Episode 48: After making use of the lessons available in the Waking Up and Headspace Meditation apps, Tim feels ready (certainly more ready than Sam Harris or Andy Puddicombe) to lead his listeners in a calming, grounding, and panic attack inducing meditation. Then, Cody, a man with a terrible singing voice and too much confidence, has an altercation with the Lord, or the son of the Lord (depending on your interpretation of the holy trinity).
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Now, if this were a nice story, Cody would’ve made up for his terrible singing by accompanying it with an unshakable faith in God and a dedication to the tenets of his religion that would’ve made him the epitome of Good. In this other story, Cody would’ve been the top volunteer in the church, helping to organize pot lucks and coat drives, leading bible study sessions and instilling an affinity of the Lord in the children of the church. In a nice story, all this goodness and service would’ve made Cody’s singing that much more endearing. “He just loves the Lord,” the members of the congregation would’ve said while dabbing the tears from the corners of their eyes. “Look at how he’s singing. Do you know, I saw him just this morning pushing Helen’s wheelchair so she could get the best seat in the house? God, Helen, she is so frail, she looks like a raisin, and Cody was pushing her, pushing her down the aisle so she could have the best seat in the house. That Cody, he is such a good and sweet man. And that Helen, God, look at that Helen, that Helen is so fucking old!”
But this is not that nice story. I know, I know, I’m disappointed too. But there is nothing we can do about that. In this story, the real story, Cody was not a good member of the church. At potlucks, Cody wouldn’t help organize, Cody would not even bring a dish, to a potluck, can you believe that? Cody would, however, eat heaping plates of all that brought by others and would then critique the food, critique their dishes, with a look of disdain ever painting his face. “This is gross,” Cody said. “Disgusting. Repulsive. Haven’t you heard of seasoning, Helen? Did you forget there’s such a thing as salt, you wicked witch of the west? Don’t you know that you should season with salt and pepper at every step of the cooking process? You know what? I should roll you off a cliff, that’s what I should do, or roll you into traffic for bringing such horrible macaroni and cheese without any fucking FLAVOR!”
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If you enjoy westerns like True Grit or The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, check out Tim’s western novel, Dust, available on Amazon in eBook form in addition to being read on the podcast.
For other resources, visit timdrugan.com.