Episode 153 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS finds us frolicking with Dorothy Gale & her friends towards the Land of Oz. We will explore this most popular and influential of stories, originally published as a book by L. Frank Baum in 1900 and ultimately made into a movie in 1939. We will take a look at all the characters, places and things that make Oz...Oz, or an Illusion. We will also notice striking similarities, through the symbolism, that the political tenor of turn of the (20th) century is like our sociopolitical weather of 2024. Let's just say, it ain't good, this cyclone in our back yard. What can we learn from this wonderful allegory? If we can learn anything, will we ever learn?
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For Episode 151 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS, BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF haunts the airwaves with three, very short eerie stories. Mars apologizes for being away for so long, but homework & studies hold her captive like the blood of a vampire.
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Episode 150 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS talks about how humans and animal species cohabitate and mate throughout time, and we will touch of four different types of couplings: Monogamy, Polygyny, Polyandry, and Polyamory. We will talk about how humans were once naturally polygynous and how they became monogamous. We will touch on why polyandry and polyamory are relatively rare as compared to polygyny and monogamy. We will also talk about how lust may give way to true love.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF seals this episode with a kiss by my relating of a true love story of which I am aware.
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When one listens to or reads the news, one really gets overwhelmed. There's so much going on - bloodshed, rumors of ramping up wars, genocides, kidnappings, etc. Sometimes, something of significance might fall through the cracks. Episode 149 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS addresses the topic of Project 2025, a 922 page document created by conservative think tank, The Heritage Foundation. The authors of this proposed plan that they suggest should be implemented by a potential second Trump administration beginning on January 20, 2025 call this document - one that they, themselves, created and probably over years - a "red herring" and a "Democrat fever dream". Liberals, on the other hand, have raised alarm bells over the plan. To discover what the plan was all about for myself, I managed to read 300+ pages of it and parsed through research conducted by conservative, liberal, and independent groups concerning Project 2025. I quote the language straight out of the plan, to boot. I have concluded that we should NOT let this fall through the cracks, for reasons that are laid bare in this episode.
For BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF, I give you a short synopsis of the novel, MESSIAH, by Gore Vidal.
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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773 or Zelle mitchellmary773@gmail.com. Thank you.
For Episode 148 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS, we will talk about last week's historic tornadic outbreak that affected the City of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs. Not only will we talk about the events that spanned 2 days, this episode serves as a warning to those who think that the Chicago area is unaffected by the possibility of tornadoes. The fact is that Chicagoland is actually sitting in the crosshairs of violent weather, and predictions point to the situation getting worse. Chicagoans don't have to be afraid, but they must be prepared.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF closes this episode out with an excerpt from THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ, by L. Frank Baum.
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For Episode 147 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS, we are going to talk about reported Marian Apparitions. This post is happening on a Sunday - what better day than to hang with our home girl, Mother Mary? We will talk about her more famous apparitions for the uninitiated (ie those who were not brought up Catholic, not married into a Catholic family, not well versed on the Divine Feminine, etc). If this episode gets a lot of plays, I may do a future show on more obscure visitations by Mary to humble earthlings.
Barb, I really miss you today. You would have loved this subject matter.
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Episode 146 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS holds 3 goals: a) to bid a gentle and peaceful farewell to recently deceased loved ones, b) for us survivors to learn to accept their new journeys in comparison with our own, ongoing mortal journeys, and c) to accept that death is not the opposite of life, but a natural and needful companion. We die little deaths every single day. We feel pain, but we can assuage ongoing suffering through acceptance and loving detachment.
We bid a fond farewell, especially, to Judy and Barb, who we lost this week. We also bid farewell to Johnny and to other wonderful men and women who've recently been born into eternity.
The topic of Episode 145 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS is the human attribute, faith. James W. Fowler, a Pulitzer Prize winner, an American theologian and professor, described a set of seven sequential stages in the development of faith. We will take you through each of these stages. Note that these stages of faith encompass religious, alt-spiritual, and secular growth.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF closes this episode with the poem, "Faith", by Arthur Caswell Parker.
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Episode 1 44 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS carries over from last week's broadcast about the murders of 3 women at Illinois' Starved Rock State Park in 1960. A suspect confessed to the crime...but the story did not end there. We will fill out the story and bring us up to today, even as doubts abound and mysteries remain.
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Episode 143 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS takes a close look at the grisly 1960 murders of three women at Starved Rock State Park in northern Illinois, a nature lover's haven. We will follow attorneys and detectives through the investigation, and will meet the man who authorities say savagely attacked the three friends and left their dead bodies in a canyon. The case, as it turns out, does not end there. Part 2 will be broadcast next week.
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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
For Episode 142 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS, we explore true leadership and self reliance. We talk about the habits we need to develop to live a self directed life. At the same time, this directive carries with it a caveat. We, as human beings, have a knack for destroying peace and cultivating jealousy, offense, and often violence against others. The Self Directed Life is so much more fulfilling, everlasting, and meaningful when it's lived in a selfless manner. When you achieve your life's goals and are an inspiration and a help to others, you are truly free.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with the poem, "Holy Thursday", from SONGS OF INNOCENCE, by William Blake.
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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
Episode 141 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS shares a quick 15 minute-or-less exercise plan that can be done at home, with or without weights and other equipment, AND a very quick high protein, nutrient dense recipe for a breakfast break to be consumed right after said workout. This episode is for anyone who has a hard time getting themselves to make healthy/healthier choices, as well as for those who are already health-and-fitness minded, but who often lack the time to get in a full workout or make their chosen meals, as they take time to prepare.
To send correspondence, email thisismarsmessina@gmail.com
To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
For Episode 140 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS, we will discuss the cognitive distortion known as Catastrophizing. Do you more often than not worry about the worst case scenario or worst possible outcome to a problem, ignoring all the other ways the issue ca resolve? Do you try to control the "what-ifs" in life? Has anyone ever told you that you make mountains out of mole hills? Catastrophizing is a common form of Anxiety, and there are multiple ways of coping with it. One of those ways is EFT Tapping. We will talk about what it is, how it is accomplished and how it helps. We will also guide you through a tapping session.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes this episode with a quote from “A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers”, by Henry David Thoreau.
To send correspondence, email thisismarsmessina@gmail.com
To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
Episode 139 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS talks about the once meandering mud stream that became a crucial travel hub between Lake Michigan, the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico...as well as home to native plant life, businesses, sports and leisure, tourists, and a bustling, thriving global metropolis. We will talk about its growth from its ancient days serving indigenous peoples to its current state of the art reversed flow, its network of canals, and its enviable water treatment plants.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF ends this episode with a reading of Carl Sandburg's poem, "Chicago".
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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
Episode 138 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS talks about Growth Mindset, Fixed Mindset and False Growth Mindset, as outlined by psychologist Carol Dweck of Stanford University. We will identify each of the three categories and give examples of each, as well as strategies to move ourselves to a Growth Mindset point of view and lifestyle. Growth Mindset is crucial to improved neuroplasticity in the brain, as is lifelong learning.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF wraps it up with the poem, "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night", by Dylan Thomas.
To send correspondence, email thisismarsmessina@gmail.com
To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
Episode 137 launches MARS MESSINA PRESENTS into the New Year with our predictions for 2024 - a year that will surely be encumbered by problems and will challenge us in myriad ways. Who will win the presidential election? Will we have all-out war in the middle east? What surprises will AI unleash on us? What movie will win Best Picture? Is there any really good news on the horizon? We make those predictions in this show, and time will tell if we have been accurate in our assessments.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes this episode with the poem, "Fallen Leaves", by Mary Cornelia Hartshorne.
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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
Episode 136 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS says goodbye to 2023 and rings in 2024 with a meditation that sets an intention for peace - a deep inner peace for the individual and a revival of a collective global peace. Put on some comfortable clothing, dim the lights and settle in for a moment to reclaim health and sanity for yourself and for your world - an everlasting moment that you can carry with you to heal yourself, your loved ones, and the world around you.
HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM MARS MESSINA PRESENTS!
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Episode 135 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS posits that we can control maladaptive thinking with alternative thoughts that challenge our anxieties/limiting beliefs with critical thinking, which then engenders a more realistic, alternative way to think. In fact, this is the basis of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Socratic Questioning. We will do a short, but effective, exercise toward the end of this presentation.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF closes with a reading of the poem, "Hope Is The Thing With Feathers", by Emily Dickinson.
To send correspondence, email thisismarsmessina@gmail.com
To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.Episode 135 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS posits that we can control maladaptive thinking with alternative thoughts that challenge our anxieties with critical thinking, which then engenders a more realistic, alternative way to think. In fact, this is the basis of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Socratic Questioning. We will do a short, but effective, exercise toward the end of this presentation.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF closes with a reading of the poem, "Hope Is The Thing With Feathers", by Emily Dickinson.
To send correspondence, email thisismarsmessina@gmail.com
To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
Episode 134 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS went spelunking for some good news in the midst of the morass of bad news in which we are sinking....eureka, we found some good news! Mars plays your Good News news anchor and reports some....good news.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with the poem, "Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening", by Robert Frost.
To send correspondence, email thisismarsmessina@gmail.com
To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.
Episode 133 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS discusses an unsolved murder in the Bridgeport neighborhood of Chicago. We will learn of the gruesome slaying of a well liked and respected church choir director/city colleges professor, and its link to an alleged ring of clerical sex abusers known as The Boys Club.
BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with the poem, “The Priest’s Brother”, by Dora Sigerson Shorter.
To send correspondence, email thisismarsmessina@gmail.com
To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.