Obsessed with Joseph Scrimshaw

Joseph and Sara obsess over reawakening old skills in our current lives--modern dance, visual art, acting, singing, and more. We talk embracing change, facing fear, hosting adult talent shows in a backyard, and the question: Are skills gifts that must be used?

Joseph and Sara obsess over a live production of the musical, CATS! The power of seeing it live, the cats who broke our hearts, the other animals we would like to see introduce themselves for two hours, and more.

Joseph and Sara obsess over Fake Meat. From blatantly plant-based balls to over-the-top-you-won't-believe-it-ain't-a-burger, we talk taste, texture, smells, and the need for cartoon logos

Joseph and Sara obsess over Ikea. The furniture, the plant balls, sleeping over night on a display bed, and being haunted by the instruction booklet's mascot

Joseph and Sara obsess over a book crawl--we visited four bookstores across Los Angeles in five hours and lived to tell the tale!

Sara interviews Joseph about his lifelong obsession with the character of Obi-Wan Kenobi. We talk the soul of the character, his victories and failures, the robes he leaves around the galaxy, drinking habits, and more life lessons from the witty, grumpy, crafty, wise, kind, and true Jedi.

Joseph and Sara obsess over Disneyland! We talk the power of immersion, wanting to wait in lines, adding film noir land, sharing a rocket ship, people watching, whiskey on the Jungle Cruise, and more!

Sara and Joseph obsess over the new Doctor Strange movie! We dive into big ideas of accepting loss, embracing imperfection, defining heroism and happiness. Plus the fun of horror, the weird magic spectacle, meeting our dream selves, and thrilling martini appearances!

Joseph and Sara obsess over hotels! We talk the magic (and sometimes horror) of these transitory spaces, frustration with sliding bathroom doors, thin walls, Goldilocks pillows, fake windows, and more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over Indiana Jones! The serial adventure roots, the charm of an action hero who just copes with action, revisiting the Young Indy TV show, Indy's artifact intents versus his poor preservationist skills, the next movie, and more!

Joseph interviews Sara about her obsession with flowers! From finding the right ones to grow in the shade to celebrating dance performances to discovering which ones are edible! Plus Joseph gets slightly stressed about impermanence. Fun!

Sara and Joseph obsess over a recent trip to go WHALE WATCHING! We talk the thrill of seeing large sea creatures, that time we didn't see the Loch Ness monster, Aquaman, the connection between dolphins and skateboarders, and much more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over WORDLE. What are the joys and the dark side of the fun little word game? We talk first word strategies, wordle poetry and paintings, resenting 6 letter words, and who would win in a fight: vowels or consonants?

Joseph and Sara obsess over NOSTALGIA! From the personal to the societal to pop culture, what's the power of this bittersweet sensation? How much is bitter and how much is sweet? Topics of nostalgia include misty morning walks, playing GoldenEye in a studio apartment, working in an old mansion, Dick Van Dyke tripping, and more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over the beauty and horror of snow! The fresh snowflakes, skiing, building snowpeople, snow storms, snow angels, snow swearing at the constant challenge, imaginary Wampa attacks, and much more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over Oldie-Time Tech! Typewriters, rotary phones, the thrilling intimacy of mix tapes on cassette! The aesthetic power, presence, and history of tech of yesteryear. Plus: what modern tech should have a big ol' crank on it?

Joseph and Sara obsess over the movie, Spider-Man: No Way Home! The big ideas of second chances, the responsibility of power, when nostalgia meets narrative, where webs come from, and much more.

Joseph and Sara obsess over Spider-Man! We talk the importance of a friendly neighborhood superhero, the mathematical formula to make a Spider-Man, what dance can tell us about CGI flips, the great web-shooter debate, and much more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over holiday movies! From It's A Wonderful Life to Batman Returns, we discuss the true spirit of a festive-time film! Plus Hallmark movies, why Joseph can't watch White Christmas without thinking of burritos, the undying Die Hard discourse, the non-holiday movies Santa should appear in, and much more.

Joseph and Sara obsess over the the fine culinary dish, Macaroni N' Cheese. We talk childhood memories, making it a staple of your adult diet, elbow vs shell, how many extras can you add before it is no longer macaroni n' cheese, and many more important philosophical questions.

Joseph and Sara obsess over the MCU movie, The Eternals! We talk opening up a new vista of superhero storytelling, the big ideas of purpose, free will, family, and evolution. Plus monster punching, cosmic fingers, and shooting lasers out of your eyes!

Joseph is joined remotely by Laser Malena-Webber of The Doubleclicks to obsess over robots! We talk seeing yourself in Data and Threepio, admiring trash robots for their focus, the non-human non-binary trope, trying not to disrespect Alexa, and The Doubleclicks' great new musical, Teaching A Robot To Love!

Joseph and Sara obsess over the new movie, Dune Part One! We talk the power of exposition, dreamy landscapes, fear boxes, rigidity versus letting go, comparisons to Star Wars, walking to confuse worms, and where exactly we'd wear stillsuits.

Joseph and Sara obsess over Halloween candy. We talk our favorite candy, the chewing to flavor ratio, why candy goes so well with spooky season, giving trick or treaters non-candy treats, and the mystery of CORN NIGHT.

Joseph and Sara obsess over the James Bond film, No Time To Die! We talk the big ideas of legacy, evolution, identity, letting go, and the 5 film story arc of James Bond's eyes! Plus cocktails, quips, explosions, how to best hide your large criminal organization, and more!

Sara and Joseph obsess over the popular baking show, Great British Bake Off! We talk the show's charm, the coziness level of a high stakes competition, piñatas based on the show, the importance of court jesters to baking, what makes us mutter-scream at the screen, and much more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over Superhero TV shows! What defines the genre? What other genres are incorporated? The battle between grim and hopeful storytelling, the ideal number of episodes, when it's responsible to have a cape, the best catchphrases to yell in your car, and more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over their recent trip to Sequoia National Park. The calming and exhausting power of nature! The metaphor of fire scars! Bears working for postmates! And the most important question: do we want to be trees?

Joseph and Sara obsess over the literal and digital piles of books they plan to read. We talk the gamut of emotions caused by the piles, structural stability, how many books a human can possibly read at one time, and more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over episodic storytelling! With a ton of storytelling serialized, do audiences want standalone adventures? What's the value of steadfast characters that don't go through massive change? Are our lives more serialized or episodic? Is a vacation a "filler" episode of life?

Joseph and Sara obsess over Local Exploration! No, that's not the title of a small scope Star Trek show. We talk visiting places in your own city you can overlook. Parks, bookstores, bars, and more! Plus, Joseph has a side-obsession with the Jacaranda tree!

Joseph and Sara obsess over having actual FUN on social media. Enjoying jokes both absurd and satirical, other people's pictures of cocktails, bonding over pop culture, the best animals to follow, and more!

Sara and Joseph obsess over the MCU movie, Black Widow while saying the word "kinetic" many times! We talk big themes of agency, family, redemption, and superhero fame. Plus great moments of action, comedy, and vests!

Joseph and Sara discuss their conflicted obsession with fireworks! From thrilling displays of luminous celebration to loud, ironic sky explosions! We talk our experience seeing fireworks from beaches, amusement parks, the Hollywood Bowl, and random driveways. Plus! What are the best fireworks in movies and TV shows?

Joseph shares his lifelong obsession with Batman. From the dark to the absurd, we celebrate the obsessive knight. Would we want to go to Disneyland with Batman? What fear would we dress up as to fight crime? What obsession would be our shtick as Batman villains?

Joseph and Sara obsess over the ancient drink, Beer. Our positive associations with summer, patios, theater shows, and community. Plus the best food to pair with beer, the best pop culture character to drink beer with, and more!

Sara and Joseph obsess about staring at the ocean. The peace, the chaos, the invitation to adventure. The joy of dolphins, the leave-me-alone energy of sharks, the possibility of underwater stand-up, and more.

Joseph interviews Sara about her obsession with soundtracks! How they tell the story of movies and TV but then become their own story. The best soundtracks to dance to, drive to, do your taxes to. Plus new songs we'd like John Williams to write.

Joseph and Sara obsess over going to the movies! The magic and tension of the communal experience in the "big dark room." Favorite movie experiences from packed Avengers and Star Wars screenings to seeing Lynch film with two grandmas and more! Plus a tribute to the great Cinerama Dome and Arclight Hollywood.

Joseph and Sara obsess over post-vaccine life. How to capture the emotional moment of getting the vaccine, the power of a communal experience, mask symbolism, the weirdness of seeing friends' lower faces, and should all the people who have "wizard hair" cut it off?

Joseph and Sara obsess over the MCU show, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. We talk big themes of what the Shield means, legacy, identity, trauma, and the importance of being awkward best friends. Plus the comedy, the heart, the action--from Zemo's dance to the controversial climax to Bucky's skill at costume design. Grab your wings and vibranium arm and dive in!

Joseph and Sara obsess over Time Travel! Why do we love stories about it? Would we get comfort or horror from jumping into the future? If we traveled back in time, could we get anyone to listen to us and/or could we ride a dinosaur? Would we want devices that allowed us to jump 15 seconds in the past? Do we already have them and not know it?

Joseph and Sara obsess over the monster-punching blockbuster, Godzilla vs Kong! We talk empathy for Kong, Godzilla's inner thoughts, vacationing in the Hollow Earth, and who truly won the battle on a thematic level.

Joseph interviews Sara about her obsession with the Bee Gees! We talk teen dance parties, the importance of strange voices, disco backlash, the great HBO Max documentary, and much more!

Joseph and Sara obsess over Takeout Food! The joy of eating restaurant food at home, the danger of sandwich sliding, the strange social dance of being recognized as a takeout customer, and which takeout food pairs best with which TV show or movie!

We obsess over the great MCU television show, WandaVision! We talk the big themes of grief, the social anxieties animating sitcoms, choosing your own identity, and the importance of Scarlet Witch's cape. Plus wrestling with the expectations game! WARNING: This podcast does NOT introduce the obsessed multiverse

Joseph and Sara obsess over The Muppet Show! We talk the comedy, the chaos, the heart, and the power of variety shows. The comedy theory of how a bear and a frog doing slapstick wrestles with the human condition! Gene Kelly's bittersweet non-dance! Plus, which Muppet we'd want to live in our home.

Joseph and Sara celebrate their mutual fascination with musicals! From Annie to Cats to Singin' In The Rain to Xanadu, what is the power of musicals? We talk raw emotion, dancing along with movies, unintended comedy, children refusing to applaud for stage musicals, the possibility of a James Bond musical, and much more!

Doctor Doom! Palpatine! Skeletor! Just about every James Bond villain! Joseph is obsessed with super villains. Their bizarre style, their terrible plans that sometimes point out actual societal problems, their huge vocabularies and ranting monologues, the anger they must feel when they get turned into Funko Pops!

Joseph interviews Sara about her obsession with maps! The sense of adventure! The aesthetic beauty! The constantly evolving history! From fantasy maps to San Francisco layers to British Railroad games to BECOMING THE MAP YOURSELF!

Joseph interviews Sara about her lifelong love of shoes! From admiring her doll's shoes to breaking in ballet pointe shoes to the dream of making shoes out of tires, Sara is very obsessed! Plus friendly bears, magic shoes, and the worst shoes for a jewel heist.

Joseph and Sara obsess over the truth! Its impact on politics, media, social media, debating pop culture, and correctly identifying what is and is not a table.

After going a year between haircuts, Joseph is becoming obsessed with hair! We discuss finding identity from your style and color, how getting a haircut is the original casual podcast, and Sara's tale of her dangerous ballet hair pins!

We obsess over resolutions! Or are they goals? Intentions? From exercise to writing to quality time with martinis, we discuss the joy and stress of making changes for the new year! Plus the new tradition: Keeper Resolutions!

Joseph interviews Sara about her love of Christmas Trees! From calming to festive, real to fake, from picking them out of a mystical forest to hanging cocktail accessories from the branches! Plus we tackle the ultimate question: Are trees just hats for presents?

Sara interviews Joseph about his VERY intense obsession with Frank Sinatra. His music, his whimsy, his fight for the underdog, his ego, his impact on culture, and how he made a scrawny kid from Minneapolis feel better about himself through the mists of time.

Sara is obsessed with tea! The drink, the mood, the history! Every sip is a story!

Joseph and Sara obsess over the great comedy show, Schitts Creek! We talk finding humanity in outlandish comedy, wigs, the potential joy of living in a motel room, wigs, the Rose family member we want to take on a road trip, and much more including wigs!

Since we can't travel for the holidays in 2020, we're traveling in our minds! We obsess over WHY we care about travel! From vacations to performing at conventions! The beauty of Edinburgh to the horror of a Greyhound Station at 2 am! Grab your mind passport and join us!

Joseph and Sara obsess over the festive holiday season! From nostalgia to capitalism to Die Hard to carols to festive cocktails to the myth of Adult Santa!

Joseph and Sara obsess over staying engaged with politics! We talk the emotional rollercoaster of the 2020 cycle, wrestle with the call for compromise, how AITA posts might help, and Sara invents the nuance rainbow.

Joseph and Sara obsess over the live action Star Wars TV show! The action, honor, wisdom, the Baby Yoda, and the closing of shared narratives!

Joseph and Sara obsess over celebrating Halloween! How can being scared during an already scary time in the world help us? What fun can we have this Halloween? Should Dracula star in a pandemic movie? Plus, the autumnal power of gourds and CORN NIGHT!

Your one hour and twenty minute mission: To boldly listen to Joseph and Sara obsess over Star Trek! For some reason stories of hope, knowledge, empathy, and striving for a better future are resonating with us right now! We talk big themes, favorite technology, and Sara has so many favorite characters she creates a bus for them all to live on.

Joseph and Sara obsess over voting! Particularly how we think about it? Is it a duty? A chore? A joy? How can we build honest stories that make people want to be involved? Should election day be a festive holiday? Plus Election Pies and Sticker Bears!

Sara and Joseph obsess over revisiting The Sound of Music! How it shaped Sara's personality, balancing the very sweet and the very terrifying, ongoing anger at Rolf, and how Liesl helped Joseph with his Zoom calls. All that and much more!

Joseph shares his lifelong love of comic books (or are they graphic novels?) from identifying with Robin the Boy Wonder to learning how to balance a budget to getting mad at large crossover events to appreciating the power of the medium to make modern day myths! Plus, Sara's early comic book adventures with Dennis the Menace Bible Comics!

Joseph and Sara obsess over the challenge of being aware that we are active participants in deeply historic times. We talk how stories help or hurt us in this time, the battle between hope and nihilism, listening to experts, finding joy through being pro-active, and, strangely, a bunny who might be able to help. WARNING: Contains blatant and strong opinions about the state of the world.

Joseph and Sara obsess over the 2007 documentary Long Way Down in which Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman ride motorcycles through Africa. We discuss our desire to be stared at by gorillas, if danger is necessary for adventure, the thrill of logistics, and more!

Sara shares her long time obsession with Yoga! Its physical and mental benefits, having yoga buddies, weird stereotypes, flash cards to be a Happy Baby, and much more! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Sara and Joseph Scrimshaw obsess over the Post Office! Why it's important to defend it from the current attack, our cultural associations from cookies to Cliff Claven, the romance of handwritten letters, stamp collecting, and more! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan E. Ward for our artwork!

Joseph and Sara obsess over their new Saturday morning ritual of watching Classic Doctor Who! We talk the different style of storytelling, monsters made of fear, interior decoration in the TARDIS, and much more!

Joseph and Sara discuss their mutual love of the food known as cheese. Its glory as a comfort food, an unexpected treat, a Sesame Street endorsed healthy choice AND a dangerous vice. Plus, the importance of cheese agreement in relationships. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Sara Scrimshaw shares her obsession with meditation videos--from babbling brooks to turtles climbing rocks to narrated train trips--how can these videos bring peace and empathy? And it there any way to MULTI-TASK relaxation???? Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music an Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Joseph and Sara discuss the prevalence of competition in our society! When is it just good, high stakes entertainment? When do we use it to challenge ourselves? And what does it do to us when we start to frame everything in a winner/loser perspective? Also, some Great British Bake-Off Anxieties. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork

Joseph and Sara share their obsession with the massive pop culture celebration, San Diego Comic-Con! The community! The cosplay! The panels, parties, and performances! The bay you can look at free of charge! Damp Obi-Wan Kenobi! And much more!

Sara and Joseph obsess over Hamilton: The Musical: The Movie! We talk the cultural impact, throwing away shots, the responsibility of telling a historical story, ensemble actors moving pieces around in our minds, and much more! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Masks! Sara and Joseph obsess over their various meanings in our culture, their power to stop the virus, and favorite masks from Robin the Boy Wonder to Kylo Ren to Michael Myers to Masquerade Balls and much more! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Sara and Joseph discuss what the "new normal" might look like after all the crises and huge societal changes we're experiencing. From handshakes to politics to birthday parties to education to the plots of James Bond villains, and beyond. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Joseph shares his very intense obsession with the social media site, Twitter! We talk the value of connection, the horror of misinformation, twitter's role in history, mourn the Fail Whale, and much more!

Sara Scrimshaw shares her deep love of history! We talk the difference between facts and stories, the danger of myths, the aesthetic power of the past, better statues, and much more! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Joseph and Sara celebrate the long history of the sci-fi/fantasy/mystery bookstores in Minneapolis, Uncle Hugos and Uncle Edgars. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork. For more information on helping Uncle Hugos and Uncle Edgars rebuild: https://www.gofundme.com/f/let-us-help-save-uncle-hugo039s

Sara interviews Joseph about his obsession with Star Wars trivia! From trivial pursuit to competing in the Movie Trivia Schmoedown. The value of knowledge! The dark side of competition! The butt cows of Attack of the Clones! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Sara and Joseph obsess over the movie Birds of Prey (and The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)! The comedy, the depth, the action, the fun, the colors! (SPOILER: we both enjoy the movie very much!) Plus, we discuss what kind of sandwich would motivate us for at least half a movie! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Joseph and Sara revisit their many years involved with the big performing arts festival, the Fringe Festival as writers, actors, producers, directors, dancers, and more! From near death experiences to dating drama to learning the ways of the internet, the festival was very formative! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Sara interviews Joseph about his long time obsession with visual art. From drawing Robin the Boy Wonder as a kid to getting a degree in Visual Art and all of the anxieties in between! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Sara and Joseph share their fascination with cocktails: The flavor, the history, the creativity, the absurdity, the instagram photos! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Sara is obsessed with Nature Documentaries! We talk mating dances, watching snakes chase lizards, delicate ecosystems, and who would narrate the documentary of life in our apartment! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Joseph is very obsessed with James Bond, the novels, the movies, their place in pop culture history! Sara is intrigued and possibly obsessed! We talk differentiating the movies, the character of 007 in the books, geo-politically aware bad guys, and much more! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Joseph and Sara watched the virus movies, Outbreak and Contagion! We obsess over whether or not that was a good idea, how marriage affects both movies, how far they are from reality, and, of course, monkeys. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

For the 300th episode of the podcast, Joseph sits down with his wife, Sara, to discuss the positives and negatives of being obsessed, how we define it, AND we check in on Joseph's many obsessions to see how they impact Sara. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Joseph and Sara Scrimshaw discuss the bizarre, cult hit movie musical, Cats. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Joseph is joined by his wife Sara Scrimshaw to talk the joys and challenges of working from home! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Actor/singer/producer shares her love and unique way of watching Murder TV Shows like CSI, SVU, and Criminal Minds! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork

Actor and improviser Craig Cackowski (Drunk History, Thrilling Adventure Hour) shares his deep love of puzzles. Particularly crossword puzzles! The more difficult the better! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Comedian/writer/podcaster Phoebe Bottoms shares her deep connection with dogs--from childhood to her current canine companion with mysterious origins, Monkey. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.

Jason Bischoff (writer, pop culture licensing and toy expert) shares how Batman The Animated Series shaped him as a human, personally and professionally! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

James Arnold Taylor portrays Obi-Wan Kenobi in The Clone Wars, he's a main character on Disney's Rise of The Resistance Ride and many other voices in Star Wars and throughout the entertainment cosmos! We discuss his love of voice acting and his years as a voice in the galaxy far, far away. Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our theme music and Bryan Ward for our artwork!

Awesome writer (The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, Lizzie Bennet Diaries) shares her love of low stakes Quiz Shows! We talk the value of trivia! The thrill of yelling at your TV! The importance of problem solving! Thanks as always to Molly Lewis for our music and Bryan Ward for our artwork.