Everything Sucks, Now What? A Merriment Method for a Messy World.

Everyone wants to know if people can change. But that’s not actually the question. The real question is: am I stuck like this? …and if I am , whose fault is it? In this episode, we’re pulling that entire thread until the sweater unravels like a Weezer song. We’re talking about : 🩷 why personality is both stable and changeable (yes, both… stay with me) 🩷 how trauma , shame , and environment edit...

What happens when life looks good on the outside, but something still feels heavy... and you can't quite explain why? This week, I'm sitting down with Kendall, author, social worker, mom of two, and the creator of Cloudy Day Chronicles: a blog, Substack, and now a children's book built around one of the gentlest, most honest mental health metaphors I've ever encountered: the cloud...

You're tracking your spending . You're watching your account . But there's another currency you're hemorrhaging every single day ... and n obody taught you how to budget it . Your attention. In this episode, we get into why doomscrolling isn't just a bad habit... it's actually making you poor . We talk about the real cost of cynicism, why money is just a personality amplifi...

You Don't Actually Want Money. (Sorry. Kind of.) Yeah, we're going there. This episode is going to annoy you a little .. fair warning. Because we're not talking about how to make more money. We're talking about why you even want it in the first place. And the answer is probably not what you think. Spoiler: it's not money. It's almost never actually money. We do a whole thou...

Are some people just lucky... or are they paying attention in ways the rest of us aren't? I've been thinking about this for a while ... and I noticed something. The "lucky" people in my life aren't just stumbling into good things. They're doing something different. I call it conscious luck. In this one, I break down 8 ways to actually become a lucky person. Not through &q...

Radical responsibility is often explained in a way that sounds like blame. Like every painful thing that has ever happened to you must somehow be your fault in order for you to reclaim your power. That interpretation does not feel safe. And for many of us , it does not feel true . In this episode, we untangle that misunderstanding and offer a more compassionate, agency-centered perspective. One th...

A furious essay kicked off this episode. It was moving, blistering, and full of big claims about patriarchy, biology, “the secondary sex,” and how fast humans have managed to speedrun catastrophe once domination became the operating system. So I’m doing something specific here. I’m honoring the rage. I’m keeping what’s accurate and important. And I’m gently but firmly correcting what’s exaggerated...

By February, most people assume they’ve already failed their goals. The routines didn’t stick. The motivation dipped. January didn’t turn them into a new person. In this episode, I want to slow that story down. Instead of asking why you’re “falling behind,” we talk about how goals actually integrate into real lives. Gradually. Imperfectly. In layers. I share: why January isn’t a deadline, it’s a w...

There's a trend on making a carousel on Instagram to look back at 2016. But I took it further and I'm walking you through the carousel and my entire year, giving you full context to what that year was like. Including the goals I set for that year, whether I accomplished them, my top 5 lists for that year, the biggest things that were helpful for me and my biggest struggles, and how I feel like 201...

We often ask “Are you okay?” with good intentions. But when that question is asked publicly, quickly, or without context, it can feel like pressure. It can make someone feel like their face, mood, or energy is a problem to solve . In this episode, Mary explores: how concern can unintentionally turn into projection why people learn to mask in social spaces how to check in with care without making o...

We talk a lot about "sitting" with feelings. Meditating on them. Quietly observing them. But what if that's not the most effective way for YOU to process your feelings? In this episode I share: + how I actually process emotions, ideas, grief, decisions, and inspiration in real life (without meditation) + why I dislike meditation and why it doesn't work for everyone + alternative ways for processin...

What if you planned the year assuming time was real? In this episode, I share a simple 4-step thought experiment I’m using instead of traditional New Year’s resolutions. It’s not about quitting your life, chasing a fantasy, or “making the most of every second.” It’s about clarity. The question is simple: What if you only had a year left to live, BUT your life stayed the same? You still have work....

This is a video episode on YouTube and it's much more engaging if you watch it! Watch here: https://youtu.be/huFtLFVhb_E The days between December 26th and New Year’s Eve can feel oddly empty. 📅 You’re off schedule. Time feels fake. ⏰ 🫠 And suddenly you’re supposed to reflect on an entire year and magically feel excited about the next one. In this episode, I’m walking you through exactly how I...

I don’t think most self-help is wrong . I DO think a lot of it is beige. In this episode, I talk about why so much well-intended personal growth advice never landed for me. Not because the tools were bad. Not because I didn’t try hard enough. But because the rooms they lived in never felt safe for my nervous system, my personality, or my way of being alive. I explain what “beige self-help” actuall...

In this heartwarming, quietly rebellious episode of The Merriment Making Podcast, Mary sits down with Baltimore-based creative director and community connector Jessica Watson, the mind and heart behind the beloved Have A Nice Day Project. For more than a decade, Jess has invited Baltimoreans to gather around long tables, pick up markers, and write encouraging messages on blank coffee sleeves. Thes...

Ever treated yourself the way you wish someone else would? In this episode, I talk about SOLO DATES and show you exactly HOW to do them. PLUS a new fun way to incorporate joy missions into them! Whether you’re craving deeper self-connection, want to romanticize your Tuesday again, or are simply looking for a playful push to get out of autopilot, this conversation has everything from reflection tip...

Stuck in a DMV line? Sitting in a quiet waiting room? Driving home after something ends?  This episode helps you find joy in the in-between. We name why waiting (and liminal spaces) feels scary, tell real stories (medical tests, money stress, weird Tuesdays), and share tiny acts that make dull moments feel alive. You’ll get simple tools: a “doorway song,” a pocket anchor, micro-kindness missions,...

Why do good things feel so terrifying sometimes? Why does joy make us hold our breath instead of exhaling? In this episode, we’re talking about the quiet, sneaky ways we brace for the end before the ending ever comes. Let's talk about how betrayal, scarcity, control, and anticipatory grief all trace back to fear and lack of trust, and how pre-grieving doesn’t actually protect us. Using the famous...

It's that time of year! An unedited honest ramble of what's been going on in my life and my take on the new Taylor Swift album.

Peppercorns of Pleasure is a quick-hit tasting menu of 33 delight bites.  Strange, sweet, and ridiculous moments that made me smile for no reason at all. Think bald heads in party hats, bears admiring the view, or the cozy click of adjusting your leggings just right. These aren’t grand gestures of happiness, they’re micro-merriments, proof that joy hides in the smallest corners of our days. Listen...

Part pep talk, part rebellion, very practical. If the world feels loud and gross and you can’t make yourself care, this one’s for you. We talk about practical optimism (realistic, not “everything’s fine”), how to move from disenchanted → enchanted in small steps, and what to try on days when feeling good feels out of reach. You’ll get nervous-system first aid, micro “caught beauty” practices, art-...

Happiness wasn’t handed to me. I built it on top of addiction, silence, and skeletons that still rattle when I celebrate. In this solo confessional, I name the cost: seven years of ketamine and dissociation, bloody letters on windshields when I didn’t know how to speak, recurring dreams (the tiger in the pit, the cords, the flat clock) that wired me for hyper-vigilance and perfectionism. I talk ab...

I’m sharing the wild plan to complete 11,111 acts of kindness in under a year — and how you can be part of it from wherever you are. We’ll talk about joy as a movement, the surprising ripple effect of one small act, and I’ll even do a live act during this class. 🎁 Bonuses waiting in the Positive Pulse (free to join): 50 Places To Leave Guerrilla Art / Random Acts of Kindness 50 Notes To Leave For...

Ever asked yourself, "Why be a good person… when none of it seems to make a difference?” Let's talk about it.   When life feels chaotic, unfair, or deeply disappointing, it’s easy to wonder if anything actually matters. In this episode, Mary offers a sacred pep talk through the lens of existentialism—acknowledging the void, the absurdity, and the overwhelming nature of modern life… and then gently...

Do you ever feel pulled in opposite directions? Like you want to be held and be free? Crave stability and change? You’re not a mess—you’re a multitude. In this episode, we explore 6 core human paradoxes—based in psychology, astrology, and real life—and how they show up in your identity, creativity, relationships, and self-worth. Through stories, examples, and reflection, you'll learn how to hold s...