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mando-lore · 3 years

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The Terror of London: the story of Spring-Heeled Jack

Certainly Strange: A Podcast About The Unexplainable, episode 6

Listen on: YouTube Spotify Castbox

The Victorian era was a time of shadows and superstitions. In every corner of London’s dark streets lived a mystery or a monster. One of the most popular and certainly strange urban legends of this time is the story of the leaping devil, Spring-Heeled Jack.

In October, 1837, a young servant girl named Mary Stevens, is walking through Clapham Common to the house that she works at. Suddenly, a figure jumps from one of the shadows, gripping her tightly. The figure starts to kiss her face and tries to rip off her clothes. Mary cries out in alarm, and the figure vanishes. Of course, this just seems like a case where a man tried to molest the young woman. And it could have been exactly that, had the strange figure not ripped at Mary’s clothes with claws instead of hands. Claws, she said, that were “cold and clammy as those of a corpse.”

Mary Stevens was not the first one to see this strange clawed creature jump from the shadows. In September 1837, one month before the attack on Mary Stevens, a man saw a man with horns and red glowing eyes leap over the cemetery fence.

This strange devil-like man did not wait much longer to strike again after attacking Mary Stevens. The very next day, it was reported that a strange figure had jumped out in front of a traveling coach, causing the coachman to lose control and crash. Witnesses reported that the figure escaped by jumping over wall that was nearly 9 feet tall, whilst laughing uncontrollably.

This was also the very first time the police got involved. At the scene of the crime they found a pair of very deep tracks in the mud that could only have been made by jumping from a great height. The tracks also showed that there was some gadgetry on the shoes, and speculated that it might be “some sort of compressed springs”.

And this is how the strange devil-like figure got the name of Spring Heeled Jack.

It was January, 1838. Polly Adams, who worked as a barmaid, was walking across Blackheath in south London when she was suddenly attacked. She was discovered half-naked lying in the gutter. When she came to, she is reported saying that she had been attacked by a man who had ripped open her blouse and had grabbed her breasts with claws that were sharp and cold as a corpse, eventually cutting open her belly.

On January 9th, the Lord Mayor of London, Sir John Cowan, received an anonymous complaint of another servant girl who was attacked by Spring Heeled Jack. Because of this incident, several other people came forward about similar incidents in the Kensington and Hammersmith area, all involving servant girls.

This was the perfect story for the press, and Spring Heeled Jack began to get a lot of publicity. With the increase of publicity, there was also an increase of reports from people who had seen or were attacked by the now famous ‘terror of London’. The police took these reports very seriously, and even the Duke of Wellington, the one who had defeated Napoleon, went out armed on horseback to hunt for the monster that haunted London.

This did not stop Spring Heeled Jack, however, from striking again.

There came a knocking on her door. The police, he claimed. He had found spring heeled jack in an alley outside her home. Jane Alsop opened the door. When she accompanied the policeman to the alleyway, she noticed that he was not wearing a police uniform, but instead a long black cape. She got suspicious, but it was already to late. The cloaked man attacked her, trying to undress her whilst, according to her, spitting blue flames out of his mouth.

Jane Alsop described her attacker later to London magistrates: ”He was wearing a kind of helmet and a tight fitting white costume like an oilskin and he vomited blue and white flames!”

Nine days later, the same fate befell Lucy Scales. Walking home from having visited her brother, she was attacked by a man in the same outfit as Alsop had described. And again, he spitted blue flames out of his mouth, blinding her and even causing a seizure.

Then, after terrorizing London for many months, Spring Heeled Jack disappeared.

There were no more reports of people being attacked by Spring Heeled Jack. In 1855 he was seen in Old Hill, far from London, leaping from the roof of an inn to another roof across the street. Somewhere in the 1880’s, a man and a young girl reported that they had seen Jack with glowing eyes, who had bid them a good evening.

Spring Heeled Jack was also seen in 1872, when he landed amidst a group of soldiers. One of the soldiers claimed to have shot at him, but the bullet reflected off of him with a hollow, metallic sound.

Spring-Heeled Jack was last spotted in 1904, 67 years after he had first appeared out of the shadows, jumping over a building in William Henry Street in Liverpool. And, seemingly, disappearing into the shadows once again.

Although frightening and violent, Spring Heeled Jack never mortally wounded any of the women he attacked. This did not stop locals from suspecting him of murder. In 1845, a 13-year old prostitute called Maria Davis was pushed off a bridge into an open sewer, where she drowned. Although the coroner recorded Maria’s death as ‘Death by Misadventure’, and though an eyewitness had seen that it had not been Jack who pushed her but instead one of her clients, locals still claimed that Spring Heeled Jack was the true murderer of this child.

Many attacks on women were blamed on Spring Heeled Jack. When there came a report that a woman had been murdered in Whitechapel in 1888, with her clothes ripped off her, people automatically assumed it had been good old Spring Heeled Jack, especially since the culprit had seemingly disappeared into the night without being spotted by police.

Spring Heeled Jack immediately became suspect number one in the other murders that followed. So much so, that the killer himself wrote a letter t the Metropolitan police signed Spring Heel Jack: The Whitechapel Murderer. Later, the killer shortened it simply to Jack. Perhaps better known as the real terror of London. Jack the Ripper.

The real Spring Heeled Jack, if he ever existed, was never caught. There was only ever one suspect. Henry Beresford, the eccentric young third Marquis of Waterford, who was known for his misogynist behaviour towards women and for having a bad, often alcohol-fuelled temper.

The Lord Mayor of London also had a theory that Spring Heeled Jack was simply created by a group of elite gentlemen who dressed up and terrorized women as part of a bet.

There is another, somewhat strange theory of how Spring Heeled Jack is actually an alien from a planet with high gravity. This would, according to them, explain his extraordinary jumping abilities. Our thin atmosphere could have made him giddy, which would explain his laughter. He would be a nocturnal alien, with reflective eyes like that of a cat. That would explain his glowing red gaze.

But, before considering the theories about aliens, it is important to understand the historical context in which Spring Heeled Jack was born. Because, how can a creature such as Spring Heeled Jack be born in the minds of people?

The 1830s in England were turbulent times, full of tension and anxiety. It was a time filled with social, economic, political, and cultural changes. King William IV died in 1837, and people were uncertain about the capabilities of the young queen Victoria, since she was only 18 and a woman. In this time period, society became more regulated and disciplined, which characterised the Victorian era.

In a period of increasing and intensified control, the monstrous Spring Heeled Jack represented the appealingly uncontrolled. Like the wicked Mr Hyde compared to the composed Dr Jekyll. That is why he is constantly shifting in eyewitness reports. One time Spring Heeled Jack is a beast, the next time he is a ghost, and yet another time he is a devil.

This tense and potentially volatile context became the perfect ground to build a legend that is build on mass panic and sensationalism from the press.

During the Victorian era, printing technology improved. This gave more people access to education and books, causing illiteracy rates to drop. The increased demand of books combined with the high rates of crime created the perfect environment for people to profit off of sensationalized stories about monsters and criminals, such as Spring Heeled Jack.

So whether Spring Heeled Jack was a man, a monster, a ghost, a devil, an alien, or simply a result of a restrained society looking for sensation, his legacy is very much real. Spring Heeled Jack remains a popular penny dreadful figure from the Victorian era, featuring in games such as Assassins Creed Syndicate or the series Jekyll and Hyde. And whatever Spring Heeled Jack was or is, he is Certainly Strange.

SOURCES

Bell, K. (2012). The legend of spring-heeled Jack: Victorian urban folklore and popular cultures. Boydell Press.

Bellows, J. (2006). Spring Heeled Jack. Retrieved from: https://www.damninteresting.com/spring-heeled-jack/

Castelow, E. (n.d.). Spring Heeled Jack. Retrieved from: https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/Spring-Heeled-Jack/

Dunning, B. (2007). The Attack of Spring Heeled Jack. Retrieved from: https://skeptoid.com/episodes/4064

Grundhauser, E. (2016). Meet Spring-Heeled Jack, the Leaping Devil That Terrorized Victorian England. Retrieved from: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/meet-springheeled-jack-the-leaping-devil-that-terrorized-victorian-england

Ogden, P. (2020). Spring heeled Jack: The Leaping Devil Who Spread Hysteria in Victorian Britain. Retrieved from: https://oddfeed.net/spring-heeled-jack-the-leaping-devil-who-spread-hysteria-in-victorian-britain/

Origjanska, M. (2017). Spring-Heeled Jack: The Leaping Boogeyman who terrorized Victorian England. Retrieved from: https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/11/26/spring-heeled-jack/

Perry, L. (n.d.). Spring Heeled Jack, Fiction Based On Fact. Retrieved from https://casebook.org/dissertations/ripperoo-spring.html

Sheldon, N. (October 29, 2018). 16 Frightening Details in the Story of Spring Heeled Jack. Retrieved from https://historycollection.com/16-frightening-details-in-the-story-of-spring-heeled-jack/16/

#certainly strange #nemo #podcast #mystery #unsolved mystery #london #spring heeled jack #urban legend #ghost story #ghost stories #jack the ripper #unsolved murders #unsolved murder #lore #folklore

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jamieroxxartist · 3 years

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✔ Mark Your Calendars: Wed Sept 8, on 🎨#JamieRoxx’s Pop Roxx Radio 🎙️#TalkShow and #Podcast with Featured Guests:

#Directors #MichaelJAhern, #ChristopherDalpe, #BrandonPerrasSanchez (Death Drop Gorgeous; #Film | #Comedy, #Horror)

☎ Lines will be open (347) 850.8598 Call in with your Questions and Comments Live on the Air.

● Click here for Guest Details and to Set a Reminder: http://tobtr.com/11994619

Pop Art Painter Jamie #Roxx (www.JamieRoxx.us) welcomes Directors Michael J. Ahern, Christopher Dalpe, Brandon Perras-Sanchez (#DeathDropGorgeous; Film | Comedy, Horror) to the Show!

● Web: www.monstermakeupllc.com ● IG: @deathdropgorgeous ● FB: @deathdropgorgeous ● TW: @deathdopgorge

DEATH DROP GORGEOUS, AN ODE TO JOHN WATERS AND WICKED FESTIVAL HIT, PREMIERES SEPTEMBER 10 IN THEATERS AND ON DEMAND AND DIGITAL

A dejected bartender and an aging drag queen fight to survive the eccentric and hostile nightlife of a corrupt city, as a masked maniac slaughters young gay men and drains them of blood. DEATH DROP GORGEOUS is released on Digital by Dark Star Pictures September 10.

● Media Inquiries: October Coast www.octobercoastpr.com

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rosencrantzsguildenstern · 4 years

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podcast rec list

(notes:

-this list is mostly audio dramas, but there’s a couple other things too

-i’m keeping it to more niche things that i don’t typically see in rec lists;so no night vale, magnus archives, critical role, or penumbra recs here, etc. that being said, all those podcasts are very good as well!

-a rec that didn’t make it in: wolf 359! audio drama, finished 2019, very good

-this is being written on july 18, 2020, and the number of episodes i’m noting reflects that; there may be more by the time of reading this)

the domestic life of anthony todd

-audio drama, currently 12 episodes, still running

-the story follows a writer named quill taylor, who’s just moved to a nice town to work on their novel! a very nice town! a very, very, definitely not suspiciously nice town!

-sort of horror, but nothing viscerally uncomfortable and quite a bit lighter than most horror. it’s got the slow buildup that very good horror tends to have, but a nicer atmosphere!

-no one is cis (2 characters, including the protagonist, are explicitly nonbinary)

-very soothing and nice to listen to

-episodes are only 10 minutes long and there’s only 12 at the time of writing (july 18, 2020), so it’s very easy to catch up on!

-second season is going up right now!

rusty quill gaming

-rpg podcast, 161 episodes, still running

-a tabletop rpg podcast! the main campaign is a pathfinder campaign set in a steampunk fantasy version of the real world’s 19th century. it’s dmed by alexander j. newall and stars sasha rackett (human rogue, played by lydia nicholas), hamid saleh haroun al-tahan (halfling sorcerer, played by bryn monroe), bertie macguffingham (human fighter, played by james ross), and zolf smith (dwarf cleric, played by ben meredith)! it’s got a lot of mystery/intrigue, as well as a lot of important themes and Emotions

-this one’s a bit more well known, because it’s made by the same people who do the magnus archives! however, not as many people listen as i think they should

-this is my favorite ttrpg podcast! it’s well paced (something that can be tricky w/ rpg podcasts!), the episodes are fairly short, it’s funny, the character development is super well done, and it’s really well made!

-there’s a lot to catch up on, but they do recap episodes at the end of each season, which make for a great jumping point; as well, a lot of it is specials, where they run oneshots in various systems! (the specials are very good in their own merit- i’d recommend Not Far To Bermuda, 4Thought, or Fiasco)

-currently on their fourth (and last) season

the 12:37

-audio drama, 11 episodes, on hiatus

-the story follows a scientist named nora, who accidentally boarded a time-traveling train! as it goes on, she realizes the crew of the train- primarily wheeler, an eccentric and oddly pleasant man, and val, his daughter and the type to shoot first and ask questions later- are part of a spy ring who are using their powers to meet various contacts across space and time!

-it’s very queer, and they say the actual words ‘lesbian’ and ‘bisexual’ which is very refreshing- also, mostly centered on female characters, which is nice, and has good takes on mental health issues

-the character dynamics are good and well-written, as are the characters themself

-fast-paced and action-packed, which is done very well and a nice change from how podcasts tend to be!

-quite easy to catch up on- they’re currently on hiatus, and there aren’t that many episodes!

the probably bad podcast

-nonfiction, comedy/improv, 16 episodes, still running

-this one’s a bit of a change from the others i’ve been recommending, as it’s actually a nonfiction podcast! it’s the people from @probablybadrpgideas giving advice and ideas for playing various systems! it’s primarily comedy, but is actually pretty good for GMing advice!

-less to say here, because there’s no story, but i highly recommend it!

the two princes

-audio drama, 14 episodes, on a season break

-set in a fantasy world- about two princes from rival kingdoms (as the title suggests), and their efforts to fulfill a prophecy, save the world, and not fall in love doing it. (spoilers: the last one is quite difficult). also has a very good subplot about the two queens, and their attempts to find the princes!

-the romance is done incredibly well, and plays into the central conflict excellently!

-really easy to catch up on!

-personally, i’d recommend only listening to the first season, as season 2 isn’t my favorite but season 1 is incredible

#podcasts #the domestic life of anthony todd #rusty quill gaming #the 12:37 #the two princes #audio dramas #podcast recs #my posts

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twostepbucho · 3 years

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tagged by @collectoroflovelythings

1. name/nickname: Jared

2. gender: dude

3. star sign: gemini

4. height: 5′3

5. time: 5:45

6. birthday: Sep 29

7. favorite bands/groups: Chelmico, The Mountain Goats, The Dreadnoughts

8. favorite solo artist: Anjimile, Mitski, Mal Blum, Orville Peck, Serpentwithfeet, we are the dirt, Johnny Cash

9. song stuck in my head: Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen

10. last movie: Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

11. last show: probably Demon Slayer

12: when did i create this blog: late 2018 i think

13. what do i post: on this blog i only post podcast related stuff

14. last thing googled: ursula le guin

15. other blogs: @toddfrommario and @dicedescriptions

16. do i get asks: rarely

17. why did i choose this url: it’s a reference to naddpod

18. following: 386

19. followers: 137

20. average hours of sleep: no two nights are the same

21. lucky number: 27

22. instruments: i used to play clarinet

23. what am i wearing: a summer camp tshirt and pe shorts

24: dream job: eccentric owner of a used book store

25: dream trip: a mountain lake with swimming hiking and fishing

26. favorite food: sushi

27. nationality: American

28. favorite song: currently Maker by Anjimile

29. last book read: currently reading A Wizard of Earthsea

30. three fictional universes you’d like to live in: Drawga, Mob Psycho 100, and Full Metal Alchemist

I tag @p-otato-s @chubbswithhuggs @wingpiercing and anyone else who wants to

#i love getting these but i hate tagging people

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gothszler · 4 years

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love newt geiszler but imagine trying to ask him for an extension like he’s already that professor who wears ridiculously tight polyester blend ripped skinny jeans every day instead of trying to make the slightest attempt at professionalism and keeps derailing lessons to talk about how his r2d2 keychain makes noises when you squeeze it or like go on these long winding tangents about What Real Punk Rock Used To Be Like even though he wasn’t even BORN when the bands he talks about were still playing???? and like one time he played a queen song and was like Now This Is Real Music acting like somehow your class wouldn’t know who queen was???? fucking queen?? anyway. you are trying to avoid eye contact by looking at his desk and he, a grown man, has a mug on it that says “Nerd? I Prefer The Term Intellectual Badass” and in that moment you’re like maybe being a genius SHOULDNT give someone a pass to be as eccentric as they want just tuning him out while he talks about his podcast

#t #hows every1 doing tonight

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johannadc · 4 years

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youtube

I finally watched The Favourite, the movie where Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz fight over the affections of Olivia Coleman as Queen Anne. Mark Gatiss plays Weisz’s husband, Lord Marlborough, and he talks about the role and working with eccentric director Yorgos Lanthimos in the first 14 minutes of this podcast episode. It’s definitely a different kind of film and film-making.

#mark gatiss #favourite

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fullregalia · 3 years

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20/20.

This year, in hindsight, was a real write-off. I had grand plans for it, and while I ushered it in in a very low-key manner since I was recovering from the flu, I’d expected things to look up. Well, you know what they say about plans (RIP, my trip to Europe). I got very, very sick in early February, and I’m not entirely sure it wasn’t COVID. Since March, the days have been a carousel of monotony: coffee, run, work, cook, yoga, existential spiral, sleep. My Own Private Year of Rest and Relaxation, if you will. Of course, life has a way of breaking through regardless; I attended protests, completed my thesis, graduated from grad school, took a couple of road trips upstate, and celebrated the accomplishments and birthdays of friends and family from a safe social distance. It was all a bit of a blur, and not ideal circumstances to re-enter the real world, or whatever this COVID-present is.

Throughout it all, in lieu of happy hours, coffee dates, and panel discussions, I’ve turned even more to culture and cuisine to fill the the negative space on my calendar where my social life once resided. However, since a global pandemic ought not to disrupt every tradition, here’s my year-end round up of what made this terrible one slightly more tolerable.

After an ascetic fall semester abstaining from TV in 2019 (save for my beloved Succession), I allowed myself to watch more as the year wore on, and especially after graduation. I caught up on some cultural blind spots by finally getting around to The Sopranos, Ramy, Search Party, and Girlfriends. I wasn’t alone in bingeing Sopranos, it absolutely lived up to the hype and then some; this Jersey Girl can’t get enough gabagool-adjacent content, pizzeria culture is my culture!

Speaking of my culture, there was also a disproportionate amount of UK and European shows in my queue. Nothing like being in social isolation and watching the horny Irish teens in Normal People brood. I’m partial to it because I share a surname with the showrunner, so I have to embrace blind loyalty even though there was, in my opinion, a Marianne problem in the casting. Speaking of charming Irish characters with limited emotional vocabularies, I belatedly discovered This Way Up a 2019 show from Aisling Bea and Sharon Horgan. And while Connell and Marianne are actually exceptional students, I found the real normal people on GBBO to bring me a bit more joy. Baking was abundantly therapeutic for me this year, and watching charming people drink loads of tea and fret over soggy bottoms was a comfort. I also discovered the Great Pottery Throw Down, and as a lifelong ceramics enthusiast, I cannot recommend it highly enough if you care about things like slips, coils, and glazing techniques. GPTD embraces wabi sabi in a way that GBBO eschews flaws in favor of perfection, and in a time of uncertainty, the former reminded me why I miss getting my hands in the mud as a coping mechanism (hence all the baking). Speaking of coping mechanisms, like everybody else with two eyes and an HBO password, I loved Michaela Cole’s I May Destroy You; though we’ve all had enough distress this year for a lifetime, watching Cole’s Arabella process her assault and search for meaning, justice, and closure was a compelling portrait of grief and purpose in the aftermath of trauma. Arabella’s creative and patient friends Kwame and Terry steal the show throughout, as they deal with their own setbacks and emotional turmoil. Where I May Destroy You provides catharsis, Ted Lasso presents British eccentricity in all its stereotypical glory. At first I was skeptical of the show’s hype on Twitter, but once I gave in it charmed me, if only for Roy Kent’s emotional trajectory and extolling the restorative powers of shortbread. For a more accurate depiction of life in London, Steve McQueen’s series Small Axe provides a visually lush and politically clear-eyed depiction of the lives of British West Indians in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Lastly, how could I get through a recap of my year in tv if I don’t mention The Crown. Normal People may have needed an intimacy coordinator, but the number of Barbours at Balmoral was the real phonographic content for me.

Turning my attention across the Channel, after the trainwreck that was Emily in Paris, I started watching a proper French show, Call My Agent! It’s truly delightful, and unlike the binge-worthy format of "ambient shows” I have been really relishing taking an hour each week to watch CMA, subtitles, cigarettes, and all.

Honorable mention: The Last Dance for its in-depth look at many notable former Chicago residents; High Fidelity for reminding me of the years in college when my brother and I would drive around listening to Beta Band; and Big Mouth.

Music

My Spotify wrapped this year was a bit odd. I don‘t think “Chromatica II into 911″ is technically a song, so it revealed other things about my listening habits this year, which turned out to remain very much stuck in the last, sonically. I listened to a lot more podcasts than new music this year, but there were some records that found their way into heavy rotation. While I listened to a lot of classics both old and new to write my thesis (Paul Simon, Leonard Cohen, Prokofiev, and Bach) the soundtrack to my coursework, runs, walks, and editing was more contemporary. Standouts include:

Saint Cloud by Waxahatchee, which makes me feel like I’m breathing fresh air even when I’m stuck inside all day

La Bella Vita by Niia, which was there for me when I walked past my ex on 7th avenue (twice!) and he pretended that I didn’t exist

Fetch the Bolt Cutters by THEE Fiona Apple, because Fiona, our social distancing queen, has always been my Talmud, her songs shimmering, evolving, and living with me every year

Shore by Fleet Foxes, for the long drive to the Catskills

Women in Music, Pt. III by HAIM, because these days, these days...

Musicians have been reckoning with tumult this year as much as the rest of us, and the industry has dealt with loss on all fronts. I’d be remiss not to talk about how the passing of John Prine brought his music into my life, and McCoy Tyner, who has been a companion through good and bad over the years.

Honorable mention to: græ by Moses Sumney; The Main Thing by Real Estate; on the tender spot of every calloused moment by Ambrose Akinmusire; Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers; folklore by you know who; and songs by Adrianne Lenker.

Reading

What would this overlong blob be without a list of the best things I read this year? While I left publishing temporarily, books, the news, and newsletters still took up a majority of my attention (duh and/or doomscrolling by any other name). I can’t be comprehensive, and frankly, there are already great roundups of the best longform this year out there, so this is mostly books and praising random writers.

Last year I wrote about peak newsletter. Apparently, my prediction was a bit premature as this year saw an even bigger Substack Boom. But two new newsletters in particular have delighted me: Aminatou Sow’s Crème de la Crème and Hunter Harris’ Hung Up (her ”this one line” series is true force of chaotic good on Blue Ivy’s internet). Relatedly, Sow and Ann Friedman’s Big Friendship was gifted to me by a dear friend and another bff and I are going to read it in tandem next week.

On the “Barack Obama published a 700+ page memoir, crippling the printing industry’s supply chains” front, grad school severely hamstrung my ability to read for pleasure, but I managed to get through almost 30 books this year, some old (Master and Margarita), most new-ish (Say Nothing, Nickel Boys). Four 2020 books in particular enthralled me:

Uncanny Valley: Anna Wiener’s memoir has been buzzed about since n+1 published her essay of the same name in 2016. Her ability to see, clear-eyed, the industry for both its foibles and allure captured that era when the excess and solipsism of the Valley seemed more of a cultural quirk than the harbinger of societal schism.

Transcendent Kingdom: Yaa Gyasi’s novel about faith, family, loss, and--naturally--grad school was deeply empathetic, relatable, and moving. I think this was my favorite book of the year. Following the life of a Ghanaian family that settles in Alabama, it captured the kind of emotional ennui that comes from having one foot in the belief of childhood and one foot in the bewilderment that comes from losing faith in the aftermath of tragedy.

Vanishing Half: Similarly to Transcendent Kingdom, Brit Bennett’s novel about siblings who are separated; it’s also about the ways that colorism can be internalized and the ways chosen family can (and cannot) replace your real kin. It was a compassionate story that captured the pain of abuse and abandonment in two pages in a way that Hanya Yanagihara couldn’t do in 720.

Dessert Person: Ok, so this is a cookbook, but it’s a good read, and the recipes are approachable and delicious. After all the BA Test Kitchen chaos this summer, it’s nice we didn’t have to cancel Claire. Make the thrice baked rye cookies!!!! You will thank me later.

Honorable mention goes to: Leave The World Behind for hitting the Severance/Station Eleven dystopian apocalypse novel sweet spot; Exciting Times for reminding me why I liked Sally Rooney; and Summer by Ali Smith, which wasn’t the strongest of the seasonal quartet, but was a series I enjoyed for two years.

Podcasts

I’m saving my most enthusiastic section for last: ever since 2018, I’ve been listening to an embarrassing amount of podcasts. Moving into a studio apartment will do that to you, as will grad school, add a pandemic to that equation and there’s a lot of time to fill with what has sort of become white noise to me (or, in one case, nice white parents noise). In addition to the shows that I’ve written about before (Still Processing, Popcast, Who? Weekly, and Why is This Happening?), these are the shows I started listening to this year that fueled my parasocial fire:

You’re Wrong About: If you like history, hate patriarchy, and are a millennial, you’ll love Sarah Marshall and Michael Hobbes’ deep dives into the most notable stories of the past few decades (think Enron and Princess Diana) and also some other cultural flashpoints that briefly but memorably shaped the national discourse (think Terri Schiavo, Elian González, and the Duke Lacrosse rape case).

Home Cooking: This mini series started (and ended) during the pandemic. As someone who stress baked her way through the past nine months, Samin Nosrat and Hrishikesh Hirway’s show is filled with warmth, banter, and useful advice. Home Cooking has been a reassuring companion in the kitchen, and even though it will be a time capsule once we’re all vaccinated and close talking again, it’s still worth a listen for tips and inspiration while we’re hunkered down for the time being.

How Long Gone: I don’t really know how to explain this other than saying that media twitter broke my brain and enjoying Chris Black and Jason Stewart’s ridiculous banter is the price I pay for it.

Blank Check: Blank Check is like the GBBO of podcasts--Griffin Newman and David Sims’ enthusiasm for and encyclopedic knowledge of film, combined with their hilarious guests and inevitable cultural tangents is always a welcome distraction. Exploring a different film from a director’s oeuvre each week over the course of months, the podcast delves into careers and creative decisions with the passion of completists who want to honor the filmmaking process even when the finished products end up falling short. The Nancy Meyers and Norah Ephron series were favorites because I’d seen most of the movies, but I also have been enjoying the Robert Zemeckis episodes they’re doing right now. The possibility of Soderbergh comes up often (The Big Picture just did a nice episode about/with him), and I’d love to hear them talk about his movies or Spike Lee (or, obviously, Martin Scorsese).

Odds & Ends

If you’re still reading this, you’re a real one, so let’s get into the fun stuff. This was a horrible way to start a new decade, but at least we ended our long national nightmare. We got an excellent dumb twitter meme. I obviously made banana bread, got into home made nut butters, and baked an obscene amount of granola as I try to manifest a future where I own a Subaru Outback. Amanda Mull answered every question I had about Why [Insert Quarantine Trend] Happens. My brother started an organization that is working to eliminate food insecurity in LA. Discovering the Down Dog app allowed me to stay moderately sane, despite busting both of my knees in separate stupid falls on the criminally messed up sidewalks and streets of Philadelphia. I can’t stop burning these candles. Jim Carrey confused us all. We have a Jewish Second Gentleman! Grub Street Diets continued to spark joy. Dolly Parton remains America’s Sweetheart (and possible vaccine savior). And, last, but certainly not least: no one still knows how to pronounce X Æ A-12 Boucher-Musk.

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likesomekindofcheese · 4 years

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Could you ship me w a queen & borhap guy? I'm dirty blonde, brown eyed, 5'4. I'm very anti capitalist and all about intersectional feminism. I work at a daycare and love it!! I spend most of my free time on tiktok or listening to stories of gruesome murders from podcasts

Of course!!!

For BohRap, I ship you with...

Roger Taylor!!!

Roger is such an outspoken firecracker and is not ashamed to stand up for his beliefs in equality. So when he finds out you feel the same he is thrilled!

Initially, he was scared to talk about that because he didn’t know how you would react, but seeing you be passionate about the world and justice, he was immediately heart-eyed over you.

He loves it when you wear something that makes your brown eyes pop, he’s quite a sucker for them and it makes you look very sweet and warm.

He was nervous at first meeting the kids of your daycare, they couldn’t stop asking about the rocker drummer their caretaker was dating! But one of them, meeting Roger, immediately went up and hugged him and then he was in love.

Sometimes when you are hanging out, he will joke about you being a bit shorter than him and lean his arm on top of your head until you brush him off.

Roger often enjoys going to the daycare center and even teaching them bits about drumming. They often run up to you afterward and say “you have the coolest boyfriend ever! Are you gonna get married!?”

You both turned red and before you could answer, Roger said “well, don’t spoil it now! Haven’t asked yet, so we’ll see!” with a wink.

As for BohRap, I ship you with...

Rami Malek!

Rami is such a sucker for romantic areas for dating so prepare to be swept off your feet in sweet, beautiful, and often private places to be with him.

Rami loves hearing you talk about social justice topics and often says something very funny that helps lighten the mood. Now that his stardom is rising, he even uses it to give a voice to these issues and he says you inspire him to.

Rami also love the kids you work with. He buys them little toys to play with or lunches or dinners to bring home and they all draw pictures of him and its adorable. They sometimes call themselves the Rami fan club.

Rami is also kind of an eccentric guy so he finds himself addicted to TikTok like you are...and sometimes you guys make one and it's wild!

Though he also gets into the murder podcasts. You both will be cooking or doing chores or something and in the background, some guy is listing all the ways one can be fatally stabbed and you both are smiling and peaceful.

Although you fuss at your own hair, Rami thinks its lovely and fits you perfectly. He adores the color- it’s raw, streaked from the sunshine, and feels beautiful but in an authentic way.

He calls you all sorts of cheesy nicknames and you both travel to cities around the world and see beautiful sites.

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ecentricqueen · 3 years

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you have a lot to be happy for | practice Gratitude #mevioscus #gratitude

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#aloe #aloe vera #appreciate your spouse #best pick up lines #blogger #eccentric queen #eccentric queen podcast #eccentricpodcast #eccentricqueenpodcast #mevioscus #practicegratitude #zerotohero

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queerasfact · 5 years

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Christina of Sweden - Sources

If you’ve listened to our podcast on Christina of Sweden and you’re keen to learn more, here’s a list of the sources we used. Feel free to send us a message if you’re curious about a specific source for individual quotes or facts.

Note that in our podcast, we chose to use he/him pronouns when referring to Christina. You can listen to the podcast for a discussion of that decision. You will find Christina referred to with she/her pronouns in all of these sources.

My main sources were two biographies of Christina:

Veronica Buckley’s Christina, Queen of Sweden: The Restless Life of a European Eccentric (2004)

As far as I’m aware this is the most recent English bio of Christina. While not handling any these topics with great nuance, it does touch on Christina’s sexuality (including the possibility that he was asexual), as well as the possibility that he was intersex.

Sven Stolpe’s Christina of Sweden (1966) translated by Sir Alec Randall and Ruth Mary Bethell

This book was originally written in Swedish, and it’s one of the very influential “modern” biographies of Christina. It's worth reading for its long quotes from primary sources, and pretty good citations of where specific pieces of info about Christina’s life come from. But it’s also written in the 1960s, so anything in there about sex or gender has to be read with that in mind.

Regarding the opening of Christina’s coffin:

Carl-Herman Hjortsjö’s "Queen Christina of Sweden: A Medical/Anthropological Investigation of Her Remains in Rome” (1966)

Carl-Herman Hjortsjö’s “The Opening of Queen Christina’s Sarcophagus in Rome” (1966)

Regarding the potential for DNA testing of Christina’s remains:

Malin Masterton's “Duties to Past Persons: Moral Standing and Posthumous Interests of Old Human Remains” (2010)

Malin Masterton et al's “Queen Christina's moral claim on the living: Justification of a tenacious moral intuition” (2007)

In trying to get a better understanding of intersex people and experiences, I had a look at:

You Can’t Ask That

Intersex-centred episode of a TV show where people from different minority groups respond to questions sent in online. You can definitely watch this link in Australia but it may not be visible in other parts of the world.

What It’s Like To Be Intersex

Short introductory Buzzfeed video with intersex people explaining what it means to be intersex and their experience. There are links at the bottom to these people’s other social media where you can learn more.

Intersex Human Rights Australia

This site has a bunch of resources for intersex people and non-intersex people wanting to educate themselves.

A couple of other things I read, which provided a few more snippets of info:

Louis XIV et Innocent XI: d'après les correspondance diplomatiques inédites du ministère des affaires étrangères de France (1882)

This was the source of the account of Christina’s belief that he was growing a penis, which you can find on p571-2. This source is in French.

Nathan Alan Popp’s "Beneath the surface: the portraiture and visual rhetoric of Sweden's Queen Christina." (2010)

Sarah Waters "A Girton Girl on a Throne: Queen Christina and Versions of Lesbianism, 1906-1933″ (1994)

Susanna Åkerman's Queen Christina of Sweden and her circle: the transformation of a seventeenth century philosophical libertine (1991)

The book has some interesting political analysis of Christina’s reasons for abdication, conversion, and other decisions. It is, however, incredibly dense.

#christina of sweden #queer history #lgbt history #lgbtq #gay history #trans history #ace history #asexual history #intersex history #queer #intersex #ace #trans

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idreamofhazel · 5 years

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Supernatural and the Scared Text

I have a question for you all at the bottom, so please take the time to read if you’re at all interested in the idea of deeply analyzing Supernatural as a regular hobby.

I’ve been listening to this podcast called Harry Potter and The Sacred Text. Each episode, the hosts read a chapter of the series through a specific theme, discussing how it’s shown, what can be learned, how we can apply it to our own lives. They use Jewish and Christian theological methods to analyze the text like Lectio Divina. There’s different ways to practice this, but they read at 4 levels: literal, allegorical, personal, and invitational/action in daily life. I’ve been thoroughly enjoying this podcast. It gives me a new way to read my favorite series, it gives my analytical, busy brain something to ponder, and while it is spiritual and uses religious spiritual practices, the discussion is not directly connected to any religion. It’s a way to treat a secular text as sacred and see what we can learn from it.

And then I had a thought. What if I applied this same type of process to Supernatural? While it’s not a text, it’s an important work of fiction for a large group of people who seem to able to find bits and pieces of themselves in the weekly episodes. It would be a bit like meta except it’s not analysis for analysis sake. It’s analysis for our own sake.

Plus, it’s something I’d get a huge kick out of doing. I’m a bit of an academic religion buff. I took classes on religion for fun in college and ended up minoring in Religion with a focus on ancient greek language. I took a class on the value of stories as being able to have sacred meaning, and gave a presentation on the use of metaphors in the bible and how they can shape our culture and thinking. I write all this to say, starting this kind of series is like, my kind of thing. I’d write it, more like a weekly or bi-weekly blog post about an episode. I’d have content for years doing it this way.

I haven’t come up with a name for it (don’t want to copy the podcast directly) or a start date, but I want to gauge interest. I’ll start it regardless, but for those who are interested, I can begin a separate tag list.

So, my question to you is, would you read it?

If you need more of an idea of what this would be, the podcast is on all major platforms. Check it out. I promise, it’s not preachy. It’s very different from any “spiritual” study I’ve seen before and personally, it’s what I’ve been missing.

So shoot me an ask, an IM, a comment, a reblog, and let me know if you’d be a willing audience and if you’d want updates.

(Tagging all my regular readers below)

@akshi8278 @amanda-teaches @angelus320 @atc74 @authoressskr @babypieandwhiskey @bambi95-blog @because-imma-lady-assface @blanketmadeofstarss-blog-blog @brewsthespirit-blog @britney8793 @butiaintgonnaloveem @calaofnoldor @carryonmycobaltangel @coffee-obsessed-writer @cutedictionary @danica-queen-of-hell @ellen-reincarnated1967 @emoryhemsworth @evyiione @fandomismyspiritanimal @feelmyroarrrr @fictionalabyss @french-the-llama @frenchybell @growningupgeek @gryffindorable713 @hanginwithmanerds @holyfuckloueh @impala-dreamer @its-not-candy @jayankles @jesspfly @just-a-normal-eccentric @justballoonfishthings @kay18115 @lipstickandwhiskey @lostnliterature @luciisthebest @megansescape @mereka18 @mjdoc90 @mogaruke @moonlitskinwalker @mrswhozeewhatsis @namelessflorence @oneshoeshort @pizza-boy-cas @pjofangirl18 @purplecatterpiller @sadist-fangirl23 @sammys-smutty-writer @sandlee44 @sea040561 @seenashwrite @seljepw @serienjunkiegirl @shamelesslydean @sis-tafics @skybinx-blog @super-not-naturall @tennesseewhiskey-and-pie @there-must-be-a-lock @trexrambling @un-autor-anonim @wildfirewinchester @wingedcatninja @wordstothewisereaders @wendibird @thisismysecrethappyplace @just-another-busyfangirl @ericaprice2008 @immafangirlmess

#blog business #the sacred letters of supernatural

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phrynewrites · 5 years

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13 and 17? For the rpdr asks

Thank you so much! I love and appreciate you!

13. Top 5 Favorite Queens?

(Did you ask for big ol’ explanations? No. Did I write some? Yes. Yes, absolutely)

1. Scarlet Envy: Honestly, I didn’t really like her at the start. From the promo materials, it didn’t seem like the kind of drag I was into or like there was a lot of substance behind her or her character. But from like minute one of her actually on the show, I was completely proven wrong on all accounts and ended up seeing a lot of myself in her—whether it was the silly jokes, owning up to her opinions, or expressing a playful sense of confidence by spinning around the workroom. I really, truly, cried when she was eliminated and have enjoyed her quick wit, eccentric glamor, and empathy ever since.

2. Shea Coulee: Shea is my idea of perfection. She’s incredible at every type of challenge, and outside of drag race, she’s one of the funniest and smartest queens out there. I loved her on her season, but she really entered my ride or die category after listening to her on the podcast “The Tony Soto Show.” She’s literally always been an incredible queen and I hope every day that she’s on AS5 and that she wins.

3. Violet Chachki: Season 7 was my introduction to drag race, and Violet’s “take no prisoners” approach to self confidence was the message I really needed to hear at the time. And of course, the way she creates visual concepts is stunning and flawless.

4. Asia O’Hara: Asia O’Hara is a masterclass in empathy and understanding, and her message is really the message we (at least us over here in America) really need to tune into today. On top of that, when I think of perfection in a pageantry sense, my mind immediately goes to Asia O’Hara. She defies the strict pageant standard with her innovative looks (like that one dandelion dress?? Stunning. Tweety Bird with the orange gloves?? Creative and Campy.) and humor (like those faces she made in the app challenge?). She’s just incredible.

5. Yvie Oddly: I would love to know what goes through her mind when she constructs a look or comes up with a new concept for performance. I admire her perseverance and dedication to the truth (again, as an American, that ideal deeply resonates with me, especially in our political climate right now), even if that truth was expressed in less than tactful ways. Her drag style always brings me joy- every time I see her fringe look, I’m struck with the feeling that the opposite of a dementor is very likely a tall, pink-painted drag queen covered in pink streamers. I was rooting for her to win and was completely overjoyed when it actually happened, and I feel like her win was incredibly impactful and timely, much like Sharon’s win was impactful for kids growing up, who needed to know that people like them could win.

17. Your ideal AS3 Cast?:

I was incredibly satisfied with the cast of AS3 and there really isn’t much I would change about it to be honest. I would have loved if Chi Chi would have had more of an opportunity to show how amazing she is (and god damnit, I really wanted a Chi Chi vs. Kennedy lipsync). I would have also loved if Thorgy and Aja had been on longer, but there were so many talented queens, so I guess that’s just how the cookie crumbles.

If I’m going to extend this question to the upcoming AS5 (and I am going to do exactly that), I really just want to see Shea Coulee be incredible, win a bunch, and eventually be crowned. I honestly have no clue who’s slated to be on AS5 but I would love to see some more queens from older seasons get the chance to show off their drag- even queens from AS1.

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