Garage Monologues with Jay Swanson

I may have given a TEDx Talk last weekend, and it might never see the light of day...Although we CAN fix that.Thanks for all your support in making this show! To support my creative projects of all stripes (but mostly YouTube videos) be sure to jump in with us over at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

In this long-overdue episode, my dad has to try mystery cheese from the grocery store because no one has the missing cheeses from my list (and the rest are closed). It's been one of those weeks 😂Thanks for all your support in making this show! To support my creative projects of all stripes (but mostly YouTube videos) be sure to jump in with us over at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Sunshine on Cooper is definitely high on this list, but in this episode I talk about a handful of practical things I've been doing to affect my mood, improve my days, and help me get out of the rut that I fell into for a few weeks there. I hope they're helpful =)Thanks for all your support in making this show! To support my creative projects of all stripes (but mostly YouTube videos) be sure to jump in with us over at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

They can't all be highs, but what do you do when your best weeks somehow feel like the worst? I hit some real walls this last month, especially in the last couple of weeks, and I haven't had a good chance to share about why. At the same time, there are so many great things happening and so much to be grateful for. Life is downright confusing sometimes.For me it serves as a good reminder that life is hard, no matter who you are. If nothing else, I hope that it sharpens my empathy for those around me. AND, spoiler alert, as usual, Garage Monologuing about it all helped feel me quite a bit better. So thanks for listening!Thanks for all your support in making this show! To support my creative projects of all stripes (but mostly YouTube videos) be sure to jump in with us over at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

I've known Mark Shrime for almost 13 years. He's a surgeon, author, and American Ninja Warrior. Grab a copy of his book here: https://amzn.to/3n5Ijn3 And enjoy our conversation as we dive into the struggles of impostor syndrome, living abroad, and doing our best to share what we love with the people we love.The cheese list, for those who'd like to try and follow along:Brie de MelunCancoillotteChabichou du PoitouEmmental français est-centralGruyèreMâconnaisPélardonPicodonRaclette de SavoieRocamadourTome des Bauges [fr]Trou du CruThanks for all your support in making this show! To support my creative projects of all stripes (but mostly YouTube videos) be sure to jump in with us over at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Puxan sits down to try some delicious cheese with me, wax lyrical on what it means to be French, and discuss our place in the world. Enjoy!https://instagram.com/puxanphoto for all his photographic skillsAnd thank you so much for listening! You can support the show and get future episodes in real time at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

I've got good news! Fresh off the presses (or out of the post, rather). The Road to Citizenship continues, as do updates around the 2023 guide and coming of the app. Thanks for listening! You can support the show and all my work by becoming a Patron at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Matt Jordan is a great friend I've had the pleasure of knowing for the last few years, with whom I just returned from a five day trip to Lapland (Finland) with a group of ten friends to celebrate his birthday. We had a blast, and our conversation about Matt's road to French citizenship led us to the importance of friendship, the challenges of making them (particularly in France), and the ways in which we might suggest anyone struggling to make friends abroad go about it.Check out Matt's latest project and get your trivia on with Learn to Quiz over on Instagram: https://instagram.com/learntoquiz and be sure to let him know who sent ya ;DThanks as always for listening! You can support my channel and be a part of this journey towards Frenchness by becoming a Patron at https://patreon.com/jayswansonHere are the cheeses we tried and the order we tried them in. Emily got them from a seasonal shop, so there was no goat cheese (apparently goat is highly seasonal?) but there are a lot of classics in here. Enjoy!Beaufort d'EteEmmental de SavoieCantal fermier affineBleu du Vercours-SassenageMorbierLagulole reserveLivarotReblouchon fermierChaourceFourme d'AmbertSaint-Nectaire fermierMunster ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

This is the week I get my citizenship application in, if all goes well, and there's a lot of momentum building behind the Paris app too! Keep your eyes and ears peeled for early access to the app, hopefully in the next few months (Spring 2023) and cross your fingers that my application is accepted by the French government without too much hassle =DSupport the show and all my work at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

It's time to start my road to French citizenship! Today's guest is Emily Guernesy, the newest addition to my team, who shares her very recent experience taking the French citizenship interview. We also try 13 French cheeses as we chat, in my quest to try every protected French cheese.If you're enjoying these episodes and would like the podcast to continue, be sure to support it over on https://patreon.com/jayswanson and let me know that you're listening!Check out Emily's theater company at www.compagnieclapotis.com And give them a follow over at https://www.instagram.com/cie.clapotis/ ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

As promised, the longer more linear story of how I was raised in the church and why I eventually left it. If you want to hear these podcasts as they drop in real time, become a Patron and jump into the member's only feed at https://patreon.com/jayswanson - you'll find the instructions in your welcome message. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Nathaniel Drew talks about the ever-evolving nature of creating, YouTube, podcasts, and where he hopes to go from here.If you want to hear these podcasts as they drop in real time, become a Patron and jump into the member's only feed at https://patreon.com/jayswanson - you'll find the instructions in your welcome message. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

It's a Thanksgiving Extravaganza! Which means it's time to look back on the year and be thankful. What are you thankful for? Spoiler: I'm thankful for YOU. Thanks for listening <3Want to listen to me go on about how thankful I am ON Thanksgiving next time? Head to https://patreon.com/jayswanson right now, become a Patron, and you'll have access to my members-only feed where these episodes are posted in real time. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Ever wondered what it's like to date French men, or work for an American man in France? Kate has you covered. We covered a lot of ground in this episode and there's plenty more we could have gotten into, but time is short when old friends are afoot.I hope you enjoy this chat with Kate: Sender of Stickers!Want to listen to these podcasts fresh out of the oven and without ads or interruptions? Become a Patron today at https://patreon.com/jayswanson and get access to all of my most recent podcast episodes as soon as they drop! Including an entire season's worth that has yet to get posted publicly. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

The behind-the-scenes of Secret Project Number Two - about a decade in the making. I've been working on an app to make your next trip to Paris even easier and filled with more fun. Now to see if we can make it work for real.This episode dives into the origins of "The Game" from a few years ago, the process I've been going through so far to get an app into the world, and the dangerous turns it's taken along the way. Thankfully we've made it through and are all good at the moment. This one is a monologue, but I'm sure we'll dive in with some friends who have been involved in upcoming episodes.https://jayswanson.mehttps://parisinmypocket.comGet these episodes in real time as they come out on the members only feed at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

I got a severe dressing down for my lack of depth and the total lack of story in my last few vlogs from a close friend and trusted advisor, and I think it helped things click. Dorian and Ashley both called me out for being boring recently, and they both had excellent cases. Part of that is a lack of story structure in my videos - something that's an issue related directly to my fears in sharing my full self in my videos, something I've been struggling with for some time now.I'm committed to figuring this out. The first step is opening up about the fears behind the struggle.Listen to these episodes as they drop by joining my Patreon at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jess shares her experience in gaining French citizenship, and we both talk at length about the pros and cons of living in France and settling in for the long haul in Paris. Jess has been a friend basically since I moved to Paris, has worked with me a little, and knows me very well, so her insights were a lot of fun to glean in this episode. I hope you enjoy it!Head to https://patreon.com/jayswanson to become a member and get these podcasts right when they go live (with an entire season's worth of podcast episodes just waiting for you to catch up on)! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

How taking breaks, saying no, and focusing on healthy priorities is having real, tangible results.Among the many, many lessons I've learned and managed to start applying, saying no more often has been one of the hardest but one that brings about the most benefit - because it means when I say yes, it's yes to what I want. Or at least to what's best.https://garagemonologues.com ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

A little more TMI for you as we dive into the behind the scenes of Kill the Swimmers, the mini documentary I made about my pandemic project: searching for a way to render myself temporarily infertile. If the idea of male contraception is a bit much for you, this episode might not be one to listen to. Otherwise, enjoy!Kill the Swimmers video: https://youtu.be/Dx3N5uzJDrITheme by @SonnyGreenwichJr ​ ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Lindsey Tramuta comes on as the Garage Monologues Season 2 opener, to talk about everything from home ownership in France to the reasons we need more discussions (and videos) surrounding things like reproductive health and how to bring men into the broader conversation (as spurred by Jay's recent mini-documentary Kill the Swimmers).You can find her at https://lindseytramuta.com and on Instagram and Twitter by her name.Thanks to today's Patron Producer Curtis Bamford and all of my Patrons for making this possible.You can subscribe to the Patron-only feed to get these videos and the podcast right when they drop over at https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Happy New Year! I am so excited for everything coming in 2023! https://patreon.com/jayswanson In this episode I look back at 2022 and some of the highlights in what was a crazy year. Then look forward to 2023 and everything that's got me excited about Paris, app development, and saying no to all kinds of things - even the projects I was most excited to launch this year that just won't make the cut.I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and a very happy New Year. If you'd like to follow along with my road to citizenship in real time, be sure to join Patreon and get into that members only feed - you'll have an entire season of podcasts waiting for you to catch up on, plus all the new ones as they come out.Not to mention all the other existing perks of becoming a Patron - and all the future ones that will pop up along the way =DThanks for listening!https://garagemonologues.com ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

The Season One Finale - reflecting and looking forward. It's interesting to hear my thoughts here, five months later, as they reflect both how I'm looking to 2023 and how I've half-handled the last half of 2022. I definitely have some patterns to break.Be sure to snag a two year plan with four months free from the sponsor, NordVPN using my link https://nordvpn.com/jayswansonvpnThe experiments with my vlog, for one, have been really revealing as I jumped back in with renewed energy in the last few months. Both in how vlogging regularly remains relatively unsustainable, that energy depletes itself really quickly, and in how those vlogs rarely seem to perform well on YouTube. 2023 needs to be the year of applying everything I've learned - I can't keep returning to the same cycle. But I'll talk more about that in a future episode, I'm sure ;)Thank you for listening to season one! I hope you enjoy season two even more =) ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

The sister episode - where Kaarin, my little sister, joins for a chat in her back yard in San Diego, California to spin her insights into gold for my benefit, as well as a little pain, and your complete listening pleasure. Thanks to today's sponsor <a href="https://nordvpn.com/jayswansonvpn">NordVPN</a> who are offering my listeners 4 months free when buying a 2 year plan! If you've ever wanted another take on the behind-the-scenes look at my long-running creative life, the struggles that have come with it, and the ways in which I've grown through it all, look no further. My sister is a more private person, but she's not afraid to wax lyrical about my successes and absolute failures in this delightful episode of sibling chatter.Use my link here to redeem that offer from NordVPN, and support the podcast at the same time https://nordvpn.com/jayswansonvpnAs always, thanks to my Patrons for making this possible! If you want to listen to the podcast without ads, and hear episodes when they're freshly minted, then jump over to Patreon right now and get started today!One episode remains in Season One!https://patreon.com/jayswanson ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Originally posted in May 2022, Garage Gratitude is a dive into exactly that: what I'm grateful for. And largely, it's you! But also many other things. I hope you enjoy! Be sure to grab NordVPN using this link <a href="https://nordvpn.com/jayswansonvpn">https://nordvpn.com/jayswansonvpn</a> and get those loans REDUCED!And if you want to jump into Patreon today, you'll have the rest of season one AND most of season two made available to you instantly. So much to catch up on, all the way to November 2022! <a href="https://patreon.com/jayswanson">https://patreon.com/jayswanson</a>Enjoy! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Paul Taylor stops by to discuss buying an apartment in Paris, and the challenges of building and maintaining community in an urban setting with the additional challenges of having a family.Whether it's the challenges of having kids, finding a place to live, or managing to cross paths with friends, we cover it all in this episode of Garage Monologues. You can find Paul at https://paultaylorcomedy.com/ or on socials like Instagram @ptcomedy ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

I spent a lot of the last year doing a lot of hard things. I burned out on vlogging, got my French drivers' license, lost 50lbs, and adopted a puppy in the midst of carrying out a ridiculous self-experiment (as yet undisclosed when recording). I could use a break.https://garagemonologues.comWant to get fully caught up on these podcast episodes? You can get access to the members only feed at https://patreon.com/jayswansonAnd thanks to this episode's sponsor, NordVPN, who you can sign up with here to support the show https://nordvpn.com/jayswansonvpn ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

The very first Garage Monologue as a podcast is more of a dialogue between Jay and @puxanphoto, who dropped by to pop a bottle of champagne and celebrate the end of season 8 of Jay's vlog, talk about the behind the scenes, and draw out a brutal story from Jay's recent brush with the French tax man. It's episode 5 of the first season in real terms (the first four were video only) but it's a great place to start.Follow Puxan at https://instagram.com/puxanphotoAnd thanks to this episode's sponsor, NordVPN, who you can sign up with here to support the show https://nordvpn.com/jayswansonvpn ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Good morning! Jay Swanson here, and welcome to Garage Monologues. This podcast was originally a video series for my Patrons, inspired by my old garage monologues back when I was daily vlogging. A Garage Monologue, in case you’re new around here, was something I did back in a more difficult era of my life. I was living with my parents, spending all of my time, energy, and money on doomed projects, and could feel myself slipping into a darker place.https://garagemonologues.comSetting my camera on top of my dad’s Honda CR-V and talking things out in the garage proved to be a really helpful form of pseudo-therapy, as I’d hear myself talking through that day’s struggles in the edit and realize, that’s not how I want to approach this situation. I’d go back, reshoot it, and a bit of perspective was born.As I’ve transitioned away from daily vlogging, and struggled to find my rhythm in this new chapter of life, I’ve missed that element of sharing my ongoing thoughts and struggles with my audience. I also want to make sure that those of you who have been following me for a long time don’t feel like you’re losing touch with me entirely. While I can’t go back to daily vlogging, at least not for extended periods, I can still give you some behind the scenes on what’s going on in my life, with my projects, Cooper, and shed some extra light on it all by involving my friends.And so Garage Monologues is a series that’s half monologue, and half conversation with different people in my life. It comes out roughly every other week, and is released first on Patreon. If you’re listening to this on the public feed, it means that you’re an entire season behind. If you’d like to catch up to the present, you can always join Patreon and get access to the members only feed at patreon.com/jayswanson. However, I know that not everyone can afford to become a Patron, and I have a lot of longtime viewers that I’d like to keep in the loop, so that’s where this compromise of releasing seasons at a delay was born.If you enjoy the series, wherever it is you’re listening, it would be a huge help if you gave it a five star rating and an honest review. So take a moment to give it a review and I’ll see you back here, in the garage, for another monologue really soon. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★