A Two Person Job

Gwen Sunkel builds her set around stubborn bad decisions fueled by white wine. The title joke comes from her trying to hang wallpaper alone on a Tuesday night after drinking half a bottle of Chardonnay, only to find a warning label from the manufacturer confirming that the task is, indeed, a two-person job.

Recorded at Almost Famous, a cocktail bar in Indianapolis, the December 2023 special captures Sunkel as she works through the absurdities of her daily life. When she is not on stage, Sunkel is a registered nurse. She points out that telling people about her healthcare career gets the exact same response as telling them she is bisexual: a polite but bewildered “not for me, but good for you though.”

Over the course of the thirty-seven-minute show, Sunkel examines several strange social phenomena, such as how easily former multi-level marketing recruiters find their way into far-right conspiracy groups. Other bits look at the intense self-imposed pressure to vacation aggressively enough to risk stomach trouble from street food, and the exhausting task of managing her senior dachshund’s fear of fireworks. The special was released on YouTube by Four by Three, with an audio version later distributed by Burn This Records.