The Breeders, confidence, Couples' Therapy and more.

What's been floating my boat? What's been getting my goat?

Something new from Compendia. The Saturday Compendium is where I’ll round up a few of the things that have interested me in one way or another this week. Some cool, some not so cool, some that have made me think, some that have inspired me to action, some that have shaken me out of a rut. Some old, some new, all borrowed, some possibly blue. But whatever else, they’re all things I think you might find interesting too.

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1. An article I enjoyed: The experts: actors on 20 ways to look and feel confident – when you’re anything but…

This was a really interesting article I found. I come across (sometimes anyway) as a confident person, but the reality is, like most people I suspect, that’s not always the case. In this article a whole load of actors — who you might think are the most confident people there are — talk about how that’s true for them, too, and explain how they too often have to fake it. They give their tips, which range from ‘Don’t go for dutch courage’ to ‘brush your teeth’, with a whole load in between.

2. What I’ve been listening to: The Breeders, Pod

I went through a phase of buying concert tickets, having fallen out of the habit of seeing live music. Those shows are now happening, and one of the bands I saw were The Breeders. As well as being excellent, I was reminded of their first record, Pod. It was released in 1990, and sounded like nothing else. It still doesn’t. Particularly poignant is the fact that it was engineered/recorded (he didn’t like the term ‘producer’) by Steve Albini, who died recently and was also recorded some of my other favourite records, including PJ Harvey’s Rid of Me and The Wedding Present’s Seamonsters.

Listen to Pod here.

3. What I’ve been watching: Couples’ Therapy

“Real lives, real therapy. Dr Orna Guralnik welcomes couples wanting to save their relationships. Follow the emotional struggles and successes in riveting, raw reality.”

Available on the BBC iPlayer, this has had me hooked. Particularly interesting for those who are in the game of creating characters, it’s also fascinating to just simply watch as Orna Guralnik gently but firmly guides people towards a better understanding of themselves, their past and their relationships. I devoured almost three seasons in four days and I know when I finish the final show I’m going to want more.

Currently available here.

4. This thread was interesting: Falling out of love with bands

   Over on Threads, @winterteeth4 posted this:

   

   I found it, and the replies, really interesting. It made me think of The Smiths, and how glad I was that they split when they did (though at the time I was far from happy about it). They never suffered the decline, Strangeways, Here We Come is one of their best albums. Are there any bands who’ve been consistently good, over a long period of time?

What bands have you fallen out of love with? When?

5. What I’m reading

I love Erin’s work, what I’ve read of it anyway. This is (apparently) a ‘loose’ sequel to The Poison Tree (which I haven’t read), but so far at least certainly works as a standalone. I’m almost 200 pages in, and it’s keeping me in its grip.

How about you? What are you enjoying at the moment?

Bonus! A little something extra for my reader-supporters.

This was fascinating! Psychotherapist Dr. Aaron Balick on how to think differently about things we’re ‘good’ and ‘bad’ at.