Forensic Tales

Let's face it: Impulse buys are fun in the moment. But what feels good in the short-term doesn't always jive with our long-term goals and quick decisions may not align with our core values. If you regularly buy on impulse, you're not alone. According to  Shopify , over 87% of US shoppers make impulse buys and more than 50% of all grocery items are sold because of impulsiveness. Enter J...

There's such a thing as too much of a good thing. The key to a balanced life lies in moderation, as any of us who's ever overdone it knows that excess quickly becomes miserable. On today's show we first discuss the Swedish concept of lagom, a.k.a. 'good enough' living. Next, we apply age-old, temperate wisdom to spending habits, interpersonal communication, tidying, and emotion...

The World Wildlife Fund's Living Planet Report is a checkup on the health of Earth, and this year’s report is the most comprehensive yet. Spoiler alert: its findings aren't good. But all's not doom and gloom: Enter the Rescue Effect, a perspective that believes there’s a lot to be optimistic about.  On this episode I’m excited to bring you two contrasting viewpoints to the biodiversity...

#147 - In July 1975, a famous American labor union leader mysteriously disappeared after a scheduled lunch meeting at a restaurant in Michigan. The police found his car at the restaurant, but there was no sign of Jimmy Hoffa. The case was cold until new DNA testing was done in 2001. But even with the new testing, many people still doubt that the mystery behind Jimmy Hoffa's disappearance will ever...

'Rise and Grind' reveres working for work's sake, and it's immensely popular. But grind culture is capitalism's fuel; worse, it diminishes you and me to cogs in the capitalist wheel. Today we're discussing hustle culture: What it is, who benefits from the collective all-in, and how we can slowly unsubscribe from a life of overwork.   Here's a preview: [5:00] Why do the...

Your favorite smartphone apps, your preferred weather forecaster, your go-to photo sharing app, and other seemingly benign technologies likely reveal details about your life to companies looking to collect consumer data. They're eager to gather thousands of data points on each and every one of us every single day because more data means better accuracy for algorithms seeking to predict human b...

#146 - In November 2006, actress, screenwriter, and director, Adrienne Shelly was found dead inside her New York apartment from an apparent suicide. But according to people who knew Adrienne, she would have never killed herself. And she would never leave her young daughter and husband behind. It wasn't until the police discovered key forensic evidence inside the apartment that they began looking a...

"I just listened to your podcast about waste and was surprised to hear that our energy consumption is so high in America! The problem is, I don't know where the energy is going, nor do I understand which things I might be doing to use so much. What are some tips for saving energy? Why do Americans require so much more than other countries?"   Waste comes in many forms. Sadly, energy wa...

Fashion rules abound and, historically, it's the patriarchy that has embedded them into our collective psyche. That's right: women's clothing is heavily influenced by the opinions of men, and just a few of the most common man-inspired fashion "rules" include: Women would do well to wear "flattering" clothes (a.k.a. ones that bring them closer to the coveted hourglass si...

#145 - In 1997, the owner of an Oklahoma City motel was beaten to death with a baseball bat. Shortly into the investigation, the police arrested a teenager, Justin Sneed, for the murder. He quickly confessed to killing the motel owner but told the police someone else hired him to do it. Justin Sneed said that his older friend and manager of the motel, Richard Glossip, was the mastermind behind the...

We're at it again! Today I'm answering 5 listener questions in a rapid-fire format. Here's a preview of the questions I'm answering today: [1:30] Are laundry detergent strips *actually* eco-friendly? What about TruEarth strips specifically? [7:00] Is eco-friendly pet parenting possible and, if so, how? [17:45] Is the Yuka app worth the hype? [22:30] Tofu containers, oat milk carton...

We often think the solution to our household woes lies in better organization, but marketing pros have commercialized tidiness. "Getting organized" often entails purchasing plastic totes and baskets: Before we know it, we've spent boatloads of money to put order to the stuff we're storing. Desk organizers, drawer dividers, specialized hangers, oh my: When we talk about living our b...

#144 - In May 1976, a young wife went missing after having an argument at a restaurant with her husband. The next day, her naked and lifeless body was found 20 miles away from the restaurant at a military air station. Initially, the police suspected the husband was involved with his wife's murder. But the deeper the police dug, the more they second-guessed their first theory about what happened to...

"How can I make eco-minimalist choices when I truly don’t have the time? I’m divorced, have two children, and work full time. There simply aren’t enough hours in the day to care for the kids, earn an income, and run the household, let alone add in sustainable living. Help!"    Together, let's re-prioritize our priorities. On today's show I'm answering a listener's question...

Triggered much? It usually goes something like this. Someone in your life does SOMEthing: Maybe your boss criticizes your work. Perhaps your partner says something that hits you the wrong way. You child stalls as you're trying to get out the door. There’s an antecedent, and then there’s your go-to reaction. There’s no space between the antecedent and your reaction; there's no intention beh...

#143 - On the morning of December 19, 1991, the body of thirty-six-year-old Kim Ancona was found in the men's restroom of the Phoenix, Arizona, bar where she worked. She had been fatally stabbed and sexually assaulted. Her killer left behind little physical or forensic evidence. Blood at the crime scene matched Kim's blood type, and the police didn't perform semen or DNA tests. Investigators relie...

"One of the hardest things we haven’t been able to tackle is our kids' snacks: we still end up using a good amount of single use plastic wraps. Do you have any ideas?"   Citing convenience, ultraprocessed foods are often sold in single-serve packs. But such snack and lunch items are overpriced (you're literally paying for that extra plastic!); they're also often unhealthy for b...

Is the future refillable? When we look at the history of plastics, it's disheartening to realize that only 9% of all plastics ever created have been recycled. Another 12% has been incinerated; a whopping 79%, then, has accumulated in landfills and nature. That's right: your Bonnie Bell Lip Smacker tube circa 1995 is quite likely still somewhere on this planet.  Refillable products (like ic...

#142 - In November 1969, Mary Scott arrived home to her San Diego apartment after her shift as a cocktail waitress. The next day, her best friend checked on her after she learned that Mary didn't show up to work. When her friend entered the apartment, she found that her friend had assaulted and strangled to death. With little evidence to go on, the case remained unsolved for the next five decades....

A hotter planet is here, my friends. Don't believe me? Just turn on the news. On today's show we first break down major current climate events; we then ask ourselves a set of ethical quandaries. Should the global north pay reparations to the global south for its centuries-long polluting behaviors, or are the inequitable and unjust natures of climate change simply bad luck?    Here's a...

When it comes to growing up, we tend to believe it's only for children. Adults, then, are assumed to be fully grown. But even us "grownups" are constantly changing, maturing, and evolving (and often at a rapid pace). Such inner changes also run concurrent with external ones that pop up as we move through our respective life seasons, day after day. If embracing change as life's only...

#141 - On February 15, 1997, 13-year-old Billie-Jo Jenkins was murdered in her very own backyard in Hastings, East Sussex, England. The case quickly gained widespread media attention for its brutality and apparent lack of motive. The police received a few tips early on in the investigation, but there seemed to be one particular suspect that stood out the most. The prime suspect was someone close t...

"Much of the time I tell my kids that material possessions aren't that important, but I also want them to take care of the possessions they have. How should I best juggle these messages and still get my points across?"   As sustainable minimalists, we want our children to devalue stuff, as we certainly don't want them to associate their sense of self-worth with what they own. But a...

Many people try to 'Marie Kondo' themselves out of clutter but find themselves unsuccessful. The reason? Decluttering only sticks when you first examine the deep roots into why clutter accumulated in the first place. Today I speak with with celebrity decluttering expert Tracy McCubbin about the excuses we tell ourselves, the clutter blocks that hold us back, and the real reasons why we can...

#140 - On October 13, 1997, 10-year-old Joel Kirkpatrick was found murdered inside his mother, Julie Rea's home in Lawrenceville, Illinois. Julie claimed a man wearing a ski mask broke into her house, attacked her, and killed her son. But investigators were skeptical of Julie's story because they didn't believe the crime scene matched her story. Can forensic science determine if Julie Rea is an in...