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Ep. 304: From Chemical Sales to Couture: Ricky on Painting, Sewing, DJing & Reinventing Yourself in Midlife
Episode 304
Published 2 weeks, 5 days ago
Description
Guest: Ricky — painter, sewist, DJ, and host of the podcast Eager to Know
Find Rick: RickyArtist.com
In this episode, Zach sits down with Ricky, a self-described "combination of right brain and left brain" who's built an entire creative second act after a first career in global chemical sales and internet technology consulting. They cover:
- Ricky's career path: 10 years in global chemical company sales, then a pivot into internet technology as a front-end developer and project manager working with major consulting firms in New York
- Zach's own surprisingly parallel origin story: working for a Miranda Priestley-esque boss at Chase Manhattan Bank who insisted he learn web design at NYU rather than move into HR
- Why Rick left a 20-year run in Boston's South End for a 400-person village in southern Vermont, and what "living in the past" had to do with the decision
- How Ricky got serious about painting, including a six-week immersive program at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy
- Ricky's deep dive into sewing since January 2026 — he's since made an entire men's wardrobe from scratch, including the quilted jacket he wears on the episode
- Zach's own aborted attempt at learning to sew, and his post-9/11 knitting era
- How Ricky taught himself DJing on YouTube after buying a $20 mixer at a yard sale, and now runs a weekly tea dance at the site of a former gay bar in Bellows Falls, VT
- The surprisingly rich queer history and community of rural Vermont
- What hosting a podcast has taught both of them about people — and about themselves
- Zach opens up about becoming a stronger transgender ally through his interviews, and about a past-life regression session that changed how he thinks about reincarnation
- Where to find Rick's art, sewing projects, and his own podcast, Eager to Know
Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com
Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ
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