Welcome back to Shiny Things! (*This episode was recorded Halloween weekend*) Thank you for your continued patience with the production of each episode. This is an amateur podcast with the intentions of reflection and entertainment, not education (although sometimes educational resources are provided). Because this is not a professional podcast, production times have been and will continue to be inconsistent due to priorities of mental health, academia, jobs and other activities. 

This week, a new guest is introduced and discusses social institutions, their meaning and how they have impacted our experiences in life. 

Possibly triggering topics: Binary institutions, comprehensive and accessible healthcare , reproductive healthcare, racism (with brief mentions of slavery), homophobia, relationships and feelings toward food, U.S National Anthem and the Pledge of Allegiance, capitalism, family relationships, explicit language

As always, if you have comments or concerns, please reach out via Instagram, Twitter, email, or any of the submission forms on our LinkTree.

This week solo host Jackie dives into 3 ethical issues that exist within the entertainment and film industry, addressing topics such as recent murder series, sexual harassment, and age discrepancies between actors in romantic roles. Stay through the end to hear about voting season as well!

Possibly triggering topics: murder, Jeffery Dahmer, sexual harassment, sexual assault, r*pe, abortion, pedophilia, body image, body dysphoria, 

This week we brought Bei back to talk with us about the world of diet culture; what that may look like and definitions and stereotypes we may have come across in our lives. We talk about the idea of body positivity; who that impacts and the benefits and challenges that rhetoric brings to specific communities. Bei also brings with her personal anecdotes and experience as well as material she has learned from resources such as the National Eating Disorder Association (referred to as NEDA). Also discussed are the very real and dangerous effects of disordered eating, and with that discussion we offer our support from the Shiny Things team as well as the NEDA hotlines (online, call and texting options are available and provided in the following link: https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/help-support/contact-helpline

The number to call is: (800) 931-2237 (Monday—Thursday 11am—9pm ET, Friday 11am—5pm ET)

Other resources, such as a reading material about how to have a healthy relationship with food (provided by NEDA) will be available on our link tree.

Possibly Triggering topics: Eating disorders, weight gain, weight loss, diets, fat shaming, death and suicide, isolation, pandemic, body positivity and body neutrality, bullying, mental health, recovery, swearing.

In our first episode back after another hiatus, we are joined by two wonderful guests with whom we discuss stories from our childhood and when we stopped believing in certain traditions. In this reflective conversation, we look at how parents’ involvement impacted our understanding of and feelings toward magical characters. We conclude with bits and bites, thank you’s and a joke.

Please note that new episodes will now come out every other week - still Mondays at 12pm PST. Thanks!

Possibly triggering topics include: Explicit language, discussion of American childhood traditions (I.e., Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, etc.), religion, agnosticism, family, heavy topics, dark humor, brief mention of bestiality (re: Shane Dawson), use of phrase: “pull the trigger” unrelated to gun violence, death and grief, brief discussion on politics (death penalty), US politics, brief reference to suicide, discussion on poverty and being poor, mentions of: loss of teeth, MPreg, and arson.