Podcasts for my Melbourne trip, ‘Knock at the Cabin’, and a renewable energy bottleneck

The book giveaway this week is ‘Weyward’ by Emilia Hart.

I can be very much a creature of habit. There’s something comforting about visiting the same café each day, rewatching movies and TV shows you know don’t contain anything disturbing and reliably lift your mood, and falling back on hobbies you’re good (okay, in my case, mediocre) at and don’t have to think too hard about.

On the other hand, I crave seeking out the new and novel. I’ve been lolling in my safe zone too often of late (and who could blame any of us after the worldwide bollocks of our 2020-onwards existence). It’s time to emerge from my Doritos-crusted cocoon.

I’m not just talking about my trip to Melbourne tomorrow. It’s more a frame of mind. Watching films I wouldn’t normally see, trying out a new form of exercise, being a tourist in my own town, taking a day trip to the other side of the city, starting a project I’ve been eyeing off for years but never scraped together the courage to embark on, expanding my mind by respectful conversations with people who think differently from me, contacting friends I haven’t seen in a while.

Participating in life more, you know what I mean? Being – if not passionate – enthused. I’ve withdrawn in recent years and I’m refusing to engage in self-blame for that. I had excellent reasons to allow myself a little holiday from certain mental responsibilities. But now I’m not saying I have to drag myself out of my funk or even that I should. I want to, and I will. Slowly, though.

Are you doing the same, or considering it? How are you taking steps in that direction?

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News

1.     At first, I thought this headline meant that Australia was in danger of losing its claim to being a renewable energy leader because the US had intensified its efforts and I was thinking: ‘Oh well, what a great problem to have – everyone’s upping their sustainability game, so everyone wins, right?’. The trouble is: we’re all doing it at once. With such a big market competing with us for resources in a global environment where supplies of so many things have been stretched thin in the past few years, we’re likely to come off second-best. Sounds like a great time to steer your career into climate change and renewable energy, though, if you’re so inclined. You’ll be in hot demand.

2.     Instead of imploding rapidly, Twitter has been sinking agonisingly slowly in quicksand in recent months. Notably in the last week, this includes glitching on Wednesday after an announcement that for a premium price, certain users would be able to issue much, much longer tweets than the current 280-character size (4,000 characters, in fact). How Twitter changed the world, in 25 tweets shows how powerful the platform has been over the years, for better and worse. Alyssa Milano’s amplification of the #MeToo movement, on-the-ground reporting of live events, Trump lighting the match for the 6 January riot, cancel culture, brands jumping on board defining moments for advertising clout… Being from the Times, it’s a very US-centric list, but it definitely paints a picture of how those who understand why and when Twitter works have been able to harness its power, and how Musk has failed to understand it to a sizeable extent. It seems he’ll just keep wildly swinging the pendulum in all directions until he finally lucks into a good one, or his purchase finally collapses.

Reviews

1.     In my search for the perfect cure for aching muscles, I’ve recently used Endota Spa Organics’s Clove & Mint Recovery Balm. Three weeks ago, I reviewed Indie Lee’s I–Recover Mind and Body Gel and I’d put this one in a similar category. This Endota one also smells pleasant – a cross between peppermint and deep heat – and gives you that tingling feeling to let you know it’s doing something. It’s decent at calming down your sore spots, but is, like the Indie Lee version, on the expensive end of town ($50 for 50 ml). If you prefer the calming scent to other options, then great, but my vote’s still for good ol’ Mentholatum Ice Gel from the chemist for around $5.95 for 100g. Crikey, a bit of difference, pricewise! Sometimes the less expensive version really is the best, which is actually quite comforting.

2.     A night at the cinema watching a new M. Night Shyamalan movie? Don’t mind if I do. I’ve seen a few of his in the past – Signs (intense), The Sixth Sense (plot twist ruined by my ex-boyfriend – bleugh), and, er, She’s All That (oddly off-brand for Shyamalan, but okay). I also reviewed his TV show Wayward Pines (a creepy small-town drama full of intrigue, but give the meh second season a miss) for a magazine when it came out. We watched his new offering Knock at the Cabin on Saturday night. Can I just say: ex-wrestler Dave Bautista is on his way to being one of my favourite actors, between his roles as the hilarious Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy, brash influencer Duke Cody in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, and now gentle second-grade teacher and not-all-he-seems Leonard in this film. Rupert Grint aka Ron Weasley also plays a fairly significant role. Knock at the Cabin seems to be drawing positive-ish mixed reviews, but I thought the acting in this was top-notch and if all ‘horror’ movies were more like this, I’d be a much bigger fan of the genre. It technically fits horror, but the gore is off-screen. It’s actually more of a thriller/mystery of the isolate-the-main-characters-in-the-woods-and-then-mess-with-their-heads variety. I’d rewatch this for Dave Bautista alone. Ace – watch it on a night where you feel like something different.

Raves and Faves

Five podcasts I’ll be listening to on my Melbourne trip

The talky-talkiness of podcasts tend to jumble with the words in my brain when I’m trying to write an article or a piece of fiction, so I don’t listen to them very often these days. Pre-2020, I’d usually catch up on a ton of them when travelling, but, well, not much of that’s been happening in recent years. So, I’m super-excited to sink my ears into several this week while I’m on the plane. These ones are locked and loaded on my Spotify.

1.     The New Yorker: Fiction

Fiction editor of The New Yorker Deborah Treisman and a guest read and discuss a short story published by the magazine in the past (sometimes delving wayyyyyyy back into the archives). Particularly keen to check out the readings and analyses of Shirley Jackson’s ‘Afternoon in Linen’ and ‘Stone Mattress’ by Margaret Atwood.

2.     Shrink The Box

This one’s brand-spanking new, but I’m already salivating over it. A comedian and a psychotherapist analysing the psychology of individual TV characters? Yes, please. The first two episodes have just dropped – on Tony Soprano from The Sopranos (a show I haven’t watched, but have heard much about in relation to his truly evil-sounding mother) and Walter White from Breaking Bad (which I have watched, and found his descent fascinating).

3.     Maintenance Phase

The blurb for Maintenance Phase says: ‘Debunking the junk science behind health fads, wellness scams and nonsensical nutrition advice’. Many of the magazine articles I write are about mental and physical health, so I keep an eye on the latest scientific discoveries and trends across health. Having also working in consumer affairs for many years, I’m also fascinated by scams and helping people to avoid them. Here, we find the intersection of both these topics. Recent episode titles include: ‘The Food Pyramid’, ‘Goop’, and ‘French Women Don’t Get Fat’.

4.     Scam Goddess

Following along on the scam theme, this podcast turns its attention to all sorts of fraudulent schemes. Laci Mosley keeps listeners (aka the con-gregation, geddit?) informed about rackets old and new, promising: ‘It’s like true crime only without all the death! True fun crime!’. Fake heiresses, faux cures for cancer, dodgy politicians, and similar frauds are covered.

5.     Decoder Ring

A Slate podcast, Decoder Ring essentially takes a cultural phenomenon from the zeitgeist each episode and examines its rise to fame. Like, how did calling people Karens become a thing? Who can we blame for the ‘mullet’ hairstyle? Where did the term ‘metrosexual’ come from? Why is everyone going nuts over ‘unicorn poop’ these days? Time to find out.

Giveaway

This week the book giveaway is Weyward by Emilia Hart. Pop your name and email address in here for your chance to win.

Playlist of the Week

TGIF – ’80s edition, but not all the overplayed usuals:

1.     Hello Again - The Cars

2.     I Can’t Help Myself - Orange Juice

3.     Play For Today - The Cure

4.     Obsession - Animotion

5.     Life in Tokyo - Japan

6.     Bassline - Mantronix

7.     Dreaming - Poly Styrene

8.     Clear - Cybotron

9.     Pull Up To The Bumper - Grace Jones

10.  She’s In Parties - Bauhaus

11.  Cities In Dust – Single Version - Siouxsie and the Banshees

12.  No Rest - New Model Army

13.  Flaming Sword - Care

14.  Cloudbusting - Kate Bush

15.  Bridge to Your Heart - Wax