45 Left or Right Podcast

Aug 21 2024

45 Left or Right Podcast artwork

A 45 degree bank left or right in a helicopter puts your body under pressure, just like middle age. You are in a battle balancing careers, parenthood, relationships, aging, and all that comes with it. Former helicopter pilot Darisse Smith uses the stories from her life to talk about the pressures of being to the left or right of age 45.

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Episode 17: Back to School

Aug 21 2024 69 mins

After a few weeks off for "vacation," I'm back with a new episode! I put vacation in quotes because it was a lot of traveling, and hectic, but we also did a lot of fun things. This episode is about back to school, and how some kids struggle more than others with this kind of transition. I interview my friend, Nicole, who has taught everything from 1st Grade to Middle School, and ha

Episode 16: Risky Business

Jul 06 2024 44 mins

Recently, we traveled to Colorado and went whitewater rafting, and though we had a great time, I found myself more hesitant to get in the raft. In my 20s, I would not even thought about it--"Let's go rafting! Woo hoo!" I looked back into the risky things I did earlier in my life, and wondered whether or not I would do them now. On this episode, I tell some stories about the risks I

Nachos

Jun 26 2024 38 mins

This is a RERUN! Enjoy! In my first flight as a Pilot-in-Command as an Army helicopter pilot, I got lost. I eventually ended up in my favorite little airport in Troy, Alabama, and consoled myself with some very delicious nachos. I was well over my head in college loan debt, and those nachos were my dinner. This experience made me think about how we make decisions when we are in our

Episode 15: Puppy Love (And Work)

Jun 21 2024 55 mins

Puppies. Aren't they adorable? They are innocent, loving, and generally come with no baggage, except they are not housebroken! Then they grow up to be dogs, and if you haven't messed up too much with training them, are also adorable, loving and selfless. Jeff and I have had several dogs together, including 3 that were our original babies, our current dog, Tex, who came with some fu

Episode 14: Summer Summer Summer Time

Jun 13 2024 29 mins

In Episode 14: "Summer Summer Summer Time" of the "45 Left to Right Podcast," freelance journalist and host Darisse Smith celebrates summer! She tells stories from her own childhood, especially her favorite vacation her family took to North Carolina. They took a spontaneous detour into whitewater rafting, and this became her favorite summer memory. Darisse talks about returning to

Episode 13: Happy Birthdays

Jun 05 2024 54 mins

In this episode, Darisse explores the evolving significance of birthdays as we age. The birthday parties Darisse's Mom threw for her in childhood were epic, and childhood milestones come in rapid fire--"10" is double digits, "13" is when you become a teenager, "16" you can drive a car, "18" you become an adult, and so on. As you get older, though, the milestones become further apar

Episode 12: Our Hobbies Tell A Story

May 21 2024 29 mins

Darisse uses the hobbies she has had in her life to tell the story of her life, or at least, some highlights of it. She talks about how triathlon united her and her husband, Jeff, when she was deployed to Iraq, and he was left behind in the United States, far away from any family. She has had some unhealthy hobbies, like drinking, that led to some amazing friendships. A weekly neig

Our Hobbies Tell A Story Trailer

Our hobbies are not trivial things we do to pass the time. They are often the only way to express our passions throughout our lives. #Hobbies #HobbiesTellAStory #HobbiesAsWeAge

Episode 11: The Mental Load of Motherhood

May 14 2024 53 mins

Mental Load. This has been a buzzword on social media, and in conversations between fellow Moms for a long time. But what is it? Darisse Smith asked her friends to provide audio clips of their mental loads, and this really illustrates the volume and variety of what Moms must manage daily, weekly, monthly, seasonally and yearly. Explore the 'Mental Load of Mothers' in the latest epi

Episode 10: The Pull of Motherhood

May 08 2024 62 mins

In Episode 10: The Pull of Motherhood, Part 2, Darisse discusses the sometimes difficult yet rewarding journey of stay-at-home moms in the Episode 10 of the 45 Left or Right Podcast. Darisse interviews her best friend, Claire Lamp Yule, a dedicated homeschooling mom who is navigating the challenges and triumphs of motherhood in midlife. This episode offers a contrast to Episode 9,