Ep 3: How My Gay Boyfriends Found Me a Husband
What do gay boyfriends, heartbreak, and funnel cake have in common? They led to a real life love story about friendship, second chances, and finally finding a husband. Host Daryn Kagan reveals how her longtime friends Craig and Michael, a married couple who’d supported her through years of dating highs and lows, decided it was time to light a spark and took things into their own hands by introducing her to her future husband, Trent. What started as a tough
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Ep 2: Young Widower Saves the Life of New Wife’s College Roommate
They were both widowed young, left to raise children alone, carry the weight of grief, and somehow start again. But through love and one selfless act set off a butterfly effect that would forever reshape three families. Kim and Steve, both widowed in their 30s and raising young kids, found love again after unthinkable loss. Just as they began building a new life together, a letter arrived from Kim’s college friend Melinda. She was in urgent need of a kidney
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Ep 1: From TV Fame to Rock Bottom: Leon Harris on Addiction, Recovery & Redemption
In the powerful premiere of Call Me Friend, Emmy-winning anchor Leon Harris sits down with host and former CNN co-anchor Daryn Kagan for his first interview since the very public incident last November that ended his TV news career. This raw, redemptive conversation dives deep into what it means to fall hard, heal deeply, and be truly seen by a friend who doesn’t flinch. From their days breaking national news together—including 9/11 coverage—to Leon’s spiral into alcoholism and his very
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Announcing my new podcast, “Call Me Friend!”
Who do you call when life gets real? When the good news hits, the heartbreak lands, or you’re just having one of those days—you call a friend. That’s the heartbeat of Call Me Friend—a feel-good weekly podcast that drops you into the kind of conversations that remind us who we are, where we belong, and why friendship matters. Hosted by former network news anchor, wife, mom, and Airbnb host Daryn Kagan, Call Me Friend is your weekly reminder of the
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Lessons from a Thanksgiving Jello Mold Fail
For the record, I did ask for advice. When planning our family Thanksgiving, my sister and I decided we should include our late grandmother’s jello mold. I can still picture it on Nana’s table: canned Mandarin orange slices magically floating in orange Jello making up the top layer. More orange jello mixed in the Cool Whip on the bottom. Yes, it is icky sweet and laden with more artificial colors and flavorings than you’ll find in a polyester dye factory.
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The thing NOT to tell a first time dog lover
I certainly didn’t want to be the one to tell him. When a friend came home with his adorable gray fur ball of fun seven years ago, I did all the things a fellow dog lover does to welcome a new pet lover into our tribe. Well, almost all the things. Deliver a basket full of puppy toys: check. Coo, snuggle, and make a big deal over that pink puppy belly: check. Offer up my
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When it’s time to stop asking questions in your marriage
I knew the answer to the question. And, I knew it was best to not answer it. At least not 100% truthfully. This is a story about what I’ve learned about questions and marriage. I’ve made a 180-degree pivot in my views. Let me start by explaining that the foundation of our entire marriage is based on questions. Before Husband and I got married we went through a book of 289 questions prompting us
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Video shows the richest parents in the world
The things you learn about your friends on social media. I’ll give this friend the benefit of the doubt. I don’t think he meant to brag. Yet, there he was on Facebook talking about how his parents died as the richest people in the world. He had video evidence, as well. It shows his 90-something father, his mother, and other members of their family enjoying their riches. His brother even makes a cameo appearance, giving
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Label this marriage ‘conflicted’
I’m armed and I’m told, dangerous. No thing, no person is safe. Hello, my name is Daryn and I’m a recovering slob. Perhaps, “lazy clutterer” is a better label. Speaking of labels, Husband says this is the problem. The messy beginning We begin with the mess. First there was me. I passed my lack of tidiness off to being single for so long. Then, there was Husband. Surely, getting married would be the
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Neighbor’s question shines light on our different family
“Where do you get your pretty blue eyes from?” a neighbor asked Daughter, looking at her and then over to me. “Certainly not from you,” she peered into my dark brown eyes. Daughter and I both paused. We travel through our daily lives like most mothers and daughters, loving and annoying each other. It’s moments like these that make us stop. They remind us of what was so obvious to the neighbor. We look nothing alike. They remind us that our family
