Welcome to “Ear Biscuits”, the podcast where two lifelong friends talk about life for a long time. I’m Rhett. And I’m Link. This week at The Round Table Of Dim Lighting We’re exploring talking to strangers. Don’t you talk to strangers? You never know what could happen. Or should you? Or should you? Might you be surprised? Do we have philosophies or unwritten codes of routine and practice associated with our interactions with strangers? What has it led to? Good, bad, and ugly. Here’s a teaser, here’s a teaser. I am in the process of actively trying to change my philosophy based on what I have learned and what I will convey to you today. Wow. There you go. Maybe it will impact you in your life. Okay. You see that? I promised some value. You see how I did that, Link? You see, we’ve been doing this for a really long time. You gotta deliver on it. The proposition that we make generally is that whatever it is that we’re doing on the internet today offers you some sort of value, what is that value? You’re gonna laugh a little bit. You’re gonna get a little bit angry about something that one of us does. You’re gonna get a little bit annoyed, but kind of like it a little bit. So you gotta come back for more and be a little bit more annoyed the next time. Whatever it is. Yeah. I think it might just be, well, do you expect to just put on two yapping voices in the background so it’s not quiet. Yeah, o you want us to- While you’re doing something more important. Do you want us to fill the space in your life so you don’t have to deal with the real stuff? Yeah, we’ll do that too. Yeah. We’ll fill space. I’m saying where background noise is really what I was getting at. Yeah. We’ll be that. We’ll be your white noise. These white boys will be your white noise. White noise. Background noise would be a great name for a band. White noise, obviously, a great name for a band, probably already taken. Background noise is probably also taken. We were talking about really good names yesterday. What was that? Somebody said like the perfect, somebody named something perfectly. What was that? Oh, “Marques Brownlee’s Auto-” “Auto Focus”. Auto review channel. His car channel, it’s called “Auto Focus”. Of course, he does tech reviews. And then, if he was gonna make a spinoff channel, ’cause I guess he would review cameras, wouldn’t he? All types of tech. He reviews any tech. Any type of tech, including ones that focus. But then if he wanted to spin off another channel where he reviewed automobile stuff. Which he did. He would call it “Auto Focus”. And you know when he came up with that, he was like, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, yes. I have to now do this. Yeah, it’s genius. Because what business do I have reviewing cars if I’m a tech guy? Well, there’s tech in cars and there you go. I was talking to you, and TJ, and Ben about him the other day and about his ability to single-handedly like change the trajectory of a company based on his review. And then, I stumbled upon, and this is we’re, you know, we are, because of all the travel that we’re doing, I don’t know when this is airing. We’re recording these ahead of time, but the- Well, this is coming out on June 3rd. Okay. I mean, this will still be true. He may have done something else, but you know that- 2024, by the way. Yeah, 2024. The little AI Pen that we talked about on this very podcast. Yeah. And we just made fun of the video that they used to present it. But he reviewed this thing. It’s got a camera on it, you can talk to it. And people are saying that he has, I don’t know what the status is now but. Sunk. Bankrupted, like ruined this company potentially because this was the product, because I think he called it the worst product I’ve ever reviewed. “Barely Reviewable” was the title of the video. Yeah. And then I think he may have changed the title or maybe it was a different article. But boy, he has the power. He has the power. Hopefully, he doesn’t do a review of us. I think he takes it seriously. Unless it’s positive. We’re not really tech though. We’re not product in that way. I tend to trust Marques with the power that he has. Well, of course, you trust him. And I do too. And that’s why he has the power to single-handedly impact the course of a company based on a product review. I would be interested, maybe he’s talked somewhere about, I mean, we’re not gonna interview him because we don’t interview people. Yeah. But I’d be curious if he’s talked about like, the personal ramifications of that. Anytime you’re like a reviewer, if you’re like Fantano, if you’re like a music reviewer, I mean, that draws a lot of aiyah, a lot of hate. I mean, he’s had to learn to weather a lot because he’s putting his opinions out there. Especially when you get away from just music to other opinions. But he’s reviewing music though, which I gotta say- Right, that’s a tough one. Well, I’m gonna say it’s tough, but it’s also, it’s reviewing art, which is subjective. I’m saying for him personally. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think it’s more tough because of the interactions with fans. I am curious what kind of boundaries someone like Marques has to put in place to be healthy. Well, the conversation right now, is about whether or not his ability to impact a company is ethical. Like, I’m just saying that was what this article I started reading yesterday that I didn’t finish was about. Should he be exercising some sort of ethical responsibility knowing the power of his own opinion? If you’re reviewing music. I would think so. You can’t, you know, people are like, well, I’m gonna listen to it, see if I like it or not. But we’re just talking about journalistic integrity here. I mean, it’s like. Here’s the thing. He’s not about anything. I think he’s very honest about what he does. But he’s more than a creator. He’s also a journalist. And there are certain standards that- And I think, I mean, as far as I can tell, he is always above board and operates under those standards. But what I’m saying is that unlike anything in the history of media, someone’s ability to give their POV of something can be the thing that makes or breaks a company or a product. But I think the point that, the counterpoint to somebody who’s critical of that is, well, he’s just talking about this product and being honest about it. And if the fact is that this product came too early, like this product didn’t have enough stuff to offer, it didn’t offer enough value for people to pay whatever it is, 700 bucks for it, then that’s not his fault. That’s the company’s fault, right? Of course. Of course. Because if he gave it a great review, it could change the fortunes. Now, if he- And he would if it was great. If he was taking money in the form of sponsorship or from a rival company, of course, then that’s a conflict. And he doesn’t do that. And if he does that, he discloses that, you know? And, I mean, I don’t watch a whole lot of Marques. Right. In the way that NPR discloses that they receive money from like the found, like Google or Meta whenever they’re then telling a story, relaying a story that’s critical of said company. Yeah. They say, of course, even though we are sponsored by this connection, we are still presenting. That’s what they say. Well, the thing that’s more worrying is when they’re saying something positive about said organization. Right. Then they say that they’re receiving money for it. Yeah. That’s the thing that, you know? Yeah, that seems like a commercial at that point. I mean, but let’s go with this for a second. Talking about, you know, Marques having sway, having an impact on companies. It started to dawn on us at a point in the past that when we were doing taste tests on “Good Mythical Morning”. Oh yeah. That, especially when we were doing the “Food Feuds” segment, you know, where we’re pitting two competitors against each other and then rating them. And you know, it’s all of a sudden we find ourselves in this position. It’s like, I’ve never thought of us from a journalistic perspective. But we start to feel that pressure. The first pressure, well, there’s a couple of things that I remember feeling and still feel. One is the pressure to actually have an informed opinion. Which for the longest time, it never crossed my mind. I’m just gonna say what I think about this. But people are just watching for entertainment value. They’re not making a decision about what they’re buying. But, of course, they are. I’m swaying, I’m influencing their decision. I’m an influencer. I’ve gotta come to grips with that. But then, I can’t remember the second part. Well, the main thing I think about is not that we’re going to bankrupt. Well, that is the second thing I did think of. Jimmy John’s as an example. That I forgot. Like, are we gonna have a negative impact on Jimmy John’s? I’m not, so, no, I don’t think so. And we’re thinking about this because we- Well, yes, we are. Well, okay, we are going to have a negative impact. We’re sending somebody to Jersey Mike’s over Jimmy John’s. It’s marginal, it’s marginal. What is more significant, in my mind, is the potential sponsorship that we will not get. I thought you were gonna say, and this is kind of the same thing, what’s more on the forefront of your mind is knowing that Jimmy, and John, and all of their cronies in the boardroom. It’s just one guy Are watching. I know. It was kind of a joke. Oh, it was funny. Jimmy, John, Jill, and Jane are in the boardroom watching our video and just getting so angry with us. I do think a little bit about that. And especially the stuff that we say that’s just out of our ass, which is all of it. Well, I think when it comes to Jimmy John’s. It’s honest, but it’s out of our ass. When it comes to Jimmy John’s, A, I feel strongly about the things that we said on the episode. Well, I got really heated. Yeah, you did. All the toppings are here and the meats are here. How? You guys need to get- This is a nightmare. You guys need to get Wes Anderson on your team. How am I supposed to eat this? Straighten this out, it’s not symmetrical. I don’t wanna bite this. And then it- You’re like, what do I, yeah, you’re gonna keep avoiding this the whole time. This is a mistake. This can’t be the way that you make your subs Jimmy John. Ouch. You got to send people to an 18-day classroom setting training. Here’s the thing. Or you know what? Just tell ’em put everything in the middle. B, I think that we have a marginal temporary impact because you kind of know, like the only people that we’re gonna impact are people who either have never eaten there, who now won’t, or people who are like, ah, okay, I’ve never really thought about it, but I guess they’re right. Jersey Mike’s is better. But if you go to Jimmy John’s, you’re a Jimmy John’s customer, and you know what you like there, you’re just gonna be like, Rhett and Link are full of shit on this one. And I don’t agree with them. And then, eventually, you’re gonna forget about it. So I think it’s marginal. I do think about the sponsorship because if they come around and they’re like, oh, there’s this deal that you guys can get, and it’s just like, when it comes to like fast food sponsorships, I mean, I’ll be totally honest with you, we’ll take anybody that was willing to work with us. Right? And so it’s like- What about Jimmy John’s at this point after what I said? Well, I would still take the sponsorship. What I’m saying is that- It’ll be a rep sponsorship. They wouldn’t offer it based on what we said. That’s what I’m saying. They could totally offer it. They did not know about it. Because the people who offered it- Don’t know about that episode. Yeah. Even though that Jimmy, John, Jane, and Jill do know about it, it didn’t get up to Jimmy, Jane, John, and Jill. And then here we are doing the sponsorship. But so would we do that? Of course, we wouldn’t do that. I just couldn’t, in good conscience, take a Jimmy John’s sponsorship. After everything I said, couldn’t do it. There’s a couple of brands in which you especially- And am I apologizing for it? Have gone so far that you have burnt the bridges. I am not. Yeah. And I just feel like if we’re doing this, if we’re reviewing food, sometimes you got to crack the whip. Sometimes you’ve got to bring down the guillotine, you know? Yeah. If Marques only said positive stuff, you wouldn’t watch him. And we’re at a point where we’re food critics damn it. Are we food critics? Of a stripe. Light. Of a stripe. What’s that stripe? You’re not comfortable saying you’re a food critic? I’m not comfortable saying you’re a food critic. Let me be perfectly clear. Yeah. But I am, I represent… A certain stripe. Yeah. Yeah. There’s people like me. Yeah. And you know what, by the way, people like me. I didn’t say people don’t like you. And people are like me and the people who are like me, like me, and sometimes the people who, I just welcome the people who aren’t like me to like me for not being like me. The reason I don’t lose any sleep over us burning sponsor is- Fuck ’em, what about that? Yeah. Let’s not do that. ‘Cause we actually had a sponsorship. Yeah, we did. And people knew that you didn’t like them. All right, we’ll cut that. Let’s just cut the brand and the F word. We don’t cut the F word. Well, don’t cut it. No. Just censor it. We don’t censor the F word. No, you don’t get the privilege. You said fuck on the internet and now it’s out there. And I don’t know why you’re so sensitive about it. Well, all right. So you say, so you’re just gonna censor the brand. Yeah. Yeah. But we already know that you don’t like those. But I stand by it. Here’s the reason I don’t lose sleep over it, is because all of the people that we have praised on the show in every single “Food Feuds” and which we have explicitly invited them to sponsor an episode. Haven’t gotten shit. Haven’t gotten one. Never. You know why? I’ve developed a theory, and I’m not gonna mention the brand, but there is a brand that, and if he mentions it, which he cannot help himself, just bleep it out. There is a brand that is doing something that has a connection to something that we have a connection to that it makes so much sense for us to be associated with this brand. Right? Oh. And the reason nothing will come to fruition is because it makes sense. Just a little insight into the world of sponsorships for a moment. If it makes sense, it never happens. If it makes sense that this influencer, this celebrity or whoever, or this brand message, it will never happen. Because somehow the people who are involved in making the decisions for what happens with brands, consistently, it seems this is the calculus that they seem to go by. If someone is not getting screwed in the process, either the brand or the influencer or the audience, they don’t go for it. They don’t do it. But if it makes sense, like it makes sense for the audience, it makes sense for the spokesperson, and it makes sense for the brand, they never actually do it. You’re so bitter about this. Well, it’s fascinating. We’ve been doing this for almost 20 years, and I would say that every single time I’ve been like, everything about this aligns, we are the perfect people for this. Our audience is perfect for this. It never happens. And the only things that happen most of the time are the ones that don’t make sense in some way that we have to then make sense of. So you don’t think it’s that they think that we’re not valuable enough or as valuable as we think we are to whatever campaign that we think makes perfect sense? No, because there’s a lot of other brands that do think that we’re valuable enough. That’s right. All right. Well, do you think it’s ’cause they just don’t know about us? And it’s about knowing somebody. It’s about connections. You gotta know somebody. If you just go through normal channels, nothing ever happens. Nothing ever happens unless you know somebody who’s, you know, slept with somebody or related to somebody. I don’t know how much it resembles like 1980s Hollywood, but I think that it’s mostly to do with the fact that the way that brands make decisions about what they’re gonna do, any brand that’s sort of big enough relies exclusively on an ad agency for all their decisions. Right. Right? And it might be some internal marketing people, but usually, it’s an ad agency and the people at the ad agency, just like anybody in, because it’s technically an entertainment business, right? They are justifying their own existence. And so the people who get paid by the ad agency, at the ad agency to come up with the creative campaigns, see people like us as people who will dispense with an idea that they came up with, right? Yeah. And so they aren’t thinking about, well, maybe these guys have an idea, or maybe just these guys talking about the product in a certain way, it doesn’t fit the plan. Because if it’s just as easy as letting us say something about a brand, then what’s the role of the ad agency, just making a connection? Then they’re just an agent. They’re no longer a creative person. Yeah. And so, I think, that’s ultimately why it never happens. Because they’re justifying their own existence. And I’m not saying they don’t need to exist. I’m just saying that, hey, sometimes some things make sense. And- But. And what? Well, the other situation that I actually am more sensitive to is the really small brands. Brands that don’t have an ad agency. You mean for us when we’re tasting something. And usually, this happens on like a more. Like a mom-and-pop popcorn company, and they like have five weird flavors. And then we’ll make fun of like something that they did on their packaging. And again, we’re- Oh, that’s giving ’em a favor, man. I feel great about that. Well, sometimes will say that it tastes bad or they missed the mark or whatever. And I think that, in those cases, I do think about somewhat of an ethical responsibility to be like, okay, well, I’m not gonna- I think they should pay us for that. That’s market research. I don’t know if we’ve ever, I think we’ve been relatively sensitive, I have tried to be relatively sensitive about that. I don’t know. I can’t speak for you. I just have to be honest. Now, okay. I’m not saying, I’m not being honest. I’m just saying I am metered in my response because I’m thinking about a little something else. Money. No, I’m not just thinking about money. I’m also, in those cases, I’m thinking about like, okay, these people are working on this thing and like, who knows? Mom and Pop are gonna get divorced over this. I don’t want the mood that we were in that day to be the reason that their business doesn’t work. Yeah. Because it’s not as simple as, I mean, go back. If you want to go back and look at the consistency. I like to wildly wield my moods. It’s fun. Yeah. But the consistency, I mean, this is true of both of us. The mood that we’re in, what we just ate. Sure. The preconception that we bring to a product. Don’t undermine our- How many times have you thought that coconut was gonna be in something or, you know, and I’ve done the same thing. Your previous experience with a taste or a profile influences your interpretation of it. And so this is so subjective. I wanna be entertaining, I wanna be honest, but I don’t want, I understand that the opinion has power and I wanna be sensitive to that. That’s all I’m saying. You don’t want me to say the name of the brand that we want to work with because- It’ll ruin it. It’ll ruin something that you just explained will never happen. Yeah. So why don’t we talk about it blatantly and just put ourselves out there. Because the conversation is- So you can find somebody who knows somebody. The conversation is happening right now. The one that you believe will lead to nothing. Yeah. Because it makes so much sense. It’s so perfect. I believe that. But why not talking about it here, why wouldn’t that help? And also, behind the scenes, we’re trying to make connections. But in front of the scenes, we’re unabashedly admirable of this brand. And also not begging, offering. Well, this release is, oh, a month from now. The conversation is happening. Is it, did you hear something I didn’t hear? I know that they’ve been reached out to. Okay. I wonder if you can guess who it is? I think when it doesn’t happen, we’ll talk about it. I’ll tell you right now, it’s not Jimmy John’s. What if it does happen? Then I’ll be like, I was wrong. And I want to be wrong about this. And that’s part of the campaign. I would love for you to be wrong about this too. I want to be wrong about this so bad. Yeah. But it hasn’t happened once. I know. And we’ve worked with hundreds of brands. And by the way, I had an idea about this, about what the campaign would be. And this fits right into it. See, and if you mention it, it ruins it because the person at the ad agency will be like. It needs to be their idea. We can’t go. We have to make it seem like it’s their idea. Yeah. We have to make it seem like the partnership was their idea. Yeah. They reached out to us, is what we’ll say. Right. Okay. You know? I’m not saying we will lie. I’m joking about that. I just love the, there’s like so much, there’s a lot of tension in this conversation. This is what we do for a living. But there’s like- And if we were completely in charge of every facet of it, we can make it all work so great. But you’re like, it’s coming out in so many different ways. Like, you’re mad at agents, you’re mad at marketers. You’re mad at the brands. You’re mad at me. I think that’s very clear. No, I’m not mad at you. You’re very mad at a lot of things. I’m not mad at you. I’m just saying that like, you’ve also, I mean, while we’re on subs, you’ve really, and I’ve done it a little bit, but you’ve really, really drug Subway through the mud. What a big risk. And here’s the thing. You know? All the Subway stands are really coming after me. And Subway is the largest, they have the most locations of, they’ll work with anybody. Have you seen the people they work with, they’ll work with anybody. They might eventually get desperate enough to work with us. And when they do get desperate enough to work with us, I don’t want them to just be like, man, these guys have talked so much shit about Subway. Now, what I’m saying is, it’s fine that it’s happened, but just- If I can just go into Subway and successfully hold my breath the entire time, I’m training to be able to do that. If you wanna go back and roll the tape, I have been extremely critical of Subway, but I’ve done it in a way where there is this little bit of hope that if they were to listen to the feedback and they would. But I feel like the way that you give feedback is okay, admittedly more entertaining than the way that I give feedback. Oh, well. Did you hear that? But I maintain some semblance of financial sustainability for our company in the future. But it’s so strange you’re talking about on both sides of your mouth. ‘Cause you don’t believe, you don’t believe that we can get the sponsorship. You think we could still get a Subway sponsorship? No, of course, not. That’s why I’m talking shit about them overtly. I believe the same thing you believe but you’re still- How many brands are you willing to do that to? All the ones that I legitimately hate. But legitimately, are you telling me that you couldn’t go into a Subway and eat something? Yeah, I could do that campaign. What about the meatball sub, right? I can do the meatball sub. I can always find something that I enjoy. And so I’m just like, okay. Go to http://www.subway.com/ear in order to get a discount on the one thing that I like at Subway. Okay, this is my issue. Shitting on an item is different, but a lot of times, your eye of Sauron turns from the item just to the whole brand. I’m drunk with power. And you’re just like, everything about you is horrible. I’m what Marques Brownlee could never be. And I just think that that’s- Gimme some tech. Let me rip that apart. You can’t judge. I don’t know how to turn this on. You can’t judge all of Subway just by one sub, you know? I don’t, I haven’t, I haven’t. Well, you judge it by about four subs. Can we talk about Jimmy Johns? The way that- Listen and not go on record. I was very critical of Subway not bringing the inches. Stop tacoing your bread, Jimmy John’s. With the 12-inch cookie. You’re not a taco shop. The 12-inch churro. I don’t know. They weren’t up to snuff. But I said it to them in a way as if they had the ability to make a correction. Not as if the company needs to completely disintegrate and all the employees need to be on the streets. I like his story. That’s how you talk about it. You started as a 14-year-old. You want all the employees on the streets. And we can tell, you know. A middle schooler started making these sandwiches. It feels like you have a personal vendetta against the consumer products economy. I like two first names. That’s fun. Build on that. That’s your strength, your only strength. Revamp everything else. You know, I’d rather take a sponsorship from Quiznos. Quiznos is good. Oh, are you about to say that Quiznos is bad. Are you actually bringing Quiznos into this just to shit on them as well? Yeah, I think so. I mean, ’cause their name is so funny. It’s like, who likes a quiz? You know, it’s like, oh, you know what makes me hungry? A quiz. Hey, guys, pop quiz today. Nope. Oh, quiz no. No quiz. Yes. I’m back on board. I love Quiznos because I’m against quizzes. Don’t pop a quiz on me. Oh gosh. I’ll just do the tests. Yeah, see, this is my issue. It’s like you’re not even talking about the sub anymore. Do not put banana peppers on anything without asking me. Now, you’re making fun of their name. Do not. It would be so hard to come back from that. If they have an offering that you don’t like, then be honest about it. Quiz, yes. But why are you gonna shit all over the entire brand, which is probably just owned by another conglomerate. Right. The fact is, is that there’s only like three companies in the world that own everything. And you probably have equally shitted upon all of them. And we’re going to be destitute. And I’m gonna have to go out and completely clear my name. And be like, everything that I said when I was with him was influenced by him and I still would like brand deals. Everybody knows that everything I’m- I’m gonna have solo brand deals. Oh, gimme a break. Everybody knows that everything that I believe is because of you. What? Yes. Everybody. It’s common knowledge, Rhett. We disagree on everything when it comes to food though. You don’t believe any of my food opinions. I may have had a slight- That’s the smoke smokescreen. I may have had a slight impact on your worldview. You think. Hey, I’m gonna- I can find something in every restaurant. I’m gonna send you to hell for eternity. And I’m also gonna criticize your opinion on food. Yeah. Well, here’s the thing. I would promise that if we both go to hell. You can’t have it both ways. I will come and say I’m sorry to you. But the fact is, is that we will most likely be in our own personal isolated torture chambers and never be able to speak again. No. Because wouldn’t it be convenient if two best friends could hang out in hell? Like all the people who think they’re gonna go to hell. And like, I wanna hang out with Jimi Hendrix. Jimi Hendrix is also in his own personal torture pod. No. You’ll never see him. There’s no parties. You’re isolated in a never-ending tormenting iso-pod. And then after an eternity, that door’s gonna creak open and Jimmy’s gonna walk in. But it’s gonna be Jimmy John. Oh my God, I’m stuck with Jimmy John. You’re gonna be force-fed folded meats and cheeses by Jimmy John himself for eternity. You’ve created your own personal hell. Where all of the toppings and meats hang out on one side of the sub, while the other side of the sub is just like a bread wall. I do agree that that’s a bad idea. That is just. But I do agree that it could easily remedied. You know, just flatten it. See how easy that was? I mean, they could just make a change. I’ve offered a solution. I know. You know, like if you’re gonna be critical, also bring a solution. Jimmy John, unfold it and flatten it. How about that? See how easy that was? You’re copying me ’cause I already told him that. No, you went way beyond that. And by the way, we’re in talks. I think this is a great story. Like, we patch up our relationship. We hang out with Jimmy John in person. I don’t know if we want to do that. I don’t know anything about him, but I don’t know a lot of these. Well, he’s 14. A lot of these like guys who own the fast food chains and like started it, problematic pasts, you know what I’m saying? Sometimes, sometimes. I don’t know anything about it. But before you start paling around with Papa John, you know what I’m saying? Yeah. You wanna look at what he said and what he’s done. You know what I mean? So, I don’t know. And I did say Papa John, not Jimmy John. And I’m not trying to conflate. See, I’m having to constantly make potential reparations here. You know? Somebody’s gotta do it. You wanna know what I think about reparations? Oh no. We have a mug that we’re selling at http://www.mythical.com. We got four mugs, actually. You might think that it’s, oh, this is the mug that’s on the desk. Well, no, it’s in a different color. This is skinned almond. Huh. This one is skinned human. Nice throwback. Okay. This is pink, coral, you might call it. There’s so many complimentary colors on these things. I’ve just got white and orange. I mean, that’s all they gave me. Four different mugs with the logo and the, what do we call this? The lockup. The lockup. The title lockup. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you can get all four. You can get one. I dunno, we doing some kind of like package? Doesn’t say. I mean, we don’t have the authority to make those decisions. “Ear Biscuits” is supported by Chime. Summertime is the right time to get new things going, including starting to build your credit. 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Get started today at http://www.chime.com/ear. That’s http://www.chime.com/ear Chime, feels like progress. The Chime credit builder Visa credit card is issued by the The Bancorp Bank NA or Stride Bank NA, SpotMe eligibility requirements, and overdraft limits apply. Out-of-network ATM withdrawal and OTC advanced fees may apply. Terms and conditions apply. Go to http://www.chime.com/disclosures for details. “Ear Biscuits” is supported by BetterHelp. This year, just like every year it seems is going by so dang fast. We do so many things that sometimes it can be difficult just to stop and celebrate. To stop and say, hey, this is what I’ve accomplished so far this year and this is what I’ve gotta look forward to. Right? But it is important to take a moment to celebrate your wins and to make adjustments for the rest of the year. And therapy can help you take stock of your progress and set achievable goals for the next six months. We’re huge advocates for therapy and we want it to be accessible to everyone. So if you’re thinking of starting therapy, give BetterHelp a try. It’s entirely online, designed to be convenient, flexible, and suited to your schedule. Just fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with a licensed therapist and switch therapists anytime for no additional charge. Take a moment. Visit http://www.betterhelp.com/ear today to get 10% off your first month. That’s BetterHelp, H-E-L-P.com/ear. We said we were gonna talk about strangers. Let’s do it. The thing that I was gonna tell you about, I’ll tell you about it next time. Yeah, we have a lot of these to record over the near future. Yeah. I went to the dentist. Is this about to be one of those I just got back from the dentist? Yeah. We have so many of those here. I’m gonna throw my dentist under the bus and I have to find a new dentist. My dentist sucks so bad. Let me tell you exactly who they are. Give you their website. Tell you why they suck. So I can go to a new dentist. No, I’m fond of my dentist. Can we get the cavity update out of the way? This is relevant to the conversation. Yeah. So cavities, never been a problem. I know the thing that, the gingivitis or I don’t know, you promised that you were gonna start flossing more and I just wanna get through this part of it. Wait, you seem impatient with me about this? I just feel like I’ve heard it a million times. Just like your hygienist, you’re gonna floss your teeth more. I mean I was gonna give like a one-minute update on that. Great. I think I’ve already given the update. Well, you got it back this morning? No, I think I gave it last time I went. Exactly, so nothings changed. It was two times ago I went, they were like, you gotta come every four months. People on the internet said that I was being scammed by my dentist because they wanted me to come 50% more times during the year. Right. And they’ll say that to everybody. But I did have buildup and I listened like a good boy to my hygienist and did all the things that she said to do. Flossing every day with an unwaxed floss. So it actually grabs it. I’m brushing with an electric toothbrush. I have a 45 degree angle into the gums. I’m going for two minutes every single time. And I got an incredible report. It was just like she said, we rarely encounter someone who listens so well to us and applies everything that we said. You are officially a good boy. At least that’s what it sounded like she said. Do they charge more for giving, like making a people pleaser happy. Like pushing your people-pleaser button. No, ’cause it’s too easy to manipulate us. But good report. Well, good. I’m proud of you too. But the thing that it made me think about was this article that I wanted to discuss because, you know. When is the next time you have to go back now, by the way? Six months. Yeah. So they’re still scamming you? Do you understand how numbers work? They were bringing you back every three months. So you’re supposed to go to the hygienist how many, like a normal visit is how many, every what? Once a year. Nope, every six months. Well, then you were being scammed by going every three months. Every four months. So that would’ve been three times a year. So now you’re back to six months. So now it’s just twice a year. Okay. Which is the normal, you know? I thought it was once a year. Six months, right? I think for me. Six months. Six months. Six months is normal. That’s what the ADA. They only schedule me once a year. I’m such a good boy, I’m once a year. You might need to make some adjustments to that. So they don’t wanna see me. They don’t want to scam me. I think you just don’t remember. ‘Cause you literally just thought it was three months and then you thought I said something else. That’s fair. You know what, I’ll take that. My hygienist loves to talk. Also remembers very specific things. She was like, oh, I checked out the show. Is she an older lady? Okay. Why, does it seem like I’m doing an old lady impression? No. No, I’m trying to place which one you have. We don’t go to the same dentist. Well, that would make it harder. We used to go to the same dentist. I thought we both switched. We both switched to different dentists. Oh. We split. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s good. It’s healthy, you know? How do you guys maintain such a vibrant friendship, well, we go to different dentist? You gotta go to different dentists. We didn’t for a while. Rule number one. As you can tell by the vibes today, our relationship is so healthy. Now, I’m having a good time. I’m having a great time. Just giving each other shit. Come on. Different dentists though. That’s the key. And I went to the better dentist, you know, based on reviews. But no, she’s not an older lady, I would say she’s my age. Okay. Alright. Which, I mean, is that an older lady? I guess it depends on how old you are. If you were a 25-year-old in a relationship with a 46-year-old woman, you would say I am in a relationship with an older woman. Yeah, definitely. A cougar, if you will. But I don’t know why I’m bringing these ideas to this company. You brought ’em. That’s, yeah. That’s my job. She was like, I watched the show and she said, I love it when people who don’t have a point of reference see one thing and then the things that they say, it’s always a, you know, it’s an interesting study. Yeah. She was like, I watched “Are we smarter than Gen-Z”? Okay. And it was so funny, and I love your dynamic with your friend. And so you’ve been friends for a long time? Okay. And so I was like, yeah, we have since 1984 and we’re pretty much, I didn’t say this, but I’m like, yeah, we’re pretty much selling the dynamic. That’s what we do. That’s what we’re demonstrating here today, Link. Yeah. Is the dynamic. But she then went on to tell me about how great my teeth were, you know, comparatively. And then she started asking me questions about, she remembered things about like what I told her about the kids. And she has similarly-aged kids and, you know, asking me questions about, of course, she’s asking me questions and then like, but there’s like a thing in my mouth. Yeah. And I’m not gonna fall for the trick, if it is a trick of the trade, to try to get you to talk while the things in your mouth. If she asks me a question while there’s something in my mouth, I don’t say anything. I don’t like. I’m not gonna. I’m not gonna be that guy. I am like, if you wanna talk to me, take the thing outta my mouth. Right. Right. Yeah. And I’m not being mean. Why do they do that? It’s a trick. It is a trap. I think they’re trying to belittle you a little bit. Power move. It is a power move. I’m in charge here. So you’re just silent. No, I wait until she takes it out. Then I remember where we were at in the conversation and she may have asked three questions by that point. What? She’ll just follow up. But I’ll go back to the first one. You silence her. I’ve got great short-term memory. And she’ll hit you with another question? She’s like, well, maybe I can get ’em with this one. She’ll take the things out and I will, okay. She’ll take the things out. That’s when you’re like, you’re spitting in the suction. I can talk, I take it back. I can talk with the sucker in. What the fuck, how? No, you can’t. Okay. I can, I’m talking right now. They’re doing great. Yep. 20 and 15. I can pretty much do this. First of all, that is the best impression I’ve ever done. That’s pretty good. But if I have this in my mouth and she’s doing this. At that point, I’m not talking. Listen to what I sound like. Yeah, yeah. But I can almost sound almost normal like this in the context For those of you who are just listening, he is fish hooking himself with his finger. Okay. And I can’t believe that you just, like, she would, you’d silent, no response, and then she’d like ask another. So then the moment that the thing comes out, you’re like very quickly trying to like, yes, my kids are this age now and this is where we’re planning to go on vacation. And what was the last question? Time’s up. Back in there. I don’t panic. I play it cool. But she also isn’t really asking, I wouldn’t say she asks three questions in a row. I would say she asks a question or she says something that invites an answer. That’s not exactly a question. I think it’s hygienist talk. I think they’re taught this. Because it’s like I’m having one side of a conversation that you could join at any moment. You may be even tempted to join it, but if you didn’t it would almost make sense. Now, that’s not questions. Open-ended questions maybe. Statements with a little questioning intonation. Yes. Statements that go up at the end. Like an Australian cadence. I think it’s more New Zealand. I’ve heard so many- You never hear talk like this? Kiwi. Yeah. I’ve heard Australian people do that too. I mean, I haven’t been to New Zealand. Maybe they do it more there, but. What is it? We gotta get to the talking to strangers thing. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. So I had read this article ’cause I was thinking about the nature of my relationship with my hygienist. And I was like, this is one of those relationships that they talked about in this study. And I’m actually trying to see the opportunity there differently than I have seen it. Okay. You’ve got different types of relationships, right? You’ve got your family, you’ve got your close friends, you’ve got acquaintances, you’ve got coworkers. And then there’s like a, there’s all these categories and like the depth of the relationship gets shallower and shallower as you move out and out. And then you get to the place where it’s just a stranger that you meet. I know what a stranger is. But then you got these people that the person in the Trader Joe’s, the cashier at Trader Joe’s. Yeah. Your hygienist is a little bit closer because you know you’re gonna see ’em again. But every, I guess every year, if you’re you. Yeah. If they’re in your mouth, that’s a special relationship. And my MO has always been not calculated, just probably introversion. In like kind of sometimes I just don’t know what to say to people and I’m not great at just making small talk. My MO has been to minimize the interaction. Okay. Perfect example. Me too. If I’m checking out at a grocery store, I might say nothing. I mean, there might be like, how you doing today? Good, how about you? Something like that. Yep, yep, yep, yep. Just, I mean- And then it’s just like- I’m smiling a little bit. I’m responding to any small talk questions in the way that we will shut it down in the most friendly way. And then if somebody says, how’s your day going? Great, you? I’m like, good, you? It moves on. Yep. And I rarely say, you know, not that great, I just did this or really good, I just found out. I’m not going, I’m not giving details. I have an explanation for why I do this that goes beyond, like you said, maybe introversion. Efficiency. I’ll hold it until, I wanna hear what this study is, but like, I have a nuanced explanation. That doesn’t seem like I’m heartless. There’s a Harvard Business School, PhD, Hanne Collins. PhD student who is studying, basically, they did a 2022 study that essentially said, I’m just gonna, I mean this is pretty simple stuff. It’s, “We find that individuals with more diverse social portfolios, people who are talking to a more varied set of relationship partners and doing so relatively evenly, experience greater well-being in terms of life satisfaction, quality of life, and positive emotion. These results suggest that talking to strangers is a critical part of a rich and diverse social life.” Okay. Yeah. So the people who, not at the exclusion of deeper relationships, but people who add, who expand that radius wider and wider. And then the evenness and the depth that they go with those people, reasonable, you know, I’m not saying you’re gonna go super deep, but like as deep as you could reasonably want to go with a cashier. People who do that on a regular basis for a lot of reasons that the study explores, have a higher well-being. Human connection in a positive environment, especially with low stakes, makes sense to me that it can be enriching philosophically. Practically, I’ll just go ahead and say it. I think that I’m always thinking about something else and it’s like, and I’m in my head. So to engage with somebody that like, investing in this conversation is not gonna lead to anything. It’s just a passing thing. This is kind of my rationalization. That’s the negative part. But I do think it’s that I’m just thinking of other things. And what’s gonna come of this? So it is nice to hear that something could come of it, an enriching life. You’re thinking about it in terms of what’s gonna come of me finding out about this person. What am I gonna do? Like become their friend, come back, always pick this line? And choosing between being in that moment with this stranger versus continuing to be in my head was something that I’m noodling on. That like, it’s almost like, am I gonna, I’m kind of working on something that’s, I need to think about this kind of a thing. It’s not that rational but it feels that way. When you’re in your head about something, it’s like, I gotta work this out versus I gotta stop that and talk to this person. It’s not my instinct. I’m just trying to explain why. But none of it’s rational. I think there are other examples too. It might be something like you are on vacation and you’re in a tour group with other people. Like, again, my MO is minimal interaction. I talk to my family. If you’re on a four-hour tour with these people and like, you’re giving ’em the silent treatment. No, no, no, no. I’m not giving the silent treatment. I just said minimal friendly interaction. Meaning that like, oh, I might say something, might make a little joke or something like that. But there’s this barrier that remains up, which is like, we are never going to see each other again. Right. And so I don’t wanna know that much about your life. Right. I’m not saying I’m right. I’m just saying I feel that that’s my natural disposition. Yeah. And it’s funny because even before Jamie found this article, I was talking to Jessie about how I was like, ’cause a couple of times, even when we were recently traveling and like the waiter at the restaurant, I was doing something that I don’t often do, which is trying to make them laugh. Like, you know, I do it for a living. You never do that. But like, I just reserve that part of myself, which is ironically a really huge part of myself for what we do for a living and for my wife. Like, I make Jessie laugh all the time. Like our relationship is sort of defined by me trying to make her laugh. But I don’t even do that a lot in like our friend group, you know? Right. But I never do it with strangers. And so I don’t know what it was, something I said or whatever, but it was like an extended interaction and I was like saying some things. And then the waiter walks away and Jessie’s like. Essentially like, what got into you? Now, she likes it. She likes to talk to strangers. Yeah. Strangers open up to her and she has that ability. But I was like, I don’t know, I’m just trying to do something different. That’s what I was thinking at the time. It’s interesting. And then I find this article, Jamie finds this article, I’m like, oh, this is kind of in sync with how I’ve been thinking about this. Maybe there’s something to it. Because for me it’s also I’m uncomfortable, socially awkward, and uncomfortable. Yeah, you are. And so I feel like what, there’s no reason, there’s no reason to be self-conscious about extending a conversation with somebody that may only ever be this conversation. And I just was doing it for my own benefit. I wasn’t even doing it in a selfless way. I was like, what would it be like to try to change this about myself? And you know, you’re an imposing physically, physical figure. Oh, thank you. And your resting face is not, I would not call it. Bitch. I wouldn’t call it bitch. I wouldn’t call it friendly either, you know? No, I- Yeah, your base demeanor could be interpreted or misinterpreted. This is often the look on my face. Like sad. Like a Zoom call. Sad, angry. Sad and angry. And I’ve actually had to be like, oh, Zoom calls have actually been very helpful. ‘Cause you look at yourself and you’re like, oh. Wow, I look so sad and angry. If I was looking at- You’re not an inviting face. If I was looking at somebody like that, I would think that they were judging me. Right. And I’m not judging this person. It’s not a welcome. So I need to soften. It’s not a talk to me face. It’s a don’t talk to me face. Mine is don’t disturb him from his stupor face, is what mine is. I mean, I’ve looked at me and you on a phone call before, on a Zoom call. And I think both of us in our own way get a little bit, I think these guys are being, maybe judging me. Yes. Oh yeah. Well, when we’re really engaged. ‘Cause we concentrate like this. It’s very like- And some people just have like a. What the hell are you thinking? Is what people. Like Jenna has a nice smile on her face most of the time, like. Most of the time. You know, it just feels like, even your resting face of like, I’m just listening. Looking at your face. Is like, I’m ready to smile even if I’m not smiling. Yep. If I talked to her, she’d start smiling. And my face looks like, boy, you’re gonna have to do a lot to get that guy to smile. There’s a lot of work is gonna have to happen ’cause I’m like. Jenna, I know that you talk to strangers. So I think we have a lot to learn from your experience. I’m interested in that. I will say, along with Rhett, that I am open and have found myself teasing, just flirting with talking to strangers. Not flirting with strangers. I feel like you talk to strangers a lot. It depends on if I’m in my mood and my mode. If it’s like night out on the town or it’s off hours or I don’t have obligations, if I’m loose, then I could start interacting with people. But like Christy and I had to go to a musical performance that my son was a part of. Of course, we had to go ’cause he’s my son. The only reason you would. Yeah. He knew that I didn’t really want to go. What’d you tell him that? Yeah. Well, it was- Why? Because it was an, I hate to say it. I want you to know, I really don’t wanna go to this. I don’t want to go, this is a tangent and we can put a pin in it, but I will say that it was an acapella competition. Yeah. So I have to put a pin in this. Yeah. I don’t even know if I’m ready to talk about it. Does he know how you feel about that? Yes. I give him a hard time about it, but he’s not in an acapella group. Why was he there? He’s in a choral group that then they also did this acapella thing. Oh. He probably don’t want me to talk about it and I don’t want to talk about it either. Okay. But it’s not a- Wants you to sing about it. It’s not a source of tension and it’s just something funny. It’s like, it’s not anything to worry about. Anyway, we’re waiting outside and like we’re off to the side, like me and Christy, and we’re in the shade and it’s cool in the shade, and there’s another couple that we haven’t talked to that’s kind of in the shade. And I’m noticing that I’m getting a little chilly. And then I see they moved over to be in the sunlight. And then they stood in the sunlight and then I walked over, I was like thinking this is a good idea. So I walk over into the sunlight, not right next to ’em, but still in the same patch of sunlight. And so I said to them, I thought that was a pretty good idea, moving over here in the sun. It got a little chilly over there. Okay. You know. And then we start talking a little bit and next thing I know, she’s giving us tickets to the event. So we didn’t have even have to buy ’em. Huh. Tickets to the acapella event? Yeah. That we didn’t have to buy ’cause we were about to wait in the line, buy the tickets. Instant gratification. Look at that. I talked to a stranger and I got something out of it. That’s what this is about, right, Jenna? Yeah. Yeah. Do you have a practice or an instinct to talk to strangers? I think that my resting inquisitive face kind of lends to people coming and talking to me. Oh, so you’re the stranger people talk to? You’re approachable. Yes, I’m very approachable. Yeah. And so people come and chat with me often, share their stories with me often. And I like hearing people’s stories, and I like being inquisitive, and kind of fun with them, and it usually works out really well. Sometimes, of course, there’s always the people who come up where you’re like, please don’t talk to me. I’ve had really, really weird bad experiences with talking to strangers and really, really wonderful. So it’s just- Is it that, are you stationary in public places a lot? I am. Yeah. ‘Cause, you know, I take myself out on dates a lot. I do a lot of things on my own. So being solo in crowds of people kind of invite people to want to chat, basically. Is it all other solo people or is it like wives who have had it up to here with talking to their husbands so now they’re gonna talk to anyone else? Both. Yeah. Yeah. Not always wives, but yeah. Groups of people will come up and chat with me. Women, men. Oh, groups. It just kind of depends. Yeah. I started chatting with a couple this past weekend, and chatting with a girl ’cause she was like really nice, and I was just asking her a few questions. We were both waiting at the bar for the bartender to notice us and we just got to chatting. And I like complimented her hair clip. ‘Cause I was like, oh, I’ve been wanting to get one of those. Like, how do you like it? It’s really cute. She literally took her hair clip out of her hair and gave it to me. There you go. And that’s why you brought it up? No, I didn’t. I just brought it up because- How easy is it to take outta your hair? I was just being complimentary. And hand to me? Yeah. It was a really cute- What if she had something? You know what? I am an optimistic person and I never think those things. Yeah, right. But I did not put it in my hair immediately, I like clipped it to my cross body bag that I was wearing. I’ll be like, thank you so much. I’m gonna disinfect this later. Thank you so much. That’s so nice of you. And then we just kept talking. You didn’t even put it in your hair? No. Well, I already had my hair- How you wanted it. How I wanted it, yeah. Okay. Yeah. But she gave me a hair clip, but we ended up talking some more and I complimented her on like, the ring she had on a necklace. Oh, you wanted that too, huh? No, I didn’t. I’m just a complimentary person, I like, she complimented me on things as well. It was very sweet. It was almost like a girl’s drunk in a bathroom talk but we were at the bar instead. ‘Cause like, that’s another great way that women interact with each other is when they’re in the restrooms a little intoxicated. Like, we always make friends in the bathroom. That’s why it takes so long for women in the bathroom. ‘Cause we end up making friends. Oh. Question as a woman. I don’t do that in the bathroom. Yeah, yeah. I hear you all don’t have that same bonding experience in the bathroom. We wanna get out of there as fast as possible. Let’s stand in two inches of piss and make friends. Yeah. Not exactly. No, I have been approached while peeing many times. It just seems like, I think that’s when sometimes Mythical Beasts who are peeing next to me feel like that’s a great time to say hello. And it’s not. As a woman because I think this is also something I think about. I think sometimes if I say, if I like begin a conversation with a woman who is like close to my age or whatever, I’m like, is this woman gonna think that I’m like trying to like start a conversation? Hit on her. Yeah. And you know, is that just in my head because I’m not a flirty guy? No, I think it’s a mix. ‘Cause I’ve had quite a lot of men come up and chat with me as well. And some of them are just friendly and we talk about other things, and it’s not them hitting on me in any way. But it’s a vibe that men give off. So, I had a really bad experience. Yes, please. So, it was when I did that solo trip to the Grand Canyon. And I was coming back and I stopped at this old motel on like Route 66 that was really famous. And I made good friends with the owner there, he was super nice and gave me a recommendation for food. So I went to the place, that was his recommendation. And it was middle of the day on like a Tuesday. And these two men came in from like playing golf and were already intoxicated. And then felt the need to have a whole long conversation with me. They bought me a drink and I was sitting at the bar and I saw the bartender make it, and I was like, you know what? Whatever, I’ll take a drink. Sure. And then they just were asking me very inappropriate questions. And then these other girls showed up and I was like, cool, these other women are here, maybe like they’re gonna interact or whatever. And well, one of the guys took one of the girls into the bathroom and that was interesting. What? I don’t think I should get into that. That was inappropriate. Maybe she was just washing her face? There was certainly something happening with that. So that was odd. And they like hit on me a few times and then I was like, I gotta get the heck outta here. And they’re like, where are you staying? And I’m like, lying. Nowhere near here. Nowhere near here. And you know, I literally walked there. So I like had to wait until it felt safe for me to leave and they weren’t gonna try and follow me. And then they kind of did. But then, yeah. So then I stopped into, ’cause I had already talked to the owner of this motel and I stopped back into the like, reception area, and he was in there with his wife and they were watching Seven Wives for Seven Husbands. There was like a Turner Classic Movies marathon of all these musicals. Okay. So I like just sat and chatted with them for a really long time, filled them in on the situation. They were like, no, stay here. Let us know. Like the wife gave me like her personal number and was like, if you feel, and they like walked me to my hotel room. Damn. And made sure everything was good. So like, it was one of those situations where I had talked to so many- Talking to strangers had helped you with the new strangers. Yeah, yeah. Talking to some other strangers has helped me with new strangers. But yeah, there’s always that. And then there’s like really good things that happen that I’ve talked to a random guy at a concert once and he ended up being a fan, and Gary was the tour manager for them. That’s why I was at the concert to hang out with Gary, our tour manager, he was on a tour with another people, this was a few years back too. It was in like Asheville, North Carolina, random. I was randomly there and he was randomly there. Okay. Yeah, I think I remember you talking about that. Yeah. And like ended up talking with a guy at that concert who was a fan of the band. And then I was like, well, I’m here with the tour manager, lemme talk to Gary. And Gary was like, yeah, he seems cool. He can totally come back and meet the guys. And so we all hung out, and then the next day the guy was like, come to the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, I’ll give you a private tour. And so like, my brother was with me, and I took him with me, and like my brother was so freaking excited. We got private tour of the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company. And it also happened to be their like October Fest announcement. And it was May, so they were premiering their new October Fest beer, like months ahead of time. And my brother loves October Fest beers, so he was like giddy. And this super nice guy just like, gave us a whole tour and we got to go, and you know, be a part of this October Fest in May, just because we had a cool chat at the concert the night before. Yeah. The times that it leads to new experiences. Yeah. I mean, there’s obviously something to just like the fabric of life, and getting to know more people, and just being in that disposition. But I think about like, I’m traveling to Portugal this summer, never been there before. Just me and Jessie. And the thing I’ve been talking with her about is, okay, yeah, we’re figuring out where we’re going and what we’re doing, and we want to have a plan where we’re gonna eat, where we’re gonna stay, the things that you should see. But I just had this, I’ve had this sort of idea in my head that’s like, yeah, you wanna know somebody from- Mix it up with the locals. You wanna know somebody from the place that you’re going who’s like, oh, what you actually should do as an American tourist who would just be doing American tourist things. Yeah. Because you know me is to go to this place, or I can take you to this place, or I can tell you about this thing that you should know about. And there’s a selfish motivation, but also it’s like it changes the complexion of the travel experience. So maybe there’s a subconscious thing that I’ve been thinking about this like, I would just like to get better at just beginning an interaction with people that then could lead to something. And you know, you never know what it could be. We’re talking about getting hair clips, and free beer tours, and you know, like tickets to shows. But I’m assuming that the article is more like just the enriching nature. Oh yeah. Of having an honest human connection that then, that was it. It’s good for your brain and your heart. I mean, even that is, yeah, a good baseline. I’ve reflected on what I’ve said and I think I’m learning something about myself that it’s just having, I haven’t given myself margin to have a passing connection with anybody. I am so in my head when I am doing things in public. And I don’t, you know, so I’m open to being more open to conversations because I like the idea of being in the moment. It’s a way to bring you outta that. Bringing me outta my head and into the space where there’s other people here and like, you know, smiling, having a positive fleeting exchange. I’m curious if we both try that what we’ll both feel like. Yeah. The easiest way will feel like way to bring people in, especially like women as well, if you feel nervous about starting up a conversation with a woman and you don’t want to give off, like, certain vibes, it’s just like, I’m always follow-up questions. Just like, oh, that sounds really interesting. Like, that’s how I learned so much about other people. And that’s how they kind of, we have these really great shared experiences is we just ask each other follow-up questions about their lives. Like, I had a whole interaction with a musician in Liverpool just because I liked some of the covers that he was doing. And I was like, those covers are great. I love it. And then he finished his set, and he sat down, and we just like had a shared experience over a couple beers talking about music, and his life, and my life. And I’m never going to see this man again. We didn’t exchange any information, nothing. It was just a nice shared experience at a bar that we had. And it was all just curiosity about people’s lives essentially. It’s Mythicality, lead with curiosity when you talk to strangers. There you go. I like it. Yeah. I like it, I’m gonna try it. Yeah. Link’s gonna go to the nearest Jimmy John’s. Just hang out. And when he is checking out. Well, this sucks, doesn’t it? He’s going to try to make a connection with any of the customers. Maybe the guy who’s folding the meat and the cheese on one side of the bread. The thing- Is that your application? I’m really into this experiment. I think the only thing that makes me cagey is that I felt a little like, I don’t know, would it seem like I’m talking to somebody to see if they recognize me. But even more than that, I think the thing I’m concerned about is that they would know who I am. And I don’t wanna talk about what I do. Right. I don’t wanna talk about me. It’s like- Well, usually, you know that, I mean, in my experience you know ’cause they usually say something or give off a vibe. Well, I just don’t want have a, yeah. And I have nothing, those conversations are great, but it’s not what we’re talking about. Right, so. It’s a different thing. I can get a vibe, that, okay, this person doesn’t know who I am and isn’t gonna know who I am. And then when you’re talking to him, it’s still like, I feel like I know you from somewhere. You know? It’s like, I don’t want that to happen. I wanna avoid that. So maybe, at that point, I’ll just lie. Or maybe, at that point, no, I don’t wanna lie. I’m your brother. That’s where you know me. We were separated at birth. I’d be like- Vague details. Be like, yeah, I’ve- I’ve been in a few commercials. I usually give vague details. You know, I make, you know, I make what? I’m on YouTube. Yeah. I’m just like the kid. I’m on YouTube. I’m like your next-door neighbor kid, I’m also on YouTube. Yeah. I’m on YouTube. But now I’m asking you another question. Yeah. So it’s like- Deflection. The deflection. Redirection. There we go. I can do that. What about elevators? Let’s close it out with elevators. Elevators. No, no. That’s a sacred space. Let’s leave it how it is. Yeah. It does feel different, Right. Urinals, let’s leave it like it is, sacred space. Checkout line, waiting in line. But the elevators get awkward so fast. That’s what makes ’em sacred. Especially in tall buildings. But it’s expected. It’s expected. And the only thing that I’m, my instinct, if I’m gonna say something, is just a dumb joke for the group. You’re too close to people to talk to ’em. You gotta be a little further away from a stranger to talk to ’em. What about turning the other direction from all the other people? Turning and facing the back of the elevator? That’s weird. Don’t be weird. So no bathrooms, no elevators. Like moving from shade to sunlight, great. Sitting down at a bar or at some where live music is happening, great. Walking down the street. Hello. Walking in the same direction as somebody who’s walking a little bit slower than you, you can have a little conversation. Bye. Oh, here I go. Look at me. It seems that I’m walking a little faster than you. And then they’re like, yep, you are. And that was the conversation. That’s nice. Walking, hiking. Those can be, it can get a little awkward there. But yeah. Yeah. It’s like if I’m biking and I get to this one rest stop sometimes there’s other bikes there and like a lot of times I’ll just keep my earbuds in. I’m huffing and puffing anyway. Well, I could talk to those people a little bit more. How’s your ride? Huh? I use that voice, how’s your ride? Oh, that’s a good voice. It’s very inviting. Bookstores. I was in a bookstore recently. People like to sell things to people in bookstores. Okay, I’m not talking about the Amway people or whatever it’s called now. Bookstore. I’m saying somebody who’s in a very particular, there was a guy that was in a very particular section, like a certain like section of the science section of this bookstore that I was in. We’re kind like looking at the same stuff. And I just made, I mean, my default is to be like, well, I’m not starting a conversation. What you after? What you after? Like, what am I gonna say? Like, what you looking for? Hey, science is cool, huh? Science is cool, bro. Yeah. We both think that. That’s good, Rhett. I’m practicing. So you’re gonna go to bookstores and just ick people into leaving? Bookstore could be good because if you are in the same section, you’re asking what they’re reading, what they’re into. And then maybe you have a shared interest. Like, oh, do you have any recommendations? Any recommendations? I can do that at a record store? Yes, you do that at a record store. Yeah, there we go. Yes, sorry for clapping. Any recommendations? That’s good. I’ve had a good, the thing about going to a record store is that people do recognize me there, but they’re typically, I’ve enjoyed talking to the people there ’cause I’m showing them what… ‘Cause it’s like, what you got? And I show ’em what I got and then it’s like, what you got? And they show me what they got. Shared interest is always the best place to go when you’re chatting with strangers. Always. Yeah. Find the shared interest and have that bond over it. And I like talking to ugly people. People that I’m not attracted to. Okay. Because ugly is just- That’s an interesting way to put it. I’m just saying somebody, like if I’m gonna talk to a woman, it’s a woman I’m not attracted to. You just lost all our potential sponsorships with ugly people. I didn’t mean it that way. Here’s how I meant it. If I’m gonna talk to a woman, it’s where there’s no inkling of attraction from me to the person. Sure. Yeah. I get that. Just so that’s not in like some subconscious mix. I’m sorry to say ugly. I take that back. Okay, take it back. We edited it out. But like I would like people who think I’m ugly to talk to me. I’ll put it to you that way. Okay. In the way that I’m using the term. Okay. What? Did I just kill it? We were having such good vibes. No no, you didn’t kill it. You just Linked it up a little bit. It’s cool. It’s interesting. I’ll compliment men on what they’re wearing, but not women. That’s probably safe. That’s probably safe. But I gotta mean it ’cause maybe I can find out where they got something and I can buy it. I had an interesting conversation. I was buying Jessie a- Did we forget about me saying the ugly part? Yep, we’ve already forgotten. We’ve already forgotten about that? We’ve already forgotten about it. You can compliment women if it’s like something that they, not like their appearance, but like- Yeah. If they’ve chosen a specific like top or- Cool shirt. Bag or jewelry I like shirts too. Like things, yeah. Cool bag. Things that aren’t about their specific appearance. So you can certainly compliment women and they won’t take that in a negative way. Yeah. I would say also like, my friend’s husband was like, well I kind of wanna compliment women on their nails, but I don’t want them to think that I’m hitting on them. And I was like, I don’t think that any woman will think that. I think nails is pretty safe. It’s really safe. Yeah, yeah, safe. That’s like the safest compliment. ‘Cause, usually, men don’t say much about nails. Yeah. ‘Cause his wife makes nails so that’s why. And I was like, you could even follow up with that. My wife makes nails. These are really nice on you. Yes. Yeah. You could always be like, oh, where did you get your nails done? I think my wife would love that style as a way to shift and be like. I often mention the wife pretty early if I may, yeah. Yeah, lead with that. My wife, I have one of those. Okay. I had a conversation with a woman that I was buying a piece of, there’s a place that I like to go that’s a weird boutique collection of things, but they also have these really interesting pieces of jewelry that are like, there’s a guy in Virginia who works in this mine that his family owns and he takes these things out of it and makes this custom jewel. Like it was always a weird backstory. Okay. And Jessie likes funky stuff and funky jewelry. Yeah. Last time I was in that place and the woman knows me ’cause I’ve bought several things, but like, I engaged in a way, maybe I am changing, maybe I’ve actually been working towards this because she was explaining it to me and then we kind of like talked more about this guy. And I’m asking like, follow-up questions, and talking about the stuff that Jessie likes. And then like, she sees my tattoo, this has only happened like two or three times. She’s like, oh, tell me about that. And so I got to, and she was the kind of person who was definitely I knew was going to be into the full explanation of the tattoo. Oh, okay. Do you know what I’m saying? Like, you know, if there’s someone who can take it, who can take the like two minute explanation of the tattoo. Yeah. And appreciate it. And then that led to more conversation. So you know, I think that, yeah, we can do this Link. I think that’s what we’re saying, we can do this, we can be people who talk to strangers. Next time we go on a trip somewhere, I’m gonna coach you all. Yeah. And then send you off to go talk to strangers. That’s right. I definitely feel like I need some gutter bumpers, you know? Oh, you need some bumpers. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. When you’re in your mode, whatever you wanna call that mode, you definitely talk to strangers but I would call it talking at strangers more. It’s not really about getting somebody to tell you something. It’s about getting a reaction. Well, there’s difference between, there’s a fine line between shooting the shit and talking shit. Yeah. You know, I think that’s, sometimes I like, you know, I’m on the talking shit side, not the shooting the shit side. Yep, yep, yep. Definitely. Yeah. And if somebody else is on the talking shit side, I love it. That’s it, boy. That’s strange to me. And when that starts happening, I’m like, okay, I’m gonna move away. I’m gonna back away slowly. That is fun to me. But I don’t know, maybe I could pick up on clues. You could write a book on talking shit. What I need is, it’s like, I just need this kind of like bumping phones together before I talk to a stranger. Kind of like when you indicate to an Uber driver if you want no talk, no music. It’s like they gotta bump and give me everything. Be like, all right, he likes to talk shit but his limit is probably 30 seconds. But he’s self-conscious about this so don’t bring that up. These are the things I need to know because I instinctively- You go for those things. If you like to talk shit but you’re really sensitive about something, you’re in a catch-22 with me. You’re like a bloodhound for finding the one thing that somebody doesn’t want you to mention. It’s like, oh. Listen, we’ll do another podcast on that. I do have a wreck. But yeah, I like the open and friendly. So not in a talking shit kind of world, but in the benefit of fleeting human connection, you know, that’s mutually beneficial. You know, I’m interested in that. I got a little wreck for you. So in our travels for our show that we are releasing in the fall, we’ve, obviously, been traveling a lot with TJ, producer on the show. Yep. And TJ has different musical tastes than I do, but he’s introducing me to some things that I like. And he introduced, he played this song from this band, Sylvan Esso, I guess I would call them like, I mean, the thing they say about themselves is pop music for feeling feelings. But it’s pretty like electronic-ish pop. Moody synth pop. I don’t know enough about this genre to tell you what it is. Okay. But I recommend listening to the song, “Hey Mami” And mommy is spelled M-A-M-I. And you know, found out they’re in Durham, North Carolina. Oh really? They’re not from there, but that’s where they’re at now. Okay. And I think it’s a husband and wife. Anyway, I really like what I’ve listened to thus far and it’s sort of expanding my musical horizons a bit. Very good and weird and in a good way. Okay. Sylvan Esso. You should talk to strangers about this. Yeah, I might. Call us, let us know what you think about anything that we’ve said. If I hurt your feelings, lemme know. No. 1-888. EARPOD1 Talk to you next time. Hey, Rhett and Link. Listen, I’m a little peeved, y’all forgot to mention the hazelnut. We were talking about the snap and the pop of a macadamia nut, hazelnuts got tons of pop. I’m pretty sure they’re healthy for you. Maybe this is frowned upon, but my sole intake of a hazelnut comes strictly from Ferrero Rocher, you know, not a sponsor, but I just think y’all need to talk about the hazelnut. Get a little more hazelnut in your life, not just the coffee creamer. All right. Love y’all.