Meet You At The Bottom

In the latest MYATB episode, Abhinav is joined by his good friends Andrew Carlson and Sameer Datla as they discussed one of philosophy's oldest questions - "Are humans inherently good or evil?". It was an interesting, thought-provoking conversation and actually led to more questions than answers as the group dissected human nature in the context of morality, day-to-day interactions and modern-day societal elements (i.e., politics, religion, capitalism). To ensure the discussion went smoothly, the group paired the conversation with some classy refreshments - Andrew went with a hometown Wheaton, IL beer, Sameer chose a worldy Sapporo beer and Abhinav kept it simple with a glass (or four) of Basil Hayden's. 

This is the Way! In today's episode, Abhinav is joined by good friend and Star Wars megafan Tyler Hogan to discuss Seasons 1 and 2 of The Mandalorian.  Tyler and Abhinav dissected a few of their favorite episodes in each of the seasons, talked about their favorite moments across the seasons and lastly, discussed what the future of The Mandalorian holds. In the second half, Tyler and Abhinav gave a bit of a preview to a future podcast episode by discussing all of the upcoming shows and movies that are expanding the Star Wars Universe. They kept it simple with Miller Lite and Bud Light throughout the episode but with a twist - every time someone said "MANDO" or "Baby Yoda" or "the Child", Tyler and Abhinav had to take a chug of their beer. 

Happy New Year! In the first Meet You At The Bottom episode of 2021, Abhinav is joined by his cousin Lavanya Chimata, a psychotherapist, to discuss mental health in America. Over some Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon, they delved into what mental health and mental illness is, the stigma (and lack of awareness) surrounding the topic and some helpful mental and physical activities that are beneficial in addressing mental health issues. The conversation was not only educational but also engaging and thoughtful as mental health has always been a topic humans are reluctant and fearful to openly discuss but now more than ever it is in need of more awareness and dialogue around it. Hope you enjoy the discussion!

I was joined this week by my friend Patrick Wille in a 2-part conversation series about his journey on becoming a Catholic Priest and his thoughts on the Catholic Faith. In today's episode, we discussed the Catholic Faith and the Church more broadly, especially in relation to some of the key hot-bucket modern issues of our time. In Part 1 of our conversation, we focused on the key moments and experiences that led him to change career paths from a Finance Professional at Boeing to his current path of priesthood. In terms of cocktails, we kept it simple yet elegant and stuck with some refreshing water. I hope you enjoy the episode and if you have not done so already, be sure to catch Part 1 of the conversation on your favorite podcast platform.

I was joined this week by my friend Patrick Wille in a 2-part conversation series about his journey on becoming a Catholic Priest and his thoughts on the Catholic Faith. In today's episode, we focused on the key moments and experiences that led him to change career paths from a Finance Professional at Boeing to his current path of priesthood. We got an an inside look into his decision making process, the reactions from friends & family and also what exactly occurs in terms of steps and studies that are needed to be completed in order to become a Catholic Priest. In Part 2 of our conversation, we discussed the Catholic Faith and the Church more broadly, especially in relation to some of the key hot-bucket modern issues of our time. In terms of cocktails, we kept it simple yet elegant and stuck with some refreshing water. I hope you enjoy the episode and be on the lookout for Part 2 of my conversation with Pat. 

The Fighting Illini Basketball Season is here and the Illini are off to a HOT start! This week, I sat down with Illini Basketball expert and former Orange Krush President, McKennon Biers. We had a great conversation discussing last year's exciting run, key members of this year's roster, success factors and expectations for this season as well as a deep dive into the schedule with some predictions for this year and beyond. For our cocktails, McKennon had a classy, always reliable Bud Light in a commemorative KAMS mug while I enjoyed a Christmas Ale by Great Lakes Brewing Company. For all of the Illini and college basketball fans out there, this is a must-listen episode as this is one of the most anticipated seasons to date and this preview will get you up to speed before the key matchups, including the Top 10 Matchups on 12/2 against Baylor and 12/8 against Duke. Spoiler alert - the Illini are winning the Big Ten and National Championship this year!

In this week's episode, I sat down with my good high school friend, Christy Rolf, for an exciting episode into her career in the world of Interior Design. We touched on multiple aspects of interior design: what the role is, misconceptions on the industry, the need to have an understanding of other disciplines such as construction and architecture and what careers are out there for those interested in the sector. Lastly, Christy gave a very compelling pitch to why it is beneficial to think about hiring an interior designer for your next home or business and she also provided a couple of simple, yet effective tips for any upcoming DIY projects you might have. It's always fun catching up with high school friends and this was even better as I got to learn about a career that quite frankly, I was never exposed to growing up or in my years of education. Most importantly for our cocktails, Christy was enjoying her quarantine-special (Bees Knees) and I was having a glass of cabernet sauvignon from Chateau Ste Michelle. If there is only 1 takeaway from this must-listen conversation, it's the phrase Christy taught me - "More pillows on your bed = everything's good".  If you want to check out some of Christy's and her colleagues' work, here is the website: http://johnsonstudio.com/

For the 2.5 billion fans in the world (and for the many billions who are not), this week's episode takes us inside the world of the second most popular sport in the world - Cricket! I was joined by expert Krish Desai and former player turned podcast host, Paarth Joshi, as we discussed the history and basics of the game, the exciting and unpredictability of year's season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and why the sport has not gained in popularity within the United States. Lastly, we rounded out the conversation talking about Paarth's podcast, The Follow On. In each episode, Paarth and his co-hosts bring you the latest news from the pitch and in-depth analyses from all cricket competitions as well as some great opinions, insights and friendly banter. I highly recommend folks to visit the podcast's website (link below) and give the latest episode a listen as I'm sure you will start following the sport of Cricket instantaneously. Here is the link to the website: https://www.followoncricket.com/podcasts and you can listen to each episode on every major podcast listening platform (Apple Pods, Google Pods, Spotify, etc.). Last but not least and on the minds of every listener, all three of us were enjoying some classic, good ol' American beer throughout the episode - check out the Instagram page for Krish and Paarth's attempt to Meet You At the Bottom. 

With Election Day just around the corner, I sat down with returning guest Parag Dharmavarapu to address the Presidential race and provide some of our thoughts on this year's election cycle. Don't worry, we're not joining the rest of the talking heads and so-called "pundits" out there in discussing the specific campaigns (and the pros & cons of each candidate), but instead we focused on the key regions (and specifically the key counties) that will decide the election come Tuesday night. Although this was a dense, detailed and maybe boring episode, it was a very educational, interesting and thoughtful discussion on the key demographics of each region, what occurred in the 2016 election and what needs to occur for each candidate this time around so the region tilts in their favor. Lastly and most importantly, for our libations this week, I was enjoying a crisp, refreshing Blue Moon while Parag was getting in touch with his Italian roots by sipping on a Limoncello.