Conversation on Tap

Bonus Episode: We Spoil Ant-Man and the Wasp

In this episode of Conversation on Tap, my brother Jesse joins me to discuss the latest Marvel film: Ant-Man and the Wasp. Caution: spoilers ahead! We break down the overall plot of the film, debate whether or not it is better than the first Ant-Man film, discuss the pros and cons, and speculate about how this film will impact Avengers 4. It's a brief 30 minute chat, but we pack in quite a bit of nerdy talk, so be prepared! This is a bonus episode, so stay tuned for episode 17, which will be a long discussion about whether the MCU or DCEU is the best. Cheers!

Episode 16: We Don't Scare Easily

In this episode of Conversation on Tap, Jose is joined by his little brother Jesse-- Joel is away with his family in Hawaii. After a brief introduction, Jose and Jesse pour their drinks: Jesse, who is staight-edge, poured himself a Dr. Pepper, while Jose poured a glass of Dewar's White Label whiskey. For their FRED Talks, Jose talked about the Janus v. AFSCME decision by the Supreme Court and the Catholic Church's stance on unions; Jesse talked about the beef between Pusha T and Drake. Once they got into the main topic, Jesse and Jose talked about how they both got into horror films and why they have a certain attraction to the genre, but they also touched on why some people have an aversion to the genre. Jose and Jesse also spent a considerable time talking about smart horror films, like Get Out. They also touched on groundbreaking horror films that set trends, though eventually became played out-- zombie movies, anyone? To wrap up, Jesse talked about the Dead Meat Podcast, which talks about horror films, while Jose talked about the movie Deadpool 2. We are thankful that Jesse could fill in for Joel, but we are hopeful that Joel will return soon! Cheers!

Episode 15: We Don't Want Families Broken Up

In this week's episode of Conversation on Tap, Joel and Jose got very upset about the Trump administration's policy of separating children from their parents at the border. But before we jumped into that controversial topic, we poured ourselves some delicious black and tan brew called Mississippi Mud. It's a delicious and drinkable brew, but we were disappointed to see that it was made in New York and not Mississippi. For our FRED Talk, Joel got very excited about sharing a Hawaiian drink called awa, which had a tongue-numbing effect on both Joel and Jose; Jose talked about the Catholic Church's stance on the LGBTQ+. Once Joel and Jose dived into the main topic, they talked about the trauma that separation has on children, which has been discussed by mental health professionals. They also raised the issue about how the separations echo the separations that occured during the Holocaust, especially when officials  promised children that they were simply "going for a shower." Jose also challenged Attorney General Jeff Session's absurd argument that this policy was biblical. Overall, it was a difficult conversation to have, but one that was necessary. To wrap it up, Joel wanted to share an article about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who won a Congressional primary in New York, and Jose gave his review of the film Solo: A Star Wars Story. Joel is on vacation in Hawaii, so he will not be present for episode 16. Jose will be joined, instead, by a guest to discuss the horror film genre. Cheers!

Episode 14: We Get Nerdy About Technology

In this week's episode of Conversation on Tap, Joel and Jose are joined by their buddy Jerry to talk about technology. Before they began the discussion, they poured themselves some delcious Belgian quad ale, which fueled their conversation. For his FRED Talk, Jose talked about the recent suicide of Anthony Bourdain, walking through the Catholic Church's teaching on suicide; Joel's FRED Talk was on the most unlivable cities in the United States. Once the conversation began, they dived into some really nerdy-- and abstract-- conversations. At one point, Joel and Jerry speculated as to whether or not we are living in a simulation, something akin to the Matrix. Joel also pondered whether or not we should simply upload the internet into our brains directly. All of this, of course, led to a discussion about the potential for artificial intelligence and references to SkyNet. One big topic of discussion was about the public spat between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerburg, both of whom have used technology to change our society. But with smartphones being an all-in-one tool, they might also have negative consequences for interpersonal relationships, particularly for couples and today's youth. After Joel and Jose bid adieu to Jerry, they wrapped up the show by discussing a few things they've been reading: Joel was reading about stores using baroque music to dispel vagrants outside their businesses, while Jose was reading about a group of friends who have been playing a 30 year long game of tag, which was recently adpated into a movie. We hope you enjoyed this episode! Please be sure to share this with your friends on social media, especially if they are into these kinds of nerdy topics. Salut!

Episode 13: We Get Real About Fake News: Part 2

Welcome back to another episode of Conversation on Tap! We had an unexpected hiatus due to the craziness of our work schedule-- the end of the school year is always insane for teachers. But we are back with a vengeance! We will be posting another episode tonight or tomorrow, so be on the look out for that. In this week's episode, Joel and Jose continued their discussion on fake news. Before they began their rich discsussion, the two cracked open a few beers: the Pablo Special Pale Ale by M. Special and Lizard's Mouth by Figueroa Mountain. Once they were generously sloshed, they dived into their FRED Talks: Joel talked about the phenomenon of perfect pitch and discrimination against saxophones; Jose continued the second part of his discussion on those nones who are "spritual but not religious," with a particular look at the film Eat, Pray, Love. Once they dived into their main topic, the conversation swirled around a multitude of topics in an almost stream of conscious-like fashion-- probably due to the alcohol. Nonetheless, they hit on the tendency for people to willingly seek out echo chambers where they only hear information that affirms their world view, a tendency made more easy through social media platforms like Facebook. The constant theme of this episode was the need for people to be more like Spock in our reasoning and less like Kirk in being guided by our gut and passions. As the episode wrapped up, Joel talked about how blown away he was by Donald Glover's This is America music video. Jose wrapped up by talking about Netflix's CNN series on the Seventies and Eighties. This was a rolicking and fun episode, especially as the two podcasters imbibed more and more in their brews. Be sure to check back soon for episode 14! And you could do us a huge favor by sharing this episode with your friends and family on Facebook or Instagram. Salut!

Episode 12: We Get Real About Fake News: Part 1

In this week's episode of Conversation on Tap, Joel and Jose brought on their mutual friend Marcus to get real about Fake News. Before they began their conversation, they poured themselves some bubbly pints of Firestone Lager. For this week's FRED Talk, Joel discussed miscegenation, which was overwhelmingly opposed by the public half a century ago; Jose talked about the tradition in many Christian denominations to talk-down religion and stress the spirituality of an individualized relationship with Jesus. Once the conversation got started, the three of them talked about Fake News, beginning with the definition of the phenomenon and how it originated. Though there were quite a few tangents, the constant refrain was the need for fact checking, a stress on backing up claims with evidence, and relying on the credibility of sources. Unfortunately, our hyper-partisan culture has only promoted the practice of echo chambers, both on the left and right. Joel encouraged us to be more Spock-ian in our reason. As we wrapped up our episode, Jose gushed about how amazing the Avengers: Infinity War movie was-- he even shed a few tears! And Joel talked a little about the second season of Westworld, which took us down a philosophical path about life and consciousness. We were so glad to have Marcus join us this week, but we had so much more to discuss. Look for part 2 of this topic next week! Salut!

Episode 11: We Embrace Trump Derangement Syndrome

In this week's episode of Conversation on Tap, Joel and Jose embrace Trump derangement syndrome. But before they drunkenly stumbled into that topic, they poured themselves several-- more than several-- pints of M.Special American Lager, a tasty brew out of Goleta, California. For their FRED Talks, Joel talked about Mt Waialeale as one of the wettest places on earth, though the top spot belongs to Mawsynram-- and talked about whether or not water is wet. Jose then talked about Pope Francis and the false accusation that he denied the existence of hell. At this point, the two rabble-rousers jumped into the topic of Trump. They covered everything from his constant lies to his love for Wikileaks to his blatant racism to his numerous ties to Russia. But they also took evangelical Christians to task for their blind support for Trump, as well as liberals who refused to support Hillary Clinton. As they wrapped up, Joel talked about an article in the Atlantic entitled The Scientific Paper is Obsolete. Jose ended by talking about Pope Francis' exhortation entitled Gaudete et Exsultate. Our next episode is on Fake News, and it will likely be a two-part episode, so stay tuned! Salut!

Episode 10: We Look Back

In this week's episode-- Episode 10!-- Joel and Jose look back on the last nine episodes. Both of these amature Podcasters were blown away by how long the show has carried on, as well as grateful for one another's company. Afterall, even without the Podcast, Joel and Jose would talk about these issues over drinks, but they greatly appreciate all their listeners, especially those who come back week after week. 

The two of them begin by going through Joel's refridgerator and revisiting some of their previous brews, such as Figueroa Mountain's Zero to Sexy and Firestone's Nitro Merlin Milk Stout. After a delicious walk down memory lane, they dived right into the topics. The began by going through some of the #metoo issues that have occured, especially Oprah's epic speech at the Oscars. Jose also mentioned a survey conducted by America Magazine, while Joel brought up the sexism facing women in all industries. They also discussed the March for Our Lives events in across the country, including those held on school campuses. This discussion also touched on the disgusting tendencies of some on the right to attack the students who are speaking out-- or to downright calling mass shootings a hoax or False Flag events. Joel and Jose then turned to the recent trend of teacher walkouts in West Virginia, Oklahoma, and Arizona. Research clearly demonstrates that teachers who are better paid perform better in the classroom, resulting in better student achievement. And they continued their discussion from Black Lives Matter to Elvis Presley. In the final segment, Joel encouraged people to check out Alt-J and Portugal the Man. Jose closed by reviewing the film Paul: Apostle of Christ.

We hope you enjoyed the episode! See you next week! Salut!

Episode 9: We Groove to the Music

This week’s episode of Conversation On Tap began with Joel and Jose drinking some delicious Kona Longboard Lager. It was the perfect island drink for a rainy day! For our FRED Talks, Joel dived into the mysterious world of Fortnite, which provided us with the perfect chance to discuss this with his son. Jose talked about World Down Syndrome Day— and the Vatican’s condemnation of abortive procedures for fetuses determined to have Down Syndrome. The main topic of our episode was music. We began by talking about the impact of music on our brains, and Joel referred to a book titled This Is Your Brain on Music. Then we each talked about our favorite bands and artists: Joel is really into Earth, Wind, and Fire, and Jose is a big Bruce Springsteen fan. The conversation turned around the way music touches the deepest part of our souls, as well as imprinting upon our memories; Joel talked about growing up listening to classical music, while Jose fondly recalled listening to Soja with his wife when they first started dating. As we closed the show, Joel talked about the latest Decemberists album, while Jose talked about Fr. James Martin’s book Between Heaven and Mirth. We hope you enjoy the episode and that you will join us next week!

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Salut!

Episode 8: We Play the Race Card: Part 2

Unfortunately, Joel and I have been quite busy, so we skipped a week. Our episode this week began with us pouring some delicious Belching Beaver Brew, a peanut flavored beer that knocked our socks off. For our FRED talks, Jose discussed the passing of Stephen Hawking, the reknowned astrophysicist who persevered in his work despite suffering from ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). And Joel quizzed Jose regarding where the Christ's followers were first called Christians-- leading to a discussion about how many of today's refugees from that region are Christians (who call God Allah). We then dived right into part 2 of our discussion about race, ranging from stereotypes to comedy to quotas. We spent a fair bit of time talking about whether or not diversity is something we should care about, as well as the idea that American culture is the most exceptional one on earth. As we wound down, Joel and I both discussed an article that appeared in the Atlantic written by Michael Gerson, entitled The Last Temptation. But Joel also took a few minutes to talk about the Breeders latest album All Nerve, and I couldn't help but nerd-out over the latest Avengers: Infinity War trailer. We hope that you find the conversation informative, and we hope that you will join us next week! Salut!