In this episode, Dara is reflecting on the overnight passing of two of the animal members of the Hashtag Blessed family. It reminds him of a key moment from the iconic TV show The Sopranos which centred on the idea of a changing world that couldn’t be controlled. The idea of chaos and disorder prompting a desire for control feels like a very present concern.
A local death in the community spurs Dara to further examine the idea of the familiar and the habitual, and to look at the strength and reassurance we take from known quantities and knowable entities. He talks about the importance of the social space made for grief and is grateful that it is something that Irish culture is very good at.
Habits of thought and behaviour are also discussed, and Dara acknowledges how in an area of his own life he has allowed habitual behaviour lead him away from difficult situations. He pitches the idea of difficulties and challenges, and their avoidance, against the finality and true reality-altering nature of death. Perspective and proportionality are healthy things to bring to bear on the things that unsettle us. Can we find a way to deal better with interruptions to normal service? Can we break the pattern of our habitual responses?
Also in this episode, the humble offer, 1983’s Risky Business, and the absence of bad influences in Dara’s past.