A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World

#141 The Final Episode

Anya Kaats — Mon, 30 Oct 2023 22:22:31 GMT

After an incredibly meaningful and successful five years, I’ve decided to end the podcast. Thank you for all of your support, time, and trust. I’m off to begin a new chapter, and I’ll hope you’ll continue to follow along.

To stay in touch, subscribe for free at anyakaats.substack.com.

Song featured: “A Better Son/Daughter” by Rilo Kiley

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#140 Catalyzing Wider Organisms of Belonging with Ian MacKenzie

Ian MacKenzie — Fri, 27 Oct 2023 21:33:01 GMT

Ian MacKenzie is a new paradigm artist who’s been tracking the global emergence of imaginal culture for the past 15 years. From the desert of Burning Man to the heart of Occupy Wall St, Ian has amplified the voices of visionaries, artists and activists who have been working toward planetary system change. He is the co-director of The Village of Lovers, as well as the host of The Mythic Masculine podcast and co-founder of The School of Mythopoetics. Ian and I speak about masculinity, community, elderhood, Eros, trust, and the vital, yet challenging work of turning ideas into action.

Find Ian at ianmack.com, and on Instagram and Facebook

Songs featured: “Mountain to Move” by Nick Mulvey and “Feed Your Horses” by Gregory Alan Isakov

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#139 A Holistic and Intuitive Approach to Life and Ecology with Peter May

Anya Kaats — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 00:49:04 GMT

Peter May is an alchemist, a Grammy award-winning musician, a tree whisperer, a firefighter (and firemaker), an athlete, an architect, and an all around fascinating human being. Peter and I discuss how his love of ecology first developed as a kid living outside Detroit on Lake St. Clair, and how this passion later influenced almost every aspect of his life. From his multiple careers in natural building, native permaculture, sustainable landscape design, and land management, to helping produce and create a Grammy-award winning album with Paul Winter, to the creation of E3 Ecologic, a Crestone-based ecological nonprofit, it’s hard not to be inspired by Peter’s dedication to following a path dedicated to holism, intuition, and shameless curiosity.

Find Peter May at windhorsealchemy.com, and e3ecologic.org

Songs featured: “Awaken and Allow” by Shannon Lay and “Woods Rose and Evening Primrose” by The Sonic Apothecary

Join myself and Christopher Ryan + Cameron and Melayne Shayne in Montana this summer for the 2023 Sex at Dawn Retreat, August 20-25. To apply, click here.

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#138 Taking Advantage of Everything That Makes Life Worth Living with Sarah Jones

Anya Kaats — Wed, 02 Aug 2023 15:30:03 GMT

Sarah Jones and her husband Michael are fourth generation potato farmers in Hooper, CO. Their farm, Jones Farms Organics, is paving the way in the San Luis Valley (the nation’s second largest fresh potato growing region in the U.S.) for regenerative and sustainable farming practices. In addition to helping manage day to day operations at the farm, Sarah has also recently transformed a local gas station and café into a neighborhood whole-food eatery, and helped to bring Marguerite Humeau’s 160-acre earthwork “Orisons” to life by convincing her in-laws to donate an unused/fallow circle-pivot to the project. Sarah and I discuss the unexpected and humbling path life sets forth for us when we stop getting in our own way, and how fulfilled and grateful we feel to live in a place where dreams can so easily become a reality.

Find the Jones Farm at JonesFarmsOrganics.com, and on Instagram

Songs featured: “Without You” by Sjors Mans, “Appaloosa Bones” by Gregory Alan Isakov & “Happiness Does Not Wait” by Ólafur Arnalds

Poem that I read: “To Be Of Use” by Marge Piercy

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#137 Critical Ethnobotany and Reimagining Our Role in Ecology with Kelly Moody

Kelly Moody — Mon, 17 Jul 2023 17:57:20 GMT

Kelly Moody is a critical ethnobotanist, philosopher, teacher, writer, and podcast host. After growing up in rural southern Virginia on her grandmother’s tobacco farm, Kelly’s interest in plants and ecology never left her. She received a B.A. in Philosophy and Religious Studies, and then left Virginia to travel cross-country, studying herbal medicine, land tending, ecology and botany. In the summer of 2020, she hiked the Colorado Trail documenting plants on foot and made notes on wild food and medicine gardens found along the old Ute pathways. Kelly and I discuss what it means to approach fields like ethnobotany, archeology, and anthropology both holistically and with a critical lens, rethinking relationships between people and plants, and questioning the ways we’ve explored, preserved, and defined “ecology”, “nature”, and “wilderness”. We also speak about the limits of capitalism, and reimagine a future in which infrastructure and capital could work toward ecological regeneration instead of against it.

Find Kelly at OfSedgeAndSalt.com, on Instagram, on Substack and listen to her podcast The Ground Shots Podcast, available on Substack and all streaming apps.

Songs featured: “Feet Keep Moving” by Natural Self & “Desert Dove” by Holly Arrowsmith

Join myself and Christopher Ryan + Cameron and Melayne Shayne in Montana this summer for the 2023 Sex at Dawn Retreat, August 20-25. To apply, click here.

How to support the show:

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Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World is a reader and listener-supported project. If you find this content valuable, and have the means to contribute financially, please consider becoming a paid supporter for only $5/month and get access to bonus content, a community book club, and more: anyakaats.substack.com

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#136 Critical Spirituality, Ecstatic Literacy & Psychedelic Harm Reduction with Jules Evans

Jules Evans — Fri, 30 Jun 2023 18:39:38 GMT

Jules Evans is a philosopher, journalist, and author, whose work centers around the interplay between rational and ecstatic states of consciousness. Currently, Jules is leading the Challenging Psychedelic Experiences Project - researching psychedelic harm reduction, ethics, and integration. Jules and I speak about our shared disillusionment with Western spiritual wellness culture, the role discernment plays in realm of mystery, and why it’s dangerous to be overconfident about ones “truth”. We discuss how Western religion has always been both a belief system and a business structure, inexorably interwoven with wellness, medicine, and an individualistic approach to self-improvement and healing, and explore how the burgeoning industry of psychedelic therapy may be following in those same footsteps.

Find Jules at PhilosophyForLife.Org, on Twitter, Instagram, and on Substack

Songs featured: “Meet Me In the Woods” by Lord Huron & “I Wanna Get Better” by Bleachers

Join myself and Christopher Ryan + Cameron and Melayne Shayne in Montana this summer for the Sex at Dawn retreat, August 20-25. To apply, click here.

Attend the Orisons art opening on July 29th int he SLV! Get the info here.

Come hang out at the Crestone Energy Fair September 16th & 17th! Here is the link for more info.

How to support the show:

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#135 Making a Living From Sunlight and Soil with George Whitten and Sam Schmidt

Anya Kaats — Thu, 01 Jun 2023 14:35:45 GMT

George Whitten, along with his wife Julie, own Blue Range Ranch (also known as San Juan Ranch) located in the high desert of Colorado’s San Luis Valley. Originally pastoralists, George and his family have been ranching on the same land for well over a century, and have been practicing regenerative agriculture and holistic land management since 1893, long before either of those terms even existed. Sam Schmidt, a New York City-area native, joined the ranch in 2020 through an apprentice program, and is now the Assistant Ranch Manager, alongside his partner Noelle. George, Sam and I speak about the rise and fall of industrial agriculture, the challenges of making a living from land stewardship, what it means to bridge the divide between environmentalism and agriculture, and how taking a regenerative and holistic approach to the land also means applying those same principles to our relationships and communities.

Find Blue Range Ranch at bluerangeranch.com, on Instagram, and learn more about the ranch’s apprenticeship program here.

For those local to Crestone and the SLV, check out my article about Blue Range Ranch in the June edition of The Crestone Eagle.

Songs featured: “El Jardin” by Hermanos Gutiérrez & “The Universe” by Gregory Alan Isakov

Join myself and Christopher Ryan + Cameron and Melayne Shayne in Montana this summer for the Sex at Dawn retreat, August 20-25. To apply, click here.

Come hang out at the Crestone Energy Fair September 16th & 17th! Here is the link for more info.

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes

Become a paid subscriber on Substack

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

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#134 To Worship at the Altar of Life, Death, Sex, and Love with Erin Ginder-Shaw

Anya Kaats — Tue, 02 May 2023 00:16:25 GMT

Erin is a professional writer who’s currently studying to get her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Erin is also one of my closest friends, and my former Whore Rapport co-host. Since ending Whore Rapport last fall, Erin and I both felt that there was more to say about our decision to stop the podcast. We speak about the animate, sacred nature of identity, the challenge of overcoming projections and idealizations, and the dangers of leaning too far into intellectualization to the point where it becomes a defense. We also talk about our evolving and deepening relationship to the archetype of the Whore, and discuss what it means to live and love from a place of sacred devotion.

Songs featured: “Path 5 (delta)” by Max Richter & Grace Davidson and “You Want What You Can’t” by Natalie Tate

Learn more about advaya and their courses here.

Join myself and Christopher Ryan + Cameron and Melayne Shayne in Montana this summer for the Sex at Dawn retreat, August 20-25. To apply, click here.

How to support the show:

* Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes

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* Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#133 Build Me a Castle of Dreams: Musings on Saturn in Pisces with Jenny Kellogg

Anya Kaats — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 23:25:20 GMT

Jenny is a certified astrologer, holds a PhD in Modern Languages and Literatures, a B.A. in Classical Philology, and has studied ancient civilizations and languages for over 25 years. She’s also a trauma-informed coach, spiritual guide, and one of my dearest friends. Jenny returns to the podcast (for the fifth time!) to discuss the upcoming ingress of Saturn into Pisces. From learning how to manifest our wildest dreams, to practicing responsible spirituality, to finding safe, structured containers to manage chaotic emotional and spiritual realms, to integrating death, grief and loss into our everyday lives, we discuss why this transit is so significant and meaningful for each of us.

Find Jenny at Amalthea.guide, on Instagram and download her Akashic Records self-study course at akashictraining.com

Songs featured: “Inside” by East Forest and “Human” by Alex Serra

Get access to the “Spiritual Bypassing” worksheet that Jenny mentioned in our conversation by clicking here.

Hear me talk more about my own Saturn return here and here.

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#132 Pursuing Gender Reconciliation Through Love and Compassion with William Keepin and Cynthia Brix

Anya Kaats — Thu, 23 Feb 2023 01:24:47 GMT

William Keepin and Cynthia Brix are co-founders of Gender Equity and Reconciliation International. William, a climate scientist and physicist who also trained in clinical psychology with Stanislav Grof began GERI thirty years ago under the name “Gender and Ecology” in an effort to expose and heal the hypocrisies of working to end the exploitation of Mother Earth without simultaneously addressing the exploitation of women and the feminine. Over the years, GERI has evolved into an international program that brings people together from all walks of life to resolve the gender divide through honest and compassionate discourse, somatic work, and mindfulness practices. GERI prioritizes cross-cultural perspectives, and is inclusive of all gender identities, sexual identities and welcomes people of all ages and spiritual beliefs. Their book, Gender Equity & Reconciliation: Thirty Years of Healing the Most Ancient Wound in the Human Family is available now.

Find William and Cynthia at grworld.org, and on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook

William & Cynthia’s Book Recommendations: Think On These Things by Jiddu Krishnamurti, Strength to Love by Martin Luther King, and Cave in the Snow by Vicki MacKenzie

Songs featured: “Above All Else, Be Kind” by AJIMAL and “Meet Me There” by Nick Mulvey

Apply to present or teach at the Crestone Energy Fair in September or get more information about attending by clicking here.

How to support the show:

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#131 Can getting better at one thing help us get better at everything else? (A solo episode / life update)

Anya Kaats — Sun, 15 Jan 2023 19:04:53 GMT

For the past few months I’ve found myself in a deep internal dialogue exploring the nature of my desires, my relationship to will, and my capacity for action. In the face of difficult choices, divergent interests, or upon reaching a fork in the road, how do we decide which path to take? How do we tell the difference between “trusting the timing” and rest/reflection vs. laziness and avoidance? How do we confront the grief of not being able to “do it all?” In this episode, I explore all of these questions, and share an epiphany I had that’s been helping me to move through the complexity of honing in on my desires in order to take authentic action. I also share some big news relative to Chris Ryan and my community project in Crestone, CO, and also speak about how I see A Millennial’s Guide to Saving the World evolving in the coming months and years.

Song featured: “In Praise of Home” by Rura

Join our book club by clicking here.

Follow Chris and my community project, The Crestone Conglomerate on Youtube and on Instagram

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#130 Living Nomadically on Horseback with Michael Ridge

Anya Kaats — Mon, 19 Dec 2022 23:36:00 GMT

Michael Ridge has spent the last decade living and traveling nomadically on horseback, mostly in the Pacific Northwest. He is an expert in primitive skills and wild foods, and possesses a level of bravery and commitment to core values that I find extraordinarily impressive. In our conversation, Michael shares about the events that led him to his current life on horseback, and outlines what his day-to-day has looked like, season by season, for the past ten years. We discuss civilization, technology, authenticity, grief, ecology, and community, and Michael outlines the the logistical, psychological, spiritual and emotional tools necessary to live the kind of life he’s chosen. This conversation is by far one of my favorite episodes of the podcast, and deserves more than one listen.

Find Michael on Instagram, TikTok and Youtube.

Here is a short video about Finisia Medrano, Michael’s teacher -

Songs featured: “And You Don’t Even Know You Hurt Me” by Nick Murphy, “Fertile Ground” by Evan Fraser, Vir McCoy, Rising Appalachia, and Chloe Smith, and “Wandering Nomad” by Cody Francis

How to support the show:

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#129 Envisioning, Designing and Creating Spaces for the Future with Johanna Hoffman

Anya Kaats — Sun, 27 Nov 2022 22:00:59 GMT

Johanna Hoffman is a designer, urbanist and strategist exploring the ties between design, planning, fiction and futures. She’s the founder of Design for Adaptation, a studio using strategic planning, interactive storytelling and speculative design to survey the impacts of potential futures and spur proactive adaptation. Her new book is called Speculative Futures: Design Approaches to Navigate Change, Foster Resilience, and Co-Create the Cities we Need. Johanna and I talk about strategies to make the intangibility and overwhelm of the future more personal and inspiring, and how we can integrate grief into shifting narratives. We discuss how national mythologies translate into the creation of different landscapes, the pros and cons of modern cities, and how important it is to give ourselves permission to lean into our creativity, imagination, and confidence in order to manifest big ideas.

Johanna’s book recommendations: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, Viral Justice by Ruha Benjamin, Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino and the work of Eric Klineberg, Ursula Le Guin, Stuart Candy, and Octavia Butler.

Find Johanna at johannahoffman.com and on Instagram

Songs featured: “The Fear” by Ben Howard and “Let Me Down Easy” by Gang of Youths

How to support the show:

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* Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World is a reader and listener-supported project. If you find this content valuable and have the means to donate financially, please consider becoming a paid subscriber for only $5/month.

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#128 Mending Our Myths and Planting Seeds of Future Stories with Téo Montoya

Anya Kaats — Wed, 02 Nov 2022 21:16:17 GMT

Téo Montoya is a Human Design Analyst, Metamodern Myth Mender, Indigenous Futurist writer and multimedia artist. His work focuses on synthesizing cosmological and spiritual systems, myths, archetypes, and modalities to find ways of supporting an emerging world in crisis through human development, ecological literacy, and reciprocity with our communities and more-than-human kin. In other words, Téo and I have a lot in common. We speak about our complex relationships to both Human Design and Astrology, and the importance of questioning the nature of “belief” when it comes to working with archetypal systems. We also discuss mythology, individualism, the collective crisis of meaning, grief, identity, ecology, masculinity, Metamodernism and so much more.

Téo’s book recommendation: The Four Shields: The Initiatory Seasons of Human Nature by Steven Foster and Meredith Little

Find Téo at archaicremnant.com, on Instagram @teomontoya_ and listen to his podcast Indigenous Futures

Songs featured: “A Prayer of My Own” by Nick Mulvey and “You Get What You Give” by New Radicals

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#127 Healing, Transformation, and Evolution through Movement and Dance with Vangelis Legakis

Anya Kaats — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 18:50:51 GMT

Van is an educator and practitioner in dance, healing and spirituality with over 20 years of experience. He integrates Eastern and Western modalities to create a holistic dance education, centering on how dance can enlighten our perspectives on life and how we interact with society. Van reaches beyond dance and choreography by focusing his work on human development through fusing dance, spirituality and healing practices. Van and I recorded this conversation in Athens, Greece where I spent two weeks participating in his Contact Beyond Contact facilitators training course. We speak about Van’s unconventional journey in discovering dance, his desire to unify his multidisciplinary interests, and his work using movement and dance not just as performance, but also as a healing modality for our body, mind, heart, and spirit.

Find Van at UnitySpace.org, and on Instagram

Interested in signing up for the CBC Facilitators Training Course? Find the info here and email cbc@unityspace.org using code “CBC_Anya”

Songs featured: “Passage” by Garth Stevenson, “Rest (Acoustic)” by Leif Vollebekk, and “De Ushuaia a La Quiaca” by Gustavo Santaolalla

For some beautiful visual representations of Contact Beyond Contact: Visit my Substack

How to support the show:

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#126 Navigating Darkness & Becoming an Apprentice of the Unknown with Deborah Eden Tull

Anya Kaats — Fri, 16 Sep 2022 21:18:28 GMT

Deborah Eden Tull (who goes by Eden) is a Zen meditation and engaged dharma teacher, public speaker, author and sustainability educator, as well as the founder of Mindful Living Revolution. She trained for seven and a half years as a Buddhist monk at a silent Zen monastery and has taught engaged dharma for over 20 years. Her new book, Luminous Darkness, explores what it means to embrace, navigate and learn from the unknown. Eden and I discuss how “endarkenment” is different than enlightenment, and how balancing both light and dark in our lives can provide a radical path to wholeness. We discuss everything from embodiment to dark nights of the soul, light pollution, the suppression of femininity, our collective disconnection from the earth, and the complexities of power, dominance, hierarchy.

Find Eden at deborahedentull.com and on Instagram

Eden’s Book Recommendations - Zen Mind, Beginners Mind by Shunryu Suzuki & Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmermer

Sign up for Retrograde with Intention here - We start September 17th, but registration will remain open through September.

Songs featured: “Heat & Dark” by Luca Fogale and “The Fruitful Darkness” by Trevor Hall

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#125 Paradox, Polarity and Nuance in Astrology with Whitney Will

Anya Kaats — Tue, 06 Sep 2022 15:35:07 GMT

Whitney returns to the podcast to discuss how paradox, polarity and nuance show up in astrology, and how to best utilize concepts of “good” and “bad” to provoke self-awareness. How can nuance be used to both invite and prevent growth? How can we assess when duality is helpful vs. when it isn’t? Whitney and I provide an overview of concepts such as malefics & benefics, sect, dignities and debilities, aspects, and retrogrades, to discuss what’s both helpful and unhelpful about seeing something as “positive” or “negative". We also discuss the archetype of Mars, and the upcoming Mars retrograde in Gemini. Our course, Retrograde with Intention, returns September 17th, and is a group container to support your growth, awareness and transformation over the course of the upcoming Mars Rx transit.

Songs featured: “Tumbleweed” by Puscifer and “Born Under A Bad Sign” by Albert King

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#124 Reckoning With Our Disconnection From Grief, Elderhood and Community, Part Two with Kimberly Ann Johnson

Anya Kaats — Sun, 21 Aug 2022 21:33:26 GMT

Kimberly Ann Johnson is a somatic experience practitioner, sexological bodyworker, author, podcast host, and doula. She returns to the podcast to speak about the turmoil of the past couple years, and recounts the journey that led her to co-author Reckoning with Stephen Jenkinson. We speak about our mutual experience feeling alienated from the “wellness” community during Covid, and the great loss and betrayal we felt from those who pitted individualism and “personal sovereignty” against community and social responsibility. We also touch on the importance of becoming conscious of our biases, cultivating humility and nuance especially in times of heightened emotion, the risks of overvaluing the hero’s journey, and what we can do to make ourselves worthy of elderhood.

Purchase a copy of Reckoning by Stephen Jenkinson and Kimberly Ann Johnson here.

Find Kimberly on Instagram and on her website KimberlyAnnJohnson.com

Songs featured: “Ballad Of A Thin Place” by RF Shannon and “Baby Hallelujah” by Konradsen

Check out this live performance of “Baby Hallelujah” by Konradsen -

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#123 Reckoning With Our Disconnection From Grief, Elderhood and Community, Part One with Stephen Jenkinson

Anya Kaats — Wed, 17 Aug 2022 19:30:14 GMT

Stephen is a culture activist, teacher, author, and co-founder if the Orphan Wisdom School. His work centers around grief, elderhood, community, and is rooted in knowing history, being claimed by ancestry, and working for a time we won’t see. Stephen and I speak about how a lack of generational connection and transmission has provoked deep rupture and brokenness. We discuss the difference between communities and collectives, the danger of individualism and personal “sovereignty,” and how grief is an inevitable outcome of true “awakening”. We also touch on guru/student relationships, societal misconceptions about power and privilege, how to cultivate belonging as a state of being, and the devastating effects of living in a culture that has traded grief for grievance.

Purchase a copy of Reckoning by Stephen Jenkinson and Kimberly Ann Johnson here.

Songs featured: “Invocation” by Nights of Grief and Mystery, “The Future” by Leonard Cohen

How to support the show:

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A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World is a reader and listener supported project. If you find this content valuable, please consider becoming a paid supporter for only $5/month.

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#122 Reclaiming Curiosity and Connection in Dangerously Divided Times with Mónica Guzmán

Anya Kaats — Sat, 06 Aug 2022 11:04:23 GMT

Mónica Guzmán is an author, journalist, and bridge builder. She is the Director of Digital Storytelling at Braver Angels, a nonprofit working to depolarize America, and author of the book “I Never Thought Of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times”. Móni and her parents immigrated to the US from Mexico when she was a teenager. Móni is a liberal, but her parents voted for Trump… twice. Our conversation focuses on the importance of curating connection to those we disagree with, and the practice of maintaining curiosity about ideas and opinions we don’t understand. We speak about how to prioritize trust above “truth,” the polarizing role of the media, and the danger of getting sucked into ideological silos. Móni explains how it is possible to remember that we are all smarter and more capable than what they want us to believe, but only when we make space for and reclaim vulnerable conversations, and a connection to one another.

Mónica’s book recommendation: The Collected Essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson

Find Mónica on Twitter, Instagram, and ReclaimCuriosity.com

Click here to learn more about Contact Beyond Contact.

Click here to sign up for the Sex at Dawn Retreat this September in Montana, hosted by Chris Ryan, Cameron & Melayne Shayne, and me! (Only two spots left).

Songs featured: “Moving” by Eskimotion, “Back to You” by Benjamin Gordon, and “Going Home” by Ásgeir

How to support the show:

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A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World is a reader and listener supported publication. If you find this content valuable, and have the means to donate financially, please consider becoming a paid subscriber for only $5/month.

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#121 Celebrating Unpopular Opinions and the Fluidity of Identity with Lenore Black

Anya Kaats — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 14:14:07 GMT

Lenore Black, a fan favorite of the show, returns for a second episode. It’s an understatement to say that a lot has changed in the year and a half since Lenore and I first connected, both personally and collectively. We speak about Lenore’s move from New York City to Joshua Tree, which was as much an inner journey as an outer journey. Lenore shares why she decided to reevaluate her career, her connection to herself and to nature, and the identity she held onto for years as a bisexual, queer, kinky, non-monogamous woman. We speak about the importance of avoiding political and ideological silos, and why it’s vital that we approach ourselves and the world with curiosity, empathy and a willingness to have our minds changed in ways we might not expect.

Click here to listen to the first podcast episode Lenore and I recorded together.

Find Lenore on Instagram and on Substack

Songs featured: “Desert Solitaire” by Greta Morgan, “Ends of the Earth” by Lord Huron, and “Meanwhile Back in the City” by The Presidents of the United States of America

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#120 Growing Up Maasai in a Complex, Changing World with Elia Edward Mollel

Anya Kaats — Wed, 13 Jul 2022 09:37:17 GMT

Chris and I had the pleasure of spending ten days with Elia on our trip to Tanzania last month, and sat down to record a podcast with him at Lake Eyasi. Elia is half Maasai, and spent much of his childhood being raised by his Maasai grandfather. He has a great deal of knowledge and insight about the complexities and conflicts between the Maasai and the “modern world,” because that complexity informs his life and identity. In this conversation we speak about his experience learning about wildlife, the land, astronomy and what it means to mature as a man within his Maasai community, and the shift into his adult life as a safari guide. We speak about Maasai culture and tradition, climate change, spirit animals, tourism, education, and population growth. Elia gives some unique and important context to the experience of coming from and living in two very different worlds.

Get in touch with Elia through Gladiola Adventure.

Songs featured: “Korobela” and “Asante Sana” by The Soil

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#119 Rerooting our Stories and Rewilding our Mythology with Sophie Strand

Anya Kaats — Sun, 26 Jun 2022 13:32:00 GMT

Sophie is a writer based in the Hudson Valley who focuses on the intersection of spirituality, storytelling, and ecology. We speak about personal and collective mythologies and how so many of our stories have been deracinated from their roots in ways that perpetuate harm. We discuss the importance of rerooting and rewilding these narratives by listening with our whole bodies, and becoming aware of how our individual story is a part of an overarching ecological matrix. We touch on how we’ve both worked to reframe our own sensitivity and illness, and the complexities of Psilocybin, masculinity, Jesus, spirituality and magic.

Find Sophie at and on Instagram, on Substack and check out her course with Advaya. Pre-order her book The Flowering Wand: Rewilding the Sacred Masculine.

Sophie’s Book Recommendations: When We Cease to Understand the World by Benjamín Labatut and Inflamed by by Rupa Marya and Raj Patel

Songs featured: “Gold Star Mothers” by Hammock, “Meet The Moonlight” by Jack Johnson, and “Dust” by Ryan Montbleau

How to support the show:

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A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World is a listener-supported project. If you find this content valuable and have the means to donate, please consider becoming a paid subscriber.

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#118 Anti-Racism 2.0: Reclaiming Love and Rejecting Division with Chloé Valdary

Anya Kaats — Fri, 10 Jun 2022 16:00:00 GMT

Chloé is a writer and entrepreneur whose company, Theory of Enchantment, offers an alternative to conventional anti-racism training. Instead of focusing on dualistic thinking and division, Chloé’s company embraces and promotes love and compassion. We speak about the importance of accepting and embodying our own individual complexities and polarities as a means to accept others. We discuss the West’s (and our own individual) obsession with controlling and predicting, which inevitably leads to abuses of power. We also talk about meaningful relationship as an antidote to power grabbing, the importance of channeling anger as opposed to identifying with it, and how real change will require that we get back into our bodies and feel our feelings.

Find Chloé at TheoryofEnchantment.com, Instagram, and Twitter, and listen to her podcast The Heart Speaks

Chloé’s Book Recommendations: The Way of Woman by Helen Luke and The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist

Songs featured: “Dreamer” by Arisha Badru and “You Make Loving Fun” by Fleetwood Mac

How to support the show:

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Here is the 60 minutes segment I spoke about in our conversation:

A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World is a listener-supported project. If you find this content valuable and have the means to donate, please consider becoming a paid subscriber.

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#117 In the Shadow of the Healer: A Solo Episode

Anya Kaats — Thu, 02 Jun 2022 10:05:22 GMT

This episode has been a long time coming. If you’re a regular listener of MGSW, you know that I’m incredibly interested in exploring power dynamics, shadow, and spirituality, especially when all three become interwoven. I share my reflections about the podcast Cover Story, which uncovers abuses of power within the growing industry of psychedelic therapy. I also discuss Power in the Helping Professions by Adolf Guggenbühl-Craig, and reflect on how power is wielded within various forms of “therapy”. How might “healers” project the wounded pole of the wounded healer archetype onto their patients, thereby avoiding their own? What are the dangers of silencing genuine questions and concerns during campaigns to gain cultural acceptance of something that’s been historically demonized? Why are we more willing to discuss abuses of power when the abuses involve sex and drugs? How have nuanced conversations and opinions been replaced by false binaries and “you’re with me or against me” reactive assumptions? I discuss all of these questions and more.

Song featured: “Waterfalls” by Ten Fé

How to support the show:

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A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World is a listener-supported project. If you find this content valuable, and have the means to donate, please consider becoming a paid subscriber.

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#116 On Living Artfully, Embracing the Unknown and Saying Yes to Life with Debra Berger

Anya Kaats — Tue, 17 May 2022 17:49:28 GMT

Debra has lived an incredibly full and inspiring life with no plan of stopping anytime soon. From moving to Europe, dropping out of school, marrying an Italian prince and hitchhiking across Africa all by the time she was sixteen, Debra has always embraced the unknown and said “yes” to all of what life has thrown at her. We speak about her love of integrating art and architecture, and the beauty of bringing something of ourselves to new experiences as opposed to requiring an experience to give something to us. We touch on the importance of embracing our individual uniqueness, the beauty of being a citizen within a community, and why elderhood is underrated.

Songs featured: “Confidently Lost” by Sabrina Claudio and “Against the Wind” by Victory

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#115 Spirituality as a Reclamation of Self with Lindsey Lockett

Anya Kaats — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 10:58:23 GMT

Lindsey Lockett is a trauma educator, coach, podcast host and self-proclaimed “awareness junkie and nervous system ninja”. She joined me to continue our two-part conversation about spirituality. (To listen to part 1, head to Episode #79 of the Holistic Trauma Healing Podcast). Lindsey spent the first 30 years of her life as an evangelical Christian, but had a reckoning at age 33 and a traumatic dark night of the soul that provoked her to reinvent her life from the ground up. We speak about her journey of developing an individual approach to belief and meaning, and her commitment to understanding herself and the world in ways that challenge the status-quo. We speak about our mutual dedication to critical thinking, reinventing ourselves, and resisting fundamentalist/black & white thinking. We talk about belonging, ancestry, past life regressions, honoring the earth, and Lindsey tells a story about this one time she sacrificed a pig with her neighbors in order to pray for rain. Join me on Substack to share your thoughts about this episode in the comments section, and get access to bonus content and a community of like-minded humans.

Find Lindsey at LindseyLockett.com and on Instagram

Songs featured: “Be Like Water” by Lo Wolf and “All The Way Down” by Jonathan Wilson

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#114 Vaccines, Veganism & Will Smith: A Solo Episode About Cognitive Dissonance & Self-Awareness

Anya Kaats — Mon, 11 Apr 2022 16:43:14 GMT

In this episode I discuss three relatively controversial and divisive issues in an effort to expose our discomfort with cognitive dissonance. For example, are we really anti-vaccine mandate, or are we just anti-Covid vaccine mandate (because we don’t feel personally at risk)? Would we still be preaching about sovereignty if the virus was deadlier? What if it had been a white man who had slapped Chris Rock, or what if Chris Rock had been a woman? Is creating an identity around veganism more about seeking external validation than it is about veganism? This episode explores how resistant we can be to embracing the subjective nature of our beliefs and decisions, instead opting into “belief clubs” that provide us with externalized rationalizations for our own biases. I argue that by doing so, we lose countless opportunities to grow and gain greater self-awareness.

How to support the show:

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#113 On Spirituality and Embracing the Mystery of the Cosmos with Christopher Ryan

Anya Kaats — Sun, 20 Mar 2022 18:51:35 GMT

Listen now (115 min) | Christopher Ryan (co-author of Sex at Dawn, author of Civilized to Death, and host of Tangentially Speaking) returns to the podcast to discuss spirituality, and the ways we’ve engaged in this realm in different, yet parallel ways. We speak about psychedelics, astrology, synchronicity, and magic, and how these tools and practices have informed our approach to life. We touch on integration, ego, and humility, plus discuss the conflict between scientific worldviews/mechanistic thinking and the exploration of subjective meaning and belief. Plus, I talk about my inspiration for The Lunar Circle and why I approach and teach astrology in such a nuanced and experiential way.

Find Chris at chrisryanphd.com, on Twitter and on Instagram

Songs featured: “Bathroom Dance” by Hildur Guðnadóttir from the movie Joker and "Inside I’ll Sing” by Shards & Isolation Choir

How to support the show:

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Join the Substack community and get access to newsletters, exclusive articles, and a private Discord server just for listeners of the show, which you can join by clicking this link - https://discord.gg/sQHPPVC9 (This Discord link expires in 7 days from the episode date. If it no longer works, send me an email - anyakaats@gmail.com)

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#112 Motherhood, Mythology & Metamorphosis with Lisa Marchiano

Anya Kaats — Sun, 13 Mar 2022 10:12:21 GMT

Lisa is a writer, Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a certified Jungian Analyst. She is a co-host of the podcast This Jungian Life and the author of Motherhood: Facing and Finding Yourself. She joins me on the podcast to talk about motherhood (both literally and figuratively), and how it offers us a meaningful path toward our own individuation. We speak about projection, the process of creativity, the dangers of victimhood, the fallacy of control, and distinguishing the difference between intuition vs. anxiety. We also discuss the power of mythology as a warehouse of psychic patterns and their capacity to give us language for things that are notoriously hard to language.

Find Lisa at LisaMarchiano.com and at ThisJungianLife.com

Lisa's Book Recommendation: The Cormoran Strike Series by Robert Galbraith (Aka J.K. Rowling)

Songs featured: "Sun, Arise! (An Invocation, An Introduction)" by Phospherescent and "One More Cup of Coffee" by Frazey Ford

How to support the show:

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Join the Substack community and get access to newsletters, exclusive articles, and a private Discord server just for listeners of the show, which you can join by clicking this link - https://discord.gg/Vwp4nr2P (This Discord link expires in 7 days from the episode date. If it no longer works, send me an email - anyakaats@gmail.com)

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#111 Non-Monogamy, Relational Discernment and the Quest for Liberation with Rachel Krantz

Anya Kaats — Sun, 06 Feb 2022 05:57:53 GMT

Rachel Krantz is the author of Open: An Uncensored Memoir of Love, Liberation, and Non-Monogamy. She is also one of the founding co-editors of Bustle, and a recipeint of the Peabody Award. Rachel and I discuss the complicated and overwhelming process of finding safety and authenticity within the world of unconventional relationships. While being careful not to dismiss non-monogamy outright, we do our best to lend some much needed nuance to the topic. We discuss power dynamics, discernment, abuse, safety, trust and intuition, among many other things. Rachel's book is incredibly courageous, vulnerable and nuanced, and I was honored to discuss it with her in this conversation.

Find Rachel at RachelJKrantz.com and on Twitter

Songs featured: "River" by Bishop Briggs and "Invocation (Chaitanya Mantra)" by The Hanumen

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Join the Substack community and get access to newsletters, exclusive articles, and a private Discord server just for listeners of the show, which you can join by clicking this link - https://discord.gg/4EaBb3FE (This Discord link expires in 7 days from the episode date. If it no longer works, send me an email - anyakaats@gmail.com)

Join the Lunar Circle waitlist - AnyaKaats.com/LunarCircle

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#110 Responsibly Navigating Metaphysical and Extrasensory Realms using The Akashic Records with Jenny Kellogg

Anya Kaats — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 09:17:25 GMT

My friend Jenny Kellogg returns to the podcast, this time to speak about the Akashic Records. Early scientists said that there was a fifth element beyond fire, air, earth, and water. It was called “ether.” The information field of the universe could also be called ether, and this information field is what the Akashic Records are said to contain - a dynamic, neutral reservoir of information including every thought, emotion, experience, and intention of your soul through all lifetimes. Jenny and I discuss the difference between accessing the Akashic Records vs. psychic/past life regression readings, and, in true form, we bring a hefty portion of discernment, nuance and groundedness to yet another extremely complex spiritual topic!

Jenny's Book Recommendations: Science and the Akashic Field by Ervin Laszlo and Journey of Your Soul by Shepard Hoodwin

Find Jenny at Amalthea.guide and on Instagram

Songs featured: "A Spark, A Beginning" by Corre and "Spinning Away" by Brian Eno and John Cale

How to support the show:

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Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive Discord Server, a book club just for patrons, shirts + stickers, playlists, and curated workshops led by myself, fellow Patrons and former guests of the podcast.

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#109 On Living and Letting Go: A Conversation with my Grandma Barbara

Anya Kaats — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 05:17:53 GMT

This week, I bring you a conversation with my Grandma Barbara. From cleverly cheating on a vision test in order to become an airplane stewardess, to becoming a psychotherapist, sex and relationship therapist, and a Jungian therapist, to buying land in Colorado and building a cabin in the mountains, to raising her son (my Dad) and embracing his homosexuality from a young age, my Grandmother has lived her life with an open heart and open mind. We speak about her life, the lessons she's learned and how she's embracing the inevitability of death. If you've heard my Dad on the podcast (episode 21 and episode 73), this conversation will certainly add some depth and insight.

Song featured: "Good Woman" by the Staves and "Virginia in the Rain" by the Dave Matthews Band

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#108 Let Me Tell You a Story... A Solo Episode

Anya Kaats — Thu, 23 Dec 2021 09:18:34 GMT

"If you asked her to identify the moment she knew she was lying to herself, she could tell you..."

This week, I decided to take a break from my regularly scheduled programming to read you a story. From unrequited love, to hero complexes, codependency, the erotic energy between teachers and students, eros, fantasy and delusion... I think you'll find this story relatable.

Song featured: "Show Me Love" by Hundred Waters

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#107 The Shadow Side of "Wellness" and Healing our Relationship to Food and Our Bodies with Orleatha Smith

Anya Kaats — Tue, 14 Dec 2021 06:51:16 GMT

Orleatha Smith, M.Ed is a serial entrepreneur, biologist and certified holistic lifestyle coach. Both of us spent years in the paleo/ancestral health world, had paleo food blogs, adhered to a strict paleo diet and worked in the wellness industry. We also both developed orthorexia and an extremely antagonistic relationship toward food and our bodies in the process. We discuss the complexities of our individual journeys and what it took to re-prioritize happiness, pleasure, and a fiercely honest, stress-free and individual approach to health and wellness.

Find Orleatha on Instagram

Orleatha's Book Recommendations: The High-Five Habit by Mel Robbins, Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon and the Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton

Songs featured: "Rise" by Dominique Fils-Aimé and "Enough" by Aisha Badru

How to support the show:

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#106 Rebuilding Tribe and Tribal Mythologies for the Modern World with Timo Killian

Anya Kaats — Sat, 27 Nov 2021 19:38:04 GMT

Timo and I have too many things in common to list. From an obsession with Tony Kushner's Angels in America, to the importance of recognizing and building personal mythologies, to neo-tribalism and the importance of community, we spent two months in Antigua, Guatemala philosophizing late into the night about all our favorite subjects. Timo was raised in Mormonism and had a successful career in political consulting before focusing on a project around a return to tribal living, where small groups of people live in committed community that gives equal weight to both the individual and the community. If you're interested in spirituality, mythology, tribe, community and belonging, this episode is not to be missed.

Timo's Book Recommendation: Tribe by Sebastian Junger

Find Timo on Instagram, at storyofexistence.com or email him tim@theunknown.be

Sign up for Whitney and my Retrograde with Intention course by clicking here. Enrollment ends December 8th and space is limited!

Songs featured: "The Truth About the World" by Andrea Marie, "Bethesda Fountain" and "More Life" from Angels in America and "MANGO" by KAMAUU feat. Adeline

How to support the show:

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#105 The Truth About Planetary Retrogrades with Whitney Will

Anya Kaats — Mon, 08 Nov 2021 18:21:46 GMT

Whitney Will is a psychological astrologer and writer. She has a B.A. in the History of Math and completed her M.A. in Counseling Psychology with a focus on Jungian and Archetypal Studies at Pacifica. Whitney returns to the podcast, this time to chat with me about planetary retrogrades. We discuss what's really happening in the sky when a planet "goes retrograde", dispel false narratives about what retrogrades mean and delve into the archetype and mythology behind Mercury, Mars and Venus. We also expand on what it means to be born during a planetary retrograde and to have a retrograde planet in your natal chart. Lastly, we discuss our upcoming course "Retrograde with Intention" where we will be helping participants track the upcoming Venus retrograde in Capricorn through their charts and creating community and ritual around the transit, honoring Venus the best way we know how.

Find Whitney at at StarHearthAstrology.com, Youtube and Instagram.

Songs featured: "Love Like a Sunset, pt. 2" by Phoenix and "Southern Star" by Gregory Alan Isakov

How to support the show:

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#104 Embodying Feminine & Masculine Polarity and Navigating Spiritual Superficialities with Chris Bale

Anya Kaats — Tue, 02 Nov 2021 21:11:56 GMT

Chris is a Spiritual Mentor and Master Energy Worker. He has extensive education in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Acupuncture, Medical QiGong, Reiki, Pranic Healing, & Sexual Alchemy. We discuss our shared experience of identifying as spiritual and yet feeling alienated by most spiritual communities and unpack why that is. We also do a deep dive into Feminine and Masculine Polarity, how they exist within each of our us and how we enact this energy balance and exchange within relationships. We talk about the physical and psychological effects of trying to neutralize and deny the natural flow of energy in our bodies, and how when yin & yang are in disharmony, true vitality and health can never be fully established. We also speak about the ways both men and women can step up to the plate support each other in this process.

Find Chris on Instagram and at AwakenedIntent.com

Chris' book recommendation: Tantric Orgasms for Women and Tantric Sex for Men by Diana Richardson

Songs featured: "Can't Help But Fly" by Climbing PoeTree, be steadwell & Luqman Frank and "Medicine Man" by Dorothy

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#103: Waging War on Gangsters: Questioning our Reaction to Terrorism with Rehan Ansari

Anya Kaats — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 23:37:07 GMT

I met Rehan at the beginning of Covid on a ranch in Santa Fe. After mentioning that my podcast features taboo conversations about a variety of topics, he asked if I'd ever discussed terrorism and the War on Terror & started talking about how bizarre he thought it was that the US had waged an entire war against what he described as "local gangsters". I was intrigued, to say the least, and a year and a half later, we sat down to talk about it. Rehan grew up in Pakistan, but came to the US for college, and has lived here ever since. He's a journalist, writer and a playwright, currently working on a project for Frontline/PBS about majoritarianism. We speak about the fallacies surrounding the War on Terror (of which there are many), and unpack how on a grand scale, the US effectively fabricated an enemy, and constructed and proliferated a war based on misguided judgement and vastly overblown risk.

Rehan's book recommendation: The War At the End of the World by Mario Vargas Llosa

Songs featured: "Masters of War" by Vieux Farka Touré and Julia Easterlin and "War" by Edwin Starr

How to support the show:

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#102 The Complexities of Environmentalism, Responsibility and Hope with Tzeporah Berman

Anya Kaats — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 18:24:52 GMT

Tzeporah is a Canadian environmental activist, campaigner and writer. She has worked in environmentalism for 30 years, is the co-founder and International Program Director at Stand.Earth and the Chair of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative. From being arrested at the front lines of forest conservation initiatives, to speaking directly with the CEOs of fossil fuel corporations, Tzeporah has seen it all. We speak about regulation as it relates to both consumption and production, the difference between being a citizen vs. being a consumer, and we dissect the complexities of locating “responsibility” for ending the climate crisis. We discuss how humans are not separate from nature, but a part of nature itself, the unknown long-term effects of clearcutting and reforestation, and how to create hope in a seemingly hopeless situation.

Find Tzeporah and support her work by visiting Stand.earth and FossilFuelTreaty.org

Tzeporah's book recommendation: The Day the World Stops Shopping by J.B. Mackinnon

Songs featured: "My City Was Gone" by The Pretenders and "Green Mountain State" by Trevor Hall

How to support the show:

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#101 The Astrological Significance of Generations with Jenny Kellogg

Anya Kaats — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 22:50:03 GMT

Jenny joins me on the podcast once again, this time to talk about the astrological significance and underpinning of generations. We speak about every generation from the Baby Boomers through to Gen Z, and give some context for how each can be viewed through the lens of astrology, karma and collective purpose. What does the Hero's Journey look like on a generation scale? What can we define as the collective shadow of a generation? How does each generation fit together thematically and what might we glean from their chronology? We also speak about the most recent, as of yet unnamed generation and provide some thoughts on what their journey may look like based on what's currently going on in the world.

Find Jenny at AmaltheaAstrology.com and on Instagram

Jenny's book recommendation: The Hades Moon by Judy Hall

Songs featured: "Life Don't Last That Long" by Anders Osborne and "Star People" by George Michael

Join the Lunar Circle and get access to special pricing through midnight, September 24th: anyakaats.com/lunarcircle

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#100 Mending the Paradigms that Shape Us: A Conversation with my Mother (Cathy Arden)

Anya Kaats — Tue, 21 Sep 2021 00:33:06 GMT

When I launched this podcast 3 years ago, I would have never been able to predict that this monumental 100th episode would be shared with my Mother. In fact, at the time, we weren’t even speaking to one another. This conversation tracks my own ancestral history from the life of my grandmother, to my mother, to me. We speak about family patterns, trauma, the mother wound, codependency, and the excruciatingly painful two years we spent apart from one another in 2017 & 2018. If you have a Mom, or a daughter, or want to reinvigorate your belief in hope, change and forgiveness, this conversation shouldn’t be missed. Thank you, Mom, for sharing this moment with me, and to Doren and Sherry for helping us in spirit, every step of the way. Also, a huge thank you to all of the wonderful, unimaginably beautiful humans that listen to this podcast. Here’s to many more…

Find Cathy, my Mom at cathyarden.com

Songs featured: "Change" by Tracy Chapman and "I Think I Understand" by Joni Mitchell

Join the Lunar Circle and get access to special pricing (now extended!) through September 24th: anyakaats.com/lunarcircle

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#99 Healing Ancestral Trauma and Reconnecting to our Roots with Torie Feldman

Anya Kaats — Sun, 12 Sep 2021 21:16:54 GMT

Torie Feldman is an Ancestral Healing Guide and Women's Spiritual Mentor. In this conversation, we speak about what it means to heal intergenerational patterns and cycles, from both a biological and psychological point of view. We also talk about the difference between grounded and ungrounded spirituality, the reclamation of womanhood and feminine power, sacred sexuality and the archetypes of both maiden and mother.

Find Torie on Instagram and at SacredAncestry.com

Torie's book recommendations: Jambalaya by Luisah Teish and It Didn't Start with You by Mark Wolynn

Songs featured: "Estrellas" and "Huracan" by Maria Jose Montijo

Join the Lunar Circle and get access to special pricing (now extended!) through September 24th: anyakaats.com/lunarcircle

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#98 The Venus Diaries with Kestrel Neathawk and Eliza Robertson

Anya Kaats — Thu, 02 Sep 2021 23:35:34 GMT

Two-thirds of Kosmic Tonic join me on the podcast this week to discuss all things Venus. We unpack the mythology and multivalent archetype associated with this frequently misunderstood and oversimplified planet. We speak about desire, longing, and how love is consistently more complex than we give it credit for. We touch on projection, fantasy, what constitutes core, human needs, and make a case to de-pathologize pleasure. We also discuss our own Venus placements and the journey that all three of us have been on to understand ourselves through the lens of love and loss.

Find Eliza and Kestrel on Instagram and at KosmicTonic.com

Songs featured: "Road to Venus" by Leif Vollebekk and "Healer in the Sky" by The Secret Sisters

Join the Lunar Circle and get access to special pricing through September 10th: anyakaats.com/lunarcircle

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#97 Death, Sex, Pain and Pleasure with Chris Ryan and Tao Ruspoli

Anya Kaats — Sat, 28 Aug 2021 19:09:25 GMT

Tao, Chris and Anya have a three-way... conversation. Sitting in Tao's shipping container gallery in Yucca Valley, the three of us speak about the interwoven relationship between life, death, sex, pleasure, pain and creativity, and how the absence of death can directly correlate to an absence of eroticism. We question the hypocrisies of mainstream environmentalism, and whether individual action can influence collective change. We also speak about disagreement, the purpose of podcasts, and the art of conversation.

Find Tao on Instagram and listen to his podcast "Being in the World" on Youtube

Find Chris at on Instagram, Twitter, and at chrisryanphd.com

Songs featured: "Pure Imagination" by Dave Harrington Group and "Human" by Sevdaliza

How to support the show:

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#96 Everything is Beautiful and Dying: A Solo Episode

Anya Kaats — Wed, 18 Aug 2021 17:53:19 GMT

In this episode, I talk about how I've been feeling and what I've been thinking about over this past summer. Namely, about the intersection of beauty and death. I speak about how as I get older, a lot of my optimism and my desire to find "purpose" and "meaning" has become supplanted with unavoidable grief, death and sorrow. I question whether believing that everything happens for a reason is really just a manic and delusional avoidance of truth, honesty and sadness. I explore whether pessimism equals complacency, and if we're kidding ourselves by thinking any one of us can make a palpable difference in the way we, as a species, operate in the world.

Song featured: "Mama" by Lola Kirke & Kelly Zutrau

Join the Lunar Circle before September 2nd and get access to special, discounted pricing - anyakaats.com/lunarcircle

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#95 Movement and Embodiment as Keys to Access our True Self with Melayne Shayne

Anya Kaats — Wed, 04 Aug 2021 21:42:39 GMT

Melayne is a Budokon Mixed Movement Athlete and founder of the Warrior Women Tribe. She is the VP of the Mixed Movement Arts System Budokon and Director of the Budokon Yoga Program and Teacher Training. We speak about movement as a tool for self-exploration and as an invitation to think about how we exist in the world as a whole. We touch on imposter syndrome, sexuality, non-monogamy, and unpack the warrior woman archetype, as well as the mother archetype. We also discuss community and how it acts as a mirror, plus how moving toward fear and risk provides us with an opportunity to grow.

Find Melayne on Instagram and at Budokon.com

Melayne's book recommendations: Sex at Dawn by Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jetha, Mating in Captivity by Esther Perel, Intimate Relationships by Stephen Wolinsky & Conscious Loving by Gay and Kathlyn Hendricks

Songs featured: "Iluminar" by Porangui, Sumeru by Islandman and "Feeling Good" by Sofi Tukker

How to support the show:

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Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

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#94 The Leftist Case Against Cancel Culture & Identitarianism with Clementine Morrigan and Jay

Anya Kaats — Wed, 21 Jul 2021 20:50:30 GMT

Clementine Morrigan and Jay are the hosts of the podcast "Fucking Cancelled." We speak about the reality, danger and harm of what Clem & Jay have defined as "The Nexus" - Cancel Culture + Identitarianism + social media. Plus, we dive into how all of this relates to healing from trauma, 12 steps, and taking responsibility of our own lives. We touch on race, gender, privilege, power, economics, and a whole lot more.

Find Fucking Cancelled on Patreon, send them an email at fckingcancelled@gmaill.com, and find Clementine on Instagram and on Patreon.

Clementine & Jay's book recommendations: Terror, Love and Brainwashing by Alexandra Stein, Toward Freedom by Toure Reed, Ministry of the Future + The Mars Trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson, Capitalist Realism by Mark Fisher & Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber

Songs featured: “I Won't Run From It” by Big Red Machine and “You Don't Know Me" by Ben Folds ft. Regina Spektor

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#93 Sexual Desire and What it Can Teach Us About Ourselves with Tracy Clark-Flory

Anya Kaats — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 00:14:18 GMT

Tracy is a senior staff writer at Jezebel covering sex, gender, and feminism. She's also the author of "Want Me: A Sex Writer's Journey into the Heart of Desire". Tracy and I discuss what it was like growing up as a young person with access to porn, AOL sex chatrooms, and how we navigated the very confusing world of "sexual education." We cover desire, pleasure, masculinity and femininity, power dynamics, sexual self-awareness, or lack thereof, and more.

Find Tracy at TracyClarkFlory.com and on Twitter.

Tracy's book recommendation: Talk Dirty to Me by Sallie Tisdale and Love and Trouble by Claire Dederer.

Songs featured: “Unravel Me” by Sabrina Claudio and “Feeling Good” by Nina Simone

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#92 Exploring Gender Dysphoria, Mental Health and the Decision to Detransition with Rachel Foster

Anya Kaats — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 22:35:39 GMT

Rachel was raised in a strict fundamentalist Christian household with rigid gender expectations. She was exposed to pedophilia, sexual violence and severe homophobia from a very young age. In the process of trying to find herself, Rachel became convinced that she could solve her mental health issues and her difficulties dating by taking cross-sex hormones and becoming a man. Rachel, who now identifies as a lesbian woman, shares openly about this process & why she decided to ultimately detransition. Rachel also explains what all of this has to do with internalized & culturally reinforced misogyny, unprocessed trauma, fundamentalist ideologies + widespread medical & psychological malpractice.

Find Rachel on Twitter.

Watch Dysphoric on Youtube.

Rachel's book recommendation: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk and Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich

Songs featured: “Save Me” by Bleu and “Things Are Gonna Get Easier” by Low Motion Disco

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

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#91 Cross-Cultural Misogyny, FTM Transitions & the Exportation of Western Gender Theory with Vaishnavi Sundar

Anya Kaats — Sun, 20 Jun 2021 22:06:51 GMT

Vaishnavi is an independent filmmaker, feminist, writer, and women's rights activist from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Her most recent film, Dysphoric: Fleeing Womanhood Like a House on Fire is a four-part documentary series on the rise of Gender Identity Ideology and gender transition in developing countries. We focus specifically on the recent uptick in FTM transitions, how the trend showing up abroad and where it may intersect with internalized misogyny. We also talk about the patriarchal underbelly of medical corporatism, cancel culture, and why understanding the social construction of our identity is so vitally important, especially when our goal is to achieve equality across the board.

Find Vaishnavi at VaishnaviSundar.com, on Twitter and on Instagram.

Watch Dysphoric on Youtube.

Vaishnavi's book recommendation: Writing by Andrea Dworkin and Sheila Jeffreys

Songs featured: “Splintered” by Aisha Badru and “Your Move” (single version) by Yes

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#90 Inventing New Ways of Being in the World with Tao Ruspoli

Anya Kaats — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 22:36:43 GMT

Tao is a filmmaker (Being in the World, Monogamish), a photographer, a musician, a podcaster (the Being in the World podcast) and has a degree in philosophy from UC Berkeley. He is also an incredibly inspiring human and friend. From the compound he's built on his property in Joshua Tree to The Bombay Beach Biennale, Tao has a knack for creating environments and communities that push the limits of our imagination. We sat down to co-release this conversation about sexuality, non-monogamy, fear, and how the act of applying our philosophies and beliefs about life to our physical, tangible surroundings can be a powerful form of anarchism.

Find Tao on Instagram and listen to his podcast.

Songs featured: “I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got” by Bettye LaVette and “Relationship Anarchy" by Mary Wander

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

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#89 Is Anti-Racism Making Us More Racist with Steve QJ

Anya Kaats — Tue, 25 May 2021 18:08:05 GMT

Steve QJ is a writer who writes about race, politics and culture. He joins me on the podcast to have a controversial, but important conversation about race, and more specifically, about the current Anti-Racism movement. We speak about how "anti-racism" tends to favor conformity to an idea over genuine solidarity and support of black people, how broken our discourse is about these topics, especially online, and how power and privilege aren't inherently negative. Steve also questions the notion of "safe spaces," how identity has become more valuable than intelligence, and how looking at these issues cross-culturally can help lead to greater understanding between all people, across the board.

Find Steve on Medium and on Twitter

Steve's book recommendation: Writing by James Baldwin and Thomas Sowell

Songs featured: “A Thought Is Just a Passing Train” by John Moreland and “In the Real World” by Alex Serra

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#88 How to Responsibly Navigate a Spiritual "Awakening" with Jenny Kellogg

Anya Kaats — Mon, 10 May 2021 20:32:31 GMT

Jenny is a certified Astrologer, has a B.A. in Classical Philology, a PhD in Modern languages and has studied ancient civilizations and languages for over 25 years. Jenny returns to MGSW, this time to expand on the topic of spiritual awakenings. Jenny and I chat about our personal journeys, and what we've experienced within (and without) various spiritual communities. We address what happens when consumerism and capitalism meet spirituality, and how our individual trauma always plays a role in our spiritual awakening. We also discuss the differences between discernment and skepticism, why having a spiritual container is so imperative to navigating the entire process, and so much more.

Find Jenny at amaltheaastrology.com

Jenny’s book recommendation: Spiritual Emergency by Stanislov and Christina Grof

Songs featured: “blue sky mind” by Trevor Hall and “Breathe” by Ásgeir

How to support the show:

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Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#87 Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself: A Solo Episode

Anya Kaats — Fri, 07 May 2021 17:35:58 GMT

I decided to record a short reintroduction to myself and to this podcast. From honoring the space between personal experience and objective "truth", finding a community that can mirror us and help us grow, and taking responsibility for the stories we tell, I speak a little bit about why I created this project in the first place and where I think it's going. Thank you, as always, for listening, supporting, and for being here with me on this journey.

Song featured: “Mind on Fire" by Aisha Badru

How to support the show:

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Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

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#86 Learning to Think for Ourselves & Healing Trauma Holistically with Linsey Lockett

Anya Kaats — Mon, 03 May 2021 17:28:47 GMT

Lindsey is a writer and podcaster, helping others to heal trauma holistically and consciously create a reality that isn't ruled by the past. Lindsey was raised in Evangelical Christianity, and at 35, after watching a pro-gay rights Christian documentary, Lindsey had an identity crisis which lead to a nervous breakdown & suicide attempt. Eventually, she rejected her religious upbringing and restructured her life and values from the ground up. Lindsey and I speak about the danger of toxic, cult-like movements, from religion, to wellness culture and woke politics. We also touch on what it means to take a holistic approach to healing trauma, and how learning to think for ourselves & healing our trauma are two of the strongest antidotes against fundamentalist ideologies of all kinds that prey on fearful, dysregulated humans.

Find Lindsey at LindseyLockett.com and on Instagram.

Lindsey’s book recommendations: A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle and Ishmael by Daniel Quinn

Songs featured: “Party at the End of the World” by Carsie Blanton and “Waking Up” by Explosions in the Sky

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website – AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#85 Finding our Role in a Social Change Ecosystem with Deepa Iyer

Anya Kaats — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 22:16:21 GMT

Deepa Iyer is Director of Strategic Initiatives at Building Movement Project where she builds projects, resources, and narratives that support nonprofits and individuals engaged in transformative movements for progressive social change. Her work includes creating the social change ecosystem map, which is a brilliant and creative way to help people identify their unique and authentic role within broad and diverse social justice movements. Deepa outlines each of the 10 roles, and discusses how self-awareness is imperative to creating change in the world. We also talk about the role anger plays social justice movements for better or worse, how shame is always counter-productive to progress, and how we can develop the courage to embody our principles and values, despite the pressure we may feel to comply or perform.

Find Deepa at buildingmovement.org and on Instagram.

Deepa's book recommendation: Sylvia & Aki by Winifred Conkling

Songs featured: "Be Good" by Carsie Blanton and "Tribe" by Danny Addison

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#84 Embodying the Magic and Peace We Wish to See in the World with Kevin Garcia

Anya Kaats — Wed, 07 Apr 2021 22:56:11 GMT

Kevin is a digital pastor, the author of Bad Theology Kills, podcaster and holds a Masters of Arts in Practical Theology from Columbia Theological Seminary. This is Kevin's second time on the podcast, and I was thrilled to continue our conversation about Christianity, faith, sexuality, spirituality, magic and gender, and how they all intersect. Kevin and I discuss the importance of cultivating spiritual community, how to avoid becoming a fake idol (or following one), and how they define and approach magic and ritual. Kevin also discusses their gender identity through the lens of Christianity and masculine/feminine energies.

Find Kevin at thekevingarcia.com and on Instagram.

Kevin's book recommendations: I'm Still Here by Austin Channing Brown, Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde and the audio version of Being Ram Dass by Ram Dass

Songs featured: "Undercurrent/Watershed" by April feat. Mary Lattimore, "Little Runaway" by Celeste and "Crowded Table" by The Highwomen, Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby, and Maren Morris

How to support the show:

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Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#83 Exploring the History and Social Construction of Vegetarianism with James Connolly

Anya Kaats — Thu, 25 Mar 2021 18:18:16 GMT

James is an artist, chef, non-profit founder, co-host of the Sustainable Dish Podcast with Diana Rodgers and a documentary filmmaker. Some of James' film projects include Transmilitary, Michael Moore’s latest documentary, Where to Invade Next, and Sacred Cow. James has been studying the history of vegetarianism for the past decade, and we do our best to unpack it's complex past. From vegetarianism's deep connection to religious fundamentalism, sexual shame and fear of death + phrenology, genocide, eugenics and American corporatism, this conversation is not for the faint of heart. However, if you're interested in exploring a fascinating, and deeply disturbing social construction, this episode is not to be missed!

Find James on Instagram

James' book recommendation: Books by Trevanian

Songs featured: "Healing" by Sampa the Great and "Strange American Dream" by Rayland Baxter

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#82 Tea, Ritual & Embracing the Gift of Our Humanity with Mariana Rittenhouse

Anya Kaats — Mon, 15 Mar 2021 17:18:15 GMT

Mariana Rittenhouse is a Tea Ceremonialist & Guide, helping people reconnect to themselves & nature through the practice of ceremonial tea. Mariana explains what a tea ceremony is, delves into some of the history of tea (Camellia sinensis) and explains how tea is a potent ally, friend and plant medicine. We speak about my experience taking her Start Your Own Tea Practice course + share our thoughts on living honorably as a human in nature, the difference between routine & ritual, and how tea can help bring us back to ourselves and our place in the world.

Find Mariana on Instagram and at MarianaRittenhouse.com

Mariana's book recommendation: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Songs featured: "Morning Sun" by Melody Gardot and "Õhtu Viimased Read (tunnetel on kõla remix)" by Kirtana Rasa

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#81 And Ode to Saturn and Saturn Returns with Whitney Will

Anya Kaats — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 22:18:26 GMT

Whitney Will is a psychological astrologer and writer. She has a B.A. in the History of Math and completed her M.A. in Counseling Psychology with a focus on Jungian and Archetypal Studies at Pacifica. Whitney and I participated in the same astrology apprenticeship and have a very complimentary approach to the practice. We chat mostly about Saturn and Saturn returns - an astrological initiation/"coming of age" that occurs for the first time in our late 20s. We define planetary returns, explore the multivalent archetypes associated with Saturn and share about our own Saturn return journeys, reflecting on their similarities and differences. This episode pays deep reverence to humility, time, honesty, heaviness, the physical manifestation of our hopes and dreams, and all that Saturn offers us if we're open to receiving it.

Find Whitney at at StarHearthAstrology.com, Youtube and Instagram.

Whitney's book recommendations: Power and Innocence by Rollo May and Drama of the Gifted Child by Alice Miller and

Songs featured: "10 Laws" by East Forest and "Voice Inside the Well" by Valley Maker

Please note: the Lunar Circle is now full! The program will return sometime in the fall.

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#80 "The Way of the Inferior Man": Part 2 with Chris Ryan

Anya Kaats — Sun, 28 Feb 2021 23:14:15 GMT

Chris Ryan returns to the podcast to elaborate on an episode he recorded for Tangentially Speaking, regarding "The Way of the Superior Man" by David Deida. We were both a little shocked at how much we disliked this book, especially given how many people had recommended it to us. We share our own opinions about healthy masculine & feminine expression/integration, and why we think this book reads more like a parenting book than a guide to healthy & evolved relationships. We discuss our thoughts on how to maintain eroticism in relationships, why growth isn't always comfortable and why "othering" your partner is never a good strategy for "enlightenment" nor self-awareness.

Want to watch the video version of this conversation? Click here.

Find Chris at ChrisRyanPhd.com, on Twitter and on Instagram.

Songs featured: "Righteously" by Anna Ash

Interested in participating in the Lunar Circle? Visit anyakaats.com/lunarcircle for more information and to enroll.

How to support the show:

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Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#79 How to Do Nothing with Jenny Odell

Anya Kaats — Mon, 22 Feb 2021 20:16:09 GMT

Jenny Odell is a multi-disciplinary artist and writer. Her book How To Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy, was just released in paperback. Jenny and I speak about what "doing nothing" actually means and how we can work to resist capitalist value structures that demand we consume and produce in order to stay relevant and valuable in society. We also discuss how to carve out authentic and enjoyable ways to be creative without falling victim to the culture of productivity, and share our thoughts on social media & tips for navigating the realm of self-promotion in a way that honors our humanness and doesn't force us to become "a brand".

Find Jenny at at jennyodell.com and on Twitter.

Jenny's book recommendations: The Spell of the Sensuous by David Abram and Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Songs featured: "I Can't Sleep" by Oliver Tank, "Shorty Don't Wait" by A Great Big World, "Chill or Be Chilled" by The Polish Ambassador feat. Nitty Scott and and off the cuff guitar lick by my dear Patron Axel, recorded in his new home.

Interested in participating in the Lunar Circle? Visit anyakaats.com/lunarcircle for more information and to enroll.

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#78 A Millennial's Guide to Spirituality: A Solo Episode

Anya Kaats — Mon, 15 Feb 2021 21:45:06 GMT

On this episode, I delve into what it was like to go through what some may call a Spiritual Awakening, but what I prefer to call a Spiritual Emergency. I speak about both the gifts and dangers of developing a spiritual practice, and how we often use spirituality, psychedelics and other forms of "magic" to avoid confronting our shadow. I speak about gurus, synchronicity, astrology, discernment, psychological projection and share my thoughts on "ascension," "5D" and other go-to spiritual concepts. This isn't an episode dismissing spirituality, but rather, a plea to bring nuance and critical thinking to the extremely useful & meaningful, (but often misused) practice of "Spirituality".

The book that I read from was Robert A. Johnson's Inner Gold.

Songs featured: "Dream 13 (minus even)" by Max Richter, and "The Weaver" by Trevor Hall

Interested in participating in the Lunar Circle? Visit anyakaats.com/lunarcircle for more information and to enroll.

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like exclusive WhatsApp group chats, an exclusive Discord server, a book club just for patrons, shirts + stickers, playlists, and curated workshops led by Patrons and former guests of the podcast.

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#77 Why Food May Not Be Thy Medicine with Dana Monsees

Anya Kaats — Tue, 26 Jan 2021 20:58:10 GMT

Dana is a Nutritionist and Body Image Coach who teaches women how to heal their relationship to food and to their bodies. She's also one of the very few people I actually trust in the wellness/functional medicine community. We speak about our personal health journeys, how we met in the food blogger world, and where we are now. We talk about the shadow sides of "wellness" culture as a whole, but specifically related to the paleo/ancestral/whole food world, & elaborate on how "functional," whole food diets are still diets. We also talk about the correlations between stress & health, how food and wellness influencers are rarely healthy and how the unhealthy relationship we have to food and to our bodies may very well be an extension of our unhealthy relationship to control.

Find Dana at realfoodwithdana.com and on Instagram.

Dana's book recommendations: Daring Greatly by Brené Brown, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, and Beyond Beautiful by Anuschka Rees

Songs featured: "This is How We Walk on the Moon" by José González and "I Like That" by Janelle Monáe

Interested in participating in the Lunar Circle? Visit anyakaats.com/lunarcircle for more information and to enroll.

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like exclusive WhatsApp group chats, a book club just for patrons, shirts + stickers, playlists, and curated workshops led by Patrons and former guests of the podcast.

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#76 Reimagining Judaism & Integrating Ancient Practices into Modern Day Spirituality with Shulie Hersh

Anya Kaats — Wed, 13 Jan 2021 23:23:19 GMT

Shulie Hersh is a graduate of the Academy for Jewish Religion, and a Cantor for the Beth Sholom Congregation in Frederick, MD. Shulie and I went to High School together, and reconnected for the first time on this episode. We speak about what it was like for Shulie growing up with a father who was a Rabbi and how it felt being "the Jewish girl" in our High School. We deconstruct Judaism as both a religion and a culture and discuss the nature of ancestral Jewish trauma. We speak about how we can incorporate traditional practices of all kinds into our lives, but also evolve them to suit our modern day values. And Shulie also explains how Judaism encourages us to question & struggle with faith, how the Jewish calendar can help connect us to nature, and how being angry and processing grief has always been a crucial component Judaism throughout history and into the present.

Send Shulie an Email - cantor@bethsholomfrederick.org

Shulie's book recommendations: The Jewish Book of Days by Jill Hammer

Songs featured: "Opening" by Jamie Sieber and "Avinu Malkeinu" by Barbara Streisand

Interested in participating in my first Lunar Cycle Intensive? Send me an email to reserve your spot: anyakaats@gmail.com

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#75 How to Depathologize your Desires and Seduce your Shadow with Lenore Black

Anya Kaats — Mon, 04 Jan 2021 00:44:44 GMT

Sex Witch and all around badass Lenore Black joins me to have a conversation about sex, taboo and accepting our full selves without judgement. Lenore vulnerably shares about her past, including her experiences with sexual abuse and child sex trafficking, and how it landed her where she is today - helping others move through trauma and become fully embodied. We speak about the complexities of trauma and victimhood, and how we can idealize the persona of being someone who's "fucked up". We speak about the positives and negatives of social media, especially in regard to sexuality and censorship. We discuss the differences between sex addiction and having a high sex drive, why it’s imperative to form relationships with people who can accept the full embodiment of who we are and why we should move toward our triggers, not away from them. Lenore also explains why she likes being catcalled, and why she doesn't call herself a feminist.

Find Lenore on Instagram @lenoreblack_, at LenoreBlack.com and download her free Erotic Self Care Ritual Guide here.

Lenore's book recommendations: Existential Kink by Carolyn Elliott

To learn more about child sex trafficking, click here.

Songs featured: "Warm Animal" by Sure Sure and "The Cult of Dionysus" by The Orion Experience

Listen to the official MGSW playlist on Spotify here.

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#74 Exploring Sun, Moon & Rising Signs with Jasmine, Kestrel and Eliza of Kosmic Tonic

Anya Kaats — Wed, 30 Dec 2020 00:47:36 GMT

The ladies of Kosmic Tonic join the podcast once again, this time to discuss sun signs, moon signs and rising signs. We speak about how each is significant in its own way, how they differ from one another and how they show up in our personal natal charts. We talk about how to find the planetary ruler of a chart, why reading horoscopes from your rising sign is more accurate than your sun sign and how tracking lunar cycles can help you learn about yourself in new ways each month. We also talk about tonight's Cancer full moon and how Cancer shows up differently in each of our lives.

Find Eliza, Kestrel and Jasmine at KosmicTonic.com

Songs featured: "Petrichor" by Keaton Henson & "Crying Woman" by Holly Arrowsmith

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat & book club just for patrons!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#73 The Rod and Anya Show, Part 2: A Conversation with my Dad

Anya Kaats — Sun, 20 Dec 2020 18:57:42 GMT

Back by popular demand, everyone's favorite gay dad returns to the podcast. We picked up right where we left off - diving deeper into the topic of identity. We discuss my Dad's childhood, how being raised by psychotherapists/sex therapists lead to overstimulation and anxiety, but also emotional fluency. We talk about identity as a construct and how my dad navigated his identity throughout the 70s, 80s & beyond, and we discuss my Dad's lifelong passion for theatre & how reacquainting ourselves with the importance of stories might lead us to embody ourselves and our identity more fully.

Saucy Rod's book recommendations: The Complete Lyrics of Cole Porter, Scandinavian Design by Charlotte and Peter Fiell and The Trouble with Normal by Michael Warner

Songs featured: "When You Come Back Down" by Nickel Creek & "Star People" by George Michael

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat, patron-led workshops, community contact list & a book club just for patrons!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#72 Regenerative Agriculture as a Step Toward Embracing Holism & Rejecting Victimhood with Maren Morgan

Anya Kaats — Wed, 09 Dec 2020 20:35:44 GMT

Maren is a writer, podcaster & curious free-thinker, currently working with her partner Jake on a multimedia project called Death in the Garden, which explores the complex intersection of the cycle of life and death, holism, climate change, civilization, ecology, and psychology from the perspective of two millennials on a journey to make sense of our very nuanced world. I invited Maren on the podcast to speak about our society's proclivity to seek out easy solutions to complex problems, how our focus on symptoms rather than systems prevents meaningful change and how embracing responsibility and rejecting blame in our personal lives is the only way to think critically, be honest with ourselves and work to construct meaningful community, empowered activism & a rejection of the status quo.

Find Maren on Instagram @onyxmoonlight & @deathinthegarden, at DeathInTheGarden.org & on Medium

Maren's Book Recommendation: Belonging by Toko-pa Turner, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz

Songs featured: "Dying to Live" by Jonny Lang & "Home" by Caribou

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat, patron-led workshops, community contact list & a book club just for patrons!

Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#71 (Sexual) Submissiveness & Healing through BDSM with Lina Dune

Anya Kaats — Tue, 01 Dec 2020 21:15:03 GMT

Lina Dune (@askasub) is a bisexual submissive in a 24/7 Dom/Sub relationship. She is a writer, a millennial and a proponent of sane and healing BDSM. She is also a masterful creatress of kink-centered memes. Lina and I discuss BDSM as a tool for addressing and healing trauma, specifically from the submissive perspective. We speak about the transition from "bad girl" to "good girl", how equality can co-exist alongside power dynamics in a relationship and the nuanced experience of "pain". We also discuss the complexities of female friendships and of navigating various personas and identities, on and offline.

Find Lina on Instagram, Twitter & Patreon

Lina's Book Recommendation: Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski

Songs featured: "Frequency" by Sylvan Esso & "The Animal I Am" by Carsie Blanton

How to support the show:

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Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

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#70 Drama of the Gifted Millennial: A Solo Episode

Anya Kaats — Mon, 23 Nov 2020 22:51:03 GMT

It's been a while since I've done a solo episode, but I had an epiphany I felt called to share. In this episode I speak about my evolving relationship to four classic millennial stereotypes - that we're triggered, sensitive, lazy and entitled, and examine them through the lens of multivalence, nuanced thinking and Alice Miller's "Drama of the Gifted Child". While at first I rejected these stereotypes, I have since evolved my relationship to them. I question whether it's not better to embrace and redefine characteristics, rather than reject them outright and why embracing the multiplicitous expression of an archetype can lead to a more honest and comprehensive understanding of ourselves and others.

Song featured: "The Old Story" by Trevor Hall

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#69 On Race & Nuance with Jasmine Richardson & Andre (DJ Sun)

Anya Kaats — Tue, 17 Nov 2020 01:31:07 GMT

Jasmine and Andre are both mixed-race. Andre is a recording artist and DJ known as DJ Sun. He was born in the Netherlands with Caribbean roots. Jasmine, an astrologer, grew up in Texas. She is raising the daughter of her brother, who is currently incarcerated. They both own a bar in Houston called The Flat. These two genuine, kind souls came on the show to discuss their nuanced perspectives and experiences around race, BLM and identity politics. From anger, to victimhood, to alienation and vulnerability, we discuss the many facets of social justice movements, & the importance of holding each other accountable + searching for authentic belonging within ourselves and the collective.

Find DJ Sun at DJSunMusic.com & Jasmine at kosmictonic.com

Andre's Book Recommendation: The Anatomy of Love by Helen Fisher
Jasmine's Book Recommendation: Goddesses in Everywoman by Jean Shinoda Bolene and Gods in Everyman by Jean Shinoda Bolene

Songs featured: "Let Go" by East Forest, "Tomorrow" by DJ Sun and "Black Man" by Stevie Wonder

How to support the show:

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#68 Motherhood, Trauma & The Nervous System with Kimberly Ann Johnson

Anya Kaats — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 22:39:33 GMT

Kimberly (known online as "MagaMama") combines her skills as a yoga teacher, sexological bodyworker, Rolfer and somatic experiencing trauma resolution practitioner, helping people heal from birth trauma and sexual trauma so that they can live more authentically in their bodies. She is also a writer and a mother. Our conversation dives deep into the nervous system and Polyvagal theory; We discuss “fitting in” as a nervous system response, how c-sections affect both mothers and children, and how equality for the sexes should not be misunderstood as "sameness". We also talk about birth control and delve into some unconventional ideas around when and how women should be having children.

Find Kimberly at magamama.com and on Instagram @magamamas

Kimberly's Book Recommendations: Women’s Anatomy of Arousal by Sheri Winston and The Fourth Trimester by Kimberly Ann Johnson

Songs featured: "Nectar Drop" by DJ Drez and "In the Blood" by John Mayer

How to support the show:

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#67 The World According to Gen Z with Fionnula Johannsen

Anya Kaats — Sun, 25 Oct 2020 19:31:50 GMT

Fionnula is wise beyond her 16 years. Officially the youngest person to be on MGSW, I was eager to get Fionnula's perspective on just about everything. We discuss what it's been like to be a high school student during Covid and how she and her friends are feeling about the election and climate change, without being able to vote. Fionnula also shares her thoughts on what Gen Z thinks of millennials and what her opinions are about college, mental health and communal living.

Fionnula's Book Recommendations: Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë and Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Songs featured: "Making Do" by Lake Street Drive and "Ooh La La" by Faces

How to support the show:

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#66 Signs of the Times: Unpacking the Astrology of Now with Jasmine, Eliza and Kestrel of Kosmic Tonic

Anya Kaats — Tue, 13 Oct 2020 17:14:50 GMT

Jasmine, Eliza and Kestrel are certified astrologers and the hosts of Kosmic Tonic, a podcast about astrology, mythology, archetypal psychology, magic and so much more. The four of us talk about each of our journeys in learning astrology, meeting each other, and how we integrate astrology into our lives. We discuss planetary cycles, explain some of prominent archetypal energies of the current moment (namely those of Pluto, Saturn and Mars) and how they're related to the pandemic, raging wildfires, the upcoming US election, our inclination to return to the land, and the multiple cycles of destruction and rebirth that we currently find ourselves in.

Find Jasmine, Eliza and Kestrel at KosmicTonic.com and on Twitter and Instagram, plus check out their podcast "Kosmic Tonic" wherever you listen to podcasts.

Jasmine's Book Recommendation: Astrology for the Soul by Jan Spiller

Eliza's Book Recommendation: Cosmos & Psyche by Richard Tarnas

Kestrel's Book Recommendation: Gods of Change by Howard Sasportas

Songs featured: "A Trick of the Light" by Villagers and "San Luis" by Gregory Alan Isakov

How to support the show:

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#65 Narcissists and Why We Love Them with Kevin Russell

Anya Kaats — Mon, 05 Oct 2020 20:10:26 GMT

Kevin returns to the show and we pick up right where we left off. From parents to romantic relationships to bosses to astrologers to politicians to Joseph Smith, Kevin and I have been influenced by quite a number of narcissists. We break down and define what narcissism is, unpack dark triad personalities, discuss how Western culture hijacks our desire to live and think communally, why we are so attracted to gurus and those with god complexes (+ why it's so hard to get away from them), and how we can develop the self-trust and critical discernment necessary to avoid being manipulated by those who don't have our best interests at heart.

Find Kevin on Medium and on Twitter @TechnoOptimist

Kevin's Book Recommendations: Hate Inc. by Matt Taibbi and Antisocial by Andrew Marantz

Songs featured: "Under Your Thumb" by Natty Reeves and "Motion Sickness" by Phoebe Bridgers

How to support the show:

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#64 An Abolitionist's Guide to Trauma, Non-Monogamy, BDSM & Shame with Clementine Morrigan

Anya Kaats — Sun, 20 Sep 2020 22:16:33 GMT

Clementine Morrigan is the author of several books and zines, and the creator and facilitator of the popular workshop Trauma Informed Polyamory. Clementine and I discuss many of my favorite topics including non-monogamy, abolitionism, shame, how we often miscategorize shitty relationships as abusive relationships, the complex physical & emotional discernment needed to assess true safety and security, how fawn dynamics can intersect with BDSM & sexual submissiveness and our culture's oversimplified understanding of consent.

Find Clementine at clementinemorrigan.com, on Instagram @clementinemorrigan and on Patreon.

Clementine's Book Recommendations: I Hope We Choose Love by Kai Cheng Thom and Various Sci-Fi books by Ursula La Guin

Songs featured: "Sex-o-Matic Venus Freak" by Macy Gray and "Never Enough" by Eminem, 50 Cent & Nate Dogg

How to support the show:

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#63 Femininity, Community and the Path to a Somatically Regulated Revolution with Kylie McBeath

Anya Kaats — Sun, 06 Sep 2020 19:34:33 GMT

Kylie a Certified Health Coach, Emotional Expert, Co-Founder of Zura Health, Podcast Host, Speaker and Writer. This is Kylie's second time on the show and we dive in real deep, real fast. We talk about our thoughts on the nature of feminine power, the importance of community and interdependence, and what an embodied & intentional path to self-trust and intuition looks like. We also discuss why you can't actually consent to anything if you don't know and trust yourself, the anger and grief-laden process of recognizing you've confused abuse with love, and why we both feel that if there's going to be a revolution, it will be one grounded in self-knowing and regulation.

Find Kylie at kyliemcbeath.com and on Instagram @beingisbeautiful

Kylie's Book Recommendation: Patriarchy Stress Disorder by Valerie Rein

Songs featured: "Geminid Meteor Shower" by Hidden Tapes and "Back In My Body" by Maggie Rogers

How to support the show:

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Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat & book club just for patrons!

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#62 Sexual Perversion and other Socially Constructed Taboos with Jesse Bering

Anya Kaats — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 16:51:15 GMT

Jesse is is a research psychologist and Director of the Centre for Science Communication at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. He is the author of several books, all of which examine controversial & taboo topics. We talk about the nature of sexual perversion - what it means, how it's defined and why moralistic, socially constructed positions related to behavior of any kind can be extremely problematic. We dive into everything from pedophilia to incest to zoophilia and challenge the "nature" argument as it relates to the construction of sexual orientation. We also discuss how shame and punishment have played a role in human relationships throughout history, how theory of mind can feed into a belief in something greater than ourselves, suicide, narcissism, and how Trump embodies a perfect elixir of both cleverness and psychosis enabling him to capitalize on collective human psychology.

Find Jesse at jessebering.com

Jesse's Book Recommendation: The Stranger by Albert Camus

Songs featured: "Animal" by Jenny and Johnny and "If 6 Was 9" by Axiom Funk

How to support the show:

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Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat & book club just for patrons!

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#61 Living as a Hunter-Gatherer in the Modern World with Callie Russell

Anya Kaats — Mon, 24 Aug 2020 21:40:15 GMT

Callie is a scavenger-gatherer, hunter, wilderness therapy guide, ancestral skills teacher and goat herder who lives nomadically following the seasons and wild food. Chris Ryan co-hosts this episode with me and we discuss everything from Callie's recent appearance on the TV show Alone, her upbringing & close relationship with loss and death, how she transforms grief into gratitude and a commitment to honoring herself and the earth, and the practical and symbolic beauty of goats and how they can help get us back to a more regenerative relationship with the planet.

Find Callie at Caprakhan.com and on Instagram @caprakhan

Callie's Book Recommendation: Nature and the Human Soul by Bill Plotkin, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and Tending the Wild by M. Kat Anderson

Songs featured: Solo by Oh Wonder and No Hard Feelings by The Avett Brothers

How to support the show:

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Visit my website - AnyaKaats.com & Find me on Instagram

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#60 White Shamanism, Spiritual Bypassing & Accountability with Leah Iracleous

Anya Kaats — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 01:40:52 GMT

Leah has a BA in social justice and is working on her doctorate in clinical depth psychology where she plans to write her dissertation on white shamanism. Leah and I speak about what it means to import the sacred, spiritual practices of other cultures into a Western context and how we can get stuck in the trap of spiritual bypassing. We also talk about how all of this relates to power, narcissism, social media, psychedelics and therapy. Lastly, we discuss the nuanced and complex nature of defining and reacting to "abuse", the dangers of cancel culture and the importance of moving from victimhood into empowerment.

Find Leah on Instagram at @creme.de.la.bean and her white shaman alter-ego Steve at @stevetheshaman

Leah's Book Recommendation: Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts

Song featured: Buildings and Bridges by Ani DiFranco

How to support the show:

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#59 The Art of Questioning Everything with Justin De Ruyter

Anya Kaats — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 22:41:53 GMT

Justin and I look at the world in very similar ways. Maybe it’s because we were both raised by a gay dad, or because we both had to navigate challenging early childhood dynamics, or because we both have Dutch heritage. Either way, for as long as we can both remember, we’ve always approached the world with a great deal of curiosity and skepticism. Justin worked in the fire department for his entire adult life and just recently retired. He shares vulnerably about what his 23 years of experience has taught him about humanity and the systems we depend on. We discuss everything from navigating our sexual identity to processing severe trauma to the crisis of loneliness to the multitude of ways our culture fails the people who need our support the most. Justin is one of the most vulnerable and courageous men I know. I’m honored to be his friend and grateful to help share his story.

Find Justin on Instagram @justinotherman

Justin's Book Recommendations: The War on Art by Steven Pressfield and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M Pirsig

Songs featured: "Bones" by DeYarmond Edison and "Lairs" by Gregory Alan Isakov

Click here to see the Feelings Wheel Justin mentioned

How to support the show:

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#58 Lessons for Life From a Death Doula with Sarah Kerr

Anya Kaats — Thu, 23 Jul 2020 19:35:36 GMT

Sarah Kerr is a death doula and ritual healing practitioner, helping people navigate literal and symbolic death through cross-cultural shamanic healing and nature-based spirituality. We speak about dark nights of the soul as initiatory experiences, rituals for letting go, the cyclical nature of the soul’s journey and how processing personal grief is of service to the larger whole.

Find Sarah at soulpassages.ca

Sarah's Book Recommendation: World as Lover, World as Self by Joanna Macey and Dark Night, Early Dawn by Christopher Bache

Songs featured: "Semolina" by Slow Meadow and "Kol Nidre" by Max Bruch

How to support the show:

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#57 Carl Jung and Our Soul's Quest for Meaning, Individuation & Transformation with Joseph R. Lee, Lisa Marchiano & Deborah Stewart

Anya Kaats — Mon, 06 Jul 2020 19:11:21 GMT

Joe, Lisa and Deb are Jungian Analysts and co-hosts of the podcast This Jungian Life. Our conversation covers Carl Jung & his legacy + weaves together discussions around manifestation, mysticism, authenticity, depth psychology, astrology, suffering, trauma, personal and collective dark nights of the soul & the mythology of the millennial generation.

Find Joe, Lisa & Deb at ThisJungianLife.com

Joe's Book Recommendation: The Mystical Qabalah by Dion Fortune
Lisa's Book Recommendation: Memories, Dreams, Reflections by Carl Jung
Deb's Book Recommendation: The Inner World of Trauma by Donald Kalsched

Songs featured: "Friends" by Francis and the Lights (feat. Bon Iver) and "Japanese Ceremonial Tea (Interlude)" by The Electric Sons

How to support the show:

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#56 The Nutritional, Environmental and Ethical Case for Better Meat with Diana Rodgers

Anya Kaats — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 20:19:15 GMT

Diana Rodgers, RD, LDN is a “real food” Licensed Registered Dietitian Nutritionist living on a working organic farm in New England. She’s an author and host of The Sustainable Dish Podcast. She's currently working on a new book and film project, Sacred Cow, exploring the important role of animals in our food system. Diana and I discuss how and why meat is imperative to a stable ecosystem, a healthy diet and necessary to address a long list of environmental issues. We talk soil, death, the religious history behind why Americans have come to view meat as "bad" and how to spread truth and enact meaningful change when it feels like everything is working against you.

Find Diana at sustainabledish.com and sacredcow.info

Click here to pre-order Sacred Cow.

Diana's Book Recommendation: Ishmael by Daniel Quinn.

Songs featured: "Walk Away" by Xavier Rudd and "The Gardener" by Holly Arrowsmith

How to support the show:

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#55 Interpreting Language, History and Spirituality to Locate our Life's "Lesson Plan" with Jenny Kellogg

Anya Kaats — Sat, 20 Jun 2020 18:05:38 GMT

Jenny is a certified astrologer, holds a B.A. in Classical Philology and has studied ancient civilizations and languages for over 25 years. She also has a PhD in Modern Languages and Literatures and is one of my closest friends and mentors. Jenny and I speak about locating and embracing personal filters as it relates to language, heritage and spirituality in order to find our life's unique lesson plan. We also discuss our own personal mother wounds and how we're working through them, our skepticisms about some forms of astrology and how trauma can and should be used as a tool for finding the truest expression of ourselves and our "purpose" in this lifetime.

Find Jenny at amaltheaastrology.com

Jenny's Book Recommendation: No Friend by the Mountains by Behrouz Boochani

Poems Jenny read: An unpublished translation of an untitled poem by Nobel Prize winner George Seferis, translated from the Modern Greek by Jenny & the poems “Day” and “Night” by Jawdat Fakhreddine translated by Huda Fakhreddine and Jayson Iwen from the book Lighthouse for the Drowning.

Songs featured: "Dreamland" by Glass Animals and "Moment of Surrender" by Nick Mulvey

How to support the show:

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Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat just for patrons!

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#54 Endangered Species Conservation & Reproduction with Kesley Martin

Anya Kaats — Thu, 11 Jun 2020 22:00:00 GMT

Kelsey is a veterinarian, former art student and badass hoola hooper. To be honest, we spend the entire first half of this podcast recounting a rattlesnake bite Kelsey got within a day of me meeting her (where she had to be flown out of a remote canyon we were in via helicopter), but for the rest of the show we discuss her experience growing up on large, remote cattle ranches, her inspiration for becoming a large animal veterinarian and how she plans to use her expertise to assist in endangered species awareness, conservation and reproduction. We also discuss our mutual love of the outdoors and how vital it is, especially in these times, to spend time outside in nature.

Find Kelsey on Instagram - @kelseamountain

Kelsey's Book Recommendation: Cathedral of the Wild by Boyd Varty

Songs featured: "Long Time Coming" by Leela James and "Drover" by Bill Callahan

Learn more about chart I spoke about in my intro in regard to mapping our roles in a social change ecosystem here - https://buildingmovement.org/our-work/movement-building/solidarity-is/

How to support the show:

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Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat just for patrons!

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#53 Inventing and Implementing a "Happiness GDP" with Micah Kaats

Anya Kaats — Sun, 31 May 2020 19:29:19 GMT

Very excited to bring this conversation with my brother to the podcast. Micah is currently working at The Happiness Research Institute developing an alternative to GDP that focuses on happiness, well-being and quality of life instead of profit. We discuss what happiness means, how it's measured and how it might be implemented. We also discuss the current state of the world and how our upbringing has informed our worldview. From living in different countries for most of our adult lives, to what it was like to be siblings, to being raised in an unconventional household, we both share our insights on how we're each trying to live authentic, individuated lives in a culture and a world that pressures us to conform.

Find out more about Micah's work at The Happiness Research Institute here and find his music on Spotify under Meeka Kates.

Micah's Book Recommendations: The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera and One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Songs featured: "I Saved The World Today" by Eurythmics and "Closure" by Meeka Kates

How to support the show:

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Support my work on Patreon and get access to perks like an exclusive WhatsApp group chat just for patrons!

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#52 Buddhism, Psychology & The Trauma of Everyday Life with Mark Epstein

Anya Kaats — Fri, 15 May 2020 21:07:55 GMT

Mark Epstein, M.D. is a psychiatrist in private practice in New York City and the author of a number of books about the interface of Buddhism and psychotherapy. Mark discusses the ways in which trauma weaves its way through the story and life of the Buddha, the difference between discipline and control and how narratives and feelings intersect and why both are useful. We also chat about the importance of integrating pain and grief into our lives and the fallacy of thinking that things ever "return to normal".

Find out more about Mark at markepsteinmd.com and on Facebook.

Mark's Book Recommendations: The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson, Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala and the 6 volumes of My Struggle by Karl Ove Knausgaard.

Songs featured: "Eyes Closed and Traveling" by Peter Broderick and "Tiny Apocalypse" by David Byrne

How to support the show:

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#51 Evolving Outdated Stories and Breaking Out of our Collective Cage with Charles Eisenstein

Anya Kaats — Wed, 06 May 2020 00:13:17 GMT

Charles Eisenstein is a teacher, speaker and author of several books including Climate: A New Story, Sacred Economics and The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible. Charles and I set out to have a discussion embracing as many paradoxes, taboos and uncertainties as possible, and I think we did just that. We discuss the addictive nature of control, the similarities between skeptics and believers, the role we play in writing personal and collective narratives, the inevitable crisis that precedes any lasting change and the importance of seeing our lives within the context of much greater and more meaningful cycles.

Find out more about Charles at charleseisenstein.org and on Instagram and Twitter.

Charles' Book Recommendations: Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism by Chögyam Trungpa and Sakyong Mipham Rinpocheand and The Invisible Rainbow by Arthur Firstenberg

Songs featured: "The Times They Are A Changing'" by Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood and "The Louder I Call, The Faster It Runs" by Wye Oak.

How to support the show:

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#50 Sex, Uncertainty & Becoming Uncivilized with Chris Ryan

Anya Kaats — Sat, 25 Apr 2020 00:42:12 GMT

Chris Ryan is the bestselling author of Sex at Dawn & Civilized to Death. He also hosts a podcast called Tangentially Speaking. We talk about everything from President Clinton's infamous blowjob to male vulnerability to the importance of embracing uncertainty and heartbreak in one's life to the myth of "progress" and the (eventual? hopeful? inevitable?) downfall of civilization as we know it.

Find out more about Chris at ThatChrisRyan.com and on Instagram and Twitter.

Chris' Book Recommendations: A Short History of Progress by Ronald Wright, Finite and Infinite Games by James Carse and The Unbearable Lightness Of Being by Milan Kundera

Songs featured: "Talyat" by Tinariwen and "Pacing the Cage" by Bruce Cockburn

How to support the show:

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#49 Healing through Sexual Embodiment and Turning Victimization into Empowerment with Mackensey Alexander

Anya Kaats — Thu, 16 Apr 2020 21:03:50 GMT

Mackensey is a trauma-informed tantra & intimacy coach, an ACS certified sexologist and an embodiment portrait photographer who offers energy and somatic healing to those looking to cultivate a deeper sense of intimacy, sexual and emotional intelligence, connection and pleasure. Our conversation explores the nature of sexual embodiment and feminine power, the intersection of sexuality with religion/spirituality and "fawning" as a trauma response. We also discuss the Lilith myth, psychological projection and what it means to be "a teacher".

Find out more about Mackensey at lilithandlavender.com and on Instagram at @lilithandlavender.

Mackensey's Book Recommendations: Becoming Animal by David Abram and Belonging by Toka-Pa Turner

Songs featured: "Changes" by Langhorne Slim/The Law and "Bitch" by Meredith Brooks

How to support the show:

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#48 Deconstructing #MeToo, Identity Politics & Media Literacy with Kaj Larsen

Anya Kaats — Wed, 08 Apr 2020 21:38:49 GMT

Kaj Larsen is a journalist, US Navy Seal and Harvard graduate. He's worked for Vice News, CNN, NowThis News and Current TV. He's also one of the kindest, smartest and most curious people I know. Kaj and I discuss the fallacy of identity politics, his experience of being accused during the #metoo movement, the way culture forces us to compartmentalize our identity, the dangers of irresponsible journalism + the importance of being an informed consumer of media & embracing our collective, human experience as opposed to falling into the spoon-fed traps of fear, demonization and cancel-culture.

Find out more about Kaj on Instagram @kajlarsen and at kajlarsen.com.

Kaj's Book Recommendation: Winners Take All by Anand Giridharadas

Songs featured: "American Kid" by Carsie Blanton and "All Kinds of Time" by Fountains of Wayne

How to support the show:

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#47 The Divinity of Nature, Intuition & Finding our Place in the World with Eli Marienthal

Anya Kaats — Fri, 27 Mar 2020 17:48:51 GMT

Eli and his friend Jesse run Back to Earth, taking groups of boys and young men on journeys into the wilderness. Eli is also a poet, dancer, songwriter and spoken-word performer. We speak about the divinity of the outdoors, the importance of physical space in defining community & identity, how each of us defines and identifies with spirituality, what it means to be "initiated," and how to locate and follow our intuition.

(There was a glitch in the audio of the original file I uploaded - be sure to delete and hit re-download for the clean copy!)

Find out more about Eli and Back To Earth at www.backtoearth.org.

Eli's Book Recommendation: A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James

Songs featured: "All At Once" by Jack Johnson and "Mangüeiro (feat. Aliboria) by Baiuca

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#46 Embracing the Duality and Wholeness of our Personal and Collective Thawing with Kestrel Neathawk

Anya Kaats — Thu, 19 Mar 2020 02:24:35 GMT

Kestrel is a psychotherapist, astrologer, and one of my closest friends. Our conversation builds on last week's episode as we discuss her life-long involvement in the climbing community and the parallels and intersections with her work as a therapist. Our conversation is far-reaching, covering everything from the therapeutic relationship and process, the complexities of grief, the contagious nature of vulnerability and the state of our personal & collective evolution.

Find out more about Kestrel at kestrelneathawk.com.

Kestrel's Book Recommendation: Buddha's Warriors by Mikel Dunham and the Dalai Lama

Songs featured: "Border Country" The Paper Stars and "Feelin' Alright" by Joe Cocker

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#45 Life, Death and Climbing with Madaleine Sorkin and Henna Taylor

Anya Kaats — Mon, 09 Mar 2020 21:07:30 GMT

Henna and Madaleine are the founders of The Climbing Grief Fund, created to evolve the conversation around grief and trauma in the climbing, alpinism and ski mountaineering community and connect individuals to effective mental health professionals and resources. Our conversation touches on the nuanced and complex nature of this project in particular and broadens the discussion to include our thoughts on the duality of life/death, grief/love and loss/gratitude.

Find out more about The Climbing Grief Fund.

Henna and Madaleine's Book Recommendations: The Overstory by Richard Powers and The Trauma of Everyday Life by Mark Epstein

Poem featured: "Everything is Waiting for You" by David Whyte

Songs featured: "Friends are Lost" by Mike Howe and "Orson Welles" by Joe Henry

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#44 Honesty, Adventure and the Continuous Construction of Authenticity with Zofia Radzikowska

Anya Kaats — Thu, 27 Feb 2020 20:29:26 GMT

Zofia is one of the most badass women I've ever met. She set out from Poland on a bicycle, eventually graduating to a motorcycle (riding one for the first time) across Europe, the Middle East and Asia, mostly alone. We met in Thailand and chatted about all of my favorite topics - what it means to embrace fear and be brave, how to give up and admit you were wrong about a thing + the importance of expanding your horizons in order to figure out who you really are and what you want in life.

Find Zofia on Facebook and Instagram

Zofia's Book Recommendations: Sex at Dawn by Chris Ryan & Cacilda Jetha and Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick

Song featured: "Agnes" by Glass Animals

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#43 Community & Neotribalism with Joe Lightfoot

Anya Kaats — Sun, 19 Jan 2020 07:30:49 GMT

Joe Lightfoot is a passionate weaver of community. He has a background in social entrepreneurship, personal vision coaching and the establishment of whole food cafe’s. He is currently focused on cultivating a new type of community structure called the Conscious Change Collective which he details in his upcoming book A Collective Blooming. Joe and I discuss what it means to build and partake in community, the nuances of leadership and power, redefining public/private life, and the importance of fixing ourselves to fix the world.

Joe's Book Recommendation: The Listening Society by Hanzi Freinacht

Songs featured: "Patience" by Lumineers and "The Ghost of Number One" by Jellyfish

How to support the show:

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#42 Destigmatizing and Embracing Fear with Akshay Nanavati

Anya Kaats — Sun, 05 Jan 2020 08:43:50 GMT

Akshay Nanavati is a Marine Corps Veteran, speaker, adventurer, entrepreneur and author of Fearvana: The Revolutionary Science of How to Turn Fear into Health, Wealth and Happiness. Our conversation centers around the intersection of fear with self-awareness, "enlightenment" & growth. We unpack what fear is, where it comes from, how we can embody it in a positive way and how to distinguish between fear and intuition.

Find Akshay at Fearvana.com

Akshay's Book Recommendations: Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl and More Beautiful Than Before by Steve Leder

Song featured: "I've Been Here Before" by The Franklin Electric

How to support the show:

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#41 Grief, Community, Ritual & The Wild Edge of Sorrow with Francis Weller

Anya Kaats — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 23:09:40 GMT

Francis Weller, MFT, is a psychotherapist, writer and soul activist. He synthesizes psychology, anthropology, mythology, alchemy, indigenous cultures and poetic traditions, and has introduced the healing work of grieving and ritual to thousands of people around the world. He is the author of several books including one of my all time favorites, The Wild Edge of Sorrow. Our conversation explores the many forms and facets of grief, and the importance of ritual and community in healing our world both internally and externally.

Find Francis at FrancisWeller.net

Francis' Book Recommendation: Coming Home to the Pleistocene by Paul Shepard

Song featured: "Every Kingdom" by Holly Arrowsmith

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#40 Finding Beauty and Meaning in the Breakdown with Tarah Edmonds

Anya Kaats — Fri, 06 Dec 2019 19:59:36 GMT

On paper, it doesn't seem that Tarah and I have anything in common. She has 3 kids, she's over a decade older than me, she lives across the country and has had vastly different life experiences than me, and yet, we have an exceptional amount in common. From early childhood trauma, to health issues, to recognizing the importance of healing from the inside out as to not pass on our BS to the next generation, we couldn't be more alike. This episode is one of vulnerability, friendship, transition and creating community across superficial divides.

Find Tarah on Instagram

Tarah's Book Recommendations: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk, When the Body Says No by Gabor Maté, The Smell of Rain on Dust by Martín Prechtel & The Wild Edge of Sorrow by Francis Weller

Songs featured: "Dary" by Omar Sosa and Seckou Keita "Let Go" by Frou Frou

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#39 Sex, Society, Sincerity & Millennial Maturation with Kyle Thiermann

Anya Kaats — Wed, 27 Nov 2019 17:16:21 GMT

Kyle is a professional surfer, podcaster (host of the Kyle Thiermann Show), an environmentalist, and co-creator of The Motherfucker Awards. We sat down to have an unfiltered, nuanced discussion about all of my favorite topics - sex, #metoo, podcasting, stress, civilization, authenticity, vulnerability and the complexities and uncertainties of wanting to make a tangible difference as a young person in this crazy, fucked up world.

Find Kyle on Instagram and on The Kyle Thiermann Show.

Buy Tickets to the Motherfucker Awards.

Song featured: "Work" by Charlotte Day Wilson

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#38 Space Exploration as a Tool for Personal and Global Evolution & Empathy with MaryLiz Bender

Anya Kaats — Mon, 18 Nov 2019 19:20:51 GMT

MaryLiz is a musician and experiential storyteller. She is the co-founder of Cosmic Perspective, which challenges the status quo of traditionally dry & inaccessible aspects of space exploration and instead uses art, performance and storytelling about space in an effort to inspire hope, empathy and appreciation for our home planet and unite humanity. Our conversation touches on MaryLiz's personal journey from religious fundamentalism to scientific wonder, the parallels between the Overview Effect & space travel to all forms of personal courage & transformation, the intersections of science & spirituality and the positives and negatives of embracing technological advance. A true podcast vortex if there ever was one!

MaryLiz's book recommendation: The Overview Effect by Frank White

Find MaryLiz at CosmicPerspective.com and on Instagram

Song featured: A cover of "Fly Me To The Moon" by Meeka Kates and "Aine" by Twin Limb

Video of Fly Me To The Moon - https://youtu.be/bcdqC8o_-No

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#37 Where Ritual, Meaning and Belief Meet Science & Secularism with Sasha Sagan

Anya Kaats — Tue, 05 Nov 2019 22:03:52 GMT

Sasha is a writer, television producer, filmmaker, and editor whose writing on death, history, travel and ritual through a scientific lens have appeared in New York Magazine, O. the Oprah Magazine and elsewhere. She recently released her first book, For Small Creatures Such As We. Our conversation elaborates on the ambiguous space of finding ritual and meaning within a scientific world view. We discuss the limitations of theistic language, how understanding something scientifically doesn't always have to remove awe and wonder, how our post-agricultural lifestyle separates us from a deep connection with nature and biology, the importance of discussing these issues in a respectful, humble and nuanced way and so much more.

Sasha's book recommendations: Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors and The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan

Find Sasha at SashaSagan.com and on Twitter and Instagram

Song featured: "Wait a While" by Leif Vollebekk

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#36 You Can't Rush Your Healing: A Hero's Journey

Anya Kaats — Tue, 15 Oct 2019 20:59:35 GMT

When I launched this podcast a year ago, I knew that eventually, this story would need to be told. Today felt like the right day. I discuss "health" and my journey toward finding it in the most broad and comprehensive way possible. From physical health to emotional well-being to societal and cultural frameworks and the way they all intermingle, my goal with this episode is to create a safe space where we can broaden our understanding of "sickness" and heal together.

Songs featured: "Grillos" by Paco Fernandez & "You Can't Rush Your Healing" by Trevor Hall

How to support the show:

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#35 Gender, Feminism & Public/Private Space with Dylan Bandy

Anya Kaats — Fri, 04 Oct 2019 23:18:56 GMT

Dylan is a photographer, filmmaker and musician. She also hosts a podcast about sex, feminism and power with her mother (Sonya Lea, who was also on this show) called BITCHCONOCLAST. Dylan and I have an open-ended conversation about both of our favorite subjects, namely, gender, feminism, power, public/private space and considering all of them from a cross-cultural and cross-generational perspective. Dylan and I don't always agree, but our conversation showcases what in my opinion is exactly the kind of conversation we need to be having about these topics - nuanced, curious, self-reflective and respectful.

Dylan's's book recommendation: All About Love by Bell Hooks and Severence by Ling Ma

Find Dylan at DylanBandy.com

Song featured: "Morning in America" by Durand Jones & The Indications

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#34 The Nuanced, Complex Journey of Finding True Health & Wellness with Steph Gaudreau

Anya Kaats — Tue, 10 Sep 2019 18:55:01 GMT

Steph Gaudreau is a Nutritional Therapy Consultant, Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, author, strength coach, athlete, podcaster and creator of the former Stupid Easy Paleo. Steph and I have an extremely open & vulnerable conversation about our own personal journeys in finding "health". We discuss diet culture (including paleo diet culture), intuitive eating, "diet fundamentalism", discovering the emotional root of many physical health & food issues, the never-ending journey of identifying ones own personal version of health plus our first-hand experiences of dealing with the complexities of being an "influencer" in the health & wellness world.

Steph's book recommendations: Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole

Find Steph at StephGaudreau.com

Song featured: "The Good that Won't Come Out" by Rilo Kiley

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#33 Myth, Story and Reimagining Astrology & Psychology with Jason Holley

Anya Kaats — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 22:36:00 GMT

Jason Holley is a psychologist and an astrologer. His approach focuses on the use of mythology, storytelling, art & astro-drama. Jason and I discuss how he uses these techniques in tandem with one another + we explore personality as a process instead of a disorder, discuss the limitations of traditional models of therapy and look at feminine/masculine + guru/disciple psychology through the lens of night/day. In other words, this was by far one of my favorite conversations on the podcast to date.

Jason's book recommendations: The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony by Roberto Calasso, Trauma and the Soul by Donald Kalsched and Standing in the Spaces by Philip Bromberg

Find Jason at Jasonholley.net

Song featured: "Caves" by Gregory Alan Isakov.

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#32 Farming & Agriculture as Holistic Tools to Save the Planet with Bill, Kelli & Cloe Parker

Anya Kaats — Thu, 22 Aug 2019 22:49:27 GMT

Farming, agriculture & human involvement in ecology are often vilified and cited as the source of environmental destruction. But is this the whole story? Can farming & agriculture actually be regenerative, holistic and even imperative in restoring the planet to a healthy state? In this episode I sit down with the family behind Parker Pastures to discuss everything from regenerative agriculture and holistic land management to myths around vegetarianism, fake meat & farting cows.

The Parker's Book Recommendations: Holistic Management by Allan Savory and Call of the Reed Warbler by Charles Massy

Find Parker Pastures at ParkerPastures.com

Song featured: "Colorado" by Lotus.

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#31 Waking Up to Ourselves & to the World with Mike(adelic) Brancatelli

Anya Kaats — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 21:36:58 GMT

Mike is the host of Mikeadelic, a podcast that focuses on the benefits of psychedelics and our right to cognitive liberty (the freedom to control own mental processes and consciousness). We talk about our parallel experiences of growing up in suburbia, childhood trauma, anger, grief and the painful/complicated process of deconstructing the status quo and waking up to our true selves & purpose in the world. We touch on community, spiritual bypassing, imposter syndrome, going through a dark night of the soul, the impending apocalypse and many other hashtag millennial topics.

Mike's Book Recommendation: Finite and Infinite Games by James Carse

Find Mike at mikebranc.com and on his podcast Mikeadelic.

Song featured: "Society" by Eddie Vedder.

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#30 (Male) Anger, Emotional Repression & the Therapeutic Process with Shawn Dinkel

Anya Kaats — Mon, 05 Aug 2019 23:03:18 GMT

Shawn is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and a Certified Addiction Counselor (CACII). Over the past 14-years, he has facilitated more than 9,000 therapy sessions, mostly focused on addressing male rage, anger and violence. Our conversation retraces Shawn's personal journey in becoming a therapist & how anger grows out of emotional repression, trauma and fear. We also discuss the positives and negatives of the therapeutic process + the dangers of becoming a "healer" of any kind before addressing ones own personal healing.

Shawn's Book Recommendations: The Body Never Lies by Alice Miller & The Wild Edge of Sorrow by Francis Weller.

Find Shawn at nd4life.com.

Song featured: "Hot Tears" by Leif Vollebekk

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#29 Ethical Pimping with Antonia Murphy

Anya Kaats — Tue, 30 Jul 2019 20:25:08 GMT

Antonia Murphy is a woman, a mother and the founder & Madam of The Bach, a feminist escort agency in New Zealand. Our conversation uncovers a great deal of misconceptions about sex work & we discuss Antonia's journey and intention in creating her agency, the types of women and men who sell and buy sex, the meaning of feminism and power within the context of sex work and much more.

Antonia's Book Recommendations: The Snakes by Sadie Jones & The Birth of the Pill by Jonathan Eig

Find Antonia at BachGirls.com, and on Twitter and Instagram

Song featured: "Love For Sale" by Eartha Kitt

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#28 Using Loss and Tragedy to Find and Reclaim our Authentic Selves with Sonya Lea

Anya Kaats — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 20:23:53 GMT

Sonya Lea is the author of Wondering Who You Are, a memoir about what happened when her husband lost the memory of their life together. Our conversation touches on the nature of identity - where it comes from, how its made and how it evolves. We discuss grief, sexuality, examining our lives inside and outside of chronological narrative + the many ways that loss and tragedy can be used as a means to find and evolve our authentic identity.

Sonya's Book Recommendation: The Chronology of Water by Lidia Yuknavitch

Find Sonya at WonderingWhoYouAre.com

Song featured: "Morning" by Beck

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#27 Mormonism, Faith & the Reconstruction of Self with Kevin Russell

Anya Kaats — Mon, 15 Jul 2019 21:59:29 GMT

Kevin was raised as a Mormon and through a series of fascinating events and self-reflections, he began to question everything he knew to be true. We talk about the nature of faith and its relationship to science, our human proclivity for falling victim to narcissism and god complexing and the excruciating process of deconstructing and reconstructing our identity against all odds.

Song featured: "Masks (Live)" by The Brook & The Bluff

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#26 Welcome to the Whorientation with Erin Ginder-Shaw

Anya Kaats — Thu, 04 Jul 2019 21:18:33 GMT

By trade, Erin is a writer. But her true identity is one she shares with me... we're both whores. Erin is one of my closest friends. We share men, women, ideas and each other. Erin and I go deep (!) into what it means to be a whore and how promiscuity often has very little to do with it. We talk about how we've experienced sexuality as a lens through which to view the world since we were little girls, how true female intimacy often has a physical component to it, how non-monogamy doesn't have to mean polyamory and, we introduce "Whore Rapport" - a podcast we are going to host together, launching this fall.

Find Erin at: eringindershaw.com

Erin's Book Recommendation: A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

Song featured: "The Seed (2.0)" by The Roots / Cody Chesnutt

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#25 On Gender with Marissa Anne

Anya Kaats — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 21:45:20 GMT

Marissa is a 53-year old queer, kinky, polyamorous & transgender woman. She's also one of the kindest, smartest and most dynamic people I've met in a while. We have an open-ended discussion about gender that touches on Marissa's experience transitioning from a man to a woman, nature vs. nurture, the gender binary vs. non-binary gender expression, being a transgender parent, the relationship between gender & sexuality, the difference of life experience between cis and transgender women and the importance of self-representation.

Marissa's Book Recommendation: Feminism is for Everybody by Bell Hooks

Song featured: "Wild Wild Woman" by Your Smith

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#24 Exploring the Link Between Physical and Emotional Trauma with Paige Roberts

Anya Kaats — Mon, 10 Jun 2019 01:09:09 GMT

Paige is a sports and fitness enthusiast. She uses a process called Performance Neuro Training which is a combination of sports psychology, Brainspotting, and hot & cold photobiomodulation laser healing. Her current practice philosophy combines a variety of techniques including clinical social work, exercise and neuroscience, and health and wellness lifestyle coaching. In addition to discussing the above therapies, our conversation addresses the link between spirituality & science + physical and emotional trauma, psychological projection, power in the helping professions & a whole lot more.

Paige's Book Recommendation: The Brain's Way of Healing by Norman Doidge and Brainspotting by David Grand.

Find Paige at RobertsNeuroTraining.com.

Song featured: "Weight" by Meeka Kates

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#23 Mother's Day, Jealousy, Cultural Appropriation & Abortion

Anya Kaats — Tue, 21 May 2019 18:30:54 GMT

Decided to release a solo episode this week to discuss some topics I've been thinking about. I talk about Mother's Day and it's implications, Jealousy & where it comes from, Cultural Appropriation & whether or not it's worth focusing on as it relates to fighting systemic inequality + Abortion and why I think the anti-abortion movement is rooted in preventing women's sexuality.

Songs featured: "Trampoline" by Joe Henry, "Lemonade" by Wheatus, "Vim & Vigor" by Carsie Blanton, "Divine" by Sebastien Tellier

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#22 Entrepreneurship and Braving all of Life's Chapters with Neal Gottlieb

Anya Kaats — Thu, 16 May 2019 02:01:51 GMT

Neal Gottlieb is the founder of Three Twins Ice Cream, a Survivor contestant, Peace Corps volunteer, house boat (floating home?) dweller, semi-unplanned activist & has been known to wear ice cream pants… sometimes all at the same time. Basically, Neal is a super interesting dude who hasn’t shied away from embracing all of the differing chapters in his life with optimism, insight & courage.

Neal's Book Recommendation: Finding My Virginity by Richard Branson

Find Three Twins at ThreeTwinsIceCream.com and at grocery stores nationwide.

Song featured: "Pike St. / Park Slope" by Harvey Danger

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#21 The Rod and Anya Show (A Conversation with my Dad)

Anya Kaats — Mon, 06 May 2019 18:12:51 GMT

You asked and I delivered. This week's episode features a conversation between me and my Dad. We talk about the importance of embracing nuance in all aspects of life, what it was like for my Dad to grapple with the intersections of homosexuality, marriage and fatherhood plus the never-ending process of coming to terms with our authentic selves by rejecting the structures, boxes and labels dictated to by our society and culture.

Songs featured: "In Bicicletta" by Luis Bacalov from the movie Il Postino and "Twin Cities" by Everything But The Girl

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#20 Grief, God & Yoga with Seane Corn

Anya Kaats — Tue, 30 Apr 2019 22:35:28 GMT

If there was ever a "fix yourself to fix the world" themed episode, this would be it. Seane is a world-renowned yoga teacher and public speaker known for her social activism, impassioned style of teaching, and raw, honest and inspired self-expression. Seane's new book, Revolution of the Soul (now available for pre-order) focuses on the connection between inner and outer work and preaches a spirituality that addresses both the healing of ourselves and the world. Our discussion touches on all of these topics and more.

Seane's Book Recommendations:
Is Everyone Really Equal? by Özlem Sensoy
White Fragility by by Robin DiAngelo and Michael Eric Dyson
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
A Return to Love by Marianne Williamson
Light on Yoga by B.K.S. Iyengar
Eastern Body, Western Mind by Anodea Judith

Find Seane on SeaneCorn.com or on Instagram - @seanecorn

Song featured: "Tallahassee" by Leif Vollebekk

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#19 Navigating the Mother Wound & Embracing Emotionality with Trisha Hughes

Anya Kaats — Mon, 22 Apr 2019 13:00:00 GMT

Trisha Hughes is a photographer, retreat leader, mental health advocate, mother & someone I feel honored to call an (internet) friend. Trisha and I decided to record an off-the-cuff podcast in order to share some real life experiences about managing our own experience with the mother wound, our relationship to emotionality, codependency, mental health & journey of self-exploration. Our goal was to encourage vulnerability & honesty around these topics and help others feel less alone in their journey.

Trisha's Book Recommendation: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk M.D.

Find Trisha on Instagram and her blog Medicated Like Me

Song featured: "A Case of You" by Joni Mitchell

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#18 The Psychology of Faith, Personal Evolution & Counseling with Mark Jones

Anya Kaats — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 18:16:24 GMT

Mark Jones is an astrologer, teacher, Psychosynthesis therapist and hypnotherapist who works with clients around the world. Mark also leads a counseling skills course, guiding counselors and healers through the complex question of what it means to be a therapist. Mark and I discuss the relationship between psychology and astrology, the nature of human change, the risks and benefits associated with finding faith & meaning in our lives and how power and Eros exist within the therapeutic environment.

Mark's Book Recommendation: Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by David R. Hawkins

Find Mark at PlutoSchool.com

Song featured: "Morning Sun" by Melody Gardot

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#17 Redefining Family, Marriage & Feminism with Diana Adams, Esq.

Anya Kaats — Mon, 08 Apr 2019 22:11:19 GMT

Diana Adams is an attorney, mediator, speaker and social justice activist. Deciding early on that she wanted her work to be meaningful and something that she could see tangible results of within her lifetime, she decided to represent those in non-traditional/chosen family structures. Our conversation touches on the history of marriage, the social construction of traditional, nuclear families + the nature of feminism & what it means to be a courageous woman.

Diana's Book Recommendations:
Marriage, a History by Stephanie Coontz
The Trouble with Normal by Michael Warner
Mating in Captivity & The State of Affairs by Esther Perel

Find Diana on DianaAdamsLaw.net and on Twitter

Diana's Non-Profit: Chosen Family Law Center, Inc.

Courageous Conversations for Women at Omega Institute, June 7-9

Song featured: "Recoil" by Ani Difranco

How to support the show:

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#16 Femininity, Masculinity & the Nature of Sexual Power with Leigh Ann

Anya Kaats — Tue, 02 Apr 2019 20:15:36 GMT

Leigh Ann is an entrepreneur, professional pole dancer & muay thai fighter + a former child actress & reality TV star. We share very similar opinions about sex, gender & power... plus, we both love to talk. Our conversation focuses primarily on the extremely nuanced issue regarding the relationship between femininity & masculinity and how power lives and breathes within both.

Leigh Ann's Book Recommendation: Island Beneath the Sea by Isabel Allende

Song featured: "Come When I Call" by the John Mayer Trio

Find Leigh Ann on Instagram or BeSpun.com and RiseTheNight.com

**The intro of this episode was accidentally muted upon first upload so if you hear 20+ minutes of dead air time, delete & re-download it and you should be good!

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

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Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#15 Sacred Sexuality, Creativity & Revolution with Carsie Blanton

Anya Kaats — Tue, 26 Mar 2019 23:47:00 GMT

It's such a rare pleasure to find other women who I feel aligned with when it comes to topics involving sexuality, relationships, spirituality, cultural norms, etc. Carsie is one of those women and having this conversation was like taking a breath of fresh air. We talk about the intersection of womanhood and sexuality, creativity, relationships & independence. We discuss masculinity, revolution, the nature of power & just about every other juicy topic you can think of.

Carsie's Book Recommendation: The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein

Songs featured: "Jacket" and "Desire" by Carsie Blanton

Find Carsie at CarsieBlanton.com or on Instagram

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#14 Using Plants as Alchemy for Healing Ourselves & the Planet with Dan De Lion

Anya Kaats — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 13:00:00 GMT

Dan is a forager, herbalist, teacher and van dweller. In this conversation we talk about plants from nearly every angle imaginable. We discuss the parallels between nature, ourselves and the cosmos, the importance of community, nature's role in grief work, herbalism as a form of medicine, the fate of our species and how we can harness progress and evolution in a positive way to create a better future for ourselves and the planet.

Dan's Book Recommendation: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Song featured: "No River" by Esmé Patterson

Find Dan at www.returntonature.us or on Instagram @returntonature

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#13 Getting to the Root of Food & Health Issues with Stephanie Dodier

Anya Kaats — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 23:13:02 GMT

Stephanie is a nutritionist, podcast host, writer & coach who helps women get to the root of their food and health issues. Stephanie and I have a candid conversation about the lies we tell ourselves when it comes to our health, the shadow side of the health & wellness industry and discuss what it truly means to be "healthy". We touch on trauma, restrictive eating, body image issues, living authentically and so much more.

Find Stephanie at www.stephaniedodier.com, on Instagram (@stephdodier) and her Podcast - The Beyond the Food Show

Stephanie's book recommendation: Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon

Song featured: "Suéltalo" by Hermanos Gutierrez

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#12 Aligning our Life with our Beliefs, Depression & Being a Mother

Anya Kaats — Sat, 23 Feb 2019 04:51:35 GMT

Decided to start scattering in a few solo shows answering questions from listeners. This week I answer questions around how to align our life with our beliefs, if there is value in depression and whether or not I want to be a mother.

Want to submit questions for me to answer in future episodes? Become a Patron: patreon.com/anyakaats

Song featured: "Into the Wild" by Langhorne Slim

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#11 How to Grow Out of Your Relationship BS with Mark Groves

Anya Kaats — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 21:30:14 GMT

This week I had the honor of chatting with Mark Groves, a Human Connection Specialist, emotional translator, writer, speaker and coach. Mark and I talk about the ins and outs of relationships and he gives some no-BS advice about how we can grow out of unhealthy, toxic patterns, get more in touch with ourself and our needs and move into a space of healthy, interdependent relationships (both romantic and otherwise).

We touch on codependency, childhood trauma, boundaries, self-reliance vs. interdependence and so much more.

Find Mark on Instagram @createthelove or at www.markgroves.tv

Mark’s Book Recommendations: Attached by Amir Levine & Rachel Heller and Loving Bravely by Dr. Alexandra Solomon

Song featured: "Into the Deep" by Galactic feat. Macy Gray

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#10 Healing the Mother Wound with Bethany Webster

Anya Kaats — Sun, 03 Feb 2019 03:54:06 GMT

Bethany Webster is a writer, transformational coach, international speaker and what you could call a midwife of the heart.

Bethany and I dissect the Mother Wound and delve into its practical manifestations for mothers, daughters and anyone raised in a patriarchal society that views mothers as all bad or all good. We discuss the nuanced and taboo process of coming to terms with our own mother wound including grief, anger and dissolving toxic relationships.

Learn more about Bethany and her work - www.motherwound.com

Bethany’s Book Recommendations: The Hungry Self by Kim Chernin, The Emotionally Absent Mother by Jasmin Lee Cori and Of Woman Born by Adrienne Rich

Song featured: "Into the Ether" by Leif Vollebekk

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#9 Trauma, Criminality & The Prison Industrial Complex with Ashleigh Carter

Anya Kaats — Sat, 19 Jan 2019 05:37:31 GMT

Ashleigh is a magnificent human with an incredible story. From surviving childhood trauma to being in prison to raising her two daughters on her own, there are few people that inspire me more. Ashleigh and I discuss the nature of criminality, what it's like to be a woman in prison, the role of childhood trauma in shaping our lives and much more.

Find Ashleigh on Instagram - @mediocritymurderer

Ashleigh's book recommendation: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander & Revolutionary Suicide by Huey P. Newton

Song featured: "Increasing Obviousness" by Hang Massive

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#8 Regenerative Agriculture & How Healthy Soil Can Save the World with Bobby Gill (Savory Institute)

Anya Kaats — Thu, 10 Jan 2019 19:21:13 GMT

One of my favorite episodes thus far. Bobby Gill works at The Savory Institute, an organization dedicated to educating farmers and ranchers on the healthiest & most holistic way to manage their land leading to carbon sequestration, drought resilience, food security, and financially viable communities.

We talk not just about regenerative agriculture, but also about nuance & the nature of human change and progress.

Find Bobby on Instagram - @b0bby.gill

Learn more about the Savory Institute by going to savory.global or on Instagram - @savoryinstitute

Bobby's book recommendation: Call of the Reed Warbler: A New Agriculture, A New Earth by Charles Massey

Song featured: "Every Age" José González

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#7 How Not To Travel Like A Basic Bitch with Kiona

Anya Kaats — Wed, 26 Dec 2018 12:00:00 GMT

Kiona and I have an exceptionally wide-ranging conversation about travel, cultural appropriation, race, activism, trauma and so much more.

Frustrated by conventional, mainstream travel writing, Kiona decided to tell a different story. Through her own travel experiences and by curating content with differing perspectives based on color, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity and country of origin, Kiona encourages her readers to use travel as an enriching experience for both the traveler and the native people, culture and land they are visiting.

Find Kiona on Instagram - @hownottotravellikeabasicbitch or at HowNotToTravelLikeABasicBitch.com

Kiona's book recommendation: The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz

Song featured: "Les Temps Ont Changé" by Amadou & Miriam

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram.

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#6 Magic, Sex & Jesus with Kevin Garcia

Anya Kaats — Sat, 15 Dec 2018 22:22:39 GMT

This week I speak to Kevin Garcia about the intersection of religion, sexuality, gender, magic and so many other seemingly oppositional concepts, but which he weaves together so beautifully and seamlessly.

We talk about what it means to have faith, the church's place in religion, the relationship between God & our intuition, the reason for suffering, how God feels about polyamory and so, so much more.

Kevin is a speaker, creative, musician, content creator and worship artist based in Atlanta, GA. After coming out in the fall of 2015 as a gay Christian, Kevin has reached thousands of individuals across the globe with his blog, theKevinGarcia.com, his podcast, “A Tiny Revolution,” on his YouTube channel where he unpacks theology and addresses life as a queer person of faith, and through speaking engagements at churches, universities, and festivals. Kevin also works with The Reformation Project, an LGBTQ direction action organization with a mission to make the global church more inclusive for queer people. He is presently a candidate for a Masters of Divinity from Columbia Theological Seminary in Atlanta, GA.

Kevin's book recommendation: Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

Song featured: "Empire" by Meeka Kates

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram.

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#5 Millennials: The Pluto Scorpio Generation with Timothy Halloran

Anya Kaats — Mon, 10 Dec 2018 11:00:00 GMT

On this episode I speak with Timothy Halloran, an evolutionary astrologer, about the astrological significance of the millennial generation.

We talk about generations through the lens of Pluto and what specific qualities are unique to millennials. We speak of trauma, grief, generational suffering and millennials' propensity toward apocalyptic mindsets - constantly sabotaging safety and stability in exchange for unstable and traumatic circumstances.

Tim and I discuss what millennials can do to best use our life experience and heal the world by healing ourselves.

Timothy's book recommendation: The Bhagavad Gita, Tao Te Ching & books by Jeffrey Wolf Green.

Song featured: "Funeral Singers" by Sylvan Esso & Collections of Colonies of Bees

Where to find Timothy:

www.rasalilahealing.com

Youtube - Rasa Lila Healing

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

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Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#4 Accessible Astrology with Eugenia Krok

Anya Kaats — Mon, 26 Nov 2018 12:00:00 GMT

This week's episode is an interview with Eugenia Krok. We sat down in Colorado in late August to talk of cosmos, psyche and the connection between the two. Eugenia has a MA in Art Therapy & Counseling, she is a certified grief counselor and has been a practicing astrologer for the last 10 years.

We discuss the nature of astrology, its relationship to psychological counseling and how both are utilized together to create a more well-rounded understanding of the human mind and the path to healing and happiness. Plus, we discuss how NOT to use astrology and what it really means to do the work.

Eugenia's book recommendation: The FountainHead by Ayn Rand

Song featured: "Sagittarius" by Trevor Hall.

Where to find Eugenia:

www.accessibleastrology.com

www.patreon.com/bridgingrealities

"Bridging Realities: An Accessible Astrology Podcast"

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram.

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#3 Live from the Apocalypse: A Los Angeles Notebook

Anya Kaats — Fri, 16 Nov 2018 20:28:49 GMT

This week I bring you a bonus episode inspired by my experience of being evacuated from my home for the past week due to the CA wildfires.

I highly recommend going through a mock "end of the world" exercise as I was forced to this week. The insight gained from having to consider losing everything and thinking about the many ways humans are unprepared for any sort of situation where we couldn't rely on resources... it was highly informative to say the least.

On this episode I share insights about home, security, Venus, what our responsibility is in planning for the future and much more.

Books I read from: Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion and The Great Bay by Dale Pendell.

Songs featured: "Lusten" by Dead Man Winter + "Loving the Small Time" by Kara's Flowers.

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

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Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#2 Health, Healing & Taking Responsibility with Kylie McBeath

Anya Kaats — Sun, 11 Nov 2018 22:16:56 GMT

On this episode I interview Kylie McBeath. Kylie is a health coach, emotional expert, podcast host, speaker & writer. She is also the co-founder of Zura Health.

Kylie and my story share many similarities. From getting divorced at a young age to experiencing a dark night of the soul and waking up to the responsibility we have over our own health and the health of our world, Kylie and I cover a lot of ground.

We touch on topics such as grief, the mother wound, childhood trauma, physical & emotional health & the responsibility millennials have in addressing intergenerational trauma.

Kylie's book recommendation: Emotional Intimacy by Robert Augustus Masters

Song featured: "Eulogy for You and Me" by Tanya Davis.

Where to find Kylie:

www.kyliemcbeath.com

www.zurahealth.co

Instagram: @beingisbeautiful

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

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Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe

#1 An Introduction: The Great Work Begins

Anya Kaats — Sun, 21 Oct 2018 22:09:39 GMT

Welcome to A Millennial's Guide to Saving the World.

This episode is an introduction to both my journey and my intention for the Podcast. Tune in to hear about what inspired me to create the show and what topics I intend to address.

From spirituality to divorce, childhood trauma and sexuality, this episode leaves no stone unturned.

In aligning my inner and outer self, I hope inspire others to do the same...

Song featured: A Better Son/Daughter by Rilo Kiley

How to support the show:

Rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

Support my work on Patreon and get access to bonus episodes & more: www.patreon.com/anyakaats

Find me on Instagram.

Get full access to Dirt Road Dispatch at anyakaats.substack.com/subscribe