With Lawrence Winnerman still off on his secret mission, I opened the The Daily Whatever Show from my newly relocated basement studio and brought back a familiar face — Samantha Paige (she/they), joining us for her second appearance and somehow vibing even more instantly than the first time.
Turns out, that’s what you get when you put two extroverts on a podcast.
Samantha is one of those guests who arrives fully herself, no pretense, no over-explaining. She simply said, “I’m me. I write about my experience,” and we were off. We talked about her brand-new, about-to-launch radio show on KXRW 99.9 FM — a vibrant mix of queer community, comedy, drag, activism, and big-hearted conversations about identity and worldview. She and her co-host Chris are building something that feels like a cultural home: reflective, messy, joyous, political, and very, very human.
Their first guest will be Lunacorn, a beloved trans TikTok creator now living in Portland.
The show is currently in production with an as-yet unknown launch date. But as soon as it’s live, we will let you know! And Samantha will share the episodes to her Substack.
From there, Samantha opened up about her own story — the early knowing her trans identity, the childhood punishments, the years of secrecy, the survival, the Army under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the long road toward living as herself in full daylight. She talked about coming out to her kids and how they still call her Dad, and how that’s okay.
We dug into parenting, gender, and the shifting landscape for trans youth — including Washington’s devastating new anti-trans sports initiative, which would authorize literal genital inspections. Samantha and I both agreed: the cruelty is the point, and it doesn’t just harm trans kids. Any girl who doesn’t fit someone’s narrow idea of femininity suddenly becomes a “suspect.” Kids deserve sports. Kids deserve safety. Kids deserve adults who don’t legislate their bodies.
You can read about the heinous initiative over at Erin Reed’s Substack:
One of my favorite moments was revisiting Samantha’s “7-Eleven” personal essay, where she captures what visibility looks like in the smallest places — claiming space, asserting pronouns, being seen in ordinary life. Not performative. Not theoretical. Daily.
Samantha showed up with wisdom, humor, lived truth, and a genuine desire to make the world less hostile for the next generation. That’s why she’s always welcome on this show — and why we’ll absolutely have her back again.
Go listen to her. Follow her radio show. Support her work. She’s building something necessary and brave.
Thank you Cat, Margaret Williams, MS, ACC, Dr. Mary M. Marshall, Char Sundust, Jeanne Elbe, and many others for tuning in. And huge thanks to Karen Marie Shelton for serving as live show moderator and for your assistance in writing this recap. 💜
We love you all, mean it!
Then tune in tomorrow for the return of Lawrence Winnerman as co-host, with special guest Leo Caldwell!
