James Nestor on the secret to breathing easier and much more!Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ 
James Pillion
 

MY FAVOURITE THINGS | I Me Mine

β€œIf we always choose comfort, we never learn the deepest capabilities of our mind or body.”

β€” WIM HOF
 

With 2021 in the rear-view mirror, it’s easy to reflect on just how wickedly perverted the year turned out to be. Yet, if you’re willing to translate the unlikely narrative turns of this ongoing saga into a blockbuster film franchise, β€” as the filmmaker in me is want to do β€” 2021 surely upped the stakes of its predecessor. Not only did the sequel deliver some genuinely unexpected turns but the story’s dramatic crescendo reached new highs with the Omicron variant stomping out the simple joys of yet another festive period. While the new viral strain certainly brought about a case of the doomsday blues, trampling all over our NYE plans, I still choose to view the year ahead with a sense of unmerited optimism. So please enjoy this β€˜best-of’ compilation from the year that was, complete with prescriptive antidotes to weather (what will hopefully be) the final installment of the COVID trilogy. Happy New Year! Xo
 

Breath πŸ“š

James Nestor’s Breath: The New Science Of A Lost Art is the first educational tome to effectively change my habits overnight. The application of sleep tape, administered over a section of the mouth, cancelling out my excessive mouth breathing (and dreadful snoring). As the California native makes plain, the secret to a life well lived extends well beyond our diet or exercise routine. In order to enjoy a long and productive innings, Nestor contends that we need to shut our pie-holes and start breathing through our nose (i.e we need to start breathing right). What makes this book all the more revealing is that Nestor’s foundational discoveries come not from the Western medical community but the texts of ancient civilizations. That the advent of industrialization and the introduction of softer foods also resulted in the collapse of our strong jawline and shoddy teeth might just help to explain why the medical community has been curiously tight-lipped.

β€œIf I had to limit my advice on healthier living to just one tip, it would be simply to learn how to breathe better.” β€” Dr. Andrew Weil
 

Sound of Metal πŸŽ₯

As a cinephile filmmaker, I make it my business to search out a wide array of films in the pursuit of growth and understanding. While I savour this ritual, it’s rare that a film disarms my critical eye to the point of terror. Darius Marder’s chilling tale of a heavy-metal drummer’s fall from grace shook me out of my comfort zone and into Riz Ahmed’s desperate shoes. What would I do if my hearing went the way of the dodo bird? Marder achieves something special through Ahmed’s journey of grief and ultimate acceptance, bringing us into the interior world of a deaf community through intricate layers of sound design. You can find out more by tuning into Louis Theroux’s spell-binding chat with the London native.
 

Attached πŸ“š

I wasn’t expecting to find so many smoking guns in Attached: The New Science of Adult Attachment. All the same, Amir Levine and Rachel Heller’s concise self-help manual distills the complexities of relationships into a user-friendly framework. As the authors make plain, we all fall into one (or more) of three emotional categories; anxious, avoidant or secure. There was a strange comfort in having my latent trademark habits unearthed and diagnosed. It also went a long way to explaining why so many of my previous relationships were doomed from the outset. I wish I’d had knowledge of this book when I was an eligible bachelor. It may have helped me avoid the pitfalls of the β€˜treat β€˜em mean, keep β€˜em keen’ dating mantra.
 

Small Axe πŸ“Ί

Steve McQueen has always occupied a unique place in my mental cabinet, his restrained style of visual storytelling evoking a sense of humanity that sets him apart from his peers. After dipping my toes into this anthology series, his first foray into the long-form space, I’ve come away with a new formal understanding for the next generation of TV. Each episode immerses itself within the private spaces of West Indian men and women trying to carve out a unique place for themselves within the racial strictures of London. Red, White and Blue stars John Boyega and tells the real life story of Leroy Logan, a policeman of Jamaican descent who joined the force after his father was beaten black and blue by London bobbies. The feature-length episode beautifully translates the tensions underwriting the five-part series and includes a sequence between father and son that will stay with me always.
 

The Overstory πŸ“š

There is nothing quite like getting lost in a good book. The kind that won’t let you set it down against your better judgment. The gift that Richard Powers has imparted with this sizable tome is subtle and yet infused through each character and sub-plot. Individuals of varied backgrounds and interests that inadvertently find themselves defending mother nature from their own species. Through the practice of meditation, I have found that my own journey with the natural world has radically shifted. Increasingly I find myself gazing up at many points in a day to take in a tree or variety of plant. The simple process imparts a sense of calm and wonder that I never thought possible. In these desperately complicated times, when existential dread seems to be on an exponential rise, such practice is medicine for the soul and helps to alleviate the most biting anxiety.
 

The Biggest Little Farm πŸ“Ή

I must confess to being a negative Nancy in the opening minutes of this DIY documentary. Yet as it unfolded I found myself being won over by a beautiful story. The doco tracks the journey of two Californian urbanites looking to realize their dreams of owning and running a solvent picture book farm. As John and Molly Chester make plain, the traditional notion of farming has been supplanted by monoculture in order to stay afloat in the age of globalization. A sad reality that continues to have devastating consequences on the natural environment. In reading about the β€˜making of’ process, I found myself drawn to Chester’s unconscious mantra to confront each obstacle with patience and presence. Just this week, I happened upon a Goop episode featuring John Chester in conversation with Gwyneth Paltrow. A remarkably insightful chat.
 

Physical πŸ“Ί

Rose Byrne is the first and last reason to sink your teeth into this eye-popping Apple TV+ period drama. The Sydney-sider takes us deep into the mindset of a brilliant woman whose talents have been squandered on a self-obsessed chauvinist husband and a lack of self-belief. The nineteen-eighties setting is the perfect visual decoy for the show’s focus around body shaming and self-sabotage. It also sheds new light on the essence of male power, helping us to remember that the success of any public figure (past and present) could only be made possible through the thankless dedication of their silent partners. It also perfectly captures the healing process of listening to and enacting the burning desires that won’t let us alone. Byrne was born to fill the shoes of Annie Weisman’s leading heroine and I can’t wait to see what lies in store for Season II.
 

Can’t Get You Out of My Head πŸ“Ή

Adam Curtis, the acclaimed English documentarian, continues to challenge my preconceived ideas about the present moment with this compelling six-part series. Released on Valentines Day, it sheds light on our current moment by re-tracing our steps back in time. Curtis has an ineffable voice, one that feels so marginal and alarmist within the current system of power. Yet his calm and considered delivery, coupled with the imprinted BBC logo in the left-hand corner of the screen makes for a compelling argument. Curtis seemingly pick up where he left off within his 2002 The Century of the Self, an examination of the rampant individualism that came to prominence over the last one hundred years. The Dartford native picks at the same scab almost twenty years on, interweaving a curious array of charismatic personalities from across the globe in a powerful indictment of the establishment.
 

Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders - Promises πŸŽ™

I’m often visited by the feeling that age, and the experience it brings, is slowly numbing my ability to lose myself in new music. While this evolution certainly holds water with most new pop records, my salvation comes from the fringes. Artists whose passions are unconcerned with feeding the current whims of the moment. Promises is a beautiful tangent for Sam Shepherd (aka Floating Points) whose output has kept my heart rate up for over a decade. Listening to the LP, made in collaboration with American saxophonist Pharaoh Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra, brings about a deep sense of calm and catharsis that has found me returning to it at moments of frustration and elation.
 

GMO’s, Glyphosate & Healing The Gut πŸ“»

I’ve never heard anyone give voice to the glaring issues plaguing the Western world quite like Dr. Zach Bush. Much like Rob Bilott’s all consuming passion to bring DuPont’s barbaric negligence to light, Bush has spent the last decade raising awareness to some startling allegations. As he makes plain, monoculture and the rise of GMO food giants like Monsanto have been directly responsible for a precipitous rise in birth defects, cancer rates, and a vast array of new auto-immune conditions. While his diagnosis is far from simple, a clear culprit lies in the emergence of glyphosate, a chemical used in most pesticides. This man-made compound single-handedly hampers a plant’s ability to protect itself and generate the necessary nutrients that nature destined for it. As Bush attests, the side-effects of such farming practices have been excessively deleterious to mankind and the planet at large.

β€œThe fundamental human impact driving climate change today is the destruction of our soils. Soils function as the lungs of the planet. When Earth stops breathing, we lose the carbon cycle, we lose energy production at every level, microbial, soil, food, human.” - Dr. Zach Bush
 

Joan Didion πŸ‘€

In the days since the passing of this titan of literature, I’ve found myself reflecting back on a cherished passage from Slouching Towards Bethlehem, her seminal collection of essays first published in 1968. In it, Didion recounts a rather curious memory of frequenting her local supermarket during a summer heat wave in Los Angeles. As she perused the aisles, a fellow patron took offense to her bikini-clad attire and proceeded to shout strings of abuse over her impropriety and lack of shame. Yet it was Didion’s response, or lack thereof, to this insistent bully that endeared me to her with a newfound clarity. The California native was so much more than her extensive body of work. She was a beacon of reason and sanity in an increasingly media-saturated landscape devoid of either.

β€œWhat I want to tell you today is not to move into that world where you’re alone with yourself and your mantra and your fitness program or whatever it is that you might use to control by closing it out. I want to tell you just to live in the mess. Throw yourself out into the convulsions of the world.” β€” Joan Didion
 

Get Back - The Soundtrack πŸŽ™

I’ve found great comfort in Peter Jackson’s fly-on-the-wall docu-series on The Beatles and their quixotic quest to cultivate the makings of Let It Be within a soundstage of spiritual disharmony. Like most music lovers, the Liverpudlian quartet played a seminal role in my understanding of music, and more importantly how it made you feel inside. Listening to this five hour playlist on shuffle has helped to rekindle many fond memories and proffered a heartwarming reminder that their vertiginous ascent into the global consciousness never hampered their ability to take the piss out of themselves. This love letter of a profile on Paul McCartney has not only reinstated my adolescent obsession for the boyish billionaire but helped to remind that his passion for creative collaboration was instrumental in the breadth and depth of the Fab Four’s expansive catalogue. 
 

Thanks for reading. To show your support, forward it to someone who’d like it or treat yourself to one of my books.

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WRITING | @jamespillion
FILM | @jamespillionfilm

8 Stephen St
Bondi, NSW,
Australia

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