3 years, 30 miles & 1 WICKED time: Our Adventure Through the NYC Boroughs

Two Southern Belles take on the Boroughs of NYC!

We just got back from the most magical trip to New York City, and holy synchronicities, ya'll! Between figuring out the subway (a genuine miracle & who knew Renée was such a direction master?), celebrating Mara's three-year alcohol-free milestone, randomly running into her brother on a bridge, crying at Wicked on Broadway, and walking 30 miles in Doc Martens, this trip was PACKED. 

We're sharing all the wild coincidences, what it's like to experience the city with sober eyes, and why pushing past fear leads to the best adventures. Spoiler: No hangovers, just really sore feet and a whole lot of gratitude.

LAUNCHBREAK: the networking platform for women athletes 

MOBIUS Fitness App: building community through fitness 

Transcript

Renée (00:00)
Hey guys, welcome back to Nosedive. We're so stoked for this episode because we just got back from a very exciting trip to NYC. Just two Southern bells in the city, bebopping around, trying to figure out the fucking subway, which was so fun. ⁓ Yeah, just so excited to kind of get into this trip. So many amazing synchronicities happen.

just some crazy shit happened while we were in York City, feel like. Lots of ⁓ people watching, meeting new people in general, making some really cool connections and connecting with some people that we've known for a really long time. yeah, Mara, why don't we just go ahead and jump right in? Because originally, let me just give some backstory. So the whole reason why I originally was gonna go to New York City,

is because Nosedive partnered with Mobius. It's a fitness app. I met Caroline, a shout out to Caroline and Julia from Mobius. They're the co-founders through Launch Break, which is ⁓ a networking ⁓ site for former collegiate athletes. ⁓ And so we partnered with them to celebrate Sober, Sober-ish October. We had an event there and Mara originally wasn't going to come.

And I'm like, and not for any particular reason, just like timelines and all that shit and ended up making it happen. And I think like it just enhanced the trip to a completely different level. So that's the whole premise of why, you know, I was going there in the first place and then so stoked that Mario was able to come as well. And then I think that just kind of like opened the floodgates of just like incredible shit that happened while we were there. ⁓

So yeah, Mara, take it away.

Mara DeMauro (01:59)
Yeah, it was such a fun trip. I'm really glad we were able to experience that together. And I think what's really cool is that we both have been to New York before, you know, it's not like it was our first time ever in the city. ⁓ But it was the first.

Renée (02:15)
Yeah, we're world travelers, people, okay? It's not like

we haven't like fuckin traveled at all, but anyways. ⁓

Mara DeMauro (02:22)
Well,

I mean, I haven't traveled that much. I'm still pretty ignorant to a lot of things, ⁓ unfortunately, but one day. But my point is that we've been there before, but this was the first time that we were there with new eyes. ⁓ You know, having gone through, you know, just the past few, you know, couple years of

regaining some clarity throughout our journeys and getting a little bit more confident with ourselves and more open to opportunities and exploring and kind of going in with going into new situations with more of a playful mindset. And y'all, all I can say is good thing Renee was there when it comes to navigating because like I was literally the most useless thing.

when it comes to that, like the trains, first of all, I'm like, I'm amazed, just period, point blank, amazed with the city. You know, not just Manhattan, but, ⁓ you know, we spent a lot of time in Brooklyn and the fact that they built that subway system a hundred years ago, I'm just like, why don't we have that everywhere? And don't come at me with,

the quote unquote reasons why. Yeah, I don't care. Like it's possible. So like we need to do this. ⁓ It's insane the amount of logistics that go into it and they have like a gazillion fucking people living there. I think we can do this in more places. And it's just amazing.

Renée (03:50)
The whole infrastructure and all that shit. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

We were

in awe, we were like underground, felt like Ninja Turtle style. We were like coming up from the fucking underground and it was like, we were looking around like how the fuck did they come down here? And like did they blow it up without blowing up the whole street? How does that happen?

Mara DeMauro (04:14)
Now!

Yeah!

Right, maybe come at me with how they do that part, but yeah, not how we can't do it in other places, but how they did that. ⁓ But it was, you know, one day I spent with my brother pretty much the whole day while Renee went off to an event and.

Renée (04:28)
how they do that, yeah, yeah. ⁓

You

Mara DeMauro (04:47)
⁓ we kept calling them like portals, like it's, it's like the closest thing to teleportation that I've experienced, which is a superpower that I always wish I had was just like, go underground, you go in this little tunnel thing and you just like, it shoots you out 20 minutes later and you're in a whole different world and you go back underground and you like traveling, shoot back out and you're like somewhere else. And it's like, come on, this is amazing. And. You know, I think when I visited in the past.

I didn't have that same awe or appreciation. That is definitely something that has enhanced with over my journey of being alcohol free. The dial on the awe, like A-W-E, ⁓ has just like ramped up. Like the smallest things amaze me. And because, yeah, like things aren't as dull.

Renée (05:32)
Mm, yeah.

Mara DeMauro (05:46)
And so something that I've experienced before several times that I just was kind like, yeah, whatever, has really blown me away. But yeah, ⁓ I...

I like hit quote unquote hit three years of being alcohol free. And I thought it'd be kind of fun to dive in to that a little bit. ⁓ Yeah.

Renée (06:11)
Yeah.

Well, and it's funny because it's like it wasn't, I didn't even know. I knew it was October, ⁓ but it's like one of these things that it wasn't the focal point for the trip or necessarily even for you. It was kind of one of these things that sort of unfolded while we were there. because of

Just like, of course, when we get together, we talk about things very in depth and like our journeys and where we are and what's going on and all of those things. And it was kind of one of these topics that was like, yeah, like, shit, you know, I need to celebrate this. Like we're in New York City and I haven't, you know, I've been alcohol free for three years, dude, which is like, it should be celebrated. ⁓ But I think it's so,

interesting how it's not necessarily or it wasn't necessarily at the forefront of your mind. Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (07:23)
Totally. We

talk about time and how it's not real or whatever and I'm like, yeah, time is not real because it's really not something that I've ever counted.

Renée (07:29)
haha

Mara DeMauro (07:40)
My life wasn't quote unquote falling apart because of my drinking habits. wasn't even a daily drinker or even weekly sometimes, you know, my style was more so like binge drinker occasionally. Um, but it was still, it was still like a knowing in me that it was a blockage to.

Renée (07:43)
Right.

Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (08:03)
my perception of everything else around me and my ability to meet everyday life with a little bit more intimacy. And so, you know, it wasn't something that I've like been counting down the days, you know, but it just dawned on me. ⁓ It really dawned on me because I was having a conversation with a family member about, you know, I'm super stoked to go to New York and it's going to be fun.

And they were like, whoa, well, don't have too much fun now. I was like, what do you mean? And they're like, yeah, you know, like, don't go off having a bunch of drinks or something. And I was like, OK, like, what? Like.

Renée (08:40)
Well, also

the term too that you said is like a slip up. Not you said that the family member of the conversation was like a slip up. It's like what?

Mara DeMauro (08:44)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Like, what does that mean? Like, because it's a... And I know they were, it was like a harmless comment from them. But it allowed me to like think about just like the language we use around these things and about our choice and this gray area space. Because, you know, when we traditionally think, or historically, whatever, think about people who decide to go alcohol free, ⁓

Renée (08:59)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (09:17)
It's because they, you know, their life is in shambles and they have to, and they can't even have one sip of alcohol. Otherwise, you know, it unravels for them. And for some people that is the case. So I'm not denying the reality of that. However, there are other people who choose not to drink just, you know, on a regular basis, just because they feel better when they don't. And if they wanted to have a drink, they could, they could have one and

Renée (09:28)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (09:46)
go back to not drinking for a long time in their life wouldn't fall apart. ⁓ And I happen to fall in that category. So to me, it wouldn't be a slip up, you know, like it would just be me having a drink like no big deal.

Renée (09:54)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Well, it's just you in New York,

it's just you in New York City. Like any other, yeah.

Mara DeMauro (10:04)
Yeah, like, whatever. Exactly.

And, you know, so it kind of got me thinking. was like, ooh, like, am I gonna party in New York City?

Renée (10:14)
we talked about it were like,

well, if there was a time, I guess, like maybe this would be it. I don't know. Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (10:21)
Right. ⁓

And, you know, so just kind of being playful with that. But in all honesty, at the end of the day, was like, no, it's just I guess it's it's wild to me to put like a number on something and be like, yeah, it's been three years since I like haven't done this thing. ⁓ Because. Commitment in general to a lot of things, you know, is.

is really challenging. There aren't many other things that I can say that I have been consistent with every single day for a big chunk of time. And so I guess that's kind of why it's kind of exciting to acknowledge. ⁓ And as we say all the time, it's not like I'm sitting here white-knuckling it, gripping like, OK, I hit three years. I'm like,

Renée (10:54)
Mm. Yeah.

Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (11:17)
I've actually literally never regretted this whole entire time not drinking. Like, not even once. ⁓

Renée (11:23)
Yeah, right, right. Well, and it's

just reflection. Like it's a time to reflect on that piece, which I think is worth celebrating, is your consistency with something not because, like you said, not because of like health reasons necessarily, or because you felt like you had to, but it's a lifestyle.

And I think that's maybe, you know, what I take away from your story too. It's implementing something into your life to where you don't even really necessarily think about it anymore. It's just second nature. Like this is sort of your, it's just kind of like how you live your life. And if you wanted to have one drink, it wouldn't then spiral your life into any kind of despair.

it would be okay, which is just like also just very like cool to see. Just like with my own journey too, like in situations like this going to New York City, fuck, it would have been a free for all probably. Like where are we going to the bars, especially in New York City, I think, because they are, know, foodie bar scene, everything's walkable. So it's like, you don't even have to worry about like.

getting a DD or Subway, you all that stuff. Like now that I'm reflecting back on this whole situation, it's like that would have been the highlight for me is like, okay, where are we going to go get some really cool, fun, fancy drinks? And instead we did so many other cool things. Which doesn't mean you can't have a drink, but.

Mara DeMauro (12:59)
Mm-hmm. Yep.

So I'm like, how, right,

like how would you even have time? That's the thing, like everything is a choice, right? Like you choose how you wanna spend your time. And dude, we were literally on the go from the minute we woke up till 11.30 at night, if not later. I haven't been like that exhausted after every single day. like, can you imagine us drinking on top of this? Like I actually can't, like.

Renée (13:34)
No. No.

Mara DeMauro (13:37)
how I would feel my body would feel it already needed so much rest. And then to put something in my body that would like prevent me from getting the best rest that I could like, I don't know. I don't know if I'd be able to do it.

Renée (13:49)
I couldn't,

absolutely not. We were walking like a minimum of five miles a day and also just navigating, which I think is super ironic because I am not, I'm very directionally challenged people, okay? And so the fact that I was on fucking Google Maps, figuring out the subway, like ⁓ if I was drunk doing that, we would have ended up on the other side of the city probably. Different kind of adventure.

Mara DeMauro (14:16)
different kind of adventures, which, you know, something to be

said for that too.

Renée (14:19)
Yeah, right, right.

Mara DeMauro (14:21)
You know, what I was thinking though too, like, because I think something that I always try to be mindful of is like when I talk about my alcohol-free journey, you know, whether for the good or the bad, someone could be like, well, you don't feel this way or whatever. It is something that I think about. I never want people to feel like I am trying to like be like my way is.

the right way, like be alcohol free and your life is gonna be amazing. Like, I don't wanna come off that way and I hope I don't, but, and it's out of my control. However, someone wants to perceive what I say, they perceive it that way. ⁓ However, I just like want people to know that my perception on all of this is that I believe we live in a world in which we have many layers of different things that keep us from being

Renée (14:48)
Mm.

Mara DeMauro (15:17)
our most confident, genuine, loving, authentic version of ourselves. ⁓ And alcohol happens to be one of those things for me. And was like in a very quiet way. And I'm sure there are many other things that also still have that barrier on me. I don't, but it just, how do I, I'm like stumbling on my words here because

Yeah, it's just like, it's, it's okay to start somewhere. Like maybe it's not alcohol for you, you know, maybe it's something else. And there's just all these layers that we can like peel back. And yeah, I just, this is happens to be the one thing that I chose. or one of the things that I chose that I stuck with that I feel like has really enhanced my life. ⁓ and so it's more of an invitation, invitation to anyone.

Renée (15:52)
Yeah. Right.

Mara DeMauro (16:17)
who is also curious about how it might, know, and knowing that like we're here, that's why we show up here to like encourage you and support you in whatever that layer might be for you. But it's regardless the messages to just numb less and live more. And that's what we're really moving towards to that conversation. this trip is just sort of a reflection of what can come about when you take on that perspective.

Renée (16:29)
Yeah.

Yeah, I, know, for me, it was escaping the thoughts and like the war that was going on in my own head when it came to my drinking and it was becoming something that was going to be detrimental for me. And so through this entire process, it's just an open invitation.

like you said, to kind of ask the question about what it is you really want from life. And I don't think we can be fully present to ask that question if we're numbing with whatever substance it is, whether that is social media, whether that is ⁓ actual substances like alcohol or drugs, or just overindulging in general to kind of push down those thoughts that are going on in your head.

And this entire trip, I just saw things from a completely different perspective with much clearer eyes to be able to be like, like at one point too, we split off. And so I was like, we were by ourselves, you know, and I was by myself, like figuring out this shit. And I don't know. I do know. I don't think I would have done that if

Mara DeMauro (18:02)
Couple times.

Renée (18:16)
I wasn't alcohol free. And maybe it's just easier for me and my brain to kind of process this shit to like equate those things with one another to be able to be like, yeah, that's the reason why I did that or whatever. But I really don't think that I would have the confidence in myself to know that even if I did get lost.

well, like I'll fucking figure it out. I have a phone, like I literally have a computer in my fucking hand. Like I can figure it out. so pushing past all of that, it's alcohol was such a crutch for me to kind of fall back on. And now I fall back on myself.

Mara DeMauro (18:46)
Right.

Mmm. Snaps, snaps. We have a guest here, goes by Quinoa. Yeah.

Renée (19:01)
Snaps for me.

Kiki!

my

God, so many dogs too, by the way. Perfect timing.

Mara DeMauro (19:12)
my God,

yes, so many dogs, so much fun saying hi to all of them. I was, what you said reminded me of, because you're like navigating the city. I feel like I had a really great ⁓ experience with so many people being really helpful, like and kind, like in the coffee shops, talkative and.

Renée (19:33)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (19:41)
You know, just like, Hey, which train is this? Immediately they tell you, you know, where to go. And I just thought that was really, really nice. Sometimes New Yorkers get a bad rep, you know, and it's like.

Renée (19:52)
Yeah,

we had a different experience. Yeah, it was.

Mara DeMauro (19:56)
Nice. ⁓

Something else fun I think we can kind of dive into are the synchronicities that happened along the way. Yeah, I feel like there are two, well, there are like three main ones that come to my head straight away. And if you think of any other ones, please. So the first one, you we show up to the Sober October event. ⁓

Renée (20:04)
my God, dude, this is like fucking crazy. So crazy.

Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (20:26)
hosted in partnership with Mobius and we're having this great conversation with this girl and she is talking about how she just quit her job of 11 year run working in advertising for big pharma. She's like, I couldn't do it anymore. Like, and I'm like, I don't blame you, you know, like sounds, sounds soul sucking for sure. And we were having just a really great conversation. You know, she's like, I've been in and out of doing alcohol free, you know, cycles and.

Renée (20:44)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (20:55)
just going about it. And then she, I think she asked like where I lived or something like that. And I was like, I'm actually, live in Charleston. She's like, no way. She was like, my parents just moved to John's Island a month ago. And I was like, what? Like someone who is literally born and raised in New York, just an hour outside, outside of Manhattan, you know, whose parents just moved to John's Island, which is like 15 minutes from me. And she's.

Renée (21:11)
What?

Mara DeMauro (21:26)
Visiting for Thanksgiving and for Christmas. And I was like, dude, like we exchanged numbers. She's like, I'd love to surf. Like I'll get a wetsuit. So we're going to hang out when she comes here. And I'm like, this is, it's just so fun to meet people in that spontaneous way. And I swear there's something with Charleston. It's like a vortex. Like everywhere I go, I kind of meet someone who's somehow connected. It's really fun. and that's just like, and then we ended up going out.

Renée (21:32)
Yeah!

Mara DeMauro (21:55)
to go dancing that night. We were just like, let's go. Unfortunately, it was too early for the city goers, 10.30 at night, for there to be much dancing. But we still tried.

Renée (21:57)
Yeah. Yeah.

It was too early for...

Ugh.

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, we even saw like South Carolina plates, I'm pretty sure when we were like walking around like the different cars and shit. And I was like, Whoa, that's kind of crazy. Yeah, the other synchronicity and I'll let you speak to that one with Andy. But what was that second one? I just lost it.

Mara DeMauro (22:14)
Yeah.

Yeah.

The second one I was going to talk about was running into my brother.

Renée (22:34)
⁓ yeah, okay, yeah, yeah, yeah, go ahead.

Mara DeMauro (22:38)
Like, so we decided, so we are about, we were about seven minute walk from my brother's place and every day when we'd go out on our adventure, we would take basically the same route. We take the same train and go from there. This day we were like, you know what? Let's go a totally different way. Let's the opposite direction, whatever.

And I was texting my brother about something, trying to get some recommendation. I don't know, a food, food for a quick bite to eat. Cause we're on our way to this event. And he responds kind of like an hour later. He's like, Oh, my bad. Sorry. I'm just seeing this. Um, I was in, I was in the seat at the barber and I was like, okay, no worries. And I know, I know there's barbers everywhere. I'm like, this is amazing. And so we're walking, you know, I put my phone away. We're walking, we're going over this big bridge. Do you know what bridge that was?

Renée (23:08)
Yeah.

Also, what a New York answer. ⁓

⁓ I don't.

Mara DeMauro (23:34)
Okay, me either. It wasn't the Brooklyn Bridge. Right. Right. Right. But anyway, we're walking over this bridge and I'm just looking at all these people walking the bridge. And Renee's like, hi. And I'm look at her and I'm like, who are you saying hi to? And Renee is just like looking at me and I'm like, okay. And then I like look back over and my brother is fucking standing right there. And I was like,

Renée (23:36)
No, I was about to say that, but I was like, I'm just saying that because we stayed in Brooklyn and that's the only bridge that we walked over, so probably not.

Mara DeMauro (24:05)
We're both just like, huh? Like it was this like It took me It took me a minute. I Was like, what are you doing here? Like I was literally, you know, we're talking about teleportation It was just another moment of that. Like I just I have no idea where my brother's barber is like, you know, it could have been

Renée (24:09)
You were so surprised. You were like, who the fuck are you talking to?

Mara DeMauro (24:27)
anywhere in the damn city. And this this guy happens to be walking right over the bridge. He also went to a store and got some food to cook with. And we just happened to be passing each other at the same exact time. And he was even like, this doesn't happen. Like, this is rare. And yeah, we were just like, whoa, it was just so fun. ⁓ And it was just kind of like that feeling of like, yeah, like, we're home. You know, my brother and I haven't lived in the same we haven't lived in the same

Renée (24:43)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (24:57)
place in Miami where we grew up for many, years. And it was kind of that feeling like, oh, we both kind of live in Brooklyn and we just like happen to see each other. And it was just like, yeah, a silly, yeah, wholesome.

Renée (25:00)
Mm.

Yeah. Wholesome. So wholesome.

Yeah. And then the other one too, like you, this one wasn't even really mine. It was your Uber ride back to the hotel and you were talking with the Uber driver and what did he say? guess his daughter was moving or had just moved to the coming Georgia area, which is

For those of you that don't know, that's kind of, it's where I grew up and where I'm from.

Mara DeMauro (25:38)
Yeah.

Yeah. So to even preface that even more, like Renee grew up in Cumming, Georgia, small ass town in Georgia, you know, and I'm in this Uber drive, 11 o'clock at night. And he's like, you know, dude's from West Africa. He's like, I've lived in the city for 20 years. It's great. And I'm like, okay. I was like, if you could live anywhere else, where would you want to go? And he's like, ⁓

Renée (25:48)
Small, yeah.

Mara DeMauro (26:07)
He's like, I really like Georgia. I was like, really? was like, part of Georgia? And he's like, well, my daughter went to whatever the high school is, one of the high schools in Cumming. Yeah. And I was like, it sounded kind of familiar. And then he's like, you know, Cumming, Georgia. And I was like...

Renée (26:16)
So yeah, central I think, yeah.

Mara DeMauro (26:26)
I wish I had it recorded, yeah. I was like, what do you mean? Coming to Georgia, how do you know? I'm not even, I'm from the States and I had no idea. And that's what I mean. I may be pretty ignorant.

Renée (26:26)
Excuse me? Yeah.

Yeah.

Well, and that's the thing, like when people ask where I'm from, usually I'll say like Atlanta or something like that because everybody fucking knows Atlanta. So when you told me that, when you got, you're like, I have to tell you something. When you got back into the hotel room, was like, holy shit, there's no fucking way, dude. That's just crazy. It's so crazy. Oh, man. OK. And then I feel like the last sort of big one is meeting up with our old buddy from grad school.

Mara DeMauro (26:47)
Mm-hmm.

Right.

Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. That's pretty funny.

Renée (27:11)
which is so, like I still too remember admiring Andy so much ⁓ because like at that time and now for his entrepreneurial spirit, even back then, we really need to. Yeah, absolutely, for sure. Yeah, ⁓ his story is just like absolutely incredible, inspiring. He is by far, I think, probably the nicest dude I've ever.

Mara DeMauro (27:24)
We should bring them on the pod. We should bring them on. It's fucking great.

Renée (27:40)
that I've ever met. Like he is just so kind and thoughtful and just very uplifting. Like he is someone that you want in your camp for sure. So I'll let you I'll let you tell the story because you reach or yeah, you reach out to him. Social media is a fucking crazy thing, y'all. Like totally crazy.

Mara DeMauro (27:42)
hundred steps.

I know it's like

pros and cons per usual, but yeah, I was, happened to be on social media and I'm scrolling at night in bed and like, shouldn't be. And I see a story that Andy posted and he's like, it's like a selfie first time in the city. I was like, Andy, I was like, you're in the city. I'm like, I'm here with Renee from Armstrong. And I was like, we're also nearby. And he was like,

Renée (28:01)
Mm-hmm

Mara DeMauro (28:25)
What? He's like, no way. I was like, I would love to see you. He's like, no way. I'm also in the city with, you know, Thomas from Armstrong. And I was like, what the fuck? And, you know, we all went to grad school together. And so he's like, OK. I was like, well, we're going to be in Manhattan tomorrow for a Broadway show at seven. And he's like, we're going to be in Manhattan tomorrow at seven for a Broadway show. And I was like.

Renée (28:36)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (28:53)
Okay. And he's like, Yeah, do you want to grab dinner before? And, you know, so we did. And just like Renee said, like, he's, he's amazing. Thomas is amazing. We just had such a nice conversation around really like the pros and cons of like working in quote unquote corporate sector and kind of that lifestyle versus doing the mix and match piece your, you know, different types of jobs together to make ends meet type of jobs.

Renée (29:13)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (29:22)
And just entrepreneurial ship. This guy had, you know, he, he was born in the States, but his family was from Costa Rica, moved back to Costa Rica. Like when he was a little kid, then came over to back to the States by himself when he was 15 to go to high school, put himself through college, grad school. And I just remember in grad school, he already had a couple of businesses going, you know, and I was like,

Renée (29:47)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (29:49)
It was like just something that never even crossed my mind. I was like, how is this kid doing this? Like why? What? was always really intrigued with his journey. And yeah, I would love to bring him on because he really is just so inspiring. And yeah. Yeah.

Renée (29:54)
Yeah.

He was light years ahead, like light years ahead with his just thought process.

And, you know, he, his first company that I remember is like a food delivery service in Savannah. And this was before DoorDash, before Uber Eats. It's fucking crazy, dude. Crazy. Terby. Yeah, I think so. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So cool.

Mara DeMauro (30:18)
Yup. Terby, right? Yeah. Amazing. Yeah.

So needless to say, and there were other synchronicities in there, you know, but I'm not going to sit here and bore you with all of them. But if you're into that kind of stuff, this trip was definitely filled with that. And it was, it's just like little moments of like that feel like magic, you know, it's like, it doesn't necessarily have to mean anything super crazy, but it feels fun and it feels exciting and

That's all that matters. That's all I fucking care about. I'm like, ooh, ooh, ooh.

Renée (30:50)
Yeah,

I was going to say that exact same term, just magical. It feels like that last puzzle piece, like you find that last puzzle piece and you put it in the open space. You know what I mean? Like it's that, that feeling of you're where you're supposed to be. Like there's no other, like fitting that ⁓ the round and the round or the square and the square piece. Like you're just where you're supposed to be and being able to also

Mara DeMauro (31:09)
Mm-hmm.

Renée (31:20)
be fully aware in my thoughts at that moment and being so present and not flooding my system with worrying about all the shit I should be doing or what I, know, all of this other shit that usually comes with anxiety and just the challenges of life. ⁓ Just so thankful to be surrounded by people who

are so helpful and uplifting and who also want to have a good time. Also shout out to Jamie Stevenson. She is the ⁓ operational manager at the Barclays Center. She got up early and took me on a tour of the Barclays Center. That's just a good fucking person to me. She's got her own life. She's got her own shit going on. She's got her kid. She's got her job. But she took the time to...

Mara DeMauro (32:07)
Yeah, yeah.

Renée (32:15)
Meet with me. I've never met her in person. We've only exchanged messages through text and email. And she's like, yeah, come down. I'll show you around. It's like a private tour. And no cost, no nothing, just because she's so passionate about what she does. ⁓ And I just think that that's something that we can all do that costs nothing. It's just having that.

Mara DeMauro (32:28)
Right.

Right.

Renée (32:41)
really good attitude and of course it's not going to be all the time, but just extending that hand to listen to somebody else's story and see if you can help them in some way. know? Magic.

Mara DeMauro (32:52)
Yeah. Yeah. Totally.

Yeah. Magic. What do you feel like was the. Well, first of all, I wanted to say that I. How you said ⁓ it's like this feeling of being in the right place at the right time. It's yeah, it's like this. There's so many moments throughout my day where I'm like, I don't feel like I'm in the right place at the right time. What should I be doing? I'm not doing it. ⁓

And I think I'm going to ponder on, on that connection for a bit because that those moments of synchronicity, that is exactly what it feels like you are in the right place at the right time. And so how do you build more of that throughout, you know, our everyday, or, know, as much as we can and, and maybe when we don't feel those, like, those like super high synchronistic situations.

Renée (33:38)
Mmm.

Mara DeMauro (33:51)
how can we maybe feel it in a different way to know that we are where we're supposed to be. That's okay. But it's such an insured feeling. It's like a fucking warm hug.

Renée (33:57)
Yeah.

Yes,

yeah, totally. It's like, yeah, it's that safety piece ⁓ that I think that we all crave just as human beings looking for connection, looking for answers. And a lot of the times I think we strive to find those answers outside of ourselves. And we're constantly searching when

Mara DeMauro (34:07)
Yeah.

Renée (34:31)
In reality, it's like you can do that shit for yourself. And I know that that's difficult to say, and I know that's not tacti... tactical, tangible ⁓ for people sometimes, which, you know, of course I struggle with too. It's like, how do I do that? Tell me how to do that. ⁓ And how do you grasp situations like that when it's not necessarily something that you can grab? ⁓ But it's a feeling. And I think the more that we...

Mara DeMauro (34:41)
Heh.

Renée (35:01)
get acquainted with what our presence feels like and realizing that just existing, we talked about this right before we hopped on, just existing is enough. Your joy and what you bring to this world and how you interact with the world and how you interact with other people, like, that's good enough. It's more than enough. And I need to remind myself of that too.

Mara DeMauro (35:05)
Mmm.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah. Yeah.

Right. I know. everything we say is like, because it's a reminder for ourself, never like above this shit. like, what is happening? ⁓ Yeah. What would you say is like your biggest highlight or takeaway from the trip?

Renée (35:37)
Yeah.

I know.

want to say how proud I am of myself, I think, which I touched upon a little bit of pushing through some fears of like doing the opposite of what I would normally do. there was a, like we were going, we're getting off the plane. We met each other and I started feeling that anxiety. I was like, you know.

Just take an Uber. Fuck it. Like I'll spend the money. I don't care. Whatever. And you know, like, let's take this up. Let's do it. Like we can do this. And I was like, OK. And then we get down there and there's so many fucking people. And I'm like, this is my worst fucking nightmare. Oh, my God. I was like, this is terrible. But then we get on. It's fine. And then I ended up really embracing this, like embracing it. And I really,

Mara DeMauro (36:47)
You became

the navigator.

Renée (36:49)
I gay

became the navigator, which is so ironic. so, yeah, I just, I'm proud of myself for kind of like pushing through some of those fears and realizing that I can do shit by myself. I really can. And that I'm my biggest cheerleader, but also like, I just had a really fun time just in general, connecting with people and networking and just getting to know people.

Mara DeMauro (37:15)
Yeah.

Renée (37:18)
That was just such a fun ⁓ thing for me because I think with leaving Gulfstream and not being in a normal setting where I'm around people every day so much anymore, it was just really nice to connect ⁓ with people who are interested in the same topics. I sat and talked to the same group of people almost the entire time at that event because he was talking about neuroplasticity and just

different things and different topics that I'm also interested in. So it's just really fun to surround yourself with people like that who are, have different perspective, but still there's like a through line where you can kind of resonate. Yeah, it was just a good fucking time. It also made me really grateful for the life that I have here. Like my creature comforts and like, wow, you know, I'm really fucking lucky to...

Mara DeMauro (37:56)
Yeah.

Yes.

Yeah.

Renée (38:18)
And it's not just about the possessions, but just the people I have in my life and the decisions that I've made. I'm just really fucking happy with it. What about you?

Mara DeMauro (38:29)
Yeah.

Yeah. No, I love everything he said. And I feel like I second that just in. ⁓

I think, yeah, the highlights were, I don't know, the synchronicities, the, just, just watching people. Like I've, I've just, how many different ways there, there are to do life and just being totally, totally amazed by it. Um, yeah, I could just, I could have spent more time there. Um,

Renée (38:50)
Mm.

Mara DeMauro (39:04)
And I'm excited to go back and I'm really like, was really grateful to come home to my home, you know, and have, I have a lot of access to the outdoors here and greenery. And that is something that, ⁓ sometimes I guess I can take for granted or kind of see pasts and, ⁓ yeah, that's why I guess it's so.

Renée (39:12)
Yeah.

⁓

Mara DeMauro (39:31)
enriching to travel even within our own bound, you know, our own borders, because you know, you can just really like see a lot of differences and a lot of similarities too and learn so much. And I just, I just find that really fascinating. So.

Renée (39:37)
Yeah.

Yeah,

step out of your bubble. And yeah, I agree with like the nature piece for sure. Like there are green spaces. We went to Prospect Park and that was really, really fun. Just seeing all the different types of people there. ⁓ Young, old, like all facets of different people, which is just exciting to see. like, yeah, we were walking around and it's like, there's just a lot of buildings and concrete and

Mara DeMauro (39:59)
Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah.

Renée (40:18)
It's like, where do you put your feet in grass? Like, I don't fucking know. Like,

where are these dogs take a shit? It's on the side of the street. Okay. Like that's just like how life is. And ⁓ yeah, it's just, it's so, it's different, but I like that. I like being surrounded by things that kind of push you out of your comfort zone and that you're not really used to, cause it gives you perspective. Yeah. Right on dude.

Mara DeMauro (40:24)
Yeah. Right.

Yeah.

Yeah, totally. So fun.

Highly recommend 10 out of 10. you know, this is like one of those things that people will pick. So, know, when there's nothing else to say, like, how's the weather? But like literally the weather was amazing. It was sunny and a little bit crisp. And that can really change your perspective and experience of, you know, being a visitor somewhere. And I was, it was absolutely the best.

Renée (40:53)
It was.

Yeah, put a pep in my step for sure. Like when I feel that fall Christmas and that's something that I miss, you know, being closer to like North Georgia and the mountains is more of that seasonal change, which we just don't really get in the low country. We get maybe like one or two trees that change for a little while. But yeah, that crispness just like awakens something in me that I'm like, my God, I love this shit. Just makes me feel so good.

Mara DeMauro (41:09)
The whole time? Yeah.

of our entry.

Yeah.

Renée (41:37)
call me a stereotypical white woman, but I love the fall. And that's just, backs it up. Like, what do want me to do? It is what it is. What do you want me to do? ⁓ Well, it was so fun traveling with you, Maro. Like, you push me to do things that I normally, you're like, you want to go to the same coffee shop? Let's go to a different coffee shop.

Mara DeMauro (41:45)
What do want us to do? Yeah. Loved it. Loved it.

I know.

Renée (42:04)
And what happened? There was a dog there that really took a liking to me that really made my day. And, Kiefer I think is, yeah, Kiefer.

Mara DeMauro (42:11)
yeah!

His name was Kiefer? Hmm.

Renée (42:18)
I might be making that up. No, I think that's what it was. He was so fucking cute and she was like, my God, he really likes you. That made my day and I have one of the best cappuccinos. do the thing that you normally don't do.

Mara DeMauro (42:19)
I know.

Wow. That's,

it's so funny. Yeah. Because like, I didn't even remember, like, I don't even remember saying that. Like now that you bring it up, I do, but it's something that I was just like, really? You want to go to the same one? Let's go somewhere else. Like, but it had an impact on you in a certain way, you know? And I was like, ⁓ you know, but I, I agree. Like I had so much fun, like traveling with you and it's just so nice to travel with someone like you're on the same page and

Renée (42:39)
Yeah.

Yeah, Yeah.

Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (42:57)
We're we both have like interests and you know, maybe similar things and some different things and we're able to like split up and come back together and then we like talk about it and you know, and then both of us being flexible with like you want to go to this? Okay, let's go do this. You know, definitely moments of like I thought my feet were going to fall off. Fucking trekking 30 miles through the city and fucking Doc Martens like they're so heavy. ⁓ But you know, yeah.

Renée (43:12)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Good thing we had Band-Aids, we're prepped.

Mara DeMauro (43:26)
Band-Aid Band-Aids. ⁓

Renée (43:27)
Yeah.

Mara DeMauro (43:29)
So yeah, so grateful. So thank you.

Renée (43:31)
Yeah, it was fun.

Yeah, so just to talk to... my God, dude, Wicked. It was my first Broadway show, you guys. And I cried. I did. I cried. The costumes, that close, being that close to like these entertainers, artists, like true, true thespians. Like, bro, it was just like, it was... ⁓

Mara DeMauro (43:34)
And we saw Wicked!

I tried too.

Renée (43:57)
It was so, so incredible. Like I understand now why people are like obsessed with Broadway. So, ⁓ yeah, it was was absolutely incredible. And we also wanted to, which I kind of forgot what we were going to do this at the beginning. But just talking a little bit too quickly about Nose Dive, you know, we for those of you who have been with us since January when we launched this podcast. First of all, thanks for staying.

Mara DeMauro (44:05)
Yeah.

Renée (44:26)
this long. We love being able to do this and bring conversations to you that we think might be helpful, but we're shifting a little bit, ⁓ kind of in the same premise of removing and reducing things that can kind of us out. ⁓ But yeah, numbing less, living more. And I think the shift for us here is bringing you more people and guests who are living lifestyles that are non-conventional.

that are kind of out of the status quo to really show you guys like what's possible when we do start to push past that fear and really get into the nitty gritty of what it is we want from life because we only get one and we want to fucking live it and we want to have a good fucking time doing it. So

not only just listening to our experiences, but bringing you experiences from people who we just think are cool and are odd and maybe a little weird and just doing really cool shit that we think could be beneficial to you. Mara, do you have anything to add to that too?

Mara DeMauro (45:33)
No, it's like Mike job. think that's amazing. I'm really excited to continue to have these conversations and meet people. ⁓ It's like, it's literally what I've always wanted to do or what I have always enjoyed doing is like being out and about and meeting someone and having a conversation. Like my friends make jokes about it. I'm like, I fucking love it. So I'm stoked.

Renée (45:47)
Yeah.

Yeah, yeah,

yeah. So we've got some really exciting guests coming your way in the next ⁓ couple episodes. We've got people who are in the alcohol free space, people who are in the dating space, so bring some relationship things to the table. We've got coaches. We've got all different people from all different walks of life.

We hope that you stay tuned with us. If you ever have any topics to that you want us to cover or if you think that there's someone who you think we need to talk to, shoot us an email at info at nosedive-co.com. Of course, follow us on all the Instagrams and all those things. And until next time, guys, peace.

Mara DeMauro (46:37)
Yeah, we'll

see you then. See ya.