Ep. 23: Renata Zarro and Chunjay discuss teaching, spoken word poetry, and “home” as a dirty word

Renata Zarro and Chunjay discuss teaching writing, spoken word poetry, and “home” as a dirty word   Intro—Who is Renata? On teaching in general, Language Arts in particular. How did she decide to become a teacher? “As stressful as it may be at times, I love it.” - Renata George Grant: “Love what you love in front of your students.” Echinachea tea. Coffee. On beards.   Sponsor spot: DrSquatch.com soaps and natural cologne Two guys quit their jobs and started a soap company   Marvel and DC Movies. Batman. DC Comics. Marvel. The Chrises and the Toms. Chris Pratt. Chris Evans. Chris Hemsworth. Tom Holland. Tom Hiddleston. Spoken word poetry. Jeanette Hickman. “I perform better when the audience is bought in.”   “Shipwreck Me”   “The Waitress Song”   On family difficulties and on real life situations put into poetry or song. “I think as artists, even things are now scars, and are no longer open wounds, we can still feel those scars. We can still remember that pain, remember those emotions. And we can use those scars, those ghosts of our pasts, to help others in their present.” “That’s the healing process of art. It’s healing for me to write it, and it’s healing for me to perform it. And when I do perform it, it’s healing to others.”   On surrounding yourself with others who can critique what you do. Shout out to kidDEAD. She likes a grammarian edit, and a stylistic edit. “I joke that I’m like a closet romantic. I never share it.”   “Home is a Dirty Word”   “We share our scars so others can heal.” On dealing with chronic illness.   “Dragon Slayer”   On being single and navigating the casual meetings. Renata shares a story about telling a guy when she was uncomfortable. Practical tips for women to assert no and deter harassment. Shoutout to Subculture Coffee. “Hey, it makes me uncomfortable. I need my space. Give me a little space.” Acknowledge what he said, but restate. Use body language. Don’t be flirty with your friend.   “If we all just started respecting each other, none of those issues would happen.” - Chunjay   Renata loves tacos! Mixed chicken and beef. “At-home Chipotle.” On Puerto Rican and Italian food at home. On Renata’s mother. On Puerto Rico. On coqui frogs. Snippet from “Closer Than You Think” from the Rumors of Our Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated. Reading young adult stories. “Locomotion” poetry book. Shout out to Lecrae. Song: “Gotta Know” #renataspeaks @renataspeaks @RoyalRuckus @RoyalRuckusOfficial