Today is, I'm presuming in the US, but maybe elsewhere too, "National Repeat Day".
I'll let them explain...
Ever had an experience that was so amazing, it’s worth doing twice? Or said something so brilliant that it simply bears repeating? Well, that’s exactly what this day is all about.
What?!?
National Repeat Day invites people to lean into the oddly satisfying side of doing something again on purpose. It can be as simple as replaying a favourite song or as ambitious as recreating an entire “best day ever” itinerary.
Was this written by AI? What exactly is "oddly satisfying" about doing something you like again? Why do I need a special day to play my favourite song again?
She was the primary teacher, you may recall, who insisted I drink my free school milk even when I told her I didn't drink milk because it made me throw up. And Mrs. Kaye never made me drink it last year! "Drink your milk," ordered Mrs. Tebb.
Maybe this set the tone of our relationship and explained why Mrs. Tebb didn't like me for the rest of the year. She thought she knew better than a 7 year old, but actually... guess what, Mrs. Tebb... sometimes you don't.
Then last week, while discussing knocking down walls in Emergency Questions, Alyson jogged my memory about another incident - one in which I was far more culpable - which cemented the animosity Mrs. Tebb felt towards me. The time I pushed Andrew Lodge through the classroom wall.
I'm pretty sure it was Andrew Lodge, but I might be wrong about that. Either way, my apologies to him. And my apologies for the time that he attended my birthday party and I threw a dart in his eye, almost blinding him. Believe it or not, Andrew Lodge was a good mate of mine in junior school. But these things happened.
Mrs. Tebb didn't have a classroom in the main school. She taught her class in a portacabin out in the school garden. It was a very nice portacabin in a very nice garden (we had school chickens too, provided by my mate Simon, whose dad was a chicken farmer). Far be it from me to suggest that the Head had arranged it that way to keep Mrs. Tebb away from Gen-Pop... or the other teachers... but if he had done that, I could easily understand why.
Anyway, as you entered the portacabin, there was a small cloak room, then a door that led into the main classroom. One morning, I was messing around with Andrew Lodge (or someone else whose name has been lost to antiquity, but Andrew Lodge is taking his place), playfighting, and... y'know, I had a bit of a temper when I was a kid, and maybe things got a bit out of hand... so I pushed Andrew Lodge straight through the cloakroom wall (which to be fair, was obviously made of an amalgam of tissue paper and spit) and into Mrs. Tebb's store-room.
Looking back, I'm starting to understand why Mrs. Tebb didn't like me. She was never going to teach me love, to quote Rockpile...
Even with 20 tunes in this week's Snapshots, I couldn't cover all the different sporting events in the Olympic Games... so here are a few silver medals...
I'm taking a bit of a break from daily blogging over the summer. Many times, writing this blog helps keep me sane. Other times, it just adds another rusty tin can on the back of the Buckaroo donkey. Snapshots will continue over the weekends and (with a little help from George), so will Namesakes. Most of the other features are on hold for now, but I'll check back in when the spirit moves me.
It's been a particularly busy week and I've been worrying about the fact that I didn't have a post ready for today. I know that's ridiculous. It's really not worth worrying about...
Imagine you’re standing in line in a coffee shop, waiting to
be served. It’s a long line and all the people in front of you are ordering
those silly drinks that involve whipped cream, caramel syrup and heart
attacks. What might you do to entertain yourself?
Now imagine you’re sitting at a bus stop and the bus is
late. These days, lots of city centre bus stops have those little clocks fitted
which tell you how long you have to wait till the next bus arrives. Only
instead of counting down, that number just seems to be stuck… or even getting
bigger. How might you pass the time?
Finally, imagine you’ve arranged to meet friends in the pub,
at the cinema, or somewhere in the centre of town. Only they’re running late
and you’ve got nothing to do but wait. Or… is there something else you could be
doing?
If your answer to any of those questions involves checking
your phone, then you’re suffering one of the major symptoms of the modern
malaise. And hey, maybe you’re not going on Tiktok or Snapchat or the book of
faces… maybe you’re doing some online banking, trying to crack today’s Wordle
or reading a fascinating blog post about how many different bands there are
called The Jerks (quite a few, in case you’re wondering: I’m sure I’ll get to
them in due course). Whatever it is, I can pretty much guarantee you’re not
doing what you would have done in this same situation 30 or 40 years ago.
You’re not allowing yourself to be bored.
And your brain is suffering because of that.
We’ve talked a fair bit about the mental health dangers of
internet and social media addiction during this series.
Part of the problem is ease of access. When the internet arrived on the scene about
30 years ago, you had to sit down at a computer, dial it up (which could take
up to 5 minutes in my house) and then crawl around a clunky, always crashing
cyberspace with limited options and plenty of built-in frustration.
Remember
watching slowly while every image on the page downloaded like one of those
novelty pens you turn upside down to watch the lady slowly lose her clothing?
(I don’t know why that particular simile popped into my mind. It’s not as
though anybody ever used the internet to look at naked pictures.)
That’s all changed. Today, we carry the internet with us
wherever we go, so every possible distraction is available instantly, any time
we want it. Queueing up in a coffee shop, waiting for the bus, killing time in response to ever-delayed friends… we need never be bored again! You see it everywhere you look.
Whenever people are alone with nothing to do, out comes their phone. They don’t
even have to be standing or sitting still. They’re even using it as a
distraction from the interminable emptiness of walking down the street (watch
out for that lamp post!).
“It’s good to be bored sometimes, to have that dead time. That’s when ideas come. If we’re on our phone checking Facebook, we lose some precious time that previously we used for daydreaming: gazing out of the window and having ideas blossom.”
Once you start reading up on this, you'll find hundreds of articles dedicated to the benefits of boredom. Scientists, business leaders and new age hippies all agree - being bored is good for your brain. We all know we get eyestrain if we stare at screens too long. Turns out we also get brain strain.
Scientist Catherine Price, author of How to Break Up With Your Phone runs digital detox sessions for chronic screen addicts to help them repair their brains. Tech writer Kevin Roose of the New York Times consulted her when he became aware of his own addiction...
My symptoms were all the typical ones: I found myself incapable of reading books, watching full-length movies or having long uninterrupted conversations. Social media made me angry and anxious, and even the digital spaces I once found soothing (group texts, podcasts, YouTube rabbit holes) weren’t helping.
In his article, Roose explains how he went about a full digital detox...
If I was going to repair my brain, I needed to practice doing nothing. So during my morning walk to the office, I looked up at the buildings around me, spotting architectural details I’d never noticed before. On the subway, I kept my phone in my pocket and people-watched — noticing the nattily dressed man in the yellow hat, the teens eating hot tacos and laughing, the kid with Velcro shoes. When a friend ran late for our lunch, I sat still and stared out the window instead of checking Twitter.
Since starting my new job, I finally find myself in a privileged position of being able to do nothing at certain times of the day. I mostly teach students 1:1 or in small groups, and in English that will often involve setting a lengthy task (creative writing is best) and then letting students get on with it. In my old job, I would have used that time to circulate the room, answer questions, help people who were stuck... and if time permitted, maybe catch up on a bit of marking or paperwork. In my current job, I get to stare out the window. How wonderful is that? I realise, I'm very fortunate. Most teachers would kill for the same opportunity. I wish I could give them all the gift of boredom... the profession would be in a much healthier state if it was full of bored teachers rather than teachers on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
Although, to be honest, I'm not really sure boredom is what we're talking about here. If you asked me if I was ever bored, my first response would probably be: never. I always have a million and one things I want to do... or think about. The only time I do feel bored is when I'm stuck doing something I don't want to... like a lengthy meeting or an interminable online training session about something I already know. When I talk about giving the gift of boredom, that's not what I want to offer. What I really want is to give you all the chance to get busy... doing nothing.
Allowing our minds to wander can be hugely beneficial to our wellbeing, our imagination and our creativity. Surely this is great news for everyone - doing nothing is good for us!
I drink Ocean Spray every day. It's not cheap, but it's much tastier than the supermarket equivalents with their artificial sweeteners that leave a nasty after-taste. I enjoy the taste, but drink it mostly for my immune system, and because I read somewhere it's good for your prostate. Which is important when you get to my age. Still, I wouldn't have thought of featuring Ocean Spray here... until I remembered a really obvious tune.
First though... I could hardly do a post about Ocean Spray without featuring these guys...
I had to reject all the songs that referenced the spray of the ocean, rather than the delicious cranberry drink. Although I wasn't sure about this one. I mean, The Beach Boys clearly spend a lot of time by the sea... but what's their beverage of choice?
Wesley Willis, meanwhile appears to prefer a glass of Ocean Spray following slightly less relaxing pursuits... he is familiar with the brand's advertising strap-line though.
Lots of rappers mention Ocean Spray as an alcoholic mixer. I drink it neat, myself, but please, do whatever you feel necessary, as it does help your health... and, apparently, your mood...
If you don't like to drink cranberry juice, Howe Gelb has a suggestion that involves pouring it onto a mirror that you've placed under your hotel room door to let the maids know you don't want it cleaning today. I wouldn't have found this one by looking, it just popped up by coincidence on shuffle the other day...
Anyway... here's the song that had me kicking myself for not featuring Ocean Spray sooner. This is the first Manic Street Preachers lyric written by James Dean Bradfield. It's also one of their most direct and moving songs, as it deals with his mum dying of cancer and his memories of visiting her in hospital...
On our way back from the football a couple of weekends ago, Sam and I stopped in at an exhibition of Bizarre Album Covers that was being held in Huddersfield.
There were some very funny and very dubious covers included, and we were asked to vote for our favourites - plus, Sam got a free cookie so it was definitely worth the trip.
The records all came from the private collection of Huddersfield resident Steve Goldman, and I was pleased to learn of a forthcoming book devoted to the stories behind these truly bizarre covers. That'll definitely be on a Christmas list when it's published.
I did have to take issue with a couple of Steve's choices though... notably the ones that feature in my own record collection! Are these really sobad...?
I mean, Pet Sounds!?! That's a classic, man!
What's the worst album cover in your collection? Certainly not this one...
Gracie Fields introduced this week's quiz yesterday. I was most disappointed that I couldn't find a photo of Sally Field holding a camera... so you'll just have to do with a picture of a camera in a field.
