Finding Joy!

Name: Finding Joy! | Open Video
Uploaded: 2025-07-25T16:47:35+00:00
Duration: 20 min 59 s

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Hello everyone, Karen Glasser here and welcome to the Super Boomer Lifestyle Show, where I welcome
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guests from all across the globe to share how they are maneuvering through a world that worships
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youth and shames the beautiful process of aging. Today I am so excited because we're welcoming
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actor, singer, producer, I mean I can go on and on, Joan Ryan to the show today. We're talking
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about finding joy. Now, as I say every single week, if you are here live, we're delighted
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you're here live, go ahead and make a comment down below and we will respond to you. If
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you're here on replay, that's just as good. Make sure you put a comment down below and
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say, I'm on replay. And of course, share, share, share, share, share, share it out to
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all of your network and friends because we love you and we love your network
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So today we're introducing Joan Ryan. Joan is making a repeat. I think a couple of years
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repeat visits. She's an actor, a singer, producer, and she's a winner of the Broadway World Cabaret
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Artist of the Year. Her four octave range, yes four octaves, led to her recent Carnegie Hall show
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and her show at Lincoln Center. Joan originated the role of Judy Denmark and Ginger Del Marco in
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the cult favorite Ruthless, and fans from all over the country have seen her in leading roles
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in Les Mis, Little Shop of Horrors, Footloose, just to name a few, and television audiences known
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Joan from her role on the long running series Saved by the Bell and
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Two Years on The Young and the Reckless, which, as my guilty pleasure, I
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like to watch Young and the Reckless all the time. And variety shows also
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include Forever Young with Jason Alexander and One Night Only with Steve Carell, Boris Whitaker
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and Eric McCormick. I could go on and on and on, but more importantly, we are excited
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because Joan is joining us today back on the show And so we're going to bring her right back in
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And Joan, hi! Thank you for that wonderful introduction, Karen. You are so welcome
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I am so excited to have you back on. We have been friends forever and ever and ever
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We'll talk about that. But we like to start the show with how do you describe a super boomer
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I like to describe super boomers as not being defined by their age
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Right. That's the first thing. and that they are defined by how they show up in life
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was sort of like a just watch me, fearless attitude. That's how I define a super boomer
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So, John Ryan, how do you define a super boomer? That is a really good question
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I would say a super boomer is someone who has passion and goes for it
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no matter how big, no matter how little. To me, that's what a super boomer is
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And I think that You epitomize that This is not good You're in Joan you're on
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You're good This is frightening are you gone No you're not gone I hear you I see you
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What happened here I think Joan can't see that she's on I see and she's
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Gone alrighty we're going to wait Joan's going to come back in She's been having technical difficulties all morning
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But we're just going to keep going and wait for Joan to come pop back in in the meantime
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One of the things that I love about Joan Ryan is that she is fearless
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And we both have similar backgrounds. She's going to come back in. Let's just have her jump back into the show
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And let's just see if you're, there she is. Can you move? That was exciting. What happened
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So I started to tell everyone that one of the things that I love about you
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is that you really are fearless. And you have done so many wonderful things in your life
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Let's talk a little bit about our history first, though. We've known each other. Let me say one thing
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It's not that I'm fearless because I have lots of fear. But what I want to do is more important than the fear
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Does that make sense? Oh, it totally makes sense. Lots of fear all the time
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It totally makes sense. It's moving through it that I think is a good superpower
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And here's the thing. I like to say I'm fearless. and somebody said the same thing that you just said, well, you know, there's no such thing as
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being fearless. Right. Well, maybe I feel nauseated most of the time, but I do it anyways, right
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Absolutely. 100%. Yes. And so Joey Garrity says, well, she likes the new background. Thanks
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Joey. I appreciate that. And she's also saying, hi, Joey. I see you. Hi. How are you, Joey
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So let's talk about our history. We've been around the block together, right
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we have literally around the block together we've sung together we have done concerts together
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we have recorded together our kids have grown up together we've known each other a very very long
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time long time and we don't look any different today than we did 30 years ago no different and
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i love you karen glasser i mean really if anybody has reinvented fearlessly for a lifetime that is
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And you are my hero I think it amazing Thank you And I can say right back at you because I mean as I introduced you you sung at Carnegie Hall I mean hello And Lincoln Center hello Both I have to say
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were pretty amazing. And they were the topping on the cake, the expression, they were the topping
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on the cake. Because when Howard and my husband and I said, okay, my turn, we're going to New York
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I wasn't really sure what to expect and I always used to say well I smiled and I dialed you know I
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made a list of all the people I knew and all my friends that were here and it was very exciting
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because I actually felt like I did when I was just starting out with a lot more support and a lifetime
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and a career behind me so it wasn't as scary what are they going to say to me go home and live in
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your house in California you know it's they better not they'd have to be I mean look I mean you've
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got a magnificent voice and we're actually going to play a snip of you singing. So without
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further ado, I'm going to bring this up into the stream and I'm going to put it on solo
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and I'm going to play this just so people have a chance. I could listen to you sing forever and ever
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And I think you dropped out. I lost you again. So I don't know
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So we're having technical. I see you. I don't know. I see you
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Okay. So Joan, you might want to, she's dropping out again. Can you believe that voice
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She's got the most amazing voice. And the reason why I played it is if you're going to be in New York this
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weekend, let's get your camera up there, Joni. I don't. Here she is. There she is
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Yeah, this is very exciting how I keep going out. You're going to be singing this weekend. You have a show
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Let's talk a little bit about that and how people. I am so excited about this show
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The show is going to be at the Green Room 42 here in New York City. And it's Saturday, March 7th at 930
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I am so profoundly excited about this show because kind of a fluke
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I found Will Nunziata is my director and he's just a brilliant director
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And I found him because I was asked to sing in something here in New York for a friend of mine
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And his twin brother was in the audience. And his twin brother said, I have something for you
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And I'm not making this up. And I just went back to California
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And sure enough, within two weeks, he called me and said, would you guest in our show? Which I did
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Wow. Then I met Will, who is, he is director. He is excited and generous and respectful and such a team player
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And to work with him has just elevated my game. I mean, he's excited to work with me
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I'm excited to work with him. So he pushes me off the cliff quite a bit
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How fun. And I go, okay, let's go. You feel the fear and do it anyways, right
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Exactly. And I've got a phenomenal musical director and great arrangements from a number of different arrangers
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And there's some tickets. I know you have a few tickets, really just a few tickets available
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Go to the greenroom42.poptics.com, pick up some tickets. But today's topic was called finding joy
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And clearly, watching you and listening to you talk, you have found joy
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I, you know, it's crazy. I love my family, as you know, so profoundly
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That's really my joy. But there's always been this part of me
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But, you know, when I was living on the West Coast, I would get offers to do things here in New York
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And I would turn them down because the thought of being away from my family was too much
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And there were shows that I took around the country. and I remember sitting backstage thinking what am I doing here waiting to go on stage because I was
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just missing my husband and my kids so much so we always knew there would come a time when I would
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so I kept myself working kept my chops up and so and there you are and I love New York so profoundly
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I think it is more than Europe more than the beat New York is my happy place I I totally love that
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And because one of the things that you like to say all the time is there is never an end date to our dreams
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And you are a walking illustration of that right It all here I mean it truly up here I always say and I sure I said it to you last time that we all have a pilot light that we had since we were little that just doesn go out
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And it's a still small voice that said, what happened to your writing
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What happened to your, you know, whatever it is that's your passion. It doesn't matter how big or how small
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What matters is that we don't let it go and that we go for it
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even in little ways. And I know that your talent has passed down to your children as well, right
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They are pretty astounding. Pretty astounding. What is Callie doing these days
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Well, Callie, you know, she's writing music. And it's so funny how our oldest is in my husband's business
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She's now coming into the rare book business. Nice. And our middle two have the gift of performing
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Callie is doing music and loves it. And she's also back in school because she's a healing child
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She's getting her master's in acupuncture and she's putting the two together, which is nice
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And our little one, well, not so little. She's towers over me, has this amazing, amazing singing voice, but is an extraordinary actress
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And she's following her passion. So she's out there doing it. I keep saying, are you sure you want to do that
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The same way that my parents said to me, are you sure you want to do it? So we support them and we love them
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And if anybody's going to do it, they are going to do it. So why do you do this
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Why do you just keep doing this? That's a great question, Karen
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Because I can't not do it, double negative. But because it brings me, I feel like I have a calling
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and I just feel like I was given a gift to share
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Right. And I can't, I mean, I've always sung, even, you know, all over
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I always worked. I always sang. I always did my own shows. But there are dreams that I've yet to accomplish
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And so in this last two years, the fact that I got to sing at Carnegie Hall
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and Lincoln Center and do my own show at Birdland and now at Green Room 42
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too. And be involved in this remarkable community. That's what I love about New York the most
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What? So what do you tell? What do you tell somebody if someone a friend of yours, a good
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friend or even not so good friend or somebody in a network said, I'm too old. I can't do this
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What do you tell them? I mean, clearly, we're getting we're of a certain age and we're doing it
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So what do you tell them? Well, let me just say that the swimmer. OK, her she's she's alluding me of
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which swam. I think she beat her record at 64. You know who I mean
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Yeah. Diana Nyad. Somebody. Yeah. Nyad. I believe she's beat her record at 64 years old
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I think that it's look, do I want to be in, uh, you know
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do a nude scene in a movie? No. However, a couple of years ago, I did do a scene in a bathtub, which is another story, but, um
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I had gotten a spray tan the day before and I didn't know that I was going to
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be in that bathtub for a long time. And as they were setting lights and I was in, I was in a
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a sheer bathing suit, but I had a spray tan because you know, they cover everything
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I'm sitting in the bathtub and I look down and all the men are around me. I look down and I see
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that the brown of the spray tan is going into the bathtub. So I decided I had to come clean. I said
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you know, I'm really not dirty. This is my spray tan. Literally, literally. Literally
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You become clean. Literally. But truthfully, what I say is, what do you want to do
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Yeah. And then figure out the training you need and figure out who your mentors can be
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And maybe you want to start small. Maybe you want to get in a class. Right
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I mean, there are people that have started acting at 75 years old in commercials and do it until, you know
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Hey, the whole pro-age, you know, movement that's out there. Yeah. There are some amazing, beautiful, just exquisite women that are out there that are in their 60s and their 70s
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And they are walking the runway and they are doing print ads and they are out there
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It's a perfect time. It is. It's a perfect time. It is. It absolutely is
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So what is your superpower? And I just want to say one thing
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The other thing that really, really, really helps is to find your support system
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Yes. Yes. I know I'm so grateful for my husband and my family and you've got to find that support system
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because if you have that then there's really nothing to lose really and I know it makes sense
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it does totally make sense and I know that you're bi-coastal right now a little bit you know you're
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on the west coast and then you're in New York I think more than you actually are on the west coast
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and I know that your wonderful husband is in town to see you in your at your concert this weekend
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But that got to be hard you know not always be loved ones And so that was a decision I mean you made that decision that you were going to go and do this And so that leads me to your superpower because you are very courageous
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Courageous. I would say that is my superpower. Or dumb. I'm not sure, but I think it's courageous
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But I think that, you know, it was with my family's blessing. And they said
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you've taken care of us for all this time you go and it's not easy
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It's not easy for them. I'm not. Although I do get them groceries on Instacart
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I just gave a commercial to Instacart, but I do make sure that they have enough food
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Well, it's my own personal pleasure. Always a mom. You know, one of the things that I, I love your, your
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your CD. This was your debut CD. It's titled, athlete Joan Ryan. We're going to put a link to the CD down in the comments after the show
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Go check it out. First of all, you have sung at, on the Today Show, right? And how was that? Cold
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It's cold, but so much fun, but bad hair because it was cold and rainy. So I don't know what
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happened, but it was really extraordinary. It was really fun. And I mean, I mean, we can go on and
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on. What was your favorite role? Do you have a favorite role? You know, I want to say
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I think my favorite role was Audrey in Little Shop. I love doing Ruthless. I love doing
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but I think my favorite role is Audrey because that was just, she was so broken and so, and the
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songs, the Alan Menken songs were so good. I think, to say, I think that was my favorite
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Well, I know that people are watching this and I'm hoping that you go and pick up
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whatever the few last tickets that are there over at greenroom42.poptics.com. And when you go, make sure you, you know
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you go up to Joan after the show and say, Karen sent me. And I saw you on the show on Wednesday because I know that it's always fun to
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have people that are there that actually recognize you there. And of course, if you are going to follow Joan on, this is Twitter
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I believe. And that's the Joan Ryan is on. Don't tweet, Quate
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as much as Instagram and Facebook, but for sure. So for then, and then this is Instagram then
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the official Joan Ryan, go check her out over there and check her out on her Facebook page, which is Facebook
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Did you know you can just do fb.com forward slash the official Joan Ryan
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That's a shortcut, but it works. And finally go check Joan out on her website
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at JoanRyan.com. Thank you. Any last minute thoughts you'd like to share with our audience about the show, about your family, about just finding joy that you would like to share
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I think that every, yes, I think everything changes. I can have joy in this minute and then my show is over and my family goes back to California and I can be walking in the freezing cold saying, what am I doing here
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And then two minutes later, I can go sing somewhere or a friend will call me and then I'm happy
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So I don't think there's ever a place to get to. I think it's all in the little, like, it's finding joy here and finding joy here
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And then you're sad and you move through it. I think, yeah
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I don't know if I'm in condition. Correctly. Ahad Khan says, hello
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Hi there. I don't know if I said that right. And I apologize if I did not say that right
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I did. But I appreciate you joining. And we have several people that are on that are not commenting
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but they're on. And I'm delighted for that. Joan, I want to thank you because I know that you came from a rehearsal
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You rushed home from a rehearsal. I don't want one of your last rehearsals to come do this show
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I'm very, very appreciative. Thank you for having me. Always, always. Anytime you want to come back on
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you just say the word and you are on. I'm going to drop you into the green room when I do my super boomer moment
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Fantastic. I'm going to wait for you. You wait for me. I will be back in a moment
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Bye. So this is the super boomer moment. And I want to talk about fear because, you know, I'm the one who always says I'm fearless
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I say it all the time. I'm fearless. And that's really not true. I think really what Jones said is completely true in that we we might appear to be fearless, but we might be absolutely sick and nauseated to our stomachs
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right? We do it anyways, because sometimes, because the results and what we get by doing it
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far outweigh the, the, the issue of, of thinking we can't do it. And sometimes you just have to
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feel the fear and do it anyway, step right into it, because trust me, some of the greatest joys
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come from doing it that way. So I want to thank you for that super boomer moment. I want to thank
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our viewers because we know that you have a choice as to how you spend your time. And I am
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eternally grateful that you decided to spend it with us today. Joan thanks you. I thank you. Go
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out and give somebody an awesome day. And we'll see you next time on the next episode of the
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Super Boomer Lifestyle Show. See you later, everyone. Bye-bye

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Finding Joy!

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