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Episode 35 - Anansi
9 Plays2 minutes ago
Nym gives Nylene a much needed break this week, and shares amazing tales of the West African trickster, Anansi.
Enter the Nightmare for show notes, transcripts, sources, and more!
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Transcript
Introduction and Spooky Themes
00:00:29
Speaker
Welcome to Nim and Nyleen's Nightmare Cottage, where we explore history, mysteries, and other tales of the macabre. I'm Nim. And I'm Nyleen. Let the nightmare begin.
00:00:47
Speaker
disturbing and mature content to follow into the nightmare if you dare This comes out right before Christmas. So at this point, you are both in your best point and your most chaotic point.
00:01:05
Speaker
What does that mean? It's your favorite time and there's a billion things happening. oh Kind of sounds like become a bitch the rest of the year, though. No, I mean, like, the time that you enjoy, like, the time that you enjoy, like, existing. My peak power is what you're trying to yeah, like, me at Halloween, you at Christmas.
Winter Gardening Tips and Pet Antics
00:01:23
Speaker
So...
00:01:26
Speaker
I have to deal with the fact that it's about to be too cold for my garden to continue to exist. So I've got to pull out the food dehydrator, dry some herbs. I'm going to do a vape station for Grim but because I've got a bunch cats. I've got to dry it, man, because he's so used to me coming inside from gardening and, you know, giving him a little nip.
00:01:47
Speaker
Yeah. That's going to be crazy. and So I know he's going to apparently it's a whole thing. that is You're creating a vape station for your cat. Dude.
00:01:58
Speaker
That was when the air conditioner, that wasn't happening. That was so scary. My house is old, man. just, it makes old man noises. I don't, I don't know. Your house is a man.
00:02:12
Speaker
Mine is. I was just asking. You know, though, it does kind of feel more feminine. i don't know. It did used to be yellow. It did used to be yellow.
00:02:23
Speaker
i changed that as soon as I realized I could. <unk> Sorry, Mom. But yeah, no, so I'm i'm trying to prepare. i'm I'm preparing for the winter with a harvest and dehydrating my my herbs and stuff. and yeah That sounds like a lot too, because you have a lot out there. Is there anything that's going to survive or that's like oh stays over the winter? Yeah, so...
00:02:48
Speaker
He's fine. He just likes to go into the hallway because it echoes and it's really dramatic. it sounds like he's saying, o I know. don't Don't listen to him. He's a manipulative little twerp. It was so sad.
00:03:03
Speaker
But no, it's not it's not that much work because I leave a lot of it out. But I pull some back just so I can have some if it does fully go. But the thyme the rosemary and the sage are kind of at least where we're at pretty evergreen because I cover them when we get like hard frost and stuff.
00:03:22
Speaker
Yeah, no, everything I have is either perennial or I protect it. So I do have a few things. i think like the I've got a couple of annuals out there that will just die, but most everything I have will either survive or come back.
00:03:35
Speaker
Yeah, I think I'm going to, um probably, I've already put a lot of my plants up in carts, but Fern keeps grabbing my aloe and running off with it, which I found out it's toxic to dogs. Like it's not even like the aloe, it's the,
00:03:53
Speaker
Hi. Hi Grim. Hi Grim. Please don't press the escape button again. Yeah. Please? Grimothy. Sir. Over here. Nope. Nope.
00:04:04
Speaker
no hope Nope. That was a mistake. That was a mistake. Yes. So it's pretty not great for my plans. I don't know if they're going to survive. The ah what are those called?
Retail Relief and Ouija Tales Recap
00:04:19
Speaker
The Tradescantias. Yeah.
00:04:21
Speaker
No, I haven't planted them yet. Okay. The other one. Oh, the purslane. Yes. Is that one annual or perennial?
00:04:30
Speaker
Just mouth that. It is not a perennial here. It is a perennial where it is warmer. So if I cover it, it should be fine. Yeah. um If it's a hard freeze, you'll want to bring it inside.
00:04:41
Speaker
Or no, you can, you have a garage. So anytime you're there's a hard freeze and you've got container stuff, put them in the garage and that will save them. Hmm. Okay. Okay.
00:04:52
Speaker
The end. Thanks for coming. Thanks. End of story. Hi. He's so active right now.
00:05:02
Speaker
I know because he wants to play. This is playtime.
00:05:08
Speaker
and we're here. and we're in a weird box. He's like, I want to be in the box. We are once again coming to you from the ah Nightmare Caravan cottage. The traveling cottage.
00:05:19
Speaker
I love it so much. I want to decorate it. That doesn't work real well for a mobile situation. Yeah. so are you ready for Christmas? Are you ready for festive bullshit? I so am, but I'm also so tired.
00:05:38
Speaker
Yeah. But I'm right on the cusp of my, my, I finally, after years of working retail and not being able to be off around the holidays, I'm finally,
00:05:49
Speaker
It feels so nice. Like I just work a different part now
Anansi Folklore and Cultural Significance
00:05:52
Speaker
where I'm like, I'm still like having to check in on things every once in a while, but not. Oh, it's so nice.
00:06:06
Speaker
So last week we had, last week, we both do this all the time. Last episode we had. Previously on. Previously on the Nightmare Cottage. On the last episode.
00:06:16
Speaker
o Nightmare Cottage. Nyleen brought us. Huija. Huija. Just nutty, crazy tales of Ouija mania and super fun.
00:06:28
Speaker
This time you have to listen to me. So what are we going to do? We're going to do folklore. have to listen to her. Have to. Have to. Well, I mean, I guess you could all turn me off, but don't do it. Please.
00:06:41
Speaker
Don't turn me off. I'll cry. It's like the please let me merge or I'll cry. yeah stickers i like i want one of those. I wanted to cover tricksters this time of year. Okay.
00:06:52
Speaker
I was going to do kind of like a little smorgasbord of like a whole bunch of different tricksters because there's so many really cool ones. And then I did what we do. And when I started doing my research, the very first one I started with yeah alphabetically speaking Led you down another rabbit hole. Yeah, it was... i he's He was just too cool to to do anything else. So are you familiar with the trickster spider Anansi?
00:07:19
Speaker
What is that from? That name just like... Anansi or Anansi, depending on... where you're hearing it in pop culture recently. I don't like to highlight the author anymore because apparently he's a piece of shit, but there is a book called American gods from Neil Gaiman that where there is a Mr. Anansi and then there's Anansi boys and there's shows for both of those. whoa Yeah. So that's a thing, but I, you know, buy it, buy it used, watch it in a way that doesn't give Neil Gaiman money. Anyways. Okay. No, I mean, I feel like I've heard something of it, but not really, I guess, if it's not striking enough of a chord for me. Let's see. What part of folklore is this from?
00:08:01
Speaker
And what kind of trickster be he? So... Anansi is a master trickster and relentless negotiator, making and breaking deals across centuries.
00:08:11
Speaker
He's one of the most famous characters in West African folklore. West African. Yeah, particularly among the Akan and Ashanti people of modern day Ghana. He's depicted most typically as a spider, but is sometimes represented as a man or general shapeshifter, depending on the story.
00:08:26
Speaker
On the surface, he's a comical character, small, hungry, lazy, and clever to the point of ridiculousness. But on a deeper level, Anansi is a cultural archive, a symbol of resistance, survival, intelligence over brute force. oh So today we're going to follow the journey of Anansi from his beginnings in West Africa as a divine trickster, his cross over the Atlantic during the slave trade, his reinvention in the Caribbean and his eventual new roles in the United States. So wait, is a Nazi supposed to be based off a real person?
00:08:56
Speaker
It's part of West African mythology. Okay. But he, he's not, he's one of the few figures from that, that isn't considered a God. Okay.
00:09:07
Speaker
So he wasn't worshipped, they didn't sacrifice things to him, but he is a mythological character. But along the way, we're going to dip into some of his most iconic stories to see what he teaches, how he transforms, and why he has outlasted kings, colonizers, and countless unlucky tigers.
00:09:22
Speaker
In Akan and Ashanti culture, stories were and still are how wisdom is passed down. This is done through lively sessions filled with drumming, song call and response, and the occasional side eye if someone calls out the moral a little too quickly. Mm-hmm.
00:09:35
Speaker
Folklore, as we've come to know, is not merely entertainment. It's philosophy, social critique, and education rolled together. in this environment, Anansi thrives. He embodies a worldview in which cunning is a legitimate response to an unpredictable world.
00:09:50
Speaker
When you see a small spider outsmart a sky god or a hulking leopard, you don't understand the basic message. You don't have to be powerful to survive. You just have to be smart. Mm-hmm. My favorite kinds of characters.
00:10:01
Speaker
Anansi is a trickster outwitting everyone from snakes to gods with the creative confidence of someone who has never once worried about consequences. my gosh. Anansi is a cultural hero.
00:10:12
Speaker
He brings stories, wisdom, sometimes food, and occasionally chaos. Freak, most often chaos. In a way, Anansi is a moral compass in the way of learning what not to do because things will inevitably go wrong.
00:10:26
Speaker
He is rarely strong or honest. He is frequently hungry and always scheming. These are all reasons why he is beloved. Real quick, I'm going to tell a couple of brief versions of common tales told about Anansi.
00:10:38
Speaker
So Anansi is said to own all of the world's stories. This is the story of how he won them from Niame, the sky god. Oh, where is this? I've heard something like this. These are. I'm just wondering if it's been adapted to something. Oh, yeah. There's tons of. OK. Tons of like children's books. There's a lot of references in pop culture that have popped up. And I mean, and these are like frequently retold fables. So it's possible you even heard them as a kid.
00:11:03
Speaker
but Here we go. Long ago, when the world was still young and most creatures believed the sky was closer than common sense, all the stories ever told belonged to Niame, the sky god.
00:11:15
Speaker
He kept them locked away, high above the clouds, not out of malice, but out of the firm belief that mortals would only make a mess of them. Besides, Niame was no librarian.
00:11:26
Speaker
He didn't lend things out. If anything, he hoarded stories the way dragons hoard treasure, extravagantly and without any plan to share. Down on Earth, Anansi the spider had other ideas.
00:11:37
Speaker
Anansi adored stories. He loved listening to them, twisting them around, telling them in ways that made him sound just a little smarter and braver than he actually was. And most of all, he loved the attention they brought him.
00:11:50
Speaker
Naturally, he decided that the story should belong to him. So Anansi climbed up to Niame's lofty home in the sky and announced with the confidence only a trickster could manage, I'd like to buy the stories.
00:12:02
Speaker
Niyame burst into such booming laughter that a few stars shook loose. You, he said, a spider. the stories are worth more than all the riches of the earth. But if you truly want them, bring me three impossible things.
00:12:16
Speaker
Onini the python, Mboro the hornets, and Osebo the leopard. Any other creature might have despaired. Anansi simply said, done, and scuttled off to think.
00:12:28
Speaker
To capture Python, Anansi relied on flattery sly cousin, Doubt. He told Python that others had been whispering that he wasn't as long as a palm branch. Outraged, Python stretched out along the branch to prove his size, and Anansi quickly tied him up.
00:12:44
Speaker
Next were the hornets. Anansi plucked a leaf from a nearby tree, filled it with water, and pretended it was raining. Oh no. He ran around frantically insisting a storm was coming and kindly offered the hornets shelter inside a hollow gourd.
00:12:57
Speaker
Once they buzzed inside, he corked the opening tight. Finally, Anansi set his sights on Leopard. He dug a deep pit on Leopard's path, covered it with leaves, and waited.
00:13:08
Speaker
Leopard tumbled in with a furious roar. Anansi appeared, all false concern, and offered to help pull him out using a woven net. As soon as Leopard stepped into it, Anansi cinched the net closed.
00:13:20
Speaker
With all three impossible beings captured, Anansi returned triumphantly to the sky. Nyame, astonished and somewhat unsettled that such a small spider had outsmarted creatures so mighty, honored the bargain.
00:13:32
Speaker
He handed over the stories, releasing them into Anansi's eager legs. From that day forward, the stories belonged to everyone on Earth. Hi, Grim! You liked your story. It made him zoom.
00:13:46
Speaker
that's the So that is like the main story of a Nazi, like the that is the most traditional. There are hundreds or more. And you know how folklore does. there's It's impossible to find the main route, right? And they were encouraged to change the stories with every telling. So there's countless. But that is a major thread. That is one that's popped up Gotcha.
00:14:13
Speaker
Next up, we have Anansi in the pot of wisdom. Long ago, that same Nyame, the sky god, grew tired of humans stumbling through life without a hint of good judgment.
00:14:24
Speaker
So he gathered all the world's wisdom into a single clay pot and gave it to Anansi for safekeeping. Anansi, being Anansi, decided this meant he was to keep every drop of wisdom for himself.
00:14:34
Speaker
To protect it from thieves, he tied the pot to his belly and tried to hide it high in a tall tree. But climbing with a pot bumping against his abdomen proved difficult. Yeah, why wouldn't you put it on your back like a backpack? Well, no matter how he struggled, he kept slipping down. If anything, that would make it look more like a spider.
00:14:51
Speaker
His youngest son watched from below and finally called out, Father, why not tie the pot to your back instead? Duh, Anansi. Mr. Wants all the knowledge, gots none of the knowledge. Realizing the boy was right, Anansi became so furious that he smashed the pot, spilling wisdom in every direction.
00:15:10
Speaker
People gathered it up as it scattered across the earth. Some collected more, some collected less. But that's why no one is entirely foolish or entirely wise and why Anansi never again claimed to own all the wisdom in the world. of An Icarus situation.
00:15:25
Speaker
ah Yeah, yeah, kind of. When millions of Africans were enslaved and transported to the Americas, they carried with them what they could not be stripped of, language, memory, rhythm, belief, and stories.
00:15:38
Speaker
Anansi traveled and whispered tales on ships, in plantation quarters, and in nighttime gatherings. In a world of violence, storytelling became an act of survival and cultural continuity.
00:15:49
Speaker
love that. Through Anansi, people preserved identity and hope. But the stories did change. They had to. a tiger in Ghana became a plantation overseer in Jamaica. sky god's challenge became a slave master's cruelty.
00:16:01
Speaker
Anansi remained clever, but now he was also a symbol of covert rebellion. Yes, love that. The Caribbean became a cultural meeting place. Akan, Yoruba, Igbo, and others from different African ethnic groups found themselves building a new Creolized world.
00:16:18
Speaker
Languages shifted, worlds blended, and now Anansi, now with various spellings and pronunciations, grew new legs. In Jamaica, especially, he became a beloved figure.
00:16:28
Speaker
His stories were told at nighttime gatherings called Anansi Storytime. And Anansi being a printed the pronunciation here. Caribbean Anansi's stories emphasize outsmarting oppressive authorities, protection of the weak, and mocking the powerful through humor.
00:16:44
Speaker
Anansi became more than a mischievous character. He became a psychological shield. In stories, he beat Tiger. In life, enslaved people could not. But through Anansi, they could laugh and imagine justice.
00:16:58
Speaker
Here's an example of how Anansi's tales changed from creation and discovery to subterfuge and trickery for survival. Hmm.
00:17:07
Speaker
The plantation owner had a long measuring stick he used to mark how much work each enslaved person completed. The stick decided everything. Who got punished, who got fed, who got accused. And the overseer loved that stick more than anything.
00:17:21
Speaker
Burn it. Yeah, you should. But instead, something else was going to happen. Okay. One day, the overseer bragged loudly that no one could ever trick him because numbers don't lie. Anansi, who never cared for numbers but deeply enjoyed disproving loud men, whispered to the others, numbers don't lie, but the people using them might. o That night, Anansi snuck into the tool shed and found the measuring stick.
00:17:46
Speaker
It was ridiculously long, clearly designed so no one could ever meet the overseer's impossible demands. Anansi smirked and shortened it by a few inches. Then a few inches more. And then, well, just a little more. Until it was a manageable, realistic length.
00:18:02
Speaker
The next day, overseer strutted around, barking orders and tallying marks. But suddenly, everyone seemed to be working twice as fast. People who had always failed are now succeeding. The overseer grew suspicious. He scolded, he double-checked, he measured twice, but no matter what he did, the shorter stick told the same story. The people were meeting the quota.
00:18:22
Speaker
Finally, the overseer had no choice but to reduce punishments for low output, since according to his beloved numbers, everyone was doing exceptionally well. That night, the workers laughed softly. Anansi bowed dramatically as if performing for a royal court.
00:18:37
Speaker
When a man uses a stick to measure your worth, he said, shorten the stick. I love that. Yeah. Under oppression, sometimes the only way to survive is to rewrite the rules that define your suffering. Yes.
00:18:50
Speaker
I like that a lot, especially during this time. Yeah, there's a lot, a lot to learn from history. Yes. Caribbean authors and storytellers like Louise Bennett Coverley, Nalo Hopkinson, and Roger Abrahams have used Anansi in poetry, literature, and performance.
00:19:09
Speaker
Festivals feature him. Children grow up with them. He is in many ways a national mascot of survival through humor. In the American South, Anansi transformed again. He morphed into Aunt Nancy, a figure who appears as human rather than a spider, sometimes as an old woman with sharp wit.
00:19:25
Speaker
Oh. I've never heard of that part. i That is actually the part I had heard just from back when the school systems taught us such things.
00:19:35
Speaker
But yeah, so Anansi's personality survived the transition, but his eight legs did not. African-American communities also developed characters like Br'er Rabbit. I don't know. Yes. Yes. Okay, great. I was going to. That's another one of the tricksters, the mini tricksters that I wanted to do a whole freaking episode. Oh, yeah. Br'er Rabbit. Yes. I remember that book. Yeah. So that's another small, clever creature who outwits the powerful. Scholars see Anansi as an ancestor to these tricksters.
00:19:59
Speaker
They all share themes of outsmarting stronger foes, surviving oppression, using humorous resistance, and winning indirectly through wit, strategy, and patience. Across continents, Anansi always remains small but mighty, a champion of cleverness, a cultural archivist of African origins, and a comic figure who instructs through failure and mischief.
00:20:21
Speaker
His stories always show that intelligence, not brute force, is the ultimate tool of survival. So what did change? In West Africa, he is a cosmic negotiator dealing with the gods. Hmm.
00:20:33
Speaker
In the Caribbean. Like negotiating for you or your soul? He was definitely kind of a go-between from man to the gods. Got it. He could go. He could fuck with either side and negotiate with either side. was the Hercules, but wait, for brains instead of brawn. Right. Exactly. Yes. Yeah.
00:20:50
Speaker
In the Caribbean, he became a rebel, undermining plantation hierarchy with laughter. And then in the U.S., he became a memory keeper and an ancestral figure, blending into new traditions. His adversaries also evolved. Snakes became slave drivers. Tigers became overseers. Trickster companions multiplied.
00:21:08
Speaker
Language followed suit, from Thuy to Creole to English. Anansi endures because he is adaptable. He can be small but victorious, mischievous but meaningful, foolish but wise.
00:21:21
Speaker
His survival mirrors the survival of African culture itself. Okay. He represents hope, humor, resistance, and resilience.
Anansi's Lessons and Media Appearances
00:21:30
Speaker
Before I close it out, I'm going to share one more Anansi tale, Anansi and the Too Heavy Load. Ooh.
00:21:38
Speaker
One day, the plantation owner had a brilliant idea. Of course, they always do. yeah Brilliant for him, miserable for everyone else. He decided that workers should carry baskets of cane twice as heavy as before.
00:21:50
Speaker
Twice the weight, same time limit, same lousy rations. Yeah, that's reasonable. Absolutely it is. A Nazi who could barely carry a coconut without filing a complaint stared at the new giant baskets and said, nope, absolutely not. This is dumb. My legs are already on strike.
00:22:06
Speaker
who The people whispered their worries. If we refuse, one man said, we get punished. If we agree, said a woman, we break our bodies. no Anansi tapped his tiny chin, eyes gleaming with dangerous shine he got whenever a ridiculous plan started brewing. Twinkle in his eye.
00:22:24
Speaker
I will fix this, he said, which made everyone nervous, because Anansi fixing things never meant clean, straightforward solutions. It meant chaos, followed by unexpected blessings.
00:22:34
Speaker
Hmm. The plan, which was either genius or madness. The next morning, Anansi was the first to reach the cane field. Tiger, who was working as plantation owners and enforcer that week, eyed Anansi suspiciously.
00:22:47
Speaker
What are you doing here so early? Anansi smiled. I want to be the first to try the new heavy basket system. I love heavy work. It builds character. Tiger frowned. Anansi talking about work?
00:22:59
Speaker
Suspicious. Picious. The plantation owner arrived, shocked to find Anansi eager. Well now, he said, if even you can carry the new baskets, then everyone else will have no excuse. Wow, rude.
00:23:13
Speaker
Anansi... God, that just brings me back to PE class. Like, damn. Yeah, and bullshit bosses at shitty jobs. Anansi nodded with the confidence of someone who had absolutely no intention of carrying anything.
00:23:27
Speaker
He dramatically hoisted the enormous basket onto his back. He wobbled. He swayed. He nearly fell. He staggered back like a drunk goat learning how to do ballet.
00:23:38
Speaker
And people winced. Anansi said, "'Oh, dear, the basket is too heavy to keep straight. Tiger, mighty tiger, please hold it steady while I get my balance.'" Tiger puffed up with pride as predicted.
00:23:49
Speaker
hum Step aside. Let me show you proper strength. o Tiger grabbed the basket and lifted it easily. Of course, Tiger was strong enough to bench press the small house. Perfect. Anansi said brightly. Now hold it there.
00:24:02
Speaker
Tiger blinked. What do you mean Hold it there. Just hold it for a moment. Anansi said, stepping aside. You see, Tiger, when you carry the basket, you prove to plantation owner that you are the perfect example of the new rules.
00:24:16
Speaker
Plantation owner clapped. Indeed, if Tiger can hold it with no problem, then all of you must do the same. Oh my gosh. Tiger's eyes widened. He realized the trap. He tried to lower the basket.
00:24:28
Speaker
Anansi shouted, no no, show him your super strength. Don't you want him to be impressed? The owner was watching closely. Tiger was trapped. Oh my gosh. So Tiger held the basket and held it and held it and seconds crawled by like a lazy crab.
00:24:46
Speaker
Finally, Tiger's muscles began shaking like an overloaded donkey cart. Sweat poured, his face twitched, his tail drooped. Plantation owner frowned. Tiger, what is the meaning of this? Is the basket weighing you down so easily? If Tiger is struggling with it, how can others manage?
00:25:04
Speaker
Anansi nodded gravely. Yes, sir, that's what I was about to say. Plantation owner sighed dramatically. Well then clearly I overestimated the workers. We must return to the old baskets.
00:25:17
Speaker
Everyone cheered inside their hearts. Tiger collapsed to the ground, gasping. As the workers has left the field, Anansi patted Tiger gently on the head. You see, a friend, sometimes resistance is not about fighting.
00:25:30
Speaker
Sometimes it's about reminding the people that even the strongest supporter can't carry the weight of their foolishness. Oh my gosh. Tiger groaned. i hate you, Anansi. was gonna don't you wish you could that to people sometimes?
00:25:43
Speaker
And Anansi smiled sweetly. of course you do. And from that day on, whenever the plantation owner tried to introduce a new cruel rule, the workers whispered, wait, let Anansi try it first. And things always magically didn't work out.
00:26:00
Speaker
I love that. So Anansi is more than a spider, more than a trickster, more than a legend. He's a thread connecting continents, cultures, and centuries. From the Ashanti storytellers of Ghana to the Jamaican yard gatherings to American classrooms and novels, he's woven his web across the Atlantic and into the modern world.
00:26:19
Speaker
He reminds us that survival often requires imagination and that humor can be a form of power. So if you hear a tiny voice one day offering to sell you premium web space property... Maybe don't take the deal, but do listen to the story he's about to tell.
00:26:33
Speaker
It's traveled long way to reach you. Oh, i love that. The end. That was a good story. Thanks. i he's All of the Anansi stories are super cool. And there's so many different collections out there.
00:26:49
Speaker
i know. It was a lot of fun. I could not possibly just summarize Anansi into a multi-trickster episode. and Yeah. You just needed too much time. too cool. Oh, I love that. It was a really good thank you for the anthology. We're just on an anthology. I feel like that would be an anthology, right?
00:27:07
Speaker
um they're short well i mean yeah i mean, they're Yeah, i mean, it's, you know, fables, collections of mythos and all that. But yes, collections of stories. Stories are my favorite thing in the world. And I love spiders. And, you know, I don't know, there's just so much to all of it.
00:27:21
Speaker
And it's such a powerful story and and the way it's stayed through time. and Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And the fact that it, you know, helps so many people who were put in a situation that they had no control over. Man, humor is so important and stories are so important to to human life. To healing.
00:27:44
Speaker
To everything. Yes, exactly.
00:27:51
Speaker
you have any nightmare fuel for us? Well, kind Yes. Well, okay. You know what? Yes. I do have official nightmare fuel, but then I'm going hijack our palate cleanser and there's going to be some nightmare fuel that leaks into that. What a bitch. So first, the actual nightmare fuel I had planned for this week was, So I wanted to recommend something that's a winter horror and there's no more of a staple for winter horror as far as movies are concerned than John Carpenter's The Thing. It should be part, if you have a horror education, you are working on like covering the classics, I recommend that one if you haven't seen it. And if you have, you know, it's just a good classic and it's great winter horror.
00:28:31
Speaker
Did you have anything? Not necessarily, but I did want to mention that apparently Anansi was in Gargoyles. Yeah. That's funny. I didn't realize that.
00:28:43
Speaker
Yeah. There's several other things. I know there was you know people who like comic book cartoons. um Static Shock. there He was in Static Shock. And ah God, some video games. and like i don't they he's He's been a ah cameo in lots and lots of stuff.
00:28:59
Speaker
Apparently there's a movie. It has a 5.6 out of 10. Don't get me lying about how good it is. But it's called Weirdo. It's supposed to be based off of one of Anansi's goat uh was it goat man tales goat yeah the nazi tale about goat man huh i don't know if you you i did that didn't cross my research but but there's so much i got a book that has a whole bunch of tales in it so i'll find that probably in there
00:29:31
Speaker
So for our palate cleanser today, I thought that because it's the end of the year, we might do like a, you know, kind of a ah recap of our favorite things from the year, either moments or... These few of my favorite things. So yeah, so what what are some of your favorite moments or if shows or movies or songs, books, whatever? Like what are some of the highlights from your year? So there's been a lot.
00:29:57
Speaker
I will say most of it is based around, as corny as it sounds, my kid. Shocking. He's in my like favorite age so far. like He's four. And it's just, it there's so much curiosity and wonder. And he has so much piss and vinegar, for lack of a better description, right? Like the other day, he he decided to Run outside. um we We let him outside. He can't get outside by himself. But he was outside and he took off his shoes and went running in the mud after it had rained because we had put his shoes on. And my poor husband, he's like, can you put your shoes on? It's so gross out there. And I'm just like, just...
00:30:39
Speaker
Just let him. It's fine. We'll rinse his feet off. I know. i know. It's just – and normally, i wouldn't let it, but there's been something about watching him just – Explore. Explore. And it's just – I owe him that. You know what I mean? I feel like we owe kids that. Yeah. It's that opportunity you to explore.
00:31:01
Speaker
and and feel the things they want to feel. But sorry, i went on a tangent. um No, actually, I want to stay on that tangent a bit. We were actually talking before we started recording about how adults don't um engage in play. Yes. and And that's why it was so fun to build this little nightmare cottage a travel caravan.
00:31:21
Speaker
um But yes, i ah i there There is something about that that that's been so great this year. And I almost want to put that as my like top three. I know it's it seems like one thing, but there's just so much about his, the way that he' is he is at this age that is just so healing for my soul. You know, it's just to be able to play again and to be able to like see the world through his eyes. Mommy, what's that?
00:31:53
Speaker
You know? That's cool. Yeah. um Two, getting my babies. My furry babies. Yeah. Even though i love her to death. is She's just so rowdy. But there is so much to love there with Sushi and Fern and just the there is so much love there. So that that's really great.
00:32:18
Speaker
So something not sappy.
00:32:22
Speaker
I mean, the fact that we're able to keep doing this podcast. i know i said something not sappy, but. There's been a lot of moments where we have to remind ourselves like we only want to keep doing this if it's fun. Right. know it doesn't seem like we've done that many episodes, but like so much goes into these episodes and you know, we're constantly working on them. So thank you to you lovely few who have been listening in. um We would love to hear from you at any time, but we appreciate you you joining us every once in a while.
00:32:58
Speaker
And then, of course, you know, there's Ace. Like, he he is really so supportive in the background of of everything that we do for our shitty little podcast. so It's not a shitty podcast. Yes, he does help us a lot. He does. And he does it for hardly any
Year Reflections and Gratitude
00:33:16
Speaker
recognition. So not to make his head bigger than it already is. And it, man, it is. he is such a big head, dude.
00:33:23
Speaker
Like, that thing is terrifying. I mean, i love you, babe.
00:33:29
Speaker
That's the end of my Oscar speech. Well, then I'm going to kind of go in that same line. ah Yeah. The a podcast, and both for the built-in hang time it gives us and also the. Yeah, that's been so great. It is because it's like.
00:33:46
Speaker
we yeah We make a lot of time for each other. Like we do naturally. But this kind of like. Gives us a reason to hang out. Right. Well, it makes it easier to. to Oh, sorry. I've got to go record. Yeah. Yeah. I got it. I got to go. This is so important. Yeah. We have a deadline. Meanwhile, we spent like a whole hour just setting up a fucking tent.
00:34:06
Speaker
Hey, listen, that was good times. But yeah, but it also gives that guided excuse to get to geek out about random topics. so it's always nice to have that. also Another is the continued evolution of my garden.
00:34:23
Speaker
Like ive i change and and grow for it differently. Like it's a different experience every year. and this this year was the first year I didn't really do any food. Aside from the herbs and stuff. been so pretty. Yeah, it's been great. Like building the perennials. Like this is year three for some of my perennials. So they're they're starting to really kind of fill in. And it's it's real pretty out there most the time.
00:34:45
Speaker
So that's neat. And then, I mean, obviously my monkey and my Grim and my mom and you and Ace and like just like the family and Bash. This is kind of a ah family time of year and and i don't have you know a lot of like you know blood family aside from my mom. but Blood family. Sounds like you're vampire people.
00:35:10
Speaker
ah I've had a lot of really great times with you guys and Bash has made me feel like a superhero I don't know he's pretty cool like that he is pretty cool like that so I have a lot of favorite things and mostly they're you guys All
Holiday Wishes and Listener Engagement
00:35:27
Speaker
right. And then we have something great to announce today. on that note, Sebastian will be doing the whole next episode on his own. um He's going to come ah tell us about a really gruesome crime and that was committed. Just kidding.
00:35:42
Speaker
I just kind of wanted to see your face and wear that one.
00:35:46
Speaker
I would listen to that episode. I don't know that I'd want to edit that episode. That'd be really funny. oh I should tell him that he keeps telling me he wants to tell you a story and he pretends to work on it on his little leapfrog.
00:36:01
Speaker
My heart just exploded into nine million pieces. As it does. So I think on that note. Merry Christmas. Yeah. And have a happy new year. Absolutely. We will see y'all on the other side. You filthy animals.
00:36:14
Speaker
Sweet dreams. man name If you have topic requests, book or movie recommendations, or just want to say hi, email us at nightmarecottage at gmail.com or visit our website at nightmarecottage.com. Sweet dreams.