The Positive Fantastic

Welcome to the 75th episode of The Positive Fantastic podcast. I’m Mori Natura, and I’m really grateful that you have all been taking this journey with me for the past four years and four seasons of uplifting interviews with farmers, musicians, poets, ecologists, and other creatives. When I set out to make a podcast, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing except that I was clear that there was a big desire in me to be part of a movement for good news. I have really loved being able to bring you stories of folks who are part of the change we want to see in the world.

I definitely feel called to do more interviews so that I can keep telling these fabulous stories of innovation, conservation, and creation in the future… but my life has changed a lot in the past four years. And, at present, I find myself needing more time to write so that I can express my own creativity. I have four books and several short stories in various stages of development, all of them wanting my fullest attention to progress forward. 

As a hope punk podcaster, my intention was to bring you good news about good people doing good things as a radical act of rebellion in a time when the news often leaves us uninspired and traumatized. Instead of trying to be objective, I dove solidly into what feels good to me, subjectively, and I have done my best to share some of those gems with all of you. Now, as a hope punk author, I hope to do the same with my books. 

I want to thank all of the listeners who took the time to hear what was shared here. Perhaps you’ll pick up a book of mine in the future and see what love mischief we can get up to together in print form. And maybe someday, after my burning desire to write has been satiated a bit, I will revisit this podcast. For now, I am clear that I am taking at least a year's sabbatical to pursue literary tangents exclusively in my free time. Being a single mom working full time with many responsibilities in my community simply does not leave enough time for me to do all the things that I want to do. As it is, I scaled back from releasing episodes on the new and full moon to just the Earth's holy days after a couple of years. And now, a pause for integration suits me very nicely. 

Still, the punk thing to do would be to stay open. Maybe an errant podcast episode will come through here and there. I did have a handful of possible interviews that never quite materialized but all seemed very juicy. So, there’s always the chance that something surprising may occur in the next year and years to come. If this is the end though, thank you from the bottom of my heart for tuning in, turning on, and daring to hope. 

A special shout out to all the musicians who helped make it possible for each episode to have a theme song, to all the folks who lovingly welcomed me into their homes for in-person interviews, to everyone who has been tuning in, and lastly to me, for daring to do something I didn’t know how to do but wanted to play with anyway. 

Laurie Bella is a human being who never ceases to impress me with her readiness to engage beauty in spontaneous ritual, with deep presence, and informed by immense gratitude. She founded Colibri Journeys to help support people in having truly meaningful cultural exchanges. In February 2025, I am going to be joining Laurie Bella's next Colibri Journeys in Peru! She is opening the call to one and all, and because I love to play in community, I am sharing about this epic adventure to summon you all by personal invitation to consider coming along as well! Tune in to hear about her travels, her next trip, and her intentions for leading trips.

There's an amazing program that has been designed to teach you about California's unique ecosystems. Offered statewide, and held regionally, these classes combine the interdisciplinary studies from hydrology, botany, geology, and more to learn about a particular ecosystem. Dive in with Jen Riddell and Hannah Bird as we discuss the California Naturalist Program & why everyone is welcome to become a Naturalist!

Miguel Elliot, also known for his natural building "accoblishments" as Sir Cobalot, joins the podcast to discuss the wonderful capacities of cob. He explains how cob is not just a tool for natural construction with durable craftsmanship that is easy on the budget, but also a tool for social justice in support of unsheltered persons. Over the years Miguel has developed some amazing innovations through his company, "Living Earth Structures," which he is making open source so that the word can spread and everyone can have access to his exceptionally functional cob hacks. Miguel has a strong social media presence to help spread the news about an innovative modern twist he has developed on the art and practice of cob building. Tune in to learn about Miguel's process, and to get some giggles about the special cob-centric vocabulary he has created too.

Molly Rinaldi is a breast cancer survivor. Closing out October 2023 breast cancer awareness month, with this interview, we offer up this personal, educational, and thoughtful podcast for your consideration. We want women to know about their options in the event of mastectomy, including "aesthetic flat closure." Rinaldi shares about her personal journey with breast cancer, and explains why women would choose to go flat.

My guest specialist, Loretta Breuning PhD, founded the Inner Mammal Institute. She has spent the last decade really looking at the ways that our brains are wired. She’s created a podcast of her own to help support folks on their journeys to rewiring. The good news is that we are capable of making big, profound changes in our lives. The harder news is that it takes time, commitment, and discipline. Part of what makes us human though is our capacity to rewire, retrain, and recreate our brains to be in service to more consciousness.

Loretta explains the role of the different feel good chemicals in our brain. Serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin, and also endorphins have historic roles in helping keep us alive. Similarly, the stress chemical, cortisol plays an important role in our survival. Looking at the ways that these chemicals served our mammalian ancestors gives us greater perspective about the ways that we have evolved to use these chemicals. And Loretta’s work with the Inner Mammal Institute is all about how we can use this knowledge to live better.

In my own life and reflections, I am somewhat of a perennial seeker, looking to grow. And, I am so impressed by the research the Loretta has done. I hope that you’ll enjoy our conversation and begin to train your own brain! 

In this episode with musical guest Alice DiMicele, we talk about her lifetime of letting song have its way with her. She shares about her singer-songwriter journey and the many albums she’s released along the way. With Nature as her muse, several of Alice’s original ecological songs are featured in this episode, including the title track of her newest album “Every Seed We Plant.” Alice has also graciously said that I can share her music on my other podcast episodes. So, look forward to hearing Alice being featured as one of Season Three’s musical guests & hearing many of her songs in the podcasts to come! 

Joybi Joyner is an amazing man who has spent the vast majority of his adulthood living in the wilderness. We met last winter when I got to camp with him over the course of a couple weeks. We discussed the fascinating juxtaposition between the ancient ways humans have lived for thousands of years and the modern ways that things are changing so quickly. Joybi reflected on the balance of being out in the bush with being situated in the community so as to be available to share the skills of living life outdoors. He is particularly interested in how we can navigate these times successfully with the merging of old technologies and new technologies

I'm excited to welcome Sarah Ryan and Sarah songbird, the two talented vocalists who make up The Real Sarahs duet, to "The Positive Fantastic" podcast. I became close friends with theses two at Herb School, just as they were forming their band. I have had the privilege of hearing them perform many times in formal and informal settings; they are a Mendo local band, but they've gone on tour internationally too. These two have a rootsy Americana sound, infused with their potent lyrical artistry and gorgeous harmonies. Over the years they have come into their own as singer/songwriters. In the podcast episode, they share about their journey through difficulties and healings, with the music continuing to bring them together in lovely, meaningful, and wonderfully harmonious ways.

Jen Dalton and I recently sat down for an author chat in her home in the hills of Ukiah to discuss trauma informed friendships. She self published a book about girl bullying this year, and has many offerings to make about the ways that we can both heal from childhood bullying and address the roots of why we bully so that we can dismantle this traumatic girlhood ritual. 

Let your food be your medicine & hear how nutrition consultant Mary Sheila Gonnella recommends not only what to eat for health but truly HOW to eat for optimal health. Learn about what Mary calls "Vitamin T," and the ways that you need more of this in a lifestyle focused on healthy eating. 

Julia Green helps support thriving barnyards by doing farm consultations where she helps farmers and potential farmers to assess their space, their animals, their needs, and the best way to holistically manage all of the above. Drawing on her extensive farmstead experience and herbalist background, Julia guides the way for a happy, healthy, and successful farm. 

Yeshe Matthews is a Priestess of the Tsogyal Lhamo Drayang Ling, the Mt Shasta Goddess Temple in Dunsmuir, CA. She is a dharma practitioner and a licensed minister, ordained and initiated in several different mystery traditions. The Temple she created serves Mt Shasta spiritual pilgrims and worldwide Goddess enthusiasts with online and in-person divinations, classes, ceremonies, and retreats. Yeshe has dedicated her life to female mysteries, sacred healing practices and the ways of the Goddess, with ongoing study and practice in Tibetan Buddhism, Siberian/Mongolian Shamanism, Ifa, Mayan Cosmology, herbal healing, and Dianic Goddess Spirituality. With a Master's degree in Women's History from Sarah Lawrence College in New York, she has studied women's mysticism, shamanism, and matriarchal communities for over twenty years. Join us for an auditory journey as we explore the matriarchal gift economy of the ancient future!

Join Kimber Holmes, male illusionist, for an auditory adventure into the heart of Drag. A lifelong performance artist, Holmes created a drag king persona by the name of Max Manchester. This episode explores the process of becoming "Max" step by glorious drag step. 

Join artist Lauren Sinnott as she explains the recent mural she created on the 200 ft long wall outside the Ukiah Conference Center as it pertains to the local history, the present, and the future of the area. 

Have you ever wanted to grow your own mushrooms on logs you harvested sustainably from the forest? If yes, then this is the episode for you. I'm gonna break down the ins and outs of how to process and cure your logs, obtain your mycelium on plug spawn, and ultimately foster the ideal conditions so that your preferred mushrooms can bear fruit. In this episode, I focus on growing shiitake mushrooms on oak logs in Northern California.