This is the end, cortexifriends! This has been such a rewarding journey for us, and we have heard so many of your beautiful stories over the years sharing with us your appreciation not only for Fringe as a series but also for us as a podcast, and it’s why we’ve done it. We kick things off with a really insightful conversation with Thomas Cadrot

How securely anchored is your sense of self when the people who know you best suddenly refuse to recognize you? The Twilight Zone asks that question twice over, following two very different men who wake up unsure which version of their life is real. Both episodes probe the fragile line between identity and illusion, exploring how quickly the world you built for yourself can unravel.

It’s the fifth Monday of August, and that means it’s Monday Mailbag day! We have one piece of mail in the bag this time and it comes in from Jeff.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression, which means that we often put pressure on ourselves when we’re meeting someone for the first time that we consider important. And sometimes that person feels the exact same pressure about meeting you. Today’s story is about one of those encounters, and everything that’s happened since. 

We are now, in every sense (technically, literally, etc.), on the ultimate penultimate episode of Fringe as we bring you “Liberty” AND soon to be death of the podcast. We are joined by special guest Marianne once again as we discuss this amazing episode of the series and its parallels to previous seasons and episodes.

I have spent more than a decade helping other people communicate clearly. Which makes it a little embarrassing to admit that I once talked for thirty minutes straight and never said the one thing that actually mattered. My wife stopped me with a single question, and I didn’t have an answer for it. It took me a few years, a rebuilt website, and a coach to finally understand what she was really asking, and it changed the way I sell, the way I explain things, and the way I ask questions.