1255 – Guide to Spence & Funk | Multiplex Ep6

Episode 1255 – Guide to Spence & Funk | Multiplex Ep6

 

[START OF RECORDING]

 

SCOOTER: Friends beyond the binary, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, whether you’ve ever been to a shopping mall that is…is that…do shopping malls…? They used to use some sort of fiber similar to what you’d put inside of pillows as pretend snow. Does anybody else…? I say, what is that puffy stuff? Is that like the inside of pillows? It’s supposed to be snow? It once covered shopping malls everywhere during the holiday season, which this is not. So, you’re wondering, Scoots, why is that on your brain? I say, I don't know. I just know that…I don't…I really don’t know. I mean, I wish I did.

 

If we could clear that stuff out, I’m sure there’d be more space for something else, but it’d probably be something…my brain would say, great, now I got more time…now that you’ve cleared all that pillow fill, I can talk to you more about stuff at bedtime. Now I have more resources to process things at bedtime when you’re trying to get to sleep. So, if you’re new, if you’re wondering what I’m talking about or you could relate to what I’m talking about or you’re just confused, I’m so glad you’re here. Welcome to Sleep With Me. It’s a podcast to keep you company and take your mind off of stuff while you fall asleep, to be your friend in the deep, dark night, to be your bore-bud, not really to put you to sleep but to just be there while you fall asleep, talking, distracting, keeping you company.

 

This show is very, very different than most things out there, so give it a few tries and see how it goes. It’s just like calling a goofy friend and saying, talk to me about something, but almost…talk to me about almost…I’m not gonna pay attention, but I want you to talk about something intentionally, but also make sure it’s kinda about nothing. But it should be about something in case I want to listen. Like, can you bare…? Here’s the thing; if you asked me this, if you said, what’s one of the compacts…can you barely put a…? Put a file on my face…no, don’t put any files on anybody’s faces, subconscience. Subconscious; I can’t even pronounce that. What is that…? It was so weird. What kind of Freudian slip was that? Put a file on my face. Why?

 

I mean, I guess if you were taking a nap at the office…now that I think about it, if you could sleep…like, if you were in a chair…a manilla file with…the one…you know the one…that’s what a file is, right? That might be pretty good. It’s…gives you plenty of room for your nose and your mouth, but it also covers your eyes. It probably won't fall off if you’re leaning back in your chair or laying down. It won't provide much pillowing, you know, but…I have no idea what I was saying before. Put a smile…oh, can you put…can you barely put a smile on my face? I think I just may have, you know? You say, people…suddenly…we tried to get everybody to go back to the office, Brad. Here’s another report on Back to the Office, news at…news to snooze to.

 

Yeah, we got everybody back in the office, and then this sleep podcaster gave everybody this great idea. I don't know how it wasn’t worldwide already, but people started taking naps at their office with file folders over their face, gently placed. Then what they started doing is putting decorations on there to express themselves, and efficiency is through the roof, Brad. I don't know what to tell you. It’s a paradox. If you have any extra money, Jim, I’d like to sell you…I got a paradox you could buy down the road. Well, hardy, har, har. Isn’t this supposed to be not even the beginning of a sleep podcast but just the teaser and lead-in for a sleep podcast? Well, Jim, Brad, it is…Scooter, and…glad you’re here.

 

This is…you’re right; I was supposed to bare…I was supposed to much more efficiently…it’s too bad I don't work at your…wait, how much are those Docs? Did you say…one of you say you’re selling a pair of Docs? Because…would they be sight-unseen? They’re laughing, Brad and Jim. Oh, a paradox; oh, I get it now. In that sense, I already have the Docs and I don't even need them. I get it now. Okay, so, welcome to Sleep With Me. It is a bit different. What we got coming up is support so paying for the podcast is optional. If you prefer to listen without the sponsor support, there’s ways to do that, but most people choose to do it that way, then there’s a long, meandering intro separate from the support made to ease you into bedtime, and then there will be a bedtime story later on, a episodically modular series called Multiplex.

 

Yeah, that’s everything. I’m glad you’re here, and, yeah, just see how it goes. Maybe you’re snoozing at work and increasing your…and it’s a workplace that’s snooze-friendly. Why not? I guess they…well, I could think of a thousand reasons, Jim. Okay, well, great. That’s why you’re only imaginary figures in my mind. So, yeah, welcome to Sleep With Me. It’s a podcast that’s here to keep you company and put you to sleep, and thanks for making it possible, my bore-friends.

 

INTRO: [INTRO MUSIC] Hey, are you up all night tossing, turning, mind racing? Trouble getting to sleep? Trouble staying asleep? Well, welcome. This is Sleep With Me, the podcast that puts you to sleep. We do it with a bedtime story. Alls you need to do is get in bed, turn out the lights, and press Play. I’m gonna do the rest. What I’m going to attempt to do is create a safe place where you could set aside whatever’s keeping you awake.

 

It could be thoughts, thinking thoughts about the past, the present, the future, so, thoughts you’re thinking about, feelings, anything coming up for you emotionally related to those thoughts or feelings that are just there, it could be physical sensations, changes in time, temperature, routine, you could be traveling, you could have guests, you could be going somewhere, you could be going through something, maybe work a different schedule, maybe you’re not feeling great. Maybe it’s baffling. Maybe you just don’t know why you can’t sleep. Whatever it is, I’m glad you’re here and I really hope I can help you fall asleep. The only reason I list through some of the stuff that keeps listeners awake is so you know you’re not alone.

 

I think that is an important element to keep pointing out episode after episode after episode, because it just can feel that way. Even throughout my life when I’ve had sleep problems, there’s been times I’ve had other people in the room with me, there’s been times I’ve been in a house full of people. I always have my sidekick, Koa. Actually, she refers to me as her…well, actually, I wish she referred to me as her sidekick, my dog Koa. She’s more…ever since they started calling stuff ‘on-demand’, she prefers to call me her petter-on-demand at bedtime. It is part of my wind-down routine, petting my sweet, sweet dog, Koa and telling her what a great dog she is. I do. It’s just part of my routine. She seems to like it and it gives me some purpose, so I like it. Also, I enjoy petting my dog, of course.

 

Of course, pets out there, there’s nothing I’d rather do than get on a hard floor, get low, and then…also have my…I don't think Koa directly criticizes my petting, but she does do some corrective measures. She says, no, no, no. How many times have you petted me before? Can't you get this right? I said, well, I was just trying something new out, you know? No, no, no. Let’s just stick to the…just stick to what works, and go back to complimenting me on what a great dog I am in that voice like you’re talking to a baby. So, that’s how I go off topic. But the reason I go through what’s keeping us awake is…I don't know. For me, it can just feel lonely. Then I feel like during the day, I try to tell people I can't sleep and they don’t understand or they give me advice, and they don’t seem to get it. Then that makes me feel more alone.

 

Maybe that’s not the case for you, but maybe there’s some reassurance knowing that there’s someone out there that can relate to how you feel, even if I’m not the one. You say, Scoots, it doesn't feel that way to me. I can tell you what; there’s enough people listening that I’ve heard from that there’s people out there that can relate to how you feel, whatever flavor in the old feeling wheel that is. Maybe…like my dog, you say, no, no, no, don’t…I don't need any under-the-chin scratches. Get that side…and I say, is that a jowl? She says, what, are you doing your podcast? No, no. Just pet me. I don't need the podcast. I say, well, but are those jowls? She says, no, no, no; that’s where…no.

 

Go over there, do a little scratch, and then I’ll move my chin, but don’t scratch my chin. Now go back to petting my head and go back to complimenting me. Thank you. If I could read dog’s minds, it’d be a lot…I mean, actually, I probably…Koa would say, you wouldn’t want to know. Don’t bother reading my mind. You wouldn’t be able to handle it. Say, you’re not emotionally equipped to handle my…reading my mind. It’d be too…it’d be pretty hard on you, so…you’re doing your best, but…so, I’ll just…let’s just leave it at that. Don’t read my mind; I’ll just tell you. Scoots, it’s clear you’re doing your best, and…so, keep trying to pet me as long as possible and as much as possible.

 

Okay, so, I guess whatever’s keeping you awake, there’s someone out there who can relate to how you feel that’s listening right now and they’re nodding, and they agree with me that you deserve a good night's sleep, because they’ve been there in the same spot whenever they discovered the show and then they started to become a regular listener. So, they’re glad you’re here. They really hope the podcast can help so that you get the rest you need and you deserve. You deserve a bedtime you don’t have to dread. You deserve a bedtime with no rigmarole. So, I hope I can provide that or help with that, and if I can't, there’s a website; sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou, and it has other sleep podcasts and sleepy stuff on there. You could check that out.

 

You say, I loathe you and your talk about…making light of petting pets is not funny. I’d say, I’m not aware…I didn’t even know I had a pet critic in my brain, but apparently I do. I wasn’t criticizing petting pets. Well, please don’t use it as a moment of levity. You say, is there any time that petting a pet shouldn’t…? I don't know. I’m sorry. There’s a part of my brain that has no levity. A large part, actually. So, yeah, check out sleepwithmepodcast.com/nothankyou, but give this show a few tries if you’re new. It just takes some time to get used to 'cause it’s…never gets started, you’ve probably tried a ton of stuff to help you fall asleep, you’re probably frustrated, you’re probably fed up, maybe you’ve listened to other sleep audio.

 

Back when I made the show over ten or eleven years ago, there wasn’t such thing as a sleep podcast or a boring cast or whatever people call them now, and a lot of the sleep audio was way more serious, and it just didn’t work for me. I know it works for some people and I’m happy about that, but I was like, how come there’s not a show like a friend, like a goofball, a person that struggles even to be a good enough person to pet their pet and enjoy it, a person I could relate to and a person that talks to their dog like a baby but also knows their dog is silently judging them? I’d say, that’s…I said, there’s no podcast out there like that? Even back then, they said, no. I’m not kidding. Every time I pitched the podcast, it was like, no. Probably a good reason, too. Then I would say, well, I’m actually making it.

 

Then people would be like, huh, interesting. Okay. So, who would have known back then that this would become a thing? But I’m glad it did because now there’s a diversity of choices, and this is just one of your choices. But for most people that listen to this show on a regular basis and who have become a part of our community and stuff, once they realized it, they say, oh, this show never does get started but this is what I’ve been looking for my whole life, or this is what helped me through this big exam or this big moment or this big journey…big, tough journey I’m going through right now, and that’s really important to me, to help. So, that’s why I make the show. What I do is I send my voice across the deep, dark night.

 

I use lulling, soothing, creaky, dulcet tones, pointless meanders, and superfluous tangents, which you’ve seen a few of, to make a show, a podcast that you just barely listen to, kinda like background noise, that barely puts a smile on your face and that just kinda barely makes sense. I mean, I guess the podcast really isn’t that different than petting a dog. Well, I guess it is nothing like that, but I’m trying…I feel like there’s a metaphor there, because it’s supposed to be soothing, right? Petting your dog says, hey, you’re important to me. You deserve to be petted. I love you. If I was a dog, personally I’d say…personally, I got issues. I’d say, no, no thanks. You can just indicate…just nod your head at me. But most dogs, they say, yeah, I’d love to be petted.

 

That’s a way to say, hey, I do love you, I care about you, and this baby talk I’m gonna use now is truthful. You are a really good girl and I really am…you’re a great dog. You can’t say…saying that to humans, we don’t…no, I’m not…you’re not gonna…we’re not gonna be petting each other out there in the world, but this is a way to do it that’s a little bit more buffered, as maybe might be…with some space, or a version of that. Maybe not, but in the spirit, in the same spirit, I guess. It’s hard when you can hear your dog rolling her eyes in the other room when you’re trying to make metaphors and sounds. I’m only criticizing your petting. But I mean, that’s great for Koa. It’s like, there’s always room for improvement in petting your dog.

 

If you haven’t heard that, put it on a pillow, because every dog, cat, and other pet everywhere could always love us more. More the time…and you could always improve. But we’re not criticizing you like a family member; just…but we are a family member. But it’s all done in love. Love your pets. Just love us a little better and more, and we’ll let you know how to do that. Preferably…I know we can't have unlimited treats, but that would be great. I got distracted again. It’s a podcast…oh, just barely listen to it. I think that’s clear…like background noise. This podcast also doesn't put you to sleep. It’s here to keep you company while you fall asleep. I’m here to be your friend, your bore-bed…your bore-bed…your bore-bud, your bore-bestie, your neigh-bore, your bore-bor, your Borbie, your bores, your bore-bruh, your bore-bestie.

 

There’s no pressure to fall asleep with this show. The reason it’s over an hour is so you could just listen and you don’t have to think about when the episode’s gonna end. You don’t have to think about when you’re gonna fall asleep. I’m gonna be here talking to you, and I’ll be here talking to you later, too, and then there’s 601 episodes in the ad-supported, free show, so you could just keep listening and listening and listening if you need it. So, there’s that, a podcast you don’t listen to, it doesn't put you to sleep…structure of the show’s different. The show starts off with a greeting; friends beyond the binary, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, so you feel seen and welcomed in. You say, I could check that show out, maybe.

 

Then there’s a long, meandering intro separate from the support. Oh no, wait…oh no…there’s the welcoming thing, then there’s support so the show could be free. That’s how most people listen, is they listen to this ad-supported version linearly, and maybe a smaller percentage of those people use a sleep timer at thirty, forty-five, or sixty minutes. But if you prefer to listen to the show…like just the stories or just the intros or you don’t want any sponsors, there’s ways to do that at Sleep With Me+ or for free just by doing a little work and support…like sharing about the show…our referral program. But that’s just there because that’s the option most…that works for the most amount of people.

 

Then there’s a long, meandering intro separate from the support, and the intro’s there to ease you into bedtime. It could put you to sleep, but it’s not designed to put you to sleep. It’s designed as you get ready for bed, as you’re petting your pets or doing your bedtime routine or your wind-down routine or you’re in bed getting comfortable. The reality is most of us just don’t fall asleep right away, and having a wind down is an important part of the bedtime routine that works. So, that’s what the intro is there for.

 

If you don’t like the intros, like I said, there’s ways you could listen without the intro, or you could start the show at twenty or thirty minutes and do it that way, or you could fall asleep during the intro. So, you could see how it goes. Then after the intro is support, then there’s our bedtime story, Multiplex, and that’ll be a nice, long, meandering bedtime story, and then there’s thank-yous at the end. So, that’s the structure of the show. That’s why I make the show. I’m really glad you’re here. I work really hard. I yearn and I strive. I really hope I can help you fall asleep. Thanks again for coming by, and here’s a couple ways we’re able to do it for you for free twice a week.

 

Alright everybody, it’s time for our episodically modular series, Multiplex, and Multiplex is…welcome, if you’re new. How you doing? Don't worry; the main character of Multiplex, Boyd…oh no, Boyd’s not the main character; Wyatt. Who would…what kind of creator doesn't know who their main character is? Narrator…narrator? Narrator. How did I mispronounce ‘narrator’? But Wyatt is the main character, and what else? Oh, if you’re new, you’ve never listened to one of these episodically modular series with a touch of seriality or maybe a hint of seriality, is…so, this is a fictional series about a group of friends at a shopping mall on an adventure. Episodically mod…seriality means it’s a continuing story with a beginning, middle, and end, seemingly.

 

It’s supposed to have those things…over the course of the series, which would be somewhere around twelve episodes-ish. But the episodically modular portion means…I think this is Episode 6 we’re recording now, but everything before this you could listen to as prequels, 'cause the main character’s gonna catch you up so you’ll have everything you need to know, and then you could watch those like flashbacks or whatever and say, oh, okay, that’s how they got to the point where I started listening. Episode 6 is pretty important 'cause Star…oh no, that was the last…Star Wars went one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, right? So, don’t use that as an example.

 

But there’s probably another better example. Like, a fantasy series…I did a test. I can't remember…it wasn’t GoT, but it was another fantasy series. Definitely one, maybe two…I read the second book and then I went back and read the first book. Was it Wizard’s First Rule? But I think that was the first book. If it’s not, then I said, well, that…I’m gonna read it first anyway, 'cause if it’s Wizard’s First Rule…anyway, not important. The only thing that’s important is you can listen to it in any order. You could go back, and we do have them numbered if you really need so, so then…but you could just keep listening to this one. Just don’t pay attention, right? I’m just here to talk and rumble you off to dreamland.

 

So, that’s what a episodically modular series is, and of course, when it’s time for a episodically modular series, we love to have someone drive all the way from the Greater Los Angeles area…or if he happens to be doing an event somewhere nearby…he’s laughing 'cause I don't think it was somewhere nearby. But we have our Hollywood announcer come by. Man, people have been talking about you, Antonio, saying, I saw Antonio in this, I saw him in that. So, so happy to have him here, because he really is a busy guy. He only does this for love of sleep, and I think he gets something out of it. I mean, I’m not trying to be self-depricating. I guess I do believe we enjoy our time together, but I can't imagine it because I am very difficult on Antonio. I just find he’s perpetually…just barely…perpetually making very subtle sounds.

 

But if there ever becomes a point where they say, you know who’s…you know, we need to cast somebody in this movie who’s silenter than a whisper. I don't know why they say, silent…that’s how I’d describe Antonio; oh, he’s as silent as a whisper. If you’re trying to record something through a pre-amp, you’ll know that when I say ‘silent as a whisper’, it’s not…it doesn't make any…he’s almost as…no, he’s more…he’s as silent as a whisper. I guess that’s a simile? But in that one, it’s kind of a fact-based statement. Mr. Antonio Banderas. The friends beyond the binary, the ladies, the gentlemen, the boys, the girls, it’s time for Multiplex. Clickety, clickety, clack. Yeah. Thanks, Antonio. That’s Antonio Banderas. This is Multiplex. Take it away, Wyatt.

 

Good evening, everybody. My name is Wyatt, and I’m recording these memories of mine, a tale I feel has needed to be told for a long time. Now, you may be listening to this…you may not know who I am, and that’s not important. But if you say, well, I’m listening 'cause I’m a fan of Wyatt and the brilliant public-access shows that are on YouTube now. But maybe they aren’t now. I don't even know. Maybe you’re listening to this and you say, well, I don't even know what a YouTube is. I say, okay, great. But maybe you wondered how I got the interviews. I used to do a public-access show, which a lot of you might not know what that is, but it’s…it was a show where…screen movies and talk to people involved in the movies or related tangentially or were fans of the movies or based their lives around characters in the movies or once acted on a show.

 

People used to say there was a couple recurring characters we…well, they thought they were characters, and they wondered how they were recurring. They thought it was so brilliant, and the movie makeup and all that…and I’m here to one, let people know, yeah, that wasn’t my brilliance…or, I don't have any makeup skills. So, that’s one thing. But so, that’s not the most important part of my tale. My tale is about how four friends or three friends and one acquaintance who were on a track seemingly from childhood for three different paths to greatness…not burdens of expectation of high-achievement, but a propellant sending them to high achievement and how they would set off on an adventure that they didn’t know at the time, where their paths would go from the idea of high flying or high falutin to just regular.

 

How does someone become…how does someone take a grand adventure and become just regular? I ain’t talking about high-fibre oat bran; just regular…well, I would be, because you say, well, what is just…? You know, high-fibre oat bran does just fine on its own, in my opinion, Wyatt’s opinion. For some reason today I’m mixed up between myself and Boyd, the Corncob Kid. So, that’s the reason I’m telling these tales, to clear things up but to give you hope. If you ever thought, what’s so great about being great? I don't know the answer to that, because I only know what’s so great about being me and in the pack I’m among and just doing stuff. So…and you might say, Boyd…well, this is my public-access accent, right? They say, what regional accent is that, Boyd? It changes a lot.

 

I’d say, yeah, this is…when you make a public-access show…this is my character for public consumption. Okay, so let me set the stage if you’re new to this story here. What happened? Where are we? What’s going on? We start off with three of us; myself, Wyatt, my best friends, Santos and Josie. I had found out recently I didn’t get a scholarship to school of my own…'cause I kinda didn’t do good on the…what would have qualified me to get a scholarship that I thought I had locked in. So, I was down because I said, I don't know if I’m gonna get…be able to go on the path I thought I was set forth on. Santos and Josie, they also had…they already had their full scholarships to school and big expectations.

 

We were just in that twilight of our high-school years, and it was around twilight that we were playing a game of mini-golf to take my mind off of the losing of the scholarship, how I’m gonna pay for school, how am I gonna…my parents…the whole nine yards. After that game of mini-golf, we ran into Boyd, the Corncob Kid, who had come through a culvert under the road. A culvert, Boyd said, that led to a shopping mall; Fairglen, Fairview…? Huh, why is it escaping me? But a shopping mall that had closed down some time before. Even though it was funny hearing a eighteen-year-old say this, a shopping mall of my youth that had long been since forgotten, but Boyd had been in there.

 

Particularly, Boyd had been inside the mall and found a collection of concentrated Doctor Julius J Juice, which used to be a stand…a stalwart of the malls where you could get…it was kinda like…I don't know. I never had one. I think maybe I had a taste of one when my parents got it, but it was orange juice…I always thought it was orange juice and milk blended together, which makes no sense. But it was some sort of creamy orange juice maybe with pineapple. Anyway, it wasn’t real orange…it was concentrate…it was some sort of concentrate based on real juices, I believe. But since Julius J Juice had gone out of business, this concentrate, which was…came in cans made to last for a very long time, was valuable.

 

This was before the internet, but there were still bulletin boards and those kind of things, and Boyd had people willing to buy this stuff; alt.julius.juice or something like…the fans? I don't know how any of that worked, but they were willing to buy cans of this concentrate at a premium because there wasn’t much out there in the world. Boyd said, alls I need help with is getting the juice concentrate cans out of the mall through the culvert, into a truck, and then into my garage where I could…or we could hold on…we can work out who holds them, and we’ll sell them and we’ll split the money. I think the arrangement was Boyd gets fifty percent and then we would split the rest, the other side of the fifty percent. But there was a lot of cans of it and to our best deduction, this was abandoned merchandise.

 

The company was out of business. The mall was out of business, and enough time had passed that if someone…if Doc…there was no Doctor Julius J Juice. That was only an imaginary figure, but if there was a Doctor Julius J Juice, all the asset’s already been taken care of. So, this was basically like an advanced form of jumping…going through…and you say, well, I own my garbage. Okay, well anyway, let’s just say it was a gray area, but it wasn’t too gray for…we’re pretty honest kids. But we went into the mall to get that juice. We snuck in the mall. There was a couple things that we thought were strange; extra fencing that looked pretty new, some of the fencing facing the inside of the mall. We eventually went into The World of Cutlery, ran into a worker there who needed us to retrieve a missing item from The World of Cutlery.

 

There, we met a mommy who needed to be reconstructed anatomically and with socks, and to find their way back into a movie in the Multiplex, the mommy movie. We initially, at this point, still believed that it was part of a immersive theatre opportunity, that there was different times…probably obvious to you listening that there’s some holes in that theory. But we were just eighteen, and this is pretty mind-boggling. So, we helped this mommy reestablish its physical being. We thought it was a puppet. I mean, on some level I didn’t think it was a puppet, but…and we helped it get back into its movie. The movie then became a cereal…and it could only get in the movie at the right time at the right moment and the right conditions. That’s what it needed our help for.

 

Again, like you would call a get-out-of-this-room thing adventure, or an immersive theatre adventure. So, we helped that mommy and we got the missing thing returned to The World of Cutlery. Then we tried to get outta there, get the juice. We had given some of the juice to the mommy, juice concentrate. The mall was closed, and so, our options were limited. Also, we had slept. But we were still on this adventure. The next thing we encountered as we were…we were just trying to get out of the mall…was someone named Franny. Franny was the ultimate companion. What do you call that? A combination of being, famous beings — again, with this anatomy stuff, but — combined to be an ultimate companion to hang around with by Victor Victori or somebody.

 

I mean, I know because I read the book and I loathe the person that did this in the book. It’s just my opinion, though. Franny needed our help. Now, Franny wanted to become the Mistress of Iron. She had gone to Spence’s Gifts and seen the posters of the Mistress of Iron, black light, black-velvet posters, and thought, hey, I want to be the Mistress of Iron. Also, Franny had remembered that in the laboratory where Franny became the ultimate companion…human companion…not like a dog companion and not like…a companion you could talk to, I guess, was the original goal. I think it was the large ego of Victor who said, this is what I think the world needs, without thinking it totally through.

 

But Franny was frustrated because Franny had been not accepted as the ultimate companion because Franny’s…when you combine a bunch of different people together, especially when those people are historical figures that have since moved on from the Earthly realm, that’s not a kind of visual that most people are comfortable having as their companion. So, Franny was very frustrated, and that’s why Franny wanted to become the Mistress of Iron, to go and dominate the people or force them to see…oh, and also use lights and lightning light type stuff, 'cause that’s the flashy part of the movie or the story. I guess the movie, in this case. Also, Spence…oh, everybody that works at Spence is named Spence. It’s one of their gimmicks, I guess.

 

More than a gimmick, apparently, but…so, someone at Spence, Spence, said, hey, I need the…what do you call it? The black lights, 'cause I can't leave work. Oh, 'cause Franny had broken all the black lights at Spence’s. So, we went…this is where we met Franny, at the Tiki Trans…Transistor Tiki Hut, where Josie used to work. They sell black lights and other items like that. That’s where we met Franny and heard Franny’s story. Now, I’ll be honest, I’m a little bit disappointed in myself and everybody; we started to gather the lights. We got Franny distracted, and then we tried to leave the mall, unsuccessfully. I think that’s where I left off in my tale. We were just gonna ditch Franny and Spence and this immersive theatre, but we had been in this immersive theater for like, thirty-six hours, more…maybe even…oh, maybe not.

 

Maybe twenty-four? I don't even know. We had lost track of time. But so, we…kind of our tails between our legs, we had to go back. The only way to get…the only door we had access to was the back door of the Transistor Tiki Hut, where you could buy radio…it became a place where you could buy everything, but…and we went back, and Franny was still there and Franny was still trying to set up the lights. We had had a long discussion again of how we were gonna handle this, so I don't need to get into that. Should we just leave Franny again, sneak by Franny, leave…? No. Clearly we need to help Franny and Spence, and then we’ll be able to get out of the mall. Also, Spence had keys to the back door of Spence’s.

 

Okay, so, we went back there and Franny…I can't remember where…the last tale…some of this also kinda clouds together. But Franny had all the lights and was getting really intense. So, the first thing we did was calm Franny down and say, okay, okay, we’re here to help. Sorry; we got…we were trying to leave, to be honest, and that kinda let Franny feel again like another set of humans letting me down…don’t…we said, okay, okay. Then we realized also…we also have to help Spence, so we decided with Franny…we said, hey, let’s bring all this in front of the Mistress of the Iron, 'cause Spence’s has a room or a place…curtained-off area with posters, mostly Mistress of Iron posters, that when you have black lights on them, they glow in the dark and look really cool.

 

So, we went back there and then we kinda started getting everything set up. Spence was not there and there was a sign like, no worries, Spence is on break. We said, okay, well…anyway, so, we started plugging in all the black lights we had taken. Josie left a invoice even though we realized, well, it’s not…this whole mall, why is there even inventory? Oh, well, it’s probably part of this game. Maybe we should leave a invoice, then, since Josie used to work there…invoicing Spence’s for the missing black lights and plasma domes and all that stuff…lava lamps. So, we got everything set up, right, and then we said, okay, Franny…'cause…this was a difficult part 'cause this was pomp and circumstance, really, 'cause the black lights and all that stuff weren’t gonna…we said, what do you want to get out of this?

 

I want to have the same powers as the Mistress of Iron. Then we realized, oh wait, but we gotta bring you back to your movie. So, we took some more time at this point, 'cause we had walked…we had walked back from…take a couple trips, we had to set everything up. So, instead of just doing it silently, we had Franny talking the whole time. Also, we had had to read the book that the movie was based on in high school. This movie was just called Franny, you know? They said, okay, well, Franny is unhappy. Franny was supposed to be the ultimate companion. Everywhere Franny went, people ran and yelled and yelled and yelled, and no…even when Franny…Franny was supposed…I tried to discuss philosophy, tried to sing, tried to be of service, you know, and help them with chopping wood and stuff.

 

We said, oh yeah, we remember that was in the book. None of us had seen the movie, by the way. It kinda worked out that it was like, okay, so, Franny’s just not visually likeable, unfortunately, and misunderstood, definitely. Even though Franny was a bit much, but under the circumstances we could see that was reasonable. If you read the book, Franny’s behavior is very…we say, okay, Franny, I’m on your side. Don't worry. So, we kinda remember…and for the shopping mall…now, we didn’t have…right now, most of the gates of the shopping mall were down, so we had access to just this one section of the mall, but there were still…we said, what about a makeover, right? First we tried doing a makeover just at Spence’s.

 

Now, Spence’s has a limited selection of clothing based on people that at this time wanted to be the Mistress of Iron. But the actual people that would hang with the Mistress of Iron probably don’t shop at Spence’s, you know, or listen to the Mistress of Iron. She’s a rock…a metal band. So, okay, so…but we did that first and we went back to the movie, left all the black lights and all that stuff. So, we said, okay, now we could go back, and Spence will be happy, too. We put Franny back in the film, right? We had already done this with the mommy, so it wasn’t that difficult. Quickly, we found that Franny…being like the Mistress of Iron did not help. So, not metal in…whatever year it was, 18…whatever year. I don't know where the setting of the film is. 19…I should have known that. So, then again we tried.

 

We said, okay, well, what if we try to put you in something a little bit more plain? I can't remember where the first store we went to was. Then we said, okay, we gotta watch the movie anyway with Franny. So, we watched it one time without Franny in there, and then we watched it and we said, okay, Franny, we think we know what we’re doing. So, you just go in dressed in this kinda plain thing, and we’ll watch. We kinda remember…we remembered from the book. The whole movie builds to when everybody decides, oh no, not Franny. And Victor, Victoria, was the team. I think that was…in the movie it was a team, where in the book it was just Victor, right? I don't think in the book Victor escapes…in the book, but in the movie, everybody decides we’re gonna go to the big castle and there’s gonna be a big ending.

 

So, we watched the whole movie with and without Franny in it, trying to figure out, well, where do we put Franny in it? Then we thought about our favorite part in the…because there’s parts that are not easy, right? So, Franny, in the movie…and they took this from the book, probably the most powerful, emotional moment. The book…I’ll just combine the two images because it’s important. So, in the book, Franny kinda lives outside of this cottage in this edge of town where this family lives, and the family’s not in great shape, you know. They could use some help, maybe the help from an ultimate companion. But Franny’s already learned the hard way that people aren’t necessarily accepting of Franny. So, Franny just lays in this broken-down…we’ll just say a broken…a broken-down mill right at the edge of their property.

 

Nobody goes there. Even the kids don’t go there and play for some reason. So, Franny just lays there all day, watching. Then Franny realizes where they need help, and then while they’re sleeping, Franny starts helping; chopping their wood, bringing fresh water, and just leaving it, kinda like in fairy tales, right, where you say, whoa boy, the forest sprites are leaving our water and our wood. These people, they were a little bit more people-centric, so they said, oh, there must be people that really care about us and they’re anonymous. Then in the movie and the book, Franny breaks Franny’s anonymity at some point. Says, well, I’ve helped these people to get to a point where they’re flourishing, almost, but still in great need of my help.

 

Of course they’re going to embrace me with open arms. In the movie, Franny decides I’ll even read you a bedtime story, to one of the kids, and that’s just what sets off the entire final chain of the events of the film. But also in the movie, they did have the scene where the people become aware of Franny, and they say, no, no, we can't accept you as…you’re too different, Franny. I’m sorry. They don’t say ‘I’m sorry’ or anything. They just react. I’ll tell you what; after watching the movie twice, none of us…we had already had a strong distaste for Victor. Now we had a strong distaste for the townspeople, particularly the people of this cottage. So, it was a little difficult to help Franny because we were like, maybe you should just go back there and we should just change the entire plot of the story. To be honest, we tried it.

 

It didn’t work. Plus, Franny was like, no, I like these people even though they’re not nice to me. Then what we did, which is pretty standard…we had already tried a metal look for Franny. We tried sending Franny back in a lot of different ways, a lot of different outfits, soft as possible, entertaining, uplifting, whatever we could design or find clothing, which even in this section of the mall, we had…and we said, well, the sock puppet thing worked in the last one. Is there anything we can do to diffuse this human reaction and have them deal with it in a different way? Did not work. We started to get really unhappy, and again, we really felt for Franny, but Franny was also fed up, and we were fed up with the people in the movie.

 

But there’s something about us four that in the face of that difficulty, it became a puzzle where you’re missing some…like a jigsaw puzzle where you’re missing a few of the pieces that you need to figure out what the pieces you have are for, and you know those pieces are missing, and you dedicate yourself to searching everywhere for those missing pieces that aren’t on the table. You say, I don't…we’re almost…we almost know what this picture of this puzzle is. Clearly something is missing. We need to find these pieces. They must be somewhere on the floor, maybe in a couch cushion, maybe in someone’s sock. By the way, Santos, remember that? So, we were also approaching it from that sort of level, or channeling our frustration mostly into solving it. But at this point we were pacing around the mall. We had free range.

 

What do we do? We kept checking Spence’s to see if Spence was there. No sign of Spence. We were all standing in front of the Mistress of Iron. Oh, who was…what was interesting; Franny’s a performer in this immersive theatre. It was a human…we were assuming it was a human in costume, right, performing as this amalgamation of famous people made to be the ultimate companion for humans, created by Victor or Victor and Victoria in the film. Okay, so, what happened? We were trying to think, and we were trying to think of anything we could do. Where had we gone wrong? Two things came together. One, we were going through everything at Spence’s 'cause we didn’t care at this point, and Josie found the Spence’s employee guidebook. Not a handbook, not a rulebook; a guidebook.

 

It talked about guides versus rules versus suggestions. That was one part. Then Boyd kind of started to relate, and Boyd told us the story of…'cause Boyd was really into this, right, because Boyd was not in the in crowd like we were. Boyd was the Corncob Kid, and Boyd said to us, you know what? Do you ever know how I became the Corncob Kid? Santos hadn’t been there, but Josie and I had. We said, yeah, you came…transfer…you transferred to our school and you had overalls. Did you have a straw hat? Boyd was laughing at this, even though this was really what Josie kinda remembered; overalls, no shirt, no shoes, and a piece of wheat between your teeth, with maybe a straw hat and a…? Boyd said, no, no, no. Well, some of that’s true. I said, I remember your corncob pipe that you still have.

 

Boyd said, pipes…because…and these were pipes you don’t smoke. Not like that kind of smoking. They used to give kids corncob pipes at the pipe store for free or a huge discount, to look cool. They weren’t for blowing bubbles. They were just for keeping in your mouth, and they were…Boyd’s…so, Boyd said, yeah, yeah, yeah, I was so on the outs at that school that my father gave me a corncob pipe to soothe myself. He goes, but yeah, I was Corncob Kid, not the Corncob Kid. Oh yeah, Corncob Kid, Corncob Kid. We had different rhymes about…not nice. Kids…this was in what, fifth, sixth, seventh grade. We all have regrets, right, how we behaved, and we saw…see the regrettable behavior we had behaved and how it impacted Boyd.

 

Boyd said, yeah, but the corncob still…the corncob pipes still soothe me, so I kept at it, and at some point I…my parents helped and I got other help from the school counsellor, and I realized I could be okay with not being as okay as I wanted to be, and that I could adjust. Yeah, it was unfortunate, but you guys were just kids being kids, and I could embrace where I was and all that. As Boyd went from being a pre-teen or…you know, the stages of growth, Boyd became a little bit more of a stronger figure. Boyd said, yeah, at some point I became the Corncob Kid, because I was the Corncob Kid in my mind first. We said, what do you mean? What do you mean? You’re gonna have to explain it better. Boyd said, it’s like playing a role.

 

This was kinda…so, these two things happened at the same time. Josie’s going through the Spence handbook, Boyd is laying out organic life lessons from being Corncob Kid to the Corncob Kid and playing that role and learning sometimes it doesn't feel…being a teen and in adolescence doesn't always feel good, and wanting to be accepted and seen and loved and all that. Then Josie’s reading the difficulties of running…being a teen or in your twenties and being in the service business and embodying the style for Spence’s Gifts. Boyd was talking about acceptance and caring and cared for and the idea that the Corncob Kid was totally okay with not being okay, with uncertainty, with other people having strong feelings and Boyd having strong feelings.

 

The Spence’s handbook was laying out stuff like, it’s a process, man. Don’t fake it, but play it like you made it or something. I can't even remember. Spence doesn't care what others think, but cares about what others are thinking. That one…we’re all like, wait a second, what? What? Is that like what Boyd’s talking about? I guess I kinda felt bad for Franny at this point. But basically, as we started to pick apart this stuff, it became clear that…two things became clear; that sometimes…'cause I think the whole thing of Spence’s was being of service like you don’t care about the result. We thought about the people at Spence’s, and Spence’s…Spence…that we had admired from afar or other people in our life like JJ the Drummer, or other people that were like…they didn’t care whether they were likeable or not.

 

Or maybe they did, but on the outside, at least, the…what they projected was similar…this was subtle going from Corncob Kid to the Corncob Kid. So, now we started to think of real examples, like kids that didn’t graduate from our school that were in grades ahead of us, JJ the Drummer being one of them. JJ did graduate top of class, but I’m just using examples. JJ never wore a shirt to school ‘til it was…then just…JJ would put on a shirt then. People…this could happen in gradations, too, right? Some of these people were really nice or were neutral, and some of them were too cool for school. But they didn’t seem to think about it, right? They just were. Again, to go back, seeing it laid out in the Spence’s thing of like, guidelines…yeah, Spence is here to help whether you appreciate the help or not.

 

The fact that you help is appreciated by Spence. So, then we got this idea, right? Okay, can we do this for Franny? We were like, okay, so, Franny, this is how it’s gonna work. We’re putting aside all the outfits and all that, and we’re gonna send you back. You’ll care…we know you care if the people are gonna want you as a ultimate companion or not, and we all care that you were doing all this hard work for this family at the edge of this town, and they just took it for granted. Yeah, in the Spence handbook, Spence draws the line at bad behavior and says, please step outside. We’re running Spence’s here. You could shop somewhere else. So, we were trying to figure out what that boundary was, right? But we said, you go back…be a labor for the love of labor. You love the people, right?

 

But what if you loved them for…and loved the service regardless of outcome? Now, this is hard to handle, right? So, I have no idea how many times we had to do this in the movie. It never worked, was the thing. How do you forget about that kind of stuff? We figured, maybe we’ll be here three years. But it was on a third time that it didn’t work that…and every time it doesn't work, Franny comes out of the movie. So, on the third time Franny was there, we were there…you know, flash of light, the end of the movie. We said, we’re missing something. Again, we had a big debate; maybe these people…maybe we pass on assisting them. We said, no, no, no, that can’t be it. That can't be it. Then what was weird is we heard in the mall…'cause again, we were pacing around. Also, we were eating and drinking.

 

The water fountains worked, all that. It was…one of the pretzel places. It didn’t…anyway, not important. But so, we heard some of the gates in the inside of the mall open, not the outside. We said, okay, this is another area where we were like, maybe we just leave, go back to The World of Cutlery, get out of the mall…figure out another way out of this mall, put Franny back in the movie. But we were…that was cursory, right? Then we’re just like the people in the movie, right? It doesn't seem very Spencing. Plus, we wanted to see Spence again. So, we said, okay, that’s not an option. It was just kinda weird; it seemed like a one-off comment, but Franny said, you know, I kinda liked dressing up. Again, this was where we figured, oh, this is a puzzle…this is a jigsaw puzzle we’re trying to solve. We have one piece.

 

Now the puzzle is giving us the next piece, kinda like when your strategies use…'cause we figured, oh, this…we forgot; this was this immersive adventure. Now Franny’s giving us a clue. The door’s opened. We’ve gotta find Franny some…'cause maybe if Franny felt more comfortable…and so, we started walking the mall, and…but we were focused on…again, we should have known; there was mannequins in the stores and everything. Other than the stores that just were under construction…and we…so, we start walking through there, right, looking for something that sticks out to Franny and what feels like…feels Franny, right? Finally, we come to this store. We pass it, and Franny says, whoa, whoa, whoa, back there…the store is called We Got the Funk.

 

I think DA…oh no, We Got the…WG…We Got the Funk. WGDF? But it also said, We Got the Funk. I don't remember this store, but it kinda makes sense in the timeline and it definitely makes sense if this was a game, right? This was a store dedicated to funk and the funk aesthetic. There was…so, it was mostly clothing, but there was also gifts, decor, records, tapes. I don't think…I don't know if this was when CDs…I can't remember that. They would have looked like tapes, anyway, kind of in a long package. Posters…a little…you say…you might not know what funk is. I’d say, like a disco…if disco was cool, that’s funk. So, there was disco balls and glitter and of course, posters, and the posters of the great…well, you’ll see what happened.

 

So, we started…we said, okay, Franny…and then we did a mini-montage of Franny dressing in different funk outfits, also trying to say, well, you gotta be mobile 'cause you’re still gonna have to be able to chop wood and carry water and help them with their livestock and find the lost cat, all the adventures in the movie, and maybe run back up to the castle. Hope you don’t have to do that, though. We got to something where Franny said, this feels right. It was very funky. Formal…semi-formal funk. We laughed a lot, and at first Franny was confused, but this was kinda like the thing with the Corncob Kid, and Boyd kinda had to explain it to us. Like, this is good, laughing with versus laughing at. ‘Cause we said, this is ridiculous.

 

We have an amalgamation…someone dressed up, so we thought, as an amalgamation of beings, post-Earthly famous people, to walk around and…but then we said, holy cow, platform shoes…in the movie, platform shoes originally…I think that was so Franny would tower over everybody like the incredible grouchy guy, green grouchy guy in the comic books. But so…okay, so then Franny was funkified, and Franny could go…so, whatever, Franny felt good. I guess that’s the key thing. So, we went back to the movie and we waited. We said, okay, Franny, remember; you’re gonna get in there. You’re gonna live in the old, collapsed mill and watch people and love the people. You’re gonna serve the people because you love them, not because they’re good people.

 

Obviously they’re not great, and you’re gonna draw the boundary. These are things we had learned through the other ones that I probably didn’t explain good. If they don’t…you can always move on to help another group of people and not keep helping them. If they don’t appreciate it, move on and help somebody else, 'cause that’s how Franny ended up finding the lost cat. So, there was some new scenes in the movie that we had discovered or created or whatever using the time-travel film principle on a loop that we had learned from helping the mommy. It did take a couple slips by Franny, 'cause Franny actually did have to move on from the family and then go back, but this one, the second time, Franny went back and they said, what are you, and whatever.

 

Franny said, I was the one helping you the whole time with all this wood and stuff. Well, why’d you stop? Franny said, oh, other people need my help, too, man. Very funky. Also doubly interesting 'cause Franny already was pretty interesting, but now, in a world without funk, Franny had brought…they were like, are you from another world? Franny goes…this was improv dialogue; feels like it. Then they said, why’d you help us in the first place? ‘Cause I felt like it. Why’d you stop helping us? I felt like helping somebody else. Well, do you feel like helping us again? We still need more wood and water. Franny said, I don't know. You know what I do know is there’s this big castle up the hill, tons of rooms. Want to come up there with me?

 

Whatever, Franny started gathering a couple of these people that lived on the outskirts of this town that Franny had helped. Franny said, maybe we could all work together and you could come. Then suddenly, Franny was like this pied piper. Well, that’s the wrong analogy 'cause they weren’t going anywhere. I mean, other than that Victor and Victoria also lived in the castle in the movie, but that’ll come later because…in a second. I’ll explain everything, right? But we knew, right, that we were watching this. Franny had been successful. The people were smiling and following Franny. In the past they were running after Franny. They were like…they said, can we go back to our house? Franny said, yeah, anytime, anytime. Come see the castle.

 

We’ll figure it out. We’ll figure out…'cause then they were talking about, okay, this…these people keep losing their cat. Oh, the kids could find the cat. Okay, and we need wood, water…and finally they get to the castle, right? And this is where everything changed, and I forgot that this is what had happened the last time, that it went from this live-action thing to this animated style. So, Franny knocks on the door of the castle. All these people are behind Franny, and then when Franny knocks on the door, it cuts to this animated sequence, and Victor and Victoria are in the castle and they have all their equipment, but instead of an amalgamated being that they’re raising up to the ceiling with the lightning bolts and the black light, it’s a giant bowl of cereal. They’re talking about cereal domination.

 

Finally, this is the most beloved cereal in the land. I don't know, I think it was the…whatever the cereal was from the last one. And we’re gonna finally do that, and once we put our power into it, it’ll be Victor and Victoria’s Victory Vs or something, and we’ll dominate all the land. So, and…but the door had opened, right? So, we could see Franny and the people behind Franny watching this. Then Franny came in. Now, at this point, Franny was even more funkified with a keytar, not a guitar. Then it wasn’t…it was kinda like Franny said…started playing on the keytar and then Victor and Victoria were like, what is that noise? Franny said, this is a funky…I don't know the dialogue. I don't remember, you know. I was there watching it. I just remember the details. But something like, this is a funky situation.

 

Then suddenly dropping out of the ceiling and then out of the crowd of people…become some of the members of funkadelic, right? The irony is they start playing a funk version of a Mistress of Iron song, and they say, we’re gonna put a stop to this cereal, blah, blah, blah. Then you see the V…the giant bowl of V cereal; Franny and the members of funkadelic jump on the lip of the bowl, and they’re playing funk music and dancing. Then all these different multicolored but very stylized bolts of lightning start hitting the cereal with each note of funky music. Then Franny starts alliterating. It’s finally…Franny’s finally time…Franny’s funky flakes. They become these pink flakes, like Franny’s funky frosted…frosting…I don't know, something like that. A lot of Fs. Almost a tongue-twister.

 

Then at the end, you see the cereal…all the people come in. They already have spoons. They have the color-changing spoons that were the free gift in the cereal, because this was a cereal vingette, did it become? Then the last thing that happens is that on the side of the bowl, one of the…Franny says the name of the cereal, then you see the box of cereal appears out of the ground in front of Victor and Victoria. Then on the side of the bowl is Bootsy Collins, but Bootsy Collins goes, it’s Bootsmallows, or something like that. Then they just play this last note like the end of a cereal commercial. We knew that Franny had found a home, and then we also knew that we were really tired. So, again, very similar to last time, we were wiped. So, we laid down and rested in the chairs of this theatre, another theatre in the Multiplex. We knew for Franny and…all was gonna be well. Until next time.

 

[END OF RECORDING]

(Transcription performed by LeahTranscribes)

Multiplex

 

Do dogs like pets?

https://www.hillspet.com/dog-care/behavior-appearance/do-dogs-like-to-be-petted

https://forevervets.com/blog/why-do-dogs-like-to-be-pet-so-much

https://www.rd.com/article/why-do-dogs-like-to-be-pet/

 

Frankenstein

https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20180611-why-frankenstein-is-the-story-that-defined-our-fears

https://lethalthreat.com/blogs/news/frankensteins-day-the-history-of-frankenstein-and-its-cultural-impact

https://stanmed.stanford.edu/why-issues-raised-in-frankenstein-still-matter-200-years-later/

 

Iron Maiden

https://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/iron-maiden-a-gruesome-history-of-graphic-artwork-248809

https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-stories-behind-iron-maiden-s-artwork-part-one

https://royal-lakill.ca/blog/look-books/the-artists-behind-every-iron-maiden-album-cover/

 

Parliament Funkadelic

https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/documentaries/parliamentfunkadelic/

https://blackmusicscholar.com/how-parliament-funkadelic-influenced-the-funk-genre/

https://www.loudersound.com/features/get-off-your-ass-and-jam-the-ferociously-funky-story-of-parliament-funkadelic

 

DOWN TO BUSINESS

The pretend snow of shopping malls

I wish I knew why that was on my brain

Clearing the Pillow Fill

No putting files on anyone’s face

News to Snooze To

Are you selling a pair of docs?

 

Deep Dark Night United

Karl W Links

 

PLUGS

NYC Mesh; Sean Casey Animal Rescue; Hand in Hand; The Midnight Mission; Trevor Project; SWM+; SleepPhones; Rusty Biscuit Links; Emily Tat Artwork; NAPAWF; Anti-Racism Resources; Ukraine Relief; Crisis Textline

 

SPONSORS

Helix Sleep; Polysleep; Odoo; Air Doctor Pro; Zocdoc; Progressive

 

INTRO

Maybe you’re not feeling great, maybe it’s baffling

It’s important to keep pointing out that you’re not alone

I wish Koa referred to me as her sidekick

I’m Koa’s petter on demand

Of course there’s nothing I’d be rather doing than petting my dog

Koa keeps me on task

I’m not allowed to experiment with my petting, per Koa’s instructions

Flavor on the Old Feeling Wheel

I couldn’t handle Koa’s mind if I could read her thoughts

At least Koa acknowledges that I’m doing my best

I didn’t even know I had a Pet Petting Critic in my brain

A large part of my brain has no levity

The Big Tough Journey I’m Going Through Right Now

I guess the show is (nothing) like petting a dog

Koa really is a good girl and a great dog

It’s hard when you can hear your dog rolling her eyes at you in the other room

All our pets want is for us to love them a little bit better all the time

 

STORY

Welcome to Multiplex

How could I forget the main character’s name?

It’s supposed to have a beginning, middle, and end, but that’s just kinda sorta what’s happening

I know I’ve read some fantasy series out of order, so the prequel approach can work

When it’s time for a Modular Series, it’s time for Antonio

People have been really talking about you, Antonio

Just Barely Perpetually Making Barely Subtle Sounds

He’s as silent as a whisper

Clickety Clickety Clack

Take it away, Wyatt

You may know me from my public access show

It wasn’t my brilliance that made that show work

But this is about me and my childhood friends

A propellent sending them to high achievement

How does someone take a grand adventure and become just regular?

My Public Access Accent

I didn’t have a scholarship and was down

Boyd led us to a shopping mall

Julius J Juice Concentrate

I still don’t know how that creamy orange juice works

The copyright issue wasn’t too gray of an area

Getting through some fences

We’ve met some friends on this immersive theater experience

Immersive Theater Opportunity

Franny was a combination of famous beings

Franny wanted to be a mistress of iron

The ultimate human companion

Large Ego Victor decided this, not Franny

Spence needed some blacklights

We met Franny at the Tiki Transistor Hut

I’m disappointed in what we did

We unsuccessfully tried to leave the mall

We’ve been in this immersive experience for 36 hours

We returned to Franny and apologized

We need to help Franny and Spence

We returned to Spence’s

Spence was on a break

We started repairing all the blacklights

We left an invoice for Spence

Now we have to help Franny become the mistress of iron

Franny is unhappy, as we know from the book

Franny is not visually likable, unfortunately

What about a makeover?

Spence-Based Makeover

Spence has a limited selection of clothing

Then we took Franny back to the movie and put her back in

Being the mistress of iron didn’t help Franny in the movie

There was no metal music in the 19th century

Maybe we try something more plain

We watched the movie for some context

A personally resonant moment from the book

In the book, Franny lives outside of this cottage in a broken-down mill

Franny tries to start helping this family

Almost like in a fairy tale

Franny breaks her anonymity

People can’t bring themselves to accept Franny

We have a strong distaste for the other characters in this movie, even if Franny likes them

We tried so many different outfits for Franny and none of them worked

A jigsaw where you’re missing a few key pieces

We’re assuming a human is portraying Franny

Where had we gone wrong?

Josie found the Spence’s Employee Guidebook

Guides vs Rules vs Suggestions

Boyd was an outsider, unlike us

How did Boyd become the Corn Cob Kid?

Didn’t Boyd show up with overalls and corn cob pipes?

Explaining corn cob pipes

Boyd was so on the outs that his dad gave him a corn cob kid to soothe him

The Corn Cob Kid was an epithet

We learn how our behavior ridiculed Boyd

Boyd grew to accept himself

We were kids being kids, but it was unfortunate

From Corn Cob Kid to The Corn Cob Kid

Playing a role

Embodying the Spence Style

Boyd was talking about self-care and being ok with sincerity

Don’t fake it but play it like you made it

2 things became clear

Serve like you don’t care about the result

Shoutout to JJ The Drummer

Thinking of other kids who didn’t think about how other people thought of them

You’re doing it to help, not for yourself

They have to do it for Franny, not themselves

Spence draws the line at bad behavior

Franny has to love the labor for itself not for other people’s acceptance

It didn’t work so many times

We’re still missing something

We heard some gates in the inside of the wall

Franny likes dressing up

The puzzle is giving us the next piece

We’re looking for clothes that Feel Franny

We Got Da Funk (WGDF)

A store dedicated to funk

Funk is as if Disco Was Cool

A mini-montage of Franny dressing in Funk outfits

She still needs to be mobile

Semi-Formal Funk (SFF)

Laughing With vs Laughing At

She even got platform shoes again!

Franny was Funkified

Back to the movie

Remember, Franny, you have to do the work because you love these frustrating, mean people

If they don’t appreciate it, move on

We’d discovered / created some new film scenes

Franny had to leave and then come back to the family

Franny brought Funk to this 19th century world

Franny starts gathering people to return to the castle

People were smiling and following Franny, not chasing her

It went from live action to an animated style

Victor / Victoria are in the castle

They’re creating a cereal to dominate the world

Victor and Victoria’s Victory V Cereal

Funkified Franny enters with a keytar

This is a funky situation

Parliament Funkadelic comes to cover a Mistress of Iron song

A funky cereal is born 

Color-changing spoons are included with the cereal

Bootsy Collins’s Boots and Mallows

This movie turned into a cereal commercial

We are so tired, let’s rest

 

SWM+ THANKS

Brock, David, Nicole, James, William, Adam, Bling, Megan, Jordan, Jamie, Thought, Claire, Chris, Kwame, Abby, Janice, Jeanie, Ellen, Amy, Elliott, Seth, Anne, Natalie, Thomas, Julie, Cheryl, Debbie, Rachel, Myrna, William, Trevor

 

SUMMARY:

Episode: 1255

Title: Guide to Spence & Funk | Multiplex Ep6

Deep Dark Night United: Karl W Links

Plugs: NYC Mesh; Sean Casey Animal Rescue; Hand in Hand; The Midnight Mission; Trevor Project; SWM+; SleepPhones; Rusty Biscuit Links; Emily Tat Artwork; NAPAWF; Anti-Racism Resources; Ukraine Relief; Crisis Textline

Sponsors: Helix Sleep; Polysleep; Odoo; Air Doctor Pro; Zocdoc; Progressive

SWM+ Thanks: Brock, David, Nicole, James, William, Adam, Bling, Megan, Jordan, Jamie, Thought, Claire, Chris, Kwame, Abby, Janice, Jeanie, Ellen, Amy, Elliott, Seth, Anne, Natalie, Thomas, Julie, Cheryl, Debbie, Rachel, Myrna, William, Trevor

Notable Language:

• Clearing the Pillow Fill
• Paradox / Pair of Docs
• Petter-On-Demand
• Flavor on the Old Feeling Wheel
• Pet Petting Critic
• The Big Tough Journey I’m Going Through Right Now
• Just Barely Perpetually Making Barely Subtle Sounds
• Clickety Clickety Clack
•  Public Access Accent
• Immersive Theater Opportunity
• We Got Da Funk (WGDF)
• Semi-Formal Funk (SFF)
• Franny was Funkified

 

Notable Culture:

• Multiplex

• • Antonio Banderas
  • YouTube

• Victor/Victoria

• • Iron Maiden

• Frankenstein

• Funk Music
• Victor and Victoria’s Victory V Cereal
• Parliament Funkadelic
• Bootsy Collins’s Boots and Mallows
• Bootsy Collins

 

Notable Talking Points:

• Maybe you’re not feeling great, maybe it’s baffling
• It’s important to keep pointing out that you’re not alone
• I wish Koa referred to me as her sidekick
• I’m Koa’s petter on demand
• Of course there’s nothing I’d be rather doing than petting my dog
• Koa keeps me on task
• I’m not allowed to experiment with my petting, per Koa’s instructions
• Flavor on the Old Feeling Wheel
• I couldn’t handle Koa’s mind if I could read her thoughts
• At least Koa acknowledges that I’m doing my best
• I didn’t even know I had a Pet Petting Critic in my brain
• A large part of my brain has no levity
• The Big Tough Journey I’m Going Through Right Now
• I guess the show is (nothing) like petting a dog
• Koa really is a good girl and a great dog
• It’s hard when you can hear your dog rolling her eyes at you in the other room
• All our pets want is for us to love them a little bit better all the time
• Welcome to Multiplex
• How could I forget the main character’s name?
• It’s supposed to have a beginning, middle, and end, but that’s just kinda sorta what’s happening
• I know I’ve read some fantasy series out of order, so the prequel approach can work
• When it’s time for a Modular Series, it’s time for Antonio
• People have been really talking about you, Antonio
• Just Barely Perpetually Making Barely Subtle Sounds
• He’s as silent as a whisper
• Clickety Clickety Clack
• Take it away, Wyatt
• You may know me from my public access show
• It wasn’t my brilliance that made that show work
• But this is about me and my childhood friends
• A propellent sending them to high achievement
• How does someone take a grand adventure and become just regular?
• My Public Access Accent
• I didn’t have a scholarship and was down
• Boyd led us to a shopping mall
• Julius J Juice Concentrate
• I still don’t know how that creamy orange juice works
• The copyright issue wasn’t too gray of an area
• Getting through some fences
• We’ve met some friends on this immersive theater experience
• Immersive Theater Opportunity
• Franny was a combination of famous beings
• Franny wanted to be a mistress of iron
• The ultimate human companion
• Large Ego Victor decided this, not Franny
• Spence needed some blacklights
• We met Franny at the Tiki Transistor Hut
• I’m disappointed in what we did
• We unsuccessfully tried to leave the mall
• We’ve been in this immersive experience for 36 hours
• We returned to Franny and apologized
• We need to help Franny and Spence
• We returned to Spence’s
• Spence was on a break
• We started repairing all the blacklights
• We left an invoice for Spence
• Now we have to help Franny become the mistress of iron
• Franny is unhappy, as we know from the book
• Franny is not visually likable, unfortunately
• What about a makeover?
• Spence-Based Makeover
• Spence has a limited selection of clothing
• Then we took Franny back to the movie and put her back in
• Being the mistress of iron didn’t help Franny in the movie
• There was no metal music in the 19th century
• Maybe we try something more plain
• We watched the movie for some context
• A personally resonant moment from the book
• In the book, Franny lives outside of this cottage in a broken-down mill
• Franny tries to start helping this family
• Almost like in a fairy tale
• Franny breaks her anonymity
• People can’t bring themselves to accept Franny
• We have a strong distaste for the other characters in this movie, even if Franny likes them
• We tried so many different outfits for Franny and none of them worked
• A jigsaw where you’re missing a few key pieces
• We’re assuming a human is portraying Franny
• Where had we gone wrong?
• Josie found the Spence’s Employee Guidebook
• Guides vs Rules vs Suggestions
• Boyd was an outsider, unlike us
• How did Boyd become the Corn Cob Kid?
• Didn’t Boyd show up with overalls and corn cob pipes?
• Explaining corn cob pipes
• Boyd was so on the outs that his dad gave him a corn cob kid to soothe him
• The Corn Cob Kid was an epithet
• We learn how our behavior ridiculed Boyd
• Boyd grew to accept himself
• We were kids being kids, but it was unfortunate
• From Corn Cob Kid to The Corn Cob Kid
• Playing a role
• Embodying the Spence Style
• Boyd was talking about self-care and being ok with sincerity
• Don’t fake it but play it like you made it
• 2 things became clear
• Serve like you don’t care about the result
• Shoutout to JJ The Drummer
• Thinking of other kids who didn’t think about how other people thought of them
• You’re doing it to help, not for yourself
• They have to do it for Franny, not themselves
• Spence draws the line at bad behavior
• Franny has to love the labor for itself not for other people’s acceptance
• It didn’t work so many times
• We’re still missing something
• We heard some gates in the inside of the wall
• Franny likes dressing up
• The puzzle is giving us the next piece
• We’re looking for clothes that Feel Franny
• We Got Da Funk (WGDF)
• A store dedicated to funk
• Funk is as if Disco Was Cool
• A mini-montage of Franny dressing in Funk outfits
• She still needs to be mobile
• Semi-Formal Funk (SFF)
• Laughing With vs Laughing At
• She even got platform shoes again!
• Franny was Funkified
• Back to the movie
• Remember, Franny, you have to do the work because you love these frustrating, mean people
• If they don’t appreciate it, move on
• We’d discovered / created some new film scenes
• Franny had to leave and then come back to the family
• Franny brought Funk to this 19th century world
• Franny starts gathering people to return to the castle
• People were smiling and following Franny, not chasing her
• It went from live action to an animated style
• Victor / Victoria are in the castle
• They’re creating a cereal to dominate the world
• Victor and Victoria’s Victory V Cereal
• Funkified Franny enters with a keytar
• This is a funky situation
• Parliament Funkadelic comes to cover a Mistress of Iron song
• A funky cereal is born 
• Color-changing spoons are included with the cereal
• Bootsy Collins’s Boots and Mallows
• This movie turned into a cereal commercial
• We are so tired, let’s rest