The place I lived at in Los Angeles for nine years was in the Miracle Mile on Cloverdale Avenue just off Wilshire Boulevard.

I loved that neighborhood — all young thirty-somethings, no kids, and honestly just cool people. Accept this one guy… (there’s always that guy)

That one guy lived across the street, but was always out on his stoop with his laptop. Day in and day out, sitting on a cold cement step of a quadraplex, not talkin to anyone. Nobody knew what his deal was. He was an odd bird. He was the stoop guy.

A few years into living in that place, I was out in New York performing and decided to have an afternoon pint — how British of me — at a place called the Grisly Pear. There was only one other gal at the bar, and naturally we started chatting. She had just moved to New York City two years prior, but used to live in LA on this little street called Cloverdale Avenue…

“What?! I live on Cloverdale Avenue — dude what’s up with stoop guy??”

We had a laugh and boy did she have the whole scoop on “stoop guy.” Apparently this man was a brilliant accomplished screenplay writer of many of our favorite films today. Kept the same apartment his whole career. And… he was a hoarder.

He sat outside because he physically couldn’t be in his space.

I had to go all the way to New York to find this out after years of wondering. I was both in awe of and deeply sorry for this stoop guy. His junk and clutter made it so his creative space could only be… the stoop.

I can’t judge stoop guy.

I’ve been spring cleaning for what feels like 19 years now. I’m always getting rid of shit just to end up with more shit. The bags are piling up. The donation piles have donation piles. Help!

On one hand, I love simplicity. It’s why I love jumpsuits so much — one decision, one outfit.

On the other hand, I love inconsistency. Change excites me. I get bored easily with things and experiences and crave something new. And I love fashion… but I’m just done with owning too much.

Clutter and junk and chaos and too many little constant meaningless decisions are total killers of creativity. It’s time to make some fresh space…

The Hustle

Why do we accumulate so much shit?

For one, capitalism has taught us to self-soothe with stuff. We are taught to show wealth with stuff. We need the trendy stuff — the newest iPhone, the luxury car.

Honestly we are all addicted to those dopamine hits; TikTok feeds, dating apps, likes, follows, credit card swipes. Fucking hell, it’s exhausting to be alive in 2025…

There’s even a TikTok trend right now for decluttering — would you keep this if it was covered in poop? It’s funny, but also weirdly profound. If you wouldn't save it in a house fire or wipe literal shit off it, maybe you don’t need it?

It’s comical how creative we are having to get with letting go of shit in our lives, literally.

As nice as it feels to declutter some of the stuff and the noise, I wish being willing to part with things was the answer. The only solution to a very real global overconsumption problem is needing less in the first place.

I try my best to stay on top of ways I can consume less and help more, but it can be overwhelming for all of us. We are so inundated with information on a daily basis that we can become paralyzed and overstimulated, and end up doing nothing at all from sheer decision fatigue.

I didn’t really have an understanding of our consumption issues until last year when I was flying to tour in Europe… I watched “Brandy Hellville & the Cult of Fast Fashion” on my flight to London (I believe you can find it on MAX), and was blown away by the effects of fast fashion on places like Ghana’s Kantamanto Market, where tons of discarded clothes end up. — more links to read here and here.

Wild. One person’s $12 Shein haul is someone else’s toxic landfill.

But on a more personal level, clutter takes up space in our homes and our minds, creating total creative paralysis. Physical clutter starts to mirror creative or emotional clutter. Kinda like how people start to look like their dogs…

The Chill

Cleaning out your space is actually cleaning out your head. Every drawer I empty makes room for a thought I hadn’t heard in a while.

There’s something spiritual about letting go. It’s an emotional labor and it’s fucking hard.

“But, like, what if I need this tiny blue tank top to go under something I wear to an event seven years from now???” or “But if I don’t save this backstage pass from Magic Mike in Las Vegas did I actually ever even go??”

Scarcity bullshit. I’m guilty of it too. WHAT ARE WE DOING TO OURSELVES?

I have a lot to accomplish in this life, and I’m well aware that when I die, nobody will give a fuck about what I owned.

True wealth to me isn’t the accumulation of stuff. It’s freedom.

It’s the ability to work on things that excite you, the flexibility to turn down things that don’t, and the freedom to travel on a whim and create new experiences with people you love any chance you get. It’s the stuff you can’t buy.

You can’t chill when your life is crowded with shit you don’t need.
Let it go. Donate it. Delete it. Trust me, I’m saying this to myself too.

Speaking of, if anyone is in need of literally anything and I have it to give — it’s yours. Give me a reason to part with it. Message me, let me know, and I’ll drop it in the mail.

Upcoming Shows

Columbus and Kansas City just announced!!

Kansas City Funny Bone July 31st

Columbus OH Funny Bone August 17th

Get your tix now — only 340 available (hahaha)

Here are the current cities cooking 🔥 for tour — Buffalo, Portland, Austin, New York, San Diego, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Charleston, Detroit, Boston, DC, San Francisco, Raleigh, Albuquerque (omg try spelling that without help), Nashville, Dallas and Arlington.

According to my online submission forms, there’s also heavy requests for Tampa, Las Vegas, Denver, Richmond, Minneapolis, OshKosh, Orlando, Atlanta, Seattle, Vancouver, Jacksonville, Savanah, and Miami, so I’m working on those cities too.

THIS WEEK IN CHICAGO:

Weds 5/28 - Comedians You Should Know

Thursday 5/29 - Laugh Factory 7pm

Saturday 5/31 - Laugh Factory at 7pm

and the MUST SEE —

Jake and I are launching a new monthly show that’s a total vibe and it kicks off Saturday 5/31 at 8pm - Certified Bangers — it’s BYOB, there will be a DJ, musical guest, and top comedians for a night of hangs and a dope ass show. COME!!

Love you all and cheers to the hustle + chill. Let us free ourselves.

xx NPH