¶ Podcast Review Channel & Women's Safety
Welcome to One Good Thing Media , your official podcast review channel . Welcome to One Good Thing Media , your official podcast review channel . We search the vast digital landscape on a daily basis to discover the best shows that podcasters have to offer . Are you ready to discover new favorites to add to your playbook ?
Stay tuned and listen to host Gerald Spears' latest podcast reviews . Hello loves , welcome to One Good Thing Media , a show that's devoted to reviewing and recommending a variety of top-notch podcasts for our eclectic listeners . If you love true crime but still crave a variety of other genres , you're in the right spot .
My name is Gerald Spear and I am the host and creator of our show . Today , we're celebrating the end of the election cycle here in America . Man , oh man . I didn't realize just how much tension was in the air until it was finally over .
I want to add that , while half the country is celebrating and the other half is very unhappy with the election results , however you voted , I hope that we can all band together , be one as Americans and keep a sharp eye on what's happening in Washington DC .
Before we get going , let's hear a word from our sponsor , who Gives a Crap , the one company that helps us keep the lights on . Did you know that you can support us by supporting who Gives a Crap , a company that really does give a crap ? We've been a loyal customer of WGAC for five years .
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Please give a crap by clicking on the sponsor's link in our show notes and go even greener , starting today . Link in our show notes and go even greener , starting today . And now it's time for some news and highlights that you won't want to miss . I must start my new segment with an apology .
I had intended to find some great podcasts that covered post-election in such a way that it was positive or empowering or comforting . I came up empty .
I'm hoping that it was just a little early for me to actually start my search because , honestly , I had to wade through so many podcasts filled podcast filled with these powerful emotions and I totally got triggered .
Even though we may be burned out with politics and I'm sure that describes most of us if you're like me , you still want to keep up with the news . I mean , are we going to be in a war today ? What's going on in Washington DC ? Are we safe ? There's so many questions that we need to find out the answers to by listening to the news .
Fortunately , there is a way that you can get your news without having to spend too much time listening to op-eds and opinion pieces , etc . For those who want to spend their time not listening to the news , there are three 10-minute news podcasts that I recommend you check out . One of them is by Reuters , that's R-E-U-T-E-R-S your World in 10 Minutes .
There's also Up First from NPR , and then there is a more centric podcast that's named the Newsworthy and it also shares the news in 10 minutes . On a personal note , I am in such an amazing place , especially in my podcasting career . It's been fueled by a lot of things , but chiefly among them are these two factors .
Number one I've launched a second podcast called Skirting Danger that focuses on women's empowerment and personal safety . Now , I've always jokingly said , even though I'm only five feet tall , that I was born without the fear gene . I say that with a straight face . If anyone tries to intimidate me , I stand my ground .
I don't care if I have to get on a step stool to look them in the eye , and even though I've been fortunate enough to never experience extreme marital violence , I've always reminded the men in my life that , while I'm no match for them while they're awake , they have to sleep sometime .
Even so , because I pay attention to the vibe on the street news coverage and , of course , on social media , my spidey sense has gone into overdrive and , although I acknowledge that you know , family members heap an awful lot of violence on each other , my concerns are mostly focused on crimes committed by violent criminals , cyber criminals , sociopaths and even
narcissists , who have a propensity for ruining our lives . Secondly , even though life has always been riskier for women , I've realized that most of us still aren't as prepared as we need to be in order to anticipate , avoid and escape dangerous situations .
If you're strong-willed , like I am , you might be thinking I can take care of myself , and that's true , but only up to a point . At this moment in our lives , and probably forevermore , just feeling confident isn't enough . You need to anticipate danger far sooner , never doubt your gut feelings and proactively take yourself to a safer space .
And that , my ladies , is what Skirting Danger is meant to do for you , for me and all future listeners . I also have a newsletter that you can subscribe to . It's in the show notes and twice monthly , you will receive information about how to protect yourself and avoid becoming a victim of crime .
Here's a clip that was originally designated for episode one of Skirting Danger , but due to length considerations for the entire episode , it had to be cut , and so I'm going to play it for you .
The voice you hear is Dr Jan Canty , who , in this clip , explains just one of the reasons why men are from Mars and women are from Venus In a world full of shadows .
I know how to play . I see the lines you try to cross , but I'm 10 steps ahead . You're already lost .
I've learned to leave the room before I walk in . With every glance I see where you've been . No fear , no prey . I own my own lane . You'll never get close . I'm stealing clear of your game . Skirt in danger .
I'm free and alive . I'm dodging the traps while I thrive .
One way to show how different men's socialization is in terms of safety from women's was this question , and it was created by Gavin DeBecker Wonderful book Gift of Fear , he said , to show you how different women's socialization is from men's , ask this question of somebody you trust , whether it's a man or a woman .
Ask them the question when is the last time you felt in fear of your safety or life ? And the answer isn't as important as how long it takes them to answer . And you're going to find that women don't have to wait , they're boom , they got an answer .
Men have to scratch their heads and actually give that question some thought , because they don't typically feel in fear of their safety or life . So I asked my husband that question When's the last time you felt your life was threatened or you're in danger ?
And he hymned and he hawed and he goes oh , I know it was when that canoe tipped over , when I was in the river , and I'm like that is so not what I mean . Women have an answer immediately oh , it was the other night when I was in a parking lot or a parking garage or whatever it might be , because we live in a state of tension .
We don't even realize it , it's so automatic .
So there you have it . Check out Skirting Danger colon . Women's safety , gerald . Oh , no , not you . Again , what are you listening to ? Oh , ais , you can't trust them . But yes , welcome
¶ Family Search and Rail Adventures
to . What Are you Listening To ? A segment where I share what I've binged this week , and it's a good one . I binged a gripping human interest story this week called Truth Be Told Presents . She has a Name , and I want to start with a question . What would you do if , as an adult , you found out that you had a sibling that you never knew existed ?
Now I'm going to tell you . One of the reasons I was initially drawn to this particular podcast was because that happened to me . My parents had a baby girl before I was born . My parents had a baby girl before I was born and , lo and behold , when I found out about it and researched her history to find out what happened , is she still alive ?
What is going on ? I discovered that they had also named her Gerald . Was it shocking ? Yeah , but it was more like an emotional earthquake and that's why , at least initially , I was drawn to this podcast . But as the story unfolded and it didn't take long I was hooked .
Truth Be Told presents she has a name by APM Studios and TMI Productions stars Tanya Mosley , a well-known journalist who does TV , radio and podcasts . The revelation that Tanya had a sister , she had a nephew and many other relatives came out of the blue after she received a pivotal phone call .
When the cops don't listen . A reporter is the next best thing . I learned that very early in my career as a journalist . People come to me for help to solve all sorts of things to understand an issue right or wrong , expose a fraud or find a person who has vanished without a trace .
And without being overly sentimental , there is so much power in having your story told to millions of people on TV or the radio . It says what happened to me matters because I matter , which is why the stories that haunt me the most are the ones about people who have been begging , sometimes for years , to be heard , like the families of missing people .
The ones we hear about are just a fraction of the thousands who disappear every single day . This is where dogs lost Katie's scent . As you can see , it's about 100 yards away from the Dollar General . This is also where authorities believe Katie's abductor . That was me in 2004 , reporting on the case of a missing girl from Louisville , kentucky .
I was just a few years out of college and this was one of my very first TV jobs , but it was a phone call I received the first week I started . That would turn out to be one of the most important stories of my life .
I'll tell you in that moment . I just remember when you answered the phone . I just kind of remember you saying hello . I was like oh wow , like your voice , there was something about your voice that was so familiar to me .
He said my name is Antonio and I am your nephew . Now , this was crazy , because I grew up with a baby brother and he couldn't possibly have a son because he was adamant about us talking . I barely knew my father Just a few years before this phone call in 2004, .
He and I had connected for only the second time in my life and I certainly didn't know his other children . So as I listened to Antonio speak , a surge of adrenaline ran through me . His mother , I'd learn , was my father's eldest daughter . I'd learn , was my father's eldest daughter . Was it finally happening ?
Was I gonna finally get to know the mystery that has always been the other side of my family , the other side of me ? I'd left Detroit a long time ago to embark on a career as a journalist , but the truth is I'd also left Detroit because of a broken heart . My family chose Motown during the Great Migration because of its promise of middle-class prosperity .
And here I was , decades later , a nomad , believing that dream could never be fulfilled for me if I stayed . Antonio dropped the next revelation just as my mind began to spiral .
Not only was his mother my sister , she was also missing and this call was a plea , one of many he'd made over the years and the search for his mother and the other side of himself .
Tanya and Antonio embarked on a search for their missing sister and mother together and , unfortunately , although it took a very long time , the results of their search had the same finality that I experienced when I finally uncovered my own family mystery . Before I move on to our reviews , I have to say I am absolutely in love with tanya mosley's voice .
There are a couple other seasons of truth be told presents and I look forward to listening to them and enjoying Tanya Mosley's narrative style . And now it's time for our main attraction . My first review today is about a podcast called the City of the Rails .
It is a magical yet gritty true story about a mother and journalist named Danelle Morton and her quest to find her daughter , who left her flat during her high school graduation to skip town , hop trains and ride the rails across America .
The story involves sleuthing both in trying to find her daughter in the culture she had become part of , daughter in the culture she had become part of , trying to understand why she did it and what made the hidden world of railroads so alluring in the first place .
Danelle's guides are the rail cops , train engineers and hobos she meets along the way , each of them with their own extraordinary tales of the beauty and brutality of the rails . There is so much about the culture of riding the rails , rules of their society , secret maps and safe spaces where they can go to winter , how they earn their money , and much more .
I learned something new every five minutes in this podcast , and you probably will as well Looking over like kind of like the east end of the train yard .
Train yard up on the hill .
Oh see , there's the other train line . That's where Amtrak comes in .
It's a warm night in Northern California and I'm drinking beers on a hill with a hobo named Mike while he waits to hop a train to Kansas City . And I'm drinking beers on a hill with a hobo named Mike while he waits to hop a train to Kansas City .
This train has been leaving since the 70s and it hauls mail all the way to Chicago and like Kansas City too . So this same train leaves pretty much every day , like at like 4 or 5 in the morning . I've caught it three times , and so here we are again . We're here pretty early , but we have nothing else to do .
Like everyone else in America , I never paid much attention to the rails until someone I love disappeared into them , and for the last 14 years I've been in train yards with hobos and talked to hundreds of people like Mike . But the rails don't give up their secrets easily .
You might hear hobo and picture an old bum in a boxcar , but there's more to train hopping than that . Every night in train yards all over America , people wait in the shadows , crouched behind bushes , scanning the tracks for freight cars to take them somewhere Anywhere . But here Riders use aliases like Jobo the Hobo , long-haired Donnie and Tuck .
Don't Give a Fuck to make themselves untraceable and there's a pretty good chance they're lying to you when they tell you where they're going . So getting to hang out with Mike Brody , a guy using his real name , was a big event .
We can see it from here Basically . Yeah , we kind of can see it .
I appreciate that impulse to escape . I've thought about it ever since she left , but I'm not brave enough to do it . So Mike's agreed to let me tag along and get a firsthand look at what it's like to live on the rails Tonight . Mike's getting ready to hop out of town and he's looking for a very specific kind of train car .
I want a pig with wings . It's a bunch of train cars that have truck chassis on top of them . So if you look at trucks on the highways , you see these big , long plastic wings , or they're called skirts .
But it's like a modern-day . Okay , and he came here . That was Fruit Loop .
I heard of Fruit Loop . I've heard that name .
And there's the three amigos . Who are they ? Randy Mann , eight Ball and Sarge all dead . Randy Mann , he was murdered . Eight Ball , he died of malnutrition and Sarge , agent Orange took him .
So he's a Vietnam vet ? Yeah , cece Ryder , who spent more than 20 years riding the rails , is looking through her photo albums .
There's Peter Billy on a gondola , dust in the wind's dead ghost is dead Oswald . He just disappeared off the face of the earth .
I kept asking every train rider I met what it would take for my daughter , ruby , to survive on the rails , and some of the older hobos told me I should find Cece . She knew more than anyone else what it was like for a woman out there . The other shallow pop culture reason I'm excited to meet her is her name , cece .
Cece Rider . See what you done , done reason I'm excited to meet her is her name .
She must have earned it somehow . So I've traveled out to Haver , montana , with winter coming on , to learn what I can from Cece . I met some nice people from the rails , but I also knew there were criminals who rode the trains and there were railroad gangs who fought each other for territory
¶ Hobo Life and Railway Adventures
. What would it take for Ruby to survive out there ? What would hobos expect of my daughter , a newcomer in their world , and what should she watch out for ? When she threw her sleeping bag down in the boxcar , who would be standing nearby ?
To understand hobo life today . I had to track on and on . I'm only going over . There's a really interesting section that she covers about New Orleans and it is one of the favorite places to winter over and they can do a lot of busking there , which , of course , is performing on the street . Danelle has a collection of hobo music .
If you're interested in listening to some of the songs , she provides a link in the show notes on her podcast pages . We're only doing one in-depth review today , which of course , is the City of the Rails , and the reason for that is it is Thanksgiving week , everybody's busy and we're just grateful that you could spend at least some time with us today .
I hope you have great plans with your family or friends for Thanksgiving and we will return the first week in December . Until then , don't forget to follow our podcast and tell a friend Love you guys . Talk soon .