Quality Human

Whose story are we telling? Is it the story we’re meant to live, or someone else’s? Is it forced on us by society or family or religion? How do we make sure it's ours?Anna Solomon’s provocative third novel, The Book of V., charts the paths of three women separated by generations, and their struggles to express their authentic selves. Woven into the Jewish story of Purim, the novel grapples with what is to have one’s own identity, especially as a women pressed by cultural ideas of who she should be.

Anna and Justin discuss the challenges of writing in the age of COVID, releasing a book during lockdown, and the dance of parenting and working as a writer. They also discuss the surprising wonder of letting go of the process and letting the writing "wander."

The Book of V. has been named an NPR Best Book of 2020, a Good Morning America Book Club book, and has been praised by the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly, People Magazine and many more. Find it at the link below.

LINKS

The Book of V.  https://amzn.to/39PjbIoThe story of Purim https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/purim-101/

Anna’s website  www.AnnaSolomon.com

Anna on Good Morning America  https://gma.abc/2VRvRGq

Anna’s LA Times piece on life during quarantine https://lat.ms/3gpXTT8

Where you do begin with Rodney Hicks' career as a Broadway actor and playwright? At the age of 22 he was a member of the opening cast of RENT. He later returned to RENT’s closing Broadway cast in the role o...

Vanessa Wright writes about the daily challenges of balancing of parenthood and personhood. In her friendly and distinctly honest way, Vanessa’s blog and social media posts tack between raising healthy kids and nurturing a healthy self. Her unexpected journey into homeschooling her three kids, now teenagers, has taught her practical, living lessons about how young people shape their own identities -- and how we can do the same in adulthood.

In this real and funny conversation, Vanessa and Justin explore the critical need for parents (especially primary caregivers) to practice self-care and sustainable boundaries to be the best parent they can be. Other topics include Vanessa’s recent 365 days of yoga, as well as her evolving spiritual life as a Christian, drawing her toward the stories of women in the Christian tradition, including Mary Magdalene. LINKSBig Life Journal  biglifejournal.com/The Home School Mom   www.thehomeschoolmom.com/author/vanessa/Author and scholar Richard Rohr  cac.org/richard-rohr/richard-rohr-ofm/Author and scholar Peter Enns  peteenns.com/about/

Architecture journalist Sam Lubell is a self-described “expert in failure.” As the co-author of the literary phenomenon Never Built, Sam’s passion is uncovering structures that never came to be. Sam’s immersion in unrealized dreams -- from suspension bridges with skyscrapers for legs, to a geodesic dome for the Brooklyn Dodgers -- has given him unique insight on how spaces make us more -- or less -- human. On Oct. 28, Sam releases his new book Life Meets Art: Inside the Homes of the World's Most Creative People.

Sam and Justin also discuss raw beauty as a cure for depression, architecture as a civil right, and how to balance work and relationships, especially as a freelancer.LINKSSam Lubell's website: www.samlubell.com/Life Meets Art www.amazon.com/Life-Meets-Art-Inside-Creative/dp/183866131XAMAZING photos of Never Built NY at the Queens Museumwww.theverge.com/2017/9/17/16304212/never-built-new-york-queens-museum-art-exhibit-previewGREAT VIDEO of Never Built NY at the Queens Museumhttps://vimeo.com/241024579CRAZY photos of Never Built L.A. www.theguardian.com/cities/gallery/2017/feb/09/unbuilt-los-angeles-city-might-have-been-in-picturesNever Built N.Y. the bookhttps://www.artbook.com/9781938922756.htmlNever Built L.A. the bookhttps://www.artbook.com/9781935202967.html

What is the job of visual art? Should it comfort a viewer? Make them feel good? Or disturb them? Shake them up? Should it do all of these things? Justin talks with visual artist Ahuva Zaslavsky about the power of art to push us out of our comfort zones to new places. They also talk about Ahuva’s focus on “I vs. We” in her art, the balance of being a parent and an artist, and the healing magic of totally impulsive decisions. Ahuva Zaslavsky completed her undergraduate work in behavioral sciences before gravitating to visual art. She is currently pursuing her MFA at Pacific Northwest College of Art. She has held solo exhibitions of her prints and paintings at PNCA Gallery, the Multnomah Arts Center and the West Linn, OR public library. LINKSAhuva’s website: www.ahuvasz.comGalleries of Ahuva's art: www.ahuvasz.com/projects-1

Music by Justin Jude Carroll.Quality Human logo design by Justin Jude Carroll, Ariel Carroll and Matan Carroll.© 2020 Justin Jude Carroll Arts.

Play is the key that unlocks creativity, says musical adventurer Andrew Callard. What’s more, play unlocks a “spaciousness” that allows unexpected things to blossom and grow. In this far-ranging chat about creativity, collaboration and meditation, Andrew and Justin draw on their long friendship to discuss trusting your creative gut, using limitations as fuel, and the divine wonder of the iPhone Voice Memo app.Andrew Callard is a singer and songwriter who has collaborated with musical acts all over the world. He’s recorded with Senegal’s Djiby Seye (the nephew of Youssou N’Dour), Cuba’s acclaimed Havana C and even spent musical time with founding members of Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Andrew has released projects in multiple genres including a capella, pop and, under the name Andres Enrique, salsa. LINKS:

Andrew's website: www.andrewcallardmusic.com"Honesty" by Andrew Callard feat. Djiby Seye: https://bit.ly/2Ewg8rj"Quedate Conmigo" by Andres Enrique: https://bit.ly/2RYJ7ayQuality Human music by Justin Jude Carroll. (c) 2020 Justin Jude Carroll Arts.

When is it time to change what we believe? To rework old ideas, to question longstanding assumptions, to empower unheard voices? Rabbi Eve Posen believes the time is always now.In this timely and wide-ranging conversation, Rabbi Eve and Justin discuss the ongoing project of reinterpretation — How we look back at our holy texts, traditions and assumptions, and by doing so, how we look forward. Rabbi Eve and Justin also talk about the resilience of children in troubled times (#pandemic); the hidden wisdom in any text we value; what Judaism can teach us about allyship in the era of Black Lives Matter; and of course her secret love of prog metal music (Tool!). Rabbi Eve Posen is the co-author, with Lois Shenker, of Pirkei Imahot: The Wisdom of Mothers, the Voices of Women. She is Associate Rabbi at Congregation Neveh Shalom in Portland, OR. She did her rabbinical training at American Jewish University where she also completed her Master’s in Experiential Education. She is a wife and mother to two young children.

LINKS:

Rabbi Eve’s website: www.rabbieve.com

Rabbi Eve’s High Holidays 2020 sermon on “He who must not be named” - to be posted 9/18!: www.rabbieve.comPirkei Imahot: https://amzn.to/2ZvO927Music by Justin Jude Carroll. 
(c) 2020 Justin Jude Carroll Arts.

How do we make our best work while remaining our best selves? Is it possible to live a life of integrity and peace in a challenging world? How do we attend to the professional and the personal without compromising one or the other? In other words: How do we find balance? Host Justin Jude Carroll sits down with writers, artists, musicians, clergy, teachers and innovators to explore these crucial questions. Season 1 guests include novelist Anna Solomon, Broadway actor and playwright Rodney Hicks, and journalist Sam Lubell.

QH Website: www.quality-human.com

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