Forever35 Mini-Episode 461: “Doree Takes a Stand”

Date: September 17, 2025
Hosts: Doree Shafrir & Elise Hu

Overview

In this mini-episode, hosts Doree and Elise field listener questions and discuss self-care with their signature blend of humor and candidness. Topics include the eco-impact of beauty product empties, the realities of secondhand clothing markets, financial vulnerability, school-year self-care strategies for educators, using local libraries as coworking spaces, and a lighthearted debate on the best J.Lo song. Doree notably “takes a stand” on bar soap, and both hosts embrace the messiness and imperfect realities of modern self-care and sustainability.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Sustainable Beauty: What’s the Deal with "Empties"?

• 00:59 – 06:43: The discussion opens with the latest in-store sustainability efforts—Sephora’s “empties” recycling program. Elise wonders whether these initiatives meaningfully contribute to sustainability or just offer more “stuff.” Doree shares her own skepticism about their environmental impact.

  • “If they're actually reusing them, then yeah, that's great… But I mean, I think reuse is like the best, like the most environmentally conscious thing to do.” — Doree (02:03)
  • “I feel like I already am like a borderline hoarder. I'm not going to start hoarding empty vitamin C bottles, you know.” — Doree (02:29)
  • “Free samples and minis are like the worst… It's more stuff.” — Doree (03:20)
  • Elise suggests she’d need an incentive—like free samples—to join in, but both agree mini products generate more waste.
  • Doree suggests an ideal system would allow people to refill containers in-store, like the bulk aisles at Whole Foods, but acknowledges most brands profit more from selling new containers.

• Doree’s Sustainability Practice:

  • Doree shares her small but “banal” sustainability win: switching back to traditional bar soap to avoid plastic packaging. “Take a stand bar.” — Elise, joking at Doree’s soap stance (12:20).
  • On finishing products: “At least when you finish something you're like oh, I, I like used all of this...” — Doree (11:29)

2. The Cycle of Consuming, Hoarding, and Reselling

• 07:28 – 10:06: The hosts reflect on the secondhand clothing market, focusing on Doree’s skepticism about trends at Crossroads and Madewell’s jeans recycling. Elise tried to sell her husband’s “very nice jeans” but was rejected for being “not trendy enough.”

  • “It's a little rich for Crossroads…to be like, these jeans are not on trend. Are they just expecting people to buy trendy jeans and then bring them to Crossroads? Because that makes no sense.” — Doree (08:50)
  • “Whatever happened to the idea of vintage?” — Elise (09:42)

• Listener Call to Action: They ask listeners to share what they do with their “empties” and old clothes, refusing to buy into unsatisfying industry narratives without input from the community.

3. Candid Conversation: Financial Vulnerability & Career Uncertainty

• 14:01 – 17:36: Doree addresses a listener's question about her family’s financial wellbeing, offering rare transparency.

  • “No, things…have not gotten better. Matt still does not have a job. The podcast brings in some money, but not enough. And I wake up every morning with existential dread.” — Doree (15:04)
  • On rejection: Doree recounts a recent experience being turned down for a podcast job, describing the demoralization and existential uncertainty that goes with creative work.
  • Elise empathizes, noting that even high-achievers in LA struggle with cost of living: “I'm so poor I can't make ends meet…I'd be like a gazillionaire if I just lived in Utah or something.” — Elise (16:28)

4. Self-Care in School Settings: Listener Tips

• 22:05 – 25:49: In response to a previous listener's question on self-care for school professionals, listeners write and call in with practical advice:

  • Electric kettle and tea station
  • String lights and extra sweaters for harsh lighting and unpredictable temps
  • Essential oils in spray bottles for stress relief
  • Designing systems and seeking help from para-educators to avoid overwhelm

  Voicemail highlight:

  “…Creating systems…that’s like self care, you know, you can't do it all, but you can have a system in place…” — Voicemail Caller (25:36)

5. The Library as Coworking Space

• 17:36 – 20:24: Molly from West Virginia champions the public library as an ideal, free coworking space—reminding listeners of its Wi-Fi, supportive staff, and diverse amenities.

  • “Membership is free. Lots of different space options depending on the size of your library…We need our community members using and supporting libraries. Amen.” — Molly (17:36)
  • Elise admits to craving the social buzz of coworking cafés but acknowledges her partner, Rob, thrives at the library: “Rob likes to have focus time…so the library works better for him.” (18:22)

  Doree recommends the West Hollywood library for LA locals, noting its café and adjacent park.

6. Life Updates & Lighthearted Tangents

• 26:02 – 27:29: Elise details a brief saga with her child's hermit crab, peppering the episode with her familiar mix of emotion and wry observation.

  • “Cece, the hermit crab I've been keeping alive and managing the crabitat for. Finally…Rob got really sad...and so then I got another crab…And then Pepper passed, like four days after he came home.” — Elise (26:35)

7. J.Lo Hot Takes: Best Song Debate

• 28:19 – 30:27: A listener stirs debate over the “best J.Lo song.” The hosts enthusiastically throw out their favorites, grounding them in personal memories.

  • “Obviously, Waiting For Tonight.” — Listener via Doree (28:34)
  • “I do like On the Floor.” — Doree (28:50)
  • “I like Let's Get Loud. That's my favorite one. It makes me very happy…” — Elise (29:06)
  • “Some of your memories are so tied into smells and songs…” — Elise (29:20)

  The segment closes on a note of lightness and shared nostalgia.

Notable Quotes (w/ Timestamps)

• On Sustainability:

  • “Recycling is like dubious right at best.” — Doree (02:21)
  • “The sample ecosystem is terrible. Do I engage in it? Yes. I engage in all of this consumerist stuff. Do I feel guilty about it? Yeah, kind of.” — Doree (06:17)

• On Secondhand Markets:

  • “It's a little rich for Crossroads…to be like, these jeans are not on trend.” — Doree (08:50)

• On Financial Transparency:

  • “No, things…have not gotten better…And I wake up every morning with existential dread.” — Doree (15:04)
  • “I think we might have to leave LA. And yeah, I don't really see a way out.” — Doree (15:48)
  • “I'm so poor I can't make ends meet. And it's like, you guys are really learned and educated and high achieving people and yet it's so expensive to live here...” — Elise (16:28)

• On Self-Care:

  • “Creating systems…that’s like self care, you know, you can't do it all, but you can have a system in place…” — Voicemail Caller (25:36)

• On J.Lo:

  • “Waiting For Tonight is a good one. And then it has that video where she's just staring straight ahead in the camera and then…lights in the background and la, la, la...” — Elise (28:35)
  • “I like Let's Get Loud. That's my favorite one. It makes me very happy. It reminds me of the Ricky Martin era.” — Elise (29:06)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Start Time | Segment | |------------|---------| | 00:48 | Show proper begins; Empties & recycling programs | | 02:21 | Doubts about recycling; Value of reusing containers | | 06:17 | Personal feelings on “sample ecosystem” waste | | 07:28 | Clothing resale & “on trend” conundrum | | 14:01 | Doree's financial transparency; Career update | | 17:36 | Public libraries as co-working spaces | | 22:05 | Listener self-care tips for school settings | | 23:19 | Voicemail: OT and school self-care | | 28:19 | Listener J.Lo song question; Nostalgia & music |

Tone and Style

The episode is intimate, confessional, and dryly funny, with both hosts embracing the imperfect realities of “wellness” and adulting. Doree is strikingly honest—at times “on one” and “salty”—while Elise offers empathy, gentle humor, and a thoughtful baseline of curiosity.

For New Listeners

This episode is a quintessential slice of Forever35: relatable messiness, community-driven self-care, and an ability to balance laughter, emotional honesty, and practical takeaways in equal measure. Regular listeners will appreciate Doree’s candor, Elise’s warmth, and the community’s ever-thoughtful contributions.

For more details, questions, or to share your own self-care hacks, visit forever35podcast.com or email the hosts at forever35podcastmail.com.