports having worked for the Watertown Indians, Staten Island Yankees, Batavia Muckdogs, and Auburn Doubledays before taking over GM responsibilities for the Syracuse Chiefs in 2013. But to limit Jason to a list of teams is to miss out on the magic that he brings to sports. Jason has used the world of competition to build bridges in the communities he resides in. Since 2013, Jason has transformed Historic NBT Bank Stadium and the baseball season into a welcoming environment for countless fans of all backgrounds, provide business opportunities for local restauranteurs, raise awareness for hundreds of not-for-profits, and provide entertainment in all forms to the greater Syracuse community. His leadership is a successful demonstration as to how to turn a business into a community hub.

In this conversation, Jason talks about growing up in North Syracuse and his time at Bishop Grimes. He shares college stories from his studies at SUNY Fredonia and the United States Sports Academy as well as his time teaching Sports Management at SUNY Cortland. He shares his approach to sales citing examples from the industry of Minor League Baseball and Hilti USA. Additionally, he shares his Syracuse Mets management approach sheds light into a leadership style that encourages the best out of everyone. It’s a great conversation about the value of hard work, passion, and welcoming ideas from all avenues.

To learn more about Jason Smorol and his work with the Syracuse Mets, visit www.SyracuseMets.com or find them on social media @SyracuseMets.

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @RyanZlomek on Instagram, BlueSky and Tiktok, or email [email protected].

This week Ryan chats with DJ Rose, owner of Halo Tattoo and a community builder of underground culture. Despite being best known locally for founding Halo Tattoo in 1997, DJ’s entrepreneurial spirit also helped build the Syracuse hardcore punk scene in the early 90s when he booked groundbreaking bands like Fugazi, Earth Crisis, ALL, Quicksand, and Uniform Choice using resources at Syracuse University. Internationally, DJ is a vegan straight edge icon, having made appearances on media outlets like MTV and CBS to talk about animal rights and the global sobriety movement.

In this conversation, DJ sheds light into his early home life growing up in a little town called North Bay, NY. He talks about attending SUNY Potsdam, starting his first band, and then transitioning into booking shows in Central New York. He talks about his unique method of utilizing college resources from Syracuse University to book large shows and establish Syracuse as a staple of hardcore punk culture. As the originator of the band name “Earth Crisis,” he talks about his brief time in the metalcore band and expresses the pride he feels seeing them reach the world with messages of animal liberation. DJ sheds light onto his goals in creating Halo Tattoo and the chance encounter with famed artist Dan Higgs that helped him feel confident to start tattooing clients. He also talks about the importance spirituality plays in his life and how his relationship with god has provided comfort in difficult times. It’s a conversation filled with messages of self-empowerment and perspective into the way in which one person can truly help change the world.

For more information about DJ Rose you can find @DJRoseDNA on Instagram, Halo Tattoo on Instagram and Facebook @HaloTattoo, or email him [email protected].

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, Bluesky, and TikTok, or email [email protected].

This week Ryan chats with Corey Trench, a TV and movie editor based in Los Angeles. Having worked for over 15 years for such companies as MTV, Netflix, Amazon Studios, Walt Disney Television, CBS, and Blumhouse, Corey has made his way around Hollywood to become a staple of the post-production world. Getting his start with shows like Parks and Recreation as a Production Staff member in 2009, Corey graduated through the ranks to eventually become a solo editor with the show Teen Wolf. Not limited by genre he has worked on projects ranging from Tau for Netflix to television shows such as SYFY’s Krypton, Fox’s The Gifted, MTV’s Eye Candy and Punk’d, and Freevee’s Leverage: Redemption and Almost Paradise.

In this episode, Corey shares his childhood fascination with making arts in all forms from music, performance, and video making. He discusses his time learning about video production at Fayetteville-Manlius High School, Onondaga Community College, and Ithaca College before moving to Los Angeles to start his career. He discusses his entry into production work with a stint on Parks and Recreation before editing various reality TV shows and eventually landing a long term position on Teen Wolf. A lifelong fan of Superman, Corey shares the experience working on the character in the show Krypton and the work involved developing post-production systems used throughout the shows 2-season run. Additionally, Corey discusses his more personal film work, sharing his latest documentary project dedicated to the memory of his late brother Colin. It’s a wonderful conversation about finding passion young in life and seeing where it can take you when you’re led with determination.

For more information on Corey Trench you can find him on Twitter @coreytrench or at his website www.coreycuts.tv.

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, TikTok, and Bluesky or email [email protected].

This week Ryan chats with internationally renowned photographer Jessica Montgomery. Originally hailing from Oklahoma City, Jessica moved to Syracuse, NY in 2018 to handle the photographic needs of Stay Fresh, a creative agency started by Tommy Lincoln. While most photographers are known for a niche talent, Jessica captivates and controls the still image no matter the subject. Jessica is known for her 31 Days Of Halloween project in which she plans and collaborates shoots with different models to share her imagination and storytelling capabilities every day in the month of October. This level of quality and dedication is seen in every project she tackles. Whether photographing beverage cans for 1911, models for publication in Selin or IMIRAGE, toys for Jay And Silent Bob, or action shots at summer concerts, Jessica’s knowledge of lenses and how to arrange her subjects makes the result jump off the screen every single time.

In this conversation Jessica talks about growing up and finding a passion for photography early in life courtesy of the toy Suzy Snapshot and the affordability of 110 film cameras. She discusses the value she found building a creative foundation in art school before focusing her attention exclusively on the mechanics and capabilities of her camera. Shifting to the professional sphere, she shares her start as a wedding photographer and the eventual move to Syracuse to take on accounts like Beak & Skiff, Ayrloom, Oh My Darling, Glazed And Confused, Funk N Waffle, Syracuse Cooperative Market, Salt City Market, Elevate, LM Social, and dozens of others. Jessica goes into depth on the narrative aspects of her work and shares examples of how her imagination takes off when the ideas start flowing. It’s an engaging conversation about the infinite depth one can explore when they truly love their chosen medium.

For more information on Jessica Montgomery you can find her @jessica.stayfresh on Instagram and Threads or visit www.stayfresh.design.  

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, Bluesky, and TikTok, or email [email protected].

This week Ryan sits down with historical fiction writer Lee Ellen Hickey to uncover the lore of Virginia Tonkin. In the late 1800s, the Tonkins were a wealthy family residing in Oswego, NY who tragically lost their young daughter to appendicitis. In their process of mourning, they famously entombed Virginia’s body in a glass coffin which resided in their family home for over a year. The story of Virginia’s death and her family’s peculiar memorial has fascinated New Yorkers for over a century so Lee Ellen Hickey sought to explore the story further in her novel Girl In The Glass Coffin: The Tonkin Affair which she self published in 2024. Lee comes on the show to discuss her inspiration, writing process, and the legacy of the Tonkins’ family on this week’s episode of Meditations.

For more information on Lee Ellen Hickey you can visit www.girlintheglasscoffin.com, or find her on Facebook at Girl In The Glass Coffin.

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, Bluesky, and TikTok, or email [email protected]

This week Ryan interviews two authors hidden within the same body; Daniel Handler, more commonly known as Lemony Snicket, comes on the show to share his writing tales with listeners. Daniel Handler introduced the pen name Lemony Snicket in his best-selling children’s books A Series of Unfortunate Events which have sold more than 60 million copies and been translated into 41 different languages. Known as a saga that wasn’t afraid to show readers the imaginative, dreary world of the Baudelaire Orphans, A Series of Unfortunate Events leapt off the page to become a 2004 feature film starring Jim Carrey and a Netflix television that lasted 3 seasons with the likes of Neil Patrick Harris and Patrick Warburton. But is not like the protagonists of his most famous stories as he’s had good fortune and a prolific writing career with the success of his other works like The Basic Eight, the All The Wrong Questions series, Adverbs, We Are Pirates, and his latest memoir And Then? And Then? What Else?.

In this conversation, Daniel talks about his affection for the city of San Franscisco, traveling to the east coast for college and discovering a supportive writing community there. He expands on the struggled sale of his first adult novel and transitioning his focus to children’s books which birthed A Series of Unfortunate Events. Daniel delves into the importance of structure in his writing as a creative guidepost to keep the process fun while he scribbles on legal pads in various cafes around California. A man of many talents, he talks about working in motion pictures, sharing tales of running the writing room of the Netflix series and in the music business partnering with Stephin Merritt of The Magnetic Fields. It’s a conversation full of intrigue, fun, playful banter, and insight into someone who makes every moment one of imagination.

For more about Daniel Handler aka Lemony Snicket you can visit www.danielhandler.com or find him on Instagram at @authordanielhandler.

For more information on the Meditations with the Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, Bluesky, and TikTok, or email [email protected]

Stepping into the world of gaming, Ryan sits down with Mike Saltzman, owner of Syracuse, NY-based companies Voltage Video Games and Viridian Dice. Mike has a vibrant history in entrepreneurship and branding, having started Voltage Video Games in 2011 and building the company into a downtown retro-focused institution. Though primarily known locally for his businesses, Mike found viral internet fame in 2013 when collaborating with filmmaking Mario Restive to create a YouTube ad that took the web by storm. Embracing greenscreen glitches, nuanced gamer jokes, and well-cued social awkwardness, the Voltage YouTube ad received over a million views gaining the store notability and turning Saltzman’s performance into meme-level popularity.

In this conversation, Mike talks about growing up in New York’s Capital Region and discovering lifelong interests in his youth. Shifting to higher education, he talks about attending Binghamton University and taking a leadership role at the campus radio station WHRW. He tells the origin stories for Voltage and Viridian and offers an honest behind-the-scenes look at business partnerships and financing. Mike provides company culture and entrepreneurship advice along with a healthy dose of nerdy references.  

To learn more about Mike Saltzman you can find him on Instagram @magitekmike. Voltage Video Games and Viridian Dice can also be found on Facebook and Instagram or online at https://voltagevideogames.com/ or https://viridiandice.com/.

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, Bluesky, and Tiktok, or email [email protected].

This week musician Laura Hall joins Ryan in conversation to chat about her amazing work in the world of improv comedy. Laura is a world-renowned improv musician having started her career with Chicago’s Second City and eventually becoming Musical Director on Whose Line Is It Anyway? for 21 seasons. Very few people have mastered an instrument, let alone mastered the ability to quickly add mood, ambiance, and rhythm on various instruments. For over two decades, Laura’s ability to play music from all genres provided the backbone for performers such as Wayne Brady, Jeff Davis, Gary Anthony Williams, and Jonathan Mangum to riff and sing memorable comedy songs about all topics imaginable. Laura has become the top of her class in improv musicianship having written the book The Improv Comedy Musician and developed traveling classes to share her unique craft.

In this conversation, Laura talks about falling in love with music, performance, and collaboration in her youth. She shares a chance encounter that helped her get a job working Coat Check at Chicago’s The Second City theater that eventually evolved into a touring performance position. Traveling with her husband Rick Hall to Los Angeles, she had the opportunity to join the cast of Whose Line Is It Anyway? where she performed in over 400 episodes. She talks about the arts of creating music on Whose Line?, her collaboration with guitarist Linda Taylor tackling all genres of music, and she sheds light into the production of the long-running improv comedy show hosted by Drew Carey and Aisha Tyler. Laura describes the importance of inspiring others to bring their musical talents to the improv world and the joy she finds working with local troops around the world. She also talks about the current Whose Live Anyway? tour that brings the fan-favorite TV show to theaters around the country.

To learn more about Laura Hall’s work visit www.laurahall.com or find @LauraHallMusic on Facebook and Instagram.

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, Bluesky, and Tiktok, or email [email protected]

This week we meditate on all things STEM with Erin Winick Anthony, a professional science communicator. Erin is the owner of the company STEAM Power Media which works with clients such as Astrolab, Hearst Media Production Company, Zero G, Space Center Houston, and dozens of others to most effectively showcase their scientific triumphs to the world.  Whether writing press releases, creating documentaries, posting on social media, or speaking publicly, Erin finds ways to make high-level scientific concepts accessible, welcoming, and inspiring.

In this conversation, Erin talks about developing a passion for problem-solving at a young age and eventually studying Mechanical Engineering at the University of Florida. She shares her first foray into entrepreneurship by developing the company Sci Chic, a producer of STEM-inspired clothing and accessories. She recounts various opportunities that led her into the field of science communication including a stint working at NASA where she earned the coveted Silver Snoopy Award. Deciding to go out on her own, Erin founded STEAM Power Media and shares the origin story of her company. As someone who is passionate about so many subjects, Erin also shares what it was like being featured in the Unstoppable Wasp Marvel comic book, using puzzles as a way to relax, and the joys of pinball culture with her collaborators Wormhole Pinball and Barrels of Fun Pinball. It’s an engaging conversation that will make you want to shoot for the stars.

To learn more about Erin’s work you can visit www.erinwinick.com, Erin Winick – Science Communicator on Facebook, or @erinwinick on X, Instagram, and TikTok.

For more information on the Meditations with Ryan Zlomek podcast, you can find The World of Ryan Zlomek on Facebook, @ryanzlomek on Instagram, Bluesky, and Tiktok, or email [email protected].