Why Are We Still Doing This?

In episode 32, I recall the greatest freak out in the history of theme park dark rides, how our offspring inherit the same fears we had as children, how brain wiring affects how people react to fear, helping your child work through fear instead of shaming them, and a bizarre encounter with a scare actor in a haunted attraction in Salem, Massachusetts. Why Are We Still Doing This? is a biweekly pod...

Remember when you could wake up and not be bombarded with information, good or bad? In Episode #31, we talk about doomscrolling immediately after opening your eyes as opposed to listening to the birds chirp, using a WAKE UP CALL and having your entire day hang in the balance of a complete stranger to get you out of bed, remembering a time of just not knowing something and not having the answer to...

In episode #30, I have the unfortunate duty of sifting through dozens of comments by grown men who argue why they should keep a foul ball at a major league baseball game instead of making a random child’s day and passing it on to them.  This is in response to a TikTok I had made about how strongly I feel that making a kids day by gifting them a foul ball at a baseball game is by far a better feeli...

Re-Release of a bonus episode, "Why We Should Still Be Doing Pride Month", first aired on June, 18th, 2025. Why Are We Still Doing This? is a biweekly podcast that can be found on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  If you’d like to support the channel, you can do so by buying me a coffee at:buymeacoffee.com/Whyarewestilldoingthis

In Episode #29, “Why Are We Still Nostalgic For A Lawless Childhood?”, we dive into why most enjoyable activities of a 1980s childhood have an element of pain, the “Book It!” program and how many of those certificates we actually earned, being a public school teacher in the 80s and 90s and parent communication ending when you leave the building, and the lost art of “getting dressed for the day." W...

In episode #28, I'm joined by my good friend and award-winning writer, author, stand up comedian, and rapper Mr. Seth Brown.  Seth and I talk about our early days of stand up comedy in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, and beyond, and the difficulty of keeping an open mic going, why “surprise comedy” is the worst kind of comedy and not good for anyone, some of the most dreadful experiences...

In Episode #27, we explore scents of the 1990s that are both burned into our brain as well as our nose, major life events in our teenage years and the smells associated with such, keeping clothing items of those who have passed for a great big sensory hug when needed, smells from our past that can trigger a physical response decades later, the nostalgia of both cigarettes and marijuana and why I’d...

In episode 26, we talk about the hilarity of SMOKING SECTIONS of our youth and how cigarettes are a nostalgic scent for kids of the 80s, Marlboro Miles and how our parents generation was slowly killing themselves to earn a cool leather jacket, cigarette vending machines and how sometimes all you needed was a note from your parents to buy cigarettes, the simplicity in the advice coming from a child...

In episode 25, we’re discussing the excitement and sadness that millennials endure when buying clothing from the same place you buy a rotisserie chicken, buying food from TJMaxx why it should be studied, the disappointment of walking into an Abercrombie and Fitch in 2026 and expecting it took as it did in 2003, navigating the mall on a Friday night as a teenager in 2026 compared to 1996, competiti...

In episode #24, I'm joined by my wife, Kristen, to talk about the little bit of good, the lots of bad, and the incredibly tragic of the early days of COVID-19.  We reminisce about the amount of time we spent as a family and how we’ll never have that much time together again, educators and families both trying to survive remote learning, having to parent both our children and our parents during the...

In episode #23, we’re talking about the stranglehold that movies like Home Alone have on our childhood and our desire as parents to share our childhood classics with our children, why were all still doing kids stuff as adults and don’t even realize it, why parents need to both show up and shut up to their kids sporting events, and the abusive relationship people in the Northeast have with its beac...

In episode 22, Colin, Scott, and I touch on cigarette guy vs vaping guy…what kind of car they might drive, and how truck brands are ingrained in family lineage, mens groups and where men feel the most pressure in their lives, parents who think food, clothing, and shelter are all kids need, the dangers in finding solace in online men’s groups and why men can’t take accountability, the once attracti...

In this episode, I'm once again joined by my friends Scott Balawender and Colin Moran. We talk about how some people, including myself, have frontloaded all their good gift ideas for their spouse and why it's not really that bad of an idea, what advice we’d give to guys on their first Valentine’s Day, how gifts you give evolve over time and why the best gifts aren’t always something tangible, the...

 In part two of my conversation with Scott Balawener an Colin Moran: “Why Do We Still Think We Know Everything About Relationships", we talk about the importance of being present with our kids and why you need to stop asking them so many questions when they get home, quality time vs quantity of time with kids and cramming it all in before age 10 , the evolving role of modern dads and why they’re b...

Episode 19 is the first episode in a collection of conversations regarding all things relationships, marriages, parenting, toxic masculinity and everything else leading up to Valentines Day with my friends Colin Moran and Scott Balawender.  In this show, we revisit a point from an earlier solo podcast-why we’re not coming clean with our friends about how awful their partner is, breaking the cycle...

In episode #18, we're talking about what solidifies or confirms that two people are in a relationship...and what we thought that looked like in our teenage years, trying to be smooth and putting your arm over a girls shoulder in a movie theater when you're 14, the importance of "experience" gifts and creating memories for kids, the catastrophic reaction to being rejected by a boy or girl in high s...

In episode 17, we’re asking why we’re still doing countdowns for things in our lives and realizing we should just live in the moment, being 17 and being excited about all the things an 18 or 21 year old can do, why time seems to go by so much faster as you get older, the Northeast’s toxic relationship with winter, our generations exhaustion with parenting two generations at the same time, a downst...

In episode 16, we explore why we're overcomplicating our wedding day-and asking the question "who is our wedding really for?" We reminisce about motels...and infamous college town eateries... we slept, and dined in, during our youth that we wouldn't dare step foot into as an adult with children, how we all have that one friend who always passes out in a plate of food at the end of a late night, my...

In episode 15, we talk about what personnel needed to run a school in 2025 compared to the 1980s, and how most people have no clue what that looks like, getting back to the basics of home economics and life skills taught in school, instead of learning about volcanoes, Pangea, and other stuff you’ll never use, personal stories about some of our favorite teachers growing up, and highlighting what ma...

In Episode 14, I’m joined by my friend and Middle School Adjustment Counselor, Scott Balawender for a two part series , “Why Are We Still Neglecting Public Schools.”In part one we talk about our career paths, the importance of building relationships with kids in a school setting and why it’s important for classroom management, challenges facing kids that are far greater than some can imagine, inst...

In episode 13, a very special Halloween edition of Why Are We Still Doing This?, I'm joined by two of my best friends Kevin and Colin Moran. We talk about the history of their childhood home and the robust amount of paranormal activity over the past 50 years, hilarious Ouija board shenanigans from our youth, a spine chilling recount of coming face to face with an apparition, rules and conditions f...

In Episode 12 I’m joined by my friend Ron Werth, a fellow stand up comic, theater aficionado, and someone who was recently diagnosed with Autism as an adult. We talk about the science behind autism, growing old and thinking about why you did certain things as a kid and realizing that there was nothing wrong with you to begin with, the percentage of stand up comedians with autism, masking and what...

In Episode 11, we talk about the Fan Expo in Boston, Massachusetts from this past August and why you’ll never find happier people than those at a Comic Con, shooting the breeze with John Cena, being part of the “good weird” crowd, letting go of antiquated and made up social norms, the plethora of smells we encounter when waiting in line to meet our childhood heroes at these events, the difference...

In episode 10, we talk about the place where most of our core teenage memories lived, as well as the home of most arcades: the mall. We talk about how our local newspaper spoiled a video game Christmas surprise for one of us, general mall nostalgia, including the smells that take us back, some of the worst places to eat in a mall food court, the lust for physical media in a digital age, the quest...

In episode 9, we’re talking about why we continue to return to the same places every year for family vacation and why it’s totally ok, hotel amenities back in the day that really weren’t amenities, why vacations with small children are not always relaxing and why they’re not meant to be, and the magic in taking your kids to the places you went as a child. We’re also talking about travel sports, in...