Sometimes it's good to get back to basics. We have been enjoying a nice run of guests recently, and have produced some decently delightful episodes as a result. But at its heart, this podcast is about two middle-aged men honking at each other about sports and other things, and as such, it is in our best interests as its stewards to return periodically to first principles. From time to time, you gotta honk.
There is a decently normal episode of The Distraction embedded within, one which features both a discussion of the NBA playoffs and a fairly nuanced assessment of our absolutely rancid political moment. For me, it is mostly about the honking. When we discussed what kind of TV is best to watch at the dentist, that is honking. Sharing our experiences of getting enormous flannel sleepy pants as a Christmas gift, and being glad to have them? Honking. Our free-associative response to the listener voicemail reopening the question of Hero Sandwich Discovered In Public Bathroom, which begins with us listening and learning and ends with me telling a story about seeing a man who is notably not Dave McKenna using a sandwich bag as a wallet? Buddy, you already know that's honking.
As for the talking, Drew and I have both been enjoying our NBA playoff experiences, and laid out why in a way that was oriented more around vibes than deep analysis. We explored the Knicks staying the Knicks, considered the Celtics conundrum through the lens of them struggling with the Sixers, considered whether the Pistons-Magic series is actually '90s-style basketball or just bad, and got pumped and jacked for the era of the Spurs and Thunder. We agreed that the Spurs are cool and could very soon be great, which led us to remember the uncool but extremely great Spurs of yore, which in turn led me to reconsider (somewhat) my comparison between appreciating that team and appreciating Steely Dan. We also shared our appreciation for this year's LeBron Thing, and the art of the professional downshift.
We also discussed our most and least favorite dirtbags of Trump 2, with some special attention for the man who became head of the FBI seemingly entirely because he wanted to wear a cool windbreaker and fly private. The term "macroplastics" is used. Over the last 10 minutes, we turned to our neglected Funbag voicemail inbox, where we took listener questions about a Bob Mould show where everyone looked like Bob Mould, and which musician has the most fans who look like them, encountered some decently high thoughts about dips and historical figures, and got the aforementioned call-in about the aforementioned Bathroom Sandwich. You might think that I would have felt honked out after all this, but it was actually the opposite. I felt alive. I felt like myself.
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