Hola, Sneakers! Welcome to Episode 594 of the saddest podcast on the internet.
This week: better best; donkeyskin flicks; Operation Mousemeat; difficult technicalities; happy endings; Star Wars is hell; a softer world; let’s sit in it; world exposition; promises, promises; a message wrapped in bloody meat; unpleasant people; de rigueur Metropolitan mention; misreading Pride and Prejudice; fantasy versus reality; rich people problems; the chatteling classes; heroic jerks; questionable deeds; mysterious vengeance; pedestrian car movie; the paradox paradox; a death in the family; pre-eulogy; heavy petting; the high cost of loving; Question of the Week – Sneakers respond; successful boyfriend replacement; tiny iron men; on the re-Bond; best dad joke; and, finally, worst dad joke.
Question of the Week: What is a fun story about one of your pets?
Sub-question of the Week: Do you live in the city or the country? What is something you appreciate about living there?
Thanks for listening.
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I’m sorry to hear that Lezah and Dave had to say goodbye to Al last week. Growing up, we didn’t have a dog or cat so I never experienced that kind of loss. We just had an aquarium with inhabitants of varying lifespans. My brother’s fish was a gourami. I think he name it after himself. After it died, it was buried in a flower bed. For many springs after that, a daffodil would pop up over the same spot and be the first one of the season to bloom. We called it “Mike the Daffodil.”
It’s appropriate that Dave read Jane Eyre on his way to Belgium to visit the Hergé Museum dedicated to an artist he is passionate about; Charlotte Bronte went there to study French and developed passionate feelings for a married professor by the name of Héger. Some characters and plot points in Jane Eyre were inspired by Bronte’s own tragic family background and life experiences so it wasn’t all made up. Her mother died when she was five. She lost her two older sisters to tuberculosis at a charity boarding school. She worked as a governess and teacher. She fell in love with an unattainable older man. She had a dissipated brother who abused alcohol and opium. She cared for her father when he went blind and needed cataract surgery. She turned down marriage proposals from clergymen (until she didn’t – and then she is thought to have died from pregnancy complications.) Her book had its detractors on moral grounds, but it was popular in her lifetime. I think she was like the Stephanie Meyer of her day, writing a fantasy about a nerdy girl taming a rich guy with a beastly side.
Oh righteous sneaky dudes of the dragon!
I neglected to mention my favorite style of dwelling last week, must have been in a hot ass hurry to watch the series finale of Picard! Which was GREAT! I’ll have to agree with Lezah that the Mid-Century Modern homes really do fascinate me. There are older parts of Dallas that have them, built in the 50’s or early 60’s. I worked one college summer for a designer who had the coolest home design. It has long hallways and spacious rooms built off of it with lots of odd nooks like booths and seating areas. It wasn’t until 12 years ago that I visited my Creative Director’s home which was also a MCM home and naturally I fell in love with it also. I never miss a get-together at his place. A cousin of mine used to work for the Frank Lloyd Wright tour in Chicago and offered me a free tour if I was visiting but that boat has sailed, she’s retired now!
Speaking of superheroes who are jerks, do you remember Alan Moore’s Miracleman (Originally Marvelman)? Ian, back me up on this, that guy was like a narcissistic version of Captain Marvel who killed everyone around him with his atomic energy. Instead of SHAZAM! he yelled KIMOTA, which was ATOMIC spelled backwards and the blast obliterated everything and everyone around him. Then of course, there’s also the Alan Moore character from WATCHMEN, The Comedian…Moore sure could write them.
I’m glad you guys are watching Ted Lasso! I thought I wouldn’t like it…Soccer? England? It grew on me fast and now I recommend it to everyone. I think it’s doing for Jason Sudeikis what Breaking Bad did for Bryan Cranston.
Funny story about my late male cat, Mr. Jinx. I let him out back one night and thought I’d let him back inside before bed. The next day, workers showed up early to work on my patio pergola for most of the day with the gate wide open. When I realized Mr. Jinx wasn’t inside and had probably ran off because of the workers, I walked the neighborhood for hours looking for him! I was ready to return home and print flyers to put up when I saw the tip of a furry tail from underneath the grill and it’s cover, it was Mr. Jinx! He had hid under the grill all afternoon waiting for the workers to leave. He had every chance to run off never to be seen again but he stayed in the yard, just hidden from the workers in the yard. Mr. Jinx slowly crawled out meowing at me as if to be scolding me, I scooped him up and ran inside I was so relieved even though he was most likely mad at me. He got over it but I knew then that Mr. Jinx would never leave the confines of his home, even if given the chance.
I’ve only ever lived in Suburbia and I guess it fits me since I like running quick errands daily to close places. It’s always been my way of life so I have nothing to compare it to.
Love to all from Suburbia, until next week!!
Question 1: Prior to meeting Dave, most guys I went out with were not fans of horses. Maybe Dave wasn’t a fan either but a better actor than I realized. Regardless, the previous guys I went out with were neither horse lovers nor good actors. One in particular was always complaining that my horse would bite him or step on his feet. I was dubious about this claim as the horse had never bit anyone before. One day I was at a horse show and this boyfriend was holding my horse. I had to go to the show office so said boyfriend was holding the horse. As I came around the corner, I could see my boyfriend holding the horse and talking to someone. The horse was standing stock still. With that, I saw his ear flick toward the boyfriend, who by this time was deep in conversation and oblivious to the horse. With that, the horse, in a move I’ve never witnessed since, keeping his body perfectly still, picked up his foot closest to the boyfriend, moved it laterally almost a metre, and set up firmly on the boyfriend’s foot, all while maintaining a perfectly calm and innocent demeanour.
Another story, this one about Al: One day I was out, but Dave was home in the house. Somehow all got out and was apparently wandering in the cul de sac. Dave, from inside the house, was made aware of this fact when he overheard the following conversation:
Man: Is that your dog?
Neighbour: That? No, that’s Al.
LOL. As though that completely explained it.
Question #2: do I live in the city or the country? I wish. I live in neither. We are in the suburbs. However, while some of the suburbs around Vancouver are just wall-to-wall housing/businesses etc., where we are does have some farmland around it. So that is fortunate for me, as we live in a little town with most of the things we need, but it’s just a 10 min. drive for me to get to the farm my horses live on. So that is good.