A Minnesota Trans-Atheist

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Quick

• 05:05 Interview with Brianna
• 63:03 Closing Music introduction by Bradley Ard

My guest today is a local listener, where local is defined as living about an hour south of me in the gorgeous town of Rochester, Minnesota. I say gorgeous because it has lots of bike trails, and if you fall down and get hurt you’re never more than a block away from some part of the Mayo clinic.

Brianna and I were exchanging emails for at least the last year, I’m pretty sure it was before she even began medically transitioning. We talked about atheism, transitioning, family, being married, staying married....and I realized I was talking about someone going through some of the same kind of things I was going through...and thus began the process of getting her on the show.

I hope enjoy this conversation as much as I enjoyed having it, because this was one of those conversations that didn’t need a microphone. It was just a lovely conversation with a lovely person, and at the end of it I left a better person for it.

The music for this episode is by Bradley Ard, someone I met on twitter who makes really great music, check them out below and follow them on Twitter.

Opening and bumper music is by Obsidian Shell find them at http://www.obsidianshell.com/

Links:

Southeast Minnesota Transgender website is http://www.semt.info/

Mayo TISCC link: Currently unable to find :( will update when available.

University of Minnesota Center for Sexual Health: http://www.sexualhealth.umn.edu/clinic-center-sexual-health/transgender-health-services

Quick Mayo Clinic video I found interesting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhfcpJviuhI

Less Wrong: http://lesswrong.com/

Clergy Project, for those involved in the clergy but are actually atheists: http://clergyproject.org/

Music:

Closing Music: https://twitter.com/BradleyArd1

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/bradley-ard

Atheist Talk: http://mnatheists.org/news-and-media/podcast

AM950 KTNF: http://www.am950radio.com/listen-live

Hey did you hear about the little boy who farted in church? Everyone just let him sit in his own pew!

Why did Cinderella get kicked off the softball team? Because she kept running away from the ball!

What do you make with epileptic lettuce? A seizure salad

What did the big bucket say to the little bucket? You look a little pail!

Okay, that's enough bad jokes for one episode

Thanks again for downloading and listening!

-Maddy

Call the show! 612-643-1108

Email the show [email protected]

Leave comments for the show at www.trans-atheist.com visit us on Facebook www.facebook.com/transatheistpod or Follow on Twitter @transatheistpod

Not feeling safe? Need to talk? The Trans Lifeline is 1-877-565-8860 remember you're never alone.

Quick Episode Summary

• 1:02 Quick introduction for new listeners
• 05:18 Grease Rag Interview
• 58:08 PixelGoth

This episode features an interview with Grease Rag, a mostly Minneapolis based Women, Trans, and Femme cycling organization who are successfully creating safe spaces not just for cisgender women, but also for anyone who is femme, trans, non-binary, or really anyone who doesn't fit into the standard cisgender masculine community.

One of my favorite aspects of Grease Rag is how grassroots and welcoming they are. You don't have to own an expensive bicycle to belong. You don't have to know anything about a bicycle to be welcome at one of their open shops. You simply have to be decent person.

The people who make Grease Rag possible are passionate about bicycling, and about empowering everyone and anyone who identifies as a Woman, Trans, or Femme.

Personally, I love my bicycle. I've always loved my bicycle. I love the freedom of moving fast, under my own pedal power, and the feeling of wind on my face. I love the being alone among people in the city, riding through Minneapolis, not having to worry about finding a place to park before I find a place for coffee. I love realizing I'm 30 miles away from home, and that I rode there, and the only way I'm getting home is back on that bicycle - or the bus :)

If you live in, or are visiting Minneapolis, I highly recommend the Grand Rounds, a bicycle tour of the city park system that encircles the city. You'll see Minnehaha Falls, the Chain of Lakes area, the Downtown Waterfront, and a lot more scenic and natural beauty nested in an urban area.

Minneapolis and Saint Paul have a fantastic bike sharing program, called Nice Ride Minnesota, that I use quite frequently, its a wonderful way to see the city or even as a transportation solution.

Music for this episode is by Pixelgoth, aka Grace Lynn, a pixel artist, songwriter, and game designer. You can check out all of the amazing Pixel Art following the link below, and while you're enjoying the art, you can listen to some of Grace Lynn's music on the Soundcloud page (see the big giant picture/link below).

As always opening and bumper music for the show was provided courtesy of Obsidian Shell.

Links

Grease Rag's home page: http://greaserag.org/ which is chock full of calendars, links, and so much Greasy Goodness.

Grease Rag on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/greaserag/

Babes in Bikeland home page: http://babesinbikeland.com/

Minneapolis Grand Rounds: http://www.minneapolisparks.org/grandrounds/home.htm

Witch Hat Hill / Prospect Park: http://www.minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=4&parkid=486

Nice Ride Minnesota: https://www.niceridemn.org/

Pixelgoth Homepage: http://www.pixelgoth.com/

Pixelgoth Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/pixelgoth

Obsidian Shell: http://www.obsidianshell.com/

Bad Joke(s)

• I bet the butcher $50 that she couldn't reach the meat from the top shelf without a step stool. She just looked at me, and said, "Nope, I can't make that bet, you see the steaks are just too high."
• Why can’t you hear a pterodactyl in the bathroom? Because it has a silent pee!

Call the show: 612-643-1108

Email the show: [email protected]

Like the show on Facebook: www.facebook.com/transatheistpod

Follow me on twitter: @transatheistpod

QUICK

• 01:12 Drake comes on to say thank you
• 03:25 Baloney Detection Kit
• 10:12 Interview with Travis Peterson of Minnesota Skeptics
• 60:48 Closing music by Advntr
  • Gelidity
  • Galdr

My interview this episode with Travis Peterson, lead organizer of Minnesota Skeptics. Minnesota Skeptics are a passionate group of science advocates dedicated to the pursuit of scientific skepticism. During this interview I bring up the subject of diversity, I won’t spoil the answer, but I will point out that as a gender non-conforming transwoman I’ve always felt welcome, safe, and completely accepted as is. I’m consistently greeted with the correct name, pronouns, and don’t ever feel as though I’m being judged. I can’t promise you every skeptic group is as awesome as Minnesota Skeptics, but I can promise you Minnesota Skeptics is a place I feel safe to be myself, and of course, question everything.

This interview was recorded inside the Be’Wiched Deli, which is on 800 North Washington Avenue in Minneapolis, right next to Target Field. They’re super nice, have the most delicious homemade caramel sauce, and were gracious in allowing me to record in their lobby.

LINKS:

Minnesota Skeptics Meet-up: http://www.meetup.com/Minneapolis-Skeptics/

Minnesota Skeptics Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/minnesotaskeptics/

Drinking Skeptically: http://drinkingskeptically.org/

Be'Wiched Deli: http://www.bewicheddeli.com/

How to build a cloud chamber (yeah we tried and failed the night of the recording - but failure is a result!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pewTySxfTQk

Graphic Link of baby struggling to breath with whooping cough (B. pertussis) due to low vaccination rates...I cannot stress enough how graphic this is.

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/83846238/

Confused on who Bel Biv Devoe is? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sb2np1HGqxg

Explanation of Homeopathy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Z7KeNCi7g

Music:

Obsidian Shell Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/obsidianshell?_rdr=p Or their mainpage: http://www.obsidianshell.com/

Musical guest this episode is Advntr, she is a 24-year-old multi-genre music producer from Illinois who shifts between a lot of Electronic dance music and Ambient music that could be deemed as "music for film and video game related content"

You can find her Soundcloud page here: https://soundcloud.com/advntr

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Thanks for being such awesome listeners!

How many ears does Mr. Spock have? He has a left ear, a right ear, and the final front-ear!

What do you call a cow with no legs? Ground Beef!

What do sprinters eat before a race? Nothing....they fast!

-Maddy

612-643-1108 [email protected]

You can call or email the show! Search iTunes, Amazon, or the Google Play Store for "Trans-Atheist" to download a free app for the show!

This episode features an interview with Paula Overby, a transgender woman running for Congress right here in Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District. I know you may already be sick of politics - but I encourage you to give Paula a listen, here her message, and send her your feedback.

Paula's politics and mine are very similar, which made endorsing her, and having her on the podcast such a wonderful time.

You can find Paula's website at http://www.paulaoverby.com/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/paula.overby.52 Twitter https://twitter.com/paulaoverby2014 Send an email to her at [email protected] Find Paula on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLarDlYlgxVMBWBfrmnkosw/videos

If you're looking for the Transition Transmission Podcast find them in iTunes, or head over to their show page at http://transitiontransmission.com/

Don't forget to review us on iTunes, Stitcher, or whatever you use to listen and consume podcasts - and of course remember we have that FREE app :)

Find Obsidian Shell on iTunes, on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/Havoccus/videos or head over to http://obsidianshell.com/

Thanks as always for listening!

Oh hey, almost forgot - How do you make facial tissue dance? You put a little "boogie" into it!

-Maddy

[email protected]

612-643-1108

Call the show at 612-643-1108 or email [email protected] Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/transatheistpod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/transatheistpod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/transatheistpod/ Main show page is http://www.thequeerlife.org/category/transatheistpod/ The Trans Lifeline is http://www.translifeline.org/ US: (877) 565-8860 and Canada: (877) 330-6366 Quick links:

• 01:02 Thank you!
• 07:36 Interview with Ted Meissner
• 71:58 Nicki Andro "Cylinder Spin"
• 75:30 Nicki Andro "Distant Hearts (Raise Community Awareness)"

My guest today is Ted Meissner, the Executive Director of the Secular Buddhist Association, host of their official podcast The Secular Buddhist, and on the Advisory Board for the Spiritual Naturalist Society. His background is in the Zen and Theravada traditions, he is a regular speaker on interfaith panel discussions, and is interested in examining the evolution of contemplative practice in contemporary culture. Ted works at the University of Massachusetts Medical School Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society doing community development and teaching Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction.

In addition to all that formal stuff, Ted is also one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. Whether or not mindfulness, is your cup of tea or not, Ted’s approach to life is definitely working for him. When I asked Ted if I could sit down with him, it was with the goal of learning more about Secular Buddhism, because it seemed like a contradictory term. Just like when someone identifies as “Christian” there is no way to know whether they take communion with wine or grape juice (and don’t for a minute think that’s not an important question to a lot of Christians) It is important to remember not all Buddhists have the same philosophy, there are many differing ideas and schools of thought. Some Buddhists believe in reincarnation and some don’t. There are around 350 million Buddhists worldwide, and just 6 months ago I was completely ignorant of different and nuanced those different belief systems were.

As Ted is a secular Buddhist, this interview will focus on what he believes, and I hope that you find it as interesting and thought provoking as I did.

Ted Meissner Links:

The Secular Buddhist Associations main page: http://secularbuddhism.org/

The Present Moment, Mindfulness, Practice, and Science: http://presentmomentmindfulness.com/category/podcasts/

Ted mentions http://whatstheharm.net/ as a website you can peruse to see how people have been harmed by pseudoscience they thought was harmless.

Ted discusses the book Mindfulness for Depression and Anxiety by Mark Williams. You can find the book online just about anywhere books are sold, here is the link for Google Books https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Mark_Williams_Mindfulness?id=fReoFW9tLxAC

http://www.mindfulschools.org/

Another podcast referenced by Ted: http://www.angryasianbuddhist.com/

Ted tells a humorous story about Uri Geller and James Randi. Here are a couple clips from YouTube:

The first one is a bit longer in the setup, but is well worth the watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9w7jHYriFo

The second is a TED talk given by James Randi on why skepticism is so important....and you should be asking tough questions of those who claim to have supernatural powers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0Z7KeNCi7g

Nicki Andro Links:

Here is an interview with TransMusePlanet: http://transmuseplanet.blogspot.com/search?q=nicki+andro

Here is Nicki's SoundCloud Page: https://soundcloud.com/nicki-andro

You can also connect with Nicki on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nickiandromusik?_rdr=p

Here is her YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8XPXuE4ABMAQe_pObsuFsQ

And links to both of the songs played in the episode:

https://youtu.be/4gh0cc_Eyh4