I found a check book in the middle of our street. Initially, I thought it was an antique. Who writes checks anymore? But when I opened the check book, I noticed that it had been used recently and regularly. I also noticed that the address on the checks was only a few blocks away.
1. How did the missing checkbook end up in the middle of the street? Wild conspiracy theories are welcome. I am from Canada, and we spell it chequebook. D.B. Cooper was trying to cash a cheque, and there was a huge misunderstanding. He panicked, jumped on a plane, and the rest is history. Unfortunately, he never got a chance to tell his side of the story.
2. Why is three such a funny number? Convoluted answers are encouraged. After jumping out of the plane, D.B., I know him well, so we are casual name basis; he joined three secret societies to escape the story he never had a chance to share.
The Inquisition
The Illuminati
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows
3. What would you do if you found $3 million in cash? I would get as far away from Anton Chigurh as fast as possible.
4. Were you swept up in Succession mania, or does the name Tom Wambsgans mean nothing to you? No, and No.
5. Should I watch the original version of The Stepford Wives or read the novel? Remember, I'll hold you responsible if the novel or the film sucks. Avoid both of them and move on with your life. I doubt if either would make an impact more than me raising the ocean level by pissing in it.
Norman, please don't piss in the ocean. Other than that, these responses are perfect, especially all the DB Cooper stuff. Tell him I said there's a pretty good documentary about him on Netflix.
Oh my god, dude, you HAVE to watch the original Stepford Wives, then you will see how absolutely wrong the remake was. The original is a message about feminism and the homogenization of women by men who just want compliant robots instead of the scary, free thinking radical women that were coming into fashion in the day. Very similar to Rosemary's Baby in that vibe. The original was like "Well, what if we misunderstood the message and the time period of the first one and then for some reason didn't properly explain if what we're looking at is robots or brainwashed women or... whatever?" A more adequate successor would probably be Get Out, because they both touch on the fetishization and subjugation and eventual appropriation of those individual groups that people in power misunderstand but also covet. Anyway, the original is great, the new one sucks butt, especially after you watch the original.
You really put your finger on my problem with the remake. I could sorta forgive the muddled concept (are they robots or just brainwashed somehow??). But I couldn't overlook Nicole Kidman's decision to stay with Matthew Broderick at the end. I was like, "but he totally signed up for this and even if he balked at the last minute, he's totally awful, and you can do WAY better!" I'm going to watch the original. But as for the remake, I wonder if it was a product of a weird cultural moment between 1970s feminism and #MeToo? I'd have to go back and watch more films that were produced circa 2004, but it almost feels as if Hollywood wanted to co-opt feminist themes without saying anything at all, which I suppose is how you get such a muddled concept and unsatisfying ending. Or, maybe they just made a bad movie. I don't know. But part of me wants another remake that really goes there on the topic of women who are more successful than their husbands. I gather that theme was explored in the original, but that concept feels very ripe in today's world. Also, hell yes to Get Out! We watched that one too and I loved it!
I can't imagine how that checkbook got there. I'm 65 and haven't used a checkbook in at least a decade. And I'm mad at the ancient man for not even thanking you. Total bad karma move on his part. Checks....🤦🤦🤦
I like 3. It's the same forward and backward. It's like 8's sister. And it seems like a whole number rather than an odd. I love numbers, how they add up to equal each other, their symmetry, their mysteries. I have 3 brothers and 3 sons.
Suitcase of cash? The rule of 3 baby! Donate a third, save a third, blow a third!
Love Succession. But too over subscribed to pay for HBO. Maybe this winter when true couch living boredom sets in.
Yes. Watch the Step Ford Wives. It's very creepy. It made me want to get an apron....June Cleaver x 3!
I like your answer for what to do if I find $3 million. I'd donate a third to my local food bank, saving the next third is straightforward, and I'd probably blow the last third on travel. How about you? Also, thanks for the rec on the original Stepford Wives! I'm adding it to my list!
Haha! Yeah, there's probably a lot to unpack there. The freelance part is easy. I've been a freelancer for more than a decade, so that was the honest part. As for coroner, we can chalk it up to my preoccupation with my own mortality, or maybe it's because I also write crime fiction. Or, maybe I write crime fiction because I'm preoccupied with my own mortality.
My wife and I have a checkbook and write one check per month because our landlord only takes checks! And then drives to the bank to deposit them! So 1980s.
Michael: Welcome to the club. . .of Rule of Three (https://ruleofthree.substack.com) - what took you so long? You’re correct in declaring Rule of Three to be “royalty free,” but only because our patent is pending - we had to stand in line behind “The Three Stooges,” and kept getting poked in the eye.
Thanks Bill! What a great name for a Substack! Pro tip: never stand in line behind the Three Stooges. In fact, if you see them in line, you're probably in the wrong line.
We were very excited for the Succession finale. I asked a lot of people who they thought would “success,” but nobody I talked to guessed correctly. I thought they nailed the landing.
Funny enough, I was on the set of the Stepford Wives for a day. I organized for director Frank Oz to receive an award at my school and he invited me to the set. It was pretty awe inspiring! I’d never been on a proper Hollywood set before and the scale of it was enormous.
It's funny, I never really got caught up in the question of who will take over after Logan. I know that's the question presented by the show, but I always thought the answer was none of the Roy kids, so I was little surprised at how wild the internet went with its theories. Then again, maybe I'm the fool here because nobody should ever bet against the internet generating bonkers theories about a television show.
I mean, it's all here in the Schoolhouse Rock....3. And if this fucking sweet jam isn't in your head 4LYFE you are definitely a Cyborg. Sidenote: Mike Doughty (Soul Coughin) covered this tune and it is *chef's kiss* Side sidenote: It's not just that there is a humor element to the "rule of 3," but that it establishes a pattern. In improv you really lean on this to either strengthen a scene or completely fuck with someone by disrupting the pattern, which you probably know :) Either way: HUMOR! (Please read that in your best Mork voice). :)
I love this comment Sheila, even though I've got an ear worm for life now :) Seriously, thank you for digging up this Schoolhouse Rock clip! Also, I am not a Cyborg, although to be fair, that's probably something a Cyborg would write.
I did not know about the Rule of 3 but come to think of it, I regularly use 3 anecdotes or analogies or descriptions, in my own writing! The rhythm of 3 beats just seems to produce the perfect humorous effect, doesn't it? Now if only there was a rule that could get *all of us* $3 million....
As always, I’m entertained by your meanderings, Michael, and the replies. I used to train professional business people to speak in public and always suggested they use the rule of three. It’s a triple hook to hang ideas on. If you can’t get your message across in three blurbs, you’ve got it wrong in your head and need to untangle it and start again. That’s my three-penny-worth. (That’s an English phrase- we used to have three-penny bits in our cash system, very pretty coins, with which I could buy sweets.)
I never watched "Succession," "Game of Thrones," "Lost," "Veep," or "House of Cards." But "Ted Lasso," which dropped the finale yesterday of its final and third season, was perfect.
You've avoided some really popular television over the years, and while some may say you're missing out, I like to think that you're thousands of hours ahead of the rest of us because while we we're waiting around to see who would sit on the Iron Throne, you were living your life! Well done, Betsy! Well done!
The checkbook was stolen by a pickpocket who didn't want it because it had no cash or cards.
My missing checkbooks (for the few times I still write checks) usually show up under a pile of papers.
Everything comes in threes. In medicine, we always had odd cases come in threes. Celebrity deaths seem to come in threes. It's the magic number. Or two is common and 3 seems like it means something.
Most of the trios weren't as much weird as uncommon groupings. Things we hadn't seen in months would cluster, like 3 kids with new onset diabetes in a short time. Or before the HIB vaccine a cluster of meningitis cases.
1. How did the missing checkbook end up in the middle of the street? Wild conspiracy theories are welcome. I am from Canada, and we spell it chequebook. D.B. Cooper was trying to cash a cheque, and there was a huge misunderstanding. He panicked, jumped on a plane, and the rest is history. Unfortunately, he never got a chance to tell his side of the story.
2. Why is three such a funny number? Convoluted answers are encouraged. After jumping out of the plane, D.B., I know him well, so we are casual name basis; he joined three secret societies to escape the story he never had a chance to share.
The Inquisition
The Illuminati
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows
3. What would you do if you found $3 million in cash? I would get as far away from Anton Chigurh as fast as possible.
4. Were you swept up in Succession mania, or does the name Tom Wambsgans mean nothing to you? No, and No.
5. Should I watch the original version of The Stepford Wives or read the novel? Remember, I'll hold you responsible if the novel or the film sucks. Avoid both of them and move on with your life. I doubt if either would make an impact more than me raising the ocean level by pissing in it.
Norman, please don't piss in the ocean. Other than that, these responses are perfect, especially all the DB Cooper stuff. Tell him I said there's a pretty good documentary about him on Netflix.
Oh my god, dude, you HAVE to watch the original Stepford Wives, then you will see how absolutely wrong the remake was. The original is a message about feminism and the homogenization of women by men who just want compliant robots instead of the scary, free thinking radical women that were coming into fashion in the day. Very similar to Rosemary's Baby in that vibe. The original was like "Well, what if we misunderstood the message and the time period of the first one and then for some reason didn't properly explain if what we're looking at is robots or brainwashed women or... whatever?" A more adequate successor would probably be Get Out, because they both touch on the fetishization and subjugation and eventual appropriation of those individual groups that people in power misunderstand but also covet. Anyway, the original is great, the new one sucks butt, especially after you watch the original.
You really put your finger on my problem with the remake. I could sorta forgive the muddled concept (are they robots or just brainwashed somehow??). But I couldn't overlook Nicole Kidman's decision to stay with Matthew Broderick at the end. I was like, "but he totally signed up for this and even if he balked at the last minute, he's totally awful, and you can do WAY better!" I'm going to watch the original. But as for the remake, I wonder if it was a product of a weird cultural moment between 1970s feminism and #MeToo? I'd have to go back and watch more films that were produced circa 2004, but it almost feels as if Hollywood wanted to co-opt feminist themes without saying anything at all, which I suppose is how you get such a muddled concept and unsatisfying ending. Or, maybe they just made a bad movie. I don't know. But part of me wants another remake that really goes there on the topic of women who are more successful than their husbands. I gather that theme was explored in the original, but that concept feels very ripe in today's world. Also, hell yes to Get Out! We watched that one too and I loved it!
Absolutely! I read the book a few years after it came out (ie, 1970s), then saw the original Stepford Wives. I haven't seen the remake.
I can't imagine how that checkbook got there. I'm 65 and haven't used a checkbook in at least a decade. And I'm mad at the ancient man for not even thanking you. Total bad karma move on his part. Checks....🤦🤦🤦
I like 3. It's the same forward and backward. It's like 8's sister. And it seems like a whole number rather than an odd. I love numbers, how they add up to equal each other, their symmetry, their mysteries. I have 3 brothers and 3 sons.
Suitcase of cash? The rule of 3 baby! Donate a third, save a third, blow a third!
Love Succession. But too over subscribed to pay for HBO. Maybe this winter when true couch living boredom sets in.
Yes. Watch the Step Ford Wives. It's very creepy. It made me want to get an apron....June Cleaver x 3!
I like your answer for what to do if I find $3 million. I'd donate a third to my local food bank, saving the next third is straightforward, and I'd probably blow the last third on travel. How about you? Also, thanks for the rec on the original Stepford Wives! I'm adding it to my list!
My money choices match yours!
But if you find a case of cash then you might end up in No Country for Old Men getting chased by a drug cartel and a sociopathic hitman.
No such thing as a briefcase full of cash that's risk-free, I guess. But if Javier Bardem is asking, I want nothing to do with that cash.
Wise choice!
The therapist in me is intrigued why freelance coroner is the first occupation that came to mind!! 🤔😂
Haha! Yeah, there's probably a lot to unpack there. The freelance part is easy. I've been a freelancer for more than a decade, so that was the honest part. As for coroner, we can chalk it up to my preoccupation with my own mortality, or maybe it's because I also write crime fiction. Or, maybe I write crime fiction because I'm preoccupied with my own mortality.
I can relate, I find myself preoccupied with mortality a lot at this mid-life juncture!
Also... perhaps Freud would have something to say about the rule of 3 and the original Oedipal triangle 🤷♀️
That's a good point. My guess is that the ancient Greek playwrights were aware of the Rule of 3.
My wife and I have a checkbook and write one check per month because our landlord only takes checks! And then drives to the bank to deposit them! So 1980s.
Wow, your landlord is very old school.
He is. I have my robot take my checks to the bank.
Nice try, Estrin. I see you using the pointing out of the rule of 3 as your third thing
Clever trick, right? Or was it too clever by half? Also, consider this post me manifesting 3 million bucks.
It was quite clever indeed!
I didn't get swept up in Succession mania but I did marry the boss's daughter. Didn't really work out. Fixed it!
Michael: Welcome to the club. . .of Rule of Three (https://ruleofthree.substack.com) - what took you so long? You’re correct in declaring Rule of Three to be “royalty free,” but only because our patent is pending - we had to stand in line behind “The Three Stooges,” and kept getting poked in the eye.
Thanks Bill! What a great name for a Substack! Pro tip: never stand in line behind the Three Stooges. In fact, if you see them in line, you're probably in the wrong line.
We were very excited for the Succession finale. I asked a lot of people who they thought would “success,” but nobody I talked to guessed correctly. I thought they nailed the landing.
Funny enough, I was on the set of the Stepford Wives for a day. I organized for director Frank Oz to receive an award at my school and he invited me to the set. It was pretty awe inspiring! I’d never been on a proper Hollywood set before and the scale of it was enormous.
It's funny, I never really got caught up in the question of who will take over after Logan. I know that's the question presented by the show, but I always thought the answer was none of the Roy kids, so I was little surprised at how wild the internet went with its theories. Then again, maybe I'm the fool here because nobody should ever bet against the internet generating bonkers theories about a television show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8lRKCw2_Pk
I mean, it's all here in the Schoolhouse Rock....3. And if this fucking sweet jam isn't in your head 4LYFE you are definitely a Cyborg. Sidenote: Mike Doughty (Soul Coughin) covered this tune and it is *chef's kiss* Side sidenote: It's not just that there is a humor element to the "rule of 3," but that it establishes a pattern. In improv you really lean on this to either strengthen a scene or completely fuck with someone by disrupting the pattern, which you probably know :) Either way: HUMOR! (Please read that in your best Mork voice). :)
I love this comment Sheila, even though I've got an ear worm for life now :) Seriously, thank you for digging up this Schoolhouse Rock clip! Also, I am not a Cyborg, although to be fair, that's probably something a Cyborg would write.
They can ban the books, but they can’t stop the Schoolhouse Rock! 🤘🏼
I did not know about the Rule of 3 but come to think of it, I regularly use 3 anecdotes or analogies or descriptions, in my own writing! The rhythm of 3 beats just seems to produce the perfect humorous effect, doesn't it? Now if only there was a rule that could get *all of us* $3 million....
Here's to all of us finding that $3 million!
As always, I’m entertained by your meanderings, Michael, and the replies. I used to train professional business people to speak in public and always suggested they use the rule of three. It’s a triple hook to hang ideas on. If you can’t get your message across in three blurbs, you’ve got it wrong in your head and need to untangle it and start again. That’s my three-penny-worth. (That’s an English phrase- we used to have three-penny bits in our cash system, very pretty coins, with which I could buy sweets.)
Thank you for the three-penny-worth of advice. We still do two cents, but with inflation, maybe America will catch up to the UK.
freelance coroner
It's a living. I mean a dying.
I never watched "Succession," "Game of Thrones," "Lost," "Veep," or "House of Cards." But "Ted Lasso," which dropped the finale yesterday of its final and third season, was perfect.
You've avoided some really popular television over the years, and while some may say you're missing out, I like to think that you're thousands of hours ahead of the rest of us because while we we're waiting around to see who would sit on the Iron Throne, you were living your life! Well done, Betsy! Well done!
The checkbook was stolen by a pickpocket who didn't want it because it had no cash or cards.
My missing checkbooks (for the few times I still write checks) usually show up under a pile of papers.
Everything comes in threes. In medicine, we always had odd cases come in threes. Celebrity deaths seem to come in threes. It's the magic number. Or two is common and 3 seems like it means something.
I'd vacation a lot more with a found 3 million.
Never watched Succession.
I've got to ask. What was the weirdest trio of medical cases you ever saw?
Most of the trios weren't as much weird as uncommon groupings. Things we hadn't seen in months would cluster, like 3 kids with new onset diabetes in a short time. Or before the HIB vaccine a cluster of meningitis cases.