Trump and dog poop, Dr. J, Janis Joplin, Nirvana, WandaVision, Enter the Dragon, NXT, and more...

The Josh Wells Weekly, Episode 79

Preface:

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No new fun pics of me so here’s a throwback from when I was young and dangerous and smoked Marlboro lights.

Random Thought

I’ve had a pretty good run of not talking politics on this newsletter but I guess that all ends today. I’ve been thinking about Trump’s impeachment and how not into it I was, mostly because I knew there was no way they were gonna get enough Republicans to support impeaching him. It felt like a movie that’s already been spoiled. Why get all caught up in it if I already know how this ends?

And it’s discouraging to watch bad people get away with bad shit. It makes you wonder sometimes if there’s any use to being a decent person at all if we have to watch indecent people get ahead and never be held responsible for their wrongs.

But this might be bigger than politics and Trump.

I was running the other day and the park I run in is currently blanketed in snow. Unfortunately, from time to time, I come across dog poop on the paths I run on and as a runner, I can’t help but notice that the amount of dog poop that’s not picked up by their owners increases when it snows and that is a totally indecent thing to do. And I sometimes get mad and frustrated. Why should I or anyone else who enjoys this park have to possibly have our good time ruined by someone who’s not up to the full task of being a good dog owner? And the worst part is knowing that whoever leaves the dog poop behind is never going to be held accountable for it. They’ll get away with it this time and every time. It’s enough to make me go mad.

But then I calm down and think about how many dog owners don’t do that. I like to think most dog owners are decent and they do pick up after their dogs every single time, even in the snow. I tell myself there’s 50 good dog owners for every 1 bad dog owner (I have no science to back this exact number up. It’s just a nice round number that makes me feel good about things… the point being, that I think the number of decent dog owners outnumbers the number of indecent dog owners by a whole bunch).

I hold on to that and I try to remember that most people are decent and in the grander scheme of things, decency is winning. Just the idea that indecency still outrages some or most of us on some level is proof enough that we haven’t normalized being indecent. It’s still the wrong way to be.

The Donald Trump’s of the world will get away with their bullshit and they’ll die thinking they were the good guys in their story. There’s not a lot we can do about it. We’ll never expel indecency completely from existence. All we can do is try and learn from it and be as decent as we can. I think we’re all mostly doing a good job of it. I’d be a lot more worried if when I went for a run through the park, there was dog poop everywhere and no one even cares because that’s the new normal. We’re still doing okay. Sometimes the bad guy’s gonna slip one by us and sometimes we’re gonna step in it and that sucks a whole bunch. But that’s no reason to let it turn you indecent too.

Movie I Watched Recently

Enter the Dragon

(Netflix)

This movie felt like an excuse to film Bruce Lee kicking ass for 90 minutes or so. There’s not a whole lot of good acting. There’s barely any character development. No one even gets in an offensive move on Lee till maybe 75%-80% of the way through the movie. I’m not saying it’s bad. It just lacks depth. But if you wanna watch a bunch of ass being kicked in the midst of a flimsy story line, have at it.

TV shows I’m currently watching

In the Dark

(Netflix)

I guess I’m sorta starting to like this show again. I’ve made it to the second season and the story has sorta reset. Now Felix’s business (Guiding Hope, which Murphy and Jess both work at) is being used as a money laundering front for Nia’s crime syndicate against their will. It’s either this or they die. Max came back but got arrested. Dean is still out there being a cop even though we all know what he’s guilty of and should be in jail. Dean also has a new partner who’s youthful and got a real go-get-em attitude and it seems to be a real thorn in Dean’s side and I’m actually kinda hoping he’s the one who eventually brings Dean down. We’ll see…

Also, I guess Felix shoots someone. They keep alluding to it in clips as if the rest of the season so far is actually a collection of flashbacks to get you to the point that explains why/how Felix shot someone. That’s tough for Felix. He’s easily the most sympathetic character in this show. I’m constantly feeling bad for him. He’s constantly in situations that I don’t think he quite deserves.

WandaVision

(Disney +)

Okay so this show got really good and I’m suddenly stoked on catching new episodes and seeing what happens next. The show overall is great however I am tempted to say that you could probably skip the first three episodes and this show would be just as, or maybe even more, entertaining.

I enjoy how each episode is presented as a sitcom from a different decade. The last episode I watched was the 90’s. I’m looking forward to see how this trend continues. I find it to be a pretty creative concept.

I’m hesitant to mention much else because it’s hard to talk about this show. I feel like what this show is about is hard to describe without giving it all away. Someone actually spoiled a major part of this show for me. It was the point of the show where you kinda finally realize what’s going on and I sorta wish that hadn’t been spoiled for me so now I’m reluctant to spoil that for anyone else.

Album of the Week

Death by Rock and Roll / The Pretty Reckless

I got sucked into this choice because of the title of the album and I messed up. I guess you shouldn’t judge an album by its title.

I didn’t mind the first song, which shares the same name as the album, ‘Death by Rock and Roll.’ But it was all kinda downhill after that. I found this album to be a large hard rock cliche. It felt formulaic and bland. There’s talent. It’s not like the parts that make up the whole are talentless. There’s even a few sweet guitar leads here and there. But somehow when the whole thing comes together, it feels vacant. It’s missing something. Possibly sincerity, I don’t know for sure. I can’t put my finger on it.

As soon as this album was over, I immediately had to listen to something else to cleanse my palate, something I’ve heard a whole bunch before and knew I already loved. So I went with Nirvana’s, ‘In Utero.’ That album rocks and it’s sincere as fuck. There’s no cookie cutter nonsense and yet a few of the jams still have pop sensibility. You guys should go listen to Nirvana’s, ‘In Utero,’ again. What an album.

Book I’m Currently Reading

Janis / Holly George Warren

I’m about a third of the way through this Janis Joplin bio and so far it’s really good. From the start, Janis is portrayed as unique and cool. She’s a bit of an outcast and she wears it on her sleeve but also sorta tries to cover up how that bothers her. She’s always against the grain. She wants to be a beatnik in 1960’s Texas. She wants to sing blues when all the other women are singing like Joan Baez.

So far she’s made it out to Cali twice. Both times, Cali sorta ate her up and she went back home to Texas both times to lick her wounds. I’m currently at her second stint back home from Cali where she at first seems to want to give up on the blues singing thing and just live a more laid back kinda life. Go to college, start a family, that sorta thing. It’s oddly kinda comforting as a reader to see her take comfort in that sorta stuff after her last Cali stint where she got real messed up on meth. I find myself rooting for her to catch a breather and I wonder if part of that is because I sorta know how this story ends. Like maybe if I root hard enough, somehow the tragic ending changes before I get there.

The whole thing feels like a paradox. I think Joplin was an amazing musical talent and the world is better for having her music. But being a fan of someone, and reading how maybe they almost come close to pursuing a more mellow life and not getting famous has me conflicted. I basically don’t want Janice to die young. But the only reason I know of Janice is because she becomes a famous singer which kinda leads to her dying young. Joplin would probably call that the kozmic blues (or the Saturday Night Swindle as her dad would call it).

Also, Joplin’s dad is an interesting character. He’s an open atheist in 1960’s Texas who likes to rock out to some classical music and talk history and stuff. He seems stoic but he can also cut loose at times. He offers advice but doesn’t pull punches or delve in cliches. He’s become my second favorite character in the Joplin story.

Random sports thought of the week

Maybe this should’ve been in the movie/doc section of the newsletter but whatever, it’s my newsletter, I do what I want.

I recently watched this doc on Dr. J called, ‘The Doctor.’ (That’s Julius Erving for the squares). And what a great documentary about a great basketball player. I actually missed the first 15 minutes and I still thought it was fantastic (caught it on cable which kinda made it more magical because I had no plans or intention to watch this thing. It just landed in my lap, ready to be enjoyed). Dr. J is the man! They show him dominating at Rucker Park. Then he goes on to dominate in the ABA and while the ABA was short lived and mostly unsuccessful, the style of basketball they presented as opposed to the NBA at the time is way more entertaining, and none were more entertaining than Dr. J, which probably made him the most entertaining basketball player on the planet.

He eventually lands in the NBA along with many future greats who look up to him (like Magic and Bird). He eventually wins an NBA championship securing his legacy as an all time great. Jordan borrows a Dr. J dunk for the NBA dunk contest and the rest is history. Basketball owes everything to Dr. J.

He’s also so fucking cool. He’s just a cool dude. There’s a lot of great interviews in this doc. There’s some sad stuff too (like when he lost his son) but it’s overall a great story about a great basketball player. Dr. J forever. My 13 year old inner child wants to hang a Dr. J poster on my bedroom wall.

Random pro wrestling thought of the week

‘NXT Takeover: Vengeance Day,’ was off the hook (despite it’s cheesy name, but then again, most wrestling ppv’s suffer from cheesy names). I don’t even know where to start. I enjoyed all five matches. I enjoyed that there were only five matches. Nothing felt rushed. Everyone got to shine in every match. There was even a cool (all be it, cheesy) Cameron Grimes video to promote his character makeover. There was a shocking ending that makes you want to tune in and find out what happens next. ‘Finn vs. Dunn,’ may be part of the ‘match of the year’ convo when the year is done. This ppv has no weak links. I don’t even know what else to say except, all hail Io Sharai, my favorite wrestler in the world.

Weekly Top 5 List: Top 5 Songs on ‘In Utero’

1- Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle

2- Very Ape

3- Dumb

4- All Apologies

5- Scentless Apprentice (just for the drums alone)

I have to add that there isn’t a bad track on this album and it feels sorta dirty to rank 5 of them above the rest. i don’t know if I could just listen to part of this album. I think I have to give the whole thing a spin every time.

I ranked ‘All Apologies’ #4 but in some ways it may be the best Nirvana song ever. I’m conflicted. It’s just such a beautiful song. But when I think Nirvana, I wanna hear that dirty grunge that I can only get in songs like, ‘Frances Farmer,’ and, ‘Very Ape.’

Motivational Quote

“Kozmic blues” means no matter what you do, you get shot down anyway. One day I finally realized it ain’t never gonna be alright- there’s always something going wrong. It’s what you wish was that makes unhappiness- the hole, the vacuum.

-Janis Joplin

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