The Kicked Can Generations Podcast
Join your eccentric Auntie Robin for this monthly podcast In which we will embark on what is called the Hero's Journey, to discover our true authentic self. For this revolution we are going to look at our belief systems, how we respond to things in our lives, learn how to control our emotions, learn how to heal our past trauma, connect back to your authentic self, and learn how to listen to your own inner voice instead of others. We will be utilizing a variety of methods based in Psychology, Cognitive Behavior therapies, Somatic exercises, Breathwork, various meditation, as well as a pinch of spirituality, learning what brings us joy, how to use your emotions as a tool for a better understanding of ourselves.
I am doing this podcast cause this last election I watched as the political parties of this country used our anger and frustration at the world in order to gain power. As a proud card carrying member of Gen X, I can tell you this all started when we were kids and has only gotten worse over the last 50 years. The current administration has several plans that they want to force through during their term. But every force has to deal with counter-force. Yet, Power, TRUE POWER is unmovable and is an ever fixed mark that looks on tempests. Well the tempest lands Jan. 20th, and they want to keep us divided and angry so we don't rise up. But I have radical, bat-shit crazy, revolutionary idea that can change with world, and it starts with you. We have forgotten how to live OUR lives for ourself, and instead have succumbed to programing, ideal and traditions that have been passed down to from previous generations. The true revolution this time needs to start from with in each one of us. We must break from the past programing, and ideals that have been passed on to us. Cause the real reason we are angry is because we no longer believe or want the same things as the Boomer and generations before. It is not who WE are. But WE need to know WHO we are in order to CREATE a new future that Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha and every generation after us can thrive in. This is the last time the Boomers will be in charge, giving us 4 years to figure out what we want for our future. But before we do that. We need to clear out the bullshit programing from the world, our families, our friends, our work. The founding fathers original motto for the United States is a Latin phrase E Pluribus Unum or Out of the Many, One. And that is what I ask of all of you. We need to become ONE, but one with ourselves first. We need to see who are we and what do we believe in, we need to develop radical self love for ourselves, we need to clear out the programing that previous generations have put upon us, to see what we believe in, and to create something that has never done before. So we need to heal ourselves. So We The People, the many, can become one. So lets start a revolution and become one with ourselves. You ready my lil punks?
The Kicked Can Generations Podcast
A Punks Guide to the Tower Moments in the Hero's Journey
Buckle up, punks! Auntie Robin gets raw about navigating personal catastrophe while the world seems to be falling apart around us. Life's "tower moments" – those periods when everything crumbles – aren't random acts of cosmic cruelty. They're necessary catalysts for transformation. Drawing from tarot symbolism, Robin explains how these breakdowns clear outdated structures so we can build something authentic from a clean foundation. Whether you're facing relationship collapse, career upheaval, or just feeling lost in America's current chaos, this episode offers practical wisdom for alchemizing pain into power. At the heart of personal growth lies a challenging question: What lesson am I supposed to learn from this situation or person? Robin shares her own revelations about standing in her power, reforming her people-pleasing tendencies, and learning to ask for help – something that previously felt impossible. She offers practical tools for identifying energy vampires versus soul family, including the simple but powerful practice of noticing how you feel after spending time with someone. Do they leave you energized and calm or anxious and depleted? Beyond personal transformation, Robin explores how building authentic community becomes essential survival strategy in uncertain times. Looking back at how communities functioned in the 1970s reveals forgotten practices of mutual aid – from local businesses extending credit during hard times to churches helping members pay utilities. These collective support systems represent something desperately needed as we face current social upheavals. Ready to transform your breakdown into breakthrough? This episode delivers both emotional validation and actionable wisdom for anyone feeling stuck in cycles of frustration. As Robin reminds us: "Life gets far more interesting and magical when you're learning and growing instead of living in fear." Join the journey and discover how what crumbles might actually set you free.
KEEP IT PUNK, My Younglings!
Hey, my younglings, my little punks, it is I, your Auntie Robin. I've been sitting here on and off trying to figure out what needs to be said, because it's been a hell of a few months, because last time, on a kicked can, I dropped a good-sized bomb on y'all Getting a divorce, selling my house, finding a new place to live and basically having a tower moment where the world is crumbling and burning to the ground around me. Well, here's the update, still going through all that. Still going through all that, and with a few sprinkles from the final episodes of the United States which, let's face it, is leading us on the road to nowhere. Come on inside. Great, now I'm going to have the talking heads going through my brain, yeah, and then just having to deal with the mundane daily life like work, paying bills, keeping the fuzzy kids alive hell, keeping your real kids alive. Are you taking care of yourself mentally, physically? Have you remembered to take a shower, brush your teeth today? It's a hell of a lot. I'm not going to lie to you about that. It's a little rough out here for fucking everyone and I'm going to Gary Oldman, that shit, when I say everyone.
Speaker 1:Now I know I promised a few new discoveries here on the hero's journey. So today we're actually going to do a side quest mission of the hero's journey. I'm actually going to talk to you about what I call the tower moment in this journey, because if you start this, you will eventually go through this kind of moment, and why it's so important that you go through it and I do mean through. There is no going around this one, sorry, but seeing as which that is something I'm currently going through. I can speak on that with some motherfucking authority right now, because I'm going to be honest with you, I'm having a little trouble focusing on the healing journey right now when my ego has got huge imposter syndrome, fear creeping, in which I'm totally admitting to you all right now, for my brain is telling me how can I teach others to get their life together when mine looks like it's spectacularly falling apart? But that's where it's all about mindset and how to learn to alchemize. I just love that word alchemize. It sounds like I'm a wizard, harry. So I'm going to teach you how to magically transform your words and your mindset to hopefully change your circumstances. I'll also be spending some time on some small things that you can do to kind of help survive the failing or the falling of America, depending on how you want to look at it, because it's a trip watching all this go down here in America while living here. It's kind of a trip. It's just not a trip that any of us want to be on. So hang on to your butts, because we are in it, people.
Speaker 1:So we worked on our beliefs that we grew up with and which one of those we still believe, or is it bullshit that needs to go? We still believe, or is it bullshit that needs to go, because, let's face it, the thoughts that we had ingrained in us as kids may not work for us as adults, but it is up to us to figure that out and to reevaluate every so often to see if it is still what we believe Because we got to choose. It is still what we believe because we got to choose God. I love free will. The other thing that we have discussed is how we react to events, comments and the day-to-day bullshit that we have to deal with in our lives. Are we more reactive, getting angry or lashing out, or do we remain more calm, present when stressful situations arise?
Speaker 1:And we'll get back on to that, I'm hoping, next month, because to truly step into your power and be the most authentic badass that you are, you kind of have to deprogram yourself from the world's expectations Hell, your expectations, your friends and family's expectations. In other words, we got to clear out our human bullshit and let me tell you, three-fourths of it has been put upon you and you get to choose what stays and goes, because it's your life. You don't need your parents' approval, you don't need your friends. It's just you, because there's only one thing in life that you can control your parents' approval. You don't need your friends, it's just you, because there's only one thing in life that you can control and that is you. I can't control my parents, my job, none of it. But I can control how I react to things, events, people or situations that come up in my life. It is the only control you got.
Speaker 1:And once you realize that, it's kind of freeing, because during my little tower moment when somebody would say something that would offend me, I'd ask them would you mind repeating what you just said? My brain kind of blanked out partway through that sentence and then I watch them like a hawk as they repeat it back to me and see if there's a look on their face like ooh, that is kind of cringe, or if they apologize. But if there is none of that, then I just try to exit myself away from them as quick as possible, because clearly they don't have an issue with it and they're entitled to their beliefs, and I understand that I cannot change their mind. Only they can change their mind when they are ready. And this is how you know you're surrounding yourself with the right people, which is one of the reasons why the hero's journey is so important.
Speaker 1:When people come and go in our lives, it is because that we are learning something from them and the situation, and once we've learned that lesson, if it comes back around again, but with different people, it is to see if we truly have learned it, and so then you can move on beyond that and level yourself up. In that kind of regard, life is kind of like a video game Every lesson you learn, you go to the next level, but the end result or outcome will be different for each person, because we all want different things in life. For some of us it's rescuing Princess Peach, for some of it it's creating a utopian Minecraft kingdom. For other it's just getting your froggy ass across the road without dying, which is why, sometimes in life, we feel as if we're stuck. Well, if you feel stuck in that cycle, only you can get yourself out.
Speaker 1:So ask yourself this what lesson am I supposed to learn from this person or situation? Really, ask yourself that and write down your answer. And ask yourself this about five times, just to make sure you're not lying to yourself. So if you get a different answer each time, you know you're lying to yourself because, boy, we do love to do that. I'm just as guilty over here. So these repeated events are not happening to you. These repeated events are not happening to you. So if you constantly feel like God damn, why does all this shit keep happening to me in this life? I just can't seem to catch a break, you need to ask yourself what lessons am I supposed to learn from this? Because these events or people are happening for you so you can level the fuck up and be the badass, authentic human being that you are.
Speaker 1:Here's a hard truth that we all need to realize. We have forgotten how to live, especially here in America. The price of admission into this country lately has been a little too influenced by the Borg on Star Trek. You must assimilate to the United States standards, practices and morality, but the last 45 years it has been all about the money, the looks, and it has felt so very superficial that we have forgotten about, well, our soul, our feelings, which is one of the reasons right now. We, the kick-hand generations, feel so fucking lost right now and not sure how to navigate the bullshit that the previous generations have thrust upon us and that we're currently dealing with in our government. I guess situationship right now, because none of the policies or situations that they have created only align with their values, not ours. We got to figure out what do we believe in, because we're up to bat to fix all of this shit. So we need to collectively, as a group, figure ourselves out, because the previous generations did not check themselves before they wrecked themselves and we have the opportunity right now to fix ourselves before we continue down the same cycle that they did Remember. Learn our lessons Now.
Speaker 1:When we clear out the stuff in our lives that we figure out doesn't belong to us, it has a tendency to show up as a job that really isn't right for us anymore, or people we're hanging around, or family members, or even your spouse, who really doesn't treat us well or we start seeing that we really don't have a lot or anything in common and we need to not be around them anymore. Maybe it is where we are living. Maybe the people in our community don't make us feel safe or good about ourselves. You will start to notice these things more and more once you figure out your beliefs and realize your value to this life and how worthy you are of it and how deserving you are of a good life. We all deserve and are worthy of a good life, but until we truly believe it at our core, it won't happen. The world is not out to get us, like they are saying, and resources are just that resources. Some have limits and some don't. But the world actually wants us to succeed.
Speaker 1:But we have a tendency to get in our own way, not just sometimes, but all times, whether that's a fear from previous experience, fear from previous experience or not having control but remember we can only control ourselves, not others or situations. Or is it the fear of the unknown, which is one that I am totally on the struggle bus with right now? But one thing is true on this journey, you will have to get really comfortable in the uncomfortable and not knowing how it's going to all work out. This is where faith and trust come in. Not the easiest things to do when you have a turbulent past. And if you get through that without a victim mentality of everything is against you. You are ahead of the curve, kids, but the victim mentality has to go. Hey, hey ho ho. That victim mentality has to go. Hey, hey ho ho. Just a little cheer of encouragement for you, because that shit right there is going to keep you stuck. Cheer of encouragement for you because that shit right there is going to keep you stuck. That is why you need to ask yourself what lessons did I learn? Then things will start moving forward again for you.
Speaker 1:It may not be fast. It just depends on if you put your oxygen mask on first before helping others. Are you taking care of your needs mentally, physically and, yes, even spiritually, at least according to your beliefs? You need to stop people-pleasing still working on that one myself, but getting stronger at it aka stop putting other people's needs above yours. Creating boundaries is a way of stopping doing that. My big boundary right now is I will no longer invest my time, money or energy into people who are not investing in themselves or at least trying to make the world a better place. I love it if they can do both, but they at least need to be making themselves better. Another one if somebody is complaining a lot about everything and everyone in their life, I will ask them yeah, that sounds rough, but what lessons did you learn from that situation or person? But what lessons did you learn from that situation or person? If they haven't learned anything, well, I may not be investing much of my time, money or energy into them either.
Speaker 1:Another indicator that I use to see if people are right for me. Now I really look at how do I feel after I've hung out with them. Do I feel energized, happy, do I have a sense of calm around them, or do I feel completely drained, exhausted or anxious? If I feel energized, happy or calm, then I know these people are right for me, because my nervous system doesn't perceive them as a threat. But if I feel drained, exhausted or anxious hanging out with you, that tells me that you may not be my people. Those people might be more out for my energy and my light and are more takers than givers.
Speaker 1:If you feel anxious around somebody, it's generally your body's way of letting you know that there's something off with this person or they are triggering that response in you. So ask yourself what is it about this person that triggers these anxious feelings? Sit with it, hopefully in a quiet space. Sit with it, hopefully, in a quiet space. Ask yourself what is it about this person that is triggering these anxious feelings in me? Take a deep breath, ask the question again what is it about this person that is triggering these anxious feelings in me? And just kind of start focusing in on your breath and see if you answer yourself back. Just don't freak out if you do Like. We did this a while back, if you remember that far.
Speaker 1:These are a few ways to find out if you're hanging out with the right people, or your chosen family, or what some people call your soul family. And you can do this for your co-workers, family, relatives, as well as your friends and people that you hang out with. Because when you've been working on healing yourself, working on those past transgressions and traumas, you will realize that certain types of people are repeatedly involved in making you feel like shit. And once you see it, you can't unsee it and you will not want to waste your time anymore with those people and cut them out of your life, which leads to the tower moment, leads to the tower moment. So the tower is a card in the tarot deck and the image of it is kind of scary. It's of a castle tower that's cracked, falling People are actually falling out of the tower. There's generally lightning fire, just mass destruction and devastation everywhere. Mass destruction and devastation everywhere.
Speaker 1:The tower actually signifies a dramatic shift where outdated beliefs, illusions and structures collapse, clearing a path for a new beginning. It serves as a wake-up call, inviting us to examine our foundations of our lives and confront any false or limiting aspects. This change should be welcome because it allows us to build something solid from a clean slate, which is what we are doing here, on the hero's journey breaking down those old patterns and beliefs that no longer serve us. You need to break yourself down to the foundation so you can rebuild with some new beliefs. Kind of sounds like what the United States is going through right now. Huh, so even though things are spectacularly falling apart right now, it's actually all coming miraculously together in ways you're not going to be able to see or understand. But before every personal breakthrough, you're going to have a breakdown. It's never fun, extremely stressful, and you will be tested. So how are your patients? And you will be tested. So how are your patients? How are you responding or reacting? How are you in control of your fear and anxiety? Have you ditched the victim mentality? This is not happening to you. It is happening for you through the lessons that you learn.
Speaker 1:The lesson I needed to learn in my tower moment was to stand in my power and stand up for myself with grace and without anger. I had to choose myself above others, reforming the inner people pleaser, which women do more than you realize. Also had to learn how to ask for help, which is so hard for me, being so stubbornly independent, because this is something I've never had much luck with in my past. But this time has been completely different. I actually learned how to ask people better Instead of just saying I need help. I gave people a few days that I would need help with, to give them a time frame. I told them specifically what we would be doing and then I left that time frame up to them. How long can you give me? It was incredible. Plus, asking for a referral for a lawyer was really tough. It has been amazing and it really made me feel as if I wasn't alone anymore, that people who care about me were actually there for me when I needed it. No idea up until this moment that people actually gave a shit about me. I had finally found a little piece of community which, if I'm being honest, is what we really all crave deep down.
Speaker 1:But once you are authentically yourself, people see it and respond to it. Now, not everybody responds positively to authenticity, and I think that we can look at the LBGTQ plus community here, especially lately, with more emphasis on trans people, sadly, who just want to authentically be themselves, who they are deep down, who they are deep down. If we look at who is hating on them, I think ultimately those haters are just mad at them because they're living out loud who they are, and they're just mad because they feel as if they can't, or at least they feel that they can't live out loud, or at least they feel that they can't live out loud. But here's the plot twist they can we all can actually but you've got to do the work, you've got to go through the dark nights of the soul, you've got to face your fears, your pain and trauma, and hopefully you haven't intertwined your traumas with your personality, for you may be too scared to let them go because you're not going to know who you are if you do.
Speaker 1:I get that it's scary becoming someone new, because you've never been that version of yourself and, quite frankly, not many people want to do that, because that shit right there is not for the weak. You have to have guts, you have to have gumption. You gotta grow a fucking vagina because you are going to take a pounding. No delicate balls to be kicked here, my punks, because life gets far more interesting and magical when you are learning and growing and expanding throughout your life, instead of being stuck living in lack, living in fear of people, places or situations. That's not living people. That's not living people. So yeah, the tower moment it isn't fun, but it is a necessary part of the process to evolve into your true, authentic self.
Speaker 1:Besides trying to be a better version of yourself, then you have to add on everything that the current administration is trying to do and attempting to do. So how do we deal with that as well? To be honest, it's going to be challenging to do both. Trust me on that one. I'm basically relying on Stephen Colbert's opener just to get caught up on the news with a side of humor instead of a straight up bullshit, that it is. So what are some things that we can do to resist against? These are odd ones, but here are some that might work. Seeing as which we're in spring, I recommend building a garden. If you don't have the space, try one of those vertical planters in which, like you, can plant many different types of plants in one tall pot. If you feel financially strapped right now, see if maybe you and your neighbors can go in on it with you. Building a community is key and vital to surviving this failing country. We are all going to need help at some point in time during this difficult cycle, so we're going to have to start cultivating that community in our local areas, for we need to rely on each other.
Speaker 1:Take a trip with me as I go back to the 70s here Now. I was just about zero to eight during this time period, but something happened more during the 70s than any other time period that I was alive, at least. During the 70s than any other time period that I was alive at least. Loving and helping your neighbors was a huge thing. I grew up in a town of about 2,000 people and our churches and community actually helped the local people. Churches would set aside part of its Sunday collection to help people pay their electric gas phone or maybe even help pay rent or mortgage if you needed assistance. Also, there were no Walmarts or big box stores. Everything was local business owners. One of the craziest memories I had was going to the grocery store with my mom and her actually putting groceries on credit with them until my dad got paid. And it wasn't just groceries. The gas station down the street also did that for us as well. But we could rely on the community to help each other out. Unfortunately, over time people got greedy and then stopped paying these things back and these types of things eventually stopped.
Speaker 1:Not many churches have these kind of programs anymore. Like living in Oklahoma, we hear about Houston when it floods every single time, and there's this guy who owns a furniture store and he opens his store every time for the community, to the people in it and gives them someplace safe that they can sleep. Now Texas is also kind of home to some mega churches, and one of those is Pastor Joel Osteen Guess, who locks up their church compound every single time. But God wants him to have a jet plane, even though his followers are hurting. We need to open ourselves up to helping others.
Speaker 1:It doesn't take a lot of effort to treat others as you want to be treated. To be honest, that's the only thing I got out of the church and during the 70s that reigned supreme. But the 80s came and changed all that. Now the look was everything Money and greed. They became gods and hypocrisy became king and hypocrisy became king, and not much has changed since. I think about the music of the 70s. Looks were not everything. It was all about the sound and the performance. If some of those artists tried today to get their music career off the ground, they would have never been able to start ground. They would have never been able to start.
Speaker 1:We need to look out for others and help out when we can. Everything nowadays has gotten bigger. Local businesses are having a hard time competing with corporations, and now we're even more of a global market which has a tendency to change things. Once we get beyond the immediate fuckery that is afoot, maybe we can start focusing in on the world playing together better. But in the meantime, what else can we do? It would be great if, locally, there was a place we could check out tools and home improvement stuff, or maybe art projects, or it could even be like a free store where people can drop off their stuff and that they don't want to use anymore and people can take what they need.
Speaker 1:This one gets tricky because we have been so ingrained to consume and take and think that things are scarce. But that concept is full of shit. We are consuming so much because we're trying to fill the emptiness inside of us, but when it comes down to it, when you find yourself and you start loving yourself, you don't need as much outside validation because you know you Plus. You'll get rid of these people around you that only value you for what they get. You'll find your people, and when you find your people, you want to spend more time with them, and this will help fill your cup more.
Speaker 1:Granted, what fills your cup is different for everyone, but there are others out there that also love what you love and love you for who you are. That is why a four-day work week is needed, so we can have one day just to clean, get your life organized, one day to run errands and then the rest of the time have fun with your family, friends and explore your personal interests and I don't know, actually maybe rest. The grind just grinds you down, and I don't know about you. But let's not do this anymore. I want to live and enjoy my life and have some fucking fun again Doing some of the things that I love to do. That, my friend, is an American dream. I think we can all get behind, and I think that is where I'm going to end it today, with a little hope. Here's to the better times.
Speaker 1:Punks, I hope you can bear with me during this awkward transitional phase that I'm currently going through, but I do have to say check with me in a couple months and you may be talking to a different person because, damn, when you go through this much bullshit, it is building you for something. I guess we'll have to find out what exactly it is that I'm building. Huh, till next month. I'm not 100% sure what I'm going to be talking about. It depends on how the month goes, but I will keep you informed. Good night, punks. Keep it real, keep it punk.
