3 Things: Shadow Art, Stuck in a Window, and Hotel Hackers

Hi friends,

It's Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with my upcoming shows, one thing I think is great, one thing that made me laugh, and one thing I found interesting. 

 Upcoming shows

EVERYWHERE:
On this week's episode of the The Payoff, Antonia Cereijido and I learn about how to navigate credit card rewards and get another visit from Erin Lowry, "The Broke Millennial."  Link

Three comedians try to guess what a leading scientist does all day and then find out why their research is important and exciting on You're the Expert.  Link

NEW YORK CITY:
Sunday, September 17 at 2 p.m. at The Bell House.  We just added MICHAEL SHOWALTER to the lineup for Sunday's You're the Expert taping! You know him from Wet Hot American Summer, Stella, and so much more. Showalter, Roy Wood Jr, one more surprise guest, and a leading scientist who discovered a new species called "The Ghost Snake"... you don't want to miss this one. Link

Thursday, September 21 at 8 p.m. at Caveat.  Comedy, readings, artwork, audience prizes, and, of course, a spoon. It's everyone's favorite variety show, You Get A Spoon. Link

My full calendar with all upcoming shows is online here.

 This week's list

1 Thing I Think Is Great:

Damon Belanger is an artist who transforms the mundane. He brings joy to everyday objects by painting shadows on the ground. At first glance, pedestrians assume it's just a normal shadow but then they do a double-take at its shape. All of a sudden, walking on the sidewalk becomes an adventure. I could tell you more about his work but it's much better to see the photos for yourself. Next time I'm in Northern California, I'm determined to get to Redwood City and see Belanger's shadows in person. Art in the Shadows: Damon Belanger
 

1 Thing That Made Me Laugh:

 
Every once in a while, a news story is funnier than any joke. Here is some spectacular reporting on a British man's date gone wrong (so wrong). Liam Smyth's date went to the bathroom in his apartment, discovered the toilet wouldn't flush, and panicked. When she tried to throw her poop out the window, it got stuck, so she tried to reach in to grab it, and then she got stuck. The night ended with the fire department destroying the window to save her. Liam started a GoFundMe to pay for the window replacement and he ended up getting a lot more than he expected. Woman Ends Tinder Date Stuck in Window


1 Interesting Thing:

In WIRED, Andy Greenberg has the fascinating story of Aaron Cashatt, a serial burglar who discovered a way to hack into nearly any hotel room. The story itself is wild, but what's even crazier is that the vulnerability still exists. Here's what happens when digital security meets analog criminals and a large corporation decides it's too expensive to solve the problem. Inside An Epic Hotel Room Hacking Spree

Thanks for reading! If you like this newsletter, forward it to a friend or come say hi at a live show.

If you're seeing this newsletter for the first time, you can subscribe here.  

Have a great day,
Chris

3 Things: Josh Gondelman, Chris Fleming, and Nick Bilton

Hi friends,

It's Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with my upcoming shows, one thing I think is great, one thing that made me laugh, and one thing I found interesting. Feel free to spread the word and share these emails with friends. If you're checking this out for the first time, you can see the archive and sign up to get these emails here.

 Upcoming shows

EVERYWHERE:
On The Payoff, journalist Antonia Cereijido and I learn about finances, money, and how to not screw everything up.  Link

Three comedians try to guess what a leading scientist does all day and then find out why their research is important and exciting on You're the Expert.  Link

NEW YORK CITY:
Saturday, September 16 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Hudson River Park.  I'm emceeing SUBMERGE, an outdoor festival in Hudson River Park with songs, jokes, and scientist interviews. If you have kids, this is a great free event to bring them to. Link

Sunday, September 17 at 2 p.m. at The Bell House.  You're the Expert is back in Brooklyn for the final year of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival. Join me, Roy Wood Jr, and a lot of surprise guests for a live taping of the podcast. Link

Thursday, September 21 at 8 p.m. at Caveat.  My variety show and prize giveaway You Get A Spoon features comedy from me and Emmy Blotnick, a reading by best-selling author A.J. Jacobs, a presentation by MoMA-displayed video artist Neil Goldberg, and of course, a spoon. Link

WASHINGTON, D.C.:
Friday, October 27 at 6 p.m. at National Geographic.  I'm bringing You're the Expert back to NatGeo headquarters for another live taping as part of Tig Notaro's Bentzen Ball. Link

My full calendar with all upcoming shows is online here.

 This week's list

1 Thing I Think Is Great:

Josh Gondelman is one of the world's best joke writers. He's an award-winning staff writer for Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, a published author, and a Twitter celebrity. But Josh is also an excellent human being. He manages to infuse his humor with his empathy and kindness, while still making biting and original jokes. It's a rare and impressive feat. In this weekend's New York Times, Josh wrote about the pressure of writing your own wedding vows as a comedian. Predictably, it's charming and wonderful. What If I Bombed at My Own Wedding? (Spoiler alert: I was at Josh and Maris' wedding and he did great.)
 

1 Thing That Made Me Laugh:

 
I've recommended Chris Fleming's web series and his digital videos before, but his live show is truly something to behold. It's a mix of standup, characters, and deeply bizarre and hilarious songs. Here's some footage from Chris' new tour, where he performs a song about a time in 1999 when his dad accidentally said "Bye, I love you" to Chris' soccer coach before hanging up the phone. My Dad and My Soccer Coach


1 Interesting Thing:

Nick Bilton's new book American Kingpin is one of the best nonfiction books I've read in years. I couldn't put it down. Bilton traces the rise and fall of Ross Ulbricht, aka The Dread Pirate Roberts, the creator and CEO of Silk Road, the dark web's marketplace for illegal goods. I strongly recommend reading the whole book, but to whet your appetite, here's an excerpt from Vanity Fair. 

"Ross Ulbricht had imagined that it might all come down to this one day. That at some point during the prodigious rise of his hot tech start-up he would be obliged to make a terrifyingly ruthless decision. Now, in early 2013, the time had arrived. The question was rather simple: Was he ready to kill someone to protect his billion-dollar company.?" Nick Bilton and Silk Road


Have a great long weekend!
Chris

3 Things: Cocoon Central, Drew Lynch, and Jennifer Bowen

Hi friends,

It's Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with my upcoming shows, one thing I think is great, one thing that made me laugh, and one thing I found interesting. Feel free to spread the word and share these emails with friends. If you're checking this out for the first time, you can see the archive and sign up to get these emails here.

 Upcoming shows

EVERYWHERE:
Ever wonder what a typical day is like for me? Photographer and writer Elyssa Goodman shadowed me last Saturday for this very fun profile and photo essay. Link 

There's a new episode of The Payoff out now about freelancing and side hustles. Antonia Cereijido and I talk through what we've learned about making a living outside the traditional 9-to-5 and get advice on everything from comedy to driving for Uber.  Link

Three comedians try to guess what a leading scientist does all day and then find out why their research is important and exciting on You're the Expert.  Link

NEW YORK CITY:
Monday, August 28 at 8:30 p.m. at QED Astoria. I'm telling jokes on "Myq Kaplan & Friends." Myq is great. He's my friend. Other fun people will be there too! Link

Tuesday, August 29 at 7:00 p.m. at The Wild Project. A short interactive piece I wrote is being performed at Cherry Picking, a festival of new plays. Link

Thursday, September 21 at 8 p.m. at Caveat.  My variety show and prize giveaway You Get A Spoon features comedy from me and Emmy Blotnick, a reading by best-selling author A.J. Jacobs, a presentation by MoMA-displayed video artist Neil Goldberg, and of course, a spoon. Link

TORONTO: Saturday, September 30 at 4:15 p.m. at Second City.  I'm bringing You're the Expert to the Just For Laughs comedy festival for our first ever live taping in Canada! Our guest scientist is the world's leading expert in raccoon intelligence. I truly could not be more excited. Link

WASHINGTON, D.C.:
Friday, October 27 at 6 p.m. at National Geographic.  I'm bringing You're the Expert back to NatGeo headquarters for another live taping as part of Tig Notaro's Bentzen Ball. Link

My full calendar with all upcoming shows is online here.

 This week's list

1 Thing I Think Is Great:

Watching Cocoon Central dance is the surest way I know to make yourself smile. They are three amazing dancers with impeccable comedic timing who are doing something totally original. It's so much fun to witness. You might recognize Tallie, Eleanore, and Sunita fromBroad City, Netflix's GLOW, or one of the other many appearances they make individually. But when they get together, it's magic. Cocoon Central Dance Team presents Love on Top

(If you want more, go to their website or check out the delightfully strange sitcom they made) 
 

1 Thing That Made Me Laugh:

 
Drew Lynch is a standup comedian with a very severe stutter. You might think that, in a profession where talking is the whole thing, a stutter would be a dealbreaker. Drew proves otherwise. In fact, he's used his disability to make his act even more unique and hilarious. Drew made his late night debut on Conan this month with an excellent set about stuttering, dating, and Super Mario. Drew Lynch Standup


1 Interesting Thing:

Jennifer Bowen is a scientist at Northeastern University studying "microbial communities." A lot of her research touches on how human activities and climate change are affecting the makeup of ecosystems. It's important, urgent work. This week, she went viral after sharing an email she received from the Department of Energy asking her to scrub all references to "climate change" or "global warming" from her abstract. So is science being politicized? Or is it always political? Is this terrifying or just business as usual? The conversation Dr. Bowen sparked is fascinating and crucial for us to have. Here's heroriginal post, here's some context, and here's a dissenting view.


Thanks for reading,
Chris