Cornhole: The Solution You Never Knew You Needed

Lindsay Miller  0:22  
Welcome to The Stress Nanny podcast. I'm your host, Lindsay Miller and I'm delighted you're here to make your life a little less stressful. This week, I'm talking to Michelle Thompson and we are going to go into how cornhole can make your life less stressful, and it's going to be fantastic conversation. So Michelle, thanks so much for joining me today. I'm gonna get into your bio in just a second, but I'm so happy to have you on the podcast.

Michelle Thompson  0:44  
I'm excited to talk about cornhole. Sure.

Lindsay Miller  0:48  
Okay, so Michelle is a graduate of National University with a Master's degree in human behavior and has completed all the coursework for her PhD in psychology. She lives in Northern California with her husband Nick sunroom and three pitbulls Jackson, Lola and pepper. Nick started playing cornhole and so the addiction for the family was born. Michelle is a women's wellness expert and cornhole personality using her passions for both mindfulness and cornhole so you can tell we're already gonna have a fantastic conversation, help women thrive and receive truly connected and fulfilling lives. For the past 12 years, Michelle has been publishing books and appearing in the media helping women release physical, mental and emotional weight to discover the essence of who they really are in find their place of significance and belonging in this fast paced, disconnected world. She believes that a combination of soulful hobbies like cornhole, and deep connection to ourselves and others can not only transform women, but the world. I'm so excited about this conversation. Thanks again, Michelle, for being here.

Michelle Thompson  1:47  
Yeah, I'm super excited to be here. I know it sounds weird cornhole, stress, all this things. But I think by the end, everybody will see it.

Lindsay Miller  1:55  
Yeah, I think so too. And I'll just share the story of how we met because Michelle had reached out she and Whitney have this podcast girls throw to you. And we'll get into that. And they asked about mindfulness. And we got to talking and we were on the podcast and chatting and had a conversation. And I was like, Oh, my gosh, you need to come on my podcast because I'm just realizing how much cornhole is a mindful and stress relieving activity. And so it just kind of emerged naturally. And so yeah, I hope everyone can connect with it by by the end of our chat today. So let's just start with what cornhole is, for anyone in the audience who's listening and is like, Okay, I've heard of that. But I don't actually know what it is, or people who have never even heard of it.

Michelle Thompson  2:37  
Yeah, and the easiest way that people tend to know what it is, is if you think of the beanbag toss game, a lot of people know that one for some reason. But basically, it's just a board with a hole in it and you stand 27 feet from, you know, side to side, and you throw four beanbags, they don't have beans in them, and they don't have corn in them anymore, but that's what they started with. And then you throw them to get them in the hole to get on the board. It's one point you could get it in the hole, it's three points. And it's started out it's just a game to have fun when you're with friends, like friends over you want to play dice or cards, or this is just another version of that. But now it's become a whole thing.

Lindsay Miller  3:17  
And I had no idea like I've played you know, at the house or backyard parties played at the beach. You know, we were at a wedding a couple months ago, and they had cornhole going, you know, is outdoor, beautiful venue, the stars, you know, this beautiful night sky, and we're just like chucking bags, you know, back and forth at this wedding. And it was so fun. And but I had no idea until I talk to you like how much it would have grown and that you can find leagues and all these different places where there are cornhole communities and people who get together to play.

Michelle Thompson  3:46  
That's the next big part of it, right? So yes, it's fun way to connect with your friends that you already know, and something to do. Like, I don't know about any of the listeners, but I meet a lot of new families because my son's in school, and it's can be awkward. You're just like to have a playdate and the parents want to stay and you're like, Cool. Hi, like, I want to let you know. But if you're like, let's go do some bags. It just sort of eases the tension with like new people. So it has that. But then now that we have leads and things like that you build a family. And now we have this whole connection thing happening on the other side, which is meeting new people. And a lot of people struggle to make new friends. It's to the point now where I literally could move anywhere in the US and feel completely confident that I would have a friend group within the first week.

Lindsay Miller  4:33  
I love that so much. And we'll get into this too. But like the accessibility let's address that just at the outset. So cornhole, one of the things that I think is so fantastic about it is that anyone can play like no matter your age or mobility, right like anyone can play.

Michelle Thompson  4:51  
That's the ACL the American cornhole league slogan anyone can play anyone can win. So that is what we stand by in this cornhole world and It's beautiful thing we've had people come to league on crutches. We've had people come to league in wheelchairs, we've like literally everything we have kids as young as seven, we have a seniors as old as in their 80s. So all across the board. If you can throw a bag, then you're one pound. So if you can throw a one pound bag, then you can play even if you have to sit down in between. We've had one guy who uses those, you know, like the grabbers to grab stuff. He uses that to pick up his bags, he doesn't have to bend down. But if you're playing with someone, they're gonna pick up your bags for you if you tell them your back hurts or something. But yeah, literally anybody could play.

Lindsay Miller  5:39  
Yeah, well, and I'm so intrigued by the community that you've built you. And when you build this online space where people can really connect and get excited about cornhole, and it's so inclusive, right, like you said, getting more women in there, getting the kids in there, like making sure that everyone has a space, when they come out to play. Talk to me about the kind of environments that are cultivated when you have that kind of crossover between ages and gender, just all the things like anybody, anybody truly could come out and be a part of it comfortably.

Michelle Thompson  6:10  
Yeah, absolutely. And it is a still a male dominated sport. That's why we started girls start to and kids start to to try to bring awareness to the women and kids, we see them a lot sitting in watching, but not playing because they're intimidated. So this idea of the of, it's a one pound bag, like there's no advantage man, men, women, and even the kids, their six year olds throwing 27 feet so they can get there, and they can do it. So it really is about including everybody and just kind of getting over the hump of like, well, am I going to be bad? Am I going to be good? Is this person gonna be mad, I'm their partner, or like getting over all that and just realizing that we're all just there to have fun, there are more competitive and about competitive environments. And stay away from that when you're first starting. And then no problems, right? Just go play. There's social leagues, there's, you know, we have three levels at our club, there's beginner, middle and advanced. So it's like there's a spot for you somewhere. Just gotta find that.

Lindsay Miller  7:12  
Yeah, yeah. And I just love diverse groups. So like having a range of people ages and experiences, it just brings so much richness, right. And you really can, it can make for fascinating conversations, and really insightful connections, right, that are not only enriching, because you're in a social setting with other people, but also because they deepen your own experience of life. We have

Michelle Thompson  7:37  
a lot of three generations show up. So we have grandpa, father or mother, you know, and child and grandchild, we're seeing that more and more come to the clubs. And we're seeing a lot like, for example, we have someone who's in his 80s, and he'll get paired up with our 12 year old, you know, so we have an 80 something year old and a 12 year old on the same team playing together.

Lindsay Miller  7:59  
Yeah, yeah. Okay, and low barrier to entry, right? Because if you, you just need to get bored. Exactly. To get started. If you wanted to play at home, I guess you don't have to have that

Michelle Thompson  8:11  
I was gonna say I recommend when you do. So, there's a couple ways you could do it. Now, if you're brave enough, I would just go and find a league that has a lower level division and just start playing, you can use other people's bags, you don't have to buy any equipment, you just go out. And I know that's intimidating, because you've like, haven't ever played this game, and everyone's gonna think I suck. And I know that if you can get over that hurdle. And there's literally no cost to you, except for that maybe $10 entry to play. And then what will happen is you'll get addicted. And then you're like, I'm gonna get some boards and bags, but you'll know which bags to buy, because you've now thrown other people's bags, because there's a whole bag thing. There's millions of bags out there to choose from. And I also wouldn't recommend getting like the cheapest boards like the like the ones you get like at a sporting goods store. Like you know, whether you build them yourself, which you can look up tutorials on YouTube, or have someone else build them who has that skill, or you just want good wood. Otherwise, it's just going to be not as fun because the boards bounce and the bags do funky things. And so I just recommend that you're gonna go buy it, you know, it's gonna it's, you know, buy some real wood boards.

Lindsay Miller  9:16  
Yeah, totally. I think someone gifted us one of those like Canvas and PVC pipe sets, you know, for Christmas, probably like five years ago. And last year it broke. And so we my brother in law made us a really nice wooden set. And I was like, Oh, this is you know, it's different. Like it's, it's really different. Yeah. Okay, so Natalie. Yeah. Now that we've kind of gone through the logistics of it and what it is and how to play, we can kind of connect with the simplicity of it. Let's talk about how it's life changing. You and Whitney have both been really open about how it's changed like your family, your marriage or you know, her family or marriage. So talk to me about that aspect of it because I think Get the outset. You're like, oh, yeah, this is a fun game to play. But you're like, meaning no, this is like changed my life.

Michelle Thompson  10:07  
I know it sounds silly. It's it's a bag and a board. But I think there's a lot of times if you're if you're in a relationship, for example, where you have activities that you do separately, like I was just listening to a podcast this morning, and she's annoyed because her husband went to play golf all day. And that's like a whole day thing. And then she stuck with the kids. And it's kind of like, I want you to have a hobby, but I'm annoyed that you went kind of you feel bad about yourself, because you're like, I can't believe I'm mad that you have a hobby. So the thing with cornhole is that, since you all completely together and it's very addictive, like equally when you start playing, then everyone has the same desires, like where are we going to go play this weekend, and like, everybody's on the same page, we're all like, looking on our phones looking for the next tournament, and children want to go, and both people in the relationship want to go, and maybe your parents want to go back home. So I'm saying I'm seeing a lot of that three generation thing happening. But everyone's on the same page with the same desires. So there's no like, well, I kinda want to do this, but they want to do that. It's like, everyone's like, where are we gonna have like, cornhole? That's what we're doing? Or who do we want to come over to play cornhole with us? And then everyone's playing together? And once again, no separation?

Lindsay Miller  11:14  
Yeah, no, I love that. I was talking to a friend the other day, and he was just saying how, like, he and his wife are still after, you know, 20 ish years of marriage, trying to figure out like, their thing. You know, like, what is the thing they like doing together. And I think it can be challenging. We have different interests and like different levels of, you know, ideas about what sounds fun. But like we've said, with cornhole like low barrier to entry easy to do in terms of physical and emotional investment, you're like, it doesn't take a lot. And then just fun, really, right, like you're chatting, and you're just like having a great time.

Michelle Thompson  11:44  
And then you could take it to the next level, right? Like, I kind of compare that to, if you have your friends over and you want to play dice, or cards, like it can be that. But then if you want to really bring in the connection piece and community piece, then you do find your local leagues, and it becomes like Wednesday nights, which is when we run our league here in my town. Everybody that comes to that is like, this is the day look forward to all week, like I look forward to seeing all these people. We just had someone come over to throw it with my husband last night, and we just got back from a long trip. And he's brought me a Tupperware of spaghetti. I don't even know this person that well. He's like, I figured you guys are probably tired from traveling and didn't want to cook. Like, this is not like our friend of 15 years. So we met at league like a few months ago. It's that kind of community that you get instantly. Like when we get new players, everybody's like, Oh, we're so glad you're here. And it's so warm and friendly, and it becomes your people.

Lindsay Miller  12:41  
Yeah, I love it so much. Because one of the things we you and I have talked about this before is the idea that sometimes especially for kids, there can be a pretty high barrier to entry is to some of those like community sports or team sports, where you feel a part of something, and I feel like right now kids need that. I mean, adults need that too. But kids need that more than ever, right? Like coming out of COVID and just trying to get back that sense of like being surrounded by a community that supports you and you know, loves you accepts you, and is there for you. And it is more competitive environments, especially in terms of athletics, it can be sometimes challenging, right to find that type of supportive community I know in the different teams we've been on. Like, it's been, there's been such a variety and I'm so grateful for the community we have right now with my daughter's soccer team. But I even think to myself now like what's going to happen when it's just my husband and I you know, like and we're not involved in these other like with these other paragraphs or when we don't have school, you know, her school friends are kind of the people we're hanging out with more and it's it's like sometimes so challenging, right to find those spaces where he can have that sense of connection. And so I love that, like no matter your level of athleticism, no matter you know, no matter what stage of life you're in, this is a community where you will belong.

Michelle Thompson  13:58  
Yeah, there's actually a couple their sisters are high school girls, and they come every week they drive from about 40 minutes away they come and they don't come with their parents, they come just the two of them. They come every week and that like the older like us older people have kind of adopted them in like, and they like they're completely part of this. Now we have we had a guy who told us that he was considering taking his own life for years, he felt completely disconnected from the world. He was complete disconnect disconnected from his family him and his dad come every week together he no longer has those feelings. He feels completely part of this family. And no one none of us knew that about him until he told my husband that just recently so it's not like we were like friending him because of Oh, this guy's you know, on suicide watch. We all have to band together. No, it's just what we naturally do. It just happens that way. And I love that about this community and it really is and this community that transcends you go travel. We just went to Virginia Beach. We're like, Okay, where's the nearest and then we went and played cornhole and Virginia Beach, you know. So it transcends everywhere and it peak Come as part of our vacation, we went to Cabo we got to pack our bags, I'm sure we'll have boards. Every morning, we woke up, we played, we threw bags before we ate breakfast. Just yeah, part of life.

Lindsay Miller  15:11  
I love it. Well, and they kind of like who knew. I mean, because I know when I started talking to you, I mean, again, I just thought it was like something a few people did at the beach, or you know, like at backyard parties. And without even realizing that this is a significant community, the world over, that you can opt into so freely, you know,

Michelle Thompson  15:31  
and then talk about the competitive side. I'm a competitive person, not like, physically competitive usually, like I don't really pay sport, play sports. But I have this desire to grow that is very strong, and sometimes gets me in trouble. Because it's like, it's not channeling that correctly. That's channeling towards things. And it becomes obsessive about stuff that I shouldn't be doing, whatever. It's a whole thing. But with Cornel, like I'm channeling all this competitiveness and desire to grow on something that is a lot healthier. For at least for me, which I think is is good. So it also helps with that competitiveness. Once again, I'm not athletic never have been. And so yeah, I kind of like channeling it there as opposed to some more dysfunctional places where I become obsessive about things that just don't really enrich my life. Really?

Lindsay Miller  16:17  
Yeah, that's a great way of putting it enrich your life. Because I think too, it's physical, right? But it's not so physical again, early. Being in your body, right? Absolutely. We are, there's so much of our life, that cerebral, being able to do something where you're in your body, and like low key low impact all the things but you're just you have to be in your body playing cornhole, right, like, your, your mind and body are in the same place at the same time. And sometimes it's hard to come by activities like that, you know, in a way that also builds community. And so I think that word Enriching is so great, because it is this like, full experience, right? Like you're touching, you're feeling the bag in your hand. It's so mindful, you're feeling the bag in your hand, you're like, you know, practicing your, your lunge or your stance, you're, you know, picking up the bag, you're making eye contact with the person across from you. Like there's so many simple physical actions that are insulating, right, both psychologically and physically, that are just part of the game.

Michelle Thompson  17:21  
Yeah, exactly. And that, and it gets people off their phones, you can't throw a bag and be on your phone at the same time you could in between, but you tend to want to communicate with the people around you because you're in that environment. The other weird thing about cornhole that is a kind of a fun side benefit is, you know, how sometimes we get really annoyed with ourselves as humans, because we say we want to do something, but then we don't follow through whether it's like healthy habits or things like that. So we start to think like, oh, I have like a willpower problem. Like, there's something wrong with me. I'm not disciplined or whatever, we make all these statements. But the funny thing about cornhole is that it's so addictive, that you were literally like, people will drive through snow and rain and drive an hour and a half to go play or the like, if there's like a small window to play, they'll go outside and throw bags as much as you can, like, it starts to make you realize, like, Oh, I really can, like, move time and space to do things I want to do. Like, I don't have a real issue here. Maybe it was I was choosing the wrong things or, or just whatever, but like I actually am capable of committing to something and being disciplined, you know, if I want to be and I kind of liked that about it, too. Like, it's crazy what people people come from two hours away to play on our Wednesday night League.

Lindsay Miller  18:29  
That's so great. Well, and I love that you said that, though, like addictive in a really functional way. Like, yeah, all of our word. Oh, I think it is because I think all of our brains have addictive tendencies. And it is a function of channeling them into stuff that's going to enrich us. And so I love the phrasing that you use there. Because if we connect knowledge, like Yeah, I just need to get myself I MAY be addicted to some, like habits or tendencies right now that are not serving. But if I can get myself just like shift that addiction into something that's really functional builds community helps me feel better. Like I'm going to feel a lot more accomplished as an individual as

Michelle Thompson  19:03  
exactly my mom just asked me yesterday, cuz she was like, asking about birthday gift ideas. She's like, Well, what do you guys do? Like what are you doing? What do you like cornhole? She's like, No, but what else like no, we literally, just cornhole. There's our entire life revolves around Kornel. Like, we're, there's the next tournament, when can we play at home? Those kinds of things. It's nice. We took our son to this last pro event in the Atlantic City. He's six. So he's never gone to a pro event before we always leave them at home. But it was so amazing. Like he got to meet all the pros like they were like taking him under his wing like he was in this huge environment of the best Cornell players in the world. And they're so warm and friendly. And it's I think it's a really cool space for him to grow up. And

Lindsay Miller  19:49  
yeah, yeah, totally. And let's talk about that too. Because in terms of kids, this is something that I see as one of the most powerful and influential parts of cornhole is the ability to just have relaxed conversation while you're doing something else. Yeah, so like not only building like letting him access this community that feels super supportive, but having a habit with him from the time he's young, to where you're just like accustomed to going out and chatting while you do something casually together.

Michelle Thompson  20:17  
Yeah, actually funny story, not totally on that topic. But so he I was standing next to him, but I guess he didn't see me. So he started to walk away when he got a little lost in that room. And he and we introduced him to like everybody. So he found someone we introduced him to, and he goes, Hi, you know, my mom and dad, can you help me find them? Like, he wasn't even scared. He was like, all fine. Someone I know, though. Somebody? I'm like Rome. I was standing right next to you. I don't know why you missed me. But yes, having those conversations with kids, especially to preteens and teens, when they can get quiet on you. I don't have one. But I know that I was one. And there was so much I was dealing with that I didn't even necessarily have the words to express, especially in a sit down what's wrong situation? I mean, I think we as adults have troubles expressing our needs, let alone us, you know, adolescence, but you're throwing bags, or you're talking about things maybe, you know, I don't know if it'll continue, but my son will ask me questions like about my life like, Mom, did you ever feel this or that? I hope it continues. But I think that can be a little bit easier to see when you're just throwing bags and casually having conversations and maybe that your kids will ask questions like that, which gives you kind of a little insight or window into what's going on in their world. Like why would they be asking that question, specifically? And being able to answer that, I mean, he'll ask me like, What is alcohol is like, your six like, but okay, what an important conversation to have. Let's talk about that. So what does it mean that be drunk? Well, okay, yeah, let's talk about that. So, I mean, I hope that continues. But that these are the kinds of conversations I think that the little bit of a harder conversation that can come up,

Lindsay Miller  22:00  
ya know, and I totally agree, my background is in Family Science and child development. And so we talk a lot about the idea that you can't have quality time without quantity time. Right. And like, because you we all as parents, I think caregivers, and some goals, you know, grandparents, we have the desire to engage in those types of conversations with our kids. But you can't always force it, right? Like, if you just have 10 minutes, you can't always like get into that, like sink into that cozy space where that kind of go. People are like, you know, you're like trying to gather up the soccer gear and you'd get out the door. And you know, make sure you didn't forget anything and like, and also you had a hard day's Can we talk about that? Right? It's just not the right, the right space for it. But when you're creating consistent quantity time with kids, then the quality has a space to come in, right, because that's the intention all along that we have. And so I love that with cornhole, like you're saying, if it's a daily practice, if for some people it's a weekly practice is just something that you do routinely, like your kids can

Michelle Thompson  23:04  
count on that. Yes. And the car rides because like I said, most people do travel for cornhole, whether it's 30 minutes or an hour or longer. So just in the car ride over to the venues that you're going to is also really good time and space for those conversations. A lot of good conversations have been driving, I think,

Lindsay Miller  23:21  
yeah, agree. 100 100%. Yeah, well, and also, in terms of having the conversations, I think this is again, where mindfulness can come in. Because if you can, again, consistently engage in the conversations, you don't get as stressed about the content of them, right. Whereas when you have a super limited amount of time and stuff is coming up, and it feels like it needs more time and space to be fully kind of hashed out or your child to be heard. It's challenging, because you feel like maybe you missed something, or there's some other piece of it that you're not getting. But that steady, consistent space can help you feel a little more at ease, right that like, even if you didn't get to all the questions today, even if he has more questions about you know, alcoholism tomorrow, or you like there's going to be space for it. And so, which is just huge. Yeah, from a from like a mindful parenting standpoint, it really does alleviate some of the burden of raising kids, right to just know, like, I have a space carved out regularly, where I connect with my family.

Michelle Thompson  24:28  
Yeah, and people do game night, I think, you know, like a board game or like that this would be similar, but it's a little bit more, a little bit more physical. But same kind of concept. And you and the nice thing about cornhole is that you could be on the same team, right? You could be throwing against your child, but you'd also be in doubles where you have one of you stand on each side of the board, you're playing together as a team, which I think is nice. The other thing I wanted to mention was I was working with women with weight for years. And one of the main things that they would complain about it not complained but when I would ask them then they had no answer was what do you do for Fun was always revolving around their children, which is definitely an aspect of life. Don't get me wrong, but like you said, What happens when the children are gone? Or what happens when your children go for a sleepover? And it's just you and your spouse or that kind of thing? And what about when everybody leaves? And it's just you? And and when you find these people who speak to women, specifically, when you find these women who find cornhole, it's like, they have their thing, and even if the full family shares that, like, that's fine, like, if you're, let's say, you're your husband takes the kids somewhere and you don't go, you could be like, Oh, do I feel like going and playing cornhole tonight are like, it's just an option. It's something you're passionate about. And it's for you, as well as your family. And that I found not only helps women, because now they have a soulful hobby, which I think is imperative. But in terms of modeling for your child, which so much of parenting is modeling. You know, you modeled this passion for something, and this, this really healthy competitiveness and healthy addiction and your children are watching. They're watching this and whether or not they play cornhole or not, it's kind of irrelevant at that point. But they're seeing you be really involved in life and connection, and community and friendships and all the things that come from it.

Lindsay Miller  26:12  
Yes, that was so beautifully put, yes, yes, yes. And I think that engagement with life, right, like they see you truly living. And that is inspiring. And I think a lot of times as women, it can feel daunting to find a thing that will allow you to like parent, the way you want to parent work the way you want to work, just like have the flexibility that comes with mom life kind of while also like having a community and a sense of, of purpose and passion for something. And so I love like you said that use of this, right? Like you can have boards in your basement, you can have boards in your backyard. And then you have the your community of people who you go play with. And it's that simple, right? Like throwing throwing bags, like a few minutes a day even like just giving yourself the space to do it. And the low barrier to entry. And the low, like demand in terms of continued practice is it makes it so ideal.

Michelle Thompson  27:06  
Yeah, you can be any level right? Like there's a lot of people who are there, if you are athletic, most likely what will happen is you will not be just one night a week like you will be fully invested in being the best cornhole player you could possibly be. And that's great for you. And you know, what the pro circuit is an option like that's accessible. You know, you go to the pro qualifier in South Carolina and August and you try to be a pro. And that's how you do it. It's very accessible, that we have pros that have only been playing for two years, because they just practice every day and got that good. And there's a lot of room for women right now, because the ACL specifically is trying to grow the women. So they're making more spots available for women that the men can't have just even though that's not technically fair, they're doing it so that we grow the sport as a whole. So a lot of opportunity to go be a pro athlete, if that's your desire. Now, that's not my desire, because I know what I mean. Like, I'm not trying to be the best Cornel. But I'm trying to be a decent cornhole player. And I run the league, and it's a lot of work. And that takes away from some of the play as well. But to me, it's more about just the the fun of it. I'm not really trying to go anywhere. with it. I have a business in it. But that's yeah, that's about it.

Lindsay Miller  28:22  
Yeah, no. And I think that's such an important thing to point out like, it's, again, a lot of pro sports, either you need to be a certain caliber of athlete, right? Or you need to be a certain age or fitness level. Yes. And like, this is super accessible. So if you did want to, like set a lofty goal and go pro and something like, why not try this and let that be if it's been? Like, I've always wanted to, you know, if that's what you're thinking yourself right now, like, go for it, right? Give it a try.

Michelle Thompson  28:53  
It's the best people to and you know, the only I would say, barrier is, if you're under 18. There's only we're only allowed to have eight pros under 18. Because of the bedding, so that if you are under 18, you would have to wait. It would be very difficult, I should say to be one of the eight. However, women and seniors not only get the normal, like singles and doubles compared to competitions, they get a women's only and a seniors only competition, which is yet another time to win money and be on you know, a big stage. So lots of opportunity there for seniors and women. I love that.

Lindsay Miller  29:32  
So if we were going to talk a little bit more about some of the stories I know you have a ton of stories. You mentioned the gentleman who like was having suicidal ideation and then like connect with cornhole and felt like he found a sense of meaning and purpose that totally eclipsed those struggles that he was mired in. What are some of the other stories that you see when people kind of access the sport and see the empowerment and the community that can come from Minute.

Michelle Thompson  30:00  
So kids would be like the first one I would start with, I don't think necessarily every kid fits into a group, a typical group. And sometimes kids don't fit into their own families, which is even actually more painful than not fitting into social groups, in my opinion. So what I love about this idea is that kids can excel at something. But let's just say there's a corner like if you can get a cornhole club at your school, which is one of our goals for kids are to now this kid that didn't have anywhere else that they fit is an awesome cornhole player, and now they have a spot where they belong, and they don't necessarily even care anymore. Because I think what's so painful about not belonging is when you don't belong anywhere, it really lowers your confidence. Overall, you're like, what's wrong with me? Why don't I belong anywhere. So even if this child is only playing cornhole with adults, but they fully belong in that room, that should fix a lot of the issues they're having, even if they walk into school and think I don't really fit in here, I don't belong here, like, well, I belong somewhere, it might not be here. But um, who cares, because I have all these awesome people, you know. So it's like, I think that it's easier sometimes to belong with adults, if you don't naturally fit in with your peers, because everyone's the same maturity level. So you know, kids can only do what they can do, right? A lot of times, there's a lot of kids that aren't very nice. And so you know, that's the world you're in, but you're not gonna see that as much in the adult world. So it gives them a place to belong, whether that's actually creating a cornhole club at your school that they can excel at, and find a place there. Or at least having it in this room. Even if your parents don't play, which does happen. We have kids who play and their parents don't play, but they go to league every night. And their parents watch and actually really enjoy that. I have some parents that used to play and stop playing to watch their kids play, because they find so much joy out of it. So there's definitely that. So I love how it can help kids. I think that it's a huge piece of that. And then marriages like we talked about connecting with your spouse, it saved a lot of marriages. I've heard that story over and over and over again, a couple other stories would be there was a guy who came out of the military. And when you're in the military, you have your group, like you have your spot where you are in a community of these people every single day. And then when you come out, you're just sort of left to kind of figure out life after that. And he was really floundering. And then he found cornhole, and he found his new group. And he said, that was huge for him. He had PTSD, he had all the things that often happen. And that fix that. And then the other one, in my town, the town I used to live in, it burnt down in 2018. And so we all lost our homes, about 90% of the town, Bert. And so a lot of us got, I mean, we all got split up, we were all displaced. And very few people went back because it's still nowhere near ready to be I mean, I think was 27,000. Now it's like 45,000. So that's how much the population dropped. So we all lost our community in one fell swoop. So what it's done for me and others who have come out of the campfire, is it. We all get together now once a week, like we're all spread out the ones who stayed in this general area. Like we used to just go to each other's houses every single day. But now we don't because we don't live in the same town, but they come to League. Right? So we're seeing these people and then we wouldn't normally see them. We wouldn't see me every week. You know, we might make plans here or there but not regularly. So it's put this community back together. And actually the paradise called Paradise, the town that burnt they started a league off of our league. So our leagues DFT with DMC Orville, they have DVD paradise, that little tiny town with 5000 people in it pulls 100 people on a Wednesday night.

Lindsay Miller  33:50  
Oh my gosh. Yeah.

Michelle Thompson  33:53  
It's been amazing for that talent.

Lindsay Miller  33:55  
Yeah. Yeah. Resilience in recovery. That's incredible. Well in considering, again, the number of people who are kind of making their way back into social settings and trying to re acclimate, I think not to, not to negate the difference between losing your whole home, which I'm so sorry to hear that like in a fire burning down a whole town. But like when when people are trying to live post COVID Sometimes some of those social things feel like they've broken or the connections that they had don't feel the same anymore. And so people are looking right like looking for new ways to connect or fit in or get involved. And, again, a simple way like looking up your local cornhole League, right, and like showing up a simple way to just take one small step that will have a huge impact in your ability to like, build resilience after

Michelle Thompson  34:47  
you watch. By the way, we have people that come and they're like, I'm not really I'm a little bit afraid to play but I want to come and watch and they do and then they play eventually. It doesn't like that as well. cuz I don't know any league that would turn down viewers like just just want to sit and watch and hang out. No, we have a restaurant, we have a bar, like, get some food, get a drink, if you want and sit and enjoy and just meet the people, they're all going to talk to you because they're all in this room together. So it becomes you'll, you'll want to keep coming back.

Lindsay Miller  35:19  
Yeah, yeah. Well, and again, this idea like of stress, and I, I'm so glad you brought that up with kids, because I think that needing to fit in, right, it's a basic human need, we all have it, but especially potent for kids in terms of building confidence, like you mentioned. And so I can really just attest to the power of having one space, you know, one space that feels like you are included, accepted no matter what, and being able to build your life from there, into, you know, other ways in that confidence kind of flowing more freely, once you connect with that one space. So if people are struggling,

Michelle Thompson  35:57  
and being good at something I was gonna say, right, like, I know, for me, in middle school, I did musical theater up until middle school, and then I stopped and when I stopped, I was like, I don't have a thing. Like, I don't I don't have I don't play sports. Like I was taking voice. But that's an individual thing. You know, I wasn't, I wasn't performing. I was just taking voice on a Wednesday or something, you know, so I could sing in my shower. But like, I didn't have a say I, I really struggled. I struggled from about 11 to probably 16 or 17. I never had a thing. I didn't belong to a club, a group, nothing. At that point, I had stopped musical theater for so many years that I felt silly trying to enter it, you know, because everyone was so much better because they had continued. And I think that a lot of kids can fit into that. That group of they don't have a thing. And when you don't have something that you're excelling on or good at or growing at you flounder like and this is where I think, my personal opinion, we start to see at least for myself getting into a lot of drinking, I drink a lot in high school. And that's because that's the only people I hung out like it's only thing I had, I guess yes, that is that is. Yeah, yeah. And that wasn't a weight that what I did, and I was talking to you, I do musical theater now in my town. And I was talking to some of the high schoolers that do the productions with us. Because they're so grounded. Like, they're like, I was talking. I was asking her and she was very candid with me. I think she was 16 at the time. And I was like, like, what are you guys? Like, do you? Are you in a drinking like? And she's like, Oh, no, I don't, I don't have time for any of that. Like, I'm constantly performing. Like, she has her group. She's got her music, she's incredible, talented singer, dancer, actress, like she doesn't have time to have any energy spent in those other things like she's fully fulfilled, where she's at. She knows who she is. She's excelling at something. And that's she's got a track. Right. She's, she's on track for something. And I think that's how you keep your kids out of those things that you don't want them to be into. Now, I don't know if that's driven study that, but that's my personal opinion.

Lindsay Miller  37:52  
Yeah, well, no. And I think it's so insightful because again, this idea of like a healthy addiction to, right, like a lot of times we turn to those were like addictive addictive things that aren't maybe as skillful or as supportive and enriching. Because we're looking to fill a void, right, or there's something that we don't, we're not feeling a connection to. And there's a disconnect within us or in in terms of our relationships. And so if we can fill that void with something like you're saying empowering, that builds our confidence, it gives us a sense of community and we can addict to that, then the power of it can be like carry itself. So as long as it's something that is skillful and enriching, I feel like for kids, that the insulating factors that come along with that are massive for development.

Michelle Thompson  38:40  
It's cheaper to I have to tell you that I've talked to like an interview pros all the time. And many of them have played sports prior to cornhole. And when I asked them like, do you still play those sports? They're like, No. If you're a parent, I mean, if your children are in a really expensive sports, hey, they might switch to Cornell and save you a lot of money.

Lindsay Miller  38:58  
Yeah, well, and like sustainable over the long term, right?

Michelle Thompson  39:01  
It's not part of the body. No, yeah, you're not going to age out. It's not hard on the body. You know, I mean, some of the way the younger kids throw, they do throw, they do some crazy, different kinds of shots that require a lot more force when they throw so I guess your shoulder could technically get a little bit overused. But if you're just doing a basic slide shot, yeah, you're not gonna you're not gonna burn out your shoulder. So you're good.

Lindsay Miller  39:27  
No, that's, that's such a, that's such a great example of how, like in the stories you were telling about the high school student, of how really being able to channel your interest is is powerful for both giving you the community that you need, and also the intrinsic motivation that you need to kind of like carry yourself through into adulthood. And I think back to our conversation around just creating space for communication. Even if cornhole doesn't end up being like their thing for life. But you play in your home or as a family, you create the space for those conversations to happen, where you can help them figure out what is their thing, right, you can get clarity on things they're going through that, like maybe you didn't understand they were struggling with or help them, help them kind of redirect some of that energy if they're feeling a sense of disconnect. And so, being like, it seems Win win, right? Like, either they're gonna love it and totally embrace it and just go for it. And or you're gonna create a space where you figure out what they do love, what they do want to embrace and what they do want to go for.

Michelle Thompson  40:31  
Those are like, I mean, adults hire people to help them figure that stuff out. Okay? So it's difficult to figure out what you're good at and what you like, like, that's, that's a tough thing to figure out as adults, let alone a child. So, I mean, those are really important conversations. We have a 12 year old who just started playing him about maybe four or five months ago. He's already very good. He plays every single day like and he's the football player and all these other things, but this has become like, at the forefront. So and he's such a like a good little personality. So we actually asked him to be one of our hosts for our kids are two cornhole podcast, like so like, it's just cool how, like, five months ago, you picked up bags, and now he's like, excelling on the boards. He's playing with some of the top talent. And he's interviewing pros. Like I just, it's cool. You never know where it can lead you.

Lindsay Miller  41:19  
Yeah, yeah. And again, like connecting with a community of people who are generous and just willing to embrace like, the, the different networking that you do in that space, just naturally, as a result of, you know, regularly seeing people it can be so powerful, and yes, and again, just like heartwarming, from the sense of, we're all human. We're all looking for that. And this is like one place we can find it.

Michelle Thompson  41:42  
Yep. And it's easily accessible all over. So anywhere you go, you can find a cornhole, I keep saying League, but I just want to be really clear league doesn't mean that you have to sign up for like 10 weeks or whatever. It's, usually they do have those. But I guess you could call it more of a club. So a typical club is that you just drop in and play whenever you want. And that's what you're going to see a lot of when you're looking. But they do actually have leagues to where it's like a, like a bowling league, you know, where you sign up, and it's like a 10 week thing and you progress through to a finals, but you definitely don't have to go that route.

Lindsay Miller  42:17  
Okay, no, that was gonna be my next question. So as we're getting ready to close, what are if someone's listening in, they're like, oh, my gosh, I hadn't even thought of this. But it sounds perfect for my child or for me or my family. I mean, I know after I talked to you, I was like, okay, when's the next time we can play cornhole? Together? You know, let's make this happen. So would they just Google you know, look up cornhole, near me, cornhole? Club cornhole? What would they? What would they look for?

Michelle Thompson  42:43  
Yeah, there's a few things I'd recommend. First of all, I'd be go to WWE thrive. to.com, that's T O. We have all the information to get started there. And so that's like a great first spot. And we'll we'll teach you all about how to find leaks, we'll teach you about equipment, you could buy all of that. So I have like a little beginners program that's totally free. Just put your email in and then it'll give you the five videos to watch. And it'll walk you through the entire process of how to get started in cornhole. But to shortly answer your question. There's an app called score folio that you can use to find leagues or you can search on Facebook, like because most of these leagues have groups or pages. So both of those options will help you find cornhole near you.

Lindsay Miller  43:27  
I love it. Okay, and then let's, I'm going to ask you three questions. I asked guests but let's go to your website and stuff. What are the ways people can connect you mentioned we strive to how can we get to know more about you and cornhole?

Michelle Thompson  43:43  
So we thrive to like I said, if you're not already playing, that's really where you want to start girls throw to and kids or two are more geared toward current players. And not that you can't be there. We'd love to have you there. We have merch and all sorts of fun stuff. We have a podcast girl through to where we interview pros and experts like Lindsey and things like that. And Whitney and I talk about what's going on in our lives. So we'd love to have you listen in at girls sorrow too. But we strive to we'll get you started if you've never even stepped foot in this world. If you're kind of dabbling then checkout girls throw to and kids are two as well. But those are the websites as well.

Lindsay Miller  44:16  
Okay, awesome. So I usually ask us three questions. Are you up for it?

Michelle Thompson  44:21  
Yeah, let's do it.

Lindsay Miller  44:22  
Okay, what's your favorite food?

Michelle Thompson  44:24  
Oh, favorite food is Thai food, like pad cu or curry.

Lindsay Miller  44:30  
And then favorite way to relax.

Michelle Thompson  44:32  
favorite way to relax is a bath or the hot tub like warm or steamroom something warm.

Lindsay Miller  44:39  
Okay. And then a funny pet or family related story.

Michelle Thompson  44:44  
Oh man, my dogs are pretty funny. Because we have we have people's we call Lola a pig bull. And we call her a pig bull because she constantly Snorks like a pig. So she snores really loud. Even though she's 40 pounds, and she constantly snort so people get really confused when they hear her because they're like, is she growling? She's snorting, so we call her pig or pig bull, or Lola. But yeah, the pitbulls are funny dogs. I absolutely adore them. It's one of my other passions pit bulls

Lindsay Miller  45:16  
or pit bulls or people. So thanks so much for joining me today. This has been such a great conversation. Thank you again for the insight you shared and for your passion for cornhole. I know, it's changed my life. So I'm excited for that to spread to our listeners today.

Michelle Thompson  45:32  
Thank you for giving me the platform. I was happy to be here.

Lindsay Miller  45:35  
Thanks for being here. This episode makes you want to get outside and play some cornhole. I know I went and played with my family just a couple days after we recorded. It really is such a fun way to just be together and enjoy a physical activity that's mellow and allow space for everybody to just connect. If you enjoyed the episode, please share it with somebody else who would enjoy it. And thank you to the one person who left review last week I saw it and I'm so grateful. If anyone else it feels inclined to leave a review, I would really appreciate it. I know that we have way more listeners than reviews and if we if I can get more views, that means more people can find the podcast. So thank you for helping me to do that. I hope you have a fantastic week and I will talk to you again next Thursday. Until next time!

Transcribed by https://otter.ai