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Mar 8, 2023Liked by Michael Estrin

1. I really don't like mondays but my biggest enemy is tuesday. You're no longer rested from the last weekend and the next one is still far away. The worst!

2. I always drink the sweetest coffee known to man in a scientist-dog mug. But now, the only thing I want is a Nick Cage mug to improve my mornings. :/

3. IMHO all Nicholas Cage movies are, at the same time, great and terrible. And he is the best and the worst actor at the same time. I can't be convinced otherwise! Ghost Rider, for example, is a masterpiece and a piece-of-garbage simultaneously.

4. Nick Cage really likes black metal. You should ask Chat GPT to create the lyrics of a black metal song about him!

5. I have so much questions: I don't even know where to start!

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João, I think you've got a really compelling case against Tuesday. Thanks for sharing your take! As for your coffee mug, you can find the Nick Cage mug on the internet. His face will do wonders for your sweet coffee.

Ghost Rider! Yes, Ghost Rider! Perfect example!

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had to make sure Moonstruck made its way into the Nicolas Cage discussion. that scene where he yells about losing his hand... I think about it pretty regularly. also, I remember seeing National Treasure as a kid and believing that he was literally the most famous actor in the world (followed closely by Ben Stiller, for some reason?)

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Moonstruck! Yes! Thank you for making sure Moonstruck made it into the conversation, Elizabeth! Also, Ben Stiller isn’t the most famous actor in the world???

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Cher's "wolf paw" rant haunts me as well in that scene. What an epically great film about love in every dimension.

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Mondays only get short shrift because we hate our jobs. If people were genuine - almost never - on this topic, they'd see that there is no difference between Monday and Saturday. Especially since Saturday morning cartoons have long since died off.

I think the introduction of Monday morning cartoons, especially for people that work from home, could really shift the balance. At least for the Gen-Xers and up who are old enough to remember such an anachronism.

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Let’s make Monday morning cartoons happen! We can do this! Great comment, Scott!

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Mar 8, 2023Liked by Michael Estrin

As a on-the-cusp boomer (born really late in the cycle), I totally remember the real Saturday morning cartoons. And remember the awful feeling when that terrible Saturday afternoon movie came on.

Mondays are only barely worse than any other day for me. My 9 to 5 job has always encroached on my 5 to 9 life. So actually going to the office only meant a little isolation from the family, which I will admit, was helpful occasionally.

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3. Can't go wrong with The Rock, which I'm due to rewatch.

5. So many questions about Vase Dude. My broken, demented brain can't shake that this is somehow Oedipal in nature, so I'd like to know if he mentioned his dear mother to Sophia at any point. Also, unfortunately, I'd like to know if he "climaxed" purely on the thrill of watching, or if manual stimulation was still required. This would speak to the depth of the pathology.

Hoping you get the answers we all seek.

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Good follow-ups! And you're right about The Rock. That's one of those films that is both good and so bad it's good. The perfect Cage flick, IMO!

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Dear Michael. I had to pause and wonder if you'd finished the line of the song "...with it?", if that might have conjured a different answer. But perhaps it would have just garnered the same sappy truths that everyone already knows about how to make love work and yet refuses to live by. Humans be humans.

Thanks for the shout-out and mustache art cred. Much appreciated.

1. I love Mondays because I get to give my children back to their teachers and start working on stuff I put off all weekend being motherly.

2. I like it "light and sweet" which means it's basically hot cream and sugar with a shot of coffee in it. In the summertime I make cold brew in my fridge which I also drown in cream and sugar and occasionally even blend with vanilla ice cream.

3. I can't NOT think of "Face Off" when I think of Nicolas Cage. And he was so bad he was good in that. I do get uncomfortable when he plays a leading man, with one exception. The movie "The Family Man". Of course, he's made like 1002 movies since then and I haven't seen them. So, it's likely I've missed a gem or two. Oh wait - "Valley Girl!" OMG. The chest hair! 😱

4. "Hello? Is it me you're looking for?" or "Who are you? Who -who-who-who?"

5. Is it crucial that the woman be "pretending" to get her hand stuck? Like, if she was legitimately stuck and needed to go to the hospital to get dislodged, would that still be hot? Or.... not?

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Meg, every word here is gold, especially the stuff about Valley Girl and chest hair. Damn that movie is a classic. Speaking of classics, you're blended ice cream coffee made me think of my dad, who loved to blend ice cream into so many drinks. (Pro tip: you can blend vanilla ice cream with baileys. You'll get diabetes, but it'll be worth it). Love your follow-up question for Sophia!

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Thanks for putting precious metal value on my words. Perhaps I can capitalize on that at some point before I die. 🤪

Love Bailey's. We've had a bottle of the Salted Caramel variety in our fridge since Christmas. It's hard to get through a whole bottle in a reasonable amount of time, because of diabetes, and it just doesn't pair that well with Red Baron pizza and box mac and cheese. Also on hand is Baja Luna. If you haven't tried it, it's basically boozy, melted, black raspberry ice cream. Highly recommend.

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I’ve never even heard of Baja Luna, but it sounds legit!

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Co-signing Meg's Monday argument, but didn't want to lead with that because it's too on-brand for me.

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I've heard friends who are parents call Sunday night the new Friday night because the next day is school, which equals freedom.

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Or did we just freaky Friday in Michael's comment section? Guess we'll find out when I read your heartfelt teen love scene on Friday morning. And I tear some unsuspecting 1 percenter a new a-hole on Saturday.

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Please, please, please let a Freaky Friday situation happen in my comments!

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What? No Garfield references in the search results? What will the aliens think?

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Hey Laura, I should've clarified, the search was of a stock photo library, and Garfield is anything but stock. Guess I'll have to take the aliens to an actual library when they get here :)

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Ask ChatGPT “Do you really want to hurt me?” (Culture Club, circa 1982).

https://open.spotify.com/track/1I6q6nwNjNgik1Qe8Oi0Y7?si=z-7q9QnUQcCj-CfT_8vFuA

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This is a good question! But I wonder if it might lead us to a Skynet conversation.

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"Us" as in "you and ChatGPT"? :)

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Haha, yes!

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Mar 9, 2023Liked by Michael Estrin

7-11s are everywhere is Taipei. Several per block are common. Much closer than Starbucks. #1 coffee seller in the country.

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That tracks with my experience elsewhere in Asia, mostly Singapore and Bangkok. Lots of 7-11s, and in some places you find a 7-11 across the street from a 7-11. I saw a few in Bali too, but it was mostly Circle K territory.

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I also think the Monday hate is overrated. It's a fresh start! Now Tuesdays...that's a different story.

Right now, I fly by the seat of my pants with writing my Substack and then just sending it out. But I'm trying to get into the habit of writing in advance and scheduling to send out. Despite the potential pitfalls you mention re: time and chronology, I think it would be better for me and better for readers to be, you know, consistent. Chronology is overrated anyway.

Have you seen The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent? The Nic Cage/Pedro Pascal crossover that is just sheer delight. Highly recommend.

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I really enjoyed The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent! It's proof that Nic Cage is up for anything and that Pedro Pascal has quietly taken over the culture.

I also like that Monday feels like a fresh start. The only time I hated Mondays was when I was a lawyer and I really hated my job. But my hatred of Monday was really about the dread of going back to work. What I really needed was a fresh start on a new career. Once I did that, it totally changed my relationship to Mondays.

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I would like to exchange all of my Scrabble tiles for "Gayle" - I love Mondays, my husband goes into his office and shuts the door and I get a couple of hours of peace after the weekend download... Coffee? Here we go: I drink instant coffee, Nescafé actually - yes, I am very continental.

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Mar 9, 2023Liked by Michael Estrin

I don’t hate Mondays, but I do love Garfield. If Garfield asked me to hate Mondays, I’d do it.

Question for ChatGPT: “Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch. Who watches over you?”

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Yes! Yes! Yes! Time to find out if there’s a birdhouse in the AI’s soul!

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Mar 9, 2023Liked by Michael Estrin

I think you’re more likely to find countless screaming Argonauts.

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I think you might be right!

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I think we ought to ask our AI friend “Who are You?” And the nagging question that’s always lingering somewhere in the back of my mind, “Should I Stay or Should I Go?”

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Both excellent questions, Justin!

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Mar 8, 2023Liked by Michael Estrin

I like my coffee black with a couple of fake sugars. I rarely drink more than one cup nor drink any past noon. But I have a 24 oz mug. Or I drink the extra large Starbucks Caffè Americano. Or when I was in Taipei a lot, I would drink a couple of large 7-11 Americanos a day.

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Are the Taipei 7-11 Americanos special in some way, or is it just that 7-11 was more convenient for you in Taipei?

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Excited to be here! Thanks for the shout out!

1) I love Mondays when Friday Jen remembers to make Monday Jen a list. If Friday Jen gets too excited about the weekend and forgets to make Monday Jen a list, then Monday Jen is sad and doesn't know what to do first and spends too much time looking for a Monday gif to post on the team chat thread.

2) Black and bitter! Sour coffee can suck it!

3) I read somewhere that Nic Cage got into some financial trouble and couldn't afford to be picky about what roles he took -- he just needed to work. At one point he did eight films in two years I think?

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I always make my Monday list Sunday evening. It’s sort of a my farewell to the weekend, but I can see the advantage of making that list on Friday while all the stuff you need to get down is fresh in your head.

I recall seeing something similar about Cage’s finances and movie output. Makes me wonder if there’s something about his experience that went into The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.

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Mar 8, 2023Liked by Michael Estrin

All that talk of Monday memes and not one mention of the National Ambassador of Monday Haters, Garfield G. Cat, ESQ.??? There's gotta be a fourth CATegory (I'll see myself out) of Monday photos on the internet, otherwise I say we unplug it all right now.

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Oooh, that CATegory joke is going to earn you a special place in comedy hell. But don't worry, I'll be right there with you for all the puns I've told. As for the Garfield of it all, I should've emphasized that my search was limited to a stock photo library, not the entire internet, so yeah, this Monday inquiry was pretty half-assed.

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1. I’ve been blessed with a love of Mondays most of my life, except for a few brief periods of working for a**holes.

2. Splash of milk, two sugars - or xylitol.

3. What was that really awful movie he made with Judge Reinhold? Started with a Z? Sorry, I’m not even gonna look it up.

4. “Who put the bomp in the bomp-sha-bomp-sha-bomp” and “Who put the Benzedrine in Mrs. Murphy’s Ovaltine?” I love a mystery.

5.None. I really don’t want to know.

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I think the movie you're thinking of is Zandalee. I had to Google it, just had to. I never saw it. Apparently, it's erotic thriller/romantic tragedy. Now, I think I need to see it, and possibly review it for Situation Normal.

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Yes, that’s the one. One of the first movies we ever rented. As I recall, it really sucked. I’m eager to know what you think.

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I wonder if it went direct to video. I can picture Nick Cage in an erotic thriller, but it's difficult to see someone saying, "Let's get Judge Reinhold for this."

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It did, and he played the un-erotic husband

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