Ear Biscuits with Rhett & Link - 256: Should Link's Family Get A Kitten? | Ear Biscuits Ep.256

Episode Date: September 21, 2020

Link opens up to the now cat-tolerant Rhett on a new proposal from Link's daughter Lily. Listen to R&L discuss whether or not Link's family should adopt a kitten on this week's Ear Biscuits! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This, this, this, this is mythical. Shop Best Buy's ultimate smartphone sale today. Get a Best Buy gift card of up to $200 on select phone activations with major carriers. Visit your nearest Best Buy store today. Terms and conditions apply. 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, a decision has been thrust upon me and my family. Thrust. And before a final decision is made, I wanna use this forum to talk it through because this is no light decision. This may be one of the most difficult decisions that we've ever made as a family.

And I'm teasing this as if people who listen don't read the title of the podcast and they don't know what I'm talking about. Maybe some people just- The title being something like, should Link get a cat? Yeah. Should Link's family get a kitten?

Which becomes a cat and that's the first point. Uh-huh, yep. But that didn't shut it down. So there's been a whole conversation and I'd like to bring it here to the table, Rhett. Well, I've got lots of thoughts. Oh my gosh, and yeah. And I did some research for you. I the table, Rhett. Well, I've got lots of thoughts. Oh my gosh, and yeah, and it's- And I did some research for you.

I just wanna let you know. Oh, really? Boopity boop, I did some research. Boopity boop. This may turn into one of those podcasts where it's like, I'm just, I'm airing out all of my inner turmoil and getting your opinion on it. Because before we get into that,

I do have something else that I'm grappling with that I don't think will take that long but- Are you using a grappling hook? It's bothered me. No, I'm just using self analysis. Okay. And when I share the story I'm gonna share with you, with my family, I didn't get the response I wanted.

I got, I was like, oh my gosh, am I a creep? Before you share that, do you want to acknowledge the nature of our conversation last week? I think we should probably just quickly. As you know, things got deeply real. One episode turned into two. We are recording this episode before that episode, part two of the conversation is released.

So that means that we haven't seen what you think about it yet, how you've responded. So we're going to hold off. But it's been a week since you've listened to it if you're listening as these come out. So we anticipate that you've weighed in on the conversation using hashtag your biscuits, which if you haven't, it's not too late.

As always use hashtag your biscuits to be a part of this conversation. Right and we don't know, I mean, we could continue the conversation, we could just have a follow up, but we just didn't wanna do it until we kinda hear your thoughts on it. Yeah, so I mean, we're open to continue the conversation, we could just have a follow up, but we just didn't wanna do it until we kinda hear your thoughts on it. Yeah, so I mean, we're open to continuing the conversation

publicly in some form or another, if the public discourse calls for it. If not, we'll just move on. It's not like we didn't continue to talk about it for two more hours after that podcast. And we're still good. We are still good. We're still good.

We were good and we're still good. Don't worry about us. That's right. Worry about yourself. But you're not making eye contact. Okay, but that's too much eye contact. Because it hurts my neck. Okay, okay.

My neck's kind of hurting too. I like to look into my, actually I don't ever look into my camera. You probably look into that camera a lot. I do sometimes. You're a camera looker. Yeah. I'm not a camera looker. Yeah, I'll look into that camera

if I want to emphasize my opinion on something you're saying non-verbally. I wonder how many times I've actually looked into the camera that's filming me. I don't believe that it's many. I go through life looking for a camera to communicate with non-verbally. That's true, we can have a conversation about that too.

That's another one, yeah. I get this is kind of, this first thing is kind of related to, well, cameras a little bit. I mean, my kids are well into school I mean, my kids are well into school and like I opened the door and they've got this screen and there's like all of these kids with their faces on the screen.

And it's so weird to be doing class over Zoom. I'm not doing it. And I really hadn't experienced it. I mean- Is it an extended, my kids don't start until next week, by the way, it's really late for the school. Is it like, hey, we're in class from eight o'clock until 2 p.m.?

Pretty much, yeah. I mean, with breaks. If one continuous, and they're required, no, it's not that- You gotta go to different teachers, as high schoolers. Yeah, I mean Lando doesn't. But Shepherd's gonna have the same teacher the whole day. Yeah, Lando's got the same teacher.

There is one class that switches out and I haven't asked him exactly how that works, but I mean they've got scheduled in breaks and like he gets up and moves around. I mean I heard some banging in there and he was like. Drone class. He was doing PE, he was doing calisthenics. Oh wow. In his bedroom. I was like okay Drone class. He was doing PE, he was doing calisthenics. Oh wow.

In his bedroom. I was like, okay. With the camera on? Yeah, like he was following along with like the instructional thing. Well, that's tough. But the thing I realized was, well, I mean, we've been conducting so much of our business

and like teamwork and coordination and meetings on Zoom for months and months and months now, but that's totally different than being in a class. But we did get a taste of it whenever, I mean, as a company, we're doing a class. You know, I don't wanna get into the specifics of it, but it's just pertinent to say in a totally different mode than how we conduct our business

and business meetings over Zoom, we're all attending these enrichment classes, right? So we're all basically students for that one hour every week or every other week. And that's as close as I feel like I've come to what it feels like to be my kids in school in remote electronic learning. And something happened there that I observed that,

I don't know, it just disturbed me a little bit. On Reddit, there's a thread called, Am I the asshole? Where somebody posts something that happens to them and how they contributed to a situation and the question up for debate is, was I the asshole in this situation? And the best ones are the ones where the title

seems to like spell out what I did makes me an asshole. But then when they describe it, the really good ones change your mind because the details. My question to you is. Yeah, yeah, you are the asshole. Am I, no, it's a slightly different question. It's am I a creep? Okay.

Here's what happened. We were in one of these, you were in it too. We were both in this class of sorts and- I think I know where you're going with this by the way, but I'm not gonna say anything. Okay, you gotta tell me, okay, all right. Here's what happened. You know, I debated whether to talk about this

because I wanted it to be clear up top and hopefully I've made it clear if any of our employees are listening that this is a different venue than, and I haven't done this with anybody that works for me. I know what you're going to say and yes, I have done it. Okay, so I'm looking at the screen and like, okay, you know, it's a class, you're mine.

I'm paying attention, but it's just somebody talking and there's a, they'll usually put a presentation slide up. And the thing with the slide is you can read everything on the slide like that, but they've only read through half of it. So I'm like, okay, I know where this is going. I've read the second half of the slide. So what am I gonna do now?

I'm gonna look around at the other people and see if they're paying attention. And I noticed that one person who was sitting, you know, with the webcam on, we all basically all had our webcams on. By the way, for my kids, they're required to have their webcams on. Okay, you just can't, you can't turn it off

and say that you're paying attention. Of course. Which makes sense. Just like you can't just like put a sheet over yourself in class. Same principle. I'm putting on my privacy sheet. One of your kids got into trouble for that?

Like you had to say, well, it was your idea? Yeah, it was a tarp. A privacy tarp. I noticed this one person in the background, like they're sitting in the foreground, right in front of their webcam, but in the background over this person's shoulder, I see some, one of the far walls is decorated with albums.

I'm like, oh, I did that in our creative house. Okay, this is going in a different direction. one of the far walls is decorated with albums. I'm like, oh, I did that in our creative house. Okay, this is going in a different direction. Oh, it is. So then I went over and I pinned this person and I made them full screen. So I could see if I could identify their albums. And so I'm looking over this person's shoulder, happens to be a woman.

To me, that's not pertinent. But you did mention it. And I'm looking- As if it might be. I'm looking over her shoulder at her albums and I'm like, I don't, I don't, and I'm like leaning in. You know, I'm like, I don't recognize any of these albums. It was like- And then she's like, what are you looking at?

That's not how it works. In 2030, that's how it'll work. I'm like, I recognize that Harry Styles album, the one with watermelon sugar on it. Okay, you're really narrowing it down. Whoever this is is going to know who it was. Yeah, maybe that's why I shouldn't be talking about it. It's someone who works for us,

who is a woman who has albums in the background. No, it's not someone who works for us. It's someone who works for the company that's putting on the class. I do not know this person. That changes things. This person does not work for me. That's important to me.

Because then as I'm looking at these albums, my eyes move over a little bit and there she is. And I'm like, oh my gosh, this feels creepy. Meaning I'm starting to feel like a creep and I like, unpin her and I like, I was like, oh my gosh, what have I done? Who am I? Cause it felt weird that like I was like scrutinizing

this person's decor, but then I'm like, that's borderline creepy. I mean, people could pin anybody they want and just stare a person down. That's what I do. And that, okay, you please take the heat off me and tell me about this. I knew this is what you were gonna say.

It went a slightly different direction. So, and it's interesting that you found this ability like more, it seems more recently. Well, I know you can pin people. No, no, you- Pin people who aren't talking? You began to- And don't know you're looking at them? Practice this.

I think this happened pretty early on for me in COVID. And, but I, for me in COVID. And, but I, my motivation for doing it, which is we're in a big meeting and everybody's listening. And I click on people so I can see if like, if they seem engaged, if they're like processing something. Is this a meeting that you're leading? I think the first time I did it

was in a senior staff meeting that we did as Zoom, right? It's just, I'm kind of just, sometimes I'm like this person's talking about this. Does this person who isn't directly related to this, I'm asking the question of an employer, of a boss. It's like, are they engaged? It's a valid question. If you're sitting around a boardroom table, which we normally do with our staff meetings.

I would look at a person who's like, is so-and-so listening to so-and-so and should they be? Like I'm thinking things like that, right? Yeah. And then more recently with the training classes. But hold on, with that boardroom, you're telling me that you pinned someone who was listening to someone else talking

in order to analyze if they were engaged. Yeah. And then did you feel a pang of creepiness? This is the analogy that I use, okay? So sometimes I go on a walk at night, right? And go up to people's windows. And I'm walking, there are some houses that like the big, like biggest window

in the front of the house is into their living room and you can see what they're watching on television. Oh, I've done this. I don't stop walking. You don't stop walking, do you? Not usually. If they're watching on television. Oh, I've done this. I don't stop walking. You don't stop walking, do you? Not usually. If they're watching something really interesting. You don't like square up, turn your shoulders.

No, but you know what happened the other night was walking and I looked into somebody's living room. Basically what I'm saying is when you've got your blinds open at night. It's permission. Your living room is like, my understanding is you're saying, yeah, you can look at my house.

And that's how I felt ultimately about the album collection. I was like, this person set up the shot. Yes, they framed it. They framed the shot. They set dressed their own Zoom shot. Everything in the frame is fine for people to see because they've set up that shot.

Now I don't feel that way about the bedroom window. You know, I'm not a peeping Tom. I don't go to the side yard and look into, that's off limits, but I'm in the street. Like I haven't left the sidewalk. I'm not in your yard. I may slow down. I slowed down the other night because I passed a house

and I was like, what is that they're watching on television? Oh, this is a new one, this show. and I was like, what is that they're watching on television? Oh, this is a new one, this show. And I was like, they have a security feed of their driveway on their television and that's why I'm currently on the television. What, what, are you serious? Yeah. Are you serious?

Yeah, it's not that exciting. Did you, it is, that's crazy. And now- Wait, did you serious? Yeah. Are you serious? Yeah, it's not that exciting. Did you, it is, that's crazy. And now- Wait, did you wave? No, but now every time I walk by, I'm like, there's the house that's got the security feed of the driveway, very prominent in the living room, facing back.

Were they seated in there watching it? No, it's just constantly, if they're not watching television, they've got a security feed of the driveway on the living room television. I can do that. Well, I can probably do it too. Is this a contest?

You're competitive, man. I know, I'm just saying. I'm saying with the Nest Cam and the Grooble Calm crashed. You can cast the screen. You have the capability of doing that. Like if I'm expecting guests, sometimes I'll put it up there. They must always be expecting guests.

It's hilarious that you stopped and saw yourself on their television. Here's the thing though. Here's what I've concluded. They know this is how it works. Because why would they leave the window open and have the television where you can clearly see? I actually think it might be for like intruders.

It might be like anybody who comes into our driveway will see themselves in our driveway that we are seeing on this feed. Because you would put it in like a different room if you didn't want people. So what I'm saying is- Yeah, yeah. That Zoom window in a video conference is your public facing window.

And so I feel, now, if I'm just like, I'm gonna click on this person and just look at them, which is not what I've done, just watch them to watch them. I don't even know why I would do that, you know. But it's- To see what it feels like to be creepy. For the training exercises, again, like you said, we're in this class and this is an idea,

and we'll probably end up talking about what the training is later. We're just in the early stages of it right now. This was our idea. It was our idea for everyone to go through this training. And I am thinking like, are they getting what they need out of this? Do they seem engaged?

Oh, so you do pin other- I pin multiple employees. And you could tell by the way I told the story that I felt comfortable pinning someone I didn't know who I was taking a class from versus pinning someone who worked for me. I think if they heard that, I'm just afraid they would be creeped out.

I don't pin them for an extended period of time. Cause you can't see everybody, right? So everybody I can see if they're like, oh, this person, but if it's like, hmm, that person looks mad or that person looks disengaged, I might click on them and be like, am I getting the right impression from them right now? And it might be a five second checking in like,

oh, okay, all right. But they looked mad, but they just are just, you know. Do you feel, and again, I'm really on the fence. I'm legitimately asking, do you feel okay about this because you're the boss and there's like a professional motive associated with it? I would feel fine if they did it to me. I thought that I was gonna need to develop

some sort of approach of like, okay, I'm gonna direct message this person and say, would you mind if I pinned you so that I could see, take a closer look at your albums? And see, you're saying that's worse. The difference between me and you is that I'll just look at their albums and feel no remorse and you'll send a message that actually

Makes it worse. Makes it worse. Now that we're talking about it. Confessions make things worse, but then they provide, they relieve burdens. Now, okay, if I had the ability, I don't know how to do this, I'm sure there are people who can do this. If I had the ability, I don't know how to do this, I'm sure there are people who can do this.

If I had the ability to, like if I see a message on your phone that is intended for you, I shouldn't read that. If I had the ability, well, I was getting to hacking. I do have the ability to read a message on a phone. I'm sorry, I lost my train of thought. But what I was getting at is some people can like hack your security cameras at home, right?

And like look at what you're seeing on your Nest camera. Really? Yeah. And I mean, this is why you need two-step authentication, but I'm sure you already have it set up. But if you didn't and someone was able to get into your, obviously that's a violation of someone's privacy because they do not,

they think that this video feed is for them. But when they are, when I'm on a video conference, my assumption is anybody could be looking at me right now. I think we just need to send out. You're talking about the difference between somebody being small on your screen and somebody being big on your screen. If you got a big ass monitor already,

the small people are already big. So there's a gray area here. I just think that this is your open, in fact, the living room window thing is even, is not a great analogy because if you were watching television in your living room and you saw a tall man like slowly walking in front, in your front yard, like looking at what you're watching on television,

you'd feel a little violated because you're not, the window isn't open. Unless he was like, you were watching. Right. And then it's, whoa, that's a tit for tat. So yeah, so I just think that this is like, this is like a window, this is like a drive-through window. You open it and of course you can look behind me. This is my public facing window.

I just don't think people will, I just don't think people are aware of it. I feel like there needs to be a warning. Maybe. It's like, remember, you're being, you can be watched in full screen at any moment. So watch your resting faces. I think everybody already knows this.

It's easy to forget. Yeah, you start scratching an itch before you know people are watching. And that itch could be anywhere. Okay, amendment to my idea. If I had somebody pinned for investigatory purposes, not even sure if that's a word, and they began to do something embarrassing,

and it was clear to me that they had forgotten that they could be pinned at any point. Booger picking, you know, something more salacious, whatever. At that point, I feel it would be my moral obligation to unpin them and maybe even send them a message. Hey, you're on chat, don't forget that. And you were big on my screen. You were coming up big.

Is that Eric Clapton on that album behind you? I would have recognized Eric Clapton. Slow hand. I also wonder, should we send out a memo? I'm not gonna single you out. I think we've done that by making it on a podcast. Hey, you know what, employees, just remember at any moment,

Rhett could be, you could be coming up big for Rhett. I think we just in the general slack, the general slack before the next training meeting, we say, please listen to the latest episode of Your Pistons. Gosh. Cause you should be doing it anyway. I don't know, man.

I feel like I'm never gonna pin anyone again and now you're gonna be pinning constantly. How did that happen? I'll do all the pinning for the both of us. I gotta tell this story. I gotta throw my son under the bus, take some of the heat off of me. Lincoln, who's 15, he's just getting started

and at the dinner table, I was like asking about class and how does it work with Zoom? And he got this sheepish look on his face that he's about to tell a Lincoln story. And so we all get excited about that. And he's like, well, I was in, I don't remember which class it was. And he was like, you know, I was just, I was making a noise to myself,

you know, like during class, I was like, I'm like, what? What is that noise? He's like, I don't know. I was bored, I was just making a noise. He's like, I was like, it sounds like you were dying. It's like, that's your boredom noise? And he's like, yeah, so I was like, it sounds like you were dying. It's like, that's your boredom noise?

And he's like, yeah, so I was like, and then all of a sudden I looked and I got big on the screen and I realized I wasn't muted. Yeah, that's how it works, Lincoln. Lincoln said, because everyone's automatically muted, usually in a classroom. And he said, the teacher said, "'We gotta mute that boy."

Well, let me just- In front of everybody. And then Lincoln was like, he was like, "'I sent a private message to my teacher "'and I was like, I am so sorry, I thought I was on mute.' But I was like, "'But you didn't explain why you were making the death noise?' If there was ever any doubt that Lincoln is of your loins,

you do not need a paternity test. What if I was doing that while you were talking, thinking I was muted? Wow, death noise. I'm glad we solved that one because now we got to solve this cat problem. Wherever you're going, you better believe American Express will be right there with you.

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Terms apply. Can I ask you one question before you get started about this? Yeah, yeah, yeah. The timing of this is interesting, right? I know it is. Because just the other night, not the other night, the other day when we were at the creative house, you know, our kids, all of our kids have taken

to using the creative house as their like, I don't know, like their getaway. And like, Locke will be like, "'Dad, gonna go to the creative house today?' And I'm like, okay. And like, he hasn't even started school yet. And I'm just like, why do you like going over there? He's like, I just like to get away.

Yeah, exactly. It's like, you know, have a play, just, you know, you get to go over to a house. Yeah. You know? So Lily has come over a number of times to do some work. And when she came over the other day, she was like, Hey, Rhett, I think we might get a cat

or I think I might get a cat. And she was obviously trying to instigate something, a conversation. Yeah. But I assume that she doesn't, for her own good, listen to this podcast. She doesn't know about my encounters with a cat. She doesn't know about the soft place in my heart

that I now have for cats. No, Rhett, Lily has taste and she listens to Dear Hank and John. Okay, you're right. She's too smart for us. She knows what's up. So you're just saying, this makes it even more interesting.

You're just saying it's serendipity. It's potentially destiny. She knows your reputation of hating cats. She doesn't know the update. Wow. Because you're bringing this into a very different environment. If you had brought this proposal into Rhett

from two months ago, I would have a completely different, but my whole attitude towards cats has changed. Because you had a run in with cat that you gave your love to this cat and now it's gone. And presumably dead. I mean, people got upset with me. Some people got upset with me that I presumed it was dead, but listen, just the other night,

right before I went past the house and saw myself on someone's television, I went past the cat house. We always go past there. Still no cat. Still a sign up, still lost. The cat's not coming back. Has your hurt grown?

I gotta say that I'm like, man, what are the chances I can find another cat like that? That was a highlight of those walks. Now I do have the ability to see myself on the television, which is I definitely go by that house every time. That's a highlight now. Which is just kind of a substitute for the cat. But no, like it's funny because it was getting

to the point where, because all these people followed up after that podcast and were like, oh yeah, tabbies, they're called tabbies, the orange tabby, right? Oh yeah, those are always really, really friendly. Oh, you know what? Also a Maine Coon, which is the official cat of Maine. They're huge.

They're very sweet too, they're very dog-like. And I'd heard that, because we've got some friends who've got a Maine Coon. A lot of hair though. And so, yeah, I'm sure I'm allergic to it. Anyway, I just, you're gonna, this is gonna fall on soft ears, but I will say I have something that might give you pause.

And that's not a pun, but it kind of is a good one. So yeah, I meant to say pause. So the other night, well, Lily texts, Lily hardly ever texts me. You know, she's beginning her senior year. I feel for her. That's tough. Because you know, it's her senior year of high school and here she is just doing it on a screen,

getting pinned unknowingly by creeper guys. Ready player one. I'm freaking concerned. And I'm just, you know, I'm just a little sad. She's doing well, all things considered, but it's just a bummer. And so she texts me and like I perk up cause I'm like, she sent me a pic of a cat.

That was just it. Okay, that's smart. And then I didn't know how to respond. And then I got distracted. Is there something particular about the cat? I didn't know how to respond. And then I got distracted. Is there something particular about the cat? I didn't respond. Was it doing something funny? Was it skateboarding?

On the second look, the cat was in her lap. I could tell when I got home, I could tell that was in her lap because it was her shorts. But when I got home, we're eating dinner and we're about to eat dinner. And this is like family conversation time. But she says, dad, there's something

I need to talk to you about. And I'm like, okay, and I'm thinking dinner. She's like, after dinner. Oh, okay, that's interesting. Oh, okay, well, so. We all talk about, oh. This doesn't need to be for the whole family. This just needs to be for me, is what I thought.

And then when dinner was over, I honestly, I'd gotten distracted. I'd gone into police mode of make sure all the dishes are done. Yeah, that's pleasant. By someone that's not me. Yeah, I'm not fun to live with sometimes. And she's like, dad, I need you to come sit on the couch.

I was like, oh my God, is this a freaking intervention? And then she like, she turns on the television and she's standing. And like, Christy's like smiling, like she knew what was up. And all of a sudden I look on the television and she's standing. And like Christy's like smiling, like she knew what was up. And all of a sudden I look on the screen and it is the first slide of a presentation that she has created that I would now, with her permission, like to share with you.

Let me pull this in here. Oops. Oh, here it is. As you can see, it's a beautiful orange hue background with white bold lettering. And if you're, I mean, if you're not watching this and you wanna watch this, Ear Biscuits YouTube channel, every Sunday we release a video version.

It's got all the visuals, including this. Big, bold, white letters. "'Reasons why you should let me get a kitten'." And then it hits me. "'This is a presentation trying to talk me into,'' well, it's pretty obvious. Yeah, it's sort of the thesis is in the title. Yeah, it's very straight.

She hit me over the head with it, which she knows how to communicate with dad. It's like, hit him hard so that he's not confused. And then in little letters it says, featuring Yeti. Which I presume is a cat. I didn't know at this point. Or is she just gonna use like a Yeti microphone? And then down here it says, listen to me, dot, dot, dot.

I'm for real. I can be very persuading. That's good, that's a really good start. I would have said I could be very persuasive, but I don't think grammatically she was there, but her puns are on point. You know what's interesting about this? Is this a thing that the youth are doing?

Because, you know, for, she's never, for Mother's Day, for Mother's Day this year, I told Locke and Shepard, I was like, guys, you gotta go all out. I mean, you don't do anything. You just live here and you eat and you're here all the time. You drive your mom crazy.

Do something cool, okay? Show some effort. Yeah. I, you drive your mom crazy. Do something cool, okay? Show some effort. Yeah. And- I remember you telling me about this, yeah. Shepard wrote her original song called Mom. Okay. Now it was just a piano, just an instrumental, but it was beautiful.

I recorded it. She loved it. I think she may have cried a little bit. We listened to that. And then I was like, Locke, what did you do? And he was like, oh, oh. He like got this look on his face like, you won't believe what I did.

And then he said, mom, come into the living room and sit down and he was casting a presentation onto the television and he led a presentation about Jessie and how awesome of a mom she was. Brilliant. So are kids doing presentations? Because that's something to get excited about. We can complain about generation whatever they are right now all we want,

but if they're doing presentations, there's hope. What was the last thing that filled you with wonder, that took you away from your desk or your car in traffic? Well, for us, and I'm going to guess for some of you, that thing is... Anime! Hi, I'm Nick Friedman. I'm Lee Alec Murray. And I'm going to guess for some of you, that thing is... Anime! Hi, I'm Nick Friedman. I'm Lee Alec Murray. And I'm Leah President.

And welcome to Crunchyroll Presents The Anime Effect. It's a weekly news show. With the best celebrity guests. And hot takes galore. So join us every Friday wherever you get your podcasts and watch full video episodes on Crunchyroll or on the Crunchyroll YouTube channel. That's the brilliant manipulation of it all, Rhett. Because she knew that you would love a presentation. Yes, and I mean, I would venture to guess

if we went to the right realms of TikTok, all the children are talking about, hey kids, psst, you wanna get what you want outta life? You wanna wrap your parents around your finger? Present something to them. Present something to them. Pick a font and a color and have at it. Cause it gives you the idea that your kids

might one day be gainfully employed, you know what I'm saying? Right. It's like if you can do this. You can do business. I mean half, dare I say 75% of corporate success. 80% of corporate success. If you can do a presentation.

Presentation bullshit. You will win at life. Yeah. I mean, where would we be without PowerPoint? Right. Man. Okay, I'm really interested in this. And I perked up.

I perked up. As you should have. Slide two. Now you see there's a picture of a cat. Reason number one, the cuteness factor. And then on the right, there's a picture, it's the picture that she texted me. Apparently, but when I did not respond to the text at all, she was like, oh, that didn't work, I gotta up my game.

And that's when the presentation came out. I didn't ask her that, but above the picture it says, his name is Yeti. And it's this white kitten, a few weeks old, sitting on, that's Lily's lap, those are her purple pants. And then underneath it, it just says, just look at it. This is smart, because this is- The cat is looking right into my soul.

There are a few principles in advertising that she is really doing effectively here. The first one is the fact that she exposed you to a picture of the cat just out of the blue. So this is a repeated exposure to the idea. And you know, people have to see and hear things multiple times in order to actually take action. So the fact that she seated the cat earlier in the day,

really, really smart. Maybe she should go into advertising. Now, she has this friend who's fostering kittens before they're adopted. So she goes over and hangs out with this person and has told me that like, oh, these cats are so cute. You gotta see these little kittens. So I was aware that this was happening,

but I didn't really see this. Is that cat gonna turn red, orange? It looks like it's a, it looks. It's a white cat with just a little tinge of, it looks like brown, it could be orange. It looks friendly. Some blue eyes. The fact she's not saying, at this point I'm like,

she's not saying, dad, I want a kitten. She's saying, dad, I want this kitten. It's staring into your soul. Its name is Yeti. I like that name. Slide three. Reason number two. Listen, anxiety is a real problem.

Cats can help. Here are some facts for you. Mm-hmm. Cats lower your stress level. Cats lower anxiety because they take less effort than dogs. Petting a cat has a positive calming effect. That's good. And finally, 84% of people say that their feline friend

had a positive impact on their life. And there's two pictures of, we're into stock photo territory now. But kittens, exclusively. Of kittens making eye contact again with my soul. This is good, this is good. So I'm not, but I'm starting to put up walls and thinking. You might be in the 16%.

You know, the anxiety thing, I just, I feel like at best, it's probably a wash. There's a lot of, bringing another creature into my house raises my anxiety. I have a lot of questions, but you know what? I had made up my mind. Hold questions to the end. I'm not gonna interject.

Yeah. And I'm gonna try to make a demurring face, which is hard to interpret. That's a vocabulary word. Next slide. Reason number three, Jade will have a friend. This is the weakest point, but proceed. Studies show that it is extremely important

for dogs to be socialized. Constant socialization will help Jade with her aggression towards people and other animals. So there's a picture of Jade. If you want more of those, then go to Jade the official Instagram channel. I think that picture's on it. Boy, is she cute.

Look how cute that dog is. And just below it is Yeti the cat. And then there's on it. Boy, is she cute. Look how cute that dog is. And just below it is Yeti the cat. And then there's a caption. Can't you just picture them being the best of friends? Look how cute they are together. Well, they're not really together. They've been put together on a presentation. So that feels manipulative.

Yeah. Now, if she had gone the extra mile to Photoshop them together, I'd be listening. But I think that this is the problem here is I can't picture them being the best of friends because I've had experience with Jade. Right. Now, Jade and Barbara are the best of friends.

But Jade was better with the cat. In our vlog. In my house than Barbara was. The prevailing theory there is that they were in a neutral territory for Jade. It was not Jade's home. But it was Barbara's home and she was freaked out, yeah. Because Barbara loved the lost cat.

I can feel many listeners at this point having lots more knowledge about introducing cats to dogs and all the dynamics there and picking apart her argument. I'm not privy to that information. So the way that I, but more to come on that. So don't get too worked up. For now, I'll just say there's a weakness in her argument here with number three

because her second point highlights a problem, which is constant socialization will help Jade with her aggression towards people and other animals. It's basically saying Jade is aggressive. But she had to address this point. You could have argued, listen, don't bring it up, but it's such a concern. It's the leading concern.

So she couched it. She made it reason number three. Yeah. So I understand why she included it, but I think that she should have included- You think Lily could be a lawyer? Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Well, do they do PowerPoint in courtrooms?

Yes, she could be. The thing that I'm looking for here is some sort of relevant fact about how she just said constant socialization will help Jade with her aggression. I need some data to back that up. Because I know that Stevie has a cat and a dog and- I was thinking about that a lot and I'm like, I think Stevie does to back that up. Cause I know that like Stevie has a cat and a dog and- I was thinking about that a lot and I'm like,

I think Stevie does not like her cat. Don't speak for Stevie. I'm not gonna, I said I think, I could be wrong. I just know that- I know she loves her dog. I know that the dog and the cat are not on the best of terms. But they can be in the same room. Well, yeah.

They don't hate each other. Next slide. Reason number four, cats pretty much do everything themselves. Another picture of a kitty and then a picture of a trash can with the sign litter on it. Which almost looks like a coffin. They can go to the bathroom and bathe

without any help or training. Huh, I was like, hmm, that's interesting. But don't worry, I'll keep the litter box in my closet. That's not, that doesn't make me feel great. It made me feel good. It's like, okay, this is gonna be your problem. But I have some concerns I'll get to later. Okay, now I have a, what might be for you,

if you've never heard about it, a mind blowing little path that I wanna take you down that is relevant to reason number four. Now we can come back to it. I don't know how many reasons there are in this presentation. I think there might be one more. The litter box in the closet raises concerns that I feel I need to inform you as a friend about.

But I'm gonna take you down a path though. So it's gonna take some time. Let me get through the rest of this because I wanna say what my response to her was. So I'll go through the rest of the presentation. Reason number five, Yeti and I can even make the same demon eyes face. Look, it's a picture of the cat getting scrubbed

on her neck by Lily. And then it's a closeup and her right eye is looking off to the right and her left eye is looking a little off to the left. That's not, this was a, this is a. And this is something that like the clown, the it clown. Can do, yeah.

Yeah, he can. On command. And Lily can do that. And it scares the crap out of me when she does it. She like looks down and then her eyes go up and out. And it's like, it's like the demon's trying to pop out of her brain. So she has a connection to this cat. Why she didn't put her face on there? Because she knew it was scared the crap out of me.

Final slide, bold letters right in the middle. That is my pitch. Then smaller letters. Please let me get a kitten. And then I look over at her from the screen and my daughter who I'm, she's my first born, I love her deeply. I'm super proud of her.

I'm beaming with pride that she has constructed a cohesive set of arguments and formed it into a presentation and I just can't deny. And I'm like, the way that I respond. She will remember it for the rest of her life. And here's the thing with teenagers. I'm keenly aware that every time they go out on a limb with either to assert themselves, to take a risk,

to share feelings, what's going on inside of themselves. It's always precarious because, I felt like any time you respond to a teenager, it feels like your entire relationship is riding on it. Well, especially now. Especially now. Because if I gave this presentation to my dad, he'd be like, nope, you know? Well, especially now. Especially now. Because if I gave this presentation to my dad, he'd be like, nope, and then he would just walk out.

And I still have a good relationship with him, but if I were to do that to my kids. The terms of our relationship. They'd fall apart. Are a little different and I don't know, you can pass your own judgment on what that is, but you know, you wanna keep connection going, you wanna keep communication lines open.

You know what, they can't get everything they want, but you have to do it in a way that it doesn't close them off to you because their predisposition is to close themselves off. I mean, I'm speaking in generalities, and Lily may not say that, but I'm maybe I'm speaking less from the reality of our relationship and more from like fear of how it may work.

And even when Christy and I talked about it later, we were like, I don't really want a cat, but I don't wanna make her this upset about something she's so passionate about at a time where we're like looking for things to, you know, positive things to experience, you know? Yeah. I made a, I was like,

I just need to be really calculated in my response. I was like, first thing I need to say needs to be positive and affirming. I was like, you know what, Lily, I wanna commend you on making this presentation, on taking the time to do it and everything in it. And I just want to acknowledge that if it were not for you, Jade would not be a part of our lives.

And that decision, she found Jade at an adoption thing and she brought us all over and said, I want this puppy. We need this puppy. And the first picture I have is the two of them like at that moment because Christy wasn't there and I like texted her the picture and stuff. So I acknowledged that and I was like, so I'm gonna hear you out.

I was like, second thing I need to point out is, in 10 months from now, you're gonna be gone. And if you go off to college, most likely you're not gonna be able to take this cat with you. This is a family decision to have a cat. Yeah, this isn't her getting a cat, this is you getting a cat.

This is you getting a cat for 10 months or so, and then us getting a cat for the rest of the time it's here. Yeah, 20 years maybe. And that really concerns me. I'm also really concerned about the impact to Jade. Like I don't want Jade's feelings to be hurt. Well, they will be at least initially.

And if there's anybody that I spoil, without any argument, it is Jade. Like I got no defense for that. And I'm not proud of it, but it does happen constantly. So I think about her and then I'm like, I need to know if this were to happen, I'm not saying it will, I'm not saying I'm on board and all of us have to be on board.

Lando was there the whole time, like begging for it to happen, he's on board. Lincoln seemed to be on board, but didn't care because Jade's his, like he's really close to Jade. He's making death noises. She sleeps with him now, he's like. Christy does not want a cat, Christy wants another dog. Well, that's what I was gonna ask

because it feels like the only person whose opinion really matters in this situation is Christy's. And Christy's like, I'm concerned about the fact that I want us to have another dog and I don't want this to keep us from that. Ultimately, it's where we're boxed out of that decision. And also, she loves plants more than she loves me. And so she was very concerned about the plants.

Because cats will eat the plants. Cats eat plants. That cat ate plants at my house. Some cats will die because they eat the wrong plants. You gotta think about your plants and a plant person doesn't wanna think about their plants. And I was like, Lily, you need to address the plants. You need to do research on that.

I need to know if there's a trial period. I need to know what it would look like to introduce, how would we introduce the two of them? I need you to do research on that. And I mean, we have to face the fact that like, they may not get along. We're making a true test. We cannot just relegate a cat that in 10 months you're gonna be gone

that has to be isolated from our dog. We can't live that way. But you could go feral after 10 months. I'm like, real talk, we have to have an actual trial. If this were to move forward and a possible outcome is that we have to give the cat back because it's not good for the cat or the dog or our family. And you would have to be ready for that.

So she went back and did a research. She did a second presentation, which I'm not gonna show you. I'm not gonna go through it, but this is what it looked like. You can see it here. Mostly text. It's just white. There's no more. Mostly text. It's just white. There's no more passion in it. It's just text.

And all it does is it walks through how to introduce a cat to a home with a dog. This could have been an email, but I appreciate the effort. And it's, so we're up to speed on what it takes step by step over weeks to introduce a kitten to a dog to have a chance. So, you know, this is like a multi-month trial. Yeah, by the time you've gotten through it,

she's gonna be off at college. But the last thing I said was, Lily, you have to give me, you have to address all my concerns and you also have to, I'm interested in how you're gonna sweeten the deal. She was like, what do you mean? You want me to pay you? I'm like, no, I'm like,

are you willing to make a commitment to like watching movies with me that I want- Bribing. Yeah, like bribe me. Like I want us to watch some movies together that are my choosing. I want you to have a good attitude when we watch them. I was like, this is an opportunity to force her

into to cultivate our relationship and you need to pull out all the stops. Also, you need to give me carte blanche to exploit anything associated with this experience for entertainment purposes on your biscuits. Yeah, well, that's a given. It wasn't a given, because she tells me not to talk about stuff all the time.

Like, just kidding. So that brings us to now. Okay, all right, I'm gonna throw what might be a complicating wrench into this a little bit, because I'm not sure that in any of these presentations, I can't vouch for the second one, it's very long, if the issue of toxoplasmosis has been addressed. No, it has not.

I have not, I may have heard the term. Prepare to have your mind blown. In preparation for that, I will just say, we've gotten to a point where, because she's been so passionate about it, we've gotten to a point where, because she's been so passionate about it, we're very open to trying out this kitten. I think at this point in this conversation,

I'm predicting that we are going to get the kitten on a trial basis. It has not happened and I don't know if it will happen, but if I had to put money on it, I think that's what's gonna happen. Okay. Now let me just- I kinda like cats. Let me premise this with the fact that, again,

I have a soft spot for cats now. I've already told you that my quote unquote hatred of cats was mostly a bit, I'm just a dog guy that I prefer them. And I did recently fall deeply in love with a cat that is now dead. All that being said, I knew about this whole toxoplasmosis thing before, and I'm sure that if you're a big cat lover,

you're gonna get upset with me because I'm bringing something up that you may think is unfair or whatever. But it's absolutely fascinating, right? And it's amazing how prevalent it is, but people don't really talk about it that much. So there is a single cell microscopic organism called T. gondii. I don't know if I'm saying that right,

but it's not a bacterium or a virus, but it is distantly related to the parasite that causes malaria. Cats get T. gondii and the disease it causes, toxoplasmosis, by eating infected rodents, birds, and other animals. Estimates suggest that about 40% of cats in the United States are infected. Most don't show any symptoms,

but they can develop jaundice or blindness and experience personality changes if the parasite spreads to the liver or nervous system. Now, let me explain how this thing works. So the theory on this is that- You're trying to gross me out of getting a kitten. This particular organism evolved. It only can reproduce in the digestive tract of a cat.

That's the only place that it can actually undergo its reproduction process. So it's gotta get into the poop of cats and then it's gotta get back into a cat's digestive system. So what it has developed is an adaptation whereby when it gets into a rat or a mouse, cysts grow on the neurons inside the mice brain and causes the rodent to lose its fear of cat piss.

So mice and rats- They're repelled by that. They're repelled by cat piss. And if they get toxoplasmosis, not only are they not repelled by it, but some studies suggest that they're into it, that they're attracted to it. And as you can imagine-

The cat opens his mouth. Well, it's pee hole and it walks right into it. They lose their fear of cats essentially, which makes them an easy target, which gets the toxoplasmosis or gets the T. gondii back into the digestive tract of the cat and the process starts all over again, right? Now.

How does it get in the rat or the mice? Because they drink the pee? Poop, it's in the poop, it's not in the pee. And poop is everywhere. Cat's got poop. And the rats eat the cat poop? That it gets, I mean, you end up getting fecal matter in your mouth sometimes.

I mean, it's just all people, this happens. And if you're a rat, you probably get a lot. They make it about you. Say I get rat poop in my mouth. 11% of people in the United States are infected with T Gandhi. So one out of every 10 people is infected. Good God.

Though rates are much higher in regions where people eat more raw meat or sanitation is poor. For example, infection rates exceed 90% in some parts of Europe and South America. I've heard that something like the vast majority, I've heard somebody talk about Brazil has a lot of people infected with T-Gandhi. Now in healthy people,

toxoplasmosis often causes a flu-like illness or no symptoms at all, but it can occasionally be dangerous or even fatal in those with weakened immune systems. Antibiotics can treat the infection, though drugs may not completely banish the parasite. Now, this is where it starts getting crazy. So I saw an article in the New York Times years ago

where somebody's talking about this, basically that crazy cat lady is a real thing, right? So like somebody who lives with a bunch of cats and has almost assuredly been infected by T. gondii, has toxoplasmosis, actually undergoes behavioral changes because of the infection. They like cat pee? And some people say, well,

they could develop an attraction towards cat urine, but the studies, the research on this, the data is really incomplete because you can't really conduct a controlled study on cat people in an ethical way, right? But there's lots of research that suggests that there are behavioral changes. And let me just talk about some of these behavioral changes

that might be the case. Again, this isn't an exact science. might be the case. Again, this isn't an exact science. Jaroslav Fleger, an evolutionary biologist at Charles University in the Czech Republic is looking into this issue. He has spent years studying toxo's impact on human behavior. He found, for example, that people infected

with toxoplasmosis have slower reflexes and are 2.5 times as likely to get into car accidents. I might already have it. Toxoplasma gondii infection is thought to alter the personalities of infected individuals, whether rats or humans, by increasing risk-taking behaviors. Studies have shown that this can lead- So you take risks and you have a slower reaction time.

That's not a good combination. Studies have shown that this can lead- So you take risks and you have a slower reaction time. That's not a good combination. Studies have shown that this can lead to more accidents. But on the flip side, this is where it gets tricky. Stephanie Johnson and colleagues, I don't know who that is, but it's in this article, they recently showed that this risk taking tendency can lead to increased entrepreneurial behaviors. So you gotta take this into account.

Now, the- Crazy cat lady entrepreneur. So it gets weird, but the chances are, especially if your daughter has a cat poop receptacle in her closet, that is- That she's gonna become a business owner. Surely getting on her clothes, which may become business suits, you gotta think about the fact that

she's gonna get a little potentially riskier. And you gotta be comfortable with that. And she may be on the cover of Forbes magazine one day, and thank you, but also, you're probably gonna get infected. I mean, only 11% of people in the United States have it. If the cat never goes out and eats raw flesh, then the cat's not gonna get it. You can't control a cat, you know that. 40% of all States have it? If the cat never goes out and eats raw flesh, then the cat's not gonna get it.

You can't control a cat, you know that. 40% of all cats have it? That's a low estimate. They're called house cats, you don't let them outside. 40% of all cats. That's like almost a coin flip. Globally. No, in the United States.

It's a coin flip. It's a coin flip whether or not you're gonna have toxoplasmosis in your family, in your own brain. There's an upside to it. I just want you to be prepared. Do not mention this to Christy. Oh wow.

You just can't be part of it. Okay, but I'm just telling you that, especially if she's got it in the closet, she's gonna get it. I mean, you're right, the cat has to contract it, which, you know, is probably gonna happen. And I know that cat people are screaming at you right now. And so I'm gonna, you know,

I know there's gotta be a balancing factor, but hey, I appreciate you bringing this up because I will need to achieve a comfort level on this approach. I am not saying, listen, all that being given, and like I said, the science is not super established, but this isn't fringe theory stuff. This is- I've heard of it.

All that being said, they think that if you take the world's population into account, I think that more than half of the entire world is already infected with this, already has toxoplasmosis. So it isn't like- Just go all in. It's not like it's that big of a deal. I mean, some people, it can be a big deal. So I'm not, and this would not preclude me from getting a cat. If I were to get a cat, I mean, some people it can be a big deal. So I'm not, and this would not preclude me

from getting a cat. If I were to get a cat, I wouldn't be like, oh, toxoplasmosis, I mean, I like taking risks, man. And now we're to it because, you know, if my memory serves me correctly, before Lily discovered Jade, and then we decided to adopt her, you said, I think we're gonna get a dog.

You told me that, you as a family, you were heads up, I think we're gonna get a dog. And then I ended up getting a dog before you because- You moved into your new house before. Yeah, because what we said is- When you move into the house, we'll probably get a dog. We had said the whole time that we were living

in our old house, we were like, this is a rental, we can't have a dog. That was the reason. When we buy a house, we're gonna get a dog. And it was like this multiple year lead up to the kids are like, we're gonna get a dog, we're gonna get a dog as soon as we move, no! And so we did.

And I think there's kind of a repeat thing happening. Like you had a connection with a cat, you've softened, then Lily shows up with a cat. And by the way, update on Yeti. After the first presentation, Yeti was adopted. Okay, that's relevant. But there was another one that she was like, you know what, there's another one.

There's always another cat. This one's a black cat. It's like, ooh, now we got luck coming in or lack of luck. Right, yeah. She's like, this one's gonna be even better. This one's more laid back. This one's black. This one, more laid back. This one's black. I'm gonna call this one opal.

So we're gonna have jade and opal. Oh, interesting. Opals can be many colors, but the most valuable color is black, she said. Anyway, I think you're gonna get catnip. Well, the dynamics- So this is really, I'm gonna, you know, out of courtesy, I'm just giving you a heads up that like,

you know what's gonna happen. Well, the dynamics are similar. Here's what I'll say. My family, everyone but me, really wants another dog and has wanted another dog for a long time. And I want another dog. And I like the idea, but I don't know. I feel like I'm the only one in my family

with a real grasp of the negatives that come along with having another being in the house, right? And the poop. Like we don't have, we don't really have much of a yard, right? We've got a little like artificial grass in one spot and that's where Barbara does her business and Barbara's a little dog.

You're gonna double the business. Jessie will like be pulling up pictures of like, a huge giant sheep dog, like sheeple doodles or stuff like that. Like this just looks like a teddy bear. I'm like, could you imagine the size of the turd? All I can see when I see that dog, you see cute giant teddy bear, I see giant pieces of shit.

Now, that's what I see. That's not the case with a cat. So- You're right. But I mean, I don't, to me it's kind of an adventure. Breaking the seal on having an animal in the house was a very rewarding experience for me. And I'm so glad that we got Jade. I have positive experiences with cats.

I'm curious. I think it would be really cool if they could be friends. Again, if they can't, I don't think it will work. And then I'm like, I think we can still get another dog. I don't know. You're gonna be like a farm eventually. Well, a farm that only has pets. That's kind of fun though.

Can I read you a list of names? These are famous people. Some people are dog people and some people are cat people. And if you feel like you're connecting with the people who have been determined to be cat people, maybe that's a sign that you should go the cat way or maybe you should just stay the dog route. Yes, yes, you can read me this list.

Martha Stewart. What's the question? Do I like Martha Stewart? You identify with- When I say Martha Stewart, do you feel like there is a, like a kinship with her spirit in some sense? Like you could vibe with her because I'm gonna tell you

whether she's a dog person or a cat person. I would have said no, but in seeing all of her collabs with Snoop Dogg, she's changed my mind. And now I'm gonna, at the last second, I'm gonna say yes. I could have a connection with Martha Stewart. Martha Stewart is a dog person. Oh.

Speaking of Snoop Dogg, Snoop Dogg. Would I connect with Snoop Dogg? Yeah. I'd love to, yes. Ironically, Snoop Dogg is a cat person. What? Okay, so now I'm 50-50, which is- Okay, all right, all right, okay.

But Jade is like a cat, that's the confusing thing. John Lennon. John Lennon, I'm a McCart, right, okay. But Jade is like a cat, that's the confusing thing. John Lennon. John Lennon, I'm a McCartney man, no. John Lennon is a cat person. Mm, mm, mm, mm, mm. See, and I don't think I, in my mind, I'm like, if I don't like somebody, I'm assuming they're a cat person because I know I'm a dog person,

it's just, am I a both person? All right, Oprah. Boy, I would be intimidated. But then I think she would just, she would make me relax right off the bat and we'd be in a cushy couch together and we'd be like, I think within 10 minutes of hanging out with Oprah, we'd be holding hands.

But you know how when you like hold both hands with somebody and you're looking right into their eye having a conversation. I would love to do that. I've never done that with anybody, but Oprah would be the person I would have the, both her hands and my hands. I think my hands will be in her hands.

Oh, she's in control. Yeah, oh yeah. My hands are in her hands and my eyes are locked on her eyes. And then maybe my head is resting on her bosom after a couple hours. That feels like a connection. Yes.

Oprah is a dog person. Lady Gaga. Lady Gaga. Like in a get up or without makeup? As Stephanie. Yeah, definitely. I wanna connect with her. I've connected with everybody, have I not?

I believe so. Yeah, I wanna meet her too, man. Lady Gaga is a dog person. Isn't that surprising? I know she drives a pickup. Katy Perry. Well, she dated John Mayer. So not for long though.

Is this my end with John Mayer? Not anymore, no. Katy Perry's a cat person. Yeah. Freddie Mercury. Freddie Mercury, man, what a talent. What? What a talent.

I mean, I just, you know, I think it's one of those don't meet your heroes kind of thing. Mm. I just, I think I admire him too much to meet him. So you don't think you would vibe with him? No. Freddie Mercury is a cat person.

You're skewing dog right now, just so you know. Yeah. You're skewing dog. I'm skewing dog. I'm not getting rid of my dog though. The Rock. He's tough, I just don't know. You know, I don't think so.

The Rock is a dog person. And finally, Vanna White. What a talent. Myrtle Beach Girl. Definitely, definitely. I mean, I'd be strolling on the beach. I mean, Christy would be there.

I was about to say, are you in a relationship with Vanna? Cause that's what it sounded like. No, it's just, it's a double date situation. It's a triple date. Is Panna Sajak there? No. Cause they're not a couple. I know, her husband or whatever.

What do you think her husband's like? Do you think he's known as Vanna White's husband? I think it's kind of like a Dolly Parton's husband situation. Low profile? Yeah, you just don't know. It's like, is he covered in tattoos? I've heard, but I don't know. Well, the rumor is that Dolly's covered in tattoos,

not her husband. I think her husband has a lot of tattoos. You definitely connect with Vanna? Yeah, yeah, triple date. My dad and his wife are also there. We're all strolling down the beach. Vanna White is a cat person. We're strolling down the beach with a bunch of cats.

Bunch of cats. So I don't- I wasn't keeping score, but I think maybe that demonstrates that you've got openness to both. You know, it's better to regret something you did than something you didn't. Okay, but not having a cat at your house

that you don't, you know, you know, people talk- That doesn't really apply to this situation, I don't think. People talk about- Because once you have a cat, you have the cat. Cats, like- For a long time. Like the reputation of a cat.

Even if I hate the cat, it's like I have a, I have a first person experiential knowledge of that. Like I've only heard all this stuff about cats. Like I wanna experience that for myself. Like I wanna take out a bite out of that pie is how I feel about it. I'm like, you know what, let's just go for it and see what happens.

Well, I do think that you're- But do it responsibly, do it safely. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I would say that it is, the one thing that is definitely true in Lily's presentation is the level of commitment is way less. Like, because your day-to-day with a dog,

there's just, there's so much. Yeah. There is so much responsibility because the dog needs so much. The cat doesn't need as much from you. So I do think that getting a dog that's a problem. If the cat doesn't need me, I'm not gonna like it. I will say that.

Yeah, but I'd like to know. Getting a dog that is a problem dog is a bigger, again, I'm saying this as a dog owner. That makes sense to me. I think it's a bigger responsibility or a bigger pain in the ass than getting a cat. That's a problem cat. That just doesn't like you.

Yeah. Lots of people have cats that's like, yeah, we don't touch him. We just set the food out. He's kind of, he kind of roams around. It's like after a while, it's kind of like, okay, that's the way that cat is. I think Stevie's cat is a little like that, but I always see the cat in the background.

I need to talk to her about it. Yeah. Okay. So no final decision. I'll keep you updated and exploit it for entertainment as much as possible because that is a wide silver lining. Mm-hmm. For sure. Definitely in my profession, it's better to regret something you did

to something you didn't do. I mean, what percentage of my contribution to the entertainment value of what we do is based on my personal regrets? I've never thought of that, but more than mine. All right, I feel good about that. Yeah, do you have a rec? Oh, forgot about the rec.

I'm excited about your rec. I've told you about this because I texted you, we weren't watching Survivor one night because everybody wasn't there and I don't like watching Survivor unless all of the family's there. Including the cat. And so it was me and Lando and Christy

and we were like, I'm just like browsing and it was close to bedtime. I was like, we might have time to watch like a 22 minute sitcom. And then I saw this thumbnail on Netflix and the runtime of the thing, it looked like a movie, but the runtime was 16 minutes. I'm like, this is strange.

A 16 minute thing on Netflix, like a short film type situation. But I was so drawn in by the thumbnail of it that I was like, let's watch this. It's short, if it sucks, it's fine. John was trying to contact aliens, that's what it's called. It's got this guy with long hair and a long beard and like, I mean, he's got what I would call the crazy eye

from like the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and they talk about that. And I'm like, this looks interesting. I mean, after I watched it, I texted you, I know your bedtime's later than mine. I was like, I bet you, I just knew you would like it. So I was like, watch, John was trying to contact aliens on Netflix.

It's 16 minutes, you can do it before your bedtime. And I did it in the morning while I was watching, while I was watching breakfast while I was watching breakfast. I was eating breakfast. Which is, I've never watched Netflix while eating breakfast. Well, I was coming in and I was like, it's 16 minutes and it's probably something funny

to talk about, so I'll just watch it. I think Netflix is onto something with these shorter videos. I think they could just have shorter videos and they could be more personality based and they could have commenting underneath and like video replies. So make it YouTube?

Yeah. It's just like an interestingly edited biopic, not biopic, it's just a documentary of this guy, John, in like the middle of nowhere, who has devoted his entire life to contacting aliens. And it's got a couple of, there's a defining moment in the documentary that we are not going to spoil.

I'm not gonna spoil it. The only thing I'll say is that while watching breakfast, why am I saying watching breakfast? Is that what happens when you watch Netflix while eating breakfast? Yep. While eating breakfast with my wife, watching this 16 minute short film,

when the thing that you're talking about that we will not spoil happened, I like my eyes welled up with tears. Ha, yeah. Like it was, this thing was 16 minutes long. It was touching. It was touching. We were giving away too much already

because the best thing is to go in totally blind. So forget everything we said, except to watch it. Yeah. 16 minutes of your time. That's all we ask. And you know, a hundred, a hundred, and well, how many minutes have we been going right now? Sometimes we ask a little bit less,

sometimes we ask a little bit more. Thanks for being on the journey with us. Hashtag Ear Biscuits.