In this episode, Sarah and Chris got into a deeper conversation about Christianity and faith. Sarah’s faith is a key part of who she is, and she wanted to discuss how that faith and the mandates that come with are at odds with the actions of people she sees. Chris’ fiance Jerry joined us partway through (he didn’t realize we were recording!) and had some great thoughts on this, having grown up in the Catholic church. Also, when Sarah and Jerry get together, it's a fun level of chaos!

Meet Elise Fox. She’s running for the State House in South Carolina, and she is our hero. She doesn’t sit around complaining, she’s putting herself on the line to DO something about making her state better for her fellow citizens. She’s also a world-class scientist: she is both a Fellow of the American Chemical Society (one of the youngest!) and has been honored as a Rising Star award from the ACS Womens’ Chemist Committee.

Elise sat down with Chris to talk about what motivated her to run and why. We get into her experience with her local officials that made her find her own voice, and the platform she’s running on to build a new community for her neighbors and her children. It was a very cool conversation, and we're excited for you to hear it.

One of the issues within Chris' profession that he's particularly passionate about is the changing nature of the scientific enterprise. Chris is a scientist, but the nature of the work of scientists is changing as society is changing. The problem is that the scientific enterprise is not changing with it, at least not at a fast enough pace. Chris talks about it in this episode about why this is a passion project for him and provides some insights into why this change is happening.

We both love us some TV, but our tastes may be slightly different. Sarah tries to convince Chris why thoughtful, well-acted dramas are amazing, while Chris reminds Sarah of his love for trashy reality TV. And Game of Thrones!

Hi friends. Sorry this episode is coming to you a little later than our normal release time, but it's worth it. I (Sarah) participated in the counter-protests in Charlottesville this past weekend. It was intense, and I wanted to talk through it all with you.

Sarah is off enjoying the glory of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, so we discussed her upcoming trip and I told her my horror story of traveling to paradise for work (boo). At the end, we share an article we both liked about the importance of vacations for your own mental and physical well-being (link in shownotes on our website, www.winefriendspod.com).

Professionally speaking, the last year has been a crazy roller coaster for us both. Sarah left the classroom after nearly a decade to move into school administration. Chris left the government to work at a non-profit, and was laid off. After months of unemployment, Chris finally landed in a new and better place, but the process of getting there was rough. We talked about the challenges around unemployment and the toll it took on Chris and those around him.