Jenn and I are chatting about lazy rivers, the perils of parenting tweens, our favorite television right now, our favorite books of the moment, to send or not send nudes, and an unexpectedly long rant about yacht rock and Steely Dan. Plus: Who’s interesting? What does interesting even mean? Plus: Even more listener questions and listener reviews! Do listen in, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Idea for a post: Steely Dan t-shirts! (And sweatpants?!?)
Love the Steely Dan chat. I also had an uber cool older brother who showed me what good music was all about. Playing backgammon and listening to Steely Dan with my college bff was my main occupation in the mid-80’s. We had a deeply cynical and smart view of the world, thanks to them.
Another great episode!
Jenn: Middle school is the worst! It gets so much better; in my case things really started to improve late 9th grade and my now 11th grade daughter is, a lot of the time, really a joy to be around. It sounds like you might have already read it, based on your daughter’s comments about understanding that she is separating from you, but if not…”Untangled: Guiding Your Daughter Through the Seven Transitions to Adulthood” by Lisa Damour is insightful and practical.
Fun podcast! Yes to Steely Dan––I didn’t know the term Yacht Rock so that was helpful to learn. And for Jenn and raising a daughter…years ago a wise woman told me to take my 11/12 yr old daughter and start putting her in classes (art, music, dance, cooking, sewing, theatre camp you name it)––the idea was eventually she’d find something she loved that had nothing to do with me so she would be better able to “separate”––she ended up loving guitar lessons (something I knew nothing about) and happily played her guitar and sang songs she wrote (angst ridden songs for sure being the age of Peal Jam)––ergo, do NOT put her in a writing class because then you just become “competition” and she will never feel she’s “good enough.” I can’t guarantee you this will work, but we all need to find our tribe outside our immediate family and this is one way to do so (she also loved summer theatre camp and thrived participating in that environment)
Forgot to mention I began reading The Candy House a couple of days ago and it is indeed very good (so far).
I think Steely Dan might be one of those bands that crosses generations by a lot, kind of like The Grateful Dead. My 74 year old dad spent one dinner raving about the album Aja, and ended the night dancing around the house to the title song. But then one summer shortly after he died (around five years ago) seemed to be the summer every hipster bar or restaurant I walked into was blasting that album. And judging from the looks the guys who worked in these places were wearing, their enjoyment of the band seemed genuine.
I just finished watching My Brilliant Friend and it’s the best series/adaption I’ve watched in years. It gets really good when the main characters become adults. It also just transports you to 1950s and 60s Italy. The acting, the art direction and costumes are sublime. I would love to hear your thoughts on it because it touches on so many themes.