Beyond the basement

Facing the demons/music on day one of this daft improv retreat my intuition signed me up for.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

That time my dead grandad's watch nearly got me nonced by a guy with calves like gammon.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

More grim recollections from a misspent adolescence in a northern industrial town.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

Gaz has a magnificent, racing mind. Here we attempt to unearth wisdom from how he manages thoughts into action, and what it's like living with ADHD. Bit of a departure from my usual audio blog format, but this is such a lovely, insightful interview. Hope I do him justice. I also hope it helps you feel more aware of your own thought processes too, and how you might begin to channel your genius. Yes, genius.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

Have you got a professional self and a personal self? Do colleagues or clients get a different version of you than at play? Sounds tiring...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

Just throwing this one out to the universe. Looking for a collaborator to play with an idea I've got for subverting seriousness. Comedians, performers, stand-up, artists. Is that you? Know anyone?

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

Everything's in its place. I'm stealing a march on the day. What could go wrong? How do some people find contentment amongst the chaos, even when things aren't going so well?

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

I'm not ashamed to say I'm drawn to rubbish. Skips, bins, fly-tipping, fruity dog eggs and obscene graffiti. Our effluent says a lot about humanity.

Or perhaps my curiosity says more about me, and my kind of people.

Last week, I spotted a fun looking skip in Armley (a run-down, yet proud district of Leeds). So I paused to film a spoof advert for a friend ("What's that? No fires? BURN IT with Beesley's Skips!").

What happened next was the last thing I expected...

A hatted, bespectacled man walking a shaggy dog approached me, with a European accent. "Ah, you find this strange too?", he asked, smiling and pointing at the skip - a hideous layer cake of sofa, carpets and mattresses. He looked like someone from a Wes Anderson film.

A fat brown rat jumped out the skip, sized us up for a fight, then clearly throught better of it, idly wandering into the overgrown weeds.

I paused for a moment, ready to spin some yarn about art, and play down my perverse interest in discarded human treasure. Then I thought, f*ck it. So I told him about the spoof video. He laughed, then we spoke about how odd, wasteful and filthy humans can be. Common ground.

It soon transpired he was an economist. And in the space of five minutes we went from bins, to the role of social economics in Keynesian theory, Kate Raworth's doughnut, and the lunacy of austerity Britain.

Not your typical fayre, on Armley's notorious town street.

I suppose, by being my unashamed, curious, weirdo self, I learned a little more about something that matters to me. Maybe I made a new friend outside my usual circles. And perhaps he'll guest on my 'Pessimist's guide to a hopeful future' podcast, or open my mind to edgier economic thinking.

Coaches often drone on about putting yourself out there, authenticity and connection. Maybe this was that: a profound illustration there's no 'right' way to do things, only your way, the way you already do, naturally.

Or maybe I'm just a curious weirdo and other curious weirdos are my tribe. We love unusual dog turds.

What's the oddest thing you've ever done that led to an unexpected connection?

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

Reflections on a thing I did with some people. A workshop with improv and role play, getting to know the inner critic. Here's what happened. Photo credit: Andy T https://unsplash.com/photos/EiDWIYspZyc?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditShareLink

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com

You know when you say yes to something significant, then pop it in your calendar when it's ages away, then all of a sudden it comes along and turns out it's ACTUALLY happening? We'll, that's the story behind my upcoming live broadcast interview with my friends over at The Happy Startup School. Holy kak. What to do next? Preparation or presence? Laugh or cry? Catch the event at https://www.crowdcast.io/e/subvert-your-serious/register

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com