Casper is suspicious of the value he puts on beauty in his life. He knows that he doesn't want to judge human bodies by their aesthetics, that much makes sense. But is it okay to love other forms of beauty out in the world? Or is that problematic too?

With the help of a Shakespearean sonnet and 'How Fair This Spot' by Rachmaninoff, Casper and Vanessa untangle how to think about beauty as a moral category.

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vanessa doesn't know what to do when people ask her 'are you okay?' A lot of the time, she is not okay. She lives with a chronic illness, so unfortunately that kind of comes with the territory.

On the one hand, radical honesty and communication is good. On the other hand, other people have their own problems. And most of the time, it's not like anyone can actually help.

With help from I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O'Farrell and Cinderella, Vanessa and Casper explore the allure of a 'suck-it-up' mentality and how to be in relationship as someone who's hurting.

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Casper has never liked his middle name. He’s ready to change it to something more meaningful to him, but how does he go about picking the right replacement?

With help from John O’Donohue and Call Me By Your Name, Casper and Vanessa explore the connection between re-naming and a spiritual life.

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John Green has spent much of his life and career online. The community that he’s built there has been one of his greatest joys and achievements. But more and more he feels like his time on social media is poisoning his sense of well-being. Should he just give it up? Or would that be turning his back on something too valuable?

With help from an essay by Thomas Berry and an episode of the podcast Your Undivided Attention, John, Vanessa and Casper explore the addictive quality of being online and if there's anyway to escape it.

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vanessa has some friendships that feel more like obligations than pleasures. What does she do with these friends? Does she break-up with them? Does stick it out and hope that they become fun again? Does she tell them how she feels? And how does she do any of it without hurting the people she cares about?

With help from the musical Waitress and Erich Fromm’s The Art of Loving, Vanessa and Casper weigh the value of clear communication versus the potentially healthy ebb and flow of life-long friendships.

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Recently, Casper’s been looking back on his life with regret: he should have kissed more boys when he was younger! But what is he supposed to do with that feeling now? And how can he make sure that he’s living his life in a way that he won’t regret in the future?

With help from a poem by Lucille Clifton and How Proust Can Change your Life by Alain de Baton, Casper and Vanessa try to parse what exactly the feeling of 'regret' is and what we can learn from it. 

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vanessa sometimes tells white lies in low stakes situations. Lies like ‘yes, I love that dress!’ or ‘I really enjoyed meeting your boyfriend!’ Are these lies good for her relationships? Or do they make her untrustworthy?

With help from Trust Exercise by Susan Choi and Grey’s Anatomy, Vanessa and Casper try to untangle the relationship between truth and trust and figure out when it’s okay to lie. 

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Casper is getting to the age where he feels like he and his husband ’should’ start thinking about buying a house, but he doesn’t know if he really wants to. On the one hand, there's so much love and stability that is wrapped up in owning a house. On the other hand, he doesn't know if he ever wants to settle on one future in one place. Maybe buying a house would limit his future possibilities?

With help from a picture of his childhood home, and theologian Walter Breuggemann, Casper and Vanessa discuss how to intentionally cultivate hospitality and whether stability is a goal or an illusion in life.

--

We are so grateful to our supporters on Patreon who make this show possible. If you can, please considering chipping in!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.