On this episode of In Conversation With, Chef Tyler Shortt, Executive Chef of Tinker Street, takes the mic and explores how food becomes a vehicle for memory, culture, and community. From family chicken fries and New York kitchens to sourcing locally and leading collaboratively, Chef Tyler reflects on putting “himself on the plate” and building something intentional—both inside the kitchen and beyond it.

Learn more about Tinker Street Restaurant: https://tinkerstreetrestaurant.com/

🍽️ Featured Dish

• Chef Tyler’s Signature Fried Chicken
  A deeply personal dish rooted in family recipes, Southern soul food traditions, and years of refinement—served alongside collard greens, mashed potatoes, and gravy.

🌸 Give Them Their Flowers

• Chef Tyler gives flowers to Chef Youssef Boudarine for his commitment to uplifting diverse cuisines, supporting small businesses, and expanding the culinary imagination of Indianapolis through Epicurean Indy.

🪴 Mentioned in This Episode

• Eleven Madison Park (NYC): https://www.elevenmadisonpark.com/
• Epicurean Indy: https://www.epicureanindy.com/
• Junior Chef Academy Indianapolis: https://www.jcaindy.com/

Subscribe to the newsletter (out Mondays): https://patrickintheworld.substack.com/

Full archives: https://conversationpiecepod.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/conversationpiecepod/

Produced and hosted by: Patrick Armstrong

Filmed and edited by: Mike Lee Productions

Engineered and mixed by: Popular Rapture
Filmed at: draft creative space

Music by: Mandog

• (00:00) - – Welcome to In Conversation With Chef Tyler Shortt
• (02:30) - – From Greenwood to the Kitchen: Tyler’s Early Food Roots
• (05:00) - – Putting Yourself on the Plate: Soul Food, Family & Fried Chicken
• (08:10) - – New York Changed Everything: Cooking at Eleven Madison Park
• (11:45) - – Learning Through Culture: Global Food, Family Meals & Cannoli
• (15:10) - – Why Acid Matters: Balance, Technique & Flavor Science
• (18:45) - – Collaboration Over Ego: How Tinker Street Builds Dishes Together
• (22:40) - – Cooking Local: Farmers, Seasonality & Sustainability in Indiana
• (30:10) - – Community as Strategy: Leadership & Partnership at Tinker Street
• (43:20) - – Advice to Young Creatives & How to Best Support the Work

🕯️ This Week’s Conversation: Mid-Cycle Map Rigging with Sen. Andrea Hunley

In this urgent conversation, Indiana State Senator Andrea Hunley breaks down the push to redraw Indiana’s congressional maps mid-cycle. We unpack what triggered this attempt, why it has more to do with DC politics than Hoosier interests, how gerrymandering works in practice, and what constituents can do right now to protect fair representation.

A clear, accessible, and empowering explainer for anyone trying to understand the stakes of Indiana’s redistricting fight.

Learn more about Andrea’s work here.

🌸 Mentioned in this Episode

• Indiana General Assembly (IGA) website
• Indiana Voters website
• Learn more about redistricting

💭 Question of the Week

My next guest is real cool. Stay tuned 👀

*This is a special presentation of episode 005 of From the Kitchen Table, host Patrick Armstrong's audio-only, Substack exclusive show. Listen and subscribe for free.*

• (00:00) - – Welcome & Setup
• (02:32) - – Why Indiana Is Redrawing Maps Mid-Cycle
• (05:07) - – What Redistricting Normally Looks Like
• (06:18) - – The DC Pressure Behind This Attempt
• (10:04) - – Indiana Is More Purple Than People Think
• (12:29) - – How Gerrymandering Works (District 46 Example)
• (17:10) - – Could This Backfire Politically?
• (20:41) - – Rules Being Broken to Make This Happen
• (23:16) - – How Fast This Could Move & Why Timing Matters
• (25:08) - – What Hoosiers Can Do Right Now

On this episode of The Open Door, Amber Gyselinck-Snyder, founder of Lapis Lily Market and Trinket Club Indy, stops by the studio to talk about trinkets, creativity, community building, and the joy of tiny cute things. Amber shares her journey from vintage seller and wholesaler to opening her first storefront and cultivating a growing community of makers, collectors, and curious creatives.

Learn more about Lapis Lily Market: https://lapislilymarket.com/
Connect with Trinket Club Indy: https://www.instagram.com/trinketclubindy/

Shout out to Life in Indy for sponsoring this initiative! Life in Indy is your comprehensive guide to the Indianapolis region. This site gives you a full virtual tour experience, so you can explore our community and discover where in Indy is the best place for your new home. Learn more at https://www.lifeinindy.com/

Subscribe to the newsletter (out Mondays): https://patrickintheworld.substack.com/

Full archives: https://conversationpiecepod.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/conversationpiecepod/

Produced and hosted by: Patrick Armstrong

Filmed and edited by: Mike Lee Productions

Engineered and mixed by: Popular Rapture

Music by: Mandog

• (00:00) - – Welcome to The Open Door
• (00:47) - – Meet Amber Gyselinck-Snyder
• (01:10) - – What is Lapis Lily Market?
• (01:25) - – Inside the Space Lounge & Trinket Club
• (02:04) - – A lifetime of loving miniatures
• (02:24) - – Building a storefront after 8 years in retail
• (03:03) - – What Amber loves about having her own shop
• (03:56) - – How Trinket Club started
• (04:14) - – Watching the community evolve
• (04:48) - – What counts as a “trinket”?
• (05:33) - – Favorite trinkets & the cat parasite
• (06:20) - – Buying collections & finding inspiration
• (07:13) - – What makes a collection?
• (08:07) - – Patrick’s own collections
• (08:36) - – Events at Trinket Club
• (09:14) - – “No limits” creativity & upcoming ideas
• (09:31) - – What Indianapolis means to Amber
• (10:28) - – How to support Lapis Lily Market
• (11:05) - – Closing thoughts

Recorded August 2025 -- For the third installment of In Conversation With, Patrick sits down with Chreece Festival Director and multidisciplinary creative Jane Sun Kim for a vulnerable, energizing conversation about community, creativity, curation, identity, and the decade-long evolution of Indianapolis’ premier independent hip-hop festival. Together they explore affirmation, failure, representation, and what it truly takes to build spaces where artists can grow and thrive.

Connect with Jane: https://www.instagram.com/vulturesonly/
Learn more about Chreece: https://www.chreeceaf.com/

Subscribe to the newsletter (out Mondays): https://patrickintheworld.substack.com/

Full archives: https://conversationpiecepod.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/conversationpiecepod/

Produced and hosted by: Patrick Armstrong

Filmed and edited by: Apicem Studios
Engineered by: Popular Rapture

• (00:00) - — Welcome & Giveaway
• (00:37) - — Introducing Jane Sun Kim
• (01:27) - — Gratitude, Teamwork & Festival Week Emotions
• (02:09) - — Jane’s Upbringing & Rediscovering Creativity
• (03:52) - — Affirmation, Failure & Finding Your People
• (06:00) - — Family Stories, Music, Assimilation & Creative Roots
• (12:05) - — Taking the Leap Into Art School
• (17:21) - — Ego, Growth & Redefining Success
• (23:54) - — What It Really Means to Curate
• (29:00) - — Learning the Festival From the Ground Up
• (35:15) - — Emotional Labor, Artists & Festival Leadership
• (43:11) - — Sustainability, Burnout & Post-Festival Reality
• (46:58) - — Local Lineup Love & Bringing Audrey Nuna
• (53:35) - — Identity, Representation & Choosing Headliners
• (57:42) - — Closing & Audience Q&A

Dr. Austin Dean Ashford, a brand-new Indianapolis transplant, multi-disciplinary creative, and performer at this year’s Chreece festival, talks about hip hop as community practice, why festivals matter to the city, how creativity builds connection, and why you shouldn’t forget the doctor.

Tap in with the Dr.: https://www.austindeanashford.com/bio

Artists on Chreece is a series of conversations with artists about their experience with the festival, their musical stylings, and more, from Chreece Media Day. Shout out to the Chreece team for having us.

Subscribe to the newsletter (out Mondays): https://patrickintheworld.substack.com/

Full archives: https://conversationpiecepod.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/conversationpiecepod/

Produced and hosted by: Patrick Armstrong

Filmed and edited by: Mike Lee Productions + Apicem Studios

• (00:00) - — Introductions
• (00:21) - — Becoming a Transplant
• (00:39) - — Discovering Chreece
• (00:54) - — First Time at Chreece
• (01:26) - — Why Chreece Matters
• (02:03) - — What Hip Hop Gives Us
• (02:22) - — The Performance
• (02:40) - — What He Brings to the Stage
• (03:13) - — Why You Should Pull Up
• (03:33) - — How to Support

On this episode of The Open Door, self-advocacy strategist Nora Elder stops by the studio to explore what self-advocacy truly means, how core values shape our decisions, and how Nora’s “Choose the Marble” practice helped her leave corporate life and build a purpose-driven business.

Learn more about Nora's work: https://choosethemarble.com/

The Open Door is a series where once a month we literally open the studio door and invite folks from the community to sit down with us and talk about whatever is on their hearts. To learn more go to https://bit.ly/opendoor2024.

Shout out to Life in Indy for sponsoring this initiative! Life in Indy is your comprehensive guide to the Indianapolis region. This site gives you a full virtual tour experience, so you can explore our community and discover where in Indy is the best place for your new home. Learn more at https://www.lifeinindy.com/

Subscribe to the newsletter (out Mondays): https://patrickintheworld.substack.com/

Full archives: https://conversationpiecepod.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/conversationpiecepod/

Produced and hosted by: Patrick Armstrong

Filmed and edited by: Mike Lee Productions

Engineered and mixed by: Popular Rapture

Music by: Mandog

• (00:00) - — Welcome to The Open Door + Episode Setup
• (01:02) - — Meet Nora Elder: Self-Advocacy Strategist
• (01:35) - — The “Choose the Marble” Story
• (04:20) - — What Self-Advocacy Really Means
• (05:36) - — Core Values: Why They Matter
• (06:20) - — Skills of Self-Advocacy: Boundaries, Saying No, Negotiation
• (07:48) - — Nora’s Four Core Values
• (10:13) - — How She Helps Clients Discover Their Values
• (13:21) - — Community, Women’s Networks, and Support Systems
• (19:17) - — What Nora Is Building in Year Two (Workshops + Speaking)

On this episode of Conversation Piece, designer, creator, and business strategist Navi Kaur stops by the studio to talk about her journey from watching Dragon Ball Z as a kid in India to helping build The Normies — an Indianapolis-based creative community and reaction channel with nearly 1 million subscribers. She dives into her path from immigrant student to financial officer, how The Normies grew from friends watching Game of Thrones to a full-scale business, and what it takes to sustain creativity, community, and leadership in digital media.

Connect with Navi: https://instagram.com/nerdy_nav/
Check out The Normies: https://thenormies.com/

Shout out to Frida's Flowers for sponsoring the show! Elevate your next event (or your living room) with some of Madeline's incredible work: fridasflowersindy.com/

This week’s Give Em Their Flowers shout out: Markéta, Rana, Blake Roebuck, and The Normies’ editing team for their creativity, care, and community spirit.

Subscribe to the newsletter (out Mondays): https://patrickintheworld.substack.com/

Full archives: https://conversationpiecepod.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/conversationpiecepod/

Produced and hosted by: Patrick Armstrong

Filmed and edited by: Mike Lee Productions

Engineered and mixed by: Popular Rapture

Music by: Mandog

• (00:00) - – Year of Community
• (01:05) - – Introducing Navi Kaur
• (02:00) - – How Navi met her friend group through Game of Thrones
• (04:08) - – Early love for anime and manga
• (06:04) - – Immigrating to America and finding identity through pop culture
• (08:24) - – Discovering manga at the library and bonding with siblings
• (09:52) - – From reading to reacting: The artistry of anime adaptation
• (11:10) - – Sub vs. dub: why both matter
• (12:00) - – Meeting The Normies crew
• (14:03) - – The first reaction video and how it all began
• (17:09) - – Building community through shared fandoms
• (20:14) - – When The Normies became a real business
• (22:19) - – Learning HR, payroll, and leadership on the fly
• (25:15) - – The evolution of scheduling, team roles, and creative flow
• (28:47) - – Letting go of control and trusting the team
• (30:37) - – Decision-making, leadership, and “no more ties”
• (31:32) - – A day in the life at The Normies studio
• (35:21) - – How new shows get added to the lineup
• (37:31) - – Staying in Indianapolis and why it works
• (40:57) - – On burnout, winter blues, and cost of living
• (44:28) - – Balancing creative and financial roles
• (46:33) - – Finding peace in nature and local trails
• (49:14) - – Give Em Their Flowers
• (50:36) - – On community, connection, and gratitude

T.G.I.FREE, an Indianapolis hip-hop artist and Chreece veteran, reflects on what performing at the festival means for the local scene, why it’s a marker of validation for artists, and how his signature songs “Set You Free” and “Big Free” capture his energy, conviction, and pride in his craft.

Connect with T.G.I.FREE: https://linktr.ee/Iamtgifree/

Artists on Chreece is a series of conversations with artists about their experience with the festival, their musical stylings, and more, from Chreece Media Day. Shout out to the Chreece team for having us.

Subscribe to the newsletter (out Mondays): https://patrickintheworld.substack.com/

Full archives: https://conversationpiecepod.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/conversationpiecepod/

Produced and hosted by: Patrick Armstrong

Filmed and edited by: Mike Lee Productions + Apicem Studios