Rec. #777: Yodel

What: If you never before considered that a yodel might be contemplative, then give Nellie McKay's "Yodel" a listen.

Representative lyrics:
Standing with my back to the wall
Minding the sky as it's falling all around me
Listening for a break in the rain
For it's not drowning my pain
Anymore

Connections to previous Wreckage: For more McKay, see Rec. #206, Rec. #320, Rec. #608, Rec. #667, and Rec. #695.

How to get it: "Yodel" is from the fantastic album Pretty Little Head (Rec. #320).

Rec. #776: The Black Cowboys of the Mississippi

What: Picture a cowboy. Try again.

Photographer Rory Doyle's ongoing series "Delta Hill Riders" focuses on black cowboys and cowgirls in the Mississippi Delta.

Take that, John Wayne.

How to get it: Doyle has had international exhibitions of this series, so maybe you'll catch one of those. If not, you can still see samples of his work from The Guardian, The Washington Post, and his own website.

Rec. #775: Russian Doll

What: Russian Doll is every bit as good as you've heard. Maybe better. 

So, you've probably heard that it's so clever and that Natasha Lyonne is pure dynamite. Both true. Have you heard that it's fun? Also true.

Comparable to: Please, stop comparing it to Groundhog Day. It is not like Groundhog Day. The tone is different, the perspective is different, and the message is different. Her life does not reset at midnight. She does not meet the same people every time. She is actively trying to solve a mystery.

I think a better comparison is Orphan Black, with a touch of The Good Place. Lyonne herself compares it to All That Jazz. 

How to get it: Russian Doll is streaming on Netflix.

Connections to previous Wreckage: Orphan Black was Rec #340. And List #68 gathers much (but not all) of this blog's content about The Good Place.

Rec. #774: "Jane Curtin Is Playing It Straight"

What: It was great to see Jane Curtin as an agent in Can You Ever Forgive Me? and it was great to see her as a parent in The Spy Who Dumped Me and it is great to read this new interview with her from The New Yorker. 

Representation quote: "What did I? — Oh, I know what I did. I know exactly what I did! (Laughs.) So I thought, Good for me."

Connection to previous Wreckage: See Rec. #725 for more on The Spy Who Dumped Me. See Rec. #743 for more on Can You Ever Forgive Me?

How to get it: "Jane Curtin Is Playing It Straight" was published on The New Yorker website this week. 

Rec. #773: "Gossip," from The Allusionist

What: The Allusionist is a podcast all about investigating language. This particular episode does a deep dive on the much-maligned word "gossip" and covers its origins, current misogynistic nuances, how it tells us who we are, and the surprising ways that it just might save you.  

Representative quote: "We're sharing what we believe in, what we don't believe in, what we judge. We are working out identity. We're creating boundaries. We're inviting people in."

How to get it: Download from the podcast purveyor of your choice. The Allusionist website (https://www.theallusionist.org/) includes full episodes, transcripts, and bonus content. This particular episode's page includes further reading on blind items, scandals of classic Hollywood, and the OED.

Rec. #772: Everything Is Alive

What: The podcast Everything Is Alive is an unscripted interview show with inanimate objects. It is less goofy than you would think. Good for when you're sick of people.

Representative guests:

Maeve, Lamppost

Chioke, Grain of Sand

Ayo, Balloon

How to get it: Listen to the episodes on the show's website, or subscribe via the podcast purveyor of your choice.

Connection to previous Wreckage: See more recommended podcasts in List #67.

Rec. #771: Aparna Nancherla Explains Politics in One Tweet

Text of tweet: "politics is easy. someone says something. then someone else says, you are a liar and i would wage my wife on it! you have no wife!!! says the first person. everyone bows. infrastructures continues to crumble."

How to get it: Jump directly to this tweet here. Follow Aparna Nancherla on Twitter @aparnapkin.

Connections to previous Wreckage: See more at Rec. #762 and List #66.

Rec. #770: #BorkBook on Twitter

What: Delilah S. Dawson (@DelilahSDawson) writes poems in the voice of her dog and shares them on Twitter with the hashtag #borkbook. Perfect dab of sweet without sugar.

Representative lines:
"I call to order 

this meeting 

of the 

good boi club 

is just me 

an the cat 

who is not always 

good"

"there is one place 

where my bed goes 

an it is 

here 

not there 

I am too polite 

to move it 

but will stand over it 

an look perplexed" 

How to get it: I have done you all a solid and provided the Twitter advanced search results for Dawson's #borkbook tweets here. 

Dawson is also a successful author who frequently shares writing and publishing advice, so do check out her whole Twitter output (@DelilahSDawson).

Rec. #769: Betsy's Wedding

What: The charming comedy Betsy's Wedding boasts not only a stellar cast (Molly Ringwald, Alan Alda, Ally Sheedy, Joe Pesci, MADELINE KAHN AND CATHERINE O'HARA AS SISTERS, Anthony LaPaglia, etc.), but also a selection of inter- and intrafamilial conflicts that feel just as timely now as they did almost 30 years ago.

Ringwald is the title character, a mildly bohemian fashion student about to marry into the 1%. Everyone in both families has a lot of thoughts about this and, as the wedding preparations move forward, we also get competitive benchpressing, appearances from dead relatives, extramarital Chinese dinners, attempted mob hits, and -- never forget -- Stevie Dee.

Representative quotes:

"He thinks that if he marries Betsy, he will become visible. What if it works the other way around and she disappears?"

"Maybe ease up on trying to redistribute their wealth."

"When you were 11, you wouldn't eat lettuce out of solidarity with the farm workers. Now all these rich people are going to give you crystal salad bowls."

Connections to previous Wreckage: See also Quote from a Fictional Character #38.