Coming Out Pod

Latest Episodes:

Episode 263: Jenn Levine Aug 23, 2023

Show notes

At sixteen years old, Jenn Levine sat in a room with her mother and was told by two doctors that she had an extra chromosome, and that because of that extra chromosome, she would never be able to have children. But that wasn't all: they also said that she shouldn't tell anyone about her "birth defect" because people wouldn't understand, and then closed out the conversation by saying "you'll probably never meet anybody else like you." What Jenn *wasn't* told that day was that she was intersex; that was something she wouldn't find out til over a decade later, when she herself undertook a years-long process of obtaining her hard copy medical records from that very appointment. Jenn describes the truly serpentine journey she went through to finally arrive at the point where she now definitively knows "I am not my diagnosis...I am an intersex woman." All this, plus Jenn kvells over the fact that she is living every Jewish woman's dream by being a bagel ambassador for Brooklyn's BagelFest!
Follow Jenn everywhere at @jennlevine! Also, follow InterConnect on Instagram at @interconnect_support, and check out their website at interconnect.support to see all that they do! If you'd like to join the L.A. LGBT Center's Club Intersex group, you can register at https://socialnet.lalgbtcenter.org/member-registration/ (intersex-identified folks only, though - allies, check out InterConnect!). Lastly, Every Body, the intersex documentary that Jenn discusses in this episode, is streaming for free on Peacock, and is available for purchase elsewhere.

Episode 262: Dianna Conley Aug 16, 2023

Show notes

Lauren sits down with voice actor and romantic/erotic audio narrator Dianna Conley, who identifies as bi/pansexual ("I saw The Mummy, and my answer was 'yes'"), agender, and neurospicy! Dianna's first kiss with a girl was in high school, but since she knew she was definitely attracted to boys, she was left more confused by the experience than anything else. That is, until she learned the word "bisexual" from a formative character on The O.C.! Dianna shares how, for her, "all clothes are a costume," and explains why "being ADHD is more important to my identity than having a gender." Plus, Lauren and Dianna - who met in a COVID-conscious Zoom group - discuss how the ongoing pandemic is very much a queer issue, and have a personal and candid conversation about why they are still taking the level of precaution they are.
Whole lotta stuff here, so buckle up! First off, follow Dianna on Instagram at @diannaconley and on Twitter at @DiannaConleyVO, and get in touch with her via her website at diannaconley.com. Also mentioned in this episode, former guest Jessica Ellis (Episode 144) is tweeting very openly about her journey with Long COVID at @baddestmamajama (you can search her profile page for "Long COVID" to turn up tweets).
In terms of all the COVID-related information we discussed, here's an easy to digest, super-thorough primer full of resources and links: https://www.patreon.com/posts/86871700?utm_campaign=postshare_fan. If you're interested in meeting other folks who are #stillcoviding, the "Still Coviding Weekly Hangout" (@covidisntover on Twitter and Instagram) is a virtual, international, and very queer-leaning group, and you can also check out covidmeetups.com. Last but not least, if you'd like to personally ask Lauren about any of the things discussed in this episode, please don't hesitate to reach out at comingoutpod@gmail.com!

Episode 261: Lane Willis Aug 09, 2023

Show notes

Lauren is joined by her friend and co-facilitator, Maggie Tielker (Episode 165), for an in-depth conversation with Lane Willis, whom Lauren and Maggie both know from the L.A. LGBT Center's HERstories group! Lane (they/them) is a *phenomenal* kindergarten teacher, who hopes their students will always remember them as "that one that wore the rainbow shoes." Lane knew that they "adored girls" as early as five years old, and also strongly identified with both Twiggy and Elton John. But a rushed marriage to a man at only nineteen years old quashed any chance of Lane exploring either their sexuality or their gender identity for many years. Lane shares how their involvement in an underground swinging community confirmed their long-suppressed attraction to women, and discusses how non-binary YouTubers guided them to their eventual gender epiphany at the age of fifty-two. Plus, Lane tells a story about running into a former student at Pride that will pull on even the sturdiest of heartstrings!
If you're interested in any of the groups or workshops discussed during this episode, check out the L.A. LGBT Center's website at https://socialnet.lalgbtcenter.org/social-networking-groups/, and follow them everywhere at @lalgbtcenter. Also, follow Maggie at @maggietielker, and check out some of her designs at @worldofwonder!

Episode 260: Lauren's College BFF! Aug 02, 2023

Show notes

For her first episode all by her lonesome, Lauren wanted to bring on "a guest who felt like home." Enter Brooke Berry, Lauren's BFF from college, whose incredible life experiences run the gamut from starting an AIDS coalition with a nun at the age of twelve, to living in South Africa, to working with Angelina Jolie (DON'T FREAK OUT, NICOLE!). Even *more* impressive than these achievements, however, is the fact that Brooke was literally in the room for Lauren's first ever girl-girl kiss, which Lauren finally dishes on in detail! Brooke reveals how she knew Lauren was gay even before *Lauren* knew Lauren was gay, and shares why she thinks so many theatre boys picked her as a queer-adjacent safe haven to come out to. She also discusses the unbridled joy of her brother's nascent journey with gender fluidity; plus, Lauren owns up to being "devoured" by her first ever queer relationship, which saw her largely peacing out on her entire friend group. Learn from her mistakes, lesbians!!!
If you'd like to reach out to Brooke, feel free to do so via @comingoutpod on Twitter or Instagram, or at comingoutpod@gmail.com!

BONUS MINI-EPISODE! Aug 01, 2023

Show notes

So, okay; here's the deal: we talked SO much when we recorded Nicole's farewell episode that we ended up cutting almost half an hour from the version that we released last week (classic #workwives!). We ultimately decided that this particular twenty-four minute chunk didn't serve the true purpose of that ep - which was celebrating Nicole, our partnership, and the version of the pod that is "Coming Out with Lauren & Nicole" - but we also felt that the tangential discussion we'd had was important enough to release on its own as this bonus mini-episode. Plus, Nicole wouldn't be Nicole if she didn't leave without a dash of CONTROVERSY! Please enjoy the following completely unedited, *heated* conversation, and remember: it's okay if we disagree!
The Out Magazine article we discuss (that we keep mistakenly referring to as an "interview;" oops!) can be found here: https://www.out.com/gay-news/jasmin-savoy-brown-lesbian. At least Lauren got the author right!

Nicole's Final Episode: The End Of An Era (But Not The Podcast!) Jul 26, 2023

Show notes

The moment is here, y'all: it's our final episode as Lauren & Nicole. So grab a glass of red wine and/or bottle of sparkling mineral water, and strap in as we take an equally hilarious and tearful stroll down memory lane; from the original tiny closet that we crammed Stephanie Beatriz into, to our posh podcasting studio, to our respective hot, sweaty closets that we've been recording in since we went virtual! Nicole shares what she's learned, what she's grateful for, and even a few things she wishes she'd done differently. We reminisce about some of our favorite moments, and talk about our ONLY fight as #workwives! Nicole sobs! Lauren actually CRIES! It's a beautiful, funny, and fitting goodbye for a truly irreplaceable co-host.
Keep up with Nicole on Instagram at @nicolepacent. Our hashtags are #comingoutpod and, in ethereal perpetuity, #foundricky.

Episode 258: Reverend Mark Montgomery Jul 19, 2023

Show notes

This is Nicole's penultimate episode of the podcast, so we knew our guest had to be someone extra-special! For over a decade, this incredible human being has been extremely close to Nicole and her family; so much so that he performed Nicole and Gustav's wedding in Scotland, and Nicole's sister's Memorial Service. Now, after *countless* mentions on the pod over the years, we finally sit down with the man, the myth, the legend, the REVEREND: Mark Montgomery! Mark discusses his small town South Carolina conservative Christian upbringing, and tells the "gayer than gay" story of how he came out to his mother at her hospital bedside (let's just say Steel Magnolias was involved). We talk faith vs. religion, Mark shares some "practical theology" you can use when confronted by intolerant Bible thumpers, and we take a deep dive into the misinterpretation of the oft-cited Sodom and Gomorrah story! This is an episode that you won't want to miss (and that you *will* want to send to your conservative family members)...
Mark gives an incorrect handle at the end of this ep, so make sure you *actually* follow him on Instagram at @markdmontgomery (and feel free to reach out)! Some of the people and resources he mentions during this episode include the United Church of Christ's website (ucc.org), Janie Spahr (https://lgbtqreligiousarchives.org/profiles/jane-adams-spahr), and More Light Presbyterians (mlp.org).

Episode 257: Pallavi Gunalan Jul 12, 2023

Show notes

We laugh our goddamned asses off with standup, writer, and biomedical engineer (yes, really!), Pallavi Gunalan, who wins Lauren over in the first sixty seconds by stating that she "would die for Pierro." Pallavi grew up in an Indian family in Utah, and only started coming to terms with her queerness in her late 20's ("I had just started wearing crop tops; I didn't know you could do that without a sari"). Pallavi made the bold choice to incorporate her newfound identity into her comedy almost immediately, and shares the exhilarating story of coming out live on stage to her cousins. (She also discusses the much less effusive reaction she got when she later told her parents...) Not only that; Pallavi provides us with a *phenomenal* pudding cup analogy, and we talk shame, adult goths, and the Tootsie Pops owl!
Follow Pallavi everywhere and on all the things at @PallaviGunalan. Share her stuff, come to her shows, and don't forget to keep an eye out for her in the comments under Pierro's pictures!

Episode 256: Tembe Denton-Hurst Jul 05, 2023

Show notes

When Tembe Denton-Hurst's fiancée gifted her a writing class, Tembe had no idea that the short story she turned in would eventually become "Homebodies," her debut novel that was published in May! A consummate writer, Tembe shares a hilarious rollercoaster of a coming out story that includes an "earth-shifting" look she exchanged with a friend's younger sister, and a highly-relatable series of "deeply one-sided, ill-fated crushes." Tembe also discusses how, at just twenty years old, she and her now-fiancée made the incredibly mature decision to prioritize their relationship over their unaccepting parents, and explains how, with "Homebodies," she wanted to tell a more nuanced coming out story about "women who are very settled in their identities, but still constantly navigating...being queer in Black families." All this, plus Nicole has sexy chest-cold-voice!
Follow Tembe on Instagram and Twitter at @tembae, and check out her website at tembedentonhurst.com!

Episode 255: Rain Valdez Jun 28, 2023

Show notes

We're closing out Pride Month in a big way with Emmy-nominated actress, writer, and producer, Rain Valdez (Razor Tongue; Transparent)! Rain, who describes herself as a heterosexual transgender woman, was born in the Philippines, and initially raised by her incredibly affirming grandparents. Things only changed when she moved with her mother and stepfather to Guam, and discovered that the people there were considerably less accepting than those in her home country. At the age of nineteen, Rain moved on her own to Los Angeles to pursue the arts, and was advised not to disclose to anyone that she was transgender. Believing this was her only path forward, Rain did exactly that for many years. But in June of 2016, bolstered by the beautiful community she'd met working on Transparent, Rain came out publicly in a VICE article. We have a candid conversation about what it's like trying to forge a career in the entertainment industry once it has decided that your particular marginalization is no longer trendy. Also, we discuss the many and varied ways that we as queer people can often feel "in between worlds," and what it means to try to align with your purpose within a system that was not built for you in the first place.
Follow Rain on Instagram at @rainvaldez, and check out her website at rainvaldez.com and her company at rainbowrated.com! Also, you can watch Rain's Emmy-nominated turn in Razor Tongue at https://rainbowrated.com/razortongue, and you can see her short film Ryans at https://www.rainvaldez.com/videos!

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