Send us a text

Lee and Simon talk about things that bother them about themselves and learning to live with them.

Things covered: Apple iCloud shared accounts and how shit they are, a ladybird backflip a la Jackie Chan, ladybugs, speaking all Northern, living in Lancaster, Blackpool, depressed British seaside towns, PIGS acronym (Portugal, Italy, Greece, Spain), Bob and Lee's ladybirds experience, finding out what ladybirds taste like, Torch Song Trilogy, the difference between hardware and software, knitting stick count in, Simon getting high on his own (bread) supply, Oliver Burkeman's Meditation for Mortals, learning to live with the the things that bother them, people pleasing, Totnes street folk singer who hates Lee, Lee sounding a bit more unhinged, chaos in the world of Bob and Lee (and singing a Christmas Carol), Bob and Lee teaching with Henry and William (their dogs at the time), performing "like me", pay them bitches no mind, self-absorption, Simon's clunking dogging him until he dies, Antipodeans going overseas to see the world (their big OE), risky humour in Turkey, the line between getting it right and getting it very wrong, squaring ourselves with ourselves, being aspirational, human beings recognising their shapes, saying goodbye.

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)

Send us a text

Lee and Simon talk about things in life that are abstract and concrete, some things about Lee's knitting, freedom of thought and action, being happy in difficult times.

Things covered: Being homeowners, sliding doors, pocket doors, porta a libero (bifold door), talking about futures (all part of an apartment update), a(nother) knitting update (including the possibility of a knitted onesie), ribbing (more knitting), Lee reaches clickety-clackety on the pearl stitch but is not through the first series yet, counting stitches and losing track, hurt people hurt people, a sin is thought is as bad as a sin in action, freedom of thought and action (Alegre's Freedom to Think), marks made on the body, a bit of chatGPT action, Alan Carr's "Chatty Man", lining the pockets of another tech billionaire, pushback on the term "male privilege", Derridean deconstructions, Lee getting angry at billionaires (again), being happy in difficult times.

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)

Send us a text

Lee and Simon talk about songs that make them dance (or not in Lee's case).

Things covered: an Oliver Spencer jacket, body size, Simon's nickname "Snogglegrass", having brothers, David Byrne's American Utopia (by Spike Jonze), I Zimbra by David Byrne, songs that make you dance, songs that make you sing, songs that make you cry, Nina Simone's "Don't Smoke in Bed", Sarah Bareilles "Once Upon Another Time", Elbow "Build A Rocket Boys!", searching for pitch, Lee banging his head three times, the feeling of longing for the things we can't do, Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time", a printer stuck in Depeche Mode (joke), being Depeche Mode fans (or not), Depeche Mode's fanbase, Duran Duran "The Reflex!" lip sync competition in 1986, being popular (or not), having too much fun (and not being shamed), dance like nobody's watching, singing to musicals, Hamilton, Lee's wonky shoulder, Lee's knitting update (a woolen tanktop), apartment owning update, happy endings.

---

Correction:

• David Byrne's American Utopia is a Spike Lee film not a Spike Jonze film.

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)

Send us a text

Lee and Simon have a conversation about moral compromises.

Things covered: knitting update, Simon's management training (difficult conversations), adult egos, being able to express emotions clearly, being compromised (morally) at work, being party to more privileged information, safe spaces, being responsibility for things that are bigger than me, the compromises of undergraduate recruitment, Simon's previous job at (Toe)Roehampton, working at a sausage factory, being a dream killer, different aptitudes, Jimi Hendrix story about not making it, thinking critically, survival at what costs?, selling shit versus helping people, Simon's compromise in supporting PhD dance students, medical update from Simon and his encounters with the National Health Service, (and is back on butter?).

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)

Send us a text

Simon shows up late so Lee bangs on fabulously. But then they talk about how much time we spend in our bodies (versus in our heads) and whether it's possible to spend too much time (in our bodies).

Things covered: Lee gets going by himself while waiting for Simon to show up (late), if only dogs could talk, Saturday Night Live, Lee failed to plug in his microphone (up until 06:50mins), needing a checklist and checking them off, Heaven songs, spending time in your body, spending too much time in your body, what it means to be 'in your body', different from using your body, physical labour, noticing your body from the inside as opposed to how your body looks, Simon agrees with himself, over sensitivity to what is going on in your body, a joke coming down the pike (not masturbation), paying too much attention to one's self and to others (say when someone is walking towards you), sensitivity to others when teaching, when we are aware of our bodies, Lee's impinged neck nerve, ibuprofen, Lee spending a lot of time ranking things (in his job), Simon sitting on a ball all day, more on consent and yoga (it really happened), the problem of not spending enough time in our bodies, not having computers in meetings, getting rid of desks and chairs, sending emails during meetings, Dilit school in Rome (and the choreography of chairs).

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)

Send us a text

Lee and Simon talk about becoming experts (in knitting), reducing screentime and nostalgia for things we have never experienced. Warning: episode includes SPOILERS for the film Conclave.

Things covered: Knitting update from Lee, maintaining the intensity of a hobby, well-being and knitting, novices, expertise and thinking, changing sides while teaching a dance class, being the best in a (yoga) class, the slowness of learning a new skill, Lee being a slow study, knitting becoming a meditation, being distracted from stress, much less screentime, knitting in bed, spending less time on our phones is a really good thing, using a phone to talk to people, anemoia, millenials being nostalgic for the time before smartphones existed, how rare videos were in the 1990s, our conversations were not recorded, audio recording from 1977 of watching Star Wars at the cinema, the complexity of growing up with smartphones, Lee watched Conclave (his homework) -- WARNING spoilers included (but not written here), Gabrielle Eastwood-Ellis as a woman in the Catholic Church, Lee finds a new Chicken Restaurant, being a chicken in Portugal, many restaurants at the bottom of Bob and Lee's road in Portugal, gentrification, Simon participates in a yoga class, consent to touch in a yoga class.

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)

Send us a text

Lee and Simon go on a typically chaotic ride that is tricky to summarise other than they catch up. Just read below.

Things covered: Lee takes up knitting, the latest on Mark Zuckerberg, Badly Drawn Boy's Pissing in the Wind, Lee's knitting sticks, reducing screen time, finding a hobby that isn't reading, Lee's year of not buying anything, Simon's recording mishap, screentime by proxy, finger knitting, Lee travelling the globe (Portugal) in a mini-van, taking knitting needles on a plane, Hannibal Lecter, dog muzzles, Simon saw two films with John Lithgow (Footloose, Conclave) and Lee guesses the first very quickly, The World According to Garp, The Adventures of Buckaroo Bonzai, the overlap in Simon and Lee's taste, Conclave (no spoilers), David Lynch's death and his films, Lee remembers Victoria Wood's death, Eraserhead, The Elephant Man, Ecosia (search engine), changing which side of the bed you sleep on, lying on top of Bob, body temperature, people with English as a second language, true facts, no content at the 23min mark, Lil's Permesso di soggiorno, three suitcases full of cash in Sardegna, there's many a slip between cup and lip, not gifting the suitcases, man with a van, how best to get stuff from Coventry to Sassari (and the emotional implications), paying customs, Brexit, not having two of everything and doing it all in one fell swoop, one's forever home, second-hand things, number of phone pickups a day, not even real bodies, Tim Cook paying $1m to Donald Trump's inauguration, Elon (doesn't get a mention), knitting for weeks, touching dough too much when you are learning.

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)

Send us a text

Lee and Simon continue their conversation with Matthew Onarheim-Smith about his experiences of depression.

Apologies for Simon's mic level.

Things covered: Agency and depression, ketamine treatment (not officially approved for depression), the patterns of depression, combined with talk therapy, failure, shame and hope, Thich Naht Hahn and hope, out of body experiences, living with depression (or chronic pain), acceptance, Uroskolen, bringing yourself to the feelings you want to run away from, the narratives we tell ourselves, not being our thoughts, others hearing our stories, buying into our personal stories, seeking help, interbeing, despair that is shared, not knowing the feeling (of depression), seeking solitude, Matthew's generosity and gentility, how best to help, more on seeking help.
---

Related links (and necessary corrections):

• coping with depression: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/self-help/tips-and-support/cope-with-depression/
• Self-care for depression: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/depression/self-care/
• Mental Health Foundation: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/a-z-topics/depression
• men and depression: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/a-z-topics/men-and-mental-health
• Matthew's "Moving Dad" YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/@amovingdad1310
• Matthew's "Moving Dad" Instagram channel: https://www.instagram.com/amovingdad
• Uroskolen https://www.uroskolen.no/

Get in touch with Lee and Simon at info@midlifing.net.

---
The Midlifing logo is adapted from an original image by H.L.I.T: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29311691@N05/8571921679 (CC BY 2.0)