birthday oh let me get you a gift man um hold on let's see what's in my pocket here

do you guys want a tower what's that you guys want a tower like a sushi tower like it's not like a tower beer yeah but also let me take your gift first that's yeah oh yeah well

Do you have like a birthday resolution? Because every year on my birthday, I go, I'm going to stop drugs, and it doesn't happen.

Mine is probably setting boundaries with friends.

I'm kind of tough.

That's awesome.

You should do it, man.

It was

interesting.

I did listen to a 16-hour Madonna history podcast leading up to the release to like... do my research.

It was also because I had, like, a long drive.

So it was, like, a perfect thing.

But Yossi Salek did this Bandsplain series where it was, like, four four-hour episodes about, like, every album and going through, like, her history and her public persona, which kind of set up the framework for me that there's always kind of been this cycle with her that started because she is, like, kind of the first pop star to continue being a pop star past, like, 35 as a pop star.

Yeah.

you add context because I don't know.

It's, he's disgusting.

So there's...

So anyway, so she has that to, like I, she's like I understand her, like, motivation and drive on that side, and the abundance of evidence that this woman is being horrifically fucked over and cheated on and, like, manipulated.

And the way that there's this b- there's, there's this hole that's been dug where the more that Joellen has tried to prove it, the more that Roula and Brian have, like, tarnished Joellen's reputation, which has only pushed Joellen further, has pushed it to this really interesting place where Joellen has, like, continued to dig and be a dog looking for a bone and getting a bone because she needs to prove her innocence.

But the more she digs, the worse it, what is revealed comes out, and then the more that J- Roula now looks like a true victim, and now it looks like Joellen is kicking a horse while it's down.

So it's like I, I, it's like Joellen, you, you haven't f- you're not, like, lying, and I understand what you're doing is right, but it's like it's this weird place to be in where it's like at some point, airing out, like, an abused woman's abuse is, like, not helping.

And I think anyone who with a, anyone with a fucking brain cell who's watched the show would be like, "Yeah, Joellen's clearly not a liar." Like, Joellen's clearly not a liar.

Great point

Right.

Do you know what I mean? So it's, like interesting to me that she's so loyal, but I guess that's also a big Rhode Island thing is, like loyalty.

Like, people really, like st- There's a certain kind of Rhode Islander that's like, you stand by your friend, you know what I mean? Which I think is probably also why...

I mean, I don't know.

It...

Like, part of why I'm also, like I do...

There's a part of me that does fully believe that all the rumors are not true and that Liz just decided to leave the show is because, like it was interesting.

Cool, cool, cool.

It was really bad.

But, like, I want...

Like, I just want, like, fresh start, like, all new.

Like, like, clean slate.

Like, am I ma- like, am I brushing my teeth with Billy's ketchup and mustard mixed together because of the chemical reaction? Or am I like...

Y- like, I know you, I know you, like, hate waste, but it's also, like, I'm, like, really trying to, like, get a fresh start here.

And it's like, but I don't wanna be a bad person 'cause, like, karma or whatever.

You gotta get, you gotta get rid of me.

Mm-hmm.

Because something really interesting that happened to me-[laughs] Like, during the election was, I had this, I had these cousins who my sister was really close with that I was like, "Fuck them," like, they're Republican, they're Trump supporters.

And my sister was out to dinner with them, and she was like, she called me, like, after dinner, and she's like, "Hey, Jake, I have to tell you that during dinner, um, we were talking," and they were like, "Yeah, we're actually fully Democrats and voted for Kamala, but Jake is literally such a bitch to us, we've never had a chance to tell him." [laughs]

Right.

Basically that like he learned the truth about aliens or was kind of brought into the fold on that, and they, there's been this long-running plan to have him aid in the announcement by the US government to the public that aliens are real, and that Disclosure Day is in fact, um, doing that.

And that there is going to be-

The way it worked, they would each read their own book, and then they'd hop on the phone and summarize it for the other person, chapter by chapter.

It was part of my, like, nightly ritual.

I feel like it was like, come home, do homework, maybe have dinner, then call Grandma and recap the book.

'Cause I loved, I always loved, like, recapping my books to her.

Like, I loved having someone to tell the story to, so that it was like, I loved being able to retell it.

Like, I wanna tell her this story in the way it made me feel.

I wanna make sure I hide the suspense.

Yeah.

The way it worked, they would each read their own book, and then they'd hop on the phone and summarize it for the other person, chapter by chapter.

It was part of my, like, nightly ritual.

I feel like it was like, come home, do homework, maybe have dinner, then call Grandma and recap the book.

'Cause I loved, I always loved, like, recapping my books to her.

Like, I loved having someone to tell the story to, so that it was like, I loved being able to retell it.

Like, I want to tell her this story in the way it made me feel.

I want to make sure I hide the suspense.

Yeah.