scrubjayspeaks

Oh, they paid me to do shockingly little for several hours today. I generally hate when I finish a job midway through the day, because then I might end up on miscellaneous nonsense. The day does not move swiftly when you're doing miscellaneous nonsense, friends. So I was officially assigned to unofficially zone out for the last two hours of the day. Read: train on a job I already know how to do but haven't done often/recently, so I'll be ready to do it tomorrow. Read: appear to read documentation related to it VERY intently whilst listening to podcasts about fin whales.

Speaking of fin whales: I really was listening to the fin whale episode of Strange Animals Podcast. Kate mentions that fin whales and blue whales are closely related enough to breed and have hybrid babies. I don't know why this blew my mind, but boy howdy, did it. I guess I think of that kind of interbreeding as something that happens with at least one domestic animal involved--dogs and coyotes/wolves, horses and donkeys, that sort of thing. It never really registered with me that some wild animals might be doing the same thing.

Now I want to know all about little (oh, gods, not little at all) whale-cross babies. What other families (is that the correct level of taxonomy?) have species that interbreed in the wild? Are any of them cute/weird?

(I actually find the fin whale bauplan to be deeply unsettling. They curve in the wrong direction. Who authorized this?)

It's been a while since I actually talked about the podcasts I'm listening to. I got through a lot this week, though, so it seemed like a good time to shout out a few that stood out.

I Only Listen to the Mountain Goats: I started this podcast back when it was new-ish, actually, and didn't keep up with it for some reason. Listening to a few episodes again, I know I heard them before, because I recognize the songs, but I have no memory whatsoever of what they discussed. I am, in any case, finding their discussions really interesting. There were a couple cringe-inducing moments when they were talking about the then-lowest points in 45's presidency--knowing what comes later felt weird and bad. I admit, I...don't actually listen to the Mountain Goats? Rather, I've heard a couple songs (apart from those in the podcast) and I'm broadly aware of John Darnielle as an apparently excellent human. I like the mix of topics they get into--it's much more than just a music theory podcast--and goodness knows I always want more music to put in my ear bits.

Strange Animals Podcast: I think I originally found this by looking for cryptozoology podcasts, which isn't really what this is (certain episodes notwithstanding). It's just a really good, short-form nature program with an emphasis on the weirdness of nature. Perhaps there are various like that. What the various do not have is this host, Kate Shaw, who I find so completely delightful. She's enthusiastic and funny in a low-key sort of way. It feels like being ten years old and looking through Time-Life books about different sorts of animals with a friend, pointing out weird facts to each other.

Uncanny Japan: Another series I listened to maybe once when I first found it and then ignored for ages. I've been going back through episodes from previous years in the current month--if that makes sense--because it's often very seasonal. I love the idea of seasonal rituals and habits, which has shaped the Lake Lewisia pieces. Also, I really like the way she tells folktales. Highly tempted to support the Patreon for it to get more of those.

Finally, I've got an observation prompted by several episodes of one podcast that will remain unnamed. I'm not calling it out because I do like it and it's not that the creator did anything wrong, per se. But I heard a string of episodes today that all gave me a head-tilting moment of confusion, as I apparently occupy a completely different reality from this person. It's a lot of time management and organization and life skills-type talk. The episodes today mentioned things like grocery delivery, shopping online for everyday essentials, and the harmlessness of ending up with ruined food when trying a new recipe.

Part of my response was, "That is the whitest, most upper-middle-class thing I've heard anyone say in at least five minutes." More seriously, I found myself horrified and confused by the idea of it just being...cool to fail a recipe badly enough that the food is no good to eat and you'll just order something in to replace it. I mean, I feel okay financially, but I can't afford to make food that can't be eaten. I know that would be a huge hurdle to learning to cook for people worse off than I am.

The other element was my sudden reminder that (other) (normal?) people live in cities. In places where restaurants deliver, where grocery stores might even do the same, where the availability of goods is never in question outside of pandemic-induced shortages. I was struck by the distressing knowledge that people in rural areas are both woefully neglected by the kinds of services that other people just take for granted in modern life, and equally unrepresented in this sort of media. The life skills category of podcasts always seems to presume white-collar jobs, (sub)urban habitats, and a set of problems born out of those types of settings.

Where, I ask you, are the organization podcasts for people living in a single wide? Or advice about maintaining good professional relationships for people doing factory work instead of office work? Yes, the advice in these podcasts can be translated into other fields and settings much of the time. But why are we the ones who have to do it? Why is there no native voice for us? Is this really a niche as of yet unfilled?

It's been a while since I've done this, in part because I haven't been listening to or watching anything of particular value for a while. While sick, I just watched a whole lot of Youtube videos. Anyway! Highlights:

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So I just want to point out how goddamn much I love the Wonderful! podcast. It's so chill and sweet. Rachel and Griffin speak softly--not, like, ASMR levels of softly, but gentle--and even Rachel's laughter is all soft and breathy. And it's all about just random stuff they think is nice. Interesting, but only in pleasant ways.

I mean, there's a reason the tagline on all my sites is "why not wonder?" This is very much my jam. So I've been listening to episodes almost inbetween every other podcast I listen to. I just really need soothing, pleasant things, and this is A+.

Also, I've gotten way more into KEXP Song of the Day. They did some kind of Spanish language week; at least, I assume it was done deliberately. And there's just been a bunch of good good songs on there lately. Tambalea by Niña Dioz in particular is fucking bomb.

And finally, the new season of Desert Oracle has started. The long dark has ended, and there is once again Mojave-based weirdness available every Friday night. Rejoice, Earthling!

Right, so, I have a ton to recap, but it's pretty light on the commentary. I'm gonna chuck the whole mess under one cut tag this time. If anybody has a strong opinion on that vs. the cut-per-show method, give me a bellow. Otherwise, I'm sticking with this out of pure laziness.

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The Tolkien Road - episode 0005, The Silmarillion Ch02

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Deep State Radio - episode 07/18/18, What are We Going to Tell Our Grandchildren?

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KEXP Song of the Day - Collections of Colonies of Bees - Ruins

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My Brother, My Brother And Me - episode 412, Robocup

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TechStuff - How to Make a Podcast

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The Sorting Hat Podcast - episode #046, Halloween Things

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And in the category of television (or Netflix and No Chill, as the case may be):

Hannah Gadsby - Nanette

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So I know a lot of people talk about what they're reading or watching on tv currently, and I thought I should jump in as well. I watch almost no television, and my reading habits are most accurately likened to desert rain--an unlikely, often seasonal occurrence and overwhelming when it does happen.

But! I listen to a lot of podcasts? (I'll talk about the other media forms as well, but this is gonna be like, 800% podcast by volume.)

Today I have listened to:

Archive 81 - episode 2, A Night At An Opera

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The Deep Vault - episode 1, The Storm

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Originality - episode 19, You Don't Have to Be an Expert

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Trends Like These - episode 7/13/18

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