The Juice with Jeff

The Juice with Jeff #63

On this episode of the podcast, Angie Tessau conducts and co-produces an excellent audio interview with me. Angie brings up a bunch of topics and asks me questions on a bunch of topics including: How I've been doing with the COVID-19 pandemic and how I'm dealing with things in terms of COVID-19, the physical distancing recommendations, and the usual everyday things on my plate that I have to deal with; what I do to stay positive and keep my mental health in check; how does my Judaism contribute in terms of how I'm handling the pandemic; what are my favorite foods to cook and how I learned to do the cooking that I do; the results from the latest lab work that was done on me in terms of my health; how my job is going, and where I get the ideas for the inspirational quotes that I share on Facebook. We conclude the interview with Angie and I sharing memories from our Valley High School days. This interview was recorded on the afternoon of Friday July 17, 2020 and it runs 42 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 #62

On this episode of the podcast, Lilianna Bernstein conducts and co-produces an awesome audio interview with me. Lilianna brings up and asks me questions on a wide variety of topics such as: how I'm handling things in the midst of COVID-19 and the physical distancing recommendations, what effect the pandemic is having on my life and the things I do to help me stay positive and to keep my mental health in check, if I could go back thru Drake University and do my college education again would I do the same thing or study/major in something totally different, a few tidbits about my Drake days, what activities would I like to do (or do more of) if I didn't have to worry about being on standby for my parents or didn't have any restrictions to worry about, memories I have from the time I spent in the land of Israel during the summer of 1993, and I perform several of my voice impersonations for Lilianna. This interview was recorded on the night of Tuesday June 30, 2020 and it runs 1 hour and 4 minutes (64 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 #61

On this episode of the podcast, Heidi Gojkovich conducts and co-produces an excellent and fun audio interview with me. Heidi begins the interview by asking to talk about memories that stand out during my time at Drake and more specifically in the basement of Meredith Hall (the lower level of Meredith has the facilities for the Radio/TV/Video production classes and projects). I describe in detail a bunch of memories I have from my 4-1/2 years in the J School at Drake and with the audio and video production experiences I had during those years and then I talk about what I'm doing today. Heidi also shares a few memories she has during her 4 years in the J School at Drake. Then Heidi asks me to talk more about my cooking talent and what my favorite foods to make or cook are. Heidi then mentions that she and her husband Scott got to see me (for the first time in over 20 years) at a musical that I went to at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines and asks me to talk about a favorite musical that I went to there; and I tell her about how I enjoy going with my sister to the Willis Broadway Series of 6 musicals per year at the Civic Center. Heidi then asks me to talk about the things that I do to help keep me positive in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and physical distancing guidelines that go with it. And then I perform 20 or so of my voice impersonations for Heidi. This interview was recorded on the night of Monday June 29, 2020 and it runs 1 hour and 7 minutes (67 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 #60

On this episode of the podcast, Sandy Henry conducts and co-produces a fun and excellent audio interview with me. Sandy starts off the interview by asking me to talk about my 4-1/2 years (between 1994 to 1998) in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Drake University majoring in Radio-TV Production, and during that segment I first talk about the experience I had with my two years being on KWDM at Valley High School in West Des Moines (Iowa) prior to my Drake years, and I share memories from my 4-1/2 years at Drake's "J School". Then Sandy asks me about any things I learned in the Radio-TV Production track at Drake's J School that I still use today and I talk with her about what I have ended up doing in terms of work. I talk with her about how I have done (and still occasionally do) event video production as a hobby and about how I regularly do audio production as a hobby. Sandy then asks me to talk about how she's impressed with my cooking skills and what I do with that. my passion for food in general, and about what local restaurants I enjoy going to. And then I perform about 20 of my voice impersonations for Sandy. The last thing Sandy brings up during the interview is that she gives me an opportunity to offer a message to Todd Evans. Todd was one of the professors that I had during my years in the J School at Drake, he taught many broadcast courses at Drake for several decades and he officially retired from Drake in the spring of 2020. Sandy ends the interview with words of positivity. 

This interview was recorded on Friday June 26, 2020 and it runs 1 hour and 15 minutes (75 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 #43

On this episode of the podcast, Michelle Parmita Voeller conducts and co-produces a fantastic audio interview with me. When this interview was recorded on April 15, 2020; there was a technical issue that came up on Zoom where for some reason, the recording conversion process from Zoom to my computer's hard drive could not be completed, so Michelle conducted/co-produced a second audio interview with me two days later where the recording conversion process from Zoom to my computer succeeded right away. But on the night of June 6, 2020, with the help of a couple websites I saw on the internet and thru watching a YouTube video; I was able to learn how to fix the problem with the Zoom recording conversion process involving the files from Michelle's original audio interview with me, complete the recording conversion process from the Zoom files of our interview to my computer, and then finally be able to share the interview here. During this audio interview, there are a whole bunch of topics that are brought up:

1.  The interview begins with Michelle asking me about how and when I got the idea to start the "The Juice with Jeff" podcast series and to have friends conduct/co-produce these audio interviews with me

2.  Then Michelle asks me to talk more about my strong emphasis on the importance of being kind to everyone and also in trying my very best to be positive/optimistic as much as possible.

3.  Then I ask Michelle to talk about how she decided to become a Yoga teacher and Reiki Master Teacher Practitioner.

4.  Michelle asks me to talk more about the Jewish festival of Pesah/Passover. There are several aspects of Passover that I talk about with Michelle:  The events in Jewish history that led to the observance of Pesah/Passover, why Pesah/Passover is celebrated, and the basics on what makes food Kosher or not Kosher for Pesah.

5. Michelle asks me about my interest in nutrition and I explain my thoughts on what I consider to be a healthy diet in terms of food without promoting a specific type of diet. I also talk with Michelle about my Acromegaly and about how I had to have two major surgeries in January 2016 to remove as much as possible of a really large tumor that was in my pituitary gland. I also talk about the importance of keeping our mental health in check and the importance of keeping our stress levels under control.

6. Michelle asks me to talk more about my really strong interest in music and I explain in detail how music is an extremely important and essential part of my life. Michelle also shares her thoughts on the importance of music.

7. Michelle asks me to talk about my interest in weather (as a hobby).

8. Michelle and I each share a couple fun and special memories we have from our Valley High School (West Des Moines, IA) days.

9. Toward the end of the interview, I perform 17 of my many voice impersonations for Michelle.

10. Michelle ends the interview with ends the interview with a message of positivity.

This interview was recorded on Wednesday April 15, 2020 and it runs 1 hour 2 minutes long (62 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 #59

On this episode of the podcast, Ali Harms conducts and co-produces a superb and really fun audio interview with me. Ali starts off the interview by asking me questions about my cooking abilities, my passion for food in general, and about what local restaurants I enjoy going to. Then Ali asks me about what talents I am proud of and I answer her question by talking about how I enjoy singing from time to time as a hobby, I talk with Ali more about the "The Juice with Jeff" podcast series, and then I talk with Ali about my repertoire of 100+ voice impersonations. And during the part of the interview where my voices are brought up, I perform about 35 (I'm serious!!) of my voice impersonations for Ali. Then Ali asks me questions about: 1. How I do I suggest that Ali could get rid of the hiccups she's been dealing with (and I answer this question with the voice of Dr. Anthony Fauci), 2. What is one topic I wish I could know everything about, 3. What are the things that cheer me up the most. Ali ends the interview with words of positivity. 

This interview was recorded on Wednesday June 3, 2020 and it runs around 55 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 #58

On this episode of the podcast, Nicole Voeller Brooks conducts and co-produces a fantastic audio interview with me. We start off the interview with Nicole bringing up a "Small World" story about how one of the parents of a friend of her oldest daughter went to Camp Ramah in Wisconsin with me (during the late 1980's thru mid 1990's) and how Nicole knows a friend from my Ramah Wisconsin days named Matthew Litwack. I told Nicole about how I indeed know Matt Litwack very well from the Ramah days. I then talk with Nicole about how I spent 8 weeks at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin between the summers of 1989 thru 1992 as a camper and again as a staff member between the summers of 1994 thru 1996 for 9 weeks each of those summers and for 4 weeks during the summer of 1997. I also talk with Nicole about how Ramah Wisconsin is one of the many summer camps that are not opening their physical camps at all during the summer of 2020 because of COVID-19 and the physical distancing guidelines that go with it but that they are offering certain camp programs this summer virtually thru the internet and Zoom. I then mention several other things about my involvement with Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, including how my years at camp have played a significant role in changing my life in terms of my social skills and also with my decision to take Judaism seriously 24-7 all year round. Nicole then asks me about keeping kosher and I tell her about how I try my best to observe the basic minimum requirements of what keeping the rules of Kosher involve (including how I deal with it at restaurants and at the Iowa State Fair). Then Nicole asks me "Rapid Fire" questions on three topics: If I had to only have one snack food for the rest of my life, what would I pick?; What is my most commonly used emoji if I use them for text messages, etc.; and What is my favorite restaurant in Des Moines? Nicole ends the interview with words of positivity. This interview was recorded on Tuesday June 2, 2020 and it runs around 33 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 #57

On this episode of the podcast, Jill Bassman conducts and co-produces a fantastic audio interview with me . This is the 4th audio interview that Jill has conducted and co-produced since "The Juice with Jeff" began back in the summer of 2017. During the interview, Jill asks me questions on: how I'm handling things with the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing guidelines, the things that I do to help keep me positive and to keep my mental health in check in the midst of COVID-19 and the social distancing guidelines, I perform several of voice impersonations for Jill (Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds,Dr. Anthony Fauci, the announcer (Jen Spyra) for the Late Show with Stephen Colbert) and I explain to Jill how I learned to do those 100+ voice impersonations, my cooking and any new recipes I've learned, how I feel about all sorts of businesses being permitted to open back up during COVID-19 albeit with significant modifications in accordance with the CDC, etc.... health and safety guidelines and social distancing recommendations, and my plans for the rest of Memorial Day. Jill ends the interview with a message of positivity. This interview was recorded on Monday May 25, 2020 and it runs around 32 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 #56

On this episode of the podcast, Micole Van Walbeek conducts and co-produces a fantastic audio interview with me. There are several topics that Micole asks me questions about during the interview: More about the series about these "The Juice with Jeff"/"Jeff's Friends Interview Him" podcasts, the things that I do to help keep me positive and to keep my mental health in check in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing guidelines that go with it, what things I am going to take away from the COVID-19 pandemic, if there are any people I've been able to see in person where I really value their time, have I been able to support any local businesses or local restaurants (for take out or delivery) during COVID-19, what kind of music I enjoy, my plans for Memorial Day Weekend, and how I feel in terms of using social media during COVID-19. This interview was recorded on the afternoon of Friday May 22, 2020 and it runs around 28 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 #55

On this episode of the podcast, Jami Bassman Ahart and Tom Ahart conduct and co-produce a fantastic and super fun audio interview with me. There are several topics that are brought up during the interview: What I've been up to during the week this podcast was recorded, I do my voice impersonations of Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and Dr. Anthony Fauci with a couple bits of US President Trump thrown in, I also do my voice impersonation of the announcer (Jen Spyra) for the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, how I learned to do those 100+ voice impersonations, I perform an original abridged version of Mister Rogers Neighborhood called "A Taste of Mister Rogers" with me doing the voices of Fred Rogers and several of the show's puppets with Jami and Tom joining in at times, my feelings on how we should carry on with life in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and the social distancing guidelines, and we end the interview with me talking about several things that I do to stay positive and to keep my mental health in check during the COVID-19 pandemic and all that goes with it. A good chunk of this podcast is quite hilarious and full of laughter. This interview was recorded on the night of Monday May 18, 2020 and it runs around 38 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!!