Out of Curiosity with kt mather

Another special edition of Out of Curiosity with kt mather! Chapters 10 - 17 of my forthcoming debut novel Rage Is a Wolf. Pre-order at ktmather.com

The first chapter of Rage Is a Wolf NOT the clean version :)

In this week's episode of Out of Curiosity with kt mather, I talk with playwright and teacher, John Yearley about trusting the creative process, internet friends, new words for pandemic things, how slide-tackling is like acting, half time talks, come from behind wins, jobs that get you custom bobble-heads, the stages of grief…and then a deep dive into the amazing TV show Station Eleven. This episode, like all the others, is chock-full of spoilers, so do yourself a favor and watch the show!

Melissa and I talk pandemic parenting, how corporate leaders cope with stress, the second shift, the two income trap, intergenerational child-care, and then a deep dive into the 80s comedy classic, Mr. Mom—which holds up surprisingly well, although there is a “the boss is going to sexually assault the woman newly reintroduced into the workforce” plot-point that was such a staple of 80s plots (and real life!), but is so jarring these days. 

Julie and I talk about eccentric geniuses, being too ignorant to be intimidated, becoming a lawyer to become a writer, when your journalistic sources show up at the birth of your child, embedding in film productions, and how an indefensible movie helped save at least one woman's life. Then we take a deep dive into said indefensible movie, Gone with the Wind (not to be watched without multiple secondary texts for context). 

DSH and I talk egg preference, chicken life, pandemic publishing (not recommended), book reviews, douchey agents, conflict vs. character in writing, the great comedy that is PEN15, and then a deep dive into the 80s classic, RoboCop (which was evidently SUCH good satire, that the director, Paul Verhoeven, almost passed on it...)

Bill and I discuss...honestly, I can't remember what we discuss because I edited this awhile ago and Bill and I text and talk a lot and it's all a big jumbled mess... I do remember that we take a deep dive into the classic thriller, Silence of the Lambs, and discuss, among other things, that when it comes to learning about how not to other--we are all Jack Crawford. Also, I do a fair number of impressions, so...

Michael and I talk about fishing on the hard water (aka, ice fishing), what happens when you fall through the ice, whether or not your iphone will pull your butt out of the frozen water, how tech difficulties are just like the story we read, plus an update on Michael's life as a quizzo host. And then a deep dive into Jack London's classic tale of a man, a dog, and the freezing Yukon...

In this episode, Nicole and I talk pandemic, politics, the revivifying effects of nature and take a deep dive into the documentary My Octopus Teacher. I have an EXTREME opinion (I know, weird, that's not like me) about the documentarian's decision NOT to "interfere" with the octopus' life at one point and you'll have to let me know if you agree with him or me. This was also recorded in December 2020 before the Jan 6th attack on the Capitol, so I guess I was wrong when I told Nicole that I didn't think our divided nation had much farther to fall...

In this episode of Out of Curiosity with kt mather, Molly Clark and I talk about how we met and skipped way ahead in our friendship. We discuss Molly’s time at the all girls school, what it feels like to not be good at the Big 5 academic subjects and finding your own niche. We talk about Molly’s impending furniture flipping turf war and what she’s doing to try to make it in comedy. Then we take a deep dive into the charming coming-of-age movie, The Way Way Back. 

In this episode, we talk about women of the leisure class, kids with cholera, volunteerism, the movie Garden State (fast forward that part if you liked that movie

In this episode of Out of Curiosity with kt mather, Jess Welsch and I time warp to a YEAR ago almost to the day because that’s how long I haven’t been editing this episode. We talk about parenting in a small town vs parenting at monkey doo (basically an indoor gym / McDonald’s play land hellscape that I'm probs gonna tell the kids closed permanently...), how my dog got her name, how Jess’ eventual next dog will get its name, referring to unborn babies as “it”, and whether or not Michael Cera’s character in Juno owes Juno both a specific act of f*cking solidarity AND an apology...

Brian and I talk sports, sexual assault, small towns, tribalism, capitalism, and we ask the question: at what age are we responsible for healing our childhood traumas and stopping the cycle of bullsh*t behavior?

Once again, the weirdness of boarding schools, the connection between med schools and Patagonia, how to choose what name to use post marriage, the process of choosing and being chosen for med school residencies, and what it’s like to be a full-scholarship kid at boarding school. Eventually we finally get to talk about Mrs. Maisel and we cover favorite characters, how characters change (and don’t change) over the seasons, Maisel vs. Fleabag, thoughts on pelvic health (eg. IUDs and synthetic hormones), and ultimately, the indestructible uterus!

Today on out of curiosity with kt mather, I circle back with my old friend Lisa Knight who was also with us for the episode about Chernobyl. On this episode, Lisa and I talk about the smash hit the queen’s gambit about a young woman crushing it in the male dominated world of competitive chess. Lisa and I talk about why she almost didn’t watch the show, what kind of porn it is, the ever-present threat of sexual assault, cool clothes, a couple of my favorite fiction tropes, and Lisa’s lasik eye surgery (don’t worry—not graphic).

Brian and I talk about wealth inequality through American history, how Apple off-shores its money, who is getting SBA pandemic cash and why, how shame does and doesn't work on business people and politicians, the need for campaign finance reform, why people should move to rural states (hint: farms), plus a deep dive into why urban elites have issues with husky dogs...

We talk self-acceptance, debut novel expectations. Plus a deep dive into the colorism, sexism, racism, capitalism (all the isms except maybe feminism), and misogyny in the Netflix binge-fest, Self Made.

Bill and I talk about his 80s brainwashing, how coronavirus is like Sandyhook (tw: very dark humor), putting your business in hibernation, Bellatrix Lestrange, rent in the time of pandemic, how Bill sometimes misses social cues and crashes your budding romance, filing for unemployment, Bill yucks my yum, and a deep dive into my hero of the quarantine, Harry Styles.

Tonight was supposed to be my Town book launch, but something different happened instead. So I recorded these couple of chapters that I had hoped to read to a crowded room of friends and neighbors at my local library...

Taylor and I circle back to chat about holographic 3D conferencing, shame, loneliness, crying in the laundry room, ketamine assisted therapy, connection, online dating at the boarding school, pronouns, and sobriety. Parents of littles--hard apology for never mentioning Taylor's repeated, unintended references to Frozen 2--we talked about it later...

We talk teaching - coaching - writing, single-sex education, Paul Zarzyski, plus a deep dive into sex (consensual and rapey),  masculinity (was Bond born knowing how to drive that loader?), and Empire (stop using rich, Victorian, white women as an excuse to kill everyone and take their shit), in the original 007, Dr. No.

Another special edition of Out of Curiosity with kt mather! Chapters 10 - 17 of my forthcoming debut novel Rage Is a Wolf. Pre-order at ktmather.com

We talk Seattle vs Atlanta, the WTO protests 20 years later, sci-fi as a touchstone for what the world might be, her connections to the movie Rushmore, and a deep dive into genre-bending classic T2 Judgement Day.

In this week’s Episode of Out of Curiosity with kt mather, I chat with my friend’s brother and my Thanksgiving compatriot, Michael Rohde. We talk about my habit of long term couch surfing at his sister’s house, my habit of crashing his family holidays, his hosting a trivia night, how his sense of humor might ultimately drive away his beloved trivia night cohost, hiking the long trail, tents vs shelters, and then a deep dive into the book Into the Wild with a focus on both the story of Chris McCandless and Jon Kraukauer’s decades long obsession with McCandless life and death. 

This week on Out of Curiosity with kt mather I chat with my friend Eliza Stoughton about both being distantly related to Puritan witch judges / murderers, meeting in Montana, our quick & infrequent friendship, getting free drinks with magic, one of the reasons why I might’ve been wrong about trigger warnings, some of the things that make the new Little Women SO great, Eliza’s almost exclusively pie-based social media presence, and the path to becoming a professional actor. Plus we take a deep dive into the harrowing, Pulitzer Prize winning play by Paula Vogel about sexual assault, love, and forgiveness called How I Learned to Drive (including a look at Eliza’s own experience putting on the play). And finally, after we signed off, Eliza realized that we really needed to discuss her own experience with being betrayed by a trusted teacher, so the last 45 minutes or so of the episode is dedicated to that. 

In this week’s episode of Out of Curiosity with kt mather, I Circle Back with fan favorite Bill Tanner for a typical kt and BT rambler. We discuss my week of small town power-politicking, Bill’s love for Nike Air Jordans (and his inability to give himself permission to buy them), unity amongst Democrats (not going well), color bravery vs  color blindness, accidentally watching Fire Walk with Me with your mom (and as Catholics), pin-up calendars, the great job assholes like Rush Limbaugh did making Feminism a dirty word (it’s still not going to stop us...), 80s hair and swimsuits, plus a deep dive into the Feminist sailing documentary Maiden about the first all-female crew in the Whitbread Round the World race. Note: do yourself a favor and watch the doc before you listen. It’s REALLY SO GOOD!!!

Special edition of Out of Curiosity with kt mather! Chapters 2-9 of my forthcoming debut novel Rage Is a Wolf. 

Ralph and I talk epic halloween costumes, dick-in-a-box, hiring someone to call you on your bullshit, how Ralph uses improv techniques to teach authenticity & a deep dive into the ever-fabulous comedy, Clue. Plus I retell a story Chuck and I heard last week from Shatner.

The county forester & I talk off-the-grid living, regenerative logging, the trouble with post-clear cut forests, the permanence of development, groundhogs (aka Prairie Grizzlies), the rights of the forest to exist, and we take a deep dive into a doc about Aldo Leopold: Green Fire. Plus I offer both an apology and a shout out to my high school biology teacher Art Ariens...

Yasmeen and I talk about her latest creative endeavor and mine as well as the trials, tribulations, and teachable moments of creating your own path. We also do a deep dive into the LOGISTICS of trying to bring a high-quality product into the world.

In honor of my website launch...A little book teaser. Rage Is a Wolf, by kt mather Published by whisk(e)y tit books. Read by kt mather Coming soon! Preorder link at outofcuriositypodcast.com, ktmather.com, or in instagram bio.

Tommy & I talk athletic conditioning, books he didn't read in high school, his tailor made college major, his somewhat delayed (thanks melanoma) move to LA which he is undertaking NOW!!! Plus a deep dive into the skeevy, but tantalizing movie Nightcrawler.

Ned & I catch each other up on our creative projects (his film and my book--links in show notes...). We chat about story-telling pronouns, the AP exam, and how Catcher in the Rye might be more relevant than ever. Plus a deep dive into Catcher (which Ned has been teaching for decades) and Franny & Zooey (which Ned was reticent to read, but which I convinced him of in the same way the he convinced me of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest ep. 21...) and which is totally part of my personal canon.

Chuck and I talk about who put the moves on whom, our Scrabble rivalry, shoutouts to the friends who made our union possible, our decision to move to rural Vermont, plus a deep dive into the sexy feminist classic, Romancing the Stone.

Francesca and I talk a little about her role as my birth doula, but mostly about her work as an end-of-life doula and the pioneering end-of-life doula training program she helped create and directs through the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine. We talk about her book, Cultivating the Doula Heart, how to find a place of unconditional positive regard for people in their end-of-life journey, the difficulty of knowing and enacting the authentic self, how embracing the doula heart is not just for doulas, but also for parents, teachers, lovers, community members...basically any human with compassion and a willingness to sit together in both joy and suffering. 

In this week’s episode of Out of Curiosity with kt mather, I circle back with the delightful Emma Yardley to talk about her chance encounter waiting for buddies in a parking lot in the Colorado River that lead to a 15 day odyssey into friendship and the Utah desert. We talk love and heartbreak, the respectful way to break up with someone, kindred spirits, water rations, flash floods, arctic climbing vs desert hiking, $150k hips, champagne & salami, plus some parenting pro-tips.

Author and movie aficionado, Chris Tebbets and I, talk about his YA novel, Me, Myself, and Him (the gay Sliding Doors), the multiverse, deja vu, temporally overlapping selves, his work as a co-writer with James Patterson, our shared love of living in a (liberal!) small town, the use of macrostructures in writing, the limits of linear story-telling, and a deep dive into the still delightful and subversive movie, Harold & Maude. 

Katie and I chat about growing up in Alaska, a favor I did her in college, how much we both loved going to a college without Greek, what happens in rugby when you score the first time, her fascinating journey to being a single mom by choice, and then a deep dive into Sixteen Candles, Pretty Woman, and Dirty Dancing--I'll let you guess which one stands the test of time (and was written by a woman)...

Thomas Anderson and I chat about the delightful beginning of our friendship (feat. twinkle lights) which hit a bit of a rough patch when we started coaching soccer together, like last week's episode, we discuss traveling together, the time one or both of us got tore up from the floor up, teaching abroad, how kids apply to too many colleges these days, plus a deep dive into the book and movie, Call Me By Your Name.

Jenn and I chat about how cancer can bring out the best in friends, how traveling together in Amsterdam brought out the best in both of us (pro-tip, if you go to Amsterdam, take the ferry across the Ij river and bike into the small towns and farms up north), the FASCINATING things we learned about our b&b host, how I nearly destroyed her new suitcase by insisting on biking it, what I would do if I was trapped in London forever, Jenn's feelings about NASA, plus a deep dive into two David Sedaris stories.

This week on Out of Curiosity with kt mather, I chat with my former student Yasmeen Watson Sharif. We talk about long commutes to school, an uptick in photo ops when you hit multiple diversity demographics for a private school, Nantucket-level wealth, getting past the fear of screwing up so you can host someone from another culture and therefore deepen your relationship, the ”the more things change, the more they stay the same” conundrum of too many interesting ideas to pursue, water ice, skeevy dudes and whether it matters if they say it or just think it, plus a deep dive into the controversial movie The Joker that I went to see because both Yaz and Michael Moore recommended it and which I liked for some reasons and loathed for others.

This week on Out of Curiosity with kt mather, I talk with slacker English student Brett Leister about excelling in things you love and doing well enough in things you don’t really give a shit about. He reads from a graduation card I gave him and we discuss how weird it is to see your teacher at a rock show, drinking a beer. We also discuss levers build by electron microscopes, weld science, and then a deep dive into the delightful and tragic story of Formula One phenom, Ayrton Senna (it’s like the crucible, only with a hot Brazilian race car driver, instead of New England ladies accused of trafficking with satan).

Brian and I discuss small town governance including, Will the tree warden let the historical society cut down that perfectly healthy maple and if so, where will the replacement tree go? Why people are SO resistant to making changes to mitigate climate change, estrangement from nature, nature as decor vs a equal constituent of the Earth, Could we solve climate change by prioritizing the lives of the dung beetle, the beaver, and the earthworm?, the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone (no, not the thing about the rivers), how humans are so goddam stubborn in refusing to learn new things that counter their existing beliefs EVEN if the new thing would improve their goddam lives, the declaration that this podcast is 100% pro hunting for food and anti trophy hunting, and how too much kale can give you scurvy...

Phillip Crosby and I talk about how we were briefly best parenting buddies, how the social scene is tough on stay-at-home-dads, how he doesn’t seem to have learned anything from that struggle, the time Chuck gave his daughter a nearly fatal artisanal cracker, the ceaseless war against establishment norms, cos-play, kid comic con, and a deep, rambling dive into the amazing German time travel show Dark.

My old friend, Lisa and I talk about how Italy and Tommy Boy brought us together (rest in power Chris Farley), about traveling together, our plans to grow old together, the times we've lived together and will live together, the Thanksgivings I've spent with her and her family, our amazing (if somewhat typically haphazardly planned) hike on the Long Trail, hiking like a 70-year-old (#recommended), why I can't watch Handmaid's Tale, George W's PR slam dunk, and then Chernobyl, Chernobyl, Chernobyl. Plus a tiny disagreement about Fleabag, the Hot Priest, and the Confessional scene. 

We discuss that time I did something RIGHT as a teacher, all-girls schools, rad & shitty lady bosses, The Hate You Give, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the Meryl Effect, periods, sex education, parenting, how to not hook up, plus Three Women by Lisa Taddeo.

McCreary & I talk about the first offensive thing I said to him, IPAs, how to not lie to your therapist, teaching English, writing, etc, and then a too short (though pretty great, I admit) dive into the amazing tv show, Fleabag. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is 100% this episode's Michelle Yeoh (aka, badass). 

Christi and I discuss how much we liked each other at boarding school, what diff kinds of kids bring to a school, the time she had to lend me her swimsuit bottoms, marrying & having a kid across cultures, plus the fun & fucked up movie Crazy Rich Asians.

Stefan & I talk elected office, chess & backgammon, internet dating, movies as wormholes to our pasts, plus a deep dive into hilarious, still relevant, cult classic, Kicking & Screaming (the 98% dialogue one, not the Will Farrell soccer romp).

BT and I chat about kitsch, Midnight Oil, a masculinity that draws us closer to humanity, Julia Roberts dancing to Brown Eyed Girl, using dark humor to cope with suffering, death, and Lester Bangs on Van Morrison's Astral Weeks.