Out Of Curiosity With Kt Mather

This week on Out of Curiosity with kt mather, I talk with slacker English student Brett Leister about excelling in things you love and doing well enough in things you don’t really give a shit about. He reads from a graduation card I gave him and we discuss how weird it is to see your teacher at a rock show, drinking a beer. We also discuss levers build by electron microscopes, weld science, and then a deep dive into the delightful and tragic story of Formula One phenom, Ayrton Senna (it’s like the crucible, only with a hot Brazilian race car driver, instead of New England ladies accused of trafficking with satan).

Brian and I discuss small town governance including, Will the tree warden let the historical society cut down that perfectly healthy maple and if so, where will the replacement tree go? Why people are SO resistant to making changes to mitigate climate change, estrangement from nature, nature as decor vs a equal constituent of the Earth, Could we solve climate change by prioritizing the lives of the dung beetle, the beaver, and the earthworm?, the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone (no, not the thing about the rivers), how humans are so goddam stubborn in refusing to learn new things that counter their existing beliefs EVEN if the new thing would improve their goddam lives, the declaration that this podcast is 100% pro hunting for food and anti trophy hunting, and how too much kale can give you scurvy...

Phillip Crosby and I talk about how we were briefly best parenting buddies, how the social scene is tough on stay-at-home-dads, how he doesn’t seem to have learned anything from that struggle, the time Chuck gave his daughter a nearly fatal artisanal cracker, the ceaseless war against establishment norms, cos-play, kid comic con, and a deep, rambling dive into the amazing German time travel show Dark.

My old friend, Lisa and I talk about how Italy and Tommy Boy brought us together (rest in power Chris Farley), about traveling together, our plans to grow old together, the times we've lived together and will live together, the Thanksgivings I've spent with her and her family, our amazing (if somewhat typically haphazardly planned) hike on the Long Trail, hiking like a 70-year-old (#recommended), why I can't watch Handmaid's Tale, George W's PR slam dunk, and then Chernobyl, Chernobyl, Chernobyl. Plus a tiny disagreement about Fleabag, the Hot Priest, and the Confessional scene. 

We discuss that time I did something RIGHT as a teacher, all-girls schools, rad & shitty lady bosses, The Hate You Give, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the Meryl Effect, periods, sex education, parenting, how to not hook up, plus Three Women by Lisa Taddeo.

McCreary & I talk about the first offensive thing I said to him, IPAs, how to not lie to your therapist, teaching English, writing, etc, and then a too short (though pretty great, I admit) dive into the amazing tv show, Fleabag. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is 100% this episode's Michelle Yeoh (aka, badass). 

Christi and I discuss how much we liked each other at boarding school, what diff kinds of kids bring to a school, the time she had to lend me her swimsuit bottoms, marrying & having a kid across cultures, plus the fun & fucked up movie Crazy Rich Asians.

Stefan & I talk elected office, chess & backgammon, internet dating, movies as wormholes to our pasts, plus a deep dive into hilarious, still relevant, cult classic, Kicking & Screaming (the 98% dialogue one, not the Will Farrell soccer romp).

BT and I chat about kitsch, Midnight Oil, a masculinity that draws us closer to humanity, Julia Roberts dancing to Brown Eyed Girl, using dark humor to cope with suffering, death, and Lester Bangs on Van Morrison's Astral Weeks.

This week, artist & professor Ann LePore and I talk online dating, synesthesia, sturgeon, college tuition rates, Jesus hands, what a truly pro-life world would look like and the 2006 dystopian film, Children of Men.

Writer, podcaster, and kid's craft maven Deb Gonzales & I discuss Vermont College, my social blunders, podcast production, the effects of Title IX, plus a deep dive into one of our faves--A League of Their Own--hope no one listening is on Team Kit.

Carpenter, cannabis farmer & podcast connoisseur Dennis Dougherty & I discuss the Philly, heating warehouse apartments, vegans & zoos, my job at the AK zoo, nude models, Jeff Lowenfels, plus a deep dive in Mentors by the hilarious & soulful Russell Brand.

Wes Sohn and I discuss the time in soccer I benched him for a half, why he fired me as his advisor, how music influenced his life path, the evolution of Korean cuisine on the world stage, plus a deep dive into the thought-provoking film, ex machina.

Ned Ide and I discuss boarding school life, the sage on the stage, cussing in job interviews, nontoxic masculinity, authenticity, institutional mortification, plus a deep dive into Ken Kesey's counterculture classic, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Gryffindor superstar, Kelly Spagnola, and I talk about the all-girls school, my ancestors, her procrastination, humor, the world of kids, the intimacy of music, vulnerability, nemeses, plus a deep dive into the controversy-causing Severus Snape.

Emma & I talk angling & adventuring, wheedling your way into a 5* resort, solo travel while female, rattlesnakes-bears-mountain lions, making art, toothbrush love + a deep dive into The Lobter: a tale of the absurdity of romance & mating.

Brent Hartinger and I talk VCFA, digital nomading, small town life, the internet (good? evil?), converting books to movies, writing against the rules, finding your tribe, work / life balance, + no deep dive into any particular book or movie cause why not?

BT and I talk Zuckerberg :: reptile, Notre Dame vs Tongass National Park, Tribe, old friends, Zuckerberg gullet deep in McConnell's guts like the fantastic Mr. Fox + Miranda July & Khaela Maricich on the Moon--it will fuck you up.

College pal, Carrie Sandvick and I discuss dorm life, scrabble & scattergories, kd lang, rugby, Seattle tech bros & their lap dances, career changes, nursing, my daughter's birth story + a deep dive into the thought provoking, hilarious, quote worthy movie 6 Degrees of Separation.

Mari Talkin and I first discuss Game of Thrones with spoilers, so if you want to skip that, go to 35 min. After that we chat about tough love teachers, boarding schools, preppers, the Mormon leader's LGBTQ fail, & Tara Westover's bananas memoir, Educated.