WEBVTT - Part Two: Baba Yaga: Everyone's Favorite Witch From Folklore 0:00:00.800 --> 0:00:02.800 Hello, and welcome to Cool People who did cool stuff. 0:00:02.800 --> 0:00:05.440 I'm your host, Margaret Killjoy, and this week is Spooky Week. 0:00:05.440 --> 0:00:07.320 Actually last week was Spooky Week, but I kind of 0:00:07.320 --> 0:00:09.959 sucked up the timing about three part episodes. So this 0:00:10.000 --> 0:00:13.040 week is Spooky Week. And instead of what I usually do, 0:00:13.520 --> 0:00:16.440 tell you about some cool actual person from history, this 0:00:16.480 --> 0:00:18.520 week I'm telling you about a cool person from folklore. 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:22.520 My guest today is Jamie Loftus, who herself is a 0:00:22.520 --> 0:00:25.799 creature out of folklore? What are you the personification of 0:00:25.840 --> 0:00:30.160 a gun? I can't remember, Jamie? Oh what was I? I? Actually, 0:00:30.200 --> 0:00:35.880 it's been heavily, it's been hotly debated over over time. Um, 0:00:35.920 --> 0:00:40.000 you know, I don't. I let people interpret it for themselves. 0:00:40.080 --> 0:00:42.720 It's not for me to say as as as someone 0:00:42.760 --> 0:00:44.760 who's not a real person, more of an idea than 0:00:44.800 --> 0:00:48.320 a person, It's not for me to say, Okay, that's fair. 0:00:49.040 --> 0:00:52.200 It's up for the listener to decide. What have you've 0:00:52.240 --> 0:00:55.520 been the what have you've been popularly interpreted to be 0:00:55.600 --> 0:01:00.520 the personification of Margaret? Oh lord? Um? Well, what's fun 0:01:00.520 --> 0:01:02.320 about that is I think people actually do do that 0:01:02.360 --> 0:01:04.200 to me. But then they, like, you know, they pick 0:01:04.319 --> 0:01:06.560 like one aspect of your personality and run with it. 0:01:06.840 --> 0:01:10.640 And it used to be the like the like vagabond figure, right, 0:01:10.720 --> 0:01:13.360 like it's the like perpetual traveler. And then it was 0:01:13.400 --> 0:01:16.200 like the girl who lives in a black house that 0:01:16.240 --> 0:01:18.360 she built in the forest, and like, both of those 0:01:18.360 --> 0:01:20.920 are like true things about me. But yeah, I see 0:01:20.920 --> 0:01:23.839 where they're coming from. To be fair, you did write 0:01:23.880 --> 0:01:27.759 a chapter in your latest book about a girl turned 0:01:27.800 --> 0:01:32.280 which that lives in a house in the forest. That's true. 0:01:32.760 --> 0:01:36.759 That's true. So you did kind of write your own folklore. Yeah, 0:01:36.800 --> 0:01:40.160 that seems like something I would do. Fair enough, they 0:01:40.160 --> 0:01:45.920 have cultivated people often think that I am extremely chaotic 0:01:45.959 --> 0:01:48.880 and don't have any semblance of control over my life. 0:01:49.640 --> 0:01:54.000 But that's not true. That is completely that is factually inaccurate. 0:01:54.760 --> 0:01:57.800 You're far too productive for that to be true. I 0:01:57.920 --> 0:02:01.000 have my ship together just enough, thank you very much. 0:02:01.600 --> 0:02:05.800 But here we are. Here we are too, or three 0:02:05.880 --> 0:02:12.640 three women who represent ideas and are projected upon constantly. Sophie, 0:02:12.639 --> 0:02:17.839 what's your professionally? Even my folklore? I think I think 0:02:17.880 --> 0:02:20.000 you wrote my folklore if you told me I was 0:02:20.040 --> 0:02:26.680 the pope of podcasting. So it's probably just like the 0:02:26.720 --> 0:02:30.560 weird para social folklore that that all I do is 0:02:30.600 --> 0:02:35.959 say no, which is not true the personification of sometimes 0:02:35.960 --> 0:02:46.680 I say absolutely not. Yeah, so the queen of yeah yeah, Well, Jamie, 0:02:46.680 --> 0:02:48.960 when you pointed out that, like, also professionally, we are 0:02:49.280 --> 0:02:52.160 like that is the odd thing about doing this kind 0:02:52.200 --> 0:02:55.480 of work is that you're like, oh, yeah, romanticize my life. 0:02:55.480 --> 0:02:58.840 You'll buy my books. Right, You're like, it's not it's 0:02:58.880 --> 0:03:02.680 not that negative, and it doesn't always even bother me. 0:03:02.720 --> 0:03:07.160 But sometimes you're just like, well, I know what I'm like. Yeah, 0:03:07.720 --> 0:03:10.200 and and and for me, nobody even knows what my 0:03:10.320 --> 0:03:15.320 job is and that's fun and I'm not telling any 0:03:15.400 --> 0:03:20.920 of you. Yeah. Well, one person whose job we do know. Uh. 0:03:21.040 --> 0:03:25.160 The audio engineering is done by ian and the theme 0:03:25.240 --> 0:03:28.679 music was written by a woman. Yeah. And where we 0:03:28.760 --> 0:03:31.320 last left off, we talked about who Bobby Aga was, 0:03:31.440 --> 0:03:33.520 about her chicken hut and her bony legs, and how 0:03:33.560 --> 0:03:36.280 she ate children who misbehaved. Today we're going to talk 0:03:36.320 --> 0:03:38.920 about what she means and where she comes from. But 0:03:39.240 --> 0:03:46.040 first another story. I'm excited. I literally I have my 0:03:46.080 --> 0:03:50.840 blanket here too, and I'm saying, okay, this story is 0:03:50.880 --> 0:03:55.800 called by command of Prince Daniel. That's a great name 0:03:55.840 --> 0:04:02.080 for a story. Okay, okay, as translated yeah by Leonard 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:05.200 Arthur Magnus, also about a hundred years ago. I didn't 0:04:05.280 --> 0:04:07.280 forgot to write down the date I picked the public 0:04:07.320 --> 0:04:10.800 domain translations. Is what happened. I'm inherently mistrustful of someone 0:04:10.880 --> 0:04:14.240 who actively goes by three names, so this will be interesting, 0:04:15.600 --> 0:04:18.560 that's fair. Yeah, I'm trying to come up with the 0:04:18.560 --> 0:04:20.599 counter example, but I don't have one off the top 0:04:20.600 --> 0:04:24.480 of my head. Three namers generally fall into the buckets 0:04:24.480 --> 0:04:29.760 of serial killers or child stars, and um, you know, 0:04:29.920 --> 0:04:31.680 and and so you're just like, this is going to 0:04:31.720 --> 0:04:35.719 be a mixed bag. We'll see YEA. Once upon a 0:04:35.800 --> 0:04:38.680 time there was an aged queen who had a son 0:04:38.760 --> 0:04:42.839 and a daughter who were fine sturred each children, but 0:04:42.920 --> 0:04:49.560 there was also an yeah coming in hard. But there 0:04:49.600 --> 0:04:51.799 was also an evil witch who could not bear them, 0:04:51.839 --> 0:04:54.520 and she began to lay plots how she might contrive 0:04:54.560 --> 0:04:57.880 their overthrow. I think this is not even whatever I 0:04:57.960 --> 0:05:01.200 must pulling anything. So she to the old queen and said, 0:05:01.960 --> 0:05:05.200 dear gossip, that must be the queen's name. I don't know. 0:05:05.480 --> 0:05:08.080 I am giving you a ring. Put it on your 0:05:08.080 --> 0:05:10.760 son's hand, and then he will be rich and generous. 0:05:11.000 --> 0:05:13.680 Only he must marry the maiden whom this ring fits. 0:05:14.880 --> 0:05:18.040 The mother believed her and was extremely glad, and at 0:05:18.080 --> 0:05:21.239 her death bade her son marry only the woman whom 0:05:21.240 --> 0:05:25.440 the ring fitted. Time went by, and the boy grew up. 0:05:25.440 --> 0:05:27.640 He became a man, and he looked at all the maidens. 0:05:27.960 --> 0:05:30.480 Very many of them he liked, only as soon as 0:05:30.480 --> 0:05:32.279 he put the ring on their finger. It was either 0:05:32.320 --> 0:05:35.440 too broad or too narrow. So he traveled from village 0:05:35.440 --> 0:05:38.360 to village, from town to town, and searched out all 0:05:38.360 --> 0:05:41.279 the fair damsels. But he could not find his chosen one, 0:05:41.560 --> 0:05:46.080 and he returned home in a reflective mood. What is 0:05:46.120 --> 0:05:49.840 the mother? What is the matter? Brother? His sister asked him. 0:05:49.880 --> 0:05:52.279 So he told her of his trouble, explained his sorrow. 0:05:52.760 --> 0:05:55.960 What a wonderful ring you have, said the sister, Let 0:05:56.000 --> 0:06:02.800 me try it on. No, hey, bro um, that wedding ring. 0:06:03.120 --> 0:06:07.920 Why don't she slap it on this finger? No problems here? Meanwhile, 0:06:08.120 --> 0:06:11.880 the water system is poisoned. There's all these policy issues. 0:06:11.960 --> 0:06:14.599 While this guy has been fucking off putting rings on 0:06:14.600 --> 0:06:19.000 the random people. People are dying. Meanwhile, we have some 0:06:19.080 --> 0:06:23.039 incest in progress. This is disgusting. Yeah, this is clearly 0:06:23.040 --> 0:06:27.760 an HBO show. Yeah. She tried it on her finger, 0:06:28.000 --> 0:06:30.280 and the ring was firm as firmly fixed as if 0:06:30.320 --> 0:06:32.680 it had been soldered on, as though it had been 0:06:32.680 --> 0:06:36.599 made for her. Oh, sister, you are my chosen bride 0:06:36.600 --> 0:06:40.080 and you must be my wife. What a horrible idea brother, 0:06:40.680 --> 0:06:43.560 That would be a sin. But the brother would not 0:06:43.600 --> 0:06:46.000 listen to a word she said. He danced for joy 0:06:46.160 --> 0:06:48.359 and told her to make ready for the wedding. She 0:06:48.440 --> 0:06:51.039 wept bitter tears, went in front of the house and 0:06:51.080 --> 0:06:54.720 sat on the threshold and let her tears flow. Two 0:06:54.800 --> 0:06:57.640 old beggars came up, and she gave them to eat 0:06:57.680 --> 0:07:00.560 and drink. They asked what her trouble was us, and 0:07:00.680 --> 0:07:04.760 she needs must tell the two. Now weep no more, 0:07:05.160 --> 0:07:08.400 but do what we say. Make up four dolls and 0:07:08.400 --> 0:07:11.600 put them in four corners of your room. After your 0:07:11.640 --> 0:07:14.080 brother calls you in for the betrothal, go and if 0:07:14.120 --> 0:07:16.559 he calls you into the bridal chamber, ask for time, 0:07:16.800 --> 0:07:21.040 trust in God, and follow our advice. And the beggars departed. 0:07:22.000 --> 0:07:26.520 We need less doll based solutions in this world. I 0:07:26.560 --> 0:07:30.720 don't know doll into girl to I mean, look, as 0:07:30.720 --> 0:07:32.960 the owner of many dolls, they have not solved a 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:36.600 damn problem. And in fact, they've been an active deterrent. Uh, 0:07:36.720 --> 0:07:41.280 they've maybe cause more problems then they've solved for me, 0:07:41.360 --> 0:07:43.840 thank you very much. You mean because when people come 0:07:43.840 --> 0:07:46.200 into your house, it's just dolls staring at you from 0:07:46.200 --> 0:07:49.720 the wall. Yeah, people don't like that, it turns out, Margaret. 0:07:49.720 --> 0:07:51.800 But people come into your house, they seed nine thousand 0:07:51.880 --> 0:07:55.559 dollars and they're like, um, interesting, I just got so 0:07:55.680 --> 0:07:58.200 busy and sick. Okay, So what we should try is 0:07:58.240 --> 0:08:00.520 we should trade and you can become a sword girl 0:08:00.560 --> 0:08:02.280 for a while and I'll become a doll girl for 0:08:02.320 --> 0:08:06.080 a while, and we'll just, yeah, like walking a mile 0:08:06.160 --> 0:08:10.119 in each other's shoes. Um, it would be useful because 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:14.360 the pigs and valleys of being a doll girl are 0:08:15.240 --> 0:08:17.960 I feel like I've really lived and I want to 0:08:18.000 --> 0:08:19.720 know what it feels like to be a sword girl. 0:08:19.800 --> 0:08:22.640 Also a horse girl. Yeah, I do want to be 0:08:22.680 --> 0:08:26.800 a horse girl, but horses don't respect my authority and 0:08:27.720 --> 0:08:32.880 go where they want. And it's hard. I've been saying 0:08:32.880 --> 0:08:40.720 that for years. Horses are so fucking disrespectful. Yeah. Yeah. 0:08:40.960 --> 0:08:43.400 The brother and the sister were betrothed, and he went 0:08:43.440 --> 0:08:46.280 into the room and cried out, sister mine, come in. 0:08:46.920 --> 0:08:49.160 I will come in a moment. Brother, I'm only taking 0:08:49.200 --> 0:08:52.440 off my earrings. And the dolls in the four corners 0:08:52.440 --> 0:08:57.680 began to sing, cuckoo, Prince Danilo, cuckoo, dio ver leo 0:08:58.559 --> 0:09:01.920 ku Ku. It's as a brother Kukou weds his sister Kukou. 0:09:02.280 --> 0:09:06.480 Earth must be split asunder Kukou and the sister lie 0:09:06.600 --> 0:09:10.840 hid under. Then the earth rose up and slowly started 0:09:10.880 --> 0:09:14.200 to swallow the sister, and the brother cried out again, 0:09:14.760 --> 0:09:20.360 did she do? Oh wait, you're here? Okay, sorry, I'm no, 0:09:20.520 --> 0:09:23.440 no no, And the brother cried out again, sister mine, 0:09:23.559 --> 0:09:26.880 come into the feather bed in in a minute, Brother, 0:09:27.080 --> 0:09:30.160 I am undoing my girdle. And the dolls began to saying, Cuckoo, 0:09:30.200 --> 0:09:33.559 Prince de nilo, cukoo, giver you hukou. It is a 0:09:33.640 --> 0:09:37.280 brother Kuku weds his sister Huku. Earth must be split 0:09:37.360 --> 0:09:41.920 asunder cuckoo, and the sister lie hid under. Only she 0:09:42.000 --> 0:09:45.840 had vanished now all but her head, and the brother 0:09:45.920 --> 0:09:49.040 cried out again, come into the feather bed in, a minute, brother, 0:09:49.240 --> 0:09:51.959 I am taking off my shoes, and the dolls went 0:09:52.000 --> 0:09:55.280 on cooing, and she vanished under the earth, and the 0:09:55.360 --> 0:09:58.679 brother kept crying and crying and crying, and when she 0:09:58.840 --> 0:10:01.720 never returned, he became angry and ran out to fetch her. 0:10:02.240 --> 0:10:04.760 He could see nothing but the dolls, which kept singing, 0:10:05.120 --> 0:10:07.680 so we knocked off their heads and threw them into 0:10:07.760 --> 0:10:11.640 the stove. Okay, I actually think I've maybe done this. 0:10:14.600 --> 0:10:18.480 Had four dolls in the corner while man slowly gets 0:10:18.640 --> 0:10:22.760 more and more furious and then just sucking bolt. It's like, 0:10:22.840 --> 0:10:32.680 where are you nothing? Yeah? Yeah. The sister went farther 0:10:32.880 --> 0:10:35.000 under the earth and she saw a little hut, standing 0:10:35.080 --> 0:10:39.079 on cox feet and turning round. Hout, she cried out, 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:41.520 stand as you should with your back to the wood. 0:10:42.320 --> 0:10:44.840 Exactly how there's a forest under the earth is not explained, 0:10:44.920 --> 0:10:49.040 Just to be clear. I like the idea, I know, right. Yeah, 0:10:49.120 --> 0:10:51.920 it's very gobliny, and I'm approve of all thanks goblining, 0:10:53.000 --> 0:10:57.400 especially my dog who was a goblin. So the hut 0:10:57.480 --> 0:11:00.200 stopped and the doors opened, and a fair maiden looked out. 0:11:00.559 --> 0:11:02.959 She was knitting a cloth with gold and silver thread. 0:11:03.440 --> 0:11:07.559 She greeted the guest friendly, and kindly but sighed and said, oh, 0:11:07.679 --> 0:11:09.640 my darling and my sister, I am so glad to 0:11:09.679 --> 0:11:11.559 see you. I shall be glad to look after you 0:11:11.640 --> 0:11:13.160 and care for you as long as my mother is 0:11:13.280 --> 0:11:16.200 not here, But as soon as she flies in, woe 0:11:16.320 --> 0:11:20.160 to you and me, for she is a witch. When 0:11:20.240 --> 0:11:22.839 she heard this, the maiden was frightened, but could not 0:11:23.000 --> 0:11:28.040 fly anywhere. I think means like runaway. Okay. I was like, well, yeah, 0:11:28.160 --> 0:11:31.280 she's a person, yeah, exactly like I can't fly anywhere either. 0:11:31.960 --> 0:11:37.360 So she's not drink covid anyway, Okay. So she sat 0:11:37.400 --> 0:11:39.560 down and began helping the other maiden at her work. 0:11:40.000 --> 0:11:43.000 So they chattered along, and soon at the right time 0:11:43.080 --> 0:11:45.920 before the mother came, the fair Maiden turned her guests 0:11:45.960 --> 0:11:48.440 into a needle because she's totally not a witch herself, 0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:51.360 turned her guest into a needle, stuck her into the 0:11:51.400 --> 0:11:54.640 bassom and put it on one side. But scarcely had 0:11:54.679 --> 0:11:59.120 this been done when Bobby Yaga came in. Now and 0:11:59.200 --> 0:12:04.160 then everyone's cheering. Everyone at midnight screening's like, yes, there 0:12:04.320 --> 0:12:10.400 she is, This is why we come here. Oh exactly, 0:12:11.280 --> 0:12:14.880 what a rush she's back. Yeah, now, my fair daughter, 0:12:15.000 --> 0:12:17.160 my little child, tell me at once, why does the 0:12:17.280 --> 0:12:23.480 room smell so of Russian bones? Classic baba, you know, 0:12:24.720 --> 0:12:29.400 sniff in that blood. Mother, there have been strange men 0:12:29.559 --> 0:12:32.640 journey in past who wanted a drink of water? Why 0:12:32.720 --> 0:12:35.120 did you not keep them? They were too old, mother, 0:12:35.320 --> 0:12:39.679 much too tough a snack for your teeth. Henceforth, entice 0:12:39.760 --> 0:12:41.520 them all into the house, and never let them go. 0:12:42.160 --> 0:12:44.320 I must now go get about again and look out 0:12:44.440 --> 0:12:47.400 for other booty. As soon as ever she had gone, 0:12:47.840 --> 0:12:50.760 the maiden set to work again, knitting, talking and laughing. 0:12:52.520 --> 0:12:54.760 Then the witch came into the room once more. She 0:12:54.880 --> 0:12:57.800 sniffed about the house and said, daughter, my sweet daughter, 0:12:57.880 --> 0:13:00.520 my darling, tell me at once, why does it smells 0:13:00.520 --> 0:13:04.960 so of Russian bones? Old men who were just passing by, 0:13:05.040 --> 0:13:07.080 who wanted to warm their hands. I did my best 0:13:07.160 --> 0:13:10.120 to keep them, but they would not stay. So the 0:13:10.200 --> 0:13:13.839 witch was angry, scolded her daughter, and flew away. In 0:13:13.920 --> 0:13:16.439 the meantime, her unknown guest was sitting in the bassoon. 0:13:17.880 --> 0:13:23.360 Someone is listening, but I keep thinking bassoon and yeah 0:13:23.960 --> 0:13:27.000 it makes me laugh. And someone who's listening knows this word, 0:13:27.360 --> 0:13:29.000 and it's like, what the fund is wrong with you? 0:13:29.559 --> 0:13:31.520 You had two days to learn how to pronounce it. 0:13:32.600 --> 0:13:34.920 The maidens once more set to work. Yeah, I do 0:13:35.040 --> 0:13:38.199 like the bassoon. Okay. Anyway, the maidens once more set 0:13:38.280 --> 0:13:40.240 to work. So it laughed and thought how they might 0:13:40.440 --> 0:13:43.160 escape the evil witch. This time they forgot how. The 0:13:43.240 --> 0:13:45.400 hours were flying by, and suddenly the witch stood in 0:13:45.480 --> 0:13:49.120 front of them, darling, tell me where have the Russian 0:13:49.160 --> 0:13:53.079 bones crept away? Here? My mother, a fair maiden is 0:13:53.120 --> 0:13:56.800 waiting for you. Daughter, mind darling, heat the oven quickly, 0:13:57.080 --> 0:14:00.760 make it very hot. If this were like a realistic story, 0:14:01.800 --> 0:14:07.040 Bobby AGA's daughter would be like, Mom, stop talking about 0:14:07.120 --> 0:14:11.199 Russian bones. Yeah, it's kind of weird, so embarrassing. I 0:14:11.280 --> 0:14:16.280 have a friend over a. Yeah. So the maiden looked 0:14:16.360 --> 0:14:18.959 up and was frightened to death, for Bobby Aga, with 0:14:19.080 --> 0:14:21.600 the wooden legs, stood in front of her, and to 0:14:21.800 --> 0:14:24.960 the ceiling rose her nose. So the mother and daughter 0:14:25.120 --> 0:14:28.800 carried firewood in logs of oak and maple, made the 0:14:28.880 --> 0:14:32.520 oven ready till the flames shot up merrily. Then the 0:14:32.600 --> 0:14:35.200 witch took her broad shovel and said, in a friendly voice, 0:14:35.920 --> 0:14:39.240 go and sit on my shovel, fair child. So the 0:14:39.280 --> 0:14:41.960 maiden obeyed, and the Bobby a god was going to 0:14:42.000 --> 0:14:44.240 shove her into the oven, but the girl stuck her 0:14:44.280 --> 0:14:48.120 feet against the wall of the hearth. Will you sit still, girl? 0:14:49.200 --> 0:14:51.480 But it was not any good. Bobby Aga could not 0:14:51.560 --> 0:14:54.120 put the maiden into the oven, so she became angry, 0:14:54.240 --> 0:14:57.280 thrust her back and said, you are simply wasting time. 0:14:57.600 --> 0:14:59.360 Just look at me and see how it is done. 0:15:00.160 --> 0:15:02.440 Down she sat on the shovel with her legs nicely 0:15:02.480 --> 0:15:06.480 trusted together. So the maidens instantly put her into the oven, 0:15:06.840 --> 0:15:09.800 shut the oven door and slammed her in, took their 0:15:09.880 --> 0:15:14.320 knitting with them and their comb in their brush ran away. God, 0:15:14.440 --> 0:15:18.320 I do love the confidence that it takes to be like, um, 0:15:19.240 --> 0:15:22.560 this is how you sit on a shovel. Yeah, you're 0:15:22.560 --> 0:15:29.760 gonna get put in? Yeah yeah, loving it? Yeah? They 0:15:29.880 --> 0:15:32.360 ran hard away, but when they turned round there was 0:15:32.400 --> 0:15:35.280 bobby Aga running after them. She had set herself free, 0:15:35.680 --> 0:15:38.800 some real ex mocking a ship in this Yeah yeah, 0:15:40.400 --> 0:15:44.120 who hoo hoo. They're run the two. So the maidens, 0:15:44.240 --> 0:15:47.040 in their need, threw the brush away and a thick, 0:15:47.400 --> 0:15:51.240 dense coppice, which is like a bunch of trees a rose, 0:15:51.360 --> 0:15:54.000 which she could not break through, so she stretched out 0:15:54.040 --> 0:15:58.000 her claws scratched herself away through and again ran after them. 0:15:58.720 --> 0:16:03.080 Whither should the two girls flee? They flung their comb 0:16:03.160 --> 0:16:05.880 behind them, and a dark, murky oak forest grew up 0:16:05.960 --> 0:16:09.560 so thick no fly could have ever flown its way through. 0:16:10.600 --> 0:16:13.080 Then the witch wetted her teeth and set to work. 0:16:13.680 --> 0:16:16.160 She went on, tearing up one tree after the other 0:16:16.280 --> 0:16:19.400 by the roots, and she made herself away and again 0:16:19.480 --> 0:16:22.120 set out after them, and almost caught up with them. 0:16:22.840 --> 0:16:27.480 I like this one, Vasiline or whatever her name is, Yeah, 0:16:27.760 --> 0:16:34.160 totally Vasiline the sexy. What was that? Was that? Vasilisa 0:16:34.240 --> 0:16:42.040 the beautiful? Yeah? Yeah, yeah, Vassiline sexy? Yeah, basically. Now, 0:16:42.160 --> 0:16:44.560 the two girls had no strength left to run, so 0:16:44.760 --> 0:16:48.480 through the cloth behind them, and a broad sea stretched out, deep, 0:16:48.600 --> 0:16:51.960 wide and fiery. The old woman rose up, wanted to 0:16:52.040 --> 0:16:54.120 fly over it, but fell into the fire and was 0:16:54.240 --> 0:16:59.480 burned to death. Again with the burning, I know, the 0:16:59.560 --> 0:17:03.000 poor aiden's, poor homeless dubs did not know whither to go. 0:17:03.720 --> 0:17:05.679 They sat down in order to rest, and a man 0:17:05.840 --> 0:17:08.600 came and asked them who they were. He told his 0:17:08.760 --> 0:17:11.720 master that the two little birds had fluttered onto his estate. 0:17:12.040 --> 0:17:15.280 The two fairest damsels similar in form and shape, eye 0:17:15.400 --> 0:17:18.600 for eye and line for line. One was his sister, 0:17:18.840 --> 0:17:21.600 but which was it? What is this? Oh? Yeah, okay, 0:17:21.640 --> 0:17:25.840 the master is the prince. Okay. One was a sister, 0:17:26.119 --> 0:17:29.280 but which was it? He could not guess. So the 0:17:29.400 --> 0:17:31.960 Master went to both of them. One was a sister, 0:17:32.440 --> 0:17:35.840 which the servant had not lied. He did not know them, 0:17:36.200 --> 0:17:38.520 and she was angry with him and did not say. 0:17:39.520 --> 0:17:43.320 What shall I do? Asked the master. Master. I will 0:17:43.400 --> 0:17:47.080 pour blood into an eu skin, put that under my armpit, 0:17:47.600 --> 0:17:50.360 and talked to the maiden. In the meantime, I will 0:17:50.440 --> 0:17:52.480 go and I will stab you in the side with 0:17:52.600 --> 0:17:55.920 my knife, and then blood will flow, and your sister 0:17:56.040 --> 0:18:01.159 will betray herself as to who she is the Nothing 0:18:01.280 --> 0:18:05.280 could go wrong with this plan. This plan is air tight, 0:18:06.280 --> 0:18:13.600 no notes, what could very well? Yeah, as soon as 0:18:13.640 --> 0:18:16.480 it was said, it was done. The servants stabbed his 0:18:16.560 --> 0:18:18.639 master in the side, and the blood poured forth, and 0:18:18.720 --> 0:18:21.640 he fell down. And Margaret isn't the one who wrote 0:18:21.680 --> 0:18:25.239 this story. So then his sister flung herself over him 0:18:25.240 --> 0:18:28.480 and cried out, oh, my brother, my darling. Then her 0:18:28.520 --> 0:18:33.000 brother jumped up again, healthy and well. Margaret, if the 0:18:33.280 --> 0:18:36.359 moral of this story is she should have fucked her brother. 0:18:37.200 --> 0:18:45.200 I'm gonna I'm gonna break my iPad. Okay, he embraced 0:18:45.240 --> 0:18:49.320 his sister, gave her a proper husband, and he married 0:18:49.359 --> 0:18:53.320 her friend. It's not Game of thron, it's got it 0:18:53.359 --> 0:18:57.399 got for the ring fitted her just as well, and 0:18:57.480 --> 0:19:02.280 they all lived splendidly and happily. Okay, they did not 0:19:02.480 --> 0:19:05.199 stick the landing on that one. I'll be perfectly honest 0:19:05.560 --> 0:19:09.399 that that that one was going great and then it 0:19:09.480 --> 0:19:13.760 really turned to dogshit at the end. But like, oh, 0:19:13.840 --> 0:19:16.359 actually this ring also fits my friend, so you can 0:19:16.440 --> 0:19:20.440 have sex with her. And yeah, it's brother was so 0:19:21.520 --> 0:19:26.879 come to the feather bed my ass. That's wow, what 0:19:27.080 --> 0:19:30.680 a what it can And and also Bobby Yaga gone 0:19:30.760 --> 0:19:36.400 without Bobby Bobby Yaga. I'm hitting this, everyone says Bobby 0:19:36.800 --> 0:19:39.959 Bobby Yaga. And then I just like watched a Russian 0:19:40.200 --> 0:19:43.520 cartoon where she's like, I'm Bobby Aga and I'm like, okay, cool, 0:19:43.560 --> 0:19:45.119 that's what I'm gonna try. And second, like, let's go 0:19:45.240 --> 0:19:49.320 with that one. But she once again, uh disappeared in 0:19:49.400 --> 0:19:54.560 the middle of the story. Yeah, because she's no one asks, um, 0:19:55.880 --> 0:19:57.720 how there's a joke here. I don't know. How to 0:19:57.760 --> 0:20:01.360 do it? Um okay. I wanted to read this one 0:20:01.480 --> 0:20:04.840 because sometimes Bobbyaga is what's called in folklore stories a donor, 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:07.560 like someone who will give you the stuff you need, right, 0:20:07.680 --> 0:20:13.119 like the skull with the fire to burn your slightly 0:20:13.200 --> 0:20:17.280 wicked steps a stepmother, right. And sometimes she's just a 0:20:17.320 --> 0:20:20.560 cannibal on a chicken hut. And I wanted to give 0:20:20.600 --> 0:20:25.240 you a taste. Yeah, exactly, um, give you a taste 0:20:25.280 --> 0:20:29.159 of the cannibal version. So who the fuck is she? 0:20:29.560 --> 0:20:31.879 Where did she come from? We'll talk about her name 0:20:31.880 --> 0:20:33.560 we mentioned a little bit about it last time, and 0:20:33.600 --> 0:20:35.680 take a little bit more into it. The simplest but 0:20:35.760 --> 0:20:38.840 sort of an accurate translation is grandmother witch baba meaning 0:20:38.880 --> 0:20:42.800 grandmother short for babushka um. No, one's really presented a 0:20:42.880 --> 0:20:46.000 compelling case about the etymology of of yoga, but people 0:20:46.000 --> 0:20:51.160 have done it, and baba icily means grandmother in tons 0:20:51.200 --> 0:20:54.520 of Slavic languages. My own Irish grandmother went by baba, 0:20:54.880 --> 0:20:56.840 which is not Irish at all. It might actually just 0:20:56.880 --> 0:20:59.800 be my family being weird, but maybe it's spread elsewhere. 0:21:00.040 --> 0:21:03.680 I I don't really know. It trips off that I 0:21:03.880 --> 0:21:05.800 was as you were saying that I realized that I've 0:21:05.960 --> 0:21:09.560 written on a show where there's the main grandmother characters 0:21:09.600 --> 0:21:12.320 called Baba, and I was like, wow, my memory is 0:21:12.480 --> 0:21:15.360 um bad. One of the things I found really interesting 0:21:15.720 --> 0:21:19.320 I found at least one reference to that um baba 0:21:19.440 --> 0:21:22.440 as a meaning grandmother is probably derived from the Old 0:21:22.520 --> 0:21:28.840 Russian baba meaning midwife, sorceress, or fortune teller. So it's 0:21:29.560 --> 0:21:33.760 actually like grandma means which not the other way around 0:21:34.000 --> 0:21:37.520 or whatever. Okay, And I don't I don't hate that. 0:21:38.080 --> 0:21:42.680 I don't hate that. So basically her names means Granny 0:21:42.720 --> 0:21:45.360 Yuga the witch as far as I can tell. As 0:21:45.400 --> 0:21:48.720 a as a folkloric figure, there's actually no known origin. 0:21:48.800 --> 0:21:51.240 There's a lot of guesses, and I have some guesses 0:21:51.320 --> 0:21:54.000 as well that well they're not my own guess is 0:21:54.040 --> 0:21:57.800 they're the guesses that I prefer esthetically and or I mean, 0:21:57.840 --> 0:22:00.200 it seemed more convincing out of the stuff what I've 0:22:00.240 --> 0:22:03.480 read about it. My question is like, in the chronology 0:22:03.800 --> 0:22:08.360 of witches, do you know, like where where does she come? 0:22:08.560 --> 0:22:14.800 Is she like an early folkloric which character or somewhere 0:22:14.800 --> 0:22:18.440 in the middle, or I guess I I there's just 0:22:18.520 --> 0:22:20.760 been so many witch figures throughout history. I don't really 0:22:20.800 --> 0:22:23.879 know where she falls. I haven't done I actually at 0:22:23.920 --> 0:22:26.920 some point want to do um more of a deep 0:22:27.000 --> 0:22:29.159 dive into the history of witches. And I have like 0:22:29.280 --> 0:22:31.119 the stuff that I've read about it and stuff, but 0:22:31.200 --> 0:22:34.359 that's constantly changing as people present different ideas. So I 0:22:34.960 --> 0:22:37.200 the answers I don't know. UM I can say that 0:22:37.680 --> 0:22:41.800 I can because people don't know when she comes from. 0:22:42.119 --> 0:22:44.159 It seems like she actually is a very similar actual 0:22:44.240 --> 0:22:47.639 origin as witches, but as sort of a a mythic 0:22:47.800 --> 0:22:50.720 figure rather than like, oh, that lady over there will 0:22:50.760 --> 0:22:52.560 like read the entrails of a chicken, so we should 0:22:52.600 --> 0:22:55.639 kill her, you know. I like, I mean, I like, 0:22:55.720 --> 0:23:00.440 I like the variations on like I don't know. I 0:23:00.560 --> 0:23:02.440 like the flavor of which that she is where it's 0:23:02.480 --> 0:23:06.240 like she's very powerful. It doesn't seem like the story 0:23:06.320 --> 0:23:10.119 has a vested interest in doing away with her or 0:23:10.280 --> 0:23:14.480 like making a strong I don't know. I I don't 0:23:14.480 --> 0:23:18.440 think I've encountered this flavor of which before excited well, 0:23:19.240 --> 0:23:25.080 speaking of flavors of witches, uh, which flavored potato chips 0:23:26.200 --> 0:23:33.040 that you could buy called witch chips? Our sponsors today's 0:23:34.800 --> 0:23:42.760 here are some ads and we are back. I'm hoping 0:23:43.080 --> 0:23:46.880 that which is would be into dill pickle chips, only 0:23:46.960 --> 0:23:49.960 because I hope that I'm a witch and dill pickle 0:23:50.040 --> 0:23:52.239 chips are delicious. Have you have either of you ever 0:23:52.320 --> 0:23:55.080 tried them. I've had dill pickles and I've had chips. 0:23:55.840 --> 0:23:59.359 I've had dill pickle chips. They're great. They have no 0:23:59.680 --> 0:24:02.480 no right to be as good as they are. It's 0:24:02.600 --> 0:24:05.840 just it's mostly just really loud salt. That's how I 0:24:05.880 --> 0:24:14.920 would describe the chips sort of. But like, but but 0:24:15.119 --> 0:24:18.520 what if what if vinegar minded her business and it 0:24:18.680 --> 0:24:20.879 was just salt screaming at the top of its lungs. 0:24:20.960 --> 0:24:24.600 It's all capital letters. Salt is what the pickle chip 0:24:24.680 --> 0:24:28.000 tastes like. And that is like as a sodium head. 0:24:28.240 --> 0:24:32.520 All right, I love it. I love it. Big sodium guy, um, 0:24:33.640 --> 0:24:38.520 huge sodium guy. Yeah. Okay, So Bobby I got started 0:24:38.520 --> 0:24:41.680 showing up in written sources in the eighteenth century and 0:24:41.840 --> 0:24:43.680