[00:00:12] Speaker A: Welcome to the 15th episode of the Stimulating Stuff podcast. Did you miss me? I'll bet you've been wondering where the heck I've been after not posting an episode since October. Well, what a month November was. If you tuned in today to hear about neurophysiology, I'm afraid you're sol, because I'm just going to open up my brain and see what flows out. I'm rich, Vogel, and this is stimulating stuff. Let's go back to the Stimulating Stuff podcast. I'm Rich Vogel, and it has been a hot minute since I recorded my last episode. And what a month it's been. A month of travel, transition, birth, death and discovery. I hope you all had a nice November as well as a happy and peaceful Thanksgiving to my US listeners. Speaking of Thanksgiving, I just have a few things about autumn that I want to say first, because I just love this time of year. There is nothing quite so beautiful as autumn. It's the season when splendor in the grass becomes luster in the leaves. It's nature's great pageantry the leaves change so quickly, don't they? Infinite shades of green become oranges, reds and yellows and soon they fall to the ground, those leaves widening auburn gyres in the wind dancing, it seems to nature's symphony. For many, there's work to be done this time of year breaking those leaves in autumn, packing away our summer gear winterizing our things we're so busy, aren't we? Working, planning, plotting through life, making ends meet who has time to notice the leaves? Before we know it? The world looks dead, dominated by grays and browns and we can't wait for spring yes, there's nothing quite so beautiful as autumn but it happens so fast and then it's gone we rarely take the time to look we're so busy, aren't we? At least busy until we pause on that one special day in the middle of fall just to give thanks of all the holidays throughout the year, thanksgiving has always been one of my favorites. American to the core, it's a tradition of feast and frenzy. Like autumn's Mardi Gras, we come together as family and friends over dinner, holding hands, giving thanks and praise for all things big and small. It's one day of peace in this mutilated world, isn't it? My excitement for this day usually builds for months. It always starts with an ephemeral shiver walking outside on that one random extra cold morning at the height of summer when the length of our day is crested and the weeks are seemingly endless with stifling heat. This year it was September 19 when old Man Winter breezed through town and caught me off guard when the surface of skin met blistering cold and a reflex of quiver foretold the coming of fall. From that day forth, anticipation just amplified for Thanksgiving.
Autumn's crescendo comes in the end of November, flanked by the beaver moon in the north. The air is crisp, the earth is hard, the leaves are long gone from the trees if you look really closely at the grass around dawn, the leaves are all covered in frost dew frozen in the darkness of night. And the path of the sun low in the southern sky is just long enough to transform it back to dew before the cycle begins again. It's so beautiful if you look really close at the grass and if you listen closely through the thin morning breeze and the wind in the trees, you can hear the sound of the local high school's marching band practicing before the big game. And then comes the whistles, the crashing of pads and the cheers of the crowds that come to watch. And then the world falls into a deep and majestic silence. If you listen through the wind and the trees if you spend enough time outside, you can see your breath in the air for a moment before it disappears to Providence. Your eyes will water, your cheeks get cold, and you may feel goosebumps on your legs. You pull your sleeves down over your hands and your hood over your head to stay warm so you can stay outside just a little bit longer to see your breath in the air. If you close your eyes and take a deep breath, you just might notice that campfire smell flowing from someone's chimney. You see loved ones gathering, warmed by the fire and each other. There's love and joy, family and friends carried in a breeze. That campfire smell. You notice a reminder of all you can see if you just close your eyes and take a deep breath.
When you go inside, your cheeks are all red. The house is warm and filled with love, each room permeated by the universal and unmistakable sense of Thanksgiving dinner. You snack and talk and joke and smile, delight in the warmth and love. When you go inside, we all gather around that table for peace, don't we? And just before we feast, fight about politics and pass out on a couch watching football, we pause. Some say grace, but all give thanks in their own way. And in that moment, we notice the world's boundless beauty. We're so busy in our daily grind, aren't we? But not in that moment when we stop to give thanks for the treasures in our lives gathered around that table. For peace. Yes, steeped in tradition, american to the core. A day to take notice. A day to give thanks. A day to find peace. Thanksgiving. It's one of my favorite holidays of the year. As autumn winds down toward winter, I hope you all take time to notice the beauty in the world and just give thanks. We'll be right back.
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Stimstuffod. That's Stimstuffpod.
And we're back. A few minutes ago, I mentioned that November was a month of travel, transition, birth, death, and discovery. Let's talk about that in the end of October, right after I recorded my last episode, my laptop just shit the bed. I had to send it back to Apple. They replaced the motherboard, wiped the hard drive clean. I mean, I lost all my podcasting, software, basically everything that wasn't backed up on Dropbox. That's why I didn't post an episode for the last month. I had no way to record it. So that's one reason I went dark. Around that same time, though, I found out a friend of mine who I've known for 30 years, Victor Schultz, died suddenly, leaving behind a loving family, including a young daughter and just a ton of friends who loved him dearly. So I drove back to Philly for their memorial. I drove mostly because I wanted to see those autumn colors, and I just needed to clear my head. So I left Nashville. I drove east. I went through Shenandoah National Park along Skyline Drive. I just love national parks. And I'm on a mission to try to visit as many as I can. By the way, my favorite was Grand Teton by far. But anyway, went through Shenandoah, actually loved it. Along the way, I listened to a couple books. The first was Hidden Potential the Science of Achieving Greater Things by Adam Grant. And your next five moves. Mastering the Art of Business Strategy by Patrick Bett. David, I'm a lifelong student of many things, and I'm particularly interested right now in business strategy and bringing out the best in people. And if you think about it, both of these subjects are rooted in psychology, something that I've been a student of for 30 years now. And one of my PhDs is in psychology. So I always love to read or hear what others are saying. On how principles of psychology are applied in business I thought both of his books were okay. I'm a big fan of Adam Grant, and I think anybody who is on socials would really benefit from following him. He has some great posts. Anyway, the day after my drive through Shenandoah, I went to this memorial service, and beforehand I met up with a couple of old high school budies at a local watering hole. Big shout out to Tom Locke and Steve Warren and over Miller Light and Tullamore Dew, we got to talking about all the people from our high school that have died since graduation. We counted about 15 people.
15 people who were high school students in the 90s are no longer with us. Amazing. Think about that. You graduate high school and you lose 15 people by the time you're in your mid 40s. Is that normal? I don't know. You tell me. And of course, that got me thinking about all the family and friends that have passed along the way. Too nearly 30 people in total have passed that I'm aware of. Man this world giveth and this world taketh away life is so precious, isn't it? I want to take a moment here to send my love to some members of the Neuromonitoring community who recently lost someone very close. Just last week, we all learned of the passing of Marty Correca, wife of intraner founder Ken Carica. If you don't know Ken and his family, let me just tell you that this is a wonderful family. I mean, really, really good people. And my heart goes out to them at this time, and I just know it's so difficult for them. So I just want to send my love to Ken, Brian, Mike, their entire family and to the entire intraner family. Our thoughts are with you in this difficult know I think many of us forget to appreciate life on our daily grind. It's not something many people think about until they're faced with it. I feel so lucky to be alive every day, and I think about that. I actually take a moment each day to appreciate all that I have. Sometimes I do it just because I'm just a pensive and reflective person by nature. Other times I do it because people in life try to marginalize, disrupt, or even destroy the joy in your life, to inject their chaos into your life to make me, you. Others think there's something wrong with us and I just need to pause so I don't lose my effing shit sometimes. You know those people, don't you? Everyone has at least one disruptor in their life. It feels like they're constantly sucking the life out of you, creating periods of self doubt, loathing, depression, sending your life off track and into pure fucking chaos. In those moments, I just appreciate life and remind myself that some people are destructive by nature and they often have no clue about it. Sometimes the most prudent action you can take is to pause and give thanks for not being one of those people.
So I went on this road trip to clear my head. Anyway, back to the road trip another reason I traveled back east was in hopes to catch the birth of my cousin Frankie's son. And despite best efforts, I missed the birth of Frankie IV, who was born just after I headed back to Nashville. But I sent all my love to Frank, Sam, and baby Frankie. Also, I'm super excited that I'm about to be an uncle again. My brother Mike and his wife Sahara are having a little girl who's due in June. I'm very excited about that. I got to see some family and friends when I was back east. It's always a whirlwind, and I never get to see everyone. I guess that's a blessing in disguise that I have so many people in my circle of friends and family. But I did get to see my buddies, scott and Jill and Dina and Jason. And since Jason bought me dinner, I'll return the favor and send out a special shout out to Jason Walburn State Farm in Limerick, PA. Stop in and see Jason for all your insurance needs. And if you don't need insurance, stop in and meet a super cuddly dog, Viper. All right, enough about Philly. After that, I went to New York to visit a neuromonitoring company and give a talk. That was a fantastic experience. And I generally don't mention company names on this podcast, so let me just say, you know who you are. Thank you so much for the invitation. I loved meeting the entire team, and thanks to everyone on the team who shared so many kind words about me and the work that I've done over the years, about the talk that I gave in New York and all the wonderful feedback I received about this podcast. I really appreciate it. So after my trip to New York, I drove straight back to Nashville. Shotgun. It was a 15 hours drive, but the scenery was beautiful. It was really, as I said before, nature's great pageantry. The leaves this time of year, the oranges, reds, and yellows, especially through New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Just beautiful to take it all in. And now we're in December. The holiday season is upon us. Time to break out your ugly Christmas or Hanukkah sweater, hit the mall, and fight the crowds for those amazing deals, which I hope everyone knows is bullshit, right? Most of those stores slowly jack up their prices in the weeks and months leading up to Black Friday and then slash them back to 10% below normal to make you think you're getting a good deal. I don't really go to stores. I shop for everything online, from groceries to gifts. Who has the time for stores? Look for parking, fight crowds. Not me. I find it online at the highest quality for the lowest price, and I have it delivered to my home. No additional time or stress required. That's living. Anyway, before I sign off something additional to share, I often make really obscure references in this podcast that I personally find interesting or amusing. But Beth recently pointed out that I should really share those things, those references, those little amusing notes with you to let you in on those references. So here's a few for you. One of my past episodes that I recorded specifically for Neurologists was entitled Eyes in the sky. That title was in reference to a 1982 song by British rock band The Alan Parsons Project.
Earlier in this episode, I made reference to widening auburn gears that comes from one of my favorite poems entitled The Second Coming by William Butler Yates. So many famous literary phrases and song lyrics have come from this poem, and most people probably don't even know it. For example, Slouching Toward Bethlehem, a 1968 collection of essays by Joan Didion Things Fall Apart? A 1999 album by the Roots, Ceremony of Innocence, a 2013 novel by Dorothy Cummings, McLean and so many more. The second coming by. William Butler Yates. Also, in this episode I mentioned a day of peace in this mutilated world that comes from a poem entitled try to Praise this Mutilated World by Adam Zagajewski. And finally I made reference to splendor in the grass. If you're old enough, you may know that phrase as the title of the 1961 film starring Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty, Splendor in the Grass. But that line actually comes from another poem that I've always loved by William Wordsworth, and it's so relevant to this episode. Here's the lines what though the radiance which was once bright be now forever taken from my sight, though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass, of glory in the flower we will grieve not, rather find strength in what remains behind.
I dedicate that verse to Victor Schultz, Marty Carica, and everyone who loved them dearly. I hope you all find strength in what remains behind.
Well, that's it for today. Thank you so much for listening. Please continue sharing this podcast on socials and through word of mouth. Also, many thanks to everyone who's been sending me emails and texts. I love reading your comments. Please continue sending your comments, insights, critiques, pushback, validation, and thought provoking questions to
[email protected]. I always love hearing from you. I'm Rich Vogel, and that was stimulating stuff.
[00:18:40] Speaker B: The information and opinions provided in this podcast are those of the individual speakers and do not represent the opinions of their employers, affiliates, or other third party individuals or organizations. Sponsorship and other advertising messages do not constitute support of or preference for specific products or services. This podcast is not designed to and does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, opinion, treatment or services. This podcast, its host, and all participants, including guests and sponsors collectively participants provide general information for entertainment purposes only. The information provided in this podcast is not a substitute for medical or professional opinion and you should not use the information for that purpose. Participants shall not be held liable or responsible for any advice, course of treatment, diagnosis, or any other information, services or product you obtain or render this Podcast should not be used in any legal capacity whatsoever, including, but not limited to, establishing a standard of care in a legal sense or as a basis for expert witness testimony. No guarantee is given regarding the accuracy of any statements or opinions made on the Podcast. Thank you for listening.
