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Remember when getting ready to go out was half the fun? When you could dance without wondering who was watching, your kids still needed you for everything, and a random object from childhood could instantly transport you back in time?

Yeah. We remember too.

This week, Maria brings up the unexpected connection between nostalgia and grief - and somehow that takes us from childhood memories to losing parents, watching our kids grow up, getting older, missing versions of ourselves we used to know, and wondering when some of the freedom we once had quietly disappeared.

We talk about the things we'd do differently, the things we wouldn't change at all, and why Jeanine believes even the hard parts of life brought her exactly where she was supposed to be.

And somewhere along the way, Maria gets an impromptu therapy session, Jeanine discovers she may actually be a goldfish, and were both left wondering:

When did we stop dancing?

It's a conversation about grief - but probably not the kind you're expecting. It's also about nostalgia, aging, regret, acceptance, and learning to appreciate where you are without pretending you don't sometimes miss where you've been.

As usual, we solve absolutely nothing. But we had one hell of a conversation.

BGB wants to hear from you! Send us a text!

This isn't our usual conversation, but it's one we wanted to have.

Maria has been closely following the Lindsay Clancy murder trial, a case that has sparked difficult questions about mental health, postpartum illness, accountability, the healthcare system, and our ability to hold more than one truth at the same time.

In this bonus episode, Jeanine comes to the conversation having followed very little of the trial, while Maria shares what has kept her watching - and why the case has challenged some of her own initial assumptions.

We're not legal or mental-health experts, and we're not here to tell you what to think. This is what Brains Gone Bold has always been: two friends talking through something complicated, asking questions, challenging assumptions, and sometimes ending with more questions than answers.

We'd genuinely like to hear what you think - and we ask that the conversation remain thoughtful and respectful.

BGB wants to hear from you! Send us a text!

When did being an adult get so serious?

After 20 episodes of Brains Gone Bold, Maria and Jeanine take a look back at what this whole podcast experiment has become. What started as two friends thinking, “People might actually enjoy listening to our conversations,” has turned into something neither of them completely expected.

They talk about the weirdness of seeing yourself on camera, wanting people to join the conversation, handling disagreement, and realizing that sometimes the quiet people listening are connecting more than you know.

Then the conversation lands somewhere unexpected: play.

Maria shares that recording the podcast brought out a side of herself she hadn't felt connected to in a while: Playful Maria. That leads to a bigger question. When did adults stop making room for fun just because it's fun?

Maybe adventure doesn't have to mean jumping out of a plane. Maybe it's trying a new place, going to a festival, taking a ridiculous adult sleepaway camp trip, or simply doing something that makes you feel a little more like yourself again.

There are also roller coasters, margarita afternoons, an accidental “Marie,” a possible podcast breakup, and the realization that maybe Brains Gone Bold has become Maria and Jeanine's own little playground.

This one is funny, reflective, and a reminder that life doesn't always have to be so damn serious.

Listen in, then ask yourself: Where could you use a little more play?