The Juice with Jeff

The Juice with Jeff #98

On this episode of the podcast, Sarah Pritchard conducts and co-produce a fantastic and superb interview with me in person. After Sarah and I expressed our excitement on how great it was for both of us to see each other in person for the first time in almost two years, we began our conversation where we talk about the subject of restaurants for almost the entire interview. There is lots of two way conversation throughout the podcast.

 

1.  During the first thirteen minutes of the podcast, Sarah and I share our thoughts on the trials and tribulations of restaurants and how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected restaurants, how restaurants and the hospitality industry have been creative and open in finding new ways to offer hospitality over the last almost two years, and how it has been and still is possible for restaurants (and other similar places) to operate/do business in a relatively normal fashion and at the same time follow the public health mitigation measures during the pandemic.

 

2.  Beginning at around the 13 minute mark, we then shift gears and spend about eight minutes talking about/discussing the fun aspects in terms of enjoying restaurants as well as the economic/creativity aspects of restaurants in general. Sarah and I talk about our favorite local restaurants and examples of favorite meals we've enjoyed from various restaurants. We talk quite heavily about the local restaurant scene in the Des Moines/Clive/West Des Moines/Urbandale/central Iowa area.

 

3. Then starting at the 21 minute mark for most of the remaining five minutes of the interview, Sarah talks about a new company that she works for in the Des Moines area called Sunday Night Foods; and Sunday Night Foods offers three different silky and rich signature sauces that blends very high quality chocolate with a handful of the fine pure ingredients (with no artificial ingredients used at all).

 

This interview was recorded on November 10, 2021 and it lasts for a total of 27 minutes. As is the case with all of "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #97

On this episode of the podcast, Leeat Cribbs conducts/co-produces an excellent audio interview with me thru Zoom, and this is the first time that Leeat makes her debut as an interviewer/co-producer in The Juice with Jeff family.

 

After Leeat and I give our introductions, the following topics are brought up:

 

1. Leeat asks me to talk about what am I looking forward to during the next year. I start answering her question by talking about how my 47th birthday went (which was several days prior to when this episode of the podcast was recorded). I talk with Leeat about how I need to take things day by day, especially given all of the issues and problems that we are dealing with both within the United States and worldwide. And then we spend the first 27 minutes of the podcast having discussion about where we are with the Covid-19 pandemic, Democracy, and Voting Rights.

 

2. Then starting at the 27 minute mark of this episode, I talk about how one of my goals over the next year is to have more episodes of this podcast produced/recorded. I discuss with Leeat how we are just 4 episodes away from having 100 episodes of the podcast, how I have been involved with audio production and recording the voices of friends throughout my life beginning from my high school days, and I discuss with Leeat more about the history of these podcasts and how we got to the point we are at now in terms of The Juice with Jeff.

 

This interview was recorded thru Zoom on Friday October 22, 2021, and it lasts for 48 minutes. As is the case with all of "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #96

On this episode of the podcast, Andrew Pass conducts/co-produces an awesome audio interview with me thru Zoom, and this is the first time that Andrew makes his debut as an interviewer/co-producer in The Juice with Jeff family.

 

After Andrew and I give our introductions during the first 3 minutes of the podcast, we brought up the following topics:

 

1. Andrew brings up the subject of bullying and shares a story about how he was bullied as a kid. Then he asks me to talk about how I have dealt with people throughout my life who have seen differences which we have and somehow have been intimidated by those difference. I discussed with Andrew about how I was bullied frequently by a small number of people as a kid. And Andrew asks me what kind of advice I would give to an 11 year old kid who is bullied. I offer my thoughts on bullying, the importance of self-esteem, how extremely important it is for us to speak up and speak out against bullying/bigotry/etc... and how crucial it is that we love/accept/respect someone as they are for who they are. And during this part of the interview, I talk about my being autistic, how it has affected my life, how important it is that we promote Neurodiversity and Autism ACCEPTANCE (Not Autism Awareness).

 

2.  Then beginning at the 16 minute mark of the podcast, we then talk about our Camp Ramah in Wisconsin days. Both Andrew and I were a part of the Ramah Wisconsin community for a while, and Andrew starts off this part of the podcast by talking about how the best experience he has that has shaped who he is professionally and that helped him build his business is being a staff member at Ramah Wisconsin. Andrew asks me to talk about my Camp Ramah in Wisconsin experience and what impact my years at Ramah Wisconsin has on my life. I talk with Andrew about how being at Ramah Wisconsin as a camper (between the summers of 1989-1992) and as a staff member (between the summers of 1994-1997) has given me the opportunity to: a. make additional friends and improve my social skills, b. how Ramah is one of the main factors that has led me to take my Judaism seriously every day of the year at all times and how it helped me make the decision to become a religiously observant Jew, and c. how working at Ramah those 4 summers shaped the skills I have with what I do for a livelihood. Even though the job I had at Ramah Wisconsin didn't involve any management or supervisor requirements, it did shape what kind of style I tried to follow in doing my job and interacting with the camp community where I did my best to maintain a balance between being "Polite" AND being "firm". This portion of the podcast lasts around 16 minutes.

 

Then for about two minutes, Andrew asks me to talk about if there are aspects of my daily life today that are similar in terms of maintaining policies where I sometimes have to say NO for the good of the whole. And I explain how there are plenty of times where I have to say No to people and maintain a balance between helping out/caring about others and practicing self-care. I also mentioned during this part of the podcast about how I work for a sleep medicine clinic in the Des Moines area as the Chief Medical Records Scanner.

 

d. And then we spend the remaining 14 minutes of this episode talking about these "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts. Andrew asks me to talk about various aspects of the podcasts including: What are my goals for The Juice with Jeff, the history of the podcasts and how they came to exist, and about the funding I get from a couple people to financially afford being able to continue having these podcasts produced/recorded. I also talked during this part of the show about how I had experience in audio/video production by being on KWDM radio at Valley High School during the 2nd half of my high school years, by being in the J-School at Drake University for 4-1/2 years and having a significant amount of opportunities and experience in working on both audio and video productions. And I elaborate on how doing these podcasts allows me to continue to use my audio production skills.

 

This interview was recorded thru Zoom on Monday October 11, 2021, and it lasts for 50 minutes. As is the case with all of  "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #95

On this episode of the podcast, Jarad and Lilianna Bernstein conduct and co-produce a fantastic and outstanding interview with me in person. This is the third time that Lilianna has done an interview with me for the podcast, and this is the first time that Jarad makes his debut as an interviewer/co-producer in The Juice with Jeff family.

 

After we all expressed our excitement on how great it was for the three of us to see each other in person for the first time in 19 months, there are several different topics that Lilianna and Jarad ask me to talk about, Lilianna conducts the interview during the first 32 minutes of the podcast and asks me to talk about the following:

 

1.  How my life has changed with the Covid-19 pandemic over the last 18 months (since March 2020). I talked with Lilianna about new ways of doing things, more about these podcasts, learning how to use and master the Zoom for these podcasts (especially during the 13 months between the start of the pandemic in March 2020 and the time I was declared fully vaccinated in late March 2021). I also talked about how things have changed with me significantly in terms of priorities, friendships, and other things over that 18 month period.

 

2.  Then Lilianna asks me to share any stories or favorite memories I have from my childhood and teenage years. As part of this, I talked about some memories I have from my childhood and teenage years, including how my interest in audio equipment and production led to my being on the radio station at Valley High School - West Des Moines during my last two years of high school and also to my majoring in Radio/TV Production in the J School at Drake University during my college/university years. And then it segues into my talking about my J-School days during my 4-1/2 years at Drake.

 

And then at the 33 minute mark, Jarad then takes over the interviewing and he asks me to talk more about what Jewish Life was like in the Des Moines area during my childhood, teenager, and university/college days. I go into great detail discussing with Jarad about the differences in the Des Moines/central Iowa Jewish community between the earlier years of my life and now; and even what things were like in terms of Jewish life in Des Moines and Iowa even before I was born. This part of the interview lasts up thru the 1 hour mark of the podcast.

 

And then for the remaining 8 minutes of the interview, I have Lilianna talking about her perspective on the pandemic, memories she has from when she was in the J-School at Drake, and on their first child that will be arriving toward the end of 2021.

 

This interview was recorded outdoors at Campbell Recreational Area in Clive, IA on Sunday October 10, 2021, and it lasts for 1 hour and 7 minutes. As is the case with all of the "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #94

On this episode of the podcast, Sarah Graf conducts and co-produces an outstanding and fantastic audio interview with me in person. This is the second time that Sarah has done an interview with me for the podcast.

 

There are several different topics that Sarah and I talk about including: How we have both been handling the Covid-19 pandemic, our thoughts on what's going on with the pandemic these days, a few things and tidbits concerning the podcasts, how Sarah and I have both learned quite a lot about Zoom over the last 18 months.

 

Sarah asks me to talk more about Neurodiversity and my being autistic, and I spend a few minutes talking about this. Sarah herself talks a little bit about being a trauma survivor and how it has affected her during this part of the podcast. I also address the importance of being able to engage in what's called "Stimming" whenever I need to, along with how important it is that we love, accept, cherish, and respect everyone as they are for who they are. And we define what real friendships are during this part of the podcast as well.

 

I also talk with Sarah about how music helps me deal with stressful situations and go into detail describing what my favorite kinds of music are. Both Sarah and I each talk about a couple things we've done over the last 18 months. For instance, for my birthday last year on October 19, 2020; we did that birthday celebration on Zoom where 22 of my friends joined me for that. 

 

Starting at around the 45 minute mark, Sarah spends about 15 minutes or so talking about several of the things she's done during the Covid-19 pandemic, and then she also goes into detail talking about the trauma she has gone thru, what she has learned about trauma, and advice she has for people in dealing with trauma (including recommendations for books that she believes can help guide people on handling trauma). Then we talk for 18 minutes about the importance of us needing to speak up and speak out about multiple issues such as social justice, doing all we can to get the Covid-19 pandemic under control, and several other extremely important issues.

 

And then for the last 15 minutes, I perform the following voice impersonations for Sarah: Fat Albert, Mushmouth, The "Let's Get Ready to Rumble" announcer, the singer/composer Barry White o.b.m., Audrey II the Plant from "The Little Shop of Horrors", Tom Bodett, former President Trump, former President Obama, President Biden, Vice President Harris, U.S. Senate Minority Leader McConnell, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Schumer, the late Jim Morrison (The Doors), Fred Rogers o.b.m., King Friday, X the Owl, Henrietta Pussycat, Lady Elaine Fairchilde, and Mr. McFeeley. And then Sarah and I share our last thoughts to wrap up the podcast.

 

This interview was recorded outdoors at Riverview Park in Des Moines, IA on Sunday September 26, 2021, and it lasts for 1 hour and 33 minutes. As is the case with all of "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #93

On this episode of the podcast, Stephanie Hankenson conducts a fantastic and outstanding audio interview with me thru Zoom.

 

Stephanie and I went to Valley High School - WDM together at one point in time. While we have been staying in touch thru Messenger and each other's FB posts, the recording session for this podcast was the very first time in 30 years that Steph and I have gotten to have a real time conversation and hear each other's voices live!! 

 

Here are the topics that Stephanie and I brought up during this interview:

1.  After we did our introduction and shared how excited we were to talk with each other and hear each other's voices for the first time in 30 years, we spend 2 or so minutes sharing thoughts concerning the horrific and tragic events that occured on 9/11/2001.

 

2.  Then we spent nearly the entire rest of the interview talking about friendships, various things regarding the podcast, and sharing memories from our VHS days.

 

There is quite a lot of two way conversation during the interview and Stephanie shares her thoughts on some of the topics that are brought up.

 

This interview was recorded on the night of September 11, 2021 and it lasts for a total of around 1 hour and 27 minutes. As is the case with all of the "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #92

On this episode of the podcast Laura Grisamore conducts and co-produces an outstanding and fantastic audio interview with me thru Zoom, and this is the third time that Laura has done an interview with me for the podcast.

 

We did this interview thru Zoom, and there are several different topics that Laura and I talk about on the show:

 

1. We start off the podcast by my talking with Laura about how the whole podcast series is now part of a non-commercial, non-profit organization called The Juice with Jeff Inc. As part of the new organization, there is a 9 member Board of Directors and Advisory Committee that helps and guides me with suggestions for questions the friends who interview me should ask me about during the interview recording sessions if the friends interviewing me or I need additional ideas for topics, PR/Marketing suggestions in terms of how to market my podcasts, names of additional friends they think would be interested in interviewing me for the podcasts, and things like that concerning my podcasts. Laura herself is one of the 8 really good friends that is on The Juice with Jeff Inc.'s Board/Advisory Committee.

 

2.  Then Laura and I share some thoughts concerning the podcasts.

 

3.  Laura then talks about some fun and exciting things that she's been up to. I talk with Laura about my dogs and the things they have been up to.

 

4.   Laura asks me to talk about several Jewish religious holy days and festivals that I will be observing over the course of the three weeks following the production of this podcast. I explain to Laura in as "Layperson" a way as I can about these Jewish holy days and festivals and it takes up 50 minutes worth of the podcast.

 

5. And then we spend the remaining 25 to 30 minutes of the podcast talking a little more about these podcasts (i.e. The interviews for these podcasts being conducted in person versus the interviews being conducted thru Zoom), and then various thoughts both of us have concerning where we are in terms of the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

There is quite a bit of two way conversation during the interview and Laura shares her thoughts on some of the topics that are brought up.
This interview was recorded on September 3, 2021 and it lasts for a total of around 1 hour and 40 minutes. As is the case with all of the "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #91

On this episode of the podcast, Meghan Malloy conducts and co-produces a fantastic and superb audio interview with me in person. 

 

We recorded this interview outdoors at Walker Johnson Park in Urbandale. Meghan asked me questions focusing on several different topics including:

 

1. How she and I met, along with my involvement in 8 of the annual Hanukkah parties that Jarad Bernstein and Lilianna Wiesman-Bernstein would hold

 

2. My love of karaoke and the karaoke system that I have, along with the occasions where my karaoke system has been a part of various events that I've participated in.

 

3. Concerts that I've gone to in the past, and also the Broadway musicals that I've gone to at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines.

 

4.  Changes that have taken place in Des Moines over the years.

 

5.  My thoughts on the pandemic, and what special things I'm looking forward to doing once things with the pandemic significantly approve (i.e. Covid cases sharply decreasing, the overwhelming majority of the population is fully vaccinated, etc..).

 

There is quite a bit of two way conversation during the interview and Meghan shares her thoughts on some of the topics that are brought up.

This interview was recorded on August 16, 2021 and it lasts for a total of around 47 minutes. As is the case with all of the "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!!

The Juice with Jeff #90

On this episode of the podcast, Julia Franklin conducts and co-produces a fantastic and outstanding audio interview with me in person. This audio interview was recorded outdoors in the partially enclosed (with open air sides) shelter house structure at Crossroads Park in West Des Moines, IA.

After I give some introductory remarks, Julia asked me questions focusing in-depth on several different topics including:

1. How Julia and I met each other at a play called "Brilliant Traces" that was performed by a group called TheatreMidwest in January 2020. Julia did scenery and design work for the play, and we talked a little bit on what "Brilliant Traces" is about. Then I talk quite a bit with Julia about how I'm interested in the performing arts and how I periodically enjoy going to musicals and plays.

2. Then Julia asks me to talk about my love for doing 100+ voice impersonations. We start this part of the interview off with telling Julia about how/when I became interested in doing the voice impersonations and the several professional voice impressionists who have influenced me, Then I perform 35 of my voices for Julia: Fat Albert, Mushmouth, Michael Buffer (the "Let's Get Ready to Rumble" guy), Barry White o.b.m., the Levi Stubbs o.b.m. version of Audrey II from the musical version of "Little Shop of Horrors", Tom Bodett, Forrest Gump, Yogi Bear and Boo-Boo, Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Tweety and Sylvester, Trump, Obama, Biden, Romney, Mr. Burns/Smithers/Homer/Marge from "The Simpsons", Bert and Ernie, Big Bird and Snuffleupagus, the two announcers on "Soul Train" and Don Cornelius, Jim Morrison o.b.m. singing The Doors' version of the "Toys R' Us" jingle, Fred Rogers, King Friday, X the Owl, Henrietta Pussycat, Daniel Striped Tiger, Lady Elaine Fairchilde, and Mr. McFeeley.

3. Then Julia asks me to talk about my intense passion and love for Fred Rogers o.b.m. and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. I explain to Julia in great depth about how I became interested in Mister Rogers' Neighborhood and Fred Rogers, and the multiple reasons why I have an intense passion/love for Fred Rogers and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood; and I also talk with Julia about the "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" movie.

4. Then we wrap up the interview with my discussing with Julia about I'm really passionate about things like friendships, quality over quantity, Neurodiversity, and Autism Acceptance.

There are several points during the interview where Julia shares her thoughts on the topics that have been brought up during the podcast. This interview was recorded on Friday July 9, 2021 and it runs 1 hour and 25 minutes long. As is the case with all of the "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!

The Juice with Jeff #89

On this episode of the podcast, Ann Kaatz LoBue conducts and co-produces a fantastic and superb audio interview with me. This is the second time that Ann has done an interview on "The Juice with Jeff"; except that while the first interview Ann did with me in August 2020 was done thru Zoom, her second interview with me was conducted with me IN PERSON.

During the interview, Ann asked me to talk about things that basically revolving around three topics: our friendship, the Covid-19 pandemic and where we are at this point with it, and memories from our years (during the mid 1990's) in the J School as Radio/TV Production majors at Drake University, and there was quite a lot of two way conversation throughout the interview.

This interview was recorded on Monday June 28, 2021 and it runs 1 hour and 8 minutes long. As is the case with all of the "The Juice with Jeff" podcasts, funding for this podcast is provided by Realty With Ahart and RandomKid. Enjoy!