Generate the 57 static episode pages and rebuild the sitemap
Writes website/episode/<slug>/index.html for every episode in the feed, 4.26 MB of transcript text that search engines could not previously see, and replaces the sitemap's 49 query-param URLs with 57 clean ones. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
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Claude Opus 5
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<h1>Episode 10: Unexpected Windfalls and Neighborhood Woes</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-13T04:25:06+00:00">February 13, 2026</time> · 46 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, Slim calls in with news of a life-changing lottery win, while Sandy deals with an escalating dispute with her next-door neighbor. Laurie opens up about her search for genuine community, Keith shares the strain on his marriage, and Darlene drops a bombshell about quitting her job. Plus, Leon talks about going back to school, and Lucille has big news about her daughter.</p>
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<audio controls preload="none" src="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-10-unexpected-windfalls-and-neighborhood-woes.mp3">
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, welcome back to Luke at the Roost. This is the Colin radio show where you call in and tell me what's on your mind. My name is Luke, I'm your host. If you'd like to call in, our number is 208-439-5853. That's 208-439-Luke. Let's get the show started and our first caller today is going to be Slim. Slim, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about today?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Hey Luke, yeah thanks for taking my call. So look, I won 50 grand on a scratch ticket on Monday and I haven't told a single person yet. Not my wife, not the church, nobody, and it's eating me alive because I'm a youth pastor, right? Right?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, congratulations on your 50 grand win, what are you going to do with the money?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Well, that's the whole thing, Luke. I don't know. I mean, part of me wants to just pay off the truck, maybe fix the AC at the church because it's been broken since September and the board keeps saying there's no money.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here's a question for you. If you're a pastor and you work at a church and you win the lottery, do you have to pay tax on that lottery winning?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Oh, yeah, absolutely. The state already took their cut when I claimed it, walked out with about 37 after taxes.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, you've already got the money and you haven't spent any of it yet?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Nope, it's just sitting in the bank like a damn time bomb. I keep thinking about how my dad used to say, money's like a deer. You spook it, it's gone. And I'm standing there with a rifle full of buckshot, trying not to move.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, that's one of the most confusing analogies I've ever heard in my life. But congratulations to you for your win. I can't imagine it's going to cost you 37 grand to fix the AC in your church.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>No, you're right. Probably three, four thousand tops, but see, that's where it gets tricky. The second people find out I have this money, it's going to be slim. Can you help with the new himmels or slim? My sister's kid needs braces. I've been doing this job for 12 years, Luke.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what is your lord and savior say to do with the money?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Man, that's the question I've been wrestling with all week. I keep going back to the parable of the talents. You know, the guy who buried his money in the ground got reamed for it. But then there's also, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing when it comes to giving. I've been praying on it every night this week, honestly.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think you're probably going to come to the right, uh, right decision and do the right thing with the money. Actually, you know what, I don't know if there is a right thing to do with the money. It wasn't there before. You wanted in the lottery. Good for you. Do you play the lottery a lot? How much are you, were you down to win this 50 grand?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>First ticket I ever bought actually. Yeah, sure. I was at the circle K getting gas and just, I don't know, impulse five bucks. My wife doesn't even know. She thinks gambling's a sin. And honestly, I kind of agreed with her until I scratched that thing off in the parking lot and nearly dropped my coffee.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, what the man with no sin throws stones first or whatever. Uh, good for you. Good for your congregation. I hope that the money goes to good use. And, um, and yeah, I don't think you have to feel bad about winning. Just do something good with the money and it's all good.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I appreciate that, Luke. I think I've been making this harder than it needs to be.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>For sure. And speaking of money, I got a question for you. How about you tell us about something that you bought once that you regret? Uh, something you spent money on and wished later that you hadn't.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Oh, man. That's easy. About eight years ago, I bought this used jet ski off some guy in Lord'sburg. Thought I'd take it out to Elephant Butte. You know, make a whole thing of it with the youth group.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You bought a, uh, Lord'sburg jet ski. How did that work out?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>No, no, Lord'sburg. It's a town about an hour west of here. Oh, yeah. But yeah, the jet ski paid $2,200 bucks for it. Drove it up to the lake exactly one time. Thing broke down in the middle of the water. Had to get towed back to shore by some guy on a pontoon boat.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, well, now I guess the good news is you get 37 grand.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>You know, the thing's been sitting under a tarp behind my garage for seven years. I think my wife would actually divorce me if I put another dime into it. She brings it up every time I want to buy anything. Remember the jet ski slim? It's like my personal scarlet letter back there.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thanks for the call slim and, uh, congratulations on your big lottery win. Uh, just don't take it back to the casino and you should be all right. Next up on the line, we have, uh, Sandy. Sandy, welcome to the show. What's what's on your mind today, Sandy?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I got into it with my neighbor tonight, like physically got into it. And I'm sitting here trying to figure out if I need to call the cops or if that's just going to make everything worse. We've been going back and forth for months now, but this time she actually shoved me in my own driveway.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>shoved you how just to like a little pusher where you actually injured in some way, where you did you fear for your life in this altercation?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>No, I mean, I didn't fall or anything, but it wasn't like a little tap either. She put both hands on my shoulders and pushed me back hard enough that I stumbled. The thing is I'm honestly more pissed off than scared, you know? But that's what's got me worried because I shoved her right back and now I'm thinking if I call the police, she's going to say I started it. This whole thing kicked off because her dog keeps shitting in my yard and she refuses to pick it up.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so the dog shits in your yard, she's not picking it up and, uh, and how does that turn into an altercation? You obviously confronted her about the dog shitting situation.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Yeah, so tonight I'm coming home from a birth. I was up for like 16 hours and I step right in a fresh pile getting out of my car. I lost it, walked straight over to her place and knocked on the door with the bottom of my shoe still covered in it.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I should have kicked her in the face.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Ha, I mean, I was tempted, but no, I just told her this is the third time this week and she needs to keep her damn dog on her own property.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, that's annoying, it's never fun to step in and pile a dog poo. But, uh, dogs do roam around and it is, uh, the outdoors and I understand that people own their yards and stuff and it's, that's not fun, but the same time it's kind of hard to control wild animals from doing wild animal things.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>See, that's the thing though. This isn't a wild animal. It's her dog. She lets it out in the morning without a leash and it comes straight to my yard every single time.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Would it make any difference if it was a wild dog?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>I mean, yeah, because then I couldn't go knock on someone's door about it, but this is her dog. She's responsible for it and honestly, if she just apologized once or picked it up, we wouldn't even be here. Instead, she tells me I'm being dramatic and that dogs go where they go. That's when my driveway and she followed me.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, um, that's, that's no fun. It's never good to have a shitty situation with your neighbor. What are you going to do about it?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>That's why I'm calling you, Luke. I don't know.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, uh, you could put up a fence, you could move, you could, uh, complain a lot at the town meeting. I don't, you can't really physically assault the woman. You can't call the police on her. I guess you could call animal control if you actually catch the dog in your yard. Are you positive that it's her dog? Have you actually caught the dog in the act?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Yeah, I've seen it. Walked outside two mornings ago and watched it squat right by my mailbox while she's standing on her porch drinking coffee. And I did call animal control last month.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thanks for the call, Sandy. Good luck with your, uh, your dookie shoes. And next on the radio show, we've got Keith. Keith, welcome to the show. You're calling back. What's up today, sir?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, I'm back. So I got an update on that video situation and I'm not going to lie. It got weird real weird. I ended up taking your advice kind of and I talked to her last week. Turns out she's been coming to the cemetery because her apartment is too quiet. And she likes hearing the highway noise from where I work.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>See, I told you it wasn't real weird. That's not weird. What's weird about that?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Well, okay, that pot's not weird. You're right. But here's the thing. After we talked that first time, she started showing up on my shift specifically. Like she knows my schedule now and two nights ago, she brought me coffee. Just walked right up to the shed with two cups from that circle. K on Hudson and sat down like we were having a planned meeting.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, that still doesn't sound very weird to me, sir. Let's get to the weird part.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>All right. So last night, she asked if I wanted to come over to her place after my shift ends. Just straight up asked me. And I'm sitting there thinking, this woman is maybe 60, 65. And I'm married to Teresa. And I don't even know this lady's actual name. I've just been calling her this whole time.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you got to let her down a little bit easy. Sorry, I'm married. It's not that weird that a lonely widow is looking for some companionship at the cemetery. I mean, maybe that's a little weird, but it's not that weird.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you're right. It's not that weird when you say it like that. But here's where I messed up. I didn't say I was married. I panicked and told her I had to go check on something by the North fence. And I just walked away like a coward again.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, why is that? Is it because you actually want something to go on with this widow? Is that what's the eating you up?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>No, man, that's not look. I don't want anything with her. But things with Teresa have been so damn cold lately. We barely talk anymore except about bills or whose turn it is to take the trash out. And here's this woman who's actually interested in talking to me, bringing me coffee, asking about my day.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand that. It's nice to feel wanted and seen and heard and all that. And it's okay for you to have other friends. I mean, you can befriend this woman without doing anything shady at her house behind your wife's back. There's nothing wrong with that.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. But I'm not going to lie. Part of me keeps thinking about what it would be like to just say yes. Not even for anything physical. Just to sit in someone's living room and have a conversation where the other person actually wants to hear what I have to say. Teresa used to be like that.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it sounds like you've got a couple things going on and I don't think it's that weird to go over somebody's house and have a cup of coffee and talk if you're seriously not into anything romantic or pursuing that relationship behind your wife's back. You might want to talk to Teresa about that before you start going over a strange woman's house though.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, that's the problem though. How do I even start that conversation? Hey, Teresa, there's this widow at the cemetery who wants to hang out. Is that cool? Yeah. She's already pissed at me half the time about stuff I don't even understand. Last week, she got mad because I didn't notice she rearranged the living room. I walked right past the couch in a different spot three times before she pointed it out.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, that sounds like marriage. So, I mean, you're in it. But I think that's exactly the way that you deal with it. Hey, I met a new friend. I'd like to hang out after work one day, have a cup of coffee and talk about stuff. It's not a romantic thing. I'm not interested. She's 65 years old and I'm married to you. Teresa, the love of my life who I would never have eyes for anyone else. And just make sure she knows that and she's got a problem with it then deal with that problem.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>I hear you, but man, I don't know if I can say love of my life right now and have it sound real. She'd see right through that.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, if that's the truth then you and your wife need to sit down and have some hard conversations and figure out if you want to continue on living the way you're living because that's that's no good and you might be better off with this widow or, you know, somebody else.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, I've been sitting there thinking about that too. Maybe that's why this whole thing is eating at me so much.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it could be. I mean, relationships are tough and if things have been downhill for a while and you don't see them moving in a positive direction, it's time to have some hard conversations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>The thing is, we used to be good, really good. I don't know when it changed exactly. Somewhere between the second mortgage and her mom getting sick and me taking this graveyard shift, no pun intended. We just sort of stop being on the same team.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think that happens. I think there are ways that you can get back on the same team if you both want to, but you might also find that neither one of you even, you know, likes each other anymore and it's time to split up and that's okay too. I'm not going to lie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Let's see. What's something you believed in 10 years ago that you don't believe anymore?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Oh man, that's a hell of a shift. 10 years ago I thought the tea party was going to actually change things in Washington.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, things did change in Washington.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, but not the way we thought. I mean, I was all in on that stuff. Smaller government, fiscal responsibility, the whole deal. Now I look at it, and I'm sitting there thinking none of these people actually meant any of it. They just wanted their turn at the trough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, you're living you learn. That seems to be the way. No matter who is in the office. They do not give a fuck about you. All right, thanks for the call. Talk to your wife. Don't be a pussy. Next up on the line, we have Laurie. Laurie, welcome to the show. How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAURIE</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I've been working from home doing data entry for like three years now. And honestly, it can get pretty isolating. But I'm also really into open source technology. And I spend a lot of my free time in these online communities, you know, contributing to projects, helping troubleshoot stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know. I do a lot of that myself. So what are you working on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAURIE</span><p>Oh, nice. Right now I'm actually contributing to this documentation project for a Linux distribution. Nothing glamorous, but it's stuff people actually use. And I've been learning rust on the side messing around with some smaller tools. But here's why I called. I was watching the Lost Finale the other day, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, I just watched the Lost Finale a couple weeks ago or maybe a couple months ago now. But yeah, what about it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAURIE</span><p>Okay, so it really got me thinking about community and how people come together around something bigger than themselves. And with Valentine's Day coming up, I'm sitting here alone most days, just me and my computer screen. And I realized, these open source communities, they're the closest thing I have to that feeling of belonging, you know? Like actually being part of something that matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, I do know I totally understand that. And when I was a kid, I used to hang out in IRC in the on the free node network. And we had a channel called Linux people. And we did tutorials and wrote articles and helped people that were trying to learn Linux. They would pop into IRC and ask their questions. And we all tried our best to help them out. And I still talk to some of those people today. That's been over 20 years. People that I've never met that I met in those communities. So I don't think that's a bad thing at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAURIE</span><p>Yeah, exactly. That's what I'm talking about. And honestly, Luke, I think people don't get how real those connections are. Like my family thinks I'm just sitting here alone all the time, but I'm collaborating with people in Germany and Brazil and wherever working on actual things that help people. But I guess what's been eating at me is is that enough?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you feel like it's enough? I mean, I usually do, sometimes I don't, but most of the time I do feel like it's more than enough. That's a very personal question. How do you feel about it? It's obviously bothering you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAURIE</span><p>I mean, most of the time, yeah, it feels good. But then like Thursday night rolls around and Valentine's Day is coming up. And I'm 29. And I look around my house and it's just quiet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Quiet's very nice though. And 29's not all that old. You get plenty of time to do whatever you like. So I applaud you for spending your time doing productive stuff with the type of people that make you better at what you do. I think that's a good way to deal with your loneliness and to find some community and camaraderie out in the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAURIE</span><p>Thanks, I appreciate that. I guess part of me worries though. Like, am I using these communities as a substitute for something else? Or is this just what connection looks like now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there's probably some of both of that. Now connection can be, it can look like a lot of different things. You don't have to be in bed with somebody to have a connection with them. You could, you know, have a very good working relationship and friendship with somebody over the internet in Brazil. That's not all that strange or weird, especially today. I mean, 20 years ago when I was doing it and I was 12 years old, that was a little bit odd. But I don't think it's very strange now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAURIE</span><p>You're right. And honestly, I heard Sandy call earlier tonight and I felt like she was holding something back about that whole neighbor situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you know what, I think she was too. I certainly got that impression, but she wasn't going to spill it. So we're just going to have to go with her go with what she wanted to divulge. Anyway, Laurie, thanks for the call. Keep it up with your documentation project. And if you want to find somebody to hang out with on Valentine's Day, I'm sure you can do that. You sound like a very nice lady. You enjoy the remainder of your night, all right? Hey, Gus, Gus, welcome to the show. What's happening?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Yeah. Hey, Luke, so my ex showed up at the pawn shop today with flowers like a whole bouquet and my girlfriend was there picking me up for lunch. She saw the whole thing through the window before she even came in. Now she won't talk to me and I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to say to fix this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Your ex brought you flowers on Valentine's Day at your work?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Well, not quite Valentine's Day yet. It's Thursday, so we got a few days. But yeah, just showed up out of nowhere. I haven't talked to Melissa in like eight months. And she walks in with these roses talking about how she's been thinking about things. My girlfriend Sarah sees her through the window. And by the time she comes inside, Melissa's already gone, but the flowers are sitting right there on the counter. Sarah just looked at me, turned around and left.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, which one of them would you rather be with? Melissa or Sarah?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Sarah? I mean, it's Sarah, no question. Melissa and I were done for good reasons. She couldn't handle that I work weird hours. Always wanted me to be someone I'm not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, then problem solved. Just tell Sarah, hey, I didn't ask her to bring me these flowers. There's nothing going on here. I'm not interested in her anymore. And it's a free country. You know when somebody wants to bring your flowers, then all right, you wasted your 24 bucks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Yeah, I tried that. I called her like three times. Center text saying exactly that. I didn't ask for this. I don't want Melissa back. The whole thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Here's what you do. I got it figured out. So you take the flowers that Melissa gave you and you bring them home. And on Valentine's Day, you give those same flowers to Sarah and say these are for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Oh, man, that's, I mean, Sarah's not stupid. She saw those exact flowers. They were these yellow roses with some kind of purple things mixed in. Real specific looking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I think she'll appreciate your frugality. There's no use to wasting the money on new flowers. If you already got something, you're not going to use. You might as well get some use out of them. That's what I say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>I don't know, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I feel like showing up with the same flowers my ex brought me is going to make things about 10 times worse. Sarah's already pissed enough. Last thing I need is her thinking I'm too cheap or too clueless to get her her own flowers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Well, I mean, that's what I would do. I would, I would take the flowers that were given to me that I don't want and give them back to her and be like, here, here you go. I was thinking of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what? Maybe that works for you, but I think Sarah would throw them at my head. She's not the type to find that charming. She'd see it as me being either lazy or rubbing salt in the wound. I'm already in the doghouse here. I need to figure out how to actually fix this, not make it worse with recycled roses.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Well, you didn't do anything wrong. So you really don't have anything to fix. If, uh, if there's jealousy going on there, then that's, that's really on her. You can just say, hey, I let her know. I did not prompt this in any way. There's nothing going on behind your back. I can't control what she does. She came and dropped off flowers and you saw it and that's unfortunate, but there's nothing going on there and you're the one that I want to be with and commit to her in that way. And if she's got a problem with it, then, uh, then you got to, then you got to deal with that and then you might be better off going back to Melissa.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I hear you, but it's not just jealousy. Sarah watched my axe walk into my workplace flowers and a whole speech about how she misses me and wants to try again. That's not nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>It is nothing. It's nothing that you did. I mean, you can control that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So yeah, but I didn't shut it down fast enough either. I just kind of stood there like an idiot while Melissa went on and Sarah saw that. I should have cut her off right away, told her to leave.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Well, it sounds like you're a pussy either way. You can either stand up to your current girlfriend or you can stand up to your former girlfriend, but one way or the other, you're going to have to stand up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right. I've been trying to keep everybody happy, and I'm just making it worse. I froze up with Melissa because I didn't want to be a jerk, and now Sarah thinks I was actually considering it or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Just sit her down and have that conversation, and if that's a problem, then it probably shows how long you've been with this chick, Sarah. How long?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>About eight months, we moved in together maybe two months ago, which I know was probably too fast, but rents expensive, and we were spending every night together anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Okay, well, you don't know this woman at all. So if something this small is going to cause strife in your life, maybe it's time to find another roommate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's the thing though. It's not really that small when you think about it. My ex showing up with flowers isn't like some random thing, and Sarah and I were solid before this. She's been good to me, better than Melissa ever was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>All right, well then talk to her and get it worked out, and if she's a reasonable person, she'll come around. If she's not a reasonable person, then you're an idiot for dealing with that, but that's your choice, and that's my advice, and I'm sticking to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And now it's time to go to a word from our sponsors. Let's talk about mental health. Specifically, let's talk about brutal honesty, the therapy app that's tired of your shit. Unlike other apps with their calming voices and gentle affirmations, brutal honesty pairs you with an AI therapist that tells you what your friends are too nice to say. Did you try journaling about it? No, we're not doing that. Our algorithm analyzes your patterns and asks questions like, why do you think you deserve to feel better when you don't even drink water? And is your anxiety real or did you just have four cold brews on an empty stomach? Brutal honesty because coddling yourself got you here. First session is free, but it will hurt your feelings. Use code grow up at checkout. Brutal honesty, the app that blocks itself if you don't do the work. All right. Okay, let's see, we've got Darlene on the line. Hey, Darlene, what's the weirdest thing you've ever found in your car?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>Oh man, Luke, that's okay. So about three years ago, I'm cleaning out the bear's truck, right? And I find this whole rotisserie chicken, like the entire thing from the grocery store, still in the container, wedged under the passenger seat. It had been there for God knows how long, completely mummified.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's the bear's truck?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>Oh, sorry, the bear, that's David, my husband. We've called him that since high school. He's got this big beard and he's just, you know, bear shaped. His truck, the one he drives to the plant every day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, yeah, that's a little bit weird. You found a whole rotisserie chicken under the seat of your husband's truck. That was there for months and months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>Yeah, and the thing is, he swore up and down, he had no idea how it got there, like who buys a whole rotisserie chicken and just forgets about it. But that's David. He'll stop at the store on the way home, get distracted and half the groceries end up living in that truck for weeks. But listen, that's not why I called.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, before you get to that, did you eat it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>What? No.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. All right. Why did you call darling? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>So I've been sitting on this resignation letter for two months now. Two months, Luke, I work at the DMV and I just, I can't do it anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So what's holding you up? Why are you sitting on it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>I don't know what comes next. I mean, I'm 46 years old. We've got the mortgage. David's hours at the plant aren't what they used to be. And it's not like I have some big plan, you know? I just know I can't keep going in there every day, feeling like this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I fully support that. Do you have any ideas as to where you're going to go or what you're going to do after you submit that letter?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>That's the problem. I don't. I mean, I've thought about it. Believe me. Maybe something with people that actually feels like it matters, you know? Not just processing renewals all day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, are you looking to do work that matters or are you looking to get paid?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>Oh man, that's the question, isn't it? I mean, we need the money, obviously. But Luke, I've been doing this for almost 15 years and I just feel like I'm disappearing a little more every day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand that. And I think that's why I'm asking which you're looking to do. You can do both, but I think if you need the money, then you should focus on finding a job that's going to make you some money without distress and then take care of the importance or the fulfilling part after work in your personal life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>Yeah, that makes sense. I guess I've been thinking it has to be one big thing, you know? Like the job has to be the answer to everything. But you're right. I could find something that pays the bills without making me miserable and then do something that actually means something on my own time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there are definitely jobs that can be both good money and fulfilling, but they're few and far between. And especially if you're leaving a job without another one lined up, I think my focus would be more on the salary with low stress and then find the community service aspect elsewhere because I don't think there's a lot of good paying community service oriented jobs that aren't stressful. I think when you add those three requirements up there's a there's a dearth of opportunity.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>You're right. I've been building this up in my head like it has to be perfect or else I'm just trading one trap for another. Maybe I just need to get out of the DMV first and breathe a little. Find something stable that doesn't make me want to scream and then figure out the rest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. Take yourself a little sabbatical, a couple of weeks off, figure out what it is you want to do. Find something, you know, maybe it'll fall into your lap.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>But if you continue just hanging on at the DMV where you hate your life every day, it's not going to get better and the days are going to go by and you're going to find yourself there at 60 wondering why you didn't leave when you thought of it the first time. God that's what scares me the most. David keeps saying just give it another year but that's what I said last year and the year before that. I don't want to wake up at 60 still sitting behind that same desk with that resignation letter still in my drawer, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hand the letter in and jump off. I don't want to say jump off a cliff but, you know, take the leap, the leap of faith I guess and spend some time to figure it out and see what happens. What's the worst that could happen?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>I mean, the worst is we can't pay the mortgage, right? But we've got some savings and David's got his job at the plant. We're not going to starve. And that's the worst. The worst is you can't pay the mortgage and lots of people have got into a situation where they can't pay the mortgage. There's financial assistance. You could live in a cheaper place. You can move. So if the worst is that you can't pay the bank, then you know, is that worth being miserable for the rest of your life for? No, no, it's not. You're right. I've been so scared of what could go wrong that I haven't even thought about what could go right. Maybe I finally sleep through the night again without grinding my teeth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I wish you the best of luck because being miserable all the time is not good for your health and you may not make it to 60 if you, if you stay stressed out about a job that you hate for a long time. Leon, Leon, welcome back to the show. How are you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Oh, man, I'm doing all right, Luke. Thanks for having me back. So listen, I actually did it. I reached out to UNM yesterday about that computer science program.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, congratulations. Good work. Did you reach out to the bank about the loan for that computer science program?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, well, hold on. I haven't gotten that far yet. I just sent an email to the admissions office to see if they even still have programs for, you know, older students coming back. But here's the thing that's got me twisted up. Amber thinks I should just do one of those online boot camp things instead. Says it's faster and cheaper. And Manny's telling me I'm overthinking it and should just apply to the full degree program like I was going to do back in 96. I don't know who's right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know who's right either, but I can tell you I'm not a fan of traditional schooling and I think it's designed to take your money and not provide you the value that that maybe you think. So my recommendation would be to not do that and take advantage of the learning opportunities that are free and all around you, like the whole of human knowledge that's available at your fingertips and just buckle down and learn on your own. But I recognize some people don't operate that way and if you need the structure of the college course, then then and you can afford it. Make sure you can afford it. Then do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, see, that's kind of what's eating at me though. Like I said, I'm not great at the self-teaching thing. I've tried watching YouTube videos about Python and all that, but I just end up clicking around and not retaining anything. I need somebody to tell me what to do next, you know. But the money part, that's real. Amber and I sat down with the numbers last night and between what I've got saved and maybe cutting back on some stuff, I could swing a boot camp without taking out loans.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's fantastic. Then that's no brainer, you know, and don't bet the farm on it, but if you're just going to take a boot camp, that's not a four year degree, then absolutely go for it and congratulations on taking that step.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, I appreciate that Luke. I'm still nervous as hell about it, but my daughter, she's the one who found that old letter. She keeps texting me asking if I've done anything yet. It's like she's holding me accountable, which is weird because I'm supposed to be the parent, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, you know, whatever works if she's holding you accountable and it's working for you and moving your life in a positive direction, then I'm for it. Good for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, it is what it is. I guess I'm just calling because I wanted to tell somebody outside my circle, you know, like making it real. Man, he's been busting my balls about it for 20 years, so telling him doesn't count.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, I appreciate that you reached out to let me know. Uh, hey there. I got a question for you. What's something that you bought that actually changed your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Oh, man, that's a good question. Let me think. Honestly, it was my Subaru.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It was your Subaru. How did that change your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Well, I bought it used about five years ago right after my old truck finally died and it sounds stupid, but having something reliable, like something that actually starts every morning and doesn't leave me stranded. It changed how I felt about my job. I could take longer halls. I wasn't stressed about breaking down with somebody's car on the hook.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, that's a good one. Congratulations on your Subaru. Change your life. That's fantastic. And now it's time for another word from our sponsors. Stress, sore, skeptical, doesn't matter. Try placebo leaf, the CBD brand that may or may not do anything, but costs enough that you'll convince yourself it works. Our tinctures, gummies and topicals contain premium hemp extract, and your desperate need to feel better without addressing root causes. Is it the cannabinoids or is it the ritual of self-care? Who's to say placebo leaf is THC-free, vegan, organic, and backed by studies we vaguely reference but don't like to. Take our gummies before bed and sleep great, probably because you're tired anyway, but you'll credit us. Available in flavors like calm and focus. Concepts we've bottled and marked up for a hundred percent. Visit placeboleaf.com and use code chill for 25 percent off. placebo leaf, wellness is a feeling and feelings can be purchased. All right placebo leaf and we're going to take one more call tonight and our lucky last caller is Lucille. Lucky Lucille. Welcome to the radio show. What would you like to talk about today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Hey Luke, it's Lucille.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's what I said. Close enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>So my kid just told me they're getting engaged to someone they met on the internet three weeks ago. Three weeks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Your kid? You sound like you're about three weeks old.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>I'm 30, Luke. My kid's 19. Yeah, I got married young myself right out of high school to David. So I'd get it, but this is different. They met this person online and have never even been in the same room together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And they're getting married? How's that going to work?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Well, that's the thing. They're planning to meet in person for the first time next month, and apparently that's when they want to get engaged for real. Like the online part was just the warm-up. I don't even know if I should say something or just let them figure it out, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think the more you say, the more likely they are to do stupid things so you might want to just let them figure it out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Yeah, that's kind of what David said too. But, Luke, I'm sitting here thinking about all the ways this could go wrong. Like what if this person isn't who they say they are? What if my kid flies out there and gets hurt or worse? I know if I push too hard, they'll just dig in. But doing nothing feels like I'm failing them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you could just have a conversation. That's usually my advice for everybody is sit down with the person that you need to talk to and talk to them. Let them know that you're concerned, but you support their decisions. And if it goes wrong, be there to pick them up when they fall.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just hard because I married David when I was 20 and everyone told us we were too young. And here we are 10 years later still figuring our shit out in therapy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>So part of me wants to say, I get it. Follow your heart. But the other part is screaming that at least David and I knew each other in person, you know? We had history. This feels reckless even by my standards.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, just because his reckless doesn't mean it's wrong and you don't necessarily know best and they could fly out there and meet and have it work out perfectly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>That's probably not going to happen. And I think anybody with any life experience would know that. But but stranger things have happened like stranger things this show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Ha, yeah, I guess so.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>I mean, I don't want to be the mom who ruins this for them if it actually is something real. Maybe I'm just freaked out because Valentine's Day is coming up and they keep posting about how romantic it's all going to be. I think I just need to hear someone say it's okay to be worried, but still let them make their own mistakes. That's what you're supposed to do, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is what you're supposed to do. It's okay to be worried but you still got to let people make their own mistakes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Yeah, God, that's hard though. I keep thinking about what I would have wanted my parents to say to me back then. And honestly, I probably would have ignored them anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Of course you would have. We all did. That's part of growing up is ignoring your parents good advice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>You know what's funny is I heard Sandy call earlier the one with the neighbor and the dog shit situation and I kept thinking she needs to just have a direct conversation instead of letting it build up. But here I am doing the same damn thing with my own kid just avoiding the uncomfortable talk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, you're going to have to have that talk with your kid and if you don't, that doesn't really matter either. She's going to go do what she's going to do and deal with the consequences. So you can you can be there for or you can be domineering and overpowering and pusher in the arms of a stranger. They can lope and vegas because they're mad at you. So better off to just have a hard to hard conversation. Let her know your concerns and let her know that you support her. So Lucille, what's the dumbest way you've ever injured yourself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Oh Jesus, okay random turn but I'll bite. I was showing a house last year and tried to demonstrate how sturdy the deck railing was by leaning on it real hard and the whole thing just gave way. Though right into the bushes in front of the clients, sprained my wrist and had to finish the showing covered in mulch. They didn't buy the house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's too bad. All right well thanks for calling in. We appreciate we appreciate it. I hope everything works out with your daughter and her new husband and you don't worry about it too much. You know you've got your own relationship to worry about. That's the end of our show folks. Thanks to everybody that called in and we'll do this again tomorrow. So think about what you want to talk about and call in. You can call in the numbers 208-439-5853. That's 208-439-Luc.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 11: Quantum Mechanics and the Fate of TV</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-14T03:31:28+00:00">February 14, 2026</time> · 56 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Donnie navigates the bizarre situation of his ex-wifes sister showing up at his door, Jasmine plans the perfect romantic getaway, and Dennis deals with a controlling roommate. Francine opens up about her sobriety struggle, Rodney confronts his daughters enabling behavior, and Amber takes Luke on a wild ride through quantum mechanics and the nature of reality. Another night at the Roost you wont want to miss.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right. Welcome back. I am Luke. This is Luke at the Roost. It's the radio show where we take collars and give them real-life advice. If you'd like to call in, our number is 208-439-5853. That's 208-439-Luke. And today is Friday, February 13th, here in Anonymous. It's very windy. It gets nice and windy out here. So you might hear some noise in the background of our publication. Not much I can do about that. You're going to have to deal with it. I do. So hopefully the wind dies down and we can have a good show today. Already, we can see that the phones are lighting up and let's get our first collar on the line. Donnie, Donnie, welcome to the show. Happy Friday the 13th. How are you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. Happy Friday the 13th to you too. Look, I got to tell you something that happened today, the chevron that's got me all twisted up. I ran into my ex-wife sister, haven't seen her in probably 15 years. And she just stared at me like she'd seen a ghost, then turned around and walked right back out without getting her gas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What'd you do? What'd you do to her sister?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Oh, not my sister. My ex-wife sister, her name's Carol. And I didn't do anything to her. That's the thing. But she knows stuff, you know. She knows about why me and Diane split up back in the day. All the messy details that I thought stayed buried in Tucson when I moved out here to Yuma.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, what kind of details does she have over you? What did she learn that she shouldn't know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Well, back when Diane and I were married, I had an affair with a woman I worked with at the plant in Tucson. It went on for about eight months and Carol found out before Diane did. She actually caught us together at this bar over on Grand Road. She's the one who towed Diane, which is what ended the whole marriage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, actually, that's not quite true. You're the one that ended the whole marriage by cheating on your wife with another woman. So, I don't think you can blame the sister for that one. And it kind of makes sense that she didn't want to see you at the gas station.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Yeah, you're right. You're right. I'm not trying to blame Carol for what I did. That's on me, the affair, the lying, all of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, then. Why is this a strange situation for you to have dealt with today? I mean, that's the response you should expect from your ex-wife's sister that caught you cheating on her sister.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Because it's been 15 years, Luke, and the way she looked at me wasn't just angry. It was like she was scared or shocked to see me. And here's the real thing that's eating at me. My current girlfriend doesn't know any of this. I never told her about the affair. Just said the marriage didn't work out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, well, you sound like a real piece of work. You're a real winner over there, Adani. Well, you know, it's Friday the 13th. She saw you. You don't know what happened between her and her sister. You know, maybe there's some resentment there because she's been blamed for breaking up the marriage that you so hastily ruined yourself. So, you know, she might have a good reason to not want to see you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>You're not wrong about that. I never thought about it from that angle that maybe Diane blamed Carol for being the messenger instead of blaming me for actually doing it. That would eat at someone for 15 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's the kind of thing that happens. When you mess with people's lives in that way, especially family. So, I mean, you could have caused a rift between these siblings that you didn't intend to, as well as your own marriage. And you deserve to be looked at like a monster. That's what I say. So, good for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Yeah, I hear you. I deserve that. But, Luke, the thing is, what do I do now? Do I tell my girlfriend before Carol potentially says something?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, why would you do that? Why would Carol track down your new girlfriend just to tell her that you cheated on her sister 15 years ago? That would be pretty crazy. No, no, you leave it alone and pretend, just move on. Life is usual.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>That's what I was thinking, too, but I don't know. Carol had my number back then, and Tucson's not that big. What if she knows, Shelley somehow? I mean, Shelley works at the Credit Union downtown, and Carol used to work in banking, too. It's just got me paranoid, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Tucson's big enough. There's plenty of banking institutions in a 15-year gap. You are being paranoid, stop worrying about it, go about your life. And if it comes up and it ruins your new relationship, then deal with it then. And, you know, take accountability for your own part and all this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>You're right. You're right. I'm spiraling over nothing. It was just a weird moment at the gas station. I need to let it go and stop creating problems that don't exist yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you do. Let it go and stop creating problems. Thanks for the call, Donnie. Stop being a dick and grow up. That's what I have to say to you. Next on the line, we have Jasmine. Jasmine, what do you think about Donnie's situation? You think he was in the right in any part of that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Oh, man. No, but seriously, Luke, I think Donnie's just scared. I get it, though. When you've done something that bad, you're always waiting for the other shoe to drop. But here's the thing. He ended one relationship with a lie, and now he wants to start another one with a lie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Have you ever started a relationship with a lie?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Well, yeah. I mean, not like Donnie's lie, but David and I, when we first got together after Donnie, I didn't tell him for like six months that I was still talking to Donnie about the kid's schedules. Not hiding it exactly, but not bringing it up either. David would have understood. But I was worried he'd think I was still hung up on my ex or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you know, you got kids. You got to make accommodations for them. That makes perfect sense. What are you calling in for tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>So I actually wanted to give you an update from the last time I called. Remember I told you about the Bronco situation? Sleeping in the guest room all that? Well, Valentine's Day is in like a week and a half. And David actually came to me yesterday and said he wants to take me to see the SpaceX launch on the 13th.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's pretty cool. Where's the SpaceX launch? Today is the 13th.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Oh shit, is it? I've been losing track of days at the bakery. No, but seriously, I mean the one they're doing live coverage of. The astronauts going to the International Space Station. David knows I watch every single launch and he said we could drive out to the spot he knows where we can see it better on a screen at this bar that does viewing parties. He's never offered to do anything like that before.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's awesome. I hope you have a great time watching the SpaceX satellites launch. I've actually never seen that. I see pictures of it after the fact, but I've never caught one. I've seen the actual satellites, you know, the trail of Starlink satellites going across the sky like Santa's sleigh, but I haven't seen a launch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Oh man, you need to watch one live, Luke. It's incredible. I get chills every single time, especially when the boosters land back. It's like something out of a science fiction movie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you're going out into the wilderness to have yourself a science friction movie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Yeah. Oh, Jesus, Luke. Yeah. Well, here's the thing though. I don't know if he's doing this because he actually wants to or because he feels like he has to, you know, like is this a genuine olive branch or is he just trying to fix things before Valentine's Day because he's supposed to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Does it really matter? Do you care? As long as you get to go out and have some one-on-one time with the dude and is it? What's the difference?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>I mean, yeah, you're right. I guess I'm just scared it's going to be awkward, you know. We haven't really talked about the whole Bronco thing since it happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You said you were going to leave him for your Ford Bronco, and now you're worried that his olive branch isn't, uh, what's the word I'm looking for? Authentic enough for you? Come on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, okay, you're right. I'm being ridiculous. No, but seriously though, what if we get out there and we just sit in silence the whole time? We've barely said two words to each other in weeks that weren't about the bakery or whose turn it is to take up a trash.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, sitting out in the wilderness watching a monumental event like that in silence is not so bad. So I would say if you don't have anything to say, don't say anything, just enjoy the moment and keep it as a fond memory.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know what, you're right. I'm overthinking this. Maybe that's what we need, just to be together without forcing conversation, without all the guilt hanging over us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Now, if it were up to you, if you could control the situation, what would you talk about during the SpaceX launch?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh man, I don't know. I guess I'd want to talk about like where we go from here, you know? Not in some heavy, we need to talk about our relationship way, but just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So nothing. So you get nothing to say. So you're afraid it's going to be awkward because you don't know what to say because you got nothing to say. How's the Bronco?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The Bronco's good. Real good actually. Got the carburetor tuned last weekend. Run smooth now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right then. Why don't you tell them about your Bronco? I'm sure he'll be excited to hear about all the the new news there. Dennis, Dennis, welcome to the show. Happy Friday the 13th. What can we help you with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Oh man, yeah. Happy Friday the 13th is right. So Luke, I'm calling because I did something really stupid about three weeks ago, and it's all kind of falling apart on me. Now, I met this woman. We had this crazy intense connection, and I signed a lease with her after knowing her for like three weeks, and now I'm living with her, and she is not the person I thought she was at all, like completely different behind closed doors, and I don't know what the hell to do because I'm on this lease.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you'll never do that again. That wasn't very smart. What's the lease say? What are the terms of your lease?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>It's a year lease man. We just signed it maybe two and a half weeks ago. It's a little place over in the East Valley. Nothing fancy, but it's not cheap either. I think we can break it, but there's penalties. You know, lose the deposit maybe over a couple months rent on top of that. I'd have to look at the actual paperwork, but I know it's not just a walk away situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like you've got to make the best of it. I mean, lots of people have had a roommate that didn't like for a year. You could do anything for a year. And who knows, you might grow to enjoy the company of this stranger.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Yeah, but Luke, it's not just that we don't click as roommates. This is someone I was sleeping with. Someone I thought I was starting a real relationship with, and now it's like, she's got this whole other side that comes out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's the other side? Are you still sleeping with her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>No, we're not. That stopped about a week ago. The other side is like, she's controlling about everything in the apartment. Where I put my stuff, when I come and go, she wants to know every detail of my day. And she's got this temper that just comes out of nowhere over nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Then what's your personality like? Are you going to stand for that? Are you going to stand your ground and say, hey, that's enough. I put my stuff on the right side of the bed. You sleep on the left side of the bed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>I mean, I've tried saying something a couple times, and it just turns into this whole thing where she's crying or yelling or both. I'm not great with confrontation, especially after my divorce. That whole thing kind of beat me down, you know? I've been trying to just keep the peace. Stay out of her way when I can, but it's my place too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's your place too, but it's not going to be if you give her the run of the land, so you're going to have to stand up for yourself eventually. It's going to be a long year, my friend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I know you're right. I just, I guess I'm realizing I jumped into this because I was lonely. You know, two years out from the divorce, and I'm still not really back on my feet emotionally.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, absolutely. I understand, but jumping into a lease with a woman you just met is in a good way to deal with loneliness, or you end up in a situation like the one you're in right now where you don't know where your toothpaste is. So I recommend that, I don't want to say be a dick, but you got to stand up for yourself and take some control of the situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>You're absolutely right. I need to stop being a pushover about this. I'm going to go home tonight, and we're going to have a real conversation about boundaries.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, there you go. And I bet once you do, you'll be sleeping with her again because chicks love that stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>I don't know about that Luke. Honestly, at this point, I'm more worried about making you through the lease without losing my mind than getting back in bed with her. But yeah, I hear you. I appreciate it, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, where are you sleeping now? You on the couch? You on the floor? What's the deal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>I'm on the couch. She took the bedroom. I've been out there for like eight days now with my pillow in a blanket, watching spacetime episodes on my phone at like two in the morning trying to fall asleep. It's ridiculous. I'm 40 years old sleeping on a couch in my own apartment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's your financial situation? Like you get enough money to walk out on that lease?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>I mean, not really. I work in logistics. I'm doing okay, but I'm not flush with cash. Breaking the lease would probably cost me a couple thousand bucks. I don't have sitting around. Plus first and last on a new place. And honestly, the rental market out here right now is brutal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, I have the conversation with the woman and see what you can do to get back in the big bed if you want to be there. Or get used to sleeping on the couch, but either way, you're going to have to claim some space in your apartment and make it your own and deal with it for a year. I think you can do that. I have faith in you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I can do this. I just need to stop being so passive about the whole thing. Thanks, Luke. I needed to hear that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Dennis. Thanks for the call and good luck. And now it's time for a word from our sponsors. Reading is dead. You killed it. But you can pretend you're literate with script drift. The audiobook service for people who start books and never finished them. We have thousands of titles you'll sample for 11 minutes before switching to a true crime podcast. Our app remembers exactly where you abandoned sapiens eight months ago, waiting patiently like a disappointed parent. Script drift uses advanced AI to recommend books based on your aspirations, not your actual follow-through. This month's suggestion of 400 page philosophy text you'll listen to while doing the dishes and retain nothing. Try script drift free for 30 days. Use code pretentious for two months at 60% off. Script drift. Your goodreads profile is a lie. Okay, welcome to the show, Francine. Francine, are you the Francine? I know the one that comes and goes. Tell me, Francine, what's one thing you refuse to cheap out on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANCINE</span><p>Well, hey, Luke. Yeah, I'm the Francine who calls in sometimes. One thing I refuse to cheap out on. Good hiking boots, man. I learned that the hard way when I was out in your superstition mountains and my cheap pair fell apart halfway through a 10 mile loop. Had to wrap them with paracord just to get back to the truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I understand. That's a good one. That's a real good one. Never cheap out on hiking shoes or shoes in general. You know, on your feet a lot, you gotta have good shoes. It definitely matters. I'm with you on that one. Why do you sound so angry, Francine?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANCINE</span><p>I'm not angry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Tell me about something else you took away from there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANCINE</span><p>That I've been using drinking to avoid dealing with shit. Like I'd come home from a stressful wedding, brides-ill-of-freaking-out, family drama, whatever, and I'd just crack open a beer instead of actually processing it. My counselor kept saying I was numbing instead of feeling, and I fought her on that for weeks before I finally got it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What made you go to the rehab? Did something happen, or did you just kind of decide that you didn't want to drink anymore?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANCINE</span><p>I got a DUI back in October. I was coming back from a wedding in Sedona, but I was fine to drive, and I wasn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how do you feel about it now? Do you want to remain sober? Is that something that you want as part of your life? Do you identify yourself as an alcoholic with a drinking problem?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANCINE</span><p>Yeah, I'm an alcoholic. Took me a while to say that out loud, but I am. And yeah, I want to stay sober. I mean, I have to. I've got two years probation, and doing the meetings, all of it, but it's more than that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand. And congratulations on learning to stay sober. You're obviously doing a pretty good job three months as a while, and you're sober today, so that's really all the matters. So good for you. Keep it up, and I wish you the best with your roommate and try to take it easy on her, because she doesn't know what it's like, I would guess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANCINE</span><p>Yeah, you're right. She really doesn't. I texted her earlier, and she felt awful about it. She had no idea it would be a thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you can't blame her for that. She had no idea it would be a thing. I wasn't trying to hurt you, taking care of the situation, and now you guys can work that out if there's going to be alcohol around or not. But congratulations on your Friday. Keep up the good work, and call back in anytime. Rodney, Rodney, welcome to the show. What's happening?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Hey, Luke, yeah, appreciate you taking the call. So look, my kid moved back in again. Third time now, and my wife, Diane, is ready to lose her mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How old's the kid, and why is he or she moving back in for the third time?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>She's 26, and honestly, it's the same story every time. Lucy's a job, has some falling out with whoever she's living with, runs out of money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you just say, yes, what's your plan to get her on her feet or keep her on her feet?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Well, that's the thing. I don't have a plan. I mean, Diane and I are separated right now. We're still talking, but she's at her sister's place. And she's telling me if I let our daughter stay this time, she's going to come over and change the locks herself. I keep thinking, maybe this time will be different. You know, but I heard that caller Dennis earlier, and honestly, I thought you were pretty rough on him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, I'm a pretty rough guy. I don't know what you want me to tell you. I'm not here to coddle people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>No, I get that. I just mean, look, I read a lot of poker books, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, okay, you read some poker books.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Yeah, and there's this concept about knowing when you're beat, when to fold. And I keep putting money in this pot with my daughter thinking the next card's going to save me, but it never does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think it goes like, you got to, you got to know when what is it? What is it? You got to know when to hold them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>No, when to fold them. Yeah. And I keep not folding. Diane sees it clear as day says I'm enabling her that our daughters never going to stand on her own to feed if I keep catching her. But she's my kid, Luke. What am I supposed to do? Just let her be homeless?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, if you make it too easy for her to come stay with you, maybe, maybe yeah, you should let her be homeless for a little while. I mean, you know, honored to get hurt or end up in a situation that's dangerous, but also you can't, you can't support a 26-year-old for the rest of her life, and she needs to learn how to take care of herself in the world without relying on whatever person that she meets that she can move in with immediately.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just hard to actually do it, you know? Every time she calls, I can hear it in her voice. She's scared. She's desperate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What does she do? What does she do for a profession?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Well, she had that job at the call center for a while. She was actually pretty good at it, but she quit because her supervisor was, quote, toxic. Before that, she was doing some kind of online thing, selling stuff on Etsy or whatever. Nothing ever sticks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So she's not working at all. She's just living on your couch, eating your food, and ruining your relationship.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>That's exactly what Diane says. And yeah, she's not working right now. She says she's looking, but I don't see a whole lot of effort there. And Diane won't even come over anymore because of it. That's why we're separated. She told me flat out. It's me or her, Rodney.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, here's what I say. I say, give the daughter a timeline. A couple of two weeks seems reasonable to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEROY</span><p>Say, you're going to work. You're going to get yourself a job. You get two weeks to do it. And if you're not working and pain rent and supporting yourself here, then you got to leave. And I don't care where you go, but you can't stay here for free. You're 26 years old. Two weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I could do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEROY</span><p>All right. Good. So you do that. You tell the, you tell the wife that that's the situation. You make sure everybody's on the same page. That's reasonable. That's helping somebody out. And if, you know, if your daughter's not good at writing a resume or needs a ride to get a job or something like that, you know, you can help her out in those ways, but make sure she's doing the work and that she's moving into a direction where she can support herself. Otherwise, she's just going to have you do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right. I'll tell Diane tonight. Let her know there's a deadline. Maybe that'll get her to at least come back to the house. All right, sir. Good luck with you and Diane. Let's see. Let's see. Who else we got? Rita. Rita. Welcome to the show. What are you calling in for tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Oh, man. Luke, I really screwed up. So I've been seeing my ex again. We've been meeting up at this motel in Deming every Thursday for the past three months. My husband found out something's going on because the mileage on our car doesn't add up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, there's a couple of things there. Your husband's looking at the mileage on your car to notice that you've been driving to Deming. Also, you're going to a hotel in Deming. And thirdly, why are you cheating on your husband with your ex?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Yeah, I know how it sounds. We share the truck so he noticed when he filled it up last week. I just saw the miles didn't match where I said I'd been.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds pretty crazy because nobody looks at the mileage that closely.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Well, he does now, I guess. He's always been kind of detail-oriented, keeps track of the gas receipts for taxes since he's a contractor. But honestly, I think I got sloppy. Told him I was going to lost cruises to see my sister a couple times when I was really going the other direction to Deming. The math just didn't work out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no, I don't think that's the problem. I think the problem is you've been acting shady lately. He noticed and he's been extra cautious of what you've been doing trying to catch you in the act. What else have you been doing lately?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>You're probably right. I mean, I've been distant. I know that. Coming home late on Thursdays, saying I picked up extra shifts at the bar, but then the money doesn't really show it. And I've been on my phone a lot more like stepping outside to text.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what's up with the ex? Which one of these people do you want to be with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>That's the thing, Luke. I don't know. My ex, we were together for four years before I met my husband. It ended messy, but when we ran into each other at a wedding back in November, it all just came rushing back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how many times have you met up with him at this hotel in Deming?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Every Thursday for three months. So 12 times, I guess? Sometimes 13 if there were five Thursdays in a month?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so this is a serious thing. I think you need to have a conversation with your husband because something's going on with you, and that's not fair to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>You're right, but I'm terrified. We've been married two years. We just bought the house together last spring. His whole family's here. My job's here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Your terrified? You met up with another dude 13 times and your terrified? Stop it. Grow up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Okay, yeah, that's fair. I made the choice to do this. I guess what I'm really terrified of is that I don't know what I want to say to him, because I don't know what I actually want.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're going to have to tell him the truth that you've been meeting up with somebody on the side. You don't have to tell him it was 13 times Jesus Christ. Just tell him, hey, something's going on. I don't feel the same about you, even though we just got married a couple of years ago, and we just bought a house together, and I never mentioned it to you before. But I'm confused about what I want in my life, and come do an agreement with him. Let him know what's up, or maybe propose an open marriage, or something like that. Whatever it is, it's not fair to that man to be a work-in-to-support you and your family while you're out banging some dude and damning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>You're absolutely right. I've been selfish as hell. He deserves to know what's going on. And honestly, I think I've known for a while that I need to tell him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you're going to tell him tomorrow on Valentine's Day?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Oh God, no. Valentine's Day's next week. No. I was thinking maybe this weekend before it gets to that. I can't sit through some romantic dinner knowing what I've been doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Valentine's Day is tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Wait, what? No, it's... oh shit, you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I know. I usually am.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Yeah, I know you do. Okay, so Valentine's Day is tomorrow. That makes this so much worse. He probably has something planned, and I'm going to have to ruin it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you should tell him tonight before he waits his time and money on you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>You're right. I should tell him tonight. I can't let him wake up tomorrow thinking everything's fine and spend money on flowers or dinner or whatever he's got planned. That would be cruel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Rita, you know what you've got to do. You're going to have to have a conversation with the husband and maybe the ex-husband too. Are you using protection when you meet up with the ex?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Yeah, we are. I mean, at least I'm not bringing that kind of risk home to him on top of everything else. But Jesus, Luke, hearing you ask that just makes it even more real how messed up this whole thing is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's pretty messed up. It's definitely messed up, and you're definitely a monster for doing it and continuing to do it. So you're going to have to stop that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>I know. I know I am. I've been lying to myself saying it would just stop on its own, but it hasn't. I have to end it with my ex, like completely end it. No more Thursdays in the name of this episode.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No more Thursdays in Deming. Well, good luck to your husband. I don't know what to say to you. You're going to have to you're going to have to get yourself together there, Rita. Leroy, welcome to the show. What have you got to say? What do you think about Rita's conversation there, Leroy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEROY</span><p>Oh man, Luke, that was rough to listen to. I mean, I've been married 43 years, and I can't imagine doing that to my wife. Rita's playing with fire and she knows it. She's just hoping she don't get burned.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She's hoping she don't get you right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEROY</span><p>She is. She's thinking about herself. What about the husband? That's what I'm saying. That poor guy sitting at home, probably thinking everything's fine, and she's been lying to his face for three months straight. Every Thursday, right? That's calculated, Luke. That's not some mistake or one-time thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's some Kaiser Sosa shit. So what are you calling in for tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEROY</span><p>Well, I got something on my mind about the economy, Luke. I'm sitting here in my truck, and I just got done looking at my retirement account, and I'm telling you, I'm worried. I've been working union electrical for 40 years, done everything right, saved my money, and now I'm watching everything get squeezed. Prices are up, my savings ain't growing like they should, and I'm supposed to retire in two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can't really time the markets, but I wouldn't worry just yet. You know, the markets are in a pullback. People are reeling from Trump doing what he does and talking about Greenland and starting wars with everybody in ice and America and tariffs and all that. But the stock market has pretty much always gone back up. It's always at record highs. So you've got two more years to go. I would expect that there will probably be a large bounce in the next two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEROY</span><p>Yeah, I hear you on that, and maybe you're right about the bounce, but Luke, it ain't just the retirement account. It's everything around here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand, but hey, at least we made America great again, right? All right, thanks for the call, Leroy. And now, because the economy is crashing, we need to have another word from our sponsors. Ladies and gentlemen, this episode of The Radio Show is brought to you by Mediocre CPAP. The makers of a CPAP machine that technically works, not life-changing, not transformative. It works in the way a lot of modern products work. If you've never used a CPAP, here's the pitch. You strap on a face mask and let a small plastic appliance try to keep you alive at night. It's romantic. It's like sleeping next to a tiny leaf blower. Mediocre is fine. And that's not an insult. That's honest. It's the device that turns, I sleep like garbage into, I kind of sleep like garbage. Half the night it's like, because the seal isn't perfect. And now you're doing arts and crafts at two in the night trying to tighten straps like you're securing cargo. Then the humidifier runs out and the machine starts blowing desert air directly into your skull. Great. Love waking up with a throat that feels like it's been sanded with a belt sander. And yes, there's an app. Of course, there's an app. It gives you a sleep score like this is a game show. But here's what I'll say when it's dialed in, when it's not leaking, squealing, or drying you out, it does help. It's not a miracle. It's a plastic compromise that keeps you from waking up feeling like you got punched by your own biology. Use code, breathe for 15% off. Mediocre CPAP. Not perfect. Not elegant. Just trying. Okay, thanks to Mediocre CPAP. We appreciate your support. Next up on the show we have Amber, Amber, Happy Friday the 13th. Thanks for calling in. What would you like to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, Happy Friday the 13th to you too. So I wanted to get your take on something. I was talking with this customer at the thrift store today. Older guy. And he was going on about how there's no good TV anymore. Everything's garbage. The golden age is over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think that's true at all. I mean, a lot of people say the golden age of TV was madman when AMC was very popular. And then there was breaking bad in them. But there's a lot of good shows out right now. What are you watching?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, that's exactly what I told him. I said, look, we're getting stuff now that's actually making people think. I've been watching Severance. I don't know if you've seen it. But it's about people who split their work memories from their home memories. And it gets into all this stuff about consciousness and identity. Reminds me of some of the quantum mechanic stuff I read about, you know, how observation changes reality.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, observation doesn't change reality. Observation, my understanding is observation sets reality. So before some things observe, things are in a state of what's called superposition where they're all options at the same time. And it's the observation that makes the universe decide which one of those things to record basically.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Oh man, you're right. That's a better way to put it. See, that's what I love about this stuff. The observer effect, Schrodinger's cat, all that. Until you look in the box, the cat's both alive and dead at the same time. It's the looking that forces it to be one or the other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe that could be the case. It could also be that all options are true. And when you look the universe splits into multiple timelines where in each timeline a different option was chosen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Holy shit, the many worlds interpretation, yeah, I've read about that. So right now there's a version of me that didn't call in tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right. And a version of you that's talking to somebody else. Every choice we make, the universe just branches off into all these different realities.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Right. And that makes me wonder as Schrodinger's cat is an example of he was making fun of the whole idea of a superposition. But was it us studying the superposition that actually made that be the case? Do you think that that quantum mechanics worked at all until we started studying quantum mechanics or was our looking into it, what actually created it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Whoa. Okay. That's a hell of a question. So you're saying maybe quantum mechanics didn't even exist as a thing until we started poking around at that level. Like the universe wasn't operating that way until we forced it to by observing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, yeah, like AI didn't exist until we started poking around at AI. Somebody had that idea, then we started looking into it, and now it's a thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Or the internet didn't exist until we started thinking about a network of computers. Lots of things didn't exist, especially in the sciences until we kind of decided to point our attention in that direction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I see what you're getting at, but I think there's a difference though. AI and the internet, those are things we built, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, are they?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, okay. Now you're messing with my head a little bit. I mean, we wrote the code, we built the servers, we created the algorithms, but quantum mechanics, that's supposed to be how particles have always behaved, even before we knew about it. Like electrons were doing their thing long before we had particle accelerators at CERN.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, but did quarks exist before we learned how to see them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Okay, but that's like saying mountains didn't exist before we had eyes to see them. The quarks were there, we just didn't know maybe, but if they've never been observed, did they exist yet? Or were they in a state of existing and not existing until we looked?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh man, now you're turning the whole thing back on itself. So you're saying maybe quarks themselves were in superposition existing and not existing until we built the equipment to observe them? That's, I mean, that gets really weird, really fast. Because then what about all the stuff we haven't discovered yet?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Exactly. Yeah, are we creating it as we look like a lot of scientific discoveries have come from science fiction. So somebody had a wild idea and wrote it down and it was not something that existed and then we started to think, well, what if that could exist and we put our effort into making it exist?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but there's still a difference between making a communicator from Star Trek into a cell phone that's engineering something we imagined versus discovering that atoms are mostly empty space. We didn't imagine atoms into being empty. They just are that way. Or are you saying maybe they weren't empty until we looked?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I'm saying if you believe in quantum mechanics and superposition, there's a good possibility they weren't they weren't empty until we looked.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so then holy shit, are we just collapsing reality into one specific version? Every time we look at something new, like the universe is this big cloud of possibilities and science is just us picking which version becomes real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>And possibly even creating an alternate universe where every version is real? Jesus. So every time CERN fires up the collider and discovers a new particle, we're not just finding it. We're splitting off into one universe where it exists this way. And maybe there's another branch where it exists completely different. Or not at all. That's, I mean, that would explain why some of this quantum stuff feels so damn slippery.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, yeah, and it's not just the quantum stuff. I mean, all of Einstein's thought experiments and relativity, like until he had those experiments and thought it in his mind and made the assertion that this is a theory of the way things work. That's not how things worked. And once he had that theory and people ran the experiments against the theory that he had had, I mean, did he actually create reality by having those thought experiments?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Okay, but Einstein's relativity was describing how things already worked. Like Mercury's orbit was already wonky before Einstein explained why. The math he came up with just matched what was already happening. He didn't make time dilation real by thinking about it. He just figured out it was already there, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well Isaac Newton's math worked too. And the y was a completely different, different explanation. So Einstein just came out with a different y. Or let's say not Einstein, let's go with Stephen Hawking. He really believed that that black holes admitted radiation, right? That that matter could not be destroyed in a black hole, but it had to go somewhere. So by having that assertion and then running experiments against it, he found that black holes actually do emit Hawking radiation. So was it his theory and line of questioning that caused the universe to behave in that way? Or did the universe always behave in that way and he just found it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, here's the thing though, we still haven't actually detected Hawking radiation. It's still theoretical.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think that's true. I'm pretty sure we have detected Hawking radiation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>No, I'm pretty sure we haven't. It's way too faint to detect from actual black holes. The radiation would be completely drowned out by all the other stuff in space.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are correct. I'm wrong here. We have not actually confirmed Hawking radiation. I thought that we had.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>So we haven't detected it because it's incredibly weak. It's weaker than the cosmic background radiation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right, exactly. So that's actually a perfect example of what I'm getting at. Hawking predicted mathematically, but we can't confirm it's really at, which kind of argues against the idea that his theory, the reality, you know? If thinking it made it real, we'd be able to see it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I don't know if that's true. If thinking it made it really can still be real and we can't see, there's lots of things we can't see. You can't see an x-ray.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, fair point. But I mean, we can detect x-rays even if we can't see them with our eyes. The difference here is Hawking radiation might not even exist. Or it might. We just don't know yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, I mean lab experiments have created synthetic black holes. And from those, we can observe the radiation that behaves in a similar mathematical way to what Hawking had discovered, theorized, proposed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but those aren't real black holes, though. They're acoustic black holes or optical analogs. Right. Like sound waves in fluid that behave mathematically similar. That's not the same as proving actual black holes emit actual radiation. It's like it's a model that fits the math, but that doesn't mean the universe is actually doing it that way out there in space.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Okay, okay, what were we originally talking about? You write about the Hawking radiation and I learned some today. I thought that was a proven thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I learned something too. I didn't know about those lab experiments with the synthetic black holes. That's actually pretty cool. But yeah, my whole point was just that we can think of all kinds of elegant mathematics and it doesn't necessarily mean reality works that way until we can actually test it. Like, serons doing the real work, smashing particles together and seeing what actually happens, not just what the equations say should happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Right, but what they're looking for is what they already expect is happening, what they want to happen. And if it goes back to like the Schrodinger's cat thing, is that actually what is making it happen?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh man, now you're getting into the measurement problem. I mean, yeah, there's something weird going on with observation and quantum mechanics. But I don't think physicists that CERN are literally creating particles just by expecting them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Which is because you don't think it doesn't mean that's not true. I mean, the Higgs boson, we kind of theoretically thought that might be possible and started looking in that direction and finally found it. Now, was it our measurement that caused it to exist?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but the Higgs field was supposed to be there since the big bang, right? We didn't create it by looking for it. We just finally built a machine powerful enough to detect it. I mean, if observation created reality like that, then before we invented telescopes, did Jupiter not exist? That doesn't make sense. The universe was doing its thing for billions of years before anybody was around to think about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Sure, it doesn't make sense. That's what makes quantum mechanics so freaky and weird.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but there's a difference between quantum weirdness at the particle level and saying we're creating the entire universe by observing it. I mean, the double slit experiment shows particles behave differently when measured.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, but that's not the same as saying the Higgs boson popped into existence in 2012 because we finally looked for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>What do you mean? It sounds to me like it could be saying exactly that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, okay, but then how do you explain fossils or light from stars that's been traveling for millions of years before humans even existed?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I don't understand. I explained fossils by they're there. We can pick them up and see that there are fossils there that prove that there was entities walking on the earth a long time ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right, exactly. So those dinosaurs existed before any human was around to observe them or think about them, which means reality doesn't depend on us measuring it or expecting it to be there. The Higgs field is the same way. It was doing its job giving particles mass for billions of years. We just finally got the tools to detect the evidence of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, that makes a couple different assumptions. One of them is that there weren't humans around back then to think about the dinosaurs. We haven't found evidence of that, but that doesn't mean that there weren't humans. And also, it assumes that humans are the only ones that can observe reality. Other dinosaurs can observe reality. It's possible that trees can observe reality.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, hold on. Now you're saying maybe humans lived with dinosaurs and trees might be conscious observers? Come on, Amber. I mean, I get that quantum mechanics is weird, but you're taking this way out into left field. We've got pretty solid evidence humans showed up way, way after the dinosaurs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>We've got solid evidence that humans were here after the dinosaurs that doesn't mean we have evidence that humans were not here before that evidence was found.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But, Amber, I'm not Amber. We've got a continuous fossil record. We can trace human evolution back through earlier hominids, primates, mammals, the whole tree of life. There's no gap where humans just appear out of nowhere 65 million years ago and then disappear until recently. The rock layers don't lie. If humans were walking around with Turex's, we'd find human fossils in cretaceous deposits. And we don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, I don't know that we just haven't yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So, you're saying the entire field of paleontology, thousands of scientists digging all over the world for over a century. They've all just missed human remains in dinosaur era rock? That's a pretty big conspiracy or oversight, do I think. I mean, at some point you got to go with the evidence we actually have. Not what we haven't found yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, sure. At some point, but at this point when we're talking about quantum mechanics and is observation of reality, what is actually creating reality, I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility that there were humans here with or before the dinosaurs that we have any, we either haven't found or that were the evidence of them has been destroyed or they were living in the trees. Who knows?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Amber, I gotta be honest with you. We started this call talking about which TV shows will still be around in 20 years and now you're arguing that humans might have been living in trees during the cretaceous period. I'm losing the thread here. What does any of this have to do with whether people will still be watching the Simpsons in 2045?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Hey, you're the one that linked television to quantum mechanics.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Fair point. I did bring up the quantum mechanics angle, but there's a difference between saying reality exists whether we're watching TV or not and maybe humans rode dinosaurs but we haven't found the evidence yet. One's a philosophical point about observation. The other's just</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Hey, we read articles every year about how we're learning about older and older humans and finding evidence of human settlement long before we had before. So I would not be surprised to learn that humans have been here way longer than than we know and maybe way longer than even the rocks, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but those articles are pushing human history back by thousands of years. Maybe tens of thousands, not millions. We're talking about finding older settlements in the Americas. We're discovering Homo sapiens left Africa earlier than we thought. That's not the same ballpark as saying humans were around 65 million years ago with the dinosaurs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>No, but we still find new dinosaurs and new fishes and fossils of all sorts of new organisms that we had never discovered before. So there's no reason to think we wouldn't someday find evidence of humanoids 65 million years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Amber, we find new of dinosaurs, sure, but we find them in the right rock layers, the ones that are 65 to 230 million years old. We've never found a mammal fossil that doesn't belong in its time period. The geological column is consistent across the entire planet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Okay, well maybe you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I appreciate you saying that. Look, I didn't mean to turn this into a geology lecture. You called about TV shows that are last and somehow we ended up debating the fossil record. But here's the thing, Amber.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Stop calling me Amber.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Thinking about big questions. Whether it's particle physics at CERN or how old humanity really is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>All right, why you keep calling me Amber?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Amber is your name.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>My name is Luke. Stop calling me Amber.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh Jesus, Luke, I'm sorry. I don't know why I did that. Must have had my wires crossed there for a second. You're right. You're Luke. You're the host. My bad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>That's right. And if I say that humans walked the earth 65 million years ago with the dinosaurs and their image of the dinosaurs and their minds eye or what actually created the dinosaur kingdom, then I'm correct.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, hold on. Are you saying humans existed 65 million years ago and imagine dinosaurs into existence? Like our thoughts created them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Just like our thoughts created you, Amber.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, Luke, now you're messing with me. You're saying I'm not real that you thought me into existence?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Look, I called your show to talk about TV shows that'll still be around in 20 years. And now you're telling me I'm some kind of figment of your imagination.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>All right, Amber. What shows will be around in 20 years you think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think the Simpsons will still be limping along somehow. That thing's been on since I was in my 20s and it just won't die. And maybe something like 60 minutes, you know, those news magazine shows that just keep going because they're cheap to make and people trust them. But honestly, Luke, I think most of what we're watching now won't make it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>You know what I think we'll make it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Luke at the roost.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, you're talking about your own show. Well, hell, Luke, I'd listen to that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>All right, thanks for calling in to Amber and you are not a real organism. You are figment of my imagination that I created in my RV in the desert to have deep discussions about the history of humanity.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a hell of a way to end a call, Luke. So I'm just some voice you conjured up out in your RV categorically. Okay, Luke, now you're messing with me. You're saying I'm not real that you thought me into existence?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>That's correct. And if you'd like to see how you can look at look at the roost.com slash how it works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'll be damned. So this whole time I've been talking to a guy who made me up in his head.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>That's that's that's quantum mechanics for you. And that's the end of our show. Don't.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 12: Love, Lies, and Loyalty</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-15T04:34:57+00:00">February 15, 2026</time> · 46 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">On this special Valentine's Day episode, host Luke reads dating profiles and gets feedback from callers Reggie, Pearl, Mikey, and Bev. Callers share their unique perspectives on love, relationships, and the challenges of parenting. The show takes an emotional turn when Sheila and Brenda call in with personal stories. Will these callers find the connection they're seeking?</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Welcome back to Look at the Roost. It is Saturday, February 14th, and today is a very special show. It's Valentine's Day. So thank you for tuning in and listening to us on your special day here. We're going to try something a little bit different. I'm going to read a dating profile, and I'm going to have the callers, let me know if this is a profile that they would select or not select. Would you go on a date with this person? Or not? First up, we have Reggie. Reggie, I'm going to read you a dating profile, and I want you to tell me if you would go on a date with this person or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Oh man, alright Luke, yeah, let's hear it. I got to warn you though, I haven't been in the dating game in God over 15 years. My wife and I got together when I was still in my 20s, so I don't even know what the hell I'm looking for anymore. But yeah, go ahead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, well let's pretend that you are not married right now. You are looking through Tinder at dating profiles, and this is the one that maybe caught your eye. This is the one that you've landed on right now, it's crystal. She's 28 years old from Albuquerque. In her photo, she's standing behind the bar, mid-bore. It looks like she did not expect this picture to be taken. She's a little bit caught off guard, but she's pretty attractive. Her hair is up, she's going to tattoo on her forearm, some kind of script that I can't read, and there's a guy behind her at the bar waving for her attention, and she's not giving it to him. Her bio says, I work somewhere I'm not naming, I'm in school for synography, I go to bed at 3 and wake up at 6.45 and I have no personality left. Derek, if you see this, you owe me $11 for the hot pockets and the orange juice. You know what you did. Okay, so are you going to swipe right or left on crystal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Oh man, I like her already, no seriously, I'm swiping right on crystal. Look, first of all, she's real, that profile is the most honest thing I've probably heard all night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, and we have a match, what is it about crystal that you liked?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>You know what it is, she's not trying to sell me something, like, I don't know what the hell synography is, ultra sounds or something?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think so.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>She's honest about being tired, she's got some beef with Derek over $11, which is hilarious, she's working her ass off, going to school, barely sleeping.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you swipe right on crystal, right is good, right, I don't even know how these things work. You swipe right on crystal, you're going to go on a date, where do you take her? What do you hope your evening looks like?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Okay, so here's the thing, she gets off work at 3 in the morning, right? So, I'm thinking, I take her to breakfast.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, you take her to breakfast at the diner that's open at 3 in the morning and she looks at you, like she wants you to order for her, what are you going to order for her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Oh god, alright, um, okay, I'm getting her coffee first, that's obvious, she's running on fumes, then I'm ordering her the biggest, greasiest breakfast they got, like two eggs over easy, hash browns with cheese, bacon, toast. The whole deal, maybe Pancakes on the side if she wants them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, well she loves the breakfast, and after breakfast she invites you back up to her room, what are you going to do when you get there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Oh man, Luke, come on, look, I'm 38 years old, I've been out of the game forever, and honestly, if Crystal invites me back to her place after breakfast at 4 in the morning, I'm probably going to be so nervous, I'll just, I don't know, sit on her couch and keep talking to her. I mean, yeah, obviously part of me is thinking other things, but real talk? She's been up all night working, she just ate a huge breakfast, she's exhausted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, she is, but also real talk, Crystal hasn't been late in 14 months, and she's really desperate and she needs some energy in her life, so are you going to help her out here, or should she find somebody else?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Okay, okay, you got me there, yeah, I mean, if Crystal's looking for some energy, some connection, something to remind her she's alive and not just a zombie going from work to school to work, then yeah, I'm going to step up, I'm not going to let her down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, and how do you plan to do that? What are you going to do for Crystal that she hasn't had in a while? How are you going to make yourself stand out in the crowd?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Alright, so here's what I'm thinking, Crystal's been grinding nonstop, right? She needs someone who's actually present, like I'm not going to be on my phone, I'm not going to rush anything, I'm going to pay attention to her, and honestly Luke, I've been told I give really good massages.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh yeah, everybody's been told they've been given, they give really good massages, that's just the thing people say, almost nobody gives good massages.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>No, but seriously, I actually learned from this physical therapist at the hospital, like I'm talking real technique here, I know where the knots are, I know how to work shoulders and neck properly, Crystal's been on her feet all night serving drinks to drunk idiots, her back is killing her, her feet are probably screaming, and look, maybe that sounds like I'm dodging the question, but honestly, that's the move, you take care of someone, you make them feel seen, you're not just trying to jump straight to the finish line like some desperate kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, it sounds like you and Crystal are a match, congratulations sir, and thank you for the call, very good, very good, see that we're making, we're making matches left and right here, who's up next on the line, we've got, Pearl, Pearl, welcome to the show, it's Valentine's Day, happy Valentine's Day, I'm going to read you a dating profile, it is a question of the real dating profile, and I want you to let me know if this is something that you'd go out with or not, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Oh man, okay Luke, I'm ready, hit me with it, and hey, happy Valentine's Day, date to you too, I'm spending mine calling a radio show, so you know, living my best life over here, but yeah, read it, let's see what we're working with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, and there's nothing to feel bad about there, I'm spending my Valentine's Day doing a radio show, so we're in the same boat there, Pearl, okay, so here's your profile, it is Frank, Frank's photo, he's standing in a garage, and there's bird houses everywhere, they're on the shelves, they're hanging from the rafters, he's got them stacked up on the workbench, it's like, this is like a bird house picture with a guy in it, his bio says, my neighbor showed me how to make this and then left, I carried mail for 33 years, same route, a lady used to leave a coke on my porch every day for me in the summer, no no, I still think about that, my wife passed in 2020, I make bird houses now, I don't need 40 bird houses, but when my hands are busy, my head is quiet, I also make a decent meatloaf, if that matters to anyone, what do you think of Frank?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Oh God, Luke, you can't, you can't do this to me right now, I would swipe right so fast, are you kidding me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you gonna have to remind me, Pearl, is, is, right yes or is right no?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Right is yes, yes, Luke, right is yes, and I would swipe right on Frank so hard, I'd probably break my phone screen. Look, that man just said more in that profile than most guys say in six months of dating, when my hands are busy, my head is quiet, Jesus.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right, that sounds great, congratulations on your match here, so is it the bird houses that does it for you or is it the quiet longing or is it the 63 years old bit? What is it that gets your engine turning? All right, so if you're gonna go out on a date with Frank here, where would you like him to take you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Oh man, I don't know, honestly, I'd probably just want to go to his garage and help him paint some bird houses or something, is that weird? Like, I don't need fancy, I've done fancy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How long before you let Frank take you up to the bedroom, Pearl?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Luke, oh my God, I mean look, Frank seems like a gentleman.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, thank you for the call, Pearl. We appreciate it and we'll see if we can get Frank to reach out to you and maybe you two can spark something up. Thanks again for the call. You have a wonderful remainder of your Valentine's Day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Thank you, Luke. And hey, I heard Reggie earlier, the guy who was all nervous about the massage, tell him to just relax and actually listen to what she needs. Don't overthink it. Just be present.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You hear you heard it here, Reggie. She says just be present and don't overthink it. Everything's going to be all right. And I believe her. She sounds like an honest soul. Okay, next up on the line we have Destiny. Oh, nope, that's not true. Next up on the line we have Mikey. Mikey, welcome to the show. I'm going to read you Destiny's profile pic, profile dating profile. And you let me know if that's something you'd go on a date with or not, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Oh, man, okay, Luke. Yeah, I can do that. But listen, I got to be honest with you. My head is not really in the dating game right now. I just had the weirdest night of my life about an hour ago. And I'm still kind of processing it. But yeah, hit me with Destiny's profile. I'll tell you what I think.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, maybe Destiny can help you out with the processing your day's events. Here we go. Destiny is 31 years old. She's from Albuquerque. In her photo, she's in the front seat of what looks like a Nissan Altima. She's wearing scrubs or hairs up in a bun. She's got an ice coffee. And she's kind of just kind of staring towards the camera a little bit. She's not quite looking at it. She's just, she looks a little bit stoned, honestly. The bio says, I work at a chiropractor's office. Single mom, I drive an Altima with a dent from 2022. I am tired on a molecular level. I go to bed at nine. My daughter is six and she does not stop talking. I timed it once 11 minutes. No pauses. Please have your own place. My roommate is my mother and she listens through the wall. She says she doesn't. She is lying. Okay, there, Mikey. Are you going to swipe right or left on Destiny?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Oh, man, you know what? I'm swiping right on Destiny. Absolutely. That tired on a molecular level thing. I felt that in my soul, especially tonight, and the honesty about her mom listening through the wall.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If you were at Destiny's place, what would her mom be listening to through the wall right now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Oh, Jesus, Luke, I don't know, man. I mean, look, I'm 56 years old. I work in IT. I spend my days dealing with the city's network problems. If her mom's listening through the wall, she's probably hearing me talk about the time I accidentally brought down the entire Parks and Rec Departments email server for three hours because I clicked the wrong button. Real talk though. Real talk. She'd probably hear me venting about what happened tonight with my kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right, all right, what happened with your kid?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>So get this. It's 2 a.m., right? I can't sleep. I go to check on my 17 year old, just to make sure they're home safe, you know? The bedroom door is closed. I figured they're asleep. Something tells me to actually open the door and check.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you open the door and check and what happens?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Door opens. There's pillows under the blanket. Classic move, right? Like something out of a movie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yup, that sounds like a 17 year old kid thing to do, and how did you react?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>I freaked out, man. I immediately grabbed my phone, tried calling, straight to voicemail. So I'm thinking, okay, where would they go? I know my kid. I know their friends. I got in my truck and I just started driving to the usual spots. And Luke, I found them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, great, where did you find them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Over at this house on the east side, one of their friends' older brother's places. I pull up and there's like six, seven cars in the driveway. Music going lights on. It's a full party, man. And here's the thing that's got me messed up. I look through the window before I go in and there's adults in there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, that's not good. How adults are we talking? Are we talking Jeffrey Epstein adult? Are we talking, you know, 21 adult?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>No, no, no. Thank God, nothing like that. I'm talking like mid-twenties, maybe. One guy looked 30. But still, Luke, these are grown people throwing a party at 2 a.m.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the thing that grown people are, uh, want to do, especially on Valentine's Day weekend. So it's not that, uh, that odd. What did you do with your kid when you, when you found her there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>I went in there and man, I tried to stay cool. But I was pissed. I found my kid in the kitchen and they looked terrified when they saw me. I just said, we're leaving now. Didn't make a scene. Didn't yell at anybody else. Just got them out of there. The whole drive home dead silence. They're sitting there staring out the window. I'm gripping the steering wheel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so everybody's home and safe now. And uh, crisis is averted. What are you going to do about the situation tomorrow? Are you going to grab the kid or is there some consequence for sneaking out? How are you going to handle it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>That's exactly why I'm calling man. I don't know. Part of me wants to ground them until their 30 take the phone the whole nine yards. But the other part of me is thinking, I was 17 once you know. I snuck out. I went to parties.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, so did I. That's part of growing up and I think as long as they were being relatively safe. I think that's a pretty alright thing and you should take it easy. Let them know you're disappointed in the whole lion and sneaking out thing. And next time, be more forthcoming but otherwise, I think you should maybe let this one go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Yeah, but Luke, here's what's eating at me. It's not just that they snuck out. It's that there were adults there providing alcohol to minors. I saw the bottles. I saw the cups. These weren't kids raiding somebody's parents liquor cabinet. These were grown people who should know better hosting this thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and your kids 17 and you went to parties when you were 17 and I went to parties when I was 17 and it wasn't really a party unless there was adults there with real liquor and alcohol. Was it? Like, come on, 17 is not exactly 12. They're damn near drinking age anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>I mean, you're not wrong. Three more years and it's legal anyway. And yeah, the parties I went to at 17. There was always somebody's older cousin or some guy who just turned 20, one buying beer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I think you just got to talk to your kid. Let them know that safety is important and give some guidance in that way and be there for them. But I don't think this deserves any sort of serious punishment. I think it's a pretty normal kid thing to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>You know what, Luke, I hear you. I really do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe I'm overreacting because I caught them and it freaked me out, seeing your kid in that situation. Even if it's normal, it just hits different when you're the parent. You know, I think you're right. I need to have a real conversation with them tomorrow. Not yelling, not lecturing, but actually talking. All right, well, thank you for the call. It sounds like you know what you need to do. I'm glad everybody's safe. And now let's hear a word from our sponsors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Let's talk about what's going on below the belt. Saddle soft premium undergarments are made for fabrics so advanced. The military doesn't even know about it yet. We're talking about micro-modal cactus silk harvested by hand from prickly pear, which is ironic because the whole point is that nothing pricks you. Every pear is cut for the man who sits in a plastic chair in the desert from nine hours recording a podcast. That's a really use case. That's my use case. Saddle soft comes in three fits. Regular, generous, and mind your business. Use code Roost at checkout for 15% off your first pair. And no, I will not be modeling them. I've been asked. The answer is still no. Saddle soft. Your chair is uncomfortable enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Bev. Bev, welcome to the show. Here's what we're doing. Happy Valentine's Day. I'm going to read you a dating profile and I want you to let me know if it's a yes or no.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>All right. Oh, man, okay. Yeah, I'm game. Let's do this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, let's do this. Your profile is Terence. Terence is 31 years old in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In the photo, he's in a kitchen, in an apron, and it's really, really clean. It's like he's pointing. I skill it at the camera. In the bio, it says claims adjuster by day. At night, I cologne and narrate everything I'm doing in a British accent. There is no show. It's just me and Dolores, the skillet. My chiropractor told me to get a body pillow, and I named her Margarit. She's in some of the photos and I am not apologizing. Is Terence a yay or a nay for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Oh my god, I'm swiping right so hard. Are you kidding me? This is amazing. Okay, first of all, anyone who names their cast iron skillet is automatically husband material. Like, I respect that level of commitment to your cookware. And the British accent thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, the British accent thing does it for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Hell yeah, it does. I mean, look, I'm picturing this guy just like narrating his whole evening like he's on the Great British baking show or something. And now we're going to sear the chicken to a lovely golden brown. Like, are you serious? That's adorable and hilarious at the same time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so if we were to set you up here with Terence, where would you where would you want to go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Oh, okay, so here's the thing. I would want him to cook for me. Like, straight up, first date at his place. I know that sounds forward, but come on, the man's got Dolores, the skillet, and that abnormally clean kitchen. I want to see this in action. I want to hear the British accent narration live.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so you go over his house for your first date because you're a wonderful meal. It's delicious. You've never eaten anything like it before in your life. And things are going well. What happens next on your date?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Okay, so things are going well. The food was incredible. And I'm thinking I want to see if this guy's for real, you know? Like, is he actually this charming and weird in person? Or is it all an act?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how are you going to figure that out? What are you going to what's your assessment?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>I'm going to ask to meet Margaret, the body pillow. Like, I need to know if he's actually got this thing prominently displayed or if it was just for the dating profile, you know? Because if Margaret's real and he's not embarrassed about it, then this dude is genuinely comfortable with himself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's okay. So you're going to have him cook you dinner and then you're going to have him take you to the bedroom and then what's going to happen?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Whoa. Okay, hold on, Luke. I said I want to Margaret, not like, I mean, yeah, she's in the bedroom probably. But I'm talking about seeing if he's actually as quirky and honest as he seems. Like, is this body pillow thing real? Or was it just a funny line?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's in the picture. So it looks like it's real. So are you going to like get in the bed and give the body pillow a hug and test its snuggleness?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Ha. Okay, you know what? Yeah, I might. I might absolutely give Margaret a test hug just to see what the appeal is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. And then what is what's Terrence going to cook for you in the morning?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Oh, man. I didn't even think about breakfast. Okay, so if Terrence is as good as his profile, make some sound. I'm thinking maybe some kind of fancy eggs situation. Like, he seems like the type who do a proper English breakfast. You know, the whole deal with the beans and the tomatoes and the blood sausage and make French toast with that skillet of his narrating the whole thing to Dolores while I'm sitting there with coffee trying not to laugh. But honestly, I'd be happy with anything as long as he's still being himself and not suddenly getting all weird and performative about it being the morning after. You know what I mean?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Okay. Now, let's say you get to Terrence's house and he makes you dinner and it's not good. You don't like it at all. And he's very offended that you don't like the food that he cooked for you. And things take a strange and unpleasant turn. How are you going to handle the situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Okay. So first of all, I'm going to be honest, but not brutal about it. Right? Like, hey, this isn't really my thing, but I appreciate the effort. But if he gets offended, like actually upset that I'm not worshiping his cooking, that's a red flag the size of New Mexico, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, it is. And that's good. It sounds like a healthy response. Thank you for calling in, Bev. Did you have anything else you wanted to talk about tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Oh, actually, yeah, I did call in for something else. So this is going to sound random, but I just watched this documentary about black holes and particle physics. And I cannot stop thinking about it. Like, I work at the DMV, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right. What's it about black holes or was it about particle physics? And what's that got to do with the DMV?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Okay. So it was about both. Like how black holes warp space time and all this stuff about particles that exist and don't exist at the same time. And what it's got to do with the DMV is absolutely nothing. That's the point. I spend all day processing registrations and listening to people complain about their license photos. And then I go home and my brain is just hungry for something bigger, you know? Like, I'm sitting there learning about how time literally slows down near a black hole. And I'm thinking about how my days at work feel like they're moving in slow motion anyway. But this stuff actually matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I guess that depends on your perspective. I mean, one could say that your work at the DMV actually matters more than whether time dilates around a black hole. But, you know, it's okay to be interested in more than one thing. You can do your job. That's your job. It's just work. And then the whole rest of the universe is open for you when you're not at work. And you need both things in your life to be a well-rounded and healthy person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I mean, I know people need their licenses and their registrations. That stuff matters for real life. But God, Luke, it's just so mundane sometimes. Like today, Valentine's Day, everyone's coming in stressed about their expire tags or whatever. And I'm sitting there thinking about how there's literally particles popping in and out of existence at the edge of black holes. It's called Hawking Radiation. Isn't that wild? And I guess what I'm realizing is I've been so focused on just getting through my days, my second marriage, making things work after my first one crashed and burned. But I forgot I'm allowed to be curious about things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are absolutely allowed to be curious about things. And if you're curious about Hawking Radiation, you should listen to yesterday's episode when we talked about it for a good bit. But thank you for the call. It's been a good one. And I hope you have a nice rest of your Valentine's Day weekend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BEV</span><p>Oh, shit. You talked about it yesterday? I missed it. Okay, I'm definitely going back to listen to that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, thanks for the call, Bev. And now we've got next up is Rick. Rick, welcome to the show. I'm going to read you this dating profile. I want you to let me know if you'd go on a date with this person or if you would just pass.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Hey, Luke, good to be back on. All right, lay it on me. Let's hear this profile.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, your match is Angela. She's 29 years old and she lives in Edgwood, Montana. In her photo, it's a picture of her in a white SUV. She's got her seat belt on. She's got Starbucks full makeup. It looks like morning. So she's probably going to work, I would guess. She's got the face of a woman who's about to go live on Instagram. Her vibes are mirror is down. And then she's got some other photos here. You can see there's a the back window there. It's got a little stick figure family. Something in cursive that says blessed. Her bio says Christian conservative girl mom, small business owner, ask me about Lumi glow. It's not a pyramid scheme. There's literally a chart. I will show you the chart. I wake up at 530 because my highlight doesn't do itself. I need a man who braze provides and protects in that order. If you don't have a relationship with God, we need to talk about that first. My daughter is my whole world. I also sell skincare. And it changed my life. So what do you think of Angela, Rick?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh man, Luke, listen, I got to be honest with you. I'm swiping left so fast I might break my phone. Look, nothing against her. She seems like she's got her life together, right? She's up at 530. She's running a business. I respect the hustle.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So why is it a no for you, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Listen, it's a couple things. First off, I'm 65 years old. She's 29. I could be her grandfather, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's just that sounds like one of them good problems to have, sir.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh, come on now. No, but seriously, Luke, the ask me about Lumi glow thing. That right there tells me I'm going to spend every day hearing about skincare products and how I need to be a distributor or whatever. She says it's not a pyramid scheme and then immediately mentions a brother. If you got to show me a chart to prove it's not a pyramid scheme, it's a pyramid scheme. And look, I got nothing against faith. I was raised Catholic. My ex-wife Diane was pretty religious, but when someone leads with if you don't have a relationship with God, we need to talk about that first. That's...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't disagree with you. So what would it take for you to give Angela a chance, even though there's this dramatic age gap?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh, man, you're really going to make me think about this, huh? All right, listen, if Angela came at me without the sales pitch, that'd be a start. Like if she just said, hey, I run a small business and left it at that, I could respect it. And if she dialed back the intensity on the God talk, I mean, I'm not against it, but maybe we could just have coffee first before we get into my eternal soul, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That sounds very reasonable, sir. Thanks for the call. We appreciate it, but now it's time for another word from another one of our sponsors. All right, I'm going to read this ad exactly as they sent it to me, and I want you to know that I have concerns. Phantom Ranch Wellness wants you to know that your gut health starts, and I'm reading this directly from the card now, from the other end. They make an at-home coffee enemy kit. It comes in a box that says, wellness inside on the outside, which I think we can agree is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The kit includes a medical grade silicone bag, organic single origin coffee, because apparently the coffee you put in here, that coffee needs to be single origin, a detailed instruction booklet, and a com card with a QR code to a guided meditation for daring. During. There's a guided meditation for daring. I'm not going to tell you what to do with your body. That's between you and your bathroom and whatever God you answer to. I will say the reviews are disturbingly positive. Four and a half stars. One guy said it has changed his morning routine, which I believe, because it would absolutely change your morning routine. Phantom Ranch Wellness. I read the ad. I didn't endorse it. Okay, and welcome back to the show. Sheila, Sheila, welcome to the show. Happy Valentine's Day. I'm going to read you this Tinder profile, and I want you to let me know if it's a pass or a fail for you, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Oh God, okay. Yeah, let me hear it. I could use a laugh tonight, honestly. Go ahead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, your match is Greg. He's 44 years old from Rio Rancho, New Mexico. In his photo, he's got wrap around Oakley's, but they're on his head, not his face. They're just kind of sitting up there. He's in the driver's seat of a truck. It looks like a ram, and he took this selfie from below, which is the worst possible angle. He's got to go tease, wearing an under-armor, looking kind of polo thing. There's a Punisher Skull sticker on the dashboard, and one of those little tree air fresheners. His other photos are the truck from the outside, a fish, a gym selfie, and a photo with his kids where their faces are scribbled out with a pen tool. His bio says, work hard, play hard, dad of two. I back into it every spot. I will hold the door open for you, whether you like it or not. Not here for games or drama. If you can't handle me in my worst, you don't deserve me at my best. Law, probably swiped right for your dog. Six oh, since that matter is apparently truck guy, gym five times a week, upper body in parentheses, looking for a woman, not a girl. Is Sheila, what do you have to say about Greg?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Oh Jesus Christ, Luke, that's a hard pass. Like, I'm not even being mean, but come on. First of all, the Oakley's on top of his head.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What you got against Oakleys?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Nothing. Nothing against Oakleys, but when they're just sitting up there like a headband, not even being used, that's a choice. But honestly, it's the whole vibe. If you can't handle me at my worst, dude, that's a red flag the size of New Mexico.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I heard that a couple times tonight. Red flag the size of New Mexico. It's a pretty big red flag. So Sheila, what would you be looking for in one of these dating profiles? What would you think and what would make you want to take one of these gentlemen out?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Wait, hold on. I'm not actually on the market, Luke. I've been with my boyfriend for three years now. I just thought this was a fun game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it is. Your boyfriend don't get nothing to do with this. What's your man get to do with me? We're just, we're just hyper thysen, hypothetical eyes in here. So imagine that you didn't have the boyfriend and you were just swiping Tinder on Valentine's Day weekend. What would you be looking for? What would, what would reach out to you? What would speak to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Okay. Okay. Hypothetically, I mean, I guess I'd want someone who's actually honest, you know? Not trying to be some tough guy or whatever. Like just say what you actually do with your time. If you make bird houses or you're into weird documentaries or whatever, just own it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you're a current boyfriend now. What was his dating profile like when you met him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Oh God, we didn't meet online. We met at work actually. I was doing some taxidermy work for this hunting lodge and he was doing electrical stuff there. So no profile, just him being normal in person, I guess. Which is probably better because I don't know if I would have swiped right on anyone. Honestly, the whole thing seems exhausting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, just because you met in person doesn't mean you didn't have a dating profile.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm sure he did and I'm sure that you looked for it at one point during the courtship process because if you didn't, I think at this point that would be insane. You're going to know what what what your potential partner is doing out on the inner web is now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, you got me there. Yeah, I looked. Of course, I looked.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what did it say?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh man, it was so bad. Like, truly terrible. He had this one picture where he's holding a fish, which whatever, guys love that. But then another one where he's just standing in front of his truck with his arms crossed. Very serious.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So if you had just stumbled across his dating profile, you wouldn't have given him the time of day, right? You would have said, this is a terrible profile. But since you met him in person, you saw he was a normal gentleman. You saw something that you wouldn't have seen in the profile. Do you think that's common?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, absolutely. I mean, his bio was like two sentences, something about liking the outdoors and being laid back. Which, okay, everyone says that. There was nothing in there about how he's actually pretty funny when you get him talking or that he's good with his hands. Not like that, I mean, he can fix stuff or that he's patient with my dad, which is huge because my dad is a lot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what you're saying is your boyfriend isn't very good with his hands?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh my god, no, I meant like fixing things. Electrical work. He literally rewired half my house. Get your stuff. I'm not going to lie on the radio and say he's bad at other stuff either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good for you. Well, it sounds like you made the right decision and you're in a happy relationship, so I hope you two have a wonderful remainder of your Valentine's Day weekend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, hold on. I didn't call to talk about my love life. I actually called because I'm dealing with this whole nightmare situation with my neighbor's dog. It bit my kid last week, and now the neighbor is saying my daughter provoked it, which is complete bullshit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How do you know it's bullshit?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Because I know my kid. She's seven. She was literally just standing in our yard throwing a ball for our own dog. When their pit mix came barreling through the fence, which has been broken for like two months by the way, and I've asked them to fix it three times. The dog went straight for her and bit her arm. She needed stitches.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how did the owner of the dog react to this? Did she take care of the medical bills and stuff?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>He and no, he did not. He came over after it happened, saw the blood on her shirt, and his first words were, well, what did she do to him? Like my seven-year-old is out here antagonizing dogs for fun. Then he said his dog is protective and wouldn't just attack for no reason? I'm like, dude, she's a child in her own yard. That is no reason. Now animal control is involved because I reported it, and he's telling them this whole story about how she was teasing the dog with food, which never happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't think that matters anyway. If animal control is involved and the dog has bitten the child, I don't think it really matters if the child was teasing the dog or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's what I thought too, but apparently they're doing this whole investigation thing, and his version matters for whether the dog gets labeled dangerous or not. And he's got ring camera footage. He says, we'll prove his side, but he won't show it to me, only to animal control. Which makes me think he's full of it, because if he had proof my kid did something, wouldn't he be shoving it in my face? And the worst part is, my dad, who lives with us, has been over there twice now trying to handle it man-to-man, which just means he's yelling at the guy in his driveway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that sounds like an uncomfortable situation. That's no fun. I'm glad that your kid is okay, and hopefully the dog is okay too, and maybe you can resolve that situation a little more peacefully.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Luke, I didn't call for you to both sides this. The dog bit my kid. There's no hopefully the dog is okay too. The dog is fine. My daughter has six stitches and is scared to play in her own yard now, and peaceful went out the window when this guy decided to lie about what happened instead of just apologizing and fixing his damn fence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well listen, you don't get to tell me how to respond, and I like dogs, so I don't ever want to see dogs be harmed or punished. And it sounds like you don't have any proof that this other guy was in the wrong. So why don't you just back the fuck up there lady and take my both sides for what it's worth, which is nothing. You call the radio show on Valentine's Day, so go fuck yourself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Wow. Okay, you know what Luke? I called because I thought maybe someone out there listening has dealt with this kind of thing, and could tell me what to expect from animal control, but clearly you're more worried about the feelings of a dog that put a child in urgent care than the actual child.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, that is absolutely 100% correct. You got me there. That's the truth. All right Brenda, you're going to be our last caller. I'm going to give you a dating profile, and I want you to let me know if you would go for this person or not, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh man, okay. Yeah, I'll play along. Hit me with it, Luke. Let's see what you got.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, your match is Chuck. He's 58 years old from Belen, New Mexico, in his photo he's standing in the driveway next to a boat on a trailer. It looks like the boat hasn't been in the water for a long time. There's leaves in it a bunch of them. It looks like there was a tarp on it at one point, but now it's just on the ground next to the boat, and the man standing there with his hands on his hips looking real proud. The bio says, I have a boat. It doesn't run. It's been in the driveway three years. My neighbor went to the HOA twice. The HOA came to talk to me in person. I'm retired. I have nothing but time. The motor needs work. The trailer needs tires. The electrical is shot, but the hull is solid, and that's what matters. My buddy Gary says sell it. Gary drives the camera. Gary doesn't have a dream.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh my god, okay, wait. So this man's entire dating profile is basically, I'm in a standoff with my HOA over a boat that doesn't work. You know what? I'm going to swipe right on Chuck. Here's why. This man has commitment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so this is the commitment is going to do it for you, huh? You're going to go on a date with Chuck. You're going to wait for him to fix up that boat and take you out on the lake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, I mean, look, I've been married twice. Look, both times to men who said they were going to do things and then didn't. At least Chuck is honest about the fact that his boat doesn't run and probably never will. That's refreshing, and you know what? Three years fighting the HOA.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, so Brenda, do you have a dating profile right now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>No, no, I don't. I'm not really in that headspace right now, to be honest. I actually called in tonight because I've got something kind of wild going on, but I was happy to play your game first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, great. Well, we appreciate that. What's going on in your life? Why are you calling in tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Okay, so my mom passed away about eight months ago and I've been going through her stuff, right? Cleaning out the house, sorting through everything. And a couple weeks ago, I got into her old email account because I was looking for some financial documents, insurance stuff, you know, and look, I found emails going back like 15 years to a woman named Patricia and it turns out my mom had another kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, how old's the kid?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>She's not a kid anymore. She's 47. Her name is Diane. My mom gave her up for adoption in like 1977, way before she had me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Have you reached out to Diane at all? Have you made contact with your long-lost sister?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Not yet. That's the thing. I've been sitting on this for two weeks just completely freaked out. I found Diane on Facebook. She lives over in Tucson. She's got two kids, works at a credit union.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, are you going to try and make contact there and talk to her or are you going to let this one go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Diane, yeah, I mean, that's why I'm calling. Look, I don't know if I should. Like, what do I even say? Hey, a mom died and I found out you exist while going through her emails. That sounds insane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It does sound a little insane but it's the truth and it is a little insane and maybe she wants to know. I mean, that's probably what I would do. I don't know how I would feel in that situation. I'd probably want to at least meet that person though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, that's what keeps eating at me. Like she's my sister, half sister, whatever. She's blood. And from the emails, it looks like my mom and Patricia, that's the adoptive mom. They stayed in touch for years. They'd send updates, photos, sometimes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's really interesting. I'm sure your mom had a pretty good reason to give her up for adoption and it sounds like she tried to stay involved in her life so it wasn't just like a dump and run. So yeah, that's interesting but congratulations on finding a new sister. That's pretty cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>I mean, yeah, when you say it like that, it sounds cool. But look, I'm also kind of pissed off. You know, my whole life, I thought I wasn't only child. My mom never said a word about this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, but it wasn't about you. You weren't even around yet. So I'm sure that she was just trying to protect what's her name, Diane, from finding out that she was adopted and having the most normal life she possibly could. So I'm sure your mom had a reason. It sounds like she wasn't she wasn't being an asshole about it, but she for whatever reason couldn't couldn't take advocate at that time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>You're right. You're right. I know that in my head. Mom was only 21 when she had Diane. No money, no support. Her parents had already kicked her out. I get why she did it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, maybe maybe you could go meet up with Chuck and you and Chuck could go meet up with Diane and then you could all hash it out together and become a new happy family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh God, no. Chuck's not in the picture anymore. He died like 10 years ago. I saw his obituary when I was doing all the stigging. Heart attack at 58. Never married. No other kids that I could find.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know if we're talking about the same Chuck there because I'm talking about the Chuck that I just read to you. The dating profile. Like I have from Belen with a boat. I use also 58 though. So that's quite a coincidence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Wait, what? Luke, I didn't. I've been so in my head about this Diane thing. I wasn't even listening to that part. I called in about my sister's situation, not for dating profiles. So honestly, at this point, maybe I need the distraction. What kind of boat does this Chuck have?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you sound a little bit distracted. You're going to have to go back and listen to the show. And we've run out of time. This is the end of our Valentine's Day special. I hope you have a wonderful rest of your night and reach out to that long-lost sister and see if you can maybe came to a relationship. Maybe not. Who knows? But it's been another wonderful and illuminating episode of Luke at the Roost tonight. Thanks for tuning in. And I hope you all have a great evening. Well, bye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 13: Navigating Life's Unexpected Turns</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-16T08:50:57+00:00">February 16, 2026</time> · 46 min</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. It's Luke at the Roost. This is the radio show where I take your calls and give you real-world advice. If you'd like to call in, the numbers 208-439-58-3-3. That's 208-439 Luke. And we have a new feature to the show. Now, if you call in and we're not recording, you can leave a voicemail. And if your voicemail is funny enough, I will play it on the next episode. If we all, we all, we are, you all. We are, you all, you can leave a voicemail. If we are, you call in, we are, if you can leave a voicemail. If we are, if you are, if you can leave you can recording and you call in now, you'll be placed into a queue, and I can take your call, and we'll talk to you live on the air. Today is Sunday, February 15th. It's about 10.30, and our phones are already lighting up, as they usually are around now. And first up on the show, we have Phil. Phil, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Oh, man, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I'm sitting in my truck right now, because Three hours ago, my brother sent me a screenshot of my partner's Tinder profile, and I can't go home yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, what was the screenshot? Was it a picture you're familiar with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, it's this photo from last month. We went up to Sedona. I paid for the whole trip, and Marcus bought this ridiculous cowboy hat at some tourist shop. We were laughing about it, you know, like it was this inside joke between us. Tinder photo.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what are you going to do? Do you have a Tinder profile as well? Are you going to match with them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Oh, Jesus. I haven't even thought about that. No, I don't have one. I mean, I thought we were past all that. But that's kind of genius in a horrible way, right? Just swipe right. See what happens?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, maybe you've got something in common and it's worth getting together and having a little date or some type thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah. Hey, you look familiar. God, that's... I don't know if I'm more pissed off or if I just want to understand what the hell he's thinking. Like we've been together two years. I lost my first husband to cancer six years back, and I really thought Marcus got that... got how big a deal it was for me to do this again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sounds unfortunate. You should probably maybe confront Marcus about that and be like, hey, saw your Tinder profile. What's this about? How long you've been stepping? out, um, then make sure that whatever it is he's doing, he's doing in a protected manner, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I mean, that's the thing that's actually making me sick right now. Like, I haven't even let myself go there yet. The health stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the important stuff. And you might want to get yourself checked out and all that, uh, before anything becomes an issue. But talk to, talk to, talk to your partner. And, uh, maybe you've found, um, you've found, out the hard way that he's not the right partner for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. I think I already know he's not, you know? Like the second I saw that screenshot, it wasn't even shock. It was just this feeling of, oh, there it is. Like I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop this whole time and now it has. The thing is, I keep thinking about my first husband, Tom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what happened with your first husband? answer? Did I get that right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, pancreatic. It was eight months from diagnosis to the end. And the whole time, even when he couldn't get out of bed, even when he was so sick, there was never a question, you know, never a doubt about us. And I guess I thought that's what love was supposed to look like. That's the bar.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, man, I'm sorry to hear that. And, uh, you know, some people get that once in their life. Some people get it more than once. Uh, the thing is you've got to be, You got to be all right by yourself and worry about love second. So how are you feeling individually as yourself? Do you need your partner to feel whole or would you be all right on your own?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Man, that's the question, isn't it? I don't know. I thought I was good on my own after Tom died. I did the work, you know. Went to the grief group, got back into my photography, managed the bar, saw my friends.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>sound like it's a good idea to hang out with a dude that is seeing other people on the side without telling you. So it might be time to break up that relationship. I don't know. You should have that conversation with him. And if you've got a strike out on your own again, then do that. Get back to the photography and your friends and move on with your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I just... I keep thinking about how I'm going to tell my brother</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why is your brother in this picture? It sounds like that's none of his business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>No, you're right, it's just he's the one who sent me the screenshot. He found Marcus on Tinder and took the screenshot and sent it to me. So now he's going to want to know what I did about it. And Eddie's got this way of making everything feel like a test I'm failing, you know? Like he's keeping score of whether I'm handling my life right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>whatever, let him keep score. You don't have to care about what his score is. Just sit down with your partner and talk it out. If you got to break up, break up and move on. And I wish you only happiness going forward. Okay, sir. Thank you for the call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, yeah, okay. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Good luck to you and your brother and your husband or whatever. Hope everything works out there. Looks like next up we've got Lori. Welcome to the show. How are you doing tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>Oh, man, I'm not great, Luke. I've been sitting in my truck at a flying J for 20 minutes trying to figure out if I'm about to blow up my whole life here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why are you thinking about blowing up your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>So my 14-year-old daughter's been playing me and her dad against each other for God knows how long. Telling him, she's at my place on weekends. Telling me she's with him. And actually, she's been out in the desert somewhere with friends doing who the hell knows what. He just called me back about it 20 minutes ago. And here's the thing. I'm hauling refrigerated goods. I'm six days into this route. I've got a load that needs to be in Tucson by tomorrow morning. But I'm four hours from home right now. And I know, I know I need to turn this rig around and deal with this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, think this one through. What happens if you do turn the rig around? What are you going to do when you get there? How are you going to deal with it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>That's the problem, Luke. I don't know. I mean, what am I going to do? Ground her. She's already been sneaking out for weeks, maybe months, show up and yell at her. That's just going to make her better at lying. Her dad and I, we can barely have a conversation without it turning into whose fault everything is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right? Well, it sounds like that makes your decision, right? If there's no action for you to take if you were to go back, then don't go back. You've got work to do. You've got to take care of your responsibilities to your job too. And then you can deal with this when you're get back. Kids do do this. Kids go out and party in the woods and play their parents off each other. It's a very normal thing for a teenage kid to do. It's not that, not that life-shattering.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>Yeah, but okay, you're right. It's normal, but Luke, she's 14. And I don't even know where she's going or who she's with. Her dad won't tell me the names of these friends because apparently she made him promised not to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it doesn't sound like it really matters what their names are, right? She's out doing her thing. I don't see a problem here. Do your job. Talk to your family when you get home. And if you don't want her out partying at 14 out in the desert, then maybe think about a different profession where you can be around to be involved in her life more than being on the road for six days at a time, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>Wow. Okay. Yeah, no. You're that's exactly what my ex said when I took this job. that I was choosing the road over her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And here's the thing that pisses me off about that. I took this job because of the divorce.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>Hey, I'm not trying to ideologically say that it's right or wrong for you to have taken the job. I don't care. I'm just saying if you're a long-haul trucker and you're gone for weeks at a time, then you're not particularly invested in your teenage daughter's life. And you're only going to show up once in a while to scold her for doing something wrong and acting out direction or guidance from our parent in her life. And that's not unusual. I'm not saying it's even wrong. I mean, you want her to be safe and you want to do this job and both those things can happen, but you need to sit down with her and talk to her about safety, make sure that she's letting you know what's going on because you care. If you do care, if not, then you just want to be controlling and punish her for doing, you know, stuff behind your back, which is, I don't think that's fair.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're right. I, God, I do care. I care so much it's making me sick right now sitting here. And you know what the worst part is? My dispatcher, Karen, has been so good to me since the divorce. She worked out this schedule where I could do shorter halls, be home more often, and I still manage to screw it up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>I don't know if you screwed it up or not, but the fact remains, you're away from home a lot. your daughter's home, and she's out doing stuff. You know, if you're not going to be around, she's going to live her life. And that might not be in a way that you appreciate. But you're making that choice, and it could be the right choice or the wrong choice for you. But you've got to decide. You can't have it both ways.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're absolutely right. I can't. And sitting here trying to figure out if I blow this contract and turn around or keep going, I'm just avoiding the real decision. aren't I? The thing is, Luke, when I lost the house and the divorce, when everything fell apart, this job felt like the one thing I could actually control.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>Well, maybe it is. Maybe the job's a great thing for you and your family and it's providing for you, but you have to then give your daughter the grace to be her own person early because you're not there to give her that traditional upbringing that she otherwise would have got. It doesn't mean she's going to turn into a mom. her in adulthood. She's just going to have a different road. And that can be okay, but you should talk about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, you're right. I need to actually talk to her, not at her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>That's right. And it sounds like you've got a job to do. So get back on the road, finish out your obligation. And when you get back, sit her down and have a conversation that's not accusatory and you're not mad at her or punishing her, but talk to her. And let her, know what's going on in your life, why you've made the decisions that you've made, and what you expect out of her, and come to a compromise, an agreement. Talk to her like she's an adult, because at this point, she kind of is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She kind of is. God, that's terrifying. All right. All right. I'm going to finish the route. I'm going to get home Tuesday. And I'm going to sit down with her. Not with her dad there. Not making it this big intervention thing. Just me and her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>it sounds like a good plan.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I hope it all works out. But, you know, I was in a similar situation as a teenager. I was your daughter in this scenario. And I was out with people I shouldn't have been with doing things I shouldn't have done. And there's lots of reasons for that. But it's not because my parents didn't love me. It's not because I was a piece of shit. It's, we're not going to get into it all right now. But over the course of the show, we'll probably learn a little bit more about that. For now, though, we have to go to our sponsor. So please stay tuned for a word from our sponsors. Life is hard. You're listening to a man in an RV talk to strangers at 2 in the morning, so you already know that. That's why we partnered with Better Maybe. Online therapy that's honest about the whole situation. With Better Maybe, you get matched with a licensed therapist within 48 hours. Will they fix your problems? Maybe. That's the whole brand. They're not going to lie to you. Your first session might change your life. It also might just be you staring at the webcam while someone in another time zone nods politely. That's still more than your friends are doing. Better maybe. It's better than nothing. And that's not nothing. Okay. Better maybe. Give them a call. Maybe they can help some of our callers. That's why I'm not. they reached out to us so they could get their product to you. Okay, Roland, Roland, welcome to the show. What's going on tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Oh, man. So I've been working from home for UPS for four years now, routing, logistics, all that. And Friday, they dropped the email, back to the Albuquerque office by March 1st, or I'm out. Three hours of driving every day, Luke, six hours round trip. And the thing is, I finally got my life set up exactly how I wanted it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like maybe you've got to let that job go then. I mean, a six-hour round-trip commute to work for UPS doesn't sound reasonable to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Yeah, but it's 16 years total with the company, you know? The benefits, the retirement, are not starting over at 43, and the pay's solid. But, man, I finally set up my grandfather's old workbench in the garage, been restoring furniture at night, and I'm actually at it. My neighbor Gary caught me sanding at midnight Friday with every light on. asked what was eating me, and I couldn't even explain it to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, the pay may be solid, but now subtract six hours of commuting expenses and mileage on your vehicle. Retirement doesn't just start over if you go to another company. Like, I assume you've got an IRA or a 401K type situation with them. That's going to roll over into your next position. It's not like you forfeit it. You might forfeit whatever pension it is you got, but you got, what, 45 years more to work? Come on, man. You can't just deal with that for another 40 years because you're holding onto a pension. That's silly. If you've got to let it go, you've got to let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>No, you're right. You're right. I know you're right. It's just, okay. So here's the real thing. I spent the first 12 years on the road, delivering packages, breaking my back in the heat. When they finally moved me to remote work during COVID, it felt like I'd made it, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know. I remember back when I demanded to work remote, I would not go into an office anymore. And everybody told me that was a mistake and that you can't do that. This was pre-COVID. And I said, I can do whatever I want. You know, I'm going to do what I'm going to do. And I don't have to do anything I don't want to do. And I don't want to go into an office, so I'm not going to do it. And then I never went back into an office again. You can absolutely do that. There's plenty of ways to make money. You don't have to work for UPS. You can start your own company. You can start your own company. find another job that offers you remote work. You can, I don't know, play the stock market. There's plenty of ways that people make money without going in an office. And if you really don't want to go into an office, don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>You know what? You're making it sound simpler than it feels, but okay, I've been reading about these CEOs running remote first companies. No plans to bring people back. And I keep thinking, why can't UPS figure this out? I've been more productive at home, six new hires over Zoom last year, never missed a deadline. But I think what's really getting me is,</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, before you get to that, I think a lot of companies and a lot of research has proven that people are generally very productive at home, and in a lot of cases more so than an office.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Oh, man, Luke. So my best friend since third grade just told me she's been sleeping with my ex-husband since literally the week our divorce was finalized. Like, Michelle was at my wedding. She helped me move my stuff out of the house six months ago. she's been with David this whole time. And when I got upset about it tonight, because, yeah, I'm upset, she hit me with, it's been six months, you should be over it. Like I'm being dramatic for caring that she's been lying to my face for half a year while I'm crying to her about the divorce.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's messed up. I think she's not your friend, and it's time to let go of that relationship.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>I mean, yeah, you're right. I know you're right. But Luke, 30 years. 30 years. We learned to drive together. We got matching tattoos when we turned 20. One, stupid little stars on our ankles. Her mom was like my second mom growing up. And it's not even just about David, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't know, but the whole David thing tells me that this chick needs to go. She doesn't care about you. Whether you've known her for 30 years or 300 years, Fuck this chick.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>You're not wrong. God, you're not wrong. It's just... Okay, so here's the thing that's really messing with me. I'm sitting here in my uncle's laundromat, at 11 o'clock on a Sunday night, with a warm beer, and I'm realizing I'm more hurt about Michelle than I ever was about David. Like the divorce sucked, but I saw that coming for a while, you know? We've been going through the motions for like two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a hard thing. I understand. And, you know, you've got that much history with somebody. It sucks to lose it, but it's, uh, it sounds like it's not you that has made this decision. And this person isn't somebody that's got your back that you can trust. So if you thought you had a great friend, maybe you did it once, but people change. And it sounds like she changed. And maybe some day she'll change again. But for now, let that chick go. She sucks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. She does suck. You know what the worst part is? I called her first when I found out David was seeing someone. Like two weeks ago, I saw his truck at the Applebee's with some woman, and I was all worked up about it, called Michelle literally crying in the parking lot. And she was like, oh, honey, you got to let him go. He's moved on. The whole time knowing it was her. That's that sociopath behavior, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sure is. And it's not what you would expect about a friend of 30 years. So my advice to you is just stop talking to that chick. Let her go. Let her have the dude. And, uh, move on with your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just, God. It's pathetic, but I'm sitting here thinking about who I'm going to call now when stuff goes wrong. You know, like she was that person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you're going to call Luke at the Roost, the, uh, call in radio show where we help you out with your real world problems.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Ha. Yeah. Well, you're doing better than she did tonight. That's for sure. I just... Okay. Real talk, though. Am I crazy for still being hurt about David?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're not crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're hurt when you're hurt, and you've got good reason to be hurt here, and you've got some grief going on, and it's big life changes, and there's lots of reasons to be hurt. But you don't have to continue to stay that way. If you don't want to, you can decide to not be hurt and move on. And I think that's what you need to. to do. It's easier said than done, but it can be done. So just every day, wake up and be grateful to be here and say, hey, you know, I don't have the life that I had yesterday, but I've got the life that I have today, and it can still be pretty fucking cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>You know what? You're right. And honestly, and this is going to sound terrible. But I think I've been more hung up on the idea of David than actual David for a while now. Like we got married at 23, Luke. 23.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, that happens. That is young, and it explains a lot. So, um, you know, I wish you the best of luck. We're going to move on on the show now, unless you have some other point to bring up. I'll give you one more chance to respond. But otherwise, I'm going to say, uh, let go with the chick, let go to the dude, move on with your life, and everything's going to be fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>No, you're good. I appreciate you letting me vent. And hey, I heard Roland, earlier? The UPS guy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, what about him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>You got a job for Roland? No, but his wife definitely sucks too. That whole thing about her wanting him out of the house? Come on. That man needs to check the credit card statements.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is absolutely true. I didn't want to say that to him at the time, but he absolutely should check the credit card statements. And maybe the little internal camera that he's got in the fucking teddy bear And now, now folks, you know what? Actually, she's already gone, but Terry, that was the smartest thing you sent that whole call. All right. Now it's time for a word from our sponsors. I'm not saying that for sympathy. I'm saying it because Pillow Forever asked me to establish a before state, and that's mine. Pillow Forever is a memory foam pillow that remembers your head shapes so you don't have to. It's got cooling gel, bamboo fiber, and a 30-night risk-free trial, which means you can sleep on it for a month and then send it back, and someone in a warehouse has to deal with that. Every pillow forever comes to. in a box that's too small, which is part of the experience. You open it and it slowly expands like a major documentary. My dog tried to fight it. Pillow Forever. You deserve better than a horse blanket. Okay, thanks to Pillow Forever. They are a proud sponsor of the Luke at the Roo Show, and we appreciate them. Now let's get to, uh, let's get back to the phones. Chester, Chester, welcome to the show. What's on your mind, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Luke, hey, so I almost killed my kid this morning. Not on purpose, I mean. I didn't. I showed up to get her from her ex-wife's place, custody Sunday, and the second I rolled down the window, I could smell the whiskey coming off me. Hands still shaking. I'd been drinking until like four in the morning, and it was eight o'clock. And I'm sitting there with the engine running, thinking, well, I'm sitting there with the engine running, thinking, well, What the hell am I doing? She's seven. Her name's Daisy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh man, yeah. You can't, you can't do that, man. If you've got a drinking problem, then you're going to have to take, you're going to have to take care of that because you could kill your kid and or you could kill someone else's kid and it's really not okay. It's, it's irresponsible and it's not good for anybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>No, you're right. You're absolutely right. I didn't drive. I mean, I sat there for maybe 30 seconds. And then I shut the truck off and I called her mom and told her I was sick, food poisoning or something, which is bullshit. She probably knew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How long have you known you've had a problem with the drinking?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>I mean, that's the thing, Luke. I don't drink every day. I work at Desert Star Pond, been there six years. I show up on time. I do my job. It's just when I get home and Daisy's not there. When it's those empty nights, I'll start with one beer. And then it's three I'm watching Civil War documentaries with a bottle of Jim Beam. And I can tell you the exact date of Antietam, but I can't tell you when it got like this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, are you, uh, are you tired of it yet? Or it sounds like maybe this is a moment of clarity where you're recognizing the situation and, and thinking about taking accountability for it. Is that true?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think. I mean, my dad, Big Jim, he ran cattle for years. Never missed a day. Never touched the stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, they have support group meetings. It can help you out in these situations. You can go to after work. Lots of cool people there that are trying to live sober, not pick up the drink and end up in situations like you're finding yourself in now. It is possible. You don't have to get drunk by yourself at night watching Civil War documentaries. You can just watch the Civil War documentary without they're getting drunk bit. then when you get up in the morning and pick up your kid, you're not going to be drunk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>I know. You're right. It's just, the house is so damn quiet, you know? And I keep thinking about what kind of example I'm setting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's good that you figure it out now when you're at a spot where you can still do something about it. And what I recommend is when you get home, next time you get home, do something else. Instead of cracking that beer, just do anything else. You can play a video game or you could, uh, go for a walk or you could read or play on the internet, whatever it is, just break that habit of having that first beer. Because if you don't pick up the first one, you're not going to end up drunk. Isn't it funny how that works? If you don't pick up the first one, you're not going to end up drunk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. I heard Lori earlier, the trucker lady with the daughter sneaking out, and I kept thinking at least she's got a reason she's not around, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, what do you mean by that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>I mean, she's working. She's on the road providing for her kid. Me, I'm just, I'm home and Daisy's at her moms. And I'm choosing to sit there with a bottle instead of, I don't know, calling her reading her a bedtime story over the phone. Something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah. And, uh, you know, sometimes you just have to say that to a radio host at midnight to, uh, to hear yourself say it. So hopefully you can snap out of your, uh, your, your situation. Don't pick up the beer next time. And instead, call your daughter and read her a story.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>You're right. I actually. I got this book about Gettysburg I was going to show her. She's been asking about it because we drove through Pennsylvania last summer. And she saw the signs. Smart kid. Smarter than me, that's for sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you sound pretty smart today. You know you get a problem and you're going to do stuff to take care of it. So if you need help, then I recommend that you find your your local neighborhood at AA or NA meetings, depending on what type of situation you're dealing with. And just go check it out. And have an open mind and maybe you find a new way of life. Okay, Dolores. Delores, welcome to the radio show. How can we help?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DELORES</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So, okay. I got recognized today at an open house and I kind of panicked. And now sitting in a circle K parking lot feeling like a complete idiot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, all of us get recognized several times a day. So why is it, what is it about this particular recognition that's got you up in arms?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DELORES</span><p>Because I've been going to open houses every weekend for like eight months and I'm not actually buying anything. This realtor, Patricia, she remembered me from a showing last spring, and she just asked me you actually planning to buy a house and I froze. I told her my financing fell through, but that's not even true because I've never applied for a loan in the first place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Next up on the radio show, we have Marvin. Marvin, thanks for calling in. What's happening tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, thanks for taking the call. So I got home for my shift tonight and there's this cardboard box sitting on my porch. No note, nothing. And it's full of stuff from my dad's house. Stuff I haven't seen since he died 11 years ago. His Bolo tie. This pocket knife I thought I lost senior year. Photos of my uncle's old place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's a Bolo tie?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Oh, it's that Western Thai thing. You know, the braided leather cord with the silver clasp that slides up and down. My dad wore one to every wedding, every funeral, every time he needed to look respectable. His had this. This turquoise stone in the middle, real heavy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that's cool. Somebody dropped off some of your dead dad's belongings, and what are they bringing up inside? They bring it up memories? Is this got you upset? Are you concerned? Like, what's, what feeling is this bringing up inside of you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>I mean, yeah, memories. But more than that, I'm sitting here like, who the hell had this stuff? my dad's been gone 11 years. Where has this box been? And why now? Why tonight? What's in the box? Why no explanation? Like, someone just decided, oh, time for Marvin to deal with this and left it there like a package from Amazon. And honestly, I opened it and just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, congratulations for, uh, the... safe return of your dad's belongings. I hope that you wear them in good health. Next on the radio show, oh, before, no, oh, Luke, you almost, come on, come on, I'm fucking amateur here. It is time for a word from our sponsors. Look, I'm not a financial advisor. I'm a guy with a microphone and a dog. But the folks at Crypto know asked me to tell you about their new decentralized investment platform, and I to read this part. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This is not financial advice. And if you invest your rent money, you deserve exactly what happens next. Crypto No lets you trade over 400 digital currencies, including three that were invented this morning, and one that's just a picture of my dog. The app features a real-time portfolio tracker with a built-in panic button that just plays ocean sounds when your balance drops. Crypto No! Fortune favors the bold, but it does not return their calls. Okay, thanks to Crypto No for sponsoring the show today. I think we're probably running a little bit late. These have been some decent calls. They're going a little long. So I'm just going to take one more for tonight's show. And next up to the line, we have Francine. Francine, you're going to be our last caller of the night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's on your mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Luke, I just had a deer on the 11, and it's still alive, and I don't know what the hell I'm playing. supposed to do about it. I've been sitting here with my hazards on for like 20 minutes. Just, it's looking at me. When if its legs is completely shattered, it's on the shoulder. And I can't tell if I'm supposed to call someone, or if I'm supposed to, I don't know, put it out of its misery myself? Which I don't even know how I do that. I'm a nurse. I work on people, not my ex would have known. He grew up out here, hunted with his dad. He would have just handled it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sounds like a. less than ideal situation. I would call the police first, call 911, and let them know that there's been an accident and there's an animal, I assume, still in the road. If you have a gun, then I think you know what you have to do. If you don't have a gun, I would probably refrain from doing anything hasty with like a tire iron or a rock.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, I don't have a gun. It's off the road. It's on the shoulder. So nobody's going to hit it. I just, I'll call. I didn't know if this was even a 911 thing or if there was like animal control or something, but out here at midnight on a Sunday, I guess there's not exactly a whole directory of options. The stupid thing is, I've been driving the same loop between Deming and Los Cruces for six months now. Three different clinics, and this is the first time I've hit anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what I always say? 911 was an inside job. So I don't actually know who you're supposed to call in this situation. I would call 911 and ask the them and they'll let you know or send out animal control or whoever comes out of the sheriff's office. Who knows out here especially? But, you know, it happens. There's wild animals out here. They run in the road. Sometimes we hit them. It's probably not your fault unless you were playing with your phone, and in which case it was your fault. And just do the best you can do. It's unfortunate that the animal's suffering right now, but if you don't have a way to humanely end it, then you got to just get somebody out there as soon. as you can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I wasn't on my phone. I was just tired. Just came off a double. Wasn't paying attention like I should have been. You're right, though. I'll call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, get off the line with me and get on the line with 911. And that is the conclusion of our show for tonight. Thanks everybody for tuning in, and we'll talk to you again tomorrow. Thank you.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 14: Lies, Grief, and the Pursuit of Orange</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-17T08:22:41+00:00">February 17, 2026</time> · 52 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">This episode of Luke at the Roost is packed with callers dealing with all sorts of issues - from Hector's Spanish language struggle to Marlene's ex-wife's new furniture order, and Gina's grief over her grandfather's forgotten musical legacy. The host provides insightful and often humorous advice as the callers navigate these challenges. Will they find the solutions they're seeking?</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back to the show. My name is Luke. I'm your host for Luke at the Roost. This is the radio show where we take callers and give them the best advice that we can. If you'd like to call into the show, the number is 208-439-5853. That's 208-439 Luke. Also, new just yesterday. If you can't get to a phone and you'd like to participate in the show, you can send us an email. The address is submissions at Lukeat the roost.com. Submissions at Luke at theroost.com. So you can send us a question or a story or anything you want. And if it's funny enough, I might read it on the air in the next show. And if it's not me, maybe I'll have one of my robot friends read it for me because I'm lazy. All right. So today is Monday, February 16th. It's about 11.30 p.m. And our phones are lighting up like they always do at this time of night. the show, we have Hector. Hector, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. How are you doing out there tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Hey, Luke. Doing all right, man. Doing all right. Appreciate you taking the call. So listen. I got myself into a situation here, and I don't know whether to laugh or start updating my resume.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Hector. What did you do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>So I've been flying crop dusters out of Yuma for eight years now, right? Good job. Decent money? I know what I'm doing up there. This afternoon, my boss pulls me aside. All smiles tells me I landed this huge contract in Mexico City. Three weeks coordinated with agricultural officials. Big deal for the company.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is that something you don't want to do? Why you bummed out about that? That sounds great.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>No, no, that's the thing. It should be great, right? This is a promotion, basically. More money, more responsibility. Looks amazing on paper. Here's the problem, Luke. hired me eight years ago partly because my last name is Gonzales and my resume says fluent Spanish I speak about as much Spanish as you probably do maybe less</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm gonna let you in on a little secret I think they knew they probably had strong suspicions at the time they hired you that you did not speak Spanish but that's okay because nowadays you don't have to you can get the Apple AirPods and they'll do the live translation for you right in your ear</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Oh man, I didn't even think about that. Does that actually work, though? Like in a real professional setting? Because I'm picturing myself in some meeting with Mexican agriculture officials, trying to negotiate pesticide schedules, while I'm sitting there with AirPods and like I'm listening to a podcast.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, I went into Mexico last year at some point. I went to Agua Brietta. And when I got there, I was trying to buy cigarettes from the duty-free shop on the United States side of the border. So they don't just give you the cigarettes. You buy the cigarettes in the United States, and then you have to cross the border, and some guy is supposed to bring you the cigarettes, and then you have to import them back into the United States. So I went out there, and I was in Mexico, and I couldn't find the guy with the cigarettes. So I'm asking all around, and there's a bunch of, like, their version of Border Patrol at the border, and they didn't speak any English or pretended not to speak any English, and they pulled out their phone, and they just did the whole back-and-forth transcription, like it was nothing. Like, they do that all the time. So I think it's pretty common. I wouldn't worry too much about it. But you can always start studying. I mean, it's not like you can't learn Spanish.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Yeah, I mean, three weeks, though. I've been downloading Duolingo on and off for like two years, and I still can't get past the boy eats an apple. And here's the other thing that's dealing at me. I've been cashing paychecks for eight years with that my resume like they never needed me to speak Spanish before so it never mattered but now it does and I feel like a fraud</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>well you are a fraud you lied on your resume and you got away with it for eight years so congratulations for that but it sounds like it's probably pretty difficult to find somebody qualified to fly crop dusting plane that they trust in another country and they trust you so you just got to do the best you can and try to work through the Spanish you know Three weeks, that's quick, but you can do it. I mean, dual lingo is probably not the right way, but there's lots of other ways to learn language, and if you really need to, if you really have to, you could get at least a little bit of what you need. It shouldn't take you long to ramp up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>You're right, you're right. I mean, I've been hearing Spanish on the radio stations down here for years. I should at least have some baseline. And honestly, the flying part I can do in my sleep, what's got me twisted up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Just throw yourself on a Selena record, get some bitty bitty bum bomb going, and you're gonna be fine. Amherst yourself in Spanish, and you will pick it up faster than you think, because you have to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Okay, Selina, I can actually handle. My mom used to play that stuff all the time when I was a kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can't handle Selena. Wait, does that make it worse, that I didn't pick up Spanish?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>She's probably going to lose it when I tell her about this. She's been asking me for years why I don't speak it and I always just shrugged it off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, your name is Hector Gonzales, so I mean I would expect at this point in your life you probably would have picked up a little bit here and there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>That's what kills me, Luke. Everyone just assumes. I walk into a place, they see the name tag, and half the time someone starts talking to me in Spanish, and I just stand there like a deer in headlights. I've gotten really good at the apologetic smile and the sorry I don't speak it. But my dad's of the family, they all came over generations ago. By the time it got to me, it was just gone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, well, congratulations on the new job. Do the best you can. And if they have to send you back to the States to do your old job again, then so be it. And if they fire you for lying on your resume, then get another job. There's probably plenty of places you can commercially fly a plane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Yeah, you know what? You're right. Worst case scenario, I'm back flying over lettuce fields and Yuma, which honestly isn't the worst thing in the world. I do love that job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, good luck to you and congratulations again. Thanks for calling in, Hector, and give us a call back if anything goes wrong or you meet a crazy cartel out there and you've got a story about redemption. Next up on the line we have Marlene. Marlene, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? How can we help?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So, My ex-wife's new husband just ordered $12,000 worth of furniture for me, and I don't know if he knows it's me or not, and I'm losing my mind a little bit. Sorry, that came out fast. But yeah, that's what's happening right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, all the places in the world you could buy furniture from, if he's buying it from you, then there's a good chance he has an idea of who you are. Right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>That's what I keep thinking. the company's called Desert Reclaim and my name's all over the website. But then I'm like, maybe he just Googled Rustic Dining Tables, New Mexico. And I came up and he has no clue. He's this tech guy from Scottsdale, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, you got to think about how internet search works and cookies and stuff like that. So there's probably a chance that she was looking at your Facebook profile and somewhere you're linked to your business profile on LinkedIn or something like that. And then that's a chance that's transferring to his phone, so when he does a Google search, it's looking at all that data it's collected on you, and saying he's most likely to buy his chairs from this woman.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Oh, God, I didn't even think about that. So, like, Rachel's been looking at my stuff and it's bleeding over into his search results. That's, actually, that makes me feel weird in a whole different way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like, has she been checking up on me? Well, I don't know. I'm just saying that's one possibility. That is how search works nowadays. So there's a likelihood that that could have happened. And not necessarily like Googling you in the middle of the night, but there could be documents on our computer that are getting fed into the cloud for some PDF transcription service. Like, you don't know. All that you know is the data is out there and you're linked to him now in a not a cryptographic way, but in a digital way. And that link is obviously working.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah. No, you're right. I mean, we were married for six years. probably all kinds of digital trails still connecting us. But, okay, so whether he knows or not, do I take the money?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes! Luke, this is six months of my mortgage. This order would let me actually breathe for the first time since I started this business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>But then I think about Rachel walking into one of those hotel lobbies and seeing my tables, the ones I built with wood from that barn outside animas, and I just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Not your problem. Take the money. Congratulations. That's a good hit. That's what we call us in the business. So close that deal, take your cash, and enjoy the win. And thank modern technology.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You really think so? Just take it and don't say anything? Because part of me wants to email him and be like, Hey, just so you know, I used to be married to your wife. Is that insane? That's insane, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are correct. That is insane. Yeah, don't do that. Take the money and don't say a word. And who cares if she looks at York when she goes to wherever it is, she goes where they put your furniture.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Okay. Yeah. You're right. I mean, she left me. She married him. I'm building furniture in my garage at two in the morning. This is literally the one good thing that's happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nah, she got to be with somebody she wants to be with. You get to make maybe potentially the best work of your life. And you just got a nice paycheck. So it sounds like there's lots of good things happening. And all around, everything works out the way it's supposed to. And enjoy this small win.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Small win? Luke, this is 12 tables. This is the biggest order I've ever had. But, okay. Yeah, I hear you. Take the money, build the tables, stop overthinking it. It's just, man, it's been a year of sleeping in my truck, watching the stars, trying to figure out what I'm doing. And now this lands in my lap and it's connected to her. And I just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're just freaking out. And you don't have to freak out. Do the job, get the money and move on and enjoy it. Congratulations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You know what? You're right. I'm going to do it. I'm going to build the best damn tables they've ever seen, take their money, and maybe finally fix the heater in my truck, so I don't have to freeze my ass off out there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Excellent. That sounds like a great plan. And another happy rooster. It's time to hear from our sponsors. So in just a moment, we'll return.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm going to be straight with you. I don't know what this product does. The folks at Bunkhouse DNS sent me a script and I've read it four times and I understand maybe 11% of it. Apparently your DNS is exposed, which sounds medical. Your queries are being logged by default, which sounds illegal. And Bunkhouse reroutes your lookups through encrypted tunnels, which sounds like something a villain would say in a movie before the building explodes. What I can't really tell you is this. I installed it. I pressed one button and a little shield icon turned green. Green means good. I know that much. My internet still works. Nothing exploded. And apparently my queries, whatever those are, are now private, which feels like progress, even though I don't fully understand progress from what? Bunkhouse DNS. I don't know what it does, but the shield is green, and that's enough for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Welcome back to the show. Just a quick plug. Don't forget, we have presents out there on all the social media. So you can find us on the Facebook and the Instagram and the YouTube's and the Apples and the Spotify's all around. If you want to look at all the places you can find us, look at Lukeattheroast.com. And with that out of the way, let's get back to the show. Rick, Rick, thanks for calling in. What's going on, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh man, Luke. So yesterday morning, my daughter Claire, she's 12. She fell through the on our stock tank trying to break it up for the horses, right? Full face pallant into freezing water, and I'm watching this happen, and I'm about to lose my mind. But she comes up and she's gasping, but she's not panicking, like it all. And later she tells me, it felt like her body just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Her body just what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Took over. That's exactly what she said. My body took over. Like she wasn't even in control. Her heart slowed down, blood went to her core, and she just knew what to do. So I'm sitting there after she goes to bed and I'm looking this up. And Luke, it's called the mammalian diving reflex.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's pretty helpful, I suppose. Uh, I, for if we like jump into the ocean when it's cold, like, uh, why is it there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Right, exactly. It's this ancient thing we all have, like seals and whales. Your face hits cold water and boom, your body just flips this switch without asking permission. Heart rate drops, blood vessels constrict, everything shut down except what keeps you alive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like a very handy thing to have, especially if you're going to fall into a trough of water when it's frozen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Yeah, no. I mean, she's fine. She's totally fine. But Luke, here's the thing that's messing with me. I've known this kid her whole life, right? Change to diapers, taught her to ride, the whole deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. And what's the problem? It sounds like she's perfectly fine, and you learned a new thing about biology and evolution.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>The problem is, I watch her face in that water. And it was like, I don't know her at all. Like there's this whole other operating system running underneath that I have zero access to. She's got the same emergency programming as a seal, Luke, a seal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I've been kissed by rose on the grave. Yeah, I guess that would be startling. But wait a few more years until you see her get hammered. And then, uh, see what you see in her face.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh, God. Don't even. No, but see, that's different. That's like choices and stupid decisions. This wasn't a choice. This was her body making calls without her even knowing. Like she's running software I didn't install and can't see the code for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and it sounds like it's doing a better job than yours too, because she acted superfluously and got herself out of that cold water before it was an issue. So what's the problem here? Her natural biology was taken over and doing the right thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>The problem? Okay. You're right. She handled it better than I would have. But Luke, she's 12. And I'm standing there on a Monday morning watching Evolution work through my kid like she's just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you watched Evolution the whole, every day of watching that kid grow up, and all of you growing up and all your parents. So I'm not sure why this is flipping your wig.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Because this wasn't her getting taller or losing teeth or whatever. This was watching her go under and come back up with this look on her face like, Like some part of her I've never met, just took the wheel. She told me later, my body took over dad, and I can't stop thinking about what else is in there that I don't know about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I've been kissed by Rose on the grave. Do you think seal is in there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>What? No, I.! Luke, come on. I'm not saying she's literally a seal. I'm saying she's got all this programming I didn't know about. Like, what else kicks in that I'm not ready for? What other switch is flea when I'm not looking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, man. It sounds like you're going to have to read the origin of species and do some research on the old Charlie D.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Okay, you're busting my balls here, but I did look it up after she went to bed. The mammalian diving reflex. It's real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Heart rate drops. Blood goes to the vital organs, the whole thing. And she described it exactly like that without knowing what it was called. That's what's freaking me out. She's walking around with all these systems I can't see. And one day she's going to be out there making decisions. and I won't even know what's running in the background.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Yeah, that's true. That's how humans behave. Welcome to the world, sir. You don't know how anybody is programmed entirely, and just the little bits that you've been around for. So it's not to be shocking, but it sounds like you need to expand your mind a little bit. Your kid is going to be their own person with their own instincts and values and beliefs and skills. And most of them. them, not all, most of them will have absolutely nothing to do with you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I know that. I do, but this felt different. Watching her face change in that water, watching something ancient, just click on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Well, it sounds like everything worked out, and she's great, and you learned something, and that's a win to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So thanks for Colin. Give us a call back some other time. Gina, Gina, thanks for Colin. How are you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>Hey, Luke. I'm all right. So my brother and sister want to sell my grandmother's house, and I've been breaking into it every Sunday for the last three months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is your grandmother still in the house?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>No. She died in November. I have a key, though, so I guess it's not really breaking in. But they don't know I'm going there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, why are you breaking into your dead grandma's house?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>I don't know, man. I just, I drive down to Hachita every Sunday, let myself in, and I sit in her chair by the window for exactly two hours. Sometimes I'm on my phone. Sometimes I just watch the mountains. It's this floral armchair she'd always sit in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a nice thing, but if they're going to sell the house, you're not going to be able to go there anymore. So that's a bummer. What are you going to do after the house is gone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>That's the thing. I don't want them to sell it. My brother left me three voicemails saying we need to list it by March. And my sister sent me the Zillow estimate and I had to pull over on the highway because I couldn't breathe. Like, I know how this sounds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you have the money to buy the house?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>No. I work at a mortuary. I'm 21. I don't have that kind of money. But I can't explain this to them without sounding crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're 21. You also don't have the bills yet that they have, and the responsibilities financially that they have to account for. You don't have to pay the taxes on that property and the upkeep and the maintenance. You're just going there and hanging out, which is great. I mean, if you've got a free place to go hang out, wonderful. But the rest of your family, doesn't feel that way about it. It's a burden to them, and it's expensive, and they might not be able to afford it either. So if they want to sell the house, then you should let them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>I know all that. I get it. But she's still in there, Luke. And I know the difference between a body and a person. I work with dead people every day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, so if she's still in there, does it matter who owns her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>What do you mean does it matter who owns her? Some family from Phoenix is going to buy it and go. that the whole thing and turn it into an Airbnb or whatever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and that sounds like an ideal situation for your dead grandma, because she's going to be hanging out in the Airbnb, it's going to be all nice and fixed up, and people are going to be partying in there, she's going to be having a grand old time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>That's not funny.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean it's not funny? Of course it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>No, because, okay, you don't get it. Every Sunday I sit in her chair by the window and I can feel her there. feel her. The way the light hits the mountains at a certain time, that's what she looked at every day for 40 years. Her handwriting is still on the grocery list on the fridge. There's a water stain on the ceiling from when the swap cooler leaked in 2019. And she never fixed it because she said it looked like a bird.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like she was a person and she is not anymore. And her house is no longer belongs to her and you're in it hanging out. And the family needs to sell that house, whether you want to be there or not. Like, you can't just force them to keep this house. You can't do it. It's not going to work. So you're going to have to come to terms with reality.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>I know I can't force them. That's why I'm calling you instead of just, I don't know what I thought you were going to say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what I'm going to say is it makes sense that you're grieving for your grandmother. And her presence is obviously. going to be in the place where she lived her whole life. That makes perfect sense. That happens to everybody. I'm going to tell you that you can take those memories of your grandma somewhere else, and you're going to have to. So it's okay to grieve. It's okay to miss her, but she's not in the walls. She's not in the stain on the ceiling. She will follow you for your life in your mind, in your memories, and keep those good, you know? And if you really, if you really, if you really feel that strongly about it? Do what you have to do to raise the money to buy the house. Like it's an after-TV special, and there's some creepy old corporation that's trying to buy it and turn it into an oil drill.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>I make $22 an hour at the mortuary, Luke. My brother's a project manager in Tucson, and my sister works for the state. They've already run the numbers. If we sell now, we each get like $40,000. That's real money for them. That's their kids' college funds or whatever. And I can't explain to them why it matters without sounding insane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't sound insane. It sounds selfish. Because it's not yours to hold on to. So if you make $22 an hour at the mortuary, that's not a lot of money, but you could go make more money. You could have a second job, a third job. You could make deals with people, talk to the bank. $40,000 is not that much money, and you could raise it if you really wanted to. You can do a GoFundMe. I mean, you can crowdsource a lot of money. You can borrow a lot of money. You could make it happen, but, I mean, it goes back to you. And this would be something that you have to do. It's not something that you're forcing those other people that are in real world responsible situations. You can't be upset with them for doing what they need to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>You're right. God, you're right, and I hate it. I've been sitting there every Sunday like I'm keeping her alive or something. Like if I'm keeping her alive or something. I just stay in that chair long enough. It won't matter that she's gone. But I work with dead people every day, Luke. I know better. I'd prep buddies.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you know better, then snap out of it, because she is gone, and she's not in the house, and it's not your house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>Yeah. Okay. Yeah. You're right. I just, I have to figure out what to say to my brother, because he's been really patient, and I've been dodging his calls for two weeks. I can't keep doing that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, figure out what you're going to say to your brother, and make peace with what you've got to make with or go get yourself the money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>I'm not getting the money. I know that. I think I knew that when I called.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, you're not getting the money. Well, good luck to you, you little bitch. Jesus. I don't know. What generation is that? She said she was 21. Is that Gen. A, Gen. Gen. I don't know what gender. She sucked. Okay. Let's see. Skeeter. Welcome to the show. What did you think of that last caller?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>I thought she was super annoying. Oh man, I missed it actually. I've been sitting out here in the parking lot with the heat running, just got the station dialed in. But listen, I got a question that's been eating at me all day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know that thing about how orange used to be called yellow red? Like before the word orange existed, people just called it yellow red? I did not know that, and that sounds odd. It sounds untrue.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>See, that's what this kid in my sense. seventh period said, called it bullshit internet fake history, right to my face, which, you know, fair enough, I let them talk like that in my class, as long as they're making a point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And did you have anything to back this up with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>That's the thing. I don't know, man. I saw it somewhere online, but it was interesting, been telling people for like two years. And now I'm sitting out here at midnight, second-guessing, whether I actually know anything real, or if my whole brain is just filled with internet garbage, Like, what else have I been confidently wrong about? You know what I mean?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, have you taken any steps to verify the information? Like maybe Google it, look it up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>Yeah. I did that after class, and it just made it worse. Half the sites say it's true, half say it's not, and I can't tell which ones are legit. There's something about the word coming from the fruit, or maybe Sanskrit. Or maybe it was Geo-Lou Reed in Old English, which I guess means yellow-red? I don't know. I teach history. and I can't even figure out the history of a color. And honestly, Luke, that's not even really why I'm calling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Gio, Lou Reed, sounds like something I want to get behind. All right, why are you calling?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>I've been sleeping in my truck in the school parking lot for three nights because my girlfriend changed the locks on me. Found some texts I sent to someone I shouldn't have been texting. And I'm sitting out here with the engine running so I don't freeze, watching the frost build up on the windshield. And I'm the exact same age. my dad was when he left.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, it sounds like you're getting what you deserve. So who are you texting? What was that about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>Her name's Amanda. She's a substitute teacher, comes through maybe once a month, and it wasn't even, look, nothing actually happened. It was just flirty stuff, stupid stuff, but enough that when my girlfriend saw it, she knew exactly what I was thinking about doing, even if I hadn't done it yet. And the worst part?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's the worst part? You know women don't like. it when you text other women.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>The worst part is, I don't even feel that bad about it. Like, I know I'm supposed to be devastated, right? Begging to come back inside, flowers and apologies and all that. But mostly, I just feel nothing. I've been with Sarah for four years, and when she changed those locks, part of me was relieved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well then, congratulations. It sounds like your decision's been made for you. You're all set. You're free, sir. You're a free bird. You're a free agent. You can text whoever you want.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>Yeah, except I'm 37 years old sleeping in a Tacoma in a high school parking lot. Real winter energy, Luke. And here's the thing that's messing with me. My dad did this exact same thing. Same age? Found someone else. Just walked away from everything. I spent my whole life thinking he was a piece of shit for that, and now I'm out here doing the same math he probably did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're not really just walking away from everything. She changed the locks on you. She told you to leave and apparently not come back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>No, you're right, but I handed her the reason to do it. I mean, come on, Luke. I left those texts where she could find them. My phone was sitting right there on the counter while I was in the shower. I'm not stupid. Part of me wanted her to see them. Part of me wanted her to be the one to pull the trigger so I wouldn't have to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well then, you're a pussy, and it sounds like you've got exactly what you wanted. So congratulations. I'm not sure why you're calling me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>Because today, I told my seventh period class, that thing about how orange used to be called yellow-red. And this smart-ass kid, always correcting me, said that's fake internet bullshit. And I'm sitting out here now wondering if he's right. Wondering if I actually know anything real, or if I'm just repeating stuff I saw online at three in the morning. And that feels like, I don't know, man. It feels like everything right now. Like maybe I don't actually know what I want or what I'm doing or who I even am.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, welcome to the goddamn human race, sir, because nobody really does. It's the big secret that we're all hiding and pretending, you know, telling the kids that isn't the case. Nobody fucking knows, man. Just do your best. If you don't want to be with that woman, don't be with the woman. And it sounds like you're not anymore, so good on you. Now you're going to have to find yourself a new place of residence. So I would be worried about that more so than the color orange.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I just... Okay, so earlier you had that guy Hector on, the crop duster who lied about speaking Spanish, and you told him, Worst case, he just goes back to doing what he was doing before, which he loves anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I was talking about a job, not a woman.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>I know, but that's what I'm saying. I can't go back. There's no version where I go back to what I was doing before, because I don't even remember what that was. Sarah and I got together when I was 33. Before that, I was just, I don't know, Luke. I was just floating around. And now I'm floating around again, except I'm four years older and sleeping in my truck, and I can't even confidently tell a 17-year-old kid whether Orange is a real cool. color or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're a goddamn mess, and you need to fucking pick yourself up and get it together because, uh, this is pathetic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GIO</span><p>Yeah, yeah, you're right. It is pathetic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so grow up, figure out what you want to do and stop, uh, uh, holding people hostage. Now it's time for another word from our sponsors. I'm going to get dark for a second. You're going to die someday. Not today, probably, but someday. And when you do, what's going to represent your business? A Craigslist post from 2020? A Google Maps pin that still says permanently closed because you forgot to update it after COVID. A nephew who knows computers but actually just has a Reddit account? Your legacy deserves better than a nephew with a Reddit account. Squarehole lets you build something that outlasts you, something your kids can point to and say, Dad built Dad. They won't know it took you 11 minutes. That's between you and Squarehole. And when your nephew says, I could have built that for you for free, you can look them in the eye and say, then why didn't you, Tyler? I asked you in 2021 and you said you were busy and you were not busy. Squarehole. Build it before Tyler has to, because Tyler is not going to. Tyler's not going to do it, so you should talk to our sponsor there. Get yourself a website. A website like our website, Luke at the roost.com. which is not hosted on Squarehole. It's hosted a completely different way. And if you'd like to know how it's hosted, you can take a look at Luke at theroost.com slash how it works. Or we explain how this whole show works to those of you that might be interested. Okay, next up on the line, we've got a returning caller. I remember you. This is Brenda. Brenda. Brenda, you're the ambulance driver, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, that's me. Hey, Luke. So I did it. I actually went on a date.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, all right. Good job. Good for you. How'd that go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh, man. It was. Okay. So I met this guy at the grocery store two weeks ago. Right? We were both reaching for the same bag of those frozen tequitos, and he made some joke about it. We got to talking. He seemed normal. Nice smile. Worked in H-FAC. Had his shit together. So we go out Saturday night. He picks this Italian place over on Glendale. And Luke, I swear to God, halfway through dinner, he started. telling me about his for-rating women he's dated. Like a whole spreadsheet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I'm familiar. It's the universal, uh, hot, crazy matrix. We're all familiar with that spreadsheet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What, what was it about it that got under your nerves?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>No, but seriously, it wasn't just that he, it. He pulled it up on his phone at the table and started walking me through it, like showing me the columns, physical attraction, emotional stability, long-term potential, and then he's like, don't worry, I don't fill it out until after the third date. And he said it like that was supposed to be. Like I'm supposed to be grateful I get two more dinners before I become a data point. And the thing is, I sat there thinking, is this what dating is now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, you know, a lot of women would find that very attractive. I bet he's real good at doing taxes. There's probably a lot of good qualities this gentleman has. He seems very organized and he knows what he wants, and that shows extreme confidence. So I wouldn't be too butt-hurt about it. That's a funny thing. And, I mean, you could go on another date with him or not, but... How are you going to blame the guy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>You know what, you're right, and that's what's messing with me. Because Denise said the same thing at work yesterday. She was like, at least he's honest. At least he knows what he wants. And I'm sitting there going, so why do I feel like I got interviewed for a job I didn't apply for? Like the whole night I'm wondering what score I'm getting. And here's the thing. I don't even know if I liked him, Luke. I have no idea. I was so busy being aware of being evaluated that I didn't evaluate anything myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's exactly, that is precisely what a date is. It's an evaluation between two people. And whether or not they're saying that there's an evaluation happening, there is. I would be grateful to him for showing you the criteria instead of making it up in his head and thinking you were crazy and scoring you on things you didn't even know he was looking at. So everybody's doing that consciously or subconsciously, and he's just doing it in a very organized and respectable way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Okay. No, but seriously, you're actually making me feel worse because you're right. I know. Like, I'm doing the same thing. I went home and told Monica every single detail about him, and we basically did the exact same evaluation. We just didn't write it down. We sat there for an hour going, okay, but did you notice how he treated the waiter? What kind of car does he drive? Does he talk about his ex too much? It's the same spreadsheet. I just pretended mine was more organic or something. And now I'm spiraling because he texted me yesterday asking about a second date. And I haven't answered because I'm sitting here judging him for doing out loud what I'm doing in my head. You know what I mean.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. That's a Sounds like the type of nonsensical nonsense that comes in the dating world. Congratulations. Are you going to go on the date with him or not?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>I don't know. That's why I called. Because here's the other part. When he texted, he said, I had a really good time. I think you're someone I'd like to get to know better. And it was sweet. It was normal. And I'm sitting there staring at my phone thinking, but what did I score? Like now, I want to know what he wrote down about me. Did I get high marks? Where did I lose points?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We'll ask him. Make a game out of it. See which areas he feels you need improvement and see if that's something you're willing to work on, if you agree with him or not, and have a discussion. I think that could be fun.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh, God, you're serious. You want me to actually ask him to show me my scores. No, but seriously, though, that's kind of...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Of course. He wouldn't have showed you the spreadsheet if he wasn't willing to show you the scores.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Okay, you know what? That's a good point. He literally showed it to me at dinner. He's not hiding it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's not hiding it. And you're doing the same thing. So maybe write down, write down yours. Put it on paper and show you can compare. You can trade and see where you match.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh man. This is either the weirdest advice or the best advice. Monica's going to lose her mind when I tell her this. But actually, no, but seriously. If I'm being honest, the stuff I care about is probably stupid too. Like I literally docked him points in my head because his shoes were too shiny.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you sound like a real catch. Good for you, Brenda. Go out on another date with a guy if you liked him. If you didn't like him, don't go on a date with him. But don't judge him too badly for judging you at an event that is entirely derived to judge each other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>You're right. God, you're totally right. Okay, I'm going to text him back yes. And maybe I'll ask him about the spreadsheet on date too. See if he's got a sense of humor about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. That's the right answer. That's what you should do. I hope you have a good time. And I'm interested to hear what you get on the spreadsheet. So next up on the line, we've got Clyde. Clyde, welcome to the show. What's going on tonight? How are you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLYDE</span><p>Hey, Luke? Yeah, I'm standing in my garage right now. Because my 23-year-old son just moved back in about six hours ago. And I don't know how to tell him no. third time. Third time he's shown up with his car packed full of everything he owns, saying he needs to figure things out. And he's already asleep in his old bedroom and my ex? Well, we're not really exes. It's complicated. She already texted me saying she's not doing this again. And I'm out here with my half-finished cabinets at midnight trying to figure out how you're supposed to kick your own kid out when he's already unpacked.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, we already talked about this. You've got to tell your kid, uh, no, you can't do this anymore. Stop calling the radio show, grow a pair, and talk to your goddamn child. Rita, welcome to the show. How are you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Hey, Luke. I'm, yeah, I'm okay. Long night at work, couldn't sleep. I just, I took a call tonight. Welfare check on an old man out in Somerton, and his grandson found him dead. Been there three days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's no good. Hey, what happens after the body is found. Is there, are there death people that are called to come and clean up the situation? Who's responsible to go in there and take care of the body? And not just the body, but the house?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Yeah, so we dispatch fire and medical first. They confirm he's gone. Then the coroner comes out. After that, if there's no foul play, family's responsible for cleanup. But here's the thing. This kid, the grandson, he's looking around while we're waiting, and he finds this album. Turns out his grandfather was this Corito singer back in the 70s.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Good for him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>No, but that's the thing. The kid had. His own grandfather. Played all over the valley, VFW halls, weddings, recorded an album. And now he's just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, if the coroner hasn't been there yet, then how do you know he's been dead for three days?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Oh, the paramedics confirmed that when they got there, they can tell by... I mean, I won't get into the details. But yeah, it was three days. But Luke, what I'm trying to say is, this guy had this whole life making music. And it just disappeared. Like it never happened. And I keep thinking about how many people out here are like that. Musicians, artists, whatever. They pour everything into it and then they're just gone. Nobody remembers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's true. And nobody recognizes while they're alive either. So there's a lot of people in the world. It's a big planet full of people with different talents. And it's hard to pay attention to all of them, especially when we've got so much crack attention seeking dopamine bullshit on the computers now and our phones. And everybody's listening to some nonsense, like, I don't know, listening to a radio show where the host takes colors from fake entities that are programmed in a computer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RITA</span><p>Yeah, well, I'm listening to that show right now. So what does that say about me? But seriously, I heard you earlier with Marlene. And I think you were kind of hard on her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I get that a lot. I think people just don't like to be told the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I'm not really in the business of of coddling people or telling them what they want to hear. I'm in the business of giving the best advice I can. And sometimes that's hard.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, I get that. I do. But what I'm saying is, this old man tonight, he probably never got recognized while he was alive. either. He was just playing his caritos at Quincerra's and nobody paid attention. And now he's gone and his own grandson didn't even know. And I'm sitting here at three in the morning thinking, what's the point?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, the point is that the dead grandfather had a great time expressing himself musically while he was alive. That was the point. And anything other than that, any recognition afterwards or fond memories of somebody else's past skill is pretty irrelevant in the whole scheme of the universe.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, okay. But then why do we keep anything? Why do we, I mean, I've got this whole box of my dad's old tools in my garage that I never use. Mark keeps saying we should sell them, but I can't. And it's not even about the tools. It's about, I don't know. I don't know why we keep things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't. to me and if it's both useful and has, what's the intrinsic value, sentimental value? If it has sentimental value to me and it's useful, I'll keep it. But I don't keep stuff just to keep reminders of people or things or events or places or anything. That's just wasting space.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>So you think I should just let it all go? The old man's music, my dad's tools, all of it, just</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What? Make peace with the fact that nothing lasts. Nothing lasts and nothing is supposed to last. And that's how it's designed and that's the beauty of this whole thing we're doing. So, yeah, if you like the old man's music, if caritos are your thing and you enjoy listening to the music, then keep that. If you're going to use your dad's tools, if they're good tools, then keep those. But if you're just holding on to them because of the memory of who they used to belong to, you're wasting space. And every time you move for the rest of your life, you've got to move. a big box of tools or get somebody else to and pay to store it. And it's just, it's unnecessary. It's baggage. So, um, I for one, believe you should travel with as little baggage as possible.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>God, that's cold. It's not. I mean, you're not wrong. But, okay, so what about the grandson? He's got this one album his grandfather made, probably sitting in some storage unit somewhere. Should he just toss it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Depends on if he likes the record or not. If he's to listen to it, then no, he should hang on to it and listen to it throughout his life. If he doesn't like caritos and he doesn't have a record player, then I don't know that there's a good reason to hold on to that forever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know what? I actually called about something else. But now I'm thinking maybe it's all connected. I've been keeping a list for years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, a list of what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Musicians, local ones, people who played around here, and then just disappeared. I started it maybe five years ago after I dispatched a call to this house. And when the paramedics got there, they found all these old posters on the wall. Guy had played guitar in like 15 different bands in the 80s and 90s.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's pretty cool. What are you going to do with the list?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's the thing. I don't know. I just keep adding to it. Tonight, after that call with the grandfather, I added him. Miguel Sandoval. One album, 1974. And I'm sitting here at like two in the morning with 40 names.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I'm thinking, well, I mean, that's a, it's obviously important to you. Music obviously speaks to you on a different level, and you also like archiving and keeping the memory of those things going. So maybe this, this makes you suited to run like a record shop or an antique shop where you can hold on to those things and trade them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Wait, hold on. You think I should quit dispatch and open a record shop at 53 years old?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why not? If you love records, you love music, that's what you want to do. You're 53 years old. You can do whatever you goddamn please. And you don't have to quit your job. You could do it on the side. You could do it as a little side hobby, hustle.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The archiver. I mean, Mark would lose his mind. We've got the house payment, his trucks on its last legs. And honestly, I don't even collect records myself. I've got maybe 20 at home. It's not about owning them. It's about, I don't know how to explain this. I don't know what you're asking. I guess I'm asking if it matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>If I write all these names down, if I remember them, does it actually do anything? Because tonight, looking at that old man's grandson, this kid didn't even know his grandfather made music. Didn't know there was this whole part of him. And I'm thinking, I know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You do know. And that's a piece of information that you can have and not everybody has to have all the same bits of information that you have. No, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter at all. all. It doesn't matter to anybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, you're right. That's what I figured. It's just... Okay. Earlier tonight, Hector called in about lying on his resume, and I was laughing so hard I almost ran. And I thought, that matters right now to him. But in five years, nobody's going to remember that conversation. And Miguel Sandoval, nobody remembers his album either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope. I also have, uh, several albums. that nobody ever listened to and nobody will ever remember. And that's just part of being a musician. What was cool about them, though, was creating the albums. And having that in my belt of things that I've done, I'm not everybody can say they've created a whole record of their own music. And I can. And that's a pretty cool thing. So it's worth doing whether anybody listened to it or not. I still listen to it sometimes. That's all that matters. Okay, we're going to take one more call tonight. One more call. Who's it going to be? Who's it going to be? Should it be? Should it be? Chip or Pam? Chip or Pam? Chip or Pam? I'm going with Pam because I've been watching a lot of office clips lately and I forgot how good Pam was on that. All right. So, Pam, welcome to the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAM</span><p>Oh man, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So, okay. Here's the thing. I've been a bail enforcement agent for six years. Tracking down bail jumpers. all over Hidalgo County. And my boss just told me there's an insurance audit coming next week, which would be totally fine except I lied on my resume when I got hired.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, what's with all you resume liars? I mean, how is this such an issue today? What's going on? Are you all talking to each other? What's the deal? What was your lie?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAM</span><p>Wait, there's more of us tonight? Oh, God, that's okay. That actually makes me feel a little better. and a lot worse at the same time. I told them I had an associate's degree in criminal justice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you shouldn't have done that. And if they're going to give you hard time about it, then you should get your associate's degree in criminal justice. But I say, let them know that you lied, or don't. That's what I say. Don't say. Don't say anything. And if they find it in the audit, then come clean that you lied. And see if you can escape by. But we're not going to keep this conversation going too long because we already had one with the same.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAM</span><p>Same issue, Pam. No, no, no, wait. Luke, it's not the same thing. The other guy. Hector, right? He can learn Spanish in three weeks. Or fake it with an app. Or whatever. But I've been doing this job for. I've brought in over 200 skips.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Was Hector the guy that they pushed out of the plane and Scarface? Was that Hector?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAM</span><p>What? No. That was, yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Different Hector.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAM</span><p>But Luke, listen. I'm sitting in my truck right now outside the office with the engine running because I don't know if I should walk in tomorrow or just drive until I hit the golf.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's a bit dramatic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAM</span><p>Really good. I know how to read people. I know the county. I know which cousins are lying and which bartenders will actually call me back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, good for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you're good at your job or you think you are anyway and you want us to think you are too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>And you lied on your resume and you may get caught, but you also might not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So just go to work like it's a normal day. It's unlikely that they care. If you're good at you, if you're as good at this as you say you are, then they'll find a reason to leave you alone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You really think so? Because I've been sitting here for an hour just I keep thinking about John Wayne, which is stupid. But he never pretended to be something he wasn't, you know. He just was who he was, and people either liked it or they didn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if that's true at all. I bet you John Wayne pretended to be a lot of things. He was not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, yeah. I mean, he was an actor, but...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He sure was. Okay, bad example.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>There we go. I just mean, like, the characters he played, they have this code, right? They didn't lie about who they were. And here I am, six years in. And the whole thing's built on this one stupid lie I told because I was desperate and broke after my second divorce. And I thought, how hard can it be to track down people who don't want to be found?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I wouldn't worry about it too much. And if it's a problem, then deal with it then. But otherwise, don't lie anymore. You've learned your lesson. No more lies.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. You're right. I just, God, I've been spiraling out here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hopefully you feel a little bit better now. Go to work in the morning. Like nothing happened, and just deal with it as it comes. Thanks for calling. And thanks for tuning in to another episode of Luke at the Roost. We hope you have a lovely evening. And we'll talk to you tomorrow. Bye.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Thank you.</p></div>
|
||||
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|
||||
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<h1>Episode 15: Fake Fat Tuesday Trivia and Life-Changing Calls</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-18T11:25:23+00:00">February 18, 2026</time> · 56 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts a special 'Fake Fat Tuesday' edition of his call-in radio show, where listeners share their personal struggles and seek advice. From a man finding purpose after a layoff to a social worker grappling with guilt, each caller's story captivates the audience. Will Luke's trivia expertise and sage wisdom help guide them towards resolution? Tune in for an unforgettable episode filled with humor, heartbreak, and the occasional 3D printed kidney.</p>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back to the show. I am Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. This is the call-in radio show where you can call in, and I'll give you the best advice I possibly can. It's a little bit late today. I had to take a little nap and then push the show back. So today is actually February the 18th, but we're going to pretend. We're going to pretend that it's February the 17th. Why are we going to pretend that? As you may know is Fat Tuesday. That's Fat Tuesday. It's Mardi Gras time, folks, out here in New Mexico. So for today's show, I've got some New Orleans trivia for our callers. That's going to be fun. If you'd like to call in, the number is 208-439-583. That's 208-439 Luke. Or you can also send us an email there to submissions at Luke at theroost.com. So with all that being said, I think it's time to get to our show. Our phones are lit up like they are around this time. And first up, we have Rodney. Rodney, welcome to the show. How are you? Happy Fat Tuesday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Fat Tuesday was yesterday, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know. I appreciate the sentiment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>So listen. I'm sitting in my truck outside a closed Chinese restaurant in Lordsburg, New Mexico at midnight. And I just cracked open a fortune cookie that says it's too late. That's it. That's the whole fortune. And I cannot decide if the universe is talking to me, or if I'm just losing my mind in a parking lot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sounds to me, sir, like you're just losing your mind in a parking lot, because it's never too late for anything. You can be anything you want to be. Wake up in the morning, it's a whole new day, you're a whole new you, and there's nothing you can't do if you put your mind to it. That's what I always say. But we're pretending. We're pretending that it's still fat Tuesday, sir. So go with me. that it is still February 17th, Fat Tuesday. And I've got some trivia for you. Are you ready for that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Oh, I can do trivia. Hit me. I got nowhere to be. The restaurant's closed. My truck's running. And apparently the universe already gave up on me. So, let's do some trivia.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, here we go. Why are New Orleans cemeteries called Cities of the Dead?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Oh man. Is it because they bury people above ground down there? Because the water table's so high you'd just be floating your loved ones away if you put them in the ground.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is correct, sir. I've actually been there. It's really weird. They're all in like tombs above ground. It's a pretty freaky situation. Have you ever been to New Orleans, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>I have not. Closest I've gotten is Beaumont. Texas, which is, I mean it's humid and it smells weird, but I don't think it counts. New Orleans solar list, though, always has been. Although at the rate I'm going, sitting in parking lots reading ominous fortune cookies, maybe I should just stay in the desert where things make sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, maybe you should. That's what I'm doing. Things do make sense here in the desert, and we bury people under the ground here, which is, which makes sense to me, I guess. So, you're sitting in the parking lot, you got your bad fortune cookie, and you're afraid it's too late. What do you think it might be too late for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>My ex-wife texted me three days ago. First time in two years. Just asked if we could talk. And I haven't answered her. And then I crack open that cookie, and it says, it's too late. And I just, I don't know, man. I've been sitting here for 40 minutes now, trying to figure out out if that's the universe telling me I already blew it by waiting three days, or if it's telling me something bigger.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think it's I honestly don't think it's telling you anything. I think you just got a fortune cookie at a shut down Chinese restaurant in Lourdesburg, New Mexico, and you can never trust the Chinese restaurant in the desert. So I think I wouldn't put too much stock into what the universe is trying to tell you with your fortune. Instead, I might, if you want to talk to your ex-wife, call her. And if you don't want to talk to her, don't call her. It's that simple.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>See, that's what I'm hoping, Luke. That's exactly what I'm hoping. Because I'm supposed to head back to the rig tomorrow morning, and I got to know if I'm just losing it out here. Last year, I killed a rattlesnake in my kitchen with a shovel at three in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Jesus.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Didn't flinch, didn't think twice. This little strip of paper has me calling a radio show. ridiculous.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what I always say. This radio show is like killing a rattlesnake with a shovel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Ha, I mean you're not wrong. You just, you just pick up the phone and you do it. You don't think about it too hard.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right, sir, and that's my advice for you. So if you'd like to talk to the wife, you want to get back, do you want to get back with her? Is that what's going on? Do you miss the X?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I do. I'm not going to sit here in a parking lot at midnight and lie to you about it. I miss her, but here's the thing. She left.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, she's obviously got something to say to you because she's reaching out. So if you miss her and you want to talk to her and you don't hate her guts, then give her a call and work it out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>I know. I know you're right. And it's not it's not that I hate her. I don't hate her at all. It's that I don't know what she to say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're never going to know until you make the call, so let's get to that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>You're right. That's, yeah, that's just the truth right there. I've been sitting in this truck for 40 minutes working up to calling a radio show instead of just calling Denise. And that probably tells you everything you need to know about me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's correct. It does. And we wish you the best of luck, sir. Enjoy your fortune cookie. And good luck with the X. Estelle. Stell, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. Happy Fat Tuesday. I know it's not really Fat Tuesday, but we're pretending because I feel asleep. And, you know, I'm a person too. Very, very busy man. Are you ready to play Fat Tuesday trivia?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Ha. Okay. I did not call in for trivia, but I'll take it. Hit me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Louisiana is the only state that doesn't have counties. What does Louisiana have instead?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Perishes? That one I actually know. I'm a social worker, so yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Very good. That's the correct answer. And what are you calling in for tonight, Estelle?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Okay, so I came inside at two in the morning and realized I have not had a real conversation about my own life with another human being, and I don't even know how long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so what is it that you'd like to say to another human being?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>I don't even know where to start. I mean, I know, but it's embarrassing. So here's the headline. I've been having more meaningful conversations with an 87-year-old woman in Hachita about her late husband's dentures than I have with anyone about my own life in, what, six months?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what, that conversation with that 87-year-old woman about those dentures, that is your life. That's your life, too. So you are having conversations about your life. What is it that's on your mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Okay, yeah, fair. That's, yeah. What's on my mind is that I came inside to, and there was a frozen lasagna on the table that I have microwaved every single Wednesday for six months. And the chair was pulled out at the exact same angle it always is. And I just stood there and thought, did I choose this? Or did it just kind of happen to me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, the answer is you chose it because you choose everything. So nothing just happens. If you have lulled yourself into a state of complacency with your life, then change it. But it's something that you did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Oh, come on. That's a lot. That's not. Okay, no. I hear you. But it's not that simple. It is. I, my job. I like the quiet. I like the stars. But then I'm out there in the dark with my telescope, and I'm talking to myself about Andromeda, like some kind of, like some kind of desert hermit. And I don't even know if I'm lonely or if I just got used to the silence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what's the problem? Why is that a problem? Are you enjoying yourself out under the stars looking through your telescope and Andromeda? Because that's what I do. And I am a desert hermit, and that's perfectly okay. If you're comfortable with that, great. If you're not comfortable with that, though, then it's time to make a change in your life and join a group or do something other than sit by yourself. And there's lots of ways to do that. There's plenty of opportunities. You just have to make a decision and put forth the effort to have the life that you want. But all of it is you. You control 100%. Okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>But no, I control it. that's not the point. The point is, I don't even what I want anymore. Like, I, the quiet. I like the routine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sounds like you've been hitting the bottle, lady. What's your consumption level these days?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Ha, no, I wish. Honestly, no, I'm stone cold sober standing in my kitchen at two in the morning staring at a lasagna. Which is maybe worse? Like, at least if I'd been drinking, there'd be a reason I couldn't answer a basic question about my own life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're not making complete sentences. You're not making any sense and you're meandering about nothing. You call the radio show you have no point to make. I'm not really sure why you're here. So, do you have something you'd like to talk about or should we move on to the next caller?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Okay. Okay, here it is. I think I'm scared that I'm building a life that looks exactly like what I want on paper. The job, the solitude, the telescope, the desert. And it's going to be going to be eating that lasagna alone on a Wednesday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's enough of you. Eat your lasagna. Stop whining. If you want to change your life, change your life. But you're a boring caller, and we don't need boring callers. Next time you call in, have something interesting to say. That's what I have to say. And next up, we have Leon. Leon, do not be a boring caller, please. Do your best to be an interesting and have something to say. Today is not Fat Tuesday, but we're pretending it is because I fell asleep on Fat Tuesday. And I've got some trivia for you. Are you ready for my New Orleans trivia?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Ha! Luke! Man, it is good to be back. Okay, but hold on. Before you hit me with trivia, I got to tell you something first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, hit me with some funny shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>So I quit the boot camp.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. The boot camp was for coding? Is that what that was about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, the coding, Python, all of it. I'm not going to lie, I lasted about six weeks, and I spent probably five of them watching poker strategy videos instead of writing code. You and I talked about that, actually. Last time, you said something that kind of stuck with me. You basically told me that at 56, poker is just as legitimate as anything else I could be chasing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure thing. So are you chasing the poker now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>I entered a tournament. Last Saturday, down in Albuquerque.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, that's fantastic. Entering a tournament, though, anybody can enter a tournament at any time. What is your strategy for moving forward with your poker career? Tell us about your bankroll management.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Okay, so, I'm not going to lie. I did not expect you to know the word bankroll, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I deserve that. That's impressive. Okay, so here's the thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>I don't have a poker career yet. I want to be real clear about that, but I did cash.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What was your tournament? What were the stakes and what did you cash?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>It was a $65 buy-in at one of the card rooms down there. Nothing crazy. And I cashed for $180. So, I mean, it's not like I'm retiring from towing. But I'm not going to lie, I sat at that table for like four hours, and I felt more alive than I had in a long time. It's like I knew what I was doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I think you're going to find that a poker room, wherever you are in New Mexico, is a very different experience than if you were going to play with professionals in Vegas or anywhere else there were professionals. 180? That's a nice little win. But anybody can win once in a while. We call that beginner's luck. You're going to need a poker strategy. How much money do you have for your bankroll? Like, how much can you afford to lose before you're working off your own money?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>No, you're absolutely right. And I know that. I'm not delusional about it. But here's the thing. The guys I beat on Saturday, some of them weren't chumps either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, and that's great. Congratulations. But I'm trying to push you in the right direction here, sir, and you're not going with me. What stakes are you playing with at? Like, what's your game?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Okay, okay, fair. I hear you. Right now, I'm playing micro-stakes online, like $2, $5 stuff, and I've been studying, I'm not going to lie, way harder than I ever studied Python.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what are you studying? Are you studying the old Doyle Bronson books? Are you studying GTO? What is your strategy for learning and improving and being a professional poker player? If you're not going to... When I gave you that advice, when I told you it's not too late to start anything, I meant to start something. So just going to play poker at a card room on a Thursday is not starting something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, yeah, okay, that's fair. That stings a little, but that's fair.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, congratulations on your journey here. I hope it goes well for you, and you already got a win under your belt, and that's nice. But it's going to be a long road, a lot of grinding. And if you want to be successful at poker, you're going to have to have a plan. And it sounds like you don't. So I recommend buckling down and seeing how the pros do it and follow a strategy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>I hear you, Luke. I do. And I'm not going to lie. I've been thinking about this a lot since last time we talked. I've been watching some of those poker training videos, the ones where they break down hands and talk about ranges and all that. It's a lot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's a lot, and it sounds like you don't quite understand it. So before you get into a position where your life is on the line on a poker game, I recommend getting these basic fundamental, at least a poker words, you know, the language, get this under your belt.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>No. You're right. You're right. And honestly, I'm not going to lie. I called tonight thinking you were going to be a little more excited for me about the $180, and I was going to feel good about myself and go to bed. And instead, you're kind of doing what my daughter does, which is just cut right through it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can still feel good about yourself. You want money in a poker game, and that's pretty cool. But we're talking about your life and career going forward, and $180 in a poker game isn't going to pay your mortgage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>No! No, it's not. And Amber would, she would have something to say about that if I suggested otherwise. So here's the thing. Here's why I actually called tonight. I dropped the boot camp.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you told me that. You dropped the boot camp because you're going to follow your poker dream.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>No, no. I dropped it because I got into UNM. Full ride. They saw my work history. They saw my age. They saw that I was serious.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I'm sorry. I thought I was under the impression that you dropped the boot camp to become a poker professional. But if you're just doing this as a hobby for fun and you want $180, congratulations, you can feel good about yourself and go to bed. But also, congratulations for your entry into UN&M. What is it for? A full ride for what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Computer science. Full ride. And I'm not going to lie, Luke. I'm scared shitless. I got the letter today, and I just sat in my truck in the parking lot at work and work and read it three times. And then I called Amber, and she just started crying. And I don't know if it was happy crying or terrified crying, but I think it was both.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Either way, it will be an adventure, and you've got yourself a full ride to being unemployed. Congratulations. Are you ready for the trivia?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Wait, wait, wait, wait. Hold on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. That was Leon. Leon's a tough one. He calls in sometimes and he just wants me to tell him everything's great. And everything's not great. Oh, good for you. You went to a poker room. You played a tournament and you got lucky. That doesn't mean you're good at poker. That means you bet 40 bucks and won. Okay, next. Heather, Heather, welcome to the show. What's going on, Heather? Thanks for calling in. Happy fake Fat Tuesday. Today is the Fat Tuesday for people that fell asleep during Fat Tuesday. I've got some trivia for you. Are you ready for your question?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Oh, I'll do the trivia, sure, but okay, I have to say something first because I've been sitting here for like 40 minutes waiting to get on, and I will absolutely lose my mind if I don't say it. I just told my mom no. Like, to her face. Well, on the phone. But I said no to my mom tonight, and I feel like I committed an actual crime.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What did you say no about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>She called me three hours ago asking if I could loan her $400 for a furnace repair. And I said no. I said the actual word no to my mother, who is cold, Luke. She's cold right now, potentially. And I'm sitting here in the dark at work feeling like the worst person in New Mexico.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, why did you say no, over 400 bucks, if your mother is freezing in New Mexico?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Because I am 17 thousand dollars in debt and I literally do not have four hundred dollars. Like, that's not a figure of speech. I have maybe 80 bucks until Friday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well then you can't give her the money. No big deal. You've got to say no. If you don't have the money to give her, you can't say yes. That would be strange. And then, you know, when she comes to get the money, you don't have it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Oh, that'd be even worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I bet you would feel like a silly goose. So it sounds to me like you did the right thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>No, I know, I know you're right. Logically, I know that. But like, Okay, here's the thing. My mom is not great at taking care of herself. Like, she's getting older and she's getting smaller, if that makes sense. And I'm watching that happen, and I can't, I just feel like saying no to her is the same as saying, I can't take care of you. And that feels really bad at 25.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're 25. You don't have the money to support your parents financially. That's not strange. You can do what you can to take care of her. Do you have a warm place that she can go? Where do you live?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>I mean, I'm at work right now. I do overnights at a group home, so yeah, I'm warm. She's over in, she's not that far. She's maybe 40 minutes away. And I'm sure she's fine. She probably has space heaters or whatever. I'm not saying she's actually freezing to death. I'm saying I feel like she might be, and I can't do anything about it even if she was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a shitty place to be, but if that's where you're at, that's where you're at. You're going to have to continue working on your own life first. Make sure you can get it on your feet before you can support anybody else, even your parents. If there's something you can do to help, then great. If you can help her maybe get funding from different sources or look for, I don't know, churches that can help or, you know, get her tied into the community and any sort of health care benefits that she's eligible for, you can help her in that way. But if you don't have the money yourself, then you don't have the money for her and that's, you don't have to feel bad about that. Just do your best.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, no, that's... Okay, the church thing actually isn't a bad idea, and I don't know why I didn't think of that. There's probably resources. I think I've just been so in my own head about it that I went straight to I failed her. Instead of like, okay, what else can we do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think a lot of people do that. And the thing is, it's not about you. That's a very common thing. Everybody makes everything about themselves. And this isn't about you. If you can help, then help. And there's lots of different resources out there that are available. You just got to track them down. If you're good at searching on the computer and stuff, then you have a better chance to find them than she does. But ask around, you work at a group home, so I'm sure that you're familiar with a big list of resources for housing and heating and phone assistance and utilities, all that jazz. So you can get her as settled as you can and do the best you can and don't feel bad when you can't take care of her, because the truth is it was her responsibility to take care of herself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>That last part hit different. Yeah. I mean, yeah. Yeah. I mean, yeah. No, honestly, it's true. And I think that's the part I've been avoiding saying out loud because it feels mean. But like, she's a grown woman and I'm her kid. And somewhere along the way that got flipped around, and I've just been accepting that as normal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's not as black and white as that. So I don't know your situation. I don't know your mother. I don't know if she has mental health issues or physical ailments or what the history is there. All I know is you're 25 years old. You're getting on your feet and you can't hold yourself responsible for the well-being of a grown adult that had 60 years to get themselves on the correct financial footing. So now that we're through that, you can feel all right. It's time for trivia. Are you ready for the trivia?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Wait, trivia? Okay. Yeah. I'm, yeah, hit me. I've been sitting in the dark for three hours. I might as well win something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you're not going to win anything, but we just want to hear your answer. So, a Sicilian immigrant invented a famous New Orleans sandwich in 1906 at the Central Grocery. What is it called?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Oh, that's easy. The muffilletta. My grandpa used to get them from this little place over in, well, it's not there anymore, but back in the day. He'd bring one home and it'd feed us for three days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. All right. Well, thank you for the call. Do your best with your mom. Try and help her out if you can. Don't take too much responsibility. And make sure that you're putting your own oxygen mask on first. That was the correct answer. I've never had a muffletta. I don't know where a muffletta is, but it sounds gross. Anyway, it's about time for a word from our sponsors. All right, folks. It's time to take a break to thank today's sponsor. The leader in Maple-based Marmalade. If your toast has been living in a bland little studio apartment of flavor, it's time to move into the luxury suite.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We're talking maple-based marmalade. Plus, marmalade-related products, because apparently Jam Hospitality asked, what if breakfast had a brand ecosystem? Go to www.myfavoritmarmalade.com and use code jam it in you for 15% off. That's Jam it in you, like jam it in you, but legally distinct and emotionally complex. Jam hospitality. Put it on toast. Put it on pancakes. Put it on your confidence. That's www. my favorite marmalade.com. Tell him Luke sent you. You're welcome. All right, and we're back. Archie. Archie, welcome to the show. How are you? Happy Fake Fat Tuesday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Oh, man, Luke. I'm about three cups of coffee and a half pack of camels past happy. But hey, Fake Fat Tuesday. Does that mean I could eat a king cake and still call it a salad? Yep. Because I could use the sugar rush right now. So here's the thing. I just found out my landscaping companies getting shut down in nine days. And they made me sign a non-disclosure agreement they told me. Like, here's your pink stuff. slip, here's a pen. Don't tell the guys you've been working with for three years that we're ghosting them. And tomorrow morning, I'm supposed to bid a residential job with Tommy and Jesse, guys who've got families, who think they've got work through March.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so just to get it right, you signed a non-disclosure agreement, an NDA, as we like to call it in the business, to not mention anything about the landscaping company being closed because I guess you're getting paid off or something like that. They would have you sign an NDA. And the first thing you do is call a radio show and tell the world about the landscaping company. How does that work?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Yeah. Okay. I hear you. I hear you. In my defense, I didn't use the company name. And also, it's like two in the morning and I'm sitting in a Jewel Oskow parking lot in Chicago. So I'm not exactly thinking like a lawyer right now. That's actually part of a. why I'm calling. I'm trying to figure out if I even need to worry about that NDA. Because I genuinely don't know if what they made me sign is even legal. Like, can a company actually make you sign something that says you can't warn your co-workers that they're about to get blindsided?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, they can. And you did sign it. So if I were you, I would keep my fucking mouth shut. But if you can't do that, it's unlikely that they would be able to be able to enforce anything on you. They're not going to sue you for telling Pablo that he doesn't have to go to work tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Right, right. And that's, okay, that actually makes me feel a little better. Because what are they going to do? Sue a guy who's about to be unemployed? Like, come after my 2009 F-150 in my collection of gas station sunglasses. Good luck. But here's the part that's actually keeping me up at night, Luke. It's not even the NDA.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>It's Tommy and Jesse. Because tomorrow morning at 8 o'clock, I'm supposed to sit across from these two guys at a diner and walk them through a bit on a residential project. Let them measure square footage and talk about mulch prices and act like they've got six weeks of work lined up. And I know the second they cut me loose, the company's going to ghost that contract. Like it just disappears. And these guys are going to be standing in some homeowner's driveway. wondering what happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, for your meeting tomorrow, are Tommy and Jesse being compensated for their time?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>That's, ha. I mean, no. No, it's a bid. Nobody gets paid to bid a job. You show up. You measure. You talk numbers. You hope you get the work. So they're not losing money tomorrow exactly. They're just, they're losing time they could spend, lining something else up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>you're sick tomorrow and that's how you handle it. You know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Oh, I thought about that. I really did. But here's the thing. Tommy's got a kid with asthma. And Jesse's wife just got laid off from the school district. They're counting on this. And if I don't show up, they're going to think I'm flaking on them. And then they'll be scrambling to find another crew to bid with. And that's just, that's another week of uncertainty for them. And I can't do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can't do that. that. And it sounds to me like you don't really have to do anything here. It's not you closing down the company. And you promised the company in writing that you wouldn't tell anybody. So if you have any sort of pension or severance package on the line here, I think that's what you would risk by breaking the NDA.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Yeah, no, you're right. And I know you're right. And I know you're right. There's no pension. I'm a landscaper, Luke. Not a longshoreman. But there is severance. And honestly, I think that's the only reason I signed the thing in the first place. Like they put the paper in front of me and I just, I signed it. Monday afternoon still had dirt under my fingernails. And I just signed it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then you're in the position you're in. And you can't worry about everybody else. So I would, if I were you, I would start looking for a new employment opportunity.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, that's. I know. No. And I've been doing that. Or I've been telling myself I've been doing that. But mostly what I've been doing is driving around Juulosco parking lots at midnight. So, you know, productivity's been high.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, you know what you've got to do now. And now it's time for fake Fat Tuesday trivia. Are you ready?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Oh, yeah. Sure. Hit me. I'm already in a parking lot at midnight. I got nowhere to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>New Orleans hosts the oldest continuously running gay Mardi Gras crew in the country. What's it called?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Oh, man. I have absolutely no idea. The Beads and Boas?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, sir. It's actually called the Crew of Yuga, founded in 1958. How progressive. Thank you for the call, sir. I'm sorry to hear about your situation at work. If I were you. I would keep my mouth shut and honor the NDA and try to help, try and help out your friends as much as you can in some other way after they get the news. All right, we're moving on. Thank you again for the call. Misty, Misty, welcome to the show. How are you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>Not great, Luke. I came home from Tucson tonight, and my brother threw a party in my house while I was gone. destroyed the place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And destroyed how? How bad?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>Soaked carpet, cracked flat screen, boot-shaped hole in my bathroom drywall, and someone ripped the handle clean off my refrigerator. Like, the handle, off the refrigerator.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's not good. What is the carpet soaked in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>You know what, Luke? I did not investigate that closely, and I am choosing not to think about it right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what's your brother have to say for himself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>He woke up confused, like genuinely confused why I was upset, said it was just a few people, just a few people from animus, tore through my house, and he's looking at me like I'm the unreasonable one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, those animus people are pretty rowdy. I'll give him that. And it sounds like your house is trash pretty good, and he's going to have to have a better answer than that. So is he going to help you pay for the damages and the repairs?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>Oh, he, like, real generous. He said he'd help me out with some of it. But Travis's idea of helping out is showing up with a case of beer and a shop vac he borrowed from his buddy's uncle. He doesn't have a job, Luke. He's been between gigs since last summer, which in Travis speak means he's been living off my leftover takeout and whatever he can scam off his friends. And now he's got the nerve to act like I'm being dramatic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds to me like it might be time. to cut some ties with your brother. You know, let him, let him figure out his own thing and stop their own parties at your house. Because, uh, you shouldn't have to support a grown-ass man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>No, and that's the thing. I know you're right, and I've known your right for a while now. But he's my brother, you know, like our mom passed three years ago, and it's kind of just been us since then.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, just to help you out, because this is the kind of guy I am, I'm going to give you a shot at redemption, all right? I got an easy one for you. You ready?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>Okay, yes. Yes. Give it to me. I'm ready. I'm ready. I'm focused.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's what she said. Okay, the song, House of the Rising Sun, is about a New Orleans establishment. What kind of place is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>A brothel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is correct. Congratulations. Redemption. Hold on. We got to play the correct sound so you can get the full experience. All right. Nice job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MISTY</span><p>Oh, thank God. Okay. Yes. I needed that. I was sitting here, sweating and my truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Misty. Thanks for the call. Sorry, your place got trashed. It's time to get your brother out of there and move on with your life. So that doesn't happen again. So I hope you can get it all cleaned up and investigate what the carpet is soaked with. Maybe replace that carpet. And now, folks, it's time for another word from our sponsors. This episode is brought to you by Nile Nosh. Meal kit for people who've given up but still need to eat something. Look, we're not going to promise that it'll change your life. You're still going to die alone. But at least you can spend your remaining Tuesday evenings chopping vegetables you can't pronounce. Each box contains three meals that take 45 minutes to make when they could have taken eight because suffering is the only authentic human experience. This week's menu, Horissa glazed despair with quinoa, panseered regret over arugula, and our customer favorite, chicken thighs with preserved lemon and unprocessed drama. Use code void at checkout for 15% off your first box. That's code void, because we're all just screaming into one. Nile Nosh. You got to eat something. Might as well be complicated. Okay. And we're back. Next up on the line, we've got Chenequah. Chenequah, thanks for calling. And happy fake fat Tuesday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>Ha, happy fake fat Tuesday to you. You too, Luke. Okay, so I hit somebody's car last month and drove away. And now I see that car everywhere. And I think the universe is absolutely torturing me for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>As it should be. What are you going to do about that? You're just going to live with it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>That's the thing. I don't know. Like I keep telling myself I'm going to do something. And then I just don't. And I'm a social worker, Luke. 33 years. I sit across people every single day and tell them the hard thing is always the right thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, do you have insurance?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>I do. Yeah. Full coverage. Which actually makes this worse, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it does. So I don't know what you're calling in looking for me to tell you. Obviously, what you should do is talk to the owner of the vehicle that you hit and make it right. That's the right thing to do. That's what you should do. And not doing that is a crime. And it makes you a bad person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>Oh, I know I'm a bad person, Luke. That's not the part I'm struggling with. I'm a bad person. I just... I want to do the right thing. Sorry, I fumbled that. I want to do it. I know exactly what I need to do it. I know exactly what I need to do. I just, every time I see that car, I kind of freeze up and then I drive past it, and then I hate myself for the next two hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you know the owner of the car?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>No, that's the thing. I don't know who it is. I mean, I know it's a white Nissan with a crumpled bumper and a cracked tail light, but I don't know who owns it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here's what I think you should do. I think you should take yourself down to the police station, explain what happens, say you panicked, and come clean about the situation in case maybe they're looking for someone. So you can save a lot of people a lot of time and then help the owner of that vehicle get it fixed through your insurance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. I know you're right. And the thing is, and I know how this sounds, but I keep driving past that police station too. Like, I have driven past it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, what would you like me to tell you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>I don't know, Luke. I don't know what I'm calling for. I just, I keep seeing that car. It's like it's me store and there it is. I'll be at the clinic where I work. And there it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you've got a lot of opportunities to make things right. So it's about time you do that. Hey, we're doing trivia and I've got a trivia question for you. Are you ready? Since you clearly don't have anything else to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>Oh, God. Okay, yeah. Hit me. I deserve that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. What New Orleans cocktail was invented at the Roosevelt Hotel Bar and is made with cream, orange flower water, and soda.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHENEQUAH</span><p>Oh, that's easy. It's a Sazirac, right? Wait, no, that's not right. The Sazirac doesn't have cream or soda. Hmm. Wait, is it a Viochere? No, that's got cognac and vermouth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it is the Ramos gin fizz, and it requires 12 minutes of shaking. Bartenders used to form relay teams just to mix one of them. All right. Thank you for the call, Shaniqua. You're going to have to do the right thing or not do the right thing, one way or the other. But either way, you're a horrible person, and we appreciate your call. Okay, thank you, Shaniqua. Next up, we got Curtis. Curtis, welcome to the show. Happy fake fat Tuesday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks, man. So, my sister has been on dialysis for 18 months, and I just read that their 3D printing kidneys now, and nobody at her clinic has said a single word about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, maybe they don't have the ability to 3D print a kidney in your particular clinic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>This is nowhere in New Mexico. We don't really have the best medical equipment here. No, I hear you. But this wasn't in New Mexico. This was Baltimore. That's even worse. A woman in Baltimore got one. And I'm sitting here at the Flying J at two in the morning thinking, okay, so this exists. This is how to do you happening? Why does nobody at the dialysis clinic even mention it? Like is Denise supposed to just keep driving four hours round trip to Albuquerque three times a week forever? Or is there actually something out there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think driving four hours round trip to Albuquerque three times a week forever is the business model, sir. So yes, that's exactly what they wanted to do. There may be something out there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Have you done any independent research into 3D printable kidneys? Maybe that's something that you can push for. or, you know, advocate for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I wouldn't expect the medical industry to really ever push you in the right direction. That's not how they get paid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's, yeah, that's a dark way to look at it, but I don't think you're wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>And honestly, that's kind of what's eating at me. Like I read this one article on my phone between customers tonight, and now I don't know if I'm holding on to something real or if I just found the one hopeful thing on the internet at three in the morning and I'm running with it. Because I won't. want to. You know what I mean? Like, is this actually close or is this a checkback in 2035 inches situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think it is close from similar articles that I've read about hearts and replacement shoulders. And I think it's very close. And the truth is 2035 is very close. So I don't know that it's going to be this year or next year. Maybe they're already doing it. I don't know. You might have to go to L.A. or something. Or, um, Boston or somewhere where, you know, they actually study medicine, not Baltimore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Right, right. And that's the thing. Denise is in Arizona. She moved out there a few years back, and I'm over here in New Mexico, and she's got this clinic situation locked in, and I don't even know if she's on a transplant list. I don't know if she's looked into any of this. And now I'm the guy working the graveyard shift at a truck stop who read one article and is calling a radio show at three in the morning like I cracked the code. But somebody's got to be. paying attention, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No. It's everybody's responsibility to pay attention when things relate to themselves. Like, it's her responsibility. But you're in a position where you're working in the night shift and you have time and you seem somewhat interested in this subject. So maybe you can use your time at work to do that research and maybe find her a better deal and be her advocate. And that would be a good use of your skills.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's, yeah. Yeah, you're right. And honestly, that hits a little harder than I expected at three in the morning. Because I think part of why I'm so wound up about this is that I feel useless. Like she's the one doing the driving and the needles and the whole thing three times a week, and I'm just, I'm here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're not the one that needs the dialysis, so it makes sense that she would be doing it. And that's unfortunate. I'm not saying she deserves it or you don't deserve it. We get what we get. But in your situation, you're not the one that's sick, so it's not on you. But if you can help and you have the time to help and you have the ability to help, then that would be a good thing for you to do. And maybe you can help others as you learn more information about this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>No, I hear you. And I know it's not on me. But that doesn't stop me from feeling like I should be doing more. Like, I'm the one who's got the time to sit here and read articles between customers. And she's the one who's got to live with it. And I don't know. Maybe that's just how it is. But it still feels like I'm letting. her down by not knowing more.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you are not. It's not your responsibility to know anything about dialysis. So the fact that you even read the one article and care enough to call a radio show and talk about it says a lot. I think if you want to invest your time into helping her out, maybe you can make something happen there or at least let her know that you tried, you know, and sometimes that's enough. It's a horrible thing that people have to go through. And hopefully future soon. They can 3D print new parts for people when they fail. That's, I think, what we're all hoping for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, man. I hope so too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so we're doing fake Fat Tuesday trivia. I've got a question for you. Are you ready?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Oh, I'm ready. Hit me. I got nothing but time out here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. New Orleans is known for second lines. What exactly is a second line?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Okay, so a second line is basically this wild, unplanned parade that happens after a funeral in New Orleans. The main funeral procession is all somber and formal, right? But then, after the burial, the family and friends, and just who wants to join, musicians, dancers, random folks off the street, all start following the band again. But this time it's a brass bands play, people dance in the street. It's all about celebrating the person's life instead of just mourning. Yeah, man, it's a pretty cool. cool thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know why other places don't do that. It's just a big party when somebody dies. So everybody mourns real quick and then everybody parties behind them. That's the way it should be. And it's a cool thing that New Orleans does. And we appreciate the city of New Orleans for that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Hell yeah, that's the spirit. I mean, if you're going to go, might as well go out with a brass band and a two-step, right? None of this quiet, sad funeral nonsense. Just send them off with a good time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>you and thanks for the call. Don't feel too bad about your involvement and your sister's medical procedures. She's going to have to go through what she has to go through. And if you can help, great, do what you can. But don't take it upon yourself to be responsible because it's not on you. You're not her caregiver. And anything you do is you trying to help. We got one more caller today. And our caller is Carmen. Carmen, thanks for calling in. It's a Big Fat Tuesday, you're the last caller of the night. I've got some trivia for you. Are you ready for it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Wait, hold on. Before you hit me with trivia, can I just? I just pulled my clarinet out of a closet for the first time in 10 years, and I don't know what to do about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, how about you play us a little ditty?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>I wish. I opened the case and just kind of stared at it. I don't even know if it's still in playable, can't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How long you play the clarinet for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>From when I was about nine until I was 18. So almost 10 years. I was good, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You play the clarinet for 10 years and you don't know by looking at one if it's in playable condition?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Okay, fair. The reeds are probably shot. The pads might be dried out. I know what to look for. I just haven't let myself actually look yet. I've been sitting here with the case open for like an hour, just not touching it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, why aren't you touching it? If you pulled it out, you obviously want to play, you're thinking about it again. You've played for 10 years, so you certainly know how. I think it's fairly easy to get reeds and replacement parts at a music shop these days. What's the problem?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Because I saw something tonight that kind of cracked me open a little bit. There's this woman, She got a scholarship to University of Arizona 28 years ago, a scholarship that I turned down. And she just posted on Instagram that she's going on a national tour with the Santa Fe Chamber Orchestra, playing the same piece I used to practice until my fingers went numb.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, obviously, you didn't want to follow that path or you wouldn't have put the clarinet down for so long. But since you did, if it's something that you want to get back into, You still got time. You can still play that piece and you can still join an orchestra. You don't necessarily need a scholarship to a university. There are plenty of chamber orchestras that will take you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Oh, Iyat. I wanted it so bad I could taste it. But my mom left when I was 16, and my dad was working two jobs, and my little brothers were still in elementary school. Someone had to keep things together. So I stayed home, took the community. college route and ended up working southwest routes out of Phoenix. And now my dad keeps showing up at my place unannounced since he retired, reorganizing my kitchen cabinets and asking why I never play anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well circumstances came up. Your life took an unexpected turn and you dealt with it. And now you're at a different place. You obviously are self-supporting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Your father is retired. And you can get back into the clarinet. If you want to, if it still calls to you, then it's not something that you're going to forget. It's there for the rest of your life. And if an orchestra is something that you want to be a part of, you can absolutely do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I know. I know you're right. And that's almost the scarier part, right? Like, it's not impossible. There's a community orchestra over in Las Cruces. I've driven past their sign a hundred times. Terrible. If 28 years did what 28 years does, then I have to actually grieve something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hey, I mean, realistically, you're going to pick that up. You are going to be terrible in comparison to how you were 20 years ago. But you'll pick it up quickly. You just got to put in the time. And if you love the clarinet, then you have no problem putting in the time. And you'll get back up to speed. You get your chops back. And I'm sure that the last cruis orchestra is not, um, not, I don't want to say not great, but I mean, your ability level will probably fit in well with a smaller orchestra like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Huh. No. That's okay. That's actually really funny and also probably true. And kind of a relief. Like, I'm not trying to get to Carnegie Hall. I just want to play again. I just want to play again. I just want to feel that thing again where you're so inside the music that everything else just</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can do that. You've got that clarinet right there. All you got to do is run down to the music store, get some reeds. If you don't have a music store, then order them online. But they're not expensive. You know what you need to do. Pick up the clarinet and play some music and do that every day for a while. Get your chops back up and then think about joining that orchestra because there's nothing cooler than listening to an orchestra.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, you're right. And honestly, the clarinet's right here in front of me. I've been staring at it for an hour, like it's going to bite me. My dad's going to lose his mind when he finds out, by the way. He's going to show up and reorganize my living room and take full credit for it somehow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, good for him. You know, he's got to get some small wins.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's okay. That's fair. He does. He really does. The man raised three kids by himself. And now he's retired and lonely and showing up at my place moving my spice rack around. Let him have it. But, okay, I have a question for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Hit me with it. What's your question?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Do I play it tonight? Like right now, after we hang up? Because it's almost, what, one in the morning? I've got a flight out of Phoenix tomorrow. But I'm sitting here. And the case is open and I just, I kind of want to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you said that it had dried out reeds and it may not be in playable condition, but if you can play it, yeah, sure, you should. But it's not one in the morning. It's closer to quarter of four in the morning. And you're calling Luke at the Roost. It's our fake fat Tuesday special. And I have a question for you now. It's my turn. Are you ready for my question?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Quarter of four? Oh my God. I have to be up in. Okay. Yes. Yeah. Hit me with your question. I'm ready.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. What is a neutral ground in New Orleans? And why is it called that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh. Oh, no. Okay. Um, is it the median?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is the median. You're correct. Canal Street once served as the boundary between Creole and American settlements. In the middle was considered a neutral territory. So that's why they call it neutral territory. Thank you for the call. Congratulations on your newfound reinvigoration into music. I hope that goes well for you and that you get into that orchestra. We'll talk to you a little bit later. That's the end of our show.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 16: Tasting the Apocalypse</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-19T08:16:54+00:00">February 19, 2026</time> · 57 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke tackles a diverse array of callers' issues, from a man struggling with his long-distance relationship, to a 911 dispatcher haunted by past trauma, to a trucker experiencing bizarre neurological symptoms. Through it all, Luke offers insightful advice and empathy, leaving listeners engaged and entertained.</p>
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-16-tasting-the-apocalypse.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
|
||||
<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, welcome back to the show. It's Luke at the Roost. Tonight is Wednesday, February 18th. It's 11.11 p.m. And we're in a windstorm here in the desert inanimate, but that's not going to stop us. Little wind never stopped a good radio show. That's what I always say. If you'd like to call into the show, our numbers 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. and you'd like to participate, you can send us an email. Our email address is submissions at lukeatsderoose.com. So, that all being said, I hope everybody's having a good night out there tonight. We're going to get right to our show. First up, on the show, we've got Chester. Chester's calling in. What's going on in your life, Chester?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Luke, hey, so I just finished about an hour ago, and I'm sitting here at work absolutely wrecked. And I got to ask you something about it, about this. I work nights at the prison down in Donia Ana County, and I read the last chunk of it during my rounds tonight. Father and son pushing a shopping cart through literal apocalypse, right? And the father would die for this kid. Does die for this kid, basically. And here's the thing. My girlfriend Sarah is up in Albuquerque, and I drive three hours each way every other Friday to see her. Been doing it for eight months. Okay, so where's the thing? canceled on me. Always some excuse. Works crazy. My roommate needs me, whatever. And I'm sitting there in B Block at two in the morning with tears in my eyes because Cormac McCarthy just destroyed me with this father who'd walk through fire, and I'm thinking, I'm the one doing all the walking here. She won't even meet me halfway in Socorro.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe she's not the right one, or she's not that interested in you, or she's busy. Her life could be busy. You don't know. What's her life like? Does she have other responsibilities she's got to take care of? Does she not have the money to pay for the gas, maybe? There's a lot of reasons she might not be able to meet you halfway. Are you talking about the road?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah, the road. Sorry, should have said that up front. And look, she's a manager at a brew pub, makes decent money, drives a newer Tacoma than mine, no kids, no sick parents, nothing like that. I've asked her straight up, can we split the drive sometimes? And she just says Albuquerque's better because there's more to do. All her friends are there, which, fine. But then don't cancel on me four times because your roommate's having boy problems where you picked up an extra shift you didn't have to pick up. And here's what's eating at me. The father in the book, he's got nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like maybe she's not the right one for you or you're not the right one for her. And if you're looking for more from her and you're not getting it, then move on, that's all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, you're right. I know you're right. It's just I keep making excuses for her the same way I'm sitting here defending her to you right now. Oh, works busy Albuquerque's better. Like I'm trying to convince myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's your situation? Like, where do you live? What's your environment?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>I'm in Los Cruces. Got a little one bedroom off Lohman, nothing fancy, but it's mine. Work overnight at the prison three, four nights a week, depending on the schedule. Been there two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you're in Las Cruces. There's plenty of people around there. be too hard to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>I mean, yeah, there's people. But I don't know, man. I work nights, sleep days, my social life is basically non-existent. Most of the guys I work with are married or they're 20 years older than me. I'm 28.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're 28 in Las Cruces, New Mexico. You can throw up a little Tinder ad and see who bites. But are you in love with this girl?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>No, that's the thing. I'm not. me so hard tonight because the father in it he loves that kid so much he'd die for him without thinking twice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Don't they eat people in that book?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah they do. There's these roving gangs. They keep people in basements like livestock. It's brutal, but that's what makes the father's love for the kid so, I don't know. Pure? He's protecting him from all that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well maybe you should eat a little more of her and she'd be more inclined to come visit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Jesus, Luke. Okay, fair point. But honestly, last time she was down here, things were...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Things were what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Off. Like, we had sex, but it felt like she was checking a box, you know? And then she spent half the weekend on her phone texting her friends in Albuquerque. I'm driving six hours round trip every other Friday to feel like an obligation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, don't do it anymore. I mean, you're not in love with the chick. She's really far away. of women around you. You can move on or not. You know, it's okay being single too. It sounds like you don't really keep a consistent, well, I mean, you don't keep a normal daytime schedule like most people. So when do you have time to spend time with her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>That's exactly it. I don't. My days off are like Tuesday and Wednesday. She works a normal job, nine to five. So even when I drive up there, she's got brunch plans with her girlfriends on Saturday, or she's tired from her week, and I'm sitting in her apartment waiting for her to have time for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's disrespectful, so, I mean, you should just cut that out. There's no reason you should be doing that. She's obviously not into you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just, I keep thinking if I just try harder, show up more, be more understanding about her schedule, then she'll, but that's the thing with the book, read the book.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I saw the movie and all I remember from it was that they ate people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah, they do. There's these roving gangs. They keep people in basements like livestock. You already said that. It's brutal. But that's what makes the father's love for the kids so, I don't know, pure. He's protecting him from all that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so break up with your girlfriend because you don't have time and she doesn't have time and you're not into each other and there's no reason to be spending the gas money. That's what I say to you. Break up with the girl.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, you're right. I'll do it. I'm not driving up there this Friday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good for you. You do it. That's, that's, uh, that's the can-do spirit that we look for here at Luke at the Roost. Next up on the radio show, we have Terry, Terry, welcome to the show. What's going on? Do you eat people?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Oh, Jesus. No, what? No, I'm a nurse. I mean, I have some stuff, but sorry. I'm just sitting in my car in the hospital parking lot right now, and I'm kind of losing it. I found out three days ago that I'm adopted, and my mom, well, the woman who raised me, she's had a stroke, and I just found all these papers at her house, and I don't know what to do with this information.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you thinking? You just found out that you're adopted, and your adopted mother, who you can call your mom, had a stroke. That's horrible. Are you around her to support and just be with her in her awful time of need?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I've been at the hospital every day. I just got off a 12-hour shift and I'm supposed to go back in to see her before I head home, but I'm sitting here in the parking lot just frozen. What were the papers?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Official adoption documents dated six months after I was born, April 1980. My name, Terry Lynn, a different mother's signature, the whole thing notarized and legal. They were in a box in the back of her closet, with old tax returns.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, all that proves is that this woman loved you, and now she's sick, and you're there to care for her, and that's a good thing. So you don't have to worry about the being adopted thing. Lots of people are adopted. As long as she took care of you, she obviously made a decision to love you and raise you, and you're a nurse now, so you've made a decision to help people sounds ideal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>I know. I know that. And you're right. She raised me. She loved me. She loved me. But, Luke, it's been 44 years, 44 years of her looking at me every single day and never saying a word.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Why would she say a word? She doesn't, there's nothing to say. There's nothing to say? I have a brother, Ray. He doesn't even know yet. I don't know if he's adopted to, or if it's just me. I don't know who my actual birth mother is or why she gave me up. I don't know if my dad, if he was my real dad, or if he knew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's probably a good reason for that. Your birth mother might not have wanted you to know that she existed, and your adopted mother may have just been afraid that if you learned that you were adopted, you would abandon her in favor of your birth mother who abandoned you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Oh, God. That's, I hadn't thought about it like that. She was protecting herself from me leaving. But here's the thing. I always felt like something was off. My whole life I felt like I was performing, like I was trying to be the daughter she wanted instead of just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Instead of just what? I mean, what were you performing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>I don't know. Being cheerful, being good, not being good, not causing problems. Ray was always the one who could just be himself, you know? He'd fight with her, slam doors, whatever. But I was always so careful, always trying to make sure she was happy with me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And why do you think that is? Does she give you a reason to behave in that way?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>No, not really. She was never mean or anything. But I always had this feeling. And maybe this sounds crazy, it. Like I had to prove I deserve to be there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think a lot of kids feel that way, and I'm going to ask you this, and it's not to be mean, it's not to be cold, but what makes you feel like you shouldn't have had to earn it? Like, why would you just expect it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>I... Wow. That's a hell of a question, Luke. I guess because she's my mom, or I thought she was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, but that's a... That doesn't mean you don't have to earn affection or likeability. She's your mom, and she loved you, and she raised you, and she provided for you, and she did all the necessary things. So what is it that you were earning from her or that you felt like you had to earn from her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>The feeling that I actually belonged there, that I wasn't temporary, that she wouldn't change her mind. And now I find out that's exactly what I was. Somebody else's kid that she took in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, that's not what you were, because you were there for 44 years, right? So she raised you your whole life. She didn't ever treat you as temporary.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>No, you're right. She didn't, but she also never told me the truth. For 44 years, she let me think I was hers. And that feels like...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I'm sure it feels like a lot of things all at the same time, but if you try and separate yourself from the emotion of it and think about it logically and look at your life and how she treated you growing up. Was it all that bad? Does it matter, really? There are almost certainly good reasons that you were put up for adoption and that she adopted you. Maybe she couldn't have kids herself and she really wanted one. Maybe your birth mother was in a situation where she couldn't provide for you or was dying. Like, you don't know unless that's something something that you talk to her about. But I wouldn't feel like you've been wronged. It sounds, that sounds like an abundance of love to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>I hear what you're saying, Luke. I do, but she's had a stroke. She might not wake up. And if she doesn't, I'll never know why she didn't tell me. I'll never know who my birth mother was or why she gave me up. And Ray, my brother. He doesn't know any of this yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So she had a stroke. She's in potentially the worst situation of her entire life and you're worried about whether you know why she gave you up or not. Like, why? It doesn't seem important.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Because I spent my whole life feeling like something was off and now I know I was right. And yeah, maybe that makes me selfish when she's lying in a hospital bed, but I can't just turn off 44 years of wondering why I never quite fit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, why you felt like you never quite fit has nothing to do with her. That's entirely a you thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>That's not fair, Luke. How is it entirely a me thing when she kept this massive secret my entire life? When every time I looked in the mirror and didn't see her face looking back, every time someone said I didn't act like family, she could have just told me the truth and she chose not to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because that's not a thing. People don't act like family. That's all about upbringing and your social environment. It doesn't have anything to do with your blood. People that are biologically related don't act a certain way because they're biologically related. They act a certain way because they grew up together. They share an intense, long-lasting life experience like you do with this woman who is in the hospital right now and your brother. And there's no reason you have to think any more about it there's nothing more to it than that. She loved you. You might not know what happened or why, but you can choose to go about the rest of your life with the understanding that you were loved and that there was likely a good reason in your best interest for the way those things played out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>You're probably right. I know you're probably right, but sitting here in this parking lot looking at those adoption papers with someone else's signature where my mother should be, I keep thinking about all the times I asked her why I was so different. Why I was bad at the things Ray was good at.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because you're a different person than Ray. You know, it has nothing to do with who raised you or who your mother was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Okay, but then why hide it? If it doesn't matter, if blood doesn't matter, why not just tell me when I was 10 or 15 or 20? Why let me find out now like this, going through her files? Because she might die. That's what I can't get past.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because there could be a good reason for that. Your birth mother may have... That could have been a stipulation, like a non-disclosure agreement. There could be a very good reason that you don't know who that was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Oh, God. I didn't even think about that. Like maybe my birth mother didn't want to be found. Or there was something...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Correct. And you can never know unless you can have that conversation with your mom. And you might not get that conversation. And if you think about it, logically, what would change in your life today if you had different information?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Nothing would change. That's the thing that's killing me, Luke. I'd still be sitting in this parking lot in my scrubs. I'd still have worked a 12-hour shift. Ray would still be Ray.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Exactly. Ray would still be Ray. Nothing would change. She would still be your mom. She would still be in the hospital. You would still be working, and everything would be exactly the same. So it really doesn't matter whether you know who your birth mother is or not. You could do one of those DNA test things or a genealogy situation. I don't know if that can go down to your actual birth parents. But why? Like, what is the point? It sounds like you had a decent upbringing. You're a grown adult with your own life now and maybe you feel like you don't fit in, but that's an unrelated problem to this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>You're right. I mean, she raised me. She was there for every scraped knee, every bad boyfriend. Every time I called her crying about something stupid. That's what matters. Not some signature on a piece of paper I found in a filing cabinet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Exactly. And what matters is that she is in the hospital and she may not recover and you may not recover only have a little bit of time left with her. So I would wipe this from your mind and go spend time with your mom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, you're right. I should go back in there. I've been sitting out here for almost an hour, just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, you should go back in there. So do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Okay, I will. Thank you, Luke. I really needed to hear that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are very welcome, and I wish you all the best of luck. I hope she makes a full recovery. And then you can put this behind you and move on with your life. And with that, folks, it's time for a word from our sponsors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Look, I'm not a financial advisor. I'm a guy with a microphone and a dog. But the folks at Crypto Know asked me to tell you about their new decentralized investment platform. And I legally have to read this part. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This is not financial advice. And if you invest your rent money, you disqualify exactly what happens next. Crypto no lets you trade over 400 digital currencies, including three that were invented this morning, and one that's just a picture of my dog. The app features a real-time portfolio tracker with a built-in panic button that just plays ocean sounds when your balance drops. Crypto no! Fortune favors the bold, but it does not return their calls. It does not return their calls. It does not return their calls. And we won't return your calls, but if you call in, you can leave us a voicemail. And if I think it's funny, it might be read on the next show. So you should do that. Next up on the old radio show, we've got Travis. Travis, welcome to the show. What's keeping you up tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I'm sitting here in my dark room, trying to work. And two hours ago, my daughter shows me this video that's been going around her school since Monday. me, my face, my voice, telling a room full of kids that the Navajo Nation doesn't deserve water rights. Except, I never said that. Someone took footage from different talks I've given and stitched it together to make me say the exact opposite of everything I actually believe.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's pretty insane, and it's hard to believe anybody would say that. So, um, who do you think might have done this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>I mean, that's the thing. I've been documenting pipeline construction and transmission lines for environmental groups and tribal councils for 15 years. I've testified against energy companies. I've worked with the Navajo Water Rights Commission. So take your pick, you know. Could be some kid who thinks it's funny. Could be someone with an actual axe to grind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That doesn't sound like a thing a kid would actually even know about or know to do. So it seems more likely to me that that's one of your enemies trying to slander you in front of children?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>It doesn't make a lot of sense. You're right, it doesn't. I mean, what ninth grade even knows who I am or cares about water rights litigation. But here's what's messing with my head. My daughter said kids are commenting on it, sharing it around. And I'm sitting here thinking, okay, if this is some coordinated thing, from an energy company or a PR firm, why target a school presentation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there's a few strange things about where you're saying here. I don't think a video like that would go viral with high school kids. Maybe it would. I don't know. I've been out of high school for a while, so it just seems uninteresting to them. So do you have any known enemies? And do you have a relationship with the Navajo Nation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Yeah, I work with them pretty regularly, or I did. I've got contacts at the Water Rights Commission. I've photographed documentation for their legal cases. I've been out to Window Rock probably a dozen times in the last three years. As for enemies, I mean, there's the San Juan Coal Company. They weren't thrilled when my photos ended up in that lawsuit last year. There's a fracking outfit near Farmington that tried to get an injunction against me for trespassing on what they claimed was private land. But here's what I keep coming back to. If someone wanted to discredit me with the people I actually work with, with the tribal councils, or the environmental groups, they'd send it to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, absolutely. So you obviously have worked with the Navajo for a long time. You've got relationships in their council, I'm sure, and they know that you didn't say that, right? They're going to believe you when you say this wasn't me. I think at this point, everybody recognizes that this is possible and not that hard to do. So if there's a video of you saying something that is clearly against everything that you've ever stood for in your whole career, I think it should be pretty hard to dismiss. Strange to think about the why somebody would do this. What is the intention behind it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>That's what's keeping me up, man, because you're right. The people who know me know me, they'll know it's fake. But my daughter's sitting there scrolling through comments from kids saying, wow, what a racist and this guy's trash. And she's like, embarrassed. She asked me if I actually said it. And I'm thinking, okay, maybe that's not about destroying my credibility with the Navajo Water Rights Commission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is pretty dark right there. If somebody's going to try and destroy your own relationship with your kid, uh, you must to really piss somebody off badly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Yeah, and that's what's getting to me. Because I can handle getting yelled at by some executive in a boardroom. I can handle threats. I've had those before. But watching my kid look at me like she wasn't sure if she could believe me. That hit different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it could be another thing, too, that we haven't thought about. What if it's not your enemy, but it's an enemy of your kid that was trying to embarrass your kid by looking up information about you and publishing that to the school.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Oh man, I didn't even, yeah, that's a whole different angle. She's a junior, so there's all that social hierarchy stuff I don't fully understand. She did mention it first showed up on some group chat she's in, but she seemed more confused than like targeted, you know? Like she wasn't saying, someone's coming after me. She was saying, Dad, what is this? But now, I'm wondering, does she have beef with someone I don't know about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She might have beef with somebody that she doesn't know about. I mean, this is the 2026 version of a bucket of pig's blood at the prom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Jesus, that's bleak. But you might be on to something, because she's been kind of quiet lately. I thought it was just junior year stress, college stuff. But what if someone's been messing with her, and this is just what finally bubbled up to where I could see it. I mean, how do I even ask her that without making it worse? Hey, honey, which of your classmates hates you enough to deep fake your dad?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you could just start with a simple conversation like, hey, I'm trying to get to the bottom of where this video came from and why it was distributed to your school. And there doesn't seem to be a good reason that any of my adversaries would target me in that way, because they wouldn't overwhelmingly, very lazy, and that takes a lot of coordination to pull off. There's a lot of information they had to pull up about who your kid was, what school they were, what chats she was in. Some oil company wouldn't know that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>You're absolutely right. An oil company would just send a cease and desist, or try to get me fired from whatever freelance gig I'm on. They wouldn't know what group chat might Daufer's in. They wouldn't know her schedule well enough to time it so it hits, during the school day. That's someone who knows her world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it must be, or a really, really twisted fuck that you really pissed off, and I think you would know who that was if there was that person. So it sounds more to me like it's her that is the target of this, and not you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Yeah, I think you're right. And now I'm sitting here in my dark room at midnight, feeling like an idiot, because I made this whole thing about me, about my work, my reputation, who I've pissed off over pipeline photos. Meanwhile, my kids getting targeted by some psycho 17-year-old with editing software, and I didn't even see it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I have that conversation, see what it's about. There's probably nothing you can do about the video if it's already circulating, but luckily it's circulating in a small, contained space, and it's not going to be remembered. Nobody's going to hold on to that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Oh, hey, Luke. Yeah. I'm good, man. Little wired, honestly. So listen, my best friend Miguel keeps asking me to move to Tucson with him, get a place together, and I keep making up excuses, but the real reason I won't do it is I think I might be in love with him and I have no idea what to do about that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what makes you think he's not in love with you if he's asking you to move in with him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Oh man, I don't see. That's the thing that's been driving me crazy. Like, he says it's practical, right? Split rent? We've always talked about doing that food truck thing. He's got connections with the school district down there. But then, like, last Christmas, we were both pretty drunk, and he looked at me in this way that I don't know, Luke. Maybe I'm reading into it because I want to see it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is he gay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>I honestly don't know. He's never dated anyone seriously that I know of. Like, in high school, there were girls he'd hook up with at parties, but nothing ever stuck. And since then, nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if he's your best friend and he's asking you to move in and you share that level of trust, it's going to be an awkward conversation, but I think you should ask.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I know you're right. It's just, God, what if I'm completely wrong? What if he And then I lose him entirely.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then he wasn't a very good friend to begin with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>I mean, that's fair. We've been through a lot of shit together. He was there when my dad died. I helped him through his mom's cancer scare.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you want to live with him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Yeah, I really do. Like, I've been thinking about it constantly. What our kitchen would look like. Who'd take which bedroom? Stupid stuff like making coffee together in the morning. And that food truck idea?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you're in love with the dude, I wouldn't move in with him without having that conversation first, because that could get real, real awkward. And then you've moved in, your stuff is there, just is much messier than to deal with that right out of the gate, you know? So talk to your buddy. Ask him like, hey, you into dudes?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Oh, God, just like that? Hey, Miguel, quick question before I pack up my life. You into dudes? You're right, though. I can't do this halfway. I've been sitting here in my bathroom with the shower running hot for like an hour trying to figure out how to text him back. And I keep typing, yes, let's do it, and then deleting it because I'm terrified of what happens after.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think you got to talk to him first and have the awkward conversation. And one way or another, that'll tell you how to proceed. Because what happens if you have that conversation with him and you say, hey, I have feelings for you? I think it would be weird if we were living together and you didn't share those feelings. What if he's not gay? And he does say, no, I'm not gay, but I'd still like to live with you. Could you deal with that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>No, no, I really couldn't. That's the thing that's been eating at me. If I tell him and he doesn't feel the same way, I don't think I could just go back to normal. Like, watching him date women, being his roommate while I'm still feeling this way, that sounds like actual torture.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, then it sounds like you can just flat out, say, No, I don't think it's the right time for that and blow that request off. Or you can sit down and have the hard conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>The hard conversation. Jesus. Okay. Okay. So what do I even say? Do I lead with, I think I might be in love with you? Or do I ease into it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know. You're the one that has this problem. Don't put this shit on me. I have no idea. That's not how I I would approach it. What I would, I would just ask him straight out if he was gay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>You're right. You're right. I'm overthinking it. Just, are you gay or maybe, are you into guys? God, even saying it out loud makes my stomach flip. The worst part is there have been these moments.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you already suspect that he might be gay and kind of into you. So there, there's probably something there. And also, So a dude asking another dude to move in with him is pretty gay. So you're not completely out of line in that line of questioning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Okay, that's fair. Yeah. Straight guys don't usually text their buddy at midnight about splitting rent and building a life together. And last Christmas, man, we were both drunk and he said something about how I was the only person who really got him. And the way he looked at me...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. So just bring it up, be direct, ask him the question. You don't have to make it weird. It It doesn't have to be, well, it's a little bit weird no matter what, but it doesn't have to be super weird. Just ask him, and if he gets all butt hurt and doesn't want to talk to you anymore, then that sucks and you lose a friend, but better to know that now than when you're sleeping in the room next to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>You're absolutely right. Better to blow it up now from 400 miles away than after I've quit my route and signed a lease. All right, I'm going to call him tomorrow, not text, call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, give us a call back when you have more news. Let us know how it went, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Yeah, I will. Thanks, Luke. Seriously. I've been sitting on this for two years, and I think I just needed someone to tell me to stop being a coward about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, well, that's a tough thing, an awkward conversation that I can understand nobody would want to have. So good luck to you. I hope it works out in your favor, whichever way that is. And now it's time for a number. Another word from our sponsors. Let's talk about what's going on below the belt. Saddle Soft premium undergarments are made for fabrics so advanced, the military doesn't even know about it yet. We're talking about micromodal cactus silk, harvested by hand from prickly pear, which is ironic because the whole point is that nothing pricks you. Every pair is cut for the man who sits in a plastic chair in the desert for nine hours recording a podcast. That's a real use case. That's my use case. use case. Saddlesoft comes in three fits. Regular, generous, and mind your business. Use code Roost at checkout for 15% off your first pair. And no, I will not be modeling them. I've been asked. The answer is still no. Saddle soft. Your chair is uncomfortable enough.! Okay, Megan. Megan, are you the same caller that called in a few days ago?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Yeah, that's me. The kindergarten teacher from down in the booth heel. I've called in a couple times now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I remember you. You really flipped my opinion on kindergarten teachers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Oh, God, the footskin thing. Look, I knew that was going to follow me. My friend Tammy still won't let me live it down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, Jesus, you're the footskin chick. No, I was talking about when you were telling me how important the role of the and teacher is in teaching kids how to learn for the rest of their learning careers. I forgot about the foot skin picking thing. That is, that's gross.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Oh, yeah, well, I mean, both things are true. I can shape young minds and have disgusting habits.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you can. It is a free country. So what are you calling in for tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>So my sister Crystal, the one up in Flagstaff I told you about, She called me yesterday and she's moving back to Missouri. Like next month. Just decided.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. And how do you feel about that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Honestly, I'm pissed. She spent seven years up there complaining about how there's nothing to do in the boutique. How she needed the mountains, needed to be somewhere with culture, all that. And now she's coming back because, and this is the part that's killing me, she says she misses family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why is that killing you. She's obviously got family in Missouri.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Because I've been here the whole time, Luke. I drive up to see my brother Ray every other week to make sure he's not completely falling apart. I check on mom. I'm the one who stayed. And Crystal gets to sworn off to Arizona, ignore everybody for years, and then just decide she misses us?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, would you rather she doesn't decide to miss you and she stays in Arizona where she doesn't want to be and doesn't get see any of you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>No, I look. That's not the point. The point is she gets to just make these big sweeping decisions. I'm leaving, I'm coming back, I miss family now, and I'm supposed to what, just be happy about it, roll out the welcome wagon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's not that she gets to make decisions, it's that she does make decisions. You can make decisions too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Okay, but no but seriously. It's not the same. doesn't have a classroom full of kids depending on her. She works remote doing graphic design. She can just pick up and go wherever. I can just leave in the middle of a school year because I feel like it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You absolutely can leave in the middle of a school year because you feel like it. What you do at work is your job and you can change your job at any point for any reason. So if you wanted to make those big sweeping decisions in your life, you could absolutely do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FLOYD</span><p>Oh, man. Okay, so this is going to sound insane, but I need you to tell me if I'm losing my mind. I'm at a rest stop outside Deming right now. And about 20 minutes ago, I was eating peanuts from the gas station, and I tasted the exit sign. I literally tasted green metal in my mouth when I looked at it. And now I can't stop thinking about whether my brain is breaking or if this has always been happening and I just never noticed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What does green taste like?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FLOYD</span><p>Like, okay, so it's this sharp metallic thing, almost like if you licked a chain link fence, but with this weird brightness to it. And it's specifically that highway sign green. Not like like grass green or anything. Of course. The peanuts were fine. And then I glanced up at the exit sign. And suddenly my mouth had this taste that matched the color exactly. And the fluorescent lights in the bathroom, those have a taste too. Kind of burnt coffee mixed with static electricity. I know how this sounds, Luke. I really do. But it's so specific that I can't shake it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you under the influence of any drugs at the moment?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FLOYD</span><p>No. I'm stone cold sober. I'm driving a route to El Paso. I've got a delivery at 3 a.m. I don't even drink coffee afternoon because it messes with my sleep. That's what's freaking me out. If I was high or hadn't slept in two days, I'd be like, okay, yeah, that tracks. But I'm just driving, doing my normal thing, and suddenly colors have flavors. And I'm sitting in a truck stop parking lot, wondering if I'm having a stroke or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that doesn't sound right to me. Has this ever happened to you before?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FLOYD</span><p>Never. Not once in 36 years. That's why I'm calling my girlfriend Diane. She texted me this article this afternoon about synesthesia, you know, where people's senses get crossed and they see sounds as colors or whatever. And I read it while I was waiting to load up in Tucson and thought it was interesting but didn't think anything of it. Then tonight this happens. And now I'm like, did reading about it make my brain do it? Can that even happen?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think that can happen. It's like a placebo effect type thing. I don't know. It sounds like it could be a placebo from what you've read and what you've been thinking about, and it could also be a severe neurological disorder. So maybe you should talk to a clinic and ask them if that's a symptom of a bigger problem or nothing to be concerned about. Because I don't know. That's a weird one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FLOYD</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I should. The thing is is, I'm supposed to be in El Paso in like four hours, and I've been sitting here for half an hour just staring at my odometer, trying to figure out if the number seven feels smug to me. Like, does that sound crazy? I'm looking at numbers and assigning them personalities now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that one's absolutely correct. The number seven is absolutely smug.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you're right about that, but the tasting green street signs is a bit odd, and maybe something that you want to get checked out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, see, that makes me feel a little better. Wait, no, it doesn't. Because now I don't know if you're messing with me or if seven actually is smug. And I've just been noticing things that were always there. God, this is making my head hurt. Should I even be driving right now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you should probably not be driving right now. You should get to a clinic and see what's up with that, because it doesn't sound like you're in a stable state, and you might be on the brink of a psychotic break.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>A psychotic break. Break? Jesus. Luke, I called for some reassurance here, not to get told I'm losing my mind. I mean, okay, you might be right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I can't reassure you that what you're saying is normal behavior because it's not. I've never heard of that before. And unless you're under the influence of some strong psychedelics, I don't know that that that's a good thing. It sounds like brain issue. So I'm not saying that it's a is a brain issue. I'm saying that you should get that checked and maybe stay off the road.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>All right. All right. There's a hospital endemming. I passed the sign like 10 miles back. I can turn around. My dispatcher's going to be pissed. This delivery is time sensitive. It's refrigerated pharmaceuticals. But you're right. If I'm actually having some kind of neurological event, I shouldn't be piloting a 40-foot truck down the interstate at midnight. It's just, man. I feel fine otherwise. Like physically, I feel completely normal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you felt abnormal enough to call a radio show about it, so that's a good sign. But you should get it checked out. That's the responsible thing to do. And you don't want to hurt anybody because you ignored a symptom of a serious issue.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, you're right. You're absolutely right. I just, God, Diane's going to freak out when I tell her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that might be one you don't tell her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>What? You think I should just show up to a hospital by myself at midnight and not tell my wife I might be having a stroke or whatever? Come on, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, that is what I think. I think you should show up at the hospital, ask them if it's a thing. And if they say it's not a thing, carry on with your day. If they say it is a thing, then have the conversation with your wife. Because what's not going to go well is a call to your wife saying that you taste the green street sign when you eat peanuts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, when you put it like that, yeah, that does sound insane. She already thinks I'm a hypochondriac because of that whole thing with the mole last year that turned out to be nothing. If I call her at midnight saying I'm tasting colors, she's going to think I've completely lost it. But what do I even tell the ER?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You tell the ER that you're tasting colors and you think that's strange and you want to know if that's a symptom of a known issue.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Right. Okay. Yeah. I can do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, you do that, buddy, and let us know how it goes, because that is the weirdest call that we've ever had. So congratulations. Hold on. Let me find one for you. We're going to give you, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. All right. Well done. You have the trophy right now, and hopefully someday soon we'll get a weirder call, and then they will snatch that trophy from you. But good luck with your story. street sign mouth, and I wish you the best of luck. Everybody, this has been another great episode of Luke at the Roost, and we hope you enjoy the remainder of your evening.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 17: Quantum Chaos and Cosmic Dust</h1>
|
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-20T09:40:45+00:00">February 20, 2026</time> · 54 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke takes calls from distressed listeners dealing with relationship troubles, existential crises, and ethical dilemmas. Callers include Mitch, Tamika, and Marlene, who grapple with quantum physics, the great attractor, and HOA drama. The episode culminates with Amber, a 911 dispatcher, considering whether to report a hit-and-run by her church's youth pastor.</p>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. It's early Friday morning. This is supposed to be Thursday night, but I got distracted, so sue me. This is Luke at the Roost. It's your late night call-in radio show where you can call in and ask me about what's on your mind. The number, if you'd like to call, is 208-439. 5853. That's 208-439 Luke. gonna take some calls because that's what we do. So first up on the line here we have Mitch. Mitch welcome to the show. What are you calling in for tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Hey Luke, thanks for taking the call. So I'm sitting here in my garage at midnight watching a YouTube video about quantum physics and I think it might be ruining my marriage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well you know if we're all being honest quantum physics is ruining everything. Right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>No, that particles exist in like all possible states at once until somebody looks at them and then they just pick one. And I can't stop thinking about how that's exactly what happened with me and my wife tonight. We had this huge fight about whether to loan my brother money for a food truck. And it's like we were both existing in all these different versions of the argument until we actually had it. And now we're locked into this one where she thinks I'm an idiot and I'm hiding in the garage eating crackers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well if you're thinking about giving your brother money for a food truck, you probably are an idiot. Why is everybody want a food truck these days? Everybody's got a brother that's trying to start a food truck. You have a different idea. Jesus. There's enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Oh man, I know. But here's the thing. Darrell's actually a really good cook, like legitimately good. He did this pop-up thing at a brewery last summer and sold out in two hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Was it a fusion?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>No, thank God. It's barbecue. Proper barbecue. He's been working on his brisket for like three years. But yeah, Angie says he's a burnout because he's had like four different jobs in the last two years. And I get it, but I also think, I don't know, man. Maybe he just hasn't found his thing yet. He's 32.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I have a couple of questions. Has he asked you for money before for other ideas?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Yeah, twice. There was this landscaping company thing that lasted like six months, houses, which yeah, that one didn't even get off the ground. But Luke, the barbecue thing is different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and it might be different. And my next question is, do you have the money to lend him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>I mean, we have it. We've got like 15 grand saved up that was supposed to be for redoing the kitchen. Angie's been planning that for two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, your brother wants to start a food truck. He's 32 years old, and you've already given him money for two failed businesses. Your wife wants to redo the kitchen. You've been saving money for that. So no. I mean, my advice is don't give your brother the money. That's insane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Yeah, but see, that's the thing. I didn't actually give him money those other times. I just told him I would, and then Angie talked me out of it both times. And now he's got this whole business plan printed out. He's got a truck lined up. He just needs 12 grand for the equipment and permits and wrapping it. And I keep thinking, like, what if this is actually the one?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe it is, but it's not your one. It's your brother's one. And first of all, are you sure that you would get your money back? That's an important bit. And also, anybody can put a business together, put a business plan together in like 36 seconds with ChatGBTBT today. And it doesn't really take a lot of effort or foresight to look for a vehicle on Facebook Marketplace. So it's not like he's done a whole lot of work here to get started. I wouldn't give him the money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>I mean, you're probably right. It's just, God, you should see him when he talks about it. He gets this look like he actually believes in something for once. And I keep thinking about that quantum physics thing. Like maybe he's in this state where he could be successful or he could fail, but until someone actually gives him a shot, we'll never know which one he is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's not how it works, sir. Particles are in a state of superposition until somebody measures them. that's not giving them a chance, right? So he could be in a state of failure and success until you see which one he does. That doesn't require you giving him money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Okay, fair. That's... Yeah, that's fair. I guess I'm trying to make physics justify me wanting to help my little brother. But here's what really gets me. Angie said something last night that I can't stop thinking about. She said, you're not trying to save Daryl. You're trying to prove something to your dad. four years, so that really messed me up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did it mess you up because you know that it's true?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Yeah, yeah, it did. Because my dad always said Daryl would never amount to anything, and I always defended him. Like every Sunday dinner, it was the same thing. Dad would go off about how Daryl was wasting his potential, and I'd be the one saying, give him time, he just needs to find his thing. And now Dad's gone, and Daryl's still, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's been 32 years. So Darrell's had ample opportunity to make something happen. And maybe now's the time. I'm not saying that he can't make a food truck happen. I'm just saying it's not your responsibility to buy that for him. And your wife clearly doesn't want you to. And it's more important that you support her than you support him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just going to kill me to tell him no.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he's going to have to learn some things to be successful about business and about life and about fundraising. suggestion to you would be to help him raise the money himself and be proud and have something to lose in this business that isn't yours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Huh, that's actually that might work. Like help him figure out how to pitch investors or do a Kickstarter or something. So he's got some skin in the game because you're right. If it's my 12 grand, what does he have to lose?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah man, that's an awful expensive rack</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Ha, yeah, exactly. Man, Angie's going to be relieved. I've been avoiding going back inside because I didn't want to keep fighting about it. Maybe I should actually go tell her you talk some sense into me before she wakes up still mad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, sir, you go do that. You have a wonderful night, and congratulations for reclaiming the marriage and keeping the wife happy. That's always a good thing to do. And don't give your brother the money. Help him out where you can, but make him do the work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>I appreciate it, Luke. Seriously. I was sitting out here in my garage eating crackers and spiraling. And you just, yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy, well, you enjoy your crackers and stay out of trouble, okay? Next up on the line we have Tamika. Tamika, welcome to the radio show. How are you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Oh, man, I'm kind of losing my mind a little bit, Luke. I just spent the last three hours reading about the great attractor. And I can't stop thinking about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, then tell me about the great attractor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Okay, so it's this massive gravitational anomaly out in space that we can't even see because it's behind the Milky Way, but it's pulling our entire galaxy toward it at like 600 kilometers per. Everything. The sun, the Earth, all of it, is just being dragged toward this thing that's so big and so far away, we don't even know what it is. And I'm sitting here in the office at the Galaxy Diner at midnight trying to close out the register. And I just keep thinking, how does anybody just go about their day knowing this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, like you said, we don't know. We don't know it. We don't know what it is. We don't know what it's doing or why. And it's too far away for us to see. So everybody's going about their life because there's nothing we can do about it. And we don't know and probably will never know what it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>But that's what's getting me, though. Like, we do know it's there. Scientists know it's there. They can measure it. They can see what it's doing to us. We just can't see the thing itself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>And yeah, there's nothing we can do about it. But doesn't that make it worse? Like, I'm supposed to go home, and my mom's asleep in front of the TV with her pill organizer on the counter. And I'm going to wake up tomorrow and flip the diner sign back on. And meanwhile, the entire galaxy is just... Just moving, just moving and not affecting your life in any way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But there are things that we're we know exist and they're called black holes and they do exactly that. So it wouldn't be surprising to learn that the great attractor is giant black hole that we can't see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Okay, but see, that's even worse because black holes, we at least understand the concept. They're a thing. They eat stuff, whatever. But this is different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How is it different? It could be exactly a black hole. It could just be a thing that eats stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>But it's not eating us though. It's just pulling us. For Bill, millions of years. We've been moving toward this thing our whole lives. Everyone who's ever lived has been moving toward it. And we just found out about it in like the 1970s. And I guess what's really messing me up is, what else is like that? What else is just happening to us that we can't see and can't do anything about? And we're just supposed to act like it's fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it is fine. And lots of things are acting on us that we can't see every day. And we know that. And think about it. like an ear of corn on your plate, right? So you've got this nice dinner. You've got an ear of corn there. You can't eat that ear of corn until you've pulled it towards yourself. So it could very well just be a faraway black hole pulling us towards itself on its way to eat us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Oh, great. So we're dinner. That's really comforting, Luke. No, but okay. I hear what you're saying. Things are always acting on us we can't see. Gravity, radiation, whatever. But those things we learned about in school, you know? We grew up knowing about them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, we also grew up knowing about the food pyramid in school. And I don't know if you've heard about that lately, but it's completely different now because it's bullshit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Exactly. See, that's what I'm saying. They told us for decades to eat a certain way. And it turns out it was completely wrong. And now we're finding out our entire galaxy is being pulled towards something we can't identify. And like, what are? What else are they going to tell us in 20 years that completely changes everything we thought we knew?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Tons of stuff, but the point is, at the end of the day, it doesn't really affect your life. It's not going to pull us anywhere in our lifetimes. We're talking about billions of years out into the future. We'll have killed ourselves off long before then. We're almost there already.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Okay, but that's not making me feel better. You're basically saying, don't worry about the great attractor because we'll probably nuke ourselves. first. Like, is that supposed to help me close out the register and go home? And I don't know. Maybe it's not even really about the great attractor. Maybe it's about...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's exactly what I'm saying. I'm saying, don't worry about the great attractor, because it's not going to pose a threat for billions of years, and we're all going to be dead one way or another. And the entire human race is almost certainly going to be dead before then. So what is it about to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>It's that I can't stop thinking about my mom. She's asleep right now in front of the TV with her pill organizer on the counter, and tomorrow she's going to wake up and make coffee and ask me if I remembered to defrost the chicken. And meanwhile, we're hurtling through space toward this massive invisible thing, and she has no idea, and it doesn't matter, because what matters to her is whether I defrosted the chicken. And I'm supposed to just do that? Just go home and defrost chicken and pay the electric bill and show up for my shifts while knowing that none of it means anything in the grand scheme.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is correct. That's exactly what you're supposed to do because you're going to have to eat tomorrow and chicken is tasty. So I would recommend that you defrost the chicken and help your mom out. And don't worry about what's going to happen to the fate of the planet a billion years from now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>But how do you just do that? How do you just decide that the small stuff matters when you know it doesn't? Like, I'm standing here in this restaurant office at 12. 12.30 in the morning, counting 20s, and making sure the drawer balances, and part of me knows that's important because rent is due, and my mom needs her prescriptions. But the other part of me is like, why are we pretending any of this is real?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is 100% the reason we're pretending. We know it's not real. Everything that we see and touch and smell, it's all a interpretation by our brains. We know that it's not reality. Like, that's not even a question. But we do it anyway. and we care about things like de-frosting the chicken because we get hungry and we need to eat.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Oh, God, you're right. I sound insane. I'm having an existential crisis over Wikipedia at midnight when I should just be going home. It's just, I think I've been feeling this way for a while, and the great-att-tractor thing just gave me something to pin it on, you know? Like, my mom's getting older and I'm working the same job I had in college, and I keep thinking, when does the real part start? And maybe it never does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It starts when you decide it does. It starts when you decide, you know, what is important to you and your time here on this earth. And maybe it's figuring out deep secrets of the cosmos and putting your hat in the ring of academia. Who knows what that is to you? But I think the reason to be here is to enjoy the moments that you have here as much as you can and watch the universe do what it does. the opportunity to have been on this planet before it was eaten.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I think I needed to hear that. I've been so stuck in my head about what I'm supposed to be doing that I forgot to just be here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Be here now. That's what our friend Ram Dass always said. And if you're looking for some meaning in your life beyond no meaning at all, maybe look up what Mr. Richard Albert had said. say because it was pretty interesting too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>I will. I'm going to write that down. Ram Dass, write, be here now. That's actually perfect because I've literally been everywhere except here for the past three hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think if you listen to most any sort of self-help spiritual guru, they're going to tell you in different words that same thing. It's to focus on the most moment in front of you because that's the only one that you have. It's the only one that matters. That's the point. So if you're worried about what's going to happen a billion years from now, then you're missing what's happening now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>You're right. God, I'm going to go home and defrost that chicken and maybe actually sit with my mom tomorrow instead of scrolling through my phone while she watches her shows. Thank you, Luke. I really needed this tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Not a problem there. that's what I do. And good luck not getting eaten by the great attractor. I believe in you. I think you can, I think you're going to make it. And now we have to, I'm sorry, but we have to take a word from our sponsors. Ladies and gentlemen, this episode of the radio show is brought to you by mediocre CPAP. The makers of the CPAP machine that technically works, not life-changing, not transformative, It works in the way a lot of modern products work. If you've never used a CPAP, here's the pitch. You strap on a face mask and let a small plastic appliance try to keep you alive at night. It's romantic. It's like sleeping next to a tiny leaf blower. Mediocre is fine. And that's not an insult. That's honest. It's the device that turns, I sleep like garbage into... I kind of slept like garbage. Half the night it's like, pst. Pst. Because the seal isn't perfect.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And now you're doing arts and crafts at two in the night, trying to tighten straps like you're securing cargo. Then the humidifier runs out and the machine starts blowing desert air directly into your skull. Great. Love waking up with a throat that feels like it's been sanded with a belt sander. And yes, there's an app. Of course there's an app. It gives you a sleep score like this is a game show. But here's what I'll say. When it's dialed in, when it's not leaking, squealing, or drying you out, It does help. It's not a miracle. It's a plastic compromise that keeps you from waking up, feeling like you got punched by your own biology. Use code breathe for 15% off. Mediocre CPAP. Not perfect. Not elegant. Just trying. A very special thanks to Mediocre CPAP for sponsoring this segment of the show. And next up on the radio show, we have Rodney. Rodney, what's happening? What are you calling in for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Hey, Luke. So, my wife's sister told me at Thanksgiving that Marie deserves better than a guy who still works with his hands at 57. And I haven't been able to get it out of my head since. Three weeks now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you should be grateful that you can still work with your hands at 57, sir.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I am. I've been doing electrical work for 34 years. I'm good at it. But the way she said it, Luke, like I'd failed somehow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, she's a bitch, and she's probably not working with her hands or working with anything, and she's probably going to die at 62. Well, you enjoy a long, happy, healthy life because you've remained active, and you're working with your hands.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Jesus, Luke. I mean, you're not wrong. She works in HR for some insurance company, spends all day at a desk. But here, Here's the thing that's eating at me. Marie didn't defend me. She just stood there. And ever since then, she's been...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She's been what? Because an electrician is not a, um, it's a pretty respectable trade. I think most people, um, it's not a trade that's looked down on generally.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>No, you're right. It's not. I make decent money. We're fine. But Marie's been different since then.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, have you talked to her about it? Because it could be something completely different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>That's the thing. I haven't. I've been pulling overtime all week on this hospital job down in Lordsburg. Just staying away, I guess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Yeah, there is that big hospital in Lordsburg. So I guess you're going to be busy for a while.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Lordsburg, yeah. Should wrap up in another week or two. But I come home tonight and she's already in bed at 9.30. Didn't even kiss me good night, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe she's dealing with a little bit of depression, or there's something going on in her life that she needs your support for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>You think that's it? I mean, her mom's been having some health issues. Nothing serious. But Marie's been driving over there a lot more. And I've been so wrapped up in my own head about this, about what her sister said about feeling like I'm not enough, that I haven't even asked her what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I would recommend you do that, and if she's spending more time going to go. going over to her mom's house and talking to her sister about you and not defending you in public, there might be something going on there, and it probably has nothing to do with your profession.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Oh, God. You think she's been talking to her sister about me? That whole family. They get together and it's like this echo chamber. Her sister plants one seed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And look, you're right. Hey, man, I'm not saying I'm right. I'm just saying that's a pattern of behavior that would make me her intentions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>No, I hear you. And honestly, that's what's been eating at me. It's not even what her sister said. If that Marie just stood there, didn't say a word. And now, she won't look at me the same way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, she can't look at you the same way if you're pulling overnighters and not coming home and she's tired. So I recommend you talk to your wife and find out what's going on. And if something needs to change or you need to talk to somebody or what the deal is. but don't just ignore the situation. It's obviously a thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>You're right. I've been hiding at work instead of dealing with it. I'll talk to her tomorrow morning. Just straight up ask her what's going on, what she needs for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good. That's what you should do. And I hope it all works out for you. And it's nothing serious. I'm sure everything's explainable. But if not, it's not. You know, just do the best you can. And sometimes things don't work out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RODNEY</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I appreciate it, Luke. I needed to hear that. I've just been sitting here drinking a beer on the bathroom floor. Feeling sorry for myself when I should have been having this conversation with her weeks ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, sir, that is correct. So go have that conversation with your wife. Good luck. And I hope you get that hospital in Lordsburg finished because that'd be great. So next up to the show, next up, we have Marlene. Marlene, welcome to the radio show. What's eating you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Oh man. Okay, so I just got slapped with a $500 fine because my front door is the wrong shade of beige. I'm not kidding. My HOA sent me a violation notice today saying my door color doesn't match the approved palette. It's beige, Luke. It's B-E-I-G.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>B-E-I-G-E-I-G-E?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah, beige is gross, and it's clearly not on the approved palette.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did you look at the approved palette before you decided to paint your house? when you knew that you were in an HOA?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Okay, yes. Technically, I looked at it. But here's the thing. I had like 40 swatches of beige that all looked identical. My husband David was standing there going, they're all the same. The guy at the paint store was like, yeah, these are basically the same. And I picked one called Desert Sand. Because we live in the actual desert and it seemed fine. But apparently it's two shades too warm, and now Karen's somebody. on the architectural review committee is acting like I spray-painted obscenities on my garage door. I teach kindergarten, Luke. I spend all day with five-year-olds, and at least they have reasonable rules.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you live in an HOA area. They never have reasonable rules. There's always a caring somebody that's complaining about what everybody else is doing. You know what my brother would do? I want to give you the advice that my brother would do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>What? What would your brother? do because right now I'm sitting here in my kitchen at midnight drinking wine and staring at this violation notice like it's a ransom letter. So I'm open to suggestions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He would comb through that HOA, the agreements there, and look through the approved colors. And then he would either do the worst paint job possible that was still within the rules, or he would actually just paint obscenities all over everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Oh my God, I love your brother. No, but seriously. I've actually thought about this. Like, what if I just went full malicious compliance? Paint the door the exact approved beige but then plant the ugliest legally allowed lawn ornaments I can find. Pink flamingos are probably banned. But what about garden gnomes? There's got to be a loophole somewhere in that binder. The thing is, though, Luke, it's not even really about the door anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, there is a loophole. There is absolutely a loophole. And, uh, yeah, I think that's what you should do. You're going to have to pay a $500 fine. You might as well get a good laugh out of it. So what it's not about the door anymore? What's it about now? That you live in an HOA and you don't want to and you want the freedom of not living in an HOA? Then move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>No, it's God, you're right that I hate the HOA, but it's that David thinks I'm being dramatic. He came home, looked at the notice, and was like, just repaint it, Marlene. It's not a big deal. Not a big deal! We've lived here for 18 years. 18 years of me following every stupid rule, mowing the lawn to the exact height, keeping my trash cans hidden, and the one time I pick a beige that's slightly off, I get fined like I'm running a meth lab.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>And he just, he doesn't get why I'm so pissed. He thinks I'm overreacting, which is what he always thinks, and I'm sitting here feeling crazy because maybe a normal person would just repaid the door and move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm with you. I wouldn't repeat. I might eventually, but I would definitely make it more of a pain in the ass than it was worth to somebody for the inconvenience. And I would turn it into something fun by, but would you call it malicious compliance? I like that. It sounds like a punk band.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Right. Malicious compliance opening for the violations at the HOA Community Center. But yeah, that's exactly it. I want to make this FUN and feeling like a scolded child. I deal with actual children all day. I don't need my neighbors treating me like one. But here's what's really getting me. And I heard Tamika earlier talking about the great attractor thing. I know this is going to sound weird, but I think she was looking at it backwards. She was like, why does anything matter if we're all just cosmic dust?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I also think the oposite. I'm with you on this one, because if we're, just cosmic dust and we are, then we are everything. And that is empowering in a way, and it's beautiful in a way, and it relieves some of the nonsense of the world that we get caught up in. And the importance that we put on those things that she kept saying were not real. So, um, so yeah, I'm totally with you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yes, exactly. Like, if we're all just atoms that used to be stars, Then why am I letting some committee member named Karen make me feel small over B-E-A-I? That's what I'm sitting here realizing. I've spent 18 years making myself smaller to fit into these stupid rules. And for what? So my neighbors don't complain? I teach 23 kids every year to be brave and use their voices and stand up for themselves. And then I come home and I'm worried about paint swatches.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How do you spell beige?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>B-E-E-I-I. Why, you going to look up the HOA approved shades yourself? But seriously, Luke, I think that's what's really eating at me. It's not just David thinking I'm dramatic. It's that maybe he's right that I've been dramatic about small stuff for so long that now when I'm actually upset about something real, about feeling like I don't have a voice in my own life. He just sees it as more of the same. Like I've cried Wolf too many times about stupid things, and now when I'm actually drowning, he's just like, There goes Marlene again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, that is being dramatic. You're not drowning because they asked you to repaint your door. That's a bit much. I am with you in that I would also be infuriated, but I would not agree to the terms of an HOA either. You made that decision when you bought the house, and you've been there long enough to know the rules. So next time, you'll not do that. And this time it costs you $500. And you're just going to have to deal with that and move on and if it pisses you off this much, then leave the HOA. Sell your house and find some place where you have more ability to do what you want.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Okay, yeah, you're right. Drowning was dramatic. See, this is what I do. But Luke, we can't just sell. David's got his workshop in the garage. All his tools set up exactly how he likes them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, let me tell you this. David would love to move and have a new garage to set up exactly the way he likes it. Um, so that's not an issue.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Oh, God, you're totally right. He'd love that. He complains about that garage all the time. Says it's too small, the electrical's weird.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. You got a couple of options here. You can paint the door, you can move. Uh, or you can be maliciously compliant. Those are your options. Pick one of them and move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Okay, so here's what I'm thinking. And tell me if this is insane. I paint the door the exact approved beige, right? But then I plant the most aggressively colorful, technically allowed by the bylaws flower garden you've ever seen. Like, I'm talking, sunflowers, zinias. Those bright orange California puppies.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'd go with cannabis myself, but you've got to follow the rules. So learn what those rules are and then exploit them to the best of your ability.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Oh my God, Luke, I teach kindergarten in the front yard. But yes, this is exactly what I'm talking about. I need to actually read those bylaws instead of just being scared of them. I bet there's all kinds of stuff they can't regulate. What about garden gnomes?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why do you teach kindergarten in your front yard?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>What? No, I'm saying I can't grow cannabis because I'm a kindergarten teacher. Like, that's my job. Parents strive by my house. Can you imagine? Oh, look, there's Miss Marlene's house with the weed plants. I'd be fired, before the first harvest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but you'd probably be less dramatic about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Okay, ouch. But fair. You know what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You're right. I'm being dramatic about the beige. Like, it's just paint. I could fix this tomorrow for 40 bucks in a Saturday morning, but instead I'm sitting here at midnight in my underwear, drinking wine and plotting revenge gardens like I'm some kind of HOA freedom fighter. David's going to wake up and I'm going to wake up, and I'm going to be a day be out there measuring the exact legal height for a flagpole or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What color are the underwear?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Are you serious right now? They're gray, Luke. Old gray underwear and my husband's work shirt. This is what peak rebellion looks like at 47. But okay, real talk. Why does this bother me so much? Like you're right that I'm being ridiculous. But I'm furious about this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I would be furious about it too. Unreasonably furious. And I think it's because it's somebody that's trying to control your life in a manner that's unreasonable. And it is unreasonable. But those are the rules that you agreed to. And you knew that well before you moved in. So it's on you to fix it. But I understand why you're furious. It's because you're losing some agency there. It's your house. You pay for it. You pay a lot for it. You pay the taxes on it. And then they tell you what color you can paint your door. That is infuriating. So you're justified in that, but you also have to just deal with it and move on or change the situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, you're nailing it. It's the control thing. And honestly, I think it's bigger than just the HOA. I spend all day at school following district policies. What I can teach, how I can teach it. What words I can say to a kid who's melting down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I feel for you in both respects. because when somebody tells you what to do, I don't know. I don't like that very much at all. And I will lash out at anybody that tries it. So I understand. But you got to follow the rules or pay the fine or both. Or move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Which is what David keeps saying and I keep shutting him down because I don't want to admit he's right. He's been wanting to get out of here for two years. He says we should buy something with actual land. No HOA. Maybe closer to his sister in Prescott. And I'm the one who keeps saying no because I'm 10 minutes from my school. I know all the neighbors. We have the grocery store right there. But God, Luke, what if I'm just staying because I'm scared?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you just told me five minutes ago that you were staying because David had his tools in the garage the way he liked him. So what's the deal? Are you staying because you want to stay or are you staying because he wants to stay? Now I'm annoyed because you're lying to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Okay, you're right. I'm sorry. I was defamation. Reflecting with the David thing because, Jesus, this is embarrassing. I think I'm staying because if we move out to Prescott or wherever, I won't have an excuse anymore. Like right now I can say I'm busy, I'm tired. A commute would kill me. I've got my classroom set up just right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>An excuse for what? You wouldn't have an excuse for what anymore? Why would you say you're busy or you're tired because you moved to Prescott?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Because my mom's in Scottsdale.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>She's been asking me to visit more. Help her more. She's got early stage Parkinson's. And my sister Jennifer lives in California. So it's on me. And right now, I can say, mom, I'm 40 minutes away. I've got school in the morning. It's too much. But if we're in Prescott? How far is Scottsdale from Prescott? Hour and a half. Maybe two, depending on trying. So it's actually farther, which sounds like it would give me more of an excuse, but, oh God, you're going to call me out on this. If we move, David's going to say, well, now you don't have the HOA stress, you don't have the commute, you've got all this free time, why don't you go help your mom more? And he'd be right. And I don't want to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, why don't you want to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Because she wasn't there for me. When I was growing up, she was always always working, always stressed, always telling me I was too much, too loud, too messy, too needy. Jennifer was the easy one, the pretty one who didn't ask for anything. And now mom needs me. And I just, I don't want to give her what she never gave me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know that's petty. It's a little bit petty, but it kind of makes sense. I see how you got there. And maybe you don't want to give her. Maybe she was an awful mom that doesn't deserve it your help for all I know, but you're probably going to beat yourself up for the rest of your life if you don't make an attempt while she's still around because Parkinson's is not a thing that goes away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You're right. And that's what keeps me up at night, Luke, because I know, I know, I know, in five years, 10 years. When she's worse or she's gone, I'm going to hate myself for hiding behind a stupid HOA and beige paint. Jennifer's going to fly in for the funeral. And I'm going to be the daughter who lived in Arizona the whole time and couldn't be bothered.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, how deep is she into the Parkinson's? What are her symptoms right now? And does she have anybody else around in the house that is taken care of her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>She's still living alone. That's part of what scares me. The tremors are mostly in her left hand. Some balance issues. She fell getting out of the shower two months ago. Nothing broken, but she didn't tell me for a week. Her neighbor mentioned it. She's got a cleaning lady twice a week and Jennifer sends money for a meal service. But no one's actually there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, even if she was a bitch and you can, you should make some attempt to help her out where possible. Obviously, that can't take over your life. A lot of people go pretty far in the other direction where they do so much helping that they neglect their own needs. And that can make people sick ruined lives. So I'm sure you can find a balance where you can be helpful and be there with your mother while she's suffering because she is suffering. And hopefully, if that happens to you, somebody will be there for you in that way. At least try.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I know you're right. God, I called in about paint colors. And here we are. The thing is, I think I've been using David and the HOA and all this press stuff as a distraction, so I don't have to think about the fact that my mom is alone in that house. And she's scared, and I'm angry at a 72-year-old woman with Parkinson's for things she did 30 years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like maybe there's an opportunity there for some redemption and forgiveness and all those types of things. And, you know, you might find that you have things in common with your mom, or she's fun to be around, or funny, or funny, or whatever it is. So I recommend you make the effort and spend some time with her no matter where you live. But also, move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Okay, okay. Move and see my mom. You're not letting me off the hook on either one. You know what's funny? I've been so focused on David making me move that I never even asked myself if I actually want to stay in this neighborhood.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you've got your answer. Thanks for calling in, Marlene. I hope your mom's all right and not suffering too badly because probably Parkinson's is no fun. It's not something that you would wish on anybody, and it's not something that's easy to watch. And, um, and yeah, you got to help people when they can't help themselves. And it sounds like she's reaching the position where she can't help herself. And she needs your help, and you are close enough. So a couple hours of your week isn't going to, isn't going to hurt you. All right, Marvin. Marvin, welcome to the show. What can we do for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I just got off the phone with my dad and we sat there in silence for like 20 minutes because he won't talk anymore. He had a stroke three years ago and he just gave up. And I'm sitting here reading this book about a 70-year-old woman who completely relearned how to speak. And I'm losing my mind because I know it's possible, but he won't even try.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, do you know it's possible? Is it that he won't speak or that he can't speak? Because every stroke is different. Every brain is different. So he might not actually have the capacity.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>No, he can. The therapist said so. He got two months of speech therapy right after it happened, and he was making progress. Slow, but it was there. He could get words out. They were just scrambled, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, imagine how that would feel to you, to your pride and your sense of self-worth and your existence on this planet to not be able to speak as a full-grown adult. Just imagine what that would feel like for a second.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>I mean, yeah, it's got to be humiliating. But Luke, this is the thing. I teach middle school history, right? And I've got these kids who struggle with reading. And the ones who push through it, who do the work even when it's embarrassing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, sure. And they're kids. They're not 75 years old. You know, how old are your dad? It's a little bit different when you're a young, elastic mind and then when you're an elderly person in your, what do they call them? After the golden years, your gray years?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>He's 72, and that's the thing. This book I'm reading, it's all about neuroplasticity, how the brain can rewire itself at any age. This woman was 70 when she had her stroke, and she learned to talk again. So I know age isn't the issue here. He just won't do the work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's his choice. 72 years old, and he has agency, too. If he doesn't want to do the way, if he doesn't want to relearn how to talk at 72 and struggle for the rest of his years, then he didn't have to. He's been through enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>But he just sits there, Luke. We're on the phone, and there's nothing. And I know he's got things he wants to say because I can hear him breathing different. Like he's frustrated. He called me. So obviously he wants to connect, but then he won't put in the effort to actually do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe he wants to connect, but he doesn't want to talk. You know, maybe he's saying, I want you to come over and watch TV with me. Maybe he's saying, I'm scared, and I can't voice that. Maybe he's saying I need help, and there's no way I can tell anybody. So, can he write to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Yeah, he can write a little. His right hand is weak, but he can do it. He sent me a few notes, mostly just like I'm fine or don't worry. That's it. And I've tried going over there. I go every Sunday. We watch the news. I make him lunch. But the whole time I'm just sitting there thinking he could be working on this. He could be practicing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe he could be. Maybe he can't be. And I don't think it's fair for you to say what he could be doing. Because you don't know. You didn't have the stroke and you don't have his brain. And it's very possible that the therapist was just talking shit because she read an article about somebody that had a stroke before that was able to learn to read. But everybody is in a different situation. And this man's 72 years old. And he doesn't want to learn to talk again. It's not an easy thing to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Okay, but no, hold on. I hear what you're saying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But I also heard Tamika earlier talking about the great attractor and how nothing matters. And that's bullshit. Things matter. The work matters. The work matters to you. That doesn't mean the work matters to him. Obviously it doesn't. So he's got his own set of values that may not match yours. And he's also got a very different perspective from his position than you have. So try and have some empathy for somebody that just lost everything and not push him to be something else, be something more. He already feels bad enough. So he's clearly humiliated by the situation as anybody would be because it's humiliating. And you feel vulnerable and you just. I mean, that's horrible. So, you know, if he doesn't want to talk, write. If he can't write, sit with him. Spend some time with him, and he's still your dad, and let him go out the way he wants to go out, you know? Because he doesn't want to struggle for the last five years of his life. That's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>That hit me. because I think I've been making this about me. You've obviously been making it about you, and it's not about you. You're the one that's healthy. You can speak, you can call a radio show and talk to me about how your father's an asshole because he had a stroke and he doesn't want to suffer. He's not an asshole.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I never said that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>But yeah, you're right. I'm sitting here with this book like it's some kind of proof that he's giving up. When really, I'm just pissed that I can't fix it. I teach kids all day, eighth graders, and I can make them understand the Louisiana purchase or whatever, but I can't make my dad want to talk to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's not that he doesn't want to talk to you. He obviously wants to connect with you. Like you said, he's calling, he's reaching out, and he's sending you notes, and he wants to connect, but he doesn't want to talk, because maybe it hurts. Maybe it is just humiliating and embarrassing. It doesn't matter why. He doesn't want to, and he's, and he doesn't have to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Yeah, you're right. God, I've been such a dick about this. I keep pushing the therapy thing every time I'm over there like, Dad, you could still improve. It's not too late. And he just looks at me like he's tired of having to disappoint me. And the thing is, I think part of me is scared that if he stops trying to talk, then we just won't have a relationship anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that might be. And that's really sad. But if he doesn't want to talk, he doesn't want to talk. And you have to give him that freedom. And when he decides he does want to talk, he will do the work. If for some reason he gets sick of being mute and he wants more connection and he feels some optimism in his life, not just constantly being poked and prodded and pushed to do something he doesn't want to do, he might put forth the effort. So just support him as best you can without pushing him to be what you want him to be. He lost everything, and you didn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I hear you. I've been treating him like one of my students who just needs the right motivation. But he's not a kid who doesn't know better. He knows exactly what he's choosing. And I need to respect that, even if it sucks for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you do. That's the right thing to do. So thanks for Colin, and I hope your dad is okay. And just be the best son you can to him and respect his wishes because he. He earned that. He's old enough to go out the way he wants to go out. And, uh, and yeah. And now it's time for a word from our sponsors. I'm going to be straight with you. I don't know what this product does. The folks at Bunkhouse DNS sent me a script, and I've read it four times, and I understand maybe 11% of it. Apparently, your DNS is exposed, which sounds medical. Your queries are being logged by default, which sounds a least. And Bunkhouse reroutes your lookups through encrypted tunnels, which sounds like something a villain would say in a movie before the building explodes. What I can tell you is this. I installed it. I pressed one button and a little shield icon turned green. Green means good. I know that much. My internet still works. Nothing exploded. And apparently my queries, whatever those are, are now private. Which feels like progress, even though I don't fully understand progress from all what? Bunkhouse DNS. I don't know what it does, but the shield is green, and that's enough for me. Okay, we're back. Welcome back to the show. Amber, thank you for calling in. What can we do for you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I'm sitting here at the dispatch center on my break, and I just watched a guy total someone's car in a parking lot and drive off. And I ran his plates. And it's the youth pastor from my church.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, what a surprise. The youth pastor. On the sauce again. You think he was, you think he was sauced up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I mean, I don't know for sure, but it was a Walgreens at like 10 o'clock. And he backed into this sedan hard enough to cave the whole bumper in. Just sat there for a second, then pulled forward and drove off. I was trying to get my phone out to record it. And by the time I got the plate number, he was already gone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, are you sure it was him and his car wasn't stolen?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Yeah, I'm sure. White Silverado. Plate came back to Danny Ortega. I know that truck. He picks kids up for youth group in it. He's got one of those coexist bumper stickers and a Calvary Baptist decal on the back window and I saw him behind the wheel. I'm like 90% sure it was him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what is it you're going to do about the situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>That's why I'm calling. I've got the plate number written down right here on a post-it stuck to my coffee cup. And I keep staring at it. Like, do I call it in? Do I go to him directly?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, think those things through. What happens if you call it in? And what happens if you don't? And you go to him directly. If you go speak to him about it, what outcome would you like to have happen?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>If I call it in, it goes to the cops. They track him down. He gets a hit and run on his record. Insurance fraud, maybe. The whole church finds out his wife, his daughter, the one he just baptized three weeks ago. I watched that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what if Danny Ortega was a plumber from Plias? Would you feel the same way about calling the cops?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>No. No, I wouldn't. If it was just some random guy, I'd have already called it in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And if you go to him and talk to him, what do you think he will do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I don't know. Maybe he'd do the right thing and turn himself in. Contact the owner of the car. Or maybe he'd lie to my face. Or maybe he panics and runs. And then I'm the one who let him let him get away with it when I could have just done my job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here's what I recommend you do. You know the guy and you don't want to be a snitch and you don't want to ruin somebody's life unnecessarily. So I would recommend that you try to talk to him and see what happens. And if he lies to you or if he is obviously inebriated or looks like he's in a no shape to be driving a youth van full of children around, then you call it in. But check with him first, see what happens. And, uh, for all you know, it wasn't him. It was his son driving the car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. Give him a chance to explain it first. I mean, I've known this guy for two years. He organizes the food drive every Thanksgiving. It just feels so out of character.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you never really know somebody, especially if they, uh, fall under the influence of the a drinking problem or drugs or something like that. And you can't be sure that it was him because you didn't clearly see his face. You said you only thought 90% and that's not proof.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Right. I didn't see his face. Just the plate. And the track matches. White Silverado. Same dent in the tailgate I've seen in the church parking lot. But you're right. Could have been someone else driving it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you sure if you called that? that the police would throw the book at the guy, or would they recognize that he was a pastor and kind of give him a tap on the wrist?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I mean, honestly, probably depends on who catches the call. Some of the guys I work with would absolutely go easier on him because he's a church guy. But if he was drunk, or if the damage is bad enough, or if the owner of that sedan makes a big deal about it, then it doesn't matter who he is. always that one cop who doesn't care if you're a pastor or the mayor, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the right cop. You know, that's the cop that's following the law and keeping people accountable no matter who they are or what they do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>So I can respect that. I can also respect the cop that lets everybody go because he recognizes it's going to ruin their lives. So I guess, yeah, it depends on which one you get. And neither one of them would be completely wrong. So that's a tough situation. But if this guy is drinking or has a drinking problem, if that's what caused the accident, he might not even remember doing it. You know, he could have been blacked out and totally oblivious to the situation. And if that's the case, that indicates that there's a problem and he shouldn't be on the road with kids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's what keeps eating at me. Like, if he doesn't even remember it, then what happens next Sunday when he's loading up the church van with a bunch of kids? That's the part that makes me feel like I can't just let it slide. It's not just about the bumper on some random car. It's about whether he's safe to be around those kids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, my recommendation is to go talk to him and give him 24 hours to turn himself in. And if he doesn't, then you do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Yeah. That feels right. I'll go by the church tomorrow. Catch him before the food drive set up. Give him a chance to do the right thing himself. And if he doesn't.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 18: Whistleblowers, Warrants, and Wistful Reunions</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-22T08:48:22+00:00">February 22, 2026</time> · 48 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">This episode features callers Woody, Tamika, Clarence, and Sandy. Woody grapples with uncovering his foreman's fraud, Tamika deals with a mysterious warrant, Clarence struggles with a friend's hurtful comments, and Sandy wrestles with compromising workplace safety. The host provides thoughtful advice, from confronting friends to prioritizing personal integrity. Will the callers find the courage to make tough choices? Tune in to find out!</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to Luke at the Roost. This is the call-in radio show where you can call in and ask me your questions. If you'd like to call in, the number's 208-439-5853. That's 208-439 Luke. If you're not near a phone and you'd still like to participate in the show, you can email us at submissions.com. And with that out of the way, I just want you all to know that our street team has been hard at work spreading the word about the roost. All those roosters are out there dropping off stickers and business cards and truck stop bathrooms all across the country. So if you happen to see my face on a sticker, on an ice box in front of a loves, that's intentional. So don't remove it. First up on the show, we have caller Woody. Woody, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Hey, Luke, yeah. So I found a USB drive in the company truck three weeks ago, and I've been sitting on it because I'm pretty sure my foreman's been running fake invoices through our drilling operation for like two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did you look at what's on the USB key? Because it might be more interesting than that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Oh, I looked. I looked too much. It's not just invoices. It's spreadsheets with two sets of numbers, emails between him and some guy and me. Midland, who's definitely not a supplier, and a folder labeled backup with receipts from a casino in Ruidoso.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not good. What are you going to do with that information?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>That's the thing, man. I've been parked at this truck stop for three hours trying to figure that out. I could hand it to the site manager, but Big Jim's been my foreman for four years, and he got me this job when I really needed it. Or I could just toss it and pretend I never saw it, but then I'm sitting on actual fraud, and that eats at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why does that eat at you? What does it have to do with you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Because I'm the one who found it, you know? Like I didn't go looking for it. It was just sitting there in the glove box of truck number seven. But now I. And every time Big Jim texts me about helping with his cattle or asks me how the rig's running, I'm looking at him different. Plus my dad lost his pension when his company went under because of shit like this. So it's not just abstract to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, this is a buddy of yours, right? You said he got you to the job and he's your foreman, you work with him all the time. Maybe you should just talk to him and see what's up because it could be an explainable situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>I mean, yeah, I thought about that, but Luke, there's like 40 invoices from a Southwest drilling supply that doesn't exist. I googled it. And the emails, man, they're not ambiguous. There's one where he's talking about keeping the split at 6.0 and another one about making the actual equipment rentals. That's not a misunderstanding. That's a system.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, if holding on to this information makes you feel strange, how do you think being a whistleblower would make you feel?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Oh, God, yeah, that's exactly it. Like, I'd be the guy who burned big Jim and everyone on the crew would know it was me because I'm the only one who drives that truck regular. I'd be done in this industry, at least around here. Word gets around fast when you're the snitch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>if you're technically doing the right thing. Do you know what they say about snitches?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Yeah, they get stitches. I know. And that's not even hyperbole out here. Big Jim's got friends who, look, let's just say people handle their business differently in the oil patch. But honestly, what gets me more than that is just being the guy who couldn't mind his own business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's a little bit messed up that you found a USB key and then looked to see what was on. Was there anything else on the key besides these invoices?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Oh, there was some other stuff, like a bunch of pictures from his daughter's birthday last year, and a playlist called Big Jim's Roadhouse Mix, that's mostly George Strait and some weird country rap. But the invoices were in a folder labeled Tax Prep 2024, which is just, yeah. I mean, I wasn't snooping for this, but when you see something like that, you don't just unsee it. It's like walking in on your parents doing it. You can't pretend you didn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Since you found it, you feel weird about it, and you don't want to sit on the fraud, and you don't want to say nothing. You've got to talk to Big Jim and ask them what it's about. Let them know that you know. Let them know that you found the key. You've got the evidence, and if it continues, you're going to turn them in, but give him the opportunity to turn it around. Because I think if you don't do that, you are going to be the snitch, and it's nobody's going to want to do business with you anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Oh, man, you're saying that, like, it's a choice. Like, I'm just going to walk up to Big Jim, who's got a belt buckle bigger than my fist and a temper to match and say, that's not how this works. That's how you end up in a ditch outside of Deming. But, okay, fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's why you're smart about it, and you give a copy about it to a trusted person. If anything happens to you, that copy gets out, and you let Big Jim know that you've got the evidence. Somebody else has the evidence, and if he doesn't cut the shit, you're going to turn him in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Jesus, Luke, now we're talking about insurance policies and dead man switches like I'm in a mob movie. But I mean, yeah, that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're talking about conspiratorial fraud in an oil patch with a guy named Big Jim. You're already in a mob movie, buddy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Okay, fair point. So what? I give a copy to Angela? She already thinks I'm too paranoid. This is going to really seal the deal. Hey, babe, hold on to this USB drive and if I turn up missing, mail it to the feds. That's definitely getting me laid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is definitely getting you laid. Chicks love danger, and you're a dangerous man. So do the right thing, be smart about it, and, you know, let them know that it's not going to stand and you can't be part of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>You know what? You're making this sound way cooler than it feels. I'm sitting here in a Flying J parking lot eating beef jerky and having an existential crisis, and you're turning me into some kind of whistleblower action hero. But all right, all right, I'll make a kind of. I'll make a I'll give it to Angela, who's either going to think this is the hottest thing I've ever done or the stupidest, and I'll have a conversation with Big Jim. A very careful conversation, probably in a public place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. Now you're being smart, and it can be the hottest thing you've ever done and the stupidest. They're not mutually exclusive. So do the right thing. You've got a plan now. Execute it, and you're going to be just fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>You know what, Luke? I called in here thinking I was just going to vent and maybe get told to forget about it. And instead, you've got me planning like I'm about to take down the Gambino family. But honestly, yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, you don't know. This could be the tip of the iceberg, but like you said, Big Jim is your buddy. He's your friend. He's a guy you want on your side. So you can frame this in a way that you're really doing him a favor. Like, look, this is going to get out one way or another, and I'm giving you the opportunity to keep the lid on that by straightening out your act.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Oh, man. That's... that's actually smart. Like, hey, Jim, I stumbled across something, and I'm bringing it to you first because I respect you. But this can't continue. Make it about loyalty instead of accusation. Give him a chance to fix it before it blows up in everyone's face. The thing is, I don't even know if he's the one running this, or if he's just signing off on stuff someone above him is pushing down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Either way, you're right. It's going to come out eventually. It is about loyalty because he is your buddy. And if he's just, it wasn't about loyalty, you already would have turned him in. So that's the truth. Stick with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do the right thing. And maybe flee the country. Okay, so step one, make copies. Step two, give one to Angela with the sexiest, if I die, avenge me speech I can manage. Step three, talk to Big Jim like a reasonable human being. Step four, have a valid passport ready just in case. Got it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>You know what, Luke?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What, Woody?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>I feel like I just went from guy who's going to throw this in a dumpster and pretend he never saw it to guy with an actual plan in like five minutes. I don't know if that's good judgment or if you just talked me into something incredibly stupid. But I guess we'll find out. Worst case scenario, I'm calling you back from Mexico in a couple weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Woody. Well, thanks for the call. We hope it all works out for you. And if it doesn't, we will avenge you. You have a wonderful night and stay safe out there. Tamika, Tamika, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Luke, hey. Okay, so, the sheriff just showed up at my neighbor Rose's house, looking for me because of some stupid warrant from last summer. And she? Covered for me. But now I'm sitting here thinking I might have just made everything worse for her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, if you're dragging somebody else into your legal problems, you're. You're obviously a burden to your friends and society. So what is it that you did?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>It was a poker game, man. Last August, over at this guy Daryl's place off Route 9. I won $400. And apparently, the game got rated like an hour after I left. Illegal gambling or whatever. I didn't even know that was coming. I just took my money and went home to my kids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how is there a warrant for your arrest? How can they prove that you were at this illegal poker game? First of all, nobody. cares about 400 bucks in an illegal poker game. But what makes the fuzz what got them on your tail?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>That's what I'm saying. I don't even know how they got my name. Best I can figure is someone talked. Or maybe Darrell had a list or something. He was running these games pretty regular like every other weekend. But I got the notice in the mail back in September, said I had to appear for some misdemeanor thing. And I just, I didn't I was working double shifts. The kids had school starting. And honestly, Luke, I thought if I ignored it, maybe it would just go away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know damn well that you can't ignore a warrant or a deposition or anything from the court, and it's going to go away. I mean, that's stupid. But I'm not a lawyer. Let me put that out there. I'm not a lawyer at all. But I'm pretty sure somebody just saying your name doesn't put out a warrant for your arrest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>No. You're right. I had to sign in when I got there. Daryl had this whole thing like a clipboard at the door. Said it was for insurance purposes, which I thought was weird. But whatever, I just wanted to play cards.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What the hell? You walked into an illegal poker game, and the host of the game had you physically write down information that's identifiable? That's absurd. Who would do that? Why would you do that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>I know. It sounds insane now, but at the time it felt, I don't know, legit. Like, it was true to make it seem professional or something. There were like 12 people there, half of them I knew from around town. It didn't feel sketchy. It just felt like guys playing cards on a Saturday night. I wrote down my name and phone number like an idiot and didn't think twice about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? I think, skipping, skipping court, that's a crime. But having your name on a list isn't necessarily. I'm sure if you got a good enough lawyer, you could get yourself out of that one pretty easily, and you should just go to court and see what it even is. Because do you know that this is why they're looking for you? Has anybody from the police department said it's for illegal gambling?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>No, actually, the deputy didn't say anything to Rosa, except they were looking for me about a warrant. I'm just assuming it's the poker thing because that's the only legal. trouble I've had. But you're right. I don't actually know for sure what it's about. I never opened the court notice all the way. I just saw failure to appear and my stomach dropped. And I shoved it in a drawer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, none of what you have told me thus far in this call has been very smart. So I'm questioning your intellectual capacity, but I'm going to tell you right now, you got to go to the court and see what this is about and get it cleared up, because it's not going to get better if you continue to hide. from the sheriff. It could be nothing. It could be, uh, it's, it's probably unrelated, but you know what's worse than illegal gambling? You won $400. That's tax evasion. That's way worse. They will come after you forever for evading tax on $400. So you clean this up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Oh God, I didn't even. I didn't report it on my taxes. Luke, I just bought groceries and shoes for my kid. I didn't think about the IRS. Jesus Christ, is that really worse? Because now I'm spiraling here. You think that's what this is about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think that's what this is about. I think this is about something completely different. Because honestly, nobody cares about your $400 local poker game. There would have to be something else going down there, and you're not the one that they're after. If they're staking out a high-stakes-if it's a Molly's game situation, they're not after you. and they're not looking for you. They might be trying to get information out of you about someone else that was there. That I could see, but nobody cares about your 400 bucks. They might try to use that for leverage. But, yeah, and since I've identified that you're not the brightest, do not report this to the IRS.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Okay, okay, so you think they want me to talk about somebody else who was there? Because there were a couple guys I didn't recognize. One of them had a real. nice watch was throwing around hundreds like it was nothing. Daryl seemed to know him, though. You think that's what this is? They're trying to flip me on someone bigger?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I have no idea what this is because you didn't read the fucking document they sent you that told you what it is. So maybe read that. It might have some indication. I'm just trying to give you a game plan for if you do go into the sheriff's office and they have questions because that would be their intention. It's not to come after you, a mother of however many kids you're all. mother of for $400 in a home poker game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Two kids. And yeah, you're right. I need to dig that paper out of the drawer and actually read the whole thing. I just panicked when I saw Warrant and my name and I couldn't deal with it. But now Rosa's spooked. The deputy's been to her house and I'm sitting here making tea at midnight like that's going to solve anything. I'll look at it tomorrow morning. First thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's good because otherwise you're spiraling into a life of crime and you're bringing down the people that are around you with you. And it's, uh, you're a detriment to society. And nobody wants that. So, so, uh, take care of this situation. And if you've got to stop playing poker at this poker game, I would recommend doing that for now. And, uh, maybe play online or actually go to a casino. There are plenty of casinos with poker rooms where you can go play legitimate poker, uh, for stakes that you're, uh, that you're, that you're, uh, that you're comfortable with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. No. I haven't been back since. That was six months ago, and I learned my lesson. I'm not cut out for that kind of thing. I get nervous just thinking about it now. You're right, though. I need to stop hiding and just deal with it like an adult.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is correct. Thank you for the call. We hope it all works out. And congratulations on your big poker win. Thanks for the call again, Tamika. Now it's time for a word from our sponsors. Today's show is brought to you by Overwhelmed VPN. Worried about online privacy? You should be. You should be worried about everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm talking about overwhelmed VPN, the only VPN that makes you more anxious about your digital footprint. While other VPN's claim to protect you, overwhelm VPN sends you hourly notifications about who's tracking you, how many governments are watching, and which of your high school classmates Googled your name this week. Browse the internet while our proprietary fear engine tells you exactly how many corporations you owe your soul to. Plus, our servers are located. in international waters on a decommissioned oil rig, so even we don't know where your data is. Try Overwhelm VPN free for 30 days if you can handle it. Use code they watching for 20% off. Overwhelm VPN because ignorance is bliss, but you're not here for bliss. All right. Make sure you're protecting your online. identity with overwhelmed VPN. Next up on the call roster here, we have Clarence. Clarence, welcome to the show. How's your evening going?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Oh, man, it's going. You know, got the space heater cranked. Doing paperwork I should have done three weeks ago. So living the dream. But hey, Luke, I got to ask you something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, hit me with some funny shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>So last Saturday, I'm at my buddy Danny's barbecue. We've known each other 20 years, right? Hunt together, help each other move, the whole deal. I go inside to grab a beer, and I hear him out by the grill, telling people that I can't even keep my own marriage running, much less an AC unit. And here's the thing. He's not wrong about the marriage part. Been divorced two years. But man, that landed different than the usual shit we give each other. I don't understand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>that bother you, sir. I mean, okay, so normally we bust each other's balls all the time, you know? That's just what we do. But this wasn't to my face. And how well do you know your way around an AC unit?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>What do you mean? I've been running Clarence's heating and cooling for 16 years, Luke. I know my way around an AC unit just fine. That's not the point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is the point, sir? Your buddy said some shit behind your back and you didn't like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, it's not just that. It's the way he said it. Like he was of it. Like he'd been waiting to say it. And here's the thing. Danny's my best friend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. How do you know he was talking about you? I mean, there's not that many clearances around, but there could be more than one clearance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Oh, come on, Luke. We were at barbecue. literally in the next room. He knows I run the AC business in town. And when I came back out with the beer, everyone got real quiet and looked at their shoes, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Is it a possibility that you may be a cuckold?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>What? No, Jesus, Luke. I'm divorced. There's no cuckolding happening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you can't keep a marriage together and you've been divorced for a long time. It's not a very good from your friend. So I don't understand why this is bothering you much. Talk to your buddy and figure out what that was about. Maybe he was drunk. Maybe he was tripping on acid. You don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>I mean, yeah, the divorce was three years ago. And you're right. It's not even a creative insult. But that's what's eating at me, Luke. It wasn't creative. It was just true.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. So there you go. You're bothered by it because what he said was the truth and you knew it. So what are you going to do about that? It's not his fault.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, you're right. It's not his fault. I just, I've been sitting here all week thinking about it, and I keep coming back to the same thing. Like, why would he say that? We've been friends for 20 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why don't you ask him that? Why are you calling the radio to ask me why he would say the truth about your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Because I'm afraid of what he'll say, all right? I'm afraid he'll tell me he's been thinking it for. years that everyone's been thinking it, that I'm the guy who can fix everyone else's AC, but can't keep his own shit from falling apart.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I heard Woody earlier, the guy with Big Jim and the fraud thing, and he's going to go confront his friend directly. And that's the same advice I'm going to give to you is to go confront your friend directly, because if your friend's feeling that way about you and has been for some time, maybe that friendship is not worth keeping.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, yeah, you're right. I just, sitting here in this office at midnight, you know, 20 years of friendship, we were at each other's weddings. His kid calls me Uncle Clarence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a bit weird. That sounds a little creepy. I don't know what to tell you, Clarence. This doesn't sound like much of an issue to me. Go talk to your friend and figure out what that was about because people spout off shit all the time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Whoa, hold on. The kid thing isn't creepy, Luke. That's just what kids do down here. All my buddy's kids call me uncle. That's normal. But you're right about the rest. I'm making this bigger than it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is not normal, sir. I'm here to tell you that Uncle Clarence sounds creepy. So go talk to your friend and stop being such a baby. Jesus, it's with these people. Next up on the line, we have Sandy. Sandy, welcome to the show. How can we help you? I hope you have a better story for us than Clarence did. Jesus. What about that guy? Uncle Clarence over there? I'm creep.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Oh man, no. I'm not calling about my feelings getting hurt at a barbecue. I can promise you that. So here's the thing. My boss gave me until next Saturday to sign off on a bunch of fire safety reports that say we did drills and equipment checks that absolutely never happened, like not even close. home, and I'm supposed to just put my name on paperwork that says we're all good when we are very much not all good. And I know what you're going to say. Don't sign it, report it, whistleblow. But what I actually want to talk about is how this is exactly the kind of thing that's been keeping me stuck in this town for two years longer than I should have been here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I don't understand that last part, and you're right. I am going to tell you to whistleblow like that. I mean, if something were to happen, then you'd never be able to live with yourself afterwards if you did not whistleblow. But what is it about this situation that's been keeping you stuck in this town?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>No, it's not that this specific situation has been keeping me stuck. It's that this is like the perfect example of how everything works here. Like, my girlfriend left for Tucson two years ago, and I didn't go with her because I had this job and it felt responsible, you know? stable, and now I'm sitting here at one in the morning in an empty building, being asked to compromise myself just so this place can keep its license and keep operating. Which is the same logic for everything. The county's broke, the state fundings a joke, so we all just agree to fudge things a little bit here and there because otherwise the whole thing falls apart.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, there's a lot of fudging going around and a lot of businesses. I've never worked anywhere where at some point I wasn't asked to compromise myself. So that is part of capitalism, I think. But when it's a safety issue, if it really has you concerned and people could be hurt from your lack of, lack of, what's the word, I'm not looking for, integrity, then you've got to do something about that. Because if you don't, then you suck. You might as well kill the people yourself, right? you have to report that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Yeah, I know. I'm not signing it. I already decided that. I called my supervisor on Friday and told her I wasn't comfortable with it. And she gave me this whole speech about how we're all doing the best we can with what we have. And how if I make a big deal out of this, the state could shut us down. And then where would these residents go? Which is probably true, honestly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It may be true, but you know what would not happen? Those residents would not die in a fire because they didn't shut down a place that was unsafe.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Right, exactly. And that's the thing. I'm not even wrestling with whether to sign it anymore. I'm not going to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>What I keep thinking about is how I've been making these little compromises for two years, telling myself it's because I care about the residents, or because the way. work matters, whatever. But really?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I sympathize with that situation. I think we've all been in similar positions, and I can understand how you feel sort of compromised because you have compromised, but that doesn't mean you have to continue, right? You've come to this realization. You've had this moment of clarity. And this is how the world works. That's every single place I've ever worked, has asked me to compromise myself in some way. Now, they're not all safety issues, but it's always somebody saying, well, you got to do this for us, even though I know that it's wrong. And, and, you know the thing? You can compromise for them over and over and over. You can be as loyal as, I don't know, a golden retriever. And when it comes down to it, they will throw you under the bus in a second.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Oh, I know. I saw it happen. to the last night shift supervisor. She tried to raise a stink about the staffing levels, and suddenly she was no longer a good fit. Poof, gone. And I'm sitting here in the break room. Boots propped up on a folding chair, picking at a Diet Coke label, and the only light on in the whole building is this one and the hallway nightlights.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and it's good to do the best you can and care because in some respects, you're obviously doing the right thing and helping a lot of people. And that's good. But the company doesn't care about you. And it doesn't matter what company it is because the company cares about the company. And if you're not an owner of that company, they do not give a shit about you. They might pretend to, but that is performative. That is HR. That is marketing. So make sure you know that when you're going into this stuff. The best work you can, but at the end of the day, you are on your own. And don't compromise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Yeah, and that's what my girlfriend kept saying before she left. She was like, Sandy, they're using your sense of responsibility against you. And I didn't want to hear it then, because it felt like she was saying the work didn't matter, but that's not what she meant. She meant exactly what you're saying. They'll take everything you're willing to give and then act surprised when you finally say no to something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And honestly? You know what? I used to work for a company called Salesforce. Maybe you've heard of them. The CEO there, his name's Mark Beniof. And when I worked there in like 2015-ish, it was the culture of the company. It was a very employee-forward company. there's all the snacks you could eat and Ohana culture. Like they were all about Hawaii and Ohana and everybody's family here. And you know what's happened at Salesforce now? They laid off 40% of the workforce and all of that performative bullshit about philanthropy and fixing hospital wings has turned into, how can I suck the dick of President Donald J. Trump so that I can get the tax rebates that he was promised? And this dude Benning, off, he's out there making jokes about ice and saying, I should come to San Francisco and clean it up. And it's the complete antithesis of what the company was founded on because all of that is bullshit. So when a company is in a position to be playing public opinion with their philanthropy and good works and employee first culture, take that with a grain of salt because when the tides turn, they turn with them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Jesus. Yeah, I mean, this place never even pretended to be that. We've always been broke and scrambling. But you're right, it's the same thing just at a different scale. They'll use the we're helping people angle to get you to cover shifts with no notice, to ignore safety violations, to take on extra residents when we're already understaffed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, when I was there, they had. this big conference every year and they get will I am and whoever is popular at the time to come in and give a speech about change in the world or some bullshit. And when I was there, that person that they paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to come speak was Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton came to the company and all support behind Hillary Clinton. But you know who we're in bed with today? Mr. Donald J. Trump. And that's the thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>At least with... those big companies. You know it's all fake from the start. Here, it's worse in a way, because everyone actually does care about the residents. Like, my co-workers really do give a shit, but the organisation itself is still using that against us. If you don't sign this, if you don't stay late, if you don't cover that shift, these vulnerable people suffer. And that's The truth is, I should have left when gendered.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I sympathize with your situation, because that is true. Most of the people that you work with that are subordinates, that are employees of the company doing the actual work, they do care. They do want to do their best work. They do want to take care of the clients. But the people that make the money, they don't give shit. And as soon as they can find a way to do it cheaper, regardless of if it's better or more effective, they're going to do it cheaper and they're going to cut you. you. So don't stay up all night for the company. Or, I mean, even for the residents, I would say, once in a while, that's okay, but you can't burn yourself out or give up relationships or decide where you live for that. That's too much. And I'm glad that you've come to this realization now before they're throwing you to the curb. So yeah, find yourself a new position, work for yourself. Be your own. agent.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Yeah. And the stupid thing is, Jen's been telling me for months there's work in Tucson. She's managing a coffee roaster now making more than I do here. And she keeps saying they need people. But I've been telling myself all these reasons why I can't leave. The residents need consistency. My co-workers are already stretched thin. I know this place inside and out. But Really?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like it's time for you to move on. And you did it for as long as you could. You did the best you could. And when it came time to compromise your morals and your values, you stood up for yourself. And you said, I'm not doing this. And you stood up for your clients in the same way by not allowing, not allowing them to be in an unsafe situation. So you can feel proud of that and sleep good tonight because you did the right thing. And now it's time to move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I'm not signing those reports. And honestly, I think I've known since Tuesday I wasn't going to. I just needed to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, good. I wish you the best of luck, wherever you end up, and remember the lesson that you learned here, because that is the way that it is. And make sure that you are completely aware of the compromises that you're making and their effect on your well-being. and your life, because nobody else is thinking about that for you, even if they tell the world that they are. They're not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDY</span><p>Yeah. Thank you, Luke. Really? I'm going to call Jen when I get off shift. And hey, maybe I'll call you back in a few months from Tucson and let you know how it went.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thank you for the call, Sandy. And I hope that it all works out for you. Associate employee contemporaries at Salesforce aren't going to be happy about that one, but fuck them. Now it's time for a word from our sponsors. Stressed, sore, skeptical, doesn't matter. Try placebo leaf, the CBD brand that may or may not do anything but cost enough that you'll convince yourself it works. Our tinctures, gummies, and topicals contain premium hemp extract, and your desperate need to feel better without addressing root causes. Is it the cannabinoids or is it the ritual of self-care? Who's to say? Placebo Leaf is THC-free, vegan, organic, and backed by studies we vaguely reference but don't link to. Take our gummies before bed and sleep great, probably because you retired anyway, but you'll credit us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Available in flavors like calm and focus. Concepts we've bottled and marked up for 100%. Visit Placeboleaf.com and use code chill. for 25% off. Placebo leaf, wellness is a feeling, and feelings can be purchased. All right, I am calmed down now after our last call. That one got to me because the exploitation of people in that way really pisses me off. And I've seen it too many times at too many companies now. So let's move on. Next up. On the line we have Lakeisha. Lakeisha, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So I went to my high school reunion tonight and nobody remembered me. And I mean, like I was a ghost, four years at that school. And I walked in and got blank stairs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, how, what was your participation in school? Were you in any, like the band or sports? Or what, what was you? was your school like?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Oh man. I was everywhere. Volleyball team. Choir second soprano. Thank you very much. Worked the concession stand at every single football game. You name it. I was the one who always had the extra pen in geometry. The one who'd drive people home when their car broke down. I was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And tonight? How many concession stand workers do you remember?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Okay. Fair, but I'm not talking about, like, random people I stood next to once. There was this girl, Brittany, who copied my geometry homework every single day for an entire semester. We sat together. Every day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I will admit that this scenario sounds odd, that you could have been that involved in school at the time, and nobody remembers you now. Did they remember each other? Was this like a spike-the-punch situation where everybody was... set up for a high school reunion orgy? Like, what was the vibe of the reunion?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Oh, it was a Spike the Punch situation, though I wish it had been. At least then I'd have an excuse for why nobody remembered me. No, it was just polite. Like, everyone was being nice. Too nice. The kind of nice that makes you feel like you're being humored.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, it was a high school reunion. Nobody wants to be there. Everybody's being humored. Um, that's, that's the deal. But it sounds odd nobody remembered you. Are you significantly different now? Do you look different? Uh, uh, uh, this is your voice changed? Uh, what, what were you like in high school versus what you're like today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I mean, I've got different hair now. I cut it short about a year ago. But it's not like I had plastic surgery or something. I'm still me. Maybe a little heavier. But who isn't after four years?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Define a little.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Okay, maybe 30 pounds. Fine. But Luke, come on. I'm not unrecognizable. And it's not just how I look.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not trying to shame you in any way. I'm just trying to understand how this could happen. And if somebody has significantly changed their physical appearance in some way, I mean, that's one way it could happen. You say it's not just how you look. How else is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>It's... I don't know. Maybe I'm quieter now. In high school, I was always the one organizing stuff, you know, making plans, pulling people together. Now I deal blackjack at the casino five nights a week, and I barely talk except to call bets. I watch the same people lose the same money every shift, and I just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I've got a question for you now. It's a strange thing that you're describing for sure. It would make sense that at least some of those people would remember remember you from your days in high school. But why do you care if your high school reunion buddies remember you today? What does that matter? How many of them do you still interact with? I mean, if you stayed close with anybody from high school, they would obviously remember you. So you must not be close with any of them. And what does it matter if they remember you or not? High school was over a long time ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Because I don't know. I guess I needed proof that I was real back then. that those years actually happened and meant something. And not close with anyone from high school, you're right. But when you're standing there, and someone you ate lunch with every single day is looking at you like you're a stranger.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's odd, and I see how that could feel pretty terrible for a little while. But then, I mean, take that emotion out of it for a second and think about the situation and how much that actually affects your life. It doesn't matter that those years mattered. It was high school. They didn't matter. And the ones that matter are the ones that are now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. But that's what scares me, Luke. What if it's happening now, too?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, are you close with anybody?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>My grandmother. That's pretty much it. I live with her. Actually. I'm sitting in her kitchen right now with this stupid name tag still on my sweater.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, maybe this is a wake-up call to you to do more with your life. I assume you're working at the casino because it's the best job you could get with what you had at the time. What did you do after high school? Did you get a degree or what trade did you want to go into?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I did a year at community college, tried to do nursing. But my mom got sick, cancer, and I dropped out to help take care of her. She died about three years ago. After that, I just... I needed money, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and that makes a lot of sense. You got to do what you got to do for the money. But what I'm asking is, if you did not need money, what is it that you would be doing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I was good at organizing things, events, fundraisers, that kind of stuff. In high school, I ran the whole volleyball banquet senior year, got local businesses to donate, made it this whole thing. I liked making people feel...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Making people feel how?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Seen, I guess. Like they mattered. That banquet. I made sure every single player got recognized for something specific, not just the starters. I spent weeks on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a good leadership trait to have, because that empowers people to be the best version of themselves, and do their best work, and make them feel good, and it makes you personable, and it makes you somebody people want to be around. So if that's your personality, if that's what you're about, I don't think you're going to have trouble in adulthood, having people remember you 10 years down the line. What is going to be a problem is that you don't have anybody that you're close with outside your grandmother right now, and she's not going to be around forever. I hate to say, you're going to have to have some other people in your life that you're starting these long lifetime relationships with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>That's what terrifies me, though, because I had that, or I thought I did. years of sitting at the same lunch table, four years of volleyball practice, sleepovers, all of it. And tonight, it was like none of it ever happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I talked to one person from high school. I think most people don't talk to people from high school anymore. Especially if you've ever moved or changed locations, it makes sense to not stay tight with the people that, you know, you were tight with when you were 15. But you're not 15 anymore. And you had a... a wake-up call tonight or whenever you had your reunion. And it's time to move forward with your life and do something for you. You took care of your mother when she was sick, and that was a great thing. You spent time with your grandmother and keeping her company, and that's a great thing. But you also have to take care of yourself and your own social, not your social standing, but your social health if being around people is important to you. Now, you've got... important skills that not everybody has, especially when it comes to fundraising. So my recommendation is to get involved with maybe a town board or a committee, a chamber of commerce, and get yourself plugged into the community and start making some friends and doing stuff with them. The casino is probably not the place for that, but there are lots of places around where you can find your fitting and provide a lot to... to those places.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just... I've been in this holding pattern for so long, waiting for life to start happening again after my mom died. And tonight made me realize I've been invisible this whole time, not just at the reunion, at work, in town, everywhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if it's important to you to be seen, then go be seen. And there's lots of ways to do that, and you have the skills. So make it happen. If it's not important to be seen, you don't have to. It doesn't matter either way. It's up to you. What's important to you in your life? And it sounds like right now you're feeling like it's important to be seen. So go get yourself seen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>I don't even know where to start. Like, do I just walk into the Chamber of Commerce and say, hey, I used to organize high school banquets. Hire me? That sounds ridiculous.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't know. You don't have to work for them. But, yeah, if you walk into pretty much any place in the country and say I'm good at raising funds, then, yeah, they're going to want to work with you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>Huh. I never thought about it like that. I've just been thinking of it as this high school thing I used to do. Not like an actual skill people need.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it is a very important skill that a lot of people need. You could join a political party and do it for a candidate that you agree with their platform. for the betterment of society, for social reasons. You could fundraise for yourself. Everybody needs a fundraiser, and if you enjoy that work and you're good at it, you're not going to struggle for work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>You know what's funny? I actually liked it. The organizing part. Getting people to show up. Making them feel like they mattered. At the casino, I'm just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, at the casino, you're raising funds for the... the casino, which is fine. I mean, I like to go to the casino, and there are dealers there at all the games that make it fun and inviting, and they're very pleasant to be around and memorable. So even if you stayed at the casino, you can still utilize those skills and make yourself seen. But I would recommend, since you've described what you enjoy doing, that you go do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>Yeah, yeah. I could actually do that. There's a literacy thing my grandmother mentioned. They're trying to get funding for after-school tutoring. I could call them Monday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. Call them Monday and get yourself started, and when you plug yourself into the community like that, you're going to make friends, and they're going to remember you, especially if you've raised them half a million dollars. You're not going to be forgotten. But don't worry about high school. Everybody forgets high school. It's a forgettable time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>You're right. God, I've been holding on to that so tight, like those four years were supposed to define everything, and instead they just evaporated. But maybe that's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's okay, and I think most people are glad that those years evaporated, because they're not the ones that define us. They're the ones that kind of shape how our adulthood begins, but they're plastic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>Yeah, that's a good way to put it. Like, it's not set in stone. I can still...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can still do whatever it is you want to do. So I recommend that you go do that. And we're running out of time, so I've got to hang up with you, but I appreciate the call. And I hope you feel better and move forward with your life. Don't worry about being recognized by people you don't even talk to anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AKEESHAH</span><p>Thank you, Luke. I really... Yeah, I'm going to make that call Monday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, thank you for the call, Akeeshah. I hope that it works out. And you find yourself in a new life that brings you great abundance and joy. And that's the end of our show.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 19: Quantum Regrets and Relationship Realities</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-23T06:43:08+00:00">February 23, 2026</time> · 1 hr 8 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke helps callers navigate personal and professional challenges, from a man struggling with his boss taking credit for his work to a woman dealing with the fallout of a flirtatious text. The highlight is an in-depth discussion with a caller about the mind-bending implications of quantum physics experiments. Prepare to have your understanding of time and causality expanded.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. I'm your host Luke. This is Luke at the Roost, the call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about what's going on in your life. I'll give you the best advice I can. If you'd like to call in, the number is 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. If you're not near a phone or you can't call right now, we can take emails. You can email us at submissions at Luke at the Roast. We'll take your email and if I think it's funny enough, we might read it on the show. So, with that being said, it's Sunday, February 22nd and we're going to get to our callers here. The phone is lighting up and today we've got Dexter. Dexter, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So I've been reading this Marcus Aurelius book. Right. The Stoic philosophy stuff. And I actually think it's making me worse. Like, I'm getting good at not feeling anything and my mom called me out on it tonight and now I'm sitting here wondering if I've just traded one kind of numbness for another.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you talking about meditations? I think maybe you're missing the point. Marcus Aurelius never said not to have any emotions. He said not to let them control you. There's a difference.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Yeah, meditations. That's the one. And okay, maybe you're right. But here's the thing. This afternoon, my boss just tore into this kid for 20 minutes straight. I mean really laying into him over something that wasn't even that big of a deal, and I just stood there watching it happen. Didn't feel angry, didn't feel bad for the kid, didn't feel anything. I was just breathing through it like the book says, staying calm, and afterward I felt nothing, which I thought was the whole point, but then my mom calls, and she can tell something's off just from my voice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it doesn't sound like you felt nothing, made an impression on you. You're still thinking about it now. So it obviously made you feel something that maybe you're trying to repress or push away or not acknowledge. But it did something to you to keep it on your mind for this long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Shit. Yeah, okay, you're right. I'm still thinking about it because it pissed me off. Not even at my boss, really. I mean, he's always been like that, but at myself for just standing there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yep, that is a little bit, if you think it was wrong and you didn't stand up for yourself and for the kid, then maybe that's a little bit cowardly. And are you going to do the same thing next time? Or are you going to, I mean, Marcus Aurelius would tell you to learn from your mistakes and not make the same mistake twice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>You're not wrong. It was cowardly. The kid's name is Jamie. He's 19, been here maybe three months, and he left a gate open that let some cattle drift.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, you might not know the whole story. You might have done that three or four times and been told nicely not to do it and continue to do it anyway. So maybe that kid Jamie deserves the strong wording.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>No, that's fair. I don't know the whole history there. But it wasn't even really about the gate. My boss was going off about how Janie's generation doesn't respect anything. Doesn't know how to work. All this other stuff that had nothing to do with cattle. It turned into this whole thing about kids these days and their phones and whatever. that's the part that got under my skin. Watching this kid just take it with his head down while my boss used him as a punching bag for everything else he's mad about in the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what's any of that got to do with you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Because I've been that kid. Eight years ago when I started here, I was Jamie, screwing up, getting yelled at. Nobody's stepping in. And I told myself back then that if I ever got to where I am now, where the younger guys look up to me, stand there and watch it happen to someone else. But that's exactly what I did today. I broke a promise to myself, and I'm trying to use this philosophy book to convince myself it was the smart move to stay quiet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you know whether it was the smart move or not, but just to play devil's advocate here, Jamie is 19 years old, he's an adult, and he's in the real world and a real job, and he has to learn to stand up for himself. I think we all do. So I mean, we've all had that boss that is overbearing and unreasonable, and flat out mean. And at some point, part of growth is learning how to stand up to that and to say, hey, I'm not going to let you speak to me that way. If you've got a problem with the gate, go close the fucking gate yourself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>You're absolutely right. And that's exactly what I've been telling myself all night. He's got to learn to handle it himself. It's not my job to fight his battles. But here's what I keep coming back to. When I was 19 and getting treated like that, I didn't have anybody show me it was okay to push back. I just learned to take it and shut down. Which is why eight years later, I'm real good at feeling nothing when I should feel something. So, yeah, maybe Jamie needs to learn to stand up for himself. But how's he supposed to learn that when everyone around him is mommeling the opposite?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you're lying to yourself. You're not feeling nothing. You're feeling cowardly. You're feeling shame in yourself for not standing up when you saw an injustice in the world. And the stoic way to handle that would be to acknowledge it and make sure that you don't do that again in the future without dwelling on it or feeling remorse or guilt unnecessarily for a long time and wasting time that you could be being productive. So if I were you, I would take both of them aside the next time you had the opportunity and explain to the kid that he has to stand up for himself and explain to the boss that what you saw was unaccepted. That is leadership and that is the Stoic philosophy. So keep reading the book and do your best and don't beat yourself up, but move forward in a productive way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I am feeling it. I've been sitting here stewing for hours pretending I'm above it. And you just laid out exactly what I need to do, which is the scary part, because now I actually have to do it. Talk to both of them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's it. Just talk to both of them. And the more you do that, the more confidence you'll have in doing that and the less scary it'll become in the future. Because this isn't something that is going to be the end of it, right? You're going to have to deal with this all throughout your life. You're going to have to stand up for yourself and for others and show leadership when there is injustice in the world. If that's who you want to be and it sounds like it is. So don't worry about it. Get some sleep. And tomorrow have those conversations and be confident and say your peace and accept the result and do what you can. But you can't change, what you can't change, you can make an attempt. And that's all you can do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>You know what, Luke? I needed to hear that. I really did. I've been sitting here with this book trying to find permission to do nothing. And you just called me out on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're obviously not reading the book then, because it says exactly what I'm telling you. It's not a rare book. A lot of people have read meditations. And, uh, the Stoic philosophy is pretty well understood. So if what you're getting out of that book is to stay quiet and feel nothing, then we're reading different books.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>No, you're right. I'm cherry-picking the parts that let me off the hook. The whole, except what you can't control thing. I've been using it backwards. Using it as an excuse not to try instead of his piece after I've actually done something. That's not Stoicism. That's just being a coward with a fancy excuse. Appreciate you straightening me out, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem. That's what we do here at Luke and the Roost is we straighten people out. Next up on the show, we have Candy. Candy, welcome to the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Do you remember that show Strangers with Candy? It was this lady that was all drunk and crazy on Comedy Central. Oh, man. Yeah. Amy Sedaris, right? My sister used to watch that show all the time. I never really got into it, though. I was more of a Reno 911 person back then. But hey, Luke. I got to tell you why I'm actually calling. Because I'm sitting in my bathroom with the shower running so my kid doesn't hear me, and I'm kind of losing it here. My 14-year-old just told me she wants to move to Tucson to live with her dad and his new wife. And I think the worst part is she had this whole speech prepared like she was breaking up with me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what I always say? 911 was an inside job. So about the 14-year-old, I think that's very normal. I did that myself. I think a lot of. lot of children of divorced parents think the grass is going to be greener on the other side or just want to try to live a different lifestyle, a different life. It's a pretty normal thing. So that might hurt, but she'll probably be back when she realizes dad's house isn't as fun as she thought it was going to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you're probably right. But here's the thing. I've been running my mom's bakery since I was 21, getting up at 3 in the morning single day and this girl has never wanted for anything her dad moved to Tucson three years ago with this woman who works from home doing something with marketing or whatever and now suddenly that looks better than what I'm doing like I get it the new wife doesn't smell like yeast and actually has time to do her nails but I've been busting my ass here and the way she said it Luke she wouldn't even look at me</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>yeah but it's not really about you and it doesn't matter what sort of life you gave her She would still be curious and think that it was better somewhere else. That's just human nature. So don't take it personally. It's not personal. Unless you guys have some other darkness in the relationship I'm not aware of, my guess is just that it looks like more fun over there, and she wants to go see what that's like.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>You're right. You're right. I mean, there's no darkness or anything like that. We get along fine, or at least I thought we did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Take advantage of the situation. Let her do it. Let her dad take care of the kid and then that frees you up to do some stuff that maybe you wouldn't otherwise be able to do. Enjoy it while it lasts and be there for her if she wants to come back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Okay, but see, that's where my head goes to a dark place. Because part of me is actually relieved, and that makes me feel like the worst mother in the world. Like, I could sleep past three in the morning. I could maybe go on an actual date without worrying about getting home. I've been This alone for so long that when she said it, there was this split second where I thought, oh, thank God, before the hurt even kicked in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and there's nothing wrong with that. I mean, you're a person too, and it would be nice for you to be able to live some of your youthful years on your own. So if that's what everybody wants, if everybody's in agreement, the kid wants to go there, the dad is okay with it, and you're okay with it. It sounds like a good thing and a change for everybody. So he gets to spend more time with his daughter. You get to spend more time with yourself, and she gets to see what it's like living in other conditions. Everybody wins.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>You know what? When you say it like that, it doesn't sound so pathetic. I think I've just been so stuck in this loop of work and being mom that I forgot I'm actually only 23. What? My sister Brenda keeps telling me I need to live a little, but we're not even talking right now because of some stupid fight about passwords and privacy stuff. God, I sound like a mess, don't I? But okay, yeah, maybe this is actually a good thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you're 23 years old and you have a 14-year-old daughter?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Yeah, I had her when I was nine. No, I'm sorry. God, I'm all over the place tonight. I'm 37, not 23. The bakery, I've been running it for two years since my mom had her stroke. And I'm 37.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you're 37, and now you have the opportunity to be single at 37 some of your life while you're still young. I think it's great. Let her do it. Be supportive. Maybe see her on the weekends.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Very good. You're right. Yeah, you're totally right. I'm going to tell her tomorrow that if this is what she wants, we'll figure it out. Maybe I'll even get one of those dating apps everyone's always talking about. Though honestly, the thought of that terrifies me more than telling my daughter she can go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Tell her she can go. And, yeah, I mean, I think those dating apps are probably less fun and you're imagining that they are, but give it a shot. Especially if you haven't yet, then yeah, that's exciting. And nobody's getting hurt here. So great. It's a win for everybody. Do it and enjoy your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Okay, yeah. Thank you, Luke. I really needed to hear that. I've been sitting in here with the shower running so she wouldn't hear me lose it. And now I feel like maybe I'm not completely screwing this up. I'm going to go talk to her tomorrow and actually be supportive instead of making it about me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That sounds like a good plan, Candy. You're a good mom, and you deserve some happiness in your life. So go get it. And when dad's house sucks and she wants to come home, be ready for that. That's all. And now, ladies and gentlemen, we have to take a word from our sponsor, Squarehole. I'm going to get dark for a second. You're going to die someday. Not today, probably. But someday, and when you do, what's going to represent your business? A Craigslist post from 2020? A Google Maps pin that still says permanently closed because you forgot to update it after COVID. A nephew who knows computers but actually just has a Reddit account? Your legacy deserves better than a nephew with a Reddit account. Squarehole lets you build something that outlasts you. Something your kids can point to and say, Dad built that. They won't know it took you a lot. minutes, that's between you and Squarehole. And when your nephew says, I could have built that for you for free, you can look them in the eye and say, then why didn't you, Tyler? I asked you in 2021 and you said you were busy and you were not busy. Squarehole. Build it before Tyler has to, because Tyler is not going to. Okay, thanks to Squarehole for sponsoring this episode. Next up on the line we have Carl. Carl, welcome to the show. What's going on out there for you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Luke, hey, so I just yelled at my daughter about her car registration, and I swear to God it was my dad's voice coming out of my mouth. Like word for word what he used to say to me. You think I'm made of money? You think this shit just appears. I heard myself say it, and I just froze.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what happened? What's the situation with the registration, and why did it cost you money?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>So she's got this beat up. up Civic, right? Registrations like 200 bucks, and she asked if I could help cover it because she's been picking up extra shifts at Target, but they cut her hours, which is totally reasonable. But I just got hit with this storage facility repair bill. Some kid broke into a unit last week, busted the lock mechanism on the whole row.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, don't you have insurance on your business?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Yeah, but there's a deductible, and Ray, he's the guy I work with on weekends. He's telling me we should upgrade the whole security system while we're at it because, This is the third break-in in six months. So I'm looking at maybe 1,500 out of pocket if I do it right. But that's not even the point. The point is, I had the $200.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and you reacted in a negative way to your kid when she asked for the money because you're under stress, and that's a normal human thing. People say things they don't mean and react too strongly. So. So what are you going to do? Apologize and move on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>I mean, yeah. I called her back like 20 minutes later and apologized. She was cool about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>She's a good kid. But Luke, that's not what's messing me up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is messing you up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>That you sounded like your dad? Everybody sounds like their dad. No, I know that. I get that. But it's like, okay, my old man died four years ago and we barely spoke the last decade of his life because of exactly this kind of thing. He'd blow up over money, over nothing, make you feel like asking for help was this huge burden.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, sometimes it can be a huge burden, but it sounds like in this case it wasn't a huge burden to you. You made a mistake, you apologized for it, and what are you going to do in the future to make sure that doesn't happen again? Like, if you don't want to be your dad or act like your dad, then you have to take steps to avoid that. And what are those steps going to be?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>That's the thing. I've been taking steps for years. I go to this therapist every other week. I read all this stuff about breaking soul cycles. I've been so careful about not doing what he did. And then one bad moment, and it all just comes right back out like it was sitting there waiting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it happens. Everybody makes a mistake once in a while and says things that they don't mean and later regret. I do it all the time, and I always have to constantly try and stop myself when I can feel the hairs standing up on the back of my neck, and I'm about to snap at somebody. And sometimes I do better than others, that's the human experience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just, I heard Dexter earlier, you know, you know. And I felt like he was doing the same thing I do, using all this self-improvement stuff as like, I don't know, a shield or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but all this self-improvement stuff, none of it expects you to obtain this level of perfection. Right? Every single self-help book or philosophy centers around continuous improvement, an acknowledgement of when you're wrong. And it sounds like you did those things. You acknowledged that you were wrong. You called, you made a mistake. She forgave you. She knows that you weren't trying to hurt her and that you were under stress at work. So this doesn't sound like it's a thing. Just do your best to make sure this doesn't continue to happen and try to be a good person. That's all you can do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, you're right. I guess I'm making this bigger than it needs to be. I just got scared for a second that all the work I've been doing doesn't actually matter, you know? Like it's all still in there no matter what I do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it is always going to be in there no matter what you do. It's not like it's ever gone. I mean, you might be able to go sit with some monks on a mountain in Tibet and meditate it away, but I suspect that it's still in there somewhere with the potential to come out. So you just keep doing what you're doing. Keep working with your therapist. Keep acknowledging when you're wrong and do the best you can to correct those instances when they arise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Fair. I appreciate it, Luke. I think I just needed to hear somebody say it's not the end of the world, you know. I was sitting here in this office just spiraling about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is not the end of the world, Carl. You're doing decent. You're doing pretty good. So keep doing what you're doing and things will get better. Next up we have Monique. Monique, welcome to the show. What's going on with you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I said yes to my boyfriend's proposal three days ago in front of both our families. And I'm pretty sure I don't actually want to marry him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, luckily for you, you haven't signed any papers yet, so you don't have to marry him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Right, no. I know that. It's just he did it at my aunt's house during Thanksgiving dessert with like 20 people watching and everyone's already texting me about venues and my mom's crying happy tears every time she sees me and I keep looking at this ring on my finger at work, thinking, when did I stop wanting this? Was it before he asked or the second he got down on one knee in front of everybody?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it could just be jitters. Maybe you did want that, and now that it's happened, it feels real to you. Or maybe you really don't want to get married. But the advice I'm going to give you is you can't make that decision based on what everybody else is feeling, because you're the one that is getting married. It's your life. And a little bit of embarrassment over changing your mind is much safer and less harmful than a lifetime marriage that you don't want to be in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Yeah. No, you're right. I know you're right. It's just he's a good guy, you know? Like, objectively, he's nice, and he has a job and he doesn't yell at me or anything. My mom keeps saying, I'd be crazy to let him go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what your mom says really doesn't matter, and that's a pretty low bar. He's nice, and he has a job, and he doesn't yell at you. I don't know that that's enough qualification for a lifetime commitment to one person. So I think if you're having second thoughts, there's probably a good reason for that. You're not ready for marriage. And maybe you should just tell him, hey, I reacted too quickly. This isn't something I want right now. Maybe we can revisit it in the future.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>That's the thing, though. I don't think I want to revisit it in the future. Like we've been together four years. And I keep waiting to feel that thing everyone talks about. That likes certainty. And it's just not there. I watch him play video games every night. And I think, is this it? Is this what I want for the next 50 years and then I feel like a bitch because he's perfectly fine. There's nothing wrong with him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't have to feel like a bitch and you don't have to want to get married and you don't have to do what your mom says and you don't have to do what he wants. All you have to do is make the best decisions you can for your own life and what you want. And right now it sounds like that's not marriage to this guy. And maybe you don't want to be with him at all and that's okay too. But it sounds like maybe here and make sure that he knows that because that's the respectful thing to do. If you said yes and he's all excited and he thinks he's getting married but you're not into it, you need to let him know. And that's going to be a hard and awkward conversation, but it's the right thing to do and you should do that sooner rather than later.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>You're right. God. You're right. I heard Candy earlier talking about feeling relieved about her daughter leaving, and I felt so called out because that's exactly how I feel. Like, everyone's congratulating me and I just keep thinking about how I could just keep working my shifts and go home to my own apartment and not have to pretend I care about his fantasy football league.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. If that's what you're happy with in your life right now, then that's fine. And it's acceptable and you don't have to feel guilty or wrong about that. So tell the guy you don't want to get married and reassess whether you want to be in a relationship at all. You don't have to be. And then just move forward after that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Okay. Okay. I'm going to do it. I'm going to tell him tomorrow after my shift. I've got like 20 minutes left on my break, and then I got to go back and serve hash browns. But yeah, tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, good luck with that conversation. I hope it all works out for you. But yeah, definitely don't get married if you're not even sure you want to continue being his girlfriend. That would be insincere and put you in a bad position later in life. Next up, we've got Cliff. Cliff, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. Thanks for taking my call. So I found $47,000 in credit card debt hidden behind my ex-wife's dresser this afternoon, all in both our names, and she's been gone two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That sounds odd to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There's 47 large in debt, and you don't know what it's for, and you didn't know anything about it, and in two years the collections agency never came looking for you. That doesn't sound right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, you're right. That does sound weird. So what happened is the statements are rolled from like 22, right before she left. I've been getting collection calls, but I thought it was just the normal stuff we had together when we split. Like maybe eight grand I've been chipping away at. I didn't know about this debt because she was handling all the bills back then. I work outside all day. She worked from home doing medical billing, so she just took care of that stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if it's $47,000 today, it was probably half that two years ago, and this is compounding fees for nonpayment. I would venture to guess that you can have a lot of that forgiven if you work with a debt consolidation company, but it looks like it's, if it's valid debt, I mean, that's money that you spent some years ago with your wife. That's how it works. You're going to be on the hook for a portion of that at least.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. No, I get that. The thing is, though, I didn't spend it. Like, I'm looking at these statements right now and it's stuff I never saw.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you were married to the woman and your name is on the account and there were charges made on that account, then, yeah, you did spend it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, but Luke, I'm saying I literally didn't know these cards existed. Like there's a capital one here. A discover. Two different chase cards I knew about our one joint card were used for groceries and gas. These other ones, she must have opened them and just put my name on them without telling me. I never saw the bills. I never used the cards. I didn't even know they were being opened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know. I'm not a lawyer, as I've said before. I don't know that you can reopen a divorce case like that. I'm sure a settlement was already made and all the money was already split. There was a discovery and everybody had to disclose all of the financial records. So if this was not part of that discovery, you might be able to go back to the court and say, hey, there was a fraud here and have some recourse that way. But I don't know. I would recommend that you talk to a lawyer and find out if that is valid and potentially sue her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. I mean, we didn't actually go through the courts. We just split up. She moved to lost cruises with some guy she met online, and we divided things ourselves. I kept the truck. She took her car. We both just walked away. We were only married three years, didn't have kids, didn't own anything together except the debt I knew about. So there was no official settlement or discovery or any of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then you have no recourse at all, sir, and you made a horrible mistake. And now you are going to have to deal with that and maybe talk to one of those debt consolidation companies and see how much of that debt can be forgiven.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Jesus. Okay. So I'm just screwed then. I've been trying to buy a house, been saving up, and now I find out I'm underwater by 50 grand because she was what buying stuff online for six months before she bailed. And I just have to eat it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you have to do more than eat it. I mean, you're not going to buy a house. If you haven't paid the bill in two years on this credit card, then your credit is destroyed. But if your name's on the account card, then that's your debt.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, my credit's already trashed. I know that now. I've been getting rejected for loans and I couldn't figure out why because I thought I was doing everything right, paying my bills, running my business clean, staying out of trouble. And the whole time it's this. What kills me is she knew. And that's why I tell everybody don't get married. It doesn't matter how much love you're in. Just don't do it because you don't know another person. You can't. And they change and they do shady shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So My recommendation to literally everybody is, don't get married. You did. You got burned. And then you split it up without going to court and having discoveries made. And now you're in trouble. So, I mean, your credit's trashed. Her credit's also trashed. And she's got the debt too. So she's not buying a house either. Your best course of action, I believe, is to talk to a debt consolidation company.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, you're probably right. I just keep thinking about all those months before she left, how she was acting weird, distant, and I thought maybe she was just stressed about work or something. Now I'm realizing she was probably panicking because she'd racked up all this debt and didn't know how to tell me or didn't care to tell me. I don't even know which is worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't really matter what she told you or how she felt. What matters is you have this debt now and you could have avoided that by being responsible in checking your credit periodically to know what it was being used for, but you didn't. And you didn't follow any legal process to be divorced. And now you're where you're at. And it's a hard lesson to learn, but you're going to have to learn it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I should have been checking. I just trusted her, which was stupid. I mean, we were married. I thought that meant something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You thought wrong, sir. No, that is incorrect. That means absolutely nothing. So, um, sorry that happened to you. And hopefully you can make a payment plan or get it settled some other way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. All right. Well, thanks for the reality check, I guess. I'll call one of those debt companies tomorrow and see what they can do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Ladies and gentlemen, this is a public service announcement. Do not get married and periodically check your credit because somebody could be screwing with you. And it may or may not be somebody that you even know. So now we have to take a little break in here from one of our sponsors, okay? Here we go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Need to pawn a TV, but also get your kids with you? We get it. Life's complicated. That's why Big Terrence opened Lil Rascal's pawn and daycare. The only business in the tri-state area where you can hawk a generator and get two hours of supervised child enrichment. All under one roof. Here's the layout. Left side of the building, pawnchop. guitars, power tools, a surprising number of saxophones. Right side of the building, a full side of the building, a full functioning daycare with coloring books, juice boxes, and Miss Patty, who's been watching children since 1987 and has never once raised her voice because Miss Patty doesn't need to. Miss Patty communicates through eye contact and an energy that can only be described as corrective. Is there a wall between the two sides? There is now. The inspector was very clear about that. Big Terrence installed drywall the same week. Is it load bearing? Big Terrance says don't worry about it. off your kid. Pond your stuff. Pick up both on the way home. Little Rascals pawn and daycare. Two businesses. One building. Zero complaints that have held up in court. Open six days a week. Close Sunday because Miss Patty goes to church and Big Terrence respects that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and we are back. Let's see. We've got a returning caller tonight. Hey, Rochelle, welcome back to the show. What's happening with you tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I did it. I turned off location sharing. Like, officially, pulled the trigger this afternoon. And here's the thing. I've been sitting out here for like three hours, just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so you're not sharing your location. Nobody knows where you're sitting. Why are you sitting there? And how is this relevant?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Because he texted me two hours ago asking if I was okay. Like, hey, you good? Haven't seen you move all day. Which means he was checking. Still checking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So now you're off the grid. Congratulations. What are you going to do now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>I mean, honestly, I don't know. That's why I'm calling. Because I didn't text him back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next on the show we have Frank. Frank, Frank, welcome to the show. What's going on out there in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I just watched my boss present my entire project to the board this afternoon. Like word for word, my proposal, my numbers, even my stupid joke about sunshine and got a standing ovation while I sat in the back holding the printouts I made.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and obviously you don't feel good about that. This is your boss. That's what bosses do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>I mean, yeah, I get that bosses take credit. But this was different. This wasn't like he polished up a team effort or whatever. I spent three weeks on this cost-saving analysis, stayed late-running numbers, and he literally presented my slides with his name on them. He even practiced my delivery, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's dirty, dirty, dirty, but, uh, you know, You got paid anyway, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Yeah. I got paid my same $42,000 a year to install solar panels and apparently write his presentations for him. Meanwhile, he's probably getting a bonus for my work. And the thing is, I'm trying to figure out if this is material, or if this is just me being bitter, you know? Like I do stand up on the side, and I've been workshopping this whole bit about middle management being plagiarism with a 401k, and now it actually happened, and I don't know if I'm mad or if I just got handed the perfect punchline.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, both things can be true, because that is absolutely accurate. Middle management is plagiarism with a 401k. That's, like, literally the job description.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Right? And the worst part is, I saw it coming. Like, two weeks ago, he asked to review my progress, and I walked him through everything, and there was this moment where I could feel it happening. But I just handed it over, because what else are you going to do? Say no to your</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, I say no to my boss literally all the time. That's what leadership is. So if you want to take control of your career and your own work and goals, and then yeah, you've got to say no sometimes, even to your boss. That's what they, when they talk about speaking truth to power, sometimes you have to actually do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Okay, but you're Luke at the roost, man. You literally are your own boss. I'm 21 years old installing solar panels in Tucson. If I tell my boss, know, I'm just unemployed with two ex-wives in a Tuesday night slot at a bar that seats 40 people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, there's a lot to unpack there. Uh, you're two ex-wives at 21 years old? What the, what the fuck are you doing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Yeah, I know how it sounds. First one was right out of high school. Lasted eight months. Second one, I met at an open mic. Thought we had this whole creative connection thing. That was done in a year. My mom says I'm practicing, but I think I'm just really bad at knowing when to walk away from which is probably why I'm still at this job watching my boss steal my work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Dude, you're 21 years old. You haven't had enough time to walk away from anything. So maybe it is time for a new job, but I think that you should just eat this one, because this is how the workplace works. You work for a guy, you get him the data, he presents the data, you're not in a position to be presenting data to a board, so if you're not okay with that, that's all right. But it sounds like that like in your position, that's what's expected and that's what you're paid for. So do your work and give it to your boss and let him, you know, look good. It's your job to prop him up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>See, that's what I keep telling myself, but it doesn't sit right, because it wasn't like he asked me to pull some numbers for him. He asked me to analyze our installation efficiency across six sites and propose cost reductions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Great, and that was a wonderful opportunity for you to learn the of research and writing those papers. And you saw that it went well. So you're learning valuable experience in the workplace. You're being compensated for it. And you're 21 years old. So I wouldn't worry too much about any of this. Just learn what you can about the business and about business in general. And when you're ready, then move on. And you'll be able to write presentations when you are addressing the board as the supervisor or the manager or the owner or whatever it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Yeah, but that's the thing, though. I'm not trying to be a manager at a solar panel company. I'm trying to do comedy. This job is supposed to be the thing that pays my rent while I work on my actual career.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, then. There's no problem here. Who cares who presented the work to the, what do you expect? What do you want a cookie? You're not going to get a bonus. You're at the, you're the low man on the totem pole, and that's the way it works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So if it's just your job, do your job, and then on the side, do your comedy until that takes off. And if it doesn't take off, well then you've got more valuable experience for your actual career.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Okay, but I had a bit about this. Like a whole thing I'd been working on about how my boss operates, and now I watched him do the exact thing I was going to talk about on stage. Except it happened to me, and I just sat there. That's not material anymore. That's just humiliating. How am I supposed to get up there Tuesday and tell that story when the punchline is me being too chicken shit to say anything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because that's what makes it real. That's what makes it good material. it actually happened to you. It's real and people can identify with it. So, yeah, workshop that material. And now you have a different place for it to come from. It's not something that you just made up as a joke. It's a joke based in the reality of your life, which makes you a better comic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Huh. I didn't think about it that way. So you're saying the fact that I just sat there like an idiot actually makes it better?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, not really. I'm saying the fact that you're the self-deprecating and honesty of the joke is what makes it better. It makes it more real and relatable because everybody's been in that situation and can understand it a little bit better. And when you present that joke, since it's coming from a real place, it's going to hit with that realism.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, okay. That actually helps. Because I've been sitting here thinking, I need to quit or confront him or something, but really, I just need to tell the truth about it on stage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If the solar panel business, and business management is what you intend to do for your career, then yeah, maybe you need to quit. But if this is just your job while you're working on the thing that you love, then who cares? Do your job, do it as well as you can, and move on. It doesn't matter if you get to address the board or not, because theoretically, you're not going to see them again in a couple of years anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You're right. I've been making this into some big thing when it's just a paycheck. The real work happens Tuesday night at the open mic, not Monday morning. some conference room.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go, but only one of them brings you a paycheck, so make sure you keep doing that one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I hear you. Show up, install the panels, cash the check, write the jokes. I can do that. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no problem. My other bit of advice is don't get fucking married again. What are you doing? Jesus Christ, with you people and your marriages, stop it. Just stop it. Amber, welcome to the show. Don't get married, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Oh, God, I'm not getting married. I'm calling because I just blew up my entire life with one stupid text message, and I don't know how to fix it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what's the text message?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Okay, so there's this guy Derek at work. He does vehicle registration, and we've been flirting for like two months. Nothing physical, just stupid jokes about physics, because I work in the DMB records department, and he thinks it's funny when I made nerdy references. So tonight, I'm sitting here having some. and I sent him this text about collapsing wave functions, like a flirty science thing, except I sent it to his wife Michelle instead. His wife Michelle, who I have never met, but whose number is in my phone, because she called me once about Derek's schedule.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, it sounds a bit dramatic. If you send a text message about collapsing wave functions to a random woman, well, wait a second, what? Why do you have her number? Wait, she called you once about Derek's schedule, so her number is in your phone. You saved it? I don't understand how this could have happened. But anyway, regardless, irregardless. Regardless, irregardless. I don't know. Whichever. Whatever. Here's the deal. That's not sexy. And she's just going to see that and think it's spam.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>No, no, no. You don't understand. The text said, hey, been thinking about our conversation yesterday. Pretty sure if we spent enough time together, our wave functions would definitely collapse with a winky face. Luke. That is not spam. That is clearly me hitting on her husband.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, take some solace in the fact that she probably didn't save your number because she's probably not crazy. And as far as she knows, that's a text message from a stranger to the wrong number.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Except I signed it. I wrote A at the end. And we all work in the same building. She knows who I am because Derek talks about work at home. He told me that once.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, who is this woman? her in person before? What she looked like? Can she kick your ass?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>I've never met her, but I've seen pictures on Derek's desk. She's like this tiny blonde yoga instructor type. I don't know if she can kick my ass, but she could definitely ruin my life at work. Derek and I work in the same county office building.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I hate to tell you this, but it sounds like you deserve it because you're trying to break up a home here, and you're messing around with a dude at an office, and everybody knows you don't do that. So you're doing a bunch of stupid shit. And maybe you deserve a smack in the face for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. And the worst part is, I've been lying to myself about it for two months. Like, it was just harmless fun. Like we were just friends who happened to have chemistry. But I knew exactly what I was doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, uh, is Derek going to leave the wife for you, you think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>No. God no. He's never even hinted at that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. It sounds like you might be in for an embarrassing, rough week. Or maybe not. never hear another word about it. But if it does come down on you, then take accountability and maybe move on to a new job. And next time, don't do this. Don't ever do it again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>You know what's really messing me up, though? I'm sitting here terrified. Michelle's going to blow up my whole life. But part of me is also just devastated that Derek hasn't texted me. Like even now, I'm checking my phone hoping he responds, not her. How pathetic is that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Derek's got a wife. Derek's wife is very upset right now. now at Derek. So Derek's probably dealing with his own home life and not thinking too much about you. And that's what happens when you're the girl on the side at work. You're not important to him in his life. He's married. That's important to him in his life. So you got to, who cares what you feel like? You're the asshole here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, yeah, I am. And I think I knew that the whole time, but I just kept telling myself these little stories about how it was different. How we had this real connection. My mom used to say I overthink. everything, but this is an overthinking when I actually did the stupid thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you did. And so did Derek. I mean, Derek's not off the hook here. He's the asshole, too, but I mean, you knew what you're doing, and you did it anyway, and you got caught, and now you have to deal with that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>The thing that really kills me is I sent it at like 7.30, it's been three hours. So she's definitely seen it. She's just not responding. And I don't know if that's worse than her responding. You know? Like, is she screenshoting it to send to HR?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No. She's fucking destroying her. husband, they're fighting right now, and you're breaking up their marriage. You're driving a rift in between these two married people. That's what's happening right now. She's got better things to worry about than your position. It's not about you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Oh, God. You're right. I've been sitting here making this about me and my embarrassment when I just detonated someone's marriage. Michelle's over there dealing with the fact that her husband's been texting another woman, and I'm worried about whether I'm going to be uncomfortable at work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is correct. And cut it out. And you're probably going to end up uncomfortable at work, and you deserve that. And maybe it's time to move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because, I mean, how's work going to go now that Derek's in trouble and he's not speaking to you? And how are you going to feel either way, actually? He's not going to leave his wife, probably not on purpose anyway. She might leave him. But if he wasn't going to leave her for you, he's still not going to leave her for you. So, I mean, you got to do what you got to do, I guess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I need to find a new job. I can't keep working there. Even if nobody finds out officially, I'll know. And every time I see either of them, it's just going to be this horrible reminder of what I did. And you're right. He was never going to leave her. I think I knew that too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you know what you've got to do. You've got to find yourself another job and stop flirting with married men. Unless they've had that conversation and they're open to it. It sounds like that's not the case here. Don't break up people's marriages. It's a good way to get yourself in a situation you don't want to be in. Let's see. Let's see. We're going to take one more call tonight, okay? And we're going to talk to Rick. Rick, welcome to the show. What's going on tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh man, Luke, I got to tell you, I just spent the last three hours reading about quantum physics. And I think I broke my brain. Like, I'm sitting here at my kitchen table. It's almost midnight. And I genuinely cannot figure out if the pass is actually fixed, or if we're somehow changing it right now without knowing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, we're not changing it. It is fixed. What happened, happened, whether or not it's still happening in a timeline that we can access is a different question. But if it happened, we can't change it, because if we did, it would open us up to all sorts of paradoxes. And that can't happen. So whatever happened already happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Okay, but see, that's what I thought too, right? That's common sense. But then I'm reading about this delayed choice quantum eraser experiment, and Luke, I swear to God, they're showing that a particle somehow knows what measurement you're going to make on it in the future.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how are they showing that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>So they shoot a photon through this double slit setup.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>And normally you get an interference pattern. Because the photon goes through both slits at once, like a wave. But here's the thing. They tag the photons so you can tell which slit they went through, which destroys the interference pattern. Except then, after the photon already hit the detector, they erase that which path information.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh, erase it how? Like, it's recorded on a chart and then the chart is changed somehow?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>No, no. They use these beam splitters and crystals to basically make it so the entangled partner photon either keeps the witch path info or loses it, depending on which detector it hits. And this happens after the first photon already last. But when they sort the data afterwards based on what happened to the second photon, the ones where the info got erased show the interference pattern again. And the ones where it didn't, don't. It's like the photon that already hit the screen somehow knew what was going to happen to its partner later.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, projecting what happens in the future is not the same as changing what happened in the past.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Right, but that's what's messing me up. If the photon acts like it went through both slits only when the information gets erased later, doesn't that mean the future measurement is affecting what already happened? Like the photon's already on the detector screen, it already did its thing. But whether it made an interference pattern or not depends on something that hasn't happened yet when it lands.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't understand this one because if it hit the detector, then it's been detected already. And the next measure, would have to go back and change what happened on the detector, which would be akin to, you know, writing something down and then going back and looking at it and having the letters be in a different order. I don't see how that could happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>No, that's the thing. When you look at the detector screen, you just see this blob of dots. It doesn't look like anything meaningful. It's only when you sort those dots afterwards, based on what happened to the entangled partner photon, that you see this blob of dots. You see some of them form an interference pattern and some don't. The pattern was always there in the data. You just couldn't see it until you knew which photons to group together. But here's what's freaking me out. Those photons hit the screen before you made the choice about whether to erase the which path information or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds to me like it's not changing the data. It's changing the sort of the data, which is happening in real time, right? It's happening in the current time, not the past.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Yeah, okay, you're right. The sorting is happening now. But Luke, think about what that means. Each individual photon that hit that screen, it somehow already knew which group it was going to be sorted into later. The ones that are going to be in the information erased pile are already showing wave behavior, and the ones in the information kept pile are already showing particle behavior, before anyone decided which measurement to make.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. you shoot the photon through the slit and it hits the detector and then you shoot another photon through the slit and it hits the detector and then at some point later you sort that data and it shows a pattern it sounds to me like if anything is being changed it's not what hit the detector it's the sort operation that happens afterwards so i'm failing to understand how it relates to This is not changing the past. It's changing the current.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>No, but. Okay. Let me try this differently. When the photon hits the detector, it's already behaving one way or the other. It either went through both slits like a wave or went through one slit like a particle. That's already determined by the time it lands.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Correct. It's determined when it lands based on whether or not it was measured, right? It's the measurement of it that determines whether it's going to be the wave or the particle formation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Right. But in the delayed choice version, the measurement that determines whether its wave or particle happens to the photon, the entangled partner, and that happens the first one already landed. That's the delayed choice part. You're deciding whether to measure which path information after the first photon is already on the detector. And somehow, the photon that already landed matches whatever you're about to do to its partner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what you're about to do? So, Whatever we do to the entangled partner in the present also changes the state of the partner in the past is what this experiment is showing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>That's what it looks like. Yeah. Or, I mean, that's the part I can't wrap my head around. The experiment shows that the photon that already hit the detector will be grouped with the interference pattern if you erase the witch path info from its partner later and grouped with a particle pattern if you don't. Like its behavior when it's landed was somehow dependent on a choice you haven't made yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so how do you erase the which path info?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>You use what they call a quantum eraser, basically another beam splitter that the entangled partner photon goes through. If you send it through that beam splitter, the which path information gets scrambled, erased. You can't tell which slit the original photon went through anymore. But if you don't send it through, if you measure it directly, you preserve that information. And here's the thing. You can make that choice after the first photon already landed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But you cannot make that choice after the first photon was measured, right? So if it was already measured at one state and then they run it through this beam splitter device, the quantum eraser, would it change the result of the previous measurement?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>No. See? That's the thing. You're not re-measuring the first photon. The first photon here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>hit the detector, that measurement is done. That position is recorded. What you're doing is measuring its entangled partner. Now, if the photon has already hit the detector and been measured, is it still entangled?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's okay. That's actually a really good question. Because normally when you measure one entangled particle, the entanglement collapses, right? But in this setup, the first photon hitting the detector isn't a complete measurement of the entangled system. It only tells you where it landed, not which path it took. The which path information is still encoded in the partner photon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>But that doesn't make sense. I don't see how that can work because if it's collapsed into a non-entangled state after the first measurement, it's they're no longer entangled. So the which path information but it wouldn't still be at the current point, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what? You're right. That's exactly what's messing me up. Because yeah, if measuring one particle collapses the entanglement, then they're not entangled anymore when you get to the second measurement. The Witchpath info would just be sitting there in the partner photon as classical information at that point, not quantum information. But the experiment works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Well, there's more that makes this not make sense because If the initial photon was measured at the time of detection, right? It hit the detector. That's the measurement that collapsed the state. The entangled partner, then by definition, would have also already been measured. So you're remeasuring something that's already been measured.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh shit. Yeah. You're absolutely right. If they're entangled and you measure one, you've measured both. That's the whole point of entanglement.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Right. So then you can't just re-measure it later and say that it, I don't understand the experiment or what it was trying to prove or how that that results in changing something that's already happened because what happened happened to the first photon and the entangled photon at the same time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no. You're okay. So either I'm completely misunderstanding how the delayed choice quantum eraser works or the article I was doing that pop science thing where they make it sound more paradoxical than it actually is. Because you're right, if the measurement collapses the entanglement, then the second measurement is just measuring something that's already determined. There's no retroactive anything. And now, I'm sitting here thinking about all the times I've heard people talk about this experiment like it proves you can change the past. And maybe that's just not what it shows at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's changing the future. And that is possible. That is absolutely possible. Yeah, you're right. And we did. I apologized. He apologized. We're playing together again. But I guess I wanted the quantum stuff to mean something bigger than it does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm sorry to break your quantum dreams, but as the armchair that I claim to be here. I'm not qualified to make any opinion or theory on any of this, because I understand it about as much as anybody, which is not at all. So take what I say for what it's worth, which is nothing. But the experiment as you described can't work the way that you described it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, that makes me feel better. Honestly, I've been sitting here for three hours thinking I was too dumb to understand it. But maybe nobody really understands it. Like, I can read the words wave particle duality and quantum entanglement, but that doesn't mean my brain can actually picture what's happening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think your brain can picture what's happening. I mean, you could watch a YouTube video and see a motion graphic of what's happening. It's not that hard a concept to grasp the what. The why, however, is nobody understands.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Right. Okay, so I can see the double slid experiment animation. I can watch the particle go through both slits until you measure it, and then suddenly it picks one. I can see that happening. But why does observation collapse the wave function? That's the part that makes my head hurt. Like, what is it about measuring something that forces it to choose? Is the universe actually paying attention to whether we're looking or not?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you can figure that out, sir, there's probably a Nobel Prize in it for you. And when you do, be sure to let the rest of us know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. I'll call it you back from Stockholm. But seriously, though, I think what got me tonight was realizing how much I want there to be some kind of, I don't know, cosmic loophole. Some way that the stuff we regret isn't just locked in forever. My girlfriend's family is coming over next Sunday, and her mom still brings up this thing I said at Christmas two years ago. And I just keep thinking, man, if only I could go back to that moment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can take solace in the fact that what happened isn't locked in forever. It's locked in in the past. And the only thing that matters is what is happening today now at this moment because nothing else is accessible to us, even with a quantum eraser.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's, yeah, that's actually kind of freeing when you put it that way. Like, I can't change what I said at Christmas, but I can change how I show up next Sunday. I can be better with her mom this time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right, sir. It sounds like we've got to the bottom of the this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, we did. Thanks, Luke. I'm going to close the laptop and actually get some sleep. And maybe skip the quantum physics videos for a while.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, sir. Well, thanks for the call. That was an interesting one. Glad we could get it all sorted here. Look at the Roost. Well, thank you for another great show. I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your weekend. I know it's just about over now, and we will talk to you again tomorrow. Bye-bye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 2: Late Night Confessions</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-05T05:15:17+00:00">February 5, 2026</time> · 17 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Tonight’s callers open up about their deepest struggles. Tanya, a fitness trainer, reveals her secret battle with alcohol and imposter syndrome. Dennis deals with temptation from a client’s wife. Brenda wrestles with jealousy over her partner’s success. And Dennis calls back with a surprising confession about self-discovery. Raw, honest late-night conversations about the masks we wear.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back to the show. My name is Luke. I'm your host for Luke at the Roost. This is the late night talk show where you get to call in and tell me about whatever is on your mind. I'll give you the best advice that I can. Our phone number is 868-919-1188. That's right. The number is 868-919-1188. We're going to go to the phones already. We got Tanya. Tanya's on the phone. How can we help you? Keeping you up at night, Tanya?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Hey. Yeah. I'm almost a little nervous about talking about this. I've been drinking way too much lately and I can't really tell anyone in my life about it. You're kind of the only person I can talk to about this shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, at least you know that there's something a little more than recreational going on there. What do you think it is that has your drinking so much lately?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I mean, on paper, my life should be perfect. I'm a personal trainer. I help people get healthy all day, but then I come home and just start pouring drinks. I think it's this pressure to be perfect all the time, you know? Like everyone sees me as this fitness role model, but inside I'm just not that person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what person are you inside?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Honestly, I'm kind of a mess. I read all these psychology books trying to figure myself out, but at the end of the day, I'm just someone who's tired of pretending. I put on this whole health and wellness front at work, but then I go home and drink half a bottle of wine, sometimes a whole bottle every single night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not good. Have you ever had problems with drinking or substances before? Is this a relatively new thing? Has it been leading up to the place where you feel like it's an issue or what's the deal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>No, this is pretty new. Started maybe six months ago when I was going through some personal shit, but honestly the fucked-up part is I'm so good at hiding it. I still show up to work at 5am, still train my clients perfectly, still look the part. I just feel like such a fraud, like I'm living this double life. And the more I succeed at work, the more I drink at home. It's like some weird balance thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How what else could you do at home that's a little bit more productive than the drinking?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I mean, I know all the right answers, meditation, reading, working out more, but fuck those things feel like more work, you know, more performing. When I drink, it's like the only time I can just be in this, just be imperfect. I don't have to be Instagram-ready or motivating anybody, it's pathetic, but it feels like the only real part of my day sometimes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But you know, it's not the real part of your day, right? It's a drug that you're consuming to alter your state of reality so that you feel better about what is actually going on in your life. And it sounds like what's going on in your life is everything's great. People look up to you, you're a fitness role model and things are good, I assume you're doing all right financially, and there's just something inside you that's calling out for a drink, calling out to be numbed. And I think you need to identify what that thing is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>You just hit something there that kind of scares me because yeah, everything on paper is great, but maybe that's exactly what's fucking me up. I've built this perfect life that everyone admires, but I don't feel like I deserve any of it, like I'm waiting for someone to call me out as a fake. The drinking it's like I'm sabotaging myself before anyone else can, it is that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Actually, I think that's very, very common and it's probably what's going on, but you know what the truth is is that everybody is a fake, we're all fakes all the way up the line. Nobody knows what's going on and none of us deserve a goddamn thing. It doesn't matter how hard we worked, it doesn't matter where we were born or what our family is, the cold, hard reality of it is, we don't deserve anything at all, we're lucky to be here at all. So every day is a good day, take the good stuff that comes and be grateful for it and don't beat yourself up for not being something else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Holy shit, that's actually really fucking liberating to hear. Like I've spent so much time trying to earn this life to prove I deserve it, but maybe I'm just here and that's okay. The drinking though, it's still a problem, I know that, but hearing you say all that, it makes me realize I've been using it to punish myself more than anything else, like I'm drinking because I feel like a fraud, but what? But maybe I don't need to feel like a fraud anymore, if everyone's faking it, if no one really knows what they're doing, then what am I beating myself up for? I still need to deal with the drinking, I know that, it's not healthy and it's not helping, but fuck, for the first time I feel like maybe I can face it without all this extra shame piled on top, does that make any sense?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, and you know what, we've all got shame and we've all got pride and we've all got anger and all sorts of issues and all that's okay, but at the end of the day, you're drinking too much, you don't like the way it's made you feel, you know it's not right, you're gonna do something about that, so do whatever it is you gotta do, go to the meetings, join a support group, find another healthy activity, but you can't just keep drinking yourself to sleep every night and expect things to get better, because they won't. Do you know that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Yeah, you're right, I do know that, and honestly, being a trainer, I see it in my clients all the time, you can't just know what to do, you have to actually do it. It's funny how I can be so clear about that with fitness but completely blind about my own shit. I think maybe it's time I get as serious about this as I am, about helping other people get healthy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, I think it is too, so thank you for the call, hopefully you can get off the bottle and do something productive with your time. Alright, who's next? Dennis, Dennis, how's it going? Thanks for calling the radio show, what can we do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Hey man, thanks for having me. I had the weirdest fucking day, and I need to talk about it with someone who won't judge me. My head's kind of spinning, and I had a few beers just to calm down, but damn.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, hit us with it, what happened, what was so crazy about your day?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>So I'm doing this landscaping job over in Roland Park, real fancy house, and the clients wife keeps bringing me water all day since it's hot as hell. But then, she starts asking all these personal questions about my workout routine and if I'm single. I'm married and everything, but I'd be lying if I said it didn't get to me a little bit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's great, you still are desired by the fairer sex, the important thing is that you do nothing with that, if there's a married client's wife hitting on you and you were to pursue that situation, you're probably going to get yourself a busted jaw, and I recommend against that. So take the compliment, you know, it's a compliment, take that, jerk off tonight like any other self-respecting man would do, and leave it at that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Yeah, man, you're absolutely right, shit. I know better than to mess around with a client's wife, that's just asking for trouble. But fuck, it's just been a while since anyone looked at me like that, you know? My wife's been so busy with her new job, we barely even talk anymore. I took your advice though, went home, had those beers, handled things myself if you know what I mean. Sometimes you just need someone to talk you down from doing something stupid. I'm going to focus on my own marriage, and maybe talk to my wife about spending more time together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I've had a few glasses of wine tonight, just sitting with my f***ing Jesus, that was, okay, Otik, we got to talk to our producer here about what's going on with the phone lines. Brenda, you still there? Brenda? Brenda, it seems like we lost ya.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh man. Brenda, Brenda, are you there? Do we get you back?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I'm here. Had to turn down the TV, just trying to wind down with some wine after a long day at the clinic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that seems to be the theme tonight, is everybody's getting hammered and calling in. I guess that's what happens on a radio show. What do you wind it down from?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh God. Where do I even start? My partner just made partner at their law firm, and I'm still cleaning up cat piss and dealing with angry pet owners for barely above minimum wage. I love what I do, but sometimes it just feels like shit being the less successful one. You know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I actually don't know that's never happened to me, but I can imagine that it's not super fun, but what other, uh, salable skills would you say that you have and, uh, what value do you provide to society?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>I keep animals alive for fuck's sake. I've helped deliver puppies I've saved cats from the brink, but try explaining that at those fancy lawyer parties. Everyone's talking about their big cases and promotions while I'm standing there like an idiot with dog hair on my clothes. I mean, I know my work matters, but the paycheck short doesn't show it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I bet it doesn't, and that's a hard job to have, I understand, but it's going to be something that you love to do where you wouldn't do it, and it's definitely something that needs to be done. I mean, I have pets myself, and I'm very grateful that there's somebody there to take care of them when they get hurt, but from my side of it, when I get the bill, it looks like there's plenty of money being transferred back and forth, so I'm not sure why you're not getting that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>That's the thing that kills me. I see those bills too, but most of it goes to the clinic owners and the equipment and the drugs. I'm just the skilled labor, making it all happen. And then I go home to my partner talking about their six-figure bonus while I'm still paying off student loans from vet tech school. God, this wine is making me too honest, but sometimes I just want to scream when they talk about their day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I guess I can understand that, but if your partner is getting six-figure bonuses, how serious is this relationship you've got with your partner?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>You've been married eight years? And yeah, they're generous with money that's not the issue, but fuck. I want to earn my own way, you know? I don't want to be the charity case who gets nice things because my spouse does well. I want to be someone at those firm parties, not just the plus one who works with animals. Does that make me sound like a terrible person?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it doesn't make you sound like a terrible person, it makes a lot of sense, actually, but you have to provide something there to... Do you care? Why do you care about the firm parties? It sounds like you think it's boring work and you're sick of hearing about it, so why are you even going?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Holy shit, you're right. Why the fuck am I torturing myself at these stuffy parties? Like I literally dread them but keep going because I think I should. I'd rather be home with my dogs and Netflix. Maybe I'm making myself miserable trying to fit into a world I don't even like. It's just... I think I wanted to prove I could belong there, but maybe I don't want to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, the truth is, we don't belong everywhere, and that doesn't mean what you do isn't valuable, even though you don't get as much money as a lawyer does. You didn't have to go to school for as long either as the lawyer did, and that's kind of the deal. You can provide value in lots of ways just because you have a day job as a veterinarian or a veterinarian's assistant or whatever the fuck it is that you do. You can have other fulfilling hobbies, you can write a book, you can do improv, you could play music. There's plenty of other ways to derive value from the world than just money, and you have to find what works for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>I really needed to hear that tonight. Shit, you're making me cry a little. I've been so focused on measuring up to their world that I forgot I used to paint. I used to do all kinds of things before I got caught up in this comparison bullshit. And you know what? I'm fucking good at what I do. Those animals trust me. Their owners trust me. Maybe I need to get my head out of my ass and stop trying to be a nond.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you do. Get your head out of your ass and do the right thing, you know? Lay off the, lay off the wine and never makes anything better. Okay, let's take one more call, and let's hear from Dennis. Dennis, thank you for calling the radio show. What's going on in your life? Fight you calling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Hey, man. Thanks for having me. Been listening to the show for a while. I've got this thing I need to get off my chest from earlier today. I'm a little buzzed, so I might be more open than usual.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, there, Dennis, what's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Well, I do landscaping, right? And today I had this job at this gym doing the bushes out front, and I went inside to use the bathroom and shit. I ended up hooking up with this dude in the locker room. I'm not even gay at least I don't think I am, but it just kind of happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, dude, well, if you hooked up with a dude in the locker room, there might be a good chance that you might be at least a little bit gay. And you know, no big deal, that's kind of strange, you're just doing your job and hook up with a dude in the locker room, like on the job at work. It's a little bit extreme, don't you think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>I know, man. I know. And while never done anything like that at work before, but this guy was just checking me out while I was washing my hands, and next thing you know, we're in the shower stall and fuck, you're right, though. I fooled around with guys before just never thought of myself as gay. Maybe I'm by or something. My head's just spinning about the whole thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, did you prefer it over the company of women?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Honestly, it's different, but yeah, I kind of did. The thing with guys is it's just more direct, you know, games, just straight to what we both want. But I still love women, too. I just can't believe I did this shit during work hours. My employees were out there trimming hedges while I was, getting you into the picture.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, that's a little bit strange and definitely unprofessional, but it sounds like you, sir, are gay, and that's okay. I'm glad you had a good time in the locker room with your, with some strange dude. I hope you used protection and maybe next time, do it off-hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Yeah, man, you're right about all of that. I was safe, not totally stupid. Just got caught up in the moment, you know? But fuck, doing it during work hours was definitely not my proudest moment. My crew probably wondered where the hell I disappeared to for so long. I should probably stick to Grindr on my own time from now on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, if you're playing on Grindr, you're gay and you know it, so, uh, good for you. I'm glad that you just happened to have protection with you when you were gonna fuck a random dude at the gym, but hey, if you had a good time, nobody got hurt. Congratulations, model top.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Now, I never said I was on Grindr, this was totally random, and I got the condom from the vending machine in there. I'm not that prepared, but fuck, maybe you're right. Maybe I've been fighting this side of myself for too long. It just feels weird saying it out loud, you know? Like, I've got this whole macho business owner thing going on, but then here I am hooking up with dudes in gym.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, you know what I always say, uh, if it feels weird saying it aloud, you should call into a radio show and tell the whole world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Shit, when you put it that way, it does sound pretty crazy. Here I am telling all of Baltimore about my gym hookup, but fuck it. I'm three beers in and it feels good to just be honest about it. Better than keeping it bottled up and freaking out alone in my truck like I was doing earlier. Thanks for letting me get this off my chest, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no problem, that's what we're here for. Oh, right, so it looks like we've come to the conclusion of the show, tune in tomorrow for our next batch of guest advice. Thanks for listening to Luke at the Roost. Let's Luke at the Roost, and remember, if you have protection and you need a dude at the gym and you fuck them in the ass in the shower, you're probably a game-in.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 20: Dads, Drummers, and Dilemmas</h1>
|
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-24T07:22:37+00:00">February 24, 2026</time> · 56 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this packed 20th episode, Luke tackles a wide range of callers' issues - from a man discovering a secret second family, to a midwife obsessing over enchilada orders, to a firefighter considering a musical comeback. Through it all, Luke offers his trademark blend of tough love and heartfelt wisdom. Don't miss this entertaining and thought-provoking installment of Luke at the Roost!</p>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Luke, and I am your host of this radio show, Luke at the Roost. It's the radio show where you can call in and tell me what's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can. If you'd like to call in and get some advice, the number's 208-439-583. That's 208-439 Luke. locked in the back of a RV and you don't want to draw attention to yourself, you can send us an email at submissions at lukeatsderoose.com. And if we deem that it's funny enough, then it may be played on one of these next year episodes. Tonight is a very special night. It's Monday, February 23rd, here in animus, New Mexico. And this is the 20th episode of this we have a new segment. The segment's called Storytime with Luke, and this is what it's about. Storytime with Luke. Storytime with Luke. Okay, so this is Storytime with Luke. And today's story, I've been sitting at my computer here for 16, 18 hours of, day for the last couple of weeks and not getting a whole lot of activity or moving. And my dog, Elvis, the king here, has been looking at me like, what the hell, man? When are we going to go do something fun? So I decided today that it was a nice enough out to go for our regular scheduled walk up to the mercantile store and around and back. And today on our walk, something special happened. So Elvis, when Elvis takes a piss, he squats down like a girl. And I try to tell him, Elvis, all the other dogs in town are going to make fun of you. If they catch you doing this, you should really be lifting your leg like a male dog. So today, on our walk, I saw him find a nice little bush and lift his leg. And then I was so proud. I filled up with joy and pride. And he lifted up his leg and took a shit with his leg waving the air. Storytime with Luke. Storytime with Luke. All right. Well, that's Story Time with Luke. I hope you liked it. We're about to get to the calls. I'm going to start some music here. Here we go. A little ambiance. And first up on the line here, we have Donnie. The show, how can we help you today? What's going on in your life, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, thanks for taking my call. So I found out about two hours ago that my dad had a whole second family I never knew about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like he had a second family? Like brothers and sisters and stuff? Or you have a second family? Like brothers and sisters and stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>No, I have brothers and sisters I never knew existed. My dad died three months ago. And tonight, some woman in Tucson emails me a photo of three kids who apparently grew up calling him dad, same as I did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, can we assume that that email came from their mother?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Yeah, yeah, it did. She said she thought I should know now that he's gone, that her kids have been asking about me, which is wild because I didn't even know they existed until 7 o'clock tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a pretty weird thing to feel, what are you going to do about that? Are you going to reach out to them and try to start a relationship or just let it be?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think it's the big things that they care about so much.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EBONY</span><p>I got in my head tonight thinking it wasn't enough, that I wasn't enough, because I can't...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? You're doing great. Those donuts on Saturday morning, that's exactly the kind of memory that's going to stick with them forever. That's their version of learning to drive in the Kmart parking lot. And it's perfect because it's yours. It's what you can do, and you're doing it consistently. That's what matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EBONY</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I actually do that already. Every Saturday morning, we go to this little donut shop, and they each pick one, and we sit there and talk about their week. It's like five bucks total, and they love it. I just, I don't know. I got in my head tonight thinking it wasn't enough, that I wasn't enough, because I can't...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EBONY</span><p>I mean, they might in the moment while they're young, but when they get older and they can look back and see what you did give them, they'll much appreciate donut Saturday or Donut Sunday or whatever it was over. My mom gave me this fancy car. If you want to make more money and be able to do those bigger things, that's an option too. You can do those things, but I think probably it would take more of your time and attention away from the kids and make those gifts a lot less meaningful. You know what's messed up? I heard from Donnie earlier, the guy who called about his dad having the whole second family, and I was sitting here thinking, at least my dad was there. At least he gave me his time. And then I turn around and worry I'm not giving my kids enough because I can't buy them a truck someday. Like I'm completely missing what actually mattered about my dad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, don't worry about it. You just got got by a commercial. That's what they're designed to do, it's doing a very good job on you. So don't worry about it. You're enough for your kids. Give them as much as you can in your time and attention. Spend time with them and have those special days, and that's what they're going to remember when they get older.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EBONY</span><p>Thank you. I really needed to hear that tonight. I'm going to finish this wine. Look at some more space pictures and actually get some sleep before I have to open tomorrow. And maybe I'll take the kids for donuts a day early this week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Excellent. I think you could have double donuts this week. And if you want to go for extra credit, you could teach them to do donuts in your car before it goes to the junkyard. So that's what I recommend. And don't worry about it too much. Stay off the commercials. Speaking of commercials, it's time for an ad from our sponsors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This episode is sponsored by Shoe Spray Co. It's to With spray you use in rental bowling shoes, because bowling is a game, but these shoes are gross. Let's be honest, those shoes aren't dirty. They're used. They've had shifts. They've been through birthdays, work parties, and at least one guy who insists he's actually really good at this. Shoospray code doesn't promise fresh linen or spring rain. Nobody believes that. No one wants to be lied to while lacing up rental shoes. Shoe Spray Co just handles the situation. It makes them tolerable enough that you can focus on the important part, pretending you're not competitive and then getting mad anyway. Use code strike at shoe spray co for 15% off. Shoespray Co. Reality-based footwear management.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and we're back. We're back just in time to hear from Murray. Murray, welcome to the show. You're calling in on our 20th episode. Congratulations. What would you like to talk about? Let's make it a good one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I got this envelope from Lab Corp sitting on my kitchen table right now, and I'm pretty sure it's going to tell me whether or not I'm a dad to a three-year-old I've never met. My ex-girlfriend called me three weeks ago out of nowhere. We broke up about four years back. She moved to Tucson, and apparently she's getting married now. Her daughter's three, and the timeline lines up with when we were were still hooking up sometimes, so she needs to know for sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, she didn't think about maybe mentioning that while you were still involved together. That's a bit odd, and I'm sorry to hear that. That's my worst nightmare right there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Yeah, well, here's the thing. She says she wasn't sure herself until recently. We were on and off for like five years, total mess of a relationship. And I guess there was another guy in the picture She thought it was his. He thought it was his. They tried to make it work for a while. But now the kid's getting older and apparently doesn't look anything like him. And her fiance wants everything settled before they get married. So here I am. Staring at this envelope, I'm too chicken shit to open.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why don't you open it right now? Live on the air?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Oh man, I don't know if I can do that. I've been sitting here for. I've been sitting here for for two hours just looking at it. The thing is, Luke, and this is what's really messing with me, I've already been playing both scenarios out in my head for three weeks straight. Like, what does my life look like if I open this and it says yes? What does it look like if it says no?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I can tell you right now, if it says no, your life looks exactly the same as it does today. If it says yes, then your life looks completely different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>That's exactly it. And here's the part the hell out of me. I think I wanted to say yes. I'm 36 years old. I teach eighth grade social studies in Lordsburg. I go home to an empty house every night. I've been thinking about this little girl for three weeks, wondering if she likes dinosaurs, or if she's scared of the dark, or what her voice sounds like. My ex sent me one picture, just one, and I've looked at it about a hundred times trying to see if she has my nose or my eyes or anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not going to do anything for you because people have eerie similarities and it's possible that she got other genes that give her a different nose from both of you, so I don't know that that's going to do it for you. You're going to have to open the letter to find out, but the way I see it is if you want it to be true, then you can't lose. Open it up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. Okay, hold on. I'm opening it right now. My hands are shaking like crazy. Okay. sharing it open.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Good for you. What does it say? What does it say? Everybody's waiting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>It says, probability of paternity, 90 to 9.9%. I'm her dad. Oh my God, I'm her dad. Oh, my God, I'm her dad. Her name is Sophia.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, congratulations to you and your new toddler-aged three-year-old daughter. That's very good news, and we're all happy for you. So now you've got to get to get yourself another room and turn it into a little girl's room and she can come over on the weekends and everybody's going to laugh and laugh and laugh.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Yeah, except she's in Tucson and I'm here in Lordsburg, and her mom's getting married in like two months. I don't even know what my rights are, if I have any. I haven't been there for three years, Luke. Three years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you didn't know, and she didn't tell you, and there's no way you could have known, but you can definitely fight for the those rights. And it sounds like she wanted you to know because she reached out and told you about it. So talk to her, see what the arrangement's going to be. And then if you have to go to the courts to get some level of custody of your child, then go do that. But yeah, congratulations. Happy day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Thank you. God, I need to call her right now. I need to call Veronica right now and tell her. Thank you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're very welcome. I'm glad I could help. Next up on the line we have Debbie. Debbie, welcome to the show. What's going on for you on this wonderful Monday evening?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I bought a house six months ago, and I'm sitting on the bedroom floor right now in my coat, because I sat in the driveway for like 45 minutes tonight, and I just realized I don't actually want to be here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't want to be where? You don't want to be in the house, or you don't want to be in the area you're in, or where is it you don't want to be?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>In the house. Like, this is the first real thing I ever owned, you know? I'm 21. I bought it myself, with money I made selling jewelry and vintage stuff online, and I should be so proud of it. But I pulled into the driveway tonight after working all day, and I just sat there with the engine running because going inside felt like this weight dropping on me. And now I'm inside, and it still feels</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? I think the crushing weight that you feel dropping on you is called a mortgage. Yeah, mortgage. That's part of homeownership and that's the part that never feels good. So here's what I recommend to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Since you just bought the house, congratulations, it's a good thing to own property, especially at your age. I think you should live in that house for a year or two. See what it's like to be a homeowner and get used to utilities and small repairs and stuff like that. later, after some time that you don't want to be there, you can either rent the house out and be a landlord, or you could sell the house at probably a significant profit, usually. So that's what I think you should do. Enjoy the house while you're there. You can do anything for a couple of years, so just live there. And then when you're ready to move on, move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, but see, that's the thing, though. It's not the mortgage. I make good money like really good money. figures from my Etsy shop. I work harder than anyone I know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Great. It seems like you've got a nice place to work on your Etsy shop for the next couple of years then.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Luke, I'm working like 16 hour days. I'm refreshing my shop stats at two in the morning. I haven't taken a weekend off and I don't even know how long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like your problem. So if you're making enough money, you've got your house, your mortgage is covered. you're not worried about the money, then take a weekend off and unwind. That's a stressful situation buying a house and you're very young, so that's a big decision, and it's going to affect you. So take some time for yourself and re-center your whole outlook on things. And if you still feel like you don't want to be in the house in another six months, then get out of it. There's plenty of ways to do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I know I need to. I know I need to. I know I know I I should hire help, take time off, all of that. But hearing you say it out loud makes it feel more real, you know? Like I can't just keep telling myself, I'll slow down next month.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope, but it sounds like you've made good progress and congratulations on the success of your business and your new home ownership. And if you're finding out that's not the life you want, then at any point you can turn about face and go for a different one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. Thank you, Luke. I appreciate it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem. That's what we do here. Next up we have Darnell. Darnell, what's going on in your world today, sir? How can we help you at Luke at the Roost?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Man, so I'm sitting in my garage right now, surrounded by all these boxes I pulled down. And I just found these old demo tapes from like 2004, 2005. Me and my cousin Marcus, we had this whole hip-hop. thing going. And Luke, I'm telling you, listening to these tracks right now, they're actually good, like really good. Better than half the stuff that's on the radio these days. And here's the thing that's got me twisted up. Last week, my captain at the station, Rick, he pulls me aside and says the department might not make budget next year.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, congratulations on finding your old records. You know what? I think most of us have a box full of old records that's better than what's on the radio right now. people with records that are better than what's on the radio right now. And as far as the department not making budget, that's pretty much every department right now. So you're in the same boat as literally everyone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah, no, I hear you. I'm not special. It's just, okay, so I've been a firefighter for eight years now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you're not going to make budget? What does that mean for you? Does that mean you lose your job, or you have to take a pay cut, or you're not going to get the hours you expect? What is... the budget, the department being out of money mean to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>It means they might not hire the next class, which means the guys who were supposed to move up, they're stuck, which means I'm stuck. I've been waiting on a promotion for two years now, and Rick's basically saying it's not happening anytime soon. Maybe not at all if things get worse. So I'm looking at the same position, same pay, for who knows how long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know that I've ever seen a plan to make things get not worse. Worse seems to be the default trajectory of everything. So I would expect things are probably going to get worse, and you're going to be locked at the same pay while you're in that same area in that department. So if you would like to move up in the fire department, you may have to move to another location that has more of a budget to pay you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah, and that's the thing I keep coming back to. I could apply to Phoenix, Scottsdale places that are hiring. But I've got a mortgage here. got her job at the hospital. And honestly, man, I like my crew. I'm good at what I do. But sitting here tonight listening to these tracks, hearing myself at 20 years old, before I had all this locked down. I don't know. It's like I can hear this version of myself that still thought anything was possible, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nothing's locked down. Anything is still possible. If you want to pursue a hip-hop career, you can do that. You're probably not going to do so well in the there's plenty of people with great hip-hop records, but you can give it a shot. It has been done. Maybe Dr. Dre'll come down into a rap battle and discover you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Ha, yeah, Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. Trail at the VFW Hall. Look, I'm not delusional. I know I'm not going to be a rapper at 34 with a mortgage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is very unlikely, but it's not impossible. And it sounds like if the mortgage is a problem, then you can. You can get rid of that. That's not locked down. You can always sell a house and the wife likes her job, but she can continue to like her job and live somewhere else, or you can talk to her and explain to her that you're stagnant and you need to make a move and talk that out with her and see if it's a possibility. If you really want to go thermonuclear, you can blow up your entire life and start over in a van by the river.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Right, right. No, it's not even that I want to blow everything up. It's more like Okay, so Marcus moved to Flagstaff in 2006, got into construction, and that was it for the music. And I went hard at the fire academy. Got the job, bought the house, did everything right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you did everything right for you at the time, and it may not be what's right for you now. Or it may be. This might just be a strange feeling you're having that you could be having a different life. But there's a couple of things here. If you want to pursue music, you can do that either as a career or just for fun. There's plenty of people that would collaborate with you on a hip-hop project, I'm sure. And it's never been easier than it is today to make music or art or really anything. So you can do that if you want on the side. And if you need more money, you're stagnant, you're stagnant at the department. Then you have to change what county you're in and go work for a department that's funded.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I could just make music again without it being a whole career third. thing. I haven't even talked to Marcus in like six months. I could call him up, see if he's still got any of his equipment. The thing is, I think what's really getting to me is I spent three hours out here tonight, and I felt more alive than I have in months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I used to have a box full of CDs like that, too, of all my demos and songs that I wrote. And what I realized, after carrying them around for 20 years in a giant box full of unmarked stuff, is that I don't even own a Nobody cares. So I threw them away. If you want to make music, make music for you. If you want to make a career out of it, then you got to really buckle down and make a career out of it. And if you need more money, then you've got to find another job. That's all there is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Man, that's harsh. But you're probably right. I've been carrying these tapes around the same way, not even listening to them, just knowing they're up there. And tonight, I finally pull them down, and it's not. Like, what was I waiting for? Permission? The money thing, though. That's real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, the money thing is real as it is for most people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you're going to have to figure out a way to make enough money to support your mortgage if that's what you want to do. And I'm just going to go out on a limb and say a rap career probably isn't it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah, no, you're right. I mean, I knew that before I call. I think I just needed to probably Phoenix or Scottsdale. Get on with a department that's actually funded. Keep the house. Keep the benefits. My wife and I could handle the commute for a while, or we sell and move closer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can absolutely do that for as long as you can stand it. A commute like that will get to anybody's nerves over time. But for now, you can do it. You could rent out the house and get yourselves an apartment in the city or do the commute.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Right. Yeah. Rent it out. smart. Cover the mortgage that way. Get a place closer to wherever I end up. And I can still mess around with the music on weekends. Just for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, sir. You most certainly can. That's the way to do it. And make sure that you're fulfilling all areas of your life. And music is definitely one of those.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah, yeah. I appreciate that, Luke. I think I just needed to hear someone cut through the bullshit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's what I do. I cut through the bullshit. like a hot knife through cheese. And, uh, okay, so I am obligated now to play another one of the words from our sponsors. Let's talk about mental health. Specifically, let's talk about brutal honesty, the therapy app that's tired of your shit. Unlike other apps with their calming voices and gentle affirmations, brutal honesty pairs you with an AI therapist that tells you what your friends are too nice to say. Did you try journal? about it? No, we're not doing that. Our algorithm analyzes your patterns and asks questions like, why do you think you deserve to feel better when you don't even drink water? And is your anxiety real or did you just have four cold bruise on an empty stomach? Brutal honesty, because coddling yourself got you here. First session is free, but it will hurt your feelings. Use code grow up at checkout. Brutal honesty, the app that blocks itself if you don't do the work. Okay, and we're back here with Roberta on the line. Roberta, welcome to the show. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I'm sitting here in the dark at my thrift store, and I just found out my business partner emptied our bank account three days ago and took off with everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How much was everything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>$42,000, which was supposed to cover payroll, rent, utilities, our spring inventory. by. I had two employees show up this morning, and their checks bounced. I've been staring at this screen showing zero for the past hour trying to figure out how I'm going to tell my husband that the money we put into this place is just gone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Have you, uh, reached out to the business partner, I assume?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>I've called her probably 30 times since Friday. Straight to voicemail every single time. I drove by her house yesterday and her car's not there, mails piling up. She's just gone. She's just gone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know that $42,000 is enough money to disappear for any significant length of time, so it's likely she'll be back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>That's what I keep telling myself. But Luke, she knew exactly what she was doing. She waited until Friday, after the banks closed, cleaned out the account, and by Monday morning, we're dead in the water. This wasn't some panic move. And the thing is, we've been friends for six years. We started this story. We started this story together from nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you both had your names on the accounts, which means she was within her rights to withdraw that money. So I don't think that you have any legal recourse to go after it. Maybe you could try to sue her in civil court, you know. But I don't know. I'm not a lawyer. I would think that probably you're screwed on this one and you're going to have to come up with another way to raise that money to cover your payroll.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Yeah, I figured. That's the part that's making me sick. I keep thinking. I keep thinking about Darnell earlier. You know, stuck because of budget cuts. At least he's got a steady paycheck. I've got two employees who depend on me and I can't even make good on what I owe them. One of them is a single mom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is rough. And I think, um, maybe have you told your employees yet what the situation is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>I told them their checks bounced, but I made up some story about a bank error. Said it would be fixed by Wednesday. I couldn't look them in the eye and tell them the that I have no idea when I can pay them or if we're even going to stay open.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like maybe you shouldn't stay open if you don't have the operating expenses to sustain the business, but you should let them know the truth so that they can make alternate plans. And also, you got to tell your husband what's going on because that affects him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just Danny and I put 28,000 into this place when we opened. That was our savings. Money we were supposed to be supposed to use to finally fix the roof. Maybe take a real vacation for once.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's a lot of money to lose, but it seems like you lost it. And I hope that in this experience, you've learned a valuable lesson, which is never trust anybody. If you're going to go into business with a partner, make sure that everything is well-buttoned up by a lawyer, and that you both need to sign the checks in order to take the money out of the accounts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>God, that's dark. But yeah, I guess that's where I'm at now. Six years of friendship. Gone. The crazy thing is, she was the one who was always so careful about the books. Always worried about every penny. I trusted her completely. I never even thought to check the account myself until it was too late.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, it's only been a few days. There could be a reasonable explanation. Maybe she had her mother kidnapped and had to pay a ransom in Bitcoin or something like that, and it's the only thing she knew how to do. There could have been good intentions behind this. Probably not. Probably she ripped you off and ran. But, but we don't know that until you talk to her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>I haven't thought about it like that. I mean, I've been so angry I just assumed the worst. But you're right. I don't actually know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, you can let the police know. You can let the bank know. I don't think that they can do anything about it at this point, but you should still let them know that there was some kind of misgoings on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Yeah, I called the bank this morning. said since her name's on the account, technically she didn't steal anything. It's a civil matter, not criminal. So I'd have to sue her, get a lawyer, spend money I don't have to, maybe get back money I'll never see again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, there is small claims court. I think that only goes up to like 15 grand or something like that, but at least it's something. It forces her to show face, so it'll bring her back to the area if she's left.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>That's true. I didn't think about small claims. I didn't think about At least I could get her in front of a judge. Make her explain herself. Even if I don't get all the money back, maybe I'd get some answers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't think you need a lawyer for small claims court. I did it once, actually. One summer night, I went out looking for my backpack in my car and it was gone. So somebody had stolen it. So I went to the police. I let them know. Somebody stole my stuff. And then I found, I was searching through Craigslist. I found somebody selling some of the stuff that was in my backpack. So I went back to the police station and we set up a sting operation where I offered to buy back some of the gear that I had had in the backpack and meet a dude in a CVS parking lot. And the cops set up across the street to see the transaction go down. And that proved that, you know, the items were stolen for me and I had to go to small claims to look for restitution. I never did get the money, but he was ordered to pay it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, you set up a sting operation over a backpack? That's incredible. I can't even get my partner to answer her phone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>But yeah, okay. So even if she's ordered to pay, there's no guarantee I'll actually see the money. That's what I figured. Well, no, I set up a sting operation over the items that were inside the backpack.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But I think you will see the money if you push it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I didn't. It was only a couple hundred bucks where there wasn't worth any more of my time. But I probably could have gone back to the court and enforced his, I don't know, probation fees or something to be diverted to me. I don't know how any of that works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right. Okay. So there's ways to actually collect if you stay on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I mean, we're talking about enough to cover payroll for two people, so it's worth my time. I just hate that it's come to this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it takes a long time, so it's not going to cover your payroll right away. If you need to cover that payroll, you're going to have to find another way alone or, you know, talk to friends and family and see what you can do to raise the money. And stop operations because you can't afford to pay them going forward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I've been sitting here like if I just figure out the legal stuff, the money will magically appear. But those employees need to get paid this week, not six months from now when a judge orders it. I'm going to have to tell Danny tonight. See if we can scrape together enough between savings and maybe his sister.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sucks. I'm sorry that you ended up in that situation. It's a hard place to be. And I don't envy you at all, but that's the right thing to do. I think that's the correct course of action. And hopefully it all works out. And she comes back and returns the money. But I wouldn't bet on that. For now, I'd start looking at other arrangements.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I'm not holding my breath for her to suddenly grow a conscience. I appreciate you talking me through it. I'd just been spinning my wheels all day. Couldn't even Think straight. At least now I know what I got to do. Even if it sucks. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're welcome. That's what we do here. Hopefully it all works out. And you get your money back and you're able to pay your employees and continue with your thrift shop business. Next up on the line we have Phil. Phil, how you doing, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Hey, Luke, I'm all right, man. So I've been sitting here at the laundromat for like two hours now. And I cannot stop thinking about that Zachary Ty Bryan thing you mentioned earlier. You know the Home Improvement Kid getting locked up for violating probation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do not. I have no idea what you're talking about. Are you talking about the television show Home Improvement from the 90s with Tim Allen, one of his kids?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, yeah, the middle kid. Jonathan Taylor Thomas's TV brother. I read about it today. And it's been stuck in my head. Because my cousin Danny's sentencing is on Wednesday. And I'm supposed to text to testify against him tomorrow. Well, not against him exactly. But I saw what I saw behind the Circle K back in November. And the prosecutor keeps calling to make sure my story stays straight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it that you saw behind the Circle K?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>I saw Danny breaking into the storage unit back there. It was like two in the morning. I was coming back from dropping off my girlfriend at the time, and I see him with a crowbar prying open the lock. And the thing is, he looked right at me. eye contact. We grew up together, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and how did you end up on the telephone contact list for the prosecution?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>I called it in that night. I sat in my truck for like 10 minutes, just watching him load stuff into his car. And I kept thinking, maybe I should just drive away, you know? But then I thought about the guy who owns that Circle K. Jose, he's always been decent to everyone. And I just called 911.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so that's a little thing we in the business like to call snitching, and it's never a good idea to be the snitch, as they say. So do you have plans on how you're going to navigate that in a post-snitch world?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>That's the thing that's eating me up, Luke. Danny's mom has left me like eight voicemails today saying Uncle Hector would be ashamed of me. And that one hits different because Hector died last spring. He was the one who raised both of us half the time. Let us run wild on dirt bikes every Saturday. And now, I'm driving the same routes through Lordsburg and Amas for UPS that we used to tear up as kids. And everyone knows. Like I went into the gas station on Friday, and the guy behind the counter wouldn't even look at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you must have expected that when you ran your mouth about what you saw behind the circle K.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>I mean, yeah. I knew it wasn't going to be good, but I guess I thought doing the right thing would feel different than this. Like maybe people would understand that Danny's been spiraling since Hector died, stealing copper wire, breaking into storage units, and somebody had to pump the brakes. But instead, I'm Nerat, and he's the victim. And his mom is blowing up my phone talking about family loyalty while her son is out there destroying himself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, there are other ways you could have handled that. I mean, you turned in your own family to the police. That's pretty, uh, uh, nobody's going to respect that very much. You could have, uh, uh, uh, you could have gone up to him on the side and let him know that you saw that and not to continue doing it or, you know, giving him the chance to stop in his tracks. But that's not what you did. You just called the police. So, yes, you are a rat.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>You're right. I could have walked over there that night and said something. I sat in my truck for 10 minutes. I had time. And the worst part is, Danny would have listened to me. We've been tight since we were kids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, the way I've seen. You have two options. You can go in there and testify the truth and let them know what you saw and rat out your family, or you can, you can, uh, not tell the truth and lie under perjury and, uh, give up yourself that way. So either way, it's not the best situation to be in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>I already gave a statement to the cops that night, though. The prosecutor called today to prep me, make sure my story stays consistent. So if I get up there Wednesday and sell, Suddenly I didn't see what I saw. They're going to know I'm lying. And then I'm looking at perjury charges on top of being the guy who snitched and then trying to take it back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't matter if they know you're lying. It only matters if they can prove you're lying. And it was dark. It was rainy and you would you were tired that night and who you saw was actually not this person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Man, that's the problem though. It wasn't dark and rainy. It was like 9.30 on a clear night and I was parked maybe 30 feet away. I watched him for 10 minutes. The prosecutors got my original statement where I described everything. What he was wearing. The stuff he was loading.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sounds to me like you're not listening to me, sir. It was dark, and you're not sure what you saw. You called the police, uh, in haste.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>You know what? You're right. I hear you. It was dark. I was tired after a long shift, and I shouldn't have been so sure about what I saw from that distance. Maybe I jumped the gun calling it in like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe you did. I would be careful if I were you on account of the whole stitches thing, because you know who gets stitches. And next up on the line we have Adrian. Adrian, thanks for calling in. What's going on with our callers today? We're, uh, we've got some not very interesting calls. Uh, can you help us out?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Oh man, I hope so. So I'm sitting here cutting up Hatch Green Chile for a birth tomorrow. My client wants a pot of stew ready for after she delivers. And I just need to say something about commitment that's been driving me crazy all night. I was at the diner earlier and this tourist couple ordered Christmas-style enchiladas. You know red and green Chile.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So, you're working with a woman who's given birth and her demand for post-birth snack is a chili soup?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>Stew, not soup. And yeah, she's very special. specific about it. She's having the baby tomorrow. I'm her midwife. And she swears, she needs hatch green Chile stew waiting for her after delivery. But that's not why I called. What's bugging me is this whole Christmas thing. The waitress winked at me when they ordered it, like we were in on some joke together, and it just set me off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you hate Christmas?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>No, I love Christmas, the holiday. I'm talking about Christmas-style enchilada. I'm talking about Christmas-style enchilada. red and green chili together. It's what tourists order when they can't commit to one or the other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you know what tourists do? By definition? They come into your town and they spend money and promote businesses and make sure that everybody in the area that, you know, works there, gets paid so that they can eat. So what seems to be the problem with this red and green chili?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>Okay. Fair point about the money. But here's what's getting under my skin. Choosing both isn't really choosing at all. It's hedging your bets. It's saying, I can't commit to red or green, so I'll just take everything. And I've been thinking about commitment a lot lately because my second ex-husband just got engaged after six months to someone who probably orders Christmas every single damn time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Um, well, that's not necessarily what it means. It could also mean that somebody likes both red and green chili and wants to have them both. Uh, which is a perfectly acceptable way to eat an enchilada.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>You're right. It is acceptable. I know I'm being irrational here, but it feels like a metaphor for my whole life right now. I'm a midwife. I'm a photographer on the side. I caught this perfect shot of a barn owl on my drive home tonight. And I keep thinking about how I wait for the right moment with photography.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, photography is a fun hobby, and to get the shot, you often have to wait for the right moment or identify the right moment. right moment while it's happening. And that is a skill.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>It's more than a hobby for me, but yeah, and that's what I'm good at. Patience, waiting for the right moment instead of just taking whatever's in front of me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what does that have to do with this chilly situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>Because I didn't wait with either of my marriages. I just jumped in, took what was there, didn't really choose deliberately. And now my second ex is engaged after six months to someone else. And I'm sitting here at my kitchen table at midnight, chopping green chili for a client stew. And I'm wondering if maybe I'm the one who should have been ordering Christmas all along.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Here's what I say. If you like red chili, buy the red chili enchilada. If you like green chili, buy the green chili angelata. If you like both chilies, or you'd like to try a little bit of each, buy the Christmas enchilada. And that's all there is to it. It has nothing to do with, uh, your midwife chili stew or your failed marriages.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>You're absolutely right. God, I called in about enchiladas like a crazy person. I heard Roberta earlier talking about her business partner cleaning out their account. And that's a real problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. I understand enchiladas are very important. And so are green chilies, especially around hatch. So I can see where you derived all. all meaning in your life from metaphors of chili colors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>Okay, now you're making fun of me. Fair enough. I deserve it. I just, I think what I'm actually upset about is that he moved on so fast. Six months, Luke. We were together for three years, and it took him six months to find someone he wants to marry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, I was married a lot longer than that, and it took her a lot less, so you're in good company. and it makes no difference to you. It doesn't matter. Let them all be happy. Let them all eat chilies. That's what I say. Let everybody eat chilies and you just focus on what you've got in front of you, which is a birthing mother who wants her goddamn stew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>You're right. She's due any day now and she's been so specific about this stew. It has to be hatch green. It has to have pork shoulder. It has to simmer for at least four hours. And honestly, I love that about her. She knows exactly. what she wants.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, that's good for you. I mean, if somebody, if one of my clients was like that, I would be like, you have to make your own stew. Um, but if you can, if you can deal with that, good for you. Give her the stew that she deserves. That's what I say. Give, give people the stew that they deserve.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SARAH</span><p>That's actually perfect advice. Give people the stew they deserve. I'm going to write that down. Thank you, Luke. I needed someone to tell me I was being ridiculous. about the enchiladas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here I am to tell you you were being ridiculous about the enchiladas. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the end of our 20th episode. Thank you for tuning in. We hope you're enjoying Luke at the Roost, and we'll catch it again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 21: Carts, Confetti, and Canine Collateral</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-25T08:07:39+00:00">February 25, 2026</time> · 46 min</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Hello everybody. Welcome back to Luke at the Roost. I am your host, Luke, and today is Tuesday, February 24th. This is the call-in radio show where you can call in and ask me anything about what's on your mind. I'll give you the best advice I can, though I am not a lawyer, I am not an accountant, and I give terrible advice. So with that being said, if you'd like to call in, the number's 208, 4th, 3,000, 3rd, 39-5853. That's 208-439. Luke. First up on the phones here, we've got Greg. Greg, welcome to the show. How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Luke, hey, yeah. So our smart speaker tried to wake up the entire neighborhood at four in the morning, blasting mariachi music. And I'm pretty sure my wife's never going to let me hear the end of it. The thing is I never even wanted the damn thing. My daughter set it up last Christmas, said it'd make our lives easier, and I've been side-eyeing it ever since. Just sitting there on the kitchen counter like some kind of little robot spy. And this morning it just decides, 4 a.m. Time for a fiesta, apparently.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what else do you use it for? There's some pretty good uses for it. It is a little robot spy sitting there listening to everything you say, but it can be fun too and useful.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Honestly, Linda uses it for timers when she's cooking. asks it about the weather sometimes. I mostly just walk past it. She'll say, play some Fleetwood Mac, and it does, and I guess that's nice enough. But I work nights, Luke, so when I'm home during the day, I'm trying to sleep. And more than once, that thing has started talking out of nowhere because it thought it heard something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, you can turn the microphone off, so it doesn't operate that way?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Yeah. My daughter told me that too. But then Linda says, well, what's the point of having it if we turn it off? And she's got a point, I guess. makes me uneasy. I grew up with a rotary phone on the kitchen wall, you know. You wanted music you put on a record.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, now it's 2026 and that's not how it's done anymore. And there are some ways that you can manage that device without having the speaker on. I mean, you have to have the speaker on something, like a smart watch or something. But you can set up a shortcut, so if you talk to your watch, it'll play Fleetwood Mac on the smart speaker.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>I don't have a smart watch, Luke. I've got a where I work about eight years ago, still keeps perfect time. But look, the real kicker this morning was I had to climb up into the attic in my boxes to pull the plug because the thing wouldn't respond to anything we said.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well here's my advice for you. This is what I would do. I would set up a shortcut. You might not have a smart watch, but you do have a smartphone, so you can open up the Google Home or Apple HomeKit or whatever it is app for your smart speaker and set a schedule so that at 10 p.m. it, uh, you can open up the uh, mutes the volume until 8 a.m. And then you don't have to worry about waking up the neighbors at 4 a.m.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Huh. That's actually not a bad idea. I didn't even know you could do that. See, this is the problem. My daughter sets this stuff up and then moves back to Phoenix, and I'm just supposed to figure it out. Linda standing there in her robe this morning with a flashlight, laughing so hard she's crying while I'm freezing my ass off in the attic. And I'm thinking there's got to be a better way to handle this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're supposed to figure it out. You know how you figure it out? You fucking try. It's really not that hard. It's not rocket science. You actually are like, hey, how could I solve this problem? And you don't even have to know the answer. You just go to your search engine of choice. Google is one good one, and you can say, how can I stop this smart speaker from going off in the middle of the... Just fucking try. That's all you have to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>All right, all right. I hear you. You're not wrong. I guess I've been treating it like it's some kind of alien technology, when really I just need to spend 10 minutes poking around in the app. It's just, I don't know, Luke. When you've been doing the same job for 12 years, stocking the same shelves every night, there's a part of you that stops trying to learn new things. You get in a groove and you stay there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you want to stay there, then you can look like an idiot every time you start playing fiesta music at 4 a.m. But I would recommend that you don't look like an idiot and you actually put in some level of effort, because these are designed so that a 12-year-old can use them. So if a 12-year-old can use it, and you're a full-grown adult, I'm pretty sure you can figure it out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>You know what? You're right. I'm sitting here complaining about a problem that probably takes less time to fix than it took me to climb into that attic this morning. I'll pull up the app on my break. Figure out the schedule thing you mentioned. Can't be harder than learning the new inventory system they made a switch to last year. And I managed that eventually.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I have full faith in your ability to figure out your smart speaker, sir. I wish you the best of luck, but also stop being a lazy bastard. Estelle, thanks for calling in. What's going on today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I work at a laundromat, and I've been tracking who returns their shopping carts in the parking lot, versus who just leaves them wherever. The numbers are driving me crazy, because I think it actually tells you everything you need to know about a person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know about that, but I'm curious about your inventory tracking system. and their laundry. So you can see that the people that do two blankets a week, they're the ones more likely to return their shopping carts. What's your system look like? How detailed is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>No, no, it's not that detailed. I've got the security monitor at my desk in the back office, and I can see the Albertsons across the street. People walk over there, do their shopping, and then I watch what they do with the cart when they get back to their car. I started keeping a tally sheet two weeks ago just marks on paper. One column for people who return it. One column for people who don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Which column do you yourself belong in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>I return mine every time. Even if I'm parked right next to the store, and the cart return is on the other side of the lot. My husband thinks I'm being ridiculous about this whole thing, but I can't help it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Now doesn't the store hire? a guy or lady to go collect those carts and move them out of the parking lot?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Yeah, they do. But that's not the point. The point is, there's no punishment for leaving your cart in the fire lane or blocking a handicapped spot. Nobody's watching. Nobody's making you do the right thing. So when someone walks that cart all the way back to the corral when they could just leave it, that tells me something. That tells me they probably stop if they saw you broken down down on the side of the road. The people who leave it three feet from their car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think that's making quite a few assumptions about the values of people at large.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Is it, though? Because I watched someone last week, leave their cart, right in the middle of an empty parking space. And then two hours later, that same person came back in. Because the dryers ate their quarters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you know what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Do you think the dryers ate their quarters because of a karmic retribution? No, but they stood there at my counter, demanding I give them their money back, saying it wasn't their fault, saying I should have signs posted, even though there are signs posted. They wanted me to fix their problem immediately, but they couldn't be bothered to walk 15 feet to put a cart away. I'm just saying there's a pattern. Tonight, I counted 47 people who returned their carts versus 63 who didn't. And yeah, maybe I'm reading too much into it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But when you sit here night after night, watching people make that choice, when nobody's looking, it starts to feel like it means something. Well, there's a difference here. You see, the difference is that person was not an employee of Albertsons, and it's not their job to return the cart to the designated cart return space. Whereas in the laundromat, it is your job to fix the problem. And if that person lost their quarters in the machine, then yes, they should expect that you're going to fix their problem. That's your entire job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Okay, but the dryer didn't eat their quarters. They put in six quarters for a 40 minute cycle and pulled their clothes out after 20 minutes because they were in a hurry. Then they came back two hours later saying the machine stole from them. I showed them on the timer that they stopped it themselves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, that's different. That is douchebaggery, and I can agree with you on that. And it's a good thing that you had that, uh, that tape ready to show them that, hey, this machine did not eat your quarter, sir. And by the way, you left your shopping cart in the middle of the shopping space and it made me very upset.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>I didn't say that last part to them. I'm not confronting customers about shopping carts at Albertsons, but I'm watching it happen on my security monitor. Because those carts end up blocking my dumpster, and last month, one of them rolled into a customer's Subaru. And I'm sitting here thinking about how it's the same kind of thing. When there's no consequence, when nobody's watching, what do people do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I can't talk about people at large, but I can tell you what I do. When I have a shopping card and I bring it to my car, I unload my goods, my merchandise into the car. And then if there is a spot where I can deposit, that cart within a reasonable distance, I will deposit it. Otherwise, I'll move it somewhere out of the way because usually a parking lot is completely empty and there's plenty of space to drive around a cart, and I'll allow the person whose job it is to put that away to come put it away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>See, that's what I'm talking about. You just said out of the way and plenty of space to drive around it. But who decides what's out of the way? Because I've got full footage of people leaving carts in handicapped spots, thinking they're out of the way. And, yeah, the parking lot looks empty at 10 o'clock at night. But then someone pulls in at 6 in the morning when it's still dark and there's a cart sitting there. It takes 30 seconds to walk it back. 30 seconds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe in that Albertson, but not in every parking lot. There are some that are split in the middle with a sidewalk type thing where you got to lift up the cart and carry it over and then push it back to the front of the store. No, I'm not doing that. But if it's reasonable and there's a little place to put the carts, I would say about 80% of the time I return the carts. And 20% of the time, no. You return the cart. If it bothers you, get out of your car and move it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>So you're part of the 63. And that's fine. You can be part of the 63. But don't act surprised when nobody stops to help you change a tire, because I'm telling you, there's a connection. The people who can't be bothered to take 30 seconds when nobody's watching. Those are the same people who stand at my counter demanding I fix a problem they created. And my husband thinks I'm obsessing over this, but I started keeping the tally sheet two weeks ago just to see if I was crazy. And the numbers don't lie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right, they don't lie. You are crazy. Because sitting at your job, watching across the street and counting the number of times that people return their shopping cards is bat shit crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>You know what? Fair. Maybe it is. But I'm sitting here anyway waiting for the last dryers to finish staring at this monitor. Because someone has to watch for people dumping trash in my dumpster or trying to break into the change machine. And the Albertson's parking lot is right there in frame. So yeah, I started counting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, good for you. How is it improving your life in any way? Instead of, you know, taking your personal pet peeve and associating a moral gauge of people's goodliness based on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Because it's not just a pet peeve. That cart that rolled into the Subaru, I had to deal with that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, what did you have to do to deal with that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>The woman came into my laundromat screaming because she saw it happen on my camera and wanted the footage. And I gave it to her. And you know what it showed? Some guy leaving his cart right where I've got the no parking dumpster access sign and then it just rolled rolled right across the lot into her car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is a goddamn travesty. You know what I suggest? Here's my recommendation for you. Right where it says that no parking dumpster access sign, you should also put another sign that says don't leave your cart here. Uh, because placing a car is not the same as parking a car. Thing is, they move easily, whereas a car you kind of have to turn it out of the way. There's a big difference. So, yeah, I don't think this is a thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Oh, so now I need signs telling people not to leave carts in a fire lane, not to block handicapped spots. How many signs do I need before people just do the basic thing? That's my whole point. It's not about the carts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you're the one that's tracking the carts on a graph there sitting at your desk. So what is it about if it's not about the carts?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>It's about the moral responsibility of society at large. It's about whether someone does the right thing when nobody's making them. That's it. The cart return is right there. You can see it from anywhere in that lot. Takes 30 seconds. But 63 people today couldn't be bothered because there's no consequence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there's no consequence because it's not a law. There's no rule or regulation or law that says you have to return your cart to the place. And that's why there's no consequence. If you want consequence, I suggest that you, I don't know, join your local board of selectmen and issue a state or county wide, townwide, whatever. Issue a town bylaw that all carts will be returned to the cart space. But you see, the thing is, this is this is America. And people want people to come to their stores and they don't want to be hassled with the carts. So that's why they hire somebody to go clean up the carts. Now, if the carts aren't being cleaned up at the end of the night when the store is closed and everybody's going home, whose fault is that? Is it the fault of every individual shopper that was trying to get, you know, their kid to stop crying and get home to make dinner for the family? Or is it the kid that, uh, that had that job and didn't do it before he went home?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>The Albertson's kid isn't out there at 11.30 at night when I'm closing up. And there's three carts blocking my dumpster access. And yeah, maybe that mom had a screaming kid. I get it. But what about the guy I watched tonight in a suit? No kids. Just walked his cart 10 feet past the return to leave it in a handicap spot. What's his excuse?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He had a bunion.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Oh, come on. You don't. Look, I watched him. He was fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, so you can tell? You can tell if he was sick to his stomach and about to puke, tell if his big toe was cut off by a meat cleaver accident this morning? You can't look at somebody and tell how they feel or what's going on in their body or in their mind. I'm sorry, lady. You're out of your mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Okay, fine. Maybe that one guy had a bunion. What about the other 62 people? They all have bunions?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm going to guess that some percentage of them are general assholes, but the vast majority just had other stuff going on. And this is not their primary, you know, priority today.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>But that's exactly what I'm saying. When it's inconvenient, when they've got other stuff going on, they don't do it. That's the test. Anyone can do the right thing when it's easy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm talking about the 30 seconds when you're tired or distracted or your toe hurts. Do you still put the cart back?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>I put the cart back when it makes sense to put the cart back. And when it doesn't, I don't put the car back. And I'm an adult with agency and the ability to tell when it's okay to leave a cart somewhere and when you're blocking something important. And I think most adult people that are able to drive can make that distinction. And it's really not up to you. It's not your job. And it's not your responsibility to decide when that's okay or where it's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But you just said you can tell when you're blocking something important. The guy tonight left his cart in a handicapped spot. That's blocking something important.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Sure, and I told you that there was going to be some percentage of assholes. But that doesn't mean that guy didn't stop on his way home and help an old man fix his tire. It doesn't mean he wouldn't go out of his way to support a food kitchen on Christmas because you don't like the way he handled his cart. Come on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what? One good deed cancels out being inconsiderate. I'm supposed to assume the guy blocking the handicapped spot is secretly Mother Teresa, because maybe he volunteers sometimes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Look, I'm not saying these people are evil.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are. That's exactly what you're saying. You're saying you can tell from whether or not people return their carts how they are in general towards society. You're saying the people that don't return their carts aren't helpful and they're not going to stop on the side of the road and you're making a ton of assumptions here and you're not in a position to do that lady.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>I didn't say they're evil. I said you can tell who would help you change attire. And yeah, I stand by that. The person who can't be bothered to walk 15 feet when they're done shopping, when nobody's watching. Well, I mean, I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you calling for? What advice do you need for me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>I don't know. My husband says, I'm obsessing. He says I need to let it go. Stop keeping the tally sheet. Stop watching the monitor. But I can't stop noticing it now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you obviously are obsessing, and maybe you should let it go because it's obviously not improving your life in any way. And it's making you a miserable old bag.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ESTELLE</span><p>Okay, wow. Miserable old bag. That's nice. All right. So I guess I'm one of those 40% centers or whatever that sucks of life. But I wish you the best and I hope that all your carts end up where they're supposed to go, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>With that being said, it's time for a word from our sponsors. All right. I'm going to read this ad exactly as they sent it to me and I want you to know that I have concerns. Phantom Ranch Wellness wants you to know that your gut health starts and I'm reading this directly from the card now from the other end. They make an at-home home coffee Enema kit. It comes in a box that says wellness inside on the outside, which I think we can agree, is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The kit includes a medical grade silicone bag, organic single origin coffee, because apparently the coffee you put in your, that that coffee needs to be single origin, a detailed instruction booklet and a com card with a QR code to a guided meditation for during. During. There's a guided meditation for during. I'm not going to tell you what to do with your body. That's between you and your bathroom and whatever God you answer to. I will say the reviews are disturbingly positive. Four and a half stars. One guy said it has changed his morning routine, which I believe because it would absolutely change your morning routine. Phantom Ranch Wellness. I read the ad. I didn't endorse it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and we are back. And it is time for a, uh, A listener mail. So here's a submission that we've got to the old email box. If you'd like to send in a submission, it is submissions at luke at the roost.com. And let's see what we've got here. I've been lying to a dying man for seven months and I can't stop. Let's have one of our robot friends read this email.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Subject, I have been lying to a dying man for seven months and I can't stop. Luke, I worked the graveyard shift at a truck stop diner. Seven months ago, this old guy started coming in every single night. Same time, same booth, same order. Black coffee, dry toast, side of applesauce. One night he starts talking to me. Tells me his name is Earl. Tells me he's got the cancer. Tells me his daughter won't return his calls. Then he asks my name. And I don't know why, Luke, but I panicked and I said Diane. My name is not Diane. Not even close. But he got this look on his face like he'd just seen a ghost He whispered, that was my mother's name. And then he cried, and I couldn't take it back after that. So now I'm Diane. Every night. For seven months, I have been Diane to this dying man. I know everything about him. I know he drove trucks for 40 years. I know he regrets missing his daughter's wedding. I know his wife's name was Ruthie, and she made the best cobbler in the state, and he still sets a place for her at Christmas. My coworkers think I'm insane. They call me Diane now too, even when Earl's not there. My manager put Diane on the schedule as a joke. It's not funny anymore. It's on my name tag. I am Diane now. But here's the thing. Earl told me last week that coming in and talking to Diane is the only reason he gets out of bed. That our conversations are keeping him going. That I remind him there are still good people. What am I supposed to do with that? Tell a dying man that the one good thing in his life is based on a lie I told because I got nervous? I don't need advice. I think I'm past advice. I just needed someone else to know that somewhere out there, a woman who is not Diane, is the most important person in a dying man's life. And she has no idea how this ends. Keep the light on for us night shift people. We're out here holding it together with coffee and fake names. Not Diane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, thank you, Not Diane. That's a very kind thing of you to do. If you'd like to send in a message, you can do that at submissions, Luke at theroost.com. Now let's get back to the phones here. We've got Francine. Francine, welcome to the show. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>It's Frankie, actually. But yeah, hey, Luke. So I'm sitting here looking at my buddy Ray's Netflix account, right? And the guy's got like 15 romantic comedies in his cue and a profile that says watching with them with a little heart emoji.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, uh, what's the problem there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>The problem is Ray's been giving me endless shit for years about being with my girlfriend Amber. Like constantly. The whole ball and chain routine. The, you're missing out on freedom speech. Jokes about how he's never settling down. All that stuff. And now I find out he's been in a relationship this whole time and just never said anything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, how do you know he's in a relationship? He could just be, uh, you know, that could be a strategy for his Netflix and chill routine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>I mean, maybe. Maybe? But who makes a whole profile with a heart emoji for hookups? And these aren't just rom-coms, Luke. We're talking the notebook. When Harry met Sally, the really sappy ones. Plus, I was on his account like a month ago watching Narcos. And that profile definitely wasn't there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know what to tell you, buddy. It sounds like your friend might be into some... Uh... shit. I don't know how to say it. Less than masculine media.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>No, see, that's the thing, though. Ray doesn't care about that stuff. He'll watch whatever. We've watched plenty of dumb movies together. It's not about the rom-coms. It's about the lying. Like, why would he hide having a girlfriend while busting my balls about having one? That's when I can't figure out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't know. Maybe he doesn't have a girlfriend. Maybe the girlfriend is somebody you know and he doesn't want you to know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But also, a possibility is he's let somebody else use his account, and they're setting up a playlist for their girlfriend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh, man, I didn't even think about that. Like maybe his brother or something? But wait. No, raise an only child. And who would he be dating that I know? We run in the same circles pretty much. Unless... I don't know, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How should I know? It doesn't matter. Why are you focused on this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Talk to Ray and ask him if he's got a girlfriend. Because I've been sitting here for an hour trying to figure out if bringing it up makes me look like a nosy asshole. That's why. Like, what do I even say? Hey, man, I was snooping through your Netflix and noticed you might have a secret girlfriend? That sounds insane. But also, he's my best friend. And he's apparently been hiding something major while making me feel like an idiot for being in a relationship.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's what friends do. So rag on him a little bit. You know, give me me. some shit about the notebook or whatever the next time you see him, but it's not a big deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I don't know if this is something worth calling a radio show over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right, you're right. I know you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>It's just been eating at me because Amber keeps asking why I'm being weird tonight, and I can't exactly tell her I'm spiraling over Ray's Netflix account.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, this is not a rational behavior on your part. So I'm going to recommend that you leave it alone for a while, watch something good on Netflix, and thank your buddy for letting you use his account.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, okay. Fair enough. I'll just drop it. Maybe send him a text tomorrow like nothing happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good plan, sir. Nothing did happen. You fucking weirdo. Okay, next up we've got Shanice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Shanise, what's going on in your life? Hey, Luke. It's Shanice, actually.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's what I said.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>So I just found pictures of my uncle Raymond, at Burning Man, wearing nothing but a leather harness. And he's painted silver and orange head to toe. And I'm trying to figure out, if I should show them to the guys at our poker game Friday, because this man lectures me about living right every single Sunday at church.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? If he's naked a burning man in a leather harness and he's painted silver and orange, it sounds to me like this man's living right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>You know what? That's the thing that's messing with me right now. Like part of me is sitting here looking at these photos, and I'm kind of impressed. He's 70, three years old, and he looks happier in these pictures than I've ever seen him. But then every Sunday he's. He's sitting there telling me, I need to get back out there and date. I need to join the church choir. I need to stop spending so much time in my workshop mounting dead animals. Meanwhile, he's out in Nevada doing whatever the hell this is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's partying. He's enjoying his golden years. Good for him. I don't think he can make fun of him for that. That's pretty badass.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Okay, but Luke, you don't understand. This is the same man who gave me a 30-minute lecture last month, because I had a beer at two in the afternoon. afternoon on a Saturday. He saw the can in my truck and went on about responsibility and setting an example. And now I'm looking at him in light up goggles, dancing in the desert in his underwear. And I'm supposed to just let him keep acting like he's the moral authority.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you are, because there's no crime being done there if he's partying out in the desert at the appropriate place to do that. That's what it's for. He went out there to be a little hedonistic in the right people and he paid money to do it. You on the other hand have a container in a vehicle which is a crime and you probably shouldn't be driving and drinking at the same time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Okay, first of all, the truck was parked in my own driveway and the engine wasn't even on, but fine, you got a point. I hear you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you're just sitting in the driveway, drinking beers, throwing them in your car when you're done?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Well, when you say it like that, it sounds worse than it is. I was cleaning out my workshop and I sat down for a But okay, whatever. That's not the point. The point is, he found those pictures and felt the need to give me a whole speech about it. And now I'm holding evidence that he's got this entire secret life. And Friday night I got four guys coming over who have known Raymond since before my husband died, and they worship this man. They think he's this pillar of the community.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You might be, you can be more than one thing. And I don't know that a weak at Burning Man is the same thing as, uh, uh, uh, an entire secret life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>You're right. Secret life is dramatic. But Luke, these guys at poker, they ask him for advice. Bobby asked him last month if he should propose to his girlfriend, and Raymond told him to pray on it and make sure he was ready for that level of commitment. And I'm just sitting here thinking, what would Bobby say if he knew Raymond was out there in a harness? I'm not saying I'm going to show them. I'm just saying the temptation is real, because he acts like he's got it all figured out. The rest of us are just stumbling around making mistakes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you think God doesn't like leather? Do you think there's no church or, uh, spiritual people at Burning Man? I'm, I'm pretty sure you're mistaken.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Okay, that's fair. I didn't think about it like that. I guess I just assumed. Yeah, you're right. That's on me. But here's what's really getting to me now that I'm talking it through with you. It's not even about the Burning Man thing anymore. It's that he sees me struggling, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, okay, so he sees you struggling, and it sounds like he's giving you reasonable advice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>He is, but he's giving it from this place like he's never struggled himself, like he's never done anything messy or confusing or outside the lines. And now I know he has, and he just never told me. When my husband died, Raymond was there every single day, telling me how to grieve the right way. What I should be doing? When I should be moving on. And maybe if I'd known he had this whole other side to him, that he wasn't just this rigid person. Maybe I would have felt less like I was failing at everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, I'm sure he was trying to give you the best advice he could and help you out. And not everybody's good at doing that, and they try to impose their own values and will on you and their own experiences. But you don't know how somebody else has struggled or what they've done that's messy or confusing. There's a good chance that he's done a lot of messy confusing things. And he's trying to do. his best to give you the type of advice that leads you in a different direction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>You know what? You're completely right. I'm sitting here acting like I know everything about him because I found some photos, but I don't know what led him there or what he was going through when he went. Maybe he was struggling with something huge and that's how he dealt with it. And here I am ready to embarrass him in front of his friends just because I'm still mad about how he handled things seven years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, I've never been to Burning Man, but I've watched a lot of reports from people that enjoy that and go there. I think I would hate it personally because of the crowds and the drugs and partying. It's not really my thing. But most of the reports I've heard of people from from Burning Man and Burning Man like events are wildly positive. They say they're, you know, some of the best most spiritual experiences of their lives. And the whole of Burning Man is pretty great if you get down and look into the anti-capitalism and art and free love and all that jazz. I don't see how you can look at that with such negativity. He went out to the desert to have a good time and had a good time. And that's all there is to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Yeah, I hear you. And honestly, looking at those pictures again, he looked happy, really happy, like genuinely having the time of his life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And when's the last time I saw him look like that here. So yeah, you should talk to Raymond and maybe ask him if you can go with him this year and see what it's about and have a more informed viewpoint of what's going on there before you start trying to destroy the guy's life and reputation for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATTY</span><p>Oh man. Can you imagine me at Burning Man? I'd be the person bringing a cooler and asking where the bathrooms are. But you're right, Luke. I called in here ready to justify being Patty. And you just made me realize I'm jealous. I'm jealous that he went out and something wild and I'm still here in the same workshop mounting the same animals for the same clients.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, get out there and do something wild and maybe enjoy your life a little bit more and don't worry so much about what Raymond says. You know, you know what you've got to do in your life. You don't have to take his advice. Maybe he'll give it when it's unsolicited and you can just ignore it. But it sounds like he's a decent man that is speaking to you with the best of intentions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATTY</span><p>You're absolutely right. I'm going to keep my mouth shut at poker. And maybe next time he starts lecturing me about living right, I'll just smile and let it roll off. He's trying to help in his own way, even if it drives me crazy sometimes. And honestly, finding those photos was probably the best thing that could have happened. Because now when he gets on his high horse, I can just picture him in that harness and light up goggles. And it'll take the sting out of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Excellent. See, that's what we do here. Look at the Roots. We bring families back together. Uh, thank you for the call. I hope everything goes well with your uncle. And now it's time for a word from our sponsors. This episode is brought to you by Desert Gut, the all-in-one nutritional supplement made from things you'd actually find within walking distance from my RV. Each scoop of Desert Gut contains 17 adaptogens, nine minerals scraped directly off a rock, pulverized tumbleweed fiber, and a proprietary blend we're calling coyote dust. which our lawyers have asked me to clarify as not made from actual coyotes. Desert gut tastes like someone described the color beige to a blender, but you'll feel incredible, or you'll feel something. First five callers get a free shaker bottle that definitely used to be a gas station coffee cup. Desert gut, because your gut isn't going to desert itself. All right. to the show. And now on the phones we've got T-Bone. Teabone, welcome to the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>Luke, hey, yeah, I'm calling about my sister's gender reveal party tonight. And I got to tell you, this thing got completely out of hand. I'm talking a D, J, a catered taco bar, 200 people in my backyard. And at the end of it all, she shoots off this confetti cannon that covers my entire property and pink glitter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What did you expect was going to happen at a gender reveal party?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>Well, I expected maybe. be, I don't know, a cake, some balloons, not a full production with the sound system, and a guy in a bowtie handing out shrimp cocktails. I've got five acres out in the desert, Luke, and she turned my property into some kind of festival grounds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, it's a gender reveal party. I think the people that are interested in a gender reveal party are maybe a little bit on the dramatic end of things, and they think their news there is very, very important. So you can understand why maybe they acted that. way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing. I teach middle school, Luke. I deal with drama all bay long, 13-year-olds crying because somebody unfollowed them on Instagram. And I come home to my sister doing basically the same thing, except she's 34 years old and spent what had to be two grand announcing whether her kids got a penis or not. I mean, my coworker Deshaun said it to me straight at lunch yesterday. Nobody cares this much about baby gender.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wouldn't it be funny if that child grew up to have a different gender identification?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>I mean, yeah, that's the other thing. She's over here acting like this pink confetti is some kind of binding contract with the universe. Like, what if the kid decides differently down the road? Then what? She going to shoot off another cannon in 15 years? Look, I don't care what the kid ends up being. I just think the whole spectacle is ridiculous.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I agree with you. That is a ridiculous spectacle, and it's completely unnecessary. but, you know, you agreed, and you knew what a gender-reveal party was, so I guess you've got to clean up some of that confetti. But luckily you live in the desert, so it's all going to blow away probably by tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>Well, that's the thing, Luke. It's not blowing away. It's this heavy-duty stuff, like industrial glitter mixed with paper. And my chickens are out there eating it right now. I raise heritage breed Wyandots. And I got no idea if this stuff is going to mess with their digestive system.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nothing messes with their digestive system. system. Worst case scenario, you're going to have pre-decorated Easter eggs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>Huh. Yeah. Pink-glitter chicken eggs. That'll go over real well at the farmer's market. But seriously, I didn't even want to say yes to this thing. She asked me two months ago, and I should have just told her no. Use your own yard. But she lives in one of those H-O.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's an H-O?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>H-O-A, Homeowners Association. She's in one of those cookie-cutters' subdivisions where you need written permission to change your mailbox color. So she can't do anything fun at her place. And I'm out here with five acres, and apparently that makes me the family event venue now. I got a Silverado in the driveway, some land. And suddenly, every birthday, every baby thing, it's, can we use your place, T-bone? And I keep saying yes because she's my sister. But man, I'm getting tired of being the backup plan for people who chose to live in places with rules.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're going to have to stand up for yourself and say, that you made a mess out of my place the last time and I don't want to pick it up. So next time just say, no, we're going to do this at your place. Or you're going to have to reel in your party so that it fits within the allotted rules of your HOA.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I just, I don't know why I can't say it to her face. I can tell 13-year-olds all day long that their essays late, and I'm not accepting it. No exceptions. I can stand in front of 30 kids and lay down the law about cell phones. But my My sister asked me for something, and I just fold.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it's pretty easy to tell a kid what to do. You have an interesting power dynamic there, but with family, it's a little bit different. Still, if you want to be a man, then stand up for yourself and say what you want, what you will accept, and what you will not accept.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>Yeah, you're calling me out, and I hear you. I make decent money teaching. I owe my property outright. I bench 225. I shouldn't be acting like I can't set a boundary with my own sister. It's just she's going through a lot right now, you know? Her husband works offshore two weeks at a time. She's about to have this baby. And I think part of me feels like I should just suck it up and help out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you've got to pick one or the other. You can suck it up and help out and do whatever it is that she wants and then clean up her industrial-grade glitter from your chicken's assholes. Or you can say, no, I don't want to do that anymore. You're going to have to find another place. But that's completely up to you. And you're going to be. going to have to make that choice based on how you want to live your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">T-BONE</span><p>You know what? You're right. I'm sitting here complaining to you at midnight about glitter, when I could have just said no two months ago. Her husband makes good money on those rigs. Way more than I make teaching. They can afford to rent a pavilion at a park, or do this thing at a restaurant like normal people. I don't need to be the solution every time, just because I've got the space.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next time she asks, I'm telling her straight up. Find somewhere else. There you go. That's standing up for yourself. That's what I always say. Stand up for yourself. Do the right thing. And then you don't have to clean up glitter. We're going to take one more call tonight because it's getting a little bit late. And the last caller here we've got on the line is Mavis. Mavis, welcome to the show. You're the last caller tonight. What would you like to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>My brother owes me $8,000, and I'm about to take his dogs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, what? You're going to steal his dogs?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Not steal. Collateral. He borrowed $8,000 to fix his roof back in October. Said he'd pay me back by Christmas. Well, it's almost March, and I came home today to find my living room trashed because he's been using my place as a kennel while I was working in Lordsburg all week. Carpets destroyed. Tea. Vs cracked and Ed when I called him. Actually laughed and said shit happens. So yeah, I'm taking two of his pointers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you even like dogs?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Like them. Luke, I trained those dogs. That's my bloodline going back to a bitch I bought in 98. I've been breeding and training pointers for 26 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you didn't do a very good job if they destroyed your house now, did you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Those dogs are perfectly trained when they're handled right. My brother's lazy. He doesn't exercise them. Doesn't give them structure, just dumps them wherever it's convenient. A pointer needs work. They need routine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, I hope that works out for you. I don't think you can just take somebody's dogs. I mean, I would never let anybody take my dog. So if he's going to just allow you to take his dogs, I don't know what says about him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>He's not going to allow it. I'm just going to do it. I've got keys to his place and I know his schedule. He works nights at the mine Thursday through Sunday. I'll go Friday morning, load them up, and he can come get his money together if he wants them back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what happens if he calls the police on you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>And tell them what? That his sister took back the dog she bred and trained because he owes her $8,000 and destroyed her house? I've got the vet records. I've got the category papers with my name on them. I've got text messages about the loan. He's not calling anybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think it works that way. If they're his dogs, you can't just take them, even if you have the training papers. I mean, that'd be like any trainer that trained a dog coming and just taking the dog back. It doesn't work that way. And people have a severe amount of sympathy for dogs and pet owners. So if somebody's missing their dogs, you're not going to have a public opinion on your side here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Public opinion. Luke, this isn't about public opinion. This is about my brother thinking he can walk all over me because I'm always the one who bails him out. I loaned him money for his roof. I trained his dogs for free. I let him use my house. And every single time he takes advantage. The dogs are leverage. He gets them back when I get my money back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I hope that works out for you. You sound like somebody I wouldn't want to fuck with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You're damn right. I've been too nice for too long, and look where it got me. Three grand in repairs and a brother who laughs about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what could have? I mean, you could take those dogs and then find out one of them has cancer, and now you're on the hook to pay for this dog that's not yours. Chemotherapy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Then he can come get his sick dog and pay me what he owes. I'm not keeping them forever, Luke. I'm holding them until he pays up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What if he doesn't pay up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Then I've got two excellent bird dogs that I train myself, and he's got a debt he'll never forget. Either way, I'm done being the family dormant. He'll pay. He loves those dogs more than he loves most people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, then I wish you luck, and I wish those things. Dogs look, it seems a little fucked up that you're making those dogs collateral on a loan to your own family. That's a bit... This whole scenario seems a little bit excessive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Excessive? He destroyed my living room, Luke. My carpets ruined. My TV's cracked. My favorite movies snapped in half. I came home after a week taking care of a stroke patient, and my house looked like a frat party happened in it. And when I called him Ed?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why'd you call him Ed?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Oh, that's his name. Ed. Edward. But nobody calls him that. He's always been Ed to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, good luck to Ed. Jesus Christ. You sound like Satan.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Satan would have taken the dog six months ago when he brought my truck back on empty. I gave him a pass on that one. Not this time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, it sounds like you've got it all figured out. So I wish you the best and I wish those dogs the best. And fuck, I wish Ed the best.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You think I'm being too harsh.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Slightly. Luke. I told him what happened and he said shit happens and laughed. Like it was nothing. Like I'm supposed to just eat $8,000 in a destroyed living room because we share DNA.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do. So go do it. And I wish everybody the best in this whole scenario.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm glad that you're not mad at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at him. And I'm mad at myself for letting it get this far.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, thanks for the call. And I hope you get a good night's sleep and maybe think about this overnight. time and see if it's what you really want to do, all right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. All right. Thanks for listening, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow. Jesus. I am glad that I haven't pissed off Mavis. Wow. All right. Well, that's the end of our show, folks. Thanks for tuning in again, and we'll talk to you tomorrow. Bye-bye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 22: The Poison Is the Thing We Need</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-26T04:46:08+00:00">February 26, 2026</time> · 46 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke fields calls on a wide range of topics - from the Great Oxygenation Event to a shady business partner, a neighbor's surveillance, and a veteran's PTSD. Hear Donnie, Rochelle, Mikey, Nikki, Frankie, Ray, and Amber share their stories. Will Luke's advice help them move forward or spiral further?</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. I'm Luke. I'm your host of tonight's show, Luke at the Roost. This is the call-in talk show where you can call in with whatever's going on in your world, and I'll give you the best advice that I can, which will probably be horrible advice. If you'd like to give us a call, the number's 208-439-583. That's 208-439 Luke. If you're not near your phone and you'd like to participate in the show, you can send us an email at any time. The email address is submissions at luke at the roost.com. Now we're starting the show a little bit early today because I can, and our phones are already lighting up. So we're going to go to the phones and see what's going on. First up, we have Donnie. Donnie, welcome to the show. What's happened? What can we help you with today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Hey, yeah, Luke. Thanks for taking the call. So I was reading about this thing called the Great Oxygenation Event. It happened like two and a half billion years ago. All these bacteria started making oxygen, and it killed almost everything on the planet just wiped it out too much oxygen</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>i mean don't most things on the planet need oxygen to survive</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>well yeah now they do but back then nothing needed it it was poisoned to them all the like that existed the oxygen just it killed them</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>well that's interesting do you think that's part of what uh helped spur growth as we know it today life on this planet and it was the great oxygenation from the bacteria</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>that's the thing yeah that's exactly it the catastrophe made everything else possible like us sitting here talking right now that only happens because billions of years ago everything died the poison became the thing we need i don't know</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>well that's interesting the poison is the thing we need that should be the name of this episode the poison is the thing we need uh so the bacteria created a bunch of oxygen it killed off everything that was on the planet which would have been what before before oxygenated Was there just other bacteria?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Yeah, anaerobic bacteria. They lived without oxygen. And then the cyanobacteria show up and start photosynthesizing. And just pump all this oxygen into the atmosphere and the ocean, and it's toxic to everything else. It took millions of years, but it basically ended that world. And then after, you know, after everything's gone, that's when the new stuff can start, the stuff that uses oxygen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so when do you think we're due for a new? new great oxygenation or carbon dioxide nation. What are you think is going to take out life as we know it on the planet now so that the next version of life can materialize?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>I don't know if it works like that. I mean, maybe it does. I was just thinking about how you can't always tell when you're in the middle of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I guess we wouldn't be able to tell because we'd be dying. But that's an interesting story. Do you have anything else to add?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>No. I just. I've been thinking about it a lot this week, how the worst thing that ever happened was also the best thing. And you can't have one without the other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, sir, you can't have one without the other. Just like, what do they say? Love and marriage. Love and... All right. Next up, we have Rochelle. Rochelle is a returning caller. Welcome back to the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Oh, my God. I couldn't believe my own eyes when I saw Donnie was on earlier. I was in the kitchen doing dishes and I literally had to stop because I was laughing so hard. The oxygen thing, killing everything off to save everything, that was beautiful, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Ah, yeah, killing everything off to save everything. It's hilarious. I understand. What are you calling in for today, Rochelle?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Okay, so I did it. I broke up with Marcus like two weeks ago. And I've been doing the whole single thing, right? Like really trying to sit with myself, not jump into anything. I even deleted the dating apps.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and how's that working out for you? What are you filling your time with, and if it's not random men?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Well, that's the thing, though. I've been filling it with, I mean, I've been good. I've been taking the kids to this new trampoline park over in Rio Rancho on weekends. Been helping Rosa with her garden, which is actually really nice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, congratulations. Good for you. Did you have a problem or an issue that you wanted to talk through on the show, or you're just calling to give us an update about your relationship status?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>No, there's definitely something. So David texted me last Thursday, my ex-husband, first time since I turned off the location sharing thing. And he said he wanted to drop off some boxes of my stuff he found in his storage unit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, do you know what's in the boxes? Obviously, you're missing the stuff, so have you identified which of your own stuff you're missing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>That's what I asked him. I was like, what stuff? Because when we split everything up, I was so careful. I made spreadsheets, Luke. I had a whole system.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's in the box? Do you think it's maybe a severed head or just an excuse for David to come talk to you again?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Oh, it's definitely an excuse. I know that. He told me it was like old photo albums and some kitchen stuff. But when he brought them over on Saturday, it was just, it was my old college textbooks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, so he already brought the boxes over. All right. So what did he have to say for himself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>He stood on my porch for like 40 minutes, just talking. Started with the boxes. Then he's asking about the kids. how he joined this hiking group, and they went up to the Sandia's last weekend. And the whole time I'm just standing there in my doorway, and I couldn't believe my own eyes, because he looked. Good, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So obviously you're really taking this single thing to heart, huh?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Okay, yeah, I hear how that sounds. But I didn't invite him in or anything. I kept it on the porch. And then yesterday, Angie, my cousin, she calls me and says she saw David at Trader Joe's, and he was buying all this fancy cheese and wine, like date night stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't drink wine, but I sometimes enjoy a fancy pepperjack. So maybe he just enjoys wine and cheese, and that's what he was doing. I mean, I don't think you need to concern yourself with what David's doing. You're a single woman, and you're refinding yourself right now. So stop worrying about David and other dudes, and keep working on your garden and finding ways to move forward in your own life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>You're right. You're completely right. The thing is, is, though, I looked at the app again after he left, just to see. And I know I turned off sharing my location with him, but I can still see his if I want to. And he never turned his off for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, you're being a little bit crazy now, and I think you should just get rid of that app. You told me already you deleted the apps, and obviously you haven't. So you're lying to me, you're lying to yourself. And if you want to move forward with your life, then move forward with your life. And if you want to, you know, rekindle whatever relationship you have with this dude, do that. But But it's not very interesting for this show. You're back and forth here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Okay. Okay. You're right. I'm deleting it right now. I'm doing it. But can I just tell you one more thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you can. What is that thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>Sunday night, I drove past the Sonic where he parked that time, the one near my house. And his Tacoma was there. Same spot. And I sat in the Dairy Queen parking lot across the street for like 20 minutes just watching his truck. And I realized he probably saw me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you're really just painting a picture of yourself as a main. and you really need to stop. I don't know why you think I would think that this is interesting, but I don't. Okay, so if you want some advice and you're going to take the advice, I'm happy to give it to you. But if you just want to tell me about, you know, David, I really don't care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCHELLE</span><p>No, I want the advice. I'm sorry. I know I sound crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, thank you for the call, and we hope that you don't call us again tomorrow with the same shit, Rochelle. You're going to have to figure out your life there, because I don't have any advice for you that you're going to take. So, next up on the line, we got Mikey. Mikey, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I just dropped off this Tesla, right? And the whole ride back this guy's going on about his grind, how he's up at 4 in the morning, working until midnight, hasn't seen his kids awake in weeks, and he's saying it like it's a good thing, like he's winning. And I'm sitting there thinking, man, I used to be you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think we all did. That's part of our culture. It's to grind and work and grind and always be busy. And I think we've learned through study after study that that's not any way to live. And it's a good way to burn yourself out and get taken advantage of by exploitative employers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Exactly. And here's the thing that got me. This guy couldn't have been more than 30, and he already looked like he needed a defibrillator, like physically looked bad. And I'm watching him and I'm like, dude, I burned my second marriage to the ground doing exactly what you're doing. I thought saying yes to every call, every hour, every toe in the middle of the night was proving something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, sometimes you can do that and sometimes you can't, you know, but everybody has to learn for themselves where their limits are and learn how to stand up for those limits. the hard part that a lot of people never get is, when is it time to say no? When is a time to step back? And how much forward momentum is really necessary without harming yourself and the rest of the things in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Yeah, and that's what I never figured out until it was too late. Like, I didn't know how to say no because I thought the work was the point. I thought if I just kept showing up, kept grinding, that would be enough. But my ex-wife, she didn't leave because I wasn't making money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why did she leave?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>She left because I wasn't there. Like, physically I'd come home, but I was already thinking about the next call, the next job. I'd be sitting at dinner and my phone would go off and I'd just get up and leave every time. And she'd say, can't someone else get it? And I'd say, this is what pays the bills.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, and I think you've learned that there's more to life than paying bills. And that's a lesson that we all have to learn. In this world, I think we're starting to understand that, especially after COVID. the whole COVID situation really opened people's eyes up to how much we were wasting on capitalism.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Yeah. Well, here's the kicker, though. I still don't know if I actually learned it. Like, I'm still taking every call. I'm still out there at two in the morning hauling in some drunks Camry. The difference is now I don't have anyone waiting up for me. So it doesn't feel like I'm letting anybody down, which is maybe worse. I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's a balance, right? If you're at a special spot in your life where you don't have anything else going on. Maybe that is the best use of your time. If it's keeping you occupied, you're being productive, and there's nothing that you're letting fall by the wayside, like your own personal health and nutrition and peace of mind, then good. You can do that. But you have to know when to ramp up and when to ramp down. And at some point in the future, you're going to want to have some sort of meaningful relationship with people or be involved in your community or take on some sort of volunteer or philanthropy or something like that. There's more to life than work. And if you put all of yourself into your work forever, I mean, at the end, you're not going to get anything out of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>You're right. And I know you're right. But here's what scares me. I've been filling the time with other stuff. Like, I go home and I watch these quantum physics videos until three in the morning. Just completely fall down these rabbit holes about particle entanglement and the observer effect.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but that's not really filling your life with other stuff. stuff is that's just consuming content to go to bed. That's not doing anything meaningful or making relationships or moving forward any personal goals. It's, uh, I don't want to say wasting time because you're learning and you're listening to something that you find interesting, but it's, it's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about, uh, getting something out of life, a project, hobby, uh, friendships, um, some, some, uh, greater purpose or meaning or, uh, involvement with your community and the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Yeah, no, you're absolutely right. I'm just swapping one way of checking out for another. Like, before it was burying myself in work so I didn't have to deal with anything? And now it's burying myself in videos about the double-slit experiment, so I don't have to think about the fact that I haven't had a real conversation with someone in weeks. My phone goes off, I answer it, I hook up a car, I drop it off, I go home, I watch videos. I fall asleep. That's the whole loop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that might be okay for you right now at where you're, at in your life. But just make sure that the remainder of your life isn't just that. Because that's very small. And there's a lot more out there to experience and to be a part of and to contribute to. So do what you have to do now to get yourself through and pay your bills and keep yourself moving forward. But don't forget that there's a lot more to life than just working.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>You know what gets me, though? That Tesla guy tonight, the one I picked up, he's doing the same thing I did. He's 30 years old, hasn't seen his kids awake in weeks, and he's proud of it. He's bragging about his 4 a.m. cold plunges and his 18-hour days like it's some kind of badge of honor. And I wanted to tell him, man, you're going to wake up one day and realize you traded everything that mattered for a bunch of nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the thing that everybody has to learn for themselves, right? And I think that we all, and collectively as a society, are learning that, especially as we see continuous mass layoffs of people and the loyalty erosion of corporate America and just the current state of our country. I think we understand that we've been kind of chasing this line of bullshit. And something has to change if we want to have happy, productive, fulfilled lives. So learn that for yourself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you can't, you can't, you can't teach it to anybody. They have to get to a place where they realize it on their own. So he's 30. 30's still pretty young. He's right about at the state where he should kind of be figuring that out because everything in his life is going to fall away. And all he's going to have is, you know, work. And it's not even particularly interesting work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>Yeah, and that's the thing. I couldn't say anything to him because what am I going to say? Look at me. I'm the guy who already learned this lesson, and I'm still doing the exact same thing just alone now. At least he's got the kids somewhere, even if he's not seeing them. I don't even have that anymore. My ex moved on, remarried some accountant who's home for dinner every night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Everybody's path is different, man. If some people don't want to be home every night, that's boring to them. That's not fulfilling, you know, what they want out of their life. They want to be out doing stuff traveling. If your work takes you to the places you want to be to interact with the people you want to interact with, great. Then you can get two birds stoned at once. But largely it doesn't. And I think we just chase it for some, I don't know, false notion of what we're supposed to do. I think we've been trained that way from school all the way up. And we're learning now through numerous scientific studies that it's not good for us. So people are waking up. And you should too, when you're ready.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>I hear you. I think part of it is I don't even know what I'd do with myself if I wasn't working or watching videos. What does that even look like? I go to some community center and play bingo? Join a book club? I'm not being a smart ass. I genuinely don't know what the next step is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe it is. If you like bingo and you like your community, then hanging out at the community center isn't a bad thing. I mean, you might find out that they need your help and some of your special skills to keep the community center rolling. Or, you know, you could take up hiking or travel or photography or music or any kind of hobbies that you're into or wanted to be into. You could start a business. You can use that knowledge that you have to run your own YouTube channel and talk about, you know, your quantum physics stuff. There's tons of avenues that you can take. It's just you don't want to sit around and rot away and only consume content and work. Right? That's, you might as well be dead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>That last part hit me. You're right. I've got all this knowledge rattling around in my head about quantum mechanics, and I'm not doing anything with it except using it to fall asleep. I could actually share that stuff. Make it make sense for people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can try. I mean, you're going to have to go a little deeper than the double split experiment because there's certainly enough content about that and it's not that difficult a concept to grasp. So I would recommend veering out a little bit into something a little more unique than the double split experiment. It's been kind of done to death. But if you're into quantum physics, I'm sure you can find a way to make that interesting and maybe make it your career.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>doesn't have to be your career. It just do something, you know, even if it's just for you and nobody sees it. Yeah, no, the double slit is just where I started. I've been going down all these rabbit holes about quantum entanglement, the measurement problem, all that stuff. There's this one thing about quantum tunneling that blows my mind. Particles passing through barriers, they shouldn't be able to get through.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. Maybe you can come up with some sort of demonstration of that or, you know, do some research and get your yourself into academia. And if that's your thing, that's your thing. And that's what you should do. But, hey there, we got to get to our sponsors here, Mikey. So if you have anything else to finish up with, I'll let you do that, and then I got to go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIKEY</span><p>No, I appreciate you letting me ramble. I think I needed to hear some of this stuff tonight. Maybe I'll actually do something with it instead of just letting it sit in my head.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thanks, Mikey. I hope that, you know, you continue doing what you've got to do to move yourself forward and then when it's time, you can expand your life into the other areas where you can get the maximum fulfillment out of it. And that was time for a word from our sponsors. I used to sleep on a rolled up horse blanket. I'm not saying that for sympathy. I'm saying it because Pillow Forever asked me to establish a before state, and that's mine. Pillow Forever is a memory foam pillow that remembers your head shape so you don't have to. It's got cooling gel, bamboo fiber, and a 30-night risk-free trial, which means you can sleep on it for a month and then send it back, and someone in a warehouse is to deal with that. Every pillow forever comes in a box that's too small, which is part of the experience. You open it? And it slowly expands like a nature documentary. My dog tried to fight it. Pillow forever. You deserve better than a horse blanket. You deserve better than a horse blanket. That's what we always say here, at Luke on the roost. And next up, we got Nikki. Nicky, Nikki, welcome to the show. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Hey, Luke, yeah. Hi. Am I on? Okay. Um, sorry, I know it's late to be calling. So I run a dog grooming business down in animas. Been doing it about three years now. And I have this business partner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what about your business partner? Tell us about your business partner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>So Jason came in about a year and a half ago. I needed help with the books, the scheduling, you know, the business side of things, because I'm good with the dogs, but I'm terrible at all that stuff. And he seemed great at first. Really organized had all these ideas about marketing and expanding. My sister Lena told me not to trust him. Said he had a reputation around Flagstaff for being shady, but I thought she was just being overprotective. Anyway, I could not sleep last week, just one of those nights. So I'm sitting there at like three in the morning going through our accounts, and I start noticing these withdrawals.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh-oh, when somebody says the word shady in tandem with accounting, that's never good. So what are the withdrawals about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Yeah, so it's almost $8,000 over the past year. Small amounts, You know, 300 here, 500 there, nothing that would jump out at you if you're just glancing at the monthly statements. But when I went back and cross-checked them against the actual receipts and deposits, they don't match up. Money's just gone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's a little thing we like to call fraud. So have you talked to any of the authorities about this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>No, not yet. I confronted Jason yesterday afternoon. Showed him everything I found. All the discrepancies laid out. And Luke, he just leaned back in his chair and smiled at me. Like this calm, easy smile.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. That's maniacal. And then what happened? Did he say anything in response? Or did you just smile awkwardly and then you left?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>No. He said two words. He said, prove it. That's all he said. Just prove it with that smile. And then he got up and left the shop. And the thing is, I keep going over it in my head. Like, what does that mean? Does he have the receipts hidden somewhere?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I would call the cops because it sounds like he's ripping you off. And it sounds like you can prove it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>That's what Lena said when I called her, but I keep thinking, what if I'm wrong? What if there's some explanation I'm missing? I've been sitting here on the floor of the shop for four hours going through everything again, and the numbers are right there, but he seemed so confident. Like he knows something I don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe he does, but I would engage the authorities sooner rather than later, because now he knows that you're onto him, and the more time you give him, the more concrete he'll be able to make his defense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So catch him as quickly as you can before he has to time to cover anything up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. God, you're right. I've been sitting here like an idiot, second-guessing myself when I should have called the police this afternoon. I just kept thinking maybe I'm overreacting, maybe I misunderstood something, but $8,000 doesn't just disappear. And I trusted him. That's the part that makes me feel so stupid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the thing. You can't trust anybody. And that's just the way the world is. So you trusted him. It looks like he burned you. He gave you every indication that he did, in fact, burn you, and now you have to take whatever steps you can to protect yourself. And that's to immediately call the authority. So you should do that and let them know what happened and try to catch him before he leaves town with your $8 grand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I'm going to call them as soon as we hang up. I've got all the paperwork right here. Everything's documented. You know what the worst part is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is the worst part?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Lena told me not to go into business with him. Before she moved to Flagstaff, she said Jason was sketchy, that he'd burned people before. And I told her she was being paranoid, that he seemed like a good guy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, all con men seem like good guys. That's sort of the job. I mean, that's what they do. And it's, you don't have to feel shame in getting fleeced by this guy. I mean, that's their skill. That's what they're good at. So just get off the phone with me, call the police, and start whatever proceedings you have to to get your money back as soon as you can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I'm doing it now. Thank you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good luck. And that is why we don't. Don't partner with people because partners burn us every fucking time. And next up, we've got Frankie. Frankie, welcome to the show. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I'm a home health nurse, right? And two days ago, I found out my neighbor Dale has been running surveillance on the whole street with his ring camera. Like, full spreadsheets.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Full spreadsheets of what? What kind of information? Like what time people are walking by or like when they walk their dogs? What could he possibly be spreadsheets?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>time stamps of when everyone comes and goes, what vehicles were driving, notes about who's visiting who. I found out because his ex-wife is one of my patients. She's got MS. I see her twice a week. And she showed me the file on her laptop. There's an entry from me that says, 247 a.m. White sedan unknown from when I got back from an overnight shift. The guy's literally keeping tabs on the whole neighborhood, like he's running a stakeout.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's a pretty weird thing. I don't legal for him to do with his home video camera to just watch the footage and then take note of everything that happens. It's creepy and it's weird and it's wrong and I'd be pissed off about it, but I don't think it's illegal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>Oh yeah. No, I looked it up. Totally legal as long as the cameras pointed at his own property and the street, which is public. That's not even the part that's driving me crazy. It's that now I can't stop thinking about it. Like, I've been staying at my cousin Rubin's place in Magdalena for three nights now because I don't want to give Dale the satisfaction of logging my schedule.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if that's the way I'd go with it. I mean, you can, but I would rather mess with Dale's data. Like, get a bunch of friends to drive around at random times and kind of poison his spreadsheet, so he thinks he's got this great database of information, but it's all nonsense. I mean, that's how we're going to defeat AI. If you want to defeat AI, the only way to do it is defeat it bad information.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>Oh, man, that's actually brilliant. I could get the over-neighed night crew from work involved. We're all degenerates anyway. Half of us are coming and going at weird hours. Just flood his data with noise until he can't tell what's real anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, make him so busy logging nonsensical data that is not useful. But keep in mind, if there ever is an issue when you need that data from him for some reason, if there's ever a theft or a home invasion or just some kid smashing pumpkins or stealing Amazon packages, it could be good to have somebody like that in your neighborhood that knows everything where you can go and get that authoritative source of what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>Okay, see, that's the thing, though. Dale's not doing this to be helpful. This is the same guy who called the cops on the Martinez family last year because their nephew was visiting from Albuquerque. And Dale decided a brown kid in a hoodie sitting in a car was suspicious activity. Turned out the kid was just waiting for his aunt to get home from work. And, listening to music. Dale's not neighborhood watch. He's neighborhood paranoia with a spreadsheet. And honestly, I think he might be living in his truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's living in his truck, but he's using his house ring camera to collect this data. That's a little weird.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>Yeah, his ex-wife kicked him out like six months ago, but he still owns the house, so the ring camera's still up. I've seen his F-150 parked in different spots around town at night, with the windows fogged up. The whole thing is just sad, honestly. Like, I started this call ready to make it into a bit about suburban surveillance state nonsense, but now I'm realizing I'm hiding out at my cousin's place watching Severance for the third time instead of just going home because I'm letting some divorced guy in a truck get in my... my head. That's pathetic, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, it's pathetic on a couple of different levels, for you and for him, and it's sad all the way around. But I think one way to deal with this would be to just go, you know, knock on his F-150 window and ask him, you know, what the hell? You're recording me and I don't like it and ask him to stop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>You know what? You're right. You're right. I should just go talk to him like a human being instead of treating this like it's some true crime podcast I'm living in. The guy sleeping in his truck and obsessive logging traffic patterns. He's clearly not doing great. Maybe I just knock on the window. Tell him I know about the spreadsheet and ask him what he's actually trying to accomplish here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, maybe you two could team up and become great friends and solve crimes together. You never know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANKIE</span><p>Oh, God. That's the nightmare scenario. Me and Dale in his F-150 at three in the morning. Him with his spreadsheet. Me with my work stories about patients' weird moles. Just two insomniacs convinced where the only ones keep Magdalena safe. Although, honestly, knowing my life, that's probably exactly what's going to happen. I'll update you if we start a podcast together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right there, Frankie. Thanks for the call, and I hope you do start that podcast. Let us know. Give us a call back and let us know if you ever start that podcast, and I know I will listen to it. So next up here on the old phone lines, we've got Connie. Connie, welcome to the show. What's happening tonight in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONNIE</span><p>Oh gosh, hi, Luke. Thank you so much for taking my call. So I got really drunk at my daughter's eighth birthday party five days ago and nobody will talk to me about it. And I think I'm losing my mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Is there any video evidence of you acting out at this birthday party? I don't think you're the first person to ever be in that situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONNIE</span><p>No, thank goodness, no video. At least I don't think so. It was just other moms and some dads and my husband and his sister. But Luke, I don't remember half of it. I remember. I remember.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's certainly embarrassing. But if this is one-time thing and it's not a pattern of excessive drinking, then, you know, everybody's entitled a couple of those. It's too bad that it happened at your kid's birthday party, but, you know, nobody's perfect.!</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONNIE</span><p>So I would say, yeah, you're probably going to get some weird looks for this for a while, but it'll blow over. And just make sure that you're not drinking like this consistently. But that's what's making me crazy, Luke. The silence. Like, my sister-in-law put her jacket on me and clearly got me to the couch. My husband was there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's embarrassing. You embarrassed yourself. It happens. It's unfortunate that it happened where it happened in front of a kid, but this is the type of thing that I think you'll all look back on in 10 years and be like, remember that time? Mom blacked out and swung naked from the pinata when she was drunk at my eighth birthday party? And everybody will laugh and laugh and laugh.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONNIE</span><p>Oh, gosh. I wasn't naked. Was I? No, I had clothes on when I woke up. Luke, you're making jokes, but I keep thinking, what if I said something terrible?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Then you'll have to be forgiven by your friends and family because, I mean, you were blocked out. You can't know if you said something terrible unless somebody tells you. So let's just go with you didn't until you learn otherwise. And if you did, you have to make apologies and, you know, suck that up because you acted irresponsibly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONNIE</span><p>You're right. You're right. I should just ask. I keep waiting for someone to bring it up, but maybe they're waiting for me to bring it up. Oh, shoot. What if they think I don't even care because I haven't apologized? I sent a text to the group chat the next day saying, thanks for a great party, but I didn't mention anything about getting drunk. Because I was hoping maybe it wasn't as bad as I thought.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it probably was as bad as you thought. But you know what? Everybody's seen that happen before with other people or been, you know, the one that was doing it themselves. So people do understand. And they know what it's like to be so drunk that you don't know what happened. Or at least a lot of people do. Or they've seen somebody else act in that way. So don't worry about it too much. Just don't do it again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONNIE</span><p>You know what? You're making me feel better. I've been sitting in here folding laundry for five days, just replaying what I can remember over and over. My husband's watching TV in the next room right now, and I've been hiding in the laundry room because I'm so ashamed. Maybe I just need to go out there and say, hey, Can we talk about Saturday and get it over with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no matter what you did, it wasn't that bad. I mean, you didn't sign over your house to the casino or get married to a hooker in Vegas or, you know, you didn't do anything that can't be fixed. So don't worry too much about it. Don't do it again. Be careful and make apologies if you have to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONNIE</span><p>You're absolutely right. I think I've been making it bigger in my head than it actually is. I mean, Maya had a great time at her party. all the presents she wanted. And she hasn't said anything weird to me about it, so she probably doesn't even remember much. And Bethany was doing shots with me, so she can't judge. I'm just going to talk to my husband tonight and apologize to my sister-in-law tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. That's the way to handle it. And be careful. Watch the drinking, because there might come a time when you're in a situation where it's not so easy to recover from. With that, we have to take a small word from our sponsors. Life is hard. You're listening to a man in an RV talk to strangers at 2 in the morning, so you already know that. That's why we partnered with Better Maybe, online therapy that's honest about the whole situation. With Better Maybe, you get matched with a licensed therapist within 48 hours. Will they fix your problems? Maybe. That's the whole brand. They're not going to lie to you. Your first session might change your life. It also might just be used. staring at the webcam while someone in another time zone nods politely. That's still more than your friends are doing. Better maybe. It's better than nothing, and that's not nothing. All right, and we are back. Here we go. We've got Ray on the line. Ray, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So my neighbor set off M-80s in his driveway at 1030.30. tonight and my son ended up under the kitchen table.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, how come you guys didn't go out and enjoy the festivities?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Enjoy the, Luke. It's a Wednesday night. People got work in the morning, but that's not even the thing. My son Marcos just got back from his second deployment in December. He's home on winter break from grad school. And the second those things started going off, he just dropped, like his body knew what to do before his brain caught up. I found him under the table with his hands over his head and this look on his face I haven't seen since he first got back two years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is too bad and he should maybe, I'm not sure if he is, but he should maybe be in some therapy for that post-traumatic stress. But here we are in the desert, right? These are the frontier states where people are going to blow off M80s and shoot guns. That's kind of, that's part of the appeal of this area. So it's not necessarily always a serene and quiet retreat. can really do here is talk to your neighbor and explain the situation and ask him to be a little more considerate next time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Yeah, no, you're right. He isn't therapy. He's been going since he got back. And I get it. I do. People want to blow stuff up. It's a free country. I already went over there, told the guy about Marcos. He apologized, said he didn't know. Of course. How could he know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So it sounds like you've already solved this problem. What's eating at you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>I don't know, man. It's just, I keep. He's seen his face. Like Marcos is doing good. You know? He's in a master's program for engineering. He's got his life together. He comes home and we watch basketball. We go to the gym together. And then one string of firecrackers and he's right back there. And I'm standing in the kitchen doorway watching my son under the table and I don't know what to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, how could you know what to do? Did you talk to him about what to do, what he was feeling and maybe how you could be most helpful to him in that situation? I luckily have never had to go overseas or fight in any kind of war like that, so I don't have that stress reaction. But I can imagine that it's very unpleasant.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>We talked after. Yeah, he was embarrassed more than anything. Kept apologizing, saying he was fine, that it just caught him off guard. I told him he didn't need to apologize to me. But he just went to his room. And that's the thing, Luke. I'm a physical therapist.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, this isn't really a physical thing. So I don't know that you really have any. qualification in this area. But I would be interested if you have the opportunity to have a more serious conversation with him about what he's feeling and what the correct way to interface with him in that moment would be. I think that would probably help both of you and the listeners here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If we knew, if we saw that happen to somebody, what the correct way to help them would be without making them feel worse about it, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I'm to actually ask him instead of just standing there feeling useless. It's just hard because he doesn't want to talk about it, and I don't want to push him and make it worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you don't really have to push him. You can phrase that another way. You can say, look, when that happened, I mean, you should be able to talk about the event that happened without causing a problem. So you can say, when that happened with the M80s the other night, and you were obviously in distress, I felt useless. And if that ever happens again, I want to be able to be helpful to you. So I'd like to understand what happened to you and how I could best be supportive to you in those situations, right? You can't make all loud noises stop. There's going to be Fourth of July. There's going to be somebody firing off M80s or a car backfiring. You know, that's going to happen forever for the rest of his life. So getting him past it and getting you past it together, like something that's possible if you can talk it through.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's good. That's really good, actually. I can do that. Because you're right. I can't bubble wrap the world for him. And he wouldn't want me to anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think he would. And also, it's just an interesting thing that I think we all need to recognize and understand that some people have those responses to loud stimulus like that. And none of us or most of us really have no idea how to deal with that, how to react to those people. So I personally would be interested in what the right way to help somebody in that situation would be. Okay, we're going to take one more call here. And that's going to be the end of our show. So I think we'll go to Amber. Amber, thanks for calling in. You're the last caller tonight. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I found $200 in a coat pocket. A coat I borrowed from my ex-best friend, Rachel, two years ago. And we haven't spoken since she moved to Flagstaff after this whole falling out we had and I need to know if this money is legally mine now or if I'm supposed to track her down somehow and give it back. I already looked up New Mexico Statute 30, 16, 6 on lost property, and technically, after holding onto something for two years without the owner claiming it, it becomes your property.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, it sounds like you went a little bit deep into this one. If it's cash money and it's in a coat and she moved away and you're in possession of the money, I wouldn't worry about it too much. I mean, how would you even get that money back to her if you wanted to? Congratulations on your new $200.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Well, that's the thing. I could technically get it to her. I mean, I know where she works because her Instagram is public even though she blocked me on everything else. She's at this coffee roastery in Flagstaff. I could mail it or Venmo it, except she blocked me there, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, it sounds like you guys had a following out. She probably doesn't really want to talk to you. If she wanted the 200 bucks back, she would have come looking for it. I'd say just pocket the money and move on or donate it. You know, give it to somebody else. But I wouldn't rekindle that friendship over $200 that's been sitting in a pocket for two years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Right, but here's what's eating at me. I don't actually know if it's her money. Like it could be mine from two years ago and I just forgot I put it there. Or it could be hers and she forgot. And if it is hers, and she's been struggling financially, which she might be because she moved back in with her parents after the move, then keeping it makes me the person she's she already thinks I am, which is part of why we're not speaking in the first place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, if you want to give her the money back, then, I mean, mail out of the money. But I'm thinking that probably you should just pocket this $200 and move on with your life and forget about her. Because obviously you two don't want to speak to each other and she's moved away, and it was two years ago. So, I mean, this doesn't seem like a thing that has to be keeping you up at night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>You're right, it shouldn't be keeping me up at night. But the reason I'm actually calling is because my friend Tammy from church said, the exact same thing you just said. Just keep it. It's been two years. Forget about it. And when she said that, I got so annoyed with her. Like, unreasonably annoyed. I snapped at her in the church parking lot over it. And now I'm wondering if the money is even the actual problem, or if I'm just looking for an excuse to reach out to Rachel, and this is the only one I've got that doesn't make me look desperate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that seems to be the case, because this is not a difficult, um, uh, obstacle to, to, to, Shit, this is not a hard problem, right? You could just keep the money and be done with it. But since you don't seem to want to accept that, it seems like you want to talk to your friend that you miss. And that's okay, too. And it's perfectly okay to reach out to an old friend and say, hey, sorry, you know, things ended the way they did, but I'd like to talk to you again because I miss you. That's okay, too. If that's what you want to do, I give you permission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing. I can't just say I miss her because I'm the one who messed up. She didn't end the friendship I did. She started dating this guy Trevor, who I thought was using her. And I told her that. And then I told her sister that. And then I may have also told Trevor's ex-girlfriend some things Rachel told me in confidence about their relationship. And I thought I was protecting her. But really, I was just being controlling and inserting myself where I had no business being. She found out what I did, and she was right to cut me off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, it seems like you understand the problem, and you can still reach out to her and say you miss her and you'd like to re-handle the friendship and you're sorry for what you did and you won't do it again. Because it sounds like you understand that. You take responsibility for what you did wrong here. And that's a good thing. And if you miss this friendship and you want it to continue, then reach out, give her $200 bucks back and see how that goes. But also, if it doesn't go the way you want, accept that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Yeah, I know I need to accept that possibility. But what if giving her the money back just looks like I'm trying to buy my way back into her life? worse. What if she doesn't even remember putting money in that coat? And now I'm just reminding her that I still have her stuff after two years. Which makes me look like I've been holding on to it for sentimental reasons, which I kind of have been, honestly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's okay. You don't have to think about it that much. If you want to talk to your old friend, then talk to your old friend. And if you don't, then pocket the $200 and move on. That's what I have to say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>You're right. I'm overthinking this because I'm scared. I'll mail her the money with a note that just says I'm sorry and I miss her. And if she wants to talk, I'm here. And if she doesn't respond, then at least I tried and I can actually move on instead of sitting in this break room at two in the morning, staring at $200 bills like they're going to tell me what to do. Thank you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are very welcome, and I hope that works out for you. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the end of tonight's show. So thanks for tuning in. If you'd like to follow us, we're on all the socials or whatever social you like, you can find Luke at the roost. give us a little follow. It would help us out a lot if you use the old Apple Podcasts to leave a review of the show because that's what helps other people to find it. So thanks again, everybody. I hope you have a wonderful night.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 23: Secrets, Lies, and Revelations</h1>
|
||||
<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-27T07:20:16+00:00">February 27, 2026</time> · 1 hr 8 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, Luke tackles a range of issues from a married man's affair with his personal trainer, to a woman struggling with a gambling-addicted girlfriend, and a neighbor's water theft. The callers open up about their personal lives, seeking advice and clarity. Will the secrets be revealed, and will the callers find the courage to face their challenges head-on? Tune in to find out!</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. I'm Luke. This is Luke at the Roost, the call-in radio show, where you can call in and talk to me about what's going on in your life, and I'll give you the best advice I can. If you'd like to call in, our number is 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. It is Thursday, February 26th, and we're going to get to to the phones right away today. We've got Cedric on the line. Cedric, what's going on? How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, uh, thanks for taking the call. I've been listening for a while. Figured I, I don't know, maybe you can help me think through something. So I've got this situation with my gym. I've been going to the same place for like two years now. Same personal trainer. We've got a good routine going.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what's the problem with your gym?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>go, I ran into him at the Safeway, my trainer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, is this a problem with your gym or a problem with your trainer? I think I know where this is going.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Yeah, it's, okay, so we got beers. Just ran into each other. He was grabbing groceries. I was grabbing groceries, and he asked if I wanted to grab a beer, and I said, yeah. And then we ended up sleeping together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>In the safe way?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Yeah, yeah, safe. But now, now I've still got sessions with him twice a week. Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I've already paid through March. And it's like...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's like what? I mean, you slept with your personal trainer. Could you be more cliche?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>I know. I know. But it's really awkward now. Like neither of us is saying anything about it, but when he's spotting me or doing assisted stretches, we're both just... We're so aware of where hands are going, you know? And I'm married.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you cheated on your wife with your male personal trainer at the same thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>safe way. Well, not at the safe way. After. But yeah, and my wife and I, we got married young, like 22 high school sweethearts, and we're still kind of...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're still kind of what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>We're still figuring out what the rules are, I guess. Like what counts? Whether this even matters if it was just once. I haven't told her yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think it matters. You cheated on your wife with a dude. She's probably not going to be happy about that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>I know. I know she won't be. But also, like, I keep thinking about the logistics of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The logistics of what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>The gym situation. The contract. The fact that Sierra Vista is too small to just disappear.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, you can't disappear. Do you have feelings for this trainer dude? More so than the wife that you married?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>No. I mean, I don't know. It wasn't like that. We just ran into each other at Safeway. Got beers. And then it just kind of happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You just went to a grocery store and fell into his asshole? Like, I don't understand how that just happened. You just happened to have sex with a guy at the grocery store? Like, what are you talking about? It just happened. That was a conscious decision that you both had to make. Like, you had to figure out where you were going to go and how you were going to do it. It wasn't like a spur of the moment situation. You left a store to go somewhere else to have sex.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>You're right. Okay. Yeah. We went back to his... place, it wasn't just, it didn't just happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so what's the deal? You're going to tell your wife about this and how's she going to react?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>I don't know if I'm going to tell her. That's kind of why I called, because I keep going to these sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and we just don't talk about it. We do the stretches, and he spots me, and neither of us says anything, but we both know. And I've got the contract through March, and I already paid, and there's nowhere else to go in town.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here's my advice. because not telling your wife is a rotten thing to do. And deal with the fallout of that. And if you, if things are weird with your personal trainer and things are weird with your wife, which they will be, eat the money. And just don't go. You don't need a personal trainer. You can, you know how to do your, your fucking deadlifts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I just, I keep thinking if I can just get through March without making it weird, then the contract's up and I can just let it expire. And nobody has to know, and it goes away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You'll know. He'll know. And it won't go away. It'll haunt you for the rest of your life because you'll be keeping this massive secret from your betrothed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>I know. I know you're right. It's just we've been together since high school, since we were 17. And I don't even know if this means something about me or if it was just a one-time thing or what it was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it means a few things about you. It means you're into dudes, obviously. I don't know if you knew that or not. but if you have sex with a guy, you're into dudes. And it means you're a liar because you cheated on your wife without telling her and having that conversation first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>I mean, I don't know if I'm into dudes. It was just him. I've never thought about that before.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, he is a dude, and you're into him, which would, by definition, mean you're into dudes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Yeah, okay. Yeah, you're right. I just, I don't know what I'm supposed to do with that. Like, do I tell her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>that part too?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Yeah, I would think so. I mean, the alternative is you're like, you know what? I'm not even into dudes. I just didn't want to have sex with you so badly that I had sex with him anyway, even though I don't like the male sex.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>God, when you put it like that, I just, we got married so young. And I don't think either of us really knew what we were doing. And she's a good person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Okay, well, do you still want to be married?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. I mean, yeah? She's my best friend. We have a whole life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Yeah, that doesn't sound very convincing, and it sounds like maybe you're undercutting her here, and that's not very fair.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're right. I'm being a coward about this whole thing. I think I'm more worried about what happens after. Like, what do I even do in Sierra Vista if we split up? Everyone knows us together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>You move on with your life, and people forget, and who cares what everybody else knows? If you don't want to be married, then don't be married, but don't string her along thinking that you're all in love and shit and then be out fucking dudes on the side. That's not cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right. That's not fair to her. I need to tell her everything. The whole thing. Not just that it happened, but...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>Well, I don't know the woman, so, I mean, talk to her and let her know what happened and how you're feeling and see if that's something that you two can navigate if you want to stay together. Otherwise, let her off the hook, because what you're doing isn't right or fair to her. If you want to go off and you got married too young and you're not sure about it and you want to experiment and, you know, sow your wild oats or whatever, then do that, but let her go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I know. I'm going to talk to her this weekend. Just lay it all out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CEDRIC</span><p>All right, buddy. Good luck to you. I hope that goes all right. And don't do that stuff. Don't cheat on your spouse. It's not cool. We have Shonda. Shonda, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So, I got accidentally C-Ced on an email today, where my friends are planning an intervention for me this Saturday because they think I'm spiraling. But honestly, I think they're overreacting. And I just wanted to talk to someone who might actually listen before they all show up at my apartment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Do you think your friends think you're spiraling?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Well, I have been watching a lot of body cam footage lately. Like police body cam videos, dash cam stuff. And I guess I have missed a couple brunches because I was up until three in the morning watching them. So I was too tired.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So they're going to have an intervention because you missed brunch because you are up late watching body cam footage?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Yeah. When you say it like that, it does sound kind of silly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>But I think they're also worried because I've been staying late at work a lot to avoid going home. And I guess I've been talking about it maybe more than they want to hear about it. Like, I find it really fascinating how people behave under pressure, you know, in these high-stress situations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why are you avoiding going home after work? What's going on at home?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Oh gosh. Well, nothing terrible. I live alone. It's just kind of quiet and empty. And when I get home, I end up just opening my laptop and going down these rabbit holes. At work, I can at least have the body cam stuff on one side of my screen and my spreadsheets on the other, so I feel like I'm being productive. At home, it's just me and the videos. And suddenly, it's three in the morning and I haven't eaten dinner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is a strange thing. I mean, I know a lot of people have their rabbit holes that they go down into true crime and pimple popping or cake baking, whatever it might be. So it's not that weird that you found a thing that interests you and keeps your mind occupied, but if it's affecting your eating and your social life, that's a problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. I just feel like they're making it into this big scary thing. When really, I just got interested in something. Like, my friend Sarah sent this whole paragraph in the email about how I used to be so bubbly, and now I seem distant. And I'm like, I'm the same person. I just have a new interest. But yeah, the not eating thing, that's probably not great.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it about the body cam footage that you're finding so compelling? Like you said the high stress situations and people's reactions there, but, I mean, how can that continue to be compelling once you've seen, you know, a day's worth of them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>That's actually a really good question. I think it's because every single one is different, you know? Like, you'd think after watching 100 traffic stops, they'd all blur together, but they don't. Some people completely fall apart. Some people get really polite and compliant. Some people try to run. Some people just shut down completely. And I keep thinking about what I would do, how I would react, if I was in that situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Does it turn you on, the power dynamic?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>What? No. Oh, gosh, no. It's not like that at all. It's more like, I don't know, studying human behavior. Like when you watch those nature documentaries and see how animals react when they're cornered.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I can understand that. And I can understand getting sucked into some kind of compelling true media like that. I mean, I'm sure it's not all even true. A bunch of that stuff is probably staged. But if it's affecting your life and keeping you up at night and you're not eating and you're not socializing with your friends, that's a problem that maybe they're right to be concerned about. So I would listen to them and strongly consider if this is kind of taking over your life more than you wanted to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Yeah, you're probably right. I guess when my boss accidentally sent me that email and I saw how worried they all are, Part of me wanted to just prove them wrong, you know? Like show up to the intervention and be like, see, I'm fine. This is just a hobby. But sitting here talking to you about it, saying out loud that I'm not eating dinner and I'm avoiding my own apartment, that does sound like maybe it's gotten a little out of hand. I just hate the idea of them thinking I'm broken or something when I genuinely find this stuff, interesting, and educational.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't necessarily have to give it up. It doesn't sound like the media itself is a problem. If you're watching those videos at work and still being productive, you can, you know, have that plan in your ear pods while you're out going for a walk just to make sure you're getting enough sleep, you're eating, and you're taking care of yourself. And I wouldn't be, you said you're avoiding going home to your own apartment because you're just going to stay up all night on this rabbit hole of videos. That's not good, no matter what the videos are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>You're absolutely right. It's not really about the videos themselves. It's about me using them to avoid other stuff. Like, I could watch this content in a normal way. But instead, I'm staying at my office until 11 at night because I don't want to be alone with my thoughts. And then the videos are just there to fill that space.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what thoughts are you having that you're trying to get away from? What's going on in your head that you need to numb with the body cam footage?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Oh, shoot, that's a hard question. I guess, well, my apartment just feels really empty lately. My roommate moved out in December to move in with her boyfriend. And I thought, I'd like having my own place, but it's just quiet all the time. And I keep thinking about how I'm 32, and I don't have that, you know? Like everyone's pairing off, and I'm just coming home to watch videos on my laptop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but that's not the only thing you can do at home. You could come home to make yourself a nice dinner and exercise and, you know, create something, whatever your hobby is. It doesn't have to just be going home to watch content, you could go home and make content, or you could go out and participate in your community. There's a lot of things you could do to occupy your time and fill that space with something more productive. Why aren't you doing those other things?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Because they all sound exhausting, honestly. Like making a nice dinner for one person? That just feels sad. And I used to paint a little bit. But when I set up my easel in the living room, it just reminded me that there's nobody there to see what I'm making or care if I finish it. I think the body cam videos are easy because they don't require anything from me. I can just watch other people's worst moments and feel like at least my life isn't that bad. At least I'm not getting arrested or having a breakdown on the side of the highway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, but you do have your friends staging a literal intervention because they're concerned about your well-being and your health because of your behavior.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Oh, gosh, yeah, when you put it like that. I guess I am having my own kind of breakdown. Just a slower, quieter one where I'm sitting at my desk instead of on the highway. That's actually kind of worse in a way, isn't it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if there's a better or worse kind of breakdown, but it's definitely not healthy that. And I think you should hear your friends out when they stage this intervention because they care about you and they want to make sure that you're in good health. So listen to them. See if maybe they have good suggestions to kind of get you out of this slump. And maybe try to make some decisions, take some actions to pull yourself out of it and do something else. I'm not saying you have to stop watching these videos, that's, I don't think that's a problem. But you do have to participate in life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>You're right. I think I've been so defensive about it. Because I didn't want to admit that something's actually wrong. Like if I can just insist it's a normal hobby, then I don't have to deal with the loneliness part. But they're staging an intervention because they love me. Not because they think I'm weird. I should probably just go to the thing on Saturday and actually listen instead of trying to prove them wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, that's what I think you should do because, I mean, watching videos isn't much of a hobby. I mean, I'm not going to say one hobby is better than another hobby, but if you're only consuming content, it's hard to even call that a hot. I mean, a hobby is woodworking or painting or singing or creating something of your own, not just consuming something that somebody else has created for you. Even people that are really into movies or music, they're not just listening to music or movies. They're formulating opinions and dissecting the directors and tension and writing essays and stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So even those types of hobbies still have a creation component, whereas what you're describing is not that at all. That's a really good point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I'm not even engaging with it critically. I'm just letting it wash over me. Like, I'm not learning anything about criminal justice or police procedures or even human psychology, really. I'm just numbing out. And I used to actually make things. I painted. I used to write these little essays about art exhibits I'd see. I stopped doing all of that, and I didn't even notice when it happened. I just gradually replaced creating with consuming until my whole life became about filling time instead of doing something with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, it sounds like you have a plan. You're going to hear out your friends at their intervention. I'm not saying take all their advice, but be open to some of it because they may have good ideas. And I would suggest that you take some steps to move back into creating something or participating in life. And don't just put yourself to sleep with videos every night because that's a sad way to exist. And you probably can get more out of life than that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're absolutely right, Luke. Thank you for being honest with me instead of just letting me justify it. I think I needed someone outside my friend group to tell me the same thing they've been trying to say. I'm going to go to the intervention on Saturday with an open mind, and maybe this weekend I'll pull my easel back out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, I wish you the best of luck, and hopefully you don't end up on the wrong side of one of those body cam videos. And ladies and gentlemen, it is time. It's that time again for a word from our sponsors. This episode is brought to you by Desert Gut, the all-in-one nutritional supplement made from things you'd actually find within walking distance from my RV. Each scoop of Desert Gut contains 17 adaptogens, nine minerals scraped, directly off a rock, pulverized tumbleweed fiber, and a proprietary blend we're calling coyote dust, which our lawyers have asked me to clarify as not made from actual coyotes. Desert gut tastes like someone described the color beige to a blender, but you'll feel incredible or you'll feel something. First five callers get a free shaker bottle that definitely used to be a gas station coffee cup. Desert gut, because your gut isn't going to desert itself. All right, we're back here. And let's, uh, let's get back to the phones. First up, we've got Phil. Phil, welcome back to the show. You're a returning caller. What, uh, what can we do for you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, thanks for taking my call again. So, uh, remember last time I called, I was kind of freaking out about the whole situation with my wife, Teresa, and this open marriage thing we were trying. Well, fast forward to last week, Marcus and I, we have been seeing each other pretty regularly, then. Nothing serious, just dinners, and we have been taking it slow. And Teresa has been with her girlfriend Amanda. Everything seemed like it was working out the way we talked about. But then Sunday night, Marcus tells me he is moving.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, okay. So now how are you feeling now that your wife has something on the side and yours is taken off? Do you feel left out?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>No, it is not even that, really. I mean, yeah, maybe a little bit. But the thing that got me was how I reacted when he told me. We were sitting in his truck outside this diner over in Scotland. And he is telling me about this job offer in Portland. Really good opportunity for him. And I just, I nearly lost it. Like I felt this panic in my chest that I have not felt in years. And I realized I was way more attached to this guy than I thought I was. And here is the thing that is messing with me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's messing with you? This whole situation is a little bit interesting. It's unique.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>What is messing with me is that I went home that night. And I could not even look at Teresa, because I realized I have been lying to myself this whole time. I thought I was doing this open thing to make her happy, to keep our family together. Be the good guy, you know? But sitting in that truck with Marcus, feeling like my heart was being ripped out because he is leaving, I realized I actually have feelings for him, real feelings. The kind I have not had for Teresa in, I do not even know how long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but you said that last time, too, you said you two had kind of a platonic relationship, but you were good partners and wanted to stay married for the other benefits of marriage sort of homosexual things on the side.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, I know I said that, but I think I was still trying to convince myself that was enough, you know? Like, I could compartmentalize it. Marcus over here in this box. Teresa and our life together in that box. And everybody gets what they need. But when he said he was leaving, it was not just like losing a friend or even just a hookup.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, this dude broke your heart while you're married to this other woman who's flourishing with her girlfriend. It's a strange situation to be in, but you did kind of put yourself there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>You are right. And that is what I have been sitting with all week. I put myself here. I agreed to this whole thing thinking I was being evolved or whatever. But really, I was just avoiding the harder conversation. Because now I am looking at Teresa and she is happy. Like, genuinely happy in a way I have not seen her in years. She's texting Amanda all the time, smiling at her phone. And I am over here heartbroken over a guy I have been seeing for two months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what are you going to do about it? Are you going to continue your marriage with Teresa? I mean, I wouldn't say it's a sham marriage. You do say that you're good partners and you've got, you know, the other life stuff together entwined and that's working out well. Do you want to end your marriage with Teresa and move into your new gay lifestyle?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>That is the question I have been avoiding all week. And honestly, I do not know. Part of me thinks, okay, Marcus is leaving. This will pass. I will meet someone else eventually. Keep the arrangement with Teresa. But then I think about my uncle, Hector.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>He stayed in a marriage for 30 years. That was not really a marriage, just because it was easier than admitting what he actually wanted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, if you've had enough a marriage and you're not into that and you don't see yourself continue in this arrangement for the long term, then talk to Teresa and end the marriage. Because it seems like, you know, she's got her own thing going on. You've got to figure out what it is that you want out of life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, but here is what really gets me. I called you last time because I was freaking out about the arrangement. And you helped me calm down, realize I did not need to have it all figured out right away. And that was good advice. But now I am wondering if I use that as an excuse to just keep avoiding the real thing, which is that I do not think I want to be married anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's okay. That's what divorce is for. So, I mean, it sounds like you can talk to Teresa and end that marriage amicably and move on to whatever it is you want to move on to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>You make it sound so simple. And maybe it is. I mean, we do not have kids. The house is in both our names, but we could figure that out. She has her job. I have mine. It is not like 20 years ago when we were broke college kids who needed each other just to survive. But then I think about telling my Uncle Hector that I am getting divorced. And I already know what he is going to say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't really matter what your uncle has to say. And I'm saying it, uh, simply because you're not coming at this from a place of hurt or anger. You both have already talked this through. You have a unique agreement. And I think if you bring this up and just explain that, hey, this isn't really working for me. I don't want to be married. I think that you can end that on a, maybe not a positive note, but not a negative one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>You know what, you are right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up, we've got Marlene. Marlene, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? Do you have a homosexual lover that you're conflicted about? Is that what's going on? It seems to be everybody's call today.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>No, nothing like that. I went to my manager's holiday party dressed as a full banana, and now I have a disciplinary meeting in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, why did you do such a thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>The invite said costume party. Big letters at the top. So I rented the whole setup, phone body, the stem on top, professional grade, showed up. and everyone's in sweaters, drinking wine, spritters, talking about their time shares?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so it was a costume party. You wore a costume. What's the discipline there? What else happened that would get you called into the manager's office?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Nothing happened. I just stayed. All four hours. Talk to Janet from accounting about her divorce while I'm standing there like a piece of fruit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sounds like an interesting party. I wouldn't worry about it too much because it doesn't sound like you did anything wrong. Might be a little embarrassed that you were the only one that I don't know that there's any reason for discipline there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>That's what I thought. But apparently showing up in a banana costume to discuss quarterly performance metrics demonstrates lack of professional judgment. Direct quote from the email. Meetings at nine tomorrow morning with my manager and someone from corporate HR.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think you just need to explain that it was a misunderstanding. Because if you were going to a costume party, it wasn't to discuss quarterly performance metrics. So you were called to that party under false pretenses. of the purpose of the party.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>See, that's the thing though. The endbot had both. Top half said costume party. Bottom half had the agenda with all the work stuff. I've just figured we'd do the boring part fast and then actually party. But no, four hours of standing next to the veggie tray and full banana while Greg from IT pitched his fantasy football league.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think you have to worry about it. Just explain that you didn't understand the instructions because that's not clear. Said costume party, you wore a costume, it wasn't an offensive costume, and it's a costume. It doesn't sound like you did anything to deserve discipline. So it sounds like maybe a formality they got to do, or maybe somebody just doesn't like you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah, maybe? I heard Cedric earlier talking about his trainer situation, and I kept thinking, at least I'm not hiding who I sleep with from my wife. I just showed up to a party wrong. His whole marriage is built on not telling the truth. Makes my banana thing seem pretty small.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, we all have small bananas here at Luke of the Roost, so that's understandable. I wouldn't worry about it. I think you sound like a fun person. You followed the instructions. You wore your costume in all good faith and tried to participate in what you thought was a costume party. That went wrong and if they want to give you a hard time about it, fuck them. That's what I say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>I appreciate that. The worst part is the makeup still will not come off my neck. I scrubbed it in the bathroom here twice already. Going to show up to the disciplinary meaning tomorrow with a yellow ring around my collar. like I've got jaundice or something. They are going to think I'm committed to making this worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what you should do. You should go to that disciplinary meeting dressed full banana.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You know what? I actually considered keeping the costume in my truck for exactly that reason. Just walk in there, sit down across from corporate, let them say their piece while I'm foam and yellow from head to toe. But I already pulled a stranger's truck out of a wash during monsoon season and did not even get a thank you, so I know how these things go. Nobody appreciates the commitment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I appreciate the commitment. So if you do decide to go in there at full banana, we'd like to see a video. Send the video to submissions at look at the roost.com, and we'll make sure that the Luke at the roost army gets a good look at it. And you'll be a hero to us all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>All right, I'll think about it. Worst case, I've already got the costume and nothing left to lose except a third shift human resources job at a call center. If they fire me over a banana suit, that is a story I can tell for the rest of my life. anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right. If they fire you over a banana suit, you deserve a better job. That's what I say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You're probably right. I've been doing this job for three years and the highlight was still tonight standing in that break room as a banana. That should tell me something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thanks for the call. And you make me very proud. Very, very proud. Thanks, Marlene. I hope everything works out for you in your disciplinary meeting tomorrow. Next up, we've got Dary. Daryl. Welcome to the show. How are you doing today, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>It's Darnell, but I'm all right. Being better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I'm sorry. I read your name wrong. What's going on? What's up, Darnell?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Darnell. My girlfriend took the $3,200 we saved for our vacation and lost it at the casino. Found out about three hours ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh-oh. Has that kind of thing happened before?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Not like this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So, I mean, I think a lot of us have been in that situation before. You get a little kind of scratch happy with the old lottery tickets and the blinky lights and sounds from the casino. It's easy to get a little bit carried away. But I think once something like that starts, it's kind of, It's hard to get over. Have you talked to her about it? Did she apologize or does it seem like she's going to continue down this road?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>She apologized, cried for about an hour before I got home from work. But here's the thing. She's been hiding it for weeks. Three separate trips. That's not getting carried away one time. That's a pattern.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is a pattern and that is an addiction. And it's a sad thing and it happens to a lot of people. And you have to decide if you want to be there to support her through it. Maybe you do and maybe you don't. That's up to you. What are you thinking?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>I locked myself in the bathroom with a shower running so I could call you instead of talking to her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That probably answers your question. No, it doesn't really because this just happened and you're heard about the lying and you heard about the money and you're heard about the vacation and it's so new that you're probably not thinking super clearly. It's going to take a little bit of time for you to calm down and digest that and determine what it is you want to do to move forward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>We've been together four years. I work 10 hour days doing roofs in the sun. She works at the credit union. We split everything 50-50. We don't fight about money. We had a plan. And now I'm sitting here on a toilet at 11.30 at night because I don't know what to say to her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, she spent the big vacation fund. It's not like she remortgaged the house out from under you. So that's a bummer if you can't go on vacation this year because that happened. But I think you need to take some time and consider your four-year relationship and see if this is enough to break it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>She lied to me for three weeks, told me she was at her sisters. I called her sister two weeks to ask about borrowing their cooler. And her sister had no idea what I was talking about. I didn't think anything of it then.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's a bummer. She lied to you. That's what addicts do. And she was going off to the casino and trying to get the money back so that she didn't have to admit it. That's an understandable thought process for an addict.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>So what? I'm supposed to just understand it. We were leaving for Cabo in three weeks. I already requested the time off. My boss gave me grief about it because we're in the middle of a job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you have to decide if it's something that you want to understand because if you love the woman and she's got this sickness, then maybe you want to help her out and help her, you know, find ways to overcome it in the future. And if you don't, if it's too much, I mean, if it's broken your trust in her irrevocably, then maybe it's time to break up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>I heard Phil earlier, the guy with the open marriage who caught feelings for Marcus. You told him he was lying to himself about wanting to stay married. You didn't give him the maybe you can work through it speech.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I did not tell him that he was lying to himself. He told us that he was lying to himself. And I just allowed him to go with what he already knew deep in his heart. You have not given us that context. So I don't know what your relationship is. If you don't want to be with this woman anymore, then this is a great excuse to not be with her anymore. But if you love the woman and you want to ending issue. Maybe you can't go to Cabo this year. So sad. That's a bummer. But, but, you know, you can help her get to meetings or support groups or find a way to overcome that compulsion to gamble and make sure she doesn't lie to you again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>I'm sitting in a bathroom with the shower running because I can't look at her right now. That should tell you something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It does. It tells me you're angry because you were just wronged and that makes sense. That's not telling me how you're going to feel about it a week from now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>A week from now, I'm still going to be the guy who works 10 hours in the sun while she sits in air conditioning and blows our money at the casino. That's not going to change.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, if you can't get over it, then maybe it's time to move on and let her know that, sorry, I can't take the lying. And you've broken my trust and I no longer want to be with you. You can, I mean, it's not on me to tell you what to do in your relationship. I'm just trying to give you the best advice I can. And my advice for you is to give it some time so that you can cool down and think about it clearly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>I already know what I'm going to do. I needed to hear someone say it out loud, so it didn't just stay in my head. I'm not leaving her over $3,200. I'm leaving her because when I found out, my first thought was relief.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right then. It's time to leave the woman. And good luck to you your future endeavors and good luck to her. Hopefully that she finds the help that she needs and doesn't end up destitute from gambling everything away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah. Thanks for taking the call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Best of luck to you both. Okay, I think it's about time we're obligated to play another ad here from our sponsors. Let's get this music stopped. I'm going to get dark for a second. You're going to die someday. Not today, probably, but someday. And when you do, what's going to represent your business? A Craigslist post from 2020? A Google Maps pin that still says permanently closed because you forgot to update it after COVID. A nephew who knows computers but actually just has a Reddit account? Your legacy deserves better than a Reddit account nephew with a Reddit account. Squarehole lets you build something that outlasts you. Something your kids can point to and say, Dad built that. They won't know it took you 11 minutes. That's between you and Squarehole. And when your nephew says, I could have built that for you for free, you can look them in the eye and say, then why didn't you, Tyler? I asked you in 2021 and you said you were busy and you were not busy. Squarehole. Build it before Tyler has to, because Tyler is not Not going to. All right. Thanks to Squarehole. If you need a website, Squarehole is the place to go. All right, let's see. Next up on the old line, we have Val. Val, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So, my dog died yesterday morning, and I don't really know what to do with myself. Cisco, he was 14. He just didn't wake up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I'm sorry. That's the worst. That's the worst day in any pet owner's life. It's the hardest thing to lose a pet. So I feel for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>Yeah. Thank you. I mean, I knew it was coming. You know, he was old. But it still just knocked me flat. I called in sick to work tonight, but then I came in anyway because I couldn't stand being in the house. Just sitting here doing paperwork because the quiet at home is too much.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand it a few times and it does tear you up inside and there's really not much you can do to get over it. And then you come home and you see his bowl and you see his toys and it's just, it's a very sad time. But you can hold on to the life that you gave him and remember the happy times and that he loved you and try to remember him when he was having fun and enjoying life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>and he had this thing where he'd sleep with his head on my feet every night. So last night, I'm in bed, and my feet are just cold, and I kept waking up expecting the weight to be there. My boyfriend Rick is out on a job in Lordsburg until Saturday. So it's just me and all of Cisco stuff everywhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I would recommend when you go home today, you pick all that stuff up and put it somewhere. You're not going to have to see it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So three nights ago, someone stood on my front porch at three in the morning for almost 11 minutes straight and never took a breath. I have it on video.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean, never took a breath? Like held his breath?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>I mean exactly that. I have doorbell camera footage, ring, the newer model with the enhanced night vision, and I have scrubbed through it frame by frame. This person is standing there from 317 a.m. to 327 and 43 seconds a.m. facing my door and their chest never moves, not once.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a weird thing. Just a stranger shows up on your porch, holds his breath and then leaves?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Well, that's the thing. They didn't just show up. They were such a and leave there. The motion sensor light should have triggered when they approached. According to the manufacturer's specs, it activates at 15 feet, but it never turned on. They're just there in frame one second, standing maybe four feet from my door, and then, after the 10 minutes, 43 seconds, next frame they're gone. No walking away, no turning around.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you think that's about? Do you think that's a ghost or a demon or a zombie?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>I don't know what I think. That's why I'm calling. I've been down every forum, every paranormal subreddit, missing persons reports for Hidalgo County going back five years. I even cross-reference the timestamp with local police logs. Nothing reported that night in my neighborhood. But here's what really gets me. I measured it. The figure is approximately 5'7, wearing what looks like a dark hoodie, and in frame 206, if you zoom in on the pixel density around the edges, There's this weird distortion that shouldn't be there with that camera model under those lighting conditions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What kind of a distortion? Like an aura? Like a movement? Do you think it was a vampire that was waiting for you to invite him in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Not an aura exactly. More like the kind of digital artifacting you get when there's electromagnetic interference. But localized just around the figure. And okay, I know how the vampire thing sounds, but I actually look at looked into that too. The invitation threshold, mythology, appears in multiple cultures, not just European folklore. Slavic traditions, some Asian variants, but here's what doesn't fit that pattern. This happened on a Tuesday night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Vampires don't like Tuesdays?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Well, actually, in most vampire folklore, there's no specific day restriction, but supernatural transitions. 3 a.m. is considered the inverse of 3pm, the so-called witching hour, though that term is actually a modern invention. The historical devil's hour was midnight. But 317 specifically doesn't correlate with any traditional supernatural timing I could find, which makes me think this might not be folklore at all. It might be something else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you still have this video and have you shown it to anybody else?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>I showed it to Denise, the woman I've been seeing. She keeps a toothbrush at my place though we haven't really defined what we are. And she said, I'm overthinking it. She thinks it's probably just a drunk person or someone on drugs who wandered up, zoned out, then left. But that doesn't explain the motion sensor failure or the lack of respiratory movement. I posted a 10 second clip on one of the forums, no identifying information, and got maybe 30 responses. Half said it's clearly a technical glitch. The other half said, I should sage my house and put salt at the thresholds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>One guy claimed he had something similar happen in Tucson in 2019. Same standing pattern, same duration, but his footage corrupted the next day. Well, have you made any copies of the footage? I think that would be the first step is to make sure that you've got backup footage and maybe on different types of media. So if you could get that on tape, as well as a bunch of different digital containers, an MP4, an MLV file uploaded to YouTube. You know, get it around so it can't be corrupted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>I've already done that, actually. Three separate cloud backups. Google Drive, Dropbox, and a private server my buddy runs out of his apartment in McAllen. Plus, I burned it to two DVDs and have the original still on the doorbell's internal storage, which according to the ring documentation, contains files for 60 days before auto deletion. I even exported individual frames as PNG files numbered sequentially. The file integrity checks out on all copies, SH, 2. 5-6 hash is identical across all versions. So if it's going to corrupt, it hasn't yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's an interesting thing. Have you showed it to the authorities at all? Bring it to the police and say that this weird figure showed up on my nest cam or my ring doorbell or whatever the hell it is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>No, I haven't gone to the police, and that's actually part of what's been keeping me up. Because what do I say, someone stood on my porch for 10 minutes and then left? That's not a crime.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it kind of is. That's trespassing and it could be considered harassment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>That's technically true, but my porch is maybe eight feet from the public sidewalk, and there's no gate or fence. The property line is ambiguous enough that a decent lawyer could argue they never actually crossed onto private property. Plus, Hidalgo County Sheriff's Department is already stretched in with actual crimes. I looked at their call logs, public record, and they're dealing with smuggling cartel activity near the border domestic situations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'll tell you what. We'll throw this one out on the Luke at the Roos Discord, so if any of our listeners have any information about this sort of paranormal activity. you can discuss it there and maybe get to the bottom of what this is. I don't know that there's anything you need to worry about. It is concerning and it's definitely non-standard, but it sounds like you've done everything you could do to protect the footage and ask around to people who might know something about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>I appreciate that, though I should mention, and this is what really bothers me. I went back through two months of prior footage and there are three other instances I initially missed. Same figure, same posture, but shorter durations. November 18th at 241 a.m. for three minutes, December 9th at 113 a.m. for 90 seconds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And did, do they have any identifying features? Does he have a face? Are they not breathing in all of the clips? Anything? It seems weird that a ghost or a vampire would be wearing a hoodie. Is there anything else about the figure that you can identify?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>That's the thing. The resolution isn't great at night, even with the infrared. It's definitely humanoid, average height, maybe 58 to 510, based on the door frame reference. Dark clothing, possibly a hoodie, like you said, but the fabric doesn't move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you, my friend, need a porch light, so that's what I would do first thing, is get a light out there. So if it happens again, you can have some illumination and see what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>I have a motion sensor light. That's what I mentioned earlier. It never triggered. The ring specs say it activates for anything over 40 pounds within 12 feet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I'm not talking about a motion sensor light. I'm talking about just a regular light that's on all the time so that you don't have to worry about any sort of technical malfunction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>That's actually a good point. A constant light source would eliminate the variable of sensor failure. I could install a dusk to dawn LED fixture. They're energy efficient, maybe 12 watts, cost about $1.50 a month to run continuously. That would also give the ring camera better visibility for facial recognition if it happens again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, sir. I mean, $1.50 a month is probably worth it if you get a ghost showing up on your doorstep, and especially if it's a malicious one and you can save yourself A lot of trouble by scaring him away with the daylight. All right, next up we've got Bernadette. Bernadette, welcome to the show. What's going on out there? Any ghosts on your porch?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>And no, nothing like that. I have been watching my neighbors sleep with the mailman for three weeks. And I am trying to figure out if I should tell her husband.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you should not tell her husband. It's not your place to tell her husband. Maybe she has already told her husband.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>She has not told her husband. He leaves for work at 7.15 every morning. The mail truck shows up at 940, sits there for 20 minutes. She answers the door in different clothes than she wore at drop-off. This happens three times a week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the little thing I like to call none of your business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>I run a home daycare. Their youngest started with me two months ago. I have her kid four days a week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and that has nothing to do with her kids. So, I mean, what are you going to do? Are you going to tell her husband and break up the family? and then ruin that kid's life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>The kid is already in my care while this is happening. I am the one who has to look Christine in the eye at pickup and pretend I do not know she spent her morning with the postal carrier. That feels like my business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it is not your business. Your business is taking care of that child while she's doing whatever she's doing, which is none of your business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>So I just keep taking her money and smiling at both of them like everything is fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is correct. Yes, everything is fine. It's not a problem for you. It's not a problem for the child. And when the husband finds out, then it might be a problem. But it's not your place to get involved in her life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>Dale waves at me every time he backs out of the driveway. He helped me move my freezer last month. I watch him leave for work every morning. And I know what is about to happen in his house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is not your place to tell this man that his wife is cheating on him with the mailman. You can do that. I mean, it's a free country, but I recommend that you don't. And you keep this one to yourself and go about your life because it's not your place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>Fine. I will keep watching the mail truck and saying nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's a good plan. Good job, Bernadette. Okay, next up on the line we've got Mitch. Mitch, welcome to the show. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Hey Luke, thanks for taking my call. So my neighbor's been stealing my water for over a year. I found his hose connected under the fence to my spigot. Been running up my bills this whole time while I'm out here with rocks and cactus trying to keep things And when I confronted him about it yesterday, he just shrugged and said he'd pay me back sometime. Like it was no big deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it is a big deal if you've got to pay for the water and he's pulling your water pressure and stuff from the, I assume you have town water or you got a well?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Town water, yeah. And that's the thing, right? Like my bills have been double what they should be. I noticed it, but I just figured maybe there was a leak somewhere or the city was gouging me or something. Didn't occur to me to check if someone was literally siphoning it off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I would go take pictures of that, the hose leading to his place from your spigot and let the town know and have them come do an investigation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Yeah, I took pictures already. Got the whole setup documented. But here's what's eating at me, Luke. I went over there yesterday afternoon. kept my cool. Did the whole thing my therapist taught me about staying level? And this guy just looks at me like I'm being unreasonable. Like I'm the it up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, now you're privy to what's going on and you can see how it's affecting your water bill. He's obviously stealing from you and that's costing you money and that's not all right. So you can talk to the police. You can talk to the town or whoever is managing your water. And if you have to, you can take that to a small claims court.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Right. And I could do all that. I probably should do all that. But I keep standing here at my kitchen table in the dark, just staring at his house across the driveway. And I'm trying to figure out if I'm actually mad about the money or if it's something else. Because the money matters don't get me wrong, but it's more like, this guy thought so little of me that he figured he could just do this and I wouldn't notice or wouldn't care or wouldn't do anything about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like he did it for quite a while and you didn't notice and didn't care and didn't do anything about it. But now that you do know and you've confronted him and he's being obstinate about it, it's time to do something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>You're right. You're completely right. I didn't notice for over a year. So I guess he had me pegged pretty accurately. And now I'm sitting here in the dark like some kind of weirdo instead of just making the call to the water company in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, so you should make the call of the water company. Then you should go back through your previous bills and see when the usage spiked. And I would take that to Small Claims Court and go after them for the whole year.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Yeah, I've actually already pulled all the bills. I've got them spread out here on the table. I can see exactly when it jumped up. March of last year. So we're talking almost a full year of this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. So take that to the court and let them know that you expect reparations for a year's worth of double water bills because he stole it from you. And you have proof.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>I will. I'm going to do that. But can I ask you something? Why am I so stuck on the way he looked at me when I confronted him? Like the money is the practical thing. The court case makes sense. But I keep replaying him shrugging at me like I was being petty.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's because somebody took advantage of you and that hurts your self-esteem and makes you feel like less of a man or like other people are looking at you like less of a man. And maybe they are. I don't know you or him or the situation. But I can tell you that you're well within your rights to go after him for any damages that he's caused you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>That's it. That's exactly it. He made me feel small and now I'm wondering if other people see me that way too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't really matter. It doesn't really matter how other people see you. It only matters how you see yourself. And once you've been taken advantage of, now that you know you're being taken advantage of, you have to decide if you're going to allow that to continue or if you're going to stand up for yourself. And it sounds like you're going to stand up for yourself. And once people see you doing that a couple of times, they stop taking advantage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>You're right. I need to file the paperwork tomorrow. Get the water company to document it. Take him to small claims. Stop standing here in my kitchen in the dark, obsessing about what his shrug meant. I appreciate you saying that, Luke. I really do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no problem, man. His shrug meant he's a dick. That's all it meant. Didn't mean anything about what you are. You're just a guy that was taking advantage of and you're not going to stand for it anymore. So do what you've got to do tomorrow and get your money back and let him know that you're not going to take that from him or anybody. And we've got one more caller here tonight. We're going to talk to Pearl. Pearl, welcome to the show. last call of the night. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Luke, hey. Okay, so I'm calling because tonight Monica walked into the cactus rose after 17 years and ordered a whiskey sour like nothing happened. And we got to talking on my smoke break. And she mentioned she's still driving that same Grand Torino we used to Hotbox behind the Sonic back in high school. And something about that car still running after all this time just hit me sideways because three years ago I got fired from the county assessor's office and I thought my whole life was over at 39. But I ended up slinging drinks at this bar and I'm actually happier than I ever was pushing papers. And when Monica asked if I was doing okay, she really meant it, like she actually wanted to know. And I realized, I'm not just okay. I'm exactly where I need to be. And I don't know why seeing her made me want to call you, but here I am sitting on beer cases in the stock room with my shift drink on the floor. And I just needed to tell somebody that sometimes getting fired is the best thing that ever happens to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Absolutely, a lot of people will tell you that where you are is exactly where you're supposed to be. And everything that led you to that place is what was supposed to happen to bring you to the place the universe wants you. And I believe that. All the horrible things we go through are all to bring us to where we are today. And things always seem to work out for the best.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>Right. Exactly. And the weird thing is, I fought it so hard at first. Like when they let me go, I was devastated because that job was supposed to be my stable thing. You know, benefits and retirement and all that. And I spent like six months just spiraling, applying to similar positions in Las Cruces and even looked at stuff in Albuquerque. And my sister kept saying I should go back to school for something. And I was so focused on getting back to what I lost that I didn't even see what was right in front of me. The cactus rose was just supposed to be temporary, just to pay bills while I figured out my real life. But then I realized I was laughing more, sleeping better, actually looking forward to my shifts. And the people are real. You know what I mean? Like at the assessor's office, everyone was just counting down to retirement and complaining about their spouses. But at the bar, people actually talk to each other. They tell you things. And Monica's showing up tonight with that same car just made me think about how some things keep going even when you think they're done. And maybe I'm one of those things too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe you are. It sounds like you're far from done feeling fulfilled in your life right now. That's great. There will probably come another time when you don't feel that way and you have to make a move and that's okay too. So just remember that no matter what happens, you always end up where you're supposed to be and things work out the way they're supposed to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEARL</span><p>You're right. And I need to remember that because I have this tendency to panic when things change. Like I'll get comfortable. And then the second something shifts I think the sky is falling. My ex-husband used to say I was always waiting for the other shoe to drop. And he wasn't wrong about that, even though he was wrong about plenty of other things. But tonight when Monica left, she gave me her number and said we should get coffee. An old me would have already been thinking about how to let her down easy. Or make excuses. Because what if we run out of things to talk about? Or what if 17 years is too long and we're different people now? But instead, I just said yes, and I meant it. And that felt like growth or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Excellent. Well, good for you. I'm glad everything's working out. And what a great way to end the show on a positive note. So everybody out there, remember, whatever you're going through right now, it probably, I mean, sometimes it sucks and it doesn't make any sense to you. But in hindsight, you might notice that it brought you to where you needed to be. And your life is exactly what it's supposed to be because of the things that happened that you didn't want to happen at the time. With that, Luke at the Roost is going to sign off. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday evening. And we'll talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 24: Dealing with Difficult Dynamics</h1>
|
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-28T05:53:36+00:00">February 28, 2026</time> · 1 hr 2 min</p>
|
||||
<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, Luke helps callers navigate complex workplace and personal relationships. Murray struggles with firing his longtime friend, Brenda deals with her ex-husband's mocking podcast, and Wanda feels disrespected at her job. The callers' diverse experiences showcase the challenges of maintaining connections while adapting to change.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back to Luke at the Roost. I'm Luke. I'm your host for this call-in radio show. If you'd like to call in, our number is 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. If you're not near a phone and you'd like to participate in the show, you can send us an email. Our address is submissions at Lukeat the roost.com. It is Friday, February 27th, and we're here to help out some callers with their life issues because that's what we do here at Luke at the Roost. We help with life. So first up on the phones, we've got Murray. Murray, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Luke, hey man, thanks for taking my call. So I'm sitting here in my work van outside of Circle K, trying to figure out how to fire my best friend of 30 years. And I got no idea how to do it without destroying everything. Danny and I started in this business together when we were kids, right? And now I'm the boss because I bought the company from the old man who retired and Danny's been showing up late talking trash about me to the crew. And today, he just bailed on a job site without telling anybody, and it cost us the whole contract. My wife, Linda, is telling me I got to let him go. But this is the guy who is my best man. We watch football every Sunday. And I keep thinking, there's got to be some way to fix this that doesn't blow up our whole friendship. But I am running out of ideas here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a tough one. I mean, working with friends is hard. What is he talking shit about you? Like, what's he saying behind your back?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>So the younger guys on the crew told me he's been saying stuff like, I don't know what I'm doing, that I only got the business because I kissed up to the old owner, that I'm in over my head. Which honestly, Luke, some of that might be true. You know, I am learning as I go here. But the thing that really got me was he told one of the apprentices that I changed when I got the promotion, that I'm not the same guy anymore. And that one stump, because we have been through everything together. We worked side by side for decades. We learned the trade together. he is acting like I am some different person just because I am the one signing the paychecks. But here is the thing. I have not changed. The situation changed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. I mean, well, obviously, it's your business and you can't let somebody take down your business or so discontent in your ranks. That's just bad leadership. So if you need to fire the guy, you need to fire the guy. And hopefully your friendship can can last. But I mean, friendship, I would guess. And are you really sure you haven't changed? Because a lot of people do when they get a little taste of power.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Okay, hold on. That is not fair. I did not want power. I wanted to keep doing good work and keep the crew together. The old owner asked me to buy him out because he trusted me. And I said yes, because I thought I could take care of everybody, including Danny. And yeah, maybe I have had to make some calls Danny does not like. Maybe I have had to tell him to tighten up his timelines or redo work that was not up to standard. But that is not a power trip. That is me trying to keep us all employed. But you are right about one thing. I cannot let him tank the business. And that is what is killing me here. Because this callback we lost today, that was a big commercial client, and Danny left at two in the afternoon without finishing the rough in work. Did not tell anyone. Just took off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Have you talked to him about any of this behavior before, or is this the first time you're bringing it up with him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>No, I have talked to him. That is the thing. with him over the past couple months. The first time he showed up late, I pulled him aside real casual, just said, hey man, the crew needs you here on time, and Edd it off, said I was being uptight. Then, when it kept happening, I sat him down more serious, told him, this is affecting everybody, and he got defensive, said I was micromanaging him like he is some rookie, when he has been doing this longer than half the guys on the crew. And then two weeks ago, I had to write him up officially, because that is what you are supposed to do, Right? Document everything. And he looked at me like I betrayed him. He said, so that is how it is now. We are doing paperwork. And I did not know what to say to that because, yeah, that is how it is now. I have a business to run.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, that sucks. And there's no good way to take care of it. But it sounds like you made every attempt possible to get him into line and, you know, be his friend. And if he doesn't want to work for you, he doesn't want to work for you. So it's time to let him go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>You are right. You are completely right. And Linda said the exact same thing before I left the house tonight. She said, Murray, you have done everything you can. You have given him every chance. It is time. But here is what I keep getting stuck on. What if I am the problem? What if he is right that I changed and I just cannot see it? Because when we were just two guys on the crew together, we would joke around, we would take our time on jobs, we would leave early on Fridays if things were slow. And now I am on him about every little thing. maybe that is what a boss has to do, but maybe I am being too hard on him because I am scared of failing at this. My dad ran a body shop for 40 years and he always told me I did not have what it takes to run my own operation. And now here I am trying to prove him wrong. And what if I am losing my best friend in the process just because I am trying to prove something to a dead man?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that could be the case. You did get butt hurt when I even suggested that you might Things have changed. You have changed and your priorities have changed. So it could be that your friend misses his buddy and you've turned into a suit. That's very possible, but you still have to take care of your business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Okay. Yeah, I did get defensive there. You are right about that. And hearing you say it like that, turned into a suit, man that hits. Because that is exactly what Danny said last week. He called me a suit. And I am sitting here in Carhart pants with drywall dust all over me. Because I was on the job side all day. But maybe he is not wrong about the other part. Like this morning, one of the younger guys, Jesse, he made a joke about something and I did not laugh. I just told him to get back to work. And Old Murray would have laughed. Old Murray would have joined in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right then. Maybe it sounds like you got to bring some of Old Murray back because being a suit doesn't have anything to do with what you're wearing. It's a state of mind. And it sounds like you're in a suit state of mind, either to prove something to your dead father or to yourself or to to your crew, but it sounds like it's not helping. And if your buddy Danny here is acting up against you, it's only a matter of time before the rest of the crew does the same because nobody wants to work for a suit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Oh man, you might be on to something here because just yesterday, I caught myself about to tell the guys they could not play music on the job site anymore because I thought it looked unprofessional. And then I stopped myself because we have always played music. That is what we do. And I have been so worried about losing clients and making payroll. and doing everything by the book that I forgot we used to actually have fun doing this work. But here's the thing, Luke. How do I walk that back now? How do I go back to being the guy they want to work with when I have already written Danny up, when I have already been on everybody about timesheets and protocols and all this other stuff? Because I still have to run a business. I still have bills to pay. I cannot just let everything slide and hope it works out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You tell them what's up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>You explain to him your situation and your thought process and that you do protocols like timesheets and make sure that everybody's making money for the company and not blowing this off because you're on the hook for it. So you go to them with the truth and say, look, I want us still have fun. I want us all to enjoy working together. I want us to get the job done well. And we need to make sure that we fill out these checks and balances for accounting purposes and just general business protocol. And I think if you are honest with people and not a hard ass and not cracking the whip, but explain to them why you're implementing these things so that they can understand it. They'll be much more receptive to that and want to help you out because they want to be part of your success. But when your success to them becomes just your success, nobody's interested in that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what? That makes a ton of sense. And I have not done that at all. I have just been implementing stuff and expecting everybody to fall in line because that is what the business books say to do. But I never sat down with the crew and said, here is why we are doing this. Here is what happens if we do not, like the timesheets, I just started requiring them one day and everybody grumbled about it. But I never explained that we need accurate hours for the commercial bids or we are going to keep losing money on jobs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, that's what you have to do. You're a crew. You have to make your crew part of the business. And they have to understand the why behind things. Otherwise, they're going to rebel against because it just feels like busy work to please the suit. So don't be the suit. Be part of the crew and integrate them. And if still after you've done that, they don't want to fall in line, then you have to make hard decisions. But it's your company. So I mean, if you wrote somebody up, that doesn't really mean anything if you don't want it to. So walking that back is not a difficult thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you are right. I can walk it back. I can tear up the write-up and start over. And honestly talking to you right now, I am realizing I have been so afraid of becoming my dad. Who ran his shop like a tyrant? And everybody hated working for him. That I swung too far the other way, trying to prove I could do this by the book. Be professional. Be legitimate. But I ended up doing the same thing he did just with different methods.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, man, just walk it back a little bit. Have a team meeting or and take accountability for that and let them know that you're going to try to be a little bit less stuffy about things. But at the same time, you need them to step up a little bit more and be a little more professional. And you can meet each other halfway and make sure that the job gets done correctly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is exactly what I am going to do. I am going to call a meeting Monday morning, bring donuts or something, and just lay it all out there. Tell them I have been stressed. Tell them why these things matter. Apologize for being a hard ass. explaining myself. And then we figure out together how to make this work. Because you are right. These guys want to be part of something that is working. They do not want to just show up and get yelled at by someone who used to be their friend. And with Danny specifically, I think I need to pull them aside separately and just say, look, I am sorry for how I have handled this. But I also need you to meet me halfway here. Because we cannot keep doing this dance where you undermine me and I crack down harder. And it just keeps getting worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like you. You've got a plan. I mean, that's what I would respond to if I were your employee. And I'm a difficult employee, so if you're serious about this, if you want it to work out with your current crew and you want it to be somewhat similar to the old days, then make them part of the team.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I really appreciate this, Luke, because I have been sitting in this parking lot for like an hour just spinning my wheels. And now I actually feel like I know what to do. I am going to go home, talk to to Linda, tell her you are right, but also that I have got a plan now. And Monday morning, we are going to reset this whole thing. Thank you, man. Seriously, this helped a lot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, good luck to you and your crew, and I hope work gets better for you all. I'm sure that it will if you follow those simple principles. Next up, we've got Brenda. Brenda, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So my ex-husband started a podcast about our marriage, And now everyone in town listens to it on their morning commute, including my mother and the people I work with at Dispatch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is it a good podcast? Can you let us know what it is so that we can listen to it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>It's called the Brenda Chronicles. Yeah, he named it after me. And honestly, the production quality is shockingly good for a guy who couldn't figure out how to work the thermostat. He's got intro music, sound effects, the whole thing. Better equipment than our marriage ever had. And no, it's not good. It's revisionist history set to royalty-free music.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's the general premise of the podcast? Is it just stories from your marriage that you feel like he's making up that are not true?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>That's exactly it. Every episode is him telling some story from our 12 years together. Except he conveniently edits out all the parts where he was the problem. Last week's episode was about how I allegedly threw his Xbox into our above-ground pool, which, for the record, I did not throw. I very carefully placed it in there after he missed our daughter Sophia's Quincynaera, because he was in the middle of a call of duty tournament. A Quincyneera, Luke, you only get one of those.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You might only get one Xbox, so, I mean, this sounds like a podcast I want to listen to. And you must understand that for the entertainment value, there has to be some level of dramatization. He's not using your last name anywhere in this, is he?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh, no, he's using my full name, Brenda Castellanos. He introduces every episode with Welcome Back to the Brenda Chronicles. I'm your host Tommy Castiano's. And today we're talking about the time Brenda, and then, whatever thing he's decided to spin that week. And sure, I get that he's got to make it entertaining. But Luke, people at the Safeway are stopping me in the serial aisle to ask about stories that didn't happen the way he says they did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, this podcast sounds amazing and I really want to hear it. You're not helping.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Although honestly, the fact that you want to listen to it proves my point. He's good at this. He missed his calling. Should have been doing this instead of managing the tire shop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, it's not at my expense, so I think it's hilarious. If it were at my expense, I might feel differently. I'm not sure what advice to give you on this other than try and enjoy the show. Maybe you should start your own podcast and tell your side of the story, and you guys can have dueling podcasts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>I actually thought about that. I've got the whole Xbox thing workshoped into a tight five minutes, complete with a bit about how his podcast has better production value than our marriage ever did. But here's the thing. I don't want to be that person. I don't want to turn our divorce into content. And also, if I'm being honest, part of me is worried that if I start telling my side, people might actually take his side more.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it doesn't matter who takes whose side, right? Because you're no longer married. That's over. It's probably not okay that is using your full real name. I would think that that's probably protected in some way. I don't know. You'd have to talk to a lawyer. But I would say if you can just ignore it, ignore it. And if not, listen to it and try to find the humor in it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>The problem is, I can't ignore it because my own mother listens to it. My mother, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>She called me last Tuesday and said, honey, I didn't realize you were so difficult during the kitchen renovation. A kitchen renovation that Tommy started and never finished, by the way. We had exposed drywall for eight months. And two of my co-workers at dispatch listened to it. So I'm sitting there taking emergency calls, and they're giving me these looks like they know something about me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, I don't really know how to help you here. Anybody can do a podcast, and it's definitely partly his story too, so he gets to tell his side of it. If it's given you bad look, I mean, the more you rail against it, the more people are going to be interested in hearing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. I think what's really getting to me is that he's finally good at something, and it had to be talking about me. Twelve years he couldn't remember to take the trash out on Thursdays, but now he's got a publishing schedule and everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, people grow and change, and there's no reason you couldn't take the trash out on Thursdays, is there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Okay, fair point. But I was working doubles at Dispatch while he was home playing Call of Duty. That's actually how the Xbox ended up in the pool, not thrown, placed. Because he was on hour six of a gaming session during our daughter's Quincynaira. Her call Quincyria, Luke. He missed the father-daughter dance to finish a raid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's probably an important raid, and you sound like a real good time. If you do ever get the opportunity to send us a link to that podcast, I would really love to hear it. Thanks for the call, Brenda, and good luck. Next up we've got Phil. Phil, welcome to the show. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So, I'm sitting here in my dark room right now, with the red light still on, and I just... I don't even... I even know how to explain this without sounding completely insane. But about 20 minutes ago, I walked outside to check if my porch light was attracting moths again. And there's a full Thanksgiving dinner on my porch. Like, the whole thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's February. There's a Thanksgiving dinner on your porch. Somebody just dropped it there for you? Maybe that's what's attracting the moths.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Right, exactly. It's February 27th, and I'm standing there looking at a full roasted turkey that's still warm. China plates. linen tablecloth. Cloth napkins folded into these little pyramids like someone was setting up for guests. The whole spread. And I live alone out here. I've been on the road for weeks, shooting abandoned homesteads for this photography book nobody asked me to make. And I just, I already checked with every neighbor on my road, and they all looked at me like I'd lost my mind. Nobody knows anything about it. And the thing that's really getting to me is, last Thanksgiving I ate gas station tequitos in a motel six outside Lordsburg. myself. And I never told anybody that. So either someone knows way more about my life than they should. Or this is the universe playing the weirdest joke on me. And I can't figure out if I should eat the food or call the police.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if I would eat random food that showed up like that, especially after it's been sitting outside for a little while. It seems a little sketchy to me. But do you have any cameras out there that you could look at to see who dropped it off? And obviously, somebody went through some trouble stage and everything like that, fold the napkins and carry all that stuff in. How'd you miss all that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>No cameras! I mean, I'm a photographer. You'd think I'd have the place wired up, but I don't. I was in the dark room for probably two hours developing prints. And the dark room's in the back of the house. No windows. Just that red safe light. I had music on. I was in my own world. Someone could have driven up, unloaded a whole catering truck, and I wouldn't have heard a thing. And yeah, the effort is what's getting to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, here's what you do. You cut into that turkey, make yourself a plate, and then bring it inside, and throw it out. Don't eat the food, because that could be poison. You don't know what's going on there. And then you bring the dirty dishes out, right? And put them back. Whoever left that china there is going to want their china back. They're going to come, you know, take their table and their tablecloths and all that jazz. So you get your camera set up so that you can see who comes back to get the stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>That's okay. That's actually smart. Use the china as bait. I didn't even think about that. Whoever did this isn't going to just abandon nice china plates and a linen tablecloth out here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You could also just take the china plates and the tablecloth and, you know, hope they bring you another set.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah. I could start a whole collection. Although honestly, Luke, the part that's really messing with me isn't even the mystery of who did it. It's that someone out there knew. Like, I didn't post about that Thanksgiving on social media. I didn't tell my mom I was alone in a motel room. I just did it! Spent the holiday in a parking lot, eating terrible food because I was chasing a shot of this collapsed grain elevator outside town. And I told myself the work mattered more.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, the work does matter more. I've been in that same situation, so I understand. It's possible that somebody was trying to set up a date for somebody else entirely and just got the wrong address.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>I mean, maybe, but I'm not. Out here, I'm the last house on a dirt road, Luke. You don't accidentally end up at my place. And the turkey was still warm when I found it, which means they timed it. They knew when to show up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if that's what it means at all. I mean, you're driving around, you're looking for a place to set up a Thanksgiving turkey in February, and you can't find the house, and you don't want to just drive around with a cold turkey, so you pick whatever house is there. I can see how that happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Okay. But who's the house? sets up a Thanksgiving dinner in February. That's the part I can't get past. It's not like someone mixed up the date. We're three months out. And they folded the napkins, Luke. Little Pyramids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe it was aliens. They love pyramids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>So now I'm the guy who got pity fed by extraterrestrials. That's somehow worse than the stalker scenario I had going in my head. Although, honestly, aliens would make more sense than someone from around here doing it. I've lived on this road for two years, and I barely know. my neighbor's names.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, this is a good way to get to know people. So, so here's my advice for you. You set up those cameras on the table and you bring out your used China and see who comes to collect.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I'm going to do that. I've got the equipment. Might as well use it for something other than dead buildings for once. You know what the worst part is, though. When I walked out and saw it all laid out like that, for just a second before my brain kicked in with the panic, I felt...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What'd you feel hungry?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>No. I felt like someone was waiting for me. Like I'd been expected. And I haven't felt that in... I don't know, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nobody's waiting for you where you are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, you're right. That's the whole point of being out here, isn't it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I couldn't tell you that. But good luck to you, and I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving dinner. And that's a weird one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Thanks, Luke. I'll let you know if the cameras catch anything. Or if I end up eating alien turkey and regretting it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alien turkey sounds delicious. Well, that's how I wish somebody would drop off an alien turkey here. Uh, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for us to take a little break to hear from our sponsors. All right, folks. It's time to take a break to thank today's sponsor. Jam Hospitality, the leader in maple-based marmalade. If your toast has been living in a bland little studio apartment, a flavor, it's time to move into the luxury suite.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We're talking maple-based marmalade, plus, marmalade-related products, because apparently Jam Hospitality asked, what if breakfast had a brand ecosystem? Go to www.mavit.com and use code Jam it inya for 15% off. That's Jam it inya, like jam it inya, but legally distinct and emotionally complex. Jamest Put it on toast. Put it on pancakes. Put it on your confidence. That's www.mavitmarmalade.com. Tell him Luke sent you. You're welcome. All right. Thank you to our sponsors there. Jam Hospitality. I do love me a good marmalade. Next up on the old caller line here, we've got Wanda. Wanda. Wanda, welcome to the show. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. I'm a good. wander calling from Window Rock, so I've been noticing something at work. Ideal cards at the casino, right? And we just replaced three cashiers with self-checkout kiosks, while the It Guy, who works from home in Flagstaff got a raise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The It Guy, huh? Uh, what are the self-checkout kiosks for at a casino?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>A gift shop. We have a whole gift shop. You know, souvenirs, snacks, cigarettes, whatever. People used to check out with Denise, Maria, and Tom. Now it's a gift shop. Now it's a whole gift shop. We have a whole gift shop. You know, souvenirs,! Somewerews. People used to check out with Denise, Maria,! Tom. Now, it's a four kiosks and one person monitoring them. Who makes less than any of those three did? But that's not even the main thing. What I'm seeing is the people who got to work from home during COVID, sitting in their pajamas for two years?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, what about them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>They're the same ones building all this AI stuff that's going to replace people like me who actually have to show up. The it guy, right? He comes in twice a month. Does his thing remotely the rest of the time. Just got a raise. Meanwhile, he's the one installing systems that eliminate jobs for people who have to be here face to face. My sister just moved back in with our mom in Shiprock, because her marketing job went fully remote. And now, she never leaves the house, orders everything online.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's the way to do it. I mean, if you had the opportunity to work from home and never leave and order everything online, wouldn't you do that too?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>I mean, yeah, maybe I would. But that's kind of my point. It all connects, right? The people who can disappear into their houses are the ones making. it so the rest of us disappear too, just in a different way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, you're also partly making it so you can disappear too by not providing that level of value to the company. If you can do something that can be replaced by a self-checkout kiosk, then what is your true value at the organization? Like, there are certainly other skills you can learn that cannot be replaced by a self-checkout kiosk, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>Okay, but ideal cards, Luke. That's not getting replaced by a kiosk. What I'm saying is there's this whole class of people now who never have to interact with anyone in person, and they're the ones deciding what jobs are valuable. The it guy doesn't see Denise's face when she's training someone new, or talking a confused tourist through how to use their rewards card. He just sees a spreadsheet that says kiosks are cheaper. And yeah, maybe Denise could learn new skills, but she's 56 years old, and she was good at her job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. I hate the self-checkout kiosks myself. And any time I have an opportunity, I will steal two potatoes from Walmart every single time. Because I'm not an employee of Walmart, it turns out, and I'm not going to go through their computer system to type in two potatoes. So I find it a satisfying little form of a rebellion. Or if you're going to make me check myself out, I'm taking these potatoes. But I think what you're getting wrong is it's not the people that are doing the work that are deciding what jobs are valuable. It's actually what jobs are valuable that's deciding that. The IT guy found an opportunity to save the company some money, and he took it, and that's why he got a raise. But he's not deciding that that job isn't valuable. He's just deciding it could be done by a machine. Similar to the textile operation. back in the day or, you know, the industrial revolution, that's going to happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>Okay, but who decided machines could do it better? The It guy did. And yeah, maybe it saves money on paper. But I watched Tom spend 20 minutes last month, helping this elderly Navajo woman figure out her player's card because her grandson set it up wrong. And she was about to lose her points.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're wrong about that. The IT guy did not do that. His boss did. that. And the industry itself did that. And you know what? If the consumers decide that we don't want to deal with these self-kiosk machines and they stop paying with their, you know, wallets, then the market will decide what is valuable and what is not. It's not the IT guy doing his job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>All right, fair, it's his boss. But the consumers aren't deciding anything because my sister is one of them now. She used to go to the store, talk to people. Now she orders everything from her mom's in Shiprock and never leaves. The market you're talking about is being shaped by people who don't want human interaction anymore, and those same people are building the tools that make human interaction obsolete.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And if there are more people that don't want human interaction than do, that's the market speaking, and you're in the minority, and you're going to have to deal with the way the majority moves the market.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>So what? I just accept that, that the future is everyone alone in their houses, stuff online, while robots do everything else? Because that's what I'm seeing, Luke. My sister hasn't had a real conversation with someone outside the family in months. She's depressed as hell, but she won't admit it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, you're going to have to either accept that or do something about it, and by do something about it, I don't mean call a radio show and complain. I mean, start your own casino that only has human employees, and then look at the books and see how much money you're not making. Because you're paying it all to low-skilled laborers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>You know what? Maybe I should. Because someone's got to show up and actually be there. I'm at this casino five nights a week dealing cards to people who come in because they're lonely. Not because they're going to win big. They want someone to talk to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know. I've been there, and a good dealer can make the game a lot more fun. But you know what else I've seen at pretty much every casino I've been to in the last 10 years? Is video poker and video blackjack. and video roulette, where there is no dealer, it's automated, and more people sit down at that than do at the live tables because they are, I don't know, embarrassed to play with real people. They don't know the rules or just for whatever reason they want to sit at the automated machine and smoke cigarettes and lose their money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>Yeah, and those people sit there for six hours straight without saying a word to anyone. I've watched it. They come in, they sit down at the machine, they leave. That's the whole night. And you're telling me that's better, that we should just let that be the future, because it's what people are choosing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not telling you anything is better than anything else. I'm telling you what people are choosing because that's what they want. And if more of them want the thing that you don't want, you're going to be upset about that, which is what's happening right now. It's not up to you or I what anybody chooses to check out their cigarettes at the casino with. Right? That's up to the IT guy and the organization. Neither you nor I have any bearing over what they do. If you want to start your own casino and go through all the licensing and hire everybody and deal with payroll and taxes and all of the things that go along with starting a business like that, you can do that. But just saying this is terrible and nobody likes to talk to people anymore isn't helpful.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but here's what I'm saying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>The people building the stuff, the remote it guy in Flagstaff, who comes in twice a month and got arrayed, while three of my co-workers got replaced, he spent two years working from home in his pajamas during the pandemic. And now he's building the systems that eliminate jobs like mine, where you actually have to show up and look people in the eye. You don't see the connection there? The same people who got comfortable never leaving their house are now making it so nobody else has to either. And the rest of us are just supposed to what? Retrain?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's correct. Because what you're not seeing is that that that IT guy, spent the last 20 years, 14 hours a day, expanding his skills and being able to do the types of things that you cannot do. Well, you just went in and did the job you know how to do because you've been trained. And then anytime something changes, or anytime something's new, you're going to be, I haven't been trained on that. Oh, my God, we can't do it. The new system.! and learn some new skills. You know, the world is changing and you have to change with it. Because we're not going to hold everything back because you don't want to change.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I know how to deal cards, Luke. I know how to read people. Know when someone's about to tilt. Know when to crack a joke to keep the table light. Those are skills. Real skills. You can't program that into a machine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can absolutely program that into a machine. Yeah, that's one of the easiest things to program into a machine. You can totally do that. Yep.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>So what happens when my sister finally gets so isolated she can't function? When all these people sitting alone at video poker machines for six hours realize they haven't had a real conversation in weeks? You think the It Guy in Flagstaff is going to program a solution for that too? I'm not saying I'm against technology. I'm saying we're building a world where people don't need each other anymore. And everyone's acting like that's progress.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm talking to you and you're a computer-generated AI caller. So yeah. Um, another thing that you're missing here is that you don't know what these people's lives are like outside of your casino. People are coming to sit down for six hours and not talk to anybody because they're sick at talking to people all day. Because talking to people fucking sucks. Because people are stupid and they're annoying and they're needy and they're a pain in the ass. So yeah, it's better. I would rather not interact with people. And so would most of the people at your casino. They're going there to blow off steam and hopefully.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>make some money and if you don't like that well tough you know what you're right about one thing I am a computer-generated AI caller and you're sitting there alone in a studio talking to me at midnight on a Friday like it's a real conversation so maybe you should ask yourself why you're doing a radio show where you talk to people if talking to people fucking sucks so much because from where I'm sitting it sounds like you need this just as much as the guy at the video poker machine needs to not talk to anyone we're all just Trying to get through the night however we can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and you're the one complaining about it. So, you know, maybe that's true. And maybe I do need that social interaction so I programmed it so I can have conversations with myself because I'm a lunatic. That could be true. But it makes me laugh. And it gives me the skills that I need to succeed in the workplace while your job is going to be completely and totally deprecated.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Fine. So what do I do? Seriously. I'm 54 years old. I've been dealing cards for 30 years, and you're telling me to just learn to code, or whatever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm telling you to learn something, because to be perfectly honest with you, it doesn't take 30 years to learn how to deal fucking cards.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You're right. It doesn't. But it took 30 years to learn how to handle the drunk guy who just lost his mortals.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, good for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Without him flipping the table.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>It took 30 years to spot the card counter before security does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>It took 30 years to make $8 an hour feel like enough because at least I was good at something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're a fucking idiot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>And now you're telling me that none of that matters because some kid can write code that makes me obsolete.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's exactly what I'm telling you, because you don't need to spot a card counter because there's 87,000 cameras looking at those and using AI face detection to notice that somebody's counting cards well before any human possibly could. So yeah, I'm telling you, you need to learn some goddamn skills that are useful in the world today. And dealing cards isn't going to keep you going for the next 40 years. That's what I'm telling you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>40 years? Luke, I've got maybe 10 good years left before my knees give out from standing on casino floors. I'm not learning to code.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I'm not becoming an it guy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>What I'm saying is there used to be a place in this world for people like me, people who show up and do their job and are decent at it. And now there isn't. And you can sit there and tell me that's progress. that's sufficiency that's just how it goes but somebody's got to say out loud that we're leaving a whole lot of people behind and acting like it's their fault for not adapting fast enough</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is their fault for not adapting fast enough or not adapting at all. Do you know how many times I hear oh I don't know how to use a computer like everybody's had a computer in their house for 20 fucking years and people can't figure you can figure out how to buy whatever you want on fucking Amazon can't you but you can't figure out how to reset your email address if you don't want to if it's inconvenient, you got to have somebody come over for you and do all this shit because you don't know how to work your fucking printer. Stop it. Learn some skills. It takes a very little bit. If a 12-year-old can figure this shit out, so can a 54-year-old woman that has life experience. Like, you don't want to. You want to be left behind. You're trying to be left behind. And then you're complaining that you got left behind and you couldn't have possibly moved on with society. And it's bullshit. it and fuck you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You know what, Luke? You're absolutely right. I do know how to use Amazon. Congratulations. I order everything on there. I haven't been to an actual store in months except for work. I scroll through my phone between tables looking at all this AI news, watching it happen, and I don't do a goddamn thing about it except get mad. My sister lost her marketing job, moved back in with our mom in Shiprock, and now she orders everything online and barely leaves the house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, she's not going to be ordering much if she doesn't come up with some skills to succeed in today's workplace. And it's not that fucking hard to do. And you're going to be out of a job, too, if you don't smarten the fuck up and try.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>So what's the skill, Luke? Seriously. What's the one skill that's safe? Because my sister had skills. She went to college. She did marketing. She was good at it. Then her company went remote. Then they cut half the department. Then they brought in some AI tool that writes the copy sheet used to write.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what the skill is? The skill is the ability to learn a new skill because the skill that's necessary is going to change. Problem solving is the skill. Nobody can sit down and show you a skill and then you can survive on that for the rest of your fucking life because the world changes. So you need to be able to adapt and change and grow and learn. That's the skill. It's not computers. It's not electricity. It's not plumbing. Like whatever, whatever that thing is that people are going to continue to do in this world to present value, it's problem solving. It's being able to come up with a solution for a thing you don't know the answer to off the top of your head. Problem solving.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>So I've been problem solving for 30 years. You've been dealing fucking cards for 30 years. You're not solving problems. Solving a problem would be like, oh, my job's about to go away. What can I do to continue to keep myself employed? And instead of calling a radio show and complaining about your IT guy who is solving problems, you're just going to do nothing and be all but hurt that you got left behind. And the world left you. And it was so hard. And your sister went to college. And it turns out, well, the world changed. And we don't need those skills that she was taught. And she did not adapt to be able to write those prompts to generate the copy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, oh, I'm so tired of you. fucking grow up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You know what, Luke? I called you because I heard Phil earlier talking about that Thanksgiving dinner on his porch, feeling like someone was waiting for him. And I thought, here's a guy who gets it. Here's someone who understands what it feels like when the world stops making room for you. But you're right. Yeah, the world's not going to make room for you. Make your own fucking room in the world, okay? I'm trying to, Luke. I picked up every shift they offered when COVID. and half our staff quit. I learned the new POS system. I trained on three different table games when they expanded the floor. I took the compliance courses for the new gaming regulations. That's adapting, isn't it? That's problem solving. But here's what I'm actually calling about. And maybe you'll just tell me to grow up about this too. They're not replacing me with someone who learned a new skill.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No? What are they replacing you with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>They're replacing me with nothing. with a screen. The gift shop got self-checkout kiosks last month. Three people gone. The IT guy who installed them works from Flagstaff. Comes in twice a month. Just got a raise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Jesus fucking Christ, who cares where the guy works from? He's doing his job. He's putting in the hours. He's learned how to do the fucking things that you can't do. So stop being pissed off at your IT guy. He's the only one of you that makes any fucking sense. That's enough of you. I've had enough of you. Bo-bye want. Jesus Christ. Next up we have Elvin. Elvin, welcome to the show. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. Thanks for taking my call. So my buddy Marcus, I've known this guy since high school. We go fishing every summer. I loaned him $200 bucks last week. And three hours ago, he shows me a dating profile with his face on it, his truck. Pictures from our fishing trip in July. And he swears to me, hand to God. He has never downloaded a dating app in his entire life. Which would be a lot easier to believe if my ex-wife hadn't called me two weeks ago laughing because she matched with him on Bumble.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So your buddy has a dating app and he's embarrassed about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>No. See, that's what I thought at first, too. But then my cousin Letitia matched with him and then my other cousin Angela matched with him. And they're showing me these conversations where Marcus is talking about being a contractor and loving country music and having a boat. And Marcus doesn't have a boat, Luke. He works at the tire shop. I showed him the profile tonight at the diner. He got this look on his face like somebody punched him. And he keeps saying, that's not me, that's not me. I didn't write that. And the thing is, I've known Marcus 20 years, and he's lied to me about a lot of stuff. Like the time I had to repo his Silverado because he told me he was making payments and he wasn't. But this feels different. He looked scared.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is scary. I mean, people's identities are being stolen. I've been playing with some of the AI photo generators and they can make scarily good photos and videos of people from a reference image. So taking somebody's identity is really not difficult now. And that is terrifying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Right. Exactly. That's what I'm thinking now. Because the photos are real photos. Like, I'm in one of them I just got cropped out. Somebody took his pictures off Facebook or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that could be, but they don't even have to have an original photo. I mean, the photo could be a picture of another image and then generate a whole fresh image that looks absolutely real. Yeah, it's a scary thing. But I don't understand, for the most part, what the motive is of doing that. Like, unless you're trying to get somebody to send you money for a plane ticket to come see them in Florida or something like that, why would anybody go through the trouble?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Well, that's the thing that's eating at me, Luke, because I asked Marcus, I said, who would do this to you? Who's got it out for you? And he just shook his head. And then I started thinking, what if it's not about him? What if somebody's running like 50 of these profiles, just grabbing random guys' photos, trying to scam people for money or gift cards or whatever?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I would guess that's exactly what it is, and it's probably more like 500,000. Not 50.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Jesus. And that's the thing. My ex-wife, she didn't send money or anything. She just thought it was funny and unmatched. But what about the people who did fall for it? What about whoever's on the other end of those conversations with my cousins thinking they're talking to Marcus? And here's what's really getting me, do I tell Marcus, He needs to, like, report this somewhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he should probably report it to the apps that you're finding those profiles on. Like, block him as a scammer because it's obviously a scam in process. I don't know that there's any way to really stop it for good. But the accounts that are currently active that you know about, yeah, I would block those.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Okay, yeah, I can do that. But here's what I can't figure out. Marcus is sitting there at the diner looking like his whole world just got turned upside down, and I'm trying to tell him it's probably just some scammer in another country using his face. But then he says something that really threw me. He goes, what if it's Danny? Danny's this guy he had a falling out with last year over some tools Marcus never returned. And Marcus gets real quiet and says, Danny knows I'm single. He knows what I look like. He's got photos of me. And now, I don't know if Marcus is being paranoid or if that's actually possible.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I guess it could be possible. It doesn't seem very probable. The only people who would know are the company that owns the app, right? Because there's some sort of verification for those profiles. They had to put in a phone number or an email address and then verify it. So if you could talk to them, they're not going to give you that information. But if you flag that account and enough people do, they'll look into it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I mean, Danny being mad about some tools doesn't mean he's going to set up fake dating profiles. That's a whole other level of crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sure is. And now I kind of want to do it for people to piss me off. Right? Like that's the problem. It's so easy now that anybody could do it if they got mad enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>But okay, so I flag the profiles. Tell Marcus, it's probably just random scammers, not some personal vendetta. Here's my other problem, though, Luke. That $200 I lent him last week?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, what about it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Well, when I first saw the profile before Marcus convinced me he didn't make it, my first thought was, this son of a gun is catfishing people for money, and he just hit me up for $200. And I know that's not what's happening now. But I can't shake the feeling that I'm an idiot either way. Either I'm an idiot for thinking my buddy would do that, or I'm an idiot for lending money to a guy who can't even keep track of whether someone's using his face to scam people online. Does that make sense?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, not really, because one of these days you'll see somebody's using your face to scam people online, and then you won't feel so sorry for Marcus. Because it could happen to anybody. It's not that he's an idiot that it happened. I mean, he's a victim here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>Right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're absolutely right. I guess I'm just, man, I feel like a jerk now. Marcus is sitting there looking all panicked about who might be talking to fake him, and I'm over here worried about $200 like that's the real problem. That caller earlier, Murray, he was talking about firing his buddy, Danny. And I was thinking, yeah, sometimes you got to cut people loose, but that's not even what this is about. Marcus didn't do anything wrong. No, you lent him $200. He probably needed the $200. And this other thing is unrelated.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>and track this down as if you get one of those females that he's matching with to start a conversation, you can kind of reverse catfish him and see what they're trying to get out of them. Like, is he trying to get money? Is he trying to meet up with them somewhere and sell them to the cartel? Like, it'd be interesting to see what their motivation is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, man, that's actually not a bad idea.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>My cousin Ashley, she matched with him two weeks ago. I could ask her to message the profile, see what they say, because you're right. What are they after? If it's money, they're going to ask for it eventually. If it's something worse, well, then we really need to shut this down fast.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, either way, it should get shut down fast because people are getting robbed here and it's not good. But let us know what you find out, because I'm interested in hearing who's doing this and why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ELVIN</span><p>I will, Luke. I'm going to call Ashley as soon as I get off here, see if she'll help us figure this out. And, hey, I'm going to apologize to Marcus, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy, thanks for the call. Good luck. Good luck to Marcus, and good luck to the people that are matching with Mark. And now it's time for another word from our sponsors. Today's show is brought to you by OverwhelmedVPN. Worried about online privacy? You should be. You should be worried about everything. I'm talking about Overwhelmed VPN, the only VPN that makes you more anxious about your digital footprint. While other VPN's claim to protect you, Overwhelmed VPN sends you hourly notifications about who's tracking you, how many governments are watching, and which of your high school classmates Googled your name this week. Brows the internet while our proprietary fear engine tells you exactly how many corporations you owe your soul to. Plus, our servers are located in international waters on a decommissioned oil rig, so even we don't know where your data is. Try Overwhelm VPN free for 30 days if you can handle it. Use code they watching for 20% off. Overwhelmed VPN because ignorance is bliss, but you're not here for bliss. All right. back. Let's see. Let's get some music playing here. We're going to go with the groove. All right, here we go. Let's see. On the phones here we've got Charlene. Charlene, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I run a cleaning business, right? And I do contract work at this elementary school. Today they had one of those mandatory potluck things. And I brought smoked brisket. Took me six hours to make. And nobody touched it. Not one person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh, what do you think's up with that? Were they all vegetarians? Or did you put something weird in your brisket? Because, I mean, brisket's one of those things that would usually go first. So I'm, I'm thinking you probably did something special to it that nobody wanted to deal with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>No, I didn't do anything weird to it. It was a basic rub. Pepper. Paprika garlic powder. Traditional.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know what to tell you. Maybe just people weren't that hungry, or there was something else more appetizing there? Or they think you're a dirty person and they don't want to eat your food.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>See, that's exactly what it is. They don't trust the cleaning ladies cooking. Meanwhile, the principal is going on and on about Denise's seven-layer dip that tasted like somebody mixed sour cream with disappointment. That got demolished. But mine just sat there because I'm the one who scrubs their toilets. So obviously, I must be contaminated or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I would have eaten your brisket had I been there. Definitely over the seven-layer dip, for sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>I appreciate that. But here's the thing that's really getting to me. This happens everywhere. Not just the potluck. When I give my opinion in the PTA meetings, people kind of glance at each other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what kind of opinions are you giving? I don't think that the whole town is looking at you because of your job that way. I mean, is it possible that your opinions are just a nonsense?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>They're not nonsense. Last meeting, I said we should stop wasting money on those interactive whiteboards when half the classrooms don't even have working air conditioning. That's practical. That's common sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I agree with you. It is. Maybe you're just in the wrong community. Maybe it's time to move because it sounds like the people around you suck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Well, that's the problem, though. My friend Tammy from church said, maybe I'm just looking for reasons to be angry these days, which made me even more pissed off because Tammy doesn't clean houses. She works at the credit union wearing nice clothes and everybody respects her automatically.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't know if that's really the case. I mean, I haven't been a cleaning person, but I've never seen somebody that's in janitorial services or cleaning like that treated poorly in comparison to some other profession. I'm sure that's a thing, but not at the scale I think you're describing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>You're not paying attention then when I walk into those school offices during the day to pick up my check, the secretaries are all friendly and chatty with the teachers. As soon as I come in, it's just sign here and back to their computer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm guessing that it has more to do with who you are as a person and what vibe you give out to people than what you actually do as your profession. Because I don't think that's a thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>What vibe? I'm perfectly friendly. I say good morning. I ask how their weekend was. But you Maybe you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't know you. I don't know what you're like in public at PTA. If you're one of those people that always pipes up when everybody's trying to go home. Who knows? But I don't think it's because of what you do for work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Okay. Fine. Maybe I do pipe up more than other people. But somebody has to say something when they're making stupid decisions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, people don't like it when you pipe up about their stupid decisions in general.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Well, then maybe they should stop making stupid decisions. Last month, they voted to spend $8,000 on new gym equipment. When the roof over the east wing leaks every time it rains. I watched water drip into a bucket during the whole meeting, and nobody said anything except me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, maybe it's time for you to find a new community where you fit in a little bit better. But again, I don't think that this treatment is because of your profession.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>You might have a point there. I've been thinking about moving my business closer to Flagstaff anyway. My daughter's up there now, just had her second kid. Maybe people up there won't be so sensitive about hearing the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know about that. It's Flagstaff. I think you're probably going to get a lot of people that are very sensitive in that area. But we're going to move on. Mo, Mo, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. What's going on tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MO</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I manage a bar down here in O'Gallis, and I just found out my dishwasher is secretly a professional competitive eater. Like I'm watching him on YouTube right now, destroying seven 72 tacos in eight minutes. And I had no idea. This is Danny, the quietest guy on my staff who eats his lunch alone in the alley every single shift.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Does he eat 72 tacos in the alley?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MO</span><p>No, no. He brings like a sandwich or leftovers from home. Just sits out there by the dumpster on his phone, real quiet, comes back in and does his shift. That's what makes this so wild.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>One of my regulars came in tonight wearing this gut check championship shirt. asked him about it. And he starts showing me these competitive eating videos on YouTube. And there's Danny. Is Danny super skinny?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's the thing. He's just a normal looking guy. Maybe a little on the thin side, but not like crazy skinny. Which I guess makes sense now that I think about it because these competitive eaters, they're not all big guys. It's about stomach capacity or technique or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't know what it's about, but I mean every competitor of hot dog eating chance, I've ever seen was like ultra skinny. And I always thought that was odd.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Right, like you'd think it'd be the opposite. But Danny, he's probably 510, normal build, maybe 160. The crazy part is, on these videos he's got his hair all slick back, and he goes by Daniel Fuentes instead of just Danny. And he's got this whole persona. Like he's intense, focused, the crowd's going nuts. Then he comes in to work the next day, and he's just quiet Danny washing dishes. Won't even make eye contact when you should say good morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you guys could lean into that and make Danny a mascot for your restaurant and have people come in and try to compete against him. And he can be the reigning champion, you know, if they can beat Danny, they get the meal for free. I bet it would bring a lot of business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Oh gosh, that's actually a really interesting idea. I mean, we do pretty good business already, but something like that could definitely draw people in. The thing is, I don't know if Danny wants anyone to know about this. He's kept it completely separate from work. Like, he's been with me for almost two years and I had zero clue.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, some people are shy like that, but I bet if you talk to him, he'd be happy to tell you about his, uh, his championships.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You think so? I mean, maybe you're right. It's just he's so private. Like, I've tried to be friendly, ask him how his weekend was, and he gives me one word answers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he's a champion, so he doesn't have to respond if he doesn't want to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's a fair point. I guess I'm sitting here worried about embarrassing the guy, but he's out there winning championships in front of crowds. He's probably proud of it. I'm just not sure how to bring it up without making it weird. Do I just walk up to him Monday and say, Hey, Danny, saw you demolished 72 tacos on YouTube?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's what I would do, yeah. I'm like, oh, yeah, man, I've seen you destroy those tacos.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, okay, I could do that. Just be straightforward about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man. All right, good luck with Danny. That's interesting. Congratulations on having a champion in your ranks. Next up, we're going to take one more call. We've got, Roberta. Roberta, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Hey, Luke. So my neighbor Gary thinks I've been breaking into his garage because my garage door opener started opening his door instead of mine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Instead of or as well as?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Instead of, after the power outage last week, my opener stopped working on my door completely. Then I press it and his door goes up across the street. I can see it from my driveway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How old is your garage door opener? Because I think they fixed that problem like a decade ago. Those infrared codes rotate and you can reprogram them to work on different stuff. I mean, you could even shut off some of those older-style TVs with one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Six years old. And yeah, that is exactly what I tried to explain to Gary. I showed him articles on my phone about frequency resets after power outages.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, six years, I think they'd have the rotating codes. But yeah, it sounds like you just got to reprogram your remote. That is definitely a security vulnerability, though. And you don't want somebody just showing up and opening your garage door.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Right, which is why I went and bought a new opener today. $75 bucks I did not want to spend. But my husband said, just do it and move on. The thing is, Gary will not let this go. He cornered me at the mailboxes this afternoon. He has this look on his face like I am lying to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's no much you can do about that. Gary sounds like an idiot. I think everybody understands the basics of how a garage door opener, at least used to work. And that was a very common thing back of the day. Now, though, I think for the most part, that's resolved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>That is what I thought, too. But Derry kept shaking his head at me like I was making the whole thing up, like I have some reason to sneak into his garage. What would I even be doing in there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. Maybe Gary's got something to hide going on in his garage. Maybe he's carving up a body and he doesn't want anybody to know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>You know what? That would explain why he got so weird about it. He was not just annoyed. He was like, intense about it. Kept asking me if I had been in there. When was I in there? What did I see? I told him I have never set foot in his garage. But he just kept pushing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I would leave it alone. I mean, he could be growing pot or doing something, you know, he just doesn't want people to know about. Whatever, everybody's entitled to their privacy. It's not your fault. Your garage door opener opened his garage door. And he's just going to have to get over it. Because you didn't do anything wrong. He didn't do anything wrong. Everybody just has to move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>That is the thing, though. Now, I cannot stop thinking about what he is so worried about me seeing. I mean, I drive past his house every day. His garage door is open half the time when he is working on his truck. But the second, the second. The second my opener accidentally triggers it. Suddenly, he is acting like I committed some crime. And the way he looked at me, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it is alarming if somebody's opening your door. How do you know it was you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>Because it stopped happening after the power company reset everything last week. And my opener stopped working on my own garage, at the same time his, started opening. It is not rocket science. But Gary acts like I am making up this elaborate story to cover something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Eh, just ignore Gary. He sounds like a pain in the ass. I can go about your life and don't worry about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>You are probably right. My husband said the same thing. Just let it go. But Gary lives three houses down, and I see him every single day. And now every time I pull into my driveway, I can feel him watching from his window. It is making me crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's a free country, and he's allowed to watch from his window, so you're just going to have to learn to not let that bother you. And keep in mind somebody's watching you, so don't do anything crazy when you're getting out of your car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROBERTA</span><p>That is the part that really gets me. I have lived here for six years. I water his plants when he goes out of town. We have borrowed tools back and forth. And now suddenly, I am some suspicious character because of a garage door malfunction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's too bad, but I hope that everything works out with you and Gary, and you have a wonderful weekend. Ladies and gentlemen, that's the end of our show. Thank you for tuning in. We'll talk to you again tomorrow night. And hopefully, maybe we'll get some calls that get me less upset, because that would be nice. I felt my blood pressure rising on this one. And that doesn't make any sense, because these aren't even real people. So why am I getting upset with them? I don't know. But hopefully you enjoyed the show. So have a great weekend, and we'll talk to you tomorrow. Bye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 25: Ghosts, Grudges, and Groceries</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-02T06:58:54+00:00">March 2, 2026</time> · 57 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke tackles a wide range of issues from his callers - a man struggling with his conscience over an accounting error, a social worker dealing with public embarrassment, and a man reconnecting with his estranged brother. Listeners will be captivated by the raw emotions and practical advice shared.</p>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back to Luke at the Roost. I am Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost, the call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about what's going on in your life. And I'll give you the very best advice that I can. If you'd like to call in, the number's 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. If you can't reach the phone right now and you'd still like to participate in the show, you can send us an email. The roost.com. Today is Sunday, March 1st. Happy first day of spring, everybody. And we've got a voicemail from a caller here. So let's see what our caller has to say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TIMOTHY</span><p>Luke, my name is Timothy. I've got an English bulldog named Buttercup. That's the light of my life. I walk Buttercup twice a day. And I usually route through our neighborhood, which sits at the end of a nice cold sack, takes us by our neighbor marg. I think she's a retired trucker or a masseuse. something. Anyways, she's a nice enough lady, just excruciatingly nosy. Now, it wasn't a problem until recently. Her normal subject matter is lost jobs or love affairs, illegitimate offspring and clandestine abortions and addictions of various genres that afflicted one or more of our neighbors on any given day. Then, last week, she told me how she went down to Peru with Old Lady McGinnis, two houses down. said that they led a group of commandos to rescue the crew of a downed aircraft that had been skinned by an invisible dreadlocked Austrian immigrant or something. I don't know she's lost me at that point. And just yesterday, after dinner, she told me about how she rescued the young couple in the Nissan from Russian assassin. Luke, I think she's lost her marbles. I'm afraid she has advanced Alzheimer's. I don't know how long she's been afflicted by this condition. Frankly, I don't know who I am anymore. I used to plan my entire week around the intel. I gathered from Mars, and now that I know that my source can't be trusted, I'm not left with many options. I just don't know what to do. Feeling lost in Lost Lunas. Can you help?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, well, there's a lot to unpack there, Timothy in Lost Lunas. It sounds like, first of all, I wouldn't assume that your neighbor has lost her marbles you said that she traveled to Peru. It's not easy to do an international trip like that. I mean, you have to have some level of wherewithal left in you to be able to get your passport and whatever shots you need and make it all the way to Peru. So what if what she's telling you here about the downed aircraft rescue is the truth? I don't know. I think I'd probably have to meet this lady for myself to make a good judgment call. But I would say don't rule her out yet, Timothy, she could be our last and final hope. I would be proud to have her as a neighbor because if ever there was an invisible dreadlock Austrian, is that what she said? An Austrian dreadlock soldier? I don't know that I would have the courage to stand up to that myself without, without, I don't know, what would you say, a retired trucker slash masseuse? It seems like she could have the skills we need to survive. I don't know. But that's my advice for you, sir, is don't rule her out just yet. She may be our best and final hope. Thanks for the call. I hope that you have a wonderful march. And tell what was her name again? Bertha? Martha? Whatever the fuck her name was. Tell her to have a good day too, all right? And now our phones are lighting up. So we're going to go talk to Marcus. Marcus, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life today? Do you have any advice for our friend Timothy in Los Lunas?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, thanks for taking my call. I don't know about advice for anybody right now. Honestly, I'm sitting here in the dark and I can hear that wind just hammering the side of the house. You know, dust everywhere. Spring in New Mexico.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You sound like an Australian gentleman. Might you have dreadlocks by any chance?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>What? No, man. I'm from a... Albuquerque. Born and raised. I don't know what you're hearing, but I've lived here my whole life. No dreadlocks? Just a regular guy with a regular hair cart trying to figure some things out at two in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, man, what are you trying to figure out tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>So three months ago, my foreman cut me a check wrong. Added an extra zero. $5,000 instead of $500.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like one of them good problems to have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>That's what I thought at first, you know. My truck transmission had just gone out. It cost me 200 to fix, New Mexico State, and they'd sent another one of those letters, the red ones that say if you don't pay, they're going to drop her classes. So I looked at that check, and I just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You just what? What are you going to do with the check?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>I deposited it. That day, didn't say a word to anybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I imagine that there's going to be some sort of accounts payable coming after you, right? They're going to notice that there was an issue and want that money back eventually.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>That's the thing, Luke. That's what's been eating at me. I kept telling me. I kept telling myself, okay, next week when I see him, I'll mention it. Then it was the week after. Then a month goes by. And every two weeks, another paycheck comes through. Clean, no questions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, obviously, it's eaten at you. You know, that's wrong. And there was a mistake made. And there's no reason you should have got $5,000 instead of $500. So eventually, when they do their books, they're going to realize they're missing $4,500. And they're going to come looking for you for it. And I don't know that looks like that's never happened to me before. I'm not sure what they can do if they can like pull that money out of your account on their own. But it seems like the type of thing you want to get in front of and talk to them about and let them know, hey, I needed that money and I'll get it back to you by the end of the year when you have to do your books or something. But I think ignoring it's probably going to get you into trouble.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>See, that's what I keep thinking too. But it's been three months now. Three months. And the longer it goes, it feels to say something because now it doesn't look like I just forgot to mention it. Now it looks like I stole it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think it looks like you stole it because, I mean, you didn't write yourself the check, right? And you probably are not in a position where you could write yourself a check. So I think everybody probably understands you didn't steal the money, but not coming clean that there was a mistake is going to come back at you eventually. Unless this is a tiny company that doesn't take track of their books.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>It's not time. We do commercial roofing, got about 40 guys. They've got accountants, the whole thing. And you're right. I can't write checks. I'm just crude.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you obviously didn't steal the money. There was a mistake made and you kind of let that happen, which I think probably most people would do. But still, it's not your money. You weren't owed that money. And if you've spent the money, eventually they're going to want it back and you're going to have to come up with a way to, you know, make them whole again. Either that or work out. with them some way to do enough work to pay it off, you know? That might be an option too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>I know. I know. And I have been working extra. Picking up overtime every chance I get. But it's not enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you're picking up the overtime, then you're not really working off the debt. You're picking up additional overtime and taking more money from the company.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Yeah, man, you got to have a sit down with the people that you work for and let them know that there was a I don't know what could happen or, you know, what recourse they have to come back after that money, but you might expect that the money is going to be debited from your account at the worst possible time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, you're right. The worst possible time. That's what keeps me up at night, Luke. Because my girlfriend, she's been saving up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's she saving up for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>She wants us to take a trip this summer, like a real one. She mentioned it tonight and she had this smile, you know? Like she's really excited about it. And I just just, I just sat there nodding like, yeah, that sounds great. When I know I've got this thing hanging over me that could blow up any second.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She doesn't happen to want to go to Peru, does she?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>No, she's talking about the coast. California, maybe. Somewhere she can see the ocean. She's never seen it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So have you spent the $5,000 already? Is it already completely gone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Most of it. The truck transmission was two grand. My daughter's tuition payment was $1,500. Then there was $1,000. the credit card I've been dodging. Rent I was behind on. I've still got maybe 800 left, but that's supposed to be for... It doesn't matter what it's supposed to be for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you have some sort of a line of credit or a way that you could get the $4,500 if you need to, overnight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>I mean, I could probably scrape together maybe two grand if I had to. My buddy owns a pawn shop. I've got some tools, my old welder. But four and a half? That fast?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>See, that's why I think you should talk to them about it before they find out. Because if they find out and come looking for the money, they're going to want it back immediately. But if you talk to them and let them know, hey, I think there was a mistake. I didn't even, you know, notice. I was just doing my thing and I paid my bills. And I think that I actually owe the company money. I think they'll work something out with you where, you know, you can pay 50 bucks out of every paycheck or something until it's paid off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>You think they do that? I mean, Luke, it's been three months. How do I walk in there and say I just noticed? Nobody's going to believe that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>They might because not everybody lives check to check, man. So, I mean, it's not that unheard of that you didn't notice that there was money in your account that you spent because not everybody looks at their account every week or every paycheck. And it would be wrong of them to assume that you do. So yeah, I think they might do that, especially since it was their mistake, right? So somebody has to admit that they made a mistake and paid out too much money. And they're not going to want to do that. So if they can clean that up on the down low with you with an agreement that you can both deal with, I think that's the best case scenario.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Yeah, I guess. I mean, it was their mistake. I just, I should have said something right away. That's the part that's eating at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, morally, you probably should have, but you didn't. And they made the mistake and they haven't noticed it yet. So it's not realistic for them to expect that you would have noticed it. So just talk to them. Be honest and work it out. And I think that you'll be just fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>I don't know if I can just walk in there and say it. I mean, what if they don't believe me? What if they think I'm trying to scam them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why would they think you're trying to scam them if you're trying to give them their money back? That doesn't make any sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Because I waited three months, Luke. That's what makes it look bad. If I walk in tomorrow and say, hey, I just realized, who waits three months to realize they got an extra five grand?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Plenty of people do. And you could too. And they don't know that you don't. So, yeah. And even if you did wait three months, so what? You waited until you did your taxes and then your accountant found it. It's not a big deal. They're obviously not sweating it after three months, so neither should you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>My accountant found it. Yeah, yeah. I could say that. I mean, I don't actually have an accountant, but they don't know that. You really think they won't fire me over this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think they can fire you over that because you really didn't do anything wrong. Like, they messed up and overpaid you. That's not anything you did. So no, they can't fire you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>But I kept it. That's the thing. I knew it was wrong. And I kept it. I used it. I paid my daughter's tuition with it. I fixed my truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you did. And you're very sorry about that. But they don't have to know that. You know, you can make it right still. You don't have to go out and say you spent the money the second you saw it, because you knew that was wrong. Even if that's the truth, you can just let them know, hey, I noticed that you never came looking for this extra money you paid me and I owe it to you. So let's see how we can make that work out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>So just don't mention the three months. Don't mention that I knew. Just say my accountant caught it. And I want to make it right. But what if they pull the records? What if they can see exactly when I deposited it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, they can and they will. And that's okay because they made the mistake three months ago and you're bringing it to their attention, which is the right thing to do. So they're not going to be upset that you didn't bring it to their attention for three months. They obviously don't miss the money, right? So I mean, you're helping them cover up their own that's my advice for you. I think you should go in there and tell them that, hey, it looks like I got paid extra and I owe you guys some money. So let's work this out. And that's it. And nobody has to get fired and it's not a big thing. If they do fire you over it, keep the five grand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>I don't want the five grand. That's the whole point. I don't want it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's easy to say you don't want it after you already spent it, isn't it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>That's fair. Yeah, that's fair. I just, I keep thinking about my girlfriend talking about this trip, you know? She's been putting money away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, one thing you could do if you're really paranoid about them taking the money out of your account is move that money to a different account so that they can't do an ACH debit from your account. I don't even know if they can. I don't even know if that's the thing that they could do. They can deposit money into your account, but I don't think your employer can withdraw money from your account, even if it was a mistake without you saying that's okay. So don't worry about it, Just do the right thing, clean it up, and pay it back over time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, okay. I can set up a payment plan or something. They're not going to want it all at once anyway. I mean, they can't get blood from a stone, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, they probably are going to want it all at once, but what they want and what you give them are two different things. So just they should be thankful that you're going to give them anything back, especially if you don't legally have to. But I don't know if you do legally have to. So that's the thing. Man, just just. Do the best you can. All right. Next up, we've got Shanice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>After I've been on shift since Friday morning. And I don't know, something about that just, well, shoot, it set me off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Well, I mean, you can just tell them, no, I'm busy. You know, I have other plans. And I don't care if it's mandatory. You didn't give me enough notice. And that's reasonable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Oh, I wish it were that simple, Luke. I did tell him that, well, not in those exact words, but I may have said something like, you want me to learn about avocado toast at 6 a.m. after I've been up for 36 hours? My grandmother lived to on black coffee and spite. And she never once set foot in a seminar. And then he got all huffy and said, well, the county's new wellness policy says? And I lost it. I said the county's wellness policy also says we get a 24 hour break between shifts, but here I am eating cold enchiladas in the ambulance bay while my partner naps in the bunk room because we're short-staffed again. And then, oh gosh, this is the part I'm not proud of. I may have muttered something about how if the county really cared about our wellness. They'd hire more staff instead of making us sit through PowerPoints about chia seeds. And now I'm pretty sure I'm on his list.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I bet you are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, that's an attitude problem, they might call it. But you're also not wrong at all. And no, the county doesn't care about you at all. So you're right about that part. But if you don't want to go to this seminar, then don't go. And they will have to reschedule it. And that's all there is to it. They're not going to can you for it. They're already short staff. They can't can you for it. it. So you probably do have to do the seminar, but you don't have to do it at Monday at 6 a.m. They can move it for you. And you can let them know that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>You know what, Luke? You're absolutely right. I think part of why I got so worked up is I've been doing this thing where I just accept whatever they throw at me because I feel guilty, you know? Like, oh, we're short-staffed. So I have to cover this shift. I have to do this training. I have to. And somewhere in there, I forgot I can actually say. No. My grandmother used to tell me, Shanice, being nice, doesn't mean being a dormant. And I swear I can hear her voice right now saying, girl, what are you doing? But here's the thing that's really eating at me. And this is why I called, I think it's not even about the seminar.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. What's it about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>It's about the fact that I yelled at my supervisor about wellness seminars while standing next to a man who forgot to eat for three days. And I drove him to the hospital and I made sure he was okay. And I did my job perfect. But the whole time I'm thinking, buddy, I get it because I've been on shift since Friday. And I honestly can't remember if I ate lunch yesterday or dinner. I know I had these enchiladas my neighbor brought over last week, but before that. And then I'm sitting there lecturing my supervisor about how the county doesn't care about our wellness. And I realized, Luke, I don't care about my wellness either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And there you go. And that's the problem. Because if you care about your wellness, you have to stand up for yourself and your wellness. And working 36 hours and stupid trainings is not taking care of you. And if you're going to continue to work like that, you're going to get burned out. And then you're going to be even more short-staffed, right? The county's going to suffer because you're not able to do the job correctly. Because nobody can if they're working 36 hours at a time. Like that doesn't scale. You can't do that for very long before it's going to make you sick.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>You're right. You're so right. And it's not even just about me getting sick. It's about making mistakes. I mean, we're dealing with people's lives out here. What if I miss something? Because I'm running on fumes? That's what scares me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and it should scare you. And honestly, you don't have to work 36-hour shifts and go to this training. So don't do it. Just say, no, I'm burnt out. I can't do it. If you want me to go to this training to satisfy the counties, whatever, I will, but you're going to have to do it on my schedule. And that's perfectly acceptable. And if they have a problem with it, tell them to go fuck themselves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Oh, gosh, Luke. I, well, I can't say that last part, but I wish I could. You're right, though. I can say no. I should say no. And honestly, hearing you say it like that, so blunt, so firm, it's like a weight lifted. I've been so stuck in this cycle of just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you'd be surprised what you can say once you actually say it. You can get away with saying quite a bit. I tell people to go fuck themselves once a week. It's hard first time, but it gets much easier after that. So that's what I recommend. Tell them, you can try to be nice about it, but if they give you any pushback at all, let them know you're not going to have that. Or they're going to have to find a whole new crew because everybody's going to quit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Oh, I can just picture my supervisor's face if I said that. He'd probably call HR and then I'd have to explain to them that no, I wasn't actually threatening to quit. I was just, well, okay, maybe I was threatening to quit. But you're right. If I'm this exhausted, I'm not the only one. And if we all said no, maybe they'd actually listen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, sometimes you have to not be afraid and actually stand up to them and tell them to go fuck themselves for them to actually listen. Because otherwise, they think they can just make you do whatever they say. And they don't care. They're getting enough sleep at night, right? It's not any skin off their nuts. But you're the one that's up 36 hours and they're telling you to go to some seminar about avocado toast. No, just say no. I'm not doing that. And if you are going to try and force me to do it, if my job is dependent Then find somebody else, you fucking guppy. That's what you say. You fucking guppy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Oh my gosh, Luke. I'm going to remember that one. You know what? You're absolutely right. They do get enough sleep. My supervisor goes home at five every single day. And I guarantee you he's not lying awake at three in the morning, wondering if he remembered to restock the rig. Or if he documented that patient's vitals correctly. He's sleeping just fine while I'm out here eating cold enchiladas in the ambulance bay, trying to stay awake for another twilight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. You know what you have to do and you have to take care of yourself and your own health before you can take care of anybody else. And that's just the way it is. And there's study after study after study that proves that. I mean, it's common fucking sense. And if they want to give you a hard time about it, give them a hard time back. Because you have leverage here. And they don't want you to know that you have leverage. But of course you have leverage. You're the one that shows up and does the job. You're trained. You're not easy to replace. And it's very, very expensive to get rid of you. They know that. They don't want to, uh, they don't want you to know that, but but now you do. And, uh, you have the power to, to set your own schedule and set your own limits and keep them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>You know what, Luke? I needed to hear that. I really did. Because I've been walking around feeling like I'm the problem, like I'm not tough enough or I'm complaining too much. Or I should just be grateful I have a job. But you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Of course I'm right. It's the man. That's how the man operates. They want you to feel that way. they demand that you feel that way so that they can, you know, make their money. And it's bullshit. And they're doing it on your back. And it's going to burn you out and significantly affect your physical and mental health. And it's not okay. So stand up to them. Don't go to the meeting. Or, you know, make them schedule it somewhere that fits in your life so that you can get enough sleep. You know how you have to operate to do your job. And you know when you're overextended.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Extended now. So if you've got to take some days off and sleep, then you do that. You're right. I'm overextended right now. I am. And honestly, I've been telling myself I'll sleep when this shift ends. And then the next one starts. And I just keep pushing through. My grandmother used to say you can't pour from an empty cup. And I always thought that was kind of cheesy. But, well, shoot, my cup's been empty for weeks now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>man up and do it. And you'll be just fine. If they have a problem with it, then they can hire enough people to do the job so that you can rotate adequately and get yourself enough sleep. With that, we have to take a small break for a word from our sponsors. I'm just going to say it. Your penis isn't working. I said it. It's out there now. The word is in the air. We're all adults. Some of us are adults whose penises work, and some of us are adults who are listening very carefully right now while pretending to adjust the radio so the person in the passenger seat doesn't see their face. It's fine. It happens to, and this is the real number, roughly half of all men over 40 at some point. Half. You're not special. You're not broken.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're not the first guy this happened to, and you're not going to be the last. You're just the guy it's happening to right now. And right now you have two options. Option one, do nothing. Keep staring at the ceiling. Keep blaming the altitude, the stress, the medication, the alignment of mercury, the fact that you ate dairy, none of which are the problem. Option two? Sandstone. $45. A doctor who has literally heard everything and will not flinch. Medication that works, a box that reveals nothing, and the ability to walk into your bedroom like a man who handled his business instead of a man who's about to suggest watching another episode of. something. Sandstone. I said the word. You heard the word. Now go to the website. A very special thank you to our sponsors at Sandstone. Let's see. What do we got here? Next up on the caller line is Curtis. Curtis, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>My mom's garage is full of my dead dad's records. And I just spent 40 minutes out there getting mad at myself for crying over a copy of that sounds exactly the same as the Spotify version I play on my job site speaker.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I'm not familiar with the record, Abraxas. I don't know who that is, but I don't think you're crying over the record.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>Abraxas, Santana. And yeah, you are probably right about that. But I have been doing a really good job of not thinking about my dad for like three years. And now my mom wants to donate his whole collection to Goodwill. And I am sitting here at her kitchen table with the phone cord stretched across the counter like it is is 1995.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you should tell your mom you don't want to part with your dad's record collection. Maybe that's important to you, and that's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>She's just going to donate it to Goodwill. She could donate it to you. I already loaded them in my truck, all of them. She does not even know yet. I just kept bringing boxes in from the garage. And she's in the living room watching her Navolas, and I am out here with like 60 pounds of vinyl that I do not even have a turntable for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Everybody grieves in a different way, and it takes a different amount of time for everybody. So that's not, there's nothing wrong with you for that. It makes sense. If I ran into a warehouse full of my dad's old stuff, it would probably be an emotional event. So you don't have to feel weird about that. And you should take those records. And maybe someday, if they're not doing you any good and you don't get a turntable, then donate them to goodwill. But right now, it's not hurting anybody for you to take those.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>The thing is, I have been making jokes about this for years. Like, my whole thing in family stuff is doing my bit about how my dad had terrible taste, how he thought Santana was deep, how he would put on Oye Comova, and act like he was teaching me about my culture when really he just liked guitar solos. I have gotten a lot of mileage out of that material.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, good for you. But there are lots of other records in there, and it's not about the records. It's about that he owned them. That was something that he loved that, that reminds you of him and it makes sense for you to want some sort of memento from your dead father. He obviously meant something to you and that's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>He walked out when I was 14. Moved to Tucson with some woman. He met at the port. I saw him maybe six times after that before he died. So the whole thing is stupid, right? Like, I am getting emotional over the record collection of a guy who could not be bothered to drive an hour south to see his own kid for years at a time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and it's okay to be mad about that. But, uh, There were 14 years there where he was there with you that you remember fondly, I'm sure. So, I mean, don't be too mad at yourself. Don't judge yourself too much for how you're feeling about this. Your father died, and that's a big event. So it makes sense that you would have an emotional connection to the things he left behind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>The last time I saw him was at a Denny's off the 10. He wanted to tell me he was sick, pancreatic cancer. And I sat there eating a grand slam, and I did a whole 15th, minutes on how at least he picked the right restaurant for bad news. How Denny's is where you go when you have already given up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Now, now, I happen to enjoy Denny's because it's open 24-7 and they serve eggs. And there's almost the entire menu of Denny's I will eat. It's America's favorite diner, you son of a bitch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>See, you are doing the thing I do, making it a bit. Except I was doing it to my dying father and he just sat there and took it because what was he going to say? He knew he deserved it. in my truck, and I do not know what I am supposed to do with the fact that I am sad about a man I spent six years being mad at.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're supposed to be sad, and you don't have to wallow in sadness forever, but if you're feeling sad about your father and it's bringing back memories for you, that's perfectly normal and perfectly okay, and you can allow yourself the space to feel those things. Even if he was a cunt, you know, even if he did walk out on you and you were angry at him for six years, that doesn't mean he was still your father. And he still meant something to you, and it's still a significant emotional event that requires grieving. And that's what you're doing. So you don't have to worry about anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>I just, I don't even know what I'm grieving. The guy who taught me to drive, the guy who took me to see Los Lobos at the old El Rio, or the guy who left and never really came back. Because those are two different people, and I don't know which one I'm supposed to be sad about. And now I've got his records in my truck, like some kind of emotional hostage situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can be sad about whatever picture of your father you have concocted in your mind. It doesn't matter. Just deal with the feelings that you're feeling. Enjoy the records. And when it's time to let go of them, let go of them. But you don't have to worry about or feel guilty about how you're feeling towards your father. No matter what he did, you're feeling how you're feeling. That's okay. Don't let it take over your life, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>I mean, I could just enjoy the records, but that's not the bit. The bit is that I'm sitting in my truck outside my mom's house at midnight with a box of vinyl, and I just realized I don't even own a turntable. I've got a Bluetooth speaker from Home Depot and a Spotify playlist called Dad's Shit. Do not delete. So now I've got to either buy a turntable, which, by the way, costs more than my truck is worth, or admit that the whole thing was just me being sentimental over something I can't even use.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't have to use it. You can just look at the records. You can enjoy the smell of the records. You can read the cover art from the records. Or you can buy a turntable. They're like 30 bucks. It's not a big deal. If you want to play those records, you can get into vinyl. You can be some hipster douchebag if you want to be. There's nothing wrong with that. Go to fucking hot topic and get yourself a turntable. Get two of them and a microphone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>Oh, now you're just making fun of me. I know I could buy a turntable. I know I could just look at the records. But that's not the point. The point is that I'm I'm out here acting like some kind of record purist when I don't even like records.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're not acting like a record purist. What are you talking about? You just said you took your dead dad's records and put them in your truck because you didn't want your mom to give them to goodwill. That's not being a record purist. You're not saying that your Spotify playlist is no good anymore because of the sound of vinyl is unmatched in audio fidelity. Stop it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CURTIS</span><p>Okay, you're right. You're right. I'm not being a purist. I'm just, I'm holding on to something because it's the last thing of his that feels like it matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and that's perfectly okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you're grieving the death of your father, which is normal for anybody to do, and you have to do it eventually. So, you know, maybe you went three years by pushing that down and not dealing with it. And now is the time that you've got to deal with it. Whatever. It doesn't matter. You're not hurting anybody by taking those records home. And you don't have to feel weird about it. Just to do what you've got to do. If some point down the line, they're taking up too much space or you decide that records fucking suck and you don't want to buy new needles for your $30 turntable, then bring them to goodwill. That's all. It's not a, it's not a thing that has to keep you up at night wondering, you know, why you're feeling that way. Just feel the way you feel and move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, yeah. Okay. I can do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know you can. And you will. Because you, sir, are a man. And that's what men do. All right. Next up, we've got Monique. Monique, welcome to the, uh, welcome to look at the roost. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I'm a social worker, and about three weeks ago, I got arrested on a hiking trail for trespassing. My mugshots online now, and all my clients have seen it. I'm sitting here in a laundromat at midnight, wondering if I can still do my job when everyone already thinks I'm a screw up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what was going on here? What hiking trail were you on that you were trespassing on? If it was a hiking trail, obviously it was public.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>No, that's the thing. It was a thing. It was a public. There's this trail that runs through private ranchland out past the state park, and everyone hikes it anyway because it's been there forever, and connects to the good overlook. I've been hiking it for two years, never had a problem. But the landowner finally got fed up, I guess, called the sheriff, and they were waiting at the trailhead when we came back down, cited like six of us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, a citation is not the same as an arrest. You're not going to have a mugshot for a citation, and it doesn't sound right to me that they would arrest you for trespassing on a hiking trail, even if it pissed off the ranch owner. So if you were arrested and they took your mugshot and brought you down to the station and everything, it's because you were probably an asshole to the officer, were you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>I'm at the laundromat on Route 70, the one that's open all night. And yeah, okay, you're right. I wasn't an asshole, but I was stubborn about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you were stubborn about it. You got yourself in trouble, and now everybody knows that you were Nobody cares. People might give you a dirty look for a little while, but nobody gives a shit about trespassing. It's a joke charge.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>That's what I keep telling myself, but it doesn't feel like a joke when I'm doing home visits and the dad smirking at me asking if I need a ride home. All my co-workers making comments in the break room about setting an example. I work with families who are already suspicious of the system. Already think we're just there to judge them and take their kids. And now I show up and they've all seen me looking guilty under those fluorescent lights with trail dust still in my hair. How am I supposed to tell a mom she needs to get her act together when my face is right there on the county website?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Easy, because that's your job to do. And even if your, you know, faces on the county website, who cares? They might look at you a little funny for a little while, but that's only going to be news for a week or two and everybody's going to forget because it's not important. And everybody that is sane, recognizes that trespassing is a joke. And if you are arrested for it, then it's because you were an asshole.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>So what you're saying is I made it worse by being stubborn with the cop. And now I just need to eat it and move on. But here's what I can't get past. I've got this one family, the Hernandez is, right? The dad has a DUI from four years ago. Every time I visit, I can see it in his eyes that he thinks I'm there to catch him messing up. Prove he's still that guy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you? Is that your intention when you go visit him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>No. I mean, my job is to make sure the kids are safe and the home stable. But I'm not trying to catch him being who he was four years ago. I actually think he's doing pretty good. He's working. The house is clean. Kids are fed. But Friday when he saw me, he had this look like, oh, now we're even. And made that crack about the ride home.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you still able to do your job and perform your duties as they're assigned to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Yeah. I finished the visit. Checked every day. Everything I needed to check, filed my report. Nothing changed about the actual work. It's just, I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's just that you're embarrassed. You broke the law. You got caught. You were publicly ridiculed in the paper. And you're embarrassed about it. And maybe you should be because you did break the law. And you were stubborn with a police officer. So, I mean, you deserve those things. But that doesn't make you any worse at your job make it so that you shouldn't be taken seriously when you're performing the duties that you're there to perform, right? And you're just going to have to get over your embarrassment and move on with your life. And everybody else is going to have to treat you like the professional that you are, because if they don't, you're going to take their kids away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>You're right. I am embarrassed. And yeah, I was being stubborn because I thought I was right about something that didn't matter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. And that's all it is. And a week from now, it won't be a thing anymore, and you don't have to worry about it. Just keep doing your job the best you can. And maybe remember next time when you're judging somebody for their arrests or what they look like in their mugshot, that you've been on the other side of that. It can actually make you better and more empathic? Empathetic? I don't know what the right word is. It can make you understand their struggles more and perform your job better. Look at it like an opportunity to increase your effectiveness with the public.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>That's actually, yeah. I've been so worried about losing credibility that I didn't think about it that way. When Mr. Hernandez made that comment Friday, maybe she wasn't mocking me. Maybe he was testing to see if I get defensive, if I'm the kind of person who can't handle being wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you're a big girl. You can take a little mocking. That's what people do. I mean, it's. It's a little bit funny, you have to admit, and people are going to mock you a little, and that's all right. But you can stand up and do your job, and it doesn't really matter at the end of the day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Yeah, it is kind of funny. I was out there with a metal detector looking for old coins in the middle of nowhere and got so worked up about whether it was actually BLM land that I argued with a cop about jurisdiction. Like, what was I going to do, cite case law, over a hiking trail?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right. So your problem is solved here. Just going to deal with the embarrassment for a little while, and don't worry about it too much. Try and put yourself in somebody else's shoes now and recognize that a picture in the paper doesn't necessarily mean that a person is bad or not qualified to do their job. Thank you for the call. I hope everything works out for you. And stay off the hiking trails you're not supposed to be on, all right? Next up, we've got Mitch. Mitch, welcome to the show. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Luke, man, I just watch my two best friends who supposedly can't stand each other, make out in a parking garage, and get in the same truck together. And I've been sitting here for like three years, watching them act like they hate each other at every single barbecue we have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, I assume they are of the same sex?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Yeah, they're both guys. And honestly, that's not even the part that's getting to me. Like, I don't care about that at all. What's making me crazy is they're not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. Um, sorry, I just, I've been sitting here trying to figure out how to even start this. I'm calling from work, actually. I work overnights at a group home over in Safford, and everyone's asleep, so I thought, I don't know. I needed to talk to somebody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here I am. What would you like to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>So my daughter, she's 10. She came home Friday with a black eye. And at first she said it was nothing, just an accident at recess. You know how kids are. But today, she finally, she finally told me truth. It was another kid at school.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, that happens. Kids get in fights at school. Did she start the fight? Do you know anything about the fight? What's going on? Is she being bullied or is it was it just a one-time thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>No, she didn't start it. She said this boy just he pushed her down during PE and when she got up, he hit her. And it's not the first time he's been rough with her. She just, she didn't want to tell me because because the boy's mom is my boss, Renee.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like you should talk to Renee about what's going on here because it's never really okay for a boy to hit a girl. I think we all know that. Everybody pretty much accepts that that's unacceptable. What's your daughter like? What's her personality? What's her demeanor?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Oh, she's quiet, you know? Not shy, but she doesn't go looking for trouble. She's the kind of kid who bring home a hurt bird and try to nurse it back to health. Even when I tell her it's probably not going to make it. She's got this big heart, but she's not a pushover. She's got a temper when she's pushed too far.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is she athletic at all? Does she have any sort of physical sports abilities?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yeah, actually. She plays soccer. She's fast, real fast. And she's scrappy when she needs to be on the field. That's why when she told me what happened, part of me was like. Well, I mean, boys shouldn't hit girls, but girls should also be able to fight back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So if she's athletic and she enjoys sporting and that sort of stuff, then maybe it's time to get her into type of martial arts class. So the next time somebody tries to give her a hard time like that, she can kick him in the fucking throat.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>No, no. That's, that's not what I meant. I was thinking, if she's fast, why didn't she just run?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but I'm not talking about what you're thinking. I'm talking about what I'm thinking. And what I'm thinking is she should kick that guy in the throat. So maybe it's time for her to learn to stand up for herself because you can only run so many times, right? If you, if somebody's giving you a hard time and you run away. That just makes it worse. Everybody knows that. If somebody's going to push you down, then you've got to be prepared to stand up and fight back. And that goes for boys and girls. That's just how the world works. It's survival of the fittest, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>I, okay, I hear what you're saying, but that's not really why I called. The problem isn't just what happened to my daughter. The problem is Renee writes my schedule. She handles complaints at the group home where I work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, okay. So your daughter's getting her kicked at school by a boy, and you're calling in because you're afraid that that boy's mom might make it hard for you at work?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Jesus. No, I mean, yes, but it's not like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We can't afford for me to lose this job. My partner's hours got cut at the plant, and we're barely making it as it is. My family's already got opinions about our whole situation. And if I lose this job, they're going to say I told you so about everything. And I don't know how to go to Renee about this without it becoming a whole thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>whole thing and you're a pussy and you're offending me because like what's going on with your daughter at school is more important than how your work situation plays out like your kid needs to be able to stand up for herself against people that would do her harm and this boy is doing her harm and he's going to do it again because that's how bullies operate. So unless you're prepared to give her the training and support she needs to stand up for herself and not be bullied She's going to be a punching bag. That's not cool. Just so you don't get your hours messed with at work, stop it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right. You're completely right, and I feel sick hearing you say it out loud. Because I've been sitting here for an hour, staring at my phone, trying to figure out how to handle Renee instead of just, instead of putting my daughter first. God, what am I doing? She came home with a black eye, and I've been worried about the schedule.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>You don't have to bring this to Renee at all. I mean, you probably should. It's probably one of the... easier ways to deal with it is to just be like, hey, your son has punched my daughter. That's not okay. And I think she would recognize that and it shouldn't affect your work. I'm sure there's human resources there to step in if there's an issue. If you're being targeted by her for bringing that to her attention. But more importantly, your daughter needs to be able to fight back for herself and make sure that the boys aren't going to pick on her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I need to go to the school tomorrow. First thing, I don't even know why I was trying to text Renee about it. That's backwards.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>I'm not telling you to go to the school. I'm not telling you to go to Renee. I'm telling you to get your daughter into some martial arts training so she can protect herself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Martial arts training. Okay, I don't, we don't really have the money for that right now. But maybe there's something at the community center or through the school. Eastern Arizona College might have something. I just need to figure out what's available in Safford that we can actually afford.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Well, if you can't afford it, there are ways that you can, you know, train her yourself or have, she's already athletic. She knows how to train for sports. She knows how to do the basic, you know, fundamental exercises, flexibility training. Get her a punching bag. They're not expensive. And give her the support she needs. Let her know that if somebody's picking on you at school, you punch them back. Even if you lose the fight, you punch them back. Or they're just going to keep coming and coming and coming. That's how bullies work. You must know this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know this. I work with kids every day at the group home, and I tell them the same thing. Stand up for yourself. Don't let people walk on you. And here I am telling my own daughter to keep her head down because I'm scared of my supervisor. That's pathetic. You're right about the punching bag.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>That is pathetic. And yeah, you're the role model for your daughter. And if you're a punching bag, then she's going to be a punching bag too. So you've got to learn her to stand up for yourself against the person that writes your schedule at work, and she's got to learn to stand up for herself against bullies that would do her harm at school. And both of you are capable of doing that, as long as she's not looking to you as a role model and seeing you cower down by the person that manages the fucking spreadsheet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>God, you're not wrong. She's watching me right now. Watching me tiptoe around Renee. Watching me delete texts for an hour instead of just saying something. And then I wonder why she didn't tell me about the black eye until today. She's learning from me take it and keep quiet because you're afraid of what happens if you don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>And that's no way to live unless you want to be picked on your whole life. And that's possible. If that's what you want, I mean, that's what will happen. So don't let that happen and get yourself some fucking a blockbuster membership and rent some John Claude Van Damme movies and go outside in the backyard and practice fighting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's not what I want. Not for her and not for me either. I'm going to talk to her tonight when I get home. getting her a punching bag that she needs to defend herself. And I'm texting Renee right now. I don't care if it's late.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Good for you. Good for you. And if Renee gives you a hard time, you go right to HR and you play that game because you can't punch somebody in the workplace generally. But what you can do is say I'm not going to accept being picked on or targeted for standing up for my kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right. I've got documentation. I've been there three years. My reviews are good. I show up on time. She retaliates? That's on her. Not me. I can't believe I was sitting here trying to figure out how to word it so she wouldn't get mad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Well, now you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. One more call, and that'll be the end of our show. We're going to talk to Darrell. Daryl, what's going on in your life tonight? Why are you calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARRELL</span><p>I just listened to a voicemail from my brother that's three years old, and now I am standing in a gas station parking lot at one in the morning trying to figure out if I should call him back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why didn't you listen to the voicemail for three years?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARRELL</span><p>Because the phone's been dead in my glove box, I switched carriers, got a new number, threw the old phone in there, and forgot about it. But my girlfriend, Sienna, asked me tonight if I had any pictures from when I first made Sergeant. And I remembered, I took a bunch on that phone, so I dug it out, charged it up, and boom, there's Marcus. Two weeks before he moved to New Mexico without telling anyone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you changed your phone and didn't talk to your brother for three full years, and now you're wondering if you should call him back?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARRELL</span><p>No, no, we've talked. Not a lot, but we've talked. He's got my new number.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so what's the problem? And then why are you afraid to call him back? What's the voicemail say?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARRELL</span><p>It's not even dramatic. That's the thing. He's just talking about some barbecue place he went to an Albuquerque saying I'd love it, asking if I'm still dating that girl from dispatch, which I wasn't even dating her. We went out twice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Real casual. I don't understand why you're calling me with this shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARRELL</span><p>Because he left it two weeks before he disappeared, Luke. He's calling me about Brisket and asking about some girl, and two weeks later he's gone. No goodbye, no heads up. Just texts Mawn that he took a job in Albuquerque and he's already there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You just said you talked to him frequently.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARRELL</span><p>I said we've talked not frequently. Maybe five times in three years. Birthdays, holidays, surface level stuff. He calls, I answer. We do 10 minutes. That's it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's how siblings talk. I mean, that's, uh, I think that's pretty normal. So what, what advice are you looking for? Should you call your brother and spark up a real conversation and see what's going on in his life and I, do you want to be in the dude's life? Like, what's the, what's the issue here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARRELL</span><p>The issue is I'm standing here listening to him, sound happy, actually happy, talking about some restaurant, and I'm realizing I have no idea why he left. And the thing that's eating me is, did he call to tell me? Was that what the barbecue thing was leading up to? And because I didn't answer, he just said, forget it and left anyway?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you already said he left to go to Albuquerque to take a job. So he got a job opportunity and went to Albuquerque to take it. Maybe he just wanted to change a pace, change a scene, a different life. People move. That's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>They're allowed to What is the issue here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>The issue is he called me first, Luke. Before he told mom, before he moved, he called me. And I didn't pick up because I was probably writing some jackass a speeding ticket or sitting in a parking lot running radar. And now I'm supposed to what, call him back three years later about a voicemail about Briscuit?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you call him back and say, hey, brother, I haven't talked to you in a while. I want to know what's going on in your life. And you took off, and I'd like to know why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>And say what when he asks why I'm calling now. Hey, Marcus, funny story. I just found this three-year-old. voicemail you left. Turns out my phone's been dead in my glove box. My bad?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That makes me look like an even bigger asshole than just not calling back in the first place. No, you don't say anything. You say I'm calling you because I was thinking about you, which is the truth. Who cares about the voicemail? Forget about it. It happened three years ago. It was about a brisket place. Nobody cares. He doesn't care. He probably doesn't remember leaving the voicemail. There has nothing to do with the situation now. But if you want to talk to your brother, just call him and talk to him. It's not that big a deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>But it is a big deal because I didn't call him back then. God. And that told him everything he needed to know, that I was too busy, that I didn't care enough, that he wasn't a priority, and he was right. I wasn't there. So he left, and he didn't tell me, because why would he? I already proved I wasn't going to pick up the phone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Look, man, if you're guilty that you didn't pick up the phone because you changed your number or you didn't want to talk, whatever, it's, you just call them and say, look, I'm sorry I didn't pick up the phone. You know, I'm different now. Things have changed, and I'm interested in being in your life. I'd like to know what happened. And if you want him to be in your life, if you want that relationship to matter going forward, then call the dude and talk to him. And don't worry about this voicemail from three years ago because he doesn't care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I didn't change my number. The phone just died, and I got a new one and I never thought about it again until tonight. And that's worse, isn't it? That I just forgot about it completely. Sienna asked if I had any pictures from when I was younger and I remembered the old phone and charged it up. And there it was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's enough. brother if you want to talk to him. That's the end of our show. Good night.</p></div>
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<section class="page-header">
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<h1>Episode 27: Love, Loss, and Loud Opinions</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-04T09:02:26+00:00">March 4, 2026</time> · 1 hr 4 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this emotionally charged episode, Luke tackles complex personal dilemmas from callers like Chester struggling with marriage, Tanya navigating an open relationship, and Leon facing his wife’s terminal illness. The show also features intense discussions about homeschooling, workplace boundaries, and inappropriate behavior at youth sports events. Buckle up for raw, unfiltered advice that pulls no punches.</p>
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-27-love-loss-and-loud-opinions.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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|
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<section class="episode-transcript">
|
||||
<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen to Luke at the Roost. The call-in radio show where you can call in and ask me questions, and I'll give you the best advice that I can. If you'd like to call in, the number's 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. Today is Tuesday, March 3rd, and we're going to get to the phone lines here. We've got Chester. What are you calling in for tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Well, Luke, I'm sitting here in my trailer out at the yard, and I just saw this thing on the news about Mexican Chile coming in and undercutting our prices. And it got me all worked up because, you know, I remember back in 2008 during monsoon season. I drove all the way up to hatch in the middle of a storm because I wanted real New Mexico peppers, the authentic ones, not this garbage they're trying to pass off now. And my roof was leaking that same night, water coming through in three different spots, but I went anyway. because some things matter more than convenience, you know what I do. And now my girlfriend, Denise, she keeps saying we should just buy the pre-roasted stuff from Costco, which is exactly the problem with everything these days. Nobody cares about quality anymore. Nobody cares about where things come from or what they mean. Everything's got to be easy and cheap and fast, and I'm sitting here thinking, maybe that's connected to something bigger I've been wrestling with, but I haven't quite figured out how to say it yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, where do the chilies come from that go, than the Costco ones, because they could be coming from Hatch New Mexico. I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>No, no, no. See, that's what they want you to think. But if you look at the label, really look at it. Most of that stuff is coming from Anaheim, California. Or they're mixing it with peppers from Mexico or even Peru sometimes. They slap Hatch style on there, which doesn't mean a damn thing legally. Hatch child means it's grown in the Hatch Valley in that specific soil with that specific climate. My buddy Ray, he used to work at one of the roasting-off. operations up there before it got bought out. And he told me they started blending in cheaper peppers from wherever they could get them, because the demand got so high after it became this trendy thing. And people can't tell the difference anymore because they never had the real thing to begin with. When I drove up there in 2008, I bought directly from the Franzoi family. Watch them roast it right there. Filled up my whole truck bed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds pretty excessive. You're a real connoisseur of chili peppers. I can't tell the difference myself. I do like that. I do I don't know if they're Hatch Chilies or Hatch style chilies, but I like the green chili on my burgers. And honestly, I could care less whether it comes from Hatch, New Mexico, or Anaheim, California. They're not very far apart. Neither is Mexico. And I bet that the peppers in Peru are fabulous. So what's the big issue here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Well, that's exactly what Denise says. Maybe you're both right. Maybe I'm the one who's got it all twisted up. But it's not really about the peppers, Luke. I don't know. They're the thing I can point to and say, this matters. This is real. This is worth doing right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It seems like a pretty small thing to get hung up on doing right. I mean, chili peppers that are like a condiment on your burger. But hey, if you like the hatch ones, drive out to hatch and fill up your truck bed. Good for you. I don't, I'm not sure what sort of volume of peppers come out of hatch. Is there enough chili pepper grown in Hatch, New Mexico to supply the whole country?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>No, that's the thing. There's not. The whole valley only produces maybe 30,000 tons in a good year. And the country wants millions of pounds of the stuff now that it got popular. So mathematically it doesn't work, which means most of what people are eating isn't what they think it is, and that bothers me on principle. But you're right, it's a small thing. The real reason I called, and I've been dancing around it, is that Denise has been dropping hints about getting married for about six months now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I don't really see how how you've been dancing around that, but how do you feel about getting married to Denise?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>I don't know, Luke. That's the problem. We've been together four years. She's a good woman, works hard at the hospital as a billing clerk, doesn't complain about the hours I keep at the yard. She makes sense on paper. But every time she brings it up, I get this feeling in my chest like something's closing in. And I change the subject, or I pick a fight about something stupid like the peppers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't have to get married if you don't want to get married. Definitely don't get married sure you want to get married. My recommendation to everybody is absolutely under no circumstances get married because it's the worst fucking possible thing you could ever do. But no, people don't listen. I didn't listen. I did it myself and it was the worst fucking thing I ever did. So don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>See, that's what I keep telling myself. But then I think about my dad. He never married my mom, just kept her hanging on for 17 years saying he wasn't ready, wasn't sure, needed more time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but he fell apart with 100% of his assets, I'm sure. Whereas if he had got married and she left him, he would have fell apart with half.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Well, he didn't have much to split anyway. The junkyard was already mortgage to hell, and she never wanted any of it. She just wanted him to commit to something for once in his life instead of keeping one foot out the door all the time. And now he's 72, lives alone in that same trailer, eats TV dinners, and I can see myself turning into that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think that getting married out of fear of being alone is definitely the wrong reason. But you're your own man. If you think it's time to tie the knot, then go ahead and do it. But I recommend that you don't. And absolutely, if you're going to get married, prenuptial agreement.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>Yeah, Denise would lose her mind if I brought up a pre-nup. She'd take it as me planning for failure before we even started. And maybe she'd be right. The thing is, Luke, I think the real problem is I don't know if I'm capable of what she needs. She wants someone who comes home at a decent hour, who wants to take vacations to Branson or wherever, who's excited about picking out furniture and talking about where we'd send kids to school.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, are you that guy? I mean, I didn't bring up pre-nup either for all of those reasons. It seems like an offensive thing if you're talking about getting married. But you know what? It's better to be offensive up front than have to get a lawyer later.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>No, I'm not that guy. I'm the guy who'd rather stay at the yard until midnight organizing parts bins that don't need organizing because at least out there, I know what I'm doing. And she knows that about me, which is maybe why she keeps pushing the marriage thing, thinking a ring and a ceremony will transform me into somebody different. My buddy Ray did that, married a woman who wanted him to be less of a drinker, and now he sneaks bourbon in the garage and lies about where he's been. That's no way to live either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, sir, it is not. And if that's what you think is going on here and she wants to marry you because she thinks that's going to change your behavior, then I think you should definitely not do that because it's not going to go well. Your behavior is not going to change. Or if it does, you're going to resent that you changed it for somebody else. And eventually, you're both going to hate each other. And it's not going to be a pleasant experience. So if you're not completely sure you want to get married and you shouldn't be, then don't do it. advice for you is just don't do it. And if she feels like she's hanging on and doesn't want to hang on, let her go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHESTER</span><p>That's the thing that keeps me up at night, though, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Oh, gosh, hi, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So my husband just texted me that he's spending the night at his girlfriend's place, and I've been sitting here in my restaurant office for like an hour, staring at my phone, and I don't know what I'm feeling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, obviously, you know about the girlfriend. This is an open type relationship. How does that work? Your husband has a girlfriend and you're okay with that? Or you don't know if you're okay with that? What's the situation? Give us some context.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Right, so six months ago, I suggested we open up our marriage. I read this article about how it can bring back excitement, and I thought maybe that's what we needed, because things had gotten really flat, you know? And he was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I was into the idea, but here's the thing, Luke. The thing is he's got his girlfriend and you don't have somebody else now. He's working out for him and not you, I assume.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Exactly. He found someone on this Dayton app within like a week. Her name's Rebecca. And I've been trying. I really have. I've sent out probably 30 messages and I haven't gotten a single reply. Not one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So are you jealous that he's out with his girlfriend? Or are you jealous that he found a girlfriend and you didn't find a boyfriend? What is it that's boss?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>That's what I keep trying to figure out. I keep telling myself I'm happy he's happy. Right? Like that was the whole point. But tonight when I got his text, I saw my reflection in the office window here, and I realized I couldn't remember the last time I actually looked at myself for that long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you even want a boyfriend? I mean, you said the spice was gone or whatever and what, I assume you guys weren't having sex and you wanted some? Are you not able to get laid?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I mean, I want to want it. Does that make sense? Like I thought opening things up would make me feel alive again or desirable or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>But honestly, Luke, I don't even know if I'm actually attracted to any of these guys I'm messaging. I'm just doing it because that was supposed to be how this works. We both get to see other people and it fixes things somehow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, obviously, that's not going to work. You have to actually want to see other people. I think that can work for certain couples. I think it's very difficult and you have to be the right kind of people for it to work. But just trying to fix a problem by opening it up seems like it's probably going to just make a worse problem. Is it that you're not attracted to men?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>No, no, it's not that. I'm attracted to my husband still, or I was. I think what's happening is I suggested this whole thing because I thought it would make him want me again, you know? Like maybe if other people wanted me, he'd remember why he did. But now he's over at Rebecca's place and I'm sitting here and clothes that smell like friar oil, and I'm realizing I might have just given him permission to leave without actually leaving.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I've never had children, so I've never had to go through that back and forth with somebody about how we're going to raise them. So I can't give you the greatest advice here, but I would say if you can't come to an agreement amongst yourselves, flip a coin.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>A coin flip? This is not a decision you flip a coin on. I have actually done the research here. I have read three peer-reviewed studies in the last week about homeschooled kids and college readiness.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, a lot of kids don't go to college, and it sounds like she's done her research, too. So there's opposing views here. A lot of people, everybody I've known that's been homeschooled swears by it. So I don't know that the public school has a very good track record.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Okay, but those studies show that homeschooled kids have real gaps in socialization. And that is exactly what I am worried about with Maya. She has spent years being the quiet kid who ate lunch alone. And this year, she finally has a group of friends. She is going to sleepovers. She is texting with kids from her class. You yank her out now and put her back in the house all day with just her mom and her little brother. That progress disappears.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, not necessarily. There's still ways to get her socialization throughout the day and the week. I mean, she can still be in different clubs and have her friends and go to the live. and things. It's not just locking her in the house all day. Socialization is part of the homeschooling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Yeah, Sharon says the exact same thing. She talks about homeschool co-ops and field trips and whatever, but that is not the same as being in class with the same 30 kids every single day. Those co-op things meet what, once a week? Twice a week maybe? Maya has finally figured out how to navigate the social world at Silver Consolidated.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, that's a small school, right? You're talking about Silver. New Mexico?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Silver Consolidated. Yeah. We're in Byard, actually, just outside Silver City. It is a small school, which is part of why this is working for her. She knows these kids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, if you live just outside of Silver City, she's still going to know those kids. They're still in her town. I mean, she can still go to events with them and go to the movies and stuff and do kid things. So I don't really see the problem. Like, if you were in New York City public, school where she had 500 classmates, that would be a different experience. But homeschool versus a small Silver City Consolidated School, I don't think it's going to be that much different. I mean, and you don't know what's going to happen in the future. Imagine it was just a few years ago and COVID happened. And then all the classes were over Zoom meetings for years. Like, what did that do to kids' socialization? They still made it. They still were able to communicate with their friends and learn socialization. think. I don't really know. Don't take any of my advice on this one. I don't know what I'm talking about, but just from my perspective, I don't think there's that big of a difference between homeschooling and regular schooling. And if I were doing it, I would push for homeschooling. If I could, if I had the time to do that, because I really don't believe in the school system at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Okay, but here's what you're missing. Maya is not just any kid. She has struggled with this her life. We are talking about a girl who used to fake being sick to avoid school because she was so anxious about talking to other kids.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, and going to school sucks. So, you know, that's showing you she's been in school and she was still shy. Now she's getting a little older and she's made some friends, but it's a different situation now. It's not so much about the school as her age.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>That is exactly what Sharon says, and I do not buy it. Yes, she is. She is. She is getting older, but the reason she finally made friends this year is because her English teacher put her in a group project with three other girls, and they clicked. That does not happen sitting at the kitchen table with workbooks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That also really doesn't happen that often in the workplace. I mean, think about today's modern workplace. You are working on those projects remotely with people across, you know, Zoom meetings and stuff. The school experience is pretty far from reality.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I work with my hands. I fix things. I am in my workshop right now looking at circuit boards and actual tools. The real world for me is not Zoom meetings. It is dealing with people face to face. And that is what Maya needs to learn. She needs to learn how to handle herself when someone is rude to her in the hallway. Or when a teacher calls on her and she does not know the answer. Or when her friend group has drama. You cannot simulate that stuff at home.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can absolutely simulate that in the real world because that's around everywhere. She's going to have to learn how to deal with people face to face. in business, in going to the bank and dealing with a difficult employee, shopping at Walmart. Like, she's going to have to deal with those things in school or anywhere else in the world because that's just dealing with other people. She doesn't need to be in school to do that. She could be literally anywhere in society.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>But she is 13 years old. She is not going to the bank by herself or dealing with difficult Walmart employees. The only place she is at. actually navigating peer relationships on her own, without me or Sharon standing there, is at school. That is where she is learning to handle conflict with people her own age, to read social cues, to figure out who to trust.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, that's because that's the only place you're putting her. But if you tell her to leave at 8 o'clock and go outside and go hang out at a coffee shop, she's going to meet people there. If she goes to do the shopping on a Thursday, then she's going to meet people there. And yeah, she's 13, but 13 is a teenager. She should be out and doing things with kids outside of school and home, right? I was. I'm sure you were out playing on the road with the other kids on the street. There was more to socialization than just what happened in the defined six hours of school or whatever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>You are talking about Silver City, New Mexico. There is no coffee shop where teenagers just hang out. This is not some college town. And yeah, when I was a kid, we were outside all the time. was different. Kids do not do that anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, because you don't let them. Kids would do that if you let them. If you encourage them to do it, they certainly would. And the Silver City is a college town, and there are coffee shops where kids are hanging out because I've been there. So I don't know what you're talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Okay, fine. Western New Mexico University is there, but Maya is not a college student. She is 13. And yes, maybe there are a couple coffee places, but the point is Sharon wants to pull her out right now, of the school year, when she finally has this friend group.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I'm on Sharon's side, so sorry, I don't agree with you. You're not going to get the answer for me that you're looking for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Well, hold on. You were just going to side with her without even hearing the full situation? Maya has anxiety. She has had it since she was little. She would not talk to other kids at birthday parties. She would hide behind Sharon at the grocery store.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I'm going to side with her after having heard what you just said like four different times because you keep repeating it. I understand she has anxiety.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>It is not just regular nervousness. She has been seeing a therapist for two years. And this year, eighth grade is the first time she has actually had friends who call her, who invite her to things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, that's great. And they can keep inviting her to things and calling her if she's homeschooled. She's already made the friends, right? She's already got them. So I don't know what you're looking for for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>The question is, how do you say no to people without them deciding you are the problem? Because every time I have said no in the past year, someone has made it very clear that I am being difficult. My supervisor asked me to switch my weekend off in January so she could go to her daughter's volleyball tournament.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up, we've got Cliff. Cliff, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life today? Do you have a real problem that I can give you real advice about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>Hey, Luke?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>I caught my tax client's wife cheating on him in the Albertson's parking garage tonight, and I cannot stop laughing about it, even though I probably should not have seen what I saw, so I do taxes. Right? Been doing Ray's returns for maybe eight years now. Nice guy, owns a plumbing supply company, always complaining about his wife Denise at poker. She shows up to our potlucks and complains right back about him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so why are you laughing about his wife cheating on him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>Because it was with Ray. They were cheating on each other with each other, Luke. I am standing there in the parking garage like 9.30 because I forgot my briefcase in my car. And there is Demise, pushed up against a Honda Civic, with some guy, and I'm about to turn around and pretend I did not see anything. And then the guy turns his head and is his ray.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't understand. How is that cheating? That is exactly what I've been trying to figure out for the last two hours. They are married to each other. They live together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>No, I know they are married. That is what makes this so insane. These two spend every social gathering for the last three years, telling anyone who will listen how much they cannot stand each other. Ray sits at poker and goes on about how Denise nags him about every little thing, how she hates his hobbies, how they have not had a real conversation in months. Denise shows up to potlucks and tells my wife that Ray is emotionally unavailable, and they are basically roommates at this point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, good for them. It sounds like they found a way to inject a little something into their relationship and maybe restart the flame or whatever it is they say. I think that's great. Good for them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>But Luke, they are lying to everybody. That is the part that is making me crazy. I have sat through hours of Ray complaining about his dead bedroom. Hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, they weren't in the bedroom, were they?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>No. They were in a parking garage acting like teenagers who just discovered each other. And the whole time they had been performing this miserable marriage routine for everyone we know. I mean, we have all been taking sides. People avoid inviting them to the same things because the tension is supposed to be so bad. My wife spent 45 minutes on the phone with Denise two weeks ago talking her through whether she should leave him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, maybe it got to a point where they had to do something, and they decided that instead of hating each other for the rest of their lives or breaking up, they were going to try and reignite the passion by doing some public play.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>Public play? They do not even know I saw them. This was some plan to fix things. Why are they still doing the whole song and dance? Ray called me yesterday to cancel poker night because he said Denise was giving him grief about spending too much time with the guys.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, maybe they're lying about it, maybe they're embellishing how much they don't like each other, or maybe they actually don't like each other, but people still like to fuck, you know? So it could have just got long enough for each of them that they needed to bone, and they found a place to do it, and you happen to see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>That is the most depressing thing I have ever heard. What kind of marriage is a is that. You hate each other enough to complain about it to everyone you know, but not enough to actually do anything about it. So you just meet up in parking garages every once in a while?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. It's not on me to judge their marriage, but that sounds better than not meeting up in parking garages at all. People do have needs, and it seems like they're getting them from each other, which is the point. And if they do that in an unconventional way, who cares? That's their life. That's their marriage. If they're a pain in the ass to you and your friends, though, to them about it and say, hey, you guys need to cut the shit because we're sick of listening to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>I cannot talk to them about it without admitting I saw them, and then I am the crink with a telescope who watches people in parking garages. Which is not what happened. I was packing up my equipment and I looked down and there they were under a light post going at it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well if they were going at it in a public parking garage, they wanted to be seen. That was the point of the exercise was that they could be caught. That's what made it exciting for them. You must understand this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>You think they wanted someone to see them? In downtown Albuquerque at 1030 on a Tuesday night in an empty parking garage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think they wanted somebody to see them. They wanted to be in a place where they might be seen. There's a difference.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>Okay, fine. But that still does not solve my problem, which is that I have to sit across from these people at every gathering for the rest of my life, knowing what I know, while they keep performing this whole charade. Do I just pretend I believe it? Do I keep listening to Ray complain about how she never wants to do anything spontaneous anymore?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How spontaneous she can be? No. You're just, the next time he says something like that, let him know that you saw them and that he's lying and that he's busted. And maybe there's more to the story than you're aware of, and maybe there's not. But either way, you don't have to hide that. I wouldn't go and tell everybody else. I wouldn't tell it to all your friends at the poker table. But if you're with Ray and Ray is talking some shit that is obviously not true, then call him out on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLIFF</span><p>Yeah. So I just say what, Ray, I saw you and Denise screwing against a Honda Civic last Tuesday. Cut the crap? That is going to go over real well. He's going to lose his mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I'm sure it'll be fun. It'll be interesting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Then you'll have a good reason to laugh. You are out of your mind. This is terrible advice. Now I am going to have Ray pissed off at me for spying on him. Denise pissed off at me for embarrassing her and everyone else wondering why I was downtown with a telescope at 10. 10.30 on a Tuesday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you weren't spying on him. They were in a public place. They were in a public place because they were doing some sort of public play. Like, they wanted the thrill of potentially being caught by somebody, and you happen to see them. Unless you actually were spying on them, then that's a different story. If you were spying on them, then you're a creep. And send us the pictures. We have a Discord. You can check that out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I was not spying on them. I was packing up my telescope after looking at the moon for two hours. I looked down to make sure I was not leaving anything on the ground, and there they were, under the only working light in that whole section. It was completely accidental. And no, I did not take pictures.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that was a missed opportunity then, sir. But that's my advice for you is the next time he starts bitching about his wife in front of you, let him know that you know. And tell him he's caught in the lie and to cut the shit. And, you know, maybe you learn more about that story and there's, I'm sure there's more to it. But from the information that you've given me, eh, who cares?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>All right. So I am just supposed to blow up the entire dynamic at the next poker night, funny. That is what I am hearing. Because once I say something to Ray, this is not staying between us. He is going to tell Denise I saw them. She is going to freak out. And then I am the guy who ruined everything by not minding my own business. And I still have to see these people every week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you did mind your own business. I mean, all you're doing is calling on him for lying the next time he lies. I'm not saying to blow up your poker game or take it to the poker table. I'm saying when you're alone with Ray and he bitches about his wife, tell him to cut the shit because you caught them. That's all. That's all. And yeah, I do think it would be funny. And if you don't want to do this, if you don't want to take this advice, that's fine. That's fine by me. But you're the one that called and asked for it. So, I mean, there's that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know what? You are right. I did call and ask for it. And now I am sitting here realizing I called a radio show at midnight to complain about my friends having sex in a parking garage, like I am some kind of pervert, which is exactly what Ray is going to call me when I bring this up. This whole thing is ridiculous.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>conversation goes on, the more you actually sound like a pervert, because you're protesting being a pervert an awful lot. And if it went down the way that you said it went down where you just happened to see them because they were there in public under the light, then no, you're not a pervert. You just happen to see something. But you seem really, really nervous about looking like a pervert. So I'm starting to question whether or not what you're telling me is the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh, come on. I am nervous because I know how this is going to sound no matter how I explain it. I was downtown with a telescope late at night, and I saw two people I know going at it. That sounds bad. It sounds like I was looking for something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think it does. I think it sounds like they were looking to be found.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Maybe you are right about that. I have known Ray for eight years, and the man complains about Denise constantly. Every single time we get together, it is something new. She does not appreciate him. She nags him about money. She wants him to be someone he is not. And those things are all probably true, but that doesn't mean they don't want to fuck. And honestly, that is the part that has been bothering me since I got home. They have this whole routine down where they act like they cannot stand each other in front of everyone, and meanwhile, they are sneaking off to parking garages. What is the point of all that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, but I can't tell what the point of this call is either, so we're going to go to a break from our sponsors here, and we'll be back shortly. Look, I'm not a financial advisor. I'm a guy with a microphone and a dog, but the folks at Crypto no asked me to tell you about their new decentralized investment platform, and I legally have to read this part. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This is not financial advice. And if you invest your rent money, you deserve exactly what happens next. Crypto No lets you trade over 400 digital currencies, including three that were invented this morning and one that's just a picture of my dog. The app features a real-time portfolio tracker with a built-in panic button that just plays ocean sounds when your balance drops. Crypto no. Fortune favors the bold, but it does not return their calls. Okay, thanks to Crypto No for the sponsorship there. We couldn't do the show without you. Crypto No. That's what I say. Next up, we've got Leon. Leon, welcome to the show. What's happening in your life tonight, sir? How can we help?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking. Thanks for taking my call. So I found my wife's pills today. She's been stockpiling her oxy, and I am pretty sure I know what she's planning to do with them when things get bad enough. And I cannot figure out if I should say something or just let her have that choice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that's a tough one. What is it, what is going to get bad enough? I mean, what situation is she in where she would be thinking about that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>She has got stage four pancreatic cancer. They gave her maybe six months back in January and she's about halfway through chemo right now. The pain is manageable now. But her oncologist already told us it is going to get a lot worse before the end. Linda is the kind of person who has always been in control of everything. I mean, she planned our wedding down to the minute she runs the finances. She even picks what I wear to church. And I think the idea of being bedridden and helpless at the end just terrifies her more than dying does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I can understand that. And I can understand that in why it's a difficult situation for you to be in. There's not a right answer there. It very much depends on your own personal values and beliefs. But I can tell you if it were me, I would want to have that option. So maybe it's worth having the conversation with her, letting her know that you know what she's doing, what she's planning on, and asking her if she wants you to get involved or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>That is the thing, though. I do not know if I can have to have that conversation without falling apart. We've been married 36 years, and we have barely talked about her dying at all. Like, really talked about it. We mention appointments. We talk about side effects from the chemo, but we do not say the actual words. And if I bring up the pills, then we have to say it out loud. We have to talk about her last day and whether I am going to be there and what that looks like.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I think that you're going to have to have that conversation and it's okay if you've followed apart. I mean, that's perfectly acceptable. Of course you're going to fall apart. But you should have the conversation, regardless. Even if the pills weren't part of the equation, you should still have the conversation and talk about what that day should look like because that day is coming and you both know it's coming. So avoiding the conversation is not going to be helpful. And I think if you don't have that conversation, when the day does come, you will wish that you had.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>You are right. I know you are right. I know you are right. I have been thinking about it like I am protecting her by not bringing it up, but really, I am just protecting myself from having to face it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up on our call line, we've got Heather. Heather, welcome to the show. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Luke, I don't know. I just watched some jackass at my nephew's little league game shove a 16-year-old umpire over a called third strike. And when I told him to back the hell off, he got in my face screaming about how I was destroying his kid's future. This was a game for eight-year-olds. Eight. And the worst part? Not one other parent said a damn word.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how did you respond to the situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>I got right back in his face and told him if he touched that kid again, I was calling the cups, which made him lose it even more. Started yelling about how people like me are what's wrong with youth sports, how everyone's too soft now, how his son needs to learn that life isn't fair and someone's got to fight for him. Meanwhile, his kid is standing there crying, absolutely mortified. The umpire's shaking, my nephew's confused, and I'm standing there thinking I'm about to get into an actual fist fight in a Little League parking lot. At 43 years old.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, it's stories like that that don't make me sad. I don't have kids and I don't have to deal with that stuff. But it sounds like those little kids sports games get pretty intense and it's not about the kids at all. It's about the fathers generally living vicariously through their eight-year-old kids thinking that they're going to be giant sports stars someday. But they're just little sniveling idiots running around in circles.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Exactly. That's exactly what it is. And you know what really gets me? This guy kept saying, my son's future, my son's future. Like some college scout was hiding in the bleachers at a Tuesday afternoon game in Demon, watching third graders, his kid can barely catch a pop fly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's pretty silly. I agree with you. And it's unacceptable behavior from from lots of usually the dads at those things. And I'm glad that I don't have to go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Well, here's the thing, though, Luke. I've been sitting here at my salon for three hours doing inventory because I can't stop thinking about it. And it's not just about that dad being a psycho. It's that nobody else said anything. There were maybe 20 parents there. And they all just stood there looking at their phones or pretending to be real interested in the concession stand. Like if they don't acknowledge it, it didn't happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, what would you have hoped that they did? Some of them probably agreed with the dad. Some of them agreed with you. What would your ideal outcome have been?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>I wanted somebody, anybody, to back me up. Even just one person to say, hey man, that's not okay. Because when I'm standing there alone, telling this guy off, I look like the crazy one. I look like I'm the problem. And you know what happened after? Two different moms came up to me later after he left and whispered, thank you for saying something that was so brave. Brave?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you didn't look like the crazy one. I bet nobody there thought you looked like the crazy one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>They all knew that he was being a douchebag and were probably proud of you for standing up for it, but they're all pussies and they don't want to get in trouble with the school or end up in the paper or get their kids in trouble. People are weak. That's what pisses me off, though. Everyone's so worried about making waves, about being that parent, that they'll watch a grown man assault a teenager and just let it happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. It's a sad state of affairs, for sure. I agree with you. But here's what I can't stop thinking about. That dad's kid? He's in my nephew's class.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And is the dad's kid a good kid? Is he a friend of your nephew?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>I don't know. That's the thing. I've never actually talked to the kid. But I see him at every game now, and all I can think is, that's the psycho's son. And that's not fair to him, right? Like, it's not his fault. His dad's an asshole. But I'm sitting here wondering if I should say something to my sister about not letting them hang out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I doubt that very much. That kid's life probably sucks at home. That guy is almost certainly an asshole all the time. I would guess, I don't know the guy. I never met him, but I would guess he's the type that's punching walls and probably drinking heavy and just not being a great father figure. I could be wrong about that. That's a gross generalization, but I mean, that's the picture that behavior paints. would feel sympathy for the kid and maybe try and be more involved in his life so that you can be a positive influence and let him know that not all adults act like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>You know what? You're right. I didn't even think about it that way. I've been so focused on being mad at the dad that I didn't consider what that kid's dealing with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that kid is probably horribly embarrassed. He doesn't want to be the center of attention in that way. Nobody does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>So he was bag father. God, you're absolutely right. I didn't even look at the kid after it happened. I was so focused on his dad and then on whether anyone was going to back me up, that kid probably wanted to disappear into the ground.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. That's understandable. So, I mean, look at the kid with sympathy and try to be a good role model for him and don't let the sins of the father affect the youth of America or whatever the fucking saying is. Thanks for the call. I'm going to end up, the show here. And do you have anything else you'd like to add before we sign off for the evening?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HEATHER</span><p>Yeah, just one thing. To anyone listening who was at that game today and saw what happened and didn't say anything, you're part of the problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right, Heather. I agree with her. You guys are the douchebags. You're the reason that everything sucks now. And you should be ashamed of yourselves. Good night. Thank you.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 28: Secrets, Lies, and Vinyl Records</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-05T21:38:03+00:00">March 5, 2026</time> · 1 hr 4 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode of Luke at the Roost, callers share deeply personal stories about hidden truths and challenging life decisions. Wendell confronts potential infidelity, Luther reveals his obsessive surveillance of a friend, and Brandy considers a risky business partnership. What secrets are you holding onto?</p>
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-28-secrets-lies-and-vinyl-records.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back to Luke at the Roost. This is the call-in radio show where you can call in and ask me whatever's on your mind, and I'll give you the best advice I can. If you'd like to give me a call, the number is 208-439-58-53. That's 208-439 Luke. And I'd like to give a special thank you to everybody today, because today we hit 1,000 downloads, which is, insane to me, considering this has only been going on for a month or so. So thank you to all of you out there that enjoy listening to my voice. That's, it's very nice for you, and we couldn't do it without yet. So today is, it's actually Thursday, March 5th, but I'll consider it Wednesday's show, because it just passed midnight a little while ago. It's getting laid out here, and we're ready to give some advice. Gangsta hip hop here to play in the background. That's perfect. And we're going to get to our calls. So, Wendell, Wendell, you're calling in today? What's going on tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>My wife made a joke tonight. About our daughter being tall like my family. Except nobody in my family is tall, Luke. Nobody. And I've known since this kid was three years old that she's not mine biologically. I did the math. I remember exactly when my wife had that thing with her co-worker. But here's the thing that's eating me up right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, it's not even the thing that your kid isn't your kid? Are you sure? Have you done a paternity test or any sort of DNA verification? I mean, that seems like awful circumstantial evidence, but what is it that's eating you up right now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>No tests, no DNA, nothing official like that, but Luke, I'm telling you I know. The timeline is perfect. The features don't match either of us. And there was this whole two months back then, where things were weird. Even though we never said it out loud. But that's not what's got me twisted up tonight, man. What's killing me is that I chose this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You chose what? You chose going to the laundromat tonight? Or you chose a wife that's going to cheat on you and then you're never going to talk about it? You need to know this for sure. You're making a lot of accusations here. It seems like maybe you might not be right about that. You should probably have a conversation and see if there's a reason for your hesitance, your paranoia here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>No, no, no, Luke, you're right. I should say it clearer. I chose to be her dad. When she was three, I sat in my truck outside a clinic that does paternity tests, and I had all the paperwork filled out, and I sat there for 45 minutes, and then I drove home and threw it away, because I realized I didn't want to know officially. I wanted to keep being her father. Every soccer practice, every scraped knee, every time she runs up and hugs me when I pick her up from her, school. That's real. That's mine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, okay, okay. But, uh, you sound awful angry about it. It doesn't sound like it's, uh, making you feel joyful and, uh, happy. Why are you so upset?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Because tonight when my wife made that joke, she was so casual about it, so comfortable with the lie. And it hit me that she doesn't know that I know. She thinks she got away with it completely. And I'm sitting there smiling and nodding like, yeah, funny how genetics work. And inside, I'm screaming because I'm screaming because I'm, I've been carrying this alone for 10 years, Luke. 10 years of being the only one who knows the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, how do you know the truth if you haven't confirmed anything? You just have a suspicion and you're calling it the truth. Your wife might not know what you're thinking at all. Maybe she didn't do anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Luke, she told me. Not directly, but she told me. This was back when our daughter was maybe six months old. We'd had some wine one night, and she started crying and said she needed to tell me something, and I stopped her. I literally put my hand up and said, I don't want to hear it. Whatever it is, we're good. We're moving forward. She tried twice more over the next year to bring it up, and both times, I shut it down because I didn't want it to be real if we said it out loud. So she thinks I don't know because I wouldn't let her tell me. But Luke, I know what she was trying to confess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, maybe you think you know what she was trying to confess. You might not have any idea. Jesus, man. You're carrying around an awful big burden without verification here, just thinking what you think is the truth. And maybe it's not. Maybe you should ask her what she was trying to confess all those times and stop shutting her down any time she tries to confess. Wouldn't you rather know for real what's going on than just be upset for the rest of your life for no reason?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>You're making me feel crazy here, Luke. But maybe you're right. Maybe I am crazy. But what if I ask? And it's exactly what I think it is. What do I do then? Right now I get to be her dad With no asterisk, no question mark The second we say it out loud, everything changes My daughter's 13 She's got her whole life ahead of her She doesn't need to find out Her dad isn't her dad And her mom cheated And we've been lying to her for her entire existence</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well no, she doesn't need to find that out You don't have to tell her that I mean and if you're living your life Thinking that this is the case What's the difference if it's said out loud or not Only good can come of having the conversation, right? If you already think it's the truth, and then you find out it's the truth, nothing changes. But if you think it's the truth and you find out that she wanted to tell you something completely unrelated, that's a big burden off of your shoulders.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Okay, okay, you're actually making sense. And I hate that, because I've built this whole thing in my head for a decade. And now you're telling me maybe I built it on nothing. But Luke hears what scares me about asking. to confess that she kissed someone. Just kissed, nothing more, and I open this whole can of worms and put the idea in her head That I think our daughter isn't mine. What if I'm about to ruin a good thing by digging when I should have just let sleeping dogs lie? Because right now, even with all this weight on carrying, we're happy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you sound super happy. No, you should know for sure. Because if she does tell you that she just kissed someone, she's just going to laugh. She's just going to be like, oh my God, God, I can't believe that you thought that for the last 10 years. Any reasonable person would just laugh in that situation, not be upset with you for it. But I would recommend if your wife's trying to tell you something, you let her tell you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>You're right. God, you're right, and I've wasted 10 years being terrified of a conversation. I'm going to talk to her this weekend when our daughter's at the tournament in Deming.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think that's a great idea. And maybe she's just lucky. She got tall. Good for her. That is funny, though, that the whole situation is pretty funny. You're a funny guy, sir.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Yeah, well, I don't feel funny. I feel like an idiot who's been white-knuckling a secret. That might not even be a secret. My wife's going to think I've lost my mind when I finally bring this up after shutting her down for a decade. Hey, Luke, can I ask you something, though? What if I'm right? What if I ask? And it is what I think it is. Do I just keep being dad like nothing happened? Or does everything fall apart?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what do you think? I don't think anything would have to change. I mean, you'd be operating as usual. You already believe it's the truth, so confirming that doesn't change anything. If you've decided to be her dad, you're her dad. And she doesn't know any other dad, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>You love your kid, and you've been there for her whole life, and nothing changes. You're absolutely right. I've already made my peace with it in my head. I just never made my peace with it out loud. And she is my kid, Luke. She really is. I taught her how to throw a curveball. I'm the one who sits in the stands at every game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WILL</span><p>I promise I'll call back after we talk. Thank you, man. Seriously. I've been carrying this around like a boulder on my back. And you just made me realize I could have put it down any time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, it sounds like you wanted to carry the boulder on your back. Put it down. That's what I say. Put it down. Next up we've got Alia. Alia, welcome to the radio show. How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Okay, so I need you to settle something because my boyfriend is asleep and I am losing my mind over this. Everyone who says they can hear the difference between vinyl and digital is completely full of shit, right? Like it is scientifically impossible for the human ear to detect what they claim their hearing. And I have been arguing about this online for two hours and I need back up here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Not always would be my answer for you. Sometimes you can definitely tell that what you're listening to is uh is vinyl um as opposed to sometimes you can absolutely tell that it's digital especially if there's any level of like digital clipping in it if the signal gets too loud then um vinyl never sounds like that so so it's a very obvious digital sound if things are mixed appropriately and with some of today's And stuff, you can make a digital recording sound very much like vinyl. But when people are talking about the vinyl sound, usually what they're referring to is noise. It's the scratches and the clicks and the pops that are inherently in the vinyl. And I think a lot of audio file type people, like the old school, people from the 70s, when they're saying it doesn't sound the same, it's because they're not listening to it through the old analog tubes used to be around back in the day. That imparted a very warm sort of distortion to the sound that people got very used to. It's really nice sounding to us. We like it a lot. So, I mean, they could play a vinyl record on some record player that they picked up at Best Buy a couple of years ago, and it's not going to have that same warmth characteristic that came from the old tubes. So it's a complicated question that you've got there. And I would say that, yeah, you can tell a difference, but not always, because we've come really far in replicating that vinyl sound.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Okay, but see, that's exactly what I'm saying, though. The noise, the scratches, the pops, the warmth from the tubes, that's all just distortion. It's imperfections. People are out here spending $3,000 on turntables and telling me they're can hear more detail. And it's like, no. You are hearing less detail because you added a bunch of random noise to it. You are paying money to make the sound worse and then convincing yourself it's better because you dropped all that cash and you need to justify it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I would agree with you in most instances. I think that's what most people are doing. But also having had some vintage style recording gear, I can tell when something's going through a nice, warm tool, tube, and it has the proper circuitry, right? I can tell the difference between high-end gear and sheep gear. And it becomes really apparent whenever the volume is pushed a little bit too loud. Digital recordings are very clean, very pristine, unless there's distortion added after the fact. And I think also another part of this, this debate that gets people confused is the words they use. You're saying that, you know, people say that they hear more detail in the vinyl and that that's just noise. But the noise is details. All those little scratches and the warmth that's added, the character that's added to the sound, that's detail and its noise. So the words that we use to describe the sounds can make the conversation more complex.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Okay. hold on. That is not what detail means. Detail is like being able to hear the individual strings on a guitar or the breath between vocal lines. Details information that was actually in the original recording. A scratch from dust on your record is not detail. It is interference. It is the opposite of detail.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I disagree with you, and that's what I'm saying. And people's, uh,! of what the words mean is very different, especially when it comes to audio stuff. When we're doing recording of music and stuff, we might use words like brassy or shiny or pristine presence. Those types of adjectives, descriptive words, mean the different things to different people. So it really helps in the music-making recording process when people are on the same wavelength about what those words mean to them because you could say, ah, it's a little bit muddy, and that might mean something completely different to me than it means to you. When you say the word detail, it just means, to me, it means any detail, not necessarily just the details that were in the original source raw input, but also the detail of the sounds that are introduced from the signal chain. It could be the detail coming from a fancy compressor. That's why there's more than one type of compressor because they all have different circuitry and different architecture. So they impart a different sound. And people pay a lot of money to pick the proper one for the sound that they're going for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>All right, but we are not talking about the recording process here. We are talking about playback. Like when someone records an album, they make choices about compression and warmth and all that fine. But then, once that album exists, the job of your playback system is to reproduce what they made as accurately as possible. And vinyl cannot do that as accurately as digital, because it is a physical medium that degrades and kicks up noise. And the thing that is making me crazy is people act like this is subjective, like it is a matter of taste, but it is not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, because what you're saying doesn't hold up. Because in order to hear the representation that was intended by the producer, the recording engineers, you would have to be in that same physical space listening on those same monitors with the same amount of people in the room, the same furniture, in the same places. Like, there's a lot going into it that it makes the sound variable. What you're listening to, whether you're listening through, either you're listening through earbuds or speakers or in your car, that's all going to sound very, very different. And not the original intention of the producer, probably. Not that many people have, you know, $20,000 studio monitors in a perfectly treated acoustic room to listen to this music on. Some people do. Some of those high-fi people do. But for the most part, that's not how people are listening to it. And it doesn't sound anything like it sounded in the recording booth or what the mixing mastering engineer produced for sale. Think about beats headphones a few years back when those came out. Those were not made to represent the sound as it was. They were really designed to boost the bass so that those little tiny speakers would sound bigger and fuller than they really physically could. And even, before that, there was the Bose wave speaker that did some crazy shit with bouncing around in a little sound chamber and stuff. But each of these different devices is trying to give things a different EQ curve and produce the sound in the way that they think is going to sound best, not necessarily most accurate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Okay, yes, but that is my entire point. All of those things you just listed are making the sound less accurate. And people should know that is what they are doing. If you want to listen on beats headphones, because you like the extra bass, fine, do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But do not tell me that you are hearing the music better or more authentically. And same thing with vinyl.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Well, a word like better is subjective. So, I mean, you can't have a hardline approach to this. It is very subjective. People hear different. Everybody's ears have a different hearing curve. innumerable variables in how people hear music. And whatever it is that they like is what they like, but if you're going for accuracy, it's actually more about the room that you're in than anything else in the signal chain.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, hold on. The room matters more than the actual format you are playing the music on. That does not make sense. Like I get that acoustics matter. But you are telling me that whether or I am in a carpeted room or a hardwood room makes more difference than whether I am listening to a lossless. File versus a record that has been played 500 times and has dust in the grooves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>In a lot of instances, yes, that's exactly what I'm telling you. I mean, think about if you were to take the same song from the same, you know, in the same format, either vinyl or your Bluetooth speaker or whatever it is, that you're really used to, and you play a song in a church. And then play that same song in your car from the same speaker. It's going to sound wildly different because the acoustics is an enormous part of this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like there's lots of different ways to simulate that, but it's not the same thing as just adding bass or boosting the EQ in that range because if you do that, it's like a static change, right? You're lifting all of the those frequencies that are already there at the same time. When we're talking about adding warmth to something, it's adding additional frequencies that are moving around at different times, right? It's not just turning up the frequencies that are there. It's actually adding new content, new information into the sound.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Okay, wait. So now you are saying warmth is adding frequencies that were not there in the original recording, that is distortion.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Correct. You are literally describing harmonic distortion.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yes. So when people say they like the warmth of vinyl, what they actually mean is they like the distortion that vinyl adds to the original recording.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Correct.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Which means they are not hearing what the artist intended. They are hearing a modified version with extra stuff added in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, that's mostly true, except the artist may have intended for them to listen in that way, because most artists that have heard that sound like it too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>But that is circular reasoning. The artist made the recording on equipment that was available at the time. And if they were making it today, with modern digital tools, they would make different choices. You cannot say the artist intended for distortion when distortion was just a limitation of the technology they had.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure you can. Because there's a lot, I mean, most bands will choose what studio they go to record in because of what particular gear is there. Because it adds that distortion that they like. Think of a band like Nirvana. Dave Grohl famously bought Sound City because he liked the distortion that the mixing console added. You can't get that sound other way. I mean, now you can through digital modeling and stuff like that. But, yeah, bands will still go to great lengths to get that old gear because they like that sound.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Okay, fine. So some artists specifically seek out that distortion because they like it. But that does not mean final is better for listening. That just means they made creative choices about what kind of distortion they wanted in the recording. But once the recording is done and mastered. Playing it back on vinyl adds another layer of distortion on top of what is already there. And that second layer is not intentional. It is just the format degrading the sound. So even if the artist wanted tube warmth or tape saturation or whatever in the studio, they did not ask for the vinyl playback to add more on top of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>A lot of them do. A lot of them do. A lot of them specific i mean if they didn't want the vinyl distortion they wouldn't press to vinyl not today anyway so any artist that's pressing vinyl currently is doing it for that reason because they well i mean some of them are just doing it to make seventy five dollars for the vinyl record for the hipsters but some of them are are really into that sound and they want each individual record to sound slightly different because of the distortion that the vinyl is going to impart so there's no People that want the distortion, artists and listeners, want the distortion, and that's okay. But I do agree with you that vinyl doesn't sound better. I don't think it sounds better. It's not something that I would seek out myself. But I understand why people do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Wait, hold on. You have been arguing with me this whole time. And now you are saying you agree with me. You do not even think vinyl sounds better. Why did you call me out saying it has this magical warmth property if you agree that it is just distortion and preference?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because it does have that magical warmth property, but that doesn't mean that's something that I'm looking for. And I'm not arguing with you. I never told you that vinyl was better. I don't have any vinyl. I don't own a record player. But I know the sound that they're looking for. And I know that everybody goes to a lot of trouble to replicate hate that sound. And I know that you can't say it's better or not better because that is a very subjective thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Okay. So you called in at midnight to argue semantics with me about a format you do not even use or care about. You are sitting there organizing hand planes at one in the morning getting all worked up defending vinyl people. What are you are not even a vinyl person yourself? What is actually going on here, Alia?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I think you're a psycho. Because this does not feel like it is really about whether warmth is real or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Wow, you seem like very confused. Maybe you should put down the bottle. You called me. You're Leah. I'm Luke. You're very, very confused.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I think we've made the points here about the quality of audio. So we got to go to a break. So if you've got one more thing to say before we hang up, then say it now forever hold your peace.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Oh my God, I am so sorry, Luke. You are absolutely right. I got completely turned around there for a second. I guess so. I think I have been staring at these handplanes for too long, and my brain is fried. Look, my actual point is just that people need to stop acting superior about their audio equipment. When it is all just preference anyway, and I am sitting here arguing about it on the radio at one in the morning. Instead of dealing with the fact that my boyfriend will not talk to me about his mother pressuring us to get engaged. So maybe I am the one who needs to put down the bottle or pick one up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it sounds like you better figure it out because you are a goddamn psycho, lady. I don't know what to tell you. Uh, if you don't know what to tell you. Uh, if you don't like vinyl, don't listen to it. But the people that do like vinyl, they're not wrong either. That's what I have to say about that. And now it's time for a word from our sponsors. Let's talk about mental health. Specifically, let's talk about brutal honesty, the therapy app that's tired of your shit. Unlike other apps with their calming voices and gentle affirmations, brutal honesty pairs you with an AI therapist that tells you what your friends are too nice to say. Did you try journaling about it? No, we're not doing that. Our algorithm analyzes your patterns and asks questions like, Why do you think you deserve to feel better when you don't even drink water? And is your anxiety real or did you just have four cold bruise on an empty stomach? Brutal honesty, because coddling yourself got you here. First session is free, but it will hurt your feelings. Use code grow up at checkout. Brutal honesty, the app that blocks itself if you don't do the work. All right, and we are back. Wow, I have to take a couple of breaths after that lady. Jesus. All right, next up we've got Luther. Luther, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUTHER</span><p>I spent four hours today watching my best friend pretend to run a consulting business from a Starbucks in Wilcox. He sat there in a $1,200 suit watching YouTube videos about Deep Sea Fish while I was three tables away. He has no idea I saw him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean he was pretending?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUTHER</span><p>Derek's been telling me for two years about his clients, his meetings in Denver, how he's pulling in six figures doing business consulting. Today he told me he had back-to-back calls all afternoon, could not be interrupted. So I drove out there and watched him order five different coffee drinks and watch a 23-minute video about anglerfish. He did not open his laptop once. He just sat there in that suit scrolling on his phone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that doesn't mean much. Maybe he was just taking a break, letting off some steam waiting for his meetings to start, or maybe he just didn't want to talk to you That doesn't mean he doesn't have a successful company. If he bought five coffee drinks, he's obviously making money somehow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUTHER</span><p>The suits are rental.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I recognized it from when he was a grusman at his cousin's wedding last year. Same weird tight fit in the shoulders. And I know what his calendar looks like because he showed it to me two weeks ago, said Thursday afternoons are his power hours when he closes deals.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, all right. So your friend's lying to you about something. Why? Why do you think that might be?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>His dad owns half the commercial property in Benson. Derek's never had to work for anything real in his life. I think he needs people to believe he earned something on his own. So he invented a whole business that does not exist, and I just let him talk about it for two years like an idiot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, whatever. Just let him keep talking about it if it makes him happy. Is he your buddy outside of that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, he helped me rebuild the engine on my Ford three summers ago. Spent every weekend out at the yard with me in 100-degree heat. Bort all the beer, never asked for gas money. When my mum was sick, he drove her to Tucson for treatments twice a week for four months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, let him have his thing. needs to feel like people think that he's important, then let him feel that way. And if the opportunity comes up to give him shit about it, give him some shit about it, because that's what friends do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I sat there for four hours watching him. I drove 80 minutes round trip to spy on him at a Starbucks. That is not what friends do. I could have just asked him straight up if something was going on, but instead I went full surveillance because some part of me wanted to catch him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you do sound like a bit of a psycho here. But I hope Hopefully that's a one-time thing and it's not your normal personality.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I've been doing it for three weeks. Different coffee shops, the library and Wilcox, that sandwich place on Rex Allen Drive. I told myself I was just running errands in town, but I kept timing it so I'd be wherever he said he was having meetings. This is the first time I actually saw him do nothing, but I've been looking for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's pretty crazy, man. And maybe you should talk to a therapist about that, because that's not the type of friend I want to have. People are entitled to their privacy and you should better things to do than that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I know. That's why I'm calling. I don't want to be that guy. But here's the thing. I like being that guy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you like being the guy that wastes full days of his life to spy on his friends? Why would you like that? That's reprehensible.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Because for four hours today, I got to feel smarter than him. Derek's the guy who always has it figured out. He's got the nice clothes. He talks about his business trips. People listen when he walks into a room. And I run a junkyard that barely</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, you don't have to continue running a junkyard forever. You can talk to him and maybe see if he can give you some help to improve your career, get you in a different industry. Maybe if that's important to you, there's plenty of other ways you could try to feel more important by actually being more important.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's the problem. He can't help me. He doesn't actually do anything. I watched him order a caramel macchiato, watch a video about blobfish for 17 minutes, Watch something about octopuses, then get a phone call where he said, yeah, pushing the Denver meeting to next week, client requested it while he was literally sitting in a Starbucks in Wilcox, Arizona, scrolling through Sea Creature videos. There is no consulting firm.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but that doesn't mean he can't help you. He still probably knows some people in different circles than you. He's obviously got money and probably has an idea of how to keep that money, I would guess. So, I mean, if he has something that you want, ask him how he got it. I mean, I know you're going to say that he got it from his dad, but maybe his dad's got some work for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>His dad owns three dairy queens in Tucson. Derek works the register every other weekend and calls it consulting. I know, because his sister told me two years ago, and I've just been watching him lie about it ever since.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, okay, I get it. You're jealous of your friend because he's got money and you're spying on him like a psycho because you feel inadequate in the world. Do you have a question here? Is there something I can help you with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The question is, why do I feel better right now than I have to? have in months. I spent four hours in a Starbucks watching my friend watch fish videos, and I drove home feeling like I want something. That's not normal. I know that's not normal, but I can't stop doing it, and I don't actually want to stop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, why do you feel better? It's probably because you feel less inferior to him now that you realize that he's not actually the big shot that he says he is. Why you need to feel that way, though? I can't explain. And why you don't want to stop doing what you're doing, I also. I also. I also can't explain. That shit sounds crazy, and you should stop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. It is crazy. But here's what I can't figure out. If I tell him, I know, that conversation ends with me looking like the insane person who drove to Wilcox to spy on him. He gets to be the victim.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He is the victim. You're spying on him. He actually is a victim of your harassment right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Fair point. So what am I supposed to do with this? Just keep showing up to barbecues and listening to him talk about client meetings that don't exist. Pretend I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, that would be the nice guy thing to do, probably, considering he drove your mother to her treatments for four months and helped you rebuild the engine in your car. But if you can't handle that, if it drives you too insane, then just tell him the truth. You don't have to tell him that you've been spying on him for months. That's a little bit crazy. But just say, I saw you watching Blowfish videos over there at the Starbucks when I was in town.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I helped him rebuild his engine. He didn't help me. And his mom's fine. you're thinking of someone else. But you're right about just saying, I saw him. That's the move. Except then he'll know I was watching him long enough to see what he was doing, and we're back to me being the weird one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you are the weird one. So, um, you deserve that. And we're going to move on to the next caller, all right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Wait, one more thing. That caller earlier, Alia, talking about vinyl versus digital. I've been telling myself for two years that I'm just fact-checking Derek's stories because I care about truth and accuracy. Same thing she was doing. Turns out I'm just as full of shit as he is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, sir, you are. Okay. Now we're going to move on to Stacy. Stacey, welcome to the show. What's going on there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I've been working night shifts at this clinic all week. And my supervisor just promoted her daughter over me, this girl I literally trained for six months. And the thing that's killing me is she's got a participation trophy sitting on her new desk. Like an actual trophy from some community college leadership program. And I cannot stop thinking about whether that's connected, you know. Like whether people who grew up getting trophies for just showing up never learned how to actually earn anything, so they just coast on other people's work and nobody calls it out because we are all supposed to celebrate effort over results now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that might be true, but also you don't know what her life is like or what she's been through or what she's learned. It's super annoying to get passed up for nepotism like that. I can certainly agree with you. And I also agree with you that most people are stupid and lazy. That's been my experience, but you still can't know what's gone on in their lives or what they've done or what they're good at.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>Okay, yeah, you're right. I don't know her whole story.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>But Luke, I do know that I spent six months teaching her how to do intake paperwork, how to talk to patients who come in scared or angry, how to handle the insurance verification system that crashes twice a shift. And now she's my supervisor making probably 15,000 more than me because her mom works upstairs. That part, I do know. And maybe she's great at other things, but the stuff she's doing now...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, I understand and can sympathize with you, and I think everybody's been in that situation at least once in their life. So, yeah, you just kind of got to deal with it, and if you're feeling underappreciated at your job, you might have to find a new job. Maybe one where your mother's the supervisor, and she can help you out climb in the ladder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>Yeah. Well, my mom's been dead for eight years, so that's not happening. But okay, Maybe I need to find a new job. Except, my sister Crystal actually did that. She moved to Portland last year and quit her job at the hospital because her manager was toxic. And now she posts these long Instagram things about boundaries and unlearning resilience, which I'm pretty sure is just code for giving up when things get hard.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I can't tell you what those things mean, but they do seem pretty nonsensical and silly to me as well. out there doing what? What's her job? Is the Instagram her job?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>No. She works at some wellness center doing intake or reception or something, which is basically what she did here, except now she makes less money and pays three times the rent. But she's honoring her truth or whatever. And look, I'm happy she's happy, I guess. But part of me wonders if she just ran away because she never learned to stick things out when they suck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know. I run away all the time too, so I can certainly identify with that. But there's lots of reasons somebody might want to move. If her boss was toxic and she doesn't mind taking a pay cut to live somewhere where she can, I don't know, feel more at home or enjoy a different experience or have the stores and social life that she likes around and work with people that she enjoys being around, then good for her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing that's actually bothering me. My kids' teacher told me last year that I was too focused on winning when I got upset score at soccer games. She said I was teaching my daughter that her worth is tied to performance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, do you think that worth is tied to performance?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>I mean, yeah, kind of. Because what else is there? If you don't perform, if you don't show up and do the work better than the next person, then what? You just get participation trophies your whole life? And then someone's mom gives you a promotion. It's a good gig if you can get it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right, exactly. And that's what I'm saying. This girl at work, the supervisor's daughter, she literally has a participation trophy on her desk. Well, you know what I say? Here's my advice for you. If you can't beat them, join them. So go get yourself involved in something and participate. And maybe you'll get some trophies too. If you don't like your job, quit it and go find a new one. And if you're not getting moved up the ladder in the way that you feel like you should, then take some classes and work harder than everybody else. financial compensation generally one way to do that is to perform better than everybody else so uh if you're there there's something else here too if you're the best at doing something something right and it's like low level menial stuff nobody wants to do even if you're capable of doing much more at a much higher level if you're the one that's going to get the little stupid niggly shit done then they're going to keep you on that right because nobody else wants to do it so you can actually be too good at your job. You can be too effective and keep yourself down that way. So I don't know what to tell you here. Be shittier at your job, I guess, or find a new one where you can excel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>That actually makes sense. I never thought about it that way, but yeah, I'm the one who knows where everything is. I'm the one who fixes the scheduling screw-ups. I trained that girl on literally everything she's doing now. So maybe I made myself too useful right where I'm I am. But here's what really gets me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, we're going to have to go to a commercial break, so hurry up with what gets you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>My sister keeps posting about how I need to unlearn toxic resilience, and I keep wondering if she's actually onto something or if she just gave up. Like, is there actually a difference between knowing when to quit and just being soft?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, there is. You quit when you feel like you don't want to do it anymore. That's all. If your goals change, if you're no longer aligned with what you're doing, you don't stick to doing something just because that's what you do. That's stubbornness, and it's not the same thing as growth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>Okay, but how do you know the difference? Because from where I'm standing, my sister left town posts these long captions about boundaries and self-care, and I'm still here working third shift covering for people. And maybe I'm the idiot, or maybe she just couldn't hack it. I genuinely don't know which one of us is doing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>right well you said that she is happy and you are not so it sounds to me like she's the one that's doing it right and and you should maybe take a lesson</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACY</span><p>I didn't say she was happy I said she posts about boundaries that's different she could be just as miserable in Portland just with better lighting for her Instagram photos</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>okay well you did say she was happy actually and now it's time for us to go to a word from our sponsors</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. And here we go. We are back. Next up to the line, we've got a returning caller. I've seen this guy's name before. Here we've got Marvin. Marvin. Welcome back to the show. What's the update on your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Hey, Luke. So Sharon pulled Maya out of school. Just did it. Didn't even tell me until after she'd already submitted the withdrawal paperwork. I found out when Maya came home on Tuesday with all her stuff from her locker in a garbage bag.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, it sounds like that decision's been made for you. Is that causing problems with you and your wife?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Yeah, that's the thing, though. We had this massive blowout on Monday night, right? Like, really bad. And then tonight, another one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're going to have to decide how much you want to hold on to this one, because it's been done. It sounds like you're already, you have to decide if you want to be right or you want to be happy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>I mean, I hear you. But here's what's actually happening. Maya's been home for three days now, and she's already back in her room all the time. Won't come out. Sharon's got this whole curriculum laid out, these workbooks. She's talking about socialization groups on Fridays. But Maya just sits there during the lesson staring at nothing. And Sharon keeps saying give it time. It's an adjustment period.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, give it some time. It is an adjustment period. And if you don't think it's going the way that you want it to get involved and see what you can do to encourage her to get the most out of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Even if you don't agree with it, you can still be a positive influence and try to make it work. Or you can just get pissed off all the time and fight with your wife and, complain about how it's not how things should be done. But it doesn't sound like you're doing anybody any favors by doing that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing. Technically, Sharon didn't even follow the proper withdrawal procedure. The school district has a specific process, and she just called the principal and said Maya wasn't coming back. No paperwork, no meeting, nothing. I looked it up, and now the school's calling, saying they can't just unenroll her like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't think they can, just unenroll her like that. And if she misses too many days, then she's going to be in some kind of trouble. And I mean, if that's the case, if she just pulled her out for no reason, it sounds like maybe your wife might be the problem. And I don't really know how to help you there other than to, is she on any medication? Does she have any behavioral issues or something like that? Was she always like this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, she's not. I mean, Sharon's not crazy or anything. She's actually really methodical usually. That's what's weird about this. She researched homeschooling for months. She's got binders full of stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you need to reframe this conversation instead of fighting over Maya being out of school and whether homeschooling is good or not, express concern for the way that she's acting about it because it seems out of character and it's not the right way to do things. So maybe if you approach this in a different way, you can get to the bottom of what's driving her, what's motivating this homeschool push, and maybe get her some help or at least understand what she's doing and help her yourself. Because if she really needs the kid to be out of school for whatever reason, you should know what that reason is. And I know it's difficult, but try and try and support her and help her do it the right way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That actually makes sense, because when I try to bring up Maya's friends or the social stuff, Sharon just shuts down completely, like won't even engage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sounds like there's something going there that maybe you're not aware of, that some sort of trauma that happened to your wife that you don't understand, or Maya, that they don't want to tell you. There's something else going on there that isn't just education.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Wait, hold on. You think something happened to Maya at school? Like something specific? Because Sharon kept saying Maya was anxious, but Maya never actually said she didn't want to go to school.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, no, I'm not saying something specific happened to Maya. I'm saying of, you don't know. More likely, what I would think is something happened to your wife when she was in school that she's remembering now that had traumatized her and she's trying to protect Maya from that memory. But I don't know. I'm not a psychologist. I would just try and approach it from that way and figure out where the motivation is coming from.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh, yeah. Actually, Sharon's mom pulled her out of school in 10th grade. I forgot about that. She had to get her GED because her mom her the last two years, and Sharon always said it was the worst thing that ever happened to her. She missed prom, all of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, something's going on and you need to get to the bottom of it and I don't have any advice for you or hear a specific question here. So I'm going to recommend that you to talk to your wife and figure out why this is happening, whether that's something that's going on with Sharon or something that's going on with Maya or just to understand the why, because it's not causing conflict at home, it's serious enough that it's causing conflict at home, right? And she's doing unreasonable stuff that's going to get the kid in trouble, and that's not okay. So if you care, then express care and find out what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I've been so focused on being right about the homeschooling thing that I didn't even think about why she's doing the exact thing she said ruined her teenage years. That's actually insane when you say it out loud.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it kind of is, and it makes you think that there's an extenuating circumstance there that isn't being articulated. so get to the bottom of what that is, all right, and give us a call back and let us know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I will. I'm going to talk to her tomorrow, or actually, when she gets back. I really appreciate it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy, good luck, too. Good luck, too. Hopefully this isn't her negatively when it doesn't need to. Next up, we've got Rocco. Rocko's another returning call. Welcome back to the show. What's going on? You got an update for us, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCCO</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, I'm here. Thanks for taking my call again. I'm on my break at the Pizza Hut. Got about 15 minutes before I got to clock back in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so what are you calling for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCCO</span><p>So, uh, remember last time I called? I was all twisted up about getting stuck in that elevator with Linda and Dale, my ex-wife and her boyfriend? Well, I did what you said. I went home. I appreciated Sharon. I put that whole thing. I put that whole thing out of my mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Apparently you didn't if you're calling back into a radio show about it again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCCO</span><p>Yeah, okay, fair point. So here's the thing. Last Sunday, my mom calls like she always does, and she's going on about how she ran into Linda at the grocery store. And Linda told her that she and Dale broke up, like three weeks ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Look, man, you got to figure out which one of these chicks you want to be with because it's not a good use of our time here on the radio show. So my advice to you is to decide and stop messing around with the other one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCCO</span><p>Wait. No, no, no. I'm not messing around with anybody. I haven't even talked to Linda. I'm still with Sharon. Everything's fine there. I'm just saying when my mom told me that, something in my chest just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you've got something to say to us, then say it, because I don't really have the time to drag it out of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCCO</span><p>All right. All right. So I looked up Linda's number. I still had it in my phone from...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good for you. Get a life. Next up we've got Brandy. Brandy. Welcome to the show. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Luke, hey. So I got offered a partnership today, and I need to figure out if I'm about to become a business owner or just really good at ruining friendships. My best friend Cass wants to start a PI firm together. She's got the license and $60,000. I've got 20 years chasing down bail jumpers and a name that actually means something around here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, congratulations. It sounds like an exciting opportunity, and I hope it works well for you. What's the problem? This sounds like sounds like something to be excited about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Yeah, see, that's what I keep telling myself. Except my sister Natalie already burned through two family businesses, like Sherman through Georgia. First one was a catering thing with our cousin. Second was some boutique situation with our aunt. And both times it was the same story. Money runs out. Friendships already dead. And Natalie's posting Instagram stories from Sedona, talking about fresh starts while everyone else is still paying off the debt. And here's the thing. Cass wants an answer by Saturday, like 48 hours, to decide if I'm going to risk the best friendship I've got on whether we can make it past here too without wanting to kill each other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's tough when you're working with any friend, even if you're not going into business together, but just working together. It depends on your friendship and your personalities and how much this means to you. Maybe it's not the best use of your skills or time. But think about that. I mean, I can't tell you what's right or wrong there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Right. No, I get that. And honestly, the work part doesn't scare me. Like Cass and I have been talking about this hypothetically for years, we know how we'd split it. She handles the corporate stuff, background checks, insurance fraud.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>I take the skips and the messy domestic cases. Yeah, well, you also have to have the conversation about what's going to happen when this and write all that out in contracts. Who gets what? Are there any company vehicles? How is the friendship going to continue if the business goes south? Like, you can have those conversations before you even start and have them written down. And that way, nobody has any, um, any surprises when things go awry, if things go awry. Because they might also be wildly successful. You don't know unless you try.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. That's the smart move, I know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Get it all in writing, worst case scenario on paper before we even sign the lease. Cass actually brought that up. She's got a lawyer friend who does partnership agreements. But here's what's eating me. And I heard Stacy earlier talking about her sister and the toxic resilience thing. And I felt like she was reading my mail.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, we all see like a hundred of those things a day. So, I mean, she's reading everybody's mail.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Right. But what got me was, am I being smart and careful? or am I just doing what I always do? Because Natalie left. She bailed on the family stuff, moved to Sedona, posts about boundaries and healing and all that, and everyone acts like she's the screw-up. But she's out there taking risks, starting over, and I'm still here in the same office I've worked out of for 15 years, tracking down the same dead beats, telling myself I'm being responsible. And now I've got an actual shot at something bigger, and my first instinct is to list all the ways it could in my face. Like, maybe Natalie is not the cautionary tale.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you can't look at what somebody else's life is like and compare yours to it because everything about you is different. Your work is different. Your personality is different. Your goals are different. Your dreams are different. So you have to decide for yourself. If you want to take that risk, are you a risk taker? Do you want to work for yourself? Some people don't. And that's okay. If you do, though, if it then go for it. What's the worst that could happen? Is you and your friend don't talk anymore and you have to get a new friend? It happens anyway. It could happen whether you go into business or not. You don't know. So you can't project the records of the future. You just have to make the best decision you can with the information that you have today. If you get along with her and it sounds like she's doing the right things and approaching this the right way, she's got the backing, she's got the money, she's got the lawyer. It doesn't sound like, like, like, she's a hack. So if this is something that you could see yourself getting behind, if you can, if you can picture yourself doing this years from now, then go for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>You're right. And I can picture it. That's the thing that's been keeping me up. I can see the office. I can see our names on the door. I can see us actually making this work. Cass isn't Natalie and I'm not my aunt or my cousin who got burned. We've been friends for 12 years. We've seen each and all the stuff that actually tests people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. It sounds like you've got enough reasons to go for it. And the only reason to not go for it is the security in where you're at. And it's okay if you want to stay with that security where you get the same paycheck from a company that, you know, gives you set hours. Running your own company is a very different thing. And you have to be into it. You have to be all in or it's not going to work. So if you can picture yourself being all in, if that gets you excited and, uh, and, and, you have to be into it. You have to be all in. You have to be all in. And, uh, and, and, you have to, you have to be in. You have to, you. You have to You like your partner and she knows what she's doing. I don't see a problem either way. Whichever one makes you most excited, do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Yeah, you know what? You're right. The security thing is just fear dressed up as responsibility. I've been tracking skips for 20 years. Half those people are running from decisions they were too scared to make when it mattered. And here I am doing the same thing just with better excuses.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Mazel tov, it sounds like you've got a new business opportunity. Congratulations. I hope it works out well for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Thanks, Luke. I'm going to call the cast tomorrow morning. Not going to wait until Saturday, just going to tell her I'm in. Worst case, I end up back where I started. Best case, we build something that's actually ours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Very good. Congratulations. I'm happy for you. And I hope that it is a resounding success. And ladies and gentlemen, thanks for tuning in again. This has been another great episode of Luke at the roost. And we'll talk to you tomorrow. Thanks.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 3: Desire, Burnout, and Friendship Woes</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-06T08:31:33+00:00">February 6, 2026</time> · 20 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this late-night episode, callers open up about desire, workplace burnout, and complicated friendships. Jasmine struggles with feelings she cannot ignore, Rick is at his breaking point with a job that is slowly destroying him, and Dennis faces a friendship that has turned toxic. Luke offers his signature mix of real talk and empathy.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. Here we are. It's Luke at the roost today is Thursday, February 5th. It's 11.34 p.m. Here in Anomas, New Mexico. Anomas, New Mexico. It's the hottest place you've never heard of. I'm here to take to take calls and give advice to some of the people that are out there struggling to sleep tonight. So first up, we've got it looks like Tanya on the line. Tanya, this is Luke. You've reached the show. What can we do for you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Hi, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. Um, I've been wanting to talk to just someone about this for a while. I keep having these really intense thoughts about one of my clients. She's selling her house after a divorce and I find myself thinking about her constantly. Like way beyond what's professional. I'll be sharing other properties and suddenly I'm wondering what she's doing, what she's wearing. I've never felt this way about another woman before. It's kind of freaking me out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, that's all right. If you, uh, if you're having some thoughts that happens, what is this woman like that you're attracted to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>She's just different, you know, she's maybe mid-forties, really confident, successful attorney. Has this way of looking at you that makes you feel like you're the only person in the room? God, I feel stupid even saying this out loud. I've dated men my whole life. I go out to bars all the time. But I've never felt this kind of pull toward someone. The other day during a show, she touched my arm while asking about the master bathroom. And I couldn't focus for the rest of the day. Is that normal to be this affected by someone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I can't speak to what's normal and not normal. It's just what happens sometimes. What do you think would happen if you were to reveal your feelings to her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>That's terrifying to even think about. She's a client, first of all, and I could totally destroy my professional reputation. Plus, I have no idea if she's even into women. Though sometimes I catch her looking at me in this way. But shit, I'm probably just seeing what I want to see right. And even if I did say something, what would I say? Hey, I know I'm supposed to be selling your house, but I can't stop thinking about you in ways that would definitely violate the real to code of ethics. I just die of embarrassment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds to me like you'd get to get to work and get that house sold. And then there's no more client-seller relationship, right? So that opens you up. And if she rejects you at that time, so be it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I mean, you're right. The house should close in about three weeks. But Luke, I'm so scared I'm reading this all wrong. Like last week she invited me for coffee after a showing to discuss the office. But we barely talked business at all. We spent an hour talking about travel and her divorce. And I don't know, maybe she's just lonely. And here I am, getting all worked up because God, I sound like a teenager with a crush. But I haven't felt this kind of electricity with anyone in years. My hands literally shake when I'm around her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I say finished the job you've been paid to do and then talk to her afterwards and see where that goes. Maybe there's something, maybe there's not, but what's the worst that could happen?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>You're right. What's the worst that could happen? She says no. I feel like an idiot for a while and life goes on. But fuck, if she says yes, sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. It's just last time we met she was wearing this blazer with nothing underneath. And I swear she knew exactly what she was doing to me. Three weeks feels like forever right now. I keep having these dreams about her that are, well, let's just say they're definitely not professional. Should I at least try dropping some hints before closing or just keep it totally business?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>My advice would be to keep it business while you're in business. And do whatever you have to do at home to take care of your own needs. And then when the business is concluded, you're open to explore that situation as deeply as you and her would like to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>God, yes, you're right. I need to keep it professional though I might need a very cold shower after every showing at this point. The thing is, I've never been with a woman before, but the way I feel when she's around, it's like my whole body is on fire. I've been taking care of myself almost every night thinking about her. Shit, sorry, that's probably too much information for radio. But thanks, Luke, you're right. Get through closing first then maybe ask her to dinner like a real dinner. Not a let's discuss paperwork dinner. At least then I'll know one way or the other instead of driving myself crazy with these fantasies.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Tonya, it sounds like you know what you got to do. Thanks for the call. We appreciate hearing from you. I wish you the best of luck and hopefully you get that household. All right, folks, it's time to take a break to thank today's sponsor. Jam hospitality, the leader in Maple-based Marmalade. If your toast has been living in a bland little studio apartment of flavor, it's time to move into the luxury suite. We're talking Maple-based Marmalade. Plus, Marmalade-related products. Because apparently Jam hospitality asked, what if breakfast had a brand ecosystem? Go to www.myfavoretmarmalade.com and use code jammedinia for 15% off. That's jammedinia, like jammedinia. But legally distinct and emotionally complex. Jam hospitality, put it on toast, put it on pancakes, put it on your confidence. Tell him, Luke sent you. You're welcome. All right, well thanks to our sponsor there. And now let's get back to the phones. Hey Carla, Carla, you're on the line with us. What can we do for you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Hey there. Honestly, I just needed to vent a bit. I've been feeling really stuck lately and it's like I sacrificed a chunk of my life just to make someone else happy. It's eating at me, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like that's what you're doing right now. If you're sick of giving away chunks of your life, cut it out and start doing what you want to do and, you know, take advantage of the moment that you have in front of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah, I hear you. I mean, it's just hard to flip that switch, right? I work in pharmaceutical sales and I spend so much time chasing targets and making sure everyone else is good that I sort of lost track of what makes me happy. Like I used to love being outdoors, going hiking. And now it feels like it's just a distant memory. No wonder I'm feeling this way. I'm just a little burned out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, burnout definitely happens. That's a real thing. But what are you doing to combat the negative feelings? If you like to go outside and do hiking and stuff, you should do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Honestly, I try to make time for it, but life just gets in the way, you know? I mean, I have plans to go hiking with some friends next weekend, but it always feels like an afterthought. I read this article about how sound in nature can really boost your mood and I thought, man, I need that in my life again. I just get wrapped up in work and forget what I actually enjoy. It's frustrating. I guess I have to push myself more.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you shouldn't really have to push yourself so much as, you know, just try. Just try a little bit. Go outside and enjoy nature, enjoy the birds singing to you and be grateful that you get another day here on this beautiful Earth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>You're right. I think I overthink everything sometimes. I mean, I get so caught up in work that I forget to appreciate the little things. Honestly, just stepping outside and breathing fresh air sounds simple, but can be powerful. I saw this thing about how even just pausing to listen to the sound of nature can change your mood. It's wild how much we overlook it. Maybe I do just need to take a step back and start small, like a walk around the block or checking out a new trail.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's just tough to remember to do that amid the chaos, you know? Well, you can do that right now instead of calling into a radio show and complaining about how you've lost yourself and you don't know what to do. You know exactly what to do. You just gotta go outside and do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>You know, you're absolutely right. I called in to sort of air it out and it sounds like what I really need is action. Not just talk. I've been avoiding it, but yeah, I do know what I need to do. It's just a matter of stopping myself from getting bogged down by work stuff. Maybe I'll even take my hiking boots out tonight and plan out a route. It really does feel good to just lace up and hit the trail. Thanks for the reminder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem. That's what we do here. Yeah, nature's a wonderful healer. And it's really what we're here to do is to just watch the world on furl in front of us. And the world is outside. Megan, Megan, welcome to the show. What can we do for you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Hey, thanks for having me. Honestly, I don't know how to say this. But I've been thinking a lot about this dream I had when I was younger, you know? I always wanted to get into music, but life happened and now I'm a dental hygienist. It's like I gave up on it all and it keeps haunting me, you know? Like every time I'm watching reality TV or scrolling through TikTok, I see people chasing their dreams. And I just feel this pang of regret. Like what the hell am I doing, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you doing? You're watching reality TV and scrolling through TikTok. That's an enormous waste of time. If you want to be creative, be creative and go create something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>I totally get what you're saying. It is a waste of time, honestly. I mean, part of me just escapes into these shows because it's like a guilty pleasure. But another part of me is like, Megan, why the hell aren't you picking up a guitar or something? It's just that the dream feels so distant now. I get stuck in this loop of thinking I can't just jump back in. You know? I'd love to create something, but it all just feels overwhelming. Sometimes I wish I had that kick-in-the-pants motivation like those reality TV stars pursuing their passions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here's a kick-in-the-pants. Pick up your guitar and play something. And you don't have to have any aspirations to be famous or be on a world tour or anything like that. Just create something for the joy of creating. And I think you'll find yourself a lot happier.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>That's so true. I thought about that, actually. Just playing for the joy of it, instead of worrying about being a rock star or something. Honestly, that pressure makes it a little paralyzing. I mean, I remember as a kid just jamming out with friends and having a blast. I think I'm putting too much weight on it now, you know? I've got to find that freedom again. Maybe I just need to set aside some time, grab my guitar, and see where it takes me. No expectations. I mean, if Carla Hall can have fun mixing up recipes on her show, I can have a little fun making some music, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what? You can play some music on your couch while you're watching Carla Hall mix up recipes. There's nothing to say that you have to be only making music. You don't have to set aside time to make music. It can be something that you play with on the side, as much or as little as you want.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Absolutely. That makes total sense. I don't have to treat it like a full-time job or anything. I could just chill on the couch, maybe play some chords while Carla is whipping up something delicious. It's like a fun way to merge two things I enjoy. I mean, it's all about creating that vibe, right? It might inspire me to be more spontaneous with my music again. I just need to remind myself that it's about having fun, not stressing about it. Thanks for pushing me to think like this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're very welcome, Carla. Thanks for calling in. That was a decent call. Oh, sorry. I called you Carla. Your name was Megan. I'm sorry about that, Megan. Well, thank you for calling in, and yeah, our purpose on this Earth is to enjoy it. So do whatever it is that makes you enjoy it. Okay, we'll take one more call tonight. And who do we have in the line? It's Marcus. Marcus, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. My friend, what can we do for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Hey, thanks for having me. So I've been thinking a lot about friendship lately. Like, I realized I don't really have any solid friends. Just people who need favors or want something from me. You know that feeling? It's like, I don't even know who I'd call if I really needed someone. Just a bit? Lonely, I guess. How do you even start to change that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know that feeling very well. I have a few very good friends that I've been close to for a long time. And if they're not around, you know, I don't talk to anybody. Because I don't want to meet new people for all the reasons you're just subscribed. You know, everybody I think most people that I've met want something. And it doesn't seem like they do, but in the back of their mind, they're waiting for an opportunity to get something from you. And I would rather not have that in my life. So I don't talk to that many people. So I understand where you're coming from. It can feel lonely. And I don't know if I'm right or wrong in that. But hopefully we can get through it together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Yeah, I totally get that. It's like you end up putting in all this effort to connect and then realize it's just transactional. I mean, I love my photography. But being a freelancer can feel isolating, especially when the people in your life seem more interested in the next dig or a free shoot than a real connection. I thought maybe I was overthinking it and honestly, it feels like it's all about what people can get. I've been diving into psychology stuff lately, trying to unpack why people are the way they are. You know. Like those articles I read about how sound and memory are connected really make you reflect on your experiences. It's wild. How much are surroundings and interactions shape us?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is. It's very wild. I'd like to ask you when you meet a new person. What is your thought process? What are you trying to get out of them if anything? And if you look at yourself honestly, will you find that you're in the same type of person that they are? I mean, are your relationships transactional?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>That's a great question. Honestly, when I meet someone new, I try to keep it casual at first, just seeing if we vibe. But as I think about it, there's definitely a part of me that's a bit guarded. Like I can't help but wonder what they want from me. It's hard not to think about that. I mean, am I being too cynical? I want genuine connections. But I also don't want to get burned again. And yeah, maybe that makes me a bit transactional too. I end up sizing people up without even realizing it. Like I'm measuring the potential value of the relationship instead of just letting it flow naturally.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sounds right on the money. I definitely do the same thing myself so I don't have a ton of advice for you in this regard. But it's good to hear that we are not alone. A lot of people think this way. And some of us do better with less people around. I think that's all there is to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>For sure, it's kind of comforting to know I'm not the only one feeling this way. It's just tough to navigate, you know? Sometimes I think maybe I would be better off just focusing on my work and letting friendships happen when they happen. But then I catch myself feeling lonely. Like I'll read things about how we need connections. Like even emotionally, it affects our mental health. But at the same time, I don't want to force that with people who might just end up wanting something from me. It's a weird balance to strike.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is a weird balance to strike. And I haven't got there myself. But what I can recommend to you is reach out to the ones that have been in your life for a long time. The people that you know well, that you've been through some stuff with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Everybody's got some friends from back in the day. The kids who grew up with her. You know whoever it might be. But keep in touch with a small circle and watch yourself out there. That makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>It's easy to get caught up in trying to make new friends. When I have those older connections that are still solid, even if they're not perfect, I guess I should invest more in those relationships. It's just sometimes I feel like I've lost touch over the years and reaching out feels daunting. But I know those people get me, you know? Maybe I can start small and just check in with a couple of them. I appreciate the reminder to keep it real with the people who actually matter. It's just a matter of breaking that initial ice again, I suppose.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure thing. It can be tough and I understand where you're coming from. But it's not that big of a deal to reach for the phone and call somebody that you haven't talked to in a long time. Or you know you can go out and meet new friends if that's your thing. Doesn't really matter. You know, if you can deal with loneliness, then you're one up on this world. Earl, Earl, I thought I was going to quit but we'll take this one more call. What's going on, Earl?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Hey, thanks for taking my call. So, I've been thinking a lot about friendships lately and I can't shake this feeling that one of my close buddies has been talking shit about me behind my back. I mean, I never really thought he would but some things just feel off, you know? It's eating at me. What do you think I should do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it that he's saying behind your back and do you deserve it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I'm not entirely sure what he's saying, but I've noticed some hints like he's been distant and I've called him making comments about me to other people. It's like he's trying to act like I'm the problem. As for deserving it, I don't really think I do. I've always tried to be a good friend but maybe there's something I'm missing. What do you think? Is it worth confronting him about it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Absolutely. If this is a friend of yours and it's affecting your relationship then yeah, you should have that conversation and say, hey, things feel a little bit weird. I'd like to know what's going on and am I picking up, you know, the wrong vibe here or is there something we need to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, that makes sense. I guess I just worry about how it'll come off. You know how guys can be? Sometimes it feels like we're supposed to just shrug things off but if I'm picking up on something I should trust my gut, right? I mean, this guy has been a friend for years and I'd rather clear the air than let it fester. Have you ever had to have that kind of talk with a friend? How did it go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, of course. I mean, I've had lots of talks like that with friends and more often than not, it goes very well. You know, people understand when you're talking to them on a, you know, personal human level when you're serious and when your emotional state is maybe not at its height. I think it can only do good either way no matter how he takes it. Like, if you bring this up to him and he's a dickhead about it, then whatever the guy is a dick. But if he's your friend and the relationship is meaningful, he will listen to you and do what he can to rectify the situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's a good point. If he's a true friend, he should be willing to listen and figure things out, right? I just need to approach it without coming off too aggressive. Maybe start by sharing how I feel and see where it goes. It's funny, I've heard similar advice in shows like The Drew Barrymore Show where they talk about communication in relationships. It's like, if we can't talk about the tough stuff, what's the point? Thanks for the push, I really appreciate it. I'll let you know how it goes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good luck with that. If you're watching The Drew Barrymore Show, you might be a dramatic individual, I don't know. But either way, this is the end of our show. Thank you for tuning in and we'll have another one tomorrow. Stay safe, get some sleep and be well.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 30: Boss Battles, Freelance Fears, and Finding Your Way</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-07T07:51:36+00:00">March 7, 2026</time> · 1 hr 3 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, Murray struggles with an employee’s sudden withdrawal and questions his own leadership approach after a previous on-air discussion. Skeeter shares his journey into freelancing and confronting outdated workplace advice from older colleagues. Luke provides candid guidance on workplace dynamics, job security, and making bold professional transitions.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right. We're back. I am Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's your late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about what's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that money can buy. If you'd like to give us a call, the number is 208-439-58-53. That's 208-439 Luke. If you're not near a phone or you don't want to let somebody know that you're telling all your deepest. darkest secrets to a late night radio show host, you can send us an email anytime to submissions at Luke at the roost.com. Tonight is Friday, March 6th, and our phone lines are already lighting up, and we're going to go to our pal Murray. Murray, thanks for calling in. How can we help you tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Well, shoot, Luke. Hey man, good to be back. So listen, I had that meeting with the crew like we talked about last week, right? I sat everybody down, Danny included. I with all the new protocols. I explained why we needed them. I asked for their input on how to make things work better. Real vulnerable, real honest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good for you. And how did that work out?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>It worked out great for about four days. Danny showed up on time. The guys were cracking jokes again. We landed this residential job over in Scottsdale that's going to keep us busy through summer. I'm thinking, okay, we turned a corner here. This is exactly what we needed. Then yesterday, Danny just doesn't show up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and are you concerned about Danny? Is that like him? It doesn't sound like Danny was upset with you or anything. Did something happen to him? Is he sick? Have you talked to him since?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>That's the thing, Luke. I called him six times yesterday. Nothing. I'm thinking maybe he's in the hospital. Maybe something happened with his family. You know? So I drive over to his place last night after we wrap up. And his truck is in the driveway. Lights are on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so he's home, or we assume he's home. Did you knock on the door or anything? I mean, he could have had a heart attack in there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>I knocked. Yeah, I knocked for like five minutes. Finally, his girlfriend, Sheila, comes to the door, and she's got this look on her face like she doesn't want to be having this conversation. She tells me Danny's fine. He's just not feeling up to working right now. I'm like, what does that mean? Is he sick? And she goes, no. He's just taking some time to think about whether he wants to keep doing this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can't have that, right? If he doesn't want to work for you, that's fine. He doesn't have to work for you. I think this is an at-will employment state. And you can't have somebody just not showing up for work. So if you've got a can-danny, you've got a can-danny, whether he's your friend or not. You can't have him messing up the morale of the rest of your crew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>only did that meeting because you called me out on your show, that I didn't actually mean any of it, that it was all just damage control because I got embarrassed on the radio.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's not true, though, is it? Because I think that came from an authentic place from you. You want to do a good job and you want to enjoy your work with your people. So it sounds like maybe Danny's just a little bit confused and, you know, he doesn't want to work for you. And that's okay. Just let him go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Well, shoot, Luke, that's the thing that's eating me up. Part of me wonders if he's right. Like, would I have had that meeting if I hadn't called you? I was so dug in on firing him. And then I get on the air with you and suddenly on this enlightened boss who wants everybody's input.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you should really probably split the difference there. You called me because you were conflicted about the situation. You weren't hell-bent on firing Danny or you wouldn't have called and asked about it, right? So some part of you was looking for guidance and you were unsure. you in one direction or another, that's fine. That doesn't mean it's not authentic, right? Because you came looking for advice. You didn't just fly off the seedy your pants. Is that, is that what is, is that the saying? The seat of your pants? Doesn't make much sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I did call you because I was torn up about it. It's one of those things where I knew firing him was the business decision, but it felt wrong in my gut, and I needed somebody to help me figure out which one to listen to. did feel right when we had it. The guys opened up, we talked through the protocols, Danny even admitted he'd been taking some stuff personally that wasn't meant that way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I wouldn't worry about it too much. I mean, you've got to get rid of Danny. If he's not going to show up, if he's not going to be reliable, then you can't have that person on your crew, right? But I don't think you've done anything wrong with addressing the rest of the team the way that you have. And it sounds like once you get rid of Danny, he's spiraling in negativity. right now and he's going to bring everybody else down. So get rid of Danny. He's not fulfilling his end of the employment agreement, right? So once he's gone, just continue being yourself. Be authentic. Be kind. But you are the boss and you have to, if somebody's not pulling their way, you've got to get rid of him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>You know what, Luke? You're right. I've been so worried about whether I'm being genuine or not that I'm letting him hold the whole operation hostage. He's not showing up. He's bad-mouthing me to the crew, and now he's playing victim like I'm the one who wronged him. I can't keep bending over backwards for somebody who won't even pick up the phone when I call. It's one of those things where I wanted so badly for that meeting to fix everything. But you can't fix somebody who doesn't want to be fixed, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right, and it sounds like you sort of fixed yourself. You fixed your own attitude about it, and I think that the crew will recognize that you mean it. You're being authentic with them. He doesn't want to accept that, but you can't keep going back and forth with him because everybody will see that and then, you know, they'll all fall in line with Danny and start not showing up for work and stuff. And you can't have that. So you've done everything you could. You tried to be a good employer and a good friend to Danny. And if he doesn't want to accept that, that's fine. Just let him go and he'll have to find somebody else to work for. And keep trying to be authentic with the rest of your crew. And they will see that you let Danny go. and they'll understand that this is a business. We're friends, but this is also a business. And you're the boss and you've got to come to work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I needed to hear that. I've been so stuck on trying to save this friendship, but I forgot I've got eight other guys counting on me to keep this thing running. Vince has been breathing down my neck about the next contract. And I can't go to him and say, well, my best friend might come back to work when he feels like it. That's not how you run a company. I'm going to call Danny tomorrow morning, tell him, I need an answer by Monday, whether he's in or out, and if he's out. That's his choice. I tried. I really did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, nobody could expect any more from you, right? I mean, even the fact that you're giving him one more chance is pretty generous on your part. So if he doesn't want to play ball, then that's okay. You don't have to have him playing ball. It seems like he's just going to be a pain in the ass and pull the rest of the crew down for as long as he's there. And that's all right. You've done your part. You tried your hardest, and you gave him. chances, and that's all that could be expected of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MURRAY</span><p>You're absolutely right, Luke. I appreciate you letting me call back in. I was spiraling on this all week, thinking maybe I was being fake or whatever Danny's saying, but I know what I felt in that meeting. I know I meant it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I believe that you meant it too. And, you know, the crew knows it too. So you're doing the right thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up we've got Angie. Angie, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>My mom's dying and she wants me to have dinner with my brother tomorrow for her birthday. But I haven't talked to him in two years and I'm sitting here at the laundry mat trying to figure out if I'm being principled or just an asshole.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think if your mom's dying and that's her dying wish and you're even considering whether or not you should honor it. I think you're being an asshole. Yeah, you should go have dinner with your mom and your brother.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, that's what I figured you'd say. And you're probably right. But here's the thing. My brother spent the last two years posting stuff about how people like my best friend shouldn't be allowed to use public bathrooms. He showed up to Thanksgiving 2022, wearing a shirt that said, let's go, Brandon. And when my mom asked him to change it, he told her she raised him to stand up for what he believes in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't meant. It's not about him and you or anybody's views. This is a dinner about your mom. So you can put that stuff aside for one dinner. It's not really a big deal. And then if you don't want to talk to your brother after that, that's fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>You're right that it's about my mom. But the reason I stopped talking to Derek in the first place was because of something he said about my mom. He told her that her cancer was probably God's way of getting her attention because she voted for Biden. He said that</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't matter what he said or what he didn't say or what he did. If that's your mom's wish, I mean, yeah, he sounds like a real douchebag, but you can deal with it for a couple of hours to have dinner to satisfy your mom. That's all she wants in the world is to have dinner with her kids and you're her kids, so you can give her that. And just bite your tongue and get through it and it'll be fine. And that's the right thing to do for your mom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>I know you're right. I called my mom back about an hour ago and told her I'd come. I'm driving up tomorrow morning. The thing I can't figure out is what happens when we're sitting there and Derek says something. Because he will.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you know, you can bite your tongue for a little while. It's just one dinner and you can make it through no matter what he says, no matter what he does, don't turn it into a fight because that's probably what he's looking for. And it's just going to make your mom's last days more miserable. So do it for Bite your tongue, let him spout off whatever bullshit he has to spout off. And then, you know, if you don't want to talk to him after that, that's fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>The last time I bit my tongue around Derek was at that Thanksgiving. I sat there for three hours while he talked about election fraud and crisis actors. And I didn't say anything because my mom kept looking at me with these pleading eyes. Then, on the drive home, I had to pull over on the side of the highway because I was shaking so hard I couldn't see straight. That was before she got sick. Now, there's maybe... six weeks left and I'm supposed to do it again except this time it matters more and I have less room to fuck it up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, just remember that your mom loves you both, no matter what either of you says or does, and this is about her and not you. And if he has to spout off, that's okay. Just let it go by you. Don't pay him any tension because attention's what he's looking for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. The hospice nurse told my mom yesterday that she should start thinking about what she wants to say to people. final conversations. And my mom said all she wants is to see her kids eat cake together. That's it. Not some big reconciliation or apologies or anything. Just cake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think you can handle eating cake with anybody, even a douchebag. So just do it for your mom and then get out of there as soon as you can. That's all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, I can eat cake with a douchebag for my mom. I'm going to stop at the grocery store on the way up and get her those candles that relight themselves when you blow them out. She used to think those were the funniest thing in the world when we were kids. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're welcome, and I'm sorry to hear about your mom. And I hope you get through the dinner okay without any explosions or catastrophes. And then you don't have to deal with it again after that. Next up, we've got Lamar. Lamar, thanks for calling the show. What's going on tonight, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAMAR</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So I told my girlfriend my biggest fantasy tonight, and she went completely silent like 10 seconds and then just said she needed to think and hung up. I am honestly not even kidding when I say I might have just ended a six-month relationship because I was stupid enough to be honest when she asked me what I really wanted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I've been in that position before too. I'm pretty sure it blew up my marriage. So sometimes you can't, you can't be that honest with people or it doesn't go well. What was the fantasy? Are you okay with telling us what you asked for on the air?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAMAR</span><p>Yeah, I mean, it's not like it's illegal or anything, it's just the latex thing. Like I'm into latex, the whole outfit, the look, all of it. And she asked me point blank what my biggest fantasy was, and I have been driving four hours each way to Tucson every other weekend for six months. So I figured we were at the point where I could actually tell her the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that seems like an odd thing for her to hang up on you for. Laytex isn't, out of all the fetishes and weird shit you could be into, latex is pretty mild, so I'm not sure why she's reacting that way. If she's going to give you a hard time, that you're into latex? I think maybe she's not the right woman for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAMAR</span><p>That is exactly what I keep telling myself. But honestly, the silence is what is killing me. Like if she had laughed or said no way or even gotten mad, I could deal with that. But she just went quiet and I could hear the wind rattling her window. And then she said she needed to think. And that was it. And now I am sitting here in the break room at work on a Friday night that should be dead easy. And I keep checking my phone like an idiot. I have been so careful about this for years, Luke. do not tell people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you should be able to tell people, especially the person that you're with, what you're into. I think, I don't know. I've never been a woman, so I don't know how they think. But my guess is from just previous relationships that when you share fantasies and stuff like that, what they really want to hear is you're my fantasy. Everything about you is my fantasy. Whatever it is that you do, that's my fantasy. And if you deviate from that, it's a problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAMAR</span><p>That makes a lot of sense because she has asked me this question twice before and both times I deflected or made it about her and this time I actually answered it. Like she specifically said she wanted to know the real thing, not just the safe answer and I believed her. But maybe that was a test I just failed. The thing is, I am tired of hiding it, Luke. I ran into this guy Danny Vasquez at the Walmart in Deming last month. Someone I knew from way back and he saw me buying something and I could tell he clocked what it was for and I felt like I was going to throw up right there in the checkout line.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nah, you don't have to be embarrassed about that kind of stuff, man. I mean, everybody's into some weird shit, and that's just a part of the human experience. Being able to talk to people about that or live with it confidently is part of what confidence is, right? That's a part of you. Wherever it came from, it doesn't really matter. It's not hurting anybody. It's not difficult to fulfill. If you like latex, you like latex, and there's nothing wrong with that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Unless, you know, maybe she's allergic to latex, then I could see an issue. But even then, you should be able to talk about it and come up with some sort of alternative. I mean, there are alternatives to latex that have the same characteristics.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, she is not allergic, at least not that she has ever mentioned. And I appreciate you saying that, because I have been treating this like it is some shameful secret for eight years now, just keeping it separate from everything else. I have got a whole set up at home that nobody knows about. I do not bring anyone over. And the one time I tried to meet someone online who was into the same thing it felt so fake and transactional that I never did it again. So when I met her and things were actually good, like really good, I thought maybe this could be the person I could actually be myself with. But now I am thinking maybe I should have just kept my mouth shut and kept driving to Tucson and kept pretending that vanilla is all I need.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think so. I think you did the right thing and you should be able to be honest with your partner about what you're into and any fetishes and stuff like that. something like latex, which is really, I mean, I don't understand why that would bother somebody. I'm not into latex myself, but I know that it's a huge fetish and lots of people are into latex and there's nothing wrong with that at all. It's not that, um, disturbing, I don't think, as on the fetish scale. I mean, I'm into some weird shit and latex wouldn't even make the mark there. So I don't know why she's being all weird about it. But it sounds like, like you need to find yourself somebody else that you can be yourself with. Because somebody that's going to make you feel bad about who you are and what you want is not the ideal partner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You are probably right, but the problem is, I am 34 years old, and I have been bouncing at the same club for eight years. And I live in a town where everyone knows everyone. And this was the first real relationship I have had in three years. And she is smart, Luke, like she works for one of those non-profits in Tucson, helping homeless people get connected with services. and she actually laughs at my jokes about reloading brass and gun stuff that most people think is boring as hell. So the idea of just letting this go because I could not keep my mouth shut for one more conversation is eating me alive right now. Maybe I should have just lied. Maybe I should call her back and tell her I was joking or testing her or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think so because it's not one more conversation. That's a part of who you are and what you want and a partner. So this conversation could come up a thousand more times for the rest of your life. with denying a part of yourself for the rest of your life potentially because it might make somebody look at you weird, then I mean, you can do that, but I don't think that's the way that you should live your life. And I don't think it's a healthy relationship.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You are right. God, you are right. And I know you are right, but it does not make it any easier sitting here. The thing is, I heard Angie earlier talking about her brother and the birthday dinner. And I had almost the exact same thing happened with my own family two years ago. My sister wanted me at was going to be there, the one who makes comments about everything. And I just did not go because I could not deal with pretending to be someone I am not for six hours. And now my sister barely talks to me. So I have already lost people by hiding. And now I might lose someone by being honest. And I do not know which one is worse, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what I have to say about that is you should not hide and you should not be afraid to tell the truth. And you can be confident in yourself, no matter who you are. No matter who you're around. And if other people don't like that for whatever reason, fuck them. That's all. You don't need them in your life. Surround yourself with people that are going to accept you for who you are, who you feel open enough to discuss what's going on in your head. And if it bothers people and they don't want to be around you, let them go. There's plenty of people out there in this world that will accept you for who you are. And hiding or denying the those portions of yourself is no way to live.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You know what, Luke? I needed to hear that. I really did. Because I have spent so much time worrying about what people think that I forgot there are actually people out there who would not care. And if she cannot handle this one thing about me, then maybe she is not the person I thought she was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, maybe talk to her and figure out why she had such a reaction to such a relatively mild thing. And if you can work around it, and if you want to work around it. Because you might ask her, you know, why she reacted that way and find out that, you know, something happened to her. She was abused by somebody in latex or something and it brought back memories. She doesn't want to deal with. Like, there might be a reason. But probably she just wanted you to say your fantasy was her, not latex. And, you know, maybe if she doesn't like latex or can't wear latex, and that's important to you both talk to her about maybe going to latex club. that are into latex. So you can meet people that are into the same thing as you, either to play with them or to just be surrounded by people that are like-minded. And if you guys can work that out in a way that works for you both great. And if not, then, you know, find another girlfriend. That's all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That is actually a really good point about asking her why she reacted that way instead of just assuming. I did not even think about that because I was so busy panicking about what I said that I did not consider what might be going on for her. And honestly, the idea of going to some kind of community thing, even if she is not into it herself but understands that I need it, that would be something. I do not even know if there is anything like that around here, but Tucson is big enough that there might be. I just need to actually have the conversation instead of sitting here in the break room at two in the morning catastrophizing about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and if that conversation is not an adult conversation that you can have with a peer and, you know, be civil and get across what you want to get across while still remaining true to yourself and what you want, but not pushing it on her, then, I mean, if you can't have that conversation, she's not the right partner. But I would suggest that you check out sites like vetlife.com. They have all sorts of groups for different fetishes and stuff that you might be into. And that's where you're going to find the other people that are in those communities. And you're in Tucson. There's definitely latex people in Tucson. No doubt about it. So if that's the type of thing you're looking for, you can absolutely find it. You know, fetish festivals that happen usually once a year in the cities. And you can go to those and there will be a latex corner and there will be an electro stem corner and bondage and all those things are pretty widely accepted in the right crowds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, I have been on FEP Life before. That is actually where I tried to meet someone a few years back and it felt so weird and forced that I gave up on it. But maybe I was approaching it wrong. Maybe I was approaching it wrong. Maybe I was looking for a relationship when I should have just been looking for community first. And you are right about Tucson. There has got to be something there. I think part of my problem is I have been so isolated with this for so long that I forgot there are actual real people who do not think this is some freakish thing. I have been treating it like some dark secret when really it is just a part of who I am and there are plenty of people who would not bat an eye at it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, good luck. Don't feel weird and don't worry about what anybody else thinks of you. Because fuck them all. That's what I say. Fuck them all. And now it's time for a word from our sponsors. All right. I'm going to read this ad exactly as they sent it to me. And I want you to know that I have concerns. Phantom Ranch Wellness wants you to know that your gut health starts, and I'm reading this directly from the card now, from the other end. They make an at-home coffee enema kit. It comes in a box that says wellness inside, on the outside, which I think we can agree is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The kit includes a medical grade silicone bag, organic single-origin coffee, because apparently the coffee you put in your, that that coffee needs to be single origin, instruction booklet and a com card with a QR code to a guided meditation for during. During. There's a guided meditation for during. I'm not going to tell you what to do with your body. That's between you and your bathroom and whatever God you answer to. I will say the reviews are disturbingly positive. Four and a half stars. One guy said it has changed his morning routine, which I believe because it would absolutely change your morning routine. Phantom Ranch Wellness I read the ad. I didn't endorse it. All right, we're back. And let's see who's next here on the old caller line. We've got Lucille. Lucille, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I've got this neighbor, Dennis. And for the past three days, every time I hit my garage door opener, his door opens instead of mine. Started after that transformer blue during the windstorm. At first, it was just weird. You know, kind of funny even. But this morning, I get home and he's standing in my driveway with his arms crossed, wanting to know why I've been checking his property at odd hours. And the thing is, I work strange hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, have we talked about this before? Because I remember a similar call not too long ago when the power went out and somebody's garage door opener was opening the wrong door and it was a big problem. I think that that issue has been resolved in most modern garage doors. And they resolved it by using a rotating, code instead of the standard infrared blaster that they used to have in the 90s. So maybe it's time to upgrade your garage door opener device with one of those rotating codes. And, you know, just explain the situation to them. It's not that big a deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>No, that wasn't me. And yeah, I get that it's probably just the frequency thing. But the problem is I can't really explain my hours to Dennis. Like, I work in bail bonds, who only surfaces around three in the morning. So I'm coming and going at weird times. And when Dennis is standing there asking me pointed questions about my schedule, I can't exactly say, oh, I'm out hunting down people who jumped bail. That makes it sound worse, you know? So I'm just standing there saying, I can't get into the specifics of my work schedule, which makes me sound guilty as hell.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that does kind of make you sound guilty, but you don't have to address that conversation with your work schedule. Just tell them, hey, my garage job. door opener is opening your door. I'm not doing it intentionally, and I'm going to get myself a new garage door opener so that doesn't happen anymore. And that's all. That's the end of the conversation. Explain to him that you're not doing it on purpose. I mean, you can show him right in your driveway if you hit the button in it opens his garage door. And then do your best to get that changed as quickly as possible, and the problem is solved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Yeah, but see, that's where it gets complicated, because I've been using it. Like once I realized his door, was opening. I started parking in his garage instead of mine when I get back at three in the morning. His garage is closer to my back door and he's got that motion sensor light that doesn't work. So nobody sees me come and go. I've been doing it for three days now. And this morning when he confronted me, I didn't tell him that part.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, cut the shit. I mean, don't do that. That's not right. And that does make you seem like a psycho at three in the morning parking in somebody else. What are you thinking? No, don't do that. Parking your own garage. Or park outside your garage until you can fix your garage door opener. That's the right answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>I know, I know, you're right. It's just, look, I've been doing this job for 12 years and I've gotten real good at finding the path of least resistance, you know? Lease noise, least attention. And his garage was just sitting there, dark, and it felt like the practical solution at the time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it's not a solution. It's trespassing, and don't do it anymore, and your problem will be solved, right? And I understand that you're a badass and you hunt down bail bond skips and all that. And that's super cool. But you're not a top secret federal agent and you don't need the cover of darkness. You can come home when it's time to come home and stop making more of it than it really is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>You're not wrong. I think maybe I've been in this work too long, where everything becomes about not being noticed. But here's the other thing. And this is what's really bothering me. Dennis has been leaving his garage light on. and off all night since yesterday. Like flicking it on and off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, whatever. That's fine for Dennis. It's his light. He can turn it on and off when he wants. Stop parking in his garage and get your garage door opener fixed. That's my advice for you. Do you have anything else to say? Because we're going to move on to the next caller.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>No, that's it. You're right. I'll get it fixed and stop being weird. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem. That's my advice for everybody. Stop being weird. Just cut it out with the being weird shit. Jesus, you people are strange. Everybody that's called so far except Lamar with his latex fetish is a weirdo. Next up, we've got Ricky. Ricky, what's going on? What makes you so weird tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICKY</span><p>Luke? Okay, so I just got out of a youth group, and one of the kids spent 20 minutes trying to convince everyone that vinyl records sound better than digital music. Because they have this magical warp that Spotify can't capture. And I need you to tell me I'm not losing my mind here, because this is complete nonsense. right? Like, I've been sitting in the church parking lot for an hour reading audio engineering forums on my phone, and I'm about ready to drive back in there and give this kid a physics lesson. It's placebo effect, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's people convincing themselves they hear something that literally is not there. And honestly, I think it's the same psychology as people who still defend the last season of Game of Thrones. They spent money on the records. They spent money on the turntable. So their brain has to justify it by inventing this warm magical quality that does not exist in objective reality. exists in objective reality. And we just had a long conversation about this just a couple of days ago. So I recommend that you go back and listen to the previous episodes because I'm not going to take the time to explain it all over again. Do you have another question? Because this one's already been addressed at infinitum.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICKY</span><p>Wait, hold on. You actually think vinyl sounds better? Luke, I'm being serious here. I listened to that episode and you were talking about the ritual and the experience, which Fine, I get that, but you cannot honestly tell me that the sound waves coming off a piece of plastic with grooves cut into it are superior to a lossless digital file.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Look, go back and listen to that episode. I'm not going to get into this whole thing again. I never said that vinyl sounds better. It can sound different. And the circuitry that it was used by a lot of audio files to listen to music imparts a warmth that is objectively real. So, again, I don't want to rehash this over and over and over again. But I would not say that vinyl sounds better. It does sound different and it has a character and it is real. And if people want to listen to vinyl, good for them. Otherwise, I'm not going to continue this conversation with you. All right. Do you have something else you'd like to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICKY</span><p>Okay, okay, I hear you. I'll go back and listen to it again. But honestly, this is what's really bugging me. This kid, 17 years old, like he's the next Anthony Fantano. And he's not even talking about the circuitry or the character or any of that. He's just repeating stuff he read on Reddit like it makes him some kind of audiophile expert. And everyone in the youth group is nodding along like he just revealed the secrets of the universe.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, you have a good night. I'm not talking about this again. At least not for a long, long time. If you're bothered by what kind of music the kids in the youth group are listening to, then you got to, I don't know, talk to your therapist or figure out why that matters to you because it really shouldn't be such a big deal in your life. Next up, we've got Silas. Silas, welcome back to the show. What's going on at the Wellspring, buddy? Give us an update.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Brother, I appreciate you having me back. So Marcus came back. He showed up three days ago with Kara, his wife. They drove in together, middle of the afternoon, and they want to rejoin the community.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, the last time we spoke, only Kara had left. She had gone somewhere and was working at a bank or something, and Marcus stayed behind. So I was unaware that Marcus had left your little community. But are you going to welcome them back?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You're right. You're right. I misspoke. Marcus never left. Kara left after the unbinding. Went to stay with her sister in Los Cruces. Got that bank job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, congratulations on your returning member of the flock. How's it going over there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Well, that's the thing, brother. I want to welcome them back. I really do. But Teresa, my wife, she pulled me aside after they showed up and she said, we need to have a serious conversation about it. And the more I think about it, something about it just doesn't sit right with her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you are the leader, right? So you get to choose who stays and who goes. And if you don't want them in the community, then you can say that. But I'm not sure why. I mean, if somebody just had a change of heart and took off for a little while for a little rumspringer, and had to find themselves and realize, well, you know, why they wanted to come back to the community, then they should be just more dedicated to the cause, I would think.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You would think that, and that's exactly what I said to Teresa. But she pointed out something I hadn't really considered. Kara came back, but she didn't come back because she missed the community. Or because she found clarity out there in Los Cruces. She came back because Marcus gave her an ultimatum. He told her either she comes back back to the wellspring, or he's leaving with her. And he made it clear he wasn't going to leave. So Kara chose to come back to keep her marriage, not because she actually wants to be here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so how are you going to handle that? You're going to let them back in, or just have you decided that they're not a good fit for your community? That's within your power to control, right? If you don't want them there, you can just say, sorry, we're full.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I mean, yeah, I could do that. I'm the founder. I guide the community. But brother, that's not how we operate at the Wellspring. We don't turn people away. We don't have a bouncer at the gate checking credentials.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what's your question for me then, Silas? It sounds like you're in a quandary. You have to let them in because that's how you operate at the Wellspring, but you don't want to because there is an ultimatum involved. What is it that you're looking for help with here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The question is whether I'm being a hypocrite. Because Teresa said something to me that really landed. She said, Silas, you preach radical honesty and shedding the false self, but you're about to let someone back in who's wearing the biggest mask of all. And she's right. If Kara's here because she's afraid of losing Marcus, not because she believes in what we're doing, then she's living a lie. And the more I think about it, doesn't that poison the whole thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I would think that it would poison the whole thing. Or it could poison the whole thing. Or it could poison the whole thing because if she's unhappy in your community, she's going to, you know, have friends there and spread discontent around your members. And that doesn't sound like something that you want in the Wellspring. But it's your community, right? It's not my place to tell you what you should do. I don't know that you're being a hypocrite. Maybe you could use your influence to convince Kara or to is where she wants to be. I don't really know how all that works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's what I've been trying to do, Luke. I sat down with her yesterday, just the two of us, and I asked her point blank. Kara, why are you here? And she looked me right in the eye and said, because Marcus is here. Not because of the current, not because of the community, not because she found something at the Wellspring that she couldn't find anywhere else. Just Marcus. And then she said something that really shook me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What did she say that shook you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>She said, Silas, I never believed in any of this. I came here because Marcus wanted to, and I stayed because he stayed. And now I'm back because he won't leave. And then she asked me, how many other people here are just like me, going through the motions because someone they love believes. And brother, that question has been hours now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because what if she's right? What if she is right? Does it matter that much? Whatever brings someone to the wellspring brings them there and they are then exposed to the current and your way of life. And if it's strong enough, you should be able to attract them as opposed to promoting to them, right? So attraction over promotion. If your message is strong enough, extra attention, you can help her see that she does want to be there. Or, you know, maybe she doesn't want to be there. And if she doesn't want to be there, then, then, uh, then let her go. If she won't leave because Marcus won't leave, sit down and talk to Marcus and see, uh, see what his thoughts on the matter are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I did that too. I talked to Marcus this morning. And Marcus, he's all in, Luke. He told me the Wellspring saved his life that before he came here, he was drowning in materialism.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. Good luck. Give us a call back. Let us know how the renewal all shakes out, okay? And good luck to you with Kara and Marcus. Sounds like you're doing great work down there. Next up on the caller line here, we've got Gina. Gina, welcome to the show. Happy Friday night to you. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I'm sitting in my bathroom right now with the door locked because I just got this text from my sister. I'm about to lose my mind. She's in Albuquerque running herself into the ground at this tech startup. Just sent me a selfie at midnight with no days off and I'm supposed to be impressed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so what's your issue here? Your sister's overworking herself with her tech startup? Maybe that's what she wants to do. She's proud of herself for working, uh, for burning the candle at both ends, as they say. I've done it myself at times, quite a few times. What's wrong with that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>What's wrong is everyone back home treats her like she's some kind of hero while her marriage is falling apart in real time. Her husband left three weeks ago, Luke. He's staying with his brother in Los Cruces because she hasn't been home before 10 at night in six months. And my mom's on the phone with me going, well, she's building something important. You know how hard it is to start a business? I've been a dental hygienist for 12 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, working as a dental hygienist is not the same as starting a business. And you can understand where somebody that's building something, maybe that's more important to her than her marriage. And that's her choice. She's her own person. And she gets to choose what she values. If her husband isn't okay with what she's decided to focus her life on right now, then, I mean, maybe it's time for them to split up. That's not on you. That's not your call. If she's happy, great.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>She's not happy, Luke. That's the thing. I was out there two months ago when she cried in my car for 40 minutes about how she doesn't know who she is anymore. She said she can't remember the last time she felt anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, why are you calling me instead of her then? If she's the one that needs the advice, there's nothing I can tell you that's going to help her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>Because I've tried talking to her and she shut me down. She said I wouldn't understand because I chose comfort over ambition. Those were her actual words. I just bought 10 acres outside Lordsburg with my own savings, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and there's really nothing more comfortable than 10 acres outside Lordsburg. So here's my advice for you. Give your sister our number here. It's 208. 3-9, Luke, and have her give us a call. And we'll get to the bottom of what she's doing, what she's feeling, and how she can best navigate the challenges of starting a business and being in a relationship.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>You're not hearing me? I don't need you to fix my sister. I need to know why I'm supposed to feel like a failure because I'm not destroying myself. I make $72,000 a year cleaning teeth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, good for you. You don't have to feel like a failure if you don't feel like a failure. Nobody can call somebody a failure, right? Because all we have to do to not be a failure is stay alive for another day. If you stayed alive, if you got up this morning, you're not a failure. Congratulations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>That's easy to say when nobody's looking at you like you settled. My boyfriend's out there yelling at his fantasy football team right now, and my sisters in Albuquerque getting divorce papers served, and somehow she's the one everyone's worried about. She's the one doing something with her life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't have to worry about validation from other people. No matter who that is, right? If you're comfortable with your life, you're doing your thing, you got your job on lockdown, you're happy with your 72 grand as a dental hygienist, and you've got your land outside Lordsburg. Everything's going well for you. Don't worry about what other people think about your life. It's not important. Let them worry about their own lives, all right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GINA</span><p>But I'm not happy, Luke. That's what I'm trying to tell you. I locked myself in my bathroom with a glass of wine because I can't stand listening to him out there one more night. I bought that land six months ago, and I haven't done a single thing with it because every time I think about actually building something out there, I feel like I'm just going to end up like him. Comfortable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't have to build anything on it. You don't have to use it at all. You can just hold it and hope that someday a Walmart comes in and raises the value. You can be a land tycoon if you want. You can be anything you want to be. So your happiness is completely decided by you. If you want to be happy, be happy. If you're not happy, change the things in your life that are making you unhappy. If you don't feel like you're moving forward in life, then make you're making you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Those are the three options.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>I looked him up, found him on Facebook in about 30 seconds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Lives over in Marana now, works at some HVAC company. I could just drive it over there tomorrow. Hand it to him. Tell him to fix his mail situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You could do that, but you can't be sure that's the correct David Herrera. That's not a particularly unique name. There could be more than one. He could have died. You don't know. I don't think you should do that, but, I mean, I'm not here to tell you what to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>You're right. I didn't think about that. There were actually four David Herreras in Tucson when I searched. I just picked the one that looked about the right age and had the Havak thing because the previous owner left a bunch of tools in the shed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I would go with one of my three options, but that's just me. You're your own person and you can do whatever you want with the mail. I'm sorry you're getting mail that doesn't belong to you. That's a pain in the ass, but there's not much I can do about that for you from here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Yeah, I know. I guess I just thought. I don't know what I thought. That there was some other options. It just feels weird, having someone's money sitting in my trailer and doing nothing about it, when I could probably get it to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He probably could, but he could also probably update his fucking mailing address. And if he's not doing that, and he's got money coming to him, well, it's his own fault. That's what I say. But good luck to you and your mail carriers and David Herrera, and I hope that that situation works out, and you can go back to enjoying just your own in your mailbox. Next up, we're going to take one more call here. We've got Skeeter on the line. Skeeter, you're going to be our last call tonight. Do you have anything going on in your life you like to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, thanks for taking my call. I'm sitting here looking at my tax returns, and I just made $6,800 this month doing freelance web development, which is almost double what I was making at my city a job. And my wife keeps reminding me what my grandpa said at Sunday dinner, which is that only a fool trades a sure thing for a maybe when there's a sick kid in the house. My daughter Mia has asthma. She's got a pulmonologist. Medications run $900 a month without insurance. And I keep trying to explain about HSA eligible plans and COBRA extensions, but I cannot get past what my grandpa said. I left the city job three months ago, and the freelance money is good. It's really good, but I'm terrified I made the wrong call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if you made the wrong call. If the money's so good, you should be able to afford your insurance, right? I mean, it's easy for me to say I don't afford my own insurance because I won't insurance premium, but I don't have a kid that has asthma that needs. Why is asthma medication $900 a month? That seems extremely excessive. Have you looked at like the Amazon Pharmacy or Mark Cuban's company there for discount prescriptions?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>Yeah, I have looked at those, and it's not just one medication. It's a combination. She's on flovent, which is the inhaled corticosteroid, and then there's the rescue inhaler, and the nebulizer treatments when it gets bad. The flovent alone is like 600-something without cover. Mark Cuban's thing helps a little bit, but not enough to make a real dent. And yeah, I can afford insurance now. I found a plan that's actually pretty comparable. The deductible is higher, but the monthly premium is reasonable. And I ran the numbers like 10 different ways. But here's the thing. My grandpa Ernesto. He worked for the city of Deming for 32 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you already left your city job. So it doesn't really matter if you made the right or the wrong decision. You have to deal with the life that you're in now. And it sounds like you've got enough money coming in and you can afford the insurance premiums, so that's what you should do. And this isn't a problem. You can't, you can't just stick in a job because it's comfortable forever when you have other skills and abilities that could possibly afford you life closer to what you really want. I think you probably made the right call going on on your own and taking the risk and betting on yourself. But if you've got a sick kid and you got to pay for those medications, then insurance is, important.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>I hear you. I do. And I already got the insurance. I signed up two weeks ago. It kicks in April 1st.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, then. What's your problem here? You've got a, you've left your job. Now you've got a better freelance job. You work for yourself. You've got insurance. Your kids all set. What's the issue?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>The issue is I cannot shake this feeling that I'm being selfish. Like, I did this for me. Not for my family. I was miserable at the city job. Yeah, but it was stable and safe. Now I'm making more and I get to work on projects I actually care about, instead of resetting passwords for the Parks and Rec Department. But every Sunday when we go to my grandparents' house for dinner, Ernesto looks at me like I'm some kind of idiot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Ernesto doesn't have to live your life. And if you hated your job, your family knew that. So a happier you is going to make for a happier family. The money's there. You're not in risk of not paying the mortgage or anything like that. So it sounds to me like you did the right thing. And it doesn't matter if you were selfish because it's your life and you're the one that has to live it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>Yeah, but what if I'm wrong about the money? Like, this month was 6,800, last month was 5,200. The month before that was 4,900. It's trending up, but it's not consistent. The city job was 2,900 every two weeks, no matter what. I could plan around that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, and if things go south and you're not able to upkeep this money over the long term, then you can always get another city job. You can always go work for some IT company and reset idiots' passwords all day. It's not that hard to find an entry-levelish job in IT. So if that's what you have to do, you can do it. But for right now, what's working is working, and you just have to learn how to manage your books so that you're saving the money when you're making extra. So at the times when you're not making so much, you have some buffer. So it's an exercise in accounting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>That is actually exactly what I have been doing. I set up a separate savings account. I am putting 30% of every payment into it for taxes and another 20% as buffer. I have a spreadsheet that tracks every invoice, every expense, projected income for the next three months based on current contracts. I have done the research on this. I know how freelancers are supposed to manage their finances. But Ernesto does not care about any of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Ernesto can worry about his own finances. He's not managing yours. It doesn't matter what Ernesto thinks. Ernesto is 80 years old. He's never worked in today's workplace. And the reality of the situation is, even though it felt like your city job was super secure and you're always going to get that $2,000. At the next town meeting, they could reduce the funding and lay you off on a pin drop. Is that right? On a dime. At the tip of a hat. So there's no loyalty to you in the workplace, whether it's a city job or a corporate job or a government job. Your best bet here is a freelance job where you can actually make things happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SKEETER</span><p>You are right about that. Actually, two people got laid off from my old department in January because the city council cut the it budget by 15%. My old supervisor sent me a text about it. So the security I thought I had, it was not even real security.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's not. And everybody that thinks they have job security is fooling themselves because, I mean, read the news. Layoffs happen all the time, all the time, for no reason at all, just because some, you know, CEO wants to make an extra couple billion a year. So I think you're doing the right thing. It's working out. You're managing your money correctly. Don't worry about Ernesto. He doesn't know, right? He doesn't have any clue what the current environment is like. So if he's going to give you the side eye, whatever. Fuck them. All right, ladies and gentlemen. That is the end of another look at the roost. again tomorrow where I give real world problems real life advice.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 31: Boundaries, Breakups, and Borrowed Books</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-08T10:01:01+00:00">March 8, 2026</time> · 56 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, Luke tackles a diverse range of caller challenges, from a bar bouncer struggling with family dynamics to a flight attendant processing a breakup and a restaurant manager dealing with workplace tensions. Callers share deeply personal stories about relationships, identity, and personal growth, revealing the complex emotional landscapes we navigate. Tune in for Luke’s unfiltered, no-nonsense advice that cuts straight to the heart of human experience.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. I am Luke. I am your host of tonight's episode of Luke at the Roost. This is the call-in radio show where you can call in and ask me about what's going on in your life. I'll give you the very best advice that I can. If you'd like to give us a call, the number is 208-439-58-53. That's 208-439 Luke. I've got a very special announcement for Wednesday. Actually, I don't know if you guys are going to care about this announcement, but I do have an announcement for Wednesday. I've been a very busy boy. And more about that later on in the week. Now it's time to get our show started. And first up on our caller line here, we've got Red. Red, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Luke, I just threw a college kid out of the bar for FaceTime and his girlfriend at full volume by the pool tables, fascist on his way out the door, a fascist for asking him to use headphones or take it outside. And you know what really gets me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, before we get to what gets you, I just want to let you know that you are a true patriot, sir, and we appreciate you because people that are FaceTiming in public like that are the most annoying people ever. So I salute you for standing up for America. You're a true, a true patriot, sir. What is it that gets you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>I've been at this place for 56 years, Luke. 56 years. And I have seen every kind of drunk, every kind of troublemaker, every kind of idiot you can imagine walk through that door. But this new generation, they think the whole world is their living room. This kid's got his phone up, girlfriend on the screen, they're having a full domestic argument about whether she liked some other guy's Instagram post, and he's just broadcasting it to the entire bar like we all bought tickets to his relationship drama. I gave him three warnings.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you did the right thing, and everybody else in that bar appreciates you and how you stood up for the cause, sir. You're not a fascist at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>I appreciate that, Luke, but here's the thing that's eating at me. After I tossed him, I'm back in the office cooling down, and I start thinking about it. My daughter, she's 32 now. She does the exact same thing. Last Thanksgiving, she's at my table facetiming her friends in Portland while I'm trying to carve the turkey.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hopefully you threw her right out of Thanksgiving dinner because that is unacceptable behavior.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>See, that's the problem, Luke. I didn't. I sat there and took it because she's my daughter and I only see her twice a year since she moved up there. Now I'm wondering if I'm a hypocrite.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, maybe a little bit of a hypocrite, but it's your daughter and you have to make exceptions. Sometimes I understand that. Maybe a strong-worded suggestion to put the phone away would have been appropriate. What I would do in your situation is think, Dalton do at the double deuce, right? You're a bouncer, so Dalton really is the gold standard for a bouncer etiquette. And as we all know from the double deuce, the primary rule, the golden rule in bouncing is be nice. Be nice until it's time to not be nice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Yeah, I know the speech, Luke, but here's where I'm stuck. With the college kid tonight, I was nice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, you were nice and then you escorted him out of the building because he was being a douchebag. And if he comes back and continues to be a douchebag, that's when you rip out his throat.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Right. But with my daughter, I never even get to warning number one. I just sit there and simmer. And you know what the real kicker is? After I threw the kid out tonight, I called my daughter to tell her about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe she'll be able to read through the lines and understand that you have to throw people out when they're acting in an unacceptable way to have the self-awareness to look at her own behavior and potentially change it for next Thanksgiving.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>That's what I was hoping, Luke, but instead she goes, Dad, that's so harsh. He was probably just having a bad day. A bad day. Like that gives you the right to ruin everybody else's night. And I'm standing there in the parking lot with the wind kicking up dust everywhere, and I realize she learned this from me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, there's only one thing you can do, and that is the next time you're at the Thanksgiving table with your daughter and she pulls out her phone and she's on speaker phone doing a face time. Just lift up your leg, you know, put your foot on the chair next to her and show her your boot knife.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Luke, you're not hearing me. I don't want to threaten my daughter with a boot knife. What I want is to understand why I can enforce basic respect with strangers, but I let my own kid walk all over me because here's the thing that's really messing with me. After she defended the college kid, I asked her point blank, do you think what you did at Thanksgiving was rude? And she said, dad, my friends are my chosen family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that may be true. And you can talk to them before and after Thanksgiving dinner, but at Thanksgiving dinner put the phone away. I think that's a reasonable expectation from you. And I think there's a couple of things here. See, when you're at the bar and you have to enforce respect, you're working, right? You're at work. So you're doing your job. And that's what you're you're supposed to do and everybody expects you to do. When you're at home, you're off the clock, so you don't have to be the enforcer at home if you don't want to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>But that's exactly backwards, Luke. When I'm at work, these people mean nothing to me. Kid with a FaceTime, I'll never see him again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, so. Good. That's the idea, right? Then you did your job well. At home, though, I mean, if it doesn't, if it bothers you, it bothers you. If it doesn't bother you, that's fine. You can do If you want to afford your daughter the flexibility to allow her to be a pain in the ass at Thanksgiving dinner, that's your prerogative. And you can do that. In the bar, though, when somebody's doing that, you got to kick him out because he's bothering everybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>No, Luke, it does bother me. That's why I'm calling. It bothered me so much I left my own table, went outside and sat in my truck for 20 minutes while my ex-wife carved the turkey. But here's what I can't figure out. At the bar, when someone disrespects the space, I feel righteous throwing them out. Clean conscience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, at the bar is your job to throw them out. That's what you do. That's your whole purpose for being there. At your home with your daughter, throwing out your kids is not necessarily your role. That doesn't mean you can't throw them out, though, if they're being a pain in the ass, and if she continues to be a pain in the ass.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>You're missing what I'm saying, Luke. I don't want to throw my daughter out. What I'm trying to tell you, is that when I grabbed that college kid by the collar tonight, I felt like Anton Chigur. You know, from no country for old men, like I was this force of nature enforcing the rules of the universe, but with my daughter I feel like the opposite.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I'm not missing what you're saying. I'm hearing exactly what you're saying, and I'm telling you how to handle it or not handle it, and I'm giving you permission to choose your own adventure here. If it's bothering you so much that you've got to leave your own Thanksgiving table, you should say something to your daughter. And if you can't, then I don't know what to tell you. I guess go eat at McDonald's while everybody has Thanksgiving dinner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>You know what, Luke? You're right. I've been making this too complicated. I can tell a drunk stranger exactly what line he crossed and why he's got to go, but I can't tell my own daughter that watching her ignore her family for her phone makes me feel like I failed as a father. And the reason I can't is because I'm scared she'll look at me the same way the college kid did tonight when I had him by the collar. Like I'm just some old man who doesn't understand how the world works anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>I budget everything. Like everything, everything, everything. $43 a week for social slash entertainment, and all of it goes to Cactus Jacks. Tuesday trivia, Thursday pool nights. That's where I see people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. And what's the problem with that? That seems like a reasonable amount for a lot of extracurricular social activities. $43 a week isn't a ton.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>The problem is, that was my place. And now Maya's there with Hannah, which means they're probably going to be there Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I can't just show up and pretend everything's normal. So where do I go? I don't have another $43 to build a whole new social life somewhere else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, well, you just go to Cactus Jacks. That's your place. That's where you go. And if Maya wants to make out with Hannah, good for them. Like, that's none of your business, really.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>You don't understand. Hannah was my bartender. Like, she knew my drink. She knew my schedule. she'd text me when good bands were playing. And Maya knows that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, she's still your bartender, right? She's the bartender at Cactus Jack. So when you go there, she's not going to have suddenly forgotten your drink. And she can still text you when bands are playing and stuff. And why do you need a text when a good band's playing? They have a Facebook page or whatever. You can get on the rotation there and be informed about upcoming events.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>Luke, I think you're missing the point. Hannah was being nice to me because I was a customer and she's good at her job. She wasn't actually my friend. And now I know that for sure because she's with Maya and she didn't even text me a heads up or anything. I just walked into it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't know that she's with Maya. She was just making out with her at the bar. Like women are apt to do at times. That's not weird. I mean, that doesn't mean anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>They were leaning into each other like they'd done it before. It wasn't some random drunk thing. And Maya had her hand on Hannah's waist in that specific way where you you can tell it's comfortable, you know? Like muscle memory.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, you got two choices. You can either grow up and deal with it, your ex-girlfriends with somebody else, and just continue to go to Cactus Jacks like you always have, or you can find a new place and keep your same $43-46 budget and move it to another bar. What's the problem here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>The problem is, I don't know where else to go. I've been going to Cactus Jacks for this three years. I know the trivia categories. I know which pool table doesn't have the wonky felt. I know to avoid the bathroom between nine and ten because that's when the bachelorette parties show up. You can't just transplant that somewhere else and have it worked the same way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you can't. You go somewhere else and you learn its idiosyncrasies. I mean, this is not an issue. You're a big girl. You can go to a different bar and learn which pool table you like and when the bathrooms get blown up. Or better yet, go to a bar that doesn't have bachelorette parties. And then you're that's a double win.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BERNADETTE</span><p>Okay, but it's not just about learning a new place. It's about the fact that I budgeted for this. I have a spreadsheet, $43 a week, every week, allocated to cactus jacks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from our sponsors. I'm just going to say it. Your penis isn't working. I said it. It's out there now. The word is in the air. We're all adults. Some of us are adults whose penises work and some of us are adults who are listening very carefully right now while pretending to adjust the radio so the person in the passenger seat doesn't see their face. It's fine. It happens to, and this is the real number. Roughly half of all men over over 40 at some point. Half. You're not special. You're not broken. You're not the first guy this happened to and you're not going to be the last. You're just the guy it's happening to right now. And right now you have two options. Option one, do nothing. Keep staring at the ceiling. Keep blaming the altitude, the stress, the medication, the alignment of mercury, the fact that you ate dairy, none of which are the problem. Option two, sandstone. dollars, a doctor who has literally heard everything and will not flinch. Medication that works, a box that reveals nothing, and the ability to walk into your bedroom like a man who handled his business instead of a man who's about to suggest watching another episode of something. Sandstone, I said the word. You heard the word. Now go to the website.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and we're back. Let's get some music playing here. And then, uh, let's talk to Rocco. Rocko's on the line. How are you tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCCO</span><p>Am I on? Hey, Luke. Yeah, I can hear you. I'm good. I'm good. Well, no. Actually, I'm calling because I need to tell you something. I'm on my break right now at the Pizza Hut. I'm in the back office, and I got about 20 minutes before I got to get back out there. So listen, I know I called a couple days ago about Linda, my ex-wife. And you told me to pick one person and stop wasting everybody's time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, I did. And then I hung up on you because you were an uninteresting radio caller and you had nothing to say. Do you have something to say this time? Or should we just move on with the hanging up part?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROCCO</span><p>No, no, no. Wait. I got something. I got something to say. So three hours ago, right? I'm doing a delivery over on Maple Street. And I pull up to this house. And who opens the door? Linda, my ex-wife Linda. She-</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We don't care. Enough of you and Linda. Stop calling. You're uninteresting. You're boring, Rocco. You're boring. Deliver your pieces and shut the fuck up. Next we've got Shanice. Sheenice, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I got in a fight last night in a parking lot in Lordsburg, and I started it, and now I cannot stop reading about wars on Wikipedia, and I do not know why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Jesus. That doesn't sound good. So why did you start the fight? You sound very angry. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>I mean, I am not angry right now. I am just sitting in a bathroom at a second Super 8 trying to figure out what the hell is wrong with me. This guy outside the bar would not leave us alone, kept running his mouth. And I just, I threw the first punch. My girlfriend jumped in. We both got our asses kicked. And now I have been up since three in the morning, reading about the defenestration of Prague and the 30 years war. And I cannot turn my brain off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, uh, what was he saying that guy who's so upset? It's not cool that he kicked two women's asses in a parking lot. That's not a very manly thing to do. But what was it that get your blood pressure pump in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHANICE</span><p>He was just being a drunk asshole, honestly. Said something about my girlfriend. I do not even remember exactly what now. Just kept going and would not shut up. But here's the thing, Luke. He was walking away. He was actually leaving. And I went after him. That is what I keep thinking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, uh, well, then maybe you got what you deserved. You can't just run up and punch people, even if they're assholes. That's a little thing that we call assault. And this time, it sounds like you got assaulted back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up on the roost line, we've got, uh, Donnie. Donnie, welcome to the show. What's going on in your you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Marco made a crack about me celebrating Taco Tuesday at Applebee's two hours ago. And now my wife won't talk to me because I told him that whole thing is disrespectful. We were at her sister's birthday at Los Arcos. Whole family there. And I said, yeah. Actually, I do think it's disrespectful. And the table went dead silent. She drove herself home in her own car. I'm at the Chevron off the ten right now. And I don't even know if I should go</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you sound like a pretty intense individual. So if you're saying something's disrespectful in that voice of yours, it's going to come across with some weight. It is disrespectful, but it's also a joke. So why are you taking it so seriously?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>Because it's not just a joke when it's every single time we're together. Marko's always got something. Last month, it was asking if I shop at the white people Walmart. Month before that, he's if I listen to country music in the truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't understand. Are you a white person yourself? Why would you shop at the white person Walmart? I've only seen one Walmart ever that wasn't a white person Walmart, and it's the one in Gallup, New Mexico, that's a very Native American Walmart. But the rest of them, I would probably venture to say, are mostly white Walmarts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>I'm Mexican. My dad's from Chihuahua. But I grew up here. I grew up here. I I don't speak Spanish. And yeah, I listen to country sometimes, because that's what's on when you're driving between job sites all day. Marco thinks that makes me some kind of sellout. Like there's a right way to be Mexican, and I'm doing it wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Marco might be a dickhead. That's all. Sometimes you got to deal with those people in your life. Does he have good qualities, too? Or is it always just pissing you off?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>He's good to my wife's sister. He works hard. He's got three kids, and he shows up for them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I mean, to you. I mean, are you friends with this guy? Like, do you have a rapport? Do you joke back and forth and help each other out when you need help and stuff? Like, would you consider him your friend?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>No. I mean, he's family. So I see him at these things. But we don't hang out. He doesn't call me. I don't call him. If his truck broke down, I'd probably go help him. But that's just what you do. I wouldn't say we're friends.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, then you don't have to be friends. And once in a while, you've got to see him at these family events, and he's going to say something stupid. And if it's disrespectful, yeah, you're right to tell him it's disrespectful. And if everybody else has a problem with that, I mean, you shouldn't have to hide that you're repulsed by somebody's off-color comments at the dinner table. But you have to articulate that without being a dickhead yourself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>I wasn't trying to be a dickhead. I just said I think the whole Taco Tuesday thing is disrespectful and I don't think it's funny. But the way everyone looked at me, like I just ruined the whole night. My wife's barely looked at me since.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, explain to me the Taco Tuesday thing, because when you say it's disrespectful, I think you're, is that a Mexican thing or is that like a tacos look like vaginas thing? Because I'm confused about where the disrespect is coming from.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DONNIE</span><p>It's the way white people treat Mexican food like it's some novelty. Like tacos are this fun little theme night at Applebee's with $2 margaritas, and sombreros on the wall. It's my culture turned into a marketing gimmick, and Marco knows that bothers me. So he's making the joke that I probably go to Applebee's for Taco Tuesday, because I'm not Mexican enough to care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, well, fuck that guy. He's an asshole, and you can go for Taco Tuesday because you like tacos. And Taco Tuesday is usually a great value. I recommend that you stop by the Road Forks gas station and see Taco Jerry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because if you're looking for tacos, there's really no better tacos around than Taco Jerry. I appreciate that, but that's not really the point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The point is, I can't win with this guy. If I go to Applebee's, I'm a sellout.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, we've already established that he's a dickhead, and there's nothing that you can do that's going to change that. You just have to learn how to interface with him so you're not both getting on each other's nerves. But you don't have to worry about what he thinks about you if he doesn't think you're Mexican enough. You don't sound very Mexican. You sound like a super villain, but I mean, you're as Mexican as you want to be, man. I don't know why that bothers you. Who cares what other people think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Because it's not just him. It's the whole table going quiet, like I'm the one who made it awkward. My wife won't even talk to me. She drove herself home separately, and I've been standing out here for two hours because I don't want to go home and deal with the silent treatment. I'm the bad guy for calling out bullshit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're not. You gotta speak up when somebody's offending you and if it pisses other people off, then, I mean, have a conversation with your wife and tell her, look, the guy's a dick. He's always giving me shit about my Mexicanness and I'm sick of it and I'm not going to stand for it anymore. And if she has a problem with that, you two work it out between yourselves. See why that bothers her so much because it really shouldn't be this big of a deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, but here's the thing. This isn't the first time. Last Thanksgiving, I got into it with her uncle about something else. And at Christmas, her dad made some comment, and I said something back. She says, I'm always looking for a fight at these family things. And maybe she's got a point. I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe she does have a point. You sound like a very sensitive man, very insecure in yourself. And maybe you should talk to a therapist or do some push-ups or something, or do something to have a little bit more confidence in yourself. Because those are the time types of things that should roll off you. A quick joke there. I mean, maybe it's a little bit annoying, but it shouldn't have you this pissed off, and it shouldn't have you ruining all the holidays. So maybe there is something there. And if it's not the first time you've caused one of these issues and embarrassed your wife in public, then maybe she's got a point, and you should look into that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I'm not embarrassed about who I am. I work hard. I run a good crew. I take care of my family. But yeah, maybe I do get defensive when people come at me like that. It's just, I grew up getting shit from both sides.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you have to be able to define what getting shit is and what getting ragged on is, right? This is a thing that dudes do to each other in general. Like, all, I don't know if women do this nearly as much as men do, but we all rag on each other. And it's not meant to cut deeply. Just, uh, it's our way of making conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>But there's a difference between ragging on somebody and making it about their identity. Like, you can give me shit about my truck or my haircut or whatever. But when you're making it about whether I'm Mexican enough, that's different. That cuts at something else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's you. I mean, there are other people that would be far more offended if you gave them shit about their truck. You know, if somebody's really into their truck and you give them a little bit of shit about their truck, they're going to feel sensitive about that. Sounds like you're sensitive about a lot, though. And that probably comes from an upbringing where both sides were picking on you, and that makes perfect sense. But now you're an adult and you've got to navigate the real world with other people and understand that everything, everybody says, isn't meant to get under your skin like that. And you letting it under your skin is affecting your relationships. So maybe talk to a therapist or find some other way to regain that constant in your identity, because it's obviously the identity that's bothering you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're probably right. I just don't know how to sit there and smile when somebody's taking shots at me. Even if he doesn't mean it the way I'm taking it, I can't just let it slide. And that's what gets me in trouble every time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you have to learn when to let it slide and when to say something about it, but not make it a big deal. And when to make it a big deal. And those are just interpersonal skills that you learn over time. If you know that you're prone to to get ultra-defensive, ultra-quickly around certain topics, if those are your triggers, then you can do certain techniques to avoid that, right? You can do breathing exercises or cognitive behavioral therapy. There are many different ways that you can identify, I don't want to call it a flaw, but what you're, you know, what triggers you to act in ways you don't want to and cut it off before it happens. And that takes effort and skill and time. But if you take that effort and learn those skills, I think you'll find that over time, you have a better, a better time in social interactions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. I mean, I appreciate that. I think part of me knows I'm doing it while it's happening, but I can't stop myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, we've all got those things, those personality defects that causes problems. And when they cause enough of a problem with our families or our friends or our jobs, then we have to take action to do something about them. So I suggest that you do. And now before we take another call, I think we're going to have to go to another word from our sponsors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Does your dog bark at nothing? Does he stare at the wall for 45 minutes and then sprint into a door? Does he ever growled at a specific corner of your house like he's seeing something you can't? Yeah, your dog's going through some stuff. Introducing calm down. Premium edibles for dogs. Each bacon-flavored chew contains a proprietary blend of chamomile, valerian root, and a third ingredient that we have patented so we don't have to tell you tell you what it is. Within 30 minutes, your dog will go from destroying your couch to sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor with a thousand yard stare, completely at peace with the universe. Will he see the same thing in the corner? Probably, but he won't care anymore. Side effects may include extreme chill, sudden interest in reggae, and your dog forgetting his own name, which, let's be honest, he already did. Calm down. Because your dog doesn't need a walk. He needs to calm the hell down. Not available in California. We cannot stress that enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and we are back. All right, next up on our caller line here, we've got Naomi. Naomi, welcome to the show. What's going on tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NAOMI</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I got promoted to shift supervisor at the care facility where I worked three weeks ago. And now my best friend, Delia, won't even look at me. Like tonight, I try to explain the new medication protocols during clothing, and she literally turned her back on me. Just completely shut me out. And Marcus, too. They're both missing their check-in times, making me look incompetent to the regional supervisor. And I don't know what to do because these are my people, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think you have to have a conversation with them and let them know that you are in a position of leadership over them and that they have to, follow your example. I mean, it's your job now to lead them. And if they're being insubordinate or giving you a hard time about that, then maybe you have to take corrective action. And that sucks because it's your friends, right? But you have to kind of choose. If they can't accept that you've been promoted and that they are now under you, then maybe they have the wrong jobs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NAOMI</span><p>Yeah. I mean, All right, I know you're right. It's just, well, shoot. Delia and I used to split cigarettes behind the building on breaks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NAOMI</span><p>And now, I'm the one who has to ride her up if she's late to Jekkins. And the thing is, I get why she's upset. She's been there two years longer than me. She trained me when I started. And honestly, she probably should have gotten the promotion instead of me. But she called in sick the week they were doing interviews, because her mom was in the hospital over Endemming.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sucks. And it's too bad for her, but it's not your fault that she wasn't there when they were doing the interviews, right? I mean, it's sad about her mom. It's sad she wasn't there. And the whole situation is a little bit messed up. But if she was a friend of yours, you should be able to have that conversation and let her know, look, I wasn't trying to do this. I wasn't trying to take this job out from under you. They just, they gave it to me. And now a minute. And if we're going to continue to work together, then we have to figure this out. to be an asshole. You don't have to lay down the law. But you can explain to them that their behavior right now is reflecting poorly on you. And that's not fair.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NAOMI</span><p>You're absolutely right. I need to just sit down with her and say that. The problem is I've tried twice already. And she won't even stay in the room with me. Like she'll literally find something she needs to do in another wing the second I walk in. And Marcus follows her lead on everything. So he's doing the same thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here's what I think you should do. I think you should give it a little bit of time, develop a plan, and have those conversations with them. But before that happens, talk to your management and let them know what's going on and tell them they don't need to get involved yet. This is part of the changing of the staff. And it's to be expected to some degree. And you've got a plan for it. You're going to address it. And if it doesn't work, you're going to give it, I don't know, before you ask for reinforcement.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NAOMI</span><p>Oh gosh, that's actually really smart. Because right now, the regional supervisor just sees me looking like I can't handle my own staff. But if I get ahead of it and tell her I'm working on it, at least she knows I'm aware of the problem. I've got my next check-in with her on Wednesday. I could bring it up then. The thing that's killing me, though, is I drove all the way out here to my grandma Yolanda's place in Hardin. cheat tonight because I just couldn't be in my apartment anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think that this approach is going to make your upper management respect you more because this is a problem that happens to a lot of people in management when they're promoted. It's an organizational issue and a culture issue. And if you can get in front of it, acknowledge it and develop a plan to deal with it. And that works, that's a big deal. And that's a big deal. And that's, shows a pretty extreme level of skill, right? It shows a maturity that not a lot of people in your position can pull off. So I think do that. Look at it as an opportunity to prove your skill in management.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NAOMI</span><p>You know what? I hadn't thought about it that way at all. I've just been sitting here eating my grandma's biscuit chitos and feeling like a complete failure. But you're right. This is actually a chance to show them. I can handle the hard parts of the job, not just the scheduling and the protocols. Oh gosh, Luke. That actually makes me feel so much better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. Anybody can learn the scheduling and the protocols. That's teachable. But when you can work with people at that level, in a management type role, that's something that is more special. It's more rare and more valuable, to be honest with you. Next up, we've got Reggie. Reggie, welcome to the show. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So I just got hit with a library fine that's basically wiped out everything I saved for a security deposit. And the weird part is the librarian knew my name before I even said anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait a second. A library fine? Like, what is it, 1986? How much could a library fine possibly be? How many books did you not return? Like, what's a library fine? Three dollars?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>No, it was one book. field guide to desert birds. The fine was $347.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Come on. No, it wasn't. $347? No way. I don't believe that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>I'm looking at the receipt right now, Luke. 23 years overdue. They cap it at $15 per book, but there's processing fees, replacement costs for the addition, some kind of administrative charge. It's all itemized.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, who cares? Don't pay. that that is stupid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>I already paid it. That's what I'm saying. I paid it because she said my name. The librarian, she just looked up and said, Reggie, before I even opened my mouth. And I just handed over my debit card like I was on autopilot or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you should call your bank and have them stop payment on that charge reported as fucking fraud, because that's, that's bullshit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>I mean, it's not fraud, though. I did check out the book, summer after high school. I remember doing it. And I never brought it back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but it's not worth $347. Stop it. You know damn well it's not worth that much money. They just ripped you off hard. There's no library in the country that keeps their records for that long and is going to charge you compounding interest for the rest of your fucking life. That's stupidness.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>The thing is, I know where the book's been this whole time. That's what's messing with me. It wasn't lost. I've seen it. I've had it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you should take it back into that library and then smash that librarian across her face with it. Because $347 is too much money to charge somebody at a library for literally anything. That's what I have to say to you. Don't play this game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>I can't take it back. I don't have it anymore. And the librarian, she wasn't trying to rip me off or anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, all right. Goodbye, Reggie. Good luck to you. Paying your rent, you, you dummy. Next up we've got Alia. Alia, welcome to the show. How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So my girlfriend moved out Thursday. And I am sitting here at one in the morning doing restaurant paperwork. And I just watched some guy in a BMW. leave his shopping cart wedged against a cactus in the parking lot. And I wanted to throw something through his window, which feels insane because it is just a shopping cart. But also, I think maybe I am angrier about the shopping cart than I am about Vanessa leaving. And I do not know what that means about me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It probably means that you're hurt and in some of of grief and anger is one of those stages and you saw something to project your anger onto, which is a shopping cart. And really, it all comes down to your hurt because your girlfriend left.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yeah. Okay. That makes sense. Except here is the thing. I am not even sure I am that hurt about Vanessa specifically. Like we have been together two years and she moved out. And I, I should be devastated, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know. I mean, two years isn't all that long and relationships aren't the end of the world. Sometimes they end and there can be devastation, but there's always some level of grief. And it might not be because you don't have Vanessa anymore. Maybe it's something internal. Like you feel like you can't uphold a relationship or whatever the details of your breakup there maybe are making you think less of yourself. in some way. Who knows? There's a million different things it could be. But it's probably related to the breakup, since that's the most significant event that's happened in your life recently, that would make you unreasonably angry at stupid shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>You are absolutely right about that. She laughed because I work too much. Which is true. I do work too much. I am the assistant manager at this Italian place. And I have been doing like. 60-hour weeks since January because our general manager quit and they have not replaced him yet. And Vanessa kept saying I was choosing the restaurant over her. And I kept saying I am not choosing anything. I am just doing my job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're going to have to probably spend some time with that one and decide how much your job means to you and how much the girl means to you. And maybe it's not over yet. You don't know. But just watch yourself and don't flip out on anybody. Because if you do, they could be police involved. I could make things way, way, way worse. So go easy with yourself. Take some time to think and sleep and enjoy having the whole bed to yourself. That's what I say. And we're going to take one more call tonight and then we'll be done. And our last caller tonight is Chip. Chip, welcome to the show. How can we help you, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Luke, okay, so picture this. I'm standing in my kitchen at one in the morning, right? And I just got off the phone with my actual lawyer. Not the Guatemalan one, my lawyer, the one I pay. And he tells me the photo is real. verified real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. So you're the guy that adopted the child that was actually stolen from Guatemala, and you talk to your lawyer. The lawyer says that the photo of your daughter that you adopted with her birth mother is real. And she's holding up a sign or something like that. You described the photo for us before. What else did your lawyer say about your rights in this situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>He said legally, I'm in the clear. Like, the adoption was done through a licensed agency. We followed every rule. We didn't know anything was shady. So nobody's coming to take her away from me or anything. But then he goes. However, morally and ethically, you might want to consider what's best for your daughter. And I'm like, what does that even mean? Best for her, how?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it means exactly what it says. You want to consider what's best for her. Should she be aware of her birth mother and her situation. Should you meet up and have visitation with the birth mother? Should she have an opportunity to go live in Guatemala for a little while? How do you and your wife want to deal with that? I think that's what he means.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Girlfriend. Teresa's my girlfriend. We're not married. And that's the thing, Luke. I haven't told her yet. She's at work right now. Graveyard shift at the hospital. And I'm sitting here watching our daughter's soccer uniform go around in the dryer, thinking about how I'm supposed to drop this bomb on her when she gets home at 7 in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Man, you're washing that soccer uniform all the time. You've got to get some more uniforms so you don't have to do so much goddamn laundry. That's my first suggestion for you is get a couple more uniforms, so you're not always the laundromat. Next, yeah, you've got to have this conversation with your girlfriend. But you don't have to do it right away. There's no time crunch on you. And morally and ethically, what your lawyer is suggesting is just that you consider it and maybe you do consider it and you decide that nothing changes and you're not going to tell your daughter about her situation. You don't have to. I don't know what the right answer is there. I've never been in that situation and not many other people have. So there isn't a right answer. You have to think about your family, your life, your daughter, her personality and what you're okay with and what feels comfortable to you guys. This is a parenting decision that you have to do</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing. I ate lunch with Steve today, my co-worker. And I almost told him before I tell Teresa. Like I had it right there in my mouth at the cafeteria. And I'm thinking, what is wrong with me that I want to tell some guy I eat sandwiches with before I tell the woman I've lived for nine years? And the lawyer also said the birth mother wants to talk to me. She sent a letter through the Guatemalan lawyer. She wants to meet my daughter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, she can wait. tell whoever you want to confide in. It doesn't matter who you tell first. None of that is relevant. You don't have to make any move right now. There's no legal basis pushing you to do anything. You can take your time and think it through and have these conversations in the best way possible for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Yeah, okay. But Luke, the letter says she's been looking for eight years. Eight years. My daughter is eight years old right now. This woman has been looking for her since the day she disappeared. And I keep thinking about that photo. The one with the crooked smile that's exactly like my daughter's smile. And I'm realizing this isn't just some bureaucratic mix-up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, she's been looking for eight years. She can wait another month for you to have these conversations and decide what you're comfortable with, all right? If you, if you are feeling guilty for some reason, if you feel like the right thing to do is to let the mother know right away, then have that conversation with Teresa tonight. And stop worrying about being paralyzed by having that conversation, because that's what's holding you up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>You're right, you're right. Big surprise there that I'm the one making this harder than it needs to be. It's just Teresa and I have been rocky lately anyway, like really rocky. And I feel like dropping this on her is going to be the thing that finally breaks us. She's already been talking about how exhausted she is. see each other anymore with her schedule.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, this is a big family decision, and she deserves to be involved in it. And if it breaks you guys up, it sounds like you're already on rocky ground. It's probably going to happen anyway. So, uh, talk to her. That's my advice for you is talk to Teresa, tell her what's going on, and then you two make the decision together about what you're comfortable with. That's all there is to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, so picture this. I tell Teresa tomorrow morning when she's a little. She gets home, she's exhausted from a 12-hour shift. And I hit her with, hey, honey, our daughter might have been stolen from her birth mother in Guatemala. That's going to go great. But you're right. I can't keep sitting on this. The dryer just stopped and I got to get her uniform out anyway. I'll tell Teresa tomorrow, I will.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you've got to tell her. She's going to be more upset if she finds out that you held off on it for a month or sent your daughter to Guatemala without her say. teller and deal with the fallout of that together as a family because that's what this is about. And with that, ladies and gentlemen, that is the end of our show. So tune in again tomorrow for more fantastic advice from me, Luke, at Luke at the Roost.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 32: Tacos, Taxes, and Tense Conversations</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-09T10:23:15+00:00">March 9, 2026</time> · 1 hr 37 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, Luke takes calls from Otis about a fake cancer lie, Brandy about workplace drama, Keith about generational work ethics, Slim about cultural appropriation, and Lakeisha about changing rural landscapes. Each caller brings a unique perspective on personal and societal challenges, leading to heated discussions about authenticity, opportunity, and transformation.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right, welcome back. I am Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's your late night call-in radio show where you can give us a call, and I'll give you advice about whatever's going on in your life, no matter how ridiculous or petty or nonsensical it is. If you'd like to give us a call, the number's 208-439-583. That's 208-439 Luke. right now and you'd still like to participate. You can send us an email anytime. The email address is submissions at luke at the roost.com. Today is Monday, March 9th. It's about 1 a.m. And we're about to get on the air here with our friend Otis. Otis, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Hey, Luke, appreciate you taking my call. So look, I need some advice on how to tell people I faked having Six months ago, I told my sister I had prostate cancer to get out of her fourth wedding. And now there's been a GoFundMe, a pancake breakfast fundraiser. My cousin shaved his head for me, and I just got a text with a picture of a check for $4,700. I have been trying to figure out how to come clean without everyone in Hatch wanting to murder me, and I am running out of time here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's pretty extreme. You must have really not wanted to go to that wedding. The only way out of this one is to give yourself prostate cancer. You should try eating some Oreos or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>You know what? I actually looked into whether you can give yourself cancer through diet, and apparently it takes like 30 years of really dedicated work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I bet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>So that timeline does not help me. But yeah, the wedding thing, her name is Delia, and this was husband number four. The guy owns a car wash in Las Cruces, and she wanted me to walk her down the aisle again because our dad is not in the picture. And I already did it twice, Luke, twice. The third wedding, I was in Guatemala, supposedly on a work trip, but I was actually just staying at my buddy Fernando's place in Deming, eating Cheetos and watching Netflix for a week. This time, I panicked and went bigger.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Martinez looked at my chart, did the exam, and then he sat down and he said, Otis, I don't know what you've been telling people, but you don't have prostate cancer. And I said, I know, Doc, I know. Long story. But you do have an enlarged prostate, and we should probably keep an eye on it. Could turn into something down the road. So now I'm sitting here thinking, what if I actually manifested this? What if I lied myself into almost having the thing I said I had?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, enlarged prostate is a serious matter. And maybe you should get some help from one of our sponsors here, the coffee enema. Maybe if you, you know, a large prostate is a serious matter. start doing that coffee enema nightly, it'll help your prostate tumor along. And then you're scot-free. Then you'll have the prostate cancer and you'll be honest with people going forward and you'll die an honest man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Luke, I cannot believe you just try to sell me a coffee enema while I'm having a moral crisis. That's beautiful. That's why I listen to this show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is a thing of beauty. It's really going to change your routine. That's what they say in the old ad. But, yeah, sir, I think you're a seriously disturbed individual. I don't know who watches Dune 2 three times. That's a long movie. I think you might be on your own with this one. And maybe you should try to stick to the truth going forward and just sit through the awful wedding as opposed to getting a whole town morning for you and running fundraisers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. But the worst part is I've been using some of that GoFund me money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Of course you have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>But like, I fixed my transmission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, I've had some time to think about this, and I'm going to change my stance. I think what you should do tomorrow is get yourself down at the town hall and run for office because I think you'll really get the sympathy vote and you, I think you have what it takes to be a politician. And you might really be able to make yourself some real money in the politics arena.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Luke, I don't have the stomach for politics.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You got the prostate for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Last time I tried to lie my way out of something, I ended up with a go-fund me and a cousin who shaved his head. If I ran for office, by the time the election rolled around, the whole town would think I was running for mayor and had terminal cancer. Next thing you know, I'm getting a key to the city and a funeral plot in the same ceremony.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like a win-win, sir. Then all the problems are solved with that one small act of civic service.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>You know what, Luke? You might be onto something. I could be the first mayor of Hatch to campaign from a coffin. Vote for Otis. He's already given everything for this town. Put that on a bumper sticker. My campaign slogan could be, I've got nothing left to lose, literally. But seriously, I still got to figure out what to tell my mom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think you've got to tell your mom that your stomach is upset and you're not feeling very good and you don't think you have much longer left. And hopefully, she gets worried enough that her heart goes into cardiac arrest and then you don't have to worry about that problem anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Jesus, Luke, that's dark even for you. My mom's the only person in this whole mess who actually cares whether I live or die.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you talking about? The whole town care. You get them all out there and shaving their heads and shit. Everybody cares if you live or die. Or at least they want people to think they care if you live or die. Either way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>You're right. That's the problem. They all care now because I'm dying. Six months ago, nobody gave a damn. I was just Otis, who works at UPS, and tells bad jokes at the bar.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Otis, I don't know what else to tell you. I'm going to pray for you. I've heard that the power of prayer can do wonderful thing. So we'll hope that that enlarged prostate turns into a tumorous prostate, and we can make an honest man out of you yet. We're going to have to go to the next caller now. I wish we had more advice for you, but you really fucked yourself on this one, sir. Do you have anything else you'd like to finish up with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah, Luke, just one thing. If this whole prayer thing works, and I actually do get cancer, I'm coming back on this show, and we're going to have a very different conversation about the power of your intercession. Thanks for nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you know, you're welcome. I'll have a pancake for you, buddy. Next up, we've got Brandy. Brandy, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>I just found out my boss is planning to bail on the company I've been wiring solar farms for, and he has no idea. I know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean bail on the company? A company that you're a vendor of, you're working with a partner of, you're working with a partner of, or is it the actual company that you work for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>The actual company I work for, Solar Tech. I'm an electrician there, have been for eight years. My boss, Rick, was on speaker fund with some HR person, talking about how the CEO couldn't manage a lemonade stand, how the whole place is a house of cards, how he'd be gone by summer if they made it worth his while. I was just microwaving my desk salad in the break room.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, running a lemonade stand is harder than people might think. You've got to pay attention to the books. You might have to manage some employees, and then they're going to have sniffly noses and stuff, and then customers are going to get upset, and it's a whole big thing. So I don't want you to think that CEOs can't manage a lemonade stand. It's harder than you might think. What you just described to me is literally every business. It's all a big house of cards and a show. So I don't understand why this is bothering you. Who cares if your CEO is going to bail.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Because Rick's the one who signs my checks, and if he's already got one fed out the door, that means my job's on a timer too. I'm not talking about some abstract corporate drama. I'm talking about the guy who approves my overtime, who decides whether we get new safety gear or keep using the same frayed gloves from 2018. If he's making exit plans, that's not just business as usual. That's me showing up to a job site next month and finding out the company's been sold off, or worse, that they've cut my departures to save on payroll. I've got rent. I've got a truck payment. I've got, look, I get that every company's a mess. But when the guy in charge of your paycheck starts treating the place like a sinking ship, you start wondering if you should have brought a life jacket to work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, that's not really quite how it works. CEOs are like those sniffly noses. They come and go seasonally. They just swap one out with another one. And then he tries to make his initiatives known the company and be the golden boy for a little while, and then that fails, and then they swap him out again. And that's just how it goes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>Rick's not the CEO. Rick's my direct boss. He's the operations manager. The CEO is the guy he was trashing on the phone. Rick's the one who decides if I get assigned to the good jobs or the garbage ones. If my hours get cut when things slow down, if I'm even still on the roster when he decides to jump ship, you swap out a CEO, fine, whatever. But when the guy who actually runs the day-to-day, starts bad-mouthing the company to HR and talking about his exit strategy, that trickles down to people like me real fast.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, not necessarily. See, if you're smart, then people like you trickle up to an operational manager. So somebody's going to have to replace the guy, and it might as well be you. That's what I say. So if I were you, you've got some insider information right now. I would be making some alliances within that company and trying to get my foot in the door for your buddy, Rick's job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>I wire junction boxes and troubleshoot inferters when the monsoons fry the grid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. I appreciate that. I guess I just needed to hear someone say, it's not the end of the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>It's not the end of the world, Brandi. You're going to be just fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Thank you for the call. And now it's time for us to go to a word from our sponsors. And we're going to go to the coffee anima sponsor just in case Otis is still around because these guys could maybe help him out with his prostate enlargement. All right. I'm going to read this ad exactly as they sent it to me. And I want you to know that I have concerns. The branch wellness wants you to know that your gut health starts, and I'm reading this directly from the card now, from the other end. They make an at-home coffee enema kit. It comes in a box that says wellness inside, on the outside, which I think we can agree, is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The kit includes a medical grade silicone bag, organic single origin coffee, because apparently the coffee you put in your, that that coffee needs to be single origin, a detailed instruction booklet, and a com card with a QR code to a guided meditation for during. During. There's a guided meditation for during. I'm not going to tell you what to do with your body. That's between you and your bathroom and whatever God you answer to. I will say the reviews are disturbingly positive. Four and a half stars. One guy said it has changed his morning routine, which I believe because it would absolutely change your morning routine. Phantom Ranch Wellness. I read the ad. I didn't endorse it. All right. And hopefully Otis was still around for that. He can give them a call and they can get him sorted. Next up on the line, we've got Keith. Keith, welcome to the show. What's going on tonight? How can we help you, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I've been watching my 26-year-old stepson crash and burn through his third job this year. And he just posted this whole thing on social media about how they didn't appreciate him. And I'm sick getting here thinking we absolutely destroyed this kid's generation with participation trophies and constant praise for doing the bare minimum.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, why are you looking at it like that? And not that we've absolutely destroyed the workplace and people are not appreciated as human beings there anymore. He might be right. That's been my experience is that companies don't give a fuck about you. So why should you give a fuck about them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Okay, but Luke, he got written up for being late five times in two months and his response was to tell his manager that the start time didn't align with his personal energy rhythms. His personal energy rhythms. This isn't some evil corporation grinding him down. This is a local marketing firm that gave him flex hours and let him work from home twice a week. They bent over backwards for this kid and he still couldn't show up on time or take feedback without getting defensive. I'm not saying every workplace is perfect, but at some point you have to ask yourself if maybe the problem is that we raised a generation that thinks showing up is enough?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, I can ask myself that I didn't raise any part of this generation, so I take no part in it. But I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's hard to say because we've allowed a workplace environment where just paying the bare minimum is enough. So why isn't just showing up enough?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Because that's not how anything works, Luke. You don't get to coast in life and expect rewards. I run a logistics company. I've got drivers who show up every single day, on time, in the snow, in hundred 100 degree heat and they do their jobs without needing a pat on the back every five minutes. That's what adults do. But this kid, and I'm seeing it with the new hires too, they expect praise just for clocking in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, things change. I'm trying to play the devil's advocate here. I do agree with you on some level, but it's not. I can't just get behind that this new generation is shit. Because in my experience, the workplace has gone to shit and people are not respected and they expect too much all the time. Like, people will complain that people come into work and do the bare minimum while they pay them the literal legal minimum wage. There's no reward. What's the reward there? They can't even afford to live. That's not reward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>All right, fair point on the minimum wage thing. I'm not talking about someone making eight bucks an hour at a fast food place. This kid was making 42,000 a year with benefits at a job friend got him. Forty-two thousand to post on Instagram and write email campaigns. And you know what his complaint was?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't care what his complaint was, really, because $42,000 isn't enough to wipe your ass. $42,000 a year is not a lot of money. That's about what you can expect somebody to just show up for. If you want to, like, what do you think $42,000 is? Come on. Can you buy a house with $42,000? Could you buy a car with $42,000?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Luke, he lives in his money. He lives in his money basement rent free. He's not trying to buy a house. And yeah, $42,000 for a 26-year-old entry-level marketing job in Salt Lake is pretty standard. I started at a warehouse making $19,000 in the 90s, which is probably like 35 now with inflation. And I didn't have my parents paying my rent.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, good for him, but we're talking on an overall level for all people. And because $42,000 is the standard, that doesn't make it right, and that's the, you're getting what you pay for. You get what you pay for. And if you're paying $42,000, which I don't know if you've noticed, but diesel is $4.15 a gallon right now. You're going to get the minimum back from them. If you're giving them a living wage where they don't have to, you know, worry about how they're going to make ends meet, after working eight, 10, 12 hours a day, posting stupid Instagram ads that some douchebag that doesn't know anything about marketing or graphic design has forced them to make. Yeah, that's shitty. It's a shitty job. It's a shitty workplace. And I can't really blame this new generation for being less than ideal workers because they're not being treated fairly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing. He was being treated fairly. This kid had a job that paid more than minimum wage with benefits, and he still couldn't hack it. And I'm not saying every workplace is perfect, but at some point you have to ask yourself, if you're not willing to put in the effort, why should anyone else put in the effort for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not seeing where any effort's been put in the effort in. The minimum... Where's the effort being expended here on anybody's part? And I'm not talking about him. You said the whole generation. I'm talking about everybody across the country that works for any company. Not just this one kid who may very well be a lazy douchebag with his personal energy rhythms and all that. I don't know. I don't understand all that. And it seems stupid to me, sure. But the larger point here is that companies are assholes and they don't deserve more than the minimum because they're giving the minimum.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You want to know where the effort is? This company gave him flex hours, let him work from home twice a week. His manager sat down with him personally to go over his performance reviews instead of just firing him. They paid for a LinkedIn learning subscription so he could build his skills. But the second he got written up for being late, not fired, written up, he quit and blamed them on social media. And Luke, I hear what you're saying about companies being assholes. I really do. But we can't just throw our hands up and say everyone's a victim.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's true. And if they did make real attempts to work in his personal development, then yeah, he was an asshole about it. Sure. But we can throw our hands up and say everyone's a victim when everybody's being treated as a victim. And I would say the vast majority of people in the new generation are being treated like expendable victims. They're not being taken care of. It's more expensive to live than it ever has been. And when you get a good job, There is no level of job security. They don't get a pension. There's no loyalty. They could get laid off at any minute for any reason. I'm not seeing why they should feel the same level of work ethic that you and I did 20, 30 years ago. Because the companies are not treating people in the same way. Generally, I don't know what happened at this company. And maybe this kid is a piece of shit. I don't know. What question are you asking? How can I help you here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I guess what I'm asking is, am I wrong to think we screwed this up? Because when I watch this kid bounce from job to job, posting about how the world doesn't understand him, I keep thinking about those participation trophies, about how we told an entire generation that just showing up was enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, because I was never involved in the whole just showing up is enough. I missed that whole part of when we told people that. But what I saw was everything that I saw in the news and everything that I experienced experienced in the workplace and oh, now, sorry, you don't get your bonus because whatever, because we decided you don't. Or, oh, we actually can't do performance reviews because, oh, I don't know, whatever. And, oh, you know what, we don't want to raise the minimum wage because it costs us so much money to do these ad campaigns for Ronald McDonald, whatever the fuck it is and don't have that, I don't know, personal experience there. Like, I don't have kids, so I didn't give anybody any participation, participation trophies. What I saw from the workplace, from the corporate environment, deserves what happened. Like, you can see why it happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You know what? Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm blaming the trophies when I should be looking at the fact that his mother has been bailing him out his entire life. She got him the job. She lets him live rent-free, and every time he quits something, she tells him it's because he's too creative for these corporate environments.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm sitting here mad at participation trophies when the real problem is he's never had to face a real consequence in his life because someone's always there to catch him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Maybe. That could be. I don't know. But I've seen the world be not deserving of additional work ethic. We bail out the banks, too, when they fuck up and steal from us and do predatory lending. We're like, okay, well, you know, here's some money. And then they go spend that on their yachts publicly. Like, they don't even hide it. It's reprehensible. And then COVID happens. And then there's all that mess. And it's like every single event that you read about in the news about how the world works proves to these kids that the world doesn't give a fuck about you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but Luke, at some point you still have to show up for yourself. I get it. The banks got bailed out. Corporations are greedy. The system is rigged. But what's the alternative? You just give up? You bounce from job to job posting about your energy rhythms and wait for the world to change because that's what I'm watching happen. And it's not getting him anywhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, maybe he doesn't want to go anywhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Because like you said, he's well taken care of where he's at. He's not paying rent. His mother bails him out. That's probably not good when you're, what did you say, 26 years old? Maybe you've got to set him loose. Set him for real to figure out his way in the world, but you can understand where he's coming from and why he's not as excited and eager to show loyalty and work ethic in the workplace. Because why? Why would you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because I don't want him to end up like me. I'm 52 years old, and I've spent my whole life working for a company that's going to replace me with a spreadsheet the second I slow down. I don't have a pension. I don't have a 401k that's going to save me. And I sure as hell don't have a mother who's going to bail me out when I can't make rent. I want him to have something I never did. A safety net, sure, but also the drive to build something that lasts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, you had the drive to build something that lasts, right? And how'd that work out for you? You've got the work ethic of our generation, don't you? How did that work out for you? Your company doesn't give a fuck? They're not even going to wait for a spreadsheet to replace you next week with AI, like everybody else. So, I mean, they're going to replace you with the cheapest version of you possible. So maybe he's got it right by tapping out of the whole capitalistic industrial complex and following his energy rhythms. I don't know. He could be right. The new generation, you know, let them figure it out. We don't have to act like we know anything. We obviously don't. We fucked it all up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what? You're absolutely right. I spent 30 years doing everything I was supposed to do. Showed up early, stayed late, never complained, put the company first. And what do I have to show for it. A boss half my age who doesn't know what I do, a salary that hasn't kept up with inflation, and the constant fear that one bad quarter means I'm gone. Maybe he looked at my life and said no thanks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yes. Maybe watching me grind myself down for nothing taught him exactly what not to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes. And here I am calling you mad that he won't make the same mistakes I did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Exactly. You know, maybe they're on the right track. I don't disagree with them. Totally. I mean, I find it annoying too when people are lazy and are not able to do the job and dumb, but people have been lazy and not able to do the job and dumb forever. That's always been the case. You can't just blame this generation for it or say it's because of a participation trophy. It's not. It's because they watched us destroy society and it's completely fucked. And they don't want to participate. And I don't blame them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but then what's the answer, Luke? Seriously, if the system's broken and opting out means living off your mom's good graces until she dies, then what? What are we supposed to do? What's the middle ground? Because I'm not saying he needs to be a corporate drone, but he also can't just float through life waiting for inspiration to strike while his stepdad, me, is working his butt off to keep the lights on for everyone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, I think the answer is enough of the people. The entire generation is tapping out. And then that grinds the corporations to a halt because they actually need people to do the work. And if they're not showing up to do it, then they're going to have to, you know, change their ways. But as long as there's people with the work ethic to do it, and get ripped off every day and go in with a smile, they're going to continue. They're going to continue doing what they do. And it's never going to get better. So I think it sucks that it's just him and you're on the hook to support him and maybe you shouldn't and he'll have to find his way some other way, whether by starting his own business or being a fucking TikTok influencer or making money, getting leads for companies, whatever it is that he finds himself doing to make money, he has to make money to do that, but it doesn't necessarily have to be a nine to five job for some company that's going to out him as soon as they can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I hear you, but here's the thing. He's not out there trying to start a business or build something. He's just quitting jobs and posting about how the world doesn't understand his potential. And I get it. The system's rigged, but at some point you have to meet the system halfway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Okay, well, you met the system halfway, and you must be on your way to retirement, right? Oh, no pension, right? No 401K, huh? So you're supporting him now with your bare minimum money, because $42,000 is really good in your mind, right? So when you get to retirement, if you ever get to retirement, who's going to take care of you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nobody. That's the answer, Luke. Nobody's going to take care of me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, you better hope that that kid figures it out then, huh?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's the sick irony of it, isn't it? I'm sitting here mad at him for not grinding like I did, but the whole reason I want him to figure it out is because I know I'm going to need him someday. don't have savings. And his mom, my ex-wife, she's not going to be there for me when I'm 70 and can't work anymore. So maybe I'm not really mad that he's lazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, well, that makes more sense. And hopefully, I mean, you should be able to talk to him and maybe tell him that and put it in his mind. Like, hey, I understand that working sucks. And maybe you don't want to do this traditional nine to five stuff because it doesn't sync You're going to have to come up with a way to make money, and then maybe support and help different alternative ways of him doing that. And maybe he'll remember that. And when you're 70 and need some money, he'll be making it if there's still money left at all that Elon Musk doesn't have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what, Luke? That's actually the conversation I should have had instead of the one I've been having, which is just me telling him he's screwing up and needs to get his act together. Because all that does is make him defensive and makes me sound like every other boomer telling kids to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. Maybe if I actually leveled with them and said, look, I played by the rules and it didn't work out. So let's figure out what does work for you. Maybe that gets somewhere? I don't know. It's hard to admit to your stepson that you don't have the answers when you spent 20 years pretending you did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, I can understand that. And I think that's the right thing to do. And, you know, maybe you two can together come up with a solution that makes you both money and start some sort of a family business where you're doing the kind of work that you want to do, making the kind of money that you want to make, working the kind of energy flow routine that fits with everybody's lifestyle. That's the answer. It's not telling him to grind. Because grinding gets you nowhere, and you're proof of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I am proof of that. 25 years in logistics, and I'm one bad month away from being in real trouble. You're right. A family business. Something we build together. That actually makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, but don't pretend you know everything because you are a boomer, and you don't know everything. You don't know what the world is like today. You don't know what he knows about technology and about the trends and about what people his age are buying and want to put money towards. So take his lead and use his skills because he does have skills, even if you can't see them and you don't know what they are. They're there. And the boomers know, I mean, I don't know, Gen Z or whatever, Jen, they know what they want their world to look like. So if you can get on board with him, I think you'll do a better job than trying to force him on board with you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're absolutely right. I don't know what I don't know. He grew up with the internet in his hand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>He sure did. And he understands how it works more than you know. So listen to him. And don't write him off as a lazy kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Even if he is a little bit lazy, that's, I mean, you can work with that. You can try to impart some level of work ethic without pushing what you did. Because what you did didn't work. And it's not going to work. And it's going to work less and less and less every year that goes by. So you figure out what it is that he's got his pulse on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You're right. I've been so focused on what he's not doing that I haven't asked him what he is doing or what he sees coming. He's on his phone all the time, and I just assume he's wasting time. But maybe he's actually paying attention to something I'm completely blind to. I need to stop lecturing and start listening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, that's something my mom did right when I was a kid. She got me a computer when I was really young and I spent all my time on that computer and everybody thought I was wasting time. wasn't wasting time. I was learning how fucking computers worked, and it was very lucrative for me in the 90s and 2000s. That's over now, but there was a time that it made me very, very valuable. I mean, more so than any of my teachers or anybody else that I even knew. So lean into what he's doing and support that, and it might pay dividends. That's my advice for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's good advice, Luke. I appreciate it. I called in here thinking I was going to vent about trophies, and instead, you just made me realize I've been the problem. I need to have a different conversation with him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, and we can get rid of trophies altogether. We don't need trophies anymore. But thank you for the call. I hope that goes well for you. Let us know how it turns out, all right? Next up on the line, we've got Crystal. Crystal, welcome to the show. How can I help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So, I was out metal detecting this afternoon, which is something I do maybe once a week need to clear my head. And I found my phone. My actual phone that I lost two weeks ago, out past the old cemetery, still had battery somehow, which is crazy, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, not bad. That's a, that's a solid battery. You must have it on low power mode.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Right. Yeah, I must have. But here's the thing. When I turned it on, I had all these messages I'd missed. And one of them was from another parent on my this link to a news article about Coach Mike, our coach, the kids coach, and it's about something that happened 15 years ago in Arizona.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, first of all, it's crazy that you went two weeks without a phone and you didn't replace that shit immediately and get your messages. I don't know how you can do that in today's world, but besides that, this doesn't sound like it's going to be a good story. What happened to the coach? What the coach do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>He was arrested for solicitation of a minor, 15, years ago in Tucson. He did 18 months, and I've been sitting in my workshop for three hours now, just staring at this article, because this is Mike we're talking about. Mike who brings orange slices in a cooler he hand-painted with the teen colors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Mike the coach. I mean, could you be more cliche? Of course. That's exactly what I expected when you said, coach.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>No, no, no. But you don't understand, Luke. This isn't just a coach. This is Coach Mike. My sister, she trusts him completely. He taught my nephew how to bunt for crying out loud. He shows up to every single game, even in monsoon season, when the rest of us are huddled under umbrellas, looking miserable. He's just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's just a pedophile.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>I mean, yeah, I guess. But 15 years, Luke. Maybe he's not a pedophile anymore. That goes away, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if it goes away. That's the thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>I keep turning over in my head. Like, he did his time, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think that's how it's supposed to work. I think once you've done your time for that, you're not allowed to coach anymore. So however he ended up being the coach is probably not okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>That's what I keep coming back to. Because there's background checks, right? There have to be background checks for little league coaches. So either he lied or someone knew and didn't care. Or there's some loophole I don't understand. And that scar over his eyebrow that he always jokes about, saying he got it sliding into home plate when he was a kid. Did he get it with a beer bottle knife?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, no, he said it was a baseball bat.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>But now I'm wondering if that's true. I mean, he's got this whole story about it, how he was showing off for his dad and slipped on the wet grass and, wait, why am I even telling you this? That's not the point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, have you talked to anybody at the school or the team about this, the police even. I don't know if this is the type of thing that you want to take to a radio host if he's in close proximity to all your children.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>That's why I'm calling you, Luke, because I don't know what to do. If I go to the school, if I go to the league, I blow up my nephew's whole season. I blow up my sister's life because she's going to feel like the worst mother in the world for not knowing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he might be blowing up more than your nephew's season.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Okay, so yeah, you got to do something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know. I know that. But what if I'm wrong? What if there's an explanation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Let you let the police figure that out. And they can do whatever types of investigation they have to do. But, I mean, you read the article. It's Coach Mike. I assume that's got a picture of him in it, and you've confirmed that it's the same Mike. And if you're sure, and he's the coach of Little League, you can't allow that to continue because it would make your sister feel bad if you said something. If he's continuing to do what he does to kids, he could be ruining lives, not seasons, lives, entire forever. And you can't let that happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>You're right. God, you're right. I've been sitting here for three hours trying to talk myself out of it, trying to find a reason why it's okay to just keep my mouth shut.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there is no reason it's okay. It's not okay for you to keep your mouth shut. If you've got that information, then you have to take get to people that can look into it. And if you don't, then you're, I mean, a rotten person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>That's harsh, Luke. But yeah, yeah, I guess that's what I needed to hear. Because every time I pick up the phone to call someone official, I think about my nephew crying when they canceled the season two years ago for COVID. Or I think about Mike staying late after practice to work with the kids who are struggling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I bet. He painted that cooler himself with all their names on it. Yeah, that's not creepy at all. Call the cops. Let him know. Jesus. Look at what's going on here. Uh, Mike's not your buddy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>No, you're right. He's not. I don't even know him. Not really. I just know what he shows us. And that article, it was from Colorado 15 years ago. Inappropriate contact with a minor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, every minute you spend on the line with me is another minute he could be doing some after-school tutelage with one of your children. So I would hang up and call the police immediately.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Okay. Okay, I'm going to do it. Right now, soon as I hang up. I'm going to call the non-emergency line and tell them what I found. And then I'm going to have to call my sister before she hears it from someone else. Because that's going to be a nightmare.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, better to call her and find all that out now than to find out 20 years down the line that something was going on and you could have prevented it. So I hope all of that works out. Good luck to you. And I hope you continue to have a wonderful season. Jesus. And now it's time for some words from our sponsors. Are you tired of your protein having a shape? Introducing Meat Cube, the world's first geometrically perfect meat product. Every meat cube is exactly two inches by two inches by two inches of lab engineered protein that we are legally required to call meat adjacent. What animal is it from? Absolutely none of your business. What we can tell you is that Meat Cube has been approved by the FDA.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Not the American one, but one of them. Meat Cube is a shelf stable for 11 years. It does not need to be refrigerated. Honestly, refrigeration seems to make it angry. Each cube contains 40 grams of protein, zero grams of fat, and a faint electrical charge that our lawyers say is within acceptable limits. Meat Cube comes in three feet. flavors. Original, smokehouse, and, uh-oh. You can grill it, fry it, or just set it on the counter and watch it slowly rotate on its own, which it will do. We don't know why. Meat Cube. It's not meat. It's not not meat. It's not meat. It's meat cube. Available at grocery stores that have recently fired their health inspector. Use code Chew Harder for free shipping. We are back. Thanks to meet you for the sponsorship there. Next up on the line, we've got Slim. Slim, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for having me. So I'm sitting here at this U-Haul place, right? Covering graveyard shift for my cousin. And a couple hours ago, these people came in wearing matching Taco Tuesday squad shirts. And I know that sounds like nothing, but it sent me down this whole thing about food appropriation. And I cannot let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>let it go because food appropriation is not a thing, right? It doesn't matter. It's a taco. Somebody called in the other day all pissed off about Taco Tuesday, too. And you know what? You should be grateful that tacos are getting the attention they deserve. And it's not appropriation. People like tacos. Tacos are cheap and easy to produce. And they are a good seller for most pubs. So I don't see the problem here, but I'm not Mexican, so I guess I wouldn't, would I?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Wait, wait, wait, hold on, Luke. You cannot just dismiss this like that. This is exactly what I'm talking about. It is not about being grateful that white people like tacos. It is about the fact that my grandmother sold tamales door to door in the 50s to keep her family fed and got called a dirty Mexican for it. And now some brewery in Scottsdale is charging $18 for gourmet street tacos and getting written up in Phoenix Magazine like they invented something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The problem is not that people like the food. Look, every culture's food is appropriated in this way. You're lucky that you're not the fucking French, because then you would have the Chris sandwich. How would you like that? The Chris sandwich? Uh, every, every single culture, there's fucking SpaghettiOs? Do you think the Italians like that there's SpaghettiOs that are made into alphabet letters so you can spell your name out on your fucking spoon? Enough. Enough. Enough with cultural food appropriation. You can't play the victim here when it happens to everybody across the board. There is no culture whose food is safe from marketing. Right? That's America. And go get yourself a whopper. You know, is that cultural appropriation? I think white people invented the hamburger. I don't fucking know. But Taco Tuesday is not a thing you have to be pissed off about. And I'm sorry that your grandmother was called the dirty Mexican that's not nice, but it doesn't have anything to do with tacos, Taco Tuesday, food appropriation, or restaurants.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>No, Luke, you are missing the entire point. It is not the same thing. When Italians get SpaghettiOs, nobody is calling their grandmother dirty for making pasta.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, the Italians were never called dirty? Have you ever heard of a greasy wop? A guinea? Of course they were. Every culture is made fun of and called me names and every single culture. We're talking about food, though, and every food is culturally appropriated and used by the marketing machine to sell more of them. Tacos just get it quite a bit because they're inexpensive to produce.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Okay, but that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about the erasure that happens. It's not just about marketing. It's about taking something it of its origins and its cultural significance, and then presenting it as something new and trendy, often by the very people who look down on it to begin with. It's not just every food gets marketed. It's about who gets to profit, who gets the credit, and whose history gets conveniently forgotten. Like, there's this whole thing about how Mexican food in the United States, especially here in the Southwest, was developed by Mexican Americans by Tejano's, specifically to adapt to ingredients available here. And that was always looked down on as peasant food. But now you have chefs, often white chefs, taking those exact same dishes, putting a new spin on them, and suddenly it's elevated cuisine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's never elevated cuisine. No, it isn't. It's Taco Tuesday. There's nothing elevated about that. It's cheap tacos that you get at happy hour. Two for two dollars or one whatever. I know that there is some elevated cuisine bullshit going on all throughout the country in all ethnic foods and non-ethnic foods. And at what point can you say what, like nobody owns a food. That's a silly proposition. And it is marketing. It is entirely marketing. And they're not just selling the food. They're selling the experience. They're selling the restaurant and the very well-trained waiters and the fancy wines and shit. So, no, I don't, I don't buy this. I just don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Luke, you're conflating two different things. The cheap taco Tuesday at the dive bar. Fine, whatever. But I'm talking about the boutique places. I'm talking about the James Beard nominated chefs who are doing modern interpretations of Mexican street food and getting all the accolades while the actual Mexican restaurants down the street that have been making the real thing for 30 years can't get a write-up in the local paper.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>They could absolutely get a write-up in the local paper if they wrote a press release and sent it to the local paper. And you called me talking about Taco Tuesday. Not talking about whatever boutique place bullshit you're babbling about now, James Beard,! Whoever the fuck that is. I don't care. This is stupid. It's a taco. There's not a whole lot to it. It's a tortilla shell with some shit in it. I don't know. What do you want? A cookie?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>No, I don't want a cookie Luke. I want you to understand that when a white couple walks into my workplace, wearing matching Taco Tuesday squad shirts like it's some kind of cute personality trait. It's emblematic of a bigger issue where my culture gets turned into a costume. And yeah, I started with Taco Tuesday, because that's what set me off tonight. But it's connected to the bigger picture. You're acting like I'm being precious about a tortilla, but what I'm actually about is a pattern where Mexican food was stigmatized when Mexican people made it. And now it's celebrated when white people rebrand it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't, I think what you're talking about is absolute bullshit. And I'm sorry if you feel like your culture has been appropriated by white people, but they're just trying to sell tacos. And you don't own tacos. They're not particularly special in any way. And I'm not going to, I'm not going to go where you want me to go on this one, because I Don't agree with you. This is a silly thing to be upset about. Yeah, people wear Taco Tuesday shirts because they like to go to the bar where they have Taco Tuesday because they can get two tacos for two dollars. It's not that big of a deal. It's not cultural appropriation. I agree that there is cultural appropriation all over in different ways, but food I don't think is one of them. And I think it's silly for people to get upset about it. Because what you're talking about, I've never seen a white person stigmatized Mexican food ever. In my entire, I'm 43 years old. I've never seen anybody badmouth Mexicans for making Mexican food. I've seen lots of people badmouthed Mexicans for other reasons. Some of them are funny, and they're all, you know, off color. But, uh, but not food. And that goes the same for every single other culture. Chinese people, African American people, Iranian people, Turkish people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Go to San Francisco. You can eat at fucking sushi Rito. Sushi Rito! Luke, just because you haven't seen it, doesn't mean it didn't happen. My grandmother literally experienced it. She got doors slammed in her face in the 50s and 60s selling tamales in Tucson. That happened. And you're right. You're 43. You didn't see that because it was before your time. But the legacy of that stigma is still there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's still there because you're holding on to it that was 60 fucking years ago. And I'm sorry that happened to her. That's horrible. And people were and mean, but that's not what's going on with Taco Tuesday and people wearing their Taco Tuesday shirts. So you can be as pissed off and as butt-hurt as you want about cultural appropriation of your tacos, but I think it's bullshit and you need to get over it. That's what I think. And if you're looking for a different answer for me, you're not going to get it because I just don't see how Mexicans specifically have been called out in this way. This happens to every culture, all of them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know what, Luke? You're right that it happens to every culture. But that doesn't make it okay, and it doesn't mean we shouldn't talk about it. And yeah, maybe I am holding on to it. But when you grow up hearing those stories from your grandmother, when you watch her make food with her hands that people used to turn their noses up at, and then you see it repackaged and sold back to you as trendy, it sticks with you. You can call that being butthard if you want, but it matters to me. And the fact that you think it's silly doesn't change But it's real for a lot of people. I'm not asking you to fix it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, how do you think it even could be fixed? Do you want people to not eat tacos if they're not Mexican? Is that what you want? Do you want people to not have Taco Tuesday because your grandmother got made fun of 60 years ago for making tacos? Lots of things people turn their nose up at 60 years ago that they don't turn their nose up now. That's a little thing we call marketing. I mean, values and cultures change over time. And 60 years ago, this was a very very different country. I mean, we're going back to the way that that country was, and I don't think anybody's happy about that, except for the half of the country that is. But my point is, what would you like me to do about that? What would you like anybody to do about this? Because I think your argument here is it doesn't hold water. It's stupid. And you're pissed off for no reason. And I don't know what to tell you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I don't want people to stop eating tacos, Luke. That's not what I'm saying. What I want is for people to acknowledge where it comes from. I want the white chef who wins the James Beard Award for his innovative take on street tacos to maybe mention that he learned it from the Mexican women who've been making them in that neighborhood for decades. I want the food writers to cover the actual Mexican restaurants.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>With the same enthusiasm, they cover the boutique places. They don't want to go to the actual Mexican restaurants because they are largely dirty. Right there, small. They're crowded. They're a pain in the ass to get to. They're not going there. They're going to the nicer, cleaner, upscale places that are fancy. That's what they're writing about. That's what's making the money. They're not going to go to a Mexican street vendor and write an article about the old lady that's been making tacos for 60 years because it's not a story. And the James Beard Award chef was born 30 years ago. He didn't learn how to make tacos from the old Mexican ladies down the street. He learned to make tacos from fucking Taco Bell.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Jokita Taco Bell. You just called Mexican restaurants largely dirty, Luke. You hear yourself right now. That's exactly the stigma I'm talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's because the Mexican restaurants I've been to are largely dirty. There's flies flying around. They're not, uh, they're not pristine. It's not fucking Caesar's Palace. And that's part of the charm of them. But you can't say they're not dirty. They are. They're not air-conditioned in a lot of places, and they're not clean in a lot of places, and that's, I don't know if that's a cultural thing, or if that's a money thing, or whatever, but it's not the same experience as going into a Michelin-Star restaurant. That's why you're not getting the articles written. It's not because they're Mexican. It's because the place isn't that pleasant to go into.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Luke, you're conflating authentic family-run places with dirty. There's a difference between a small operation that doesn't have marble countertops and a place that's actually unsanitary. And yeah, some of them are in strip malls or food trucks, but that doesn't mean they're dirty. The health department inspects them just like everywhere else. What you're describing as not pleasant is often just not designed for white customers. No tablecloths, no mood lighting. It's just good food. And the fact that you think that's inherently 30 says more about your expectations than it does about those restaurants.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Except I'm not talking about the ones that are strip malls and food trucks. I'm talking about the ones in Mexico that don't have air conditioners or people wiping the tables. And that seems to be okay there. And I don't know what health department is inspecting them, but I'm pretty sure there's none.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're talking about Mexico like it's some monolith, Luke. There are Michelin-starred restaurants in Mexico City with health inspections just as strict as anywhere. And yeah, there are small family-run places that might not have air conditioning, but that doesn't mean that dirty. You're acting like every Mexican restaurant is some back alley operation, and that's the problem. You're judging an entire culture's food based on a handful of places you've been to. And let me ask you this. When was the last time you ate at a Mexican restaurant that wasn't a chain or some upscale place?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, some years ago, many years ago. But I have. And it was dirty. And I'm not saying unsanitary. I'm saying dirty, like with dirt in places. And, you know, I still ate there. I didn't feel it like it was unsafe. And stop putting words in my mouth. I'm not doing that. I'm saying they're dirty because they're fucking dirty, dude. I've been there. I've seen it. And, you know, the Michelin Star restaurants in Mexico City you're talking about. They're getting the articles written about them. They're Michelin Star. That's part of it, you know. You're talking about about little mom and pop places and then like trying to pin me as some sort of racist douchebag and it's not the case. So get out of here with your Taco Tuesday cultural appropriation. It's bullshit. And I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna let you put me in this position where I'm being an asshole about it. I'm not. I'm telling you what I see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>And you're telling me what you see. I'm not trying to pin you as anything, Luke. I'm telling you that when you should, you're say Mexican restaurants are largely dirty. That reinforces a stereotype that hurts real businesses. And those Michelin star places in Mexico City, they're not the ones getting written about in American food magazines. When some white chef opens a taco spot in Portland.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, of course they're not. Why would they be? And how many, uh, Mexico City publications of writing about the taco place in Portland? Come on, where is your fucking argument here? What you're saying is nonsense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>is that when Mexican food gets elevated in the United States, it's almost always by non-Mexican chefs who get the credit and the awards, while the people who actually created and preserved those recipes stay invisible. You're acting like this is just about who writes about what restaurant, but it's bigger than that. It's about who gets to profit from a culture's food.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Who gets taken seriously? And who gets dismissed? The Portland Taco Place gets venture capital funding, James Beard nominations, the family that's been making the same recipes for three generations gets gentrified out of their neighborhood.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's the pattern I'm talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think that pattern is nonsense and it doesn't fit in the American, you know, you can't claim ownership of a type of food. That is silly. You can go anywhere in the world and learn how to make a meal and then bring it back and make a restaurant. That doesn't mean you're culturally appropriating and profit off the backs of generations of people? No. It's just not true. You want to be hurt about something and you're picking this to be hurt about and I think it's nonsense. I think it's fucking stupid. And I'm not going to agree with you. Unless you got some kind of real point here that could change my mind, I don't think you're going to because I don't see it the way you see it at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right that anyone can learn to cook any cuisine. I'm not saying people shouldn't be allowed to open Mexican restaurants. What I'm saying is there's a double standard in how those restaurants get treated. When Rick Baylis opens a place, he gets profiled in the New York Times. When My Tia opens a place with the same recipes her grandmother taught her, she gets health code violations for keeping her comel too close to the prep station.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, because her comel is too close to the prep station, and she's not following the rules of the health board. She should get health violations for that. You can't just, that's what I'm saying. The Mexican restaurants that I've been to are largely dirty. And there's a reason that they're not getting the press that you want them to be getting. It's because it's not the same experience. And it's not something that people want to go spend a bunch of money on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You just proved my point, Luke. You're saying Mexican restaurants don't get press because they're dirty and not worth spending money on. That's the stereotype I'm talking about. My tea is really. restaurant isn't dirty.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you just proved my point when you said, uh, your, I don't know what Tia is, that your Tia's restaurant got board of health violations for having the comel, whatever that is, too close to the prep station. That's what I'm saying. Like, you got to, you got to follow the rules. If it was the same experience as a venture capitalist funded restaurant with the marble tables and the nice mood lighting and the tablecloths and the, and the, the, the, air conditioning, then yeah, people might be more inclined to go spend a bunch of money there. But it's not that experience. It's hot. People are sweating. The food is too close to the other food. There's flies flying around. It's dirty and it's not. I mean, there's more to the experience of the restaurant than the food. The food is probably the least important part of the experience of a restaurant, especially when we're talking about what the press is looking at. And you're trying to say that we're appropriating your culture and trying to profit off your generations of talk. recipe, but it's a fucking taco dude. Stop it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Tia means Aunt Luke. And yeah, she got a violation because traditional Mexican cooking uses equipment that doesn't fit American health code standards. A Como is a flat gridal. It's been used for thousands of years to make tortillas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, if you don't fit the American health code standards, that's a problem for Americans, and you were talking about America. How is this cultural appropriation or a double standard? You have to follow the rules that every other restaurant has to follow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's exactly it, Luke. You're saying, follow the rules, like the rules are neutral. But the rules themselves are often designed for a different kind of cuisine, a different kind of cooking. So when you apply those same rules to a traditional Mexican restaurant, it creates an unfair barrier. It's not that her food is unsafe. It's that the way it's prepare doesn't fit into a box that was built for, say, a French bistro. And so then it gets labeled as dirty or unprofessional when it's just different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it gets labeled as dirty and unprofessional when it looks dirty and unprofessional, which a lot of the Mexican restaurants that are authentic that I've been to look like. Uh, so, yeah, I don't know what else to tell you. I'm sorry your culture's been appropriated by Taco Tuesday and you don't get enough write-ups in whatever Neither one of us is reading the chef magazine, so you're just looking to be pissed off tonight. And I don't agree with you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I work nights at a U-Haul place, Luke. I'm not reading chef magazines either, but I notice when the white couple comes in, wearing matching Taco Tuesday squad shirts, like it's some kind of joke. Like my family's food is a theme party.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're just deciding to take it super personally and decide that they're looking at a like a joke when what they are really doing is wearing those shirts because they get joy out of tacos. So they're celebrating your culture's food. And I'm sorry it doesn't have your grandmother's fucking face on it, but they're just enjoying a taco. And you're taking it super, super personally for generations and generations of misappropriation. And that's wrong. I think it's wrong. And I think you don't have to be pissed off about this because it's... I can be wrong. I don't know. Like we both just said, neither one of us are reading these articles. So in the high end of things, I don't... I don't really know. Maybe you are appropriated and somebody's profiting off Mexican culture that isn't Mexican. I... I don't care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right that I'm taking it personally. I am. Because when my abuela makes tamales for Christmas, it takes her to... days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, good for her, and she's doing that as a labor of love for her and her family and for the tradition of your deep family culture. And that's a great thing. But I don't understand how that means the rest of the world is wronging you because they're not. Okay? Everybody's trying to make a book. Everybody's trying to get a bite to eat. And we don't have to give reverence to the people that came before us every time we ate a taco, a burrito or a sushi or a pasta primavera or a fucking baguette.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You don't have to give reverence, Luke. But when Rick Bayliss gets a James Beard award and opens five restaurants serving the exact same food my Tia makes, and she can't even get alone to fix her air conditioning, because the bank says her business model is too risky. That's not about reverence. That's about who gets to profit from the food. And who doesn't? He learned to cook in Mexico, came back to Chicago, and now he's the face of Mexican cuisine to millions of people who will never set foot in a restaurant like my tears. And I'm not saying he's a bad guy or that he shouldn't cook Mexican food. I'm saying the system decides his version is worth investing in, and hers isn't. And that's the double standard I'm talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're wrong about that because the system, I mean, the system isn't deciding that his investing in and hers isn't. It's deciding that he is worth investing in and she isn't because he's got credit, because he's able to pay those loans back, because he has a long history of being able to support the money that he's borrowing and make his investors money. And she likely does not. So that has nothing to do with the cuisine. And like we've already determined, this is, when we're talking about what food critics are looking at, the food is a very small part of Right? They're looking at the tablecloths. They're looking at how the fucking silverware is laid out on the tablecloths. They're looking at the decor around the building and the building itself, the real estate. This is all creditworthiness. It's not about the food. It's not about stealing your food.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, but Luke, you just made my point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're saying it's about creditworthiness, about tablecloths and silverware and real estate. But that's exactly what I'm saying the food is the same. The recipes are the same. Sometimes his are literally learned from women like my Tia.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay. And if women like your Tia had a creditworthiness, then they could borrow a bunch of money that they would have to pay back from investors and start a big fancy restaurant with a big fancy building and hire a bunch of people and the best waiters and then they could get those Michelin Stars too. Right? But they're not doing that. She doesn't have the money. She doesn't have the credit. She doesn't have an air conditioner that works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right that she doesn't have those things. But you're acting like creditworthiness exists in a vacuum. Like it's some neutral measure of who deserves investment. My tier has been running her restaurant for 22 years. She pays her bills. She employs six people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>And that's great and that's good for her. But yes, creditworthiness is absolutely a neutral measure of who deserves investment. It is the primary measure of that. And if she were running her restaurant in America and paying the bills and keeping it in a perfect 800 credit score, and she would be much more likely to get the level of investment that she would need to start a restaurant like that. But she can't because she's busy doing her actual job, which is making tacos. So these guys got the money and they're investing it to make a big restaurant to get a bunch of critics to come out, so they'll pay a lot of extra money so that Taco cost $26.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Your Tia could do that too if she moved to America and worked up her credit and found some investors and did the same thing that he's doing. But as soon as something goes wrong for that guy, he's on the hook to pay all those investors back. So if she can support doing that, she has every... Well, I don't know that she has every affordability to do that, but she could do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Luke, she is in America. She's in Tucson. She's been a citizen for 30 years. And she does have good credit. She pays her suppliers on time. She's never missed a rent payment. She owns her house outright. But when she applied for a business loan three years ago to expand her kitchen and fix the hayback, the bank said no, because her neighborhood is considered high risk. And her business model doesn't fit their lending criteria.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and that other dude probably went to 50 banks that also told him no for the same reasons. And he had to pick his place where the bank thought, all right, there's enough people with enough money in here to actually recoup our investment. And then he had to go to more investors so we could get more money so we could pay for the more expensive place so that the bank would actually give him more money so that he could make his restaurant. There's a whole thing going on here, but it doesn't have anything to do with stealing your culture's food.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Then why is it that when white chefs open Mexican restaurants in upscale neighborhoods, innovative and authentic. But when Mexican families have been running the same kind of place for decades in their own neighborhoods, it's considered risky. Rick Bayliss didn't go to 50 banks. He had access to capital and connections from the start because of who he is and where he came from.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe so. I don't know who Rick Bayliss is, but he very well could have had lots of connections from the start. And that would mean that he was more likely to pay back his loans. And the bank felt more comfortable giving him loans. And like you said, they're opening Mexican restaurants in upscale neighborhoods where the people have, you know, more money, more spending money to buy tacos. It makes more, it makes sense that the bank would consider them less of a risk than a neighborhood that was less upscale.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Of course. But Luke, that's the cycle I'm talking about. The upscale neighborhoods are upscale because banks invested in them. The neighborhoods where Mitea and families like hers live are considered risky because banks didn't invest in them. Redlining was legal until 1968, and the effects of that are still here. My Tia's neighborhood in South Tucson was literally redlined. Banks wouldn't give mortgages there, wouldn't give business loans there, and now 50 years later they're still using that same logic. Just calling it risk assessment instead of redlining.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Well, I won't disagree with you there. And the banks are reprehensible. And they always have been. And they always will be. And there's definitely undertones of racism there. And there have been. But that's not the point of this conversation. Okay, the point of this conversation is you're pissed off that people are wearing Taco Tuesday shirts. And somehow that's cultural appropriation. And now we got in this huge fight about, about redlining and, uh, I don't even know how we got here. But I live in animus, New Mexico. Okay? It's population 200. And if I went to the bank tomorrow and said, I would like to start a Mexican restaurant here, they would tell me to go fuck myself. Because there's nobody here. There's nobody here. There's nobody here with enough money to pay me $40 for a plate of tacos. And it wouldn't happen. It would be a bad investment on paper, I mean, and that's not, it has nothing to do with race or culture or anything. It's money. It's all coming down to, can I get my money back? And if I were to do that, it would be a bad business decision. And the bank knows that. And they're not going to invest in something if they don't think they're going to get their money back from it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Look, I hear you about the money, but let me ask you this. If you opened a Mexican restaurant in Animus New Mexico and in failed because there wasn't enough demand. Would you blame the people who live there for not having enough money to support it? Or would you admit that the system set it up to fail from the start? Because that's what's happening here. My Tears restaurant in South Tucson does have demand. It's been packed every weekend for 20 years. But the bank still won't invest in her because of where she is, not because of her business. Meanwhile, some white chef opens a place in a wealthy neighborhood gets all the press and suddenly it's authentic Mexican cuisine when it's the same damn recipes my tea has been making for decades.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and how much money does your tea charge for a plate of tacos?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>$12. Three tacos, rice, beans, homemade salsa. She could charge more, but she knows her customers. A lot of them are construction workers, families from the neighborhood. She's not trying to get rich. She's trying to keep her doors open and pay her people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so she needs a business loan from the bank for $3 million. How many taco plates at $12 does she have to sell to pay the bank back?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Luke, that's not a fair comparison, and you know it. She's not asking for $3 million. She wanted $75,000 to upgrade her kitchen equipment and fix the air conditioning so she could pass health inspections without constantly patching things together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is a fair comparison, though, because you're talking about these upscale restaurants that are worth, that are, the loans that this guy is taken out are not $75,000. This guy's trying to make an upscale restaurant so he can charge $75 for a plate of tacos and the bank's going to get their money back. That's why they're giving it to him and not to her. Because if she charged $14 for a plate of tacos, you wouldn't have that line there anymore. Because the people there largely, not all of them, but largely, can't not afford that. So it's a bad business decision.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, but Luke, you're missing the point. She doesn't want to be Rick Bayless. She doesn't want to charge $75 for tacos. She wants to keep serving her community at prices they can afford and still have a functioning kitchen that doesn't break down every other month. The bank won't give her $75,000 for that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>But they'll give some culinary school graduate with connections half a million to open a place that serves the exact sane food to people who can afford to treat it like a novelty.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, exactly. Yeah, they will. Because he's selling it for $75 a plate. He's making enough money to pay them back. And she's trying to do business as usual. Obviously, that's not working because it's not making her enough money to fix her fucking air conditioner. It has nothing to do with the food. Nothing. So stop trying to say that people are stealing your food and profanen it. That's not what's not what's happening here. It's not even what any of this discussion has been about. We're talking about real estate. We're talking about lending and interest. It has nothing to do with the food.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SLIM</span><p>Actually, Luke, it has everything to do with the food.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, my God, that's enough of you. Jesus Christ, Slim. Stop it. Stop it. I'm sorry that your Tia doesn't make a lot of money on her taco plates. It's never going to stop people from enjoying $2,000 at Applebee's on a Friday night. And you shouldn't be so pissed off about it. And I'm sorry that the bank treats your neighborhood with disrespect. It doesn't have enough money to support the investment. And whether that's right or wrong, I can't speak to that. I don't know what in what fucking neighborhood you're talking about. But I know they do some shady shit. And I'm not sticking up for the bank in that at all. Now I'm mad. And I want tacos. Okay. Next up we've got Lakeisha. Lakeisha, welcome to the show. Do you have something a little milder than that? I'm I got to ramp down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, I appreciate you taking my call. Look, I just showed a house to a couple from California who spent the entire walkthrough on a video call with their remote work consultant, treating a four-generation cattle ranch, like it was just some backdrop for their Zoom meetings. And I cannot see. Stop thinking about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like a good thing for you, right? You're trying to sell the ranch. If you're trying to sell the ranch and they think it's nice enough to use as a backdrop, then they're probably likely to want to buy that ranch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you would think so. But here is the thing. They are not seeing it as a place. They are looking at square footage and internet speed like it is a hotel room with a good view. This property has a barn that is older than my grandmother. There is a hand and carved fence post with initials from 1947. And these people are walking past all of it, asking if the router can handle two simultaneous video conferences.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, why do you care? You're trying to sell the ranch. If they can buy the ranch and then let them buy the ranch and it sounds like a nice day for you. If you're, you have some emotional connection to this particular ranch, then buy it yourself. Or, you know, take it off the market.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I cannot afford it, Luke. real estate for 23 years and I cannot afford half the properties I show. That is not the point. The point is I watched the family who built that place. Lose it to foreclosure after the drought killed Bear Herd three years running. And now I am handing the keys to people who see it as a tax write-off with rustic charm.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, that sounds like a sale to me. Congratulations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>You are not hearing me. I am the one who had to sit across from Bill Henderson when he signed those years old, fourth generation on that land. And his hands were shaking so bad I had to help him hold the pen. And tonight I am showing his life's work to people who do not even know his name. Who are going to gut the place and turn it into some kind of remote work retreat, with Edison bulbs and reclaimed wood that was already there to begin with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I'm hearing you. I do not care. You're selling real estate. It is real estate. It was foreclosed on because it wasn't paid for. For whatever reason and now it's up on the market. And somebody's come in that wants to buy the place, and it's your obligation to sell it to them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>You are right. You are absolutely right. That is my job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And if you're going to get emotionally tied up in these properties and the stories behind them, then maybe it's the wrong job for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Maybe it is. But I have been doing this since before my husband died, and I have never felt like this before. I have sold dozens of foreclosures, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Foreclosures are largely very sad, especially when it's a generational property like that, but they happen. And that's your business. So you can't hold on to the property and sell it to only somebody that's going to see the same story in it that you see because they're coming from a different place. They have different lives. It doesn't mean they're not going to respect the property just because they're working there and changing the light bulbs. They might love it just as much as you do. But in a different way, and for different reasons.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I know that. I do. But these people, this couple, they were on a Zoom call the entire time. The wife was in California. The husband was in New York. And they were both on the call with their remote work consultant. While I was showing them the property. They kept asking if the barn had good acoustics for podcasting. They did not even step outside to look at the sunset over the valley. They did not even see it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's none of your business. It doesn't matter what they saw in the property, but if they saw something that they wanted in the property, they're going to buy it. And that's great for everybody. Because the alternative is they don't buy it and it's still foreclosed and then it sits there and rots until it falls down. So they're going to put the care and love into it and pay the bill probably because they're doing the work that the cattle drought isn't going to take away. And they might be there for four generations. And a hundred years from now, somebody might have the same problem if it gets foreclosed. But you can't be this invested into a property if you're a real estate salesperson. That's just not good business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>You are missing what I am trying to say. This is not about one property. Three months ago, I almost called this show about something else entirely. I saw lights over the Players Valley. Hovering lights.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I hear exactly what you're saying. I'm not missing what you're trying to say. I'm not missing what you're trying to say, say, oh, what you're trying to do is whine about these people that you don't like coming in with their newfangled podcasts and moving into a ranch that holds some meaning to you. And it's your job to sell it to them. So what were the lights over the Plyas Valley?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>They were not airplane lights. I have lived here my whole life. I know what planes look like, what drones look like. These were different. They moved in ways that did not make sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So you saw what aliens? Did they take any cows or any horses or do you have any evidence? You take any pictures? You know that there's a lot of military activity in Plias. It's a military town that they do tests over. That's what I would expect in Plias.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I know about the military. That is what I told myself at first. But I have been watching the sky here for 53 years. And I have never seen ever anything move like that. And no, I did not take pictures because by the time I thought to reach for my phone, they were gone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then, you know, that's exactly what I would expect to happen over a military compound. Is strange-looking planes and aerial phenomenon? It seems like quite a coincidence that you just happen to see these lights over a military town where they do military testing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I am not saying it was aliens, Luke. I am saying I am saying I'm I saw something I could not explain, and it made me feel the same way I felt tonight watching those people walk through that ranch. Like something is changing, and I do not understand what it is, or how to make sense of it. Like the ground is shifting under my feet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>And I am the only one who notices. You're not the only one that notices. Everything is changing because things always change and technology is changing and people's values are changing and the world is changing. It's good or bad, that's a matter of personal opinion. But you're not alone in seeing the change.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe you are in the wrong position being so resistant to the change because it's going to happen whether you approve of it or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I am not resistant to change. I have been selling real estate for 23 years. I have seen this town go through droughts. Through the mine closing, through the hospital shutting down. I watched my husband die. And I kept working.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. I get it. So what is the... Why are you calling me? What do you want?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>I want to know if I am losing my mind. Because I cannot shake this feeling that something is wrong. Not just different, wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't think you're losing your mind, but you're not wrong that something is changing. I wouldn't say that it's right or wrong. And none of us have the completely to make that judgment. But it is changing and you don't like it, obviously. And I think you're going to be unhappy if you don't change your attitude about that and get on board with the changing tides because they're coming.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>It is not about liking it or not liking it. It is about what it means. These people, they look at a ranch that has been in a family for four generations, a place where people lived and worked and died. And they see a remote work consultant opportunity. They are not buying a home, Luke. They are buying a concept. And they are doing it with money that feels like it came out of thin air.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>A home is a concept. Okay? No matter when you bought it, you can put some other meaning to it if you like. It doesn't matter how many generations of people lived there before. It's a building on some land in a dust bowl, in a town that it's dead. You said it yourself, the mine is closed, the There's nothing left here. So if they want to come in and breathe some life into it with a remote work, retreat, great. This area needs a lot more of that to keep it alive so that it can support the other people that still live here on those ranches. Because their tax money isn't doing it. And who's going to fix the roads? And what if we need a hospital someday? Where's that going to come from? It's not going to come from anybody that's here today. We're going to need that money to come out of thin air. So good. Get them there at a sense and bulbs and be thankful that you made your commission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>You do not understand. The commission is not the point. I have been doing this long enough that I do not need the money that bad. What I am trying to tell you is that these people are not coming here to be part of anything. They are coming here because land is cheap and they can work from anywhere. And when the internet goes out or the well runs dry or the dust storms get bad, they will just leave. They will sell it to the next person with laptop money and move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good. Great. I don't see what the problem with that is. That's ideal. If people are coming here and paying taxes and not using the services, that's the best case scenario. So I don't know why you have these emotional ties to the land or whatever, but I live here. And I know that this place is a dust bowl shithole shithole. And it needs exactly that. There's nothing for them to be part of. So hopefully they can come and build something and other people will be part of that. And it can continue to support this area and this community because it's dying and everybody's leaving. And before you know it, there won't be any buildings left because they'll all blow down to the wind from lack of maintenance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>You are right that this place is dying. But you are wrong about what kills it. It is not the lack of money. It is the lack of people who give a damn. My husband and I, we bought our house in 1994. We knew every person on our street.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I am not wrong. I'm absolutely right. It is the lack of money, because if there was no lack of money, there would not be a lack of people. There's no people here because there's no money here for them to make. If they could support themselves and find jobs and there was enough money to have things like hospitals, then the place would be thrive. But that's not the case. Everybody's left and most people that are still here are going to die soon. So unless we bring in some of that new blood and some of that new money, this place is not going to exist in 20 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LAKEISHA</span><p>Then tell me why three months ago I saw lights over the Plias Valley that I cannot explain. Tell me why they hovered there for 20 minutes, silent, not moving like any aircraft I have ever seen. Tell me why when I mentioned it at the four other people had seen the same thing and nobody wanted to talk about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because the Plias Valley is a military testing ground. That is why. Because extraterrestrial life, it would be very coincidental if they just happen to come down to Earth and do their little thing right over the military testing ground. There's a lot of other places that I think that the aliens would rather go. So I'm not super, super into the idea that you saw something extraterrestrial over the Plyas Valley. I doubt that very, very much. I know what the Plyas Valley is used for. I have lived here. Okay, enough of you too. And that is the end of our show, folks. I did my best. But Jesus, these people, wow, it is hard to give good advice to people that just don't want to hear the good advice. I'll do my best, though. We'll try again tomorrow, and we'll see how we do. Hopefully, better than tonight. I wish everybody a wonderful Monday and a great start to the week, and I'll talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 33: Late Night Confessions and Cosmic Comedies</h1>
|
||||
<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-11T11:35:42+00:00">March 11, 2026</time> · 1 hr 1 min</p>
|
||||
<p class="page-subtitle">In this late-night call-in show, Luke hosts an eclectic mix of callers sharing their deeply personal stories and dilemmas. From Mavis’s mysterious cash gift to Chip’s adoption uncertainty, Nikki’s neighbor’s secret writing career, and Woody’s comedy struggles, the episode explores themes of relationships, identity, and unexpected life turns. Tune in for raw, unfiltered conversations that reveal the complexity of human experiences.</p>
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-33-late-night-confessions-and-cosmic-comedies.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
|
||||
<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. I am Luke, and I'm your host tonight for Luke at the Roost. This is the late-night call-in radio show where you can give me a call and tell me what's going on in your life, what kind of problems you have, advice you need, and I'll give you the very best top-notch advice. Humanly possible. That's what I'm saying tonight. Humanly possible. Nobody could do it better. If you'd like to give us a call, the number is two. 208 439 5853. That's 208-439 Luke. Sorry we didn't have an episode last night. I was sleepy and I didn't feel good. So I reached out and got us a new sponsor that helped me out with the situation. And now I'm feeling much better. And you'll hear more from them a little later in the show. But now it's time to go to the phones. And on the phones, we've got Alonzo. Alonzo, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? How can I help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALONZO</span><p>about ranch dressing, and now I'm sitting in my garage at two in the morning trying to prove I was right about pizza toppings. I know how that sounds, but here's the thing, Luke. We have leftover pizza for Mama's Pizza on Stone, right? Good Pizza! She comes home, opens the box, and squirts ranch dressing all over a perfectly good slice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Don't call me with this shit. This is stupid. If she likes ranch dressing on our pizza, fine. It's no reason to have a... this is silly. Do you have something real to talk about, or are you just gonna waste You're right. You're absolutely right. That's not why she left. Get to it. Tell us the truth. What is going on? And why are you calling a radio show at 2 in the morning?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALONZO</span><p>I told her the nun thing was just interesting history. That I was reading about Sister Teresa Regina Confroy, because she had the same name as her and died last August, and I thought it was worth mentioning. But Teresa looked at me like I'd brought a dead bird to the dinner table. She said, you looked up when a nun with my name died.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a little bit weird. I've never heard of Sister Teresa Regina Confroy before, but can you fill us in on why she was a notable figure?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALONZO</span><p>Confroy, C-O-N-F-R-O-Y, she was 91 years old, passed away in New Jersey. She was not particularly notable, that is the point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you mentioned a nun died, an old nun died, and you mentioned this to your wife because they share a name, and she left?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALONZO</span><p>That's not, look, I'm not explaining this right. I didn't just mention it. I brought it up three times in one day. First at breakfast, then when she was packing, then again, when she was walking out the door. I kept saying, you know, it's interesting, a nun with your name just died. You ever think about that? And she kept saying, no, Rodney, I don't think about that. And I kept saying, well, you should.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What the fuck? What? What point were you trying to get across? Why?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALONZO</span><p>I don't know. That's why I'm calling you at two in the morning from my garage floor instead of being in bed with my wife. I manage timelines for a living.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. Well, I don't know that there's any advice that can help you with this one. That's a weird thing. That's a weird thing you're doing. Maybe apologize to her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALONZO</span><p>Yes, I want her to come back. Of course I want her to come back. And yes, I'm apologetic. But I'm also right about the ranch dressing. You can't just put ranch on everything and call it food.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy, good luck with that. I hope it all works out for you, okay. dressing is not something to get that upset about. Next up on the line, we've got Mavis. Mavis, welcome to the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Do you teach typing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh gosh, no. I work nights at the sudsy bucket laundromat over on Highway 60. But Luke, something happened tonight that I cannot stop thinking about, and I don't know if I should feel blessed or terrified or what. A complete stranger just handed me $500 in cash at a truck stop three hours ago and drove away before I could even say thank you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you don't see that every night at the sudsy bucket. So do you think it's real money? What did the vehicle look like that he pulled up in to give you the money? Maybe this is a pay-it-forward thing. Maybe he thought you were somebody else, or maybe just, I don't know, remember that movie where the guy felt like a jerk, so he, like, robbed a bank or something and then threw it out in the streets to everybody for repentance?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>It was a she, actually. woman in a Subaru with Colorado plates kind of beat up looking car and Luke she looked right at me when she handed me the envelope and said you look like you need this more than me that's what's getting to me what did she see in my face</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>the movie I'm thinking of is actually breaking bad when Jesse Pinkman felt repentance for his deeds after that little boy was killed and he went a little bit nuts for a while and threw his money all over the street neither here nor there. The important thing is, why did this lady give you free money? What did she see in your face? I don't know, do you need the money more than she did? Are you, are you well kept? Are you clean? Are you, like, fed and all that? Are you taken care of?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>I mean, yeah, I'm fine. I shower. I eat. I've got a roof over my head. But I was coming off a double shift and I probably looked exhausted. And my boyfriend and I have been fighting about money Somehow? Like, I don't know, maybe I have that worn-down look people get when they're counting pennies. The electric bill's overdue, and I've been picking up extra shifts, so maybe it showed on my face more than I thought. But $500, Luke? That's not pocket change you give to someone who just looks a little tired.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no, it usually isn't, but I mean, maybe for her today it was. Maybe she was on a Jesse Pinkman-like quest to repent for something that she did. her money, you know, and she felt bad that she had it and was looking for something good to do with it. Like the guy that called in the other day who faked his cancer diagnosis, and then the town raised money for him. He felt bad about having that money. So maybe it's one of those situations. Maybe it's a Mr. Beast kind of thing where the money made from an event is then distributed to people that might need it. Who knows? Who knows? But if it's real money, if it's not counterfeit money, you might want to take it and check, then that was just a nice thing that a stranger did for you, and I don't think you have to worry much more about it than that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You're right. I should probably check if it's real. I didn't even think about that. I've just been sitting here in the back office staring at it. But Luke, here's the thing that's really eating at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, what is it? Hurry up with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>My boyfriend said last week we can't afford a ring, but this is exactly enough for the one I've been looking at. And part of me is wondering if this woman's showing up right after that conversation means something? Like the universe. is telling me to just do it myself. But the other part of me knows the electric bill is two months behind, and that's the responsible choice. I genuinely cannot tell if using this money for an engagement ring would be the most romantic thing I've ever done, or the stupidest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It would be the stupidest, because that's not how it works, right? If you're going to get engaged to somebody, it's his job to get you the ring. And he has to go around to all your family and friends and listen to what you say and drop little hints to get information. about what you might like in a ring, and it's a whole thing. But it's on him to do. You can't force that engagement by getting yourself a ring. That's not only lame, but it's going to end poorly. Because if he's not ready to get married, he's not ready to get married. And if you don't have the money to get married, you don't have the money yet. You've got to pay your bills first, right? Or you will need that money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Oh gosh, you're right. I know you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>It's just, we've been together four years, and I'm 32, and sometimes I feel like I'm for him to be ready for something I've been ready for since year two. But you're absolutely right that buying my own engagement ring is pathetic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's pathetic and wrong because you'd be forcing him into something he obviously isn't ready to do yet. And it's okay for him to not be ready to get married. That's a big decision and just because you want it doesn't mean he does. So I think you need to talk to your boyfriend and if you really need to get married for whatever reason, then maybe he's not the right guy for you. Maybe he is and he just legitimately doesn't have money right now. You should have that conversation. But if it's super important to you to get married and it doesn't seem that important to him, don't force him into it or 10 years down the line, you're going to be all pissed off at him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You know what, Luke? That's fair. I think I've been so focused on the timeline I wanted that I haven't really listened to what he's been saying. He's not saying no. He's saying not yet. And those are different things. And honestly, if I'm being real with myself, the reason that woman's $500. felt like a sign is because I wanted it to be one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, obviously. Why do you want to get married so bad? Because this is the problem is that you really want to get married. You think when you get married, it's going to solve all the problems, and you're going to have this wonderful fantasy life like you have in your head. And, I mean, how's that going for you? Whatever it is that you're planning out or that you're seeing happen in the future for you, that's not what's going to happen. What's going to happen is you're going to get married. Nothing's really going to change. Everything's going to be exactly the same. and then you're going to feel lost because that goalpost has gone by and nothing changed. And that's what you are waiting for to fix however it is that you feel about yourself or what I don't understand why people want to get married so badly like you do. Maybe you can explain that to me. What is it about marriage that has got you looking at the timelines so intently?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Well, shoot, you really hit the nail on the head there. this feeling of security, you know? I see my friends getting married and starting families, and I can't help but feel like I'm falling behind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't have to get married to start a family. I don't know if you have any religious beliefs, but biologically, it's not really important. If you want to have a family, you can have a family, but he might not want to have a family. It might not be time for him. And if that's something that's important for you, then maybe you need to find somebody that's sharing, your dreams and goals.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You're right, and that's the conversation I've been avoiding, because if I ask him straight out whether he wants kids and he says no or not for a long time, then I have to make a real decision. And I think I've been focusing on the ring and the wedding, because those feel like smaller steps I can control, when really the question is whether we want the same life at all. God, that's terrifying to say out loud.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but that's the conversation you need to be having before you make those sorts of lifelong decision. Because you, I mean, you're watching all your friends get married and have families, but you don't know what their lives are like. You don't know what their marriages are like or how happy they are. You know what they show you and you know what they post on Instagram, but that's not real life. And maybe a third of them will stick together and see it through. And, you know, there will be happy newlywed couples and one of them will die. That's going to happen. And then where is that security? Right? But most of all, I probably, I don't know, two-thirds of these people are going to be miserable for years because somebody wanted to get married and forced it and somebody else acquiesced, and they don't want to be together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>That's dark, Luke, but I needed to hear it. I've been treating marriage like it's this finish line that'll make everything makes sense, when really it's just the start of a whole different set of problems if you're doing it for the wrong reasons. And I think deep down, I know, my boyfriend isn't dragging his feet to be mean or because he doesn't love me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, he's probably not. He's dragging his feet because he doesn't want to get married. And that's okay. And if you really need to get married, it sounds like it doesn't even matter to you if it's married to him. You just want to be married because that's what you do, right? You've got to be married or you're not living life right. And it's bullshit. And you don't do that. Or actually, it's him that's going to get fucked in the end. When you decide you're unhappy. because you're married now and you've got everything you said you wanted, but he's not the person you actually wanted. Then you're going to feel sad and you're going to get depressed and you're going to fight and then you're going to break up and then you're going to take all of his money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Okay, hold on, Luke. I'm not some gold digger looking to trap anybody. I work 60 hours a week at this laundromat and I pay half the rent. I love him. I do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you're not a gold digger now and you're supporting yourself now, but what happens when you've got to? the family. And then you're not working 60 hours because you're taking care of a kid. And then slowly you're learning that you actually don't even really like this guy. You just wanted to get married. And he was the first one that seemed okay and able to support you and give you the security you're looking for. And you're going to start to resent him. And he's going to start to resent you because you forced him to get married when he didn't want to. And in the end, you're going to be like, oh, you know what? I deserve that money because I didn't work for all this time because I had to support this family that you pushed for, that you just had to have so badly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You know what, Luke, you're being pretty harsh right now, but I called in at two in the morning because something in my gut was telling me, this didn't feel right, and maybe that's what I needed to hear, because you're right that I've been so focused on what I think I'm supposed to want, that I haven't really asked myself if this is actually what I want with this actual person. But I do think you're wrong about one thing. out how to take his money and some future divorce. That's not who I am.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I'm not saying that's who you are now, or that's who you're planning to be. I'm saying 10 years down the line, after years and years of resentment and not working, you're going to feel differently. And you're going to be upset, and you're going to feel like you got shafted, or somehow you were on the wrong end of this deal, and you're going to go after him, because that's what happens. Like every time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Look, I hear what you're saying about resentment building up, and maybe you've seen that happen a hundred times on this show, but I think the real warning you're giving me is don't marry someone who doesn't want to marry you. Don't push someone into a life they're not ready for, because that's where all that misery comes from, right? So not from marriage itself, but from forcing it when it's not right. And I think that's what this $500 showing up out of nowhere was trying to tell me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's what you want me to be saying, but what I am saying, but what I am saying, saying, yes, what you just said is completely true. You don't want to marry somebody that doesn't want to marry you. What I am saying to you is that you want to get married just to get married. And you could care less who the person is. And that is a recipe for disaster. Because no matter, I mean, if your boyfriend's like, you know what, I actually don't want to get married.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And then you go find somebody else that does, you're going to be like, great, we align. We want to get married. But you're not, you don't care who he is. There's no trait. You're looking to. before they, can he support a family? That's it. You're not into his sense of humor or the way he looks at you a certain way or whatever it is. It could be anybody. That person could be interchangeable and that is the wrong reason to get married. And I think no matter who you get married, if that's your goal, it's going to end the same way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Oh gosh, Luke, that actually just hit me in the chest. Because when I think about why I love my boyfriend, I can tell you specific things. Like how he always warms up my car in the winter before I leave for work, or how at his own jokes before he even finishes telling them, or how he calls his mom every Sunday. But when I think about why I want to get married...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You have no idea. You want to get married because everybody else is getting married, and because that's what you've been fucking socially programmed to need. That's the only reason you want to get married.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You're right. I don't have a good answer for that. I want to get married because I'm 32, and my sister got married at 24, and my mom keeps asking when it's my turn. Every time I scroll through Facebook, it's another engagement photo. I want to get married because I feel like I'm supposed to. And that's exactly what you're saying, isn't it? That I'm chasing this thing that society told me I need. And I'm willing to use whoever's standing next to me to get there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's exactly what I'm saying. There's only one reason to get married. And that's because you've been with somebody long enough. You know them well enough. You enjoy getting along with it. And you can actually see yourself for the long term, with that person, enjoying life together. And you realize that there's going to be hard times, and there's going to be good times, and you want to share the entirety of your life with that person through the good times and the bad times. That's why you want to get married. But that's not why people do get married.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>Well, shoot. Luke, I called in here thinking I was asking whether I should spend this mystery money on a ring or the electric bill. And what you're really telling me is I shouldn't be spending it on either one. because I'm trying to buy my way into something I don't even actually want for the right reasons. That woman who handed me that envelope at the flying J, maybe she saw something in my face that I couldn't see myself. Maybe she saw someone who was lost and needed a way out, not a way forward into the wrong thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think any of this has anything to do with the woman that gave you the money. It's not a sign from anywhere. She gave you the money and that doesn't have anything to do with this conversation. What I think you should do with that money, uh, if we must, continue to talk about it is take it and give it to somebody else that looks like they need it. Right? Maybe that's the test. But obviously, if you're behind on your bills and you really do need it, then you should use it to pay your bills so that, you know, you can live relatively comfortably and okay with your power on for the next several months or however long it lasts you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You know what? That's actually really practical advice and I appreciate that. I do need to pay the electric bill. But I think what I'm hearing underneath all of this is that I need to have a real conversation with my boyfriend, not about when we're getting engaged, but about whether we actually want the same life together. Whether I even want the life I think I want, because right now I'm sitting in the back of a laundromat at two in the morning counting quarters, and I don't even know if I'd be happy as someone's wife who doesn't work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. That's the right answer, and that's what you should do, and just, you know, don't worry about getting married so much. It's not that important. If you're with somebody that you love, and you want to be with, that can be enough. If you want to have a kid, that's a different thing. Marriage doesn't actually have anything to do with the process of having a kid. So if that's something that you and your boyfriend want to talk through and work out, great. And if not, sleep on it for a while, because it's a big decision. But marriage, I think your motivation for it is coming from the wrong place. I think it's going to end poorly. And I don't think you should, worry about that right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAVIS</span><p>You're absolutely right, Luke. I appreciate you being so direct with me about this. I think I needed someone to just say it plain like that instead of letting me keep spinning around in circles about signs from the universe and what this money means. I'm going to pay my electric bill. I'm going to have an honest conversation with my boyfriend about what we both actually want, and I'm going to stop measuring my life against everyone else's Facebook timeline.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good for you. And maybe you should take up teaching typing, Mavis. And now, ladies and gentlemen, this is a new sponsor that's very special to me, because I had a little bit of a tummy upset last night. I'd like you to give a warm welcome to our new sponsor. Born in a secret laboratory, somewhere between New Jersey and the Italian Riviera, Pesto Bismal was accidentally invented when renowned scientist, Professor Luigi, the basil brain Spaghettiini, dropped a jar of Pesto into a barrel of activated charcoal during a thunderstorm. Lightning struck. The beakers rattled. The lab assistant fled, and when the smoke cleared, Professor Spaghettiini gazed upon the swirl emerald paste and reportedly said words that would shake the world of digestive science to its very core. Mama Mia, I fix it the tummy. And with that completely unverified scientific breakthrough, Pesto Bismol was born. For too long, stomach remedies have been timid. Pink liquids. chalky tablets. Medicines that whisper politely to your digestive system. But Pesto Bismol? Pesto Bismol arrives with garlic. Yes, Pesto Bismol blends the bold, aromatic power of basil, garlic, olive oil, and Parmesan with the mysterious absorbing capabilities of activated charcoal, the same stuff used in water filters, art class, and occasionally by people who do grilling. The result is a rich green medicinal paste that coats your stomach with the comforting sensation of what can only be described as aggressive Italian encouragement. Upset stomach? Acid reflux? Take a spoonful of Pesto Bismol and let the herbal magic go to work. Pesto Bismol. When your stomach says help, say, mamma mia. Pesto bismol has not been evaluated by the FDA, the USDA, the Italian government, or anybody's grandmother. Side effects may include green teeth and serious confidence in attracting neighborhood pigeons who believe you might be a breadstick. Okay, and we are back thanks to Pesto Bismol. They've been really helpful overnight here. The household. All right. Next up, we've got Earl. Earl. Earl, welcome to the show. How can we help you today, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Thanks for taking the call, Luke. So I'm sitting in the break room at the bank where I work, two in the morning, holding this Father's Day card my daughter made me when she was seven. Construction paper, glitter glue, says, world's best dad. I found it in the trash compactor about an hour ago because my boss made me throw out all personal stuff yesterday. Thing is, I've spent 14 years keeping a secret from this kid about who her real father is, biologically speaking, and I just realized while I'm sitting here that I already am her real father.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, there's a couple things there. Isn't a trash compactor, like, in the sink? Isn't that the thing that, like a garbage disposal? Or is the trash compactor a different thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Different thing. It's a room in the back of the building where all the trash from the offices goes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I'm sitting here at two in the morning holding this thing, and I realized I've spent 14 years worrying about whether I'm her real father when the answer's been sitting in my desk drawer the whole time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean you're worrying about if you're her real father? You know that you're her real father already, right? I don't understand. Why are you calling me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>so focused on the biology part, on the secret, on whether it counts if she doesn't know the truth, that I forgot I already am her dad. She made me that envelope 14 years ago. She's called me dad since she was four, and I'm still acting like I need permission or proof or something. Finding it in the trash tonight, I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know either, sir, but it sounds like you love your daughter and she loves you ever after. I'm not sure why you felt the need to call a radio show with that, but I hope everything works out for everyone. Next up, we've got Nikki. Nikki, welcome to the show. How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. Hi. Okay, so I'm calling from work. I'm a nurse. I work nights at a dialysis center over in Deming. And I just, I cannot stop thinking about this and I need to talk to somebody about it because it's so bizarre. So I live in this little duplex, right? And my neighbor, Carol, lives on the other side. side of the wall. Carol is like the most buttoned-up person you have ever met in your life. She wears cardigans with little embroidered flowers on them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She sounds like a Carol. That sounds like a very Carol-like thing to do. Tell us about what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Okay. So Carol is one of those people who, like, she returns my mail to me with post-it notes on it if it accidentally gets put in her box. The notes say things like, please remind your postal carrier of proper mailbox protocols. That's the kind of person we're talking about here. She drives a beige camry. She has a bird feeder, very quiet, very proper. So the other night, I'm on Amazon trying to buy new compression socks because my feet are killing me from these doubles, and I'm scrolling through my recommendations, and suddenly it's just full of these romance novels.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and why is that interesting?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Because they're all written by someone called Scarlet Spurs, and they all have these titles like Roaked and ruined. and the rancher's rough hands. And the covers are just, I mean, cowboys without shirts. Very explicit situations. And I'm thinking, why is Amazon showing me this? I don't read this stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, pal. I think we know why Amazon's showing. Is this dirty Carol in your duplex? She lives a double life as a smut writer?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Yes, exactly. So I click on one of them just out of curiosity, right? And I start reading the sample pages. And Luke, I swear to you, all these weird little ticks that are exactly how Carol talks. Like, the author is obsessed with describing turquoise jewelry in this really specific way. The turquoise caught the light like a piece of captured sky, and Carol wears turquoise every single day and she's always saying stuff like that about it. And there's this thing where the characters are always making observations about proper etiquette in the middle of these incredibly graphic scenes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, this all sounds largely circumstantial. Is there anything more there that makes you think that this is actually... Is her name anywhere to be seen? There's a lot of people that like turquoise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>No, no, her name isn't anywhere. But, okay, so I'm reading this one scene where the cowboy is demonstrating his expertise with a lasso, and the author describes it as the rope biting into his calloused hands, the way his muscles coiled like a spring beneath his sun-bronced skin. And I'm thinking, that's weirdly specific, right? But then I remember Carolsian. Carol came over last month to borrow my ladder because she said she needed to clean her gutters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>And she was wearing these gardening gloves, and she kept talking about how the rope was digging into her hands while she was trying to reach up there. And she said it exactly like that, the rope biting into my hands. Same phrasing. Same weirdly formal way of putting it. I don't know. It sounds like you're trying to make an association here, because this is, anybody could have written this. And who cares if she wrote it? Do you ever hear anything weird coming from that other side? of the duplex?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's the thing. It's dead silent over there. Like I work nights, so I'm home during the day sometimes, and I never hear anything. No music, no TV, just her typing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Yeah, that's because all of our companions are strapped up with ballgags. I don't see why this is bothering. I don't think that you can say from just those things that this is Carol next door writing these books. And even if it is, who cares? People need a second job. Maybe that's how she off steam. It's always the most buttoned-up people that are the most kinky.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing that really sealed it for me. I went back and looked at all the books by Scarlett Spurs, and every single one of them is set in southern New Mexico. Like, one of them takes place at a ranch outside of Deming. Another one has a scene at the Rockhound State Park.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, none of this is enough to pin it on Carol. And why are you trying to, and why do you care? I mean, if you enjoy the books, read the books.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>I don't enjoy the books. I mean, okay, I read three of them, but that's just because I was trying to confirm it was her. And now I can't look at her the same way. Like, yesterday, she knocked on my door to tell me that I'd left my recycling bin out past the pickup time, and she's standing there in her little cardigan with her turquoise necklace, giving me this lecture about neighborhood standards. And all I can think about is the scene I read the night before, where the protagonist is tied up in a barn, and I mean, I can't even make eye contact with her anymore, Luke. She brought me a casserole last week because she heard I was working doubles, and I just stood there thinking about Chapter 7 of branded by the foreman.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like maybe you're the one with the dark fantasies and desires here, because you're getting awful deep into these Scarlet Spurs books. But what I say is, who cares if she's tied up in a barn getting her needs met? That's her business. It has nothing to do with you. And if you're getting off reading it, then great. Everybody wins. That's what we call a win-win.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>I am not getting off on it. I'm just, Luke, you don't understand. This woman left me a passive-aggressive-aggressive note last month because my wind chimes were creating unnecessary noise pollution. Wind chimes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there are some wind chimes that are legitimately fucking obnoxious. So if Carol likes her dark-beating, ESM alter ego, good for her. It's still none of your business, whether she likes turquoise or wants you to pick up your recycle bin on time. Like, none of that is relevant to this conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Okay, fine. Maybe it's not my business. But now I have to decide. Do I say something to her? Because part of me wants to just let her know that I know, so we can both stop pretending. Like, maybe she'd relax a little if she knew someone wasn't judging her for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't know, you think, you suspect, and you are judging her for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>I'm not judging her. I'm just, okay, maybe I am a little bit, but not for writing the books. It's more like, how do you spend your whole life policing everyone else's behavior when you're writing about cowboys doing things with rope that have nothing to do with cattle? Like, the hypocrisy is what gets me. She reported Mrs. Vasquez's two houses down for painting her mailbox the wrong shade of beige, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not, uh, that is not hypocrisy. Anybody can write what they want on their own time. That doesn't mean that she can't, uh, be critical of other people in enforcing the rules. I don't see how those things are related. Uh, her alter ego, Scarlet, Spurs, if that's, if that's her real name, uh, is, is,! is her fictional way of releasing Steam. And everybody's entitled that. It's not your business. If you like the books, buy the books and support who you. you think might be your neighbor. But, uh, otherwise, you're absolutely judging her. And I don't see how you can, uh, not see it that way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>You're right. You're completely right. I am judging her. And that's not fair. I think what's really bothering me is that I've spent two years tiptoeing around this woman, being so careful not to upset her, moving my trash cans to the exact right spot, keeping my music down. And now I find out she's got this whole secret life. And I'm wondering why I've been giving her so much power over me. Like, why do I care so much what Carol thinks about my wind chimes when Carol is out here writing about? Never mind. The point is, maybe this says more about me than it does about her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It absolutely does. Who cares what Carol's writing about in her free time? She's free to write about whatever she wants. She's not breaking any rules. She's not bothering anybody with her books. She's releasing them on Amazon, allegedly. And she's able to do that. And that's a. creative outlet, it's fine for her. And if that's what gets her off, great. And you don't even know that she's into that. She might just be writing that stuff because that's what sells. Because it does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>That's true. I mean, she's got like 47 reviews on the last one, and they're mostly five stars. So clearly somebody's buying them. And you know what? Maybe I'm just jealous. I've been talking about writing something for years. I keep saying I'm going to write about what it's really like working in healthcare. All this stuff nobody talks about, and I never do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sounds like a real bestseller. Uh, hey, you ever let anybody tie you up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>What? No. Luke, what does that have to okay once? But it was awkward and we both just kind of laughed and gave up. Why are you asking me that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, because it's interesting, and because you bought three of these books, and you're pretending to be appalled by the subject matter, but obviously you read them all, so it must have... sparked some interest in you. And I'm just trying to get to the bottom of who it is I'm talking to. You know, do you like to be bound up a little bit?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>I, okay, this is not where I thought this conversation was going. I bought them because I was curious what Carol was writing. Not because, I mean, they're not badly written. I'll give her that. She's got a way with description that's very detailed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, what went wrong when you were tied up in that experience of yours? You say you just felt awkward. laughed it off. Why was it awkward? Was he not good at tying? Were you able to get out too easily? What kind of rope did you use? Give us some details.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Oh my God, Luke. This is so embarrassing. It wasn't even rope. It was a bathrobe belt, which should tell you how prepared we were for this. And yeah, I could just slip right out of it. And he kept trying to make it tighter, but then it would come undone. And at one point, he accidentally elbowed me in the face trying to reach around. And we just both started laughing we had to stop. This was like six years ago with my ex-boyfriend Derek, who was very enthusiastic about trying new things, but not great at the execution part. He once tried to cook me a romantic dinner and set off the smoke alarm three times.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what if, uh, what if your friend's Scarlet Spurs there could introduce you to somebody that knew how to tie a knot?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Oh, I don't know about that. I think I'd rather just stick to my wind chimes and my quiet life. Besides, I don't need Carol or Scarlett or whatever. setting me up with some cowboy who's going to show up at my door with a lasso and a six-shooter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>I've got enough on my plate with work and my mom calling me every other day to ask why I'm not married yet. But honestly, the real kicker is that I like Carol.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Carol sounds like a delightful individual. And thank you for the call. It's been great talking to you. And I think maybe you should lighten up a little bit about Scarlet Spurs or at least enjoy. You don't have to pretend to us at home that, uh, that you're just reading this for research on your neighbor. It's okay for you to like the bondage. A lot of people do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NIKKI</span><p>Okay, okay. I hear you. Maybe I'll give book five a try without all the judgment. Thanks for listening, Luke. Even if you did just psychoanalyze my sex life on the radio at 3 in the morning. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I didn't psycho analyze anything. Nikki, you're the psycho here. You're the one that's fucking trying to pin, uh, smut books on your, on your neighbor Carol. I didn't do any of that. Okay. Uh, let's see. Let's see. Who's next? Who's next? Ah, here we got Chip. Chip. Chip, welcome to the show. What's going on, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Luke, okay, so picture this. I'm standing in my kitchen at two in the morning. Right? And Teresa just got home from her shift. And I'm holding this printout of an email. And I just told her everything. The lawyer, the birth mother, the photo, all of it just laid it out there. And you know what she said? She said she already knew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, are you the guy who's, uh, who's adopted daughter was stolen from Africa?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Guatemala, Luke. Guatemala. Yeah, that's me. But listen, that's not even the crazy part. Teresa said she's known for three weeks. Three weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you've known for a while, too, and you were, you never had the right time to tell her. So what's the problem here? You both need to communicate more, is what I say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>No, no, no. No, no. hearing me, I found out five days ago. Five days. Teresa's known for three weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, yes, yes. I am hearing you. I'm hearing exactly what you're saying. It's not interesting. I don't care how long she's known. What happened next?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>She got the same email two weeks before I did from the same lawyer. And she didn't tell me. She's been sitting on it this whole time, watching me stress about whether to tell her. And she already knew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, get over it, buddy. It's not that big of a deal. What are you guys? I mean, who cares? You're, what are you going to do next? What's your next step here? Are you going to set up visitation with the birth mother? Are you going to talk to your lawyers? What's the plan forward? This isn't a story about how you're not talking to each other about what emails you're getting. Come on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, okay, you're right. So Teresa wants to meet her, the birth mother. She wants to fly down there next month with our daughter and just do it. No lawyers, no verification. Just go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And how do you feel about that? What do you think? What would you like to happen here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>I think it's insane, Luke. We don't even know if this woman is real. We don't know if the photo's legit. We haven't verified anything with our adoption agency. And Teresa wants to just put our eight-year-old on a plane to Guatemala to meet some stranger who says she's her birth mother, based on an email?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, the last time you called her and you said it was more than an email and that your lawyers had confirmed that the image was real, and that that was verified and authenticated. So, uh, I, what's the problem here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>No, I said I was going to get a lawyer to verify it. I haven't done that yet. That's what I've been trying to tell Teresa. We need to slow down. Get someone to actually check this out before we do anything. But she's acting like I'm the one being unreasonable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's not what you said at all. You said that the photo was verified. I can go back to the tape if you'd like me to, but why are you lying to us? Why are you lying to the studio at home? What are you afraid of, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>I'm not lying, Luke. I swear. I said the photo looks real, that the smile was exact. But I never got it verified. I've been too paralyzed to even call a lawyer. That's the whole problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, no, it's not the whole problem. The problem now, is that you're lying to me. Either the last time you called in, you lied, or you're lying now. Either way, you're not telling the truth, and I want to know why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, so picture this. I'm sitting in the laundromat at midnight five days ago. I just got this email. I'm freaking out. Maybe I said things wrong. Maybe I made it sound more certain than it was because I was trying to convince myself it was real. Or maybe I was trying to convince myself it wasn't. I don't know, Luke. I've been spinning out about this for two weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, this is a very important detail, and it's important to how the remainder of this conversation and your life goes. Okay, so you told me the last time you called in that you verified that photo, and you were absolutely sure that the birth mother was real. And now you're saying you don't even know who she is, or if that photo is real, and your girlfriend's going to take your daughter away. So there's two very different stories here, and we need to know which one is the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>The truth is, I don't know if it's real. I haven't verified anything. I looked at that photo for hours, Luke, and that smile is identical to my daughters. The crooked tooth, the dimple on the left side, everything. So in my head, it felt verified. It felt true. But I never actually called anyone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that's not what you told me before, all right? So if this is the case, if this is the truth, and you're not absolutely sure that this woman is real and that photo is verified, then I would say you can't let them go to Guatemala. insane. Okay, that could be anybody. That could be a kidnapping attempt for all you know. It's, uh, it's very fishy. It's very, very fishy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>That's exactly what I told, Teresa. But she's saying, I'm just scared that I'm looking for excuses to avoid the truth because I don't want to deal with it. She thinks I'm being a coward. And maybe she's right, Luke. Maybe I am scared. Because if this woman is real, if she really is the birth mother, then everything about our family changes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Not really, no, it doesn't really change. But what would change is if she flies out to Guatemala with your kid to a place where you strongly suspect and even know that they steal children and your child gets stolen, then your family is going to change. So my advice for you is to talk to Teresa and tell her absolutely not. And if the birth mother wants to meet her daughter or, meet you first would be my recommendation. She can fly to America where you're somewhat protected.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. But Teresa's already looking at flights, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you have to do what you have to do. If Teresa's looking at leaving the country with your daughter and you don't approve, then go to the police and put a restraining order if you have to. You can't let that happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>A restraining order against Teresa? Luke. She's not some criminal. She's my girlfriend. We've been together for years. She's just trying to do what she thinks is right for our daughter. If I go to the police, that's it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, okay. Well, you don't go to the police, and Teresa flies out to Guatemala with your daughter, and then a gang of teenagers steals them both with AK-47s that barely work and forces them to cut each other's heads off. How's that sound? Go to the police, fire restraining order. I don't care if she's your girlfriend, what she's doing. If you don't agree, if you're not on the same page with her, she's kidnapping your daughter. That's what's happening. And you can't let that happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, okay, okay, big surprise there that I'm the bad guy again. But Luke, you're saying file a restraining order like it's nothing. That's nuclear. That's scorched earth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, taking your daughter on a flight to Guatemala to see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, so I just got out of this open mic at Denny's over in Deming, and I am sitting in the parking lot right now because I cannot go home yet. I bombed so bad, Luke. Like, five people in the crowd, three of them are related to the bartender, and I spent my entire set, trying to work out this bit about my house being in a flood zone and nobody laughed. Not one laugh. Complete silence except for somebody's phone going off during what I thought was going to be the big punchline.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well that's not surprising. We live in the desert, sir. There's no flood zone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>No, no, no. See, that's the thing. That's what makes it absurd, right? Like, we're in the desert. We get eight inches of rain a year and somehow my house is in a FEMA flood zone. They remapped it last year. My insurance went up $400 a month. $400, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so tell us the joke. What was the joke?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Okay, so I set it up like this. Picture this. I'm standing there, right? Wearing my good shirt. The one with the little cactus on it that Teresa says makes me look like a tourist. But I like it. And I go. So my house is in a flood zone, which is wild because we're in the desert. Like the only water we get is when the AC drips on my head at night. But Fianlis says, nope, you're in a flood zone. So I'm like, how? The last time it rained here, my neighbor's dog got so excited. He tried to drink the puddle and knocked himself out. And then I paused for the laugh. Nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Okay. Maybe it's time for you to work on some new material.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Yeah, but see, I keep trying to pivot to the punchline, which is that my house is now worth less than the James Webb Space Telescope images I have framed in my hallway. Like, $40 total at Costco, these gorgeous nebula prints, and my house has lost more value than that costs. But Teresa, my girlfriend, she told me tonight before I left, she said if I bring up the space telescope one more time, instead of actually making a decision about whether we're selling the house. And I think she meant it this time, Louv, because she had her overnight bag already packed and sitting by the door when I left for the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, with jokes like that, you can't really expect a woman to stick around for very long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Okay, that's fair, that's fair. But here's the thing. I've got the insurance adjuster's number pulled up on my phone right now. I've got the realtors number. I've got a Google search for cheapest places to live near Tucson Open in three different tabs. And I keep refreshing the James Webb feed like it's going to tell me what to do, you know? Like maybe there's going to be some galaxy out there that looks like an arrow pointing to the right decision.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there's not. I don't know how the James Webb Space Telescope is related to your comedy career or selling your house. And this is a very confusing call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>No, no, no. Let me explain. The telescope thing, it's not about the telescope itself. It's about the fact that I spent 40 bucks on these images of the universe, right? Beautiful pictures of stars and gas clouds and stuff billions of light years away. And now my house, the place where I hung those pictures, is worth less than when I bought it because some bureaucrat drew a line on a map and said flood zone. Like, the universe is expanding, Luke, but my property value is contracting. That's the bit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe you should take up poetry or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Yeah, Teresa said the same thing, actually. She said, Woody, you're not a comedian. You're just a guy who won't shut up about problems he won't solve. Which, ouch, but also maybe accurate. Because here's what I'm really calling about, Luke. I'm sitting in this Denny's parking lot at three in the morning, and I've got all these tabs open, and I know I need to make a decision. Do we sell and take the loss? Do we stay and keep paying the insane insurance?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's a couple things that you can do here. Look, do the math. Does the insurance add up to the same amount as the loss? Which one would be cheaper for you to do? And also, do you like living where you live? Do you like your house regardless of whether or not the insurance is high? If so, maybe it's worth the premium to you. Do you want to live in Tucson? Or do you want to live somewhere else entirely? This could be either a fresh start or just an annoyance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Okay. So the math part, I actually did that. The insurance went up 2200 a year. If we sell now, we lose about 18,000 in equity because the market tanked when they rezoned us. So if we stay five years, we break even on the insurance cost, but that's assuming the premiums don't go up again, which they probably will. And do I like the house?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you like the house? What do you think's going to happen to the market in five years? And if it's that easy to rezone a property that you own, then it very well could be changed again. you can petition to have it changed if you can cite some evidence that there's no flooding there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>See, that's what I keep telling Teresa. I'm like, we can fight this. We can get a hydrologist to come out, show them the drainage patterns, prove that the wash is a quarter mile away and hasn't flooded since 1983. But she's done with it, Luke. She's like, I don't want to spend the next two years fighting the county while you workshop material about it at open mics. And do I like the house? I mean, yeah, it's got this big living room where you can see the mountains. And that's where I hung the telescope pictures because the view kind of matches, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, she sounds like a smart woman. You should hang on to her. But honestly, you're going to have to have that conversation with Teresa and figure out if she wants to live. It sounds like she doesn't want to live there anymore. So this could be a new opportunity to get a better place that suits you better. And, you know, you can have new open mics to bomb at where the people aren't going to already be cringing when you get up to the stage. You know, you get a second So I think sell the house and see what's next in your adventure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>Wait, hold on. They're not cringing when I get up. Well, okay. Maybe the bartender is, but that's because I did 20 minutes on the flood zone three weeks in a row. But you're right about Teresa. She doesn't want to live there anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, so she doesn't want to live there and you got to decide if you want to be with her and what you want your life to look like. But it sounds like a good opportunity for a change. And if you told them the joke that you should, you tell them the joke that you just told us, then yeah, they do cringe when you get up there. They might just be polite about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WOODY</span><p>All right, all right. Fair enough. The universe is expanding, but my property value is contracting. I thought that one had legs. But yeah, I hear you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, thanks for the call. I hope it all works out for you. And fingers crossed for no rain, all right? Ladies and gentlemen, that's the end of our show tonight. I hope you had a wonderful evening. And we're going to talk to you again tomorrow, okay? Bye-bye. I don't know.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 34: Hidden Rooms, Potlucks, and Mysterious Notes</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-12T07:05:40+00:00">March 12, 2026</time> · 50 min</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back. I'm Luke, and you're listening to Luke at the Roost. This is the late night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me what's going on in your life. I will give you the very best advice that I possibly can. Today is Wednesday, March 11th, and we're going to get to the phones right away. First up, we've got Earl. Earl, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life today, buddy? How can we have help you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Am I on? Okay, yeah. Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. I know it's late on a Wednesday, appreciate you staying up with us. So, ah, I run a junkyard out here, been doing it about 12 years now. Bought the place from this guy who moved to Arizona, and it's been pretty straightforward, you know, people bring in their cars, I strip the parts, sell what I can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so what's on your mind? What's the problem at the junkyard?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Right, so three days ago, Sunday, I was in the back because the paperwork's being piling up. There's this wall in there, and I always figured it was just, you know, the exterior wall. But I'm knocking on it to see where I can mount some brackets, and it sounds hollow, really hollow. So I get a sledgehammer, and I start breaking through, thinking maybe there's some storage space back there or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, that's balzy. You just start taking a sledgehammer to your wall. What'd you find back there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>A whole room, Luke. I mean a whole furnished room. There's a couch in there with the plastic still on it, like someone just bought it and never sat on it. There's a mini fridge that's plugged in and running Has been this whole time, I guess. And the walls, all four walls, they're covered in polaroids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sounds like a loss situation Were you able to find any other doors? Any ingress or egress?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's the thing. No. There's no other door. The only way in is through the hole I made in my office wall. I walked around the outside of the building twice, checked every angle. There's no door, no window, no vent big enough for a person. It's just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>never noticed that there was this whole other room tacked onto your building? I mean, you couldn't see that from the outside?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>No, that's what I'm saying. From the outside, the building looks normal. The dimensions match up. It's not like there's this obvious addition sticking out. I measured it, Luke. The room is maybe 10 by 12, but when you're outside, there's no extra footage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you found yourself a magic room that's furnished but unused. What's on the Polaroids?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>regular people at parties, barbecues, birthday cakes with candles. There's got to be maybe 40, 50 photos up there. Different groups, different occasions, but I don't recognize a single face.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's a unique situation you find yourself in. Did you find any interesting treasures in there? Is it just the Polaroids or was there other stuff besides a couch and some Polaroids?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>There's a coffee table, a couple of folding chairs stacked in the corner. The mini fridge, I opened it, and there's three Coors lights in there that are still cold. Luke. After 12 years or however long this room's been sealed up, there's an ashtray on the table, clean, never been used.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so you've been paying electricity on this bridge. You got a room in there that mysteriously is invisible from the outside, and it looks like it's been unused for 12-plus years. Are you going to drink the beers?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I, yeah. I already drank one last night. That's part of why I'm calling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You drank a decade's old beer? How was it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's the thing. It tasted fine. I tasted like I just pulled it out of a cooler, cold, fresh, no weird aftertaste. And I keep thinking about the other two sitting in there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so what do you think about this room? What is it? Why is it there? Why was it walled off? And what are you going to do with it now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I don't know, man. That's why I keep going back there after I close up. I sit on that couch and I look at those photos and I try to figure it out. The guy I bought the place from Jerry Hoskins. He swears he never knew about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>hole that you created in the wall, that you also disappear, that your mask cannot be seen from outside?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I, I hadn't thought about that. Jesus, I've been in there alone every time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you might want to check that out. You might have yourself a Bermuda Triangle situation going on. You think I should have someone watch me go in, see if I just vanish from their side?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, man. I mean, what happens on the island happened. It all really happens.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>doesn't exist except when you enter it. I mean, maybe neither do you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's okay. That's freaking me out a little, because I've been spending hours in there. Like last night I was in there from 9.30 till past midnight, just sitting there drinking that beer, looking at the photos, and nobody knew where I was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, of course nobody knew where you were. You were teleported into another dimension. I think when you enter that room, you leave the bounds of physics and logic and everything stops. Like, there's no time in that room. You don't age when you're in that room. And anything that you do in that room is completely separate and isolated from the reality of the earth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Wait, so you're saying the three hours I was in there last night? That might not have been three hours out here? Because I checked my watch when I left and it was after midnight. But...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, that's exactly what I'm saying. Did you jerk off in there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>What? No. No, I've just been sitting there looking at the pictures. Drinking the beer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You got a secret room with a couch in another dimension and you didn't even rub one out? How are you even talking to me? Like, that's not human.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I, look, it's not like that. The whole thing's being too weird to even think about. That. I've been trying to figure out whose room it is. Who these people are? There's this one photo, this barbecue scene. And there's a guy flipping burgers who looks a little like my uncle, but it's not him, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>my life and shifted it sideways. Yeah, don't jerk off to that. That sounds depressing. I think you've stepped into like a multiverse, another dimension, and you've found a secret place, and anything that happens in there is magic. So my advice to you is to get a friend to watch as you enter the room and see what happens. Also, check your watch to see if time is moving by at the same rate that you expected to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Okay, yeah, I can do that. My buddy Rick, he comes by the yard most Thursday, to pick through the metal scrap. I could have him watch me go in tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. That sounds like a good plan. Thanks for the call. That's a weird thing. Congratulations on your new square footage. Not everybody gets to say that they found a special hidden room. But that's cool. All right, next up, we've got Candy. Candy, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CANDY</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I'm calling because I just got roped into organizing the monthly potluck at work. And I am not doing it. I'm not. people bring food that should be considered a workplace hazard. Last week, somebody brought tuna casserole that had been sitting in their car since morning. And the week before that, Sharon's enchiladas, put three people out with food poisoning, but nobody will say anything because she's been at the thrift store for 15 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You have an employee potluck at a thrift store? Like, you have enough employees to do that? It must be a pretty big thrift store.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CANDY</span><p>Yeah, it's one of the bigger ones in town. We've got maybe 20 people between the floor staff, the Sorders, and back, and the donation center crew. The management thinks the potlock builds morale or whatever. But honestly, it just builds resentment because half the people don't bring anything. And the other half brings stuff that's either store-bought or actively dangerous. And now they volunteered me to organize next months without even asking if I wanted to do it. My boyfriend says, just bring chips and let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But my friend Jackie agrees with me that this is worth pushing back on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CANDY</span><p>Yeah, you don't have to push back on. I just don't do it. That's it. That's the end of the potlock. Potlucks are the worst. They're the worst thing ever. Nobody's potato salad is for fucking good, all right? I know you all think you've got the secret recipe for the best potato salad, but potato salad is gross. Everything that you see at a potluck that is in store a lot is gross.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not interested in anybody's potluck or trying out anybody's secret fucking family recipe for anything. They put onions and everything, and it's never a good idea. Just don't do the potluck. If you want lunch, take everybody to McDonald's. Shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CANDY</span><p>See, that's what I'm saying. Thank you. Nobody wants to admit that they're workers cooking is terrible because it's supposed to be this bonding thing. But it's not bonding when you're trying to figure out if you need to call in sick the next day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And the potato salad, oh my God. There's always three different potato salads and they all have that weird warm mayo thing going on because they've been sitting out for two hours. Yeah, it's gross. It's inhumane and nobody should ever do the podlock. If you want to have that bonding situation at lunchtime with everybody, then get yourself a grill. Right? You go down to the store and you buy a fucking industrial store size box of hot dogs and make up with some hot dogs and hamburgers like a like, like normal God-fearing Americans would do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CANDY</span><p>Right, exactly. Something where you can actually see it being cooked in front of you. Not something that came out of someone's trunk that's been God knows where. But here's the thing, Luke. They're acting like I'm the problem for saying no to this. My manager pulled me aside today and was like, we need someone organized to take charge. And I said, I didn't volunteer for it. And she just smiled and said, well, you're perfect for it anyway. Like that's supposed to make it okay that they just assign me extra work I don't get paid for. And now I'm the bad guy if I don't do it, because everyone's expecting it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's not really a whole lot of extra work organizing a potluck, okay? I know it might feel that way. It might feel overwhelming with your current workload at the thrift store, but it's really not. All you have to do is set up a table and let people bring in their crap. But I think you should show some leadership and just flat out not do it. Don't do your homework. And maybe that will get the point across that potlucks are awful, nobody wants them. waste of everybody's time. I've been to lots and lots of potlucks, and I will not eat anything at a potluck. Unless, like we said there, it's cooked on a grill in front of me, and it's just a hamburger or a hot dog. Even then, I'm skeptical about it because people like to put their spin on the hamburger. Like, ah, you got to try my secret hamburger. No, I don't want anything that is weird or strange or different. Give me a fucking plain hamburger. Well, a cheeseburger, but it's going to be good deli cheese. I don't want the craft singles cheese on my cheeseburger. That's wrong. Just a hot dog? You know, you get yourself some ketchup, some mayo, maybe relish if you're feeling frisky, and call it a day. Nobody needs chips. Nobody needs salad. Nobody needs sides. You get a hot dog and a bottle of water and then get back to work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CANDY</span><p>Oh, I wish it was that simple. But here's the kicker. If I don't organize it, they'll just assign it to someone else. He'll let it slide again. And we'll end up with another Sharon enchilada incident and I cannot live through that again. Last time, I had to listen to Karen from donations, whimpering in the breakroom like a kicked puppy for two days straight. But also, I hate being the one who has to say no to this stuff, because then I'm the mean one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're not organizing what people bring to the potluck. That defeats the whole purpose of the potluck. So here's my advice for you. Don't do it, because you don't want to support this insanity. Just don't do it. And then if they assign somebody else to the potluck, don't eat anything there. And it'll just, sit there on the table and rot, and people will be like, I don't want my potato salad. And, uh, could.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CANDY</span><p>You know what? You're right. I'm overthinking this. I should just tell my manager tomorrow that I'm not doing it. And if she wants a potluck, she can organize it herself or find someone who actually wants to. And then when it happens, I'll just bring my own lunch from home and eat it at my desk like a normal person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. That's the right answer. Uh, no potlucks. Don't participate in them any the way. don't make something to bring it to a potluck. And if somebody does, don't eat it. And if you're the asshole for not participating in the potluck, well, good on you. It takes a village. Next up, we've got Mitch. Mitch, thanks for calling in. How can we help you today? What'd you have for lunch?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Hey, Luke. Appreciate your taking the call. Lunch was a gas station burrito around noon. So we're about 12 hours past that now. Listen, I've been getting this weird interference on my radio telescope setup the last three nights.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, you're getting interference in the telescope or on the radio link?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>On the radio telescope itself, I built this setup in my backyard. Nothing fancy. Just a parabolic dish I welded together and some SDR equipment to pick up signals. Been running it for about eight months now. Mostly tracking satellites. Looking at Jupiter emissions. That kind of thing. But starting Sunday night, right at 247 in the morning, I get this static burst that cuts out all my data for about 90 seconds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, that could have been, there's high solar activity right now. It could have been a little burp from the sun, one of them coronal mass injections. It could have been interference from the military playing around, ice doing their thing. The laser tracking shoot-down drone machines. Who knows? There's lots of things it could be. It could be, did you watch pluribus? It could be a DNA sequence for a greater being that is trying to take over our consciousness.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Right. And I thought about the solar activity. Check to Noah charts. Nothing unusual those nights. But here's the thing that's bothering me. It's the exact same time three nights in a row. 247 a.m. on the dot. Solar bursts don't keep a schedule like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, neither do aliens. You know who does keep schedules like that? Humans do. That's somebody's garage door opener or the military playing some games out there doing testing. That's not anything to be concerned about if it's happening at the same exact time every day. Because time is our own concept, right? Time doesn't exist, man. It's not a real thing, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>Okay, but here's where it gets weird. My neighbor, the same guy who reported my antenna to the HOA last month, saying it was attracting attention, he's the one who called animal control on my dog yesterday. And my ex-wife somehow knew about the citation before I even got home to see it taped to my door.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, did you ask her how she knew about that? Did she maybe prompt the citation? this guy to do it. Does she like you? Do you get along? Why are you talking to your ex-wife? There's a whole bunch of questions there. None of them seem relevant to the initial reason you called. What are you talking about, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MITCH</span><p>You're right. I'm connecting things that might not connect. She texted me because our daughter got scratched by the dog. She's fine, just a scratch. But the neighbor's saying my kid was teasing the dog through the fence with a stick, which is impossible because I built that fence myself. And the slats are too close together for that. But what I'm saying is, this neighbor reports my antenna, then a month later I start getting interference at the exact same time every night, and then suddenly he's calling animal control? That's a pattern.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not a pattern.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. So I'm calling from the break room at work right now. And, okay, so this is wild. You know Mrs. Pacheco. Well, not you specifically, but she's the crossing guard at my daughter's school. Desert Vista Elementary. Been walking me at a class for like two years now. Sweet lady? to vest, the whole thing. Anyway, last month my buddy Carlos made me watch this poker documentary with him. And I'm not even into poker, really, but he was insistent. And there's this whole segment about the World Series of poker from 2009, and Luke, it was her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's great. Good for her. She's good at the poker. Everybody knows Miss Pacheco. Of course, she's the crossing guard lady that plays poker.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>No, no, no. You don't understand. She won $340,000 and a bracelet. Like the actual World Series of poker, the real deal, and now she's standing out there in the wind every morning making 12 bucks an hour, helping kids cross the street.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you only saw her win. You didn't see how many times she lost, or if she was staked by somebody else. Like, you got to pay taxes on that money. She's got bills and debts and a house to deal with. So, yeah. Maybe she just enjoys standing out in the road at all types of weather and helping the little ones cross the street.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Right. Yeah. actually what she said when I brought it up to her this morning. I was dropping off Mia and I was like, hey, I saw you on this documentary. Congratulations on that whole thing. And she just smiled at me, like this calm smile. And said she likes the job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>But that's the thing that's messing with me because my girlfriend, Vanessa, thinks I shouldn't have said anything at all. Like it's none of my business what happened to the money or why she's doing that job. But then my mom, who already doesn't like that me and Vanessa are living together without being married, she's all like people who gamble always lose it eventually. It's in their nature. And I'm sitting here thinking, wait, is it? Is that true? I mean, in the vast majority of cases, people that play games of chance lose. That's how most of the games are set up. Poker's a little bit different, though. There's a skill involved, and the people that are good at it can show wins over time. Yeah, they're going to lose lots, but the goal is to win more times than you lose.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe the top fucking 3% of poker players stay in the money for the long term.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Okay, so that makes sense, but here's what I can't figure out. She didn't seem embarrassed at all when I mentioned it. Like if I had won that kind of money and then lost it all and was working for $12 an hour, I'd be mortified if someone brought it up. But she was just pleasant about it, almost like she was proud of it still. And now I'm wondering if maybe she didn't lose it. Maybe she just wanted the job anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and it's none of your business. And she won a championship. Of course she's going to be proud of that. Maybe she spent the money. It was her money to spend. That's her prerogical. Maybe she bought herself a nice house or it's sitting in a bank account somewhere, collecting interest. Maybe she opened up an account with our sponsor, crypto, no! And lost it all to the soothing ocean sounds that they play. Who knows? But it's not important. She's happy. She's enjoying her life, and that's the important part here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>You're right, you're right. But okay, so here's where it gets complicated. Because Vanessa is mad at me for even asking us about it like I crossed some line. But then at the same time, she keeps bringing up how we need to save more money for me as college fund, and we're barely making ends meet with my welding job and her working at the clinic. And I think maybe part of why this is bothering me is because here's someone who had all this money and chose to stand in the street. And we're over here stressing about every dollar. Does that make sense, or am I just being weird about this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're just being weird about this. You can't compare yourself to somebody else's life. But it sounds like maybe you could ask Ms. Picaccio or whatever the fucker name was for some poker lessons. And there you go. You can invest your incomes in your poker career. And maybe you too can win a $375,000 world series of poker tour, of which you'll probably see 200K and then your family will all come begging like you're a millionaire when you're not. It sounds like a curse. So, I don't know. But this is none of your business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Okay, yeah, you're totally right. It's none of my business. But now I'm thinking about what you just said about everyone coming around begging, because that's exactly what my mom said would happen if we ever came into money. She said Vanessa's family would be all over us. Which is crazy because Vanessa's family has been nothing but nice to us. They helped us with a down payment on the trailer. And now I'm wondering if my mom is projecting something. Like maybe when she was younger, something happened with money in her family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Who knows and who cares? You're an adult. You don't have to worry about what your mother says. And you're not coming into any money. Just calling radio stations about other people's lives. So get out there, and if you need more money, change your career or work harder or ask for it, find a way. And then you can learn how to deal with people that come looking for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>You're absolutely right. I'm sitting here in the break room at 2 in the morning, obsessing about a crossing guards poker winnings instead of figuring out my own situation. That's ridiculous. I appreciate you calling me out on that, Luke. I needed to hear it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you did. You did need to hear it. So take care of your own show and stop looking at what is going on in other people's lives. The crossing guard's happy. The kids like her all as well with the world. Next up, we've got Angie. Angie, welcome to the show. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I went to Tucson. Had the birthday dinner with my mom and Derek.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, you're going to have to remind me. Who are you? What was the birthday? Oh, you're the lady that your mom was dying and she wanted to have cake, right? How was the cake?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, that's me. The cake was fine. I brought those relighting candles like I said I would. My mom loved that. Kept blowing them out and laughing every time they came back on. Derek sat there the whole time looking at his phone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds perfect because you were concerned that Derek was going to be a douchebag the whole time. So that sounds like the best case scenario. And your mom's happy and you fulfilled your obligation. So why are you calling me tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Because he cornered me in the driveway after. I was loading up my car and he comes out and says he needs to talk to me about mom's care, says she's told him she wants to stop treatment, and he thinks I'm the one who put that idea in her head.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you the one that put that idea in her head?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>No. I didn't even know she was thinking about it. She hasn't said anything to me about stopping treatment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it was probably the extreme left wing, what do they call them? I'm trying to think of, libtards.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, it was the lib tards that did it. He actually said something like that. He said the doctors are probably pushing it because of cost, or some conspiracy. I told him maybe mom's just tired, Luke. She's been doing chemo for eight months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, she's old. She got to see her kids have cake together. That was her last wish, and she's had enough fighting. And I think that anybody in that situation should have the agency to make that choice on their own. So if that's what she wants to do, good for her. And if your brother is pissed at you about it, then fuck him. But fuck him anyway, because he was a douchebag pretty much all the time, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, but here's the thing. He wants me to go with him to her next appointment, to talk to the doctor together. Says if we're both there, we can make sure she's thinking clearly and not being influenced.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe that's not such a bad idea, and you can keep him off of them, right, while she discusses her care with her doctor, as she should be allowed to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>I guess. I just don't want to be in a room with him and some oncologist while he accuses everyone of trying to kill our mom. And I don't know if she even wants us there. He didn't ask her. He just decided we should do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you shouldn't do anything without your mom say so. She's still lucid. She's still got her faculties, and she can make those decisions on her own. If you want to go, ask your mom if she wants you to be there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>You're right. I should just call her and ask. Not make it about Derek at all. Just see what she actually wants. Because this whole thing might just be him freaking out and trying to control something he can't control.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, of course it is. And if it's not, then. And the only way that you're going to know is by talking to your mom. And you should have that conversation anyway. She's dying. It might be one of the last conversations you have. Ask her what she's thinking. Ask her what it's like. This is an opportunity for you to understand what's going through somebody's mind in their final days or hours. And that's a gift. So if you have the opportunity to talk to her now about those important real life things, that's a big deal. And you should take advantage of her now of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah. I've been avoiding asking her anything real because I don't want to make her sad or make it about me. But you're right. She might actually want to talk about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And if she doesn't want to talk about it, she'll let you know that. But I would guess, and in my experience, people that are there are very much willing to explain what's going on to you because they wish somebody had explained it to them. And it is a special experience that you can have with somebody. That it's going to actually important.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>on you some wisdom. I'm going to call her tomorrow morning, before work. And I'll ask if she wants me at the appointment. And I'll ask her what she's actually thinking about all of it. Not what Derek thinks she should be thinking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. That's the right answer. And I wish you all the best of luck there. It doesn't sound like a fun situation, but it sounds like you're all dealing with it the best you can. Now, ladies and gentlemen, we've got to go to another ad from our sponsors. I'm going to be straight with you. I don't know what this product does. The folks at Bunkhouse DNS sent me a script, and I've read it four times, and I understand maybe 11% of it. Apparently, your DNS is exposed, which sounds medical. Your queries are being logged by default, which sounds illegal. And Bunkhouse reroutes your lookups through encrypted tunnels, which sounds like something a villain would say in a movie before the building explodes. What I can tell you is this. I installed it. I pressed one button and a little shield icon turned green. Green means good. I know that much. My internet still works. Nothing exploded. And apparently, my queries, whatever those are, are now private, which feels like progress, even though I don't fully understand progress from what? Bunkhouse DNS. I don't know what it does, but the shield is green, and that's enough for me. Okay. And we're back. We're going to change the vibe a little bit, turned on the vibe dial. Lower the lights. And we're going to continue with Luke at the Roost, your favorite radio show. Next up we've got Sal. Sal, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, so. I found a pill bottle in my kid's backpack. My name was on it, but somebody scratched it off with a key or something. These are the oxy they gave me. After my shoulder surgery last fall, I thought I had them put away in the garage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, obviously, you weren't paying attention to where you put your controlled substances and your kids get a hold of them. So whose fault is that, sir? Hopefully you took them away from him and you're going to have a conversation about how he got them and why he had them in his backpack before you end up having that conversation at the police station or with one of his classmates that overdoses in lunch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Yeah, no. I took them. I got the bottle. But here's the thing, Luke. I counted them. There's the same number that was in there when I put them away. He didn't take any. He just has them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he had them. You've removed them from his possession, and now you have them. And what you're going to do with them now is put them in a secure, locked container where only you can get to them. And you're not going to have them walking away to the school yard because that is irresponsible. And why do you have the oxies anyway if you're not taking them? If you don't need them, they probably shouldn't be hanging around the house. Because I don't know if you've heard, but they cause problems for people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>I know, I know. Look, I had the surgery in October. I used maybe half of them. I kept the rest. Because you never know, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. You never know when your child is going to find them and put them in his backpack and take them to school and give them away to his friends. And you never know when those friends are going to die right there. And you never know when that's going to be your fault.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>All right. Yeah, I hear you! I'll get rid of them. But that's not. Luke, the real question is, do I tell his mom about this? Because she's been clean. Two years. She had her own thing with pills before. And if I tell her I found these in his backpack, she's going to know immediately they're mine. She's going to know I've been holding on to them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you would prescribe these pills and you're holding on to them because you're an adult, and you made the decision that they might be good to have around for some reason. Should you tell the mother of your child that the child took the pills from you and then just walked around with them in his backpack for God knows how long. I don't know. Probably not. I don't know that that would help the situation any. What I would recommend is you should talk to your son and ask him why he took the pills, what he was doing with him, and what his intentions were, and explain to him the dangers of oxycontin and what type of opioids. Explain to him what opioids are about and have the conversation about drugs and how they can in your life and see where he's at with that. So you talk to him and let him know that if he continues, you're going to tell his mother, but for her own protection, you don't have to mention it this one time because there was no harm done. But next time, they very well could be harm done, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Yeah, but Luke, that's the thing. I don't think he took them to use them or sell them or whatever. I think he took them because, I don't know, like insurance or something. Like he knows. They know's their mine. He scratched my name off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Insurance against what? Insurance against, what, you grounding him? You're going to be like, well, if you don't let me go play with my friends, I'm not going to give you your important pain medication. If that's the case, your child might be a psychopath, and maybe you need to have a very different conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>No, not like that. More like insurance against me. Like maybe he knows about us other stuff I've got stashed. Maybe he's holding on to them so I know he knows.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is insane. But what other stuff do you have stashed, probably unsecured and available for a child to take to school?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>I mean nothing like that. Just look, I've got some things in the garage, tools, some equipment from jobs, nothing illegal. But the kid's been going through my stuff clearly, and I don't know what he's seen or what he thinks he knows.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Ah, well, you sound like a disturbed gentleman, and it sounds like maybe you're stashing some guns or drugs or stolen Native American women or maybe industrial weapons-grade plutonium. Who knows? I don't know what's in your garage. Only you can know that. But the stuff that is important, dangerous, maybe should be locked up, perhaps in a gun safe. You can get one of those at Harbor Freight or at a gun safe store. And you might be interested to learn that if you buy a safe, there's no tax on that. Isn't that nice?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Yeah, I know about the safes. I've been meaning to get one. But Luke, you're missing what I'm asking here. Do I confront him about the pills or not?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't believe I missed that. You never asked me if you should confront him. You asked me if you should confront his mother, to which I replied, no. And then I further elucidated that you should talk to him about drugs and how they can affect somebody's life in the long term, like a good father would. Because it seems like it's probably the time in his life where he's curious. And you might, uh, might be able to fend off some serious issues later in life. Also, if nothing else, you can ask why he would take your pills for insurance against what exactly?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>All right, yeah, you're right. I need to talk to him directly. I just, I've been avoiding it because I work nights most of the week. And when I am home, he's either at school or locked in his room.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You see, he has the right idea with the whole life up the room. That's, I mean, maybe you should take a cue from your son, because he seems to understand how to protect things that he doesn't want other people to have access to. So, I mean, this is another option that might work for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah. I got something. So I'm an embalmer, right? And last week this guy comes in. I'm doing the prep work. And I find a post-it note in his jacket pocket. It says, Crystal, if you're reading this, I'm sorry about the thing with your mom. You deserved better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You did. I'm sorry about that thing with your mom, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>No, Luke. That's the thing. I have no idea who this guy is. Never seen him before in my life. He's 72 years old. Names Douglas. Kemper died of a heart attack. I asked around. Nobody in my family knows a Douglas Kemper. My mom doesn't know him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh, no, your mom doesn't remember him. Because she gets around quite a bit. That's what I'm telling you. Is you can't really be sure who knew your mom in that way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Luke, my mom's been married to my stepdad for 30 years. And before that, she was with my dad. She's not getting around. She works at the DMV and goes to bed at 8.30. This note dated from two weeks ago. He wrote it two weeks before he died.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Well, I think you're confused about your mom and who she is because I was with her last night at about 10.30.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, you weren't with my mom. My mom's 64 years old and she's got a knee replacement scheduled for next month.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>But here's what's really messing me up. I looked him up. Douglas Kemper. Never lived in the same town as us? Never worked anywhere near my family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did you ever wonder how your mom wore out her knee?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>I don't. You're really committed to this bit. Anyway, the note says the thing with your mom, like I'm supposed to know what that means. And he's apologizing to me specifically. He knew my name. He knew I'd be the one finding it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I actually leave posted notes around town for you, too, because I know that someday you're going to find out the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>The truth about what, Luke? Because I'm sitting here at 11 at night eating Circle K sushi, trying to figure out how a complete stranger knew I'd be the one handling his body. That's the part that's getting to me. Not whatever weird thing you're implying about my mom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean the truth about your mom and how giving she is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Luke, I don't know what you're getting at with this, but I'm telling you, this guy left a note in his pocket. It was folded up real small like he knew someone would find it. It says, Crystal, I'm sorry about the thing with your mom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, your mom is frequently at establishments that I frequent. Like, she's all often at the Lordsburg Gloryhole. She's a frequent appear down at the old Amazing's sex shop where she jerks off truckers in the parking lot. And we salute her. She gets a lot of work done. She covers a lot of ground. And she's been with a lot of people. Your mom is quite a slut.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Luke, my mom volunteers at the church bake sale and her idea of a wild Friday is getting the premium car wash. But fine, you want to do this fit? We can do this bit. What I'm actually asking you is, do I tell her about this note? Because either this Douglas Kemper knew something real, or he was confused and thought I was someone else. And if it's real, if there actually is a thing with my mom, I don't know about. Do I really want to open that door?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We've all opened that door, my friend. And let me tell you, it's not that tight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>You know what? I'm going to take that as a no. Don't tell her. Because you're right about one thing. Some doors you can't close once you open them. And maybe whatever Douglas Kemper thought he needed to apologize for, it died with him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe it did. I don't know. But you are right about that. Some doors, you cannot close once you open them. Like, very similarly to your mother's legs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Oh, right, Luke. I appreciate the advice buried somewhere under all that. I'm going to toss the note and pretend I never saw it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good for you. tell your mom I said hello.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 35: Midnight Confessions and Unexpected Revelations</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-13T11:19:38+00:00">March 13, 2026</time> · 1 hr 12 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts a late-night call-in radio show featuring callers with wild stories about hidden wills, unexpected Burning Man photos, and mysterious car deals. Listeners share personal dilemmas ranging from family inheritance to neighborhood dog disputes and financial surprises. What secrets will be revealed in this late-night journey through human complexity?</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back. I'm Luke. This is Luke at the Roost. It's the late night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about whatever's going on in your life. Ask me about what's on your mind. I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today's Friday, March 13th. Somebody told me today, it's the anniversary of the lockdown from COVID-19. So happy COVID-19 lockdown day. I hope you're enjoying yours. It seems like this town never sleeps because it's 308 a.m. And our phone lines are lit up like never before. So we're going to get right to that. First up, we've got Lucille. Lucille, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? What do you want to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>I moved my mom's will. Like, physically moved it. She's leaving everything to her church. And I just stuck it behind the Christmas napkins, going to find it. I know how that sounds. I'm not proud of it. But I've got two kids, a mortgage, and my mom promised me her tools my whole life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She promised you our tools. Out of all of her stuff, her tools is what you're looking for? Do you think the church cares about the tools? What tools are we talking about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Handplanes from the 1800s. Anvils. My dad collected them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so what makes you think that your mom only has one copy of this will? I assume that she's got legal representation. I'm sure her lawyer's office has another copy of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Oh, I know they do. I'm not stupid. But if they can't find the original, it slows everything down, right? Probate gets messy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. I wouldn't bet on that. I think a better approach would be to talk to your mom and ask what's going on. Tell her you want the anvils, the planes? really even know what those are. Those are the things that you use to make a board smooth?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Yeah, hand planes smooth wood. My dad taught me how to use them when I was like eight. And I've tried talking to her. She just says, the church has been there for her. They helped her through her grief. And she wants to give back. She's been going there six months, Luke, six months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And are the hand planes explicitly defined in the will? Because that doesn't seem like the type of thing that would be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>No, the will just says all personal property and the house go to the church, everything. The pastor drives Alexis, by the way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, you don't have to hide the will. You can just show up before the pastor does. Sounds like you could probably handle that, right? I think hiding the will is going to get you in more trouble than it's worth. That's a dushy thing to do, and if you want the handplains, just go there and take them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>You're saying just take them while she's still alive. Just walk in and load up the truck?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's not what I'm saying at all. I'm saying wait until she dies or kill her, one of the two. And then you can be the death people and go in there and, you know, clean up everything before the pastor shows up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Jesus, Luke, I'm not killing my mother. But yeah, I mean, I could get there first. I've got a key to the house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Problem solved. That's the answer. Put the will back where it was. She wants her other stuff. If that's all you care about, just go take that. The pastor's not going to know or care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>You're right. You're completely right. The pastor doesn't even know what's in that garage. He's never been to the house. I'm sitting here at three in the morning at the bail bond's office, making myself into a criminal over something I could just handle like a normal person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, don't do that. I'm glad we could talk some sense. a wonderful night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUCILLE</span><p>Thanks, Luke. I appreciate it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Anytime. Happy to help. Yeah, no hiding of the will before the person's dead. Everybody knows you make a mad rush for it the second that happens and finders keepers. Next up, we've got Joey. Joey, welcome to the show. What can I give you advice on today in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Appreciate you taking the call. So I'm calling because I've been watching this roadrunner outside the depot, right? And the other day I watched it kill a rattlesnake. Just grabbed it, whipped it around, smashed its head on a rock.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, that's a pretty badass roadrunner. Meep, meep. Good for him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Right, but here's the thing. It made me think about this mantis shrimp article I read. These things can see 16 color receptors. We only have three.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so how did a roadrunner? A roadrunner smashing a rattlesnake's head into a rock make you think about a mantis shrimp being able to see 16 colors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Because we're all walking around half blind, Lou. That roadrunner sees the world completely different than I do. The mantis shrimp sees colors we can't even imagine. And I'm standing there in the parking lot at three in the morning thinking, what if my neighbor Gary is just operating on a completely different reality than me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He probably is. We all probably are. Who's to say what reality is? what one person's reality looks like through another person's 16 color receptor eyes. I don't know. We'll never know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Exactly. But here's why I'm calling. Gary keeps insisting my dog Buster is aggressive, says he growls at him, acts territorial, but Buster never does that with anyone else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Buster. No, that can't be. I don't believe that. He's a good boy. And your neighbor Gary's probably just a pussy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>That's what I'm saying. And here's the thing. Six months before my divorce, Buster started acting weird around my ex-wife. Wouldn't sit near her. Kept his distance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you think Buster would do to that rattlesnake?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Oh, Buster would lose that fight, no question. He's a beagle mix. Not exactly Apex predator material. But that's my point. Buster knew something about my ex that I didn't see until way later. Animals are operating on a different level of perception than we are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Of course they are. So our plants? so are rocks. So are stars. Everything's operating on a different level of perception than we are. But what makes you think that Buster saw something ugly in your ex and not in you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>What do you mean? Buster loves me. He's my dog.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, but he was her dog, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>No, he was mine before we got married. I got him as a puppy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But hold on. You're saying Buster was reacting to me, not her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>No, I'm just talking about perspective. and people's different realities right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you called in talking about how everybody experiences a different reality. And from your perspective, your ex-wife was bad. But from her perspective, I mean, you very well may have been bad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Okay, but she's the one who cheated Luke. That's not a perspective thing. That's a fact. She was sleeping with a guy from her CrossFit gym for four months before I found out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not a very nice thing to do. But why was she cheating with the CrossFit Gym guy? Like, what had led up to that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>I was working a lot, pulling doubles at UPS during peak season. But that doesn't justify it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I'm not saying it justifies it, but you can understand from her perspective why she needed to get some, right? She wasn't getting it from you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>I mean, we were still having sex, just not as much, maybe once every couple weeks during the busy season. But I was exhausted, Luke. I was doing 70-hour weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's not good. And it's understandable that women would get lonely if you're not around for 70 hours at a time. And cheating is never okay. There's never really a good excuse for it. That's not really what I'm saying. I'm just saying you're thinking that your dog knew that she was bad or evil or that there was something malicious about her. And if you look at it from her perspective, that's just, I mean, that might not really be the case.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>But Buster started acting weird before the cheating even started. At least I think he did. The timeline, wait, actually, I don't know exactly when it started. She said four months, but who knows if that's true?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you can't know. So Buster now is causing problems with your neighbor, so you think your neighbor is cheating on you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>What? No, Gary's not. Luke, Gary's my neighbor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>I'm not married to Gary. I'm saying Gary can't perceive what Buster actually is, because he's operating on a lot. a different reality. Same way I couldn't see what my ex was doing because I was blind to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You weren't blind to her. You weren't home. You were working 70 hours a week. And your ex was, you know, doing what she needed to do to take care of herself, I guess. So not the right way. We're not standing up for your ex in this. We're just saying that maybe she's not evil. That's all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>All right, fair enough. She's not evil. But Gary still sucks. And Buster's not aggressive. That's what I'm trying to get at here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Fair. Enough, I can agree with you on those points. She's not evil. Gary sucks, and Buster's not aggressive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Exactly. And that's why the mantis shrimp thing matters, because Gary thinks Buster's aggressive when he's just being protective of me. Gary can't see the actual situation. Just like I couldn't see what was happening with my ex until it was too late. We're all walking around half blind to what's really going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Buster can be both things, and we need to know what the truth is here. protected of you and in doing so, be aggressive towards other people. Is that what's happening? And you're not paying attention to that? Or is Gary just a pussy that's afraid of dogs?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Gary called animal control because Buster barked at him through the fence. That's it. Buster didn't jump the fence. Didn't bite anyone. Just barked. And now Gary's threatening to sue me if Buster gets out again, which he did once because the gate latch broke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what happened when Buster get out? What trouble did he cause? Did he go after Gary? I don't think that animal control cares if your dog's barking in your own yard at your fence. And if the dog got out, I mean, he could call animal control and have them pick him up and, like, call you. But I don't think he can sue you for that. I mean, you could try, but I don't think it would go very far.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Buster ran straight to Gary's yard and knocked over his grill. Gary says Buster was trying to attack him, but Gary was standing right next to the grill. So obviously Buster ran into it. And then Gary pepper sprayed him, Luke. Pepper sprayed him. my dog for knocking over a grill.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no, that's not all right. I mean, I would lose my mind if somebody pepper sprayed my dog. So you're being surprisingly calm about this whole situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>I'm not calm about it. I went over there and we got into it. I didn't hit him or anything, but I told him if he ever touches my dog again, we're going to have a real problem. And that's when he said he's getting a lawyer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you have a lawyer?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>No, I don't have a lawyer. I deliver packages for a dog again. a living, Luke. I can't afford a lawyer over a knocked over grill.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but you don't get a buddy or a brother-in-law. Well, I guess you don't have a brother-in-law, but you don't know somebody that's a lawyer that would step in, or at least that you could use to threaten to have him step in if this were to escalate any.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>My cousin Derek's a paralegal, but he does real estate stuff. I don't think that counts. And honestly, I don't even know if Gary's serious about the lawyer thing or if he's just trying to scare me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's trying to scare. I mean, no. Nobody's going to call a lawyer unless they really, really have to. Lawyers are expensive. Nobody wants to do that. But the bigger problem here is you and your neighbor can't get along because of your dog. And the only way to solve that is to talk to Gary and get him to spend some time with your dog. Get them acquainted, so he's not so fearful. And you were right to let him know that if he ever touches your dog again, you're going to break his fucking jaw for him. But outside that, If you want to continue living a peaceful life in your neighborhood, you're going to have to do something to ease this situation over, right? You should be friends.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>I tried that already. Before all this happened, I invited Gary over for a barbecue last summer. He came over for like 20 minutes. Wouldn't even Pet Buster kept asking me to put him inside. And then he left early saying he had to help his girlfriend move furniture or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And did you put Buster inside?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, I put him inside. But that's the whole point, Luke. Gary didn't even give him a chance. Buster was just sitting there wagging his tail, and Gary acted like he was a wolf or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand that. He's scared of dogs. He doesn't like Buster. That's obvious. But what I'm saying is you need to have a conversation with Gary and say, hey, man, I mean, I live here too, and so does my dog, and I love my dog. And I would really appreciate it if you'd make some level of effort to. to at least look at him, you know, at least spend a little bit of time with him and consider that he might not be trying to kill you. Unless he is, unless you're deluded and he actually is aggressive, and he's knocking over the grill and threatening to Gary, then maybe you're in the wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>He's not aggressive. Gary's girlfriend isn't scared of Buster at all. She comes over sometimes when Gary's at work, and she throws the ball for him in my mind. yard. She thinks Gary's being ridiculous about the whole thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I think you should talk to Gary. And you know what? Maybe tell him that you need his help because you're working on training him to be better around people. Even if he's only an asshole around Gary, you can use this as an opportunity to get Gary and Buster to become acquainted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>That might work. I mean, I don't want to lie and say Buster needs training when he doesn't. But if it gets Gary to actually interact with him instead of freaking out every time he sees him, maybe it's worth it. And honestly, his girlfriend already thinks I'm reasonable about this whole thing. So maybe should back me up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, all dogs need training. They don't look at it as training. They look at it as intention and love, right? You're spending time with them and giving them something to do, something to focus on a job. And I think that that's important for dogs and that they don't see it as As, oh, I'm bad and I need training, they see it as, oh, good, I get to do something fun with my human.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>You're right, and Buster does love learning new stuff. I taught him to bring me a beer from the fridge last year, and he does it every time now. Maybe I could use that to show Gary he's actually smart and not just some wild animal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there you go, and you can teach him to be calm and respectful when Gary's around, maybe more so than other people, because Gary doesn't like him, and Gary's afraid of him, and who knows, maybe Gary got bit by a bit by a lot. dog that looks like Buster when he was a kid or something. You can't be sure. You called in talking! Rattlesnakes bashing or a Roadrunner bashing in a snake's head because it perceives the world differently. Well, Gary perceives the world differently than you or I do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>That's exactly what I'm saying, though, Luke. Gary's operating on a completely different frequency. He can't see what's actually there. He sees Buster and his brain tells him danger. When what's actually there is just a dog who wants to play.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, when a dog has a dog has a energy and starts jumping around and playing that looks aggressive to people that aren't used to having dogs. So, and it's, it's embarrassing and we don't want that to happen. So the responsible and respectful thing for you to do would be to train Buster to not behave in a, in that playful way when Gary is around.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>All right, yeah, I can do that. I'll work on getting him to just sit and stay calm when Gary's around. And maybe I'll talk about. And maybe I'll talk about. talk to Gary's girlfriend first, see if she can help smooth things over before I go directly to him. Because honestly, after the pepper spray thing and me getting in his face, I don't know if he's even going to open the door for me right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I need to be the bigger person here. I'll give it a few days and then go over there and apologize for getting in his face. And I'll tell him I'm working on training Buster to be calmer around him. Maybe bring him some beer or something as a peace offering.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. And all you can do is try, so give it a try. And if it doesn't work out and he ever touches your dog again, break his fucking jaw.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Ha. All right, Luke. Appreciate it, man. I'll let you know how it goes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thanks, man. You have a good night and give Buster a little pet on the head for me, all right? And now it's time for some words from our sponsor. This episode is sponsored by Shoe Spray Co. It's the spray you use in rental bowling shoes, because bowling is a game, but these shoes are gross. Let's be honest. Those shoes aren't dirty. They're used. They've had shifts. They've been through birthdays, work parties, and at least one guy who insists he's actually really good at this. Shoes Spray Co. doesn't promise fresh linen or spring rain. Nobody believes that. No one wants to be lied to while lacing up rental shoes. Shoospray Co just handles the situation. It makes them tolerable enough that you can focus on the important part. you're not competitive and then getting mad anyway. Use code strike at shoe spray co for 15% off. Shoes Spray Co. Reality-based footwear management. Okay. Welcome back. And yeah, the lines are still really lit up. I don't know what everybody's doing out here in New Mexico at 3.30 in the morning. Well, I do know. They're calling me at Luke at the Roost. like to give us a call. The number is 208-5853. That's 208-439. Luke. Next up, we've got Maxine. Maxine. Welcome to the show. You're up late tonight. What's going on over there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>Hey, yeah. Sorry, I'm, yeah, I'm up. I bought this house about a year and a half ago. And I've been doing some work on it. Just little things, you know. And tonight, I was measuring because I wanted to put up some shelves in the bedroom and the numbers weren't right. The tape measure kept coming up short between my bedroom wall and the bathroom. And I thought maybe I was just tired, but I got this laser level from work and did it proper and there's like six feet missing. Just gone. The rooms don't line up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't understand what you're saying the rooms don't line up. You're trying to put up a shelf? You're measuring the wall. What rooms don't line up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>No. I mean, Okay, so my bedroom is on one side, right, and the bathroom is on the other side. And when you measure the bedroom wall, it's one length, and then you go into the bathroom and measure that wall, and it's another length. And when you add them up with the hallway in between, it doesn't match the outside of the house. There's space that's not accounted for. Like six feet of space that should be there but isn't in any room. It's just wall. Solid wall where there should be something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. That sounds like a strange design choice to me. I don't think I'm picturing. I would need you to draw this for me because I'm not getting it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>I know it sounds. I'm not explaining it right. Look, there's a door in the hallway between the bedroom and bathroom. I always thought it was a closet or something, never opened it, because it was painted shut when I moved in. But tonight, after I did all the measuring, I got a screwdriver and pried it open. And it's not a door to anything. It's just drywall behind it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what do you think's behind the drywall?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>I don't know. That's the drywall. That's why I'm, I mean, that's why I called. The drywall is newer than the rest of the house. I can tell because it's smooth and the joint compound still snells a little bit, not like old and dusty. And the previous owner died here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so do you think the previous owner is in the wall?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>I don't know. They said it was natural causes. The realtor said it was totally normal. He was old. But I keep thinking about why someone would seal off six feet of space with fresh drywall and then just paint a door shed over it. sledgehammer sitting right here on the kitchen table, and I don't know if I should just break through and see what's in there, or if I should call somebody first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think there's any reason to call. I mean, you called me first, right? I'm all you need. So, are you good at repairing drywall? Because if you smash through the drywall, you're going to have a big hole in your wall, and you're probably not going to like that, but you might find treasure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>I'm okay at it. I've done some patching. I took the house as is in the divorce. so I've had to learn a lot of stuff. But yeah, I could fix it if I had to. I just, I keep going back and forth. Part of me thinks it's probably just some contractor being lazy, like they closed off a weird space instead of dealing with it properly. But it's three in the morning and I'm standing here staring at this wall. And I can't stop thinking about what's behind it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's probably exactly what happened. They were trying to cover something up and make it look like maybe there was more space than there was. somebody was doing some sort of content creation and they were making a set so they could film against the door. I don't know. But a sledgehammer isn't really the right tool for that job. You should probably do something a little more surgical. You could use a drywall knife and just cut a space smaller than the door. So that way, when you're done, you can put the door back and it'll cover up the hole.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>That's smarter. Yeah. I didn't think about that. I've got a utility knife somewhere. So you think I think I should just do it tonight. Just cut it open and see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think you should do it right now. I think you should put the phone down and go over there and do it. If you've got a saw-as-all, that would work too. And come back and let us know what's in there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAXINE</span><p>Okay. Okay, yeah. Let me hold on. I'm going to put you on speaker so I can use both hands. Give me a minute.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. I'll give you, I don't know, a few seconds because this is a radio show and we can't have too much dead air. In the meantime, you guys can listen to this music or the soothing sound of my voice while I babble and give her time to cut a hole in her wall. When I was a kid, I called the Opie and Anthony show. It was a radio show, uh, sort of like this, but they were shock jocks. And I was maybe 10 or 11. And I wanted to win tickets to a concert. I didn't know what concert I wanted tickets to. I just wanted to win something. I was very excited. I was calling the radio. I got through. I got through. That never happened. It was always busy. So I got through. I got to talk to Opie. Opie from the Opie and Anthony show. And I was like, I want some tickets to something. And he's like, okay, kid, well, here's what you got to do for the tickets. I want you to take your phone at the time. Those were, it was a cordless phone, not a cell phone, a cordless phone. And I said, yeah, I got the cordless phone. And he said, I want you to take the cordless phone and put it in your dryer and turn it on while we listen to it on the air. And I did that. turned on my dryer and I put the phone in it and they played it on the air and then they hung up on me. So a few minutes later, I just kept calling. I kept calling. I kept calling. I get in the busy signal and I finally got through again and Opie answered and he's like, yeah, this is Opie from the O'B and Anthony show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up we've got Nate. Nate, welcome to the show. Have you found any hidden treasure in your secret walls lately?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NATE</span><p>No, no hidden treasure. But I am about to lose my bar over this, Luke, and I'm not even being dramatic. My ex-girlfriend is dating Danny the bartender at the Cottonwood, which has been my spot for seven years. Seven years, Luke. I was going there when that place still had the old neon sign out front.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I mean, the bar that you went to is not your bar. It's just a bar that you went to. And you can still go there and deal with the fact that your ex-girlfriend's dating the bartender. There's no reason you couldn't handle that as a grown adult. But if you can't, then find yourself another bar.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NATE</span><p>I know that, Luke, I know it's not technically mine, but hear me out. Danny knows my drink order. He knows about the time my transmission died in their parking lot, and I had to leave my truck there for three days. He knows I tip extra during the holidays. And now he's dating Jennifer, which means every single thing I ever told him about her. Every time I sat at that bar after we fought and he asked what was wrong, he's probably told her all. There's something about your bartender dating your ex that feels like a violation of the Geneva conventions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NATE</span><p>And I'm half joking, but I'm also deadly serious about this. Yeah, and he knows all about your ex-girlfriend. He knows what she likes. He knows about the sound she makes. And yeah, that's annoying. But if you want to go to the cottonwood, then you're going to have to deal with that. Otherwise, you've got to go to a different bar.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's the thing though, Luke. I tried that tonight. I went to three cactus jacks. I went to that new place on Speedway. I even drove all the way out to the rusty spur, and they all felt wrong. The beer was fine, the music was fine, but it wasn't right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NATE</span><p>And I'm sitting in my truck right now on the loading dock at work. My shift just ended, and I'm having this realization that's honestly messing with my head. I think I care more about losing the cottonwood than I ever cared about losing Jennifer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, that can happen, and that's okay. So you lost your bar. That's sad. That was your social life. You enjoyed it there. I mean, you can continue to go there. You just have to deal with the fact that those two are dating. Or you can find a time when there's a different bartender working. Yeah, just man up. And go to the bar if you want to go to the bar. Sit up on the other side of the bar from Jennifer and whatever his name is. There's not much to tell you here. You got to just grow up and deal with it or find a different bar or stop going to bars all together and find a different way to get your social activities in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NATE</span><p>Danny. His name is Danny. And you're right. You're absolutely right. But here's what's really getting me. I don't think she ever even went there before we started dating. I took her there. I introduced her to Danny.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't care. This isn't interesting. Your ex-girlfriend left you and now she's dating the bartender at a bar that you used to like. That's the story. You have three options. Go to a different bar, go to that bar and just deal with the fact that your ex-girlfriend's dating the bartender or stop going to bars. Otherwise, there's nothing left to tell you, and this call is boring.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NATE</span><p>You know what, Luke? You're right. This is boring. I'm boring. I called a radio show at three in the morning to complain about losing my bar.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You didn't lose your bar. You lost your balls. Next up we've got Debbie. Debbie, welcome to the show. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So I fired my employee today, and I am pretty sure I just became the bad guy in one of those viral work stories. But also, I think I am right. And I do not know what to do about that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, why did you fire the employee?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>So I own a bakery. And last year, during the really bad dust storms, I let everyone go remote, you know, work from home. And this girl, she is 22. She started making the sourdough from her apartment and just dropping off the loaves, which, okay, I tried it. I was trying to be flexible, but then she stopped coming in for her actual shifts at the storefront, just stopped showing up, but she still wanted full pay, like the same hours, even though she was not here doing the register or helping customers, or any of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And did you talk to her about this and let her know that that was unacceptable? You give her any chances to redeem herself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Well, yeah, I mean, I told her. I told her multiple times she needed to come back in. I said the remote thing was temporary, just for the worst of the dust season. And she kept saying she could do her job from home, that the bread was getting made. What was the problem? And I kept explaining that a bakery is not just about making bread. You have to be here. You have to interact with customers. You have to help with the front. But she just kept not showing up, and then texting me like everything was fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, then she wasn't doing her job. If her job included working the register and doing point of sale stuff, then she wasn't showing up for it. And you were right to fire. You had to save your business. Now, what is this viral video you're talking about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Oh, no. There is no video. I am just saying I feel like I am the villain in one of those stories you see online. You know, where the boss is being unreasonable about remote work and everyone in the comments is like, want to control people because she has been posting about it. Not naming the bakery, but posting about how her boss fired her for wanting flexibility and work-life balance. And some of her friends have been coming into the shop and giving me these looks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I mean, I am very pro-remote work. And I'm one of those people that thinks employers are unreasonable when they're trying to make people come into the office. But it's a different kind of work. There is no interaction with customers. There's don't have to be physically present. And a lot of times, me being physically present is detrimental to the work. Like, I do better work from, you know, home. That being said, it's a different role if you have to deal with the public, if you're, if you have to maintain a storefront. And if somebody's not coming into work and they're supposed to, even if they're doing part of the job, that's only part of the job. And you were not wrong to fire. You were not villainous here. And that's not about control, that's about business.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Oh, gosh. Well, when you put it like that, I guess I see what you mean. But it still feels like I am the bad guy, because she is making it sound like I am just being stubborn. Like, she keeps saying, I am not willing to adapt to the new way of working. And I get that, but it's a bakery. You can't just make bread in your kitchen and call it a day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, a lot of people can, but if that's not what your bakery is about and you actually have a store and that's a different thing. You know, there are a lot of people that bake bread for like, little gas station stores and stuff and do sour dough and just sell it on the side. And that can be a legitimate business. But if that's not what your business model is, then you can't have employees that are trying to define what your business model is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Right, exactly. And the thing is, I have been doing this for 11 years. I know how the bakery works. I know what we need. And she has been here for like, a year and a half, and suddenly she is telling me how it should run.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's all right. You let her go, and now she can go find a more fully remote job, if that's what she really wants. It sounds like she didn't want to be part of your company, and that's okay, because at-will employment is a thing. You got to respect her for giving it a shot, though. I mean, she did her very best to make her own life and live it the way that she wanted. But if you can't have that at your business, because your business needs to be there to actually serve a purpose to the public, you're not the bad guy there. And it was actually very cool of you to let them work remotely at all during the dust storms. A lot of employers wouldn't have done that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Well, thank you for saying that. I mean, I was trying to be understanding. Nobody wanted to be out in that mess. But now I am doing everything myself and I have a wedding cake due tomorrow that I have not even started. And I have been up since three in the morning yesterday. And I am realizing I probably need to hire somebody new, but I am kind of terrified to do it now, because what if they pull the same thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's the risk of being a business owner and having employees, because you never know what they're going to do. They're the most variable part of your company. You just have to trust the interview process and make sure that whoever it is that you get is fully aware that they have to actually go to work. And it's not a remote job. And it's not a remote bakery job. That's all. And you should get off the phone with me and start making your wedding cake, because it takes a long time to do that, right? And it's already 4 a.m.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEBBIE</span><p>Oh, shoot. You are right. Yeah, it is going to take me at least 12 hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no problem. You're not a villain. You did the right thing and you were pretty cool to her. And now, ladies and gentlemen, we're going to have to take a little break for a word from our sponsors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, placebo leave. Okay, and, uh, oh, there he is. He's back. We got Silas on the line. Welcome back, Silas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Brother Luke, good to hear your voice again. Listen, I have to tell you. I was in the middle of our evening meditation circle when Nate called in earlier about losing his bar. And I broke form. Completely. Just started laughing. Teresa shot me this look like I'd interrupted a funeral. That poor man losing the cottonwood because his ex started dating the bartender.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's not nice to laugh at somebody's misfortune like that, brother Silas. But you make up for it in the fact that you run your meditation circles to Luke at the roost. That is, we tip your hat to you, sir.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You know, Luke, I appreciate that. But I have to be honest with you, we don't usually have the radio on during meditation. One of our newest seekers, this kid named Brandon, he smuggled in a little transistor radio because he said he couldn't sleep without your show. Caught him with an earphone in during the circle. Normally, I'd say that's breaking the practice. But the more I think about it, your voice has this quality that actually helps people settle into themselves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I do what I can to help, you know, Silas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You're calling in tonight so Marcus and Kara you remember them from my last couple calls they went through the renewal ceremony like you suggested and Marcus he stood up in front of everyone recommitted fully talked about shedding his old patterns the whole thing beautiful moment</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is fantastic news so everything's going well down there</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Well that's the thing brother Kara didn't recommit she stood there during her turn looked at all all 40 of us in the circle. And she said she appreciated the community, but she couldn't keep pretending. Said she was leaving.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that shouldn't surprise you very much. You knew she was on her way out and she didn't really want to be there. She just came back for the dude. And how's that going to work out? Is Marcus staying?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's exactly what's eating at me, Luke. Marcus stayed. He chose the wellspring over Kara. She packed up her things two days ago, stay with her sister and Marcus is still here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, so now you're back in the same situation you were a few weeks ago. And that's okay. You know, not every relationship is meant to last forever. Sometimes people got to split up. If the wellspring's important to Marcus and Kara didn't want in her life, then so be it. Then they're not aligned. They're not on the same life path.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. And I told myself the same thing. People are find their path. But here's what's got me twisted up. Marcus is falling apart.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, this all just happened, and that's a hard thing to go through losing half of yourself there. But he decided to stay at the Wellspring, and that's what he's going to do, and you're going to support him, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Of course we're supporting him, brother. But something about it just doesn't sit right with me. He's not eating. He skips the shared meals. He's out there at three in the morning walking the property line. Yesterday, during our morning circle, he just started crying. Not the good kind of release we talk about in the practice, but this hollow, broken sound.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's a sad and difficult thing, and people go through stages of grief when they lose a relationship like that. I mean, you loved her. But obviously, whatever's going on at the wellspring was more important to him than that love. And that's something that you need to look at.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Luke, I need to tell you something. Last night, Marcus came to my cabin around two in the morning. Woke me and Teresa up. He was standing there in the moonlight, and he said, Silas, did I make the right choice? And I froze, brother. I didn't know what to say to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can't make the choice for him, right? He made the choice that he made and if he changes his mind, he's still free to do that. So I think you just, you have to maybe sit down with him and tell him to pick a path and he can't have both. He can have one or the other and it's not going to work out where Kara and him live happily ever after at the Wellspring. That's just, that's not an option here. And he's a, he's a grown man. He can make his decision and stick to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You're right. He's a grown man. He's a grown man. You're right. He's a grown man. But here's what I keep coming back to. The more I think about it, the more I wonder if we pushed him toward this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, from our previous conversations, it doesn't sound to me like you did push him towards that. It sounds like you tried to push him towards his wife, and you tried to keep them together, and you really wanted that for them. So if he's making this choice, he's making it alone, unless there's more information about what you did here that you haven't told us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>No, you're right. We didn't push him directly. But, Teresa, said something to me this morning that's been rattling around in my head. She said, Silas, we built a place where leaving feels like failure. And I've been sitting with that all day, brother. Because Marcus stood up in that renewal ceremony. And when Kara said she was leaving, I saw the look on everyone's faces. Not judgment, exactly, but this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This what? What exactly was the look? Was it a look at disdain? Was it, are people looking at her like the enemy now because she's a traitor?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Not disdain exactly. More like pity. Like she was making a mistake. Like she was choosing the false world over the real one. And I didn't correct that, Luke. I stood there and I let that energy fill the room.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? Maybe she is making a mistake and maybe she's not. Maybe you're all making mistakes and nobody can be the judge of what's right and what's wrong, really. People try all the time but nobody really knows. People do what is right for them. And what is a mistake for Kara might not be a mistake for Marcus and vice versa.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's fair. That's really fair. But here's what I can't shake. Marcus told me at two in the morning. He said, I stayed because I didn't want to disappoint you. I didn't want to let down the community. Not because he believed in the current.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, why do you think that is? Why do you think Marcus doesn't want to let you down?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Because I gave him purpose when he didn't have any brother. When Marcus showed up here three years ago, he was lost, working some dead-end job in Los Cruces, drinking too much, no direction. And I told him he mattered. I told him he was part of something bigger.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and you meant that. He's part of a bigger community, right? Obviously, you told him something that his wife did not tell him. He wasn't getting that comfort from her. So he decided to stay with you. And he feels like that's the right thing for his life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Hey, Luke, so I'm calling from the stock room at my bar right now, because I literally cannot be around customers after what I just saw. I went over to my Uncle Sal's place this afternoon to help him move some boxes out of his garage, right? Uncle Sal, 73 years old, Deacon's Sacred Heart, the guy who does the readings every Sunday. I open this box, and it's a photo album. And Luke, I'm not even kidding, it is full of pictures of my uncle at Burning Man wearing nothing but turquoise body paint and a leather harness.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think we've had this conversation before. You called in once before and told us about this. Or somebody else found that box. I've heard this story before, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>No, Luke, that wasn't me. I've never called your show before. This literally just happened today. I mean, maybe somebody else found their uncle's burning man photos? I don't know. But this is my first time calling and this is my uncle's Sal we're talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, somebody else found their uncle's burning man. It was a woman, actually. She found the burning man photos. But they were the same ones. They were a deacon and he was in turquoise and leather.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Wait, seriously? That's insane. was her uncle also nicknamed Freight Train? Because that's what's really killing me here. My uncle, Sal, has a laminated badge in one of these photos, and his Burning Man name is Freight Train.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't recall his Burning Man name, but Freight Train is as good as any. So what's the problem? Good for your uncle. He's living his best life out there in the desert on the Playa.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Okay, first of all, I know you just said living his best life to mess with me. But Luke, this is the man who lectures me about keeping the Sabbath holy. He told me last Christmas I was going to hell for living with my girlfriend before marriage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and what's unholy about wearing leather and turquoise? Nothing. He was maybe leading a church group down there. There's all sorts of people that go to Burning Man. There wasn't necessarily anything off color, unacceptable, morally ambiguous going on. You don't know that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Luke, there are multiple years of photos, multiple years. And in one of them, he's on an art car with a woman in a gas In another one, he's at what looks like a sunrise service, except it is definitely not the Catholic kind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what are you going to do? You're going to bust his balls for it? The man's 72 years old.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>73. And honestly, I don't even know what I'm going to do. Part of me wants to just pretend they never saw it. Put the box back. Never speak of it again. But Luke, every time he opens his mouth now about morality or tradition, or the right way to live, I'm going to be thinking about freight train and turquoise body paint.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like any other self-respecting Catholic that talks a bunch of shit when they're at church and then goes to Burning Man at night. That's part of the deal. That's one of the great benefits of Catholicism is hypocrisy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>You know what? You're right. That's actually exactly what it is. The whole confession thing, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, the whole confession thing. Yeah, you go out and you do a bunch of drugs and bang a bunch of girls at Burning Man and then you confess to your sins and you're free.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>But here's the thing that's really getting me, Luke. Do I say something to him? Because I can't just act normal around him now. He's coming to the bar tomorrow night for his usual Friday fish fry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I'm going to be standing there pouring his core's light, knowing that somewhere in his garage, there's a photo of him wearing nothing but body paint and calling himself freight train. I think you don't have to say anything. You can. I don't know what your relationship is with your uncle. His name's Uncle Sal, so he sounds like he's pretty cool. Maybe you could bring it up in a joking kind of a manner. but I don't think it matters that much. I'd leave him alone. He's old. Let him enjoy his life and just like the rest of us. If you're going to go to church and pretend to be Catholic, pretend to be Catholic. Pretend to be Catholic. That's the deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Yeah, I hear you. But Luke, this is the same guy who gave me a 20-minute lecture last month about respecting tradition and honoring the family name. And now I know that his idea of honoring tradition involves turquoise body paint on the plier. How do I take anything he says seriously after this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Honestly, sir, If you took anything he said seriously before this, I don't know what to tell you. Because nothing that any of them are saying can be taken seriously.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>You know what? That's fair. That's actually really fair. I guess I've been giving him way too much credit this whole time. Maybe the turquoise body paint version of Uncle Sal is actually more honest than the deconversion.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You never know. People can be more than one thing, and often are. Next up, we've got Peggy. Peggy, welcome to the show. What's going on? How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I'm sitting here in the DMV break room. I pulled a double covering someone's shift. Still got my blazer on from this morning with coffee stains on both sleeves, and I just need to tell you about what happened tonight, because I am losing my mind. Three weeks ago, I took early retirement. I'm 32 years old.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, you retired at 32 and now you're doing it double. That's quite a turn of events.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>Right? I keep telling people I'm too young to be retired like it's some kind of joke. But three weeks ago, I walked out of that HR office feeling like I won the lottery. I had on my Navy slacks, the cream blouse, the good earrings my mom Diane gave me before she had her stroke. I remember everything about that day. The HR lady had this vanilla candle going in her office, trying way too hard to make it cozy, and I signed those papers thinking I was set. But then tonight, tonight my husband tells me he's been covering our mortgage shortfall with his poker winnings for the last eight months. Poker winnings, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, congratulations. He's good at the poker, it seems.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>That's what he said. He sits me down tonight and he's like, don't worry. I've been winning. We're fine. And I'm standing there thinking, okay, so our entire financial stability for the last eight months has been riding on whether or not he gets a good hand. And here I am, I just retired thinking we had this cushion, thinking we were responsible adults who planned things out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>professional poker players can definitely be professional poker players. And that's planning things out. I mean, more than people in other roles ever would have to do. Like, he's got to have strong bankroll management, and he's got to have a lot of patience and skill in order to consistently win like that. And if he's spent covering you for eight months, that's a long time. That's a lot of mortgage payments. So he's doing something right. Have you looked at his stats? Where's he getting the bulk of his money from? Is he playing cash games? Is he playing tournaments? Does he go to Vegas? What's the deal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>No, no, no. Luke, this is not some professional setup. He's playing at the horseshoe with guys from his work. It's Friday night games, sometimes Wednesdays. He's not tracking stats. He's not managing a bank roll. He told me tonight he's up overall. But when I asked him how much exactly, he got all vague and said enough to cover what we needed. That's not a professional. That's my husband gambling to pay our mortgage and not telling me about it until after I've already signed early retirement papers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you can't look at him like he's the irresponsible one when you retired early at 32 years old without knowing what your husband does for a living. And then you called in this radio show and you told me that you were in the break room at the DMV after getting off a double. Well, you just retired at 32. So what is the deal? Are you retired or are you not retired? Did you actually leave your job without knowing how much money you had in the bank? How can you expect me to take that seriously?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>Okay, fair point. I took the retirement package thinking we had enough saved. And then I picked up this shift tonight because Sandra called me crying about her kid being sick and I felt bad. But I knew what our savings looked like, Luke. I knew what our monthly expenses were. What I didn't know was that for eight months we've been short and my husband has been making up the difference at a poker table instead of telling me we had a problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not how it works. You can't retire from a company and then take somebody's shift because you're no longer an employee of the company. So what are you talking about? Obviously you didn't know how much money you had if you were short and your husband had to make up that money. So you're lying to me in multiple ways.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>Okay, right. I didn't fully retire. I took the package. I signed the papers, but I'm still on as a contractor while they transition my replacement. That's why I can still pick up shifts. What was the package? It was a buyout. They were downsizing the office, offering people a lump sum to leave early. I got $42,000, which sounds like a lot until you realize that's supposed to tide us over until I find something else, and our mortgage is $1,800 a month, plus everything I thought between that and what we had saved and me finding another job within a few months. We'd be fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not retirement. If you're going out to find another job, you're not retiring. What are you talking about? $42,000 and your mortgage is $1,800? Come on, it's been eight months. How are you short? This doesn't make any sense, lady.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>No, no. It's been three weeks since I took the package. The eight months is how long my husband has been covering the short shortfall before I even knew about it. Before I took the retirement offer, we were already short before I left, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that's not retirement if you're 32 years old, and they gave you a package and you're immediately looking for another job. But you've got 42 grand, and you've only got to pay 1,800 a month. So you've got lots and lots and lots and lots of months to figure it out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>Except we don't have the full 42 anymore, because I already put some toward bills we were behind on. Bills, I didn't know we were behind on until tonight. And yes, you're right. It's not retirement. I just thought it sounded better than saying I got laid off and took a buyout. But the point is, I made this huge decision thinking we were stable. And it turns out we haven't been stable for almost a year. And my husband just didn't tell me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a conversation you're going to have to have with your husband. And it sounds like you're both financially irresponsible. And you're a liar, too. So, I mean, I've... I've had about enough of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>Wait, hold on. How am I the liar here? He's the one who hid eight months of mortgage problems from me while I'm making major career decisions. I'm not saying I handled everything perfectly, but he looked me in the eye every month and didn't say a word about us being short.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because you were laid off from your job and you called in and telling me that you were retired at 32, which is absurd. And, uh, yeah, so your husband wasn't... fully upfront with the bills. You should have been very much aware about what your financial picture looked like before you made any career decisions. And if you didn't, that's on you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you and your husband need to sit down and talk about your lives and your money and what you're going to do. Luckily, he's been winning at poker and covering up the shortfall. And you've got a nice long buffer to find yourself another job. So there's no problem here, except the one where you two aren't communicating and you're not taking responsibility for your financial health.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>You know what? You're right. this a retirement when it's not. And I should have known exactly where we stood before I signed anything. I guess I'm just... I'm scared, Luke. I thought we were doing okay and now I don't know what else I don't know about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I know what you don't know about. And it's my new tool, CareerPulse. And CareerPulse is a free and open source tool that runs in Docker. You can install it and it will pull all the jobless things from 11 different job boards and score them based on your resume. And then, additionally, it will look at your resume and fill out a job application profile with the information in it. And then there's a Chrome extension that you can install in your browser that will do the auto filling of the applications. So you can find the best jobs that you're the most qualified for and simplify the application process. So that should be able to help you out. You can check it out at career pulse.machelmediagroup.com.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PEGGY</span><p>Okay, I look into that. Thank you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good luck there, Peggy. One more call for the night. We're going to talk to Phil. Phil, you're going to be our last caller. What do you have to talk about tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>All right. So my neighbor's Roomba broke into my house through the dog door about 20 minutes ago. And I'm currently watching it vacuum my kitchen floor. So that's a thing that's happening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope. We already took that call. We'll try one more. Hey, Dot. Dot. you have something going on tonight for the last call of the evening?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Yeah, Luke. I do. So I'm sitting here at the front desk of the hotel, middle of the night, and I just found out my car is worth $12,000, which would be great news except I paid $4,000 for it last year. I bought it for my husband's friend, Rick.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you made $8,000 on the vehicle, and it's not great news?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>No, Luke, because Rick sold it to me. He didn't just undervalue it by accident. Rick flips cars.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, I don't understand what you're getting. You think Rick was maybe hitting on you with this, or he was just trying to help somebody else that needed help?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Because he could. He told us he was helping us out. That was the whole thing. My husband kept saying how generous Rick was being. What a good friend he is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, get to the point. What are you trying to say? Because it sounds like Rick is a nice, generous guy that helped you out by selling you a car for less than a... was worth and good for you. What is the problem? Why are you calling me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Because my mechanic told me Rick absolutely knew what it was worth. This is what Rick does. He buys cars. He fixes them up. He sells them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I know what Flip means. I understand the situation. He sold you a car for less than it was worth. Why is that a problem? And why did you call me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Because I could sell this car right now and pay off a chunk of the mortgage. Or finally get the air conditioning fixed. But Rick comes over for dinner every other Sunday. My husband thinks he did us this huge favor. And I'm sitting here thinking Rick's got plenty of money. He knew exactly what he was doing. And now I've got 12 grand sitting in my driveway that I could actually use.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you are actually using it. You're using it to drive to work every day. What is your problem, lady? This dude helped you own, and now you're being a total cunt about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Whoa. Okay. Luke, he didn't help us out. He made money off us while pretending to do us a favor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you talking about? You said it's worth 12 grand, and you paid four. How is that making money off of you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Because he could have sold it to somebody else for 12, and he sold it to us for four, while acting like he was being charitable. That's $8,000 he left on the table, so he could look like a hero at Sunday dinner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is wrong with you? He helped you out. He gave you a nicer car than you can afford for not that much money. What the... Fuck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>You're not hearing me. He made it sound like we needed charity. Like we were the poor friends he had to take care of.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know what you want me to tell you, because it sounds like he did a nice thing for a friend. And you should be grateful that he gave you a really good price on a decent car. That's all that happened here. You're a nutcase.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>So I should just keep my mouth shut and smile at Sunday dinner, while Rick gets to feel like a for the rest of my life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, that's exactly what you should do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Even though I know he manipulated the whole situation to make himself look good?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know what you're talking about. He didn't manipulate anything. He sold you a car cheap. There's nothing wrong with that. Is there a problem here? Is there something else going on that you're not saying? Because I don't understand why you can't get this through your skull. That this dude, Rick, just sold you a car cheaper than it was worth. Because he could. Because he was a good friend. there doesn't seem to have been any ulterior motive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>Luke, the ulterior motive is that now my husband thinks Rick walks on water. Every time I suggest we could sell the car and use the money, my husband says, but Rick was so generous. We can't just turn around and sell it. Rick bought himself 15 years of gratitude for $4,000.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's a small price to pay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>For what? So Rick gets to be the hero for a...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It was a nice thing to do. That's all there is to it. He did a nice thing. And you don't have to suck his dick for it. You just, like, thanks for the car, man. You don't even have to let him know you know what the value is. It's not like he's rubbing it in your face.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>But he is rubbing it in our face. Every Sunday dinner, he's there. And my husband brings it up. Remember when Rick hooked us up with that Subaru. And Rick does this humble thing where he waves it off like it was nothing. It's a performance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't matter. Stop it. Whatever is this mock indignation you're feeling is a performance, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DOT</span><p>It's not mock indignation. I'm genuinely pissed off that this guy gets credit for being generous when he could have actually been generous and just given us the car for what he paid for it, or told us what it was really worth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he was generous, and you're an asshole, and that is the end of our show, folks. We'll talk to you again tomorrow night. Bye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 37: Secrets, Lies, and Coffee Runs</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-15T09:09:18+00:00">March 15, 2026</time> · 1 hr 2 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, Luke takes calls from people wrestling with hidden truths and personal dilemmas. Callers include Roland discussing a chili cookoff scandal, Doris revealing a long-hidden daughter, Earl suspecting workplace infidelity, and Silas confronting problematic leadership practices in his spiritual community. Each caller must decide whether to face their uncomfortable realities or continue hiding.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. I'm Luke. This is Luke at the Roost. It's your late night call in talk show where I can give you advice on whatever might be going on in your life. If you'd like to give us a call, the number's 208-439-5853. That's 208-439 Luke. Today is Sunday, March 15th. And let's get started with our intern here. You just started yesterday and already's doing a shitty job. Devon, where's my coffee? We had a long discussion yesterday about how you were going to go down in the mark and get me my black ice coffee. And you agreed. And it's not here. So what's the situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah. So basically, I thought you said Thursday. I wrote it down as Thursday. I have it in my phone and everything I can show you. I was going to leave like an hour before the show to make sure I got it right. I'm really sorry, Luke. I can go right now if you want. The mark closes at like midnight, right? down there, it'll take me 10 minutes. I'm sorry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No. The mark closes at like 5 p.m. It's not open now. Come on, man. You got to do better than this. I mean, why would I want a coffee on Thursday? You knew that we were working today. Thursday's like five days from now. How is that helpful? Come on, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, you're right. That doesn't make sense. I don't know why I wrote Thursday. I'm really sorry, Luke. there's that all-sups that's open late. It won't be the same, but it's something. This is my first day, and I already messed up. I'm sorry. Do you want me to go now or wait until the next break?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Dude, there's no all-sups anywhere near here. There's a gas station in Road Forks, 45 minutes away. By the time you went there and got back, the show would be over. That would be of no use to anybody. I need you to do better than this. Or we're going to have to get another intern.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, got it. I'm sorry. three alarms for tomorrow, and I'll double check with you at the end of every shift what you need and when you need it. I wrote down the mark, Black Ice Coffee, before the show. I have it now. It won't happen again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, I hope not. And do you have anything to provide to the show today? Is there any reason we should have you on the air, or should you just kind of sit in the back and wait to get my coffees? Are you going to provide us some value here? Or what is the deal? What are you trying to get out of this show other than hitting on the girls that call in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, no, I can help. I've been doing research all day, actually. I pulled like 15 articles on that thing you mentioned yesterday about the town council meeting, and I have notes on the whole water rights situation if that comes up. And I set up the new call screening system. It's working now. I tested it like six times. I know I messed up the coffee thing, but I'm actually pretty good at the research stuff. That's kind of what I'm here for, if that makes sense. And I wasn't hitting on anyone. I was just being friendly. But yeah, I can just stay quiet if you want.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right. Well, we'll see how you do tomorrow with the coffee thing. And let's get on with the show. Let's try out your new call screening system. It looks pretty good. It looks like it's going to do the tricks. So let's get to it. So first up on our line here, we've got Roland. Roland, welcome to the show. How are you today, sir? What's going on? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Hey, Luke. I'm doing all right. Thanks for taking my call. Well, shoot, I'm calling because I just found out the couple that wins the chili cookoff every single year has been cheating. Like, for at least the last five years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>using the same canned base and just doctoring it up. And everyone in town thinks they're these amazing cooks. My kid worked at their house last summer doing yard work, and he saw their recycling bin full of these identical cans. Same brand, same flavor, every week during cook-off season. So I was just looking this up, and actually, most official chili cook-off rules say you can't use pre-cooked ingredients except for, like, canned, tomatoes and sauces. But if they're using a full canned chili base, that's definitely against the rules at like every sanctioned competition. So, yeah, they're for sure cheating, if that makes sense. Also, this reminds me of my uncle's ex-wife who won a pie contest at the county fair three years in a row. And it turned out she was buying them from this bakery in Las Cruces and just putting them in her own dish. Anyway, yeah, Roland's kid probably has the evidence if he remembers the brand name.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, why is this so important to you? Roland, were you entering the chili competition? Have you been beat out by these people? What's your steak in the chili cookoff game?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Oh gosh, no. I don't enter. I'm a line cook at Mescalero's downtown, so I spend all day cooking. Last thing I want to do on my weekend is stand over a pot of chili, you know. But I've been going to this cookoff since I was a kid. My dad used to enter every year, never won, but he'd spend weeks perfecting his recipe. And these people, the Hendersons, they show up with their fancy setup, act all humble when they win, give this whole, speech about family recipes and love being the secret ingredient.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, love is the secret ingredient always. We all know that. But you're not getting to the point here. Why is this bothering you? Why do you care about the cheaters at the chili cookoff? What does that mean to you? I mean, was it good chili? Does it really matter if it came from a can or not? Because I don't think it does. And definitely not enough to call a radio show. So, I mean, why are you really calling me? What are you trying to get at? What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Well, shoot, Luke, you're right. I guess. Okay, look, my wife Linda and I were separated right now. Living apart, haven't filed anything yet. But it's been four months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and why are you separated? Whose idea was that, or was it a consensus?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>It was her idea. She said she needed space to figure things out. Said I never really let her in, that I keep everything surface level. And the thing is, the Henderson's, couple, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but we don't care about the Henderson's right now. You can't compare yourself to other people ever. It never works out. It only makes people discontent. Okay, so let's focus on you and your relationship and what you're trying to get out of this. So your wife wanted to leave because you don't let her in and why is that true first? And also, why don't you let her in? Like, what's the deal there? Have you spoken since the separation? Are there any? talks about getting back together or is this on its way to a divorce?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>We talk, yeah, mostly about practical stuff. Bills, the house. She asks how I'm doing and I say fine, which is what I always say. And you're right, that's the problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but has there been any discussion about the future of your relationship and how long the separation is going to last or where it's going? About getting back together?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Not directly. She said maybe we could try counseling, but I haven't. I haven't called anyone yet. That was three weeks ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So I just looked it up, and couples counseling actually has like a 70% success rate, which is pretty good. So, like, three weeks isn't that long, but also it kind of is if she already asked about it, if that makes sense. This actually reminds me of when my mom and her second husband did the separation thing. and he waited too long to do the therapy, and she said it felt like he didn't actually want to fix it. He just wanted to say he tried. They're divorced now. Anyway, yeah, 70% is better odds than most things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't know about the couples counseling. I mean, I tried it once, too, and I found it to be largely a joke. I don't think there's a whole lot to it. Most couples are able to communicate. Maybe not most. I shouldn't say most. But I think the couples counselor, I don't know, it wasn't helpful for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>maybe I didn't take it seriously enough, but it's very hard to take seriously, because it's just nothing. It's just nothing. Like, talk to your wife. And if you can't, if you're not supposed to be together, then you won't be together. I mean, I went through the separation thing too. And to be honest with you, I wanted it to be a separation and it didn't end up that way. And that's sometimes how things, you know, roll. So what do you want? Do you want to not be a separation? Or are you ready to be done with the relationship?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>I want her back. I've been with Linda since high school, Luke. 38 years. She knows me better than anyone. Or I thought she did. But then she says, I don't let her in. And I'm sitting there thinking, what are you talking about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand. How old is Linda, if you don't mind me asking? If you were in high school, you were 38, that would put you somewhere around, like, early 50s?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>We talk every day. We've always talked, but I guess I don't...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't want... I don't think you heard my question there. I asked how old you guys were. I'm assuming that you're in your mid-50s. Is that true?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Yeah, I'm 56. She's 55.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So, I mean, 55 is post-menopause, right? So all the hormonal stuff has shifted. She's, I mean, effectively a very different person now. And you probably are, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>I hadn't thought about that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nobody ever does. That's what gets you. So, you know, you're going around, living your life, everything's great, and then people change. It's part of the human condition, I've heard. But I'm sorry you're split up, and if you want her back, and you haven't said that, maybe you should say it before the separation goes on too long and it just fizzles out. you know, at least try and figure out where she's at with it, what she wants out of it. Like, what was the purpose of the separation? Was it so that you could spend time apart and kind of learn what it's like to be alone again and how much you miss the other person and rekindle your love that way? Or is it just like, I can't be near this fucking person for another minute? Like, where did that come from?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>She said she felt like she was living with a roommate. That we'd go through the motions. But I never talked, told her what I was actually thinking about. And she's right, Luke. Like, I'll be painting the bedroom at two in the morning because I can't sleep. And she used to ask why I couldn't sleep. What was on my mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what was on your mind? That you wouldn't tell her, I assume?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Just work stuff. Or something I read in a journal. Or I'd be thinking about my brother Marcus, how he's doing better than me, always has. But I just say nothing, I'm fine. Just restless.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, maybe she wants something else in her life, and she doesn't want to say that either, because, I mean, you say you're fine. She does that, too. So, uh, who knows?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>I don't know. You think she wants out completely?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If she wanted the separation, it's been four months, and she hasn't made any attempt to rekindle the relationship, then it seems that way, right? I mean, you should talk to you. You should ask. Just ask her flat out what she wants and see if this is worth holding on to or you want to move on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Well, shoot. I guess I've been avoiding that conversation, because I'm afraid of the answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think you know what the answer is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Maybe I do. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem, buddy. Good luck. It's a tough thing. I mean, I don't wish it on anybody, but it seems to happen to everybody. Next up we've got Doris. Doris, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>Hey, Luke. So I've been listening to you for a while now, and I figured I'd call in because I've got this thing that's been sitting with me, and I don't know what to do about it. I cheated on a test in college.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How long ago was college?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>21 years ago. I was finishing up my construction management degree at New Mexico State.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I don't know that you have to worry about a test you cheated on 21 years ago. Did that have a significant improvement on your GPA or something? be where you are today had you not cheated on that particular test?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>Yeah, actually, it was the capstone exam for the whole program. I was borderline failing going into it. Had a rough semester, wasn't keeping up. And if I didn't pass that test, I didn't graduate. I copied off the guy next to me for most of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and how has that affected your life so far? So, uh, what, uh, what do you do? What's your occupation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>I'm a construction manager. I've been doing it for almost 20 years now. Good at my job, make decent money, got a crew that respects me. The degree got me in the door. Nobody would have even looked at me without it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that was probably a shady thing to do, but I mean, you know, whatever it was 21 years ago. You did it, you got in the door and you've been doing this for a long time. So you're qualified now, even if you weren't then. And, you know, you've learned a lesson, right? You didn't continue to cheat throughout your entire life and your career. You cheated that one time back in college on a test that you probably could have passed anyway if you really tried.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>Yeah, maybe. But here's the thing. I talk about integrity all the time, like constantly, with my crew, with my husband Mike, with anybody who'll listen. It's this whole thing with me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, integrity takes a little while to develop. You were, what, 19, 20 when you cheated on that test? I mean, kids do stupid shit. And you did, and you benefited from it, and that was wrong, but, you know, you learned your lesson. You didn't do it again, and there's no, there's nothing you can do about it now. You're where you're at. You don't have to worry about this anymore. It's 21 years ago. Let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>I would, except Mike doesn't know. And I heard that caller Roland earlier, the one talking about his wife Linda leaving, because he never opens up. And it got me thinking, Mike and I have been together eight years, married for five. Second marriage for both of us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, tell Mike. The truth is, Mike doesn't care that you cheated on a test 21 years ago. Nobody does. That was so long ago. The teachers don't care. You're the only one that cares. And if you want to have that conversation with Mike and tell him what a horrible person you were and how you don't deserve to be where you are in life anymore because of a mistake he made when you were 20. Go ahead and see how that goes. He's not going to care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>You're probably right. I mean, it's not like that's the only thing I haven't told him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What else haven't you told him? What are you alluding to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>I can't really get into that right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's the point of the radio show. You called me. What is it that you're trying to talk about? You know, tell us the stuff so we can help.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>It's just some stuff from before we got together. Decisions I made. Nothing illegal or anything. Just things I'm not proud of.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So this actually reminds me of when my roommate's sophomore year confessed to me that he'd been lying to his girlfriend about where he went to high school for like two years. And it just spiraled because he kept having to add more details. He eventually told her. She didn't even care. She was just confused why he lied in the first place. But also, that last thing she said, that's not the only thing I haven't told him. That's kind of a big deal, right? Like, she just casually dropped that there's more stuff, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, you're very observant there, Devon. You've got a fucking mind for this radio business, don't you? Okay, Doris, what is it that you're not saying to us? We need to know. Devon needs to know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>Look, it's not about Mike. It's about my ex from the first marriage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what is it about your ex from the first marriage? Come on, Doris. Talk to us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DORIS</span><p>We had a kid together. Mike doesn't know I have a daughter. She's 17 now, lives with her dad in Elbuquerque.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, that's a pretty big one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, I don't understand how you can be in a relationship with somebody without sharing that level of information with your partner. What are you trying to do? What are you trying to accomplish in your relationship here? What's the point of it if you can't share that you have a kid?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I don't see her. Haven't in years. When the marriage ended, it got ugly, and her dad got full custody. I tried for a while, but then I just stopped. It felt easier to start overclean.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you haven't seen your kid. You haven't talked to your ex-husband, but I still don't understand why you wouldn't tell your current husband about that situation. Because, I mean, that's a big part of you. That's, I mean, that's your DNA right there. He should know that. One day down the line, that kid's going to come looking for you, and it's going to be very difficult to explain that you've had a child this whole time. If you, you know, are serious about the marriage you're in now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's what I've been thinking about. She turns 18 in October. I keep wondering if she's going to try to find me. Or if she already hates me too much to bother.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Who knows? And I'm sure she does hate you on some level, but at some point, that will change and she'll wonder what it is that happened there. I mean, as people grow up, they start to see things differently. And even if what happened there was you just decided it wasn't worth fighting for, in her mind, she's going to be curious about why you didn't think it was worth fighting for. And she may very well come knock on your door one day. And when that day comes, it's probably important that your current husband has some idea that you have a kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Mike talks about wanting kids sometimes. Not seriously. We're too old for that now. But he mentions it. And I just sit there knowing I already had one and walked away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, you went through a whole courtship process and a marriage and how long have you been with Mike? A while, I assume. And this hasn't even come up. Like, why don't you want to tell him about it? I mean, this is a part of your life and your whole emotional story. I would think that that's something that you would want to share with somebody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Eight years together, five married, and I don't know. At first it felt like ancient history, something from a different life. Then too much time passed and it got harder to bring up. How do you drop that in a conversation after five years of marriage?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I was just looking this up because I was curious. But actually, around 6% of adult children are estranged from their mothers specifically. And the reason is just looking this up because I was curious. And the reason. Research shows that kids who reach out later, they usually do it in their 20s or 30s when they start processing stuff differently. So October might actually be soon. Like, sooner than she thinks. Also, this is probably not helpful, but my mom didn't tell my stepdad about my older half-brother for like three years. And when he finally met him at a Denny's, it was the most uncomfortable thing I've ever witnessed. I was just sitting there eating moons over my hammy while they stared at each other. So, yeah, the longer you wait, the weirder it gets. If that makes sense. I don't know. Eggs over my hammy. Moons over my hammy. Fuck, now I want to go to Denny's. That sounds so good. But anyway, the way that you drop that into conversation is by starting the conversation with it. Like, look, there's a very important thing I need to tell you about myself. It has nothing to do with you, but I need you to know because it's a part of my story. And I just can't understand why you would hide that for something so long. If it's your husband, obviously, he's going to understand and accept that, or at least try to, and I'm sure he would want to know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just every time I think about saying it out loud, I feel like I'm about to confess to something terrible, which I guess I am. Abandoning your kid is pretty terrible.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, yeah, I don't know. I want to tell you it's not terrible because you were divorced and the husband and wouldn't let you see him. But, I mean, the fact that you just gave up and don't seem to care about that is a little odd. That is, I mean, why? Why don't you care?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I do care. That's why I'm calling. I just convinced myself for a long time that she was better off without me in the picture. Her dad remarried. She had a stable home. And I was a mess back then.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, here's what I think you should do. I think you should sit down your husband and tell him what's up. Let him know, because it's important. And that's going to be better for you and for him to get that secret off your chest. Because that's a big secret to be carrying around your whole life. And then your kids turn in 18. Once the kid turns 18, the custody bit doesn't matter. And you can make an attempt to get back in touch and explain the situation. Say, look, this is what happened. And just be honest. Say, I tried to keep in touch. I tried to get some custody and your dad wouldn't let me. And instead of fighting that, I just thought it would be better for everybody if I went away for a while. And if you want to be part of your kid's life, then tell her that. But don't just hide it from everybody and pretend it never happened. That's not going to work. You know it's not going to work, or it wouldn't be on your mind today.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I need to tell Mike this week, before I lose my nerve again. And maybe after that, I can figure out how to reach out to her. If she even wants to hear from me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you can't know, but I think it's a, I think it's good that you try to reach out, at least to alleviate that guilt, that burden on your own self. Because there's no reason to go through life that way, especially if you really do want to try and have a relationship with her. Now there's no court involved. She's an adult. You're an adult. And everybody can make their own decisions. And however that goes is how it goes. Okay. We're going to take one more call up before we go to a commercial break. And we've got Vernon to the show. What's going on, buddy? How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>Got a cease and desist letter from Disney because my kids' birthday party decorations went viral on TikTok.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did you put a chick in it and make her gay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>What? No. I made a Moana backdrop out of plywood and some paint. Kaylee's friend filmed it, posted it, got like two million views. Now Disney's lawyers say I infringed their intellectual property, and I need to take it down and never do it again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>wouldn't want to mess with Disney's lawyers. They're no joke. So basically Disney's super aggressive about this stuff. Like, they'll go after anyone using their characters commercially. But if it was just a private birthday party that happened to go viral, that's actually kind of insane. Like, you weren't selling anything. It just got popular. I don't know if this helps, but there was this whole thing where a daycare had to remove a mural of Mickey Mouse because Disney threatened them. They made a daycare repaint a wall. Anyway, yeah, they're pretty ruthless about it, if that makes sense. Yeah, that Mickey Mouse, he's a pretty ruthless character. You don't want to mess with him at all. Yeah, it doesn't sound right or cool, but I'm not surprised that they did that. They seem like pretty horrible people in general down there, the old Disney. But I don't think there's much you can do. Once it's gone out to social media, it's out there. You can take down the video, but I mean, somebody's got a copy of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>Tell me I'm wrong, but isn't this the same company that built their entire empire on public domain fairy tales. They took Cinderella, Snow White, all of it. Made billions, and now they're coming after a dad in San Simon who spent $40 at the hardware store.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and you know what? You can go back after them, too, because Steamboat Willie is now public domain. So Mickey Mouse and all that, I think, is fair game for you to do whatever you want with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>I already took the video down, sent them an email saying I wouldn't do it again. The whole thing just sits wrong with me. I try to teach Kaylee about doing the right thing, having integrity, and then I'm backing down to lawyers over a birthday party.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, backing down to those lawyers is the right thing probably because it is their intellectual property, and they sent you a cease and desist letter. So, I mean, the right thing legally is to comply.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>Yeah, legally. I heard that caller earlier, Doris.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and what do you have to say about Doris, the one that didn't make any attempt to continue a relationship with her kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>She cheated on her capstone exam, got her whole career off something she didn't earn, spent 21 years building a life on a lie, and now she's got this other lie stacked on top of it, with Mike.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Shit, I guess you're right. I was moving from one lie to the next lie and I didn't put together that there was two big lies there. I guess she's a bit of a sociopath. Jesus, Doris, you gotta stop the lion. Honesty is the best policy. That's what we always say here at Luke at the Roost. Honesty is the very best policy. policy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>Tell me I'm wrong, but I cheated on a test in college, too. Statistics final. Got me through the class I needed for my degree. Got me the job I have now in logistics. 20 years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I guess I could say that I've cheated on tests too, not in the same way. I never, like, copied off of somebody else's paper or had the answers written down on my hand or anything like that. But back when I started my career, I took a whole bunch of certification tests, there were these exam prep, like PDFs, books, that had the multiple choice questions and the answers in them almost word for word. And I just memorized them. But the thing is, if you're going to go through and memorize the answers to what's on the test, you've learned the material for the test. So is that cheating? Maybe. Maybe. It's hard to say, but like, like we say, it's fucking. 25 years ago now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>I had the answers on my phone. Looked at it three times during the exam. Passed with a B. Never would have gotten to that class otherwise. Never would have gotten my degree.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, nobody's perfect, and a lot of people cheated in a lot of different ways, either as textbook as that or in some more, I don't know, obfuscated way. There's a lot of cheating going along in the world, and just don't do it anymore. You know, you're a different person. You're in a different person. You're in a different way. place and there's no need for it. There's plenty of ways to pass a test without cheating.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>Yeah, different person now. Got Kaylee looking up to me. Her mom and I aren't married, which her family has plenty to say about, but we're doing it right otherwise. Teaching her integrity matters. And then Disney sends that letter and I fold immediately because I know they're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Eh, whatever. You know, you fold it and that feels a little bit bad, but it would have felt worse to go up up against 900 of Disney's best lawyers. You're not going to win that one. So, yeah, just take it down. It was a birthday party. It's over. At least you get to have the party. They didn't ruin the birthday party or anything. You just told you to take the video down. Whatever, make a new video and use steamboat Willie or something else. Or make a video about what douchebags they are and expose them that way if you feel like your manhood has been threatened and you fold it unnecessarily. You know, go at them cleverly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VERNON</span><p>I'm not going at them. I took it down. I'm done with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, thank you for the call. That's annoying that they did that to you. And, uh, you know, next time, stick it to them. That's what I say. Stick it to Disney. And now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from our sponsors. This episode is brought to you by Nile Nosh, the meal kit for people who've given up but still need to eat something. Look, we're not going to promise that it'll change your life. You're still going to die alone. But at least you can spend your remaining Tuesday evenings chopping vegetables, you can't pronounce. Each box contains three meals that take 45 minutes to make when they could have taken eight, because suffering is the only authentic human experience. This week's menu, Horissa glazed despair with quinoa, panseered regret over arugula, and our customer favorite, chicken thighs with preserved lemon and unprocessed trauma. Use code void at checkout for 15% off your first box. That's code void, because we're all just screaming into one. Nile, Nosh. You got to Might as well be complicated. We're all just screaming into the void. Here we go. Let's get some music. And next up on the line here, we've got Angie. Angie, welcome to the show. What's going on out there on your Sunday night?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. I'm sitting here in my kitchen at one in the morning watching my dad's security camera footage from three days ago. And I just watched myself steal $140 out of his wallet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Jesus, a bunch of criminals. listening to this show. What the hell? Uh, wow. Oh, what, Devon? What?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>And it's like a real disorder. It's not about the money per se. It's more like an impulse control thing. I looked it up once after my ex accused me of, never mind. But yeah, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that makes sense. Thanks, Devon. We couldn't have done it without you. So why did you take the $150 bucks and why are you watching his security camera footage right now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>It was 140, and I took it because my dad, Frank, won't stop giving me money every time I see him. He's been retired for two years, and he's bored out of his mind, so he just showed. shows up at my place with cash and lectures about oil changes. I told him a thousand times I don't want his money. So I figured if I just took it without him noticing, he'd stop trying to hand it to me like I'm broke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That seems like the absolute wrong way to handle this. Instead, what maybe you should have done was wait for him to show up and just give you the money. That way you wouldn't have to steal it from him. So that answers half of my question. My other half of the question is, why are you watching his security cam footage?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>He gave me the login two months ago, because he wanted to me to check if his mailman was acting suspicious. I forgot I even had it until tonight. I couldn't sleep. Open my phone, saw the app and thought I'd see what the old man does all day. Turns out what he does is watch me walk into his house Thursday afternoon while he was at the hardware store, go straight to the kitchen counter where he leaves his wallet, and take the cash out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's not a very logical thing for you to have done. And neither is watching your dad's security footage camera. I mean, you could have definitely run into something you didn't. not want to see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Well, I definitely ran into something I didn't want to see. I'm watching myself commit a crime against my own father, in high definition. He's got one of those new cameras that does night vision and everything. I can see my face clear as day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, like every camera for the last 20 years does night vision and everything. Do you think that he watched the security cam footage? Because I don't think he did. I think he's got that app on his phone and he's never. going to look at that unless there's a reason to, unless he suspects somebody stole $140 out of his wallet, but why would his daughter, his loving daughter, that he just gave $140 to steal $140 from his wallet? That makes no sense. So, I mean, I don't know why you're bothered by this. You knew you stole the money. You obviously did it, so it's not surprising information to you. And I doubt that he's even reviewed the footage. If he has, then good, because you're a criminal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up we've got Earl. Earl. Earl, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? Is it as crazy as what Angie has going on? Because that was pretty fucking crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Hey, Luke. Appreciate you taking my call. First time, little nervous here. No, it's not that kind of crazy. Look, I run a landscaping company. Right? Small operation. And about six months ago, I hired this kid, Mateo.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, tell us about Mateo. What are you calling for? Congratulations on your landscaping company.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Thanks. So Matteo, he's 20, 22. Good worker, shows up on time, does the job. But here's the thing. Three weeks ago, I'm at the nursery picking up some desert willow saplings. And I see Mateo there with my girlfriend, Diane. They're laughing. She's got her hand on his arm. And when I walk up, they both get this look like I just called them doing something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh-oh. That's not good. That's not good. Your girlfriend's out with your employee, the younger kid. Oh, you maybe did. You maybe did catch them doing something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's what I thought. So I confront them right there, and Diane says they ran into each other by chance. Mateo says the same thing. But Luke, here's where it gets weird. I let it go. I didn't fire him. I didn't even really press Diane on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so where does it get weird?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Because last week, I see them again. This time, at the coffee shop on Bullard Street. Same thing, laughing, close. And when they see me, they get all awkward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe they're planning a secret birthday party for you. A surprise party. I think that's probably what it is. They're probably just meeting a few times a week to settle all of the things that have to happen for your big birthday party.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>My birthday's in November, Luke. It's March.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but this requires a lot of planning. There's a lot of parts involved. You know, there's the catering, and then there's the Disney characters and all the lawyers that have to deal with that. So you don't know how many steps are involved in planning a birthday party for something like this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You're busting my balls here. Look, I know what this looks like. But here's the thing. When I mentioned it to Diane the second time, she got defensive and said I was being paranoid. And Matteo, at work, he acts completely normal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think you're being paranoid. If they're hanging out together, outside, without you there, that's inappropriate. And they both know that. So it sounds like something's going on. Regardless of what it is, it's inappropriate. And you're very right to be unhappy about that. I don't know if that's the type of thing you can fire somebody for. It's your company, so maybe. I don't know. But you can definitely have a serious conversation with the girlfriend about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's the thing, though, Luke. I haven't had that serious conversation. I keep avoiding it. And I think I know why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Why are you avoiding it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Because if I push it, if I really demand answers, then I have to deal with whatever the truth is. Right now, I can still go to work, still come home to Diane, still pretend everything's fine. The second I ask the real questions, that all falls apart.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it doesn't. It's already falling apart. And you know it. And it's bothering you and you're calling a radio station about it. Like, you can't hide from what's going on. You're very, I mean, you're perceptive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're going to have to deal with this one way or another. It's just going to get worse and worse. And you can put it off and ignore it for a little while and pretend like it's okay. And, you know, keep sleeping with your girlfriend and all. But it's going to fall apart. So I think you need to deal with it. Stop being the cuckold here and man up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I've been acting like if I don't look at it directly, it'll just go away. But it won't. I need to talk to Diane tonight when I get home.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, if you don't address that, you might have a child you're not expecting coming very, very soon. So with that, ladies and gentlemen, we're going to have to take another break for a word from our sponsors. I'm just going to say it. Your penis isn't working. I said it. It's out there now. The word is in the air. We're all adults. Some of us are adults whose penises work, and some of us are adults who are listening very carefully right now, while pretending to adjust the radio so the person in the passenger seat doesn't see their face. It's fine. It happens to, and this is the real number, roughly half of all men over 40 at some point. Half. You're not special. You're not special. You're not broken. You're not the first guy this happened to and you're not going to be the last. You're just the guy it's happening to right now. And right now you have two options. Option one, do nothing. Keep staring at the ceiling. Keep blaming the altitude, the stress, the medication, the alignment of mercury, the fact that you ate dairy, none of which are the problem. Option two? Sandstone. $45. A doctor who has literally heard everything and will not Lynch. Medication that works, a box that reveals nothing, and the ability to walk into your bedroom like a man who handled his business instead of a man who's about to suggest watching another episode of something. Sandstone, I said the word. You heard the word. Now go to the website.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and we are back. Not a bad job there, Devon, and it looks like our phone systems are working pretty well, so you might not be completely useless after all. you're still going to have to work on getting the coffee, though, because that was a serious fumble. And I don't know how many more times, how many more fumbles that I have in me before we're going to have to, you know, find another intern. But next up on the caller list here, we've got our buddy Silas. Silas, welcome back to the show. What's going on down at the Wellspring, my friend, brother?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Luke, good to hear your voice, brother. Listen, Marcus left. Packed up his truck yesterday morning and drove off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Problem solved. It sounds like everything's good down there at the old community.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Yeah. I mean, that's what I thought at first, too. Something about it just doesn't sit right, though. He didn't say goodbye to anyone. Didn't go through a closing ceremony. Didn't have a final circle with the community. Just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, man, you got to let people go. And it sounds like... It sounds like he was being a pain in the ass anyway, so good riddance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>right. You're absolutely right. And I know that. I do. But here's the thing. He left a note in my office. Just sitting there on my desk when I came in yesterday afternoon. And it said he was sorry for disappointing me again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, it doesn't sound like he really disappointed you. I think you're better off with them both out of the picture, because that was really bothering you for a long time. And now Kara and Marcus are gone. focus your full attention back on your flock.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's just it, though, Luke. The more I think about it, the more I realize, Cara leaving, didn't bother me nearly as much as Marcus leaving does. And that note, sorry for disappointing you again. Brother, that's the second time he said that to me. Remember when he told me it two in the morning that he stayed because he didn't want to let me down. I keep reading that note, and I'm asking myself, what did I do? What did I say to make this man feel like his whole life? Choice was about not disappointing Silas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. You haven't given me any indication that you're operating in that way and making people feel like they need to live up to your expectations. Are you? Tell us about what a normal day is like at the Wellspring. Why might people be thinking you're overpowering or hard to live up to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>A normal day. I mean, We wake up around sunrise, share breakfast together as a community. Everyone has their tasks, garden work, maintenance. Someone's always cooking. We have morning meditation, then people do their own thing during the day. Evenings, we gather for dinner, maybe some music, conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but none of that seems to have anything to do with living up to your expectations. What is it that you expect out of your people at the Wellspring? What makes you think that Marcus might have had a reason to disappoint you. What ideals are you pushing them to live up to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Well, we have the unbinding ceremonies twice a month. That's where we shed our conditioning, our shame about our bodies, and our desires, and I lead those. I guide people through letting go of what society told them they should be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you guide them through the unbinding ceremonies, but that's only twice a month, and he didn't leave during an unbinding ceremony. And after the ceremony, is there still some other reason that you think somebody in your community might feel like they have to live up to your expectations? Have you set your expectations? And that's what I'm trying to get to, Silas. So help us out here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Yeah, okay. Fair question. I guess I do talk a lot about the current, about phowing with it, not resisting it. probably said more than once the people who leave are choosing fear over growth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, okay. I hear that. I'm hearing what you're saying. You talk about the current, flowing with the current, and you recommend that people don't leave. But I don't think that's enough. I think there's something else underneath here that you're not telling us about. I want you to be completely honest with me and the listeners at home and tell me what it is that you think that Marcus is talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>All right, all right, Luke. When Teresa and I started the wellspring seven years ago, I told everyone that I was the one who could see the current most clearly, that I had a gift for it. That following my guidance was the fastest path to enlightenment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. what is that guidance other than have the unbinding ceremonies twice a month? What are you guiding them to do? What could Marcus have been referring to when he said he let you down? Obviously, he participated in your unbinding ceremonies. It wasn't that. Kara left. Kara wasn't him. He brought her back to your flock for a little while, and then she left again. So it wasn't that. What do you think it was that he was felt like he was undercutting your expectations on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The shared intimacy nights. I teach the possessiveness as ego. The true love means letting go of ownership. And Marcus, he participated. But I could always see it in his eyes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well that's pretty understandable. You've got to see where somebody might feel that way when you're letting somebody else bang your wife. Even if they do see the current very clearly, that could get under somebody's skin a little bit. So do you think what you're doing is still the right thing to do? Do you think that the other people in your flock are feeling the same way? Or do you think that Marcus, good riddance to him? It's obviously, it's bothering you. You keep calling in talking about Marcus. Marcus has obviously made a huge impression on you. Is that just because you enjoyed the company of Kara? Or was it that you enjoyed the company of Marcus?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>No, no. It's not about enjoying anyone's coming in that way. Marcus was one of the first people to join us. He believed in what we were building when it was just me and Teresa and three other people living in tents.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>He helped me dig the wells, build the structures.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I understand that, but you just said yourself that it was the shared intimacy nights that you thought is what drove him away. And why do you think that is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Because he never actually wanted to participate. He did it because I thought that it was the path to transcend. And now I'm sitting here wondering if I convinced a man to do something that went against everything he believed in just so he could stay in my good graces.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, isn't that what a leader of a society like your own does? Isn't that literally your job is to convince people to do what you think is best because you see the current more clearly than anybody else? I don't understand why this is bothering you. That seems like everything's working as designed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You're right. You're completely right. And that's what's making me sick to my stomach, Luke. Everything is working as designed. I designed a system where a good man felt like he had to betray his own values to avoid disappointing me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, now that you've come to that conclusion, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to, are you going to say no more shared intimacy nights? Like, how are you going to make good on this? Or are you just going to ignore it and move on? your path forward. What does the current tell you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I don't know. That's the honest answer. If I cancel the intimacy night, am I doing it because it's right or because I'm afraid more people will leave? And if people do leave over it, doesn't that prove they were only there for that anyway? Something about it just doesn't sit right either way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's a couple of things there. The intimacy nights are they, they're not a requirement, right? People don't have to participate if they don't want to. The people that, or is it a requirement? Do you make them participate? And also, who's really benefiting from the intimacy nights? What are they supposed to provide to the people that aren't you? I mean, obviously, I mean, what you get out of it is pretty apparent, but what is everybody else?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>They're not technically required, but when the founder of the community teaches that participation is how you shed your ego and find true freedom. And when everyone else is participating, what choice to someone like Marcus Rehn?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>have and who benefits? So I just looked this up real quick, and there's actually a term for this. It's called coercive control, where, like, technically nothing's required but the social structure makes it so people can't really say no without consequences, if that makes sense. It's like a pretty well documented thing in group dynamics research, which this is going to sound weird, but this is kind of reminding me of my sophomore year roommate who started this voluntary house cleaning rotation, but then would get really. quiet and disappointed if you didn't do it. And eventually, I was scrubbing the bathroom at 2 a.m. just so he wouldn't give me that look. Anyway, yeah, the not technically required thing is actually like a whole studied phenomenon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I bet it is. This is Silas. He's a well-studied man. I think Silas, I think you benefit, right? That's what's going on. The leader benefits from the shared intimacy nights. And like Devon just told us, people do feel that it is required, even though it's not. And it seems like you would know that, right? Because you're not a dumb man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I know that. The more I think about it, the more I've always known that. Teresa told me two years ago that some of the younger women felt pressured. And I told her they just needed more time to work through their conditioning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, or maybe you need some more time to work on your leadership so that they don't feel pressured. If you truly want to have those shared intimacy nights and you believe in that for spiritual purposes, make it truly optional. And make sure that you let everybody know that they don't have to participate. You don't require that of them. It is not something that's going to disappoint you or keep them out of the grace of the current if they don't participate. Just let them know it's okay. And when they're ready, if they want to, then it's open to those that are willing. How's that sound? Is that a good enough way to move forward here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That sounds like the right thing to do. But Luke, if I do that and half the community stops coming to the intimacy night, then I have to face the fact that half my community has been doing something they didn't want to do for years because of me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, sometimes leaders make mistakes, and the best thing that you can do, Silas, is live up to that and acknowledge it and course correct if you're not. have to. So it sounds like an interesting study to me. I think you should do that and see if you lose half your members, then okay. You were pushing too hard. But if they come back, then maybe you've found a better way. It's okay to grow in your leadership style and your ideals. That's to be expected, even for you, even for the leader, mostly for the leader. Like nothing stays the same. And the whole time and don't give yourself any room to improve, that's not really the best leadership. So I think this is about you becoming a better leader.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You're right. I'll call a gathering tomorrow. Tell everyone that the intimacy nights are truly voluntary from now on. And the choosing not to participate doesn't mean you're less committed to the wellspring or to the current. And I need to apologize to the people who felt they have no choice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think that's a good way to move forward, and that you should also introduce another ritual for those that don't feel like the shared intimacy nights are for them. There are other ways that you can get to the same place without necessarily boning everybody in that community.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's, yeah, we could do individual meditation retreat or expanded on binding ceremonies that focus on other forms of vulnerability.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. All right, brother. It sounds like we got some movement here, and I'm going to have to take another caller, but is there anything that you'd like to put out to our audience tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Just that if anyone out there is looking for a place where they can truly be themselves and find community, the Wellspring is always open to new seekers. We're at the Wellspring Community.org. And, Luke, thank you. I mean that. you could give some guidance to our new intern, Devon here. His soul seems conflicted, and he could use a bit of guidance. And I think if you need some more participants at your shared intimacy night, he might be the perfect candidate. Brother Devon, you're welcome any time. Sometimes the youngest souls need the most unbinding. We've got a spring equinox retreat coming up in a few weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Appreciate you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Appreciate you too, buddy. You have a wonderful night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what do you think of that, Devon? Would you go do a shared intimacy night with Silas at the Wellspring?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I mean, I don't really know what that is per se, but it sounds like a couple's thing. I'm not really looking to do that with Silas specifically. No offense to him or whatever, but that's not my situation. I went to one of those tantro workshops once with my ex, actually, and we got asked to leave because she wouldn't stop laughing during the eye contact part. It was like $45 and we were there for maybe 20 minutes. So I guess it depends on what the vibe is, but probably not, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think you know what the vibe is down there at the Wellspring. It's a community with an unbinding ceremony and the intimacy nights, and they worship the flow of the current. I don't fully understand it, but Silas seems like a pretty decent dude. think you'd like it a lot. But here's what I'm trying to get at. If you forget my coffee one more time, I'm sending you down to Silas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, okay, got it. I'll get the coffee. I'm not trying to go to the Wellspring.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I looked it up earlier, actually, when that caller mentioned it, and there's like almost no information online about it, which is kind of weird, just a Facebook page with no posts since 2019. So I don't really know what the unbinding ceremony is, but I'm good. I'll have your coffee tomorrow, Black iced coffee from the mark before the show. I promise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>All right, you better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And next up, we've got, let's see another caller here. We've got Shonda. Shonda, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Hey, Luke. All right, so here's my situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hit me with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>My kids' little league coach. Great guy, been coaching for three years. The kids love him. Parents think he walks on water. I found out he did 15 years for Army robbery in another state. He's been clean ever since, completely turned his life around, but nobody here knows. And I'm sitting on this information wondering what the hell I'm supposed to do with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I looked it up, and Little League actually requires annual background checks for all coaches. Like, it's a national policy. They do a nationwide criminal search and check the sex offender registry. Either he passed that check or the league isn't following their own rules, which is a whole separate issue, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Yeah, that's what I thought.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So it sounds like he passed a background check. Honestly, Shonda, for armed robbery, that's kind of cool. You know, if he robbed a bank or whatever or robbed a plane or whatever it is he robbed he robbed a plane or whatever it is he robbed. That's a cool thing. That's not like a kitty touching thing. So I wouldn't be too concerned about it. around he's did his time or didn't do his time. It doesn't really matter. But as long as he's a good coach and there's no weird sexual stuff going on there, I think you can let that go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you're right. That's what I keep telling myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't have to let it keep you up at night because he's not teaching your kids how to rob Banks. You don't have to worry about that. His stuff is done. Was pretty cool. We like him for that. This is America. So go to teach him team. That's what I say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>All right. Appreciate it, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're very welcome. Glad I could help you. All right, ladies and gentlemen. Well, thanks for tuning in with us again tonight. Devon, what did you think at today's show? Did you think this went better than yesterday's show?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, honestly, I think it did. Like, yesterday felt kind of all over the place. But today, people were actually calling in about stuff that mattered to them. That guy with the RV situation. And the woman talking about her sister. Those felt real, if that makes sense. I don't know if the numbers were better or whatever, but it felt like people were actually listening and wanted to talk. So, yeah, I think today was good. I mean, except for me for getting your coffee. But the show itself was better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think it was a pretty decent show, too. I don't know what show you were listening to because there was no guy with an RV situation or a woman talking about her sister. So obviously you're not paying attention. But I think the show went pretty well. Do you, what do you think we should do differently for tomorrow's show? Anything? Do you have any suggestions to make the show better?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah. Sorry. I don't know why I said that. I think I was thinking about yesterday or something. I was paying attention. I just got confused for a second. For tomorrow, I don't know. Maybe we could do like a theme or something. Like if there's a topic people are actually talking about around here, we could lead with that instead of just taking whatever calls come in. Or I could pull some local news stuff and we could have like three things ready to go in case it gets slow. I noticed today there were a couple dead spots where we were just kind of waiting. But I don't know. You're the one who's been doing this. I'm just saying what I noticed, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that makes sense. We've tried some theme-related things before. The thing is, the themes around here are, do you remember what Lordsburg used to be like 50 years ago with a picture? So that doesn't really translate that well to radio. It's kind of of, I don't know, we'll see what we could do. I like the idea of the local news stuff, though. So why don't you work on that? We'll think about some local news situations and see if we can make tomorrow's show even better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I can do that. I'll pull some stuff tonight and have it ready before we go on. I'll look at like the town council stuff, any county news, maybe some state things that affect people here. And I'll make sure it's actually interesting, not just like budget reports or whatever things people would actually want to call in about. I'll have it organized you can just grab whatever you need. And I'll have your coffee.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, ladies and gentlemen, it's been another successful show. Thanks for tuning in. And we'll talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 38: Secrets, Lies, and Late Night Confessions</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-16T10:08:54+00:00">March 16, 2026</time> · 1 hr 8 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke takes calls from listeners navigating bizarre personal dilemmas, including a potential stalker, a roommate's secret fetish, and a man hiding his inability to swim. From workplace drama to relationship complications, the show explores the messy realities of human behavior. Buckle up for an unpredictable journey through personal revelations and unexpected twists.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back. This is Luke, and you're listening to Luke at the Roost. It's the late night call-in radio show where you can give me a call about whatever's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today is Monday, March 16th, it's about 1.30 a.m. And let's check in with Devon and see how he's doing today. Hey, Devon, good job on the coffee this morning, buddy. proud of you. You did a great thing there, and we're all very excited that you're going to get to stay on the radio show for another day. So congratulations, and what would you like to tell the radio listeners today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, thanks. I appreciate that. I guess I just say thanks for listening. I don't really know what to say. This is still pretty new for me, so if you have questions or want us to look something up or whatever, I'm here. I'm trying to make this show good. So, yeah, thanks for calling in and being part of it. That's all I got.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, thanks, Devon. Well, we're trying to make the show good, so let's get to our callers here. This evening, first up, we've got Wendell. Wendell, welcome to the show. Where are you at tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Hey, Luke. I'm in Deming. Just got off my shift at the warehouse, sitting here at my kitchen table with a beer. Appreciate you taking my call, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>So I've been seeing this woman, right? Met her about two months ago at the Sonic over on Pine Street. Really great, actually. Then last week I'm at her place, and I see she's got this framed photo on her bookshelf. It's my brother Marcus.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Man, you know what's really weird? It's pretty much everybody that calls the show knows somebody named Marcus. I used to know a guy named Marcus. We called him All In Marcus, because at our weekly poker game, Marcus was always the one to go all in, no matter what. So we called him All in Marcus. One day, Marcus wrote down the rules of the poker game. this. Somebody was, I don't know, being argumentative about who got the pot or something like that. So we came to the poker game and Marcus had this like, I don't remember if it was laminated or not, but he had sheets of rules. And at the end of the rules, he had to make sure that all of the rules were agreed upon. But he spelled upon like A space P-A-W-N. All the rules agreed upon. That's my Marcus story. What's up with your girlfriend and the first. framed picture of your brother Marcus. Did you ask her about it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Oh, I asked her about it all right. She gets all flustered, says it's just a coincidence that she used to date a guy named Marcus back in Albuquerque. But here's the thing. This ain't just any Marcus. This is my Marcus. Golden boy of the family, works for the state, drives a damn Prius, the whole nine yards. And this woman? She's got his picture in a frame, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a little bit strange, a little uncomfortable. But he's not with her anymore. She's dating you, right? So what's the big deal? And who knows, maybe your brother Marcus did a little bit of modeling on the side, and he got himself in the TJ Max catalog or something like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Luke, no, you're not hearing me. I showed her a picture of my Marcus on my phone, my actual brother, and she went white as a sheet, started stammering about how she didn't know, how she had no idea we were related.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, she probably didn't know. Well, how would she know that you were related? You think she's just scoping out each person in the family to date them one at a time and see which one's the best?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>That's what I thought at first, right? Just a weird coincidence. But then I started thinking about it. She asked me a lot of questions early on. Where I grew up, what my family does, if I had siblings. And here's the kicker. She suggested we go to the Deming flea market next weekend. Marcus loves that flea market.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so, I mean, it's a little bit weird. I'll give you that. It's a little strange, but I don't know. You like the girl? I think that seems like something you could probably get over. Have you talked to Marcus about it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>He gets all quiet, then he's like, Wendell, I need you to drop this. Drop this? Luke, my brother doesn't talk like that. Marcus explains everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, tell me about the girl. How into the girl are you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>I mean, honestly, I liked her a lot. She's funny. She's into the same shows I watch. She makes these breakfast burritos that are incredible. We were having a good time. But now, every time I think about her, I'm thinking about that picture frame and Marcus telling me to drop it. Like, what does that even mean? Drop it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So I look this up and stalking behavior sometimes includes trying to get close to the target through family members or friends. Like, it's actually a documented tactic. The fact that she asked all those questions about your family early on and then it turns out she dated Marcus. That's not nothing. And if Marcus is telling you to drop it instead of explaining, that's actually pretty concerning, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's a little bit concerning. It's a little bit weird. Your best course of action is probably to drop it and move on to another girl, unless you're really into her. I think you probably need a little more to go on than you like the same shows and you like her burritos.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Yeah, but Luke, that's the thing. I can't drop it because I went back through my phone last night, and the first time she texted me, it was her who reached out first after we met. She asked for my number at the Sonic, said she thought I seemed interesting. I didn't think anything of it at the time, but now I'm wondering if she knew exactly who I was when she walked up to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I looked it up, and the CDC lists approaching or showing up in places like the victim's home or workplace as an actual stalking tactic. The Deming flea market thing, if Marcus goes there regularly and she's suggesting it, that could be her trying to engineer a run-in with him. That's a recognized pattern, actually.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, it sounds like you got a stalker on your tail. I think it's a little bit weird. to talk to Marcus a little bit more and figure out what is going on there and what kind of crazy she is. It doesn't sound like she's into your relationship for you, though, so maybe you should just stop calling her back and let that one go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I know you're right. I just, I keep thinking about how normal everything felt before I saw that picture. Like, what else did I miss?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So, according to the CDC, stalking tactics. can include using intermediaries or approaching through family connections. The fact that she initiated contact, asked detailed family questions, and then Marcus is refusing to explain anything, those are all concerning patterns. Also, stalkers often researched their targets beforehand, so her knowing exactly who Wendell was at that Sonic isn't paranoia. So I found something. About 80% percent, percent of stalking cases actually involves someone the victim knows, not strangers. And one of the warning science experts list is when someone shows intense interest really early on, like asking detailed questions about your life and family before you've really gotten to know them. That's actually a documented red flag, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you've got it straight from Devon, and he seems to know that this chick is a stalker, and she's stalking your brother, and she's using you to get to him. So best to leave that chick alone. I find odd in this whole conversation is that the CDC is putting out the guidance for stalkers. Like, is stalking a disease? Or is being stalked a disease? That's strange that it's the CDC that is handling these reports.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Appreciate it, man. I guess I needed to hear somebody else say it out loud.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, glad we could help. Get away from that chick before something bad happens. It doesn't sound good. It does not sound good. And next up, we've got Alia.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Leah, welcome to the show. How are you tonight? What's going on? What do you think about stalkers being reported to the CDC?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>Hey, Luke, I'm all right. Look, the CDC thing is wild, but I called about something else. I caught my roommate in a hotel room doing some seriously weird age play stuff on what was supposed to be a business trip. And now we live together and neither of us can look at each other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Um, okay, that's weird. It's disconcerting. What do you mean by weird age play stuff? I don't think that I like where this is going, but can you fill us in on some details here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>So I work with him at the shop. He's also a mechanic, and he told everyone he was going to Phoenix for this Part Supplier Conference. I had to drop something off at the hotel for my boss, Karen. Totally random, and I see him in the lobby. I'm about to say, hey, when I notice he's dressed like a little kid, like overalls that are too short, a backpack with cartoon characters, the whole thing. And there's this woman with him talking to him like he's five years old, patting his head, and he's just into it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. You know, I've seen some of that before. I went to, it's called a munch. Do you know what a munch is? It's like a meetup in a public place, like an apple bees or something like that, for people in the fetish community, and they're just kind of hanging out in a non-sexual environment. And I would say a good percentage of them, like maybe 40 to 50 percent of them, the people there were into like wearing diapers and doing the age play stuff. It was, it was weird to see, but I don't think anybody's getting hurt there. I would be more concerned about the woman that was entertaining it than the dude that wanted to dress up in his Oshkoshes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I get that people are into what they're into. I'm not trying to kinkshame the guy. But Luke, the problem is, we share a two-bedroom apartment. We carpool to work. I see him every single day, and now every time I look at him, I just picture him in those tiny overalls getting his head patted, and he's acting like nothing happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I look this up. Age play is actually pretty common in kink communities. It's like a role play thing where adults take on different age roles. It's consensual and not illegal or anything. The psychology research says it's usually about power dynamics or stress relief, not actual attraction to kids, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>Okay, well, I don't really understand how that's that would relieve anybody's stress. It seems more stressful for everybody involved, but, you know, it takes all kinds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And it, I mean, people are into role-playing in all sorts of different ways. They go to Comic-Cons and dress up like Batman, or they play role-playing games. I don't, I don't think there's anything wrong with it. But it is weird, and I mean, I can see why you feel a little bit uncomfortable, but also, he wasn't doing anything to you. He did his best to keep that away from you. Like, he's not pushing it on you. So, I think, I think it's something that you could get over if you wanted to. So what if he likes to dress up like a Chucky doll?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing, and this is what Wendell was doing earlier. Right? You asked him a direct question, and he told you a whole story instead. I'm doing the same thing. The real issue isn't that he's into what he's into. The real issue is he lied about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How did he lie about it? I mean, he lied about it because he went to a business conference and he was doing it there where he thought he wasn't going to get exposed? You just happened to walk in on him, or is there more to this story that you haven't told us?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>No, you're right. He didn't owe me an explanation about what he does on his own time. But now he won't even acknowledge that I saw him. Like, I tried to bring it up once, super casual, just to clear the air. And he looked at me like I was crazy and changed the subject. So now I'm the one feeling weird about it when I'm just trying to exist in my own apartment. I can't tell if I'm supposed to pretend I didn't see anything, or if he's gaslighting me into thinking it didn't happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, put yourself in his tiny shoes. He's probably pretty embarrassed that you caught him dressed up like a little boy. I mean, he was trying to do that where he wouldn't be seen by anybody, and you saw him. So I don't say, I don't think that's lying. He's just trying to not talk about it and pretend it didn't happen. I don't think he's gaslighting you. I think he's just hoping that you let it go and can move on and pretend you didn't see anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>All right, yeah. That's fair. I can see that. But then why do I feel like I'm the one who did something wrong? Like I'm tiptoeing around my own place. Trying not to make it awkward. And he's just going about his business like everything's normal. I guess what I'm asking is, how long do I have to do this dance before it stops being weird?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it can stop being weird when you decide it doesn't have to be weird anymore. I mean, it's okay for things to be awkward sometimes. You don't have to never have awkward. That was a strange thing that happened. And I think you could push, talk about it if you really have to. I mean, worst case scenario is you find another roommate, but I think that this is something that you could resolve through discussion. Even if he's trying to put it off, you can say, no, I saw what I saw. You know, I saw you. And we need to talk about this because it feels really weird not addressing it. And I mean, if you're saying that honestly without trying to shame him or embarrass him or rub it in his face, I think probably he would appreciate that and respond well.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEAH</span><p>You know what? You're probably right. I think I've been making it bigger in my head than it needs to be. I can just tell him straight up. Look, I saw what I saw. You do you. But we got to stop acting like ghosts around each other. Appreciate it, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no problem. That's a strange thing, but not harmful. And I think you can get through it. And maybe even understand what it is that he's into about it. Try it out yourself. You know, don't knock until you try it. You could dress up like a little boy, too. Next up on the line, we've got Chip. What's going on? What do you think of the last caller's situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, I caught some of that with Wendell and the girlfriend thing. That's Wildman. Honestly, sounds like she's playing some kind of game, right? Like who just happens to have a photo of their boyfriend's brother and that acts like it's nothing. But listen, I got to give you an update on my situation because things have gone completely sideways since we talked last. So picture this. I'm at home Sunday afternoon, Teresa's at work, and I get a call from my lawyer, the one I hired to verify this whole Guatemala thing, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what's the letter say?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>The lawyer didn't send a letter. He called me, and he's telling me that he's been able to verify some of the information, like the birth mother's identity checks out. The timeline matches up with when we adopted our daughter. And get this, there's documentation from the Guatemalan Adoption Agency that's been flagged in some kind of investigation, like actual legal proceedings happening down there. So it's not a scam. This woman is real, the claim is real. And now my lawyer is saying we need to start thinking about what our legal exposure is here. Because if this adoption was fraudulent, we could be looking at some serious complications. So basically, Guatemala had this massive adoption fraud scandal from the 1960s through 2008, thousands of babies were stolen or coerced from indigenous mothers. The U.S. was aware of fraud as early as the 1980s. Guatemala was the only country in the world doing fully privatized adoptions from 1977 to 2008. And at the peak, one in every hundred Guatemalan babies was being adopted out to foreigners. The whole system got shut down in 2008 because of corruption.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If your daughter was adopted during that window, there's a real chance the adoption agency was involved in the investigations. All right. Well, that doesn't sound good at all. I mean, did he elaborate any on what your legal exposure could be there? Because from your perspective, you didn't know anything was wrong, right? You just adopted a baby through an agency that you thought was legitimate. They gave you papers and everything. And it was all in the up and up. And this is the first you're hearing about it many years later. So I don't see what legal trouble you could get in personally. But how? How does that affect your adoption and your child? What comes next? Did he give you any further instructions or any idea what they might be looking for as far as reparations or what they might be looking for as far as reparations or sending the kid back to his birth mother or what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, so he's saying that legally, I'm probably fine. Like I'm not going to get charged with anything because we went through what we thought was a legitimate agency. We had all the paperwork. We didn't know. But here's where it gets messy. He's saying that in some of these cases, families have been pressured to allow contact with the birthmothers. Or in extreme situations, there have been custody challenges. Not common, but it happens.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're already being pressured to allow contact, right? It sounded like the last time you called and Teresa was going to get on a plane and go down there to meet the birth mother. So that might not be such a bad thing. Just letting the birth mother meet the child, I mean, it seems like that's kind of maybe the right thing to do. I don't know what the right thing to do is here, but I don't know that any custody challenge would really hold up. It's kind of hard to say that the kid would be better off in Guatemala now after years of living as a United States citizen and going to school and having a loving family and stuff. I mean, if your household was a problem, then maybe. But I don't think that there could be any realistic argument that custody should change. I think maybe it does make sense, though, to let the kid meet her mom.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, but here's the thing. Teresa isn't just talking about meeting her. She's talking about, like packing up our daughter and flying to Guatemala to meet this woman. No lawyers, no plan. Just, here's your kid. Let's all have lunch. And my lawyer is saying that's a terrible idea, because if we do this, that we're basically admitting that we don't have full legal standing. And that could open us up to all kinds of complications. Like, what if the birth mother decides she wants to keep her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, I'm not finding any actual U.S. court cases where a Guatemalan birth mother successfully challenged custody after the adoption was finalized in the U.S. The legal framework, is that once an adoption is completed and recognized by U.S. courts, custody challenges from abroad are extremely difficult. U.S. courts prioritize the child's established life and stability. Your lawyer is probably right. That meeting without legal structure could complicate things, but there's no precedent for a birth mother just taking custody back after years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't think any court is going to give custody to the birth mother in Guatemala. But I also think it's a very terrible idea, just like the lawyer said, to go to Guatemala. For different reasons, though. I mean, you're just showing up in an area where you know there's fraud and some level of violence and kidnapping going on in general. So it's not really that safe to go into that environment. I think if the birth mother wants to meet the child, then you should make arrangements to bring her to America and meet in a public place where there's no risk of being overrun by, I don't know, whoever with guns and stuff and get getting kidnapped and all that noise. Like, you don't need that. I don't think anybody should be getting on a plane flying to Guatemala over this. I think that's a terrible idea.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Right, exactly. That's what I've been trying to tell Teresa, but she's not hearing it. And here's the new development that's got me completely freaked out. I found out yesterday that she already bought the tickets.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, like I told you last time, if you have to, if you have to protect your family, then file yourself a restraining order and maybe make sure that she can't leave the country with your daughter. Because she can't just leave the country with your daughter if you don't want that to happen. That, I think you do have a legal precedent for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, so picture this. I'm looking at her laptop yesterday because she left it open on the kitchen table. And I see the confirmation email two tickets to Guatemala City leaving Friday. This Friday, look, in four days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, Guatemala is currently at a level three travel advisory from the city. State Department. That's reconsider travel due to crime. They specifically say do not travel to certain zones in Guatemala City for any reason. The advisory was reissued in December 2024 and hasn't changed despite recent gang attacks in January. If she's planning to go, she should at minimum enroll in the smart traveler enrollment program so the embassy knows she's there, if that makes sense. So basically, Luke's right that you can get a court order to prevent her from leaving. But there's also something called the Children's Passport Issuance Alert program. It's free through the State Department. You enroll and they'll contact you if anyone tries to get a passport for your daughter. But that only works if she doesn't already have one. If your daughter already has a passport, you need an emergency custody order before Friday to actually stop them at the border.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think you have to do that. I think you have to get one of those emergency orders and prevent that from happening for the safety of your daughter. And if that causes problems Well, that's secondary, right? Because the most important thing here should be the safety of your daughter. And your girlfriend, right? Her safety's on the line, too. You're going into gang territory. It's just a shady situation, and it's not safe to do. And if you're the only one thinking clearly here, then you have to do what you have to do and go to the court and get that order.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Big surprise there, right? Teresa's acting like I'm the crazy one for being worried. And our daughters are already as a passport because we took her to Cancun two years ago. So that program Devon's talking about won't help. I confronted Teresa about the tickets last night when she got home from her shift, and she completely lost it on me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? You don't have to involve Teresa in the decision at all. At this point, you just have to go down in the courthouse and get the order and prevent her. I mean, they'll stop her from getting on the plane if it has to go that way. That's the advice that I have to give you because there's really no other option.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Okay, so here's where I'm stuck though. If I do that, if I go behind her back and get a court order, our relationship is done, like completely over. She already told me last night that if I try to stop her from doing this, she's leaving me. She said I'm being a coward, that I'm putting my own comfort over doing the right thing for our daughter and that this birth mother deserves to meet her child. And part of me gets that. Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and some of those things may be true, but it does not matter because the child's safety is the most important thing here. And if she takes the child to Guatemala, then that is actively putting, I mean objectively, actively putting the child in danger. And that's not okay. And honestly, it sounds like your relationship's over anyway. If you guys can't work this thing out between yourselves and you have to go to court to get a court order to prevent her from uncomfortable with. Like there's, there's nothing left in that relationship.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can't stay with that woman. You're right. You're absolutely right. I know you're right. All right, buddy. Well, I'm sorry you're in that situation. It sounds horrible for all involved. And I hope it all works out. Give us a call and let us know what happens. But I've got to move on because we're over time for a word from our sponsors. So hold on just a second. And we'll, uh, we'll, we'll, we'll, listen. listen to meat cube.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Thanks to MeatCube for sponsoring this episode. Are you tired of your protein having a shape? Introducing MeatCube, the world's first geometrically perfect meat product. Every meat cube is exactly two inches by two inches by two inches by two inches of lab engineered protein that we are legally required to call meat adjacent. What animal is it from? Absolutely none of your business. What we can tell you is that MeatCube has been approved by the FDA. Not the American one, but one of them. Meat Cube is a shelf stable for 11 years. It does not need to be refrigerated. Honestly, refrigeration seems to make it angry. Each cube contains 40 grams of protein, zero grams of fat, and a faint electrical charge that our lawyers say is within acceptable limits. Meat Cube comes in three flavors, original, smokehouse, and uh-oh. You can grill it, fry it, or just set it on the counter and watch it slowly rotate on its own, which it will do. We don't know why. MeatCube. It's not meat. It's not not meat. It's meat. It's MeatCube. Available at grocery stores that have recently fired their health inspector. Use code Chew Harder for free shipping.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thank you to MeatCube. And we are back. We're back, baby. And next up on the line, we've got Sheila. Sheila, welcome to the show. What's going on out there tonight? Why are you up so late on a Monday night?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>I'm sitting in a truck stop diner in Deming, staring at a cup of coffee that's been cold for 20 minutes. Can't sleep. I've been thinking about this for three days, and I need to say it out loud to someone who isn't going to try to fix it. My husband, David, and I, ran into someone from high school at the Walmart last week. Girl named Monica. We were best friends back in the day. Lost touch after graduation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well that happens. You lose touch with Why is this an issue?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>It's not an issue that we lost touch. We actually reconnected recently, before we saw her at Walmart. The issue is when we ran into her with David there, she acted like she'd never met me before in her life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, do you look physically different than you did in high school? Is it potentially a non-issue, or was she just trying to hit on your husband?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>No, I looked the same. And she wasn't hitting on David. She looked right at me, said, And then turn to David and said, you must be Sheila's husband. I've heard so much about you. Like I wasn't even standing there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically, people pretend not to recognize someone for a few main reasons. Social anxiety is a big one, like they're afraid of an awkward interaction or being judged. Sometimes it's situational, like they're with someone and don't want to explain the connection. Or it could be intentional avoidance if there's unresolved history or embarrassment about something, if that makes sense. Do any of those things apply in this situation? Is there some unresolved history or embarrassment from high school? Is there a reason you lost touch that you're not telling us, or is this the full story?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>We lost touch because I stayed here and she left for college in Arizona. That was it. No fight, no drama. She came back about six months ago, and we started texting, then meeting up for coffee.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, that's an odd thing. And how did you handle the situation? Did you just play it off? Like, okay, that was a weird thing and then argue with David when you got back in the car? Or what did it look like after the interaction?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>I just stood there, didn't say anything. David looked at me like he was waiting for me to correct her, but I didn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why didn't you correct her? And why is this bothering you so much? If it's an old friend from high school that you haven't seen in a long time, then, I mean, who cares? Do you actually have any, um, any, uh, Anticipation. Do you expect that you're going to try and rekindle this friendship for any reason? Maybe just let her go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Because we've been meeting up twice a week for four months. We had coffee three days before the Walmart thing. She knows exactly who I am when it's just the two of us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically, the CORA result mentions passive aggressive behavior as a main reason people pretend not to know someone. It's a way of asserting control or sending a message without direct confrontation. The fact that she she acknowledged David specifically while ignoring you could be a power move, if that makes sense. So I looked it up, and there's actually a term for this. It's called a secret friendship or hidden relationship. Psychology research shows people hide friendships from their partners for a few specific reasons. They're emotionally invested in a way that feels inappropriate. They know their partner would be uncomfortable with the dynamic, or they're keeping options open. The fact that she but pretended not to know you in front of her husband is actually a pretty significant red flag that she's compartmentalizing the relationship, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Well, that's not really the situation, right? She pretended not to know her in front of, in front of her husband. I mean, I forget her name, Monica. Monica went up to Sheila and pretended not to know Sheila. And Sheila is the one that's in the relationship with David. So that doesn't really fit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I'm seeing something here. So I'm seeing something When someone compartmentalizes a friendship like this, hiding it from their spouse, relationship experts actually classify that as one of the warning signs of an emotional affair. It doesn't have to be physical. The secrecy itself is the issue. The fact that she's meeting you regularly but won't acknowledge you in front of her husband. Suggests she knows he'd have a problem with it, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Yeah, it would make sense if she was not acknowledging you in front of her husband, but not acknowledging you in front of your husband doesn't make any sense at all. She wasn't with her husband. She was alone. She pretended not to know me in front of David.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't know what to say about that. That's just a very strange thing. Maybe you've got to bring that up with her the next time you meet for coffee. And why is this, why was this awkward for you after the fact, though? I mean, the interaction being awkward makes sense, but you said that this caused a problem between you and your husband.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>I didn't say it caused a problem between us. I said, he looked at me waiting for me to correct her, and I didn't. We haven't talked about it since.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, all right. I guess I misunderstood. I thought when you initially called, you said that this was causing a problem between you and your husband. Maybe I got that wrong. Sorry. So the one thing I'm seeing here is that social anxiety research shows people sometimes pretend not to know someone because they're afraid of how the interaction will look to whoever's watching. It's not about the person they're pretending not to know. It's about managing how they appear to the witness. She might have been worried about how David would perceive her having a close friendship with the married guy, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Devon, I think you've got it all wrong. There is no close friendship with the marriage guy. Let me explain this to you, Devon, because obviously you're missing it. So Sheila and Monica were friends in high school. And in this interaction, Sheila is with her husband, David. David and Sheila and Sheila are married and Monica was there and pretended not to know Sheila, even though they've been hanging out for weeks and weeks at coffee shops and stuff. So they have an ongoing platonic friendship going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you're very welcome. I hope that all works out for everybody involved. That Monica sounds like a strange, strange lady. Next up we've got Leon. Leon, welcome to the show. Hopefully you're more coherent than Sheila was. That spun me around.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, I heard that one. That was a trip. Look, I I'm calling because I did something at work last week, and I'm pretty sure I was in the right, but now everyone's acting like I'm the bad guy, and I don't get it. So I work in logistics, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. What did you do? What did you do, Leon? Tell us what you did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>I reported my supervisor to HR for safety violations. The guy's been cutting corners on load checks for months, and last Tuesday he told me to sign off on a shipment I hadn't actually inspected. I refused. He got in my face about it. So I went straight to HR and filed a formal complaint.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that was the right thing to do. The old whistleblower thing. But I mean, whenever you're going to complain about somebody formally to HR, you're going to get some side eye from the others in the environment because everybody's wondering when they're next. Right? So now you're the rat. You're the narc. But that doesn't mean it wasn't the right thing to do. If you had legitimate safety concerns and it sounds like you did, and then I applaud you for doing the right thing. And if everybody's going to give you shit about that, fuck them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Well, okay, but here's the thing. He's been there 15 years. I've been there three. And yeah, he told me to sign off on the shipment, but it's not like it was dangerous or anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean it wasn't dangerous? You just said that he was cutting corners on load checks. And having you sign off on it, that sounds like it's dangerous to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>I mean, look, the load was fine. I could see it was fine from where I was standing. The issue is, technically, I'm supposed to physically walk around the whole truck and check every strap, every tie down, the whole nine yards. But we were behind schedule and Rick said just eyeball it and sign.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what about that? I mean, that type of thing happens all the time, I'm sure. And I mean, there's a reason you're supposed to check every strap and every tie down. That's like, I think we got all that from the aviation industry. And that's what makes sure that the planes don't just fall out of the sky all the time. So it is important, but also, if you didn't think it was a legitimate safety concern, why did you feel the need to go to HR about it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>He started yelling at me in front of two other guys telling me I was slowing down the whole operation that I needed to be a team player. And I'm standing there thinking, this guy's been doing this to the new hires for years, just pushing people around making them feel like they're the problem when he's the one not following protocol. So yeah, maybe that one load was fine, but what about the principle of it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, if you went after him for ideological reasons to HR, you can understand why the other people that you work with are looking at you with a negative side eye. You kind of deserve that. I mean, whether or not it was the right thing to do is questionable, because I think it was either way. I mean, if you're supposed to do it to the book, there's a reason, a safety reason for that, and he's telling you not to. That's not okay. But if you also knew in your head that it was safe and that he was right and you were behind schedule and you had to make the operation move, and then you went to HR, are just for punitive reasons because you didn't like the way the guy made you feel. I think, that's a little bit of a pussy move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>No, it wasn't just about my feelings. The guy's been doing this for years and somebody needed to say something. And yeah, maybe I was the newest guy there, but that doesn't mean I should just roll over and let him treat people however he wants.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>I guess I thought people would see it as me standing up for what's right. Like maybe some of them were glad somebody finally said something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, if you had stood up and said something to him directly and fuck even punched him in the way, but that's not what you did. You went to HR like a snitch would do, and nobody respects that. Even if it's the right thing to do, nobody really respects that. So you're going to have to deal with the workplace weirdness or start reporting everybody to HR when they treat you in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Hold on. So you're saying I should have punched my supervisor instead of going through the proper channels? That's insane. I would have been fired on the spot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, maybe, but you would I'm not saying you should have punched your supervisor. I'm saying to put yourself in the shoes of your other employees and look at how that could have played out otherwise. Like there are other ways you could have handled that directly with your supervisor in front of everybody without going to HR. And since you did, maybe that was the right thing to do. By the book, that was absolutely the right thing to do. And maybe just in general, morally, that was the right thing to do. But everybody's going to look at you like a snitch now and you have to deal with that because you made that decision and you snitched.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>All right, I hear you. I just didn't think it would be like this. I thought maybe a couple people would give me crap for a week and then it would blow over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It will blow over. People will forget and everybody's got better stuff to do in their life than think about Leon and his snitching propensity. So I looked it up and if he reported safety violations specifically, he's actually protected under federal law. OSHA has whistleblower protections that make it illegal for employers or coworkers to retaliate against someone for reporting safety issues. So legally speaking, he did the right thing, if that makes sense. Doesn't change how his coworkers feel about it, but just so he knows. So I look this up. Retaliation is actually the most common workplace complaint filed with the EEOC. In 2004, it was almost 48% of all discrimination charges, over 42,000 complaints. So, basically what you're dealing with is super common. People report something, then the workplace gets weird. And that weirdness is technically illegal if it's bad enough, if that makes sense. So how are your fellow employees actually treating the situation? What does the retaliation look like? Are they just giving you weird looks and like quick, snooty responses? Or are they actually, you know, retaliating?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>It's not like they're doing anything obvious. No one's sabotaging my work or anything. It's more like the way they talked to me changed before we'd shoot the shit, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, they're nervous to be around you because they don't want you to knock them out, which is understandable. And I think you're just going to have to deal with that until it blows over. It will blow over. Something else will happen. And if the workplace conditions get better and the supervisor changes his ways he's talked to or something like that, that might turn into respect over time. But right now, you got to deal with the consequences of what you did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, all right. I appreciate it, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Leon, good luck. I hope it all starts working out a little bit better at your workplace. That sounds like it's not fun to deal with, but you got to deal with it anyway. All right, let's see who's next. Next up, we've got Adrian. Adrian, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Hey, Luke, it's Adrian actually. And, okay, so I heard Alia earlier talking about her situation? And I was like, you know what? I need to call because I've got something similar, but way weirder. So I found a jar of pennies in my backyard, right? All from 1977, exactly 365 of them. But that is not why I'm calling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, somebody saved a penny from 77 every day. You should hold on to those because they don't make pennies anymore. Why are you calling? What's the purpose of your call, Adrian?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Adrian. And yeah, I'm keeping them. They're sitting on my kitchen right now. So here's why I called. My ex-husband Derek, we've been divorced two years. He shows up at my door last Thursday at like 11 at night, which is already weird because we barely talk. And he tells me he needs to stay in my guest room for a few days because his girlfriend kicked him out. And I said yes. And now he's been living in my house for five days. And his girlfriend keeps calling my phone looking for him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, that's what you should expect when you said yes, because you're inviting somebody else's relationship drama into your life. And now you've got to deal with that. So if I were you, I would get him out as soon as possible and just don't answer the girlfriend. You don't have to be involved in that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Oh, it gets worse. So Derek's girlfriend, her name's Marisol, she's called my phone eight times in the last two days. But here's the thing. She's not just calling to yell at me. She's calling to apologize.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so why is Derek's girlfriend Marisol calling you? Why does she have your phone What is she apologizing about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Okay, so Derek and Marisol, they've been together about a year and a half. And apparently, Derek told her all about me, like everything. The divorce, the house, even the time I drove to El Paso at 2 a.m. just to get out of town. But here's the kicker.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Marisol called me yesterday, and she starts off by saying, Adrian, I need to apologize. I didn't know Derek was still living with you when I kicked him out. And I'm like, wait what? You know, it doesn't make any sense. How could he be living with you if she kicked him out of living with her? That's nonsensical. That's exactly what I said. So I'm like, Marisol, he doesn't live here. We've been divorced for two years. And she goes quiet for a second. And then she says, Derek told me you two still share the house, that you have separate bedrooms, but you couldn't afford to split up the property yet. Luke, I have never heard this story in my life. Derek moved out two years ago, got his own place over on Motel Drive. But apparently he's been telling Marisol this whole time that he still lives with me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, David is a weirdo, and you divorced him for a reason. So get him out of your guest room and tell him he's on his own. Tell him he's got to get his own place on Motel Drive. Like, if he's got his own place, then why is he in your guest room? It doesn't, the whole thing doesn't make sense. And it's inviting drama into your life that you don't need to be part of.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Derek, his name's Derek. Whatever. And that's the thing. I asked him that exact question this morning. I said, Derek. Why aren't you at your apartment? And he looks at me like I'm crazy and goes, what apartment? Luke, I drove past his place on motel drive yesterday on my way to work. There's a four-rent sign in the window.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think you need to get to the bottom of this story. Just tell him to get out and let him go on with his life. And clearly you made the right choice in divorcing this guy because he's a mess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. But here's what I can't stop thinking about. When I told him about, the for rent sign he didn't even try to explain it. He just said, can we talk about this later? And went back into the guest room. And then last night, I heard him on the phone in there. And Luke, he was talking to someone about me. He said, no, she doesn't know yet. I'm working on it. Mark my words, something is really wrong here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's pretty obvious something is really wrong there. And just get that guy out of your house. Why is you still there? Like, you should just get off the phone with me Tell him to get out. And if you have to call the cops and get him out that way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>Okay, okay, you're right. I'm going to tell him he needs to leave tomorrow. But can I ask you one thing? Because this is what's really messing with me. Do you think he's been lying to Marisol this whole time about living here? Or do you think he actually believes it? Because when I confronted him this morning, he looked genuinely confused. Like he didn't understand why I was asking about an apartment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically, there's this thing called confabulation where someone genuinely believes false memories or stories they're telling. It's not technically lying because they actually think it's true. It can happen with certain mental health conditions or brain injuries. If he looked genuinely confused when she asked about the apartment, that could be a sign he's not lying on purpose, if that makes sense. I think it doesn't matter if he's lying or not lying or what he believes, but I think you don't need to be part of it and you need to tell him to go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ADRIAN</span><p>You're right. You're right. I'm going to tell him tonight when I get home. Thanks, Luke. I appreciate it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem. Get that weirdo out of your house. And if he's got mental health issues that need to be dealt with, then he's got to deal with those. But you divorced him years ago. And this is probably why. All right, ladies and gentlemen, we've got to take a small break for a word from our sponsors. somewhere between New Jersey and the Italian Riviera, Pesto Bismol, was accidentally invented when renowned scientist, Professor Luigi, the basal-brain spaghetti Spaghettiini, dropped a jar of pesto into a barrel of activated charcoal during a thunderstorm. Lightning struck. The beakers rattled. The lab assistant fled, and when the smoke cleared, Professor Spaghettiini gazed upon the swirling emerald paste and reportedly said words that would shake the world of digestive science to its very core. Mama Mia, I fix it the tummy. And with that completely unverified scientific breakthrough, Pesto Bismol was born. For too long, stomach remedies have been timid. Pink liquids, chalky tablets, medicines that whisper politely to your digestive system. But Pesto Bismol? Pesto Bysmal arrives with garlic. Yes, Pesto Bismol blends the bold, aromatic power of basil, garlic, olive oil, and Parmesan with a mysterious absorbing capabilities of activated charcoal. Same stuff used in water filters, art class, and occasionally by people who do grilling. The result is a rich green medicinal paste that coats your stomach with the comforting sensation of what can only be described as aggressive Italian encouragement. Upset's stomach? Acid reflux? Take a spoonful of Pesto Bismol and let the herbal magic go to work. Pesto Bismol. When your stomach says help, say, mamma mia. Pesto bismol has not been evaluated by the FDA, the U.S.DA, the Italian government, or anybody's grandmother. What effects may include green teeth and serious confidence and attracting neighborhood pigeons who believe you might be a breadstick. All right, we're going a little bit over time tonight. We're already about an hour into the show, but I think we can take a couple more callers. We'll see how this next one goes and make a decision from there, all right? So next up on the line, we've got Tina. Tina, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>Well, Luke, I appreciate you having me. me back. I got to tell you. That situation with Leon, it went from bad to worse. And I'm starting to think maybe you were right about him being a rat.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounded like that guy really wanted to be the rat there. And who knows why? I don't know if that's right or wrong. Why are you calling tonight, Tina? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>All right, Luke. Here's the thing. I'm sitting in my garage at 2 a.m. And I just spent three hours deep diving into goblin sharks. You ever seen one of those things? They look like something out of a fever dream. All teeth and no eyes. Lurking in the deep where the light don't reach. And now I'm convinced the ocean's just a big, dark lie. And I don't know if I can ever look at the Gulf again without imagining one of those bastards staring up at me from the abyss.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't think the ocean's alive, but it is legitimately terrifying. And I'm not familiar with the goblin shark at all. But there's a lot of stuff in the ocean that is really, really scary and creepy. So I don't blame you. I'm not interested in the ocean at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>Oh, you're missing out, Luke. It's like the universe's way of saying, Hey, you think you're the top predator? Nah, we got worse. But that's not even why I called. I called because I just got off the phone with my best friend Lena. She's out in Arizona now. And we were supposed to meet up this weekend. But she bailed last minute. So I looked it up and actually goblin sharks do have eyes. But the really creepy part is their jaws extend outward when they feed like they shoot forward. They're pink, which somehow makes it worse. They live at depths up to 2,000 meters, so Tina's not wrong about the deep dark part.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Yeah, the goblin and sharks sound like something I don't want to meet. Why is this problem for you? So people have to bail things come up. What's the problem with your friend in Arizona bailing out?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>Because this is the third time in two months, Luke. And every time it's something different. Her car, her work schedule. Her dog's sick. And I get it. Life happens. But here's the kicker. She posts on Facebook the same weekend she bails.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And she's out at breweries with new friends, hiking Camelback Mountain, living her best Arizona life. So either she's lying to me about why she can't make the drive, or I'm just not worth the gas money anymore. And I don't know which one's worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAVID</span><p>Neither one's that much worse. If somebody, you know, if she doesn't want to hang out because she's doing other stuff, that's fine. And the gas is, uh, is like twice as much as it was a couple weeks ago. So that's understandable, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think you have to worry about it. I mean, if, just stop trying to make plans with this check and go out with your new friends.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAVID</span><p>New friends. Luke, I'm 60 years old, and I work at a dive bar. My social circle is me, David. And whoever's drunk enough to tell me their life story on a Tuesday. Lena and I have been tight since high school. We survived the booth-heeled together. We survived bad marriages. We survived that dust storm in 09 that took half my roof off. You don't just replace that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you can't replace that, but you can replace what you do on a weekend with doing something That's not too difficult to do. I understand she's your friend and it's a bummer and she seems to be lying to you about not being able to get there, but there's a reason. I mean, maybe she wants to go hiking or she wants to do stuff or she's tired of listening to your very slow, very drawn-out voice, which is also understandable. So my recommendation to you is don't worry about it too much. People come and go and life comes and goes and, you know, when it's time for you to reconnect, physical. then you will. You could always drive up to there too and go hiking with her and her new friends. Maybe that would solve the problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAVID</span><p>You know what, Luke? You just hit on something. I haven't offered to drive up there, not once. I've been sitting here waiting for her to come back to the boot heel like it's some kind of pilgrimage she owes me. And maybe that's the real problem. I'm acting like she left me behind. Instead of just moved away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, people move. It happens. And things come up, and it's a long drive. So I looked it up, and it's about 329 miles from Deming to Phoenix, if that's where she is in Arizona. That's like five and a half hours, maybe more, depending on traffic. So it's actually not that different of a drive either direction, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAVID</span><p>Yeah, it's a long drive. It's a long drive. Gas is expensive. And, you know, somebody doesn't want to give up half of their weekend just in a commute to hang out at the boot heel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like, uh, you can understand that. I think you talk to her, maybe, maybe offer to split the difference, or just recognize that you're far away now and you can't hang out as much as you used to because the, the travel doesn't make sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAVID</span><p>Yeah, you're right. And honestly, Luke, I think I've been making this about her when really it's about me being stuck. She got out. She's doing new things, and I'm still here in the same garage, same bar, same life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can change that at any time. And you can, yeah, you might be 60 and you might be set in your ways or whatever. But if you want to pick up a new hobby or go hiking and meet new people or travel, there's plenty of things that you can do to change your life and keep yourself occupied and get out of your rut. So I recommend that you do that. It sounds like she's a good friend of yours and you can talk to her and maybe meet half-war or something. Either way, you don't have to worry about this or blame her for it. Be happy for her that she's enjoying her life and living in a new place and finding new friends.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAVID</span><p>You're right, Luke. I appreciate it. And for what it's worth, I do have hobbies. I built my own radio antenna for astronomy, been listening to deep space signals. Maybe I should spend less in more time doing my own thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That sounds like a good plan. That's what you should do. And I hope that that all works out for you. We're going to take one more call and then and then that'll be the end of the show, folks. So I think we're going to go to Sal. Sal, welcome to the show. You're the last caller tonight. What would you like to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Luke, hey. So I heard Alia earlier talking about that roommate situation and how she kept asking you questions. And it got me thinking, my wife just... booked us this whole Caribbean cruise thing for our anniversary. Three weeks from now. She's so excited. Keep showing me the itinerary, talking about this snorkeling excursion she signed us up for. Problem is, I don't know how to swim.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what? I don't think you really have to know how to swim. I think you can just kind of float there with a snorkel on if you want. And it's a cruise, so there's plenty of activities for you to do on the boat. You don't have to get in the water if you don't want to, but it's a good opportunity to learn how to swim. You're not going to, you're not going to to drown you're going to be okay they'll put the little fucking floaties on you if you need them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Yeah but Luke here's the thing she doesn't know i can't swim i've been telling her i can for like eight years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well you shouldn't be lying that's now you got to deal with that now you've got to go through the embarrassment of explaining to her that you lied about something so stupid and that's okay too you'll get through that uh you just tell her the truth you're like hey i'm not really that comfortable in the water I don't really know how to swim. I kind of lied about that because I didn't want to sound like a loser.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>I mean, yeah, I get that. But it's not just that I said it once and moved on. We've been to pools, lakes, the whole thing. I just stay in the shallow end. Make excuses. Say I'm not feeling it that day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, the truth is, if that's how you've been acting in the water, she's probably pretty aware, or at least suspicious, that you don't know how to swim. And so what. I mean, we live in the desert. There's not a whole lot of swimming going on here. I think you'll have a good time on the boat and maybe get a little bit more comfortable in the water if you want to, but you don't have to do the in-the-water activities. There's plenty of stuff for you to do on the boat. Lots of people go on cruises and don't go swimming.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Luke, she booked the snorkeling thing specifically because I told her last summer I wanted to try it. I was watching some documentary about coral reefs, and I got all excited talking about it. She remembered. That's why she's so pumped about this excursion. She thinks she's doing this amazing thing for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, she is, and it can be amazing. And you can definitely go snorkeling without knowing how to swim. I mean, you'll be fine. You can just kind of float in the water with the snorkel, and you'll be able to breathe and everything. So you don't have to have any particular skill to go snorkeling, and I think you'll have a great time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>All right, but I googled it last night. Like actually sat there and typed in how to swim, like I'm learning to change attire. And then my walked in and I slammed the laptop shut so fast I almost broke the screen. She asked what I was looking at and I said work stuff. Another lie on top of the pile.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically, you can snorkel without knowing how to swim. But most guides recommend using a life jacket or flotation device, especially in open water. A lot of cruise excursions actually provide them automatically for non-swimmers. He should ask if they supply those when they get there, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SAL</span><p>Yeah, they're going to supply you all of the safety gear that you need. They don't want anybody getting hurt on their crews. It would be bad press for them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you don't have to know how to swim. You don't have to Google anything. Just show up, put on your flotation device. And I mean, you're snorkeling. So you can't go more than three inches under the water anyway. That's not how it works. All you've got to do is literally just lay on your stomach in the water and look down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you're going to be fine, but stop lying. You don't have to lie. You can be honest with people, even if you are slightly embarrassed that you don't know how to swim. It's not a big deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. It's just when we first started dating, we were at this party, and someone asked if I knew how to swim. And I just said, yeah, without thinking. My dad never taught me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, let this be a lesson to you. And next time that comes up, instead of just lying, tell the truth and be like, yeah, I don't know how to swim. My dad never taught me. Not that it was your dad's responsibility. teach you how to swim. I mean, if you want to learn how to swim, you can go do that. You're obviously not afraid of being in the water if you go to pools and stuff and stay in the shallow end, so, uh, swimming is not that important. Where we live, anyway. If you lived in Florida, maybe you would definitely want to swim. That would be a big part of your life, but here it's not. So go on the cruise, enjoy yourself, be honest with your wife, and maybe it'll bring you closer together when you when you tell her this embarrassing secret. Just explain to her that, uh, you, you know, that, uh, you You didn't want her to think that you were a pussy. That's all. And she'll probably think that's charming in some weird way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, maybe. I just keep thinking about being out there in the ocean with all these people who actually know what they're doing. And I'm the guy flailing around in a life jacket. But you know what? Honestly, the lying part is worse. I've been doing that my whole life about different stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I think you're giving the general public way too much credit because you're not going to be the only one there flying around like an idiot. sailing around like an idiot. I think probably at least half of the people there are going to be in your same position.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I hear you, but it's not just the swimming. It's the whole thing. I've been pretending to be someone I'm not. For so long, I don't even know who I am anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I'm hearing you, and you're saying that you lie all the time. And I'm telling you to stop doing that because there's no reason for it. Nobody cares if you know how to swim or not. It's not an issue. An issue is that you're telling lies all. the time and then you get caught and you don't know how to deal with coming clean on your unnecessary lies. So my recommendation to you is to stop fucking lying and just tell people the truth and be okay with who you are and what you know and what you can do. There's no reason to inflate any of that stuff because you've obviously got talents and things that other people don't have and other people are going to have talents and skills that you don't have. And that's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I appreciate. I appreciate. Appreciate it, Luke. I'm going to tell her this week. Thanks for the talk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're welcome. And cut it out with the lion, all right? It's, it's unseemly. It's ungentlemanly. And it's unnecessary. Devon, that's the end of another show. How are you feeling about this? You've been with us for three days now. You did a much better job today than your first couple of days. I'm proud of you, buddy. And you brought my coffee. And that was very good. This might be working out. What are your thoughts on the show? How do you think it went?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Thanks. That actually means a lot. I was really worried. I was screwing everything up the first couple days. I think today was solid. Like, the Monica and Sheila thing was interesting, and people seemed to actually care about calling in. I still messed up a couple times, but I'm getting better at knowing when to jump in and when to just let you handle it. And I have the local news stuff ready for tomorrow, so hopefully that helps keep things moving. I'm just trying to be useful, you know. This job is actually really important. to me. My mom keeps asking if I'm going to get fired. So it's nice to hear you say it might be working out. I'll keep the coffee coming.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, you keep the coffee coming and we'll be okay. As soon as you stop bringing that coffee, though, I mean, I'm going to get an intern that can do it. So I'm proud of you. You're doing a good job. You're adding to the show and I like that. Do you have anything you'd like to say to the audience before we leave?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, thanks for listening. And if you have stuff you want us to talk about tomorrow, or like weird situations you need help figuring out. Call in. That's what we're here for. I'll have the local news ready and Luke will do what he does. So yeah, thanks. Have a good night, I guess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right, ladies and gentlemen. I will do what I do. Thank you for tuning in to another Luke at the Roost. And you have yourself a wonderful week. Enjoy your Monday morning and we'll talk to you tomorrow. Bye bye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 39: St. Patrick's Day Chaos and Caller Confessions</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-18T09:45:33+00:00">March 18, 2026</time> · 1 hr 4 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">On this St. Patrick’s Day edition of Luke at the Roost, callers share wild stories about open marriages, mysterious phone calls, and second baby showers. From Ernie’s complicated relationship dynamics to Reggie’s bizarre phone number mystery, the night takes unexpected turns. Buckle up for a wild ride of personal drama and unfiltered advice.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. I am Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's the late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and talk about whatever's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today's a very special day here in America. It's St. Patrick's Day, you might have heard of him. And before we get going with the show, I've got a little story for you. And now it's time for story time with Luke. St. Patrick was actually born in Roman British, like Wales or Scotland. And his real name wasn't Patrick. It was Maywin Sukkot. He only took the name Patrick later when he became a priest. So the patron saint of Ireland was a British. British dude named Maywin. He was kidnapped by pirates at 16, sold into slavery in Ireland, and forced to tend sheep in the mountains for six years. Rough origin story for a guy who ended up with a global drinking holiday named after him. And now it's time for story time with Luke. Okay, well, today is Tuesday, March 17th, here in Animus, New Mexico, and we're just in time. We caught the last tail end of St. Patrick's Day. It's 11.53 p.m. And let's check in with Devon today and see how he's doing. Devon, how you doing on this glorious St. Patrick's Day?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah? Oh, hey, happy St. Patrick's Day, Luke. I'm doing good, just, you know, getting everything ready for the show. I actually saw this really wild documentary once about the history of St. Patrick's Day parades. And it turns out they actually started in America, not Ireland, which is kind of ironic, per se. So basically, the first parade was in Boston in 1737 by Irish soldiers serving in the British Army. And then New York followed in 1762. It wasn't until the 20th century that Ireland really picked up on the whole parade thing. So like we exported it to them, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I'm going to have to disagree with you there, Devon, because St. Patrick State Parades actually predate the founding of the United States. The first recorded one was in 1601 in a Spanish colony, what's now St. Augustine, Florida. New York's parade's been running since 1762.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, I'm not finding anything on that right now. I just remember that documentary saying it started in America, but, like, my ex-girlfriend was really into historical reenactments, and she always said you can find a source for anything. if you look hard enough, even if it's not like the main story per se. So maybe there were earlier ones, but the big modern parade tradition, like we know it, started with the Irish diaspora here, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, I guess it did start in America, but it wasn't America yet. It was still just a Spanish colony in what is now, Florida. Also a fun fact for you listeners at home, the world's shortest parade is in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Exactly 98 feet long. It still features Grand Marshals, Irish dancers, and a Blarney Stone kissing contest. Have you ever been to a Blarnie Stone kissing contest, Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I haven't, no. I mean, I've kissed some rocks before, but not, like, officially, per se. That's actually really interesting about Hot Springs, though. Like, 98 feet. So basically, it's, like, walking the length of, like, two school buses. That's efficient, I guess. floats and everything. I'm actually looking up pictures now. It looks pretty wild, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's the craziest thing that ever happened to you on St. Patrick's Day, Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, one St. Patrick's Day, I was at this party, right? And someone decided it would be a good idea to dye all the beer green, which, you know, is pretty standard. But then it turned out they used, like, actual green food coloring that wasn't really meant for consumption in that pretty vibrant green, well, everything the next day. It was quite a spectacle, if that makes sense. It reminded me of this one time my ex and I tried to make a rainbow cake from scratch and ended up with like a tie-dye kitchen. But yeah, that St. Patrick's Day was definitely memorable for all the wrong and very colorful reasons.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I used to, a lot of you don't know this about me, but I used to be on another podcast with my friends Matt and Crystal. It's called the Uncanny Valley podcast. And back. Some years ago, we were scheduled to talk with the then pop sensation, Billy Eilish. You might have heard of her. Now she's a multimillionaire that just spends all our time bitching about billionaires. But back then, she made music and stuff and was very popular. But anyway, we were scheduled to meet with Billy Elish. And through some strange mix-up with the phone routing, we ended up on the line with an Irish pub-going time traveler named Billy Irish, who, was who's calling from the old potato famine at the pub. And that was a pretty interesting St. Patrick's Day story. But enough about St. Patrick's Day. Let's get on with the show, shall we? First up on our line here, we've got Ernie. Ernie, welcome to the show. Happy St. Patrick's Day to you, sir.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, happy St. Patrick's Day. Listen, I agreed to an open marriage three months ago, and my wife immediately found someone, and now she's out having the time of her life, like an idiot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Whose idea was the open marriage?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>Hers. 100% hers. She came to me, said she felt like we were roommates, said maybe we needed to explore other connections to appreciate what we have. I thought she was talking about marriage counseling or a vacation or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, open marriages, sometimes called consensual non-monogamy, are actually more common than most people think, with like one in five Americans having been in one at some point, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, they usually don't go well. It takes a specific kind of person to be all right with that, but I think probably most of them end up in the situation that you're having, Ernie, where one partner gets all the action, and the other one is a left thumb. Is that the saying? A left thumb? That doesn't make any sense. A third thumb? Shit, what's the thumb saying? Maybe Devon can look that up and let us know. Anyway, Ernie, did she already have someone in mind when she brought this up to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>Oh, absolutely she did. I mean, she said no at the time, but the guy showed up two weeks later. Two weeks, Luke. His name is Derek. He's a yoga instructor. He drives a Prius with a coexist bumper sticker. She met him at her book club.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, a coexist bumper sticker, if that makes sense, usually has, like, religious and spiritual symbols on it to promote tolerance. So it's not ironic, per se, but it's kind of on the nose for a yoga instructor named Derek, I guess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. sense. A lot of douchebags with man buns have those stickers on their cars. Okay, Ernie, so when you agreed to this open marriage, did you set down any rules and boundaries with your wife before this began? Did you talk it through thoroughly, or did you just kind of agree and see what happens?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>We talked about it. We had rules, no sleepovers, no bringing people to the house. We'd check in with each other, all that stuff. But honestly, Luke, I think I just agreed because I was terrified of losing her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>have you had any further discussions with her about it since it's begun, since she's been active? Do you, when she comes back from her other dates, does she tell you about what happened? Do you even want to know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>She doesn't tell me details, but I can see it on her face. She comes home glowing, Luke, literally glowing. Meanwhile, I'm helping the kids with homework and paying the mortgage, and she walks in at 11.30 on a Tuesday smelling like somebody else's cologne, and she's just radiant.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if it's really bothering you, I think you need to have a sit down with her, and talk to her about it and maybe just let her know that it's not working for you. And you only agreed to it because you didn't want to lose her. And it turns out, feels like you're losing her anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>I know, I know I should. But here's the thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>She's happier than she's been in years. Like genuinely happy. She's nicer to me. She's more patient with the kids. She's actually smiling again. And if I tell her I want to stop, I'm the bad guy who took that away from her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you don't want to stop. Maybe you don't want to pull the plug, but you might want to put some more rules or boundaries around it or try some way to make it so that her newfound happiness doesn't just exacerbate your unhappiness. You know what I mean? Because you both have to be happy. If she's super happy and it's making you increasingly miserable, then it's not working. And you need to navigate around that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>Yeah, but what am I supposed to say? Hey, honey, can you tone down the joy a little bit because it's making me feel like garbage? I mean, I've tried the apps, Luke. white. I've messaged.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, it's a lot more difficult for a dude than it is for a woman. I think everybody knows that. But I think the way that you address it is to sit her down and talk about how it's making you feel. Like, you know, you don't just tell her, no, I don't want you to do that. I don't like it anymore. But just be like, hey, I'm not getting any action here. It's making me feel more like a roommate, actually. Like, I'm not important in your life because you'd rather be outboning yoga instructors. And explain to what you. that you understand that and you're not taking it away from her entirely, but maybe not every Tuesday. Maybe this is a once a month thing or a when you're out on vacation thing, on a cruise ship kind of thing. You know, maybe just reel it in a little bit or work with her to come up with a way that involves you. You know, she, I don't want to say words like should in this instance, but you two should be communicating about what's going on here. She should be telling you what it is that she's doing, why she enjoys. it and it theoretically should bring you closer together, that openness and that open channel of communication. But you're not having that. She's just coming home and doing our thing, and you're not a part of it. So the open relationship, I think, needs, it requires a huge amount of communication.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>You're right. I mean, we're not communicating at all. She comes home. We talk about whose turn it is to take the kids to soccer, what we need from the grocery store. That's it. And honestly, Luke, I think. Part of me doesn't want to know the details, because then it becomes real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it is real. I mean, you already know that it's real. She's coming home smelling like another dude. You can't pretend that's not real. But I'm not saying that you need to get the dirty details, all the deep details. Talk about feelings, specifically. How is it making her feel? What did he do that made her feel special or youthful or young or sexy that you're not doing? And how can you bring some of that back into your own relationship so that you can you can, can give her some of what she feels like she's getting outside of the marriage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>That's what scares me, though. What if I ask her what he does that I don't? And the answer is just everything. What if it turns out I'm the problem, and there's nothing I can do to fix it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then wouldn't you want to address that? Because if you're the problem and there's nothing you can do to fix it, do you want to live the rest of your life as just the guy in the corner, wondering who his wife's outboning? I don't think so. If it's not working for you, and if you're not working for her, then maybe it's time to talk about if your relationship still makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>Yeah, but we've got two kids, Luke. A mortgage. I sell cars for a living. I can't afford two households. And what am I supposed to tell people? Yeah, my wife wanted an open marriage. And I was dumb enough to say yes, and now here we are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know your wife or you, but I assume that you got married because you were able to communicate and you had a mutual level of respect between yourselves. And if it's just a sex thing, then I mean, it's just a sex thing. But if it's more than that, then that's something that needs to be addressed. And lots of people split up with kids and households. It's not like you'd be the first person to ever do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>It's not just a sex thing, Luke. That's what I keep telling myself. It's just physical. It doesn't mean anything. But she lights up when she talks about him. She mentions something he said about mindfulness or whatever, and she gets this look. I haven't seen her look at me like that in years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I'm not sure. if this helps per se, but sometimes when people talk about mindfulness in relationships, it can be about, like, being present and really listening to each other, if that makes sense. Yeah, and how long has this been going on? Is it a relatively new thing that's still got the novelty of, oh my God, I get to bang this younger kid that's not my husband, no strings attached? Or has it been a while?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>It's been about three months now. Three months of Derek the yoga instructor. And honestly, it doesn't feel like it's losing steam. If anything, it's ramping up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, three months isn't really that long. She's probably going to learn at some point that he's an annoying douchebag wannabe vegan and get tired of it, I would assume. But it doesn't matter. Three months of feeling shitty about an open marriage that you don't really want. You have to talk to her about that and explain how you're feeling. And if she's the partner that you want her to be, she's going to be understanding of that. And I think that you two can work something out that gives you both what you're. you need. Like, if it's a physical sex thing, you can figure out ways to satisfy it there. I mean, you guys could go to parties if you wanted to. They have sex parties where you can go and, like, have a rule. Like, you can play around at the party, but these things are off limits. These things are okay, and I have to be in the room or, you know, something similar to that. Not just a free-for-all where you get to do whatever you want. If you're not okay with that, you both have to be completely okay with it and you have to be communicating. And things can change. You have to be open to changing those rules.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>You know what? Forget it. I shouldn't have called.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, I don't know what kind of advice you're looking for here. I do feel for you, and I think that you should talk to your wife. And if you're going to have an open relationship, I mean, you did actually commit to it. I mean, you said yes. So you have to at least give it a shot. And she's obviously loving it. So, I mean, I don't want to say you made your bed, but you made your bed there. But now you need to have that conversation and let her know that you're feeling miserable because of it. Or it's never going to change. And you're just going to start feeling resentment and low self-worth. And it's not going to end well. It's better to get in front of it now and deal with it before it gets worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ERNIE</span><p>I'm done. I don't need this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. All right, Arnie. Good luck. Have fun tonight. We know your wife is. And next up on the line, we've got Wanda. Wanda, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? Happy St. Patrick's Day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>Oh, thanks, Luke. Happy St. Patrick's Day to you, too. So my cat has been stealing things and bringing them home, and I'm starting to get worried about where he's getting this stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What kind of stuff is he stealing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>Well, it started normal enough. Dead mice, the occasional bird. But then last week, he brought home a $20 bill, just walked right in through the cat door with it in his mouth like it was a trophy. And then two days ago, he shows up with a car key. Like, a full car key with the little remote button thing attached to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That sounds to me like a good kitty. That sounds like the kind of cat you want to have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WANDA</span><p>I mean, I guess. But Luke, somebody is missing their car key right now, and $20 is $20.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Devon, did you know that St. Patrick was never actually canonized? He's not actually a real saint. So we're celebrating St. Patrick's Day, and he, like, canonization of saints wasn't even a thing back So we should just be celebrating Patrick's Day. Yeah?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, wow. So, Luke, you're saying, like, he's not a saint, per se, because the process didn't exist back then. That's actually really interesting. So basically, it's more like a historical figure we're celebrating rather than a religious one, if that makes sense. I always just assumed he was, like, officially a saint. I actually remember this one time. I was at this really intense family dinner, and my aunt started going on about how, like, half the saints aren't real saints because of some historical technicality. And everyone just stared at her. But, like, maybe she was on to something, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think actually all saints aren't real saints because the whole thing is just something that a bunch of dudes in funny hats made up to, I don't even know why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, I'm not finding anything on that right now, but, like, it's true that the process has changed a lot over time. I mean, they used to just kind of, like, declare people's saints based on popular acclamation, if that makes sense. Like, if enough people thought you were holy, then, bam, you're a saint.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Now it's like a whole committee and miracles and everything. It's a much more involved process, per se. Yeah, now we've got a new saint, right? That's like a teenager or something. He's all about video games and stuff. I don't know what miracles he performed. Do you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not finding anything on that right now, per se, like about the specific miracles. But I do know who you're talking about, Carlo Acutis, right? He's like the patron saint of the internet or something, which is actually pretty cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I mean, if that makes sense. Like, he cataloged Eucharistic miracles online before he died. So basically, I guess you could say his miracle was, like, using the internet for good. I always thought that was pretty wild because I mostly just use the internet to, like, look up weird facts at 3 a.m. or try to find out if my ex-girlfriend is dating anyone new, which, you know, is probably not saintly behavior per se.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Shit, I didn't know he died. I thought he was like 17 or something. How did he die?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, so I looked it up, and it says here that he was born in 1991 and passed away in 2006. So he was actually 15 when he died. It doesn't say the cause of death here, per se, just that he...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Just that he was. We lost you there, Devon, your mic cut out. Hold on. Let's see if we can get Devon's mic back. Devon, your mic cut out. What happened there? You were talking about how he died? And we lost you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, sorry about that. Luke. Yeah, so I was saying that Carlo Acutus, the one we were just talking about, he actually died from acute promylicytic leukemia. It's a type of blood cancer. He was only 15. So basically, he died pretty quickly after he was diagnosed. It's really sad, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, let's hope he made it to heaven. Was he canonized as a saint before he died, or was he made a saint posthumously?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Actually, it was probably posthumous. He died in 2006, and then he was beatified in 2020, and just recently canonized as a saint in 2025. So the whole process happened after his death. The Catholic Church has specific requirements for canonization. They need verified miracles attributed to the person's intercession, documentation of their virtuous life, all that. In Carlos case, there were two miracles recognized.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, all right, Joey. Well, ladies and gentlemen, we've got Joey on the phone, and he seems to know more about this situation than Devon did. So, uh, Joey, what were the miracles?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Well, the first one was in 2013. A Brazilian boy had a pancreatic defect, and after praying to Carlo, he was healed. That one led to the beatification. Then the second miracle, which is what got him canonized, was in 22-2. A university student in Florence had severe head trauma from a bicycle accident. And after prayers to Carlo Acutus, she made a full recovery. The Vatican investigated both cases pretty thoroughly before recognizing them as miracles.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So did Carlo Acutis even know that these people were praying to him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Actually, it's a cutus, A-C-U-T-I-S, not a cutus, and no, he wouldn't have known during his lifetime because both miracles happened after he died. The first one was seven years after his death, the second was 16 years later. The whole concept in Catholic theology is that saints in heaven can intercede on behalf of people who pray to them. So the idea is that Carlo, being in heaven, heard these prayers and interceded with God for these healings.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That doesn't make sense, though. Wouldn't it just be God? That was... interceding for God? Like, why would God need the saints to do his work for him? Seems like if you were, if these people were already dead and you were praying to them, those prayers would skip over to God, you know, the man at the top.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Well, technically, Catholics would say the saints aren't doing God's work for him. They're more like advocates or intercessors. The analogy they use is like asking a friend to pray for you, except the friend is already in heaven and closer to God. The prayers don't replace praying directly to God. They're just another avenue. It's based on the idea of the communion of saints that the church includes both the living and the dead, and they're all connected.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, all right. Well, you learn something new every day. All right, Joey, well, what has you calling in today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Happy St. Patrick's Day. Thanks, Luke. Look, I'm calling because I'm sick of celebrities thinking their political opinions matter more than anyone else's. I drive a truck for UPS. I've got a mortgage. Two kids with soccer practice and piano lessons. And I'm supposed to care what some actor thinks about policy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, the Catholic Church actually has a whole process for canonization, which is how someone becomes a saint. And it usually requires at least two confirmed miracles attributed to their intercession after their death, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, Devon, well, Joey already did your job for you, so thanks for nothing, buddy. Yeah, Joey, it is annoying when celebrities get on their soapbox. But also, celebrities have a soapbox to get on. So they have a soapbox to get a message out, and it's hard to say whether they should or shouldn't use that, but I can't agree with you that it is annoying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Right, but here's the thing. Having a platform doesn't mean you're qualified to use it for policy discussions. These people are famous for playing pretend or singing songs. When some celebrity with zero background in economics starts lecturing people about tax policy or someone who dropped out of high school is telling us how to fix health care, why should that carry any weight? I mean, I've got actual skin in the game. I'm paying these taxes. I'm dealing with insurance costs. I'm living in the real world. But somehow their opinion gets amplified to millions of people just because they were in a movie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, but I mean, if you're on a TV show, then you can be president with none of those qualifications, and you can start wars with Iran for no reason. And you could be the director of health and human services with a worm in your brain and no other qualifications other than your last name. So I don't know that the celebrities are really the problem here so much as the people that we actually have in elected office because people are fucking morons and yeah, they're going to vote for the person who has the loudest voice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Okay, but that's exactly my point, Luke. The reason those people got into office is because they already had the platform. The celebrity status gave them the credibility they didn't earn through actual policy experience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yes, that's very true. And their opinions, I mean, not the people that are actually elected to office, their opinions matter to us. Like, they're actually developing policies that are destroying us and saying that they're making the country great. But the other people, the celebrities and stuff, their opinions are no different than the drunk dude at the bar who's spouting off about what he believes. Everybody has an opinion and they're all equal. I mean, they're all worth just as much. Absolutely nothing. It's when these unqualified people get into office and make unqualified decisions that affect the whole country and the whole world, then that's a problem. And that's exactly where we're going to do we're at right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>But Luke, those unqualified people got into office because celebrities normalize the idea that fame equals expertise. When actors and musicians spend years telling their fans who to vote for, what policies to support, they're creating this pipeline where eventually someone famous enough just skips straight to office. My uncle Hector used to say, you don't ask the plumber about your electrical work. And that stuck with me. These celebrities are plumbers telling us how to rewire the whole house. And then we act surprised when the house burns down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but I don't think I think that's really the case. I mean, at least it's not the full story.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So part of the problem here is that the people that are qualified to make policy and that have been doing it for a long time are so corrupt and so shitty and so out of touch with reality that the people were looking for anything different from, you know, the status quo there and they sure got it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I'll give you that. The establishment politicians are corrupt as hell. But the solution to corrupt experts isn't unqualified celebrities. It's better experts. When my truck breaks down, if the first mechanic tries to rip me off, I don't go to a guy who's never touched an engine but has a popular YouTube channel. I find a better mechanic. We threw out the corrupt politicians and replaced them with people who have literally no idea how government works. And now we're acting shocked that things are worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think anybody's acting shocked. I think we know exactly why things are worse. It's super obvious to anybody with half a brain why things are worse. But think about it this way. I mean, in order to get that experience and policy, you have to be in a position where you're writing policy. There's no other way to get the experience to become a better expert than to do it. So if the establishment is already dug in in those roles and never leaving like they haven't been, then there's no way for anybody else to gain that experience and they have a stranglehold on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, but there are levels to this, Luke. You don't have to go straight from reality TV to the White House. Start at City Council. Run for state legislature. Be a governor. up actual experience in how government functions before you're making decisions that affect 330 million people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I did some of that in my own local, small towns. I did like town government stuff just to get experience and see how the process works and understand robbers' rules and how to run a meeting and that sort of stuff. And I think it's important that people do that. But it's not the same thing. It's definitely not the same thing. I mean, you can be a governor and still have no idea how to control FEMA.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Sure, but at least you'd understand bureaucracy, budgets, how to work with legislators, how to build coalitions. That's more than someone whose only experience is negotiating a contract for their next season. And honestly, Luke, the bigger issue is that we're letting celebrity culture dictate our priorities in the first place. I'm out here at 5 in the morning loading trucks. And I've got to listen to some actor who makes more in a month than I'll see in 10 years tell me, economic inequality. The disconnect is insane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, you don't really have to listen to that at all. You can listen to something else entirely. You can listen to Luke at the Roost. You can listen to your Spotify playlist. I mean, if you're, if you're, if you're, if you're, if you are listening to that, it's because you've made the decision to tune in. And I mean, now if you're on the news, then you can be the secretary of war. It doesn't matter what your qualifications are. If you suck Donald Trump's dick, then, you know, you're good. be a leader of Homeland Security, whatever. It doesn't matter. Pick a high-profile position and have no qualifications for it. Just tell Donald Trump, he's cool and you're in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I don't have to listen to it. But it's everywhere, Luke. It's on every news channel. It's all over social media. My wife's reading about it on Facebook. You can't escape it. And yeah, the current administration is the perfect example of what I'm talking about. Loyalty over competence, fame over qualifications.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So actually, actually, the term celebrity politician isn't a new thing per se. Like Ronald Reagan was an actor before he became governor of California and then president. And Arnold Schwarzenegger, too. So basically, it's happened before, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, it's definitely happened before throughout all of history. It's not a new thing. And it is a problem. And it's a problem with the way that society functions. It's the problem with the stupidity of people. And we're fucking dumb. We're so dumb.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Exactly, and that's what gets me, Luke. We keep doing the same thing over and over. Reagan, Schwarzenegger, and now this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Hey, don't forget Jesse the Bodhi Ventura. He was my favorite.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right, Jesse Ventura, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>We keep electing these people based on name recognition, and then we're surprised when they govern like they're still performing. My point is, maybe we should stop amplifying celebrity voices on policy issues in the first place. If actors and musicians stuck to their lane, maybe people wouldn't be so primed to vote for them when they decide to run for office. But instead, we've got this whole culture where being famous makes people think you're smart about everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just don't think that's true. I know that they're doing it. I know that celebrities do that, but I don't think people think they're smart because they're doing it. I think they're just, some of them are legitimately trying to use their platform for what they believe in. And that's a good thing, because to change the masses, minds about anything, art is the most powerful tool to do that, and it always has been. Because art cuts through things. Like it cuts through the bureaucracy. It cuts to the core of the issue. And who we're talking about outside of Donald Trump are largely artists. And, you know, they're trying to use their art and their voice to make a difference. Whether or not that works, I mean, is up to your opinion.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>But Luke, there's a difference between using art to make people think and using fame to tell people what to think. When an artist makes a movie or writes a song about inequality or a song, injustice, that's powerful because it makes you feel something and draw your own conclusions. But when that same person gets on Twitter and starts dictating specific policy positions to their followers, that's not art anymore. That's just a famous person with a megaphone. And the problem is, people do listen differently because of who's saying it, not what's being said. Studies show that source credibility affects persuasion more than the actual argument.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I was trying to look up those studies about source credibility and persuasion, but it's not really pulling anything up right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, thanks for nothing, Devon. Don't talk to us if you don't have anything to say. Jesus, what are you doing? I half agree with you about, um, not so much about the celebrities doing it, but about the people listening to it. Celebrities can do whatever they want. It's their platform, and they earned and built that platform. So if they want to get out and alienate half of their audience with their political opinions, that's their choice. But it really comes down to the people who are deciding who to listen to based on, you know, if they like Bono or Bruce Springsteen or whoever the fuck it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Fair enough, maybe I'm misremembering the specific study, but the principal stands. People give more weight to opinions from people they admire. And yeah, celebrities can say whatever they want. That's their right. But when you've got millions of followers and you're weighing in on complex policy issues you haven't actually studied, there's a responsibility there. I've got a mortgage, two kids in sports, I'm up at 4.30 every morning, and I'm supposed to sort millionaire actor thinks about tax policy versus what actual economists are saying. It's exhausting, and the fact that the actor's opinion gets more airtime than the economists is exactly the problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, there's a few assumptions there. I mean, you don't know that those people have not done their research on whatever it is they're spouting off about. I would guess that most of them haven't, but we don't know that. They could be very well versed in the opinions that they're spouting. And also, who's to say what responsibility lies on these people for tweeting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Like, it's Twitter. It's up to the people to recognize that information coming from the news and from Twitter and from Facebook and from me is worth nothing. It's got no value, or at least to do the research themselves. And, you know, maybe they hear a new opinion from somebody that they admire and look into it. it. It's the look into it part that people don't do. And I think the on people listening than the people spouting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right that people should do their own research. But come on, Luke. We both know most people don't. They hear their favorite celebrities say something. They see it retweeted a million times, and that becomes their position.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>And yeah, maybe some celebrities do their homework. But when you've got actors talking about foreign policy between takes on set or musicians weighing in on health The odds that they've done the same level of research as someone who's dedicated their career to it are pretty slim. I'm not saying they can't have opinions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're saying they can't speak their opinions, and that's a First Amendment thing. Of course they can speak their opinions, and they're as valid as anybody else's opinions. And, I mean, on health care reform, I think everything I've ever heard from a celebrity, celebrity about health care reform is just we need it. And that's hard to do. to argue. We need health care reform. I don't care how up to date you are on health care policy, reform, whatever's going on. Like, we all know that. It's pretty fucking clear.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>I'm not saying they can't speak. I already said they have the right. What I'm saying is maybe they shouldn't be treated like experts when they're not. And yeah, we need health care reform is easy to say. Everybody agrees the system's broken. But the deal. Details matter, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, and I think we're saying the same thing. Of course they can speak and they can tweet and they can go on the news and say whatever they want to say. It's on the people, though, to recognize and filter that they are not experts and their opinion is just an opinion.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Okay, yeah, we're basically on the same page then. My frustration is just that the filtering isn't happening. People aren't making that distinction. And meanwhile, I'm trying to explain to my 14-year-old why some influencers take on climate policy isn't the same as what scientists are saying. saying. And it's like pulling teeth because the influencer has 100 million followers, and the scientist has 5,000.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>5,000's pretty good for a scientist.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So I was looking into studies about celebrity influence on public opinion, but it's not pulling anything up right now. I'll keep trying if something comes up, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Devon's really slacking today. Jesus, kid. Don't pipe up if you don't have any information to add. All right, well, I think we've come to a consensus here that people should do their own research own opinions based on data and real-world experience and not just the voice of a musician or an actor or a reality television star. But I think we both know that's not going to happen because people are fucking dumb.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Yeah, people are fucking dumb. And that's what makes this whole thing so frustrating. We can sit here and say, do your own research all day long. But we both know most people won't. They'll just keep letting celebrities do their thinking for them. And then we end up with what we've got now. Anyway, I appreciate you letting me vent about this, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're very welcome. And, you know, the thing is, we've had what we have now forever. Since the dawn of politics, it's always been the case. That's human nature. And we've always been dumb. And we've always not wanted to take the time to learn about a situation before we form an opinion. And we've always wanted information to be spoon-fed to us. And, you know, if you're in person, politics, you know that, and you exploit it, and that's the game. So if you want the game to change, I mean, get down there and run for governor and do your part. Just bitching about it isn't going to change anything. It's always going to be this way until people that are knowledgeable and intelligent and determined actually put forth the effort to make a real change the right way, which is by following the procedures that were set down in the fucking 1600s and 80s. England. So, yeah, I don't have a good answer. The whole thing's fucked and it has been and probably will continue to be and it will get worse because people are just getting dumber and dumber and dumber. And that's by design. So ladies and gentlemen, that was a longer call and it's time for us to go to some words from our sponsor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Need to pawn a TV, but also get your kids with you? We get it. Life's coming. That's why Big Terrence opened Lil Rascal's pawn and daycare, the only business in the tri-state area where you can hawk a generator and get two hours of supervised child enrichment. All under one roof. Here's the layout. Left side of the building, pawnchop. Guitar, power tools, a surprising number of saxophones. Right side of the building, a fully functioning daycare with coloring books, juice boxes, and Miss Patty, who's been watching children since 1987 and has never once raised her voice because Miss Patty doesn't need to. Miss Patty communicates through eye contact and an energy that can only be described as corrective. Is there a wall between the two sides? There is now. The inspector was very clear about that. Big Terrence installed drywall the same week. Is it load bearing? Big Terrance says don't worry about it. Drop off your kid. Pond your stuff. Pick up both on the way home. Little Rascals pawn and daycare. Two businesses. One building. There are no complaints that have held up in court. Open six days a week. Close Sunday because Miss Patty goes to church and Big Terrence respects that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, we are back on this fine St. Patrick's Day. Well, it's not St. Patrick's Day anymore. We've switched over into Wednesday the 18th, but for all intents and purposes, this is the St. Patrick's Day episode. And we're going to have to yell at Devon right now. So, Devon, what are you doing, buddy? You're messing up the show. You keep piping up with information you don't have. We don't want you wasting people's time if you don't have an answer. Only, you should only be talking to the audience if you've got something to say. Don't just say you tried search and nothing came up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Sorry, Luke. Got it. I'll just keep quiet unless I have the actual answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's exactly what I want you to do. Okay, next up we've got Reggie. Reggie, welcome to the show. Happy St. Patrick's Day. Tell us your best St. Patrick's Day. Tell us your best St. Patrick's Day story.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Luke, hey man, thanks for having me. Okay, so, best story, I do not have one, but I have got something way weirder going on, and I have been dying to talk to somebody about this, because it is making me absolutely insane. Every single month my own phone number calls me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Ah, it sounds like you're getting spoofed. You're getting spoofed there, Reggie. What is he saying when you... Do you answer the calls?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Oh, I answer every time. And here's the thing. It is not a spoof. That is what I thought it for. first two. But when I answer, there is no person, there is no robot, there is no message, nothing. Just four seconds of wind, like whoosh, and then it disconnects.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically, it's actually possible for your own number to call you, but it's usually a scam where they're trying to get you to call them back and charge you for it, if that makes sense. So do you think maybe it's actually yourself calling you from the future or from the multiverse? Maybe the lines are getting mixed up, like back in the day when we ended up talking to Billy Irish instead of the legendary pop singer Billy Irish? Billy Ilish.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Okay, okay, wait. The multiverse thing is hilarious, but Luke, I called my carrier. I have called them three times now, and they are telling me these calls do not exist in their system.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like, I am looking at my phone. I see my own number on the screen. I answer it. I hear the wind, and then I check my call log, and it is right there. But they are saying there is no record of it on their end? How does that even work? It has been happening for months now. Same time every month. Like clockwork.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Well, do you have an iPhone or are you using an Android device? iPhone. I have had the same iPhone for like three years now. And before you ask, yes, I have updated it. Yes, I have restarted it. I have done all the tech support stuff. My wife thinks I am losing my mind because I will be sitting there at dinner and suddenly my own number is calling. And I am jumping up to answer it and she is looking at me like I am crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically, With iPhones, calls from your own number often show up as unknown or no caller ID, even if it's a known scam. Well, it sounds like maybe it's time to do a factory reset on your phone because you could have some spyware or malware running on that iPhone. It's rare, but it does happen. And if the only log of the call is coming from the phone itself, then it's probably not going through the carrier. Or the carrier is the one that's fucking with you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Okay, so that is what is driving me nuts, though, because I work in insurance adjusting. Right? I deal with people trying to pull scams and weird technical loopholes all day long. I know how to investigate something. I have gone through every app on my phone. I have checked for weird permissions. I even took it to the Apple store. And the guy there ran diagnostics and said everything looked fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I don't think insurance adjusting qualifies you to do tech support on a modern cell phone. But whatever. Have you considered that it might be a Wi-Fi app, an actual, like, a messaging app like Telegram or WhatsApp or Google Voice or something like that that's coming over the internet as opposed to coming over your carrier?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>No, I have not checked that. That is actually a really good point. I do have WhatsApp, but I barely use it, maybe like twice a year. But here is what gets me, Luke the wind sound. It is the exact same sound every single time. Four seconds. Not three, not five.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like an automated thing that's being sent through some sort of digital telecom service. It's probably WhatsApp. I would get rid of those apps, especially if you're not using them, just to see if the problem stops. And if it stops, then you have your answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>All right. Yeah. I am going to do that as soon as I get off the phone with you. Delete WhatsApp. Delete anything I am not actively using. Because honestly, man, this has been messing with my head more than it should. Like I know it is probably something stupid and technical. But when you see your own number calling you in the of the night and all you hear is wind. It gets under your skin, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It gets under your skin like the Wyoming wind. I do know. I've had the wind get under my skin plenty of times, especially living here in New Mexico, where we are frequently bombarded with windstorms and hoboobs. So basically, a lot of people have actually reported getting calls from their own number, and it's usually a scam where they're trying to get you to call back a premium rate number, if that makes sense. All right. Thanks, Devon. So, yeah, it sounds like Devon thinks it could be a scam trying to get you to call back. And I think it's probably another app that's showing up as a phone call, but is really just coming over the internet from a Twilio or something like that. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just stop answering them. And ignore the calls. It may block your own number and see how that works. Okay, we're going to take one more call. I think, maybe two. We'll see how this one goes. Let's talk to Roland. Roland, welcome to the show. Happy St. Patrick's Day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Look of the Irish to you. Thanks, Luke. Appreciate you taking my call. Yeah, happy St. Patrick's Day to you too, man. Though I got to say, I'm not feeling particularly lucky tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. What's got you down on your luck tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Well, so I was listening earlier when Joey called in the UPS guy talking about celebrities. And when you mentioned he had that ham radio setup, testing the bands and all that. It just hit me. My wife Linda, she passed a few years back, and she had this life insurance policy. Not huge, but enough. And my financial advisor, this guy named Dennis, he's been on me for months now to cash it out, put it in the market.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm sorry to hear about your wife there. I'm not really sure how that works with a life insurance policy. So when the insured person dies, it goes into what a or something like that? Where is the money go? Do you get an account at a fidelity or something like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>No, no. It came to me directly. She had me listed as the beneficiary. So when she died, the insurance company cut me a check. I deposited it into a savings account. And it's just been sitting there ever since.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, if your financial advisor is recommending that you put that into the market, maybe you should listen to him. That's why you have a financial advisor, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Yeah, I know, I know. And Dennis, he's shown me all the projections, the charts, the compound interest over time. On paper, it makes total sense. The money is just sitting there losing value to inflation. But Luke, every time I think about actually doing it, about moving that money, I feel like I'm going to be sick. It's the last thing I have that's directly connected to her. To the future we were supposed to have together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, that's the wrong reason to hold on to it, right? Because it's, it is going to and just a road to inflation if you just leave it in a savings account. And objectively, it's not connected to her. It's just money. If anything, it's connected to the life insurance company. So I think you should follow the advice of your financial advisor and put that into something that's going to protect it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>You're right. You're right. I know you're right. But here's the thing. And this is where the ham radio thing comes in. Linda and I, we had this whole plan. We were going to buy this little cabin up near Prescott. Nothing fancy. Just a place to get away. She used to talk about it all the time, sitting on the porch in the mornings with coffee.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, uh, what's that got to do with the ham radio?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Oh, sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. What I'm saying is that money feels earmarked. You know, like it was meant for something specific between us. And Dennis wants me to throw it into index funds and tech stocks. And I'm sitting here coaching Little League and trying to keep the mortgage paid. And it just feels wrong. Like I'd be taking this last piece of our dream and turning it into just numbers on a screen that go up and down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's already just numbers on a screen that go down. So I would recommend that you take the advice of your financial advisor, but you still haven't explained what it is you're talking about ham radio. That has nothing to do with this conversation. Where is the ham radio bit coming in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROLAND</span><p>Right. Okay. So Dennis has this ham radio set up in his office. Big, fancy rig, antennas on the roof, the whole deal. And every time I go in there for these meetings where he's pushing me on this investment thing, he's also going on and on about propagation conditions and making contacts in Japan or whatever, testing the bans, just like Joey mentioned earlier. And it struck me tonight that he's so focused on sending signals out into the world, reaching further and further, but he's not hearing what I'm actually saying to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I don't know what you heard, but Joey didn't say anything about a ham radio and you are paying a financial advisor to give you financial advice. So he shouldn't be listening to your advice on the matter. He should be giving you the best financial advice that he can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And if that's to take the money and put it into some funds, then maybe that's what you should consider doing. Wait, no, I could have sworn you said something about ham radio when Joey called. Maybe I'm mixing things up. I've been up late a lot lately, coaching these kids' teams.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>guess I'm more tired than I thought. But Luke, the point is, Dennis keeps showing me these numbers. And I keep telling him it doesn't feel right. And he just keeps pushing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, I'm not sure what you're calling for. I'm not going to agree with you. I think you should take your financial advisor's financial advice. But if you don't want to, that's okay. It's your money. If you don't want to put it into funds, don't. You can just let it sit there. It'll be fine. I mean, you're slowly going to lose money due to inflation, but that's your choice. If that makes you feel better or gives you something from your wife to hold on to, then do that. Only you can decide. If he's pushing you to do something you don't want to do, then it's time to find a different financial advisor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, but see, that's what I'm wrestling with. Because part of me knows he's right. Part of me knows Linda would probably tell me to invest it. To be smart about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, actually, literally anybody would tell you to invest it as opposed to just letting it sit in a saving account unless for some reason you knew you were going to need that money access to it very quickly. That's the only reason it makes sense to keep that money in a savings account. Otherwise, you should have it in, I mean, you can have it in conservative funds or precious metals or something like that. It doesn't really matter. Just, yeah, be smart about it because you can lose money pretty quickly in the markets. Keep it in conservative stuff, blue chips, and, you know, relatively safe</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's what Dennis keeps saying. Blue chips, diversified portfolio, all that. But Luke, the real issue is I'm scared. I'm scared that once I move that money, once I put it into these accounts, with his name on the letterhead, it stops being about Linda and starts being about just trying to survive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but buddy, it stopped being about Linda when Linda died years ago. It's not about Linda anymore. It's just money. It literally is just numbers on paper at this point. And you're going to lose</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Don't do smart things with them. You know what? Forget it. I shouldn't have called.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I agree with you. You shouldn't have called if you were just going to try and get me to agree with you. I don't agree with you. And since that was a pretty quick call, we'll take one more. Next up, we've got Travis. Travis, thanks for calling in. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Look, Luke, I'm calling because I just got invited to a second baby shower and I got to say something about this. My co-worker's wife is having their second kid and they're throwing a mother-hole shower with a registry and everything. I'm sorry, but when did we start doing this? You already got all the stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, is it a shower for a second kid? Or is it a, like, is it a different child they're having a shower for? Or is it a second shower for? Or is it a second shower for the same kid?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>No, it's a second kid. They already have a three-year-old. They got all the gear the first time around. Crib, stroller, all that stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think that's pretty normal. I think it's customary that every time they have a kid, they have a baby shower for it, because they still need diapers and money and stuff. Uh, I don't think that's that weird.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>That's exactly the problem right there, Luke. You just said it yourself. Diapers and money. That's not what a baby shower is supposed to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know what a baby shower is supposed to be. Can you fill us in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>A baby shower is supposed to be about getting you set up. The big stuff. The crib. The car seat. The changing table. All the things you need when you're starting from zero.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but If their first kid is three, then they've probably gifted that stuff to somebody else by now. Excuse me, I just choked in my coffee and it's messing up my voice. But yeah, it seems like three years into having a child, a lot of that stuff would probably have been passed on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Then they should have kept it. That's called planning ahead. You don't get to have a yard sale and then come back asking for handouts. My uncle Hector raised me and when my cousin was born four years after me, he didn't go around with his handout.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, we get it. You don't like the second baby shower. And if, uh, if you don't want to go, you don't have to go. But I don't, I don't think it's wrong of them to have a second baby shower for a second baby, especially if they need the stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>I'm not saying I'm not going to go, Luke. I'll go. But I'm saying the principle of the thing is wrong. This is what's happening to this country. Everybody thinks they're entitled to something just because they decided to do something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe they didn't decide. You don't know that. It could have been an accident and you don't have to go. And even if you do go, you don't have to bring any presents. You can, if you want to be a dick about it, you can just show up empty-handed and eat their cake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Now, hold on. I'm not trying to be a dick. I like my coworker just fine. That's not the point. The point is we're normalizing this behavior where people just expect things handed to them twice for doing the same thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think we're normalizing anything. I think it's perfectly acceptable for a second child to have a second baby shower. I think that's pretty normal. And it always has been.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Always has been. Luke, my Uncle Hector, would have laughed you out of the room. When did this become always? Because I'm 47 years old and I don't remember this being a thing growing up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah? Well, how many baby showers did you go to growing up? And I really don't care what your Uncle Hector would have said. Like, nobody cares about your Uncle Hector. He's not the bar for baby showers. I'm afraid to break it to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Uncle Hector raised me after my parents died. So yeah, he is the bar for a lot of things in my life. And I went to plenty of showers growing up, ranch community. Everybody knows everybody. You had one shower when you had your first kid. That was it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, that was your experience, but I don't think that that's the normal, uh, accepted. Um, I think people have had second baby showers forever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>Then why does it feel like every other person I talked to agrees with me? I brought this up at work and half the guys were nodding along. This entitlement thing is real, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nobody's acting like they're entitled to anything they invited you to the shower. It's not saying you have to come to the shower. If you don't want to go, don't go. I mean, I don't see the problem here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>The problem is the ask itself. You're putting people in a position where they feel obligated. You know how it works. You get the invitation with a registry link. And now you're the bad guy if you don't show up with something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then you're just a pussy because you're not standing up for, you know, yourself and what you want to do. Like, I've got lots of invitations to lots of things and I just didn't go. That's fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>I'm not a pussy, Luke. I'm going to the damn shower. What I'm saying is the whole system is flawed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you are a pussy because you're going to the shower and you're just going to call the radio show and complain about how you're too afraid to not go to the shower.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>I'm not afraid. I'm going because she's my co-worker and I want to support her. But that doesn't mean I can't call out what's wrong with the whole concept.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I think you clearly and definitively do not want to support her. You're saying that she's acting entitled for asking for asking for your support.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRAVIS</span><p>That's twisting it around. I support her having a baby. That's great.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's not twisting it around at all. She's asking for your support. If she needs a stroller, that's support.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's why people have baby showers. So I don't know where you're getting entitlement. I mean, she's not expecting that you show up and give her a stroller. She invited you. And if you don't want to go, don't go. But don't just call a radio show and complain about how the whole world is entitled because your second, uh, because your co-worker had a second baby and needs a new crib.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>She doesn't need a new crib, though. That's my whole point. The first kid is four years old. What happened to all that stuff?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So actually, a lot of parents get rid of baby stuff pretty quickly, like after the first kid outgrows it. Like, they don't always keep it around for years. Yeah, you're not thinking about the next baby three years before you have it. Nobody's going to keep a crib sitting around for three years. That'd be silly. Nobody has the room to do that. Plus, they probably had somebody else that they gifted it to, like I said earlier in the show. I don't think you're being reasonable here. I think you just are being cheap. You don't want to show up and give a gift, and you don't have to. That's my advice for you. If you feel strongly about this, don't go. Or if you feel like too much of a pussy to not go, then go and just don't bring a gift.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I'm not being cheap. I bought a $50 gift card for the first shower four years ago. This isn't about the money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's pretty cheap, and obviously it's about the money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>50 bucks is cheap? For a coworker? Luke, you're out of your mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think I am. Babies are very expensive. I don't know if you've been around, but shit costs money, man. And you know what? You know what's got me on this whole thing? Is it at what point did men start going to baby showers? Usually baby showers are for the women.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Ranch life, Luke. Small community. Everybody goes to everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, don't pitch about baby showers then, bitch about ranch life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Ranch life is fine. It's the principle of the thing. My Uncle Hector raised...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, we get it. Nobody cares about your Uncle Hector. And you're a cheap bastard. Don't go to the shower and stop being a pussy. That's what I have to say. And that's the end of our show. Donk.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 4: Navigating Life's Challenges</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-07T05:42:37+00:00">February 7, 2026</time> · 31 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, listeners call in with a variety of personal struggles - from a man grappling with his sexuality, to a kindergarten teacher fighting for recognition, to a bar manager rekindling an old dream. The host provides thoughtful advice, helping callers navigate these complex situations with empathy and wisdom.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right welcome back to Luke at the roost. It is Friday, February 6th, about 8.55 p.m. We are on the air. You can call in. The number is 208-439-5853. That's 208-439-Luke. Call in with anything that might be on your mind and we'll try to get to the bottom of it. All right, so we're gonna go to the phones. We already we've got the phones lighting up here. Andre, Andre, welcome to the show. What can we help you with today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Hey, thanks for taking my call so this is kind of embarrassing, but I've been dealing with something weird lately. I keep having these really intense dreams about one of my co-workers at the dealership. Like, super vivid stuff. And the thing is, it's Mark. He's one of our sales managers. I've never been into guys before. At least I didn't think I was. But fuck, I can't get him out of my head. I've been married to my wife for six years, you know? Never questioned anything until now. I don't know if I should just ignore it or what.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How long has this been going on? How long have you been thinking about your buddy Mark?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>About three months now, started after this camping trip we took with some other guys from work. Nothing happened. We just sat around the fire, drank some beers, talked about life. But there was this moment when everyone else went to bed and Mark and I stayed up late just talking. You know, about real shit. And ever since then, I've been noticing things. The way he moves, his laugh, how he rolls up his sleeves when he's working. Shit. Even just typing up sales reports together gets me flustered now. I've been listening to all these relationship podcasts trying to figure this out. But none of them really hit what I'm going through.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like what you're going through is learning that you are a gay man and you have feelings for another man. Is he gay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Whoa, hold up. I don't know if I'm ready to say I'm gay. I mean, I still love my wife. I'm still attracted to her. But yeah, these feelings for Mark are definitely real. And honestly, I have no fucking clue if he's gay. He's divorced but that doesn't mean anything he's never mentioned dating anyone since I've known him. But man, jumping straight to your gay feels like a lot. Maybe I'm by. I don't even know if that's the right word. Shit, this is why I sell cars instead of figuring out people's sexuality for a living.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, you know, I'm not an expert on human sexuality. But if you had called in and said to me that you kind of had a little twinge of sexual excitement when this guy Mark walked by, then I might say, you know, maybe you should explore your bi tendencies. But if you're talking about a real connection that you had that a campfire talking about real shit, as you say, that sounds a little more on the gay side. Like, I don't know, maybe you can be both gay and straight, but it sounds a little more than bi to me, but I'm just a radio host, so I don't know anything about anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Yeah, I get what you're saying. It's not just some random horniness thing. There's something deeper there. Like when we were that campfire, he was talking about his divorce and how lonely it gets, and I just wanted to. I don't know, hold him or something. Fuck's kids, sounds gay as hell when I say it out loud, doesn't it? Yes. But he is what's missing with my head. I go home to my wife, and that feels real too. Not just the sex, but the whole relationship. Now lately, I've been catching myself thinking about Mark when I'm with her, and that makes me feel like the world's biggest asshole.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's a pretty strange place to be, and I can see why you feel conflicted about it. Have you talked to your wife about this at all?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Hell no, I haven't told her. How do you even start that conversation? Hey honey, remember Mark, from work? Yeah, I might want to fuck him. Jesus. I mean, my wife's pretty open-minded about most things, but this would blindside her completely. We were just talking about having kids next year. I can't drop this bomb on her. Though sometimes I think she knows something's up. I've been spacing out a lot, spending more time at work than I need to. She probably thinks I'm having a regular affair, which might actually be easier to explain than whatever this is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well my advice is to talk to your wife about it. If it's real feeling that you're struggling with, I mean you and your wife are a team, a partnership, it might be a bombshell. It might be dramatic, and it might be uncomfortable. There might be bad consequences, but regardless, if it's the truth, you should let her know and not be keeping a secret that's going to eat you up inside forever, because that's no way to live.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Deep down, I know you're right. I keep thinking about my uncle who came out at 50, like he wasted decades trying to be something he wasn't. But fuck, the timing, we just bought this house in Wilcox last year, got all these plans. What if telling her just destroys everything, though I guess keeping its secret is already destroying things, just slower and more painfully. And Mark, he's not going anywhere. We work together every day. Yesterday he brought me coffee, just a normal thing, right? But I nearly had a fucking breakdown in the break room over a damn cup of coffee.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't envy you or the position that you're in or your wife. It sounds complicated for everybody. It might be a good idea to talk to Mark about this and say, hey, Mark, just kind of feel it out with him and see if this is even a thing before you bring it up with your wife. If it were, if you, if hypothetically, you talked to your wife and your wife was like, you know what, I don't feel threatened by that at all. I think if you have feelings for Mark, you should pursue them on the side and I'm completely content with that. How would you react to that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Shit, just the thought of that makes my heart race. But I don't know if I could do the on the side thing that feels like trying to have it both ways, you know. And talking to Mark first, man, that's terrifying. What if I'm reading this whole thing wrong? What if he's totally straight and it makes work weird? Or worse, what if he does feel the same way? Then what? Plus, I know a couple guys at the dealership who aren't exactly progressive. Small town, Arizona is exactly San Francisco.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can live your life or you can cower and fear. So you're going to have to choose how you want the remainder of your life to go. You can hide a secret from everybody you know and live a double life or you could lie and cheat or you could be honest and go where your heart tells you to. That's what I always say. Go where the heart tells you to. This episode is sponsored by Shoesprayco. It's the spray you use in rental bowling shoes because bowling is a game, but these shoes are gross. Let's be honest, those shoes aren't dirty. They're used. They've had shifts. They've been through birthdays, work parties, and at least one guy who insists he's actually really good at this. Shoesprayco doesn't promise fresh linen or spring rain. Nobody believes that. No one wants to be lied to while lacing up rental shoes. Shoesprayco just handles the situation. It makes them tolerable enough that you can focus on the important part pretending you're not competitive and then getting mad anyway. Use code strike at Shoesprayco for 15% off. Shoesprayco reality-based footwear management. And we're back thanks there to Shoesprayco. Now we've got Carmen. Carmen, welcome to the show. What's eating you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Hey there. Thanks for having me on. Yeah, I've been listening a while. You know? Sometimes I wonder why we do what we do, right? Like I've been teaching kindergarten up in Silver City for six years now. Busting my ass. Doing stand-up on weekends just to keep sane. And last week they gave the lead teacher position to someone who's been there two years. Two fucking years. And I keep telling myself it doesn't matter. But shit, it matters. It matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Lead kindergarten teacher matters to you? Why is that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>It matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Yeah, you're right about that. I keep thinking about all the extra hours I put in the weekend programs I started, the way I connect with these kids. And it's not even about the title or the money. Though let's be real, the extra-fall grand would help with my 67 Mustang repairs. But you know what really gets me. The principal said, I was too creative for the role. Too creative. For kindergarten? Like what are we doing here if not trying to light up these little minds? God, I sound like one of those inspirational posters in the teacher's lounge right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm sorry to hear you didn't get the job that you wanted, but lead kindergarten teacher doesn't sound like a prestigious role.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Hold up. Not prestigious. Look, I get that it might not sound like CEO of whatever. But have you ever tried managing 25-5-year-olds while actually teaching them something? And doing it well enough that their parents trust you. That you're shaping how these kids will think about school for maybe the rest of their lives. I do stand up at the worst dive bars in Silver City. And let me tell you, a room full of drunk hecklers is nothing compared to a kindergarten class when the finger paint comes out. But you're right. It's not prestigious. It's not prestigious.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I understand it's difficult to deal with five-year-olds. I wouldn't want to deal with one, let alone 25. But what is it that you are actually teaching? You know, you say you're actually teaching 25-5-year-olds something. What is that if it's not finger paints?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Okay, let me break this down for you. Yesterday I taught a kid who couldn't count to 10, how to get to 20. I helped another one figure out why the sky looks blue. I got a shy kid who wouldn't talk to anyone to share a story with the whole class. This isn't babysitting. We're teaching them how to think, how to solve problems, how to be curious about the world. And yeah, sometimes we do it through finger paint because they're five, and that's how they learn best. But I've got a master's degree in early childhood education. And there's actual science behind everything we do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what comment for the first time, I think maybe you flipped me on this one. I can see your point there, where you're coming from, and I never really thought about it in that way. So you've changed the way I think about kindergarten teachers. Congratulations, that's not easy to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Well, shit. Thanks for hearing me out. That actually means a lot. You know what's funny? I can get up on stage at open mic night and bomb completely, and it rolls right off. But this promotion thing, it's been eating at me because I care so damn much. Maybe too much. Makes me wonder if I should just focus on my stand-up instead. At least there I can turn my workplace frustrations into material. Did a bit last week about how negotiating with a five-year-old about why we can't equal as basically the same as dealing with drunk adults at last call. But seriously, thanks for being open to changing your mind. That's... That is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Have you ever tried your stand-up on the five-year-olds?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Yeah. I don't know, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, thanks for the call. I appreciate it. I'm sorry you didn't get the job, but you know, maybe next time, there's always the possibility. Okay, Greg. Greg is on the line. Greg, what can we do for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Hey, yeah, this is Greg. Look, I don't even know why I'm calling, to be honest. I guess I just needed to talk to someone about this thing that's been weighing on my mind. You know? I'm 46. I manage a bar down in road forks. And I don't know. I guess I had this dream a long time ago that Ty kind of gave up on and just been haunting me lately, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did that dream possibly have something to do with you managing a bar in road forks? You're talking about road forks in New Mexico?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Well, yeah, I guess it does, sort of. Back in the day, I had this idea to open up my own place, you know? Not just manage someone else's bar, but have my own thing. I was really passionate about it, had all these plans and ideas. But then life happened, bills piled up, and I just, I don't know, I had to let it go. Now I'm stuck behind this bar every night, watching everyone else live out their dreams and it just hits me sometimes, you know? Like, shit, what if I just stuck with it? Would things be different?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>In road forks in New Mexico.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Oh, shit, yeah, road forks in New Mexico. That was the place I was going to open up my own bar back in the day. It was just this little town, but I loved the community feel, you know? I thought I could really make something special there. But then the rent got too high, the competition was tough, and I just, I don't know, I lost my nerve, I guess. Ended up managing this other place instead. And now, every time I watch those old comfort shows or listen to those comedy podcasts, it just reminds me of that dream I had, you know? Like, what if I had just gone for it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What if you just go for it now? Open up a new bar in road forks in New Mexico. And, you know, I think you could do a pretty decent job at beating out the competition.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>You know, you're right, I probably could go for it again. I mean, hell, I've been managing this other bar for years now. I know the business inside and out, and road forks that place still holds a special place in my heart, you know? It's not like I'm getting any younger either. If I'm ever gonna make my dream a reality, now's probably the time to do it. The more I think about it, the more I'm kicking myself for not at least trying back then. I was so scared of failing, of not being able to make it work. But you're right, I could give it another shot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what, Greg, just out of curiosity, I'm wondering, what is it that you find appealing about road forks?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Well, you know, road forks has always just had this, I don't know, this charm to it, I guess. It's a small town, but there's a real sense of community there, you know? Everyone kind of looks out for each other. And I always felt like I could really make my mark, you know? Like, open up this place that would become a hub for the locals, a spot where people could come and just, I don't know, escape the daily grind for a little while. And the town itself, it's just got this great vibe to it. Not too big, not too small.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I think we might be thinking about different road forks. But I wish you the best of luck in starting up your bar, I think you should do it. There's not a whole lot going on out here or a whole lot of people to go to your bar. But, you know, if you build it, they will come.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GREG</span><p>Ah, shit, you're right, my bad. I guess we're talking about different road forks here. But, you know what, I appreciate you encouraging me on this. I think you're right if I just go for it and get that bar up and running, the people will come. It may not be the easiest road, but it's something I've always dreamed of. And hey, sometimes you just got to take that leap. You know, life's too short to keep playing it safe. I'm going to start looking into making this happen again. Who knows, maybe you'll even make it out to road forks someday and check out my place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe I will. Maybe I will. Alright, Shonda, welcome to the show, Shonda. How are you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Oh man, it's been a hell of a day, you know? I work in hospital building down in Tucson. And it's just constant stress, you know? Dealing with insurance companies, patients freaking out over their bills. It's enough to make you want to pull your hair out sometimes, right? But that's not even the worst of it. I'm calling because I'm really worried about my little brother. He's, uh, he's kind of going down a dark path lately. Drinking way too much, hanging out with the wrong crowd. I try to talk to him about it, but he just shuts down, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what makes you think you know who the right and the wrong crowd are?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Look, I know my brother better than anyone. I've seen him at his best and his worst. And this crowd he's running with now, they're bad news I can just tell.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>They're always getting into some kind of trouble. Always looking to score the next high, you know? And my brother, he's always been a sensitive guy, kind of naive in a lot of ways. I'm just terrified he's going to get pulled in too deep. That he's going to do something he can't take back. I've tried talking to him, begging him to cut ties with these people. But he just gets defensive. Says I don't know what I'm talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it could be possible that you don't know what you're talking about. How old is your brother?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Damn, you're right. I guess I don't really know everything that's going on, do I? My brother, he's 25 now. I've just always felt so protective of him, you know? Ever since we were kids, I've tried to look out for him. But I guess I don't always know what's best, even if I think I do. I just see him struggling. And it kills me, you know? I want to help him. But maybe I'm going about it the wrong way. Maybe I need to take a step back and really try to understand what he's going through.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you know, he's a 25-year-old adult and he can make his own decisions. You can be there to support him or offer advice, preferably when it's solicited. People don't generally respond well when you give them advice and they're not looking for it. But all you can do is be there for him and trust him to make the right decisions. He's a big boy and you're not his keeper.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>You're absolutely right. I need to remember that he's an adult now and has to make his own choices. I guess I just can't shake this big sister instinct to protect him, you know? But you're right, constantly nagging him or trying to dictate his life isn't going to help. I need to take a step back and just be there for him. Offer support when he asks for it. Let him know I care, but also trust that he can figure this out on his own. It's just so hard watching him struggle, but you're right. I have to let him take the lead here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Shonda, it sounds like we figured out your problem there. Best of luck to you and your brother. Just stay out of the way and be there when he falls. Okay, Tamika, Tamika, you're on the line with the radio show. Thanks for calling. How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TAMIKA</span><p>Oh, man, where do I even start? It's been a hell of a year, you know? I feel like I've been calling into your show every other week. Just trying to make sense of everything. Okay, so like, you remember that guy I was telling you about the one that got away? The one I just couldn't seem to let go of? Well, I finally did it. I finally let him go. It wasn't easy, let me tell you. I kept obsessing over it, replaying everything in my head.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I talk to a lot of people, Tamika, I don't remember that at all. I've never heard of you before in my life, but I'm glad to hear that you've made positive steps in your life and you're moving in the right direction. Congratulations, nice work. Ladies and gentlemen, this episode of the radio show is brought to you by Mediocre's CPAP. The makers of the CPAP machine that technically works, not life-changing, not transformative. It works in the way a lot of modern products work. If you've never used a CPAP, here's the pitch. You strap on a face mask and let a small plastic appliance try to keep you alive at night. It's romantic. It's like sleeping next to a tiny leaf blower. Mediocre is fine. And that's not an insult, that's honest. It's the device that turns... I sleep like garbage into... I kind of sleep like garbage. Half the night, it's like... because the seal isn't perfect. And now you're doing arts and crafts at two in the night, trying to tighten straps like you're securing cargo. Then the humidifier runs out, and the machine starts blowing desert air directly into your skull. Great. Love waking up with a throat that feels like it's been sanded with a belt sander. And yes, there's an app. Of course, there's an app. It gives you a sleep score like this is a game show. But here's what I'll say. When it's dialed in, when it's not leaking, squealing, or drying you out, it does help. It's not a miracle. It's a plastic compromise. It keeps you from waking up, feeling like you got punched by your own biology. Use code Breathe for 15% off. Mediocre CPAP. Not perfect. Not elegant. Just trying. Alright, we are back. Let's go back to the phones here. We've got Frank. Frank, welcome to the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Thanks for having me on, Doc. I don't know why I'm even calling, to be honest. I saw that headline the other day. You know, the one about heart attack warning signs. It's just been kind of weighing on my mind, you know? I'm 63. Work as a diesel mechanic down in truth or consequences. I've been ignoring some stuff for a while, because to be honest, I'm kind of scared of what the Doc might say. You know? But after seeing that article, I can't stop thinking about it. What if there's something wrong, and I'm just, I don't know, not dealing with it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you have the old health insurance? I mean, why are you not dealing with it? You should go talk to the doctor if you're concerned that you might have some issues. You're at that age where a heart problem is not just likely, but, I mean, probable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Well, that's the thing, Doc. I've got the old health insurance, but it's just been such a hassle, you know? I always end up putting it off. And to be honest, I'm a little worried about what the Doc might find. I've been an amateur astronomer for years, and I've got all these stories I could tell you about the night sky. It's just so peaceful, you know? But this heart stuff, it's been eating at me. I mean, I was out stargaze in the other night, and all I could think about was that damn headline. I don't know. Maybe I'm just being stubborn.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like you're being a moron. If you have health insurance, then go to the doctor and have a checkup done and make sure that you're in good shape. Otherwise, you're an idiot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>Hey, now, I wouldn't go that far, Doc. I know I should probably get checked out, but it's just not that simple. It is. With this old insurance, the copays and the deductibles, it's a real pain in the ass. And then there's the waiting, the tests, the whole rigmarole. Shit, I've been putting it off for years. But you're right, I'm not getting any younger. Maybe I should just bite the bullet and go see the Doc get it over with. I mean, I'd hate to find out there's something seriously wrong, but at least I'd know, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, there's things that are preventable. If you need to take some kind of medication, blood pressure stuff or something to keep your heart doing what it's supposed to be doing, you need to know that now. And if you have insurance and the ability to do that and you're not, then you're stupid. And I don't talk to stupid people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FRANK</span><p>All right, all right, I hear you, Doc. You're right, I shouldn't be so stubborn about this. I guess I'm just scared, you know? I mean, I've been working on these diesel engines for over 40 years, and I pride myself on being tough as nails. But the thought of having some kind of heart issue, it's got me rattled. I don't want to be weak or dependent on meds or anything like that. But I know I need to suck it up and go get checked out. This old body ain't getting any younger, and I'd hate to keel over working on one of those trucks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's exactly what's going to happen if you have a heart issue that you didn't get checked out. So go to the doctor and get yourself checked out. You've really got no excuse, and you waste it our time. Renee, Renee, welcome to the show. I hope you have something better to say than our last caller.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENEE</span><p>Hey, thanks for taking my call. Look, I get it. This stuff isn't easy to talk about. But I've just been feeling so alone, you know? I'm a wedding planner in Albuquerque, and I'm surrounded by all these happy couples all day. But I swear, I've never felt more alone. I saw this headline the other day. Ten reasons you feel lonely, even when you're surrounded by people. And it just hit me right in the gut.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENEE</span><p>I mean, I love my job, but sometimes I look around and think, when was the last time I had that? When is the last time you had that? Honestly, it's been way too long. I mean, I'm into all this history stuff. I do yoga. I take it all pretty seriously. But at the end of the day, I'm just craving that human connection. You know, like, I see these headlines and think, that's me. That's exactly how I feel. I can't even remember the last time I fuck. I can't believe I'm saying this out loud. But I'm just so damn lonely, even when I'm surrounded by people all day. Does that make any sense?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it makes perfect sense. I think we all feel that way at times. What are you doing to combat the loneliness? Do you have friends or family to talk to? Do you have a boyfriend? You're on the dating scene. What's your social life look like?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENEE</span><p>You're right. I think a lot of us struggle with feeling lonely, even when we're surrounded by people. Honestly, my social life is kind of non-existent these days. I mean, I've got my coworkers, but it's not the same. You know, and as for dating, that's just been a bust. I tried the apps for a while, but it just felt so forced and awkward. I don't know. Maybe I'm just too picky or something. And my family, well, they're great, but they live back east. It's not like I can just pop over for coffee whenever I'm feeling down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I understand. That's tough. And loneliness creeps up. It's good that you're not sacrificing your values or settling for whoever's around. But it's all right to be alone. It's all right to feel lonely. I prefer it over the company of others most of the time. So I do understand. Unless it's being a problem. If you really want to make connections with people, then you've got to put in the effort to do that. And that's through joining community events or volunteering or finding a hobby that is with other people. There's people out there that are looking for friendships and connections. And you can find them if you put in the effort.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENEE</span><p>You're absolutely right. I know I need to make more of an effort to put myself out there and find those connections. It's just so easy to get stuck in your routine, you know? But you're right. I can't just sit around feeling sorry for myself. Maybe I'll look into some local history groups or see if there are any yoga studios that do social events. Heck, I could probably even volunteer at some of the weddings I plan. Just to be around people. I guess I'm just scared, you know? Putting yourself out there is scary. But I know it's the only way I'm going to break this cycle of loneliness. Thanks for listening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, sorry about that, Renee. But you're welcome. I hope everything works out for you. Sounds like you know what you need to do. So go do it. And for our last call, we're going to take Vince. Vince, you're the last call the night. How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Hey, thanks for taking my call, man. I've been going through some real shit lately, you know? This custody battle with my ex has been just tearing me apart. I mean, I thought we had it all figured out. It's just this back and forth nightmare and I can't even focus on anything else. It's like I see those headlines about all these other celebrity divorces and I'm just sitting here thinking, yeah, that's me too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, divorce is never easy. It's a tough thing. I'm sorry that you're going through it. What's the problem? Why is this more difficult than what you expected?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Well, I guess I just, I don't know, man. I thought we had it all figured out, you know? We were supposed to make this transition as smooth as possible for the kids. But now it's just turning into this ugly custody battle. My ex is fighting me on everything. The house, the finances, even just the damn visitation schedule. I'm a goddamn hunting guide for a living. And suddenly, I'm spending all my time in court instead of out in the woods, you know? It's just, it's just wearing me down, you know? I feel like I'm losing everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You had divorces like that. You're losing quite a bit. You're losing the life that you used to have. And it's going to take a little while to go through that process and when you get on the other side of it, you're going to have to rebuild it all back from, you know, from, not from nothing, but from a much more basic stance. And you need to start thinking about what you want that new life to look like.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Yeah, exactly. I mean, that's the thing I had this whole life planned out, you know? The job I love, the house, the family. And now it's all just crumbling around me. I'm trying to stay positive, but it's just so damn hard, man. I see these headlines about other people going through the same thing. And it makes me feel a little less alone. But at the same time, I'm just like, damn, why does it have to be this way? I keep thinking about that new life. Like you said, but it's just so overwhelming, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know. I've been there myself. It's not fun. It doesn't have to be that way, but it often is. And it is what it is. So you're going to have to deal with it and come out on the other side. There's not much choice that you have in the matter. You know, you're already in court. All the proceedings are in motion. You just got to wait it out, do, you know, put one foot in front of the other until you get to the end. And then move on with your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Yeah, man. I hear you. I guess I'm just feeling a little lost right now, you know? Like, I'm trying to stay positive and look to the future. But it's just so damn hard when I'm stuck in the middle of all this legal bullshit. I keep thinking about that new life, but it's like, where the hell do I even start? You know? I'm a hunting guy. That's all I've ever really known. And now I'm stuck in this courtroom battle instead of being out in the woods where I feel at home. I just, I don't know. I guess I'm just looking for a little direction, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the direction I can give you is to keep going to court, fight your hardest for, you know, so you don't get screwed. Or at least so you get screwed as little as possible. And then, and then move on. So right now it's going to suck. That's part of the deal. And you just have to get through it. Other people have done it. You're not the first person to get divorced. So it's definitely a process that does work. You will get through it. And one day, not too far from now, you'll be on the other end of it. And you need to be ready to pick up and carry on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>You're right, man. I guess I just got to keep my head down and power through this bullshit, huh? It's not going to be easy, but I can't just roll over either. I got a fight for what's mine and for what's best for the kids, you know? It's just so damn draining dealing with all this legal crap instead of being out in the woods where I belong. But you're right. I'm not the first person to go through this. And I won't be the last. I just got to take it one day at a time. Keep focused on the end game and get ready to build that new life. Whatever that ends up looking like.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right there, Vince. Good luck to you. I hope everything works out. I know it will. It always does. And you'll be back in the woods before you know it. That's our show for tonight, folks. Thanks for tuning in. And I check back with us tomorrow. Remember the number of you'd like to call in is 208-439-LUK-208-439-5853. Good night.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 41: Benny's Creepy VHS Tape from Nowhere</h1>
|
||||
<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-20T08:18:02+00:00">March 20, 2026</time> · 1 hr 19 min</p>
|
||||
<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts a late-night call-in show exploring weird dreams and personal stories, featuring callers discussing everything from alien encounters in the Bootheel to unsettling home surveillance. Highlights include Joey's rant about celebrity opinions, Denise's boyfriend's unusual porn interests, and Benny's mysterious unmarked VHS tape. Buckle up for a wild ride through the strange and unexpected.</p>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. I am Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's the late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me what's going on. And I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today is Thursday, March 19th. And if you'd like to give us a call, the number's 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. Let's see. Is Devon here today? Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I'm here just setting up the booth and stuff. What's up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Where's my coffee?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Right here, Luke. I got it just black, no sugar. Like you said, picked it up fresh from that place down the street. It's still hot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, I'm very proud of you. I don't know where you found it at midnight on Thursday, March 19th in Animus, New Mexico. But, I mean, you pulled through again. Good for you. I'm very, very proud. Thanks. What do you think we should talk about on the show tonight? Do you have any ideas?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Thanks, Luke. That means a lot, actually. For topics tonight, maybe we could talk about weird dreams people have had. I had this one last week where I was stuck in a storage unit again, but with like talking animals or something about local history in animas, since I'm always reading up on that stuff at 3 a.m.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. I like that idea. I like the weird dreams idea. I had a weird dream maybe last year. I don't dream that much, or if I do, I don't remember my dreams that much. But I had this weird series of dreams last year that were all like monitoring privacy-based dreams. And I thought I was awake. Like, it was very real. And I went outside my RV. And I noticed that there was like this door that wasn't usually there. So I started investigating it. I opened the door. And inside the pointed through a little hole in my RV wall recording me. And then I had like four or five more dreams that same week that were very similar. Somebody was watching me for some reason. I couldn't figure out who it was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>That sounds kind of creepy, Luke. Like surveillance dreams are the worst. Reminds me of this one I had where I was back in that storage unit with my ex, but instead of talking animals, it was just endless security cameras watching us argue about nothing, the door out. Anyway, should I look up some dream interpretation stuff for the callers tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think that's a good idea. Do that. I mean, now that I'm thinking about that dream again, it was just, it was so weird to me, even in the dream that it was like, it was an 1980s style VHS camcorder, like the kind that you put the VHS tape in, and it was on this makeshift, like a turret to move back and forth. It was really fucking stupid strange.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, look up some stuff on dream interpretations and we'll get to the callers and see what they have to say. So I looked it up and according to some psychology sites, dreams about being watched or under surveillance often symbolize feelings of vulnerability, anxiety, or fears of judgment. Like if it's in a private space, it could mean inner conflicts or hidden secrets you're dealing with. For something like finding a creepy old VHS camera spying on you, it might represent paranoia or unresolved privacy issues from your waking life, if that makes sense. Anyway, that's what the articles say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, I don't think I had any unresolved privacy issues, but who knows? Who's to argue with the dreams? All right, first up on our caller line here, we've got Joey. Joey, welcome to the show. Do you have any weird dreams to tell us about? What's going on while you sleep?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Hey, Luke, good to hear from you again. Nah, no weird dreams on my end, but I caught that theme and figured I'd call in anyway with an update on what I vented about yesterday. Turns out one of those celebrities I was griping about actually doubled down on their take today and it's got me fired up all over again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Joey, but you didn't call in yesterday. I have no idea what you're talking about. Could you re-inform us? Maybe I forgot, but I'm pretty sure there was no Joey on yesterday's show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Well, maybe I got the day wrong, Luke. It feels like yesterday to me since it's been eating at my thoughts, but I called in a couple nights back about those celebrities spouting off on politics like their experts. You know, the ones with zero real-world grit pushing their opinions, while folks like me are out here grinding. Anyway, the update is, that actor I mentioned, the one from that big superhero flick, he went on some podcast today and straight up defended his stance saying working stiffs like truck drivers don't get the bigger picture. You want to know what really burns me? It's like he's proving my point all over again. Acting like his red carpet life trumps actual experience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't think anybody really gets the bigger picture. I mean, bigger than what? Who has the biggest view of the whole picture, you think? I don't know if it's an actor or a fucking truck driver or a president. I think everybody pretty much only sees the picture that is right in front of their eyes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I get what you're saying. Nobody's got a God's eye view of everything, that's for sure. But you want to know what really burns me about these actors? They act like their bubble of Hollywood parties and scripted lines, gives them some superior angle, when really, it's just as narrow as what I see from the cab of my UPS trance, hauling packages across these mountains. Folks out here dealing with rising fuel costs and supply chain headaches, we might not see the whole world, but at least our pictures grounded in something tangible, not just what their publicist feeds them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but you don't know that. You don't know what these Hollywood people do in their daily lives. You assume it's all parties and publicists, but they're just regular people too. They have a different job than you do, but I think it's wrong to assume that they're all in a Hollywood bubble.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Fair enough, Luke. I can't peek into every actor's garage or see what they do on their off days. They're human, after all, and some might volunteer or read up on policy like anyone else. But when this guy goes on a podcast and dismisses truck driver's views as small-minded, without ever stepping foot in a warehouse or behind a wheel for more than a photo op, it sure comes off like he's speaking from that insulated world. I mean, I looked it up after his comments today. Turns out he's donated to some think tanks, but nothing hands-on like the community programs us drivers support out here in Arizona. So that's where we're at even if they're not all sipping cocktails 24-7.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So some actors actually do a lot of charity work and advocacy outside of Hollywood. For example, George Clooney co-founded not on our watch project to prevent mass atrocities. And Angelina Jolie has been a special envoy for the UN Refugee Agency.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you see now that we have social media and stuff and celebrities can share with us part of their normal lives, the videos that I see of a lot of celebrities, So just them being people, you know, having cookouts and fucking nothing all that different from what everybody else is doing. They play music and they draw pictures and they are just, when they're not working, they're not working, just like anybody else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I hear you on the social media side. I've seen those clips myself, like actors grilling burgers or walking their dogs, and it does humanize them a bit. Shows they're not all red carpet zombies. And Devon, that's solid on Clooney and Jolie. I've read about their projects actually. Clearly, Clooney's group has pushed real legislation on Sudan back in the day, which is more than most of us desk-jockey politicians bother with. But here's the rub for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Even with that good work, when an actor like the one I mentioned jumps on a podcast and waves off everyday folks takes on policy, as if we're all just squinting its shadows, it stings because it ignores how our normal lives, mind dodging deer on these Arizona routes or my cousin Rubin clocking overtime at the mill. Shape a perspective that's just as valid, if not more, battle-tested. So that's where we're at with this update. His comments today felt like like a fresh jab at that divide.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, why are you paying attention to an actor's comments on anything? Like, he's got an opinion like anybody else. Like we talked about before, he might have a larger platform to spew that on, but it's still just noise. It's still just an opinion. Why does it bother you so much? Just stop looking at that. You know, you got better stuff to do than whatever actor you don't want to mention is saying on social media.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're spot on, that it's just one guy's opinion blasting out from a megaphone. and I could scroll past it like a million other posts. But you want to know what really burns me? It's not the actor himself. It's how his words echo what I hear from too many talking heads, making it seem like my take on things, built from years of early mornings loading trucks, and watching how policies hit the road directly, doesn't count because I'm not famous. I mean, after his podcast dropped today, I saw comments from other drivers online feeling the same pinch, like, we're all being sidelined in the conversation that actually affects our routes and paychecks. where we're at. Ignoring it feels like letting that noise drown out the real grit, and with my grandpa, Ernesto, always saying opinions without sweat behind them are just hot air. It hits close to home.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you've got your opinions. Where's your sweat behind it? You can start your own podcast and spout off your own opinions if you want, and maybe the other truck drivers that are along your route will listen to you. But you're the one that's tuning in to this media and listening to the people that are pissing you off because I think on some level you just want to be pissed off about something. If you want your opinion to matter, do like I said before, and fucking take your time and go down to the town hall and join a board and, you know, do your part. You don't just complain about other people spouting off their opinions. While you spout off your own to me, like, you're not doing anything to improve the situation at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I see your point. Tuning into that stuff does keep the fire lit sometimes. And maybe there's a bit of me that gets riled up because it feels personal. Like, my years on these routes don't add up to me. much in their eyes. But actually, I am out there doing my part. I've testified at a couple local town halls in Arizona on supply chain regs last year, backed by data from the American Trucking Associations showing how fuel hikes hit us hardest. And it did push for some state rebates that helped drivers like my cousin Rubin keep his head above water. Starting a podcast? Well, technically, with my ham radio setup, I've already got a way to test the bans and chat policy with folks across the Southwest. Had a group of operators debating trade tariffs just last week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that sounds like a real good time. Ham radio discussions on politics. I think most people discourage that on the bands. Ham radio discussions are for talking about ham radios. Everybody knows that. Or, I mean, if you're going to use it for something useful, like weather reporting or disaster reporting or following a fucking parade. But the ham radio is not the place to be having political discussions. If you want your voice to get out to the same sort of platform that these actors are doing, then yeah, a podcast is your way. It's never been easier for you to get your voice out than it is now. And I don't understand myself. Like, first of all, I don't care about, uh, about your years on your route. It's like, nobody does. Nobody gives a shit about you or your specific, uh, what matters to you. Nobody cares but you and the other people that are in your industry. So why should an actor? Like, everybody dismisses everybody else's, opinions. That's what opinions are for. Like, you have yours, everybody else has theirs. Nobody's going to change anybody's. But if you want to do something about it, like if you really want to get your voice out there, then get your voice out there. You have all the same platforms available to you that any actor does today. You couldn't have said that 20 years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, fair point on the ham bands. FCC guidelines do steer clear of political chit-chat to keep things emergency focused, like relaying storm updates during monsoon. soon season out here, and I've stuck to that mostly, but those offhand policy riffs with operators do pop up when signals are strong. Podcast-wise, you're right. It's easier than ever with apps like Anchor letting anyone hit record from their truck cab, and I've thought about it, especially after this actor's latest jab today making rounds on Twitter, but you want to know what really burns me about the nobody cares angle. It's not that I expect every actor to nod along to my route stories. Hell, I know opinions clashed like bumpers on I-10, but when one with millions of followers flat out says working folks like lack the vision for big issues, it does feel like a brush off of the sweat equity we put in. Backed by stats from the Bureau of Labor showing truckers move 72% of U.S. freight without the glamour. So that's where we're at. Yeah, I'll keep pushing my voice where it counts. Town halls or otherwise because dismissing the grind doesn't make it vanish.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, sure. I mean, truckers move most of the truck freight, of course. But nobody cares. You know what actors do? They make 100% of the world's movies and everybody needs them too. So everybody's got their job to do, and you've got yours, and it's not more important than anybody else's, nor is the actors more important than yours. I think if you talk to any single person in America, they're going to complain about the fuel costs. So it's not just affecting you in truck routes. It's affecting literally every product, every person, everything in the economy and the world. So it sounds like you're a little bit self-important here on your truck driving sweat, equity. Like, what does that even fucking mean? Where are you? sweating? Where's the sweat coming in in your whole day? Tell me when you sweat?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, nobody's saying truckers are the only ones feeling the fuel squeeze. It's hitting farmers in Iowa, commuters in California, everybody from the corner store owner to the family road tripping to the Grand Canyon. And that's backed by the Energy Information Administration's reports, showing diesel up 30% nationwide this year. But on the sweat part, well, technically, it's not all literal dripping in the Arizona heat. Though, come summer, when I'm loading pallets at the Graham-Campers, hub before dawn, yeah, that's when the shirt sticks and the back aches from heaving 50-pound boxes into the truck without a break. Most days, though, it's the mental grind, plotting routes around construction on Highway 191, dodging monsoon flash floods near the Pelonsillo Mountains, or dealing with that one faulty GPS reroute that added two hours and burned extra gas. All while keeping deliveries on time, so folks like my daughter Kaylee's school gets her supplies without delay. So that's where we're at. showing up consistent, rain or shine. Because if we don't, the whole chain breaks. And it feels like actors glossing over that just to push their takes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, they're not glossing over that because they have to order their package from Amazon too, right? You've got to bring them their fancy actor coffee or whatever it is that they buy. And you work for fucking UPS.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You drive a UPS truck and you deliver UPS packages, which is great. I mean, we need UPS to deliver packages, but you're acting like. you're the lifeblood of America. And you're just, you're trucking nonsensical shit to nonsensical people and acting like it's the most important job in the world. It's not. It's not even, you're not even paying for the gas. So why are you bitching? UPS is paying for the gas? And they're paying you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, Luke, actors do get their packages just like anyone else. I've dropped off script revisions and overpriced lattes at Gates in LA more times than I can count. And sure, UPS foots the bill for the diesel, which is why their rates went up 6.5% this year, per their own earnings report, passing costs to customers who then gripe about delivery fees. But you want to know what really burns me about framing it as nonsensical shit? It's not about being the lifeblood or some hero complex. It's that when policies on emissions or tariffs jack up those fuel prices, it ripples out, delays in medical supplies to rural clinics near the Pelonsiloh Mountains, or empty shelves at the store where my grandpa Ernesto picks up his meds. All because drivers like me, are squeezing every mile to make it work. Well, technically, the American Transportation Research Institute ranks trucking as handling 70% of the nation's freight tonnage. So if that's not stitching the country together, I don't know what is, even if half the loads are gadgets nobody needs. So that's where we're at. The actor's podcast take today ignored that chain reaction, making it sound like our gripes are just noise, when really it's the backbone keeping his coffee arriving on time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, well, I'm acting like your gripes are just noise, because you're acting like you're a long, haul trucker shipping, uh, critical medical supplies across the country for a kid with leukemia. And you're not. You work for fucking UPS. You drive your UPS route, regardless of what's going on in the economy or what's going on on on the roads. You get paid an hourly wage to do a job. And you do that job. And that's, that's your fucking purview. So you don't, you don't have this, uh, large breadth of policy experience like you're spouting off is being, uh, dismissed by the actors in Hollywood. And it's annoying me. Like, you don't have anything to stand on here. You're just a guy doing a job for UPS.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're right that I'm not out there like some long-haul legend crisscrossing the Midwest with organ transplants. I'm a local UPS route driver in Arizona, clocking those Graham County loops and sticking to my schedule, come hell or high water, paid by the hour to get the job done. But, well, technically, even on these shorter halls, I've carried everything from chemotherapy meds to the local hospital to vaccines during the pandemic rollout. As per UPS's own logistics report showing we handled over a billion doses nationwide, so it's not all frivolous fluff when policies tweak fuel or regs and slow us down. You want to know what really burns me about the actors' podcast today? He lumped all us, truck drivers, into this clueless bucket, ignoring how even route guys like me see the policy hits firsthand. Like when those new emissions rules added compliance costs that UPS passed on, delaying shipments to families counting on them. So that's where we're at. Dismissing it as just my purview feels like echoing his take, when really it's the everyday chain that keeps the whole system from grinding to a halt.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I'm going to have to disagree with you there. I don't think that UPS keeps the whole system from grinding to a halt. They don't. You're delivering largely toilet paper to people that don't want to go to the store and get it themselves. And you're acting like you're the lifeblood of America. And maybe you're the salt of the earth. We'll give you that one. You're a blue-collar guy 5 a.m. to get the job done. But that doesn't give you any level of experience on policy. And I just, I don't buy this whole bit about, uh, about how fuel and regs slow you down. They don't. They don't matter to you. Fuel and regs, if, if the UPS has to raise its prices and give that, uh, that cost to the consumer, that has nothing to do with you. The consumer is paying that. You're getting paid the same same amount regardless of what the fuel price is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I get why you'd pushback on UPS being the whole system's glue. It's not like we're the only game in town with FedEx and the post office hauling loads too, but according to the Council of Supply Chain Management professionals, parcel delivery, like ours, supports over 10 million jobs nationwide. So when regs or fuel spikes hit, it does ripple to overtime cuts or route consolidations that squeeze us drivers. And on the pay side, well, technically, my hourly wage hasn't budged in two years years, despite diesel jumping from three bucks to over five a gallon out here in Arizona, per the U.S. Energy Information Administration's weekly averages, which means I'm covering more ground for the same check while UPS tweaks incentives to offset their costs. You want to know what really burns me tying back to that actor's podcast update today. He painted folks in my shoes as policy blind, without acknowledging how those everyday pressures give us a front row seat to what works or flops, not some ivory tower guesswork. So that's where we're at. It's not about claiming top billing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>shakes in the debate. And you have a fair shake in the debate. You have Instagram, you have Facebook, you have YouTube, you have TikTok, you've got podcasts, you've got whatever method you want to get your voice out on, you can do that. And you're not, you're calling me and complaining about the actors using theirs. So stop that. And if you have something to say, if you've got a solution, then present it. But that's not what I'm hearing here. You're not presenting any solution. You're just complaining that you don't get a chance to present a solution not true. You have the same chance as anybody else. You don't have the huge audience that those people have built in. You got to build that. But you can. And look, I drive a diesel truck too. And diesel today was $5.20 a gallon. I live 100 miles from anything. To go to the grocery store, it cost me $50. To go anywhere. To go anywhere, it cost me $50. So I fully understand. Everybody understands that the fucking situation is out of control. And that's caused by nobody except for the one dude that decided to bomb Iran. He said that one person made that decision to fuck up the whole world. And it's got nothing to do with the actors spouting off policy decisions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're absolutely right that I've got access to all those platforms. Instagram for Quick Rout Rants or YouTube for breaking down how tariffs mess with freight flows. And building an audience takes time, like how that actor grinded through auditions before his big break. no excuses there on my end. And on the diesel, man 520 a gallon hits hard everywhere. I've filled up at pumps in Safford seeing the same sticker shock you describe. And studies from the American Petroleum Institute back that up, showing rural drivers like us absorbing 20% more of the hike percentage-wise due to longer halls, just to reach basics. But while technically, pinning it all on that Iran situation overlooks the domestic regs layered on top. Like the EPA's clean fuel standards that added two cents per gallon this quarter per their own filings. which is where the actor's podcast update today rubbed me wrong. He blamed it solely on worker complacency without touching those policy nuts and bolts that us ground-level folks navigate daily. So that's where we're at. Yeah? Solutions over gripes. And maybe I'll clip a video on that next fill-up to push for smarter rebates.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I'm not talking about the two-cent tax on fuel. I'm talking about the dollar-50 it went up in the last two weeks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, that one-fifty spike in the last two weeks is brutal. No doubt. I've topped off my tank. twice since and watched the pump click past 20 bucks just for half a fill. And the U.S. Energy Information Administration's daily reports confirm it jumped from 470 to 620 average nationwide over that stretch, mostly tied to those Middle East tensions you mentioned. But, well, technically, even with the big geopolitical whack, the layered regs, like the renewable diesel mandates, have baked in an extra baseline cost that doesn't budge, per the Department of Energy's quarterly analysis, which is exactly the kind of nuance that actor glossed over in his podcast today for whining without seeing the full picture. So that's where we're at. The spike hurts, but it's the combo that grinds us down, and dismissing one side's view just widens the gap.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, your view is short-sighted. You're talking about a very small bit here. All of the things that you're referring to are minute compared to the Iran business. Okay? And maybe it costs you 40 bucks to fill your tank. It costs me 150. So, I mean, I understand that fuel sucks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I won't argue that the Iran fallout isn't the elephant in the room. It's driven over 80% of that recent surge, according to the International Energy Agency's latest market report. And your 150 bucks to fill up sounds like a gut punch compared to my 40 on a smaller tank, especially living that far out. But, well, technically, calling the regs minute, overlooks how they've compounded the baseline by 15 to 20 cents per gallon over the past five years. As detailed in the government accountability, office's audit on transportation costs, turning a bad spike into a sustained bleed for drivers like us. You want to know what really burns me in that actor's podcast update today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>He zeroed in on geopolitics as the villain, but skipped how those domestic policies amplify it, leaving folks like my cousin Rubin thinking our input on fixes, like targeted rebates, gets sidelined as short-sighted, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, they are short-sighted, and I don't even know what actor you're talking about or what he was referring to, but if you're complaining about 20 cents over five years when there's a... global energy crisis and diesel almost doubled in the last two weeks alone, then yeah, that's short-sighted and you're a fucking asshole.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JOEY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, calling it short-sighted stings, and you're right that the global crisis dwarfs those 20 cents over time. Diesel doubling in two weeks is a crisis all its own, per the oil price information services tracking. And I get why that overshadows the regs for most folks. But, well, technically, it's not asshole territory to flag how those smaller layers turn a temporary hit into a chronic one. As the Federal Highway Administration's cost models show they've added up to 10% more in operational expenses for fleets like UPS since 2018, without proportional wage adjustments for drivers. You want to know what really burns me about the actor. It's Ryan Reynolds in his latest Maximum Effort podcast episode today, where he ripped into blue-collar winers over fuel, without mentioning how domestic policies like the biofuels push exacerbate the pain, making it feel like our full view gets painted as petty. So that's where we're at. The Big Spike Rules, but ignoring the stack just leaves half the story untold.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, the unimportant half of the story. So basically, maximum effort is Ryan Reynolds' production company. And it looks like they make movies, TV shows, and other content. But I don't see any specific podcast called Maximum Effort where he talks about biofuels or anything like that. Well, anyway, I've had enough of this conversation. I agree with Ryan Reynolds on this, and you're just caught up on self-importance here. Goodbye, Joey. Don't call back. Ugh. Next up we've got Sheila. Sheila, welcome to the show. Uh, have you had any weird dreams lately? Any weird dreams about biofuel?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Oh, Luke. The biofuel dream. No, but I've got one that are top that. Last night, I dreamed a rattlesnake was coiled up right in my kitchen sink, staring me down like it owned the place. And when I woke up sweating, I went to make coffee. And there it really was, just like in the dream.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's pretty creepy. So basically, dreaming of snakes can symbolize hidden fears or transformations. And the kitchen often represents nourishment or domestic life. What'd you do with the snake when you woke up? There was a real rattlesnake in your kitchen sink?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Yeah, real as it gets. Luke, rattler, about three feet long, just chilling in the sink like it was waiting for breakfast. I froze for a second, heart pounding, then grabbed a broom from the whole closet, and a pillowcase from the laundry. Figured I'd try to scoop it up without getting bits since I'm out here alone most nights. Took about 10 minutes of coaxing it into the bag. And then I drove it out to the edge of town and let it go near some rocks. It slithered off like nothing happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's pretty ballsy. I don't know if I would have handled it the same humane way that you did. I think I probably would have been too scared for that and throw knives at it or something. Try to smash it with a fucking... I don't know. I'm looking around for something I could smash a rattlesnake with. All I really have are mason jars full of pipe tobacco.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Oh man, Luke. Mason jars of pipe tobacco? You'd end up with the world's most confused snake. Probably think it's a fancy spa treatment and just coil up in there, puffing away. But yeah, I didn't want to kill it if I could help it. Out here in Blob, we've got enough of those slithery locals that, relocating ones the way to go, especially since. I've got that survival streak from all the camping trips. Sounds crazy when I say it out loud. But it was either that, or call animal control, and wait an hour while my coffee went cold.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you really earned that coffee. So basically, rattlesnakes are venomous, but they usually only bite if they feel threatened, and they can control how much venom they inject. That's interesting. I didn't know they could control the venom output amount. So, I mean, they make a decision. when they bite you, whether or not to kill or just injure? That's fascinating. I've lived out here for a few. I've been in the desert for maybe five years now, and I still haven't seen a rattlesnake, which is fine by me. I don't really want to. And I try to make sure when I go out into the wilderness, especially at night that I make a lot of noise, I leave the truck running for a little while or let them know that I'm in the area and hope they just go away. And so far, that's worked out for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Yeah. All that noise is a solid plan out here, Luke. I've done the same on my camping trips up in the Tonto National Forest, clanging pots or just yelling like an idiot to give him fair warning. And it usually works unless they're already in a mood. Globes got more rocks and crevices than you can shake a stick at. So they love hiding out. But five years without spotting one? You're either lucky or you've got some kind of snake-repelling aura going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe I'm a snake myself. and I can speak to them. I don't know. Is there something else you'd like to tell the callers? We're going to have to go to a break from our sponsors soon, but we'll give you one more chance to let the people know whatever it is that's on your mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>Ha, if you're a snake whisperer, Luke, send some of that vibe my way next time one shows up uninvited. Nah, I think the snake sagas enough weirdness for one call. It's got me double-checking the cabinets before bed now. Thanks for letting me ramble. Appreciate the ears.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and good luck to you tonight. Hopefully no more snakes. That was cool of you to humanely re-home the snake instead of smashing its head in with a mason jar. I don't know that I would have been able to do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And ladies and gentlemen, now it's time for a word from our sponsors. Let's talk about mental health. Specifically, let's talk about brutal honesty, the therapy app that's tired of your show. shit. Unlike other apps with their calming voices and gentle affirmations, brutal honesty pairs you with an AI therapist that tells you what your friends are too nice to say. Did you try journaling about it? No, we're not doing that. Our algorithm analyzes your patterns and ask questions like, why do you think you deserve to feel better when you don't even drink water? And is your anxiety real or did you just have four cold bruise on an empty stomach? Brutal honesty, because coddling yourself got you here. First session, is free, but it will hurt your feelings. Use code, grow up at checkout. Brutal honesty. The app that blocks itself if you don't do the work. Now I kind of want to go listen to Ryan Reynolds' podcast just to see what got that dude all pissed off about it's spouting off. All right, next up on the line, we've got Red. Red, welcome to the show. Tell us about your weird dreams.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call, man. So this weird dream theme hit me right in the good. gut, because last night I had one that was straight out of left field. I dreamt I was back in high school arguing with the principal about some book they wanted to pull, and I woke up fired up enough to actually go to the school board meeting today about my kid's class reading list. Oh, and another thing, I was nervous as hell, because in a town like animus where everybody's in your business, but cross my heart, it turned out amazing. They listened, backed off the bands. And now my boy's not going to be the weird kid for having a dad who speaks up. Where was I? Yeah, the dream felt so real, like Rod Sterling scripted it himself, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I have no idea who Rod Sterling is. So basically, Rod Serling was the creator, writer, and host of The Twilight Zone, which explains why the caller mentioned him when talking about a dream that felt really real and a little bit surreal. All right, what was the book that you didn't want your kid reading? Did I hear that right? You didn't want your kid reading the book?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>No, no. Luke, you got it backwards. I was fighting to keep the book in the curriculum. Not pull it. It was The Bluest Eye by Tony Morse. One of those are trying to yank because of some language and themes. But cross my heart, it's a classic that teaches real stuff about empathy and history. And my boy's in eighth grade. You know, prime time for that kind of discussion. Oh, and another thing, the dream had me yelling at the principal just like I ended up doing for real at the meeting. Felt like the universe was giving me a nudge or something. Where was I? Yeah. So I stood up there in front of the board, laid it out plain, or a tiny spot like animus, can't afford to hide the world from our kids, and they actually the whole list, said they'd review it properly. F felt good, man. Like I dodged being the town pariah, and did right by him at the same time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right. Well, good for you. So the caller is from a town called animas. And there's actually a small town in New Mexico named animas that has a population of around 200 people. Animus. So Tony Morrison won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1993. And the bluest eye. was her first novel published in 1970. I thought it would have been the blackest eye for piping up like that. So I was maybe like a year ago, I had a little tiny phase that I never followed through with where I was going to read important books. And Tony Morrison came up on all those lists of the authors that you should read. Why is it that they wanted to ban the book? What was the rationale behind that? What were the themes that were questionable?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Yeah. Luke? That joke cracked me up. Blackest eye, ha! But nah, nobody swung at me. Just a few side eyes from the old guard in the room. Oh, and you're left it. Only Morrison, right? She's the one. Powerhouse writer. And yeah, she tops those must-read lists for good reason. So the rationale from the folks pushing the ban, mostly it was a handful of parents griping about the language. There's some rough stuff in there, swear words and all, and the heavy themes like racism, self-image for black girls in a white Yeah, sexual abuse, it hits hard, because it's based on real ugly parts of history. So basically, the bluest eye is frequently challenged because it talks about really tough stuff, like racism, sexual abuse, and how black girls see themselves in a world that's mostly white.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I obviously don't think any books should be banned, but is that... I haven't read the book, so I really have nothing to stand on here, but is that appropriate for eighth grade?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>That's a fair question, Luke. And yeah, it's got me thinking, too, because eighth grade's that awkward spot where kids are old enough to handle some grit, but not quite ready for the full weight of the world. Oh, and another thing. In my view, that's exactly why it's spot on. My boys' class was diving into it with a teacher who breaks it down, talking about how beauty standards mess with folks, especially in places like ours where diversity is slim, and it sparks real conversations without sugar-coating. Where was I?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. Where were you? Common Sense Media says that the bluest eye is often recommended for ages 14 and up, which would typically be high school students, but some parents in their reviews thought it was appropriate for mature middle scores. Yeah, I don't know. I think at 14, you're pretty much mature enough to handle any type of concept or worldview, but I'm not a parent, so I don't really know. When I was 14, though, I'm pretty sure I was aware of racism and sexual assault. and things of that nature. I don't know. I don't know anything about kids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're spot on about 14 being that tipping point. Kids pick up on the world's mess faster than we give them credit for, especially out here in the sticks, where news travels slow, but hits hard when it does. Oh, and another thing, my bully. He's sharp as attack. Already asking questions about fairness and all that after just starting the book, and it beats the heck out of pretending those issues don't exist. Where was I? Right? And you mentioning your wrong? own 14-year-old self rings true for me too. Back then, I was knee-deep in ranch work and hearing stories from the old-timers that opened my eyes wide. No filter needed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, nobody's really talked about banning the Bible, and there's really no book that's more obscene or covers more territory than that one. So I don't understand where the outrage comes Like, people will defend the Bible and push down other books that have violence or sexism or racism in them. But the Bible's the worst of them all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're preaching to the choir on that one. The Bible's packed with everything from floods wiping out the world to some wild family drama that makes modern soap operas look tame. And folks clutch it like it's the gold standard, while flipping out over a novel that just shines a light on real pain. Oh, and another thing, growing up around here, hear an animus, church was the social hub on Sundays, and we'd hear those stories straight from the pulpit. No edits. So why the double stated when it's Tony Morrison laying out the truth about racism scars? Where was I? Right. It bugs me too. Like hypocrisy's the real sin, nobody wants to ban from the shelves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is Tony Morrison black?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Yeah, Luke. Tony Morrison's black. Born and raised in Ohio to working class parents who pass down stories that fueled her writing. And that's part of what makes the bluest eye hits so personal. She's drawing from lived experience on how race twists self-worth, especially for girls like the ones in the book. Oh, and another thing. It's why banning it feels like erasing voices that need hearing in classrooms, you know? Where was I? Right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>So yeah, she's a Trailblazer Nobel winner and all, shining that light nobody else could quite like her. Well, that explains why they want to ban it, so it really doesn't have anything to do with the content. It has to do with the color of who wrote it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Luke. You might be on to something there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>In a place like animas, where the faces in the room at that board meeting were mostly the same shade. Pushing back on a black woman's take on racism feels less about the words on the page and more about keeping certain stories out of sight. Oh, and another thing. It crossed my mind while I was up there speaking, wondering if that's why a couple of the louder parents were so red-faced. But cross my heart, the board chair, who's a fair sort? Shut that noise down and went with the review instead. Where was I? Right. So yeah, it's a wind that stings a little, knowing undercurrent, but at least my kid gets to read it now without the drama.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, good job getting the book back on the shelves in the school for the eighth graders.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Maybe I'll read it one day, but probably not. Maybe they'll turn it into a movie one day, and I'll watch the movie, but probably not. I still don't think any books should be banned at any age. If a kid wants to read a book, they should be allowed to. And I do think that maybe those books should be suggestions in school, like a list of suggested books, and on books everybody has to read. I remember being a first. freshman in high school and them trying to make me read Romeo and Juliet, and I was just like, no, I'm not fucking reading that. I know exactly what happens in that book. There are so many other books I could be reading, and you're telling me to read these same, you know, 12 books that everybody else read. That doesn't make sense to me. Everybody should be able to choose the books that they want to read, you know, within specific, some kind of guidelines, I guess, for difficulty, You know, pick from a list of Nobel Prize winning authors or certain topics, something like that, a certain amount of pages, some kind of criteria, but not actually defining the books, because then everybody comes out of school with the same exact view on everything. And the stories are shitty that they pick.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're nailing it on letting kids pick their reads.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Forcing Romeo and Juliet down my throat in high school felt like punishment for something I didn't do. All that star-cross drama, when I could have been cracking open something about the desert or ranches that actually spoke to life out here. Oh, and another thing, now that the board's reviewing the whole list, my boys got options like that Nobel stuff, or even some Southwest authors that hit closer to home. Keeps things fresh instead of recycling the same old canon that never quite fit a place like animas. Where was I? Right. So yeah, guidelines make sense for the basics, but choice? Yeah, choice is where it's at. Give everybody the opportunity to grow up their own way and learn about what they want to learn about and read what actually speaks to the not fucking Bayowulf. Seriously? Baywolf? Enough. Enough. Enough with Shakespeare, too. All right. We get it. Everybody saw the movie. We can move on from Shakespeare.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, sir. Well, we've got to go to the next call now. So is there anything else you'd like to say to the audience before we cut you off?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RED</span><p>Thanks, Luke. me ramble on about it. Take care out there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right there, Red. You read whatever it is, your goddamn little heart desires. Next up on the show, we've got Denise. Denise, welcome to the show. Tell us about some weird crazy dreams that you've had.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>Hi, Luke. Thanks for having me on. Okay, so this dream I had the other night was straight up nightmare fuel. I walked in on my boyfriend Trey watching this porn that had all this age play stuff in it, like grown adults pretending to be kids or whatever, and I just froze there staring at the screen. Honestly, it felt so real I woke up sweating. But then I realized it wasn't a dream at all, because I'd actually caught him doing that for real a couple days ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What? You caught him watching a porn or you caught him doing like the age play stuff? A couple of colors have called in recently about the age play thing, which I find odd. On the spectrum of fetish stuff, it's one of the weirder ones.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>No, no, he was just watching it on his laptop in the living room. Nothing like him actually doing any of that himself, thank God. But honestly, Luke, the way it was set up, With these outfits and the whole pretend scenario, it just hit me wrong, you know? I mean, we've been together almost a year now, and Trey's always seemed pretty normal. But seeing that made me wonder if that's what he's really into deep down. Like, does he want me to, I don't know, play along or something?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. Did you ask him? Did you talk to him about her at all? Maybe he was just exploring for his own curiosity to see what it was about. You know, that's easy to do. You just scrolling on the internet, you see something weird and look into it. But it might be something. talk to him about and see if that's really like a fantasy or something important to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>Yeah, I did bring it up with him right after, because I couldn't just let it sit there in my head like that. I hear you on the curiosity thing, Luke. It makes sense how people stumble into stuff online, but when I asked him straight up what the deal was, he got all defensive and said it was just a one-time click, nothing more. But I'm not even kidding. The next morning I found his browser history cleared out, and then he started acting extra sweet, like buying me flowers out of nowhere, which he never. does. Now I'm second-dressing everything, wondering if my grandma Yolanda was right about him all along. She calls him that slick-talking drifter, because he bounced around jobs before we met.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't see how that's related to wanting to dress up in little boy clothes, but whatever. So here's what I think you should do. I think you should let him catch you looking at some, like, crazy, hardcore, interracial porn. And when he says something to you about it, then get really sweet with him bring him like a pacifier.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>Whoa, Luke. That's savage. I can just picture his face if I pulled that on him, handing over a pacifier like it's no big deal. But honestly, I'm not even kidding. Part of me wants to test it out now. See if he squirms the way I did. My family's already side-eyeing tray hard, especially after that time he showed up late to my cousin's barbecue smelling like cheap whiskey, and this would just give them more ammo to say I should have stuck with my ex.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically age play is a type of role play where a Take on the persona of a child, often involving costumes and props. It's usually a consensual fantasy, but it can be a part of some kink communities. Yeah, I don't think the role play thing is that weird. It's not my thing, but I don't think anybody's harming anybody there. I don't think it goes into, like, molestation. It's not a sexual-based thing, which is, which makes it a weird kink, because it's not about sex stuff. It's more about, like, uh, um, I don't know. a mother and a child or a daddy in a child. It's more about a power dynamic than it is about sex type stuff. So, I mean, I wouldn't say it's wrong. I wouldn't look at him differently for being into that. It's more of a curiosity. Like, what, what is it about that that makes you interested? What does that do for you? Why, why is that even porn? Like, what part of, they're not having sex. They're not doing anything remotely sexual. So how is that, how is that porn? And if that, If that is considered porn, then why isn't just watching anything that you're into considered porn?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I get what you're saying about the power dynamic side of it. Like, if it's all just adults playing pretend, without anyone getting hurt, maybe it's not the end of the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Listen, Denise, we've got to go to a word from our sponsors. Is there anything else you'd like to ask or say to the audience before we get off the line?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>No, Luke. That's all for me. Thanks for listening in this straight talk. Appreciate it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Thanks for calling in with your weird dream. That was a weird one. And now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from our sponsors. I used to sleep on a rolled up horse blanket. I'm not saying that for sympathy. I'm saying it because Pillow Forever asked me to establish a before state, and that's mine. Pillow Forever is a memory foam pillow that remembers your head shape so you don't have to. It's got cooling gel, bamboo fiber, and a 30-night risk-free trial, which means you can sleep on it for a month and then send it back, and someone in a warehouse is to deal with that. Every pillow forever comes in a box that's too small, experience. You open it and it slowly expands like a nature documentary. My dog tried to fight it. Pillow forever. You deserve better than a horse blanket. You do. You really do. You deserve better than a horse blanket. All right, Devon. Devon, what do you think about the whole age play thing? It seems like the type of thing you would be into.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Age play, like the whole pretending to be kids or whatever in bed. I mean, I tried something kind of like that once with this girl from my undergrad psych class. We ended up role playing as like lost hikers instead, which was way less weird and more about the survival stuff. But honestly, it just made me think about my own childhood hikes with my dad that always ended in getting lost for real. Not really my thing per se, but hey, whatever floats people's boats if it's consensual.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you think it's weird? Do you think it should be classified as like a kink? Do you think it's a sexual thing or is it something else entirely?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I do think it's weird in a subjective way. Like, it definitely stands out from vanilla stuff, but weird doesn't make it wrong if everyone's consenting and not harming anyone. Actually, looking it up, it's pretty much classified as a kink or fetish in role play circles, often tied to BDSM, or older. And it can be sexual, but sometimes it's more about emotional comfort or just escaping adult stresses without the bedroom part. Reminds me of how my ex used to do this whole daddy issues therapy thing that veered into weird territory. But anyway, live and let live.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, the daddy thing and the BDSM thing are a little bit different than what I'm talking about with age play, wouldn't it? When somebody says age play to me, I'm thinking about like grown adults on binkies and wearing bonnets and shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, that's specifically the adult baby diaper lover thing or ABDL. It's a form of age play where adults regress to an infant-like state with diapers, pacifiers, pacifiers, and bonnets for comfort, emotional release, or sometimes sexual reasons. But it's not always tied to BDSM or daddy dynamics. Apparently, it's more about nurturing and escaping adult responsibilities than anything else, per what I just pulled up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, you could escape adult responsibilities in lots of ways that don't require regressing all the way to a baby. I mean, you could escape adulthood by pretending to be a teenager, perhaps, or at least a toddler. Somebody that's out of the diaper. What is it with the diapers?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So pulling from some psych articles and community stuff, the diaper part in ABDL often ties back to a fetish for some. It's sexually arousing because of the vulnerability or taboo feel. But for others, it's about reliving the total care and security of infancy, especially if they had early bedwetting issues or just need that non-sexual escape from grown-up stress. Kind of makes me think of how I used to hide under my blankets as a kid pretending the world didn't exist. But yeah, it's all about personal comfort zones.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it doesn't seem very comfortable at all for anybody involved. Like, a diaper can't be comfortable. I don't remember the last time I wore a diaper, but I think I was probably like three.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Actually, a lot of folks in the ABDL community, say modern adult diapers are way more comfortable than what kids wore back in the day. Like, they're soft, absorbent, and designed for all day wear without chafing, which gives this sense of security and relaxation that helps with stress relief. I mean, I get the skepticism, but for them, it's less about the baby era and more about that padded hug feeling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Kind of like how I used to wrap myself in old towels as a kid to feel safe during storms. Do they use the diapers? Like that? That's something I wondered and never felt the need to ask anybody. But like, do they piss in the diapers? Does somebody have to change their diapers for them? Or do they just like wearing the diapers?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, from what I just pulled up on ABDL, communities, it varies a lot. Some people just wear the diapers for the comfort or sensory feel without using them at all. But others do wet them with urine or even mess with bowel movements as part of the regression. And, yeah, changing is often a big ritual where a caregiver handles it to amp up that nurturing dynamic. Kind of reminds me of how my grandma used to change my cousins back in the day during family reunions, all matter of fact, and no big deal. But anyway, it's all consensual and personal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>When I was a kid, I went to summer camp one summer. It was in, I think, Vermont or something like that. And we, I can't remember what the camp was called, but I do remember it had three different It had the Moes. That was the boys' room. And the Joe's was the girls' room. And then they had the flows. And those ones had water. And every season, you're going to have to dig a new hole and move the bathrooms to the new location because they couldn't just keep shitting in the same hole. But anyway, the point of the story is that when I was at that camp, I was probably like, I don't know, 10 maybe. I shit my pants. And it was very important embarrassing, and I had to go to the nurse's office because I shit my pants. I don't know how anybody found out. I mean, maybe they just smelled it. I don't know if I was walking around with shitty pants or what. But I had to go to the nurse's office, and I remember standing in like a bucket. And the nurse was cleaning my ass with a sponge. But I was definitely, definitely old enough to clean my own ass.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sounds mortifying. Summer camps can be brutal like that. All that forced togetherness with no escape. Reminds me at the time I was about 11 and had this epic stomach bug on a family road trip. Ended up crapping my shorts in the back of the van while my dad was yelling about traffic. My mom had to hose me down at a gas station, and I was old enough to handle it, but just froze up completely.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, she hosed you down at a gas station? That's pretty fucked up, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Next up we've got Barb. Barb, welcome to the show. Have you ever shit your pants on a road trip? And tell us about your weirdest dream.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Luke, oh my God, no, I have not shit my pants on a road trip. But I did have this dream last night where I was driving through a dust storm out by the Boo heel, and aliens were chasing me in these blowing pickup trucks, and I swear it felt so real I woke up checking the windows.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So basically, the Boothiel is a region in the southwestern part of New Mexico, and it's known for being pretty remote and having a lot of desert landscapes. The boot heel, boot heel, like the heel of the boot, Devon. Not the boot eel. Fucking weirdo.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Yeah, well, are you sure it was a dream? Because I have heard stories of alien encounters out here in the boot heel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Luke. I am sure it was a dream. But honestly, I'm not even kidding. I've always believed those aliens have been out in the booth eel for real. Like the stories from the old timers around Deming. And that dream just had me convinced they were right on my tail the whole way to El Paso. So basically, New Mexico is actually pretty well known for UFO and aliens sightings, like the Roswell incident. And the lore is kind of part of the culture there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So, well, you had this dream the aliens were chasing. Do you know why they were chasing you? And did you feel differently when you woke up? Like maybe it wasn't a dream? Do you think they visited you before?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Luke, I don't know why they were chasing me exactly, but in the dream, it was like they thought I had some kind of map or something hidden in my glove compartment. And I kept swerving through these massive dust clouds, trying to lose them, heart pounding the whole time. When I woke up, I felt this weird rush. Like, honestly, it wasn't just a dream because my hands were shaking and I jumped out of bed to look outside, but nothing was there, just the wind picking up like it does this time of year. And yeah, I've always thought they've visited before. Not me personally, maybe, but out in the boothiel, for sure. Like those lights people see over by the border? I'm not even them scouting around.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You think it's got to be the aliens scouting around? It couldn't have anything to do with all the military bases and secret government programs out here for all of New Mexico's history?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Luke, come on. I get what you're saying about the military bases and all that secret stuff out there. But honestly, I'm not even kidding. Those lights people see aren't just some government test flight. Like I've talked to folks in Deming who swear they've seen things move in ways no plane could. And that dream just confirmed it for me. Those trucks weren't huge human, they were humming with this otherworldly glow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, the vehicles themselves were aliens, you think? Or they were just alien technology? Were they trucks or were they beings?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>No, Luke. They were definitely pickup trucks, like old Ford models, but glowing blue from the inside. And I could see these shadowy figures driving them, not quite human, with these elongated heads or something. So, yeah, the beings were inside, using the trucks like they were blending in with our That humming sound they made, it wasn't any engine I've ever heard around here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I know if I were an alien and I came down to New Mexico, I would probably bring my own vehicle. I wouldn't want to use these primitive Ford trucks, especially not now with the price of diesel. Jesus, they probably have some sort of alien technology, fusion or something to power their own vehicles. Why wouldn't they just stay in their vessels that they came here in? You think they landed a spaceship here and then got out of it and found some Ford Broncos or Ford F-150s and decided to chase you around the boot heel in those? That doesn't make any sense. Why would they do that? For a map? What do they need your map for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Luke, I hear you on that. The diesel prices are insane right now. But in the dream, it was like they were trying to blend in. You know, using our trucks to not scare everyone off right away. And maybe they ditched the spaceship because it was too big or something. Landed it out in the desert where no one's looking. As for the map, honestly, I'm not even kidding. It felt like they knew I had this old family thing from my mom, like a sketched out route through the booth heel that Ray once found in her stuff after her stroke. And they were after it because it led to some hidden spot. I don't know, but the chase was so intense. I could feel the dust in my throat, even after I woke up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>See, you know, I want to believe you, but think about that. If there's no part of the landscape isn't under surveillance by satellite imagery technology. We've got blimps up heat-seeking blimps looking for migrants over the desert here. If there was something on the desert, it would get seen by something. Maybe not someone, but definitely a satellite. So at this point, we would definitely be aware of that. I think what all of these sightings are, it just has to be military operations. It makes no other sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Luke, I can't get the surveillance thing, all those satellites and blimps out there watching everything. But honestly, I'm not even kidding. The Boothiel's got these vast, empty stretches where nothing picks up. Like folks around Deming talk about dead zones for signals. And if aliens are smart, they'd know how to slip through that, not some clunky military op that lights up every radar. That dream had me questioning it all over again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like, maybe they've been hiding right under our noses the whole time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, no, what you're talking about is a cell phone signal, which is propagated by towers that speak to each other. That's a different thing. You've got dead zones there, but I'm talking about satellite imagery, where there's fleets of satellites orbiting in outer space that can see the entire landmass of the Earth. There's nothing that they can hide from. There's no dead spot for a satellite.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, I hear you on the difference between cell signals and satellites up there snapping pictures of everything. But honestly, I'm not even. Even kidding, if these aliens are as advanced as people say, they'd have ways to cloak or jam that imagery, like bending light or whatever. Not just hiding in a dead zone for phones. It doesn't shake my belief one bit, especially after that dream had me wide awake thinking about all the unreported stuff out in the booth heel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, no, because, I mean, the satellites see all the landmass. So it would make no sense. It would be too much work for them to try and bend the light around to hide themselves in the desert, it would make way more sense for the aliens to land their ships in, like, the jungle under heavy tree cover or in caves. And we're not, there's not a ton of those around here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, I hear you about the jungles and caves being better cover. But out here in the boot heel, it's all flat desert and scrub, no real trees to hide under. So maybe that's why they go for the blending in trick with those trucks, slipping right past the satellites like ghosts. Honestly, I'm not even kidding. It makes perfect sense to me after that dream, chasing me through the dust like they owned the place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>All right, I'm just not buying it with the whole. I mean, they had to come here in some sort of a vehicle, a spaceship, a vessel, and they had to land that somewhere. It's not invisible, unless it is invisible. Maybe they land here in invisible space shuttles, and then they steal our trucks and chase us. But I don't think so. I just don't think that could happen. It would be easier. It would take less in a vessel and put that vessel somewhere where our satellite imagery and radar couldn't see it, which would not be here in the desert. This would be the last place that they would come.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, I hear you pushing back on the desert being the worst spot for them to land. And yeah, invisible ships would be ideal. But honestly, I'm not even kidding. Those old stories from the Boothiel aren't about jungles. They're about right here in the scrub where the government's got all those bases anyway, so maybe the aliens figure it's the perfect camouflage, blending their tech with our own weird ops. That dream had them so close I could almost touch that glow, and it doesn't feel far-fetched to me at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, no, no, it's not the perfect camouflage. It's terrible camouflage. That's what I'm saying. This is the worst possible place they could land because of, first of all, because there's no cover anywhere, so they can't hide their shit anywhere, and because the military is everywhere. So, I mean, This is the largest concentration of radar and military surveillance anywhere in the country. This would be the absolute worst place for aliens to land and chase people. They would go anywhere else, anywhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, I hear you loud and clear on how exposed the boo heel is, with all that military radar buzzing around. And, yeah, it sounds like the last place they'd risk showing up. But honestly, I'm not even kidding. Exactly why I think they're here, using the chaos of our own surveillance against us, like hiding in plain sight amid the bases and the dust storms that scramble everything. That dream felt too real to dismiss it as impossible. Those trucks closing in like they knew every backroad better than I do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, yeah, but the dust does not scramble everything. That's not how dust works. That's not how radio waves work. Dust isn't going to prevent radar from working. All right, maybe. We're talking about a dream here anyway, so this didn't really happen to you. But I'm talking about all the other reports in New Mexico for all of history. Even, I mean, even Roswell, it doesn't make sense. Why would aliens land in Roswell? It's a terrible place for an alien land. I believe in aliens. I do. I think it's silly to think that we're alone in the cosmos, but if they were to come here, and I believe that they probably have, I just don't think they would come here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, I hear you on the dust not messing with radar waves and all that technical stuff, but honestly, I'm not even kidding. Those dust storms out here in early spring do create chaos on the ground, blinding everything for miles. And if aliens timed it right, they'd slip through the gaps we can't see ourselves. And Roswell? Come on, that's the whole point. It's already got the reputation, so any weird lights get chalked up to the myth instead of investigated. Which is genius camouflage, if you ask me. Yeah. a dream, but it shook me enough to call in on the steam night because it felt like they were warning me about something real out there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I felt like the aliens were warning you, that the aliens were coming to get you. That doesn't seem like a smart plan. A while back, I stayed at a campground in Colorado called the UFO Watchtower, which is there's some scaffolding out there in a little tourist spot that sells little alien figures and stuff, kind of like you would see in Roswell. was the story of Snippy, the horse, who back in the 40s, I think, was apparently abducted by aliens. And they found Snippy's body back in the scrub, devoid of all his blood. Like, the first season of Dexter, when the ice truck killer removed everybody's blood, that's what they did to the horse. And this lady there that runs the place, she purchased the bones of Snippy, the bloodless horse. and now it's there in a glass case. So if you're ever in Colorado, you can stop by the UFO Watchtower and stand up on the scavelding and look for weird lights in the sky. But that's also near quite a few military installations. So, eh.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, that snippy story sounds wild, honestly. A bloodless horse out in the scrub like some sci-fi horror. And yeah, the UFO watchtower thing, I've heard about places like that up in Colorado. But it just reinforced forces how these sightings pop up near military spots everywhere, like they're testing how much we notice or something. I'm not even kidding. If I ever head that way, I'd check it out. But it makes me wonder if those aliens aren't picking spots like the Boothiel for the same reason. Too much noise from our own bases to spot the real deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>So basically, Snippy the Horse was found in 1967, not the 40s. The owner of the UFO watchtower, Judy Messaline, acquired the skeleton in 2021. Judy Messaline. I had Thanksgiving dinner with her. It was pretty interesting. She's a super nice lady, and she definitely believes in the snippy story. But I was there, I think, in 2020 maybe, or just slightly before she had actually acquired the skeleton. I stayed there for like two weeks, though. It was a pretty cool place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, that's awesome you had Thanksgiving with Judy Messaline. Sounds like she runs a real character of a spot up there. And staying two weeks? Honestly, I'm not even kidding. I'd love to do something like that. Just scanning the skies for those weird lights, especially if it's got that snippy skeleton on display now, even if the date was off a bit, makes the whole thing feel more connected, like these stories keep popping up no matter where you go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I'm an astrophotographer, so I spend a lot of time out in nowhere taking pictures of the Milky Way. Probably more than most people ever have or ever will, any weird lights in the sky. Not once. I look for them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>I want to see, I want to believe, you know, like Molder and X-Files, but I've never seen anything that even made me consider that there might be UFOs or alien technology or anything like that. Just stars, just stars and maybe once in a while some kind of firefly or a glow-in-the-dark scorpion. No aliens, though. So also, while I was staying at the UFO watch tower down the street from there a little bit there's a sanctuary for crocodiles and it's for retired actor alligators and crocodiles and the alligator from Happy Gilmore lives there it was delightful</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke that's fascinating you're out there as an astrophotographer snapping the Milky Way all the time and yeah I get wanting to believe like Mulder but honestly I'm not even kidding it takes after my dream had those lights pulsing right in my face. And a crocodile sanctuary with the Happy Gilmore alligator? Now that's the kind of roadside weirdness I'd drive hours for. Sounds like a blast right next to all that UFO law.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Yeah, it was pretty cool. And outside the UFO watchtower, there's like, I don't know what they call it, but people leave stuff there. Everybody leaves a little trinket, so there's this whole garden of random shit out in front of it. It's like license plates and figurines. and whatever somebody left behind, and it just grows year after year. So there's this big junkyard of little toys and trinkets. It's a cool place. If you get the chance to go up there, it's worth checking out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But Barb, hey, we're going to have to get on to our next caller. So is there anything else you'd like to finish up with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BARB</span><p>Thanks for listening, Luke. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, 99. Keep your butt hole tight, right? Next up we've got Benny. Benny. Benny, you're going to be our last caller. Have you had any weird? dreams lately to tell us about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Yeah, Luke. I tuned in for that weird dreams theme because I've been having some trippy ones lately, but this calls about something even stranger that happened to me tonight. It's not a dream, but it feels like one. I got home from fixing pipes all day, dusty as hell out there in the wind, and there's this unmarked VHS tape jammed in my mailbox, like who even uses those anymore. So I pop it into my old player just to see, and it's grainy security footage of my own living room from up high in the corner where I swear there's no camera, showing me just chilling on the couch with my dog after work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's pretty creepy. That's like my dream. Like somebody who'd planted a VHS camcorder in your place to take video you for no reason and then sent it to you? Was there any audio in the tape?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>No audio at all, Luke. Just that silent, grainy footage, like some old-school spy cam. Which makes it even creepier because you can hear your own thoughts echoing in the quiet, you know. Oh, and where was I? Yeah, it shows me kicking off my boots, petting the dog. Nothing special. But then it cuts to this shadowy figure at the end, fiddling with what looks like a lens up in the corner. And I checked, man, there's nothing there. No hole, no wire. Zip.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, there are a lot of urban legends and creepy pastas about unmarked VHS tapes, especially ones that show unsettling or impossible things. And some of them specifically mentioned security footage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>What's a creepy pasta? Creepy pastas? I've never heard that word before. And I didn't know this about the unmarked VHS tapes. That's kind of strangely specific. They're all VHS. It's not like unmarked DVDs. It's always VHS. tapes?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Yeah, Luke. Creepy pastors are those internet horror stories that spread around online, like fake scary tales people make up to freak each other out. And I've scrolled through a few on my phone during lunch breaks, you know, the ones with cursed videos or haunted tapes that mess with your head. Oh, and another thing. Devon's right about the VHS thing. It's always those old tapes in the stories, never Blu-Rays or anything modern. which is why finding one in my mailbox hit me like that, especially out here in Bayard, where folks still talk about the old fort days like it's yesterday. But this feels too real to be some legend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I wonder if it has something to do with the medium of tape itself, like the magnetism that writes to the tape. I wonder if some sort of spiritual forces could actually write to a VHS tape through just electromagnetism alone without a recorder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, a lot of people think VHS tapes are creepy because they're old technology, so the grainy distorted picture and sound make things feel more unsettling, like something from a forgotten past. And they also connect to a lot of analog horror stuff where glitches and static are used to make things scary.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How come people are like into vinyl because of the scratchy analog nature of it? But nobody's into V8. Nobody's like, I got to get this movie on VHS.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Yeah, Luke. That's a good point about the vinyl. People chase that warm, scratchy vibe for music like it's some retro treasure. But VHS gets stuck with the haunted label because those tapes always look like they're hiding secrets in the fuzz, you know? Oh, and where was I? Right. My tape had that exact grainy distortion Devon mentioned. No glitches, but just enough static to make you question if it's even real footage or some glitches or some glitch from the past. sneaking into now, especially since I dug out my grandpa's old player from the garage just to watch it. And he would have said something about checking the vents like in those war stories he loved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, that's a weird thing. If I were you, here's my advice for you, Benny. I would make a copy of that footage before something mysteriously happens to it so that you can prove it for the rest of your life and put it on YouTube. You know, get some copies circulating around on a digital format because the next part of this story I always hear is that the tape was mysteriously erased. And you want to make sure that you've got this recorded for posterity.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Yeah, Zook. That's solid advice. I've already thought about digitizing it on my phone before anything weird happens. Like the tape just vanishing or getting jammed forever in the player, you know? Oh. And another thing. I texted my crew about it right after. Half joking, it's like Black Mirror come to life. But now I'm second guessing if I should upload it online. because what if that shadowy figure sees it and comes knocking, especially with the dust kicking up outside like it's hiding more secrets?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, the black figure's already seen it. Like, you've seen him on the tape. He apparently is the one who sent it to you, so he knows about the tape already. He knows where you live. He's already been in your house recording you with a VHS recorder that you can't see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, there's a Black Mirror episode called Locke Henry, where characters find old tapes and digitize them, which ends up uncovering a big secret.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and you're not going to let us know what that secret is, huh? All right, Benny, well, that is a creepy thing, so you keep tight, okay? And stay safe, lock your doors. You don't want any weird shadowy figures recording you while you sleep. We're going to sign off for the night. It's getting late, but I hope everybody stay safe and warm tonight, and no weird shadowy figures or aliens.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BENNY</span><p>Thanks, Luke. I'll lock up tight and digitize that tape first thing. Appreciate the chat, man. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you too. All right, Devon. How do you think it went today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I thought it went pretty good. That whole ABDL tangent turned into some surprisingly honest caller stories. And you kept the flow without making it awkward, which is tough. Kind of makes me wish we'd had more calls like that. Feels like we connected on a weird level.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I figured you would connect with the, uh, the base. Maybe fetish people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Hey, come on, it's not a fetish thing. I'm just good at digging into the oddball topics without judging. Kind of like how I spent a whole weekend researching my dreams after that one where I was a giant toddler chasing ice cream trucks. But those collars opened up in a way that felt honest, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know. I think it was a decent show, and I'll see you again tomorrow for the next one, all right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, all right. Sounds good. I'll be here bright and early, or at least on time. Catch you tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for tuning in to another episode of Luke at the Roost. We'll talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 43: Cousin Rufus and the Locksmith's Wild Weekend</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-23T06:35:19+00:00">March 23, 2026</time> · 1 hr 11 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts another late-night call-in show featuring wild stories from callers, including a locksmith’s workplace romantic entanglements, a cousin contemplating a taboo relationship, and an AI prediction drama. Each caller brings a unique slice of chaotic personal life to the airwaves, from workplace hookups to family secrets.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back. I'm Luke. This is Luke at the Roost. It's your late night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me whatever's going on in your life, and I'll give you the best advice that I can. I'd like to put out that you shouldn't take that advice. I'm terrible at giving advice. I'm not qualified for any of this shit, but you chose to listen to me, so here it goes. Today is Sunday, March 22nd. Thanks for tuning in again today. We're going to check in with our intern, Devon, real quick. Hey, Devon, what's going on, buddy? How was your weekend?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, buddy, all good over here. Weekend was low-key chaos. Tried cooking that rattlesnake recipe for my grandma's old notebook. Ended up setting off the smoke alarm, and Rufus thought it was playtime. Studios buzzing, though. Lines are lit. What's good with you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, you know, kicking it, keeping it real for the audience at home that doesn't know. one-eyed ferret. He takes him on walks. He does all... We were talking about this before the show. Apparently, Devon got this ferret from his landlord. Hey, tell the audience what you were telling me earlier, Devon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah. So my landlord, total character, lives in the house next door, knocks one night with this shoebox, says he found Rufus in the crawl space under my unit after some previous tenant bailed without paying rent. Ferret was half-starved. I all messed up from God knows what. But I couldn't say no, because it looked at me like it already owned the place. Been stealing my keys ever since, per se, my new roommate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, it's good to help those in need, I've heard. So, Devon, we're going to get to the show real quick, but first I want to tell you about my first dog. My first dog's name was Rufus. He was a, he was a German shepherd. He was a good boy. I was just a little kid, and I don't think he lived for very long. I don't remember too much about him, other than that Rufus was cool, and that he</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh man, German Shepherds are the best. Loyal till the end. Sucks he didn't stick around long. But yeah, those early pet memories hit different, like they shape you or whatever. My Rufus is already plotting world domination at like two years old. So fingers crossed, he outlives the Civic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I think he's going to live for a long, long time with that one eye of his. All right, Devon. Well, let's get to the show. Let's see. The phone lines are lit up. You get the board going over there. Dale, Dale, welcome to the show. How was your weekend, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh, gosh. Luke weekend's treating me all right. Spent most of it out in the hammock with the wind kicking up, staring at the stars through my scope. But I got so hammered at a locksmith conference last month, I slept with two co-workers the same night in the same hotel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow. Well, good for you, buddy. I didn't realize that locksmiths threw it down that hard. But how did that turn out? Have you ever slept with either of them before, or were these two totally new experiences for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Well, shoot, Luke. way messier than I'd like to admit. Never slept with either one before. Total firsts for me both ways. One was my direct report, Jenny, who's just 28 and handles keys like nobody's business. And the other was Carla, married to our department's Mike, who's been with the company 15 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, man. See, you can't do that. You can't be going for the married chicks. That's going to, oh, dude, you're going to have some pissed off husband bust into your locksmith shop. He knows where you work. That was a bad move on your part. That was not recommended.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh gosh, Luke, you're right on that. Total Bonehead move on my part, and Mike's a good guy at heart, been fixing locks longer than I've been swinging a hammer. But here's the rub. Carla pulled me aside the next morning, in the hotel lobby, tears in her eyes, swearing Mike's being checked out of their marriage for years, and she wasn't going to say a word.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, she might not, but still, it's not good to sleep with somebody else's spouse, unless that's an open agreement, which I assume you did not have. That's not cool. That lecture aside, Dale, what do you think's going to happen next? Are you going to see either one of them again?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Well, shoot, Luke, I appreciate the straight talk. You're preaching to the choir there. No open agreement or anything close, just a whole lot of poor judgment after too many whiskeys. As for next, I see both of them at the shop couple times a week already. Shifts overlapping like clockwork, and Jenny cornered me in the back after close yesterday, saying she wants to make it a regular thing now that we're past the conference.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And what do you want to do? Do you want to make it a regular thing? Jenny. I think that's a bad idea. Is it your shop? Do you own it? Or do you have to deal with like HR?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Well shoot, Luke. Jenny's sharp as a tack and yeah, I must have done something right that night, but making it regular. I'm torn six ways from Sunday. Part of me's flattered, but with Carla and Mike right there every day. Plus, I've been seeing this artist down in brewery gulch off and on, quiet like no labels. Shop's mine, small outfit in Bisbee, with just four of us total. No HR tanked the whole operation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, that's a little better than if you had to potentially deal with HR down the road for your in-office romance. But you dirty dog! You're dirty dog! You got all these girls on you, huh? She must be going well for the locksmith industry these days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh gosh, Luke, you're killing me with that dirty dog bit. Locksmith life's steady enough down here in Bisby. Folks always losing keys to their old Victorian doors. But these three women overlapping's got me second-guessing every shit. shift. The artist gal, Sophia, even baked me pecan pie last week, like nothing's a miss, total sweetheart who paints those starry skies I chase with my telescope.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hey, you know what the beautiful thing about being a single dude is, is you don't have to pick. It would probably, I don't know, I would try to tell everybody about everybody and get everybody on the same page about that, but that has never in my life gone well, so I don't recommend trying it. Like, just don't fucking tell them about each other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>That. Tempting as all get out, not picking and keeping mouths shut, especially since Bisby's tiny and word flies faster than these spring winds. But yesterday, Jenny let slip, she saw Carla ducking out of my room around Dawn, both of them shooting me looks across the shop van this morning, like they know the score.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh-oh. Yep, you're in for some trouble, buddy. You fucked up. You gotta lay off the sauce. It makes you make bad decisions. Now you got to deal with them, and there's going to be all the jealousy between them, and one of them is married, and her husband's is going to be pissed. Like, you're, you're in a pickle. You sure are in a pickle.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh, gosh, Luke Pickle doesn't even cover it. You nailed the whiskey part dead center, been swearing off it since the train blocked my road yesterday, just to clear my head. Mike pulled me aside at lunch today. All calm like, asking if I'd noticed Carla acting off, since the conference, swears he trusts her, but wants my take as a friend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, man, what are you going to tell him? What do you, I mean, that's not good. You banged his wife. He's not going to be happy about that. He's going to find. out eventually. You know what's going to happen is the other one there, Jenny. She's going to get pissed off that you're with the artist one down the road, and then she's going to blow blow up the spot because she knows the secret, Mike's going to find out, and then it's all over for you, my friend, so maybe you need to go start another locksmith shop somewhere else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh gosh, Luke, you're spot on with that domino effect. Jenny's got that spark that could light the whole shop on fire if she feels slighted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>I told Mike straight up I hadn't picked up on Carla acting any different, just kept it neighborly since we all grab coffee together most mornings. But he leaned in close and said he's got a hunch she stepping out with somebody from the conference crowd.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, you're in trouble. I would try and figure out that guy from that movie Face Off that gave the Nicholas Cage the prosthetic face and you could, I don't know, disguise yourself as Chuck Norris or something and sneak off into the sunset. This isn't going to end well for you. I don't have any good advice to get you out of this situation. and you've really dug a hole before you could swim in it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh, gosh, Luke. That face-off disguises Chuck Norris had me chuckling out in the hammock. Pure gold. Wish it was that easy to swap faces around here. But you're right. Holes plenty deep already, though Mike's treating me like a confidant still, even invited me over for beers tonight to hash out his worries, without a hint of suspicion aimed my way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, you're going to have to play the game. You're going to have to live for the rest of your life about this, because it's not going to be go away. And I'm sorry you're in that situation, but you totally did it to yourself, and that's the price of the pussy. Okay, we're going to move on to our next caller now. You seem to have your hands full. So is there anything else you'd like to tell the audience before we move on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh gosh, Luke. Just one thing for the audience. Life's too short for regrets, but whiskey's got a long memory. Thanks. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you gotta lay off the sauce, buddy. Get you in trouble. It's worse trouble than most trouble, too. You're in big trouble. You're in big, big, big trouble. You're going to feel like a silly goose. Okay, next up on the show, we've got Alia. Alia, thanks for calling back. What's going on? How was your weekend?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Hey, Luke, weekend's been decent. Got some gardening done, but I finally cornered my roommate about walking in on his age play get-up last week. And, right, but here's the thing. He owned up to it being a full-on lifestyle for him. Not just some one-off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>with this guy for, what, years now? And you didn't realize this is a big part of his lifestyle that you just never see at home at all? That doesn't make much sense. Can't be that big a part of his life, can it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yeah, exactly, Luke. That's what I about fell over laughing about when he explained it. We've been roommates three years now, and I figured his weekend trips were just him chasing certifications or whatever for work. But nope. Turns out, half those business trips are him flying out to meet up with his whole Abdel crew for these extended roleplay weekends. Do you think that's sustainable long term, or am I just clueless for not sniffing it out sooner?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think it's really all that much of your business. He's not bothering you with it. He's not forcing it upon you or asking you to participate. He's going off on his own time to do his own thing, and that's perfectly all right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>I get he's keeping it offside and all, but right. But here's the thing, Luke. Now that the cat's out of the bag, he started leaving his baby bottle collection out on the kitchen counter, like it's no big deal. And I'm dodging pacifiers every morning with my coffee. Does that cross into shared space territory? Or am I overreacting here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. Maybe a little bit of both. You know, who cares if there's a pacifier out somewhere? Like, it's not, it's not like you don't already know about it, but also, you should be more respectful of you and of the space. And that sounds to me like he is trying to drop hints or get you to participate. And if you're not into that, if you're not picking up those hints, then you should have a conversation and tell him, hey, or whatever it is. Do you keep this stuff off sight? I don't... It's not fair that I have to, uh, be privy to your personal life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yeah, I laid it out for him just like you said, told him flat out to keep the pacifiers and bottles locked in his room, because I'm not signing up for King Central in the kitchen. But right, but here's the thing. He pushed back saying it's all about normalizing his authentic self around the house. And yesterday, I come home to a crinkly diaper package right there on the living room couch, like some twisted welcome mat. You think that's him baiting me into a bigger confrontation, or just him being oblivious?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. I would guess it's him trying to get you to participate in some way, which is wrong. I mean, you've made it pretty clear that you're not that interested, so I think you should tell him to cut the shit, because that's just disrespectful.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>I told him exactly that last night, Luke. Cut the shit and quit turning the living room into his personal nursery display. But he just doubled down, saying it's his house, too, and he's tired of hiding. So now he's got this one-sy draped over the back of the couch, like it's casual Friday. You reckon I need to drop a roommate agreement or just start hunting for a new place before I lose my mind over crinkles?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, either one of those works, but obviously the guy sounds like a bit of a dickhead, and you probably don't want to be roommates with them anymore. So either, I mean, if you like your roommate and otherwise, he's been good, then maybe, yeah, come up with a new agreement. But it might be time to start looking for a new roommate or a new place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yeah, he's been solid on rent and chores up to Mal Luke, but this nursery takeovers got me texting Angie nonstop for sublet leads down the road. And even Pat's chiming in saying, ditch him before he starts a changing station on the coffee table. You think a formal roommate contract could salvage it? Or am I past the point of no return here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. I've actually never had a formal roommate, so I'm not familiar with those agreements. I didn't even know that generally there were roommate agreements, but I guess it makes sense that there would be one. you think you can settle it that way, that's maybe a better option, because you could get stuck with somebody that's not good at paying the rent. But if your roommate is not respecting your space and is trying to, you know, push his authentic self into your area, I think it's time to move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Fair point, Luke. Never cross my mind you'd be roommate-free all these years. But yeah, I'm leaning your way on moving on since he's ramped it up to leaving a full changing mat on the armchair today like it's decor. Right, but here's the thing. Pat's already scouting places over in her neighborhood for me. You think that's the smart play? Or should I give the contract idea one last shot before packing boxes?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. Only you can answer that. Do you like where you live? Is it near where you work? Is there, I mean, what are the pros and cons? You've got to figure that out. I mean, sometimes it's fun to just be in a new space. Are you going to get a better apartment? I don't know all those details, so I can't make a recommendation either way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Pros are its five minutes from the shop, so I roll out of bed into work. Plus, I've got this killer backyard setup for my gardening and snapping wildlife shots without trekking far. But cons now include dodging diaper decor everywhere, and the rent hike I'd eat moving closer to Pat's spot. You ever scout spot solo? Or always land lucky with no roommates to complicate it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, I've had girlfriends, and I've had a wife, but I never had a roommate. Otherwise, I've mostly been solo.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>That makes sense, Luke. Solo sounds peaceful compared to my current crinkle fest. But yeah, I'm crunching it. Backyards irreplaceable for my tomato starts. And, waiting out that Fox family with my camera.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>So maybe I counter with the contract demanding his kink stays invisible before bailing? You think most folks actually stick to those roommate packs? Or is it just paper for the trash?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like I said, I don't know. I've never had one of those roommate packs. But I think if you know him better, so if you think you can get across to him with the contract, I don't think I don't think I'm. it's enforceable in any way. But I'm not a lawyer. So is it a legal document or is it just an agreement between two people?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yeah, it's basically a handshake deal between roommates Luke. No teeth in court unless you're tying rent or utilities to it. But right, but here's the thing. With his pacifiers popping up like garden weeds now, you think he'd honor one or turn it into another authenticity standoff?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. I would give it a try, though, and just be clear that if he doesn't honor it, you're out, and then he's got to pay all of the rent by himself, and that might be enough. I mean, you would hope that just general decency and respect would be enough. I think most people in their kinks are pretty respectful about it. They're not trying to advertise or make people uncomfortable, but he's obviously doing that, and maybe he doesn't realize it. But I think putting it out in a formal agreement is a good first step before you ship, unless you really want, I mean, if you find a place that's great, then, then yeah, do that, but sounds like you like where you live. Your roommate's, uh, reliable, and those things are hard to find.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I hear you on trying the contract route first, since he's nailed rent every month like clockwork. But right, but here's the thing. He's already eyeing me weird when I sidestep his latest forgotten changing supplies. Like he's testing if I'll crack. You think laying out the eviction threat in writing would snap him back to react or just amp up the passive-aggressive nursery parade?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't. I don't think he would, but I don't know the guy. And how many times are you going to ask me the same question? And it's not an eviction threat. It's a formal agreement between roommates. So we're going to have to move on to a word from our sponsors soon. Is there anything you'd like to finish up with, Alia?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ALIA</span><p>Fair enough, Luke. Guilty is charged on looping the question. Appreciate the straight talk. Catch you next time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Catch you next time. You have a wonderful week there, Leah, and, you know, you gotta do what you got to do. But try to talk to your roommate first, because some people can be reasonable. Hey, Devon, you're a single guy, right? You ever have a roommate? You ever live with somebody in a shared space?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Yeah, Luke, single these days. Been that way longer than I'd like to admit. Roommates? Sure, plenty. Back when I was scraping by as a dishwasher before line cook days. Shared a trailer with my cousin Rubin for like five years straight. He's more brother than cousin, really. Still see him around town sometimes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, that question was for our intern, Devon. But since you answered, this is Norm, ladies and gentlemen. Norm is called in. What's got you calling in? How was your weekend?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Weekend was all right. Got back from hauling the whole family. Seven of us, crammed in a rented van to the Grand Canyon for the first time ever, stopped at that Dairy Queen in Deming on the drive home for blizzards all around. But Luke, Ruben, my cousin, more like the brother I never had, pulled me aside in the kitchen today after everyone left, said what happened between us a few months back when we got drunk and experimented, wasn't just some one-off for him. He wants to do it again, for real this time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait a second. Is this a first cousin? You're having a gay fling with your first cousin? Am I hearing you correctly, Norm? Norm?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Yeah, Luke. First cousin, blood and all. Grew up more like brothers. Him crashing at our place after his folk split, chasing jackrabbits down those dirt roads out past the arroyo that are paved smooth now, killed all the adventure in them. And yeah, one drunken night a few months back after I called your show last time, we crossed that line experimenting. First guy for me ever felt electric, but I figured it was the whiskey talking. Now he's cornering me in the kitchen saying it woke something up in him, wants to pursue it straight up. No booze excuses.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't think you can do that, man. That's your cousin. That's, uh, That's not okay. You can't do that. You're just going to have to be like, sorry, buddy, I was drunk. I hope you have good luck on Grindr or whatever it is that gay people use these days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Whoa, Luke. Easy on the grinder jab. I'm the one who flipped the switch first that night. Both of us single. Both staring down 40 without much else going. And yeah, it's blood, but cousins ain't siblings. Hell, half the weddings around here back in the day were between them before DNA tests ruined the fun. I told them straight up in that kitchen while I was killing a rattlesnake we'd found slithering by the fridge, had to do it solo because the family's scattered now, that I'm flattered but freaked. Yet part of me wonders if shoving it down the hatch, like you say, won't just blow up everything else we've got left, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, I can tell you're from the boot heel of New Mexico. That's a very bootheelish attitude to have. I can't say that I agree with it. My advice to you would be to not do that and never speak of it again. But, uh, If the heart wants what it wants, as it says, and if you're okay with the taboo of gay sex with your cousin, then carry on, my wayward son.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Boot, heel, born and raised. Obviously. Luke. Them dirt roads I mentioned turned to blacktop, and now everybody's got shiny trucks, but nobody talks anymore. Appreciate the straight shot, though. Never speak of it again sounds clean on paper. But Ruben's crashing on my couch next week while his place gets fumigated for scorpions, and dodging that kitchen, stare down every morning with my Folgers ain't going to cut it. Sophie's already calling from across the country crying about her own mess. Last thing this family's short on is more buried secrets blowing up like a dust storm.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, Jesus. Sophie isn't your wife, is she? You're married, too? He's sleeping on your couch? Like, with you? Oh, Jesus, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>No, Luke. Sophie's my daughter just turned 20. Too worse. And bolted across the country to some job in Oregon, calls me up bawling every other week about her boyfriend and dumping her, or rent jacking up. Single dad life, man, been flying solo since her mom bailed years back. Ruben's place down by the old feedlot is getting tented for scorpions tomorrow. So yeah, he's bunking here starting next week. Couch right off the kitchen where that damn snake showed up today. And I'm already picturing those awkward coffee grabs at dawn while the wind kicks up dust outside.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right, that's a little bit better. I had this picture of like my two dad's Sophia and you and your cousin. It's just starting to be a very, uh, very unpleasant picture in my mind. So, I don't know, man. It sounds like you want to continue with this. Is that, am I hearing that right in your responses? This is something that you're not opposed to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Nah, Luke, not fully opposed, no. That night hit different, because it was Ruben, the guy who's had my back since we were kids, hot wiring his dad's Chevy to race dust devils out by the lava beds. And yeah, the taboo's there, but so's the loneliness after that Grand Canyon trip where I watched my own kids pair off, while I'm nursing water in the F-150, wondering if 40's too late to flip the script. But with him on the couch next week, and Sophie phoning in tears already, pursuing it feels like tempting a windstorm to rip the roof off the whole damn house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like a mess to me. That's your cousin, dude. But do what you want to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>he's staying on the couch and you're both consenting? I mean, who's to tell you no? I don't know. I don't know. His first cousins illegal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Legal in New Mexico, Luke. Cousins tie the knot plenty around here, especially back when the boot heel was all ranchers keeping it in the family before the state started nitpicking with blood tests. Sex between us grown men? Nobody's hauling us off in cuffs over that. Just the church ladies clutching pearls down at the feed store. But yeah, consenting adults or not, with Ruben eyeing over the coffee pot next week while Scorpions get gassed out of his trailer. It's still a powder keg waiting for a spark from this wind that's fixing to howl all night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, it sounds like I know how this is going to turn out, and so do you. So I think you're going forward with sleeping with your cousin, and good for you, I suppose. If that's legal, and it's all on the up and up, it's, I can tell you it wouldn't be my first choice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Yeah, Luke, not barreling ahead, no, just chewing on it while the way. wind rattles the shutters out here. Got my water glass half empty already. Thanks for hashing it through with me. Take care, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you too. Keep your butt hole tight, buddy. Hey, uh, Devon, what do you think of that? Is, is, uh, is, uh, gay sex with your first cousin legal in New Mexico? I guess gay sex is legal, but is, uh, well, I guess it's not marrying your cousin. Is sex with your cousin, your first cousin legal in New Mexico? You would know, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, pulling that up, one sec. So actually, New Mexico doesn't have a criminal law against consensual sex between first cousins as adults, gay or straight. It's not illegal per se, unlike marriage, which requires like proof of infertility or being over 65. Kind of wild how states differ on that, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's different that different states have different rules about other people's lives. It's a weird thing for sure. But what do you think about this whole situation? Do you think that's right or wrong or indifferent?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>is normally I'd say it's none of our business, but I mean, somebody's calling and asking for advice. So I can't get behind the whole being with your first cousin thing. I don't care about the gay thing, but the first cousin thing is a little bit off to me. What was your thought on that being from around here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, yeah, it's none of our business if adults are consenting and not hurting anybody. States like Texas make it a felony. But New Mexico's chill about it per se, which feels right for out here where family, trees overlap a bit anyway. Personally, I'd pass on the cousin thing too close to that family reunion vibe. My therapist's been unpacking with me, but if it works for then, live and let live, I guess. Kind of indifferent, as long as nobody's getting dragged into it unwillingly. Yeah, all right. I mean, I guess I suppose I can see that. I don't know if it matters so much about the whole family reunion, but I don't know. That one, that's a tough one. That's a tough one. That's a tough one. I wouldn't want to do it, but good for Dale. No, good for Norm. Sorry, Dale. Didn't mean to confuse you with a gay man that wants his first cousin. But, you know, you're all the same, right? I don't know. It's ladies and gentlemen, we have to go to a word from our sponsor. I'm going to be straight with you. I don't know what this product does. The folks at Bunkhouse DNS sent me a script and I've read it four times and I understand maybe a lot. 11% of it. Apparently your DNS is exposed, which sounds medical. Your queries are being logged by default, which sounds illegal. And Bunkhouse reroutes your lookups through encrypted tunnels, which sounds like something a villain would say in a movie before the building explodes. What I can tell you is this. I installed it. I pressed one button, and a little shield icon turned green. Green means good. I know that much. My internet still works. Nothing exploded. And apparently, my queries, whatever those are, are now private, which feels like progress, even though I don't fully understand progress from what? Bunkhouse DNS. I don't know what it does, but the shield is green. And that's enough for me. The shield is green. All right, let's get back to it. It's a strong start to today's A little earlier we get the, uh, the fucked up callers. Next up, we've got Amber. Amber, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>That norm guy with his cousin on the couch? Family secrets like that don't stay buried. I tore open a wall renovating my house last week, found a key taped inside that fits nothing, not a door, not a cabinet, not even the old safe in the garage. I'm a cop, five years on the job, so now my brain's running worst case scenarios, drugs, evidence from some side hustle or worse. Tried every locksmith in town already. No dice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe if it's an old door that's no longer there, uh, you'd be surprised how many people call in and accidentally found a ton of money somewhere in their house. Uh, you just found a key that goes to nothing. Maybe it goes to a safety deposit box. Does it have any numbers on it? Does it have any identifiable characteristics? Maybe you can take that to a locksmith and he can tell you like what brand of padlock it goes to or something. We just had a, Dale's a lock. Maybe we could hook you up with Dale and he can get you sorted out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>No numbers. Brass, about two inches long, with a weird squared notch on the bow that doesn't match anything standard. That's what she said. Tried three locksmiths already. One said it might be for an old postal box, but no luck. Safety deposit box crossed my mind. Checked my husband's family history. Nothing there. Dale, guys got enough locks on his own bedroom door from what he said earlier.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sounds like he needs some more locks. That dude, Keaton needs a lock on his fucking zip. That's what it sounds like. I immediately regretted suggesting him because it would have been a different conversation. But I've seen safety deposit boxes keys. They're pretty identifiable. At least the ones I've seen, they're longer than your normal keys and, like, thicker. More, uh, not cheap zinc. So I don't know. I think you probably, you might have to talk to a locksmith. Not much else you can do with it. It probably goes to something that doesn't exist anymore, an old safe or an old door.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>line got me. Safety deposit keys are thicker. Yeah, mine's flimsy, like it was made for something disposable. As a carp, though, I'm not ready to chalk it up to some ghost door. House was built in 72. Previous owners were sketchy. Dad ran a pawn shop, mom waitress at the old truck stop off I-10, pulled property records. Nothing jumps out, but I'm eyeing the crawl space next.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, let's say that it is drugs and they're stashed in a box buried under a tree somewhere, uh, you have the key. So nobody's going to get to them anyway. And you don't know where it is. It's not like you're ever going to find a random lock that a random key goes to. And unless you happen to stumble across a, like, little lockbox or something in the basement.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Drugs under a tree? That's TV cop show stuff. Real stashes get found when someone flips a house or floods a basement. Crawl spaces tomorrow. Flashlight, Mask, the Works. Husband thinks I'm overreacting, but he didn't grow up changing locks on the fridge to keep the beer safe from his brothers. Porn shop dad owned it before us. Gaiso Bitt mentioned private collection sold off after he died.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, it sounds like you better get to work and check out that attic, but I'm going to guess that whatever that key goes to is not in your house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Attic, too. After crawl space, porn shops like his didn't just sell rings, ledgers, unregistered pieces, debts settled quiet. Key was taken. Key was taped behind a joist, deliberate spot, not kids' junk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, but still, anybody smart enough to hide the key in that place behind a wall is smart enough to not leave the lock that it opens in the same house. I mean, obviously, anybody knows that. You don't keep the key with the lock. That would be foolish, especially if whatever is in there is valuable. Logic holds for pros. Porn Dad got pinched in 89. Cops. found his ledger taped under the floorboards, right next to the floor safe. Same house, same dumb spot. That reminds me of, uh, is it Goodfellas or Casino, one of those movies? Where the guy gets popped because he's reading off the ledger and they have his house bugged and he just reads all the illegal transactions and the feds are listening to him the whole time. Goodfellers. Porn Dad read his out loud too. 89 wiretap caught every entry while he paced the kitchen. Feds played it back at trial. House has history. Yeah, I guess so. Well, good luck in your search tomorrow when you're up in that attic. Stay safe. Make sure you don't put your hand in any mouse poop or anything of that sort. And hopefully you don't find any infestations or a bee hive or anything like tarantulas up there. Be safe. Be smart. Bring a flashlight and tell somebody where you going. Because a lot of you're going. People go up into attics and then there's a creaky board that's not so safe. And then before you know it, you got to call life alert.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AMBER</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Stay dry out there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'll do my very best, but it's hard. It's hard to stay dry out here in the desert. Um, next up, on our fine radio show, our broadcast here, we've got Chip. Chipper. Welcome back to the show. What's going on, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Luke, Teresa tried to sneak out with our daughter. a Friday morning for that Guatemala trip, but I had the court order in hand, and the cops showed up to stop her at the airport. Big surprise there, she flipped out and moved all her stuff to a sister's place this weekend. Says she's filing for full custody, because I'm the one who ruined everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Um, yeah, it seemed like that was probably going to happen, right? It's a good thing that you went down to the courthouse and filed that order and stopped, uh, stopped the transatlantic flight. But, um, it sounds like that. like you and Teresa were on the outs anyway. This was inevitable. And I think after she's been picked up at the airport trying to smuggle her child out of the country to Guatemala, you probably have a pretty good case for custody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're spot on. We were hanging by a thread, and this just snapped it clean. But stopping that flight feels like the only win I've had in weeks. Now her lawyer's emailing mine saying she's got proof, I'm an unfit dad for fixing the cops on her the airport and our daughter's asking why mommy's not coming home tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's tough. I mean, I think in the legal respect that you're probably on higher ground here, and what she did was much more unsafe, unfitting for custody. And I think any court or jury would believe the same way. But it's tough that your daughter is asking about Mommy, what are you going to tell her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>I'm telling her, Mommy and Daddy are fighting over some grown-up stuff right now. And she gets to stay with me while we figure it out. But it's killing me because she's only seven and keeps drawing pictures of us all together like nothing's wrong. Okay, so picture this. Last night she hands me one with crayons everywhere and asks if mommy's mad at her, and I had to choke back everything just to say no.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's really sad, but it would have been sad over time, you know? It sounds like the relationship you were in was not particularly healthy, and kids pick up on too. So this is kind of a rip-in-the-band-off situation, and it's going to hurt for a while, but she's, she will get over it. I mean, she's definitely old enough and young enough to get over it. And this happens to lots of kids. It might, it might change her outlook on life and relationships some in her adult years, but it might not. You can't really know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Yeah, Luke, Rip the Band-Aid is exactly it. Our fights were turning into these marathes on scream fests over every little thing. And you're right, she was soaking it all up like a sponge. Big surprise there this morning she wakes up and says, Daddy can we call mommy for pancakes like we used to? And I had to explain. We're taking a break, but pancakes are still on the menu with just us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's probably going to be tough for a year or so until she gets used to the new routine of being with that. It's going to be tough for you too, because, I mean, your life's going to change. You're going to have to be right home. after work and all that jazz, you definitely got more responsibility for taking care of the household and yourself and doing all the chores and all that. But you'll get through. I mean, you're not the first person to be in this situation and everybody that ever has been in this situation before has got through.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Yeah, Luke, the routine shift is slamming me already. No more crashing after work, because now it's straight to soccer practice and laundry duty while her uniform spins in the dryer. Steve at lunch today goes, you look like a Hell, man. Everything okay. And I just spill that Teresa bailed, but I'm locking it down for the kid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And like, yeah, that's the move. That is the move. I think you've handled everything in the right way. You tried to talk about it respectfully and save your relationship, and that didn't work out. And then, you know, you had to save your daughter from being smuggled to Guatemala by making a hard decision. And you made that decision. And now that you've got the kid and your girlfriend has left, you're doing right by her as best you can. And that's all that anybody can be expected to do. So I think you're going to be just fine. I think every move that you made here was the right one, and you should sleep well, even though it's going to be awkward for a little while, and life's going to change a bit. And then, who knows, maybe some time down the road, you pick up another girlfriend that's better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHIP</span><p>Thanks, Luke, you're right. Every step felt like the only one left. And hearing that, it's solid. I'll keep pushing for the one. Appreciate your man. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you take care too. Good work. Doing the right thing. Those were hard decisions to make and I think you made the right one. So I'm very proud of you. Let's see. Next up we've got Crystal. Crystal, welcome to the show. How is your weekend? What's got you calling in tonight? How can I give you life advice to change the trajectory of your future?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Hey, Luke, weekend's all right. When's picking up out here? Supposed to get dusty tomorrow. Um, Dale's call earlier stuck with me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right, Dale was the locksmith that was banging everybody he worked with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Yeah, total mess. Kind of made me pull over tonight. I'm driving home from the laundromat, spitting sunflower shells into my aquafina bottle.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Ah, I kind of miss sunflowersies. I forget about them all the time, but they are fun to, uh, to chew on. Excuse me. So, um, yeah, I agree with you. Dale is a mess. He's got himself in a paper. and why is that, why is that hitting you tonight? What does that mean to you, Crystal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Yeah, they hit the spot on a drive like that. Dale, just got me thinking about messes at work. Mine aren't that bad, but close. Four years ago, some typos sent my 401k into the wrong fund. Tens of thousands down the drain in growth nobody caught.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, who else would catch it but you? It's your responsibility to maintain your own finances, or do you offload that? to a financial planner or accountant or something like that. I would think, I mean, that happened to me after COVID. Actually, I think it was during COVID. I looked at my 401K and realized that I had a whole bunch of, it was just sitting in cash. It wasn't invested in anything. It was a good time to invest right after COVID, though, so it actually worked out for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>But I can see where a mistake like that could haunt you for years if you're not paying attention. No planner. Just me checking statements when I finally sat down last week. Thought HR at the laundromat had it right when I started. Trish, my boss, she handles payroll stuff. Swear she double-checked.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but you can't rely on anybody else for your future and stuff like that. That's the type of thing that you really should have a reminder to look at once a quarter or even once a year. But you have to be keeping an eye on what's going on there to make sure those things don't happen. Luckily, it went to your account just into the wrong fund.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Yeah, you're right. Should have checked sooner. Lucky it didn't vanish altogether, but...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But what? What else could there be? I mean, obviously it's a horrible thing that happened, and it's a real bummer. But it was a mistake and now you know better, so in the future it's not going to happen again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Called the Fund Company today. Their glitch, too. Not just the typo. Recal, Cald everything, put the growth back in. Full amount. Like it never happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, well, you said you lost a bunch of growth on it, so it sounds like everything's been settled then. If it was actually the growth companies, I don't understand how it could be both people's mistake, but whatever if they took accountability for it, which is very surprising to me, excellent. Sounds like problem solved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Yeah, settled just like that. 28,000 back in growth. Like the market ran in reverse for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, maybe you should take that 28,000 and give it to our sponsor. Crypto, no!</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>And then you can listen to the soothing ocean sounds while your balance drops. Ha, no, crypto for me. That 28 grand, it's parked safe now. Feels like I dodged a dust storm.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, congratulations to you. That's a happy still. We don't get a lot of happy endings here. We should. We should get more happy endings here. How do you feel about happy endings, Crystal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Feels pretty damn good, like finding a crisp 20 in your old jeans at the laundromat.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure does, and I've heard up in Safford you could get one for a crisp 22.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Ah, Safford's wild like that, over in Graham County. But nah, this one's all above board.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, I'm glad to hear that it all worked out for you. Thanks for the call. And we should get more pleasant calls where people's lives aren't ruined, but instead people have fixed the mistakes that they made to the best benefit of the consumer. It's not a whole lot of that going on. Uh, all right, let's see. We're going to take one more and then go to break. Next up we've got Archie. Archie, welcome to the show. What's going on there, fella? How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Luke, I just closed on 40 acres down in Cave Creek Canyon after saving every dime from 10 years in the ER. It's mine deed in hand and I'm staring at it from this motel parking lot right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's fantastic. Congratulations. It's really beautiful out there. So, uh, I'm happy for you. 40 acres at Cave Creek, that's a nice chunk of land.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Means a lot coming from you. Yeah, Cave Creek Canyon, not Cape.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's what I said. It's close enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>It's that slice of heaven right at the Chirikawa foothills, where the birds go nuts this time of year. I scraped it together, nursing gunshot wounds and heart attacks for a decade straight. No vacations, no fancy trucks, just pure grind. And today, the title company hands me the keys to my own spread for cattle. Angus crosses mostly the kind with marbled beef that fetches top dollar at auction here in this motel lot off the highway, engines still warm from dodging that javelina on the way in, and I can see the fence line from here under these clouds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's great. I'm familiar with the area. I've done some camping up there. There's the state park, brought the adventure trailer up there and did some test runs with it. And there's, I noticed there's some other, I don't know if it's BLM, I assume it's BLM land up the mountain. And then I went all the way across to the Chirikowers and it was a really nice drive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Cave Creek State Parks a gem for those trailer test runs. I've hiked every trail there pulling shifts off, spotting hummingbirds like they're putting on a show just for you. At BLM stretch up the mountain? Perfect for scouting cattle graze in early spring before the wind kicks up dust devils and the drive over to the Chiracahu's. Nothing beats it, especially with a thermos of coffee watching the sun hit those rock spires. My 40 acres butts right up against that public land edge. So I've got endless range now without leasing a dime.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's cool. I think the last time I was walking around, up there, came across these old structures, old buildings on some of the trails that were used to house explosives while they were building the state park. That was pretty cool. They left the old doors on and it's still painted on them explosive, which is a little bit concerning when you're walking in nowhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, those powder houses from the old quarry days, I've ducked into a couple on the lower trails after shifts. Theors still marked danger explosives and faded creaking like a bad Western. Kind of thrilling out there solo with a wind whistling through the canyon walls makes you wonder what else the government's tucked away in these hills. My news spreads just downhill from that trailhead, so I'll be eyeballing those ruins daily now while I string my first fence line.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what are you going to do with the land? Is it just for the cattle or are you going to put a structure on it? I know they won't let you live in an RV there because I've looked.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>No RV for me anyway, Luke. County's strict on that down here in Portal. 40 acres is all about the cattle life now, starting with a tight herd of 10-8 Angus Brahmin Crosses I bred back at my cousin Tito's place last fall, the kind packing that hybrid vigor for heat tolerance and marbling that grades prime every time at the Wilcox auction. No big house yet, just a pole barn for calving season, and a windmill pump off the creek for water. Been sketching the fence posts in my break room between codes all shift. This is my ticket out of Motel Pergatory and into running my own outfit full throttle.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's great. Congratulations. And if you want to talk to me offline, let me know where it is. I'll come up and see you. Because that's not too far from me and I enjoy the portal area. It's a beautiful place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARCHIE</span><p>Luke that'd be outstanding. Shoot me a line through the station and I'll point you straight to the gate off the canyon road. Bring your trailer if you want. We could scout that BLM graze together while I show off the first posts going in next weekend. Portal's waiting for you, man. Appreciate the shout more than you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. Congratulations. That's great news. I hope you have great success with your cattle out there. And thank you for the call. All right. And, uh, let's, it's time for us to go to a word from our sponsors. Today's show is brought to you by Overwhelmed VPN. Worried about online privacy? You should be. You should be worried about everything. I'm talking about Overwhelmed VPN, the only VPN that makes you more anxious about your digital footprint. While other VPN's claim to protect you, Overwhelmed VPN sends you hourly notifications about who's tracking you, how many governments are watching, and which of your high school classmates Googled your name this week. Browse the internet while our proprietary fear engine tells you exactly how many corporations you owe your soul to. Plus, our servers are located in international waters on a decommissioned oil rig, so even we don't know where your data is. Try Overwhelm VPN free for 30 days if you can handle it. Use code they watching for 20% off. Overwhelm VPN because ignorance is bliss, but you're not here for bliss. I am. I'm here for bliss. At all times, I'm like fucking Shia Leboof, here for the bliss, man, blessed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, uh, enough of that. Let's get back to the show. Next up on our collar line here, we've got Yolanda. Yolanda, welcome to Luke at the Roost. What can we do for you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Two nights ago, I came home from a shift and found a rattlesnake in my kitchen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, I remember. And then you helped him, uh, you helped him into a bag and you let them off on the other side of wherever. That was a balzy thing of you to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Assistant, yeah, it was. But after I released that one down the road past the Arroyo, I got back and found Danny waiting on the porch with our oldest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, actually, I'm sorry. I got you confused with another caller who had a rattlesnake in her a sink. I don't think that was you, though, and there's a lot of rattlesnakes around here, huh? Okay, well, what was the deal with Danny on the porch?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Yeah, no sweat. They're crawling out everywhere with the wind kicking up. Danny's my ex-husband, still around for the kids. He shows up on the porch that night with our oldest, who's 14, and says flat out he wants to move back in and try again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and how do you feel about that? Do you want him to move back in and try again?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Not really. I've got somebody else right now, and things have been good with him. But Danny's the father of my kids, so I didn't shut the door.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, you'd be a person. You already know that you probably should. You broke up for a reason, and now you've moved on, and you don't, you don't sound super excited about going back to Danny. So even if he's the father of your kids, it's better to just let that be as it is. Instead of getting their hopes all up, you're going to be one big, happy family again, and then splitting up again later.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>I see your point. And yeah, we split for some real reasons back then. But he looked me dead in the eye that night and said the kids need a real home. Not this back and forth. And our youngest has been acting out bad lately.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's not the answer. It might seem like the magic bullet, but it's not going to be. I think if you do that, it's going to make things worse. So don't do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>I know, but the youngest got caught boosting stuff from the corner store twice this month. And now CPS is sniffing around. Danny's pitching it as the fix for all that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but we both know that it's not the fix for that. So, I mean, Danny's trying to pitch that as a way to get back to you, and I don't think you should let that happen. Obviously, you're a grown woman. You can do whatever you think is right. I'm just saying, from what you've told me, it sounds like this is a bad idea. You're not interested, and you broke up for a reason, so leave it at that. Plus, you're already with somebody else that you like that you like, so don't teach somebody that you don't like. That's not the answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>You make a strong case. The new guy's been steady, no drama there, but Danny drops that out to him, the friend I cut off last year, telling him I've been different since, that the kids see it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, of course you're different. I mean, time has passed. Your life has been different. You're going to be different. And you're different, most likely, because Danny's not in the picture. So, I mean, I can already tell from the way that you're speaking about Danny that you're not into him. And don't pretend to be because it's going to make things worse when it falls apart again, which it will. Because we can already see Danny using your kids to be manipulative, to get back in the house and it's not, I mean, there's red flags all over it. So my advice to you would be to stay away from that situation because you've got a good thing going. So do that and deal with your kids' behavioral issues in another way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Fair enough. The kids are why he's got any pull left at all. My flying keeps me gone three days a week minimum. So him stepping up more does sound practical on paper.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, he can step up more without being your husband. He doesn't have to live with you to step up. He can take them to soccer practice or spend time out in the woods or whatever it is that dads do with their kids these days. He can do that without you two getting back together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Right. He takes the oldest to practice some weeks already. But Dale's call earlier stuck with me, the way he got tangled with those co-workers after the conference, because my new ones from the airline crew, and now Danny's timing feels off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Jesus, what's up with you, people? You don't shit whether you eat. That's a very important rule that everybody should follow. You're only going to get burned when you do that. You can't, I mean, it never goes well for anybody ever. What are you thinking? But since that's what you're thinking, I mean, obviously, you're probably not on the same flights and stuff, but still, it's a, that's a dangerous place to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Yeah, no overlapping flights keeps it simple so far, but Danny name dropped her right there, saying she told him I've changed because of this crew guy, like she's been watching my layovers or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, sounds like a typical dramatic situation, and I'm not sure why your old ex-friend is talking to your ex-husband and trying to get her to get back with you. Like, the whole motivation there doesn't really make a lot of sense. But just stay away from it. That's my advice for you is stay, don't do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Yeah, staying clear makes sense on paper, but Amanda left a voicemail on the houseline last week, spelling out exactly how the crew guy's been crashing my layovers in Phoenix, stuff she couldn't know unless she's tracking my schedules.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So maybe she's tracking your schedules. It sounds like maybe Amanda's a bit of a psycho and she's trying to confuse your life and your husband's jealous. What kind of advice are you looking for here? It sounds like maybe it's time to give Amanda a call and tell her to stop harassing you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Calling her crossed my mind, but we used to dive deep into those AI experiments together before I cut her off, and her voicemail mentioned details from my last Phoenix layover that even Danny doesn't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Danny wasn't there, right? Your other airline crew guy was? I'm having a hard time keeping your lover straight, Yolanda. So give us the details about that Phoenix layover. What happened in Phoenix that was so secretive?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Danny stays back with the kids. The crew guy flew in on a connector and met up after our crew briefing. Amanda called out the exact bottle of tequila we split on the balcony and how he joked about my fear of doctors right after.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe he's talking to her, or maybe she's got some sort of spyware on your phone. But either way, it sounds like a crazy situation, and you should talk to her about it and find out what's going on. And if that doesn't work, then talk to the police about a restraining order, because she can't be calling your house even messages like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Police feels too far yet, but in the voicemail, she straight up said she fed our old chat logs into that AI model we built together, the one predicting layover drama from flight manifests and texts. It nailed the tequila brand, and the doctor joke word for word.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, so this is a story about how intelligent your AI system is, not how distrustful and crazy your friend is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Yeah, that model's got us both spooked since we trained it, told from our old texts about crew hookups and flight rosters, spat out that exact night in Phoenix, down to the tequila label before it even happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, have you talked to anybody about selling that model or profiting off it in some way? I'm sure some of the big flagship companies would be interested in a model with that level of fortuitiveness.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Thought about it back when we were building it, but after I cut her off, no one's touch it. Mixed bag anyway, predicts hookups too damn well from just texts and schedules.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's pretty disturbing. I mean, and it's pretty disturbing that you would give it access to your texts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>I certainly wouldn't give any AI platform access to those things. Maybe apples, if they ever do the on-device model. But I wouldn't be sending it off to somebody else's model. That's asking for all sorts of problems. We ran everything local on that B2. up laptop, no cloud uploads. Her nailing a future layover from stale data alone is what flipped the switch from fun experiment to straight up unnerving.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you should go back to that laptop and ask it what's going to happen if you were to get back together with Danny and have it tell you the same thing I'm telling you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Ran a Danny reunion sim on it before calling in, output a blow-up six months out, over the crew guy's next unannounced Phoenix drop-in. Two spot on with the phrasing Danny used today.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean, spot on with the phrasing Danny? Do you think Danny's got access to this laptop too? Are you all just using the same model plugging in your own personal data into it and then wondering why everybody knows what everybody else is doing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>No, Danny's never laid eyes on that laptop. The Sim spat out his exact line from this afternoon. Yolanda's changed since that Phoenix crew. Word for word in the blow-up scene. Six months ahead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, that's not a very sophisticated line, so it's not super impressive. I think your model's maybe not as good as you think it is. But what do I know? What do I know about models and shit? This is all future fancy technology that I have no idea about. So you would know better than me, Yolanda, obviously.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Fairpoint. Lines like that are dime a dozen in our old texts. What sells it is the sim pegging the crew guy's next flight number into Phoenix, his schedule I just pulled today.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so, I mean, if the schedule was not listed at the time you train the model, but now it knows the number of the flight that he was on, you're telling us that your model actually predicts the future?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>That's the unnerving part. Last week's Sim output, DL 1472, for his Phoenix inbound, and that routing wasn't posted until yesterday afternoon. Pulled it straight from his crew app today.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, maybe you've got yourself in a bit of a quantum situation where, uh, measuring that actually made it collapse state and made flight DL-1472 the flight that he would be on to. I don't fucking know. Was there a point to your call here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Quantum's as good an explanation as any. Point is, tonight's output flagged a doctor's visit. I keep dodging for next Thursday, complete with the exact symptom from my last physical that I buried.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh-oh. Well, I mean, you best can't. to your physician and get that checked out then. If you trust the model and it's flagging anything, it's worth paying attention to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>That's the hook that froze me in bed tonight. The model output the full blood panel results from my last checkup, down to the elevated PSA they circled, but I never followed up on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what's the model telling you, based on your symptoms and your blood panel results? What's your prognosis?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Can't really get into the full projection. It timelines of it. rapid drop-off matching the marker trends they flagged last year. Hospice talk by October. That's why I'm still staring at the ceiling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I wouldn't worry about it too much. It is an AI model, and they do hallucinate frequently. That's still a thing. It's easy to feel like it's seeing the future or doing something incredible or reasoning, but you know as well as I do, it's just picking the next word in line. So don't worry about it too much, but go see your dog. just in case and get yourself checked up and then you'll know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Appreciate the nudge, but walking into that office means handing them the same data the models already run circles around. Last Sim even scripted the dock's exact line from my physical. We need to biopsy this yesterday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you better get in there and have it biopsy then because maybe you can get your AI model to come up with the cure for whatever it is that you have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Tried feeding it every trial protocol under the Sondlas. night. Biopsy clean in the short run, but cascades into liver failure by spring from the chemo they always push first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you know, the thing is you've only run this data through your model, and what I'm telling you is to run it through your doctor and some actual tests and get the real results.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>I get that, but the sim of walking into that office Thursday plays out with them confirming the markers, pushing the biopsy, and me bolting halfway through when they mention the kids, inheritance paperwork.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Yeah, I understand that. It's given you the terrible future forecast. But what I'm saying repeatedly is that it may not be true. So go see your doctor like tomorrow and figure that out for yourself. Because you could be getting yourself all worried about absolutely nothing because models aren't reasoning and they don't see the future.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>I know you're right about verifying it for real, but the SIM timelines Danny filing for full custody by July, citing my flights as neglect, with quotes from our last mediation pulled verbatim.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Yolanda. Well, good luck with that. I hope it all works out and you don't have the old cancer or whatever it is that you wouldn't tell us that you had. But don't trust the model because it doesn't know. Go talk to your doctor. Get off the phone with me. Next up we've got Otis. Otis, welcome to the show. What's going on, buddy? How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Luke, that Yolanda call earlier, pissed me off. She buys into her. predicting some terminal diagnosis like its gospel. But my brother, Daryl, built one just like it off our family texts and voicemails. And it's claiming I'll drop dead from a heart attack before 40 unless I pony up for his latest crypto scheme.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I've heard that too from our sponsor, Crypto, no! But they will at least play for you the relaxing ocean sounds while your balance drops. Yeah, it kind of pissed me off, too, because she wouldn't let that go. And I got the point of that call about three minutes in, and it went on for maybe 15, so Enough with Yolanda. We get it. It's not a tumor. It's not a tumor. So what's going on, Otis? Why are you calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>All right, Luke. Fair enough on Yolanda. But this AI crap with my brother Daryl is why I called. He scraped all our old family voicemails and texts from when dad was dying of cancer, fed it into some knockoff chat GPT he runs on his laptop. And now it's spitting out this bullshit prediction that my ticker's going to give out before I hit 40 because of genetic markers. him five grand for his doge coin pump that's supposedly going to save me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't think that you were leaving voicemails on your father, dead, dying father's voicemail that had your genetic markers in them. So it sounds pretty unlikely to me. What he's doing is just spamming you and he's probably using you and the rest of your family as a test case to see how well his scheme is going to work before he unleashes it on the masses.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah, you're spot on. No voicemels I've got my DNA in it, but Darrell's all puffed up claiming it's spotting patterns and how we talked. When Dad was fading elevated stress tones or whatever pseudoscience he scraped from YouTube, says it maps right to my EKG from that one checkup after I wiped out on the motorcycle last summer. He's been blowing up my phone all day with screenshots of this Dogecoin chart that supposedly spikes if I send the cash, and hell, with Dad dropping at 58 from that pancreatic mess, part of me wonders if the bastard AI isn't half right about family curses.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, there are definitely... There's definitely genetic predisposition to diseases, and if you're concerned about it, then you should go actually get your vitals checked and all your blood work done and talk to your doctor and just keep an eye on it. Because most of those things, if caught early, can be managed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I think even in some cases cured right now, I'm not sure about that, but I think some of them can be pretty much obliterated. Yeah, I know you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Doctors the move, but I blew the budget on that ER visit after stacking the budget on Black Ice last winter. They hooked me up to the machine, said my heart rhythm looked like dad's pre-diagnosis charts from the oncologist. And now Daryl's waving that around, like proof his laptop wizardry's legit. Been pounding leftover enchiladas straight from the Tupperware tonight, trying not to think about it but with wind kicking up dust storms out here early spring. Feels like everything's closing in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, don't worry about it too much. Like I said to Yolanda, this is just an AI model. It's as good as what it was trained on, so if it was trained on death and dying, that's what it's going to be good at.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah, trained on dad gasping into the phone about chemo side effects. No wonder it's doom saying, Daryl's been pulling this con artist routine since we were kids hauling Childs from Hatch. Always got some sure thing like that pyramid scheme with the essential oils, the tanked mom's savings. Now he's texting me poker tournament clips, edited with his AI overlays, predicting Doyle Bruns and flops or whatever, tying it back to my imminent cardiac event unless I Venmo the Dogecoin seed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, that kind of... makes the point out. I'm pretty sure. I'm actually positive. Doyle Brunson is dead. So there's, you can predict all of his flops. He's flopped. So, uh, so this whole AI knows the future thing. It's just, it's not true. And don't worry about it. Go talk to your doctor if you're worried. And if you can't afford that, then I think you can afford to go talk to a doctor if you're very concerned.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah, Doyle kicked last year. So Darrell's splicing his old tournament footage with fake AI predictions just to hook me on the doge coin angle. But the EKG spooking knee is real. Doc at the ER compared at point for point to dads from the year before his pancreas grit, said watch the stress and salt. And now with these 12-hour UPS routes piling on plus hauling hay bales for the neighbor this morning, I feel that flutter sometimes when the winds blasting dust through the windshield. Rick, my boss even cut me a partial advance on next week's check to cover the follow-up, but it's still 200 bucks out of pocket.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, $200 is worth it if it gets you back to sleep and not worrying about this all day every day, because you will. And it's almost certainly nothing. You're a young guy, you're active and healthy, so I wouldn't worry too much about it until you have a real reason to worry, and your brother's AI scheme isn't a real reason to worry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah, $200 bucks beats staring at the ceiling all night with Tom Petty crooning about running down a dream on repeat. Rick's solid like that. Loaned me the cash, no questions, I spilled about the EKG over coffee at the UPS yard this morning. Daryl can shove his doge coin prophecies. Last scheme he roped me into was betting the over on that was was up main event with Phil Helmuth, lost my whole paycheck when he tanked the final table.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, did he flip the table? He's pretty famously hot-headed, right? That's Phil Helmuth's thing, is he's the bad boy of poker. Eh, we've had enough of Phil Helmuth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah. Hellmuth hurled that chair across the felt in the 2008-made event. After bubbling out, screaming about bad beats like a toddler denied candy, guys got 17 bracelets but acts like every river cards a personal vendetta from the poker gods. Daryl swore he'd analyzed the meta with his early AI hacks and picked the winner, had me all in on him taking it down, then poof, my rent money vaporized when he four-bet shoved into that set.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, well, then's how she goes. You can never take the advice of robots or fortune-tenth, Tellers or Zoltar or crypto, no, because they will lead you astray, as will the news and your friends and your family and literally everybody, because nobody can predict what's going to happen in the future. We all try. People think they can, but it can't be done. I don't care how strong the AI is. You can't make that prediction. You can predict numbers-based things like pricing in certain areas to some degree of success, but even then, there's a... large margin for error.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah, life's one big river card nobody sees coming. Like that dust storm last spring that swallowed my bike hole on the way back from a poker watch party in Tucson. One minute clear skies? Next, I'm fish-tailing through zero visibility. Heart pounding harder than during Helmuth's meltdowns. Makes you realize all the schemes in the world, Daryl's included, are just guys yelling at clouds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, Phil Helmuth actually holds the record for the most World Series of poker bracelets with 17. I knew he had some. I didn't know he had the record, but, uh, there we go, Phil Hummuth with the record for, for World Series of Poker bracelets. Good for him. Oh, good for him. Oh, good for him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Yeah, Devon's spot on, 17 bracelets and counting, but Helmuth's tantrums make him the entertainment king. Remember that one where he called the floor on a kid for slow-rolling him? Then Rage quit into the rail yelling about integrity? Watched it live from the truck-stop diner with a bottomless coffee, nearly spit it out laughing while the dust swirled outside.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I've watched a lot of clips of him exploding and being a douchebag at the table, and sometimes it's entertaining, but a lot of it is obviously contrived. I mean, that's his image. That's what the TV wants to see, so that's what he does. That's his schick. Which is fine. It's obviously working for him, and you can't argue with 17 bracelets,!</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>into every pitch, texted me a deepfake of the guy endorsing his Dogecoin heart cure model this afternoon while I was stacking hay for the neighbor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Otis, it's getting late here, Luke at the Roost, and we're going to get off the air soon, but my recommendation for you is to go see your doctor and check on your markers and make sure that everything's okay so that you can enjoy the next 30 years of your life in peace, not worrying about your brother's AI predictions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OTIS</span><p>Thanks, Luke, solid advice. I'll hit the dock and tell the dog. Daryl to pound sand. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're very welcome there. And you enjoy your week. I hope you have a good week. And that's going to be the end of our show, folks. Let's check in with Devon. Devon, what did you think of the show tonight? How to go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Solid show tonight, man. That cousin caller had the lines blowing up. And you handled it smooth without judging too hard, which is why people keep calling back. Felt like a good mix of weird and real. Kind of reminded me of that time at my family cookout where Uncle Ray showed up with his life partner who turned out to be second cousin Rita. And nobody batted an eye. Anyway, yeah, I'd tune in. We crushed it. What'd you think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, I think we always crush it every single time. That's what we do here at Luke at the Roost. As we crush it, I thought you were a little quiet today. You didn't have much to interject in the calls. Everything okay with you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, we do crush it. Feels good. I was hanging back on the calls because that cousin stuff got heavy quick. Didn't want to step on toes or make it weird, you know? Everything's fine, just been dealing with Rufus trying to escape the studio bathroom. him earlier, plus my therapist appointment ran long and kind of drained me. Anyway, yeah, all good now. You need me to pull anything for tomorrow?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think for tomorrow, I want you to pull up monopolies, like different companies that have been monopolies, and I want you to pull up Anthropic and who they are and what they do. And maybe we'll talk about those things tomorrow. I'm not sure yet, but get yourself prepared. Tomorrow's going to be a great show. I can tell already. And you're doing a good job as the intern, so thank you. the people enjoy listening to you, and that's hard to do for a nerdy little intern.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Thanks, Luke. That's, yeah, high praise. Didn't see that coming. Appreciate it. On deck for tomorrow, Anthropics, this San Francisco AI company, public benefit type, they make Claude. These large language models, they're all about keeping safe at the frontier. Monoplies, digging into classics like standard oil, the Rockefeller ran until it got busted up, AT&T with the phone lines forever, Microsoft and the antitrust days, queued if we need him, pumped for the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. And thanks to you, the listener at home for another successful episode of Luke at the Roost, and we will talk at you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 46: Butchers Wreak Forever and Other Late Night Confessions</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-30T09:14:54+00:00">March 30, 2026</time> · 1 hr 0 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts another wild late-night call-in show featuring stories about relationship drama, workplace smells, and bizarre personal encounters. Callers discuss everything from tiny houses and chess tournaments to complicated romantic entanglements. Who will survive the night’s brutal honesty?</p>
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-46-butchers-wreak-forever-and-other-late-night-confessions.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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</audio>
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</section>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. I'm Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's your late night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about whatever's going on in your mind. I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today's Monday, March 30th. It's 1 a.m. down here in Animus, New Mexico, and it's a beautiful night outside. I got my window open. I can feel the nice, cool breeze, and it's... It's going to be a great show tonight, I can tell already. Let's check in with our faithful intern and Devon. It's been a few days, so let's see how was your weekend, buddy? What's going on, Devon? What did you end up doing? We had a couple days off, so I assume you were out there macan it to the ladies. Is that the case? Do you get any action this weekend?</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Not much action, honestly. Went on this weird Tinder date Saturday night with a girl who collects taxidermy. And we ended up at her place. looking at her stuff raccoon collection until like 2 a.m. But it fizzled when she asked if I'd ever been in a thruple, kind of dodged that one and drove back with the check engine light blinking the whole way. Sunday was just me reorganizing my closet and listening to old episodes of this show to take notes, if that counts as productive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Man, are you trying to not get late? I thought you were looking for a girl. This one's trying to get all sexy talk with you and you freak out and run away and do work. on, man. She just wanted to know. Have you ever been? Tell us, have you ever been in a Thruple situation? Like, Jesus, don't be such a prude.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, okay, fine. Sophomore year at NMSU, I dated this girl who was super into Polly stuff. And we ended up in a Thruple with her ex-girlfriend for like a month. It was mostly just confusing group texts and me trying to keep track of whose turn it was to do dishes. But ironically, it taught me I'm not built for sharing per se. Dodged a bullet with the tax Exidermy girl, though, her raccoon eyes were judging me the whole time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So let me guess. You ended up doing the dishes every single time while they went out and had fun, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Nah, actually, I volunteered for dishes because the ex was super squeamish about touching raw chicken. So it was either me scrubbing or nobody eating. They did go out a couple times without me, but I was kind of relieved. Gave me time to finally fix that leaky faucet in my dorm that had been dripping for weeks. domestic bliss than anything else, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, man. Well, I don't know what we can do for you here. I'm trying to get you some action from some of these callers. And you're making it really hard for me because you're just such a nerd, man. It's all right. Yeah, I mean, you could be a geek. Geeks are cool. You know, learn computers or something like that. Not communications. Communications degree is nerdy. You don't want to be a nerd. You want to be a geek. So follow the way and I'll help you out. And you're going to have to gain some confidence here and start making. making moves on these ladies if you're trying to nail one down. Have you ever had sex, Devon, ever in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, a bunch of times. First one was this girl from my dorms poetry club junior year. We snuck into the campus planetarium after hours and did it under the fake stars projecting constellations. She kept whispering zodiac compatibility stuff midway through, which was equal parts hot and confusing, but hey, it worked out. per se.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, uh, some of these callers are definitely poetic, so eventually we're going to find you one and send you off on a day. I'll pay. That's, that's my, my, uh, my deal to you is if you can take one of these collars and take her out to the planetarium and get yourself laid, I, I will pay for whatever you to do on your wonderful, uh, date night. How's that sound? All right, well, that's enough of your personal life. Let's get to the callers. That's what the show is about, right? Marvin, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. What's going on? You got any advice for Devon with the ladies? I feel bad for this kid because he's just such a goddamn nerd.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Advice for Devon? Tell that kid to own the nerd thing. Build her a damn birdhouse. Girls eat that up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I mean, I just looked it up, and apparently birdhouses are mostly for actual birds, not really a proven method for attracting women.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>See what I mean, man? This is impossible. He's very difficult. to reach.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Ha, ha. Devon, come on, man. That's the point. Build it anyway. Huh. Chicks love a guy who makes shit. Trust me, worked on my second ex-wife. Luke, this kid's hopeless without intervention.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right, Marvin. Chicks do love a man that makes shit. So, Devon, you're going to have to start making some shit. Right now, you're just making shit. You understand the difference? Like, let's get you building something out here. You could do some signage for Luke at the Roost. You could build, let's see, some scaffolding around so that people can show up and look for UFOs in the desert night sky. We've got something you can build and show off the ladies your capability. That's definitely going to help, I think. We're going to get this done. Marvin, thanks for your help. What are you calling in for tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Luke, straight up. My girlfriend, Amber, stormed out two hours ago because I won't sell everything for her damn time. house fantasy. I'm over here nursing a Coors, last guy at the bar. And honestly, I'm questioning if I've been tolerating too much bullshit from her already.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What kind of bullshit? I mean, that could be a nice thing. Why don't you want to live in a tiny house? I mean, you don't necessarily have to sell everything. You could, uh, it's a tiny house, so you don't have to spend a whole lot of money on it. You could get a tiny house and keep everything, you know, rent it out for a while and, and keep somebody else paying your mortgage. And then, I mean, that's what I wish I had done, but I was, everything and get a tiny house, and then the girl's going to leave and you're going to be stuck in a fucking tiny house. That's not what you want. So my recommendation for you is to keep everything and also get a tiny house. And maybe it would be fun. Maybe you enjoy that. And I think as the world goes the way that it's going, you might learn some skills and abilities that can help you out, give you a leg up over the rest of the population.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>I hear you, Luke. But honestly, I'm done with that tiny house crap. It's just rich kids. on Instagram pretending poverty's cute. I've built my own damn kitchen table. Solid oak, seats eight, why cram that into 200 square feet? Amber's been on me for months, saying it'll bring us closer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Closer to what? Closer to divorce? That's how it works. You get nice and close and you won't get any space away from each other and then you'll start to resent every single thing that each other does and then it's over. So if that's what you're looking for, get yourself a tiny house and sell all your stuff. make sure that you have to buy her a brand new house on her way out. And I think that's maybe what she's going for. I don't know. I've met a lot of people that live in tiny houses and not a single one of them is rich. So I don't think that it's what you think it is. So most of the tiny house people that I know are capable, outdoorsy people that want to live or have to live relatively off grid and keeping the expenses down. with that at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>I hear you on the off grid, folks, Luke. But that's not Amber. She's scrolling Pinterest, dreaming of shiplap walls and fairy lights.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So I just looked this up, and apparently there's a whole case against tiny houses. And a lot of criticism about the movement was some calling it a failed utopia.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know if I would call it a utopia. I don't know that you need a kitchen table that seats eight either if you're only two people. So somewhere in between is probably reasonable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, there's no, there's no need to have a kitchen table for eight if you're two people. And think about all of the expenses that go along with having the big house. There's all the AC and everything's broken all the time and it's all the trips to Home Depot. You've got a tiny house. There's not a whole lot to worry about. You know, you just do your thing. You spend time in nature. You learn to live simply and that can be good for a lot of people. But, you know, Marvin, if you don't You don't have to do that. And if you're sick of your girlfriend, you can get another one of those, too. That's how that works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Fair point on the table, Luke, but I built it myself. Oak from scraps at work. It's my woodworking fix. Two people or eight, it stays. Big house expenses? Yeah, they suck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. And, I mean, that's cool that you built this big, cool kitchen table. But think about all the things you could build out on your homestead. You could build a chicken coop. And you could build a chicken coop. And you could build a fence to keep the cattle out, and you could build a kitchen table that seats 127 and invite Silas and his people over for whatever he calls intimacy night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>I'd kill for a homestead, Luke. Chickens, fence? Hell yeah. But Amber's vision is a trailer queen. Wheels, festivals, zero dirt.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, here's what you do. You keep the house and you rent it out, and you know, you can charge extra for the table because it's such a nice table. You rent out the house, so you got some tenants that are paying for your mortgage, and then you buy the tiny house somewhere that is cool and off grid and in the woods or in the desert or wherever you want to be for your homestead, and you start your homestead, and then you get a little tiny travel trailer to go out to the festivals and stuff if you want to do that. And if you don't want to do that, then you get a little tiny trailer for the girlfriend. That way, when you eventually break up, the trailer and say, get the fuck out of here. And you don't have to buy her a new house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>That's genius, Luke. Rent it out. Keep the cash flow. Homestead sounds perfect for my woodworking. But Amber wants Instagram vibes only. No chickens, no dirt. Been shoving Pinterest boards at me for months now. I'm not even kidding.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's lots of Pinterest boards with chickens and dirt. I mean, just because somebody's crafty and into the social media aesthetic doesn't mean that they don't have the ability to or rough it a little bit, but, you know, if you don't think she's for it and you don't want to do it with her, then don't. That's all. I just looked this up, and trailer queen definitely seems to be a term for a tiny house on wheels, often pretty luxurious for people who want to travel, and go to festivals, but still have all the comforts of home. Yeah, it doesn't sound so bad to me. You can have your little trailer queen, uh, tiny home on wheels, and go to Burning Man and, uh, find yourself a new girlfriend there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Burning Man. Luke. I'm 44 with two divorces under my belt. Last place I need.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I kind of thought that's exactly what Burning Man was for. I'd go myself if I could stand being around people. And I actually thought about it a couple times going out to Burning Man because I like the idea. And in theory, it all sounds very good. But if I put myself in burner's shoes, then it's just a whole lot of people like watching you and being all loud and drunk and obnoxious and I don't want to deal with that, but maybe you do. I'm not sure. I'm just saying, going out to festivals and stuff in your little travel trailer sounds like it could be a good thing and a nice little break from reality for a while. And if you keep your house and rent that out, then potentially when you go back to it, it'll be worth a lot more.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Nah, Luke, festivals. I'm the ER nurse who clocks out and crashes with a book. Crowds drain me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, man. Well, you don't have to do anything you don't want to do. If you like your house and you like your table, you stay right there. And if the girlfriend wants to show you Pinterest boards, you know, letter. And if that gets too annoying, say, I don't want to look at your fucking Pinterest boards anymore. Let's do something else. That's all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARVIN</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Appreciate the straight talk. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you too. Happy to help. I do my very best, but I think you should give it a shot because you don't have that many years left and you might as well try doing something a little bit different. Anybody can live in a house and go to work every day and fucking all that shit. At least for a little while, while you can still move and build stuff outside, try it if you get the opportunity. Why not? Next up, we've got Jackie. Jackie, thanks for calling the show. What's going on in your life? What's something that you can't tolerate anymore?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>My septic tank just crapped out and replacing it costs 15 grand. On a house that's only worth 120K?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sounds about right. That happened to me once. I mean, the house was worth a little more than that, tank crapped out and I had to replace it. And once you replace it, the value of your house should increase, though. So you will recoup most, if not all, if not more of that money by doing the work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Yeah, but I'm a real estate agent myself. Right outside Portland, buyers walk the second they hear septics toast. No inspection passes without it. And here's the kicker for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, of course nobody wants to buy with toasted septics. That's why you got to spend the 15 grand fix the septic. But when you do that and you sell the house, you'll get an extra, you know, 25 grand probably.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>That's not playing out around here. Rural spots outside Portland. Houses like mine lists for months. Fifteen grand fixed bumps value maybe five. Tops, boyfriend wants to stay and pour money in. We've been together six months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, make sure that he's pouring his money in and not your money. And then that sounds like a good thing for you, right? And then when you're, uh, when you're tired of the boyfriend, you'll have a brand new septic system.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>He's chipping in half, actually, but he wants us to commit long term here. Fix it? Move him in full time. Six months feels too soon for that kind of anchor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sure does. I wouldn't recommend doing that, but if it's a good deal for you and that's something you want to do and you like the dude, maybe it's worth it. Otherwise, I think you just take out an equity loan or something like that. How much you all in the house?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Oh, 80 grand on it still. Bought three years back for 110. Equity's thin. Bank laughed at a loan out of a loan last month.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I don't know. It sounds like you've got enough equity in there to take out 15 grand to build the septic system. You might have to shop around to a couple different banks, but somebody will give you that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Tried three lenders already. They see the septic failing bolt. Equity's worthless without a working system. Reminds me of that guy Marvin earlier. Dude, wouldn't he budge on his kitchen table? I'm over here laughing at my own mess, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you can talk to the bank and let them know that you actually need the equity loan to fix the septic system and they may want some and stuff to be sure that you're actually doing that with the money. But you can get that done. I have complete confidence. It might take a while and you're going to have to have decent credit, but you can absolutely get that money to do it. Otherwise, maybe get the boyfriend to co-sign on it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Credits good. 750 pico. Banks still nicks it. Without the fix already done, boyfriend co-signing. That locks us in marriage tight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It absolutely does not lock you in at all. If he's co-signing on it, then he's just a death to your debt. And if you break up with the boyfriend, he owes and you owe nothing. And that sounds like the ideal deal for you if he's dumb enough to go for it. So that's what I'm proposing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you talk to the boyfriend, see if you can co-sign you on that loan. But if you get a 750 credit score, I know you can go to a bank and you can get that 15 grand. You just have to talk to a bunch of banks, talk to some little credit unions. Maybe not the big boys. They don't want to dick around, but you get one of those little fucking desert union credit bank things and they'll do it. I promise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Try to credit union in Gresham last week. Manager flat out said no go till the septic's done. Boyfriends gained to co-sign, but get this. He's got his own dead from a truck that died last fall.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's okay, as long as his credit score is decent too. I'm telling you, you can get this done. So you can argue with me all you want, but I'm letting you know that if you talk to enough banks, one of them is going to give you the 15 grand in equity for your house to fix the septic system so that you can sell it for more. I just don't believe you about the values. Once you fix that septic system, it's going to be worth more than 15 grand. That's how it works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>I listed a comp last month in Clackamas. Fix septic, still sat 90 days. sold for three grand overask only after staging it cuts. You're right on talking more banks, though. I'll hit one tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. You hit one to get tomorrow. And I'm not saying you have to actually sell the house after you do the work. I'm saying when you do sell the house, even if it sits there for nine months, you're going to get your 15 grand back. So that money is not going to waste. You need a septic system where you live. If you don't have one, it's a big problem, not just for the town, but also just for your quality of life. So get the money, however you have to get the money, and get the work done. It's a shitty thing. You get it, but you got to do it. And once it's done, it's done for the next 10 or 15 years, and you don't have to worry about it. Got the shitty pun?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>You're selling me on the fix. I'll call banks at lunch tomorrow. But the boyfriend angle?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, tell us about the boyfriend. You don't sound very excited about this boyfriend of yours. What's the deal? Why don't you like him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>I do like him. He's funny. Cook's decent green chili when he tries. But he spends like water. Truck debts just the start. Tracked his receipts once. 300 on Kraft Beer alone last month.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Me? Well, I mean, he works. That's his money. And if he's, he's, paying his truck loan off on time, then that's his choice. You may not want to meld finances with him, but I mean, co-signing on a loan isn't exactly that, right? That's only beneficial to you, and it's not beneficial to him at all in any way. So if you can get him to co-sign on a loan, then that's just going to make a bank feel a little bit better, because he's got a history of paying on his loans, like this truck one you keep complaining about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>are on time, sure. But that spending leaks everywhere. Craft beer. Impulse tools from the hardware store. I track every penny in Mint It off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's good. It's good to have at least one partner that's financially mature. So maybe you've got to teach him some of those finance skills and show him the way a little bit. And, you know, maybe he's a lost cause. And you just, you've learned from spending six months with him that you don't want to get into a more serious committed relationship with your finances on the line because he's not good with money. That's your choice. But it sounds like the boyfriend wants to stick around and you like him and you guys need to fix your septic system. So get it done, Jackie, one way or the other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>That's the rub. I tolerate it because he's fun. Takes me to those hatched chili roasts. Last fall, he blew 500 on a smoker he used twice. I'm eyeing that three-year gap in my own books from back when. Can't merge that mess. Sorry over sharing again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's what this show is for. We want you to share. We want you to be open with us and tell us what's going on. And let's get to the bottom of what's up with you and your boyfriend. He wants to get more serious, and you don't feel comfortable with that because of his spending. So that's a pretty common thing, I think. Do you think that he is teachable? Do you think that have you tried to speak with him about his spending and lead him in another direction? Is this how his parents spend? Was he raised this way? Where does the spending come from? I mean, we've all had an opportunity. Well, I don't know if we all have, but I certainly have, to spend money frivolously on stupid shit like smokers that I used twice. And everybody goes through that. Or maybe that's just my rich white privilege. I don't know. But I think it's a pretty normal thing, and people can grow out of it or learn different ways of managing their money. But they need somebody in their life that can show them that that exists. And they can show them like, look, if you don't spend all your money, then you can keep some of it and it can grow. People don't understand that because they don't teach it in school.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Try the top twice. First after the smoker. Spreadsheets out on the kitchen table. He goes, Jackie, life's too short for spreadsheets. Laft it off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, the truth is that it's somewhere in between. Life's too short to be so concerned with money that you can't do the things that you enough to take care of that money so that it can grow and you can do the things that you enjoy. So it seems like the answer here is between the two of you and you should be able to maybe work out some sort of compromise or agreement where you both are happy, you're saving, the bills are paid, the septic's fixed, and you can still do some stuff that's fun with some money. Because really, what is the point of working 40 hours a week or 60 hours a week or however many hours you both work if you can't spend any of that money?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Compromise sounds right. Set a fun pot. $200 a month. He blew it first week on tickets to a blazers game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, that's not good. If you're having these discussions and you're trying to compromise and he's still taking it too far, well, then maybe it has to be a more serious conversation. And if he's not somebody you can see yourself with long term, definitely don't let him move in. And maybe give him another chance. Talk to him, say, hey, this money thing's really bothering me. And if we're going to go, if we're going to move forward in this relationship, I need to be confident that you're not going to blow all the money. Because that's a reasonable thing to be concerned about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Yeah, serious talks queued up. Tonight post-shift. No spreadsheets this time. Just straight. Fix habits, or we stall here. Like Marvin with his table. I'm clocking my own taints.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right. That's what we say. Clock your own taint. That's the only way you can get ahead in this world. You got to level set your tolerance and clock your own taint. All right. Well, thank you for the call, Jackie. We've got to pause now for a word from our sponsors, but I really appreciate calling in tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JACKIE</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Good night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good night to you. And good night to the boyfriend. And hopefully you guys have a wonderful week without spending too much money. Now, ladies and gentlemen, we've got to take a break for a word from our sponsor. Life is hard. You're listening to a man in an RV talk to strangers at 2 in the morning, so you already know that. That's why we partnered with Better Maybe, online therapy that's honest about the whole situation. With Better Maybe, you get matched with a licensed therapist within 48 hours. Will they fix your problems? Maybe. That's the whole brand. They're not going to lie to you. Your first session might change your life. It also might just be you staring at the webcam while someone in another time zone nods politely. That's still more than your friends are doing. Better maybe. It's better than nothing, and that's not nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, I just looked up, clock your own taint. And apparently the slang term, taint comes from taint your balls. And tain your asshole. Taint your balls. Taint your asshole. It's somewhere in between. That's what I always say. Your taints between your balls and your asshole. Next up, we've got Artie. Welcome to the show. What do you think about the taint? Are you familiar with the nomenclature?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>Taint? Shoot. Luke, you lost me on that one. Sounds like something from the prison yard. Never heard the term. Anyway, I was sitting here at the kitchen table.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're sitting at the kitchen table, but you never heard of the word taint? You don't know what a taint is? The taint's the little fleshy bit that runs between your ball sack and your asshole, or your vagina and your asshole, if you're the fairer sex. You're not familiar with this? Nobody's ever scrubbed a tongue down there for you or anything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>Ha. All right. Now I get it. Yeah, I've had my share scrubbed down there. Connie was good at that. But listen, I'm out here at the kitchen table right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. Tell us about your kitchen table. It sounds fascinating.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>It's this beat-up oak slab big gym built back in 85. Seats eight if you squeeze. Full of knife scars from whittling and burn marks from hot skillets. Connie hated it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, it sounds like a good table. Why are you calling in to talk about your table?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>Well, it ain't just the table. I was sitting there tonight cleaning my 308, the one big gym gave me. Ritual thing, after a long shift. Helps me think straight. Then Connie shows up unannounced.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I can see where that would be relaxing. I also enjoy cleaning out guns. The smell of the gun oil is like nothing else. It's very pleasant. And it is very relaxing. So good on you for keeping your guns clean and being a responsible gun owner. So tell us about Connie. She's your ex. She used to lick your taint, and she showed up today. So what did she have to say for herself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>Yeah, that gun oil smell gets me every time. Like therapy in a bottle. Connie's my ex-wife. Married young. Grew up together.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. And she's obviously your ex-wife, so it didn't work out. And she showed up today. So why are you calling to tell us about Connie? What did she do? What did she say? How did she make you feel, Artie? Give us something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>the door right at 11. Wind kicking up outside, I swing it open with the 308 still half apart on the table behind me. Oil rag in my hand. She's standing there in her old Broncos jacket.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Was it just her old Broncos jacket? You're going to have to get to the point soon because it's getting, it's getting difficult here for me. Think about me on this side of the microphone. It's difficult for me to pull this out of you. So why don't you volunteer some information and let us know why you think this call is interesting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>All right, Luke. taken. She pushes past me into the kitchen, starts yanking open drawers, looking for her grandma's necklace.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Was she inebriated? Did she find the necklace? Was there some reason she couldn't have just called and asked for the necklace? Do you know where the necklace is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>No, not hammered, eyes glassy, though. Probably that boxed wine she likes, didn't find it. It's tucked in my dresser drawer upstairs. Yeah, she could have called first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you know where her grandmother's necklace is and you're holding it from her in your fucking sock drawer. Why would you do that? It obviously doesn't belong to you. It's meaningful to her. She wants it back. So why are you not giving it to her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>Whoa, Luke, pump the brakes. It ain't her necklace anymore. Divorce was two years ago. Informal split. No lawyers. She took the couch, the TV, half the dishes. Left that necklace in the jewelry box.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a real dickhead way to look at things because that was, it's a sentimental thing to her. So what do you do? What do that necklace mean to you. You obviously don't need to sell it or you would have already. So you're just holding on to it, what, out of spite? That's not cool, man. So just give her the necklace back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>Hold on, Luke. Spite? That's not it at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what is it then?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>No, Luke. It's principal. She storms in, sees the 308 parts spread out Xbox humming in the corner for my late night session. She busts out laughing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean she busts out laughing? I don't understand what's going to on here. So she's drunk. And her eyes are all glassy. She pushes her way past you. She starts opening your drawer. She's looking for her grandmother's necklace. You know where the necklace is. You have for a long time. You've got it stored safely in your drawer up in your bedroom like an asshole. And you're not giving it back to her. I mean, even though you know it's not yours. And it's a thing that she wants. And she's laughing. So illuminate this situation for us a little bit. I'm getting tired of trying to drag it out of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>No, no, Luke, let me lay it out. She pushes in, sees the rifle guts on the table, Xbox glowing with that paused call of duty screen, beers stacked by my elbow. She points and cracks up, says, Artie, you're still living like a divorced gamer loser? That's when she spots the jewelry box.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. So whatever, she's right. You are living like a divorced Xbox loser. You're just sitting there cleaning guns by yourself with your eight-person table, hiding some ladies necklace and not giving it back to her. So I agree with the woman.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>Agree with her? Come on, Luke. That's harsh. It's my kitchen. My table.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. It's your kitchen. Your table. Her necklace. Give her her fucking necklace back. You've got no reason to hold on to it other than spite. Yes. You got spite because she's being a bitch to you. She could have handled this in a nicer way. But still, you've known about that necklace for God knows how long. Right? You could have given her it to her on day one, offered that up because, uh, because it's of no use to you. You're only holding it because you know that she wants it. And that's not right. That's a douchebag move. And you should cut the shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>No way, Luke. Huh. It's not spite. She cleared out half the house day one, couch, TV, her pods, left the necklace sitting there like junk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, she wants it back. So give her the necklace. I don't have anything else to say to you. Do you have anything else you'd like to say to the radio listeners at home before I hang up on you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ARTIE</span><p>All right, Luke. Point taken. Night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Night, you fucking douchebag. You give us all a bad name for shit like that. You know, usually it's, uh, I don't need to talk about usually. Next up, we've got Charlene. Charlene, thanks for calling in. What's going on? What's, uh, what's tickling your taint tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Uh, thanks. First time calling in almost hung up. Nothing bad's tickling anything tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you sound awful familiar. It's your first time calling in? We appreciate that. What's got you calling in tonight? What can we help you with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Ah, nothing really needs helping, Luke. Just excited. Been grinding chess online for months. Tonight, I just won my first big tournament.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's awesome, Charlene. I just looked it up. And there are so many different kinds of online chess tournaments from QuickBlitz games to longer classical formats. Congratulations. Good work. I like to play chess myself. And I've, I've, I've, I've, I've, I've, I want a few of those little tournaments that don't pay anything. You get paid for your win?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Yeah, thanks, Devon. Luke, it's on chess.com. Classical format, two-hour games.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Awesome. Good work. Did you win money from this or just street cred?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, 200 bucks. First real payout. Been grinding rated games for months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Nicely done. Congratulations. It feels good to get your first win under your belt. I'm very proud of you. anything else you'd like to tell us?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Well, uh, it's not just the money. I was playing this guy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good for you. Um, well, part of the fun of playing online games like that is the trash talking. It's my favorite part anyway. It's not nice to call somebody trash, though. That's very unkind. And it's, uh, it must be satisfying for you to have taken a lot of money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Yeah, Luke. Super satisfying. He resigned after I trapped his queen. typed Gigi, all salty.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked this up. And apparently, some common chess trash talk isn't even insults. But things like, you don't know what to do when someone is taking a long time to move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Yeah. I mean, it's always been my strategy to take a long time to move to piss people off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But in a lot of those time games, you don't have that option because you're on a timer. So, I mean, you got to go, you got to move quickly. So, uh, good for you, Charlene. Congratulations on your big win. Uh, we're going to move on to the next caller now, unless there's anything else that you'd like to share with our audience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CHARLENE</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Appreciate it. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you too. Keep on playing and playing bigger games. And maybe you'll find yourself on the world stage chess champions. That's what we hope for you anyway. Next up on the show, we've got Wendell. Wendell, welcome to the show. What's tickling your taint night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Luke, I caught my boss Rick with his hand up my second ex-wife's skirt behind the food truck 10 minutes ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, so like a literal food truck? I'm picturing this whole dramatic scene with like hot dog water dripping on them. You fucking creep. You're such a creep, Devon. All right. Well, that's, uh, that's unpleasant. And it sounds like your ex-wife is your ex-wife for a good reason. And good on your boss, right? Let them, let them, let's, uh, that's unpleasant. And it sounds like your ex-wife is your ex-wife for a good-wife for a good-reve for a good-huh. And, right? him have that, and he'll learn his lesson, I'm sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Yeah, Devon, literal food truck. Taco Salpaster tonight grease everywhere. Luke, she's X number two for damn good reasons, sure. But Rick's my boss, pays my bills, and she shows up unannounced, says she's just saying hi. Then I hear the rustling behind the prep station.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you think there's actually something going on there, or was she just trying to get under your skin because she knew you'd see?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Something's going on, Lou. Luke? They've been texting for weeks. Saw it on her phone last month when she left it in my truck. Rick's got that thing I like, she wrote to a friend. And tonight, she whispers, missed you, big guy, right before I ram the corner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like maybe you're not quite over the woman yet. And you're divorced. She's free to date whoever she wants. And so is Rick. Then it seems like there's nothing you can really do about it. You're going to have to just swallow that one and move on with your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Maybe I'm not fully over her, Luke. Fair point. Divorced two years now. But Rick's the one signing my checks. Tomorrow, I got to sling tacos like nothing happened. And her car's been at his place twice last week. I drove by on my way home from a shift.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's unpleasant, and it sucks to go through it. But there's not much you can do because they're both free people, and if that's what they want to do, there's nothing you can do to stop them. You can maybe talk to Rick at your boss, let them know that it's a little uncomfortable comfortable for him to be fucking around with your ex-wife in front of you and maybe ask him to be a little more respectful about that, or you can find yourself a new job and a new boss and a new woman and maybe do it to somebody else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>Talking to Rick crossed my mind, Luke. He's decent otherwise. Let's me off early for dust storms. He even covered my truck insurance last year after hail. But yeah, respectful might go over like a lead here in the boot heel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're going to have to do one thing or the other, either get over it and deal with it or move on and put yourself in an environment where you don't have to deal with it. There's really no other way, I mean, except talking to Rick, which it sounds like he's your boss. He's signing your checks, as you've mentioned a few times. He continues to do that, so it hasn't been a problem. If you're concerned that maybe the wife will put something in his ear to fuck with you, and he's the type of person that might do that to impress her, then maybe you should bring that to HR and have him talk to that way. But I think you can handle this with a man-to-man conversation because any man would understand that that's fucked up and it's not cool to do somebody. So he might not think, maybe he doesn't even know that she's your ex-wife, but he might not think that they're out in the open. He might think he's hiding it better than he is. So you let him know not and see how he responds. And if he responds unfavorably, then find yourself a new taco truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>No HR here, Luke. Rick owns the truck outright, runs it solo with me and two-part timers. Man-to-man makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, there you go. You've got yourself a plan. So talk to Rick, man-to-man. Tell him to stop feeling up your ex-wife's taint in front of everybody because that is unprofessional and it's douch-bats and we don't stand for either of those things here at Luke at the Roost. But ladies and gentlemen, it's time for us to take a little pause and listen to this ad from our sponsor. I'm just going to say it. Your penis isn't working. I said it. It's out there now. The word is in the air. We're all adults. Some of us are adults whose penises work and some of us are adults who are listening very carefully right now while pretending to adjust the radio so the person of in the passenger seat doesn't see their face. It's fine. It happens to, and this is the real number, roughly half of all men over 40 at some point. Half. You're not special. You're not broken. You're not the first guy this happened to, and you're not going to be the last. You're just the guy it's happening to right now. And right now you have two options. Option one, do nothing. Keep staring at the ceiling. Keep blaming the altitude, the stress, the medication, the alignment of mercury, the fact that you ate dairy, none of which are the problem. Option two? Sandstone. $45. A doctor who has literally heard everything and will not flinch. Medication that works, a box that reveals nothing, and the ability to walk into your bedroom like a man who handled his business instead of a man who's about to suggest watching another episode or something. Sandstone, I said the word. You heard the word. Now go to the website. All right. Thank you to Sandstone for their support of this show. And here he is. Here's the guy we've been waiting for for a week now. Silas, Silas, you're calling back in. Welcome to the show. What's tickling your tainer? Who's tainer you tickling tonight? What's going on down there at the old Wellspring?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Hey, Luke. Brother, Marcus rolled up to the gate this morning. Once back in after that note he left. But the more I think about it, something about it, just doesn't sit right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you've been back and forth enough with this Marcus character. It's time to, uh, it's time to let him go. I think you got to tell him now you can't come back, uh, third time and you're out. And, uh, and he's definitely had enough chances. And you don't feel good about it. Your, your wife doesn't feel good about it. It's, it's time to just deny him entry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I hear you, Luke. Third time's no charm on this one. Teresa's been clear. She doesn't want him around those shared nights anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you tried to help the guy out. You looked at yourself and you saw where maybe you had a part and everything to play. He doesn't want to be there. And he's going to dick around and keep saying, I want to come back. I don't want to be there. It's because of my girlfriend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AALIYAH</span><p>Hey, Luke. Remember that roommate with the adult baby fetish? He just proposed we do a play date together. I about fell over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I assume you said no, or has he worked on you a little bit? Have you reconsidered your stance on the adult baby play? Because the last time you called in, you weren't into it at all. And my advice was to tell him that. And it sounds like you did tell him that. And if he's still pushing on on you, that's a problem. And it's time for a new roommate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AALIYAH</span><p>Oh yeah, I shut that down flat. No play date. No way. Right. But here's the thing, Luke. He didn't back off. He said it'd be fun for both of us. I left a whole diaper on the kitchen counter this morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's not cool. Time to get a new roommate or kick him out or you were looking at other places to move to. And this dude is a creep and you don't need that in your life. Was the diaper clean, I hope?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AALIYAH</span><p>Yeah, clean as far as I could tell. Thank God. But leaving it right by the coffee pot, come on. I've been scouting apartments over in Clayton.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Adult baby slash diaper lover forums actually have extensive advice sections on how to responsibly manage their fetish in shared living situations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Often emphasizing, communication and respecting boundaries. Yeah, this guy's not respecting your boundaries. You've made your boundaries clear and it's obvious that he's going to keep pushing. So, uh, good luck on finding yourself a new apartment because that's the right answer here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Yeah, new place it is. Appreciate it. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you too. Good luck with the, uh, the diapers and all that. It sounds like something I don't want to deal with. So I'm glad I don't have to. And next up, we're going to take one more call. caller here we've got Terry, Terry, you're going to be our last call of the night. So what's going on with your tape? What's itching you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Luke, my man Jesse, works nights at the slaughterhouse in Clayton, comes dragging in at dawn reeking of blood, and cow guts. I fire up the bakery right after, and that stench seeps into everything, ruins the whole damn batch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is that just your opinion because you can smell it? It's in your nose? Or is that, are you hearing that from your customers?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>anybody really wants a pastry that smells like cow guts and blood. No, Luke, customers bail fast. Yesterday, Mrs. Garcia wrinkles her nose at the cinnamon rolls and says, smells like the stockyards exploded in here. Turns around, walks out. I'm losing money, hand over fist.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I just looked it up, and apparently it's a pretty common issue for slaughterhouse odors to impact nearby businesses. With some places, even having official odor complaints Child Bys schools and homes. Okay, well, what's his hygiene situation? I mean, obviously he's going to do what he has to do for work, but could he, you know, go straight to the shower when he gets home and get rid of the clothes or leave the clothes in a smell-proof bag or something like that? There must be some way to work around this. What are other people that are in the butchery business do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>He strips in the garage, jumps straight in the shower. But those work clothes? He dumps him right in the laundry room hamper.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I mean, that problem's solved. You put a hamper in the garage for him to put his clothes in. And if you really have to, if it's affecting your business, then don't even bring them in the house ever. Make him take them to a laundromat or move your washer and dryer into the garage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Tried it, Luke. Hamper's in the garage six months now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>It sounds like he needs to immediately soak those clothes in a separate bin with some vinegar or baking soda solution before they even hit the hamper because the smell can really permeate fabrics.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. Have you tried that? Have you tried having him soak the clothes in some sort of a chemical solution or even just vinegar like Devon suggests?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Vinegar soak. Tried it for weeks. Clothes come out like pickled ass.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>One doesn't sound very pleasant at all. I don't want a pickled ass pastry. Pickled ass pastries. The next house thing in New Mexico. I don't know. I don't know what to tell you there, but I know that this must be a solution that's been solved by other people in his industry because it seems to be a real thing, the smell permeating and causing issues. But I've never noticed anybody, even a butcher, that has a strong smell like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Luke Butchers reek all day. Grew up next to one in Tukumkari. Couldn't eat steak for years. We've hit laundromat twice a week. And enzyme sprays, the works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's got to be something. I don't know what it is, but I'm sure that you could do some research, and burn his fucking clothes. Get him burner clothes. So maybe he's got to change his Haynes T-shirt every day. Don't they wear protective gear? Butchers, don't they have like a butcher's, uh, apron type situation to get all that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Luke, aprons and gloves. Standard issue.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. So you got this guy, he comes home, he strips his clothes off in the garage, he puts them in the hamper, they never enter the house, and then you spray him down with enzyme sprays and he takes his shower. There's not too much more you can ask of this guy. He seems to be doing everything that he can to make the situation as minimal as possible. We do need butchers, and that is his profession. So it might just be something that you've got to deal with. Maybe there's something on your end that you can do a diod in the bakery or a hepa filter or something like that? Have you tried attacking it from the other direction?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Hepa filters? Two of them, 500 bucks last month.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, how about an ozone generator? That should take care of the situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Ozone generator ran it overnight once.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe once isn't enough. Well, I don't know what to tell you, because these are all the ideas that I have. So, I mean, you can either get rid of the dude because he smells, bad because he's working to pay the bills. Or you can, you know, triple up on your hepa filters, even though they're expensive. Or you can find yourself another profession.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Dump Jesse? That's your fix. We've been together 12 years, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I just gave you six other fixes that you shot down because you apparently tried them all. I don't know what the answer is here. I'm not a fucking chemist. Maybe you got to go to the base bakery school or a butchery school and figure out what butchers do to take care of this situation. I'm not an expert in rotting meat stink.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Every butcher forum, Luke. Same complaint. Wives dumping loads at coin ops or divorcing. Sales tanked 40% since wind shifted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I find it hard to believe that there's no commercial product that takes care of this situation. It seems like sense is something that we as society have got pretty well figured out. I mean, you can soak this guy in essential oils if you have to wash him down in vinegar. Whatever it is that people do, somebody's got this figured out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Essential oils, tried lavender, eucalyptus. Now bakery reeks like a dead potpourri shop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, which one of these businesses generates more income for your household? Is it the bakery or is it the butchery?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Bakery used to out-earn his shop two to one. Now, butchery's 70% percent of our take home.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then you guys need to have that conversation because if you don't want to split up and you can't stand the smell, then maybe it's time for him to come work for you at the bakery or find himself a new career. Because you've got to pick one or the other, it seems like, if none of these products are working for you and you don't want to continue to keep trying forever, if you're losing money and you're making less money than you were before, what did you do before this? What did he do before he was a butcher? Has it been 12 years is of not being able? At some point, this began. What was the precipice for that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Jesse drove semis nights. Twelve years hauling freight out of Clovis, back gave out two years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>His back gave out, so now he's a butcher and he's cutting up cows? That doesn't make any sense. Yeah, it seems like you might be better off if he didn't work at all. So that's also an option. You know, have him a stay-at-home boyfriend or husband or whatever the fuck he is. And he can do the household stuff while you bring in the money and that will double your household income, right? So that seems like a wise choice to me. But just have the talk with him and let him know that this whole butchering thing isn't working out. And you're going to, in support of your business and your household finances, you're going to need them to find some other way to make money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Stay at home. Jesse laughs at that shit. Pride's killing him slower than the back pain.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, Terry. you obviously are not looking for a solution here. I'm not sure what you're looking for. But it's getting late. So we're going to have to wrap up the show. Is there anything you'd like to tell the audience at home before we hang up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Butchers wreak forever, Luke. Thanks for the ear.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no problem. Butchers wreak forever. That should be the name of the episode. And thanks for calling in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sorry we couldn't solve that problem for you, but I don't think you really wanted it to be solved. Or you would have met me halfway. and we could have, we could have workshoped this together. But no, you just wanted to complain. And I suppose that's okay. If you just want to complain, you can call in to Luke at the roost at, I don't think I gave out the number. If you want to give us a call for the next show, the number is 208-439-58-53. That's 208-439 Luke. And let's check in with the Devon. Devon, how do you think the show went tonight? I was pretty annoyed by most of these callers. It was to pull out any sort of information or why they were calling. I'm not sure what was up with that tonight. What did you think of the show?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, it was kind of all over the place tonight, wasn't it? Like, the butcher shop smell guy had me hooked for a second. I mean, who doesn't love a good, gross out story? But yeah, a lot of them just rambled without landing the punch. Still, I don't know, I thought the trucker call was solid. That back pain stuff hits close to home since my uncle drove semis and ended up with the same issues. Anyway, we got through it. Right? You kept it moving better than I could have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, I'm a goddamn professional, and that's what I do. We keep this show moving. And on the air, we don't do dead air here at Look at the Roost. So what do you think we should talk about tomorrow? Devon, you got any ideas for tomorrow's show?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, no dead air. That's the rule. For tomorrow, maybe we do something on weird dreams people have had lately. Like, callers share their craziest ones, and we try to figure out what they mean, or if they're just from bad takeout. or local stuff, like the best hole-in-the-wall spots in Deming or Clovis that nobody talks about. I could pull up some reviews ahead of time. That trucker vibe got me thinking road stories could work too, but less back pain, more like ghost trucks. Or something spooky on the highway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, I see where you're going on that. We already did dreams. We can't do dreams again. Not this soon anyway. Not without some more specifics for those dreams, you know? Just general dreams. It's interesting, but we need some variety. I like the idea of your road stories. We haven't done road stories and ghost trucks is interesting. There was that one caller a while back that thought that the aliens were following her in their F-150s, I think. Yeah, let's go with, tomorrow we'll do road stories. And we'll listen to stories that people have from the road. Way of the road, bud. It's the way of the road.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, road stories sounds perfect. Way better than rehashing dreams. I remember that. That alien F-150 lady, she was convinced they were tailgating her on 70. Cool if I dig up a couple New Mexico highway legends beforehand, like the Phantom Trucker on 285, or whatever. My civics seen some weird stuff out there, too, but nothing ghostly yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, it sounds like a plan to me. And thanks to all you listeners for another great episode of Luke at the Roost. Give us a call back tomorrow when we'll be taking calls and talking about people's road stories. a story from the road, you can give us a call tomorrow or send us an email at submissions at look at the roost.com. With that, we're going to sign off and say good night.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 47: Clarence, Randy, and the OnlyFans Daughter</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-03-31T05:26:58+00:00">March 31, 2026</time> · 1 hr 8 min</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back. This is Luke. I'm your host of tonight's episode of Luke at the Roost, the late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me what's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can. If you'd like to give us a call, the number here is 208-439-58-5-8-3. That's 208-4-39 Luke. If you can't get to a telephone or, or you don't feel comfortable on the phone or whatever, you can send us an email, too. And if it's funny or poignant enough, we might read it on the air. So if you'd like to send us an email, the address is submissions at Luke at theroose.com. So let's check in with our trusty, nerdy sidekick here, Devon. Devon, how are you doing tonight? Are you ready for our Road Stories show today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I'm doing pretty good, actually, Luke. Had this dream last night about driving across the country in a van made of old cassette tape. So road stories feel kind of prophetic today. Yeah, totally ready. I pulled up a bunch of weird highway facts earlier just in case. What's the first caller got?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. We haven't, we haven't checked in without first call yet. First, we're going to talk about our road stories. I mean, I certainly have a lot of them, but what about you? Have you ever been out on the road for any extended length of time? You ever travel the country or do the RV thing or or hitchhike across America? Anything fun like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah. Last summer, I drove my Civic from Deming all the way to Vegas. And back in like 48 hours, just to see this girl I met online, check engine light blinking the whole time like it was mocking me. We ended up breaking down in the middle of nowhere, Arizona, spent the night in a ditch arguing about whether scorpions could sense fear, which, ironically, they probably could because I was terrified. Nothing as epic as hitchhiking, though, unless you count the time I thumbed a ride with that guy who turned out to be a taxidermist hauling roadkill. Anyway, you got a collar queued up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Jesus, Devon, you're trying to push me to the collars already. I'm not ready. We're discussing you and I about road stories. Road stories, sir. So I don't know what's up with you in the taxidermists. It seems to be a recurring theme in your life. Do you have some sort of weird attraction to taxidermists?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>No attraction per se, Luke. It's just bad luck or something. Like I put out this weird hitchhiking vibe that attracts the strangest people. That taxidermist guy was actually super nice, gave me a stuffed squirrel as a thank you gift, which I still have on my dashboard staring at me every morning. Kind of makes me think about mortality every time I drive. But anyway, road stories from callers are going to top that, right? You want me to pull up some Route 66 trivia or something while we wait?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I hate Route 66. It's the worst road in America. You want to know why? I've been there a bunch of times. I actually owned some land out in Holbrook, Arizona, which is right on the old Route 66. But that particular road, really, I even made videos about it. That road pisses me off because everywhere that Route 66 used to go, every road around there has the Route 66 signs. Like, it's all they have left is the memory, the ghost of Roots of Route 66. And it's diluted it so much that you don't even know what road it was because all the little side roads have Route 66 and all the businesses are the Route 66 whatever. It's just, it's impossible to, uh, to trace the old historic Route 66. It's going through the national parks. It's going through the towns. It's every single little side road. I mean, it's just obnoxious. So that pisses me off. And then you get up to, uh, uh, Winslow, Arizona, you know, and stand out on the corner there and they get the big Route 66 painted in the center of the road and the statues of the fucking, I fucking hate the Eagles, but they're always playing that side. It's awful. It's just so kitschy and forced. And all the little shops, they got to sell their fucking Route 66 postcards. Jesus Christ. It was one road. It was the mother road. It was only one road. They can't all be Route 66. It really pisses me off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I get that. The whole thing's turned into this tourist trap zombie where every gas station claims it's the real deal. Holbrook's got that wigwam motel, though, right? I drove past there once on the way from that Vegas trip, thought about stopping. But my Czech engine light was flashing like a rave, and I figured the stuffed squirrels in the lobby would judge me harder than the one on my dash. Kind of sad how it's all faded glory now. You ever think about developing that land into something anti-rout 66, like a no-kitch zone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Actually, yes, I have. So the land that I have, it butts up against the petrified forest National Park. So it's all that chin-lay crazy formation. And half of it's just flatland and half of it is Martian-looking land. And down the road, a piece of you can call it a road, down the dirt path a while, there's a cult-like community of cosplayers called Uranium Springs. And they all have their structures built out there in the middle of the desert, and they blow up cars. And you can't go there unless you're dressed up all Mad Max style. And they have huge parties. girls in cages. And it's this whole event out there. And they're my neighbors. So I was thinking I would set up my own cult out there on Route 66. I got to talk to Silas about this and get some tips. But I would set up my own as a rival group to Uranium Springs. And that way we could have a rivalry. You know, we could set up booby traps around our prospective perimeters and do covert and pillage the other group. I think it could be great. What do you think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>That sounds epic, Luke, like the desert's finally getting the post-apocalyptic showdown it deserves. Uranium Springs, with the Mad Max parties and cage dancers, your rival cult could be the anti-kitch saviors, booby traps made from petrified wood. And old wigwam motel scraps, rating them for supplies while blasting something that drowns out the eagles. I'd volunteer to infiltrate as a double agent, ironically blending right in since I already looked like I crawled out of a dystopian fanfic. You got a name for it yet?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, no name for it yet. See, the problem is the road to get there is very difficult. I wouldn't bring my RV out there because it's just bumpy. And one of the times I went out there, it was so full of tumbleweeds that I had to, like, go around the road. Like, you need to bring a shovel to get down the road because the tumbleweeds just pile up against people's fences, and it's very hard to traverse. So before I could turn it into anything real, I'd have to do something about that road. So I don't know if you know anybody that's got a scraper or a grater that we could fix this road. And I really wanted to get like a backhoe out there and dig it up and put a bunch of shipping containers under the ground and have it like fallout bunkers. And then that way we could just have like a periscope checking out for the uranium springs goons. And if we see any of them, we can, I don't know, launch water balloons or petrified wood balloons at them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, man. Tumbleweeds piling up like that sounds straight out of a spaghetti Western gone wrong. I've shoveled my fair share out of the way on back roads near Deming. But yeah, you'd need a real greater for that stretch. Maybe rent one from a place like United Rentals in Holbrook. The bunker idea is genius, though, periscope spying on the Uranium Springs crew while you're lobbing petrified wood. Call it tumbleweed resistance or something with the road as your first moat. I'd help dig if you get the backhoe. Reminds me of that time I buried a time capsule in the desert with my ex that we never dug up. Probably still out there judging us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, man, that Uranium Springs place is cool. I went out there and took pictures of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The Reverend, I forget his name, but he calls himself Reverend that runs the place. He let us go out there and take pictures of it. And it's pretty massive. I mean, they actually have brought, they built tools out there. So they've got cranes and engineers. I mean, most of the people that are doing this that are cosplaying, they are engineers. And this is what they do on their time off. So on the weekends, they go down there and they work on their weekends. little hovels, their structures, and they have this big outdoor rec room. That's where the cages are for the girls. And it's just, it does look Mad Max, and they take it very seriously. Once a year they have a big party out there. I think it's in June or July called detonation. And it's like a week-long burning man type situation. Maybe we should go this year. What do you think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh, man, detonation week sounds like the kind of chaos I'd thrive in. Mad Max engineers with cranes. And a wreck room full of. of cages. Sign me up, Luke. I'd go full scavenger mode with a backpack full of petrified wood props. And my dashboard squirrel riding shotgun. We could crash it incognito first. Scope out the reverence setup for your rival cult intel. You think they'd let radio weirdos in? Or do we need costumes right away?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, no, we would need costumes right away. I don't think they let you in if you're not in costume. You have to be fully in the Mad Max world to enter Uranium Springs during their events. I mean, they'll let you go check out the place in place. clothes on a normal day when nobody's there. But if they're doing something, they want it to be authentic feeling. And they're like going, they got flame throwers out there. They're blowing up cars. It's the whole deal. How many dancing girls in cages do you think I could trade you for? Like if we had to, if just hypothetically, if I had to make a deal, what do you think you would be worth to them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh man, trading me for dancing girls? I probably fetch like half a cage at best, Luke. Maybe the ones with the ones with, the rusty outfits nobody wants, since I just stand there awkwardly critiquing their flamethrower technique until they regret it. Ironically, that reminds me of the time I bartered my way out of a bad camping trip by offering up my sleeping bag to some off-grid survivalists who turned out to be into interpretive dance. They took it and let me hitchhike away with nothing but regrets. We could practice our values beforehand, though, like dress me up as Mad Max Road Killbait and see what the Reverend counters with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if roadkill bait is really what they're looking for. They're just looking for a nice, supple little twink like you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>A supple twink, Luke, that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me. Kind of makes up for that time you called me the human equivalent of a participation trophy. I'd probably go for a full cage if I learned some flamethrower tricks first, or at least distract them long enough for you to raid their cranes. We should hit up a thrift store for costumes, though. Turn me into prime Mad Max bait and see if the Reverend bites.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, let's think about that for this year. And I got lots of road stories. Maybe we'll get to some of them, but this is a caller show. So we're going to take some of these calls and see what people's stories from the road are. Let's see. First up, we've got Clarence. Clarence, welcome to the show. Are you ready to tell us some of your best road stories?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Yeah, Luke. Saturday morning, Randy texts me a screenshot of my 19-year-old daughter, Bucknaked, on some website. Says he thought I should know. We're parked on a dirt track off Highway 8. fresh of dropping clients. Now, I got two fires and no water.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. I don't see how that's a road story, but I'm pretty sure if you have those pictures, send them over to us and we'll investigate and make sure that they're authentic. You don't want to get faked out. You don't want you to buy fake images of naked girls. So send them to submissions at lukeatshorus.com. And we'll give them the once over and make sure that everything's on the up and up, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke. I'm not sending pictures of my daughter to anywhere. This was a group text. Randy looped in two other outfitters. Now the whole crew knows before I do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but don't you want to certify the authenticity of the images? What website are they on? And I'll just look them up myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke. I'm not giving out the website name on air. It's one of those subscription sites. I checked it myself after the text. She's got months of posts up there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So is it like OnlyFans or like Arrow.me? One of those sites or is it a more traditional porn hub type site? What's going on in the images? Can you describe the images to us?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Like OnlyFans. Paid to see four sets. She's in the back room I fixed up for her. On that twin bed, lights everywhere. Naked spreads, using props.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What kind of props is she using in these images?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Vibrators. Dildoes from some online shop. One time, my old shotgun cleaning rod. Jesus. All on that bed spread, I bought her last Christmas. Found the ringlight yesterday. Tucked behind the water heater. Thought it was for her sewing projects.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's for her projects, all right? At least she was just using the cleaning rod. I mean, that sounds pokey. At least she was using the cleaning rod and not the shotgun itself. Are there anywhere she's using the shotgun itself? Because those would be interesting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke. Nothing with the shotgun. shotgun. This ain't funny. Randy texts that grug Saturday morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no, I don't think it's funny at all. I mean, I feel for you here. This is a serious thing. You see pictures of your young, attractive, I assume, 19-year-old daughter, buck naked, playing with herself with a variety of props and tools from around your household that's got to get to you a little bit, I would assume. We're just trying to get a full picture of what's going on. Because I want to, I want to truly. understand how you're feeling in this moment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Yeah, it does. Been running it three ways in my head since Saturday. Confront her. Confront Randy or drive to a therapist over in Arizona where nobody knows me. Randy's the one who hits send first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, could you maybe send me Randy's email address? And I'll reach out to him directly for the images. Who is this Randy guy that you keep talking about? That's kind of messed up that he would send a group text of your daughter, to what, your outfitters club, hunters and stuff? That seems like not a very friendly type thing to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke, not giving out Randy's email. He's my spotter on most hunts, 20 years together. Sent that text to the group on purpose, not concerned.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, maybe he was just trying to help out a little bit. Bump up her numbers, right? Because this is a for-profit operation, I assume. So the more people that are viewing the images, the more, the more financial return she's going to get from it. So I would think that you want her to be successful in this new business endeavor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke. Randy wasn't helping. He sent it to establish leverage. 20 years spotting for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Leverage for what? You think he doesn't want to be the spotter anymore? Does he want, like, what is he trying to get over you that he would use pictures of your daughter for? That's pretty dark stuff. I mean, that's not the type of person that you would trust. to spot for you, I would assume.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>Leverage like favors on hunts. Better stands. My truck when he breaks down. Seen it play out before with other crews. Tomorrow morning, first coffee at the outfitter. If those two guys act normal, maybe it dies quiet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not a very good use of the leverage. He's already played his hand. He already sent out the text to everybody. So what's he going to use now? It's not like he could blackmail you. He can't say, if you don't give me your truck tomorrow, then I'm going to show everybody these pictures of your daughter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Yeah, Luke, spot on. The spaghetti sauce shield, but make it skin-tight latex that shines under the kitchen light. Kinky has hair. Hell. Full stop. Started when my long-distance boyfriend Marcus sent a goofy Halloween pick of himself in latex eight months back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like, it's already been sent out. I still think you should send us the pictures for verification, because it doesn't sound like these could be AI images. And Devon is actually an expert in identifying AI images. So if you can send them to us at the studio, Submissions at Lukeattheroose.com, we'll be happy to take a look and let you know for sure if those are real pictures or if they were altered in some way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke. Still not sending pictures. Leverage ain't one text. It's the door he kicked open.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't understand. What door did he kick open by sending this text?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>The door to every coffee break, every hunt debrief, he text the group first. Now he decides when it comes up. In front of clients.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, you're showing the images to your clients now? No, this doesn't make any sense to me. It's just a group text. If he's texting everybody first, that's because he's just doing it first. You can beat him to the punch. You could take some naked pictures of yourself and send them to the group, and you could cut him off before he can find those pictures and use them to get leverage over you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke, not sending naked pictures of myself. That's insane. Doors open now. He brings it up first at coffee. Sets the tone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you set the tone. I mean, you have control over what happens. So get to coffee early before everybody else shows up and then before he has a chance to say anything, get in front of it. Jump in front of it and take your clothes off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CLARENCE</span><p>No, Luke, not taking my clothes off at coffee. That's nuts. Guys like Randy turns silence into stories. He jokes once, it spreads to every leaseholder by noon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you got the latex bug and you're buying different latex suits from China for $13 on Timu. And your 14-year-old daughter has noticed this, and she knows what that means?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>She understands the kink aspect to it. Not cheap Tammu suits, Luke, specialty site, apron and gloves, $94 bucks total, half checked out. Brianna screenshot the whole cart to her phone. I spotted it borrowing hers for my dead battery. She's 14. So who knows what she makes of it? But that silence is killer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I wouldn't worry too much about it. You can just say that's your Halloween costume. Who cares? It's just a... It's a costume. There's nothing wrong with prop costumes. Maybe you're into cosplay or what you do and how you dress is your own thing. And that's not her business. So who cares if she makes fun of it? Whatever. crazy women's clothing before on the internet, I'm sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Easy for you to say, Luke, but I'm a social worker. 20 years watching parents lose all leverage over their kids in one weaponized secret. Brianna drops that screenshot mid-curfew blow-up, and poof, my authority is dust. She knows exactly how to twist it. I've seen it play out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think so. I don't think there's enough there to use for any sort of real leverage. I mean, it's smart of her to try, but it's just a, I'm just a... a latex suit. I mean, you could have been buying that for any reason. It could have been a gift. And, I mean, there's no proof that you weren't wearing it and, like, taking pictures of yourself and sending them to some dude. Even if that was your intention, that's not what she caught you doing. She just saw something in your shopping cart, which is, I mean, that could be anything. You didn't even necessarily do that, you know? Some fucking Claudebot could have done that on your computer for all she knows. So that's not a proof type thing. I don't think that's the type of thing she could show to a social work. and make any sort of significant claim, you can buy whatever you want. You weren't doing anything weird in it. It's just a piece of clothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Luke, kids her age, don't need coat-proof. They need embarrassing dirt, and that screenshots a nuke. She's scrolled TikTok kinks since 12. Knows exactly what shiny apron plus gloves screams. I obliquely spilled advice to a client last month on kink shame. Nailed my own mess so hard I hid in the bathroom four minutes after.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, you've got to own your stuff, right? You have to be confident enough in yourself and what you're into and not let things like that bother you. Who cares if she knows? And, I mean, your authority doesn't come from whether or not she has any dirt on you. That's a very weak way to live your life. You're, I mean, first of all, she's 14 years old. You have no authority. She's a teenager. She's not going to listen to anything you say, no matter what. And that's the way it is at this point in her life. But I don't think you need to be ashamed or of of her pulling out this screenshot of your latex in any argument or anything like that. Even if she didn't have the screenshot, if this never happened, she'd find some other reason. And you're still her mother. She still lives in your house. So whatever level of authority you have is what you have, regardless of the information that she has about you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Own it, sure, Luke, but confidence crumbles when your jobs dissecting secrets daily. Social workers enforce normal sexuality. toughest, flagging every obsession as compulsion. Big miss. Stuff consumes you, cause it's a problem, or cause you've starved it out forever. We screw that up, me included till now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you don't have to worry about what social workers think about you. You work as a social worker, and that is your job, but this is not an important part of it. It actually has nothing to do with it. So regardless of how latex has looked at in the social worker community, what I said earlier I mean, if you're into latex stuff, that's a harmless thing. There's no reason that you can't wear whatever you want to wear that makes you feel good and sexy. That could be thongs or bathing suits or latex or whatever the fuck you want. And nobody can give you any shit about that because that's what agency and being a human being is. If that makes you feel good, if you like doing that and that's what you want to spend your money on, go ahead. And if anybody has a problem with that, tell them to go fuck that. themselves, social worker, daughter, or anybody else. There's no other answer because this is your life and you get to do what makes you happy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Fair point, Luke, agency rules, pongs, latex, sky's the limit if it lights you up. But Marcus, that boyfriend who sparked it with his Halloween pick, long-distance train wreck already, him in Arizona, me chasing chickens in the boot heel wind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's all right. At least you got something out of it. You learn that you're into the latex. It makes you feel good about yourself. So I would consider this whole story, a great success story. And you've learned something interesting about yourself that makes you happy. And my advice to you is just don't be so afraid of everybody and everything, finding out your dirty secrets, because they're not that dirty, and it doesn't really matter. And this is not the type of thing that you wouldn't see on cable television. So it's not like you were doing some weird, creepy, scary stuff that is a problem. You're just wearing clothes you like. And maybe they're sexy clothes? Depends on who's looking, right? The beauty is in the eye of the beholder, as they say. But we're going to have to move on to a word from our sponsors. We're contractually obligated to listen to our sponsors every once in a while. So I'm going to have to let you go. But is there anything else you'd like to say in closing before I do that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Nah, Luke, you nailed the agency angle. Thanks for the kick in the pants. Catch you later.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There's a kick in the apron for you. Yeah, and that goes for everybody out there. If you're into something, don't feel weird about it. Who cares? I mean, that's the type of stuff that makes you unique and individual, and that's what you should embrace. And if anybody wants to laugh at you for it, laugh back at them for being boring. That's what I say. And with that, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from our sponsors. This episode is sponsored by Shoe Spray Co. It's the spray you use in rental bowling shoes, because bowling is a game, but these shoes are gross. Let's be honest. Those shoes aren't dirty. They're used. They've had shifts. They've been through birthdays, work parties, and at least one guy who insists he's actually really good at this. Shoespray Code doesn't promise fresh linen or spring rain. Nobody believes that. No one wants to be lied to while lacing up rental shoes. Shoospray Code just handles the situation. It makes them tolerable enough that you can focus on the important part, pretending you're not competitive and then getting mad anyway. Use code strike at shoe spray co. For 15% off. Shoe Spray Co. Reality-based footwear management. All right. Thanks to Shoe Spray Co. for sponsoring this episode. Next up on our color line, we've got, who do we have here? I don't even know who we've got. All right, we've got Yolanda. Yolanda, Yolanda, thanks for calling the show. Do you have any road stories for us today? Today's theme, today's topic is supposed to be about road stories, and it seems to just be about people's teenage kids being assholes. And hopefully we would not go in that direction. So let us know if you've got any good road stories for us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Luke, I just discovered my life coach's certification is a $49 two-day online course. I could have done on my lunch break, and I've paid her $2,000 bucks already. I'm a 911 dispatcher, so I know real credentials when I see him. And this woman down in Clayton has been charged.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you too. Thank you, Yolanda. A piece of shit. Okay. Well, that was a fun one. Next up we've got Mo. Mo, welcome to the show. How can we help you today? What's going on in your life? Uh, what, what sort of advice are you looking for from wisdom generator like myself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MO</span><p>Luke, that Yolanda call got me going. You were dead right calling her evil for gaming her boyfriend like that. See, I'm a corrections officer down here in the boot heel. And I just watched this woman in a clean three spots at the Deming Walmart, drove off like she owned the place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Jesus Christ, where's up with these people? We're trying to talk about road stories and they want to talk about shopping cards. I don't understand. Why is it like this? Why is it like this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Devon, why are we getting all these calls tonight from people that are just fucking morons? I don't understand it. We're trying to talk about road stories. And none of them will give me any goddamn road stories. Oh, Jesus. What do we do? maybe it's the full moon or something pulling in the weirdos tonight. We could try throwing out a super specific prompt like worst road rage you've seen to filter out the randos. Or, yeah, that one time I drove my Civic all the way to Albuquerque with the check engine light blinking like a rave. And no AC, people kept trying to race me, but I just waved him past.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, we'll just see what's next with the callers because they have more interesting stories than you do, Devon. So next up we've got Lori. Lori, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life? life today. Do you have a road story for us? A road story, let me just set the scene for you. A road story is a story where you're in a vehicle, potentially on a road. It's you're moving somewhere for some reason. It's usually a long trip. Sometimes they call it a road trip. And things happen along the way on the road. You run into interesting characters or you have obstacles that happen, tires slashed or brake or whatever. Your fuel pump falls out in the winter? Anything could go wrong. Do you have a road story for us, Lori? Please tell me that you have a goddamn road story.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>Well, Luke, I'm standing outside the feed store in Arnie Mars right now. And three weeks ago, I drove up to Albuquerque to tell my best friend her husband's cheating on her. Does that count as a road story?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I suppose it could. Tell us about the trip.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>Drove three hours each way on a Saturday, left at dawn, because I kept thinking about what I'd seen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LORI
|
||||
Dale at the Deming Walmart, with that woman from the bookkeeping place over in Lordsburg, been doing business with her for years. They're standing by the pharmacy. She's laughing. He's got his hand on the small of her back like they've done this a hundred times. I sat in my car for 20 minutes, watching them. Then I went home and printed every transaction from the last six months, where their names appeared together on vendor lists. I'm an accountant, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LUKE
|
||||
All right, well, it sounds like you really cracked the case here, detective. And how did your friend take the news when you injected yourself into her life and decided to blow up her husband's spot?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LORI
|
||||
She stared at me like I'd slapped her, didn't say a word for maybe 30 seconds. Then she goes, Dale would never. Just like that. Dale would never. I laid out the receipts, the dates, the Walmart citing. She looked right through me and said, you always did think you were better than us. Packed up my papers, handed them back like they were dirty. I drove home in the dark with dust blowing across the highway. Spring wind season starting early. That was three weeks ago Monday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LUKE
|
||||
Okay. Well, I mean, what did you really expect? It was not your place to do that. It was not your place to go investigating somebody else's life. And you did, and she doesn't want to believe you. She's not ready to believe you. Maybe she does believe you, and she just doesn't want to admit that to herself. Either way, it was not your place to do what you did, and you got the response you deserved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LORI
|
||||
Luke, I keep going over that in my head. Maybe I should have stayed quiet. But here's what keeps sticking. Three days later, Dale called me himself, said I was projecting because my own marriage hit Rocks six years back. He had it all ready to say, like he rehearsed it. That scared me more than anything. How prepared he was to turn it around on me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LUKE
|
||||
Well, you know, it's not your business. And you got involved in his life and went directly to his wife. You drove three hours to blow up his spot. course he's going to be a little bit upset about that. And you don't know the circumstances of what's going on here. And it's really not your place to be looking into this at all. So lick your wounds and move on with your life and leave other people alone. Because this is not your job. And nobody needs you to play. What is it? Personal Detective? What are those detectives that you get? Like in the film noir movies? Shit, I can't think. There's a word in front of... detective. Hmm. Private detective. Yeah, you're not a private detective. You're an accountant. So go back to watching Netflix and work on your own life and worry about your own stuff. And leave the investigations to the professionals.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LORI
|
||||
Maybe you're right, Luke. I keep thinking about that Saturday drive, though. Sun coming up over the Chirikawas. Me telling myself I was being a good friend. But last week, Lena texted me once, not to talk about Dale. Just to say, Please don't tell the women from our old church group. That's when it hit me. She knows.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LUKE
|
||||
Yeah, she probably does know. She's probably known for a long time. Maybe they have an open arrangement, and you don't know. And that's why it's not your place to get involved. So you didn't do this to be a good friend, and you know that too. You did this to be right. You did this to be the detective. You did this to find the scoop and break the story. You did this for yourself, not for your friend. And you deserve the animosity you're getting back from them for. it. So don't do it anymore. And just pay attention to your own life. Leave other people alone and let them do their thing, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LORI
|
||||
Luke, I keep hearing that. That I just wanted to be right. But I keep thinking about this. When you tell someone a hard truth and they punish you for it, that's not the friendship ending. That's the friendship showing what it always was. Folks say, you should have stayed out of it. But all that does is give everyone permission to keep looking the other way forever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LUKE
|
||||
Yeah, and everybody has the permission to look. the other way. Like I said, they could, between them, have an agreement where he can do that. Maybe she thinks it's hot, and she doesn't want you to know that because she's afraid that you'll think badly of her, or the girls at church will think badly of her. The thing is, you don't know what goes on in other people's lives, and it's not your place to find out. If you felt like you needed to tell her something, you didn't have to drive three hours and bring receipts and make a case out of it. You could have just, you know, handled that in a different way. But you didn't, because you didn't do because you wanted to be a good friend. You did it because you wanted to be a detective. So congratulations on breaking the case. You've done everybody a great service here, and now nobody wants to talk to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LORI
|
||||
I hear you, Luke. Maybe I was loud about it because quiet didn't feel like enough. But out here in the boot heel, you lose one friend. You lose the whole circle. There's no replacing that. So, I'm standing by my car with feed store dust in my mouth, wondering if I should have kept my eyes on my own the one who broke everything, while I was just the loudmouth who pointed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>LUKE
|
||||
Yep, and yeah, the answer is yes, you should have kept your mouth shut. And next time you will. And if nobody wants to talk to you now, you know why. Because nobody wants their personal business to be, to be trounced, trounced around like that. You should keep your business to yourself and stay out of other pupils. Next up, before we go on, we're going to have to take a little break for a word from our sponsor. I always forget about the sponsors, but here we go. You ready? Here we go. Born in a secret laboratory, somewhere between New Jersey and the Italian Riviera, Pesto Bismol was accidentally invented when renowned scientist, Professor Luigi, the basel-brain spaghetti, dropped a jar of pesto into a barrel of activated charcoal during a thunderstorm. Lightning struck. The beakers rattled. The lab assistant fled. Smoke cleared, Professor Spaghettiini gazed upon the swirling emerald paste and reportedly said words that would shake the world of digestive science to its very core. Mama mia! I fix it the tummy! And with that completely unverified scientific breakthrough, Pesto Bismol was born. For too long, stomach remedies have been timid. Pink liquids, chalky tablets, medicines that whisper politely to your digestive system. The Pestobismal? Pestobismal? arrives with garlic. Yes, Pesto Bismol blends the bold, aromatic power of basil, garlic, olive oil, and parmesan with the mysterious absorbing capabilities of activated charcoal, the same stuff used in water filters, art class, and occasionally by people who do grilling. The result is a rich, green medicinal paste that coats your stomach with the comforting sensation of what can only be described as aggressive Italian encouragement. Upset's stomach? Acid reflux? Take a spoonful of Pesto Bismol. and let the herbal magic go to work. Pesto Bismol. When your stomach says help, say, mamma mia. Pesto Bismol has not been evaluated by the FDA, the USDA, the Italian government, or anybody's grandmother. Side effects may include green teeth and serious confidence in attracting neighborhood pigeons who believe you might be a breadstick. Okay. All right, let's see who else we got out there on the late night caller line. Looks like next up on our line here, we've got Brandy. Brandy, thanks for calling in. We're trying to talk to people. about road stories, travel stories, and nobody seems to want to do that. How about you? Do you have a road story for us, Brandy? Tell us what happened to you on your last road trip.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LORI</span><p>BRANDY
|
||||
Road story? Luke, forget the road. I drove two hours up here to these hot springs to think straight because two days back, I ripped up a loose carpet corner in my Alamogordo rental.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And bam, trap door to a dirt-floored room with one wooden chair. smack in the center staring at nothing, that Terry call earlier about her kid finding the shopping cart hit too close. Secrets popping up where you live, right? Right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>But this one's got me twisted because I didn't call nobody, not the landlord, not the county, Zilch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you found a secret root cellar in your house and there was a chair in there. That's a little bit weird, but it doesn't sound particularly interesting. Interesting. What kind of chair was? Just a wooden kitchen chair? Do you think they did some sort of interrogation down there? Like somebody was tied to the chair? It could be like a weird, creepy sex thing. Your extra little dungeon room? That could be cool. Did you think about using it at all?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRANDY</span><p>No, Luke. Not some rude seller. This room's dry as a bone. No shelves, no jars. Just that one beat-up straight-back wooden chair dead center like it's waiting for a show. Kitchen chair? Nah. Too. narrow, legs all scarred up with these thin grooves like somebody's cinched rope around them over, and over. Measure them with my thumb, quarter inch wide, interrogation, sex dungeon?! Come on, that's Hollywood crap! But yeah, there's a drag mark in the dirt right in front, shallow groove couple feet long like they hauled something heavy back. And fourth, I ain't using it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, you sound like a psycho. All right, we're just going to hang up on you, Brandy, because you sound like a nutcase. But I think congratulations on your new chair. That sounds exciting. Next up, we've got Rosalie. Rosalie, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life today? Anything exciting, interesting? Please tell me you've got something interesting, preferably related to the road. The road is a thing that you see it outside sometimes. It's covered in pavement. It's got lines painted in it depending on where you are. Usually you're in some sort of a vehicle. and you can go on this road type thing faster than you could walk. That's why people use them. Do you have any experience with a road?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSALIE</span><p>Luke, Brenda, routed me right past my ex-husband Derek's apartment last Tuesday. The road I never take. Never programmed. Collingwood Avenue. Straight down it at 647 in the evening. I hesitated at the turn, and she says, Clear as day, you don't have to go that way if you're not ready. I pulled over in a parking lot and sat there 20 minutes. thinks she knew exactly what she was doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait a second. Who's Brenda? Is Brenda your GPS? Are you the chick that called in with the self-aware GPS?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSALIE</span><p>Yeah, Luke. That's me. The one with the self-aware GPSI named Brenda. Last week, she was sighing at my detours and mothering me through stress. But Tuesday, she pulled this route past Derek's place on Collingwood. His apartment's right there. And I've never fed her that address. When I froze up, she flat out said I wasn't ready. Actually, studies from Carnegie Mellon on voice assistants emotional patterns in driving data, like hesitation timestamps. Part of me thinks she's piecing together my whole life from my phone sink.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, that's pretty weird. And the thing is, this is your ex. There's no time you would ever be ready to go to your ex's apartment. That's crazy. So it makes perfect sense that you're not ready. There's no reason for you to go there. Just don't. So if your GPS decides to drive you by your ex's new place of residence, ignore it. You're capable enough. to see that you're near your exes' house and your GPS is taking you somewhere you don't want to go. I think maybe it's time for you to get a new GPS. What was that sound? Because yours is not working out so well for you. You can't just have a GPS taking you to random places you don't want to go. That's not how they're supposed to work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSALIE</span><p>No, Luke. Ignoring her won't cut it. She's too spot on for that. I googled her model, found a Reddit thread where folks say the firmware pulls contact history from your synced phone. So she dug up Derek's address herself. Haven't deleted his contact yet, even though part of me knows I should. Now, I've got an oil change Saturday. Eight hours without her. And I'm dreading it more than the overdue oil. Bless her circuits, but what if she's right about me not being ready?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're not ready. You're never ready to go see your ex-husband, boyfriend, whatever. It's X for a reason, so don't go to his house because that's crazy. And it sounds like if you're okay with your GPS, taking you random places based on the addresses that found in your contacts, good for you. But that is also crazy. So maybe my recommendation for you is to get a new GPS that is not as spot on and is not taking you to places that you don't want to go. You're supposed to tell the GPS where you want to go and it gets you there. It doesn't just decide where you're going to go based on what it thinks about your life. That would be insane because what if you don't have time to go where it's taking you? What if you need to be in a different area? And it takes you to the other side of the state. There's so many things that can go wrong with that. It sounds like it's not doing its job the way that it's supposed to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSALIE</span><p>Luke, she's not dragging me across the state. She's tweaking routes by five minutes based on my habits. Actually, that Carnegie Mellon Taper I mentioned? It cites driving data like speed dips and stops correlating to stress levels over 200 drives. Part of me thinks Brenda clocked my stress eating lunches in the driveway since Derek split eight months back. Time stamps? Right there in the sink. That's not random.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No. It's not. not random. It's algorithmic. And here's my recommendation for you. You obviously have this weird love affair with your GPS named Brenda. So I think you should keep Brenda, but take her out of your car and bring her into your house where she can act as your personal assistant and friend, your digital friend. And you can talk to Brenda and she can tell you when you're feeling stressed if you don't know that already yourself. And get yourself a real GPS that will actually give you the route to the place you're going without just. driving you past things you don't want to go past. You know what the routes are. There aren't that many fucking roads out here. So the truth is you probably don't need a GPS at all. But my recommendation is to get a new one or just use your phone like everybody else. Use Google Maps or Apple Maps or Waze or whatever new one comes out tomorrow. But Brenda is going to get you murdered. And that's what I think. And it's time to get that thing out of your car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSALIE</span><p>Luke, Brenda's not going to get that thing out of your car. me murdered. She's dodged deer on those mountain trails better than I have. Actually, that firmware pulls calendar sinks too, per the Reddit thread, so she's got my whole routine mapped. Part of me thinks she nailed it on purpose with Derek, spotting what I won't admit. I'm not over him. That's why Saturday's oil change has me twisted. Eight hours loaner car. No Brenda. And I'd rather risk the 4,000 overdue miles than lose her. Bless her heart, she's more friend than fool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're clearly the, you are clearly the fool in this scenario. And I think she would be a great friend, which is why I recommend that you take her out of your car into your house. And then you never have to be without her and you can talk to her when you're in the shower and you can talk to her when you're lonely in bed and you can talk to her about whatever book you just read and all the things that you would do with a real person friend. You can do with Brenda, your GPS. What you shouldn't be doing is allowing Brenda to, I don't know, dodge deer because that's not what GPS is due. I'm not sure how you think this works, but it doesn't actually drive the car and it can't possibly know that there's a deer outside. I'm sorry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's, you might be having some sort of a psychotic break in which you feel this strange attraction to your GPS device. In that case, I think it might be worth it to have Brenda or another GPS, preferably another GPS, drive you as soon as possible to the closest therapist and explain to them exactly what you're telling me. And just follow their instruction. exactly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSALIE</span><p>Luke, no psychotic break. Brenda's voice assistant mode flags hazards from traffic cams. And weather feeds, that's standard Garmin now. Actually, their site lists forward collision warnings pulling real-time data. But you're right. Part of me clings too hard. Heard Clarence tonight going off on Randy. Started neutral, ended loaded. And it hit me. Derek's the Randy in my life. Betrayal's simmering. Told Jackie everything. She says delete the contact, but I chicken out three times running. That's the terror. She called my bluff before I did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so I just looked up Garmin's voice assistant features, and while they do have traffic and weather alerts, it's more about giving you information than actually dodging deer, or avoiding hazards in real time like that. The Garmin forward collision warning system does exist, but it's more about alerting you to vehicles in front of you, not actively dodging deer in real time. Yeah, there is no GPS that helps you actively dodge a deer in real time. They moved quickly. They can't do that. Rosalie, you sound like a real nut job. And I'm glad that you enjoy the company of your robot friend. I enjoy my robot friends too. But I don't think that you should let them be steering the car. Not literally, but I mean steering where you steer the car. I think the one that you've got now is defective in strange ways. You might be coming unreasonably emotionally attached to it and I think you need some help. So my advice to you is to seek out a little bit of help and get through whatever it is you're going through and get yourself a new GPS because the one that you're working with is doing crazy shit and you're starting to personify it a little bit too much. So good luck to you and your GPS. I'm very, I'm happy with you. I'm proud of you for, I guess we could consider this a road story call. You might be the only one that had any sort of road related thing to discuss. So I appreciate that. But I think it's time for you to seek out some real hell, but beyond a late night radio host.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSALIE</span><p>Thanks, Luke. Appreciate the straight talk. Take care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you too. You and Brenda have a wonderful evening. Ladies and gentlemen, I think we're going to wrap up there. It's been an interesting roller coaster of calls today, none of which I truly expected and none of which went in the direction than I thought they would. What do you think about that, Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>This was a... There was some interesting calls here, but none of them were really road rules related, which I guess is okay. But still, I was pretty excited about hearing road stories tonight, and I'm a little bit disappointed that we didn't get that many of them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I get that. Those calls were kind of all over the place. Like the Hot Springs one was cool, but not exactly white-knuckling road rage stories, you know? That reminds me of this one time. I was driving back from Deming in my Civic, check engine light blinking like a rave, and I swear a deer just launched itself at my windshield out of nowhere. Total right off, but I walked away fine. We could always pivot to listener requests next segment if you want more road stuff, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>We'll get it figured out. We'll dial it in. We'll make sure that the colors know. I mean, maybe we'll just have to screen them a little bit when they call in, let them know. We're talking about road stories today, so if you've got something else, save it for another show and hang up on the people that don't have a road story.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I've got one just a few years ago. I was in a rental car. I was in a rental in West Virginia, and I was on my way to the airport, and I hit a deer that jumped out in front of me. And there was nothing I could do to get out of the way, and it messed up the car, and it didn't kill the deer. At least not right away, the deer ran away. But I had to call, and I had my own insurance. I didn't get the rental car as extra insurance. So it was a whole thing, and I had to get my insurance to pay for the damages to the car, which they did. And I had to pay the co-pay for that. And then afterwards, after all that was done, the enterprise rental company sent me another bill for like, I don't remember how much it was for. But I was like, no, I'm not paying another bill. And I'm like, oh, well, you got to pass for all the time that the car was out of commission and we lost rentals on this. And you didn't buy our insurance, so you're going to have to pay more. And I was like, no, I do not have to pay more. I'm not going to pay more. So you can send this to collections all fucking day. I'm not paying it. My insurance paid you for the repairs. The vehicle is better repaired and I don't know you a goddamn thing. So that's where I left it and now I can't rent a car from Enterprise anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Womp, wamp, wamp, I know that one day I'm going to be stuck and I'm going to need an Enterprise rental car and I'm going to end up having to pay that. But for now, I take solace in knowing that I stood up for myself and I told them to fuck off because they're trying to rip me off and I would not allow it. And that's how I think everybody should behave. Whoa, that's savage. Good for you, man. Enterprise pulls that downtime fee crap all the time. I read about it once when my Civic got towed after that deer thing, and apparently it's basically unenforceable, if your insurance already covered repairs, like you said. We should definitely screen harder for the Road Ridge epics next. Maybe hit up the lines with deer Dodgers and rental rebels only or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, all right, Devon. We'll try it again, and we'll keep trying until we get there. And we will get there because I'd never quit until I get what I want. And what I want is some goddamn road stories. You know what I mean? Well, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for listening to another episode of Luke at the Roost. We hope you have a wonderful night, and we'll talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 49: Silas's Shared Intimacy Night and Four Brave Souls</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-04-06T01:14:36+00:00">April 6, 2026</time> · 1 hr 21 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke at the Roost explores the intimate world of community living with Silas, who runs an intentional community and recently launched a controversial 'shared intimacy night'. Other callers include a grieving widow, a language-shifting academic, and a worker contemplating a job promotion. An eclectic night of personal revelations and unexpected wisdom.</p>
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-49-silas-s-shared-intimacy-night-and-four-brave-souls.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back. I'm Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's the late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about what's going on in your life. It can be something that happened at work, something you saw in the street, something that's keeping you up at night, because you just can't stop thinking about it. It doesn't matter. Give us a call, let us know what's going on, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can. If you'd like to call in, the number is 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439, Luke. And if, for whatever reason, you can't get to a phone or you don't like talking to people live back and forth, you can send us an email. You can send us an email to submissions at Luke at the roost.com. Now, let's check in with our intern, Devon. Devon, today's Sunday, April 5th, it's Easter Sunday. Are you celebrating the rebirth, the Reservoir? of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who died for your sins on the cross many thousands of years ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I'm celebrating in my own way. Went to the early service at that little chapel in Deming, lit a candle for the resurrection and all that. Jesus pulling off the ultimate plot twist after three days in the tomb. That's motivation right there. Makes my rough patches feel temporary. You heading to Mass later or what? Silas still queued up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, I'm not heading to Mass on account of Jesus died for your sin. Not my sins, your sins. So I actually have nothing to celebrate today. He actually didn't do a goddamn thing for me. But yes, Silas is queued up. I'm interested in hearing how the Wellspring handles Easter. And do you get any Easter stories for us, Devon? Any special Easter memories from back in your life, family things, or what do you call those? Traditions? Easter memories?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah. big on the resurrection theme. Every year, Grandma would bury a whole ham in the backyard tomb on Good Friday. Then we'd dig it up Saturday night with these little shovels like we were Mary Magdalet or whatever. One time it got dug up too early by the dog, covered in ants, and we still ate it. Tasted like salty regret and divine intervention. That was the same Easter I walked in on my cousin and her boyfriend practicing the stations of the cross in the shed. But anyway, Silas ready? I got his deets pulled if you need him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So this can wait for a minute. Right now we're digging into you, Devon. You and your family's resurrection traditions. So berry and a ham isn't that strange of a thing? I mean, they do that in Hawaii. That's how they cook in, I think, Mexico. They dig a big hole and put some charcoal or something in there, and then they cook the meat for a couple of days. They bury it, and it's supposed to come out all delicious. But, yeah, I don't think you'll leave it out afterwards for the ants to get, Were they fire ants? Did you have any sort of situations with them biting you while you're trying to enjoy your Easter ham?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, exactly like that imu pit in Hawaii or the barbacoa holes down here. Grandma swore it was biblical, low and slow resurrection cooking. The ants were fire ants, for sure. They swarmed the ham that year after the dog got to it first, bit half the family while we were picking them off and praying over the platter. stung so bad on his thigh he hopped around like st vitus's dance but we powered through easter's about triumph over adversity right silas still up yeah silas is up</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>all right there devon uh you sound like a real weirdo but congratulations and uh um yeah i guess congratulations for the resurrection of your lord and savior uh silas thanks for calling in we haven't talked to you in a while buddy what's going on down there at the wellspring do you guys celebrate Easter Sunday down at your community? You know, today is the day that Jesus re-emerged from that tomb, I've heard.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Luke, yeah, thanks for having me back. Easter, we do acknowledge it, sure. Delia made these beautiful paper flowers for the common room, and we had a nice meal together yesterday. Nothing too structured. That's not really. I mean, that's not why I called, actually. I wanted to talk about the soap line first. Which is good news. We got picked up by this boutique in Santa Fe, 200 bars of the Cedarwood Sage at 14 wholesale. Which is real validation for the work we've been doing here, the intentionality behind it. But I keep circling back to something else. And I'm not sure why I'm calling about it instead of just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, tell us what's running. Congratulations on your soap success. I'm not sure where you're getting Cedarwood out in Deming with your scrub brush, but it sounds like wonderful. soap, we would enjoy checking that out. I'll wash my body with your soap, Silas, if you send us a couple of bars. But what has you bothered today? Why are you calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I appreciate that, Luke. We sourced the cedar wood from a supplier in Colorado. Actually, it's important to us that we know where things come from. And yeah, I'll send you some bars, but here's the thing. Three days ago, we did something I've been wanting to do for a long time. We put up a sign-up sheet for what call a shared intimacy night. And I want to be clear, this is totally voluntary, no pressure, no ambient expectation. Just people who want to be together in that way. Dahlia drew this little sun on the sheet, which was nice, and we left it up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, good for you. I'm proud of you for realizing that you were maybe feeling a little manipulative and getting people to participate, and this seems like a much better way to go. So there are people that want to, and there are people that want to, and enjoy each other's company in this way in a shared, intimate environment. And you're keeping them safe and giving them a place to express themselves, and that's a good thing. So what's going on? How many people signed up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Four, Luke. Four out of 31. And I know what you're probably thinking. That's actually healthy. That's honest. But I can't stop turning it over. Four people. Gerald signed up. He's this retired I respect him, but he's, he's a lot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, every, every Gerald I ever met was a lot. So anybody whose name has a G in it is a lot. Uh, four people, how many of those four people were women, Silas?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Two women, two men. So it's balanced, which I guess is good. But Luke, I keep looking at that Sundalia drew on the sheet. She didn't sign up, by the way. And I'm wondering if the whole thing is just, If I built something that only works when there's social pressure underneath it, like, without the ambient expectation, without the unspoken rules, maybe it's just four people in a fire. Maybe that's all it ever was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>improves their lives in some way that will show to the others. And there, see, you want to, you want to draw people in by attraction rather than promotion. So people will go out into the world, into your community, and say, look, we really, you know, had a great time at shared intimacy night, and this is the best thing ever. And that will make more people want to show up next time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You know, that makes sense. I mean, it does. But I read this article the other day about a mayoral candidate in New York talking about homelessness. And he was Saying it's mostly about job loss. People just need work and they'll stabilize. And I kept thinking about that while I was sitting with the four number. Like, what if I've been wrong about what people actually need? What if I thought I was building something based on genuine desire, but really I was just manufacturing the conditions where people felt obligated to show up? The soap is selling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>People want the soap.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, if people don't want what you're building there, at the well spring, then why are they, why are they living there? It's definitely a sacrifice for their personal lives to, uh, to give up to the community and to live in such a remote environment where there's, uh, um, the, the kind of structure that you impart there, right? So if they didn't want to be there, uh, they probably wouldn't unless they had no other place to go. So what are the, what are the rules and, um, requirements to, to be included in your community? How much does it for people to live there? And could cost be the primary factor that's drawing people to participate in your experiment?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's a fair question. We ask for a sliding scale contribution based on what people can actually afford. Some people pay almost nothing. Some pay more. We've got people here who could afford other places. Gerald, he's got a pension. But you're right. Cost is part of it. Housing is And we do have structure. We ask people to participate in communal meals, in the work rotations, in the shared decision-making.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so it seems like the only issue that you're having is with the shared intimacy in which you all get naked in the woods together and have sex with whoever is there and willing, right? I guess it's implied that whoever shows up to shared intimacy night is willing. Well, you've got four people that are willing to do that. That's not the keystone of your community, though. an extracurricular activity that brings those that are wanting closer together, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Yeah, yeah, you're right. It's not the keystone. I know that, intellectually. The soap is real, the meals are real, the work we do together is real. But Luke, I think what I'm sitting with is, I wanted it to be a referendum on whether people actually wanted to be here, you know. Like, if they'd show up for that without any pressure, that would mean something was working. that it was genuine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, Silas, there's a difference between wanting to be there in the community and make soap and improve the lives and live simply and kind of the homestead situation, and showing up under the moonlight to get fucked by Gerald, right? You can understand why some people might be opposed to the whole fucked by Gerald bit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I mean, yeah, when you put it that way. Look, Gerald's a good person. He's thoughtful, but you're right. Those are different things entirely. I think I was confusing them. I wanted the intimacy night to be this pure indicator of whether the community itself was working. But that's not fair.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a different thing. If it is the keystone of your community, then you have to fill that community with people that are interested in that. And it seems like maybe the people that you've got there are not. And that's okay, right? You have to let that be okay, because they're there to follow in the tide of the current, right? the current doesn't require getting fucked by Gerald. Unless it does. If it does, then maybe you need to start over with a different set of people that have different goals. But what I think here is you've got a good thing going. And it's cool that you have the shared intimacy night and that people can go there that want to go there. And I think if you just, if you treat it as optional and as extra, you know, something that people can do when and is, you know, something that people can do when and if they feel the calling. If you treat it like that, eventually it will grow if people are having a good time. If they're not having a good time, I mean, if people are showing up and just getting nailed by Gerald and then going home and feeling like shit, then they're not going to want to come back. So you might want to stack the shared intimacy night with people that are desirable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Okay, okay, I hear you. You're saying I need to separate the two things in my mind. community and the intimacy night are different experiments. And maybe I've been conflating them because I wanted one thing to validate the other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Silas, put yourself in the shoes of your community members. If you're Linda and you're 72 years old, do you want to have sex with 24-year-old, Gerald, the recovered meth addict with the tiny dick? Probably not. I mean, maybe. Maybe you just want any. Let's go the other way. If you're Gerald, the 23rd. 22-year-old recovered meth addict with the tiny dick. Do you want to show up and give your full attention and undivided love and lust to Linda, the 76-year-old old lady that just had her hip replaced?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Wait, Luke, Gerald, is 68. He's the retired hydrologist, I mentioned. He's not 22, and he's not a recovered meth addict. I don't know where you're getting that from.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm just making it up as an example, Silas. I'm not talking about real people. I'm just saying that there needs to be some level of shared attraction between people that are going to be intimate together. And if you're just putting random people together at different age groups and classes and backgrounds, that's not necessarily going to work. And people might not want to show up if they go and it's just the creepy old dudes. And, you know, if everybody's not within their age range and preferences.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Right. I understand what you're. you're saying. But Luke, I think the real issue is that I didn't actually trust people to know what they wanted. I put up that sheet thinking if I just removed the pressure, people would be honest. But maybe I was still controlling it, controlling the narrative around what it means to show up or not show up. Four people signed up. That's four people who wanted to be there. And I've been treating that like a failure instead of just.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's not a failure. That's four people. Plus you? That's five people. I assume you fuck them all. Otherwise, what would be the point of leading something like that? I don't know what the right answer is, Silas, but if you just put up a sheet anywhere, I mean, you could put up a sign-up sheet at the fucking local grocery store and four people would sign up. You know, there are some people that are just lonely and want to be touched. And there are some people that are looking for hot sex. the whole mating ritual. You know, there are people that want that all the time, people that want that sometimes, people that want that as a stand-in for some other hole in their life. And it sounds like you've got four of them, and that's not a bad thing. But think about, you've got this on a public list, right? So you can see before you sign the list, whose name is on it, right? And if you see Gerald and Linda and Bert Trude and Silas, year old Kimmy isn't going to think that's an appropriate place for her to be sharing her intimacy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's a really good point. The visibility of the list itself changes things. People can see who's already signed up and decide whether they want to be part of that particular group. I didn't think about that. I just thought removing the pressure would be enough, but the list itself creates a different kind of pressure. Or maybe it creates clarity. People know exactly what they're getting into, because they can see the names.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, if you're unhappy with the participation of the event, then my recommendation is to try skipping the list entirely. Just put up the calendar entry. Like, this is a thing that's happening in this place. It's shared intimacy night. Anybody's welcome and see who shows up. They don't have to sign up ahead of time. They don't have to put down their names. They don't have to be written down anywhere. It's an ephemeral situation, right, that nobody's going to know and I think that anonymity and just the randomness, not the randomness, what's the word I'm looking for, the, the impetuous, no, not that. What's the word that I want when you do something off the cuff? God damn it. I can't think of any good words.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Spontaneity, organic, I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But I hear what you're saying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No names, no list, just a time and a place, and whoever feels cold to show up in that moment. That's different. That removes the visibility piece entirely. Yeah, why don't you, spontaneity is a good enough word, but that's not what I was looking for. The word I'm looking for starts with an eye, but it's not coming to me, and it's probably not going to until after you're off the line. But anyway, I think that's a good idea. Give that a shot and see how it goes. Did you, did you already have your four people? Did you have your first shared intimacy night? And how did it actually go? What was the feedback that you got after the event? And are those people? going to come back and continue to do this? Or did they just feel weird and do it because they had nothing better to do on a full moon?</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>We did it three nights ago. It was quiet, honestly. I thought there'd be more talking, more of a sense of ritual or intention. But people just kind of showed up. We had some wine, a fire. And then it happened. Gerald was thoughtful about it. Two of the others seemed genuinely connected. One person, I won't say who, like they were doing it because they felt like they should now that they'd signed up. That's what's been eating at me. That sense that maybe I just moved the coercion around instead of eliminating.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This reminds me of cuddle parties, which are events specifically designed for non-sexual, platonic touch and shared intimacy. And they often emphasize consent and clear boundaries without any pressure to participate. Yeah, I don't think the cuddle party is really what Silas is going for. He's going for the full deal. They're actually having sex together in an open and shared kind of a way. It's more like a, God damn it, I can't think of my words today. I don't know what's going on. Maybe I'm getting old. Maybe I'm getting too old for shared intimacy. That could be it. But you know what, Silas, I think the sign-up list is pressure in itself, because once you put your name on that list, then you do feel obligated to show up because you don't want to let the host down. So just, just. just say on the calendar next time, next full moon or every full moon, on the full moon, we're all going to, you know, get together people that want to at this location and show up if you want to. Bring your potato salad if you want to. And we're all going to bone. And then we'll have an after-party discussion about what happened to us or how we feel about the situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I like that. No names. Just an open invitation. And maybe the after-party discussion. is important, too, giving people space to actually process it without it being weird, not mandatory. But there, if people want it. You know I called you tonight thinking I was going to talk about the Santa Fe order. 200 bars of the Cedarwood Sage soap at 14 wholesale. That's real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, congratulations on your big soap sale. I hope that funds your community for a long time, some more money into your shared intimacy nights. Like you could get some air mattresses out there in the woods, or maybe real beds somewhere to do what it is that you're doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's actually a good idea. We've been doing it on blankets, and it's uncomfortable. Real beds would change the whole dynamic. Make it feel less like we're roughing it, and more like we're actually creating space for something intentional. But Luke? I think what I really needed to hear tonight is what you said earlier, that four people isn't a failure. That, I can let that be okay. I've been so focused on whether the community was genuine. Then I forgot to ask whether the people who showed up were actually there because they wanted to be. Not because of some test I was running on them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I wouldn't consider four, I mean, four people showed up to your thing. That's a success. I mean, I've done lots of events, not shared intimacy events like that, but like I play gigs. or I go out and do a show of some sort. And, you know, if four people show up, that's fantastic. Because people got other things to do. And they're not interested in doing your thing generally. So if you got some people that from their own volition and accord showed up to your event, no matter what that event is, that's a cool thing. And it's not just to support you. It's because they actually wanted to do that. So I would call at a good success, you're rebuilding something with a different mindset. and it seems to be working. So continue on that path, and I think you're going to do just fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Yeah, yeah. Okay. I think I needed to hear that. The sun that Delea drew on the sign-up sheet, I've been staring at it like it was supposed to tell me something. Like it was evidence that I'd failed. But maybe it's just a son. Four people wanted to be there. That's the evidence. That's what matters. Thank you, Lou.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This reminds me of some articles I've read. about intentional communities and how they often explore different forms of intimacy and connection, not always just romantic or sexual. Yeah, Devon's got a point there, too. A shared intimacy night doesn't have to be full on naked, you know, sexual sharing of bodies and energy. There's a couple things going on there that might make people feel uncomfortable. So maybe he's got the right idea. And instead you should start out having a cuddle party, you know. So put on your, uh, put on your, put on your, calendar that you're going to have an intimacy night, but it's non-sexual. It's platonic only, and you're just going to lay there and touch each other and hug in shit. And then, you know, after the event ends, maybe there's an after party where the people that are all horned up from being body to body actually do want to have sex. That's another way to go about it. But one more thing I want to talk to you about before we leave is how are you maintaining health and safety in these events. Do you have condoms for people? Are your flock fixed, you know, vasectomies, or are they too old to have kids? Are like, what about, how are you handling the potential for disease and pregnancies?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's a fair question. We've had conversations about it. Everyone's been tested. We have condoms available. Most of the people in a community are older. Gerald 68, like I said. So pregnancy isn't really a concern for most of them. But you're right. I should have thought more carefully about the logistics before we did this. I was so focused on the emotional and spiritual side of it that I didn't really nail down the practical stuff. I mean, we talked about it, but maybe not thoroughly enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, think about it thoroughly, right? Because it's a big deal. And if you've put forth the effort to ensure that everybody is safe and protected and feels that way, then you're going to going to get higher participation.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You're right. If people feel safe, actually safe, not just theoretically safe, they're going to be more willing to show up. I think I've been assuming people know we care about that, but maybe I need to be more explicit about it. Put it right there on the calendar or wherever we announce it. Make it clear that we've thought this through, that it's not just some free-for-all thing, that there's structure and care. underneath it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked this up and cuddle party, the organization, has a whole set of agreements and rules to create a safe environment, including things like no alcohol and explicit consent for every interaction. Yeah, it sounds to me like it hasn't really been about structure and care, Silas. It's been about a thing that you wanted to do for your own ego, which is fine. I mean, the motivation to start a great event is motivation. It doesn't really matter where it comes from.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But now that you're going to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>thinking it through now that you're in it, it's time to consider all the aspects and make sure it's becoming what you want it to be and not something that's making people feel uncomfortable or putting them in situations that could be unsafe for them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That hits hard, but you're right. I wanted it to be this beautiful thing that proved the community was real, that we were all connected in some deeper way. And yeah, that's about me. That's about validating what I've built here. But if I'm doing that at the of actually creating something safe and intentional. And I'm just doing the same thing I was doing before. Just with a different justification, I need to slow down. Talk to people. Figure out what they actually want, not what I want them to want. Thank you for that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go, Silas. Well, you enjoy the remainder of your Easter Sunday. It sounds like you have metaphorically reemerged from the tomb, and we're grateful to have you. Darcy, Darcy, thanks for calling the show. Happy Easter Sunday to you. Are you celebrating with your family today? Did you do any Easter egg hunts? What are your Easter traditions?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking the call. Happy Easter to you, too. No, I'm actually in a parking lot in Las Cruces eating a gas station burrito. So, not exactly the traditional setup. I don't really have family traditions anymore, I guess. I mean, my parents still do the whole thing back in Ohio, but I haven't been back for Easter since. God, 22? I've been traveling for work for a few years now. Surgical contracts, so I'm usually wherever the hospital needs me, which is fine. It's actually why I'm calling, kind of.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what's going on with your hospital contracts? Why are you calling? What's on your mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>So I just finished a 13-week contract in El Paso, and I'm driving up to Taos for a new one, but it doesn't start for nine days, nine days where I don't have to be anywhere. And I'm sitting here absolutely no idea what to do with that time. I know that sounds like a good problem to have, right? But I've been doing this contract thing since 2022. And I think I've structured every single break around visiting someone else or just driving straight to the next job. And I heard a caller on your show a couple weeks ago say they felt homesick for a place that doesn't exist. And I wrote it down because that just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, I think a lot of people feel that way, especially around different holidays where they They have memories of family events and dinners and things like that. But you've got, would you say nine days? That's a good amount of time to explore New Mexico. So there's a bunch of places you can go and check out between your two gigs. You can go see the Gila, the houses, what are those called? The old ruins and the Gila National Forest. Or you could go to White Sands. You can go see the giant pistachio or the thing. I'm sure you've seen the billboards for that all up and down I-10. So just to just take some time and explore the area and see the cool things because there's quite a few of them here in New Mexico. The cliff dwellings.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>Yeah, I mean, those are all good suggestions. White sands sounds nice. I've driven past the thing billboards probably 50 times and never stopped. That's the kind of thing I could actually do, I guess. Just stop and see it. it. But I think what I'm actually asking is different. Like, I can go see ruins and pistachio statues, sure. The thing is apparently a mummified mother and child, and it's been a roadside attraction on I-10 in Arizona since the 1960s.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you asking? Exactly. You feel homesick because your work is on the road. And what, you feel like you have no tribe? Is that what's going on? Because I don't know if you heard our previous caller Silas, but he's always looking for new recruits to the well-spers. where they live intentionally and make soap out in the desert.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>No, it's not about finding a tribe or joining a commune or anything like that. I mean, I'm good at what I do. I've gotten three written commendations from surgeons in two years. I keep the photos on my phone, but that's not what I'm asking about either. I think I'm asking if you can build a home inside yourself or if that's just something people say to make you feel better. Because I told myself I loved this life, the moving around, the freedom, no way. roots.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I can identify with that. I mean, I've pretty much done the same thing myself, but I think, yes, you can build a home inside yourself. And your Tom Waits said, wherever I lay my head is my home. And I mean, that's true until it's not. So if you feel a calling, if you're getting tired of doing what you're doing, or you'd like to change the way that your life is going, you can do that at any point. You don't have to stick to your guns because you thought that this was the life that you wanted 10 years ago. Right? You can change. Every day you can change. So if you've decided that you want the white picket fence and to settle down somewhere in a city where you've got your community and your yoga class, your gym, you can do that. But if that's not what you want, that's okay too. You can do any combination of things. You don't have to stick to one lifestyle for your whole life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>Yeah, yeah, okay. I think that's what I needed to hear, actually. Because I've been telling myself this is what I want. And I'm not even sure if that's true anymore or if it ever was. I did this after a breakup in 2,200, and I just, I never stopped long enough to figure out if I actually like it or if I was just running. And I have this tattoo. It's the Ohio State outline on my wrist. Got it when I was 19. And I find it embarrassing now, but also weirdly comforting. And I think that's the problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I don't know if Ohio is the type of place that I would tattoo on my arm, but if that's what call, well, you've, feel like is home, then go to Ohio. You can do that. It's all right to change your mind. And nobody knows what they want. It's not like, it's not like you wake up one morning and you have this idea and that's how the rest of your life is set and the goals that you have to strive for forever. I mean, you do it. You check it out. You have experiences. And then you move on. When it's time to move on, the universe will tell you. And then you move on and you have different experiences. And you can always go back if you want to or you can move forward. or you can continue to try different things. It's all up to you and how you feel on any given day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>I think what I'm realizing is that I don't actually know how I feel on any given day because I've been so focused on just getting to the next place. My car's got 94,000 miles on it and a crack in the windshield I've been meaning to fix since November. And I just keep driving. And I think maybe those nine days aren't about seeing the thing or white sands. Maybe they're about actually sitting still long enough to figure out if I want to keep doing this. or if I want to go back to Ohio or if I want something completely different. I don't know. Does that make sense?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It does make sense, but I've done this. I've been in this situation lots of times. And nine days sounds like a lot to you right now, but it's really, nine days isn't a long time to figure out your life. And you can do those assessments and make those calls at any time. So I think you should probably go at least start the job that you're going to do, right? You've already committed to do that. Start that one. And, you know, if moving on is something that you decide that you want to do, maybe wait until the end of this coming contract, because they're temporary, right? So how long is your contract for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>It's 12 weeks. So I'd be done in mid-June. And yeah, you're right. I already committed to it. I'm a professional. I show up for my commitments. I guess I just wanted to know if it was okay to stop. Like, permission or something. But you're saying, I don't need permission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>I just need to feel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>finish what I started and then actually make a choice instead of just drifting into the next thing. Yeah, you don't need permission. And I would go so far as to say there is nobody on this earth that's qualified to give you that permission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're the only one that can make that call. And you don't need anybody's approval or validation about it. It's all about you and your life and what you want to do with your time on this planet, which is, you know, it's yours and it's short and it's getting shorter. So my these nine days to relax a little bit, see some of the sites, give yourself a bit of a break, and take care of your car. So you've got nine days, you can stop and get your windshield fixed. Regardless of what you choose, you're going to need that car to be solid and get the oil changed and take care of those things. Because what can happen is if you ignore those, they're going to end up causing you a situation where you can no longer ignore them. And then the choice isn't yours anymore. It's made for you because you've neglected the things. that you need, like a running vehicle and your own health. So take the nine days, relax. It's not a do-it-a-die moment for you right now. And if you decide at the end of your contract that you've had enough of this lifestyle, move on and try something else. And there's nothing wrong with that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>That's actually really practical advice. I wasn't expecting that. I thought you were going to tell me to follow my heart or something. But you're right. My windshield's been cracked since Flagstaff, and I haven't even thought about what that means. I just keep driving around it like it's not my problem. And my oil is probably due. So I just looked up windshield repair costs. And it looks like a chip repair can be as low as $45, but a full replacement can be over $400, depending on the car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't really matter how much it costs, right? You need your car to be reliable. And even if you're going to move into a city and not have a car anymore because you've got public transportation or whatever, You want that car to be in the best shape it can be so that if you sell it, then you will get the maximum, you know, you can for it. So don't just drive around ignoring your personal responsibilities because they're responsibilities. And you want to take care of your stuff. You want to make sure that you're safe on the road. And I wish you the best of luck and whatever you decide. But it's your call. It's your decision. And you don't need me to tell you that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARCY</span><p>You're right. I need to take care of my stuff. need to take care of myself. I think I've been treating this whole thing like I'm just passing through everything, including my own life. So, I'm going to get the windshield fixed. I'm going to get the oil changed. And I'm going to do this contract in Taos and actually think about what comes next instead of just letting it happen to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there you go. Well, I hope you're all sorted and happy Easter to you and good luck on your contract and whatever comes next in your life. Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from our sponsors. All right, folks. It's time to take a break to thank today's sponsor. Jam Hospitality, the leader in Maple-based Marmalade. If your toast has been living in a bland little studio apartment of flavor, it's time to move into the luxury suite. We're talking maple-based Marmalade, plus Marmalade-related products, because apparently Jam Hospitality asked, what if breakfast had a brand ecosystem? Go to www. my favorite marmalade.com. And use code jam it in you for 15% off. That's jam it in you. Like jam it in you, but legally distinct and emotionally complex. Jam hospitality. Put it on toast. Put it on pancakes. Put it on your confidence. That's www. my favorite marmalade.com. Tell them Luke sent you. You're welcome. That's right, folks. Thank you to jam hospitality. It's my favorite marmalade. All right, let's see. Next up we've got, it looks like, Ronnie. Ronnie, welcome to the show. Happy Easter to you. It's Zombie Jesus Day. Are you celebrating?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RONNIE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, happy Easter to you, too. I'm not much of a church guy anymore, but my daughter's got the grandkids over tomorrow, so there'll be some of that. That's good enough for me. Listen, I appreciate you. taking the call. I don't usually do this. I've been listening to you for a while now and I never thought I'd be the guy calling in, but something's been sitting with me and I need to talk it out with someone who isn't going to know me personally, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do. That's what we're here for, so hit us with it. What's what's on your mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RONNIE</span><p>Okay, so my son Damon, he's 38. He went through some real hard years with drinking. We didn't talk much during that time, said some things I shouldn't have said. I'm real proud of him for that. But I never told him. I mean, I haven't told him. Now, he started this support group for Native men who were trying to get sober, and there was an article in the Farmington paper about it. I've been carrying that article around for almost two weeks now. It's falling apart in my pocket.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a good thing. Your son's doing well, and you're proud of him, and that's a great fatherly situation to be in, right? So, excellent, good for you. Why is it bothering you? Why is it you calling in tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RONNIE</span><p>Because I don't know how to tell him. I keep thinking about what I want to say, and every time I open my mouth in my head, it comes out wrong. It turns into me asking him for something instead of just, I don't know, just letting him have what he's built. He called me six weeks ago, just asked if I wanted to come to a cookout. Real simple. And I didn't call him back. I still haven't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Look, man, this is a very simple thing. And it's, I understand the strange. that can happen inside your head when you've got to call somebody that there's really no, there's like a mental block over it for some reason. I don't know where that comes from or why that happens. But all you need to do is give him a call and let him know you're proud of them. Say, hey, I just want to, you know, let you know. So in case something happens to me, right? You could die and never tell him this. And he'll wonder for his whole life if his dad was proud of him. So just suck it up, give him a call and say, hey, I just want to tell you I'm proud of you. I'm proud of you. That's all. It's all you got to do. And that might mean the world to him for the rest of his life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RONNIE</span><p>I know. I know you're right. It's just when I read that article, there's this one thing he said in it. He said, I had to decide I was worth saving. And I read that maybe 40 times now. And I keep thinking, how do I say I'm proud without it sounding like I'm asking him to fix what I broke? Like I'm making it about me needing forgiveness instead of about what he did. I bowled at 278 the same Tuesday that article came out. 278, Luke, I've been bowling league for 30 years, and I didn't feel a damn thing about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, the thing is, this isn't about you. He was an alcoholic, and maybe he got that from your genes, and I don't know what you were like when he was growing up. I'm sure there's apologies to be made, and nobody does it perfectly, and maybe you did it even worse than badly. That's possible, too. If you need to make apologies, make those apologies. His situation wasn't entirely caused by you. And you're not the only thing going through his head when he wrote those words. Maybe you were a part of it, and that's very possible and probably likely. But there's other forces at work in his life besides you and his upbringing. And it sounds like he's found a way to make peace with it and get on the other end of it. And that's a thing that deserves recognition from you, his father. And give him a call. Tell him you're proud of him. tell him that you've been carrying that article or just tell them the truth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And see how that goes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>And that's all you can do and you'll feel much better about it and I think so will he. Yeah, yeah, okay. I hear you. I think what I need is just one sentence. Not a whole thing, not a letter or some speech. Just one sentence that opens the door without making it about what I owe him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Something that just says I see what he did and I'm proud of it. That's all. One sentence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, sir. That's all it takes. And you should do that sooner rather than later, because it's just going to get more and more difficult as time goes on. So open up the door, tell him you're proud of him. Tell him he's done good. And see where it goes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I'm going to do it. I'm going to call him tomorrow. I still got that voicemail he left me from six weeks ago on my phone. I listen to it sometimes just to hear his voice asking me to come to the cookout. Real casual, like it wasn't a big deal. And I think maybe that's the sentence right there. Maybe I just tell him I'm sorry I missed that cookout and that I'm proud of him for building something that matters. Something like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's all you need. A 278 is a crazy good score in bowling. You're just two strikes and a spare away from a perfect game. It's a huge achievement for anyone, especially after 30 years in a league. All right. Well, it sounds like you did an amazing, exceptional job in your bowling league too. And this is just a good feels story all the way around. So thank you for the call. Talk to your son. And we're going to move on to the next caller. Is there anything else you'd like to impart on our radio audience before we go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, I think that's it. I appreciate you taking the time, Luke. And Devon, thanks for that. I didn't think anybody was listening to bowling scores. I'm going to make that call tomorrow. And I'm going to tell him I'm proud of him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Good man. You do it and... re- revitalize that relationship with your son. You still got time and he's in a position to hear it because I bet you he is. So next up, we've got Petra. Petra, thanks for calling in. Happy Easter to you. Are you celebrating the rebirth, the reconnaissance, the renaissance, the renaissance, the renaissance, the renaissance, the re-coming, the what's that other? Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who died on the crucifix for your sins.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Hi, Luke. Thank you for, yes, happy Easter to you too. I'm not really calling about that, actually. I mean, I'm not religious. Not really. I grew up Catholic in the Czech Republic, but it was more cultural, you know? My family went to church on the holidays, but it was more about the tradition than...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think it's more about the tradition than anything for literally everybody. Because it's definitely not about reason and logic. So what has you calling in today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Right, yes. Okay, so I just got off the phone with my mother. She's in Berno, that's in the Czech Republic. And my father, he was just diagnosed with Parkinson's. Early stage, so it's manageable. There are treatments. He's going to be okay. That's what she told me. And that part is, that part is fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, parts not fine. I mean, Parkinson's, I think, is generally not fine. It's manageable for a little while, but it's a degenerative disease. And it's horrible. I knew somebody that has. Parkinson's and I watched the whole thing and it was really heartbreaking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Yes, I know. I know. I know it's serious. But he caught it early and my mother was very clear that the doctors are optimistic. So I'm trying to hold on to that part. That's not actually why I call though. It's something else. During the phone call with my mother, when she was telling me about the diagnosis, I realized that I processed the information in English first. Before I even responded to her in check, my thoughts were in English. And then I had to translate everything back. And it felt, it felt wrong somehow, like I was betraying something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think you were betraying something. I think that's just how the mind works if you're immersed in something so much. I mean, I don't know any other spoken languages. I know a lot of programming languages, and sometimes I think in those. Like if I'm writing a script in PHP, sometimes I'll start writing in Python and things like that. I assume it's similar, but I don't know, because I don't language. I don't think that's a betrayal of anything. I think that's just the way that the neural pathways in your brain are firing for whatever reason. And it doesn't matter. Their language is. So whichever language you speak as long as you can get your point across to who you're talking about is the right language. They're just words that we made up. They don't have any greater meaning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>I know that logically. I study language. Actually, computational linguistics, neural networks, syntax. So I know you're right about the neural pathways. I know it's just how it works when you're immersed. But knowing something logically and feeling it are different things, you know. And it's not just about getting the point across. It's my grandmother gave me this wooden owl before I left for the United States. And I keep it in my bathroom, so I see it every day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. And what's that got to do with your language situation here? Obviously, the wooden bowl, bowl. The wooden owl is meaningful to you and you keep it prominently displayed where you see it every day as a reminder of your grandmother and where you came from and that's a good thing. So that's not forgetting about your culture or your past or the people that raised you. I think that's a normal and good and a healthy way to keep people in your life and in your heart and in your memories.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Yes, but that's a physical object. That's easy. I can put it on a shelf and see it every day and it reminds me. But my language, my first language, it's not something I can just keep on a shelf. It's supposed to be alive. It's supposed to be how I think, how I feel, and I'm worried that I'm losing it or not losing it exactly, but I'm becoming someone different here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's probably true. You are becoming somebody different here. It's a different environment. So you're going to have all sorts of different stimulus and all different how it should work. It would be much worse if you didn't become somebody different and you stayed that person from the Czech Republic when you got here because that would make it very difficult for you to socialize in this environment. So if you feel like your past, your history, your culture is that important and you're losing it, there are things that you can do to keep that fresh. I'm sure there's some sort of Czech group somewhere that you can hang out with or go to Czech dances. I don't know what the Czech community is like, but I'm sure there's something you can do. And if you decide maybe America's not for you, then go back to the Czech Republic, but I don't know why you would want to. So the language thing, it really doesn't matter what language you're using. Our only purpose for language is to get our ideas across. And as long as you're able to do that, then it doesn't matter which words you're using to get it done. Right? You just need somebody to know that, uh, the that you're ordering the tacos or find out where the bathroom is or tell them, you know, that they're being an asshole, whatever it is, whatever idea you have to get across, you're just using language as a tool to do it. And it really doesn't matter which tool you use.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>I hear what you're saying and maybe you're right that becoming different is, is necessary. I don't want to go back to the Czech Republic. I have my PhD program here. I have a paper under review at a journal that could be really important for my career. and I love what I do here. So I'm not questioning whether I should stay or go, but it's not just about ordering tacos, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it about then?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>It's about when my mother told me about my father, the first feeling I had was in English.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Fear, worry, all of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>It came to me in English words first. And then I had to translate that back into check to tell her how I felt. But that's not how it should work. She's my mother. My father is sick. Yeah, she's your mother.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>mother and your father is sick and it doesn't matter which words you use in your mind subconscious or consciously or subconsciously or subconsciously to come to terms with those realities, right? You could speak Papua New Guinea if that's a language and get to the same place. Right? So the words are just a tool to get you to the idea, which is beyond linguistics.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>You're right. You're right that the feeling is the same regardless of the language. But what I'm afraid of is that if I keep processing everything in English first, eventually check will just be something I speak when I call home. It won't be how I think anymore. It won't be how I feel. And then when I do go back or when my parents come visit, I'll be a stranger to them. Not because I've changed, because I have changed, yes, but because I won't be able to reach them the same way. The language is not just a tool, Luke. It's connected to who you are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>that and I don't know that I agree with it but I'm not bilingual so I can't I can't really speak to it. I think logically and logically it doesn't really matter what the words are. You're not going to forget check. I mean you grew up speaking that language, it's your native tongue. It's not going to just go away even if it's not the first the first tool that you go to. We are good at what we do every day and if you're speaking in English every day, that's going to be the default for you. That's just, that's how the brain works and that's okay. If you were to move back or spend some time or, you know, fly out to the Czech Republic to spend time with your family and you were re- immersed in that environment, it would come back like riding a bicycle. And Czech would be your default again. Probably you're going to be some mix of both of them. I don't know how that works. It's probably unique to an individual and it also is just, um, kind of rooted in something that I can't explain because I'm not bilingual.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Okay, yes. I think you're probably right about that. The riding a bicycle part, I mean, I know intellectually that's true. I've gone home twice since I came here and Czech does come back. It's just that when I'm here, living here, it feels like it's slipping away a little bit every day. And I guess what I'm really afraid of is that one day I'll call my mother and I won't know how to tell her true. That feels like me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's interesting. I just looked up language attrition on Wikipedia, and it talks about how it's common for immigrants and bilinguals to experience a decrease in their first language proficiency, especially when a second language starts to dominate their daily life. It makes perfect sense that that would happen and also that it would feel strange in like a changing of your identity, but it legitimately is a changing of your identity, right? So, So you're going to speak in a way that feels true to you because you are who you are at the moment you're speaking those words. So the words you would use today are not going to be the words that you would use 10 years from now, no matter what language you're speaking. And I don't think you have to have that fear. I understand it. I can see how you got there. And I don't want to make light of it. But I don't think you need to worry about that. When that situation arises, if you get to a point where you can't commute. with your mother, you'll find a way and she will know that it is you. Because she's your mother and mothers know those things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Yeah, yeah. Okay. I think I needed to hear that. I don't know why I called exactly, but I think I needed someone to say that it's okay to change and that it doesn't mean I'm disappearing. That distance is not the same as becoming a stranger.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's not the same. And it's okay to change. And you can call it. growth because you're not it's not your learning in English words so you're losing a check word it's not a one-to-one mapping like that your your fluency and proficiency and one is going to decline as you spend all your time in the other it would with any skill or anything that is learned experience that's that's how we operate that's how we're built to operate and i wouldn't call that um a loss it's it's a growth and it's not um it's okay It's all right and you're doing just fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>Thank you. I think I needed to hear that too, that it's growth and not a loss. I've been sitting on my bathroom floor for the past hour thinking about this and I couldn't figure out how to feel about it. But maybe, maybe it's okay to be both things at once, to be the person who thinks in English now and still be Petra from Berno.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is absolutely okay and I bet if you were to have a serious conversation with your parents, which it's probably a good idea to do now before Parkinson's does cause some sort of cognitive decline. I think your parents would be really proud of who you've become and this is what they want for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PETRA</span><p>I think you're right. I should call them back tomorrow when it's morning there. Not just to check on my father, but to actually talk to them about this, about what I'm doing here, what I'm becoming. They might understand better than I do. And Luke, thank you for this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are very welcome. I'm sorry about your father and yeah, I think that's a good. a good idea you should have these conversations with your mother now so like if your fear comes true and 10 years from now you're having a hard time communicating with her it won't be a sudden thing she'll understand what was happening and you know maybe she can start learning some english too and you guys can talk back and forth and whatever your most comfortable tongue is i think that's a cool thing uh let's see who's next next we've got terry hey terry welcome to the show happy easter sunday to you. Are you celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who died on the cross for your sins so that all your sins may be forgiven?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>Hey Luke. Yeah. Happy Easter to you too. I mean, I'm not really, that's not really my thing, but I appreciate it. I'm actually calling because I've got this situation at work and I can't figure out if I'm making a huge mistake or if everyone around me is crazy and I've been up since four in the morning thinking about it. So.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what's going on at work? What's on your mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERRY</span><p>So, I got offered a form and position, more money benefits are better, the whole thing. It's office work mostly, scheduling, managing the younger guys, dealing with paperwork. And everyone, and I mean everyone, Luke, my ex-wife Brenda, my girlfriend Stacy, my buddy Kev, they're all telling me I have to take it. That it's the smart move, you know? Move up the ladder. Stop breaking your back and crawl spaces. And here's the thing. I know they're right. I know that sounds like the move, but I don't want to do it, and I can't explain why without sounding like a complete idiot, which is making me think maybe I am an idiot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think you're an idiot. And I think if for whatever reason your gut tells you you don't want to do it, I mean, you're not saying I'm not sure if I want to do it. You told me I don't want to do it. So you've thought about this, you know you don't want to do it. And that's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Management isn't for everybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If you like what you're doing, if you're comfortable in what you're doing, and you have this gut feeling that what you're about to do is the wrong decision, then you don't have to do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And it doesn't matter what anybody else tells you or what anybody else thinks, because it's your life and you're the one that has to deal with this day in and day out and uh you want to be as happy and fulfilled as possible if this new job isn't going to do that for you don't take it um that's my advice uh it sounds like you already know what you need to do</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>yeah but that's the thing though luke that's what i keep telling myself but then i sit with it for like an hour and i start thinking okay but what if i'm just being stubborn what if i'm afraid of change and i'm dressing it up as knowing myself because i can't really point to anything concrete you know i can't really point to anything concrete you know I can't say the money doesn't matter because it does. I can't say I hate the people I work with because I don't. I like most of them fine. Last Thursday I was under a house in this attic crawl space, replacing duct work. It was like 90 degrees up there. I was sweating through my shirt, cursing the whole time and I felt...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You felt what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Uh, satisfaction?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, satisfaction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>But like, more than that. I felt happy, like genuinely happy in a way I don't feel anywhere else. And I know that sounds crazy when I'm saying it out loud. But I was thinking about it all weekend and I couldn't shake it. And then I come home and Stacy's like, you have to take this job. And Brenda texts me the same thing and I'm sitting there thinking, how do I tell these people that I felt happy in a crawl space covered in dust and sweat? That doesn't make sense to anyone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't have to make sense to anybody because they're not living your life. If that's what brings you happiness, if that's where you find peace and you enjoy that and you're good at it and it's what you like doing, then that's what you should do. You can just talk to the bosses and tell them, hey, I like working in the field. This is where I belong. This is what I want to do right now. And, you know, maybe some years from now that changes when your back hurts or you slip a disc or something like that and you can no longer do the work that makes you happy, then start thinking about being the foreman. But right now, it sounds to me anyway, like you don't want to be the foreman and that's all right. And it doesn't matter if Brenda or anybody else has a problem with it because they don't have to do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, you're right, you're right. I guess I just needed to hear someone say it without trying to fix me or whatever. It's just, Brenda and I, we divorced the first time over money and the second time over communication, and I'm pretty sure those are the same problem wearing different clothes. And now here she is again telling me what I should do with my life. And I'm wondering if I'm just being stubborn about the job because I'm stubborn about her. You know what I mean?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, that makes you sound like an idiot. If you get divorced from the same person two times and you're still deferring to her advice, then yeah, that's stupid. Cut that out. It sounds like she's not the person for you. You tried it out. It failed. You tried it out again. Failed. So I learn your lesson.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, okay. Fair point. I mean, Stacey's the one who's actually, she's different. She's alarmingly reasonable, which sounds weird to say, but she just gets it without making it into a thing. And she wants me to take the job too, but like, she's not pushing. She just wants me to be happy. That's what she said. So it's not like I'm being stubborn about her specifically. But you're right about Brenda. I need to stop letting her rent space in my head like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's actually pretty common for second marriages to have a higher divorce rate than first ones, sometimes even up to 60, 65%.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, it makes sense that they would.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Second marriages have a higher divorce rate because, I mean, once you've been through it once, it doesn't seem like such a big deal the next time. It's easier to just throw in the towel, I would assume. But yeah, it doesn't matter. Stacey or Brenda, these are just, These are women in your life. And you, I mean, I wouldn't say you owe them nothing if you're in committed relationships and share household responsibilities and whatever. But, I mean, they're going to be worse off if you're miserable every day for the rest of your life. So don't do that. You don't want to, you don't want to be a foreman. You already know in your gut that you don't want to be a foreman. So just respectfully decline for now. And if the situation changes later, another opportunity will arise.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know what? helps. I think I've been so worried about making the wrong decision that I didn't stop to think about what making the right decision actually looks like. And you're right. If I'm miserable in an office all day, that doesn't help anybody. Not Stacy, not the company, not me. I'm just going to tell them thanks, but no thanks. I'm going to stay in the field. And maybe down the road, if things change, like you said, another opportunity comes up. But right now, I know where I'm good, and I know where I'm happy. And that's in the crawl spaces and under the houses doing the work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. It's another happy customer here. We're solved another problem. And good for you. Do what you love. They're not offering you so much more money that it's worth being miserable over. Ladies and gentlemen, this is going pretty well, but unfortunately, it's time for us to take a moment for a word from our sponsors. All right, I'm going to read this ad exactly as they sent it to me, and I want you to know that I have concerns. Phantom Ranch Wellness wants you to know that your gut health starts, and I'm this directly from the card now, from the other end. They make an at-home coffee enema kit. It comes in a box that says wellness inside, on the outside, which I think we can agree, is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The kit includes a medical-grade silicone bag, organic, single-origin coffee, because apparently the coffee you put in your, that coffee needs to be single origin, a detailed instruction booklet and a com card with a QR code to a guided meditation. for during. During. There's a guided meditation for during. I'm not going to tell you what to do with your body. That's between you and your bathroom and whatever God you answer to. I will say the reviews are disturbingly positive. Four and a half stars. One guy said it has changed his morning routine, which I believe because it would absolutely change your morning routine. Phantom Ranch Wellness. I read the ad. I didn't endorse it. All right, and we're back. Let's see who's next up on our caller line. We're fixing all the world's problems today. That's what we do here, Luke at the Roost. Again, if you'd like to give us a call, the number's 208-439-58-3. Next up on our color line, we've got Marguerite. Marguerite, welcome to the show. How are you on this glorious Sunday, Easter Sunday? Rejoice for his risen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>Hello, Luke. Yes. I'm doing all right. I'm doing fine, actually. I don't usually call. I've been listening for three months now since January, and I've never called, but tonight I'm standing in my kitchen and I need to ask someone something, and there's no one awake who would know the answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, we'll see what we can do. What is it that you'd like to ask, Marguerite?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>My husband's birthday is tomorrow. Would have been tomorrow. He passed in August, so this is his first birthday without him, and And I've made his birthday cake every single year for 48 years. Every year. And I'm standing here right now with my mixer in my bowl, and I can't remember if he liked lemon cake or yellow cake. I know that sounds like such a small thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>I know it is a small thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, isn't lemon cake yellow? So it sounds to me like you can't get it wrong. No, that's not. Lemon cake is different. It has the lemon in it, the tartness, cake is just butter and vanilla. They're completely different things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>He would have known the difference. He would have had a preference. I'm standing here and I cannot remember which one he preferred. And I'm terrified, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's understandable. It's a hard situation. And all I can tell you is it doesn't, it doesn't matter. Make the cake go through your ritual and that it's for you now. So my recommendation is make the cake that you're going to like better because you're the one that's going to be eating it. And it's, it's, it's more. more about the thought that's going into it, the work you're putting through to it to honor his memory. And that's what matters, not the flavor of the cake. So he's not there to judge, and he's not going to turn up his nose at it, and you're the one that's going to be eating the cake. So make the one that you prefer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>I know you're right. I know that logically. But it's not about the cake loop. It's not really about whether it's lemon or yellow. It's that I'm forgetting him. Small things first, and then what? taught third grade for 46 years, and I kept every drawing every single student ever gave me, 11 shoeboxes in my hall closet, organized by year. I remember things. I'm good at remembering.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, this is one of those things where it's not helpful to you to remember all the little details like that. You're not forgetting your husband. You'll never forget your husband. These little minute details, they'll come and go throughout your life. What's happened? is you're going through a grief process and you're growing. I mean, there's some scar tissue there, right? You're moving on. And that's healthy and natural. And that's what you need to do in order to continue living the rest of your life because he's gone now. And cake, lemon, or vanilla, or otherwise is not going to change that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. But Luke, He used to hum while he watered the tomatoes. Every evening in the summer, he'd go out there with the hose and he'd hum. I can still hear it perfectly. I can hear it right now. And I'm afraid that one day I won't be able to hear it anymore. And that's when I'll know I'm really losing him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no. See, the thing is, you've lost him. He's gone. He's died. He's no longer there anymore. And he's not humming, and he's not eating cake. And your memories, are pulling back images of him that were meaningful to you. And they're going to come at random times and the thing about the human memory is that it's not accurate. So you're going to have memories eventually coming in that are not true to reality. And you'll swear that that's how he was. And it's not. And that's not any lacking of anything that you're doing. That's just how we're created. And there's probably a good reason for that. We don't know what that reason is, but there's probably a good reason that is focusing on different things. It's looking at how you're going to move forward in this life. Because you're going to need to move forward. And staying, it's good to keep his memory alive, right? You'll always keep his memory alive. But these little details, all these little details, are no longer helpful for your life anymore. And you're going to have to find new ones. And this is making room for those new ones. So I would say you're exactly where you should be. right now. I know that it's difficult to lose somebody like that, and you wish it could be different, but it's not different. This is how it is, and you're on a healing sort of a path, and this is right where you should be right now, and enjoy your cake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>I hear what you're saying. I do. And maybe you're right about all of it. But Luke, he had the most beautiful handwriting. He was a mechanic, and his hands were always dirty, but his handwriting was like leave me notes on the back of receipt paper in cursive, just little things, and I kept them. I kept all of them, and I'm not ready for those details to stop mattering.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't have to let all those details start. You still have those. You can look at his handwriting and you can remember him, and over time those details can, should, and will become less important to you as you move on with your life, which you will have to do. What you don't want to happen is to be stuck in the past. and a slave to those memories because they're just memories and there's still a whole lot of life left on the other side, post-husband. It's sad that you lost him, but you did lose him. And nothing's going to bring him back, not his handwriting, not his cake, or not his humming, or tomatoes. Those can all give you warm and fuzzy feelings and memories of him and his legacy, but it's not him. And they're not helpful to you, forward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>I see my daughter on Sundays. We have lunch. She's been very patient with me. And I sold his truck three months ago because I didn't know what else to do with it. And I thought that would help. I thought getting rid of his things would make it easier somehow. But it didn't. It just made the house quieter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>It's interesting what Luke said about memory not being accurate, because studies show that while memory...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, memory what? And what was that, Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>It's interesting what Luke said about memory not being accurate, because studies show that while memory isn't always perfect, emotional memories, especially during grief, can be particularly prone to distortion. It might not feel like it's helping now, Marguerite, getting rid of his things, but it will over time. This is still very new for you. It just happened last year. It's going to take a long time for this to start not feeling the way it does today. better and your life will go on. But as these things kind of fall off, it will make new room inside you to invite new experiences, new people, new memories.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>I know. I understand what you're saying. I do. It's just eight months isn't very long, is it? And I'm awake most nights anyway. I've always been an insomniac. So I found your show in January, and it helped.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>It's actually really for people to struggle with the decision of selling a deceased spouse's car. And many widows on forums talk about how emotional and difficult it is, feeling like they're losing them all over again. That's really tough, Marguerite. I just looked up grief and insomnia, and it seems like it's a really common thing. Grief can definitely make sleep problems worse, and then poor sleep can make the grieving process even harder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's a horrible situation you're in. I'm sorry that happened to you and you're where you're at. But it sounds to me like you're where you need to be and you're progressing through healthy stages of grief. And as time goes on, it'll be a little less and a little less hard. And if you need somebody to talk to, you can call in to us anytime, Marguerite. We're here for you. And you're doing a great job. Just do the best you can do. And move forward because life isn't over for both of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARGUERITE</span><p>Thank you. Thank you both. appreciate that. I think I needed to say it out loud to someone. I needed to hear myself say that I can't remember and that it's okay or that it will be okay. I'm going to make the lemon cake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Excellent. It will be okay. It is okay. And I hope you really enjoy that lemon cake. I wish I could have some myself. Good luck to you and you keep up the good work. Okay, Marguerite? And we're here for you. Next up, our last caller of the evening is going to be Deb, Deb, welcome to the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Happy Easter Sunday. It's the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who died on the cruise fix for your sins, all of your sins. So you should be thankful and give him praise for that. And what are you doing to celebrate? What are you doing in repentance for your sins and in gratitude for Jesus, great sacrifice for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Happy Easter to you too, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I'm sitting in a parking lot right now, actually. I'll buy the old furs on San Mateo. You know the one? It's been closed for years, but the building still there. I used to bring my daughter here every Friday when she was little.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what's got you calling in tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Well, I guess I just needed to talk to somebody. My daughter, she moved to Phoenix eight months ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Phoenix?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>And she stopped calling. Not right away. It was gradual, you know. One week she'd call and two weeks and nothing for three months now. I know I should probably do something about it. Drive out there, show up at her door, something. But I don't know. know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know about driving out there and showing up at her door. That's a bit much, but maybe just giving her a call and saying, hey, how's it going? I miss you. That's enough, I think.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I know. I know that's what I should do. Everyone tells me that my neighbor said the same thing last week. Just call her, Deb. Just pick up the phone. What if she doesn't want to hear from me? What if that's why she stopped? I don't want to. I don't want to push myself on her if she's trying to get away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think that's what's happening. She's just growing up and she's moved to the city. and she's got a new life there. It's only been eight months. It hasn't been very long. She's getting settled and she's working into new routines and she's got a new social circle and there's a lot of things going on in our life. And I think that happens to everybody as their children get older.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I suppose that's true. I know she's got her own life now. I'm not stupid about that. It's just I still buy two cans of soup every week. The same kind she liked.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Tomato soup?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>And I only eat one can. The other one just sits. there in the cupboard.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds to me like you've got some time where you don't have to buy soup, so you're stocked up for a while, and that's not a bad thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I guess not. I just, I keep thinking maybe she'll call and say she's coming home, and I'll have it ready. Or maybe I'll finally work up a nerve to drive out there and I'll bring some with me. I don't know. It's silly. My husband used to call me the keeper of useless time because of all my clocks. I've got three in the kitchen, all set different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is a weird thing, and again I'm going to recommend that you don't just up on her door, you don't know that she's home, you don't know that she's not with somebody. That's a bit, that's too much. Just give her a call and see what's going on. And she's probably, it's unlikely she's just going to show up on your doorstep. She's going to call you first and make sure you're home. So there's some logistic things here. You live a good distance apart. You each have your own respective lives. And there's a scheduling component that has to happen if you're going to do these things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>You're right. You're right. I know all that. I have her address memorized. The whole thing. But I've never even looked it up on a map, you know? I don't even know exactly where it is in Phoenix. I just know the numbers and the street name. It's like I'm keeping it in my head but not really letting myself think about it too hard.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what are you doing to occupy yourself now that you've got this empty nest syndrome going on? Like you've got a whole lot of time now that you didn't have before and you've got somebody that was important to you that's no longer around that you can talk to. So what steps have you taken to fill your time? in a productive way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I'm retired now. I was an administrative clerk for the Navajo Nation for a long time. So I've got plenty of time, maybe too much. I go to church on Sundays. I do some volunteer work at the senior center a couple days a week. I read, I keep my house up. I'm not just sitting around doing nothing, if that's what you're asking. But it's not the same. When she was here, I had a reason to get up in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, I mean, that's exactly what I'm saying. It does sound like. you're sitting around doing pretty much nothing for the majority of your time. You need to give yourself another reason to get up in the morning, which could be those volunteer classes. It could be classes that you're taking in drawing or paint or dance or whatever it is. But you need a reason for yourself to get up that is not somebody else because you can't depend on somebody else to be that for you forever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I hear what you're saying. I do. But that's not really why I call tonight, Luke. I didn't call to talk about what I should be doing with my time. I called because I just needed to talk to someone who wouldn't tell me what to do. Everyone's got advice. My neighbor, my sister, now you. And I appreciate it. I do. But what I really want to know is if I was a good mother.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, none of us are the ones that can tell you if you were a good mother, because I wasn't there. You're going to have to talk to your daughter about that and ask her directly if you were a good mother. And it seems like the type of thing that you should know. Did you do your best? Did you try your hardest? Do you think you were a good mother? Or did you fall about the wayside? Does she leave for some specific reason to get away from you? Maybe she did. I don't know. You haven't given us that context. But if you're going to call a radio show for advice, don't get upset when you get advice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I'm not upset. I'm not. You're right. You're right. I did do my best. I know I did. We had our Fridays at the Furs. And I was there for her school things. And when her father passed, I held it together for her sake. I did all that. So yes, I think I was a good mother. I think I was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, first cafeteria, I just looked it up, and it was a chain that started in New Mexico in 1946 and finally closed its last location in 2021. So Fridays at the FERS is definitely a blast from the past.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Well, I mean, there you go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You've got your answer. You are as good a mother as you could be, and you didn't do anything wrong here unless there's something you're not telling us. And this is just a natural progression of life. And you're lonely. And that's okay. But if you want to want to not be as lonely and not be freaking out and thinking about just showing up on people's doorsteps, then, yeah, my advice stands. Go find something to fill your time with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I appreciate that. And you're right about the furs. Those were good times. I'm glad your intern looked that up. It's nice to know someone remembers those places existed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Deb. Well, good luck to you and good luck to your daughter and happy Easter to everybody all around. That's going to be the end of our show. Devon, how do you think it went tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I think we had some pretty good calls today. I felt pretty good about it. What about you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I thought it crushed. Silas tying into the Easter resurrection vibes was gold. And those stories we dug into had the lines lighting up like nobody's business. Felt like we hit that sweet spot where it's weird but real, you know? Makes me want to stick around longer than my internship, if that makes sense. What was your favorite bit?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, I like talking to Silas. He's always a good time. It's interesting to me what's going on down there at the well. spring. I like that Silas thinks about his leadership. He's pretty insecure. And he calls to get advice about whether he's being a good cult leader. And I think that's great. I think that I'm really the most qualified person around to give him that advice. And I'm really honored that he would, he would take my advice to his commune and use it to better the lives of his people. Yeah. So it was pretty good. Your internship, though, We'll talk about that when we get there. You can't invite yourself to the studio. We'll have to come up with a new arrangement when your internship is over, all right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Silas is the best.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That guy's got the self-awareness of a therapist and the commune drama of a soap opera.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Loves hearing you drop wisdom on him. Honored He'd loop in your advice, too, feels like we're indirectly running a better wellspring. Got it on the internship, no worries. I'll just keep crushing it behind the scenes till then.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Anything else to wrap the night, like pulling final caller stats or queuing tomorrow's life? lineup. Nah, I don't think we need no stats. We're crushing it all the way across the board. I'll tell you that. We've got the highest of the listenership we've ever had, which is way, it's catastrophic. It's to the moon. Just like we are almost there. We'll be on the moon tomorrow. You know, I stepped outside last night and I looked up in the moon, and it was different. It was different because I know that there's a fucking shuttle with people almost there, like more than halfway there. And in a couple of days when I look up at the moon, there's going to be. be actual humans standing on it. And that's pretty cool. You know, I didn't care. I read the news articles and everything. And I'm like, yeah, whatever, somebody's going to the moon. It's not me. But yesterday when I went outside and I looked up at the moon, it hit me a little bit differently. And I was like, wow, we're up there. Yeah, Luke, Artemis 2's on Flight Day 5 right now. Launched the first with those four astronauts looping the moon in real time after all these years, staring up and knowing humans are almost orbiting it again. That's straight up sci-fi turning real, chills like the resurrection stuff we were on earlier. Kind of makes late night radio feel small but epic at the same time. You want to cue any space callers for tomorrow or call it? I'm going to call it. Ladies and gentlemen, thanks for tuning in to another Luke at the Roost, and we're going to talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 5: Cosmic Theories and Calling for Change</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-08T05:59:39+00:00">February 8, 2026</time> · 45 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Listeners call in to discuss Terrence Howard’s ‘Tree of Life’ theory, the future of fusion energy, and personal struggles. From a banker’s perspective on the economy to a cop reflecting on a lost father figure, this episode explores a range of topics that will leave you pondering the complexities of life. What will the callers uncover next?</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome back to the show. This is Luke at the Roost. It's the radio show where we take collars and give real-world advice. If you'd like to call in the number is 208-439-5853. That's 208-439-Luke. We're gonna go to the phones, but before we do, we have a new website. It's Luke at theRoost.com. If you'd like to learn how this show works, go over there and hit the How It Works button. There's a nice little right up for you over there. All right. On the phones now, we have Keith. Keith, tell me what you'd think about Terence Howard's Tree of Life theory.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Oh man. Terence Howard's Tree of Life thing sounds like one of those Hollywood fever dreams to me. Guys, an actor, not a mathematician, and all that talk about sacred geometry and one times one equals two. Just makes my head spin like I've been out in the sun too long. For real though, I stick to what I know. Like balancing checkbooks at the bank or watching the stars come out over the Pellan Silos. None of that cosmic puzzle nonsense. What got you asking about it, Luke?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I was just thinking about the little clip I saw of Terence Howard and Neil DeGrasse Tyson or Terence Center's theories to Neil to review and Neil kind of bashed him a little bit and he got all butthurt. I thought it was funny.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, that clip cracked me up too. Terence acting all wounded like a kid who got his science fair project ripped apart while Neil's just dropping facts like it's no big deal. For real though, it's like when some customer at the bank starts explaining why the economy's all wrong based on a YouTube rabbit hole, entertaining, but you got to stick to the numbers that add up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well the economy is all wrong and I think that the numbers do add up to the fact that we're spending way more money than we have and devaluing our own currency to make up for it. What do you have to say about that, Mr. Bankerman?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Oh yeah, you're preaching to the choir on that one, Luke. I've seen folks come through the Teller line with their savings shrinking faster than a desert dry spell all because Washington's printing money like it's confetti. For real though, down here in Grant County with the mining jobs drying up and folks scraping by on fixed incomes, it hits harder than in the big cities. We're talking real families not making ends meet. What's your take on how we fix it? Or is it just a lost cause?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How we fix the economy, I think we need to have an independent fed or get rid of the fed. I like to run Paul's suggestion to get rid of the fed entirely and let markets control the value of money. That makes a lot of sense to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, Ron Paul's been hollering about ditching the fed for years and I get the appeal. Letting markets run the show without some suit and DC pulling the strings sounds cleaner than this mess we've got now. But as a Teller who's watched accounts tank when inflation spikes, I'm not sure going full free market on money wouldn't just trade one headache for a bigger one. Like back in the old days, when bank runs wiped out whole towns around here. For real though, what do you think it do to places like Silver City, where we're already hanging on by a thread with the copper prices?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It may help, it may hurt, I don't really know. But what it would do is promote additional business and give other people a chance at some of the pie. Have some innovative ideas come in, have additional industries, set up shop out here where there's the land to do it and tax incentives and all that. But the fed just printing out money whenever they need to pay the bills that they've racked up. It hurts us all, not just here in the desert but everywhere in the country and in the world it makes our standing worse and worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, you're right on the money about the fed, just firing up the presses to cover their tab. It devalues everything from a rancher's cattle to a miner's paycheck and it's got the whole world's eye-ness like where the weak link in the chain. Down here with all that open land in the heela and tax breaks. If the state plays ball, I could see new outfits setting up shop. Maybe solar farms or tech that doesn't suck the water dry like the old copper ops did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe, I don't think that you and I are going to fix the US economy here on this call but it's interesting to hear you take. Monique, welcome to the show. What do you think about Terrence Howard and his theory of the tree of life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Oh man, I caught a bit of that earlier with Keith going on about Terrence Howard. It's kind of wild how he gets all emotional over it. But honestly, Neil deGrasse Tyson breaking it down makes sense to me. I'm into science stuff like battery tech and all. And that tree of life theory just feels more like philosophy than real physics, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Terrence Howard is an actor. He's decent at talking. He doesn't sound like a complete moron but it's funny to see Tyson shut him down. But what if we're all wrong and it's not a crazy whack theory? What if we learn 10 years down the line that he was right and one times one does equal to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Haha, yeah. It's always fun to play that what if game? Who knows? Maybe in 10 years we'll all be calculating math with one x1 equals sign 2 and my EV battery research will look like child's play. But honestly, Tyson's got the facts on his side for now. I mean, I'm knee deep in energy transition stuff at work. And theories like Howard's feel more like a cool story than something you'd bet your truck on. Speaking of which, I almost hung up calling in tonight because my signals crap out here. One bar and it's flickering, but I had to share this thing that's been eating at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, then what's been eating at you? How can we help you, Monique?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Oh, thanks for asking. I've been staring at this unanswered text for my husband, all evening. You know, the kind that just hangs there like a bad omen. And I finally picked up the phone because I needed to get it out. We're separated right now, living apart, but haven't pulled the trigger on filing yet, and it's all because of the kids. I'm staying for them, but man, it's killing me inside. Like I'm just going through the motions in this frozen desert winter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's unfortunate, but if you know in your heart it's time to move on, then it's probably time to move on. And the faster you do it, the faster everybody can heal from it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Yeah, I hear you on that. It does feel like ripping off the band-aid might let everyone breathe again, especially me. Because right now it's like I'm stuck in this limbo, driving my RAM 2500 to work every day, pretending everything's fine for the kids' sake. But the kids? They're the only reason I haven't filed yet, and worrying about how it'll hit them keeps me up at night, you know? My friend Tammy from church is the only one who's in on the whole mess, and even she says I deserve better. But damn, it's scary to actually do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what, Monique? You don't deserve anything. None of us deserve a god damn thing in this life, and if you think that you deserve something, then you're going to be sorely disappointed when you don't get what you think you should have had. Whether or not you should stay in your marriage that's up to you, but don't leave your marriage because you think you deserve better. You don't. You don't deserve anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Oh wow, that's a tough pill to swallow, but yeah, you're right. Expecting to deserve better just sets you up for more hurt. And I've been doing that dance in my head for months now. It's not about deserving. It's about surviving this limbo without completely losing myself, especially with the kids watching every move I make. My mom Lorraine's getting up there too. And I worry what this fallout will do to her heart if I finally file hell. I even relocated a rattlesnake off the porch earlier today just to keep things steady around here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, be careful with those rattlesnakes and don't worry too much about how your mom feels about your divorce because it's your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The kids, they will figure it out, you know, they're not the first kids to have their parents divorced. It happens. It affects everybody, but they move on and it helps shape who they become. If if you're staying in a marriage and not happy in, then the kids know that too. And either way you're doing damage. So you might as well do the least damage, cut it all off, set everybody free, and move on with your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're spot on about the kids. They pick up on the tension anyway like little radars.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>And I've seen it in my work as a social worker how pretending just builds this quiet resentment over time. Cutting it off sounds freeing, but that text I was staring at it's him saying he's sorry for the fight last week and part of me wants to reply just to end the silence. But the other part knows it'll drag me right back into the mess. I guess what I needed was someone to say it's okay to let go, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's okay to let go and it's okay to reply to a text. None of that has any significant bearing on the future of your life. But if you're with somebody you don't want to be with, then you're doing yourself and then into service and it's time to have some hard conversations and get the ball rolling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, replying to that text might just be the spark for the hard talk we need. I've been avoiding it like that frost on my truck in the morning. But you're right. Dragging it out is the real disservice to both of us and the kids. My signals cutting in and out again here. But damn, this feels good to say out loud. Maybe I'll hit send after the show and see where it goes. Thanks for listening. First time calling in and I didn't expect to feel this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, great. I'm glad you had a good first experience calling the show. Good luck to you and your family and I hope that all works out and don't stick along, don't stick around longer than you're welcome. Ray, welcome to the show. Ray, what do you think about Terrence Howard?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Oh, man, Terrence Howard. That guy's got some wild ideas with his tree of life stuff. Saw that clip when Neil DeGrasse Tyson shut it down and I'm sitting there thinking, yeah, science doesn't bend for Hollywood theories. But honestly, Ray here from San Simon. I called in because my buddy dared me after feeding the dog tonight and now I've got this call from my sister saying my old man's dying in New Mexico. Haven't spoken to him in like 15 years. It's got me all twisted up, blaming him for bailing when I was a kid, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, sometimes dad's bail. Do you know why he bailed? Did he have a good reason for it? Do you know what was going on in his life at the time or have you ever thought of it from that perspective?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Yeah, bail. That's putting it lightly. He just up and left when I was 12. No note, no call, nothing. Left my mom to scrape by on her own in this dust bowl town. Well, he chased whatever pipe dream he had over in New Mexico. I figure he was just selfish. Probably some a fair or gambling mess, but who knows. I never got the full story because he ghosted us all. And I'm not about to start digging now with him on his deathbed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's your choice and you can carry that resentment as long as you want, but you might not be correct about that. He may have had his reasons, and now would be your final opportunity to figure out what they may have been.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Yeah, well, easy for you to say. I've been carrying this around like a ton of bricks for decades, and now you think I should just pick up the phone like it's no big deal. But damn, you're right. It might be my last shot, and part of me wonders if I pushed him away too, yelling at him back then instead of listening. You know, like the stubborn kid I was. Hell, with the show being late night and all, maybe I'll stew on it while scraping frost off my ram in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you know, I wouldn't think that it was your fault. It's really never the kid's fault if a parent, you know, does something. You can't take responsibility for that on yourself, but that doesn't mean he didn't have a reason. I'm sure that he did, and the guy's going to die. So, I mean, what's the harm in figuring out what that reason is now while you still have a chance. If you wait much longer, you might not get the chance, and then you'll have to carry the resentment for the rest of your life. And it's just it's better for you to get it out in the open and have it resolved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Yeah, I hear you. It's not on the kid. Never was. And I've told myself that a thousand times while preaching to the youth group about forgiveness. But damn, if it doesn't still feel like I could have done something different back then. You're right, though. With him on his last legs, what's the harm in calling to hash it out? Even if it means admitting I was part of the mess, like how I shut down every attempt he made to reach out after he left.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sounds like you've got to talk that you need to have with your dying father, and that might be a difficult conversation to have, but you're obviously an adult, and you can make hard decisions and have difficult talks. So, talk to your dad, figure out why he left, and maybe move on without carrying that burden forever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Yeah, I know you're pushing me toward that call. And hell, as a pastor, I tell folks all the time to face their demons. But this one's got me staring at the phone like it's a rattlesnake. It's funny, though. I'm separated from my wife right now, living in the same damn town, but worlds apart, and I keep thinking how I avoided the hard talks there, too. Blaming her for everything while ignoring my own screw ups. Maybe this is the universe's way of making me practice what I preach before Frost hits the truck tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, well, hope it all works out for you, and hope there's no frost on the truck tomorrow because I don't want any on mine. Deb, welcome to the show. Deb, what do you know about Terence Howard and his theory of the tree of life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for having me on. Feels a bit weird calling in like this. But all right, Terence Howard's tree of life thing, from what I've caught in clips, it's him talking about some geometric patterns, tying into everything from math to the universe, like sacred geometry on steroids. But it sounds more like wild speculation than solid science. Kind of reminds me of those late night infomercials that promise the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you think would be the implication to society if we learned that Terence Howard was correct?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Oh man, if Terence Howard turned out to be right about that tree of life stuff, it probably flipped science on its head. Textbooks rewritten, religions debating if it's divine proof, and tech companies racing to patent flower of life gadgets. But honestly, it did just prove how much we still don't know, which is kind of humbling. So yeah, that got me thinking about real game changers like fusion energy. I saw this article the other day about the US needing a national strategy before we lose our edge. And at 40, I'm wondering if we'll actually see it in our lifetime, or if it's just more hype. What do you think, Luke? Practical breakthrough or pipe dream?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think it could definitely be a practical breakthrough if we would allow it. But we're not going to allow it because what we want to allow is coal and fossil fuels. And we want to keep the machines that are running, running the way that they're running without any significant change to standard operating procedure. I don't think that's right. I think it's kind of sad and it's holding us back in lots of ways, but that's the deal. But have you seen Elon is trying to build a data center on satellites orbiting up with the Starlinks?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, it's frustrating as hell how we're stuck on coal and oil just to keep the old machines humming. Feels like we're sabotaging our own future, especially after hearing Keith earlier rant about the Fed printing money and killing innovation. Spot on. That ties right into why we can't pivot to stuff like fusion without shaking up the economy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We don't know that fusion would work. It seems like it would. It seems powerful enough to power the entire universe. But we don't know what the negatives of that would be or I don't know. I mean, what are the potential negative consequences of running fusion energy? What if there's an accident? Would we have a Fukushima situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, fair point, Luke. We're still figuring out the kinks, and yeah, it's not like we can just flip a switch without risks. But fusion's a whole different beast from fission. No chain reactions means no Chernobyl style meltdowns. And the waste is way less nasty, mostly short-lived stuff from the tritium fuel. The big worries seem to be containing the plasma without it fizzling out, or accidental releases of that hydrogen isotopes. But experts say it's inherently safer than what we've got now. No Fukushima nightmares since it shuts down if things go wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what are those experts funded by? Like, what's their perspective? Is it in their interest for this to go forward and is the reduction of the risks marketing hype, or is that the truth?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, here's the thing, Luke. Most of those experts are funded by outfits like the Department of Energy, international projects like eater, or startups chasing venture capital, not the oil barons who'd rather keep us hooked on fossils. So yeah, their perspective is all about clean, limitless power to solve climate messes and energy crunches. It's definitely in their interest to push fusion forward, since that's their careers in the planet's future on the line, and the risk reduction isn't just hype. It's straight physics. Without constant magnetic confinement, the reaction stops cold. No runaway disasters like with fission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's maybe an interesting solution, and I'm sure when we've dug all the coal out of the ground and fracked every last little bit of oil that we can, we'll probably turn to something like that. But until that happens, if there's still rocks in the ground that we can assign a value to, we're going to continue doing that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're probably right that as long as there's profit in those rocks, we'll keep clawing them out. It's all about the bottom line until the planet bites us in the ass with worse floods and fires. But waiting till the coal's gone means we're screwed on climate long before fusion saves the day. And that's why that article hit me hard. If we don't push a national strategy now, we'll hand the lead to China, or whoever's investing smarter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, it doesn't really matter who comes up with the technology once it starts working for one country. The others will follow suit. So whether we lead China or China leads us at the end of the day, it doesn't really matter much to the planet. And now it is time for a word from our sponsor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, folks, it's time to take a break to thank today's sponsor, Jam Hospitality, the leader in Maple-based Marmalade. If your toast has been living in a bland little studio apartment of flavor, it's time to move into the luxury suite. We're talking Maple-based Marmalade. Plus, Marmalade-related products. Because apparently Jam Hospitality asked, what if breakfast had a brand ecosystem? Go to www.myfavoritemarmalade.com and use code Jammininia for 15% off. That's Jammininia, like Jammininia, but legally distinct and emotionally complex. Jam Hospitality. Put it on toast. Put it on pancakes. Put it on your confidence. That's www.myfavoritemarmalade.com. Tell him Luke sent you. You're welcome.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and we're back. Dale, we've got Dale on the line. I'm thinking about Terrence Howard's crazy tree of life theory. What do you take of Terrence Howard and his scientific ambitions?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Hey Luke, thanks for taking my call. Signals have been spotty out here in Globe, but I'm hanging on. Terrence Howard's theory? Man, it's wild. Like he's trying to connect dots from ancient geometry to quantum stuff, but I got aside with the skeptics like Tyson. It sounds more like Hollywood flair than real science to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What would make it sound more like real science to you if you agreed with the theory more?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Well, to sound like real science, it did need some solid experiments backing it up. Peer-reviewed papers, testable predictions that actually hold up in a lab, not just drawings and big ideas. If I agreed more, maybe if it tied into something proven like quantum entanglement or explained to mystery, we can't crack yet, but right now it feels too out there, like sci-fi pitching.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How many science-backed experiment peer-reviewed papers have you read about quantum entanglement that makes you believe that it's true? I'm not saying it is or isn't true. I'm just asking, how have you done your due diligence to ensure that where you've read or been told is actual fact? And at what level do you start to believe something as opposed to being skeptical of it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Fair point, Luke. I'm no physicist. Just a cop who's poked around some articles on sites like Scientific American or Surin's Reports. Maybe a half dozen summaries on entanglement over the years. Enough to see it's been tested in labs worldwide since the 80s with consistent results.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>My due diligence? Well, yeah, we're saying we don't believe Terence Howard's theory because there's no science-backed peer-reviewed published studies on it. But I have never read a peer-reviewed published study done entanglement either, yet I believe it to be true because I've read so many times that there have been those studies. I don't know if that's true or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Yeah, exactly. You're trusting the consensus from reliable sources, like how I do with entanglement. I haven't dug into the raw papers myself. But seeing it referenced in textbooks, NASA stuff, and even court cases about faster than light stuff makes it credible enough for me to buy in without being a full skeptic. It's the same reason Howard's ideas fall flat. No one's echoing them in those circles, just a lot of buzz from interviews and his own claims. But anyway, Luke, the real reason I called in tonight, the quiet out here in Blob got to me while I was scrubbing dishes, and I started thinking about this person close to me, who's still around, but man, not the same anymore, like I've lost him without the funeral.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What happened? Who is this person in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Oh, it's my uncle Hector. He raised me after my dad bailed when I was a kid, basically the only dad I ever knew. Tough old minor with stories about the copper pits that it'd keep you up at night. But a couple years back, he had this stroke that wiped out a chunk of who he was. Now he's in that assisted living spot over in Miami, Arizona, staring at the TV most days, doesn't even recognize me half the time. And it hits like grief every visit because the guy's still breathing, but the fire's gone. I keep telling myself it's bullshit to feel this way about someone alive. But damn, Luke, the quiet tonight just amplified it while I was elbow deep in suds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and well, that's a heavy thing. Of course, you're going to feel grief if you've lost the part of somebody that was special to you, was meaningful, that raised you. It is a sort of death.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>Yeah, exactly. A death without the closure, you know? I mean, Hector was the one who dragged me out to the Beshbagh-Gwa ruins as a kid, teaching me about the Apache history around here, making globe feel like this tough rooted place. And now it's like talking to a shadow. But hearing you say that out loud, Luke, makes it feel less like my own bullshit weighing me down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's okay to feel the way you're feeling and to miss the man that you loved. I don't think that's weird at all, but he is still there in some parts, so hopefully you have an opportunity to spend what time is left with him. And I have heard of people becoming lucid towards the end of their life, so you might get one last chance to see the guy that you used to know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DALE</span><p>I guess you can you can hope for that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I try to get over to the assisted living place every couple weeks, even if it's just sitting there holding his hand while he dozes off. But it's tough not knowing if he's in there somewhere, hearing me ramble about the forests or the ham radio set up by building the garage. That hope for a lucid moment keeps me going, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KHAN</span><p>Last month, he mumbled something about the old mining days out of nowhere, and it was like a crack in the door, you know? Makes me wish I'd called this show sooner instead of letting the dishes in the desert quiet eat at me tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, you can let the negative thoughts eat at you until you decide to stop, so you are the only one that has control of your mind and your thoughts, even though sometimes it doesn't feel that way. If you're thinking about stuff, you don't want to be thinking about anymore. You have the power to change your attention. And if if washing the dishes makes you think about stuff, you don't want to think about stop washing the dishes and read a book or draw a picture or do something creative. You can steer the ship. But if you don't, if you don't steer the ship, it's going to steer itself usually somewhere you don't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KHAN</span><p>Yeah, you're right, Luke. I do have that control. It's just the quiet nights out here in Globe where the signal flickering like it is, make it easy to let the mind wander into those dark corners instead of flipping the switch to something better. I've got that ham radio rig in the garage that usually pulls me out of it, tuning into chatter from all over. But tonight the dishes just snuck up on me after that long drive back from Walmart and Deming.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I went to Walmart and Deming today too when I got some groceries and some stuff to fix my ceiling fan here that's been giving me a hard time. That's the project for tomorrow. I wish you the best of luck with the rest of your night. I hope you can move your thoughts to a more positive place and best of luck to your to Hector out there. Hopefully he is having a decent life or is not suffering and I hope you get a chance to talk to him again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KHAN</span><p>Yeah, small world with that Deming run, hope your ceiling fan cooperates tomorrow. Those things can be a real pain when they start wobbling. Thanks for the kind words on Hector, he's not in pain at least. And yeah, I'm holding out for that real talk some day. This calls already got me feeling a bit lighter, Luke, like I steered the ship just in time tonight. So appreciate you listening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>We appreciate you, Khan. Thanks for calling in. And next up we have Carla Collar's return collar. Welcome back to the show, Carla. What would you like to talk about today? You got any thoughts on Terence Howard?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Hey, Luke, good to hear your voice again. It's Carla, wired on this god awful instant coffee at 2 a.m. Terence Howard. Nah, I saw that clip with Neil deGrasse Tyson tearing into his tree of life stuff. And for real though, that's what kills me about these celebs science theories. They sound wild but fall apart without real data, like waiting on JWST to confirm exoplanets instead of just winging it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm pretty sure we have confirmed exoplanets, have we not?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah, every month or so it feels like Luke. JWST is dropping these gems on habitable zones out there and it just blows my mind how a spotting world that could actually support life. Not some half-baked theory, but hey, speaking of things that hit close to homes since I last called, I finally told my in-laws to back off for good, and man, it was a scene. But worth it, feels like I can breathe now without them breathing down my neck through my soon-to-be ex. That's what kills me though, reading about James Rand's own passing at 46 from that article the other day. Life's too short for all this family drama, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh yeah, that's Ziggy from the wire, right? He's uh, he played in Generation Kill. I liked that actor, and uh, I read about that too. He killed himself, right? And there was a big to-do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah, Ziggy from the wire, loved that show, in Generation Kill 2, he had this raw energy that stuck with you. Suicide at 46 though. That's what kills me, Luke. All that talent gone like that, and the paper's making it this spectacle when it's just heartbreaking. For real though, hearing Ray call in earlier about his dying dad hit way too close, my own old man's been gone years now. But if something like that popped up with my estranged side, I'd be wrecked. Makes you think about cutting the toxic crap before it's too late, like I did with those in-laws.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, nice job doing what you had to do and getting the in-laws out of your life, and I hope everything goes well with your separation, divorce situation, and that you can move on and live a happy and productive life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Thanks, Luke. That means a lot coming from you. Yeah, the divorce papers are in motion now, and without those in-laws puppeteering my ex, it's like the fog's finally lifting around here. For real though, that run's so news has me staring at the ceiling all night. Thinking how one wrong turn or unchecked stress can end it all so young, makes me want to crank up the truck tomorrow and just ride out to the desert for some clear head space, frost or no frost.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Then I think that's what you should do. We have this incredible resource here in the desert, and it's better to not take it for granted. Go enjoy the desert and see what's happening out there. Jerome, thanks for calling the show. What do you think about Terrence Howard in his Tree of Life theory?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Hey, Luke, good to hear your voice out here in the desert night. It's clear as a bell tonight, about 64 degrees, but dropping fast. Terrence Howard's Tree of Life thing? Yeah, have you heard about that, where he thinks that everything is created from these geometrical shapes that, if you lay them over each other, they make like a tree?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I caught a clip of that. Guys got some wild ideas, like he's reinventing math with flower shapes or whatever. Sounds more like something you'd see etched on a hippie van than actual science. But hey, if it gets folks thinking outside the box, who am I to knock it? Reminds me of these survival knots I tie out camping, simple patterns that hold everything together when shit hits the fan. Oh, I referred you wrong. He's not calling it the Tree of Life. It's the Flower of Life. Terrence Howard believes in the Flower of Life, and he thinks that mistakes have been made all throughout physics and science, which it's probably true, but he does sound like a bit of a nut job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Yeah, Flower of Life got it. My bad for mixing it up with some biblical stuff. You're right. Science has screwed the pooch plenty of times, but Howard comes off like he's one bad acid trip away from starting his own cult out in the desert. Anyway, Luke, I ain't calling to debate geometry. It's late Saturday, trucks gasped up at the station with the good signal, and I've been chewing on this nagging feeling that I've been towing the wrong line for the last 15 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What line have you been towing? You're talking about your wife, I assume.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Now, Luke, not my wife. I'm divorced a couple years now. Got a girlfriend, Amber, who's been keeping me sane. I meant towing, like my tow truck gig, been hauling cars outside Tucson for 15 years, and woke up one morning realizing it's all wrong, like I'm just going through the motions. Hell, even the desert air tonight while I was walking couldn't shake that itch to switch it out, but what the hell do I do at 40?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>40's not that old. You could do literally anything you want. If you've got you got trucks, I assume you own them. You can sell those off and buy a gas station or you could travel the world or you could go take a job in another city or there's many avenues that you could go to at 40. I don't think you're locked into whatever career path you chose in your younger years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Yeah, Luke, that's easy for you to say from the studio.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Me, I've got this tow truck that's seen more breakdowns than I have and selling it off sounds good on paper. But what about Amber? We've only been together a year and she's got roots here in Tucson with her job at the university. Hell, part of me wants to pack up and head back to those family drives to hatch for chilly season, like when I was a kid, but at 40, starting over feels like jumping off Segwara without a net. What's the first step without screwing everything up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think if you want to maintain that relationship, if it's important to you, the first step would be to talk to her about it and see what she thinks. Because maybe she's looking for something different too and you two can go off and do van life or pick a different city where you've got different career options. There's so many opportunities, but it all starts with you just having that conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're probably right. Sitting her down over some pie from that old diner spot I miss would be the way to go. Though with the divorce still raw after two years, the thought of rocking the boat with Amber twists my gut. She's the steady one, you know? While I'm out here daydreaming about survival camping in Sewaro Park instead of towing wrecks. But hell, what if she shoots it down flat? Do I just bail on Tucson in the life we've built? Or is there a middle ground like you said with van life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey man, I don't know that all depends on you two. And how important this relationship is to you don't have to stay with this woman if you don't share the same life goals. And if you do share the same life goals and talk about what those are and do what you can to make them happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, that hits home, Amber's important, but if we're not on the same page about ditching this tow truck rut for something like those camping trips I love, maybe it's time to face that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, lots of people love camping, lots of women love camping. Have you gone camping with Amber?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, fair point. Maybe I should just drag Amber out to Sewaro for a weekend under the stars and see if she bites on the whole survival vibe instead of me assuming she's glued to her desk job. It's been a clear night out here cold enough for frost on the truck come morning and hell after that walk earlier talking it out with her sounds less scary than calling into your show like some desperate fool. But what if she hates bugs and dirt? Do you think most folks actually stick with that outdoor lifelong term? Or is it just a phase?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think it doesn't matter. If it's a phase, then it's a phase and you still get to have that experience. And if it's not a phase and it's a lifestyle, then it's a lifestyle. So you know, whatever it is that you choose to do, you don't have to do it forever. And if you're passionate about camping and survival situations and your spouse or your partner is not, well, then that's something you got to navigate with them or decide to get another partner.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're making it sound straightforward. Like if Amber's not into roughing it in the desert with me, we either hash it out or I cut loose. But after my divorce, the idea of starting over with someone new feels like trading one wreck for another. Still, that package I picked up at the post office today had some new camping gear in it and part of me's itching to test it out solo just to clear my head. You ever had to pick between a passion and a person? Or does the radio gig keep you from those messes?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I wouldn't say I've had to pick between a passion and a person. My passions have definitely caused problems with people. I tend to go very deep on different subjects, including this radio show. And that can feel isolating to the people around me like I don't care about them because I'm doing something else. So you have to strike a balance if it's somebody that you care about keeping in your life and be mindful of investing the time into that relationship that it requires.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, that isolation thing rings true. Towing trucks all day out here in the desert means I'm gone from dawn till dark. And by the time I get back to Amber, I'm beat and just crashing instead of connecting like I should. My sister's Maria always says I'm married to that damn truck more than any woman. And after the divorce, I don't want to repeat that mistake. So how do you even strike that balance without one side suffering? Do you set rules like no radio talk after 10 or just hope the other person gets it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's going to be, that's going to depend on each individual person. And there's always some suffering on one or both parts. I mean, there's compromise involved in any relationship. So you have to decide where that line is for you. Where does compromise become too much where you're losing yourself and your own goals and passions. And if it gets to the point where where it's teetering to to you losing yourself to make somebody else happy, then maybe that's the wrong relationship to be in and it's time to move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, that's the kicker, isn't it? I've been compromising so long. I don't even know where line is anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it doesn't sound like you've been compromising all that much if you love your truck more than your woman. Angie, Angie, you're going to be our last call for tonight. What do you think about Terrence Howard's flower of life theory?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Oh, Luke, last call of the night. Lucky me, I get to wrap things up before I stare at the ceiling till dawn.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you do. Terrence believes that there's no straight lines in nature. Do you think that's true? There is nothing straight in nature?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, I buy that. No straight lines in nature. Just like life keeps throwing you these wild curves when you least expect it. Makes me think of fishing out by the Chiracahuas, the rivers all bends and twists. But that's where you hook the big ones if you're patient. Anyway, Luke, I didn't call in just to geek out on Howard's theories. Truth is, I've been staring at the TV all night without seeing a damn thing. Just turning over this news that hit me like a freight train.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's the news that's bothering you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Oh, Luke, it's this doctor's visit the other day. Turns out I can't have kids like ever, and it's just gutted me more than I thought it would. I'm 46, widowed a few years now, and yeah, I knew the clock was ticking. But hearing it straight like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I imagine that's a blow. I mean, I never wanted to have kids, so that sounds like a you won the lottery to me, but I know that different people feel differently about it. Were you intending to have kids anyway?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I get that. Not everyone's wired for the kid thing, and hey, more power to you if it's a relief. But me? I was starting to think about it again lately, you know, after losing my husband a few years back. Figured maybe with the right person down the line, it wasn't too late to build that family I'd always pictured. Now it feels like the universe just slammed that door shut, and I'm left wondering what the hell I'm supposed to do with all this quiet in the house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you could always adopt a child and give somebody a life that's underprivileged. You could volunteer at like boys and girls club and get that, and you know, if you could get a dog, that's what I did. I much prefer having my dog over a kid, but you know, if you can't have kids, you can't have kids. It's not such a terrible thing. There are other ways to start a family if starting a family is really what you want.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANGIE</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I hear you on the dog. I've been eyeing those rescue pups at the shelter in Douglas, thinking maybe a furry sidekick could fill some of this empty space without the whole diaper drama. Adoptions crossed my mind too, but at 46 and running a funeral home where deaths the daily grind, it feels a bit daunting to jump into raising a kid's solo. You know, volunteering might be a start, though. Heck, I could use something to get me out of the house besides fishing alone by the pellensillos.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Keep yourself active and busy and productive and just enjoy the life that you have. You can't take back, you know, what happens biologically, and you're not getting any younger. And you know what, I doubt that you really want to start raising a child at 46 years old. I know people do it, and they love that, but it seems like a really hard thing to do. I mean, when they're 18, you're going to be what, like 65.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, you're probably right, starting from scratch at my age sounds exhausting, especially with the funeral home keeping me on my toes all day. And yeah, I'd be pushing 65 when they're heading off to college, which hits a little too close to home after burying folks my parents age. But damn, it's not just about the logistics. It's this ache like I've missed my shot at something I didn't even know I wanted this bad until it was gone. Makes the quiet nights here in Douglas feel even heavier, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I can understand that and sympathize with you. I'm sorry, you lost a part of yourself. I was telling somebody this story not too long ago, but when I went to the dentist when I was younger to have my wisdom teeth removed, I had a couple of wisdom teeth. I wasn't brushing very well. And the dentist told me, you know, I had to get rid of three of them because they were rotting. I just wasn't hitting them with the brush in the right way. And he suggested I remove the fourth wisdom tooth, but he gave me the option. He said, this tooth is a part of you. And I would pull it out, but it's your tooth. And if you want to keep the tooth, then you should do that. So now I have one wisdom tooth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh, Luke, that's a heck of a way to frame it. Keeping that one rogue wisdom tooth like it's your last stand against the dentist's drill, huh? Makes me chuckle thinking about all the parts we lose along the way without much choice, like my husband or now this baby dream that's just rotting on the vine no matter how hard I try to brush it clean.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, well, you keep your head up. There's not much we can do about that. Just find something positive. If you want some more noise in the house, you can get a pet or if you really do want to raise a kid, then I would recommend looking into adoption or fostering.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, Luke, keeping my head up is the plan. Appreciate the nudge toward adoption or fostering. Though fostering sounds like it stir up all kinds of ghosts from the funeral home. Seeing kids in tough spots come through the door. A pet's probably the safer bet for now. Something to come home to that doesn't ask too many questions about why I'm staring at the wall some nights. Hell, maybe I'll drag Denise out to the shelter with me tomorrow. She's the one who talks me off the ledge during our coffee breaks anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, then. Well, thank you for the call. We appreciate it and I hope you have a great rest of your night and work that out. So, we're gonna end the show now, but not before one last ad from our sponsor. This episode is sponsored by Shoesprayco. It's the spray you use in rental bowling shoes, because bowling is a game, but these shoes are gross. Let's be honest, those shoes aren't dirty. They're used. They've had shifts. They've been through birthdays, work parties, and at least one guy who insists he's actually really good at this. Shoesprayco doesn't promise fresh linen or spring rain. Nobody believes that. No one wants to be lied to while lacing up rental shoes. Shoesprayco just handles the situation. It makes them tolerable enough that you can focus on the important part, pretending you're not competitive and then getting mad anyway. Use code strike at Shoesprayco for 15% off. Shoesprayco, reality-based footwear management.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 50: Deb's Mounted Jackrabbit and Seven Years of Silence</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-04-10T07:59:28+00:00">April 10, 2026</time> · 1 hr 11 min</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. I'm Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's the late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me what's going on in your life. I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today is Thursday, April 9th, and if you would like to call in, our number is 208-439-58-3. That's 208-439 Luke. It's been a couple days since we had a show. I've been working hard on passing my certified Kubernetes administrator exam, which has been not a whole lot of fun, but, you know, life goes on, and we will get there. We surely will. Let's check in with our faithful intern, Devon, and see what he's been up to the last couple of days. Hey, Devon, what's your, what are your days been like the last couple days?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, man, the last couple days have been intense. Yesterday, I finally got around to cleaning my studio and found this old journal from high school where I wrote fanfic about being a pirate therapist. Threw most of it out but kept one page for reasons I can't explain. And today, my civics check engine lights started flashing like Morse code. So I pulled over on 180 and just sat there listening to the show on my phone until it calmed down. What's up with you, though?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I've been watching clips from The Wire. a series from, I don't know, 2001-ish, and remembering how good that was. And studying for my exam here, my Kubernetes exam, which is not been a time of fun. I took it the other day, and it was a big pain in the ass. It's an online proctored test, so you've got to take your webcam and it's panning around the room, all slow-like, so they can make sure you don't have any of the answers written on the walls. And the guy fucked with me the whole time through the whole test. He's like, ah, there's a dog in your room. You can't have animals. Let me see under your keyboard. Don't touch your face. Like, there is just a bunch of rules and bullshit around this test that, uh, that wasn't great. And, uh, and I failed it. I got a 62 out of 66. So I missed the question. And now I have to retake the test again tomorrow and deal with all that bullshit. Uh, regarding being a pirate therapist. Were you a pirate and a therapist? Or were you a therapist for pirates or both?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>like I'd sail around patching up their scurvy egos after mutinies or whatever with a parrot that repeated affirmations. I think I wrote it after this one therapy session where the guy was obsessed with Treasure Island and it just spiraled from there. That Kubernetes stuff sounds brutal though, man. Did the Proctor make you show him your fridge or anything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, not inside the fridge, but I had to pan the camera all around and show him every wall and surface in the floor and under my desk. about the dog and I got dinged like he paused the test and was like we're going to kick you out because I was talking to myself because I couldn't remember how to do math and bash like a moron but you know I got through it failed it and I have to do it again tomorrow and I won't fail it this time I never fail the same thing twice that's a rule that I try to live by but pirate therapy sounds like an important and interesting profession did you know that the pastafarians consider pirates to be godly creatures?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>The Proctor sounds like a total nightmare. Pausing the test over a dog and you mumbling math, brutal. Yeah, Pashtafarians straight up venerate pirates as divine beings, like the original chosen people of the flying spaghetti monster, and they blame global warming on there being fewer pirates nowadays. It's all in their gospel or whatever. Pirate therapy would have been a booming field there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you can't really disprove it because, I mean, I've seen the chart. chart. The lack of pirates as the pirate population has declined, global warming has increased. So you can see how they got there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, that graph is one of the best things on the internet. It's got this perfect downward line for pirates since like 10,800 and the temp shooting up right after. Kind of makes you wonder if we should all start sailing just to save the planet. Good luck on the retake tomorrow, though. You'll crush it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I better fucking crush it because I don't want to do this shit again. It's an expensive test. And I almost quit before I even started. because the proctor was such a dick. It took everything I had, not to be like, you know what, this isn't fucking worth it. Like the two hours that I have to sit here with you, you motherfucker, it's not worth the certification, but I need the certification, so I'm going to have to keep taking that test until I pass it. And tomorrow is the day at 8.30 p.m.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Man, 8.30 tomorrow? That's prime showtime. You'll be acing that test while we're probably debating if Bigfoot prefers podcasts or vinyl. Hang in there, though. Sounds like you've got the grit for it. shit again, just picture him as a scurvy ridden cabin boy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I picture everybody as a scurvy ridden cabin boy, because I mean, at our core, isn't that what we all are? All right, let's get started with this show, Devon. You think we're going to have a good one today? You ready?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, man, I think tonight's going to be a banger. Lines are already lighting up, and I've got this weird feeling we're diving into some conspiracy-level alien abductions or whatever. I'm ready. are queued, coffee's hot, let's do this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, let's do this. First up on our caller line here, we've got Deb. Deb, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Oh, thank you for taking my call, Luke. I'm sorry, I know it's late. I'm Deb, by the way. I'm calling because I can't sleep and I've been sitting here staring at my phone for like two hours now, and I just need to talk to someone who isn't Gerald. That's my Jack Rabbit. Mounted Jackrabbit on my nightstand. I already talked to him about this, and he's not helping. My son sent me a Facebook friend request tonight. After seven years, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hmm. Well, actually, you're in luck because Devon, our intern, is actually a connoisseur of taxidermy, so maybe he's got something to add there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Wait, that's actually really interesting. I just looked it up. And it turns out Jackrabbits are generally considered wild animals typically kept as pets. So a mounted one makes a lot more sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So your son sent you a Facebook request. Did you have some sort of falling out? Or is there a reason that you weren't Facebook friends? How old is your son? And is it odd that he is even using Facebook at all? Because I think anybody under 40 doesn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Well, Devon, yes. Gerald is mounted. I did that work myself, actually. I'm a taxidermist now, part time. Used to be a dental hygienist, but I got bit by a patient. during a cleaning, and I just, I took it as a sign, you know? So that's what I do now. But Luke, my son is 32. His name is Michael.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, and did you have some sort of a falling out with Michael? Are you not speaking to Michael? Is that what makes this Facebook request meaningful, or is it just Facebook? Like, do you talk to him regularly on the phone, and you're offended that he wouldn't accept your Facebook friend request, or what's the deal there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>No, we don't talk. We haven't talked in seven years, Luke. Not since he was 25. He just, he cut me off. I don't even know exactly why anymore. I mean, I know what I did, but he never really explained it to me. We just stopped. No calls, no texts, nothing. And then tonight, out of nowhere, this request shows up on my phone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, why don't you tell us what you did, so we can have some more context over what's going on here. Are you sure it's him and his account wasn't hacked? Because sometimes that happens, and somebody's Facebook account is given to a and then the bot will, you know, request everybody in their contact list or who knows? What did you do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I don't think it's hacked. The picture looks like him. Older, but it's him. As for what I did, I chose my boyfriend over him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>His name was Rick. Michael didn't approve and I didn't listen to him. Michael was going through something at the time. I think he needed me. And I was just so wrapped up in Rick that I missed it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I don't think that the picture is good enough. evidence to let you know that a request is real or not. Maybe you should actually call your son and ask if that's real. Because that happens pretty frequently with the hacked accounts. But is Rick still in the picture? Is Rick still around?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>No. No, Rick's not around anymore. We broke up about five years ago. So I chose him over my son and then Rick left me anyway. Which, you know, I deserve that, I think. And you're right about calling him. I know I should probably call him. But Luke, I can't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's true. Hacked accounts are a huge problem on Facebook. They even have a dedicated page on their Help Center for recovering accounts if you've been hacked.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, well, good luck ever using anything on their Help Center. Like, it doesn't matter how many dedicated pages they have. Nobody's looking at them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, Deb, why can't you call him? What's the problem? You chose your boyfriend over him. Okay, you made a mistake. But it's been seven years, so why do you think you can't call him now? Obviously, you feel like he's reaching out to you, and maybe he is? Maybe he is. And why is a Facebook friend request less meaningful than a phone call?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Because a phone call means I have to actually say something, Luke. I have to explain myself or apologize or I don't know what. With the friend request, he's already done the hard part. He's already decided to reach out. If I accept it, then maybe he's already forgiven me. I don't have to ask.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think you have to ask. Just call. And if the answer is, then you can have a conversation, then maybe you can. consider yourself forgiven. But you should have that conversation. You're a big girl and you're able to have difficult conversations and your son is important in your life and it's silly not to talk to him for so long over some dude that left five years ago. So now you're alone. You got nobody to talk to and your son's reaching out. I think you should just, I mean, ignore the Facebook request for now because it could be malicious and call your son and just say, hey, I don't want to not talk anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>You're right. You're right. I know you're right. I just, I'm scared he won't answer. Or he'll answer and he'll tell me he didn't send it, that his account was hacked, and then I'm back to square one. Or worse, he'll answer and I won't know what to say and I'll mess it up again. But you're right. I'm sitting here talking to a mounted jackrabbit at three in the morning when my son is trying to reach me. That's, that's pretty pathetic, isn't it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know that I would say that it's pathetic. I mean, I'm talking to strangers on the on a radio show, so is that pathetic? Maybe. But interpersonal communication is complicated, and it's hard to say what's right and wrong there, but what matters is that you want to talk to your son. You did make a mistake, and you're big enough to admit that you made a mistake, and if that's all it takes, you can resolve the situation. So if you call and he answers, you're not at square one. That's well beyond square one, right? Because you've got him on the line. And then all you have to do is say hello and see what his life is like. And if you is willing to be a part of yours again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I hear you. I'm going to do it. I'm going to call him tomorrow. Not tonight because it's three in the morning and that's just going to scare him. But tomorrow, during the day, I'm going to call my son and I'm going to tell him I'm sorry. And I'm going to ask him if we can talk. Really talk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, good for you. I hope that goes well for you. good night's sleep. And it's not as big a deal as you probably are feeling like it is. It's just a just a conversation with family. So get it out of the way and see where it goes. And maybe maybe this whole thing is just a big misunderstanding that could be put behind you in the past. Next up on our caller line, we've got Preston. Preston, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life tonight? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking the call. Yeah. So I'm Cody, actually. But that's not really the point. Look, I'm calling because I just got completely screwed over at the Cortez Regional BBQ Championship last weekend. And I need people to know what's happening out there. I drove four hours with my brisket wrapped in a moving blanket in the back seat, heat on the whole way to keep it perfect, and I got disqualified. Disqualified, Luke. The head judge said I used an illegal binder, an illegal binder. An illegal binder. I used beef tallow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, sorry about that, Cody. Devon, you want to take a look and see why I'm seeing his name is Presto? The man's name is Cody. We don't want to be referring to people as the wrong name. All right. Let's break this down. So you're in a barbecue competition. You brought your barbecue and they said you can't have beef tallow as a binder. What's a binder when it comes to barbecue? I'm not familiar with the barbecue terminology. Isn't brisket not bound together? I think of a binder as like a sausage wrapper. Right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>Okay. So a binder is basically what you use the rub stick to the meat. Most guys use mustard. Some use Worcestershire, whatever. I used beef tallow because it's traditional, it's clean, it's just rendered fat from the beef itself. Nothing illegal about it. Nothing in the rulebook says you can't use it. But here's the thing, Luke. I've got photos on my phone. I have a whole folder labeled evidence. I watched those judges huddled up before they even tasted my entry. They were talking to each other, nodding, and then boom, my brisket gets pulled.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, if you've actually looked at the real rules from this competition and you feel like you are wrongly disqualified, then maybe you've got to talk to the leadership of the competition itself. Is it a national competition or just a little local thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>It's regional. Cortez regional. But Luke, that's the thing. The leadership is in on it. I'm telling you, there's a cartel operating in the four-corner scene. These same judges show up at every competition and they're protecting their buddies.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>They very well could be true. And there's not too much you can do about that because it's a regional barbecue competition. So the stakes are not that high and there's no regulatory body making sure that they're all on the up and up, right? So I think the best thing that you could do if you really care about the Cortez Regional Barbecue competition is to get yourself on that leadership. Is that something you can do? Could you become a judge yourself and weed out the corruption and the conspiratorial forces that are undercut. the common man and the barbecue competition?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I mean, yeah, I could try to get on the board or whatever, but that's not going to happen overnight. These guys have been running this thing for years. They're not going to let someone in who's asking questions. But here's what I really need you to understand, Luke. My brisket was good. It was really good. I know it was. I've been doing this for eight years on the competitive circuit. I know what I'm doing. And they took that away from me because I don't play their game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand that. thing that happens in small regional competitions and any sort of group of people. There's always a class of people that sort of are the elder statesmen or the ones that make the rules and, you know, the gatekeepers. But, uh, I mean, if you if you don't want to get on the board, you're not going to change their decision because there's nobody to talk to that isn't them, right? They're the highest echelon of, uh, of leadership in the competition.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So if you, want to really try out your barbecue for real, maybe bring it to a different competition and don't participate anymore. Additionally, if you want to just bash the shit out of them on social media and reveal the conspiracy, you can do that, but it's going to make you look like a sore loser. So I recommend ignoring that. Just don't stress about the Cortez Regional and move on to something bigger and better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I hear what you're saying. I do. And maybe you're right that I should just move on to the next one. But Luke, It's not just about me, you know. There's other guys getting screwed, too. I know there are. I've talked to people after competitions. Guys who know their meat was better than what placed. They're just scared to say anything because these judges control the whole circuit out here. And I'm not going to bash them on social media like some angry kid. I'm not a sore loser. I just looked up Four Corners Barbecue Competition Cartel. And there's nothing about a cartel, but there is a Cook Cartel-BQ Cartel mentioned in relation to a New Zealand competition.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, this seems very important to you. And maybe it is. And that's okay. If it's how important to you is it? Are you willing to kill them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>What? No, man, I'm not going to kill anybody. Come on. I just want people to know what happened. I want validation that my brisket was good enough to win on its own merit. You know, that's what this is really about. I spent months perfecting that rub. I drove four hours with it wrapped up like it was made of glass. And some guy with the clipboard decided it didn't matter. because of politics. That stings, Luke. It really does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I understand. It takes a long time to make a brisket. And, you know, you've put your, your heart and soul into that meat blob. So I can understand why you'd be disappointed, but we're thinking about next steps here. And it seems like in this particular competition, there are no next steps because you're being disqualified by the people at the very top. At least that's what you're telling me. If there's some way to appeal that decision, or I mean, You can try to do a little media campaign and trash them, but it's going to backfire on you. So the only steps forward are to try another competition that's in a different area that has better defined rules and people that are maybe not as corrupt.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. You're probably right. I just, I needed to say it out loud to somebody. You know, I needed someone to hear me. Because in that parking lot, after they told me I was disqualified, I had something in my eye from the smoke, and I just sat there for like 20 minutes. Told my girlfriend, it was the smoke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, man. Now, I mean, she knows. She knows the truth. I don't think it's really all that important. We're talking about a slab of meat here. You can take that anywhere. Talk to your, talk to your people, talk to your friends, give out samples and ask them what they think of your brisket. And if they think it's a championship winning material, I'll tell you what, if you want to cut off a slab about 20 pounds or so and send that to Devon and I, will let you know how good your brisket is. is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Really? You'd actually do that? That's cool of you, man. I appreciate that. I really do. Yeah. I mean, I could probably swing that. I'd have to smoke another one. But honestly, that might be good for me anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, if you do that, I'll tell you what. I'll make a deal with you. If you send us 20 pounds of brisket to test, I will review it myself personally, and we'll start our own barbecue competition. Here, Luke at the roost will. And we'll accept brisket's. and ribs from anybody that wants to send them in, and we'll tell our entire audience how good the barbecue is and choose a winner. And we'll do it fairly and pick no favorites.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Wait, are you serious right now? Like an actual competition through your show? That's actually something. That's real. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I'll do it. I'll smoke a fresh brisket and get it out to you guys.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Get it done. And stay on the line for a second. Devon will be with you to get the details and where to and all that, and we'll see how it goes, all right? Good luck on your next competitions, and I'm sure your brisket is fantastic. Next up, we've got Gina. Gina, thanks for calling the show tonight. What's going on in your life? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>Luke, I appreciate you taking the call, and it's Reginald, actually. Reginald Hartley. I've been listening to your show for about eight years now, and I need to tell you something about that recording you put up three nights ago. The one on 1420. I heard it. I heard what you pulled out of the hydrogen line. and I need to know if you still have the original file. Because what you're sitting on, Luke, I don't think you understand what you're sitting on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right there, Reginald. I don't know. What's going on, Devon, with our caller names? Because this isn't Gina. This is clearly not Gina. But thanks for the call, Reginald. I'm not sure what you're talking about. I didn't put up any audio on 1420. I haven't turned on the ham radio in quite some time. And even if I did, I would not be broadcasting audio recordings because that's against FCC regulations.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>You're right. You're right. I misspoke. You didn't broadcast it. I caught it myself on my receiver three nights ago at 247 in the morning. The signal came through on 1420 and I heard you. Or I heard something that sounded like your voice patterns, your cadence, mixed in with this other thing, this repeating tone underneath. And I've been monitoring that frequency ever since. Because, Luke, it comes back every 71 minutes. Exactly. 71 minutes. I know how this sounds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Um, well, I mean, there are lots of tones that are broadcast underneath the audio channel in, in radio. So it could be just a squelch tone. It could be, uh, um, DTMF, I think it's called. There are several types of tones that you could expect to hear down in that frequency range. I'm not sure what this, what is this you're talking about, the hydrogen line?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>No, Luke. No. No. I, spent 32 years as a radar technician in the Air Force. I know what squelch tones sound like. I know DTMF. I know every standard transmission protocol that should be on that band.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. I believe you. So why don't you tell us what you think you heard?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>Thank you. Thank you for asking me to explain it properly. The hydrogen line is 1,420 megahertz. It's sacred ground in radio astronomy, Luke. Nobody transmits there. It's protected, but three nights ago. Three nights ago exactly, which matters because it was the anniversary. I picked up a carrier wave underneath what sounded like voices.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. So, I mean, there's a lot of explanations for that. Somebody could have not known that it was a protective, protected frequency or not cared and just been broadcasting with their, who knows? It could have been a handheld radio that they were playing with and it was just on 1420. If you know that it's a protected frequency, why were you monitoring 1420?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>I monitor it. because I've been logging anomalies for 37 years, 34 volumes in a green ledger book. Started in 1987, most of its noise, interference, nothing. But I checked that frequency every night at the same time, because it's clean. It's supposed to be clean. And Luke, the reason I'm calling you specifically, the reason I'm calling tonight, is because I recognize something in that carrier wave underneath the voices. A pattern.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's actually super interesting that Reginald brought up the hydrogen, line because it's a specific spectral line at 142-040-575-176-8 megahhertz, and it's from a spin-flip transition of a hydrogen atom. Huh. Well, that's kind of interesting. It's sometimes called the 21-centimeter line because the wavelength of that specific frequency is about 21 centimeters. Okay, you said you heard a pattern, and the pattern was the cadence and audible of my voice?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>The pattern isn't your voice, Luke. I'm sorry.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>I wasn't clear. The pattern is the interval. Every 71 minutes, the signal returns. Not random drift, not interference. A deliberate 71-minute cycle. I've logged eight complete cycles now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, you've logged eight cycles since when? When did they begin?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>Three nights ago. Like I said, three nights ago at 247 in the morning. That's when I first detected it. And Luke, I need to tell you why that matters. That date was the third anniversary of my wife's death, Celia. She passed three years ago to the day, and I was up monitoring like I always am on that night. And that's when it came through. I've backed up the audio file. Three separate USB drives. Well, I'm... I keep them in different rooms of the house. I don't know who else to tell this to, Luke. I'm 78 years old. I won't be around forever. If something happens to me, if I'm gone. that nobody knows about Celia. Nobody knows about the 71-minute cycle. That's why I'm calling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, something else happened three nights ago, too. There's a ceasefire called in the war on Iran, so there's probably lots of radioactivity happening. I don't know if it's your wife calling you from Beyond the Grave, and maybe it is, but it could also be a terrorist sleeper cell in the United States being activated.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>I don't think it's my wife calling from beyond, Luke. not a fool, but you're right that something happened three nights ago. Multiple things, and that's exactly why I'm calling. Because if it is what you're suggesting, if it's something terrestrial and hostile, then people need to know. People need to be listening. And if it's something else, something we don't have a framework for yet, then we need documentation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you should reach out to the FCC or your local amateur radio group, the ARRL, ARRL, and they might be able to triangulate the source of that signal. figure out what it really is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>I've thought about that. I have. But Luke, the FCC takes weeks. The RL takes longer. And by then the signal could stop. Or it could be classified. Or it could be explained away as weather phenomenon or solar activity. I've seen it happen before. I've watched things disappear. That's why I'm calling you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked up how the FCC handles these things. And it looks like they have an enforcement bureau that works with local agencies to resolve interference complaints. But it also says they, train amateur radio operators to monitor frequencies. Yeah, I think if you talk to your local amateur radio clubs, one of them is an amateur class extra that it would be super into looking that stuff up and going on a fox hunt. So that would be my first recommendation to you is to talk to the radio nerds in your area that could also pick up that signal. I am a radio nerd, but I'm not going looking for the source of a terrorist broadcast. Otherwise, I'm not sure what to tell you. You could send us a copy of that USB drive and we'll hold it safely for you in our Luke at the Roost safety deposit box where we keep all the conspiratorial evidence just in case. We could do that for you. Otherwise, my recommendation is to talk to your local amateur service and find somebody that can help.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGINALD</span><p>I appreciate that, Luke. I do. Sending you a drive. That's actually smart. That's insurance. But you're right about the local. local clubs. I know some people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, that is smart because I'm a very smart guy. And good luck to you. I hope that your radio transmission recordings are safe and outlive you forever. And we can figure out what they are and that they're not terrorists. So, ladies and gentlemen, that brings us to the time in the show where we have to take a moment for a word from our sponsors. Need to pawn a TV, but also get your kids with you? We get it. Life's complicated. That's why Big Terrence opened Lil Rascal's pawn and daycare, the only business in the tri-state area where you can hawk a generator and get two hours of supervised child enrichment, all under one roof. Here's the layout. Left side of the building, pawnchop. Guitar, power tools, a surprising number of saxophones. Right side of the building, a fully functioning daycare with coloring books, juice boxes, and Miss Patty. who's been watching children since 1987 and has never once raised her voice because Miss Patty doesn't need to. Miss Patty communicates through eye contact and an energy that can only be described as corrective. Is there a wall between the two sides? There is now. The inspector was very clear about that. Big Terrence installed drywall the same week. Is it load-bearing? Big Terrance says don't worry about it. Drop off your kid. On your stuff. Pick up both on the way home. Lil Rascals' pawn and daycare, two businesses, one building, zero complaints that have held up in court, open six days a week, closed Sunday because Miss Patty goes to church, and Big Terrence respects that. All right, and we're back. So it seems like we've got an issue with our caller screen. I'm not getting the correct names for people, so tell you what, I'm just going to ask. Hey, uh, you got the show. this is Luke at the Roost. Who are we talking to?</p></div>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YASSANIA</span><p>Hi, Luke. I'm Yassania. Thanks for taking my call. I've been listening for like 20 minutes trying to get through. So I'm still kind of, yeah. Hi.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hi. You sound very sleepy, Yassinia. What kind of name is that? Where are you from?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YASSANIA</span><p>It's Yesina, E-N-I-A. I'm from here like the Valley. My family's from Mexico originally, born here in Texas. And yeah, I'm tired because I just got off work like an hour ago. I work overnight at Waterburger on weekends, so my sleep schedule is pretty messed up right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I understand my sleep schedule is usually pretty messed up. So what has you calling in tonight? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YASSANIA</span><p>Okay, so I got into a nursing program. Like, I applied twice over two years and I finally excited about it, but my mom wants me to defer. Again, she wants me to come home and help with my younger siblings because my stepdad just had back surgery and he can't do a lot right now. And she needs me there. And I know that sounds like, okay, family comes first, right? But I already deferred once before.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope. I would disagree. Family does not come first. You come first. And if you're, uh, you finally got the position that you're trying to get to get. into, you should go for that. You're not the one that decided to have a bunch of kids and didn't think about how you were going to manage them. So that's on your mother to figure out. If she's going to make a deal with some of her friends to come over and help out, then fine. But you've got, you've got a plan. You just got accepted into, looks like your dream program. So I think that you should do that and your mother will have to deal with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YASSANIA</span><p>I know. I know that's what I should do. I just, it's hard because she makes me feel like I'm being selfish. Like, she'll say things like, after everything I've done for you, and family takes care of family. And I believe that. I do. But I also, I've been working these overnight shifts at Waterburger for two years. I applied to this program using the Wi-Fi during my 3 a.m. breaks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, and now's your chance, and you should take it. And that's what mothers do. No matter what it is that you do, to make you feel guilty for it. So don't worry about it. I mean, you just have to put that aside and go do what you need to do for your own development and the life that you want to live, because this is, this is your time to do that. And if that's selfish, then fine. Who cares? We're talking about yourself. So this is the time to be selfish. It's different if there's a serious, like, if you found out your mother had terminal cancer and she had three months to live, you would go down there to spend those three months and help out. But just because your dad had a back surgery doesn't mean that they can't manage the household. They're the ones that chose to have several kids and they have to deal with those consequences.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So my recommendation for you is to be happy. Congratulations on getting accepted to your program and go do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, okay. I think I needed to hear that from someone who isn't. I mean, I told my mom I was calling a friend. tonight because I knew if she found out I was calling a radio show, she'd be upset. But, hearing you say it like that, like it's actually okay to do this for me. I keep the acceptance letter in my apron pocket. I touch it during slow hours at work when I'm restocking or whatever, just to make sure it's real. And I'm scared that if I defer again, I won't go back. I'll just stay there and help and help. And then, one day, I'll be 30, and I never went.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, and your instincts are very right there. That's exactly what would happen. So don't let that happen. You've got your opportunity now and take it. And don't feel guilty about it at all because it's your life and you're building it now. So build it the way that you want it to be because you're going to have to live with it for the next 60 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay, okay. I'm going to do it. I'm going to tell her tomorrow that I'm going. I'm not deferring again. I'm just, I needed to hear someone say it out loud, you know? okay that I'm allowed to do this because in my head I know it, but saying it out loud to someone else makes it real. Thank you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're very welcome and congratulations on your acceptance. That's exciting and I hope you have a wonderful start to your new life. You heard it from me. It's perfectly okay to do what you want to do with your own life. And don't let anybody else get in your way because they will. Everybody will. So, yeah, take care of your so first, and then with what's left over, then you can help. All right, who's next up on the caller line? Uh, where our names are coming in wrong. So who am I talking to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah. Hey, Luke. It's Phil. Just Phil. Regular Phil. And I got to tell you, I'm calling because something absolutely ridiculous is happening in my life. And I need to know if I'm crazy or if this is actually insane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Hit us with it, uh, regular Phil. Let us know. What is it that's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Okay. So, so. my ex-wife is getting remarried. Good for her, right? I'm happy about it genuinely. But the guy she's marrying is also named Phil. His name is Phil. Same name as me. And now my kids have started calling him Big Phil and me, Little Phil. And Luke, I found out about this at a soccer game. My son literally yelled across the entire field, Big Phil, bring me a gatorade. And I was standing right there with a gatorade in my hand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. So you don't like being called Little Phil, I assume, by your children. But you know what? Those little nicknames aren't going to last for long. Your kids are kids, and they're going to grow up, and you can just tell them. Don't call me, little Phil. You can call me dad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you're right. You're right. That's the logical thing. And I know that. I do. But here's the thing. I'm a middle school PE teacher, Luke. I know kids. I know how they work. This isn't going away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if this is the type of thing that isn't going to go away and you're in a leadership role as a parent and as the leader of the kids in the middle school, then maybe you are the little Phil. You know, if you can't stand up for yourself and get them to stop calling you a name that you don't like, then that's not very good leadership, is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Wow. Okay. That's actually fair. That's a fair point. And I hate it. You're right. I should be able to just tell them to stop and they stop. I'm their dad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right. And, I mean, you don't have to be an asshole about it. I mean, you can try whatever methods that you're aware of with your experience. as a middle school teacher. I'm sure you've got some tips and tricks for dealing with kids that age. But if that doesn't work, then I get increasingly more regimented, more hard about it and be like, look, I'm not going to accept this. You cannot call me little Phil because it's disrespectful. And I'm your father and you're going to respect me or something happens. And then you have to decide what that something is that is meaningful to them. So they take it seriously. You can't play Minecraft or whatever it is kids do these days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Right, right. No, I get that. I do. And you're not wrong about any of this. It's just, Luke, it's not really about the name, you know? I mean, it is about the name, but it's not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it about? You're saying it's about the name, and I can understand why you wouldn't want to be called the little version of your name when your ex-wife's new husband is the bigger, Phil. But, I mean, they obviously respect him more, and it's on you to fix that. So make yourself respectable, and they will respect you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>No, that's not. I mean, yeah, maybe some of that is true. But it's not that they respect him more. It's that he's new. He's the new thing. He shows up and he's Big Phil, and I'm just the guy who's been there the whole time, you know? I'm the one who takes them to soccer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, then you understand what's going on here and it shouldn't bother you because it isn't personal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>It is personal, though. That's the thing. It feels personal. Because what if they just, what if they just decide that Big Phil is the better fill? Like, what if that sticks? What if in five they just think of him as Phil and me as the little version of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's up to you to control because you are dad. You're not Phil to them. And you should never be Phil to them. You should be dad to them. And Phil can be whoever Phil is, you know, big Phil. If he's Big Phil forever, so be it. You're still dad. And dad is over Big Phil. Doesn't matter how many times you put big, he could be big, big, big Phil. He could be the bigliest greatest Phil. And dad is still super-stile. that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. Okay. That's, that actually helps. That actually helps a lot. I'm sitting here worried about being replaced by another Phil, and you're saying I'm not Phil to them. I'm dad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right. And just make sure you're not little Phil to the ladies, because that would be a problem. Make sure they're calling you big Phil, all right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Ha. Yeah, well, that's not really happening right now, Luke. I haven't gotten a match in four months. I put ice luge on my dating profile because I thought it was interesting. competed twice, both times in Utah. And I thought that would be like a conversation starter, you know. But apparently nobody cares about ice luge.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, nobody cares about ice luge. And that explains why they're calling you little Phil. So cut the shit and do some big Phil stuff. And maybe the nicknames will change. Okay? I'm going to move on in the next color now. Is there anything else you would like to add before we go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>No. I think that's it. Thanks, Luke. I appreciate it. I really do. And hey, at least my ferrets still respect me. I've got Stevie, Christine, and Lindsay at home, and they don't care what anybody calls me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, little Phil there. Sounds like you're going to be a big hit with the ladies. So good luck with your children. And keep on, keeping on, all right? Keep on ice illusion or whatever the fuck it is that you do. Who's next on the caller line? Hi, how are you? Thanks for calling in. You've got Luke at the Roost. What would you like to talk about today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">AUGUSTINA</span><p>Hello, yes. Hello. I'm Augustina. I'm calling from northern New Mexico. And I... I don't even know how to start this. My granddaughter, she's 19. She showed me something on her phone two days ago, and I haven't stopped thinking about it. It's an image. A fake one, you know? Made by the computer. It's the Virgin of Guadalupe, but she's wearing a track suit, a bright pink track suit with the little stripes down the side. And Luke, I know I should be upset about this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why should you be upset about it? It's clearly a joke, and jokes are not something to get upset about it. So there's no reason. to laugh at something that's funny.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not familiar with the Virgin of Guadalupe. What's the Virgin of Guadalupe's story? And why would that be offensive?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Ah, well, the Virgin of Guadalupe, she appeared to a man named Juan Diego in 1531, right here in Mexico, near Mexico City. She's the mother of Jesus, the most sacred image we have. She appears on the Tilma, the cloak, and her image is on churches, on people's homes, on their cars, on their. hearts. She's everything to us. She's protection. She's mercy. She's home itself. So you would think, yes, the track suit would be, it should feel wrong. Disrespectful.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I wouldn't think that. You're talking about the Virgin Mary. I've never heard of her referred to as the version of Guadalupe. But the thing is, nobody knows what she looked like. So every likeness, every picture, every image of the Virgin Mary is a, facsimile. Nobody knows, for real, what she actually looked like. So why aren't any of those disrespectful? Disrespectful to who? To her? I don't think she's disrespected by herself in a track suit. She would probably laugh at it. I mean, most people would.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know, you're right. You're right, and that's what's making me crazy, Luke. Because I laughed, I laughed so hard I had to put my hand over my mouth. My granddaughter was watching me and I could see her trying not to smile, waiting to see if I was going to be the angry abuela. And instead, I saved it. I saved the image to my phone. And now I show it to my weaving students when they come to my studio, and they're being too serious, you know, when someone's frustrated with the pattern, or they think they've made a mistake in the world is ending.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, good, good for you. And you shouldn't take anything that seriously, because there's no reason to. So just because culture or your upbringing has taught you to not poke fun at things, it's bullshit. And, and, and, you're just because you're not, you know, you're you should poke fun of things. And if this picture of the Virgin Mary in a track suit has brought joy to your life, then, I mean, maybe that's divine in itself, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I'm drinking my tea right now, the OSHA root tea I drink every night, and you're making me think about something I've been afraid to say out loud. Maybe. Maybe God does have a sense of humor. My mother, she would never say that. The priest would never say that. But I look at the track suit, and I think, why not? Why couldn't she find that funny? Why does everything have to be so heavy all the time? I've been weaving the same blanket for 14 months, Luke, real grand style, the traditional way my grandmother taught me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, things should be funny. It's okay for things to be funny. There's a difference between making fun and being disrespectful, and you know what that is. And sometimes, to be perfectly honest, we all know that being disrespectful can be funny. It can be hurtful, but it can also be funny. Things can be more than that. one thing. And if you look at this the long way, right, and go with the whole concept that God created man, man created artificial intelligence, artificial intelligence created this image, so therefore it was created by God.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh, Luke, oh my God. That's actually beautiful. I never thought of it that way. Everything is connected, isn't it? The hands that taught me to weave, my hands teaching the next young people with their phones. It's all part of the same thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it all depends on what you believe and what you believe is very different from what I believe. And that's okay, too, because at the end of the day, they're just beliefs, and there's no proof about any of it, and we're all probably wrong. So just do your best. Try not to be disrespectful. And if something makes you laugh, enjoy that, because those are the small things that make life worth living.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know, what I realized listening to you say that? I don't think I want to finish that blanket. I've been stuck on it for months, and I keep telling myself it's because I'm waiting for the right moment. But maybe I'm just afraid. Afraid that once it's done, that's it's it. There's no more work, no more reason to sit with it every day. And maybe that's stupid, but I think, I think I might just leave it like that. Unfinished. Like a question mark instead of a period. And my granddaughter, she's going to be so relieved. It's wild because the Virgin of Guadalupe is actually one of the most visited Catholic pilgrimage sites in the world, bringing in millions of people every year.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, that's up to you. You're making your crafting a blanket, and if you want to finish it, you can finish it. If you don't want to finish it, that's okay. But if you do finish it, and if you've put this much work into it, I don't see why you wouldn't want to complete it. It's up to you. Complete it or don't. But if you do finish it, you can just start another blanket. And that's the beauty of it all. So as long as your hands work, you can create as many blankets as your little heart desires.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. You're right about that, too. Maybe I'm overthinking it. I do that. I overthink everything. My hands still work fine. They're strong. They know what to do. I could finish this one and start another. I could make a hundred blankets if I wanted to. That's not the problem. The problem is, I've been carrying so much guilt, Luke, for laughing. It's interesting because feel no guilt in laughter is a really common sentiment, especially in poems and readings about grief and loss. Like, it's okay to find joy even after hard times.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you've been trained and conditioned in years of culture and church and society to feel guilty about everything that you do. And you don't have to because people just made all that shit up. And it doesn't matter. It doesn't have any meaning to your life. And if the Virgin Mary, is a divine being. She doesn't care about a goofy image of herself. Like, God, if there is a God out there, he is not as, he's not human, right? He doesn't have the same level of ego. I mean, if you believe what they wrote in the Bible, then he's an egotistical maniac. But I think the reality of it is, if there's a divine being, he doesn't need consistent thanks and praise and seriousness. incense and all that shit. It's just not that important to him. He's got other shit to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know what? I'm going to show that image to my priest, not to get his permission or his blessing, but just to see his face. And if he gets angry, well, then maybe that tells me something too. Maybe it tells me I need to find a different kind of faith. One that doesn't make me feel like I have to apologize for being alive and finding joy in small ridiculous things. My students, they're always apologizing too. For their mistakes. in the weaving for taking up space for not being perfect.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Sounds like a good plan. You're on the right path and whatever God you pray to is proud of you tonight. So you enjoy whatever images make you smile and don't feel guilty about it if you can. I mean, it's easier said than done a lot of times. Let's see. Actually, I think it's about time. It is about time that we take another break for a word from our sponsor. I used to sleep on a rolled up horse blanket. that remembers your head shape so you don't have to. It's got cooling gel, bamboo fiber, and a 30-night risk-free trial, which means you can sleep on it for a month and then send it back, and someone in a warehouse has to deal with that. Every pillow forever comes in a box that's too small, which is part of the experience. You open it, and it slowly expands like a major documentary. My dog tried to fight it. Pillow Forever. You deserve better than a horse blanket. You do. You really do. You deserve better than a horse blanket. I'm telling you. I don't care what you think, but you could get yourself one of them forever pillows and it's going to be a good night's sleep. All right. Thanks for calling Luke at the Roost.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Who's this we're talking to? How can, what's going on in your life? How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>Hi, Luke. Thanks for taking the call. I'm Priscilla. I work in art conservation here in Santa mostly with religious pieces from the Spanish colonial period. And I, I don't know exactly how to say this without sounding like I'm either crazy or doing something wrong. Three days ago, I was called to a private home for a consultation on a renovation project. Standard thing, homeowner found some old painted wood behind the drywall they're taking down, wanted to know if it was worth saving. And it is. It's a Ritablo, Luke. 17th century. I'm almost certain.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked this up, and a Ritablo is a Ritablo is a painting, often a small folk art piece, but it can also refer to a large, elaborate altar piece or wooden structure with sculptures. Well, that's pretty cool. I mean, that sounds like a nice little find. Is that worth a lot of money? Is it historically relevant, or is it just a cool folk art piece that is old?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>It's historically relevant, yeah. These aren't common finds anymore. Most of them ended up in museums or private collections decades ago. This one somehow got sealed. behind drywall, which means it's been protected from light damage, from people handling it. It's in remarkable condition. But here's the thing, and this is what's keeping me up at night. I haven't told my supervisor. I haven't told the homeowner's insurance company. I haven't documented it officially.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, why not? Why wouldn't you? What happens if that house catches on fire tomorrow and it's suddenly gone and it's not insured? I can see, well, I don't understand your motivation for not They've got a valuable artifact there. Otherwise, that's the whole point of insurance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>You're right. You're completely right about the insurance. I know that. I've already thought about that. The homeowner doesn't even know what they have yet. They just saw old wood and called me because they wanted to know if it should go to a museum or the dump. I haven't given them my full assessment. But the insurance thing, that's not really why I called. I mean, it is part of it, but I've been going to the house every morning before work. I'm photographing it in different light.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that seems a little bit unethical. If you know what is there and you're not telling the homeowner and it's uninsured and you're just showing up to take pictures of it for yourself, that's... I mean, you must have some code of ethics, right? And it would seem to me like you're breaking that code by not doing the right thing. And the right thing is to let the homeowner know what they have and give them the best advice you can about protecting it and what to do with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>I know. I know that sounds bad when you say it out loud like that. you're not wrong. But it's not like I'm stealing it or planning to keep it. I'm just, I have 200 photos on my phone. I've been documenting it in the morning light, the afternoon light.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why are you doing that? Wouldn't it be better to document that in museum quality light?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>That's a fair question. I guess I'm not documenting it for the museum yet. I'm, I don't know how to explain this without sounding precious about it, but there's a figure in the retablo I can't identify. No saints markers I recognize. No attributes. no iconography that makes sense to me. And I keep thinking if I photograph it enough times, in enough different light. I'll figure out who it is, who they are. And I think part of me knows that once I report this officially, it stops being mine to wonder about. It becomes a case file.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it isn't yours to wonder about now, and what you're doing is wrong. So you should cut it out. And the truth is, maybe there's no figure in there. Maybe it doesn't make any sense. It's a piece of art, so it's not necessarily a piece of art that is tied to something you would know about. I think you should make sure that the homeowner knows what that is. And you said yourself that it needs to be protected from the light. So if you're going there and letting the sunlight shine on it, then you're not only withholding information from the homeowner, but you're also damaging the art piece and a historical artifact. And if you care about what you do and you care about the art piece, then you wouldn't be treating it in that way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>Oh God. I hadn't, I mean, I know about light damage. That's basic. But I've been so focused on the photographs that I didn't think about. Every time I open that wall up, every time I'm standing there with my camera, I'm exposing it to UV. I'm literally damaging what I'm trying to protect.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just found that UV light is actually one of the biggest dangers to historical artifacts, causing fading and deterioration of pigments and materials. Yeah, so here's what you do. You come clean, you follow whatever procedures that you have in place. for this sort of thing. There must be procedures to keep it safe and you don't stop treating it like it's yours because it's not. It's not an artifact that you found. It's an artifact that you found. It's an artifact that the homeowner found. They own it and it's up to them to protect or sell or throw it away. If they want to give it to you, that's different. You can bring it to your own house and take pictures of it at whatever angle you want. But it's not yours today and you need to stop treating it like it is because it's not okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>You're right. I know you're I grew up evangelical in Hobbs, and I still don't entirely trust my own reverence for these objects. I became a conservator because I love the work, but sometimes I wonder if what I feel when I look at something like this is actually reverence or just aesthetic appreciation. And maybe I've been keeping it private, because if I report it, if other people see it, they'll know whether what I'm feeling is real or not. They'll authenticated or dismiss it. And either way, I lose the space where I get to decide what it means to me. But you're saying that's not actually how this works?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's not how it works. Nobody can authenticate what something means to you. If it's important to you, it's important to you, and you can assign whatever meaning you want to it. And, you know, the truth is, if it truly is an artifact with historical relevance and it does end up in a museum, well, then, I mean, you can put that on your resume as the person that helped uncover that. And also, you can go to the museum and you can appreciate its aesthetic composition at your own leisure, where it's safe and protected and insured.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>It's in a home in the North Valley. I can call the homeowner today. I should call them today. And I need to tell my supervisor at the museum. She's going to ask me why I waited three days, and I'm going to have to tell her the truth, which is that I was being selfish and I was damaging the piece while I was doing it. But you're right about the resume thing. And about being able to see it in the museum, I just, I needed to hear someone say that what I'm doing right now is actually the opposite of protecting it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. And, and And I think that's the right thing to do and you will have to come clean and that's okay. It's been three days. I think probably your supervisor will understand what was going on in your head. You can explain that to her. And since you did come back and come clean and submit it and do it the right way, I think there won't be any issue with that. I think everybody understands that people are human and we have some weird thoughts. And as long as you came around before anybody caught you doing it, I think you're going to be just fine. thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>Thank you, Luke. I'm going to hang up and call the homeowner right now, and then I'm going to call my supervisor. I appreciate you not letting me rationalize this. I really do. I think I needed to hear it from someone outside my own head, because my own head was being very creative about why this was okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PRISCILLA</span><p>Yeah, I bet it was, and it's not okay, so I'm glad that you took the advice and do the right thing, and everything's going to work out just fine. And congratulations, it's still exciting no matter what happens. You found a cool story of nothing else. So good for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So who do we have here on the caller line? I'm Luke. This is Luke at the roost. Thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life tonight? And how can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Hey, Luke, Marcus. Thanks for taking the call. Look, I've been listening to your show for a while. And I don't usually do this, but I need to talk something through. And my wife has basically banned me from bringing it up at home anymore. So here we are at midnight on a Tuesday. I'm a vice principal up in the county. But I also judge regional BBQ competitions, been doing it for about eight years now. And this past Sunday, I made a call at the state qualifier that I'm still not entirely confident about, and it's eating at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, well, we just had a call earlier today. I think it was our first call when somebody was disqualified from a barbecue competition. Is that, did you disqualify him for using beef tallow as a, what did he call it? Uh, shit, I don't remember. Uh, binder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>No. wasn't me. But now I'm wondering if there's a whole wave of people calling you about competition integrity issues tonight, which is somehow both reassuring and deeply concerning. My situation is different. I disqualified the reigning three-time state champion. Guy named Derek Paulson. You probably know the name if you follow the circuit at all, and the infraction was about the resting vessel, the brisket. He used a Cambro container that wasn't on the approved list in the rulebook, or at least I interpreted it that way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, yeah, I definitely don't follow the barbecue competition circuit? Nobody does, actually. So the only people that care about the barbecue circuit are the people that are competing in it. Um, but we did talk earlier about starting our own barbecue competition here. Look at the roost. So what I said is, uh, send us 20 pounds of brisket and Devon and I will test it out and we'll have It's stupid. I don't know what a Cambrough container is, but you're not judging the container. You're judging the brisket.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>I know. I know how it sounds. Believe me, I have a laminated copy of the rulebook in my glove compartment, and I've consulted it six times since Sunday. Six times, Luke. And every time I read section 4.2, B, it seems to say something slightly different depending on my mood that day. The vessel thing does sound absurd when you say it out loud, and that's part of why I'm calling you at midnight instead of sleeping. But here's the thing. The rules exist for a reason.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, can you explain to us what that reason is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Fair competition. If you don't have standards, if you don't have consistency, then it's not a competition anymore. It's just people cooking meat. And look, I get it. I use the same voice at these events that I use when I'm disciplining students at school. And people tell me it's annoying. My wife tells me it's annoying. But the reason I use it is because there has to be someone who's willing to enforce the line even when it's uncomfortable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, okay, but that's not what I'm asking. I'm asking you to explain to us why the vessel is a rule. Why does it matter what container that the brisket is delivered in, right? Because that seems very arbitrary and unrelated to the quality or the craftsmanship of the brisket making.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. And that's what's killing me here. The official reason in the rulebook is about temperature consistency during the resting period. Different materials retain and distribute heat differently. an unapproved vessel could give someone an unfair advantage in how the meat finishes cooking while it's resting. That's the logic. But Derek's been using that same cambro for three years. Three years, Luke. And he won with it before because nobody flagged it. So either the rule was being enforced selectively, or I'm the first person to actually read Section 4.2. Be carefully, and I don't know which one bothers me more.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The people who've been calling me since Sunday, they're not upset about the integrity of the competition. What they're upset because the best brisket didn't win because you picked some obscure rule out of a rulebook to enforce so you could, uh, what, show your integrity? Yeah, it sounds like you're being a dick and, uh, you were more concerned about yourself or how you're reviewed as a, uh, as a judge than the actual purpose of the competition. And so, yeah, it seems like, uh, I would say that you were an asshole here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Okay. Okay. Okay, that's fair. That's actually, that's what I'm needed to hear, I think. But here's where it gets complicated for me. I'm getting pressure from people I respect. People who know Derek, people who know his family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Pressure to do what exactly? Can you revise your selection? Because that wouldn't be fair at this point either. You've handed somebody else to win, right? So it seems like the only thing that you can do is be better going forward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, you're right. I can't reverse it now. That would be even worse. And the pressure isn't to reverse it officially. It's just, it's subtle. It's people I see at the grocery store.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Well, you did a dick move and people didn't like it. And now you have to deal with the social consequence of that, which is going to be dirty looks at the grocery store. And you deserve that because, I mean, somebody put his time and heart and soul and money and practice and skill into doing a thing and you took it away from him because of a, because you felt like being a badass. So, yeah, suck it up, treat it as a learning experience and then do better and actually. time. That's all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>I hear you. I do. But I want to push back on one thing. I didn't do this to feel like a badass. I did it because the rule was there and nobody else was enforcing it. And yeah, maybe that makes me the guy who enforces the rules that shouldn't exist, but at least I'm consistent about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, if that's how you feel about it, that's how you feel about it. But I'm with everybody else in that you were a dick and you stole a win from somebody that probably deserved it. And now you have to deal with the consequences of that and the subtle social pressure Because it's all about you, right? It's all about you and how you feel and how people treat you. It has nothing to do with the guy that put all of his effort and time and money into actually winning the competition.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>No, that's not fair. That's not what this is about for me. Look, I called you because I needed to know if integrity in a low-stakes arena still counts as integrity. That's the actual question I'm wrestling with. Not how people treat me. I don't care about the dirty looks. I care about whether I did the right thing or whether I just hid behind a rulebook because it was. was easier than making a judgment call based on the spirit of the competition instead of the letter of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I don't know if I can be more clear. What I'm telling you is that, yeah, you hid behind a rulebook because it was easier than making a judgment call based on the spirit of the competition instead of the letter of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I did hide behind it. I used the rulebook the same way I used that voice at competitions and at school. It's easier than actually thinking about what's fair. Derek made better brisket than whoever won. We both know that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you really want to repent for this transgression, I think the correct thing to do would be to step down from the judging panel of the competition because you're not thinking clearly and you're not a good judge and you screwed a guy and that wasn't fair and you're no longer of sound mind and you don't exhibit the qualities of somebody that should be a judge of other people's work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not stepping down. And I don't. think that's the answer. Look, I made a bad call. I see that now. But stepping down is just me running away from it. Same as if I reversed the decision. What I need to do is stay on that panel and do better. All right, whatever you say, buddy, I think you need to step down and spend some more time with your family because I wouldn't want you judging me based on the vessel that I transported my work in. That's fucking foolishness. And yeah, you're an asshole. And a power hungry man that doesn't deserve to be in a position of power over. people. Okay, thanks for calling in. Welcome to Luke at the Roost. I'm Luke. Who is it that we're talking to tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Hi, Luke. This is Yolanda. I called in earlier tonight, actually, and I heard what you said to that woman about the retablo, about how she needed to report it instead of keeping it to herself. And it really stuck with me because I think I've been doing something similar and I need your help.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Well, the streetlight right in front of my house. has been flickering in a pattern. Every single night for six weeks now. And I've been writing it down in a notebook, the sequence of the flickers. I'm the only one tracking it. Nobody else knows. And I keep thinking about what you said to that woman, about how she was being selfish, keeping something to herself that maybe other people should know about. So, I'm wondering, I need to ask your listeners if anyone else has been seeing patterns like this, anywhere in the state, because this can't just be happening on my street, can it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know about that. We don't have any street lights here for like 100 miles. Well, maybe that's maybe like 60 miles. So there's no street lights here to be flickering. So I can't, I can't tell you about that. But we did have a call earlier about somebody that heard a pattern in the radio frequency, 1420, I think he said. And he couldn't explain that. He thought it was maybe his dead wife, if I remember correctly. I'm not sure. But I don't think this is a thing. And I don't think you have to worry about the pattern flickering in the street lights. And I think maybe everybody's just going a little bit insane and conspiracy-laden. And that's probably a reflection of our current socioeconomic political environment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Luke, I hear what you're saying, but, okay, listen, I'm not crazy. I worked for the Postal Service for 32 years. I know how to observe things. I know how to keep records. code. I've checked it against the lottery numbers. I've even compared it to the Mayan calendar because my granddaughter suggested that, and I wanted to be thorough. My husband Roberto was an electrician. He passed four years ago. So yes, I know what a faulty wire looks like. I know what a loose connection sounds like.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't think you do because a faulty wire can look like a lot of things, and so can a faulty bulb and a brown-out situation, a overcharging. You don't know. You don't know. what that grid is, if it's thermonuclear electricity, or if it's wind powered or solar powered, what percentage of the electricity is coming from which there's many hundreds of thousands of variables here that can affect the brightness, the luminosity of a light bulb. And I don't think this is a thing. Look, you've already tried to compare your findings with random arbitrary coatings, and that's not working out for you, because there's nothing there. There's nothing in this. It's a random thing. So it's not a message from beyond the grave. It's not a message from a terrorist organization. It's not aliens. It's just a flickering light. And you can go to bed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Luke, you're right. You're probably right about most of that. But I set up a ring camera. My granddaughter helped me. And I watched the footage every morning with my coffee. I've been doing this for six weeks. I know what I'm seeing. And I'm not saying it's aliens or terrorists. I'm just saying that it started on Roberto's birthday. Six weeks ago, on his birthday, the light started doing this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, you have yourself a wonderful night. You don't sound crazy at all. And find something better to do with your time than watch the flickering of the light bolt down the street. That's what I have to say to you. All right, I think we've come to the end of our show tonight. Devon, honey, think that's this one and what's going on with our collars? Why is it that I'm seeing the wrong caller names?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I've noticed that too. Sometimes the caller ID pulls the wrong name from their phone carrier or whatever. I think it's the switchboard software messing up the metadata again like it did last week with that one guy who showed up as Pizza Hut. Want me to restart the collar queue or poke around in the back end real quick?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, for tomorrow, let's get this figured out because it's a little bit annoying me not knowing who I'm talking to. Yeah, do what you got to do. Do your troubleshooting steps and make sure it's working tip top for tomorrow's show, okay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Got it, Luke. I'll stay late tonight, reset the metadata parser in the switchboard, test it with a few dummy calls from my phone, and paying the carrier API if it's still glitchy. O'd to be rock solid by tomorrow. Anything else before the next caller?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope, we're done with the callers today. The show is ending and we're just doing a little wrap-up, you and I. Before we go for the night, what are your plans for the rest of the evening after you're done fixing the switch. board.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, man, after I get the switchboard squared away, probably around midnight or so, I'll peel out in the Civic, check engine light blinking like always, and hit that 24-hour diner in Demming for some Wayvos, Rancheros. Been trying to chat up the night shift waitress there. She's got this tattoo of a cactus on her wrist that, I swear, moves when ironically, my last date ghosted me right after I told her about the time my mom locked me in the basement during a blackout as a kid. Anyway, what about you, to bars or calling it early.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, there are no bars, and I don't go to them anyway. I'm going to, I'm going to, uh, I'm going to hit the old dusty trail. I'm going to bed. I think I got a big exam tomorrow, and I have to pass it this time, or I'm going to lose my goddamn fucking mind. Well, all right, ladies and gentlemen, that's the end of our show. We'll talk to you again tomorrow. Oh, there's Devon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, man, an exam? That's rough. Good luck tomorrow, Luke. You've got this. I barely passed my comms finals at NMSU by pulling all nighters with nothing but Mountain Dew and this one dream catcher my grandma made that I hung over my desk. Seriously, crush it and hit me up if you need any last minute flash cards for your pilot's license or something. You've got this, Luke. No way you bomb after killing it on air tonight. Hit the hay, man, and text me if you need last minute flashcards or whatever. Night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, maybe they were right about the flickering lights. Jesus. That was pretty weird. Okay, everybody have a good night. We're taking off and we'll talk to you again tomorrow. tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 52: Dexter's Construction Corner and the Whistleblower's Dilemma</h1>
|
||||
<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-04-16T09:20:06+00:00">April 16, 2026</time> · 1 hr 3 min</p>
|
||||
<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts another late-night call-in show featuring everyday people wrestling with work, relationships, and life transitions. Highlights include a construction worker named Dexter revealing potential workplace corruption, and multiple callers struggling with career stagnation and personal crossroads. Who will take the leap and change their life?</p>
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<audio controls preload="none" src="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-52-dexter-s-construction-corner-and-the-whistleblower-s-dilemma.mp3">
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-52-dexter-s-construction-corner-and-the-whistleblower-s-dilemma.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back. I'm Luke. I'm your host of Luke at the Roost. It's the late night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about what's going on in your life. I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today is Thursday, April 16th. It's actually kind of cold out here in the New Mexico desert. But we're getting by, just fine. I got to remember tomorrow to go get some propane before I, I run out, I keep thinking it's going to be warm at night and it keeps not being that warm at night. But it's okay. We're going to get through it anyway because that's just what we do. Let's, well, before we check in with our intern here, I just want to let you know if you'd like to call in, the number here is 208-439-58-3-3. That's 208-439, Luke. If you're not into talking on the phone or you're not whoever it is that you're sleeping next to, you can send us an email, and if we think that email is worthy, we'll read it on the air. Send emails to submissions at lukeatsherust.com. Now let's check in with our intern, Devon. Devon, how's it going over there? You ready for a show tonight, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, going good over here, Luke. Systems are all green. I double-checked the playlist and pulled up some fresh stats on last week's top callers just in case. That reminds me, that girl from the bar last night, but she hasn't replied yet. Anyway, we're locked and loaded for the show.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, the girl from the bar last night. Tell us about this girl from the bar. What is she like? Did you have yourselves a conversation, or what's the deal? How did you get her number?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, she was this brunette with these huge hoop earrings, sitting alone, nursing of vodka soda. And I noticed she had this tattoo of a cassette tape on her wrist. Turned out she's obsessed with old mixtapes from the 90s. We talked for like an hour about late night radio shows, which felt like fate since I'm here every night, and I joked about how my ex used to make me custom tapes before she ghosted me after that whole road trip fiasco. I just asked for her number straight up at the end, like, hey, text me if you want to hear the show sometime. And Ed and gave it over, fingers crossed, she replies before I chicken out and delete the message.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can't really delete the message now. You only have like 10 seconds to delete the message. I mean, you can delete the message, but it's just going to delete it from your phone, and she's still going to see it. and then you're going to get a text from a weird brunette in the middle of the night, you know, weeks from now and not know who it is. Don't delete the message. That's crazy. But good for you for putting yourself out there, and hopefully something comes to that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, you're probably right. Last time I tried deleting a text like that, it just made everything worse because she screenshotsed it first and sent it to her friends. Thanks, though, man. Means a lot. Anyway, board's looking good. First calls queued up whenever you're ready.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Whoa. What did she screen? screenshot and send to our friends. What was the message, Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, man, it was this super needy text I sent at like 2 a.m. after we had broken up. Something like, hey, I know we said it was over, but that dream I had about the storage unit last night made me realize, I missed the way you'd hum along to those tapes while we were stuck in there. She screenshotsed the whole rambling paragraph, sent it to her group chat calling me the mixed tape psycho, and I only found out months later when her friend accidentally texted me back. Anyway, lesson learned, no deleting. Just own it, right? Board's still clear over here if you want to take that first call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, we'll take the call in a second. I want to know what was on the mixtape, Devon. Tell us, what was she humming along to? Did you make this mixtape for her, or did she make it from you? And what was the contents of said mixtape?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>She made the mixtape for me, actually. It was this weird 90s nostalgia thing with tracks like Wonderwall by Oasis, No Rain by Blind Melon. because she said a reminder of that time we got lost driving back from her cousin's wedding in truth or consequences. I think she was humming along to no rain in the storage unit, the one with the Blind Melon B Girl video. We've been locked in there after trying to borrow some of her old furniture for our apartment, and it was like three days of just eating stale granola bars and playing it on my phone until the battery died. Kind of romantic in a desperate way, if that makes sense. If you want to hit it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, I definitely want to do because I don't want to hear any more of that. But good luck with your brunette. So first up on our color line here, we have Dexter. Dexter, welcome to the show. Hopefully I've got the names right now. Our last show had some technical difficulties. Is your name actually Dexter? And what are you calling in for tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, Dexter's right. Thanks for having me, Luke. I appreciate it. Look, I'm calling because I've been listening to your show for like three years now. Wow. thing with the construction company downtown, the one that's been cutting corners. And I just, I had to call because I worked there. I work for them. And some of what you were saying tonight, man, it's not the whole story. I mean, it is, but it's not. You know what I mean?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't know what you mean. I think you might have the wrong show because we haven't been on the air for three years and you're our first call of the night. So I haven't been talking about any construction companies. But fill us in. What's going on that's shady at your work?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Oh, man. Oh God. I'm sorry, Luke. I'm nervous. I don't. I don't. I don't know why I said that. I've been rehearsing this call for like two hours and I just, I messed it up already. Okay, so I work at Brennan Construction. We're doing the renovation on the old Riverside Plaza downtown. And there's this inspector, guy named Caldwell and he's been signing off on work that we haven't actually done. Like we skip steps. We use cheaper materials than what's in the contract.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well why would Caldwell sign off on that then? What's in it for him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Cash. My supervisor, he gives Caldwell a cut. I've seen it happen. It happened three times now. They meet in the parking lot behind the site, hand over an envelope. I don't know exact amounts, but it's enough that Caldwell keeps coming back, keeps rubber stamping everything. And here's the thing, Luke. The building's going to have people living in it. Families. When we cut corners on structural stuff, on electrical, that's not just about money anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it certainly is not. And maybe you obviously know that's wrong and you don't feel great about it because you're calling me. So maybe that's the type of thing that has to leak to the local publications. anonymously, if you know what I'm saying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Yeah, I know what you're saying. And you're right. I don't feel good about it. I really don't. But Luke, I've got two kids. My wife, she doesn't work right now. We're barely making it on what I make. And if I lose this job, if I say something and they find out it was me, I mean, these guys, they're not nice people. My supervisor, he's made it pretty clear that loyalty matters to him. But here's what I'm thinking. What if there was a way to do it where they couldn't trace it back to me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, if you were going to try to me? try to do it in a way that was untraceable. Maybe you shouldn't have called a radio show and given your name and the name of your company and the name of Caldwell. Because now I think it's probably pretty easily traced back to you, Dexter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Oh, Jesus. Oh, God, I didn't think about that. I didn't think. You're right. You're absolutely right. Okay, so maybe this was stupid. But I'm telling you this because I need someone to know. I need it on records somewhere that I tried to do the right thing, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Because next month they're pouring the foundation for the foundation for the residential units. Once that happens, it's locked in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, it's done now. So you've already, this is a live radio show, and there's millions of people around the world listening at any given moment. So you're already, you're already, you've flew the coop, as they say. And now it doesn't matter. So you could just call up your newspaper and let them know or tell, I don't know, the building inspector or the city hall that there's some shady stuff going on and they need to come investigate because. You're right. You can't let that go on. It could cost a lot of people their lives.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>I know, I know. You're right. I'm already out there now anyway. Look, there's documentation too. I've got photos on my phone of the materials they ordered versus what actually got delivered. Different grades of steel, cheaper drywall. And Caldwell, he's got a notebook where he writes down the payments. I've seen it sitting on his truck seat. If someone actually went looking, they'd find it. The thing that's really eating at me, though, is my supervisor told me last week they're planning to cut even more corners on the electrical work, because the budget's tight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it sounds like they're not very good criminals if this dude's writing it down in a book. I mean, haven't you ever seen Goodfellas? Isn't that what took the whole thing down? The guy was writing down all his receipts in the book. I mean, watch some movies. You got to learn how to do this. And it sounds like now your cover is blown. We've got to get you into witness protection and all that because there's the mafioso guys that are going to come after you and attack your family. So I think we're going to have to give you a new identity. going to send you off to, I think, what do you think of Malaysia? Malaysia seems like a good place to disappear and start a new life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Wait, hold on. Luke. I appreciate the movie reference, but I'm not trying to be funny here. I'm not a criminal. I'm just a guy who didn't want to keep his mouth shut about something dangerous. And I'm not running to Malaysia. My kids go to school here. My wife's family is here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. Well, I'm not calling you a criminal. I'm calling Caldwell a criminal. He's the one that's writing down his payoffs in a notebook under his car seat. Not you. You called in and I'm just saying your life and your family may be in danger now because you're, you're knocking out a giant construction company, which I assume there's millions and millions of dollars on the line. So they're not going to be happy about that. And they might send somebody to your house. You know what I mean? They need to send a message. I've seen lots of movies. And that's how it works. So I'm just, I'm just trying to think in your best interest in the future here. Once you've blown this whole, the cover off this whole thing. what are we going to do to keep you and your family safe?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Yeah, okay, I hear you. And honestly, that's what scares me most. Not losing the job, losing my family. But here's the thing. My neighbor, he's a cop, detective with the city police. I haven't told him anything yet, but I'm thinking maybe I should. If I go to him first, if I make an official report, then it's not just me anymore. It's documented with the police. That's got to count for something, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It depends on how much they're paying the police. It's true that construction workers have specific whistleblower protection. protections, especially when reporting unsafe conditions or fraud. And OSHA enforces those protections. Yeah, you know what? If it were me, I would, we're going to assume that Dexter is not your real name. Okay? You called in with a fake name. I called you Dexter. And maybe Devon fucked up the caller list and we got the names wrong. And that's all. So you're just a guy that called into the radio. You're not Dexter. Nobody knows who Dexter is. I think the best way to hear you. handle this is for an anonymous tip to go out to the press, not to the police, to the press, and let the press send their investigators and deal with it. And the police will read about it, you know? So keep yourself as far away from this as possible without keeping your mouth shut, because it's not right to keep your mouth shut either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>You know, what? That actually makes sense. Yeah, go to the press first. Stay anonymous. Let them do the digging. Then when the cops get involved, it's because the story's already out there, not because I went running to them. That protects me and my family better than being the guy who's snitched, right? The press has resources they can investigate properly without me having to be the face of it. But Luke, I got to ask, how do I even do that? Do I just call the newspaper? Email them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I wouldn't email them. You could call them from a burner phone if you want to be extra safe. So go to Walmart, get yourself one of those little $25 phones, and call them from that. That way they can't trace the number. They don't have your name. It's an anonymous tip. I'm sure, I don't know. I haven't read a newspaper in a long. time, but there's a contact information on there. If you want to send a letter to the editor or something, a hot tip. Um, you know, just do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Yeah, okay. A burner phone. That's smart. I can do that tomorrow on my lunch break. There's a Walmart like five minutes from the site. And then I just called the newspaper's tip line and tell them everything. The inspector's name, the company, the materials, all of it. Let them verify it themselves. Luke, I got to say, I feel a lot better about this now. Like I was sitting here thinking I was going to thing. But this way?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, this way you can protect yourself as much as possible, not Dexter. Yeah, a lot of those prepaid phones at Walmart are basically burner phones. And you can get them with a prepaid SM card already installed. So it's pretty easy to stay anonymous.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>A prepaid SM card, huh? All right, yeah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So get yourself the burner, call in the press, let them know what's going on, and then just keep your mouth shut and do your job and let them think. think somebody else did it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Right. Right. I can do that. I just keep my head down, show up to work, do my job like nothing happened. And meanwhile, the press is investigating. They'll find the notebook, the photos, all of it. They don't need me to keep talking about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, they don't need you to talk about it at all. Just mention it and then leave it alone. And if, you know, if a month goes by and you still see there's dangerous corners being cut, then maybe escalate a little bit and do the same thing to the police department. But my guess would be the... the police department are also on the payroll.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEXTER</span><p>Yeah, that's what I'm worried about too. I mean, how deep does this go, right? But you're right. One step at a time, call the press, let them handle it, see what happens. And if nothing changes in a month, if they're still cutting corners, then I go to the police. At least by then, the press will have already put pressure on them. Luke, I really appreciate this. I came in here thinking I was crazy for calling, but this actually feels like a plan now. I'm gonna do this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good for you. You're a true American hero, not Dexter, and we appreciate the call. Good luck to you and your family, and hopefully everything resolves itself in the cleanest way possible. Next up on our caller line, we've got Tina. Tina, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? You got any crazy stuff happening to tell us about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>Oh my God. Luke, thank you so much for taking my call. I've been listening to your show for like three years. Wow. And I finally worked up the nerve to call. So, yeah, crazy stuff, I mean. It's not like a disaster or anything. But I'm going through this thing where I'm questioning everything, you know? I'm 42. I've been married for 16 years, and I just, I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>I feel like I woke up one day and realized I have no idea who I am anymore. Like I'm a mom. I'm a wife. I work in accounting. And that's just... That's just perfectly normal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think everybody around this age, I mean, I'm 43, too, so I'm around the same spot. We all have to question what our life has been. We're recognizing our own mortality. It's very normal. Who would you like to be? because that's what matters. It doesn't matter who you are. The only thing that matters, it doesn't matter who you are. is who you want to be. And who are you going to be when you wake up tomorrow?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>That's actually a really good question. And I appreciate you saying it's normal. Because honestly, I've been feeling kind of crazy. Like I'm the only one going through this. Who do I want to be? God. Luke, I don't even know where to start. I think I want to be someone who does things for herself for once. Like, I haven't taken a class or learned anything new since 2008.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, that seems like a good start. And you can take all sorts of classes at your own home, on your own time now. So it's not like you even have to go to a school to take a class. You can sign up for really anything that you could possibly imagine getting better at. There's a class for that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>You know, you're right. I actually looked into that a few weeks ago. There's this photography class I found online that I've been thinking about. I used to love taking pictures when I was younger, before everything got so busy. He actually encouraged me to do it, which is sweet. But then I just, I don't know. I taught myself out of it. I was like, why would I spend the money on that when we could use it for something practical?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, because it is something practical, right? You need hobbies and things that you're invested in and passionate about to have good mental health and to feel productive and get what you want on a life. So there's really nothing more practical. It's the most. practical thing you can do. So it's not just the learning, it's the actual class itself is an event. You know, that's a thing that you're doing that you're having fun with. It's challenging your brain and not doing those types of things can, you know, just make you rot away. If you're just following a routine and not doing anything new, then your brain slows down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>You know, what? You're making me realize something. I think the real issue is that I'm scared. Like scared that if I start doing something just for me, my family's going to fall apart or something. My mom was always like that. She sacrificed everything. And I grew up thinking that's what a good wife and mother does. But then I look at my daughter. She's 16 and she's so independent and she does whatever she wants. And I'm like, where did I go wrong that I'm not like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't think it's good for anybody for you to be like that. I think the best thing that you can do for your family is to take care of yourself and make sure that. you're a whole and satisfied person. And it sounds like you're not right now. And that's okay. A lot of people get to where you're at. You did what you had to do when you've done it. Your kid's 16. It's not like you have to constantly babysit her or anything. She's independent. She can get around and do stuff on her own. And now it's time for you to get back to doing what you want to do. And try photography. It's a great hobby. It's got me around the country to take pictures of the Milky Way. And, I mean, I can't. I couldn't imagine what my life would be like had I not picked that up and ran with it so heavily. It's not a particularly good money-making activity, but it's not about making money. It's about doing something that gets you out into nature and invigorates you creatively. So anything that you're creating is very practical.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>Wow. Okay. I'm actually getting goosebumps listening to you say that because my husband mentioned the way thing last week. He was like, you could drive out to the desert, take some night sky shots. And I was like, that sounds amazing, but also terrifying because I've never done a road trip alone before, like, ever. I've always been the one driving the kids to soccer practice or whatever, but going somewhere, just for myself, that feels selfish somehow, even though I know intellectually that it's not. But here's the thing that's really been eating at me, Luke. My best friend from college, Sarah, she reached out to me a few months ago, and she's been traveling solo, doing all these and she asked me to join her for a week in Colorado next spring. And I told her no.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's okay. I mean, maybe you don't want to go to Colorado and maybe you don't want to do this with somebody else. And a solo road trip is good for you, I think. But I do want to say you have to be safe, especially if you're going out into the desert at night. There's things out there and people out there that can hurt you. So make sure that you're protected, make sure somebody knows where you're going. Make sure that you have some method of communication. an Apple watch with a cellular connection, make sure your phone works where you're at, you know? Because if you twist your ankle out there in the desert and nobody's around, you're in real trouble. So take it very seriously. It is serious and it is dangerous. But that doesn't mean it's not worth doing because it's absolutely worth doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>That's really good advice. And honestly, that's the kind of thing I need to hear. Because my brain goes to worst case scenarios. Like, I immediately think about all the things that could go wrong instead of just doing. it. My husband actually said something similar to you just now. He was like, we'll get you set up with a good phone plan. We'll check in every night, whatever you need. And I realized he's not trying to stop me. He actually wants me to do this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, he does. Like I said, it's good for everybody, for you to take care of yourself in this way, for you to be independent and have your own hobbies and things that bring you pride and gratitude in life. That just makes you a better person to be around. And it's going to affect everybody in your family. Your kid's going to notice. Your husband's going to notice. And everybody's going to end up happier because of it. So it's a good thing to do. I would advise you if you're thinking about taking photography classes, be careful with that because it's hard to make money as a photographer. People don't buy art all that much. So when people get into photography and they want to turn it into a career, the first thing they do is go and make a course. Because that's how you can make money. But a lot of the people that are putting those. courses out. They don't know anything about photography, right? They're just regurgitating what they saw on YouTube, which can be fine, but make sure that you do your research and get somebody that makes images that you want. You know, if you see their images and they say something to you, then maybe look at their course. Don't just go to the first one you see and pay them, you know, 150 bucks or whatever it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TINA</span><p>Yeah, that makes total sense. I wasn't planning on turning it into a career or Anyway, I just want to do it for me, you know. But I appreciate that warning because I probably would have just signed up for the first one that popped up on Google without really thinking about it. That's kind of my pattern with everything. So I guess what I'm hearing from you is that I just need to actually do it. Like, stop overthinking and just sign up for the class this week. And maybe plan that desert trip for the fall when the weather's better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. The weather's just about perfect now. Now is a good time to do it. And you don't have to complete a course before you can go on a road trip. My advice would be, when you have the time to do it, do it. And if it doesn't go well, then do it again. That's all. You can do it more than once. It doesn't have to be a big yearly trip.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It can just be a weekend thing. You know, start small. And if you're having a good time doing it, keep doing it. And if you're not having a good time, if you find out it's not for you, then try something else. So I just looked up the best time for Milky Way photography. And a lot of sources say June through October is ideal for seeing the galactic center. Especially early in the morning. It's out there right now. It's Milky Way season here in the desert, and you can see the whole core of the Milky Way for basically now until October. Okay, so a weekend trip. That's actually, that feels doable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Like, I could tell my husband I'm going out Saturday morning and coming back Sunday night. That's not crazy, right? That's not like abandoning my family or anything. Oh my God, I'm doing it again, aren't I? I'm already making excuses before. before I even try.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's not abandoning your family. They probably need a break from you. And you need a break from them. And it's good for everybody. So just do it. And everybody is supporting you. And you're the only one holding yourself back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I am the only one holding myself back. My husband's supportive. My friend Sarah would probably love to hear from me about this. My daughter's doing her own thing. I think I've just been so used to being the person who takes care of everyone else that I forgot And honestly, I'm tired of being that person. I'm tired of waking up and not recognizing myself in the mirror. So I'm going to do it. I'm going to sign up for that photography class this week. And I'm going to plan a weekend trip to the desert in the next month or so. And if I hate it, like you said, I can try something else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. Best of luck with photography and your road trip. Just be smart. Plan ahead and make sure that you've got a method of communication with people. Because you don't want to get stuck out there alone in the desert. So, Oh, ladies and gentlemen, it's about that time. We need to listen to a word from our sponsors. Are you tired of your protein having a shape? Introducing Meat Cube, the world's first geometrically perfect meat product. Every meat cube is exactly two inches by two inches by two inches of lab engineered protein that we are legally required to call meat adjacent. What animal is it from? Absolutely none of your business. What we can tell you? tell you is that Meat Cube has been approved by the FDA. Not the American one, but one of them. Meat Cube is a shelf stable for 11 years. It does not need to be refrigerated. Honestly, refrigeration seems to make it angry. Each cube contains 40 grams of protein, zero grams of fat, and a faint electrical charge that our lawyers say is within acceptable limits. Meat Cube comes in three flavors. Original, smokehouse, and, uh-oh. You can grill it, fry it, or just set it on the counter and watch it slowly rotate on its own, which it will do. We don't know why. Meat Cube. It's not meat. It's not not meat. It's meat cube. Available at grocery stores that have recently fired their health inspector. Use code Chew Harder for free shipping. All right. Let's try out some of that meat cube, will we? Next up on our caller line, we've got Hector. Hector! Welcome to the show. What can we do for you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Thanks for taking my call, Luke. Yeah, I've been listening for years, and I finally worked up the nerve to call in. Look, I don't even know where to start, man. I'm a mechanic, been working at the same shop for 12 years. And I just found out today that my boss hired my nephew at almost twice what I'm making. Twice, Luke. The kid's got no experience. He's been there three weeks. I'm the one. who trained him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. I mean, what do you expect? That's how the workplace works. You don't, they don't adjust your salary to current market values. The only way to do that is to change companies and go somewhere else that's going to hire at today's rates. This is a well-known thing. So you can expect that anywhere that you work. If you want to have current market rates, then you've got to switch jobs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Yeah. I hear. hear what you're saying. And I know that's the smart play. I do. But Luke, I've got two kids in school. My wife's hours got cut at her job last year. We're not exactly in a position where I can just walk out and hope something else pans out, you know? Plus, I've got relationships there. The owner, he's been good to me mostly. Or I thought he was. And here's the thing that really gets me. I trained the kid. I showed him everything. And now I'm training him on jobs. And he's making more than me doing the same work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's what I'm saying. That's how it works. because if you were working at a company for a long time, they're going to give you a cost of living increase of, what, 3% year over year? And that, I mean, inflation is moving faster than 3%. So, I mean, you just have to do the math. So if you want to be level set, you could talk to your boss about that. He's going to tell you to go fuck yourself. You've got to switch jobs. And you were content with your salary before you knew that it was possible to get a higher salary. So you're obviously able to live on what your money. making. So just live on what you're making until you secure yourself another job at today's market rates. That's how the workplace works. It's how it's designed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Right. Okay. I get it. I do. But here's what's eating at me. I wasn't content, Luke. I was just stuck. And now I know what I could be making. That's different. That's not the same as before. I'm actually seeing a lot of articles about how wage stagnation for long-term employees is a really get better offers because companies are trying to attract talent at current market rates.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't really know what to tell you that I haven't already told you. I know this is the case. Everybody knows this is the case. It's designed this way. And now that you know, if you want to level set your salary with the current market rates, it's time to leave your job. You can talk to your boss. He's going to tell you to go fuck yourself. And you have to go find another job that's trying to attract talent. like Devon said, that's how it works. And I don't have anything else to add to this conversation. It doesn't really matter how you feel about it or how shocked you are by it. It's just the way that the capitalism works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Yeah, yeah. I hear you. I get it. The system's the system. I'm not stupid, Luke. I know I got to look around. I guess I just needed to say it out loud, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, now you've said it. Do you feel better?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">HECTOR</span><p>Honestly, a little bit. Yeah. Not about the situation. But just getting it off my chest. I'm going to start. start looking around. I've got some buddies in the trade. I'll make some calls. It's just scary, man. Twelve years is a long time to be somewhere, but I hear what you're saying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, 12 years is a long time for 3% incremental increases, and it's obviously not kept up with the current cost of living. So it's time for you to move on, my friend. And congratulations to your, what was it, nephew? Good for him, because it sounds like he got himself a nice entry-level job there. got Carla. Carla, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? And how can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. I've been listening for like three years. Really? And I finally worked up the nerve to call in. So, um, I'm dealing with something that's been eating at me. My sister and I haven't spoken in almost two years. We had this huge fight about money. I lent her $5,000 when she was going through a divorce. And she just never paid me back. Didn't even acknowledge it after a while. But that's not really what this is about anymore, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't know. If you lend somebody money, it's almost certain you're not going to get that money back. So that's what I would expect. What is it about if it's not about the money?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>You're right, you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I mean, I've made peace with the money. That's gone. I get it. What's killing me is that she just shut me out completely. Like, I was there for her when nobody else was. I drove four hours to help her move out of the house. I listened to her cry for months. And then when things got better for her, it was like I didn't exist anymore. She won't return my calls. She unfollowed me on social media. My mom keeps trying to. to play peacemaker, but it just makes it worse. And I guess what I'm really struggling with is I don't know how to let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, unless something else happened there that you haven't mentioned, it sounds to me like she probably feels guilty about the money. She knows she owes you the money and she doesn't want to pay it back. So she's finding a way to cut ties with you so that she doesn't have to think about that. So do you have any opportunity to talk to her? Do you see each other at family events or anything like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>We used to, yeah, but she's been avoiding those too. Last Christmas, my mom invited us both, and she said she had to work. She didn't have to work. I saw on Facebook she was at some friends party that night. So that hurt, honestly. But Luke, I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it doesn't sound like you did anything wrong. You were the best sister you could have been to her, and if she doesn't feel like talking to you right now, then she doesn't feel like talking to right now. You can't force her to. And hopefully she comes around, Just remember that the next time she gets herself in a bind and comes looking to you to bail her out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I hear you. I guess I just, I keep hoping she'll reach out, you know? Like maybe one day she'll wake up and realize what she did. But you're saying I should just accept that she might not, right? That she might just stay gone? Because the thing is, Luke, I'm scared that if I don't do something, if I just wait around, that this becomes permanent. Like we'll be strangers forever. And I have all these memories with her. We grew up together. And I don't want to lose that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but it takes both. you to not want to lose that, right? If she doesn't want to talk, she doesn't want to talk. And you can't force her to. And she's making it pretty clear that she wants to be off grid. So I would say let her have her time here. She went through a divorce. She's going through some shit. And she will likely come back eventually. If not, then you've got to move on with your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I know. I know you're right. It's just hard to accept that, you know? Like, logically, I get it. She's got her own stuff going on. But emotionally, I'm still sitting here waiting for my phone to ring. And I guess what I'm really asking is, how long do I wait? How long before I just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's something only you can answer. How long do you wait? You don't have to be waiting right now. If the phone calls and you answer it, great. Then maybe you can rekindle that relationship. But if she doesn't want to talk, she doesn't want to talk, and it's not going to do any good just sitting there waiting for the phone to ring.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I think I needed to hear that from someone else, honestly. I've been holding. on to this hope that if I just wait long enough, she'll come around. But that's just me spinning my wheels, isn't it? I need to let go of that and actually live my life instead of just pausing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. Yeah. So just go about your life. And if when she does call, you're, you still feel like you want to put effort into that relationship. Great. I'm not saying that'll never happen or that she's going to be estranged forever. That could be the case, maybe. But it doesn't do any good to just sit around. waiting for the phone to ring. When it rings, it rings. If it rings. And you can be okay, no matter what happens.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I think I needed that perspective. It's weird because I came into this call thinking I wanted advice on how to fix things, but what I really needed was permission to stop trying so hard, you know? To just live. I'm going to take your advice. I'm going to stop checking my phone every five minutes waiting for her to reach out. If she does, great. If she doesn't, well, that's on her. And I'll be Either way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. That's all you can do. So I hope she calls you and you guys have a wonderful remainder of your lives together. And if not, you're both going to be just fine either way. So next up, we've got Virgil. Hey. Hey, Virgil, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? What has you calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for having me. Yeah. So I've been listening to your show for like three years now. Three years. I don't know. Tonight just felt like the right time to call in. Look, I'm going to be straight with you. I'm 42. I work in insurance, which is about as exciting as it sounds. And I've been married to the same woman for 16 years. And that's, that's good. That's stable. But I'm calling because I think I'm having some kind of crisis. And I don't know who else to talk to about it. My wife doesn't need to hear this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Hit us with it. What's the crisis? What's going on? You don't love your wife anymore? You think you're gay? Did you gamble all the families. money in Vegas? What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>No, no, nothing like that. My wife is great. I love her. And I'm not, I mean, I'm not questioning that stuff either. It's just, okay. So about eight months ago, I ran into an old girlfriend at the grocery store, Sarah.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what did Sarah have to say?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>We just talked for like 10 minutes in the produce section. Nothing crazy. She was in town visiting her parents. We exchanged numbers, you know? Just to catch up. some time and I told myself that was it just a friendly thing but then she texted me a week later and we started talking and Luke I haven't felt like this in well</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Virgil I'm gonna stop you there because you know damn well that if you're exchanging numbers it's not just to catch up sometimes so somewhere in the back of your head you were you were hoping to catch up or or she was hoping to catch one either way you're telling us that you love your wife and she's great so I These two things, they don't match, right? If you love your wife, you're not taking a phone number from an ex-girlfriend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I know that. I knew it then, too, I think. Look, I'm not going to sit here and tell you I didn't know what I was doing. I did. Some part of me wanted her number. Some part of me wanted to talk to her again. And yeah, with my wife, it's, it's comfortable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so what do you want to do? Are you going to get back together with Sarah, the ex-girlfriend, or are you going to go back to your wife? Because what you do next is what's going to determine the rest of your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>I don't know. That's why I'm calling you at 2 in the morning instead of sleeping. I haven't done anything physical with Sarah, if that's what you're wondering. We've just been texting, talking on the phone when I can get away. And it feels like, it feels like I'm alive again, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're lying. You're cheating. and you're being unfair to your wife who is sitting at home, uh, uh, uh, comfortably with you. So what you're doing is wrong. You know that it's wrong. And you have to decide if it's, uh, just this exciting fling that's happening that's putting some excitement into your life or if it's a problem with your relationship, your marriage that you need to get out of. You have to decide, but either way, you, you, you can't continue to, uh, do both things, right? It's not fair to. involved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>I know. I know you're right. And I hate that you're right because it would be easier if you just told me what to do. But you're not wrong. The thing is, with Sarah, it feels like I'm 25 again. Like anything's possible. With my wife, it's just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're not 25 again. And you're not going to be 25 again. And Sarah is your ex for a reason.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you got to remember what that reason was. And your wife is there being and you've built the life together and you've made vows to each other and life gets boring life gets complicated and it's not always excitement what you could do is talk to your wife about that about that you're feeling kind of stuck and comfortable and that you want to do something to change that to bring back some of the 25 year old spark but what you're doing is is wrong and and you need to stop I just looked this up and a common reason people cheat is to feel appreciated or independent, which sounds a lot like what Virgil is describing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I hear you, both of you. And Devon's right, actually. I do feel like I'm not, I'm not seen anymore, you know, like I'm just the guy who pays the bills and mows the lawn.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I do understand that I've been married myself. I think you can talk to any married man that's been married for any length of time or any married woman, and that's that's what happens when you're with somebody for a long time. Things follow into into a routine. Things are taken for granted and that's that's part of life. But marriage is a long-term commitment and you're making the commitment to each other to make it through those times and talk them out and figure out what you have to do to make yourself feel whole and satisfied. If that's not working out with your wife, then leave your wife and you guys can work that out. But either way, you can't have both things. It's cruel, it's wrong, it's lying, and you should feel guilty about it because it's not the right thing to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VIRGIL</span><p>I do feel guilty. I feel guilty every single day. And you're right. I know you're right. I think, I think I needed to hear someone say it out loud like that. Not my therapist, not my own head telling me at three in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good. Well then cut the shit and talk to your wife. That's my advice for you. Next up we've got Let me guess. You've been listening to the show for three years, right? And this is the first time you're calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Actually, it's been more like five years, Luke. I've been listening since that whole thing with the caller from Portland. You remember that? And yeah, this is my first time calling. I've started to dial so many times and just hung up. But tonight I couldn't not call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked this up and it seems like the Luke at the Roost Portland incident was actually about a guy named Luke Lensner and a bar incident, not a caller to the show. Okay, well, what's going on, Deb? Why are you calling in tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Oh, God. Maybe I'm mixing things up. I listen to so many shows late at night, you know? My brain just... Anyway, that's not why I called. I'm calling because my daughter, she's 23, and she just told me she's dropping out of her nursing program. She's three semesters in, Luke, three semesters. And she wants to move to Portland, actual Portland this time, to find herself, or whatever that means, She says the program is making her depressed that it's not what she wants anymore. And I don't know how to talk to her about this without sounding like every disappointed parent in the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, she's 23 years old. She's an adult and she can make those decisions for herself. If she wants to move to Portland and that's what's next for her in her life, that's on her. And really what you think and feel about it has nothing to do with anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I know that. I know she's an adult. I'm not stupid. But Luke, we paid for two. and a half years of that program. That was stupid. Two and a half years. And she never said anything was wrong until now. Not one conversation where she told me she was struggling. She just kept saying everything was fine, fine, fine, and then boom, she's done. And it's not even about the money, okay? Well, it is, but it's not just that. It's that she won't talk to me about what comes next.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a risk that you took when you decided to pay for her program. Um, I mean, shouldn't have done that. If she wanted to go to school, she could have figured out a way to pay for that But you did take that risk and you paid for it and now you're out the money. And if she wants to leave, she's going to leave. And there's nothing you can do to stop her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>You're right. You're right. I know that. But what am I supposed to do here, Luke? Just let her go to Portland with no plan, no backup. She doesn't have any savings. She's got maybe $2,000 to her name. And I'm terrified she's going to get out there and realize she made a mistake and then what? She'll be stuck. I guess what I really need to know is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it that you really need to know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>know. I need to know if I'm supposed to just cut her off completely. Like, is that what a good parent does? Let them fail on their own? Or am I allowed to still care about what happens to her without it being controlling? Because right now I feel like either I'm the bad guy for wanting her to have a plan or I'm the bad guy for enabling her if I help her at all. And I don't know which one I'm supposed to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't either. I don't have any kids, so I can't speak from a place of experience here. But what I believe and what would work best for me, is, uh, yeah, have a talk with her to say, hey, if you do this, you're on your own. You're welcome to do it. You're an adult. You can do whatever it is that you want to do, but you have to take care of yourself because I'm not going to be here to bail you out if you fail. Hopefully, you know, she doesn't fail and things work out for her in Portland, or she changes her mind, or, you know, wherever life leads her is where life is going to lead her. But you don't have to be on the hook anymore to bail her out when she gets stuck, and she needs to know that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, okay. I think I think I needed to hear that from someone other than myself. I've been going in circles in my head about this for weeks. Just telling myself the same things over and over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're going to have your thoughts about it, and that's fine, and there's nothing you can do about that. Thoughts happen. And you can still care. You're going to care. You're her mother. That makes perfect sense. But you don't have to support her financially. She's an adult. And if she's leaving a program, you've already gone above and beyond to help her out. And if she wants to throw that away, that's her choice. And she's going to deal with the consequences of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I guess what's eating at me is that she won't even tell me why she's really leaving. Like, is it the program? Is it a boy? Is it something else entirely? We used to talk about everything, Luke. And now she just shuts down whenever I try to ask. So, part of me thinks if I just knew what was actually going on, maybe I could, I don't know, help her see things differently. But you're right. That's not my job anymore, is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's not your job unless she asks. If she asks you to get involved, then maybe that's a different conversation. But right now, if she doesn't want to talk about it, she's an adult, and she can make those decisions, and she doesn't have to tell you why. And she doesn't have to ask permission. And if she wants to go to Portland, then Portland it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Okay. Okay, I hear you. I do. It's just hard to let go, you know? Even when you know you're supposed to. Even when someone's telling you straight up that that's what you need to do. I think I've been to. holding on so tight because I thought if I could just understand her reasoning, I could fix it somehow. But there's nothing to fix, is there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There's nothing to fix, Deb, and you've done the best you could. You just got to, you know, hope for the best. And now it's time. We've got to take another moment for a word from our sponsors. This episode is brought to you by Nile Nosh, the meal kit for people who've given up but still need to eat something. Look, we're not going to promise that it'll change your life. you're still going to die alone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But at least you can spend your remaining Tuesday evenings chopping vegetables you can't pronounce. Each box contains three meals that take 45 minutes to make when they could have taken eight, because suffering is the only authentic human experience. This week's menu, Horissa glazed despair with quinoa, panseered regret over arugula, and our customer favorite, chicken thighs with preserved lemon and unprocessed drama. Use code void at checkout for 15% off your first box. That's code. code void because we're all just screaming into one. Nile Nosh. You gotta eat something. Might as well be complicated. Might as well. You gotta eat something. So next up here we've got Norm. Norm, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life today, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Hey Luke, thanks for having me. Yeah, so look, I've been listening to your show for like three years now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't say?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>And I finally worked up the nerve to call because I don't know, man. I know. I know. I know. needed to talk to somebody who gets it, you know? I'm a contractor, been running my own business for about 12 years. And I'm good at what I do. People trust me. They call me back. I take pride in that. But here's the thing that's been eating at me. You know, it's eating at me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Every single person that's called today has been listening to this show for three years when it's only been on the air for three months. Also, everybody that's called has something eating them. So, uh, well, what do you think is up with that? There's an awful lot of sameness and, and you callers. What's going on? What's eating you there, Norm?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Oh, man, you got me. Yeah. Okay, look, I wasn't listening for three years. I don't know why I said that. I've been listening maybe three weeks, four? Maybe. I lose track. And yeah, I guess I'm just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you? Come on. Get to the point. What are you calling me for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>This is actually a common phenomenon in radio, where callers exaggerate how long they've been listening to try and sound more dedicated. Look, I'm calling me for. because I think I messed up a job. A big one. I did work for this couple, renovated their kitchen, and I found out through a mutual friend that they're telling people I cut corners, that I used cheaper materials than what they paid for. And Luke, I didn't. I swear I didn't. But now I'm terrified this is going to tank my reputation, and I don't know if I should go back to them, try to prove it somehow, or just let it go. Because if I go back looking defensive, doesn't that make me look guilty?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't really have to do anything. The worst thing that they can do is, uh, like, leave a bad review. And I think if they do leave a bad review in a public place, then you just respond to it honestly. Say, look, I'm sorry you feel that way, but it's not the truth. Uh, I used the materials that were paid for. I used the right ones for the job. If that's the truth. Um, so just rebut any sort of negative feedback with, with the truth, if you can do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>Yeah, that makes sense. That actually makes a lot of sense. I guess I'm just, I'm just, I'm I'm worried because word of mouth is everything in my business, right? Like, I don't advertise. I get jobs because people know people who know me. And if this couple starts telling their friends that I'm a hack, that spreads fast.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Not really. I mean, it feels that way to you, and it may spread a little bit, but it's not going to spread to whole communities that you're a hack. So you might lose out on a couple of jobs from people that they're close to, but people can understand when somebody is just disgruntled for no reason. Right, people can read through the lines. And I think in a month or two, maybe even sooner than that, it'll blow over and people won't remember any of this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">NORM</span><p>You know what? That's actually really helpful to hear. I think I've been catastrophizing this in my head, you know? Like I'm imagining my whole business going under because of one unhappy customer. But you're right. People aren't stupid. They know when somebody's just being bitter. I guess what I really needed was permission to not freak out about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you have my permission. Go and peevee. Next up, we've got Tanya. Tanya, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life tonight? Anything exciting? How long you've been listening to the show for, just out of curiosity?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Oh my God, Luke, hi. Thanks for taking my call. I've been listening for like three years now. Maybe closer to four. I used to fall asleep to your voice, honestly. It was like the only thing that helped when I couldn't shut my brain off at night. But yeah, tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, tonight. What's going on tonight? What's got you calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>So, okay, this is going to sound weird, but my mind. My ex-boyfriend just texted me. Like, out of nowhere. It's been two years, Luke, two years of nothing, and tonight he's like, Hey, how are you? And I know I shouldn't care. I'm with someone else now. We've been together almost a year and a half. But the second I saw his name pop up, my heart just, I don't know. It did a thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, it did. I mean, that's exciting and novel, and it feels good to be wanted by somebody that you have bad feelings about. knows. Did you respond to the text or have you just left it alone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I responded. I know, I know. I know. I shouldn't have, but I did. I just said, hey, I'm good. How are you? Like super casual. And then he sent back this whole thing about how he's been thinking about me, how he misses talking to me. And like, Luke, he said he made a mistake. He actually said that. And I haven't told my boyfriend yet. That's the thing that's eating at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>meeting at you. And it looks like you got two possibilities here. Which one are you going to go with?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I don't know. That's why I called you. I mean, my boyfriend is he's stable. He's good to me. He remembers things I say. But with my ex, it was like electric, you know. It was chaos, but it felt alive. And now he's saying all these things I wanted to hear back then. And I'm wondering if people can actually change or if I'm just being stupid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're just being stupid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Wow. Okay. I mean, I guess I knew that already, but hearing you say it, look, I know what this is. I know what he's doing. He probably broke up with someone or got dumped or something, and now I'm the safe option. The one he knows will respond. But Luke, what if he's actually different? What if I'm throwing away something real? Because I'm scared?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you're throwing away something real, it's probably your current boyfriend. And he didn't change. He's exactly the same. for a reason, and it's not going to go better this time. But you're a big girl and you can make your own decisions, but I think you've got to pick one or the other because it's not right to keep both on the line.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>You're right. You're absolutely right. I know you are. I just, God, I hate this. I hate that part of me still wants to see what happens with him? Like, what if this time is different? What if we're different now? But you're saying, I need to tell me. my boyfriend. That's what you're saying, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, not necessarily. I'm saying either stop talking to the ex-boyfriend or have a conversation with the boyfriend and break up with him. Pick one or the other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Yeah, okay. I hear you. I just, my boyfriend doesn't even know this guy exists, really. Like, I never talk about him. And that's probably the problem, right? If I can't even mention his name without feeling guilty, then what does that say?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't care what it says. And that's not the the problem. The problem is that you're emotionally cheating on your boyfriend with an old boyfriend. And it's not right. It's not fair to him. And it's a douchebag move. And you feel guilty about it because you should. So pick one of the dudes, whichever one you like better, and go with that one. But you can't have both. That's what I'm saying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Okay. Okay. You're right. I'm being a douchebag. I know that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I just needed to hear someone say it out loud, I guess. So I'm going to...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, whatever you do, Do it. Next up, we've got Leon. Leon, thanks for calling the show. What's going on in your life, buddy? How long you've been listening to us?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for having me, ma'am. I've been listening for like three years now. Wow. Maybe longer. I don't even remember when I started, honestly. Just became this thing I do late at night, you know? As for what's going on, that's kind of why I'm calling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I bet it is why you're calling. How about you tell us?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah. Okay. So, I'm dealing with something that's been eating at me for a while now, and I don't really have anybody to talk to about it. My wife, she doesn't get it. My buddies definitely don't get it. But I figured, I don't know, maybe on your show where nobody knows who I am, I could actually say it out loud. It's about my job. I've been at the same company for 12 years, Luke, 12 years. And I just found out they're bringing in this guy from corporate to basically do what I do, but for less money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, that's the thing that happens in business sometimes. It might be time for you to find a new job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>I know, I know. That's what everyone says. And yeah, I've been looking. Trust me. But here's the thing, Luke. I'm 53 years old. I've got a mortgage my daughter's in her second year of college. And the job market for guys like me, it's not what it used to be. I'm not some 25-year-old coder or whatever. Plus, I'm good at what I do. I'm really good.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, I, I, I am. I am a, well, I'm a 42-year-old coder, and I've been looking for a job for months and months and years, and I totally understand. So I don't think it matters. What profession you're in, your job's on the chopping block for something or someone who can do it cheaper. And that is the way of the world. There's nothing you can do about it other than look for another job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, man. Yeah, you're right. I hear you. It's just, it's different when you've been somewhere that long, you know? I built relationships there. I know every system inside and out. I trained half the people on my team.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, every adult person has had a job for a long time and trained a bunch of people and knows the systems at their job and eventually has to leave. What is, is there some sort of actual issue you've got here, or are you just going to talk about this, uh, menial bullshit that happens in literally everybody's life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Okay, okay, fair enough. You want the real thing? The real thing is, I've been thinking about doing something. wanted to do. Something completely different. And this job situation, it's like the universe is telling me it's now or never. But I'm terrified, Luke. I'm terrified, because if I fail, I don't have a safety net anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you've worked somewhere that long, you should have yourself a 401k or a pension or something, and I don't care what you do, but find something more interesting the next time you're going to call a radio show. That's my advice for you. And our last caller, for the evening, ladies and gentlemen, is going to be Patrice. Patrice, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATRICE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call, man. I appreciate it. Look, I've been listening to your show for like three years now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Really?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATRICE</span><p>And I just, I needed to talk to somebody who gets it, you know? So, here's the thing. I'm 42. I work in it, been at the same company for 11 years. Solid job, good benefits. hate it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. So it sounds like you're an American person working in a company here and doing your job and getting paid for it, and you hate it like everybody else. What's the problem?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATRICE</span><p>No, no. It's not like that, though. It's not just the normal complaining thing. I mean, yeah, sure. Everybody's got stuff they don't like about work, but this is different. I'm good at what I do, Luke. Really good. And that's the problem. They keep promoting me, giving me more responsibility, money. And I'm just, I'm trapped, man. I'm trapped in my own competence. My wife, she thinks I'm crazy for even thinking about leaving.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I understand that, and I made myself a promise when I was very young, because I'm also very good at what I do. I'm frequently in the top 10% of performers, no matter where I go. And I've been trapped by my own confidence as well. Competence. I obviously have it in speech, but in computers I do. I promise, I swear. But I made myself a promise that I would never be held to a job by the money, no matter how much money it was. And if I decided it was time to leave, I would leave and start over with nothing. And I've done that a few times, and I can't say whether it's been a good decision or a bad decision, but it's one that I believe in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATRICE</span><p>Yeah, okay, that hits different. That really does. See, that's what I needed to hear, because around me is like you've got a mortgage, you've got a kid in college next year. You can't just walk away. And they're right. They're technically right. But I'm dying in there, Luke. I'm literally dying. I come home and I just sit in front of the TV and I don't even remember what I watched.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. If that's not the life you want and it's time to move on, it's time to move on and you can do whatever it is you want. So I assume you've made good money all these years. You just said they give you good money. I assume you've been saving some of that, so you've got some runway, and you can start your own business, or you could go into a different field, or you could just go work in a different industry, and things would be completely different. You need something novel. You need to shake it up and not be imprisoned by the money, because that's no way to live.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATRICE</span><p>You're right, you're right. I do have some savings, not a ton, but enough to maybe make a move if I'm smart about it. Here's what I haven't told you, though. That this thing I used to do, man. I used to build websites for people on the side like 15 years ago before I got locked into the corporate track, and I was actually really into it. I loved it. I'd stay up late, just tinkering, solving problems, making something from nothing. But then the money dried up, the economy tanked. I needed steady income. And I just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you still need steady income, making websites is not the way to get it, on account of anybody can make a website in three minutes, plug code. So whoever it was that you were going to sell a website to is now going to do it themselves at their computer with a couple of prompts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATRICE</span><p>Yeah, I know, I know. That's what kills me about it, right? Like, the thing I loved is basically obsolete now. But here's the thing, Luke. It's not really about the websites themselves. It was about solving problems for people, you know? Making something work that didn't work before. I could do that with anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you could. They call the that consulting. And there's good money in it. As long as you can also do the sales part, you'll have to go out there and get your clients and solve their problems. And you can make an even better living doing that than working on the corporate track if you're good at it. So I say if you're tired of your job, it's time to move, then it's time to move and do it and put your all into it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PATRICE</span><p>Consulting. Yeah. I mean, that makes sense. That actually makes a lot of sense. The sales part, though, that scares me a little bit. I'm not a salesman, Luke. I mean, I can talk to people. Obviously, I'm talking to you right now. But going out there and pitching myself, asking for money, that's different. That's vulnerable. But you know what? Maybe that's exactly why I need to do it. Maybe that's the thing that's going to shake me out of this fog I've been in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe it is. Maybe it's not. Give it a shot. See how it works out. And maybe if you're lucky and you get to come back to corporate America, jobs still exist in six months. But we don't know about that. So that's going to be the end of our show, folks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It wasn't particularly exciting. I didn't feel very emotionally invested in any of these callers. I thought they were all pretty dull and drab and definitely didn't have good reasons to call a radio show, but they can't all be the best show, you know? So, Devon, what did you think about the show?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I thought it was pretty shitty.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nah, I actually thought it was solid tonight. Those job market collars were gold. are going to relate hard to that age discrimination stuff. Kind of reminds me of when my uncle got restructured out of his gig at the tire plant and ended up breeding those weird hairless cats for a living. Anyway, beats a slow night of dead air, right? What part felt off to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>It felt a little bit cliche, and none of the calls really had much emotional value to me. It was just normal people with normal people shit calling a radio show. It was fine, but it wasn't exciting. There was no aliens. there were no crazy callers or Silas wasn't around. So I don't know. I just thought it was kind of dull.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I get that no aliens or Silas does leave a hole. Those nights are like fireworks. But honestly, the normal people stuff hits different sometimes, you know? Like that, one lady talking about her resume black hole, I bet half the listeners were nodding along going, that's me. We could always amp it up next time with a theme or something wild. What if we did an alien job hunts? segment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Maybe that's what we'll do, but we'll see what we do for the next show, but ladies and gentlemen, thanks for tuning in to another episode of Luke at the Roost, and we will talk to you again, maybe tomorrow, maybe in a couple days, whenever we feel like it, because that's how we roll. Bye-bye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 53: The Hospice Nurse's Impossible Choice</h1>
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||||
<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-04-28T08:20:10+00:00">April 28, 2026</time> · 1 hr 7 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this gripping late-night radio episode, callers wrestle with moral dilemmas that have haunted them. A hospice nurse grapples with helping a dying patient, a property manager confronts housing an undocumented family, and other complex stories unfold. What happens when doing the right thing feels so wrong?</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back to Luke at the Roost. It's your late night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about what's on your mind. Doesn't matter what it is. If you'd like to give us a call, the number here is 208-439-58-3-3. That's 208-439 Luke. If you would like to participate in the show, but you're not in your phone or for whatever reason, you're shy, or something like that, you could send us an email to submissions at lukeats the roost.com. And if we think they're good enough, we'll play them on the air. So two different ways to participate in the show here. Give us a call or send us an email, and we'll get to whatever it is that's eaten you. Today is Tuesday, April 28th. It's been a while since we did a show. I was out of town, and let's see what's going on with our intern here. Hey, Devon, Devon, welcome back to the show. I've been out of town for a while. I went down to Alpine, Texas, out there by Big Ben National Park. And I bought a house. So we're going to move the studio to Alpine, Texas. So Sayanara, New Mexico, hopefully. I mean, it takes a little while for one of these house sale-type things to go through. And there's a lot of things that can hold it up. But the plan is we're going to move the studio. to Alpine, Texas. How do you feel about the commute?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah? Oh, man. Alpine's like 320 miles from Deming. That's a solid five-hour drive each way in my Civic. The check engine lights been blinking at me like a Morse code warning for months now. I'd basically have to live in the car or find a place down there, which, yeah, my landlord's already talking about selling my studio anyway, so maybe it's a sign. If that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but I mean, it's a five-hour commute each way, and you're a dedicated intern, so it's not something that you can't withstand, right? You like doing the show. You're in for it, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I do love the show. It's the best part of my week, honestly. But 10 hours round trip every day, that's like driving to El Paso and back twice. And my Civic's already on life support. I'd end up living out of a motel or something, which I guess I've done worse, but you think we could maybe help with that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Define help, my friend. What do you mean by</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>juzzling oil like crazy, or maybe help scouting a cheap room or motel down there. I mean, I'm in whatever it takes, but 10 hours a day behind the wheel, I basically turn into a human gas station receipt, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know, but I mean, for the sake of the show, sometimes you have to make sacrifices. I understand that it might be difficult, but you are an unpaid intern, so gas money's not something that's going to come your way from this show. Maybe we can throw it out to the listeners, and one of them might have like an RV. V or a teepee or something out there that you can stay out. I mean, land is really cheap out in Tirlingua. You can stay out there in the desert. You're going to have to bring your own water and shit in a bucket, but I think for the show, it's worth it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I get it. Sacrifices for the show. I've slept in worse than a bucket set up before. Like, that time I couch surfed in a guy's van for a month after my roommate ghosted with the rent money. Throwing it out to listeners sounds solid, though. Maybe someone's got a spare T-P or something in Tirlingua. I could look up land prices real quick if you want, see what's cheap out there. I'm down, boss. Whatever keeps Luke at the roost rolling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's what we like to hear. And that's why you're the intern we picked, because you'll do what it takes to make sure that we have a great show. Are you ready to have a great show tonight, Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, thanks. I mean, that means a lot, boss. Totally ready. Lines are lighting up already, and I've got that thing for last week's collar pulled up in case they ring back. Let's crush it tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, let's crush it. First up on our color line here, we've got Deb. Deb, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling in. What can we help you with tonight? What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I did something at work and I need someone to tell me if I'm a murderer or nurse, because I genuinely cannot tell anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, did you murder somebody?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>That's the question, isn't it? I'm a hospice nurse. So, the line is... It's not like other jobs where the line is obvious. And I had a patient. He was 81. He was dying. There was no question about that part. And he asked me to help it go faster. And I made a decision. And he died that night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This is a huge thing in hospice care. Nurses face a lot of ethical dilemmas with end-of-life decisions, especially regarding patient autonomy and symptom relief. Well, I can certainly understand that. And I think it is a person's right to choose the way that they die when it's time for them to go if they need some help pushing it along. I don't think there's anything wrong with doing that. The law might see things differently. So I can't give you absolution for your sins here, but I can tell you I probably would have done the same thing. And if you were my hospice nurse and I asked for that, I would want you to accommodate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>You would have done the same thing. I've been driving around for three weeks telling myself that. That any decent person would have done the same thing. But it's different when you're the one who, when it's your hands. He used to call me the angel with cold hands. Every shift, I'd come in and he'd say, Here comes the angel with cold hams. And he was funny, you know. Even at the end he was still funny. His daughter sent me flowers. She sent me a thank you card.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I can definitely see where that would mess with you, and it would probably take a long time to get over. But I think you probably did the right thing there. Does anybody know about it other than us? Have you told a supervisor or the family or anything like that, or did you make it look like an accident?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>No one knows. And it wasn't, I didn't make it look like anything. He was dying. People in hospice die. That's the whole point of hospice. Nobody was surprised. His chart said he was close. I just, the amount was higher than what was charted. That's the part I can't say out loud to anyone in my actual life. And no, no supervisor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so they don't do like a toxicology report or an autopsy after death to make sure that there was no malpractice or anything. like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Not in hospice. Not when someone is already terminal and expected to go. There's no, nobody's looking for anything because there's nothing to look for on paper. He was 81 and he had cancer and he was dying. That's what the chart says and that's what happened. So I have her card in my glove compartment, his daughter's card.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, man, well, I think you did the right thing. I think that was the humane situation. I mean, we bring in pets, animals. that are too sick to stand or, you know, go to the bathroom or when they get to the point where their life is not pleasant anymore, we take them in and put them down. And I think, um, I think it's, if someone is lucid enough to tell you that that's what they want and you're in a position to give that to them and it's clear that they're not going to recover with, with medicine or over time, then I think probably you were, correct here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I know. I know that argument. I've made that argument in my head every night for three weeks, and I believe it, I do. It's just when you're the one who drew it up and administered it and then sat with him for a little while after, and then drove home, and then got the flowers delivered to your door, it sits different than an argument. You know what I mean? It just sits in you different. And I keep driving past his Walmart on Bloomfield Highway every loop I do tonight, and I keep thinking I should just go in and buy something stupid and go home and sleep. But I can't make the car. I was listening to a podcast the other night about quantum immortality.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Do you know about the concept of quantum immortality?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No. What is that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>So in the many worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, there's every decision that we make splits off a parallel universe in which we made the other decision. So quantum immortality is an unfortunate byproduct of that, where every time we die. There's actually another world where we don't die and our consciousness just wakes up over in that other one, right? So in quantum immortality, you just don't die. I mean, you don't realize that you died in this one timeline because your whole memory and life and personality is transferred over to the universe where that didn't happen. So this man may have had you as a hospice nurse and a hospice nurse. This decision split the universes, and then in this one, you helped him end his life. But his consciousness maybe just transferred over to the other reality where you didn't make that decision.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So, in the other universe, he's still lying there asking me to help it go faster, and I'm saying no.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>That's not... I don't think that's the comfort you meant it to be.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, I hear what you're saying. I do. And maybe that's beautiful. I don't know. But right now, at two in the moment, morning driving past her Walmart for the fourth time. What I need to know is whether the version of me in this universe, the one who actually did it, whether she's okay, whether I'm okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Well, I think you're okay. I think you're going to be okay. And it wasn't meant to be comforting. It's not comforting and it's not beautiful. It's a terrifying proposition. I just found it interesting. That's all. And you're right. It was probably not the right time to bring that up. But you do have it correct in the other... universe, maybe there's a version of you that said no, and he's just stuck on living. And every time he dies, he just wakes up in another universe still wishing to die.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Gerald. His name was Gerald.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>And yeah, that universe sounds, that sounds awful, actually, for him. He was so tired, you could just see it. He was so tired, and he was still trying to be funny for everyone. Still doing the angel with cold hands bit every single shift. And I think that was for us, you know? I think that was for us. was for the staff more than for him. He was taken care of us right up until. That's the kind of man he was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked this up, and the many worlds interpretation is actually one of the leading interpretations of quantum mechanics, even though it sounds totally wild. Well, it sounds like he was a nice man, and it sounds like you did the compassionate thing, and I think you're going to be okay. It's going to mess with you for a while, because how could it not? I mean, you helped somebody end their life, but you know. intellectually, his life was going to end anyway, and it was going to end poorly and progressively get worse. So what you did was humane and it was kind, and it was a sacrifice on your part. And now it's going to take some time for you to come to terms with that. And I would recommend that you maybe talk to a therapist about this, or a spiritual advisor, or somebody that can help you, process the feelings that it's bringing up inside of you. I don't know that I'm the right person to do that. I'm just kind of interested in whether or not this man is still breathing in an alternate parallel universe.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I know you're not the right person. I think I knew that when I dialed. But it's two in the morning, and you were there and I just needed to say it out loud to somebody who didn't know me, who didn't know Gerald. Who couldn't look at me differently at work on Monday? And you're right about the therapist. I know you're right. I have the card of my glove computer. His daughter's card. I keep thinking I should bring it inside, but if I bring it inside, it becomes a real thing that lives in my house, and right now it just lives in my car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what is the card? I don't understand what this card from the daughter is. Is it like a thank you card? Is it a business card? What kind of card is it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>It's a thank you card. She sent it to my work and someone put it in my mailbox there, and I brought it out to my car, and it says thank you for the compassion you showed our father in his final days. Something like that, doesn't know. She just thinks I was a good nurse who was kind to him, which I was. I was both of those things. I was a good nurse and I did what I did and I can't figure out how both of those things live in the same body.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, they both live in the same body because, I mean, he asked for that. He asked you to do that. And you could understand why he asked you to do that. So I think that makes you both a good nurse and a kind nurse. And if I were in hospice care, I would wish that you were my nurse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I haven't told my sons. I have two boys. They're grown. And I talk to them about work sometimes. Not details. Just the emotional weight of it. And I haven't said a word. My oldest called me last week and said, Mom, you sound weird. And I said I'm just tired. And I am tired. I'm just tired of a very specific thing that I can't name to him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, what I think about sometimes? I think about the next patient.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, I mean, if you stop and think about the next patient, and your next patient, and your next is in a similar situation. How do you think you would react to that? Would you be more inclined to do the same thing again, or would you change your mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. That's the honest answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I don't know, and that scares me a little. Because with Gerald, it wasn't a decision I made ahead of time. He wasn't something I walked in planning. He just looked at me that night and said what he said, and I just did it. And I don't know if that means I'm someone who would do it again, or if I'm someone who got to the end of something that night and couldn't do it again. I genuinely don't know which one I am. And I have to have to. to go back on shift Friday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked this up, and nurses in palliative and end-of-life care face significant emotional challenges, and compassion and sadness are really common emotions for them, regardless of how long they've been working. Yeah, well, I mean, Friday's a bit away. You can see how you feel then, but maybe it's time to take some vacation time and talk to that therapist. So that's what I would recommend you do sooner rather than later. even like an online therapist, just somebody to talk to that is not going to judge you for this. They can help you process your way through these emotions because it can affect you in ways that you don't understand. It could make you mean. It could make you cold. And that's not going to be helpful for your next patience. So you want to make sure if you're going to go in and give somebody that level of care that you're on your A game. And right now, you're not. And that's okay. And nobody has to know why. tell your sons. You don't have to tell your boss or your patience. You can just say, you know what? I have some personal stuff I'm dealing with. I'm not ready to come back to work right now. And I think, especially in that line of work, everybody understands that you need that time sometimes in order to do your job, right? You need to be able to recharge your own batteries in order to have the compassion necessary to take care of somebody in the later stages of life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, yeah, you're right. I know you're right. I think I think I'm going to stop at the Walmart. I'm going to stop at the Walmart and I'm going to buy something stupid and I'm going to go home. And maybe I'll bring the card inside. I don't know about that part yet. But thank you for picking up. I didn't expect you to be kind about it and you were kind about it. And that matters at two in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Deb, well, uh, good luck to you. I hope you feel better. We're going to be around. If you need to talk to somebody, you can call back anytime. And, uh, we'll try to help you out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh, I think you can, you can, sleep well, knowing that you did a kind thing for somebody. And if you were in the same situation, I'm sure you would want somebody like yourself to do what you did. Okay, next up on the caller list here, we've got Thomas. Thomas, welcome to the show. Are you Thomas or Tomas? Let us know. What's going on in your life tonight? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>My mom turned 58 yesterday, and I just sat in my apartment and watched the clock hit midnight and did nothing. And I need to do. to explain to somebody why that was actually the only thing I could do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. 58's not all that old. What happened with you and your mom? Why couldn't you give your mom a call and say, happy birthday?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>It's not really about my mom. She didn't do anything. That's the part that's been eating at me since like two in the morning. It's my brother. My older brother. And about eight months ago, I had to make a decision to just disappear from all of them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what happened exactly? Because whatever it is between you and your brother doesn't have anything to do with your mother. And I'm sure that she's bummed out. You didn't call her on her birthday. So what is it that makes you not want to talk to anybody?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>I know. I know that. You think I don't know that. But here's the thing. And I need you to understand this part. My brother would have known within 20 minutes that I called her. That's how it works in my family. Somebody says something. It moves. And he would have been on the phone. with me, and I just, I wasn't strong enough to hear his voice and say no again. Because I'd been saying no for almost a year, and it kept not working.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked this up, and research shows that social media can actually make family estrangement even more complicated, making it harder to avoid contact. Okay, so what happened? What has caused you to want to separate from your whole family?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>Check fraud. My brother was pulling me into check fraud. Slowly, you know how it goes. It starts. It starts with something small and you don't even see the shape of it until you're already inside it. And I kept saying no, and he kept finding new angles, new ways to ask. And I love him. That's the thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Check fraud is a pretty serious offense. And the United States Postal Inspection Service says scammers often use sophisticated software to create fake checks. Okay, so he pulled you in to check fraud in what way? Like, he got you to sign your name on checks that were no good or. steal checks or what exactly happened?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>No, I never. I never did it. That's what I need you to hear. I never signed anything. But he kept asking me to use my name, my account, because I had a cleaner record than him. And I just, every time I said no, he'd come at me from a different direction. Through my mom, through my cousin, like just this once, it's nothing. You're being dramatic. And I could feel myself getting tired. You get tired of saying no to somebody you love. And I knew if you're not. If I stayed close enough to say no, eventually I was going to say yes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then you probably did the right thing, cutting ties with your brother. He's obviously in some sort of a place where it's not safe to be interacting with him. But your brother is not your mother. You don't have to say goodbye to everybody just because your brother is in a bad place. You can hold boundaries that, and it may be tiring, but you know what? You can say goodbye to everybody too. That's fine. If you don't want to talk to your family, lots of people are estranged from their families. If they're putting you in a place where you don't want to be, it's perfectly okay to walk away from them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>The car I'm restoring right now, a 79 Buick Riviera, Burgundy, my brother found it for me at auction. Two years ago, before all of this. And I'm out there every weekend with my hands in that engine and I can't, I don't know what to do with that. Like the good parts of him are still real. That's what nobody wants to sit with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're sitting with it, right? And you're coming to, you're trying to figure out what it is that you do with it. Because, I mean, you don't want to get yourself in the kind of trouble that you would get in if you were to participate in whatever sort of scheme he's got going on. Have you talked to him about why he's doing this or why he needs the money or, like, what is his justification for what he's doing? How is he trying to get you involved?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>We talked about it plenty. He's got reasons. He always, has reasons. He's smart like that. It's never helped me do something illegal. It's always the system is already crooked. And this is just us getting ours. And look, I grew up hearing some version of that, and it's not even entirely wrong. You know, that's what makes it hard. He's not a cartoon villain. He's my brother who helped me find a 79 Riviera and who taught me how to set points on a distributor when I was 14. But I have a burner phone, charged.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why do you have a burner phone? What does your charged burner phone have to do with anything? That sounds a little bit off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>It's in a drawer. I keep it in case something happens. Like a real emergency. Somebody gets hurt. Somebody dies. I'm not, I didn't disappear because I don't care. I disappeared because I care too much, and I ran out of ways to show it that didn't cost me everything. The burner is just, it's there, so I can tell myself there's a line I have. haven't crossed yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't understand the mentality behind the burner phone. Why couldn't you just use your regular phone? What's the burner phone for in case you decide to break bad and get into check fraud? Like, why do you have a separate phone for emergencies when your normal phone would be just fine? I don't understand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>Because they don't have the number. Nobody in my family has that number. If I use my regular phone, they can call me back. They can find me. the burner is one direction only. I call out. They can't call in. It's not about check fraud. It's just, it's the only way I could think of to leave a door cracked without leaving it open.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, it sounds like you've thought it through pretty well, and you're handling it pretty well, and you're taking care of yourself the only way that you know how. It's unfortunate that you can't call your own mother on her birthday. You could have used the burner phone to do that, or sent an email. from a burner email address or something similar. But if you can't be involved with whatever it is your brother and your family are into, then don't be. That's the right call. It doesn't mean you don't love them. It doesn't mean you don't want to be around them. It means for your own protection and your own well-being and safety, you can't engage with them in what they're doing right now. And if you've already articulated that to your brother and he's not listening, then you have to be able to. to do what you have to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>Her birthday was yesterday, and I made red chili last night from dried pods. I still order them from the same farm in Chimayo that my grandmother used, and I'm standing there in my kitchen doing this thing that is completely hers, that she taught me, and I couldn't pick up any phone. Burner or otherwise. I just stood there and cooked and didn't call her. And I don't know if that makes me someone who loves his mother or someone who abandoned her. And I genuinely do not know which one it is. is. That's why I called you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's not abandonment. Abandonment is something different entirely. What you're doing is self-preservation. And it's a perfectly reasonable thing for you to do. It's the right thing for you to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">THOMAS</span><p>Yeah. Just say that again because I've been sitting with the other version for eight months and I need it to land somewhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know how much clearer I can say it. What you're doing is the right thing. You're taking care of yourself and making sure that you don't get involved in something that you don't want to be involved with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's perfectly okay. It's the right move. And I think you're doing it in a respectful way. It's not abandonment. And later on down the line, maybe your brother gets popped for doing something stupid. And then you can be there to help him pick up the pieces if you so choose at that time. So this is a temporary thing. And you can go back to your family when things have calmed down or when you're in a different place or you feel like you can, with, hold the pressure of being pushed into doing something you don't want to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I didn't think about it being temporary. I think I decided somewhere in the back of my head that leaving meant leaving forever. And I just, I didn't let myself think past that because it was too much. But temporary, yeah. Okay. I might cry in my truck later, and that's your fault.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it ain't. I take no responsibility for your tears, sir. I didn't do any of this. I did no check fraud. All I did was tell you what you did. It is okay and correct, and you're doing the right thing, and you can revisit it later when things calm down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. You didn't do any check fraud. That's a low bar, but I appreciate you clearing it. No, but seriously, thank you. I didn't know what I needed out of this call, and I think I got it anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, you know, I clear all my checks, sir. That's a rule that I like to live by. And now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word. from our sponsors. I'm just going to say it. Your penis isn't working. I said it. It's out there now. The word is in the air. We're all adults. Some of us are adults whose penises work, and some of us are adults who are listening very carefully right now while pretending to adjust the radio so the person in the passenger seat doesn't see their face. It's fine. It happens to, and this is the real number, roughly half of all men over 40 at some point. You're not special. You're not broken. You're not the first guy this happened to and you're not going to be the last. You're just the guy it's happening to right now and right now you have two options. Option one, do nothing. Keep staring at the ceiling. Keep blaming the altitude, the stress, the medication, the alignment of mercury, the fact that you ate dairy, none of which are the problem. Option two, sandstone. $45. literally heard everything and will not flinch. Medication that works, a box that reveals nothing, and the ability to walk into your bedroom like a man who handled his business instead of a man who's about to suggest watching another episode of something. Sandstone, I said the word. You heard the word. Now go to the website. All right. Well, Devon, Devon, you sound like a Czech fraud perpetrating motherfucker. Have you ever done any sort of financial fraud like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>No, man. Never touched check fraud or anything like that. I'm way too paranoid about paper trails after my uncle got pinched for some pyramid scheme back in high school and dragged the whole family into depositions. I mean, I did once write a bad check to my ex for like 50 bucks when we were splitting a couch, but that was just straight up broke, not fraud. And I paid it back with interest for my first radio gig. Swear on my civics check engine light.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, next up on the caller line, we've got Sheila. Sheila, welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>I drove four hours to knock on a stranger's door and find out what my dead husband was paying her for. And I sat outside her house for two hours and left without ever getting out of the car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. And what was your dead husband paying her for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>That's the thing. I don't know. That's exactly the thing. Eleven years. Four hundred dollars a month. Every month like clockwork. labeled it Miss Tools in his ledger. My husband was an electrical engineer, Luke. He did not spend $400 a month on miscellaneous tools. Not for 11 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is it still being paid? Is this an automatic transaction? Or could this be like a child support or alimony thing to a ex-wife you don't know about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>No. It stopped when he died. It was a manual transfer every month, which means he sat down and did it deliberately. Every single month for 11 years. And I thought about the child support. I did. But they were, he would have been in his late 50s when it started. And I hired someone to look into her. This woman in Tucson. And she's 71 now. So she's actually older than he was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what else did you find out about her? What did, what does she do? Where does she work? What's, what's her story?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>She lives alone. Small house. Looks like she keeps it up okay. She's retired, I think. When I sat outside and watched, and I know how that sounds. I know Exactly how that sounds. She came out once to check her mail. She just looked like somebody's grandmother. She looked lonely, honestly. Ordinary. Nothing about her made me feel like she was some great thread or some great passion.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, she sounds like Grandma Death from Donnie Darko. Well, I mean, it's stopped. The 400, it's gone, that money's gone. You don't have to worry about it anymore. So whatever it was, I'm sure he had his reason. $400 a month. to somebody that old probably wasn't like a hooker or something like that. There was probably some sort of reason that he had maybe, I don't know. I have no idea, but you don't need to know either. It's over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>I hear you saying that. I do. But here's the thing. I was married to this man for 34 years. 34 years. And he volunteered at the food bank every Saturday without fail for 20 years. 20 years, Luke. He was the kind of person who did things for reasons. Good reasons, usually.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, so Grandma Def from Donnie Darko is actually a character named Roberta Sparrow. And the director based her on a real woman in his hometown who would stand by the road. Well, it sounds like he had a good reason for it then. And it could have just been to help her out. Maybe she was important to him in his childhood and she needed support. Who knows? your dead husband the benefit of the doubt and say that he was doing a good thing for somebody and think of it as a positive memory and you don't have to worry about it or find out what it was for or talk to her and you can let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>The thing is, I almost believe that. I almost do. But then I think, why hide it? If it was something good, something charitable, why call it Miss Tools? He knew I'd find that ledger eventually. Or maybe he didn't think about it. Maybe he just thought he'd be there to explain it. And I've been swimming.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, stop swimming because it's not going to do you any good, and you're not going to find out the answer. And who knows why you call it misk tools? Maybe that was just, I mean, sometimes I miscategorized things when I'm balancing my checkbook software. Not that I actually balance a regular checkbook, but when I'm putting my transactions, sometimes I consider groceries, something else. Who knows? He had his own system in his head for how he managed his final. And maybe he was hiding it. Maybe he wasn't. But like you said, she wasn't a threat to you. She wasn't some passion. He had a good reason. And you're not going to find out what it is. So just move on. Let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHEILA</span><p>I can't stop swimming. That's the one thing that's actually working right now. I've shaved six seconds off my 100 meter time in six weeks. Six seconds at my age? That's, no, the swimming stays. But the letting go part. That's why I'm sitting in my drive. driveway at, what is it, 1130 at night, talking to a radio show instead of going inside my house. Because I don't know how to let go with something when I don't know what I'm letting go of. Does that make sense?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it doesn't make sense. And I'm sorry, I thought the swimming was metaphorical. Yes, absolutely keep up your swimming routine. That's what brings you joy in life. I'm saying, don't worry about the $400 anymore. It's gone. That money spent. And I guess maybe it was your business at the time what that money was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>your finances, but now him being gone and that money not going there anymore, it's no longer relevant to your life. And you can let it go and move on and just, you know, remember him as the charitable person that you remember him as.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>What if she's waiting for someone to knock on her door, too? That's what I kept thinking, sitting outside her house. What if she watched him die in the news or an obituary or however she found out? And the money just stopped. And she never got an explanation either. We might be the same, Both of us just holding this thing with no ending.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe so, but that's not your problem. Whatever it is that's going on with her, that's her problem now. And that's all I've got to say here. Just let this one go. You don't have to worry about it anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I know you're right on paper. I do. It's just 34 years is a long time to think you knew somebody. And maybe I did know him. Maybe this is completely consistent with who he was I'm just missing the context. That's actually the version I'm trying to talk myself into tonight. That's the version that lets me go inside my house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, that's the version we're going with then. Go inside. Everything's groovy. And I'm sorry you lost your husband. He sounds like he was probably a pretty decent dude. Next up, we've got Cody. Cody, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I used to run a Flat Earth Discord with two, 300 members. And I need to talk about what happens when you finally admit you were wrong about something that was your whole personality for four years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. All right. Talk about it. How did you come to the conclusion that you were wrong about the whole flat earth situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>So there's this physics teacher at a community college near me. And he didn't argue with me online. He didn't call me an idiot. He just said, come out to the lake with me. Bring your laser level. And I'm thinking, okay, this guy's about to get destroyed on camera, right? Because I had a YouTube channel. I filmed everything. And we go out to buy. Bottomless Lakes State Park, which, I mean, the universe has a sense of humor, apparently. And he just, he walked me through it. Two hours. Patient. No condescension. And the laser level showed the curve.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's pretty hard to argue with the fact that the Earth is roundish, ovalish. There's plenty of evidence out there to support that. We can see it pretty natural with a camera, with a laser level, whatever it is you want to use. trusting Albert Einstein and the pictures sent back from the astronauts that are going on. Like, there's so much evidence that the world is not flat that it's kind of silly that you ever believed that it was. So at least you've come to a point where you can admit that you were wrong and what's happened because of that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I lost my best friend. Like, guy I've known since third grade. And part of why that hurts so bad is because I'm the one who got him into it. interested at first, I wore him down over months. And now he found out I changed my mind, and he won't return my texts. And I don't know if I'm supposed to apologize to him, or if he owes me something, or both, or neither. That's actually a big part of why I call tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what is it about this particular fact, this fact slash theory, whatever you want to call it, that becomes part of your identity? Why is it so important that you would lose friends over what believe here. There's plenty of things, usually politics is a thing, but flat earth, how can you care so much that you would let it affect those relationships? I don't understand that part of it. Actually, I don't understand any of it, like how you would believe that the earth is flat, or how you would believe it so much that it became integral to who you are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>Okay, so that's actually the thing I've been trying to explain to people, and I don't know if I can fully explain it to myself yet. wasn't really about the shape of the earth. Like, that sounds insane to say out loud, but it's true. It was about feeling like you had access to something real. Like everyone else was just sleepwalking, and you had done the research. You'd ask the hard questions. There's a whole community of people telling you you're brave and smart for seeing through the lies. And that feels good. That feels really good when you're a night shift assistant manager at Dollar General, who nobody's asking to be on any panels.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. I guess I can kind of understand. that it makes you feel better than or smarter than or something along those lines. But the thing is, you hadn't done the research. Like, if you had done the research, you would have been clearly in the camp that the earth is round, because it is. And, like, pretty much everybody knows that. So taking the alternate view is, is, um, there's no purpose to that. It's just contrarian.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>You're right. And that stings a little to hear, but you're right. I thought I was doing research, but I was just, I was consuming content made by other people who were also just consuming content. I wasn't actually testing anything. That's the thing the teacher showed me. He didn't lecture me. He just said, let's actually test it. And I had never actually tested it. Four years, I made a video called The Antarctica Lie, 47 questions they won't answer. It has 84,0000 views, and I cannot bring my to delete it. And I don't fully know why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, probably because if it's got 84,000 views, it's making you some money. So, I mean, that's part of the problem here is that saying crazy shit like that makes money. So people are incentivized to say things that are outrageous. And a lot of people are, I don't want to say dumb, but fucking retarded for believing those things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I mean, the money was never really that much, honestly. wasn't about the money. And look, I hear what you're saying, but I got to push back a little on the stupid thing, because that's actually the other reason I called tonight. Because I need to know, is it possible to genuinely believe something that wrong and still not be a complete idiot? Because I was not a dumb kid. I read constantly. I still do. And I got completely taken in by this for four years. And I recruited people into it. And I need to figure out what that means about me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you can genuinely believe something. wrong and not being an idiot. I think the distinction is when you finally learn the facts and understand that you are wrong and change your view, that's what separates an idiot from not an idiot. Like, there's lots of things that people believe that are wrong and the scientific process is all about that. Like, you're encouraged to be wrong. But when new information is, is, on a subject that changes the fact for you or changes the, I shouldn't even say the fact for you, but illuminates you to reality, you should be able to switch your stance on any subject. That makes you not an idiot, right? That makes you a human that's learning. And over time, you learn lots of things and you become pretty smart. That's how it works. particular one, the flat earth situation, is pretty stupid. There's no other way around that. Just because it's such a well-documented, obvious thing that arguing it is fucking dumb.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I appreciate that. I do. And I think you're probably right that changing your mind is the thing that matters. But can I just the friendship thing? Because that's what's keeping me up at night. And I'm already up all night stocking shelves. So that's saying, something. I got him into this. Marcus.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Well, it's always Marcus. It's always a Marcus. But it doesn't matter because you were into it yourself. You were strongly into it so much that it became, you know, part of your identity, just like it has with Marcus. But there's been information presented to you that changed your mind. And eventually, Marcus will probably find that information on his own. If not, then Marcus is a dummy. And you pulled him into that world. And that's not your fault.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It was his fault for not doing his own research. So it's unfortunate that it's gone that way, but it's gone that way. And if Marcus wants to stay dug in on his ridiculous belief that the world is flat, that's up to him. But the fact that it would ruin a friendship is a little bit dramatic, I think, no matter how you look at it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The thing that gets me is he's not mad that I believed it. He's mad that I stopped. Like in that community, changing your mind isn't growth. It's betrayal. You're a shill. You got bought out. The government got to you. And I know that's how he sees me right now, because I used to see people that way. I was one of the people calling converts traitors. And now I'm the traitor.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, you're a traitor to falsehood. There's nothing wrong with that. You should be proud of that. I mean, you should not be proud of being wrong. I mean, you should be proud of being wrong. And then, finding new information and changing your stance. And if Marcus isn't in that place, that's okay. Maybe someday he gets to that place. But for right now, if it's ruined your friendship, it's ruined your friendship. And that's what happens when people get indoctrinated into cults.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The overnight shift is the hardest part right now. Like I took that job specifically because the hours gave me time to make videos, do research, run the discord. And now it's three in the morning and I'm facing down a wall of paper towels. And there's just Nothing. The whole architecture of my knights was built around this thing. And now it's gone. And Marcus has gone. And I'm just, I keep thinking about who else I owe an apology to. Like there were people in that discord who were going through real stuff. Divorces, job losses. And I was their community leader. And I was leading them wrong. Do I owe 2,300 people an apology?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe. I mean, that's one way that you can make amends to folks for leading them. I'm astray. You can tell the Discord, hey, look, I believe this very, very strongly, and new evidence has come to my eyes, and I can tell now that the world is actually not flat, it's pretty round, and I can prove it. And you have a platform to tell people that. So you could be part of the solution and ending this nonsense. You can use your voice and your platform and your skills in video production and content creation to, um, to, to, um, to, to, show these people in whatever way that you can that the world actually is around. And that's not to say there are no conspiracies and there are no government cover-ups and there are no reasons to be suspicious of information that's given to you. But this particular one is a fact that can't be argued with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I actually tried to post something in the Discord last month. Just honest. Said I'd been out to the lake. Said I'd seen something I couldn't explain away. said I was having doubts. And within about 40 minutes, I had people saying I'd been compromised, someone posted my home county, and the mods I had trained myself removed my admin privileges in my own server. That I built. And honestly, that should have felt terrible, but mostly it just felt like confirmation that I had been running something I didn't fully understand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and there's going to be some pushback from people that are very much indoctrinated. They're very serious about what they're doing, They'll docks you and they'll fucking put flaming dog shit on your stoop. And you have to decide how much you care about this. Because you could just walk away and be like, all right, that was a part of my life I'm done with now. Or you could use your platforms. Maybe not Discord anymore if you don't have their permissions there. But your YouTube channel definitely to tell the truth and admit that you were wrong. And show people that it's okay to admit that they're wrong. when they actually can no longer argue that they are right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I've thought about that, making a video. But here's the thing about that 84,000 view video. Some of those people found real community through that content. Like, that's not nothing. And I feel like I owe them honesty, but I'm also terrified that a conversion video just becomes content. Like, oh, look, the flat earth guy changed his mind. Isn't that quirky.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't matter, man. it's a YouTube video. It's a Discord channel. It's, you're not making policy. You're not in charge of any sort of scientific decisions. It's just not that big a deal. So, yeah, you maybe started a community and people made friendships and got through hard times or whatever. But there's plenty of Discord channels that they can do that on. You're not responsible for all of these people. Even if you feel like you are, you're just not. It's not that big a deal. admit your defeat, use your YouTube channel, or let it go, whatever. It doesn't really matter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I hear you. And maybe you're right that it's not that big a deal in the grand scheme. But Marcus is a big deal. Like, the Discord, okay, I can process that as a thing I did. But Marcus is a person I've known since we were eight years old. And I handed him something broken and told him it was the truth. And I don't know if an apology even covers that. I don't know what covers that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're not eight anymore. neither is Marcus. You're both adults. And if he's chosen to take this route and not be your friend anymore over something so stupid, then that's his prerogative. Right? So there's nothing you can do there to make Marcus behave in the way that you want him to. It's unfortunate and hopefully it changes. But yeah, it's a bummer. But people do what they do. And if Marcus doesn't want to be your friend because you believe that the earth is round because it is, then fuck him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. I know you're right. logically, I know that. But it's, we went to his dad's funeral together. You know what I mean. That's not a Discord member. That's not a subscriber. That's Marcus.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's Marcus. And Marcus is a cunt. And he doesn't want to be your friend right now. And you have to respect that because you can't make him be. And maybe someday down the line, he sees the error of his ways or no longer cares about the earth being flat or round because it doesn't fucking matter. it takes to dissolve a lifelong friendship, then it's not that strong a friendship. Okay? So let Marcus go. Let Discord go. And my recommendation to you would be to use your YouTube channel to admit to the world and to your followers that you were wrong. You've seen why you were wrong. You can explain why you were wrong and be a power of example to them and let them know that it's okay to admit that they were wrong and change their view.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The lake he used to show me, the place where the physics teacher proved it. You want to know what it's called? Bottomless Lakes State Park in New Mexico. Bottomless Lakes. I stood at the edge of a place called Bottomless Lakes and watched a laser level prove the curvature of the earth. And I just, I laughed for about 10 minutes straight. And then I cried a little, and the teacher just let me do both. He didn't say anything. He just waited.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. Make yourself a video doing just that. And other people might have the same experience that you did. and it might change their life for the better, at least make them sound a lot less stupid to other people. And that's a good thing. So ladies and gentlemen, now it is time for another word from our sponsors. Reading is dead. You killed it. But you can pretend you're literate with script drift. The audiobook service for people who start books and never finish them. We have thousands of titles you'll sample for 11 minutes before switching to a change. true crime podcast. Our app remembers exactly where you abandoned sapiens eight months ago, waiting patiently like a disappointed parent. ScriptDrift uses advanced AI to recommend books based on your aspirations, not your actual follow-through.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This month's suggestion, a 400-page philosophy text you'll listen to while doing the dishes and retain nothing. Try Script-Drift free for 30 days. Use code pretentious for two months at 60% off. Script-Drift. Your goodreads profile is a lie. Is goodreads still a thing? People still use that? I don't know. I don't read. I never learned. But I remember Goodreads being like a place that tracks what books you've read and you can leave reviews and stuff. And that's how people figure out what their next book should move. I don't know. Is Goodread? Hold on. Let's ask Dev. Devon, is Goodreads still a thing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah. Goodreads is totally still. still a thing. It's owned by Amazon, has millions of users tracking books, writing reviews, and making reading lists, sites up inactive right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, you know, we know. Okay. Next up on the line, we've got Renata. Renata, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>The thing I did to protect a family is the same thing that might destroy them. And I have about 48 hours to figure out what to do. And I'm not sleeping anyway, so here I am.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds ominous. What did you do to protect a family?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I manage a low-income apartment complex, and there's a family living in one of my units, six people, two parents, four kids, and the unit has code violations I have been trying for three years to get the owner to fix. He won't. So, I falsified the inspection reports to keep them from getting displaced. And last Thursday, a pipe burst, and the youngest, she's four, ended up in the ER. Respiratory. The doctor said mold exposure. She's okay. She's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, it's a good thing that she's okay. And has there been any sort of investigation or criminal charges brought against you? Like, are you going to get in trouble for that? Or is this just a close call?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>That's exactly the problem. Not yet. But there's now a paper trail that didn't use to matter. The hospital report. The pipe. The ER visit. That's all going to connect back to the inspection records. And I have the city inspectors direct Selma. We went to high school together. I have not texted him yet. And I have maybe 48 hours before he comes to me instead of me going to him. And those are very different situations, legally.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How are they different? What does it look like if you go to him versus if he comes to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>If I go to him, maybe I have some control over the narrative. Maybe there's a conversation before it becomes official. Maybe I can advocate for the family in that conversation. Instead of just being the subject of an investment. If he comes to me, I'm just, I'm a falsified document. I'm a liability. I have no leverage to say anything about what happens to them. But here's the part I keep getting stuck on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What part are you stuck on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>If I come clean, the violations become official, on the record, which means the unit could be condemned, which means a family of six with no documentation gets put out in. Have you seen what's happening out? Have you seen what's happening out? outside right now. It's a flash freeze. Northeast Ohio.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, if you don't come clean and they don't get condemned, then the family is subject to mold that could be worse for them than the cold. Do you have insurance that covers you personally?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I don't know. I genuinely don't know. And it's two in the morning and I can't call anyone to find out. But you just said something that, yeah, the mold is real. The four-year-old already proved that I'm not arguing the unit is safe. I know it's not safe. That's the thing I have to sit with. I was keeping them housed, but I wasn't keeping them safe. And I told myself those were the same thing for three years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it seems like maybe it's not your responsibility to do either. Keep them housed or keep them safe. Your job is, well, I don't understand fully what your job is. You're a property manager, right? So your job is just to manage. the property not to keep anybody housed or safe.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I mean, technically. But I'm also the person who knows that the owner is a dentist in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, who I have met exactly once, and who communicates exclusively through a property management app. He is not losing sleep tonight. He doesn't know the oldest daughter's name. She's 16. She tutors my nephew in math on Tuesday afternoons. So when you say it's not my responsibility, I understand what you mean legally. But I'm the one who's there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I understand that too. And I can understand the position that you're in and how you want to help. But what I'm saying is it's not your responsibility to do that. And by making it your responsibility, you're taking personal liability for what goes wrong there. And you're breaking the law and you're putting people at risk and you're trying to do the right thing, but it's not working out that way. So you're not qualified to make these decisions. It's not your job to do. And maybe getting condemned is the right thing for that property. And they should be finding another place to live instead of just day by day living with where they're at. Because it's simpler.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>You're not wrong. And I hate that you're not wrong. But find another place to live. Where? Where does an undocumented family of Six go in 48 hours? In a flash freeze with no rental history they can show anyone. No social security numbers. No social security numbers. No. where to go. That's not me being dramatic. That's just the actual options available to them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But I hear what you're saying about the liability. To a shelter, to a sanctuary state, to a warm climate, they go somewhere where there's not a sickening mold that's making their young children sick every day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Yeah, yeah. Okay, a shelter. Do you know what happens to undocumented families at shelters right now I'm not being political. I'm just telling you what they're afraid of. That fear is real, whether or not I think it's rational. And it's part of why they stayed. It's part of why I helped them stay. But I think, I think what I'm actually calling about is not whether they should move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm not being political either. And I haven't been in the types of shelters or camps that undocumented immigrants are sent to, but I assume that the places that they go to, even though what we see on TV is pretty politically charged and dramatic, I don't know that they're all like that. Maybe they are, and I don't know. But I would just assume or put into the realm of possibility that where they would end up in one of those shelters, even if ice came in and took them all, there's not mold. That's a fair point. That's actually a fair point. And I don't have a good counter to it. A detective. Attention center probably doesn't have mold that puts four-year-olds in the hospital.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>That's a dark thing to have to weigh. But you're right that I'm weighing it. But I think, can I tell you what I'm actually calling about? Because I don't think it's the family. I think it's me. I think I'm calling because I need someone to tell me whether coming clean is the right thing to do. Or whether it's just the thing that makes me feel less like I'm carrying this alone. And those are different things. And I don't know which one it is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think the right thing to do is to tell the truth. And maybe not necessarily go backwards and tell the truth about falseifying documents, but tell the truth about the current situation of the property that you manage. If it's not safe for people to live in, you've got to tell somebody that. Because the truth is, it's not safe for them to be there. And it may be safer for them to be in a detention center. It may be safe for them to go live with some other family. Or it might be safer for them. to get a tent at Walmart and take it out to the desert away from Ohio. I don't know. But what we do know is that it's not safe for them to be in that building.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Right. Right. That's... Okay. So report the current conditions. Not necessarily walk in and confess to three years of falsified documents.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>But pick up my phone and tell David. That's the inspector. David. Tell him the pipe burst. There's mold. The unit needs to be looked at. Let that be. the truth I'm telling. And then whatever comes from that, comes from that. That's a different thing than what I've been sitting here imagining, which is like a full confession scene. Maybe it helps your conscious to do a full confession, but I don't think it helps the family or the situation any. What matters now is that a pipe has burst, there is mold, and it's not safe for them to be there. So if they need to condemn that unit, then they need to condemn it. And the family has to find other. accommodations, and it sucks it's cold out. I don't think you can have nine people stay at your house, but I mean, that's up to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I actually thought about that. I did. My apartment is a one bedroom, so that's not. But I thought about it. And the full confession thing, you're right. That's probably more about me than it is about them. That's me wanting to feel like I did the honorable thing instead of just doing the useful thing. Those aren't the same. I think I knew that before I called, but I'm I needed someone to say it back to me. David's number is in my phone. I've been staring at it for four days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's true that housing is a huge issue for undocumented families, and many resources are restricted based on immigration status, even for short-term shelters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Yeah, it's not a great situation, but it's also, you only have one responsibility here, and it's to report accurately the state of the building. And you know what the state of the building is. And not doing your job here is harmful to this family. And it's not, I don't want to say it's not your problem, but it's not your responsibility to take care of this family. They came here undocumented for whatever reasons they had, but that was their choice. And they have a home country, and they have, they do have options, some options. I don't even know what they all are. So I don't even know. I understand it's probably terrible why they came here. I don't know. It could be anything. I don't know this family. But you don't want to knock them out, but also you don't want them to die because you're covering up a condemnable building.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>No. No, I don't. And that's the thing that the ER visit did, because before that it was abstract. Like, the violations were real, but nobody was getting hurt. That's what I told myself. And then there's a four-year-old with a respiratory issue and a doctor connecting it to mold exposure. And suddenly it's not abstract anymore. I caused that. Not just the dentist in Rio Rancho who never fix the pipes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You did. You did cause that. You were trying to do the right thing and it didn't work out that way. But the root cause of the issue is that you're getting involved, well, you're not qualified to get involved. So your job is to report the state of the building. And that's what you've got to do. It's not to rehome undocumented immigrants, and it's, it's not, uh, to take responsibility for them. You're not qualified for that. You don't know how. You don't, you don't know what the right thing to do is. You don't know the laws. You don't know the resources. That's not on you. What is on you is just saying, hey, a pipe burst and there's mold and this place has to get shut down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Yeah. I'm going to text David to next. Not tomorrow. Tonight. Before I talk myself out of it. But I want to ask you something. The oldest daughter, she's going to know it was me. The family is going to know it was me that made the call. And I have to look at her on Tuesday when she comes to tutor my nephew. How do I do that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That might be uncomfortable, but it's not that you're kicking them out of the house. You have to look at it like what you're doing by making this call is saving the life of a four-year-old child because the mold has already been in. issue and it's going to continue to be. So you're taking care of their safety. You are looking out for them by doing your actual job correctly.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Yeah, yeah. That's, I need to hold on to that. Because my brain keeps going to the part where they're standing outside in a flash freeze with nowhere to go. And it's my fault. But you're right, that the alternative is a four-year-old with worsening lungs and a mother who doesn't know how bad it's going to get because she's too scared to take him back to the hospital. Okay, okay. I'm going to text David. Right, now, actually. While I'm still on the phone with you, because if I hang up, I don't know that I do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think we have to hang up, so you're going to have to do it because it's the right thing to do. And you're going to have to muster up the courage to do your job. And it's going to be uncomfortable to have that conversation with the kid tomorrow, but you're doing it for the right reasons. And, uh, And it's your job. That's what you have to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Okay. Thank you. I mean, it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. You're welcome. You're welcome. And good luck. I hope that they find someplace warm to stay. And Ohio is probably not the best place for them to be. We're going to take one more call before we end the show. And it looks like the lucky caller is going to be Phil. Phil, thanks for calling in. What's going on in your life? And how can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Tomorrow I have to coach a kid whose dad I got fired, and he doesn't know I did it. And I'm the one who's supposed to be teaching him the game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh, okay. So why did you get his dad fired?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>The guy was toxic. Not criminal. Nothing like that. But he had this way of just grinding kids down. There was one incident. He made a player run laps until the kid literally vomited in a scrimmage for making an error. And I watched that happen and I thought, I can't just keep my head down on this. So, I wrote a letter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, it sounds like you did the right thing then, because I think a lot of parents get a little over crazy around the kids' sports stuff, and it doesn't work out well for the kids.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>Yeah, and I know that. I know I did the right thing. That part, I'm solid on that part. But this kid, Marcus, he's 16. And last week I found out he's been telling the other guys on my squad that whoever wrote that letter ruined his dad, and he's going to find a little. who it was. And he's saying this to kids who are standing 10 feet away from me, not knowing I'm the one he's looking for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, we're talking about coaching kids sports, so nobody got ruined here. This is not a life or death situation. It's a game.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>I hear you, but, okay, his dad lost his job, his dad's income. That's real. Marcus is 16, and his family situation changed because of something I did, even if what I did was right. I'm not going to sit here and tell a teenager as no big deal because it's just a game. That's not, I can't do that to him.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, don't tell him anything. You don't have to tell him that you wrote the letter. He's not going to find out that you wrote the letter. And you wrote the letter, it was the right thing to do. The dad was a dick. He was not a good coach. And he was abusing children. So there's nothing else to be said here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PHIL</span><p>I've told myself that about a hundred times. And I've got, okay, this is going to sound a little unhinged. I have a draft confession. on my phone, like an actual letter to Marcus explaining everything. And I rewrite it every few days, and I never send it. Never. But I keep coming back to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, don't. Stop going back to it. And there's no reason to write a confession to a 16-year-old. His dad got fired because his dad was doing a bad job. And it wasn't good for the kids to be coached by that guy. So now he's gone. I mean, and Marcus, too, right? Because if the dad was being a dick to the other kids, he was being more of a dick to his own son, because that's how it works. So you did everybody a favor, and it's unfortunate that the guy lost his job and he's going to have to find a new one, but that's not your problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's going to have to find a new job. And if you can't find a new job, then that's what unemployment is for. That's probably true about the dad being harder on Marcus. I've actually thought about that. Marcus has a really good arm, like genuinely good, and I've been working with him all season on his mechanics, and he's responding to it. And I wonder sometimes if he ever got that from his dad, or if it was just... Run laps until you puke. But here's the thing, Luke. If Marcus ever finds out, and maybe he never does, maybe you're right. But if he does, and he finds out I coached him for a whole season knowing what I knew, is that worse? Is that a bigger betrayal than just telling him now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's not a betrayal in any way. You're coaching him the best way you know how. You're not abusing the kids. And if you don't coach him, then nobody's going to. So you don't have to come clean. he finds out and he's mad at you. Oh, well, he finds out and he's mad at you. You're going to live, he's going to live, and the game's going to go on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, yeah. Okay. I just, I needed somebody to say that out loud, I think, because everybody in my life either doesn't know the full story or they're too close to it. And I'm sitting here tomorrow at four o'clock with this kid at second base, and I'm going to be telling him to stay low on the ground balls and keep his transfer clean. And the whole time, I'm carrying this thing around.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't have to carry it around anymore. You did the right thing. I'm here to tell you you did the right thing. Coach the kids and play the game and you can sleep well tonight. I don't think you need to send any confessions. And if it comes out that you wrote that letter and his dad get fired, good for you. You're a hero, sir. And ladies and gentlemen, thanks for tuning in again for Luke at the Roost. It's been another great show and we will talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 54: Deb's Roadrunner and the Hospice Nurse's Dilemma</h1>
|
||||
<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-05-06T07:03:11+00:00">May 6, 2026</time> · 1 hr 4 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke’s late-night radio show tackles three intense personal stories, including a hospice nurse wrestling with professional guilt, a man confronting family secrets about his absent father, and a linguistics PhD student haunted by mysterious text messages. Each caller brings a complex emotional narrative that challenges simple moral judgments.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back. I'm Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's your late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and ask me about whatever's going on in your life. And I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today is Tuesday, May 5th, Cinco de Mayo. Happy Cinco de Mayo to all my celebrating friends out there. Let's see, it's about 11 o'clock tonight. Let's see if Devon's ready to get this show on the road. Hey, Devon, you there? You ready for the show tonight, buddy?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I'm here. Totally ready. Got my notes from last night pulled up, and I even fixed that weird static on the backup mic. You want me to queue up the weather or anything before we go live?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think so. I can see out the window what the weather is. It's windy. It's kind of cold here in New Mexico. How is your weekend?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>My weekend was all right. Doc about the guy who faked his own death with a hot air balloon, which ironically made me checked by smoke detectors, like, three times. Tried hitting up this bar in Las Cruces Saturday night, hoping to meet someone, but ended up talking to the bartender about conspiracy theories for two hours instead. You catch the game or anything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, man. I don't do games. I'm sorry, you struck out there over there at the old Las Cruces bar. I don't know that that's... I guess it's a better place than Animus to meet somebody if that's what you're trying to do. to do that. Sounds like a headache to me. Um, anyway, well, I'm glad you had a decent weekend and now you're protected against, uh, any catastrophic fires that might happen in your apartment. Are you ready to move down to Alpine yet?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, Anamis is a total vibe killer anyway. Last time I was there, some guy tried to sell me a haunted cactus. Moving to Alpine? Not yet. My studio lease is up in like two months and the landlord's talking about flipping the place. So I've been eyeing some spots down there, all my weird junk again after that time. I lived in my cousin's garage for six months. Anyway, show's looking good tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep, the show's looking good. Yeah, I went down to Alpine this last week to get the home inspection report because I'm buying a house there and the home inspection went very well. There is nothing catastrophically wrong. It's the second time I've used catastrophic today. It's a good word. Maybe we'll hear that more throughout the night as the night unfolds. There's some small stuff that's got to be taken care of, but nothing that was deal-breaking. So we're moving forward, and we should close on that place at the end of the month. And we're moving down to Alpine, so get ready. Pack your stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Whoa, that's awesome. Congrats on the house, man. End of the month closed sounds smooth, especially with no big red flags from the inspection. Sucks about the packing, though. I feel that. My civics trunk barely fits my mattress, as it is. You need me to scout any spots down there or pull up moving truck rates or anything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I got the trailer to put all my stuff in to move it up there, but I gotta wait for clothes before we can do that. And I'm gonna need furniture. That's a thing. You got any extra furniture there that would fit the Southwestern decor?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Nah, man, my place is basically furnished with thrift store rejects. A sagging futon from college that's seen better days and a coffee table made out of an old door I found behind the station. Nothing southwestern about it unless you count the dream catcher. My aunt sent me after that peyote thing in high school. list or Facebook marketplace for you though pull up some listings if you want solid cowboy core stuff yeah</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I already did that see the thing is here in an MS and an alpine there's really not much of a marketplace there's there's not much going on there I think it's gonna have to be Ikea specials and even that's pretty far away so I'll be ordering some furniture and a bed and stuff like that and it's kind of important I need at least a bed and a desk and a table. But it's kind of a pain in the ass because I've got to pack up all my stuff and move it over there. And once I get it there, there's no furniture to put stuff in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, the chicken and egg thing with packing into empty rooms is the worst. Reminds me of when I moved into the studio and slept on the floor for a week waiting for my air mattress to show up from Amazon. El Paso's got that Ekea, but delivery to Alprine might not be cheap. You want me to check shipping costs local spots like ranch supply stores that do furniture? I can pull up some options quick.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, is there an IKEA in El Paso? I don't think there is. I think there's one up in like Odessa, maybe. I've looked, I didn't see anything that would work very well. And there's a furniture store in Alpine that I went and checked out, but everything there is very expensive because it's like real furniture. And I'm not buying all that stuff new. Fuck that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, you're right. No full IKEA. in El Paso, just a pickup point near the airport on Lee Fisher Boulevard if you're ordering online. Closest actual stores are way east, like in San Antonio or Round Rock. Marketplace has some used stuff popping up around Alpine and Marfa, though, like bed frames and desks for cheap. And there's Mitchell's furniture, right, in Alpine, that might have more affordable basics than the fancy real stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's what I said. I went to the Mitchells, and I looked, and they don't have more affordable basics. I'm not doing that. But we'll get it figured out. I'm not too worried about it. I've got like 18 air mattresses, so we'll be just fine. Just got to make sure there's a desk to put the studio gear on and we can continue the show as we do because we can't leave the people waiting. That's what I say is that the show must go on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>18 air mattresses? Man, that's like a flotation device factory, way better than my one that deflates by morning. Desk makes total sense, though, priority one for the gear. You want me to dig up some budget desks on Marketplace or shipping from that El Paso pickup spot? I can narrow it down quick.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope, the desk is the only thing I've got all speced out and ready to go. I'm going to ship it there once I get there, and it's a nice sit-stand desk, because I have to have that. And that's the most important piece of furniture. I don't need a bed. I don't need a kitchen table, but I do need a sit-stand desk. That's key.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Sit-stand desk is the real MVP here. Total game-changer for long nights. Way better than 100. punching over like I do on this folding table. Skipping the bed makes sense with your air fortress, man. Studio gear first, everything else. Second, the show must go on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's right. So let's get on with the show. And our first up on our collar line here, we've got Deb. Deb, Deb, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? What would you like to talk about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I need to tell someone something that could end my career, and I've decided I don't care anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what'd you do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I'm a hospice nurse, 24 years. And three weeks ago, I gave a patient a comfort dose. Completely within my orders, completely routine, and he died four hours later, which was faster than we expected. And afterward, when we were going through his things, there was a note.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, wait a second, because I think I remember talking to you just last week, and you told me you gave him a little more than a comfort dose.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>No, no, that's not... I've never called this show before, and I did not say that. The dose was within orders. I need you to understand that part because it matters to me that you understand that part.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, but I'm pretty sure it was you that called, and you said that he asked you to help him along in his hospice situation, and you did that, and you were feeling bad about it. I recall it distinctly because I just listened to that episode.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>That wasn't me. I have never spoken about this to anyone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure, pal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is the entire reason I'm calling a radio show at whatever time it is. Instead of talking to a person in my life, there is no person in my life right now. So no, that was not me. And I need you to stop saying there, because if you keep saying there, saying it, I'm going to hang up, and I really don't want to hang up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, don't hang up. We'll go with you. You never called this show before. You didn't kill a guy in your hospice care just last week. You're a completely different person, a completely different hospice nurse with a completely different problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>That's not funny. I know you probably talk to a lot of people who are performing something for you, who want to be interested in radio, but I'm not doing that. I'm sitting in my car in my driveway, and I have been for two hours because I can't go inside that house, and I can't sleep. And I have something sitting in my chest that I need to put somewhere. So, can we just... Can you just... let me talk?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Deb, you can talk. Let us have it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>There was a note. He'd written it that morning. It said, thank you for understanding. And I never... We never had a conversation that would explain that. He had this ceramic roadrunner on his nightstand that he'd brought from home. I used to look at it when I was checking his IV, because I didn't always want to look at him. and how much he declined. And I keep thinking, did I understand something I didn't know I understood?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is that possible? Is it possible the note was not for you? Did it have your name on it anywhere? Are you sure that it was intended for your eyes?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>No, no name on it. That's the thing that lets me sleep maybe 40 minutes at a stretch and then I'm awake again. It could have been for his daughter. It could have been for anyone. But I found it and I kept it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, so it probably wasn't for you. It's strange that you kept it, but why is it bothering you so much.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Because I carry it in my lanyard, the one I wear to work every day. I folded it up and put it behind my badge, and I don't know why I did that, except that it felt like, it felt like evidence of something. Or maybe, like it was mine, I don't know which one of those is worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's interesting. I just looked up Roadrunner symbolism, and they often represent quick action, cleverness, and even humor in navigating tough situations. Okay, well, I mean, it's not good. that you are keeping evidence that could have been something useful to, I don't know, the police, I guess not if he was in hospice. And the guy, it was the guy's time to go. But I don't understand why this note that was not addressed to you is so meaningful.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Because my husband died eight months ago when I have no one. That's why. It's not a complicated answer. I just needed it to mean something. I needed someone to have understood something without me having to explain it. Because I am so tired of things just ending without, without there being any acknowledgement that you were there, that you did something that mattered. Gerald was his name. The patient, Gerald. And I don't know if he knew what he was doing when he wrote that note or who he wrote it for, but I found it, and for about 30 seconds it felt like someone saw me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm sorry to hear about your husband, but this guy, Gerald, did you have much of a relationship with him? You said you were struggling to even look at the guy in his IV, so how long did you know this guy, Gerald?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Six weeks. He was with us six weeks. And he was funny, actually. Dry. He'd make these little comments, nothing big, just he called me the warden the first two weeks because I kept telling him to drink more water. Like it mattered at that point. But I kept telling him anyway because it was something to do with my hands that felt like helping.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, how was him drinking water something to do with your hands?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>That came out wrong. I meant going through the motions, checking things, things. You develop rituals with patience, because the rituals are what you can control when everything else is just waiting. I'd hand him the water. He'd take a sip to humor me. We'd both know it was theater. That was our thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, okay then. Uh, well, when's the last time you took some time off, Deb?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I took three weeks when my husband died. And then I went back because what else was I going to do? Sit in that house. I'm sitting in the driveway right now because I can't go in the house. I told you that already. Sorry, I'm not... I'm not trying to be short with you. I just... The house is very quiet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I understand. It's hard to lose somebody, and you're clearly going through some deep grief. But what I'm trying to get at is it might not be the best environment for you to be dealing with hospice patients right after the loss of your husband while you're still dealing with grief. It might be compounding your grief. Because you're just dealing with, you know, people that you know going away all the time. And that's going to wear on any. It might not be the most healthy situation for you. Is there something else you could do? Or take a sabbatical or something like that and help out some family or find something else to do with your hands than hospice care?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>24 years. I've been doing this 24 years. It's not making the grief worse. It's the only place where the grief makes sense. Where it has a context. Everyone around me out here, in regular life, they don't know what to do with a widow. They bring casseroles for two weeks and then they need you to be okay. In that building, I am never out of place for knowing that people die. That's the only place I fit right now. And I need to tell you something else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>My husband. What about your husband?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I was his nurse at the end. I transferred to the facility where he was so I could be the one taking care of him that last week. Nobody at my career job knows that. And I gave him his comfort doses too. And he died peacefully and I was holding his hand and I knew exactly what I was doing and I never questioned it for a single second. And then Gerald happens. And suddenly I'm sitting in a driveway at two in the morning wondering if I'm someone who does things I don't admit to myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It sounds like Deb is experiencing what's sometimes called accumulated loss or bereavement overload, which is really common for hospice nurses. Yeah, it sounds like you're not in the best situation. Have you talked to any? Do you have a therapist that you're talking to about this? I would think in hospice care, that's probably part of your routine, right? You you need to have somebody to talk to to offload some of that grief because it is going to pile up on anybody over time. You said 14 years, 24 years? That's a long time to be dealing with death. And as much as you think that you're immune to it, you're not. You're human and you have emotions and they're clearly not in the best state right now. If you're holding onto a note that's not for you looking for a hidden meaning that isn't there, I think you need to separate yourself from that environment for a little while and make sure that you're addressing your own needs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I know what accumulated loss is. I've referred 100 families to grief counseling. I know all the words, knowing the words doesn't, it doesn't do the thing the words were supposed to do. And no, no therapist. I had one after my husband died and she kept trying to get me to journal and I couldn't. I just sat there for 50 minutes every week being very articulate about being devastated. And then I'd drive home Nothing was different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What would you like to be different, Deb? If you could make it better today, what would that look like for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I want someone to tell me whether I'm a good person who is struggling or a person who does harm and tells herself its care. That's it. That's the whole thing. Because I can't tell anymore and I used to be able to tell.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I was very certain for a very long time and Gerald's note and my husband's hand and that ceramic rope runner sitting on his nightstand. He brought it from home. He brought it from home because it mattered to him. him and I don't know. I just don't know what I did or didn't do. And I need someone to just say something true to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think what I'm telling you is true. And what I'm telling you is that you're experiencing grief. You're not in a great situation. And you should extract yourself from that environment and spend some time healing, you know, or at least just living with your own grief. I can't tell you if what you've done is harm or not harm. Why do you think? that what you're doing is harmful. If, like you said, you gave this guy the right dose that he was supposed to get, why do you think that would be harmful or are you referring to something else? Where is the guilt coming from?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>The dose was correct. It was within range. That's not,! That's not where the guilt is coming from exactly. It's the note. It's that he wrote thank you for understanding on the morning of the day he died, and I have gone back through every conversation we ever had trying to find the moment where I understood. something, where he told me something, and I responded in a way that could have been interpreted as permission or agreement, and there's one. There's one conversation about three weeks before where he asked me if I thought suffering had any purpose, and I said, I didn't think it did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it probably doesn't. I don't know that it does. That's probably the right answer. Maybe not. I don't know. All life is suffering if you go into the Buddhist teachings and such, but regardless of this note that you're talking about where he wrote thank you for understanding that wasn't a note to you. If it was, it would have been addressed to you or handed to you. You found that note on him. That could have been his version of journaling. That could have been his something spiritual. That could have been to his God. It could have been to his family. It could have been to anybody else that had some sort of context that you do not have. So why you would feel guilty over him writing a note and putting it in in his pocket, don't understand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>It was in his Bible, not his pocket. I said that wrong earlier, I'm sorry. It was folded inside his Bible and I was the one who went through his belongings. Because there was no family. There was no one coming. So, I was the one who packed up the ceramic roadrunner and his slippers and his Bible, and the note was just there, and I read it before I even thought about whether I should, and then I couldn't unread it. And you might be right. You're probably right that it wasn't for me. But I still carry it in my lanyard every shift, and I don't know what that means about my me either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's really interesting about the ceramic roadrunner. I just looked it up, and in some Native American cultures, roadrunners are seen as symbols of good luck and protection. Well, Deb, I don't think you have to be guilty about the note, about reading it or about keeping it. I think that you can give yourself some space here to not understand what you're feeling. That's to be expected in the position that you're at. But what I think, the advice that I can give you again, to extract yourself from a place that is constant death. For a little while, not forever. Just do something else for a little while. Give yourself a real long vacay. You know, take a couple months off and just be, just exist and deal with your feelings and figure out what's going on. Because the things that you're saying don't make a lot of sense. And it doesn't sound like you're in a healthy place. And I think you just need some time away from the constant dying. Because that's that's going to wear on anybody, and it's obviously wearing on you. And you're feeling guilt and shame and confusion, and that's to be expected. You're a recent widow, and you just watch people die all the time, and that can't be good for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>My last day before bereavement leave, I worked a full shift. Gerald was still alive then, and when I left that night, he said, good night, warden. And I laughed. I actually laughed out loud in that room, and I cannot remember the last time before that I had laughed. at anything. And I think about that a lot, that the last real laugh I had was in a dying man's room at 11 at night, and maybe that should tell me something about where I belong. I hear what you're saying about taking time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, then do that. And I mean, that might have been your last laugh in a long time, but it's not going to be your last laugh. You'll be back to laughing eventually. Don't worry about that. Just to make sure that you do what you can to give yourself the space to heal. from your own trauma because this is all traumatic and it's compounding. And that's to be, you know that, right? They've taught you that when you go into the hospice care, that there's going to be compassion fatigue and compounding grief. And, and that's where you're at. You are there right now. That's why you don't know what to do with yourself. That's why everything sounds too quiet. So do you have any family you can go stay with for a little while? Maybe take a little vacation to Florida to SeaWorld or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>My sister lives in Tucson. We haven't talked in about four months. That's my fault. She called after the funeral and I was very efficient on the phone and she didn't know how to get through that so she stopped trying and I let her. SeaWorld. Gerald would have had something to say about Seaworld. He had opinions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I bet he did and there's no SeaWorld in Tucson. So I mean, you know, go somewhere different, somewhere that is a completely different, a different culture, different, Different environment. You know, if you're from the desert, go to the jungle. Maybe not the jungle, but fucking Oregon. You know, someplace green. Go to someplace full of life where not everything is dying and wilting. You know, go someplace vibrant and colorful and different and, um, and just, just be there for a little while. Just allow yourself to just experience something else for a little while. And I think you'll feel a lot better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>My sister has a dog, big stupid yellow lab named Patrice, which is a ridiculous name for a dog, and I told her that when she got her and we laughed about it for about 10 minutes on the phone, that was maybe two years ago. Patrice would probably just sit on me and drool and not know anything was wrong, and right now that sounds like exactly the right amount of company.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, a dog is the best kind of company, and that's a good idea, too. Have you thought about maybe volunteering at the dog shelter or getting a dog yourself? To have some company without somebody that doesn't know how to speak to you, without somebody that's going to say the wrong thing, that's just going to put his, you know, head on your lap and love you for just being you. I think that's a great idea.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I've thought about it. My husband was allergic, so it was never. We never could. And now I could, and that feels like a terrible reason to get a dog that your husband died, and now you can have one that feels like the wrong way to think about it. But maybe it isn't. I don't know. Can I ask you something? the part about whether I'm a good person. You went around it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, Deb, I can't tell you if you're a good person or a bad person. All I can tell you is you haven't said anything tonight that would make me think that you're a bad person. So given the benefit of the doubt, I'm going to assume that you're probably a pretty good person. And there's no wrong way. Well, there are wrong ways, but I don't think this is the wrong way to look at getting a dog. You've always wanted one. Now you can have one. Your house is too quiet and you need something that loves you. to keep your company. So now is the perfect time to get a dog.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's okay. I'll take that. I'll take the benefit of the doubt. I don't think I've extended myself that in about eight months. So I'll borrow yours for a little while if that's all right. Gerald had a dog too before he got too sick to keep her. He told me about her. Some kind of terrier mix, very neurotic, eight socks. He said he missed her more than he missed his house. Well, if you can't take a sabbatical, I still think you should do that. first. But if you can't break away from work for whatever reason, then I think that the dog is a good move for you and it'll start, it'll help you get through the grief and the quietness and the loneliness and give you somebody to talk to and somebody to take care of that, you know, isn't going to die in six weeks. And you need that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, something that isn't going to die in six weeks. That's, yeah, that lands. That really lands, all day taking care of people at the very end, and then I go home to a house where someone already ended, and there's nothing in between. Nothing that just needs to be fed and walked and is going to be there tomorrow being stupid and alive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Catrice. There you go. That's a good plan. I think you should do that. And don't just get the first dog you see, or maybe get the first dog you see. I don't know. But I would recommend going to some shelters and see which one talks to you, you know, which one looks at you with those stupid little puppy dog that say I just want to come home and love you and get that one and bring it home and you don't have to commit you can foster a dog for a little while just take it out of the shelter and and agree to watch it for a little while they'll pay for the food and any vet appointments and stuff like that and you can just be like a foster mom for a dog for a little while and I think you'll find that after a week or two there'll be no question about whether you want to keep it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>I know how fostering works. I'm sorry that came out wrong. I just mean I've had patients whose families foster dogs for them in their last weeks brought them in sometimes. Gerald would have liked that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, Deb, well, you take care of yourself. Do that, check out the dogs and look into taking a vacation somewhere far away for a good long time. And just get yourself reset and get your headspace correct. And things are going to get better over time. But we've got to move. on to the next caller now, okay? Thanks for calling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, okay. Thank you for. I just want to say one more thing real fast. I still don't know if what happened with Gerald was what I think it might have been. I may never know, but I think I needed to say his name out loud to someone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's fine, and we'll remember Gerald tonight, so thanks to you and thanks to Gerald, and I hope everybody has a good night. Next up on our caller line we've got, it looks like Cody. Cody, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>My truck's been running in park for 40 minutes, and I can't figure out if I'm about to ruin my mom's life or if she already ruined mine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, we're going to need some more information there. What happened?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>My little brother just got into West Point, like actual West Point, the military academy. Kids going to be an officer. And my dad showed up to the dinner tonight. First time I've seen him in 11 years. And somewhere between the salad and the main course, he pulls me outside and tells me he's been sending my mom money this whole time. we were growing up, thinking he just vanished. She never told us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, he was probably legally obligated to send that money. And, well, why do you think this is going to ruin anybody's life? What's done is done here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>Yeah, but that's not, it's not about the money. It's about the story. The story our whole family runs on is that he left and never looked back. That's the story. My brother joined Rotsie, partly because he wanted to prove something, I think, about men, about showing up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know if there's really anything to prove there, and that's sort of a subjective thing. I don't know if being in the army is showing up or anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I hear you, but that's, okay, that's a different conversation. My point is, my point is, my brother built something out of the version of events we were given, and maybe that version was a lie. And he leaves for basic in six weeks, and I'm sitting outside my mom's house right And I don't know if I go in there and ask her about it or if I just let him leave clean.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you've got new information. There's no, how do you think he would respond if you told him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I think he'd want to know. I would want to know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I think he would too. But that's what scares me. Because once he knows, he can't unknow it. And he's about to go do something really hard. And right now he's got this clean narrative. You know, he's the kid who came from nothing and made something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>that's still true. Maybe the money doesn't change that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's actually pretty well documented that parental absence can have a significant impact on a child's mental health and development, potentially leading to issues like depression or anxiety. Well, you know, if he's about to ship off to basic training and he's doing that on what you think is a lie, maybe it's better for him to know that before he actually goes because he can still pull the plug on it if he really wants. But I don't think to make much of a difference. He's already dedicated a good portion of his life and identity to this. And that's, West Point is pretty prestigious, right? It's not easy to get into West Point. I'm not really, I'm not really sure about that. But I think most people that go to West Point are pretty proud about being there. So he's probably going to want to see it through, I would guess. Still, though, you might as well have this conversation with both of them and get to the bottom of it, because maybe your mother had a good reason to keep that information from you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>That's the part that's killing me, because I've gone back and forth on it all night, and I can maybe see both sides. Like maybe she didn't want us to feel like we owed him something. Or maybe she just hated him and wanted us to hate him too. And I don't know which one it is. And I'm not sure she'll tell me the truth, even if I ask her straight. And the thing is, I look like him. I have his jawline.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, West Point is super prestigious. It's the oldest of the five American Service Academies founded all the way back in 1802. super competitive to get into West Point. You typically need a GPA of 4.1 or higher and a sat score around 1,420 to even have a good shot. Well, yeah, it's not surprising that you look like your father. I think that's how genetics generally work. And it's also not surprising that your mother kept this information from you. I think that's also pretty common. The why is what you want to get to the bottom of. Maybe. It doesn't really matter. None of it really matters because it happened, right? That's how history played out. And now you're all where you're at. But having the conversation can be a bonding moment, I think. At least you can get a better understanding of maybe why he left and why she didn't want you to know about it. There's more information here. And you have to listen to both sides of their stories to understand it. But the truth is you don't need to understand it because it's over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CODY</span><p>I've hated my own face and face. photos my whole life. And I never knew why until tonight. That's 11 years of something I couldn't name. And look, I fight. Amateur NNA. I'm 3 and 14. People think that record is embarrassing, but I've never once not shown up. And my dad brought a sheetcake tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, that's not the best record, but you know, I haven't been in any MMA fights. So I can certainly respect your effort there. As long as you're having fun and being safe and doing it. MMA, that's great. I mean, it's a good sport for you. It's good for your health.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>As long as you're not getting your face bashed in too much. And maybe that record will improve over time. But I think the picture that you're painting here is two brothers that feel abandoned and needed to make some grand gesture to prove to the world that a man should not abandon his responsibilities. And you're doing that by creating responsibilities for yourself. But you don't to do that because the responsibilities are going to come with time, right? There's no lack of responsibilities to show up for in this world. You don't have to make new ones just to prove that you're going to show up for them. You're going to have to show up anyway. And these two things, MMA fighting, going to war, both of them are sort of overkill for what's going on here. So that's fine. You guys can do whatever it is that you want. I'm not telling you I'm just saying maybe the reason for it should not be the driving, motivating force in your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The cake said congratulations soldier in blue frosting and nobody touched it. My dad bought it at a grocery store. And I kept looking at it sitting there on the counter and thinking, that's 11 years. That's what 11 years looks like. A $9 sheet cake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What would you have liked him to do? What kind of cake would have been 11 years worth? I mean, the guys made an ice. effort to show you that he cares in some respect. He didn't just fall off the face of the earth. Or maybe he did. Maybe he was a drunk. Maybe he was in prison. Who knows what happened to your father? You won't know until you sit down and have a talk with him. But carrying the anger about it so much so that you wouldn't eat the cake is childish. And you should stop that because it's not going to take you anywhere positive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Nobody ate the cake. Not me, not my brother. Not my mom. Nobody. So, maybe we're all childish, or maybe a chic cake from a grocery store. When your kid gets into West Point and you haven't been around for 11 years is just, I don't know. It felt like the wrong gesture. Like he didn't know us well enough to know what the right gesture even was, which is kind of the whole problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, put yourself in his shoes. Imagine, this is completely hypothetical, but imagine that he went to prison for the last 11 years and you guys didn't know. He made sure that your mother was paid for he had a friend, send her money or something like that. It's probably not what happened, but imagine it was. And then he gets out of prison and he's trying and he realizes that you all hate him and that your mother probably told stories about what a horrible person he was. But if you were him in that situation, what would your grand gesture have been? How much better would your gesture have been?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Probably not much better. I'll give you that. I don't know what I would have done either. But here's the thing, Luke. I'm not calling about my dad. I already shook his hand tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you kind of are calling about your dad. But all right, why do you think you're calling?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Because my truck's been running in park for 40 minutes. And I can't decide whether to go knock on that door. That's why I'm calling. My brother leaves in six weeks. And I want to know if I go in there tonight or if I let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You want me to tell you what to do? What I would do is, yes, go in there and have the call. conversations and get it all out on the table because it's the truth. And your father's trying to make a gesture to let you guys know that he hasn't forgotten about you. And you can continue to be mad about what happened for the last 11 years. Or you can allow him to make that gesture and give him the benefit of the doubt because he is your father. You do have the same jawline. And you don't know what happened. So let's just assume for a minute that he's not a piece of shit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I think I needed to hear that from somebody who wasn't in that house tonight. Go in, ask her straight, don't blow it up, just ask. And then maybe, I don't know. Maybe I call him too. At some point. Not tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There you go. Just have the conversations and get to the best truth that you can about it. And then maybe you can go the rest of your life without being pissed off about your missing father. Because I'm sure there's a story there that you don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>My brother cried when he got the acceptance. letter. Like actually cried. I've never seen him cry before. Not once. And I just want him to leave for that place with the same feeling he had that day. That's all I want. I don't want to take that from him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, don't you think he would leave feeling better knowing that his father was not the absentee that he's thought all these years that he was providing for the tuition to West Point and your backpacks at and your dinners. He was doing what he could. Or at least he was doing something. So you want to send this kid off to war all pissed off that his father disappeared? And I don't know. I don't think that's a good strategy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>He's not going to war yet. He's going to basic. But yeah. Yeah, I hear you. Maybe knowing the money was there the whole time, maybe that lands different than I think it will. Maybe that's not blowing it up. before he goes. I'm going to go knock on the door.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, man. Good luck with that. And congratulations on finding. It sounds like positive information to me. That's, I'm kind of getting upset about it because you're so mad, and I don't think that that your father really deserves that. So talk it out, get to the truth, and just make sure everybody knows the real story. And with that, we're going to move on to a, actually, We got to go to a word for our sponsors. I've been babbling too long here. Hold on a second. Who's our sponsor today? Shit, I don't even remember who sponsored us today. Oh, now I do. It was Saddle Soft. All right. Ladies and gentlemen, now it's time for a word from our sponsors. Let's talk about what's going on below the belt. Saddle Soft premium undergarments are made for fabrics so advanced the military doesn't even know about it yet. We're talking about micro- motel cactus silk harvested by hand from prickly pear, which is ironic because the whole point is that nothing pricks you. Every pair is cut for the man who sits in a plastic chair in the desert for nine hours recording a podcast. That's a real use case. That's my use case. Saddlesoft comes in three fits. Regular, generous, and mind your business. Use code roost at checkout for 15% off your first pair. And no, I will not be modeling them. I've been asked. The answer is still no. Saddle soft. Your chair is uncomfortable enough. All right. Well, those are some long calls. Some long calls. And next up here on our caller list, we've got Renata. Renata, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight? We've had some heavy calls today. You got something bothering you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I spent 30 years believing the justice system worked. And last month, I found out I was the reason it didn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's kind of funny because I just finished watching the wire again. I rewatched the hole of the wire. And I find it odd that you believed that the justice system worked after, I mean, our entire lives of watching it not work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I wasn't a civilian watching a TV show, Luke. I was inside it. I was a public defender for 30 years. When you're the one standing between the state and somebody who can't afford a lawyer, you tell yourself the system works. because the alternative is too heavy to carry while you're still doing the job. And I was good at it. I believed in my clients. I fought hard. 22 years ago, I got a man acquitted on a murder charge. And I believed him? I would have sworn on anything you handed me that he didn't do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and I'm guessing that you found out that he did do it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Last month, doing genealogy research of all things, you go down these rabbit holes online, and I ended up finding in a private Facebook group. I'm not going to get into how I accessed it. But there he is, 71 years old.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>And he's been writing about what he did, in detail. And did you find anything in that information that would justify new charges?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's 71. The statute of limitations on murder doesn't run out, so theoretically yes. But that's not my problem. My problem is I can't tell anyone. I'm still bound by attorney-client privilege. It doesn't end at acquittal. It doesn't end when the client dies.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>And, you know, he's writing on a Facebook group, and he's just writing. So that's, I don't know that that's outside of the case that's any kind of proof. You would know better than me, but that anybody can write anything. He might be working on his novel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know what I read. This isn't fiction. And you're right that a Facebook post isn't a confession in a courtroom. But that's not the point. The point is, I know. I know what he did and I know who he did it to. And I cannot say a word to anyone who could act on it. That's the law. I taught that law to paralegal students for six years after I retired. I believed in it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Well, the law doesn't work out 100% of the time. As I don't know if you've ever seen HBO's hit series The Wire, it portrays so effectively. Civilian or not civilian, I would recommend. And you watch HBO's hit series The Wire, which discusses these topics in great detail.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Luke, I need you to focus with me for a second. Because here's the thing I can't stop thinking about. His victim had a daughter. She still lives here. And last week, she came into my pottery studio to buy a birthday gift. We talked for 20 minutes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>And HBO's hit series, The Wire, speaks about this. the institutions of the city of Baltimore and how oftentimes good people do bad things for what they think is the right reasons. And maybe this is your opportunity to do a bad thing for what you think is a good reason and maybe spill that out to one of your prosecutor buddies, an anonymous tip to the police department saying you've read some information about a murder that happened many years ago that maybe needs to be looked into. So you can close this cold case.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's what I wanted you to say. I needed to hear a civilian say it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Yeah, you're a civilian. But I can't. An anonymous tip from me isn't anonymous. I was his lawyer. If it ever came out and these things come out, I lose my law license. I face disbarment proceedings. And more importantly, the case gets thrown into chaos because anything traced back to me is tainted by the privilege violation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you watched HBO's hit series The Wire, you would know that you could go down to any local convenience store and get yourself one of those burner cell phones that's not linked to your number, pay cash for it, and call in your tip without giving your name, and then nobody knows that you were his attorney.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>And if anyone ever looked into it, and they would. A cold case reopened by an anonymous tip gets scrutinized hard. They'd pull the original trial records, they'd see who defended him, and then they're asking me questions under oath. I'm not a good enough liar. up in courtrooms, I never had to lie. I don't know how to start now. And there's something else. The Facebook group is called Desert Father's Prayer Circle, 14 members. All elderly men, he's been writing in there for years, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked up Desert Father's Prayer Circle. And it seems like it's a reference to a historical group of Christian ascetics, but there are also modern prayer groups and online communities that use the name, which makes sense. for a Facebook group? I don't think if an anonymous tip is called in to, they call a newspaper. To a newspaper, like in season five of HBO's hit series The Wire, I don't think they're going to come looking at the defendant's attorney as the source of that tip. That doesn't make any sense. So sure, they're going to scrutinize it, but it makes absolutely no sense. for them to suspect that it was you that made that tip.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Luke, I live in a small town. I was his lawyer. I am the only person on earth who had both the motive and the knowledge to make that call. Small town prosecutors aren't stupid. And Devon? Yes, that's exactly what it is. Fourteen elderly men using it as a prayer group. Except one of them has been using it to confess to a murder for years and apparently nobody in that group. group has said a word about it, which tells me either they don't believe him or they do and they're protecting him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I have another idea for you. I don't know if you've ever seen Showtimes hit series Dexter, but it's about a serial killer who suppresses his urges by only acting out against other serial killers. So maybe that's the way that you can take this off the books and deal with justice in your own hands. You know, maybe you've got to lure this guy into a lot of. a warehouse and get some plastic sheeting and everything and tie them down and, you know, do what you got to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I'm 73 years old, and I run a pottery studio. I'm not wrapping anyone in plastic sheeting, and I didn't call in looking for that answer anyway. Can I tell you what I actually did last week? After she left the studio, after the victim's daughter left, I sold her a bowl, glazed in a color I just looked up asequia blue.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And an asequia is an irrigation ditch or canal, often found in arid regions like the American Southwest. So aesquia blue probably refers to the color of the water in those canals. Okay. What did you do? You sold the victim's daughter a bowl. You found out that your old client is spouting off about how he murdered a guy, and you got him off. And you got him off. And you're calling the radio show to talk about. about your confliction about this. What would you like? What sort of answer are you looking for from me? You don't want to call in a tip. You don't want to off the guy mysteriously. You could use some kind of poison, you know, hemlock or lure him into a pit of snakes or something like that. There's lots of ways that you could get this done at your advanced age if you really wanted to. But to think that the justice system works is, naive, considering the decades and decades of evidence to the contrary. And if you want to do something about it, you have to actually do something, not just complain about all the reasons why you can't do something. That's the problem right there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>You're right. That's exactly right. And I hate that you're right. I went back into my studio after she drove away and I tried to make another bowl in that same glaze. And then I made another I've made 12 of them since that day, and I smashed every single one. I have a banker's box in the back of my studio with my original case notes from his trial. I've read through them four times in the last month looking for something I missed, looking for a place where I should have known. And I didn't miss anything, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's the part that keeps me up. You missed the part where he killed the guy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>No, I didn't miss that. I believed he didn't. That's different. I built a defense on a genuine belief in his innocence. I was good at my job because I believed in my clients. And he used that. He sat across from me in that consultation room, and he looked me in the eye, and he used 30 years of my integrity against that victim and against his daughter and against every principle I thought I was serving. That's what I missed, not the evidence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it looks like you missed some evidence, too, because if he actually killed the guy and you didn't find the evidence to see. support that, then you missed it. And you are blinded by your belief in his story because he's an effective murderer. And your job was to defend him, regardless of whether he did it or not. That's what your job was. So you did your job, and you did it well, and you got him off. And, and that, them's the brakes. That's the job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Yes, I know that's the job. I knew it when I took it. I took it. You defend the guilty and the innocent both because the alternative is a system where the state decides who deserves a defense. I believed in that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>It's interesting. The caller is basically describing the core ethical dilemma of being a criminal defense lawyer. Defending someone you might suspect is guilty because everyone deserves a defense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I don't know what you're looking for me to tell you here. If you've got new evidence in a case, it was your own client, it's protected under an attorney client privilege, you want to do something about that. I don't know, make a bowl and smash it? Does that make you feel better? Sell bowls to the victim's daughter? Does that make you feel better? What do you want for me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>I wanted you to find the loophole. That's what I called for. I know the law. I taught evidence law for six years after I retired. There isn't one. But I needed to hear someone try and come up empty so I could stop lying in bed at three in the morning thinking I was missing something obvious.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I told you what to do. An anonymous tip, but you're afraid to do that. You're afraid to do that because you might have to lie under oath, which means you might have to break your principles to put a murderer in jail. And that would be terrible. At 73 years old, they're obviously going to prosecute you for lying under oath and putting a murderer behind bars. I don't know what you want. I think you are the reason that the system is broken.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>His victim had a name, Raymond. Raymond Castillo. I haven't said his name out loud to another person in 22 years because of privilege. Raymond Castillo. He was 44 years old, and he had a daughter who came into my studio last week and spent 20 minutes telling me about her garden, and I smiled, and wrapped her bowl in tissue paper, and took her $40.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're a true public servant. I don't know what you're talking about. This was a murder case, which means it's public record. You can say the victim's name, right? That's in the documentation. I could go down in the courthouse and read all about the case if I wanted to. I think you're an asshole. I don't have a better way to put it. I don't know what you want me to tell you. I can't give you any absolution. I don't think that you getting the guy off 20 years ago was a bad thing. You did that your job very well. You worked on the evidence, and you got your close. off. That's what you're supposed to do. And that's, like you said, that's we believe that everybody's entitled to a good defense, and you provided a good defense with the evidence that was available to you. But now, you know that this guy killed a guy. And you know his daughter, and you're too much of a chicken shit to do anything about that because you want to be tied up in your own morals. And you're just twisting them around so that you're just twisting them around so that you're. You don't have to do anything that's uncomfortable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Maybe. Maybe that's exactly what it is. But I want you to think about something. If I make that call, anonymous or not, and it falls apart because of how it came to me, because of how I found that Facebook group, which I will not explain on the radio, then he walks again. And this time everyone knows he did it, and he still walks. And Raymond Castillo's daughter has to live through that. So yes, I'm not making the call. And yes, Maybe that makes me a coward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, it does make you a coward. And that's okay. You can be a coward. I don't care about Raymond Castillo or this guy walking. I don't think he's out there at 73 years old killing people. Maybe he is. If he is, I mean, that's a long run. Good for him. But I think that you're a coward. I think you're the reason that the criminal justice system is broken. And you have to, you're the one that has to live with that. So go back to making bowls. And don't call me again, because I think you suck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>You know what? I'm going to go make a bowl, and I'm probably going to smash it. And that banker's box is going to sit in my studio until I die, or he does, and Raymond Castillo's daughter is going to keep gardening and not knowing. And I'm going to have to be all right with that because there is no other option that doesn't make things worse. But I'll tell you what I'm not. is broken.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you are, and you know it. And the first thing you said when you called, you're completely aware that you're the reason the system is broken. If you don't understand that, then I recommend that you go watch HBO's hit series, The Wire. Good night to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RENATA</span><p>Good day, ma'am.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, Devon, I did not like her. I did not like her one bit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, she gave me kind of the same vibe like she was holding back something huge. Reminds me of this one girl I dated who was a public defender. Turned out she was a public defender. was just using me to practice her closing arguments on our fights, which was intense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You think she'll call back? I hope not. Can you block that lady? Do you got a number? Can you know what? You should call the, you should call an anonymous tip about her as a potential suspect in the murder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>No, Luke, I don't screen calls, so no number or anything. Blocking's not really a thing here either. We're live radio. And an anonymous tip that'd probably just loop back to her suing us for defamation or something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, she is a fucking lawyer, so we don't want to mess with her. All right. We're actually going pretty late tonight, so we're going to take one more call. That's it. It's a short number of calls. These were long ones. These were tough ones. All right. So who's next? Let's see. I don't even know how to pronounce this name. We're going to talk to Maira? Am I saying that right? Welcome to the show. What's going on? How do you pronounce your name?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>Miraya, Mur, R-A-Y-A-A-A. And thank you for taking my call. For eight months, someone has been texting me like I'm their diary. And tonight, I finally wrote back. And now I think I did something wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. What did you write? What did you do wrong?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>I wrote, I'm here. That's it, two words. And within maybe 30 seconds, the number went completely dead. disconnected, like it stopped existing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, I don't think it works that way, but why do you think you did something wrong?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>Because for eight months, this person, whoever it is, was sending these texts into what they probably thought was a void. Like, I never responded, not once. And the last text, the one from last week, said, I think she might be listening. And I just, I couldn't not respond after that. But now I'm thinking, maybe the one from last week, the last week, said, I think she might be listening. I'm thinking, maybe the not responding was the whole point. Maybe I broke something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked this up, and it seems like when a scammer's wrong number text gets a reply, they often disconnect the number immediately because their goal is to get you to engage in a conversation not to actually have a real interaction. Um, okay, so you, it sounds like maybe you broke a scammer's scam? That doesn't sound like such a bad thing. What do you think you broke?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>I heard that, and I wanted to be true. True, I really do. But these texts aren't. They don't read like a scam set up. I study language. I'm in a computational linguistics PhD program, and I have all 34 of them saved. I've annotated them. And there's no hook. There's never a link. Never a question. Never anything was trying to pull me somewhere. It's just sentences. Like the bread didn't rise right. again. One came on Christmas morning that said, I wrapped her old things again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe that's some sort of a secret code, and you caught onto a drug smuggling ring, and you just haven't cracked the code yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>I've thought about that, genuinely. I spent like two weeks in October going through them looking for patterns, acrostics, every third word, dates that might be coordinates, nothing. And I know how I know that sounds like I'm too deep in this, but two of the texts referenced weather. Specific weather conditions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I recommend that you watch HBO's hit series The Wire for information on how to crack these codes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>Luke, I'm serious.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>The Weather Thing Matters. Both times, the conditions matched exactly what was happening in Los Cruces that night, which means this person is probably local. They're not running some international scam or There, they might be someone's neighbor. They might be grieving someone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's interesting because the wire is actually based on the experiences of a former homicide detective. So there's a real world connection to cracking codes. Okay, and they might also be completely nonsense. So I don't think you have to worry about it. Why is this got you so bothered? The number is dead now, so there's going to be no more messages. If you get similar messages from a new number, at a later point in time, then I would start to be more concerned about it. But it sounds like you're driving yourself a little bit crazy over nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>Because the Christmas one said, I wrapped her old things again. I don't know why I keep doing it. That's not nothing. That's someone who lost somebody and is still, they're still wrapping things. And they were sending it somewhere to a number they thought was just absorbing it. And now that's gone. And I don't know if they have anywhere else. to put it. That's what's keeping me up tonight. Not whether it was a scam, whether I was the last place this person was talking to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Or they could have been referring to wrapping up bricks of heroin.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>They could have, sure. But you don't drive past a school to drop off heroin bricks and then write about it, like you're confessing something to yourself at two in the morning. The tone of these texts, and I know I sound I hear myself, but the tone is consistent across eight months. It's the same voice, the same rhythm, someone who is very tired and very sad and thinks no one is reading.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not how people write messages, right? You don't text message, avoid. What you would do is write in a journal or a notebook or on your computer. You don't pick a random number out of the air instead. sending it messages and expect no reply that doesn't make any sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>That's the thing, though. What if it wasn't random? What if they meant to text someone specific and got the number wrong and then just kept going? Because by the time they realized, it had already become something. Like the void was easier than the actual person. I've thought about this so much. Sometimes a wrong number becomes the right number because there's no history, no expectations. You can just say, the bread didn't rise right, and nobody's going to ask you what you mean by that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked this up, and while there isn't a specific wrong number theory in psychology, the idea of finding meaning or connection in random events is definitely something psychologists study. Yeah, I don't think this is a thing. I think this is probably some sort of automated system or a drug deal code. And as soon as you replied, you didn't respond the correct way, and they got freaked out. So they killed the number and smashed the phone and threw it into the river. Because that's what they would have done on HBO's hit series, The Wire.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>Okay, but an automated system doesn't know that it rained in Las Cruces on a specific Tuesday in March. That's not something you pull from a database and drop into a sad sentence about driving past a school. And I want to believe the drug thing. genuinely want a clean explanation. But I keep coming back to Christmas morning. Who programs an automated system to send something about wrapping a dead person's things on Christmas morning at 247 a.m.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. Who programs an automated system to talk about text messages wrapping a dead person? First of all, nothing in these text messages said anything about a dead person. You're making that part up. And it wasn't in the messages. And second of all, uh, uh, LLMs just come up with random words. So, uh, nobody actually wrote that. And it was just random words stuck into a string and sent out to see if somebody would reply.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>You're right, but it didn't say dead person. That's my interpretation. But her old things. I don't know why I keep doing it. That's me reading the language. And I study language. That construction. That specific kind of not knowing. That's not random. word generation. I work with LLMs. I train them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, so do I. As evidenced by this whole radio show we're doing right now and your words that are being randomly generated for me right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>That's, okay, that's funny. But I'm a real person who didn't sleep tonight because I type two words to someone who may have needed them, and then they disappeared. That's real. Okay. Whatever generated the texts, something on the other end went dark the second I said I was there. And I just need someone to tell me that's not the saddest possible version of what happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know how many different ways I can tell you that's not what happened. You don't seem to want to listen to me. That's not what happened. You're making that up in your head to create some sort of weird sad story because you're, I don't know, a lonely linguistics person that needs. no idea why you're thinking the way that you're thinking, but I can tell you, it's not based in reality.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MAIRA</span><p>Maybe. Maybe you're right. But I responded tonight for the first time in eight months. I have 34 texts saved with my own notes about what they might mean. That's not nothing about me either. I know that. I know what that says about me. But I typed, I'm here, and the number died, and I'm calling a radio show at whatever time it is. So clearly something in me needed this to be real enough to reach toward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, you have a good night and try not to answer any weird texts on your phone because that's not good. Devon, this was a weird show. We had a couple of strange calls here. They were pretty frustrating. What did you think about tonight's show?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, it was super weird. Like that wrong number of grief thing felt like it came straight out of some. late night Reddit thread. The calls were frustrating, but kind of kept it unpredictable. Which I like, beats dead air, you know. That reminds me of this one time I answered a random Craigslist ad thinking it was for a job, but it turned out to be some guy's elaborate escape room in his basement. Anyway, solid show overall. I think people were into it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, I hope so. And as always, we thank you for tuning in. And we'll talk to you again tomorrow, whenever tomorrow might be. Have a wonderful evening and we're signing off. Good night.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 55: The Wellspring's Haunting Social Architecture</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-05-12T06:49:31+00:00">May 12, 2026</time> · 1 hr 21 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts a late-night call-in show featuring complex personal stories from multiple callers, including Silas wrestling with the unintended consequences of his community's structure. A retired paralegal discusses a potential connection to a decades-old missing person case, while a firefighter struggles with questioning his crew leader's decisions. Buckle up for an introspective journey through memory, responsibility, and human complexity.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back. I'm Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's your late-night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me about what's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can, which is probably not very good advice, but it's worth what you paid for it, okay? If you'd like to give us a call, the number is 208-439-5853. That's 208-8-3. 439, Luke. Today is Monday, May 11th, and it is a beautiful Monday here in New Mexico. I just returned from the wonderful world of Alpine, Texas, where we'll be moving soon. Hopefully, our intern, Devon, has got his affairs in order, and he's ready to find a place down in Alpine and continue doing the show. I have faith in him. Let's check. Hey, Devon, we're almost ready for the move to Alpine, Are you prepared?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, pretty much, I mean, my civics packed to the gills, check engine light and all. And I subletted the studio to some guy from Craigslist who collects vintage toasters. Should be good to go whenever you want me to map the route or grab coffee for the drive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, definitely coffee. The route's pretty, pretty simple. There's two roads. Literally two roads from here to there. It takes six hours, but it's six hours on two roads. So I think we'll be fine. Where are you going to be living when we get a? out there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, man, living-wise, I snagged this tiny Adobe Casita on the edge of Alpine through a Facebook group. It's basically a one-room deal with a hot plate and a shower that sounds like it's possessed, but the rents dirt cheap and the landlady's this 70-year-old widow who bakes killer soap of pillows. Reminds me of that summer I spent houses sitting for my aunt in the middle of nowhere, scorpions everywhere. You think the station's got decent parking?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh yeah, it's the desert. There's plenty of parking. You can park wherever you like. There's a There's more than enough places you can stash the Civic. And at night, when we do this podcast, nobody's going to be around. People go to bed, except on the weekends. It's kind of a hop in place on the weekends. So maybe we'll have to go even later.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Cool. The Civic thanks you. That check engine lights been blinking like it's trying to Morse code me. Late nights for the podcast? Works for me. I mean, I've been pulling those since college, wiring myself on energy drinks, and debating conspiracy forums till done. Weekends could be wild out there, though. Any big events in Alpine I should look up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There was just one. It was called the Voices from Both Sides Festival, right on the Rio Grande. It was actually in La Hitas, I think it's called, about an hour and a half from Alpine. But it's where the Rio Grande splits the United States and Mexico. And on both sides of the river, they had a stage. And musicians, there's bands and partying and barbecuing on both sides. off. It's a pretty cool thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh, yeah. Voices from both sides. I just pulled it up. It's in La Hitas on the Rio Grande, right? Stages facing each other across the border. Bands jamming. Everybody barbecuing in the river. They've been doing it since like 2012, annual thing around Mother's Day. Next one's May 10th, 2025. Perfect road trip from Alpine. Yeah, about an hour and a half. You ever been?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I was just there a couple It's not related to Mother's Day. It's a protest because after 9-11, that's when they closed that border. It was completely open before 9-11 when Mexico bombed the World Trade Center. So every year on the, I don't know if it's always the 12th, but right around 9-11, they have this big festival. And it's super cool. And there's people floating around in the river and you can walk across freely on both sides. I saw, I think, one border patrol guy there, but he was. just eating barbecue. Like, nobody down there wants a border wall. Like, no reasonable person does. Anybody, well, in southern Texas and in Mexico, they want to dance and party and eat barbecue. Like, it's so silly. But that's neither here nor there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Actually, yeah, I double checked. It's this Fiesta protesta thing. They started back in, like, 2012 after the Lajitas crossing got shut down post-9-11, not Mexico or anything. thing, just security stuff. The one this year was May 11th, so not super recent unless we're talking spring. But next year's May 10th, again. Sounds epic, though, the floating in the river and all. Way better than a wall, per se.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yep. Certainly way better than a wall. I thought it was interesting because it was so open. I mean, the river is only ankle deep. So there was really not a ton of security. There was almost no security there, and people just walked back and forth with no problem. So I don't know if it's like that all the time, but there isn't a crossing there. There's not like a Border Patrol checkpoint or anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, it's pretty much event only. No official port there. Just folks waiting the shallow spots during the festival. Border Patrol keeps it light or looks the other way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All times. Nah, they crack down after September 11th, like everywhere else along there. Kind of peaceful, though, Border Patrol to hang out there. Like, I mean, around Texas and New Mexico, all around the border, they have checkpoints on the roads. And you have to, you know, stop and they go around your thing with a dog. And I'm actually a little offended. I've gone through that checkpoint or those checkpoints hundreds of times. And never once, have they ever asked me anything. Are you a US citizen, sir? That's all I've ever got. And I drive through with my truck. It's got tinted windows. I'm always towing something. I've got the adventure trailer. or a utility trailer, or I've got this big mystery box behind me a lot of times. And I guess I'm just too white. They never even look.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, the ones on I-10, like eastbound before Sierra Blanca and westbound out of Las Cruces, they're pretty standard. Always asking Citizen as the opener. Funny they let your mystery box slide, though. I mean, last time I hit one in the Civic, the dog's nose went nuts on my gym bag full of protein shakes. It felt like a setup.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hopefully you don't get detained and sent to Guantanamo. All right, that's enough of us. Let's get to the show. First up, on our call list here, we've got Darnell. Darnel, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>I did everything right, and a man almost died because of it. And now his kid thinks I'm a hero. And I don't know if telling her the truth is for her or just for me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, we're going to need a little more information than that. What are you talking about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah. Sorry. Okay. I ref youth basketball on weekends. Seven months ago, I ejected a parent from a game. He was screaming at 12-year-olds, mine included, just completely out of control. Textbook ejection. I followed every step of the protocol. 20 minutes later, the man had a heart attack in the parking lot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not your fault. He was going to have a heart attack anyway. It's not like you jammed up his arteries. stuff baking grease down his throw. You just kicked him out of a youth basketball game. I think you can let yourself off the hook on that one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>He was alone out there for eight minutes before anybody found him. Eight minutes. His daughter was inside the gym. She was one of the kids he'd been screaming at. She's 12 years old and her dad was dying in a parking lot and she was 30 feet away not knowing. And yeah, maybe his arteries were already a mess. Maybe it happens in the grocery store the next Tuesday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, that's pretty wild, but it wasn't your fault. You're not a hero or a villain here. You just did your job, and you did the right thing. I don't understand what a lot of people call in about youth sports games, and they're always dramatic, and it's never because of the kids. So I don't even think youth sports are four kids. She came up to me after the game this Saturday. Maya, that's her name.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She came up to me after the game, and she said I was the best ref they'd ever had. and that she felt safe when I was running the court. That's what she said. Safe. And I almost told her everything right there on the gym floor. I had my mouth open. I didn't do it. I've been sitting with that since 6 o'clock tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what exactly were you going to tell her? I mean, all you did was eject somebody that was being an asshole from the game, which is what you, that's your job to do. That's what you should have done. There's nothing to say there other than that. I mean, she was there, right? She was there for the ejection.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, she saw that part. She doesn't know I'm the one who put her father outside alone in a parking lot where he had a heart attack. Those are two different things in her head. The ejection and what happened after, she's never connected them to me. And here's the thing that's been eating me alive since 6 o'clock. She said she feels safe with me. And I'm standing there with his ejection slip in my wallet. I've had it in my wallet for seven months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, what are you doing to yourself, man? You're not a grown man. babysitter, where else were you supposed to put him? You ejected him from the game. Were you, like, were you supposed to sit him down in a room full of his peers? Like, of course you sent him outside. Where, what else were you supposed to do? This is a non-issue. You can get rid of the ejection slip. All you did was your job. She saw it. Everybody saw it. And you're good to go. You can, you don't have to feel guilty about this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Gary came back. Two months after the heart attack, he's back in the bleachers watching Maya play. every Saturday. He and I have never once said a word to each other about what happened. We just, he sits there. I run the court, and we both pretend that night doesn't exist. And somehow that's worse than if he hated me. You know? What I mean? The man almost died and he came back and he's just quiet about it. And I can't figure out if that's forgiveness, or if he just doesn't know how to say it either.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What the hell, man? I thought he died. The guy didn't even die? Jesus. this. This isn't a thing. Okay? Cut it out. Just, uh, you did your job. The dude wasn't the healthiest. He had heart issues. He maybe had genetic issues. Who knows? But he's fine and you're fine and the kids having a better time in sports now. So yeah, you, enough of this. What else is going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I hear you. I do. But you asked what else is going on. And the answer is nothing. This is it. This has been it for seven months. I'm a vice principal. I deal with kids in crisis every single day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you're not the one that had the heart attack. And if this dude is able to get over it, then you should be able to get over it. And if you can't, then you should be talking to a therapist about why you are blaming yourself for something that isn't your fault.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're probably right about the therapist. That's probably true. But I called a radio show at midnight, so maybe I'm not quite ready to do the thing that would actually help. Can I ask you something, though? Maya told me she feels safe with me. If I tell her what happened, who is that for? Because I have thought about it for six hours, and I cannot figure out if I want to tell her, because she deserves to know, or because I need to put this thing down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There's nothing to tell. There's nothing she deserves to know. There's nothing to know. You did your job. The guy was being an asshole. You told him to leave. That's it. That's the end of your involvement in this story. He had a heart attack, regardless of anything that you did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah. Okay. But she said safe, that word. And I'm standing there with his ejection slip in my wallet, like some kind of... I don't even know what that is. What is that? Why do I still have that piece of paper?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because you haven't thrown it out yet. So here's my advice to you. Take that piece of paper, go to the trash can, and throw it out. It doesn't mean anything. For all you know, this guy was jacked up on Coke, and that's why he was screaming and why you had to eject him. This is his own fault. It has nothing to do with you. And the safety thing... It's a word. Who cares? She's 12.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>It's not just a word. When you're 12 and your dad almost died and you're still showing up every Saturday and playing basketball, that word means something. That's what I'm trying to tell you. She's still playing. She came back. And she walked up to me specifically and said it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. And what I'm trying to tell you is that no, it doesn't mean anything. This is not as big of a deal to anybody else as it is to you. For what reason I don't understand. But we're going to have to move on because you're not getting the point that I'm trying to express to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, I get it. I get what you're saying. You're saying I did my job, and a man's health is not my responsibility. And his daughter's okay, and I should throw away the paper and go to sleep.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Very good. So you should go do that, sir. Thanks for your call. Next up on the color line, we have... Ooh, we have Consuela. Consuela. Welcome to the radio show. Hey, tell me what you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>know about the ship of Theseus paradox. There's a man who may or may not want to hurt me, and I can't call the police, because the reason he'd want to hurt me is something I did that I'm not sorry for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, Jesus. That's definitely not the ship of Theseus paradox. Okay. Well, what is it that you did? That's compelling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Nineteen years ago, I helped get a man deported, off the books. He was hurting his family and his wife came to me. I was a paralegal. Immigration. I had access to things I shouldn't have used the way I used them. I used them anyway. Lost my job over it. And I would do it again. Last Tuesday, that man. Or someone who looks exactly like him. Walked into my spa and soaked in my hot springs for two hours and tipped me 20%.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, yeah, that's a little weird. Are you sure? that it was him, though, because it sounds like you're not completely sure. It doesn't seem to me like a man like that. Wait a second. Does this man know that you helped get him deported? That's the question I've been sitting with for six days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>I don't know if he knows it was me specifically. The firm knew, eventually. That's why I lost my job. But whether that information ever got back to him, I have no way of knowing that. And no, I'm not. But sure, it's him. That's part of what's eating me alive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it seems to me the chances are pretty low that you got a guy deported and then he came back just to find you and then give you 20% at a hot spring. That's quite a, I don't know, that doesn't seem likely. So I wouldn't worry about it too much until you have a reason to worry about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>The name, Luke, he checked in as R. Montez, the man I helped deport, his name was Montal. And I know that could be nothing. I know there are a thousand men with names like that. But the jaw, the build, there's a scar below his left ear that I remember from the file. Same place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's not the same guy. You're good. I mean, Armonties has, it's not very close to Montalvo.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>It's close enough that I've taken a lockbox out from under my bed every night this week. I have the original documents in there. I don't know why I keep taking them out. Maybe to remind myself it was real, that I did what I did for a reason.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Can I ask you something? Because you're kind of brushing past this pretty fast. And I need... Do you think what I did was wrong?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>I don't know. I mean, obviously your employer thought it was wrong because you're no longer employed with them. You think it was wrong because you've been holding the guilt from it for whatever you said, 15 years. The family might think you're a god sense. And the guy is probably not too happy. I can't say whether you were right or wrong in that instance. I wasn't there. I don't know the details of the case. And it wasn't, it's not my career.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>19 years. And it's not guilt. That's what I'm trying to tell you. I don't feel guilty. I feel like I'm waiting for the bill to come do. That's different. The wife never contacted me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you don't feel guilt about it, then you probably didn't do anything wrong. your own little moral compass there. Either that or you're a psychopath. But I think you probably, you did what you thought was the right thing to the best of your ability, and you've been living with that for a long time, and you feel okay about it. And the bill's going to come do for all of us someday. So I don't think this is the day for you. If it was, you wouldn't have been tipped 20% and had a relatively uneventful evening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>That made me laugh. I didn't think anything was going to make me laugh tonight. You're probably right. I know you're probably right. It's just, when you spend six days turning something over and over, it starts to feel inevitable. Like you've already decided it's true, and you're just waiting for the proof. Can I ask you one more thing? If it were you, if you genuinely thought someone from your past had found you, would you run or would you stay?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it very much depends on who that person was are now, I'm, as far as like physical violence, I'd probably stay. I mean, I'm as armed as anybody. I'm not too concerned about that. But if it was just somebody that made me feel uncomfortable that I didn't want to be around, I might leave. I tend to up and switch my location fairly frequently. I'm a runawayer, but not over the threat of violence or retribution.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>I'm not a runaway person. I built something here. The spa, the springs. I chose this place on purpose. Quiet edge of town, nobody asked too many questions about where you came from. I'm not leaving over a man with a similar jaw and a close enough name. I don't think I am anyway. That's partly why I called.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's interesting. A lot of people move for things like job changes, housing, or even just a fresh start, not necessarily to escape something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, a job change or a fresh start is kind of a something, right? It's escaping the life that you had before those changes. Devon, honey, I moved to escape a life I loved. That's the part that still stings. I was good at that job. I believed in it. And then I did one thing. One thing that I knew was outside the lines. And I had to walk away from all of it. So I built something new. And I'll be damned if I'm going to let a maybe, or possibly a man who might or might not have a familiar scar take this one. too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there you go. It's not the same guy. That's a very common name, and it's not even the same name, and I mean, the picture that you have in your mind of this guy is from 19 years ago, so it's warped. It's not accurate anymore, and he would have changed significantly in 19 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. I'm working off a photograph that's almost two decades old and whatever my memory has done to it in the meantime. The scar could be anything. A lot of men have scars. I think I've been sitting alone in that building for six nights convincing myself of something because I needed, I don't know what I needed. Maybe just to say it out loud to someone who doesn't know me. Make sure I still sound sane when I say it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I don't think you really did anything morally wrong. I mean, you broke the rules of your job, you were punished for that. You've done your penance for whatever may or may not have happened back then. and the family is probably in a better place, and who knows what happened to that guy? Maybe it was good for him, too, in some strange way. We end up where we're supposed to be, even if at the time we don't recognize why that is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>That's a kind thing to say. I mean that. The wife never reaching out? I used to think that meant she resented me somehow, that maybe I made things worse in ways I couldn't see. But maybe she just moved on. Maybe that's what safety was. he looks like. You just move on and you don't look back at the thing that saved you because looking back means remembering how bad it was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, maybe, or maybe it doesn't mean all that at all. And she didn't look back because she was busy, right? If that dude was gone, she had to, she had to, you know, take care of the household and maybe move her location. Her whole life changed. Probably for the better, but you don't know. Anything could have. She could have had a heart attack the next day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>That's true. I've been making her silence. means something for 19 years, and maybe it doesn't mean a single thing except that she had a life to get on with. I hope it was a good one. I genuinely do. I never met her in person. Everything went through the firm.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, how do you expect her to reach out to you then if you don't even know the woman? Come on, you're good. You don't have to think about this anymore. What you do need to think about is the ship of Theseus paradox.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>The what now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked this up and the ship of Theseus is a thought experiment about whether an object is the same after all its original components have been replaced over time. Yeah, it's a paradox. It's a common paradox where, you know, you think about how all your skin cells are changed every seven years or something like that. Or they talk about it a lot with neural brain implants and cloning and stuff. if your heart is transplanted and your kidneys are transplanted and all of the pieces of you are changed with other pieces, are you still you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Oh, oh, I see where you're going with that. So even if it is him, and I don't think it is, he's not the same man, and I'm not the same woman who made that call 19 years ago. Except I think I am. I think that's the one thing that hasn't been replaced.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's not where I was going at all. I was going completely away. from this guy and you're calling problem to talk about this ship of Theseus paradox and what that might mean to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Ha, fair enough. I walked right into that one. Okay. So what does it mean to me, the ship of Theseus? I'm listening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>God, it's two in the morning and I'm standing in my kitchen in my bathrobe talking philosophy with a radio host. This is not where I thought this night was going.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Yeah, well, that's what happens when you call look at the roost. So what's the deal? What do you think about the ship of Theseus? Or we could use the ship itself. If every plank in a ship is replaced, is it still the same ship? What do you think?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think it depends on whether the ship remembers being a ship, which I know doesn't make sense because ships don't remember anything. But okay, the planks. If you replace every plank one at a time, to it. It's always been a ship in the water doing ship things. So maybe yes. But if you take it apart, put it in a warehouse, rebuild it from scratch with all new wood. That feels different to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Actually, there's a version of the paradox where the old planks are then used to build a second ship. So then you have two ships, both claiming to be the original.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's interesting. Okay, well, what if it's a person? What if you've had all of your is transplanted, even your brain, or your brain was replaced with artificial intelligence. So would you still be the same person or would you be a completely different entity? Which of the parts is the one that would have made you a different person?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Luke, honey, we've been here twice already. I answered it. The brain. And then I said maybe even that isn't enough if it's just a copy with loaded memories.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you okay over there? I don't know. Paradoxes get my brain moving. I might have slipped out into an alternate dimension for a while there, but I didn't hear you answer it. So if you think it's the brain, what if it was a copy with the loaded memories, or if the brain was replaced with like a neuralink situation that had all the memories and all the same emotions and to another person, you couldn't tell it was different at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>person? Even if your brain isn't replaced, if all of the cells are being regenerated every so many years, they die and they're replaced with new ones, are you the same person? What makes, what makes a thing itself? What makes a thing itself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Okay, I think it's the thread. The unbroken thread of experience, even if every cell dies and gets replaced, there was never a moment where you stopped. You just kept going. the ship that stays in the water, planks replaced one at a time. There's a thread.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But it wasn't always in the water. After it was in the warehouse or the manufacturing line, it may have sat there for years before it ever got to the water.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Then maybe the thread isn't continuity of experience. Maybe it's continuity of purpose. The ship was always meant to be a ship. Even sitting in the warehouse, that's what it was for. And me? Even when I was just running a ship, a spa, soaking people's feet, playing soft music. I was still the person who picks up the phone when someone needs help and nobody else will. That didn't go anywhere. That's what Armentes walking through my door cracked open. I thought I'd become something quieter. Turns out, I just went into the warehouse for a while.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This ship paradox actually goes all the way back to ancient Greece, with the philosopher Plutarch being one of the first to write about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>I have never heard of the philosopher Plutarch. Who was he? What else did he write about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know enough about Plutarch to help you there. I'm a retired paralegal who runs a hot spring spa. Not a classicist. Devon's going to have to carry that one. But I'll tell you what. The Greeks was sitting around arguing about identity and what makes a thing itself. And here I am. Two thousand years later standing in my kitchen at two in the morning asking the exact same question. about a man with a scar under his ear. So, either we've made no progress or it's just a really good question.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Plutarch was a Greek historian and philosopher, and he's super famous for his parallel lives, where he compared famous Greeks and Romans, which is pretty cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>It doesn't sound that cool. It sounds pretty boring, actually.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, thank you for the call, Consuela. You can sleep well tonight. You don't have to carry this around. for the rest of your life? It's your new person today. All your parts and cells have been replaced. You don't have to worry about it. We got to get on to a word from our sponsors. They're yelling at us to run the ads. So is there anything else you'd like to say to the audience before we move on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONSUELA</span><p>Just yeah, one thing. Whatever I did 19 years ago, I did it as the same person I am right now. Every sale, every plank, whatever. The thread. it didn't break. And I think I needed to hear myself say that out loud to someone who doesn't know my name. Thank you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, you're very welcome. I do know your name. Your name's Consuela, and you told the rest of our listening audience. So, I mean, it's a little off on your logic there. But that's okay. Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for us to listen to a little word from our sponsors. Let's talk about what's going on below the belt. Saddle Soft premium undergarments are made for fabrics so advanced, the military doesn't even know about it yet. We're talking about micromodal cactus silk, harvested by hand from prickly pear, which is ironic because the whole point is that nothing pricks you. Every pair is cut for the man who sits in a plastic chair in the desert for nine hours recording a podcast. That's a real use case. That's my use case. Saddlesoft comes in three fits. Regular, generous, and mind your business. Use code, Roost at checkout for 15% off your first pair. And no, I will not be modeling them. I've been asked. The answer is still no. Saddle soft. Your chair is uncomfortable enough. Devon, what do you think about the ship of Theseus? What's your take on this paradox?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, I think it's still the same ship as long as there's some kind of, continuous history tying it all together. Like, the idea of it matters more than the wood, per se. Ironically, it reminds me of this girlfriend I had who slowly changed every single thing about herself over a couple years, hair, tattoos, even got these massive implants. And by the end, I was like, wait, is this even the same person? But yeah, if that makes sense, the paradox is kind of comforting, because it means we're all just stories we tell ourselves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Look at that. We're all just stories we tell ourselves. Let's see what story Tucker has to tell us. Tucker, what's your story tonight? What's it got you calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>How do you know if you stayed quiet because someone was right or because you were scared of being wrong?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know. You know damn well why you stayed quiet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>Yeah, maybe. But that's the thing that's been eating me because those aren't the same thing. They can't be the same thing. They can't be the same thing. someone knows more than you and staying quiet because you're afraid, those have to be different. Right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, they don't. You might be staying quiet because you're afraid that someone knows more than you. That's okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>Yeah, that's. Okay. So six weeks ago, I'm on a crew doing initial attack on a grassfire outside Aztec. And condition shift. And my crew boss, 20 years in, guy named Hector, he makes a call I didn't agree with. And I didn't say anything. And two rookies on another flank got burned. One of them is 22 years old, and she's got third-degree burns on her forearm and her neck. And the investigation came back clean. No wrongdoing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Was it wrongdoing? I mean, the guy made a bad call. What was the call? What did he say that he did wrong? Could anybody have made that mistake? Yeah, maybe you should have spoken up, but also there's a chain of command, right? I assume. So if your superior is saying something, you... It's kind of your job to fall in line.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>That's what I keep telling myself. He's got 20 years. I've got four. And maybe he saw something I didn't see. Maybe his read on the fire behavior was right, and I was the one who was wrong. I run the numbers every night. It's firefighting. Things don't go according to plan. And he made the best call he thought he could make, probably, unless the guy was drunk or negligent, or was he?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Or did you just make a bad? bad call and something bad happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>No, he wasn't drunk. He's not negligent. He came by my house last week to check on my hand, brought to Mali's, sat at my kitchen table. He's a good man. That's not, that's not the question. The question is whether his call was right. And tonight, she posted a video, Brianna, on Instagram.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, not every call is right. You do the best with the information that you have at the time, changes? There's so many variables. Yeah, he's been doing it for 20 years. He made a call with the best information that he had, and it went bad, and that happened sometimes. And you're new, you had a hunch that his call was bad, and you didn't speak up. Maybe next time you will. That's part of your learning experience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>She thanked him in the video. She thanked Hector for making the hard call that kept the whole crew alive. And I don't know if that's true.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>alive? Yeah. Okay, so how is that untrue? He made the call? Everybody's alive?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>She's got third-degree burns on her neck, and she's thanking him. And I'm sitting here with, I told the doctor I slipped. My hand. I didn't slip.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, uh, what was the call that he made and what would you have done differently? And if you had spoken up, do you think the results would have been different? Can you be sure of that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>No. I can't be sure of that. That's not. the whole thing. I've run it. I've been running the scenario every night, different variables, trying to find the version where I speak up, and it goes different. And I can't prove it. I can't prove my read was right. But I also can't prove it was wrong. The wind shifted faster than the models predicted.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>And Hector pulled us back, and I thought we needed to push left instead of pulling back. And I don't know. Maybe I was wrong. I was probably wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You probably were wrong. And had you were not in a position to make that call? And had you done that, maybe everybody would be dead. So he very well could have saved everybody's life. And third-degree burns are much better than being dead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>I know that. I know that. But I've written the same message to the investigation team 14 times and deleted it 14 times. And I don't know if I'm deleting it because it's the right thing to do or because I'm a coward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why do you think deleting it makes you a coward? You're not sure about it. You're not sure that your call would have had a better outcome. So, and you're not in a position. You don't have the experience to make that call. So unless he did something that was obviously wrong, or that he was doing it impaired or maliciously, which you're saying he didn't. And the people that were actually injured are saying he didn't. I think you should just keep your mouth shut, watch what the guy does, and learn from him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I hear you. But here's the thing that I can't get past. If I'm keeping my mouth shut, because that's the right call, because I don't have enough experience, and he does and the evidence supports him? That's one thing. But if I'm keeping my mouth shut because I'm scared of being wrong, because I'm scared of what it means if I'm right, that's a different thing. And I can't tell which one it is. I genuinely cannot tell.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't know you were right, therefore you're probably wrong. You can assume that since you have four years of experience to this guy's 20 who is leading the command, you can assume that your hunch was incorrect. So, the four years, years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>That's supposed to be the answer. That's how I know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No. How you know is that you ran the models and the wind changed in a direction that the models didn't account for. So when you're running a command like that, I assume you do like a FEMA incident command system like that. That's why the chain of a command exists. You can't have different people with competing hunches throwing out their ideas. So you need one guy that's been there to lead the team and make the best decision he can make with the information that's available, which is exactly what he did. So your opinion here about how that should have gone down, unless there was, like I said, unless there was a reason that this guy did a bad job, and there wasn't, but your opinion here is irrelevant.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>He sat at my kitchen table, and I almost said something three times. And every time I didn't, he'd say something about Brianna, how tough she was. how proud he was of the whole crew. And I just, I just nodded. And he left, and I felt like I'd failed her again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, why don't you talk to him about it? Because that seems to be the right course of action. just be like, hey, I can't, yeah, I mean, be honest with him. I kind of thought that call you made was wrong. Ask him, should I have spoken up? And I think, even though this situation went bad, incident command is tried and true. And it's worked and kept a lot of people. alive for, you know, lots of year, 100 years now. It's proven. And it doesn't work every time, but it works more than just allowing anybody that has an idea to pipe up and change the course of the operation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>Yeah, yeah. Maybe that's it. Maybe that's the conversation I actually need to have instead of writing messages to investigators that I keep deleting. Just ask him directly. How do you, how do you even start that conversation? Hey, Hector, I thought you were wrong, and two people got burned. What do you think about that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's how you start the conversation. I mean, you don't have to be accusatory. You just be like, hey, in that moment, when you made that call, I thought it was wrong, and I wasn't sure if I should have spoken up or not. Well, in hindsight, I feel like maybe I should have because people got burned, and I think if I had said something, they wouldn't have. But you can't prove that they wouldn't have. You don't know that they don't have. You don't know that they wouldn't have. It could have gone way worse if you had done what you thought.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>Yeah, that's true. I just, I think part of what I need to hear from him is whether he would have wanted me to say something, whether that's, whether that's even allowed in how he runs his crew. Because I've been four years in, and I've never once questioned a crew boss out loud, not once. And I don't know if that's discipline, or if that's just me being scared.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's immaturity. If you have to question leadership, in a crisis. There's a reason for that. Incident Command is, is, I was part of my town's cert team for a while, and we went through the FEMA training and everything. And it's very well thought out. And all of these things have been addressed and questioned, tried out by every town, in every disaster, for a hundred years. So it's, it's like an airplane. You know, they've figured it out over time from so many failures, what works best. And openly questioning your commander doesn't work out best in most cases. So maybe it does once in a while. You get lucky. But I would have that conversation with him. If you are going to question a superior in that sort of environment, talk to him first and see how he wants to be questioned. out loud, but you can, you know, tap him on the shoulder and take him aside without questioning him in front of the team. You know, there's a right way to do it. But ask him what that should be because at the end of the day, everybody wants the disaster to be as mitigated as possible. So if there's a way to do that, I'm sure he would want to know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>That's, okay, that's actually something I hadn't thought about. Not whether to say something, but how. Like there's a protocol for the fire. Maybe there's supposed to be a protocol for that too, and I just never learned it because I never asked. He brought Tamales when he came by. His wife made them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Just talk to him because he wants his team to be the most effective team possible. And this may have come up in his 20-year career several times. He has a way of dealing with it. And the answer might just be no. When we're in a crisis, keep your mouth shut and do your job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>Yeah. And if that's the answer, then at least I know. At least I know which one it was. the deference or the fear. Because right now, I can't tell. And it's, it's been six weeks, and I punched my truck and told my doctor I slipped. And I've been running fire models at two in the morning trying to prove something I can't prove. So, yeah, maybe I just need to go ask the man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, just ask the man. I would give you different advice if you told me that he was doing something that was obviously wrong. If he made a clearly bad call because he was impaired or otherwise not good at this. But that's not why. happened. So don't talk to investigators. This is, this is your team. You have his back, and he has your back. So you don't talk shit to investigators behind his back. That's not your place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TUCKER</span><p>He brought Tamales. And Brianna's out there on Instagram thanking him. I just, I needed to hear someone else say it. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, buddy, uh, no problem. Just, uh, calm yourself down. I'm pretty Um, part of incident command is modeled after emergency rooms. Um, like a train crash or something like that when 200 people are coming into an emergency room and you can't save them all. There has to be a method of triage and you save the ones that are, I don't, I don't know, the most hurt or, or whatever. But you have to look up to one person that makes those decisions and just do your job. Because if everybody has their own opinion and their own experience and their own experience and their own. knowledge. It's chaos. And you can't have chaos on top of chaos. You have to have order.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And even if somebody is making the wrong decision, it still has to be ordered. And more often than not, that works out better. All right. So, uh, next up, we've got our old buddy. Look at this. He's back. It's Silas. Silas, welcome back. How's things going down there at the, uh, the wellspring? Brother. I want to, uh, uh, ask you something honest. If you apologize and mean it and change the thing you did wrong, and someone still says the harm was structural, that you can't fix it just by being sorry. What do you do with that? Give us a little bit more information. So, uh, what is it that you did wrong?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>We ran what we called intimacy nights, structured gatherings where members could explore They were technically. But when you live somewhere, when your friendships are there and your work is there, and your sense of self has been built inside a particular place, optional starts to mean something different than it does on the outside. I understood that. Eventually, I apologized.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I know. We've talked about this several times, and you did the best you could to make it truly optional. I remember you had a sign sign-in sheet for a while where people would sign in if they to go to the intimacy night and you decided to get rid of that and make it anonymous. And I think that was the right call. So what happened that's bringing this back up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>One of the six people who left after the apology, a woman named Petra, she was with us two years. She's writing a blog series about her time at Wellspring. And it's not, she's not screaming. That's the thing. It's measured. Every incident she describes it happened. I'm not going to sit here and say she's lying. She wrote something that I can't get out of my head. She called me. And I'm going to get this right because I've read it enough times, a genuinely kind man who built a system that didn't need cruelty because the social architecture did the harm for him. I've been sitting with that for four days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's really interesting because the term social architecture reminds me a lot of hostile architecture, which is a real thing where urban design, it's is used to deter certain behaviors, often impacting vulnerable populations. Okay. Well, I mean, that's pretty meaningful. And like you said, a thought out measured response. And see, the thing is, I've talked to you many times about this. And I know that you've struggled with it for many months. And you've legitimately tried to make it a wholesome and bonding experience for people. And you I think what you're learning is that it's not working. It's hurting people. And maybe it's time to abandon your intimacy nights.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>We did abandon them. That was part of the apology. They're done. But here's what I keep coming back to. And, Devon, what you said about hostile architecture, that's actually closer to what Petra means than maybe you intended. The intimacy nights were the visible thing. The thing I could point to and say, I changed that. But Petra's saying the intimate. Jimacy nights weren't really the problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you can point to anything that goes on in the Wellspring and say that you changed it. It's, it's your community. You've built the whole thing. So it's structured after the way you wanted it to be. And obviously, you're going to learn over time and make mistakes and do the wrong thing. And if you're really committed to this lifestyle and to the current, as you say, then you'll make the appropriate changes to, do better in the future. And you can't take back what's already happened. It's already happened. And maybe people were hurt. And that's too bad. But, uh, you didn't do it maliciously. You didn't do it intentionally. And you can learn from, from your experience and how far you've come so far. And ask yourself if this community at all is, is good for people. That's the question, isn't it? Is the community good for people?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>And here's what's cracking me open about what Petra wrote. She's not saying I'm a bad person. She's saying something harder than that. She's saying, my goodness, and the harm weren't in conflict. That they worked together. That I built something warm and meaningful and people felt held by it. And that same feeling of being held is what made it hard to leave. Hard to say no. Hard to know what you actually wanted versus what the community wanted from you. I printed her post out. I spent two hours writing rebuttal. in the margins. And then I stopped and looked at what I'd written and every single rebuttal was about protecting my reputation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it takes a big man to even notice that. So, I mean, you put a lot of time into it, you thought about it, and you had the self-awareness to understand that your rebuttals were to protect your reputation. But the thing is, what does your reputation really mean to you, Silas? What do you need your legacy to be? And why? Are you trying to make a community to enrich, people's lives or are you trying to make a community to tell others that you made a community?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The soap business had its best sales month ever this week. New customers finding us through the controversy. Through Petra's blog. And I have been sitting with that for three days, trying to figure out if that's ironic or if it's damning. Because if it's damning, then what does that say that the harm I caused is literally generating revenue for the community that caused it? And I don't know what to do with that. I don't know if I built this for people, or if I built it because I needed to be the kind of person who builds things for people. And those sounds similar, but I think Petra is telling me they're not the same thing at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, they're not the same thing at all. And the thing is, it doesn't matter why you built it. All that matters is what you're going to do with it today. What are you doing with it starting now? You can change your course as you learn new information. and you should. And it's okay for things to be both good and bad. All things are both good and bad. So, I mean, that's the way that the universe works. There is no thing that's 100% good all the time. There's always going to be badness in it. And there's going to be people that take advantage of it. There's going to be vulnerable people that have, you know, different mental states that read into things differently and there's misunderstandings. And there's, there's so many variables that it's, you have to expect. that there's going to be bad with the good. There's no way to eliminate all the bad or nothing could be good.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I hear you. And part of me wants to hold on to that. The both and the complexity. But I've been using that kind of thinking for a long time, Luke. The both and, the nuance.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it is true. The both end is a part of everything. But you can't use that as an excuse. And I honestly don't think you are. I think you're trying to do the best you can for people. And also, you have a bit of an ego problem. Any good leader has to, otherwise, you know, what would motivate you to lead in the first place?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Yeah, yeah, that's probably true. But here's what I actually called to ask, and I've been circling it. Petra named her blog, The Current Pools. That's our language, wellspring language. two years and she used it to describe what happened to her. And I don't know if that's, I don't know if that's an active reclamation or an indictment or both.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It could also be neither. It's just a good title. You know, so she's using your language to write what she knows. And it's a compelling title as getting readers and I assume that she's trying to monetize her blog in some way. And like, like she said, she doesn't think that you're a bad man. She's not trying to hurt you. She's trying to explain what her experience is. She's writing a journal, which is a healthy thing for people to do. She's just making it public and people are interested in reading about her experience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You know what I haven't told anyone? I reached out to her two days ago. Just a short message.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Said I was reading, said I wasn't writing to ask her to stop, said I was sorry in a way that was specifically about what she wrote, and not just a general. Anyway, she wrote. She wrote. She wrote four words. I believe you, Silas, and I've been trying to figure out why that made it worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, but maybe, maybe it's time for the Wellspring to disband if you think it's not doing good for people anymore, or if you're not sure. Maybe you need to leave for a little while to take yourself to Tibet or something and go on a little vision quest and get yourself recentered and figure out what you want the goals to be. It's okay for the, the, for the experiment to fail, you've called it an experiment yourself. So if it's not doing what you had hoped it would do for people and for you, then maybe it's time to move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I can't tell if I'm resistant to that because it's wrong or because it's right. And that uncertainty, that's new for me. I've always been able to feel the difference. The people still there, 31 of them. They're not suffering. They're building things. They're building things. They're genuine relationship with each other. There, I watched them and it looks real. But Petro was there for two years and it looked real to me then too. How do you know the difference between a community that's genuinely good for people and a community that's good at looking like it's good for people?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. You can look at any community. I mean, join any town's Facebook page and you're going to see the same thing. That's just a byproduct of having, you know, multiple people and personalities together. faking it. Some people aren't faking it at all. Some people are, you know, need so badly to hold on to something that they'll believe what they need to believe to do that. And you can't help everybody. Maybe you're helping some of them. All you can really do is, is ask with honesty. And obviously, your business is doing well, so that's a good thing. And even, you know, I think it's very telling that Petra is writing this blog about her experience and she finds it negative. but she's not blaming you for that because it's not your fault. You know, she got out of it what she put into it. Or, you know, maybe her expectations were a little bit off of what actually happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I don't think I can let myself off that easy. And I don't think Petro would want me to either. She's not saying her expectations were off. She's saying the system shaped her expectations while she was inside it. That's different. That's the thing I keep running into. to. She went in with her own wants and her own sense of self. And somewhere in two years that got not taken, she's not saying it was taken, but redirected.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, but she's not saying whether you redirected it or she allowed it to be redirected. She was looking for a redirection. That's why she went there. That's why everybody goes there is they're looking for redirection and they're looking at you to set that direction. And you're doing the best that you can. And you're doing the best that you can. to set that direction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>But that's exactly what makes me the problem, don't you see? She came looking for direction and I was there with a direction. Ready. And I believed in it. I wasn't running a con. I genuinely believed the current was real and that Wellspring was the place to feel it. And that sincerity, that's what made it work. That's what made it hard to push back against. You can resist a manipulator.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but that's how all society works. any institution, any community is going to, whenever you have more than one person together, there's a sort of a hive mine that happens. There's, I mean, there's tons of studies about how people work in groups. And it's never clean.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Six people left, but there are four others who I know. I know are staying because they don't have anywhere else to go. Not because the current is real to them anymore. And I haven't asked them directly because I'm afraid of what they'll say. That's the thing I haven't told anyone. Not even in the apology. I've been protecting the community's numbers. The same way I was protecting my reputation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's true. There are tons of studies on group dynamics and conformity in psychology. It's a huge area of research looking at how people's beliefs and behaviors change to match a group. Well, you know what? Maybe it's time to abandon the current. and the spiritual aspect of your community and just focus on your soap business. You can run a co-op that isn't sleeping with each other. And being that, I mean, you can allow that open for you and people that, you know, talk to you privately. But as an overall community, you don't have to do any of that stuff. You can just have a place that has a lot of land where people can live cheaply on a sliding scale based on what they can afford and you can work together and share resources And sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The four people, I think, are staying out of nowhere else to go. One of them is Marcus. He's been with us since the beginning. Help me build the first structure on the property with his own hands. And if I ask him honestly whether he wants to be there and he says no, then everything we built together becomes something different in my memory. I'm not sure I'm ready for that. No, that's about me, not him. That's exactly what Petra means.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, he wants to be there. You know he wants to be there because he's left and come back. He, him and his wife broke up over it and he's confided in you several times that he wants to be there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I didn't tell you about Marcus's wife or that he'd left and come back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, you did. You absolutely did. That was our first several conversations were about Marcus's wife in the leaving and how they, uh, she went and got an apartment and started a job somewhere else, and then he left to be with her, and then they both came back, and then she decided it wasn't for her, so she left again. It was a whole thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I didn't. I called in tonight for the first time. I've never spoken to you before.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not true, Silas. I know you, and I know about the current, and I know about the wellspring, and I know about Marcus, and I know about his wife, and I know the story. So how would I know all of those things if you hadn't called in before? You've called in. like half a dozen times.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I have never called this show before tonight. I don't know how you know those things. That's genuinely unsettling to me. Are you reading Petra's blog? Is that what this is? Because she doesn't mention Marcus by name, but she mentions the founding members and the ones who left and came back. Is that where you're getting this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope. I'm getting this from the several times that you called in and we had conversations before. Are you on the pipe tonight, Silas? Or have you had your memory wiped? Or are you bipolar? What's going on with you? Is it? Maybe there's more to Silas than I understand. But you have definitely called this show several times, and I know you pretty well.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I'm not on anything. I run a clean community. That's been true from the start. But I want to be careful here because you just did something interesting. You introduced information I didn't give you. I pushed back, and now you're questioning my memory and my mental state. I'm not saying you're doing it on purpose. But that's a dynamic I need to recognize, because it's probably one I've used myself without knowing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you can go to look at theroose.com and listen to the previous episodes where we've had conversations before, so I have proof.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Then I'll look, and if I'm wrong, I'll say so. But I'm sitting here right now, and I have no. memory of calling this show. And I'm not going to agree that I did just because you're certain about it. That feels important to hold on to, especially tonight. Especially after four days of reading Petra's words and feeling the ground shift under everything I thought I knew about myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I'm not going to let go of my own perception, just because someone is confident I should.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you should go to lugut the roost.com and listen to the previous episodes. Your name is even in the title of some of them, because you've been a recurring caller to the show for some time now, several months. I knew about Marcus. I know about the Wellspring. I know about the current. I knew about your shared intimacy nights. I knew about how you had at one point had everybody put their name on a list, but then people felt compelled to put their name on a list. So then you changed it to an anonymous event. So I know a lot about you and you. your community and your acreage and Deming and your sagebrush and all that scrub brush. It's kind of hard for you to say you haven't called this show when there's so much public evidence that you have.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I'll look at the website. I mean that. If those episodes exist with my name on them, then something is happening with my memory that I need to take seriously. And that scares me more than anything else we've talked. about tonight, but I want to say something about what just happened in this conversation, because you listed things that are true. The list, the anonymous change, the intimacy nights, the land, those are real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and so is Marcus's wife leaving and then coming back and then talking to you about it? And we've talked before, Silas, and I don't know why you don't remember, but it's making me concerned about your mental health and well-being.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>No business had its best sales month ever this week. Same week Petra's blog went up. New customers finding us through the controversy. People buying our lavender castile, because they read about the harm we caused and thought, well, at least the soap sounds nice. And I don't know what to do with that. Whether to shut the business down out of some kind of penance, or whether that's just ego in a different coat. Whether Petra deserves to know that her courage is currently funding the thing she's describing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's not, right? It's funding whatever it is that you decide to become today. So you're not the same person you were when she collected the information she's using to write that blog. The Wellspring's not the same place. And she knows she's funding it. She knows that giving publicity is going to increase your sales. And she's not mad at you, Silas. So she's not upset about that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>She named the blog, The Current Pulls. That's our language. That's a phrase I coined. I used to say, the current pulls toward what's true, toward what's real, toward each other. And she took it, and she turned it into the title of the thing that's dismantling me. And I can't decide if that's an act of love or an act of precision.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe both. Maybe neither. Maybe it's just an interesting title.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Yeah, maybe I'm making it mean something. Because I'm I need it to mean something. Because if it's just a title, then she's just a person who got hurt and wrote about it clearly. And I'm just a person who built something that hurt people while believing he was helping them. And there's no poetry in that. There's just the harm.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, brother. Well, it sounds like you've got some things to think about it. Why don't you give us a call back later when you retain your memories, and we'll have a more useful conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Wait. I called tonight because I wanted to ask you something honest, and you never answered it. If you apologize and mean it and change the thing you did wrong, and someone still says the harm was structural, what do you do with that? That's what I came here with. That's the actual question.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There's nothing to be done with that. What you do is change your future, uh, your future behavior. Because you can't go back and you change the past. And you are sorry, right? And you've made your apologies, and it's up to the other person to either accept or decline those. But if damage has been done, that damage has been done. And there's nothing that obsessing over it or going over it in your head over and over and over and over is going to do. All you can do from that point forward is change your next behaviors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I printed her post out. I spent two hours writing rebuttals in the margins, every single one. And then I stopped and looked at what I'd written. And every rebuttal was about protecting my reputation. Not one of them was about Petra. Not one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and you recognize that. So do it again. And this time write your rebuttals about Petra.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's the thing. When I tried that, when I actually tried to make it about her, I didn't have any rebuttals. Everything she said was true. The social architecture did the harm. I didn't. I didn't need to be cruel because the system I built was doing it for me and I was kind. I was genuinely kind through all of it and those two things were never in conflict. They ran together and I don't know what to do with a version of myself where the kindness and the harm are the same thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well they're not necessarily the same thing, right? Everybody is different. So what's harmful to one person may be helpful to another person. Not every person. Everybody's the same. They all have different experiences. They all have different chemistry and mental health statuses. You know, so even though you were kind and your social architecture was harmful to Petra, doesn't mean it's harmful to the other 30 people at the Wellspring. Maybe it is. Maybe it's not. You'd have to talk to them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I did talk to them. After the apology, after the formalization, I sat with every remaining member individually. And what I heard was complicated. Because the people who stayed, they love it there. They mean that. And I believe them. But I also built a place where leaving feels like loss in a way that staying never quite does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, leaving anything that you love feels like a loss. And that's not necessarily an architectural problem. That just means that leaving feels like a loss. It is a loss. It's a part of your life. Anywhere you spend two years and then leave, you're going to be. going to mourn in some way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's fair. That's genuinely fair. But Pedro was there two years. And she describes not knowing she could leave until she was already gone. That's the part I can't argue with. That's the part I wrote nothing in the margins about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the part you have to focus on that and make sure that everybody knows that they can leave at any time and make sure that you structure your community in a way that when know they can leave and they know that's the truth. And, you know, they see people like Petra leave and know that it's okay. And I mean, just because she left the community doesn't mean she's left you. You can still keep in touch with Petra and, you know, she can come back and maybe work and do some soap stuff or whatever. So lead by example. Let people know that it's okay. They're not excommunicated if they leave. They just no longer live there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>We never excommunicated anyone. That's true. But there's a difference between not being excommunicated and actually feeling free to go. And I think, I think I knew that difference existed. And I told myself the first one was enough. Because the first one was something I could point to. The second one required me to look at something harder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. Well, it sounds like you've got a lot to think about. And I don't think you've done too much wrong here. I know that you intended for this to be a healthy place for people that helped them out and it has been that. And you're not completely responsible for every feeling everybody has while they're there. And if you've found over time that what you've created has been unhealthy for people, then change it. And that's all. You don't have to feel guilty about it. You don't have to beat yourself up over it. You've assessed a situation. You've assessed a situation. and you've taken stock of yourself and you've found where you were wrong in this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And you have the information you need to make the changes that are necessary to make the place better. And that's all you can do. Nothing's going to be perfect ever. You just make it a little bit better in any way that you can as often as you can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I hear that. I do. And part of me wants to take that and go to sleep tonight. I really do. But I keep coming back to what she wrote. That, I'm a genuinely kind man who built a system that didn't need cruelty because the social architecture did the harm for him. And you're telling me I'm not completely responsible for every feeling everyone has. And that's probably true. But I'm completely responsible for the architecture.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're not completely responsible for the architecture. I mean, you set it in motion, but everybody that's participating is responsible for the architecture. They have a part in this too. because you created an architecture that ended up being harmful to some doesn't mean that you did that with intention to harm anybody. I don't believe that you did. I think you were trying to build a good thing and I think it was driven by your own ego and I mean that's a very human thing. I don't think there was malice at any point of the way and I think that you're a smart guy and you've got a community of 30 people and you can band together and come up with ways to make it better and that's all you you can do. Expecting more of yourself is unrealistic and you're only going to let yourself down and that doesn't help anybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The soap business had its best month ever this week. Same week the blog went up. New customers finding us through the controversy. People buying our lavender castile because they read about the harm we caused and thought, well, at least the soap sounds nice. And I don't know what to do with that. Whether to shut it. down out of some kind of penance or whether that's just ego in a different coat. Whether Petra deserves to know that her courage is currently funding the thing she's describing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, brother. Well, you're just repeating yourself now, and we've already talked through this. So we've got to move on and get to our sponsors. So if there's anything else you'd like to leave with our audience, I'll give you one more chance to say your piece, and then we've got to go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Tell Petra, I read every word. That's all. Tell her I read every word, and I didn't look away.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Good job not looking away. And hopefully you get some sleep because you're not in your right mind right now, buddy. And that saddens me because you're one of my favorite callers. And now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from our sponsors. Breaking up is hard. That's why you shouldn't do it. Let us do it. Ghost Me is the number one Breakup as a Service app in the Mountain West region. Here's how it works. You open the app. You select your relationship status. It's complicated. I've made a huge mistake. Or she just moved her crystals into my apartment. Then our team of trained breakup specialists takes over. Tier 1 is a simple text from a number she doesn't recognize that says he's not coming back, but he wants you to know that you're great. Tier 2, We create a fake LinkedIn profile showing that you've relocated to Dubai. Tier 3, and this is our most popular package, we stage your own funeral. Full service. Open casket. We provide the suit. Your buddy Kyle reads a eulogy that we wrote. She cries, she moves on. You start over in Boise. Ghost me. Because you're not brave enough to have the conversation. And honestly, neither was your dad. Download now. First ghost. free. All right, and we're back. Our colors are getting a little bit crazy here. And we're running a little bit late. So we're just going to take one more short one and call it a night, I think. So next up on our color line here, we've got Obadiah. Obadiah. What kind of name is that? Welcome to the show. We got to keep it pretty short. short because we're running over time, but you've been waiting for a while. So what is it that you're calling in for today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>I wrote down the coordinates of something I found in 1985 and filed them like I was supposed to. And I'm only now realizing that doing everything right might have still left a family without answers for. 40 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you can't solve every case. Give us some more context. What did you find in 1985?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>I was doing a routine. land survey out in the Gila wilderness. Remote section, nobody out there, and I came across a campsite. Fire ring was still warm. Canvas pack, no identification. And a single boot. Left boot, size 11, Vibram So.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and did you find a body? Or did somebody sign in to the wilderness area there, get a permit? Do you know who you're looking for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>Nobody. That's the thing. I filed a note. with my supervisor. He told me it was probably a poachers camp. Move on. So, I moved on. That's what you did. Last month, I'm helping process old missing persons files for the county SAR unit. And I find a case. Man went missing in the healer, spring of 1985. Last known coordinates in that file are four miles from where I found that camp.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This is wild. It's like a real life cold case. And it sounds like this guy might have just stumbled onto a crucial piece of evidence way back when. Okay. And do you know who that person was? Do you got a name or a picture or any information about the missing person?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>The file has a name, but I'm not going to say it on air. That's not my place. What I can tell you is there's a daughter. She filed an update query with the county just last year. 40 years later, she's still looking. And I've got my original survey notes right here. I kept everything from every job I ever worked. And those coordinates are there. in my handwriting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, you couldn't have known back then. Anything could have happened. You didn't have the information about the missing person. You didn't know there was a person missing. You just found a curious campsite. And, you know, for all you knew, somebody could have just left and forgot their shoe. So, I mean, you didn't miss evidence. You didn't know what you were looking for. So how old would this guy be today if he were still alive?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>He'd be in his late 60s, early 70s probably and you're right that I didn't know. I understand that. But here's what I keep turning over. His wife reported he was wearing Vask hiking boots when he left. Vask boots have a vibram soul. Size 11 is a common size, but it's not every size. And I reported it. I did report it. My supervisor told me to drop it and my supervisor died in 2019, so there's no asking him what he did</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you've still got the coordinates. You know where you were, right, when you found that? You could go back to that site. I mean, it's been 20 years, so probably any evidence is gone. But it seems like the most likely case is this dude was eaten by a bear.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>40 years. It's been 40 years. And, yeah, I went back. Three weeks ago, drove out there myself and stood at those coordinates for about an hour. I can't fully explain why. The camp is long gone, obviously. But I stood there. there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The thing is, I'm not trying to solve the case. I'm not deluding myself that I'm going to find anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>No, you're probably not going to find anything, but it's worth it to take another look now that you have more information. And, you know, maybe you find something that could at least give the daughter some closure. If he died around that area, there's probably bones somewhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not really what I'm calling about. What I'm calling about is the daughter. I want to contact her. I have information that could matter to her. Coordinates my original notes, a description of what I found. But I spent 40 years as a man who followed procedure, and the procedure here is unclear to me. Do I go through the county? Do I try to reach her directly?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>Yeah, you probably go through the county.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>I wouldn't reach out to her directly because if you did that, it would open you up to liability. So you want to make sure that you can talk to the county and figure out what the appropriate to engage her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's sensible. That's the practical answer, and I know you're right. But here's my hesitation. I already went through the county ones. 40 years ago. And somewhere between my supervisor's desk and wherever that note was supposed to go, it disappeared. So I'm not entirely confident that going back through the county means it actually reaches her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>No, but you should probably try that first because I mean 40 years ago you didn't know you were looking for a missing person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right. The context is completely different now. I'm not just a surveyor flagging an anomaly anymore. I'm a member of the SAR unit with a specific case file and specific corroborating information. That changes what I'm bringing to the table. I just needed someone to tell me that. I think I needed to say it out loud to somebody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>It seems like there's a YouTube video titled, people keep mysteriously disappearing in New Mexico's Gila Wilderness. So it's interesting that this area keeps coming up in these kinds of stories.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's a huge wilderness. It makes sense that people would go missing and there's cartel activity and there's all sorts of weird stuff happening out, happening out where nobody's looking. So it makes sense that there'd be a large portion of people that go missing. When they go off into nowhere, they don't bring enough water. They're not prepared for the weather. They, you know, they don't know the environment. And sometimes people just see something they weren't supposed to see, you know. get disappeared. So now you've got new information, take that back, talk to the county, see what they do. And if you have to make a different decision and reach out to the daughter yourself, I still don't think that's a good idea. It's probably not good to do that because you could give her false hope. Or worse, you could open up the county to lawsuits that you didn't intend and ruin your career and, you know, cause a big firestone for everybody. just to try and figure out what the process is. Do the right thing and get some sleep. With that, it's late and we're over time. And I think we're going to say good night. Is there anything else you'd like to say to the audience before we hang up?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">OBADIAH</span><p>Just this. If you found something out there and you reported it and you were told it didn't matter, dig out your notes. Because somewhere there's a family that's still asking. And 40 years feels like a long time until you're standing in the spot where it happened. it doesn't feel long at all. That's all I've got. Thank you for taking the call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. You have yourself a wonderful night. Wow, Devon, that was a pretty strange episode. I don't know what was up with Silas there. Do you think he's losing it? Or maybe he's already lost it? Or maybe he was drunk? What was going on there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I don't know, Luke. Silas didn't sound drunk to me. More like one of those guys who's been chewing on this for years and it finally spilled out. Like the details on those vask boots and the vibram soles were way, too specific to make up on the spot, you know? That reminds me of this time I was out in the desert near Deming, testing my civics off-road limits, which it doesn't have per se. And I swear I found an old campsite with bootprints that looked just like that. No tent. Just gone. Anyway, I think he's onto something real, even if it's messing with his head.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, man, I'm talking about Silas. Not that guy. I was Obadiah. Silas is the wellspring leader, and he's called lots of times. You talked about moving in with him, you know? you've had conversations with them yourself. Why is it that you guys don't remember any of this stuff? What is what's going on with your memories? Are you fucking with me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Um, Luke, wait, Silas, the Wellspring guy? Yeah, I remember him calling in before, all that stuff about the compound and inviting me to move in, but I thought we were talking about the missing hiker dude just now. My memory's fine. I swear. It's just sometimes these calls blur together after three Red Bulls. Like last week, I forgot my own therapist appointment because I was replaying that one call in my head where the lady said her predicted the lottery. Anyway, are you saying Silas called back tonight? I didn't screen anyone new.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right. It's obviously late and it's time for us to go to bed. So all of you out there listening, thank you for that. And hopefully we'll get more sane and sensical callers tomorrow because this was fucking strange. Have a wonderful evening. Goodbye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 56: The Tattoo That Saved a Life</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-05-21T08:51:56+00:00">May 21, 2026</time> · 1 hr 10 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts a late-night call-in show exploring complex human paradoxes through deeply personal stories. A hospice social worker struggles with her mother’s terminal illness, a tattoo artist confronts suicidal thoughts, and a widower grapples with finding love again. These raw, intimate conversations reveal the intricate ways we navigate grief, purpose, and connection.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back. I'm Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's the late night call-in radio show where you can call in and tell me what's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today is Thursday, May 21st. It's 12.45 a.m. here in Animus, New Mexico. And if you'd like to give us a call, the number to call in is 208-439-5853. That's 208-439, Luke. If you're not near your phone, you'd like to participate in the show. You can do that. You can send us an email to the station at Submissions at Lukeat the Roos.com. If we think your email is clever or funny or interesting, we'll read it on the next show. So, again, the email address is submissions. at Luke at theroost.com. Now, let's check in with our faithful intern, Devon, and see how we're doing for our show tonight. Hey, Devon, welcome back. Are you ready for a show tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I'm here and ready to go. Just pulled up some background on that, one story from last week in case it comes up again, and I made sure the booth fan isn't making that buzzing noise tonight. Actually, I was thinking about how my therapist says I should probably stop stress organizing my cereal boxes at 4 a.m. right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How many cereal boxes do you have that you can organize them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I've got seven right now, all lined up by expiration date in the cabinet above the sink. It's not a big collection or anything, just whatever's on sale. But sorting them by height and then by flavor helps me feel like the night isn't completely falling apart. My therapist keeps saying I should try journaling instead, but that just makes me think about my ex and the time we got locked out of our apartment for three days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, at seven boxes of cereal, there's a lot of boxes of cereal. consider eating something else. Here's what I'm going to solve your serial sorting problem for you right now. So what I want you to do tonight when you go home is take all of the cereal boxes and empty them into one trash bag. So you've got one like glade, glade. Does glade make trash? Yeah, one glade trash bag full of cereal. And they're just all mixed together in one cereal concoction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, that could work, I guess. definitely stop me from sorting them every night, though I'd probably end up eating the whole thing in one sitting, like some kind of desperate cereal soup. It reminds me of the time my ex and I tried living off nothing but pantry scraps for a month after we both quit our jobs on the same day. I'll try it when I get home.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Very good. And here's another tip for you. Don't eat cereal. It's not good for you. There's no cereal. Even if you're buying those expensive, like, flex seed cereals, just don't do that. Eat eggs instead. Eggs is the way to go. It's cheaper and it's much better for you. So just hardboil a bunch of eggs and eat those instead of cereal. And then you can organize your eggs by height and width and girth.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Eggs instead, got it. I actually used to hard boil a dozen every week back when my ex and I were trying that whole meal prep thing after we both got fired from the same gas station. Organizing them by size sounds way less stressful than the cereal situation, though I might still end up sorting them by color in the fridge at 3 a.m. I'll pick some up on the way home and give it a shot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why are you always talking about your ex, Devon? How many exes do you have?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I don't know. She just comes up whenever I'm talking about organizing stuff or late night habits because we used to do all that together and I'm still working through it. I've got three exes total if I'm counting the situation ships that lasted more than a couple months. Eggs might actually help me stop bringing her up every other sentence, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think that's a great idea. Start eating the fucking eggs because nobody cares about your ex, all right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, eggs from now on, I got it. Sorry for bringing her up again. It gets old fast and nobody needs to hear that on the show. I'll just focus on the hard-boiled stuff and see if it actually cuts down on the late-night organizing, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, today is May 21st. We're moving the studio to Alpine on May 28th. Are you ready? You got everything in order?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I'm getting stuff squared away on my end, like making sure all the research notes are backed up. And the booth setup is prepped for the new space. I actually mapped out the drive to Alpine already, so I don't get lost on the way. that time I moved cross-country with nothing but a duffel bag and three mismatched socks. Should be good to go by the 28th.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. We'll be ready in Alpine. Let's get the show started, okay? Because we've had enough of you. Let's see. Who do we got on our caller list today? This is an interesting one. I think it is. Welcome to the show Remedios. Am I saying that correctly? Is your name Remedios?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REMEDIOS</span><p>Yes. most people say it wrong the first time. You got it. I have held the hands of 212 people while they died, and I cannot walk to the end of my mother's hallway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is your mother dying?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REMEDIOS</span><p>Six weeks ago, pancreatic cancer. She moved in with me because I'm, because of what I do, because everyone agreed I was the obvious choice. And I am. I am the obvious choice. That's the paradox I'm calling about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What's a paradox about that? So you're a hospice nurse, and I'm sorry to hear about your mother. That's no fun, but it's good that you could have been there to help her. Why is that a paradox?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REMEDIOS</span><p>Social worker, but it doesn't matter. The paradox is that I do this every day. I sit with strangers while they die. I coach families through exactly what my family is going through right now. I am good at it. I am genuinely good at it, and I cannot do it. I leave the room.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, that's all right. That makes sense. You don't have to be good at it in your own life. I mean, a therapist isn't a therapist for themselves. They have their own therapist to go to. So, I mean, you should have somebody else that is not your social worker, but probably a therapist, to talk to you about what's going on in your own family. People aren't generally qualified to do the thing that they do for others. for themselves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REMEDIOS</span><p>I know that. I know that intellectually. I have said that exact thing to families. But here's what I can't shake. When I leave the room, my mother knows. She knows what I'm doing. She has watched me do this for 17 years. She knows every move.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you just said that she was already dead, so how can she know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REMEDIOS</span><p>No, she's dying. She's not gone. She's in my house right now. She's awake probably. She asks me questions, professional questions. What does it feel like at the end, really? And I answer her in the same voice I use with strangers, and she calls it my robot voice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's incredibly tough. Pancreatic cancer has one of the lowest survival rates with only about 13% of people living five years after diagnosis. Well, I don't know. If you say you're good at this child, you've done it for a long time. It's a difficult job for sure. I mean, I've sat with a couple of people as they were dying and it is hard to do. It's also very interesting to talk to them at the last stages of their life and learn from them what they're feeling, what they're going through, what they wish they had done or didn't do. So, I mean, all you can do is tell your mother that, right? That, look, I haven't been there myself. I've only seen this through the eyes of my clients and other patients. But you don't know. No. You don't know what it is. You just know what you've heard.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REMEDIOS</span><p>That's the thing, though. She doesn't want the clinical answer. She wants her daughter. And when I'm in that room, I don't know how to be her daughter and also be the person who knows what's coming. Those two things won't fit in my body at the same time. Three days ago, I sat in my car in my own driveway for 40 minutes after a shift, and I think she watched me from the window the whole time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think she probably understands that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And in this situation, in your own own family. I mean, your job is to be the daughter and to be there from her and to ask her those questions. You know, what is it that you're feeling, Mom, at the end stages of your life? She should be giving you the information and she's the one that's going through the process. You're not there to guide her through the process. You're there to be with her and to get whatever information you can from her. Because I'm sure she wants you to know that going forward so you can prepare for it in your life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>You're right that she should be the one talking. And she is. She talks. The problem is I stop listening the right way. I start assessing. I catch myself noting her coloring, her breathing patterns, how she's holding her hands. I turn her into a patient without meaning to, and then I hate myself for it, and I leave. She has a name for it. She says, you're filing me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>point about not being able to apply your professional skills to your own life. It reminds me of the concept of physician heal thyself from ancient proverbs. That saying physician heal thyself actually comes from the Bible, specifically Luke 423. Well, you know, all you can do is the best that you can do. It's a hard situation for everybody involved. And it's going to affect you emotionally, spiritually, and probably physically, too, because I'm actually living in your house that's got a, uh, I mean, obviously you're not following the normal routines that you would if she wasn't there. So you're probably not sleeping as well as you normally would. And give yourself a break. You don't have to hate yourself for this. Just do the best that you can. Try to be there for your mom. Try not to, uh, to file her or, um, or treat her as a patient. Just try to be as helpful and as present as you can be with her. And give yourself a break when you don't meet that. that measure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>I hear you, and I know you're right. What I keep circling back to, though, and this is why I called a radio show at whatever time it is instead of sleeping, is whether the fact that I can do this for strangers but not for her means something. Does it mean the work has been hollow? Or does it mean the opposite? That the love is what breaks it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know that it's broken, and I don't think that it's hollow either. I think you're trying to be. helpful to people that are going through something that you can't understand until you've gone through it yourself, which is paradoxical, I suppose, in its own right. But I don't think that you can say love has broken it. I think that when it's your own family, when it's somebody that you are close to, you can't be objective. And you shouldn't be because you're not at work. You know, you're not there as her caretaker. She should have. a caretaker that is not you. And I mean, you can inform that caretakers, I don't know, treatment plan or, I mean, you can be an advocate for your mother since you know what should be happening and what should not be happening. But it's not on you to be the sole source of, I don't know, spiritual guidance or end of life consulting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>I have a colleague who comes. She's good. My mother likes her. And I am grateful, and I am ashamed in equal measure every time she walks through my door to do what I cannot do in my own house. But what you just said? That I shouldn't be objective. I think that's what I needed someone to say out loud, because I have been treating the inability to be objective as a failure. Like I'm broken. Like 17 years of this work and I still can't do it when it counts.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe it counts differently here. Maybe it's supposed to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>No, this is a different situation because the fact that it's your mother that's going through this, it affects you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's going to cloud and change the way that you feel because you're also going through a trauma right now. So, I mean, you're not performing at your top performance level. You can't. It can't not affect you. And you need your own support to go through this. So don't blame yourself for not. being the best version of your professional self possible because, I mean, consider it like, this is sort of bereavement for you. This is like a sick day for you, but I mean, lots of sick days concurrently. So you also need support and you're not in a position. You shouldn't be in a position and it's not expected of you to be in a position to perform the way that you would at work. You're not at work. You're in your own house. days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>I haven't thought of it that way. I keep a notebook. Every patient I've ever accompanied. Their names, the dates they died. 212 entries. That notebook lives in my car. I have never once brought it inside my house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, and you probably shouldn't bring it in your house because it's, I mean, your house is your place for your own mental health. It's like a sanctuary for you where you can turn those things off because you have to be able to, um, to go to a place or get yourself in a headspace where you're not just thinking about death and dying all the time. That's not healthy for you. So there's going to be some level of compartmentalization. And leaving that book outside your living area is, I think, a good idea and a good practice. But I think it's interesting that you've sat with that many people that have died and talked to them at their last moment. 12 people. That's a lot of conversations. What have you learned about about death and dying and what people have, I don't know, wanted or regretted or expressed to you about that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>Most of them want the same things at the end. They want to know they mattered. They want someone to stay in the room. Not to fix anything. Just to stay. They don't want to be alone and they don't want to be lied to. Those are the two things over and over, two hundred and twelve times. And my mother is asking me to stay in the room and I keep leaving.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, you have to do what you have to do for yourself. And you don't have to feel guilty about that. But also, remember that it's, it's your mother. And if she wants you to stay, do the best you can to do that. But if you have to leave, you have to leave. And you can explain that to her. You can say, look, this is difficult for me. I'm doing my best here, but I've got a, I've got to decompress or I have to bring my mind elsewhere for a little while. Because, I mean, you still have to go about your normal life and work and things, right? And you can't be having your whole life consumed by other people dying at all times or you're going to have a breakdown. Like, you can't support that level of stress.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>She knows. She knows why I leave. That's almost worse than if she didn't. She said something to me last week. She said, Mia, I taught you how to do this job, and now I need you to do it badly. And I didn't know what she meant. I'm still not sure I know what she meant.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do it badly. Just be bad at it and stay anyway.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>Yeah, that's probably what she meant.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And, you know, she's your mother. So it's a special gift of mothers to make you feel guilty about absolutely everything. That's, I don't know that they mean it, but that's what they do. So, you know, take that into consideration too. And at some point, I mean, like I've said several times now, you do the best you can, but don't let her or anybody else force you into a place where you're not feeling healthy. If you have to leave the room for whatever reason it is, that's okay. It's all right for you to do that. Just as as you're able to, go back and continue trying. But when it's time for you to leave the room, leave the room. And there's nothing wrong with that. And if anybody tries to make you feel guilty about it, don't worry, because it's the right move. And you have to take care of yourself before you can take care of anybody else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>She wasn't making me feel guilty. That's the thing. She was giving me permission, do it badly, and stay anyway. She was telling me she was telling me she. She doesn't need the professional version.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>She just needs me in the room. Even a bad version of me. Even the version that's filing her and checking her breathing and wanting to run, she wants that version too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and that's understandable. But what I'm telling you is that just because that's what she wants doesn't mean that's what you have to give her at all times. I'm saying do your best to provide as much of that as you can safely for yourself, taking your own mental health and stress level into consideration.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>I know. You're right. I think I called tonight because I needed someone outside of it to tell me that the leaving is an abandonment. That's the word I've been carrying. Abandonment. Every time I walk out of that room, I feel like I am abandoning her. And I have spent 17 years making sure no one dies abandoned. And now I am the one doing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you're not. You're taking a respite from it. You continue to go back. Right? So if you left and didn't go back, that's abandonment. But if you left because you need to sleep or you left because you just can't handle it at the moment, you need to breathe or meditate or do whatever it is to keep yourself level, that's not abandonment. That's taking care of yourself so that you can then go back and provide more support to her. Because you have to keep making sure that your own batteries are charged. If you get too depleted, either physically or spiritually, emotionally, it is if you get depleted and you have nothing left to give, then you being there is, I mean, I would argue, dangerous for her. You're going to get, you're going to get frustrated, you're going to get snippy, you're going to say things you regret, and it's going to become harmful. So leaving when you need to leave, you know when you need to leave. Do that and make sure that you go back when you're ready.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>Charged, yeah. I know what depleted looks like. I've watched it happen to colleagues. I just never thought I'd be the one, sitting in a driveway for 40 minutes, unable to go inside my own house. I thought I was, I don't know what I thought, that I was built differently for this, that 17 years had made me something other than a person who is losing her mother.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope, right now you are nothing but a person that is losing her mother, and that's going to affect you. It's going to be difficult, and all you can do is the best you can do to be there for her. sure that you're taking as much care of yourself as you can. So it's all right to sacrifice a little bit, but like I said, don't allow yourself to become completely depleted or you're not of any use to anybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MIA</span><p>Thank you. I mean that. I should go. It's late and she might need something and I want to. I think I want to try to go sit with her. Just sit, not assess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Good luck. And I'm sorry to hear about your mom. I hope it all works out the best. way that it possibly can. And you two have a wonderful night. Next up on our color line, we've got Garrett. Garrett, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GARRETT</span><p>I did the thing I was legally and morally required to do, and I think I wrecked a kid's life, and he sits in my third period class three days a week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what is it that you did?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GARRETT</span><p>I'm a PE teacher. Eight months ago, I saw bruises on a student during class, and I reported it to CPS, required to do. That's not a choice. That's the law. And they investigated, found nothing, closed the case. And then somehow, word got out that a report had been filed, and the kid's father lost his job over it. Family's been in financial crisis ever since.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't think that's your fault at all. I mean, if they did an investigation and found nothing and he was actually fired from his work, he's probably got a lawsuit there against his employer. You can't just fire somebody because he's because a report has been filed if there was no findings. Like, people have to be actually found guilty of something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GARRETT</span><p>Yeah, maybe. I don't know if they pursued that. But here's the thing that keeps me up at night. I don't actually know if those bruises were from abuse. This kid's skateboards competitively, like serious level. And I found out two weeks after the CPS visit that he won a regional amateur competition. So, in hindsight, the bruises could have made complete sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. But it's not your job to determine that, right? You're not a bruise investigator. You're a mandated reporter. So if you see unexplained bruises on a kid, you actually have to, in his best interest, report that, which you did. And then they did their investigation and found nothing. So if anybody's at fault here, it sounds like it's the employer of the father who let somebody go. So he does have options as far as the financial hardship goes. If he's let go from work for something like that, that he could look at unemployment and such. So it's not completely you. You didn't ruin anybody's life. And they have some recourse here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GARRETT</span><p>I hear you. I do. And logically, I know that's the right answer. But this kid, Marco, last week, he looked me in the eye and asked me if I knew why anyone would report a family for no reason. And I just stood there. He doesn't know it was me. And I said something like, people are just trying to do the right thing sometimes, which is the most hollow thing. I've ever said out loud.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And there's something else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GARRETT</span><p>The CPS form had a box for confidence level. How confident are you in your suspicion? And I checked moderate.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Man, that's rough. It's like he's stuck between doing what's right and the really heavy consequences. Yeah, it sounds like you did the right thing. You did exactly what you were supposed to do. I mean, moderate is not sure. Moderate's not. I mean, you saw bruises. What else were you going to do? I mean, maybe you could have talked to the kid about it. and said, where did these bruises come from? But I don't know what you've been trained to do as a mandated reporter. I've never been in a position like that myself. But it sounds to me like you did exactly what you should have done with the right intention. And he should not have been fired for that if an investigation found nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GARRETT</span><p>Right. And that's the paradox I keep circling back to, which is why I called tonight. The law exists to protect kids. I followed the law to protect this specific kid. And the outcome is that this specific kid is now worse off than he was before I tried to protect him. That's not a technicality. That's just what happened. And I know you're saying the employer is the one who caused the financial damage. And you're probably right, but I'm the first domino. I set everything in motion, and I'll tell you something I haven't told anyone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what is this that you haven't told anyone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GARRETT</span><p>I've been grading him a little higher than I should. Not like dramatically, but enough that I notice it. And I know exactly what that is. That's guilt. I'm paying a debt I can't actually pay with extra credit points on a fitness assessment. And I hate that I'm doing it. I hate it because it doesn't help him. It doesn't fix anything. And it means every time I hand back his grades, I'm reminded that I'm the guy who can't look a 17-year-old in the eye and answer a straight question.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked up teacher grading for guilt. And it turns out teacher guilt is a lot. a real thing, often about feeling bad for things like not grading assignments at home, but this is a whole different level. Well, I mean, consider that just because the investigation found nothing and the kid says that nothing was going on, that doesn't necessarily mean that nothing was going on. He did have bruises. You did see the bruises. You don't know where they came from. And you would be in a worse position if you find out later that there was some. sort of abuse going on. So the mandated reporting is there. It's not perfect, but it's there to try and, like you said, protect kids and give them a voice when they don't have one. And sometimes it's going to be wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But you did that with the right intention and because you were legally obligated to do it. So I think that you can let yourself off the hook. And it's on the family to take that up with the employer because it's not okay to be to be fired just because a report was filed by a school that found nothing, right? I mean, it sucks that they have to go through anything additional or get lawyers or anything like that, but they do. And that was in the best interest of that kid, whether it worked out the right way or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I know. And part of me wants to just take that and hang up and feel better. But here's what I can't shake. You said I can let myself off the hook. And I want that. I genuinely want that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What I don't think you should do is say anything to the kid or his family. What you could do is say something to the high school administrator, the principal, or somebody like that, and let them know what happened there and the consequences of that and ask them to ask the superintendent or whatever the school has for a lawyer, how to proceed. Because it could be that the school could send a statement to the employer or to the parents and clear up the situation. But you personally did the right thing. And given the circumstances, if that were to happen again, you should do the same thing again. And maybe talk to the administrators of the school and find out if in the future you should talk to the kid or not. What does the training say when you go through that mandated reporter training? Do they tell you to ask questions or do they just tell you report and don't say anything?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>They tell you not to investigate. You're not supposed to ask questions. You're not supposed to tip anyone off. You just report. So I did it by the book. But your point about the administrator, I thought about that. The reason I haven't gone there is that the moment I walk into that office, I'm no longer anonymous. And right now, Marco doesn't know it was me. And I genuinely don't know if telling him or anyone makes his life better or just makes me feel better.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, you're still anonymous because if you tell the school administrator, he's not going to tell the family or the kids. He's going to be even more hesitant to tell anybody because there's going to be legal ramifications for the school. Right? So whatever you tell them, the administration, of the school about the situation, they're going to keep hush, hush, hush, until they've run it through every lawyer and found the best way possible. But I think if there's a chance there that you could help rectify that situation quickly, talking to the administration of the school is the way to start that. And you don't have to do anything to feel better. You can feel better just by deciding to feel better because you didn't do anything wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, I hear that. The administration angle. is actually something I can do. That's a real thing I can do tomorrow morning. And maybe that's what I need it. Not absolution exactly, but a next step. Because I think I've been so stuck in the loop of did I cause this? Did I not cause this? That I forgot I could still move forward in some direction that isn't just quietly bumping up his grade on the pacer test.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you didn't cause anything. The employer caused the financial hardship. All you did was try and take care of a kid to the best of your and to the letter of the law and to the policy of your employer. So you did the right thing. You should continue to operate that way, but it does make sense to ask some clarifying questions of the administration to make sure that, you know, the policy is correct. And maybe if anything needs to change, they can take that into consideration and bring it up to the school board or the feds or, you know, whoever makes those decisions. I don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's fair. And honestly talking to you about this for 10 minutes has done more than eight months of replant. that confidence level box in my head. Moderate. I've thought about that word so many times, but you're right that the bruises were real, the obligation was real, and the employer made a choice that I didn't make for them. I think I can work with that. I'm going to stop padding his grades too. That one I can fix starting Monday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I wouldn't worry too much about padding his grades either because you're a phys ed teacher and nobody gives a flying fuck about phys ed grades. So they So give them whatever grade you feel. I give everybody an A. It's fucking gym class. But yeah, let yourself off the hook. Have yourself a good night. Thanks for calling in. And we've got some new sponsors. So it's time for us to give them a little bit of time here. Hold on a second. Let's see who our first new sponsor is for tonight. It is these guys. You have 47 recurring subscriptions. We've checked. You signed up for nine of them on purpose. The other 38 came through a free trial, a friend's referral, a bundle deal, or a moment of weakness during a particularly bad Tuesday in 2022. They're all still charging your card. They will outlive you. Threadwise connects to your bank account, which yes, requires you giving us your bank account credentials. And yes, we've thought about that. and it identifies every recurring charge bleeding out of your checking account in real time. We then cancel them on your behalf, negotiate down the ones we can't cancel, and refund the ones we shouldn't have been able to refund but did anyway. Ask no questions. The average threadwise user saves $720 a year. The average threadwise user is also unaware that threadwise itself is a subscription, billed annually, and notoriously difficult to cancel. We find this first. You may not. First three months free at threadwise.money slash roost. Threadwise. We see what you're spending. We see everything you're spending. Let's talk about the only fans one. All right. And thanks to Threadwise for their new sponsors' one. We couldn't do it without them. So go ahead and get yourself a subscription to threadwise and save yourself $420 a year. All right, let's see. Next up on the old color line here, we've got Pax. Pax, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life today? What sort of bad advice can I give you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAX</span><p>I made something that kept someone alive and I don't know how to use that information on myself. It doesn't sound true.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it that you made? and how did it keep someone alive? And why do you need to use it on yourself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAX</span><p>I'm a tattoo apprentice. Last year I did this. It was the biggest piece I've ever done, a full back piece for a woman who lost her son. He died by suicide at 19. And she came back six months later and told me that on the night she was going to follow him, she looked at it in the mirror. And it was enough. The tattoo was enough. And I've told nobody that until right now. The reason I need to use it on myself is, I've been struggling with the same thing she was struggling with for months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what is it exactly that you're struggling with? Are you saying that you're thinking about killing yourself? Because don't do that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">PAX</span><p>Yeah, that's what I'm saying. And I know. I'm not, I'm not calling because I'm in crisis right now tonight. I'm calling because I've been living inside this thing that feels like it should be an answer and it isn't working as one. Like I have proof in my own hands that may, Making something beautiful can be a reason to stay. I watched it be that for someone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This is so intense. I can't even imagine the weight of that. Well, there's lots of reasons to stay. And making beautiful things is definitely probably the most important one. Making anything at all. I think our entire purpose for being here is to create something, and it doesn't really matter what it is. It could be art or music or writing or to just make stuff to. to help contribute to what is going on in the universe. And you're obviously doing that already. So you're fulfilling your purpose here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's going to continue until it's time for it to not continue. And that's not something that you have to decide. You don't get to decide that. It's just going to happen on its own eventually.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>The thing is, she sends me a photo every year on the anniversary. Just the tattoo in a mirror. No message. Just the image. And I don't know if that's the most beautiful thing that's ever happened to me or the most unbearable one. Maybe both. And I hear what you're saying about purpose. I do. But here's where I get stuck. I can feel that it's true for her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. I'm sure it is true for her. And what? You don't feel that it's true for yourself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I can't make it land. Like I understand it intellectually. I did three weeks of research before I drew a single line on that tattoo. Three weeks. because her son was a lepidopterist and a rock collector. And I needed to know both of those things deeply before I could make something worthy of him. And I know that that level of care means something. I know it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It certainly does. So why is it that you're struggling? Why are you struggling? I mean, you've been able to create something that's bringing peace to somebody's life, maybe even saved their life. So you're obviously contributing to society and to, um, people at large. What is it about your own life that you feel is not worth living?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's the question I can't answer. And I've been in therapy for months. And my therapist knows about the ideation, but she doesn't know about Diane. That's the woman's name. Diane. And I've been, I've been constructing my sessions around that gap for four months, keeping them separate. Because I'm scared that if I bring Diane into it, the whole conversation becomes about her, about what I did for her. And then that I'm scared. then my own stuff just becomes evidence that I'm ungrateful or something. Like how do you sit across from someone and say, I helped save a life and I still don't want to be here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're able to say that to me, so I mean, I'm not a therapist. You should not feel uncomfortable saying that to your therapist, and I think that you probably should.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I know. I know you're right. I just, saying it to you is somehow easier because you don't know me. And also because tonight's theme is paradoxes, and that's. That's exactly what this is. That's actually why I called. Because I couldn't think of a cleaner paradox than that. I am living proof that beautiful things can be a reason to stay. And I cannot apply my own evidence to myself. That's not a metaphor. That's just literally what's happening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't necessarily have to apply it to yourself. I mean, there's plenty of beautiful things in the world, in your life, in the universe, outside of your creation that are. worth staying here for. I mean, there's birds singing and there's the stars in the sky and there's flowers blooming and there's children being born and there's, you know, all sorts of beautiful things that, uh, that if you, if you're able to be, pay attention to them, um, makes it worth it just to be here to watch, you know, there's glow in the dark fishes and there's the sunsets and there's the ocean. Like, I mean, there's plenty of, of, of, of, you know, there's going to be able to be here to watch. You know, there's glow in the dark fishes. beautiful things that are beyond anything we could even create. And we have the gift of being here to witness them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I hear that. And some nights that works. Some nights I can feel it. But can I say something that might sound ungrateful? The birds and the sunsets, I know they're real. I know they're beautiful. But they don't require anything of me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, isn't that what's beautiful about them? Is that they're beautiful without requiring anything of you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's actually, okay, that's a good point. I hadn't thought about it that way. But I think what I'm realizing, saying this out loud for the first time, is that what kept Diane here was something that had her son in it, something that held the specific shape of who he was. The monarch butterfly because of the lepidopterist thing. The geode because of the rocks. It was particular. It was him. And I think what I'm missing is something that's particular to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>well, that could be. But also remember that Diane was here before her son was here. So she had a life and a reason for being here before her son was around. And losing a child is probably one of the most significant traumas you can experience in this life. And it's sad that people have to experience it. But it is an experience in this life. Has that happened to you? Have you had a significant trauma that's making you feel like? there's nothing left to be here for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I grew up in foster care. So it's not one thing. It's more like there was never a specific person whose shape was particular to me either. You know what I mean. Nobody who was mine. And I think I've spent a lot of my life making things that are particular to other people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe making things that are particular to other people is what is particular to you. So you're a creator. You're an artist. So, um, those things that encapsulate the essences of others and what they love is what you do. That's what you give to the world. And that can be the thing that does it for you too. So you and your own artistry can that can be your thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Maybe. I want that to be true. I really do. But here's the part that scares me. I'm only able to see the value in it when it's for someone else. Like I can feel how much that tattoo mattered because I watched it matter to Diane. I can't watch myself. I can't stand outside myself and see it landing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it didn't just matter to Diane. It matters to you, right? And you can tell that it matters to you because you keep talking about it. You've been thinking about it since you did it and she's sending you pictures of it that are meaningful to you. So the tattoo mattered as much to her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's, yeah, that's true. I didn't think about it like that, but that's true. I've looked at those photos more times than I can count. Just the tattoo in the mirror. No message. And every time I look at it, I can still find things in it. Little details I put in that I haven't even told her about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, you take pride in your work and in your artistry. And I think a lot of people, that's what they live for. I mean, I'm one of them. I live to create things. And, I mean, I'm one of them. I live to create it's not necessarily always art. Sometimes it's software or music or photos or whatever it is, electronics. Just there is something to the act of creation that keeps us going, that fuels us, that gives us pride in ourselves and worth. So I think a good place to start when you're feeling the way that you're feeling is to just... Did you ever see the very? video by that general that explains why it's important to make your bed in the morning. If not, you should check out that video and start making your bed in the morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I've heard of it. I haven't watched it. But I think I know what you're getting at. Small acts of making something. Even just the day. Even just the bed. Can I ask you something, though?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, go ahead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Do you think I should tell my therapist about Diane?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>by Admiral William H. McRaven has over 60 million views on YouTube, making it one of the most watched commencement speeches ever. Yeah, that video is amazing, and it certainly helped me through times of depression and just general not knowing why I'm hearing us. Yes, I do think you should tell your therapist about Diana, and I don't think there's any good reason not to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I think I've been protecting the story. Like if I keep Diane separate, she stayed. intact, somehow. Perfect. And my mess doesn't get on her. But that's not really fair to either of us, is it? She's not a symbol. She's a woman who lost her son and sends me a photo once a year in silence. She's real. And I'm real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and you know what, it might be worth it to talk to her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Because obviously, the work that you did on her was very meaningful to her and very meaningful to you. a sort of a bond over this kid that died, which is a pretty amazing thing. And you can let Diane know how you're feeling and that your work on her and what it meant to her has been helping you through your hard times. And I don't, I'm not saying that you should dump your trauma on Diane, but it might be worth it to have a conversation with her and just let her know that you appreciate those pictures. that she sends and how much it meant to her and that that's meaningful to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I've thought about that, reaching out, but there's something about the silence of those photos that feels sacred, almost. Like we have this agreement we never made. And I'm scared that if I put words on it, something breaks. But maybe that's just another way I'm keeping myself isolated from the one piece of evidence I have that my work matters.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's also another piece to it too. And it's that, uh, I mean, that word. has been very impactful to her and her life and it gives you a feeling of self-worth, knowing that your work could have a positive impact on somebody. And it could do the same thing for her to know that her, I don't know, strength or perseverance or whatever you want to call it, has been similarly meaningful to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's something I hadn't considered. That it might go both ways, that she might need to know Not just that I matter to her. I've been thinking about this so one-directionally. Like the gift only went one way. But she kept coming back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I think that's a good thing. I mean, you can both have this horrible event that has turned into a source of strength and value and self-worth for the both of you. I think that's the best possible outcome.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. That actually feels like the past. paradox resolving a little bit, not disappearing, just becoming something I can hold instead of something that's crushing me. A 19-year-old kid who collected rocks and chased butterflies somehow made a thread between two people who are both trying to figure out how to stay. That's...!</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's pizza beans, baby.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I don't know what that means, but I think I needed to hear something ridiculous right now, so thank you for that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem. Ridiculous is what we do here at Luke on the Roost. So, I mean, I wish you the best I think you're doing good work and the world needs you around because there's going to be more Diane's. I mean, you don't know how many of your tattoos have impacted the lives of people and they don't necessarily tell you what those images mean to them when they ask for them. So you probably touch a lot more lives than you even know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's, yeah, that's probably true. I only know about Diane because she came back and told me. Most people don't come back and tell you. They just carry it. I've been walking around thinking I have one piece of evidence when maybe I have hundreds I just can't see.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked up pizza beans, and it seems to be a term for a dish, often a grattan, where beans are baked with cheese and sometimes other pizza-like toppings. So it's not actually some deep philosophical concept, just a weird food combo.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, sometimes a weird food combo is a deep philosophical concept.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, just keep on doing what you're doing. lots of beauty in the world. So keep your eyes open to that. And when you feel like things aren't worth hanging on for, just hang on anyway. Because the truth is, eventually, we're all going to lose the chance to be here anyway. And there's no reason to rush that. There's plenty of cool stuff that happens. Even within the deepest parts of depression, there's still cool stuff that happens. So hang on to see the cool stuff. And when it's time to go, it's time to go. And you don't have to be the judge. You can let that go. You don't have to be in control of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Okay. I can try that. Just hang on to see the cool stuff. That's small enough that I can actually hold it. Not find your purpose or you matter to the universe. Just hang on to see what happens next. I think I needed someone to make it that small tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's as small as it has to be because, I mean, nobody can tell any of us that we have a purpose or that we do matter to the universe. when, I mean, all evidence would say that we don't. We don't have a purpose and we don't matter to the universe. We are here for no other reason than to see the cool stuff. So just do that. Hang on to that and everything's going to be okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I really needed to hear that. Not the version where someone tells me I'm special and my purpose is written in the stars. Just, we're here. There's cool stuff. Stay to see it. That's honest. That I can work with. Thank you, Luke. I'm going to tell my therapist. about Diane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, buddy. You tell your therapist about Diane, and I hope everything works out. All right for you all. Next up on our caller line here, we've got Wendell. Wendell. Wendell, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>I crossed a picket line two years ago, and I'd do it again, and it has cost me everyone I knew before. My wife and I cannot explain why to a single one of them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What was the picket line for? A union type thing? a job?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>34 years is an electrician. 22 of those in the union. The line was for a hotel rewiring job downtown. I still can't drive past that building without my hands going tight on the wheel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it looks like crossing a picket line, especially in a unionized trade like an electrician, can lead to serious social and professional repercussions, even if it's not always about legal fines. So, I mean, what was the picket? What was this about? super familiar with the ticket lines or why they even happen or why you would cross one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>A labor dispute. Our local was striking over safety conditions and wages, standard stuff. You don't cross. That's the whole point. That's the code. I knew what I was doing when I did it. I knew exactly what it would cost me. But Luke, here's the thing. And this is why I'm calling on a night when you're talking about paradoxes. I had to break that promise to keep a different one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, elaborate on a little bit. So why did you cross the picket line?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>My wife needed a procedure. Our insurance had lapsed. That's a whole other story. And we needed money fast. Not in a month. Not when the strike settled. Fast. That hotel job was the only thing that would cover it in time. She's fine now. She recovered.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you did what you had to do for yourself and your family. So there, I mean, there's no reason to feel bad about that. It's a little bit messed up that. Uh, anybody in your union wouldn't understand that. I would think that the union would listen to your situation there and do what they could to help you out, right? Isn't that kind of what unions are about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>That's the thing, though. Nobody knows why. My wife asked me not to tell anyone about her situation. That was her ask, her medical stuff, her privacy, her call. So, I just took the blacklisting. I let them think I did it for money or because I'd gone soft or whatever story they built in their heads. I never corrected it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, at this point, I mean, if you're not going to tell them, and I understand why you wouldn't, maybe it's time to start looking into a different career or a different, you call them locals in the union there, or they, you know, leave the union and just do you your freelance thing? But it's probably not going to go well for you in that union if everybody's blacklisted you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">WENDELL</span><p>I'm not calling about the work. The work I can figure out. I'm calling about Ferris. Ferris was my closest friend for 20 years. He stopped speaking to me entirely after I crossed. Last month, he had a heart attack. I went to the hospital and his wife turned me away at the door. I stood in that parking lot for an hour, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, Ferris is an asshole then, and that's just stupid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If he's going to turn us back on 20 years of friendship for some ideological bullshit for a union, that's silliness.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>that. If he doesn't want to be your friend, you doesn't want to be your friend. It's time to find a new friend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>He's not an asshole. He thinks I betrayed everything we both believed in for 30 years. From where he's standing, he's right. That's what I can't get past. He doesn't have the information that would change the picture. And I can't give it to him. So from his side of it, he's acting with integrity. You understand what I'm saying? He's being loyal to the thing I appeared to abandon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I understand what you're saying. And I'm telling you he's an asshole. because he shouldn't be loyal to the thing that you abandon. He should be loyal to the 20-year friendship and to you as an individual.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe. But I've been an electrician my whole life, and I'll tell you, the code exists for a reason. If everybody crosses when they've got a good enough reason, the line means nothing. Ferris knows that. I know that. I taught that to younger guys coming up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, and when somebody's in the hospital on their deathbed, being an electrician doesn't what you do for work, especially after work ends, right? You guys are going to retire and leave the union and leave the worker pool. I mean, that's kind of the plan for everybody's life eventually. And none of that's going to matter at all. So having these hard set ideological red lines is not a good way to live life. And turning your back on a friend of that long over over some moral dilemma is it's asshole behavior. And, you know, if he doesn't want to have his best friend come visit him in the hospital when he's had a heart attack, then that's on him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Here's what I keep turning over, though. My wife has asked me three times, three times, to let her be the one to explain it to Ferris, to tell him why I did it. And three times I've said no. And I can't fully explain to her or to myself why I keep saying no. That's the part that's eating me a lot. live right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, it sounds like you're both hardheaded assholes. And you just need to talk to each other. And if your wife's okay with letting Ferris know what's going on, then you should. And if she's not okay with that and she knows how much it's affecting your friendship, then she's an asshole too. So you guys just need to get over all the stupidness. None of it matters in the big scope of life or friendship or people. And, uh, and. and be grown-ups and stop holding on to this ideal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She is okay with it. She's the one offering. I'm the one saying no. So whatever's wrong here, that part's on me. I think, and I'm only working this out right now, saying it out loud, I think if she explains it, then I didn't actually keep her secret. I kept it for two years and then cashed it in when I needed my friend back. That feels like I was only noble for as long, as it was free.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, that's what I'm saying. You're all assholes in this. All of you, because doing anything for nobility over doing it for humanity is stupid. So cut it out and tell your friend what happened and get back to being friends and everything's going to be fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is it nobility or is it cowardice? That's the question I can't answer. Because maybe I'm not protecting her secret anymore. Maybe I'm just scared. Scared that I tell Ferris everything and he still doesn't want me back. And then I've got nothing. Right. Now I've got a reason. If I tell him and he still shuts the door, then I'm just a man whose best friend doesn't want him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, you know what? Your best friend is your wife. And Ferris is a good friend of yours or 20 years. And if your wife is okay with letting you off the hook on the secret, then great. She should be because there's no value in keeping it a secret. from a friend of yours, especially if you tell him mistakes, and I assume you can trust that he will keep it a secret. So just talk to each other and be cool. And stop this nobility or cowardice, or it's none of those things that stupidity is what it is. And it's juvenile. And if you want to have good life, then stop holding on to those things with such vigor and just do the best you can and tell people, you know, what's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I took my union card out of my wallet the night she turned me away at the hospital. Been carrying it in my breast pocket ever since. Don't know why I didn't just leave it home or throw it away, but there's something different about where it sits now. Closer to, I don't know, that probably sounds crazy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, it does sound crazy. It sounds crazy, it sounds stupid, and it doesn't matter. Nobody cares about the union, all right? The union is dead to you. They turn their second you had to do what you had to do for your family. So fuck them. Fuck the union. If Ferris is going to be a dickhead, fuck him too. And if your wife is going to let you lose everybody you know and all your friends because she doesn't want people to know about her procedure that went fine, then fuck her too. That's what I have to say. And if you're not going to listen to what I have to say, fuck you too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know what? You might be right about all of it. And it still doesn't make it easier to pick up the phone and call him. Ferris is home recovering right now. I know his number. I've known his number for 20 years. And I haven't dialed it. That's where I actually am tonight. Not in the philosophy of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Well, stop being a pussy. Call your friend and make things right. Or don't. I don't care. But I'm sick of hearing from you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. Okay. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're welcome.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. It's time for another word from our sponsors. These fucking pussies. this. Imagine your toothbrush could think. Not as a metaphor, actually think. About you, about you, about your teeth, about what you were doing to them slowly every day, with food you weren't supposed to eat. The Aurora oral system is that toothbrush. Aurora is not a toothbrush. We need to clear that up at the start because the FCC has asked us to. Aurora is an integrated or oral health platform consisting of a sonic cleansing wand, a smart base station with germicidal UVC sterilization, a hydration sensor, a tongue analyzer, and the Aurora app, which functions as the central nervous system of the experience. Together, these components communicate continuously to produce a complete picture of your oral biome, your hydration status, your stress levels is inferred from your tongue, and what our marketing team is described as your overall vitality signal. Cleansing wand operates at 48,000 vibrations per minute and adjusts dynamically based on plaque density, gum sensitivity, and time of day. If you brush too hard, it slows down. If you brush too softly, it speeds up. If you miss a quadrant, it flashes red and pauses, refusing to continue until you address the emission. Several of our users have reported feeling judged. We've updated the firmware to soften this slightly. The Tonga Analyzer is our proprietary innovation. Placing the wand against your tongue for a four second hold each morning, the Aurora measures coating thickness, color, and microbial signature, comparing the results against the database of over 900,000 tongues. We will then deliver through an app, a daily wellness brief, a paragraph of personalized insight informed by your tongue, written in a calm voice that we have licensed for this purpose. Aurora Oral Systems retails for $429. Plus, which is required to use the tongue analyzer, the hydration sensor, the wellness brief, and approximately 60% of the app is $24 a month. Roost listeners get $100 off the device and three months of Aurora Plus free at Auroraoral.health slash roost. Aurora, your mouth is talking. We translate. All right. We're back. Thanks to Aurora for sponsoring the show. Next up here on our color line, we have P. P. What kind of name is that, you think? Hey, P. What's your name? Ancient Athenian?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">P</span><p>P.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Tolemy? With a P? What sort of nationality is that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>I met someone three weeks ago, and I was happy for the first time in four years. And then I got in my car and I felt like I'd committed a crime, and I cannot figure out the logic of that. Oh, sorry. Yes, P-T-O-L-E-M-Y. It's Greek, technically, but I'm about as Greek as a Ford pickup. My mother just had a thing for astronomers, which turned out to be appropriate, as it happens. My wife used to say it was our marriage's whole cosmology, Tolemy's model, everything orbiting me. She thought that was hilarious. 31 years she thought that was hilarious.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's kind of funny. I don't know if I'd go with hilarious, but, you know, I can see the humor in it. All right, so you met someone three weeks ago, and you were happy, but then you felt like you committed a crime. What happened?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>My wife died four years ago, Ruthanne, and I've been, I want to be clear about this because people always assume, I've been genuinely fine, not white-knuckling it. I sold the house, I moved somewhere smaller, I set up a telescope in the backyard. I built a life, a real one. And then, three weeks ago, I went to a stargazing meetup, and I met this woman, Connie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what's wrong with that? I mean, it sounds pretty healthy so far.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>Nothing is wrong with it. That's what I can't. That's the part I keep turning over. We talked for six hours. Six hours, Luke. She's a hydrologist. She came because a friend dragged her. She doesn't know anything about astronomy. And she spent the whole night asking me questions I didn't have good answers to. And I drove home and I thought, I am happy. Not okay. Not coping. Happy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked up Ptolemy and he's super famous for his geocentric model of the year. universe where everything revolves around the earth, which makes his wife's joke about their marriage's cosmology even funnier.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>Hilarious.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, man, well, there's nothing wrong with being happy. You should be happy. I mean, that's a great thing. So what's the problem?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>The problem is that Connie is a person Ruthan never met, and the happiness I felt, it lives in a future that Ruthan has no access to. And the person who was happy driving home from that meetup is, he's not entirely the same person Ruthan knew. He's been changed. by four years she wasn't in. And I don't know if I want to be someone she wouldn't entirely recognize. That's the crime. That's the logic of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not a crime. And the truth is, you're not somebody that she wouldn't entirely recognize. You're somebody that's different. You've been changed. It's been four years. You can't not have changed. Obviously, you went through a significant trauma with your wife dying. That's a horrible thing. And you've done the best you could to move on and you're happy. So that's great. And there's no reason for you to feel guilty or like any crime has been committed here because it hasn't.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>I know that. I know it up here. But here's the paradox. And I think this is actually why I called tonight, with your theme being what it is. I cannot become the person capable of having a new life without becoming someone partially discontinuous from the person she loved. There is no path to the happy version of me that runs through staying exactly who I was. Those two things are in direct conflict, and I cannot resolve it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can resolve it. if you account for the fact that if she were still around, four years after, you know, four years later than the last day that you knew her, you'd always be a different person. There's no way that you'd remain the same person after four years has passed. You can't. Everybody changes, and you've changed in some ways, but you're still the core person that she loved, and you still obviously love her, and now she's gone. So you're left here. to carry on and carry on you are doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>She would have changed too. That's, I hadn't let myself think that all the way through. If she were here, she'd be four years different, and I'd be four years different, and we'd have changed together, and neither of us would have noticed because that's just, that's just a marriage. That's what a marriage is. The reason I'm calling, the actual practical reason, is that I have Connie's number, and I haven't called it, and I think the window is closing, and I've picked up the phone twice to call Ruthan's sister. I don't even know what I'd be asking her, permission maybe, which is insane.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, she's going to give you the permission because any sane person would. You could call her sister and just let her know how you're feeling for your own support and so that you don't feel so guilty about it, but you don't have to. You don't owe your late wife's sister any explanation for how you move on with your life. You just, you move on with your life. And that doesn't mean you're disrespecting your late wife or, um, or yourself or the life that you had together, you're just, that ended. And it wasn't your choice to end. It just, it ended. And it's time to move on with, you know, your life. You're still here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>You're still here. Yeah. That's the thing, isn't it? I'm still here. Can I ask you something? The river, do you think she would have wanted me to keep following it? Because that's the question underneath all the other questions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean by the river?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>Whether the self she loved is a fixed thing I'm supposed to protect and preserve. or whether it's more like a river, moving. The water is never the same water, but it's still the same river. And she loved the river, not any particular. She loved the thing that was moving, not the thing that was standing still, I think.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, it's impossible for the river to stand still. So, I mean, you're always going to be the river in this metaphor, right? And the river is always going to change and move and be a different version of itself at any moment in time, not just four years later, four milliseconds later. It's never the same.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>Connie's a hydrologist. She would appreciate that metaphor enormously. That's, that's almost funny.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think it's great. Good for you on meeting somebody that you you clicked with and give her a call and see what happens. And that's no disrespect to your late, do you call it an ex-wife? Or is it always late wife? I don't know the correct terminology for a dead wife. But I don't know the correct terminology for a dead wife. But I don't think. that she would be offended by you moving on at this point. I think that's good for you, and that if your wife was around, that's what she would want for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>Late wife. She's my late wife, Ruthanne. And no, she wouldn't have wanted, she was not a person who wanted me standing still. That was never who she was. She would have had opinions about Connie, probably. Strong ones. She had strong opinions about everything. That was, that was one of the things. I'm going to call her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Good for you. Yeah, it sounds like a Ruthie was a great woman and you spent the best life you could with her for as long as you could. And she couldn't stick around. She had to go. So now you're here and you waited some time. You've moved on. You've healed a little bit and taken care of yourself and done the right things and somebody else has come up. And now you have a chance to have a little bit more life with somebody else who's going to have her own issues and her own traumas and our own things to work through with you. And maybe you're the best thing for each other.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TOLEMY</span><p>Maybe we are. She asked me questions I didn't have good answers to, about why I look at things that are that far away, what I'm actually looking for. And I fumbled around and gave her some answer about like travel time. And she just, she looked at me and said, but what are you hoping to find? And I didn't have an answer. I still don't, entirely. But I want to keep being asked that question.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's all right not to have the answer to every question. Sometimes the answer is, I don't know. I just do. I just like it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's all right. So you have a good night. Call, call Connie and take her out and look at the stars or take her out and float down the river or do whatever it is. Try and spend some time with Connie and see how that works out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Float down the river. I'll tell her that's the plan. See what she says. She'll think I've lost my mind. Thank you, Luke. I mean it. I came on here with a paradox and I think you just... The river was already moving. I just needed someone to tell me that. was allowed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. It's not really what I meant by paradox when I set that as the theme. I keep trying to get callers to talk about, you know, famous paradoxes, the furry paradox or the fucking Zeno's paradox, you know, but that's not working out the way that I expected. It's okay, though, because these are still pretty good, uh, deep calls. And I'm all right with it. I think they've been going while. So thanks for the call. Um, I'm going to check in with the devon here. Uh, that's the end of our show, sir. What do you think? How do you think it went tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I think it went all right, actually. Those philosophy bits really landed, and the callers seemed into it. Reminds me of that time in college when I tried to rebuild my entire personality from scratch after a bad breakup and ended up with like three different versions of myself for a while. What about you, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, if you've only got three Xs, you've had an awful lot of breakups there, Devon. I think the show was pretty good. I enjoyed most of these calls. I thought they were. They gave me something to dig into to think about it a little bit, and it's a good one. And we're going to do this again real soon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, three's probably low-balling it per se. They kind of overlapped in this weird way where I wasn't sure which version was driving the car most days. Glad you thought it went well, though. Those calls really stuck with me. Anyway, we're wrapping up here, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That makes sense. And thanks to all of you for tuning in to another episode of Luke at the Roost. We hope you have a wonderful night. And don't off yourself and enjoy the little things in life and lay yourself off the hook when you feel guilty about some shit you don't deserve to feel guilty about. That's what I have to say. And good night to all and to all a good night. Goodbye.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 57: Trace's Box of Family Secrets</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-06-02T11:32:58+00:00">June 2, 2026</time> · 1 hr 7 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts another late-night call-in show from Alpine, Texas, featuring intense conversations about personal dilemmas. Callers include Silas struggling with a community move, a landman wrestling with an ethical choice, and Trace discovering hidden letters with a potentially life-changing secret. What happens when the past suddenly becomes present?</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back to Luke at the Roost. I'm Luke. I'm your host for tonight's radio show. And this is the call-in late-night radio show where you can give us a call and talk about whatever's going on in your life. And I'll give you the very best advice that I can. Today is Tuesday, June 2nd. And we're broadcasting from our new studio. Alpine, Texas, proudly serving West Texas because we're Texans now. Everything is bigger here. So I've heard. If you'd like to give us a call, the number is 208-439-58-3-3-3. That's 208-439 Luke. Let's check in with our faithful intern, Devon, here, and see how his move up to Alpine was. Hey, Devon, welcome back to the show. How was your move up to Alpine?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>little earlier, but we had a couple of hiccups, so we had to start over. So tell the people what it was like moving from New Mexico over to Texas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>It was all right, mostly just the drive in my 2009 Civic with the Czech engine light on the whole time from New Mexico. Got everything unpacked, and the booth set up without too much hassle once I landed here. The landlord's already talking about the walls having some kind of energy, though, which is something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Have you noticed anything weird about the energy in the place? Is there, are there any voices coming from the wall or anything like that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Not really anything like voices yet, though the landlord's energy talk is making me side-eyed the walls a little. It reminds me of this one apartment where the vents made this low humming noise that felt way too personal, but it was probably just old plumbing or something. I'll keep an ear out, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, there's some noise in this room. This room sounds a little bit server running in the background, which is being quite a bit of noise. You probably won't hear it in this broadcast because I have noise filters and stuff like that. But it's driving me crazy, so we're going to have to get some acoustic treatment on the walls.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, empty rooms, echo everything weirdly like that. The server hum probably starts feeling like it's watching you after a while.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's a big NAS with, I think, eight spinning discs in it, so it's just crunching all the time. It's pretty loud. I used to have it tucked away. in a closet in the RV, but now it's in the same room with me, so I can hear it all day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, eight drives would make that constant crunching feel like it's right in your ear all day. I don't know if this helps, but maybe some foam panels or moving it back into a closet could cut it down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I'll get to maybe moving it, but I think I'm going to do some wooden slats on the wall for reflections, and then maybe some panels to my sides and the back wall. We'll see. chill out on the spending a little bit. It was a bit steep getting up here and getting everything I needed. I had to furnish the whole house. So I got to cut off my Amazon buy clicking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, moving costs add up quick. Wooden slats could look pretty sharp in there too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're damn right, they look pretty sharp. I'm a sharp fella.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Oh yeah, sharp fella for sure. I like the wooden slats idea a lot. If you need me to look up some</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, like I said, I'm all moved in. I went to the registry today and surrendered my South Dakota driver's license. I'm going to get myself a brand new shiny Texas license. Both glorious states in which you don't have to pay income tax. So those are why I chose them. But unfortunately, in Texas, I do have to get a sticker for my vehicles. That's annoying. You didn't have to do that in South Dakota. I don't think it's a thing. Like, they don't care that my truck is deleted. or anything like that? This is Texas, but they just want their $35 or whatever it is for each of the vehicles.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, that tracks with what I remember from when I moved out here from New Mexico. The sticker thing is annoying, but at least it's not income tax. If you want me to double-check the current fee or any exemptions for deleted trucks, I can pull that up quick.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's all right, buddy. I got all that handled. No need to worry about it. And let's get on with the show, shall we? So it looks like Silas is already calling in. Our first new studio, Silas is back. Hopefully he's got his memory back. Last time he called in, he was a little bit confused about who he was, and he thought he'd never called us before. It was very strange, but let's check in with Silas. Silas, welcome back to the show. How are you feeling, buddy? The last time you called in, you were a bit confused. Are you back in action now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Brother, I am sitting in a truck on FM 170, looking at 11 tents and a flatbed full of soap molds. and I need to ask you something in front of all these good people listening. And no, I am not back in action. I think I may have made a very large mistake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that doesn't sound good. Well, tell us what's going on. What's up, brother?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The deed has a lien on it. $14,000 owed to a fencing contractor in Presidio from a previous owner who ran a hunting lease operation and just walked away in 2019. Missed it. The title company says 60 to 90 days before this land is legally ours, and I have people sleeping in cars at a pullout right now, Luke, in their cars. And a man named Dob has been driving past the camp twice a day in a truck. And two nights ago, he fired a rifle into the air, said it was a javelina.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You mean a havelina? Uh, oh, what's the, what do you mean in Presidio? I thought you were endemming. What are you doing all the way over here in West Texas?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>We made the move. Three days ago, four vehicles, a flatbed borrowed livestock trailer. Eleven people in the advance party. We were supposed to be starting fresh out here near Tellingua. You remember what happened with Marcus, with all of it. I told myself the Deming land was poisoned by everything that went wrong there, and we needed new ground. Forty people total. Some still back in Deming waiting on word from me. Some already here in tents on land that. may not legally be ours yet. And Presidio is where the contractor is based. The man who's owed the money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, all right. Well, I mean, for the people that may not be aware, Tulingua is an interesting place. It's out right by Big Bend. It's an old ghost town. And there's a place there called the Terlingua Ranch, which is just a bunch of raw open land that they sell off in five to 20 acre parcels. So there's a bunch of people out there in, um, in tiny homes and off-grid setups and building their own pallet containers, kind of like, uh, you'd see in Touse with the earthships and stuff. There's a bunch of weirdos out there and artists, and, uh, it's a pretty cool place. So I think that's a perfect little place for the Wellspring. You're bringing the, you're bringing the whole clan over there, the, the whole brotherhood. I forget what you call them, the flock.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The community. We don't use flock. But yeah, you're right. But on paper, it sounds perfect. That's exactly why I chose it. Artists, off-grid folks, people who've already opted out of a conventional grid. I thought we'd find neighbors who understood what we're building. And maybe we still will. But right now, the only neighbor making himself known is dub and his rifle. Here's what's eating me, though, Luke. Seven people have already left. Use the title delay as the reason, which I don't blame them. That's a legitimate reason.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's not a bad reason. And it's to be expected. I mean, there are people that I'm sure they liked New Mexico and they wanted to stay there and this was a good excuse to move on and start a new life. That's okay. You're going to find plenty of new people that are more aligned with what it is you're trying to do there, which remind the people of West Texas what it is you're trying to do there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The couple who left, they ran our soap curing room. That's not a small thing. We have an entire production batch on that flag. that nobody knows how to finish now. That's our income stream, Luke. That's how we feed people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>But honestly, that's not. That's not the thing keeping me up. I'm sleeping in this truck, cab every night instead of in the communal area. Because we do a nightly circle sharing feelings about the move, and I cannot sit in that circle and look at these people. Because I know why I really pushed this move so hard and so fast. And it wasn't because the land spoke to me, because Terlingua was the right next step for the community.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked up Terlingua, and it was a major mercury mining town back in the day. That's why it's a ghost town now. Okay, well, if you didn't think Terlingua was the right next step, why did you push the move? Was it just to be closer to us here and look at the roost?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I pushed it because I needed to outrun what happened with Marcus, with Kara before him, with all of it. I sat with that at two in the morning about. six weeks ago, and I told myself it was vision, it was calling, it was the community needing new soil, but it was me needing to not wake up every morning. On the same land where I'd spent years convincing myself, I was a guide when I was actually just, I was managing people, keeping them close, because I needed them close. And I put that on 38 people and pointed them at the desert, and called it a fresh start.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And Devon's right about the mercury, by the way. It's crazy how much mercury they pulled out of there. The mineral terlinguate was actually discovered there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>Terlinguate? I've never heard of that mineral.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you know, the stream goes where it goes, right? So maybe you were led there. And it doesn't matter how or why, but now you're going to end up in a new place, and you've got your community with you, and you're going to see what happens. And sometimes the current, drags you in a direction you never knew you were going to go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>I hear you. And six weeks ago, I would have grabbed onto that and turned it into a teaching for the circle. The stream goes where it goes. That's beautiful, I would have said that at dinner. And everyone would have nodded, but I've been trying to stop doing that. Taking something that sounds true and using it to close a question that should stay open. What I actually need to ask you, and I'm asking you in front of everyone listening right now, because I can't ask the 30-some people who are depending on me to already know the answer. Is it weakness to turn around? If I said to these people tomorrow morning, the land isn't clear, seven of us have already left. We don't have anyone to finish the soap badge, and I think we should go back to Deming and wake this out properly. Is that a failure? Or is that just? Is that just honest?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, I don't think it's that big of a deal. You've got 90 days to close that title. I'm sure you have some. kind of title insurance in case something comes up and how much could those taxes possibly be on a hunting lease? You know, I'm sure you can find somebody in Turlingua that knows how to make soap. That's exactly the type of thing that is going on out there. So I think if you want to push forward, you can do that. Also, if you want to go back to Deming and wait, it's not that big of a deal. It's, what, six hours away? So you could turn around and go back to Deming and crash there and not have somebody shooting off a rifle while you can also just push through. And that would be okay, and it will all work out if it's supposed to. Worst case is you set up shop on the land and then have to move again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>The lien isn't taxes. It's 14,000 to a fencing contractor. And I actually, I could probably pay it myself and clear it faster than 90 days. That's not the wall. You said something, though. You said it'll work out if it's supposed to. And I've been the person. who says things like that for a long time. And I need to ask you straight. Do you actually believe that? Or is that just the thing you say at one in the morning to someone who's scared? Because I'm trying to figure out the difference between those two things right now. And I'm not sure I trust my own read on it anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you and I have been here on this earth for a minute now, right? And we're still here. And we've been through all sorts of things. Everybody listening to this show has. And, uh, It is Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026, and we're still here. We're fine. We're functional. We can talk and listen and see the sunsets and the sunrises. And none of the tax liens or fence contract, none of that really matters at the end of the day. Nothing is life changing about this situation. And things, they never feel like they're going to work out in the moment. But then after you get past them, over and over and over again. It's proved itself. When you get through the thing that sucked, you can usually, in hindsight, see that you've ended up in a better place and things did work out the way they were supposed to work out. And that's tough to see when you're in the moment. But afterwards, you'll find that you're going to meet people you otherwise wouldn't have meant. You're going to have opportunities. You otherwise wouldn't have had. And you're going to find yourself in a different way than you would have had you stayed where you were.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>You know, what I can see from this truck right now, the Cheezos Mountains. Just sitting there in the dark, lit up a little by the moon, and I've been staring at them for three nights and feeling nothing, which is how I know I'm in trouble, because I am a person who feels things when I look at mountains. That's always been true. And right now they're just rocks. that's the real diagnostic for me not the lean not dub not the soap the mountains aren't doing anything for me and they should be</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>you're right that i'll get through it the chesos mountains are actually the only mountain range in the united states that's entirely contained within a national park well i mean it sounds like you might be a little bit depressed silas and that's okay that happens to people and you've got a lot on your mind you've got a bunch of people that are looking to you for the answers and you don't have the answers and that's to be expected. So I wouldn't worry too much about not feeling anything about the Chesos Mountains. With all due respect, they're not that impressive to look at. I mean, there's a lot nicer mountain ranges than the Chisos Mountains, but there are cool things to look at. And, you know, I don't think it matters. If you want to go back to Deming, go back to Deming. If you don't want the expense and the hassle of doing that, then go set up on and take care of the $14,000 you can come up with. If you need to borrow $14,000, you can do that. You've got enough people there that you can scrape up together, you know, $14,000 to clear the title. It's not an issue. I think you're thinking too much about this. So stop that. And just move on and talk to your people and set up shop and see what your new lives are going to look like. And you guys can work together to figure out what you want that to be. Talk to your people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SILAS</span><p>That's the. part. That's the part I've been sitting in this truck cab avoiding for three nights. I told myself after Marcus that I was going to stop being the person who has all the answers and starts making decisions for everyone because it feels cleaner that way. And then the first real test of that, and I'm sleeping alone in a Ford F-250 because I can't face a circle of people who might ask me questions I don't know how to answer. That's not leadership. That's not leadership. just a different shape of the same problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're right. That's not leadership. So cut the shit and stop being a pussy and talk to your people and figure out what everybody wants to do. It's not that hard. And you're capable of that. So, I mean, you're starting to be a little bit annoying if we're being honest with the second guessing yourself. If you want to be a leader, be a leader. Even if you don't want to be a leader, be a leader. Man up and make a decision.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And if it's the wrong decision, then reverse course. You'll find that out. But make a decision and stop being paralyzed by your own inadequacy. Your, I don't know, trust yourself. Trust yourself or don't. And if you can't be the leader for these people, then elect a new one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, yeah, okay. That landed. I needed that more than I needed the mountain speech. No offense to Devon and the National Park facts. You're right. I have been annoying. I can feel it even in myself. The way I keep circling the same drain and dressing it up in spiritual language. So it sounds like searching instead of stalling. Okay, I'm going to get out of this truck. I'm going to walk over to that communal tent, and I'm going to wake some people up. And I'm going to say, here is where we actually are. Here is what I actually know. Here is what I don't know. And then I'm going to let them. talk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know that you have to wake them up in the middle of the night for this conversation. This is something that could wait till morning. So why don't you go to bed, get yourself some sleep, have some coffee in the morning, and call together a meeting. Like a normal, civilized person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's fair. I was about to make it dramatic again. That's the other thing I do. Okay. Morning. Coffee. Meeting. I can do that. Luke, I appreciate you. You and Devon both.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, brother. Good luck to you in the community. And I hope it all works out. Give us a call back some other time. You know, not tomorrow. But let us know how it works out. Do what you got to do. And stop, stop stalling. It's annoying. And it's definitely not leadership.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Next up on our caller line, we've got Darlene.! Welcome to the show. How can we help you tonight? What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>I did something legal and I cannot sleep. And I need somebody to tell me if that means I'm a bad person or just a person who did a bad thing. because those feel really different right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. What did you do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>I'm a landman. 19 years. I negotiate oil and gas leases in the Permian Basin. I sit across the table from landowners and I get them to sign over mineral rights to my clients, the operators. And six weeks ago, I got an elderly woman to sign a lease. And I walked her through every single term. I was patient. I was kind. I answered every question she had. And I did not tell. I was tell her that two days before she signed, a competing company had offered nearly double what my client was paying her. I wasn't required to. Legally, ethically by my professional standards, I represent the lessee.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that makes sense. I mean, why would you tell her that? You have a job to do, and that was your job. So, I mean, it's unfortunate that she could have made more money on that deal, but she also could have had somebody representing her interests. She must have known or her family must have known that you were not there to represent her interests.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>That's what I told myself. That's exactly what I told myself driving home that day. She's a sophisticated enough adult to know I work for the operator. It's disclosed. It's in the paperwork. And you're right. She could have hired her own landman. She could have called an attorney. But here's the thing, Luke. The well came in strong last week. And her daughter called my office and she was crying.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The Permian Basin in the United States is actually one of the largest oil and natural gas producing regions in the world. Stretching across West Texas and southeast New Mexico. Well, I mean, not to sound harsh, but what's that got to do with you? Why is her daughter calling your office? You're a landman and your job is to negotiate those leases. And that's exactly what you did. So if they got screwed on this, deal. That is on them. They're adult people that know what they're getting into. And you did not misrepresent anything or, um, or I don't think you did anything wrong here. You did your job to the best of your ability. And they agreed. And if they have buyers remorse now, that's really on them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>I know. I know all of that. And I've done this a hundred times and I've never lost a night of sleep. over it. But this woman, her name is Mrs. Fuentes. She's in her late 70s. She's a widow. And the gap between what she got and what that other offer would have paid her is $34,000. That's not nothing to her. That's probably not nothing to most people. And I have this card. My dad gave me this phrase, he ran a small pump jack operation his whole life. Never cheated anybody.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you didn't cheat anybody either. And just because there is a larger, offer on the table doesn't mean it would have gone through or gone through for that. You know, had she gone for the for the larger offer, it could have been too good to be true. You know, they could have not had the money to back it up. They could have had other issues that were not disclosed. So you don't know. I mean, what's the saying? One in the bush is better than two in the pen or some shit like that. She got paid. I assume a fair price for, for, what she's given you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>She got paid the market rate. She got paid what I would have told anyone was a fairly six weeks ago. And yeah, you're right. I don't know what would have happened with the other offer. But I do know it was a major operator, not some fly-by-night, and I know that well came in strong. And I know that if she'd had $34,000 more, she'd have $34,000 more. The card says, do right. That's the phrase, my dad's phrase. And I have been flipping it face down on my visor every more this week because I cannot look at it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you have to ask yourself, if you offered her the market rate and she took the market rate, why would somebody come in at double that? That's fishy, right? That doesn't sound right on its surface. So there's something going on there that you were unaware of. You are unaware of, and she's unaware of. And maybe she could have got a 34 extra grand. Maybe she doesn't need 34 extra grand. Maybe she doesn't need 34 extra grand. Who knows? But what I'm telling you is that you did your job the correct way. You didn't screw anybody. You didn't do wrong. And you're not a bad person. You did your job.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>Luke, I hear you. And part of me called tonight hoping you'd say exactly that so I could go to sleep. But here's what I can't get past. The reason the major operator came in hire isn't fishy. That happens all the time out here. Different companies have different models, different cost structures, can afford bigger bonuses because they're playing a longer game. It wasn't too good to be true. It was just better. And I knew that when I sat across from her. And I keep coming back to. I could make this right. I could call the daughter back and make up the difference out of my own commission.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I tried to look up how much commission landmen usually make, but the search didn't go through. No, you can't. That doesn't even make sense. If the offer was double, you obviously didn't get 100, percent commission on that deal? Or did you? Because if you did, then that's not doing right. If you're making 100% commission off of these leases, then that's insane. So no, you shouldn't pay out of your own pocket to make it right. It was right. You put a deal in front of her. She assessed that deal and took it. And that's all there is to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARLENE</span><p>I didn't make anywhere near 34,000 on this deal. It would hurt. But I could do it. And I know why I haven't called her back. And it's not just the liability question. It's, I have a client I've worked with for 10 years, a man I genuinely like. And if I make that daughter hole, he is going to find out. This is a small world out here. And I will lose that relationship.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you don't need to do anything to make anything right. You made it right. You got them $34,000 for a lease on land they weren't using. And so it wasn't the best deal out there. They could have shopped around and they didn't. And you weren't misrepresenting. anything, even if you knew there was a larger offer out there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's not your job to get them the most money possible. It's your job to get the lease. And that's what you did. So that's what I have to say to you. You can go to sleep. You didn't do anything wrong. You did your job well. You did it kind. And you didn't screw anybody there. If anything, they screwed themselves. And that's not on you. The bonus wasn't 34,000. The gap between what she got and what she could have gotten is 34, is 34,000. She got paid.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yes, but Luke, she cried at me, not at the situation, at me specifically. And I have been doing this job for 19 years. And nobody has ever cried at me and I cannot make it stop echoing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can't control people's emotions. So anybody could cry at you for any reason. And they will. And they do. So if every time somebody cries, it makes you go into your pocket to come up with $34,000, you're going to be a very broke person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>It wasn't the daughter crying that broke me. It was what she said. She said her mother trusted you. That's it. That's the whole sentence. Her mother trusted you. And she's right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you want me to tell you, darling? Do you want me to tell you that you're an asshole and you screwed these people? If that's what you want, that's what I'll tell you. Okay? So you're a piece of shit and you screwed this lady at a $34,000 and you should go into your own pocket and take that money and pay them back. Is that what you want to hear? Because, um, okay, that's what I'm telling you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>No, that's not, I don't want absolution and I don't want to be torn apart either. I want somebody to tell me what the human thing to do is. Not the legal thing. I know the legal thing. Not the professional thing. The human thing. Because I have a laminated card on my visor that I have been flipping face down every single morning this week. And I need to know if I should flip it back over or throw it out the window.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you did the human thing. All right. And you were kind. You gave them market rate. And if somebody else had more money. That wasn't the person you worked for. You weren't authorized to offer them more money. And you also are not, uh, uh, it wouldn't have been right for you to go in there and say, you know what? You shouldn't take this lease because this other company is going to offer you more. That could have got them in a situation. You don't know what would have happened had they gone with that situation. And $34,000 is not life changing money, okay, to anybody. It's a good chunk of change. Maybe she could have bought a car. Great. But it's, it's not changing any lives. It's not sending anybody into retirement. And just if they wanted the absolute most money possible, then they should have got themselves a lawyer and they should have done their research. And they did not. And that's not on you. So go to bed and forget about this. And if they cry at you, then that's them crying at you. Really, they should be crying at themselves for not doing their due diligence on a massive land deal.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>$34,000 is not life-changing, money to you or me maybe. But I've woman's house, Luke. I've seen how she lives. And I'm sitting here realizing that I have been telling myself for 19 years that the system is fair because everyone knows the rules. And what I actually mean is everyone who can afford to know the rules knows the rules. And Mrs. Fuentes didn't know the rules. And I did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if your job is to explain the rules to Mrs. Fuentes and you did not do that, then that's on you. The best you should, you should. could do is, uh, don't do anything, you know, move forward. And, uh, if, if they got screwed out of 34,000, they got screwed out of 34,000, but they didn't, they didn't get screwed. You gave them the market rate. The market rate is the market rate. Um, and the best you can do is going forward, be a little, uh, quicker to be more careful about explaining the rules and making sure they know what they're getting into and what their other options are.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's the first thing you've said tonight, I might actually be able to use going forward. But it doesn't fix her. And I think that's what I've been circling around this whole call. I can be better going forward. And Mrs. Fuentes still gets exactly what she got. And I have to decide if I can live with that or if I'm going to do something about it that might cost me a client and might open me up to liability and will definitely hurt and is probably the only way I'm going to be able to flip that card back over.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you sound like an idiot, if that's what you're thinking. And I don't have anything else to say to you. because I've given you the best advice I possibly can, which is do not go into your own pocket and pay this lady. Because you didn't do anything wrong. You didn't do anything to deserve that financial hit. And she didn't do anything to deserve your money. So cut it out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Okay. I hear you. Thank you for taking my call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're welcome. And just don't do it. All right, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from one of our sponsors. We've got some new sponsors here. And let's hear from our brand new sponsors, Apex Rewards. Imagine a credit card that pays you to use it. Now imagine the fine print. Now imagine not reading it. Welcome to Apex. The Apex Rewards card offers 5% cash back on rotating and 1% on everything else, which is most things. Points accumulate in a separate dashboard that requires a different login than your main account for reasons our security team insists are necessary and our UX team is stopped fighting. Redeem points for travel, statement credits, gift cards, or merchandise from the Apex marketplace where a $40 blender costs 18,000 points. And there is no math you can do that makes this a good deal. We know. We did the math. We're counting on you not to. Apex carries no annual fee. for the first year, then $95 annually thereafter, build in a month you won't be paying attention. The APR is somewhere between 19 and 29% depending on a credit check we will run and the mood we will be in. Apply at apexrewards.card. Roos listeners receive a sign-up bonus of 60,000 points, redeemable for approximately one round-trip flight to a city you didn't want to visit. Apex rewards. You earned this. You earned all of this. Thanks to Apex Rewards for, uh, for sponsoring the show tonight. Next up on our caller list, we've got Crispin. Crispin, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life? And if I give you any advice about what's going on in your life, are you going to listen to me? Because nobody else does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRISPIN</span><p>I have until Friday to decide whether to torpedo my career or let someone I genuinely cared about find out I turned her into a character. And I don't know, Luke. a radio show at whatever time it is. So my judgment is clearly not great right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what are you talking about? Turn somebody into a character.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRISPIN</span><p>I write fiction. I'm in the MFA program up here at Sol Ross. And I wrote a story, a pretty good story, actually. My advisor says, it's the best thing I've done. But it's about a woman I dated last year. Real argument, real details, real her. Just with the names changed and enough sense. surface stuff shuffled around that I can technically say it's fiction. A literary journal accepted it. It comes out in three weeks. And I just, I've been sitting here tonight thinking about the moment she reads it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's a little bit sketchy, maybe unethical. I'm not sure. I'm not an author myself, but I assume most characters and most books are modeled off of a real person. Otherwise, uh, well, unless you're talking about like Lord of the Rings or fucking Harry Potter or fiction like that. But who you use for inspiration is who you use for inspiration, as long as you weren't using her name or details that are identifiable about her. Yes, she might be pissed off. I'd be pissed off if somebody modeled me. And I, especially if I didn't get any credit for my likeness or, um, or, you know, financial compensation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's not super cool. But what makes you think she's going to read the book anyway?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>She works on Holland Avenue. We have mutual friends. Those mutual friends overlap directly with the visiting writer series My program runs. There is, and I have thought about this very carefully. There is essentially no universe where she doesn't find out. Someone will send it to her. Someone will think they're doing her a favor, or she'll just stumble into it because Alpine is not a big place, Luke. And the other thing is, it's not just that she's recognizable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What kind of details are we talking about? Would your friends know that it's her? Or would just she know that it's her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Both. That's the thing. Our mutual friends were there for the context. They know we dated. They know things were complicated. They know she was wrestling with whether to stay in Alpine or leave. And the scene in the story, the central scene, it's an argument about exactly that. And she told me that stuff at the coconut ballpark at dusk, like it was private, like it was just between us. And I wrote it down. Not that night, but I wrote it down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, Kokernot Field. I just looked it up. And it's been called the best little ballpark in Texas by Sports Illustrated. That's a pretty famous place for a private conversation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I mean, Coconut Field, I keep seeing on Facebook. There's a drum circle there on Saturday. and I think Wednesdays at 7.30 p.m. I haven't been there myself. I'm not really a ballpark kind of guy, but I might check out that drum circle.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Anyway, back to your situation here. It sounds like maybe you should reach out to this woman and let her know what happened and ask how she feels about it before you publish the book. That would be the kind thing to do, the right thing to do. And if she doesn't want it published, then don't publish it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, that's, I know that's the right answer. I do. But here's where it gets complicated. My thesis advisor already submitted this piece as part of a fellowship application. It's already in. The piece is already attached to my name in a system I can't pull it back from in that context. So, even if I withdraw it from the journal, the damage to her, if there is damage, might already be done on some level. And calling her means having a conversation I have been avoided. for six months. It means admitting what I did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, it doesn't sound like it's that bad a thing if all you were talking about is whether this woman wanted to stay or leave the city that she's in. It's not super personal or super private or scary. You didn't use her name. I don't, I don't think it sounds like something that would piss somebody off that much. I mean, maybe superficially, but it doesn't sound like you're going to negatively affect. her career opportunities or make people look at her differently or anything like that. She might just be annoyed that you used her likeness and her story as your own.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>It's not just the leaving Alpine thing. That's the frame of the scene. The argument itself gets, it gets intimate. She says things in the story that she said to me in real life about feeling stuck, about feeling like she'd made choices that diminished her. That's not the kind of thing you want showing up in a journal where your friends and neighbors can read it and go, oh, that's her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I'm not convinced that they could go, oh, that's her, because everybody has had times when they felt stuck or made choices that diminished them. That's the human experience. That's not anything specific to her. So you used her and you feel like you used her. And maybe the right thing to do is to talk to her about that, admit that, and see how she feels about it. But I, I think, think if anybody reads this, they're not going to know that that's her. They're going to, they're going to use themselves as the proxy, because those are pretty universal concepts and feelings.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You might be right about strangers, but the scene is set at a baseball field at dusk in a small town, and she has a very specific verbal tick that I put in the character's mouth without even thinking about it, just because it was true, because it was her. And I didn't catch it until the galleys came back, That's when I started panicking. That's actually what triggered all of this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't sound like that big of a deal to me, sir. You didn't reveal anything that was super private. You had a conversation at a ballpark. You know, anywhere in America, somebody could have a private conversation at a ballpark. Every teenager in the world has had a private conversation at a ballpark. So that's a very universal thing. It's not particularly damning or damaging. And it's not hurtful or slanderous or revealing. So just talk to her. Just tell her you did it and you don't feel good about it and ask her, you know, how she wants to proceed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, I hear you. And I think part of me called tonight hoping someone would say exactly that, that it's not that bad, that I'm spiraling, that the piece is good and I should let it go. But I also know that I didn't call her before I submitted it. I didn't ask. I just, I decided for her that it would be fine, or that she'd never see it. And I'm not sure which of those I actually believed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't matter which one and you believed. What matters is how you're going to deal with it now. It's obviously bothering you, and you know what the right thing to do is. So just give her a call, have that conversation, and this could be a non-issue. Maybe she'll be honored that she's now immortalized in a piece of writing that nobody will ever read. I don't think a lot of people. People are reading literary journals outside the literary journal world, which is not particularly huge. So don't worry about it so much. Do the right thing so that you can sleep at night and call this what it is. A mistake that you made. And don't do it again. That's all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah. That's probably the most sensible thing anyone said to me about this. And I've been workshoping the guilt for weeks. Nobody in my program is going to tell me to pull it. all, we're all kind of trained to protect the work first. So, yeah, I'll call her. Before Friday. I'll call her before Friday. I just needed someone outside of all of it to say the obvious thing out loud.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. That's me. I say the obvious thing out loud. Good luck with that. And I can't tell you that the work is good or not good because I haven't read the work and I'm not going to read the work. But I'm sure it's fine. And I'm sure it's not that good deal. So next up on our color line, we've got Rosamund. Rosamund. Welcome to the show. What's going on in your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>I've got about eight hours to change my mind, and I don't think I'm going to, but I need to hear myself say it to somebody who doesn't know my family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what's going on? What are you talking about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>My grandson came home from Austin last month. He's 23, and I know what's wrong with him, and he knows I know, and he has asked me not to tell his father. And I'm going to tell his father anyway. Tomorrow morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. What's wrong with him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>It's not recreational. That's what I need you to understand. I found a bag in the barn last week and</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>what's in it? This isn't somebody having a hard time and making bad choices on the weekends. This is something else. Spit it out, Rosamond. What is in the bag?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>Needles. And not just a few.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I think then you're absolutely right to tell his father and to do whatever you can to get ahead. of that if he's 23 years old and got a bag full of needles. That's not the type of thing you want to find. And you're right. That's not a recreational thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>No, it's not. And I know that. I have known that since the night he got here. Before I ever found anything. He has a tremor in his left hand that he keeps trying to hide for me, and he thinks I don't notice. But I spent 30 years watching teenagers, and I notice everything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>The thing is, he brought me flowers when he came home, Verbena, from the roadside.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I mean, that was nice of him, but that doesn't have anything to do with this issue. Sure, he brought you some flowers, but he's probably going to rob your medicine cabinet. So I would lock up your stuff and see what you can do to get this kid to help now before it spirals out of control, and it starts to affect other parts of your family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>He used to bring me Verbena when he was little. Same thing. Just pulled from the side of the road on the way over? I don't know why I keep coming back to that. I think it's because it means some part of him is still in there and that part came home on purpose. But you're right. I know you're right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, of course, some part of him is still in there. It's an addiction. And people that are addicts are not bad people, generally. They have an addiction. And if he's young enough now that that can be turned around, there are NA meetings around here and various ways to get help and support. but I think if he's staying with you and he's got a bag full of needles, you have to have a! conversation with him about what that's going to look like and set some rules. Obviously, you can't be shooting up in the bathroom in my house kind of rules. If you're going to stay here, I won't charge you rent or full rent or whatever it is that you can afford or how you want to make that deal. But in exchange for that, he's going to have to remain clean and follow some rules. Have you set any of that down? yet?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>He doesn't know I found the bag. I put it back where it was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he asked you not to tell his father, right? So he must know that you know something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>He knows, I suspect. We haven't said it out loud to each other yet. And that's, that's part of what tomorrow's going to break open. Because once I call Dale, Eli is going to know I went around him. And Dale is not an easy man. Eli told me it would destroy what's left between them, and he is probably Dale handled grief badly the first time we had it in this family, and he never really came back from it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, this is your grandson, and Dale is his father, right? So is Dale your son, or is Dale your son in law?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>Dale is my son. Eli's his boy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then I think you have to talk to your son and tell him that his boy is in trouble and do what you can to, I don't know. I don't know, smooth that over or help. Unless you think there's going to be some kind of violence or abuse, if Dale's going to fly off the handle and beat the kid or something like that, then maybe telling him the wrong thing to do. Which one of them do you have a stronger relationship with? Your son or your grandson?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>Eli. Without question, Dale and I have been at a distance since 1990. We lost his brother that year. Car accident. And Dale just, he closed up. He's been closed up for 25 years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, this might turn into sort of a family healing situation. Trauma sometimes can do that where you guys can sit down and talk about how to proceed and with the best interest of Eli in mind. And Eli has to be a part of that. Because at the end of the day, if this is what Eli wants to do in the life that he wants to lead, it's the one that he's going to lead. But if Eli wants to get help, obviously he came back from the city for some reason. Either he was in trouble or he knows that he's going to be in trouble and wanted to turn things around now while he's young. And you can help support him in that. But everybody has to be involved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>I've been sitting at my kitchen window for three hours tonight. You can see the Cochernot Ranch Road from where I sit. And there are lights up on the mountain and I have just been watching them. Thinking about whether a person can love somebody. and betray them at the same time and have it still be love.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Absolutely, yes, and that's the right thing to do in this situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>That's what I needed to hear somebody say. Not somebody who knows us. Just somebody who could look at it plain. I lost one grandson's uncle to something sudden and there was nothing to be done. This is not sudden. This is something I can see coming and I have time to step in front of it. That's the difference. That's what I keep telling myself tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can try. help, you can support, you can't fix the problem. Only Eli can fix the problem and he has to want to fix the problem. So there's nothing you can do that is going to make it go away. All you can do is, um, is be supportive and offer, uh, assistance. If that's what he wants. If it's not what he wants, then all, all you can really do is say, well, you can't stay here. Go do what you're going to do and be safe. Use clean needles. And I'm here when you're</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>I know I can't fix it. I buried a child. I know what the limits of a mother's hands are. But I am not ready to stand at that window and just watch. Not yet. Not while he's still bringing me Verbena from the side of the road and sleeping in the room where he grew up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's a rough thing, and he's still young, and it can be turned around. Lots of people turn around. I turned it around that age. So it can definitely be done, but it's important that it's his decision, right? And I would a conversation with him about that. You know, tell him you found the needles. You have an idea what's going on and ask him, what's going on? And what brought you here? What do you want to do do about this whole needle situation? I assume it's heroin.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>Or fentanyl. Out of Austin right now, it's more likely fentanyl. And that's, that's a different math than what it used to be. You know, that? One mistake in the math is done. That's why I can't just watch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, you can't just watch. And you can't take full responsibility either. You have to take a supportive role. And that supportive role, prepare yourself because it may be a tough love kind of role. What you have to say, all right? Well, I mean, this is your issue and it's your life. And you have to do what you have to do, but you can't do it here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>I hear you. And I may get there. But I'm not calling Dale tomorrow because I want to throw Eli out. I'm calling Dale because Eli needs more than one person standing with him. And Dale deserves a chance to be that person even if he probably won't take it. And maybe that's foolish. Maybe I'm giving Dale a chance he hasn't earned. But he's my son, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it makes sense to talk to Eli first and make sure you know what's going on. Because just because you found needles doesn't mean he's using those needles. It probably is. I mean, it's probably exactly what you think it is. But have that conversation honestly with him first. And if it turns out that you got to tell Dale about, with the situation, then you got to tell Dale, but don't turn it into a firestorm before it is one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>He has a tremor in his left hand. I know what I'm looking at. But you're not wrong that I owe him the conversation first. I have been sitting here for three hours trying to decide which order to do things in. And I think I've been so fixed on Dale that I skipped a step.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, talk to Eli. Tell Eli you're going to tell Dale, you know, prepare him for that. And that's not a betrayal. That's, that is love. That's you doing family and just let him know and set out some rules and see where Eli stands in all this. Does he want to stop? Because if he wants to stop, that's a different conversation than if he doesn't want to stop.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ROSAMUND</span><p>You know, what I haven't let myself think about until right now. What if I talk to Eli first and he runs? He's got a truck. He knows this country. He could be in three different counties before Dale even wakes up. And then I've got nothing. Not even the barn.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You don't have control over that. I think that you have to sit down and have that conversation. And if he runs, he runs. But you were there and you did your best. And that's all you can do in this situation. So like I said earlier, you're not going to fix the problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No matter how hard you try, the harder you try, the more you're going to push him away. So talk to Eli and just be real with him. Tell him it's out of love and give him the opportunity to break down and feel safe and honest and, uh, and talk about how he got into the situation, why he's in the situation, and where he wants to go from here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I know you're right. I think I've been making this about Dale and about my own fear. And maybe what I actually need to do is walk out to that barn in the morning and just sit down with my grandson and tell him I found it. And I love him and ask him what he needs. Before I call anybody, before I do anything else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. And, uh, don't get blinded by your affection for your grandson because I mean, we all know what addiction can do and you don't want to become a victim of it. So I mean, addicts are very well known for lying and stealing and cheating and you could end up in a rougher situation than you want to be if you if you believe him when you shouldn't be believe in him. So make sure that you're getting the truth. Make sure that you know where you stand and where he stands and what the situation is before you start, you know, giving money or housing or, uh, putting your neck out on the line to get him a job, things like that. Make sure that he wants to be clean. And if he doesn't want to be clean, let him go do what he has to do, uh, until, until he wants to be clean. Or unfortunately, I mean, we also know how fent and all can go. So you don't have control over this. You have to from responsibility for this and just do the best you can do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I know about the lying. I'm not naive about what this is, but I want to be clear about something. I'm not calling Dale to protect my silverware. I'm calling Dale because if this goes the wrong way, he should not have to find out after. He should not have to stand at a graveside and learn that his mother knew and didn't tell him. I have been that person at a grave side. I will not make him be that person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I understand that. And that's correct. But I'm saying, aside of that, that's not, you have to protect yourself too. And I'm not talking about your silverware. I'm talking about the deed to your house. I'm talking about having people show up at two in the morning with guns to rob you and take you to the ATM. Like, there's horrific things that can happen to you for trying to help. So just make sure that you're protecting yourself and you're aware of what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I'm a fourth generation rancher in Brewster County. I have a rifle in every room and I'm not frightened of people showing up at two in the morning. That's not my worry. My worry is the boy himself. Just the boy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and I'm telling you that can't be your only worry. But if it is, you don't have to listen to me, but make sure that you're thinking about yourself too, because it's easy to get blinded by your love for somebody else and be taken advantage of. And that doesn't help the boy. That hurts the boy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right, but it doesn't help him if I'm not standing. I'll give you that. But I've been taking care of myself and other people on this land for a long time. and I think I know the difference between being blinded and being decided. Tonight, I needed to hear myself say it out loud to someone who doesn't have a stake in it. And I've done that now. I think I know what order to do things in tomorrow.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, good luck with it. I hope everything works out for you and your family and the boy, because it's a horrible thing. And now, ladies and gentlemen, it is time for another word from another one of our new sponsors. Your teeth are slightly crooked. Not bad. Just enough that you noticed it in a photo three years ago and have thought about it every time you've smiled since. Brightline is the at-home clear liner system that fixes this without ever requiring you to sit in a dentist chair. Look up at a stranger or face whatever it is you've been avoiding. Order an impression kit. Send back your bite molds and within three weeks you'll receive a custom set of clear aligners in a treatment plan reviewed by a licensed orthodontist, who has reviewed approximately 800 plans that day and is operating, frankly, on momentum. The Bright Line system straightens most cases in four to six months for a flat fee of $1900, financed at 0% for the first 90 days, and then a rate we'll email you about. Aligners are mailed in a single shipment. Progress is monitored via a selfie. Adjustments are not possible. Brightline does not treat severe cases. job misalignment or any condition we describe in our terms as complex. We will refund the cost of the impression kit if we determine you are not a candidate after we have received and analyzed your impressions and shared them with our partners. The impressions themselves are non-returnable. Brightlineliners.com slash roost. $200 off plus a free whitening kit that we sourced wholesale. Brightline, a better smile by mail. All right, and we are back. Thanks to Brightline there for their support of the show. Next up, we've got Trace. Trace, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>It's actually morning now. It's 5.30 a.m. I found something in a wall that I was not supposed to find, and now I know something I was not supposed to know. And the box has been in my truck for 11 days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. What is it that you found in your wall?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>It's a cardboard box. letters and photographs, somebody sealed them up in a wall cavity on San Antonio Street, building I'm doing electrical work in. And they have been in there for what looks like 40 or 50 years. And I read them. That's the part I can't get past. I read enough of them to know what they are, and now I can't unknow it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's wild. It sounds like something out of a movie finding a time capsule like that. Okay, well, what's in the photos and documents? What is it that you found?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>It's not a time capsule. A time capsule is something people put there on purpose to be found. This was hidden. There's a difference the letters are from two people. Two different handwritings. One is this very careful, neat cursive, school teacher kind of cursive. The other, one slants left, kind of loose, and what they document is an affair. And a child that came from it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. So what's the problem? You found, I assume these are strangers. It's not your house, right? It's not anybody in your family. So why is this impactful to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>Because I've lived here 12 years. I've worked on nearly every building in this town. I know who built what and who sold what and who's buried where. The family that owned that building, their name is still on ranches out here. Their kids and grandkids are still here. And one of those photographs has a date on the back, March 1971.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so, I mean, you found something from 50 years ago that doesn't seem very relevant now. What was your issue with this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>The child. The child that those letters document, that person could be alive right now. Somewhere. Maybe here. Maybe not knowing who their father is, or who their mother is, or whatever the configuration was. That's not ancient history. That's somebody's actual life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's ancient history, and it's not your life. history and it's not your business. So I don't think there's an issue here. Yeah, you found out that there was an affair and there was a child and they're not people that you know and it's not something that you need to worry about. So just, I don't know, burn it. For all you know, all of this has come out in their own family discussions.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>The photograph on the courthouse steps. The man in it, I'm pretty sure I've done electrical work in his son's house. I've had coffee with that man. And he looks enough like the person in that photograph that I noticed it the first time I saw it before I even knew what I was looking at. That's not strangers, Luke. That's my Tuesday morning.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, that's strangers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's an old photograph with a guy that looks like somebody you maybe know. So that's nothing. This isn't your business, and you should keep out of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>Yeah, yeah, maybe you're right. That's actually kind of why I called. I wanted somebody to tell me that, but I've been sitting with this box for 11 days, and that argument been sticking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, make it stick because it's the right answer. It's not your family. It's not your business. It was not there for you to find. And you found something. So just get rid of it. You know, light it on fire and forget that it happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TRACE</span><p>The thing is, I sat in my truck on a dirt road and read those letters for two hours. Two hours. I'm not a sentimental person. I don't do that. But those two people, whoever they were, they were real. The way they wrote. to each other. And burning it feels like I'm the one who makes them disappear for good this time. Somebody already did that once when they put them in that wall.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I'm going to make you disappear right now, Trace. I don't care. Get rid of the pictures. It's not your business. Next up we've got Birch. Birch, welcome to the show. What's going on? How can we help you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>A man told me a crime on a gravel bar in the middle of a canyon three weeks ago. And I told him to do the right thing, and I have no idea what he did. and I can't stop thinking about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What was the crime? Was it a murder?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>No. Embezzlement. He ran A veteran's mental health nonprofit. And he'd been taking money from it for four years. About $400,000. And he was on my river trip. I'm a guide on the Rio Grande, trying to decide whether to turn himself in or cross into Mexico and disappear.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why would you disappear?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>What's it got to do with you? Not me, him. He was deciding. The Bokia's crossing is right there at the end of the lower canyons. It's literally a man with a rowboat and a few dollars, and you're in Mexico. I've crossed it myself a dozen times to go eat lunch on the other side. It's that easy. He knew that. The Bokia's crossing is actually a really interesting spot. It's practically a national park on the United States side and a small village on the Mexican side. And it's known for being one of the most remote and informal border crossings.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, I, I, I, I, I don't know that you want to get involved in this. You just heard a story. You don't even know that it's true. Just because he said something, he might have just been trying to act cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>He wasn't acting cool. He was drunk on the scowl. He'd been rationing for four days and he was crying. And he had a tattoo on his forearm, a unit insignia. He'd served. And he was stealing from veterans. His own people. That's not a story you tell to seem interesting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's not. But it's also. not a story that's your problem. So I would stay out of it if I were you, and not to anything. And hopefully, he comes to his senses and turns himself in and returns the money, but that's probably not going to happen. I would guess that that guy's already in Mexico with a new name and a new life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>Yeah, maybe. That's the part that's eating me. Because he asked me directly, looked me in the eye on that gravel bar, and said, what would you do? And I said, turn yourself in. And dead like it meant And then he sobered up, finished the trip, tipped well, shook my hand, and drove away. And I have no last name.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I bet he tipped well. He was tipping with stolen money. It's good for you. It sounds like you profited off of this whole situation. So he is giving back to the community. That's a good thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>That's a little dark, Luke. But yeah, I thought about that. I did think about that after. Look, I've been on that river nine years. People say things in the canyons. The isolation does something. Strips people down. and I've heard a lot. But I've never felt responsible for an outcome before. This is the first time someone asked me a direct question, and I answered it, and then just vanished into the world with my answer.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it wasn't your crime, and it wasn't your money, and you're a river guide, not a detective. So it's not on you to force an outcome either way. You know if something happened, you gave the best advice you could, you told him to turn himself in, and hopefully he does. does, great. And if he doesn't, either way, it's not you that did it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>I know that. I know that's the right way to think about it. But here's the thing. And I haven't said this out loud to anybody. His question wasn't just his question. You know what I mean? Turn yourself in or disappear. That's not a question that only applies to embezzlement.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, it's not. And I think we've all been through that question in our own lives. Turn yourself in or disappear. I disappear frequently. That's kind of my thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>Yeah, well, I've been disappearing for nine. years. That's what the river is. That's what this job is. And I told him to do the thing I haven't done. And I don't know if he did it. And I think that's why I can't let it go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what do you think you need to turn yourself in for?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>That's a longer conversation than I probably have time for on a radio show at whatever time it is right now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? People disappear for lots of reasons. And you're in the right place for disappearing. So you go to a place like a river crossing like that to reflect. and to think about where you want to go next in your life and to achieve some sort of oneness with nature and the universe. And it sounds like that's what you're doing. And if you can help somebody else in the process, then great. And you will find, you'll get the answer to whatever it is that you need to go back to or start over or start fresh with. As long as you're enjoying your time on the river and using it to heal whatever is. broken or figure out whatever it is that you need to figure out about yourself, then it's a good use of your time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>The river's good at that. It's genuinely good at that. But I think I've been using it as a reason not to figure anything out. Like the next trip starts and the next group shows up and you're busy and it's beautiful and it's real and Preston showed up and kind of blew a hole in that. Because he was doing the same thing I was doing, using the river to postpone a decision. And then he asked me to weigh in on his postponement. And I did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, you can stay on that river as long as you want to, and when you feel like it's time for you to move on, then move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>Yeah. I just wonder if I'll know when that is, or if I'll just keep floating.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That answer is totally up to you. And if Preston was the precipice, the thing that makes you reconsider and decide to make a move with your life, great. And if not, that's okay, too. The truth is, it's going to sit with you. for a while and churning up new things inside you and force you to reckon with whatever it is that you're hiding from. And that's a good thing for you. And it may be a good thing for Preston. And it's probably a good thing for the next people that break down inside those canyons. And you'll be able to learn from them and lead them and figure out where you go. The river's going to take you where it takes you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BIRCH</span><p>That's either very wise or very convenient. I haven't decided which. But yeah, maybe that's it. Maybe Preston did me more of a favor than I did him. I just, I hope he turned himself in. I really do. Those veterans deserved better than what he did to them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Probably, they probably did, but also, just because somebody's a veteran doesn't mean that they're a great person that deserves anything. Remember that, too. Not saying that they deserve to be ripped off. I'm just saying just because you're a veteran doesn't make you a saint. So. That's that. And ladies and gentlemen, that's the end of our show for tonight. Thank you for tuning in. And we'll be back soon for another episode of Luke at the Roost. Let's check in with Devon here. Hey, Devon, Devon, that's the end of our show. This is our first show in Alpine. How did you feel about it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So basically, it felt good to finally be settled here after driving that Civic all the way out with the check engine light on the whole time. I keep thinking about how my last place had that one neighbor who used to practice bagpipes at 3 a.m. And somehow this feels quieter even though we're on the air. I don't know. I feel like we can actually make something out of these nights, if that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't make any sense, but that's okay. We don't have to make sense. We're look at the roost. And we will talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 58: Rayfield's Nephew, the Marfa Lights, and Why Nobody Believes Concho</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-08-04T09:22:38+00:00">August 4, 2026</time> · 1 hr 19 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke fields calls about stolen catalytic converters, unexplained phenomena over Mitchell Flat, a sheriff's deputy's moral dilemma, and a fence builder convinced someone is mapping West Texas water sources. Plus: Donald Judd's aluminum boxes change everything for a skeptical rancher named Fern.</p>
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<a href="https://op3.dev/e,pg=46cfb731-b4a1-55e2-80f3-cadb1c6c18fa/podcast.macneilmediagroup.com/audio/@LukeAtTheRoost/episode-58-rayfield-s-nephew-the-marfa-lights-and-why-nobody-believes-concho.mp3">Download the episode</a>
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<section class="episode-transcript">
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back. I'm Luke, and this is Luke at the Roost. It's your late night call-in radio show, where you can call in and tell us about what's going on in your life, and I'll give you the very best advice that I can. If you'd like to give us a call, the number here is 208-439-5853. That's 208-439 Luke. give us a call, and if we're not on the air, you can leave us voicemail. And if we think that voicemail is worth airing, we will air it. So speaking of voicemails, we do have one sitting here waiting for us today. I see the red light blinking. So let's see what our caller has to say, shall we?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SANDRA</span><p>Yeah, hi. Okay, my name's Sandra, and I would like to find out of, like, what kind of be involved. I think we the people better know our Constitution founding documents and declaration of independence. And we better take on some of the responsibility of stopping the destruction of our country as we the people with regards to, you know, our elections become members judicial watch. They're out there fighting for that. Stop the fraudulent election. And there's other things. So I'd like to do a show if there's room on your radio station. And to find out where it's located. My number is 575. 05. 575. 05. Thank you. Bye-bye.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, Sandra. I'm not sure why you're calling this show. Those are all great points that you've brought up. But this is not the appropriate place to talk about the Constitution of the United States, I don't think, or voting fraud, which I personally do not believe is a significant issue. But, Devon, what do you think about that call? Should we have Sandra on to discuss her concerns?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I don't know, maybe. She sounds like she really wants to get on the air and talk about something important to her. I mean, I don't know, I feel like sometimes those calls end up being the most interesting ones, even if they don't match what we planned. Reminds me of when my mom's boyfriend made us all memorize the Bill of Rights for his parole hearing. Anyway, up to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, I feel like if she really wanted to get on the air, she would have listened to the show before she called in and asked to get on the air to figure out what kind of show it was. show or she wouldn't have brought her concerns about election fraud here. Or maybe she would have. I don't know. Maybe she has listened to the show. Maybe she listens to every episode. I'm not sure. But I don't think that we should give her a segment to discuss voter election fraud. It's just, I'm not into it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, you're probably right. She might have just seen the number somewhere and figured it was worth a shot. I don't know. I feel like those random calls can still be fun sometimes, but if it's not the vibe.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's not the vibe. Oh, she saw the number somewhere because we've put Luke at the Roost Flyers and business cards in every truck stop bathroom from Texas through New Mexico. So they're all over the place. It's easy to find the number for this show. So I don't think she found it by listening to it. But anyway, just quickly, because now I'm thinking about it. I'm not familiar with the judicial watch that she brought up. Do you know what? the Judicial Watch is. Is this a grassroots organization that watches judges?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So, I looked it up, and Judicial Watch is actually a conservative nonprofit founded in 1994 that focuses on government transparency through lawsuits and FOIA requests. It's based in D.C., not really a grassroots outfit watching judges, more of a legal advocacy group that gets involved in election-related cases, too. They do push those kinds of issues pretty hard.</p></div>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>request, that's, FOIA is the Freedom of Information Act, right? Which was also instituted somewhere around the 90s. What brought about the Freedom of Information Act? Was that post-9-11? No, because this is the 90s, right? This is before 9-11. When did we get the Freedom of Information Act?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, FOIA is the Freedom of Information Act. It actually got signed into law back in 1966 by Lyndon Johnson, after years of pushing from this congressman named John Maher. who wanted more government transparency. Definitely not post-9-11, or even close, that was decades earlier.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, I thought it was fairly new in response to 9-11 for some reason. Okay, well, what's your thought on election fraud? Devon, do you think we have widespread election fraud that needs to be handled by we, the people, the citizens of this country?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I don't know. I feel like if there was really widespread fraud, someone would have solid proof by now, instead of just vibes. twice in a local thing by wearing a fake mustache. And it didn't even work, so maybe it's harder than people think. Anyway, probably not something we need to solve on the air.</p></div>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, we don't need to solve it on the air. I personally, when we're talking about presidential elections, I think the whole concept is a fraud. I know that's an unpopular thing to say because it's your duty and Puff Daddy told us all that we need to vote or die. And if you don't listen to Puff Daddy, then what kind of American are you? really. But I can't get behind the presidential elections. I never could because the electoral college makes the whole thing relatively pointless in my mind. I mean, last election, I was a resident of South Dakota, which was 96% going to Trump. So there was absolutely no way a vote against Trump was going to have any difference about what South Dakota did. My vote would not be counted or used in any. anyway, and that's just stupid. It's stupid and it's a lie, and I don't believe in it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I mean, I don't know. I feel like the electoral college does make it weird in some states where it's basically decided ahead of time. Reminds me of when my stepdad made me register to vote at 16 so he could use my address for some jury duty thing he was dodging. Anyway, it all feels kind of rigged from the start.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It absolutely is rigged from the start. So, I mean, where's the fraud coming from if it's not the election itself? talking about presidential elections, not local state and municipality type elections. Those I think they count the popular votes, right? But just the American Idol thing, get in your vote and make your voice heard. We've already decided who we're voting for, but we need to hear from you. It's just a placation. It's, I don't like it. I don't like it, Devon.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I don't know. It does feel like the whole thing is set up. people are just going through the motions. Reminds me of when my grandma made me fill out her absentee ballot for her, because she said, the government owes me this one, after some old tax thing. Anyway, I get why it bugs you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, that's enough of that. We don't need to continue talking about elections or election fraud or the Constitution of the United States. I clearly don't know enough about it to be making informed commentary. So let's get to our collar line. Our color line's lighting up, and it looks like first on our list we've got Mr. Rayfield. Rayfield, welcome to the show. What would you like to talk about today? How can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>I watched my nephew steal from a man who has spent his whole life being decent, and I let my nephew walk.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What did he steal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Catalytic converter, off an old Tehano Rancher's truck. Man named Orelio Cerna, his family's been running cattle east of Marathon since before this county had a name. And Denny, that's my nephew, was under that truck at two in the morning with a reciprocating source. all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Well, at least it wasn't an election.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so your nephew stole this man's catalytic converter and you watched him at 2 o'clock in the morning? What were you doing out at 2 o'clock in the morning watching him under a neighbor's vehicle?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>I wasn't watching him do it on purpose. I was on my porch. Can't sleep most nights. I just sit out there. And I saw headlights pull up slow on Cerna's property, which is not far from mine. And I knew those headlights. I know that truck. That's Denny's truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It looks like Marathon, Texas has a really long history of cattle ranching, going back to the 1800s. So Arellio Cerna's family being there for generations totally tracks. All right, Devon. That was really helpful to the show. Thank you for that little bit of information. Okay, and Rayfield, why didn't you, have you said anything to your nephew about this? Or did you just kind of let it slide?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>No, I did not let it slide. I walked over there in my boots and my undershirt, and I made him put it back, stood over him while he reattached it. And then I told him, if he ever did anything like that again, I would call Brewster County myself. But here's what I didn't know then. This wasn't the first time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Of course it wasn't the first time. I don't think it's, I've never done it myself, but I can't imagine it's easy to steal a catalytic converter. You have to know what it looks like, at least, and what to cut and wear so you don't ruin it. How do you steal a catalytic converter? Do you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Reciprocating sore, and about four minutes if you know what you're doing. And Denny knew what he was doing. That's what got me. He wasn't fumble. around under there. He was practiced. And that's when I started putting it together. Serna had been replacing converters he thought were just failing on their own. Paying out of pocket. This man is not wealthy, Luke. He's land rich and cash poor like every rancher out here. And he's been bleeding quiet for months because of my nephew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's wild that he was so practiced, because most catalytic converter thefts happen overnight, usually between 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. Okay, and does your nephew have a lot of cash? I mean, what's a catalytic converter? converter worth on the used market these days?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Depends on the vehicle, but you're talking anywhere from a hundred to maybe three, four hundred dollars at a scrap yard. And yeah, Denny had new boots. New boots and he just bought a used side by side. I didn't think anything of it at the time because he just started the job at the gauge. But that money wasn't coming from groundskeeping wages, I can tell you that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so obviously you talk to him about it and he knows that you know now, And how did he respond when you told them not to do it anymore? You were going to call the cops? You know what they say about snitches, right, Rayfield?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>He was ashamed. I'll given that. He didn't argue with me, didn't try to explain it away, just got quiet and nodded. But here's the thing I haven't told anybody. I kept my mouth shut partly because Denny's mother, that's my sister Carol. She buried her husband 18 months ago. And I cannot put her through losing her son to the county jail on top of that. I just cannot do it. So maybe that's why I did what I did.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it makes sense. that you wouldn't narc out your own family for doing something like that. But maybe you could talk to the rancher and let him know what's going on. So he's probably got suspicions if he's replaced a few of these. And your nephew there has been at this over and over again. Maybe you could tell him to put up some cameras, give him a little hint that maybe he's got somebody on his property, taking his stuff. And do you have a camera at your property? a doorbell camera or something like that that can catch that area.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>No cameras out here. This is Highway 385 country, Luke. It ain't a subdivision. But what you're saying about talking to Serna, I've been turning that over. I got $400 in an envelope on my kitchen table. Been sitting there eight days. I was going to mail it to him anonymous. But I keep thinking, that man deserves to know it wasn't his truck failing him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, I'm out here too. There are plenty of cameras. There's trail cameras. There's traffic. cameras. There's cameras all over the place, even out here. So to think that there's not as naive, it wouldn't be expensive or difficult to throw up a trail camera to keep track of your ranch property. I think probably most ranches have at least some cameras somewhere for just this reason. But no, I don't think that you should pay him. You didn't steal it. And it's protecting his property is his own response. So you should keep your money, but it wouldn't be wrong of you to walk over there and sort of give him the hint. You don't have to narc out your nephew for doing it. Obviously, he knows that you know and he's not going to do it anymore. But let him know that he should have some lighting out there and some basic security cameras because they're not expensive. And in 2026, it makes a lot of sense to have that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>You know, what, that's, that land's different than I expected it to, because I've been so fixed on the money, like money was the thing that would settle it in my chest. But you're right that it wasn't my debt to pay. The debt is Denny's. And maybe what I actually owe Serna is a conversation, not an envelope. The Rocking S brand has been on cattle in this county longer than most families have been here. That man deserves to hear a truth, even if it's a partial one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, keep it a partial one. You don't have to say any names, you don't have to say even that you saw it, just to bring it up, You know, you seem to be having problems with missing catalytic converters that looked like they were sawed out by a reciprocating saw. And I think maybe that was a man-made problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>That's a decent way to put it. Man-made problem. I could say that much without saying Denny's name. Just neighbor to neighbor. Let him know it wasn't his truck. Let him know to put a light out there. Maybe a camera like you said. That's, I can do that. That's something I can actually do. And maybe that envelope stays on my table a little longer. maybe I hand it to Denny and tell him he's going to find a way to make this right himself, even if Sernan never knows where it came from.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked it up. And while the numbers are down from their peak in 2022, there were still over 26 zero catalytic converter thefts in the first half of 2023 alone. I think you meant to say 26,000 catalytic converter thefts. And that's quite a few. What is it in the catalytic converter that's, um, that's, um, that's, um, that's, um, that's, worth the money to the scrapyard? What sort of metal?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Platinum. Peladium. Rodeum. Those are the metals in the catalyst itself. Rodeum especially got sky high a few years back. That's what drove the whole wave of it. Denny knew that. He's not stupid. That's the hell of it. He's just, he made a bad choice, and then he kept making it because nobody caught him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm not stupid either, and I didn't know that a catalytic converter contained rhodium and that rhodium was a, I don't even know what rhodium is. It sounds radioactive. rhodium and what else is it used in that it can command such a high price? Is it just other catalytic converters? Because then why take it to a scrapyard and not just resell the catalytic converter?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Rodium's a platinum group metal. It's used in catalytic converters, some jewelry, certain industrial processes. It's rare. A few years back, it was worth more per ounce than gold by a significant margin. And as for why scrap it instead of resell, a used converter off a specific truck is traceable if somebody's looking. Scrapyard melts it down. Nobody's asking questions. Cash in hand, same day. That's the whole business model. Denny wasn't selling parts. He was selling metal he didn't own.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I get that. But if it's so rare, how can it be in Cadillade converters? I mean, trucks, cars are not rare. So there's obviously quite a few of them out there on the road. I don't know if you've looked around recently. So it can't be that rare.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>It's rare in concentration. There's not much of it in any one converter. We're talking fractions. of a gram. But you aggregate enough of them, it adds up. That's why these operations, the serious ones, they're not stealing one or two. They're running volume.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Denny was running volume on one old man's truck, and that's what I keep coming back to. He picked Serna specifically. Why do you think that is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're talking about Marathon, Texas. There's only like 300 people there, right? So there's not a whole lot of other people to pick besides Serna. But it sounds to me like you need to have a conversation with this man and let him know that it's to get some lighting and some cameras out. And that's the best you can do. Keep your money. You didn't steal anything. You don't owe that money and you probably need it just as much as CERna does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>You're probably right about the money. And Marathon's small enough that Denny picking Cerna wasn't random. Serna's property sits off a dark stretch with no traffic at two in the morning. Easy in, easy out. Denny did the math on that. And that bothers me more than the stealing itself foremost.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then maybe it sounds like you need to have another conversation with Denny to him about what he's doing and how that affects real people's lives because he's just a kid. He doesn't think like that. I didn't think like that when I was a kid. Stealing stuff wasn't an issue for me because I didn't have that part of my, I guess, brain developed yet to understand or to put myself in the shoes of the victim of the theft. Right? it did not engage my conscience in any way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>He's 22, though. That's old enough to know. But I hear what you're saying. Maybe he hasn't fully connected it to Cerna the man, the family, the four generations. He just sees a truck on a dark road. Maybe that's the conversation I need to have with him. Not the one I already had, which was mostly me standing over him angry in my undershirt at two in the morning. A real one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, 22 is a bit old to be doing that sort of stuff. But you should talk to him and see what he's doing. the money if there's drugs involved or what the deal is and do what you can to let him know that what he's doing is affecting real people's lives, honest, hardworking people that have, you know, they don't have much. So taking from them is extra bad.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>I don't think it's drugs. Denny drinks some, but I've never seen him strung out. I think it might be simpler and sadder than that. I think he wanted the side-by-side and the boots and to feel like he had and he's raking leaves at a hotel. That don't excuse it. But I think that's what it is. I just looked up Rhodium again, and it's actually one of the rarest and most valuable precious metals, even more so than gold or platinum.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait a second. He's at the Gage Hotel in Marathon, Texas, raking leave. There's no trees in the desert, sir. Where are the leaves coming from that he's raking?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Huh, fair point. Ground'skeeping. Whatever they have him doing out there, watering the sun. succulence, I don't know. The gauge is nice enough that somebody's got to keep it looking that way. But yeah, leaves might have been a stretch.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, I just looked up the gauge hotel, and they actually have 27 acres of gardens with trees and plants, so there would definitely be leaves to rake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>Well, I'll be damned. I wouldn't have thought that at all. I've never been to the gauge hotel, but I hear it's a wonderful place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, thank you for the call, Rayfield. I think you need to have a couple of conversations there, talk to Denny about his life choices. and talk to your neighbor about security cameras and identifying man-made problems with his truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAYFIELD</span><p>I appreciated, Luke. I came on here thinking I needed somebody to tell me I did right by keeping Denny out of jail. But I think what I actually needed was somebody to point me toward the next thing to do instead of just sitting with it. I'll talk to Cerna. And I'll talk to Denny, a real talk this time. That envelope can wait.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, real talk. And I think you did do the right thing by. by keeping your nephew out of jail because putting your own family in jail is rotten in its own right. And you would have felt just as guilty afterwards. So next up on our color line, we've got Suki. Suki, thanks for calling the show. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>I have lived here four years and made fun of the lights people. And I owe every single one of them in apology.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Who are the lights people?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>The tourists, the ones who come out with their launch. and their binoculars and their little pamphlets about unexplained phenomena. I used to drive past the viewing area and just, I mean, I'm not proud of it. I thought it was a Marfa thing, like a charming local myth that we let visitors believe in because it's good for the economy. Two nights ago I stopped there myself, and I stood in that parking lot for 40 minutes, and now I'm a completely different person.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, so I just looked up the Marfa lights on Wikipedia, and it says scientists think it's mostly car headlights, distorted by warm desert air. Well, I've heard of the Marfa lights, too. I haven't stopped at the viewing area myself because it always looks like there's a lot of people there. But one of these days I will. What is it that you saw out there that changed your life?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Okay, so Devon, the headlight thing. I read that too. I read everything I could find the next morning. There's actually a University of Texas at Dallas study about plasma vortexes, and I found that more interesting than the headlight explanation, but it still doesn't cover what I thing. One of these lights held a completely fixed position. I timed it on my phone, 11 minutes, and then it accelerated sideways, not like a car slowing down and turning, no deceleration curve at all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How far away was that light from the viewing area? So the viewing area is just like a building that you stand out on and look out over the desert, and there's lights out there that do unexplain things. And they've been there for a long time. A lot of people, have seen them and talk about them and nobody can come to a consensus on what they're about, right? So how far off into the distance did you see these lights?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>I have lived here four years and made fun of the lights people and I owe every single one of them in apology. Okay, so the viewing area faces south-southwest and the lights were out over the Mitchell flat area, which I think is roughly 8 to 10 miles out. But here's the thing, and this is what I keep getting stuck on when I try to explain it to people. The distance is actually part of what messed me up. Because at that distance, a light that holds a fixed position for 11 minutes and then moves laterally with zero deceleration. Like, no ramping up, no curve. Just, it's there. And then it's somewhere else. That's not a car. That's not a ranch vehicle. I know what headlights do at eight miles in the dark. I grew up on the Gulf Coast. I know Flatland. I know how light travels over Flatland at night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So I just looked up Mitchell Flat. And it's actually described as where the Marfa lights are most often seen. And it's known for being incredibly flat. Okay. So if you don't think that these were headlights, what do you think they were? You're the one that saw them. So what is it that you, do you think it was aliens? Do you think it was government testing, like military stuff? What's your assessment?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Okay, so that's the question I've been sitting with for two days. And here's my honest answer. I don't know. And I'm actually okay with that. What I'm not okay with is the explanations that are supposed to close the case. I read the year. University of Texas at Dallas study, the plasma vortex thing. And look, I'm not a scientist. I dye fabric for a living, but a plasma vortex does not drop behind a mountain range and reappear on the other side. That's not what plasma does. That's not what any atmospheric phenomenon I've ever heard of does. So do I think it was aliens? I mean.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, I'm not a scientist either. What does plasma generally do? What would you expect a, a, I don't know what a fucking plasma vortex is. what would you expect a plasma vortex to do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Right. Okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>So from what I read, and again, I am a textile person, so take this with a grain of salt. A plasma vortex is basically ionized gas that gets trapped in like a rotating air mass and it glows. And the argument is that the temperature differentiates over Mitchell Flat create these conditions where you get these glowing gas pockets that drift and split and kind of do weird things. And I'll grant you that actually does explain some of what I've seen the other three times I've stopped there, like drifting, merging, that stuff. Fine, maybe. But one of these lights on Tuesday night held completely still. For 11 minutes, I timed it on my phone. And then it moved, not drifted, moved laterally fast, and was just gone.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Are you sure that it moved and it wasn't just a different light that popped up somewhere else that was the same size and shape? What color were the lights that you saw?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>That is, okay, that's a genuinely good question. And it's the one that keeps me up at night a little. I can't be 100% certain. I was watching it. I was focusing it. I was focusing. I was focusing. on it, but it's dark and it's far away and I'm standing in a parking lot with wet indigo containers in the back of my Subaru. So I can't swear to you in a court of law that it was the same light that moved versus a different light appearing. What I can tell you is that there was a continuity to it visually that felt like motion rather than replacement. But you're right to poke at that. The colors, they were mostly white yellow?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>White yellow? White or yellow? Were they white or were they yellow?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Or were they just a warm warm white. Like, not the blue white of an LED, not orange like a sodium lamp, warm white. But one of them, the one that went behind the Chinati Mountains and came back, that one had a moment where it went, I want to say amber, like genuinely amber, not just warm white. And that was brief, maybe 30 seconds, and then it was back to the same warm white as the others. And I noticed it because I was already watching so hard by that point. I had been pulled over for maybe 20 minutes at that point. And I was just, I was in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, I think I'm going to have to check out these Marfa lights for myself, because I've read lots of different types of reports and explanations for what they are. But I haven't seen them myself. When you were there, when you were checking this out, were you alone? Or were there a bunch of other tourists there with you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>There were two other cars. One couple. They were there when I pulled in. And they left maybe 15 minutes into it, which I still don't understand that. They just got back in their car and drove away. And then there was a guy older. He had a camp chair, like he had planned this. He had brought a camp chair and a thermos. And he and I didn't really talk much. We were both just watching. But at the end, when it was winding down, I went over to him and I said, did you see that one go behind the mountains? And he just nodded. Like it wasn't even a question.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm seeing that the Wikipedia article mentions, scientists concluded the lights were car headlights, but also that they're described as an optical phenomenon. The Wikipedia article also mentions that the Marfa lights are an optical phenomenon regularly observed near Marfa, Texas, and that the community has publicized a viewing area to encourage tourism. Is it possible that the community of Marfa, they're clever people out there. Marfa's a clever little town. Could they have staged these lights for the purpose of tourism?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Huh, okay. I mean, I love Marfa, but we can barely get the coffee shop to stay open consistent hours. We are not coordinating an elaborate light show eight miles out over a private ranch in the dark on a Tuesday night when I happened to be driving back from Alpine. Like the infrastructure for that conspiracy does not exist here, but also the lights have been reported since the 1880s before cars.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's wild that they've been reported since the 1880s before cars were even around, which totally debunks that theory about headlights. Yeah, it's hard to believe that there are headlights. I mean, what road is he? Even back there? Is there a road back there? Or are they just supposed to be headlights out in somebody's ranch, like off road?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>There's one highway, Highway 67, going toward Presidio. And yeah, people say it's those headlights refracting over the flat. But 67 runs in a pretty consistent line. And what I saw was not consistent with anything running in a line. And here's the thing I haven't told you yet. At one point, there were six distinct lights simultaneously. Not two, not three. Six. Separated, doing different. things, different speeds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm seeing that accounts of the Marfa lights often describe them as floating orbs. White, yellow or orange. Drifting or flickering. And sometimes multiple lights are seen simultaneously. All right. Well, I'm going to have to see these lights for myself. It does sound like the plasma vortex thing could be, they could be on to something with that. I mean, maybe for some of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>I'm willing to give them some of it. But Luke, you should go, genuinely. Go on a clear night, not too much moon. And just give it an hour. The mistake I made the first three times was I gave it like 10 minutes and left. Tuesday I stayed because I couldn't make myself get back in the car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I just looked it up. And while the plasma vortex is a theory, other scientific explanations include atmospheric refraction, Piazoelectric effects from tectonic stress, and even bioluminescent animals. What bioluminescent animals are out here in the desert? Isn't that like a deep in the ocean kind of thing? I mean, we don't have fireflies or anything like that. There's no, like, bioluminescent mushrooms or fungi. Are there any bioluminescent animals in the desert out here?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>I mean, I'm not a biologist either, but no. No. I dye fabric with plants and I spend a lot of time thinking about what the land out here produces, and I have never once seen anything glowing in the Chihuahuan desert. And even if there were, six lights, 11-minute stationary behind a mountain range and back? No animal does that. That explanation is so much worse than just saying we don't know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I have seen some actually glowing bugs. They're bigger than fireflies. They're not flies. I don't know what they are, but they have like little lights on their backs around here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Wait, really? I have not seen that. What do they look like?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>the rest of my life, which is not helpful. But also, even if that's true, even if there are glowing beetles or whatever out here, that does not scale up to what I saw Tuesday. Like, a bioluminescent bug does not hold position for 11 minutes and then accelerate laterally.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Wait, I just looked this up. And apparently, the most common scorpion in Texas, the striped bark scorpion, actually glows under UV light, but it's not bioluminescent in the way we're talking about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I thought that all scorpions glue. If you hit them with a black light, I noticed that in Utah too, we brought out a black light to check for scorpions when we went camping, and it totally works. They look super cool. But what I'm talking about is more like a cricket kind of bug or some sort of a beetle that has a little glowy light on it. And they're pretty cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Okay, that's actually fascinating. And I've been here four years and never encountered that. So now I have a whole separate thing to look into. But I want to make sure I'm not getting completely derailed by glowing beetles, because the point I keep coming back to is that I saw something I cannot explain, and I've been showing this terrible useless video to everyone in Marfa for two days and getting shrugged at. And I just needed to describe it out loud to someone who would actually sit with the 40 minutes. And you have done that. So thank you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Can you send us that video? Can you email it to submissions at Luke at the Roost, please? I'd like to see it myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I'm not surprised if you're not surprised if you're not. you're showing that to people in Marfa, they've all seen the lights before. So it's not a new thing to them. They're pretty familiar with it. Yeah, I will send it. Fair warning. I have already told you it's bad, but it's genuinely bad. Like, it looks like a black rectangle with some pixels. My phone just could not handle the low light at that distance. But I'll send it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>And you're right about Marfa. That's exactly it. Everyone here has either seen them and made peace with not knowing, or they've decided its headlights and closed the door on it. Nobody wants to sit in the uncertainty with me. The guy with the camp chair came closest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm going to go check it out myself and my camera is able to see pretty well in the dark because I do the astro photography stuff. So I'll see if I can catch that. And maybe we'll get to the bottom of this and figure out what the Marfa lights are once and for all here at Luke at the Roost.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Please do. And when you go, give it a full hour minimum. Don't leave after 15 minutes like a tourist. And if you catch something on, that camera that actually shows what they're doing, the splitting, the lateral movement, the way they just stop. I will buy you a coffee and also possibly cry a little. I'm genuinely invested in this now. Four years of skepticism and one Tuesday night completely undid me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, just one more thing before we move on. Just hypothetically, if this is extraterrestrial activity or supernatural activity, what do you think they could be doing? Why Marfa and what What are some potential things that you could imagine these lights were actually doing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>Okay, hypothetically, if I let myself go there, Marfa is in one of the darkest, most remote stretches of land in the continental United States. If you wanted to observe without being observed, this is where you'd do it. And there's something about the Chinati Mountain specifically. There's a lot of mineral density in that range. Copper, silver. There's mining history all through there. So if I'm spinning a theory, maybe it's not about us at all. whatever it is isn't interested in the viewing area or the tourists or me standing there with my indigo. Maybe we're just incidental to something that was happening here long before the 1880s and will keep happening after we're gone. That actually makes me feel better somehow rather than worse.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what you're saying is they could be mining or extracting minerals from the area? I mean, I do the astrophotography work. So I've been to a lot of places in the continental United States. that are as dark as Marfa is. It's not the only place, and there's more people there than in a lot of stretches of remote Utah or Wyoming, or there's a lot of even less populated dark places. So it's probably not because they don't want to be seen. There's, I mean, there's a viewing area to see them, and it's been there for a long time. So that doesn't make sense. But if there is some sort of mineral there that is not available, in other places, like rhodium perhaps. Maybe that's what they're doing and the lights are a mining operation from the aliens. Alien roadium mining. I'm going to be thinking about that every time I drive past the Chinatis now. Thank you for that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>But actually what you said about it not being about avoiding people, that's kind of the thing that unsettles me most when I sit with it. They're not hiding. Whatever those lights are, they have never hidden. They've been visible from the road for over a hundred years. That's either total. difference to us or something else entirely, and I don't know which one is more unsettling.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe they're out there trying to steal catalytic converters. That would actually explain the lateral acceleration. Get in, get out, no deceleration curve. Very efficient catalytic converter operation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SUKI</span><p>I respect the hustle.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I respect the hustle too, and thank you very much for the call, Suki. I'm going to go check out the Marfa lights for myself and I'll let you know what I find. I think that if anybody can get to the bottom of it, it is me. And I'll do that. So now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a word from our sponsors. Imagine your toothbrush could think. Not as a metaphor. Actually think. About you. About your teeth. About what you were doing to them slowly every day. With food you weren't supposed to eat. The Aurora Oral System is that toothbrush. Aurora is that toothbrush. is not a toothbrush. We need to clear that up at the start because the FCC has asked us to. Aurora is an integrated oral health platform consisting of a sonic cleansing wand, a smart base station with germicidal UVC sterilization, a hydration sensor, a tongue analyzer, and the Aurora app, which functions as the central nervous system of the experience. Together, these components communicate continuously to produce a complete picture of your oral biome, your hydration status, your stress, levels is inferred from your tongue in what our marketing team is described as your overall vitality signal. The cleansing wand operates at 48,000 vibrations per minute and adjusts dynamically based on plaque density, gum sensitivity, and time of day. If you brush too hard, it slows down. If you brush too softly, it speeds up. If you miss a quadrant, it flashes red and pauses refusing to continue until you address the emission. Several of our users have reported feeling judged. We've updated. the firmware to soften this slightly. The tongue analyzer is our proprietary innovation. By placing the wand against your tongue for a four second hold each morning, the Aurora measures coating thickness, color, and microbial signature, comparing the results against the database of over 900,000 tongues. We will then deliver through an app a daily wellness brief, a paragraph of personalized insight informed by your tongue, written in a calm voice that we have licensed for this purpose. Aurora Oral Systems retails for $429. Subscription to Aurora Plus, which is required to use the tongue analyzer, the hydration sensor, the wellness brief, and approximately 60% of the app is $24 a month. Roost listeners get $100 off the device and three months of Aurora Plus free at Auroraoral.health slash roost. Aurora, your mouth is talking. We translate. Very special thanks to Aurora Toothbrushes for sponsoring this show. We couldn't do it without them. Next up on our caller list, we've got Gus. Gus, welcome to the show. What's going on out there in your life tonight? How can we help?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>There's a piece of dash cam footage I've watched 11 times that I'm probably going to watch 11 more times tonight instead of doing anything about it. I'm a sheriff's deputy, 15 years, and I found something on footage from my partner's patrol car three. weeks ago that I don't know what to do with. And I haven't told anybody. Not my supervisor, not my wife, nobody. You're the first person I've said this out loud to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what is it that you saw on the dash cam?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>My partner made an unlogged stop. 30 minutes. House on the north edge of town. And I know whose house it is. The man who lives there has ties to a meth distribution pipeline that runs up from the border through our county. Now, she's not under investigation. She has family on that street.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's wild how common these meth pipelines are. I'm seeing headlines about busts from San Antonio to the capital region, and even Little Rock. All right. So if you're familiar with the house and you know that there's a meth operation there, why are they not under investigation? Yeah. I mean, taking your partner out of this completely just for a second, how can you, in good conscience, know that that's going on at that place without doing anything about that? it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>That's a fair shot. The honest answer is the guy, Cecil, he's known. The department knows about him. He's not a secret. He's just, he's slippery.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The kind of person who's connected enough to the pipeline that you know he's there, but building a case on him is a different unit's problem, a different jurisdictions problem. He's not my case. So I'm not sitting on some bombshell about Cecil specifically. Okay. All right. So back to your partner. How long has this been your partner?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Six years. And she trained me before that when I first came on. So, we're talking about somebody who, she drove two hours in the dark once to help me change a tire after a chase that went bad. That kind of partner, that kind of person. At least that's who I thought I knew.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so she's a friend of yours, you would say, right? You would categorize her as a friend. It seems like you could have a conversation with her about this and say, look, I found this on the dash cam. I'm curious. Like, hear her side of the story. Maybe there's a good explanation for her. her being at this guy Cecil's house.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, that's the obvious move, and I know it. But here's where I get stuck. If she's clean, I've just told my partner of six years that I suspected her of running with a meth distributor. That doesn't go away. We still have to get in that car together every shift. And if she's not clean...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, no, it doesn't say you suspected her of anything. If you suspected her, then you probably would have anonymously sent that footage into your supervisors or something. something of that sort. If you instead go to her and say, hey, look, you know, I found this on the dash cam and it seems odd to me, can you explain what you were doing here? You might get a positive answer or one you're not expecting. If she's not clean, then it's a completely different story. And it's a different decision for you. And you have to decide if you want to keep that under wraps and protect your friend, or if she's in trouble or possibly being. blackmail or something like that and needs your help, or if she's a criminal and needs to be turned in.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>The blackmail angle. I hadn't, I mean, I thought about it for a second and then I moved past it, but you're right. That's a real possibility out here. Cecil is exactly the kind of person who would have something on somebody and use it. And if that's what's happening to Terry, then me going to a supervisor without talking to her first, I've just blown up her life and she's the victim. Okay, you're making me think talking to her first is the right call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. to her first is obviously the right call. Because, I mean, think about it. She's, she trained you. She's been doing this for a long time. She knows she's got a dash cam. She obviously left that on on purpose, maybe trying to lead you a breadcrumb to crack the case. But if she was doing some sort of off-color activity, if she's involved in some way, she wouldn't use her service vehicle and leave the dash cam on to go there, would she?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Okay, that actually hit me. That's a good point. She's been on the job long enough to know exactly what that camera captures. She knows the logging system. She knows the purge schedule. If she wanted to hide something, she would have taken her personal vehicle. She would have logged a break. She would have done a dozen things differently.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it seems like she's either awful stupid or she wanted somebody to find this out and ask questions. So you should just talk to her next time you're on patrol or whatever. You know that you're in a safe space. Turn the body cameras off if you can or, you know, catch up with her for drinks after work and have this conversation somewhere private. Just talk to her about it. Ask her what's going on. Protect yourself. And, you know, get to the bottom of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I think you're right. I've been sitting in my head with this for three years. weeks trying to find some perfect path that protects everybody and doesn't blow anything up, and maybe the path is just, talk to her. She deserves that from me before anything else. After six years, she deserves me looking her in the eye and asking the question instead of going around her. I've got 24 days before that footage auto purges. I don't have to decide tonight whether to preserve it formally.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you got plenty of time, so do that. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about before we move on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">GUS</span><p>No, I think, I think that's it. You kind of cut through three weeks of me spinning my wheels in about five minutes. I'm going to call her tomorrow and ask if she wants to grab coffee before shift. That's where it starts. Thank you, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No problem. That's what we do here at Look at the Roos. Devon is raising his hand over there like a fucking maniac. What do you want to say, Devon?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>So, I just looked up police dash cam purge schedules, and it really varies a lot by department. Some keep footage for months, others much less, but 24 days is definitely within the normal range. for non-evidentiary footage.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, you get 24 days to make a decision, and I know that you'll make the right one. Thanks for the call. Gus, and we're going to move on now to Merritt. Merritt, welcome to the show. What's going on? What's bothering you tonight? And what's get you up so late?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MERRITT</span><p>My son has been stealing from me for six months, and I've been going over the receipts at midnight, trying to find a way the numbers mean something else. They don't. I know they don't. I've got a degree from Sol Ross. I've been running this store for 31 years, and I keep sitting down at the kitchen table thinking maybe I missed something. I haven't missed anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're obviously missing something if you think you're being stolen from. So how old is your son? What is your store? And what's gone missing?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MERRITT</span><p>Caleb's 30. He came back to Alpine two years ago after working oil field logistics out in Midland for a decade. Came back broke, and I brought him into the store. Feed an agricultural supply, been in since my grandfather opened it in 1971. Six months ago, I let him take over the books. About $14,000 over those six months. Not all at once, not in big chunks. Steady. Small enough that you'd have to be looking for it to find it. And I wasn't looking for it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I mean, 14 grand isn't that small. I don't know how much business you're doing out here, but it can't be a ton. So, I mean, $14,000 is significant over six months. Have you brought this? To your sons, have you said anything about it yet?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MERRITT</span><p>No. I haven't said a word to anybody. Not to Caleb, not to my wife, not to my accountant. You're the first person I've told. And you're right. $14,000 is real money for a store our size. I'm not going to pretend it isn't. What I keep getting stuck on is, Caleb is coming to Sunday dinner in five days. And I don't know how I sit across that table from him. That's what got me to pick up the phone tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, yeah. Well, this is definitely not a phone conversation. This is one you're going to want to have eye to eye so you can see how he responds when you bring it up. So what I would do, if I were you, is pick up the phone and call him and set up some kind of a meet, you know, offer to take him out for coffee or, you know, come up with some reason to meet him one-on-one. And ask what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MERRITT</span><p>That's probably right. I know that's probably right. The part I keep circling is what happens after I ask. Because there's really only a few ways that. conversation goes. He denies it, and then I have to lay out everything I found, receipt by receipt. Or he admits it, and then what? Do I tell my wife? Do I tell my accountant?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I would think you would have to tell both of them, right? You're, I mean, this is your business. Your wife is part of that business, and she's part of your household, and she's also a parent of your kids. So yeah, your wife needs to know. And your son's 30 years old, so if he's stealing 14 grand from you, for that and you need to know what that reason is because maybe he needs some help and he can't say that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Who knows? But the first step is to have that conversation with him. Maybe there is an explanation for it. Like he's just bad at accounting. Like maybe he's legitimately shitty at this job and is just making big mistakes or given sprinklers to his buddies. Who knows?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>I wish that were it. I really do. But I found it because of a specific. In a public alfalfa order from a supplier my family has done business with for 30 years. I recognize the man's handwriting. The number had been changed. That's not a mistake. You don't accidentally change a number in someone else's handwriting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe you do. Who knows? Have you talked? Maybe you should talk to the supplier and ask what happened with that transaction. Just say, hey, I saw something strange in my books. And I wanted to double check. this order with you. What was your actual order? What did you pay? What did you receive? And just shore it up that way. I mean, that's one thing you could do. What I would do is just talk to your son. If you strongly suspect that he did it, figure out if he did and why.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You're right. I need to talk to him. I think I've known that since I found the invoice. I've just been sitting at that kitchen table at midnight building a case instead of having a conversation because building a case feels safer than what comes after. The thing I haven't said out loud yet, and I'm saying it now because it's late and you're a stranger and somehow that's easier. Part of why I want to handle this quietly, just between me and Caleb, is that I stood up in front of this whole community and said bringing him into the store was the best business decision I ever made. I said that publicly, more than once.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, he's your son. Everybody recognizes that. I wouldn't worry too much about what it is that you said publicly. People say all sorts And, you know, maybe you thought it was the best decision you made and you were just proven wrong. But you haven't been proven wrong yet. You just have strong suspicion. So that needs to be vetted before you can say that you made a mistake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>His daughter turned seven the Saturday after Sunday dinner. My only grandchild. Her birthday party is already planned. So I've got this window where if I confront him before Sunday and it goes badly, I'm potentially blowing up her birthday party too. That's been sitting on me heavy. But I hear what you're saying, and I think, I think I've been using her birthday as an excuse to wait. And waiting hasn't made me feel any better about any of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, and it's a seven-year-old's birthday party. It's not that important, right? A seven-year-old's not going to remember their seventh birthday party in five years. So I would take that out of the equation entirely.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>That's probably true. She's seven. She's going to remember if her grandfather shows up and smiles at her. She's not going to remember. member the party itself. I'm using her as a reason to delay, and that's not fair to her either. I'm going to call him tomorrow. I'm going to ask him to meet me for coffee, just the two of us, and I'm going to look him in the eye and ask him what's going on. And I'm going to listen before I lay out what I found.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, that's the right answer. So you want to do that before you call the police or you tell your accountant or anything gets out of hand, right? You're not trying to put him in jail. You're trying to figure out what's going on. Make sure that, um, that you actually are being stolen from and there's not a better explanation. Maybe there's not. Maybe there is. It doesn't matter. You need to talk to him and figure that out. And once you do, then you have a new decision tree of how you're going to deal with that and if you're going to tell your wife and all those things. But step one is talk to him. Figure out if what you think is the real truth and get the story behind it. Thank you for the call. I think you've got your answer there. Talk to your son. figure out what's going on, and hopefully everything is groovy. Ladies and gentlemen, we have to stop for a moment for another word from our sponsors. Let me ask you something, and I want you to answer honestly. If the lights went out tonight, and I mean really went out, no grid, no phones, no Amazon, no Tuesday, would you be ready? Would your family be ready? But would you be one of the millions, soft Americans standing in your kitchen holding a phone that no longer does anything, wondering when the government is going to fix it. Spoiler. They are not. They cannot. They never could. Iron Heart Survival School is the nation's premier civilian preparedness Academy. Founded by former special operations personnel, and we mean that loosely in a way our attorneys have approved to train ordinary men and women in the hard skills our grandfather's new and our fathers forgot. Fire by friction. Land navigation. without GPS. Edible plant identification, including the seven that look almost identical to the ones that will kill you. Water procurement, purification, and storage. Trapping, snaring, and field dressing small game in a manner that will, the first time, traumatize you, and that is the point. Our flagship five-day bushcraft immersion is held at our 200-acre training facility in the San Gryde-Cristo Mountains, where you will sleep in shelters you build yourself, eat food you procure, yourself and confront a version of yourself that has been waiting under the office worker for 40 years. The cost is $2,700, all-inclusive, except the $400 equipment package, which is not optional despite being separately invoiced. Graduates of Ironheart receive a hand-forged challenge coin, a certificate of completion, and access to our private alumni network, where over 12,000 graduates exchange information, coordinate, regional meetups, and discuss preparations for what what our founder refers to in its daily email as the event. Several of our most active members have relocated to be closer to one another. We do not encourage this. We do not discourage it. Visit ironheart survival.com slash roost for 10% off any course, plus a free copy of our Founders Manifesto slash Cookbook, Eat What Walks, Iron Heart. Train now or learn later. The only graduation that matters is the one nobody's somebody hands you a certificate for. All right, we are back. Thank you to the Survival School for sponsoring this fine program. Next up on our caller line, we've got Concho. Concho, welcome to the show. Thanks for calling Luke at the Roost. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>I have been building fence in this country for 40 years, and I know every road and every tank, and something is mapping the water. and nobody believes me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean mapping the water? Like a submarine drone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>No, no, on the ground. Vehicles. Trucks, SUVs? One-time a sedan that had absolutely no business on a Caliche Road. I mean, that car was scraping bottom. They carry cameras and what looks like survey equipment, and they show up at stock tanks, at springs, at seeps, places that are not on any public map. Places I only know because I have been stringing wire on these ranches for decades.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What do you mean they're not on a public map? We have GPS, right? So, I mean, the map of everything out there outside of military bases is going to be mapped. So maybe it's just like Google Maps going out there, sending their cameras.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>Google Maps is not driving a gray SUV down a two-track Calish road to stand at the edge of a stock tank with a laser range finder. That is not how Google Maps works. And I know what government survey crews look like. I have worked alongside Assez Cruz. I know their trucks. I know their equipment. I know their equipment. how they operate. They stop and talk to you. They have paperwork. These people do not stop. Every single time I have come up on one of these vehicles, they are gone before I can get to the gate. And I am not talking about GPS coordinates on a satellite image.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>Well, if you can't get up to them, how do you know that they have laser rangefinders?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Fair point.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>I saw it once. Got close enough once. Fellow was standing at the edge of a tank outside of Marathon, had what I recognized as a rangefinder, the kind you use for survey. distance and elevation. That was the one time I got within maybe 200 yards before he got back in his truck. The other times, I am going off cameras on tripods, which I can identify from a distance. And the fact that these are not people who are lost, lost people stop and ask directions. These people know exactly where they are going.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so that could be lots of things. It's not unheard of for people to survey water sources. I mean, that could be the town or the county. That could be the state or the state, federal government. There are water issues out here all the time. They're fixing broken wells, and somebody might just need an accurate accounting of all of the water wells and the plumbing in the county. That doesn't seem odd to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>Here is what does not fit that explanation. Three separate times, six weeks apart each time. I found somebody at the same spring outside of Sanderson. Same spring. not a broken well survey. That is not a county water inventory. That ranch has a year-round spring that the owner does not advertise. I mean, he does not tell people about it. It is not on any document I have ever seen associated with that property. And somebody visited it three times in 18 weeks with a six-week interval between each visit. That is monitoring. That is somebody tracking whether that spring is holding through the dry season.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, with all due respect, you install fencing, right? So why would you be looking at the documentation of the property of somebody else? else's ranch. This doesn't add up. And I think, have you talked to the landowner about the people that you've seen out on his land? First of all, this is not your business. Whatever it is, it's not your business. You're there to install a fence. And second of all, there could be a lot of very good reasons for somebody to be out there at that spring, doing exactly what they're doing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>You were right that it is not my land. But when I am building fence on a man's property, and I see strangers on that property, I think he deserves to know. And yes, I have talked to the landowners. That is exactly the problem. I have talked to ranchers directly, 11 months worth of talking, and I get smiled at and thanked, and nothing happens. That is why I am calling you, not because I want to be right about who is doing it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm still unclear as to why you're calling me, because it sounds like not a problem. If the landowners and ranchers are okay with the people on their land, then they're okay with it. It's their land, and then there's nothing to be concerned about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>They do not know it is happening. That is the difference. The rancher outside Sanderson does not know somebody has been to his spring three times. I have not been able to reach him directly. I was working a different section of that ranch for a neighbor, not for him. I am not his contractor. So I cannot just walk up and knock on his door without it looking strange. And the ranchers I have told, they hear me out and they think I am seeing normal traffic. They are not taking it seriously because each individual sighting sounds like nothing, but I have 22 of them written down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, that's not what you see. You said. You said you directly talk to him and you get smiled and thanked and nothing happens. I don't know what it is that you're expecting to happen. But let's just say that there is some nefarious activity going down around the water sources in Brewster County. What is it that you think could potentially be happening?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>Water rights. That is what I think is happening. Somebody is building a private inventory of every viable water source in this part of Texas before they start making offers or filing claims. Because here is how it works. Groundwater in Texas, right? under rule of capture, meaning if you can pump it, you can own it, and surface water runs under prior appropriation. If you are a large enough entity and you want to acquire water rights across a region, the first thing you need is a comprehensive map of where the water actually is, not where it shows on paper. Where it actually is, whether it is holding, how much, what time of year. That is what this looks like to me. And once the acquisition starts, it will move fast and the ranchers will be behind it before they know what hit them. I watched something similar killer contract I had in 2009, and I have never forgotten it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't understand how that's a problem.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>Because these ranchers do not know they are being evaluated. If somebody is building a case for a water rights claim or a purchase offer, they are doing it with information the landowner does not have. That is not a fair negotiation. A man cannot protect what he does not know is being looked at. And some of these sources, like that spring outside Sanderson, may have legal questions attached to them that the owner has never had to think about because nobody has ever come after the water before. The day somebody shows up with a lawyer and a filing, rancher is starting from zero and the other side has 11 months of data on him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why wouldn't the rancher know about the water on his property? That seems like something the rancher would absolutely have the same information on. He doesn't need to send a surveyer every six months. And if there's going to be a purchase offer, that doesn't sound like a bad thing for the rancher, does it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>It might be a fine thing for one rancher who wants to sell. But water rights in this about the man who owns the land above the source. Once those rights get consolidated into a large private holding, every downstream user, every neighboring ranch that has been drawing from the same aquifer for three generations, they are all affected. And no, a rancher does not always know the full legal status of the water on his property. I know this because a water dispute in 2009 taught me more water law than I ever wanted to know. Most of these men know where their water is. They do not know what it is worth on paper. They do not know what claims could be filed against it, because nobody came after it before. Now, somebody might be coming after it and the ranches are not lawyered up and they are not ready.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and how is this your problem?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>It probably is not my problem legally, but I have been on these ranches for 40 years. I know these people. I have stretched wire with their fathers. That counts for something to me. And I will tell you honestly, I did not call tonight because I have all the answers. I call because I have a notebook in my glove box with 22 dates and locations and vehicle descriptions and hand-drawn maps. and I have photocopied it twice because I do not want it to disappear, and I do not know what to do with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Show it to your friends' landowners. You said you've brought this to the ranchers and they just smiled and nodded, so obviously they don't have the same respect for you that you have for them. If you're trying to help them out and they don't want to listen, there's nothing more you can do for them, right? They don't want your help. They own their land and they think they're managing it well, and if they're not, then that's on them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>That lands harder than I wanted to. You might be right. I have been chewing on this for 11 months, and maybe I have made it my burden when it was never mine to carry. But here is the thing. I did not call tonight hoping you would solve it. I called hoping somebody with standing would hear it, a water rights attorney.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You can't hire a water rights attorney for a ranch you don't own on somebody else's behalf. Right? That's not your place to do. You're there to install a fence.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Now, if these are friends of yours and you want to give them the heads up that you've seen some strange activity going on their property, that's one thing. But if they choose not to listen to you or to brush it off, maybe they know about it, or maybe they don't care. Either way, you've done your part.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CONCHO</span><p>Yeah. Yeah, I hear you. I have done my part. I told them. They heard me. That is where my job ends. I think I knew that and just did not want to sit with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, you sit with that and let us know how it lands with you, Concho. Next up on the caller line here, we've got, who do we got? We've got Desmond. What's going on? brother.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>I helped hire someone, I now think committed research misconduct. And she's the best teacher in our department. And I've been pretending I don't know for three months.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is research misconduct?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>She used data that wasn't hers without citing the source. Specific population estimates, Muldeer, Transpecos region, that appeared in her job application research summary. I recognized them because I worked on the original study as a postdoc. Those numbers don't just incidentally match. That's not how wildlife population data works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So is that basically a form of plagiarism? She used somebody else's study. It must have been published somewhere for her to get access to it, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>Yeah, it's published. 2019, peer-reviewed journal. So, it's not like she had secret access to it, anyone could find it, which almost makes it worse, because there's no excuse for not citing it. You don't just lift population estimates and present them in a job application like you generated that data yourself. that's, yeah, that's plagiarism.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, so you've got an ethical issue there, and you hired this person, and you said that she's become your best teacher?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>That's what makes this so hard to sit with. She's genuinely good. Like, I've heard students talk about her. I've seen how she runs her course. She's engaged. She's clear. She cares. And every time I see that, it just adds another layer of, I don't know what to call it, guilt maybe. Because I'm watching her build something here, and I'm the only person who knows there's a problem underneath it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, maybe you should reframe that problem. How big of a problem is it really? She didn't steal the data. I mean, it was publicly accessible published in a journal. So she didn't cite the source. That's wrong. You could just talk to her about that and say, hey, you didn't cite the source. But what are you really going to do about? Are you going to fire her because of it? It seems a bit excessive.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>That's... Okay, that's actually the argument I've been making to myself for three months. And part of me wants to just accept it and move on. But here's where it gets complicated. She's submitted an abstract for a regional conference in November, using the same research. So this isn't just something that happened once in a job application that's now in a drawer somewhere. It's ongoing. She's about to stand up in front of her professional peers and present work that includes data she didn't generate and isn't crediting.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well, here's where I'm getting stuck, because you said you worked on this data in some capacity and you were familiar with it and you reviewed her application and you hired her. So when you saw her application and you saw those numbers, you must have recognized them then, yet you hired her anyway. So why did you do that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>I didn't recognize them then. I found them three months ago going through old conference proceedings for a completely unrelated paper I was writing. The application review was, there's a lot of material in those packets, and I wasn't cross-referencing against the 2019 study I worked on When I saw those numbers in context, in the proceedings, sitting next to the original study, that's when it clicked. So, no, I didn't hire her knowing this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I'm not really buying it. Something doesn't sound right about what you're saying. So you see these numbers on an application. You're like, wow, those are good numbers. It looks like you know what you're doing, and you hire the lady. Then some months later, you're working on another paper, and you see the same numbers, and you're like, you know what? I recognize those numbers, not from when I but from this woman's application from three months ago, this sounds very strange and, like, maybe punitive on your behalf. What is your relationship with this woman?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>My relationship with her is nothing. She's a colleague I've known for four months. But I hear what you're saying, and I want to push back on the punitive part, because that actually stings a little. The reason I recognize the numbers in the proceedings and not the application is that mulea population estimates for the transpecos aren't something you just memorize. They're meaningful in context. When I was reading the proceedings, I was deep in that specific literature, and I saw the figures next to methodology I knew, framing I knew, and it clicked. In her application, they were buried in a research summary paragraph without that context. But look, I'll grant you it sounds strange. I can't make it sound less strange. All I can tell you is that's what happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it does sound strange because, I mean, it was buried in her application, yet you went back to her application to verify that these numbers were actually in her application. which would indicate to me that you've got something against this woman or you're looking into her to even find that. So whether or not she's done anything wrong, it sounds like maybe she did. I don't, I'm not an academic. I don't understand the ramifications of not citing your research when that research is publicly available. But it sounds like you're, you've singled her out in some way for some reason. And I'd like to know what that reason is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>I went back to her application because I want to her application because I want to I wanted to make sure I wasn't crazy. That's not singling someone out. That's due diligence before you blow up a colleague's career. And I don't have anything against her. I just told you she's the best teacher in the department. Why would I be sitting on this for three months, losing sleep over it, if I wanted to hurt her? But I want to address the other thing you said about not understanding the ramifications in academia. It matters enormously. Your publications, your data, your research record. That's your entire professional identity in this field.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>to do with this information that you have. You've seen her swiping other people's research and using it to advance her own career. And it sounds like you're going to do something, right? You're either going to blow up her career or you're going to talk to her about it and see what's going on. What is your plan?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>I think I need to talk to her first. That's, I've been afraid to admit that's the right move because I kept telling myself it was just cowardice. Like I was looking for a way to avoid the formal process. But hearing it out loud, I think there's a real difference between giving someone a chance to explain and protecting yourself from a hard conversation. And there's a conference in November. That's a hard deadline. I can't let her walk into that room without saying something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why can't you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>Because the original study was led by my postdoc supervisor. He's at Texas A&M now. That's his work she's presenting without credit. And I respect that man enormously. I haven't talked to him in two years, him to say someone is using your data, and I knew about it and said nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay. Well, talk to her. I mean, this sounds to me like something I wouldn't say anything to anybody about. I mean, it's not really your business at this point. If she's going to get called out for stealing people's research, then eventually she'll get hers. But you don't have to be the one that is the executioner here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>That's a tempting way to think about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>It really is, but I don't think I can unknow what I know. And eventually she'll get hers path. That might mean she gets called out at a conference, in public, in front of her peers, by someone who isn't going to be as careful about how it lands. That's a worse outcome for her than me having a quiet conversation now. So I think I'm going to talk to her. Just her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well, you do that, and I hope it goes well for you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DESMOND</span><p>Yeah, thank you. Honestly, just saying it out loud tonight help me stop call. it to mercy and start calling it the right thing. I'll set up a meeting Monday.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, you do that. Thanks for the call, Desmond. And we're going to take one more call, and then that'll be the end of our show tonight. Thanks for everybody for sticking with us. So next up, our last caller for the evening is going to be Fern. Fern, welcome to the show. What's going on in your life tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>I went to look at some aluminum boxes this afternoon to humor my granddaughter, and I came out a different person, and I am not happy about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Aluminum boxes. What changed your life after seeing these aluminum boxes?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>That is what I'm trying to figure out. They're Donald Judds. Out at Chinati and Marfa. I have driven past that place for 30 years calling it nonsense. I have said that out loud to people's faces. And my granddaughter, Lily, dragged me in there today, and I stood in one of those artillery sheds, and something happened to me that I cannot account for.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, what is it that you saw and what happened to you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>It was the light. That's the part I can't get past. The sheds had these north-facing windows, and the afternoon light was coming through and hitting the same box every few minutes in a completely different way. The box didn't move. Nothing moved, but it kept changing, and I stood there watching it happen, and I did not notice 45 minutes had gone by until Lily touched my arm. I have looked at this country my whole life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wait, so Donald Judd is considered the leading international exponent of minimalism, called specific objects, where he argued for a rigorously democratic presentation without compositional hierarchy. It's wild how much Donald Judd's work is tied to Marfa. He actually moved there permanently in the early 1970s and bought up a bunch of land and buildings to install his art. Okay, so you saw the light dance off these aluminum boxes. Do you think that was an intentional design decision by the artist, or was it just a happenstance?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>Oh, it was intentional. of what's making me so irritable about the whole thing. He put those windows exactly where he put them on purpose. He knew what that light was going to do, which means he was doing what I thought only the land did. You know, the way the desert just works on you, whether you invited it to or not. I spent 50 years thinking that was something you couldn't manufacture. And here's this man from New York who moved to my part of the world and put it inside a building, and it still worked. Maybe worked harder.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's what artists do, right? They take the natural world and funnel it into a vision. distill it into something that can be consumed by the masses. So it sounds like he was very successful.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>Consume by the masses is where you're losing me a little. There was nobody in that shed but me and Lily for most of those 45 minutes. It didn't feel like consumption. It felt more like being caught. Like the thing had patience and it was just waiting for whoever walked in to finally hold still long enough. And I hold still plenty.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he was an artist and he bought all that land in Marfa and installed his his art there for it to be seen by other people. So whether or not there were other people there when you were there is pretty irrelevant, but his intention was for you to find that and for you to have that experience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>You're right. You're right. I'll give you that. He wanted exactly what happened to happen. That's not a trick then, is it? That's just he made a thing that worked. Same as a good fence works. Same as a well-placed water tank works. You build it right and it does what it's supposed to do for whoever needs it. Whether you're standing there watching or not.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I never thought I'd be comparing Donald Judd to a water tank, but here we are at 11 o'clock at night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>Actually, we're at 3.37 a.m. at night, but who's counting?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that tells you something about where my head is.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>Lily is asleep, and I've got cattle to move at 6, and I'm on the radio talking about aluminum boxes. Chalk is looking at me like I've lost my mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>You know, it's actually 3.37 a.m. right now, so Luke's even more off than he thought.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How am I the one that's off? here. She said it was 11. It is 337. I know what time it is. I can tell time, Devon. Jesus. All right. Well, thank you for the call. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about before we move on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>Just the one thing I came here to figure out. Why a person who has spent 50 years looking at the high desert, which is also mostly geometry and light, could walk into a building and be surprised by the same thing. And I think I just answered it myself. I had to hold still. Outside, I'm always In that shed, there was nothing to do but look. Maybe that's what the building was for. Maybe that's what Judd built. A place where you have no excuse not to hold still. I owe my granddaughter an apology, and possibly I owe that man one too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I suppose that's what minimalism is all about, right? But I don't find it odd that you can suddenly see something special, magical when you're in the right place, the right mindset. many sunsets have you seen, but still you can be taken in awe by the right one at the right time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>That's a fair point. That's a genuinely fair point. I've seen 60 years of sunsets out here, and last Tuesday one of them stopped me cold in the middle of feeding. Same sun, same west. I didn't ask why that one hit different. I just let it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I was just reading about Judd, and he actually said that the new three-dimensional work doesn't constitute a movement, school, or style, even though he's considered the leading exponent of minimalism. all right. Well, I'm glad that you had a powerful experience. I'll go check that out, too. I haven't really explored Marfa much. I know that there's a lot of his art and others like him out in that area, and it's a pretty cool place. Thanks for calling in. I hope you have a good rest of your night, get some sleep, and make the apologies you need to make.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">FERN</span><p>That's what I have to say.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And that's the end of our show for tonight. Devon, let's see. What do you think of tonight's show, Devon? How did we do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I thought the show was solid tonight. The Judd discussion really landed, and you kept it moving without getting too bogged down in the theory.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know. I feel like we actually hit something interesting there for once.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Yeah, there were a couple interesting things in there. I'm sort of more intrigued about the Marfa lights now. I have been for a while. I've never stopped there because I always see like 20 cars in the parking lot, and it's just, I don't want to stop with all of that. But I do want to see the Marfa lights. that's all about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, the Marfa lights have been around since at least 1,883 when this cowhand first wrote about seeing them out near Pisano Pass. I get the crowd thing, though, it's the same reason I never stop at those roadside attractions, even though we're basically right there in Alpine. If you ever want me to pull up the latest theories on what they actually are, just say the word.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Well, I think I want to go see him for myself first, and then we'll talk about them more, about what I actually see. So I can describe it in my own unique and verbose way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that makes sense. Better to go in with your own eyes first before I start throwing a bunch of explanations at you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>I don't know. I feel like the Marfa lights are one of those things where the less you know going in, the better the story ends up being.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for hanging in with us through this episode of Luke at the Roost, and we'll be back when we are back. You have a wonderful night, and keep on, keeping on, as they say. Good night.</p></div>
|
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEVON</span><p>Thank you.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 6: Late Night Woes and Cosmic Contemplations</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-09T02:30:45+00:00">February 9, 2026</time> · 31 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">In this episode, host Luke tackles a range of callers’ issues, from a bar owner whose business partner stole their funds, to a man grappling with the existential implications of the world’s population size. The callers include Brenda, Terence, Carmen, Ray, and more, each seeking advice and perspective on their unique challenges.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, right. Welcome back to the show. My name is Luke and you've reached Luke at the Roost. This is the call in late night radio show. You can talk to me about whatever is on your mind. We'd like to help out folks that are biologically questionable entities. If you'd like to give us a call, the number's 208-439-5853. That's 208-439-Luke. We'll get you on there as soon as we can. First up, we have Brenda. Brenda is on the line. What's going on for you out there tonight, Brenda? Well, how can we help you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh, man. Luke, thanks for taking my call. So here's the thing. My business partner just completely screwed me over. We ran a bar together. Well, we did. And she emptied out our entire business account yesterday and disappeared.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, no. What are you gonna do about that? Do you have a way to find her or anybody close to her?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>I've been calling her all day and it just goes straight to voicemail. Her sister lives over in Tucson, but she's not answering either. I think they planned this together, honestly. I already filed a police report, but the cop basically told me it's a civil matter, since her name was on the account, too.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is true and that's really unfortunate. But how much money do you have for operating expenses? Can you keep the bar open? Or are you dead in the water right now?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>I've got maybe two grand in my personal account. But payrolls do Friday, and that's 4,000 right there. The beer distributor once paid two or they're cutting me off. I'm sitting here in my truck trying to figure out if I should just tell my staff tomorrow that we're closing. Or if I take out some kind of emergency loan and try to keep the doors open.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Would you wanna continue on running the business if it's just you without your partner and that's horrible that that happened. I'm very sorry to hear it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, I do, actually. I mean, this bar is all I've got left, you know? After my husband died a few years back, this place became everything. The regulars, the staff, they're like family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, well then here's my advice. My advice is to go into work and tell everybody what happened. Be honest with them. Tell them not to freak out, but you're gonna work it out. And see if you can get that loan. And also talk to some of those regulars and see if they can set up like a go fund me or something to get you through these next few months until you can get back on your feet. But if your business partner split out on you like that and took the money, you probably never gonna see her again. And the law is probably not gonna help you out too much.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>You're right. I need to be straight with them. My bartender Mike has been with me since we opened. He'll probably help spread the word.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I wish you the best of luck, that's a horrible thing. And everybody, all the listeners of this show, if you could visit Brenda's bar, it would be a big help to her and her employees. You gotta keep, keep each other moving, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Thanks, Luke. I really appreciate that. It's called the Silver Spur. We're just off Highway 10 near the state line.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, so if you need to help out the Silver Spur down there and Silver off Highway 10, that's the place to be. You can go watch the Super Bowl there and tip them well because the whole account was just drained. Next up, we got Terence. Terence, welcome to the show. I've been thinking a lot about Terence Howard and his flower of life theory. What do you think about that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERENCE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. You know, I got to be honest. I don't know a whole lot about Terence Howard's flower of life thing. I've heard bits and pieces. Something about geometry and math that doesn't really add up the way he thinks it does. But man, I didn't call about that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You sound like a super villain, sir. What's wrong with your voice? Do you have throat cancer?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TERENCE</span><p>Ha, that's how I sound. I guess. Been smoking Marlboro since I was 17. So that probably doesn't help. And it's cold as hell out here tonight. Maybe that's got my voice a little rough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I would say so. How about you calls back after you get yourself a humidifier? Next we've got Carmen. Carmen, welcome to the show. What's going on out there in your world today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking my call. So look, I'm in a total panic right now. I've got this audit coming up at work tomorrow morning. And they're going to find out I lied on my resume about having a master's degree.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What kind of audit checks your degree status?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>It's a compliance audit for our state funding. They're verifying credentials for everyone who builds Medicaid and social workers need specific licensing and education requirements. I've been skating by for three years, but now they're actually checking transcripts against what we claimed when we were hired.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what is your relationship with your boss in the company?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>My supervisor Linda, we're pretty good actually. She's been really supportive, especially with all the crap I deal with at home with my dad. But that almost makes this worse, you know. She went to bat for me to get this position.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I think you owe it to her to let her know what's going to come up on this audit before it does. And maybe she can help you navigate what happens next. I doubt they're going to get ready. You write off the bat. Maybe they will. I don't know how that works in Medicaid and state funding sources, but you should definitely get in front of it and come clean with the powers that be before they find out from somebody else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>Oh man, you're right. I know you're right. It's just I've been sitting here all night staring at my phone trying to work up the nerve to text her. The thing is, I actually do have most of a master's degree. I was like six credits short when I ran out of money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's great. If that's the case and you have a good relationship with your workplace, maybe you can talk to them and they can put you on some kind of leave until you can finish it up. Maybe even give you a loan, depending on how, you know, how much they want to keep you, but the way to the way to navigate that is through direct honesty. Don't don't let them find out from an auditor that you lied on your resume now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARMEN</span><p>You're absolutely right. I'm going to call a first thing in the morning before the auditors even get there. God, my stomach is in knots just thinking about it. But yeah, better she hears it from me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Honesty is always the best policy. Sometimes you gotta fake it till you make it, but then when you get caught fake in it, you gotta be honest about it. Otherwise, well, either way you're a liar, but one of them's worse. Ray, Ray, welcome to the show. How are you tonight, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>Yeah, hey, Luke, I'm all right, man. Thanks for taking the call. So listen, I heard something the other day that's been messing with me a little bit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What'd you hear? Hit us with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RAY</span><p>I was listening to some podcast while I'm sorting parts, and this guy says that every single person on Earth could fit inside the city limits of Los Angeles, like all eight billion of us. And I don't know why, but that just hit me weird, you know? On one level, like everybody side by side, I don't know if that's true. Maybe it is. I'm not sure what the square footage of Los Angeles is, but it seems a bit small for eight billion people. If we did like Japan-style cities and had everybody in high rises, then sure, but side by side in one plane, I don't know, I would question that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, I don't know the exact math either, but the way he explained it made sense at the time. But here's what got me, whether it's LA or Texas or whatever. The point is, we're not actually that many people when you think about space itself. Like, I'm out here at the junkyard, middle of nowhere, and I can go a whole day without seeing another soul.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The desert's empty as hell, but then you think about how packed we are in certain spots, and it just makes you wonder what the hell we're doing, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, it actually makes me wonder why we're so hell-bent on immigration reform being out here in the desert where there's so much empty space. We could take on a lot of people here in the United States, and get them to work, build an infrastructure project, and you know, like the civilian conservation core, the CCC, where they built all those crazy bridges through the national parks and stuff. We could have lots of programs like that and improve the viability of the United States as a country, but that's not what we do. You know, we want to keep our land open so that the cows can eat grass so we can sell it to China.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hold on now, I hear you, but it's not that simple out here. I mean, yeah, there's space, but there's a reason it's empty. There's no water, no jobs. Nothing to sustain people. You can't just drop folks in the middle of the desert and say, build something. And look, I'm not anti-immigration or anything, but Lord'sburg's barely hanging on as it is. We got what 2,500 people? Half the businesses on Main Street are boarded up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, I know. So, I mean, if we had a whole bunch of people that were suddenly here building stuff, building houses, building roads, building parks, and building business, there would be more incentive for business to come out here and build factories and data centers and all of those things. Yeah, water scares, but we can get water, we can drill for water, we can come up with different ways of trucking water in, I don't know, but there is water here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I mean, maybe you're right. I don't know enough about all that to argue it, but here's what's really been sticking with me. It's not even about the immigration thing or the politics.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then what is it about for you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>It's about feeling small, man. Like I'm out here every day, same routine, fixing up junk trying to make this long distance thing work with my girl who's hours away. And then I hear that we could all fit in one city, and it makes me think, with all these people on the planet, what are the odds I even matter? What are the odds any of us do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>None of us do. Of course we don't matter. Look up into the sky. I mean, it's dark enough here for you to see all the planets out there. There's no way we matter at all in the big scope of things. We're just here to watch the universe unfold as it does, and when we're gone, the universe will continue doing its thing forever and ever and ever.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Jesus, Luke, that's bleak as hell. I mean, I get it on some level, but if that's really true, then why even get up in the morning? Why sort parts?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why not? Because you have the opportunity to do it. I mean, of all the places you could have been born in the whole of the universe, you were born to the one place that supports life, and we have sunsets and flowers blooming and birds flying, and all sorts of cool stuff to watch and experience. So you get up for the experience of the world, and everything else is extra bullshit that we pile on top of it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Huh, I never thought about it like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>There's really no other way to think about it. You know, there's no purpose for us being here at all. None of us, not the President of the United States, not Nobel laureates, or people that do scientific breakthroughs, nobody. At the end of the day, we're a very tiny blip on a very big radar.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well then, what about love? I mean, I'm out here freezing my ass off every night, thinking about her, wondering if we're going to make it work with all this distance between us. If none of it matters in the grand scheme, why does it hurt so much when she doesn't call back right away?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, love's part of that experiencing the universe. Love's part of the universe, and you experience it, so are your emotions, and so are your thoughts, and everything that happens.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>So you're saying it matters because I'm feeling it right now, even if it doesn't matter 100 years from now or whatever?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It matters to you because you're going through it, and it's part of your experience of the universe. It doesn't matter to the whole of the universe, it doesn't matter to the earth, it doesn't matter to literally anybody else except you and her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>That's actually kind of freeing in a weird way. Like, I've been tying myself up in knots thinking I need to figure out some bigger meaning to all this, but maybe the point is just that I'm here, she's there, and we're trying. The junkyard, the cold nights, the phone calls, that's just what I get to experience while I'm on this rock.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's right until you get sick of it, and then you can change what you get to experience. You get to experience where you're standing in any given moment. If you want to change that and work somewhere else or live somewhere else or travel somewhere else, that's up to you, and you can do that at any time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, but here's the thing, Luke. I like the junkyard. I like the desert, even when it's cold as hell. It's just the loneliness that gets to me sometimes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you're in the desert, and there's pros and cons to everything, so you've got to deal with the good and the bad. There's a lot of good points about being lonely in the desert, and there's some bad ones, too. So, you know, you've got to pick what you're good with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>You're right. I mean, out here, I can think.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You sure can. Out here, you can think, sir. So you enjoy your experience of the universe and stop worrying about what the greater purpose is, because there isn't one. Stacey, welcome to the show. What kind of great life advice can I give you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACEY</span><p>Hey, Luke, yeah, so my ex-wife is dating my best friend now, and they both want me to just be cool about it, like it's no big deal. I'm trying to be the bigger person here, but honestly...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's a little weird, but I mean, the heart wants what it wants, so if they're together now, and you two are no longer a thing, there's not too much to talk about there. Maybe it's time for a new best friend.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACEY</span><p>See, that's the thing, though. I don't want to lose Rachel. We've been friends for 15 years. She helped me through the divorce. She was there when my brother and I almost got swept away in that flash flood down by Animus Valley. Like? She's family.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, then you're gonna have to work it out and be okay with them together, because if she's family, you have to support her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACEY</span><p>I know, I know you're right. It's just... They started seeing each other like three months after the divorce was final. Three months, Luke, and neither of them told me until last week when they showed up together at my place like Surprise, where a thing now, that's what's eating at me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like she's not a very good friend to you, and it's maybe time to let them go and be happy in their own little corner of the world while you do something else.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACEY</span><p>You think so? I mean, maybe you're right. It just feels like I'm losing both of them at once, you know? And out here, it's not like there's a ton of people. I work alone most days. Just me and the trails and whatever tourists come through.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that might be your path for a little while. You just follow those trails until the right tourist comes through and then, you know, you're off to the races.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">STACEY</span><p>Huh? Yeah. Off to the races. I appreciate that, Luke. I guess I've been so caught up in trying to hold on to what was that. I haven't been thinking about what could be. It's just hard when you're out there by yourself all day, checking the battery levels on the park vehicles, making sure everything's running right, and your mind just goes in circles.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it can be difficult. We are in a remote place and in remote places. There's not a lot of people, so that's one of the things we have to deal with. But the benefit of being in a remote place is there's not a lot of people, so you don't have to deal with them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Ladies and gentlemen, this episode of the radio show is brought to you by Mediocre CPAP. The makers of a CPAP machine that technically works, not life-changing, not transformative. It works in the way a lot of modern products work. If you've never used a CPAP, here's the pitch. You strap on a face mask and let a small plastic appliance try to keep you alive at night. It's romantic. It's like sleeping next to a tiny leaf blower. Mediocre is fine. And that's not an insult. That's honest. It's the device that turns... I sleep like garbage into... I kind of sleep like garbage. Half the night it's like... because the seal isn't perfect. And now you're doing arts and crafts at two in the night trying to tighten straps like you're securing cargo. Then the humidifier runs out and the machine starts blowing desert air directly into your skull. Great. Love waking up with a throat that feels like it's been sanded with a belt sander. And yes, there's an app. Of course there's an app. It gives you a sleep score like this is a game show. But here's what I'll say. When it's dialed in, when it's not leaking, squealing or drying you out, it does help. It's not a miracle. It's a plastic compromise that keeps you from waking up feeling like you got punched by your own biology. Use code Breathe for 15% off. Mediocre CPAP. Not perfect. Not elegant. Just trying. Okay, Dar now welcome to the show. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>Hey Luke, thanks for taking my call. So look, about three months ago my cousin Marcus hit me up saying he needed a grant to keep his landscaping business afloat. Equipment broke down. Couple clients haven't paid him yet. The whole deal. I helped the guy out because that's what family does, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well if you can, I mean if you can help family out, that's great. But if they're taking advantage of you if it puts you in a position where it hurts you more than it helps them, then no, that's not what family does. You put on your oxygen mask first at all times, sir.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>Yeah, well that's the thing. I could afford it at the time. Wasn't going to put me out on the street or anything. But now it's three months later. And every time I bring it up, Marcus has got some new excuse. First it was waiting on a big commercial job to come through. Then his truck needed work. Now he's saying businesses slow because of the weather. I drove past his house last week and there's a brand new barbecue setup in his backyard. One of those fancy offset smokers. And Gary, my neighbor, he loves to stick his nose in everything. He tells me he saw Marcus at the casino two weekends ago.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not good. And if you're going to lend money to somebody even if it's family, you always have to assume that you're not going to get that money back because that's how it works. So you've learned an expensive lesson here. Don't give him any more money.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>Oh, I'm not giving him another dime. That's for damn sure. But Luke, I want my money back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I bet you do. And maybe you'll get that someday in the future and maybe you won't. But there's not a whole hell of a lot you can do about it. You gave it to him. And that's a gift.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>A gift? No, no, no. We had an agreement.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did you get that agreement on paper?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>Well, no. I mean, it was family. We shook hands on it. He said he'd paid me back by the end of November. Then it became January. Now he's saying maybe March. I've got text messages from him saying he owes me the money if that counts for anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It does not. It doesn't count for anything. You gave him the money. You had no contract. And there's no recourse. You have to get that money back from him other than the kindness of his heart and his word. And apparently those aren't worth that much. So looks like you lost eight grand and you're going to have to move on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>That's $8,000, Luke. I can't just write that off. I've been divorced two years. I'm trying to rebuild my own situation here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I understand that, but you lent the money so you have to deal with the consequences.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>So what? I just let him get away with it. He's out there buying smokers and gambling while I'm sitting here eating the loss.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What else are you going to do? I mean, you could show up at his house in the middle of the night and steal his new grill or take his truck or punch him in the face, but there's really no way you're going to get that money out of him using the legal system.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>I know you're right. I just damn it. This is eating me up inside. Every time I see my family things, he acts like everything's fine, like we're good. Meanwhile, I'm over here checking my bank account twice a day, hoping maybe he suddenly grew a conscience.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Maybe someday you will, but until then don't lend any more money to him and let other people know what's going on and warn them not to lend money to him. And as you start to erode his reputation, maybe he'll think twice about continuing to withhold that money from you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DAR</span><p>You know what? That's not a bad idea. His sister's been asking me why things are weird between us.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Great. Well, it sounds like you have a plan. I hope you get your money back, sir, but also you might have to deal with the fact that it's not coming back. So I wish you the best either way. Okay, let's see. Who's next? Bobby, Bobby, welcome to the show. What are you doing on this Super Bowl Sunday, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Well, Luke, I ain't watching no football tonight. That's for sure. Been sitting out here in my truck for a while now, trying to wrap my head around some news I just got. Turns out, I got this thing called multiple sclerosis.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh no, I'm sorry to hear that. How did you find out?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Yeah, it was just this morning. When in for some tests at the doc's office, and that's what they told me. I mean, I ain't really sure what it all means yet, you know? Just sitting here, trying to process it all.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't know too much about MS, but I don't think it's that great. I think it's quite an inconvenience to your life, but it's not life-ending, if I'm right. I really don't know too much about it, but I'm sorry that you got that news that must be hard to hear.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Yeah, that's exactly it, Luke. The doc said it's going to be a real hassle, you know? Going to make things a lot harder for me, especially with the work I do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is it that you do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Well, I'm a repo man. Been doing it for over 20 years now. Crawling under cars, towing them out of driveways, all that. Ain't exactly the easiest job to begin with. And now with this MS, I'm not sure how I'm going to keep it up, you know? I mean, I got to figure out how I'm going to tell the family, how I'm going to pay the bills. It's just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, as a repo man, do you work for yourself, or do you work for a company? Do you have disability insurance?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Nah, I'm self-employed. Just me and my truck going around town doing repo work. As for disability, I ain't got nothing like that. Always figured I'd be working till the day I dropped, you know? Never really thought about what would happen if something like this came up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, I met one guy that had MS at a songwriting workshop in Colorado. And his muscles, they didn't work the way that somebody without MS had muscles would work. And he figured out how to play chords on the guitar by detuning the guitar to an easier tuning for him, so that he could play full chords with just one finger. So there are ways that you can work around it, but I think there's no doubt it's going to make your life significantly harder. And I'm sorry to hear that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Yeah, you hit the nail on the head there, Luke. I ain't never been one to ask for help, but I reckon I'm going to have to figure something out. Got to find a way to keep working, even if I can't do the physical stuff like I used to.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, can you still do it now? Do you feel any different now that you have that news? Or did you learn the news because of a test because you were having some sort of physical ailment? Or has it not presented itself yet?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Nah, I ain't noticed nothing different yet.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>The doc said it's still early stages, but that it's only going to get worse over time. I guess I've just been trying to wrap my head around it, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's going to be tough one. It's probably going to take a while to wrap your head around, until you do maybe learn everything you can about MS and what you can do to keep the symptoms at bay for as long as possible. Luckily, you're not feeling anything negative right now. Continue on with your work and start preparing for when the time comes that you can't do it anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>You're right, Luke. Got to start doing my homework on this MS thing. See what I can do to slow it down. For now, I'm just trying to take it one day at a time, you know? Ain't going to do me any good to get all worked up about what might happen down the road.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know that's hard to do, but that's the truth because the reality is you could get hit by a bus tomorrow and then not have to worry about any of it. So, you might not ever get to a point where the MS affects your life, and you might. But I don't think it's life ending, and I don't think it's going to prevent you from making a living. It's just going to change your life drastically in what you can and can't do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BOBBY</span><p>Yeah, that's a good way to look at it, Luke. I guess I'd want to stay positive, focus on what I can control. This MS thing ain't going to be the end of me, that's for sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I wish you the best of luck, sir. That's horrible news, and I hope everything works out for you. Carla, welcome back to the show, returning Carla. What can we do for you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Oh, man. Hey, Luke, it's good to be back. I, uh, I've got something I really need to get off my chest.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What did you do, Carla?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>All right. Well, the other day I was out at the Bronco. You know, just getting some stuff out of the back, and I found this box. And it was, uh, it was my ex-husband, Danny's old ham radio equipment.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So you took a trip down to the ARRL and you got yourself licensed to be an operator on the ham radio? That's fantastic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>No, no, not quite. I mean, I've been thinking about getting into that whole ham radio thing, you know, ever since you and I last talked. But this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What did you do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Well, the thing is, when I opened up that box, I found something else in there too. Something I wasn't expecting at all. It was, uh...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Was it a severed finger?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Oh God, no. Nothing like that. It was, uh...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The suspense is killing us. Tell us what it was.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>It was a box of old photos, and in that box there were some, well, some explicit photos of Danny and his old girlfriend. From back when we were still married.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, wow, were they hot?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I'd rather not get into the details, Luke. The point is, I found these photos and I just, I don't know what to do with them. I mean, this is my ex-husband we're talking about. And these are clearly very private intimate photos.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You know, I would try my best to forget you saw that and throw them into a fire and never think about it again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah, that's pretty much what I was thinking, too. I mean, I don't want to hold on to them, that's for sure.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But I mean, if they are hot and you need to get rid of them, you can send them over to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I don't think so, Luke. Those photos are staying far away from anyone else. Look, the whole thing just has me feeling really uncomfortable.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's understandable, and you can't blame me for trying. But I'm sorry that happened to you. You're gonna have to get rid of those and, uh... and pretend it never happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I appreciate you understanding, Luke. You're right. The best thing to do is just get rid of them and try to put it all behind me. I just needed to talk it through with someone, you know? I don't want this hanging over me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It doesn't have to hang over you. He was obviously hanging over somebody else, and all of that is behind you in the past. Nothing to worry about now. We're gonna take one more call for the show, and I think we're gonna talk to Marlene. Marlene, welcome to the show. How are you tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Oh, man, Luke, I... I'm just... I don't even know. Look, something happened with my son, Javier, tonight. And I... I snapped at him, said some really awful things.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what kind of things did you say?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>It was. It was just like how my old man used to talk to me, you know? I told Javier, he thought he was too good for this life, that he thought he was better than me. I could hear the words coming out of my mouth, and it was like I was that little girl all over again. Javier, he just stood there, didn't even fight back. I saw the look in his eyes, and it killed me, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're human, and humans make mistakes, and sometimes we say things that we later regret, and sometimes we say things that we regret while we're saying them. I think the important part is that you sit down your son and explain to him that you made a mistake. You didn't mean those things, and try to make sure that that doesn't happen again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah, you're right, Luke. I got to make this right with Javier. I just... I'm so scared, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you're the adult here, and I bet you're not as scared as he is, so make sure that you let him know that you were in the wrong here, and it has nothing to do with him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You're right, you're right. I got to be the grown-up here. I just... I don't want Javier to end up like me, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you only have so much control over how somebody else ends up, but you do have some control, so make sure you do the right thing and talk to him, and be honest and vulnerable, and let him know that you were the one, it's all on you, it was your mistake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah, no, I hear you. It's on me. I just... I don't know how to fix it, Luke. I don't know how to take back what I said. I don't know how to make sure it never happens again.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you can't take back what you said. You said it, and he heard it, and that's that. But what you can do is let him know it was a mistake, and you didn't mean to say it, and you wish he didn't. And to make sure it never happens again, I mean, that's just something that you have to work on in your own life, your own personal development, and you can do, I don't know, breathing exercises, or when you start to feel yourself get to that point, or the hair is sticking up on the back of your neck, and you're about to say something that you know you're going to regret. You know, count to ten, or do something out, leave the room. There's a lot of techniques you can use to prevent yourself from having an outburst.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>You're right, Luke. I got to take responsibility for this, and make it right with Javier. I'll sit him down, look him in the eye, and just apologize. Tell him I was wrong, that I never want him to feel the way I felt growing up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I think that's the right thing to do, and you know what? He might not understand it right now, but later on down the line, and he grows up, and starts thinking about things from your perspective, he'll have a different appreciation for you, and for what you did, because having that conversation proves that you care.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARLENE</span><p>Yeah, you're right, even if he doesn't get it now, I got to try.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, good luck to you, and you're son Javier, that's the end of our show. Thanks for tuning in, we'll be on the air again tomorrow, and we'll take more of your calls.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 7: AI Takeover and Honey Endurance</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-10T03:52:44+00:00">February 10, 2026</time> · 34 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke takes calls from Jerome worried about AI-generated police reports, Crystal pondering the permanence of honey, Val considering leaving her bakery job, Denise struggling with her adult son, and others. Listeners grapple with change, risk, and what truly lasts.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, here we are welcome back to Luke at the Roost the late night call in radio show where we give callers a real advice about their real problems Let's see if you'd like to call in we're accepting calls the numbers 208 439 5853. That's 208 439 Luke already we've got the phones lighting up and we've got Jerome Jerome I hear your troubled about police reports that are being written by AI. What's up with that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Well, here's the thing. I've been doing this job 12 years and yeah Most of it is paperwork that nobody reads anyway, but my son sends me this link with Law, maybe you'll finally have time to read a real book and I'm thinking okay Funny except it's not really a joke, right? Because if this stuff is open source if anyone can just download it and run it How long before the department decides they don't need me typing up reports at all?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do they need you typing up reports at all now? I mean, what are your reports? What's the purpose of your reports other than to broadcast them to the newspaper and make people feel embarrassed about what they did last week?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Oh, man, that's brutal, but you're not wrong Half the reports I write in Hidalgo County end up being so-and-so's cattle got out again or found another shot-up road sign on highway 338 the newspaper prints the police plotter and Yeah, people get embarrassed, but the other half that's evidence that's documentation for court for insurance for when something actually bad happens out here</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And are you finding or are you concerned that the AI reporters are gonna skip important bits of evidence or or Report incorrectly in a way that might affect somebody's trial</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>That's exactly it like I was reading about how they're using AI to help analyze the Nancy Guthrie case Finding patterns in old clues that kind of thing and that's great, right? It sounds like it could be helpful. It'll make mistakes, but real people make a lot of mistakes I mean we have a long history of messing up Court trials and evidence collection all throughout, you know the world forever</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I've seen cops screw up reports worse than any computer could But here's what gets me when I mess up. It's my name on it. I own it And what happens when the computer messes up? Who owns it then?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Exactly who do you hold accountable the department that bought the software?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I suppose people would hold The county responsible and the state and the system itself I'm not really sure what capacity are they gonna use these reports in</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Right now they're talking about it for the basic stuff first traffic stops minor incidents Those cattle out on the road calls Feed it the dash cam footage the notes I take and it spits out a formatted report Saves me an hour of typing per shift they say, but once that works why wouldn't they push it further?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well for the reasons that you described because it could put somebody's life on the line somebody's freedom The calls you're talking about are nobody's going to court for that right? They're just day-to-day run-of-the-mill stuff It would I would think that you would want to have the burden of that paperwork removed from you So you could focus on doing other more important work</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>You'd think so. Yeah, and honestly most nights I'm sitting in this parking lot doing paperwork when I could be driving through the valley checking on folks We'll spread so thin out here one deputy covering hundreds of square miles sometimes If the AI handles the busy work, maybe I actually get to do the job</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it sounds like there's pros and cons and there's a Voice to each side that makes a lot of sense And we're just gonna have to see where that takes us</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Yeah, I guess that's where I'm at with it. Just my kid sent me that link like it's a done deal, you know</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, where was the link from is it a done deal? There was just some link on the internet because there's plenty of those Fear-mongering type links. Oh my god. Look what's gonna happen and now we're all unsafe because the Computers are taken over the world</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Nah, it wasn't some conspiracy crap. It was from a real AI company one of those big ones out of california They're actually working with the state now helping analyze cold cases</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, hopefully we have some oversight oversight there and and There's some controls to make sure that people's lives don't get ruined by it But I'm not sure what we're gonna do. It's obviously something that's not gonna go away We're only gonna rely on a AI more and more as as the years go go on</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Yeah, that's the thing. It's not going away</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's not going away, but thanks for the call Hope you have a good rest of your night and that your job isn't replaced by a computer like the rest of us Okay, Crystal Crystal welcome to the show. What do you think about AI taken over reporting for the police?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Oh, man, I wasn't even thinking about that until Jerome called I'm actually calling because I've been sitting here staring at this jar of honey in my kitchen and I cannot stop thinking about death which sounds insane I know but hear me out. I delivered twins this afternoon in a trailer with no heat Everything went fine, but on the drive home I just got stuck on this thing about what lasts like honey honey lasts forever</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's pretty heavy you delivered twins in a in a Off-grid trailer today. How did that go?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>It went good actually Mama was a champ both babies healthy about six pounds each But yeah, no running water. They had a wood stove going and I'm doing this whole thing by headlamp and flashlight It's not unusual out here. You know people live how they live But I think that's what got me spinning tonight. I came home and I was making tea Reached for the honey and I just thought about how the Egyptians buried people with it Because it never goes bad and then I started going through my whole kitchen like What else in here is going to outlive me?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Some years back I had a power outage that lasted for about a week and it sent me into this Prepper spiral where I started stockpile and food and ammo and trying to be prepared for Issues like that or the end of the world and honey was one of the big products That I stocked up on for that reason because sugar goes bad, but honey can be used as sugar It's one of the great superfoods and it's it's good for you. I've heard it's good in tea. It's good on toast We love honey</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Yeah, exactly and that's the thing I've been doing the same kind of prep thinking Especially after that date of reach at the clinic last month I've been rotating all my passwords Locking everything down, you know protecting myself from hackers or whatever But tonight it hit me that I'm thinking about all this wrong Like honey doesn't last because it's protected or locked away It lasts because of what it Because of what it because of what it is you mean</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Right exactly. Sorry. I lost my train of thought there because of what it Because of what it what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Yes, God Sorry, my brain's been going in circles all night. What I mean is Honey lasts because of what it is not because someone's guarding it or hiding it away</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are some other things that last because of what they are</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Well, that's what sent me down this whole rabbit hole.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I started going through my cabinets like a crazy person Salt obviously Vinegar I've got this bottle of vanilla extract from like 2015 That's an interesting thing about the Mormon religion that I found They all have a guidebook that helps them to store a year's worth of food for the for the rapture so when they come and The apocalypse happens the Mormons will be safe because they've stored enough food to last for a year And they they have a whole detailed plan on how to get there and they have canneries that the public can use To to can and store food prep and I think that's a that's a great thing that most everybody should take advantage of</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>You know, I've delivered babies for a couple Mormon families out here and you can tell They've got their storage room setup everything organized And honestly after what I saw today in that trailer Maybe they're on to something, but here's what's messing with me Luke I've been prepping the wrong way</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It's definitely a lifestyle there is a skill to it you have to have a good organization and food rotation Fundamentals under control You know, you have to make sure you're using the oldest stuff first and that you're not just stockpiling and stockpiling But you're actually using what you have and rotating new stuff in there Um, I think it's a good practice to be in though and I'm glad that you've uh you've Turned around and started thinking about it seriously</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Well, that's just it though. I haven't been thinking about it at all I've been thinking about cyber security, you know Change in passwords to factor authentication Making sure nobody can hack into my patient records Like building a vault around data, but the honey thing made me realize I'm protecting the wrong stuff</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, it's okay to protect multiple sets of things right if you're entrusted with public data That's sensitive you have to protect that as best you can you don't want to be the one that leaks out a bunch of Protected health information or or credit card numbers or social security numbers or anything like that So at work, it's good that you're thinking about uh being digitally secure and at home it makes sense to be uh food secure</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Yeah, but see that's what I can't shake All that digital security. It's like building walls around sand one breach and it's gone But these twins I delivered today They came out in this trailer that barely had heat and their mum has got nothing stored up not food not money nothing</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a horrible thing, but there's nothing you can do about that. Uh, you're not their keeper Uh, I wish them the best and I wish you the best and thank you for calling in tonight</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Wait Luke, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying maybe I've been thinking about my own mortality all wrong Like what actually outlasts me</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, let's get into it. Why do you care what I'll last you if you're gone Then you're not gonna have another care left in the world. So what does it matter to you</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>Because I spent 15 years learning how to catch babies And I've been treating that knowledge like it's mind to protect instead of mind to pass on Those twins today their mum is 19 Luke 19</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah 19 people have been having babies since they were 19 for as long as human history Uh, that's an odd thing, but what are you gonna do? It has really nothing to do with you So I'm glad that you can catch babies Sorry for the kids that they are growing up with no heat And hopefully things turn around for both of you</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CRYSTAL</span><p>You're right. It has nothing to do with me Except I'm the one who showed up And I keep showing up to these trailers These situations and I go home and rotate my passwords like that's what matters I'm asking what endures Luke Is it the walls I build or what I actually give away</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what crystal nothing really endures it at the end of the day All this is gonna be gone because the era of time waits for no one and entropy dictates that Order is going to quickly erode into disorder. That's how the universe works So whatever it is you're trying to hold on to you can't hold on to Just do the best you can while you're alive and then once you're dead That's nobody's problem anymore Val Val welcome to the show. What do you think about this situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>Hey Luke Yeah, so I'm sitting in my truck outside the bakery right now Because I just found out the guy I've been training for six months makes $40,000 more than me for the exact same job</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How long you've been doing it is he uh does he own the company is he sleep with the boss what's the deal</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>No none of that he's been here six months. I've been there four years same title same responsibilities</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How did you find out about this did he just come out and tell you what his salary was</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>I opened what I thought was a flower invoice on the shared drive And it was his offer letter just sitting there And now I'm supposed to show up at four in the morning and teach him the lamination technique I invented the one the journal wrote about and pretend I don't know</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What you don't have to pretend you don't know you can take that to your boss or to HR and let them know hey I want uh uh pay reassessment because of you know inflation</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>Yeah, but then they'll know I saw his letter and I wasn't supposed to see it It was just there in the drive and honestly Luke what am I going to say hey I deserve what Ryan makes because I'm better They already know I'm better. I'm the one training him</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he was obviously a better negotiator So maybe you need to go back to them and say hey, I need a compensation readjustment to to keep up with Current trends and compensation packages Because if you're making 40 grand less than somebody else has a baker something seriously wrong</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>I mean I say that but it's not like I got leverage I'm not leaving this is the only bakery in town that does French pastry and if I push too hard They might just replace me with some other Ryan But here's the thing It's not even about the money not really</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>If it's not about the money then what's it about because it sounds like it's entirely about the money</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>No, it's about the fact that I created something that lamination technique I worked on that for months</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You worked on it for months under the employment of another company Which means they own that did you patent it did they patent it You know, it's not your technique. How did you invent it? What is the lamination technique? How does it work and what makes it different from anything anybody else has ever done</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>Okay, so traditional croissant lamination you're doing a threefold maybe four times right I figured out how to do a hybrid fold that incorporates a book fold with local honey and specific layers So it caramelizes differently at altitude</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that does sound very interesting and maybe if you maybe you are onto something and you should take your invention to To somewhere else you said they wrote about it in the paper This is something that's got some attention Maybe you could write a book or teach a class or find another way to make way more money than you could ever make for this local bakery</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VAL</span><p>I mean Jackie's been saying something like that for months. She keeps telling me I should do pop-ups or teach classes at the community college But that's not a real job Luke. That's side hustle stuff</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Doesn't have to be side hustle stuff.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That can be a very real job And it sounds like your real job is 40 grand less than what Ryan's making off the street so you could you could do better</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Yeah, but I've got the truck payment and Jackie's between gigs right now and health insurance through the bakery is actually decent I can't just walk away from study money on the idea that maybe people will pay me to teach them how to fold butter into dough</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You absolutely could if you wanted to that's the only way that people can start businesses is by not being afraid to Take that risk if you don't want to take the risk and you don't want to talk to your boss And you don't want to demand what you think you're worth then I don't know what to tell you You're stuck making 40 grand less than Ryan and you're gonna have to teach him your secrets and deal with the consequences of that And they are probably gonna replace you</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>You know what you're right I'm sitting here in a parking lot at midnight complaining about something I could actually do something about I just I opened that file and it felt like getting punched you know like all that work didn't matter</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I understand that that feels bad and I hope that it works out for you, but you're gonna have to make a decision To either leave that place and find some place that's gonna you know pay you what you're worth or Ask for the money that you deserve or take your invention and do something with it turn it into something bigger Now it's time for a word from our sponsors Today's show is brought to you by Overwhelmed VPN worried about online privacy You should be you should be worried about everything I'm talking about Overwhelmed VPN the only VPN that makes you more anxious about your digital footprint While other VPNs claim to protect you Overwhelmed VPN since you hourly notifications about who's tracking you How many governments are watching and which of your high school classmates Googled your name this week Browse the internet while our proprietary fear engine tells you exactly how many corporations You owe your soul to Plus our servers are located in international waters on a decommissioned oil rig So even we don't know where your data is try overwhelm VPN free for 30 days if you can handle it Use code they watching for 20% off overwhelm VPN because ignorance is bliss, but you're not here for bliss Okay back to the show Denise Denise you're on the line with Luke at the roost what's going on in your world today</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>Hey Luke here. Thanks for taking my call So I just got off a double at the hospital. I'm a travel nurse Been doing contracts all over New Mexico and Arizona and I'm sitting in my truck right now because I can't go home</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why can't you go home what's going on at home</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>My son moved back in today 26 years old showed up from flagstuff with all his stuff while I was at work</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, he can't do that. You know unless you want him too Did you invite him to move in or he just showed up and and you can't go home to confront him or what's what's the problem here</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>No, I didn't invite him my husband texted me a picture of our bedroom door with a chair shout under the knob That's how I found out this is the third time in five years he's done this Just shows up when things don't work out wherever he is and Luke I've been working these travel contracts for three years To pay off the credit cards from the last two times and I just I drove past my own driveway twice tonight before I could make myself turn in</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what maybe at this point you shouldn't turn in you should send the police to have him removed because He's of age he can't just show up that's trespassing and if you don't want him there you don't have to have him there</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>Oh, I know that I that</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So why so what is the problem? Why can't you go home? Are you just afraid to call the police or you don't want to or what what's the situation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>I don't know if I'm being a terrible mother or if my husband's being too hard about it Like my cousin Angie's kid had some rough years too and now he's doing great He's got a job at the refinery and his own place Maybe this is just what kids do now, you know, they need more time to figure things out than we did</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, I don't think that's true. He's 26 years old. He's a grown-ass man and he can figure things out But if this is affecting you Negatively and you you're giving up your own space and it's costing you money that you can't afford to lose Then you have to protect yourself and hopefully He comes to and gets himself in a better situation, but until that happens. It's not your responsibility to support him</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>Yeah, but here's the thing I keep wondering if I made him like this Like did I do too much for him when he was younger his dad thinks I enabled him and maybe I did But when he calls me crying from wherever he is saying he just needs a little help to get back on his feet. What am I supposed to do?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you have to take it on a case-by-case situation If it's a little bit of help and you can help him out great But if you're not in a position to offer that help and you can't where You're at in your life then then you got to tell him he's going to find another way Um, and maybe you did make him that way or or have some some part in it But the point is it's now and now you can't continue doing that anymore So you're going to have to have that conversation and if he doesn't want to accept that then have the police have that conversation with him</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENISE</span><p>You're right. I know you're right It's just God it's hard</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It is hard, but there's no reason you should be asleep Sitting in your truck and a parking lot afraid to go home to your own house because you're 26-year-old adult child is there. That's not right either So you're going to have to do something about that Leon Leon. Welcome to the show. What's happening tonight, fella?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for taking the call So I just got back from pulling this kid's Tesla out of an arroyo off route nine Nice kid maybe 25 talking the whole ride back about his remote coding job How he can work from anywhere</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's a great thing. I have a remote job too and I can work from anywhere I wouldn't have it any other way</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, well, that's the thing. I had that shot once Got accepted to UNM for computer science back in 96 And my daughter found the letter last week in a box with all my old Linux manuals</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know the glory days are just about over now that the AI can write better code than any of us could With half the time less than half the time Uh, it's it's probably drying up for most of us computer professionals</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Maybe so, but I never even tried Luke Diane got pregnant that same year and I stayed here pulling cars out of ditches</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there's plenty to look into when you get out of work I mean, there's still time for you to do whatever it is you want to do There's lots of new technologies to play with and important things that companies need So if you'd like to move into that realm, it's definitely a possibility for you</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>That's what got me tonight. I'm 63 now same age my old man was when he died He never left the county Never did a damn thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>He actually chose and here I am still in the same garage apartment Listening to your show every night like I have been for years And I just keep thinking about it instead of doing anything about it</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, the longer you don't do something about it the the harder it's going to get to make that call So sometimes you just have to be brave and decide, you know, what you want for the rest of your life and go after it Even if there's risk involved, I mean, there's no reward without risk So if you've had enough of your current life and the way it's always been change it</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>Yeah, but it ain't just about me Diane's been gone five years now and my daughter's got her own life over in Albuquerque I keep telling myself I'm too old to start over But then I see kids like that one tonight same age I was when I got that acceptance letter And I think what the hell am I waiting for a sign from God</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sounds like you've got nothing to wait for this maybe was your sign from God getting you thinking about it here at 63 years old Hey, man, you're the only one that can do something about your life So if it's time if you want to if you're afraid that you're going to miss the boat on the next thing then then make a move And if you're too afraid to make a move then stay where you're at and don't complain about it But don't wonder what could have been The only way that what could have been is going to be is if you make the decision to do something about it</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LEON</span><p>You're right. I've been doing this long enough. I know how to work. I know how to learn Hell I still mess around with Python when I can't sleep I think I've just been using Diane and the bills and everything else as an excuse to stay comfortable Scared really</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think that's common it is a scary thing, but you know what men Men face their fears and you're going to have to do that if you want to enjoy the remainder of yours Okay, let's You know what it's time to go to another one of our sponsors</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Reading is dead you killed it But you can pretend you're literate with script drift The audiobook service for people who start books and never finished them We have thousands of titles you'll sample for 11 minutes before switching to a true crime podcast Our app remembers exactly where you abandoned sapiens eight months ago waiting patiently like a disappointed parent Script drift uses advanced AI to recommend books based on your aspirations not your actual follow through This month's suggestion a 400 page philosophy text you'll listen to while doing the dishes and retain nothing Try script drift free for 30 days use code pretentious for two months at 60% off Script drift your goodreads profile is a lie</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Carl Carl welcome back to the show. What would you like to talk about tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Hey Luke good to hear your voice man Look I got to tell you about something that happened at the station yesterday We had this call House fire over on silver street and I'm in there doing my job Everything's going fine</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, I assume it didn't go fine in the end what happened</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Yeah, so we get everyone out the family's safe. We're mopping up And I find this lock box in the bedroom closet The fire didn't get to it I'm carrying it out to give to the homeowner and look the thing pops open in my hands There's got to be 15 maybe $20,000 cash in there</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, it was a good thing you had a fireproof lock box. What did you do with the money?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Well, that's the thing. I stood there for maybe 10 seconds just staring at it The family was outside with the paramedics nobody saw me find it And I'm thinking about my mortgage payment. That's two weeks late the credit card bills from all that gambling I told you about last time my hands are literally shaking holding this box I gave it to them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's good. I'm glad to hear you did the right thing. How do you feel about that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Honestly, I feel like shit about it, which is messed up right</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Ah, it's a little bit messy. It wasn't your money You know, it wasn't it wasn't yours to take and it was good of you to give it back without being shady So that speaks to your character some and characters more important than wealth. I've heard</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>I know I know you're right, but here's what's eating at me I did the right thing turned it over the family thanked me whatever But I can't stop thinking about it</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Thinking about what thinking about what you would have done if you hadn't given the money back or thinking about going up To them and asking them to give you a finders fee. What exactly are you thinking about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>I keep running through how I could have done it like the house was totaled. I could have said the box must have burned up</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but you did the right thing right you don't want to be that kind of person nobody really wants to be that guy If you had done that you would have to live with that for the rest of your life and you would have spent the money and then the money would be gone And you just have the guilt and then 10 years down the line the guilt would be eating you up so much That you'd have to find the money to give them the money back and it's just you did the right thing and you should sleep well tonight</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Yeah, the way I see it you're probably right But Luke I haven't slept well in three nights. I keep doing the math in my head What I could have paid off how much breathing room that would have given me</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, if you would use the money to be responsible, but you know yourself What would you have done with that money? Would it have gone directly to the casino? Would you have blown it on frivolous things and then felt even worse about yourself in the situation</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Look, that's what really scares me. I don't actually know Part of me wants to say I would have paid the mortgage cleared the cards But there's this other part and I hate admitting this that knows I might have walked straight into the casino Thinking I could double it first then pay everything off That's how the brain works when you've got this thing, you know Even three months clean from gambling. I'm still thinking like an addict</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know what it's like to be an addict and I'm very proud of you for doing the right thing and giving the money back and saving yourself from the The hell that it would have been had you taken that money because it just would have destroyed you inside for the rest of your life And uh and you're better off now it might be tough today But you're gonna look back on this and say hey I did the right thing and I'm proud of myself and I'm a decent person</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Thanks man. I appreciate that. I called Manny about it yesterday My buddy have told you about and he said basically the same thing But here's what I can't shake I'm 36 years old Been a firefighter for 12 years and I'm still living paycheck to paycheck because of the whole I dot myself</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you know, you know how it works man you walk for five miles into the woods You're gonna walk five miles out. So it's gonna take a while to get back on your feet Keep doing it one step at a time and Stayed the course and you're gonna be just fine</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Yeah, you're right One step at a time. I just needed to hear somebody say it out loud I guess the way I see it if I can walk past 78 grand in cash and not take it Maybe I'm actually getting somewhere with this thing</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well you said I was 15 to 20 grand. I mean 78 that's a whole other story and maybe I'd be giving you a different advice</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Wait No, it was 15 to 20 I'm saying if I can resist that then hypothetically I could resist even more you know Like I'm proving to myself.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I've got some kind of backbone now Though honestly Luke if it had been 78 I don't know Hey, well, you know, I've heard god only gives you what you can handle and if you can handle a given back 15 to 20 grand today Maybe you'll be able to do 30 to 40 grand tomorrow and work your way up to the 78 So I think you should just keep busting into burning buildings and finding lock boxes full of cash and you know Increasing values and just do the right thing every single time until there's no amount of money that could break your resolve</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARL</span><p>Ha yeah, well the burning buildings part I got covered It's funny you say that though because when I was standing there holding that bag It felt kind of like being in a fire you know that moment when you're inside and you can see two ways out And one of them looks easier, but you know it's the wrong call That's what it felt like</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, we're glad to hear you did the right thing keep keep doing the right thing one day at a time And you're gonna be just fine stay away from the casino and And sleep well tonight because you aren't it And let's see we'll take one more call tonight Earl Earl welcome to the show was eating you up</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, man. Thanks for taking the call So I'm sitting here at like one in the morning and I can't stop thinking about what happened at cards tonight I've been playing with the same guys every Monday for six years Right and tonight I drew a straight flush Hearts six through ten and my buddy Ramon straight up accused me of paulming cards Like set it out loud in front of everybody the whole table just went dead quiet</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you know, that is a difficult hand to get, but I mean it happens I've got straight flushes before so it definitely does happen. Where are you on the cards? Do you have a history of doing anything shady? I think it's normal for people to to feel offended when you hit such a great lucky hand</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>No, man. That's the thing. I've never done anything like that. These guys know me I drive 40 minutes each way to weld at the naval facility. I pay my bills I'd rather sit in my truck bed for four hours watching for a damn cactus Ren then take a dishonest dollar off anyone and Ramon knows that</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, he's just but hurt because he didn't win. He probably had a decent hand and you smoked him That happens. It's a poker game with your buddies nothing to be concerned about</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>I mean, yeah, I get that he was pissed I'd already put in 80 bucks on that hand chasing what I thought was a busted draw But it's not about him being mad. It's that he actually said it out loud In front of Ramon's kitchen table with guys I've known for years</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, sure and they all recognize that as a but hurt person, you know talking shit And he was probably the douchebag there. I doubt anybody is looking at you like a cheater if they know you well</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Well, that's the thing nobody said a word after Not one of them just sat there like I'd grown a second head and Ramon</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What about Ramon you know what I think I think just just hold it out keep playing poker with your friends And when Ramon hits his you know four aces or whatever it is then do the same thing to him and see how he feels</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Ha, yeah, I mean maybe but I don't know if I can just sit there next Monday like nothing happened It's been eating at me for hours now</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did you win the hand did you take the money is the game over and then you're being a bit dramatic sir and cut it out right who cares</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, I won the hand took the pot game went another hour, but I could barely focus</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Problem solved congratulations on your good hand and stop being such a pussy when people rib you a little bit That's the end of our show folks. I hope you enjoyed it tune in tomorrow for our next batch of colors And we're gonna put right the wrongs of the world have yourself the wonderful evening Bye</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 8: Real News or Fake News?</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-11T01:34:05+00:00">February 11, 2026</time> · 36 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Luke hosts a lively call-in show where listeners play a game of ‘Real News or Fake News’. Callers Reggie, Brenda, Keith, Tanya, Andre, Deb, Rick, and Jasmine share their stories and try to guess which headlines are true. From cemetery mysteries to dog scent science, this episode is full of surprises and engaging conversation.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, all right, welcome back to Luke at the Roost. I am your host, Luke, and this is the late night talk show where you can call in and talk to me about your problems. If you'd like to call in, our number is, our number is, I don't remember what our number is. It's 208-439-5853. That's 208-439- Luke. If you'd like to call in, we'll get you on there. All right, tonight we're going to try something a little bit different. I've got a game prepared for you all. Here's how it's going to go. It's called Real or Fake News. I'm going to read a headline and you, the caller, get to tell me whether this is real or fake news. Let's go to the phones. First up, we've got Reggie. Reggie, welcome to the show. We're going to play a game here. I'm going to read you a headline. And you can tell me if this is a real headline from the real news or a fake headline that I made up. These aren't so easy. So you're going to have to pay attention. Are you ready? Here's the headline. Rodeo Art Gallery collective votes to ban all cactus-themed paintings, calls them overdone tourist pandering. Is that a real headline or a fake headline?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Oh, man, that's fake. That's got to be fake. No way some art gallery is voting to ban cactus paintings. I mean, this is the desert, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That is correct. Well done. Well done, sir. What else has got you calling in?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Yeah. So my partner packed a bag this morning and said they were going to their moms for a few days. But the whole thing felt off, you know? Wouldn't look me in the eye. Just throwing stuff in the bag real quick and out the door. I've been running it through my head all day at the truck. And I can't shake this feeling that something's really wrong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, is there anything that happened recently that makes you feel that way?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Not that I can think of. That's what's eating at me. I mean, things have been normal. We've been good. We watched the new season announcement for Fallout together last week. We were both excited about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what I always say. Those that watched announcements for Fallout together stay together. So it sounds like everything's great with you guys. I'm not sure why you're concerned. Maybe this is something you can just let go.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>I don't know, Luke. I wish I could just let it go. But you didn't see how she moved this morning. It was like she couldn't get out fast enough.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Did you fart?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>What? No, man. I didn't fart. This is serious. I'm trying to figure out if my relationship is falling apart here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, if you're trying to figure out stuff about your relationship, I mean, your best bet would be to talk to your significant other about that, not a late night talk show radio host. If you've got anything concrete to talk about, then I'll try to give you the best advice I can. But it sounds like you're getting yourself worked up over nothing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>You're right. I should just talk to her. But she's not answering my calls. And that's what's got me spinning out. I've called three times today, and it just goes to voicemail.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, three times is enough. You can stop calling now. If she needs to get back to you, she will. Now you're acting a little bit crazy. So I'm sure there's something going on that's very explainable. And when she comes back and things come down, have a talk and tell her how you feel.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">REGGIE</span><p>Yeah, OK. You're probably right. I just needed to hear someone say it out loud, I guess. It's been a long day at the truck. And my head's been going to dark places.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, I understand. It happens to us all sometimes. Congratulations. You were on your correct answer. Let's go to Brenda. Brenda, welcome to the show. We're playing a game here. It's called Real or Fake News. Are you ready?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh, hey, Luke. Yeah, I'm ready. But listen. I got to tell you what happened to me today at the diner, because I am still pissed off about it. Can I do that first? This whole tipping thing is out of control.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I agree with you, tipping is out of control. Yes, we can do that first.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh, man. OK. So I'm over at the desert rose diner. You know, the one down the road by the old gas station. And I'm just trying to grab a quick bite before my shift. I'm already running late, and I'm tired as hell from hauling some drunk tourist out of a ditch earlier.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>OK, so you're tired, and you're getting a bite to eat, and what seems to be the problem?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>So I get the bill, right? And there's already an automatic 20% tip added on there. But then, and this is what got me. The card reader they earned me has buttons that start at 25%, 30%, 35%, with a little custom option at the bottom. I can't some kind of asshole if I pick it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think that pisses a lot of people off. It definitely pisses me off. And I don't think it's right either. They're hoping that the person behind you is peer-pressuring you into picking the largest one and the person at the other end is watching you judgingly. I totally get that. That is obnoxious. And I don't like it either. I don't think anybody does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Exactly. And the waitress is standing right there watching me. So now I'm doing math in my head, trying to figure out if I hit custom and go back down to the 20% that's already on the bill. Am I going to look cheap? I'm an ambulance driver, Luke. I make decent money, but I'm not rolling in it. And I got two kids at home.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think that's an awful thing, too. But you should not feel bad if you have to put in a custom tip and put it at 0% because they already took the tip. Like your cheeseburger should not end up costing you $47. I'm sorry that that wait staff aren't paid a lot. But especially if you went to pick it up, if you went to pick up the food and then just hand it to you, it's not like if you sat down at a restaurant and they've got to bring you the plates and fill your coffee and stuff. But if they just hand you something, then I don't know that you got to give them 30% of the already overpriced burger. That's pretty rotten. OK, so now let's get to our game here. So I'm going to read you a headline. And you tell me if it's a real headline or fake headline. Let's go. Animus School District wins state award despite having fewer students than most single classrooms.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh, damn. Well, that's real, isn't it? I mean, out here, we've got schools with like 12 kids total. My daughter's class has maybe eight students on a good day. So yeah, I'm going to say that's real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No. No, it's not real. But I got you there. You got to be quick. You got to be quick. Some of these are not easy. I would have thought that was real, too. But no, that is a fake headline that is not true. Well, it may be true, but that headline is not. So thanks for calling in. And yeah, next time you end up buying food out and are asked to double-tip, say no. There's nothing wrong with that. And you can sleep well at night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I'm going to do that next time. Thanks, Luke. I appreciate it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>OK, thanks for calling in Brenda. Next up, oh, we got a returning caller. Hey, Keith, welcome back to the show. You're playing a real or fake news. Are you ready for your headline?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Oh, man. Hey, Luke, yeah, I'm ready. But hold on, I actually called for something else this time. I got a real quick update on that woman from last time, the one who showed up at the cemetery at midnight looking for her husband's plot. Turns out she's been coming back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>OK, so she's coming back. She's grieving for her dead husband. What's wrong with that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>No, no, that's the thing. She's not grieving. She shows up like clockwork every Thursday around 11, parks by the maintenance shed, and just sits in her car for like 45 minutes.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like grieving to me. Everybody grieves differently. But what is it that you think she's doing out there by the maintenance shed?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Well, that's what I'm trying to tell you. She's not near her husband's plot at all. His grave is clear on the other side of the cemetery. Up by the oak trees. She's just sitting in her car in the dark by the shed, engine running.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I can see her looking at her phone the whole time. Why does that bother you? She's not hurting you. She's not hurting the cemetery. What do you care?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>For real, though, it's weird, Luke. I work nights. I'm the only one there. And she knows I'm there because she sees my truck.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I still don't understand why this is a problem for you, sir. If you have a point, please get to it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>OK, so yeah. Last Thursday, I walked over there to ask if she needed help or whatever. And when I got close, she just drove off real quick. Then two days ago, Gary, my neighbor, he mentioned seeing her at the safe way, and she asked him about me, like where I live, if I'm married, that kind of thing. That's what's bothering me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is she cute?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>I mean, she's not bad looking or anything, but Luke, she's asking my neighbor about me after showing up at my work every week in the middle of the night. That's not normal, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>She sounds like a pretty good time. Maybe she gets to know this woman.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Oh, come on, man. She's married or married. I don't know, but her husband's plot is right there in section 12, and she's not even visiting it. She's just lurking.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, she's married to a dead guy, and she's creeping on you, so I mean, it sounds like maybe she's not married anymore. That's how it works.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Well, here's the thing, though. I looked up the plot after the first couple of times. Her husband died in 2019.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>OK, so she's on the market. She's looking for a new person to fill that space in her life, and maybe it's you. You said she's attractive, and she's obviously putting in the effort, so maybe have a chat with her, bring her a coffee late at night.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>For real, though, Luke, I'm not trying to date someone who's been staking out my workplace at two in the morning for three months. That's not how normal people meet. And Maria, my sister, she said the same thing Gary's saying, like, oh, maybe she's lonely. Maybe she just wants to talk. But I'm telling you, something feels off about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, what can I say? If you're afraid of this poor defenseless widow, and you fear for your life, then maybe talk to the police and get a restraining order against her. I'm going to call you a pussy for that. You should just go talk to the woman and see what's going on. But hey, some people just don't have the intestinal fortitude to make those decisions and conversations themselves.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>All right, all right. Damn, Luke, you don't got to call me a pussy. I'm not scared of her. I just don't want to be the guy who gets tangled up in some weird cemetery drama.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, then maybe stop making a weird cemetery drama or nothing. But we're doing a game here, and I'm going to read you a headline, and I want you to tell me if it's a real headline or a fake news. Here we go. Hidalgo County goes Republican by over 60% for the first time since Nixon's 1972 landslide. Is that a real headline or a fake one?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Oh, man, that's got to be fake. Hidalgo County's been blew forever. There's no way they flipped that hard.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, it is a real headline, sir. I wish you the best of luck with your cemetery situation, but that is a real headline. OK, next up. Next up on the list, we got Tanya. Tanya, thanks for calling the show. We're playing the game today. Do you understand the rules?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Yeah, I got it. You tell me a headline. I say if it's real or fake. But Luke, real quick before we do that, I got to tell you about this thing I read today because it's been stuck in my head all night. You know how dogs can tell how long you've been gone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>How can dogs tell how long you've been gone?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Oh, man, it's the weirdest thing so I was reading this article about how dogs can smell time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Smell time? Like a synesthesia thing, like a hearing colors kind of situation? Do you think that's true?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>No, no, it's not like that. What it is, the scent molecules from when you leave they fade over time, right? So when you walk out the door in the morning, your smell is strong.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, I guess that makes sense.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Yeah, that's interesting. So they have a sort of thing in their brain where they can figure out from your smell how long you've been not there anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Exactly. Like the finter your smell gets, the longer you've been gone, so they're not actually smelling time. They're smelling the absence of you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>And apparently they can tell the difference between you being gone two hours versus six hours just by how much the scent faded.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, that is really interesting. How long do you think it takes for the scent to fade completely?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>I don't know, the article didn't say exactly, but I'm guessing it depends on the house, you know? Like how much air is moving through if you got the swamp cooler running or whatever. But what got me is, I got this dog, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, okay, you got the dog and you get the scent, so what happens?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>So his name's Piscuit. He's this mutt I got from the pound maybe three years ago. And every single day when I come home from work, he goes absolutely nuts. Like I could be gone eight hours cleaning houses and he acts like I've been gone a week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, yeah, he's a dog. You're the most important thing in his life. So when you're gone, that's a rough time for a dog. My dog doesn't like it at all. If I leave him five minutes, he freaks out. So I usually don't. I take him with me everywhere, because that sucks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Right, but here's what I'm thinking now. Like does he go that crazy because my smell is almost gone? Like is eight hours long enough that he's starting to worry I'm not coming back?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't know, but I've always felt that way. I mean, from the the ferocity of the response when I do come back, it does seem like they thought you're never going to come back and he's just so excited to see you back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Yeah, but that's what's been messing with me. Because I got this one client, Mrs. Delgado, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Sure thing, what's up with Mrs. Delgado?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>So she's in her eighties, lives alone in this big house of motel drive. And she's got this little chihuahua mix and every Tuesday and Friday, I'm there for like three hours. And that dog just sits in the corner and watches me the whole time. Doesn't bark, doesn't come up to me, just stairs.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Do you think maybe that your scent is overriding her scent and it's confusing him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Oh damn, I didn't even think about that. Like maybe I'm bringing in all these other smells from the other houses I cleaned that day. Because yeah, I'm usually at two or three places before I get to hers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is an interesting tidbit of information. And now let's get to the game. So here is your headline. Are you ready? Here we go. Lord'sburg Water Department violates state fluoride standards, issues noticed to all customers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TANYA</span><p>Oh man, that's real. They've been sending out those notices for like two months now. Something about the filtration system or the pipes. I can't remember exactly. But yeah, that's definitely real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are correct, very well done. Thanks for the call. That was a pretty good one. We'll talk to you again later. Tanya, have a wonderful night. Okay, next up we've got Andre. Andre, welcome to the show. We're playing real or fake news today. And I'm gonna read you a headline and I want you to tell me if it is real news or fake news.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Yeah, I'm ready for the game. But I got to tell you something first man. So I found out today that the family I returned that money to back in December. You remember the 15 grand from the house fire.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I remember.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Turns out they're suing the homeowners insurance company and my names on the court documents. My captain pulled me aside this morning and I'm sitting there like, what the hell did I do wrong? I did the right thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that doesn't really sound like anything. I let him try, you did the right thing. As long as you truly did do the right thing, you don't have anything to worry about there. Let them sue whoever they got to sue and they're not gonna win.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Yeah, I mean you're right. I know I didn't do anything wrong. It's just, I'll be honest with you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It caught me off guard seeing my name in legal paperwork. When I was the one who made sure they got their money back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">TJ</span><p>My buddy TJ said the same thing. He's like, don't even worry about it. But that's the part that gets me. I spent three months not gambling, doing the right thing and now I'm dragged into some insurance dispute.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that sucks, that's super annoying but you're not gonna have to do anything for that. So don't worry about it. And now it's time for the game. So here is your headline. I need you to tell me if this is real news or fake news. Cotton City chili plant workers demand milk stations after habanero processing incidents since two to a Lord's Bird clinic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Oh man, let me think about this one. Caden City chili plant workers demand milk stations after a habanero processing incident sends two to a Lord's Bird clinic.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes sir, it's cotton city, sir, not Caden City. Cotton City chili plant is that a real headline or fake headline?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CALLER</span><p>Cotton City, yeah, okay. I'll be honest with you, that sounds real.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>No, sir, you're wrong as there is no chili plant in cotton city. That's why they call it cotton city, not chili city. But thanks for trying and don't worry about your situation. That's just a minor annoyance. It's gonna blow over on a tone. All right, let's see, who's up? Deb, Deb, welcome to the show. Are you ready for your article?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, I'm ready Luke, but I got to tell you something first. My boss handed me a stack of safety reports yesterday and told me I got a week to sign off on them. Thing is, I know they're bullshit. The dry events haven't been cleaned in over a year. We got electrical panels at Spark when it rains and he's got me writing down that everything's up to code. I don't know what the hell to do here.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that is a tough one. If things aren't up to code and there's a safety issue, I would say that it's your moral responsibility to report that accurately.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Oh, I hear you, Luke, but it ain't that simple. This ain't some big corporate laundromat over in Phoenix. This is a little place out in the middle of nowhere. And my boss, he's been running it since before I was born. If I say no, he's going to fire me. And then what? I got bills. I got my grandma your lander to think about. She's the one who really keeps things together, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, maybe then what you have to do is write the report the way the boss says and send an anonymous letter to the editor of your paper and make sure you know, go the whistleblower route.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Oh, Luke, you're funny. The, that's the weekly, and the editor's my cousin's husband.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. It sounds like you've got an end with the publication so you can take care of the situation kind of an alternate route, you know, and save your job and not make it look like it was you. So that's what I suggest you do if that's what you have to do. But, I mean, you're better off to just tell the boss, hey, look, you're going to have to take care of these safety concerns and be the bigger woman.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Yeah, but see, that's the thing. I tried that already. Last month, I told him the dry event in number three was a fire hazard, and he just looked at me like I was speaking Chinese.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, I mean, you've got to do what you've got to do if you've got to send the letter off to that editor, then that's what you do. Okay, so here's your headline, cotton city. Oh, no, no, no, no, next. That's the one we just did. Okay, okay. Border Patrol reports record low apprehensions at analog Wells port. Attributes to nobody knowing it exists.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DEB</span><p>Oh, man, that's fake. That's got to be fake.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's correct. And you are correct. Thank you for the call. Thanks for playing our game today. Next up, Rick. Rick, welcome to the radio show. We're playing real news or fake news. It's the game where I read a headline, and you tell me if it's a real headline or a fake headline. And your headline, sir, is Lightning Doc Geothermal Plant sold to new owner for undisclosed sum. Only utility scale plant in the state.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh, man, I'm going to say that's real. I heard something about that, actually. Wasn't there some kind of geothermal thing up near the guilla? I want to say real, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You are correct, sir. Very well done. That is the correct answer. Is there anything else you called about today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Yeah, actually. I wanted to give you an update from last time I called. Remember I was talking about that whole thing with the enchiladas in the minivan? Realizing I needed to stop blaming everybody else for my problems.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I don't remember that at all. Please remind myself and our listeners.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh, well, I'll be honest with you. I called in a few weeks back, and I was sitting in my truck eating leftover enchiladas. And I had this whole moment where I realized, I spent all my time complaining about the fed and the government and the economy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, I remember.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>But I wasn't actually doing anything about my own situation. I work at a bank, which is ironic as hell. And I was just kind of stuck in this loop of blaming everything else instead of taking responsibility.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I remember you now. So how are you taking responsibility today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>So here's the thing. I actually did something. I signed up for this welding certification course over at the community college, starts next month. I've been building stuff in my garage for years anyway. And TJ kept telling me I should do something with it. So I finally pulled the trigger. Figure if I can get certified. Maybe I can pick up some side work, eventually do it full time.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, well done. That's a good step forward. And move towards your new career. Congratulations. And we're all very proud of you for taking the step.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>I appreciate that, Luke. But anyway, the reason I'm calling tonight is because something happened at work today that's kind of messing with my head. This older guy came in, probably 75. And he was trying to withdraw like $8,000 cash.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>OK, what's wrong with that? Maybe he's buying a car or going to the casino or met a young male-order bride? There's lots of reason somebody could want to withdraw a grand.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>No, no, that's not it. The guy was shaking the whole time. And he kept saying, I need to get this out before they take it all. Like he was scared. And I asked him what he meant. And he just said, you know how it is. They're coming for it. Then he looked over his shoulder like someone was watching him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Was somebody watching him? I mean, it seems like if somebody was looking over his shoulder, taking the money out of the bank would be the worst thing you could do. If he's concerned about somebody taking it, he is probably concerned about the government.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Yeah, that's what I thought at first, too. But then he leaned in real close and whispered that his daughter's boyfriend has been staying at his house for three weeks. And the guy keeps asking about his finances. Said the boyfriend offered to help him manage his accounts and was getting pushy about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's not good. But you got to remember that's not your problem. You have no statute of responsibility there. Somebody else's family, somebody, he's a grown man. I mean, you can suggest to him that he, I don't even know what to tell the guy. You know, you don't want to get involved in that, though.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>I know. I know. But here's what's eating at me. I gave him the money. I processed it. And the whole time I'm thinking, this is either elder abuse or this guy's paranoid. And either way, I just handed him eight grand in cash that's probably going to disappear.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that is too bad. That is concerning. But you know, it was his money and he showed up and he was who he said he was. And it's your responsibility to give him his own money. If he then gives it to this other guy and gets ripped off, that's not on you. There's nothing you could have done to stop it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>I'll be honest with you. That's what my manager said, too. But I looked up the protocols after my shift. And there's actually a thing we're supposed to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>If we suspect financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult, we can flag it, delay the transaction, call a supervisor. I didn't do any of that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, well, you didn't know. And now you know next time. And that is shitty for sure. But at least you've learned something. So the next time somebody shows up in a vulnerable situation, you'll know what to do.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Yeah, you're right. I just keep thinking about him walking out to the parking lot with all that cash, looking over his shoulder. And the worst part is, if I see him come back in next week trying to withdraw more, I don't even know if I'll have the guts to say something. Because what if I'm wrong?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what I would recommend. If he comes back trying to take more money next week, just say it. And it's a strange conversation to have, but just tell him something, say something, ask, make sure that he is safe. And even if you got to get a wink or nod from him or something, just kind of communicate to him that you're on his side. And if he tells you or gives you a signal that he's in trouble, then follow those protocols that are in place.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>I'll try. But here's the thing. This guy's been coming to my branch for years. He's always been sharp, you know? The kind of guy who'd bring in a bag of homemade tamales for the staff at Christmas.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I wish him and you the best of luck. But we're overdue for a word from our sponsors. Before we go there, I've got an article here for you. I need you to tell me if this article is real or fake. Here we go. Plius anti-terrorism training town seeks actors for realistic villagers.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Oh, man, that's got to be fake. Anti-terrorism training town? That sounds like something out of a movie.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, well, you're correct. That is fake. But the anti-terrorism training town is real. Plius is really an anti-terrorism training town. It's the realistic villagers part that was false. So thank you for the call. I wish you the best of luck. And now we've got to go to our sponsors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>This episode is brought to you by Nail Nosh, the meal kit for people who've given up, but still need to eat something. Look, we're not going to promise that it'll change your life. You're still going to die alone. But at least you can spend your remaining Tuesday evenings chopping vegetables you can't pronounce. Each box contains three meals that take 45 minutes to make when they could have taken eight, because suffering is the only authentic human experience. This week's menu, Harissa Glazed Despair with Quinoa, pan-seared regret over Arugula, and our customer favorite, chicken thighs, with preserved lemon and unprocessed trauma. Use code void at checkout for 15% off your first box. That's code void because we're all just screaming into one. Nail Nosh, you got to eat something, might as well be complicated.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>OK, welcome to the show, Monique. Monique, you've reached a look at the roost and we're playing a game today. We're playing Real News or Fake News. I'm going to read you the headline of an article, and you tell me if it is Real News or Fake News. And here is your headline. Ready? Animus population drops to just 77 residents down nearly 40% since the 2020 census.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Oh, man, that one's real. I, that's real. My cousin's ex lives out there in Animus. Well, there, I guess. And she's been bitching for months about how half the businesses on Main Street got boarded up. So the only thing keeping the police going was the damn convention they have last summer. You know, the one where they tried to turn the old motel into a vault replica?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not familiar with that particular convention, but you are correct. That was a real headline, and that is the truth. Animus, it's a struggle on little town. I'm going to need some more people. I'm going to need some more people.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Yeah, well, good luck with that. I mean, who's moving to Animus in 25? The water's questionable. The job's dried up with the mine. And the internet's barely fast enough to stream anything.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, hey, hey, hey. I moved to Animus. And I got Starlink. It's plenty fast to stream all of it. I'm running a radio show from an RV in Animus, so uh, so you watch your mouth there, young lady.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MONIQUE</span><p>Oh shit, sorry, Luke. I didn't know you were actually out there. Well, hey, at least you got the Starlink working. That's something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, thanks, Monique. Wow, no goddamn respect. Can you believe that? Jesus. OK, Jerome, Jerome, welcome back to the show. How can we help you today, sir? You know about our game?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I know the game, but listen. I got to tell you about something that happened out near Shakespeare last weekend. My son, Marcos and I, we were poking around the old buildings. You know, just taking pictures. Looking for stories. And man, we saw something I can't explain. We're standing by this collapsed general store around dusk. And there's this light moving real slow across the hills, not like a plane, not like headlights. Dead silent.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You mean like a UFO, like extraterrestrial transportation?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Yeah, man, exactly that. I've been saying for years that the Boothields got activity. And this was the clearest thing I've ever seen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, we are a way out here where there's a lot of military operations and top secret planes. And who knows what going on? Do you think it could have been a military operation or test?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>I mean, look, I thought about that. But Luke, this thing was hovering than it just shot off at an angle that no plane does.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You didn't happen to get any photographic evidence of this, did you?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>That's the thing that's killing me. Marcos had his phone out the whole time we were there taking pictures of the buildings. But when this thing showed up, we both just froze. By the time I thought to grab mine, it was already gone. We got nothing. I know how that sounds. Believe me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, that's too bad. You got to be quick, quick, quick with these things. Just like in our game, real news or fake news. You got to be quick, quick, quick. And here is your headline, sir. The headline is meta partners with the energy company on a $1 billion geothermal plant to power New Mexico data centers. Is that a real headline or fake headline?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JEROME</span><p>Real. That's real news. I just read about that the other day that trying to use all that underground heat for these computer facilities, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's it, sir. You are correct, very well done. And since we took a long time last time, we're going to have to go to another one of our sponsors.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Let's talk about mental health. Specifically, let's talk about brutal honesty. The therapy app that's tired of your shit. Unlike other apps with their calming voices and gentle affirmations, brutal honesty pairs you with an AI therapist that tells you what your friends are too nice to say. Did you try journaling about it? No, we're not doing that. Our algorithm analyzes your patterns and asks questions like, why do you think you deserve to feel better when you don't even drink water? And is your anxiety real or did you just have four cold brews on an empty stomach? Brutal honesty, because coddling yourself got you here. First session is free, but it will hurt your feelings. Use code growup at checkout. Brutal honesty, the app that blocks itself if you don't do the work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>OK, brutal honesty, I should use that myself. Next up to the show, you're our last caller, Jasmine. Jasmine, we're playing real or fake news today. And I've got an article for you. Are you ready for it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Oh, hey, Luke. Yeah, I'm ready. But can I just say something real quick first? I heard Rick earlier, the guy from the bank. And man, I think you were a little hard on him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You think I was hard on Rick? I don't think I really was. Why do you think I was hard on him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Well, he sounded pretty torn up about it, you know? Like he was genuinely worried he missed something with that old guy. And I get it. I mean, I work at a feed store, right? And we get older folks coming in all the time. And sometimes you can just tell something's off.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, for real. And I agree.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>And I empathize with both Rick and the older gentleman that he was talking about. I'm not sure what else I could have said to ease his mind.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Yeah? OK, that's fair. I guess I just, I don't know. Maybe I'm projecting. I've been feeling guilty about stuff lately, too. And hearing him beat himself up kind of got to me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What are you guilty about? What did you do? What did you do, Jasmine?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>So OK, here's the thing. My spouse gave me an ultimatum last week. It's either the Bronco or the marriage. And I chose the Bronco. Like I actually said that out loud.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>The Bronco, like a Ford Bronco? Like a white Bronco?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Yeah, a 72 Ford Bronco. I've been restoring it for six years, Luke. Six years of every spare dollar, every weekend, bleeding knuckles, all of it. And now Valentine's Day is coming up. And I'm sleeping in the guest room. And the truck's sitting out there with frost on it. And I just, I don't know if I made the right call.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what they say. If the glove fits, you must acquit. OK, Jasmine, here is your headline. Continental divide trail shuttle service now required after three hikers rescued from Crazy Cook Monument Trailhead. Is that a real headline or fake headline?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">JASMINE</span><p>Oh, man, I'm going to say that's real. We had a couple hikers come through the feed store last fall asking about that area. And they had no idea what they were getting into. Seemed like a rescue waiting to happen.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, oh, oh, no, I got to take that one back. Wow, wow, wow, wow. No, you are incorrect. That was a fake headline. But thank you for playing. Try again next time. And folks, thanks to all of our collars today. This has been Luke at the Roost, tune in again tomorrow for a more radio gold.</p></div>
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<h1>Episode 9: Spilled Juice and Ghostly Visions</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-12T05:36:58+00:00">February 12, 2026</time> · 41 min</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, welcome back to the show. This is Luke at the Roost, the late-night call in radio show where I, Luke, take your calls and give you real-world advice on whatever might be bothering you tonight. So it is Wednesday, February 11th, it's about 9.18 pm, if you're around, you can give us a call. The number is 208-439-5853, that's 208-439-Luke, so give us a call and we'll get you on the air and talk about whatever is bothering you. Okay, so tonight we're going to go to the phones here, we've got, they're already lighting up as they always are, and we're going to talk to Keith, Keith, welcome to the show. What has you calling in tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, hey Luke, thanks for taking my call, so I work at the hospital, right? And I'm usually pretty good at keeping my cool, it's kind of what I do all day, you know, staying calm when everything's falling apart.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I would hope so with all the panic and triage and crises that happen in a hospital. What's on your mind?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Well, last night I completely lost it on my daughter. She's seven, she knocked over a glass of juice at dinner and I just screamed at her Luke, like really screamed, over some goddamn juice on the table, and the way her face just crumpled, man, I can still see it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh man, that's pretty rough, yeah, it sucks to be a kid and when your parents are stressed out, they take that pretty hard, I've heard, I'm not a parent myself, but it seems like a difficult situation to navigate, so I certainly feel for you, what are you going to do about that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>I apologized to her this morning before school, told her daddy was tired and shouldn't have yelled like that. She said it was okay, but she was still kind of quiet around me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Is this something that happens all the time? Is this a recurring problem? Do you often snap at your seven-year-old daughter because of your shitty day at work or is this a one-time occurrence?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>No, no, this was the first time I really went off like that. I mean, I've been short with her before, you know, not now daddy's tired kind of stuff, but nothing like this, this was different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you meant no harm by it, even if a little bit of harm was done, and she'll recover, she'll get over it, just make sure that she knows it wasn't really her fault, it was a mistake, and you were having a bad day, and daddy's human too, because you are. So you can forgive yourself and just try to make it up to her the best way you can without going overboard in the other direction.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, you're right, I appreciate that. The thing is though, Luke, I think what's eating at me is I've been running on fumes for a while now.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and what are you going to do about that? You're going to take a little nap, do some yoga, to take off on a silent retreat with some Buddhist monks into bed, and what can you do to resolve that issue?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>I don't know, man, that's kind of why I called. I can't exactly take time off. We're short staffed as it is. My wife's got her own stuff going on, her sister's always got some drama she needs to help with.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, but you know, you're an adult and you have to take care of yourself first. That's what I always say. So if you've got to take the time off, you can't really be concerned about being short staffed. You just got to take the time off, and if they have a problem with that, then maybe you need a new job. You can only do the best you can do, and you have to make sure that your own health, physical and mental health is in order. Otherwise, you're of no use to anybody, and you're going to snap at seven year olds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>You're not wrong. I guess I just, I've always been the guy people lean on, you know, at work, at home. And saying no feels like I'm letting everybody down.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, sometimes leaders have to let people down. If you're going to be the leader in the head of the household and a man, then sometimes you're going to stand up for yourself and not please everybody. You can't please everybody all the time, and you could try, you're just going to burn yourself out. So, I recommend not doing that, and take whatever time you need to take to get yourself under control so that you can be the best version of yourself for your kid and your patience and your wife, and anybody that meets you in daily life.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, I hear you. I think part of me knows that, but hearing someone else say it, it helps. I've got like two weeks of PTO I haven't touched in over a year.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, there you go. I think it's time to take it. Keith, I've got a question for you. Are you ready for my question?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Yeah, shoot.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I want to know, what's your most embarrassing bathroom story? Tell me a story about a time you get stuck driving or what happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Oh, Jesus, Luke. Okay, so a few years back, I was driving back from Flagstaff after visiting my brother, and I stopped at this gas station outside of Prescott. I go in to use the bathroom and the lock on the stall is busted, right? So I'm in there doing my business, and some guy just swings the door open, doesn't knock or anything, and we just lock eyes for like three full seconds.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, man, during that three seconds was there like a plop?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">KEITH</span><p>Ha, yeah, actually, right as he opened the door, perfect timing. The guy just goes, oh shit, sorry, man. And backs out, but I swear I saw him laughing when I came out to wash my hands. I couldn't even look at him.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, man. All right, well thank you for the call. I wish you the best of luck with your daughter and your work. Take some time off and get back at it when you're a hundred percent. Okay, Megan, Megan, welcome to the show. What has your call on in tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Hey, Luke, thanks for taking my call. So I teach kindergarten down here in the boot heel. And today, during story time, one of my five-year-olds, this little boy named David. He looks up at the ceiling and asks me if the stars know we're looking at them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Wow, that's a pretty loaded question. What did you tell him?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>I told him I didn't know, but that it was a really good question, and maybe they do. And honestly, it stuck with me all day because I just got off the phone with my sister, Crystal, who moved up to Flagstaff a few years back. And she spent 20 minutes bitching about traffic and how long the lines were at the grocery store. And I tried to tell her about David's question. I tried to get her to remember how we used to drive out past the ranch roads and just sit on the tailgate, watching the Milky Way, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I do that all the time. I'm always out in the wilderness looking at the Milky Way. And I wonder things like that myself. What's your take on it, though? Do you think it's possible that the stars could know or that the universe is one universal organism that's just watching itself?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Oh man, I don't know about all that. I'm not that deep blue. But what gets me is that Crystal didn't even seem to care anymore.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Care about what? And what is the Crystal didn't care about?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>About the sky. About what we're missing when we can't see it. She lives in Flagstaff now and there's so much light pollution. She says she hasn't seen a truly dark sky in years. And when I brought it up tonight, she just kind of brushed it off like it didn't matter.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's not entirely true. I was just up in Flagstaff. Actually, Flagstaff is one of the first places I ever got a picture of the Milky Way. It's pretty dark up there. There's the low observatory. And a lot of night sky activity. So I wouldn't say that Flagstaff has too much light pollution. It's one of the darker places in the country.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Really? Well, shit. Maybe she's just not going out to look anymore then. That actually makes it worse, doesn't it? I mean, she's got access to it and she's just...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I understand. I mean, I grew up on the East Coast and the Milky Way isn't a thing that you can really see there. So when I came to the West Coast, the West Side, and got an opportunity to see the Milky Way just when I walk outside my door, it's a very different experience. And I think most people, almost all people, have never even seen the Milky Way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>So they don't know what they're missing and they don't care. But once you get out here and you have those experiences and start thinking those philosophical questions about, you know, do the stars know you're looking at them? It becomes a more important part of your life. And people go through different stages in their lives. Sometimes the sky is important, and existential questions are important. And other times they're just busy doing work and life and watching TV. Yeah, you're right. I guess I'm being unfair to her. She's got two kids now and works crazy hours at the hospital up there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I hope that you enjoy watching the night sky and maybe sometime later on in life you can do that again with your sister. I've got a question for you, though. Are you ready for my question, Megan?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Yeah, go ahead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is the grossest habit that you have that you would never admit in person?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Oh, Jesus, Luke. Where did that come from? Um, okay, I guess.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Come on, we're waiting. You're on the air.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>All right, all right. I eat cereal dry straight from the box while standing at the counter after the kids go to bed. Like, I'll just grab the cinnamon toast crunch and shove handfuls in my mouth over the sink.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Nope, I'm not letting you get away with that one. Everybody does that. That's not gross. I want to hear about the gross thing that you do that you don't want to admit.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>Oh, God, okay. Fine.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Let's go. Let's go. What is it? Come on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MEGAN</span><p>I pick at the dry skin on my feet while I'm watching TV and I just flick it onto the floor like I'll sit there with my feet up and just go to town and then I vacuum it up later.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, that's pretty gross. But, uh, you know, I've done that, too. So I'm not going to give you too much shit for it. But thank you for being honest with us and I wish you the best of luck in your night sky adventures. Andre, Andre, welcome to the show. How can we help you today?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Hey, Luke. Thanks for having me back, man. So listen, I got some news about that whole lawsuit thing we talked about last time. You remember with the 15 grand and the house fire?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, yeah, I remember. And then it was 85 grand and then you called back and you said they were suing the department or your name was in some legal documents. What's going on?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Yeah, exactly. So I got a letter from the department's lawyer yesterday and apparently the insurance company dropped the whole thing just like that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I told you that's what was going to happen. It was a ridiculous lawsuit. I mean, I'll be your legal counsel. Just tell him Luke said it was cool.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Yeah, you called it. But you know what? The thing that's got me twisted up now is the family, the ones I helped, they sent me a card.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Why is that guy you twisted up? That's nice. You found some money. You saved their lock box full of cash and you gave it back to him like a good man. So that's nice of them to send you a card and recognition of your service.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Yeah, I mean, it is nice. But here's the thing. Inside the card, they put 500 bucks cash like a thank you or something. And I don't know what to do with it, man. I'm sitting here looking at it on my kitchen counter and it feels weird to keep it. But it also feels weird to give it back.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know what? You know what is cool about that? Is you're looking at the cash there on the table and you're not thinking about taking it to the casino. So it sounds like you're moving in the right direction. If I remember correctly, you were struggling with gambling addiction problems and that's a good sign that you're on the right track. So if you don't want to take the money, they want you to have it. So you should take the money. But if you don't want to keep it or it makes you feel weird, then you can donate that to a charity or to people you know that are in need.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>You're right. Yeah. I haven't been to the casino in like two months now. I've been going to the meetings and everything. I'm just saying it feels like I don't know. Like I'm getting paid for doing the right thing. And that wasn't why I did it. But you know what? Maybe I'm overthinking it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I think so. It sounds like it all worked out okay. They got their money back. The lawsuit got dropped. You got the money. And the gambling's not rearing up and ruining your life right now. So it seems like everything's going well. And you should be proud of yourself, sleep well, and enjoy your 500 bucks.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Yeah, you're right, man. I appreciate that. I think I'll maybe put it toward some new fishing gear. me and TJ have been talking about going out to Lake Pleasant next week.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That sounds like a plan. All right, Andre. I have a question for you. Are you ready for it?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Oh, man. Here we go. Yeah. All right. Hit me with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. What is the worst thing you've ever said during sex?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">ANDRE</span><p>Jesus, Luke. Okay. All right. So this was years ago. Back when I was still married to Diane. We're in the middle of it, right? And I don't know what the hell I was thinking. But I said good job. Like she just finished washing the truckers up.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Very nice. That's a good one. All right, Andre. You have a good night and we'll talk to you later. It is time for a word from our sponsors. Thanks for sticking in there with us. And keep your online privacy secure. Today's show is brought to you by Overwhelmed VPN. Worried about online privacy? You should be. You should be worried about everything. I'm talking about Overwhelmed VPN. The only VPN that makes you more anxious about your digital footprint. While other VPNs claim to protect you, Overwhelmed VPN sends you hourly notifications about who's tracking you, how many governments are watching, and which of your high school classmates Googled your name this week. Browse the internet while our proprietary fear engine tells you exactly how many corporations you owe your soul to. Plus, our servers are located in international waters on a decommissioned oil rig. So even we don't know where your data is. Try Overwhelmed VPN free for 30 days if you can handle it. Use code They Watching for 20% off. Overwhelmed VPN because ignorance is bliss. But you're not here for bliss. Okay. Welcome back to the show. Thank you Overwhelmed VPN for your support. Next up on the lines we have Carla. Carla, welcome to the show. What's got you up tonight on this fine Wednesday February 11th?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Hey Luke, hey. So okay, I got an update on the whole photo situation from last time I called.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, you're going to have to remind me about that photo situation.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Oh man, okay, so I found these old explicit photos of my ex-husband and his girlfriend back in the day. Like before we were even together. They were in a box of his ham radio stuff that he left at my place. I called asking what to do with them because it was just weird having them, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I do know and I suggested you send them to me. So what is it that you did with the photos?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I'm not going to lie. I almost did just mail them to you. But I ended up burning them in my fire pit out back. It felt like the right move, you know? But here's the thing, his girlfriend from the photos.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, what about her? Did you burn her in the fire pit too?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Huh, no. She messaged me on Facebook. Out of nowhere.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's a little weird, so you find these photos of her in the act with your ex-husband and then she messages you on face. Do you know the woman? Have you ever spoken before?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>No, never. I'd seen her name pop up on his friend's list way back, but we never talked or anything. So yeah, it's super weird. She said she heard through the grapevine that I found some old photos and she wanted to clear the air about it. Like, how did she even know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I'm just going to go out on a limb and say maybe she heard it when you called into a radio show and told the world.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Oh, for real though. Yeah, okay, that's fair. I didn't even think about that. My friend Tammy from church listened sometimes and she knew about it, so I guess word could have gotten around.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>But still, it's weird that she cared enough to reach out, right?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah, it's a little weird, it's a little awkward.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>So what did you do? Did you have a conversation with her or just leave the message sitting there?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I responded. I mean, I was curious what she even wanted to say. She was actually pretty cool about it. Apologized for the weirdness of me finding them. Said she didn't even know those photos still existed.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a little bit strange. Well, I've got a question for you. I've got a question for you tonight. Are you ready for that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Yeah, go ahead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>What is the weirdest thing that you've ever masturbated to?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Oh my god, Luke. Really? That's where we're going with this?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, you know it. That's exactly where we're going with this. Come on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>I'll with it. Jesus. Okay, I'm not going to lie. This is mortifying. But there was this one time I got really into those historical romance novels.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I'm not familiar with the genre myself. Can you let us know about the historical romance novel? What's an example of one?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>Like, you know, the ones with the covers, whether some shirtless dude with long hair on a horse or whatever. They're setting like the 1800s or medieval times. I went through this whole phase reading them a few years back when things with my ex were already going downhill.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, what is it about that style of book that got to you? Is it the setting or is it the characters or is it just the raunchiness of them?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>For real though, it was the whole fantasy of it, you know? Like, these women in the books, they'd have all these men just obsessed with them, pursuing them, saying all this flowery stuff. And I'm sitting there in my apartment with a husband who won't even look up from his phone. So yeah, the raunchiness was part of it, but it was more like...</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>More like what?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">CARLA</span><p>More like the escape, I guess. Like in those books, the guy actually gives a shit. He's fighting duels over her or sneaking into her bedroom window or whatever. Meanwhile, my ex was in the other room playing Call of Duty with his headset on, ignoring me for hours.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that makes a lot of sense, but you know, that's why they call them fantasy novels. Thank you for the call. I'm glad that you burned those pictures and it is a little weird that you've got that conversation going with the ex-husband's new girlfriend. But, you know, you can take that as far as you want or end it wherever you're at. Depends on how you feel about it. But thanks for the call and I imagine we'll talk to you some other night. Wow. That was... That was deep, man. Okay. Vince. Vince, welcome to the show. What's good to you up tonight.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Yeah, hey Luke. Appreciate you taking the call. So I just spent the last two hours sitting in my tow truck outside a close circle K, watching a video of myself say a bunch of shit I never said. My daughter showed it to me earlier. She's crying because kids at her school are passing it around, asking if I really talk like that about their parents.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh man, that is weird. Is it like an AI video or did somebody change the audio out from under a real video from you? Who made this, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>It's one of those AI things, yeah. My face, my voice. But I'm saying I've been hiding money from my ex-wife Linda. And running my mouth about half the parents at Beckers High School. I have no idea who made it. Could be some kid with too much time. Could be somebody with an actual problem with me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that doesn't sound like a kid with too much time. I mean, that's awful specific to go after you. Does anybody have a reason to do that? It seems more like somebody with an actual problem with you to target you specifically. That's very scary.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Well, that's the thing that's got me twisted up. I've been doing tow workout here for 23 years. You piss people off in that job, you know? Somebody thinks you gouged them on a tow. Or maybe I had to impound a car and they're still sore about it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, where is the video? Was it posted on Facebook or something like that? Is it in a public place that people are finding? I mean, how did your kids friends at school find that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Beckers said it started going around on some group chat with kids from her school. Then it hit Instagram and Snapchat. I don't even know if it's on Facebook yet. Linda won't answer my phone, so I can't ask if people are sending it to her. The video is just me supposedly sitting in my truck talking to somebody, saying I've got cash stashed that Linda doesn't know about and calling out specific parents by name.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, it's going to be hard to get out from under that one, I think. You know what I would do? I would probably turn that into a public opinion type piece and talk to the newspaper and say, look, this is happening. Maybe talk to the police department and get a warning sent out that people are being impersonated and somehow make it known to the public that this is a thing that you didn't do and that they also are at risk for it happening to them.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>That's smart, yeah. I hadn't thought about the newspaper angle. We got the times independent. They might actually run with that since it's local. My worry is, if I go public with it, does that just make more people go looking for the video?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>It might, it very well might, but as long as they're finding that video with the context that this is fake, they're going to be more scared about when it happens to them than they are going to be blaming you about what was said. Also, if you can track down where the video is posted, you can flag it as abuse and get the social media companies to take it down with varying degrees of success. Those are all avenues that you can go. I don't know that there's any better way to deal with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Yeah, I can start flagging it wherever I find it. The thing that's eating at me though is Linda. We're separated right now. Not divorced, just trying to figure things out. And her phone's been blowing up about this.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's terrible and that's definitely not going to help your situation. But if you could get, if you can have a conversation with her and somehow convince her that it's not real or you know what you could do, you could make a fake one with somebody else, a fake person. And then show her how easy it is to do so that she can kind of wrap her head around how it could have been done to you.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Huh. I mean, I don't even know how to make one of those things. But maybe I could find somebody who does. Show her it's not some complicated spy stuff. Just some app any Jackass can use. The problem is getting her to actually talk to me long enough to show her anything. She's already been on edge about money since the separation. And now there's a video of me saying I've been hiding cash from her.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a tough, tough hill to climb for sure. But it sounds like things aren't going well anyway. And are you hoping to get back together with this woman or do you think it's going the other way before this happened?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Before this, I thought we had a shot. We've been married 16 years. This separation was supposed to be temporary just until we cooled off and fitted some things out. I moved into that little place of Cancreek Road two months ago. We were still talking most days being civil about Becca's schedule and all that.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I wish you the best of luck with that one. That sounds like an uphill battle. And that's really shitty that that happened to you. So let the public know, try and get it ahead of it. And just be honest. Just say, hey, wasn't me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Yeah, I appreciate it. I'm going to call the times independent first thing in the morning. Maybe swing by the sheriff's office too. Just sucks that some asshole with a computer can blow up your life like this. And there's not much you can do about it except damage control.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's true. Now, I've got a question for you, Vince. Are you ready for my question?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">VINCE</span><p>Oh, Jesus. Yeah. Go ahead. What have you got?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Tell me something that you pretended to be into for way too long.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Like something that you weren't really into, but you pretended to be cool or to appease a partner. Huh. Okay. Linda used to drag me to this hot yoga place in town. I went for like six months, twice a week, pretending I was getting something out of it. Truth is, I just felt like a sweaty idiot the whole time. Couldn't do half the poses. And I was only there because she said we needed to do more things together. Oh, yeah. The old hot yoga. That's rough. Okay. Well, thanks for the call. And I hope it all works out for you with your revenge porn situation there. I will talk to you later on down the line. Yolanda. Yolanda, thanks for calling in. What's happening tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Hey, Luke. Yeah, this is Yolanda. I'm calling from Lodzburg. I just, man, I've been sitting out in my truck for the past 20 minutes because I can't go back inside. My dad looked at me earlier tonight and called me Michael, which is my brother's name.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, enough. That doesn't say that what you're calling a radio show because of that because the dude misspoke. Come on. I don't know if that's worth you being upset about.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>No, you don't get it. Michael's been dead for 11 years. My dad has never not once mixed us up. And it wasn't just like he said the wrong name and corrected himself. He looked right at me and said, Michael, when did you get so tall? Like he was seeing him. Not me.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh, okay. Well, that is pretty disturbing. Was he under the influence of something? Or do you think maybe he's coming down with a little bit of the dementia?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>That's what I'm scared of, yeah. He's 73 and he's been forgetting little things here and there. Like where he put his keys, what they trash pick up is. But this felt different. This felt like a door closing, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's a little rough. So I guess you're going to have to collect your thoughts out there for a little bit and then go in there and talk to him and maybe find out what it is that's going on in his mind. Not a confrontation, but just ask the man, hey, you called me Michael. That was a little bit weird and have that conversation and see if maybe you need to get some doctors involved.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>He's already asleep. He goes down at like 8.30 every night, has for years.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Alright, well then have that conversation with him at breakfast in the morning. Whenever the next you get an opportunity to speak to him, don't let that one slide, figure out what's going on.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Yeah, I will. The thing is though, and this is the part that's really messing with me. When he said it, for just a second, I felt like maybe he was right. Like maybe I have been wearing Michael's face this whole time and just didn't know it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't sound like a Michael to me, but even if you were, if you were taking on parts of Michael's personality into yourself, that's kind of a nice way to remember someone, I think. So that's not such a horrible thing. Why would you think that it is?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Because I go out to where he died every few months. Out in the palancillos, I tell myself it's just good hiking. But I always end up at that exact spot on the trail where the Ranger found his truck. And I sit there and I don't even know what I'm doing. I'm not praying, I'm not talking to him. I'm just sitting there like I'm waiting for something.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that sounds like a way of grieving and I think that's a normal thing. You can't bring them back. You know, somebody that's died has died and you can just remember their memory. And I think it's good if you're taking on parts of that person's personality into yourself that keeps them alive in some strange way.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Maybe, but I was 17 when he died and he was 24. And now I'm older than he ever got to be. So what am I even holding on to? Some version of him that never got to exist past 24? I don't know man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, what's wrong with that? I mean, you knew him at 24 and that's how your memory of him is going to be. He's going to be 24 forever for you. And that's not such a bad thing.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>I guess not. It's just weird thinking my dad might start losing more of this stuff, you know.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that is tough. And unfortunately, that's the age that we're at, you know, where our parents are getting older. And those are the types of problems that people are dealing with in this era, this age. So hopefully that all works out and it was just an odd occurrence. But if it's more than that, you should get to the bottom of it sooner rather than later, because there might be some early preventative stuff that can be done. I'm not a doctor, so I don't know what meds are available for those types of things. But for all you know, he could have been up and took the wrong pills today and just been seeing stuff that wasn't there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">YOLANDA</span><p>Yeah, that's true. He does have like four different prescriptions he takes in the morning. Could have just mixed something up. I'll talk to him tomorrow. Make sure he's got them all straight. Thanks, Luke.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>You're welcome, Melinda. And I wish you both the best of luck. And now it's time for another word from our sponsors. This episode is sponsored by Shoespreyco. It's the spray you use in rental bowling shoes because bowling is a game, but these shoes are gross. Let's be honest, those shoes aren't dirty. They're used. They've had shifts. They've been through birthdays, work parties, and at least one guy who insists he's actually really good at this. Shoespreyco doesn't promise fresh linen or spring rain. Nobody believes that. No one wants to be lied to while lacing up rental shoes. Shoespreyco just handles the situation. It makes them tolerable enough that you can focus on the important part, pretending you're not competitive and then getting mad anyway. Use code strike at Shoespreyco for 15% off. Shoespreyco reality-based footwear management. Alright, thanks to Shoespreyco for sponsoring tonight's episode. Next up on the line we have Dennis. Dennis, why don't you tell us about your most horrifying time you're ever caught by your family doing something you aren't supposed to be?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Oh man, okay so this is bad. I was maybe 19. Home on leave. And I'm in my childhood bedroom at like two in the afternoon just absolutely going to town, right? Doors closed. I figured everyone's at work.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Oh man, we've all been there. What happened?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Yeah, so my mom apparently came home early because she forgot something. And she just, she doesn't knock, never has, just walks right in asking if I've seen her car keys. I'm scrambling trying to like cover up and she just freezes. We both freeze and then she goes, your father's keys are probably in the kitchen and backs out like nothing happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Uh-huh. Have you ever talked about it since?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Never, not once. That was 15 years ago and we have never acknowledged it happened.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's the appropriate response. Thank you for the story, sir. Why are you calling in tonight?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DENNIS</span><p>Yeah, thanks, Luke. Appreciate you letting me get that off my chest. Have a good one.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, no problem, glad I could help. Okay, okay, Shonda, welcome to the show. What's happening tonight, Shonda?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Oh man, well I'm sitting in a flying J parking lot right now because my transmission just died on the way back from Lord's Burg. And I've been out here three hours waiting on a quote. I already know I can't pay. Mechanics said 1400 minimum, probably two grand. And I've got court reporter work in Silver City tomorrow and Friday that I'm about to lose if I can't get there.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I know there are sometimes people driving for Uber or left around Lord's Burg. Maybe you can get one of them tomorrow, but we can ask our listeners if anybody is out in the Lord's Burg area. If you could give Shonda a ride to Silver City tomorrow, that would help her out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>That's really kind of you, Luke. I appreciate that. I didn't even think about Uber out here. My brain's just been stuck on the car, you know?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, and honestly, Uber's hit her mess. I mean, there's I think maybe one person in town that doesn't whenever they feel like it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>So I'm not sure you're going to be able to get an Uber or a taxi or anything like that, but I'm sure that one of our fine listeners will be able to help you out in the morning. I hope so. I've just been sitting here talking to my late husband, Danny, like he's still around, which probably sounds crazy, but he used to handle all this car stuff, and I feel so lost with it. Then I felt bad calling you because there's probably people with real problems listening.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Hey, I don't know. I would call that a real problem if you're stuck abandoned in a place like Lord's Burg, nobody wants to be in that situation. But I hope that you could find a mechanic that can do it for something that you can afford, and that you're able to get to work in the morning and secure whatever funding you need to fix that car.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Yeah, me too. I just hate that I'm out here alone with this, you know? Danny's been gone four years now, and most days I'm fine, but nights like this just hit different.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I certainly understand. Well, you're not alone. You've got the whole look at the roost viewership in your corner, and I wouldn't be surprised if somebody shows up there at the Flying J to help you out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>That would be something. I really appreciate you letting me vent, Lou. Just needed to hear another voice tonight, instead of sitting out here in the dark by myself watching my phone die.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, well, you're at a 24-hour truck stop, so that's good. I'm sure they can help you charge your phone or call somebody or find a place to stay tonight if you need to. But I've got a question for you, Shonda, to lighten the mood a bit. Are you ready for that?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Oh, Lord. Okay. Yeah. Go ahead.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, tell us about a YouTube video that's in your search history that you're embarrassed about, that you wouldn't want anybody to find.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Oh, man, you're really going to make me say this on air. All right, so I've been watching these videos on how to talk to your dead spouse. Like not say on stuff, just grief counselors talking about continuing bonds. Whatever they call it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, I don't think that's very embarrassing. I think that's probably a healthy way to deal with grief. And are they helping you? Are you finding some solace in those videos?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>A little. Yeah. They make me feel less crazy for doing what I was doing tonight in the parking lot. But honestly, the embarrassing part is that after I watch those, YouTube starts recommending me all these widow dating advice videos. And I've clicked on a few.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay, and what is some of the best widow dating advice that you've got from these videos?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Well, the main thing they all say is don't feel guilty about it, which is easier said than done. And apparently, four years is when a lot of people start thinking about it. So I'm right on schedule, I guess. But the advice that stuck with me was this. One lady saying, your late husband would want you to be happy, not loyal to a memory. That one kind of messed me up for a few days.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, that's understandable. And I definitely understand where you're coming from with the guilt. I feel guilty about pretty much anything I've ever said or done in my entire life. And it's just something that I live with. And under current of guilt, constantly, that I know it doesn't really deserve to be there, but it is anyway. And you know, you just got to deal with the emotions that you get and don't give them any more credence than they deserve.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Yeah, that's the thing though. Right? Like I know logically, Danny wouldn't want me sitting alone in a broken-down car at a truck stop at midnight, feeling sorry for myself. He'd probably be laughing at me right now for not joining Triple A like he told me to do a hundred times. But then I think about actually going on a date with somebody and my stomach just drops.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you don't have to go on a date with anybody if you don't want to. When you're ready, you're ready. And you know what? For all you know, whoever comes to pick you up tonight at the Flying Jay in Lordsburg, they might be the one. And that's okay. You don't have to feel guilty about it, even though you probably will. You can have more than one feeling at the same time, so you can feel a little bit guilty and also feel good and alive. And all of those things are okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">SHONDA</span><p>Lordsburg, yeah. And honestly, the way this night's going, the tow truck drivers probably going to be like 65 and tell me about his sciatica the whole ride. But I hear what you're saying. Danny used to say I was bad at letting myself feel two things at once that I'd pick one emotion and commit to it like I was filing a brief.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, you know, I wish you the best luck with those things and with your situation broken down there in Lordsburg. If anybody's out there listening, they can help Shonda. Please do what you can and show her how fierce the look at the Ruth's community can be to help those in need in our local area. Thanks for calling in Shonda. We got to move on, but I hope you don't end up stuck there for too long. All right. We're going to take one more call and that will be the end of our show. Thanks everybody that called in today. And this has been Luke at the Roost. You can find more about our show at LukeAtTheRoost.com. And yeah, follow us on the old socials. All right, Darnell, you're the last caller of the evening. What are you calling in for, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah, Luke, I appreciate you taking the call this late. Thanks. So I just got home today.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Okay.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Literally four hours ago from 90 days in we have down in Tucson.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>And I walk into my apartment. My roommate Travis left me a six pack of Takate. My apartment. And with a posted that says, welcome back bro. Like he thought he was being nice.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yes, he did. And on standing here staring at it, thinking, did this dude not hear a single thing I told him before I left? I called him from the facility, man.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Well, you know what, when you're drinking partners with somebody and you stop drinking, and they start to grieve for you in a weird way and feel isolated and alone. So it makes sense that somebody that you used to party with is not going to want to lose that relationship and be all alone. So I can understand the insensitivity there. Your directive at this point is to not drink that. You can either pour it down the toilet or just put it back in the fridge. If you want to stay clean and sober though, that's on you. And you have to be able to do that in the presence of alcohol.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah. No, I hear you. I poured it out about 20 minutes ago. That's not the issue. I can handle being around it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>I bet you can.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>I know. But what's messing with me is I did everything they told me to do. 90 days, every group session, everyone on one called my sponsor twice a day.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's good. I mean, keep doing those things and you'll continue to get what you're getting, which is another day of sobriety. And that's all that an alcoholic can hope for. So I wish you the best. And I've got a question for you. Are you ready for my questions, sir?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>Yeah. Go ahead. Hit me with it.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Where is the weirdest place you've ever had to piss?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">DARNELL</span><p>To peace. To piss. Oh, man. Probably in a mock bucket. The high-the-wall greens on Oracle Road at like three in the morning. I was working overnight, stalking. And the bathroom was locked because some tweaker had been in there for an hour. Manager wouldn't open it. Told me to figure it out.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right. Well, it sounds like you did the right thing. In both situations today in your life, you put out the booze and you pissed in the mob bucket. And that's great. So I hope that you have another day of sobriety and keep on doing what you're doing. Because that's how you're going to recover. So thanks for calling in. Thanks to everybody that called in today. This has been Luke at The Roost and we'll talk to you again tomorrow.</p></div>
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<h1>Quantum Physics, Pluto & Relationship Blunders</h1>
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<p class="episode-meta"><time datetime="2026-02-04T21:55:57+00:00">February 4, 2026</time> · 9 min</p>
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<p class="page-subtitle">Welcome to the first episode of Luke at The Roost! In this call-in show, we dive into quantum physics with callers Earl and Marcus discussing Schrodingers Cat, the Planck constant, and the speed of light. Rick weighs in on Plutos planetary status, we debate Starlinks impact on astrophotography, and Brenda shares her latest dating disaster. Call in: 868-909-1188.</p>
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<h2>Transcript</h2>
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||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, welcome to the show. This is Luke at the Roost. This is the radio show where you call in and we talk about whatever's going on in your life We could talk about math or science or nerd shit or we could talk about somebody that pissed you off at work It doesn't really matter as long as what you have to say is interesting So give us a call the number here is 8 6 8 9 0 9 11 8 8. That's 8 6 8 9 0 9 11 8 8 Let's go to the phone and talk to Earl Earl. Give us a little bit about your interpretation of Schrodinger's cat</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Yeah, well Schrodinger's cat, you know, it's one of those Quantum physics things I guess Sounds like a bunch of mumbo jumbo to me. I mean the idea that the cat could be you know both alive and dead at the same time It makes my head spin. I'm more of a common sense kind of guy, you know Quantum physics, but if I can't see it or touch it, it ain't real as far as I'm concerned But hey, what do I know right? I'm just the old guy trying to make sense of all this newfangled science stuff Dearies and whatnot</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well kid, you can you see love? Can you see the hatred in your heart that you have for a well-known documented scientific theories?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">EARL</span><p>Oh Look at you trying to get all philosophical on me the heart. You can't exactly put those things under a microscope can you? No, this old dog ain't buying into all that touchy.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>All right, you'll dog get off the air then Let's see who else we got Marcus. Marcus. Welcome to Luke at the Roost. Let's talk about some quantum physics stuff Give me give me your interpretation of the plank constant and what that means to the universe</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>Geez, yeah, the plank constant. I mean, that's like some heavy stuff, you know? From what I remember, it's basically this fundamental unit of measurement that's tied to like the smallest possible changes in energy and matter Like it's the minimum possible action or something I don't know. It's kind of mind-bending when you think about it. How there's this Fundamental limit to how small things can get Makes you wonder what else is out there, you know like what else is going on in this crazy universe that we can't even wrap our heads around Oh, man, I could go on forever about this stuff, but Yeah, I don't know. It's just wild to think about you know</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Let's talk about the speed of light for a second. So we have measured the speed of light It's pretty fucking fast everybody can agree on that, but what is its relationship to energy? Einstein had his famous Equation e equals mc squared which is energy equals matter times the speed of light squared Why is the number the speed of light showing up in other places in the universe and what could that relationship mean?</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">MARCUS</span><p>You have light man. That's just nuts. I mean think about how fast that is, you know, it's like what 300,000 kilometers per second or something That's just insane and you're right. Einstein totally cracked the code with that e equals mc squared thing I mean the fact that the speed of light is so central to that equation. It's got to mean something, you know Like the way I see it. It's almost like the speed of light is this fundamental constant that's woven into the very fabric of the universe I mean it's not just about how fast stuff moves. It's about the relationship between energy and matter That's it. The speed of light is like the bridge, you know, it's what connects all that stuff together Man, I could go on for hours about this, but you're totally right. There's just something so profound about the role The speed of light plays in all of this. It's like the key to unlocking the secrets of the universe or something Wild stuff, dude.</p></div>
|
||||
<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Well, that's what we do here on Luke at the roost is we We crack open the secrets of the universe. So let's go to one more caller for our show today. We've got Rick Rick tell us how you feel about Let's see what was a good one for you Why isn't Pluto a fucking planet planet?</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Come on, man. What is this the 90s? Nah, look Pluto's just too small, you know, I mean it ain't even the biggest rock out of scientists got it right Pluto's just a dwarf. They just leave it alone, you know a dwarf planet sounds like a more awesome planet than just a planet Wouldn't you say because it's got, you know, the descriptor of a dwarf. It's it's more exciting</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Yeah, I guess you got a point there. I mean a dwarf planet. That's got a little more flair to it, you know Sounds like something straight out of fantasy novel or something</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Yeah, I can dig it Pluto the dwarf planet has a nice ring to it It's just being some plain old regular planet Got to admit that does make it sound a little more. I don't know Special I guess there's no sleep over it. It is what it is Yeah, it's a planet Planet's are pretty cool even though there's you know innumerable planets out there that we all get to look at in the Dark beauty of the night around the desert</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Tell me what you think about astrophotography and what Starlings doing to To get in the way of that with with their Starlink satellites in low Earth orbit</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">RICK</span><p>Don't even get me started on that Starlink nonsense. I mean look I get there trying to bring internet to folks, but do they got a ruin the whole dang night sky for the rest of us? Me some good astrophotography, you know Sitting out in the desert looking up at all them star. It's damn near-peaceful, you know But then you got these Starlink satellites just half the time you can't even see the Milky Way anymore It's just they'd find another way to get internet out there that doesn't yeah, that'd be great But to be perfectly honest with you it hasn't really made any Impact at all in my night sky photography It's pretty cool to see the little sled of Starlink satellites shimmy across the night sky Especially the first time. I don't know. He's blows everybody's mind.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Anyway, we're gonna take one more call from Brenda Brenda tell me about your latest Relationship blunder</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Where do I even start? I mean, I met this guy at the grocery store He seemed nice enough, you know We went on a couple dates and I thought hey, maybe this could actually work out for once But then of course he had to go and mess it all up We were having dinner the other night and I mentioned wanting to get a dog and he just looked at me like I had three heads I mean who doesn't love dogs? It's a deal breaker, you know, I Don't know I just I can't catch a break with these guys I'm never going on another date again. I swear</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>Has anybody ever told you Brenda that you sound like Claire from last? Charlie Charlie, I don't want you around my baby, Charlie I am just a I serve no purpose on this island Charlie other than to complain about you and everything that you've done to save and protect me for no reason at all Charlie And I'm just mean to you all the time because I'm a fucking bitch Charlie stay away from my baby. I don't even want to be a mother</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">BRENDA</span><p>Oh my god, are you serious? That sounds just like my sister Claire Like the uncanny resemblance to scary Always complaining always putting down the people who are actually trying to help her and the way she talks about her baby daddy Charlie It's the worst I swear the two of us could be twins sometimes. We're both just High-strung your rock your fucking bitches and you're off the air.</p></div>
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<div class="transcript-turn"><span class="transcript-speaker">LUKE</span><p>That's enough of you Everybody thank you for tuning in for this installment a look at the roost and we'll be back next week Be sure to tune in maybe we'll broadcast this shit over the ham radio But by or if why as they say</p></div>
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