Hola, Sneakers! Welcome to Episode 539 of Sneaky Dragon, the podcast that gains weight!
This week: scary start; religious rite; nit picking, in defence of Judas; cock crows for a chicken; carry on; singing your life away; two-fisted ice cream cones; Lenten gelato; dessert toast; pulling mussels from the shell; sea wieners; expired powder; dried up vinegar; pedophile factories; nose lube; ear shaming; dizziness quotient; deviant nose; living in the passed; aquaman; new phoo; grumbles; elite dogs; wolf it up; we recommend: Everything, Everywhere, All At Once; sci-fi science vs. practically magic; super corn; Dave recommends: Why Didn’t They Ask Evans; Hollywood bods; aesthetic muscles; batmangled; turtle boner; Top 5 Radio Songs; Question of the Week – Sneakers respond; easy money; local cult; dad weight; save it for a rainy day; best worst job; pre-toxic; understanding the weak; yoga culture; Schroedinger’s library; and, finally, a French exit.
Top 5 Radio Songs
- Elvis Costello – “Radio Sweetheart” – Columbia Records single b-side to “Less Than Zero”, 1977 – 1:53:00
- Loudon Wainwright III – “AM World” – Attempted Moustache, 1973 – 2:01:15
- Sloan – “Listen to the Radio” – Never Hear the End of It, 2006 – 2:07:03
- The Selecter – “On the Radio” – Two-Tone Records single b/w “Too Much Pressure”, 1979 – 2:15:42
- The Slits – “FM” – Cut, 1979 – 2:23:14
Question of the Week: What book that you borrowed from the library as a child had a big impact on you?
Sub-question of the Week: Do you do yoga? If so, what has it done for you?
Thanks for listening.
Department of Corections:
As usual, David was a little mixed up; this time concerning songs added or dropped from Elvis Costello albums. He stated that “Radio Radio” was added to Armed Forces, but it was actually added to This Year’s Model, which lost two great songs: “Night Rally” and “(I Don’t Want to Go to) Chelsea”. Armed Forces, on the other hand, was the album that lost “Sunday’s Best” in favour of “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding”. The three tracks were removed by the US record company, concerned that the songs were too British for American ears (or interests).
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Another of the Great Brain series had an impact on me when I was young. I checked out the Great Brain at the Academy first, for some reason, and I enjoyed it so much, I went back because I remembered there were other “Great Brain” books on the shelf and couldn’t wait to read more.
Next would be Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Aykroyd. Not having read many–if any–mystery novels as a young teen, I was shocked and fascinated by the ending. I read all of the Hercule Poirot mysteries in the next year or so.
Hello Ian and David and Sneakers all!
This episode was a lot of fun, so many laugh out loud moments for me! David, your radio music choices were fantastic! The first “radio” song that came to my mind, when you said the music topic, was “Turn Your Radio On” by Ray Stevens. It’s an oldie gospel tune, and was a big favorite of my family. We could all do harmonies on that one. Might not have fit in with your selections!
An immediate answer came to mind with Question 1: “The Witch of Blackbird Pond” by Elizabeth George Speare was a library book that made a tremendous impression on me. It’s an historical novel for adolescents that takes place in colonial New England. I have a copy around here somewhere that I bought a few years ago at a library sale. I’m saving it for my granddaughters who are very little now. Hopefully I will find it again before they are of age! (Because, Chris Roberts, that’s the kind of thing very, very sweet Grandmothers do for their grands! 🙂 You see?)
I do not do yoga. I have a stretch routine, head to toe, that I do every morning first thing… after getting my coffee. An hour after rising, I take our two dogs for a long woods hike, over hills and dales, wherever our 10 feet take us! I just mostly want to be outside, so there’s lots of gardening to do or shoveling, pushing a mower or weed eating, depending on weather and season. Plus my job is physical, what with it being massage! My husband is usually the dog-hiker evenings, and if I’m home, I generally run along with.
Just now, I’m waiting to hear from oldest grandchild. He is 15, and if he’s allowed, I’m taking him to see “Morbius” . Another thing that only the VERY NICEST of grandmas would do!
Ciao all, and have a pleasant week!
Laurel
Laurel, I want to be that kind go Grandfather too, taking my grandkids to the movies. I have zero grandkids but I have a feeling my daughter and son in law are heading that way. Let us know how “Morbius” is.
Haha! My devious plan to get Laurel to admit she really IS the nicest person in the world has succeeded! Only, now I look like the bad guy… Oh, well – it ain’t the first time. Plus, it gives me a great excuse to share this wonderful cartoon from Ian and Pia: https://www.gocomics.com/mannequin-on-the-moon/2022/03/15
A book that had a big impact on me as a young reader was The Year of the Unicorn by Andre Norton. It’s a fantasy novel in which a misfit orphan switches places with an aristocrat and becomes one of a group of tribute brides to a clan of shapeshifter mercenaries. Will she discover she has unknown powers of her own? Very likely! And it turns out you CAN judge a book by its cover…at least the very groovy Ace paperback cover by J.H. Breslow. After finding this book, I read every Andre Norton fantasy and sci-fi novel our library had, but this one was my favourite. Like Laurel, I also read the classic The Witch of Blackbird Pond. Sad to say, there are still religious communities as superstitious, bigoted and controlling as the one portrayed in the book.
I’ve taken yoga classes but I find them boring. I know you’re supposed to practice being mindful while holding those long poses. I end up thinking thoughts like ”I’m paying a fee to lie on my back and breathe? I can do that at home!” But the exercises are really good for flexibility, strength and balance, so I do them while watching TV or reading a book.
Thinking back on the last few episodes, I stand very corrected, “Here Comes the Judge” was indeed Sammy Davis Jr. on “Laugh-In” and not Flip Wilson as I had stated. Some conflation of early 70’s television at play I guess…I give you exhibit A:
https://youtu.be/iMJOdLZaKE0
Ian, you mentioned that Gil Kane drew his characters from an angle that looked right up their noses! We used to joke about that back when we worked at Lone Star. We would play comic artist charades, one was throwing our heads back with both nostrils flared and eyes bugged out. “Gil Kane!!” we’d shout. The other Gil Kane charade was trying to pose like an anatomy model and saying, “See all my muscles under my skin and every knuckle in my fingers!!”
GIL KANE, GIL KANE!! We’d shout
Or maybe even Burne Hogarth (who I think doubled as Mr. Mooney on “The Lucy Show!”)
Don’t even get me going on Rob Liefeld.
Great music on the show! Bouncy AF, just like Ian said…
I discover more great music from what David shares on Sneaky Dragon, it’s always great to have the Listening Party peppered in every other week.
I camped out in the movie and biography section of the library looking for Marx Brothers books as a kid. Once I found them, I’d go to the copy machine and make copies of my favorite pages, then take the book home to read it and the copies to draw from. I also checked out Marx Brothers albums so I could take them home and record them onto cassette. Many of the Marx books were out of print, so I couldn’t buy them, just check them out over and over again. The books I wanted to own had me spending my allowance at the bookstore, I still own every one of them.
I’ve never tried yoga but my wife Susan has just started looking into it, so it’s funny that it’s been frequently mentioned on the podcast. My manager at work has been doing yoga for years, so she’s helping Susan get started and giving her some tips. So far, Susan uses the treadmill a few days a week but she wants to add in some yoga now as well.
I’m off to watch the “Thor: Love and Thunder” trailer a dozen more times, everyone enjoy their weekend and the following week!
Wow, that first question brought back a vivid memory of finding a book called ‘Breton Folktales’ in Greenock Library when I was around 9 or 10. As I remember, this was a collection of stories in a similar vein to the Brothers Grimm, only even weirder, if you can imagine.
I loved that book and kept renewing and rereading it as long as I could. I’ve never been great at remembering plots – it was the spooky, unpredictable atmosphere that hooked me and the overarching vision of a world where pretty much anything could happen and nothing was what it seemed to be. Also, the protagonist of most of the stories was a naive young idiot, an archetype I still find immensely relatable, for some mysterious reason.
From time to time over the years, I’ve rummaged around in second hand bookshops for a copy, with no success. However… prompted by you fine dragon people, I went online after this week’s show and a copy is even now making its way from Dunfermline to Inverness. Woo and, if you will, hoo! If you’re interested, I’ll let you have an update once it arrives.
The thing that got me into yoga was marrying a yoga teacher. Admittedly, that might not work for everyone.
Although I practise daily, I rarely attend a class. One of the great things about yoga is you can do it by yourself pretty much anywhere, with no need for equipment or even much space. A class is helpful, though, for the guidance a good teacher can offer someone who’s just starting out, particularly if you don’t have one of your own at home. In defence of paying to lie on your back and breathe, I’d have to say that a lot of people really struggle to know how to relax, and it’s a very useful skill to learn.
There are also several different forms, so you shouldn’t be put off by those pictures of human pretzels that really just reflect one extreme. The style that Diane practises is called Hatha Yoga, and is very gentle, with a lot of emphasis on movement and breathing, rather than holding a rigid pose for what feels like forever. That’s not to knock the other kinds. Different strokes…
Now that i’m in my seventh decade and no longer a sprightly 50-something like Ian and Dave, I find yoga incredibly good for suppleness, flexibility, posture and, yes, breathing and relaxation. Why, some days, I can even get off the couch without grunting. Byeeee!
Ahoy,
I’ve nothing yoga wise to add but always happy to chime in on books.
Funny thing is, I’ve rediscovered libraries of late having, the past year or two, taken to reading new, and some old, books for free over paying Amazon or B&N for the privilege.
From my earlier days, however, “The Beatles: An Illustrated Record” by Tony Tyler and Roy Carr and the Hunter Davies 1968 Beatles biography are the first two that come to mind. I was born in ’63 and though aware of the band didn’t become a raging Beatlemaniac until ’72, ’73 or so.
Wasn’t the wealth of Beatles books back then and, of course, no internet, Amazon etc.
Was always a thrill when a new Beatles book showed up at the bookstore, “Growing Up With the Beatles,” “All Together Now” and so on.
Anyway, the Davies and Tyler/Carr books were the only Beatles-related tomes in the Fort Worth Public Library back then. I devoured both and kept them checked out pretty much nonstop. Took a while, being a kid with no money, but finally got my own copies. Still have them.
In fourth grade social studies class we covered Antarctica for a few days. Previously, I’d been aware of the existence of the South Pole and all but other than knowing it’s the one where Santa doesn’t live I paid no attention to it.
But the two or three days spent on Antarctica fascinated me to no end and I checked ev every book available out from the school and city libraries. Still fascinated with the place truth be told.
Was a big fan of the Alfred Hitchcock and Three Investigators books in my younger days as well. Hadn’t thought of those in years till this question came up. Many are out of print now and go for a pretty penny. Wouldn’t mind reading one or two to see how they hold up.
Keep up the good work and take care.
Matt Smith