Happy When Curious

It seems to me that being able to sense which mode of thinking we are operating in- attempting to be right or attempting to get it right, really matters. Listen in as I do a short musing on it. 

Amanda is an ethnobotanist and cultural anthropologist. She is currently a Ph. D. candidate in anthropology at Washington State University. She researches ethnobotany (including traditional foods and medicines, among other topics) in the Americas, with recent and ongoing projects in Mexico, Guatemala, and the US. Read here awesome blog here Follow her on Twitter here Follow her on Instagram here

The impulse to say "knock on wood" after certain types of sentences is very strong in me.  But lately I've been feeling like rejecting the impulse. Listen as I try to muddle through it. From Wikipedia: " Knocking on wood (also phrased touching wood ) is an apotropaic tradition of literally touching, tapping, or knocking on wood, or merely stating that one is doing or intending...

For Adam Summers, natural history and the practice of biomechanics starts with those moments where you witness an animal or plant doing something that you can't quite understand.  How did that eagle fly upside down? How did that fly land on the ceiling? How did that suckerfish stick to that rock?  I find Adam to be one of the most captivating communicators of science and enthusiastic curiosit...

Join me as I explore what I see as one of the main causes of bad conversations when it comes to topics of public import-the continual muddying of waters between empirical questions and values questions. 

Mandy Fer is one half of the Indie Folk Rock Duo Sway Wild, alongside Dave McGraw, as well as being currently the guitarist for the 3x GRAMMY nominee Allison Russell. You may have recently seen Mandy appearing alongside Allison on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, the GRAMMY Awards, or at festivals like Luck Reunion, SXSW, and more. She is a DELIGHT! You can learn more about Sway Wild h...

What if there is nothing to fix?  I don't think this is literally true, but I do think it's a very useful state of mind to entertain every once in a while.  Join me for a short musing as I think it through. 

Iris Graville is a writer and retired nurse from Lopez Island, WA.  She is the author of the books "Hiking Naked: A Quaker's Search for Balance" and "Writer in a Life Vest" amongst others.  Her profiles and personal essays have been published in national and regional journals and magazines. She holds a Master of Nursing degree from the University of Washington and an MFA i...

Join me as I try to come up with some rules as to who to trust in the wild landscapes of opinions we find ourselves in!

Dan is a homesteader, writer, artist and agroforester in Alaska and the author of the Where the Forest Meets the Sea substack.   I highly suggest reading his blog, it's a very enjoyable read. Our starting point for this conversation:  "Why am I moving with my wife and child to a remote stretch of beach in the darkest and rainiest part of this continent, at the far end of every supply cha...

Happy New Year! Is life one damned thing after another...or not? Join me as I try to think it through. 

I absolutely love this question as it brings in so many elements of humanity. In this episode I try to explore what I see as a few interesting nooks and crannies of the huge mountain that is the conversation around meat eating. I hope you enjoy!   As always, if you have comments or guest suggestions, email me at  happywhencurious@gmail.com

Please enjoy this wide ranging conversation I got to have with Brittany Newell and music and all it's many wonders! (And my apologies for the low sound quality at times from my microphone, technology is a real bear!) Brittany Newell was the Director of Orchestras at Edmonds-Woodway High School from 2018-2022, previous to that she spent six years at Ballard High School in Seattle, where she en...

Is parochialism a virtue or a vice? It's not easy to know. 

Bojan Belic is a Teaching Professor in the subjects of Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian language, Russian language, and Slavic linguistics at the University of Washington as well as the Departmental Languages Coordinator (first-year Russian, Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin Serbian) University of Washington and a published scholar in linguistics.  Join me as we discuss how the war in the former Ju...

What's more important? Winning or getting to play again tomorrow?

Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon is an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC). Her ministry and professional background includes serving as the Senior Director of Advocacy and Outreach for World Vision-US, the executive pastor of Hillside Covenant Church (Walnut Creek, California), Director of Development and Transformation for Extension Ministries at Willow Creek Community Church (Barr...

Join us as we discuss the complexities of Jonestown, the tragic end it came to, and what came before.  Fielding M. McGehee III is the principal researcher for the Jonestown Institute, where he manages tape transcripts, Freedom of Information Act requests, primary source documents, and general inquiries on questions concerning Peoples Temple. He may be reached at fieldingmcgehee@yahoo.com. You can...

Some questions about immensity I have been ruminating on. And apologies for the less than optimal sound quality this was recorded outside on the grass at 4:50 in the morning to put me in the right head space :)

Daniel is a historian whose research focuses on urban history, public health, racism, and capitalism in the twentieth-century United States. His dissertation, “Health is Wealth: The Rise of a Medical Metropolis and the Remaking of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century Baltimore,” traces the development of a postwar health care economy through housing, environment, and labor politics, focusing on...

What is the most useful metaphor for politics: war or marriage?

Buddhism, mindfulness, addiction and recovery, turning a raw ass life story into something useful and good.  Joe has lessons to share and he learned them the hard way. Please enjoy this discussion with this inspiring human Joe Conniff. Joe Conniff is a person living in long-term recovery from a substance use disorder and public speaker, sharing his experiences in addiction, spirituality, and recov...

Dr.  Stan Meiburg served as Acting Deputy Administrator for the EPA from 2014 to 2017, capping a 39-year career with the agency. He is known for leading efforts to protect the nation’s air and water, clean up hazardous and toxic waste sites, build collaborative relationships with state and tribal environmental programs, and promote sound management in EPA. Currently Dr. Meiburg is the Director of...

Everyone is entitled to their opinion...or are we?