With Noah Perkins (On Childhood, Grief, Schooling, Parenting, Anxiety, Technology, the NBA and Sandwiches‪)‬ Jonah Asks

Welcome back to Jonah Asks,Noah Perkins is a terrific sports journalist, a dedicated and proud father, a sandwich lover, and a native of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Like me, Noah loves basketball and is a child of divorce. Unlike me, Noah experienced profound loss at a young age. His dad died in a tragic accident when he was 14 and his mom died years later in a car accident. Like me, Noah moved to California and became a father a few years ago. This is the 2nd time Noah has been on Jonah Asks. To hear the first episode: https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/jonahasks/episodes/2021-01-11T12_59_55-08_00We discuss the following topics: family (divorce, family history)fathers (masculinity, psychology, connection, vulnerability)dealing with griefschooling (personal experience and considering education in general)parenting (connection, anxiety, attachment, identity)anxiety (how anxiety is passed down and how we deal with it as adults)technology (screen life versus real life)NBA (Celtics, Warriors, the schedule)sandwiches (Noah's Top 3)music"The Bottom of It" Fruit Batshttps://fruit-bats.bandcamp.com/album/gold-past-life"Reckoner" Radiohead (From the Basement session)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9rN9eY2hRcNoah's writing: https://muckrack.com/noah-perkinsNoah on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NoahZZPerkinsOpeningHolidaysWe discuss navigating the holidays as a parent. Noah has a 22-month-old daughter and is trying to balance his old self with his new parent self. Noah interviewed Patrick Ewing in May of 2020, beginning of the pandemic. Noah balances journalism work with fatherhood. 8 minutesNoah describes his father's background. His parents divorced when Noah was in Kindergarten.11 minutesTwo Homes and Benefit of the Doubt. Both of Noah's parents died long ago. Jonah's parents are both still alive. We discuss mythologizing and giving people the benefit of the doubt. 18 minutesThe death of Noah's dad and the aftermath. How Noah's father grew up - Moving around and abuse in the '50s. Bedford, Massachusetts. After the divorce, Noah's parents had shared custody. He'd spent every other weekend with his dad. When he was 14, Noah's died tragically in an accident. Noah was forced to see the school counselor. The situation wasn't well thought out and Noah was really uncomfortable being required to see the counselor. Noah's brother was away at college. Noah's mom did the best she could do given the situation. 27 minutesNavigating High School and Starting College36 minutesSchooling: Perseverance and Overcoming AdversityWe discuss the complexity of schooling, regarding socialization, motivation and support. 45 minutesAnxiety Growing up with anxiety and trying to parent without anxiety. Anxiety - constant problem solving - leads to creating the problems that don't exist in order to then solve. 55 minutesHow We Live - ConnectionScreen Life versus Real Life - changing behaviors and time spentNoah:"Human connection feels really good. It feels like it's become really hard to come by."63 minutesTrust We discuss the complexity of building human connection in modern life. 71 minutesNBA Talk. The Celtics, the Warriors and we discuss the much too-long regular season and ways the NBA could shorten it. 78 minutesNoah feels dirty watching football. 80 minutesNoah loves sandwiches. Three of his favorites: Pastrami on rye from a Jewish deli. Banh mi. Grilled cheese with bacon. ***Podcast Recommendation:Story of the Week: Ten Straight Years on Tinderhttps://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/story-of-the-week/10-straight-years-on-tinderThanks for listening to Jonah Asks. Share, subscribe and rate as you see fit. Be Safe and Be Kind,Jonah