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Midlifing
By Lee Miller and Simon EllisSociety & Culture
Midlifing episodes
- Hallmarks of competence
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A lovely opening gambit about the difference between competence and skill turns Lee and Simon's pre-show natter into the show itself.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Just three related links:- Christian Marclay's The Clock: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Clock_(2010_film)
- Surgeon Simon Bramhall signing his initials on livers: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/dec/13/surgeon-admits-marking-his-initials-on-the-livers-of-two-patients
- Digital poverty: https://www.digitalpoverty.co.uk
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)25 min - Dry humping the walls
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Lee and Simon start talking about being at school and end up at burgeoning sexuality and Bob the Drag Queen.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links (and necessary corrections):- Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull and disruption to travel (for 6 days, NOT 10 days -- come on Simon, sort it out), April 2010: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eyjafjallaj%C3%B6kull
- Tsunami, 24 December 2004: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_Ocean_earthquake_and_tsunami
- Grange Hill: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grange_Hill
- Comprehensive schools UK: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comprehensive_school_(England_and_Wales)
- Grammar School: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammar_school
- Eleven Plus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleven-plus
- Margaret Thatcher did indeed go to a grammar school: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/oct/16/margaret-thatcher-grammar-school-social-mobility
- Social class in the UK: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_class_in_the_United_Kingdom
- Class and supermarkets in the UK: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2004/mar/12/foodanddrink.shopping
- Sophie Pender article about reverse Bullingdon club: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2021/mar/06/bullingdon-in-reverse-working-class-student-93-club-taking-on-elitism
- Chav: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chav
- 93% club: https://www.93percent.club/
- Arts Emergency: https://www.arts-emergency.org/
- Wellington College: https://www.wellington-college.school.nz/
- Gavin Williamson: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gavin_Williamson
- AFL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_Football_League
- Gary Ablett Snr taking marks: https://youtu.be/znqklBRKXpU
- AFL screamers: https://youtu.be/Igk8sL26pCM
- Peter Schmeichel: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Schmeichel
- Bob the Drag Queen: https://www.bobthedragqueen.com/
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)26 min - Making a virtue out of necessity
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Lee and Simon take too long getting to the three questions, which in themselves are the start of a chat about community. Also, Lee edited out all Simon's mentions of Bruce Springsteen.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links (and necessary corrections):- We don't know whether we got it right about things that are random vs things that are arbitrary, but we know we shouldn't have even tried to talk about: "randomness is not haphazardness; it is a measure of uncertainty of an outcome": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randomness
- ipotesi vs assumption: https://context.reverso.net/translation/italian-english/ipotesi
- pressgang: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impressment
- flying freehold: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_freehold
- sinto muito: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/portuguese-english/sinto-muito
- mortificare: https://www.wordreference.com/iten/mortificare
- deus ex machina: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deus_ex_machina
- Stephen King's Elevation: https://stephenking.com/works/novella/elevation.html
- Medea: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medea
- report on Jason Sudeikis's Golden Globe speech: https://www.vulture.com/2021/02/2021-golden-globes-jason-sudeikis-acceptance-speech-watch.html
- Leo Tolstoy's The Three Questions: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three_Questions
- browser extension that blocks Amazon, Google and Facebook: https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/24/22297686/browser-extension-blocks-sites-using-google-facebook-microsoft-amazon
- Harvard study re 47% (NOT 49% Simon) of our time spent thinking about something other than what we are doing: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2010/11/wandering-mind-not-a-happy-mind/
- it takes a whole village to raise a child: https://rightforeducation.org/cultures/it-takes-a-whole-village/
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)28 min - There is no promise to the future
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Once they get past psychoneuroendocrinology, being attuned to panic, and the definition of sonder, Simon and Lee talk about being in love (not necessarily with each other).
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links:- tornare vs ritornare: https://hinative.com/en-US/questions/3943098
- saudade: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudade
- flop sweat: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/flop-sweat
- Broadcast News (film): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadcast_News_(film)
- Broadcast News flop sweat scene: https://youtu.be/RR9TFbqAScQ
- Between Us (Bob and Lee's book): https://www.amazon.com/Between-Us-Audiences-Affect-Between/dp/1137584041
- Psychoneuroendocrinology: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows: https://www.dictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/
- sonder: https://www.dictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/post/23536922667/sonder
- compromise: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compromise
- romantic love: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_(love)
- narcissism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissism
- Simon talking about embodiment on another podcast: https://soundcloud.com/user-235484908/simon-ellis
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)33 min - One person's Star Wars is another person's cheese
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Lee and Simon talk about bubble-bath ... not for the entire episode but probably more than is necessary. Then they talk about the nature of fandom (but only get there via Lee's undertaker friend).
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links (and necessary corrections):- Matey bubble bath (for clean fun): https://youtu.be/YqL-2wmF7dw
- Ungulates: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ungulate
- Six Feet Under (TV show): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Feet_Under_%28TV_series%29
- The Green Funeral Company: http://www.thegreenfuneralcompany.co.uk/
- Hana Mandlikova: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hana_Mandl%C3%ADkov%C3%A1
- Bjorn Borg: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bj%C3%B6rn_Borg
- Gareth Southgate played for England between 1995 and 2004: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gareth_Southgate
- All Blacks vs England 1995, Jonah Lomu try (it was Tony Underwood he walked over, not Rory): https://youtu.be/yhmQlxCDFSc
- Jonah Lomu death from kidney problems (not liver) at the age of 40: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah_Lomu
- bovver boy: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/bovver-boy
- Kelly Marie Tran: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Marie_Tran
- John Boyega's critique of Star Wars: https://www.wired.com/story/john-boyega-star-wars/
- Is bullet stuck in tree story a myth? https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1137550-man-dies-from-gunshot-36-years-later/
- Fortean times: https://subscribe.forteantimes.com/
- Charles Fort: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Fort
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)29 min - You dial it up and then it unwinds
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Stuff. Lee and Simon talk about stuff, and then deviate towards discussing the way culture can be changed. Then, somehow they end up back at Armie Hammer. Bloody Armie Hammer! It all means they can no longer avoid talking about cancel culture and the divisions in our political and social worlds.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links (and necessary corrections):- The Story of Stuff animation: https://youtu.be/9GorqroigqM
- The Story of Stuff wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Story_of_Stuff
- Sonos backlash: https://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/sonos-users-angry-over-trade-up-program-old-speakers/
- DFS: https://www.dfs.co.uk/
- Thomas Thwaites' toaster project at Royal College of Art: https://www.thomasthwaites.com/the-toaster-project/
- Dualit toasters: https://www.dualit.com/products/classic-toasters
- introduction of seatbelts in the UK: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat_belt_legislation
- smoking legislation UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/tobacco-and-smoking-policy-regulation-and-guidance
- overton window: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overton_window
- L. P. Hartley's quote on the past being a different country: https://www.thewhitereview.org/feature/the-past-is-a-foreign-country/
- sex positivity: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex-positive_movement
- performative allyship: https://forge.medium.com/performative-allyship-is-deadly-c900645d9f1f
- intimacy coordinator: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intimacy_coordinator
- Emilia Clark: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emilia_Clarke
- Bridgerton: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridgerton
- binge watching: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binge-watching
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)26 min - We don't feel like we always have something to add
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Lee and Simon respond to some listener questions, but definitely not their feedback. The show ends when Simon realises that he's not going to be a secret witch for much longer.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links (and necessary corrections):- object permanence: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Object_permanence
- macroeconomics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macroeconomics
- a bit more on Armie Hammer: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/entertainment/movies/armie-hammer-dropped-by-talent-reps-amid-alleged-graphic-message-scandal/ar-BB1duv5W
- Evan Rachel Wood as Dolores Abernathy on Westworld: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolores_Abernathy
- Midlifing episode on feedback: https://www.midlifing.net/1480717/6791131-they-re-your-worms-you-didn-t-tell-us-where-you-kept-them
- Lee attempting to stay curious: https://www.midlifing.net/1480717/7632361-we-need-a-bigger-towel
- musk (Lee's deer joke): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musk
- Kai Kupferschmidt on twitter: https://twitter.com/kakape
- Tim Harford mentioning Kai Kupferschmidt about being critical of your own biases (01:39:00): https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-67-tim-harford-on-leaving-academia-to-become-bestselling/id1515786216?i=1000507443867
- Rumer Godden: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumer_Godden
- Black Narcissus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Narcissus
- Michael Powell's Peeping Tom: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peeping_Tom_(1960_film)
- Rumer Godden's A House with Four Rooms: https://www.literaryladiesguide.com/book-reviews/a-house-with-four-rooms-by-rumer-godden-1989/
- Tim Harford notice how you feel (01:43:00): https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-67-tim-harford-on-leaving-academia-to-become-bestselling/id1515786216?i=1000507443867
- Stoic dichotomy of control: https://medium.com/stoicism-philosophy-as-a-way-of-life/the-importance-of-understanding-dichotomy-of-control-1f7133210c0d
- Good Measure clothing: https://www.goodmeasure.co.uk/
- Supernumerary nipple: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernumerary_nipple
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)27 min - We need a bigger towel
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Simon and Lee attempt to tackle shame but get bowled over by Ted Lasso who suggests they meet people with curiosity.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links (and necessary corrections):- Something about embodiment: https://www.dancemagazine.com/embodiment-dance-2646793771.html
- Bread Ahead Bakery: https://www.breadahead.com/
- Tips for laminated dough: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/blog/2018/11/26/how-to-make-croissants
- Taekwando: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taekwondo
- Baddha Konasana: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baddha_Konasana
- Brene Brown on shame vs guilt: https://brenebrown.com/blog/2013/01/14/shame-v-guilt/
- Difference between renaissance and reformation: https://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-renaissance-and-reformation/
- Wikipedia turns 20: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/15/wikipedia-turns-20-aims-to-reach-the-next-billion-users
- The Onion's version of wikipedia turning 20: https://www.theonion.com/wikipedia-turns-20-1846062024
- Regime vs regimen: https://www.grammarly.com/blog/regime-regimen/
- Ted Lasso: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Lasso
- Soccer, football, American football, etc: https://www.rd.com/article/soccer-vs-football/
- Ted Lasso quotes Walt Whitman regarding curiosity: https://gritdaily.com/ted-lasso/
- Ru Paul – if you can't love yourself: https://youtu.be/rKJp5xRVpJs
- Antipodean: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/antipodean
- Streuth: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=streuth
- Sorry if: https://www.skellis.net/blog/sorry-if
- How to say sorry: https://cognitiontoday.com/how-to-say-sorry-and-seek-forgiveness/
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)30 min - A totally stink conversation about being out of control
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A conversation about being out of control starts off all middle class, veers wildly out of control and Simon and Lee end up struggling past thirst tweets.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related links (and necessary corrections):- How to pronounce stracciatella: https://youtu.be/K9JpVi_FanE
- Groundskeeper Willie has a Sardinian accent in the Italian version of The Simpsons: https://italicsmag.com/2020/08/03/sardinian-case-for-language-diversity/
- Bonce: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/bonce
- The Notebook is not a rom-com Simon: https://ew.com/movies/2019/02/06/what-is-a-rom-com/
- The Northern Rock crisis timeline: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2008/mar/26/northernrock
- Fannie Mae (not Fannie AND Mae): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fannie_Mae
- Robin Williams does a bit of Martha Graham: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXkApy0gkjM
- Phrasal verbs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phrasal_verb
- Joe Scoglio (dancer): https://www.rambert.org.uk/performance-database/people/joseph-scoglio/
- Original story about dancing in Italian piazza: https://www.midlifing.net/1480717/6400684-until-one-day-we-go-to-eat-and-our-head-just-falls-into-our-plates
- Armie Hammer and cannibalism: https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/armie-hammer-instagram-dms-response_n_60005d88c5b65671988c5656
- Kink shaming: https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/kink-outside-the-box/202008/kink-shaming-how-did-we-get-here
- Thirst tweets: https://www.buzzfeed.com/uk/tag/thirst-tweets
- Bussy: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/bussy
- Taron Egerton (and not Daniel Radcliffe) learns about the word bussy: https://news.avclub.com/just-taron-egerton-learning-what-a-bussy-is-1835152836
- Call Me By Your Name: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_Me_by_Your_Name_(film)
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)32 min - Whenever I opened my mouth everybody else shut up
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Lee and Simon talk about being heard and privilege. It gets beautifully messy and ends in shame, and then ice-cream.
Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
Related Links:- Stelarc's Ear on Arm: http://stelarc.org/?catID=20242
- Maxwell Smart shoe phone: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoe_phone
- Being heard and being loved (David Augsburger): https://www.skellis.net/blog/being-heard
- Academic parent episode (on feedback): https://www.midlifing.net/1480717/6791131-they-re-your-worms-you-didn-t-tell-us-where-you-kept-them
- Ecosia: https://www.ecosia.org/
- Poverty Safari (review): https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/aug/30/poverty-safari-understanding-anger-britains-working-class-darren-mcgarvey-review
- Darren McGarvey (Loki) (YouTube channel) - Not Gavin Simon!: https://www.youtube.com/user/misterloki100
- Loki Tedx Talk: https://youtu.be/Zoo_41mo1Ds
- Shit sandwich: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Shit%20Sandwich
- Jacques Derrida: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Derrida
- Manatee and Trump: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/11/manatee-trump-etched-into-back-florida
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)Get in touch with Lee and Simon at [email protected].
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The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)28 min
About Midlifing
From the publisher's feed
Two friends Lee and Simon have serious conversations about silly things, and silly conversations about serious things. Together they dig into the pleasures, absurdities and imperfections of being…
human.