This week, we chatted with Melinda Strauss, an amazing Modern Orthodox health coach, podcaster, influencer, and business coach who turned her passion for food blogging into a thriving career. She grew up in Seattle and currently lives in New York with her husband and family. We kick off the episode chatting about what being modern Orthodox even means, a topic that Melinda regularly explains to her audience on Tik Tok. Like Jori and Abby, Melinda also attended Yeshiva University’s Stern College, and told us all her NYC college experience. She went on to tell us about how she got into food blogging and health coaching in the first place. As a current health coach at OPTAVIA, she explains how the program works for participants. She’s all about planning in advance when it comes to your health journey. She shares her favorite Shabbat food and guilty pleasure snacks, which obviously had us drooling. She gave us more insight into her Tik Tok account, where she educates her followers about antisemitism and modern Orrhodox Judaism. Both Jews and non-Jews alike have a whole lot of questions, and Melinda is thrilled to answer them. Finally, she explains how she balances everything along with being a mom. She claims that she’s not always the perfect mom, but she regularly works on communication and compromise with her children. If you enjoyed hearing from Melinada, follow her on Instagram and TikTok @therealmelindastrauss.

This week, we chatted with Burger Kings of the Middle East, who went to camp with Abby in Israel back in the day. The Oppenheim family owns and runs Tel Aviv's Bodega American Kitchen, most known for their delicious American smash burgers. What originally piqued our interest is that they serve kosher bacon cheeseburgers, but they argue that this isn't the coolest thing about Bodega. According to the Burger Kings, what makes Bodega cool is that they offer the best food in Israel. They may be kosher, but they're extremely unorthodox. They told us their family's history in the NYC food industry, how Bodega came to be in Tel Aviv, and the creativity that goes into the kosher bacon cheeseburger. They Burger Kings also explained why their family decided to open a kosher restaurant even though they don't keep kosher themselves.  If you haven't tried Bodega yet, you know where to go on your next trip to Tel Aviv. To hear more about Bodega, be sure to follow them on Instagram @getbodega. 

This week, we spoke to Libby Amber Walker, Jewish content creator and born and bred Upper West Sider who is most famous for her hilarious portrayal Sheryl Cohen, AKA everyone’s favorite Jewish mom on Tik Tok. Although she never attended Jewish day school, her Jewish upbringing came from her summers spent at Ramah Nyack. Her unique brand of Jewish comedy featured on social media is naturally inspired by her own life. She told us how she started creating Jewish personas online, starting with the iconic stereotypical Jewish mother. As more people related to her Jewish personas, the more confident she became in her ability to make people laugh. She told us more about the inspiration behind her characters, and even revealed that she’s never scripts her Tik Tok skits before filming! That’s right: it’s all improv! After getting bigger and bigger, she finally launched her own consulting business. She’s also rocking it with oh, so many Jewish brand deals, in addition to co-hosting Schmuckboys, a podcast all about Jewish dating. After chatting with Libby, we’ve got a pretty clear view of her future in Jewish comedy, and it is blindingly bright! She’s a fellow Jewish queen, and we can’t wait too see what genius content she comes up with next. You can find Libby on all the following Instagram accounts: @libbyamberwalker, @libby_w, and @schmuckboysofficial.

This week, we chatted with Karen Cinnamon, founder of ‘Smashing The Glass’ and podcast host of ‘Your Jewish Life, Your Way.’ Karen told us about growing up Jewish in London with a British dad and Israeli mom, and how that influenced her strong connection to Israel and Jewish traditions. She told us about how ‘Smashing The Glass,’ her Jewish wedding platform, started back in 2013 as a small blog after she was planning her own wedding. Since the growth of the platform, she started the Bride’s Club for the Jewish and Jew-ish brides to be who were looking for an inclusive community to help each other out as they plan their weddings and deal with all the drama that comes with wedding planning. She highlighted how important it is to NOT be a people pleaser when planning your own wedding because then everyone will be pleased - except for the bride and groom. According to Karen, maintaining Jewish traditions with your own personal touch is the best way to go! Her philosophy is doing what you connect with. She recommends taking time to connect with the spiritual and sacred sides of Jewish weddings that often gets lost in all the meticulous wedding planning. She went on to explain why she started her podcast ‘Your Jewish Life, Your Way,’ which is focused on Jewish joy and connecting with our Jewish identities in the modern, fast-paced worlds we live in. We discussed our own versions of being unapologetically Jewish, and how to stop judging ourselves because there’s no right way to be Jewish.  If you want to hear more from Karen, follow her on the socials @yourjewishlife and @smashingtheglass.

This week, we spoke to Carly Rothenberg Friedman, the founder of MyTzedakah Fund, a tech platform that empowers Jewish millennials to be actively involved in charitable giving. Carly and her husband Mark were Abby’s ‘adoptive parents’ back when she was a lone soldier in the army, and they were thrilled to catch up after so long. Carly shared why and how she started MyTzedakah Fund, and what makes it easy for millennials to use and give back to the community. Her ultimate goal is for MyTzedakah Fund to become the marketplace for charity organizations, and she gives us a glimpse into what organizations are on the platform so far. As a mother of two, she shares how she balances raising her daughters with running a charity tech platform, and what helps her stay motivated to get up in the morning and seize the day. As a woman that has worked in Jewish non-profits her whole life, she gives top-notch advice for women looking to work in Jewish spaces. Although it can be rough out there, she encourages our listeners, to persevere, be powerful, and keep kicking butt. We move on to talk about what Carly does when she’s not busy running MyTzedakah Fund, which includes working out, hiking, and watching insane amounts of reality tv. She tells us what she finds so fascinating about reality tv, and why she could see herself being a reality tv producer in another life. If you liked meeting Carly and hearing about MyTzedakah Fund, follow the platform at MyTzedakah on Facebook and Instagram.

On this episode, we spoke to Eli Weinstein,  an incredible psychotherapist, husband, father, and fellow podcaster behind the Dude Therapist podcast. We chatted with him about what drew him to psychotherapy, and what he finds so special about helping people. He opened up about how hearing people’s difficult stories affects him, and the self-care he follows to stay grounded as a therapist. He then delves into what it’s like working specifically in couple’s therapy, and where he fits into the equation as a therapist. He celebrates the beauty of love, and the opportunity he has to help people figure out the puzzles of their relationships. He lets us on in the ingredients of a healthy relationship, and the top signs that a relationship isn’t going to work out. We dig deeper and talk about the significance of cheating, and if a relationship can genuinely be salvaged after cheating occurs. We then shift to the struggles of being single - especially in the Jewish community - and how to work on ourselves during singlehood by finding out what we need. He tells us more about why he started a podcast about mental health, and how many amazing people he’s had the opportunity of meeting and connecting with through his podcast. We discuss how Eli is able to manage his busy schedule and his mental health along with being a husband and a father. Apparently, Shabbat plays a major role in keeping him grounded. Finally, we wrap up the episode discussing New Years resolutions, and how we can realistically achieve them this time around. Connect with Eli via his website at eliweinsteinlcsw.com and his Instagram @eliweinstein_lcsw. Be sure to also tune into his podcast, The Dude Therapist.

This week, we spoke with Adrianna Chaviva Freedman, a very talented entertainment and culture journalist, a pop culture queen, and an old buddy from our college days. Since graduating, she’s working at Cosmopolitan, Men’s Health, and Esquire - and totally rocking it. She told us about what exactly about journalism piqued her interest, and making her way into the media world. She gave us the inside scoop about what’s it’s like being on a fast-paced editorial team, and updated us about the latest celebrity gossip she’s been in the know about. Afterwards, she shares the secrets to building the perfect angle for a story, and weaving in your own voice to make it unique. She also touches upon how important integrity and trust are when it comes to interviewing celebrities. She tells about the coolest interviews she got to do, and the celebs she’s still dreaming of interviewing in the future. She reveals what it’s like working in media as a modern Orthodox Jewish woman, the challenges that come with it, and grappling with her identity from time to time. According to Chaviva, the way media works is that you can’t be judged, and that’s what she loves about it. We go on to talk about judgment in the Jewish community, and how we could feel comfortable with who we are regardless of judgment within the community. Chaviva then moves on to share how she dealt with post-college depression, and how she currently fights burnout at work and prioritizes things outside of her job. She finishes the episode with very wise words about the importance of living in the moment, and we’re officially feeling inspired. Naturally, she’s our Kosh Girl of the week, so stick around till the end to find out how you can slide in, gentlemen.

On this episode, Jori and Abby celebrate the holiday season by talking Thanksgiving, Chanukah, and pop culture. Jori’s spending the holidays with her boyfriend’s family in Chicago and already hit up an incredibly cool Chanukah-themed bar (8 Crazy Nights for whoever’s in town), whereas Abby hosted a huge Israeli Friendsgiving with her roommates and has plans to go Chanukah party hopping all week long. Even though it also happens to be cuffing season, Two Kosh Girls picked up on the fact that it’s more like breakup season in the pop culture world. The most recent splits include Batsheva and Ben from Netflix reality TV show “My Unorthodox Life,” Tayshia and Zac from “The Bachelor,” and Shawn Mendes and Camilla Cabello. However, Pete Davidson & Kim Kardashian’s unlikely pairing over the holidays might just make us believe in love again. Jori and Abby then delve into Abby’s most recent listicle for work about all the things we’re thankful for this holiday season, with even more of a focus on pop culture. Finally, the episode comes to a close with what we’re personally thankful for this year. Of course, we’re especially thankful for our Kosh community of listeners. Wishing everyone a happy Chanukah season!

This week, we spoke to Nava Chaimedes, a practically famous army medic and future badass doctor who also happens to be Abby’s previous roommate in Israel. Nava made Aliyah to join the military, and recently moved back to New York to take on that coveted medical degree like a very good Nice Jewish Girl. She shared all her hilarious experiences as an army medic, kibbutz resident, and Garin Tzabar participant, including that one time the her army base’s doctor gave all the soldiers sick leave and ran away from the base, or the other time a soldier fakes fainting for attention. She also touched upon top-notch tips she learned to earn sick days from the army, even though she never used any of them herself. Abby and Nava also reminisce about quarantining together in Jerusalem at the very beginning of coronatines, which included writing a Hamilton-based musical about Abby’s love life and fighting with elderly Israeli neighbors who were convinced we were behind every single noise in the apartment building that they heard. Evidently, making Aliyah right after high school is quite the experience. We also discuss Nava’s last couple of months in Israel before she moved back to New York, such as the trauma of getting her appendix removed at an Israeli hospital. Finally, she gives top-tier advice for new immigrants who are about to draft to the Israeli army. Nava is also our lucky Kosh Girl of the week, so if you enjoyed virtually hanging out with this future doctor on the pod, slide into those DMs, gents. We’re talking to you, Nice Jewish Eligible Bachelors of New York.

Welcome to the finale to our first season, Kosh fam! We’ve come a long way since the pilot episode, huh? Now that they’re both vaxxed and waxed, Jori and Abby talk about their big plans for Summer 2021, or as they like to call it, Kosh Girl Summer. Jori’s officially starting a new job as a career consultant (cheers to a new chapter in her career!), and her boyfriend is officially making the big move to New York. She also just got her tax money back, so you know she’ll rolling around in the dough for a while. Meanwhile in Israel, Abby’s top priority is making it out to the great outdoors to have fun in the sun while trying to find the right balance with a full-time job for the first time. Because she procrastinated the past couple of months, she’ll also be spending the summer slaving away on seminar papers and getting her creative juices flowing in general by getting back into writing. They go on to answer listener questions, the last batch before we head into the summer season. They reminisce about all-nighters they pulled off back in their NYC college days, and the all-nighters they’ve managed to pull off since, which are obviously more rare these days. Cut us working ladies some slack, por favor. We’re trying our best. To top it off, Jor and Abs then go on to play the Jewish version of F*ck, Marry, Kill, AKA Shtup, Marry, Kill (apparently, shtup is the Yiddush word for intercourse). Finally, we talk our plans for next season, so stay tuned till the very end. Wishing our dearest Kosh fam an easy, breezy beautiful Kosh girl summer!