Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:02 Hey movers and shakers and happy mother's day to all you funky mamas out there. Thank you for tuning in to this super special super bonus episode. Today I time travel to have a conversation with myself 35 years in the future, AKA, I had a conversation with my mom. I thought there might be no better way to get my mom to come on the pod than to create a new mother's day tradition, a cross interview, mother-daughter podcast. So without any further ado, here is the first installation of mother's day conversations over coffee with my mom, the seamstress, the philosopher, and the dancer, Stephanie Wilson. Enjoy
Speaker 1 00:50 happy mother's day. Happy coffee. I know you've got brunches to go to and little kids to chase and diaper and stuff. So really quickly, I want to introduce you. This is my mom, Stephanie. Also known, maybe even better known as Stan. And the reason that is is because your kids are lazy and we, all three of us prefer to abbreviate names, right? Um, Dana obviously, which is way too long to bother anyone. Uh, turns into Dan Taylor. My brother turns into tan Adrian. My sister turns into an, and obviously Stephanie turns into Stan, you're, you're, you're a woman of many skills and many, many talents. If you say something, um, and I, speaking of skills, have a and talents have a talent for misplacing things. I had some interview questions written out for you and now I don't know, how does that happen? Hold on. Okay, I'm holding. How did I really, mom, I read them like we had to rehearsal, right? You don't admit that. I just admitted it. Where did all my good questions go? You had some, I don't know. Was it on my to do list? This is making costumes. This is me being
Speaker 1 02:40 unprofessionally.
Speaker 0 02:42 Yeah.
Speaker 1 02:44 Also, uh, a funny, a funny moment just now as I was trying to send you the zoom link, accidentally sent you the link that I had last copied, which could have gone so wrong. But fortunately for you and me, um, and entertainment, I sent you a link to, uh, those plastic segmented kids jump jumping ropes, the beaded ones of many different colors. Do you remember the sting of those little podium? If you ever got nipped by one of those, Ooh, feel for days we actually had jump ropes, made a rope and you had to walk to school uphill both ways in the freezing cold, right? Burying our suitcases, cause we didn't even have backpacks in mini skirts. We weren't allowed to wear jeans to school. Let's make it worse than sneakers because we didn't have fashion boots. No fashion boots. What'd you do without fashion?
Speaker 1 03:50 That's the worst part. They invented Gogo boots like when I was in junior high and that was like Gogo boots. I wore them out and then Adrian did a competition number two. These boots are made for walking by Nancy Sinatra. I bought little Gogo boots, which are white and straight up. They're not shaped and they go, not even mid shin. They're lower than mentioned, but they're not ankle boots and I made the cutest little checkerboard sequined dress with fringe on it. I think we might need some photo evidence of that. Okay. We might have to find some, Ooh, Ooh, now I'll find it later. I have a pen with a picture of her. Oh, that's exactly what we need. I know the one you're talking about. I remember it. Yeah. Okay. Um, so, okay. So I'm gonna, I'm gonna freestyle my interview questions. Okay. So we had a VHS tape that is somewhere it got digitized and that DVD is also somewhere maybe being used as a coaster or living in a box somewhere probably in my closet somewhere somewhere.
Speaker 1 05:02 And it's called the Dana funny tape, which is actually a very unfair title because Adrian, my older sister is also in the video and she's hysterical. Um, I don't know why we call it the Dana funny tape, but I can be seen in that video of which you are the camera operator. Most of the time I'm dancing in front of the TV to Sesame street in my little diaper and I use the word dancing very loosely. Many years later I would dance in front of a TV that had like Brittany Spears and in sync on it. And then maybe one or two years after that I'd be dancing in front of a TV that had Justin Timberlake on it. And then one day was dancing on TV with Justin Timberlake. And that's pretty much how it happened. But it wouldn't have happened if you didn't put me in dance class when I was three and keep me in there despite my best efforts. So my question
Speaker 3 05:58 to you, Stan, is why dance? In other words, why not? Why not soccer? I didn't know soccer. I didn't know what soccer is. That my question was like not on my radar. I had, um, I put Adrian in dance at three because one day I was driving down the street and I saw a dance studio opening up and I went, Oh, that looks like fun. And um, then we, she was in the first class when she was three and you were born, you were a newborn. And I sat and watched the first class and the first couple of classes with you as a newborn lying on my lap on my legs. So it made logical sense then when you were three to put you in the dance class. And I think that dance has always been the thing I wanted to do. We could, mom couldn't do dance classes for us really, but at one point, my grandmother paid for us to have ballet lessons from this little lady.
Speaker 3 07:06 I'm the skinny little lady and she would March just across the floor and somewhere we have a family movies, super eight movie, probably black and white of us in a ballet class with this lady. And that was my first love, uh, dance. And then I did some dance classes in high school. My mind is blown. I had no idea. I was maybe six and Nikki would have been if I was six. Nikki was five, four, three now. So I must've been a little bit, maybe I was chatting and Nikki was seven and Michelle was sick. Maybe it was that. Speaking of speaking of Nicki and mothers, happy birthday, happy birthday. Happy mother's day on Nikki, but also happy mother's day. Charlene, could you just do a run through of this, of your siblings real quick? Yes. My mother had me when she was 18 and by the time she was 30 she had had Stephanie, Peter, bill, Nicki, Michelle, Mark, Andrea, David, Melanie, Christopher, and George.
Speaker 3 08:13 And George George jr. I still can't do those in the correct order. Try so try as I might. Um, okay, so happy mother's day. Happy mother's day. All my aunties. Happy mother's day, Stan. Um, and great answer to question number one. Woo. Woo. Okay, now you go. Okay. Question for you. Okay. Um, wait, do you have something? Do you have something in the house that's dinging every now and then? Oh, I'm getting text messages. Don't, don't worry about it. You're a popular lady. It's mother's day. I'm not going to stop you. Okay Darren. I had a job that let me travel a lot in case you hadn't noticed and it had upsides. Downsides cause I was gone when you broke your arm. I came home and you have a broken arm. But also I got to travel with you a lot. So can you tell me how if you're a member, much of that child will cause I made a list of where I think we went. And how your life as a child traveler helped you in your life as a person on tour.
Speaker 1 09:17 I'm looking at you asking the good questions. The hours, the money. That was a really good question. Okay. So that was like a six part question. It was a very Dana style question cause it's pretty, one question is like six sub questions. So number one was if I remember and number two. Okay, I'll recall some of those. Um, and then, and then the, the meat of the question is how did that prepare me for, for tour life or my career? My life life. Um, okay. The first trip that I remember was to London when I must have been nine. Oh that's not true. Eight. I was eight. I do remember that trip vaguely. Then I really, I remember going to London, I remember the jacket that I brought with me, this big pink thing. And I remember um, Yaya, your mom was also there with us and she was very nervous about bringing me because she thought that I would misbehave and you told me that she had a nightmare about me misbehaving.
Speaker 1 10:28 And so I was deliberately on my very, very best behavior. I tried to be so charming. And I also remember going to the London dungeon, which also made me want to cry. I remember wanting to cry a lot when I was young and I think I actually did cry a lot when I was young. But, um, if she nods in agreement, um, we went through the London dungeon, which was, uh, this kind of like amusement, like Madame Tussaud's wax museum, amusement park of ancient medieval torture stuff, which sounds like a great place to bring your eight year old.
Speaker 1 11:09 Um, and, but at the end of it, after I got through all this torture and wanting to cry, there was a candy store at the end and we got, um, uh, gummy, all the gummy things. My mom is a big gummy fan and so am I. I think you and I actually share the exact same taste buds. Um, but I got, I remember getting Coke bottles, you know, they have the big gummy Coke bottles, but I was so small, I thought it was actual sized that, you know. Um, and then I, we had a big gummy shark and I'll never forget the way that plastic candy bag felt in the pocket of that big pink coat. I also remember you getting annoyed that all I wanted to do was feed the pigeons and that carried over into, uh, we, we went to Greece when I was 12 and my family is Greek.
Speaker 1 11:58 It was, uh, it was a big moment. We went with grandma and grandpa, he was speaking Greek all over the place and I was working on, uh, where's the bathroom please? I think although I do remember picking up language and, and pieces of language really fast, like very easily when I was young anyways, I loved pigeons. I really loved the birds. I remember you being very interested in the changing of the guard in London. And I was nowhere to be found cause I was feeding birds somewhere like I bought, you know, for some tuppins a bag somewhere I'd make feeding the birds. And in Greece I threw a tantrum at 12 year old tantrum because I wanted a leather satchel to keep bird seat in. Everywhere we went, I couldn't feed and I wanted to buy this leather bag from the Placa that like the market.
Speaker 1 12:51 And um, that was a note that was a hard no, but then we went to Mykonos and do you remember this? We went to make a note and it rained all day long and there was a guy, a jewelry shop that was trying to sell rings some, some rings and we were looking at our birthstones for me and Adrian. And uh, so you wouldn't buy me a leather bag, but you were looking at these rings, these expensive rings and you didn't buy them and you regretted it and you always regretted it after that. Cause they were a great deal. Turns out, sorry, sorry to bring up a sore subject. I guess what I didn't need. It turns out I'm fine,
Speaker 3 13:31 but that is my, that is my memory of Mykonos. It was beautiful. Even in the gloomy rain. It was beautiful. I remember that. And I remember they were desperate to make a sale because it was gloomy and there was nobody spending my, nobody walking these rings were beautiful and I loved them. And I thought I wanted one for me too, probably. Yeah. And you guys are going, no mom, cause you didn't like that. They were pressuring me, pressuring me, fear, um, awareness even then. And they were pressuring, pressuring and new and Adrian didn't like that, but I loved the rain was, and I was getting this negative idea or probably like, well I couldn't have the leather bag.
Speaker 1 14:14 Right.
Speaker 3 14:17 Um, yeah, I didn't get them. And I thought, well, we'll just get them in Athens and never saw them again. Anything is beautiful. They were elegant, simple. They're beautiful. So maybe that's the lesson life lesson. If you see it and you love it, there are times to indulge your impulses,
Speaker 1 14:34 especially on mother's day, especially on mother's day. Uh, okay, next question. Okay. What does it mean to be a dance mom? Not the reality TV type, but what did it mean for you to be a dance mom?
Speaker 3 14:51 Well that's a really good one because yeah, I think now, especially the, the first image that people have is that kind of dance mom. And maybe there was a little bit of that in me. I suppose everybody wants the best for their kid and thinks their kid is the best, but what it really was, um, it was a way to be involved in something that was artful and beautiful with the kids. Mmm. You for the most part seem to like it. I think the best, okay. Off the top of my head, one of the best things about it was driving to and from dance cause some of our best conversations, we're in the car staring straight ahead, driving over cherry Creek down that time that you spend in the car with your kids. Just getting them to and from the dancing things. And another thing about it is, um, that it gave a structure just as I'm sure soccer or football gives a structure to your day, to your life, you have ABC.
Speaker 3 15:57 And especially now if I really kind of missed that places to have to be and have to go. But also, I dunno. Cheering for your kid, making things for your kid, making things for your kids group. Yeah. Talk about your, uh, your costumes. Costuming. Yeah, so costuming started out really, I didn't know what I was doing. I had no idea. I think the first one I really made was a white leotard that I, just, a white leotard that I had bought and then I found some stretchy sequent elastic and attached a little white skirt. We still have it in Adrian's house and she wore it over the top hat and a cane and did a cute little top hat and Kang thing. This little white, I made a little fake skirting off for back. Oh, something about a skunk. Was it like, or no, that was, that was a group number, but then she did it as a solo. But anyway, dance, talk, dead stop. And then you, I did that pink pajamas the night, took a pair of bunny slippers and glued it onto tap shoes. Wait a second, show me that. Those are buddy's slippers.
Speaker 1 17:05 If you are listening, you're going to have to take a visit over to the words that move me podcast, Instagram page, where I will be sure to include some of the gems, the visual gyms from this conversation that you cannot see.
Speaker 3 17:22 Okay. You've gone though. So I started making costumes just for my kids and that was kind of inevitable that that teacher said, well, can you do this tree out when you guys were in a tree or something? And uh, so by the time you got to Michelle's Michelle Adams, shout out to the best woman. Look, it's you running their podcast. I love this. No, good. That was great. Shout out Michelle Latimer dance
Speaker 1 17:50 Academy in Inglewood.
Speaker 3 17:51 Hello. Oh, so when I, then I started doing costumes for, for her and the biggest Singh, the single biggest project I remember being a production number that was fairies, a magical fairy number. I do not remember the music. It came on the heels of a smaller number that I had done for Mark and Sandra Carlson, who were your ballet teachers and they were doing an independent, um, Midsummer night's dream ballet performance in Boulder at the Mary rip on theater at CU. And so they weren't truly each costume unique. We did each of the adult fairies just so a theory really. And it was just beautiful on a Corolla. Oh, that's it. I'm holding up a photo. That's it. Yeah. Collaborating with Sandra was amazing. We just had this great, ideally we would just played off each other so well. So anyway, had done that and then somehow that inspiration or those costumes made it to the thing with Michelle. And the number that comes to mind is like we did, there were 72 kids and I, um, it took me like virtually most of the academic year to do that. And I didn't pay tuition. Yeah. Didn't know what to charge. And Michelle does.
Speaker 1 19:10 I didn't charge tuition. That's special. Thank you for doing that. I remember our living room turned into a fairy poop glitter and it was chiffon. And, um, you made the wings by stretching tights or pantyhose over folded hangers and then you hand painted every, every pair of wings was different. Those were gorgeous. We've got to find some more photos.
Speaker 3 19:35 We have some of them. I do have to find more of that. So, so that art outlet was what that was for me. It was a creative outlet. So being advanced mom was like art and it was like, um, social, it was a good group of people and a good group of kids, um, that you come to know. And isn't that the most important thing when you have kids involved in any activity that you know, the people that surround them with that activity? The other parents, the other kids, the coaches and people in charge of it. So it was a way of getting all that. So it was what sports are to other families, but it was indoors and I could sit down and watch
Speaker 1 20:17 and be knitting. I love it. Good answer. Nice job. Okay. You're good at this. It's the first podcast.
Speaker 3 20:26 Yes. Crushing it. Natural. Um, okay. I think it's your turn. Oh, it is. My turn. Um, how many more questions do I get to ask too? Tomorrow. Uh, okay. So I'm saving the big one. Ready? And I have questions. Four. I, I have three more. Okay. So you have to answer me quickly then. Okay. So one of the things that I'm, the proudest of you for was how you took the reins when you were in middle school and you and your friend Natalie decided to raise the bar. That wasn't your words. You just said, none of the girls in school dress good. Did I see you like that? It's so middle school. Are you kidding? Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Middle school. So you started dressing better and then everybody else started dressing better.
Speaker 1 21:21 I do remember that. I remember that. And furthermore, I remember, I think the, the impetus for that was the movie Romy and Michele's high school reunion. I'm pretty sure I might have to fact check and make sure that lines up on a time line, but I'm almost positive that's what inspired us to be bright and bold and have a little bit more of a feminine flair. Let's take a look at Romy and Michele high school reunion.
Speaker 1 21:58 Romy and Michele's high school reunion came out in 97, so it was right around that time. Um, GenCos were very cool, uh, like polo shirts. FUBU was the coolest. Tommy Hilfiger was the coolest. We, we dressed in bags, which w which is my style now for sure the baggy or the better. But at the time Natalie and I got so into this friendship in the movie and these, the women were creative and they dressed, you know, in figure fitted clothing that was bright and fun and playful and expressive. And until they decide to try to dress like businesswoman, which is very funny. That part will have the business women special please. Okay. So, um, I'm having a nostalgic moment. Okay. Let's see. Oh, was that it? That was, did that question have a part to, it would, it would have a person should have been. Okay. I do remember that. And that was fun. Um, Oh, okay. Here we go. Last one for you from me. So you must've loved dance because you shelled out and endured and drove and made costumes for two kids, sometimes three in dance. But it wasn't until all three kids were out of the house that you found dance for yourself or at least, so I thought before this call when I found out you've been doing it forever, but you found tango. How old were you when you started dancing? Tango. And what do you love about
Speaker 3 23:46 that dance? Oh my gosh. Um, I started tango before I start. Oh, in 2008. Yeah. Yeah. I was flying to Honolulu and there was a wonderful woman that I met because she was on an airplane knitting and so therefore she was my new best friend and I actually became really good friends. You matter. Um, you and Ava came to her house available and she was just, she's, she is a gifted, um, artists, needle artist knit or crochet or, so we became good friends and I went back on a trip and she said, Oh, you have to come with me now. She had a German accent, has a German accent. You have to come with me, I have a new thing. And I said, okay, let's go. And it was a tank of Monga and I had never heard of it and never seen it. And it was magical.
Speaker 3 24:41 I mean, the music is like nothing you've ever heard the on. It doesn't have drums. It's lyrical, it's musical, it's swirling music, especially at waltz. Um, so I was hearing this music and it was in kind of a dark room, which wasn't my dance experience, right. As a dance mom. And then I saw the way they dance, they like lean up against each other and they're kind of curled over onto each other and the elbows are down and the feet are down into the floor. And it was the opposite of ballet. And it was fascinating. Um, and, and the man lad and the women followed the women didn't sustain themselves, support themselves. Although I know now knowing more that yes, a woman does. But what I saw was this, um, two people dancing together has one which didn't often in ballet. Often while they do sing this one, it's two people apart, dancing together in different.
Speaker 3 25:50 So it was magically different to me. Huge challenge. I met with her a couple of times and people would say, would you like to dance? And I'm in my flip flops. So now, you know, walk backwards and flip flops. And at one point I said, I'm not coming back here and find a husband. So in 2009 or 2008, maybe Memorial day 2008, Adrian and I went to him a ago, but she's on card and it was beautiful and magical and we said tangling. Um, it was just great. I think what I'm aiming to, Scott's this dates was it tango lesson and we had to like partner with me. We're walking around in circles with our hands on each other's chest, who was comfortable. Oh, that's a beautiful story. Um, but I do, I, I love that connection of it. I love the music. It's hard.
Speaker 1 26:44 Okay. Okay, final question. Final question from you. Okay. You have no idea this is coming at you. Oh, you're good. Okay. So we're in this pandemic and things already are kind of becoming scarce. Like toilet paper. Elastic is the new toilet paper as we make masks. Meat. Yeah. So my little brain spins around at night and uh, what if it really turns into something and the infrastructure really goes away or collapses. So that was my thought that led to this question. And I'm not saying it's going to happen or I think it will happen, but the question is for the mind game. What if we had electricity rationing and you already had a finite amount of electricity that you can use and you could use it in whatever way you chose and we'll leave the refrigerator out of it cause we know they suck energy and we need to eat.
Speaker 1 27:39 So that's not part of the question. But what are the things that you would not be able to live without that needle electricity? How would you percentage wise or how would you ration your own electrical electricity? That's a really good question and I encourage everybody to answer along with me cause that's a fun exercise. I am going through combat in my head right now. Oh man, that's a tough one. Since the podcast, I've been spending a lot of time on the computer editing. Um, and communication is very important to me. I've been loving FaceTiming with you and the nieces trying to help relieve the load of your need to be with two kids who aren't in school all the time. Um, so, Oh, I love my Sonicare toothbrush, my electric toothbrush. I will never use a manual toothbrush again unless I'm
Speaker 2 28:41 okay
Speaker 1 28:41 stranded on a desert Island. I'm kidding. I, I use them when I try. I know I even bring my electric toothbrush when I travel. I love that thing. Okay. That, um, I'm going to need my computer desktop for sure. And then if I had to choose a camera,
Speaker 1 29:06 I'd say my sone a six and my Vic SIA, my Vixy is the little tiny one that looks kind of like, um, kind of like a pebble and it has the folding up screen. It's the one that I brought on tour with me and we made all those videos forever. Um, yeah, that, that camera has been around the world three times I think. Um, and it, it is, it's my pocket. It's my everyday carry. I can't imagine that thing not being able to power on that makes me want to cry. So I need, I'd need that. I'd need my Sony, I did my desktop and I need an hour to face time. But man, that would be kind of cool if I was, if I was somehow enforced to not use Instagram. What if using those magic, you couldn't turn on the lights at nighttime?
Speaker 1 30:01 Oh, that's fine. We had a blackout recently. I saw out my window across the street. It got really windy. It got crazy windy and Daniel and I had a very romantic candlelit dinner that was very quiet because there were no sounds in the house. Um, and it was beautiful. Although I've learned, one of the things that annoys me is when there's stuff on the floor in my walking path, I get red hot, angry when I trip on stuff that I didn't see. I know it's my fault and I should watch where I'm going, but I get pissed when I trip because think about it. I am used to dance studios that are big open spaces where there's nothing on the floor. So I struggle when there's stuff on the floor. And that night I got so mad because there was so many things, there were so many things in my path that I didn't see. And tripping on things makes me feel helpless and I don't like feeling helpless. So yeah, I'm going to need, I'm going to need the air to be electricity until nine but after 9:00 AM okay. Good. That's a good one. Yeah. Okay.
Speaker 0 31:21 Okay. So this is going to be a tradition, mom. We're going to do a podcast every mother's day. Thank you so much, mom. I know you got a big day ahead of you. Busy. Very important wedding places to go, people to see from a distance, and I love you so much. Oh my gosh. Okay. I love you. Thank you. I love you. Happy mother's day to all your listeners. Yeah, bye. Bye.
