When the pandemic hit we all had to take a step back. Many people kept saying all they wanted was to get back to 'normal.' But what would that normal look like?As vaccines became available and places started to reopen, the transition back to 'normal' wasn't easy for everyone. Some dove right back into old habits while a lot of people realized they didn't want their normal to return. They wanted a new normal. And for others, the transition back out into the world wasn't easy. Enter our guest for this week, Katherine May. She recently published her latest book titled 'Enchantment: Awakening Wonder In An Anxious Age.' This book is all about that transition. It's all about finding joy (enchantment) through those little things in life.

Inspired by a couple of my favorite podcasts, I'm taking you on a trip down memory lane to talk about some of my personal favorite albums. Introducing a new show to the Adult Education Podcast network. I'm calling it Adult Education: Visor Library. If you know anything about me then you know I'm a music fan. So many of my favorite memories in life are attached to music. I wanted a way to discuss music on my podcast without taking away from what I've already built with Adult Education. So, consider Visor Library as a companion podcast.Each week I'll discuss a different CD that spent a lot of time in my car's sun visor organizer. I'll start with the letter A and take you through to Z with a new episode each week. As I said, these are going to be some of my favorite albums. I hope to extend the conversation on social media to find out some of your favorites. Make sure you follow @adulteducationpodcast on Instagram.

Where does hate come from? We aren't born with it. It's not part of our genetic make up. Yet there is so much hate out there in the world. And it seems like we're surrounded by it on a daily basis. Professor and criminologist Matthew Williams has taken a deep dive into hate over the last couple decades. He has uncovered some fascinating research that he discusses in the book The Science Of Hate: How Prejudice Becomes Hate And What We Can Do To Stop It.I find the subject to be fascinating. I hope you enjoy our conversation.

How many of us have sat in our cubicles and thought this is not the life we wanted for ourselves. Yet we continue coming in day after day to do our work. That's not the life Kiki Andersen wanted.Comedian Kiki Andersen was once a rising star at a Baltimore, MD TV station. She was working the morning shift for a news program and even won herself an Emmy for her reporting work. But journalism is not what made her excited. Kiki decided to hang it up for a life in comedy. She followed her passion and it sent her across the country to Los Angeles.I've been a fan of Kiki's since she was on my TV in Baltimore, so it was a pleasure to finally be able to catch up with her and learn more about her journey to comedy. I hope you enjoy!

Don't let the episode title throw you off. What you know and love about Adult Education will not be changing. I'll still be doing my best to bring you compelling conversations with experts from all different fields.But I want to add some content to this show. I have a couple of ideas working through my brain that I plan to bring your way soon. Find out more in this bonus/update episode of Adult Education.

One of my favorite authors is Grady Hendrix. I first came across his work when he published 'The Final Girls Support Group'. We spoke about that book in a previous episode of Adult Education. I found him to be so fascinating that I went back through his catalog to look up other stories to read. I've fallen in love with his work.And so has Hollywood. His book 'My Best Friends Exorcism' was turned into a film for Amazon Prime Video. 'Final Girls' is being turned into a series for HBO, as is his book 'The Southern Book Club's Guide To Slaying Vampires.' You'll be hearing a lot about Grady over the next couple of years.He just published his latest work 'How To Sell A Haunted House.' We caught up and talked about the new book as well as his writing styles and habits. It was really interesting to learn more about his process of getting into a novel, and what he really enjoys writing about.I hope you enjoy this episode.

As a freshman college radio DJ at Villanova University I came across an album by a new band called Over It. They fit right into my wheelhouse at the time and their music became a staple on my radio show on WXVU. The song '80's Movie Antihero' became one of our 'greatest hits' over my four year career. I continued to follow the guys in Over It, even booking them to play a show at Villanova. A show where they opened up for Tiffany. Yes, that Tiffany. As time went on, the band dissipated and some of the guys started a new project called Runner Runner. When that wrapped up, Nick Bailey discovered that he could make a career out of his love of songwriting. That leads us to today's conversation. I caught up with Nick for the first time in probably about 10 years, if not more. We talked a bit about Over It, Runner Runner and what the transition to songwriting has been like. I also ask if we'll ever be blessed with an Over It reunion.I hope you enjoy the conversation with Nick Bailey.

One of the biggest issues I've had with the Wellness Community has been the sort of 'all or nothing' approach to things. So many of the popular faces in the culture preach an idea that you need to completely remove the troubling or bad things in your life. For example, they'll tell you to be happy you need to remove all stress. That's just not realistic, or healthy. Stress is a natural part of our lives. The better way is to learn how to manage the stresses we face. Learn how to determine how much of it we take on.Dr. Elissa Epel has been studying stress and its impact on the body for years. She's just published a book called 'The Stress Prescription: 7 Days To More Joy and Ease.' I had a chance to catch up with Dr. Epel to discuss stress, how it's evolved over time and how we can better manage it in our own lives.

As we kickstart a new year, I wanted to think back on 2022 and discuss some of the wins, losses and what I've got coming up for you in 2023. Looking forward to another great year for the Adult Education Podcast!

Enjoying and respecting the outdoors is not exactly a skill that's being preached to our young people. There's this great big world out there at our fingertips, but we're all more concerned with what's happening on Instagram and in our email. I know, this sounds preachy. I don't mean it to be that way, but I think it is important for us to get outside more. I spoke with Linda Akeson McGurk about her new book 'THE OPEN AIR LIFE: DISCOVER THE NORDIC ART OF FRILUFTSLIV AND EMBRACE NATURE EVERY DAY.' The Nordic people have an immense respect for the outdoors and they understand how we live within the natural world. There also are a lot of health benefits that come from spending more time outdoors.I really enjoyed this conversation with Linda and I'm glad it will be my last interview of 2022. I think it's a great way to go out!