Dr. Lulu, aka the Momatrician, is a Nigerian-born pediatrician, parent coach, author, and the CEO of Dr. Lulu’s Life Coaching Lounge. She is the mother of a transgender young adult and works with parents struggling with accepting and supporting their LGBTQ+ children. A former Lt Col and Commander in the US Air Force, Dr. Lulu is also an award winning LGBTQ+ and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) advocate. She has been featured on local, national, and international media, including Oprah Winfrey’s The Life You Want masterclass. In this powerful conversation, she covers topics including the intersectional experiences of queer immigrants of color, common mistakes parents make with their queer children, and how we will all do better to reframe "coming out."

At the beginning of the show, co-hosts  Robin Renée and Wendy Sheridan welcome spring and offer the Random Facts of the day on the origin story of a rock classic and how to extend the life of rubber bands. All the News We Can Handle is a lot: rumors of Donald Trump's impending arrest, destruction in Madagascar, Mozambique, and Malawi by Tropical Cyclone Freddy, a new anti-drag law in Tennessee, and a roundup of the illiberal trend in Florida. The mood is brightened by a study showing positive impacts of legalization of cannabis and the 10th Annual Bi+ Health Awareness Month. In Why Is This Awesome?, Wendy is excited about Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio. It won Best Animated Feature at the 2023 Oscars after this segment was recorded. Spoilers abound.

Things to do:

Learn more about Dr. Lulu and her work.

Follow Dr. Lulu on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.

Pre-order her book, Invited In: How to Become the Parent Your LGBTQ+ Child Needs.

Watch "Rethinking the Closet: Coming Out LGBTQ* vs Inviting In"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=60B-NChtNiA&ab_channel=TEDxTalks&fbclid=IwAR1FPPIUNe0eUZRe036c0evQ6g7oQBHfTosleTk6wQz7H7S9blJM828Xta0

Listen to "Drag queen (and ordained minister) Bella DuBalle won't be silenced by new Tenn. law" on Fresh Air.

Take part in Bi+ Health Awareness Month! Learn more, get resources, and show support for the bi+ community's health and wellbeing: BiHealthMonth,org

Read books by Dr. Lulu:

Watch Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio on Netflix.

Listen to Radio PVS. The North West Coast show airs on Fridays, 9pm EDT.

Listen to this classic rock earworm!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rfirxs_NUcE

Sound engineering by Wendy Sheridan

Show notes by Robin Renée

Fake sponsor messages by Ariel Sheridan

Web hosting by InMotion

Remote recording by SquadCast

Writer and game developer Arinn Dembo has been involved with game development for over 25 years. She has helped build a number of popular franchises in science fiction gaming including Homeworld and Sword of the Stars. She has also worked on two different Artificial Intelligence projects and has been interviewed for the AI Ethics course taught by Athabasca University. Dembo recently spoke with Wendy Sheridan about the expert systems that are in use for making artwork today -- how they work, their capabilities, limitations, biases, and the need for our laws and ethics to catch up with the current use of artificial intelligence that shows no signs of slowing down.

Earlier, Robin Renée picks Wendy's brain about sound recording technology in The Geekscape. The Random Facts of the day involve an escaped cow and the fear of belly buttons. The News ranges from serious to silly: The Supreme Court case regarding user content on social platforms, Gonzales v Google, a Donald Trump lawsuit roundup, another Ohio train derailment, a snow plow naming contest, and a Tennessee whiskey fungus all make the cut. At the end of the show in the You Got Questions? We Got Answers! segment, Wendy and Robin respond to a question sent in by friend of the podcast, Tom Limoncelli.

Things to do:

Follow Arinn Dembo on Facebook and Twitter.

Subscribe to The Dembo Jam - The digital notebook of Arinn Dembo

Read Monsoon and Other Stories by Arinn Dembo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Watch Fantastic Fungi: Fantastic Fungi on Netflix

Support The Leftscape.

 

Sound engineering by Wendy Sheridan

Show notes by Robin Renée

Fake sponsor messages by Ariel Sheridan

Web hosting by InMotion

Remote recording by SquadCast

A graduate of Cornell University, JD Stillwater is a science ambassador and an author who writes and speaks about profound insights from natural reality that drive paradigm shifts and cultural awakening. He spoke with us back in April 2020 for Episode 79, The End of Certainty, about his presentation, Seven Candles. In this conversation, he shares his current thoughts on science as a point of common understanding, the origins of humans' propensity for world harm, and the potential course-correcting power of Religious Naturalism.

Co-hosts Wendy Sheridan and Robin Renée are happy to be back after a winter hiatus and catch up at the beginning of the show before offering the day's Random Facts, this time about Al Capone's New Jersey hideout and world record-breaking conga canines. Before the featured interview, Robin and Wendy enter The Blanket Fort to hide from/grapple with grief. In the News: a predicted sudden stratospheric warming event, ways to help those in Turkey and Syria affected by the recent earthquakes, increasing far right tendencies in Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, a bill aiming to stop the teaching of scientific theory in Montana schools, the return of the monarch butterfly, and former President Jimmy Carter's choice to receive hospice care at home at the age of 98. The show comes full circle with a You Got Questions? We Got Answers! question from JD!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3Ha6s3KRac

Things to do:

To help those in Turkey and Syria in the aftermath of earthquake, donate to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Disaster Response Emergency Fund (IFRC.org) or PublicGood.com.

Visit JD Stillwater's website and follow him on social media including Twitter, Instagram, and Mastodon, and TikTok.

Watch JD Stillwater and Darryl Purpose in The Great Turning Roadshow - Kickoff event livestream Thursday, March 2nd, 2023.

Learn more about Religious Naturalism.

Visit the Unitarian Congregation of West Chester, PA on March 19, 2023 at 10am when JD Stillwater will lead the service.

Read The Sacred Depth of Nature by Ursula Goodenough.

Read My Grandmother's Hands by Resmaa Menakem.

Check out the record-breaking conga line of dogs!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXhdCglQNnQ

Sound engineering by Wendy Sheridan

Show notes by Robin Renée

Fake sponsor messages by Ariel Sheridan

Web hosting by InMotion

Remote recording by SquadCast

Please enjoy our last redux episode before our new season begins. This conversation is another of our favorites: John Tod shares about creating a space for honest, vulnerable conversation among men. What started with one other friend in Fort Wayne, Indiana grew into a weekly safe container where men can talk about all the things they were taught not to express. John was originally featured way back in Episode 41, "Of Memes and Men." Take a listen to this inspiring story of how the members of a men's group can grow together, help each other deal with and embrace emotions, and bust the myth of the rugged individual.

A brand new podcast will be out in two weeks!

Love,

Wendy Sheridan and Robin Renée

Facebook: Leftscape

Twitter: @leftscape

Instagram: @leftscape

Email: insight at Leftscape.com

Show Your Support! The Leftscape on Patreon

We're back with another favorite interview from our last season on DEMOCRACY. Featured guest Susan Szanyi, a lifelong resident of Ohio and an international traveler, shared her insights on Ohio politics post-midterm elections as well as perspectives on the US political landscape from around the world. She discussed how most of our decisions are made by quick reflexes, which is part of the challenge of creating openness to dialogue across the proverbial aisle. Check out the show notes from "Swing State Reflections (Episode 133)" for a great list of resources to help us deepen our conversations and understanding.

We've been doing some great interviews that we can't wait to share with you in our upcoming season! Got a question for our You Got Questions? We Got Answers! segment? Reach out on social media or send us an email. We always love to hear from you.

Love,

Wendy Sheridan and Robin Renée

Facebook: Leftscape

Twitter: @leftscape

Instagram: @leftscape

Email: insight at Leftscape.com

Show Your Support! The Leftscape on Patreon

Happy New Year! Please enjoy this redux episode while we're on winter break.

In "Traversing Democracies (Episode 131)," Wendy interviewed Kat Ardern. Kat is an artist, a part-time student (Fine Art BA), and a full-time carer for her wife who has Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). She shared her insight and knowledge about the various versions of democracy she has experienced while living and working in New Zealand, Australia, and currently, the UK. They spoke in the unique time frame just after the death of Queen Elizabeth II and during the very short tenure of Prime Minister Liz Truss.

Thanks for listening. We're working on a brand new season and will be back soon with new episodes for you!

Love,

Wendy Sheridan and Robin Renée

Facebook: Leftscape

Twitter: @leftscape

Instagram: @leftscape

Email: insight at Leftscape.com

While we're on winter break, we chose a few of our favorite interviews to reshare. This one is with Susan Billmaier, whose professional background is in Religion, Ethics, and Philosophy and whose personal exploration encompasses healing arts, religious ritual, and study of the “big questions” like “Who am I?” and “Why am I here?” In this interview from our season of exploring FREEDOM, Susan speaks about living and working with deep intention around spirituality and the betterment of community, discerning true seeking from spiritual bypass and cultural appropriation, the practices she has come to rely on to uncover “natural divinity,” and the essence of moksha, or freedom from ego. The conversation was first released in "Better and Better Together (Episode 123)." Susan Billmaier's website is WithPearls.com. 

We’ll be back in 2023 with a brand new season. If you missed our greeting of the sunrise on Winter Solstice, you can still view the glory that is Househenge. We always love to hear from you on social media @Leftscape and please join us on Patreon to support the show and to catch up on all our bonus content and events.

Love,

Wendy Sheridan and Robin Renée

Facebook: Leftscape

Twitter: @leftscape

Instagram: @leftscape

Email: insight at Leftscape.com

Happy Holidays to one and all! While we're taking our winter break, we hope you enjoy the show rewinds we've scheduled for you.

We first featured a conversation with Halina Brooke back in Episode 97, “Therapy, Activism, and Reclaiming Freedom.” She is a therapist at  Recourse Counseling, a mental health counselor, and a longtime advocate in Phoenix, Arizona. This is an encore presentation of our second interview with Brooke, which was featured in Episode 118, "Navigating Pay-to-Play Politics." This conversation, first posted during our season focusing on FREEDOM, approaches the complex question, "How free are we to work within our governmental systems to get bills passed in our legislatures?"

We’ll be back in the new year with a brand new season. On the morning of December 21st, you can ring in the Winter Solstice with us: Join us for Househenge! Reach out to us anytime on social media @Leftscape and join us on Patreon to catch up on all our bonus conversations and events.

Love,

Wendy Sheridan and Robin Renée

Facebook: Leftscape

Twitter: @leftscape

Instagram: @leftscape

Email: insight at Leftscape.com

David M. Higgins is a Senior Editor for the Los Angeles Review of Books, and they are the Chair of the English Department at Inver Hills College in Minnesota, where they teach classes on science fiction, graphic novels, and American literature. They are the author of Reverse Colonization: Science Fiction, Imperial Fantasy, and Alt-Victimhood, which won the 2021 Science Fiction Research Association Book Award. Leftscape co-hosts  Wendy Sheridan and Robin Renée have a lively discussion with Higgins on the meaning of reactionary victimhood, how it is enabled by reverse colonization fantasy by many on the political right, takes on current science fiction writing and television series, and more.

Before the featured interview, Wendy geeks out about Star Trek: Lower Decks in The Geekscape segment. After a post-Thanksgiving check-in at the top of the show, Robin and Wendy's requisite 3 Random Facts tip the hat to "the father of theatrical jazz dance," competitive art in the Olympics, and the movements of sperm cells. In this edition of All the News We Can Handle: Merriam-Webster's 2022 word of the year, the high count of US mass shootings, the Senate vote on the Respect for Marriage Act, the recent state election in Victoria, Australia, the first potential payment of reparations in Barbados, and one of the planet's most massive creatures, Patagotitan mayorum. 

This is the last show of the season of DEMOCRACY! At the end of the episode, Robin and Wendy share some reflections, think of a few holiday plans for listeners to keep an eye out for, and wish everyone HAPPY HOLIDAYS and a great start to 2023.

Things to do:

Read Reverse Colonization: Science Fiction, Imperial Fantasy, and Alt-Victimhood by David M. Higgins.

Follow David M. Higgins on Facebook and read their articles for the Los Angeles Review of Books.

Watch Star Trek: Lower Decks.

Explore the work of N. K. Jemisin and Joy Sanchez-Taylor.

Play Coyote & Crow.

Listen to We Should Be Recording This on The Leftscape's Patreon.

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3RkBKedKWw

 

Sound engineering by Wendy Sheridan

Show notes by Robin Renée

Fake sponsor messages by Ariel Sheridan

Web hosting by InMotion

Remote recording by SquadCast

Susan Szanyi is a lifelong resident of Ohio. Thanks to her job as a Program Manager for an international company, she is fortunate to travel throughout the US and Europe and she has gotten perspectives on the US political landscape from around the world. Advocating for animals was her first foray into politics. She got engaged with electoral politics starting with the 2016 presidential election. She was a volunteer for the Elizabeth Warren campaign in 2020. Susan shares her thoughts on the recent midterm election, the dynamics of politics in the swing state of Ohio, and the need for reflection and deep dialogue between those of differing political viewpoints. 

Before the interview, co-hosts Robin Renée and  Wendy Sheridan register this episode's 3 Random Facts. This time they're all about whale gas, music for cheese, and the start of the War on Christmas. The News takes us to the disturbing implementation of Sharia Law in Afghanistan, US midterm election results including better-than-expected showings for Democrats and some abortion rights victories, Donald Trump's likely bid for re-election, and Elon Musk's Twitter weirdness. On the personal news front, Wendy will be at the Philadelphia Science Fiction Convention (Philcon) this weekend with art by her and by her cat, Friday through Sunday at Doubletree by Hilton in Cherry Hill, NJ. In the new Earthscape segment, Robin and Wendy discuss and debate the value of manifestation and money magic. 

Happy start to the holiday season to all who will be celebrating in the coming weeks!

Things to do:

Check out resources curated by Susan Szunyi:

"In Ohio, one man's quest to get more voters to agree to disagree" in the Christian Science Monitor

Listen to a conversation with Ted Wetzel, Executive Director of Fighting to Understand on "The Sound of Ideas"

Fighting to Understand

Read Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

See and buy Wendy Sheridan’s art at:

Philcon 2022 – Philadelphia Science Fiction Convention

Friday – Sunday, November 18th – 20th

Doubletree by Hilton, Cherry Hill, NJ

Sound engineering by Wendy Sheridan

Show notes by Robin Renée

Fake sponsor messages by Ariel Sheridan

Web hosting by InMotion

Remote recording by SquadCast

*Featured image of downtown Cleveland, OH by Steve DiMatteo