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
Standup Comedy, Wellness and Cat People with Paula Kosienski
What happens when your dream career collides with your physical limitations? When external validation no longer sustains you? Join standup comedian, Paula Kosienski, and host, Nicole Swisher, as they discuss:
- Is clean comedy funny?
- Pursuing a standup career while managing chronic illness
- The woes of seeking external validation
- Defining your own success
- Pets parents taking it too far
- Proper chip-eating etiquette
Whether you're pursuing a creative career, managing health challenges, or simply trying to align your daily choices with your deeper values, this conversation offers both practical wisdom and soul-nourishing perspective on what matters most.
Subscribe now and join this exploration of what it means to live a happy life in an increasingly complicated world.
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Host: Nicole Swisher
Guest: Paula Kosienski
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Welcome to my crunchy zen era. I'm your host, nicole Swisher.
Speaker 2:I'm here with my guest Paula Koschensky Hello. I'm so excited to be here.
Speaker 1:I've known you for I don't know two years, a year and a half, and we're just laughing because I can't pronounce her last name and I don't know her address. Which is, I think that's fine.
Speaker 2:I feel like it's probably more reasonable to not know how to pronounce someone's last name than to not know their address, but with Google Maps, you don't need to know anyone's address these days.
Speaker 1:I don't know anyone. I put it in my phone though. Yeah so you don't need to know anyone's address these days.
Speaker 2:I don't know anyone I put in my phone though. Yeah, so if you don't update the phone like that's a problem, okay, that oh, like in their contact? Yes, I didn't know you could do that. What do you mean? You didn't know you could do that. I've never put anyone's address in the contacts before. I mean I guess I've never like clocked that it's there. I'm sure I know it's there, but it's like because when you get someone's number, you're I'm never like, oh so what's your address for my phone? And then by the time I get it, I think I just you just don't update it. I just didn't think about it, yeah, until right now we're we are different people and I love that so much.
Speaker 2:I have.
Speaker 1:Like I don't know if I have yours in my phone, but I can put your apartment complex.
Speaker 2:I can get there right so, anyway, what is something?
Speaker 1:what is something crunchy or zen that you've done recently?
Speaker 2:okay, I was thinking about this a lot today and the crunchy thing that I do is I've started to read ingredients lists on things more strictly, and I used to do that in college and then I kind of faded out of it and now I'm back into it.
Speaker 1:So I feel like that's very crunchy yeah, and are there certain ingredients that you're keeping an eye out for um?
Speaker 2:this is. I don't actually even know if it's really that bad for you, but anything that says gum I have a genuine aversion to like chewing gum. So I just picture like chewing gum in my food and so like it's in everything, yeah, and I I don't like that. So if I know it's gonna have like ranch I know ranch has it I just don't look at the ranch label because I just can't live without it. But if I can get around that ingredient, I'm sure it's not even the worst for you. But it just grosses me out just anything gum, anything gum.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, it's a great boundary, paula. Yeah, so what's a memory that you would love to relive and why?
Speaker 2:probably when I was in you know what I'm gonna say my wedding day truly perfect, because it flies by so fast and I didn't get a video of it. I only did the pictures. So that would be like my chance to relive the video part of it would you watch your video if you had it?
Speaker 1:yeah, okay, because I've always felt like people wouldn't actually watch their video.
Speaker 2:I think we would watch it like on anniversaries. We have a video of the actual ceremony, so I'm grateful for that. But the video I wanted is like all the getting ready stuff and then the reception. It's like I love home videos. My mom used to have the vhs home videos and I just loved watching them. Those are fun.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I was cleaning out some stuff and I found like a tub that had the whole bottom was lined with like home videos and I don't know what's in there, and I would love to know. Yeah, but I don't have the capabilities currently, so yeah, like the no vhs thing, right, yeah, but that can be corrected yeah home videos are the best. Home videos are fascinating. There is one.
Speaker 1:I'm getting my grab bag casually um there is a video that my sister and I put together for it was like for a project, um extra credit for her and it's our chickens performing the death scene from romeo juliet. Oh my gosh, it's, it's fabulous I actually kind of feel better.
Speaker 2:When you said romeo and juliet, I was expecting that you were doing some sort of like death march or something.
Speaker 1:It was like oh my god, like okay, I mean, that's still insane, no, and and us talking the chickens and moving them and going thus with the kiss I die, and then flopping the chicken over that video I would love to get. That'd be fun. It was great it was cinematic perfection. So that's awesome, all right. A random question is if you were a ghost, who and where would you haunt?
Speaker 2:Oh, I would love to haunt like a really nice house. Oh, that's a good idea, and I don't really care who lives there and I'll be really a respectful ghost. I'm not trying to give people anxiety, but I would just love to live and enjoy a really fantastic home, like one of those homes in Balmead.
Speaker 1:I always think those would be really pretty to see.
Speaker 2:Right or like out in. I feel like Brentwood doesn't necessarily have the same character, but we recently went to a lake where we didn't have a home on the lake, but there were these massive lake homes. I would love to haunt one of those.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it'd be super relaxing too.
Speaker 2:And, if possible, to haunt the boat as well. That'd be nice Pontoon boat.
Speaker 1:I'd like to haunt a pontoon. Just spend your day on the water, yeah, be very relaxing.
Speaker 2:I think that's a great answer Be perfect.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so you and I met because we do stand-up comedy, heck, yeah, yeah, and I think I met you at why Nots? Because you were running the show, or something like that.
Speaker 2:We actually met for the first time at Zany's. Remember you Well, okay.
Speaker 1:I jumped out at you.
Speaker 2:You were like want to be friends and I was like I do want to be friends, okay. So I mean, I feel like that was like not a legitimate, like we weren't meeting as friends, it was just like meeting as two people at that point. But I feel like we quickly like I feel like that was in the fall and then by the winter I remember you invited me to your new year's uh party and that we weren't like super close, it was like you and all of your good friends, and it ended up being so fun. I feel like our friendship really took off from there.
Speaker 1:Yes, but solving all your apartment problems.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so great, yeah, oh yeah, you guys, I had a lot of lawyers coming to my life at exactly the right time the lord's timing man because I really needed some, yeah, feedback so how long have you been doing stand-up now? Um, I started stand-up when I was 20, but I've lived in Nashville doing stand-up for three and a half years.
Speaker 1:Why Nashville? Because you're originally from North Dakota yeah, minnesota, I saw that.
Speaker 2:Oh, I thought I was like I should have worn something North Dakota.
Speaker 1:But we have problems.
Speaker 2:I just wore the one sweater. I haven't stained um anyway, that's not the point um what was the question again?
Speaker 1:why did you come to Nashville?
Speaker 2:oh yeah, well, okay, so John and I were dating and we had watched a show of Nate's at Las Vegas in Las Vegas and it was like the most insane thing ever and it just felt like I didn't really want to live in like New York at the time because this was post-pandemic um. So I kind of got like a little stressed about that and I thought if they can live in Nashville, then there's comedy there and so I'll go there and truly that is the level of research that I put into it.
Speaker 1:I mean, it worked out. Great though it did work out.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, and you're clean now but you haven't always been clean, correct no, unfortunately, thank goodness, I don't have any tapes from that time, nothing, nothing that I know of. If you have it, not that you have it, but burn it because I don't.
Speaker 1:It was, it was bad, I was not a righteous, I have a hard time managing, or like imagining you being not clean now but yeah, anyway good um so like. Why did you decide to make that change?
Speaker 2:I feel like the like, the easy answer, I guess, is like I just didn't want to make my parents uncomfortable and a lot of comedians, I think they were like, oh, my parents are going to have to deal with it, and I just like I would never You're not supposed to my parents would be disappointed in me. You know, I don't want them to be disappointed in me. But then I feel like, as I took it on, it grew into a much bigger set of values where it's like I think clean comedy is really providing a service to people. I think there's more people out there that are craving clean comedy than there is out there. I just think it's a. So it seems like now I feel like I have a more deep reason, but at the time I really just didn't. I wanted my parents to come and not be disappointed in me. Yeah.
Speaker 1:I think clean comedy is kind of interesting because even as somebody who, like I, have always been clean and my reasons for it were more like it didn't really make sense with my personality. They wouldn't be, and then I have a professional life and right, it just didn't. It was like it would have been a disconnect at this point in my life. But I feel like there is a stigma of like clean comedy being kind of boring or like churchy, but it's really.
Speaker 2:There's some really great clean comedians, yeah, like hey Bragatti right and I feel like clean doesn't mean detached from reality, like like. I think Land Morgan's a great example of someone who definitely confronts real issues that women deal with. She's not like she's super relatable, but she still keeps it like generally clean. You can take your kids to it, so it doesn't have to be like squeaky. Like you said. Let's talk about only the grocery store clean. It can be real, but just respectful yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:And what like? What was your first open mic?
Speaker 2:like, oh my gosh. Well, I'm okay. My first open mic was at an extremely hipster coffee shop. Very hipster. They had a month where they did a nude art show for an entire month.
Speaker 2:Oh, wow, and subjected everybody to it, and so they had like nude paintings on the wall for a whole entire month. So I'm sure you can catch a vibe of what I'm talking about. And it was supposed to be an open mic for comedy and also poetry. Oh no, and you truly could not put two things that are worse together. I mean, it was so bad and but uh, I mean I don't even think I really walked off stage and it wasn't a great set, obviously, but it's just that was the first one did you?
Speaker 1:was it like three or four minutes? I think it was five. Oh, it was, it was five yeah.
Speaker 2:Because in North Dakota we don't have the. It's not a real, I mean, it's a real comedy scene, but it's not competitive like here. So you can do five.
Speaker 1:There's like not as many people so.
Speaker 2:Right, okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So are you pursuing comedy full time? Yes, or do you want to? Yes?
Speaker 2:Yes, but in like not as strict as I have in the past. I feel like when I moved here, I was like I'm going to do comedy full time and then I'm going to move back and then now I'm like I feel like saying like a lot, I'm trying to get better about that. I feel as though if it's the Lord's will, then there's clearly there's nothing I could do about it. I it either will or won't have. Then then I'm kind of trying to take myself out of the equation and be like I will always do stand up because I love it and I genuinely think it serves people. Maybe not mine, but generally stand up serves people and uh, but I don't, I'm not trying to like fight people.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, okay. So because I mean to set some context, like I know, a year ago you opened for Dusty Dusty. Slay yeah In North Dakota a couple of times Pretty fun, yeah, and you did the Ryman with Nate Land. Yeah, that was insane.
Speaker 2:Not too long ago and you've tried out for Late Night or something at Zany's yeah we did the showcase Zany's put it on where comics were invited to come and like audition in front of the Late Night producer, and that was also very exciting, so like you're.
Speaker 1:I mean, you're decently along Right, Like you've done some really cool things, um and, but you still work. Do you work full-time now or are you like part-time?
Speaker 2:No, I work part-time, but I'm starting to work full-time again. I had a little hiccup there where it just didn't make sense for me to work full-time and then have an employer be mad at me because I was like calling out a lot. So I worked part-time. Now I'm hoping to work full-time. But yeah, stand-up has definitely like evolved in terms of how I look at it and the priority that I put on it what like.
Speaker 1:What was the pivotal moment for that?
Speaker 2:um, I feel like it was a combination of getting sick frequently and kind of looking around and feeling like I only had stand-up and I was only focusing on stand-up and I didn't have anything else going on. And then you start to put all this pressure on stand-up and then you kind of start to not like it. So then you have to backtrack and ask yourself how can I create a more full life so that I can do this forever? And whether I become successful at it or not truly does not matter. I will always do it and I view that I have been successful. Not that I'm not trying to say I'm killing it by any means, but I feel very grateful and I feel like I've gotten opportunities that I have no business have gotten, and I'm just very grateful. So you, you're just kind of like well, I'm farther than I ever thought I would be. So we'll just see what happens now, which let the record reflect.
Speaker 1:I think you're very funny, so I don't know about not but so you, you said you were getting sick a lot, yeah, and you, you've had a medical condition most of your life, right? Yeah, just chronic illness yeah, and how have you, like, I mean, how has that been intertwined with stand up?
Speaker 2:Well, I've definitely learned that when I'm very healthy, stand up is a much bigger deal, and then when I'm not doing well, I'm well. I should say. When I'm doing well, stand up is very fun, and then when I'm not doing well, stand up is very stressful and that's pretty much with everything. Up is very stressful and that's pretty much with everything. But, um, yeah, I feel like you. Just, I was definitely having to get, I was getting sick more and needing more support and just needing a support system. That I didn't have and I definitely have friends in comedy that if I wasn't to continue doing comedy, I would still hope that we're friends.
Speaker 2:It's more than comedy. You stand up was I like it, and also I want the good feelings that come along with the compliments and the pride. And when someone says you're really funny or whatever and I do think, and every, I think every stand-up has to deal with this there's a moment where, like that no longer is like what carries you through. It's like the compliments don't matter, because there's always some situation in or out of stand-up that can just make you feel like you're not actually that great, and so you stop to think, you stop treating it like a source of ego and you start thinking about it as do I actually really like this? And if you do, then you keep doing it, but you don't do it. To keep up this, I constantly need someone to tell me that they love me yeah you do it because you want to make people laugh.
Speaker 1:You think that people deserve to be able to just relax and laugh, and it's definitely different yeah, I, you could go from one show and I'm speaking on this from experience of like, oh my gosh, that was an amazing show. I'm like doing so great, and then the next night you have a show and you're like this was so bad Right.
Speaker 1:Like I can't, oh my gosh, yeah, and if you're just on that roller coaster for the accolades, the laughs, like that's not, how do you? How do you improve too, if that's all you're looking for, right? Because, everybody's humor is a little different.
Speaker 2:Right, yeah, yeah. And to your point like what's the motivation behind improving? Is it to get more compliments or is it because you believe people deserve a good quality show? You know, stand-up is so often like for the comedian, but it's really for the audience. They're the ones who are paying and taking time out of their life to watch this, so the show should be for them and they should enjoy it. But I will say I'm I feel like there's an audience for everyone. So, while I say it's not for stand-ups, there's a lot of stand-ups that do completely different comedy and it feels like there's an audience for them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it does seem like. I mean, that's part of everyone being so different and you get to relate to different people and that's why it is important to see different people, that's our theme now different, different, yeah yeah, but it's hard sometimes and I know that you're talking about this too.
Speaker 2:Like you don't, you don't ever. I never want to be someone who, like is thought of as like, oh, they're quitting or they're taking a break or something, because frankly, I don't think I matter that much, like that would be appropriate for a major comedian to say, but it's to me it's like when someone's like I'm on vocal rest, it's like okay, nobody really cares. It's like nobody really cares if you're taking a break or what your deal is. Just you know in your own head how much you accept and don't accept. But sometimes people do like notice if you're around a lot and then not around that much and you want to give a valid explanation.
Speaker 1:And there and for local, when you're at that level. It's like I saw the request for shows start to Peter out after like two months, where I was turning it down or like I wasn't showing up places.
Speaker 2:Then people are like oh, she's like not here, right, I was like I'll be back maybe yeah, well, I don't know if your audience knows this, but nicole runs a very successful show and cheaper than therapy. So your note, your absence, is definitely like was noticed, not necessarily in like where's nicole, but like that show was doing really good things and and whatever happens, I think it'll continue to do really good things. So I do think like your presence and stand-up was very like helpful for people.
Speaker 1:So and that I mean, yeah, that that show was. I loved it. Um, and I started it very soon after I started stand-up, because I like putting stuff together.
Speaker 1:That's part of why I'm enjoying this podcast and I just wanted it to be a very safe place for anybody you know audience and the comedians and like for comedians to be like, oh, I can't wait to be on that show because it's a fun atmosphere. And then you know I was hosting it and it just got to a point where I couldn't do, I couldn't maintain a monthly show, right, and it really can't. It was. It was a really hard decision to like back off because we had done zanies successfully. That was really cool, yeah, and frankly it was. I mean it was one of the harder decisions I've had to make because I was getting so much enjoyment out of it. But that just prioritizing my own health and saying like, hey, if this is meant to continue, like God is going to figure that out right, and it doesn't matter you know that was.
Speaker 1:I mean when I started it like I don't know what. It's so preachy about it.
Speaker 2:No, it's great, I'm not crying, by the way, I just burped Go ahead.
Speaker 1:But yeah, it was a lot of like. You know, I just felt called to do it, yeah, and I felt called to take a little bit of a baby break, right, and it was like we had April, we, and it was like we had April we might have again in October, but it really is just, I needed to prioritize myself in a way that I don't know that I've done in a very long time, yeah, so and you know, just kind of going back to your point about how sometimes stand-up can be a very it's like, if you're there, then you're there, and if you're not, you're not.
Speaker 2:And why aren't you there? And do you not care enough? Then? And I get those are valid questions, because we, we all know that we're not entitled to this and and people want to kind of know who's who's doing the hard work, because it is a grind sometimes.
Speaker 2:But, um, but I think every comedian, every human being knows what it's like to live in the reality that you live in and you can give what you can give, and sometimes you can give a lot and sometimes you can give a little. And so people might be in a season where they can give a lot and they might see you not giving a lot. It might be confusing for them, but I think that's why I kind of want to be open about it. Confusing for them, but I think that's why I kind of want to be open about it, because I think it helps people feel comfortable, being like I'm not trying to be lazy, I'm not trying to not be gracious of what people have given me, but you just only have so much in a day, so you want to be efficient with it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, what would you say? I don't know if I want to ask top five, because that is what I did this year, but like what do you have like top one or two priorities, like what are they right now?
Speaker 2:okay, I would say honestly and I'm not just saying this because it's the name of your show but number one priority would be like nothing like getting sick that makes you crunchy or makes you care about health in all ways. So I've been working out more, I've been trying to just treat my body better. I mean, you can't tell because I just started, but in a couple months you guys, you're gonna be, like wow, I'll be back.
Speaker 2:I'll come back um, but so that's been a big priority. And then growing more in our faith has been a huge priority, especially more, more, even in the last couple weeks. Just yeah, do you?
Speaker 2:mean you and John, yeah, husband, yeah, okay yeah, john, my husband, um, who I love, and it's just, I think you can get a little bit complacent, and a marriage takes a lot of effort and there are seasons where it's really easy and you're on the same page, but typically when someone's sick or there's some sort of major stressor, that's a that's hard, so trying to keep on top of that. And then you know, we're doing stuff with our church's youth group and that's been really amazing and we'd like to one day provide our two cats not a studio apartment, so some things like that. Hold on Two cats. Oh yeah, what is happening?
Speaker 1:Okay Well, Bella passed away.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:That's why I'm like I thought we were zero cats.
Speaker 2:We were zero cats and I didn't want to touch on that unless it's sensitive, but share more. No, it was honestly just a quick decision. So we were zero cats and then we went to the cat shelter to cheer us up and it's a catio. So it's like we didn't go with the intention of adopting.
Speaker 1:You never do I know adopting you never do I know you go with the intention of, like, hanging out okay, I wanted to bring this up, but again I wasn't sure how, like sensitive, because bella was like a week, two weeks ago, yeah, yeah, um two, I actually went to a cat cafe on Saturday because I was just like there's like multiple in Nashville and I was like what is this killing it? It's kind of awesome, it's awesome, like I.
Speaker 2:We went to the cat cafe and we're chilling out which the reason we did this is because when I was a kid we had a cat a kitten like two years old, unexpectedly pass away from a heart issue, and so we were young, so my mom did was took us to the local cat thing cat shelter but it was like where you could go pet them to cheer us up, and so that is now my tradition. If a cat dies, we go do that afterwards. It's kind of supposed to be heartwarming. So we went and they have so many cute cats and we we waited to put in an application because it was like that day but we knew we wanted another cat. So then we went back like a couple more times we found this cat we really liked and then, because we travel so much, we're like one cat is going to be lonely, so we'll get two.
Speaker 1:Which I mean people recommend two. So now we have two Fewer cat people.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and we had to. It's kind of it was kind of awkward for us. I don't think the vet cared, but you have to get an application approved by your vet. I don't think the vet cared, but you to get a application approved by your vet. So the catio had to call our vet and be like, are they good to adopt these cats? And I just in my mind the guy was like they were here like a week ago but he wasn't judgy. We have since had to go back, yeah, for the new cat twice if they probably get that all the time.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so I. So after after I put katharine down, I went to the animal shelter because I was alone during the whole thing and that's so sad, like I, yeah, I didn't want anyone around I was ugly crying and and then I started making dark jokes to the vet. I was like this is not good. Anyway, I went to the shelter and like Philip was like I recommend no animal for six months and I'm actually really grateful he said that because I was definitely on the verge for like a week or two, like.
Speaker 2:I put in. I did put in an application and then I was like this is not a good idea.
Speaker 1:I'm too busy like I travel, like, and now I'm I'm kind of, I mean I definitely miss having an animal, but I still just feel like I need, yeah, like a moment right because dogs are a lot of work.
Speaker 2:I think dogs and cats are different. I love cats. I'm not trying to like belittle the cat community here, but rebounding off a dog is like a thousand times different than quote unquote rebounding off a cat. We knew we wanted cats before Bella passed. We knew we were going to be a cat household, so it was already talked about. But like I just think about if my dog from homeus were to die and can't think about that for very long. But the idea of going back and getting another saint bernard to like fill the hole, that is such a different level of commitment. So I get, from a dog perspective, why you're like you should wait it out. Cats, on the other hand, I feel like they're so easy. It's like having a plant okay, another plant.
Speaker 1:Okay, let's, let's go here for a second let's go here I have considered a cat. However, I can't with the litter it is, it's not great, it's hard, and I've fostered cats so like I have some general idea um, and I just don't think I can do it. Yeah, with the litter I get it so.
Speaker 2:I get it. I don't like the litter. John skips the litter. He was the one who, uh, converted us to a cat family. I mean, I agreed to get the cat, but it was like John's a cat person, so he's taken why?
Speaker 1:why is there so much stigma around cat people?
Speaker 2:I don't know, I don't get it because, well, okay, if I'm being honest, I do get it. If you meet the people at the cat shelter, they are, they're not mean, but they have, they're just interesting are they aggressively protective of the cats that I've encountered?
Speaker 1:that that?
Speaker 2:shelter no, but I've heard that from shelters that they, it's like, do you even want people to adopt these animals? But I just feel like cat people uh, any you know what cat, or aside any people that turns their animals into like a child to such an intense degree. It's like it's just a little weird. I mean I get it from like a haha dog mom. That's funny. But like if you were actually pushing your dog around in a stroller just have a kid, like it's too far I've definitely seen people with cats and strollers, dogs and strollers.
Speaker 1:I can't. It's too much. Yeah, I wouldn't, although I do love the videos of like people hiking with cats. I just think that's hilarious.
Speaker 2:That is pretty funny, so cute like, how do you get that cat? Yeah, nature makes more sense because like they like nature, but it's like when they're like dressing their pet up yeah you're like I really think you guys should just have a kid, honestly, yeah like I would put um outfits on kaffrey for halloween and christmas, that's a little different and he was so mad he wouldn't move you, just stand there and glare at me.
Speaker 1:I was like yep, this is for the picture, right, right but there's a healthy amount to love an animal. Yeah, I don't know how we got here. I don't know, but I like it.
Speaker 2:I thought it was nice.
Speaker 1:I do love animals, they're so great they are awesome yeah it's yeah, okay, we can't keep going on, I can't bring it back around.
Speaker 2:If you want, let's do it so I can't john and I. One of our priorities although it's not like a top three is we want to build some type of family. So, like I don't want it to just be john and I, I want it to feel like we have a family and ideally that would be kids, but we're gonna adopt. It's a long process, it's very expensive and you have to hit a lot of qualifications, so it's not just like a on a whim situation and definitely doesn't happen accidentally.
Speaker 2:Um. So in the meantime we're we're like building a family with animals, and I know I just said that you shouldn't treat your cat, but what I mean by that is we don't think of them as kids. We really do think of them as animals, but having animals in your home makes you home more and it makes you prioritize a home life more.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying, though I do know what you're saying, because my roommate and I have talked about this and his point is like if you're an introvert, do they make you be home too much? And it's like a crutch Like for me, I don't think that's the case. I'm not really introverted, I'm somewhere in the middle, but he is, and so he's like you get to where. It's like an excuse to like go home versus go out and meet people.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:I would say for the last six months, since Kaffrey was basically in hospice for six months, there was a lot of home time and care and I was like this is a lot of home time.
Speaker 2:But I think that's the difference for me between cat and a dog, because if you're like I gotta go home because of my cats, it's like how sick are your cats? So I don't think they keep us from traveling or whatever. Yeah, but it makes us. I think it makes us care for our apartment more. We clean, more, I vacuum every day, we look after things better than we would if it was just us two.
Speaker 2:And then also, I think it helps us to think about things a little bit more long term, to have somebody that relies on you, or like an animal, like vet bills, and okay, we want to live in this environment, and so I I definitely don't think you should treat your animals as children, but there's something about having living things that rely on you. Yes, that like cultivate that sense of family that can not fill a void but can be a good momentary, because we would love to have kids, that would be, and and if we had more control, we would probably have them sooner. But because we don't have that control, it's like animals are a way for us to cultivate a more rich home life.
Speaker 2:I guess that's what I'm trying to say yeah, it would be like if you got chickens, you know it's like that's a task it's so.
Speaker 1:Yes, I agree I. What I'm kind of thinking about is how, when it's just you like you think about you so much yeah, and so when? You're caring for something or giving back or volunteering. It gets you out of your head and I think it's a much more selfless way to live. It's not right or wrong to do the other. I just think maybe certain personalities might find that helpful.
Speaker 2:Right and honestly similar with the youth program thing. It's like we've been pouring a lot more of ourselves into our church youth group. Obviously, I don't think someone else's kids are my kids. However, it's nice to pour into a community. It's nice to have an opportunity for John and I to like think about something outside of ourselves and outside of our comedy careers and make some level of sacrifice, I guess. So that environment, that vibe, is like a priority.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so in all this, have you thought about, like, what kind of legacy you want to leave?
Speaker 2:wow, that's an insane question I'm sorry, no, I'm not mad. That's a good question. I just feel woefully unimportant to answer a question like that. You can skip it no, okay, I want to answer it because, to be honest, you know, like I, I know I think about it and I mean that's so narcissistic. But to think about legacy, so I guess I think that's okay then, and then I disagree.
Speaker 2:Okay, I agree with you unless well, okay so and I think this goes to the conversation about balance and priorities and stuff three years ago if you were to ask me that, I would say I want to be like a comedian bit, like I want to tour on, be big comedian. That's how I want to like leave my mark on the earth or whatever. And now I still would want, I still want to leave that door open for if that's like God's will for my life. But more than that, I truly just want to be like a faithful servant of Jesus and there are things that I think that I should be doing that aren't comedy, that would still fall into that category, and that has become more important than stand-up alone. So like eventually having a family of children, of human children, kids that you can pour into, and like raise up part of the next generation and just that sort of stuff. I I crave that more now than like I've ever craved it and just wanting to, whatever you do, just do it for the glory of God.
Speaker 1:I think that's a great way to wrap up that segment. All right, moving on to a much more serious segment Much more serious. Am I eating chips? Wrong, that's my question. I feel like everybody eats chips and they like don't need napkins, or they're being like very sneaky about how they're keeping their hands clean, right they're, yeah, like they're doing something this do you struggle with this chip eating?
Speaker 2:honestly, I struggle greatly. Okay, this is how I eat chips. Okay, let's hear it, I like to be like people who don't use napkins, except I don't like the feeling of it on my hands, and I think there's a socially acceptable amount of times you do this. Okay, and to me it's twice. Once you take a chip, maybe you weren't planning on eating a chip. You brush it off no big deal twice. Okay, seems like we're communicating some chips. But okay, third time, get up and get a paper towel. Now what I do is I like to get up on a paper towel and I like to use it, and then I like to be in denial that I'll need again and immediately throw it away and eat a couple more chips and go back up and get another paper towel. It's incredibly wasteful, I understand, but that is.
Speaker 1:That is how I solve that problem, okay because I'm like how are these people just out here like eating chips at a party and they just like don't have a napkin, and I'm like here with my messy fingers right, I just haven't. I don't, right, just wasted copious amounts of paper towels.
Speaker 2:Also, it's good. Take breaks, maybe eat a few chips. Okay, I'm gonna go to the bathroom, I'm gonna wash my hands. I'm gonna eat a few tips. So you're sneaky about it yeah, okay, maybe I'm gonna eat a bigger dish, so I for some reason feel the need to commit to a full-time napkin. I don't know. It's a balance, okay um, follow-up.
Speaker 1:Would you tell me if I had something in my teeth? Yes, 100, right, because that's the kind thing to do, right, and I think?
Speaker 2:it's like a girl's girl thing to do. It's like, okay, girl, I feel like you're a girl's girl. If you would do something like that, I wouldn't do it in front of people. But yeah, it's like it's sneaky, it's like a little bonding thing. It's like when you go to your friend, you be like, hey, girl, you know a little something in your teeth. It's like a little bonding thing. It's like when you go to your friend and be like, hey, girl, you know a little something in your teeth. It's like a moment where you like build trust with each other. It's like vulnerability, and then you like, oh, that went so well. This person's always going to look out for me.
Speaker 1:Yes, so I love doing stuff like that. So I had something in my teeth and then, like I went upstairs and I came back down to my roommate, I was like I had something in my teeth like massive. Why didn't you say anything? And he was like I would never tell you. I was like what, what do you mean? You'd never tell me.
Speaker 2:That's terrifying. I get it a little bit more that he's a guy, because I don't think he has the same, I don't know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, when you said girls, girls like yeah, maybe it is different.
Speaker 2:I just because, from a girl's perspective, you do it out of like respect for another female you believe cares about how they appear. Yeah, and I feel like guys are either a jerk about it and they're like you have something in your teeth, or they just don't care enough to say anything.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was, it was eye-opening it was and I mean, I think, when I think about like my brother or something he would like, he would say he would like make fun of me, you know. So I was like I don't know, do you guys just not say anything? They're like, oh, she'd be more embarrassed.
Speaker 2:I'm like, no, I'm gonna be straight up the same embarrassed, like you might as well do it I always like to start it with I'm so sorry to tell you this be fitting, because then you're you're saying you know it doesn't bring me joy to do this. I'm not being like you're ugly with stuff in your teeth. It's like I'm so sorry to be the bearer by, but you do something in your teeth very, very chill yes, so do you have something that you're obsessing over lately?
Speaker 2:yes, true crime yeah that makes and we don't have time to get into it, and that's not a knock on the time, that's just a knock on how long I will sit and talk about it, for oh.
Speaker 2:I know, but I would like to make one distinction. There are some people that treat true crime almost kind of like a romance novel, where they romanticize it and they get obsessive about it and they get weird and they get disrespectful. I don't like that. I like criminal cases or civil cases where you follow it from, like the the law standpoint or from an investigator standpoint I'm not trying to do where you're like coming up with these insane theories that are incredibly hurtful to people and you're kind of romanticizing someone who's doing something terrible. There's different types, so I would like to put myself in the normal category, not the insane category.
Speaker 1:I support that.
Speaker 2:And I don't want to be one of those people who, like, watches a murder show and is like, oh my, maybe I'm teetering on, this is probably a good self check. But when you're like, oh my gosh girl, get the popcorn, let's spill the tea, it's like someone has died yeah but sometimes, if the murder show is not really about the murder and about drama surrounding the murder, I think, then that's okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I feel like there's some like podcasts and stuff that are good and then some that like cross the line.
Speaker 2:Right, I agree yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm pretty sure that Zita a couple weeks ago said Dateline was her thing she's obsessing over. Okay, but my memory's terrible, so who knows? But I'm like along those same lines, yeah. Dateline's good, I had somebody professionally clean my house for the first time. Ooh, had somebody professionally clean my house for the first time, oh, and I love it. That's amazing. I've like I don't know why I haven't done it before. Um, but I came home and I was like they made my bed oh my god, which I don't like.
Speaker 1:I don't. I mean, my bed is like fine but, it was like crisp and like they'd move the pillows and they buttoned up the comforter like wow thing and I was just like this is that's amazing yeah, so I think I'm gonna do that again, yeah do it.
Speaker 2:It's great, we've done that. One time on a deal, I saw some girl on Facebook who's like I'm just starting my cleaning business. I'll clean your house for $30 or $40 if you book in the month of May for a studio, and I was like, yes, please. So that was really fun and probably, uh, if you're a brand new cleaner I'll take it, but I feel like her services probably went out.
Speaker 1:She did a really great job yeah, I'm thinking like maybe like twice a year, right, really like a deep clean or something. Yeah, the deep clean, right? Um, do you have any recommendation for our listeners?
Speaker 2:for like a book, or a book a podcast a true story.
Speaker 2:Um, I recommend, truly recommend christianity. And my second recommendation is a really great book out and not enough people talk about it and it's pretty popular but it's still not talked about enough. It's called chaos and it is written by honestly, his name escapes me, but the. The book is centered around the manson murders. However, the book very quickly evolves into this whole thing about the corruption of the 1960s and the cia and all of this stuff, and none of it is conspiratorial. It is all on the record. Like all of these things that he unravels, they have been outed in the 70s and 80s in Congress, like in the political world, so it's not like some guys like. I think this it's really actually factually checked and true, so good. It's a dense book and I think it pardon me, I think it changes your life. Like I, unless you are already knew about it beforehand. I don't see how you can read a book like that and not look at the world, just vastly different interesting um my book is totally different.
Speaker 1:Let's get into yours um it's called fast like a girl by dr mindy pelz, um, and it's all about how to fast differently, because, like men can fast like all the time and they're fine, but if a woman were to fast in a way that a man does, she'll like start to lose her hair and like get very fatigued. And so this book talks about how to fast like a girl I love it.
Speaker 2:It's really good. I have one question if we have time for it for the book, yeah we got like four minutes sure um, okay. So when it says fasting, does it mean like fasting for weight loss or just fasting in general?
Speaker 1:in general for like a healthier situation. I I'm sure like the intermittent fasting will help for weight loss and I think it is used as a tool, but not like a religious type fast.
Speaker 2:It's like no, it's for health. It's for health. Yeah definitely for health, and like if you could give one takeaway from someone who's like maybe didn't read the book in the future, but like probably maybe not.
Speaker 1:Well, when you're have you read it through yet I have read it, I'm on my second time. Um. So I would say that as women, we have different cycles and so we can't fast and stay away, because our hormones change and so, leading up to like the time where we're, we have like more progesterone and you know, basically, if we're having a baby, all the things like you should be giving your body more like comfort food and not be exercising as hard, and so you shouldn't be fasting because, it's time to just like be calm and recuperate right.
Speaker 2:Okay, I saw a tiktok about that where someone and it's a tiktok, so I don't know if it's real, but it sounds real now where the girl was like men will lift the same level of weight across the whole month and women will lift harder one week, less the other week, because of those hormone changes. Yes, it's really interesting it's.
Speaker 1:It's definitely along those lines. That's so cool. So what are you looking forward to this?
Speaker 2:week. This week it is tuesday, right, um, john and I are going to go to our first show at the opry and I'm so excited I'm wearing a little dress. It's gonna be such a fun little date. It's like one of those times where we could like cosplay being like a couple that like has it all together and like gonna go catch a show. You know and paid for the tickets and didn't get them for free. Yeah, I'm really excited about it and uh, and that's so. Then that and then otherwise, I think it's a pretty chill week.
Speaker 1:I don't have a lot going on yeah, um, I'm looking forward to a spa day on Sunday fun massage and then steam room and then maybe like a lunch. So I love it, very excited about it. I love that, yeah well, paula I think we gotta wrap up.
Speaker 2:Thank, you so much for having me on your podcast. It's a great podcast. You guys should listen to more thank you, paula.
Speaker 1:Um, thanks for listening. I hope you guys will join us next week. Thanks 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 Colter. 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. You.
