Fight Club Part 3 - Chuck Palahniuk - The Side Quest Book Club Podcast

Episode Transcript
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Jonathan (00:10):
Good morning, good afternoon, and good night,
wherever you're tuning in. Weare Slava and Jonathan bringing
you the SideQuest podcast wherewe talk about character
development, stories, and allthings that are world building.
And we occasionally takeSideQuest because, frankly,

(00:43):
Welcome back, side questers.Lava and Jess back on the show.

Slava (00:48):
Hey. Hey.

Jonathan (00:49):
Hi. Happy to have Jess on for another Chuck Palahniuk
book and bringing so many extrathoughts. We had a good little
chat here before we hit record,and I can't wait to share that
with all of you and let you hearall of her rants because they
are some juicy ones. Slava, doyou wanna give us a quick
rundown of the author and book,and then we'll jump right in?

Slava (01:12):
Yes. So as you have guessed by the title, this is
part 3 of Fight Club, and thisis a novel that follows a story
of an unnamed narrator toldlargely through flashbacks who
is struggling with insomnia. Thenarrator finds solace in
attending support groups forterminal illnesses where he can

(01:34):
cry and finally fall asleep. Thepiece is disrupted by Marla
Singer, a fellow imposter,leading to his insomnia as
return. This man is alsodissatisfied with his life,
corporate life in general, untilhe meets Tyler Durden, a a
charismatic man who introduceshim to Fight Club, a secret
group where men release theirfrustrations through physical

(01:56):
fights.
Narrator and Tyler become close,but Tyler's relationship with
Marla triggers jealousy in thenarrator. Tyler's influence
escalates to the creation of agroup called project mayhem, a
movement of destructive andanarkic anarchic? Is that the
word? Anarkistic? Anarkistic?

Jess (02:15):
Yeah. That seems right.

Slava (02:16):
A movement of destructive and anarchistic acts. As Fight
Club and Project Mayhem grow,the narrator realizes that he
and Tyler are the same person,with Tyler emerging when the
narrator sleeps. Determined tostop Tyler, the narrator
confronts him atop a buildingrigged with explosives. He
shoots himself in the face torid himself of Tyler's control.

(02:38):
Surviving the ordeal, thenarrator awakens in a hospital
where he converses with staffwho subtly revealed their
loyalty to project mayhem,leaving the future ambiguous.
And this was brought to us byCharles Michael or Chuck
Palaniuk, who is an Americannovelist and describes his work

(02:59):
as transgressional ortransgressive fiction. He's
published 90 novels, 3nonfiction books, 2 graphic
novels, and 2 adult coloringbooks, as well as numerous short
stories. And this is his firstpublished novel.

Jonathan (03:13):
Wait. I don't remember that he published coloring
books.

Jess (03:16):
They're like short story. I think they're both are there
novellas? 1 might be a shortstory book and one is, like, a
novella. I own them. I have notread them.

Jonathan (03:23):
Are they set in any of his other worlds, like, Fight
Club, or is it something, like,totally by its standalone?

Jess (03:28):
They're not Fight Club related.

Jonathan (03:30):
Okay.

Jess (03:30):
Although, like, I don't think he has a book that is in a
different universe that wecouldn't exist in.

Slava (03:36):
Yeah.

Jess (03:36):
Yeah.

Jonathan (03:36):
I

Jess (03:37):
feel like fight club could be in the same universe as
survivor, as choke, andinvisible monsters. Modern day.
Are very similar.

Jonathan (03:43):
Yeah. Interesting stuff.

Jess (03:45):
But fight club 23 are the graphic novels.

Jonathan (03:48):
Yes. And I look forward to you

Jess (03:49):
I'll be bringing that up

Jonathan (03:51):
Yes.

Jess (03:51):
And how bad they are to save anyone time from reading
them.

Jonathan (03:54):
Please do.

Jess (03:55):
Unless they wanna get hate read. I like to hate read.

Jonathan (03:58):
I think you've mentioned that before.

Jess (03:59):
Yeah. I mentioned it, Head Full of Ghosts, because I read
it, like, so many times.

Jonathan (04:04):
Let's talk about the the differences here, because
it's something that Jess broughtup before the show, the
differences between the book andthe movie. So anyone who
finished reading the book andhas been listening along,
there's definitely some cleardifferences. I think the
clearest one is the ending issuper different from book to
movie, but there are other minorthings as well. Slava mentioned

(04:24):
it in one of the previousepisodes about the line, I wanna
have your abortion versus I Ihaven't been screwed like that
since grade school. And whatother ones, Jess, stick out to
you in that comparison from frombook to movie?

Jess (04:37):
Well, there's some quotes that are just I think they're
applied to, like, a differentperson, Marla in general. I'd
like her way better in the book.In the movie, she's like, she's
cool, she's sexy, but she's notthe way in the book, she's way
more of a a sympatheticcharacter. And she plays a way
bigger part in the book than shedoes in the movie.

Slava (04:57):
And the interactions between the narrator and his
boss are flushed out more in thebook too too.

Jess (05:03):
Yes. Yeah. And, obviously, it was after he stopped working
at the place. That was the endof his boss in the movie, not in
the book, obviously.

Slava (05:09):
In the movie.

Jess (05:10):
Yep. Yeah. So it's the the movie's a little more tame,
actually. They couldn't put in,like, all the lists of I I don't
know if you guys talked aboutthis in the other app. They
couldn't list all those bombinstructions, explosive
instructions

Slava (05:22):
Yeah.

Jess (05:22):
The same way. Because I think they're all legit because
I googled it, and they said theywere all I was trying not to
Google too much about

Jonathan (05:30):
You don't wanna get put on a list?

Jess (05:31):
Building Yeah. I was worried that I wouldn't be able
to fly. But this was pre 911, soI didn't know what they could
get away with back then.

Jonathan (05:39):
Clearly not much.

Jess (05:41):
Yeah. Not yeah.

Jonathan (05:42):
Yeah. The one I remember from the movie for
descriptions was the orangejuice concentrate and gasoline.
Yeah. That's the one that Iremember distinctly, but I don't
recall them going into detailson any of the other ones.

Jess (05:56):
But that's part of his writing style, Chuck P, because
I can't pronounce his last nameeven if you guys say it a
1000000 times. He always likesto, like, teach the reader
something.

Jonathan (06:06):
Yes.

Jess (06:06):
It's in it's in all the book. Oh, like, all the cleaning
methods and survivor and the

Slava (06:10):
stealing stuff. Yeah.

Jess (06:12):
Except for, like, in this, I have not done I don't think
I've done anything that heteaches you in this book. Like,
stole, like, from Survivor.Right. I kinda love the
livening. I kinda I feel like weshould do it.

Slava (06:26):
I have some lie in the basement.

Jess (06:27):
That'd be pretty cool.

Jonathan (06:28):
Well, this took a turn. Alright. Audience, line up
if you wanna get the fight clubkiss

Slava (06:33):
From Slava and Jess.

Jess (06:34):
As a very self destructive teen, that was, like, so cool to
me and still is as a selfdestructive person.

Jonathan (06:40):
You wanna have labels on your skin

Jess (06:42):
Yeah.

Jonathan (06:44):
For Project Mayhem?

Jess (06:46):
Well, I don't want, like, a Fight Club tattoo. Chuck p
makes fun of that, kind of, inthe in Fight Club 2, the graphic
novel. Oh, definitely. Peoplegot Fight Club, yeah, tattoos.

Jonathan (06:56):
Like, they missed the point?

Jess (06:57):
I have a tattoo. It's abandon that hope. It's kinda
the same message.

Jonathan (07:01):
From Dante's Inferno? Is it No.

Jess (07:03):
It's not abandon all hope you enter here, not that. It's
abandon that hope. It's from,although when you said Dante's
Inferno, I'm like, that's notfrom American Psycho? Because it
it also starts abandon all hopeyou who enter here.

Jonathan (07:15):
Yeah.

Jess (07:16):
Oh, but it's from what's that video game? Alice the
Madness Returns.

Slava (07:20):
Okay.

Jess (07:21):
But it's kinda the same idea, losing all hope is
freedom, you know, that wholemessage, if you were to ruin
everything, then you couldrebuild.

Slava (07:29):
Yeah. Very Nietzsche From nothing. I'm sorry. No.
Nietzsche has a line somewherethat the blessed man is the one
who forgets.

Jess (07:39):
Oh, yeah. I mean, I'm only familiar with that also from a
movie, not from

Slava (07:44):
anything you've heard from. The Jim Carrey movie?

Jess (07:47):
Yes. I love that movie.

Slava (07:49):
So do I.

Jess (07:50):
Eternal sunshine and the spotless line.

Slava (07:51):
Yeah. Which is a line from a poet from the 1700, 1800.
It's like a long poem.

Jonathan (07:58):
Yeah. So this is kinda what I was getting at Slava with
the, because we're on theabandon all hope idea at the
moment, is that, I believe,harks back to well, definitely
Dante's Inferno, but I think itgoes back further. I think it
goes back to Greek and Romanmythology for descent into hell.

Slava (08:21):
Yeah. Who's that guy that had to push a boulder up the
mountain? Sisyphus. It hasconnections to Sisyphus. The
movie that we just referenced,Eternal Sunshine of the
Spotless.
Spotless mind, there's Sisyphusovertones in it, and I only know
this because I watched aninterview with the director.
Okay. Nice. Life repeats.

Jess (08:39):
Yes. Yeah. It has to.

Jonathan (08:42):
It does.

Jess (08:43):
You know, maybe, again, it was maybe my young mindset. It
did not occur to me that theywere of this is just me being
dumb. It's not really a hugedifference because they exist in
the book and the movie. In themovie, it didn't seem so much
like terrorism as much as itseemed like, you know, cute
little pranks that involveexplosives

Slava (09:01):
Boys will be boys.

Jess (09:02):
Ruining damage. Yeah. And I was like, oh, that looks like
fun, but I didn't it did notdawn on me as terrorism were in
the book. I was like, oh, thisis terrorism for sure. And then
in fight club 2, there's, youknow, there's more terrorism.
And and where it kinda pissed meoff in fight club 2 more because
they were talking about youknow, they do talk about this on
ruining modern art and how wehave seen that happening. And

(09:24):
every time someone ruins, like,whatever they I know it's been
Van Gogh. I don't know who else.I I like like, we should just
shoot those

Slava (09:30):
people. Fair.

Jess (09:30):
Oh, oh, like, just shoot that ass.

Jonathan (09:33):
Destroy art in museums and stuff for

Jess (09:35):
They can destroy modern art, but don't destroy the
classics.

Jonathan (09:39):
The classics. Yeah. That it's never made sense to me
that that's been

Jess (09:42):
Mad.

Jonathan (09:43):
The go to where it's like, oh, we're gonna destroy,
you know, Da Vinci's Mona Lisa.It's like, why?

Jess (09:49):
But they did that in Fight Club 2 with their blood.

Jonathan (09:52):
Their blood?

Jess (09:53):
Yeah. I think they nicked their artery in such a way and
sprayed I feel like one of themdied from it. Oh, yeah. I don't
like Fight Club 2 at all.

Jonathan (10:00):
Why don't you give us a quick rundown of Fight Club 2
and 3?

Jess (10:04):
I'll spoil some. I did not read 3 yet. I own it, but I have
not read it. So Fight Club 2,Marla and the narrator who has a
name, Sebastian, which is Ithink one of his names from I
don't know if it was in themovie or the book where he used
that at in one of his, nametags, so probably the movie.
They're married.
Marla is no longer my favoritecharacter because she's an
asshole who starts switching outhis meds that I guess have been

(10:28):
keeping Tyler Durden at bay andfor to have sex. For because the
sex is boring.

Jonathan (10:35):
Oh, so for her own pleasure, she

Jess (10:37):
Yes. Without like, she didn't she didn't think of the
ramifications of, like, whatcould possibly happen. Kinda
makes her seem dumb. She alsowas, like, a big character. It's
kind of an all over the placething because she goes back to
support groups.
And she's at one for those kidsthat have that protein that ages
them rapidly, progeria progeria

Slava (10:58):
Okay.

Jess (10:58):
Or something.

Jonathan (10:59):
Sure.

Jess (10:59):
Turns out there's a faker among them that isn't just her.
It's Khloe. Khloe's not dead.Yeah. I'm spoiling it.

Jonathan (11:05):
That's

Jess (11:06):
fine. Not dead for whatever reason.

Jonathan (11:08):
But wait. She's not dead in Fight Club 2?

Jess (11:10):
She's not dead, which makes no sense. That takes a lot
of meaning from the first one.Yeah. Marla wanted I guess she
would thought he was not becauseI guess nothing changed for the
narrator Sebastian. He I'massuming he has a dead end job.
He has a He I'm assuming he hasa dead end job. He has a house
in the suburbs, and they have achild together.

Jonathan (11:27):
They have a kid? They have

Jess (11:28):
a kid who is also obviously Tyler's kid. But then
Tyler, they kinda undo the wholesplit personality thing, and
Tyler is like a mind virus. He'snot, like, his psyche split to
do what, you know, the narratortruly wanted to do and wasn't
even aware that he wanted to do.He could somehow and he's
infected other people in thatfamily tree. And they have, like

(11:50):
the the art is nice and well,not this one I'm about to
describe because there's spermin it.
It was like a family tree with,like, little spur it was
disgusting. Sperm. I told youguys before we started that,
Chuck p is also in the graphicnovel for, like the meta
commentary. Oh, yeah. He wroteit.
He didn't draw it, but, like, hewrote it.

Jonathan (12:10):
Right.

Jess (12:10):
And he has his writing group that he talks about all
the time at interviews there,like, helping him out to how to
resolve the story. And it'sawful. Chuck p, I've seen in a
lot of interviews. I love him.He's not very pretentious.
He's just a good storyteller.But him in the graphic novel, I
was like, he said he wasannoying. I told you guys I

(12:32):
don't remember if I told Saba.Yeah. He compared yeah.
He compared, Tyler Durden tobeing as culturally relevant as
Santa Claus.

Jonathan (12:39):
That's a weird in the book?

Jess (12:41):
On Fight Club 2. I don't know if they're trying to get
rid of Tyler Durden because,like, he's become such a huge
cultural or this is how I tookit. Fight Club is very popular,
but not like Santa Clauspopular. Like, Santa Claus is
never gonna escape get out ofthe cultural landscape. I don't
know if we're gonna be talkingabout Tyler Durden in a 100
years from now.

Jonathan (13:01):
Right. Probably not.

Jess (13:03):
I was like, that probably someone should have told you
that was a line that should havebeen taken out, or I don't know
if it'd be a line. It's about aseries of pictures. But I was I
saw someone else reference thatbecause I looked up all the
shitty because it is not ahighly reviewed book, Fight Club
2. Even and you think thatdiehard fans would pretend to
like it like I wanted to likeit?

Slava (13:20):
Yeah. Yeah. I I I agree with your assessment of it being
a rage read. Now that you'vedescribed it

Jonathan (13:26):
Yeah.

Slava (13:26):
If I ever read it, it's gonna be a hate read.

Jess (13:29):
And Bob's alive too, I think.

Slava (13:31):
Bitch is alive.

Jess (13:32):
Yeah. I don't remember why. What? They they explained
Khloe being alive. What?
I don't remember what if Bobsays anything, but they do a
close-up of his tits. Yeah. Atfirst, you're like nice, and
then you're like, ew.

Jonathan (13:43):
At first, you're like nice. Okay.

Jess (13:45):
Yeah. Nice. Those are Okay.

Jonathan (13:46):
How do you really feel, Jess? Yeah. That's I just
okay. I had to look it upbecause I I didn't know there
was a Fight Club 2. Yeah.
I'm just kind of at a loss forwords in terms of why there
would be such such distinctretcons of things that happened,
like, Chloe's alive, RobertPaulson is alive, I guess.

Jess (14:06):
They bring up the the quote that was changed in the
movie. She wants to have Tyler'sabortion versus

Jonathan (14:13):
In 5 Club 3, they bring it up?

Jess (14:14):
Yeah. Versus because he's I think Chuck P's talking to
Tyler Durden, I think. Yeah. Isthat what it was? It was hard to
remember something that made nosense.

Jonathan (14:23):
Yeah. It doesn't make sense even hearing it.

Jess (14:25):
I don't recommend it.

Slava (14:26):
We can blame Chelsea Kane.

Jess (14:29):
Yeah. Yeah. She's one of them.

Slava (14:30):
Yeah. She's the one that convinced Palaniuk to continue
Fight Club in comics.

Jonathan (14:37):
What?

Slava (14:37):
Yeah.

Jess (14:38):
I think she's one of the one in the writing thing.

Slava (14:41):
Yeah. Oh,

Jonathan (14:42):
from her writing group?

Slava (14:43):
Yep. Yep.

Jess (14:45):
Which they show in the comic, and she's one of them.
She's the one I didn't like, Ifeel. I don't like any of them.
I hated them all.

Slava (14:51):
Debuted in 2015.

Jess (14:52):
Which is weird because there's a lot of terrorism in
it. I guess it didn't matter.

Jonathan (14:57):
Very strange.

Slava (14:58):
It takes 10 years after the events of the first novel.
Sebastian and Marla are marriedwith a son. Sebastian works a do
nothing office job again at amilitary contractor company
called RISE or Die. RISE

Jess (15:14):
Oh, yeah.

Slava (15:14):
Spelled with a z. Marla has grown tired of suburban
life, resurrects Tyler Durden byreplacing her husband's
medication with placebos so shecould have an affair with Tyler.
Tyler has other plans and burnsdown the family's house and
apparently kills their son as aresult.

Jess (15:30):
Wow. Dead. He's not dead.

Slava (15:32):
But apparently kills him. So yeah. Yeah.

Jonathan (15:34):
Yeah. That feels less purposeful in at least from the
summary.

Jess (15:38):
It's all over the place.

Jonathan (15:40):
Yeah. So I hate read what you said.

Jess (15:44):
When I read Fight Club 3, I'll tell you about it.

Slava (15:46):
Please. Well, in Fight Club 3, I won't spoil anything
because I'm looking at the plot.In Fight Club 2, he also returns
to his childhood home, and chaosensues there.

Jess (15:59):
Well, they show him as a child. That's what I remember.

Slava (16:01):
Yeah.

Jess (16:01):
But, yeah, I remember him being a a child or something.
But I'm kinda getting himconfused for his own child
because they to me, the theythey looked alike.

Slava (16:10):
Right. And then he starts a new group called Project Chaos
after a speech from the head ofthe recruitment center about how
men have lost all their rolemodels due to feminism making it
impossible for men to holdpositions of power without being
falsely accused of rape byvindictive women. Then Tyler
tries to rape Marla. Marla fleestown to discover a wide variety

(16:33):
of Fight Club spin off groupshave formed around quilting,
creative writing, and filmviewing. Oh, yeah.
So they started podcasts allinspired by Tyler and Fight
Club.

Jonathan (16:44):
Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait. So there's men's quilting
things, or is it, like, women'sNo.

Slava (16:52):
It's men's quilting. Fight Club's where men quilt.
And they But it's not a fightclub then? No. But sit

Jess (17:00):
They listed all these well, she's looking for I cannot
remember if it was him or herthat was looking for fight
clubs. And then they listed,like, everything that was kinda
similar to fight club, but fightclub like, they named their
group based off of fight club.So there was a quilting club.
Can't remember any of the otherones. There was a film yeah.

Slava (17:19):
And then Marla gets help from a child with Progyria, and
she convinces the Magic WandFoundation to give her resources
to kill dictators and heads ofthe Middle East.

Jess (17:33):
What is mag what's that thing but in that world? I was
like, is it not based onsomething?

Jonathan (17:38):
Dictators and kill them As from a Make A Wish
Foundation?

Jess (17:42):
They asked for, like, explosives and guns, like, all
these little wrinkled children.

Jonathan (17:48):
Is it end where it's, like, hey, this was all just a
dream or a psychotic episode?Because that's what it sounds
like.

Jess (17:53):
I don't even remember that.

Slava (17:55):
Well, it gets more fever dream ish. At the compound that
Sebastian works, ties betweenISIS and Project Mayhem are
revealed when a member ofProject Mayhem is given his
assignment as an ISIS suicidebomber, which implies that Tyler
is behind ISIS as part of hisdesire to destabilize the Middle

(18:17):
East

Jess (18:18):
Yeah.

Slava (18:18):
As part of his plans for global anarchy. What is going
on?

Jess (18:22):
I think its rating on Goodreads is pretty low. There
are a lot of 5 star reviews forpeople who didn't read it yet.
They were just, like, excitedabout it.

Jonathan (18:33):
Sure.

Jess (18:33):
Okay. Read more of the 5 star to see what they were
thinking.

Slava (18:37):
Yeah. Tyler also makes new rules. You can no longer hit
Tyler in the face in Fight Club.That's a new rule. I don't
remember that.
Meanwhile, Marla and her ally,who reveals herself to be an
elderly midget woman pretendingto be a child suffering from
progeria for attention

Jess (18:57):
That's Khloe. Yeah.

Slava (18:59):
And they are comp But

Jess (18:59):
I don't remember her being a midget.

Slava (19:01):
They are confronted by female mercenaries working for
Rise or Die Whatever. In theMiddle East and apparently are
blown up by missile strikesordered by the miss mercenaries.

Jess (19:13):
Yeah. And then he thinks she's dead. But then she's fine.
I don't remember. Again, it'ssuch a mess.
It's hard to keep it straight.That's it's a very ambitious

Jonathan (19:22):
This feels like a series tucked into a graphic
novel because this is not thisis not as long as, like,
Watchmen. Right? Like,Watchmen's like a nice thick
graphic novel.

Jess (19:34):
No. This is not this isn't as long.

Slava (19:36):
How? It ends in a metafictional ending according
to this, plot, overview, butPalaniuk himself is shown to be
running the story of Fight Club2 by a group of fellow comic
book writers and friends, butstuff happens. And then here's
what I wanted to read. Palynukand Tyler walk on the beach, and

(19:58):
Palynuk claments the integrityof stories and art. Tyler asks
what happens next, and Palynukdescribes the fictional world of
Fight Club 3.
Marla is pregnant once again byTyler and will have an abortion.
Tyler shoots Palynuk in thehead, happily proclaiming he's
going to be a father.

Jonathan (20:19):
Sounds like a psychotic episode. It yes. The
entire thing.

Jess (20:23):
That will somehow affect the child. I don't I don't
remember. It's dumb, though.But, like, a lot of people did
not like didn't like it.

Jonathan (20:32):
Understandable. It's a

Slava (20:34):
There's a shit It's a different book. Shit story.

Jess (20:36):
It just ruins a lot of the first book, but, like, most
sequels are not a good ideaever. Like, use unless you're
unless you wrote the first bookwith the intent. Right. Like,
any fantasy series, they wannacontinue the story so there's
room to continue the story. Thiswas, I feel like, sounds bad,
but kind of the opposite ofFight Club, which is kinda

(20:58):
cashing in on that consumerism.
They thought everyone was gonnalike Fight Club by regurgitating
Fight Club.

Slava (21:05):
I figured out why Marla and Robert Paulson come back.

Jess (21:10):
Khloe.

Slava (21:11):
Khloe and Robert Paulson come back. The fans in world,
maybe out world, but this plotoverview says the fans write
their own ending in fight club 2resurrecting Robert Paulson and
everyone from the bunker that issupposedly hiding there because
there's a nuclear holocaust?

Jess (21:32):
What? Fans are all outside like an angry mob covered in
tattoos that he's making fun ofthem. That's the only funny
part. And they're theredemanding that, I guess.

Jonathan (21:42):
I feel like you did you're just making more things
up to me.

Jess (21:45):
Because I can't just not like it. I'm not also telling it
the right way. It's part of why.Because it's a mess that I can't
and I didn't give a shit enoughto remember it. I was just like,
this is stupid.

Jonathan (21:55):
I don't think it's gonna be coherent even if I read
it.

Jess (21:58):
No. No. Because I I'm smart enough, and I don't get
it.

Jonathan (22:03):
And just by having to say that sentence means that it
wasn't written in a coherentway. Your audience should not
have to wonder and guess whatthe story is.

Jess (22:11):
Because it's not yeah. He's not that kind of writer.
But you have to, like, be able

Jonathan (22:15):
to Correct.

Jess (22:16):
This mean? It's it should be I mean, Fight Club is very a
very straightforward novel. Somepeople I did read criticism of
Fight Club, the original, andsome people were like, didn't
understand what was going on.I'm like, wow. Like, it tells
you everything going

Slava (22:29):
on. Right.

Jess (22:30):
I guess the way it opens, Fight Club, the one that we're
reviewing, opens. He does say abunch of things that don't have
anything to do with each other,but it gets you intrigued to
continue reading. Let me see.Like, what's the first? Tyler
gets me a job as a waiter.
After that, Tyler's pushing agun in my mouth and saying the
first step to internal life isyou have to die. For a long time
though, Tyler and I were bestfriends. Yeah. That's all over

(22:52):
the place, but, like, if youjust keep reading, it explains
it all. Right.
Hard to understand even thoughit is very fast paced.

Jonathan (22:58):
Right.

Jess (22:58):
And that's why I like the writing without yeah.

Jonathan (23:02):
Okay. So Fight Club 2, not worth the read.

Jess (23:06):
Or maybe if you have nothing else to do.

Jonathan (23:09):
Yes. Yes, chef. Fight Club 3, jury's still out. Wow.
Slava, bring us to a side quest.
Let's do a quick transitionhere.

Slava (23:18):
So what rules would you guys make up if you were running
a fight club? Obviously, wecan't talk about fight club, and
we can't hit Tyler in the face,but that's for his fight club.
The 3 of us have started our ownfight clubs. What's one rule
that you would add to the litanyof rules that fight club has?

Jonathan (23:36):
Alright. Let me reread the rules real quick, make sure
I don't forget them so that wehave some context, both
ourselves and the audience. Thefirst rule of Fight Club is you
do not talk about Fight Club.The second rule of Fight Club is
you do not talk about FightClub. The third rule of Fight
Club is if someone else stop,goes limp, or taps out, the

(23:57):
fight is over.
4th rule, only 2 guys to afight. 5th rule, one fight at a
time, fellas. 6th rule, noshirts, no shoes. 7th rule,
fights will go on as long asthey have to. The 8th and final
rule, if this is your firstnight at fight club, you have to

(24:19):
fight.
So we're gonna make rules 9, 10,and 11 together.

Slava (24:24):
Jess, what's your fight club rule?

Jess (24:27):
Well, it was gonna be don't mess up my face.

Slava (24:29):
But Tyler stole it.

Jess (24:30):
It wouldn't make any sense. Don't mess up my hair. I
don't know. I'm not a fighter.That's part of the why I could
never really be in fight club.

Jonathan (24:39):
And, Slava, did you say you wanted us to make real
ones or obnoxious ones?

Slava (24:43):
Oh, mine's kind of silly, but you can do anything you
want.

Jonathan (24:46):
Okay, Slava. Go first then.

Slava (24:49):
So all fight club meetings must end with a group
hug to ensure no hard feelings.

Jess (24:55):
Oh, I love that.

Slava (24:57):
Wow. They're gonna hug it out.

Jonathan (24:58):
Wow. That's obnoxious, actually.

Slava (25:01):
Yeah. A group hug too.

Jonathan (25:02):
Once a year, fight clubs need to have a Super Bowl
event where it's a knife fightbetween the 2 guys.

Jess (25:10):
Oh. To the death? Well Did someone tap out for that?

Jonathan (25:14):
Yeah. If if their arm goes limp

Jess (25:17):
Yeah.

Jonathan (25:18):
Or another body part.

Jess (25:19):
If they lose blood? Yeah. I don't know.

Jonathan (25:22):
Tough to have a group hug after that, though. Hey. Can
you not get your blood on me atthe moment? Be great. Thanks.

Jess (25:28):
Oh, okay. I won. They have to recite poetry before. Like,
make it really meaningful.

Slava (25:34):
Yeah.

Jess (25:35):
Something like, they they think of they think about why
they fight. Like, that, thatpoem you read at the wedding,
Slava.

Slava (25:42):
Oh, if

Jess (25:43):
by Kipling? Is it Kipling? Kipling. Yeah. Oh, that would
that's really epic.

Slava (25:47):
Yeah. It's a very stoic poem.

Jonathan (25:49):
Oh, my gosh. Well, don't worry, Jess. According to
these rules, you can'tparticipate in Fight Club. Only
2 guys to avoid.

Jess (25:57):
That's fine because, like, that's not how I deal with my
anger. I cry when I'm angry.

Slava (26:02):
Yeah. And all poems must rhyme and have meter, or there's
no fight.

Jonathan (26:07):
Woah. Woah. Woah. Woah.

Slava (26:08):
Woah. What about Robert Frost? We're making up absurd
rules, aren't we?

Jonathan (26:12):
Okay. Fine. Yeah. Yeah. Sure.
Okay. You know, it's fine. Hedoes have poems

Jess (26:17):
that rhyme, though, Robert Frost.

Jonathan (26:19):
I'm not familiar with any of them, but I believe you.
I've read, you know, some of hispopular stuff.

Jess (26:24):
But isn't he the one who wrote the whose Woods are these
I think I know? I can recite thewhole thing. I just don't know
if he wrote it.

Jonathan (26:30):
Do it. Recite the whole thing.

Jess (26:32):
Whose woods are these? I think I know his house is in the
village, though. He will not seeme stopping here to watch his
woods fill up with snow. My mylittle horse I don't wanna do
the whole thing. I I might getthem mixed up, but I think I
can.
It's stopping in the woods on asnowy evening. Is that him? Hold
on. Shoot. I wrote he justGoogled Robert.

Jonathan (26:50):
His name was Robert Paulson. Yeah. I don't know that
one.

Jess (26:54):
It is Robert Frost. These woods are lovely, dark, and
deep, but I've got promises tokeep, a miles to go before I
sleep, and miles to go before Isleep. You haven't heard that?
It's been quoted in a Tarantinomovie, Death Proof.

Jonathan (27:04):
I didn't see Death Proof.

Jess (27:05):
Yeah. It was okay.

Slava (27:06):
So It was okay. Robert Frost is okay,

Jonathan (27:09):
but no

Jess (27:09):
EE Cummings. Okay. Yeah.

Slava (27:11):
Although I

Jonathan (27:11):
like E Cummings. Yeah.

Slava (27:12):
I actually love EE.

Jess (27:13):
Not a a lot of people wouldn't, like, won't Whitman
wouldn't qualify. A lot ofpeople wouldn't qualify for your
role.

Jonathan (27:20):
That's the point I was trying to make. Semi modern.
Yeah. Shel Silverstein wouldapply Yeah. With some of his
work.

Jess (27:26):
That would that'd be meaningful, though.

Slava (27:28):
Yeah. No Instagram poetry.

Jess (27:30):
Oh, yeah. No Oh my gosh.

Jonathan (27:31):
What was that person that you showed us

Jess (27:33):
Rupi Kaur. Megan Fox is a poet too. A better one better
one than Rupi Kaur.

Jonathan (27:39):
When did you know what? I actually don't care.

Jess (27:42):
Yeah. She she says a lot of bad stuff about men,
apparently.

Jonathan (27:46):
They all do. Yeah. I they they all do, which honestly
kinda leads into the next pieceI wanted to hear from you, Jess.
You have a bit of a rant forbooks for women versus books for
men, And I wanna hear all aboutit.

Jess (28:03):
I did not say this when I was ranting because I I saw the
little note you have. And I andI heard him talk about it. I've
heard Chuck p say, there'splenty of books for women. And
I'm like, no. There's books forwomen, but they suck.
And he said the Joy Luck Club. Ididn't read these books. I don't
I don't think I did. And thesisterhood of the traveling

(28:24):
pants. And I started saying howand you guys haven't seen the
stupid movie.

Jonathan (28:28):
No. No. I think I saw the movie.

Jess (28:30):
Okay. There's these pants, and it fits all of them. They're
in a thrift store or something.They all I've never had a group
of 5 I don't have 5 friends.Never had a group of 5.
Not 5 female friends. Wewouldn't all get along. Five
women who, like, they're alldifferent sizes, and they're not
the same size. Like, clearlylooking at it. And then they all

(28:51):
decide, well, this pair of pantsfits me.
And then they all try them on,and it magically fits them all
perfectly. And they don't stopand question that. They have,
like, an adventure in thesepants that they, like, trade.

Jonathan (29:03):
There's a party in their pants and everyone's
invited?

Jess (29:06):
Like, I don't think a lot of women relate to that book. I
don't. But my point was there'snot like there's really great
books for women written about,like, themes like this, like,
you know, feeling lost anddisillusioned. And there's a lot
of books for women for surebecause I I said maybe it's
because women are bigger kindabigger consumers, and maybe

(29:29):
that's why there's more booksmarketed towards women. But
they're shitty books that aremass produced, and they're about
dumb things that they thinkwe're all gonna like.
But I'm not saying that men Istill think it is important for
men to have books about, youknow, problems they have, which
I don't fully understand becauseI'm not a man, about, like,
masculinity and, like, you know,stuff that's in Fight Club.

(29:51):
Like, I think Fight Club is agood book for men.

Jonathan (29:53):
Assuming they don't wanna become terrorists?

Jess (29:55):
Yes. I I just don't think there's a female equivalent that
appeals to a lot of women.

Jonathan (30:01):
For specifically and if I heard you correctly, I just
wanna make sure I understood it.So there's not a lot of books
for women that address truefemininity and the frustrations
of femininity, I guess, would bethe equivalent. Is that fair or
slow?

Jess (30:18):
Or if there's one, it's haven't been done well, and I
don't know of it. Because when Ithink of this book, I think of
it as a dark book. I feel likethere's not a book about life in
that way for women. Because Isaid, like, earlier that I kinda
relate to Marla being, like, adeath obsessed person.

Jonathan (30:31):
Uh-huh.

Jess (30:32):
So in in a way that that's maybe why this book appealed so
much to me when I first read itor anytime I've read it. But,
like, as a younger person, itwas the first time I saw, like,
a more up female character.Although, like, now we have a
lot more books with upprotagonists in general.

Jonathan (30:49):
Yeah. So you're looking for a book, and I don't
disagree with you. I haven't Ihaven't heard of anything.

Jess (30:55):
I think there is one, but it's now, and it was semi
recently. My Year of Rest andRelaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh,
I believe is how you pronounceher name. And it's about a woman
who's trying to sleep for ayear. It's kinda the opposite of
Fight Club. She just tries tosleep for a year.
She starts to do weird things inher sleep too, but, like, it can
be explained by all themedication she takes. To to be

(31:16):
reborn, like, hers is not kindato destroy herself. Kind of this
actually shit. Kind of thisidea. Never mind.

Jonathan (31:24):
Interesting.

Slava (31:25):
So there's one book in the past couple years.

Jonathan (31:27):
Yeah.

Slava (31:27):
So your point still stands.

Jonathan (31:28):
I don't think yeah. I was gonna say, I think your
point still stands. Thefrustrations of femininity,
right, like, and societalpressures because Fight Club is
about masculinity and societalpressures and the frustrations
they're in. So it sounds likethat book and and, to your
point, I haven't heard of one,because I think it would take
off. I think the only femalebooks that have taken off in the

(31:50):
last decade, maybe 15 years,that I can think of was Fifty
Shades of Grey.
Oh,

Jess (31:57):
I didn't read it, but I didn't see the movie either
because it's not really up myalley.

Jonathan (32:01):
But, like, what other big female books took off
outside of, like, romance books?

Jess (32:05):
I was gonna say that vampire one that I read all of
them in one day. Twilight?

Jonathan (32:09):
You read all of Twilight in a day?

Jess (32:11):
I hate them, but I couldn't stop reading them.

Jonathan (32:14):
Read the trilogy in a day?

Jess (32:16):
I thought there were 4.

Jonathan (32:17):
Is there 4?

Jess (32:18):
No. That's only 3 you're they're right. They made into 4
movies. So my roommate, I readfaster than her, and I was like,
you need to stop reading so Ican read that stupid book. Yes.
I read them all. I was, like,2020 years old.

Jonathan (32:30):
You hate read okay. That's a story for a different
time.

Jess (32:34):
I didn't hate I didn't hate the first movie, so that's,
I think, why I read the books.

Jonathan (32:39):
Wait. Wait. Wait. It there's 5 books.

Jess (32:42):
Did I read them all? I read all the books in one day. I
thought I feel like there's 4.I've No. No.
The 5th one, I feel like shewrote another one later.
Stephenie Meyer.

Jonathan (32:51):
Yeah. Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn,
and Midnight Sun.

Jess (32:57):
I've never even heard of Midnight Sun.

Jonathan (32:59):
It's probably new ish.

Jess (33:00):
Are you sure that's not like a prequel?

Slava (33:02):
The burning question for me and the audience, team Edward
or team Jacob, Jess?

Jess (33:06):
Who the Jacob's some weird wolf guy. He just doesn't wear a
shirt. I didn't like him. Like,the brooding guy.

Slava (33:12):
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I'm a fan of vampires, although I
haven't read or watched thesemovies.

Jess (33:17):
Yeah. I I don't like their vampire lore. I don't like the
vampires who can go out insunlight. That's stupid.

Jonathan (33:23):
Defeats a little bit of the purpose.

Jess (33:25):
Yeah. It does.

Slava (33:26):
My favorite vampire book is Interview with a Vampire and
the Vampire Lestat. In my head,some somehow I made him make
them into one book because Iread them one after the other by
Anne Rice.

Jess (33:38):
I have not read the the book you gave me yet. Yeah.

Slava (33:40):
You should

Jonathan (33:40):
read interview

Jess (33:41):
with a vampire. I didn't read that.

Jonathan (33:42):
Whatever you're the Vampire, we should put on the
list.

Slava (33:44):
That's the one. Should. It's a great, great story. Anne
Rice is amazing. I mean, I'veread only 2 of her books, and it
was I think what I started myAudible subscription with is The
Tipping Point, the old TippingPoint by Maxwell Gladwell, Anne
Rice, Interview the Vampire,Anne Rice, The Vampire Lestat,

(34:05):
and then The Exorcist.

Jonathan (34:07):
What do you mean the old Tipping Point?

Slava (34:09):
There's a new tipping point. He's coming up with a
tipping point too.

Jess (34:12):
Is this I thought his name was Malcolm.

Slava (34:14):
Yeah. Malcolm Gladwell. Malcolm Gladwell. Yep.

Jess (34:16):
I didn't read it. I read a book by him, but I can't
remember what it was.

Slava (34:19):
Dave and Goliath?

Jonathan (34:19):
David and Goliath. What the dog saw.

Jess (34:22):
Talking to Strangers?

Slava (34:23):
Oh, yeah. Is that it? Yeah.

Jonathan (34:24):
Yeah. Dog and Strangers. Yep. He has a lot of
books. He has a lot of books.
But let's bring it back to yourcomplaint about there's no fight
club for women. So let's this isour next side quest. What would
be in a fight club style bookfor women? Jess, you gotta lead
this one because, Slava is not awoman.

Jess (34:40):
I think you would have to bring up feminism

Jonathan (34:44):
Yep.

Jess (34:44):
But kind of how that's kind of made women go against
their natural

Jonathan (34:49):
Mhmm.

Jess (34:50):
I'm a say urges. Instincts, maybe.

Jonathan (34:52):
Instincts. Yeah. That's a good word.

Jess (34:54):
Because we if anything, we act tougher than maybe we want
to.

Jonathan (34:57):
So I think that this is actually a really interesting
question is okay. So the bookwould address feminism as an
ideology. What other ideologiesthat women are presented with in
today's society would itaddress?

Jess (35:09):
Well, it would all it would be the same similar to
Fight Club, the consumerismthing. Yeah. Sometimes I wonder
and not that I'm not I don'tfall prey to this often. I just,
you know, don't have as muchmoney maybe, so I don't buy
everything that's fuckingtrendy.

Jonathan (35:24):
Same.

Jess (35:25):
But I see, like, my roommate has 5 cups that don't
fit fit into our, cabinets.

Jonathan (35:33):
She has

Jess (35:33):
some Are they the Stanley

Jonathan (35:34):
Cups? Yeah.

Jess (35:34):
Because she has, like, every version of the cup that's
been popular. So she has thecups that were popular before
the Stanley Cups. Whatever thoseare, like the YETI I feel like
there's been a bunch of womenhave been obsessed with these
stupid cups. I don't like thesecups. I just use a cup just any
cup.

Jonathan (35:51):
Yeah. Does it hold like a can you drink out of it?
Yeah.

Slava (35:54):
Well, here's evidence that backs up Jess' claims that
women's books are marketed enmasse and they're shit. I asked
Chad GPT, what would a woman'sfight club look like? Here's
what it says. It's blank. It'sblank.
Now hold on. Oh, here it is.Instead of bare knuckle bras,

(36:14):
incorporate unconventional toolslike pillow fights. What the
hell?

Jess (36:20):
No shirts still. No shirts still.

Slava (36:22):
Me it gave me it gave me 3 rules. Three rules. Rule
number 1, you can talk aboutFight Club, but only in a group
chat. Rule number 2, all fightsmust end with compliments. And
rule number 3, if you lose, youbuy the snacks.

Jess (36:40):
Backhanded compliments. This Maybe like, you fought
really well for someone likeyou.

Slava (36:44):
Yeah. And there'll be community building aspects of
this fight club. After thefights, women share their
experiences, vent frustrations,and bond over mutual challenges.

Jonathan (36:56):
Okay. Back to Jess's brainstorm on what this book
would actually entail.

Jess (37:01):
That was funny, though. I feel like in fight club, men
have been neutered so much.They're acting like women.
Because, you know, kind of thatidentity through the shit you
buy.

Slava (37:12):
Yeah.

Jess (37:12):
Because I feel like that's a bigger problem now than when
fight club was written foreverybody.

Jonathan (37:16):
Agreed.

Jess (37:17):
Because now we have trendy like, I don't have so social
media, but on not TikTok. Idon't have TikTok. On Amazon, I
see all the trending TikTokshit. Oh. You know?
Interesting. I buy stuff becauseit's trending. I can't we can't
escape it. And in this it'sbeing sold, like, this idea
like, how he's sold a certainkind of lifestyle. Like, you

(37:40):
could become a person, a certainkind of person if you buy this
dumb cup.
Apparently, that cup is gonnasave you.

Jonathan (37:48):
Hope your roommate doesn't listen to this show.

Jess (37:50):
I she hates me, and I hate her, so I don't care. Let her
listen.

Slava (37:54):
But I've noticed this even back then because I was
1920 when this movie came out,and I watched the movie first. I
noticed this issue in my earlytwenties where my friends or
fellow male compatriots,wherever I may find them at
work, at school, and college,they would express their
identity through what I calledback then groupthink. So I am a

(38:21):
dirtball, as we called them, orI am a punk, or I am a grease
head, and I buy shit that'strending, quote, unquote, in the
sense that it did back in thenineties, early 2000. I buy this
stuff. I wear this stuff.
I have key chains or walletchains or anything that was

(38:41):
around back then, and this ispart of my identity. Like, the
clicks that I was part of, theyall function this way, and I
always felt a bit of anoutsider, although I was kinda
part of 3 different clicks, andthey were all very different.
And I was welcomed by all ofthem, which was fun and great
for me, but I've always foundthem to do the same thing only

(39:05):
within the constraints,technological and otherwise,
within the constraints of the 19nineties and early aughts. I
think humans just do that allthe time. I have a buddy who I
love dearly, but he has aparticular kind of identity and
a particular type of friendcircle, which I am the odd man

(39:27):
out, and that's his whole world.
He buys stuff and consumescontent and movies and books and
social media all within thisthing that moves

Jess (39:38):
What is the thing? Or you don't wanna tell

Slava (39:40):
us I don't wanna tell you.

Jess (39:41):
He listen?

Slava (39:41):
Yes.

Jess (39:42):
He's gonna know it's him because he knows he does it.

Slava (39:45):
Well, they all do.

Jess (39:46):
Maybe maybe he will. Do a little.

Jonathan (39:48):
Maybe he doesn't know.

Slava (39:48):
Yeah. And I'm not even, like, judging him for it. It's
just the natural response tothings, for lack of a better
terms. Just a natural humanresponse because I do it in some
way too. I have a particularstyle.
I have particular books that Ilike. I have particular movies
that I watch, and I'm more nowinto documentaries, so I consume
a crap ton of documentaries anda crap ton of podcasts on true

(40:12):
crime and paranormal activity.So that's kinda me, and
everybody does it. The obnoxiouspart of it is when you take any
of those things in isolation andmake it your personality.

Jess (40:23):
Yeah.

Slava (40:23):
And it's just well, that's stupid. And that's what I
think you're talking about thelast thing you mentioned where
these items, these trendingthings on TikTok or whatever
that are pushing Amazon salesfor whatever the hell product
popping up on your screen,that's the obnoxious part of it.
Just because I like collaredshirts and jeans, it's kind of

(40:44):
my go to everyday dress, that'snot necessarily, like, a
personality trait. That's justwhat I like.

Jonathan (40:51):
It's

Jess (40:51):
a pref yeah, preference.

Slava (40:53):
But if I thought that, hey, this is who I am and guys
who wear collared shirts aresomehow better or better dressed
or more cultured or whatever thehell or somehow it gave me some
sort of, sense of self worth,I'd

Jess (41:08):
be the best. It doesn't?

Slava (41:09):
It doesn't.

Jess (41:09):
That was your thing, I thought Yeah. At the restaurant.

Jonathan (41:12):
Slava likes to wear collared shorts.

Jess (41:14):
Yeah. Because I was like, who is that weirdo? Well, that's
because outfit.

Slava (41:18):
That's what the rules were. I don't know.

Jess (41:20):
I wasn't following rules.

Slava (41:21):
That was my rule. At the restaurant? Because I follow the
rules. Collared shirt, darkpants. That's all I wear when I
was a server with at Jess'srestaurant.

Jess (41:30):
Can't say the rest yeah. Jess's it is my restaurant.

Slava (41:32):
Restaurant. And everybody's

Jonathan (41:33):
like a liar. Wearing

Slava (41:34):
all that cheers.

Jess (41:35):
Yeah. Cheers.

Slava (41:36):
Yeah. Yeah. They're like, why are you wearing that? I'm
like, it's the rules. He's like,but, like, you spent money on
that.
I'm like, no. I did. I went toWalmart. I bought, like, a $3
shirt and, like, $10 pants. Ididn't You looked I didn't go go
to Nordstrom's rack or, youknow, Lord's Taylor and and got
buy, like, the most expensivesilk black shirt or something
like that.
But, anyway, I but I do prefer

Jonathan (41:56):
slave to consumerism over here. Well,

Slava (41:58):
yeah. You know me. But I do prefer collared shirts and
long sleeve shirts when I when Idress

Jess (42:04):
for whatever. Never seen your arms.

Slava (42:07):
Yeah. I like long sleeves. Even teens.

Jess (42:10):
Offensive tattoos?

Slava (42:11):
No. Oh. No.

Jonathan (42:12):
See? His time in the Russian mafia, he just gotta
cover it up.

Jess (42:15):
Yeah. All your kills.

Jonathan (42:19):
Oh, boy. Alright. So that's that's a rough breakdown
and another side quest ofwomen's version of Fight Club,
which, Jess, if you're a writer,maybe you should write it.

Jess (42:29):
I was thinking that.

Jonathan (42:30):
Honestly, I think it'd

Jess (42:30):
be as well. Be people would hate it while I was alive.
I've already planned it. Notwhat it's about. People would
women would hate it.
That's fine. That's greatadvice. In the future.

Jonathan (42:40):
That'll make you a lot of money.

Jess (42:41):
Yeah.

Jonathan (42:43):
That publicity like that.

Jess (42:44):
Yeah. Although, I'll get working.

Jonathan (42:47):
We'll read it. We'll review it. Yeah. And And then
we'll have you on.

Jess (42:51):
No. If anything, I'll be I'll be, like, it's awful.

Jonathan (42:53):
I feel like that's what most of us do.

Jess (42:54):
I'm not I'm not overly confident.

Jonathan (42:56):
So let's talk a little bit more about the characters
from the book. And it soundedlike earlier before we hit
record, you had some, additionalthoughts on Marla in the book
versus in the movie, which webriefly touched on. And then
Slava in the previous episode,we spoke about how Marla kinda
has a moral backbone, and ourmain character doesn't. So or

(43:16):
any other characters from thebook don't all go at once.

Jess (43:21):
Yeah. I feel like I've been talking a lot. So I was
waiting for Slava to go.

Jonathan (43:25):
Yes. Slava.

Jess (43:25):
I also don't I don't remember what we said before
versus on. That's another thing.Remember, I was talking a lot.

Slava (43:32):
Yeah. So to recap what Jonathan and I talked about,
Marla, unlike the narrator, doeshave, to quote Jonathan, a moral
backbone. But my point was morethan that. She has a growth arc.
So being one who was infatuatedwith death, when she encounters
death in a real sense with thepossible cancer, she

(43:54):
understands, oh, yeah.
This might not be the cooltrendy thing or whatever the
hell she was going through orher issues. She grows from that
and understands that death is areality where for the guys,
Tyler and the narrator andProject Mayhem, death is very
abstract. They're causing chaosand mayhem, and even though they

(44:18):
say death is the final releaseand death will set you free and
death is how you get internallife, Those are all great, I
guess, if you're trying to waxphilosophical in your own head
in the basement, but they're soabstract that they have no
meaning. Whereas Marla has areal encounter with death and
she grows from it, and thebackbone part of it is she does

(44:42):
push back against Tyler'styranny, if you will, terrorism,
and she gets pissed off that hermother's fat was being, like,
sent to her. So she does have aline in the sand where, yeah,
she'll say crazy stuff like Iwanna have your abortion, or she
will live with Tyler slash thenarrator in some rundown dinky

(45:02):
house, and she will act out inher own way, but there's a line
for her that she won't crosswhere for project mayhem, it
seems call.
We'll just do whatever we want.

Jess (45:13):
I agree, but I don't know if it's a disagreement. It's
more like I feel like part ofthe point of the book was that
in modern life, death is a veryan abstract thing.

Slava (45:22):
Yeah.

Jess (45:22):
So that's why she felt better once she went to the
support groups. She never feltso good in her life just like he
did because she was alreadyalways death obsessed in some
way, and now she has somethingto contrast her life with seeing
all those dying people. But Iguess that changed a little bit
once she had, like, the realbrush with death. Yeah. But I do
think that's a good point of thebook.

(45:43):
Kind of like a lot of this is toget rid of all the modern,
comfortable things we hadbecause we're not one living.
And I guess that holding thatthere was a huge deal with Tyler
getting them to accept deathbecause it almost doesn't seem
real. And because, like, wedon't the way we used to live,
there it was unavoidable. Deathwas, like, always in your face,

(46:04):
and now it's very sanitizedalmost.

Slava (46:07):
Yeah. The church I attend, as you walk up to the
sanctuary, you pass a graveyard,a 200 year old graveyard. This
church is a 180 years old, andthere's this sense of I don't
wanna say awe, but it's areminder of your finality.
Right? Like, there's a reminderof your mortality and as you go

(46:32):
into worship, so we have lostthat because modern comforts
have, you know, kindadesensitized us to death,
whereas before you might have 10kids and only 4 would live, or
you don't know if your husband'scoming back from war, or your
brother or your cousin or halfyour family.

(46:53):
You don't know when the nextraiding party's coming. You
don't know if you'll live outthe winter because it had a
crappy, you know, dry summer.And the realization not the
realization, but to you Thereality? Reality? Yes.
Reality of death, but

Jess (47:13):
I Reminder?

Slava (47:13):
Reminder reality. What's a different word for brushes
with death? You had a constantdaily brush with death. Yeah. So
all those words, as we havebecome more technologically
advanced, medically advanced,scientifically advanced, all the
stuff advanced, we have lessbrushes with death.

Jess (47:29):
And secular, I think, too. Because Yes. Because I feel like
Chuck p also discussed ininterviews, like, the the the
the loss of what is it called?The 3rd place. Your other place
could be church or, like, amen's group or something.
And then in modern times, youdon't have that. And I guess
church would church would keepyou kinda remembering your hey.
You're gonna die.

Jonathan (47:50):
Yeah. 3rd spaces, I think.

Jess (47:51):
3rd spaces. What did I call it?

Jonathan (47:53):
3rd place. Yeah. I'm I'm like places. Yeah. That's
that sounds familiar, and then Iwas thinking about it.
3rd places, spaces, whatever.

Jess (48:00):
Fight club would be their his commune the community he
need because he I mean, he'skinda isolated in his condo.

Slava (48:06):
Yeah.

Jess (48:06):
Oh, Marla. Marla as a character.

Jonathan (48:09):
One quick note for the audience, though, for if you're
not familiar with a what a thirdplace is. The 3rd place is a
social environment distinct fromyour 2 primary places, which
would be, like, home and work.3rd places would be your local
fight club in this instance oryour local gym or your local
coffee shop. Like, 3rd placesare diminishing. People used to

(48:29):
go to town squares.
Cheers. Another good example.Town squares where they would
share information or, like, thebazaar, the market when the, you
know, merchants would come totown would be a third place.
That was a very common thingthrough all of human history,
and because we're individual,because we're locked away, and
Fight Club touches on this, youknow, we don't have to leave our

(48:49):
first two places, home and work,and we don't very often.

Jess (48:53):
And some people don't leave for work anymore. Right?

Slava (48:56):
Yeah. Remote work. Remote church.

Jess (48:59):
Yeah. Oh, yeah. I watch some church. I don't go to
church. I watch it.

Jonathan (49:03):
For being as connected through the Internet as we are,
we're actually more isolatedthan we have we've ever been.

Jess (49:10):
Yeah.

Slava (49:10):
Yeah.

Jonathan (49:11):
For those of us in the West.

Jess (49:12):
I think that's why this book is still so popular. It's
because it becomes more and morerelatable or more or I feel like
we're That's not a good thing.Good way. Not at all. And I feel
like men feel even more neuteredas I said before.
I can't think of another word.Emasculated, neutered.

Jonathan (49:29):
Sterilized?

Jess (49:29):
Like I said, but the the female thing, obviously, men
have been and it's not, like, toanyone's advantage. It's not
like women really, benefit frommen being neutered.

Slava (49:39):
Right. There's a anime that popped into my brain.

Jonathan (49:42):
Death Note.

Slava (49:43):
No. Your conversations struck a memory, sparked a
memory. It's called perfectblue, and it really deals with,
you know, loneliness andisolation. And the, like, the
plot is this a pop singer givesup her career to become an
actress, but then slowly goesinsane after being stalked by an
obsessed fan. That's kinda likethe metaplot, but you get a real

(50:08):
insight into her head and howlonely she is because she gave
up one thing, and she went toanother thing career wise.
She excelled at it. She's verypopular, but none of that brings
true fulfillment. And as I'mtalking about this anime,
another one pops into my headthat I watched at the same time.
I forget what it's called, butit's about a girl who goes

(50:30):
online and just lives her lifeonline, a young girl who lives
all her life online, and slowly,like, the Internet in this
world, whatever the Internetlooked like in this world, takes
over her life completely. Butshe's isolated from Avery, from
her family, from her friends,and all her life, all her

(50:50):
experiences become on the net,and she becomes totally
separated from anything elsearound her.
So in the nineties, people werethinking about this, at least
Japanese were, these twowriters, and Chuck Palahniuk was
the only one thinking about it.Across the pond and across
another continent all the way inJapan, people were thinking

(51:12):
about the same thing. As thingsbecome more easy, as life
becomes more easier, astechnology advances, it really
doesn't bring us together. Yes.It's a smaller world,

Jonathan (51:24):
but we're still isolated. So how do we deal with
that? If we take what Fight Clubis trying to reel against and
this idea of isolation andfrustration with society, like,
how do we locally I don'tbelieve that big change happens
unless there's strong localmovements personally, like back
with Martin Luther King Junior,where it's like it was a local

(51:45):
movement, and he started somegroundswells in different local
spaces, and then it became anactual, like, national movement.
So for us, thinking about beingisolated, thinking that there's
no more third spaces that arearound or places, how do we,
yeah, how do we how do we dealwith that? How do we make sure
that we're fighting against therising tide, if we will, in

(52:09):
today's consumeristic societythat still desires tribalism and
will basically shut off ourbrains to become part of those
tribes.
Is that too heavy of a questionor too convoluted?

Jess (52:20):
No. I don't know if I could answer, like, a one
solution for, like, theconsumerism. Like, really think
about if you need something orif you were just momentarily
convinced you need something.But, like, the isolation aspect
is find a community group to bea part of. Where I work, I think
kinda count is one of thoseplaces because it has that kinda

(52:41):
community vibe, which is whysometimes I don't feel like I'm
going to work.
Because when I don't lookforward to work, I'm like, well,
you do you're kinda hanging outwith your friends too. For kids,
like, my daughter at her school,they banned cell phones to some
extent. She told me we're forcedto talk to each other now and
that she likes it.

Jonathan (52:58):
Man, the nineties were tough.

Jess (52:59):
They all will stare out their phones. Really? And, you
know, when they were allowed to.Yeah. Because they they really
just were allowed to have themout.
I didn't realize how much theywere allowed to have their
phones out. I I thought it was,like, in her in, like, a hoodie
pocket or something.

Jonathan (53:13):
Right. Yeah. I have hide it or something.

Jess (53:14):
Yeah. But that's just all they would do. Like, when there
was any free time in class, theywould all not talk to each other
and be on their phone mostly. Soone would be, like, for to help
children ban phones. Like,they're they have to turn them
in somehow in the beginning ofclass.
But I I remember some parentswere, like, against this idea.
And I get in a little bit, like,me as like, I need to be able to
reach her. I'm like, why? Myparents never my parents never

(53:36):
knew where I was.

Jonathan (53:38):
Right.

Jess (53:38):
Like, they didn't they didn't know if I was in school.
They didn't I check mydaughter's location every day.
Like, while she's in school, myis she still in school? Just
checking her location.

Slava (53:48):
So the anime I was talking about, it's Serial
Experiments Lane, and it followsa young girl named Lane Iwakura
who gets obsessed with being onWired, which is similar to the
Internet in that world. Andanyway, I needed to get that out
because my anal retentive brainwouldn't rest. I think what Jess

(54:10):
said is the only answer. It'sthat's it. You have to find your
3rd, 4th, or even maybe 5thplace, if I could add on to
that, community that'sintentional.
Right? And I know that's wordsbeing overused has become a
cliche, intentional, authentic,blah blah blah. People use it,

(54:34):
but in an abstract way. And thenthey sit around a table and all
check their Instagram feeds asthey're sitting in front of each
other. And I'm guilty of thattoo sometimes.
But intentional community, likeJonathan and I, this is like my
4th place. This project, thispodcast, I look forward to every
week. The reading, the research,the actual recording, hanging

(54:57):
out with guests, theconversations that spark from
that on and off air, that givesme a sense of community, a sense
of peace even. It gives me, youknow, I don't wanna say a sense
of identity, but it fills incertain gaps on my identity
because I get to do the stuffthat I love, which is research

(55:19):
and talking, getting into moreconversations that are not just,
well, how's the weather or whatdid you do this week and what
did you do last week, but actualreal conversation of about life
with somebody that I consider afriend, not just some rando on
the bus, which you can have agreat conversations with randos
anywhere, but here's a personthat's part of my life that I

(55:40):
come to every week, and we getto hang out. The same thing can
happen in other people's lives.
It doesn't have to be a podcast.It could be a D and D session.
It could be a book club. Itcould be a drinking club where
you go out and taste whiskeys orwhatever the hell it is. People
do need more spaces than justhome and work.

Jess (56:00):
In the in the Internet space. And Like, the Internet
space that people should stopthinking of as, like, a
community because onlinecommunities are not the same
thing as real life where youtalk to people and people are,
like, truthful to what do theysay? Echo chambers online is
like an echo just a bunch ofpeople are gonna either be
really mean to you or just agreewith you mindlessly.

Jonathan (56:18):
Both simultaneously.

Jess (56:20):
Yeah. Yep. Where in real life, I mean, you also get to
see someone's expression whenthey talk to you. And sometimes
when

Jonathan (56:26):
body language.

Jess (56:27):
They're lying, and they're like you can kinda tell they're
like, okay. That sounds so youknow?

Slava (56:32):
Because I've been part of some online communities because
as everybody knows, I'm aamateur chef, and I have an
Instagram account devoted to mychef, you know, experiments and
cooking escapades, if you will.And because of it, I've been
invited to groups where we shareeach other's recipes and we talk

(56:55):
and we try to bolster eachother's Instagram accounts by
voting and sharing and all thisstuff and talk to the guy
running the group, and you getto meet other chefs and home
cooks, and it's great. And thesethings usually last about a
week. And then, you know, youyou wait a while, then another
one pops up, and you kind offollow each other on Instagram,
share each other's recipesagain. So you're constantly

(57:18):
connected with these people, butthat's not the same as me going
to church and hanging out withthe friends I made there.
That's not the same as meproviding Jess over for a
Saturday night meal. It's notthe same as me and Jonathan
hanging out for this podcast.Yeah. I met these chefs, and,
yeah, I've got an Instagramfollowers, and, yeah, I've got
most more exposure, and, yeah, Ifound another recipe that I
like, and we talk in the groupchats, and everything's fun. But

(57:40):
that ends, and I move on.
That's no different than metalking to the guy who I sold my
remarkable to. So I bought aremarkable. I didn't use it for
anything that I wanted to use itbecause it wasn't serving my
needs, and I sold it.

Jonathan (57:53):
Mhmm.

Slava (57:53):
And I had a back and forth to the guy. I sold it on
eBay, and he was a pleasantfellow. But after the that was
over, transaction concluded, I'mnever gonna talk to that guy
again. Same with 99% of thesechefs that I met online. They're
not real, quote, unquote.

Jonathan (58:09):
Well, I think that a lot of us could pull up
something that's a a similarexample where there's a lack of
feeling connected when you'renot in a physical space with a
person, which I think could leadto a premise that there is
something that cannot bereplicated through the Internet
that is given to us that wereceive as human beings when we

(58:34):
are in the same physical spacetogether. Like, there's some
sort of symbiotic or or human,you know, bio biological
transference or spiritualtransference, or maybe it's a
mixture. It's a cocktail of boththat happens when you're
physically with people that youenjoy. And I think that that
kinda gets into the the thirdspace where it's, like, when you

(58:55):
have a a space to go to andthere's people and you get to
relax and be yourself andauthentic like Salve is talking
about, it's different. And itand it feeds something in our
souls and our and ourpersonhoods.

Jess (59:08):
Agreed.

Slava (59:09):
Yeah. For sure.

Jess (59:10):
I also feel like you're you're you are your full self in
person. Even if, like, I havesome social anxiety, so I'm act
awkward or I imagine that I amwhy I'm talking to someone and
then I'm like, stop thinkingabout yourself, then I hopefully
stop. But, like, you are moreyour full self. We're online.
You're kinda like, if you'rechatting with someone, you're
very you're presenting what youyou know what you're gonna say
because you get to read it outor whatever.

(59:32):
So Yeah. Fair. I feel like youdon't know if you like the
person in real life, the thereal talking like, I might hate
you, Jonathan. I don't know. Youhaven't been in the same room
before.

Jonathan (59:42):
That's true.

Jess (59:42):
I feel like because I see seen you enough. I I don't hate
you for now.

Jonathan (59:46):
I've got a growing list of people who hate me, and
you can join that list if you

Jess (59:50):
want to. I'm on the may or may not. I have the mutual
person. But, like, you like, howyou don't know every time I hear
someone's dating someone online,I'm like, you guys don't know
what you're really like though.Like, you've seen pictures, but,
like, you don't know if you hateeverything about that person
because there might be somethingby a lot not biologic or maybe
biologically, like, theirpheromones or something that you
don't know if you like or don'tlike.

Jonathan (01:00:09):
Or they're catfishing you.

Jess (01:00:11):
Or they're moving your well, I I meant, like but
assuming I'm

just I I know what you mean. They are.

Jess (01:00:15):
I know what you mean. Catfish. I I can't they're in
love. These people are in love.Like, how the are you in love?
You don't know what you guys arelike in real life.

Slava (01:00:22):
Even if you're awkward, you can be a lovable, awkward
person. Right? Your friends canlove you despite you being a
little bit off. You can be yourauthentic self, your genuine
self, and that might mean you'rea little awkward. That's okay.
Yeah. I talk fast and I stutterbecause I forget that I should
slow down and talk slowly Yeah.Let my mouth catch up to my

(01:00:43):
brain and vice versa. And I ranta lot. That's just me.
I go on rants, and sometimespeople like Slava, okay. We get
it. Shut up. But that's just me,and I can be myself around
friends. And you can be yourawkward self.
You're not, but I'm just sayingfor the sake of this example

Jess (01:00:59):
But okay.

Slava (01:01:00):
You can be your awkward self with us, meaning my wife
and me, and I guarantee yourtrue friends really do like you
for who you are no matter whatyou think you come off as. And
you can't do that online becausethe mask that you built for
yourself online, the mask thatyou portray, the people will
never see your authentic self.If you were an asshole,

(01:01:22):
Jonathan, for example, or you

Okay. Let's see where this goes. I'll make it some
popcorn.

Slava (01:01:29):
Right. If you were an asshole and you never showed
your true self and you alwaysplayed a role that you thought
other people wanted to see, notin a way that, you know, you had
self image issues or self esteemissues where people would say to
shut up, Jauff, and just stopthat and be yourself. But if you
honestly, like a like apsychopath or a sociopath, put

(01:01:51):
on a mask that you thoughtnormal people would like, nobody
would hang out. You'd be like,that guy's weird. He always
pretends he's somebody else.
He always is putting on a farcewhen he's talking to us. You'd
slowly be excluded from anynormal interactions. Yeah. So
being in person also allows youto maybe butt heads with people

(01:02:14):
or be called out on some of yourBS, and that's that's a normal
part of life that should behappened to anybody, and you get
to participate in life, if youwill, instead of just, you know,
dead comments back and forth ina group chat. I think I think I
can end my my comment with that.

Jess (01:02:35):
It made sense.

I think it checks out.

Jess (01:02:37):
Part of it, to change something, you have to realize I
think some people like being,like, mindless consumers. Maybe
it's because life is sodepressing and buying stuff
makes them in the moment, theyget that dopamine rush.

100%. Or

Jess (01:02:51):
maybe it really because I don't know if people are really
convinced they're gonna changetheir life before they there was
a book I read, and the woman wasa shopaholic and she realized
that. And then she decided tobuy a bunch of books on shopping
addiction. Like, she went onlineand started buying those books.
I'm like, I feel like anytimeyou have a problem, some people,
they just wanna buy something. Ithink I realized how much stuff

(01:03:13):
I don't use in my room.
Because someone asked me what Iwanted for Christmas. They don't
get me anything. Like, I don'tneed anything else. I have so
much stuff I don't need rightnow. It's killing me.
And I I'm not an organizedperson, so I don't need any more
things in my room.

Same. People were asking me the same thing over
the holidays, and I was, like, Imean, anything that I want
that's small, I'll buy myself.

Slava (01:03:34):
You

know? But the things that I want are, like, you know,
100 of dollars, if not a grand,and you're, like, no one's gonna
buy that because none of us havethat much money Yeah. To go,
like, hey. I'd really love togive you whatever, and just be
like, yeah. Grand doesn't meanthat much to me.
Right? Or it's you mean enoughthat I'll spend a grand on you,
and everybody around me gets agrand level gift. And it's like,

(01:03:54):
well, I don't I do win thelottery, so not gonna happen.
Yeah. Right?
So I feel the same.

Slava (01:04:00):
Yeah. So as we land this plane, well, I wanna ask the
audience, what are their, quote,unquote, fight clubs? You know,
where you where do you guys findyour meaning, identity, or
connection? And if you findyourself isolated, my challenge
would be, because this hashelped me immensely, is reaching
out to somebody or finding acommunity, whatever that

(01:04:20):
community looks like, but it hasto be in real life. Maybe that
even means embracing a new wayof connecting with others that's
outside of TikTok and Instagramand chef group chats.

Yeah, chef.

Jess (01:04:34):
Shoot. Favorite quotes, though. Sorry.

Slava (01:04:36):
You're good.

Jess (01:04:37):
I wanna ask you guys your favorite quotes because, like,
this is a very quotable book.

It is a very quotable book.

Jess (01:04:43):
I know my favorite. It's not in the movie. The cancer I
have I I'm paraphrasing a littlebit. The cancer I I don't have
is everywhere now. That one

Oh, yeah.

Jess (01:04:53):
I love that one so much when I was, like, young.

Why was that one one that hit for you?

Jess (01:04:58):
I don't know. Oh, shit. I didn't think it through.

Fair enough.

Jess (01:05:01):
Shoot. Let me think that through. Oh, I don't know. I'm
so excited.

Well, the first time that I saw the movie and read
the book, one that stuck out tome is you're the same decaying
organic matter as everythingelse. We are the all singing,
all dancing crap of the world.And although it's nihilistic,
similar, I was younger at thetime, and I was like, yeah.
That's kinda how this all feelssometimes. And I think it's
partly due to our overexaggeration of stories, which

(01:05:29):
is not a bad thing.
It's meant to be entertaining,but I think of, like, a
Braveheart. It's, like, we canget the full Braveheart story in
2 hours and 7 minutes orwhatever it is. However, if we
lived it out, it wouldn't feellike 2 hours and 7 minutes. It
would be months or years. Thosemoments that we highlight in a
book or a story of thesespecific scenes, we put them in

(01:05:51):
highlight reels, and then as wewere growing up, we start
comparing, like, well, my lifeisn't like that movie that I
saw.
My life isn't like the NinjaTurtles or Power Rangers or
whatever favorite book we werereading at the time, Harry
Potter. So then my life isboring, and it's like, no. The
in betweens that the authorignores because no one cares if
John McClane takes a poop duringDie Hard because it's not

(01:06:15):
relevant to the story. Right?Like or him walking up the
flights of stair.
Like, no one cares, so we'regonna skip those parts.

Jess (01:06:23):
Yeah.

But we as the audience are like, we're comparing the
highlight reel with the mundane,and they're not an apples to
apples comparison.

Slava (01:06:30):
I have 2 that stand out to me as phenomenal quotes. One
is this is your life and it'sending one moment at a time.
Poof. I like that one a lotbecause it gives the reader a
challenge to live not just in amoment, but for a greater
purpose. And the second one isyou are not your job.

(01:06:54):
You are not how much money youhave in the bank. You are not
the car you drive. You are notthe contents of your wallet. You
are not your khakis. You are allsinging, all dancing crap of the
world.
And that goes back to thecomment I made about the clicks
that I was part of and that Isaw in the nineties and aughts
where people made the thingsthat they had and their own

(01:07:15):
communities, and although wejust challenged the audience to
join a community, that was thewhole of their identity to some
degree, good, bad, andindifferent. So that one those 2
for me particularly really standout that you're more than just
the stuff that you have. Right?The things you used to own now
own you. That's another quote.
It's more than the stuff youhave. It's more than your job,

(01:07:38):
and your life is ending a momentat a time. You have to realize,
speaking about death, Justin andI talked about death before we
came on podcast, you have toknow that you might die
tomorrow, and living a lifethat's purposeful is necessary
to live a fulfilled life. That'swhy Marla appeals to me so much
because she realizes that herobsession with death is trite

(01:08:00):
and abstract and cliche anddeath is a real real thing that
could happen to you tomorrow.

I thought your other quote was gonna be sticking
feathers up your butt does notmake you a chicken.

Slava (01:08:09):
Oh, I love that one too. And since I read that book again
for this podcast, I've beendoing variations of I am Tyler
Durden's x x x y, whatever thehell he says.

I am Jack smerking revenge.

Slava (01:08:21):
So I would say I am Tyler Durden's burned hand or some
crap like that when I burn myhand cooking the beer or tacos.

Mhmm.

Slava (01:08:29):
But that's just me being, you know, a silly, goofy,
dumbass. So just me being silly.

It's only after we've lost everything that we're free
to do anything.

Jess (01:08:38):
I agree.

Jess, what's your what's your go to quote?

Jess (01:08:41):
Oh, well, that well, the cancer one was it, and then your
guys' the ones you guys said.But I think I like the cancer
thing because it's not in thebook, And, also, it's so weird.
Like, he hides his foot in thesand when he's on the beach so
no one can see the birthmark.That made him dying. Like like,
he was like, I was dying intheir heads, and he didn't even
know what was going on.

Slava (01:08:59):
Yeah.

Jess (01:09:00):
I think I just like not because it's like a very apple
I've never felt that way that hefeels because I've never no
one's thought I had cancer thatI wasn't aware of. I just love
that little thing that theydidn't put in the movie. He he
hides his foot. He's a pictureof his foot. But then and I
think it goes missing when Tylergoes missing.
The picture of his birthmark, Ithink he had a Polaroid of it,
and, like, it's one of hispossessions. Like, he something

(01:09:20):
he cared about.

Slava (01:09:22):
Yeah. Well, one final one, and then we can end this,
that I like because it's so,appeals to my Russian soul, I
guess, you could put it thatway. Today is the sort of day
where the sun only comes up tohumiliate you.

Jess (01:09:36):
Oh, that is awesome. That's I feel that's the best
quote, and I didn't even knowit.

Slava (01:09:41):
Beautiful. Well, Jess, thank you. A heaps of thanks for
joining us for this episode.

It was

Jess (01:09:48):
a lot more fun than I thought it was gonna be. I was I
was really worried.

Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait.

Slava (01:09:51):
You say that all the time. Each time you come on, you

Jess (01:09:54):
say that. Worried, and I'm like, I'll never do this again.

You always have a lot to share and bring a very fresh
perspective to the boys' club,so we we appreciate it. We do
it.

Jess (01:10:04):
Oh, yeah. Thank you for having me on the because because
it's kind of a man man's book.I'm glad I was here to But
listen. Take something.

Slava (01:10:09):
Listen. I've said this before to you privately, to
Jonathan privately on thispodcast publicly. 20% of our
audience and it jumps between,like, 18 and 22, so

in the middle. Yeah.

Slava (01:10:22):
20% of our audience is women. So having a female voice
on it is fantastic. I'm I'm gladthe women just listen to us
rant. That's great that we canappeal to to a wider audience,
but having a female voice isessential.

That they just come here for Jess episodes, which
I'm okay with.

Jess (01:10:39):
I doubt that. I'm not in enough episodes. They like you
guys just fine.

Alright. Well, before you guys vanish back to reality,
be sure to share this episodewith your book loving friends.
It keeps our quest alive andhelps other book adventurers
find their way here. See younext time on Sidequest.

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Fight Club Part 3 - Chuck Palahniuk

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Fight Club Part 3 - Chuck Palahniuk