My Crunchy Zen Era
Welcome to My Crunchy Zen Era — we're not exactly sure what it means, but we're figuring it out.
It started when I asked my friends: How do you create a life you love? Then it turned into a podcast full of a little fun, a little humor, and a whole lot of curiosity. Each week we dive into a fresh topic with a guest, exploring everything from everyday joys to life’s bigger questions. Whether we’re laughing, learning, or just letting things unfold, this show is your weekly dose of lighthearted inspiration.
Hosted by Nicole Swisher.
My Crunchy Zen Era
Improv, Building Confidence, and Getting Rid of Fish Smells with Zeta Graves
I feel like I've designed my life to be a very stress-free experience... Zeta Graves shares on this episode with host, Nicole Swisher. Join Zeta and Nicole as they chat about:
- Mental health benefits from improv (soooo good for anxiety)
- Building confidence through improv
- The fear of deep water and poisonous creatures in the south
- Accepting the uncertainty of life
- Using AI in the legal field
Catch Zeta's improv team, Location Island, at Third Coast Comedy Club in Nashville on July 31st at 9pm — a 45-minute improvised reality TV show where audience members can submit their confessions for the performers to explore.
Subscribe now and join this exploration of what it means to live a happy life in an increasingly complicated world.
Host: Nicole Swisher
Guest: Zeta Graves
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Welcome to my crunchy zen era. My guest today is Zeta Graves. Hi, zeta, welcome, thank you. I had a moment where I was like, did I get your last name?
Speaker 2:wrong. Nope, that was it.
Speaker 1:Okay, perfect. So what's something? Crunchy or zen that you've done lately. What's something?
Speaker 2:crunchy or zen that you've done lately. Not really a crunchy person, I would say my whole life is pretty zen. To be honest, I feel like I've designed it to be a very stress-free experience for myself. Where you know work from home, my main hobby is, like improv and embroidery which is just hanging out. I actually didn't know you did embroidery, oh.
Speaker 2:I, I love embroidery, some cross stitching too embroidery like shirts, or I'm working on a hat right now cool yeah um, I'm trying to picture an embroidered hat and I can't, so I just bought like a plain baseball hat and then I'm like embroidering, I'm doing a little succulent theme.
Speaker 1:on it, I was imagining a beanie and I was just like I could probably do a beanie too.
Speaker 2:It might be harder, but if you want a beanie, I was like I don't.
Speaker 1:I don't think they're embroidered that often.
Speaker 2:I don't know, oh, like they're embroidered that often. I don't know, oh, like making one. I think they're probably knitted.
Speaker 1:Probably I don't know enough about this craft. Mostly I do improv. We love that. Yeah, hold me to that. Yeah, great. And so what is a memory that you would love to relive?
Speaker 2:I had a camping trip with a group of friends on this beautiful piece of land in Colorado and it was like me and my closest friends, and we played this game that my husband and his friends had made up before, like a made up game. It's called Spoople. Wait, say it again, it's called Spoople. It's a made up game, spoople. Where you, you like, balance on something like a log or a rock, but you're in a circle, everyone's balancing, and you're throwing a frisbee or a ball, um, and if somebody misses, the whole group starts yelling either bad catch or bad throw, depending on the group's agreement. Okay, was it a bad catch or bad throw? That person has to like run to the center, do some type of you know like shot, or I think we made it kind of improv. We were like you have to list five things of whatever and like run back before everyone can throw the ball around the circle, um, but it was so.
Speaker 2:It was so like it brought me so like childhood feelings of playing outdoors. We're in the mountains playing a made-up game. Everyone brought their dogs. There's dogs running around. If I ever think of what's my happy place, it's that camping trip, and playing this made-up game with my friends is a very, very good time.
Speaker 1:I feel like there's so much in that of like being in nature, just having fun, like, yeah, no rule, I mean somewhat rules, but also you made it up right, it's like made up game rules.
Speaker 2:Yeah yeah, being with friends and it was like I. I want to say maybe it had rained, so it was like cool, but the sun was back out, just like everything was so perfect and just magical feeling, and yeah, it was very, it was very nice.
Speaker 1:I love that. Yeah, now I want to go be in nature. I can't go play spoople maybe. I was walking around today and I was like I should go touch a tree and do some grounding good, yeah, there's a lot of traffic going on and yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 2:I know I don't feel like I have done much nature stuff since moving to Nashville, oh really, and I, russell, and I my husband, Because you are into that.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Very, very much. So we were talking about this recently and I was saying like I I feel like it's because I don't know the outdoors here, like I very much know all the animals in Colorado, what to expect weather-wise, all that stuff, and I'm like I don't know. There's like snakes and there's so there's a lot more lushness.
Speaker 1:Because, you know, things hide in lushness. It's beautiful, but they hide in there.
Speaker 2:They hide and there's ticks, and you know, I just feel like I'm still kind of ill prepared to go out into nature. How long has it been now? Um, about a year and a half. Okay, so like I should learn.
Speaker 1:I think you should. We could go, we could you can come with me. I did a lot of googling because I felt the same. Yeah, come from Minnesota. It's like the poisonous things, like can't make it there because it's so cold. Yeah, so the snake thing was a big deal for me and I've learned to like pay attention yeah not that I've ever had anything happen here I did in Yosemite. There was a giant rattlesnake see rattlesnakes, I'm.
Speaker 2:I had rattlesnakes in Colorado. I'm fine, you're like. I'm okay with it. Well no. I think this goes back to like I know about them, so I understand, like if I'm too close they'll rattle. Okay, that's fine. I don't know. What do you have Like cotton mouths here or something? I don't even know what, I don't know.
Speaker 1:I don't to like. Stay away from snakes yeah, well, that's good.
Speaker 2:See, imagine me walking through the forest. I don't want to be aware, so, so don't, shouldn't go out there yet, okay this is so like when I hike with summer she's super unaware as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so we have a system where I go in front because I'm super aware, and the one time she's she like started wandering in front is when she almost stepped on this rattlesnake who we named bertha and we have pictures of, and it was like I stopped her right before and I was like I feel like I heard something.
Speaker 2:Good job, terrifying, oh my gosh, yeah, so again not here in the line and that'll be good and I'll go out, because I, I do. Really I know that there's like cool cave systems yeah, I haven't done that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I want to. I want to do that.
Speaker 2:I know there's waterfalls that are nearby that I want to see there's a lot that I do want to be involved.
Speaker 1:There's so many things I think you would love yeah, like Cummins Falls is amazing let's South. Cumberland Park is amazing. Let's go. Okay, we've got so many things we've got an agenda yes, we do. But on the poisonous things yeah, so my dad was visiting with my nephew and my dad is like I don't know if he's like really afraid of poisonous things or he's really afraid of the possibility.
Speaker 1:But every time he's like nicole, I saw a spider in your bathroom and I was, and he's like you need to have them come in and spray. And then my roommate's like, yeah, there's spider webs in the garage. He's from Oregon and I'm like you guys need to calm down.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there's some good spiders, I was gonna say, are there.
Speaker 1:See, I don't even know there's recluse, brown recluses, yeah, but like those are really specific, yeah. So, anyway, we had brown recluse.
Speaker 2:We had a lot of black widows in Colorado, we had a lot of black widows Yikes. Okay, we should move on from this topic.
Speaker 1:This is not.
Speaker 2:Zen for anyone? This is not Zen, okay.
Speaker 1:This is my grab bag question. Okay, um, okay, this is my grab bag question. Okay, fancy little bag. Ooh, it's my. My Minnesota accent comes out whenever I say that it's like the word I get made of fun oh what's your most irrational fear?
Speaker 2:Oh man. Well, all my fears are extremely rational. Oh man, irrational fears I probably have, like I think the ocean is pretty spooky, but I don't think that's that irrational. I don't think that's irrational, because why are we going so deep in there?
Speaker 1:Like I'll swim in the ocean.
Speaker 2:I will. I like a little ocean swim um but like I don't like even scuba diving, I'm like that's too far, I'll snorkel, I won't scuba dive. No, that's I don't. I don't feel like we belong down there.
Speaker 1:Um, my concern is like what if you have to get up fast? But then there's that like the bends yes, yeah, I was gonna say the bubble thing yeah, there's.
Speaker 2:Is that what it is? I don't know. There's bubbles and water in my blood suddenly and then I'm yeah where did they come from? Yeah, no one can say yeah, I yeah yeah I so I don't know pretty rational fear. Yeah, um, I don't know, I don't think I like have many, uh, day-to-day fears. I don't know I don't think I like have many day-to-day fears. I don't, you know, I don't like bugs, but I wouldn't say I'm not afraid of them, I'm just more like stay away Personal space yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's fair. How about you, nicole, so many?
Speaker 1:Phillip and I talked about this on like a couple episodes ago so I won't like bore everybody with it. Wait, yeah, it was with philip, but mine is like that there's something in a pool that'll get you in a pool. Yeah, it's like dirty and scary, oh okay, but they don't actually have to be dirty and scary it just has to be deep, yeah, funny.
Speaker 2:Funny. Both water, deep water. I don't like deep water. We shouldn't be. I mean, I do to an extent. For me it's mostly I'm like the ocean, no go.
Speaker 1:Yeah, ocean is like. I like the sound of it, I like being by it, but I do get like nervous, even just being in like up to my knees or something. Yeah, being in like up to my knees or something, yeah, there's sharks. There's definitely sharks.
Speaker 2:I, you know and I all of my ocean experiences in California, so I feel like I haven't had too many shark works. I know they're not sharks.
Speaker 1:And you know, don't tell me if there are. Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 2:My life in ignorance, and then I can keep going in the ocean there, probably are?
Speaker 1:I think there are.
Speaker 2:I think it's just a lot more common in like the gulf and florida areas that there are sharks.
Speaker 1:I feel like we hear more about the shark attacks yeah, in that area yeah, and maui I've heard, but maybe okay, when I went to hawaii I specifically looked it up. Right, it was like most shark attacks are like Maui, the big island, and I was on Oahu.
Speaker 2:So I was like I'm fine, the sharks don't even like water. You can get in the water, it's fine yeah.
Speaker 1:They were trying to teach me to surf. And one I did not have the upper body strength, and I want to say it's because I was in high school at the time but I still don't. And two all I could think about was like, do I look like a seal? Like am I going?
Speaker 2:to get attacked, so I never got up. It was not. I've been like boogie boarding in the ocean, but surfing, that's hard, really hard yeah.
Speaker 1:I don't know how. Yeah, I've tried. Yeah, it was like one time, but but hey, you tried it, I tried yeah. I think the guy was just like this is not what I intended to spend. I intended to spend my life. It's like I'm really sorry. He's like try harder. And I was like this is all I got.
Speaker 2:That's helpful, thank you yep yeah, no, surfing, surfing's hard, so I don't think anyone gets it on their first try. That's probably not true, and there's athletes out there who, I'm sure, make it look easy there's athletes who can make everything look easy.
Speaker 1:So today we're going to talk about improv. Yay, and partly because we met in improv, I decided to get over my fear and try level one, and then I did half of level two for reasons to not be this close today. No, it was fine.
Speaker 2:I only finished level three, so you didn't go further. I joined a team and they met at the same time that I was doing classes.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's right, and.
Speaker 2:I was kind of like I'd rather just do the team team that performs, and then we have like coaches that come in too, so that's fun. It still feels like I'm, yeah, learning. When did you first try improv? I want to say, um, maybe 2021, 2022, in Colorado Springs. Um, there was a reddit post in the Colorado Springs subreddit um, that was just advertising this improv class, um.
Speaker 2:So my husband got me. He like bought me the classes for my birthday and I was like very nervous because I was like a fan of comedy and I had done other like public speaking things before. I was like a debate kid growing up so like, yeah, a lot of public, were you theater or just I was. I was kind of a theater kid but not, you know, not like fully in it. I was always like some type of small supporting part. Um, never got the lead. The year I got the lead, my senior year, everyone in the cast had like various problems, had to drop out and the play got canceled. So I never got to be the lead. There's some sad zeta lore, um, but I was like nervous to go into it and then I was addicted yeah.
Speaker 1:I've never stopped since so I think it'd be interesting to talk about what that first class is, because I was extremely nervous too, yeah, and like. So my therapist was like you should try improv to help with some of this like intense anxiety going on in your head and like do something creative. But instead I did stand up because I was like you can prepare for that. So to me.
Speaker 1:What was scary is like with improv, like what if you're up there and you just can't think of anything at all and you're just standing there and then you have flashbacks to high school? Of some sort so I don't know. I feel like that's not what was scary about it to you.
Speaker 2:You know, I I think I'm just kind of a baby about new things, um, and then as soon as I I get like nervous about new things I love doing new things, though, so I just part of it, I think is I like having that like what's gonna happen, and it happens, and I'm like yay, yeah um, but I think it was just kind of like the unknown, you know like what's gonna happen.
Speaker 2:and it's so funny looking back now, because I'm like there's no friendlier, more welcoming of a space than a level one in a prof class. That is the definition of like the sweetest instructors and the most welcoming of meeting you where you're at, and everyone's scared.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because if you're in a level one, everyone's just like Everyone's new. Yeah, yeah, they're all worried, yeah we're all worrying about ourselves, and then we find out, like you're supposed to just like focus on the other person, which is great so helpful and I feel like it.
Speaker 2:it does help remove that anxiety really quickly because by the nature of improv you're very focused on being in the moment and listening and responding. And when you're in the moment you're not really worried about other things because you're just listening and responding and the next thing you know time's gone by. You're done with your first improv class.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think I had the picture of Michael Scott Like I think a lot of people do Right and I was like is that? Really what it is and it's not. I had the picture of Michael Scott Like I think a lot of people do Right and I was like is that really what it is and it's not?
Speaker 2:I mean some of it is actually there have been moments, yeah, okay, I was about to say something.
Speaker 1:You don't normally get someone like that and then I was like but you also do sometimes.
Speaker 2:You know, improv can especially like early level classes. I feel like there are some people because there's lots of things that draw people to improv and for some it is like a therapeutic setting and that comes out in some of their scenes. I think usually, though, as you progress, that falls off. But I think everyone kind of goes through that initial phase of improv where you say kind of stuff where you're like why, like you're making like bathroom jokes, and you're like that's like, why would I? Um, yeah, and then you kind of get over that, like you get out all the bad ideas. That's what we even say in practice is like we'll like run a scene and then be like, okay, got out all the bad words like now we can do a real thing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, um, but I think you, yeah, you get a lot of characters, um, yeah, but some of that is great because it forces you to be a better improviser, I think, when you're partnered with someone like that, because then all you can do like yes, yes, and we do love bacon yeah, I feel like the first class.
Speaker 1:I was so relieved because it was mostly just like these games of like I think we might have done like one thing where we went up and like ranted about something, yeah, but that wasn't that big of a deal, right, but then a lot of the interactions were just games in a circle and it wasn't so focused on just you, right, and so I found that really helpful of like you sort of built up the camaraderie or something before yeah, you performed, yeah, and then what was so interesting to me is I always had the like yes and that's. I feel like everyone hears that. But then it was like don't think about what you're gonna say next. Just like you said, focus on the person across from you and respond, and like I kept reminding myself of that to like not be so worried, and that really helped me a lot, yeah.
Speaker 2:I feel like it. I really love that feeling, especially like right after a show, because it's such a different mental state to be in when you're like so focused on this just happened. I'm going to respond to the thing that just happened. Maybe in a show you're like thinking about what happened prior and tying it all together, but it's such a beautiful state of like flow kind of, where you're just so in the moment in a way that I don't think you're usually in.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think so. Do you remember our last class and we had, like we had to say all the things you weren't supposed to do, yes, and then in our last scenes, like all I could think of were the things I wasn't supposed to do. So those were the things I wasn't supposed to do, so those were the things I was doing and I was like I don't think I've learned anything from this, and it was like a guest instructor, because our instructor couldn't be there and I was like yeah, I was like, well, this was not how I wanted to end but you know what?
Speaker 2:it's fine because it was a guest instructor so he probably doesn't remember me. Yeah, it's fine, any of our class. Yeah, one what? It's fine because it was a guest instructor, so he probably doesn't remember me. Yeah, it's fine, any of our class. Yeah, one class it's great.
Speaker 1:And then we sat in a little powwow circle and shared our feelings. We did. I feel like that's a little bit of a cliche or not cliche a stereotype. It is it.
Speaker 2:It is um and there's. It's funny because I you know half of me I really like that aspect of the improv community. It is like very kind of theater kid community, but I also I like it more than the theater kid aspects because it's still a comedy community.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And I feel like, especially with the teams I'm on now, there's because I'm a, you know, I like to make fun of people and have them. You know, I like that aspect of comedy of the like we're gonna rib each other and we're we're joking, so it's okay. Um, and I feel like I've found that with my teams in a way that is not really appropriate to do in classes, and I enjoy that element of it, yeah.
Speaker 1:So you have two teams. Now how often do you like get together and what do those practices look like?
Speaker 2:Mostly weekly for both of those teams. One of my team's worst case scenario we've been've been working with different coaches um, which has been. I love that. I love when we have like a coach come in.
Speaker 1:Are they?
Speaker 2:acting coaches or different. We had an acting coach and then our last two have been like improv specific coaches, um, which has been really nice, cause there's lots of you know there's, so it's an art form. So of course there's always something new to learn and things to tweak, um, but it's really great to hear those different perspectives on what we're doing and things to work and ways to, ways to improve on the areas where we're like something seems not right with our opening or like why does in the middle something, something happen? And then the coach can watch and say, oh, it's because of xyz, yeah, um, so I love that.
Speaker 2:And then location island we actually had practice last night, um, and those practices are just fun because it's an improvised reality tv show, so it's, yes, um, kind of everyone on their worst behavior, because we're, you know, parodying reality tv, um, but we have someone who plays a producer and we switch that up each practice so we all get a chance to produce, but they'll throw different, you know, like, and we use each other's real names is the fun thing. So it'll be, um, like zeta. Did you know that nikki and and Josh were like talking smack about you behind your back? And it's so funny to hear like your real name used in an improv scene where usually we're playing characters and in this case we're kind of like just caricatures, but it's still very much us based but playing like our worst selves, based on suggestions that that we get from the audience okay, so so when you, so you guys are at third coast comedy club, right, which that's where we took our classes shout out, shout out, there goes and so when you have, how does it start?
Speaker 1:like when you're on the stage, like someone just comes out and you're like this is what the reality show is.
Speaker 2:We, um, we start by asking. When people come in, we ask them to write down on a slip of paper something that they want to get off their chest oh, Um. And we've gotten some very serious answers. We just recently got something like I'm jealous that my best friend is happily married oh, wow, um. And we've also gotten people who write down like cheese um, like bike riders in Nashville in groups apparently?
Speaker 1:yeah, that would be mine right now. Yeah, where are they coming?
Speaker 2:from. So it's. The answers vary wildly. Yeah, um, but we asked them to write that down and then, when we take the stage, whoever is producing introduces the show and we introduce it to be kind of like we're a couple seasons into this reality show, like here's the cast.
Speaker 2:You know, we're all like posing um. We get a location from the. Our show is called location island, so we get a location um. Usually they kind of give us some more beachy, but we've also had, we've had place dang and I can't, of course. Oh, someone said antigua, to which we all looked at each other and went where is that there's antigua?
Speaker 1:isn't that like in the caribbean? Did you ever look it up? I did did because I feel like it's in like pirates of of the Caribbean or something OK.
Speaker 2:I want to say there were like a couple Antiguas.
Speaker 1:So we, of course, we just made stuff up and went with it. But we get a. Could the audience tell you didn't know?
Speaker 2:Probably, but we did our best. And I like, when we get a suggestion like Greece and I'm like I've heard of that one and then we so then what we uh like confessionals from last week is kind of the uh premise. So we'll like draw a line. That's like each of us draws one of the lines and that's our very first line of the show and then, based on what we draw, we like build our character and our opening confessional moment to the camera. Based on that, that's cool. Um, and then it's really just scenes between the housemates the producer, just scenes between the housemates the producer lobbing secrets or saying like, oh, I see, like Zeta and David, oh, david Beeman's on our cast now. Um, so it'll be someone saying like Zeta and David, like it seems like you two are fighting, like why don't you go have an outing together and work on your relationship?
Speaker 2:or you know, whatever it is or um, you know, and they'll kind of the producer will kind of guide us through what would happen on one of those types of reality shows. But we also have people when they produce who like to do more challenged based things. So they'll put us in like a cooking competition, or I think we were in like a Mr Beast competition in one. So it varies based on who's producing, which is also a lot of fun as a cast member, if I were the producer, I would want you guys to do.
Speaker 1:Love is blind.
Speaker 2:I don't know how that would work but I love that show so much I would actually I think that would be so funny to have two improvisers with, like, their back backs turned to each other, to like build up that moment, have different pairings and then be like okay, you have the reveal. Yeah, do the reveals, because I love the moments on. Love is blind, where the doors open and you watch someone go. Oh wow, it's so good to see you and they're like panicking and dodging kisses.
Speaker 1:I love that part yeah yeah, that's um.
Speaker 2:I usually when I'm watching love is blind. I've watched seasons where I just get to the reveals and I'm like I don't actually care what happens and I'll like stop the season there.
Speaker 1:We didn't do this about each other. We're basically the same. So I fast forward, okay, because I get past when, when they're like trying to live together and there's so many feelings and I'm like, how many different ways can you talk about the same feelings?
Speaker 2:Right, yeah.
Speaker 1:The one did you watch? I know we're getting sideways, but I love this show so much Did you watch the Minneapolis one? Oh, I don't know, it was the most recent season?
Speaker 2:Oh no, I don't. Oh, I may have watched just when they're. That it was the most recent season oh no, I don't. Oh, I may have watched just when they're. That's what I love. I love when they're in the pods and then the reveal, and then I'm like that could be the whole show for me, Okay.
Speaker 1:I loved it because, like their accents and all the things, Because they literally filmed in the apartment complex that my friend lived in, oh, wow, and then I was like watching lived in.
Speaker 2:Oh, and then I was like watching, I was like that's my apartment complex.
Speaker 1:So like I knew all the stuff fun and just like they're different like mannerisms, and so my roommate is this like 37 year old, like hfac, like whatever but he'd like be eating in the dining room and I'd just be like talking to him about it and he started getting so into it that we started watching together and it was so great. They'll get you, those shows will get you. Yeah, that's my. I don't know what is it called my Confession? I can't think of what it's called. The thing that I like, that I really shouldn't like the word. Oh, like guilty pleasure. Thank you.
Speaker 1:Thank you that I really shouldn't like the word oh, like guilty pleasure, thank you, thank you. Yeah, words are hard, um, understand, um, anyway, I would love to see you guys do that. Uh, okay, so you sold out a show in May, april, may yeah, it might have been March I.
Speaker 2:We only started performing. We formed as a team late last year and our first show was in January um but we actually talked about this at practice last night because I was like, yeah, we've done a handful of shows, and then we started counting them up and I was like I think we've done like six or seven which is because it's only the sixth month of the year, I don't know when we did all these shows, um, but it's, I mean, but I've loved it, and a lot of those have been um, like we're, we've been like part of a group show or we've opened for a show.
Speaker 2:So we will like condense our format to like 20 minutes, um, which is is it normally an hour? About 45 minutes, um, mostly because we're like that's what an episode of reality tv would be if you added commercials. So that's true we do, we do pretty close to 45 minutes, uh, each time, which which feels good, because then there's time to let the relationships build and decay, and build and blow up, and then, hey, that's our episode um as happens on a reality tv show exactly um, and then what's?
Speaker 2:fun is our ending. Um, if you remember the game conducted story where you like stand in a line and someone stands down and they like, oh yeah, point to you and so you kind of pick up the story. So we do that, only the producer points and we do it as a foreign, separate confessionals, um. So it's kind of our chance to like wrap up the episode. But we're of course just trying to get kind of little one-liners that summarize the show. That'll get a laugh and then like black out on the laugh. Um, it's a very fun format okay, that's.
Speaker 1:Oh. Wait, before I say something else yeah, when your next show is july, july 31st, at 9 pm at third coast comedy club.
Speaker 2:Go to third coast comedy. Clubcom is probably their website. I don't actually know. I think it is, um, that's my guess. Yeah, probably google. July 31st, july 31st, 9. It is a thursday at 9 pm. So my apologies, um, but it's only a 45 minute show, so you can be in bed by 10 30 maybe yeah yeah, depending on your bedtime routine.
Speaker 1:Um, okay, I was gonna say before I forget. The other thing about improv that I was surprised about is that you're not supposed to try to be funny, right? Does that change when you're in a group or like a team?
Speaker 2:no, no, I think that's a pretty fundamental rule and I think it goes back to what we were talking about initially in terms of you want to be so focused on your scene partner and and really the idea, something that I was taught in my with my first improv teacher in Colorado Springs was, she said, treat your scene partners as geniuses and poets, which was really just to say like, honor the gifts they're giving you, even if it feels like, why'd you just do that? You know, assume the best and like, play at your highest intelligence and respond in the moment. And really my experience is the funny does always happen which feels remarkable because it doesn't feel like people are. Sometimes you'll get moments where you're like well, okay, like we're gonna put. You know, you find those moments where you want to like push that button again or, you know, have recurring. You know there's, there's little things.
Speaker 2:Your brain's always working in the background, um, but I it will derail a scene for someone to like oh, I've got this funny pun, how do I make it work? Because then they're immediately like out of that moment, you know they're not responding in character to the character, um, and I think something a great moments happen when you let there be like serious conversations, um, and you kind of build attention. And some of the funniest moments happen when you're like you're kind of blowing up this balloon and you're blowing up this balloon and there's a serious, you know this couple's either going to get divorced or like what's happening, and it's so tense because then any slightly weird or funny thing that pops that balloon because the audience is, you know, like, oh, like they're uncomfortable and what's going to happen, and then it just takes the smallest thing and then there's a huge release of that tension. And that's like one of my favorite moments to have too is to like purposely kind of build the tension and then anything can be said. That pops the balloon and it's perfect.
Speaker 1:It's perfect, yeah, so I mentioned to you that I found this article in Psychology Today. Yes, that I found this article in psychology today. Yes, I'm gonna read seven research-backed benefits of improv comedy by clay drink, because I'm sure I'm supposed to give credit.
Speaker 2:Nice, good job, thank you clay drink, clay drink I actually I was like did I write that down wrong? Yeah, that's a. That's a nashville bar order. That's a bachelorette party themed drink. Okay, what are our seven?
Speaker 1:um, okay, so the first one is it activates language and creativity centers in the brain, so the brain region associated with self-judgment quiets down and a creative part speaks up. That sounds right to me. Yeah, I, I feel like that was like a big part for me of like, when you're focusing on someone else, you're not thinking about how silly you look, right, and to add to that, I think by nature of improv your scene partner.
Speaker 2:You know you look best when you're supporting your scene partner and you're you know, true, true, the other way, and I think there's something so rewarding and kind and just feels so good about when you do say something, because inevitably you're going to have a moment where you're like well.
Speaker 2:I don't know why I said that. And to have someone on stage who's like, yes, that was the best thing ever, I'm going to do the same thing, I'm going to add to it. That feels like what a confidence boost to have that level of energy always with you, yeah well, there's something about confidence later on. Oh okay, sorry, I jumped the gun no no, that's great.
Speaker 1:I just won't remember if I skip over any right now. Which goes to our next one promotes brain connect connectivity. I can't say that word could, could be helpful. Wait, let me start over. I can read.
Speaker 2:Just improvise it. We can make, we can list seven things.
Speaker 1:It could be a helpful treatment for people with trauma to connect better with others and help brain regions work better together. Which enough said baby. Yeah, that makes sense, let's focus on the first one and then skip over all others um okay, boost creativity and promotes divergent thinking. Oh yeah, which, okay. I think this is kind of funny, but a 10-week improv course helped participants develop more creative uses for a paperclip compared to a control group. As I was writing, it, all I could think of is like, um, like, what uses?
Speaker 2:I the way.
Speaker 1:I need us both to have a paper clip right now oh, I should have brought something like I'm like yeah, there's that uses for creative uses for paper.
Speaker 2:I mean, you're picking locks, you can can probably use it as a little bobby pin thing. You need a little jewelry piece, necklace, multiple Any tool use for glasses.
Speaker 1:I feel like Like to fish something out that you dropped.
Speaker 2:Yes, Annoy your podcast host by throwing it at her.
Speaker 1:Throw it back and forth.
Speaker 2:Yeah, now we're playing shboople Callback. We need paperclips.
Speaker 1:Oh, I did not think ahead, that was pretty good.
Speaker 2:I feel like we came up with a pretty good list pretty fast, I think, so that was good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, see Improv. Improv Reduces social anxiety. Yeah, it's helpful to lower anxiety, even after just 20 minutes of improv intervention.
Speaker 2:I so believe that my old team we used to do like corporate workshops and it would be amazing how much, especially because one time it was somebody's surprise to their team. I don't want that surprise. No, no one did um which was such a terrible feeling to be in a side room as because it was like their company Christmas party or something like that was a surprise, or were you finding it out in the moment, I think? We were finding it out in the moment.
Speaker 1:We were like hired.
Speaker 2:It was me and my friend Sam and they they were like they had done another workshop. One of the guys had done another workshop that we had done. He was like I want to bring this to my team and we were like awesome, we'll be there. And then, as we're like in the side room, he's like I've got a fun surprise, like we're going to do improv and we hear everyone oh no, but it was such rewarding. Like one of the most rewarding experiences in doing improv was then like by the end, everyone was like that was so fun. You know, getting to see people get over that initial moment of anxiety, um, and then be so creative was so yeah, that's a very rewarding thing to witness did you know they have improv for lawyers in law schools Some law schools, not all of them.
Speaker 1:Like my mom took it, Summer took it.
Speaker 2:That's great.
Speaker 1:I guess it's supposed to help you be a better trial lawyer.
Speaker 2:That makes sense to me and probably all lawyer but I think it was specifically that. That makes a lot of sense to me.
Speaker 1:Honestly, I'm like you should have done it in orientation week for everybody Right. Honestly, I'm like you should have done it in orientation week for, like everybody Right.
Speaker 1:Because maybe law school wouldn't have been what it was, so anxiety inducing constantly. Yeah, yeah, I definitely found that it helped with, like, the anxiety I was experiencing at the time, which was a lot work related funny enough as a lawyer, work related, funny enough as a lawyer um, but it was just like I. What I found is like I hadn't just done something just fun in a long time, and so it was like you just went and played with your friends, basically, yes, which sounds weird as an adult, but it was very fun it's I.
Speaker 2:That's what I always. I like describe it that way too. When I go to practice I all say that like off to go play pretend with my friends. Just me and four other adults playing pretend. Um, because it I, I think there you know there's a portion of the population who you do. You just like go to work and you have to clean your house and you got a lot of responsibilities, but man, it's fun to take some time out of that week and just like play and like play, like do make believe is such a how it feels nice. It sure does feel nice.
Speaker 1:OK, it reduces uncertainty and tolerance. How, I was a little confused by that at first. How not? Ok, someone is with the unknown.
Speaker 2:Right how they describe it.
Speaker 1:And improv helps people be more comfortable with uncertainty. That which, when I read that, I was like I should probably go back to level one, because I just feel like a lot of like there's a lot of moving parts in my life right now and I'm like I just need to know one thing yeah, one but, um, boost confidence is the next one.
Speaker 1:Interpersonal and performance confidence, yeah, which I feel like a lot of this keeps going back to, like the social anxiety stuff too, yeah, so yeah, and decreases stress. Participants were less stressed before completing a math task. I can't speak today, math, tasks or reading. We should have warmed up with improv games.
Speaker 2:Oh, I'll remember is the zip, zap, zap. I'm sure they would come back to me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that one's memorable, yeah, it sure is yeah.
Speaker 2:I think most people will not. I don't know If you're in the comedy circle.
Speaker 1:I think you've heard of yeah, zip, zap zap I tried to get employees at my brother's company to do some improv and they just were like no, I was like we all need to be friends. They just we're not having it.
Speaker 2:I think think my favorite game to introduce to a group of like you're not going to make me do improv lawyers is here what's called I think they call it mind meld, where you start with two people, you know you go three, two, one and I'll say a random word and you say a random word. So if I said fern and you say a random, word.
Speaker 1:So if I said, oh, this one fern, and you say plant, wait, what did I do wrong?
Speaker 2:actually that would be great, um, but say, you said like record, something totally unrelated, our opening words, because we're not um, they're just totally random words to us. So if I said fern and you said like record, for example, and then you turn to the person next to you and you try to, at the same time, say the one word that marries those two words oh, okay, I feel like we did that in like a circle yes and yes, okay, and so the goal is to like get it to the point where two people are going to make eye contact, yes, and for whatever reason, they're going to go whiteboard, ah, and then everyone freaks out because you found the one word that like varies the two words prior um, and it's so.
Speaker 2:It's such a good feeling of satisfaction when it was a fun game, yeah I. That's one of my favorites to introduce to people who are we'll call them improv resistant, improv resistant that's what I had on improv.
Speaker 1:Is there anything you want to make sure we cover before we move on?
Speaker 2:that's about it. I would, it's fun. I can't recommend it enough is, I guess, what I would say. Yeah, um, even if you just try it out, I, I, literally, some of my closest friends are from improv. I think it's just such a welcoming community. It feels so good to have a group of people have your back, like that in that moment when you feel vulnerable, um, and then to do the same for others, like when you see someone struggling on stage and you can walk in and like save them or match their energy and just let them know they're not alone.
Speaker 1:Um, that like reciprocity, I, I just, and it's so fun, um, and then you laugh a lot too, by nature of like, it's comedy, so yes, and I really think like part of the reason I wanted to talk about it is because, like, I was so scared and I think it helped me a lot and so, like, level one is just nothing but fun games pretty much. So you, it's not scary once you get started right as soon as you're like in the door.
Speaker 2:It's so welcoming and fun and a good time and it would be three hours.
Speaker 1:It was three hours for eight weeks and that those three hours went by so fast yeah, I would look forward to it quite a bit. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So let's see, okay, checking the time as I do, oh yeah, good job. Okay, I have a couple of random things I want to mention. Okay, how do you get a smell out of your house?
Speaker 2:oh, man, is it in?
Speaker 1:fabrics or no. I came home yesterday and my roommate works totally different hours than me and I just walk in the door and I'm just hit by this fish smell and I've got like a three-story house fire the roommate um move I was like maybe it'll dissipate and it didn't, but I think I just became like one nose, yeah, and then, um, did you like open all that?
Speaker 2:did you like?
Speaker 1:okay, you know, here's what I've done yeah, yeah, I did not open the windows last night because it was like really muggy and hot yeah, um, and then muggy hot fish smell is not so gross. But then I got up this morning and I was like it is still here and I'm working from home today, so I opened up all the windows, I put baking soda out, yeah, and then I realized he was soaking the pot in the sink. So it was just, it was so gross.
Speaker 2:It was just sitting there. Okay, what's your roommate's name? Let's shout out to your roommate wash the fish dishes and I wish I had.
Speaker 1:I knew it was in there but I didn't think about it last night and I was like, oh so I just like dumped it and then I put lemon down the drain and all the things and he gets up. But he's just like I am never cooking fish in this house again. I was like no, you're not, it was halibut of all things. I was like that was so gross. Any other options? I it's.
Speaker 2:I think you've burned the house so much. Um, I I would say, yeah, I think you know like airing it out is really all you can do, because, yeah, I feel like you don't want to like add a smell, you know you don't want to like turn a candle, because then you just have like lavender and fish.
Speaker 1:I hate anything like smell like glade yeah, I think if I had like a diffuser right now, I got rid of all of them because I felt like there was mold or something. Oh yeah, because they've just been sitting there. Yeah, I don't know. I went through a whole perch of things but I'm like maybe like essential oils, but I don't have a diffuser.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I think it is. I think you got to get out the snow before you can replace this. I don't know.
Speaker 1:Maybe if I got like like turned my fans on, I should have turned my fans on yeah, okay, yeah yeah, I've got things I can do yeah, we'll see there's still options before we take a match to it. We're gonna have dinner and then I'll go home and we'll see where we're at. Yeah, and maybe I can open the windows again, okay that was on my mind it's good, I, I love that question.
Speaker 1:It was so gross. Halibut why? Okay, yeah, that's the halibut too. He accidentally bought too many halibut. Halibuts, yeah, plural, anyway. There was something about he thought it was by the pound, it wasn't $75 worth of halibut and there's two fillets in there. And him going I'm never cooking fish again and I'm like there's two really expensive fillets in there, like I don't know what's gonna happen. We're gonna see. Did you get?
Speaker 2:to eat any of the halibut. No, also what? What does halibut taste like? He just like subjected you to fish smells and he didn't get to reap any rewards.
Speaker 1:That's man, the first time this has happened in a year, so I think I'll like and I know you know, he's very handy, he's got redeeming qualities, he's got a lot of redeeming qualities and he was the one who acknowledged he was wrong. Yeah, he violated the roommate agreement.
Speaker 2:That's all we can ask for. Admit when you're wrong. Yes, next time you cook the halibut at least feed me some of the halibut right, yeah I don't know if I want how I it. It's the type of word that sounds gross uh, like when you eat it, I feel, I feel like it's, you know, it's like a typical fish, fishy see I don't really like fish a lot. I I like fish. It depends. So when he's cooking a halibut, invite me over there will be no more halibut.
Speaker 1:Maybe if there's like an outdoor grill somewhere, he can go to the park.
Speaker 2:Yeah, not even close by the park. You've got to go grill three blocks over man that's fair. After the biological warfare he's done on you, I think sending him blocks away is very fair it was awful, okay, um, next one okay, I was on a client call this morning.
Speaker 1:Okay, I won't give away confidential information, but my client said the word like and I was taking notes, right and he said something about something being agitated and I was like trying to write the word agitated, I was like I don't know how to spell it agitated. Do you ever have this happen where you're? Like I hear words, the other one is miscellaneous. I can never spell miscellaneous.
Speaker 2:So I avid reader, terrible speller, and I had this happen, I want to say, yesterday or today, Attorney paralegal, where I was doing some type of like intake call or something with a potential new client and and usually what I do is I'll kind of like screen a call, send it to the attorney and kind of be like you don't want this or like you want this. And I don't know if I was just like out of it and like because I've had a lot of discovery responding to blah, blah, um. But I went back to like type up my notes and half of them I was like oh, oh, boy, um, something about an agreement and, like you know, I'm trying to like read your own hand.
Speaker 2:I could not, for the life of me read my own hand, it was half the spelling, because I'll just like kind of like, I'll like write half of a word and be like that's enough.
Speaker 2:I know what that is, um, it's atrocious, but I definitely I'm not good at spelling and and I forget, this is a fact because word and google and all my devices, you know, they're kind of like fixing it. Oh, I understand basically what you meant and then I, if I write something out, it's, oh, it's embarrassing how much I can't spell. Do you want to know how I spelled?
Speaker 1:agitated spell it for me okay, the right way which I wrote down here is a, g, I, I, t, a, t, e, d. Okay, I wrote a, j and then I tried again and I I think I wrote like a, c, yeah, and I was like okay, this is for my personal use.
Speaker 2:I, I really feel like for me I'll get like stuck on weird small words that I'm like that's so okay. The other day, for the life of me, I was trying, there was a scheduling poll, poll, p-o-l-l, p-o-l okay. I kept being like why, like that's not how you spell it, and I realized my brain was trying to get me to spell poll like p-o-l-e and I just had to like walk away from everything for a minute and be like girl. It's four letters. So yeah, Do you?
Speaker 1:think we're just going to get worse with like chat, gpt and all more stuff.
Speaker 2:You know, I don't, I haven't used chat GPT at all.
Speaker 1:I'm, i're going to get left behind, which, like I actually agree to a certain extent, but like figuring out where to use it. But to remember, like hey, like I have been practicing like 10 years and went to law school for three years. I was about to say two, three and there's like a way that my brain works that I don't think ai quite works yet yeah but there are benefits, like when I'm like I don't want to put together this paragraph.
Speaker 2:That I know is kind of like a standard thing right, I'm just like anyway yeah, I, I, you know I like it for because all you know our firm uses like LexisNexis and I like the review like I like uploading like an opposition and our response and having it like compare the case law things like that, where I'm like I wasn't about to go look up all these statutes and like compare them. I love that um.
Speaker 1:I didn't know it did that, because I'm not that type of lawyer. That sounds really good, though. Oh it is, oh it is.
Speaker 2:But then there's other things where I'm like I just don't, because I know that AI does like hallucinations where it'll just make stuff up.
Speaker 1:Oh yes, like it made up those cases in New York and it made up cases. There was one I'm trying to think, if I can share this, unrelated to me, but like it's happened subsequent to that lawyer getting in big trouble yeah and it's like guys, like literally, this was all over the legal news yeah how are you still not checking if it's making up cases?
Speaker 2:yeah, so I I haven't, I've, I've, you know, I've played around with some of it. But things like chat GPT, like for my own personal use, I'm very. I do have younger friends who have told me like I was struggling with how to respond to a text, so I typed the scenario into chat GPT and it gave me a response and I'm like whoa.
Speaker 1:I want to know somebody in my life, who will remain nameless, has been using it to respond on dating apps thoughts. You know, is that a bigger conversation? You know, I was gonna say also it's not me, since I'm on dating apps.
Speaker 2:I've heard it's really bad out there in the years since I've been off um I I would say it's probably, you know, hilarious use of time. Um depends on what you're looking for, maybe yeah, if you're just trying to like have fun and get easy dates, hey, let the robot do it. Um, if you're like looking to find your soulmate, you should probably like be who you are probably.
Speaker 1:I'm like you know, you have to eventually meet in person, if you want this to go right, anyway, again, it's not me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, um, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's not me either.
Speaker 1:So what are you obsessing over lately?
Speaker 2:like myself. Um, it's always the true answer. Um, within the last three days, um, rosa and I were watching tv and we caught an episode of 48 hours. That was a cold case. Usually they're like here's this case, it's been solved, blah blah, but it was a cold case. Um, so I've had that like bouncing around in my brain, because I love a cold case. And then we were talking about um dateline. Um, specifically, we were talking about the host, keith morrison, and bill haters. Um, I don't know if you've ever seen bill hater like parody keith morrison doing dateline no, please send it to me I will, it's so funny.
Speaker 2:And then we were like how do we watch dateline? We found out it's free download like pluto tv app. There's a 24 7 dateline channel. Oh my God. That plays like nonstop Dateline, and so for the past two evenings we've been like just sitting down and watching Dateline. It's a lot. So definitely Dateline.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So which is? You know, I feel like I get like. I kind of get like mini obsessions, I feel like you know, like if a song gets stuck in my head, I'm like, well, that's all I'll listen to for the next 72 hours and I'll play it until I hate it and it's burned in my head um and then I'll let it go. So my answer for the last three days.
Speaker 1:It's Dateline nice mine is. I got my house windows cleaned professionally for the first time ever amazing inside, outside and the screens and I didn't think it would make a big difference. It does. The pollen, so much pollen is gone and it's brighter.
Speaker 2:And I am telling everybody and now you have to open those babies up and let the fish out okay.
Speaker 1:so I like to do a weekly recommendation, okay? Um, mine this week is to do float therapy at Pure Sweat and Float. It's like sensory deprivation. I do 40 minutes and like I've been doing it like a year and a half so I'm like I can get into like a meditative state.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but.
Speaker 1:I can go in with like so many thoughts going on and I come out and I'm just like that's so good. I did it yesterday. It was great. That's so nice.
Speaker 2:What recommendation do you have? Something I did a few weeks ago I'm not doing it anymore, but I took like a rowing class where you like get into the boats and they teach you like how to row, like as a team. Like, do crew rowing out on Percy Priest Nashville Row Club? Shout um, nashville Row Club, shout out, nashville Row Club. Um, such a good time. I didn't know anything, you know, I've like kayaked before and things like that. Like I love a rowing machine at the gym or something yeah, but.
Speaker 2:I've never like gotten in a boat with like a six person boat um six people, okay, yeah.
Speaker 1:Okay, yeah, it was like full on rowing yeah.
Speaker 2:Very, very cool, learned a lot, beautiful time. Um like met sweet people, um, and what was nice was that introductory class was only two weeks. So you do like three times for two weeks, oh nice. So it was a very and it and it was kind of perfect where it landed, cause I I feel like both my teams had like people traveling and we weren't practicing, so I just happened to have like two available weeks that I normally wouldn't um like no shows, but it was such, it was such a good time and it was fun to like learn something brand new. I feel like I hadn't learned something like really brand new in a long time.
Speaker 2:Um, so that was that would be my. It is a little expensive. I didn't realize those boats, those six person boats, are like $40,000.
Speaker 1:Yeah, cause I guess it um cause it got popular in the Ivy league circles.
Speaker 2:Oh, of course, right which?
Speaker 1:I picture.
Speaker 2:I also enjoyed rowing because it really spoke to my inner Yale bully persona which you can only tap into if you're also rowing crew Nice.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and what are you looking forward to most this week?
Speaker 2:Next weekend my friend Beth is coming down. She lives in Kentucky. I actually think she's one of the only people I know in town that I don't know through improv.
Speaker 1:Okay, wow, because most people I know through improv.
Speaker 2:Nice and she and I met at a show and then we go to like a lot of concerts together and she's gonna come down and we're gonna hang out, have a little pool party at my apartment. Sounds awesome. Yeah, I also have like improv on sunday, which I always. I feel like we just talked about improv a lot.
Speaker 1:I always look forward to improv yeah, um, I'm looking forward to I'm going to the nateland showcase tapings at zany's yes I'm going on tuesday with my friend mariana. Maybe we'll go to another one I have. I have to decide. But it's been a while since I've been, so I'm excited about that. That's cool.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I liked when we got to be in that studio for the Chief of Thin Therapy. Yeah, that was gosh that was a while ago. I guess I don't know when that was. That was, I think, december.
Speaker 1:It was a while ago. Yeah, well, we gotta wrap up because we would talk yeah longer thank you so much yeah, and thanks for everyone for being here. Uh, tune in next week for listening to my crunchy zen era. Please subscribe and leave a review wherever you listen to your podcasts. This podcast is produced by me, nicole swisher, and my good friends Summer Harkup and Liz Coulter, editing is by Drew Harrison Media and recording is done by Lagos Creative in Nashville, tennessee. Thanks for hanging out. We'll be back next week. We'll be back next week.