Robyn Strain, a respiratory therapist, was among the first Albertans to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. She joins us hours later to discuss the process, and how she and her colleagues are feeling as cases continue to rise. The politics of a pandemic are producing interesting polling results, including the rise of a right wing party that could take votes from the governing UCP. Dr. Jared Wesley helps us sort it all out. Momin Saeed and Trent Daley give us a sense of how Alberta's Muslim community is holding up in light of multiple targeted attacks in Edmonton. And April Prescott takes us inside her creative mind, and how she's dealing with the mental health impacts of COVID-19.

Dr. Stephen Duckett joins from Melbourne to discuss what's worked, and what work remains, with Australia's COVID-19 response. University of Toronto Law and Bioethics professor Trudo Lemmens explains why he's concerned with Bill C7 - Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying legislation. Legendary ice bather John Mark Earle (literally) takes us into Peace River on the one year anniversary of his first polar bear swim. And eight-time World Champion boxer Jelena Mrdjenovich checks in minutes before her weigh-in, ahead of her title defence against Paola Torres in Los Angeles.

Dr. Stephen Duckett, Director of the Health program at Grattan Institute, explains why Australians are already back to hosting dinner parties, their masks packed away in their sock drawers. Dr. Duckett also looks back on the famous "cookie incident" that led to his dismissal as CEO of Alberta Health Services in 2010.

Why should Canada roll out a universal child care, and what would it take to make it happen? Journalist Anne Casselman dives into her feature in The Walrus, "The Case for Affordable Childcare". Heidi Bergstrom's an accountant, a mom, and the engaged citizen behind a petition calling for national childcare. She gets into the dollars and cents of national childcare. And, after a sexist Wall Street Journal op/ed called Dr. Jill Biden "kiddo" and urged her to "drop the 'Dr'" before her name, we get the straight goods from Dr. Muna Saleh, an author and educator from Concordia University.

New York Times best-selling author and "Gaslit Nation" podcaster Sarah Kendzior joins us to talk about her book, "Hiding in Plain Sight - The Invention of Donald Trump and the Erosion of America." Fourth-generation Millwright and teacher Stephen Anderson, a Real Talk audience member, shares why he's so concerned about cuts to Alberta's education funding. Sportsnet NHL reporter Gene Principe looks ahead to the league's COVID-shortened season, including how he'll approach his bread and butter - the art of the pun. And palliative care physician Dr. Amy Tan tells her remarkable survival story, and how she and her loved ones approached and learned from a very "different" holiday season nearly twenty years ago.

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste.

We take a twitter tiff and put it on the air, as Dr. Peter Silverstone, chair of Psychiatry at the University of Alberta takes on Postmedia columnist David Staples over the mental health impacts of a lockdown. Plus, perhaps our best segment yet, as Professor Joni Avram and Dr. Jody Carrington discuss finding middle ground, and the human need for connection. Buckle up and enjoy!

Former UCP staffer Natasha Kornak talks about navigating the landscape as a young woman pursuing a career in politics. Garth Mullins, host and producer of Crackdown Pod, gets into the nitty gritty of a safe supply, and legalized drugs in Canada.

Deputy PM and federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland joins Ryan to discuss Ottawa's ongoing response to COVID-19. She addresses Opposition allegations the Liberal government is eyeing personal savings accounts, and touches on The Great Reset. She answers audience inquiries around emergency wage and rent subsidies, and concerns around a lack of transparency. And, she explains how her Alberta roots influence her response to the grim economic outlook faced by Canada's prairie provinces.

Health researcher Dr. Sajjad Fazel assesses Alberta's updated pandemic measures, and takes on vaccine hesitancy. Vancouver public health nurse Jaclyn Robinson updates us on her recovery from COVID-19, seven months after she was in a medically-induced coma. Journalist Tristin Hopper chimes in from Victoria, touching on pandemic protocols, 2020 news headlines buried by COVID-19, and his storytelling project with 99-year-old Grandma Hopper.