Be There in Five Kate Kennedy

This week, Kate critiques the stagnant nature of traditional Father's Day gift guides and compares them to the rapidly changing trends for women like “office siren,” which leads her to snorkel through the current male microtrend: having a “rat boy summer” or taking on a “rodent boyfriend.” She also discusses how aggressive the gals on TikTok are getting about items being on sale and reflects upon why she’s being followed by a product called Bovine colostrum. Then, after a detour about irreverent bumper stickers, she formally responds to a clip she heard on New Heights where some of the Kelce’s takes about D-COMs were just plain D-wrong, and provides a framework involving DCOM cinema that will help you determine if you’re an old or young millennial. She also talks about TV ratings and how naive we can be about what we think is popular versus what’s truly mainstream and complains about the Curse of Oak Island doing the least but getting the most ratings relative to ladies like the Housewives whose lives implode on television for meager hype. The conversation also touches on reproductive rights, the volume of IVF-related news this week, and, lastly, celebrates millennial dads breaking traditional molds amid reflections on her own motherhood journey. Kate wraps up by inviting audience feedback for the podcast's future direction in a shifting industry landscape. Can you tell this was AI-generated? Enjoy!

00:37 The Eternal Struggle of Men's Gift Guides

04:06 Micro Trends and Aesthetics for Women

08:35 The Rise of 'Rat Boy Summer' and Male Aesthetics

11:16 The Impact of TikTok Ads and Shopping Trends

30:05 Nostalgic Dive into Disney Channel Original Movies

36:24 Millennial Disney Channel Divides

37:28 High School Musical: A Cultural Shift

44:00 Bumper Stickers That Must Be Stopped

48:09 The Curse of Oak Island: A TV Phenomenon

49:05 TV Ratings and Reality Shows

54:21 Diving into Reproductive Rights

55:50 Navigating Infertility and IVF

01:16:59 The Reality of Parenting and Partnerships

01:17:26 Celebrating Millennial Dads

01:29:13 Podcast Future and Listener Feedback

This week, Kate is solo and snorkeling through some of the latest and oldest of topics, like time. She warms up by wandering through things like grandfather clocks, the true crime history of the Magdalene Laundries (aka "Maggies") in Ireland, Harrison Butker’s speech, lyrics where people quote Taylor Swift but don’t realize she’s quoting someone else, and ponders why we treat punctuality like it’s an inherent virtue to the human condition when people had no way of knowing the precise time until the 18th century. Then, she crowdsources on IG in real time people's thoughts about having heirlooms as millennials in an era of fast fashion and furniture, highlighting the statement pieces of yesteryear that are incredibly pricey to maintain and whose experts are dying off. Then Kate goes off on a tangent about lucrative niche trade careers, like fixing grandfather clocks and elevator technicians, in case anyone's in the mood for a career pivot. Very random, they can't all be hits, enjoy!

This week, beloved #1 best-selling author Emily Henry (Beach Read, Book Lovers, Happy Place, etc.) is back for Millennial Ennui: the Sequel to chat about her latest romance novel, Funny Story. Kate and Em Hen (she delusionally thinks they’re BFFs/on a nickname basis) talk about a variety of topics, from gift shop enthusiasm to the characters we problematically root for in RomComs, to the prevalence of fudge in touristy areas. They also discuss female friendships, what it’s like behind-the-scenes to adapt books to the big screen, and explore the intricacies of female characters in Emily's books and the related challenges faced by women in their 30s—touching on breakups, motherhood desires, and societal expectations. The convo also dances through Taylor Swift's songwriting, the struggles of writing deadlines, and the wonders of libraries as havens for diverse stories and support. Enjoy!

This week, Kate’s chatting with co-author of the audiobook The Art of Small Talk (also actress, comedian, host of The Deep Dive podcast), Jessica St. Clair. Jessica shares her personal experience with the gift of gab and gives advice about the art of casual conversation, with topics ranging from how to be friendly with neighbors to stories about pleasant celeb run-ins. Overall, a joyful interaction that is essentially a celebration of the joys of everyday interactions. Enjoy! 

This week, Kate interviews podcast listener and NFL WAG Haley Pepper, who shares her experiences with a lot of BTI5 adjacent topics, like pageants, Bama sororities, and being in a relationship with a professional athlete. She discusses the misconceptions and realities of this lifestyle, including the lack of job security, the high expenses, and the pressure of constantly moving and adapting, along with the challenges of motherhood. Enjoy!

This week, Kate is joined by NYT bestselling romance author Carley Fortune (Meet Me at the Lake, Every Summer After) to discuss her latest book, dropping on May 7th, This Summer Will Be Different. They discuss Carley’s former "RomCom job" as an editor at Refinery29 Canada and her pivot to becoming a romance writer, the importance of strong female friendships and real experiences represented in literature, and why Prince Edward Island may be the next hot vacation spot. They also touch on literary tropes, Carley’s journey of writing through early motherhood, and how her own life has shaped her storytelling. Then, Kate can't help but fangirl that Meet Me at the Lake has been optioned by Archewell Productions, so she asks if she's met Meg, among other things. No spoilers - Enjoy!