Clare and Hannah share their experiences practicing martial arts. By share their experiences, we mean they soared with exquisite grace through a grove of bamboo trees, exchanging blows that shook the surrounding wilderness and awakened a long-d...

Clare and Hannah return with another book club, this time covering Joseph Heller's Catch 22, a satirical commentary on corporate malfeasance, nonsense, incompetence and bureaucracy. A classic war novel that coined a phrase still promin...

In this breakfast chat, Clare shares a truly embarrassing story from a fellow veterinarian. Names and locations have been changed to protect those involved from further shame. This episode may be troubling for more squeamish listen...

In part 2 of our series on the kings and queens of England, Clare and Hannah talk about two kings who embodied the term, "man-child." Henry II spent his entire wedding reception goofing off with his best friend and ignoring everybody else, incl...

Hannah takes the "reigns" for part 1 in a series about the kings and queens of England. Because royalty in England just cycled through the same three names over and over, today we learn about two kings named Henry:Henry II: the highligh...

Clare shares a song that terrifies both her and the man who wrote it. Hannah's song of choice did not so much rock her world as haunt her every waking moment for two weeks straight.Clare's song: "

Clare and Hannah read Charles Portis' 1968 novel, True Grit, and have not been able to talk normally since. We also analyze two movie adaptations of the book: the 1969 adaptation directed by Henry Hathaway and the 2010 adaptation direc...

This is a weird one. Not at all what you'd be expecting. The names of locations, individuals, and 4-legged lifeforms have been changed to protect the innocent.If you enjoy funny vet stories, you might enjoy the books of James Herriot, a...

Clare has been doing some light reading... of Dante's Inferno.  The translation Clare's been reading is by Robert Hollander and Jean Hollander. The commentaries are A Beginner's Guide to Dante's Divine Comedy by J...

Today we discuss whether The Chronicles of Narnia should be read in chronological order or in order of publication. Clare has strong opinions about this one. Hannah doesn't care either way, but that may change...You already have your ow...

Clare and Hannah share some more of the songs that rocked their worlds. Turns out they both really love heavy metal. Who knew?Clare's songs: "I See Fire" -- metal version! Pe...

The four temperaments have been around since Hippocrates, who theorized that our human behavior is influenced by the quantities of various fluids present in our bodies. The four temperaments are: Sanguine (blood), Choleric (Yellow bile), Melanc...

Clare shares some of her veterinary exploits. WARNING: This episode is gross. If any of the following words or phrases gross you out, you may wish to forgo listening:PoopVomitBileRectumRectal examRingworms

Whether you're writing a book, a movie, or a play, there are three elements you need to think about when creating a character. Clare and Hannah discuss these three things, debate whether James Bond is funny, and discover that they both struggle...

In this episode, Hannah and Clare continue to talk about Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World," through the lens of one of our favorite "Star Trek" episodes. We also manage to mention "Abolition of Man" again. See if you can spot it!

In this episode, Clare and Hannah come off the reservation and step into a Brave New World where people are made in bottles, Henry Ford is God, and the police are armed with water-pistols.

Don't be fooled by the title. We're still talking about Shakespeare. This time Hannah and Clare talk about the elements of tragedy and comedy, why the Lancasters had to look good in the histories, and what kind of play The Tempest is a...

Hannah finally uses her drama degree! In this episode, our mother-daughter duo discuss Shakespeare, its challenges, its beauty, and its relevance to us today.This week's installment of "Splanchnics Math:" According to Clare (3:50), Shak...

Spanning 18 centuries, Walter M. Miller's "A Canticle for Leibowitz" follows a Catholic monastery's attempts to preserve knowledge through several apocalypses.In this episode, Clare and Hannah talk about very serious topics like the cyc...

Clare and Hannah share some of their favorite songs and explain why music is an essential part of character development. We manage to quote both Plato and Michael Jackson.Hannah's picks:I'm a Funny Dame (Eartha Kitt):

In this episode, Clare and Hannah continue to geek out about robots, but to be honest we spend more time discussing humans. Typical humans, always talking about ourselves. We talk about the nature of beauty, being stewards of the earth, and som...

"The humans, who can think, are so afraid of those who cannot think..."In this episode, the first half of a two-part discussion, Clare and Hannah chat about the progress of robotics over the years, laying the groundwork for the seco...

In our second episode about Lord of the Flies, things go hog wild.Intro and outro music (“Splanchnics Riff)” composed and performed by Clare T. Walker.Special thanks to The Tw...

Clare and Hannah discuss William Golding's classic 1954 novel, Lord of the Flies. Like all civilized people, they pass the pig mug, and things get philosophical.Click the...

Clare (Gen X) and Hannah (Millennial) talk about how different generations were shaped by technology, historical events, and in Clare's case, a whole lot of geopolitical mayhem.Intro and outro music (“Splanchnics Riff)” composed and per...