Welcome to the premiere of In the Meanwhile—a podcast for anyone trying to survive the slow-motion apocalypse without losing their soul (or their sense of humor). Professor Nora Kenworthy and journalist Marcus Harrison Green kick things off with a candid, funny, and heartfelt conversation about what it means to live through this messy in-between era—where the old world is collapsing, the new one isn’t here yet, and the group chat is full of existential dread.

Born out of pandemic grief, political exhaustion, and the need to build something meaningful, this first episode explores what it means to live through a time of collapse without becoming a monster, how to hold onto your humanity when the headlines hit harder than your therapist’s out-of-office reply, and why Bob Ross might be the spiritual leader we don’t deserve but need right now.

This is part secular sermon, part group therapy, part dinner table rant with your smartest friends—the ones who still believe in hope, justice, and eight ounces of joy per episode. No hot takes, no empty platitudes—just real talk about how we hold onto our humanity, build community, and figure out what the hell we’re doing in the meanwhile.

New episodes drop every Friday. Bring snacks. Bring questions. We’re muddling through this together.

Mentioned in the episode:

• Readying to Rise: Essays by Marcus Harrison Green

• Crowded Out: The True Costs of Crowdfunding Healthcare

• The South Seattle Emerald

• Hinton Publishing

• Nora and Marcus at Town Hall Seattle

• Martin Demant Frederiksen writing about pandemic mean/time

• Antonio Gramsci on the time of monsters

• Ad Astra

• Bob Ross on YouTube

Follow us on Social:

https://www.instagram.com/inthemeanwhilepodcast

https://bsky.app/profile/inthemeanwhile.bsky.social

*Nora and Marcus’ work on the podcast is separate from their professional roles and does not represent the views of their employers.