Anxious Machine

Rob McGinley Myers
  • 5.0 (10)
  • SOCIETY & CULTURE
Anxious Machine

True stories about modern humans

  1. 2020-05-19

    The News

    I’ve always had a problematic relationship to the news, and I’ve struggled to navigate that even more since this pandemic began. I talk to my father about the night I yelled at him over his insufficient fear of the virus, and I look back on a 1954 essay by E.B. White about the disparity between his experience of a hurricane and the coverage he hears of that hurricane on the radio. Subscribe (or write a review) in iTunes Music: Blue Dot Sessions Links: The Eye of Edna by E.B. White Cancel Everything by Yascha Mounk

    17 min

  2. 2020-04-28

    Contagion

    Like most people, I imagine, I've been having a lot of anxious thoughts these days. And I’ve been wishing I could get those thoughts out of my head. Then I remembered that I used to have a podcast called Anxious Machine. So here’s my first episode in three years, part of a planned, ongoing audio journal. This episode starts with some thoughts about how this virus first entered my consciousness, how it felt to watch the movie Contagion with my daughter, and trying to stay awake to what's happening. Music: The House Glows with Almost No Help by Chris Zabriskie Contagion: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack by Cliff Martinez Links: Contagion by Steven Soderbergh Dana Stevens on the Slate Culture Gabfest Wesley Morris on On The Media

    10 min

  3. 2018-11-08

    New Show Announcement

    I'm announcing a whole new podcast, and giving you a listen to the first episode. The podcast is called Before It Had a Theme, and on it, Britta Greene an I discuss and deconstruct old episodes of This American Life. On this episode, we discuss the very first episode of that show, as well as why the show is worth discussing, how we and others became fans of the show, and why we love Ira Glass’s mother. Clips from following were used in this episode: Coffaro’s Theme by Bill Frisell Episode of Tape with Jonathan Mejivar Episode of Tape with Ben Calhoun Ira’s talk at the Third Coast Audio Festival Longform Podcast, Episode 159: Ira Glass This American Life, Episode 1: New Beginnings Ira’s talk at the Gel Conference Rob's Twitter Britta's Twitter Show Twitter Review us on Apple Podcasts

    49 min

  4. 2016-05-11

    If You Could Do Anything?

    Sometimes in your life, you reach a crossroads, go on a men’s weekend, spend too much time alone in the forest, have a mid-life crisis, and start thinking you can change the world with your podcast. This episode is about that happening to me. Part one of a three-part series. Support Anxious Machine on Patreon Subscribe (or write a review) in iTunes Links: Startup Music: Opening Credits by johnny_ripper Divider by Chris Zabriskie Audrey by johnny_ripper Mario Bava Sleeps in a Little Later Than He Expected To by Chris Zabriskie Black Book by johnny_ripper The Dark Glow of the Mountains by Chris Zabriskie A Void by johnny_ripper Program Reverie by Podington Bear Massive by Podington Bear

    37 min

  5. 2015-09-28

    Pay Attention All the Time

    Parents of young children have an especially fraught relationship with their smartphones. On the one hand, these devices are indispensable tools for getting things done and staying connected to the adult world while in the midst of childcare. On the other hand, the culture is constantly telling parents, and particularly mothers, that they’re too distracted by these devices, that smartphones are stealing precious attention away from our kids. But the idea that parents should be focusing so much attention on their kids is itself a modern invention. In fact, our current understanding of parenthood and childhood is, in a very real way, the product of technology. Support Anxious Machine on Patreon Subscribe (or write a review) in iTunes Links: Moms, Let Go of Your Smartphone Guilt Siobhan Adcock’s website Amy Shearn’s website Music: Opening Credits by johnny_ripper Spring Solstice by Podington Bear Cylinder Three by Chris Zabriskie The Dark Glow of the Mountain by Chris Zabriskie Walkin Flags by Sealadder Button Mushrooms by Podington Bear Stuck Dream by Podington Bear 88 by Podington Bear What True Self? Feels Bogus, Lets Watch Jason X by Chris Zabriskie

    24 min

  6. 2015-09-14

    Do You Feel More Like Gods?

    This past week, my kids went back to school. Summer vacation has come and gone. And that’s gotten me thinking about the very idea of summer vacation because every summer, for the past several years, my wife, her sisters and our families have had this tradition of going to a cabin for a few days to get out of the city. We don’t own a cabin. We have to rent one. And this year, the process of finding it, looking at pictures of all the possible cabins on all the possible lakes, made me wonder about this particular, middle-class American ritual of going into the wilderness for vacation, where that ritual came from, and what it says about our relationship to modern life. Support Anxious Machine on Patreon Subscribe (or write a review) in iTunes Patrons: Special thanks this week to new Patreon supporter Matt Holliday. Links: Where Was the Birthplace of the American Vacation? Thoreau Leaves Walden Pond Why Fire Makes Us Human Working At Play: A History of Vacations in the United States Music: Gentle Chase by Podington Bear Arrival by North Hive Tam by LJ Kruzer Electron by Podington Bear Halflight by Podington Bear Tamz by LJ Kruzer 88 by Podington Bear

    21 min

  7. 2015-08-31

    Bringing Wes Home

    Since the wide-spread adoption of embalming in the United States, most Americans have turned the process of handling the deceased over to experts in the undertaking business. On this episode, the story of one family who decided that they wanted to be the ones to wash and prepare the body of the son and brother they’d lost. This episode was previously aired on the podcast Neighbors, one of the podcasts in The Heard. Support Anxious Machine on Patreon Subscribe (or write a review) in iTunes   Music: Cylinder Five by Chris Zabrinskie 88 by Podington Bear

    17 min

  8. 2015-08-17

    A Horrible Experience

    My older brother Scott lives almost completely outside the network of modern life: he has no internet, no email address, no cable TV or satellite, not even an antenna for his television. Until recently, he didn’t even have a bank account or a telephone. In this episode, I try to get to the bottom of why he hates computers, and especially the internet, even though the internet helped him solve a question he’s had since the day he was born. Support Anxious Machine on Patreon Subscribe (or write a review) in iTunes Music: Heavy Flutter by Podington Bear I Am Running with Temporary Success from a Monstrous Vacuum in Pursuit by Chris Zabriskie The Sun Is Scheduled to Come Out Tomorrow by Chris Zabriskie The House Glows with Almost No Help by Chris Zabriskie The Theatrical Poster for Potergeist III by Podington Bear The Dark Glow of the Mountains by Podington Bear 88 by Podington Bear Patrons: Special thanks to Eric Keys, Cam Hudson, Bradley Dunham, and Gordon Delp for their support of this podcast.

    29 min
See All (24)

5
out of 5
10 Ratings

About

True stories about modern humans

Information

  • Creator
    Rob McGinley Myers
  • Years Active
    2014 - 2020
  • Episodes
    24
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Show Website
    Anxious Machine

More From The Heard

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada