CBD & Poetry Podcast
In 2020, I launched my inaugural podcast, CBD & Poetry. I interviewed ten friends about their experience with CBD. Inspired by the conversation, I’d write a summary in the form of a poem, which I read at the end of the episode.
Although I only had eight episodes, I enjoyed the process, including designing the logo with new visual medium for me, digital illustration.
This humble beginning prepared me to launch two other podcasts: Strange Family Folklore and Discovering the “T.” The former podcast documents the descendants of my maternal great grandfather, Jesse Strange and the latter, documents the Peatross descendants on my father’s side of the family.
Music
With my friend’s permission, DJ Cabrini Green, I sampled two of his songs for each episode.
- Intro Music: “Green Magic” Cabrini Green, Green Magic Album.
- Outro Music: “Bumpin That Real Shit”Cabrini Green, This Is Ghettostep Album
- cabrinigreenenterprises.com
Statements made in CBD & Poetry podcast have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Non-prescription CBD is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or medical conditions. The CBD & Poetry discussion is not intended as medical advice and should not substitute advice from a healthcare professional.
EPISODE 1: Stephanie Webb: Racism & The Built Environment, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 8.24.2020.
Activist Stephanie Webb shares how inauthentic conversations, which omit race as a factor in shaping the built environment, cause anxiety.
Resources
Racism & the Built Environment
Racism causing insomnia
Surrounded by fake people
Networking with the alleged like-minded
Yet divided by money
New vision turned a blind eye
To indigenous cultures and history
Gushing about beautifying the environment
Because no one supposedly lives there
Without seeing the existing community
Seeing a people isn’t the same
As engaging with a people
Apologies just won’t do
Restorative justice will
Both the so-called good neighborhoods
And the so-called bad neighborhoods
Were built on a foundation of racism
The 1920s roared with planned segregation
Nowadays it’s no longer segregation
It’s urban renewal
The only thing that’s new
Is the branding
EPISODE 2: Larry Mayfield: The Mailman Cometh, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 8.31.2020.
Retired mailman Larry Mayfield shares how walking his 14-mi postal route for 26 years contributed to foot pain.
Resources
The Mailman Cometh
Curiosity doesn’t always kill the cat
It’s usually where the adventure begins
One step at a time
14 miles a day
For several years in a row
So, batter’s up!
Knock it out of the ballpark
Anything can be a playing field
When you’re a child
Especially playing with kid rules
Just don’t get distracted by the blackberries
The barefooted boy playing outside every summer
Grew into the man paid to be outside all year long
EPISODE 3: Cindy Beringer: A Good Smidgen, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 9.7.2020.
Cindy Beringer shares how her fur baby, Smidgen, has undergone changes in the past 13 years.
A Good Smidgen
Old sweet and quirky
Smidgen’s such a good boy
Barking like he’ll kill the mail carrier if given a chance
Honestly, he’s the coward of the county
Joints a little rusty
Allergies occasionally flare up
But at least he still has an appetite
T-R-E-A-T-S’s are his favorite
EPISODE 4: Felipe “Negro” Roberson: Renaissance Athlete, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 9.14.2020.
Lifelong athlete and capoeira instructor, Felipe “Negro” Roberson talks about embracing the cultural aspects of fitness.
Resources
@negro_evolucao
Renaissance Athlete
AKA Negro
Lifelong athlete
From baseball to capoeira
Ultimate way of self-expression
Every injury has a story
In three different languages
Flowing musically, physically
Passionate personal trainer
Bringing practical mobility
To all students
EPISODE 5: Gracie Fleming: Unearthing the Trends, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 9.21.2020.
Sociologist Gracie Fleming talks about the indigenous healing of her cultural heritage.
Unearthing the Trends
The latest, hottest trend
Has been known to indigenous healers for centuries
Now prepackaged home remedies
For general consumption
Traditional knowledge lost
When we embraced the computer
Looking for the “American shaman”
What the hell does that even mean
True understanding lies in unplugging
Grounding into the earth
Into the long line of curanderas
EPISODE 6: Elizabeth Rodriguez: What a Headache!, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 9.28.2020.
Expatriate software designer Elizabeth Rodriguez contrasts hemp culture between the US and Mexico.
Resources
elyrodriguezzz@gmail.com
What a Headache
Extremes trigger the mind
Too much capoeira or sleep or emotion
Even part of a nightmare
Waking up with a migraine
It’s bananas
Creative masks
While forging through grocery stores
Not quite a day at the beach
Especially with the military
On the data front lines
Marking the path of the pandemic
Thank God for work
It helps sanity
EPISODE 7: Alicia Eastes: Back to Life, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 10.5.2020.
Screenwriter and yogi Alicia Eastes retrains her neurological pathways.
Resources
Back to Life
Breathe in, breathe out
Meditate for inner balance
Left right left right
CLICK
Break the trauma bond
Back to life
Back to film
Organically-sourced screenwriting
Creative processing
Responds to creative healing
Organize the chaos
Clean the space
Move forward
To new endeavors
EPISODE 8: Laura Redden: Meditative Mermaid, Season of Sheltering in Place. First published on 10.1`2.2020.
ESL instructor Laura Redden balances teaching, poetry, pottery, painting and mood disorders.
Resources
lauraerturk@gmail.com
Meditative Mermaid
Can barely sleep
Dreaming of boobs
Dreading the plague
The highs and the lows
Singing for courage
Embedding fingers into clay
Connecting to the Earth
Digging within the depths
Emerging sensual mermaids
Birthing a fantastical world
Talking drum without
Anyone to talk to
Poetry seeps into
The fabric of life