Good Good Things – Issue 006

Hi Friends, I have returned to my chair and desk after a much-needed two-week break from staring at large screens. Here’s what I did on my summer vacation:

Your boy is now well-tanned (well, mostly red), rested, and ready to dole out some more goodness. Let’s get going. First off, if you are in the Philly area, please go check out this very funny fellow on Friday…

Chip Chantry Headlining at Next In Line Comedy Club on July 18th!

A ticket to see Chip bring you joy and laughter is $20. He’s gonna deliver 50 hilarious jokes. This averages out to 40 cents per joke. Money well spent.

Chip Chantry is a stand-up comedian, television writer, and actor. In 2024, he released Move Closer, his first stand-up special, following his role as Kyle the Liar on the Netflix series Tires.”

Get tickets here >

Podcast: Ghost in the Machine

Last year, while watching Tour de France recaps, I made a lame little joke about how I would simply add a tiny motor to my bike to make things more pleasant for me during the race. The idea of hiding a motor in one of these finely-tuned racing machines was preposterous, but before tweeting it out, I googled it and was shocked to learn that this was a thing! People hide motors on their bikes during races! It is called “motor doping” and there is an very intriguing podcast devoted to it:

In January 2016, 19-year-old Belgian cyclist Femke van den Driessche was caught with a collection of wires, motors, and batteries buried deep inside her spare bike at the Cyclo-cross World Championships. Eight years later, Chris Marshall-Bell is on a mission to reveal the truth around motors in cycling as he peers beneath the surface of sports’ most incredible discovery. Chris will unpick a tangled web of bizarre misdemeanours, claims and counter-claims. From jail time, bankruptcy, and death threats to carnival cat costumes and one daring canary theft – this story is set to keep listeners on the edge of their seat.”

Listen to the podcast >

Great Art Explained

James Payne, a curator, gallerist, and passionate art lover, creates concise and informative videos about famous works of art that regular janes and joes like me can understand and drop in conversations when hobnobbing with smart and classy friends.

I am on a mission to demystify the art world and discover the stories behind the world’s greatest paintings and sculptures. Each episode will focus on one piece of art and break it down, using clear and concise language free of ‘art-speak’.”

Watch the Videos >

Pretty Good Names for Summer Pests

Tick Astley
Justin Bumblebeeber
Hornet Coleman
Gnatalie Portman
Cicada Pinkett Smith
Steve Waspniak
Carrie-Anne Mosquito
Little Steven Van Ant

Deep Sea Diver – “Let Me Go” (feat. Madison Cunningham)

An absolutely perfect song.

Master Chef Answers Indian Food & Curry Questions

I’m a big fan of Chef Meherwan Irani. When you are done watching him drop some knowledge about Indian cuisine, check out his “This Sandwich is Mumbai’s #1 Street Food” video. Yum yum! A must for Indian food loving vegetarians like me.

Chef Meherwan Irani joins WIRED to provide expert answers to your Indian food and curry questions from Twitter. How does food vary from region to region of India? What makes a curry a curry, exactly? Which spices are indispensable for a beginner chef taking on Indian cuisine? And why is Indian food traditionally served so often with yogurt?”

Creating Art for Skateboards with Hannah Eddy

Despite being a subpar skateboarder, I dig skate culture and the cutting-edge art and design it continues to produce. Love seeing Hannah’s process.

Today we meet Hannah Eddy in Reno, NV, as she takes us inside her home and studio to show us her latest collaboration between NHS and Skate Like a Girl.”

Discover Great Music with SOMA FM

“Jeff, you have incredible taste in music. How do you discover all the killer tunes you recommend?”

First off, thank you, Aunt Betsy. I listen to a variety of internet radio stations and read numerous indie music websites. If you’re looking to discover some amazing under-the-radar music, I’d recommend starting with Soma FM and exploring their various genre-based channels.

“Over 30 unique channels of listener-supported, commercial-free, underground/alternative radio broadcasting to the world. All music is hand-picked by SomaFM’s award-winning DJs and music directors.”

My three favorite stations in heavy rotation:

Indie Pop Rocks!
New and classic favorite indie pop tracks.

Underground 80s
Early 80s UK Synthpop and a bit of New Wave.

Covers
Just covers. Songs you know by artists you don’t. We’ve got you covered.

Also check out other top-tier music resources: Brooklyn Vegan, Bandcamp, Jon Solomon, KEXP, Audiotree, and some more I will highlight in future issues.

Because You Watched “Broadchurch”

Meet Your New Best Friend: Harold

This 1.5-year-old goofball is the total package: sweet, silly, and always ready to play! Harold has energy to spare and loves chasing toys, pouncing on imaginary prey, and making his humans laugh with his quirky antics. One of his most charming habits? He eats like a chicken! That’s right—Harold flips his food bowl over and pecks at his kibble like a barnyard bird. It’s weird. It’s wonderful. It’s Harold.”

Adopt Harold from Morris Animal Refuge >

Enjoy Some Fun “Brooklyn 99” Moments

Sometimes, all it takes to get me out of a bad mood is tossing my phone in the garbage and firing up a best-of video compilation of a beloved show. Captain Holt and his crew are usually up for the task. Such a funny cast, and Andre Braugher was the absolute best. Andy Samberg had some lovely words to say about him on Amy Poehler’s podcast.

Amazing Murals by Mantra

"The Houston Collection" by Mantra. Location : Houston, Texas. United States.233-foot/71 meter tall mural — “The Houston Collection” by Mantra. Location: Houston, Texas. United States. 233-foot/71-meter tall mural

Youri Cansell, aka Mantra, is a consummate artist and naturalist. While equally adept at painting humans as animals, Mantra is especially fascinated by entomology, the world of insects. Mining memories of his childhood garden in France, he now paints exquisite murals, often of moths and butterflies, on urban surfaces where these ephemeral beings are seldom seen in the wild.”

Visit the Mantra website and behold the beauty >

Everything This Ultralight Backpacker Took on a 2,160-Mile Hike

If you follow ultrarunning or through-hiking, you know one of the best people in the community is Joe McConoughay. Friendly, funny, generous, and a serious crusher on the trails. See what he packed and carried for many miles when he tackled an epic adventure a few years back.

Ultralight backpacker Joe McConoughay, known on the trails as ‘Stringbean’, is here to share his essentials for his 2,160-mile hike on the Appalachian Trail. On the go for 50 miles a day, Joe’s goal was never to remove his pack while moving, allowing him to cover 2,160 miles in only 45 days. From storing the right amount of food to serious chafe prevention, see how Joe packed his ultralight 20lb bag for his record-breaking trek.”

Also enjoy his Appalachian Trail FKT Documentary and his 2023 Barkley Marathons Documentary.

Joe still holds the self-supported Appalachian Trail record: 45d 12h 15m 0s completed on 2017-08-31.

Who holds the current record for the supported Appalachian Trail trek? It’s Tara Dower! 40d 18h 6m 0s complted on 2024-09-21.

Capybara Appreciation Post

Capybaras are cute, very chill, and now firmly established in my top five favorite animals to see on social media. Follow Tupi and his Mom on the San Antonio Zoo Insta to see him in action.

Video Playlist: Early 80s MTV Goodness

Enjoy a rad and odd mix of some under-the-radar rock, pop gems, and new wave bangers from the very early days of MTV, where they’d play pretty much any band that had a video. Don’t worry, this is all top-notch stuff.

Poetry: “The Size of the Horizon, or, I Explained Everything to the Trees” by Mitchell Nobis

Mitch likes playing basketball and writing poetry and he is really good at one of them.

Parents can be expected to know all, but they don’t have many answers in a world of constantly moving rights and wrongs. The poems in The Size of the Horizon, or, I Explained Everything to the Trees embrace the wandering uncertainty of the self in a life of so many unknowns and the frustrations of enduring the knowns. These poems address the natural world, gun violence, basketball, youth, mortality, climate crisis, and the parenting anxiety raised by tangling with all of that. Mitchell Nobis is a white adoptive dad to Black sons, and his work often looks at America’s racism and various crises with both sorrow and fury. Yet, rhizomatic life maintains wonder amid chaos, and these poems bear witness to the joys alongside the worries.”

The Family Behind Philly’s Favorite Soft Pretzels

For my money, soft pretzels are the best affordable and filling snack. When they are fresh out of the oven, good lord, they are hard to beat. In addition to the Center City Pretzel Co., I am also a big fan of the Philadelphia Pretzel Company chain. Basically, any Philly-style soft pretzel with a healthy sprinkling of salt is a win for me.

Get to know Center City Pretzel Co., a second-generation family-owned soft pretzel business located in the heart of South Philly. Founded in 1981, this beloved company has been operated by the Tonelli family for over 40 years.”

Quick Hits

New Deftones!

Puppet History: “Surviving The Titanic: History’s Luckiest Woman”

There is nothing funny about the Titanic disaster… okay, there is one thing that is very funny about the horrible incident: a cute little professor puppet teaching you about a woman who miraculously survived. Also, the song at the end is knee-slapping, LOL funny.

More Puppet History >

Jeff’s Fun Music Facts

You: “Hey Jeff, you have any album cover fun facts?”

Me: “The photo on the 1981 and 1984 Minor Threat records features Alec MacKaye not Ian.

The photo on ‘It’s a Shame about Ray’ is not Juliana Hatfield. It’s friend-of-the-band/actress Polly Noonan. She yelled/sang the opening to Bit Part.”

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— Jeff Lyons (@gojeffgo.com) January 22, 2025 at 7:43 PM

PIZZA Shirt Sighting

When you go to Vic’s, be like Pat and wear your PIZZA shirt!

Steve Lillywhite Rules

Listening to the legendary music producer talk about the music he made and his career is pure joy.

Stephen Alan Lillywhite CBE (born 15 March 1955) is an English record producer. Since he began his career in 1977, Lillywhite has been credited on over 500 records, and has collaborated with a variety of musicians including new wave acts The Alarm, XTC, Big Country, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Simple Minds, Ultravox, the Psychedelic Furs, Beady Eye, Toyah, David Byrne, Talking Heads and Kirsty MacColl, as well as U2, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, the Rolling Stones, the Pogues, Blue October, Steel Pulse, the La’s, Peter Gabriel, Morrissey, the Killers, Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Guster, Counting Crows and Joan Armatrading.”

Running in the Heat Tip

Running in the heat tip:
1. Take a cotton bandana
2. Drench it under cold water or place ice in center, fold in triangle, and wrap it around a few times
3. Place around your neck with tip pointing down on your back or chest
4. Drench it again at water fountains or creeks during your run
5. You = 🆒️

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— Jeff Lyons (@gojeffgo.com) July 6, 2025 at 4:43 PM

Love a Good Summer Storm

Click and enjoy the sounds and sights…

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jeff Lyons (@phillytrailrunners)

Good Things on Bluesky:

For the absolute last time: I *never* said I thought E.T. dressed in the wig and the dress was sexy, I said *I could see why people would think that*

— Paul F. Tompkins (@pftompkins.bsky.social) June 15, 2025 at 9:32 AM

For just $30 an hour I will watch streaming shows with your parents and tell them whether something is a flashback

— Dennis B. Hooper (@dennisbhooper.bsky.social) July 6, 2025 at 3:25 PM

“Kiss my ass” seems like such a vulnerable request. What next in the world of insults? “Play with my hair.” “Tickle my arm.” “Watch this video of me as a child.”

— Erin Whitehead (@girlwithatail.bsky.social) July 2, 2025 at 6:36 PM

I’m the reason they have to put “Do not chase” on Missing Dog flyers.

— matt prindle (@griefbison.bsky.social) July 10, 2025 at 6:59 PM

If that’s your girl then why is she reaching up to grab something off the top shelf for me

— Patrick Cosmos (@veryimportant.lawyer) July 4, 2025 at 9:20 AM

[me to my date at the symphony] i had a ringtone like this once

— Ali Garfinkel (@aligarchy.bsky.social) October 9, 2024 at 3:01 PM

Today in “large dog, small chair”:

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— Alex de Campi (@alexdecampi.bsky.social) July 9, 2025 at 8:05 AM

My 18-month-old son took the last slice of pizza from me. I could not be prouder.

— Dan McQuade (@dhm.bsky.social) July 1, 2025 at 5:42 PM

I was explaining to my Ukrainian colleague the phrase ‘There’s no such thing as a free lunch’. She told me the equivalent in Ukrainian is ‘The only free cheese is in the mousetrap’ – which is so much better

— Prof Sarah-Jayne Blakemore (@sjblakemore.bsky.social) July 16, 2025 at 2:39 AM

“Hey. Guess what. I’m $30 now.”
-Lunch

— mark magark (@markedly.bsky.social) July 1, 2025 at 11:33 AM

Shouldn’t have to wait until I’m long dead before paleontologists gently scrub my bones with tiny brushes, they should be doing it now when I can actually appreciate it.

— Steven (with a PH) (@sjksalisbury.bsky.social) July 11, 2025 at 12:07 PM

(when I very much do not have something) hey, I got this

— RM (@dorsalstream.bsky.social) July 7, 2025 at 8:43 AM

I was thinking about my first car. A 1978 Toyota Corolla Liftback. It was eggshell white with a dark blue pinstripe and dark blue vinyl interior. It had a hard plastic brown steering wheel. Automatic transmission, but no power steering. I got it not long after turning 16. It was a great little car.

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— Jeff T. Owens (@jtotheartist.bsky.social) July 8, 2025 at 10:32 PM

Take care of each other. See you soon with more…