Shows
At My Kitchen TableGuests: A Table Full of ShaaksIt's Thanksgiving week, teabags! I decided to do something a little different with the pod this week, so this won’t be a typical episode. Since I’m not gonna have my three kids together for the holiday, I Zoomed with my family and did a twist on the At My Kitchen Table 3 good things about your week. You get our bonus hot takes of best and worst Thanksgiving foods, you'll hear a couple of hidden gem Grandma’s Boy quotes, and you'll get to hear my kids' dark humor because it turns out that we raised sarcassholes.I’m so...
2025-11-2647 minAt My Kitchen TableGuest: Kenzie ShaakIt pays to be a nepo baby this week, as I welcome my offspring to my kitchen table (which is obviously her kitchen table as well)! For anyone who follows my blog, you’ll know her as Kid 3; for those who follow my socials, you’ll recognize her as the Toots to my Bub in our #BubandToots. My frequent travel buddy has been going through it lately and we talk about how she finally got through her doctor avoidance to start to figure out wtf was going on with her. We also yap about her first cellphone (the Rant), her dis...
2025-11-191h 20At My Kitchen TableGuest: CJ McDermottWelcome back to my kitchen table, CJ McDermott! CJ has a ton of wild stories about his childhood and growing up the middle child of parents who were addicted to drugs. We barely scratched the surface, but we talk about the feral 80s, the life lessons his parents taught him, and the beautiful and diverse people he's met along the way. CJ talks about his family with a lot of humor and sarcasm, but that's a result of the deep love his family has for each other. While addiction is so often stigmatized, CJ's story humanizes it.Intr...
2025-11-141h 16At My Kitchen TableGuest: CJ McDermottWelcome back to my kitchen table, CJ McDermott! CJs has a ton of wild stories about his childhood and growing up the middle child of parents who were addicted to drugs. We barely scratched the surface, but we talk about the feral 80s, the life lessons his parents taught him, and the beautiful and diverse people he's met along the way. CJ talks about his family and trauma with a lot of humor and sarcasm, but that's a result of the deep love his family has for each other. While addiction is so often stigmatized, CJ's story humanizes it.
2025-11-121h 15
You've Got MalesGirls Just Want to Have Fun - 1985 - With Karen!Send us a textDon't get starstruck! We have the host of At My Kitchen Table with Karen Shaak!
2025-11-101h 31At My Kitchen TableGuest: Victoria RibeiroToday's guest at my kitchen table is a friend of the pod and my friend in real life, Victoria Ribeiro. Vic is a community builder. She genuinely likes people and in her own words, just wants her epitaph to read "friend." She loves to collect and connect friends, build community, and make the world around her better. We talk about that and more as we cover a pretty fraught chapter in her life, when she end up on the receiving end of online hate and vitriol that spilled over into fear and intimidation in the real world. And despite that...
2025-11-051h 17At My Kitchen TableGuest: Kristin EstrellaMy friend and former colleague Kristin Estrella joins me at my kitchen table today to take me on a journey through her autoimmune diagnosis of Antisynthetase Syndrome and the ripples of impact it's had along the way. We chat about how she does NOT give youngest sibling vibes, her ASS disease, and the "yes, and" of women powering through hard things as she tells her story with equal parts grace and f-bombs.Intro riff by Dale Lytle (concert husband). All content edited (I use that term very loosely) by Karen Shaak.
2025-10-291h 33At My Kitchen TableGuest: Mike IorioThis week at my kitchen table, I have a candid conversation with my friend, Mike Iorio. Diagnosed with a stroke at 47 and colon cancer at 53, Mike gets real with me about the challenges of serious medical issues at relatively young ages, how his challenges strengthened his relationship, maintaining an "onward and forward" mentality through treatments, and being stalked.Intro riff by Dale Lytle (concert husband). All content edited (I use that term very loosely) by Karen Shaak.
2025-10-221h 09At My Kitchen TableGuests: Jason Hill & CJ McDermottGet ready to steep in the fun, teabags! This week at my kitchen table, I chat with my friends and fellow Pittsburgh-based podcasters, Jason Hill and CJ McDermott, creators of the You’ve Got Males podcast. As I mention early in the episode, AMKT doesn't exist without these guys, and I appreciate the hell out of how open and helpful they've been as I figured out my own podcast.I had a blast recording with them over bourbon drinks (you can hear the ice clinking in the beginning!) as we covered topics like Yinzer ASMR, the impact of...
2025-10-151h 23At My Kitchen TableGuest: Shannon ReichelShannon Reichel loses her podcast virginity at my kitchen table this week! Our chat began with her recounting her experiences raising a biracial child. But because we veered off-topic, she comments on ideology versus action, family dynamics, and the impact of secrets. Shannon ends up spilling a few drops of tea towards the end of our time as we veer down the family secret path!Intro riff by Dale Lytle (concert husband). All content edited (I use that term very loosely) by Karen Shaak.
2025-10-0849 minAt My Kitchen TableGuest: Tim GallagherTim Gallagher, AKA Dirk Magnum, pulls up a seat at my kitchen table today! Tim is the bass player and vocalist for Tongue 'N Cheek, an 80s band out of Wheeling, WV, that brings the decade of excess in full glory to every show. Tim was very cool to be one of my early recordings when this podcast was all wishes and hopes.We talk about rock & metal, what it's like to be in a band for almost 20 years, music genre definitions & purity, and we somehow largely ignore disco when we mention 70s music. Have a seat as...
2025-10-011h 03At My Kitchen TableGuest: Connie IorioI welcome Connie Iorio at my kitchen table with an adult beverage this week to talk about understanding menopause through the rearview, which is the only view you have when you go through it early but the doctors won't take you seriously! She very candidly discusses what she calls her "crazy years" as we walk through what it feels like when you aren't believed by the people you are supposed to be able to trust, and why it's so important for men to know more as well.Intro riff by Dale Lytle (concert husband). All co...
2025-09-241h 18At My Kitchen TableGuest: EJ PostVery excited to have EJ Post at my kitchen table this week. I met EJ on threads, which is a plus in the "good" column of being on socials. EJ is a Pittsburgh author, having published her first book Hiding Places in 2024. She is one of those people who, when she sees a need, rolls up her sleeves and jumps in to fill that need. She's deeply committed to the Pittsburgh community, and we talk about her book, healthcare, the publishing process, and some of the things that make Pittsburgh so magical. Pull up a seat!Intro riff...
2025-09-171h 23At My Kitchen TableGuest: Angela MyersAngela Myers pulls up a chair at my kitchen table to talk about her experience with postpartum depression with psychosis. From when she noticed things weren’t right to the wrong medicine to a hospital stay to finding relief in functional medicine, Angela candidly tells a serious story with great humor. Also, she’s my sister.Intro riff by Dale Lytle (concert husband). All content edited (I use that term very loosely) by Karen Shaak.
2025-09-101h 34At My Kitchen TableAt My Kitchen Table TeaserComing soon and with weekly drops, join At My Kitchen Table to hear real stories from real people who do cool things, think fun thoughts, and have overcome big obstacles!Intro riff by Dale Lytle (concert husband). All content edited (I use that term very loosely) by Karen Shaak.
2025-09-1000 min
Excentia Chat! - Enhancing Lives, Transforming CommunitiesBest Business Partnership Award 2023 with Emily and Ed HartmanOn this episode...It's a father and daughter-duo. This year's Best Business Partnership Award recipient, Emily Hartman, is interviewed by our hosts, Chris Shaak and Karen Fitzgerald. The discussion highlights the support Emily has received via Excentia Human Services' Supported Employment Services. Also on the podcast is Emily's father, Ed Hartman, who has long supported our mission and has a special connection to our daily operations. Make sure to tune in!Pop Upbeat Active Fight Song: Pop Upbeat Active Fight - Kiluwhy
2023-04-1440 min