Rod and Karen discuss learning to love reading, Coronavirus News, election stealing news, Obama says he wont’ be in Biden’s cabinet, Lil Pump didn’t even register to vote, Vermont issues free hunting licenses to Native Americans, rappers getting shot, Badu got the Covid, GoAuto Insurance man calls Kamala a hoe, Eva Longoria apologizes again, UPS ends ban on natural hair and beards and sword ratchetness.
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This was a terrific episode and yes, the discussion about personal relationships with reading was great, evidenced by the great comments other listeners have already left. TBGWT community is so smart!
One thing I’ll add is that it was lovely to hear Rod encourage Karen to change what she might have seen as a lost cause in regards to reading for pleasure. I loved hearing Rod gently push Karen and I loved hearing Karen accept and really hear what Rod was saying. It was the most loving thing! Love!
I was excited to hear this because just a few days prior I LITERALLY was thinking, how do I tactfully ask Karen how she feels about Rod being such a prolific reader and I know she’s said in the past that’s not her. I so often lament having lost my love and passion for reading. It’s dwindled like thinning hair over the past few decades and I do grieve it.
I suppose I feel I’ll never get it back but that is me giving up. This conversation helped me to stop and think, I COULD change that. It is a choice.
Love y’all,
Monica
P. S. I keep falling behind on episodes because 2020 is wringing me out like a dirty mop, but I’m so thankful you’re always here, now on Spotify, for me to escape into Tiplandia.
I absolutely love reading. I was the type of person who would read the back of the cereal box and random labels. My Mom was an avid reader and she took me to the library every week so while she was checking bout her books I would check out goosebumps and kids books. And as I got older I fell in love with romance books. I got teased a lot for reading them on the bus but some of those same people teasing me were reading them too they just had more fucks to give than I did. I still love reading.
I loved this discussion about reading. I used to read a lot for pleasure – it was my escape when I was young. When I would get sent to my room on punishment, I would get lost in a book. It’s a shame that my grandmother had to take away my books to punish me lol. But after my MBA program – I got away from reading books. I guess I got burned out. As I was thinking of my goals for 2021, one of them is to get back to reading and I’m dedicated to reading one book/month. Honestly, I don’t have to buy any because I’m always buying books to support people and I’m sure I have at least 12 that I haven’t read.
I guess the COVID tests are different because when I got my latest, it was the same swab for both noses. I can’t remember if it was the same for my other test because they administered it and my scary ass had my eyes closed, gripping my steering wheel. But the more recent one I had to do… I stuck that thing up my nose for like 2 seconds – the lady was like “AHT AHT! you gotta do it for 10 seconds” then I suffered through that and she told me to get the other nose lol. I don’t see how Badu got it in one nose…
Finally – I love it when I have to get to the end of the show to figure out the show title
Hi Rod and Karen!
I wanted to say I’m a new listener, but by Thanksgiving I’ve been listening for a year so I guess that would be a lie. Also congrats on making that Spotify money! Moving on up! I found out about you guys when visiting my cousin in Korea and she listened to y’all every morning before work.
I have been wanting to write in for a while, but was never sure what to say. A lot of old topics you guys discuss are insightful and make me wonder about my own thinking and how I perceive the world. Even if my mind isn’t changed with some things I do like to see how y’all see certain issues. Also y’all are accurate with so many things politically. When I got tired of watching the news for my mental health y’all were my main source of political news (besides online articles). I’m youngish (mid-20s) so I don’t know how things have been going years before my birth when it comes to politics, other than that the Republicans aren’t for us and whatever history was taught in school. Or maybe I just haven’t paid attention until now. I also am glad you talked about Bernie and AOC because I couldn’t quite put my finger on why I wasn’t 100% on board. Their ideas I hope can be implemented someday, but I also see that a lot of things they want to do are too radical for a majority of the democratic party. I also have been trying to tell friends the comment I think Rod said about third parties needing to start now and take the off years to build traction. I noticed with the Bernie bros they still think it will just happen some day despite me telling them this and often wonder if they’re a lost cause much like black people who voted for Trump this current election.
But what inspired me to write you this week of all weeks was the episode Waste of Whiteness where y’all discussed reading. In college I majored in English and was introduced to many authors. World literature was my favorite, but also I liked when in American Literature we would focus on black authors. It was amazing how much I didn’t know even with my parents having us grow up reading and reading about black history primarily. And even not counting black literature my mom had us read a lot in the summer months since she was an English teacher and knew it was important. It helps with spelling, grammar, and general understanding. Like Rod said, even if you pronounce a word wrong you know the word and the context it’s used it. What I’m trying to say is I used to love reading, but now after college I feel burnt out since we were just about trained to read and analyze everything. My drive to read for pleasure went down and I usually opt for Webtoons these days if I read anything. So I like how Rod suggested reading a little at a time. A lot of what y’all described I similarly feel. Can’t focus. Feeling like I could read a novel easily in a few days at one time so it should be easy to jump back in, but now even small books seem daunting. But I like the idea of having a set 5-10 minutes a day and hopefully grow from there. So far I started on Tuesday and it’s working for me. Also it’s crazy y’all talked about reading because my coworker has a podcast about reviewing books and wanted me to come on, so I hope reading small portions of books first can inspire me to stay on track re-reading the book I recommended we review. And also that I find a love for reading again. I just wanted to say it’s funny how timely it was that you guys happened to talk about reading.
I also am late but wanted to add that I loved the Lovecraft Country recaps y’all did. I remember once I watched and then I listened I got a lot more out of it. Like the conversation about Martin Luther King Jr. during the show I missed, but I also didn’t know about the relationship he had with a white woman. Also the breakdown of the song Whiteys on the Moon. And other little details about the show in general. I’m recommending friends not only watching the show, but that they listen to y‘all’s recaps too.
Anyway I hope this isn’t too long and I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes. It’s 1am. But as my grandpa would say “y’all go out there and make that big money.â€
Please don’t say my name.
Hi Rod and Karen!
(If you read this on air, please just call me “Ray from 804”, or “Ray”)
The first episode I listened to was your recap of the finale of Lovecraft Country, and I loved how deeply y’all analyzed the episode and pointed out all the ties to brief scenes for other episodes. I had just watched the finale the night before, and your recap made me go back and watch it again.
On your Monday episode, I just wanted to add 2 quick thoughts:
1. I’m with you on reading, Rod, in that I love to read, but I also feel bad about how little time I’ve made in my life to read more than I currently do. With your words of encouragement, I’m going to try again, and maybe finally read this book I bought a year ago.
2. On the GOP attempts to overturn the election, they all know it’s not going to work. What they are really telling us is that the next time there is a close election, they *will* cheat to win it. That is all everything they are doing is about. This is all a practice run for 2022 and 2024.
Thank you guys for your great show, keep up the great work.
Ray from 804
Again, there are some things you say that I pop up and am like, “how did they get in my head� Your discussion about Toni Morrison described my feelings about her exactly. I discovered her in an African American women’s class in college and when I read The Bluest Eye, my mind was blown.
I loved reading as a child. My dad took me and my sister to the library every Saturday and I would check out the maximum of 10 books each time. College kind of killed that love with the mandatory reading and I’m trying to get back to reading for pleasure. I think the access to cable and streaming tv and social media has had a real negative impact on my allotting time to it as well. But as I’m getting older, I want to maintain my language and writing skills so I really want to focus on this.