A Little Less Guilty

Marion joins the podcast while Anna is holidaying to talk about the new trend of cycling shorts that we won't be adopting, along with stick on swimwear and long fingernails. Amazing things this week include nail stamping and a model walking down the runway breastfeeding. We review books entirely by their cover including Ottessa Moshfegh's My Life of Rest and Relaxation. And discuss the etiquette in group chats - can you ever leave?

Cressida and Anna thought nothing could be worse than sneaker sandals, but now there are high-heeled crocs. We're not feeling guilty about not doing the Drake #inmyfeelingschallenge or having an open plan office.  Two work mistakes this week:  Ikea's pet water fountain and the China airlines pilot who had an e-cigarette and nearly crashed the plane. Something amazing: a smart bra that sends a signal to the police when a woman is being attacked, and a man in Spain skips work for 10 years. In books, Anna recommends The Death of Mrs Westaway by Ruth Ware. And our modern dilemma: is business wear becoming too casual?

Anna and Cressida follow up on synthetic burgers after Winston Peters' war of words with Air New Zealand. We are not feeling guilty about not having a capsule wardrobe or wearing mermaid jeans, or drinking the new Starbucks Avocado Frappuccino. Something amazing: Japan's classy exit from the World Cup and the font detectives in the case against Pakistan's former Prime Minister. Anna has been reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelly.  We are not feeling guilty about not reading The English Patient despite its Golden Booker win this week. Our modern dilemma: would you want your daughter to compete in a beauty pageant?

This week Anna is unavailable so Marion joins Cressida. They both aren't feeling guilty about sitting in salt rooms, doing migraine poses or their work mistakes which are not as bad as Samsung. We're feeling great about the interesting tale of the Maraschino cherry bees and an excessive amount of babies born in a Texas hospital. We're not feeling guilty about reading A Little Life but we are loving Wikipedia Horror Movie summaries. And we have strong opinions (or are they?) about whether it's ok to watch an ex's insta stories.

Anna and Cressida are not feeling guilty about not drinking collagen coffee, wearing sneaker sandals, or curing our hangovers with beef liver.  Something amazing: deleting all of your emails when you go on holiday. Anna is reading Sharp: The Women Who Made An Art of Having An Opinion by Michelle Dean. Our modern dilemma: what to do when the mother-of-the-bride's guest list is out of control.

Anna and Cressida follow up with the Amazon prize for AI: will Alexa ever be able to talk like a human?  Justin Trudeau starts his own eyebrow trend. We're not feeling guilty about not wearing melodramatic purple or getting eyeliner tattoos. Something amazing: the Woke Charlotte meme as we celebrate 20 years of SATC. Anna is reading Moonstone by Sjon.  We're not reading The President is Missing by James Patterson and Bill Clinton. Our modern dilemma: is is okay to eavesdrop on public conversations?

Anna and Cressida are not drinking broccoli coffee - the new health trend - or knitting tea bag string scarves.  They're not feeling guilty about watching Netflix while drinking at home - it's now a Finnish lifestyle trend.  Also not worrying about crotch pocket pants or scenting our homes with meat candles. Something amazing: pizza wedding bouquets, and Echo Look can advise you on your outfit choice. Anna recommends Exactly by Simon Winchester. And our modern dilemma: is it OK to dress up in the traditional clothes of another culture?  Appropriation or appreciation?

Cressida and Anna are not feeling guilty about not doing armpit masks or making a faux pas at work.  They are definitely not feeling guilty about their stainless steel kitchen sinks. Don't worry about your bitcoin trading habit - there's now an addiction centre in Scotland.  And to put our work mistakes into perspective, zoo-keepers in Germany released lions and tigers by accident (or did they?) while a valet in Sydney crashed a guest's Porsche. Something amazing: a new gel that reduces humidity and produces electricity, and company directors to be personally liable for those pesky automated phone calls. Book of the week: Anna recommends Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh. And our modern dilemma: should companies let employees use social media at work?

Anna and Cressida are not drinking cockroach milk, but not feeling guilty about drinking at work after Harvard Business Review found some benefits.  Don't worry if you've been talking about a work colleague this week: at least Amazon Echo didn't record the conversation and send it to them.  And don't feel guilty if you are not following the cow cuddling trend. Something amazing:  Toys R Us are selling Kinky Toys R Us and other dubious domain names they bought to protect their brand. Anna recommends The King Is Always Above The People by Daniel Alarcon, kindly sent to us by Bibliophiles. Our modern dilemma:  at 30, are you overstaying your welcome at home?

Anna and Cressida are not feeling guilty about their messy hair after Meghan Markle's hair came loose at her wedding.  A train in Japan departed 25 seconds early, so that puts our work mistakes in perspective.  And we are not worrying about our swimsuit mistakes or the trend for butt rip jeans. Something amazing:  this primer on being sane insane. Our book of the week is The Female Persuasion by Meg Wolitzer. And our modern dilemma:  should private companies pay for essential services?

Cressida and Anna are not feeling guilty about not hiring proposal planners or visiting museums naked.  Also not worrying about the teeth nails trend or gluing a bow to their baby's head. Something amazing: people are buying fewer black cats because of Instagram and more ukuleles are being sold in the US than acoustic guitars. Anna recommends the new translation of The Odyssey by Emily Wilson. Our modern dilemma: should men wear dresses?

Cressida and Anna are not feeling guilty about not drinking diet vodka or doing face yoga.  We discuss the new at-home hair colour solutions disrupting the industry and the future of analogue clocks. Something amazing: the gun emoji is being replaced with a water pistol and even a little exercise can make us happier. Anna recommends Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie. Our modern dilemma: should children watch the music video This is America by Childish Gambino?

Anna and Cressida feel better about their work mistakes after a horror trailer was shown at a screening of Peter Rabbit.  More miracle ingredients not to worry about, this time wasps' nests in vaginas. And there is no need to feel guilty about drinking one coffee a day during pregnancy. Something amazing:  Beyonce fell at Coachella but it was performance art, and Kanye West is back on Twitter. Anna recommends Earthly Remains by Donna Leon, and this week there are 21 books you don't have to read. Our modern dilemma:  what to do about people who don't play by the hospitality rules.

Cressida and Anna are not feeling guilty about not eating charcoal croissants, being boozy mums or wearing brain-zapping headsets during exercise. T Mobile faked ringing sounds on calls that never went through so that puts our work mistakes into persepctive.  Something amazing: scientists have accidentally created a mutant enzyme that eats plastic bottles. Anna recommends The Trick to Time by Kit de Waal. Our modern dilemma this week: do we need apps to formalise sexual consent?  

Anna and Cressida are not feeling guilty about not rating people.  More work mistakes to put your week into perspective, with Optus advertising for Anglos-Saxon staff and Samsung accidentally issuing 2.83 billion shares. Human evolution is amazing this week, with eyebrows again playing a  key role, and Queen Elizabeth II found to be a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. Anna recommends Born a Crime by Trevor Noah on audio. Our modern dilemma: should eating be allowed in the movie A Quiet Place?