Funny biz
Damn, we take ourselves sooooo seriously.
I met a woman recently who I can't stop thinking about:
That's Yao Huang.
Yao founded The Hatchery, which among other things, runs the Wonder Women dinner series across the U.S.
Yao is a serial entrepreneur, an investor, and according to her LinkedIn bio, a doctor of pharmacy. Whuuut?!?
She's also a standup comic. A multi-hyphenate of the highest, funniest order.
I met Yao at Seattle's first Wonder Women dinner. She's been in my brain ever since with her unapologetic "find me a black man" refrain. Yao asks for what she wants.
We can all learn from Yao.
What distinguished the Wonder Women dinner from other networking events was Yao's hostessing.
Yao kicked off the dinner with a short comedy set that explained the rules of engagement. We had to keep intros short and focused on something that Google didn't know about us.
It was bawdy from the get-go. We covered black men, a Beastie Boy ex-boyfriend, boobs, butt tattoos and butt rockers. That was just the Bs. No one escaped a ribbing from Yao.
Two hours later, some of us were twerking while others moved furniture to practice sun salutations in dresses and pant suits.
All because of comedy. Permission to let loose.
We need more of that levity. So today we lighten up. On behalf of a few Underwire readers, here's some fodder.
Amber Says What
Cynthia Masterson served up Late Night writer Amber Ruffin. In 5-min-ish skits, Amber dissects pop culture news through a black culture lens.
Here she is on the 2019 Academy Awards, or Kamala Harris/Beyonce at Target and the Gillette toxic-masculinity ads, and an entire skit dedicated to the black undertones of the Royal Wedding.
Plus, Amber styles up the best bomber jackets ever.
"Sorry straight white guys, no room in the eartubes for ya"
That's direct from the always irreverent Sarah Blankinship. Here's where she goes...
Podcasts:
Bitch Sesh — never watched an episode of Real Housewives but this is like white noise + gal pals plus + funny times + no politics.
Why Won’t You Date Me features hilarious comic Nicole Byer — fun topics and vicariously Tinder-ing through others.
Las Culturistas — it’s like your two gay boyfriends interviewing other gay boyfriends and gal pals. They always have a section called “I don’t think so honey” where they clear the air on a topic of non note.
How Did This Get Made? — funny people talking shit about really shitty movies.
Shows:
RuPaul's Drag Race
RuPaul Drag Race All Stars
Queer Eye
I’m Sorry
Broad City
Anything Men Can Do I Can Do Bleeding
Allison Roger recommends this McSweeney's article by Madeleine Trebenski. Uhn-huh, all of it, espesh this:
“Remember that meeting yesterday? The one where you talked over me repeatedly, so that I was forced to yell over you? It was so fun, both of us yelling like that. Weren’t you pumped? I was so pumped, but I was also pumping blood out of my uterus. That’s right, my life force was being pumped out of my body and into my pants — my fashionable, androgynous, business pants. Sure, that meeting was high stakes for you, but just one sneeze and it would’ve been all over for me. Seriously, it would’ve been all over my very expensive pants.”
Xena: Warrior Podcast
For you warrior princess acolytes, Richa Prasad gifts us the Xena: Warrior Podcast.
Richa says, "I love the discussion between the ladies on Xena: Warrior Podcast. I grew up watching Xena so it's very nostalgic for me and they really are hilarious."
Here's how the creators describe the show: Tis a weekly show where three film school grads (Vera, Katie, and Livy) over-analyze the Hades out of Xena: Warrior Princess. This 90’s classic deserves more critical attention and appreciation within the television canon, and that’s where we come in. Watch along with us as we revisit Xena from the beginning. The power, the passion, the podcast!
The Fabliaux
Lynne Hannah gets props for the most surprising, and medieval, quickie chuckle—The Fabliaux.
As Lynne says, "This is a collection of stories written between the 12th and 14th centuries. It's scandalous, irreverent, anti-establishment (church), and sexual comic tales in verse, almost all anonymous. Written at the fall of feudalism and the rise of manufacturing, transportation, and rampant materialism, it just seems to ground me that even 800 years ago people were people. And they are quite shocking by our modern senses! They always make me laugh."
Julia Child presents....the Chicken Sisters!
This video compilation recommended by moi showcases Julia's dry, kinda corny but totally lovable sense of humor.
Julia reminds me to find the fun in the mundane, embrace failure and wield a knife with confidence (literally and metaphorically).
Other things I've learned from Julia:
“The egg can be your best friend if you just give it the right break.”
Lots and lots of butter makes everything better.
“There’s something terribly exciting about a whole suckling pig….what an elaborate way to serve an apple!”
And don’t forget the wine!