Odds and Ends
Bits and bobs from a topsy-turvy world
I don’t know about you, but it feels like there’s a lot going on in the world—or at least my world—lately. Trying to take it all in and get my thoughts together in writing has been a little difficult, though I do have some work in progress.
In the meantime, here are a few things I’ve been up to:
Podcast
I was recently a guest on Lucinda Sage-Midgorden’s Story-Power podcast.
If you’re more of a listener than a watcher, you can find the episode on Apple or Spotify.
Lucinda, who has been a guest on Follow Your Curiosity, and her sister have their own show celebrating classic movies: Classic Cinema with the Sage Sisters.
Books
I recently read Tony Stewart’s book Carrying the Tiger: Living with Cancer, Dying with Grace, Finding Joy While Grieving, which chronicles Tony’s wife Lynn’s lung cancer diagnosis and their journey with the disease, and his grieving process. It may sound bleak, but I actually found it refreshingly real and honest in a way that allows for hope and joy along with the heartbreak.
I’m talking to Tony for the podcast today, and you’ll get to hear that conversation later this year.
I’ve also recently finished Barbara Ehrenreich’s Bright-Sided: How Positive Thinking Is Undermining America. This one came out in 2009, which makes it a bit of an historical artifact, but if anything, it’s even more relevant now than it was then.
When I first heard about this book, I thought Ehrenreich sounded like a really wet blanket, which surprised me, because I’d really appreciated Nickel and Dimed. How could positive thinking possibly be a bad thing? Of course, I hadn’t actually read the book! These days, I’m more and more aware of the way toxic positivity has become almost an unspoken national religion in the US, causing a great deal of harm despite its good intentions, which is why I decided it was time to put aside my prejudices and give it a try. I’m so glad I did. I learned so much about the religious roots of our addiction to “good vibes only”—worth the price of admission for that alone, though I’m not at all shocked that we can blame the Puritans for this one, too, in a roundabout way—and how thoroughly it’s embedded itself in nearly every aspect of our lives, from cancer treatment to the C-suite to the “law of attraction” in ways that are downright cultish.
Speaking of which, I also recommend Amanda Montell’s Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism, which presents a fascinating look at cults through the lens of language. That’s fitting, since language is one of the primary control mechanisms cults use. It also looks at the surprising areas of life where cults can exist, from the obvious (religions) to the more subtle (workplaces), and also shines a light on some of the more (in)famous examples, like Jonestown and Synanon, where Montell’s father spent some time growing up.
I read Cultish and Bright-Sided back to back, and if you’ve read this far, it’ll likely come as no surprise that I found a good deal of overlap between the two. That’s certainly something that gives one pause. Even more pause comes from the fact that the United States is more prone to cults than almost any country on the planet because of our incredibly limited social safety net, which leaves people desperate for connection and security—two things that cults love to provide in spades, in exchange for a whole lot of control.
(These are all Amazon links not because I’m hoping you’ll buy anything from them—they’re not affiliate links, I get nothing from them, and I’m no happier with them than anyone else is these days—but because they’re convenient and because of the reader reviews. If you do decide to read any of these books, please purchase them wherever you like, or check them out of your local library, which always needs your support.)
TV
The new season of Doctor Who is back, and I’ve been enjoying it, especially the visit to 1952 Miami a few weeks ago. The show is really coming right out and commenting on just about everything there is to comment on these days, and while a lot of people are upset about that—no surprise there—I’m here for it. Last week’s episode, in particular, but hey…
I’ve also been enjoying the heck out of Kathy Bates in the new Matlock series, very loosely based on the original (verrrry loosely), but with a fabulously feminist twist that shows a 75-year-old grandmother might just have more up her sleeve than you give her credit for. I guess I can tell I’m no longer 25 myself, because I’m eating it up with a spoon, cheering her on every step of the way, and just loving the way this show is showing that, as it turns out, women actually are more than capable after 40 or 50, and you ignore us at your peril.
Also, has Kathy Bates ever been better? Lord knows, she’s always been amazing, but she’s obviously having such a fabulous time, and this series gives her a chance to show off her fabulous range in almost every episode.
If you haven’t seen it, I can’t recommend it highly enough.
That’s it for me for now. I’d love to hear what you’ve been reading and watching!
Love Barbara Ehrenreich! Thanks for the book recommendation. The last book of hers I read was "Natural Causes" and it was a very informative, funny, and compelling read. I have to watch "Matlock" too!