Episode 119: Inconceivable! Anybody want a Peanut? (The Princess Bride)

Somehow in this economy we get Baron Von Cheeseplate back on the show to discuss William Goldman's The Princess Bride, as well as how much we all hate that weird Evangelical puppet, Douglas. To Listen Along: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/Inconceivable--Anybody-want-a-Peanut--The-Princess-Bride-e2retm9 To Drink Along: Port (Iocane powder optional) Resources: The Princess Bride (novel) - Wikipedia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYhIViuWIJI&themeRefresh=1 William Goldman -... Continue Reading →

Episode 118: The Haunted Audio (Turn of the Screw)

This week Amanda and Victoria discuss Henry James' novella, The Turn of the Screw. After Daddy's Little Harbinger shows up (Mothman) our audio started to have some problems, the episode crashing twice. To Listen Along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/The-Haunted-Audio-Turn-of-the-Screw-e2psssc To Drink Along: Strawberry wine, an energy drink, and some sort of cheese. The rest of the death story:... Continue Reading →

This week Amanda and Victoria discuss the Daniel Quinn book of Socratic dialogue with a gorilla, Ishmael. To Listen Along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/Diet-Malthus-Ishmael-e2p04g1 To Drink Along: Bloody Mary or Vodka Lime water spritzer Resources: Zen kōans: Unsolvable enigmas designed to break your brain - Puqun Li Ishmael : Study Guide | SparkNotes Ishmael - Wikipedia Daniel Quinn... Continue Reading →

This week Amanda and Victoria discuss Robert Graves' epic I, Claudius, and immediately questioning Graves' concepts of history. To Listen Along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/This-is-My-Roman-Empire-I--Claudius-e2nrm6a To Drink Along: WINE! MORE WINE! Resources: I Claudius Summary | SuperSummary Robert Graves - Wikipedia Claudius - Wikipedia https://youtu.be/71s_Y37_KYo?si=DwGFhCVrNEulL_zz https://youtu.be/H8aBYRsxuTk?si=3u7PXSOY588cYKlv

Happy Birthday Month to Amanda! This month, we discuss Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird (and Victoria actually does the shortest short story long.) To listen along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/Episode-115-Word-by-Word-Bird-by-Bird-e2m9rn7 To drink along: Water or your choice Resources: Bird by Bird: Themes | SparkNotes Anne Lamott - Wikipedia Anne Lamott | Biography, Novels, Books, Husband, Parents, & Son... Continue Reading →

This month Amanda and Victoria discuss City of Night by John Rechy for Pride Month and discuss the old ways and the new of Queer community and acceptance. To Listen Along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/City-of-Naw-City-of-Night-e2lf82l To Drink Along: Dealers choice. Stay hydrated!!! Resources: City of Night - Wikipedia Fifty Years of Rechy's "City of Night" | Los Angeles... Continue Reading →

Baron Von Cheeseplate joins Amanda and Victoria to discuss Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll, and the impact of this work on pop culture. To Listen Along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/Following-the-White-Rabbit-Alice-in-Wonderland-e2k3saf To Drink Along: https://theimaginarymixologist.wordpress.com/2015/10/03/alice-in-wonderland-drink-me/ Resources: Confirm you're registered to vote: https://www.usa.gov/confirm-voter-registration Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: Sparklet Chapter Summaries | SparkNotes The Annotated Alice https://youtu.be/H7mrIJCjTdc?si=PvUorTzTd5iFtCR2 Lewis Carroll -... Continue Reading →

This week Amanda and Victoria discuss Manifest Destiny, the Minnesota Massacre, the lie of Westward expansion and why neither host can spell prairie. To Listen Along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/Little-Scam-on-the-Prairie-Little-House-on-the-Prairie-e2ic6fb To Drink Along: Ginger KombuchaOR Old Timey Not At All Racist LemonadeOR A fun optional mixture of the two: Switchel-ade Resources: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/interactive-map-shows-you-what-indigenous-land-you-live-on-180980920 Killer of the Flower Moon by... Continue Reading →

This week Amanda and Victoria discuss Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. To Listen Along: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/unfortunately-required/episodes/Basically--Just-Real-Life-in-Late-Stage-Capitalism-Fahrenheit-451-e2h5ut4 To Drink Along: Drink what you want, but if you want to hurt yourself this website has a Fahrenheit 451 cocktail that will probably kill someone like the Panera Charged Lemonade. Resources: Fahrenheit 451: Full Book Summary | SparkNotes Ray... Continue Reading →