Speaker 1: 0:12

Welcome to One Good Thing Media, your official podcast review channel. Welcome to One Good Thing Media, your official podcast review channel. We search the vast digital landscape on a daily basis to discover the best shows that podcasters have to offer. Are you ready to discover new favorites to add to your playbook?

Speaker 2: 0:57

Stay tuned and listen to host Gerald Spears' latest podcast reviews. Hello loves, welcome to One Good Thing Media, a show that's devoted to reviewing and recommending a variety of top-notch podcasts for our eclectic listeners. If you love true crime but still crave a variety of other genres, you're in the right spot. My name is Gerald Spear and I am the host and creator of our show. Today, we're celebrating the end of the election cycle here in America. Man, oh man. I didn't realize just how much tension was in the air until it was finally over. I want to add that, while half the country is celebrating and the other half is very unhappy with the election results, however you voted, I hope that we can all band together, be one as Americans and keep a sharp eye on what's happening in Washington DC. Before we get going, let's hear a word from our sponsor, who Gives a Crap, the one company that helps us keep the lights on. Did you know that you can support us by supporting who Gives a Crap, a company that really does give a crap? We've been a loyal customer of WGAC for five years. They produce the greenest toilet paper and paper towels on the planet, have a microcarbon footprint and donate 50% of their profits to help underdeveloped countries safely manage human waste. Fyi I recommend the bamboo toilet paper. It's three-ply soft and because bamboo is a grass, you're helping to preserve our forests. Please give a crap by clicking on the sponsor's link in our show notes and go even greener, starting today. Link in our show notes and go even greener, starting today. And now it's time for some news and highlights that you won't want to miss.

Speaker 2: 3:02

I must start my new segment with an apology. I had intended to find some great podcasts that covered post-election in such a way that it was positive or empowering or comforting. I came up empty. I'm hoping that it was just a little early for me to actually start my search because, honestly, I had to wade through so many podcasts filled podcast filled with these powerful emotions and I totally got triggered.

Speaker 2: 3:29

Even though we may be burned out with politics and I'm sure that describes most of us if you're like me, you still want to keep up with the news. I mean, are we going to be in a war today? What's going on in Washington DC? Are we safe? There's so many questions that we need to find out the answers to by listening to the news. Fortunately, there is a way that you can get your news without having to spend too much time listening to op-eds and opinion pieces, etc. For those who want to spend their time not listening to the news, there are three 10-minute news podcasts that I recommend you check out. One of them is by Reuters, that's R-E-U-T-E-R-S your World in 10 Minutes. There's also Up First from NPR, and then there is a more centric podcast that's named the Newsworthy and it also shares the news in 10 minutes.

Speaker 2: 4:34

On a personal note, I am in such an amazing place, especially in my podcasting career. It's been fueled by a lot of things, but chiefly among them are these two factors. Number one I've launched a second podcast called Skirting Danger that focuses on women's empowerment and personal safety. Now, I've always jokingly said, even though I'm only five feet tall, that I was born without the fear gene. I say that with a straight face. If anyone tries to intimidate me, I stand my ground. I don't care if I have to get on a step stool to look them in the eye, and even though I've been fortunate enough to never experience extreme marital violence, I've always reminded the men in my life that, while I'm no match for them while they're awake, they have to sleep sometime.

Speaker 2: 5:33

Even so, because I pay attention to the vibe on the street news coverage and, of course, on social media, my spidey sense has gone into overdrive and, although I acknowledge that you know, family members heap an awful lot of violence on each other, my concerns are mostly focused on crimes committed by violent criminals, cyber criminals, sociopaths and even narcissists, who have a propensity for ruining our lives. Secondly, even though life has always been riskier for women, I've realized that most of us still aren't as prepared as we need to be in order to anticipate, avoid and escape dangerous situations. If you're strong-willed, like I am, you might be thinking I can take care of myself, and that's true, but only up to a point. At this moment in our lives, and probably forevermore, just feeling confident isn't enough. You need to anticipate danger far sooner, never doubt your gut feelings and proactively take yourself to a safer space.

Speaker 2: 6:52

And that, my ladies, is what Skirting Danger is meant to do for you, for me and all future listeners. I also have a newsletter that you can subscribe to. It's in the show notes and twice monthly, you will receive information about how to protect yourself and avoid becoming a victim of crime. Here's a clip that was originally designated for episode one of Skirting Danger, but due to length considerations for the entire episode, it had to be cut, and so I'm going to play it for you. The voice you hear is Dr Jan Canty, who, in this clip, explains just one of the reasons why men are from Mars and women are from Venus In a world full of shadows.

Speaker 4: 7:41

I know how to play. I see the lines you try to cross, but I'm 10 steps ahead. You're already lost.

Speaker 3: 7:48

I've learned to leave the room before I walk in. With every glance I see where you've been. No fear, no prey. I own my own lane. You'll never get close. I'm stealing clear of your game. Skirt in danger.

Speaker 5: 8:01

I'm free and alive. I'm dodging the traps while I thrive. One way to show how different men's socialization is in terms of safety from women's was this question, and it was created by Gavin DeBecker Wonderful book Gift of Fear, he said, to show you how different women's socialization is from men's, ask this question of somebody you trust, whether it's a man or a woman. Ask them the question when is the last time you felt in fear of your safety or life? And the answer isn't as important as how long it takes them to answer. And you're going to find that women don't have to wait, they're boom, they got an answer.

Speaker 5: 8:45

Men have to scratch their heads and actually give that question some thought, because they don't typically feel in fear of their safety or life. So I asked my husband that question When's the last time you felt your life was threatened or you're in danger? And he hymned and he hawed and he goes oh, I know it was when that canoe tipped over, when I was in the river, and I'm like that is so not what I mean. Women have an answer immediately oh, it was the other night when I was in a parking lot or a parking garage or whatever it might be, because we live in a state of tension. We don't even realize it, it's so automatic.

Speaker 2: 9:23

So there you have it. Check out Skirting Danger colon. Women's safety, gerald. Oh, no, not you. Again, what are you listening to? Oh, ais, you can't trust them. But yes, welcome to. What Are you Listening To? A segment where I share what I've binged this week, and it's a good one.

Speaker 2: 9:49

I binged a gripping human interest story this week called Truth Be Told Presents. She has a Name, and I want to start with a question. What would you do if, as an adult, you found out that you had a sibling that you never knew existed? Now I'm going to tell you.

Speaker 2: 10:11

One of the reasons I was initially drawn to this particular podcast was because that happened to me. My parents had a baby girl before I was born. My parents had a baby girl before I was born and, lo and behold, when I found out about it and researched her history to find out what happened, is she still alive? What is going on? I discovered that they had also named her Gerald. Was it shocking? Yeah, but it was more like an emotional earthquake and that's why, at least initially, I was drawn to this podcast. But as the story unfolded and it didn't take long I was hooked. Truth Be Told presents she has a name by APM Studios and TMI Productions stars Tanya Mosley, a well-known journalist who does TV, radio and podcasts. The revelation that Tanya had a sister, she had a nephew and many other relatives came out of the blue after she received a pivotal phone call.

Speaker 6: 11:33

When the cops don't listen. A reporter is the next best thing. I learned that very early in my career as a journalist. People come to me for help to solve all sorts of things to understand an issue right or wrong, expose a fraud or find a person who has vanished without a trace. And without being overly sentimental, there is so much power in having your story told to millions of people on TV or the radio. It says what happened to me matters because I matter, which is why the stories that haunt me the most are the ones about people who have been begging, sometimes for years, to be heard, like the families of missing people. The ones we hear about are just a fraction of the thousands who disappear every single day.

Speaker 6: 12:24

This is where dogs lost Katie's scent. As you can see, it's about 100 yards away from the Dollar General. This is also where authorities believe Katie's abductor. That was me in 2004, reporting on the case of a missing girl from Louisville, kentucky. I was just a few years out of college and this was one of my very first TV jobs, but it was a phone call I received the first week I started. That would turn out to be one of the most important stories of my life.

Speaker 7: 12:51

I'll tell you in that moment. I just remember when you answered the phone. I just kind of remember you saying hello. I was like oh wow, like your voice, there was something about your voice that was so familiar to me.

Speaker 6: 13:06

He said my name is Antonio and I am your nephew. Now, this was crazy, because I grew up with a baby brother and he couldn't possibly have a son because he was adamant about us talking. I barely knew my father Just a few years before this phone call in 2004,. He and I had connected for only the second time in my life and I certainly didn't know his other children. So as I listened to Antonio speak, a surge of adrenaline ran through me. His mother, I'd learn, was my father's eldest daughter. I'd learn, was my father's eldest daughter.

Speaker 6: 14:03

Was it finally happening? Was I gonna finally get to know the mystery that has always been the other side of my family, the other side of me? I'd left Detroit a long time ago to embark on a career as a journalist, but the truth is I'd also left Detroit because of a broken heart. My family chose Motown during the Great Migration because of its promise of middle-class prosperity. And here I was, decades later, a nomad, believing that dream could never be fulfilled for me if I stayed. Antonio dropped the next revelation just as my mind began to spiral. Not only was his mother my sister, she was also missing and this call was a plea, one of many he'd made over the years and the search for his mother and the other side of himself.

Speaker 2: 14:56

Tanya and Antonio embarked on a search for their missing sister and mother together and, unfortunately, although it took a very long time, the results of their search had the same finality that I experienced when I finally uncovered my own family mystery. Before I move on to our reviews, I have to say I am absolutely in love with tanya mosley's voice. There are a couple other seasons of truth be told presents and I look forward to listening to them and enjoying Tanya Mosley's narrative style. And now it's time for our main attraction.

Speaker 2: 16:11

My first review today is about a podcast called the City of the Rails.

Speaker 2: 16:13

It is a magical yet gritty true story about a mother and journalist named Danelle Morton and her quest to find her daughter, who left her flat during her high school graduation to skip town, hop trains and ride the rails across America. The story involves sleuthing both in trying to find her daughter in the culture she had become part of, daughter in the culture she had become part of, trying to understand why she did it and what made the hidden world of railroads so alluring in the first place. Danelle's guides are the rail cops, train engineers and hobos she meets along the way, each of them with their own extraordinary tales of the beauty and brutality of the rails. There is so much about the culture of riding the rails, rules of their society, secret maps and safe spaces where they can go to winter, how they earn their money, and much more. I learned something new every five minutes in this podcast, and you probably will as well Looking over like kind of like the east end of the train yard.

Speaker 7: 17:28

Train yard up on the hill.

Speaker 8: 17:30

Oh see, there's the other train line. That's where Amtrak comes in.

Speaker 7: 17:34

It's a warm night in Northern California and I'm drinking beers on a hill with a hobo named Mike while he waits to hop a train to Kansas City. And I'm drinking beers on a hill with a hobo named Mike while he waits to hop a train to Kansas City.

Speaker 8: 17:42

This train has been leaving since the 70s and it hauls mail all the way to Chicago and like Kansas City too. So this same train leaves pretty much every day, like at like 4 or 5 in the morning. I've caught it three times, and so here we are again. We're here pretty early, but we have nothing else to do.

Speaker 7: 18:04

Like everyone else in America, I never paid much attention to the rails until someone I love disappeared into them, and for the last 14 years I've been in train yards with hobos and talked to hundreds of people like Mike. But the rails don't give up their secrets easily. You might hear hobo and picture an old bum in a boxcar, but there's more to train hopping than that. Every night in train yards all over America, people wait in the shadows, crouched behind bushes, scanning the tracks for freight cars to take them somewhere Anywhere. But here Riders use aliases like Jobo the Hobo, long-haired Donnie and Tuck. Don't Give a Fuck to make themselves untraceable and there's a pretty good chance they're lying to you when they tell you where they're going. So getting to hang out with Mike Brody, a guy using his real name, was a big event.

Speaker 8: 18:53

We can see it from here Basically. Yeah, we kind of can see it.

Speaker 7: 18:57

I appreciate that impulse to escape. I've thought about it ever since she left, but I'm not brave enough to do it. So Mike's agreed to let me tag along and get a firsthand look at what it's like to live on the rails Tonight. Mike's getting ready to hop out of town and he's looking for a very specific kind of train car.

Speaker 8: 19:14

I want a pig with wings. It's a bunch of train cars that have truck chassis on top of them. So if you look at trucks on the highways, you see these big, long plastic wings, or they're called skirts.

Speaker 4: 19:33

But it's like a modern-day. Okay, and he came here. That was Fruit Loop.

Speaker 7: 19:39

I heard of Fruit Loop. I've heard that name.

Speaker 4: 19:43

And there's the three amigos. Who are they? Randy Mann, eight Ball and Sarge all dead. Randy Mann, he was murdered. Eight Ball, he died of malnutrition and Sarge, agent Orange took him.

Speaker 7: 20:00

So he's a Vietnam vet? Yeah, cece Ryder, who spent more than 20 years riding the rails, is looking through her photo albums.

Speaker 4: 20:08

There's Peter Billy on a gondola, dust in the wind's dead ghost is dead Oswald. He just disappeared off the face of the earth.

Speaker 7: 20:21

I kept asking every train rider I met what it would take for my daughter, ruby, to survive on the rails, and some of the older hobos told me I should find Cece. She knew more than anyone else what it was like for a woman out there. The other shallow pop culture reason I'm excited to meet her is her name, cece.

Speaker 4: 20:40

Cece Rider. See what you done, done reason I'm excited to meet her is her name.

Speaker 7: 20:47

She must have earned it somehow. So I've traveled out to Haver, montana, with winter coming on, to learn what I can from Cece. I met some nice people from the rails, but I also knew there were criminals who rode the trains and there were railroad gangs who fought each other for territory. What would it take for Ruby to survive out there? What would hobos expect of my daughter, a newcomer in their world, and what should she watch out for? When she threw her sleeping bag down in the boxcar, who would be standing nearby?

Speaker 2: 21:47

To understand hobo life today. I had to track on and on. I'm only going over. There's a really interesting section that she covers about New Orleans and it is one of the favorite places to winter over and they can do a lot of busking there, which, of course, is performing on the street. Danelle has a collection of hobo music. If you're interested in listening to some of the songs, she provides a link in the show notes on her podcast pages. We're only doing one in-depth review today, which of course, is the City of the Rails, and the reason for that is it is Thanksgiving week, everybody's busy and we're just grateful that you could spend at least some time with us today. I hope you have great plans with your family or friends for Thanksgiving and we will return the first week in December. Until then, don't forget to follow our podcast and tell a friend Love you guys. Talk soon.