What Was That Like - True Stories. Real People.

When you travel internationally, do you ever get nervous when you come back to your own country and have to go through all the questions about where you’ve been, your reason for travel, and what you’re bringing back into the country? This is stressful for a lot of people, even those who have not done anything wrong. My guest in this episode is Emily. She lives in Toronto, and a few years ago she spent some time in the Caribbean. She flew back into her home airport, and had to go through that process of being asked all the questions. Like a lot of people, this really stressed her out.  But in Emily’s case, she had good reason to be nervous. Under her dress was roughly $150,000 in cocaine. That was a bad day for Emily. She told me the whole story, including how that experience led her to what she’s doing today. Follow Emily, and try some of her amazing popcorn: website: comebacksnacks.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/comebacksnacks/ Facebook: http://facebook.com/comebacksnacks YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoBFKhNnSi2dA_WXTDaRP2w This episode is sponsored by BetterHELP – professional counseling, done securely online. Get 10% off your first month by using this link: BetterHELP.com/WHATWAS This episode is sponsored by Ana Luisa – timeless, earth-friendly jewelry starting at just $39. Get 10% off by using this link: AnaLuisa.com/WHAT and use the promo code WHAT Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Peekskill, New York. Angela Correa was 15 years old. She was a student at Peekskill High School, with an interest in photography as a hobby and perhaps eventually a career. On November 15, 1989, she went missing, and an area-wide search was conducted. Two days later, Angela’s body was found. She had been beaten, raped, and strangled to death. Police began an investigation, and questioned some of the other students at Angela’s school. Based on some tips, they began to question one of her fellow students, 16 year old Jeff Deskovic. After a long session with a polygraph examiner, Deskovic confessed to the murder. He was charged and convicted, and sentenced. He was in prison for 16 years. Just one problem with this story: he didn’t do it. Jeff Deskovic is my guest on the show today, and we talked about a lot of things, including why he would confess to a murder that he didn’t commit, and what it was like to be a sensitive, 17 year old boy living in prison next to violent criminals. And best of all, what he’s been able to do since he got out. Deskovic Foundation: https://www.deskovicfoundation.org/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thejeffreydeskovicfoundation/ YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/deskovicfoundation/featured Twitter: https://twitter.com/DeskovicFDN Jeff’s TedX talk: https://www.deskovicfoundation.org/deskovic-tedx-talk Documentary “Convicted” on Amazon Prime: https://www.deskovicfoundation.org/deskovic-tedx-talkThis episode sponsored by Felix Gray blue-light glasses and HelloFresh, America’s #1 meal kit. Music credit: Drone in D by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1200044 Artist: http://incompetech.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Monica was divorced, and now a single mom with two little kids. She wasn’t looking for a relationship. Kevin was a nice guy, and he’d never been married. When they first met, there was a chemistry between them, but Monica was reluctant. Fortunately, Kevin was persistent. This is their story, and it’s a good reminder for all of us – when you have someone you love, be sure to appreciate the time you have with them now. Because sometimes the unexpected can change everything. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When I was a kid and even as a young adult, I had no fear of heights. I was always climbing trees, climbing all over the roof of our house, never had a second thought or any fear about it. Then, when I was 30, something happened that changed that. I fell off a ladder. You can get the full story by listening to the podcast. The thing is, what happened to me wasn’t even that bad. But imagine you’re walking along a trail, and there’s no guardrail next to it, and the other side of that trail is a 100 foot drop, which is about 30 meters, and the bottom of that is rocks. And suddenly you get too close to the edge, and you start to lose your footing. That’s what happened to Gil. This episode is sponsored in part by BetterHELP – professional counseling done online. As a What Was That Like listener, you can visit https://betterhelp.com/whatwas for 10% off your first month.  Music for this episode: We Always Thought the Future Would Be Kind of Fun by Chris Zabriskie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Source: http://chriszabriskie.com/darkglow/ Artist: http://chriszabriskie.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we’re talking about the concept of being alone. Many people all around the world have been recently exposed to some form of loneliness or isolation because of the worldwide Coronavirus pandemic. This problem started a little over a year ago, but for a lot of people it seems like it’s been longer than that, because they’ve had to stay at home in order to avoid getting infected.  Prime Minister Boris Johnson issued the announcement to residents of the UK, back in March of 2020, that the primary key to mitigating the spread of the virus, and eventually defeating it, was to stay home. These were the most stringent restrictions in Britain since World War 2. Very few people thought we would still be dealing with this a year later.  Being isolated at home, either by yourself or perhaps with some family members, can lead to some mental health issues. And that includes the possibility of depression. At least we have some ways to connect, using Zoom, Facetime, or some other audio/video communication. But it’s just not the same as being with people. Our guest today, Woniya, is actually pretty good at being alone. And we’re not talking about just being stuck at home. She was brought to a remote spot in the Arctic, nowhere near civilization – just a middle-of-nowhere place, and she was left there to fend for herself. She had to build her own shelter, find her own food, and somehow stay warm in the unbelievably cold Arctic winter. Woniya was a contestant on the reality show called Alone. This was Alone season 6, and it was called Alone in the Arctic. Right now, which is March of 2021, that whole season is available on Netflix. I highly recommend that you watch it, before listening to this episode. What we talk about here will make a lot more sense when you’ve seen what Woniya had to go through, and how she handled herself out there – for 73 days. I think you’ll agree with me that she’s pretty amazing. And if you want to learn some of the skills that she used to survive, click the link below for the Spring Online Gathering, and use the promo code WWTL15 for a discount off the enrollment fee (promo code expires April 1, 2021). Spring online gathering: https://academy.buckskinrevolution.com/springbrog website: www.buckskinrevolution.com YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJqeQWXKz7vpLnu8Sde7Xrg Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/buckskin_revolution/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Buckskin-Revolution-276888169854940/ Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/woniyabuckskinrevolution Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When you’re a police officer, one of the things you learn as part of your training is that there’s no such thing as a routine encounter, or a “regular” traffic stop. In most cases, you don’t know the person you’re about to interact with, or if they have a criminal history, or how desperate they might be. My guest today, Daril, found that out the hard way. He was a rookie officer, working the morning shift on a weekend, and he wasn’t necessarily expecting anything exciting to happen. But then he unknowingly crossed paths with a career criminal who had recently escaped from prison, and that man was determined to do anything to avoid being captured.Daril's book about his police career:https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Chameleon-Life-Story-Supercop/dp/1646063252/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0Daril's website:https://www.thebluechameleon.net/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Personally, I’ve never had a fear of flying. In fact, I really like it. I’m not sure if it’s the flying itself, or maybe it’s the fact that the flying just means I’m probably going somewhere to see people or have fun. But I’ve never had that feeling like “Oh…what if the plane just falls from the sky and we all die.” I don’t think I’ve ever worried about that. Which might be kind of odd, since I do have a fear of heights, but that only started after I fell off a roof. But that’s another story.And if you’re on a flight and you’re sitting next to someone who is just terrified, it doesn’t really matter if you tell them how safe it is to fly in an airplane. I mean, there are around 100,000 flights that happen every single day all around the world. There’s really nothing to be afraid of.But what if you’re on a flight…and there is actually cause for concern? Like, the pilot sees a thunderstorm ahead that you’ll be flying through, or maybe something is not working right on the plane, and he makes the announcement that the plane might be in trouble. That would probably scare most people.That’s what happened on a commercial flight from Phoenix to Dallas a couple of years ago. The pilot didn’t say what the problem was specifically, but he came over intercom and gave the passengers the instructions to brace for impact.Fortunately, the pilot was able to land the plane safely and no one was injured. But I’m guessing a few prayers went up, and some phone calls were made to loved ones. Can you imagine how happy those passengers must have been when they finally felt the wheels touch down on that runway, and they knew they were safe.My conversation today is with Matt. Matt is a licensed airplane pilot. And there was one day when he was flying a small plane, and it was just him – no passengers. He took off and got up to cruising altitude, and for a while everything seemed fine. What Matt didn’t know was…that plane would never touch down on an airport runway again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If this is your first time discovering the What Was That Like podcast, you need to know that this is NOT a normal episode.On this show, each episode is usually a conversation with a regular person who has been through some type of extremely unusual situation (such as a plane crash or a mass shooting). The guest comes on the show and tells the story of what happened, first hand. Check out some of the past episodes – I think you’ll like it.But this is a bonus episode, and it’s different. A bunch of listeners called in their questions for me, and I answered them.A couple of things that came up, in case you’re interested: Photo album of homeless people getting bikes Dave Jackson’s podcast episode about his dog, Dudley Big thanks to all those who sent in their questions! We’ll do this again sometime. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trains are a big part of American culture, because they are really fascinating in so many ways. If you stand next to one, you realize – they are just so BIG.And they have so much power, to be able to pull all that weight. And wow, are they LOUD. Not just the sound of the engine, and the steel wheels on the track, but that horn – you can hear it even if you’re nowhere near the railroad tracks.Kids and adults of all ages are fascinated by trains. And they are fun to watch, as they rumble by. Maybe you get a wave from the engineer. It’s great entertainment, as long as everything works like it’s supposed to work.Deneen was with her two little girls one day, at a railroad crossing, watching the train go by just a few feet from the front of their car. Then she realized that something was very wrong, and that train was about to crash. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

December 26, 2004. That was the day a huge earthquake happened.In fact, it’s the third-largest earthquake ever recorded, and it had the longest duration of faulting that has ever been observed – between eight and ten minutes.But there was something different about this earthquake. It happened underwater. It took place in the Indian Ocean. The epicenter was off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The result of this enormous earthquake happening under the ocean was that it created massive waves of water, up to 100 feet, or about 30 meters, high. These waves arrived without warning. More than 227,000 people woke up that morning and went through their normal routine, not realizing it was their last day to be alive.I remember when it happened. It was a Sunday, the day after Christmas. Of course it was the leading news story all over the world. I heard how the story unfolded, how the underwater earthquake happened, and the unbelievable numbers as the death toll kept rising. It was an incredible tragedy. But I was in the US, and that horrific scene was on the other side of the world. It didn’t seem real.But for my guest today, Aaron, that scene was very real.He was there. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices