Episode 317: Making Change Happen with Melissa Walker
Doree and Elise bring on return guest Melissa Walker (Head of Giving Circles at The States Project) to discuss why you should care about state legislatures, which states The States Project is really focusing on this year (and why), the ~vibes~ in politics right now, and the amazing changes that Forever35 listeners have helped enact in the last few years through our Giving Circle.
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Transcript
Doree: Hello and welcome to Forever35, a podcast about the things we do to take care of ourselves. I'm Doree Shafrir.
Elise: And I'm Elise Hugh. And we are just two friends who like to talk a lot about serums.
Doree: So Elise, we're in a very exciting political moment, in my opinion,
Elise: So much has happened, just has happened within the last few
Doree: Weeks. We interviewed Tressie McMillan Cotton mid July, end of July,
Elise: And this was when Joe Biden was still at the top of the Democratic ticket.
Doree: He had not dropped out of the race, and we were sort of like, this is bad. Everything
Elise: Feels so tenuous.
Doree: Yes. But then by the time Trey's episode aired, Biden had dropped out. Kamala Harris had become the presumptive nominee, and there had been a huge vibe shift, the whole vibe. She had a perfect rollout.
Elise: Yeah, yeah. Perfect Rollout. The selection of America's Ted lasso, like real life. Ted Lasso, Tim Walls, coach Walls, everybody's calling him coach as her running mate. I mean, she really has had a fantastic few weeks and then the money is pouring in. The volunteer signups are huge. The new voter registration numbers are stratospheric. It's really been quite a thing to watch, and I think I'll always look back no matter how the election actually turns out, because this is a neck and neck race, they still positions themselves as the underdogs. So who knows what the final election tally is going to look like, but I think this is going to be a summer that none of us will forget. There was an assassination attempt. People at the RNC were wearing maxi pads on their ears. I mean, when we tell our grandkids about this, they are not even going to believe it.
Doree: No, it's so wild. Yeah. And for those of you who joined us on Thursday night for the DNC speeches, I know it was super last minute, but we had so much fun and we're so glad you were able to join us, and hopefully we'll be able to do more stuff like that. And if you missed it, it's because it all came together super last minute, but it was really fun and really inspiring. And so we decided to have Melissa Walker back on the podcast today. So Melissa is a three time Forever35 guest, which is very
Elise: Rare. That's almost unheard of, right? Weird. It's almost unheard of. Yeah.
Doree: Yes. We don't like to repeat guests. There's so many amazing people out there in the world, and we figure we want to give a lot of people airtime, but Melissa is such an important figure in the Forever35 universe. First of all, she's a listener. Hi Melissa. Second of all, she runs the States project, which is the coolest thing in the world in my opinion. They realize that Republicans had figured out that all a lot of the power is at the local level, and all the stuff that happens in the state legislatures is really important.
Elise: It really touches our lives in such direct ways. So if you want to have an impact on your schools, on safety, on local police, on high ways, on reproductive rights, so much of that is decided at the state level and specifically by legislatures in your individual state. Yes. Except these are the down ballot races that don't get that much attention.
Doree: Yes. Well, that didn't get that much attention from Democrats. For decades. Republicans had figured this out and Democrats had not. And then the States project was like, Hey guys, how about we focus on state legislatures? So they have had just enormous success, and you listeners have been a huge part of this. We've helped flip legislatures and we're doing it again. We're going to get into it with Melissa, but we just wanted to ride the momentum of this political moment and have Melissa back on the pod. So if you are not aware, she is the head of giving circles at the State's project. She's also the author of 10 novels for young adults and children. She's a former magazine editor and she now enjoys gathering people together to share stories about how they can pool their resources and change the balance of power in state legislatures. She's a graduate of Vassar College who hails from Chapel Hill, North Carolina and her work has appeared in publications including The New York Times and Teen Vogue. And before we get to Melissa, I also just want to remind you that our website Forever35 podcast.com has links to everything we mentioned on the show. We're also on Instagram at Forever35 podcast. Please join our patreon at patreon.com/Forever35.
So fun. So fun. We're doing so much bonus content and it's just really great. You can also shop our favorite products at Shop my us slash forever three five. We have our newsletter at Forever35 podcast.com/newsletter. And you can call or text us at (781) 591-0390 and email us at Forever35 podcast@gmail.com. And I also do just want to note that the link to our giving circle, the Forever35 Podcast Giving Circle is in the show notes. Please join it. Please make a recurring donation. We are currently, we mentioned this in the interview with Melissa, but we are voting on which state to give our money to in this election cycle, and you can only vote if you are a member of the giving circles. So please join and let us know where our money should go.
Elise: I love a People powered campaign. Totally. And thank you all for being part of it.
Doree: Yes. Alright, here is Melissa. Melissa, we are so excited to have you back on Forever35. Is this your third time on the show? Second?
Melissa: Yeah, this is my third visit.
Doree: It's your third, right? Yeah. Repeat guest. A Threepeat. Yeah, a Threepeat guest. We're really excited to have you on and to have you talk about State's Project and what's going on and how our listeners can help. So do you want to just kind of briefly give an overview of State's Project? And I think also a lot of our listeners are familiar with Stage Project because you have been on the show three times. But I think what we'd love to hear, just kind of how things have changed since the last time you were on, how the organization has evolved and maybe some of your key victories over the last year or two.
Melissa: So the State's Project is an organization that focuses exclusively on shifting the balance of power in state legislatures to elect majorities that are focused on improving lives. So we focus on state houses and state senates across the country, which is an area that just doesn't get a ton of spotlight, but is an incredibly important foundational power center for democracy. And it also happens to be a place where when regular people plug in, they can be true difference makers, even with a few friends, families, and their networks. So just like you all have proven with your giving circle. So what I'd love to do is recap a couple of the states that the Forever35 Giving Circle has helped us with in the past couple years because
It's a good recap, y'all. It's a good one. In 2022, which was the first year of the Forever35 Giving Circle and a Giving Circle with the State's project is a group of people coming together with friends, family networks, listeners in your case and readers, those folks coming together to pool dollars and impact these state legislative races that are important for power in the country. And in 2022, y'all joined us and focused on Pennsylvania. And Pennsylvania is a state where in 2022 we needed to flip 12 seats to gain power in the State House. That's a lot of seats. It was a lot of seats. And to be honest, often there's a two or three cycle build and we just have to ask people to be patient and to know that there is change coming. But in 2022, the State's project was able to operate at our full capacity and get our full core electoral program out there, and we got all 12 seats. The final seats wild,
Doree: Amazing.
Melissa: We won by 63 votes. Power in Harrisburg shifted in 2022 by 63 votes. And so what I want to say, honestly to your listeners and members of your giving circle is that was you. I say that to all the giving circles that focused on Pennsylvania with us that year, because if one piece of that basket weave hadn't been there, I don't know if we would've been able to do it.
Doree: 63 votes.
Melissa: 63 votes, yes. A candidate named Missy Serato who was knocking on doors who had great digital ads that had been ad tested, who had a local press person working on press projects. This is our core electoral program and it worked. So that power shift in Harrisburg. Yeah, that power shift, by the way, has led to the first black woman speaker of the house in Harrisburg. Her name is Joanna. She's wonderful. Her district is in Philly. So one of the things that I think is important for folks to know is that we work in the tipping point districts in these states. So we're never in deep red districts. We're never in deep blue districts, but we are in the tipping point seats. And what helping candidates in the tipping point seats does is it helps shift power so that candidates who are in safer seats can actually wield the gavel. And in Harrisburg that has meant leaving to free breakfast and lunch for public school children in the state and an expanded maternal health program in the state and a bunch of other wonderful things. Even though the right wing still holds power in the state Senate, we were able to get some great things into the budget. And this year we're working to hold that majority and we're also working on the state senate. So it's a great thing. Thanks for being there.
Elise: What a fantastic narrative. And remind folks, you all have been laser focused on state lawmakers, state legislative seats. Tell us why does that matter to individual lives and citizens so much?
Melissa: Yeah, absolutely. So for this one, I've actually got a four parter that is fairly dramatic, but it is really true. So if you care about kitchen table issues in this country, education, funding, environmental policy, healthcare, civil rights, gun safety, abortion, voting rights, gerrymandering, the drawing of the district lines that decide who goes to Congress and the state legislature, you have to care about state legislatures. So last year, Congress passed about 35 bills. Now Michigan, Michigan with a new trifecta that we helped win flipping the State House and the state Senate by fewer than 400 votes each in 2022, a new trifecta, meaning they have the governor's mansion and control of both state chambers. They passed 3 21 bills last year.
Elise: So 10 times what Congress was able to pass
Melissa: In terms of legislative change. This is the road. Exactly. This is where the rubber meets the road on policy. So if you want to see policy move in this country at a foundational level, you've got to look at state legislatures. The second piece is if you care about Congress, and a lot of people care about Congress, you care about state legislatures because in 70% of the country, state legislatures draw the district lines that decide who goes to Congress. So winning power there can create fairer maps and more representation in Congress for the people the voters are actually choosing. The third piece is if you care about the Supreme Court, which feels like a body that we can't touch, right? It feels like an untouchable thing that brings folks a lot of anxiety. If you care about the Supreme Court, you should care about state legislatures because the Supreme Court doesn't write laws, they rule on laws, many of which are coming out of state legislatures.
It was a Mississippi law that took down roe. And if that one hadn't done it, there were 16 other states that had queue up abortion bans with this specific purpose of rising up to the Supreme Court to challenge roe. They did that right after Kavanaugh was confirmed. Those laws are coming from state legislatures. We change the balance of power in state legislatures. We change what's rising up to the Supreme Court. And the fourth piece is that if you care about the presidency, you should care about state legislatures because state legislatures decide who can vote in their states and when and how. And also because the path to steal the presidency in 2020 that the Trump team tried ran directly through state legislatures. It wasn't senators and Congress people who Trump called to the Oval Office in December of 2020. It was state legislators from Pennsylvania, from Michigan, from Arizona where they held right wing majorities at that time and he was asking them to change their electoral college slates for him. Now this is a path that we can block or not based on who wins in November in Pennsylvania, we're already safe in Michigan because we were able to flip both chambers in 2022. And the state Senate is not up this year. Arizona is another one that we're working on where we need to flip both chambers in order to make that a safe place. But there is a lot going on in state legislatures. It isn't just the issues, it's also a lever over federal power.
Elise: So complete thank you for the thorough answer.
Doree: So we're just going to take a short break and we will be right back.
Elise: Tell us where the battlegrounds are right now. You mentioned Arizona, where else?
Melissa: Yeah, so we'll be back to defend majorities that we won in Pennsylvania and Michigan and Minnesota. We'll also be in Arizona to try to flip. I mentioned we'll be in New Hampshire to try to flip the state, which is a state that seats two. There were seven races that were decided by fewer than 10 votes. So New Hampshire is one where we'll try to flip. We're also in Wisconsin for the first time with our full core electoral program this year. And that is because they have fairer maps in Wisconsin and we see an opportunity to potentially flip the assembly, which is what they call the house in Wisconsin. And that's wonderful because those new fair maps really show a path to possibility. We're also in North Carolina and in Kansas, in both of those states, we're working to break right wing super majorities because in Kansas there's a democratic governor who has no veto power.
And if we're able to win just two seats in the State House, we can hand that veto power back to her. And in North Carolina there's also a governor's raise, but even if the Democrat wins, they'll not have any veto power unless we win one more seat in the State House. So we're working on doing that. Just one. Just one. And folks focus on governor's races and millions and millions of dollars go into it. And that's great. We're hopeful in that race as well. But if they win it and aren't able to break the super majority, there's no power there. And so looking just at the state legislature can lead us to know where the real power shift is. And the last state we're in is Nevada. We're working in Nevada to actually build a super majority because there is a right wing governor who vetoes everything. So if we're able to build a super majority there, we can overturn some of those veto and get some life improving policies moving through Nevada the way the legislature wants to.
Doree: Wow. So you mentioned earlier that our listeners helped ensure that majority in the Pennsylvania legislature. I would love for you to talk a little bit about just exactly where the money goes. How does states project use the money and money? How do you do what you do?
Melissa: Yeah, absolutely. The second year of the Giving Circle, I just want to point out and I'll talk about the money, how the money was used there. So we can tie those two stories together, is that the Forever35 Giving Circle helped us in Virginia last year because Virginia has odd year elections and we were working to defend the state Senate and flip the House of Delegates. We were successful in that endeavor and changing that dynamic in Virginia, put a wall in front of Governor Glenn Jenkin and his right wing ambitions to put an abortion ban in the state and defund education further and cut some environmental protections. None of that is able to pass now. And he also had kind of a wet blanket thrown on his national ambitions because not able to do anything now. So that was a very wonderful victory. Virginia is just a state that we're very proud in. So thanks last year giving circles who were supporting Virginia with the State's project put more dollars into that effort than the DNC did. So we're really
Pulling our weight in Zoom rooms and on podcasts and in living rooms, which is really awesome. A lot of people are getting involved. The way that we spend the dollars in the state is we figure out which are the potential tipping point districts in these states, and then we just make sure that those folks run research based and funded campaigns. So we work with, in Virginia, for example, the state caucus, so the Virginia House Democrats and the Virginia Senate Democrats we worked with last year to make sure that we're aligned on the tipping point districts and to make sure that there are a few key tactics that get brought into the state. The first one is a local press consultant whose job it is to get local press for the candidates in the tipping point seats that can be everything from a small town newspaper to a neighborhood bulletin.
Last year we had a candidate, a delegate, Joshua Cole, who is amazing, who did a barbershop tour and had a reporter follow him around for that tour and do some local press. Those types of articles and that type of spotlight can really be helpful in state legislative campaigns because most people don't know state legislators names. And that name recognition is really important when you get to the ballot box. And the other pieces of our core electoral program are ad testing. So we want to make sure that because campaigns spend so much of their dollars on digital and television ads,
That the ads are actually tested locally. So we know that they're resonating locally with voters. It's a tactic that hasn't been used in state legislative races in the past, mostly because it gets used in flashier federal campaigns, but it hasn't been used at the state legislative level. And we brought that tactic in because it's really important and it sometimes changes the messaging that's happening because we want to make sure it's resonating in their local area. And the third piece, which is my favorite, is that we run a candidate door knocking challenge. So last year in Virginia, for example, every month the candidates turned in their personal door knocking numbers, not their campaigns, not their field teams, but their personal numbers. And the top four door knockers got additional campaign contributions from the state's project that incentivizes more time spent on the doors meeting voters, less time sitting in an office dialing for dollars out of state.
And it can be an incredible way to win these campaigns. It's not a tactic that's scalable or that you could use for a statewide racer, a presidential, but a candidate knocking on the door in these very tight districts is the thing that cuts through Fox News on in the background or a negative mailer and they're on the doors talking about local traffic patterns, the grass on the softball field, the local school. And that is a persuasion knock that we really need in those districts and we need it to be the candidate themselves. Research shows that it needs to be the can incentivizing them on one pieces of this whole thing in s more doors knocks the candidates that were involved in this challenge knocked on thousands more doors. And that's a game changer
Elise: In this day and age where there's so much that is at scale because of the internet, because we're all on social platforms because we're connected digitally, are there still ways to make a difference at the hyper-local level? It sounds like door knocking is one of them.
Melissa: Absolutely. It honestly has given me so much hope to work at this level because that personal interaction is the thing that cuts through all the noise that makes us all feel so wild all the time
Elise: And polarized. It makes us feel more polarized than probably we actually are.
Melissa: Exactly. Exactly. And getting on the doors and really listening is a key component of this as well. So another element of our door knocking challenge is the person who sends the most, what we call clinch cards after they door knock also gets additional campaign contributions. A clinch card is a postcard that is sent to voters that they've made contact with a week after the contact that says things like, oh, you had such a cute dog, I loved your shade garden. I know you're concerned about the local public school. When I get to Richmond, we're going to work on this together. And that type of acknowledgement with voters that people are meeting is really powerful. And then later in the cycle, those folks get a postcard that says, Hey, early voting has started, or Hey, here's your polling place. And those extra touches and those personal touches can really cut through everyone's anxiety and fear and that connectivity is incredibly important. And luckily in state legislative races where the districts are small enough a voters if in to. So
Elise: Okay, let's take a break and we will be right back.
Doree: Can I ask, you said that the door knocking really works, we know this. Is there anything that doesn't really work? Is there anything you tried that hasn't panned out the way you thought it might have? What has the worst RO, I guess is what I'm asking?
Elise: Yeah, what are your learnings?
Doree: Yeah,
Melissa: That's a great question. So I will say that our team is incredibly research heavy. So all the tactics that we use come with a ton of research behind them on what moves the needle on votes. I will say that one of the things that we've learned a lot about is how incredible field teams can be for get out the vote for telling people, here's your polling place, here's whatever. But how essential it is for the candidate to be the persuasion knock I just talked about for that to be a different thing. Because that can, connecting with you is the thing that's going to folks who, especially with the districts that we're focused on, we do need that persuasion because we're not talking to all friendly voters and it's not a get out the vote effort. Exactly. It's a persuasion effort. So we kind of learned that field teams are great for get out the vote and the can is the persuasion. That makes sense.
Elise: What are hearing that voters are most concerned about going into this election year?
Melissa: I'll say that anecdotally, we have heard from folks on the Doorknocking challenge that there have been a lot of moments of women coming out of houses and closing doors behind them and talking about reproductive rights, which is a really interesting thing. Certainly to see happening might be a split household, might be a sensitive issue, who knows? But we've anecdotally heard about a lot of that, which I think is really important. And then of course, cost of living stuff is always on people's minds. And a lot of the time I think voters really want to know that someone's listening and don't even necessarily need someone to have policy solutions at their fingertips.
Elise: Just
Melissa: Need to hear that someone heard them and that they're sympathetic. And that's something that the clinch cards really can help with too, because it's a reflexive, emotionally intelligent response. Like I heard you, we talked about this and I remember. That's really connective. Yeah.
Elise: And what feels different to you about this year as there does seem to be so much new energy and new excitement after the change at the top of the ticket, but what feels different for you this year versus previous cycles? Because actually a lot of progressive causes have done well at the ballot in 2022 and 2020
Doree: And
Elise: In some of those ballot measures at the state level too when it comes to reproductive rights. So talk to us about vibes and how that might affect the ballot box.
Melissa: So honestly, what's been incredible to watch is that when over the summer when the Harris campaign came forward, and this was going to be the nominee, we felt a huge surge in energy from people, but we were a little nervous that everyone was going to start giving just to the presidential, putting their dollars in the presidential. And that has not been the case among our giving circles, which is awesome. What it means to our team is that these folks have developed a political fluency to understand that the top of the ticket is going to raise enough money, totally give some dollars, throw your support in, be counted as a supporter, but in terms of strategic investment in places where your dollars can actually move the needle, what we saw was a huge surge in giving circle giving, which means that the leaders of giving circles went out to their friends who may not be as fluent in that and said, Hey, we know you're excited about the Harris campaign. Guess what? We need to win to support this state legislatures. Here's the Giving Circle link. And that I think was such a validation for us and really, really cool. It's certainly what I did with my friends. I mean, I had friends who never talked to me about politics who were suddenly like, Hey, how can I get involved? And I'm like, oh yeah, welcome, welcome,
Elise: Yes. That's the power of vibes.
Melissa: That's the power of vibes, that's the power of vibes. And I send them giving circle links and I say to people like, we've got to be strategic about this. There is so much emotional giving. There's emotional giving when you feel terrible and there's emotional giving when you feel good. And so to be strategic about that is really important. And I say to every Giving Circle leader, you have turned on the porch light for strategic political giving. Keep it on. People are going to feel all kinds of ways. Keep that porch light on and let people know this is a place where we can really move the needle. The other thing though that's been exciting this year is that, and I think most folks aren't thinking about, is that when Governor Walls was picked for the VP position, our team got really excited because in 2022, we helped flip the Minnesota Senate by 191 votes, one seat.
That one seat flip gave Governor Waltz a trifecta in Minnesota control of the state, Senate State House and the governorship. And that made it possible for all the policy wins that are attached to him now to get through, because that was the legislature. And so I don't think folks connect the dots on the fact that 191 vote win in the state Senate in 2022 made it possible for this bench to be built for this man to be up there calling folks weird and making dad jokes and making us all cry, seeing his son. And that's really powerful too. And it's a powerful story that's completely connected to our work. So that's been awesome.
Elise: Yeah, because he has this great progressive record now, right, of gun control in Minnesota, and then also the free school lunches that we talk about ensuring that everybody at public schools in Minnesota doesn't go hungry. Those are all made possible because of that very close race that you're talking about in Minnesota's legislatures. So that's amazing. Exactly. That's fantastic.
Melissa: And if y'all ever have a rainy day and want to watch the best video of all time, it is Governor Waltz signing the free breakfast and luncheon for school children with all the kids. Yes. I mean, I cry every time. So it's a great one.
Doree: Melissa, what are some new states that States Project is focusing on these days?
Melissa: Well, Wisconsin is a big add for us because of those new fair maps. So we think there's a chance to flip the, it's a 15 seat lift, so that's a pretty big one. But with the Fair and Maps, we think some of those seats are going to flip automatically without much help. And then we just need to focus on the others to get us across the finish line. That would be huge because Wisconsin's been such a gerrymandered state that has not really had representation of the population for a very long time. So Wisconsin's an incredible ad. And then we also added Kansas this year, and Kansas is a great one to talk about because it's a state that I think we all recognized about a year ago when the voters decided that they did not want abortion bans and they did not want to take the right to abortion out of their state constitution.
And that was great. We were all like, go Kansas. That's incredible. People standing up for their freedoms there. Now the state legislature with right wing super majorities put through limitations anyway, and when the governor vetoed them, they overturned the vetoes. So we know that the state legislature in Kansas does not represent the will of the people and breaking that super majority. So the veto power stands will be an incredible thing for people in Kansas. And so that's a great addition. I'm really excited about that. And I think it speaks to the fact that, yes, we're looking for flips, but we're also looking for other power thresholds.
Doree: Breaking
Melissa: A super majority can have immense power. So we can't just look at like, oh, what states are flipping, but we have to look at where's a power threshold that we have access to because we see districts that are possible with the right set of tactics.
Elise: Alright, Melissa, what is your challenge for us and your fellow Forever35 listeners as we head into these final weeks?
Melissa: Well, I am really proud of y'all because you have had some steady giving circle givers, and that's an incredible thing. So the Forever35 Podcast Giving Circle has already raised, I believe over $8,000 this year, which is awesome.
Elise: We haven't even activated anybody.
Melissa: Those are just steadily activated people, which is awesome. So yeah, so we would love for y'all to get active, help people go to the page and set up a recurring contribution or give a donation as they choose, and then maybe pick one of our target states this year that y'all would like to focus on, because every giving circle does get to pick their target state and a hundred percent of the amount that you raise goes out the door to the state that you choose. So yeah, we're excited that you're back.
Doree: So we're going to be throwing this out to you all to decide which state we should focus on. You're going to be voting on which state we're going to be donating to. So that is live right now. You can head over to our giving circle, the link is in the show notes and click on whichever state you want us to support this election cycle.
Elise: Melissa loves all her state children equally.
Melissa: I do. People always ask and I'm like, I can't. You got to go with your heart. It's already a very strategic list, so no bad picks.
Elise: Okay. No bad picks, folks. All right. Thanks, Melissa. Thanks. Thank you, Melissa.
Doree: I always end conversations with Melissa, just feeling hopeful, and that's just such a nice feeling.
Elise: She's also so articulate. I want to be her. I want to be somebody who's like, okay, here are my four points and let me hit them. Yes, totally. Go on a winding digression.
Doree: No, she stays on message. She loves a message and she stays on it.
Elise: I want to be like her.
Doree: I know. I also really appreciate a former magazine writer who has pivoted their career. Yeah.
Elise: What do you want to be when you grow up, Doree?
Doree: I mean,
Elise: You could have a whole nother life, a whole nother career.
Doree: I know, but it's like, I feel like that ship has sailed.
Elise: Nah, it's never too late. I still have designs. I think about it anyway. I don't know that there's actual a design, but I think about going to school and being a therapist
Doree: Because
Elise: There is a lot of overlap.
Doree: We've all had this dream. I've looked into this. It's expensive and it takes a while. And so I feel like in order to do this, my husband would have to be gainfully employed. He can't be out of work, and I stop working and go back to school. That just isn't going to happen. But a friend of mine who I used to work with is doing this right now. He's working and he's getting his counseling degree. I forget exactly which one he's getting, but he's getting it part-time, and it's very cool. So yes. Fantastic. Been there.
Elise: Well, let's check in on our intentions. Do you want to tell us how the kindergarten transition has gone?
Doree: I do. I don't know. I don't know if I'm just a naturally anxious person, but so far the transition has gone really well, knock on wood. And I'm like, am I waiting for the other shoe to drop? You know what I mean? Is something going to go horribly awry? Maybe. But so far it's been going really well, and his school is just so lovely, and his teacher is so lovely. And the other parents in his class of the kids in his class are so lovely. The kids seem great. It's just been good vibes. And he comes home happy. He's tired, but he's in a good mood and he's excited to go to school every day. I mean, look, it's been three days, but I hope that that does not change.
Elise: No, that's fantastic. Because it's a big transition.
Doree: Huge transition.
Elise: You love seeing your kids coming home happy, having enjoyed their school day. So good.
Doree: Good. Hear. Exactly. Exactly. So this week, I feel like we're coming up to me. To me, September always feels like the beginning of the year. It's the Jewish New Year, it's start of school, even though school here starts in August, it feels like the start of school. And so I feel like I need to do a fall cleaning.
Elise: What are you going to clean? Is this outdoors, indoors, any target areas?
Doree: Well, I mean, the problem is it's that my whole house is a target area, but I do feel like my office, my office has been kind of neglected. You can't really tell looking just the backdrop behind me, but surrounding me is a lot of clutter and chaos, and I just want to get it all taken care of. So I think that is my goal.
Elise: Okay. Great intention,
Doree: My intention, my goal, whatever. For the week. Yeah. What about you?
Elise: Well, last week, I believe I wanted to go to bed earlier if I'm recalling my intention correctly, because that was when I introduced what a hard time I was having, because zero period has been a new thing for me. And I'm having to get up in some cases an hour earlier than I used to get up for the school year.
Doree: No, no,
Elise: No. Yeah. And my Fitbit scores indicate it because I like to keep my Fitbit sleep scores, at least in the eighties. I feel like eighties and up is ideal, but I'm just frankly not sleeping enough and then not sleeping restfully. So my intention was to improve that. Still not there. So I'm going to re-up my intention for the first time since I have been in the host chair. So I am going to try it again. I'm still trying to move up my bedtime and keep that intention in place because we're not there yet. And it's so crucial because when I don't sleep enough, I'm like a different person. I actually become my alter ego, which nobody wants, and I get weepy. I'm just like, and nobody wants that. So the intention is a little bit more peace and sleep and let's put it out there in the world once again.
Doree: Yes, we're manifesting it. Well, Elise, this is the episode where we thank our Patreon supporters.
Elise: Fun.
Doree: Everyone at the $10 level or above gets a special shout out each month on our podcast on main episode. We're so grateful for our Patreon supporters. You really are the backbone of the podcast, and you keep us going financially, mentally, physically, all the things. So thank you to the following patron supporters, Amy, Amy Schnitzer, Heather Hale, Megan Donald Brew, Jr. Devlin, Tedesco, Jen, Jenn, Helen De Moy, Shelly Lee, Kim Beagler, Sarah, Sarah Boozy. Alison Cohen, Susan Eth, Lynette Jones, Fran, Kelsey Wolf, Donne. Laura, Eddie, Pam from Boston Del Apdi, Valerie, Bruno, Jane, Thoreau, Katie Catone, E Jackson, Amy, Mako. Liz, rain. J. DK, Hannah, M Julia, putt, Marissa, Sarah Bee, Diana Coco Bean, Laura Hadden, Josie Zi, Nikki Boer, Juliana Duff, Chelsea Torres, Angie James Anonymous, Diana Martin, Emily McIntyre, Stephanie Ana, Elizabeth Anderson, Kelly Dearborn, Christine Basses, Zulema Lundy, Carrie Gold, a T, Nikki, Catherine Ellingson. Kara Broman, cc, Sarah Egan, Jess Bin, Jennifer Olson, Jennifer Hs, Jillian Bowman, Brianne, Macy, Karen Perlman, Katie, Jordan, Sarah, m Lisa, Travis, Kate, M, Emily, Bruer, Josie, Alquist, Tara, Todd, Elizabeth Cleary, Monica, and Joanna Stone. So in addition to getting their names read as a thank you, the $10 level also gets ad free episodes. So if you're sick of listening to ads or skipping ads, just join us at the $10 level at patreon.com/forever. Three five Podcast and Forever35 Podcast is hosted and produced by me, Doree Shafrir and Elise Hugh, and produced and edited by Sam Junio. Sami Reed is our project manager, and our network partner is Acast.
Elise: Thank y'all. We love you.
Doree: Bye.
*Transcripts are AI Generated.