A Drink With a Friend

Latest Episodes:

Matter Matters Sep 17, 2021

Show notes

When you grow up hearing that this world will one day fade away, it’s hard to reconcile why, then, there’s so much astounding beauty everywhere. Seth and Tsh unpack why our invisible souls aren’t the only things that matter. (Gnosticism is still around, folks.)

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s blackberries

As Kingfishers Catch Fire, by Gerard Manley Hopkins

God’s Grandeur, by Gerard Manley Hopkins

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Ordinary Beauty #2 Sep 10, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, Seth and Tsh pull on the thread they started weaving earlier this year, practicing the art and habit of noticing the everyday beauty around them. (After all, it’s not optional if we want to live a sacramental life.) As always — as a listener, you’re invited to nod along and notice your own as well. Join in this time-tested practice!

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

No Fear Shakespeare: Hamlet

Hamlet on YouTube: David Tennant, Benedict Cumberbatch, Andrew Scott

Strange Brew

Mozart’s Requiem

Andrew Peterson

Vivian Maier’s A Photographer Found

Eva to Ave by Santa Clara Design

Virgin Mary, by Sr. Maria Innocentia Hummel

Ambience videos on YouTube

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Steeped in Stories Sep 03, 2021

Show notes

The books we read in childhood have the power to transform us lifelong. So what do we do with the classics that are so good yet have those problematic bits because they’re products of their era? Do we avoid giving our kids these great works because they don’t reflect everything we believe in? Seth and Tsh are joined by fellow writer Mitali Perkins, who has passionate thoughts about why what we read in childhood matters. Her own immigrant story was steeped in stories.

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

Mitali Perkins: Twitter | Instagram | Website

Mitali’s new book, Steeped in Stories: Bookshop | Amazon

The Chair on Netflix

Digital Minimalism, by Cal Newport

The Book of Waking Up, by Seth

Why Art Matters, by Alistair Gordon

A Nature Poem for Every Day of the Year (and Night), by Jane McMorland Hunter

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Listening to Our Childhoods Aug 27, 2021

Show notes

There’s a purity to our childhood perspectives, and if we’re quiet enough, we can still hear them whisper to us. What do our first experiences with beauty, goodness, and truth tell us about what’s really there? Seth helps Tsh unpack a process he’s recently experienced as he listened to his nine-year-old self.

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Philosophy of Tolkien, by Peter Kreeft

Drew Binsky on YouTube

The Summer of Helga, by Seth

The Suns We Orbit: Lessons Learned From Leaving the Church, by Seth

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Dunbar’s Number Aug 20, 2021

Show notes

After a short summer break, Seth and Tsh are back! To kick off another season, they talk about many vs few: why does it matter how many people we follow online, friends we stay connected with, names we know, or celebrities we keep up with? Turns out there’s some anthropological science to the overwhelm we feel when we keep track of thousands of people online yet don’t know our neighbor’s name across the street. Perhaps this isn’t how we’re designed to live?

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

Orgain protein powder

Dunbar’s Number: Why My Theory That Humans Can Only Maintain 150 Friendships Has Withstood 30 Years of Scrutiny, by Robin Dunbar

Bear Grease Podcast

1,000 True Fans, by Kevin Kelly

Brideshead Revisited, by Evelyn Waugh

Start With Why, by Simon Sinek

The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell

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Real Rest Jul 16, 2021

Show notes

It’s not just the not doing of something… It often takes a certain proactivity to truly rest. Seth and Tsh talk about what it looks like to rest physically, emotionally, spiritually, and even sensory rest (which we all need more than we realize, what with all our modern sensory input everywhere). Resting well is a game-changer — especially when it’s in tandem with a dignified view of work and real play.
This episode puts their first season in the books! Seth and Tsh are taking a short summer break to REST, but they’ll be back soon.

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

The 7 Types of Rest that Every Person Needs, by Sandra Dalton-Smith, MD

How Soft Fascination Helps Restore Your Tired Brain, by Markham Held

Leisure: The Basis of Culture, by Josef Pieper

Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less, by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang

This Is Where You Belong, by Melody Warnick

Manifest on NBC (and on Netflix)

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Real Play Jul 09, 2021

Show notes

It’s a kid’s m.o. to play; it’s how they learn and walk through life. But we adults need to play, too, and some of us (🙋‍♀️) frequently forget how. Play benefits our health in all sorts of ways, but it’s also just …fun. That’s a gift. Being a real, responsible adult doesn’t mean taking everything seriously.

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

Leisure: The Basis of Culture, by Josef Pieper

Interior Castle, by St Teresa of Avila (selected passages)

An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good, by Helene Tursten

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Ordinary Beauty #1 Jul 02, 2021

Show notes

Recognizing beauty is a habit, and it’s also not optional if we want to live a sacramental life. In this episode, Seth and Tsh share specific examples of beauty they’re currently witnessing in their lives, and you’re invited to notice your own as well.

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

“We’ve Always Asked the Wrong Question,” on The Commonplace

Andrew Wyeth: Website | MoMA Collection

Jess Franks on Instagram

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Slaying Dragons Jun 25, 2021

Show notes

Good stories matter — we all know this. But how do these good stories shape us, form our imaginations, make us better parents, and remind us what really matters? Why do the best stories sacramentally peel back the surface to reveal what’s really there? Seth and Tsh talk to their friend, novelist Shawn Smucker, about what it means to immerse your life in good stories — and why it’s not optional.
To borrow a quip from G.K. Chesterton about children and fairy tales (because it’s just as true for adults): good stories don’t tell us dragons exist. We already know this. Good stories tell us dragons can be killed.

Seth: Newsletter | Website

Tsh: Newsletter | Website

Shawn Smucker: Books | Podcast | Twitter | Instagram | Website

Pick up a round of drinks & help keep the show going

Come to Italy with us!

Journal of a Novel, by John Steinbeck

Working Days, by John Steinbeck

Evilene Killerman on Instagram

Anything is Possible, by Elizabeth Strout

The Surrender Experiment, by Michael A. Singer

Radical Face's albums The Family Tree: The Roots, The Branches, and The Leaves

Radical Face guidebook

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Alive People, Alive Art Jun 18, 2021

Show notes

Two episodes ago, Seth and Tsh talked about artists who are no longer alive but still live on through the great art they left us. As a follow-up, in this episode they chat about the artists who are very much alive and are making the world a bit better through their art.
Seth's and Tsh's criteria? Artists who aren’t as commonly well-known, as well as people who aren’t out to make a name for themselves as an Influencer™ or ThoughtLeader™. They’re also some who aren’t even literal artists, per se, but they use their preferred medium like an artist would — curated, thoughtful, and with the receiver in mind.