A Drink With a Friend

Why is adding beauty to our everyday lives worth the time and effort? Tsh Oxenreider talks with fellow writer Katy Carl about why the ongoing, noble pursuit of beauty (in its truest form) is essential for ALL of us. They also chat about grad school while raising kids, AI (of course), and other such sundry. * Guest: Katy Carl * Host: Tsh Oxenreider * Katy's new book, Fragile Objects * Tsh’s latest:...

We’re back for a new season of chatting over drinks! Writers Tsh Oxenreider and Seth Haines discuss the old idea of Ignatian examen and how it applies to us moderns. Also, why morning and evening bookends are a great idea. * Hosts: authors Seth Haines and Tsh Oxenreider * Buy a round of drinks * Recommended reads * Merch! * Tsh’s latest: First Light & Eventide * Seth’s upcoming: The Deep-Down Thin...

No need to panic; the podcast isn’t ending! It's simply time for a summer break. In this episode, Seth and Tsh chat about some of their favorite finales: the last lines of books, the final songs on an album, the ultimate episodes in a TV series. What makes a good ending? And what helps us forgive a story's less-than-ideal finale? Drink episodes will take a brief hiatus for some offline summer reve...

Stories (the good ones, anyway) tell us more than an entertaining tale—they tell us why the world is the way it is, as well as the way it should be. In this way, fiction is often more real than non-fiction. Everyone should read fiction, especially folks who want to know how the world works and how we're called to make it better. Seth & Tsh unpack why good stories do just that. * Seth’s Newsletter...

Is reading good books, watching good movies, and preferring good art a matter of subjective taste or objective reasoning? And if it’s objective, does that mean there’s a wrong preference for these things? Even a …moral wrong? Tsh talks with one of her favorite current thinkers and writers, Joshua Gibbs, about what it means to wisely know the difference between mediocre, common, and uncommon things...

Both Seth and Tsh's oldest children are graduating high school this month, and just like the cliché, they can't believe how fast time has flown. Here are a few things they'd tell themselves when they were younger and in the early, exhausting stage of parenting younger children. * Seth: Newsletter | Website * Tsh: Newsletter | Website * Pick up a round of drinks * Our recommended reads * There’s ON...

Continuing with (what the numbers say is) this show’s most popular series, in this episode, Seth shares more of why he became Catholic. If he could sum up a major reason why he and Amber led their whole family into the Church, it's this: matter matters . (…And again, don't worry, it's not to pressure you — Tsh and Seth and just telling their stories.) * Seth: Newsletter | Website * Tsh: Newsletter...

We've reached a fever pitch with smartphones, and more and more people aren't sure what to do anymore with these computers in our pockets. Is it time to throw them in a river and "downgrade" to older school flip phones? Some folks are. Autumn Kern is one such person, and in this episode, she chats with Tsh about why she'll never go back. She makes the case that smartphones are turning us into gnos...

It's still the question Tsh and Seth get more than just about any other... They each began answering this question in earlier chats, but it involves an answer that may take a lifetime to share... In this episode, Tsh shares more of her journey to the Catholic Church, why it wasn’t just switching a “denomination,” and why the telos of the idea of a global church led her to recognize that Jesus esta...

On the trails, in silence of an adoration chapel, in the practice of shrugging our shoulders, in the dirt of the earth, in art, bread, a feast with our friends. In other words: practice. This is where Seth and his wife Amber have learned to search for signs of hope, even during a season of recovery, pandemic chaos, political turmoil. Tsh talks with Seth about this idea — looking for hope in the mi...

C.S. Lewis wrote a newspaper column as a series of letters from a demon writing to his nephew training for his role as …well, a demon. Screwtape advises Wormwood how to best attack his “patient” — an unassuming young man — and his tactics aren’t what we’d expect. Tsh shares with Seth why she loves this book so much, why it’s still relevant (perhaps more?) today than it was when it was first publis...

Isn’t it weird to travel with people you’ve never met? Tsh thought so, too, until she started leading pilgrimages. Now it’s one of her favorite things she does. She chats with her friend Bond Strong, who went on Tsh’s 2022 pilgrimage to Italy. They talk about why travel makes them love their home even more, how their love for travel only grew once they became parents, what they loved most about th...

Aren’t old books too hard for kids to understand? Maybe. Or maybe not. Tsh chats with her new friend Noah Tyler about his challenge of reading aloud from the original Harvard Classics set (also known as “Dr. Eliot’s Five-Foot Shelf of Books”). They talk about how books have the proclivity to form our minds and hearts, what it looks like to homeschool in an urban setting, and how any parent can sha...

You always remember your first. ...Get your mind out of the gutter, we're talking about first BOOK loves — you know, the stories that captured us and wouldn't let us go. In this episode, Seth and Tsh talk about the books that first drew them to the magic of good storytelling and word-weaving — beyond childish trinket stories, these were the books that first taught them the sacramental beauty of te...

Lex orandi lex credendi lex vivendi . What does this old Latin phrase mean? And what does it have to do with actual life? Lots, actually. These words represent an idea that’s not only time-tested, but it affects more of your life than you think. Seth and Tsh unpack why this concept matters, and what it has to do with topics like faith, education, work, and more. (In fact, you’ll hear more about th...

The new year kicks off with Seth in bed with the flu, so even though he musters up the strength to chat, in this episode it's mostly Tsh. Last year they each gave themselves a six-month challenge, so she shares her plan for this year: ten challenges in ten months! Why? How? And what are they? Tsh gets into all that with Seth.  Seth: Newsletter | Website Tsh: Newsletter | Website Pick up a round of...

Seth and Tsh are offline for the next couple of weeks, but the show will pick back up in January. In the meantime, they've got a few thoughts for you — by way of other people's thoughts. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Seth's newsletter + website Tsh's newsletter + website Pick up a round of drinks! Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Bonus! Tsh recently talked with Sam Smith and his teenage son, Josiah, about the fine art of writing a book together. Sam, often known as S.D., is the author of the beloved Green Ember series, and his son came up with an idea for his own story. So, he took him under his wing and together they published the first in a new book series! Sam and Josiah share with Tsh what it’s like to write together a...

With Advent in full force and Christmas on its way, Seth and Tsh keep it lighter-hearted in this episode. They share what's adding more joy to their days in the categories of movies/TV series, music, books, and habits. Bookmark this episode's show notes for your upcoming holiday downtime! Seth's newsletter + website Tsh's newsletter + website Tsh's 2022 Gift Guide Pick up a round of drinks! Our re...

We all have a liturgy to our lives, even if we don't call it that. So why bother with one that's old and global, too? Since Advent is the start of a new liturgical year, Seth and Tsh unpack what the calendar is and why it matters. Not so much a deep dive, this chat is more of a high-level perspective on why it's good to lean into a rhythm for marking time outside of ourselves. Seth's newsletter +...

Seth is joined by Myles Werntz, a professor of theology, and in this chat they unpack what's meant by community, a word we toss around a lot in our culture. What's the real difference between in-person and virtual communities? What do screens provide a community when they're needed, and what do they rob us of when they're not? And what's the takeaway for our day-to-day lives? p.s. - Seth & Tsh wil...

Tsh is joined by a good friend — her husband, Kyle! A late-night conversation, they reflect on how travel has affected their 20-year marriage and why you (yes, you!) should join them next summer in Ireland. ☘️ Tsh's newsletter + website Pick up a round of drinks! Our recommended reads Create your Rule of Life Come to Ireland! Somebody Feed Phil in Ireland Get full access to The Commonplace at thec...

Both adult Catholic converts from a lifetime of Protestantism, Seth and Tsh each could do a 12-part series on why they swam the Tiber. In this chat, Seth unpacks with Tsh just a few items in his backpack worn on his journey to the Church. If you’re curious about what compelled him to walk this path, this episode’s for you. Seth's Newsletter + Website Tsh's newsletter + website Pick up a round of d...

More and more folks are talking about the ills of social media, but the platforms remain hugely popular (and addictive). Seth asks Tsh about her recent decision to leave Instagram even though "they" say writers should be there if they want to sell books. She was willing to leave her large-ish following and decade-plus feed for something better — and she has zero regrets. Seth's Newsletter + Websit...

What does it mean to be a man or a woman? And just as important in today's culture, how do we have civil, truthful, loving conversations about that topic? Seth and Tsh are joined by author and professor Abigail Favale to talk about those things. She's written a book that's taking off like wildfire about one of the most pressing questions of the day — who are we as men and women? Seth's Newsletter...