Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Passport Mommy. I'm your host, Michelle Jerson. This
show is for anyone raising little humans. We feature experts
with tips and advice to enrich the lives of our children.
Mom and dad entrepreneurs tell us their inspiring stories, learn
about products that could make both you and your child's
life easier and more fun, and of course, fellow parents
(00:21):
discuss and laugh about what's happening in their child's world.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Motherhood is a journey. Thanks for joining me onmine. Welcome
to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
So I'd love when I get to do interviews with
brands and people that I really love and admire. And
so when I recently received an invite to an event
by Veggies Made Great, I was very excited, and you know,
I geek out over like healthy foods and healthy foods
for my kids, and so we have been buying Veggies
(00:53):
Made Great for years. There are these little muffins that
they come. There's an egg white one and cheese, egg
whites and cheese. There's chocolate and we'll get into all
of that, but they're really healthy.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
They have great ingredients.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
My kids love them, which is so important and so
I'm really happy to have on the show with me today.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Julia.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Heck.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
She is the chief marketing officer of Veggies Made Great,
and she's going to talk to us just all about
the brands and where we can find it.
Speaker 3 (01:20):
Hi, Julia, Hi, thank you. It is not for having
me here today.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
My pleasure.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
So tell me about Veggies Made Great and why this
brand is so great for the entire family.
Speaker 4 (01:32):
Absolutely, so, the company was really started to fill a
void that our chief founders saw on the market.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
It turns out that only.
Speaker 4 (01:39):
One in ten Americans get the recommended servings of vegetables
per day, and so when we founded the company, the
mission was really to unlock the greatness of vegetables to
power healthier families, and so Veggie's Made Great. We have
lines of different products, which you mentioned. We have egg
bite for tatas, we have muffins, baked oatmeal, etc. All
(02:00):
of them have vegetables as the first ingredient, because we
believe that veggies don't have to taste boring. In fact,
we really think that vegetables make good food even greater,
and so at the end of the day, all of
our products have vegetables as the number one ingredient all
made to put real, nutritious, delicious veggies first, and at
the end of the day, it's super important that everything
(02:21):
we make also meats are remarkably delicious rule because we
want to put delicious tasting food into people's hands as well.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Yes, I love that, and I love how veggies are
the first ingredient because you can have a box that
has vegetables listed, but if it's the sixth ingredient listed,
you can bet there's not a lot of veggies in them.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
So what makes Veggies Made Great stand out from other
frozen snack brands?
Speaker 4 (02:49):
I think that frozen food often forces you to make
a trade off between convenience, health, and then taste.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
But at Veggies me great.
Speaker 4 (02:58):
We believe the eating better shouldn't involve that kind of compromise,
and so while many of the other frozen convenient options
on the market can be overprocessed, unhealthy or bland, we
offer real food that is tastier, healthier, and easier and.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
That gees meet great. We really don't follow food fads
and trends.
Speaker 4 (03:19):
We only make what we believe in, and for us,
that means vegetables is the lead ingredient delicious recipes and
prep that's always family friendly.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
Are there any new exciting products or seasonal items that
are launching soon?
Speaker 4 (03:34):
Yeah, so innovation is actually, you know, something that's always.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
On our radar. We recently launched a few product lines.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
We launched Potato Baked, which are like a hash brown
but better with the addition of egg whites for protein
and a medley of vegetables.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
We also recently Yeah, they're delicious.
Speaker 4 (03:51):
The loaded flavor actually one product of the Year this
past year, so we're very excited about that product line.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Oh congratulations, I haven't tried that one yet. I would
try that well yet.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
I'm in your hands for sure.
Speaker 4 (04:03):
We also recently launched soft Baked Oatmeal, which is a
heat and eat hand held oatmeal that's packed with eight
grams of protein and seventeen grams of whole grains. Again,
vegetables is the first ingredient really playing off of the
trends we've seen in overnight oats and oatmeal across the market.
And then, as you said, we do have some fun
seasonal items that are going to be available this fall
(04:25):
at places like Costco and All the including a pumpkin
cranberry as well as an apple cinnamon muffin.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Oh yum.
Speaker 1 (04:33):
And so which of your products would you say are
the most popular right now? I know in my households
we haven't tried all the ones that you just mentioned,
but my kids love the chocolate. You tell them chocolate
anything and they'll never know that there's vegetables in them.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
But what do you find are the most popular?
Speaker 3 (04:50):
We find that are number one bestseller.
Speaker 4 (04:52):
Our most popular product is our signature spinach egg white
for a Tata, which is made with spinach, tomatoes, mozzarella.
That tends to be very popular with all families, I
think with kids. As you mentioned, our muffins are really
popular both for breakfast as well as school lunch box solutions,
whether it's the blueberry oat muffins which have yellow squashing carrots,
(05:14):
or the double chocolate muffin with truly hidden zucchini.
Speaker 3 (05:18):
You would never know it's there.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Right exactly.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
And I love that they're so easy to heat up
as well, because you don't even need to take them
out of the package.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
You just put the whole thing in the microwave exactly.
Speaker 4 (05:29):
I mean, our core consumer group is busy families and
individuals who are at the end of the day juggling
too many things, and we want our products to be
as close to homemade, but with a heat and eat
convenience that we know people are looking for exactly.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
And are all of the products soy free, nut free,
gluten free.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
They are. Absolutely.
Speaker 4 (05:51):
That makes them a whole you know, a great option
for the whole family, as well as a school safe
lunch box solution for busy families who are packing lunch
for their kids.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Definitely.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
And I know that they could heat up very quickly
if you are packing them for lunch. Do you just
I mean, I think they're fine cold or warm? How
do you recommend sending them for lunch? They can just
defrost from frozen okay?
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Perfect?
Speaker 1 (06:15):
And so I know they come in six count eighteen count.
Do you recommend stocking up which tends to sell better?
Speaker 5 (06:22):
No?
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Absolutely. I don't know if it's about selling better.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
I think it's about a strategy that works for different
retail channels to meet different consumer needs. You know, our
six count items are sold in retail channels nationwide, while
some of those larger pack sizes are sold in club
channels like Costco and BJ's. Right, and as you sort
of alluded, to we can. We do find that our
most loyal consumers can't get enough of veggies.
Speaker 6 (06:46):
Mate.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
Great, So those larger packs of the top items like
the Costco twenty count eggwait for tatas are definitely great
options and provide great value for those who want to
stock up.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
And then what about introducing Have you introduced a mixed
variety pack with some of each?
Speaker 3 (07:03):
You know, we have not, but it's definitely on our radar.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
It does present some operational challenges, but stay tuned.
Speaker 1 (07:11):
Okay, okay, great, No, that's terrific. Where can customers typically
find your products? I know you said that they're sold nationwide.
They're in places like bjswhere else.
Speaker 4 (07:21):
Yeah, so we're sold nationwide at most major retailers. You
can find us at Costco, Target, Walmarts, Publics, Shop Right,
Stop and Shop, Safeway, BJS.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
You know, I think there's pretty.
Speaker 4 (07:34):
If there's a retailer you want to find us, you
can probably find us there. But you can check our
store locator on our website to see specifically what's available
near you. And then we are also available online through
both Instacart as well as through online grocery at places
like Target, dot com, Walmart dot Com, Amazon Fresh, and
some other chains.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
That's terrific.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
And you know, it's funny because I feel like a
lot of times you don't necessarily hear about these healthy
food items being sold in all of the places that
you mentioned, So it's really nice to know that we
can go into any.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Of those places it will probably be.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
In any way, and that we can go there and
buy Veggies Made Great there.
Speaker 4 (08:11):
Yeah, and we're always looking to get into more channels.
At the end of the day, our mission, as I said,
is to power healthier families, So we want to be
that go to solution for anyone who's looking to make
better food choices. And you know, if we're not available
where you shop, one of the best ways to get
more distribution is for consumers to ask their local store
(08:32):
to carry Veggies Made Great. So if you can't find
it at your local grosser, do inquire. We find that
those customer requests go a long way in showing stores
that there's demand and helps them decide what to bring
in next.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
And so, are there any new products that you're really
excited about from Veggies Made Great?
Speaker 3 (08:49):
Yes.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Actually, one of our top selling runaway items is actually
a new item that we launched exclusively at Target back
the spring, which is a birthday cake comuffin, and we
found the kids are just gravitating towards this fun flavor
and in the most recent weeks, we've actually seen it
surpass pretty much all of our other items at shelf
since launching, even though it's only been available for a
(09:12):
few months. So run, don't walk to your nearest Target
to get your hands on birthday cake.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Yes, and I feel like for all those times that
we have to bring snacks into our kids' schools when
it's their birthday, this would be a great thing because
I don't know, like, I don't want to be that
mom that's like, ah, you're giving my kids more sweets again,
But I hate when they come home totally incredibly sugared up,
and so I would rather bring in something like this
to celebrate their birthday totally.
Speaker 4 (09:37):
It's a school safe lunchbox solution or you know, party snack.
And if you check out our Instagram or our TikTok,
you'll find some fun recipe hacks about how you can
jush up that recipe with frosting in other ways to
make it even more festive.
Speaker 2 (09:52):
Oh, I love it, and what is your Instagram?
Speaker 3 (09:55):
We are at Veggie's May Great.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Perfect, and so where else can we find you? I
know you said that we can go. Is it on
your website to find out what storage you're in?
Speaker 4 (10:04):
Absolutely? If you visit that You'smaygreat dot Com. One of
the options is a store locator where you can put
in your zip code and figure out what assortment is
available near you.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
Terrific.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
Well, thank you so much, Julia hecked. I really appreciate
you joining me today on Passport Mommy. Like I said,
we have always been a fan. We will continue to
be a fan. And thank you and your company for
making such great products for my kids.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
They love them.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
I love them because they are healthy and also taste
really good. And you know, honestly, my husband pops them
in the microwave all the time.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
I do, and some of the kids.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
We all love different flavors, so they're always good to
have on hands.
Speaker 3 (10:42):
We love to hear that. Thank you so much, Michelle,
my pleasure.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
I'm Michelle Jursen the Passport Mommy More coming up in
a few If you heard the show last week, you
know we talked all about Charleston, South Carolina. We'll head
over to the podcast because we have part two up
there now with so many fun places to go and
incredible restaurants to check out. So just head over to
Passport Mommy on your favorite podcasting platform. And also while
(11:07):
you're there, don't forget to leave a review, because the
more reviews we have, the more people can find this show.
I'm Michelle Jerson the Passport Mommy More.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Coming up in a few.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
You're listening to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson and I'm
thrilled to have on the show today. Lisa Lanchi is
the senior vice president for PETA and today we're going
to talk about animals in the entertainment business because when
we see them on TV or in a movie, we think, wow,
that's so cool somebody's animal is in a movie. But
(11:39):
what is their life like really when the cameras aren't rolling. Lisa,
thank you so much for joining me today. Thanks so
much for having me on My pleasure. So what has
PETA founds behind the scenes in regards to animals that
are used for film and TV.
Speaker 5 (11:56):
Well, we've done several investigation and training compounds at the
big you know, the Bigger suppliers, and consistently we've found
neglect and abuse of training methods. And the thing is,
you know, very little of the abuse today takes place
while filming. But what we say to showrunners on television
and what we say to directors and anyone who will listen,
(12:20):
is you have to pay attention to what's going on
behind the scenes. And so we've found that animals are
living in squalor feces encrusted cages, cages that are very
very small animals stacked in cages one on top of
another at a compound in New Mexico. For example, cats
who are trained through starvation because anyone who knows cats
(12:42):
know they they're not They do what they do when
they want to do it, and so on set time
is money, and so a hungry cat is more liable
to respond to a trainer, and that's just outright abuse.
Speaker 6 (12:57):
Dogs who are.
Speaker 5 (12:57):
Living in cages, who are kept outside overnight in cold conditions,
so one after the other, it's not good. And so
what we've done is we're going to showrunners and directors
and saying just don't use animals across the board, especially
don't use wild animals, because when you use a monkey,
an elephant, a tiger. The training methods typically are even
(13:19):
more abusive, and the living conditions are even worse because
these are wild animals. So when you put a monkey
in a cage, it denies them of everything they need,
everything that is natural to them, denies them family and
all of that. So those are the things we've found.
But the good news is that there is a real
shift in Hollywood away from the use of animals and
(13:40):
instead a reliance on CGI, which is computer generated imagery,
or even filmmakers using their own animals like Bradley Cooper
did in A Star is Born right.
Speaker 1 (13:50):
And I love that because I was going to ask you,
is there anyone that who's using animals correctly?
Speaker 2 (13:55):
And who are some examples of people who are doing
it wrong?
Speaker 5 (14:00):
So let's start with the good news. You got people
like I said Bradley Cooper, Bridget Evertten for her show
Somebody Somewhere Roberts and Nero even used his own dogs
in the Alto Kings recently, and so if their own
companion animals are comfortable, that's a great way to do it. Also,
look at Superman, huge blockbuster success, Crypto the super Dog
(14:24):
one hundred percent CGI and based on James Gunn's own dog, Ozu,
who was adopted. So those are kind of the heroes
of the day. There are many more actually who are
doing it right. But then you look at someone like
Danny McBride, thankfully the Righteous Gemstone this is over. But
he used a monkey in the entire last season and
(14:45):
even had the monkey quote unquote, well not quote unquote,
had the monkey smoking. I mean, that's something that's abuse
we haven't seen in a really long time. He should
rely on his own ability as a writer and as
a comedian, but he didn't. Saying with bad Monkey on Apple,
they used a monkey for their whole first season. We're
hoping there won't be a return of the monkey in
the second season. But you know, so those are those
(15:07):
are bad actors. But mostly we're seeing things going in
the right direction.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
That's great. And do you work with the showrunners?
Speaker 5 (15:17):
We do, We do, you know, That's that's where we
go when we do a ton of research, and when
we hear that a television program is going to be made,
we look to see is there a call for animals
to be included, and even if there's not, we write
and introduce them to our work. Show them the footage
of the investigations we've done of these poor dogs living
(15:39):
in you know, just barren cages, and cats being starved
and birds living in very small cages, that type of thing.
We show them and say, hey, meet with us, let us,
let us tell you what we've found behind the scenes
before you move forward. And more and more they do
and are shifting away from the use of animals. We
also rely heavily on whistleblowers. The best information we've gotten. Recently,
(16:02):
a series called for they were going to hunt and
kill a deer to use her corpse and put a
horse in a violent shootout scene, and a whistleblower contacted
us before they shot those scenes, before they killed the deer,
and we were able to get it stopped. So we
really rely on whistleblowers, crew members, actors, people who are
there who can come to us anonymously by either filling
(16:25):
out a form online, by going to peda dot org
slash report or calling us, and we will jump on
that quickly and we will leave your name out of it.
Speaker 2 (16:34):
That's terrific.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
So I feel like people in the industry can report
things like this without feeling like their jobs are in Jeopardy.
Speaker 5 (16:42):
That's absolutely right. We take that anonymity very very seriously.
But if you can be our eyes and ears, and
that also goes for people who are seeing movies and
watching television. You come to us even if you're not sure.
If you see something that troubles you, come to us.
We may already know about how a scene was shot
(17:02):
or that it was actually cgi and not a real animal,
and we're happy to tell you that, but we can't
be everywhere, we can't see everything, so if you see something,
please reach out to us.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
Terrific Well, thank you so much as always for all
of the work that you're doing, Lisa Lange. Where can
we get more information on PETA everything that you're doing,
not just with animals on movie sets and in television shows,
but just in general, and if we want to get involved, yeah, just.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
Easily just go to peda dot org. It's all right there.
But also follow us on Instagram and Facebook and all
the social media channels because we update those very very
quickly and you can kind of stay on top of
what we're up to.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
Perfect.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
Thank you so much, Lisa Lange, Thank you for joining
me today on Passport Mommy, Thank you, my pleasure.
Speaker 2 (17:48):
I'm Michelle Jerson. More coming up in a few.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
You're listening to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson, and I'm
really happy to have on the show with me today,
Lori Murphy. She is the author of dream Me Dead. Laurie,
thank you so much for joining me today.
Speaker 6 (18:04):
Thank you very much for having me. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (18:07):
Sure. So tell me a little bit about dream Me Dead.
Speaker 6 (18:10):
Okay, Dreamy Dead is the sequel to my first book,
dream Me Home. So just to give you a little
starting off point. In dream Me Home, the first book,
the protagonist is Peggy Prescott and she is the wife
of a celebrity plastic surgeon, Rob Prescott, and they moved
from Boston reluctantly she moved. He dragged her away to
(18:35):
the Key West, Florida. Anybody would love to live in
Key West. But she missed home, so she was very
happy about that. But she is narrating the first book
from her grave, so we opened up to know she's
already dead. So that brings us through the first book
and to the second book, Dreamy Dead, dream Me Dead.
(18:57):
They're wondering who how did this happen? To her? Found
frozen in the marital bed next door to her husband,
who didn't seem to notice she was deceased, and so
he is now in the second book, dreaming Dead, up
for trial for murder, and that's where we open.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Wow, So did you plan this sequel while writing the
first book?
Speaker 6 (19:17):
No, As a matter of fact, the first book stood
by itself and it had a little bit of a
kind of a paranormal ending, and to me, that was that.
And I've had many book clubs going what happened to
this one in this one? And I'm like, well, their
fictional characters, so nothing. But it was a compliment, I
think to the book because people really loved the characters,
(19:40):
even the secondary characters, and they wanted more. So I said, oh, okay,
I'll write the second book. Well the second book is
out and people are like, yeah, I know, but it
couldn't we just maybe? So I said, okay, first last
and final book I'm writing now just could be called
Dreamy Gone.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
What are there things that you left out of the
first books so that you could reveal them in the second.
Speaker 6 (20:03):
There was a home invasion in the first book, which
spiraled Peggy, the protagonist, into seeing this psychiatrist doctor Sherman,
who was a misogynist. He hated women, and he twisted
her mind up even further. So we had that, and
we had also a killing of someone and it really
(20:27):
was irrelevant, I thought, to the story, but people loved
that character and they wanted to know why it was
he dead, Okay, So I had to tie that up
for everybody that wanted to know. In the second book,
there are no loose ends at all, except that there
is a different ending we could have. And people argued
(20:48):
over the second book, dream Me Dead. I think it
happened this way, and I think it happened this way.
I know how it happened. I wrote it, but people
are adamant about which way they wanted to go. So
the third book is going to tie it all up,
and it's going to say this is how it went
the end.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
Wow, okay.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
And so how did you handle having a wide cast
of characters and just switching between their perspectives?
Speaker 6 (21:14):
You know, it's very interesting when I one of the
reasons I wrote is because I am an avid reader,
always since childhood, and I was a lot of times
really disappointed if it was a really good plot, but
I couldn't keep the characters straight there were too many
of them, or they didn't really seem to pop out
of the page, or the characters were great, but the
(21:35):
plot just seemed like it wasn't a page turner. So
I thought, well, there should be a way of getting
both in. So my characters. There's probably no more than six,
maybe seven characters in the books, but each one of
them has a backstory, and each one of them stands
by themselves, and you really feel like you know them
and you're rooting for them, even if they're the bad
(21:57):
guy or you're kind of annoyed with good guy because
come on, you know, get a backbone, so you care
about them. So when they pop up in the next
chapter or the next chapter, you're like, oh good, Oh
it's Erica. Oh good, Oh it's going to be Anthony.
So that's what I tried to do. And you know,
so far, so good. So people say they can remember
(22:19):
every character.
Speaker 1 (22:20):
Always, Oh that's great, because I know. Just on a
quick side note, I have an eight year old daughter
and I can't get her to read, and I'm like, oh,
but you have so many great stories and so many
I feel it's so key at this age to give
her books that are engaging.
Speaker 6 (22:34):
It is, and you know one of the tricks. You know,
I was the therapist and I saw a lot of children.
One of the tricks to get kids to read if
they don't want to read, is to have them sit
down with you and you start writing a story. Like
you just make up whatever fictional story about her friends,
or her playmates down the street, or the people that
she doesn't like, and then she fills in the blanks,
(22:55):
and then pretty soon, page after page after page, it
becomes a story and she says, oh, look what I did.
And then she realizes, Okay, these stories matter to me,
so the stories that other people write will also matter
to me.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
Oh how interesting. That's thank you. That's a great tip
to try. Not all right, well, let's get back to you.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
So how do you find a balance between reality and
the dream world in your book?
Speaker 6 (23:23):
That's always a problem. It's been a problem for me
my entire life on a personal level, because when I
was young, I used to think my dreams were very vivid,
and even if I had nothing to do with anything
that was happening in real life, I used to think, well,
how do I know that my dream life isn't the
real life and my real life isn't a dream. I
(23:44):
had that sort of in my head, so it was
easy for me. I knew the ending of the first book,
and I knew the ending of the second book. I
just didn't know how I was going to get there.
But what happens is once I have the character, and
I know this sounds crazy, but the character will take
me where they want to go. And if I want
them to go in this direction. When people say they
(24:05):
have writer's block, it's writer's block is really basically saying
your character is not going down that road. That's not
their story. So you have to back it up and
let them go where they want. And I'm as surprised
as anybody. I used to say to my husband, you
would never believe what happened to Peggy, and he'd be like, listen,
you're writing it. Why would you surprised, And I'm like, no,
(24:26):
I'm shocked that she took this turn. So that's how
it goes.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
I know, as part of your plot, court cases, the
justice system plays a huge part.
Speaker 2 (24:37):
What experience do you have with that.
Speaker 6 (24:39):
As a therapy. I started out as a registered nurse
and I worked in the ICU, and then when I
moved to Florida. I moved from Washington, d C. To Florida,
and I married a psychologist and we had a lot
of and so I ended up getting a degree in psychology.
And we have a lot of court ordered cases, or
(25:00):
I would go as a standby person, or I would
actually be testifying on behalf of some of my clients,
and so I got to see how the court system
worked as well. I have many friends who are a
lawyer's defense and prosecuting attorneys. So I don't know, it's
just second nature not to mention. I mean, who hasn't
loved reading John Grisham's books and brief or watching Lincoln
(25:23):
Lawyer on TV. So you pick up stuff as you go.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
Sure, And so what characters were the easiest and which
ones were the hardest to write?
Speaker 6 (25:31):
Doctor Sherman is my favorite character to hate because he
is so obnoxious and rude to his patient, and he
knows how to manipulate. And I could not have my
husband passed away a few years ago. I had this
book in my head. I could not have written this
book if he was still alive, because he would never
have allowed me to be so degrading to a psychologist.
(25:55):
But you know, when you think about it, when you
go to a first you're giving them all of your
secrets or most of them, not all, but most. They
can do what they want with it. I'm sure ninety
nine point nine percent are very above board wanting to
help therapeutically. But there are some some therapists we assume,
(26:18):
I don't know any that maybe want the power of
you know, you remind them of a wife that left you. Okay,
they're going to punish you for that, and they can.
So he does.
Speaker 2 (26:29):
And so what would you say the main theme or
the message of this book is.
Speaker 6 (26:33):
I think the main theme of well, the main theme
of Dreaming I have to start from the first one.
The main theme of Dreaming Home is that there is
always hope. Anything is possible, no matter what, and no
matter what adversity comes in your life, you can overcome
it by choice if you really find the strength within you.
(26:53):
Dreamy Dead, I think the message is, you know, when
we have time to reflect, like Rob, the husband is
in jail for a long period of time waiting against trial,
and you have trying to reflect on who actually are
you associating with? Who are your friends and who are
your so called friends, because innately, you know some of
these people are really not on your behalf, not advocating
(27:17):
for you, but you keep them anyway for whatever purposes
you have. And he has time to reflect and say,
these are the people that have to be eliminated one
way or the other.
Speaker 1 (27:28):
And so you mentioned that parts of the story are
inspired by your career as a psychotherapist. Tell me more about.
Speaker 6 (27:35):
That, you know, probably I was a therapist for thirty
eight years. And you hear so many stories. I mean,
they start to almost blend into each other. But just
when you think you've heard everyone, there's another one that
you think, wow, I didn't see that coming. And some
stories because these people are not just patients to me,
(27:55):
these people are human beings with real lives. They sit
in your head and they resonate and they take residence
in the crevices of your mind. And so when I
started writing, I could hear their voices just so all
blend together and go, I want to tell my story.
I want to tell mine. I want to tell mine,
And so it's almost like to honor them. Blending their
(28:18):
stories made my characters. And these are real life things
of thousands of people that ended up in six people's minds.
Speaker 1 (28:28):
And I feel like you had the best, as they
would say, show prep or book prep in all your
years of working. As as I go there, I can't
imagine anybody who probably has more material to work from.
Speaker 6 (28:40):
Well, there was a lot of material. And believe me,
I've been a writer in my whole life in my head,
but I have four kids, and I had careers, and
I had a lot of stuff going on. So it
wasn't until the last several years that I thought, Okay,
I've got like eight books in my head, let me
start this one. The first one, Threw Me Home, was
going to be a love story, but I didn't know
there was miss in me. So it turned out to
(29:01):
me a psychological thriller with a little bit of a
twist of a love story toward the end. And then
the second one Dreamed Me Dead, which is what we're
talking about. Now. There's a lot in me that was
and I am a very optimistic person, but there's a
lot of anger that I felt from patients that sort
of I needed to get out of my head and
say on the page.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
Yeah, I always wondered, you know, it's a psycho therapist
obviously you need to keep that, you know, a certain boundary.
Speaker 2 (29:30):
Up, But how do you not how do you not absorb?
Speaker 6 (29:33):
I never took anybody's work home with me. I don't know.
I think it's good, just good. DNA an optimistic person
by nature. But when people in my practice started crying
for whatever reason, happy tears, sad tears, I ended up
with tears rolling down my face, and my husband, who
shared the office on the other side of the room, said,
(29:55):
you can't cry with your patience. You have to be objective,
and I'm like, I know, but their stories are touching.
So that's how I tried to make my characters. I
want people to love or really hate these people so
that they never leave you, even when the last page
is closed.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (30:12):
So what's next for your writing projects? I know you
mentioned you have one final book in the trilogy.
Speaker 6 (30:17):
One final book, dream Me Gone, and that'll wrap up
this trilogy. And then I've always had two other books
in my head that I really I want to write
it right now, but I have to finish This one
is going to be called Grace, and I can't tell
you what it's going to be about, but it's a
heartwarming story having nothing to do with mystery, and the
(30:39):
last one is going to be a generational mystery that
incorporates religion and sadness and deceit.
Speaker 1 (30:46):
Okay, I know you mentioned earlier in the interview that
you believe people can change. You just have to make
a decision to make a change. Did you ever have
a client who just couldn't make decisions and just couldn't
make changes as much as they wanted to.
Speaker 6 (30:59):
I had a lot of clients that said I don't
feel any better from week to week, and I'd say, okay,
excuse me. I suggested that you might want to think
about doing this and this and this. Did you do that? Well? No,
I didn't do that. Okay, would you want to try
that again this week? Yes? I will. Next week, they
come in, I don't feel any better? Did you do
this and this? No? I didn't. It's a personal choice.
(31:22):
I mean, obviously, if you have a terrible tragedy in
your life, the death of someone, that's not a choice
you have to just that's time. Time will heal those
wounds to a point. But if you are just lingering
over a bad relationship or a boyfriend that went and
cheated on you, or you don't like your friends and
you can't get out of your friend group. Those are
(31:43):
choices that you make, and a lot of times it
really goes back to childhood. And I hate to quote
Siegmund Freud, but I mean he always said, you know,
if you don't go back to childhood and all the
issues that you had buried there, you're never going forward.
And so to a certain degree, that's really accurate. People
that used to go back and talk about people parents
(32:04):
even that they go, I don't want to be disrespectful.
My parents are gone now. I don't want to talk
about the dead. Well you should, because you're not hurting them,
You're hurting yourself if you don't.
Speaker 1 (32:14):
Right, excellent advice. So where can we go to find
dream me Dead? And also dream me Home?
Speaker 6 (32:19):
Amazon would be the quickest and probably the cheapest place
to go because they'll deliver books overnight, but Bornes and
Noble has them books a million I think Walmart, Target,
anywhere you buy books.
Speaker 1 (32:32):
Thank you so much, Laurie Elizabeth Murphy. I love speaking
with you. Thank you for joining me today on Passport Mommy.
You're listening to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson and I'm
thrilled to have our next guest on the show, doctor
Kate Jordan. She is with the American Association for Pediatric
Optometry and Strabismus and we are going to just talk
(32:52):
about the importance of getting back to school eye screenings
because we all know how important our eyesight is and
especially for our children who are learning. Thank you so
much for joining me today, doctor Jordan.
Speaker 7 (33:05):
Thank you so much for having me my pleasure.
Speaker 1 (33:09):
So why are regular vision screening so important for kids?
Speaker 7 (33:14):
Yeah, it's so helpful for our kids to have regular
vision screenings at an early age to catch vision problems
so they can be fixed before they get worse. A
lot of times children don't realize that they have vision
issues because they just assume that the everyone sees the
same way that they do. And especially if they have
a lazy eye, if they can't see well out of
one eye but the other eye is really good, they
(33:35):
don't really care, and because they can keep mine in
one eye. So it's really important to get flagged early
to detect those things and treated early.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
Absolutely, and kids may not tell us either, like you said, So,
what would be some of the warning signs that a
child may be having vision issues.
Speaker 7 (33:52):
Yeah, So the biggest thing is squinting to look far away.
That shows that they're having some nearsightedis problems, if they're
things close to their face, if they're not reading at
a grade level, if they have any eye misalignment such
as crossing or eye drifting. Sometimes kids will cover an
(34:12):
eye or squint and eye when they go outside, or
cover an eye when they're reading, and those are signs
to look for that really need to be evaluated at
a young age so that we can treat and have
success for their vision for their future.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
Sure, so what would you say is the best time
of year or just any time to get an eye exam.
Speaker 7 (34:34):
Anytime is good for an eye exam, but the best
time of year for vision screenings is at the beginning
of the year. Just for the reminders. Every year, children's
eyes grow and vision changes yearly, so vision screenings are
important to do yearly. They might not have had a
problem the year before, and then they do have a
problem the next year. So if they're not getting vision
(34:57):
screening at school, they can get a vision screening through
their primary care provider through Health THEIRS with the Lions Club,
which partners with icare professionals nationwide to screen vision and children.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
Oh interesting and are they involved with the All Children's
See program.
Speaker 7 (35:17):
So, the All Children's See program is actually launched by
the Children's I Foundation of a posts A post is
the Americaside launched. They launched that program in twenty twenty
as the first direct patient care program. The program connects
US families with a pediatric ophthalmologist who will provide no
cost eye care to children without insurance or.
Speaker 3 (35:39):
Access to vision care.
Speaker 7 (35:40):
This program operates in over thirty states and in Washington,
d C. And we're really grateful that the night Timelor
I Foundation provided a generous donation of two million dollars
for this program. So it's a really wonderful program for patients,
especially families that do not have a vision and or
I care and insurance.
Speaker 1 (36:02):
Absolutely, that's an incredible program. Where can people go to
see if they qualify and to get connected with it?
Speaker 7 (36:10):
Yeah, So more information can be found at All children
c dot org, dot c See dot org. That's part
of the Children's I Foundation. So they can also go
to the Childrensifoundation dot org to find out more information
about health or finding a pediatric ophthalmologist in their area.
(36:32):
They can go to a pos dot org and that's
a really helpful website that provides a lot of information
for families.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
Terrific.
Speaker 1 (36:42):
And I know that you are a pediatric ophthalmologist in Columbus,
Ohio and you practice at the Pediatric Ophthalmology Associates and
Nationwide Children's Hospital.
Speaker 2 (36:51):
Are you can we come see you if we're in
the area.
Speaker 7 (36:55):
Absolutely, you can definitely come see me at my office
in Pediatric Opthalmology Associates or Nachhoie Children's Hospital or in Columbus,
Ohio or accepting new patients. And you can find us
on our website and but we are on the apos
dot org information find it out so perfect.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
Thank you so much, of course, thank you doctor Keith Jordan.
Thank you for joining me today on Passport Mommy and
for all of those excellent tips.
Speaker 2 (37:22):
Thanks so much for having me my pleasure.
Speaker 1 (37:24):
I'm Michelle Jerson the Passport Mommy, and thank you so
much for joining me this week. Don't forget as always,
you can download the podcast and listen to this in
any episode anytime. So they're folding laundry, making dinner, whatever
it is, you can listen.
Speaker 2 (37:37):
To previous episodes.
Speaker 1 (37:39):
Just go to Passport Mommy on any of your favorite
podcasting apps, and while you're there, if you can leave
a review. That is super helpful because it allows other
people to find this show as well.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
The more reviews that we have and I love seeing
each and.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
Every comment and review that you leave, and I truly
appreciate you joining me on the show.
Speaker 2 (37:56):
I'm Michelle Jerson. Have a wonderful week.
Welcome to Passport Mommy. I'm your host, Michelle Jerson. This
show is for anyone raising little humans. We feature experts
with tips and advice to enrich the lives of our children.
Mom and dad entrepreneurs tell us their inspiring stories, learn
about products that could make both you and your child's
life easier and more fun, and of course, fellow parents
(00:21):
discuss and laugh about what's happening in their child's world.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Motherhood is a journey. Thanks for joining me onmine. Welcome
to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
So I'd love when I get to do interviews with
brands and people that I really love and admire. And
so when I recently received an invite to an event
by Veggies Made Great, I was very excited, and you know,
I geek out over like healthy foods and healthy foods
for my kids, and so we have been buying Veggies
(00:53):
Made Great for years. There are these little muffins that
they come. There's an egg white one and cheese, egg
whites and cheese. There's chocolate and we'll get into all
of that, but they're really healthy.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
They have great ingredients.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
My kids love them, which is so important and so
I'm really happy to have on the show with me today.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Julia.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Heck.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
She is the chief marketing officer of Veggies Made Great,
and she's going to talk to us just all about
the brands and where we can find it.
Speaker 3 (01:20):
Hi, Julia, Hi, thank you. It is not for having
me here today.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
My pleasure.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
So tell me about Veggies Made Great and why this
brand is so great for the entire family.
Speaker 4 (01:32):
Absolutely, so, the company was really started to fill a
void that our chief founders saw on the market.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
It turns out that only.
Speaker 4 (01:39):
One in ten Americans get the recommended servings of vegetables
per day, and so when we founded the company, the
mission was really to unlock the greatness of vegetables to
power healthier families, and so Veggie's Made Great. We have
lines of different products, which you mentioned. We have egg
bite for tatas, we have muffins, baked oatmeal, etc. All
(02:00):
of them have vegetables as the first ingredient, because we
believe that veggies don't have to taste boring. In fact,
we really think that vegetables make good food even greater,
and so at the end of the day, all of
our products have vegetables as the number one ingredient all
made to put real, nutritious, delicious veggies first, and at
the end of the day, it's super important that everything
(02:21):
we make also meats are remarkably delicious rule because we
want to put delicious tasting food into people's hands as well.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Yes, I love that, and I love how veggies are
the first ingredient because you can have a box that
has vegetables listed, but if it's the sixth ingredient listed,
you can bet there's not a lot of veggies in them.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
So what makes Veggies Made Great stand out from other
frozen snack brands?
Speaker 4 (02:49):
I think that frozen food often forces you to make
a trade off between convenience, health, and then taste.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
But at Veggies me great.
Speaker 4 (02:58):
We believe the eating better shouldn't involve that kind of compromise,
and so while many of the other frozen convenient options
on the market can be overprocessed, unhealthy or bland, we
offer real food that is tastier, healthier, and easier and.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
That gees meet great. We really don't follow food fads
and trends.
Speaker 4 (03:19):
We only make what we believe in, and for us,
that means vegetables is the lead ingredient delicious recipes and
prep that's always family friendly.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
Are there any new exciting products or seasonal items that
are launching soon?
Speaker 4 (03:34):
Yeah, so innovation is actually, you know, something that's always.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
On our radar. We recently launched a few product lines.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
We launched Potato Baked, which are like a hash brown
but better with the addition of egg whites for protein
and a medley of vegetables.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
We also recently Yeah, they're delicious.
Speaker 4 (03:51):
The loaded flavor actually one product of the Year this
past year, so we're very excited about that product line.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Oh congratulations, I haven't tried that one yet. I would
try that well yet.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
I'm in your hands for sure.
Speaker 4 (04:03):
We also recently launched soft Baked Oatmeal, which is a
heat and eat hand held oatmeal that's packed with eight
grams of protein and seventeen grams of whole grains. Again,
vegetables is the first ingredient really playing off of the
trends we've seen in overnight oats and oatmeal across the market.
And then, as you said, we do have some fun
seasonal items that are going to be available this fall
(04:25):
at places like Costco and All the including a pumpkin
cranberry as well as an apple cinnamon muffin.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Oh yum.
Speaker 1 (04:33):
And so which of your products would you say are
the most popular right now? I know in my households
we haven't tried all the ones that you just mentioned,
but my kids love the chocolate. You tell them chocolate
anything and they'll never know that there's vegetables in them.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
But what do you find are the most popular?
Speaker 3 (04:50):
We find that are number one bestseller.
Speaker 4 (04:52):
Our most popular product is our signature spinach egg white
for a Tata, which is made with spinach, tomatoes, mozzarella.
That tends to be very popular with all families, I
think with kids. As you mentioned, our muffins are really
popular both for breakfast as well as school lunch box solutions,
whether it's the blueberry oat muffins which have yellow squashing carrots,
(05:14):
or the double chocolate muffin with truly hidden zucchini.
Speaker 3 (05:18):
You would never know it's there.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Right exactly.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
And I love that they're so easy to heat up
as well, because you don't even need to take them
out of the package.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
You just put the whole thing in the microwave exactly.
Speaker 4 (05:29):
I mean, our core consumer group is busy families and
individuals who are at the end of the day juggling
too many things, and we want our products to be
as close to homemade, but with a heat and eat
convenience that we know people are looking for exactly.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
And are all of the products soy free, nut free,
gluten free.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
They are. Absolutely.
Speaker 4 (05:51):
That makes them a whole you know, a great option
for the whole family, as well as a school safe
lunch box solution for busy families who are packing lunch
for their kids.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Definitely.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
And I know that they could heat up very quickly
if you are packing them for lunch. Do you just
I mean, I think they're fine cold or warm? How
do you recommend sending them for lunch? They can just
defrost from frozen okay?
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Perfect?
Speaker 1 (06:15):
And so I know they come in six count eighteen count.
Do you recommend stocking up which tends to sell better?
Speaker 5 (06:22):
No?
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Absolutely. I don't know if it's about selling better.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
I think it's about a strategy that works for different
retail channels to meet different consumer needs. You know, our
six count items are sold in retail channels nationwide, while
some of those larger pack sizes are sold in club
channels like Costco and BJ's. Right, and as you sort
of alluded, to we can. We do find that our
most loyal consumers can't get enough of veggies.
Speaker 6 (06:46):
Mate.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
Great, So those larger packs of the top items like
the Costco twenty count eggwait for tatas are definitely great
options and provide great value for those who want to
stock up.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
And then what about introducing Have you introduced a mixed
variety pack with some of each?
Speaker 3 (07:03):
You know, we have not, but it's definitely on our radar.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
It does present some operational challenges, but stay tuned.
Speaker 1 (07:11):
Okay, okay, great, No, that's terrific. Where can customers typically
find your products? I know you said that they're sold nationwide.
They're in places like bjswhere else.
Speaker 4 (07:21):
Yeah, so we're sold nationwide at most major retailers. You
can find us at Costco, Target, Walmarts, Publics, Shop Right,
Stop and Shop, Safeway, BJS.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
You know, I think there's pretty.
Speaker 4 (07:34):
If there's a retailer you want to find us, you
can probably find us there. But you can check our
store locator on our website to see specifically what's available
near you. And then we are also available online through
both Instacart as well as through online grocery at places
like Target, dot com, Walmart dot Com, Amazon Fresh, and
some other chains.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
That's terrific.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
And you know, it's funny because I feel like a
lot of times you don't necessarily hear about these healthy
food items being sold in all of the places that
you mentioned, So it's really nice to know that we
can go into any.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Of those places it will probably be.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
In any way, and that we can go there and
buy Veggies Made Great there.
Speaker 4 (08:11):
Yeah, and we're always looking to get into more channels.
At the end of the day, our mission, as I said,
is to power healthier families, So we want to be
that go to solution for anyone who's looking to make
better food choices. And you know, if we're not available
where you shop, one of the best ways to get
more distribution is for consumers to ask their local store
(08:32):
to carry Veggies Made Great. So if you can't find
it at your local grosser, do inquire. We find that
those customer requests go a long way in showing stores
that there's demand and helps them decide what to bring
in next.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
And so, are there any new products that you're really
excited about from Veggies Made Great?
Speaker 3 (08:49):
Yes.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Actually, one of our top selling runaway items is actually
a new item that we launched exclusively at Target back
the spring, which is a birthday cake comuffin, and we
found the kids are just gravitating towards this fun flavor
and in the most recent weeks, we've actually seen it
surpass pretty much all of our other items at shelf
since launching, even though it's only been available for a
(09:12):
few months. So run, don't walk to your nearest Target
to get your hands on birthday cake.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Yes, and I feel like for all those times that
we have to bring snacks into our kids' schools when
it's their birthday, this would be a great thing because
I don't know, like, I don't want to be that
mom that's like, ah, you're giving my kids more sweets again,
But I hate when they come home totally incredibly sugared up,
and so I would rather bring in something like this
to celebrate their birthday totally.
Speaker 4 (09:37):
It's a school safe lunchbox solution or you know, party snack.
And if you check out our Instagram or our TikTok,
you'll find some fun recipe hacks about how you can
jush up that recipe with frosting in other ways to
make it even more festive.
Speaker 2 (09:52):
Oh, I love it, and what is your Instagram?
Speaker 3 (09:55):
We are at Veggie's May Great.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
Perfect, and so where else can we find you? I
know you said that we can go. Is it on
your website to find out what storage you're in?
Speaker 4 (10:04):
Absolutely? If you visit that You'smaygreat dot Com. One of
the options is a store locator where you can put
in your zip code and figure out what assortment is
available near you.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
Terrific.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
Well, thank you so much, Julia hecked. I really appreciate
you joining me today on Passport Mommy. Like I said,
we have always been a fan. We will continue to
be a fan. And thank you and your company for
making such great products for my kids.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
They love them.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
I love them because they are healthy and also taste
really good. And you know, honestly, my husband pops them
in the microwave all the time.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
I do, and some of the kids.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
We all love different flavors, so they're always good to
have on hands.
Speaker 3 (10:42):
We love to hear that. Thank you so much, Michelle,
my pleasure.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
I'm Michelle Jursen the Passport Mommy More coming up in
a few If you heard the show last week, you
know we talked all about Charleston, South Carolina. We'll head
over to the podcast because we have part two up
there now with so many fun places to go and
incredible restaurants to check out. So just head over to
Passport Mommy on your favorite podcasting platform. And also while
(11:07):
you're there, don't forget to leave a review, because the
more reviews we have, the more people can find this show.
I'm Michelle Jerson the Passport Mommy More.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Coming up in a few.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
You're listening to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson and I'm
thrilled to have on the show today. Lisa Lanchi is
the senior vice president for PETA and today we're going
to talk about animals in the entertainment business because when
we see them on TV or in a movie, we think, wow,
that's so cool somebody's animal is in a movie. But
(11:39):
what is their life like really when the cameras aren't rolling. Lisa,
thank you so much for joining me today. Thanks so
much for having me on My pleasure. So what has
PETA founds behind the scenes in regards to animals that
are used for film and TV.
Speaker 5 (11:56):
Well, we've done several investigation and training compounds at the
big you know, the Bigger suppliers, and consistently we've found
neglect and abuse of training methods. And the thing is,
you know, very little of the abuse today takes place
while filming. But what we say to showrunners on television
and what we say to directors and anyone who will listen,
(12:20):
is you have to pay attention to what's going on
behind the scenes. And so we've found that animals are
living in squalor feces encrusted cages, cages that are very
very small animals stacked in cages one on top of
another at a compound in New Mexico. For example, cats
who are trained through starvation because anyone who knows cats
(12:42):
know they they're not They do what they do when
they want to do it, and so on set time
is money, and so a hungry cat is more liable
to respond to a trainer, and that's just outright abuse.
Speaker 6 (12:57):
Dogs who are.
Speaker 5 (12:57):
Living in cages, who are kept outside overnight in cold conditions,
so one after the other, it's not good. And so
what we've done is we're going to showrunners and directors
and saying just don't use animals across the board, especially
don't use wild animals, because when you use a monkey,
an elephant, a tiger. The training methods typically are even
(13:19):
more abusive, and the living conditions are even worse because
these are wild animals. So when you put a monkey
in a cage, it denies them of everything they need,
everything that is natural to them, denies them family and
all of that. So those are the things we've found.
But the good news is that there is a real
shift in Hollywood away from the use of animals and
(13:40):
instead a reliance on CGI, which is computer generated imagery,
or even filmmakers using their own animals like Bradley Cooper
did in A Star is Born right.
Speaker 1 (13:50):
And I love that because I was going to ask you,
is there anyone that who's using animals correctly?
Speaker 2 (13:55):
And who are some examples of people who are doing
it wrong?
Speaker 5 (14:00):
So let's start with the good news. You got people
like I said Bradley Cooper, Bridget Evertten for her show
Somebody Somewhere Roberts and Nero even used his own dogs
in the Alto Kings recently, and so if their own
companion animals are comfortable, that's a great way to do it. Also,
look at Superman, huge blockbuster success, Crypto the super Dog
(14:24):
one hundred percent CGI and based on James Gunn's own dog, Ozu,
who was adopted. So those are kind of the heroes
of the day. There are many more actually who are
doing it right. But then you look at someone like
Danny McBride, thankfully the Righteous Gemstone this is over. But
he used a monkey in the entire last season and
(14:45):
even had the monkey quote unquote, well not quote unquote,
had the monkey smoking. I mean, that's something that's abuse
we haven't seen in a really long time. He should
rely on his own ability as a writer and as
a comedian, but he didn't. Saying with bad Monkey on Apple,
they used a monkey for their whole first season. We're
hoping there won't be a return of the monkey in
the second season. But you know, so those are those
(15:07):
are bad actors. But mostly we're seeing things going in
the right direction.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
That's great. And do you work with the showrunners?
Speaker 5 (15:17):
We do, We do, you know, That's that's where we
go when we do a ton of research, and when
we hear that a television program is going to be made,
we look to see is there a call for animals
to be included, and even if there's not, we write
and introduce them to our work. Show them the footage
of the investigations we've done of these poor dogs living
(15:39):
in you know, just barren cages, and cats being starved
and birds living in very small cages, that type of thing.
We show them and say, hey, meet with us, let us,
let us tell you what we've found behind the scenes
before you move forward. And more and more they do
and are shifting away from the use of animals. We
also rely heavily on whistleblowers. The best information we've gotten. Recently,
(16:02):
a series called for they were going to hunt and
kill a deer to use her corpse and put a
horse in a violent shootout scene, and a whistleblower contacted
us before they shot those scenes, before they killed the deer,
and we were able to get it stopped. So we
really rely on whistleblowers, crew members, actors, people who are
there who can come to us anonymously by either filling
(16:25):
out a form online, by going to peda dot org
slash report or calling us, and we will jump on
that quickly and we will leave your name out of it.
Speaker 2 (16:34):
That's terrific.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
So I feel like people in the industry can report
things like this without feeling like their jobs are in Jeopardy.
Speaker 5 (16:42):
That's absolutely right. We take that anonymity very very seriously.
But if you can be our eyes and ears, and
that also goes for people who are seeing movies and
watching television. You come to us even if you're not sure.
If you see something that troubles you, come to us.
We may already know about how a scene was shot
(17:02):
or that it was actually cgi and not a real animal,
and we're happy to tell you that, but we can't
be everywhere, we can't see everything, so if you see something,
please reach out to us.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
Terrific Well, thank you so much as always for all
of the work that you're doing, Lisa Lange. Where can
we get more information on PETA everything that you're doing,
not just with animals on movie sets and in television shows,
but just in general, and if we want to get involved, yeah, just.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
Easily just go to peda dot org. It's all right there.
But also follow us on Instagram and Facebook and all
the social media channels because we update those very very
quickly and you can kind of stay on top of
what we're up to.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
Perfect.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
Thank you so much, Lisa Lange, Thank you for joining
me today on Passport Mommy, Thank you, my pleasure.
Speaker 2 (17:48):
I'm Michelle Jerson. More coming up in a few.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
You're listening to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson, and I'm
really happy to have on the show with me today,
Lori Murphy. She is the author of dream Me Dead. Laurie,
thank you so much for joining me today.
Speaker 6 (18:04):
Thank you very much for having me. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (18:07):
Sure. So tell me a little bit about dream Me Dead.
Speaker 6 (18:10):
Okay, Dreamy Dead is the sequel to my first book,
dream Me Home. So just to give you a little
starting off point. In dream Me Home, the first book,
the protagonist is Peggy Prescott and she is the wife
of a celebrity plastic surgeon, Rob Prescott, and they moved
from Boston reluctantly she moved. He dragged her away to
(18:35):
the Key West, Florida. Anybody would love to live in
Key West. But she missed home, so she was very
happy about that. But she is narrating the first book
from her grave, so we opened up to know she's
already dead. So that brings us through the first book
and to the second book, Dreamy Dead, dream Me Dead.
(18:57):
They're wondering who how did this happen? To her? Found
frozen in the marital bed next door to her husband,
who didn't seem to notice she was deceased, and so
he is now in the second book, dreaming Dead, up
for trial for murder, and that's where we open.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Wow, So did you plan this sequel while writing the
first book?
Speaker 6 (19:17):
No, As a matter of fact, the first book stood
by itself and it had a little bit of a
kind of a paranormal ending, and to me, that was that.
And I've had many book clubs going what happened to
this one in this one? And I'm like, well, their
fictional characters, so nothing. But it was a compliment, I
think to the book because people really loved the characters,
(19:40):
even the secondary characters, and they wanted more. So I said, oh, okay,
I'll write the second book. Well the second book is
out and people are like, yeah, I know, but it
couldn't we just maybe? So I said, okay, first last
and final book I'm writing now just could be called
Dreamy Gone.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
What are there things that you left out of the
first books so that you could reveal them in the second.
Speaker 6 (20:03):
There was a home invasion in the first book, which
spiraled Peggy, the protagonist, into seeing this psychiatrist doctor Sherman,
who was a misogynist. He hated women, and he twisted
her mind up even further. So we had that, and
we had also a killing of someone and it really
(20:27):
was irrelevant, I thought, to the story, but people loved
that character and they wanted to know why it was
he dead, Okay, So I had to tie that up
for everybody that wanted to know. In the second book,
there are no loose ends at all, except that there
is a different ending we could have. And people argued
(20:48):
over the second book, dream Me Dead. I think it
happened this way, and I think it happened this way.
I know how it happened. I wrote it, but people
are adamant about which way they wanted to go. So
the third book is going to tie it all up,
and it's going to say this is how it went
the end.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
Wow, okay.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
And so how did you handle having a wide cast
of characters and just switching between their perspectives?
Speaker 6 (21:14):
You know, it's very interesting when I one of the
reasons I wrote is because I am an avid reader,
always since childhood, and I was a lot of times
really disappointed if it was a really good plot, but
I couldn't keep the characters straight there were too many
of them, or they didn't really seem to pop out
of the page, or the characters were great, but the
(21:35):
plot just seemed like it wasn't a page turner. So
I thought, well, there should be a way of getting
both in. So my characters. There's probably no more than six,
maybe seven characters in the books, but each one of
them has a backstory, and each one of them stands
by themselves, and you really feel like you know them
and you're rooting for them, even if they're the bad
(21:57):
guy or you're kind of annoyed with good guy because
come on, you know, get a backbone, so you care
about them. So when they pop up in the next
chapter or the next chapter, you're like, oh good, Oh
it's Erica. Oh good, Oh it's going to be Anthony.
So that's what I tried to do. And you know,
so far, so good. So people say they can remember
(22:19):
every character.
Speaker 1 (22:20):
Always, Oh that's great, because I know. Just on a
quick side note, I have an eight year old daughter
and I can't get her to read, and I'm like, oh,
but you have so many great stories and so many
I feel it's so key at this age to give
her books that are engaging.
Speaker 6 (22:34):
It is, and you know one of the tricks. You know,
I was the therapist and I saw a lot of children.
One of the tricks to get kids to read if
they don't want to read, is to have them sit
down with you and you start writing a story. Like
you just make up whatever fictional story about her friends,
or her playmates down the street, or the people that
she doesn't like, and then she fills in the blanks,
(22:55):
and then pretty soon, page after page after page, it
becomes a story and she says, oh, look what I did.
And then she realizes, Okay, these stories matter to me,
so the stories that other people write will also matter
to me.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
Oh how interesting. That's thank you. That's a great tip
to try. Not all right, well, let's get back to you.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
So how do you find a balance between reality and
the dream world in your book?
Speaker 6 (23:23):
That's always a problem. It's been a problem for me
my entire life on a personal level, because when I
was young, I used to think my dreams were very vivid,
and even if I had nothing to do with anything
that was happening in real life, I used to think, well,
how do I know that my dream life isn't the
real life and my real life isn't a dream. I
(23:44):
had that sort of in my head, so it was
easy for me. I knew the ending of the first book,
and I knew the ending of the second book. I
just didn't know how I was going to get there.
But what happens is once I have the character, and
I know this sounds crazy, but the character will take
me where they want to go. And if I want
them to go in this direction. When people say they
(24:05):
have writer's block, it's writer's block is really basically saying
your character is not going down that road. That's not
their story. So you have to back it up and
let them go where they want. And I'm as surprised
as anybody. I used to say to my husband, you
would never believe what happened to Peggy, and he'd be like, listen,
you're writing it. Why would you surprised, And I'm like, no,
(24:26):
I'm shocked that she took this turn. So that's how
it goes.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
I know, as part of your plot, court cases, the
justice system plays a huge part.
Speaker 2 (24:37):
What experience do you have with that.
Speaker 6 (24:39):
As a therapy. I started out as a registered nurse
and I worked in the ICU, and then when I
moved to Florida. I moved from Washington, d C. To Florida,
and I married a psychologist and we had a lot
of and so I ended up getting a degree in psychology.
And we have a lot of court ordered cases, or
(25:00):
I would go as a standby person, or I would
actually be testifying on behalf of some of my clients,
and so I got to see how the court system
worked as well. I have many friends who are a
lawyer's defense and prosecuting attorneys. So I don't know, it's
just second nature not to mention. I mean, who hasn't
loved reading John Grisham's books and brief or watching Lincoln
(25:23):
Lawyer on TV. So you pick up stuff as you go.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
Sure, And so what characters were the easiest and which
ones were the hardest to write?
Speaker 6 (25:31):
Doctor Sherman is my favorite character to hate because he
is so obnoxious and rude to his patient, and he
knows how to manipulate. And I could not have my
husband passed away a few years ago. I had this
book in my head. I could not have written this
book if he was still alive, because he would never
have allowed me to be so degrading to a psychologist.
(25:55):
But you know, when you think about it, when you
go to a first you're giving them all of your
secrets or most of them, not all, but most. They
can do what they want with it. I'm sure ninety
nine point nine percent are very above board wanting to
help therapeutically. But there are some some therapists we assume,
(26:18):
I don't know any that maybe want the power of
you know, you remind them of a wife that left you. Okay,
they're going to punish you for that, and they can.
So he does.
Speaker 2 (26:29):
And so what would you say the main theme or
the message of this book is.
Speaker 6 (26:33):
I think the main theme of well, the main theme
of Dreaming I have to start from the first one.
The main theme of Dreaming Home is that there is
always hope. Anything is possible, no matter what, and no
matter what adversity comes in your life, you can overcome
it by choice if you really find the strength within you.
(26:53):
Dreamy Dead, I think the message is, you know, when
we have time to reflect, like Rob, the husband is
in jail for a long period of time waiting against trial,
and you have trying to reflect on who actually are
you associating with? Who are your friends and who are
your so called friends, because innately, you know some of
these people are really not on your behalf, not advocating
(27:17):
for you, but you keep them anyway for whatever purposes
you have. And he has time to reflect and say,
these are the people that have to be eliminated one
way or the other.
Speaker 1 (27:28):
And so you mentioned that parts of the story are
inspired by your career as a psychotherapist. Tell me more about.
Speaker 6 (27:35):
That, you know, probably I was a therapist for thirty
eight years. And you hear so many stories. I mean,
they start to almost blend into each other. But just
when you think you've heard everyone, there's another one that
you think, wow, I didn't see that coming. And some
stories because these people are not just patients to me,
(27:55):
these people are human beings with real lives. They sit
in your head and they resonate and they take residence
in the crevices of your mind. And so when I
started writing, I could hear their voices just so all
blend together and go, I want to tell my story.
I want to tell mine. I want to tell mine,
And so it's almost like to honor them. Blending their
(28:18):
stories made my characters. And these are real life things
of thousands of people that ended up in six people's minds.
Speaker 1 (28:28):
And I feel like you had the best, as they
would say, show prep or book prep in all your
years of working. As as I go there, I can't
imagine anybody who probably has more material to work from.
Speaker 6 (28:40):
Well, there was a lot of material. And believe me,
I've been a writer in my whole life in my head,
but I have four kids, and I had careers, and
I had a lot of stuff going on. So it
wasn't until the last several years that I thought, Okay,
I've got like eight books in my head, let me
start this one. The first one, Threw Me Home, was
going to be a love story, but I didn't know
there was miss in me. So it turned out to
(29:01):
me a psychological thriller with a little bit of a
twist of a love story toward the end. And then
the second one Dreamed Me Dead, which is what we're
talking about. Now. There's a lot in me that was
and I am a very optimistic person, but there's a
lot of anger that I felt from patients that sort
of I needed to get out of my head and
say on the page.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
Yeah, I always wondered, you know, it's a psycho therapist
obviously you need to keep that, you know, a certain boundary.
Speaker 2 (29:30):
Up, But how do you not how do you not absorb?
Speaker 6 (29:33):
I never took anybody's work home with me. I don't know.
I think it's good, just good. DNA an optimistic person
by nature. But when people in my practice started crying
for whatever reason, happy tears, sad tears, I ended up
with tears rolling down my face, and my husband, who
shared the office on the other side of the room, said,
(29:55):
you can't cry with your patience. You have to be objective,
and I'm like, I know, but their stories are touching.
So that's how I tried to make my characters. I
want people to love or really hate these people so
that they never leave you, even when the last page
is closed.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (30:12):
So what's next for your writing projects? I know you
mentioned you have one final book in the trilogy.
Speaker 6 (30:17):
One final book, dream Me Gone, and that'll wrap up
this trilogy. And then I've always had two other books
in my head that I really I want to write
it right now, but I have to finish This one
is going to be called Grace, and I can't tell
you what it's going to be about, but it's a
heartwarming story having nothing to do with mystery, and the
(30:39):
last one is going to be a generational mystery that
incorporates religion and sadness and deceit.
Speaker 1 (30:46):
Okay, I know you mentioned earlier in the interview that
you believe people can change. You just have to make
a decision to make a change. Did you ever have
a client who just couldn't make decisions and just couldn't
make changes as much as they wanted to.
Speaker 6 (30:59):
I had a lot of clients that said I don't
feel any better from week to week, and I'd say, okay,
excuse me. I suggested that you might want to think
about doing this and this and this. Did you do that? Well? No,
I didn't do that. Okay, would you want to try
that again this week? Yes? I will. Next week, they
come in, I don't feel any better? Did you do
this and this? No? I didn't. It's a personal choice.
(31:22):
I mean, obviously, if you have a terrible tragedy in
your life, the death of someone, that's not a choice
you have to just that's time. Time will heal those
wounds to a point. But if you are just lingering
over a bad relationship or a boyfriend that went and
cheated on you, or you don't like your friends and
you can't get out of your friend group. Those are
(31:43):
choices that you make, and a lot of times it
really goes back to childhood. And I hate to quote
Siegmund Freud, but I mean he always said, you know,
if you don't go back to childhood and all the
issues that you had buried there, you're never going forward.
And so to a certain degree, that's really accurate. People
that used to go back and talk about people parents
(32:04):
even that they go, I don't want to be disrespectful.
My parents are gone now. I don't want to talk
about the dead. Well you should, because you're not hurting them,
You're hurting yourself if you don't.
Speaker 1 (32:14):
Right, excellent advice. So where can we go to find
dream me Dead? And also dream me Home?
Speaker 6 (32:19):
Amazon would be the quickest and probably the cheapest place
to go because they'll deliver books overnight, but Bornes and
Noble has them books a million I think Walmart, Target,
anywhere you buy books.
Speaker 1 (32:32):
Thank you so much, Laurie Elizabeth Murphy. I love speaking
with you. Thank you for joining me today on Passport Mommy.
You're listening to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson and I'm
thrilled to have our next guest on the show, doctor
Kate Jordan. She is with the American Association for Pediatric
Optometry and Strabismus and we are going to just talk
(32:52):
about the importance of getting back to school eye screenings
because we all know how important our eyesight is and
especially for our children who are learning. Thank you so
much for joining me today, doctor Jordan.
Speaker 7 (33:05):
Thank you so much for having me my pleasure.
Speaker 1 (33:09):
So why are regular vision screening so important for kids?
Speaker 7 (33:14):
Yeah, it's so helpful for our kids to have regular
vision screenings at an early age to catch vision problems
so they can be fixed before they get worse. A
lot of times children don't realize that they have vision
issues because they just assume that the everyone sees the
same way that they do. And especially if they have
a lazy eye, if they can't see well out of
one eye but the other eye is really good, they
(33:35):
don't really care, and because they can keep mine in
one eye. So it's really important to get flagged early
to detect those things and treated early.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
Absolutely, and kids may not tell us either, like you said, So,
what would be some of the warning signs that a
child may be having vision issues.
Speaker 7 (33:52):
Yeah, So the biggest thing is squinting to look far away.
That shows that they're having some nearsightedis problems, if they're
things close to their face, if they're not reading at
a grade level, if they have any eye misalignment such
as crossing or eye drifting. Sometimes kids will cover an
(34:12):
eye or squint and eye when they go outside, or
cover an eye when they're reading, and those are signs
to look for that really need to be evaluated at
a young age so that we can treat and have
success for their vision for their future.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
Sure, so what would you say is the best time
of year or just any time to get an eye exam.
Speaker 7 (34:34):
Anytime is good for an eye exam, but the best
time of year for vision screenings is at the beginning
of the year. Just for the reminders. Every year, children's
eyes grow and vision changes yearly, so vision screenings are
important to do yearly. They might not have had a
problem the year before, and then they do have a
problem the next year. So if they're not getting vision
(34:57):
screening at school, they can get a vision screening through
their primary care provider through Health THEIRS with the Lions Club,
which partners with icare professionals nationwide to screen vision and children.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
Oh interesting and are they involved with the All Children's
See program.
Speaker 7 (35:17):
So, the All Children's See program is actually launched by
the Children's I Foundation of a posts A post is
the Americaside launched. They launched that program in twenty twenty
as the first direct patient care program. The program connects
US families with a pediatric ophthalmologist who will provide no
cost eye care to children without insurance or.
Speaker 3 (35:39):
Access to vision care.
Speaker 7 (35:40):
This program operates in over thirty states and in Washington,
d C. And we're really grateful that the night Timelor
I Foundation provided a generous donation of two million dollars
for this program. So it's a really wonderful program for patients,
especially families that do not have a vision and or
I care and insurance.
Speaker 1 (36:02):
Absolutely, that's an incredible program. Where can people go to
see if they qualify and to get connected with it?
Speaker 7 (36:10):
Yeah, So more information can be found at All children
c dot org, dot c See dot org. That's part
of the Children's I Foundation. So they can also go
to the Childrensifoundation dot org to find out more information
about health or finding a pediatric ophthalmologist in their area.
(36:32):
They can go to a pos dot org and that's
a really helpful website that provides a lot of information
for families.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
Terrific.
Speaker 1 (36:42):
And I know that you are a pediatric ophthalmologist in Columbus,
Ohio and you practice at the Pediatric Ophthalmology Associates and
Nationwide Children's Hospital.
Speaker 2 (36:51):
Are you can we come see you if we're in
the area.
Speaker 7 (36:55):
Absolutely, you can definitely come see me at my office
in Pediatric Opthalmology Associates or Nachhoie Children's Hospital or in Columbus,
Ohio or accepting new patients. And you can find us
on our website and but we are on the apos
dot org information find it out so perfect.
Speaker 1 (37:14):
Thank you so much, of course, thank you doctor Keith Jordan.
Thank you for joining me today on Passport Mommy and
for all of those excellent tips.
Speaker 2 (37:22):
Thanks so much for having me my pleasure.
Speaker 1 (37:24):
I'm Michelle Jerson the Passport Mommy, and thank you so
much for joining me this week. Don't forget as always,
you can download the podcast and listen to this in
any episode anytime. So they're folding laundry, making dinner, whatever
it is, you can listen.
Speaker 2 (37:37):
To previous episodes.
Speaker 1 (37:39):
Just go to Passport Mommy on any of your favorite
podcasting apps, and while you're there, if you can leave
a review. That is super helpful because it allows other
people to find this show as well.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
The more reviews that we have and I love seeing
each and.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
Every comment and review that you leave, and I truly
appreciate you joining me on the show.
Speaker 2 (37:56):
I'm Michelle Jerson. Have a wonderful week.
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