Colourful accessories or clean minimalism? Moody, rich tones or bright, airy ones? Sleek wood floors or soft, lived-in carpet? Our dream homes say more about us than we think.

Because imagining your dream home isn’t just a fun escape; it’s a mirror of your values, your personality, a manifestation of you in the architecture of a home.

So, in today’s episode of 24 Days of Reflection, we allow ourselves some delightful daydreaming in answering the question: What does your dream home look like?

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on whichever platform you listen to us on to catch our weekly episodes!

Check out our Substack and subscribe to get our 24 Days of Reflection episodes directly in your email inbox: ⁠https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com⁠

As always, we’d love to know: what does your dream home look like? Share your thoughts and musings with us at [email protected] or leave a comment wherever you’re listening.

References

Question Source: Letterloop

Sound Credits: see ⁠here

Ever wonder why happiness feels so close yet somehow still out of reach?

It can be confronting to explicitly call out the things standing between you and your own happiness—especially if one of those things is yourself. But maybe the journey you’re on towards understanding what hinders and helps your happiness is one you don’t have to go through alone.

In today’s episode of 24 Days of Reflection, we embrace this self-confrontation alongside you by exploring the question: what do you believe stands between you and complete happiness?

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on whichever platform you listen to us on to catch our weekly episodes!

Check out our Substack and subscribe to get our 24 Days of Reflection episodes directly in your email inbox: ⁠https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com⁠

As always, we’d love to know: what do you believe stands between you and complete happiness? Share your thoughts and musings with us at [email protected] or leave a comment wherever you’re listening.

References

Question Source: ⁠Pinterest⁠

Sound Credits: see ⁠here

We all have a compliment that’s stuck with us. The real question is: why that one?

Sometimes you hear a compliment over and over, but don’t believe it till the right person says it at the right moment in your life. Other times, compliments lose their value because they’re simply morphing into the same uninventive statements: “You’re so [smart], [pretty], [fill-in-basic-adjective-here].”

In today’s episode of 24 Days of Reflection, we revisit the compliments that have stayed with us by exploring the following question: What’s a compliment you’ve never forgotten?

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on whichever platform you listen to us on to catch our weekly episodes!

Check out our Substack and subscribe to get our 24 Days of Reflection episodes directly in your email inbox: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com

As always, we’d love to know: What’s a compliment you’ve never forgotten? Share your thoughts and musings with us at [email protected] or leave a comment wherever you’re listening.

References

Question Source: Pinterest

Sound Credits: see here

It’s been a while, dear listeners, and as you might have heard if you’re up to date with our latest episodes, season 1 of Mixed Media Minds has just come to a close. And we have, well, mixed feelings about it (pun almost always intended). While we’re excited for what comes next, we can’t help but feel a sense of sentimentality looking back on the reflective expansion and wisdom gathering that marked the start of our podcasting journey.

Somehow, we couldn’t imagine taking a break from this incredible reflective momentum during the holiday season. Regardless of how this time looks for you, we still imagine it involves quietening down and regathering with yourself and loved ones.

So, as our gift to you, dear listeners, we’d like to welcome you to 24 Days of Reflection, an advent calendar of short-form episodes that handles one daily thought-provoking question or prompt. We hope these little nuggets make you laugh, think, and pause just for a short moment in your day—just as they did for us.

To kick things off on a hopeful note, our first episode explores the following question from Letterloop: What makes you optimistic for the future?

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to catch our weekly episodes.

Check out our Substack and subscribe to get our 24 Days of Reflection episodes directly in your email inbox: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com!

As always, we’d love to know: what makes you optimistic for the future? Share your reflections with us at [email protected] or leave a comment wherever you’re listening.

References

Question Source: Letterloop

Sound Credits: see here

We still may not yet be ready to accept it, but season 1 of Mixed Media Minds has *officially* come to a close (!!!). Needless to say, we’re finding ourselves deeply in all the feels about what this means.

In today’s episode, we take a look back at some of our favorite moments of joy, reflection, and bonding throughout the last season, reliving and relishing the many memories we made along the way. For those who’ve been with us throughout the season, you’ll also remember that in S1 E12, we shared our hopes, dreams, and reminders for the podcast and today’s episode was also our chance to revisit those sentiments. While of them stayed true, some of them are now evolving with us as we explore what comes next.

We hope you enjoy our goofy, bittersweet, nostalgic season wrap-up as a little testament to what this season meant to us. Mixed Media Minds wouldn’t exist without the community of listeners who’ve supported and encouraged us throughout this season and we truly can’t wait for what comes next with all of you.

P.S. While this all sounds like we’re going to be gone for a while before next year’s season, the reality is that we unashamedly have separation anxiety with the pod—meaning a fun collection of holiday episodes will be coming your way soon. Stay tuned!

Episode Breakdown

00:00 - 25:14: Highlight Reel

25:15 - 36:13: Reflecting on our hopes, dreams, and reminders for Mixed Media Minds

36:14 - 48:45: Rapid Fire “This or That”

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to catch our weekly episodes.

Check out our Substack and subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay connected to our Mixed Media Minds pluriverse: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com

Any reflections on our season 1 journey? Share your thoughts with us at [email protected] or leave a comment wherever you’re listening.

Sound Credits: see here

This week, we’re reflecting on a theme that carries significance for us on and off the pod — endings. Why? Because this week’s episode marks the beginning of the end of our first season and naturally brought with it the question: what does it actually mean for something to truly end?

In our conversation, we explore endings and how we process their existence. We reflect on how endings sometimes announce themselves quietly — through intuition, pre-grieving, or a sense that a certain constellation of life will never exist in quite the same way again. On the other hand, sometimes endings arrive abruptly, unannounced, and only visible in retrospect.

We also unpack our relationships with different kinds of endings — the ones that still ache, like lost friendships or moments in life that never got a proper closing note, and the ones that bring relief or peace, like moving on from places or experiences that have already served their time.

In an intentionally non-committal way, we continue asking ourselves throughout the episode whether endings truly exist at all, or whether they’re simply continuations viewed from a particular vantage point — beginnings disguised in reverse. 

And with that: thank you so much for being along for the ride of Mixed Media Minds’ 1st season. We hope this ending truly is the beginning of many more soulful journeys and seasons to come. 

Episode Breakdown

00:00 – 8:37: Lightbulb Moments

08:38 – 18:43: Creative Lab

18:44 – 20:38: Motivation

20:39 – 32:04: Do endings exist? If so, how do we know that something is coming to an end? 

32:05 – 53:56: What’s an “ending” that we still struggle with?

53:57 – 1:07:10: What’s an “ending” that we’re happy about?

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to catch our weekly episodes.

Check out our Substack and subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay connected to our Mixed Media Minds pluriverse: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com

As always, we’d love to know: What endings have shaped you most? And do you believe endings ever really end, or do they just transition into something else?

Share your reflections with us at [email protected] or leave a comment wherever you’re listening.

Sound Credits: see here

If you’ve ever wondered what comes out of willingly seeking out things that unsettle us — from chilling horror films to psychological thrillers that make us question our life choices — this week’s episode is for you.

In this special Halloween edition episode, we dive into the emotion of fear as it appears in cinema, exploring what draws us to stories that disturb, haunt, or morbidly fascinate us.

Together, we unpack the ways fear can be fruitful and perhaps even constructive. How does fear in art stretch our understanding of ourselves and of others? Why do mirrors or bone-chilling music evoke such unexplainable, complex fear in us? Can this discomfort be meaningful or insightful? 

From rants on Twin Peaks to Black Swan, we then analyze our favorite dark characters and what they symbolize to us, opening up a new space of appreciation and admiration for fear’s crucial role in art and media. And although our episode is packed with our usual giggles and banter, we also secretly hope today’s theme will add an extra dose of spookiness to your Halloween night. Stay spooky, stay soulful! 

Episode Breakdown

00:00 - 10:16: Lightbulb Moments

10:17- 18:32: Creative Lab

18:33 - 22:09: Motivation

22:10 - 25:16: What attracts us to consuming art/media/cinema that evokes fear?

25:17 - 34:25: What actually comes out/what do we think can come out of consuming this kind of art/media/cinema?

34:26 - 1:07:10: Our favorite dark characters and what they symbolize to us

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on whichever platform you listen to us on to catch our weekly episodes!

Check out our Substack and subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay connected to our Mixed Media Minds pluriverse: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com

As always, we’d love to know: What’s a film, story, or piece of art that scared you in a way that stuck with you? What did or does that fear teach you about yourself? Share your thoughts and musings with us at [email protected] or leave a comment wherever you’re listening.

Sound Credits: see here

References:

Twin Peaks by David Lynch

Mulholland Drive by David Lynch

Requiem for a Dream by Darren Aronofsky

Black Swan by Darren Aronofsky

The Sixth Sense by M. Night Shyamalan

We spend so much of our lives trying to make sense of things — seeking clarity, certainty, and structure in a world that doesn’t always (rarely) offer these things on a silver platter. But what if confusion isn’t something to fix or overcome, but something to learn from, sit with, and embrace?

In this week’s episode, we explore the intrinsic value of confusion, independent of its eventual trajectory towards clarity. We allow ourselves space to understand why it feels uncomfortable and messy — and why, at the same time, it’s often the very space where we grow the most.

In an effort to center tangible experience, we also share a little about what confusion looks and feels like for us personally — from navigating our sense of vocation and purpose, to wrestling with ideas about identity and self-conception. Through that, we reflect on how confusion can slow us down in valuable ways: helping us question assumptions, pay closer attention, and define what’s truly meaningful on our own. Maybe confusion isn’t per se the opposite of knowing, but rather the force that keeps us curious enough to keep making sense of it all. 

Episode Breakdown

00:00 - 8:37: Lightbulb Moments

8:38 - 18:43: Creative Lab

18:44 - 20:38: Motivation

20:39 - 32:04: What is our bar for clarity? What does it feel or look like?

32:05 - 53:56: What is an area of life/aspect of our lives where we actually have clarity and confusion? On the spectrum between confusion and clarity, where do we lie (in certain aspects of life)? Pick 2 areas: 1 area with clarity, 1 area with confusion. Talk about what it looks like, thoughts, and feelings.

53:57 - 1:04:18: Let’s focus on the areas of confusion: how did they help us grow or reach some other ‘valuable place’?

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on whichever platform you listen to us on to catch our weekly episodes! 

Check out our Substack and subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay connected to our Mixed Media Minds pluriverse: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com! 

We’d love to hear from you: what does confusion mean to you? Is it something you resist, or something you’ve learned to sit with? Has it ever brought you to an unexpectedly valuable place? Let us know what your thoughts are, on these questions or today’s episode, by sending us an email at [email protected]!

Sound Credits: see here

References:

Helga Paris

Strange Pilgrims

There’s possibly no greater feeling (okay, probably there is — but we love hyperbole) than discovering a term or slang word that perfectly captures a slice of human experience. Phrases like “cringe,” “vibe check,” and “delulu” aren’t just part of our everyday vocabulary at Mixed Media Minds — they’re often also liberating tools that fill the gaps where standard language falls short.

One term that hits especially hard (for better and for worse) is FOMO — the fear of missing out. In today’s episode, we unpack FOMO’s deeper implications and explore what it can reveal when we reflect on our relationship with it. At the same time, we confront how FOMO can become a consuming distraction from the present, making our actual lives feel less satisfying than whatever we imagine we’re missing. To dig a bit deeper, we take a quick trip down memory lane, reflecting on moments from our past that once triggered major FOMO — but no longer do. These reflections offer scientific, objective, unequivocal proof (we REALLY love hyperbole) that our early twenties are profoundly shaped by the opinions and values of others. Back then, experiences like partying or chasing certain social milestones felt essential — until we got a little older and wiser.

Flipping the question, we then tackle a tougher reflection: what do we experience FOMO about now in our late twenties? Sure, we’ve grown beyond our earlier fixations, but new versions and insecurities have emerged in their place. We find ourselves wondering what the “crucial” or “quintessential” experiences around dating or community are — and whether we’re missing out on them.

Finally, we close with a gratitude exercise designed to help us detach from the endless pull of FOMO and refocus on what truly matters. Because sometimes, perhaps even often, what we’re really missing out on is the life unfolding right in front of us.

Episode Breakdown:

00:00 - 6:01: Lightbulb Moments

6:02 - 17:48: Creative Lab

17:49 - 20:17: Motivation

20:18 - 24:05: What are up- and downsides of FOMO? Is it a useful concept and if so, how?

24:06 - 42:38: What is something that we used to have FOMO for and don’t anymore?

42:39- 52:31: What is something that we didn’t used to have FOMO for that we actually do now? 

52:32 - 1:06:41: Gratitude Exercise

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on whichever platform you listen to us on to catch our weekly episodes!

Check out our Substack and subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay connected to our Mixed Media Minds pluriverse: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com! 

As always, we’d love to know: what kinds of FOMO show up most in your life right now? What values underlie your FOMO and how might gratitude for the present shift your relationship with those feelings? Let us know what your thoughts are, on these questions or today’s episode, by sending us an email at [email protected]!

Sound Credits: see here

References:

Check out Cristina’s Substack: Renaissance Soul!! And Sitara’s Substack too!

We talk a lot about finding balance — in work, relationships, creativity, and rest — but rarely pause to ask why we want it so much. What is it about balance that feels like an intuitive marker of a “good” life? And is it even something we can truly achieve?

In this week’s episode, we dig into this obsession with balance and what it really represents. For some, balance means spreading time and energy evenly across the things they value; for others, it’s about pulling back to focus deeply on just a few. Along the way, we realize that balance isn’t always about time or scheduling — it’s moreso an emotional state, a sense of inner steadiness that doesn’t necessarily align with how our days look on paper.

We also explore when being out of balance might actually serve us. Some of the most meaningful parts of life — love, grief, creative flow, or new beginnings — demand that we pour ourselves in fully, even if balance is the cost. Maybe imbalance, in the right moments, is its own kind of ideal to strive for. Our episode provides us space to delve into all of this and more, closing out with a glimpse into what we’d like our future relationship with balance to  look like.

Episode Breakdown

00:00 - 4:35: :Lightbulb Moments

4:36 - 13:59: Creative Lab

14:00 - 27:08: Why are we even striving for balance? What draws people to this idea? 

27:09 - 46:00: For what reasons could it be worth it to be “out of balance”?

46:01 - 58:58: What would we like our relationship to the concept of balance to be moving forward?

Don’t Be a Stranger!

Subscribe to Mixed Media Minds on whichever platform you listen to us on to catch our weekly episodes!

Check out our Substack and subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay connected to our Mixed Media Minds pluriverse: https://mixedmediaminds.substack.com! 

As always, we’d love to know: What does balance mean to you (right now)? Have you ever found value in letting yourself fall out of it? Let us know what your thoughts are, on these questions or today’s episode, by sending us an email at [email protected]!

Sound Credits: see here

Check out Cristina’s Substack: Renaissance Soul!! And Sitara’s Substack too!