Is this the norm?

This episode of the podcast "Is This the Norm?" — hosted by sisters Heather, Rebecca, and Lora — explores the history and mythology surrounding the Book of Thoth across three distinct incarnations. Rebecca leads the discussion by first recounting the original ancient Egyptian legend (from the Papyrus Cairo CG 30646) about Prince Setne Khamwas, who discovers the magical book written by the god Thoth in the tomb of Naneferkaptah, only to learn — through a cautionary tale of betrayal, death, and a hallucinatory seduction by the beautiful Tabubu — that the book brings ruin to all who possess it. The hosts then trace how European scholars in the Greco-Roman period reinterpreted a collection of Egyptian texts as a second "Book of Thoth" (the Corpus Hermeticum), fueling Renaissance-era fascination with Egyptian mysticism. Finally, Rebecca connects this lineage to the invention of a common divination tool used today. References: Aleister Crowley | biography, teachings, reputation, & facts. (n.d.-a). Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved August 28, 2026, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Aleister-Crowley Antoine Court de Gébelin | French scholar and writer | Britannica. (n.d.-a). Www.Britannica.Com. Retrieved August 28, 2026, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Antoine-Court-de-Gebelin Egyptian texts : Setne Khamwas and Naneferkaptah. (n.d.). Www.Attalus.Org. Retrieved August 28, 2026, from https://www.attalus.org/egypt/setne.html Rosetta Stone decree. (2022, February 10). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosetta_Stone_decree The Ancient Egyptian book of thoth. (n.d.-b). Near Eastern Studies. Retrieved August 28, 2026, from https://neareast.jhu.edu/faculty-books/the-ancient-egyptian-book-of-thoth/

This is an episode of the podcast "Is This the Norm?", hosted by three sisters (Lora, Rebecca, and Heather), in which Heather presents a deep-dive on William the Conqueror — covering his illegitimate birth and precarious youth as Duke of Normandy, his 1066 conquest of England after defeating King Harold II at the Battle of Hastings, his brutal "Harrying of the North" campaign that devastated the population, his legacy of castle-building across England, and his eventual death and division of his territories among his sons. The episode also touches on related topics like Queen Elizabeth II's descent from William, Alfred the Great, and the Norman/Viking history of the era, interspersed with casual, tangential banter among the hosts about reality TV, movies, and names. References: William the Conqueror’s Childhood https://thefreelancehistorywriter.com/2013/08/27/william-the-conquerors-childhood/ William I ‘The Conqueror’ (r.1066-1087) https://www.royal.uk/william-the-conqueror

Rebecca, Heather, and Lora share a legendary story with you today, where Lora leads the episode, telling the story of Calamity Jane a Wild West frontierswoman. The hosts also go off-topic discussing ticks, chiggers, tumbleweeds, essential oil bug spray, and their grandfather's deathbed comment about Native Americans enduring pain without modern medicine.

This episode of "Is This the Norm?" has hosts Heather, Lora, and Rebecca covering the Battle of Megiddo, the earliest recorded battle in history, fought around 1457 BC between Egypt and a rebel alliance of Levantine city-states led by the Princes of Kadesh and Megiddo; Rebecca walks through the Thutmose dynasty's rise, Thutmose III's bold gamble to attack via the risky Aruna Pass, Egypt's decisive victory (documented in detail on the walls of Karnak), and the battle's lasting legacy as the namesake for "Armageddon," before the conversation drifts into related tangents on Tel Megiddo's ancient ruins, comparisons to Game of Thrones, and a broader discussion about underreported historical atrocities like the Rwandan genocide and apartheid. References Battle of Megiddo Facts | Battle of Megiddo Infomation | Battle of Megiddo History. (2018, July 2). Egypt Tours Portal US. https://www.egypttoursportal.com/en-us/the-battle-of-megiddo/ Mark, J. J. (2017, September 25). Egyptian empire. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/Egyptian_Empire/ MilitaryHistoryOnline.Com - the battle of Megiddor. (n.d.-a). Www.Militaryhistoryonline.Com. Retrieved August 25, 2026, from https://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/Ancient/BattleOfMegiddo Popular pharaohs of Egypt timeline - google search. (2022). Google.Com. https://www.google.com/search?q=popular+pharaohs+of+egypt+timeline&rlz=1C1VDKB_enUS1110US1110&oq=popular+pharaohs+of+egypt+timeline&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIICAEQABgWGB4yCAgCEAAYFhgeMg0IAxAAGIYDGIAEGIoFMgcIBBAAGO8FMgoIBRAAGIAEGKIEMgcIBhAAGO8F0gEIODQxOWowajeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&source=chrome.ob&ie=UTF-8 Search Media - Wikimedia Commons. (2026). Wikimedia.Org. https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?search=Battle+of+Megiddo+BC&title=Special%3AMediaSearch&type=image The battle of Megiddo - Ancient Egyptian culture. (n.d.-b). Www.Donsmaps.Com. Retrieved August 25, 2026, from https://www.donsmaps.com/egypt2cb.html Wikipedia. (2020, October 24). Battle of Megiddo (15th century BC). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Megiddo_(15th_century_BC) Wikipedia Contributors. (2019, June 11). Hatshepsut. Wikimedia Foundation. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatshepsut

This is an episode of the podcast "Is This the Norm?" hosted by three sisters — Lora, Rebecca, and Heather. Heather presents the history of the "Black Dinner," a 1440 assassination of two young Douglas clan brothers at Edinburgh Castle orchestrated by rival Scottish regents, with the sisters riffing on parallels to Game of Thrones' Red Wedding along the way. They close with a preview of their next episode on Egyptian royalty. References: ‘The Black Dinner’ https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/posts/the-black-dinner The Black Dinner – An event that inspired the “Red Wedding” in Game of Thrones https://www.heritagedaily.com/2021/06/the-black-dinner-an-event-that-inspired-the-red-wedding-in-game-of-thrones/139523