The most underrated phrase

Hello,

I checked the analytics and the streets are saying that a few of the people who subscribe to this newsletter are based in Slough. I’d like to take this time to offer my condolence for you living in Slough. That must be tough. Here is this week’s newsletter:

A very important thought

Do you know which term we don’t hear enough of? The term ‘properly rated’. You will often hear [insert name of movie you thought relied too much on CGI] described as ‘overrated’ or [insert name of favourite sportsperson] as ‘underrated’ but there is a lack of appreciation for things that have been correctly assessed.

Potatoes are an example of something that is properly rated. You never hear people say ‘yo, french fries are being slept on right now’. It’s also rare for someone to say something like ‘I’ve never understood the hype surrounding chips’. They exist at the correct point on the ranking scale. Potatoes do a solid job and they are respected as such.

The term ‘properly-rated’ is massively underrated.

Spoiler-free media recommendation

Book: Welcome to Dunder Mifflin: The Ultimate Oral History of The Office

If like me, you are a big fan of The Office, then this book is great. If you don’t watch The Office, then my question for you is, how do you sleep at night?

Match report

I review all of my gigs as football scores. Here’s a nerdy insightful breakdown of a gig.

Location: Greenwich

Score: 3-2 win

A gong show is a show where you get five minutes to perform. Three audience members are given cards. If those three people don’t like you, they can put up their cards and vote you off. Three cards, and you’re outta there. If you make it to the end of your set, there is no pot of gold but admittedly, it’s a nice feeling. I’ve done this particular gong show 15 times, but the last time I did it was a head-scratcher.

One of my defenders (a joke I thought would work) was getting ahead of himself (I underestimated the potential for this joke not working). Game day arrives, and this defender who claimed to be so reliable, ended up getting sent off (I told a joke that usually gets a big laugh and an audience member put up a card).

That red card from my defender was a good reminder that just because one joke worked in one venue, it might not always get the same response at another venue. This particular gig was odd because I left the stage with three applause breaks and two cards. I managed to survive the set, but only just. A fun, if not chaotic gig.

Content I made for you to consume (or not consume, to be fair, it’s completely up to you)

ajay_rose

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A quick bit of motivation

“Don’t fear your uniqueness, fear being the same”

Someone told me about this quote, and then I loaded up Instagram and saw the exact same quote again. So now, if I tell someone else “don’t fear your uniqueness, fear being the same”, then I will have become the exact thing that quote told me to avoid becoming.

I told this joke, pretty much word-for-word as I wrote it above at a gig recently (not at the gig I described above, but the gig in last week’s match report, which you can read here). Do you know how many people laughed? Zero. Lol.

The worst part is, I knew this joke probably wouldn’t work. I’m not even sure if there’s a punchline there. At best, it’s a mildly funny Tweet, but I thought you never know, it could work. Well, now I know, I ain’t saying that s**t again.

See you next Tuesday.

Ajay