DJ CASS&RA (pronounced DJ Cassandra) is a female DJ based in Austin, TX. This DJ alter-ego is the product of being a composer and keyboardist. Cass&ra's main musical passion is a mix of funk, disco and house, but other sets have included classic hip-hop, rap, indie-electronic-pop, club mixes, top-40s, and world music (open format DJ). As a trained musician who understands the musical theory behind songs, Cassie began DJing for friends' house parties, creating a good vibe, and began growing her audience and clients. She has DJ'd for crowds of over 3,000 people.

Even though Cassie DJs for many different events, she specializes in DJing for health & wellness clients and events. Her day job is working with the Movement Tracks Project designing original Biomedical Music™ to help people move, and "by night," she creates the perfect sets for movement for her clients, whether it be a morning yoga class, or a late-night dance party. So zen out or get down, because DJ Cass&ra can provide the perfect soundtrack for any crowd.

You can follow DJ Cassandra on her websites and on instagram at: 

http://www.cassieshankman.com/djcassandra 

http://www.cassieshankman.com/

https://www.instagram.com/djcassandra_/

Raad Mansour is Chaldean, a part of an ancient tribe. He was born and raised in Baghdad. Raad moved to the Metro Detroit area in the U.S, where he grew up and attended grade school.

Raad shares that he worked in corporate retail after high school, where he managed the top performing stores in the telecommunications Industry. After working long hours and being constantly stressed out, his health suffered as a result of this line of work and led to frequent doctor visits. After a two year addiction to pain medication, he realized one day that this was no longer a path that served him, which was the beginning of his journey to plant-based healing foods.

Raad spent the next few years transforming his health, both mindfully and physically, by going back to nature. He wanted to spread the good news to those around him of how eating plant-based healing foods can change every aspect of their lives. He has been striving to encourage everyone to take control of their health through healing foods. This is why he started ATX FOOD CO., making healthier food options more accessible to everyone!"

Raad attended The Natural Epicurean Academy of Culinary Arts, with a focus on Plant-Based Healing Foods. He is professionally trained in the following healing cuisines: Ayurvedic cuisine, Macrobiotic cuisine, Raw and Living, Vegan, Vegetarian and Alkaline-boosting cuisines.

You can learn more about ATX Food Co. on its website at https://www.atxfoodco.com/. 

You can also follow ATX Food Co. on its instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/atxfoodco/. 

Amy Kreydin is a clinical aromatherapist, board certified reflexologist, birth doula, and author who has been in private practice since 2004. Her early training in botanical medicine included mentors in Western herbal medicine, Native American healing, curanderismo (Latin folk healing), and midwifery. She graduated as a Certified Reflexologist in 2004, was board certified by the American Reflexology Certification Board in 2006, graduated from Jane Buckle's Certified Clinical Aromatherapy Practitioner program (CCAP) in 2011, and graduated from Mark Webb's Advanced Diploma in Aromatic Medicine program in 2016. Amy's practice, The Barefoot Dragonfly LLC, is located in Austin, Texas, where she sees clients in her studio and conducts consultations with clients across the globe.

You can learn more about Amy Kreydin and the services she provides at The Barefoot Dragonfly, LLC, by reviewing her website at http://www.thebarefootdragonfly.com/. 

You can also follow Amy Kreydin and her work on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/barefootdragonfly/  and on her Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/barefootdragonfly.

Vivian Best believes in the value of social connection and in the process of creating support in our modern lives beyond our devices. She inspires positive change, building thoughtful communities to bring greater awareness and hope for growth, change, and possibility through her work with WomanSpeak and Sparked. Vivian supports women to create connections, share resources, and take initiative in their lives by helping them to bring their voices to what truly matters.

She is a facilitator for women's conversational and public speaking events. She is also a Feldenkrais Practitioner teaching self-aware self-care. Her compassionate guidance helps bring a sense of pleasure in movement and ease to her clients.

Recognized by Honolulu Magazine as one of "6 People Making a Difference in Honolulu" in November 2013, by Pacific Business News as Hawaii's "40 Under 40" and the Honolulu Star Advertiser as one of "10 Who Made a Difference in 2010", Vivian moved to Austin in September 2018 and is delighted to be a part of this community.

You can follow Vivian Best on her Sparked in Austin Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/SparkedinAustin/. 

Viviane Mitchell is a natural henna artist in Austin, TX, and the founder of Heart Healing. A healer in many ways, she is also Reiki II certified, a physical therapist assistant, and death walker. She utilizes henna to blend her knowledge with body art. She also enjoys working out in groups, nature hikes, and trips to foreign lands.

You can learn more about Viviane Mitchell and how to contact her for henna services at https://www.mehndivaviv.com/?fbclid=IwAR38TbfgLOnKjZthpeZf7lgOCChXOUqiIbp2JTCE4kBqy5cRtc75E62_tMA

You can also follow her on instagram at @mehndivaviiv (https://www.instagram.com/mehndivaviv/)

Jill Dalley is a rare blend of artist and business-person. From Albuquerque New Mexico, she studied violin from the age of 7, but was also known as the neighborhood entrepreneur. As a 20 something, she moved to Dallas, married, went to work in sales for D magazine, had a family, finished a degree in Mass Communication, and made a mark as one of the top competitive runners in her age group in the Dallas area. Raising two kids under the age of 5 she managed to write a highly respected book on the subject of nutrition for breastfeeding moms.

In 2002 Jill and her family moved to the Austin area where she formed a string quartet, Musical Discovery Chamber Players. Little by little, the quartet grew to include many ensembles comprised of more than 45 players. Jill's company is among the top providers of music for weddings and corporate events in Austin and the Hill Country. Her company has gained the distinction of being the best wedding music provider for 5 consecutive years by "The Knot" magazine, and has been named to the Knot's Hall of Fame.

Jill's accomplishments are impressive, but not surprising, especially to anyone who watched her grow up as the neighborhood violist-entrepreneur.

You can learn more about Musical Discovery Chamber Players at https://musical-discovery.com/. 

You can learn more about The Spa in Me Rest, Reset, and Restore Retreat and Pajama Party near Austin, Texas, at https://thespainmeretreats.com/

Angela Vlasova, new to Texas, has worked in clinics and medical spas all over the world, including Israel, Russia, New York, and Las Vegas, all leading locations in the skin care industry. Angela has been perfecting her skills in the beauty industry for over sixteen years, ten of which she has spent as an esthetician.

Angela's love for skin care started when she was a teenager, as she developed her foundations while helping her mother in her school with students. Angela's love for the industry grew very fast as she began teaching at her mother's school in Russia. One of the greatest things Angela learned from her mother, at such a young age, was to treat the person and not just do the procedure. By working in three different countries, Angela was able to tailor the best of what she had learned into a personal system that focuses on the needs of the patient/client. This system allows Angela to give the best treatments necessary for optimal results, all while giving a relaxing, pampering experience. Angela specializes in many services at Ann Webb Skin Clinic and her enthusiasm is undeniable. It shines through in every one of her treatments.

You can make an appointment to visit with Angela Vlasova for your skin care needs by going to https://www.awskinclinic.com/.

Lydia Isnanto has always enjoyed a good story, especially those with an impactful message that brings awareness to an issue, empowers women, and are stories about transformation, and healing. Her passion since she was a young girl in her native country of Indonesia was to tell these stories to anybody who would listen.      She has spent the majority of her adult life pursuing this dream, and sometimes doing the grunt work to make ends meet and other times living out the dream. She started her own company in Singapore, doing both photography and film productions. After relocating to the United States with her husband, she has been able to concentrate fully on bringing stories to life. In between film projects, she currently directs and produces a podcast telling stories of great women called DREAMPRENEURS CHAT.  She has the opportunity to chat with awesome and incredible women making their stories happen through business and influence.   In her most recent film project, THIS IS ME (2019), filmed in Austin, Texas, where she wrote, directed, co-produced, filmed, and edited, she was fortunate enough to have a great cast and crew to bring this project to life. This story was created for and dedicated to mental illness survivors and warriors. To date, the film has been screened in the San Francisco Bay area, Los Angeles, and Texas. It has won nine awards, including a special Mental Health Community Award from the Los Angeles Silicon Beach Film Festival.   She also wrote, directed, co-produced, filmed, and edited THE CALLING (2018), filmed in the San Francisco Bay area. The film tells the story of transformation and healing, based on a true story of a writer, a pastor and a filmmaker, Tony Gapastione. This short film was made entirely with an iPhone celebrating the creative movement of smartphone film making. THE CALLING has been screened in San Francisco and New York. It has won five awards, including the Best Phone Made Film award from Olympus Film Festival Los Angeles.   While back in Singapore, Lydia had the tremendous opportunity to work with a super talented band, FantabulouZ and create a music video for their song, BFF (2017). She had the privilege to write the screenplay, direct and film the music video. The video portrays a fictional story about two best friends with inspiration about true friendship. To date, the music video has won three awards and was screened at the Long Beach Indie International Film Festival and Fort Worth Indie Film Showcase. Lydia realizes that she could only get this far through the strong tribe of people who believe and support her. She remains hopeful that she will continue bringing impactful and meaningful stories for many years.

Chris Marshall became a licensed counselor in 2010. He worked at Integral Care and other residential programs in the Austin, Texas, area. He observed a disturbing pattern with his patients. They would flourish while in treatment, but soon relapse when they rejoined their old social groups. Chris decided to act. In 2017, Sans Bar was born. Sans Bar is a sober pop up bar and music venue serving alcohol free beverages in a safe and welcoming environment. The first pop up was composed of about six people, but Chris could sense that he was on to something significant. He continued to host monthly pop ups, until he found a permanent location in East Austin in May of 2018. Later that year he decided to go on a national tour to promote the Sans Bar concept.  His goal is to have a Sans Bar in every city, and to be the Starbucks of alcohol-free nightlife. 

Sans Bar is located at 1818 East 12th Street, Austin, Texas, 78702.

Website: http://thesansbar.com/

Instagram: @sans_bar

Twitter: @thesansbar

In this bonus episode, Cousin Kay responds to a letter from Run Ragged. The listener writes about feeling exhausted all the time, which is believed to be due to bringing required work home on a daily basis. Run Ragged explains that this work means staying up late to complete the assignments. This results in going to bed at odd hours and getting an inadequate amount of sleep. 

If you have a question about making more time for yourself and want advice, please email [email protected]. Don't forget to use a false name applicable to the subject matter of your situation.