Marianne & Melissa - chatting overseas

This week on  Chatting Overseas , we're discussing red flags, questionable men, and why falling in love sometimes means temporarily losing access to your common sense. Inspired by the spectacular dating disasters of  Love Is Blind , we ask the important questions: Can you actually trust your gut? When does romance become love bombing? And why do some grown men still behave like unsupervised te...

We're back! After weeks of illness, exhaustion and questionable immune systems, Marianne and Melissa reunite across the Atlantic. This week: shingles (or  Hellfire , as Norwegians call it), vaccines, Alzheimer's, the benefits of naps, and why Instagram thinks being tired means you're developing dementia. Marianne discovers  Love Is Blind: Boston  and calls it cultural research. Melissa...

This week, we are operating at about 65 percent. Marianne is sick, traveling, possibly dealing with a UTI, and has an extremely unfortunate airport parking story involving absolutely no dignity whatsoever. Melissa is also running low on energy, so naturally this becomes the perfect time to pitch a brand-new reality show: Welcome to  Cringe Island . We also finally tell the story of how Melissa dis...

At some point, you realize you’re tired of spending energy on things that don’t deserve it. So this week, we’re making a list. FOMO. Calories. Looking stupid. Being liked by everyone. What strangers think about your relationship. Dressing “appropriately” for your age. High heels. LinkedIn. And apparently, deciding what to eat for dinner. Marianne has reached the stage where she’ll post a nine-minu...

We keep saying we’re not nostalgic. And yet Marianne is binge-watching  The Americans , developing a completely reasonable crush on Matthew Rhys, studying every blouse, hairstyle and watch on screen — and slowly realizing that half her wardrobe already looks like it escaped from 1987. So this week, we go all in on the 80s. Big hair. Shoulder pads. Swatches. Walkmans. Cassette tapes.  The Goonies ....

What happens when you stop looking for love and then accidentally meet a man 16 years younger in a tiny bar after a stand-up show? Marianne tells the full story of how she met Adrian, why she almost dismissed the relationship because of the age gap, and what made her realize that chemistry, emotional intelligence and connection mattered far more than the number on a birth certificate. Melissa, mea...

Season 2 is here — and apparently, we have a lot to catch up on. Melissa has done something she’s been thinking about for years: she got up on stage at an open mic in Cambridge and performed four minutes of stand-up. But ticking off an old goal creates a new problem:  what do you dream about next? We talk about setting goals at 50, making time for yourself when you’re a parent, Marianne’s terrifyi...

For the season finale, Marianne checks in from Japan and Melissa from Massachusetts — which means this episode is officially happening across approximately eight seas, several time zones, and one deeply committed 7-Eleven birthday mission. They talk World Cup tactics, Norwegian football emotions, why losing to Sweden would be a national trauma, and how Japan somehow makes trains, cakes, convenienc...

In this episode of  Chatting Overseas , Marianne calls in from Amami, Japan — in a bikini, far from Trondheim — while Melissa reports from Massachusetts, newly converted into a Norwegian football supporter after watching Norway play in a Boston bar surrounded by 300 Scottish fans in kilts (with no underwear). Melissa dives into World Cup energy, Tartan Army chaos, Haaland fever, Madagascar vanilla...

In this episode of  Chatting Overseas , Marianne and Melissa begin with an important Norwegian language lesson: the dangerous difference between complimenting a cute little girl and accidentally complimenting something very different. From there, Marianne reports from the sidelines of her daughter’s soccer match, where she is supposed to be a neutral “game host” in a yellow vest — a role wildly in...

In this episode of  Chatting Overseas , Marianne and Melissa move from Bergen confidence boosts and cathedral raves to Northern Norwegian curse words that probably should not be taught on Duolingo. Marianne reports from her travels, Melissa develops a sour candy addiction, and together they explore salty licorice cravings, pregnancy smells, and whether hormones are secretly running the snack depar...

In this episode of  Chatting Overseas , Marianne and Melissa move from laundry mysteries in a Norwegian camper to a one-day vacation in Nantucket, complete with ice cream, squishies, and a third-grade windmill hat parade. They talk about fashion courage, the power of wearing the red skirt or the blue fringe jacket, and why everyone should get more “titsy” with the clothes already hiding in their c...

In this episode of  Chatting Overseas , Marianne and Melissa travel from Norwegian hammocks to American regional culture, from Botox-level facial control to full-face emotional transparency, and from 90210’s eternal question — Brandon or Dylan? — to the deeper mystery of why some people wave at strangers and others absolutely do not. They talk about Montana friendliness, Boston social ice, Atlanta...

This week, Marianne has discovered vibe coding — and may accidentally have built an entire website, solved several work problems, and become mildly unbearable about AI. Melissa is thrilled, confused, and ready to make AI fix school emails, calendar chaos, and maybe everything except the bathroom caulk she has been avoiding since October. They talk about using AI as a tool for women who are tired o...

This week we accidentally invent a new word:  podcoasting  — thanks to Melissa’s dad, also known as Master P, laundry angel and possible merch genius. We talk AI (AKA Nils and his brother Claude), vibe coding, Norwegian travel logistics, beauty advice from “Nils,” eyes that  pop  but definitely do not “pop out,” and the eternal question: do peptides change your life, or should we all just go back...

In episode 2, the conversation jumps from podcast life and creative ambitions to a slightly one-sided (but deeply committed) love story involving Robbie Williams. Expect telepathic friendships, gourmet vanilla beans from Madagascar, and a cross-cultural deep dive into  Love Is Blind . Plus: some hot flashes, sleep struggles, and why everyone might need their own “little boyfriend.”

Marianne in Trondheim and Melissa in Massachusetts launch Chatting Overseas —the podcast absolutely no one requested. In this first episode, we attempt to explain why two middle-aged, slightly hormonal, internationally confused friends decided to start an English-speaking podcast. We cover essential topics like the weather (obviously), weird American geography explanations, Copenhagen reunions, me...