SWAP-A-THON 2024: Floaties for Krakens

Welcome to the third insidious installation of Susto's 2024 Swap-A-Thon! This week we are visited by Floaties for Krakens!

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Hi Cuttlefish! ^-^

Welcome to Season 2 Episode 14 of Floaties for Krakens - A podcast about the monsters in your head, but reclaiming them instead.

WELCOME! Just a quick reminder that Season 1 in its entirety is available to stream on Spotify, and Season 3 is currently underway on YouTube. Go check it out!

The following episode is a bit of a throwback to our Pride Month Special called “Lavender for Monsters”. It was a beautiful four part series where we explored the intersections and power within Queerness and monstrosity.

I’m going to begin this episode description with a phenomenal quote introduced to me by our guest of honor, Robin today. This quote is by Cuban American Queer Activist and Academic Jose Esteban Munoz:

“Queerness is not yet here. Queerness is an ideality. Put another way, we are not yet queer, but we can feel it as the warm illumination of a horizon imbued with potentiality. We have never been queer, yet queerness exists for us as an ideality that can be distilled from the past and used to imagine a future. The future is queerness's domain. (p. 1)”― José Esteban Muñoz, Cruising Utopia: The Then and There of Queer Futurity

Let’s hear it for the beauties, complexities, and histories to come for Queerness. Robin Gow (it/fae/he & él y elle) is a poet and witch from rural Pennsylvania. It is the author of several poetry, Middle Grade, and Young Adult books. It works as a community educator on topics of LGBTQIA2+ and disability justice.

Robin is a literal ray of sunshine. My goodness, I’m not kidding. The work that Fae does to explore the brilliance of Queerness in all of its monstrous complexities is nothing short of astronomical. Please, go check out this beautiful soul’s poetry work Monstrous Cartography and all of the other outstanding works in Faer repertoire. Thank you so much for doing this show Robin, and I’m so excited to now call you a friend.

Today’s episode is all about the kindest person in the world Robin Gow, Robin’s mastery in writing and poetry, the power of a ghost story, how monsters become manifestation of what society doesn’t understand, Robin’s PHENOMENAL new poetry book Monstrous Cartography, the relatability of “Queer Sea Monsters”, Robin’s partner Rain and his monstrous watercolor mastery, the tears of the Squonk, Robin’s explorations of Mothman, Climate Grief, the fears of endless wandering, the amazing Paranorman film, and how Robin and myself will forever be proud, proud, crybabies; because feeling “too much” is a superpower.

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Content Warnings:Mentions and discussions of mental health complexities, depression, grief, and the beauties, trials, and tribulations of growing up QueerMisophonia: Snaps, Pops, Clicks, and Hisses throughout the episode. -

Robin’s Monstrous Mentions:Instagram: @ robin_gow_poet TikTok: @ robin_gow_poet & @ transdemontologist Website: robingow.com Monstrous Cartography: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/monstrous-cartography-robin-gow/1145307923?ean=9798990348837 Dear Mothman: https://store.abramsbooks.com/products/dear-mothman -

Mental Health Resources:LGBTQQIP2SAA+ Mental Health Resources: The Trevor Project: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/category/mental-health/ Domestic Violence Resources: https://www.thehotline.org/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=domestic_violence National Institute of Mental Health: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/find-help 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: https://988lifeline.org/ Disaster Distress Helpline: https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/disaster-distress-helpline National Alliance on Mental Health: NAMI HelpLine is available M-F 10 a