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About Me

Welcome to the Traveling Professor! My name is Cheri Madewell and I have traveled the world since 2014. Read more about me.

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When @gloriasteinem visits your LGBTQ+ chocolate shop and sits at your family table you listen to what she has to say.👏👏We talked about the importance of sober queer spaces and chosen families (the title of chapter 2 in her newest book!). We were honored to host both Gloria Steinem and Feminist Camp creator Amy Richards & the Ball State University Women’s and Gender Studies staff at @queerchocolatier yesterday as a stop on a her book tour in Indiana.

Heading into the holidays this week I wanted a curated list of podcasts about *secrets* that take me down the rabbit hole. So I created a play list. It’s on the blog now at the traveling professor dot org. Link in bio.

I have always been embarrassed by my smile. It’s why I look so somber in photos even if it doesn’t match my mood. Today I finished and posted a personal piece on the moment I unearthed a family secret buried for 30 years. It is serious, but I love storytelling. It’s when I feel my most authentic self. You can read more on my blog. Link in bio.^^^

Things did not go well when I came out. My grandma was aghast. My parents were hurt and shocked. My wife and I eloped and I did not tell or invite my parents to celebrate. My sisters have always been fiercely supportive and I am incredibly lucky - a lot of queer and trans folks lose their entire family or walk away to guard themselves against toxicity from ignorance, homophobia, and transphobia. My parents have changed in their own way, in their time. They love Morgan. Our Family Wall in the Chocolate House represents those living their beautiful truth with family they have chosen. And we choose them. Visibility matters. Solidarity is not performative. It does not say, ‘I am an ally’ but asks instead how you can honor and affirm and acknowledge those who are the least represented and included at the table. We affirm you. You are our chosen family.

Traveling for two years nonstop I itched to CREATE something. Constantly in motion, I needed to stop and catch my breathe. I reconnected with and married my wife in 2015 and we were on the same page: let’s build something from the ground up. TBH it was hard giving up traveling full time, taking off when and wherever I wanted. But it was time. I wanted a home. It was the season to plant roots. So we moved to Minneapolis. Ultimately, it wasn’t the right place for our first venture and we returned to where we first met in grad school: Muncie, Indiana. We had strong connections and relationships that we would come to lean on for support. More than that, we wanted to be a part of a community that wanted and needed us. This month marks one year from our grand opening on University Ave. in what used to be The College Sweetshop dating all the way back to the 40s to the 80s.

Today is a big day. I’m launching 1985 The Podcast on Kickstarter. It’s a creation three years in the making and my ❤️ is deeply embedded in this project. It’s a personal story about the Satanic Panic of the 1980s and how it impacted my family. Check out the link in my bio to listen to the the teaser.

Tags

1985 1985 The Podcast ancestory another round podcast biography cheryl strayed chocolate CIA secrets conspiracy theories dani shapiro daycare hysteria dear sugar radio diverse voices DNA testing family history family secrets fresh air fulbright great depression journalism kickstarter podcast poland pronouns queer radiotopia safe space satanic panic secrets small business sober space solidarity storytelling stranger things the nod podcast the secret room podcast trans vegan wondery

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