Family Trips with the Meyers Brothers - JENNY SLATE Found Her Soulmate in Amsterdam

Episode Date: April 16, 2024

The one and only Jenny Slate joins the podcast this week! She tells Seth and Josh about the love for her neighborhood dog storm, ghosts in her childhood home, the trip where she realized her husband was her soulmate, and all the mishaps that happened on her family vacations!Sponsors:AirbnbSupport comes from Airbnb your home might be worth more than you think find out how much more at airbnb.com/host to learn about hosting. BetterHelpFamily Trips is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/trips and get on your way to being your best self.  Family Trip listeners get 10% off their first month. AG1  Try AG1 and get a FREE 1-year supply of Vitamin D3K2 AND 5 free AG1 Travel Packs when you first subscribe. Go to drinkAG1.com/TRIPS  Check it out. 

Hey, Pashi. Hey, Sufi. You took a very exciting trip this weekend. It was fantastic. The improv troupe that you and I were both a part of at Northwestern University turned 50, which is crazy that an improv troupe started in 1974 and so many alumni were back.

It was so emotional. There were panel discussions. And I don't know if I've ever sat in a room for four back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back panel discussions. You did four panels in a row? I mean, I watched two of them. I hosted one of them and I was in one of them. There was also a presentation of the history of Meow, history of the Meow Show, which I found fascinating. Yeah, it was so much fun. It was such a great community. It is such a great community to be a part of. And yeah, it was

a real treat. You were missed. I was very upset that I couldn't be there because I don't want anybody listening for a second to think that I did not also make our college improv troupe. Your senior year. You hadn't previously made it. How many years were you in it? Two. Yeah.

I did audition every year and only got in my senior year. I didn't even know it was a show until you got in it. Gotcha. So you're saying now you maybe would have gotten in even earlier? Probably. And the year you got in. You could have knocked me out. Well, the year you got in, we were sharing a job of,

we were tutoring to high school kids in a northern suburb. And you asked if I could do that whole week of tutoring and I was like sure because more money for me works for me and at the end of that week you were like hey I got cast in meow and I was like what's that and you were like it's this improv thing like that's why I needed you to to work all week and I was very upset yeah I pulled a fast one on you yeah because I was the theater kid and you were the radio, TV, film kid. That's right. And I should have known about it.

Yeah, well, that's the problem. You theater kids never know when a fast one's being pulled on you. I should also note that both of the kids we tutored are now rocket scientists. Oh, I don't know about that. Look, they had a couple of improv kids as tutors. It's not their fault. Yeah. It was, but yeah, this weekend was great.

The organizers did a real bang up job. And I feel like they wanted a lot of current students to be sort of interested. There's, you know, there's some big names out there. Eric Gilliland, one of the sort of Roseanne showrunners, I want to say. Executive producer, yeah. Executive producer. Ana Gosteyer was there. Dermot Mulrooney was there, among others.

So a lot of people with a lot of success. And I feel like the current cast, they were definitely all there. With a lot of success. And I feel like the current cast, they were definitely all there. But I feel like a Saturday afternoon from 11 to 5 in the student union building in this theater that you probably never go into is a tough draw for a college kid. Also spring, like springing. Yeah. Nice day outside.

It was one of the most beautiful days, spring days, I feel like I've ever seen in Chicago. And I spent every second of it inside. But yeah, it was great. I cried multiple times. That's great. Yeah, I can kind of tell you sent a few videos around and I could kind of tell that you were, you had either just cried or were about to.

There's one I couldn't send because I couldn't get through it because I was so choked up. And yeah, it was great. It was really, really, really great. And we should know, so this Meow Show, which Josh and I both did at Northwestern, one of the alums from the Meow Show founded the comedy theater Boom Chicago in Amsterdam.

And it sort of was a perfect gateway for us when we auditioned for Boom Chicago. You know, it was this sort of very similar audition to our college improv troupe. And then Boom Chicago was almost, I mean, Meow was incredibly formative for us. Boom Chicago was incredibly formative for us. So this was the first step in, I think, the we've been, the journey we've been lucky enough to be on. Yeah. And, you know, I hosted a panel about Meow worldwide. It was sort of, you know, theaters that started from Meow people.

The guy who created Whose Line Is It Anyway was a Meow guy, Dan Patterson, this British TV producer. And so, you know, I asked him what, uh, you know, what did you take from meow and, you know, use on, on whose line, how did that transition work? And John Rosenfeld or Pep Rosenfeld, one of the founders of boom Chicago. And, uh, I was like, what did you take? He's like, we took the entire show. He's like, that is, he's like, our show is meow. And it was absolutely true because I flew on June 10th of 1998, you know, and I was still sort of a Meow cast member at that point. I was pretty sharp. and I did a show that day, it was very easy for me to step into it because it was a muscle that I had been working out.

And yeah, without Meow, there's no Boom Chicago. And I don't think either of us is here today. Yeah. I mean, we're here. We'd be around. There'd be no podcast. Yeah. That's really cool.

My highlight, I was doing some stand-up this weekend, so it was travel, but not particularly trippy, but did fun shows in Royal Oak, Michigan, which is near Detroit, and then Philadelphia. But then I took Ash to his first professional sporting event on Sunday night. We went to a New York Rangers game. And it was a delight.

He was very excited. Also, it's always been, I've been dreaming of the day he's been ready to go because it is so easy to get to Madison Square Garden from where we live. It was a 10-minute subway ride. And so I think about when we went to Boston, it was an hour drive to get to the game, and then you'd go to the game, and then the drive home was so exhausting. And

it was just great. And I think he was pretty excited about the whole thing. We bet a dollar, he bet a dollar that the Rangers would win. And when they went up 2-1 halfway through the second period, he said, we can go now.

Like as if that would make the bet official. Hockey's so fun live. Hockey's just a great game live. All right, I'm going to say, this complaint will ring hollow with a lot of people, but we were given very good seats to the Rangers. They were too low. It was too close to the ice. Like I realize, you know what I mean? Like there is, you can actually get a little too close. And I think that maybe ideally we would have

been a little bit higher up for Ash's first hockey game. I once got to Pittsburgh for our annual trip to Pittsburgh with mom and dad and yourself. And I got there a day early. And so I didn't know what to do with myself that night. And it was the Penguins' second game of the season. And they were home. And I was just looking on like things to do in Pittsburgh tonight on my phone. And I bought a ticket.

First row, I was right behind the Buffalo Sabres bench. And what you don't sort of realize is there will be gigantic men right between you and the glass. And you're kind of, you have to like try and look around them, but they're very big men. And it was, yeah, it wasn't the best place to be. But still, nice to be in the building. The other wonderful thing is, of course, Ash was, and I think this is true of any kid that age, that they're obsessed with what they're going to eat at the game.

Snacks. So even on the subways, it's like, so how many treats do I get? And I'm like, you get two treats, man. And so, kid loves treats. He loves treats.

He loves treats so much, you almost never want to give him a treat. Basically, yeah. And we were in this, sort of, between periods, we'd go into this,

like, you know, like sort of a, it was like a, what do you call it? A VIP type room. Okay. Everything. Another thing that was given to you that you didn't like? No, I loved it. The VIP room, amazing.

No complaints. Okay. No complaints about this. But there was so, there was everything you could imagine. Uh-huh. You know, candy bars, popcorn, ice cream. And I go, what do you want, Ashton? He goes, I saw some mints.

I go, what? And there was a bowl, you know, of that, like a lifesaver, you know, the white lifesaver individually wrapped. Yeah, individual wrapped, yeah. And I go, what mints? And he goes, over here. And he like went and it was like by the like bath and like a weird side. Yeah. And he goes, yeah. It like went and it was like by the like bath in like a weird side

yeah and he goes yeah that's where the stink mouse people go he goes i want some mints and i go all right have a mint he goes can i have two i'm like you get five let's go like if you don't want a you know a mars bar go get five mints yeah and uh but then throughout the game, he just kept tapping me and would handing me his little crumpled up cellophane. Yeah. Just because he was just like plowing through his mints.

Mom and dad, this is, we're recording this a day after the eclipse and mom and dad were, lived pretty close to where

you could have been in the path of totality. Yeah. And I asked, like a month ago, I asked mom, I was like, you guys are close. Are you going to go see it? And she says, we got invited. A friend of ours lives in Vermont and is in the path. And your father doesn't want to.

I was like, really? She's like, yeah. He says no interest. And so I sent him some Eclipse glasses. I'm hoping they got there in time and that they at least went out and looked at it. Yeah. I didn't. I know.

Yeah. You know what it is for me? It's too much pressure. I just, anytime someone's like, this is once in a lifetime, I'm like, ugh, this is a bad day for me. Well, it's definitely not once in a lifetime. But they did say it a lot. Yeah, but I even Googled, like, when's the next one I can go see? And I know it's 20 years for the continental United States.

But in two years, it looks like you could go to France, maybe Belgium. I'll have to track it. I mean, I'd go to track it but I mean I go to France but fuck Belgium well at this point I'm sort of desperate to be in the path of totality

and I'm hoping that two years from now if we're still doing this podcast I will have just been in the darkness and I'll be able

to report back at how life changing it is that's great you could also can I just pitch something real quick? Yeah. Just go turn the lights off.

Yeah, okay. Thought so. Yeah. Saw it coming. You didn't think I was going to give you an actual eclipse tip? Yeah. I mean, yesterday I walked up to the Griffith Park Observatory in Los Angeles, which was packed with people.

The lawn was packed. And I like, that's another thing that I think I like that you don't, and that's community. Oh, right. I like being part of something with a bunch of people. And as I see these, see footage of big groups of people sort of cheering as they're sort of left in darkness, I want to be part of that. I think I'm, I'm confident I will cry. Yeah.

Whereas I just like to be with my Sims. They do what I want them to do. This is a wonderful conversation with someone that I have been a big fan of for a long time. I think she is a wonderful person. And did you enjoy our time with Jenny Slate, Josh? I did. I actually, I also worked with Jenny Slate once when I was writing ads for Old Navy.

We got Jenny to be a voice of some socks. And I was also a voice of some socks. And I was also a voice of some socks. So it would be a deep cut if we're able to find this ad. And they said somebody watched that socks ad and they're like, she should be the voice of Marcel Lachelle and he should do a podcast

with his brother. Because he has the same voice as his brother and that'll be fun for people to listen to. Well, yeah. No, but she's great and she was lovely to work with because he has the same voice as his brother, and that'll be fun for people to listen to. Yeah. Yeah. No, but she's great, and she was lovely to work with, and yeah, lovely to speak with on our podcast. And a little bit of ghost stuff. Yeah.

The most ghost stuff we've had in an episode of Family Trips. So far. So far. Yeah, you never know. We've had some. We have had some ghost stuff, but this is the most ghost stuff. Yeah, for sure. So if you're a. We have had some ghost stuff, but this is the most ghost stuff. Yeah, for sure.

So if you're a celebrity and you got more ghost stuff. Come on by. And try to knock Jenny Slate off the top spot. Before you get to that, hey, watch this tie-in. You know what album's really good? Speaking of ghosts. What's that?

A Ghost is Born. You know what album that is? That's a Wilco album. You know who their lead singer is? That's Jeff Tweedy. Give him a listen. Family trips With the Myers brothers

Family trips With the Myers brothers Here we go There she is. Yeah. We all did it. My brothers. Hello.

We did it. So Jenny, you were wearing, just for Josh real quick, because you mentioned this to me, you were wearing a sweatshirt that says Storm on it. Yeah, it's embroidered. It's embroidered. And so why didn't you purchase a sweatshirt that says Storm on it? Okay, so near where I live in Silver Lake, right now I'm in an absolutely bizarre Verbo, VRBO, whatever.

They say Verbo. It's weird. What are they doing? Give it a word with like, it's very, very hard, but I'm not in my house right now. But in Silver Lake, there's like this beautiful husky living on a little triangle plot of land, like between two roads. And it's just like rules. It's like such a pretty dog.

And when I used to smoke weed, I would like take long walks and be like, I'm going to visit Storm. And literally sometimes she would be busy. Like she would like be talking to someone else. And the first time also, I just stuck my hand through the fence like a fucking idiot.

Like I genuinely was like, it's basically a wolf, but whatever. And I just was like, what's this dog's name? What is this dog? It's so peaceful. And I just was like, what's this dog's name? Like, what is this dog? It's so peaceful. And I looked on her little necklace and it said Storm. And I was like, yes. And then I don't even know how I got to this point. Honestly, this is the info that we're missing and we'll never get it. But it was like, I'm going to get a shirt, like merch for Storm. This is so fucking weird. It's so, it is whatever. But then I was on Etsy and like a miracle there was, this is like some old lady's like bowling

sweatshirt or something. And I just was like, that is so beautiful. And I got it. And I was like, this is going to be so awesome. I'm going to like wear it to Storm and show it to her. Did you? Like, yeah. I like wore it to the dog and was like, look, Storm, look. Like so stoned, like standing outside someone's property wearing merch of their dog.

Being like, Storm, Storm, look, Storm. property wearing merch of their dog being like storm storm look storm and then being like dogs can't read uh this doesn't make any sense um but yeah that's why i have this and i like i like love it it's still it's just such a it's like such a great memory for me it's such a great memory and maybe it's a good also reminder when you have it on to smoke a little less weed, you know? I know. I know. Definitely. Put that in the large catalog of like, wait, what did you do? Like, say again what you did. But I don't, I haven't smoked weed in like over five years, but it definitely has affected me permanently. Yeah. There's a dog in my neighborhood that I visit very often just on walks. Who's not my dog. I love it. It's nice. Yeah. Very,

very much so. Really gentle activity. Yeah. Have you ever gotten merch for that dog? No, I haven't. Interesting. Yeah. Interesting. Yeah. Do you know that dog's name? Sadie. Interesting. Yeah. Interesting. Yeah. Do you know that dog's name? Sadie.

Oh, that's nice. Yeah. Sadie. And also, like, we liked Sadie so much that it's partially why we got the kind of dog that we have now. It was like, we like visiting this dog so much. We're going to get a dog that's similar to that dog because it's such a winner. So, anyhow. That's nice.

Yeah. This is, I'm very excited to talk to you, Jenny, because you are a middle child. And I've got three now, and I'm fascinated by the middle child and everything about him and the dynamics of being in the middle. What is the gap between you and your two sisters? Like, how in the middle are you?

My older sister, Abby, is four years older than me, and my younger sister, Stacy, is three years younger. Were the three of you very close growing up? We were. We were very close, and we are very close, yeah. We didn't even, like, fight that much. Like, little squabbles here and there, but pretty nice girls in the family. I think four years might be more helpful than two years i think a little bit of gap maybe it was an assist

for sure because abby was like firmly older than me you know like she and it she just was so responsible and cool and um it really didn't feel like I could like cross into her zone and like sort of usurp her like power or identity. Like I was clearly in my own zone as the middle. Yeah. Yeah. Four, four years is a lot, especially for kids. Was it three years or were you like separated by schools? Were you in high school together or junior high? We, Stacey and I were in the same school together, but my older sister went to a different school. So she also, she was just kind of like this other thing.

Yeah. Like in a cool way. It was just like, Abby's got her own thing. She goes to Cambridge with dad. And we went down the street. You have something else in common with us, Jenny. Which is your, I believe, hopefully I have this right. Your parents still live in common with us, Jenny, which is your, I believe,

hopefully I have this right, your parents still live in the house you grew up in. They did until recently. Oh, I'm so sorry. I know. It sucks so much. I mean, it also sort of does.

I mean, it does, but it's also like, I'm about to be 42. Like, boo-hoo. You know what I mean? You can't really complain about that. It's like, move on, Jen. But so your parents do still live in your childhood home.

They do live in our childhood home. Did your parents, was it just they had to downsize out of it? I think they had this plan to, like, live both on the mainland and on Martha's Vineyard. And then for whatever reason, it was just like, this is not feasible. And then for whatever reason, it was just like, this is not feasible. And they made the choice to move fully to an island where we all have to take a boat to go see them. But your parents, I mean, I would imagine your parents love having their daughters around. They do. They do. They really do. And it's like, I think, yeah, I think they actually were just like, we don't want to live here anymore. Like in this big old empty haunted

house in Milton, Massachusetts, you know, like it just wasn't working. So I'm happy for them, but I do miss it, but I don't miss the ghosts. And I say that really honestly. Yeah. And you and your father wrote a book and refers to this. I mean, a lot of it is about this house that you lived in and whether or not there were ghosts or not, which I think you're pretty confirmed that it's a yes. That's a yes. Everyone in my family has seen them except for me, but I feel that yes. Yeah. And what is your theory as to why the ghosts have not presented themselves to you? I think that they know that I believe in them and that i'm way too scared and that they'll like kill me i think they're like in like in like a huddle being like she'll die and then she'll be here with

us and she's like she's really chatty so just don't do it honestly don't start with her that's how they feel they're like just don't was there when your parents sold the house did they i mean obviously there was a book out there, so I feel like they, if anybody wanted to dig into the house, they would know that the Slates thought it was haunted.

But did they mention to the buyers there is a ghost situation in the home? They did not. I don't think. I mean, but to be fair,

the previous buyers, I mean, sellers, also didn't mention that there was a ghost. Right. There's that like, there's that murder thing that you have to disclose, but maybe not with ghosts because it's always that.

It's like if a murder happened there, you know a murder happened. If a ghost happened, there's going to be someone who's like, there are no ghosts, so that can't be. Wait, you're telling me that if I were to purchase a home and a murder had been done there, someone would have to tell me that? I think that's a thing. Or is that just etiquette? I think it's etiquette.

I don't think it's the law. I think it's Emily Post would tell you, you must confirm that there's been a murder in the home. But I don't think you actually legally have to say there's been a murder in the home. All right. Well, I'm going to dig into this. I've always heard that as a thing but yeah the your your parents your sisters who saw the ghost did they in general sort of feel like they were friendlier ghosts the other thing you know people are usually like i just felt like you know like everyone's just we're all just

trying to work out like our whatever happened to us. That is not, like everyone in my family was like, we didn't like it. It was really scary. Like it was really scary. We did not like it. Like everyone was like, ah! You know, like it wasn't like people being like, wow, you know. And in that moment, like I really wished that that spirit like found the peace that she needed.

It was like everyone was like, this fucking lady came out of the den. And she looked at mom. And then, like, we were like, what? And then she went up into the light. She, like, went up into the light fixture by the front door. And, like, our whole family's just like, what do we do now? Like, that sucks. Not good.

Do you recall, like, hearing someone in the house,, like one of your sisters or your parents like screaming when they saw it? Were you nearby or was it always like you were away at a sleepover and maybe you were haunting them? I mean, first of all, in our house, every single family member like twice a week is like, oh, my God. Like like just because everyone was so scared all the time that everyone, you know, was like really on edge. But I was not, I was a baby, I guess, when my dad saw the ghost of the like sea captain. And I was not there when my sister and my mom saw the lady who floated up into the light. And I also wasn't there when my older sister experienced like a lamp turning on and off, but other electricity being fine,

but like one lamp and she was like, you know. And there was this like other thing where they peeled down the wallpaper in the room where my older sister was going to. That was going to be her room when they moved into the house. And there was just like a pencil portrait on the plaster of the wall of just like a little girl in profile. And underneath it just said Abigail, which is my sister's name. And they're like, ah! But then, of course, they just like put me in there. They're like, ah!

But then, of course, they just, like, put me in there. It is really deliciously New England to have a sea captain ghost. That is, I mean, all you can ask for. I will say terrifying when two people see a ghost at the same time because then almost impossible to dismiss. Like, I could write off sea captain and your dad and the lamp thing. But the fact that your mom and your sister saw a ghost at the same time. Yeah. It's totally horrible.

It's so scary. And like, yeah, I don't think they're lying. I think they both saw it. My sister is especially reliable. So I definitely think they did. And it was a beautiful house. And it was sad when my parents moved out. But I also was kind of like, bye.

It's okay. It's fine. But where I live now, we have a pet cemetery. So that's also very New England-y and rather spooky. But I really love it a lot. And I visit the bones of the pets on a daily basis. Hey, we're going to take a quick break and hear from some of our sponsors. Family Trips is sponsored by Airbnb. Hey, Bashi.

Yeah, Sufi. You know my in-law's home. It's a beautiful home. Oh, gorgeous. So cozy and comfortable. Cozy, comfortable, and they're thinking about selling it. No. Yeah. And so my wife, my sister in law, my brother in law, they don't want them to get rid of it. And they said, why don't you consider it as an Airbnb? They're traveling a lot in their retirement. They're enjoying the world, but don't give up a beautiful home. Let that beautiful home be an Airbnb. Make money while you're gone

and do not lose a house that your children are desperate to inherit. I think people worry about, is this going to be too much work? And it's not too much work. If you've made your house into a lovely place to be, then someone's going to Airbnb it and they're going to be delighted to be there

and they will be lovely, nice guests. I mean, mom and dad often will come to stay with me and that's fine. But I'd rather they Airbnb our home. See a shrine to Josh Myers and one solitary photo of me. That's what you'd be getting if you Airbnb their house and you know it's true. Yeah. And again, another comfy, cozy house that anyone would be delighted to be spending some time in. And remember, you don't have to Airbnb your whole house. It could be a guest

house. It could be a spare room. There's a ton of options. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much more at Airbnb.com slash host. Our show is sponsored by BetterHelp. Sufi! Remember that time when I was like eight

and you and mom and dad left me at Busch Gardens in a category two hurricane? How could I forget? You bring it up constantly. And how can I forget all those times you spied on me and ratted me out for not wearing my headgear when I had braces? Hey, dad paid me two bucks a pop for that intel.

I was just exercising my entrepreneurial spirit. The point is that childhood experiences, both good and bad, can have a profound influence on our mental well-being. And even as an adult, family dynamics can affect our mental health because all families experience conflicts at times, conflicts that can create a stressful environment for all involved. Therapy is a great way to talk through and work out all family-related issues. And BetterHelp is a great way to experience the benefits of therapy. It's entirely online. Designed to be convenient, flexible, and suited to your schedule. And it's more affordable than in-person therapy. So what were the Slate family vacations

when you were little? Well, it was a lot of going to like, maybe like the Caribbean was what was happening, like that kind of stuff. And then, and I've been thinking about this because we, they were usually very lovely. We didn't and I've been thinking about this cause we, they were usually very lovely. We didn't go on a lot, but when we did, we really appreciated it. There was one vacation to Hawaii where everything like,

like it was like the first time that was like, there might be some mean people in our family. That's, that's what I, that's what I took away from that trip. But it was just the five of you? No, it was our extended family. There were many family members there. And it was like my grandfather's treat to our family.

I mean, when I think about it now, it was my grandmother's 65th birthday, which is like not old. But I was like, Nananie is so old um 65 um and yeah and there was one relative who truly apropos of nothing uh a female relative came up to my sisters and i while we were like waiting to go into that like like you know when you go to a resort and they have like it was like a luau yeah Yeah. But like for like. For tourists. Yeah. It just doesn't feel that great to talk about it now.

But we were just sitting there waiting to go in. And she just goes, you know, girls, when I feel unattractive, I try to wear bright colors. It's like such a burn. She just was like, might as well just like walked by us and been like, you girls look really ugly tonight. I just,

I like that also that implies that you were also maybe not trying too hard and just wearing a lot of like grays and browns to a resort luau. I'm like, it's like 1993.

We were all in like ocean Pacific, you know, like we were all wearing surf colors. There's no way we're like, it's like 1993. We were all in like Ocean Pacific. You know, like we were all wearing surf colors. There's no way we're like, you know, Jane Goodall-ing it. Yeah. Meaning khaki. Right, right, right. I wore a ton of Ocean Pacific clothing when I was young in a way that's deeply embarrassing now.

Yeah, because we weren't like OP people. It's so embarrassing now. Yeah, because we weren't like OP people. No, we were all New Englanders in the early 90s wearing body glove and Ocean Pacific. Had never seen... Umbros. Umbros. I remember I had a t-shirt with a poster of a surf movie

called Endless Summer that I just wore a lot. And that is still a movie to this day I haven't seen. Never surfed. Never even tried to surf, but I just liked it. It's so embarrassing to have not surfed but enjoyed surf fashion. Oh, totally. But that is what the 80s and early 90s, it was like the sport was kind of just generally in the culture or something.

And I'm not even talking about like Baywatch. That was even kind of later. It was like, when I think about it, it's like Bart Simpson, Cowabunga. Like just, why did we like that? You know, Kokomo, the Beach Boys, what are they doing? Like, it just was, it was cool. It, like Tom Cruise in Cocktail.

Yes. There was something about the, like, that kind of beachy, tropical thing that was like, everyone was into that. It's funny. I do feel as though the first time I heard Kokomo, it almost made me think, yes, this is what I like. I do like the islands. And I thank you for finally opening my mind to where my peace is. It's just island living. You never went full Buffett, though.

No. You never went full Jimmy Buffett. No, we had a lot of friends who went full Buffett. Yeah, which was also a weird sort of thing existing in New Hampshire that there was like, but I guess like that's just Jimmy Buffett. He sort of pervaded the, the, the culture, sort of the culture at the time. And people were like, yeah, I do like this because, you know, we were going to Florida. Jenny's going to the Caribbean. We certainly went to

the Caribbean as well. And it was just that, that Island life that you were like, yeah, let's get into this. I mean, pina coladas, like, I just was obsessed with them as a kid. Like, you know, not the alcoholic ones, but, like, I just thought this is the most delicious thing I've ever had in my life. And it's a beautiful, beautiful drink. I just talked to a fellow parent at my kid's school who said the last time they went on spring break, their kids, they didn't realize their kids were ordering virgin pina coladas all day long. And each kid put on like seven pounds because they basically were having like seven milkshakes a day.

Yeah, yeah, they are a milkshake. Like they basically are a milkshake. But yeah, we would also like with a drink like that or just a Shirley Temple or whatever, like and so many people say this, but like there was no way we were ever getting more than one. There's absolutely just no way. You know, if we're getting soda, we're getting a thing like that. It's like you're drinking it so slowly that you almost ruin the drink so that you don't. I mean, some kids just suck it down.

They're the dum-dums. Yeah. So that you don't, I mean, some kids just suck it down. They're the dum-dums. Yeah. They're the ones that it's like, they do that test of like, we're going to give you a cookie and wait 10 minutes. And if you haven't eaten it, I'll give you two cookies.

And some of those kids are like, I'm eating that cookie the second you leave this room. Yes. I don't really know which, I tried to pace it. I really tried to pace it out. I would be so prudent with it. And, you know, actually it was really touching last night, but also sort of worrisome. Like I think last night, my daughter, I was, my parents were visiting yesterday and I got her a hot chocolate, like, and it was like there for her when she

arrived at the hotel with my husband to meet us. And I was like, I got you a hot chocolate, honey. And she was like, I just had a cookie. I mean, she's three years old, you know? And I was like, it's all right, honey. Like, it's okay, baby. Like you can have it. And she was like, um, I think it's too much sugar. And I was like, it's not, it's okay. Meanwhile, by the way, it was. And like, then she had dessert. She was up till midnight and it was horrible. But I was like, wow, I would never would have been like, actually, I should probably be careful. I've just had a cookie. I remember when Ash was that age, we went to visit Alexi's parents in New Mexico, which is higher elevation. And he eats so healthy. And he had a hot chocolate in the middle of the day.

And then threw up. And we had to give him an hour long bath. And to this day, I feel he's real. He likes a lot of sweets, but hot chocolate. He has a real, I think I'm good. I think I've ridden that horse. Oh, he remembers. There was like, we got taken to like this fancy. It was like in a hotel in Cambridge.

And I thought it was the fanciest place I've ever been. And what it was, was one of those places where they cook the, it's like a Japanese steakhouse. Yeah. They cook it at the table. It's like a Benihana, but it wasn't. So fun, yeah. And I freaked out.

I thought it was so cool. And like basically every single morsel that got cooked, I put it in my mouth. And I just, I just fully barfed at the table. I couldn't even, I was like, God, we can't stop. He's cooking it right here. Just putting it in and didn't even remove myself. I fully barfed, fully barfed. And then I have not ever been able to go back to a restaurant like that because it's just, it's in my, it's deep in my mind now. Yeah. I wonder if while they're cooking it,

they can clock that there's a kid who's just going way too hard and they know that it's not their job to tell the parent, but they have a sense of, oh no, this is bad. Oh God, this kid, this fricking kid is going crazy on this. Did you share, when you would travel on vacations to the Caribbean, did you and your sisters share a room? Yeah, we shared a room with like a connecting room, usually it would be, with my parents. But we would all get our own little, we would take like a carry-on. Because my mom was always afraid of the suitcases getting lost and that we would arrive in paradise and we wouldn't have our bathing suits

right away so we had a carry-on with an outfit for dinner and um underpants and like a bathing suit and then oh this is i had a doll named puddindin who had so many clothes. And I would pack way more for her. And so my carry-on was always bursting. And she would have a travel outfit and everything. And I used the sewing machine in our house. I made her capes and stuff. And it was this whole thing.

And eventually, Stacy, my little sister, got a doll of the same kind. They were these Madame Alexander dolls, I think they're called. And they come with the name. So my doll's name was Puddin. And unfortunately, this sucks so much, but Stacey's doll was named Pussy Willow, which we immediately shortened to Pussy and no one said anything. which we immediately shortened to pussy and no one said anything. And we would like have a procession, like going through the, like Logan airport with these dolls in long capes,

you know, just like fur lined fricking capes that I made on the sewing machine, wanting people to look at us, you know, cause we're like, these are our daughters basically, you know, like we're,

we would be on the trip, but like we would be in character as Dana, susan and diane actually was what our names were um you and your sister were dana susan diane yeah stacy was diane i was dana and abby was susan because she took the best name immediately and um can't beat susan as far as names go that's the that's the pinnacle. That's it. Number one for me always has been. And we'd be like, don't call me Jen. Like, don't call me Jen. Just call me, like, I'm Dana. And our parents knew. They weren't, you know, they would like fully let us do this.

But we were on vacation somehow without our husbands, but with our kids. And we were like, look at us. You know, you know that thing like kids just want you to know. And I can't even count the amount of times that they were like, you know, like a flight attendant was like, what's your doll's name? And I'd be like, put in. And then they would like, look at Stacy and be like, what's your doll's name? She'd be like, pussy. And they'd always be like, huh? You know, like, we don't know what to do. We don't know what to do. Get him off the plane. You know, like it just over and over again.

And like my dad just being so, now I look back on it and I'm like, oh my God, he must've been so embarrassed. Yeah, yeah. Really bad. Or he could have stepped up and said like, hey, let's call your doll Willow. Let's go with Willow.

I think Willow is a better name for this one. If his girls are walking around insisting their names are Diane, Dana, and Susan, it might be tough to change Pussy's name. Yeah. God, it sounds so bad. Like when you hear it.

Oh man, yeah, totally. Are Puddin' and Pussy still in existence? Do you have Puddin' somewhere on a shelf? Yeah, I have pudding. But my husband is like, that is what was haunting your childhood home. Like that. It is.

She looks horrifying now. Because it's one of those dolls with the eyes that go up and eyelashes. Yeah, like eyelids that go up and down. You know the human body. So when you would lay her down, her eyes would, like, close. And then also if you flipped her over, she had, like, a horn inside that would get depressed, and she would be like, and she would cry. And she had real hair, human hair, that of course now is one gnarled pelt or a cone.

And then she had plastic arms and legs and they're very dirty. And she's just this dirty doll. It is funny. It is a doll that's actually built to age along with the owner. Just like bad hair and weird hands.

So bad. And they're and weird hands. So bad. And they're like baby hands. They're like in a position all the time. Yeah. I also imagine those eyes don't open and close very smoothly anymore. I would think that time would cause some stickage, some doll cataracts. Totally. It's like one eye is always down. You know's like one eye is always down.

You know, like one eye is always down. And it's just bad. It's like, oh, you know what she looks like? Like in the book Eloise, Eloise has two dolls and one of them has like no arms and no legs. And she's been in the most terriblest accident, she says. That's what Puddin' looks like. Do you think Stacey still has pussy? I don't know. That's worth finding out.

Hey, how's pussy doing? Hey, where is pussy? Have you thought about giving pussy to Nadine? That's her daughter. You know, it's just like, why didn't someone put a stop to this? Do both of your sisters have kids? Yes, they do. Yeah. My older sister has three kids and my little sister has one. Um, but nobody really has any, any dolls anymore. Um, I guess it's, it's over.

I try, I don't know, whatever. Um, it's just, I think pussy really, really pushed us over the edge and now we're just doing trains and stuff. Do any of your sister's kids boys or is it just Girl City? There is one boy, my nephew, Sam. Gotcha. So four girls and one boy. Your parents have four granddaughters and one grandson? They do. Yes, they do.

Yeah, I'm like, uh-huh, this is not. But they do. Yeah. I'm like, but they do. And actually, like, we all went on our first, like, everybody in family vacation just a couple of years ago. And it was it's so weird. Like, I don't know if you guys have been through this, but it'm like, oh, I'm the auntie now. This is so weird. And the last time we went on a full family vacation was such a bad, it was the worst of all. So like anything could have been better than what happened. We went to Key West was like the real nail in the coffin of family vacations, I guess. Yeah. So anyway, we were vacationing again, though. So what happened in Key West and how old were you? Oh my God.

It was really bad in a lot of different ways. So first of all, we didn't want to go there. Okay. But your parents picked it? They picked it. And Abby. I'm sorry, is this when you're an adult now with kids or is this when you're, when you're children?

I was a new adult. I think I was, I had just graduated from college. Um, and it was kind of like, I don't know, like it was kind of like, we were doing this one more time, sort of. It's it, it, I think is what it was like, we're just doing this one more time. And, um, and cause like, it was, I think maybe my sister was engaged. My older sister, I can't remember. Anyway, we went to Key West. Uh, it was I think maybe my sister was engaged my older sister I can't remember anyway we went to Key West it was a bad trip for many reasons number one it's just a lot of drunk people like like it's just like there's a ton of drunk people and and there was like a lot of throw up on the

street and I was in the time in my life when I was like 22. J.Crew was really pushing the flip-flop as a shoe. You know, like I was just re-watching Notting Hill. And there's a scene where Julia Roberts like on the street is wearing flip-flops. And I'm like, yeah, I remember that. Like it's so weird. It's so gross. But like, you know, now I'm like it's a shower shoe. But at the time,

flip flops, whenever I could thought it was so cool. I was wearing flip flops. I skidded out of them because of some barf. My foot came out. And then when I put it down onto the sidewalk, I stepped on a dead rat, okay? Super bad. Super, super bad. But then— I wish the rat, when you stepped on it, made the noise that the dolls did when you turned them over. Yeah. And it just was like,

Ew! I hate those planes! Why are we here? And it just was like, ew, I hate those planes. Why are we here? And it was bad. But then I guess we all decided to go to a movie. And we went and we saw the movie The Motorcycle Diaries in the theater. And we came out. And I guess it was like kind of that movie days, you know, like you're just blinking into the daylight. And we were crossing the street. We were being obedient to the signs. And a biker was coming down like the wrong way. And he just straight up like crashed into my dad and specifically like biked into his like penis, like into his crotch. And it's like the feeling of watching like

your dad be like oh you know like it's just like it's it's humiliating like you feel your family tree be like degraded yeah like it's just like you've dishonored our family like that's our patriarch and you just like biked right into him. And it was so upsetting and strange that I, who have had like literally one public confrontation like this in my life, and this was it, I like snapped just seeing my dad get so hurt. And I was like, what the fuck? Like, what are you doing? And the guy was like, what? And I was like, what are you doing? Bikes have the like, what? And I was like, what are you doing?

Bikes have the same rules as cars. You're going the wrong way. And he was like, get the fuck out of the way. And I was like, no, you get out of the way. Like, bikes have the same rules as cars. I was like trying to make it rational. And then he started to, he was like, he bikes back to us. It's like our whole family.

And he, in front of my parents and my sisters, he goes, I don't know what swearing is allowed on your show. And I'm just sorry if you can't even use any of this story. But he was like, bikes have the same rules as cars, you fucking bitch. And I was like, um. And he was like, bikes have the same rules as cars, you cunt. And he, like, called me a cunt while still on his bike, didn't dismount. And we were like, oh, we're going to get killed. Like, this is crazy.

This guy was, he was like so mad. And then our whole family was like so demoralized. And weirdly, instead of being like, that was scary and strange, but let's just move on and maybe let's go get like an ice cream sundae or something. My mom was like dead set on visiting the Jewish cemetery. So the next stop literally was the Jewish cemetery.

There was a gravestone that said, I told you I was sick, which was like so funny. But also, it's just so sad to like be like still trying to riff when you're dead. Like that's like my biggest nightmare is that like I just won't stop. It's just so sad to be still trying to riff when you're dead. Yeah, told you. That's my biggest nightmare is that I just won't stop. Oh, my God. Called it. It just was like, this sucks. And then we got back to the bed and breakfast where we were staying.

And it was like, they made you speak at library volume in the, like, shared spaces. And then my mom, we were, like, all going to get changed or something and go have dinner. And she never makes a joke. Like, my sweet, wonderful mother, like, doesn't really have a lot of use for humor or music. Like, it's just not what she needs. She gets close to me and in a stage whisper, a.k.a. completely audible, goes, see you at dinner, you cunt.

And like everybody in the freaking like lounge of the bed and breakfast is like, what? What is this family? What is this fucking flip-flop, flip-flop family? And it just, it was just so bad. Like it just was bad. It was like all the attractions. It was like, let's go to Hemingway's house.

And it was just fucking filled with cats. Yeah. It was so gross. What is this? It just was, it was horrible. It was like a really, really bad vacation. I feel like every detail I learned about Hemingway makes me enjoy Hemingway books less.

Like he's, I think there's certain people just to leave alone. Like even pictures of him. The very fact that he lived in Key West makes me think, I feel like we got the best of him on the page. Yeah. And he was like, he always sat at the best of him on the page. Yeah. And he was like, he always sat at the end of this bar just like drinking.

You could come in and drink with Hemingway. He's just like scribbling in his little book. Yeah. Yeah. Like now when you look at it, you're like, he kind of seemed like a mean alcoholic, you know, but who had all these cats. Even worse. I don't know. My experience of Key West is I feel like everyone in Key West is from New England. Like every accent down there is like just a New Englander who's like, yeah, we fucking came down here and this is where we live now.

It's the Boston neighborhood with the best weather. It is also, I hate, weirdly, I prefer an island you have to take a ferry to than a place like Key West where there's like, and my memory serves, there's just one long bridge in. Yeah. And it seems like a zombie apocalypse nightmare to be caught on Key West. Anywhere where there's no way out. Yeah.

I don't ever want a situation like that at all. Like in sort of, I just need like a lot of different ways to leave almost anything like a situation, not just an Island. I'm just like, I need to know how long everything is. Like, like I just, it's just crazy to be like, there's just one bridge and it's this. I mean, I'm sure there are wonderful parts about Key West.

I think Judy Blume lives there. She does. Which is enough for me. She does. And you know what? And I think she has like a nice bookstore. And we're obviously, I think all three of us are Team Blume. Oh, big time.

I did go on a recent good trip to Key West where we stayed in like an old cigar factory. It was adults only. It wasn't like adults only, like everyone's naked and doing it. Yeah, right. It wasn't that. Oh, wait, what? But it was, yeah, we enjoyed ourselves down there. But it's also, yeah, it's a weird scene.

Like on the main drag, Hulk Hogan was driving around in like a golf cart and everyone was like, Hulkamaniac. Oh my God. I really, Hulk Hogan and his sort of positioning in the zeitgeist for the last almost like 15 to 20 years is like, it's just so different than what, I mean, not that as a kid I was like obsessed with WrestleMania. But like I knew everyone knew who Hulk Hogan was in the 80s and 90s. it's just so different than what, I mean, not that as a kid, I was like obsessed with WrestleMania, but like I knew everyone knew who Hulk Hogan was. Yeah. In the 80s and 90s, just as we all loved our Pacific,

our Pacific Sun, Ocean Pacific outfits and stuff. It was also about Hulk Hogan. He was a big one. And when he started having that reality show, do you remember that? Yes. What was it called? His Whole Family. His Whole Family.

It was like, I just started, I just was like, wait, what is this guy? I was just so fascinated by him and his whole family. I mean, obviously you can imagine when I'm sitting at a restaurant on like the second floor on the main drag of Key West and Hulk Hogan like parks out front and walks in everyone is calling out to him and it's pretty great I mean he is yeah he is like uh you know Caesar returning

from uh a battle just every Hulk Hogan do you think 70 I guess does he have the same hairstyle? I'm going to say no. I mean, it's less. And it also looks like when he walks, it looks like years of sort of hitting the mat have taken a bit of a toll. The other crazy thing about Hulk Hogan is... He can still kick my ass, I'm quite sure. The domino of Hulk Hogan having that sex tape that Gawker reported on and then Peter Thiel funding the lawsuit

that toppled Gawker. Like Hulk Hogan. Oh my God. Yeah. And again, he was one of the 30 most famous people in America, I feel like for a time just for being a wrestle guy. And then he became a weird extra piece of culture. I want to go back real quick.

Wrestle guy is what he. Yeah, that's what he's preferred term of culture. I want to go back real quick. Wrestle guy is what he, yeah, that's what he's preferred term of address. Now we're going to take a quick break to hear from one of our sponsors. Support for Family Trips comes from AG1. You know, I first gave AG1 a try because four years ago I went vegan because I know there are things I'm missing in my diet. And it's nice to know that I start my day with AG1 and I've just got a baseline of good stuff to keep me going. I feel like I've got more energy. I feel healthier. I got focus and I feel good. Well, the ingredients I'm into, it's a vitamin C and zinc to support my immune health, which I need because I live with three germ machines who I love very much. They're my kids. Well, that's because AG1 is a foundational nutritional supplement that supports your body's universal needs like gut optimization, stress management, and immune

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That's drinkag1.com slash trips. Check it out. I want to go back to your dad getting hit by the bike because I think everyone in my family, including my mom, would prefer she get hit by a bike to my dad. Why? Because of everything you said. Like, I think just the emasculation of the entire family if your dad gets hit by a bike.

Like, that, because I feel like it's a longer, the shame trail is longer when a dad goes down. And then my question is, when the guy came over on the bike and started calling you awful things, was your dad still like on the ground? Yeah, he wasn't on the ground. He was like doubled over. Right. And it was like, yeah. So that's the piece of it that it would be awful enough if your dad just got waylaid by a bike. piece of it that it would be awful enough if your dad just got waylaid by a bike but then if the biker sort of doubled back and started like verbally attacking the kids while your dad's like

oh oh god totally like he can't do anything and he's like jenny's out of control like you know like he's like so scared and uh my little sister was crying and you know it just was like this it just is so so heinous to see to see your parents get humiliated but then to to see them kind of like hurt and like hurt in an area of the body that my mom and my sisters and I like we can't relate to you know like it's it's this thing like I feel like if if if you don't have like that anatomy you hear tell constantly like all the boys you know in in like, I feel like if you don't have like that anatomy, you hear tell constantly, like all the boys, you know, in like at recess or like kicking each other in the balls and like making a big show of it. And then later in life, there's a more earnest conversation with like just men that are like,

it really, like it really hurts. Like, you know, like, like it is, I've seen my my daughter like just totally by mistake just like punch my husband in the balls and like he it's so sad you know like I could like it just really really hurts but she doesn't know she's doing it and like to see that injury happen to my dad it just was like I wish we had gotten on a plane that night because also then it kind of felt like our family does kind of talk about everything. Yeah. But we kind of couldn't like talk about it. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Right, right. It was like, it just was so sad. And there have been, there was like one time in France, another bad trip, I've got to say, where my dad, and I know he feels so bad about this, and I wish he didn't, but he rented a car to drive. It was my little sister, my ex-husband, Dean, and I and my dad. And we were driving from Paris to the center of France where my grandmother hid during the Holocaust. And it was kind of like, this is a big deal. We're going back there. She hadn't been back there since she was in hiding. Very emotional trip. And when we got to this town, which did appear to be like stopped in time,

the car like died, like completely broke down. And we were like stuck in this weird place in France and none of us could really like speak French. And just to sort of compound that, no pun intended, I was like suffering from intense constipation. I was already like, oh, like I had eaten like 17 baguettes in like fucking three days like I just was like reverse you know how Mary Poppins like takes stuff out like a lamp out of her like nanny doctor bag or whatever she has like I was like reverse Mary Poppins thing, just like carbs, like hard carbs, like crusty baguettes. And it was just like, when I think of it now, I'm like, I was probably like six, four, just by the baguettes, like stretching my body. I was so, it was just like compacted. And so, and it was just like, look, we're, you know, we're just going to spend a couple hours

in this town and we're going to get out of there and instead we we were we broke down there wasn't like anyone to help us it was my dad was he felt so bad and I like tried to cheer him up by being like our family has been stuck here for longer. And he was like, Jerry! Jerry! It was so sad. Yeah. Yeah. My dad needs a, like, now it's crossing my mind. I'm like, I need to do something really nice for my dad.

Like, take him on a really nice trip where his body is protected and his, you know, his body and his, what do you call it? His identity is protected. I think there's that moment. We had one recently because Josh will attest to this. My dad will. If something goes wrong, I think everybody in our family gets a little quiet because we realize he's on edge and he is prone to being temperamental.

And the four of us just went on a vacation to Pittsburgh and we left a football game and Josh was in the passenger seat. Dad was driving and Josh was doing map quest. Pittsburgh is a confusing city, but dad fully drove over a curb. No. So it was a rental car.

So that jarring thing, and the car was fine, but that jarring thing where Josh is giving me a direction, like turn here, turn here, and it was like quack, quack, like a rental car. So that jarring thing, and the car was fine, but that jarring thing where Josh is giving me a direction, like turn here, turn here, and it was like, quack, quack, like the whole car. It was like some weird cones that were like. It was. I'm not. It was a very confusing. It was dark.

It was rainy. Everything was weird, but it was going badly. And basically, we very clearly left Pittsburgh because, and we weren't trying to, but like we went over a bridge, like through a tunnel into like the surrounding suburban area. And it was very quiet. Like nobody, and Josh and my dad were equally frustrated. And in the end, it only cost us, what, 20 minutes? It wasn't terrible. Not even that, I don't think.

But it was funny, and it was clearly a mistake. And it felt like it was going to be a disaster when we left the city. And in the end, it didn't. But when we pulled into the parking lot at the restaurant, and I felt like this was a real gamble, I pulled out two 20s, and I leaned over, and I tipped Josh and Dad for the tour. And it was great.

As a teenager or even someone in my 20s, I wouldn't have dared risk it. But it was good. I think it was a good stress reliever. It really was. Did you guys have, like, we always had an element of stress no matter what. It was always my dad too. Like he got stung by a bee when we were in St. Thomas, you know, like just hobbling around.

And we ran into someone from the synagogue that we didn't like. And you know, it's like there's stress. Like it's always my dad. Is that a trend or like a motif with your family outings? He was really good. I want to give him all the credit for making sure we were active. And when we went places, he was the reason we would go.

Like we wouldn't just like stay in one place and we'd go out. And so I think if he had any stress, it was the fact that he felt that burden. But it wasn't. And by the way, we know he's a valuable listener, a loyal listener. It wasn't that much worse than it was at home, right? He was also a little on edge at home. Yeah, dads. A lot of dads are on edge. It happens, as are moms. Both of my parents can have a real stress vibe. I was like, I was trying to describe to my older sister, like, what it's like to watch them pack the cooler for the beach. Yeah.

And it's as if, it's as if they're packing that weird, like, gun that, you know, this is what I think about. I don't know why I go here, but it's like, this is where I go. In the movie, The Rock, starring Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery. Yeah, there's like a, there's a weapon, something about a weapon. Out of trying to stop someone, the bad guys want it. And it has these green balls of like nuclear something. balls of like nuclear something. And you see that when, if the balls roll away, they like melt people. They're like crazy nukes. They're these like little green balls of nukes, I think. And anyway, and they're like, like, you gotta be so careful with it. And everyone's like so annoyed

at each other about it. That's what it's like to watch my parents like put pirate's booty and like spin drift seltzers into a Yeti cooler. Like I'm doing all brands here. Not because I'm, I don't know why. I'm just like, I'm being specific, but it's like, it's as if this is all we can take. And we're gonna just, we're running away to, you know, the beach by their house. It's just the stress that they do to each other that they have curated over 50 years of marriage,

you know, is like, it's unbelievable. And because I was the person taking our family on vacation when we all went a couple of winters ago, I felt that I was allowed to be like how about we don't you guys don't need to have like that vibe right now it's like cool you know yeah i'm the the leader i'll be how did they did they receive that message well i think um they get it that the the first time they'll be like, you know, the cause of the stress, of course, is always that they just want us all to have a good time, which is sad because it's so tragic that someone's stressy attitude about wanting to have fun is what ruins the fun, of course.

That's something I experience as well. I do it. I can do it as well. But yeah, they're really receptive to like, Mom, you don't need to. You're at an 11 right now. Or sometimes my mom uses really morbid language just naturally. And sometimes I ask her, Let's try just a different tone.

You don't need to tell my three-year-old daughter that you need to put on a hazmat suit to go out into the garden. It's just too much. Josh has witnessed this, but when my parents visit us, Alexi is very good at, we have to go do this, let's go do this. She takes the opportunity. If all of a sudden it gets sunny out, let's go to the beach. do this. Let's go do this. She takes the opportunity. If all of a sudden it gets sunny out, let's go to the beach. And I think everyone my parents' age needs a little bit of warning

when we're about to do something. And so I will often say to Alexi, just help me get ahead of it. And she'll say, I just think, you know, tell them to, you know, be on their toes, be ready to go. And I'm like, that's not, that won't work. They're never two minutes away from being ready. So you have to give them a little bit more buffer. And then you have like, I mean, and kids are also not two minutes away from being ready. There's no way.

My parents very much have a pretty set routine. And like, like I even something like I was trying to describe like Postmates to them, you know, and it just was like, but no, you know, like they just couldn't. It just're all going to Nana Connie's house tonight. And my mom's like, whoa, you know, what should we make for dinner? Which is a lovely concern. She cares, you know? And she's like, I have some chicken breasts. And like, obviously in my mind, I'm like, I don't want plain chicken breasts. Like I'm such a teenager still, but I'm like, now that I have a phone, like it's all at my fingertips. Like, why would I have, I don't want to, you know, chicken breasts. And I'm like, let's just postmate something to the house. And she's like, well, the thing is,

and it's like, but there's not a thing, honestly. But there is this. It's like, you have less to do if I do this. And it's just not possible. Yeah, like the change of plans is very hard on our group, I feel like, as well. But it's not really the way, like Ben and I are kind of,

we'll just run out the door at any minute. That's great. That's great. The other thing that I have observed about my wife's family is every morning there's a giant conversation about what are we going to do today? And I always want to jump in and say, I'm going to guess it's the same thing as every day.

Totally. And I think we should jump in and say, I'm going to guess it's the same thing as every day. Totally. And I think we should save ourselves this big old conversation. Because I have now spent 200 summer days with you guys. And I know exactly how it's going to go. And it's just, it's all this, I don't know, like a performance of a conversation. So strange. Yeah. We do the what are we doing for dinner at breakfast? And it is

confusing to my husband. He's like, what? Like, why? Like, it just, it's just so weird. Like, but I, it just happens. It is so strange. But I, now I kind of do it too. Like, I just, I saw my parents off just now. They're headed back to Massachusetts. I got, you know, dropped my daughter off at school. I went and had breakfast with my parents. And then I was rolling back here by, you know, 9.30 and I come in the door with my mom's like leftover breakfast potatoes. My husband's trying to get into his day, do his thing. I'm like, so I have some leftover potatoes from my mom. And I thought we could have salmon and potatoes for Ida for dinner tonight. And he's just like, he can hardly understand, like ascertain, like he can hardly comprehend.

He's like, well, are you sorry? What's tonight? And I'm like, well, eventually it'll be dinner. And then I like, I'm standing there. I don't have a stressy vibe, but obviously it's incoming. And I'm like, I'm my mom. I'm like, I'm my mother right now. I'm like weirdly gently massaging my own shoulder blade, which hurts. Like I'm, you know, I'm showing that I have pain in my body

and I'm talking about dinner like 20 hours away from it. I'm like, I'm Nancy. Do you think, because not to get a little dark, but I want to be forgiving about this. So your grandparents were Holocaust survivors. Alexi's grandparents were Holocaust survivors. And I do think maybe it's a little bit of like crisis prep to just stay three steps ahead. And like I realize, I'm like, oh, that's what this is.

And that's why I have to just sort of be loving and understanding of it. I think that is really, I think there's really something there. And actually Ben asked me a similar question because we were, we were like around, we were around a Jewish family that we just met. And he was like, is there something about just like staying in the house and sticking to plans that's like an epigenetic thing? And I was like, it's not, it is not far off at all. There is something there. It's just like really controlling how we're going to be and circulate in the world. I think it's really something. And my Nana Rochelle, now she passed away a little over a year ago,

but like when I was a little girl, her like main thing that she liked to do for real was to like look out the window. And I would like look out the window with her and that was like her comfort level. And also it's very chill.

Yeah. Yeah, very chill. It's so fun. Our mom is fully in her window years. I mean, like, reading, looking out a window is her A plus day. And I will say I'm very jealous that she has that time. And she'll also, like, she'll snap a couple pictures every now and again and be like, this is what it looks like just out the window.

Like, this is from my reading chair. This is what I see. And, like, it gets sent to us and one of her sisters. It's like those Monet haystack paintings. It's just like the same thing with different light. Yeah. It's just like the exact same angle every time. Of course, like how much is your yard

or the exterior really going to change of like where your house is? Like if you're not on a moving train, you are, you know, you're seeing the same the same thing yeah you all right so you and ben uh took a trip to amsterdam and yes i'm gonna count this as a family trip because he's your family now but this was before you were married yeah it was we had like just started dating like i think we were maybe like a month and a half maybe a little bit more yeah and that's a pretty bold trip to take a month and a half, maybe a little bit more. Yeah. And that's a pretty bold trip to take a month and a half in. Yeah.

Well, he lived there. And I was like, I cannot let this guy go. Like, I really, I, and I talked about this a little bit in my special, but I was like, we had just started dating. I sort of had this like background awareness that's like, you know, when George Costanza just changes everything he does and he's like, I'm George, I'm balding and I live with my parents or whatever. And that lady's like, hi, I'm Victoria. Like I really was like it, whatever I do, it's not cool. Whatever I've

been doing, it doesn't work. Like I'm just going to be like this contrary action. Like I'm doing different stuff. And so like, instead of, you know, being like, like I talked about it in the special that I tried to be like, so I'm not sure like, what's up with you in Amsterdam? And I have like other lovers, you know, like trying to be like, as if I have lovers or whatever. Like, and I just like, I am such a monogamist and I'm, you know, I wouldn't have been cool with it and whatever. But I was trying to be chill. I think he thought I was pretty relaxed. But then when he invited me to Amsterdam,

I was like, yeah, and I went right away. Yeah. Was that a good trip? Was that a fun time? I mean, I guess if he lived there, he sort of knew all the ins and outs. It was. It honestly was like such a romantic, wonderful trip. And I mentioned in my

special that like he assumed that I would ride a bike with him, which just was devastating to me. And I didn't want to. And it sort of leads to a greater thing that's like, oh, my God, I'm really not the right person for him. Like he doesn't understand that I hate this. And not only do I hate it, I like, I'm like afraid of it. And I don't think it's fun. And I think it's like stupid. And I don't want to. But I did ride the bike.

And I don't think, Seth, that I told this to you when I saw you on your show. No, you didn't. I didn't get there. But the funniest, sweetest thing was that i rode this bike with him and i was like this you know i just was like so fucking scared but he had made he got us tickets to go to like a family circus where like the grandparents were the stars and like the grandfather was the strong man and he was like like genuinely, you could tell he had dentures. He was like lifting like four people up,

just being like, ah, and like wearing like, like he was just in those teeny tiny little like shorts, you know, like the talented Mr. Ripley style, like tiny shorts. And he was a billion years old and so fricking strong. And then, and the main, and everybody in the circus was sort of part of the family, but then there was one clown.

And his joke was that he ate like a spicy soup. And he's just trying to get to this toilet. And they're moving the toilet all around. And eventually he finds his toilet. And they just did a full-on scene of him having diarrhea and they don't show his buttery like he was like it was strange I don't know how he was covered up but his his legs were like spread out you know like as if he was having a baby and it was just and it was like just he was just exploding you know invisible diarrhea being like in a language that I didn't

understand had no idea what what the story, but I was laughing so hard. And then, like, at the end, when the grandparents, like, kissed each other, because they, like, love their show and they love each other, they kissed, I started crying really hard. And it just was like, this bike sucks, but the circus was like the, just nothing could be more on brand for me than this circus, this diarrhea clown with grandparents. Yeah.

I think, yes, I do think that a very grand, it is like the revelation of not understanding that you hate a bike, but also understanding that you'd love the circus is kind of like a perfect, like that's about what you're going to get out of a spouse. is kind of like a perfect, like that's about what you're going to get out of a spouse. It's like, they're going to nail it 100%, but then like get it 0% right, maybe on how to get there. Yeah, that's right. And it like, it was like,

I mean, I fully had to call my therapist from this vacation. Like, like I, and she, you know, she like really talked me down because I just, first of all, I would never live abroad. You know, like I would never live in Amsterdam. I have like a, I mean, I'm an American performer. I need to live in the United States. There's no option. Like if you wanted to keep living there, it's like, I'd kind of have to, you know, just maybe I can't,

but I can't, I can't like give my career up, but you know, like, what will this be? And I was like freaking out. But then the best thing about Amsterdam is like literally any time of day, everybody's drinking beer. And so I was just like, kind of buzzed the whole time, just being like, actually, I think it'll probably be fine. But, but when we finally got off these bikes, um, uh, and I was like, I didn't want to tell you this, but I'm really, really scared of bikes. And I've never ridden a bike in a city before, except for one time on a job, on a show I had to ride a bike. But he was like, you were afraid? And I was like, yeah, but you know, like, I tried

to have fun. And you know, like, I wanted to do it. And he was like, but did you did you not notice that your bike is completely broken? And when we looked at the actual bike, it was like, fully, like, bent and like, like, it had been the whole time I noticed I was like fully like bent and like, like it had been the whole time. I noticed, I was like, this bike's really hard to keep straight. I was just like, like the, like the version of like a car that has like something wrong with its axles or something. Like it just like the front wheel was like always going right. And I, and I was like, oh, I was like, I was like just trying to make it go straight.

But honestly, I completely internalized it and thought it was like my own emotional issues rather than that the bike was actually broken. And so anyway, the plus side of this was that he was like, wow, you really go for it. And I was like, that's a really nice thing for him to think. Like, I don't care that he knows that I'm afraid of the bike now. Like now he just thinks I'm kind of like, probably more courageous than I am also. But yeah. That's all right. You take those when you get them too.

Fine, why not? Were you, was part of being afraid of bikes that one of them had hit your dad in the penis? Oh my God, yeah. Obviously. Oh my God. See, Josh is like a free therapist. He always like to find the thing.

That was so perfectly landed. Like, I mean, and honestly, yeah, I've never seen a bike do anything cool. I've only seen people get hurt, you know? Just as a public service, you had mentioned Hawaii earlier and a luau. And I went to Hawaii once and I insisted with the three friends I was with. I was like, let's go to this luau. I was like, I'll pay for it. And it is not a good idea. Correct? Yeah. Well, what was your experience of this, of the luau that you did? I mean, it was like, it was a hotel sponsored luau and it just, it just felt like it was being

put on by, by like local people who were like, we make some money doing this, but this is not your thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It was a bummer. And it feels like the kind of thing, because when you go to Hawaii, you're like, well, this is a Hawaiian thing, but it just felt so canned, and it felt borderline inappropriate. Oh, sure.

Yeah. And yeah, so I would just say as a public service, skip it. It didn't have the authenticity of Jenny's Dutch family circus. Right. There was no old people kissed at the end of the Hotel Luau. Oh my God. It was so great. it was so great. It was so great.

Like I just, I'll never forget that circus. And it was very, very romantic. And we drank this wine that they call like glue, glue, glue vine. Yeah.

I love that. Totally. Yeah. That made it even harder, obviously to ride my broken, scary bike. I think there's something very romantic about, because when Alexia and I first started dating pretty early on,

Josh and I used to go back to Amsterdam for Thanksgiving with my parents, and she came. And I think it's very romantic to say to anyone, this is a city I know, and I would like to show you about the city. And Alexia has done it for me in a million places, but I think it's really cool to be able to. You've never been here. Let me show you the cafes.

So romantic. And we got our first Christmas tree together, and we did a ton of fun stuff. One, he took me to a dinner party with his Dutch friends. And we played that game where you put the name, like you got like a post-it. The celebrity, yeah. Yeah. Like some people play it with a phone, I guess.

But this was like authentic Amsterdam post-its. And he and I had been talking about, we had been talking. Oh, I had wanted to go. We we did a little stop in Bruges, and I wanted to go to the Medieval Torture Museum. Because honestly, what the hell were those people doing? They are crazy. They're perverted. They were crazy what they did. I mean, it just was so over the top.

They're perverted. They were crazy what they did. I mean, it just was so over the top. But one of the, you know, the main things that we were talking about was Vlad the Impaler, who's kind of like the prototype for Dracula. And we just had a long conversation about it. And I remember being like, I've never had this with anyone before. Like, I've never. And the Medieval Torture Museum had like a leak in their septic. And we didn't

know. We were too new of a couple. Like nobody had, apparently nobody had farted yet. Of course, we both had. But I mean, this was back when I eating, eating gluten. So I would fart like 95 times a day. Now I'm really, it's once a semester for me, which is incredible. But at the time, so we go to this medieval torture museum and I was like, is this, is this like immersive? Like, is this part of it that like, we're like kind of in like a fart, in a fart, you know, like we're like, that it's like, cause I was very on edge. I was like, Ooh, this is what it was like in medieval times like everybody's just like shit on the street you know they're all just disgusting i

don't know but um i i remember us like talking for so long about vlad the impaler and then um feeling like wow i really genuinely have i don't i did not believe in soulmates and then i was like i genuinely think this guy's my soulmate. Like it just is the best. He's the best. And then being like, did you smell that? And he was like, it smelled like farts. I was like, oh, phew. Also he's normal. But then we went to a dinner party with his Dutch friends. And this was like, it was like, I was there for like two weeks and it was a, we were playing that game and we put the, you know, We were playing that game and we put the, you know, the papers on our heads and everyone was looking at us. And I could see that his, I wrote Dracula.

And I didn't know what mine said, but it turned out that I had said Dracula and he had put Vlad the Impaler. And when we both like figured out that we were kind of like, you know, had put the same person and we were still thinking about it. And everyone was like, this couple is so weird. But it just was so romantic. It was like so, oh, I just loved the whole thing. It was very nice. Well, that's great. And I'm glad, obviously, it turned out he was your soulmate. Yeah.

That's a very nice, very nice ending. Jenny, this has been a total delight, but you're not off the hook yet because Josh is going to ask you some quick questions that everybody gets asked. Everybody gets asked. Everybody gets asked. Everybody gets asked these questions. All right. You can only pick one of these.

Is your ideal vacation relaxing, adventurous, or educational? Relaxing. What is your favorite means of transportation? Train, plane, automobile, bike, boat, your own two feet? I love trains. Yeah, we agree. Yeah. If you could take a vacation with any family, alive or dead, real or fictional, other than your own family, which family would you like to take a family vacation with?

Oh, wow. I would like to take, what if I was like the white family from the White Lotus season one? I mean, it would be a cool vacation. I mean, I think it's a good pick. Yeah, yeah. I guess, you know what I just reread and then I watched the movie is A Room with a View, which is a gorgeous film. And I would take a vacation with the father and son pair because they're so spirited and I love them. And I just would love to do that. Yeah. Great. All right.

Yeah. That's a dorky answer. No, please. If you had to be stranded on a desert island with one member of your family, who would it be? My husband, you know. Yeah. Great.

I would love that. I think, look, it's come across. You like the dude. I like him a lot. I think it's good. Yeah. Yeah. You're from,. I like him a lot. I think it's good. Yeah. Yeah. You're from, is it Milton, Massachusetts?

Mm-hmm. Would you recommend Milton as a vacation destination? No, I would not. I would not. Okay. I would not. Yeah, I would not. That's fair.

That's fair. You know, I don't know. We don't recommend our hometown as a vacation destination, so don't feel bad. We loved growing up there, but it's not a good vacation. Yeah, not a ton to do. There are marshes, but there's not any water. I don't think there's a hotel there. Where would you go?

I don't think so. Yeah. There's a CVS. And then Seth has our final questions here. Final question. It's potentially a two-parter. Have you been to the Grand Canyon? Yes.

Is it worth it? I don't know. Like, yeah. Yeah, of course it is. Of course it is. How old were you when you went? How old was I?

I was 36. Okay. Like recently. So this is an adult's bounce on it and it was worth it. I think it was worth it. It was like a real, but I did it in the best way, which was like, ah, it's right there.

Like, we better go there. And then we went there. Gotcha. And we were like, we just like looked over it. But I just, you know, I get really unsettled around like crevasses and or like expanses of stone and desert. I'm just like, same, like what? No, like I don't want to fall down and I'm thirsty. This is, this seems really old. I don't like, like seeing the earth opened up. It just, it's tectonic reminding me of the tectonic plates. Like I just, it's not, it's very like stressful for me. Um, I, I saw it, you know,

I've seen it many times from an airplane, and that'll do it. Yeah. I think I'm with you 100%. It all feels like a trap to me, like nature's trap. It's a Venus fly trap, but for people. Yeah. Yeah. I like that you said it was worth it and then couldn't have said more negative things about it.

But, you know, wouldn't you be sad if, like, the Grand Canyon was right there and you just, like, weren't— Yeah, didn't look at it. You didn't even try? Yeah, like— I think it's—you know what? I think it's a little bit like you—the way you got on a bike in Amsterdam, which is you knew, look, what am I going to do? Yeah. Ruin this whole day?

You know, I'll do a thing that I'm not dying to do, but it's better than the alternative. Yeah, I'll stare into the abyss. You know? Thank you so much, Jenny. This was such a delight to see you, as it always is. Thanks for having me. This was really fun. Wow. Thank you. Yeah. Thank you. Say hi to

Storm next time you see him for us. And Pussy. Yeah. Bye, Jenny. Bye, Jenny. Bye. You ever seem to have one of those days when there are drunk people everywhere and you come out of your flip-flop and step on a dead rat and you think,

well, this day can't get any worse? Well, let me tell you a little story about the Slates. Jenny went to Key West with the family. Adjusting to the sun, coming out of movie. A wrong way cyclist, it happened so quick. He rammed his bike right into Jenny's death dick. Jenny truly hated to see her dad emasculated.

A pot got popped in his family jewels. See you at dinner, you cunt!