Guest: Kim Ukura, bookish blogger & podcaster Book: Knocking on Heaven’s Door by Katy Butler Boozes: Gin & Tonic Main topics: End of life care, physician assisted suicide, reading, reviewing “bad books”, podcasting, blogging, being a “dork”, and more.…

Episode #15 - Blitzed Guests: Stefani Manard & Big Dev from the Shot of History podcast Boozes: Bourbons: Elijah Craig, Jim Beam, and Bulleit Main topics: Nazi’s & drugs, history, podcasting, reading recommendations, and Dr. John Harvey Kellogg’s views on…

Episode #14 - The Geometry of Wealth Guest: Brian Portnoy Boozes: Noah’s Mill bourbon and Bulleit bourbon Main topics: Money, meaning, reality vs expectations, investing, and reading (plus recommendations) Find more Brian & John: Follow on Twitter:…

Episode #13 - Civilization and Its Discontents by Sigmund Freud Guest: Tom Beck Booze: Lagunitas Aunt Sally Main topics: Sigmund Freud, religion, morality, and civilization Part 1 - Freud (~23 mins) 0:00:00 - Intro - Tom Beck 0:03:27 - Why Freud? 0:07:29…

CEO of Toujours Planning and co-host of the Worth It! Podcast, Dustin Granger, joins the show to sip Maker’s Mark bourbon and discuss The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz. Topics include: Thinking big, finding meaning, confidence, goal setting,…

Ron McIntire from the Grasping at Beers blog joins the show for a second visit to share four different kinds of booze and to discuss Drinking in America by Susan Cheever. Topics include: the history of alcohol in the United States, John’s & Ron’s own…

Author and traveling winemaker Amira Makansi joins the podcast to discuss 50 Shades of Grey. Topics include: Power dynamics in relationships, sexual taboos, wine and writing, politics, and more. The Sowing (Seeds Trilogy #1):…

Rich Young joins the podcast to split a bottle of Green Spot Irish Whiskey and discuss I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb. Topics include: Mental illness, self-delusions, bullying, masculinity, denial. Subscribe and Rate us on iTunes. (Please!)…

Retired politician, current entrepreneur, author, and world traveler Elliot Killian sits down to discuss a variety of interesting topics including: How Elliott ran for elected office at age 19 (and won), Elliott’s two short stories that peaked at #6 and…

John read 100 books in 2017, and narrowed them down to 4 books that you should read. The top 4 are: Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari, Tribe by Sebastian Junger, War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedges, and Doing Good Better by William MacAskill.…

Ron McIntire joins the podcast to discuss Saint of Auschwitz, a biography of Catholic saint Maximilian Kolbe, who sacrificed himself in a Nazi concentration camp. Despite John’s initial trepidation due to his rejection of Catholicism, the pair enjoy and…

Billy Ray Taylor joins the podcast to discuss Doing Good Better by William MacAskill and drink Lagavulin 16 year scotch. Topics include: Effective Altruism, moral philosophy, problems of loyalty, leadership organizations, and how to make the world better.…

John’s first solo episode is a deep dive into Hammurabi’s Code and its relevance in today’s society. 00:00 - Introduction: Why try a solo episode? 03:30 - Low-carb boozin’ 04:47 - What makes Hammurabi’s Code so unique and fascinating? 10:42 - Who were the…

Bridget McNeela joins the podcast to discuss The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot and share 3 local wines. Topics include: scientific advancement, medical ethics, informed consent, scientific education, individualism vs collectivism, and…

Geek culture writer, and host of the Blurbing It podcast, Monica Piluso joins the show to drink copious quantities of Pinot Grigio and discuss Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. Topics include: geek culture, escaping reality, serial killers, cults, virtual…

Pawel Bogdanowicz joins the program to drink a bottle of Tito’s Vodka and talk Hunger Games, sort of. Major topics include: Political protests, reality TV, schadenfreude, the morality of nuking alien puppies, poop problems, North Korea, and rebellion…

Host John Leven discusses his show’s premise, inspiration from Steven Johnson, John’s background, and what to expect in future episodes.