Nore Davis is a standup comedian based in New York City.

Instagram and all episodes

(00:00) Growing up in Yonkers

(02:09) Being the funny kid

(03:04) Art before comedy

(04:52) Discovering stand-up at Pratt

(05:59) Secretly taking a comedy class

(08:06) Finding the thrill of stand-up

(11:06) Making comedy financially sustainable

(13:58) Building connections and community

(15:32) Albums, SiriusXM, and independence

(16:46) Finding material in real life

(18:30) Living with sickle cell anemia

(23:23) Becoming a working New York comedian

(27:04) Getting discovered at Just for Laughs

(28:58) The first Conan appearance

(34:25) Acting, writing, and career milestones

(36:42) Money, ambition, and destination anxiety

(40:41) Building an hour of stand-up

(44:45) What separates great comedians

(47:21) Why New York beats Los Angeles

(50:07) The importance of constant stage reps

(52:11) Learning to move past bombing

(53:17) Defining success as happiness

Nancy Borowick is a photographer, author, teacher and speaker based in New York City and St John in the USVI.

Instagram and all episodes

(00:00) Finding photography in New York

(02:18) Teaching photography in Ghana

(05:29) Discovering photography’s power to create change

(07:41) Learning both parents had cancer

(11:02) Using photography to process illness

(13:35) Planning a wedding amid terminal illness

(14:52) Sharing her family story publicly

(17:12) Losing both parents one year apart

(20:41) Grief transforms her photography career

(22:17) Leaving New York for Guam

(24:28) Turning her family story into a book

(26:31) Deciding whether to have children

(30:29) Motherhood, birth trauma, and postpartum depression

(31:40) Processing birth trauma through photography

(34:33) Discovering the hidden reality of stillbirth

(37:23) Knowing your normal during pregnancy

(40:35) Pregnancy, advocacy, and trusting your intuition

(45:18) Finding joy, family, and a quieter life

Luke Strathman is a writer, economist, comedian and poet based in New York City.

Instagram and all episodes

(00:00) Moving to New York before COVID

(01:58) Growing up on a donkey farm

(03:26) Discovering comedy by accident

(05:58) Lessons from poverty research

(10:25) Finding creativity at grad school

(11:17) Choosing joy over the expected path

(13:23) Pursuing comedy in New York

(15:27) Uncertainty around a creative career

(16:51) Keeping a foot in policy research

(17:38) Building a varied comedy career

(18:58) Creating PowerPoint comedy shows

(23:02) Booking comedians through outreach and community

(24:16) Finding the humor in economics

(26:24) The Beanie Baby business years

(27:51) New York’s alternative comedy venues

(31:57) Favorite New York comedians

(34:15) Balancing comedy with a day job

(36:31) Redefining success around happiness and creativity