Absolute Talk!

The conversation was so much fun it had to be broken up into two parts. For this week, Julia Boucher joins the podcast to share her stories from hiking, to working as an EMT, coral researching in Belize which we'll find out how that came to be. She's also a musician in which we'll hear about with regard to her career in that during the pandemic and her favorite inspiration. Plus, there's one common food item that she never had tried EVER till two years ago that you'll be shocked by.

This week the event-directing fun continues as I chat with the co-creater of Swustlicious, Stephanie Risser Loveira!! Some of the great things we talked about were how got started in hustle to adding in west coast swing, and how that helped improve her first dance greatly. We'll also get into how she started Swustlicious with her tag-team partner Angela McCabe including some great behind-the-scenes stories. And we'll look back at how she met her husband Victor, the dance community and even more!!

One of the greatest minds of the west coast swing circuit, Victor Loveira, returns to the pod as we look back at his DJ journey from the very beginning!! He shares with us memories of the mobile DJ business he started with his brother, first influences, to even his first gigs and more! He also dives in to the equipment used back then, how he learned so much from nightclubs including stories he has from that along with the behind-the-scenes of the music biz. And also some of his favorite clients, parties, other places to DJ for, and celebrity encounters that will shock you!

This is definitely a historic moment today as Absolute TALK! celebrates it's 100th episode with a twist!! The "Dancing Doctor" Elysha Greenberg takes over as the special guest host interviewing me about all sorts of topics related to me and the show. We also read some of the questions that fans and past guests of the show sent in that we truly thank you for, and also play back some clips from past episodes that really stood out. It's great times and I want to personally thank each and every one of you that either tuned in or were a part of the show from when I started to now! None of this wouldn't be possible without your love and support! Don't forget to follow the show with #absolutetalkpodcast

Today, Ben Pollak joins the show for some great stories and great journeys of multiple proportions! We'll dive into his life on the farm and what he has going on these days. Also, he shares his days of traveling overseas to places such as Australia, New Zealand and more as well as his love for animals. And also we get into how his passion for west coast swing dancing ignited, plus we share some of our favorite memories when we used to go to Super Swing Tuesdays at The Brix!

On what would've been his 89th birthday, myself along with Victoria Locke share our favorite memories of the late, great icon, Regis Philbin. Not just that, but also a few facts that we recall from his book, "How I Got This Way", that he wrote in 2011 which is worth reading or listening to the audiobook version of. Also, if you have a favorite memory of him that you would like to share, please post on Facebook with the hashtag #absolutetalkpodcast and I'll read it on my next solo episode.

That's right we are putting the spotlight on one of the great west coast swing dancers to come out of Montreal, Quebec, Simon Girard!! We'll look back at how he got into that dance and why "Spotlight" is the key word in the episode that has some great stories to it! Plus, we'll get his recollection on how he met his wonderful wife and mom-to-be Isabelle Roy which they are expecting their first child at the end of September. We also share great travel highlights, food for thoughts, and other great topics!!!

We continue the conversation looking at a variety of things from fun facts to music to weekend events we've both been to and where we would like to go in the future. Also she gets into her passion of healthy foods including what she had cooked up during the pandemic. Then we look back at some other dance highlights from our Jack and Jill dance and what the future holds for us doing strictly swing in 2021....maybe.

Joining me this week for this two-part episode is the talented dancer Erika Victoria Dane! This interview took place prior to her moving from NY to San Diego, but we'll get into why she's making this move temporarily. Plus, how her dance story began along and the challenges of teaching. Not only that, she reflects back on her days growing up with stage fright, going to modeling school and why she left later on, and the physical and mental changes she had dealt with over time. Also she's got some questions for me and we'll get into music a bit later on.

From rolls to robes we got it all here with the great Sonya Dessurealt! We talk about how both her dance and life journey started from the beginning to what she's doing now. She's also traveled all over the world with some cool, amazing stories that we dive into...along with some sushi, pad thai, and wine to complete the title of this episode. If you want more information on what she has in store for the future or to book your next virtual lesson possibly, check out sonya.dance OR sonyadance.com

Ladies and Gentlemen drummer Jim Royle is here on the pod!! We'll talk about how he got his start as a drummer growing up along with what he likes most about the genre of Jazz Music. He also lets us in on the challenges of being a percussion teacher including the adjustments to teaching online during this pandemic. There's also some great charity work and he shares with us his jammin' days with the Chris Coogan trio, quintet, quartet and more!!

One of my greatest dance friends and overall great person, Adaire Bane f.k.a "BUNNY" joins the podcast to talk about the origin of her old nickname and her journey. It includes, her time living in New Hampshire to the Boston area, her current days in Colorado, to her trip to Ireland and what she enjoys most in each destination. We'll also look back at some of her memories from the West Coast Swing days that we both enjoy the most and what's in store for the future.

It was July 3rd, 1985 that the world got to see the movie that would change the way we saw time traveling! Join me alongside "TOMDOG" Morse of Channel X on the Brill Pro network as we recap the story of the movie along with some behind the scenes including how the roles were casted. Also our favorite moments and how critical each element, including the famous Delorean, made it arguably the greatest time-machine movie ever!!

This week it's definitely Absolute TOSHC! as I sit down with the one and only Scott Hughes who is co-director of the Toronto Open Swing Hustle Championships! We'll look back at how his dance journey started and how he got into West Coast Swing as well including his favorite dance moves and music. Also how did he become a partner for TOSHC with Lisa Scarfo and what challenges come with running that weekend event. Also if you haven't heard, their event in July has been canceled because of the pandemic, but they'll be back next year! For more info, check out TOSHC.COM

He is by far, one of the greatest singer/pianists to ever grace the stage and the recording studio as DJ 911 a.k.a. Aric Lemieux and I reflect back on the "Rocketman" Elton John. From his childhood days growing up to the hits made famous and the success he has today as we cover a lot of it including the time Aric even saw him in concert! Not only that, we talk about how he met the songwriter that would put them both on the map, Bernie Taupin to the personal struggles of addiction and how he overcame it. NOTE: This was recorded last year shortly after the movie came out. And we're not claiming to be experts on the matter....WE'RE JUST FANS and proud of it!

Hey everyone I just wanted to get y'all caught up on some upcoming things with the show. Also, I'll give my take on some of the recent happenings in the news that I want to get out there for real. And of course if you have a question or comment, please use #absolutetalkpodcast on facebook or instagram.

This may be a "Finger-Lickin' Good" episode, and you'll know why later, hanging out with the awesome Kelsey Buckley! We get into a lot of things from 8-Tracks to celebrities, the differences between Lindy Hop and West Coast Swing from her perspective, horoscopes, and even crazy childhood stories from our days that may surprise you. It's a fun adventure we hope you enjoy as much as we have recording it!

Something new for me as I record my very first interview using the audio from Facetime with one of the most popular west coast swing dancers from the Boston area, Lindsay Mistretta!! We go through both coffee and her days of dancing from ballet and why she had to unfortunately give it up. Also, she tells us all about her days of traveling to South America to the times she did some modeling with the help of some our great mutual friends and what she loves the most about working as a real estate agent today! And if you want to book your next dance lesson with her, check out DanceWithLinds.com

This week I sit down with the dancing duo of Didier and Juliana reflecting back on both of their dance journeys from then to now. Also, we'll look back at how he started Canadian Swing Championships, how they both met, parenthood, funny moments and much more! Also stay tuned later on as they'll have more info online in terms of the dance communities up north and anywhere in-between!

In honor of "May The Fourth", it would be fun to give our thoughts on the Star Wars series that's making serious waves! Join me along with "Tomdog" Morse of Channel X as we reflect back on the very first season of "The Mandalorian" going through the story from beginning to end. And yes, there will be lots of spoilers so we recommend that you watch the show on Disney+ first, but after that, it's one fun journey worth exploring with us!!