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Tom & Melody dive into discussions about their interests: Tom is into theme parks, retro-computing, and sci-fi/fantasy; Melody is into food, politics, and games. Hang out with us every week!
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Tom & Melody dive into discussions about their interests: Tom is into theme parks, retro-computing, and sci-fi/fantasy; Melody is into food, politics, and games. Hang out with us every week!
show less
We Are One
We Are One
(S1E6) 8-Bit Computers, Mental Health
7 MAR 2021 · What was your first computer? If you can't immediately answer that then you didn't live through the late 1970's/early 80's. Melody, for example, had a nameless PC compatible by some unremarkable manufacturer. Computers nowadays are pretty much all the same. During the heyday of the home computer market when Tom was growing up, every computer was its own universe. One computer from company A would not necessarily be compatible with a computer from company B, and in fact neither with another computer from the same company A; compatibility was not the norm. This led to everyone having their favorite brand and be fiercely loyal to that brand, similar to the way some are loyal to the Xbox or PlayStation consoles. The big four home computer companies in the US back then were Atari, Apple, Commodore, and Tandy/Radio Shack. Tom is a Commodore guy, ever since he first used a computer in high school. His high school had mostly Commodore PET's and a few Commodore 64's, and that's where he taught himself to program in BASIC. The first computer that Tom owned was a Commodore 128, which was compatible with the Commodore 64 but had twice the specs. His father bought it for him, along with the associated 5.25" disk drive and a Commodore dot matrix printer. Tom saved up his birthday and Christmas money to buy the matching Commodore monitor (he used a black & white TV until then). The Commodore 128 had a Commodore 64 mode that could be accessed with a BASIC command (GO64) or holding down the C= (Commodore logo) key on boot, and that way it could run all the software of its predecessor. Tom mostly used it to play games, to be honest, but he also learned about how computers worked. He learned how to code in 6502 Assembler, and poured over the disk format block by block with a software called DiSector. His mom used the software Print Shop to generate custom greeting cards that she printed out in black & white (the printer did not have color). Tom used to share software with his high school friends who had a Commodore 64 or 128 computer. Another striking difference to modern computers is booting up: an 8-bit computer of the era would boot up literally instantly on applying power. They would drop you into their version of the BASIC language, and that was your user interface. In the episode Melody mentions that she was introduced to BASIC by a friend, but later off-mic she told Tom that he was that friend and she was hoping he would remember. So on these 8-bit computers everything had to be done with BASIC commands, even to load your game from disk. On Commodore computers the entire screen was used to enter commands or lines of BASIC code; contrast with MS-DOS or Unix shell where you are only editing one line. Another difference to modern computers is the user manual. You would be lucky if your new PC came with a single setup sheet. The Commodore computers came with a hefty user guide (180 pages for the "Commodore 64 MicroComputer User Manual", 2nd Edition 1984) that explained everything about the computer, including how to program in BASIC and how to use the computer's graphics and sound features in BASIC. And programming graphics and sound on a Commodore 64 involved poking and peeking values in specific memory addresses which could be done in BASIC; the Commodore 128 introduced advanced BASIC commands to do this. However, as a user interface, BASIC was not the most friendly. Tom had been impressed by the graphical user interface of the Apple Macintosh, so he was very excited when Berkley Softworks came out with GEOS or Graphical Environment Operating System. It is very impressive that they could get a GUI to run in a Commodore 64. It was later bundled with the redesigned Commodore 64C, which my brother was gifted by his father along with the new Commodore 3.5" disk drive. Sadly, after Tom got his Commodore Amiga his 8-bit system fell into disuse. He donated most of his software collection to a friend who would be using his Commodore 64 for a while longer. Tom still has his and his brother's Commodore 8-bit systems, and hopes to get them up and working some day. For this episode's YouTube Shout-Out, Tom wants to highlight "The 8-Bit Guy'' channel by David Murray of Dallas, Texas. Tom met him once at an Orlando Maker Faire. David is very well known in the community, and does retro-computer videos weighing heavily on the Commodore line.
Melody has a history of anxiety and depression, more the latter than the former. She tried an SSRI to treat perceived social anxiety, but stopped treatment after having a disturbing dream. She did not address her mental health again until college, where she took advantage of the complimentary mental health counseling on campus. After about three appointments, she was unsure if it had improved the state of her mental health. Melody and Tom have found that with counseling you get out of it what you put into it. After college she did not prioritize treating her mental health until years later when depression overtook anxiety in her life. Tom needed to address his depression also. Acknowledging their privilege in having insurance coverage for mental healthcare, some good luck finally brought them to the right counselor. Melody believes you have to be ready to address your mental health state. After noticing improvement in Tom's depression symptoms, Melody chose to see the same therapist. She needed to first address her mental health as a prerequisite to achieving her overall health and fitness goals. Melody has discovered three principles that help her: patience, the reverse Golden Rule, and forgiveness of self. The first step is becoming aware of a negative thought, then you counter it with one of these principles. The brain acts as a muscle, as you put in practice these principles the brain develops a muscle memory and they become automatic. Melody recommends counseling to everyone that has access to it, and if someone does not have the means she recommends at least visiting the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy subReddit.
*** YouTube Shout-Out ***
The 8-Bit Guy https://www.youtube.com/user/adric22
*** Visit our Facebook page! ***
https://www.facebook.com/WeAre1One.Podcast
(S1E5) Star Wars and Star Trek, Using Good Experiences to Adopt New Foods
14 FEB 2021 · We delve into science fiction fandoms, starting with the big two: Star Wars and Star Trek. Tom saw Star Wars in the theaters when it first came out in 1977. Melody's first experience was limited to the VHS tapes of the original trilogy. Tom's first lightsaber, back when the first movie came out, was an officially licensed black flashlight with a white tube attached that emitted white light. The toys got better after Empire Strikes Back, and then again after the prequels. Tom eventually got a combat lightsaber to play with Melody's nephew, but Melody thinks they're so expensive and should not be banged up in battle. Star Wars is big in Tom's family and he and his dad bond over it. Tom's dad has had many different and interesting jobs, but when he was an Air Traffic Controller in the 1980's he was so good at it that his coworkers nicknamed him Luke Skywalker. Melody and Tom took his dad out to see the prequels and sequels, and would love to take him to visit Galaxy's Edge at Walt Disney World. Tom has read some of the expanded universe, and is partial to Timothy Zahn's "Heir To The Empire'' Thrawn trilogy. He bought the books at the store at the exit of the Star Tours ride, and would read them while sitting next to the tank in The Living Seas at Epcot while listening to the dolphins. Melody and Tom attended several cons, including Celebration V where they saw Jon Stewart interview George Lucas and Melody almost ran into Carrie Fisher as she rushed by. Melody used to role play Star Wars with her elementary school friends. Her brother had a cardboard cutout of Darth Vader that she valued more than he did. Also, Han Solo was her first crush! Tom is a big Trekker. He really enjoys Gene Roddenberry's vision for the future, and likes that it's a show that makes you think. Melody can appreciate Star Trek but is not a fan (yet). However, she has only seen up to the second season of The Next Generation, so she hasn't seen the better episodes. Tom got deep into Star Trek in college, but unfortunately there had been no sci-fi conventions in Puerto Rico. Close to the time he left the island however, some company did a test con. It was a tiny, intimate gathering with two guests, Jonathan Del Arco who played Hugh Borg and one of the writers, and a few merch tables. He attended both nights and got his first Star Fleet pin and pips, and a Bajoran earring and nose prosthetic. We give a YouTuber Shout-Out to Nasser, who started doing Harry Potter content but has gained a following doing first time movie reactions. His reactions to watching the Star Wars original trilogy for the first time were very entertaining, and Melody loved his reaction to the Luke & Leia relationship.
After completing her first two weeks on the full elimination stage of the Auto-Immune Protocol (AIP), Melody can't say that she notices much of a difference in how she feels. She believes this is due to the gradual transition that she made to this stage, and having already reaped much of the benefits. Currently her Crohn's symptoms are barely noticeable, and she feels her skin condition is improving. We celebrated Valentine's Day early and Melody overindulged on AIP junk food, which she found out is possible. The silver lining to the repercussions of overeating is the motivation you get to refocus on healthier choices. Melody has always been a picky eater and has found it is important to have a positive experience when trying new foods. She makes a point to have a good recipe in order to try foods that intimidate her. Having successfully integrated bone marrow into her diet with a marrow cheese recipe, she will next attempt to outgrow her distaste of seafood by trying a recipe called "nomlette" for an egg substitute made with whitefish.
*** YouTuber Shout-Out ***
Nasser
https://www.youtube.com/user/acciohorcrux100
(S1E4) Living Among Theme Parks, Progressive Transition to Full AIP
4 FEB 2021 · Tom discusses his experience with the local Orlando theme parks, how it was growing up versus living in the area. Visiting the parks as a kid used to be a big, expensive endeavor that happened at most twice within a decade. In between visits, Tom was able to feed his theme park needs by watching the occasional Disney TV show or anniversary special that showed the parks. All his friends saw living close to and working at the theme parks as a lofty goal. So as soon as Tom moved to Orlando he couldn't wait to get an annual pass to Walt Disney World, and later Universal Studios Florida. He found that experiencing the parks as a local with an annual pass is a very different experience, making them feel like your extended back yard. From going to Epcot with friends after work, or running to get Mardi Gras food during his lunch break, annual pass life is sweet! Even though they are expensive, annual passes do save money if you go as often as Tom & Melody did, which was weekly in pre-COVID times. But the biggest benefit comes from the whole different way to experience everything the resorts have to offer, with a lot less stress than if you were only here for a few days. Tom gives a YouTuber Shout-Out to Adrian from Theme Park Express, who gives news updates on the parks and has fun livestreams featuring his girlfriend Koda and her "Baby Yoda", Nugget.
Melody's YouTuber Shout-Out goes to Stacey of RealWorldAIP, whose unorthodox recepies are excellent for nutrient density (e.g. marrow cheese, nomlette), and Melody gained an appreciation for her ability to do recipe substitutes with whole foods. Melody has lost 90 pounds in 16 months and she gets frustrated when she is asked if she feels better. One of the reasons she starts a weight loss journey is when she gets to a heavier weight her knees start to hurt. She doesn't notice feeling better until and unless she relapses and starts noticing how bad she felt before. As she has entered a temporary maintenance phase, despite having lost 90 pounds, if she gains just a couple of pounds her knees start to hurt. Melody is five days into the full elimination phase of the Auto-Immune Protocol (AIP). She intends to do this phase for at least 90 days or until she feels better before reintroducing foods. Some people are afraid to start reintroductions because they feel so good eating only elimination phase foods, but they miss out on key nutrients. Melody continues her slow transition to the AIP which focuses in turn on "out with the bad", "in with the good", water intake, sleep, physical activity, and skin health.
(S1E3) Binge Watching, Harry Potter, Prioritizing Health
27 JAN 2021 · During this pandemic we are watching more streaming content, so we wanted to talk about what we're watching. We don't always agree on what to watch together, so we search for our common interests. We've been watching "Whose Line Is It Anyway", the BBC improvisation comedy show, on Amazon Prime but they only have seasons 2 and 9 available for free. The latter seasons are more what we remember, including the intro animation and the regular players, so the season 2 feels weird to us. Once you finish a show on Netflix, and before you start a new one, you fall into the show hole. Tom has started watching Nickelodeon's "Haunted Hathaways" just to fill the gap, and though it is quite bad he can't stop watching. When the conditions are right to capture Melody's attention, Tom has been showing her the Netflix show "The Queen's Gambit". Chess is important to Tom and he has good memories of bonding with his grandfather while learning the game. Melody however hates chess, because she admits she is not patient enough to plan her moves ahead.
If we can't agree on what to watch, we can always watch the Harry Potter movies. We are both big Potterheads and though Melody started reading the books earlier, we finished them together. Melody appreciates the historical research that the author used in her writing. Tom is a Ravenclaw, Melody is a Hufflepuff; we say "is" because it's more of an identity than just the team you're on. Seeing all the memes on social media about Bernie Sanders has been heartwarming, as we Feel The Bern, but then we asked what Hogwarts house would he be sorted into. A Facebook post showed everyone had a different opinion, but Melody has strong reasons for placing him in Gryffindor. It is worth noting that the author's stance on trans people is wrong: trans men are men, trans women are women. Before the quarantine we frequented the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando Resort. The Diagon Alley and Hogsmead portions of the parks are very themed, immersive, and indeed magical. An interesting phenomenon in Diagon Alley is to watch other fans enter the area for the first time, watching their eyes light up with sheer joy. Non-fans however can sometimes not even find the entrance, and have asked us how to find "Harry Potter Land" while having gone right by it. The highlight of our visits is enjoying the food and drinks specially butterbeer, a non-alcoholic creamy butterscotch beverage. The flavor is available in different forms, cold (the original), frozen, and hot (the best but seasonal), and also as soft-serve ice cream, potted cream, and fudge. If you want a good idea of the flavor your local supermarket may carry Flying Cauldron, though it is a little more butterscotch than cream soda and the one in the theme parks is the opposite. Otherwise you can try to make butterbeer yourself by following our first YouTuber Shout-Out, "Tasting History with Max Miller". Max will make a recipe from the past and explain the history behind it, and did an episode on "buttered beere". Our other shout-out goes to "Super Carlin Brothers", who do research into Harry Potter lore and other fandoms, coming up with interesting fan theories. The brothers Jay and Ben also take quizzes from the Internet that would stump even the most devoted Potterhead.
Shifting from "the boy who lived", Melody gets on her soapbox to present a public service announcement. Before we all had to cope with the pandemic, we overloaded ourselves in such a way that we did not prioritize our health, a very American thing to do. The lockdown forced us to simplify our lives, which allowed us to prioritize health and sleep. Melody is determined to not go back (completely) to our pre-COVID habits, and urges our listeners to keep health a priority as the world returns to normal. As Melody enters the full elimination phase of the Auto-Immune Protocol (AIP), we discuss an incredibly versatile recipe (included below) that has been very useful in her journey. She has been trying to diversify her nutrient consumption by incorporating more "superfoods" like mushrooms, though she does not like the term because it often gets exploited for marketing. Her final elimination before starting full AIP is dairy. While making her breakfast hash one day, Tom discovered that he likes roasted kale even though he had always dismissed it as health food. He enjoys the delicate airy crunch and the seasonings that Melody uses, and had her make him a batch of kale chips.
*** Roasted Breakfast Hash ***
4 cups (480 mL) chopped leafy greens
2 cup (240 mL) diced starchy vegetable
1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil
1 tbsp (15 mL) butter pats
2 tsp (10 mL) salt
2 tsp (10 mL) onion powder
1 tsp (5 mL) garlic powder
1 tsp (5 ml) pepper
For AIP compliance, substitute palm shortening for the butter, and for pepper use and 1 tsp (5 ml) kelp flakes and a pinch of galangal powder. For starchy vegetables, Melody recomends potatoes, cassava, or plaintains. For leafy greens you could use kale.
Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C). Boil your chosen starchy vegetable for 3 minutes. Strain them in a colander, then place them in an ice bath. Sprinkle olive oil into a caserole dish. Place strained starchy veggies into the caserole dish with the leafy greens. Top with butter pats and the seasonings. Place in the oven for 30 minutes, stirring halfway.
*** YouTuber Shout-Outs ***
Tasting History with Max Miller
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsaGKqPZnGp_7N80hcHySGQ
Super Carlin Brothers
https://www.youtube.com/user/SuperCarlinBrothers
(S1E2) AIP, Nostalgia Games, Puerto Rican Holiday Food
18 JAN 2021 · We continue our discussion from last week about Melody's weight and health journey. She uses the weight gambling app DietBet, and her weight is now the same as when her and Tom began dating. She is almost to the full elimination stage of the Auto-Immune Protocol (AIP). She is reaching this milestone by gradually eliminating food groups that cause inflammation, starting with gluten. Now she is switching her goal from weight loss to healing her gut.
During the quarantine we have been playing nostalgic retro games. Melody recently beat Donkey Kong Country in the SNES emulator on her Switch, and is recalling a lot from playing Super Mario 64. She will be playing Final Fantasy IX next, as she is a fan of turn-based games. Tom has been enjoying nostalgic games on the Switch like Burnout Paradise and Ghostbusters, which he first played on the XBox360. However his nostalgia really fires up when playing Atari 2600, IntelliVision, Commodore 64/128, and Amiga games on emulators; games that really depended on great gameplay. Thinking of the future, kids today might in their adult life look back on games like Fortnite for their nostalgia kick. Tom remarks that the retro-computing scene is quite active, including young people not just old, and new hardware and software is still being developed for these platforms.
For the holidays we made some typical Puerto Rican holiday dishes since many of the starches are AIP compliant. We made pasteles with green bananas, though they are typically made with plantain, cassava, or even rice. We made pernil, which we also put into the pasteles. Tom is from Puerto Rico and reminisced about the fried food vendors along the Luquillo beach; Puerto Rican fried food is the best fried food and Melody agrees. Melody attempted to make arroz con habichuelas (rice & beans) and was delighted to have magically created the quintessential yellow Hispanic rice out of riced cauliflower. She got to make sofrito with culantro, an interesting and new-to-her ingredient. She was struck by the fresh pungency of the plant's aroma and had difficulty sourcing it fresh (even in the Hispanic market). Tom remarked on how his mother would send him outside to gather the culantro leaves in the wild. Despite the many wonderful substitutes for other foods on the AIP, there is not a good one for beans. Melody experimented with diced cassava to mimic the starch-ines of the bean, but the result was disappointing since she mistakenly reduced the sauce too far. We also wanted to make coquito, a holiday drink with similarities to eggnog but quite different. Coquito is very nostalgic for Tom, so we wanted to make an authentic version, but also an alcohol-free and an AIP compliant versions. We did not get to make the alcohol-free one since we could not find enough rum extract in the stores.
(S1E1) Our first episode! COVID, Theme Parks, Dieting
10 JAN 2021 · On our first episode, we begin by discussing our efforts to stay safe during the pandemic. Melody had a cough which forced us to get tested and we talk about our experience waiting for the results. Both our jobs have had positive cases, but how they handle it can vary. We offer passive-aggressive tips for how to deal with people who do not take the situation seriously.
Before the pandemic, we frequented the local Orlando theme parks, specially Universal Studios. We express our love of theme parks, and how they can be enjoyed differently as an adult.
Melody describes her history with her weight and previous dieting attempts. She is now embarking on the Auto-Immune Protocol (AIP). Melody is binge-listening to The Whole View podcast, which discusses AIP.
Tom & Melody dive into discussions about their interests: Tom is into theme parks, retro-computing, and sci-fi/fantasy; Melody is into food, politics, and games. Hang out with us every week!
show more
Tom & Melody dive into discussions about their interests: Tom is into theme parks, retro-computing, and sci-fi/fantasy; Melody is into food, politics, and games. Hang out with us every week!
show less
Information
| Author | Thomas Bernal & Melody Bernal |
| Organization | Thomas Bernal & Melody Bernal |
| Categories | Personal Journals |
| Website | www.facebook.com |
| weare1one.podcast@gmail.com |
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