Girls Gotta Eat - How to Let Go of Regret

Episode Date: December 22, 2025

It's the last episode of 2025 and we are reflecting on the year – the highs and lows, the lessons learned, and if we have any regrets. Then we discuss regrets in general, being consumed by "micro regrets" and three steps for managing it, our feelings on moving to LA and the potential of moving back to NYC, and our audience's biggest regrets of the year (with focus on staying in a relationship or job for too long). We are also sharing our listeners' biggest accomplishments of the year, recapping the holiday show and our favorite "secret segment," and discussing the age we're scared of. Enjoy! Follow us on Instagram @girlsgottaeatpodcast, Ashley @ashhess, and Rayna @rayna.greenberg. Visit girlsgottaeat.com for more. Thank you to our partners this week: Hungryroot: Get 40% off your first box and free item in every box for life at https://hungryroot.com/gge with code GGE. Quince: Get free shipping and 365-day returns on your next order at https://quince.com/gge. Nutrafol: Get $10 off your first month's subscription plus free shipping at https://nutrafol.com with code GGE10. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the year comes to a close, I think that, like, a lot of us need to hear stuff like this, that, like, you're not the only one, like, replaying these moments in your head. This podcast is a Dear Media production. Hi, guys. Hi, guys. Welcome back to another episode of Girls Got to Eat. Last episode of the year. We did it. We survived 2025.

Shit. Is this the most surprised you started here? You don't know. There's still some couple days left. Something bad could happen. They died doing what they love. Talking shit on the year. Yeah, it was the roughest start.

That's how you want to kick this off? Yeah, how bad it was. Yeah, well, we're going to take you guys low and then I'm going to bring you back up. We have a lot to say. But we're really excited to get into this episode and just it's really like a reflective episode about mistakes and accomplishments

and we love to wrap up the year with you guys like this and just thank you for eight years together. And I can't believe we still have stuff to talk about. We really do. Yes, February will be. February. February. We'll be eight year anniversary.

You think we're going to make it to 10? Yeah. We're going to make this to 20. Are you kidding me? 20. I'm going to do this until I die. Yes. Where are you going? That's going to be a bummer because when we have this podcast, when we're 80, 90, it's going to be iconic and we're going to be making all this money for what?

No. Right. You know, they're driving kids. They're making more funny than ever. I did the other day. I was talking to my brother about my will, and I was like, I guess I'll leave my money. But like, your kids and charity. And your nephews. And the rest of the family. Who else? I support the family. Okay, not me. My brother makes me. I'm going to leave it to his kids and charity. I guess that's it. Yeah. Azul. No, he'll be long gone.

All right. I'll start this with jazz. Anyway, guys. Let's thank our partners. Thank you to Hungry Root. Get 40% off your first box and a free item in every box for life at Hungryroot.com slash GGE with code GGE and Quince. and 365 day returns on your next order at quince.com slash gGE. And thank you to Nutraful. Get $10 off your first month subscription plus free shipping at Nutraful.com with code GGE 10. So if you guys are looking at my nails, you're probably like, oh, you didn't get them changed. But I did. But you're not going to be able to tell a camera.

And it makes me feel like a little bit of a psycho. I know that I did. That I went and got my chrome gold nails reed. done just with a clear base. No, I think that they're, oh, you did clear, not white? What is clear? Clear gives them even more of like a less ostentatious gold, a little more of that, like antique gold.

I don't know if I recommend it. I don't even know if Julietta recommends it. It's tough. It's tough for her to do because she can't see it. And you have to smudge on the chrome powder. So I do think white is the way to go. I just actually don't think I'm a chrome girly. Listen, it's just, it's bold and I don't want it more than a couple days.

Because I saw that and I was like, maybe I'll do silver chrome and I knew I wouldn't want it and I stuck with red. And then for the holiday show, I did all silver diamond rhinestone accessories and was like, I feel like a fucking clown. Like I did gold to like match this look and I'm doing silver boots and silver jewelry and gold nails. I literally was clown emoji as I got ready. No, you were just dressed for the holiday. Also, you looked great. I loved your outfit. Thank you so much.

You're welcome. I loved your outfit. I actually like, I asked you if you were wearing red and you were like, kind of. And now I said red would have looked crazy with my room. If you were to worn red. Yeah. Well, you stuffed yourself into that gold jumpsuit. It was a sausage casing.

It looked incredible. I didn't even know you got it zipped. You kind of were in the room with a team of people. And all of a sudden it was like, it's been zipped. Not comfortably. I didn't try it on. I was like, I'm so small. I can wear an extra small of anything.

and then I put one leg into it. I was like, oh no. There was no give. I am like petite, but I had like a butt and boobs and thighs. Like I got some, I'm thinking the right place. I'm thinking all the right places. I'm so skinny, but I just don't have like tits and ass. It's such a plight. I don't know what to do with my perfect little body. Well, in 40, it's nice to finally like myself. Did you see that article that how millennials are aging so well, but we're going to fall off a cliff at 44? Actually, I saw. saw that and I shuddered. I was like, that's all I have left. No, I know it. I know it to be true. Listen, I get married whenever you want, but try to do it before 44. No, I saw that article and I was like, I need to catch a man now. You do. And like, thank God I'm going on a 20 city tour. Like somewhere in this country, I have to find somebody that will date me. I feel it. I see it. I saw this new ring. No, for me, I saw this new wrinkle today and I was like 44 is coming up quick. And I remember being at this wedding and a friend of mine who is gorgeous and she was talking out of her ass,

whatever, but she was like, I think I was 34 and she was like 36, bitch, just wait, everything's going to go south and this and that and your body and your face and your hair and all that stuff. And here I am still feeling good, but I actually do think the cliff is 44. That article sent a chill down my spine. I already have wrinkly knees. I had to edit my knees out of something the other day. There's no good way to edit your knees also. It always looks over-smoved.

I think I'm done doing that. I don't really do it too much anyway, but I think those problem areas, I'm like, I'm just going to embrace them. And I talk about in this podcast and you guys know that my hands are 70 years old and, you know, has wrinkly knees. And it's just like, it's what it is. You know, I think we do ourselves a disservice by doing that sometimes. Because like, you look back at photos of yourself from two years ago or something and you're like, I was so this. But it's like you weren't. You edited that too. Exactly. Yeah. So I don't, yeah, I don't do much. Like I throw a Paris on there. But we talked about, we mentioned what we wore to the show. So we want to just thank you guys for coming. We had a. our eighth annual Girls Got to Eat Holiday Spectacular at Bam Theater in Brooklyn, which was a fave. Love it. Like, almost sad.

We never did it before. Me too. Really, really beautiful theater. Incredible theater. And just wanted to throw out a few thanks. So we opened it with our GGE drumline, which was created by BD Entertainment, who did the drumline for my wedding. So of course, we just want to shout them out again. Easy to remember BDE for short.

And BD. Entertainment is their website. And that's how you can book your own drumline. in any major city, and they just brought the energy and started the show on such a fun, high-energy note. They were incredible. And the music medley was great. A little Ald-Lang-Zine. Rain, I was off the side singing, and I do not know the words to that song.

No one knows the words that song. What is it Latin? What is the words to that song? What the fuck is Old Lang-Zine? And I was belting it out, but I was like, those aren't even worse. What's coming out of my mouth? This is like when I sing all bad bunny songs. I don't know what I'm saying.

energy. That's crazy. For all acquaintance, la no, no, no, no, no, na, na, na, na. Also, for all acquaintance, we forgot, what does that even mean? I don't know. It sounds a little shady. It's not even English. It sounds like a fuck all y'all. It's a new year, new me. It's like, bye bitches. For all, okay. Yeah, it is like, see you never. And our Philly strippers, we had them, and they're incredibly, they've been with us for a lot of years. Leon, Arrow, Joe, and Mario, and they were there and they did this thing. And I'm ready to break

our silence on this segment that we do because we don't talk about it because we wanted people to be surprised. And what we have done, we did it. We started it in Philly last year and then we did it for the holiday shows last year and then we did it this year is we have guys from the audience, people's, boyfriends, fiance's husbands come up at a point in the show after the strippers have performed. And then we send them back with the strippers to get trained. to come out and perform and strip in costume. And it's one of my favorite things we've done in eight years. Yeah.

For Philly, we did mascots. So last year we did Rocky and an eagle and gritty. And we did like Philly songs. And then for the holiday shows, we do elf, like Will Ferrell Elf, Frosty the Snowman, and the Grinch. And we do, it starts out this like the Frosty song or the Grinch song or the elf music. And then it goes into like pony or candy shop. And the audience goes absolutely crazy. I'm going to maybe put some footage up on the screen if you guys are watching on YouTube.

But I'm just excited to talk about it because we've ever talked about it because we want people to be surprised. And it has never not been my favorite thing because you don't see it coming. The elf got so nasty with this one. People went crazy for him. It was unanimous. Unbelievable. But the Grinch last year, he had this sign and would say who's been naughty or something. You had the Grinch hands.

And this has just been such a fun thing we've done over the last few years is figure out which costumes we're going to do and get this. these guys to come. And then they win vibes only vibrators for their partner. So we don't want to, you know, we don't want to give prizes out to guys. You have to come with a girlfriend or a wife. You have to have a handler at the show. And perform for her. So that was just such a fun thing. And it was wonderful as always. And we had Anna Royceman come, who was a recent guest. And she did her Chris Jenner impersonation and judged a Christmas karaoke as Chris. I was pretty drunk when that happened. You were? I like realized after the fact, like, I was pretty. buzzed up by the time that happened. I don't know my own strength when I start drinking tequila,

and I have no strength. I could tell you were because your mic wasn't working. You were tapping it. And I was like, oh, fuck's sake. I had to take it and go switch it out. You were like this. Like, why is my mic down working? I was like, I don't know, but we need to fix this. So I guess I'm going to take control. And we had Alex with us, who's one of our tour managers, and she was incredible and she met us. And then my husband ran the show for us. Flawlessly. I just, Truly couldn't believe. I couldn't believe it. We put him to work. It's not that I think he's stupid or incompetent. It's just like it's a lot of moving pieces for one person day one in a 2,000 person theater. Yeah. And we trained him up a little bit with how to work it.

He had some help with the staff was wonderful at Bam, but he was in charge of the music cues and really keeping the show running. And he really did wonderfully. But there were a few times where I had to run over there and play this thing. Like he. Oh, you did? He had it ready. He didn't do anything wrong. It was just like I needed to think. Oh, no, but I'm Prompt two, I did, I had him play Wop because we had the dance off between two of the finalists in this strip off. And I was like, play Wop. And like, there's no way to be like, babe, I love you. Like, I have to bark orders.

And he's so wonderful and he's so chill. But at the end of the show, I was like, sorry, I just have to be like, I just have to say the thing. Now he knows what it's like to work with you. I can't be gentle. Yeah. In that type of setting. I can't be gentle. Ashley has a ton of work.

I think that you have gotten much more gentle over the year. But in that setting, I can't say like, hey, can you please. Well, it's instantaneous. Play what, yeah, it has to, it's a quick movie. He was great. He was very chill. Like, rehearsing and stuff, he was like, I got it. He was like, but the, he was a little too chill.

Alex is chill too. And she never misses, and they're both like, I got it. Yeah, okay, but we've been burned by, I got it before. We've got, we've been burned by like, I do this every day. And especially men that are like, I do this all the time. And we're like, we know you don't got this. Yeah. We know you're going to mess this up.

You never know with people like that because it could be too cocky. They don't got it, or it could be confident. Of course, I got it. You never know what you're going to get. And you announced her tour at the show, which you've already announced it on this podcast, but people just went crazy for it. It was a really special moment. Jeremy, like, filmed it for me and sent me the video, and I was just, like, crying, watching it.

And this is, so I announced it, I posted this morning. It went on sale on Friday. Hopefully every single tour stop sold out. It's 20 cities. If I didn't get to your city, it's a first-time tour. I don't know who launches with more cities than 20. I do have one. Okay, tell me. I'm keeping a list. I am going to add. Why did you add Salt Lake?

Did not add Salt Lake. Why didn't you do Salt Lake? So I was like 20 cities is a lot. I actually was going to start with like 12. And then I was like, okay, I got to do like 14. This is true. Little things I kept adding like I was like, well, I'm already in Texas. So I should add Houston to Dallas and Austin. Like I would have liked to add more cities. But 20, I was like, let's see how that goes. Of course. It's more than I would have expected. Yeah. Like the first time I did a tour, it was like eight cities. Yeah. I guess that's just a city I love so much. Everybody loves.

Everybody loves Wise Guys. It was one of my favorite cities of my tour. I love those anti-Mormons so much and ex-Mormons. And I just love my Mormon jokes so much and my soaking jokes. No, you're right. I know. Listen, I hear you guys about Salt Lake and Atlanta and Charlotte and Nashville and Pittsburgh and London. I hear you guys.

And I will work on it. I promise. I'll go visit my brother in London at some point. I'm going to be in London, you guys. Don't worry. I'll come to that one. Okay. I will add these shows.

I promise I will work on it. But if you guys bought tickets, thank you. I'm sure I've added a couple second shows in a lot of these markets by now. Rainagreeberg.com. I can't wait to see you next year. And I've been running around doing shows. It's been really fun. I said this thing last night.

Oh my God. Actually, it's been haunting me. I was on stage last night. And I, I hopped off. I started asking people like how their year has been and things like that. And when I got off the stage, I was like, okay, guys, happy New Year. But last night was December 14th. Well, that's a weird choice over happy holidays or Merry Christmas.

I know. And as soon as it came out of my mouth, I was like, Happy New Year. And it is akin to like when you get out of an Uber at the airport, they say have a good flight and you say you too. This has haunted me for a full 24 hours. I don't know. The energy is I'm ready to be done. Fuck the holidays. I'm ready for the new year. Just let that be your brand. I think keep doing it December 14 is crazy

I'm going to see like a thread about you on the internet It's like I think Raina shows this week And she is saying Happy New Year And it is mid-December you guys What kind of drugs is she on? Okay, when do you? Happy New Year to me is like two days before New Year And four days after New Year

And that's it. It can't be before Christmas. Yeah and while this was a carb episode Of how long you can say it into the new year I think one week it's enough One week max Yeah What are we doing?

Even January 7th, it starts and get a little like. What's people start to really get back to work? Let's stop this. Yeah. So anyway. That's what exciting to me. Okay.

Well, we're talking about regret today. So I have a three-step program to help you get past that. But after the show, you didn't go out, did you? I did go out. You went out? I went out. No, you didn't. Shosh and I were like, there's no way she's out.

Because I had texted you something. I was like, she's long asleep. It was like blizzard snowing, also and raining. Yes. Well, I went back into the city, yes, with Melanie and Emily and Jeremy, and they were just going to drop me off and they were like just come get a drink and we went to rent-tintin um next door to mother's ruin and we ordered soup and tequila and there was like one table sitting there you know i'm not a go out after the show i don't want to do that ever in the weather the weather

was unbelievable it was like raining snow well good for you um i didn't want to we got back and we were starving we ordered shake shack it didn't arrive till 1-06 i didn't even wait the one that's right next to... No, no. We thought it was going to come from that one near the hotel. So we're like, it'll be here in 15 minutes. No, it did not. It came from, I don't even know, time square. So we waited until 1 o'clock the morning. So we didn't get to bed till after two. And then we woke up at 7 a.m. to go to the Eagles game. And it had started lightly snowing again that night. But I woke up and opened the blinds. And it was a blizzard. And I was like, oh, we're going to a football game. We are going to be outdoors all day. I was like, are we really doing this?

And we did it. And it was one of the best days of the year, honestly. It was so incredible. I mean, if you guys were keeping track, it was my second Eagles game in the week. No big deal. But you also went to the Eagles game the day after last year? Yeah, at last year after the show. It's kind of like the tradition. I went last year after our holiday show. We drove down to Philly. And it was just such a core memory. I mean, we made the best of the weather. We got there. It was me, Chunky, our friend Megan, and then two new friends. Lauren and Meg there are a couple and Eagles fans. And we got there and my brother had the tailgate set up and he made sure all his friends did it right. There was a tent. Like at one point, Raina, we were like eating Italian wedding soup over a heater in a tent. I was like, this is the life. That sounds fun. I love wedding soup so much. And I got tickets for Matt and Steph and Shoshanka's Christmas gifts and the Eagles gave me field passes. So Matt and I left the tailgate a little early. We went down to the field while they were warming up, and that was such an incredible experience. So then we went into the fucking tunnel.

Shout it to my new friend Kelsey. That's my new co-os of the podcast. Kelsey from the Eagles. I'm going to have another wedding just so she can come. I would love you to have another wedding. Shout to her. So we're going in the tunnel. I'm like, what is about to happen?

We see Swoop, the mascot. We get a picture with him. We're like, Jay, my nephew is going to freak out. Matt and I got a picture with Swoop. And we go into the tunnel. And we're waiting there. I'm like, we're going to see the fucking players come out. It was like so iconic.

And so all the players walked through and Jalen Hertz like walked right by me. He came out of a little, a separate room. Like all the players come through and they, the Jordan Mayelado was like the first one to walk out. It was just like so hype, you know. And then I felt I could feel him, right? I could feel Jalen Hertz behind me. I could feel and I could feel his energy and he came right here. I mean, he could smell him.

Like he was right here. And then we went up to the game and the game was a blowout. The Raiders didn't score at all. Did you say the whole time? Yeah, it was quick. It was sub three hours. No, I watched it. I turned it on.

I was like, oh, this game's over. Yeah. So we would have left a little early, but it was fine, and we got out of the city really early. And it was really just one of my favorite days was such an amazing experience with our friends. And also for me to do for Matt, it was like the best Christmas gift I could have given him. And then as all that was happening, Chiefs got knocked out of the playoffs. I saw that. First time in 10 years.

11 years. Really? Yeah. Turns me on to even. say it. They're not even it. Who are the Eagles going to play the Super Bowl? I don't know.

Shoshonka's saying the Patriots are going to be the Super Bowl. Okay. Listen, I think that'll be fun. Is he like a really big Patriots fan? Not anymore. He doesn't care. He's, I mean, he loves the Eagles. But he doesn't care about the Patriots.

Like, he's not like a, uh, he does care about the Patriots. Yeah. I mean, he's New England, raised his whole life. I got to say. A house divided. It is funny to be, we've talked about this before. It's funny to be with. with someone, typically a man who has money on the game and specific things.

And we always joke about this, like the way that men get so invested about these games and they're going crazy if it's going well or it's going poorly. And it's like their fucking mortgage is riding on it sometimes. I do forget that because I'm always like, you don't play for this team. And it's like, you're going to be. Yeah, exactly. You are playing for this team. They're trying to pay their bills.

And so we came down. We were like, went to this little lounge for halftime. And we came down. And as we're walking back down to our seats, AJ Brown scored a touchdown. And Shoshan went fucking crazy. And I'm like, how much you have on that? He was like, $500. I was like, exactly.

I'm happy for you. That's paying for your Christmas gift. So it was just really great. And you were supposed to come, but, you know, you just, you knew it didn't, it wasn't going to be for you. Jeremy texted me, thank God you didn't go to that game. And I was like, why? As I woke up at 11.

And I was like, why? And he goes, look outside. And I was like, oh, I couldn't handle this. It cleared up and there was no snow in the field. But it was freezy. and the seats had snow on them. I think most people just stayed standing the whole game. But it really, like, the sun came out, and it was just a wonderful day.

And I just thank you to the Eagles for really making this the best end of the year for me. I'm really loving being in with them, obviously. And it's just the best team, and I'm so happy to be a part of it. And, you know, we're back on top. Let's hope. Go birds. Yeah, go birds. And one correction the other week, because we mentioned these lifelong teams,

and Raina mentioned the L.A. Lakers. And someone corrected us in the comments and said that they used to be the Minneapolis Lakers. So sorry. Oh, I also got a UD. to check your fax DM the other day about love is blind. And they told me lots of people have gotten divorced besides Milton and Cynthia. We just want to talk about Milton. Y'all, shut up. Wait, oh, Ray, I have to tell you, when I was at the Eagles game, obviously having the best day in my life, people were

DMing me. Don't oversell it. You better not oversell it. Oh, don't oversell it. Someone from Wisconsin might get pissed. Okay, so should we pivot to our lessons learn this year? Oh, our personal lessons we learned this year? What do you think?

Yeah. I didn't prep for lessons I learned this year. Oh, we're not going to recap our year? I'm going to recap my year, but I didn't read like a list of lessons. Oh, I've wrote a list of regrets. Okay, well, I'll start. You can noodle on it. No, we always talk about.

Raina keeps forgetting what we do on this podcast. Raina was like, so for this episode that we're recording right now, she's like, we'll do like our pop culture roundup. And I'm like, Raina, you know we have a pop culture episode. And I was like, but this is the last episode of the year. I was like, yeah, but you know, we started the snacks that we would do pop culture. You can't remind me about stuff that happened more than a week ago. I, you know, I don't remember.

And also, I'm really like a positive person, but yeah, I only wrote a list of progress for this year. But I'm going to wrap them in positivity. Okay. Can I talk about my year? Everyone's like, we're sick of hearing about your ear. It's raining his year now. No, 2026, I'm going to waterboard you with May. I have eight days left of Ashley's year, so.

Thank God. We didn't get enough. I comment on Raina's Torpo Street. Do you guys think she got married? Yeah, did you guys? No, I got married. Oh, you sound like haters in my comments now. People that write that publicly, I'm like, how mad are you about your life?

Like, to see that and write it publicly? Yeah, but I'm allowed to. That is crazy. The people in the camp of like, I didn't know you got married. Anybody that says that to anybody else, I'm like, how bitter are you? Yes. Your jealousy is like seeping out of your pores. You know what I thought, which I've done a couple times?

I want to talk you about this. Removing followers. I think that is so insulting because I'm not blocking you. You haven't bothered me that much. but I don't want you here. And if you want to be involved in my life, you have to follow me again. Like, I don't do it a lot. You know what the message it sends is I want followers, of course, I do this for a living.

You know, we are technically influencers with everything else that we do. Like, we need followers. We want followers, but I don't need you. What I love this idea? Remove follower. Bye-bye. Why are you here in the first place? You don't get to be here.

Well, I just, I think for a little while, you know, it was fun to abuse it. influencers and say stuff and people just had to like take it. Not fun for me. But now I think that like people have really taken that back more and you don't get to come into my house and say things to me about my job, my looks, how I live my life that is negative or miserable. You don't need to be here. You could unfollow me and I would cease to exist. So I don't have to be abused in my comments. Exactly. And for something that's just celebratory, like your tour or my wedding. Are people talking to my tour? No. No, no. I didn't see any. Only one person was like, I didn't know you did stand up.

And I was like, take this energy somewhere else. Yeah. Get out of here. Remove follower. No. Like if you post something that's meant to stir something up or be controversial or even like an opinion, pop culture related and people want to debate it, whatever, there's a line certainly. But when you are just celebrating and haters come out, you are the worst.

Get the fuck out of here. I think people, if you're celebrating something you're proud of, listen, it might be, not you. There's somebody that I'm thinking of that has posted like four. 40 times about her wedding. They both have. And I was like, it's a lot. But you know what? Let her cook.

Let her cook. But people spend a lot of money on this. You can unfollow. I know an influencer too, someone that I love. And I was like, this is, it's so much wedding content. I might have muted her for a little bit. And it's someone that I like. And it's someone that I went back and looked at her content for inspo on something.

Like, it's not that. It's just, there are other ways to go about this than being a hater. You talk shit on me behind my. my back, like everybody else. So anyway, got married this year and, no, I've never accomplished more in a year. There was a point in 25, which we're still in, where I was like, if I really pull this off successfully, if I really do the whole tour, shoot the special, have the wedding of my dreams, on top of running two companies, doing two episodes a week, all the other work stuff we have to do, and having a personal life, being in a little travel a little bit, we took a trip, and being a good

friend, partner, daughter, sister, mother to a zool. Like if I can really do it all, I will be so proud of myself and realize just what I'm capable of. And I think that's really what I learned this year about myself is just what truly I am capable of. And after it was over, after the tour and the special and the wedding were over, I mean, I had this crash that I kind of thought, but I didn't totally expect the magnitude of it. And I would say it was about a month until I felt really back to normal. And we talked about the post-wedding crash, but it was more than that. It felt like a loss of identity because all I did for an entire year was plan the tour and shoot the special and plan the wedding. Those were my priorities and my focus and took up all my time and energy.

And then they both ended what felt like abruptly. And I had this like, who am I? And I feel back to normal now. But that was my primary emotion was just pride and feeling accomplished. and just feeling so much love and support and grateful for the friends and the family and the support system I have and this audience. And we talk about this all the time. And obviously, we've always felt that for years and you'll feel it even more as you're on tour solo and coming out to the shows and leaving the supportive comments. Like, again, I hate to talk about the negative without the positive because it's overwhelmingly positive.

And people just want to see us happy. Most people again and want to see us succeed and whatever it is, whatever it's a comment on Instagram or it's buying a ticket to, my show or Raina show or the girls got to each show and just listening and leaving a nice comment on Spotify or YouTube and we just we rarely feel that hate or energy it's mostly love and I'm so grateful well I knew what you were capable of just so you know I never for one second doubted you and it's funny that you said like you didn't know like what you were capable of because like I have some friends that would tell me they were going to go on a tour and shoot a special and do their wedding and I'd be like um maybe pick one yeah and

I mean, the rest of our job can't, like, take a backseat. I mean, we have a team of people that are responsible to us for vibes only. We do two episodes a week, 90 episodes a year. Like, we don't have a job that you can also not do. Yeah. And I really would have had a, if I had a different business partner, I would have really paused and thought, like, can I trust her to be present for this? Can I trust her to, like, show up every week, twice a week, two episodes, edit the stuff, post everything. Like, it just never even crossed my mind.

Wow. Well, thanks. I mean, we've talked about this before. We don't need to be repetitive, but you picked up a lot of the slack. And I feel so lucky to have you as a partner for eight years at this point where I can have those conversations with you and just like, I need your help. And that's what we do for each other. And, you know, I'll do it for you next year. And I know we feel the same like when we're really happy. And I feel like this year was these highs and lows. And I felt so happy in these certain areas of my life. But it was such a horrific year. And we don't. need to rehash it all, but just the atrocities committed by the president and the administration and all the pain and suffering and loss and families ripped apart and just the greed and the corruption of it all and this dismantling of our democracy. It has been like a waking nightmare that we're still in. And so there was that this year of living this double life where you're doing all this stuff and you'll feel like this too, where you're like, I'm feeling so happy. but there's this feeling in the back of my mind that things are bad and there's rage and heartbreak over what's happening. And we've discussed various ways to manage that.

I think that just stay vigilant and speak out and be generous when you can and take care of each other. And let's look forward to the midterms in 2026. And I just think that so many people are hurting and suffering and struggling. and I did this thing that I have done in the past. I feel we were talking about it because it's like I'm kind of, I don't have much more capacity to do it. So if someone's listening, they're like, well, I want to be a part of that.

But I post on my Instagram the other night. Like, if you're struggling and I can help you and give you some money, let me know. And I'll then know you. I want people to get, you know, cash immediately if they really, really needed and just message me. And I had it up for an hour and I had like over 100 messages. And so I took it down because it was like, I can't even get to all these. and I don't want people to pour their heart out and then expect something.

Like, I just have to limit what I can handle and I wish I could handle more. But it's just to read these stories. Like, I couldn't go to bed until like three in the morning. It's just, it's overwhelming, like the people that are hurting, like young people, our age, younger parents, grandparents, people who are taking care of sick family members, people who are working two jobs, like single moms. I mean, people have graduate degrees. They can't pay their bills. It's just I'm so sick over it.

People that were the only country in the world where people can't afford their medical care and their one medical emergency way from being completely broke or on the streets. And the way that the cost of living has 10xed over the last decade, but people's salaries haven't and the greed from this administration and are these people in power and how they don't care and the wealth hoarding and the disparity. And people are working hard. they're just trying to get by and they can't. And it's, it's tough. And I feel so angry at the state of the world and that we're the only advanced country that has to live like this when it comes to

health care and the people at the top are just getting like wealthier and wealthier. And I just say, like, if you can help, just do it. You know, if you have, if you are you, if you're secure yourself financially and you have something to give, of course, you put your oxygen mask off before you help others just try and, you know, give back where you can. And, you know, give back where you can. help your neighbors and you know so many people in my DMs also submitted other people and I think that was the comment that I was seeing that they were like all the go fund mes that I posted were from other people like I want you can you help this family or help my friend or people were sending in like can you not for me I'm fine but can you this is this other person that needs it and I got

messages like that like are you realizing that people I want to help other people I think we saw that so much with LA fires and how devastating it was and the entire city showed up to donate and not just donate, but organize the donations and make sure the people were housed and people's children were taken care of and buying out people's whole Amazon wish lists. Yeah. We adopted a family and like just what it meant to them just just for that family. And they just thanked us over and over and over again. And that's just like one small person's life that we touched.

And the amount of like GoFunds me that were fulfilled, it just it reminded me about the beauty in the world and how kind people can be. You know, I don't want to bring the mood down, but it's just if you're doing all right, just. like I know that so many people aren't. And, you know, anytime you can give back, I just encourage it. And that's what we can do for each other. And we shouldn't live in a fucking country where we have to help each other with our medical bills. But here we are.

And again, there is so much beauty and generosity in the world. And, you know, I just encourage you to be a part of it. I don't know how to pivot to me. I want to talk about me now. Let's go. Let's talk about your regrets. No, I had a really reflective year. I had a different kind of year this year.

You know, you really, like, accomplished so much. And I started off the year saying, like, my goal is just to have fun. Yeah, I did enjoy your shit. I enjoyed my shit. I really did. I really enjoyed a lot of things. But it was a really reflective year because the first time in seven years, I wasn't on tour. I didn't have this tour schedule.

And I thought, like, well, what does that mean for my free time? And we had this giant community of friends in L.A. And a lot of people moved away. And I thought, like, do I even, like, living here anymore? and I bought a house here and what am I doing like in this city? Do I want to be in this city? My family's so far away for me. And I saw you go out and accomplish all these things.

And I kept thinking like, well, what am I also accomplishing? And I thought that I would do these like therapy classes. And I just turned out to not really enjoy them. It just like wasn't what I enjoyed as much as I thought I would. And you start, I mean, I wonder if other people have this experience that other people don't work with another person as close as I do with you. I guess it's like having a sister that gets married and you're single. And you're like looking at this other person who's the closest person in the

world to you succeeding and accomplishing all these things and you think like well what am I going to do to add creatively and I don't think I've really ever had a year like that in my life and I used the time to just travel and explore my hobbies and write and I was just like what what's next and you know the culmination of all that is being able to like date so much and then write this comedy hour and birthed out and it it started at the exact time it was supposed to and I guess I beat myself up of like well, why didn't you try doing comedy sooner? Why didn't you try to get on stage before this? And I asked myself, like, why, why, why?

Or, you know, why did you commit to these therapy classes? And you spent all this money on this, you know? And I think we just have to, like, be kind to ourselves and say, like, starting now is still starting. And, like, as the year comes to a close, I think that, like, a lot of us need to hear stuff like this, that, like, you're not the only one, like, replaying these moments in your head. And you're not the only one wishing you'd, like, started sooner or left earlier or spoken up. saved more money or chosen differently. And I think regret is really human and it's not like personal failure. And a lot of these decisions came at a time where you were just tired or hopeful or scared and you used the information that you had at the time to make those decisions. And, you know, I bought

a house in L.A. I don't know that I really want to live in L.A. anymore. But I thought at the time, that's really what I wanted to do. And now I'm trying to sort of like figure out how to move forward with that, but I think that, like, if you're carrying regret into the new year, like, I hope you pause and notice, like, what you, what it really means. And I think what it means is that you've, you've grown and you got new information. And none of this was, like, a mistake. We just, we use the information we have right now to make decisions and we learn new things and we move forward. And I am so proud at the culmination of this year. And I'm able to reframe it and think, like, look at all these things I got to be a part of. Being a part of your tour was, like, so

special to me, being part of your wedding and your bachelor at parties and being inspired by you. And and by the people around me and by this audience. And I'm going to like take all that into next year. Yeah. And I'm not like starting so late in life. I just feel like I'm like where I'm supposed to be right now. Totally. And you just had to figure out what you wanted to do.

And I feel like I see people have really great quotes that I can't recall one right now because I'm a little brain dead. But about careers like ebbing and flowing and you can't just be go, go, go all the time and you do need to recharge your battery. and figure it out. And I think that is something I've had to learn. And I have watched people's careers go up and down and them, you know, someone, you might feel like they aren't in the spotlight anymore. And then they come back and it's really inspiring to see. And I think when I first started doing things creatively when it was like blogging,

influencing and then starting the podcast and things like that, I was just like, you have to stay on this upward trajectory the whole time. or you'll just completely fall off, and that's not true. And it's just not true at all, you know. And so I, you know, we just have so many more years of doing this and doing new different things and pivoting. And it's just a lesson that I'm always learning in those moments too. And that everybody needs to take time off to recharge and figure out what they want to do. And I also had to remind me so I didn't, I also didn't take time off of, you know?

Like I took time off a tour and we still ran two companies. But this whole hour that I wrote is just about dating this year and the experiences I had and the things I learned. And I wouldn't have had the capacity to do that. Had you and I been on the type of tour schedule that we're normally on? Right, exactly. I really fill my cup with being on tour. I love it. You and I have so much fun.

We have a great team. We can be in front of our audience. It lifts me up in a way that I don't necessarily feel like I get home and I want to like go meet a stranger at a bar. But like I had the time to do that this year. Exactly. Yeah. And I like got all these crazy stories and I learned a lot of lessons. and I don't know.

I think I changed my mind about some things and that's like okay. And I'm not going to like carry this regret or punish myself. It's like I'm excited that all these things happen because it's like put me here right now. That's so true. And that's the thing with comedy is you have to live life to write the jokes and create the material. And yes, some comics never take a break and they go, go, go forever. But some comics also are like, I need to live life. I need to not feel like I need to write jokes every day.

I want to go out and have the experiences to make the jokes. People that do, I was on the show last night with this guy and he was on his way to go to the cellar to do six more shows. And I was like, how do you sleep? Yeah. And I'm not doing comedy right now. I don't, I'm coming up with some new stuff as it comes to me, but I don't feel pressured. And I like that feeling. when I have jokes that I've written feel excited about performing, I'll get up and do them.

But I am on a little bit of a hiatus. And I don't want to force it because I think that's what some people feel the need to do. I got to what's funny? What like they're just, it can feel forced and you feel pressure. And I'm just like, you got to live your life. So that's what you did. I did live my life. And I just, I feel like I come out of it now.

I'm more aware with all these experiences and things I'm excited to take into the new year. And I just, I can't dwell on the things that, like, didn't go right because I wouldn't be exactly here right now. Yeah. And I don't live my life with a lot of regret about the big stuff. I trust the timing of my life. I truly believe everything happens for a reason and it works out how it's supposed to. But I am plagued by what I would call micro regret. And this is the little stuff from I should have said this thing in our episode.

Or I should have made this joke on stage or little things that went wrong. I say this in quotes at my wedding that no one else knew about. Literally, there was not one thing that a guest would have thought went wrong. These are just things that I know and I beat myself up and they sit with me for so long and I'll ruminate and just really be hard on myself. And I noticed it a lot more this year because I had so much going on and the stakes were so high with the wedding and the tour. And, you know, I am a perfectionist, but on top of it, I'm on top of it. also really sentimental. So if it's something I feel like I didn't, a picture, I didn't get at a moment, I didn't have it, a wedding, for example, or a show, a big girl's got to each show.

Like, I'm like, I'll never get that again. And this stuff really gets to me and I have really tried to work on it because I feel like it was taking up space in my brain on our little honeymoon. You know, like, time. I'm just like, I'm wasting time. But I'm thinking about this stuff that I can't change. I think when you're somebody who identifies as being very high functioning, you and I don't make a lot of mistakes, you know, I think you and I are juggling like a thousand balls at all time. I'm really proud to say we don't really drop them that often.

Like even when like something goes wrong, I'm like I'm 90% sure it's not my fault. And I read this quote. It's just said like you can't apply today's literacy to yesterday's version of yourself. And like, yeah, you might have like made quote unquote mistakes at your wedding, but like you hadn't had the wedding already. Like you wouldn't have made those mistakes had you already been an expert at having your own wedding. Yeah. And I mean, mistakes. Sometimes I feel like they're.

mistakes. Sometimes I just am like, why didn't I think of that, you know? And I am working on it because it's no way to live. And I was making some notes this morning. I put together three-step program of self-talk. So this is my three-step program for managing your micro-regret. So my first course of action is reframing. And this is what I want to do. This is always the goal is to say this happened for a reason and it's for the best. So I forgot this thing or I didn't do this thing or whatever it is, but it worked out how it's supposed to. So it's good that I made the mistake. And you can reframe that and move on. This is what I try to do. But if I can't get there, I move on to step two, which is the obvious, is there something I can correct? Is there anything I can do about this? And if there is, I do it.

If there's not, then there's step three. And that is just you have to move on. you are human, you will do better next time. And that's the thing. Like, we're not perfect. We, like you said, learn new information every day. And so I really just have to stop beating myself up. And, you know, I feel like I'm trying to snap the rubber band. Like, stop it, stop it. Stop thinking like this. Like snap out of it. And I think that talking the stuff out is really great, too. You have to get it out of your body. Like, you have to let this leave your body. So if I can tell you or tell Shishang, like, I'm having regret about this thing and I'm beating myself up over it.

And, you know, I think that really, really helps too. And I just think just try to be gentle on yourself and tell yourself everything is a learning experience and no one is perfect. And these mistakes or these regrets that we have is how we learn and understand ourselves and do better. I think it's great, great three-step program. I hate when people say just get over it. I think it's really reductive. I think it's like, yeah, I thought of that. I thought I'm just getting over it. And I would have gotten over it if that was an option right this second, but I can't. I think it's okay to marinate on a mistake every once in a while and say, like, I can get better at this. I can learn from this. You know, I think it's good to have like a healthy relationship to marinating on something you would do better next time. And I have learned a lot by making mistakes. I have made all the mistakes. You know, you and I are really good at what we do today. because we've made mistakes.

And I have a support system that will allow me to talk about those things and that know that I'm not doing anything maliciously or on purpose. If there was an oversight, it's because I was juggling 15 other things. Like I hope that people around me are kind and understand that because I'm going to be kind to them. And I guess that's all I have to say about it. I just, you know, this happens to everybody. Everybody's human. And I dwell on things like I should have sat on the podcast. I should have framed this a different way.

Like, in an eight-year period, I've pissed some people off in my life about things I've said, and I wished I could have gone back. And why didn't we just edit this out of the episode, me personally? Like, why didn't I say, let's take this out? And I've just learned to be better. Kinder, softer. It's made me – every one of those mistakes has made me like a much more understanding, kind, soft human. Yeah. And we get to talk about things like that, which is the best part about having a business partner.

And we do the same thing. And we go through a lot of the same problems and issues. We can talk about them with each other. and that's my biggest thing is just get it out of your body. I mean, this is not important. It's not like I'm gigkeeping, but I just had a regret about my wedding with my mom and something that we didn't really do photograph, and I could not let it go. And I just finally, like, I texted her, like, I'm just kind of having a regret about this.

She was like, you know, I am too, but it's fine. And then I was like, I'm not, it's not out of me yet. And I called her. I was sobbing. And I was just like literally like sobbing like someone died. I just had to like let this go. And afterwards I felt so much better. And she was like, it's okay, sweetie.

I was fine. You feel like you're overreactive a little bit. But I just had to like get it. It felt overreactive to a smallest thing. But I just needed to release it. But you're talking about a moment you'll never get back. Yeah. Those things are really hard to negotiate with.

I think those are some of the, I can move past shame. I think I can move past like bad habits. Even like, you know, then I compare myself to other people. It accelerates the regret. But like a moment I can't get back is always really. tough to wrestle with. And I think a lot of people have that with their weddings, and especially with photos specifically. I mean, that's the most. I think I heard my brother and my sister-in-law talk about the wedding afterwards was like, we didn't get this photo. Yeah. Yeah. And we'll never

get it again. Yeah. So you guys submitted your biggest regrets. And I think we should go through some of them and reframe them. But let's talk about our partners first. Okay. So as people who are on tour and we're busy podcasters, it is a game changer to have our weekly food shopping taking care of with Hungry Route and Hungry Root plans meals for the whole week. It shops for you. It delivers everything. It'll fit into your health goals, dietary preferences, and budget. So it's really highly personalized. When you go on the Hungry Root website, you'll see they're going to help you eat well and reach all your goals. So if you're gluten-free, you're dairy-free, high-protein. If you have kids at home, if you're focused on gut health, you're going to take this quiz and

they have this smart card technology. And it'll recommend recipes and ingredients tailored to your tastes and needs. And I love this so much because I think that like our bodies change over time, our health changes over time. Even with the weather, like I just need different things in the summer than I need in the winter. And it'll help recommend all those things. There's tons of varieties. So unlike other food companies, they have over 50,000 chefcrafted recipes to choose from each week. And they're going to compile that and give you the ingredients for everything. The quality is fantastic. They screen out over 200 additives. And there are just so many preservatives and corn syrup and artificial sweeteners and so many products. And they screen for all that.

And now that it's just like the holiday season and busy time of year, you have less time and just available brainpower in general for grocery shopping and meal planning. So Hungry Road not only saves up money for gifts by cutting down on food waste, but it also can save you a trip to the store and the cold. I love it. I love the meals that I've gotten from that. I love everything they do. I'm really picky about proteins and the proteins are all really quality and fresh, the vegetables. I've made incredible tacos, pastas, like a chicken with sides, like a nice healthy meal. I mean, if eating healthier is on your New Year's resolutions, like, this is the best way to start.

And again, I cannot hype the time saving enough from not going to the grocery store in the cold. We've been in New York. I really am struggling. Okay. Well, you guys can take advantage to this exclusive offer for a limited time. Get 40% off your first box. Plus get a free item in every box for life. Go to hungary root.com slash gGE and use the code GGE.

That's hungry root.com slash GGE code GGE to get 40%. sent off your first box and a free item of your choice for life. And Nutraful, okay, if you are dealing with any sort of hair issues or someone you know, this can make a great gift or just, again, something that you might want to do in the new year is really take back control of your hair if you're dealing with thinning, shedding, hair health. Nutriful has a proactive approach to target the root causes. So you can see improved hair growth, decreased shedding, visible thickness while taking Nutraful. I've been taking this for years. I take the women's formula for capsules daily. I never go on a trip without it. I have my pill case and I do my four

capsules and I never skip a day. It is so, so important to me. And I really have seen such an improvement. Nutraful is the number one dermatologist recommended hair growth supplement brand trusted by over one and a half million people. You can see thicker, stronger, faster growing hair with less shedding in just three to six months. This holiday season, Nutriful is the perfect gift for anyone on your list, your mom or your aunt going through menopause, a friend who just had a baby and is experiencing postpartum hair shedding, your husband or father, who relies on his baseball, had to cover up yourself or anyone looking to support their overall hair health. So, you know, we still have some days left to give a gift if you guys are looking for that. But again,

just for yourself, this is something we really recommend trying in the new year and just improving the overall look and feel of your hair. So you can give the gift of confidence this holiday season with Nutraful, whether you're treating yourself or someone on your list. Visibly, healthier, thicker hair is the gift that keeps on giving. Right now, Nutraful is offering our listeners $10 off your first month subscription plus free shipping when you go to Nutraful.com and use promo code Gigi10. That's Nutraful.com promo code GG10 for $10 off. Okay. And Quince, I mean, what can't quince do? Their website is amazing if you want to do gifting for literally anyone in your life, your parents, your spouse, friends, yourself. They pretty

much have the whole list covered in terms of gift giving. So they have luggage, which I really love. They have these Mongolian cashmere sweaters starting at $50 that you normally pay more than $200 for. Ashley and I have tons of them. I have it as a cardigan. I have as a turtleneck. I have these jeans that I just got. They're the Bella Stretch Relaxed Straight Jeans. They come in like five colors.

I linked it on my Instagram. It's the most clicks I've ever gotten on any piece of clothing ever. And I think that they were like originally $230. Quince has them for $50. The prices are unbelievable on Quince for the quality that you get. I can't believe it. That travel outfit is the most clicks I've ever gotten to. It's the fleece, like wide-like pant with the crew neck sweatshirt.

It's gray. And I travel in it every time. So I need to get it in black because I'm just wearing it out. It still just feels like it's brand new because their quality is that good. But it is so comfy. Like it's a perfect travel outfit. Yes. So that's actually, I love that as a gift for somebody.

A gift. 100%. And it's just like anything comfy, cozy. They also have coats. And they work with trusted factories. They maintain high standards. And they're able to sort of cut out the mix. middle ban and all these markups. So prices are unbelievable. You guys can find good. So good. You'll want to

keep them at Quince. Go to quince.com slash GGE for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada, too. That's QINCE. Quince.com slash GGE to get free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com slash GGE. Okay. So our audience submitted some of their regrets from the year on Instagram. We'll laugh up with accomplishments at the end. Yeah. But I just want to say like, as I was scrolling through these regrets, quote, unquote, from our audience that I just saw the same things. Like, we saw the same things come up over and over and over again. And I hope you guys find comfort in that, that we're all going through this stuff. And whether it's money or relationships

or jobs, I mean, this just came up over and over and over again. We'll break down each one individually. But so many people are exactly where you are today. And then I read the list of accomplishments. And I was like, wow, how many people like pushed through these exact issues, regrets, problems? and had a totally different year the following year. And I was really inspired by it. Exactly. And I find a lot of comfort that so many people are in the same place, feeling the same way. And like, we're all similar.

Yeah. And we just change so much. I mean, we've always said when people say, you've changed. It's like, that's the point. That's the growth we're talking about. But I used to feel it like, you know, year over year. Five years ago, yeah, I was a different person. at my core and my values and stuff have stayed the same.

But things I may have said or done I wouldn't do today or I've just changed my mind on things. And now it's, I mean, it can be week to week. I can't believe I thought that last week. You know, like we just changed. And so a lot of it was like staying in a relationship or a job that you didn't want to stay in. And our relationship timelines, I think we should trust them and that we will get to where we want to be and we'll find the person. And so when you find that person, if that's what you want, if you may not, which is fine. But if you want that and you find them, you'll look back and know that everything made sense.

And the years you spent with this person or months or whatever it was that you regret, all played into the timeline that got you where you are today. I mean, if you were with somebody you knew was wrong for a decade, all right, I'll give you that. I'll give you that regret. Because you should, when you know something's not right, you should get out of it. And we tell you to trust your gut. But if you were in it in the moment and you only knew what you knew and you look back and you're beating yourself up, what's the point of that? Like we've all been through. Why was that with that guy?

How could I have wasted my time? And I understand beating yourself up if you knew it was wrong and you stayed. So that's the whole thing. Like first, like look for the signs and use our podcast and the advice and guidance that we've given and trust yourself. of course, but you were in it. And that's what you wanted at the time. So you can't look back with regret. I can't be myself up for the relationships I had that ended because I have to reframe

it as like, look at all the stuff I got from this. And whether you met new friends or you learned something about yourself or maybe you just became more patient, became more kind. Maybe you learned that you have harder boundaries than what you did. Yeah. You know, I look back at one relationship in particular and him blaming me so much in the end. and I actually think if I could go back and do it again, I would be worse and I would have hard or stricter boundaries. And, you know, maybe you made friends through this or learned

to maybe you just had a couple years of really great sex. Like whatever it was, I try to just be grateful for that moment in time. I had what I needed at the time. And we can outgrow those things. It's fine that you aren't exactly who you were five years ago. None of us are. If you're still with the person you were with 20 years ago, that's amazing. You guys grew together. But I don't know that's everybody's story. And it's okay to change your mind. So I try to not beat myself about relationships and jobs too. I mean, you were asking me, was I ever in a job? I regretted. I mean, I've had a different type of career. It's been, you know, weirdly makes sense, but kind of also looks a little chaotic. And I think about this one time I was in a toxic relationship, which I felt like was causing me to lose a little bit of my confidence and security and not trusting myself. And I took on this. It was freelance. I mean, I was working for myself, but I should have stuck with what I was doing and really

doubled down on it. But I think due to the relationship was just having doubts about everything and didn't think I could and didn't think it was going to be successful. And so I did this other thing, which took a lot of my time and energy and focus, and I didn't like it. And I did that for six months. And I would say that was one of the unhappiest periods of my life because of my off and on relationship because of that.

And I was like, why did I do that? I could have used those six months to build the other thing I was working on that was doing great. Like, I don't know. I was operating from that scarcity mindset and just having a lot of self-doubt. And that is a reason why I think never be in that type of relationship. They change who we are. And they really cause us to lose our sense of self and our confidence. But I regret it for a while because I was like I really could have done a lot more with that six months.

But it's what it is. I made a choice. And I got out when I needed to. And I mean, I think people stay at jobs for years. And I don't know. Where are you now? Are you happy where you are now? Maybe not also.

But then figure out how to get out of that. Then like the regret is not productive. And this is a self-talk I'm having myself too. Your career and your relationship are probably the two things you define yourself by the most in your life. Most people do. And it's really hard to extricate yourself from those things. And you should be kind to yourself and give yourself grace.

Your job gives you stability and money and something to do every day. your relationship is something you've probably built a lot of community around. Maybe you live with that person. Maybe you've a dog with that person. Maybe you're really integrated into their family and their friend group. And if you took a little longer to weave yourself out of this, that's okay. These are really hard things to leave. And I think so many people are like, I didn't leave my toxic boyfriend for so long. There was probably a lot of good there. I'm sure every single second wasn't terrible. I'm sure you just had a lot of community built in there. And jobs, too. People can't just up and leave their jobs. You need money to pay your bills. And, you know, maybe you have a non-compete. Maybe it's just hard to find something in this job market is really hard. I took a job at Amazon and I wanted it so badly and I worked so hard to get it. And the interview process was like three months long and I got it. And week one, I was like, oh, no. I have made a huge mistake.

But I didn't have money to like leave this job. I couldn't just like say by to this. I had to negotiate with myself. Like, can I do this for a year? Can I emotionally manage this? It's going to be. And I did. I did it for exactly one year.

That's what I could handle. But yeah, I beat myself up thinking like, why didn't I really think more deeply about this? Did I want to work at this really hyper corporate company that takes three months to hire somebody? And there's a lot of great things about working at Amazon. And I beat it up a lot. There were great things about it. There were. But it was wrong for me?

Well, it was that part of it too where you're like, I should have known myself better. That's where I really beat myself up is like, I consider myself self-aware. I have a strong sense of self. I know myself. Why did I do that? This isn't aligned with me. And then you're being yourself up on a different level. You're like, you don't even know yourself.

Like, I really, I'm not in my 20s. I'm not, I should be able to navigate my life better and make better decisions. And so that's another layer of regret. But I think you're, a lot of times choosing between like two things that like neither of them are an easy choice. And actually the Amazon thing, I don't even know if I ever told you this. But there was this crazy expose in the New York Times about how negative of a work environment it was. And they interviewed dozens of people that. had worked there. And this went on for pages and pages. And it was like right after I had accepted

the job. And I was like, I should have heated these warnings. But I thought, okay, journalism, yes, you're going to find in a company like Amazon and what hundreds of thousands of employees, you're going to find disgruntled employees and people that had a bad time. And I thought like I should have read, I should have like listened to this a little bit more. But I don't know, it's a huge company and a huge salary and I wanted it. And I did it for as long as I could deal with it and I don't have any regrets looking back now because it put me where I was. Exactly. I mean, I do think warning signs are important, but sometimes not. You know, my first New York City apartment, everybody said, do not live there. Do not live there. The slum lordy is getting sued

for tenant harassment. There's caution tape on every other door on your floor. There's every single permit violation on the front of the building. I was like, I'm going to do it. Justice for people that just need to figure it out themselves, okay? You know, I'm. I have no regrets, that first apartment. That's where we started the podcast. I mean, I do think that those regrets really haunt you, not the one of living your apartment. But things that, like, everybody around you was like, don't do this. But that is true.

I think that's an exception to the role. Why? That situation. I'm just kind of, like, making a joke. Just I think, like. But I saw this on here that says not moving sooner. And I feel that. I'm going to guess this person is happy where they're at because they wish they would have moved there sooner.

I'm going to just read between the lines. And I felt this. I mean, I lived in Atlanta. I think I stayed way too long. I really had a great time there, but I was there for 11 years. And if my life could be exactly the same now, yeah, I would have shaved off a couple years. I'd be a little younger now. I would have moved to New York.

I would have met you, but I would not change a thing. Like, I really was like, why did I stay with that long? I should have moved to New York City. But I wanted to wait until I had a right amount of money to move to New York and live on my own in my 30s and if anything would have changed, I wouldn't have met you and we wouldn't have started this. So I have to tell myself that. And that was an easy one. That was my step one of regret where it's just like this worked out the way it was supposed to be. I have to trust this timing. But I thought about that a lot of like, why did I stay there so long? You know, I was meant

to be in New York. I mean, you know, I think about, what is it called? Not red string theory, the other one. The chain of events that puts you somewhere? Butterfly effect? I think about moving to L.A. and I'm struggling with being there because I really want to be back in New York and I'm just like, why did I do this? Even though I deeply love L.A. My decision to not want to live in L.A. has actually nothing to do with me not loving L.A. I love it. I love my house. I love the weather. I love everything we do there. I love the food. And I've been like, you know, kind of beating myself up like, would our career be different today if we had to move there? And I have to be grateful that like this is giving. me the time to write. And I'm really, I'm bored out of my mind. And so I actually like put that towards like some creative energy and like I used that time and I probably wouldn't have had that time in New York because we go out so much. I stay up so late. I drink so much more when I'm here. Like I became like a healthier, more clear version of myself. I mean, it's crazy because I

love to come back to New York and I feel so energized and inspired and so busy in the best way. but I cannot sleep in night. I can't turn my brain off. When we moved to L.A., night one fell right to sleep and haven't stopped in three years. It's like, I have a different brain. And if we move back here, which that's a big if, but for me, but I'll work through it. But I don't think I would have met Shishonk. I mean, Shishonk lived on the East Coast.

I had met him. I had met him before. I don't think I would have been with him. If I had moved to L.A. and rewired myself in these certain ways. And I love L.A. I love New York. working at and I love L.A. I was watching I love L.A. last night while I was looking at like the Freedom Tower. I was like, I love both. But it changed me in a way that I think I needed.

It really slowed me down and softened me. And I really feel like helped me choose this person and be with him. And I get emotional thinking about it because it really felt important. And I think, I'm thinking about that as I'm trying to sleep at night of like, man, I just, my brain works differently here. I agree. Yeah, it really allowed me to like pause and slow down in a way that I like really needed. Less stress. I think, like, did I waste the last few years of my 30s in L.A.? And I could have been here running around more. And I'm a little more tired than I used to be.

But it gave me what I needed at the time. And I really was sort of done with New York at that point. I needed to slow down. I wanted to, like, take a break. And I made the decisions that I needed to make for myself at that time. Yeah. There are some on here that are just, they're small things. And I think, you know, you guys are funny, too.

And you've submitted some things that made us laugh, like not being as petty as 50 cent. I didn't have more threesomes, slept with a loser who ghosted me, and gossiping with the wrong people. All this stuff is just learning. This is stuff we all do and you're better for it after you learn the lesson. We have, we're talking to a friend. She's a trustworthy friend. We really love her, but she was like, I want to stop, like, talking about certain things with certain people. You just, you learn, you know.

We love to talk shit. But I catch myself sometimes of, like, we've talked too much shit at this dinner. know, like, I don't want this to be the defining experience people have with me is gossiping. Yeah. Even though I love to do it. And again, you live and learn and ignoring red flags you clearly saw. That's like something like that is just like, you've learned though. Now you see them.

Red flags are tough because I think it's hard to, it's hard to move past that because I think most of feel like I'm too grown. I have too much information. I'm better than this. I've seen this before. Like, why did I? And I'm the first person to say, like, I've had a podcast about dating and relationships for eight years. You and I have had the foremost experts in every corner of the field of dating and relationships on this podcast. I make mistakes in relationships all the time. And I ignore red flags and I

beat myself up for it, specifically like something that happened this year with somebody. And I'm like, I'm 40 years old. I do this for a living. Like, I have the information. And I fuck up. Yeah. Exactly. I hope that makes you guys feel better. Yeah. There's a big one on here that you should regret and not as missed out on Ashley's tour. you like that one. Yeah. So you can watch my special and then go to Raina. That should be good enough.

Can bend moan me. She's getting up. Fun moan someone else in need. I mean, there's, I feel these though. Like not having enough fun. Being on my phone too much. This is something too that I'm always working on. And just this is the first step is feeling this and being able to make the change and let

an ugly guy hit it because that was such a dip in my aura. We all have dips in our aura. Send a follow up email to a co-re. worker who died two months prior. I don't know where that email went. And then lastly, no regrets, not even won. We got a lot of those. And I really like that.

And I like that a lot of our audience is like, oh, my God, shit. Yeah. And before we go into the accomplishments, I just do want to talk about changing your mind. And I think that's been a theme that we've woven throughout this conversation. But we love to change our mind. And it's just human. And I think of myself as a reliable, stable person. I really do, but I do be changed in my mind.

And we really do. You know, when we, we'd been in L.A. for about a year and we thought we wanted to move back to New York. And then we told everybody. And we told Tessa and Anna and our team. And then we changed our mind. And it was, we had to go back to everybody and tell them. And I don't know how much we've talked about this deeply. But we were going to move with Tessa.

I mean, we did tell her. I mean, she had told her parents. I mean, it was hard. I mean, we were really distraught over, like, why did we do this to people? And we better than just being like, well, we told people, so now we got to do it. You know, I really think we wanted to stay in L.A. And I know maybe you feel differently now. But things like that, I mean, I was like, am I going to hate my wedding dress in six months?

Like, I'd be changing my mind. And should I marry this person? I'm kidding. No. But I have to. You can get out of that. Totally, yeah. Trying to print up.

We're not even married. Honestly, yeah, you're not even in it yet. But then I look at the relationships of my life have had my whole life. We've been in business for eight years. Like, I can trust myself and people can rely on. Yeah, me, and I'm stable and secure, but I just, it's okay to change your mind. We are all human. It is okay to make a big decision that you felt totally confident in and change your mind on that. Don't buy a house. I think you should be pretty secure that you want to live somewhere for a super long time.

I bought that house, and I was like, but it's hard to know that too. Like, I'm out here 42 years old, still renting. Like, I don't know where I want to be. Like, I'm ready to settle down. Like, and the house thing, is huge. Like, I get it. You want to have roots. You want to forever home. You want to stop renting. But it's just like, how do you know? How are we supposed to know? I just, now I have to be like, I have to use the resources available to me to deal with this. And, you know, I bought and furnished a three-bedroom house at the beach. Now I'm like, I would like to live in a small one-bedroom apartment in New York. And like, what do you do? But I'll, I will deal with it. I'll deal with it. I dug this grave and I'll deal with it. I mean, there's worse things in owning a home, I guess.

You know, I am really proud of it. It's an investment. But I think... You're upset about a boy and you bought a home. I did. I really, I brought a machine gun to a tickle fight. I should have just gotten bangs. Oh, my God.

I feel like that's a tag from the special. Yeah, I wrote that line. Sorry, that's a tag from the tour. Yeah, I wrote that line. But it's so funny sometimes when I tell people lines. I'm like, I wrote this. Can people tell that I already wrote this? I can tell.

You can tell. You can tell. I'm doing a bit. It's too quick, yeah. A lot of people said I didn't socialize enough. I didn't have enough sex. I didn't date enough. Life is long.

Do it next year. Do it tomorrow. Starting tomorrow is still starting. And I've had years where all those things ebbed and flowed. And I've had years where I have socialized. I always socialize a lot. But I don't want to, but I do. But dating sex, like every year is totally different and ebbs and flows.

That's the easiest thing to start. Fire up a dating. I've gone on a date tomorrow. And if you don't feel like it, if you think that other people think you should, if this is a projection, like if you just enjoyed being at home at the house and not having a person in your life romantically or not socializing, you can also honor that and lean into that. Yes. Do you feel bad because your friends or your family or society is telling you you should? Or did you want to do that at the time? Yeah, I like being on the couch. Yeah. I don't want to do anything. Yeah. And I've leaned into it. Okay. So should we talk about our audience's biggest accomplishment? I felt so emotional going through these.

Like, I know we thank you guys all the time, but like this audience just blows us away by how smart and caring and amazing you are and thoughtful and funny and accomplished. And I felt like emotional reading every single one, like every engagement, every marriage, every person that got pregnant when they tried to so hard for so long or left a job or started a business. I felt like so proud of our audience. We have the best audience in podcasting. We do. Hands down. Everybody says it. Yeah.

And like last week we were talking about like, don't judge other people and there's nuance. No. Every other audience is as goes ours. I will say that with my whole chest. There's no nuance needed. It's ours. Hands down. We've never done a show and had like performers in the show that every person wasn't like,

I can't believe what your audience is like. That's why I'm trying to come to rain his door just to see all y'all. Catch me in the crowd. I'm just going to be sitting in the crowd. Distracting people. One show you were like, do I have to host this? I was like, no, I just come chill. I just come chill.

You just did tell me. You were like, so Miami, it's going to be me, you and Brittany. I'm like, who's hosting this shit? You. The fact that I'm going to be your host. I mean, I will be glad to do it, but that's the lowest wrong, just so you guys know. Honestly, it's the highest honor. You could saunter out there with a cocktail and then sit back down.

Well, the thing with hosting is that you are in control. You set the tone and you're in control. I mean, but that's, this is like comedy. talk of like how important a host is. And like people don't want to do it because it's like low level. And it's just like, you set the motherfucking tone. You are in charge. I hosted for you in Phoenix at a great time.

Yeah, exactly. Love the host. But yes, I just, I was blown away by this audience and how amazing they are. So we'll start it off strike. Quit my job and I bought a company. What company? I love that. I know.

Should we invest? Let us know. Okay. I am down to the final $1,000 of being completely debt-free. Oh, I feel that. Oh, no. That must be so nice. I know. Like, when you get it down to three digits. Oh. I mean, some of these were like really, like, really got me. A lot of people just said, like, I kept going. Like this girl said she survived her first year without her mom Or like their life was terrible

Or they like finally extricated themselves from a marriage that was terrible And they like survived their first year being single or without their pet Like those things like really hit me in the chest Like it's such a huge accomplishment When those thoughts When you're thinking something a hundred times a day And you finally think about it 98 times a day Like what an accomplishment

I forgot really like Oh, I know. I mean, really upset. Like, just happy for you guys, but choked up. And every time I read something, like, I kept going when this tragedy happened and I just pushed through, I'm like, a woman. Oh, yeah, none of these are men. I mean, our audience is primarily women, but it's such a female trait. Anyway.

People said I passed the New York bar. I got my PhD. Pass the bar. Kim could never. Kim Kardashian could never. Did she pass the bar yet? No. I thought there was like a little ceremony or something.

She's going to start. Okay. We have pregnant people stuff. We have a lot of pregnant people stuff. Growing, birthing and feeding a baby while pursuing my PhD and infectious disease research. Only a woman. Only women. Survive my miscarriage.

Again, these are these things that really just you're thinking like how am I going to get through this and then you do. Two and three rounds of IVF. I mean, even one round is really just such an accomplishment. Started a whole new career at 27 after my last one sucked the life out of me. That's the time to do it. We got a lot of 27, 28 left my job. That's the time to do it. Somebody said I returned to work after maternity leave and I fucking crushed it.

That is hard. I can't even imagine. Yeah. Lost 93 pounds? Congrats. I mean, people just be on their fitness. And if you're not, if you're excited to gain 90 pounds, also proud of you. Do your thing.

I'm cancer-free. We always love to see that. We get that every time we ask something like this. Our really good friend who we've talked about her cancer journey a lot, just every time. Cancer-free, she gets those scans back, and she always tells us. It's just like, I just love it. Because I'm not checking in, hey, you cancer-free? Like, I like that she sensed this.

Yeah, me too. We too. Had my first and second threesome. Oh, okay. I love that. She needs to talk to the girl that said her regret was not having enough threesome. They should connect. Just trade tips.

I had sex the first time in three years. That is a hard streak to break. Yeah. Because I think you're like, it's been so long. It's closed up. You know what? It's just like riding a bike. You can take breaks. You will still know how to do it. Raina can't ride a bike. So I don't know why she's speaking on this, but she's, it is from my experience. I don't know what the analogy would be for other people. Yeah.

My partner passed away last year and I finally started dating again. I don't even just know what to say. That chest. That's just like crushed me. Yeah. So congrats to her for getting back out there after something like that. Quit my job to take an offer that pays less but gets closer to what I want. I mean, I just, I love to hear that, you know, because again, like I was talking about, there's just so much greed. So many people are motivated by only money or only power, just how much money they can make. And it's just, you know, this sounds like something that's maybe in the career path that you want or it's just going to make you happier, even if it is lost money. When I was in my early 20s, I was working at a restaurant group.

It was fine. And I got this opportunity to work for Danny Meyer. And he owns Shake Shack most famously, but he owns tons of restaurants in New York. And he's really known for being really philanthropic. and just top down just a really great company to work for and a good person and the people there are just wonderful and I accepted way less money to go work for him at the time and it made all the difference. I mean, it taught me, he single-handedly taught me how to hire people and I think it's so important. It has like set the path for me in terms of like who we've let into the company and how I

coach people and how you and I just raise them up and I learned all my lessons from him in terms of like how to manage employees. And I made way less money and it changed my life. But that's the value. Yeah. Those lessons are valuable. So it's sometimes people don't think like that. I mean, again, you need what you need to get by. But I think people really struggle with that. Like maybe, I mean, we have someone who works for us and she was between working for us and an offer that was with a much larger company and they could offer her. One of the bigger. One of the bigger ones. One of the big three. And then. And we couldn't offer her what they could offer her on a lot of different levels. I mean, there's no comparison.

And she wanted to work for us. We couldn't believe it. We're like there's no way we're going to get her. And she wanted to work for a company where she felt like she had an impact, but also a better work-life balance. And it was a honor. Yeah. Yeah, it is really an honor. Or chase after that money.

You know, whatever you guys want to do. Yeah. Well, thank you guys, as always for sharing your lives with us, whether it's your regrets or your accomplishments. and we have loved another year with you. Yeah, and congratulations for all these huge accomplishments. And if you feel like you've regrets from last year, I hope you're inspired by these people that accomplished all this. And every year is a new year, every day is a new day.

And we just thank you for coming back really week after week and give enough to your ears and your time and your energy. We just love you guys. We're really grateful. Yeah, happy new year. Raina Greenberg. Actually, it's Merry Christmas. If you guys celebrate Christmas.

If you guys want to follow along this week, actually, on the 24th, we're doing the appetizer competition. at Ashley's brother's house. I'm really excited. Your brother really can't win. I actually might be rethinking my entry. Not too hard, but we do it every year at Ashley's family. They do an appetizer competition. So follow along on the 24th.

That'll be really fun. We'll just be at your parents' house doing fun stuff. Yeah, so we're excited for Christmas and whatever New Year's is going to be. I don't know. I might be kind of a boss this year. I don't know. Nobody's in town. Whatever.

Happy New Year, you guys. I'm kind of staying inside. I like being in the house. And Girls Gotta Eat.com. You can head there, but not too much going on over there. So head to Raina Greenberg.com and check out tickets for Raina's tour. We are Girls' Got to Eat podcast on Instagram and TikTok. Of course, YouTube.

You can watch every episode in full. Share this episode with a friend. And we will see in 2020. Yes, we love you. Merry Christmas. Happy New Year. Happy holidays. Thank you for an amazing 2025.

Bye.