895: Label Maker!
Summary
This episode explores the power and complexity of labels through three stories. First, it examines why some couples avoid defining their relationships, contrasting this with the abrupt end of Temporary Protected Status for 300,000 Haitians, focusing on a nurse losing her job. Second, comedian Janet McNamara shares her decade-long struggle to get an autism diagnosis to understand her workplace difficulties. Finally, writer Alfred Jung Lee reflects on how we describe loved ones, particularly his late wife, revealing what remains unsaid in our attempts to define others.
Topics discussed
Intro: The power and ambiguity of relationship labels
Sponsor message: Southern New Hampshire University
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians ends
Marie's reputation as a dedicated nurse aide
The silence surrounding Marie's impending deportation
The boss's struggle to fire Marie quietly
Marie's final shift and departure from the nursing home
Sponsor messages and show break
Act 2: Janet's curiosity about being autistic
Workplace struggles and failed autism diagnosis
Masking behaviors and guilt over sensory issues
Janet receives her autism diagnosis and feels relief
Alfred Jung Lee on describing his late wife
The meaning of 'unremarkable' in medical reports
Credits, partners, and next week's preview
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