Our inaugural episode of Playful Subversions has me chatting with Carter Carter—assistant professor, psychotherapist, community organizer, and author of the food column Larder Ardour (with Carter Carter.) I frame the podcast as a response to contemporary authoritarianism and fascism, which I describe as exhausting and immobilizing. Drawing on D.W. Winnicott, I emphasize play and creativity as vital forms of resistance against compliance and psychic deadness. This series is meant to highlight quirky, playful practices that help therapists and activists replenish themselves to continue their work.
Carter discusses the origins of Larder Ardour, a monthly column in the Ashfield News, which emerged after moving with their wife to a small farm in Western Massachusetts just as COVID lockdowns began. Writing about food provided Carter with a creative outlet amid political and clinical work, and allowed them to explore food’s political dimensions—its ties to climate change, colonization, identity, and community. They reflect on articles addressing antisemitism, the politics of Israeli and Palestinian food, and the colonial resonances of American cuisine. Recipes serve not only as nourishment but also as invitations, countering the extractive logic of appropriation with gestures of sharing and cultural memory.
Our conversation includes topics ranging from Carter’s “slutty strawberry cupcakes” to their battles with an aggressive rooster nicknamed “F***face.” Food becomes a lens for ethics, environment, and survival, while also embodying creativity, intimacy, and resilience. This first episode models how play and culinary practice sustain vitality in the face of political and existential fatigue.
