Uncorked with Funny Wine Girl

The path to today's guest has been an informative and enlightening one. What started as a search for one documentary on drink spiking by former guest Shirah Benarde's brand NightCap, led to the discovery of a nother powerful documentary about a sexual assault survivor called Lough Enough Surviving Justice. That led to two wonderful podcast conversations and a screening of the documentary i...

As we approach the 4th of July weekend, you might be looking forward to plans made with friends or family or you might be fondly thinking of memories from your childhood. I'm smiling as I remember the excitement my brother and I felt when we watched my Dad light a few bottle rockets or a good ole fashioned fire cracker in apples that fell from the tree. These days, I'm happy to watch profe...

This week's episode was recorded on a rainy Monday and thatwas just fine by me. I like a rainy day. I feel like expectations are lower and I'm in a cozy state of mind. My guest agrees that rainy days can be great because we might otherwise not get a chance to see salamanders. This week I'm chatting with Conservation Advocate, Community Connector and Environmental Steward RachaelStark o...

As my guest this week puts it, people are becoming more "death curious" these days. Nicole Kidman is training to be a death doula after she was affected by her mother's death in 2024. I admit that my curiosity has been sparked by the death of my father just a month ago, which led me to seek out my guest this week: Helen Dunkle of Pinnacle Doula Services. Helen and I have a tender con...

Happy Pride Month! Wishing you a joyful June full of your favorite things. In this week's episode of Uncorked with Funny Wine Girl, my guest Hollie Browning opens up about her coming out experience, her life as a licensed professional counselor, and how she keeps her self well enough to guide her clients along their path of mental wellbeing. Learn more about NEPA Pride Coalition and Hollie&#39...

After one week off, Uncorked with Funny Wine Girl is back. I'm kicking off June with an incredible conversation this week with Shay Jones Vitale who helps people connect with their body, feel their feelings and reflect on the experience. She is also helping to educate and train on the importance of mental health for job seekers and companies who hire. Shay and I discuss what many (if not most)...

Given that May is Bladder Cancer Awareness Month and that my father Joe Luby just passed on May 13, I wanted to have an open and honest conversation about the loss of a parent and how we grieve. Oliver (or Ollie as I call him) has been my dear friend since our years at Bishop Hannan High School. Since that time I had the pleasure of getting to know his mother Christine (Chrissy) Ord who had a laug...

It can be easy to judge others when we are unaware of their story and when we stop looking through the lenses of kindness and empathy. My guest this week, Tara Gallucci, has felt her share of judgement and she'll tell you herself that much of it was deserved at the time. She was raised in gang culture that left its mark on her life the same as it had her other family members. But after falling...

May is Mental Health Awareness Month so let's give ourselves some grace, open our mind to learning about what others are going through and offer empathy from our heart to everyone...starting with ourselves. This week I'm sharing the second half of a conversation I had with my friend comedian, public health speaker and mental health advocate Gab Bonesso about some of the heavier parts of li...

Each day is filled with noise. We have messages coming at us from every direction. But do we take time to connect with each other, connect with nature and connect with ourselves? Probably not enough. This week I'm joined by a group of women who are collaborating on an event to offer women the opportunity for connection...and a break from all the noise. Meet the women of Embodied Women's We...

Happy Earth Day 2026! I had to share this week's podcast a day early in celebration of Earth Day and my wonderful guest: my friend, podcast sponsor, and sister in sustainability Gabby Lynn of Reinvented Threads! Gabby and I discuss that the goal of sustainability isn't perfection; it's making a difference one small act at a time. For Gabby, that often means taking her husband Tom's...

There are some people who you just connect with--no matter how long you know them or how you met. Gab Bonesso, comedian, mental health speaker, and children's performer, is one of those people for me. Ever since we met online 5 years ago, we've been able to talk--and talk and talk--about pretty much anything, which is why our conversations tend to go well over 1 hour. With that in mind, I&...

As I celebrate five years of incredible conversations with fabulous women on this show, I'm eager to deliver more valuable content and experiences to my audience. One such event that I am so heartened to co-host with the Women in Philanthropy of the Scranton Area Community Foundation is a film screening on April 13 in Scranton. Thanks to my partnership with Women in Philanthropy, we will co-ho...

You've heard me say it more than once. I enjoy living in northeast PA and find joy in the nature, art and community here. This week on my show, I talk with two area women who are helping to highlight assets of our region as well. Gia Tugend, director of the Waverly Community House and Desiree Zielinski, graphic artist and NEPA Film Fest committee member talk with me about the amazing history o...

Note to listeners: Connectivity was a bit unstable for this week's recording. I offer my sincere apologies for any issues that might interfere with your full enjoyment of this week's podcast. My guest this week inspired me to check out a map of the United Kingdom and learn more about football, or as we call it: soccer. Melanie Evans is the social media manager for Scranton Fringe so she&#3...

'Dad always  thought laughter  was the  best medicine , which I guess is why several of us died of tuberculosis.' Jack Handy, Deep Thoughts on SNL. Laughter won't cure tuberculosis, or any disease for that matter, but it sure will disarm us of toxicity and arm us instead with a host of healthy benefits. Research shows that it lowers cortisol (stress hormone), it boosts endorphins (pain...

In last week's podcast conversation, we touched upon the idea of blooming where you're planted. That's not to say you should accept everything as is in life. If it's not right for you, do what you can to change it...whether that be a job, place of residence, health status, etc. But, we also tend to look outwardly to want change to happen so some of us might complain about external...

March just feels different. Over the past few days I've felt hopeful with warmer temperatures, the promise of flowers blooming in the weeks ahead and the joy that comes from celebrating Women's History Month. I'm kicking off this special month with my guest Michelle Pack... a self-identifying feminist who empowers women through financial education and through her many civic and communi...

After a long day, you might enjoy curling up in your favorite chair or even under your bed's comforter with your favorite book to lose yourself in a good story. But have you ever wondered where your favorite authors get their ideas? If they base their characters on people they know? How they plan or outline their story before they write? Those are some of the questions that were posed for this...

Leadership is nothing new to Brenda Johnson. She served her country for 22 years in the Army and retired as a Major. Now that she's retired, she's doing things she enjoys like traveling, foraging for natural remedies and serving her community as the current president of the NAACP in Lackawanna County. Brenda joins me this week, along with her daughter and friend/frequent guest of the podca...

Have you ever dated someone, or are currently married to a person whose relationship with money looks very different from yours? Maybe they like to spend and you're more of a saver? Or, you're self-employed and want to know the best strategy for saving for retirement? Then give this week's special episode a listen. In celebration of five years of Uncorked with Funny Wine Girl , I'm...

If you're a human being, this week's podcast episode pertains to you. You may or may not like the idea of networking, but we all have human encounters and need human interactions to thrive--and that's networking essentially. My guest this week is J. Kelly Hoey, author, executive coach and venture capitalist who is known as a networking expert. While she says she never set out to be an...

The face of manufacturing is slowly changing, but with women holding approximately only 29% to 30% of jobs in the U.S. manufacturing sector, and making 80 cents to men's dollar, more changes need to happen. Thanks to my guests this week Liz White and Kate Logan, the wrecking ball continues to swing through the glass ceiling in this industry. Tune in to hear about Kate's path to manufacturi...

Check out this real conversation about AI and how it's being used by writers. This week, my guest Tina Gallagher, who is a friend and author, talks with me about how AI helps her do research to keep her stories accurate and realistic, how it helps her brainstorm creative ideas for character names and book titles and how AI has shaken up the romance novel space, leading to author cancellations....

Mahatma Gandhi's words of: "Be the change you wish to see in the world," are spoken often and shared on social media and on bumper stickers. They are wise words. If we want things to change, we need to do whatever we can to contribute to that effort. My podcast guests this week Jennifer Graham Partyka and Sabrina Hannon were inspired to make their contributions by running for local o...