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