Rachael McKelvey

• Please recycle less but better
• Do headphones divide offices or make them functional for all?
• Why Literary festivals are more than just books
• Even NASA want better data
• I need to talk about Succession – no spoilers

Please recycle less but better
A seemingly odd request when the world is simultaneously on fire and drowning, but it’s true. An excellent piece in the Inews has called out that people will be advised to recycle less as part of the Government overhaul to waste management.

Termed “wishcycling” a lot of things that end up in the recycling bins are not in fact recyclable, we put them in there solely to make ourselves feel better but they actually cause significant problems in the recycling process. From seemingly innocuous things like small bits of foil that the splitting machines just can’t detect, much better to start a foil ball and put it in when it has reached a substantial size. Your paper takeaway coffee cup? Has plastic in it which is incredibly hard to separate, your pizza box, that is entirely cardboard? That greasy pizza ring can contaminate a surprisingly amount of other non-contaminated cardboard for recycling.

Do headphones divide offices or make them functional for all?
The Sunday Times has asked whether headphones in the workplace are “dividing colleagues” and citing the increase in usage being down to being able to listen to music and podcasts when we were working from home in the pandemic, which seems very on brand for the Times. Citing Debrett’s, the 250-year-old British guide to etiquette: “If you work in an open-plan office where there is frequent conversation and interchange of ideas between colleagues, do not wear AirPods or headphones.”

I’ve worn headphones in the office for most of my career, I don’t function at my best in an open plan office on a floor of 200+ people talking about a lot of things all at once, nor a smaller office with more than about 5 other quiet people in. I usually only have one in, in the ear away from colleagues, sometimes I am listening to something, most of the time I am just using them for noise cancelling. I never mind being interrupted by colleagues and I don’t use them to exclude dialogue and important conversations, I just use them as a tool to help me focus, much like when bosses just get to be unavailable and get to close their office doors.

Why Literary Festivals are more than just books
Don’t get my wrong, books are important but the soundbytes coming from Hays Literary Festival again this week just make me remember how important they are in the world, the enquiry and the discussion between writers and audiences is almost more important than the books themselves.

The most interesting discussion to come out of Hay Festival this week was Patrick Vallance, probably the only Government Chief Scientific Adviser anyone will ever be able to name in history, he has called for greater research into the use of psychedelics as a tool for mental health. This was prompted solely from an audience question about their 107 year old grandmother who has depression. There has been many decades of interest in psychedelics and Vallance confirmed there was a lot of enthusiasm at the moment and questioned why we don’t work it out properly.

This long read from the FT back in March has stayed with me, the story of Aly and her journey with Anorexia and psychedelics contrasted with Ekaterina’s story and the mission and values of Compass and just how hard it is to secure funding for research and trials, even when the results seem so positive because well…drugs.

Just FYI, Vallance did warn not to slip your grandmother an ecstasy tablet just in case anyone was wondering.

Even NASA wants better data
It’s been a week at work this week so it was nice to know that even NASA is like if you want us to find things we need better data. NASA this week confirmed they have not found alien life and that of the staggering number of unidentified flying object reports they receive that really only a very small amount remain truly unexplained.

Sean Kirkpatrick of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (cool job) said they receive around 50-100 new reports of sightings each month and only 2% to 5% of those fall into that truly unexplained category. Why so low? The quality of data submitted isn’t quite what they need. Eyewitness reports aren’t enough to provide conclusive proof and you absolutely know trying to capture a video of anything in the sky with any phone always basically looks like you’ve filmed it with a potato.

Next time you’re sat at work thinking this doesn’t make sense, there is no useful insight here, the data is awful. Know you are not alone, even NASA just wish people would record things better.

I need to talk about Succession
The ending was perfect, and this is a hill I am prepared to die on. You may come at with me with your bad opinions, but I can assure you that was probably never what the show was about. Everything ended exactly as it should, they all got what they earnt or deserved.

I don’t want to talk spoilers, but I do question your commitment if you’ve been there this whole time and you’ve not finished it yet, but if like me you are the first finisher amongst your friends please let me sign post some wonderful comforting podcasts that might just act as the emotional ant acid you need while you wait.

First up the HBOs Succession Podcast S4 E10 Part 2 “With Open Eyes” with Director / Producer Mark Mylod Kara Swisher and Mark Mylod talk through the last half of the episode, the characters, the intention, the styling. This was the comforting hug I didn’t realise I needed.

Up next Oh God, What Now  – Succession Finale: Goodbye to the Beastie Roys Andrew Harrison, Hannah Fearn and Alex Andreou talk ALL things finale, touching on all the important moments, including what it was like to watch it as a women, like the long winding chat down the pub I really needed.

What an achingly beautiful show through and through, right to the end. The most beautiful, awful goodbye. I’m going to miss those strings.

Current watch:  Anatomy of a Scandal – Happy to be well over a year late to the party on this one, because now I know I didn’t get caught up in the hype. David E Kelley has a special place in my heart (Ally McBeal, The Practice, Boston Legal…I could go on) and along with Melissa James Gibson they created a masterpiece based on Sarah Vaughan’s novel.

The story follows Sophie Whitehouse, the wife of a prominent Tory MP, after her life is blown apart when she learns of her husband’s affair which results in him standing trial accused of rape. The story comes full circle right back to where their relationship began.

It’s dark and clever and if you’ve ever had anything to do with Oxbridge of old, probably likely a little too close for comfort.

Current read: 8 Rules of love – How to find it, keep it and let it go by Jay Shetty – I was heavily influenced by informal yoga book club on this one and while I initially was really sceptical, it just felt like the diary of a smug married, I did really enjoy this book when it got passed the concept of romantic love.

I am probably a little more receptive to this book as I am in myself love healing era and enjoyed the roadmap to modern love with all the references to eastern philosophies, the input from other professionals and the tangible advice and practices to help with that self-reflection piece that we just don’t do. Absolutely not a book for everyone, it’ll make you think and maybe sit in discomfort, but you will probably realise something.

Most Impactful Listen: The Intelligence from The Economist – Cash out: the digital-payments revolution – Jason Palmer, who sounds like melted chocolate, and Ore Ogunbiyi talk us through the shift in global digital payments and how it is more than just a matter of convenience, cash is no longer king falling 25% pp in the last decade, thanks to digital payments. UPI in India is fascinating and it’s just nice to have some coverage that isn’t crypto based. The podcast also covers the future of Singapore’s Golden Mile and recommends 3 books that document some of history’s greatest hoaxes, what is not to love?