This is an escape from politics post.

But it was partially prompted by a comment a dear friend of mine made on the 2024 President Elect’s nomination of (now former) Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), MAGA flamethrower and arguably the most hated elected official in Congress among his colleagues, to the post of U.S. Attorney General.

For those who don’t recall (Note: Or prefer not to), Gaetz was credibly accused by numerous witnesses of child sex trafficking; having sex with a 17-year-old girl; and bragging to his fellow congressmen on the House floor of snorting erectile dysfunction medication, chased with energy drinks, so he could “go all night”(Note: They also claimed he showed them partying picks).

In any event, said friend randomly quipped making THAT GUY our #1 chief law enforcement officer – “was like putting Dracula in charge of the blood bank.”

Which must’ve been overheard or mentally channeled by SNL’S Colin Jost, because on this week’s Weekend Update he posted a photo of Gaetz, with his trademark slicked back hair and demonically tweezed and tortured raised eyebrows, and reported:

“…Gaetz, who was created when Frankenstein raped Dracula…”

I know.  It’s a lot.

And that’s only the beginning of… so much.

Clearly, we all need time.  And here at NotesFromAChair, Holly and The Chair have some suggestions for films, TV and internet trolling to take your mind off being an unwitting citizen of the new Gilead, um….America.

1. Watch “Emilia Perez” on Netflix – The Chair thinks it’s the film of the year (Note: And if you’re a subscriber you know how accurate The Chair is at predictions).  In any event, it’s a totally surreal, magical, dramatic and darkly funny tale of three women, one man and a bunch of yet to be fulfilled dreams that are, in part, all set to…yes, music.  For sure Oscar nominations for best picture, best director, best screenplay, best actress and supporting actress as well as _________.  And if that wasn’t enough, it tackles themes of immigration, feminism, economic inequality and trans rights.  Making it popular could even be enough to break what’s left of Matt Gaetz’s brain!!!

• Go see or buy on Amazon Prime (Note: Curse you, Jeff Bezos!) — The Substance. Holly says, and this is a direct quote – It is beyond the beyond and beyond.  And who are we to disagree with her, especially if we haven’t seen it.  Demi Moore, for those of us of a certain age, is a MOVIE STAR frozen in time and who better to play a star frozen in time (Note: So to speak) than….Demi Moore.  We don’t truly know how she does it, but also who better to topline in a body horror movie than an actual 62 year old actress who looks 32 from afar and maybe, 42, up close.  How does she do it?  Well, that’s what the film is about.  Sort of.

• Re-watch Ghost on many streaming platforms or pull out an old DVD of one of Demi Moore’s best (older) films  – The Chair was reduced to a blubbering mess of tears by the end and it wasn’t because he remembered a time around when this movie came out that he had a volume of hair similar to Demi’s seminal pixie cut.  Rather, it’s because Ghost is a Hollywood movie at its best.  It’s funny (Note: Whoopi Goldberg earned every gold gilded (Note: Sorry) portion of the Oscar she won, and second note: The first Black women since Hattie McDaniel in 1939 to do so); it has something to say about greed and envy vs. the power of love (Note: Ahem); and it will allow you to have a good cry about all the things and people you love but will always have in your heart along with the best crier in the history of the silver screen – Demi Moore! (Final Note:  Yes, it’s true).  Sometimes when a movie you’ve seen five or ten times shows up on cable and you don’t plan to watch it but do, it changes your whole outlook for….at least a day.

• The Great British Baking Show, the new season on Netflix – Holly thinks it’s irresistibly escapist; infinitely British in the best, most disciplined way; and inescapably impossible to process just how precise a dozen bakers can be asked to be while fulfilling the ultimate British command to keep calm and carry on.  The Chair enjoys the show but sometimes fails to see the appeal of concocting the ultimate figgy pudding with pineapple and rutabaga dustings.  And even Holly admits she longs for the day when the final challenge will be to ask contestants to merely concoct the perfect chocolate brownie.  But that would be another show. In another country. 

• Somebody Somewhere on HBO or MAX – This specialty item is one of The Chair’s favorite TV series in the last decade.  It stars former cult NY cabaret singer/comic Bridget Everett in a semi-autobiographical story of a larger-than-life woman in the very small town of  Manhattan, Kansas (Note: Yes, it’s a real place and Everett’s home town) recovering from her sister’s death.  But more than that, she’s also trying to rediscover her life and her voice, as we all are these days, with the help of some new-found friends.  Every episode is a slice of life told through the lens of a group of people the incoming presidential administration would likely categorize as misfits, sinners or simply non-existent but that The Chair considers his tribe. 

• Shrinking (season 2) on Apple TV – Holly is hooked on season 2, and not only for Ted Lasso’s beastly funny Brett Goldstein being featured in a potentially career-changing guest star arc.  Rather, it’s because somehow therapy with the dysfunctional surrogate father-son therapist duo of Harrison Ford and Jason Segel manages to make sense in a world where people help people to face their inner truths while all the while avoiding or deluding themselves about the realities of their own lives. The Chair was fully on board during all of season one but can’t face a second season of therapy in his post-election, in denial haze.  For now.

• YouTube, TikTok and Facebook Reels & Short Video Scrolling – Some say it’s a waste of time and energy suck.  But The Chair believes it can make the many long hours of a day of news you are not about to acknowledge go by just like that. I mean, where else can you purchase a stylish puffer jacket that can lose its shape after one wearing for just $19.95, find out which celebrities are the best and worst tippers (Note: Some of them may no longer be alive) and discover superhuman musical talents you might never know existed.  On the latter score, a week after Election Day at about 2:30 am I discovered the 2012 winner of the first season of The Voice in Australia.  Her name is Karise Eden, she was coached by Seal and if she is not a reincarnated version of one of my all-time favorite vocalists from the early 1970s then, well…she is, trust me.  If only because if there was one creative talent in the universe I’d like to have it would be to be able to tell the world to F Off while singing like this. 

• Last Week Tonight with John Oliver on HBO or MAX – Yes, we mentioned this list is a political respite.  But John Oliver says everything we can’t because no one else has 12-15 of the best creative writing staff on TV researching stories and concocting snide insults, clever bon mots and active call-outs while shining their unrelenting lenses of shame on some of the most outrageous injustices and generalized sh-tty behavior occurring in the world today.   As a recovering news junkie hoping to create a better world while not ignoring the crumbling version of the one I fear we will all be required to live in and reform during the next four years, watching Mr. Oliver, et al for 30-40 minutes each week ultimately gives me hope that there are answers, laughs and camaraderie if you go looking for it among fellow travelers.  And keep your mind open and free of brain worms. (Note: RFK, Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services?  WTF????!!!!).

Got more? Let us know in the comments. We’re all for more pop culture escape hatch suggestions.

Righteous Brothers – “Unchained Melody” (from Ghost)