The Whimsy Farm Podcast

Send us a textMark Dyken and his brother Bear Dyken have been visiting the Navajo Reservation in Arizona for decades now, offering boots-on-the-ground support for families that refused forced relocation in the 1990s. Founders and members of the band Clan Dyken, they tour northern California and southern Oregon each fall to raise funds and awareness of the Dineh people and The Beauty Way.For more information about Clan Dyken's activism on the Navajo Reservation: https://www.clandyken.com/category/beauty-way/Shelly Muniz's book "When The Creator Moves Me: A Story about Music, and Creative Activism" is available from your favorite independent book seller.Support the show

Send us a textChristabeth Ingold can be found online at www.soulfullynourishing.com.Her resume: B.S. in Art Therapy, Lesley University, 2006Certified Buddho-Ennersense Advanced Reiki Practitioner, Christine Radice of Boston Reiki, 2010Certified Holistic Health Coach, Institute of Integrative Nutrition, 2011Certified Life Coach, Coby Kozlowski of Souluna Life Coach Certification, 2012(formally) Licensed Chakradance Facilitator, Chakradance, 2014Certified Hawaiian Shamanic Bodywork Practitioner (Lomilomi), Wayne Kealohi Powell, Harry Uhane Jim & Sila Jim, Bethany Boulger, 2015-on goingLicensed Massage Therapy & Polarity Therapy Program, Spa Tech Institute, 2018Certified Akashic Records Reader, Liz Varney, 2018Narrative Astrology Training, Grace Harrington Murdoch of Flowers and Stars, 2021From Race-ing Consciousness To Raising Consciousness (Psychoeducational Process Group on Race & Racism), Professor Tarell Kyles, 2021 (with on going self inquiry, discussion, learning, and unlearning of myself as a white woman, my own privilege, and intersections)Energy Medicine Training, Catheryn Schoenfarber of Spirit Wellness Institute, 2023Touch For End Of Life Care Training, Catheryn Schoenfarber of Spirit Wellness Institute, 2024Village Deathcare Citizen Training, Anne-Marie Keppel of Stardust Meadow, will be complete November 2024!I would also like to honor my teacher, Asha D. Ramakrishna. She has brought ceremony and practicing being in right relationship more deeply into my life.Maryam Barrie is a regular contributor to The Whimsy Farm Podcast. She is a retired professor of poetry, a prolific poet, and an expert on poetry. She sits on the selection committee for The Midwest Review.Support the show

Send us a textIn the fast-spinning news cycle that is the overwhelming reality of media today, there are dizzying distractions. From sex scandals to failing escalators, we often lose focus of what might be happening that is less sexy, less sensational, yet much more important. With that in mind, today we spend an hour with independent investigative journalist Antonia Juhasz, a regular contributing politics reporter to Rolling Stone, where she writes feature articles focused on energy, climate, and environmental justice. She has also written for the New York Times, Atlantic, National Geographic, Guardian, Wired, and many other outlets. She is the author of three books: Black Tide: the devastating impact of the Gulf Oil Spill, The Tyranny of Oil, and The Bush Agenda. She has also contributed to nine additional books, including most recently Rebecca Solnit and Thelma Young Lutunatabua’s Not Too Late:Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility (2023). Introducing Juhasz in his 2020 interview with her in The New Yorker, Bill McKibbon wrote that “she was a 2020-2021 Bertha investigative-journalism fellow, working with an international cohort of journalists on fossil fuels, the climate crisis, and corporate power.” Her most recent article (September 29) in Rolling Stone is titled “Inside the Fight Against Trump’s Alaskan Pipe Dream”, and that’s the focus of our discussion.You can find Antonia at antoniajuhasz.net.  You can also support her work there with your tax-deductible contributions. Support the show

Send us a textIn the fast-spinning news cycle that is the overwhelming reality of media today, there are dizzying distractions. From sex scandals to failing escalators, we often lose focus of what might be happening that is less sexy, less sensational, yet much more important. With that in mind, today we spend an hour with independent investigative journalist Antonia Juhasz, a regular contributing politics reporter to Rolling Stone, where she writes feature articles focused on energy, climate, and environmental justice. She has also written for the New York Times, Atlantic, National Geographic, Guardian, Wired, and many other outlets. She is the author of three books: Black Tide: the devastating impact of the Gulf Oil Spill, The Tyranny of Oil, and The Bush Agenda. She has also contributed to nine additional books, including most recently Rebecca Solnit and Thelma Young Lutunatabua’s Not Too Late:Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility (2023). Introducing Juhasz in his 2020 interview with her in The New Yorker, Bill McKibbon wrote that “she was a 2020-2021 Bertha investigative-journalism fellow, working with an international cohort of journalists on fossil fuels, the climate crisis, and corporate power.” Her most recent article (September 29) in Rolling Stone is titled “Inside the Fight Against Trump’s Alaskan Pipe Dream”, and that’s the focus of our discussion. You can find Antonia at antoniajuhasz.net. You can also support her work there with your tax-deductible contributions.  Support the show

Send us a textEpisode Twelve consists of highlights from the first six months of The Whimsy Farm Podcast.  Episode One: Seth Donnelly joins me to talk about Taxpayers Against Genocide and their work to hold our elected officials accountable for their support of genocidal acts such as funding arms for the conflict in Palestine. Seth Donnelly is the author of The Lie of Global Prosperity: How Neoliberals Distort Data to Mask Poverty and Exploitation. He teaches high school in northern California. Then I talk with story teller and end-of-life doula Dr. Kim Bateman about how grief manifests in today's political climate. We also discuss ways to bridge the chasm many of us feel when communicating with people who don't share our political beliefs--or our news sources. Kim Bateman is the author of the Indie award winning book Crossing the Owl's Bridge: A Guide for Grieving People Who Still Love. She is the Executive Dean of Sierra College's Tahoe-Truckee campus, where she teaches a popular course on death and dying.  Episode Two: Sociologist and author Betsy Leondar-Wright joins me from her home near Boston late last winter about her new book, Is it Racist? Is it Sexist? Why Red and Blue White People Disagree, and How to Decide in the Gray Areas. Episode Three: Community organizer and radio personality Mike Thornton joins me to talk politics. From liberals to leftists to the Long Memory, we discuss how the Dems have lost touch and how to create lasting change. We also celebrate the 90th anniversary of the birth of Utah Phillips, who is the inspiration behind The Whimsy Farm Podcast. Episode Four: We begin celebrating Pride Month. I speak with Kathryn Bond Stockton. Kathryn is a distinguished Professor of English at the University of Utah. She is the author of Gender(s), Making Out, an (anti Memoir) and The Queer Child, or Growing Sideways in the Twentieth Century. We’ll talk with Kathryn about why she says gender is queer, by which she means strange. Why is gender strange even when it’s played straight, and how do race and money factor into the equation? How can we better understand the nuances of gender? Episode Five: We continue our celebration of Pride with a hyperlocal focus on the town of Milan in Southeast Michigan. I have four guests: Ash Eichner-Pendell from the organization ARC, an educational nonprofit that seeks to advocate, represent, and connect the community around LGBTQ+ issues. We’ll speak with Milan mayoral candidate Laura Russeau, who organizes Milan’s annual Pride Parade. We’ll learn about Ozone House in Ypsilanti, Michigan when we visit with Brie Nikora, its Pridezone Coordinator. And finally we’ll debut a new periodic segment of the podcast, Poetry Sustains with Maryam Barrie.  Episode Six: I talk about gun violence and gun safety legislation hwith two women, Gwendolyn LaCroix of Michigan and Amanda Wilcox of Colorado. Gwen and Amanda are mothers who suffered the most horrible loss. Each of them lost a child to gun violence. What’s incredible is that through this loss they became change agents, working as activists to help save the lives of other children. They share their stories with me, as well as what they are doing today to reduce gun violence. Episode Seven: I talk about the life and death importance of thinking with philosopher Elizabeth Minnich. She recently released the expanded edition of her 2017 book The Evil of Banality. Minnich received her doctorate at The New School, where she was Hannah Arendt’s teaching assistant. For twenty-five years she was a professor at the Union Institute. She also wrote Transforming Knowledge, and with community organizer Si Kahn wrote Support the show

Send us a textWe learn more about fighting fascism as we protect our children from falling victim to it. Our first guest is Craig A Johnson, author of How to Talk to Your Son about Fascism. Then we spend some time with poet Maryam Barrie on our recurring segment, Poetry Sustains. Support the show

Send us a textWe learn more about fighting fascism as we protect our children from falling victim to it. Our first guest is Craig A Johnson, author of How to Talk to Your Son about Fascism. Then we spend some time with poet Maryam Barrie on our recurring segment, Poetry Sustains. Support the show

Send us a textI speak with three writers and activists from Massachusetts. Carolyn Cushing, the former poet-laureate of Easthampton, Rachel Teferet, young adult fiction writer, and Carolyn Zaikowksi, current poet-laureate of East Hampton. These three friends and neighbors continue to work passionately on behalf of the Palestinian people amidst the genocide that continues. Carolyn, Rachel, and Carolyn share their motivations, strategies, and the vital importance of community in the context of activism. THE WHIMSY FARM PODCAST September 1, 2025 SHOW NOTES FROM CAROLYN CUSHING, RACHEL TEFERET, AND CAROLYN ZAIKOWSKILinks to SpeakersCarolyn ZaikowskiSubstack: http://carolynzzz.substack.comWebsite: http://www.carolynzaikowski.com Instagram: http://instagram.com/carolynzaikowski/ Carolyn CushingWebsite: https://soulpathsanctuary.com/ Substack: https://soulpathsanctuary.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolyn_cushing/ Rachel TeferetInstagram + activism: http://instagram.com/rachelteferet/Creative writing blog: http://lettersandfeathers.wordpress.com Calls to actionFundraising/Mutual Aid:Donate to Sameer Project: https://opencollective.com/the-sameer-projectMECA’s (Middle Eastern Children’s Alliance) emergency campaign for Gaza: https://secure.everyaction.com/b00t33wD-EOVJ1cNTyHixg2PCRF’s (Palestine Children's Relief Fund) emergency campaign for Gaza: ​​https://pcrf1.app.neoncrm.com/forms/gaza-recovery?_gl=1*rf6ycr*_gcl_au*MTA0NjgyNTgzMC4xNzU1NTI2MjA2*_ga*MTkwMDA4NTkyOS4xNzU1NTI2MjA2*_ga_1DBT989QE4*czE3NTU1MjYyMDYkbzEkZzAkdDE3NTU1MjYyMDYkajYwJGwwJGgwThe Sumud School through Friends of the Sumud School on Insta and FB https://www.instagram.com/friendsofsumudschool/?hl=enRachel also mentioned one of their fave mutual aid projects on the podcast: Jamal Abu Al-Ata, General Director of the" FOOD NOT BOMBS" project in Gaza, who does incredible work. Learn more about him at https://www.instagram.com/jamal_fromgaza/ and please contribute to his Go Fund Me: https://www.gofundme.com/f/jamalfromgaza For more extensive show notes, visit Carolyn Crane and Whimsy Farm on YouTube and see Episode Ten. Support the show

Send us a textComing up September 1 on the Whimsy Farm Podcast, I speak with three writers and activists from Massachusetts. Carolyn Cushing, the former poet-laureate of Easthampton, Rachel Teferet, young adult fiction writer, and Carolyn Zakowksi, current poet-laureate of East Hampton. These three friends and neighbors continue to work passionately on behalf of the Palestinian people amidst the genocide that continues. Carolyn, Rachel, and Carolyn share their motivations, strategies, and the vital importance of community in the context of activism. Support the show

Send us a textToday I talk with Barb Barton, author of Manoomin: The Story of Wild Rice in Michigan. Barb is a woman of myriad talents, from singing and songwriting to filmmaking. She’s a scientist and a student of the cosmos. And she’s a passionate activist for social and environmental justice. She lives a couple hours from the farm in Lansing, Michigan’s capital. Support the show