Dream Chasers and Eccentrics

Sam Trammell, Making it as an Actor, remastered 02.07.2026 1h 12m

This is a remastered version of episode 4, from 2023, when the podcast was new. It's such a great interview that I remastered it and republished it. Sam Trammell is not only a great actor, but a fascinating person who had a dream, chased it to fruition, and made it happen. He is probably best known for his role as the shapeshifter Sam Merlotte in HBO's "True Blood," and has also been in "The Fault in our Stars," "Homeland," "The Gray House," "Big George Foreman," and many other movies, TV shows, and plays. He is currently in "Euphoria" as the character Ellis. We talk about childhood visions of being a physicist, getting into acting, Brown Summer Theater, Broadway and Off-Broadway jobs, acting classes, working hard, staying focused, luck, persistance, rejection, staying in and getting out of character, doing accents, moving to Los Angeles, avoiding temptations, drugs, food, professional decisions, job choices, auditions, offers, a typical day on a set, dangers, calling up emotions, alligators, advice for young aspiring actors, and more. Links are on the podcast website Support the show theough Patreon

Margaret Bryden, Poetry in Therapy 25.06.2026 1h 8m

Margaret Bryden is a licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, author, and founder of Sage Insight Therapy. She works with individuals and couples navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, addiction and life transitions. Margaret is the author of "How I Understand It: A Bad Poet's Guide to Mental Health & Resilience," where she introduces "bad poetry" as a powerful, accessible tool for emotional processing and insight. Through her work, she helps people start understanding themselves in a way that leads to real connection, clarity and resilience. We talk about using poetry in therapy, getting patients and clients to write poetry, writing bad poetry, how therapy and poetry help clients discover things about themselves, hope, boundaries and how this is defined, consequences, her book, what poetry is, she reads two of her poems from the book, birds, codependency, marriage, resiliance, self-awareness, communication, publishing, artificial intelligence and the value of writing poetry without it, mind hacks to increase productivity, television, nature, art, and more. links are on the podcast website support the show through Patreon

Native American Author David Heska Wanbli Weiden, Wisdom Corner 18.06.2026 1h 7m

David Heska Wanbli Weiden is an award winning author, professor, and an enrolled citizen of the Sicangu Lakota nation. He received his MFA from the Institute of American Indian Arts, his law degree from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, and his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. He's professor of English and Native American and Indigenous Studies at Stony Brook University and also serves on the faculty of the Cedar Crest Pan-European MFA Program. He lives in New York and Colorado with his family. Hw is the author of Wisdom Corner, forthcoming in July, 2026 from Ecco/HarperCollins. He's also the author of the national bestseller Winter Counts (Ecco, 2020), which was the winner of many awards, and was a New York Times Editors' Choice, an Indie Next pick, main selection of the Book of the Month Club, and named a Best Book of the year by NPR, Amazon, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, The Guardian, and other magazines. The novel is included in Time magazine's list of the 100 best mystery and thriller novels of all time. We talk about his book Wisdom Corner, Native Americans, his book Winter Counts, the broken criminal justice system on Indian Reservations, Native American boarding schools, the word "Indian" and whether or not it is offensive, the Sicangu Lakota Nation, Native American history, bison, life of the Indians before Europeans came, the slaughter of the bison, passages from the book, religion, Buddhism, Lakota spirituality, treaties made and broken, the future of Native Americans, football, writing a best seller as a first novel, the role of fiction in bringing about social change, teaching creative writing, writing dialogue, books, short stories, favorite authors, movies, the Native American Literary renaisance, and more.

Antiauthoritarian Psychotherapy, Lincoln Stoller 11.06.2026 1h 17m

Lincoln Stoller is a quantum physicist, neuropsychologist, hypnotherapist, clinical counselor, psychonaut, mountaineer, author, and educator. His approach to psychotherapy is unique and antiauthoritarian, combining science, spirit, economics, and mental health through an understanding of the hard sciences, the psyche, and the behavior of groups. We talk about quantum physics, psychotherapy, moutaineering, traveling and visiting other cultures, education, hypnotherapy, length of life, racism, ADD/ADHD and how it's diagnosis is abused, the problems with modern education, how psychotherapy started as a political tool, modern quasi-slavery, alternative schools, ecology, indigenous Panamanians, hope for the future, depression, Caribbean society, unemployment, schizophrenia, family structures, Spanish and English languages, dreams, past lives, inherited personalities, empathy, war, and more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Past Lives and Forgiveness, Dr. Anthony Emmett, remastered 04.06.2026 1h 11m

This is an episode I published in February of 2024, and it is so good that I remastered it to remove background noise and improve sound quality. Even if you listened to it two years ago, it is well worth a second listen. Dr. Emmett is a retired surgeon, sculptor, and author. He has a vast and unique knowledge of a level of consciousness that most of us don't perceive. We talk about self-image, the subconscious, intuitive knowledge, immortality, consciousness, meditation, telepathy, past lives, working with clairvoyants, the source of knowledge, the creator, history of religion, karma, the purpose of life, UFO's, near-death experiences, other dimensions, the power and importance of forgiveness, the energy field of creation and love (God), why we should be planting more forests, why we shouldn't get angry, how to be more forgiving, hypnosis and autohypnosis, Buddhism, and much more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Anthony Horowitz, Author of A Deadly Episode 28.05.2026 53m

Anthony Horowitz is a British novelist and screenwriter who has written over fifty books. He started with children's books and first found success with the Alex Rider seires, which has sold over 21 million copies and was made in to a TV series on Amazon. As his readers grew up, he began writing mysteries, including Magpie Murders, which initiated a series on BBC Television. He has also written for the Sherlock Holmes and 007 estates. He has written several television series including Foyle's War and Midsomer Murders. He was on this podcast in 2025 talking about his book "Marble Hall Murders." His latest book is "A Deadly Episode." We talk about reader feedback, reviews, work and time spent working, swimming in the river Thames, blending fiction and reality, solving the crime in the book and how difficult the author wants this to be, scripts and adaptations, other books and authors, elaborate setting descriptions, settings and characters, immersion in the book and characters, writing with a pen vs a computer, fountain pens, writing a mystery within a mystery, word puzzles, keeping the mind active, poetry, social media and phones, keeping up the motivation to write before breaking out, self-publishing vs traditional publishing, mediocre writers and great writers and what separates them, a connection to something greater than us and cultivating it, his favorite of his own books, advice for writers, and more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Cornucopia, a Sci-Fi Short Story by Paul Trammell 14.05.2026 38m

Cornucopia is a short story about a mission to colonize another planet, written and narrated by Paul Trammell. Subscribe to paultrammell.substack.com to get a freee short story in your mailbox on the first of each month. Support the show through Patreon.

Phyllis E Leavitt, a Spiritual Journey and America in Therapy 07.05.2026 1h 8m

Phyllis E Leavitt graduated from Antioch University with a Masters' Degree in Psychology and Counseling in 1989. She co-directed a sexual abuse treatment program called Parents United in Santa Fe, New Mexico until 1991 and then went into private practice full time. As a psychotherapist, she treated children, families, couples, and individual adults for 34 years, and has worked extensively with abuse and dysfunctional family dynamics, their aftermath, and some of the most important elements for healing, including the intersection of emotional wellbeing and spiritual healing and connection. She has written three books, "A Light in the Darkness," "Into the Fire," and her latest book, "America in Therapy: A New Approach to Hope and Healing for a Nation in Crisis." In this interview, we talk about visions of a divine love consciousness, finding a path to divine guidance, poetry, our souls and what they are doing here, operating as a soul-consciousness in our human bodies, receiving messages, moving away from an ego-consciousness, past lives and reincarnation, tuning in to our highest source, her books, injury to love and safe belonging, healing and shedding negative beliefs and coping mechanisms, family dynamics, the family of America and how it resmbles an abusive family, her book "America in Therapy," division in America, sobriety, and more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Phil Borges, Shamans, Schizophrenia, and CRAZYWISE 30.04.2026 1h 4m

Phil Borges is a photographer and flimmaker dedicated to documenting the lives of indigenous cultures, and their shamans in particular. His work is exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide and his award winning books, which have been published in four languages, include Tibetan Portrait, Enduring Spirit, Women Empowered and Tibet: Culture on the Edge. He has hosted television documentaries on indigenous cultures for Discovery and National Geographic channels. Phil also lectures and teaches internationally. During his work, he noticed similarities between shamans and the people we label as mentally ill - specifically schizophrenic or bipolar. His documentary Crazywise dives into this subject and focuses on two individuals in America who suffer from psychotic episodes and how they tried to deal with their mental difficulties. CRAZYWISE explores the relevance of Shamanic traditional practices and beliefs to those of us living in the modern world. CRAZYWISE centers around a young man struggling with his sanity, world renowned mental health professionals, and a gutsy survivor-led movement...all challenging a mental health system in crisis. In this interview, we talk about growing up in the Haight-Ashbury, becoming an orthodontist, interviewing hippies on the street, becoming a photographer/interviewer, becoming a professional photographer, documenting tribal cultures, Tibet, watching the Dahlai Lama's kuten go into trance and channel an oracle, an interview with the kuten discussing how he got the job, things shamans have in common, schizophrenia, ego disolution, psychadelic experiences and the neuroscience behind them, what happens when our identity anchors are taken away, near-death experiences, our view of reality, making the film CRAZYWISE, Vipassana, pharmaceuticals, trauma, ayahuasca, psilocybin, how to talk to people having a psychotic episode or paranoid hallucinations, the stigma associated with psychotic diagnoses, advice for people with schizophrenic freinds, the importance of maintaining the relationship, and more. links are on the podcast shownotes page support the show through patreon

Race Relations in the South and How they have Changed, Melvin Edwards 21.04.2026 1h 5m

Melvin Edwards is an author, journalist, and podcaster. His latest book is "Nuremberg Mississippi." We talk about how laws affected blacks differently from whites and were used as tools of opression, such as not being able to use the front door of stores or to eat inside restaurants or for a black man to be driving with a white woman or to be black and in town after sunset in "sundown towns," segregation, the "Negro Motorist's Green Book," where racism comes from and how slavery started it and perpetuated it, why it's nearly impossible for Blacks to trace their ancenstors in the USA prior to emancipation, his book "Nuremberg Mississippi," how the current administration emboldened racism in America, racist organizations in America, why people join racist organizations, PTSD, what we can do to promote friendliness between races, Jim Crow - where the name came from and what it means, his podcast "Stories from Real Life," and more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Space Man, a Short Story 16.04.2026 29m

Space Man is a short story by Paul Trammell, published April 1 on paultrammell.substack.com The story is narrated by the author. Links are on the podcast shownotes page support the show through either substack, if you want more short stories, or Patreon

Amjad Tadros, The Fixer, War Journalism in the Middle East 07.04.2026 1h 10m

Amjad Tadros was CBS News' Middle East producer from 1990 to 2023, during which he managed regional coverage of transformative events, including Iraq's wars, the September 11 hijackers' backstories, the Arab Spring, and Syria's chemical attacks on civilians. His commitment to truth earned him four Emmy Awards, including for stories about Syria's chemical gas attacks (2016) and White Helmets (2017), a 2008 Peabody Award, and two Alfred I duPont Awards from Columbia Journalism School. He is also the author of the recently published book The Fixer: A Journalist's Accidental Journey Through the Middle East. We talk about current events in the Middle East - including the war in Iran, the people and various cultures of the Middles East, how war can be prevented, Yemen, how the lies a spy told helped instigate the Iraq War, Islam, the actual meaning of "Jihad," why wars start, nuclear weapons, Qatar, the possibility of the war in Iran spreading, why war does not solve anything, the Epstein files, war journalism and what goes on behind the scenes, fake-news accusations and why they break his heart, meeting Osama Bin Laden's bodyguard, Bin Laden's objective, 9-11, what a "fixer" is in journalism, trustworthy news outlets, and more.

Former FBI Agent Eric Robinson 02.04.2026 1h 6m

Eric Robinson was a Baptist pastor before becoming an FBI agent. He was a SWAT operator for 15 years, a tactical and firearms instructor, and worked in Human Intelligence, National Security, and most of the criminal offenses covered by the FBI. He recruited informants, dealt with teen prostitutes, interrogated terrorists, arrested drug dealers and peadophiles, and much more. Two of his cases won the Attorney General's Award. He is writing a book, not released yet, titled "Irreverend." We talk about becoming an FBI agent, morals and ethics in work, why he left his ministry to join the FBI, similarities between the ministry and the FBI, interrogation, why torture happens (and shouldn't happen) in interrogations, the benefits of professional conduct, foiling mass shooters, why school shootings have become more common, lessons learned in the ministry that were useful in his FBI work, prostitution and how girls (and boys) fall into it, practical jokes, drug cartels, ripping off drug dealers, wiretaps and listening to suspects, crack dealers' phones, the Epstien files, how redactions should be done, peadophiles, ICE and how they have been conducting business under the current administration, the current FBI leadership, Antifa, Christian nationalism and white supremacy, and more. links are on the podcast shownotes page support the show through Patreon

Author JR Thornton, Lucien 26.03.2026 48m

J. R. Thornton was born in London and graduated from Harvard College in 2014, where he studied history, English, and Chinese. He later competed for Harvard as an internationally ranked junior tennis player on the men's professional circuit. Shortly after graduating from Harvard, J. R. published his first novel, Beautiful Country, loosely inspired by experiences he had living in Beijing as a teenager. The novel became a best-seller in China, and the film rights were subsequently purchased by WME/IMG. J. R. returned to China in 2016 as a member of the inaugural class of Schwarzman Scholars, earning an M.A. from Tsinghua University. He lives in Milan, where he works for AC Milan. Lucien is his second novel. Lucien is described as an incendiary literary work about a gifted artist on financial aid at Harvard who falls victim to the manipulative control of his wealthy, enigmatic roommate. Drawing inspiration from the true crime stories of Christian Gerhartsreiter (a.k.a. "Clark Rockefeller") and Adam Wheeler, Lucien is an immensely entertaining novel that will appeal to fans of The Secret History, The Incendiaries, The Talented Mr. Ripley, and Saltburn. This is complicated, toxic friendship and dark academia at its best. We talk about how he got started writing, lessons learned playing professional tennis, how he got his first agent, his writing routine, becoming immersed in his novel while writing it, maintaining discipline, writing in alternate places, where the idea for Lucien came from, developing the main character, publuishing, books and authors we love, cultivating creativity and curiosity, writing a screenplay, advice for writers, time travel, and we discuss I highlights I took from the book. links are on the podcast shownotes page support the show through Patreon

Change Never Happens Within Your Comfort Zone, PJ Glassey, Fitness of Body and Mind, X Gym 19.03.2026 1h 14m

PJ Glassey started personal training in 1987 and successfully grew his business over the following 11 years, training clients in their homes and at local area gyms. With the help of these clients as test subjects, and armed with his degree in Exercise Science, PJ invented his "multi-protocol" concept and refined it through 1998, when he founded the X Gym. He is also the author of the book "Cracking Your Calorie Code" and the inventor of his Brain Type Test, which helps people achieve health and fitness results much faster through specific brain wiring techniques tailored to their unique brain type. We talk about his unconventional training method, which focuses on toning and defining instead of bulking muscles and taking less time and being less dangerous, muscle size vs strength, muscle density instead of girth, endurance and strength training, sets to complete muscle failure, intensity, the equipment in his gym, comfort and the downward spiral of staying in your comfort zone, exercise goals, TRX, diet, alcohol and aging, breakfast, intermittent fasting, why aging comes from the relentless pursuit of comfort, avoiding dementia, brain training and body training, the value of discipline, the biggest mistake of New Year's resolutions, doing business based on Jesus Christ (and morals and ethics), sharing happiness, asking God for inspiration, beating writer's block, and more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Can Science and Religion Coexist? Two Similar but Divergent Opinions, Doug Ell 12.03.2026 1h 1m

Douglas Ell grew up in Connecticut, and graduated early from MIT, where he double majored in math and physics. He then obtained a masters in theoretical mathematics from the University of Maryland. After graduating from law school, magna cum laude, he became a prominent attorney. His legal training and work, combined with his academic science background and a lifetime of independent study, has given him a uniquely grounded approach to science, religion, and philosophy. He is a proponent of Intelligent Design and takes the Bible literally. We talk about math and art, physics and how it led him to God, the three laws of thermodynamics, the universe and time, the fine tuning of the universe, why anything exists at all, atheism, Christianity, how all life runs on code (DNA), SETI, evolution and natural selection, entropy, deep time, Carbon-14 dating and rediometric dating, quantum entanglement, intelligent design, suboptimal design, his book Counting to God, the James Webb Telescope, cosmology, and more. links are on the podcast shownotes page support the show through Patreon

Chai on Life, Lorie Kleiner Eckert 05.03.2026 1h 5m

Lorie Kleiner Eckert is a slice-of-life blogger, motivational speaker, and author of five books. Her latest is Chai on Life (pronounced "High on Life") and is a collection of 36 short stories or memoirs with themes of gratitude, happiness, family, and self-help. It's a delightful book, and Lorie is a wise and delightful person with lots of insights on life to share. We talk about her book, finding gratitude even in difficult situations, avoiding the intrusiveness of modern technology, writing, happiness and how to find it, sobriety, meditation, chasing numbers, solitude, avoiding the covid lockdown in The Bahamas, family, reinventing ourselves, rewarding yourself, journaling and blogging, finding friends, art, books, and more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Ten Years of Freedom, Quitting Alcohol and Marijuana 26.02.2026 42m

This February marks ten years without smoking marijuana and eleven years without drinking alcohol for me. In this episode, I talk about how I quit, and why I quit, both of these addictive drugs. Links and photos are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon

Poetry Episode 3 19.02.2026 25m

Poetry by Paul Trammell, read by the author. click on this substack link to get a short story every month, as well as poetry and book reviews Support the show through Patreon Links are on the podcast shownotes page

Great Books and How they Change your Heart, Cheryl Drury 04.02.2026 1h 17m

Cheryl Drury, a lifelong reader, is on a misssion to read a long list of classic books which she found on Ted Gioia's Substack page. She now has her own Substack page that features her podcast "Crack the Book" about classic books. We talk about The Great Gatsby, The Red Badge of Courage, Romeo and Juliet and other works of Shakespeare, The Odyssey, David Foster Wallace, James Joyce's Ulysses, Swann's Way, Les Miserables, Louise May Alcott's Little Women, Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice, reading on a Kindle vs hardcopies, things we learn about life and human nature from reading classic books, Great Expectations and Charles Dickens, Gentleman in Moscow, Dead Souls, Fathers and Sons, The Brothers Karamazov, The Death of Ivan Ilyitch, characters, taking notes while reading, Dante, what makes a book a classic, Bleak House, Blood Meridian, The Road and Cormac McCarthy, Canticles for Liebowitz, Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad, reading aloud, poetry, Pablo Neruda, writing every day, why we love to read, Breakfast at Tiffany's, In Cold Blood, Brave New World, Blood Child, This is How you Lose the Time War, Isaac Asimov, classic science fiction, Don Quixote, The Golden Ass, and more. Links are on the podcast shownotes page Support the show through Patreon