Theme Song  0:05  
Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent / Trauma disguised as comedy / Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent / If you don’t have problems, then you’re likely repressing sh*t and you should find a therapist / (Who’s not me) 

Michele Baci  0:21  
Hi, this is Michele Baci. Welcome to another episode of Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent. I am your host, you can follow me on Twitter, at Michele with one L Baci B-A-C-I and also on Instagram at Michele with one L B-A-C-I comedy to keep up with all the random thoughts that are popping into my head and how I'm making a satire out of the life I'm leading. Just follow me on the gram, on Twitter. If you want to follow the podcast, we are at Therapy Roulette pod on Instagram and at Therapy Roulette on Twitter. All the links all the handles will be in the podcast description. So follow me now. Pause the podcast or follow me after you do your thing. I love followers. I love talking to people on the social medias, so don't be a stranger.

Well,

I had a birthday over the weekend I turned the big three zero. And it was kind of anti climactic. It didn't feel like a monumental birthday. It just felt like a birthday. And it was really fun. I had Joseph, my boyfriend he had his birthday the day before mine, I guess we are both Scorpios. And his birthday just happens to fall the day before my birthday. So we had a dual birthday weekend. We had like dinner with his family one night. And then we had a beach party the next night with like a close circle of our combined friends and family. That was really nice. I'm glad we had a little mini shindig because I have not left the apartment in a while or seen other people besides Joseph in a while. So it was nice to like expand our circle for a few hours. And we were outside and we served some food and really kept it like close knit and as COVID safe as possible. So it was it was nice to be outdoors for a little bit. We had a little bonfire on the Bolsa Chica State Beach, and roasted smores and chicken skewers. And Joseph put his culinary skills to work. So it was beautiful. Like we got there early, too early. I think we did not need to get there at 10am like we did. But Joseph wanted to make sure we got a fire pit. So we got there early to reserve one. And it just wasn't crowded. People were not showing up for the fire pit so we could have gotten there whenever. But I'm glad we got one. And we like took a nap on the beach. I got to read my book. I'm still reading Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino, which is so good if you haven't read it. I just love her like catty intellectual view on on the lifestyle or they're really more intellectual like the way she looks at different things that she's experienced in her life. And the way she describes them and whoever her research assistant or research team is I like how I like the research they're giving her giving her it's, I don't know, it's a fascinating book. It's something you don't come across the way she writes or the topics she writes about. If you haven't checked out trick mirror yet, do it. So we got to read a little bit on the beach, took a nap. And then our friends showed up later in the day, and we cooked dinner for them and had a bonfire. And it felt like pre pandemic times, seeing people eating food laughing talking without a mask on, you know, it felt weird because I haven't even like remembered to go out of the house like when I leave the house. Now I have to remind myself bring your mask, bring your mask, and I usually walk out of the house forget and then walk right back to get my mask because they don't leave that often, you know, only to run essential errands or maybe to go on a walk around the neighborhood. But I haven't even been doing that. So I've been like kind of glued to my apartment and it was nice to to get out of the apartment. But now that my birthday is over I I'm like back to feeling hopeless. A little hopeless, a little sad. There just feels like there's nothing to look forward to. You know, I mean, we have a new president coming in, but our current president is still nuts. The pandemic is spiraling. And we're reaching like heights of new peak cases so the world just doesn't feel stable or okay, so I don't feel stabler or okay. And then the holidays are coming up and All the news outlets are like you must quarantine for two weeks if you want to travel for the holidays. So I've been thinking, I'll try to do that, like I don't, I don't plan to go to New York to see my family for either holiday, Thanksgiving or Christmas. But I do want to go back when I can. So maybe I'll go like in between the two holidays and just, you know, make a trip out of that and be like, Oh, I'm here for my mom's birthday is in December, maybe I'll go for her birthday, or just a little before Christmas, not during an actual Christmas to avoid peak travel times. And I'll make sure I quarantine not seeing anyone for two weeks before I travel. And if Joseph comes, I'll request, he does the same. That's really the only way you can travel or visit your family, especially if you have like older or predisposed family members who might be more susceptible to COVID, you want to make sure you're following all the guidelines, guidelines to quarantine. And you know, you don't want to put anyone at risk because you want to eat a turkey. So take this seriously, guys. So I've been feeling down after the birthday celebration high wore off. And now I don't know, it's only Tuesday, I should really like be more optimistic about the rest of whatever's left of 2020. I guess. I think I need to reset my mindset, practice some gratitude, meditate, do all those things that help massage your brain into a better state, I hope you the listener, I hope you're doing better than I am. Or if you're doing the same, hey, we're gonna get through it together. If you're doing worse, I feel you I was there a minute ago. Or I can only imagine if it's actually like way worse, I can only imagine what you're going through. But what I remember and what I remind myself is that this current time period is so weird. And so out of the ordinary. Whenever you're super depressed or super anxious or feeling any kind of exaggerated emotion. It's totally valid because we are in a pandemic, and no one is providing leadership and every, you know, exaggerated response is natural. So I say, bring on the Phoebe Bridgers and the Bright Eyes mash up music and I will get through it and it'll be fine. So let's see, Do I have anything happier to say? I've been listening to a lot more podcasts, trying to catch up. I've been like way behind on my usual listening of podcasts. And I've been behind like being a fan of things just because I am working on Therapy Roulette. I've been doing that with all my free time and not watching TV, not reading, not doing the things I love. So I used to always be behind on pop culture. But now I'm like extra behind. So give me a break. I've been watching the show Ratched. on Netflix, Nurse Ratched. It's so good. It's so gory. And I love the way they set it up with the colors and the lighting is crazy. And the acting is awesome. If you like scary stuff. It's very Stephen King esque. But very creepy. So I've been watching that when I can as like an escape from the current horrors of 2020. It's it's a horror in a mental institution in New England, I think in the 50s question mark, some other time period. It's cool. Ratched is a cool show. Um, that's all I have to say. Other than I'm 30 now and it doesn't feel any different. So if you're worried about turning 30 or if you're worried about turning any age 40, 25 that was my last crisis 25, if you're worried about turning some age or hitting some benchmark, don't worry about it because it's all made up. None of it's real. It's society that plants these ideas in our brain. 

Michele Baci  
I would like to welcome to the podcast, my friend Gabe Mollica, who I know from high school, he is a stand up comic. He's a writer. He was in the Edinburg Fringe Festival and I would like to welcome Gabe Mollica.

Theme Song  
Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent / Trauma disguised as comedy / Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent / If you don’t have problems, then you’re likely repressing sh*t and you should find a therapist / (Who’s not me) 

Michele Baci
All right, we're here with Gabe Mollica. Gabe, how's it going? 

Gabe Mollica  
You know, Michele it's going as well as I guess it could go. We're just, you know,

Just discussing that there are challenges with any situation, but I'm home with my parents on Long Island from my former stand up comedy days in New York. So that's an adjustment because I don't know I'm 28 like there's some ways where you just like feel like you're 15 again, like it doesn't like I'm not using those, those bedsheets that boys have with like sports balls on them. But I feel every night I go to bed every night I go to bed and feels like there's a soccer ball and a hockey puck and like a football on my, on my sheets.

Just like

Michele Baci  
are you, are you in your like forever? childhood home? Did you grow up there? Yeah,

Gabe Mollica  
we've been here for my parents. 30 years. I'm 28 so it's like, yeah, this has been my bed since and like my room since I was like, 10

Michele Baci  
I know the feeling because you're I didn't even realize you live so close to my parents. So 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh yeah

Michele Baci  
Whenever I go home, I feel like I'm trapped in like some middle school, adolescent, you know, torture chamber where I can't get out of my own head.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I'm like, Oh, my God. You know, I'm a boy. So like, I'm wearing the same clothes basically, that I had in high school. Like the same underwear and super short, like, you know, because like, boys don't evolve. We just like taxes pay, I guess.

Michele Baci  
I would say you've evolved from when I first met you? I think we both have.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, yeah, yeah, definitely. Maybe not my style.

Michele Baci  
Style.

Gabe Mollica  
 Yeah, I've definitely evolved. I mean, I was like, I was like, a choir kid. Marching Band. So I've evolved in like, I guess my, a certain type of aesthetic maybe that like, but like, it's like, I took up golf this summer, because I've nothing else to do. And I like wear this like Polo shirt. And then like, I found an old picture of me and it's like my eighth grade. picture taking and I was like, yeah, I'm wearing the same shirt. Just like Oh,man

Michele Baci  
Is it just lying around your parents house, the same shirt?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it's like, it's like one of those like, really soft Polo t shirts that says Notre Dame on it. And it's just like, I like wearing the shirt to golf. And I've been wearing it since I was 13.

Michele Baci  
You have you like retracted to your high school self? Or is this maybe like who you were always meant to be? Just a garden city golfer?

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, well, it's public golf. I mind you, you know, fancy uh, uh Country Club Golf. Um isn't always always meant to be. I mean, part of me feels like I like could not be here. That allowed me to express myself, uh

Michele Baci  
 It's weird. To live, to live at your parents house for so long.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. I mean, like, and I have been gone like four years of college and then I was in Scotland for a year or started comedy. And then I came back here

Michele Baci  
I didn't know you were there for a whole year in Scotland?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I taught there. I had this like teaching fellowship.

Michele Baci  
Oh, cool. And then you did the Fringe Fest, right?

Gabe Mollica  
 Yeah. Yeah, I did that last summer. The Edinburgh Fringe Festival. So I like I brought a stand up show there. But I started comedy in Edinburgh. And so the reason I wanted to do the fringe was because it was five years to the, basically to the summer that I started comedy there. So it was like, oh, like, let's see how far I've come in five years, and it was sort of a triumphant return in some ways. 

Michele Baci  
Yeah. Let me just pause you for a second Gabe cause I want to make sure my audio things plugged in but it is I was freaking out. We're good. Yeah.

So you live there for a year teaching?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I had this like weird job where I just like filled in all the gaps at the school. So like, I was the varsity basketball coach, which was insane.

Michele Baci  
What?

Gabe Mollica  
 Yeah, like a, like high school theater kid, like, coach the basketball team, but like they were America so they're like, Oh, you must know, like LeBron James and Kobe.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, America is so small.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, exactly. Yeah. They just like let me do it.

Michele Baci  
That's awesome.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it was cool. It was cool. We, and when I went back this summer, some of the boys I coached um, we met up and play basketball and they came to my show. So that was pretty cool, too. And I

Michele Baci  
Were you uh, were you a good basketball coach?

Gabe Mollica  
I mean, I thought I was, maybe I wasn't, I don't know, it's definitely one of the things I enjoyed the most. While I was, so it was a really hard year for me. And this ties into therapy perfectly, was really hard for me because I started comedy over there, basically, because I was dating a girl who broke up with me and then like three weeks later started dating my best friend. And so

Michele Baci  
The worst.

Gabe Mollica  
 yeah, yeah, just like a classic Girls season five situation. And

Michele Baci  
We got to have the height of drama when you go abroad.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, it would have been it physically just like we starting adulthood. And I started comedy right after that. It's just like I needed something to do. I was just like, so sad all the time. And I

Michele Baci  
You don't want to be like alone with your thoughts for too long.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I mean, it's so funny to do be doing a podcast because that was the year that I just got so into, like the Pete Holmes podcast. And just like three hour episodes, I would just like, annihilate. And I remember I listened to one. I listened to one with a comic, I think it was Whitney Cummings. And like, I think Whitney Cummings is fine. I would not say she's like my favorite comic of all time. And like, the conversation ended after three hours with me just like walking around. And it ended and I remember being like, I do not want this to end. And I was like, I don't even like this. And I just like can't have it end.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, that's, that's something that happens to me like, regardless of my mood though with podcasts. I'm always like, I wasn't ready for this to just be over and like my friends are leaving because I you know, you're alone listening to a podcast usually. So

Gabe Mollica  
 yeah, it's very intimate. It's very, like

Michele Baci  
you feel like you're talking to these people.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah. I know, every time. Yeah, and you're, My like mirror neurons are firing every time I listen to a podcast were like, what would I be saying to Pete?  Or all those um, or all those different hosts that I feel like I mean, we all feel like we know in a certain certain point, because everybody who's doing comedy now basically, like, was radicalized by the comedy podcasts and the creative process, and then, and mics and all that stuff that like used to sort of be secret. Um

Michele Baci  
I remember when I first got into, like Mark Maron, I first saw him at a music festival. I saw him in like, 2011 or something. And then I saw him in Brooklyn, and no one else in my social circle knew who he was. I was like, No one knows who Mark Maron is? And like he is, you know, everyone knows him.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, he's so ubiquitous. Yeah, it's so funny. In when I was in college in around 2011 or 2012. My like, first, like real therapist, would tell me about listening to Maron.

Michele Baci  
It's very therapy minded his podcast, I try to mirror his intros where I'm like, here's a way too much about me. No one else is asking. And then like, you know, just so I can get it off my chest and it kinda, you know, it's a podcast thing to do.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, well, I used to, it's so funny you say that, I used to, like skip through the Maron intros, I'd be like, Alright, Mark, like, let's get to like, I don't know, Princess Diana, or whoever he's interviewing. And, and we, and I would like, like, not care about the intro. And then during the pandemic, even before like, his girlfriend passed away. I was like, I need to check up on Mark like, I need to know how

Michele Baci  
Yeah, oh my God.

Gabe Mollica  
 he was struggling. And then obviously, like Lynn passes away, and it's so sad. And now I'm like, I like I don't care who the guest is like, I won't even listen to the interview. I'm just like, how is Mark like, how is his eating ? like does he have that under control?

Michele Baci  
I go like back and forth especially that podcast. WTF has been around forever.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah.

Michele Baci  
I guess it's like it's probably a decade plus old by now but I used to go back and forth like I'm so sick of hearing Mark Maron talk. I don't know anything else about him. And then if you get you know, you take a break from the podcast or you maybe skip past the intro then you're like, I miss him. How is he? And you want to hear more? So if you don't, I guess you have to like moderate it. But some podcasts I think are the best with the intros and the lack with the guests. And then I guess it can depend based on the day, the episode

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah it's nice cause he like drops these gems in

Michele Baci  
Yeah.

Gabe Mollica  
In the intro. So I I was walking around New York probably like

Michele Baci  
I also love his like tales of sobriety where he's like, I'm eating too much Haagen dazs.

Yeah, yeah.

 Or I found I found this new topping for my ice cream like tell me more.

Gabe Mollica  
Well, I don't have a problem with drugs or alcohol and I don't do I don't do alcohol. I don't do either of them any like, at all. And but like I just love food a lot. And so like I relate to mark, but like not from the same place like he relates to food is like oh, this is like the last thing I'm allowed to do since I gave up smoking and heroin. And I'm just like, this is the only thing like I understand the struggle Mark like ice cream is really good.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. So you're Are you a sober person then?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, I haven't

Michele Baci  
Yeah?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I guess I had one or two drinks and last summer in Ireland and in Scotland just because I was there and it's like, oh have a Guinness, I guess.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. A vacation drink.

Gabe Mollica  
 But, yeah, yeah, we had like, I was staying with my friend in Ireland and we like, they own this like little lake in the middle of the country. And we like untangled this like boat that guts this like old ratty boat that got stuck and all this like, gross stuff. And we we did like an hour of labor. And it was messy and gross. And they were like, do you want a Guinness? I was like, absolutely, like, it was well deserved. But yeah, yeah, I'm sober person. It just like, wasn't doing anything for me. And I had like one ,the last summer I like drank drank was like 17, 2017. And I started dating a girl who drank a lot. And we were just like, both drink a lot. And like, halfway through, it was like a summer long relationship. I was just like, I don't like this at all. Like, I just like, Don't doing this. I like don't feel good after it. And since then, no drinking for me.

Michele Baci  
Were you dating the girl in New York at the time?

Gabe Mollica  
 Yeah, we met we were working at a summer camp Upstate. And she was, she's British. And so yeah, and so like, it was gonna end eventually, when she moved back wasn't like it, she moved to New Zealand. So she moved like as far away as a human can move. But like she liked to drink and like halfway through it. I was just like, I actually hate this. I actually never want to drink anymore. Because like,

Michele Baci  
So many, so many relationships are like, they continue because you just keep getting drunk. And in New York, that's such a big thing in the city, like people just drink all day every day. And I I think in Britain, also some cultures is just like part of it.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Oh, yeah. I mean, having lived in Scotland, and then done the fringe. I've noticed that like, I think fewer performers are like getting bombed every night. I tend I tend to think because I lived with

Michele Baci  
well, especially since what a month long festival?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, so over there. I mean, I had five roommates, who were all comics and at least three of us were sober? Um

Michele Baci  
You get more done.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, you definitely get more done. And like, I just like prefer food. Like I'd much rather spend $15 on on food than like two drinks or  whatever. Something 

Michele Baci  
Yeah, I hear you.

Gabe Mollica  
Just like doesn't do anything for me.

Michele Baci  
I drink rarely since living in LA and my boyfriend is sober. So I only drink like around friends. And then even last night my my friend was making cocktails and I had one and she's like, you want another? It's like, Oh, no, I've had one, I'm done. 

Gabe Mollica  
More than enough, yeah.

Michele Baci  
I yeah, such a lightweight in Los Angeles cause I don't know. It's not as big of a thing here. A lot of people don't drink.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. Is that I mean, I guess the driving. There's an element to that. And like, though, I guess when Uber first came out, you know, imagine everyone was drinking like crazy. Because like we can get home now. 

Michele Baci  
Yeah, I think, I think the young people on the wealthy people do but Ubers kind of expensive here. Like it's not. Everything's more spread out than  New York where you could get places for a $5 car ride. Here It's like they gouge you. 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh yeah,  I bet. Yeah.

That's really really insane. Yeah.

Michele Baci  
Stay off the Guinness, Gabe you're doing good.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I don't think Yeah, and like I have no compulsion to drink. Yeah,

Michele Baci  
what's your food of choice then?

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, man. Um, oh, I mean, I just just like in general like I make basically every day and like I take a lot of pride in it. And I'm doing this thing I'm just doing like very very low carb right now. And like after a couple days, I could just like feel a lot better so I'm trying to do things that make me feel better, um

Michele Baci  
That's awesome. So you're like noticing what put what you put into your body actually like affects how you feel, how you act every day?

Gabe Mollica  
I mean, as as much as I would be like yeah, I just eat Taco Bell every day cuz it's dope and like that's the other thing like after a show there's no better food on earth than the chicken quesadilla from Taco Bell, it's like very important to me to have like a post before show like eat whether I eat or not like like after a show I just like feel emotionally and like physically drained. And like I take great comfort ideally in a car somewhere. Ideally, in like my black Hyundai really makes really moves me 

Michele Baci  
Just alone in the car like 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, absolutely.

Michele Baci  
Shoveling down quesadillas

Gabe Mollica  
Podcast, music, quesadilla. Yeah, I love to eat in my car. Maybe, maybe I'm meant for,

Michele Baci  
Checking on Pete Holmes.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, check it on Pete see how Mark's doing. Yeah, maybe I'll fit in LA because I love to be alone in my car and I like to eat in my car alone.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. Come to LA, get your car. It's like a little bubble. You don't haveto leave that often. It's kind of nice.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. No, I mean, my worry would be like, the stuff I would like about it. I would like really, really like.

Michele Baci  
I know I get conflicted because now with the pandemic, I can't even come back to New York. You have to quarantine for two weeks if you go to New York right now. So I'm not coming anytime soon, and I just miss the people there mostly.

Gabe Mollica  
Mm hmm. 

Michele Baci  
Um, so I like LA, don't plan to leave long term but it would be nice to like, be on both coasts. Part of, part of the year.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah  Are you still working at? for CBS?

Michele Baci  
CBS No, I, I just got like a real job. So I haven't been at CBS for a minute. And then with the pandemic, I had, like, part time jobs. And now I'm in a real company with like, not an entertainment focus. So I'm trying something new while doing the podcast on the side.

Gabe Mollica  
Cool. Very cool. Yeah. I mean, like, a comic I like really love. He just like posted on Instagram, like, congrats on getting into grad school. And I'm like, wow, we really all have to take the world is changing. We have to change. There's no shame in that like, so. Like, I hear you. Good for you. Glad you're glad you're have a lot of projects. That's cool.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, who who got into grad school? You are just like a random person?

Gabe Mollica  
Just a random person. Yeah. 

Michele Baci  
Got it.

Gabe Mollica  
I was happy for him. But also like, Oh, he's so good at comedy man. Like, I hope he keeps doing stand up forever.

Michele Baci  
But comedy is such a like, it's an art you need to like live for, like, you need to have experience you need to go do stuff. So I can always like do comedy when I can. But if I'm not doing something, what am I gonna write jokes about?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Oh, you have to, I mean, that's an old. No, I'm just gonna reverting to my Pete Holmes holmesian theories, but you have to live a life worth commenting on. That's the thing. He always I always appreciated that. Because I always felt that I was taking like a little bit of a circuitous route, and everything I did, because I just like, you know, just trying to do the thing. That's the most meaningful that I could do. So like I worked, there was that summer camp that I worked at for, like six years, and like the kids, that the kids that go there have life threatening illnesses. So like, there's, there's, you know, quote, unquote, sick kids. And it was just like, the most meaningful thing I could think to do, and I loved it. And even when I started stand up, I'd be like, ooh, I should stay in the summer, and do stand up all summer. And then I'd be like, No, I have like a really cool opportunity. And like, I do not regret going to camp at all.

Yeah. That's awesome.

 And so I like some, yeah, so I was

Michele Baci  
Such an enriching, like, rewarding. You know, you know, you're doing good in the world, when you do something like that.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, yeah, it feels good to do good. And like, it's also just like, 60 really nice, cool counselors, and like kids who you know, and get to get to know over years and years and parents, and it's like, the most fun in the world. And so I always liked the idea of like, you have to live a life to like be any type of artists really. But the idea, it's like, oh, no, I should stay in New York and like, do 100 sets like you get so much better comedy in that year? Or in that

Michele Baci  
Did'nt you do 100, you did 100 sets in a year?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, that was the first thing. When I started comedy in New York after having done it in Scotland, and I got back into it. It was like the fall and fall of 16. So like, just as Trump was getting elected. And I was like, I'm gonna do 150 stand up, and I'm gonna do a blog about it. Because I just like needed some like accountability. And it was a good project. And I ended up doing it, doing 100 that year.

Michele Baci  
And I thought it was so cool just to follow on Instagram you know, see like what you're doing. Because every time I saw you post, I was like, I couldn't do that. I can't do 100 sets or commit. I can't commit to anything that huge. It seems so intimidating. So that was awesome you like went after it.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, thanks. yeah I just like needed, I needed to think like, think about as I was doing. So like, each set was 1%. So it's like, oh, this goes really poorly. Like, you know, it's not even all of the download. It's like so little of it. So I needed that as like an inspiration. And then like, I had done more and more sets every year until the pandemic had. So it was nice to have that like benchmark. Um, but

Michele Baci  
Let me ask you about your stand up career because we'll get into therapy eventually. But yeah, since we're on this subject, um, what made you want to do stand up?

Gabe Mollica  
Um, the first time I like, knew I wanted to do it was I was a senior in college, and I was visiting a girl I was dating in Boston. And my buddy Nick texted me, he's like, Hey, I just saw this thing on Netflix called. Mike Birbiglia is my girl, My boyfriend's, My girlfriend's boyfriend. And I think you would really love it. And so I watched it with this girl I was dating at the time. And I was just like, totally floored. I was like, that's the best thing I've ever seen. It's so funny because it was so the jokes are so good. I felt like really connected to his character. I mean, he's playing himself, but it's like, certainly a heightened version of himself. So I felt really connected to him. And I remember being like, like saying to the girl I was dating, I was like, wow, I want to do that. And she had like a very proportionate response, which is like, you are very impulsive. And at the time, I was like, I'm not impulsive. Like I like definitely resented it. And like, years later, I'm like, are you are 100% right, like, super impulsive, but also, like, you know, I was 20, 21 or 22

Michele Baci  
21, yeah.

Gabe Mollica  
 And

Michele Baci  
And at college. I mean, you're trying to figure out what you want to do.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was really, cause I was like a music major. And like, not a certified teacher to teach music so like, I didn't really know what I was gonna do. And

Michele Baci  
And you have an arts background. You were like the star of the school play

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah.

Michele Baci  
You have a theatrics background.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Yeah, lots of musicals and all that stuff. But I was doing that stuff in college too. But anyway, so I watched Birbiglia and it was, it was amazing. And on the bus ride back to school, I started writing down like, oh, what would my version of this show be? And just like for the first time of my life, like outlining a show, and like, I didn't have any material, like, I didn't know what it would be, or could be.

Michele Baci  
What's that Birbiglia special about? Cause I don't know if I know it from the title.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, it's so good. It's about, it's basically about falling in love with his wife.

Michele Baci  
Ok.

Gabe Mollica  
 And it goes, it's like a nonlinear narrative. So like, he keeps cutting back and forth between like, this car accident he has, and his childhood, like failed first kisses, and then meeting his wife and like, it's really, I think it's his best one by far.

Michele Baci  
He's such a good storyteller.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Oh, he's, he's incredible. And his politics have been disappointing me because he's, like, because he like, like, is one of those comics who just like, like, dunks on like Trump and Trump supporters, and I'm just like, we know that they're bad. Like, there's more to this than like, Trump is bad, like, believe in something like health care. And maybe I'm just like,

Michele Baci  
I saw one post he did that was appealing to like the people who don't vote or people who aren't interested in voting. I thought that was pretty good.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it's definitely good to get people to vote. My issue with that, as always, just it's about more than getting people to vote. Like Yeah, like, like, people vote like,

Michele Baci  
it's always hard because you want to start somewhere. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yes.

Michele Baci  
And then you want to just keep going. And there's so much to do. And we live in a terrible world. So it's hard to, it's hard to, like get any wins or any feeling like any feeling good in 2020 is hard to come by. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. And maybe I'm just disappointed like I just like, want him to be more ideological. Like, I want him to be like,

Michele Baci  
Because you want to be him.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, part of me wants to be him. But I'm like, like, I can I see that. Like, we need to be advocating for healthcare and like, or like, we can't just pretend that Joe Biden's amazing. Like this is so foolish, like you have to be understanding the criticisms of it. And so I'm just like, you're the best comedian I know how do you not see this? How do I get this more than you? So like, there's been other comics since like Ted alexandro and a couple others that I'm like, This guy has my politics, this guy's a leftist guys like wants to burn down the corporate establishment. So like, I'm more to those guys politically, but Birbiglia is still like, my favorite. I mean, that's special if you get a chance to watch it. It's so so good. 

Michele Baci  
I might've  like listened to it. I definitely haven't watched it though. I'll have look it up. 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, yeah. And when you watch it, there's like certain jokes that only land, not only land, but like work much better when you see him like running around the stage. Um, and, yeah.

Michele Baci  
It was actually the the comic I saw, either the day or like two days after Trump got elected. I had, I had tickets to like a union hall show, one of those like small Brooklyn clubs. And Jojo Firestone opened 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, no

Michele Baci  
I thought she was great. She made a lot of health care jokes, but the crowd hated her. They like did not let you in once. 

Gabe Mollica  
At union hall?

Michele Baci  
It was union hall or like a similar club. I think it was union hall. It was in that Park Slope neighborhood.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah.

Michele Baci  
And it was just a sad day you know, it was like fresh Trump presidency in our, in our future so. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah that was a mess. I wasn't really doing comedy.

Michele Baci  
And Mike Birbiglia did his whole like, sleepwalking set and people were like, okay, funny. Like the crowd was so dead.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, that was not a week for comedy. It was really not four year for comedy. Um,

Michele Baci  
I know what you mean. It's hard to um, idolize people and then like follow up kind of closely and be like, why aren't you believing in what I believe when you feel a little disconnected?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, cuz like, like so intimately connected to his comedy and like really did inspire like, like my life, you know, like I brought that show to Edinburgh, I wrote the show, basically about starting comedy in Scotland was what the show is about. Because I was like, Oh, my girlfriend's boyfriend is so good I want to try to do that. And so it's structured kind of similarly and like, took a long time to like, mold and figure out and it's still not done. I'd like to eventually, like, record it. But yeah, that's like that was like the first, like, big, big influence. So I started comedy sort of in an interesting way. And that like I was doing all these sets and like those hundred sets or whatever, but it was all with the, I knew that I wanted to do solo shows like Birbiglia talks about, like, I wanted to be a comedian and then like, I realized I was better at the storytelling stuff. So like, moved over that way. But I like swerved like five lanes. I was just like, I'm doing Mike's but I want to do this big thing.

Michele Baci  
He must have done the moss, haven't you?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I told, I've told stories of the moth before and then like the one I told him the fall of 16, even before that election, and then they like called me, like, or they sent me an email like three years later and we're like, we want to put this on the radio. And I was like, okay, so that was pretty cool.

Michele Baci  
What? That's so cool.

Gabe Mollica  
 Yeah. Cuz I love the moth.

Michele Baci  
Yeah.

Gabe Mollica  
 And it was cool. Because like, I didn't win that night. Like, I didn't go on to the next round or whatever. And I sort of forgot about it. And I had told like three or four stories and like the slams. And when they said that, we want to put your story on the radio, like, the last story in the world that I thought they were going to put up was the first one that I had done, because it's just like not as polished. I didn't think. And there's not as many jokes.

Michele Baci  
It's not your favorite. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah but then in retrospect I was like, maybe this is the best one.

Michele Baci  
Everything's subjective, you never know.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. You never know what like people connect to. But also there's like a moment that I get like really dark in that, in that episode, or like in that story. And I talk about like, I would I would not say I was suicidal, I think that's really dramatic, but I did like, not want like, I was like, I feel so sad. Like, I wish I were not alive. And I like said that in the story. And like I think the reason I said it, like I was talking about being in ninth grade. I think the reason I said it was because like I didn't know any better. I like didn't know that. Like you weren't supposed to like say that.

Michele Baci  
I mean, it's it's like quote unquote "triggering" to say that but then, I think it's

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah.

Michele Baci  
I think it's better to like talk about feelings like that to normalize them. I mean, I have like a suicide joke that almost never works. But I love telling you because I'm like this is I think this is a cool topic to like, bring to the stage and, you know, put a little bit of comedic light to it.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, for sure. For sure. I just had no jokes about it. I was like a very moment. And like, now if I were to approach that moment, I would, I would have a little bit more skill and tact with like bringing it up. So it's, it's it's a little funny to me that like the first time I like basically it ever said in front of a crowd and I ended up in front of like, I don't know, 100, hundreds of thousands of listeners.

Michele Baci  
The world. The nation.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. But it was cool. Like the teacher who I talked about in the story, like, reached out and like random people on the internet reached out. And it's a cool program I like, there's a lot of there's been a lot of moth stories that have really impacted me. And yeah, so it was cool. That was cool to be on there.

Michele Baci  
That's awesome. I like when things turned dark. I think that makes it you know, there's like a heavier weight to it and people listen more sometimes. So I try to do it whenever I can. I try to be dark.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, it's fun. It's fun. It's um, and there are ways to like. there are ways to do it, you know that um, that work better than others but like you also just have to try a million things and that's what that's what really fucking sucks about the about the pandemic cuz he just can't like fail publicly anymore. Like this the shame maybe have a shame kink. I just like miss the, like figuring out

Michele Baci  
like the bombing?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, even just like a joke bombing. Like, it's one of the questions we discussed of like, what we might you talk about? Yeah, was about. It made me think of. So I did a set in Brooklyn a couple weeks ago. And I was like, oh, what's the last set I did in March. And it was a really good show. I was on a Friday night at New York comedy club. And I was like, trying out a new joke. It was about therapy. And the joke was about how I had this therapist. I went to so I was really sad. And I was in ninth grade. And my parents took me to a therapist and the therapist thought I was there because I was emotionally disturbed by 9/11..which was not true.

Michele Baci  
I mean you were What? 10 years old during 9/11?

Gabe Mollica  
I was, I was 10 when 9/11 happened, and it was like four years later? And she thought like, I was emotionally disturbed by it and like I don't know why she thought that. And so like, I was working on a joke about it, and I had some time.

Michele Baci  
Maybe she was writing something like a dissertation.

Gabe Mollica  
I that would not surprised me at all, like thought I was like, and like, we didn't. I didn't know anybody personally, that died, It was just like a very bizarre thing that like after like four sessions, she was like, I think I know what's wrong with you. And she was just so wrong. And so like, I had all these tags about it, where I was just like, I know, I'm like, 14, but is there something you want to talk about? You know, is it 9/11? and then I had the tag about like, I was, I wasn't mad at her, even though she diagnosed me with 9/11.  And I was like, I was like, watching myself do these tags. And I'm like, Oh, yeah, I never got to like finish that idea. Like it just like, it was an idea I had and I wrote three tags for it. And I said, I did a really good show and it worked kind of okay, and it could work better the next time but like, there was no next time. And now it's, you know, November.

Michele Baci  
Were you watching, rewatching a tape?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, that one I taped because it was like, it was like a bigger weekend show.

Michele Baci  
Ok. And it was kind of like newer material you were working out?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah I did it. I usually I like newer material. I like to open with stuff I know. I like to open like being in the room, then I'll tell some jokes that I like know, or Okay, usually. And then like, I might stick in, like something new. And then like, like to finish the last like,

Michele Baci  
That's smart.

Gabe Mollica  
like six minutes with stuff. I was like, like, as the last tag that didn't really work. I was like, I was a little underbaked Let's do some of the stuff I hope gets on top. And then like I went to the material that I thought was better, a little bit more polish, but like, I missed that idea of like, like molding the clay like I can't even do that anymore. Like I can work on that like chunk of text, I guess about having a therapist who thinks everything is 9/11.

Michele Baci  
Yeah that is an interesting concept. You should get deeper with that.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah it definitely makes me laugh. Like I dont know if It's like a sketch. It's just like,

Michele Baci  
And going back to dark topics. 9/11 Oh, he's a crowd pleaser. Yeah.

People love remembering the tragedy. Before COVID we had 9/11.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, now we just have COVID. And like, it's just, it's such a more prolonged and like terrible sadness, because it's just like so many more people. I mean, they're both obviously terrible. It's sad, but like this one just like feels like it's never ending. 

Michele Baci  
No, I mean, this one has no end in sight, unless, you know, you know, maybe Biden will do something. He'll do something better for sure. But I don't know how quickly we're going to recover from it.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, that was. I couldn't agree more. And that was like my darkest moment on election night. Where I was just like, because it looked like Trump. Trump was gonna win after he won Florida and Ohio.

Michele Baci  
Last week.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, last week on like, Tuesday.  And it looked like Trump was gonna win. And we just like,

Michele Baci  
Tuesday,Tuesday sucked. It was so divided. It was so even.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it was so so and then, like, you know, Michigan and Wisconsin came through and it was like, maybe this will be good. But my darkest moment was, like, all like, he's not gonna fuckin if, if it's like, he's not gonna fix anything. Like, he's gonna keep doing it. And we're hitting record numbers of COVID. And like, he never talks about it. Like he basically wants to pretend it's not there.

Michele Baci  
He got the virus and he still doesn't think it's a big deal.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, it does not care. has no care in the world. And I was like, oh, we're never gonna get back to. I mean, like, not just like, not just standard Well, not like a psychopath, like I just need to do comedy. But like, we're not gonna get back to like stadiums and concerts and restaurants. And I was like, the, perhaps the best reason to vote for Biden is like, oh, maybe there's like a 10% chance like he does things like that or, like, help it 10% like, I'll take those odds. Like, yeah, give me some Biden maybe. Like maybe he'll be like some like

Michele Baci  
I'm like, I'm a super optimistic about Joe Biden in office. I think just like going from Trump to Biden, we're gonna have a huge improvement. It's just about getting Trump out of office. That's like the current predicament. Because he hasn't. It's a week after the election. He hasn't conceded yet. So we'll see how it gets dragged out.

Gabe Mollica  
He sees too much of a wuss I think like actually get dragged out. He's, he's a knight today.

Michele Baci  
Today, Listening to NPR. They're like, well, Trump, his whole brand is about winning. And we have to make sure he's not you know, a loser. We can't portray him as a loser. It's like why are we coddling the 70 year old man who's a psychopath?

Gabe Mollica  
Who coddles no one. Total thug, yeah, completely insane.

Michele Baci  
But at least, but Biden and Kamala have like revealed a covid plan. They, you know, they're talking to scientists. So if we have Dr. Dr. fauci on our side.It's got to be Better

Gabe Mollica  
You know, I really hope so. I really I really I hope you're right. I am so pessimistic about the Biden/Harris ticket but I

Michele Baci  
It will be better, it will.

Gabe Mollica  
 I am deferring to you for the sake of the podcast so I don't start screaming about I don't know. 

Michele Baci  
We don't have to get too deep into it.

Gabe Mollica  
But I am deferring to you, Michele I am rooting for you to be right, I want you to be so right, let me tell you I have to say that.

Michele Baci  
I have a good feeling that's all I have. 

Gabe Mollica  
Okay, okay will take a good feeling, I will take pandemic money that they're gonna they should be giving everyone

Michele Baci  
simulus check

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. Another round of stimulus I could love Yes, I'm really gonna be very right.

Michele Baci  
Have you watched any like recent Coronavirus comedy cuz I was just watching the new Chappelle SNL monologue. He did a lot of COVID jokes.

Gabe Mollica  
He did, it was I thought it was maybe I'm being a comedy snob, but I was like, Oh, this is the stuff he was working on at like the summer camp, like we're at the at the Chappelle summer camp or whatever. And, and then he was also like, throwing in, you know, like, like, he had one that like, didn't work. He had like a bomb line. He was like, Oh,

Michele Baci  
He got he got mad at some point. Yeah.

He was making fun of women. Oh, no one liked it.

Gabe Mollica  
Now I remember. Yeah, yeah.

Michele Baci  
That's gonna be hard no matter what. You're in New York, Chappelle. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah I love Chappelle I think he's a genius. And I also, I don't, I don't want to say I'm disappointed. But like, he set up that joke about like, thinking about his, I think great grandpa, who was enslaved, he like had this like, really beautiful setup. And like he we use like, his personal narrative, like the, like, the thing he did after George Floyd. was, was amazing..

Michele Baci  
You liked it?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I mean, like, Yeah, I just like him talking. Like, rather and I just thought

Michele Baci  
it was so I'm not. I'm not a huge Chappelle fan. Like, I don't know all of his stuff. But um, the George Floyd thing was so serious. I felt like I was being lectured. I was like, Yes, this is, you know, your moments to talk and speak to your crowd. But I didn't think I was really comedy.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah,I don't know what it was. I just like, know I would watch it. Like, I watched it at the moment and was like, Yeah, like, I want to hear because like, especially like Dave being black in America, and the way he's able to, like talk about that. I'm always just like, all ears about, I'm just like, Yeah, please like, like, watch this over me. His like, takes, like, less interested in. So like, he told that like, beautiful thing about his grandpa. And then like, the joke ended up being about like, how like, Netflix bought Chappelle show, and he didn't make any money off of it. Are we still talking about your Viacom contract from 2003? Like, is this really the moment? 

Michele Baci  
Yeah, I didn't like that. I was like, that's the end of it?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Yeah. And like, maybe I don't know, maybe I'm like, making the bar too high or whatever. Or like maybe it's the very nature of like, yeah, I'm gonna use this this like, new political moment to talk about like my Viacom contract, because like, they treated me terribly, and they compared himself to a slave. Um

Michele Baci  
I mean it's his artistic

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah like he's definitely allowed to I'm just like is this the moment we should be talking about your Viacom contract? Like maybe I'm wrong.

Michele Baci  
I didn't like it either. So I was like, Dave Chappelle Do you need money? Like, are you hurting from the lack of stimulus checks? I think you're doing ok.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it seemed like a little tone deaf, like a tiny bit because like he's so and like, he also mentioned in that same thing, like I flew in a private jet like that's all, But I also like

Michele Baci  
Maybe it just didn't, maybe it just didn't  work that that night recording.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, I don't I mean, he's also like winging it. Like I don't think he gets a time limit. Basically, I think like Lauren's like, talk, and I think the rest of the episode I my perception of it was like they were scrambling because they started late because the football game. And then like, they had a cut stuff. I imagine there was only one Weekend Update character. I was like, oh, they're definitely like, flying by the seat of their pants during all this. Because Chappelle doesn't have, there's no rules when he hosts basically I don't think

Michele Baci  
Yeah, he's too much of a veteran to be given a time limit. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, it's not like when they have like another host who's like never spoken before and like, I like to have a huge musical number where like the person just like stands there.

Michele Baci  
Especially when they have a comic on who's doing a stand up set as the monologue they really like give them more freedom.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. Like they give him Yeah, they gave him a lot of freedom don't even like I think he just like a little bit more of a free comic up there, like Mullaney like I'm sure he's a little bit more of the Seinfeld school where it's like every word  every pause Mullaneyknows what he's gonna do and Chappelle show.

Michele Baci  
Mullaney is always on SNL. It's like every few months he's hosting the show.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it's been four times already. 

Michele Baci  
It's crazy.

Gabe Mollica  
 and he like hasn't been famous that long. Like I you know, 

Michele Baci  
No.

Gabe Mollica  
I love comedy. So like I knew about those early speciasl even before the Netflix specials, like I was all over those.

Michele Baci  
He's like, super awkward in the beginning specials.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I love it. I love how like

Michele Baci  
I saw him live last year. He was pretty awkward. Like he didn't do well. 

Gabe Mollica  
Really?

Michele Baci  
Bur I think the crowd loves him so much, it doesn't matter.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. Where did you see him in LA?

Michele Baci  
I saw him at a San Francisco Comedy Festival, Cluster fest.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, yeah. I know people who were there.

Michele Baci  
He was headlining I think he did two shows in one night. And I caught him I think the Early Show and he was like sweating like in his little suit. And he was he seemed pretty nervous. But you see you're hitting all the jokes. People liked it. Yeah, it wasn't as it wasn't as good as his like latest special.

Gabe Mollica  
Okay. Okay. That's 

Michele Baci  
I saw like, I saw the human in him.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Oh, that's really satisfying too I, I I find when they're like working stuff out.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. I like seeing my favorite comics bomb or like not do that great, I'm like, oh, like, I know, you could do so good at this. And tonight, you're just not.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Oh, that's like, it's a real gift to see a comic you love not because you know, that they could turn it on. And like, go to stuff that they know works. But like, they're like, no, this is how I got good. By, like doing all this work. 

Michele Baci  
And theyre like I want to do this set tonight. This is my new special. You're not gonna just go give you like the Greatest Hits type of thing.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, there's something really satisfying about that. That I really love. Yeah, that's always a real gift.

Michele Baci  
How do you think, um, how do you think mental health relates to comedy? Do you see like, a lot of mentally unstable people in the comedy community? Or does it help you with your own mental health?

Gabe Mollica  
At its best, it definitely provides an outlet for me. But at its best, it definitely provides an outlet. At its worst, because like, the career path is so unsteady. I mean, I'm, I consider myself lucky.

Michele Baci  
Super unsteady.

Gabe Mollica  
 I consider myself lucky. Yeah, I consider myself lucky in that, like, I have a day job at the school where I work the writing center. And so like, I have a little bit of a better schedule. But for a lot of my friends who were comedians and who have mental illnesses, or like, struggle with therapists, like there's just a lot of free time, which can be hard. And it always feels like you could be working, right? Because like, every hour of the day is like I could be writing I could be doing this. So there's pressure in that way. And there's less viable careers in comedy right now. In some ways. For the folks who like aren't, you know, like making money doing it. It's not like you can do the tonight show once and like, be rich forever. And so

Michele Baci  
And entertainments just hurting right now.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, absolutely. So like, is there? Do I see connection? Like, absolutely. But I also think comedians might just be like, a little bit more willing to, like, discuss it. Or like, be upfront about it than like, general population, like, I don't know how much talk of like mental health issues there are at people who, like, sell insurance. I think maybe I'm wrong. But like, I just don't, I don't know. But I don't get the sense that like, when I like interned at a law firm, when I was like, a senior in high school, like, I don't get the sense that like, we were having the same conversations that I have with comics in a comedy club. Like after a mic before the 730 show, you know?

Michele Baci  
Right. Do you see, if you probably know a lot of comics, do you see them being as open on stage as they are? Like, after the mic or before the mic?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Um, that's a great question. I mean, I have some friends. I, if you're making me think of like, I've clean comic friends who have like, like, 

Michele Baci  
Oh you do?

Gabe Mollica  
a new Yeah, friends who were clean and like, who like were clean and then like, tall they want to talk about is porn. And then, like, we're

Michele Baci  
Are they only clean on stage?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, they were only clean on stage and off stage they're like.

Michele Baci  
Oh ok. That's so weird.

Gabe Mollica  
 Like saying so like, that sort of made me think of Yeah. Which I loved.

Michele Baci  
I feel like we don't have that in LA.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, interesting. Interesting.

Michele Baci  
I don't really come across clean comics. Or maybe I'm not in that scene. I'm not you know, I'm not on that level.

Gabe Mollica  
You gotta be big to work clean. I guess. This is I just off topic, but he made me think of La comics. Did you watch the Comedy Store thing? Because I have not watched it yet.

Michele Baci  
No. Is that um, a documentary? There's been so much coming1 out about the Comedy Store. I can't keep up.

Yeah, like an old comic who worked there made a documentary It. And I have no connection to the comic store at all. But I did do a weekend on the road with two comics were passed there. And they were like telling me about it a little bit.

I got to perform there before the pandemic a couple of times. I was like, I've made it. Yeah. And then and then it's actually like, Oh, no, like, this is just something that happens. Like it's not like I got passed to the Comedy Store was on the show, but it was really cool. Oh, I

Gabe Mollica  
I bet it was so cool.

Michele Baci  
It's legendary.

Gabe Mollica  
Legendary. Yeah. Yeah, me and my buddy, my buddy Ron on, like, two weeks before the pandemic, three weeks, maybe had gotten past at the comedy cellar. And like, when the pandemic hit, I was just like, like, This is all because your career is starting to go too well, and the universe had to like, Correct, correct itself, because you can't have too many good things happen to you, buddy.

Michele Baci  
I know. It's funny. It's funny. Just like people we know, the age we are. I feel like people are really like hitting their stride with like, professional achievements. People are getting married, or they're having kids or whatever. And then 2020 hit and we're like, Okay, everyone stop being happy and bragging. And we're gonna go hunker down for now.

Gabe Mollica  
Yes, we're like, we're like leveling the playing field. Yeah, and like, I don't know, maybe it's just because I'm partly moving back in with my parents. But I think I feel this way. Even if like, I was still in the apartment, which is just like, marriage just feels like so far away. For me. It seems like a different, that'll be a different person. In a different lifetime.

Michele Baci  
Especially as you become a better comic. It feels like it's it feels like such a different path.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. Just like

Michele Baci  
Although it doesn't have to be. There's a happily married monogamous relationship comics like Birbiglia and there's some people who are doing stable being okay. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. And like, I do aspire to that. I like the idea of having like, my own, like, routine and my own life outside of this, it would be nice, like, go home, to a person that I love. Late at night after doing comedy, but even that idea of like, a late night doing comedy and like coming home. I haven't thought about that in months, you know? Because

Michele Baci  
Because it hasn't been reality for so long.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. And I try I've been really struggling with the idea of, maybe not struggling with but like I've been thinking a lot about like, it's just like, it's not something I can control. So I'm just like, okay, like, I can't do comedy, like I'll try to do some other things. So like one of the things I'm actually working on, and this ties back to everything actually, is that I'm working on doing like, sort of like a late night host monologue with like graphics and like pictures and stuff, sort of like a daily show or John Oliver. But instead of tackling like the really complicated problems that john oliver tackles, like, I'm just gonna tackle things that are like in my life. So the first one the first episode. Yeah, yeah, do like the deep dive, essentially. And the first one I've written that I'm gonna film this weekend is about moving back home. And what that's like and how the main idea is basically that like, I don't, I don't feel sad. I like I feel sad. I feel sad. It's like, just like that, like life no longer existed in the way that it did.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, saying goodbye to your old life starting something new, but you've done it before. So it's not that deal.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. It's It's hard. It's hard to like Miss stuff. That's not there, I guess. But the idea is, I don't feel bad about missing comedy. I feel bad about feeling bad about missing comedy, which is like, like, I'm safe. I'm privileged. I get like, a paycheck every two weeks, and I still feel bad. And so I feel bad about that. Like, I have guilt. I have like survivor's guilt over like, my privileged, like pain.

Michele Baci  
So you're not suffering enough?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, that I'm not suffering enough that like, my complaints are like my suffering, like isn't worth discussing. And so like, I just like the idea of the episode, just like, I need an outlet from that, because like, it's not fun. Like, what do you mean? I'm like, What do you mean I'm safe, healthy, privileged, and I'm unhappy? Like, that's bullshit.

Michele Baci  
Are you gonna have a visual diagram?

Unknown Speaker  
Mm hmm.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, there's like Photoshop going on. logo. Perfect. Yeah, like there's like a, there's a song parody in it. I'm gonna like write sketches that are gonna go in the middle of them. It's sort of just gonna be like, I can't get a late night job right now. So like, I'm doing myself kind of.

Michele Baci  
it's a bring your own late night writers packet to life.

Gabe Mollica  
It's literally that Yeah. And like, if nobody watches it, I'm just like, whatever. Like, I just like, want the practice.

Michele Baci  
I'll watch it. 

Gabe Mollica  
 Oh, that's very kind.

Michele Baci  
It sounds awesome.

Gabe Mollica  
 Yeah, hopefully, it'll be good. I have some friends. Like a friend. He's gonna direct it and help me edit it. And it's cool guest on the show.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, it'll be it'll be take take all the help you Get cuz I just doing my podcast and like Why don't I have a team? Like it feels like so much work to put something out every week you know?

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah you know when like the podcast host like, like has like a bit or like riffs with like their tech? Yeah it was just so cool to like be successful enough to have a tech.

Michele Baci  
To have an engineer on site, a producer, and editor, I need like five people.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah I need I need all of head gum.

Michele Baci  
Do you have a Do you have a title for the late night sketch? 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I'm calling it Gabe time. And I'm actually having a meeting tomorrow with my buddy Chris who did design my Edinburgh Fringe poster. Oh, he's going to like come up help me come up with a logo. That'll sort of be like the default like john oliver logo. Like the last week tonight thing that's just like that's in the corner when there's no like joke image or whatever. And yeah, I have like a friend helping with like the Photoshop jokes sort of like the Daily Show does like u pun on a movie. I have a couple of those like, it's a movie poster. But like we've changed the title to like be about the thing you're talking about. And yeah, I just like need a thing to be excited about I'm sure the pod This podcast is doing that for you too, but yeah being excited is really helpful.

Michele Baci  
Helps to be like I can be creative and do my hour of podcasting. And then like, you know, cry for four days while I edited just like having a look forward to. It's really nice.

Gabe Mollica  
Like something from my fingers to do as I'm sobbing is always really important.

Michele Baci  
Like, I don't have any other friends. But I have myself. I  have a guest, I have Gabe to talk to you.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I need something to do I  And like as much as I like fight it sometimes. I'm like, Oh, I can't, like do something. It's always better basically, to do it. And when you have stuff to do, then you can cancel and that's the best.

Michele Baci  
Yes. I'm very busy working on my projects.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. 

Michele Baci  
You'll have to tell the audience where they can find Gabe time.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, yeah, yeah, I'm gonna be uploading it to all my all my socials. I'm basically I basically don't Insta. Well, I'll put I'll put it on Instagram. But Twitter's like where I'm at. @GabeMollica

Michele Baci  
You're really big on Twitter. I was looking you have like a huge following.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, that's very kind. I just I got 1000 followers. And it basically feels the same. But I do, I do like Twitter.

Michele Baci  
That's what everyone says. I know, semi pretty famous Twitter person. She's like, nothing changes when you get famous. on Twitter. It feels that way. I'm sure.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, no, I mean, it's the funniest thing. So I've had like two videos that like got passed around. I wouldn't say they went viral but two video to comedy videos that people liked. And the most fun thing about that happening was just like there are people there are other comics in like Chicago who I've never met, so I'm like friends on Twitter with like, all these Chicago comics I'd never would have known. You like I have these Mutual's now with people who are like, Oh, you're the guy from that thing, like and then they follow Me. And like, I would not say there were fans, I would not say they're like, no one would recognize me walking down the street. But it is sort of nice. It makes Twitter like slightly more bearable to have like my friends who I know. And then also like some strangers who like we like each other's jokes.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. Twitter is the best for finding strangers in a in your pit of like, comedy gold or like deep depression. Things I find a lot of Twitter harmony. Yes,

Gabe Mollica  
yes. Twitter. Twitter is definitely the the app for me. Instagram makes me sad. Instagram is just like, that's where all your exes live. is just like yeah, Twitter's more my speed.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, there's some people some my friends just don't do Instagram. They're like, never gonna do it. Never gonna download it saying away and I'm like, stay away. It's not Instagram is not for everyone. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. I mean, it's like I'll delete once a week and be like, Nope, not gonna go on it anymore. But Twitter like Twitter, I basically just uses like a new source and like a, like a how I discovered my radical politics. 

Michele Baci  
Yeah. Well, it's great for politics and like, stalking comedians, politics or other people's politics.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, yeah. What my, my sneaky favorite feature of Twitter is what has somebody liked, like go to their profile like see what what things that they've liked? I'm like, Oh, this is where you discover like, what people do. That's where like,

Michele Baci  
That's true. People just throw away likes like it's No, no big deal so.

Gabe Mollica  
They dont know,they dont know that Gabe is watching.

Michele Baci  
I hope that's all your Twitter activity, just looking at people's legs. very creepy Gabe. So let me

Gabe Mollica  
 Ashley Feinberg do You know her? She follows all like the Trump children and she finds what they've liked. And it's just like, so funny. Like because they're so lame and stupid.

Michele Baci  
Who is that? 

Gabe Mollica  
 Ashley Feinberg? 

Michele Baci  
No, I don't know her.

Gabe Mollica  
She's a journalist. Oh, she's incredible. She's so, so funny.

Michele Baci  
The Trump Childen.

I like all the big celebrities like Christina Teagan john luch legend has been adding a vaca Geron being like, yo, here's me singing like fuck you, Donald Trump for one full minute. Everyone's coming after them now. Like, we're gonna shut down society for Ivanka and Jared.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it would be nice to shame them as much as possible.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. Let's make their life hell for a while.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, they deserve it. I mean, Jared Kushner has COVID blood on his hands. I hate that guy.

Michele Baci  
The worst worst team in the history of America.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Michele Baci  
So let me ask you about therapy. Do you you were mentioning you, like recently got back into therapy?

Gabe Mollica  
Mm hmm. Yeah, like found a new one. I'd started. So I guess my brief history of therapies, I had a terrible one in high school who like I never went back to again, because she diagnosed with 9/11. And then

Michele Baci  
And you were sad about 9/11

Gabe Mollica  
I was sad about 9/11 and then in college, I had, like, I met a therapist is named Dave Walden. And, oh, he was amazing David. And really changed my life. Just like I came in there asking questions about like, why am I working so hard? And like, what's the like? Like, how do you be in relationship and stuff like that? And he was just like, always, really very much a humanist. And then I ended up taking his counseling psychology class. Yeah. And he was wonderful professor, super smart. super interesting. I think about that class all the time. And then I had a therapist before Scotland, very, like stoic man who like just like, listened a lot. different than David. But I just like needed a space to talk. And then I found a guy right before the pandemic. So that's 9/11, College. First guy, second guy. Now my third New York City therapist. So this third guy, the second guy was like, I thought twice, didn't matter. But this guy that I'm seeing now, I met once, and he's like a CBT. therapist so it's more like, a little bit more like behaviorlist um And he was talking to me about how like, he sees himself as a, he calls himself an accountant, because he's there that hold people accountable. And I don't know..

Michele Baci  
That's not what accountants do.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, like, so that is a joke.

Michele Baci  
Okay.

Gabe Mollica  
And

Michele Baci  
 He can play with words.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Yeah. He's at least capable of doing that. And he was very honest. He was like, you do stand up? I was like, Yeah, he's like, you on YouTube? I was like, Yeah, he's like, Okay, I'm gonna watch that, like, other people wouldnt tell you that,I was like okay, so like, he's, in some ways, like, radically honest. But

Michele Baci  
that's also I like that. He's taking an interest in you to be like, Oh, you do stand up. I'm gonna check it out.

Gabe Mollica  
Yes, yes. It's definitely better than the alternative of like, Oh, cool. You do comedy, like, whatever. It's more interesting. You're right. See, I didn't think of that. So like, right now, I haven't had like a real session with him. I just had like a like

Michele Baci  
an intro. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah And I'm like, it's funny. I'll listen to this in a month. And I'll Gabe in the future i you're listening. Like this is how you feel now about this session that you haven't had yet. But I'm like a little dubious of like, because I don't necessarily think therapy needs to be like result oriented in terms of like I reached my goal weight or like I got the job or like I asked the girl out or whatever. I think it just like some

Michele Baci  
More exploratory.

Gabe Mollica  
yeah and like humanist in that way and open ended and he seemed more like he seemed to suggest that he was like, sort of results based and like, let's change our behavior and we can be happier and like, it takes effort to be happy and so like, part of that rings true to me where I'm just like, Yeah, it does take effort to be happy and like I can get behind that.

Michele Baci  
I have to remind myself of that I'm like, Why Why am I not happy? It's like oh, because you're doing the same stuff every day. You have to make a change.

Gabe Mollica  
Yes. Yes. So like part of me is like reluctant because like I see myself as this like radical humanist where I'm just like, No, I just like need to express myself and part of me like thinks that I might really like the CBT where I'm already like, at my best can be like a very disciplined person. And at my worst can be like such like a lazy being lazy and lethargic. And another word that means the same thing.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. From the exterior, you seem very disciplined because you're like making strides and comedy, you did 100 sets I feel like you're you're really like checking stuff off of like, what a comedian should be doing.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I guess I do try to do that. I guess I just haven't I feel like I've just like it's all chaos that I'm just like trying to like order the chaos like maybe I it's funny. I've dated people before that have like I've been the radical one or I've been the one that but it's like too impulsive and like to all over the place and then I've also dated people who have been more like all over the place and like thought of me as like the one who like needs a scheduled like needs their handheld. And it's so funny to me to have like been both, because it's way more in some ways, like it's, it's easier to be the one who's like kooky and like, like, non traditional than it is to be the one who's like more buttoned down. Like it's less fun with the button down what I found in some ways.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. I think you need one of those in the relationship, though, because if you're both kooky and without a schedule, then like, when are you gonna go hang out with your friends? Like, no one's gonna plan it.

Gabe Mollica  
Yes. Yes. Someone needs to be the planner.

Michele Baci  
Yeah you need someone, someones the doer, someone taking the initiative.

Gabe Mollica  
Mm hmm. Yeah. So I don't know where I am. Like, I don't know who I am. Or at least like, Yeah, I don't know where that where that goes. But it was funny to like, to date somebody in my early 20s, who was like, You're crazy. And to date, somebody in my late 20s has been like, you are a rule follower. And like you like order.

Michele Baci  
So is that but was that also like the point in your life? Because were you late, like, early 20s Before comedy late 20s. Kind of deep in comedy?

Gabe Mollica  
Mm hmm. For sure. For sure. So maybe I've changed. That's also very possible.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. Because we're in our 20s. We're like really finding ourselves like, I'm not the same person I was when I was 26. Now, I'm almost 30. So you really go through a lot of evolutions, or hopefully you do you don't want to stay the same person as you were at 21.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. In some ways, like, I feel I do feel different. I do feel in some ways more mature. And then sometimes I just, like, do something that I'm just like, this is what 13 year old Gabe would do.

Michele Baci  
It was an example of that? I want to know.

Gabe Mollica  
what's something that 13 year old Gabe would do? Um, I'm just like, getting emotional about like stupid stuff. Because it feels like I'm just like going through puberty. Or like, I'll have like, an argument with my mom about something stupid. And I'm just like, I can't read your mind. If you want me to do that. Like you need to tell me or like, whatever that fight is, and I'm just like, oh, like what I like the way I just spoke to my mom is how I spoke at 13. And then there are things like this, like low carb thing, where I'm just like, I feel very confident that like, when I'm motivated, and like when I'm excited about it, I can be really disciplined. And I can cook for myself, and you know, cut the avocados and like, do all the stuff that I need to do um, to try to be healthy.

Michele Baci  
it's like really hard to cut an Avocado, I can't do it

Gabe Mollica  
when they're not perfectly right there. Like kind of disappointing. I had one today and I had to like sort of like force it down. And I was like uhh.

Michele Baci  
that was one of my big reasons to move to California, I'm like they eat Avocados there. They can't be that expensive.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Yeah, the tacos. I'm definitely jealous of all the Mexican. Like,

Michele Baci  
there's guacamole everywhere you go. Oh,

Gabe Mollica  
yeah. I'm all in on that. And then the LA food scene like the I mean, we have Koreatown also, but I hear like the Korean tennis just like outrageous and cool.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, I think I haven't experienced it enough to really be like, Oh, it's awesome. like New York still, I think is the top but I'm biased, lived in New York forever.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah.

Michele Baci  
But LA is a lot softer too, can't knock LA.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, no, I again, I'm afraid to go cuz I would like I like eating alone in my car. I think LA is for me.

Michele Baci  
You should uh, you should experience it. Let yourself tempt fate a little bit.

Gabe Mollica  
I think I would love to go out there like, with a thing to do, like working on a show or something. But also, like it would just be fun to go and visit and

Michele Baci  
well, you can even just come to comedy like when comedy comes back or for doing these backyard shows. That's something to do like when I first came out here I just didn't open mic at nerd nerd melts, which isn't even a thing anymore. And I did comedy in LA you know, I felt like I really hit some milestone.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, r.i.p. nerd melt. That was Yeah, that was where they filmed Pete Holmes and Kumail and Jonah.

Michele Baci  
It was a cool little comic book, open mic type thing. And I met like this 16 year old kid who was like already more famous than I've ever will be glad I'm glad like the young people are out. Yeah, their dreams. 

Gabe Mollica  
I met  my friend Dan Wilbert is a stand up and has been doing comedy forever. And when I met him, like we really, we like, each did a joke at an open mic that like the other one, like noticed and like liked, and we sort of like made eye contact. And we're like, oh, like, I like your jokes. And we like, we ended up doing some writing together. And he's been doing comedy, like a long time in New York. And so like, he knew Pete and kumail and all those guys when they when they came to New York, and then one day he like posted a video of him doing stand up at nerd melt, like on the Jonah and kumail show. And I was just like, Damn, this is the coolest thing I've ever seen. And he was just like, Yeah, whatever. Like I did the show. And I was like, No, dude, like, this is like you're the real deal.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, it's really cool. When you do something you've only seen on the internet or on TV where you're like, I'm here doing this like, it feels very it feels very out of body. At the time,

Gabe Mollica  
yeah, I definitely had sets where it felt like even just like, I've never done the comedy cellar, but like, even like a New York comedy club or like, like Gotham, or something where I'm just like, oh, like, I'm on a show with somebody I really admire or like, I'm on a stage that like I've seen, you know, Seinfeld that. Yeah, it's cool. To feel like you're part of the club, they feel like you're part of something bigger than yourself was pretty neat.

There in that, that piece of history with that comic that you admire

Michele Baci  
That's cool. Let me ask you, because you brought it up a few times, like how you you think you like, are in these relationships with girls who are like, not on your level? Or like on some other level? Is that something you struggle with? Or like, what's your current dating predicament? Especially in COVID?

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, Oh, interesting. Um, I am just like, dating. So

Michele Baci  
That sigh, Gabe.

Gabe Mollica  
And like, I tried in,

Michele Baci  
I wonder what people are doing. So this is like, the only time I haven't been single. So I am so fascinated by what single people are doing. 

Gabe Mollica  
I tried, like, early in middle pandemic, to like, talk to people and like, reach out and like, try to, like, spark some romance. And then like, I got to a point where I was just like, I am just not ready for anything like I like. Yeah, I just like didn't feel ready. Don't feel like dating. Don't Yeah, it's just like, too overwhelming. I like it, like, scared me. Like, how not ready I felt, and like a

Michele Baci  
It's a big thing to admit too, to be like, Oh, I don't have the space for another person.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, well, not everybody in my life was so happy to hear that. But it just like, and like, you know, good people. Like in my life, that like, thought about dating or like wanting to date or whatever. But like, right now, I'm just like, that feels so far away for me. And like, maybe again, future Gabe, maybe like one day I'll deel differently? And like, I'm sure I will. But right now, it's just like living with my parents. I'm trying to make the best of it. I can't like, I can't like muscle through a relationship If I'm not like, feeling it. And I'm, like, feeling like an adult. And I feel like I just need to like survive right now. And like, try

Michele Baci  
Taking time for yourself.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, as cliche as that idea is I very much I'm 100% you could could not have said it better. I'm taking them for myself. I'm like trying to like figure out like what is quarantine Gabe like. Like, yeah, yeah,

Michele Baci  
We're house bound. Like why not really learn who you are, what you want, and work on stuff that makes you like you makes you excited and makes you want to keep doing this in the future. Like, like your late night project.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, I needed something like that. That felt like a craft. I felt like an expression that like I didn't owe anything to anybody. Because like, I just like don't feel equipped to do that right now. And like, there are other times in my life where I'm just like, like guns blazing, like no, I'm in love. Like, this is like a thing that matters most to me.

Michele Baci  
Okay, do you have like a romantic side where you could be like,

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, yeah, 

Michele Baci  
Like fuck other responsibilities.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah notorious one, I'm just like, we're all gonna die, I just want to be with you.

Michele Baci  
Life is short.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, I get like very fatalistic about it. Where I'm just like, this is important to me. This is the only thing that matters. And so, but now's the time, now's not, not the time. I mean, like I said, I

Michele Baci  
I wouldn't think it is for a lot of people. Yeah.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. And like, I'm trying not to be too hard on myself about that, either, where it's just like, this is just what I need. Like, I just need to chill. And like, you know, I'm not even talking to anybody in a romantic way. Really, you know, I'm just like, just trying to get by and like, see my friends and like, do what I need to do to like, feel okay during this because, like, it feels like and like, you know, whoa is me but like, it feels like my late 20s. Or, like, slowly this, like, all at once sort of disappeared. And what I thought was going to be two weeks off from work is now gonna be maybe like two years. 

Michele Baci  
Yeah. But also, I think New York's doing pretty. Okay. I think you'll have a social life before I do in LA.

Gabe Mollica  
Hmm, yeah, we'll see. I mean, like, I was talking to a friend or I'm like, I work in a school and it's like, Am I confident that next September, we'll start school in person? I'm like, if I had to guess, I would say no. And that's like, so scary.

Michele Baci  
Even though schools and other states are like fully in person all the time.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, like I was talking to my buddy in Texas, who's like a middle school athletic director. And he was just like, yeah, we slowly brought. We started with sixth graders and slowly brought in seventh and eighth graders. And like, now we're all in school. Just like, I guess you have more space. Like in the school, I go to Queens, there's a community college in the first two floors, a high school on the fourth floor, high school on the fifth floor. And then our school is the sixth and seventh floor. And we just today got our first email. That was like a kid entered the building this weekend, who tested positive for COVID. And I'm just like, oh, like, this is the first time we're getting that scary email. It's November. There's no way we're ready by September, like, this isn't gonna be a long term project, like I need to figure out so I got motivated in the last like, couple days, like I need to figure out not just like, the late night thing that I'm going to do myself, but like, also, I need to figure out like, like bigger plans of certain kinds, like, maybe not grad school, but like, stuff to do.

Michele Baci  
Like, what is the immediate future hold for you? 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah like can I find like a part time gig somewhere that like, fulfills me in some way? Or like, start writing something when like, have a harder deadline? Stuff like that.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. Maybe take like a comedy class or a writing class? 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah I took a late night writing class with this guy, Pete gross who wrote for Seth Meyers.  And so I did that in August. And like it turned out it like turned my August around. Like it really did.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. It's cool to get a some kind of professional guidance in a way like that, like taking a class or going to an improv, like even a one time improv class really gets your creative juices flowing in a different way.

Gabe Mollica  
Mm hmm.

Michele Baci  
You get to talk to someone who's probably older than you, who's been doing it longer. They're like, this is what we're doing. This is how it goes like the way it works. And you're like, oh, there's like a way to do things. Okay.

Gabe Mollica  
Mm hmm.

Michele Baci  
I like taking classes every once in a while.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, I really, when I first started doing comedy in New York, I was at the magnet a lot. And I take storytelling class there. And I took improv and sketch. And it was really I mean, you just like, feel like a writer, you have sketches due and you have monologue jokes to write and it keeps you just like eating fiber, keeps you regular.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, it's a good routine to be on. So we can spend a random question if you're, if you're up for it.

Gabe Mollica  
That sounds amazing. I would love to do that. Real quick. Is that book next to the artists way? 

Michele Baci  
It is. I have not made it very far. But I started doing the I started doing the morning pages she talks about.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I do those.

Michele Baci  
They help. I mean, I have a lot of resentment and a lot of emotions that do come out on morning pages so I see what she's talking about, like right away. In the day, you got to get out your your pent up whatever and before you start your craft,

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, I found I found it and we could definitely spin, but I found it. From August 1 last year to Christmas. I did them every day. And then I was like on and off again.

Michele Baci  
And that the full 12 weeks, or was it longer than 12 weeks?

Gabe Mollica  
I think it was slightly longer. And then I did them, I have the calendar up right there. From

Michele Baci  
what are you talking about you're not disciplined, Gabe ?you did The Artist's Way everyday.

Gabe Mollica  
I did them almost every day in July, but I wasn't doing much else. And I found at the height of me doing them I found that some days it was really hard. Because I was like facing emotions and thoughts and fears. First thing in the morning that later in the day like made my day harder when I started my day by like thinking about this like, like, you know, death or life issue. Yeah. What if like, this person dies or like, like, what if I never blank, you know, like, like, like, deep like philosophical questions about my life and like my fears. And I found it really hard. But I also like got a buzz from it too. Especially on days when I when I pushed through and I could write also. So I think it's a good and like, I don't know I'll do it low carb right now, I don't know if I can add morning pages to that. Like I just need to like singularly focuse.

Michele Baci  
Low carb sounds really hard, I don't know how you're doing that. As an Italian person, I could not do it.

Gabe Mollica  
do it. My mom makes my mom makes meatballs and puts bread crumbs in them. And I'm like, I guess those are keto. I don't know.

Michele Baci  
A little bit of breadcrumbs. But yeah, the morning pages I've been I've been like encountering a lot of darkness a lot of demons and it does put a weird tone on my day. But then it also kind of frees me up to be like, Oh, that was cathartic. And maybe I cried in the morning but at least I didn't cry before I went to bed. You know your emotional setpoint but for a good reason.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah, at its best. I can really like be alleviating and it's worse. It's just like stirring shit that To be stirred and live my life morning pages.

Michele Baci  
Yeah. I don't know. It's an interesting concept. My therapist actually recommended that book. So that's why I picked it up.

Gabe Mollica  
 That sounds like an LA therapist to

Michele Baci  
like, have you heard of the artists way? I use it every day. And I'm like, that's all it's been. It's been good so far. I recommend The Artists Way.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, Yeah, me too.

Michele Baci  
All right. Let's spin a random question. Oh, these are all like kind of Fung Shui oriented. Not too hard. Yeah. We're in Vegas, baby.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, Wheel of Fortune.

Michele Baci  
Okay, landed on gratitude. Tell me something you're grateful for? 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, man. I, gratitude is a thing that I think is, like very important to me about being intentional about um, I am grateful for I guess, like, being home. Being home, I have a new sense of gratitude for like my parents, like owning a house. Yeah, having two kids and like, like, buying house in like the early 90s. And I'm just like, thinking about them like, Oh, yeah, like they were in their early 30s. And like, they saved up and like, they bought this house. And it was a big deal to own property, you know, and it's like, maybe it's more difficult to buy a house in 2020 than it was in 1991. But it feels like very, I'm, like, more grateful than I've ever been for like, Oh, yeah, they like paid the mortgage. Like, throughout my childhood, they like every month. They like, had the money for it, because they like worked hard. And like that was their goal. And they want to have a family. So I'm very grateful for like their maturness And like, that's feels tough to say because like we argue politically.

Michele Baci  
Oh, you do?

Gabe Mollica  
 mean, like they're liberals. But like I'm, again, like a radical leftist.

Michele Baci  
I mean, who are we not arguing with politically? 

Gabe Mollica  
Yes. Yeah. They're like, we love andrew cuomo. And I'm like, that guy's the worst. Like, don't get me started.

Michele Baci  
We voted for Bloomberg.  Something like that, where you're like, what? I don't understand.

Gabe Mollica  
I mean, like, even like my dad, like, we even voted for the same primary person. And I'm still like, you're a neo-liberal.

Michele Baci  
No, it's crazy how divided you got, like, I literally filled up my ballot next to my boyfriend, and we fight about politics multiple times a day. And we had very similar balance, but it's just like, there's, you know, you can really nitpick and tear each other apart. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. And especially like, you know, I'm flipping adult living at home. And so like, they were, I don't feel gratitude to them. But being home and just like thinking about, like, where were my parents when they were 28? Like, what was their life like? I'm very, I feel gratitude for their, for their choices, because like, they really did like, give me a pretty great life.

Michele Baci  
They did good by you and also, they bought a house in a nice neighborhood. My neighborhood.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, our parents made very similar decisions, Michele. 

Michele Baci  
Yeah, Like minded-people. 

Do you think that's cuz? You're coming to that age, when they bought the house? You're like thinking about it more?

Gabe Mollica  
I think so. Yeah. And like, it was a very different climate. And like, my dad, like their lives are very different. And like, in their relationship, like my dad's like, the crazy one of my mom's

Michele Baci  
the crazy one.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, he's the one who's like, all over the place.

Michele Baci  
He's the fun one. Yeah.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, he can be,

Michele Baci  
I don't know your parents. I could say things like this. Just making wild assumptions. 

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah they're, they're fun in their own ways. I'm sure my dad would describe himself as a felon. But yeah, being at that age. And, you know, like, my parents definitely did not make money. They're like loan priority in life. And they're both still working, and they're in their 60s. And like, it looks like they're gonna work for a while. Because they made choices during their lives to like, do things that they thought were meaningful, in addition to that, things that paid the bills. And I think that's something I definitely inherited. And so like, Why I am probably farther away from buying my own house right now than they were when they were my age. I like to think I'm modeling myself after them in some ways, just like the marriage, like the marriage of responsibility, and also like finding things that are meaningful, meaningful for you to do. 

Michele Baci  
Yeah like you respect the choices they made and where it's brought them.

Gabe Mollica  
Definitely I respect their choices. That's very well said. Yeah, my dad went to law school at 50. He graduated law school the same year, I graduated high school. 

Michele Baci  
I think I knew that That's pretty, that's pretty badass.

Gabe Mollica  
It's pretty badass. He was just like, you know, the old guy in in law school and all the kids, the kids who graduated, the kids, the kid the guy, the man who graduated first in his class, second class, and third in his class, are all the lawyers he like collaborates with cases. He just like you're the smartest kid in the class. Like, I'm gonna have a law firm and he like works for himself. And he's like, I have a big case. I need somebody help me write it. You're my guy. So he like. He's very, like, passionate and he loves the law. And

Michele Baci  
He knows how to network. 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh Yeah. He's the networking King. Yeah.

Michele Baci  
That's awesome. What kind of law does he do? 

Gabe Mollica  
He does horse law. He's a horse lawyer.

Michele Baci  
That's not a thing, is that a thing? 

Gabe Mollica  
I swear it's a thing. Cause he worked in horse racing for a long time.

Michele Baci  
Okay.

Gabe Mollica  
And when he became a lawyer, there's a lot of like horse racing law to be had. There's there's ownership of horses that gets under contention, there's jockeys who get suspended for doing something they shouldn't do. There's people who sue the trainers for not being paid properly.

Michele Baci  
Is it called equestrian law?

Gabe Mollica  
it's called equine law. Yeah. Yeah, he's an equine lawyer. But he also does all different. Yeah, yeah. He does all different types of things. But he works for himself, because like he could never like the idea of my dad going to a nine to five job was like, the funniest thing in the whole world, because like, he could never do that. Like, he could never show up where somebody needed him every day would never happen.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, sure. I'm sure he shows up somewhere. Sometimes because he's a lawyer.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah has a little office that he goes to, that gets like the Golf Channel that he's very happy with. But like, yeah, just in terms of respecting his choices, like, in theory, he could like try to find a job like some like fancy law firm, but like, that's just like, never gonna be his deal. And so like, he made choices, and I think they're pretty good ones, but there's just a little bit less security. And we sort of like a comic where it's like, like, for him like a weekend gig is like somebody calling him with some dispute. And sometimes business just like falls out of the sky. We're like, I'll be driving around with him, and we're going to play golf or something. And he'll just get three phone calls. And you're like, Well, those are three cases. And then sometimes it'll be like, two or three weeks in a row. And he'd be like, just waiting on the phone to ring like, need need some work. So like, we have that in common a little bit with like, the idea of working in comedy or working in entertainment, where it's a little bit less stable than a public school teacher, and I show up on these, you know, 180 school days, and that's the deal.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, that makes life more interesting. I think that's, you know, the way to do it.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it certainly works for him.

Michele Baci  
And I know my parents, my mom's a lawyer also. And she's like, never, she never plans to retire. She's like, no, I like what I do. You know, she doesn't know what she would do if she retired. So

Gabe Mollica  
Hmm. I didn't know your mom was a layer, very cool.

Michele Baci  
Yes. She does wills, trusts, and estates.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah. Okay. Very cool. Does she is she working in? We're getting real GC centric, she works in town?

Michele Baci  
She works, she works in GC off of like near Seventh Street. A few streets over.

Gabe Mollica  
Okay. Cool. Yeah. My dad's office is on Franklin.

Michele Baci  
Okay. Yes. They might be like right by each other.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it's very possible.

Michele Baci  
But my just to bring it back to 9/11. My mom was super busy when 9/11 happened. Making wills for people and dealing with their estates.

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, my God, I imagine. Yeah, I probably. I don't know the numbers. But I imagine September 20th, All of America was like, You know what? It's been a few days. Let's everybody needs a will.

Michele Baci  
Right. I mean, I was, you know, also in middle school. So I don't know. I didn't know what's going on with my mom's work at the time. But yeah, when Coronavirus hit, she was like, you know, you know, we can't really go into the office and I don't know how we're, our business is going to be but once September 11 went down. She was doing great. So maybe she predicted COVID would be good for her. And so far it has been. 

Gabe Mollica  
A spike in people wanting wills, yeah.

Michele Baci  
Never goes out of style.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, everybody needs a will.

Michele Baci  
We've come to the end, Gabe. I don't want to keep you up in New York any longer. So tell the audience where to find you what you want to promote?

Gabe Mollica  
Oh, that's very kind of Yeah, just like Twitter and Instagram are perfect. If you feel like getting real frisky you can friend me on Facebook.

Michele Baci  
ooo, Facebook.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, it's just my name, Gabe Mollica. I put up some sketches and some some videos and

Michele Baci  
You have some funny videos up there. 

Gabe Mollica  
Oh thank you.

Michele Baci  
I like them. Put your acting skills to work.

Gabe Mollica  
Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I wasn't in I wasn't in all those musicals for nothing. And I have more ideas for videos that I just like have it like worked myself up to actually making so there will be more in the near future. And eventually, come see a stand up show and then you can get on my email list and we could, we'll do comedy forever. But until then, just like Follow me on the The internet and say hello.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, follow Gabe. I'll put all the details in the podcast description. And this has been a lovely conversation. Thank you so much.

Gabe Mollica  
Thank you so much. It's so nice talking.

Michele Baci  
Yeah, we'll talk again soon. This has been Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent. If you liked this episode be sure to subscribe, leave a review if you can, and tell your friends. I'll be back with a new episode next Thursday.

Theme Song  
Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent / Trauma disguised as comedy / Therapy Roulette: Consent to Vent / If you don’t have problems, then you’re likely repressing sh*t and you should find a therapist / (Who’s not me)