Life in Parallel with Matt Marr and Kenneth Suarez

Latest Episodes:

S1 E4: Life's Too Short Not to Be a Little Delulu with Stacy Solodkin| Friends & Acquaintances Oct 28, 2026

Show notes

At 18, Stacy Solodkin had a scholarship to the Art Institute of Chicago. She didn't go. In her family, art was a hobby. You got a real job. So she got one.

Stacy spent 25 years building a talent agency that started with a fax machine and a pager. Then came stage III cancer, a comeback, and one question she couldn't shake. Now she's an experimental builder working in raw porcelain and fiber, with her artwork in six galleries. We talk about:

why negotiating is a creative act
Beth Stein, her agent alter ego
why she doesn't teach classes, and what to do instead (it costs about $20)

Her plan for age 80 is a museum show. She calls that delulu. We call it a plan.

Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.

Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)

Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.com

Find Stacy: stacysolodkin.com · Instagram

Mentioned:

The KonMari Method
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Sanford Meisner
The Creative Act by Rick Rubin
Art & Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland

Walkout songs (she couldn't pick one):

"Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars
Any Prince song
"I'm Alive (Life Sounds Like)" by Michael Franti & Spearhead

Breaking the algorithm: Florence Given, "a portal of permission."

S1 E3: "Boys Aren't Nurses" (in 1980s Nebraska) with Dr. James Q Simmons | Friends & Acquaintances Oct 22, 2026

Show notes

At 28, Dr. James Q Simmons walked away from a six-figure job at PepsiCo to become a nurse. His dad's first question was about the pension.

Matt's longtime friend grew up in Omaha, survived a hate campaign in college and went viral in 2014 answering the health questions everyone Googles at 2 a.m. Now he's a nurse practitioner. We get into the one free thing that will improve your health tonight.

This episode includes discussion of homophobic harassment, suicidal thoughts in childhood, and HIV.

If you or someone you love is struggling, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (US). LGBTQ+ young people can reach The Trevor Project.

Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.

Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)

Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.com

Find Dr. James: drjamesqsimmons.com · YouTube · Instagram · TikTok

Mentioned:

Artemis II
CDC diabetes resources
Sugarland and The Chicks
For the record: The Sound of Music and Oklahoma!

Walkout songs (he couldn't pick one):

"Million Dollar Bill" by Whitney Houston
"Take Your Time (Do It Right)"
Pickleball: "Big Bad Wolf"

Breaking the algorithm:

Dr. Jonathan P. Higgins, author of Black. Fat. Femme. · Black Fat Femme podcast
Jocelyn Fuller, James's best friend

S1 E2: Forget Red Flags. What Does Right Look Like? with Damona Hoffman | Friends & Acquaintances Oct 22, 2026

Show notes

Is there one perfect person out there for you? Damona Hoffman has been married for 19 years, hosted a dating podcast for 13, and wrote F the Fairy Tale. Her answer: no. "The one" is a unicorn. (Matt is still processing.)

Damona was a Northwestern theater kid who didn't get the callback, then an NBC and Syfy executive. We talk about straightening her curls for TV, and the morning she stopped. Why your dating profile is a headshot and your first date is an audition.

Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.

Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)

Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.com

Find Damona: damonahoffman.com · Instagram · TikTok

Mentioned:

F the Fairy Tale
Dates & Mates with Damona Hoffman
Cake Mix
for colored girls who have considered suicide
Man's Search for Meaning
The Gottmans' Four Horsemen
Veronica Alweiss, life coach
Durand Bernarr: "I don't need to be confident. I'm convinced."

Walkout song: "This Is Me" from The Greatest Showman

Breaking the algorithm: Rebecca Benenati, yoga teacher, doula and somatic coach. wellbornlifestyles.com · @rebeccabenenati

S1 E1: What Are You Waiting For? Just Hit Record. with Astrid LaMarche | Friends & Acquaintances Oct 22, 2026

Show notes

Austria. Not Australia. (There are no kangaroos. Please look at a map.)

Astrid LaMarche grew up in her parents' café, bakery, and grocery store in Upper Austria. Then a stranger said hello on the San Diego harbor. Yep, she married him.

Today she runs Austrian Cravings, where hundreds of thousands watch her stretch strudel dough. We talk about:

overthinking her first Instagram post for six months (it was a loaf of bread)
why American grocery store bread isn't up to her standard
what happens when retirees see their mother's recipe on their phone

Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.

Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)

Watch on YouTube · Follow us on Instagram · TikTok · Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.com

Find Astrid: Austrian Cravings Instagram · Facebook · Book a cooking class with Astrid

Mentioned:

1. April 2000, Astrid's must-watch comedy
Fire in the Belly: On Being a Man by Sam Keen, the book Kenny poorly paraphrases
Altenberg, Bad Leonfelden, Vienna, Bad Ischl and the Zillertal

Walkout song: "Der Kommissar" by Falco. The intro counts.

Breaking the algorithm: Leni vom Bichlhof, a Zillertal farmer who mows mountain pastures by hand.

Season One Trailer: Life in Parallel Podcast drops tomorrow! Oct 21, 2026

Show notes

We can't wait to share this labor of love with you! Be sure to subscribe. The first three episodes drop TOMORROW, 10/22. And then a new episode every Wednesday.

Know a do-lover? Someone building an extraordinary life just outside your social media zip code? Nominating yourself counts. Email us at hello@lifeinparallelpod.com.

Enjoying the show? Review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. (Thank you, sugars.)

Watch on YouTube · Follow@lifeinparallelpod on Instagram and TikTok · @lifeinparallelpod.bsky.social on Bluesky · lifeinparallelpod.com

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