Ozzy Forever

The Josh Wells Weekly, Episode 307

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My tribe! Hanging with my mom and my brother. Had a fun family hang this past Saturday.

Random Thought

Ozzy Osbourne and the original lineup of the legendary Black Sabbath had a “final show ever” this past Saturday in England and although I didn’t get a chance to watch the whole thing, (I’d like to sit down one day and take it all in) I have enjoyed pretty much every single video clip I’ve run into since it happened.

It was all very bittersweet. It felt like a celebration and a farewell all at once. Ozzy ascended from below the stage on a cool looking black throne. He couldn’t stand. Sometimes you see old rockers and you think, “they’re looking good or moving around well for their age.” That was not the case with Ozzy. However, he fucking brought it while sitting in that throne. The Ozzy voice is so unique, powerful, and one-of-a-kind. He could sit, stand, or lay down on a bed and it would be incredible to hear those songs coming from his mouth.

It was all very star-studded with a bunch of other famous bands and musicians of the hard rock and metal persuasion present and performing as well. It was a bit of a who’s who for older metal heads. I’m not sure if it’ll go down as the greatest hard rock/metal show of all time but it definitely feels like it’ll go down as memorable and important.

But as Ozzy ages, so do the rest of us. A part of me supposes I could get sad about it. But I guess this, like almost everything else in life, is a reminder to keep rocking while you can. And always put respect on the legends that came before us no matter what the genre or artform is. We all have a limited timeframe, but what really matters is carrying the torch when it’s your turn to do so. Ozzy has passed the torch.

All hail Ozzy. One of the best to ever do it.

Movie I Watched Recently

The Road Dog

(Prime)

Full disclosure, the only reason I watched this movie is because it features my favorite living standup comedian, Doug Stanhope. I don’t know if I’d even know this movie was a thing if he wasn’t in it. It’s super indie, which is not a bad thing but it’s obviously off the beaten path of the mainstream and this is what drew me to it.

Doug Stanhope plays an aging, alcoholic road comic (Jimmy Quinn). It doesn’t feel like too much of a stretch for Stanhope from his real life. Jimmy Quinn feels like maybe a sadder, less famous version of Stanhope who instead of having fun being an alcoholic, has totally let it consume him.

Jimmy has a 21-year-old son (David) who he hasn’t seen or had contact with in a very long time. David surprises Jimmy one day and visits him unannounced at a motel Jimmy is staying at. The two connect and David begins to tag along with his dad for a few of his gigs. David has recently dropped out of med school and plans to move to NYC to be a standup comedian as well.

Their relationship starts out awkward but at times they seem to start to get along and like each other and the movie hits some sincere emotional notes along the way. There’s definitely this constant feeling though that it could all blow up at any moment.

Does it all blow up? Only one way to find out. I enjoyed it. It leans into dark territory without diving all the way in and also, all the comedy stuff is interesting and at times relatable for me. If this sounds like you’re kinda thing, give it a watch.

I feel like there could be so much fun backstory on Jimmy Quinn. Like one detail they never really dig into, he doesn’t have a car of his own. He takes the bus everywhere. Is it so he can drink more? Did he total his car somewhere along the way? Did he lose his license for what I can only assume was some kind of alcohol-related driving offense? We’ll never know, unless they make a prequel.

Rest in Peace Michael Madsen

Michael Madsen passed away recently. Making it weirder for me, in last week’s newsletter, I wrote about a movie from 1993 called, ‘Money For Nothing,’ and Madsen played an FBI agent in that movie. I put the newsletter out and maybe like an hour later, I started seeing posts and even got a text from my brother saying that he passed away. It felt so surreal that I had just seen this movie and wrote about it and even typed out his name, hit publish, and an hour later received the news.

To know me is to know I love the movie Reservoir Dogs. I know Madsen’s been in a ton of other movies, but I don’t think there’s a role more synonymous with his name than Mr. Blonde. In a movie featuring a bunch of killers (killers at acting but I guess also fictitiously they were killers), Madsen’s character shined the brightest. He was portrayed as a maniac by his peers for things he’d done in scenes we’ll never get to see. But anytime he took up space in Dogs, he was cool as ice. He steals the movie with THE SCENE. You know the scene, right? Stuck in the Middle with You, dancing, a cop, and an ear. And although his character doesn’t make it out of the first half of the movie, by the end of it all, he’s the most memorable.

I know there’s more to Madsen than just this one movie. But this movie means so much to me. It’s always been one of my favorites. And growing up, me and my friend Kenneth would watch this movie so much and quote it all the time. Kenneth passed away a few years ago which made this movie suddenly feel even more important to me. And now Kenneth is gone and so is Madsen and although I’m an atheist, I really wanna believe the two of them are in some afterlife somewhere quoting pieces of this movie back and forth to one another.

Rest in peace, Michael Madsen. Rest in peace, Mr. Blonde. Blonde probably deserved to die. Madsen should’ve been able to live forever.

TV show I’m currently watching

The Bear

(Hulu)

I have one more episode to go and then that’s it. I think subconsciously I’ve been holding it off so that the experience lasts a little longer. But also, realistically, I’ve just been too busy to fit it in anywhere. Also, when I do end up watching it, I wanna give it my full attention.

I feel like every season of the Bear has one episode that really sticks out and has everyone talking and my guess is this season it will be the hour-long Wedding episode. We get a glimpse into some of the inner workings of the Berzatto and Fak families. We also get the answer to one of life’s most important questions, how many people can you fit under a table?

I think a big difference in this season so far is that although the restaurant itself seems doomed and maybe things should be sadder and heavier than ever, the vibe is somehow lighter. This season hasn’t left me with the same feelings of anxiousness previous seasons have.

One of the bigger issues of this season, will Sid stay or go, seems to have been solved before the season even ends which was kinda surprising to me. Now I’m just sorta waiting for everything else to fall into place with this last episode. Are we gonna get a soft landing with a bunch of good feelings or will this show somehow pull the rug out from under me and find a way to crash and burn?

There’s a lot of people under that table.

Album of the Week

For The People / Dropkick Murphys

Look, I will absolutely listen to every album this band ever puts out. Do I like them as much as I used to? I do not. Will I ever enjoy any of their albums as much as their first 3 or 4? Probably not. But this band is just too important in my own personal punk rock history to ignore. I will be tied to them till the end of my days (it’s a long story for another day but DM play a pivotal role in my punk rock origins).

It’s not that this album is bad. It’s very okay. It just sorta feels like this band has a brand and is self-aware of it so they make sure they check all the items on the list and that’s what this album feels like to me. I might’ve even liked this album a lot more than some of their other “post first 4” albums. It definitely rocks, but in a sorta predictable way.

There are some valuable songs on here though. There’s a tribute to Shane McGowan to end the album which feels super appropriate. There’s another tribute to Fletcher from the band Pennywise who isn’t dead or even sick, I guess they just wanted the world to know what a cool guy he is. There’s also a song featuring Al Barr which holds sentimental value to me because Al Barr used to be a full-fledged member of this band and also, Al Barr rules.

These days, I think I love Dropkick Murphys more for what they represent than what they sound like. They’re total pro-working class, pro-immigrant, pro-union people. They hate Trump and they’re very loud and proud about it. Those politics don’t seem to come into play with the lyrics on this album, but if you pay attention to the news, the Dropkick Murphys seem to semi-consistently upset Republicans and Nazis at their shows. They’re older and maybe their music has grown more predictable but they’re still punk rockers at heart.

A very pro-protest album cover. I dig it.

Book I’m Currently Reading

Drugs Are Nice / Lisa Crystal Carver

I finished this book up. I was so close to being done with it at this time last week that I don’t feel like I got a lot more to say about it. Lisa eventually breaks away from her asshole husband and moves back to New Hampshire and it ends with her just sorta picking up the pieces of her life and moving on without that dude.

It was a bumpy ride for sure. Lisa seemed to have been living such a wild, chaotic, artistic life that also seemed mostly fun, if not dangerous from time to time. But then it felt so anticlimactic when she went from being this untamable creature to allowing some asshole to totally dominate her life and try to take away all her spark. It was a big relief when she broke free from him.

I’m not sure if this is an alternate cover or just some weird fan art I found on Google images, but I dig it.

Random sports thought of the week

I haven’t been paying much attention to sports. I did watch the hotdog eating contest on July 4th. I watched both the women’s and the men’s competitions. Competitive eating is interesting. I don’t think I’d ever wanna partake in it. I enjoy eating and I’d hate to ruin it somehow. I’m sure there’s glory to be gained, but while it’s happening, it doesn’t look like the competitors are having a lot of fun.

It’s insane how many more hot dogs Joey Chestnut can eat than everyone else. I think the next closest to him ate something like 20 less hot dogs than he did. That’s crazy to me. I don’t think I could even eat 20 hot dogs in one sitting, never mind eating so many that no one can come within 20 of me.

Just the best in the world doing his thing.

Random pro wrestling thought of the week

This upcoming weekend is going to be insane for wrestling. The biggest show of the weekend is AEW’s All In PPV on Saturday. It’s their biggest PPV of the year and apparently WWE took notice because they decided to stack the weekend with their own special programming as well.

WWE will air an NXT PPV at 2:30pm on Saturday (that pretty much goes head-to-head with AEW’s All-In) and then at night they will have Saturday Night Main Event which is on network TV (NBC) at 8pm and is probably the reason why AEW’s All In is starting so early (3pm).

WWE will also be airing their all-female Evolution PPV on Sunday which bothers me because I’d really like to see this show get its own weekend. I feel like it’s gonna get overshadowed by everything else that’s going on. And it doesn’t help that WWE has done a pretty mediocre job of building up stories and matches for the card.

There’s also a ROH PPV on Friday night if you’re a complete maniac or have no social life. And that might be it but I’m a little afraid I still might be forgetting something.

I’d really like to see AEW and WWE come to some agreement or mutual compromise to let each other have their own space around their big shows. I get that it’s business and business isn’t friendly but as a fan, this sucks. I wanna enjoy it all but I’m definitely not gonna be able to so decisions will have to be made (AEW All-In is top priority).

Then next weekend will come around and there’ll be no major wrestling show to watch. That’s when it’ll really feel like this pro wrestling arms race is completely silly and dumb.

Speaking of being overshadowed, FTR and Outrunners had a great match on Collision this past week that was well done and entertaining. It’s definitely the best match of the Outrunners’ career so far and for FTR, maybe it’s just par for the course. Those dudes are really good at this tag team stuff.

Top 5 Ozzy Songs (solo and Black Sabbath)

1- War Pigs

2- Paranoid

3- Crazy Train

4- Mama, I’m Coming Home

5- Iron Man

Weekly Quote

Thanks for reading!

Follow me on IG, Twitter, and BlueSky:

@joshaintfunny

If you haven’t seen it yet, please go to YouTube and give my 40th birthday comedy set a spin, and while you’re at it, a like, a comment, or a share would be appreciated and goes a long way as well. If you’re feeling really crazy, hit subscribe… no pressure.

I got some other videos as well if you want to check them out. I just uploaded a raw phone recording of my 30-minute set for my 45th birthday. Unpolished, unedited, warts and all, if you’re into that sorta thing. Go here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRg2MM2mOOvh1JKnDatFiBQ

Upcoming Shows

TONIGHT!!!

Fri, 7/11

Bergenfield, NJ

Sun, 7/13

Guttenberg, NJ

Fri, 7/18

NEXT HELL YEA!

North Bergen, NJ

Fri, 7/25

Hasbrouck Heights, NJ

more info to come

Fri, 8/01

Piermont, NY

Fri, 8/08

Ridgefield Park, NJ

Dart Night

The Josh Wells Weekly, Episode 306

This newsletter is free, however if you like the content and you think it’s worthy of any sort of gratuity, feel free to drop a donation to:

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Me and my street gang. We go hard. (Those are my wonderful, amazing, awesome, super-cool nieces for those not in the know).

Random Thought

I’ve been doing this thing lately on Tuesday nights where I go out to have a few beers and not do comedy. Sometimes it feels like comedy is the only thing that gets me out of my apartment, but I try to remind myself that there’s more to life and my social life specifically than just comedy stuff. And on Tuesdays, one of my life long best buds bartends at a local spot so it’s a cool chance to chill out and catch up. It’s usually slow and I can put a bunch of songs on the jukebox.

But this past Tuesday it was really busy. It was dart night. It was the first dart night of the new season I believe. I’m not complaining. It was just noticeably more hectic than usual. All these people were standing around, hooting and hollering as darts flew across the room and hit the board.

A brief side note: A younger me would tell you darts is stupid. But I’m older now and I’m trying to be better at this sorta thing where just because I don’t like something, doesn’t mean it sucks. It’s just not for me. But I should enjoy other people enjoying things. That’s always a cool thing and that never hurt no one.

So, I mostly hung out and watched the dart players play darts. I wasn’t even really watching the darts themselves. I was more into the people-watching aspect of it all. These dart games were bringing a lot of these people some real joy. I thought, how great is that? It’s Tuesday night. Most people just look forward to the weekend and that’s it. But to find joy on a regular old weeknight such as Tuesday in my mind is some kind of leveling up in life. Most people will show up to work on Wednesday with no story to tell. But not the dart players. A few of them probably had a rough go of it on Wednesday morning, drinks and shots were flowing, but I imagine that’s a small sacrifice to make to the good time dart gods.

Everyone’s got their own thing. For many years, it felt to me like dart and pool players were in some way an enemy to comedy. But that’s just because so much comedy is done in bars and goes up against these activities. No one’s out to harm the other. We’re all just trying to do our thing. I remember doing a weekly comedy show at this place that had pool league nights at the same time as the show (which is probably a severe organizational/scheduling error in hindsight) and the pool players would get mad if we tried to talk to them and in the moment I was sorta like, “well, fuck you guys then.” But pool probably means as much to them as comedy does to me.

If you can find a thing that brings you joy and gets you out of the home for a few and allows you some time to hang with your buds, there’s not much better than that. Doesn’t matter if it’s comedy, darts, or a book club. Bearing witness to Tuesday night dart league was a reminder that there’s joy in the world. There’s fun to be had. Your tribe is out there waiting for you. And if you hit that winning shot on dart night, the people around you will make you feel like you just won the goddamn Super Bowl. A momentary hero, surrounded by your people, getting the most you can out of life on a Tuesday night.

Movie I Watched Recently

Money For Nothing

(Prime)

This movie presents us with the moral quandary of what would you do if you found a bag of money that fell off an armored truck on the side of the road? The wildest thing about this movie is that it’s based on a true story. The dude (Joey Coyle) did try to keep it, and the story is extremely fascinating to me.

The movie cast is ridiculous. The movie came out in 1993 and it’s young versions of the following: John Cusack (plays the lead), Benicio del Toro, Michael Rapaport, James Gandolfini, Philip Seymour Hoffman (so young that he’s listed as ‘Philip S. Hoffman’ in the credits), Debi Mazar, and Michael Madsen. Madsen actually doesn’t look like a younger version of himself. This came out about a year after Reservoir Dogs which is probably his most well-known role. Funny thing about that is in Dogs, he played a cop hating gangster but in this movie, he is an FBI agent with an attitude.

It’s a fun movie that really played with my own moral compass. There’s a part of me that wants him to get away with it. Start a new life. Live better. But slowly as the movie progresses, more people find out he’s the one who took the money (it becomes a major news story locally, that being in Philadelphia). Only so many people can keep a secret like this safe until everything falls apart.

Or does it? I don’t know… I don’t really wanna spoil it for you if you haven’t seen it. I enjoyed the ending. There’s even a fun twist that coincides with the true story that I couldn’t fully believe was true until I did some googling after, and maybe if you watch the movie or read up on the true story, we can talk about it someday.

There’s also a book about this dude. Who knows? Maybe that’ll make it to the book section of the newsletter one of these days.

Hug it tight. I think there was $1.2 million in there. There are moments in this movie where I don’t think Joey Coyle has a realistic idea of the limitations of how far that kind of money will get you. It can do a lot, but it’d run out pretty quickly if he followed through with some of the things he said he wanted to do with it.

TV show I’m currently watching

The Bear

(Hulu)

The Bear is back and so is my Hulu account. Back in January, I was looking for ways to save money, so I got rid of Hulu. It was the streaming service I probably used the least. But I just couldn’t stand not be able to watch the newest season of the Bear so I’m back in Hulu’s arms, but this time with the cheaper version that shows ads. I was pretty certain it was only a matter of time anyways. Hulu will also be the exclusive place to get new King of the Hill episodes when those drop.

I’m trying to do this thing where I limit myself to one episode a day. I did two in a row on Day 1 and then I told myself this was crazy, that if I didn’t reign it in, I’d be finished with it in 2-3 days, and I don’t want that. I wanna stretch it out, make it last. Plus, it gives me a little more time to consume what I’ve already watched.

I don’t wanna spoil a bunch because the show did just drop and I’m trying to avoid spoilers myself. But the dysfunctional kitchen staff is back and possibly as dysfunctional as ever although it does seem like Carmy’s reigned in his lunacy a bit and also the beef sandwich stand seems to have it together actually.

I’ve probably said this before about this show, but I’ll watch an episode and feel like so much happens but then I’ll think back on it and actually it seems like not much happened at all. This show does some kind of magic trick where they make you think you’ve seen more than you did. Maybe it’s how they present the minutiae of everything. I don’t know for sure. All I know is that it’s still very fucking good. This season has presented a few fresh angles as well as some add-ons to a couple of old ones. It’s good to see that The Bear has not jumped the proverbial shark yet.

A fun reaction I’ve had at the end of every episode so far is, “c’mon man! You can’t end it there!” But they do. I always wanna text my brother (because I know he’s ahead of me) and be like, “can you believe they ended episode such-and-such there?” But I don’t because he’d probably just be like, “don’t worry, they explain that three episodes later,” because the Bear never explains it in the next episode (maybe ‘never’ is an extreme term but this show definitely likes to flirt and tease and make you wait).

Love these characters. Maybe that’s this show’s strength? I don’t know. The plot and dialogue (and lack of dialogue sometimes) are very, very good as well.

Album of the Week

Mental Madness / Pig Pen

This might be peak Josh Wells Weekly content. This dude below, Matty Matheson, who plays Neil Fak in the Bear, is also the lead singer of a hardcore band, Pig Pen.

The album came out this past week which coincides with the dropping of the new season of The Bear which I suppose is a clever marketing plan. Not that I’d expect much crossover from Bear fans. This is some real hardcore shit. I feel like you gotta be a preexisting fan of hardcore to get into it.

It’s a decent album, pretty much par for the course for hardcore. I’ve heard better but I’ve definitely heard worse. If you wanna get angry for 24 minutes, it’ll do the trick. It’s hard not to think of Matheson’s character in The Bear and what a teddy bear he is on that show but here he is in real life, tattooed and screaming. I suppose it’s a fun dichotomy.

I can’t help but wonder what it’d look like if the cast of The Bear went to a Pig Pen show. Maybe some of them even get into it, go crazy and try moshing. It’s similar to the visions I’ve had for many years of cast members of Law and Order: SVU going to a Body Count concert (Ice-T’s metal band).

So, if anyone in the media is going to interview cast members of The Bear, ask the important questions. Ask the hard questions. Have they heard Pig Pen? Will they go see Pig Pen (or if they have, will they go again?) Do they like Pig Pen?

I would’ve been tempted to take the Peanuts character Pig Pen and redraw him as a hardcore kid for the cover, but to each their own.

Book I’m Currently Reading

Drugs Are Nice / Lisa Crystal Carver

This book has taken a turn. Lisa was leading a pretty rocky artistic lifestyle that always seemed to be flirting with complete chaos but there always seemed to be an element of fun to all of it.

But then she meets this dude, and he totally dominates her in a way where she’s suddenly less free. She’s still publishing her zine, ‘Rollerderby’ but she doesn’t seem to talk about it a lot in this portion of the book. It just feels like this dude she married is squeezing the life and freedom out of her. On top of that, the dude’s mom is a complete asshole who doesn’t like her. Lisa moved to Denver to be with him and it’s like she’s got no one else.

I just got to a part though where she leaves him. She’s taking her baby and leaving for her old stomping grounds of New Hampshire where I’m hoping things work out better for her.

More to come. Pretty close to finished. Oh, also, she wrote this other book, a novel, ‘Dancing Queen,’ that I will probably end up reading as well.

This is an alternate cover I found on Google just now. I get the Hunter comparison. It’s a bit gonzo.

Random sports thought of the week

Now that the NBA playoffs are over, I’ve sorta taken a mental break from sports. But here’s a few quick thoughts:

-The Indiana Fever won the in-season Commissioner’s Cup tournament, and they did it without Caitlyn Clark who is currently injured. I’m cautiously hoping Clark will be okay and playing dominant basketball again soon. But wow, this team was able to get shit done without her. Kinda scary to think how good this team can be if/when Clark’s healthy.

-The WNBA is expanding pretty fast. They’ll be adding three more cities in the next few years (Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia). This is pretty exciting stuff. I totally believe that if the WNBA keeps getting the support of TV channels airing their games, they can maintain being a successful league. There’s a lot to enjoy about it and if you’re a basketball fan, it’s like you get great basketball all year round. It just needs to remain accessible so new fans can find their way to it.

-Shoutout to Damian Lillard. I’m a big Lillard fan. So, when I first heard that Lillard was released by the Bucks, I was bummed. But then I would later find out some of the financial details. To help restructure their budget, the Bucks let Lillard go but with a restructured payout that will see him making something like $22 million a year over the next five years. He could do nothing, not play basketball, and that money is his.

It’s exciting to think of the possibilities once he heals from his injury. Since he’s already making bank, it’s very conceivable he could go to any team he wants at a cheap price and chase a ring or whatever else he wants to chase. I hope it’s a ring though. I’d like to see him get one before his career is over. But also, it’d be sorta funny if he disappeared and did nothing and just enjoyed his life with his newfound riches.

A picture of the Fever celebrating their big victory. I was watching ESPN and one of the dudes on there said something along the lines of how the Fever could show the Oklahoma City Thunder a thing or two about celebrating (The Oklahoma City Thunder are famously young and there’s clips of them looking awkward around champagne bottles, like they didn’t know what to do with them).

Random pro wrestling thought of the week

Some quick random thoughts:

-I can’t believe Asuka’s big comeback-from-injury angle was just to put Jade over in the finals of the Queen of the Ring tournament. Asuka deserves better. LAME.

- I was really excited for Punk vs Cena. I thought it was an entertaining match, but the end was very wild. Obviously, they had to find a way to keep the title on Cena without making Punk look weak and Rollins has to be in the fray just to remind everyone of his presence.

-Speaking of Rollins, I’m of the opinion that they need to do something big with his cash in and it’s gotta be soon. The tease at Night of Champions was good if only because it lets us know what the possibilities are. But I don’t think they should let too much time pass. I’d have him either cash in by or at SummerSlam.

-I’m gonna give it more time, but I’m not sure if I like MJF being added to Hurt Syndicate. I was really into it when MJF was trying to sell his case to join the group. But now that he’s in it, it feels like Bobby and Shelton are taking a bit of a backseat to him and I don’t think that’s the direction they need to be going. Bobby Lashley especially…. dude is legit. He needs to be top of the card soon. Anything else in my mind would be a waste of his talents.

-They announced these gauntlet matches for AEW’s All-In and it’s got me thinking we might see some surprises in those matches. Do Darby Allin and/or Orange Cassidy possibly make their long-awaited returns? It’d be fun to see either one of them come back and win a title shot.

-Everyone in the Judgement Night currently has a title. It’s incredible what they’ve done with this stable and how long it’s been kept a vital part of weekly TV programming. Think of all the members that have come and gone, all the storylines, all the titles, all the drama. It’s very well done. I say keep pushing, keep going, keep letting it change shape and form. I think the fluidity is what’s helped keep it fresh and entertaining for so long.

But never get rid of Finn. This is his group. He’s the only OG member.

Top 5 things that I think suck that I’m trying to not hate on others for liking but it’s hard.

1- Nickelback

2- Coldplay

3- baseball

4- Jake and Logan Paul

5- eggplant

Weekly Quote

“The British media in a frenzy about Bob Vylan and Kneecap but artists all weekend at Glastonbury from pop to rock to rap to punk to DJs spoke up onstage and there were tons of flags on every streamed set. Trying to make it look like just a couple of isolated incidents and a couple of ‘bad bands’ so it appears the public isn’t as anti-genocide as it is, and trying to make it look like Bob and Kneecap are one-offs, instead of that the status quo has shifted majorly and that people are concerned and desperate for our governments to listen. And if you don’t want politics in music don’t blame the musicians, blame the politicians and journalists, and the political landscape in general, for not doing their job, and there’ll be more and more of this until it stops.”

-Amyl and the Sniffers on their IG commenting on the recent controversies at the Glastonbury Music Festival

Thanks for reading!

Follow me on IG, Twitter, and BlueSky:

@joshaintfunny

If you haven’t seen it yet, please go to YouTube and give my 40th birthday comedy set a spin, and while you’re at it, a like, a comment, or a share would be appreciated and goes a long way as well. If you’re feeling really crazy, hit subscribe… no pressure.

I got some other videos as well if you want to check them out. I just uploaded a raw phone recording of my 30-minute set for my 45th birthday. Unpolished, unedited, warts and all, if you’re into that sorta thing. Go here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRg2MM2mOOvh1JKnDatFiBQ

Upcoming Shows

Sun, 7/06

Guttenberg, NJ

Fri, 7/11

Bergenfield, NJ

Fri, 7/18

NEXT HELL YEA! ALERT

more info to come

Fri, 7/25

Hasbrouck Heights, NJ

more info to come

Fri, 8/01

Piermont, NY
more info to come

Fri, 8/08

Ridgefield Park, NJ

Sad Songs

The Josh Wells Weekly, Episode 305

This newsletter is free, however if you like the content and you think it’s worthy of any sort of gratuity, feel free to drop a donation to:

Venmo:

@joshwells666

or Cash App:

@joshaintfunny

No pressure. Now, on with the newsletter.

Telling jokes and pointing at things in front of a dartboard at the Wild Rover in Guttenberg, NJ. We’re there every Sunday night at 8:30pm having a good time!

Random Thought

I know I’m not as sad as I used to be because there’s a bunch of sad songs that come up on my Spotify shuffle and they don’t make me sad like they used to. Well, I shouldn’t say the songs make me sad. It’s just that there’s a bunch of songs out there that convey a level of sadness that matched whatever my own level of sadness was when I first heard those songs.

I have a fairly long list of sad songs I’m a fan of from a lifetime of being sad. It’s not that I’ve been sad my entire life, it’s just that I’ve had bouts of sadness here and there throughout it all. And I can usually gauge my current sadness by how I react to these songs.

Because when I’m sad, it’s like these songs are hugging me and letting me know I’m not alone and that sadness is universal even if the circumstances are specific and different for everyone. When I’m sad, these songs will play and I’ll stop and give it a second of thought like, “I really needed this song right now.” Or maybe I’ll turn the volume up a notch or two. Or if I’m really in a bind, I’ll stop what I’m doing and give the song my complete attention.

Now, whenever these sad songs play, my reaction is something like well, this isn’t hitting like it used to but I still recognize this song’s greatness and the love I had for this song when I first stumbled across it so I’ll let it play. In some extreme cases, I’ll hear a sad song I know and love and be in a good enough mood to skip it entirely. Those are the moments when I’m really feeling myself.

I’m forever grateful for sad songs. I know I’ll be sad again because that’s life and these songs will be there for me in an otherwise cold world that feels like it just keeps cruelly moving along when I need a moment to stop and work my sad shit out. Sad songs won’t cure sadness but there’s something beautiful about how they acknowledge our sadness and for a few minutes make it feel okay to be sad.

Be sad. Feel your feelings. Play a sad song (or several sad songs). My hope for anyone and everyone is that you just don’t stay sad for too long and you find yourself flying high and hitting skip soon enough.

Movie I Watched Recently

I Like Movies

(Prime)

This was a decent movie about a 17-year-old kid (Lawrence) who is about to graduate high school and has big dreams of going to NYU for film school. He’s socially inept and a bit of a narcissist and although his post-high school vision is strong, it doesn’t necessarily mean that’ll be enough to carry him through.

There’s a lot this movie has going for it with me. A know-it-all teenager who’s a film buff and thinks all his wildest dreams are gonna come true sorta reminds me of myself in some manner. I don’t think I was ever that much of a know-it-all or film buff, but this movie portrays the realization when some of your visions for your future will certainly be compromised and the pain that comes with all of that.

It’s set in the early 2000s so there’s no cell phones in the movie (or at least, I don’t recall seeing any. I know there were cell phones in the early 2000s, but I don’t think they were anywhere near as prevalent as they are now). Lawrence gets a job at a video rental store which is where a big chunk of the movie takes place which adds an enjoyable layer of nostalgia.

Lawrence is hard to like though, and they don’t really offer you a lot in the other characters so it’s hard to find someone to root for. He’s mean to his mom a bunch. There is a very sad thing that happened in his family that makes it very understandable why Lawrence would be a mess, but still, it’s hard to like a character who yells at his mom when the mom is just trying her best to deal with the same sad situation he’s dealing with.

He’s also a dick to his best friend (Matt) and that’s all part of a subplot that goes along with the rest of his movie. He’s also a dick to his boss (Tabitha) who actually seems like a pretty cool boss. It’s no dream job or dream, life, but everyone around Lawrence is trying their best and Lawrence is ungrateful for all of it.

Without spoiling too much, this movie avoids a cliché happy ending. I don’t wanna give away too many specifics, but the ending felt about as appropriate of an ending a movie like this can get. I’m just glad they didn’t do that thing where Lawrence becomes a better person in a montage towards the end and then gets everything he wants.

I’m not saying it’s gonna be, but this could be the last movie ever about the staff at a video rental store. Sure, there could be more in the future but what if there isn’t? Eventually, someone somewhere will make the last movie ever about working at a video rental store.

TV show I’m currently watching

Jeopardy!

No new binge. Just Jeopardy! Nothing exciting to report here.

Album of the Week

Sogolo / Witch

This is a wild album by a wild band. Witch is a psychedelic rock band from Zambia. The name ‘Witch’ is an acronym for ‘We Intend to Cause Havoc.’ What’s not to love about that name?

Most of the album is in local Zambian language although there are two songs that are in English. The sound ranges from psychedelic rock to something I can only describe as psychedelic tribal music. The beats and drums are strong. There are many vocalists. The guitars are wild and out there when they need to be.

I’d say overall this was a far-out album. But far-out in all the best ways. It’s certainly not boring. The strong beats act as a backbone that never lets this album get too out of line or spacey. It’s psychedelic but with purpose and drive. It’s even a bit dance-y at times.

I read up on the band a bit. They got their start in the 70s. They sorta disappeared till vinyl nerds found their stuff and caused a bit of a resurgence that led them to getting back together. Pretty rad story.

A far-out album cover for a far-out album.

Book I’m Currently Reading

Drugs Are Nice / Lisa Crystal Carver

I’m a lot deeper into this book now and so far, it’s been a wild story. Lisa takes us on a real journey. She starts an avant-garde band/music project. She eventually marries this dude and gets herself into a confusing marital situation that is open but also abusive at times. Also, her husband kinda steers her musical output in his direction and they start collaborating (Lisa ditches her one-time best friend Rachel who was in a band with her before this). She moves back and forth to France and then back to New Hampshire. There’s drugs and sex and a lot of living life to the limits and beyond.

When Lisa settles back down into New Hampshire life, she starts a zine called Rollerderby. And actually, I’ve just gotten to this part of the book, so she just started it but it’s kinda inspirational to a dude with a newsletter. It’s fun to read what her wild ideas were and how much joy she got out of putting them in print.

Fun, wild read so far. More to come…

That’s Rachel and Lisa, the original lineup of the experimental band, Suckdog. ‘Drugs Are Nice’ is a Suckdog song and where Lisa got the title of the book from.

Random sports thought of the week

The Oklahoma City Thunder did the thing I was pretty certain they were gonna do for the past few months, and that’s win the NBA Championship. Congratulations to them and that concludes what is probably my favorite time of the sports year, the NBA playoffs.

I enjoyed watching the Oklahoma City Thunder a bunch. They are a young team that plays skilled and fast lead by a young superstar, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is sure to be providing us with many more years of exciting basketball. I do think this team can remain dominant for years to come but a lot of these young guys are on rookie contracts and finding the money to pay them all when contracts are up and new ones need to get made could be tricky.

I thought it was a little odd that Kevin Durant was traded to the Houston Rockets on the same day as Game 7. Prior to this season, Durant was the biggest thing that ever happened to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Seeing him get traded once more to try and chase glory felt like a real passing of the torch moment generationally for the NBA. The team he abandoned early in his career finally figured it out while Durant struggles to figure out how to end his career.

Semi-bold prediction: this year’s finals and playoffs are the beginning of something new and different. I don’t think the major stars of the old guard will win any more championships after this. I’m talking about LeBron, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant. The next generation has fully arrived.

And finally, how can I sum things up without writing about the tragic injury of Tyrese Haliburton. Personally, for me, the Pacers will stand out as one of the big themes of this year’s playoffs. Going into the playoffs, I didn’t dig too deep into this team, and I definitely didn’t have them pegged for Finals contenders. They blew away expectations and were entertaining the entire way. The Pacers were amazing underdogs and a lot of fun to watch, especially Haliburton. When he was on, it was magic. He delivered so much late-game heroics in these playoffs, it’s stunning to think about.

Haliburton tore his right Achilles in the final game of the season. It’s like he almost made it all the way but ended up paying the ultimate sacrifice. A lot of back and forth will be made on whether he should’ve played and everyone has a right to their opinion I suppose but at the end of the day, it was on him and he chose to play and I respect that so much. It’s all about that championship. The finish line was in sight. How could he not chance it?

Here’s hoping he heals fast and maybe even faster than the prognosticators estimate (I heard he could miss all of next season. Insert sad face here).

The trophy, the team, and the amazing fans of Oklahoma City.

Random pro wrestling thought of the week

John Cena delivered a “pipe bomb” of his own on last week’s Smackdown against CM Punk. It felt slightly overdue for me. Since CM Punk’s return, I was waiting for someone to really go in on Punk in a promo. Seth’s been okay and said some scathing things but there was never a promo that I felt would be memorable and he never seemed to get the best of Punk. Drew did some really good promo work against CM Punk that was almost surprising but then again maybe not, maybe all Drew needed was a chance.

But Cena’s promo was different. It felt like for the first time in CM Punk’s latest WWE run, someone got the best of Punk on the mic. I’d go as far as to say that CM Punk is probably the best promo/mic guy in pro wrestling right now (except for maybe Paul Heyman who is not a wrestler, so we’ll just curb that convo for another day) and I feel like WWE talent has had a hard time going toe-to-toe with him on the mic.

And even with this Cena feud, for a few weeks there it felt like Cena was just gonna stand there with a grimace while Punk talked and just be all “whatever” about it and it was annoying me because here’s John Cena, perhaps the only dude with the clout and the promo skills to put Punk in his place.

And then he let it out. He called Punk a bullshitter and Mr. TKO. He broke the fourth wall and waved hello to former WWE talents by their non-WWE names. And as he kept talking, it seemed the crowd got more into it. By the time it was over, people were cheering. Maybe Cena’s promo was that good that it changed some minds?

It won’t go down as the best promo ever, but it might be my favorite John Cena promo ever. It’s probably the best promo of the year. It’s easily the best promo against Punk in this current CM Punk/WWE run. It may be one of the best promos against CM Punk ever (although I’ll always love the Eddie Kingston stuff in AEW).

It’s also the moment for me personally where I’m fully all in on Cena as a heel now. It took some time to get there. At first, I felt sorta bad. Here’s a dude who’s gonna go down as one of the greatest to do it. He spent so much time on top as a babyface hero… Mr. Make-A-Wish. The heel turn felt a little wrong to me at first. But as time’s gone by, I’ve slowly gotten more into it. But this promo right here, this was the moment where I was like, “I’m into this.” And maybe I’m crazy, but I think I might not be alone. I’m starting to think there’s a chance Cena can get over as an asshole heel who speaks his mind and tells it like it is.

Matt Cardona said “hey” back. That’s a fun thing about working the indies, you can just come out and do these sorta things right away. No responses yet from Claudio or Nic Nemeth.

Top 5 Sad Songs

1- Sleep Walk / Santo and Johnny

2- Hurt / NIN or Johnny Cash (let’s call it a tie)

3- Where Did You Sleep Last Night / The Nirvana Unplugged Version

4- Sunrise, Sunset / Bright Eyes

5- 9/10 / Jeff Rosenstock

Weekly Quote

“Anything well done has the feeling of death to me, of being finished. I don't want to "master" anything. I want to spy, and sneak, and capture things just as they are… record all that comes before and after the song—jokes and fights and private moments.”

-Lisa Crystal Carver

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We're all the screaming man on the street

The Josh Wells Weekly, Episode 304

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We did it, we took it to the streets. Despite not the best weather, the turnout for No Kings Day was epic. Umbrellas as far as the eye can see.

Random Thought

The other day I saw a dude yelling on the streets at no one in particular. He was losing his mind and people were just walking by him not paying any sort of attention. A part of me thought that maybe he was crazy for yelling his head off but then again, this world is insane. Why aren’t there more of us yelling our heads off? The more thought I gave it, the more miraculous I thought it was that more of us aren’t losing it on this level. Is he crazy or are we crazy for just accepting it and walking by silently?

The other day I took part in those ‘No Kings Day’ protests. It was cool and empowering in a way to be surrounded by thousands of people who also see what’s going on around us and wanna call, “BULLSHIT.” While walking the streets of NYC, yelling our heads off, anything seemed possible. Maybe we could force the positive changes we want to see so badly.

I got home from the protests and saw footage of all the other protests across the country (and some in other countries). I thought it was amazing. It really felt like a moment. Then I saw a stat somewhere that there were millions protesting and it was estimated that 3-4% of America’s population took part in it.

Hearing that 3-4% stat kinda threw me back. Earlier that day, there were so many of us. It felt something like or near invincible. But as soon as it was over, we all had to go to our mutual homes and be 4% of the population again. That means for every gathering of 20 people (or so), we average out to being the only person in that gathering who gives enough of a fuck to scream about it in the streets. If I started shouting the same chants I chanted at that protest, 19 people would look at me and think I’ve lost it.

And then I realized that in a way, we’re all the screaming man on the street. We’re all willing to lose it for something. It’s just that not everyone else wants to lose it for the same reasons so we’ll always feel outnumbered. We all get a turn and when it’s over, we forget we ever played that part and get all weird whenever it’s someone else’s turn. It’s like we’re all fine with the yelling but only if we’re the one that’s doing it.

One of my favorite signs at the ‘No Kings Day’ protest:

Movie I Watched Recently

Barbarian

(Netflix)

This movie was pretty scary but also captivating in a dark sorta way. So, there’s this Airbnb in a bad neighborhood in Detroit. The Airbnb itself is the only occupied house in what seems to be a neighborhood filled with abandoned houses and buildings falling apart. Why anyone would choose to stay here is beyond me. Why anyone would choose to stay here, discover secret doors in the basement, and continue to search beyond those doors is complete insanity to me and took a bit of suspending my disbelief. But hey, if they didn’t go exploring, there’d be no story to tell.

There’s an excellent swerve/misdirection at one point in this movie. There’s one character I felt really bad for and wanted her to survive. There’s another character who was presented as such a douchebag that I was pretty okay with it if he ended up being murdered.

The backstory for what’s in the basement and the why and the how is also morbidly intriguing. I’m not a fan of the causation behind it, but it does add a decent layer of fucked up darkness to the overall story.

If I go exploring the basement of an Airbnb and I come across this room, I’M OUT. All the way out. Can’t be convinced otherwise and anyone else who saw this room and kept exploring sorta deserves what they get.

TV show I’m currently watching

Jeopardy!

I haven’t latched on to a new TV show to binge yet, so I’ve mostly just been watching basketball, wrestling, and Jeopardy. And while there’s mostly nothing too exciting to report about Jeopardy, last night’s episode did have a bizarre ending.

The winner, Bevin Blaber, finished with $600. That means the other contestants who lost walked away with more money than her (2nd place- $3000, 3rd place $2000). It happens, but not a lot. It was very weird to see. What made it even weirder is that the other two contestants sorta knew the answer to Final Jeopardy but one of them left off a word (it was a 2-word answer) and the other spelled it wrong. Possibly one of the oddest endings I’ve ever seen.

And while Bevin will have a chance to add to her amount and most likely eclipse the amount of money the other two contestants were awarded, there’s still the slight chance she could come in 3rd place on today’s episode giving her a total of $2600 over two days which means the 2nd place contestants on both episodes will have made $400 more than she did.

Bevin also danced a lot. Not gonna lie, it was kinda festive and fun for Jeopardy, but it was consistent, like her body never took a break, she was constantly moving and bopping.

Album of the Week

Junior / Rodeo Boys

So, I learned about Rodeo Boys in my favorite way to learn about a new band. They opened for another band I went to go see live and I ended up enjoying their stuff (I even bought a shirt). They were endearing from the jump when they came out and said their name and that they’re from Lansing, Michigan with pride. They also mentioned that it was their first time ever in New Jersey and that they might’ve had a few shots of tequila before taking the stage. They then proceeded to provide us with a display of high-level alternative rock music.

“High-level alternative rock music” is also how I’d describe this album. Except for maybe one song (one good, slow song), this album keeps up a continual pace of enjoyable rock music. It’s fuzzy and distorted and feels like it could’ve been made in the 90s or yesterday. Sometimes there’s some intricate guitar soloing going on but never too much. The vocals are solid but never too angry or pushed. I wouldn’t dare call it mellow. It just rocks on a good level that isn’t obnoxious. There’s never a point where I feel the urge to mosh and/or cover my ears. It’s a collection of solid tunes that I just wanna vibe out to.

This is a weird and fun album cover although maybe the 2-headed cow isn’t having that much fun.

Book I’m Currently Reading

Drugs Are Nice / Lisa Crystal Carver

Sure, it’s a shocking book title that may have helped grab my attention. But I think by the time it’s all over, it’ll make sense how it fits in with the story and that this whole thing isn’t really some big pro-do drugs thing.

It’s a memoir about growing up punk or at least punk adjacent. I’m not very deep into the book yet but the beginning has already been kinda wild. Lisa goes on these adventures on her own and on one of them, she meets GG Allin, which sorta lights a fire in her to start a band.

She tries to book GG Allin on a local show and it backfires but leads to her band’s big debut and that leads to a whole bunch of other stuff that gets her deeper into a punk rock/alternative lifestyle.

I’m definitely into it so far, just lacking time. Can’t wait to dig further into this book. More to come…

I haven’t done the research but I’m assuming this is a picture of the author on the cover.

Random sports thought of the week

Last night was Game 6 of the NBA Finals and with their backs against the wall and facing elimination, the Pacers delivered an amazing performance that had me thinking for the first time in this series, maybe they could be the better team. If they’re not the better team outright, they were the better team last night for certain.

And going in, it didn’t look good. I didn’t have a good feeling about it for the Pacers. Tyrese Haliburton is suffering some kind of calf injury, and he was questionable leading up to it and it just felt like if he couldn’t play or if he could play but not well then this could be a cakewalk for the Thunder to close this out on the road.

But Halliburton played pretty well for someone with a busted calf. And I think maybe the energy of the home crowd and knowing it was do-or-die lifted this team, and they played their most dominant game of the series.

Game 7s rule and it feels more like a classic if the series goes the full distance. So, here we are. I still think the Thunder will win at home in Game 7. But the Pacers dominant performance suddenly gave me something to think about when it comes to that prediction. I’m suddenly not as confident as I would’ve been if the Pacers maybe only beat the Thunder last night in a reasonable fashion, not in an all-out-bonkers, you-shouldn’t-have-even-shown-up-for-this fashion.

Also, although I’ve been predicting the Thunder to win the Finals for months, the Pacers have grown on me. Watching their run has defined the NBA playoffs for me this season. Before the playoffs, I wasn’t very locked in on this team. Now, I can’t get enough. They’re a lot of fun to watch. They play really good and balanced team basketball. They’re deep. They’re well coached. Their home fans are amazing. There’s a lot to like. I wouldn’t be mad at the Pacers if they were able to pull off the upset (they’re still the underdogs here) and spoil my prediction.

This dude T.J. McConnell is having an amazing Finals coming off the bench. If the Pacers do win this thing, is he the MVP?

Random pro wrestling thought of the week

Bummer about Liv Morgan’s injury on this week’s episode of Monday Night Raw. She separated her shoulder and could be out for 3-4 months. It seemed like they had some cool stuff lined up for her like a storyline with Nikki Bella (They weren’t very deep into it yet, but I already enjoyed Morgan’s promo against Bella a couple weeks back).

The thing with Liv is that I had just started coming around to her. They kept booking her against other wrestlers that I’m a bigger fan of (Rhea and Iyo for example) and it was sorta masking the enjoyable parts of her character to me.

But once they put her into a thing with Nikki Bella, I was like, oh shit, Liv Morgan is cool. I really hope she comes out on top in this one. All I ever really needed is for WWE to book her against someone I’m not that crazy about, and I was able to start seeing all the positives.

Then I started thinking about her NXT days and how far she’s come since then. She hit the main roster as part of the Riott Squad which at the time seemed like a vehicle to help get Ruby Riott over. Fast forward a few years and Liv ended up being the breakout star from that group, a grouping that didn’t make sense to me at the time but in hindsight, worked out very well for her.

She’s also from Elmwood Park, NJ which is a 25-minute drive from me (early in her career she’d wear shirts that said “201,” which is my area code). I try to take pride in Jersey when I can so, in a way, rooting for Liv is like rooting for Jersey. That probably makes it a more bitter pill to swallow that SummerSlam is going to be at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey this year (minutes away from Elmwood Park) and she almost certainly won’t be cleared for competition by then. That would’ve been a really cool moment for her to be on that card in front of that large of a home crowd.

Wrestling is crazy. These athletes put it all on the line for us and sometimes bad things happen. I hate to see it no matter who it is but with Liv, I was just starting to come around and enjoy her stuff.

But she’ll be back, and she’s got so many years left on her career. Plus, sometimes that time away from injury helps to get the crowd even more into you so that you’re even more popular when you return (absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that).

A before and after. This is a ten year difference. Who knows what another ten years will bring Liv Morgan? She just keeps getting better (although I wouldn’t be mad at a retro run with that “Jersey 201” shirt).

Top 5 Bands whose name ends with the word ‘Boys’

1- Beastie Boys

2- Beach Boys

3- Dead Boys

4- Geto Boys

5- Rodeo Boys

Weekly Quote

Thanks for reading!

Follow me on IG, Twitter, and BlueSky:

@joshaintfunny

If you haven’t seen it yet, please go to YouTube and give my 40th birthday comedy set a spin, and while you’re at it, a like, a comment, or a share would be appreciated and goes a long way as well. If you’re feeling really crazy, hit subscribe… no pressure.

I got some other videos as well if you want to check them out. I just uploaded a raw phone recording of my 30-minute set for my 45th birthday. Unpolished, unedited, warts and all, if you’re into that sorta thing. Go here:

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Takin' It to the Streets

The Josh Wells Weekly, Episode 303

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Hung out with the family this past Saturday to take my mom to see Glengarry Glen Ross for her birthday. We had an excellent outing. The play is great. We did that thing afterwards where you wait outside for the cast and they sign autographs. Then we ate some burgers and got ice cream. It was a fun outing all around.

Random Thought

So, there’s all these protests going on in Los Angeles right now (and elsewhere in the country) all inspired by a mutual disdain for ICE. It’s a cause I can get behind because I’m not a fan of ICE myself. In this very newsletter last week, I referred to them as the ‘American Gestapo,’ and that is not meant as a term of endearment for anyone that might possibly be confused.

I know that deportations are nothing new. Obama and Biden put up some healthy deportation numbers as well. But it’s the cruelty that the Trump administration is showing in the uptick of detainments and who they choose and how they do it (eliminating due process, adopting inhumane practices and facilities, using the military, etc). You wanna deport criminals? Have at it. I get that. But when you start raiding workplaces and Home Depots and going after human beings who are out there working hard, many trying to provide for families, I just can’t dig that type of behavior. These are not bad people, and I don’t think they should be treated this way.

I’m of the opinion that no human being is illegal. We’re all stuck on this planet together with these imaginary lines we made up and for some reason, some among us tend to get real uptight when people suddenly cross over these imaginary lines. Most, if not all the people who tend to get uptight about it are also the descendants of immigrants themselves and have somehow let the sands of time wash over that fact.

America is constant waves of immigration, and it always seems like hysteria is manufactured to have us believe the current wave is always the worst one yet. Although I’d argue the very first wave that ended up wiping out most Native Americans was and will probably always be the worst one. If only those Native Americans would’ve protested politely, maybe things would’ve been different.

I suppose a part of me thinks America needs to look in the mirror and self-reflect but that’s some fairytale bullshit. In fact, what the mirror is reflecting is real ugly right now. I think the thing that bothers me the most about the entire situation in LA is knowing there are millions of people in America rooting for ICE like it’s their favorite NFL team. That idea sickens me.

I can go on and on about how crucial protesting is and how important it’s been in American history and if you enjoy things like the weekend and not having 12-year-olds work in factories, you got protests to thank for that (Maybe you hate the weekend. That’s cool. I know some people who’d like you to cover their shift this Saturday so they can go be part of the “No Kings Day” protests. More on that in a sec).

My favorite thing about the protests is just knowing that someone is protesting. It’s looking at my phone and seeing videos of thousands of people flooding the streets to let their voices be heard and to let the powers-that-be know that ICE can go get fucked. Sometimes I can be so stuck in my head, I worry maybe no one cares anymore (which is probably just me projecting if I’m being honest. During the Biden years, I found myself in a real apathetic groove and it was hard for me to care again. Even when Trump was elected that second time, a part of me just thought it’s what we deserved for being a dumb country. Maybe I still feel a little bit like that, but not enough to make me numb to what’s going on right now).

It’s comforting to know I’m not alone. People are out there letting it be known and I am way fucking inspired. It almost gives me hope that maybe this will spread, and a movement will be born and maybe we can force some kind of change to happen.

This Saturday, I plan to take it to the streets. There’s these ‘No Kings Day’ protests going on that were organized before the LA stuff. They were originally a rebuttal to Pumpkin Head’s dictator-style military parade he’s having for his birthday. But suddenly it feels like so much more.

I wanna be out on the streets. Whether the protests succeed in bringing on any positive change or not, I don’t want the record to show that when people were out there trying to make it happen, I decided to stay at home and sit on the sidelines. I’ve seen and heard enough from this wanna-be fascist administration. It’s beyond time for me to make some noise. There’s something going on out there and I wanna be part of it.

For anyone interested in ‘No Kings Day’ protests, check out the link below:

https://www.nokings.org/

On Saturday, marching gets started at 2pm in NYC at Bryant Park. That’s where I’ll be.

This thing I just wrote feels heavy and I really wanted to lighten it up with a joke and I sorta had one in mind, but I never found the right place to put it so here it is now.

I’m not against all deportations. I am very pro-deporting Nickelback back to Canada.

Boom, Nickelback. You’re so roasted right now.

*This week’s newsletter title, ‘Takin’ It to the Streets,’ is the title of a Doobie Brothers song. The Doobies are an American Treasure, and I would never want to see them get deported.

Movie I Watched Recently

25th Hour

(Prime)

This was a pretty good movie about this dude Monty (played by Edward Norton) who is going to jail for selling drugs. The movie tells the story of his final 24 hours before he goes to turn himself in.

There’s a lot I liked about this movie. You sorta get the story in reverse. Over time, they drop all the info on why he’s going to jail and how it happened. That weaves in and out with the story of how he chooses to spend that last 24 hours before going away for seven years.

They don’t really make any apologies for Monty. There’s no attempt to justify his character or try and paint him as some drug dealer with a heart of gold. A thing I enjoyed is how much he was dreading it. That felt real. He’s no tough guy and he’s scared about what’s going to happen to him when he gets there.

I was a big fan of the ending. I don’t wanna spoil it, but it explores the imaginings of someone who is about to lose all his freedom. I imagine the mind could go mad leading up to that moment.

There are also some great support actors. Rosario Dawson is Monty’s love interest. Philip Seymour Hoffman is one of Monty’s lifelong friends. This movie even features Isiah Whitlock Jr of ‘The Wire’ fame and he uses his trademark Wire catchphrase which is elongating the word, “sheeeeeeeeet.”

Also, there’s a touching subplot about the dog, Doyle. Maybe that is the one time this movie is semi-guilty of trying to make Monty look like he has a heart of gold.

TV show I’m currently watching

Conan O'Brien: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor

(Netflix)

I’m usually not too into shows where celebrities spend a bunch of time telling each other how great they are, and I suppose this show approaches that territory a bit. But Conan is the best and if anyone’s gonna get this kind of award in comedy, it should be him. In fact, I’d say that it’s overdue and there are many recipients of this award that came before him that I find less deserving. That’s if we’re talking about being in the mold of Mark Twain, which in a way, I feel Conan is, especially when compared to many of his peers at the top of the comedy world.

Anyways, it’s star studded, of course. It’s a celebration of Conan. And they even get in a fair number of digs at the new Trump-centric direction of the Kennedy Center going forward. It all made for a fun watch.

I also dig the end when Conan is wailing on the guitar. I feel like deep inside the center of every comedian is really someone who’d rather be a rock star.

There’s this one part where he goes hard on a guitar solo and I was a bit blown away by it if I’m being honest.

Album of the Week

Never Enough / Turnstile

I’m not sure how I feel about this album. Turnstile seems to have this reputation as the current saviors of hardcore, but this album didn’t exactly give me that hardcore fix. A lot of this stuff is very mellow at times. Turnstile can be very melodic, and it felt like they leaned on that pretty hard in this album.

Not to say that that’s a bad thing. Turnstile is not beholden to any certain sound just because of the hype that exists around them. It was an interesting turn. At some points, the music almost felt like entry level psychedelic. There were even horns at one point.

Of course, they still thrashed hard when they thrashed. The hardcore was still there. It didn’t disappear completely. It just feels like it evolved into something else and in hindsight, based on some of their stuff I’ve heard before this, maybe I should’ve seen that evolution coming.

This is the album cover. Double rainbow, far out.

Book I’m Currently Reading

I messed up. I’m currently not reading a book. I didn’t reload on books before the last one I read. I placed an order for some new books online and I should receive them today and by this time next week, I should have a new book to tell you about. But until then, this has been a very illiterate week for me.

Random sports thought of the week

Last night was Game 3 of the NBA Finals and the first Finals game in Indiana in 25 years. The Pacers won in a very exciting fashion and are now up 2-1. Last night was also the first time I watched the Finals this year and thought maybe the Pacers could win this whole thing.

It was the Thunder’s first road game of the Finals so if they’re gonna lose a game on the road, in my head it’d most likely be this one. And ultimately, I still think the Thunder will win the whole thing. However, I think last night changed things and we suddenly find ourselves in the midst of a very competitive series.

As of last night, I’d like to change my prediction of Thunder winning in 6 games to Thunder winning in 7 games. I think this series will go the distance and I think the Pacers are proving they’re a deserving contender. This won’t be easy for either team.

Halliburton getting love from Reggie Miller, the biggest legend in Pacers’ history (and one of my all-time favorite NBA players).

Random pro wrestling thought of the week

What a difference a week makes. Last week I was talking about how much it sucked that R-Truth was released by WWE and this week he’s back already. That alone would be exciting enough. That alone would have fans saying, “well done, WWE.” (Although maybe don’t release him in the first place but I digress).

But WWE packed a lot of exciting stuff into the past few days. Bayley is back. Asuka is coming back. Walter in the new World Champion. Fans fell in love with a wrestler who has an iguana gimmick. Chad Gable had an impressive showing twice in one day and is probably my pick for WWE’s weekend MVP and also WWE’s most underrated. I don’t know if there’s anyone in the pro wrestling world that is more underrated than Chad Gable right now (he performed his ass off but lost twice).

Speaking of his losses, one of them was to Vikingo. It’s just super fucking cool to see Vikingo on the WWE big stage.

Speaking of underrated, I’m a huge fan of Naomi winning the MITB briefcase. I’m interested to see where WWE takes this. I’m not 100% confident that this goes or ends well for Naomi but I hope they let her run with it and really give her the opportunity to make something out of this briefcase run. She deserves a shot to do something at the top of the card for a while.

As the young people say, “let her cook!”

Top 5 Bands I’d like to see get deported

1- Nickelback

2- Creed

3- Puddle of Mudd

4- Three Doors Down

5- Coldplay

I realize at least two of these bands are not from America and maybe don’t even live here. But you get the point.

Weekly Quote

“He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it.”

-Martin Luther King Jr.

Thanks for reading!

I am now on BlueSky. You can now follow me there as well as Instagram and Twitter at:

@joshaintfunny

If you haven’t seen it yet, please go to YouTube and give my 40th birthday comedy set a spin, and while you’re at it, a like, a comment, or a share would be appreciated and goes a long way as well. If you’re feeling really crazy, hit subscribe… no pressure.

I got some other videos as well if you want to check them out. I just uploaded a raw phone recording of my 30-minute set for my 45th birthday. Unpolished, unedited, warts and all, if you’re into that sorta thing. Go here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRg2MM2mOOvh1JKnDatFiBQ

Upcoming Shows

Sun, 6/15

This and every Sunday till football is back, there will be comedy at the Wild Rover!

Fr, 6/20

NEXT HELL YEA! ALERT!