Last week I was lucky enough to engage in conversation with the lovely Eréndira Ibarra who portrays Mariana, half of the smoldering same-sex super-couple of Julia and Mariana on the telenovela, Las Aparicio.  Take a look:

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As you will hear, Erendira is extremely gracious to this uni-lingual, English-only, American blogger.  We chat about the Mexican soap opera, the truthful, yet controversial storyline of “Juliana”, and the extreme commitment of bilingual fans who take it upon themselves to subtitle the LGBT themed love story.

I blogged about the fact you should be watching, and now it’s verbalized.  This is no fairy tale, this is a soap opera, and there is plenty of drama.  There is no platitude of patronizing head bumping or finger caressing; there is honest passion…and a love triangle that is agonizingly frustrating.  But I can’t stop watching over and over again.

Click the heels. listen, and enjoy.  I know I did.

Las Aparicio will be coming in it’s entirety to Telemundo.com.  Until then, I have listed links to the YouTube channels with subtitles:  love2angel12, nixawme, and scootgirl100

Last week my funny bone and I were fortunate enough to Shoot the ‘Schmootz with comedienne and community caregiver, Gloria Bigelow.  We sat down for a late night snack of humor, politics, and the occasional reminiscence of nostalgic TV.  Going into the interview, I was quite familiar with Gloria’s comedic timing, but I soon discovered that it is her passionate work with inner city youth that is no joke.

Please join me as Gloria and I spend a humorous and high-spirited hour of conversation.  How often can you actually have fun…and learn something as well?  Enjoy.  I know I did.

Also join Gloria and her co-host, DJ, on their Blog Talk Radio show, Late Nite Snacks, airing tuesdays at 10 pm EDT. You can also find Gloria on The AfterEllen.com One Night Stand Up airing on the Logo channel, 5/13/10 at 9:00 pm and weekly on episodes of CherryBomb on SheWired.com.

Episode 5 – The “Schmootz on” Gloria Bigelow

Mindschmootz’s Podcast

Thanks to Jeryl for our Schmootzcast intro music “Stay Away From You” from her Radio Friendly CD . Check out all of Jeryl’s music on her MySpace page.

April was Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and honestly, I was not aware of that fact until doing research for this interview.  It is opportune in reference to my conversation with Joanna, though I believe a thirty day designation is something she would find interesting and worthy of comment.  For Joanna Katz, every day is awareness day.

On June, 17, 1988, Joanna and a female friend were abducted at gunpoint, beaten, tortured, and gang raped repeatedly by five men.  Bloodied and dazed, Joanna was able to escape her attackers, find help, save her friend from imminent death, and fight for the conviction of her assailants.  It would be enough to end the story here, but thanks to a South Carolina justice system that, at the time, continued to emotionally brutalize victims of sexual crimes, Joanna’s story was only beginning.

Joanna’s inspiring account of survival, both physically and emotionally, is chronicled in the PBS documentary, Sentencing the Victim.  As a compliment to this podcast, I encourage you to watch the documentary.  I will warn you, this is a brutal film in it’s subject matter.  It is dark, disturbing, and infuriating at times, but it also encapsulates hope, support, and courage in its purest form.

In our conversation, I ask Joanna about life post-documentary, where her advocacy has taken her, and what has changed, if anything, socially and/or politically, where victim’s rights are concerned.  I believe this conversation is enlightening and inspirational.  And this is the Schmootzcast after all, so Joanna is delightfully humorous, so entertaining as well.

Episode 4 – The “Schmootz on” Victim Rights Advocate, Joa…

Mindschmootz’s Podcast

You can watch the documentary here:

Episode 3 – Schmootzcast with Queens of the World’s Mel R…

Mindschmootz’s Podcast

Thanks to Jeryl for our Schmootzcast intro music “Stay Away From You” from her Radio Friendly CD . Check out all of Jeryl’s music on her Facebook page here. Become a fan today.

Episode 2 – Schmootzcast with Rachael Hip-Flores

Mindschmootz’s Podcast

Thanks to Jeryl for our Schmootzcast intro music “Stay Away From You” from her Radio Friendly CD . Check out all of Jeryl’s music on her MySpace page.

Premiere – Schmootzcast with Orlagh Cassidy

Mindschmootz’s Podcast

Links:

Orlagh Cassidy’s Facebook Page

Orlagh’s Voice Samples

God of Carnage

The ‘Schmootz on Susan Miller

The ‘Schmootz on Lisa Bernhard

Title picture credit: Roy Gumpel