If you’ve ever found yourself wrestling with the high stakes of people-pleasing, marriage, or just living life fabulously after fifty, this episode is for you. I had the absolute joy of chatting with the remarkable Ann Leary, who has managed to pack all these subjects and more into her latest collection of essays, "I've Tried Being Nice." Think you can resist a book with an essay about a passive-aggressive showdown over off-leash dogs? Think again! Ann dives deep into her personal experiences—childhood, marriage, and even her tennis obsession. Spoiler alert: tennis may have saved her marriage, and also might save your next awkwardly long family holiday.

We laughed, we nearly cried, and if I'm honest, mostly we laughed. Ann's candidness about her struggles with people-pleasing gave us all the giggles. Who knew that a confrontation over dogs could reveal so much about human nature? And if that’s not enough, we touched on the delights of aging, the beauty of Italy, and her hilarious misadventures with ballroom dancing classes alongside her husband, Denis Leary. Yes, there was a Russian dance instructor involved, and yes, it was as entertaining as it sounds. So grab a cup of coffee (or maybe a glass of wine), and tune in to hear Ann’s wonderful stories. And don’t forget to check out her new book—I promise you, it's a page-turner you won't want to miss!