3 Things: Yegor Zhukov, Joe Pera, and Mark Engler

Happy Saturday!

I'm writing today's email from a house on the Russian River, which it turns out is located in Northern California and doesn't require any quid pro quo to access. These days, I'm finding myself half-immersed in impeachment news and current events, and half-looking ahead and planning for a new year. So today's email is full of people who are focused on how to actively address what's happening in the world and also change it for the future.

Upcoming Shows

LOS ANGELES
Thursday, January 9th at 7:30 pm. Due to a scheduling conflict, this show had to be postponed. New date TBA

Wednesday, January 15th at 7 pm at the Lyric-Hyperion. Matt Porter and I are starting a monthly multimedia comedy show called HOMEWORK. Tickets are on sale now. Link

NEW YORK
Friday, February 7th and Saturday, February 8th. I will be back in NYC workshopping a stage show about long term couples and new scientific research on love. Details coming soon.
 

This week’s list

GREAT:
Yegor Zhukov is a twenty-one-year-old university student on trial in Moscow. He's "accused of 'extremism,' for posting YouTube videos in which he talked about nonviolent protest, his campaign for a seat on the Moscow City Council, and different approaches to political power." The speech he gave in court is beautiful and thought-provoking and certainly as relevant to our present moment in America as the situation in Russia. Masha Gessen translated it into English for The New Yorker. A Powerful Statement of Resistance from a College Student on Trial in Moscow


FUNNY:
Joe Pera's comedy is quietly subversive. He takes small moments seriously. Simple pleasures like grocery shopping or having a conversation over breakfast are worthy of full episodes of television. And while it sounds like that might be slow or boring, it's not. Joe makes it incredibly funny, with the help of his head writer and co-star Jo Firestone. The new season of Joe Pera Talks With You is out now. Here is a delightful interview with him and Stephen Colbert: Joe Pera Talks Soothing Joys


INTERESTING:
My friend Shuchi recently sent out an email encouraging her friends to more actively participate in protests and rallies around climate change. It's easy to support Greta Thunberg's message in principle, but sometimes people like me wonder whether marching in the streets makes a meaningful difference. Shuchi made a very compelling case that it does. So much so that I want to just share what she wrote with you verbatim.

"Social movements like this one are beautiful and powerful beasts: it's hard to pin-point what a single action achieves and yet movements are responsible for most of the powerful political transformations of our time. I'm thinking of the Indian struggle for independence, the civil rights movement, the fight for suffrage." Shuchi also included this fascinating case study by Mark Engler on marriage equality and how social movements build power. When the Pillars Fall: How Social Movements Can Win More Victories


Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or spread the word. If someone forwarded you this email but you're not yet on the list, you can subscribe here.

Have a great day,
Chris

3 Things: Astronomy Club, Ivan Anderson, and The Burden

Happy Saturday!

Thanks for subscribing and reading these emails. We're deep in End of the Year list season, when everyone is taking stock, ranking favorites, and posting their Spotify most played music. As you can guess from the fact that I've sent my own weekly list directly into your inbox every Saturday for years... I'm a fan.

Several years ago, I started making a list at the end of every year of everything that felt even remotely like an accomplishment. I included things like "learned how to roast a sweet potato" alongside more obvious milestones.  Now, each year I make a point of looking back a few years. It can be hard (for me at least) to appreciate the progress that I'm making and not just focus on what I haven't done yet. So looking back and realizing that I considered getting "a very encouraging rejection letter" and "a professional comedian gave me a thumbs up" achievements worth documenting is a good reminder of how quickly the goal posts move. I guess my point is: even if you're feeling like this has been a long, challenging year, your past self would probably be very impressed. And I am sending anyone who needs it both a thumbs up and sweet potato instructions. (It's two steps: turn the oven on and insert sweet potato.)

Upcoming Shows

LOS ANGELES
Thursday, January 9th at 7:30 pm Due to a scheduling conflict, this show had to be postponed. New date TBA

Wednesday, January 15th at 7 pm at the Lyric-Hyperion. Matt Porter and I are starting a monthly multimedia comedy show called HOMEWORK. Tickets are on sale now. Link

NEW YORK
Friday, February 7th and Saturday, February 8th. I will be back in NYC workshopping a stage show about long term couples and new scientific research on love. Details coming soon!
 

This week’s list

GREAT:
We are in the middle of a sketch comedy renaissance. There are so many great groups finally getting the recognition they deserve. Last night, Netflix premiered a new series from Astronomy Club. Each of the group's members is hilarious in their own right (I particularly love watching Caroline Martin and James III) but the group as a whole is on a different level. I can't wait to see what they'll do now that Hollywood has caught up to them. Astronomy Club: The Sketch Show (or if you don't have Netflix, at least you can watch the trailer).


FUNNY:
I've recommended Ivan Anderson's comedy before, but if you're not familiar, he remains the king of email-based comedy. His subscription service, Email Pro, is free to join and then you receive hilarious comedy bits in your inbox. Or as Ivan puts it, "I send you emails and then it's your problem." Email Pro is inspired in part by SPAM emails, multi-level marketing schemes, pop culture trends, and terrible Facebook posts Ivan has seen online. It's partly internet satire and partly its own unique performance art project (at one point, the narrator got trapped inside a hologram and could only be saved by the power of jazz). It makes me laugh harder than anything else.

Ivan has now branched out into videos, specifically trying to contact Tropicana Orange Juice as their number one fan. (Full disclaimer: I make a brief cameo.) Understanding Tropicana Orange Juice, Part 1


INTERESTING:
Niki Lindroth von Bahr is an award winning Swedish filmmaker. Her specialty is surrealistic short films featuring animals. They're almost indescribable but have stuck in my brain since I watched them. Aparna Nancherla recommended this one to me. In her words, "It's funny and strange and singular all at once. Warning: there is singing." The Burden


Have a great rest of your weekend! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or spread the word. If someone forwarded you this email but you're not yet on the list, you can subscribe here.

Thanks for reading,
Chris

3 Things: Greg Hochmuth, Alyssa Limperis, and the National Stutterers Association

Good morning!

I hope you had an easy and smooth Thanksgiving. My body is now mostly stuffing, but I've been thoroughly warmed by spending time with family and friends. I'm looking forward to being rolled onto a plane home later today. But first, I have to eat several dozen bagels.

Upcoming Shows

LOS ANGELES
Wednesday, January 15th at 7 pm at the Lyric-Hyperion. Matt Porter and I are starting a monthly multimedia comedy show called HOMEWORK. Tickets are on sale now. Link

This week’s list

GREAT:
At some point every week for the past year, Mollie and I have sat down and played Greg Hochmuth's "The Questions Game." It's not really a game, per se, but three conversation starter questions every week for a year. It's a tradition that I'm very sad is coming to an end. The good news is, if this is the first you're hearing of The Questions Game, Greg has it set up so anytime you can sign up and start the year of questions anytime, for free. Greg and his partner Marc designed it for couples or close friends to get to know each other better and I found it worked and was a lot of fun.

Greg's art always explores offline connections and the digital world. He's made some fascinating projects like an anonymous confession line, a collage of six years of silence and breathing from public radio broadcasts, and much more. You can see it all on his website: Gregor Hochmuth


FUNNY:
Every video Alyssa Limperis puts out makes me laugh. Her comedy is always so perfectly written and performed. She often appears as her mom (on vacation, at home, or at the store) but this week, watch as she nails a perfect New England Thanksgiving Toast. (h/t Tom Murphy)


INTERESTING:
Barry Yeomans writes about his experience attending the National Stutterers Association conference and how stuttering has affected his own life. It's a very thought-provoking piece about efforts to "cure" stuttering and how many, Yeomans included, don't see what makes them different as a problem that needs to be cured. What does it mean when a group of people "reach beyond the medical model of disability?" Stammer Time


Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or spread the word. If someone forwarded you this email but you're not yet on the list, you can subscribe here.

Safe travels,
Chris