Latest / This Is My Circus / 🎪 Episode 94: Senior Year Stress, Dating App Wins, The Block Party Book Review & Internet Rabbit Holes

Transcript

🎪 Episode 94: Senior Year Stress, Dating App Wins, The Block Party Book Review & Internet Rabbit Holes · This Is My Circus

• 0:00
  I'm Stephanie.
• 0:00
  I'm Meredith.
• 0:01
  And welcome to This Is My Circus.
• 0:02
  Yeah, so I like our new backdrop here.
• 0:04
  Thank you.
• 0:05
  Mm-hmm.
• 0:05
  I moved the whole office around by myself, and I don't know why I thought that was a good idea.
• 0:10
  Because the desks are very heavy.
• 0:13
  They are.
• 0:13
  They're nice desks.
• 0:14
  They're not like my cheap, particle board crap.
• 0:16
  Well, they're IKEA.
• 0:17
  They're still nice.
• 0:18
  But they're very heavy.
• 0:19
  Yeah.
• 0:20
  The glass is heavy.
• 0:20
  The glass is...
• 0:21
  Yes, and I can attest because I've hit stuff on this several times and it's not broken, so it's really well-made.
• 0:27
  But I did, um, drop my computer screen and it's, chipped on the back now.
• 0:32
  Oh, no.
• 0:33
  Yeah,'cause it slipped.
• 0:34
  Like, that one slipped- Yeah and it just hit everything the right way, and it just was not a good- One of the worst parts about re-situating everything is all the cords.
• 0:43
  You have to unplug everything and then...
• 0:45
  I mean, okay, good,'cause you get everything untangled and you can identify, like, I'm not even using this cord, so I can take it away.
• 0:52
  But then, you have to figure out where everything goes back.
• 0:55
  It wasn't good.
• 0:57
  Well, it looks good in here.
• 0:58
  And it took me way longer than I thought.
• 1:00
  Yeah.
• 1:00
  my estimation was- You're- not on point.
• 1:04
  Well, it was ready by the time I got here today.
• 1:06
  Yeah.
• 1:06
  Well, I got nothing else done though, like, for the podcast.
• 1:09
  Well, you know, we do better when we wing it.
• 1:11
  So- Well, we're winging it we're both winging it today.
• 1:13
  We are winging it.
• 1:13
  I do love, a rearranged room.
• 1:15
  Especially, a bedroom.
• 1:17
  I do, too, but I, again, like, I, there's boxes still everywhere that I need- Sure to find places.
• 1:22
  It- Yeah it's, it's not in, in the backdrop, but it's- Right, right.
• 1:25
  Yeah.
• 1:25
  Yes, there's still more work to be done.
• 1:27
  Our bedroom only has, one layout at home that works, and it's been that way since we've been in the house for 18 years.
• 1:35
  Mm-hmm.
• 1:36
  sometimes I'm like, I really just wanna move things around.
• 1:38
  But it just doesn't work with the way the TV is and everything, so.
• 1:42
  Yeah.
• 1:42
  But I love that feeling.
• 1:44
  This is crazy.
• 1:44
  I love the feeling of waking up and, like, you've rearranged and you're like,"Where am I?" It's a fun little feeling, isn't it?
• 1:52
  I used to rearrange my room all the time as a kid.
• 1:54
  Yeah.
• 1:55
  I did, too.
• 1:55
  Yeah.
• 1:56
  And, like, rearrange all my clothes, like where my clothes were.
• 1:58
  Oh, yeah.
• 2:00
  What was hung up- Mm-hmm what was in the drawers.
• 2:01
  Yeah.
• 2:02
  The home I grew up in was very small.
• 2:04
  Mm-hmm.
• 2:05
  And the closets were very small, so I used to rotate my stuff out, spring or summer and winter and- Yeah you know, take out...
• 2:12
  Not that I had many winter clothes because let's face it, our- Our winter- Our winters down here are not anything, but, just that transition just always felt so, good to get reorganized.
• 2:21
  Yeah.
• 2:22
  Yeah.
• 2:23
  Well.
• 2:23
  Yeah.
• 2:24
  And here we are with a nice, new, cute office oh, goodness.
• 2:26
  So how was your week?
• 2:28
  Honestly, it's been rough.
• 2:30
  Oh, no.
• 2:31
  Why?
• 2:31
  It has been a really rough week.
• 2:33
  If I cry, is that okay?
• 2:34
  Yeah.
• 2:35
  Okay.
• 2:35
  But, like, I love you.
• 2:36
  I know.
• 2:36
  I love you, too.
• 2:38
  So, Jackson had been healing really well and, he pulled a muscle last week in the same shoulder.
• 2:44
  He did nothing wrong.
• 2:45
  Nobody did anything wrong.
• 2:46
  He was at practice and his arm just moved like, like it used to- Yeah like really fast.
• 2:51
  And, it just...
• 2:53
  Anyway, so we took off to the ortho that day'cause he was like,"Mom, it hurts really, re- like I'm scared I already broke it." And of course I'm like,"Of course you didn't." And then I see him and I'm like,"Let's just go ahead and go." So- Yeah We had to go and get it checked out.
• 3:06
  Well, in the meantime while I'm trying to find the ortho urgent care and communicate with his doctor that he's been seeing, I get this, meeting pop up on my computer that says, IT organizational update.
• 3:19
  It's a 15-minute time block.
• 3:20
  It's in, like, one hour, and two HR people are on the call.
• 3:24
  And you know what that means.
• 3:25
  And of course, priority is Jackson, but then I'm like,"Oh, God, I hope I have a job." Yeah.
• 3:29
  And we ended up having the call while I'm driving on the way to take Jackson to Charlotte.
• 3:35
  My job is safe.
• 3:36
  Mm-hmm.
• 3:36
  But in IT organizations, there's always a lot of restructuring.
• 3:39
  You never know what's gonna happen, and roles are turning hybrid and, and all of this.
• 3:44
  But we get in this meeting, and we're all on the line, and it's just like a bunch of hibbity-hooblah- to quote my friend Eminem.
• 3:52
  It's just like I said, organizational updates and keep the consistency of the integrity of the organization and, restructure.
• 4:00
  And I'm like s- do we have a job?
• 4:03
  Who do we report to and what do we do?
• 4:05
  You know, like- Yeah you So I didn't absorb half of the stuff they were saying other than I'm still employed by them.
• 4:10
  Amen.
• 4:10
  Oh my God.
• 4:12
  Um, but yeah, so very emotional week last week.
• 4:14
  Jackson is okay.
• 4:15
  It's just a strained muscle, but it is pretty severe.
• 4:18
  So he's been going to physical therapy, and that's just another layer of frustration.
• 4:23
  I'm so thankful the guy that works with him is really, really good, and he got connected with him through the football coaches.
• 4:30
  Mm-hmm.
• 4:31
  And he's great, but he's in Fort Mill, and from us, that's, like, 45, 50 minutes.
• 4:35
  Anything farther than, like, 20 or 30 minutes, I start to just get anxious, so I check his location the whole time he's gone.
• 4:41
  So I'm anxious about that.
• 4:42
  I'm glad he's getting the PTs.
• 4:43
  They're working on stretching it out, and they're doing the things.
• 4:45
  But he was really down last week.
• 4:48
  And he's still kind of down, and I don't blame him.
• 4:49
  I'm down.
• 4:50
  Yeah.
• 4:51
  As much as I'm excited about this football season and all the fun things, of course my priority is him being healthy.
• 4:57
  But even above the physical healthy, it's mental.
• 5:00
  Yeah.
• 5:00
  And, for athletes that get hurt or injured- it's so tough.
• 5:06
  And like you were talking about going into, your sports- Mm-hmm hypnotherapy stuff.
• 5:10
  Yeah.
• 5:11
  This would be a good thing because, I mean, he's so frust- He's like,"Mama, I did everything right.
• 5:17
  I followed the rules.
• 5:18
  I did the PT.
• 5:19
  I've not," you know, and he's like,"Mm." Yeah.
• 5:21
  And what do you say?
• 5:22
  Yeah.
• 5:22
  And he's so over that.
• 5:24
  It all happens for a reason.
• 5:25
  Yeah.
• 5:25
  And it's- Yeah all gonna work okay, and this was part of God's plan.
• 5:29
  Like, we know all of that.
• 5:30
  Yeah.
• 5:30
  So anyway, you opened a can of worms when you asked how my boy I am so sorry that you had a bad week.
• 5:37
  So it has just been...
• 5:38
  And that is on top of school starts tomorrow in senior year.
• 5:43
  I don't know how you made it through s- I don't know.
• 5:45
  Any parent that has had a child get through senior year, clap, clap them for you, because I'm already a basket case.
• 5:51
  Not only because- It's senior year.
• 5:54
  Yeah.
• 5:55
  I am stressed out about all of these college things that I don't have any idea about.
• 6:00
  Mm-hmm.
• 6:01
  And I need to get off all these Facebook pages- is what I need to do.
• 6:05
  'Cause these people are like, the Common App is open, and has anybody already applied and gotten anything back?" And I'm like,"Oh my God, we don't even...
• 6:12
  I just talked to Jackson about an essay the other day." There are so many...
• 6:15
  And I didn't go to college, so, and even if I would have, it's so different now.
• 6:19
  There's so many steps and so many things to do, and honestly, I feel like I'm floundering.
• 6:24
  Yeah.
• 6:24
  And I don't know who to ask for help.
• 6:26
  Yeah.
• 6:27
  And I know their guidance counselors will help with all that, but there's so many kids.
• 6:32
  And of course, I feel like our situation's different.
• 6:34
  Every family feels like- Yeah but, but we're, we're different.
• 6:36
  We're more important, or we're, you know- Yeah I need more help or whatever.
• 6:38
  So I am just all over the place right now.
• 6:41
  Yeah.
• 6:42
  Hence no notes.
• 6:43
  Same.
• 6:44
  Same.
• 6:45
  Well, if I can help you in any way with any of that stuff- I appreciate it you know that you can call.
• 6:49
  I know.
• 6:50
  I know.
• 6:50
  I don't, I am great at chatting Well, and I, I guess that's just what I'm gonna have to do, I've got like a senior year project.
• 6:58
  Yeah.
• 6:58
  Just be like, respond as a guidance counselor who has helped other kids, and give me step by step what I need to do.
• 7:03
  These people are, already...
• 7:06
  I didn't even know there was a Common App.
• 7:07
  So there's an app that you're supposed to upload all the things in, the references and, right.
• 7:11
  So I'm like, where do y- where do these people even find out this information?
• 7:16
  Dylan in his senior year- Mm-hmm did not share all of the senior stuff.
• 7:21
  They didn't send, like, the parents all these emails- Yeah they sent to the kids.
• 7:24
  The kids are supposed to be responsible.
• 7:25
  Well, and I think that's what they're doing.
• 7:27
  I think that's what they're doing.
• 7:28
  But they're not.
• 7:29
  And they're not.
• 7:29
  Right.
• 7:29
  So we literally missed, like, 70% of the senior things.
• 7:33
  Yeah.
• 7:34
  As far as, like, the activities or- Right like, whatever.
• 7:36
  And Dylan didn't care.
• 7:37
  He was not into senior year.
• 7:38
  He- Yeah just was not into it.
• 7:40
  Yeah.
• 7:41
  But we missed a lot of the senior activities- Yeah because they were sent to- The students- Mm-hmm and the parents and- And I understand that they are starting to get responsible or they should be responsible, but my child is not.
• 7:55
  And mine isn't, obviously mine wasn't either.
• 7:58
  So I feel like that there could be...
• 8:00
  I mean, you've got my, you've been emailing me since he was in kindergarten.
• 8:03
  Listen, you can- Just keeping all of me you can text, you can send emails.
• 8:05
  I know.
• 8:05
  You can do all these things for every, their lunch accounts get below, like, uh, get- Uh-huh 30 cents and you get a call every single day.
• 8:11
  Every day when it's, even if you still have money in there- Yeah but it's just not enough.
• 8:15
  Yeah.
• 8:16
  anyway, so stressed about all that.
• 8:17
  You know, I help with the Adopt an Eagle program.
• 8:20
  Actually, I run it and, that's stressful.
• 8:23
  We don't have enough people, of course, because, people are busy.
• 8:26
  It's a big commitment.
• 8:28
  So been trying to, get all that leveled out.
• 8:30
  I bring all this on myself too, But in my mind I'm like,"Well, I want my child to have that." Yeah.
• 8:34
  So f- I guess if somebody- It's good, yep needs to do it, I'm gonna do it, Well, you're better than me.
• 8:39
  No, no, uh, I'm just- Uh, my, my ex- Not as medicated maybe, I don't know.
• 8:45
  My, volunteering at the school, stopped in sixth grade when COVID hit.
• 8:50
  I get that too.
• 8:51
  I get that too.
• 8:52
  I was done volunteering.
• 8:53
  I get that too.
• 8:54
  Well, on one hand, of course, I'm like, Time, slow down," and the other hand, I'm like,"I'm so ready to be done with this stuff." Mm-hmm.
• 9:01
  so, yeah, I'm just a little- Frazzled Yeah, a little is the wrong word there.
• 9:06
  I'm very frazzled.
• 9:07
  I am just...
• 9:08
  And like I said, I bring it on myself.
• 9:09
  Yeah.
• 9:10
  And not to mention, you know, work.
• 9:11
  Yeah.
• 9:11
  And the lawn care business.
• 9:13
  Yeah.
• 9:13
  And then the wedding.
• 9:13
  It has just been, I am, I am there.
• 9:16
  Yeah.
• 9:16
  I am there.
• 9:18
  And Brian today, he's just, you know, he's watching TV, and I am just like...
• 9:22
  at the point where I didn't even know where to start today.
• 9:25
  You know what I mean?
• 9:25
  Like- What do I and he would just, like, raise his hands up He wanted me to just, like, give him a hug and whatever.
• 9:30
  I was like,"What?""What do you..." I said,"You can't come to me?" It was, it was great.
• 9:34
  It was a really loving moment.
• 9:35
  This is how I've lasted so long, but But I was just, I'm, I'm done.
• 9:41
  and I think we all get that way.
• 9:43
  Yeah.
• 9:43
  That we just get overwhelmed.
• 9:45
  Well, it's the start of school year.
• 9:46
  I think every year is stressful.
• 9:48
  Agreed.
• 9:48
  This is obviously my first year not having any of that.
• 9:51
  How are you feeling?
• 9:53
  Pretty good.
• 9:54
  Good.
• 9:55
  I love that for you.
• 9:58
  But, I mean, yeah, making sure that they have whatever, clothes, shoes- Yeah, yeah the, whatever backpack that they want- Right that year.
• 10:05
  Not that, I don't even know if they use backpacks.
• 10:07
  And Dylan never did, but- He does a backpack just because he usually carries, extra workout stuff in there, whatever, and then his iPad and his food- Yeah and snacks and, usually just snacks.
• 10:15
  Yeah.
• 10:17
  Just the prep is stressful because even though you get your list the teachers want different things- Mm-hmm by the time school starts, um- And that's so frustrating.
• 10:25
  So we haven't had a list thing in a while, or if we do, I just ignore it and we just wing it.
• 10:28
  But, when they're in elementary school and you are trying to be the good parent that gets the things, and then you get to the meet the teacher or whatever, and it's like,"I don't need that, but we'd like extra this" and I'm like,"I already bought it to avoid the crowd," and- but teachers are stressed out, too.
• 10:44
  We're all just there.
• 10:45
  Mm-hmm.
• 10:45
  We're all there together.
• 10:46
  Yeah.
• 10:47
  I get it.
• 10:48
  I think it, I feel like it comes like that with all the kids.
• 10:51
  I, I think it does, yeah.
• 10:52
  You have spurts of like,"Woo-hoo, this is- Right great.
• 10:54
  Life is grand." It's like, why have I ever been stressed out?
• 10:57
  And then it just, it's like- It- the universe is like,"No, sorry, girl" Right.
• 11:05
  Right.
• 11:06
  Wrong.
• 11:07
  I'm sorry.
• 11:08
  Oh, it's a, it'll be, it'll be fine.
• 11:09
  I appreciate it.
• 11:10
  It's gonna be fine, but it's just- Well, again, if I can help you the emotional rollercoaster of, of the things.
• 11:17
  Well, I love you.
• 11:18
  I love you, too.
• 11:20
  Bear with me this next- Not that that helps you at all.
• 11:22
  Yeah.
• 11:23
  No, it, it does,'cause you made it.
• 11:25
  You came out on the other side okay.
• 11:27
  Well, we'll see.
• 11:28
  If this is okay, we are- in some major trouble.
• 11:32
  Oh, my God.
• 11:34
  Oh, so sorry for that, that rant.
• 11:37
  It's all good.
• 11:37
  Yeah just a lot going.
• 11:38
  It's life.
• 11:38
  It, yeah, it really is.
• 11:40
  Yeah.
• 11:40
  A lot going off.
• 11:41
  So, we've always said, we're just gonna, you know, tell the people- This is life what's going on.
• 11:45
  Th- this is, this is it.
• 11:46
  This is what's going on.
• 11:47
  So, if you see me out and about, I'm a basket case right now, as my other class of'27 parents probably are also.
• 11:53
  Or the class of'26, where they're going off to college.
• 11:55
  Oh, my God, I can't even think about that.
• 11:57
  Mm-hmm.
• 11:58
  I'm gonna be a blubbering mess.
• 11:59
  It's gonna be okay.
• 12:01
  I guess it will be okay.
• 12:02
  How have you been?
• 12:03
  How have you been?
• 12:04
  Good.
• 12:05
  For now.
• 12:07
  I'm afraid to jinx myself.
• 12:08
  And because the universe is getting ready to face-palm you.
• 12:11
  Yes.
• 12:13
  But no, it's my turn right now.
• 12:14
  It's okay.
• 12:14
  It's my turn to be a basket case, so you're in a good stretch.
• 12:17
  Well, we'll see.
• 12:18
  I don't know.
• 12:20
  Universe, I've learned my lessons.
• 12:22
  I don't need any more.
• 12:24
  So what you been up to?
• 12:26
  Um, date.
• 12:26
  Yay.
• 12:28
  Dating updates.
• 12:28
  Yes.
• 12:29
  So, I was talking to this guy- Mm-hmm on Facebook Dating, and he had sent, a funny, response to one of my pictures.
• 12:37
  It was like, I don't know,"Let me...
• 12:40
  w- how can I set my application?" Like, I'll have the perfect date or something.
• 12:42
  I'm like,"Well, let's hear the date details first." Yeah slow down.
• 12:46
  Yeah.
• 12:46
  And so He said,"Well, I need more information first," and he asked me, like, 30 questions, and then came back with two different date ideas.
• 12:53
  Okay.
• 12:54
  Which I was like, okay, that's, um, like, that's- So the questions were to help determine what kind of date?
• 13:00
  Yeah.
• 13:00
  What were the two date options?
• 13:02
  Okay, so, it was a two-day date, so- Okay two, like, Friday and a Saturday.
• 13:05
  Okay.
• 13:05
  And so Friday would've been dinner to, get to know each other- Mm-hmm before we have to go in a car together.
• 13:09
  Okay, that's good.
• 13:11
  That's exactly what he said.
• 13:12
  He's like- That's good.
• 13:13
  "Let, we can do dinner on so that we get to know each other and it's not so uncomfortable the next day- Mm-hmm when we're in a car together." Okay.
• 13:19
  And then the second date would be, like, like, a animal zoo safari.
• 13:22
  Okay, fun.
• 13:23
  Yeah.
• 13:23
  And I was like...
• 13:24
  Good choice.
• 13:25
  Good choice.
• 13:26
  Okay.
• 13:26
  Um, or, like, hiking to waterfalls, which is also, Yeah something I love.
• 13:30
  Yeah.
• 13:31
  So I was like, okay, well, he put thought into- Mm-hmm and, effort into asking me questions.
• 13:36
  Mm-hmm.
• 13:36
  And, he responded to every question, not just,"Okay, next question." He responded and it was, he- He was processing it was really good.
• 13:43
  Good.
• 13:43
  So then, he's like,"Oh, I'm taking my- kids to the lake this week before school starts.
• 13:51
  If you're not doing anything, come hang out." Which we hadn't gone on either of those two dates yet.
• 13:55
  You'd just been doing 20 questions.
• 13:57
  Okay.
• 13:57
  So I'm like,"Well, maybe.
• 13:59
  Where's the lake?" So I, I did hang out with him this week.
• 14:04
  Awesome guy.
• 14:05
  Good.
• 14:06
  He could have pushed you over into the lake and you could be a goner listen, I told him I don't do slimy, like, gross- Mm-hmm fish and bait- Mm-hmm and all the gross things that are at a lake.
• 14:17
  Okay.
• 14:18
  Told him it was a deal breaker.
• 14:19
  How do you feel about, like, the bottom of a lake where it's slimy?
• 14:22
  I think that's disgusting.
• 14:22
  Yeah,'cause like- Like, I don't wanna be in a lake.
• 14:23
  No, yeah.
• 14:23
  I'm good with almost every other...
• 14:25
  Like, I'm good with rivers.
• 14:26
  Yeah.
• 14:27
  I'm good with moving water, like- Mm-hmm ocean.
• 14:29
  Mm-hmm.
• 14:29
  Mm-hmm.
• 14:30
  But a lake, mm-mm.
• 14:33
  I started thinking too much about it.
• 14:35
  Mm-hmm.
• 14:35
  I think too much about the snakes that are around me.
• 14:38
  Snakes and, the nasty catfish and all- Uh-huh.
• 14:41
  That are, like, as big as a Volkswagen- Yeah you hear the stories about.
• 14:44
  Gosh, no thank you.
• 14:45
  I am- Mm.
• 14:46
  O- but he did buy a pink, flamingo blow-up if I wanted to get into it.
• 14:54
  Oh, that's cute.
• 14:55
  But, like, no.
• 14:55
  That's cute.
• 14:56
  Did you, did you get in?
• 14:56
  I did not.
• 14:57
  Okay.
• 14:57
  No, absolutely not.
• 14:59
  And then, his daughter and her boyfriend were on a paddleboard and, like, they were, like, knocking each other off, so he's like- Yeah"Oh, do you wanna go on the paddleboard?" I'm like,"Mm-mm." Nope.
• 15:06
  Nope, I'm good.
• 15:06
  That looks, that looks dangerous.
• 15:07
  I'm fine over here.
• 15:08
  I am good.
• 15:09
  Don't wanna- He's like,"I'm not gonna knock you off." I'm like,"I- Mm I'm sure you won't.
• 15:12
  I'm good." I'm fine.
• 15:13
  "On land." I'm fine.
• 15:14
  A few years ago we went to Florida and rented a boat with, my, whole family.
• 15:20
  And we're having a good time, we've got our coolers and, you know, just having a great time in the middle of the Gulf.
• 15:27
  And, you know, you have to pee.
• 15:28
  And you're like,"Oh, I'll just jump off and pee." And you do, and then I'm crawling back up into the boat on the little ladder and I'm like,"There's gonna be a shark come take my legs off." That's all I could think about, was my legs are getting ready to just be ripped off by a shark.
• 15:43
  Did you see that there's, a huge massive, unheard ofly big shark, on the coast of, like, New York- Oh, no or New Jersey area?
• 15:50
  No.
• 15:50
  Yeah.
• 15:51
  Oh.
• 15:51
  It's, bigger than any shark that they've tracked- Oh so far.
• 15:55
  Since you said that, I just had a dream about stingrays, that I was, like, looking off a balcony and I saw stingrays in the water.
• 16:01
  That's weird, huh?
• 16:02
  This is what we do when we don't have notes.
• 16:04
  Is it, one of those sharks, is it tagged?
• 16:06
  You know, they get, sometimes they'll tag them- I, I didn't- so they can follow'em I, I was not opening up the article because- Yeah like, you have to- Oh, yeah sift through all the pop-ups- You're, you're right and everything.
• 16:13
  Yeah.
• 16:13
  But it just said it was, a massive, like- Okay bigger than any shark that they've- A megalodon yeah, like- Yeah some crazy big thing, off the coast of I wanna say it was in New York and New Jersey.
• 16:22
  I guess it was, like, traveling.
• 16:23
  Yeah, yeah.
• 16:24
  But- Yeah yeah There was, there was one several years ago, I think it's name was Mary, and they had it tagged and I would follow it.
• 16:30
  But, you know what I love?
• 16:31
  You were talking about the articles.
• 16:32
  When these heroes will be like,"Don't click the article.
• 16:37
  All it's saying is blah blah blah," and I'm like,"Thank you." Yeah.
• 16:40
  Those are the great people- Mm-hmm in the world.
• 16:42
  Yeah,'cause, who wants the freaking pop-ups?
• 16:44
  So date was good.
• 16:45
  Another date this weekend with him.
• 16:47
  Good.
• 16:48
  So.
• 16:48
  Good, that's exciting.
• 16:49
  I like a man who can plan ahead and- Yeah Do it properly.
• 16:54
  Yeah.
• 16:55
  Oh, he walked me out to the car, opened up the car door.
• 16:57
  We were just talking about this the other day.
• 16:58
  Like two podcasts ago.
• 16:59
  Yeah.
• 17:00
  But like opened up the car door, like just- That's, that's very nice.
• 17:03
  He's just a good guy.
• 17:04
  That's kind.
• 17:05
  Is he tall?
• 17:06
  Uh, he was, he was taller than me.
• 17:08
  Like not like- Yes everybody's taller than you.
• 17:12
  Yes, he was taller than me.
• 17:13
  I don't know.
• 17:14
  I could wear heels.
• 17:17
  My pocket purse is- that's all I'm worried about is can I put heels on?
• 17:20
  So he's taller than 5'2" and a half.
• 17:21
  Got it.
• 17:23
  Yeah, so.
• 17:23
  That's nice.
• 17:24
  I'm glad he's a nice guy.
• 17:25
  Yes.
• 17:25
  And I don't have to whoop that ass.
• 17:28
  I did wanna tell you though, and we talked a little, just for a second about this.
• 17:31
  We were talking about sports psychology or whatever.
• 17:34
  Mm-hmm.
• 17:34
  Or the hypnosis.
• 17:35
  I had talked about being able to major in sports performance.
• 17:39
  It is sports psychology.
• 17:40
  Mm.
• 17:41
  That's what it is.
• 17:42
  And all the people that listen might have been like,"Meredith, get your facts straight." And you know, that's all I am is- I don't know if our listeners are listening like that.
• 17:52
  I think they're listening for our like random- I don't.
• 17:55
  They're listening for nothing but the 100% facts raccoons.
• 17:58
  Oh my gosh, speaking of raccoons.
• 18:01
  Jimothy, since the, the raccoon Jimothy with the weird spine issue, there's apparently like a whole animal kingdom with the s- the same issues.
• 18:11
  Like- Like it wasn't just a one-off?
• 18:12
  No, I'm seeing German shepherds with the same thing that have been- No, I don't like this at all but now he's getting adopted c- because he's like getting- Jimothy attention because of Jimothy.
• 18:24
  It's the Jimothy effect, I guess.
• 18:26
  There's, yeah, yeah.
• 18:28
  He's everywhere, and everybody's like,"We love him, we love him," and I'm like,"Er, mm." I'm like-"I loved him from before.
• 18:36
  I don't wanna see him run.
• 18:37
  Don't run.
• 18:38
  Don't run." Why did he do a wheelbarrow race?
• 18:41
  No, that's front paws.
• 18:44
  His front paws would be down, and I'd be holding his back paws.
• 18:47
  It'd be normal.
• 18:49
  Just like every other raccoon wheelbarrow race.
• 18:53
  Oh my God, I love you.
• 18:55
  I love you, too.
• 18:56
  Yeah, yeah.
• 18:59
  That was great.
• 18:59
  That was great.
• 19:00
  Yep.
• 19:00
  That was fabulous.
• 19:01
  Oh, listen to what I taught Brian this week.
• 19:03
  Oh, what?
• 19:04
  We were going- Teach me okay.
• 19:06
  We, you probably already know.
• 19:07
  I was like,"Brian, are you serious right now?" We were driving somewhere, and it was like 60 miles away, and we were on the interstate.
• 19:13
  Mm-hmm.
• 19:13
  And I was like,"Okay, we'll get there in an hour." he said,"How do you know that?" I was like,"'Cause you're going 60 miles an hour." I-"And that means we'll get there in an h-", he was like,"That's not what that means." I said,"Well, then what does that mean?" He did not adapt.
• 19:26
  My Brian, who knows all the driving things.
• 19:29
  That shocks me.
• 19:29
  Yes.
• 19:30
  As much as when I told you he liked Lisa on Saved by the Bell.
• 19:33
  Yeah.
• 19:37
  That was funny.
• 19:37
  Listen, Brian is full of surprises.
• 19:39
  He is.
• 19:40
  After all these years.
• 19:41
  After all these years, so I taught him something about vehicular stuff.
• 19:47
  I am impressed.
• 19:48
  I know.
• 19:48
  I'm so impressed.
• 19:49
  It won't happen again.
• 19:50
  No.
• 19:50
  No, and if it does, it'll be in like 24 more years, or however long we've been together.
• 19:56
  Well, I did see something funny, and, somebody was commenting on an article that they saw, so like I don't have the actual article.
• 20:02
  Okay.
• 20:03
  But it was a missing drunk man spent hours helping a search party look for himself.
• 20:08
  Oh my gosh.
• 20:10
  So one, okay, there's so many things- Oh wrong with this, right?
• 20:12
  Yeah.
• 20:13
  Okay.
• 20:13
  So one, how did nobody know who they're looking for?
• 20:16
  Mm.
• 20:16
  Because if he's among them- Mm-hmm and then was he like,"I was here earlier, but where did I go?" That, you, okay, so you're right.
• 20:26
  If I'm looking for you, I know what you look like.
• 20:29
  Was everybody else drunk with him?
• 20:31
  Right.
• 20:31
  It was his whole party.
• 20:32
  It was the whole party.
• 20:33
  They're like,"We lost Tim.""We just can't find Tim," and, and Tim is like,"Oh my God, again?" I was o- I was just right over there.
• 20:41
  That is hilarious.
• 20:43
  Like how?
• 20:44
  And how did he reveal like,"Oh, wait, I found me"?
• 20:48
  How did that happen?
• 20:50
  That's- Did he get a reward?
• 20:51
  Oh, probably.
• 20:53
  That's hilarious.
• 20:55
  I mean..
• 20:56
  Tim, can you hear me?
• 20:58
  Tim.
• 21:00
  That's hilarious.
• 21:02
  He was, he was very drunk.
• 21:04
  But was everybody else drunk is what I need to know.
• 21:07
  Was it- Or, were they just in it for the drama?
• 21:11
  Like"We're just going to help." I don't know.
• 21:13
  Like- But like how do you not know who you're looking for?
• 21:15
  And this man that's so, so you wouldn't even know if, if you found them.
• 21:19
  Yeah.
• 21:20
  'Cause at any moment they all could have been like,"Tim." Oh my gosh, that's great.
• 21:28
  I hadn't heard that story.
• 21:29
  I just don't understand.
• 21:30
  Yeah.
• 21:31
  There's a lot wrong with that story, but it's hilarious.
• 21:34
  It, it's mm-mm.
• 21:36
  Mm-mm?
• 21:36
  Mm-mm.
• 21:37
  Not your, not your favorite?
• 21:38
  No.
• 21:38
  We did talk about the, Dirty Dancing, festival, didn't we a couple weeks ago?
• 21:42
  Maybe.
• 21:43
  It is, in September.
• 21:45
  Okay.
• 21:45
  It's at Mountain Lake Lodge, Pembroke, Virginia.
• 21:49
  So they used to do it in Lake Lure.
• 21:51
  Mm-hmm.
• 21:52
  Is that what we were talking about before?
• 21:53
  Mm-hmm.
• 21:53
  Okay.
• 21:54
  I guess because we talked about it, I got hit with the, ad for it.
• 21:59
  So they used to do that in Lake Lure, and you could go and...
• 22:03
  Well, I honestly, I don't know if the festival was there, but I know you could do tours there, but Brian and I did the tour.
• 22:10
  Did you?
• 22:11
  Mm-hmm.
• 22:11
  We were dating, and we went to Lake Lure for the day, and it was this pontoon boat ride through Lake Lure, and everybody else was like 70, and me and Brian were, like, in our 20s, like- riding around.
• 22:22
  You can see the place where, he carries the watermelons.
• 22:24
  Mm-hmm.
• 22:25
  You know when he's, like, juggling them?
• 22:26
  Yeah.
• 22:27
  Yeah, up the stairs.
• 22:27
  Mm-hmm.
• 22:28
  Whatever.
• 22:28
  You can see that.
• 22:29
  And there were some more scenes that took place up there.
• 22:32
  I love that movie.
• 22:34
  Yeah.
• 22:34
  Did you love the movie?
• 22:35
  I loved it, yeah.
• 22:36
  I didn't think Patrick Swayze was hot though.
• 22:38
  I never did, no.
• 22:38
  No.
• 22:39
  No.
• 22:39
  I mean, he can move.
• 22:40
  Well, yeah.
• 22:41
  But, like, m I'm not a f- fan of m- his face.
• 22:48
  That's gonna be my new response.
• 22:50
  Ugh.
• 22:50
  Look at your face.
• 22:50
  You can use it.
• 22:56
  That's gonna be my new pickup line.
• 22:59
  It's not y- you, I'm just not a fan of your face.
• 23:06
  Oh, God, it was great.
• 23:07
  That's hilarious.
• 23:07
  It was great.
• 23:08
  Did you know that ever since the Michael Jackson movie has come out, there's, all this hype on how hot people think he is?
• 23:15
  He was never hot in my mind.
• 23:17
  Mm-hmm.
• 23:17
  I agree with you.
• 23:18
  No.
• 23:19
  Somebody s- commented, they were like,"Lowkey, he's hot," or whatever, and somebody was like,"That's not a secret.
• 23:24
  We all think he's hot." And I'm like,"That wasn't a thing back in the day." Mm-hmm.
• 23:27
  Nobody thought he was hot.
• 23:28
  We- everybody just liked the way he danced, and everybody kind of thought he was gay or bisexual.
• 23:33
  Mm-hmm.
• 23:33
  Which, whatever.
• 23:34
  But there was never- Yeah a, a big talk about his hotness.
• 23:38
  And now that's just the thing.
• 23:39
  They all think he's hot.
• 23:40
  Yeah.
• 23:41
  That's weird.
• 23:41
  It's very weird.
• 23:43
  Did you see the movie?
• 23:44
  No.
• 23:45
  It's a good one.
• 23:45
  Well, maybe one day.
• 23:47
  Maybe.
• 23:48
  Mm.
• 23:48
  Maybe.
• 23:49
  I, I enjoyed it.
• 23:50
  I'm a Michael Jackson fan.
• 23:52
  Well, this isn't about movies, but- Okay you know black panthers aren't supposed to, exist in the United States, like- Mm-hmm in the wild.
• 23:59
  Mm-hmm.
• 23:59
  Um, and- But we got a whole team of them uptown.
• 24:03
  Prum pum.
• 24:08
  I thought you said you weren't gonna be funny today.
• 24:11
  Oh yeah, that one was a good one.
• 24:13
  That one's a good one.
• 24:13
  Anyway, they're not supposed to exist in the wild.
• 24:15
  But the, somebody on their trail cam or whatever, have...
• 24:18
  And it was not the shitty grainy- Mm-hmm video.
• 24:21
  It's in 4K, like legit video of black panthers walking up to the camera.
• 24:28
  That is crazy.
• 24:30
  In the US?
• 24:30
  Yeah.
• 24:31
  That is insane In Tennessee?
• 24:34
  Mm-hmm.
• 24:34
  That's not too far from here.
• 24:37
  No.
• 24:38
  No.
• 24:39
  Not at all.
• 24:40
  Not far at all.
• 24:41
  It's just like a state over.
• 24:42
  Mm-hmm.
• 24:44
  Yeah.
• 24:45
  I'm kind of freaked out.
• 24:45
  Mm-hmm.
• 24:46
  It was, like, staring right into my soul.
• 24:50
  Okay, so I'm thinking people had them, let them loose, and then they've- That was my initial thought too, but I mean, who knows?
• 24:56
  I don't know.
• 24:58
  I still think, if a tornado hit a zoo, Oh, yeah well, then they lost that giraffe.
• 25:05
  What?
• 25:05
  They lost a giraffe.
• 25:06
  Recently?
• 25:07
  Yeah.
• 25:08
  A couple weeks ago.
• 25:09
  You didn't hear this?
• 25:09
  I thought it was a, I thought I heard a lion.
• 25:12
  No, it was a giraffe.
• 25:12
  How the heck do you lose, a 40-foot animal?
• 25:16
  Do you think it had on the glasses with the nose and the mustache?
• 25:20
  It had a tree hat on, so it could be.
• 25:22
  Yeah.
• 25:22
  I mean, they caught it after, three, four days.
• 25:27
  But, like, how do you lose a giraffe?
• 25:30
  Okay, so even if you're in the forest, can't we fly over with, heat sensor things, whatever they're called?
• 25:39
  I would still think you can see his head, like, whoop-a-doop.
• 25:40
  Yeah.
• 25:41
  Well, that too, but okay, so super tall.
• 25:43
  Super tall.
• 25:44
  Mm-hmm.
• 25:44
  If you still did, a heat thing, you'd see a giraffe shape item.
• 25:49
  With the weird little things on the top of the head.
• 25:51
  I don't even know what those are for.
• 25:52
  It's such a weird looking animal, right?
• 25:54
  They are looking- Like, they have these, like, weird...
• 25:56
  Like, what happened in the makeup of a giraffe?
• 25:59
  What's the point of them?
• 26:01
  They're cool enough.
• 26:01
  Eat the leaves of the trees, but why?
• 26:03
  Up high.
• 26:04
  I don't know.
• 26:05
  They're weird-looking, and then the things, I don't remember the name of them, but, like, the front is a zebra, and the back is Have you seen those?
• 26:12
  Back is like what?
• 26:13
  Like a horse.
• 26:14
  Like, it's only a half zebra?
• 26:16
  Yeah.
• 26:16
  How does that happen?
• 26:18
  It's a breed of animal or whatever.
• 26:20
  Breed- A speci- species.
• 26:22
  Whatever variation?
• 26:23
  No, that's not it.
• 26:24
  I don't know.
• 26:24
  I don't know the word either.
• 26:25
  It's a type of animal.
• 26:28
  Hold on.
• 26:28
  I'm gonna pull it up they're called okapis or something like that.
• 26:32
  Oh, I don't like that I don't either.
• 26:33
  It looks- I don't like that at all weird, like, like look at the face.
• 26:36
  No.
• 26:36
  No.
• 26:37
  No.
• 26:37
  It's like God had all these leftover stripes, right?
• 26:41
  And then he had s- like the horse body, and then- It's like alien.
• 26:45
  That's not- Like a hyena face, and was like,"Let's just put this together"- No.
• 26:49
  That-"'cause we don't wanna waste anything." That's like a skin walker or whatever they call'em that's- Yeah just got like really thin legs.
• 26:53
  The baby, though, the baby's cute.
• 26:55
  Nuh-uh.
• 26:56
  You could put pants on it, you'd never know.
• 26:59
  That face is mean.
• 27:01
  Yeah, that face kinda looks evil.
• 27:02
  Oh, I don't like that at all.
• 27:04
  No.
• 27:04
  Yeah.
• 27:05
  They're not native to here, but then again, neither are black panthers.
• 27:09
  Look at their thighs on...
• 27:11
  Wait, I don't even know which way that's going.
• 27:13
  It's like one of those optical illusions.
• 27:15
  I don't like this.
• 27:16
  Can we not look at those anymore?
• 27:18
  You wanna talk about something else?
• 27:19
  Those are scary.
• 27:20
  Like, they're scary-looking.
• 27:21
  Okay.
• 27:22
  Do you, do you think that they're not scary?
• 27:23
  I think they're very odd.
• 27:25
  Mm, I don't like that.
• 27:25
  I'm not scared of it.
• 27:27
  Well, you are- But I do think it's- very brave, my friend.
• 27:30
  Well, I wouldn't take it that far.
• 27:32
  I would not take it that far.
• 27:34
  So what is the main thing that, that, like, pops up in your algorithm?
• 27:37
  Animals?
• 27:38
  Yeah.
• 27:38
  Okay.
• 27:39
  What would Date dude- Mm-hmm did say he was thinking of getting a mini, miniature cow Shut up I know.
• 27:46
  I was like,"I can cuddle it." I'm a really good cuddler.
• 27:48
  I never cuddled a cow before, but I'm sure I would be great.
• 27:51
  I think I am fully equipped for that.
• 27:53
  Yeah, I s- I cuddled a baby goat.
• 27:55
  Oh, yeah.
• 27:55
  That was life-changing.
• 27:56
  And- Yes, that goat loved you.
• 27:58
  I loved the goat.
• 28:01
  That was so much fun.
• 28:03
  Oh my gosh.
• 28:03
  We need to find some more baby animals.
• 28:05
  Somebody with baby goats, please.
• 28:08
  Any baby animal.
• 28:09
  Well, but not the okapi, whatever it was called.
• 28:11
  Mm-mm.
• 28:12
  Not, we don't want a baby one of those things.
• 28:13
  Or reptiles.
• 28:14
  No.
• 28:15
  Something furry.
• 28:17
  Fuzzy, cuddly.
• 28:18
  Mm-hmm.
• 28:19
  Not bitey.
• 28:20
  Not bitey.
• 28:22
  I was thinking, like, spiders could be.
• 28:24
  Ew.
• 28:24
  That's not- Yeah that's not an animal It's an arachnid.
• 28:27
  Bug.
• 28:27
  It's still under the animal- It's a bug category.
• 28:29
  Okay, okay, okay.
• 28:30
  Maybe a mammal.
• 28:31
  Yes, yes.
• 28:33
  A mammal.
• 28:33
  A, a mammal.
• 28:34
  That's ex- you're so smart.
• 28:36
  You know, I, I tell everybody all the time,"You are the brains and the beauty" and here you are proving it again.
• 28:40
  I am not the brains.
• 28:42
  We had debated this week over- the classification of a bird.
• 28:49
  You know- It's its own category- You know- of Aries.
• 28:52
  You know what?
• 28:54
  We all have our moments, and it's okay.
• 28:57
  It's okay.
• 28:58
  Those pants look comfy.
• 28:59
  They are so comfy.
• 28:59
  Yeah.
• 28:59
  Gosh.
• 29:00
  They're comfy.
• 29:02
  I am, ready for sweatpant season.
• 29:04
  Mm-hmm.
• 29:05
  And, like, hoodie season.
• 29:06
  Mm-hmm.
• 29:06
  I'm ready for hoodie season.
• 29:07
  I bought this, at Walmart, nonetheless, and it was on sale and I was like,"Well, come on, it's like, six bucks, so if it doesn't work, whatever." It's a set, and it is so...
• 29:16
  It probably kinda feels like that.
• 29:18
  Mm-hmm.
• 29:19
  And it's the shorts and the shirt.
• 29:20
  Mm-hmm.
• 29:21
  And it's so comfy.
• 29:24
  Yeah.
• 29:24
  I actually got two.
• 29:25
  Yeah.
• 29:26
  Two sets.
• 29:27
  Yeah.
• 29:28
  I went bathing suit shopping.
• 29:29
  Yeah.
• 29:30
  And ended up with sweatpants.
• 29:32
  I was like,"You know what?" Did you find a swimsuit?
• 29:36
  I did, but it's really cute too.
• 29:38
  Yeah.
• 29:38
  But, yeah, I ended up with two pairs of sweatpants and a bathing suit.
• 29:41
  That's not the way that was supposed to happen.
• 29:43
  No, but they're so comfortable.
• 29:44
  Those are super cute.
• 29:45
  Thank you.
• 29:46
  What else you got going on?
• 29:47
  Can we also want to talk about anything else?
• 29:48
  I don't know.
• 29:49
  You wanna do, uh, the am I the a-hole?
• 29:50
  Yes.
• 29:51
  Okay.
• 29:51
  You got one for us?
• 29:52
  Am I the a-hole for dating a friend's ex-side piece?
• 29:56
  Okay.
• 29:56
  Let's go.
• 29:58
  Okay.
• 29:59
  So all of this started around five months ago.
• 30:01
  A guy I used to know around three years ago texted me on Telegram asking how I am.
• 30:05
  I won't go into detail, but we started dating pretty soon after.
• 30:09
  We were dating for four months when he decided to cheat on me with a friend.
• 30:12
  During those months, he introduced me to lots of new friends in his town, and we all hung out a lot.
• 30:17
  One of those friends, let's call her Janice, was particularly close to him and me.
• 30:23
  She's a rather special kind of person.
• 30:24
  She can be really nice and fun to hang out with, but at the same time, she can be a very trashy friend.
• 30:30
  She talks shit about everyone, probably definitely about me as well.
• 30:34
  We got along fine, and she also introduced me to many new people, including a very important guy, we'll call him Jake, who at the time was basically her side piece.
• 30:43
  She has a boyfriend and admitted to cheating on him with Jake.
• 30:46
  Apparently she was- Yeah.
• 30:47
  Yeah.
• 30:48
  Apparently she was having issues in the relationship.
• 30:50
  I don't think that's an excuse, but whatever, and so she decided Jake would be better for her.
• 30:55
  She was telling him she loves him.
• 30:56
  They had attempted to have sex with each other, but he said he couldn't do it with her for multiple reasons.
• 31:02
  So let's get more to the actual story.
• 31:04
  Around a month or a few weeks before I broke up with my ex, Janice, my ex, and me were driving to McDonald's with Jake.
• 31:11
  This was the first time I met him.
• 31:12
  I didn't really think about him in any way besides him being a nice guy.
• 31:15
  I was happy for Janice for finding somebody good for her.
• 31:18
  At the time, my relationship with my ex was already not going well, but I didn't think about cheating or anything.
• 31:23
  I wanted my ex to be like Jake, but nothing more.
• 31:25
  After we met that day, we never talked again until I met him at my birthday party.
• 31:29
  Janice invited him and we got along.
• 31:30
  At that point, me and my ex were broken up.
• 31:33
  To say it quickly, we got along, it turned into more than friends.
• 31:36
  I won't go into much detail.
• 31:38
  Okay.
• 31:39
  But- Why?
• 31:40
  Come on.
• 31:41
  Why are you on Reddit then?
• 31:42
  Why?
• 31:42
  That's what we're here for.
• 31:43
  Okay.
• 31:44
  We decided to start dating, not public yet, but dating.
• 31:47
  Around a week later, I was sleeping at his place and found out my ex was stalking my location.
• 31:52
  He figured out I was at Jake's place and he told Janice.
• 31:55
  She spammed me with tons of messages and calls while I was at work.
• 31:59
  I called her back when I had time and denied everything about me and Jake.
• 32:04
  Why deny it though?
• 32:05
  Right.
• 32:06
  She asked Jake and he denied everything as well.
• 32:08
  We agreed we wouldn't tell anyone from that friend group as they tend to be a bit psycho and live off of drama.
• 32:14
  So am I the a-hole for dating my friend's ex side piece?
• 32:17
  So, like, are you dating or are you just- Friends with benefits?
• 32:21
  Yeah, because how are you not gonna tell a whole group of people?
• 32:24
  Right.
• 32:24
  Like, you can't go out in public?
• 32:26
  Are you just doing it?
• 32:27
  I don't know if you're an a-hole or you're just making really bad choices that you're gonna get found out.
• 32:34
  Yeah, like there's...
• 32:35
  I mean, especially if you look at your location.
• 32:38
  Right.
• 32:38
  I hope you turn that off.
• 32:39
  Right.
• 32:40
  Yeah, f- side note, let's, let's make sure that all of those are turned off.
• 32:43
  So Janice is a friend that she met through her ex.
• 32:47
  So, I mean, I don't know what the loyalty is there anyway, but- But it was a side piece, Right I think it was her, like, uh- Ex-fiance or- Yeah something, yeah.
• 32:54
  So I don't think, no, I don't think you're the a- I think you're making bad choices.
• 32:57
  Yeah.
• 32:58
  But not just- I think you're the a-hole for lying.
• 33:00
  Yeah.
• 33:00
  You should have just, like owned up to it- Right and said,"Yeah, and?" Right.
• 33:03
  Yeah.
• 33:04
  Yeah, you do you, do what you want to, but I mean, people are gonna find out and if you're in public, people are gonna know.
• 33:10
  Yeah.
• 33:11
  It's gonna get back to somebody.
• 33:12
  Yeah.
• 33:13
  Especially, like you said, locations.
• 33:14
  Mm.
• 33:15
  Turn that off.
• 33:15
  No.
• 33:16
  Don't give those out freely.
• 33:18
  No, don't give those out freely.
• 33:20
  But she's 19.
• 33:21
  I yeah.
• 33:21
  I have your location.
• 33:22
  Did I ever share mine with you?
• 33:23
  Mm-hmm.
• 33:23
  Yeah.
• 33:24
  See, you keep me safe.
• 33:25
  Yes.
• 33:27
  I told I told the date guy, I'm like,"Um, like five people have my location." Yeah.
• 33:32
  Just so you know.
• 33:32
  Just to let you know.
• 33:33
  Don't kill me.
• 33:33
  They know where I am.
• 33:34
  Don't kill me.
• 33:35
  Mm-hmm, nope, don't do it.
• 33:36
  Yeah.
• 33:37
  Not the a-hole, but just, 19 year old.
• 33:39
  Yeah.
• 33:40
  When you're a 19 year old, Just be honest.
• 33:44
  Lying about it's not gonna get you anywhere.
• 33:45
  It's just gonna- I think- get you in trouble later on down the line I think she's doing a lot of lying to herself and to everybody because she was like,"It's not that I wanted Jake like that, I just wanted my boyfriend to be like Jake." Come on, girl.
• 33:55
  Mm-hmm.
• 33:55
  At that point, you're already thinking about Jake.
• 33:57
  Mm-hmm.
• 33:58
  From State Farm.
• 34:00
  Wearing khakis.
• 34:01
  Yes, and the red polo.
• 34:02
  Yes.
• 34:03
  Yeah, just, just- Do better be honest.
• 34:06
  It'll be easier in the long run.
• 34:08
  Yeah.
• 34:08
  The more you, the more you hold off, the harder it's gonna be.
• 34:12
  Not the a-hole, but just making bad choices.
• 34:14
  I- There we go.
• 34:15
  If every problem was that easy.
• 34:17
  Listen, we, we should be- Uh-huh advice givers.
• 34:20
  100%.
• 34:21
  We need to call in.
• 34:22
  We need to call in.
• 34:24
  You should, you should just hook that up.
• 34:26
  How do we do that?
• 34:27
  I don't know.
• 34:27
  I can- ChatGPT it though.
• 34:31
  Like I ChatGPT'd how to fix a leaky faucet.
• 34:33
  I'm rooting for that though.
• 34:35
  Did you?
• 34:35
  What'd you have to do, get under there and like- No, like I had to take a whole, apart the whole faucet thingy and then put new pieces inside of it And I had to use like some kind of plumber grease.
• 34:45
  I went to the store, I had no clue like what to look for.
• 34:47
  You should've gone and asked Brian.
• 34:48
  Well, Brian wasn't there.
• 34:49
  I did go to Lowe's.
• 34:49
  Oh.
• 34:50
  I asked somebody else that worked there.
• 34:53
  Oh.
• 34:53
  So yes, I went I put it all back together, and I used all the right tools.
• 34:56
  I'm just, oh, I'm just curious about the YouTube video you watched.
• 35:00
  Was it like how to fix a sink for ladies?
• 35:03
  Like- No okay, you take this thingy and this round thing.
• 35:06
  I ChatGPT'd it first.
• 35:08
  Oh, okay.
• 35:08
  And then I asked ChatGPT to find me a video to show me exactly what I needed.
• 35:12
  Okay.
• 35:13
  Okay.
• 35:14
  You know, I love ChatGPT.
• 35:16
  So, I love it but it fixed it, and I was so proud of myself.
• 35:18
  I'm proud of, I'm proud of you.
• 35:20
  I was like doing a little bit of a happy dance.
• 35:21
  I'm proud of you.
• 35:22
  That's a huge thing.
• 35:23
  Yeah.
• 35:23
  That's intimidating, stuff like that.
• 35:25
  Yeah.
• 35:25
  I was like,"I'm either gonna flood this house or-" we are not gonna have a leaky faucet anymore." Right.
• 35:31
  Good for you, though.
• 35:32
  Thank you.
• 35:33
  I'm proud of you for that.
• 35:34
  Me too.
• 35:34
  Mm-hmm.
• 35:35
  Yes.
• 35:35
  Now you can fix anything.
• 35:37
  Pat on my shoulder.
• 35:39
  well, if you are not a bookie- Oh, wait, let's watch a doc next week.
• 35:43
  Okay.
• 35:43
  Do we need to announce that here?
• 35:44
  We can, yes.
• 35:45
  So Toxic Love Story on Netflix.
• 35:48
  Yes.
• 35:48
  Yep.
• 35:48
  If you're not a bookie, you can leave now.
• 35:50
  We love you.
• 35:50
  Thank you for listening.
• 35:51
  Come back next week.
• 35:52
  Thank you, we love you.
• 35:53
  Bye.
• 35:53
  Bye.
• 35:54
  Okay.
• 35:54
  Hey, smart people.
• 35:55
  Glad you're still here.
• 35:57
  What up, bookies?
• 35:58
  What up, bookies?
• 35:59
  Okay, so the book that we had said we were gonna read was called The Block Party by Jamie Day.
• 36:05
  Yes.
• 36:06
  If you wanna just do, like, a quick rundown- Okay.
• 36:09
  Um, so The Block Party by Jamie Day,"An affluent cul-de-sac in Massachusetts gathers for its annual Memorial Day block party.
• 36:16
  Everyone seems perfect from the outside, but nearly every family is hiding something.
• 36:21
  Throughout the day, secrets unravel until someone ends up dead." So, there was a lot of characters in this book.
• 36:28
  There was.
• 36:28
  You have a lot of families.
• 36:31
  And then in the families of course you have the parents or parent, and then child or children.
• 36:36
  And then on top of that you also have, the random teachers or you have, random people thrown in.
• 36:42
  But I will say this was a pretty good book.
• 36:45
  Yeah.
• 36:46
  It took me a minute to get into it.
• 36:48
  Okay.
• 36:48
  Um, but once I got into it, I really did like it.
• 36:52
  Everybody had secrets.
• 36:53
  Yeah.
• 36:53
  It was this It kind of reminded me, not the Same Secrets of course, but, the one we just did about the tennis club- Mm-hmm where there's just secrets everywhere and, and, you know, they start coming out.
• 37:02
  Let's run down the, families.
• 37:03
  Cool.
• 37:04
  All right.
• 37:04
  So we've got Alex and Nick Fox.
• 37:07
  Alex is the unofficial queen of the neighborhood.
• 37:09
  She organizes the annual block party.
• 37:11
  She's struggling with alcoholism.
• 37:12
  Mm-hmm.
• 37:13
  And, as the book progresses, Mm-hmm you see that she's in denial.
• 37:16
  Yeah.
• 37:17
  Really bad.
• 37:18
  Mm-hmm.
• 37:18
  She's drinking, like, morning, noon and night.
• 37:20
  Yep.
• 37:20
  Yeah.
• 37:21
  And sh- she had, like, some fancy job too.
• 37:23
  I forgot what she does, but and then her daughter is Letty.
• 37:26
  Yes.
• 37:27
  Alex serves as, like, the emotional center of the story.
• 37:30
  Mm-hmm.
• 37:30
  Um, she's kind of like the in with everybody.
• 37:33
  Mm-hmm.
• 37:34
  Then we have Emily and Ken.
• 37:35
  Emily is Alex's sister.
• 37:36
  Ken appears to be successful, charming, generous, everyone's favorite Uncle Ken.
• 37:41
  Mm-hmm.
• 37:41
  But he's actually one of the darkest guys in this novel.
• 37:45
  Mm-hmm.
• 37:46
  Yeah.
• 37:46
  Their son is Dylan.
• 37:48
  Then we have Willow and Evan.
• 37:49
  Currently they are going through a divorce.
• 37:52
  Their daughter is Riley.
• 37:54
  The family looks dysfunctional from the outside, but Evan is hiding far more than anyone realizes on the inside.
• 38:00
  Mm-hmm.
• 38:01
  Then we have Mandy and Samir- Mm-hmm Kumar.
• 38:04
  They just move in- Yes at the beginning of this story.
• 38:07
  Yes.
• 38:07
  The mysterious new family moving into the neighborhood, many neighbors assume Mandy is strange.
• 38:11
  She's actually carrying decades of trauma.
• 38:13
  Their son is Jay.
• 38:14
  Mm-hmm.
• 38:15
  And then Brooke Bailey.
• 38:17
  Yeah.
• 38:18
  Oh, Brooke.
• 38:18
  Oh, Brooke.
• 38:19
  The attractive widow.
• 38:20
  Neighborhood gossip says she may have pushed her husband overboard on a cruise.
• 38:25
  As with almost every rumor on Alton Road, the truth is much more complicated.
• 38:30
  Mm-hmm.
• 38:31
  So we open up, at the Memorial Day party.
• 38:34
  Alex is wasted and making a fool of herself.
• 38:36
  Yeah.
• 38:37
  Her husband's like,"Just go home." Yeah.
• 38:39
  She goes home then passes out, and wakes back up, and she was like,"What time is it?" Oh yeah, Alex.
• 38:45
  This book took place over a period of time.
• 38:47
  Yeah.
• 38:47
  So after, w- it's, when it starts off at the Memorial Day party, which is the main focus, like they hit on several Memorial Day parties throughout the thing but- This is like the murder party.
• 38:57
  Right.
• 38:57
  This is- Not, not the murder party but Murder party.
• 39:00
  It's the one where the murder happens.
• 39:02
  But yeah, so they go back in time and you get some backstory and start to learn about some of the relationships The thing that I loved about Alex's husband is he never gave up on her.
• 39:10
  He was so supportive even though he- He was, yes knew, there's a problem.
• 39:15
  Yeah.
• 39:15
  And most of the times he dropped everything- Yeah anytime she called.
• 39:19
  And spoilers, I like the fact that they, at the end they're still together.
• 39:23
  Mm-hmm.
• 39:23
  Like I really liked that he was like,"You know what?""You're, you're my person.""Let, let's just, let's just get through this together." Yeah.
• 39:30
  Yeah Al- was Alex the, mediator?
• 39:33
  I think so.
• 39:34
  Yeah.
• 39:34
  So she was a lawyer.
• 39:35
  Mm.
• 39:36
  Divorce.
• 39:37
  She was a divorce lawyer and she ended up, uh, her, her role changed and she ended up being, uh, like a mediator in divorce stuff.
• 39:44
  Mm-hmm.
• 39:44
  And, because of that she thought that everybody assumed that everything was perfect in her marriage.
• 39:49
  Mm-hmm.
• 39:49
  People told her stuff because they thought that she was just gonna keep their confidence, and she did.
• 39:54
  Yeah.
• 39:54
  But still she knew the things, so then we had Riley's secret relationship.
• 39:58
  Mm-hmm.
• 39:58
  So Riley's a teenager and- Yeah is secretly involved with an older man.
• 40:02
  Everyone assumes it's a certain person.
• 40:04
  Mm-hmm.
• 40:05
  It turns out to be a much different certain person.
• 40:07
  Mm-hmm.
• 40:08
  When, when we're hearing that it's an older man and there's a picture and everything, I'm picturing just like a 25-year-old, because she's a teenager.
• 40:16
  I was picturing like a teacher at school.
• 40:18
  Uh-huh.
• 40:19
  Yeah.
• 40:20
  Or like, I mean like in like 30s, like 40- Yeah you know like 30s, 40s I was picturing- Okay a teacher at school that she got involved with.
• 40:27
  Yeah, okay.
• 40:28
  For some reason I had it in my head that it was just like he was just enough older for it to not be appropriate- Yeah kind of thing.
• 40:35
  So- so Letty and Riley used to be best friends.
• 40:37
  Mm-hmm.
• 40:38
  Riley dropped Letty, very dramatic, like how she did it.
• 40:41
  Mm-hmm.
• 40:41
  And Letty wanted revenge.
• 40:43
  And so when- Mm-hmm the Kumars moved in- Mm-hmm she got with their son Jay- Mm-hmm who was, like, super good at computers and all the- Yeah things.
• 40:53
  Yeah.
• 40:53
  And they concocted this plan to- Mm-hmm find out, get the dirt on Riley, and, and ruin her life.
• 41:00
  Pretty much, yeah.
• 41:01
  There was a lot going on in this book, I'm not gonna lie.
• 41:04
  There was so much that I felt like was just, what is this necessary for?
• 41:08
  There was a lot going on.
• 41:09
  Yeah.
• 41:10
  that was an important storyline, but it was like- But Riley's also dating Letty's cousin Dylan Dylan.
• 41:15
  Yeah.
• 41:16
  And then there you have their relationship where they're kinda on and off again, and, I just felt like there was so much.
• 41:22
  There was a lot of characters, and every character had a lot going on.
• 41:25
  Mm-hmm.
• 41:25
  I did have a little, not a hard time keeping up with all of the things, but I was just getting a little like,"Okay, this is too much." Mm-hmm.
• 41:32
  I can't deal with all of this.
• 41:33
  Can we, Tune it down a little bit maybe.
• 41:35
  Yeah.
• 41:36
  Maybe.
• 41:36
  But,, the teenagers play a big role in this- Mm-hmm between Riley and Dylan, and then Letty, and then...
• 41:42
  Jay's not a te- he's like early 20s, I think.
• 41:44
  Yeah.
• 41:45
  Early college- College, yeah year.
• 41:46
  Mm-hmm.
• 41:46
  Um, they play a big role, in this, in finding things and seeing things, and then just like you were explaining with her.
• 41:54
  Yeah.
• 41:55
  So Letty has second thoughts about ruining, Riley's life because it sh- it's gonna affect her cousin, Dylan.
• 42:01
  Mm-hmm.
• 42:02
  So she's like,"No, no, no, back up, we're not releasing these photos." Just kidding.
• 42:06
  Yeah.
• 42:07
  Yeah.
• 42:07
  And, then all of a sudden Dylan starts getting blackmailed for something he did in front of a computer.
• 42:13
  Mm-hmm.
• 42:14
  Um.
• 42:14
  Which then he was stealing jewelry- Mm-hmm and other stuff to pay off the blackmailer.
• 42:20
  and it all seems to be unrelated, but it's all tied together.
• 42:24
  So he was getting blackmailed, we assume, for, sending pictures and- Mm-hmm.
• 42:30
  So Evan, Willow's ex-husband, appears awkward and lonely.
• 42:34
  Eventually readers discover he's obsessed with Brooke because Brooke has an OnlyFans.
• 42:38
  She sure does, and she is proud of it and she is fine with it.
• 42:42
  Yes, and, and so Evan had shared Brooke's images with all the husbands.
• 42:46
  Which she was not pissed that he shared it.
• 42:49
  No.
• 42:50
  She was- She was like,"Oof." She, she was pissed because- Yes she didn't get paid for it.
• 42:52
  She didn't get the subscribers fee.
• 42:53
  Yes.
• 42:53
  They were getting the free goods.
• 42:54
  Mm-hmm.
• 42:55
  But yeah, she was like,"I mean, why not?" I look good.
• 42:59
  Right.
• 43:00
  Yeah.
• 43:00
  Yeah.
• 43:00
  Absolutely.
• 43:01
  So there's, there's that storyline too where there's the jealousy and the looks and all that.
• 43:06
  But she, the whole time, this whole book, she has a stalker.
• 43:09
  Yep.
• 43:09
  And then we find out she has an OnlyFans and it just, continues to spiral.
• 43:14
  Mm-hmm.
• 43:14
  And, but she's like,"Oh, he's fine.
• 43:16
  He's a nice stalker." Like, what?
• 43:19
  She was very, nonchalant about, about the stalker situations.
• 43:23
  Yeah.
• 43:24
  So Jay, he initially seems to be, like, the quiet, nerdy- Mm-hmm computer guy, although, Letty's like,"Oh, he's the hottest thing since sliced bread." She's 100% obsessed.
• 43:32
  Yeah.
• 43:32
  It was weird.
• 43:33
  That was weird too.
• 43:33
  Mm-hmm.
• 43:34
  And he's actually orchestrating this whole thing.
• 43:36
  Mm-hmm.
• 43:37
  Like, behind the scenes he is pulling some of the strings.
• 43:38
  He's the maestro.
• 43:39
  Yeah.
• 43:40
  Mm-hmm.
• 43:40
  His motivation becomes understandable once the readers learn about his mom.
• 43:45
  Yes.
• 43:46
  The gasoline to this whole thing is that Mandy, so Jay's mom, had been sexually assaulted when she was younger.
• 43:55
  And it ended up being by two men.
• 43:58
  One of them lived on this road.
• 43:59
  Right.
• 44:00
  So which is, that's why she wanted to buy this house.
• 44:02
  She wanted to buy this house to basically torture this man.
• 44:04
  So Ken sexually assaulted Mandy when they were teenagers.
• 44:07
  Everyone believed Mandy simply moved into the neighborhood by coincidence, but she didn't.
• 44:10
  She bought the house there.
• 44:13
  Mm-hmm.
• 44:13
  She wanted to be close to Ken, not because she loved him, because she never forgot what happened.
• 44:17
  Mm-hmm.
• 44:18
  And then we get to the murder.
• 44:23
  The murder.
• 44:25
  So we find out that Ken is disgusting.
• 44:30
  Ken's 100% disgusting.
• 44:31
  Ken's been sleeping with Riley- Yes the teenage girl who was dating Letty's cousin.
• 44:37
  Yes.
• 44:37
  So that's the older guy.
• 44:38
  Mm-hmm.
• 44:39
  So Ken initially appears that someone shot him, but the truth is way worse.
• 44:46
  Mandy had already poisoned his whiskey because she intended to kill him, because she destroyed- Mm-hmm his li- or her life.
• 44:52
  Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
• 44:53
  Before the poison could finish him off, another confrontation erupts, and Evan discovers that Ken had been having a, an affair with his daughter- Mm-hmm and shoots him.
• 45:04
  Yep.
• 45:05
  Evan shoots him.
• 45:05
  Yep.
• 45:06
  Evan threatens, everyone else with a gun, and suddenly suffers a seizure.
• 45:11
  Like, it was just like one thing after another.
• 45:12
  It was.
• 45:13
  It's been like my week.
• 45:15
  Just like my week.
• 45:18
  No, but it was, so yeah, he just starts seizing.
• 45:20
  Yeah.
• 45:21
  The poisoning he unknowingly consumed from Ken's whiskey- Mm-hmm.
• 45:23
  Yeah oh, he drank the whiskey, okay- Yeah causes him to collapse.
• 45:26
  Okay.
• 45:26
  Yeah.
• 45:27
  Mandy's, final confession.
• 45:28
  Weeks later, Mandy admits that she poisoned Ken.
• 45:31
  She had intended d- for him to die, and she changed her mind too late.
• 45:34
  So that was so great.
• 45:35
  I don't know if you caught that, I'm sure you did, but at the end of the book when all of the, the women are, getting together and Mandy pulls out this bottle of whiskey and she's like,"Well, I was gonna be symbolic with it and, like, throw it in the water," and she tells them that she, uh, poisoned it.
• 45:49
  And they were like,"Well, what'd the autopsy say," or whatever, and she was like,"Well, gunshot wound" and she was like,"Okay." And they used it to set things on fire.
• 45:56
  Yeah.
• 45:58
  Yeah.
• 45:59
  She also told everybody what happened.
• 46:00
  Yes being abused.
• 46:02
  Leading up to- Yeah what, what the...
• 46:03
  Right Yeah.
• 46:03
  So but then, we find out that Brooke pushed the husband over.
• 46:09
  Yep.
• 46:11
  She sure did.
• 46:11
  Over the rail on the cruise ship in self-defense.
• 46:13
  But he had been abusing her for years- Mm-hmm and nobody knew.
• 46:17
  Right.
• 46:18
  Right.
• 46:18
  So she pushed him off, and then she waited, five minutes, and then she was like,"Oh, I heard something." So I mean, she did try to find him.
• 46:25
  Yeah.
• 46:25
  But I mean...
• 46:26
  So now we got this group of ladies who like to murder.
• 46:28
  Yeah.
• 46:29
  It's the murder club.
• 46:30
  Yeah.
• 46:32
  so one year later we get, a recap Alex is sober and- Yes is happily in her marriage.
• 46:37
  They're learning- Yes this new way of life.
• 46:39
  Letty heads off to college.
• 46:41
  Dylan begins recovering from his trauma because he tried to commit suicide- Yes um, throughout all this because he was being blackmailed.
• 46:47
  Mm-hmm.
• 46:47
  But it was unsuccessful.
• 46:49
  Um- Thank goodness they found him.
• 46:51
  Emily starts over in a new home, and the neighborhood is quieter but closer after everything that happened.
• 46:57
  Mm-hmm.
• 46:58
  There was just a lot.
• 46:59
  Even as you're reading that I'm like, oh yeah, we didn't even talk about her college decisions with her dad and- Yeah going back and forth with that, and then, like, you mentioned him, trying to end his life, and then all of the stuff with that.
• 47:09
  There was a lot in this book.
• 47:11
  Yeah.
• 47:12
  And it, it's one of those that I'm like, what am I supposed to pay attention to?
• 47:15
  Mm-hmm.
• 47:16
  Um, and I know they do that on purpose, and that's fine, but this one was, this was a little much for me.
• 47:22
  Mm-hmm.
• 47:22
  I'm not gonna lie.
• 47:22
  Yeah, it was, it was a lot.
• 47:23
  It was a lot.
• 47:24
  Yeah.
• 47:24
  It was a lot.
• 47:25
  Probably give it a seven.
• 47:26
  Yeah.
• 47:27
  That's what, six, seven, yeah.
• 47:29
  Six, seven.
• 47:29
  Yeah, not my favorite, but it was good.
• 47:31
  Once I got into it.
• 47:32
  Yeah.
• 47:32
  Once I got into it, it was good.
• 47:33
  Just a lot.
• 47:34
  Mm-hmm.
• 47:35
  Well, do you wanna pick our next book?
• 47:36
  Yeah.
• 47:38
  Our next book is gonna be.
• 47:40
  It's Your Turn Now by Theo Baxter.
• 47:43
  Okay No idea what it's about but I can read the thingy.
• 47:48
  Okay.
• 47:49
  Daisy is desperate to escape her husband but has she made a deal with the devil?
• 47:53
  Daisy Costigan is desperate to leave her violent, controlling husband Bruce but she knows he'll never let her go, and if she tries to escape he's promised to do whatever it takes to track her down and have his revenge.
• 48:04
  She's trapped.
• 48:05
  One day Daisy meets a charming stranger in a bookstore.
• 48:08
  His name is Marco, Daisy's terrified phone conversation with the controller Bruce.
• 48:13
  Marco makes Daisy an offer.
• 48:15
  He'll take care of Bruce if she'll help with his little problem with his wife.
• 48:20
  Daisy doesn't really think he's serious but two days later Bruce is dead and now Marco wants her to hold up her end of the deal, and if she doesn't he says he'll kill someone she loves.
• 48:28
  Stalked by the unhinged Marco, Daisy finds herself in an impossible situation.
• 48:32
  Can she find a way to escape this terrifying man or will she be forced to do the unthinkable?
• 48:36
  Contains mature themes.
• 48:40
  Doc next week, toxic love story.
• 48:42
  Yes.
• 48:42
  And then we'll do in two weeks It's Your Turn Now by Theo Baxter, and then, we'll probably need a palate cleanser soon.
• 48:49
  Yes.
• 48:50
  And then August right now, and that means September, and then October and that's Halloween.
• 48:54
  That's Halloween.
• 48:55
  Do you have little hands for doing this?
• 49:00
  It's all planned out.
• 49:00
  Like you planned so much.
• 49:00
  Ah! Okay, cool.
• 49:01
  Yes, so, um, we'll have to like map out our- Yeah, we definitely need to plan.
• 49:06
  Mm-hmm.
• 49:06
  Yeah.
• 49:07
  Plans are good.
• 49:08
  I love Halloween.
• 49:09
  I know you do.
• 49:10
  Are we gonna dress up again this year?
• 49:12
  Yes.
• 49:12
  Okay.
• 49:13
  We didn't last year'cause we stopped the pod then.
• 49:15
  Yeah.
• 49:16
  But this year, yes.
• 49:17
  Okay.
• 49:17
  Have to pick a theme.
• 49:18
  Okay.
• 49:19
  Did we dress up every week or just like the one time?
• 49:22
  No, like we did like makeup and stuff, and like we did like- Yeah well, we did vampires, we had like vampire-y- Yeah attire.
• 49:27
  That's right, that's right.
• 49:28
  That's right.
• 49:28
  And witchy attire.
• 49:30
  Yeah.
• 49:31
  Okay yeah, we'll do that.
• 49:32
  It'll be soon.
• 49:33
  Did you see all these onesies that are coming out for Halloween?
• 49:35
  No.
• 49:35
  And they're all like, like the Jason and Freddy- No way yeah.
• 49:40
  I love a onesie.
• 49:44
  They're so comfortable and warm.
• 49:47
  They are comfortable and warm.
• 49:47
  Okay.
• 49:47
  They are comfortable and warm.
• 49:47
  Well- Okay we'll, we'll get to that soon.
• 49:48
  That'll be soon.
• 49:49
  That'll be soon.
• 49:50
  Okay.
• 49:50
  All right.
• 49:51
  Well, we love you guys.
• 49:51
  Thank you so much for listening.
• 49:53
  Please leave us a review and come back next week for our doc review.
• 49:56
  Yep.
• 49:56
  Thank you, we love you.
• 49:57
  Bye.
• 49:57
  Love you, bye.