SpaceTomatoes

SpaceTomatoes-podcast

Welcome to Space Tomatoes, the podcast where we boldly go where no logic has gone before, armed with nothing but an unhealthy amount of enthusiasm and a profound lack of focus. Here, we discuss everything and nothing, jumping from topics like quantum physics to why pineapple is (or isn’t) a pizza topping—sometimes in the same sentence. Join us as we dive deep into the void of random musings, irrelevant trivia, and obscure pop culture references that are guaranteed to make you giggle, cringe, or wonder if we’ve lost touch with reality (spoiler: we have).

  1. Terrence Rotering - Flight and Fiction The Trinian Chronicles Unveiled S2-EP23

    Jun 5

    Terrence Rotering - Flight and Fiction The Trinian Chronicles Unveiled S2-EP23

    Retired Air Force WSO Terrence “Roter” Rotering on Low-Level Flying, Writing a 10-Book Multiverse, and AI Havok and LX interview Terrence “Roter” Rotering, a retired Air Force weapons systems officer who flew as a backseater in the F-15E and previously in the F-111, describing demanding training, extreme low-level terrain-following flights, and a dangerous incident dropping through a stack of F-111s. Rotering explains how he began writing to inspire his children, ultimately creating a 10-book, 6,000+ page connected universe spanning fantasy, sci-fi, time tunnels, wormholes, multiverse “wheels,” and spiritual warfare themes. He outlines his voice-to-text writing process, use of Gemini AI for continuity and reference (not for writing), and discusses a recurring AI antagonist character, “Blok.” The conversation touches on UFO speculation, Hollywood adaptation concerns, personal “God wink” coincidences, and he credits his wife Theresa for her support while sharing where to find his books and site. 00:00 UFOs And AI Tease 00:39 Meet The Guest 01:18 Life As A WSO 03:08 Low Level Flying Stories 06:41 Training Reality Check 08:32 Why He Started Writing 11:46 Voice Notes Writing Process 13:57 Building A Linked Universe 17:51 Continuity Checks With AI 25:40 Spiritual Themes And God Winks 29:33 Favorite Character Blok 33:47 UFOs Time Travel Theories 35:20 Reading From Forever 38:04 Hollywood Adaptation Talk 39:49 Retirement Mission Writing Sprint 42:21 Real Stories In The Backmatter 43:31 Seven Wheels Return To Earth 45:01 Worldbuilding With Wheel Stones 49:10 Science Grounded Time Travel 53:38 Writing Lessons And Hope 57:19 Cold War F-111 Freefall 01:05:13 War Deterrence And Human Nature 01:08:41 John 316 God Winks 01:13:37 Shout Outs And Marriage 01:17:38 Where To Find The Books 01:20:26 Final Sign Off Want to be a guest on Space Tomatoes? Send us a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/1767024435775999c3b686d39

    1h 31m
  2. Cathy Nesbitt - Worms in the Kitchen, Laughter Yoga, and Educational Silliness S2-EP20

    May 15

    Cathy Nesbitt - Worms in the Kitchen, Laughter Yoga, and Educational Silliness S2-EP20

    LX and Havok welcome the unstoppable Cathy Nesbitt founder of Cathy’s Crawly Composter (24 years selling worms by the pound!), Cathy’s Sprouts, and Cathy’s Laughter Club to the Space Tomatoes Podcast. What started as a “Toronto landfill just exploded and we’re shipping garbage to Michigan in a thousand trucks a week” panic became the ultimate indoor composting empire. Cathy reveals how red wiggler worms (yep, five hearts each) turn your kitchen scraps into “black gold” in a Rubbermaid bin even if you live in a condo. Hear the legendary school workshop tales: over 100,000 kids, squealing worm hugs, one brave (or peer-pressured) student who actually ate a worm on a countdown, and the time the boys tried sticking worms to the bathroom ceiling like spaghetti. Plus: why sprouts are your countertop superfood secret, how laughter yoga floods you with happy hormones (and why it feels super awkward the first time), and why Cathy once considered starting a dating site for “you got worms, I got worms” singles. Practical, hilarious, and weirdly inspiring this episode proves sustainability can be fun, regenerative, and done from your apartment. If you’ve ever said “eww, worms in the house,” Cathy’s got your number (and a comeback). Drop a comment: Would YOU let worms move in? Find Cathy & join her free Tuesday 9:30 a.m. ET Global Giggle Gang: https://www.cathyscomposters.com/ • https://www.cathyssprouters.com/ • Cathysclub.com #PodMatch Want to be a guest on Space Tomatoes? Send us a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/1767024435775999c3b686d39

    1h 16m
  3. Russell Van Brocklen Returns - Dyslexia Prof’s 3X Productivity Hacks while swimming S2-EP19

    May 8

    Russell Van Brocklen Returns - Dyslexia Prof’s 3X Productivity Hacks while swimming S2-EP19

    LX and Havok welcome back repeat guest Russell Van Brocklen the dyslexia professor chilling in Albany, NY (definitely not the crazy downstate chaos). It kicks off with epic hotel horror stories: $113 steal one year, $429 nightmare the next, plus a Times Square shoebox room where the bed touches the wardrobe doors. Then Russell drops his no BS playbook for turning AI into a tireless teammate using ChatGPT 5.4 extended thinking + Claude Opus Coworker. Learn the exact 10 moves the top 1% use to double or triple their output while still swimming at the YMCA and living life. Meet 10-year-old Grayson (99th percentile math/science) who’s already gunning for a NASA Mars-terraforming PhD, plus why Russell won’t let kids touch AI until 9th/10th grade (hello, Craft of Research). He breaks down custom memory workflows, reusable prompts, beating hallucinations, and why humans still own empathy, creativity, and final calls. We also geek out on the wild future of jobs, robotics, and why the right AI skills could mean three offers for every qualified human. Russell shouts out his life changing professor and teases his upcoming book If You Can Write, You Can Read. Funny, practical, and zero robot apocalypse doom just real talk on using AI to work smarter, not harder. If you’re into productivity, dyslexia wins, or just love watching smart people geek out, smash that like button, subscribe for more Space Tomatoes chaos, and drop a comment: What’s the wildest AI win (or epic fail) you’ve had? PodMatch Want to be a guest on Space Tomatoes? Send us a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/1767024435775999c3b686d39 Russell's Skool Project: https://www.skool.com/dyslexia-classes-2483/about Chapters: 0:43 - Welcoming repeat guest Russell Van Brocklen 2:15 - Albany lake life vs. NYC stimulus overload 4:30 - Wild NYC hotel stories ($113 steal → $429 nightmare + shoebox rooms) 7:00 - Meet 10yo Grayson: future NASA Mars terraformer 11:20 - Russell’s AI evolution (ChatGPT Pro → Claude Opus Coworker) 16:00 - Top 10 AI practices of the 1% (treat it like a team member!) 28:00 - Building custom memory, reusable prompts & workflows 37:15 - Handling hallucinations, human review & shipping 85-90% perfect 44:30 - Why kids shouldn’t touch AI yet — enter the Craft of Research 52:00 - Jobs, robots, autonomous cars & the AI future (optimistic edition) 1:02:00 - Life-changing professor shoutout & Russell’s story 1:06:30 - New book “If You Can Write, You Can Read” + dyslexiaclasses.com 1:10:00 - Outro, thanks & where to find us

    1h 12m
  4. Robert Mahoney on Humanizing Violence Prevention S2-EP17

    Apr 25

    Robert Mahoney on Humanizing Violence Prevention S2-EP17

    Hosts Havok and LX welcome Robert Mahoney, founder and CEO of TVT Solutions (Targeted Violence & Terrorism Prevention) for a fresh take on why calling violence “random” is total nonsense. Instead of more cameras, battle-rattle cops, and fortress vibes, Robert makes the witty, human-first case for real prevention: spotting behavioral clues early, building multidisciplinary “care teams” in schools, libraries, FedEx routes, and beyond, and understanding how radicalization actually works (hint: it’s all about filling those identity, purpose, and community buckets). From reframing radicalization and why feelings drive behavior (not logic) to the pitfalls of hyper specialized systems, AI overkill, and reviving the spirit of true community care without stomping on civil liberties this one flips the security script from fear-based to empathy-powered. Thought provoking, practical, and way less dystopian than you’d expect. Tune in and discover how spotting struggles beats waiting for the boom every single time! Chapters: 00:00 – Welcome to the Space Tomatoes Podcast 00:30 – Introducing Robert Mahoney & TVT Solutions 01:25 – Prevention vs Protection & the “Random Acts” Myth 03:08 – Training Formats: Seminars, Half-Days & Bespoke Sessions 04:35 – We Don’t Take Individual Cases 05:27 – Training People to Spot Signs Without Paranoia 09:10 – Who They Work With: Schools, Libraries, FedEx, Houses of Worship 11:45 – Is This Privatized Community Policing? 13:40 – Self-Funded, Hand-offs to Law Enforcement & Risk Management 15:20 – Why Feelings Drive Behavior (The Electric Car Study) 18:25 – Layton’s Error, Hyper-Specialization & Over-Valued Protection 25:00 – Security Narratives: SROs vs Students + The Scary Liquor Store 29:30 – The Quiet Kid vs Death Spiral of Isolation 32:22 – Who Defines “Extremist”? Bias & Civil Liberties Concerns 33:58 – Radicalization: Identity, Purpose & Community Buckets 40:20 – Intervention vs Intercession – Why Top-Down Fails 43:22 – Protecting Individual Liberty & Personality Types 47:38 – Why Call Them “Care Teams” Instead of Threat Assessment 50:09 – Real Wins: Bus Drivers, Substance Abuse & Family Help 52:47 – Data, ROI Challenges & Why AI Can’t Replace Human Judgment 57:30 – Contextual Intelligence, Empathy & Civil Liberties 1:07:00 – Wrapping Up: A Human-First Approach 1:08:07 – Blue Light Towers & Security Paradoxes 1:11:57 – Lessons from DHS/CP3 1:15:43 – Guest Shout-Outs: Luntz, Lakoff & Sutherland 1:18:06 – Where to Find Robert & TVT Solutions Want to be a guest on Space Tomatoes? Send us a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/1767024435775999c3b686d39

    1h 21m

About

Welcome to Space Tomatoes, the podcast where we boldly go where no logic has gone before, armed with nothing but an unhealthy amount of enthusiasm and a profound lack of focus. Here, we discuss everything and nothing, jumping from topics like quantum physics to why pineapple is (or isn’t) a pizza topping—sometimes in the same sentence. Join us as we dive deep into the void of random musings, irrelevant trivia, and obscure pop culture references that are guaranteed to make you giggle, cringe, or wonder if we’ve lost touch with reality (spoiler: we have).