Reduce, reuse, recycle
Freudian stone circles? Need those like a hole in the head
Hello Sugar-tits,
Brief intro today as I went to see Gary Oldman in a play last night, excitedly drank too much wine afterwards… and long story short, my brain is now 63% Malbec.
For that reason, today’s newsletter is what you might consider a ‘previously on Pocket Polymath’. I’ve been digging around in the archives (you should try it for the daft gifs alone) and found a few pieces that I still like and want to (re)share. It’s not just laziness; around 60% of readers weren’t here when these aired first time round - if that’s you, hi and thank you!
Whether you’re new here or a die-hard PP-er, think of it like a mixtape made from old vinyl: considerately curated, made with love… and slightly pretentious.
Bon weekend!
Curiosity clippings
A prehistoric mons-ument
Does Stonehenge symbolise a vulva? There, I bet that woke you up from your late-afternoon slump. One of many theories on the purpose of Stonehenge - including it being a place of healing or a spaceship landing pad - this suggestion came from gynaecologist Anthony M Perks in 2003. Yes, a gynaecologist. If Sigmund Freud were still alive, I think he’d tell Tony that sometimes a giant mystical stone circle is just a giant mystical stone circle.
Finishing school
I hate to make you blush, darling, but did you know that less than 40% of women in heterosexual relationships are regularly having orgasms, compared to over 90% of fellas? This is something discussed in frank detail in this podcast episode by The Story of Woman. As a former Catholic I obviously had to self-flagellate after listening to it (and not in a fun way), but trust me, it’s worth it.
Coming soon: Eyelids 2.0
Spend too much time on your phone? This might cure you. A US tech company has created a 3D model of a human of the future (called Mindy, if you’re interested). Thanks to years of us texting like mofos and working at desks, poor Mindy ain’t much of a looker, with a curved ‘tech neck’, ‘text claw’ of the hands, and a second pair of eyelids. And you thought you only had your thigh gap to worry about.
A hole new world
I suppose we should think ourselves lucky. These days, the NHS counselling waiting list might circle the globe 12 times, but at least no one’s suggesting cutting holes in our skulls. Throughout history and all over the world, however, trephination/trepanation was a relatively popular ‘treatment’; so much so that there were at least five - count em - methods for hole, er, punching. If this whets your appetite, have at this potted history of the procedure.
Word of the week
KALSARIKÄNNIT
/kahl-sah-ree-ken-neet/ [Finnish]:
Roughly translated, it means ‘pantsdrunk’, and refers specifically to when you get smashed in your underwear. We were on lockdown for most of 2020 - don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m on about.
And finally…
