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In this Bonus Episode Michele and Sally have fun doing an overview of the entire podcast. First Michele lists her favorite quotes from the memoir, and Sally chimes in with her usual probing questions. It turns out that Michele had to pare down the list from about 150 quotes to 50 or so. Lots of pith to discuss! Next, our love heroine reveals her most cherished LoveCapades. Once again the intention was to list the Top Ten, but she ended up with 17 faves. We find out that Michele would have done some things differently over the course of her life, that is, made other choices along the trail. So she created a funny “Do Over” List. And lastly, Michele and Sally propose a very interesting idea for the listeners to contemplate. Would they like to tell one of their LoveCapades in a future podcast? Wouldn’t’ it be fun to hear your love stories? So, stay tuned for future developments…

In this final episode Michele ties up loose ends and draws conclusions from the myriad of exhilarating LoveCapades she’d experienced over many years. What had she learned about love? One lesson is that a real love story never ends. Such was the case with her first boyfriend, high school Bobby. Fifty years after they’d first met, he was on her doorstep once again declaring his love for her. The next rendezvous with destiny occurred in 2006 when Michele and her dear Australian friend Trish took a trip to France and Italy. Upon checking into a charming country albergo in Piemonte, she asked the receptionist Valentina to do a Google search for her Sicilian lover Nicola. And voila—she discovered his address and phone number. A few days later Michele fortified herself with an entire bottle of Piemonte’s best red wine and then dialed his number. The conversation that ensued was a remarkable testament to amore! Finding him made her happy and sad all at once. But isn’t that the way with love? As Michele says in the book and in the podcast, “It makes us come alive like nothing else. It defines us, it describes us, it propels us forward, and it stops us dead in our tracks. It makes our world spin on its axis.” In this last look at love, Michele shares more poignant conclusions and professes that hope springs eternal. She poses the final question …will she find her true love in the end?

We hear about Michele’s most recent and perhaps most fascinating and unexpected LoveCapade. It’s an affair of the heart that no one would have predicted, including our heroine. Michele hired a young gardener named Jorge to spiff up her garden before an upcoming surgery to remove fibroids. After she’d recovered, while spending time in the garden during Jorge’s maintenance visits, he would flirt with her unabashedly. It was very surprising since he was decades younger, much smaller in girth, and barely spoke English. But his advances continued, and one day they crossed a line so flagrant that Michele was flummoxed to the max. She knew this was what the universe was offering then in the love department, but it looked so very different than what she expected. What to do? After a serious talk with herself under the moonlight one night, she decided to give it a try. Luckily that adventurous side of her took over once again. What transpired was a delicious five-year romance that they kept very private and secret from the rest of the world. Theirs was an intimate fairytale romance—a Camelot-like affair that taught them both many lessons of the heart. It helped Michele realize once and for all that love may appear different than what you expect but that is part of what makes it magical. Once the romance ended she realized that Jorge had come into her life to cultivate much more than her garden. Their fairytale story had awakened Sleeping Beauty and made her very happy.

Michele’s mother had been the most ardent kind of dog lover, a sentiment not shared by her daughter until something amazing happened shortly after the mystical trip to Egypt. During a visit to see the therapist Linda, who had just rescued a doggy, they muscle-tested to see if Michele should get a dog as well. And shockingly the answer came back, “Yes!” In spite of serious doubts, Michele then set about figuring what breed she wanted, an adventure in itself. In the end our Lady of Love chose a miniature black poodle which she named Shakti…a Sanskrit word that means the creative energy of the universe. It turned out to be the perfect name for the pup! After a period of figuring out how to be a doggy mom, Michele learned the real reason this divine creature had come into her life. Shakti had arrived Valentine’s week 2001, and just three months later Michele’s younger brother died tragically with no warning. It was a horrific time. Yet Michele’s new canine partner proved to be the perfect comfort to keep Michele from losing all grip on reality. God had miraculously arranged it in advance, and what a blessing it proved to be. The two became attached at the hip in the most loving ways. Fast forward to 2008 when Barack Obama was elected President. In his acceptance speech he mentioned getting a dog for his daughters once they moved into the White House. So…Michele decided to write a letter to Sasha and Malia, from Shakti’s point of view, advocating for a black poodle in the White House. Michele reads this hysterical letter to the listeners…and the response she received from Michelle Obama on White House stationery. This tale of puppy love is one of Michele’s most unique and endearing LoveCapades.

Michele begins by describing all the types of love, and then suggests a new one—what she calls mystical or spiritual love. She goes on to describe three fascinating examples of this kind of love that exists in the sacred space of one’s consciousness. The first of these took place in the late 1980’s when the AIDS pandemic was just emerging in San Francisco. She met a beautiful young man named Michael Paulsen who became one of her spiritual mentors just as he learned he was dying of AIDS. However, his inspired guidance later allowed Michele, in spite of her Christian beliefs, to be open to meeting an Indian guru named Gurumayi Chidvilasananda. That encounter changed her world forever. As a meditator she then had a number of relationships inside meditation. One of these was with the Puerto Rican actor Raul Julia. Even though she’d never met him, their relationship became very real and she grieved when he died suddenly. Michele’s third mystical romance took place in Egypt in the year 2000. While with a group of her meditation friends on a two-week journey up and down the Nile, she did a mystical dance with their captivating Egyptologist guide, Emil Nazmy. The two obviously had a deep karmic connection which played itself out in many powerful ways on this mystical journey. Toward the end of the episode Michele has her second “burning bush” moment at St. Catherine’s Monastery, the site of the original Biblical burning bush event. You won’t want to miss a minute of this amazing episode.

Michele clearly has big time karma in Australia, the Land of Oz. She describes the Aussies as a charming combination of British good manners and correctness mixed with American Wild West individualism and penchant for fun. She’s traveled there many times for both business and pleasure. The first trip was in the late 60’s while working at SRI International when they sponsored a conference in Sydney. Then she met Trish Mappin who became one of her forever best friends—many years later they even traveled the world together. Her next junket was to play in a tennis exchange in Canberra arranged by the then American Ambassador to Australia. On her way home from that trip she and a galpal flew to Hong Kong which led to an off-the-charts wild week full of rugby-playing hunks! In addition Michele managed to spend not one but two month-long Christmas jaunts with her Aussie friends in a magical place called Binalong…a mere dot on the outback map. These sojourns proved to be enchantment personified. Suffice to say, over the years Michele encountered many divine Australian men, but you’ll have to listen to the episode to find out the delicious details. To tie up this all up in a typically tantalizing bow, Michele concludes by telling a story of how she lured a German race driver into her web while dining at a trattoria in Milan, Italy. Never a dull moment!

This episode starts with a wild night of Saturnalian lovemaking sure to get your pants in a bunch. Next you find Michele fending off an over-amorous—and married--neighbor who makes late night visits to escape his gun-wielding wife! You can’t make this stuff up. Next an old beau returns to restart their romance, invites our love heroine to spend a weekend away with him, but it turns out he’s become a scary guy with a drinking problem. To figure out how she can avoid all of these cads and attract some winners, Michele signs up for a Love Seminar in San Francisco. The course covers how to find good men to date and how to behave once you’re dating them. The teacher suggests the best method is to put a personal ad in the local papers—this was way before online dating—which leads to a crazy outcome. With all of her real estate marketing experience, Michele creates a humdinger ad that yields 189 responses. What she does with all of them will tickle your Cupid bone and make you reminisce about your own dating life.

One day Michele’s trusty therapist Linda suggested they do past life regressions as a way of untangling present life issues. Michele was skeptical at first, but became a believer after the work uncovered a rich vein of intriguing discoveries! Their first excavation found a hair-raising lifetime with high school boyfriend Bobby which explained much of their complicated relationship. And it absolutely convinced Michele that reincarnation was the real deal. The Bobby saga would make a smashing full length movie so you won’t want to miss it. There are several other past lifetime stories that will also curl your hair…including one that took place in Africa. Another humdinger! Michele finished this episode with a touching tale of her brother Victor, their relationship, and how he managed to teach her the invaluable lesson of forgiveness.

Around the time of her mother’s death and the end of the banker story, high school Bobby showed up at Michele’s house looking pretty adorable. He told her that his mother on her deathbed said he should marry Michele. Where was that going to lead? In the end, when Bobby married his secretary, their convoluted love affair hit yet another road bump. Thank heaven that not long after that Michele signed up to attend a croquet tournament at the swank resort Meadowood in California’s Wine Country. That turned out to be a homerun decision as she met a delicious German aristocrat named Carl and had one of her very favorite LoveCapades! Romantic, sexy, elegant, and glamorous all at once. Every woman should have an affair of the heart like this one. Oh la la! To finish up the episode Michele described her father in much more detail and explained how he’d been a profound influence on her life. Intriguing stuff.

The affair with the banker Lance revved up, but it was a rocky ride. There was clearly a strong sexual attraction, but since Lance the Lover was married, things became complicated…and often frustrating. Michele had to once again grapple with the familiar conundrum of what to do about being in relationship with a married man. It became a taffy pull of emotion. There were many erotic moments and some very disappointing ones as well. One particularly dramatic event happened which involved her mother. You need to listen to the episode to find out what that was about. This affair of the heart actually went on for a number of years but finally ended in a very dramatic way! Was it worth it you might ask? Michele answers that question at the end of the chapter.

This episode is definitely a fun ride. It begins with Michele’s version of the Mrs. Robinson story…only this time it’s reversed. Nick, the younger man, seduces Michele! This Love Capade will definitely make you smile. Next we begin the saga of Lance the Banker. It turns out to be one of Michele’s Top 3 love affairs and is full of romance and drama. They meet because his face is plastered all over the SF Chronicle’s Business section, and with remarkable determination and bravado Michele sets out to sell him a home. Little did she know where that intention would lead! As a little bonus you will learn a lot of insider Realtor techniques as the story unfolds. Without giving away too much of the story, suffice to say the banker puts on a full court pursuit. On their first “date” he utters two take-your-breath-away sentences that launch this irresistible affair of the heart. You won’t want to miss a minute of this entertaining—even titillating—episode.

Please don’t forget to submit any questions that pop up from the first 10 episodes directly to michele@lovecapades.com. If there are enough questions we will add a bonus episode at the end of the series. And…in the meantime, as you finish this first batch and are waiting with bated breath for the next, don’t forget to go to the Facebook page called LoveCapades to see some really fun visual posts that will help you connect all the dots. We are all delighted to have you be a part of this exciting adventure. Love is in the air!

We see Michele having a whole string of “international relations” with enthralling men.  One of the most significant is with a famous Israeli war hero whom she meets in her hometown one night at the local watering hole.  This encounter develops into an exciting affair that takes her all the way to Israel with a most surprising outcome! There is a great deal of high drama, even danger. During her month’s stay in Israel, she also spends time at a Club Med in Eilat, and explores the captivating city of contrasts, Jerusalem.  Two more love matches sneak their way into the story, but you’ll have to listen to find out how. In this episode, Michele deepens her understanding of why it is so important to learn to love oneself.  And she becomes more convinced than ever that maintaining her independence is crucial to her well being.  Yet again we see our heroine making choices that are unexpected…taking the path less traveled rather than the predictable one.  Michele experiences again and again her early therapist’s advice that women can choose their man, but best only from those who choose them.  Listen to this gripping chapter to find out the times she says yes, and the times she says no. Fascinating stuff! Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.

The parade of LoveCapades continues at the beginning of the 1980s.  First was a mini affair with the man who created the ski resorts of Vail and Beaver Creek.  Mostly a downhill ride. Then Michele visits her favorite spa at Rancho La Puerta in Mexico.  Here she has a fling with a fascinating psychiatrist who helps diagnose her approach with men.  More importantly, on one of these spa visits, Michele has a powerful and profound encounter with God that definitely alters the course of her life. This prompts her father to make another of his hurtful remarks which affects her deeply. Luckily there’s a big dose of comic relief in the episode with a whole batch of hilarious things that will have listeners laughing aloud. It turns out that one of Michele’s interesting patterns is that her lovers circle back years later.  One of the most tantalizing examples of this happens when Zander returns for a liaison.  Naturally, there’s a twist.  Michele explains in detail that she feels fortunate to be able to enjoy a variety of love experiences in a way that most women of her era cannot.  She does realize, however, that there is a double standard between men and women, how unfair it is, and how it continues to this day. Definitely food for thought…and discussion. Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.

After the heartbreaking stuff that happened last time, in this episode we hear about many happy, playful, sexy, and carefree events that pop up in Michele’s adventurous life. She buys an adorable bungalow and over the years turns it into her own personal “dream-o-cile.” Shortly after that she returns to Italy for a vacation, and naturally finds another ‘oh la la’ romance!  On her way home she stops in NYC to meet girlfriend Lynn and has yet another titillating encounter with a former World Body Building champion.  And on top of that she has an hilarious stopover in Montreal where Tony tickles her funny bone to no end.   One thing these escapades reveal to her is that the macho, assertive side of her personality does not in any way deter foreign men from appreciating her. It is only on her home turf does this character in a woman becomes an impediment.  She maintains that this self-assured, powerful way of being is welcomed in a man, but not so much in a woman. In this segment, Michele also describes what makes a good lover and goes on to explain that we remain connected in spirit to each and every man we encounter whether it be for a short fling or a long romance. Delicious food for thought. Don’t miss it. Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.

This episode continues the romantic story of Michele and Drake.  It’s intense…in the telling and the listening.  It starts off with Michele playing house during the summer up in Drake’s San Francisco apartment. She’s happy with this turn of events and sees it as a sign of the commitment she’s longed for. Suddenly Drake decides to move back to the Peninsula and open a tennis shop. He takes an apartment again at Oak Creek and Michele moves in with him another time. At this point it has become obvious that Michele hates teaching high school, so her man brilliantly suggests she pursue a real estate career.  Bingo! It turns out to be a huge success.  She sells five properties her first two months—one to Drake, and one to herself among them. The latter signaled her blossoming business acumen.  Finally Drake proposes marriage and buys Michele an engagement ring.  What happens next is when things get complicated.  You’ll have to listen to find out what a roller coaster ride ensues. The relationship presents huge challenges, and yet offers much that is positive.  What unfolds demonstrates Michele’s amazing ability to see the good in every situation, no matter how challenging, and to remain hopeful whatever crosses her path.  Tighten your seatbelts! Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.

This episode spans Michele’s graduate school experiences and veers into the beginning of her teaching career. After a third stay in Italy, she had pretty much been liberated from her sexual hang-ups.  You could say she’d been set straight by the Italian man’s way of being with women. And luckily she brought the new Self back home.  Michele’s first fling was with a gorgeous younger man named Zander, a Stanford basketball player.  There’s some pretty juicy stuff in this LoveCapade.  Next she ran into an African Prince from Biafra—this too is pretty erotic, but poignantly reveals the truly backward cultural thinking about interracial relationships at that time.  Her final grad school love affair was with a blond stud named Beau.  That led to another ill-fated event which you will discover when your ears are glued to this part of the saga.  Once Michele starts teaching high school, she meets Drake.  As you shall see, he becomes one of the main relationships of her entire life. To seal the deal with Drake and make his heart grow fonder, Michele goes off to Club Med on a week’s vacation where truly hilarious shenanigans ensue. You won’t want to miss one minute of this episode! Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.

After experiencing a painful betrayal and breakup with Jack, Michele meets a charming young Roman named Sandro.  Their story, while enchanting, does not reach the fever pitch of her romance with Nicola whom she can’t seem to find to save her soul. It appeared as if he’d dropped off the face of the Earth. This was to become one of the great mysteries of her life. But in her style of making lemonade out of lemons, Michele enjoyed her time with the handsome, and rich, young Roman while she worked in a couple of fascinating job assignments found through a temporary agency.  One of those was at Dino DeLaurentis Films. Two fascinating encounters also happen during this stay in Rome—one with the CEO of a major brokerage firm and the other with a Liberian Ambassador she’d met at one of the SRI conferences. As someone said, “You can’t make this stuff up!”  Next Michele had to choose between going back home to graduate school--at Fletcher, or Stanford to pursue a teaching credential—or to stay in Rome. In the end she chose Stanford for reasons she can’t quite explain to this day.  Unraveling that decision reveals a great deal about Michele’s character. Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.

Upon arriving home, Michele tries to recapture the magic formula that gave her so much happiness while living in Italy. She finds a perfect job working at SRI International, a think tank right in her hometown.  Their task is to organize business conferences around the globe.  At one such event in San Francisco, she experiences a number of international flirtations and then meets a handsome man named Jack who also works at SRI.  By this time Michele decides to pursue graduate studies at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.  Just before leaving for Boston, she has a change of heart and her love affair with Italy pulls her back for a third sojourn.  The romance with Jack follows her there with disastrous results.  Before returning to Florence, she and her travel mate visit the Swiss relatives in Fribourg.  Here Michele almost dies in a fire and finds herself featured in headlines in the Geneva newspapers!   Undaunted, she still heads to Rome where she finds a job and an intriguing place to live. Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.

Michele describes why Italy is her “happy place,” and how the romance with Nicola unfolds.  It’s quite a story. There is an amazing seduction scene in Siena—oh la la.  Eventually the two girls travel to Palermo, Nicola’s home city, where they stay and frolic for several weeks.  Michele’s father writes to tell her to leave Sicily immediately as he had been a pilot there during WWII and was worried about what might befall his daughter. Next Michele and Marlowe leave for Greece and then head back to Rome, where Marlowe plants herself.  Michele, however, returns to Sicily to spend bliss time with her young doctor. Midst all the romance, there is a harrowing scene on Mt. Pellegrino. Finally Michele flies back to California to get a job and establish herself on her home turf.  Her love affair continues via love letters from the divine doctor. Thank you for listening to the Love Capades Podcast. To submit your questions, please send them to michele@lovecapades.com. Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our website to get your hands on more content. This show is skillfully and playfully produced by StudioPod Media. For more information, please check out studiopodsf.com, or send an email to info@studiopodsf.com.