Essay Americana artwork

Essay Americana

13 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 2 years ago - ★★★★★ - 14 ratings

Essay Americana provides insight into American life in the late 20th and early 21st centuries covering work, relationships, history, leadership, self-identity, philosophy, politics, and psychology.

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Episodes

Hero?

November 10, 2021 20:01 - 12 minutes - 17.8 MB

This essay is part of the series, "Asphalt Blackboard: Life Lessons from America's Highways." It examines how we are socially programed to respond to a crisis and what it means to be a hero. 

Season 2, Ep. 1 Stranger Relief at Thanksgiving

March 22, 2020 19:59 - 29 minutes - 40 MB

In this time of COVID-19, social distancing, and sheltering in place, why not look at family dynamics in the form of a major holiday? 

Comic Book Blues

October 01, 2019 03:58 - 29 minutes - 26.7 MB

Art, pop culture, comic books, movies, tv, and compulsive behavior. This episode deals with all that, as well as taking a hard look at when we cut out parts of ourselves in order to "fit in" and what it means to reclaim parts of our personality we should have never let go.     

What's a Life Worth?

July 26, 2019 19:18 - 17 minutes - 23.9 MB

This month's essay looks at the fundamental question--how we determine the value of a life. 

Hallowed Ground

June 06, 2019 03:32 - 12 minutes - 17.8 MB

What do we hold sacred? What is truly hallowed ground? A massive church that's been turned into a disco and two battlefields are the backdrop for this interesting essay about what we value and why. 

Nurse Logs

May 05, 2019 14:27 - 13 minutes - 18.1 MB

What do we owe the past? This essay, the third from “Asphalt Blackboard: Life Lessons form America’s Highways” series, explores that question from the only temperate rain forest in the world.

Follow the Leader

March 23, 2019 17:00 - 14 minutes - 20.5 MB

Leadership. It's the Holy Grail of the business world. It took a cold day in whitewater to teach how Americans' view leadership and a possible new approach. 

Unplugged

March 05, 2019 05:20 - 12 minutes - 17.3 MB

Changes to rural Montana, the Great American Road Trip, and becoming unmoored from you daily life all teach something about modern American life. 

Memorial Service

February 21, 2019 22:17 - 12 minutes - 17.4 MB

A memorial service serves as the backdrop for a reflection on church culture and who gets to stand behind the alter. 

Holding onto Humanity

February 07, 2019 19:21 - 8 minutes - 12.2 MB

We see the end results on the television, but what's it like to cover a major tragedy? 

Walking on Sunshine

January 29, 2019 03:11 - 10 minutes - 14.1 MB

iTunes and Spotify have robbed us of something, but have they given us something in return? This essay explores the power of music, nostalgia, and technology and how each impacts the other and what it might mean to you.

Hush

January 15, 2019 04:23 - 9 minutes - 13.2 MB

An evening at a nightclub with a journal ends up providing insight into what night clubs teach us about ourselves—the good, the bad, and our society as a whole. 

Essay Americana Episode 1

January 05, 2019 03:02 - 11 minutes - 16.2 MB

Essay Americana captures snapshots of American life in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Topics covered include work, relationships, history, leadership, self-identity, and others. This episode looks at the positive consequences of unlearning a well intentioned lie all mothers tell their children.