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I m David Farrier, a New Zealander accidentally marooned in America, and I want to figure out what makes this country tick.
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One thing I love about America is that it really loves celebrating different days of the week.
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It finds all kinds of excuses to do this, mostly focused around food because America loves eating.
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And so there s Ice Cream Day on July 21st, Burger Day on May 28th, and Pie Day on January 23rd, not to be confused with Pie the Number Day which is on March 14th.
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Woo-hoo, National Pie Day, and we re excited to celebrate with the New York staple.
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Pie is like the perfect dessert.
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It is.
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And so while I m months late, it s today that we turn to pie day.
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The food, not the number.
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I went to nationaldaycalendar.com to find out more about Pi Day, where it told me the first Pi was created around 9500 BC during the Egyptian Neolithic period.
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Over 10,000 years later, in 1986, America decided it loved Pi so much, it declared January 23rd National Pi Day.
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The day was created by the American Pie Council, because of course that s a thing.
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And America has been celebrating it ever since.
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Because America loves pie.
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Over $2 billion worth of pies are sold in American grocery stores every year.
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And according to the American Pie Council s website, 1 out of 5 Americans have eaten an entire pie by themselves.
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So this week, I talked to a woman who travelled to all 50 US states to investigate 50 different American pies, and we try her top 3 pie suggestions.
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So, get ready to decide what your favourite pie is, because this is the Pies Episode.
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I feel like we ve talked a lot about pies in different episodes.
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It s time to do a pie zip.
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I love pie.
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I m so excited for this episode.
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Your face lit up as an intro was playing, which I liked.
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Yes.
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It lit up a little brighter than beavers.
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Your face dropped.
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Beavers, why the fuck are we doing beavers?
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Maybe everyone should run these topics by me.
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Things are getting out of hand.
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Yeah, it s confronting for me because as you know, when I think pie, I think meat pie.
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Exactly.
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And so this has been a real rollercoaster.
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Can you start by saying your thoughts on American Pie, not the movie?
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I love sugar.
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Since being in America, I ve had bits of pies.
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You saw me at Thanksgiving stuffing my face.
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Oh shit, that s right.
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There is a problem though recently where I have got new medical insurance and so I ve been to my new doctor.
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PPO?
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PPO.
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Finally.
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I m on a PPO, which I feel very grateful.
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It s very expensive, which I m not happy with.
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But I went to my new doctor.
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He was lovely, handsome, charming.
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Single?
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Don t know.
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Didn t get that far.
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Might need to ask.
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His nurse drew my blood and my bloods came back.
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And for the first time in my entire life, my cholesterol is higher than it should be.
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Okay.
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Yeah.
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My cholesterol is high.
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Whenever I ve got results back, anything, STIs, cholesterol, I don t know, whatever else is in blood, perfect.
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A plus.
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America, it s done something to me.
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It s done something to me.
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I think it s age.
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You re not gonna like to hear that.
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This is horrific.
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The older you get, the more...
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commonplace this is.
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Because my whole life what I ve done is I sort of eat what I want.
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And in America, I ve been eating, I eat a lot of pizza, I eat a lot of burgers, and externally I ve felt okay.
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I haven t looked at myself and gone, I m ballooning out of control, I m unhealthy.
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What I was unaware of is that my insides over the last three years have slowly been rotting away.
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Corroding.
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And that s just come to my awareness now.
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Do you ever cook dinner or do you always order?
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No, that s why I like this meal delivery service stuff, because that s really good for me.
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Factor, who s a sponsor at some point, I like Factor.
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That works for me.
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I get a lot of takeout.
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I live alone.
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Cooking for one kind of sucks.
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It s hard.
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And I m not a good cook.
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Whereas you love cooking.
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Yeah.
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I don t.
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Yeah.
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So America and my age is a problem.
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I think you re right.
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I think cholesterol, ooh, did you do any stats on this or we should?
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We should.
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Cholesterol levels in the United States.
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It s a whole other episode.
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We know we have obesity issues and those poorly.
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But cholesterol in general.
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Genetically, I have high cholesterol.
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I ve had it since I was just a wee baby.
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Oh, your genes have changed.
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When I moved to the United States.
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When you moved to America.
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Yeah.
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We re going to let that go.
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Let s take our daughter to America.
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Let s take our high cholesterol baby with us.
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What will cure her?
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The United States.
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Yeah, so I have it genetically.
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And then recently, I guess last year, it was quite high.
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This is all new to me.
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I m in panic at the moment, which is why going into this pies episode, I was worried because pies isn t recommended to keep the cholesterol down.
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So usually I d go into an episode like this, just absolutely stuffing my face.
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My doctor said, just eat a lot.
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You should basically eat salads.
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You know, it s kind of like when we did Loma Linda and we were trying to learn about longevity and really it s just the most basic thing ever, which is eat vegetables, run or, you know, move your body, exercise and sleep well and probably don t drink.
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Okay.
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So this is what s happened to me then.
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Okay.
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My age.
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Yeah.
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Since I had back issues, I haven t been exercising as much.
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I m not sleeping as well because of that fucking ghost that comes in at three.
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So all those have combined.
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We gave him a name.
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Frank.
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No, it wasn t Frank.
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No, damn it.
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I don t call him by that name.
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Peter.
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Peter.
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I can t remember.
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Peter s Calvin s ghost.
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Oh, right.
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That one really creeps me out.
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Okay.
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Anyway.
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So I just wanted to say at the top, I ve got high cholesterol and I m thinking about that a lot.
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Okay.
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So how is exercise?
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Have you been dipping back in?
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I walk a lot.
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That s great.
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I walk up a hill and I swim.
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He sent me a note.
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That s the other thing about America.
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If you need to get into your medical notes, there s a portal.
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America loves a portal.
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In New Zealand, you get email stuff to your inbox.
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In America, every institution you re a part of, there s a portal, you log in, there s security measures, they re texting your phone.
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It s driving me nuts.
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I can never get into mine.
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When I was sick, I went to the urgent care and I couldn t get in to pay my bill.
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Everyone s like, get to the portal, go to the portal.
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SPEAKER_04
You guys gotta do the face password.
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SPEAKER_02
I ll do that.
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SPEAKER_02
Yeah, I ve just set that up on my phone.
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SPEAKER_02
And it s like, do you do it in your browser or in your app on your phone?
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SPEAKER_02
It s Cedars-Sinai, what I m going to.
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They ve got two apps.
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SPEAKER_02
Cedars is great.
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SPEAKER_02
Why the hell?
0
SPEAKER_02
Why have you got two?
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SPEAKER_02
Make it one.
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SPEAKER_04
Well, Cedars is a very reputable hospital.
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Oh, I m over the moon.
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I m there.
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Okay, hold on.
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What did they say in your portal?
0
SPEAKER_02
Should I try and get into this portal now?
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SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
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I ll tell you.
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SPEAKER_04
I can get in my portal.
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SPEAKER_04
It sounds sexual, like get into my portal.
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SPEAKER_02
Okay, I m logging in.
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SPEAKER_04
Can t get into her portal.
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SPEAKER_02
This doctor told me to get into his portal.
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Okay, so I m logging in now.
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I m typing in my username, which I m not gonna tell you.
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Don t let me into her portal.
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Okay, I m clicking sign in.
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SPEAKER_02
Get into your portal, David.
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Okay, here we go.
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Dr. Andrew, this is what he said.
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I ve reviewed your recent lab results.
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Your LDL, bad cholesterol, is a bit elevated.
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This increases your lifetime risk for developing cardiovascular disease, aka a heart attack.
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He thinks I m an idiot.
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Stroke, and even certain types of dementia.
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SPEAKER_04
I can t get dementia.
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Your calculated 10 year risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is 1.4%.
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SPEAKER_04
Okay, that s really low.
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SPEAKER_02
It s low, isn t it?
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SPEAKER_02
What s the number, David?
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Okay, so I m going to go into a different part of the portal.
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Yeah.
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Let s see.
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Test results.
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Chlamydia, nothing.
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HIV, nothing.
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SPEAKER_02
Yeah, okay, so cholesterol, normal value, HDL cholesterol, normal.
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SPEAKER_02
Triglycerides, high.
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SPEAKER_04
Uh-oh, yes, that s bad.
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You want to be under 150 milligrams per DL.
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I m 217.
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150 is the?
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150 is what you want, I m 217.
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SPEAKER_02
That s not good, David.
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So I m 67 above.
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SPEAKER_04
Yeah, that s bad, okay.
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And triglycerides.
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It s not helping my panic.
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SPEAKER_04
Sorry, but triglycerides are the thing.
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SPEAKER_04
I mean, there s a lot of bad stuff, but triglycerides is one we do gotta watch.
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When I went, mine was 600.
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What are your triglycerides?
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SPEAKER_04
And I. Oh.
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I m fucking out.
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SPEAKER_04
So you didn t laugh?
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SPEAKER_04
No, I was like, I ll be dead.
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SPEAKER_02
So you must have experienced complete panic.
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SPEAKER_04
Yes, because it was crazy.
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And my doctor said, I think there s something wrong.
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So we had to retake it.
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And did it come down or that was you?
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Yeah, it was not 600.
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600 is dead.
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I mean, you re dead.
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Was it around 200?
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Am I higher than you or lower?
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Oh, should I look at my portal?
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SPEAKER_02
Can you look at your portal?
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SPEAKER_02
My LDL is 113.
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It s meant to be under 100.
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So it s not as bad.
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That s not too bad.
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Non-ACL cholesterol is 147 when it s meant to be under 130, which is not that bad.
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What s your ratio?
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The ratio s very important.
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I ve said too much already.
1
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This is so personal.
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It really is.
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Is there anything more personal than your blood?
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I don t think there is.
1
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Well.
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Where your lumps are.
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Your sperm.
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SPEAKER_01
Oh, the lump.
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SPEAKER_02
Is it time for you to tell us?
1
SPEAKER_02
No.
1
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So much time has passed.
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SPEAKER_01
The triglycerides I need to sort out.
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How s your portal going?
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Face recognized.
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SPEAKER_01
You re in on your app.
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My triglycerides were 103, so they re fine.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh my God, you re making me feel so low.
1
SPEAKER_01
I m 217.
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But let me make you feel better.
1
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My LDL is 184.
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This was in June of last year.
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Okay, mine s 113 right now.
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And it should be less than 100.
1
SPEAKER_02
So 184 is bad, which affects my overall cholesterol, which is 274 and should be less than 200.
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SPEAKER_01
Did you feel the feeling of panic?
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I mean, I felt really worried.
1
SPEAKER_01
I feel really worried.
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SPEAKER_02
I felt really worried that my triglycerides were 600, but I ve been high my whole life.
1
SPEAKER_02
So it s not that startling.
1
SPEAKER_02
Also, my HDL, your good cholesterol, is also high.
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SPEAKER_02
So that s good.
1
SPEAKER_01
That is good.
1
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Yeah, that is a good one.
1
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So that also affects it.
1
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Now, my ratio is four and it should be under five.
1
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And that s really the thing that matters.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh yeah, 4.7.
1
SPEAKER_01
It s meant to be under 5.
1
SPEAKER_02
Under 5, so you re fine.
1
SPEAKER_02
You re fine.
1
SPEAKER_01
I don t like that gasp.
1
SPEAKER_01
That gasp doesn t say fine, Monica.
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SPEAKER_02
It s just awfully close.
1
SPEAKER_01
That s what the doctor said.
1
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I think we should get your HDL up.
1
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, okay.
1
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To help this ratio.
1
SPEAKER_01
Okay, so look what I ve done.
1
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The last two weeks, I ve been on salads.
1
SPEAKER_02
Oh, good.
1
SPEAKER_01
Apples.
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SPEAKER_01
Great.
1
SPEAKER_01
Apparently oats is good for soaking up some of that fat.
1
SPEAKER_01
I m off the butter.
1
SPEAKER_02
Oh, wow, okay.
1
SPEAKER_01
I used to eat a lot of eggs.
1
SPEAKER_01
I m not eating eggs.
1
SPEAKER_01
No, that s a fallacy.
1
SPEAKER_01
Avocado.
1
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, no, okay.
1
SPEAKER_01
What s your sugar?
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh, look, let s move on.
1
SPEAKER_01
Look, this is stressful.
1
SPEAKER_01
My point is.
1
SPEAKER_02
Don t stress out.
1
SPEAKER_02
It s fine, it s fine.
1
SPEAKER_01
It s gonna get higher if you stress.
1
SPEAKER_02
Actually, yeah, exactly.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh, God.
1
SPEAKER_01
Sweating, heart rates elevated.
1
SPEAKER_02
None of this is dire, right?
1
SPEAKER_02
Did they say you need to get on a statin or something?
1
SPEAKER_01
No, they said no meds.
1
SPEAKER_01
They just said get your diet sorted out.
1
SPEAKER_02
Okay, pies.
1
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I ve got a couple of other bits of admin.
1
SPEAKER_01
I m going to save a bit of admin for in between the documentary.
1
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But just before we start, and this is important, we got a lot of feedback to the Lord of the Rings episode we did.
1
SPEAKER_01
Mainly because I didn t watch it.
1
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, people were upset by that.
1
SPEAKER_01
It s a bit like when I did Waffle House.
1
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, that was a nightmare.
1
SPEAKER_01
And I get it.
1
SPEAKER_01
And part of my brain, I m a bit chaotic, and part of my brain knew the Bianca about doing a Lord of the Rings episode without watching the movies.
1
SPEAKER_01
So, a couple of things.
1
SPEAKER_01
First off, in that episode, I commented that Orlando Bloom has sort of vanished.
1
SPEAKER_01
And immediately when we put that out, he s everywhere.
1
SPEAKER_01
He s absolutely everywhere.
1
SPEAKER_02
Oh my God, maybe you brought him back.
1
SPEAKER_01
I like to think I did.
1
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
1
SPEAKER_01
So Orlando Bloom, I want to apologize.
1
SPEAKER_01
I don t even remember that.
1
SPEAKER_01
He s got a new docu-series called To The Edge, which chronicles his mental, physical, and spiritual journey as he pushes himself to the edge, that s where the title To The Edge comes from, to learn and master three extreme sports.
1
SPEAKER_02
So are you going to do an episode on that and also not watch it?
1
SPEAKER_01
I wanna do an episode on Orlando Bloom.
1
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, that d be cool.
1
SPEAKER_01
Because he s in this amazing film.
1
SPEAKER_02
He s not American though.
1
SPEAKER_01
Where s he from?
1
SPEAKER_01
Canadian?
1
SPEAKER_02
No, he s like British.
1
SPEAKER_01
United Kingdom.
1
SPEAKER_01
He was born in the United Kingdom.
1
SPEAKER_01
Okay.
1
SPEAKER_01
Okay.
1
SPEAKER_01
He s not doing an episode in Orlando, but I wanted to apologize to him.
1
SPEAKER_01
And another thing, because so many people were a bit annoyed that I got the plot a bit wrong.
1
SPEAKER_01
I got Rob to show his son, Calvin, Lord of the Rings, the first one.
1
SPEAKER_02
Is that age appropriate?
1
SPEAKER_01
Well, we ll find out.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh.
1
SPEAKER_01
Afterwards, Rob got Calvin to review the film.
1
SPEAKER_02
Oh my God, I can t wait.
1
SPEAKER_01
And so this is a little mini review from Calvin.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh my gosh.
1
SPEAKER_01
Reviewing his first viewing of Lord of the Rings.
1
SPEAKER_03
You just watched the first Lord of the Rings movie, right?
1
SPEAKER_00
Yes.
1
SPEAKER_03
Can you tell me what it was about?
1
SPEAKER_00
It s about a ring that was made by a master and they re trying to break it because the master was a bad guy.
1
SPEAKER_00
But they can t use any of their tools to break the ring because what it made was this fire and only like a volcano and lava can break it.
1
SPEAKER_00
They re trying to get on there.
1
SPEAKER_00
They re on this island and they re trying to like escape but they landed on another island in like the middle and like the last of the movie and then but these goblins
1
SPEAKER_00
Um, this goblin was too powerful and he hid three bow and arrows in one of the good guys and he died because he was too powerful and you couldn t see him and there s too many goblins that he had to fight at once.
1
SPEAKER_03
There s a lot of characters in it, right?
1
SPEAKER_00
Mm-hmm.
1
SPEAKER_03
Do you remember them?
1
SPEAKER_00
There s Frodo and Sam and that s all I can remember.
1
SPEAKER_00
There s like eight of them or maybe there s seven or six.
1
SPEAKER_00
There was 12 given to the men, nine to the elves and three to the dwarves.
1
SPEAKER_00
It was actually a trick because the rings were bad and if you put them on you turn into his command and you turn into a bad guy.
1
SPEAKER_03
So he had given out all those rings but then there was one ring that would rule them all, right?
1
SPEAKER_00
Uh-huh.
1
SPEAKER_00
It was one given to the master.
1
SPEAKER_00
But there s this man that defeated him and cut his hand off.
1
SPEAKER_00
But then he got killed because all the bad guys wanted that ring.
1
SPEAKER_00
Too bad.
1
SPEAKER_00
And then it got left in the dirt.
1
SPEAKER_00
But the ring was also a trap.
1
SPEAKER_00
And he s still alive, but only his eye is left.
1
SPEAKER_00
and it got left in the dirt, and then Frodo found it, and they re trying to break it and put it in a volcano, and then it ll break up into dust.
1
SPEAKER_03
Did you like the first movie?
1
SPEAKER_00
Mm-hmm.
1
SPEAKER_03
Did you think it was too long, too short?
1
SPEAKER_00
It was three hours.
1
SPEAKER_00
It was pretty long.
1
SPEAKER_03
Would you recommend this movie to other people?
1
SPEAKER_00
Mm, yeah.
1
SPEAKER_03
Was it too scary?
1
SPEAKER_03
Too funny?
1
SPEAKER_00
It was, like, perfect.
1
SPEAKER_00
It was perfect.
1
SPEAKER_03
Perfect, man.
1
SPEAKER_03
Are you excited to watch the next ones?
1
SPEAKER_00
Uh-huh.
1
SPEAKER_00
I bet they re gonna try to destroy it, but the bad guy s gonna try to get them, and he s gonna get his ring back.
1
SPEAKER_03
Alright, we ll check back in after you finish the second one, okay?
1
SPEAKER_00
Okay.
1
SPEAKER_00
Bye!
1
SPEAKER_00
Learn and exprive!
1
SPEAKER_03
What?
1
SPEAKER_00
Like and subscribe!
1
SPEAKER_00
Oh my god, hold on!
1
SPEAKER_00
Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on!
1
SPEAKER_02
He just added like and subscribe!
1
SPEAKER_01
How old is Calvin?
1
SPEAKER_01
He s seven.
1
SPEAKER_01
It killed me.
1
SPEAKER_01
I did the same thing, Monica.
1
SPEAKER_01
I was like, did he just?
1
SPEAKER_02
Oh my God.
1
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
1
SPEAKER_02
He knows to say that?
1
SPEAKER_03
Just from me and being around podcasts.
1
SPEAKER_03
Yeah.
1
SPEAKER_03
It s really good.
1
SPEAKER_02
But still, we don t say that.
1
SPEAKER_01
I know we don t, but.
1
SPEAKER_01
It s a thing though, like you do hear it so often.
1
SPEAKER_01
And also that was amazing recall.
1
SPEAKER_01
I couldn t have done- That was incredible.
1
SPEAKER_01
Your son s amazing.
1
SPEAKER_01
He s pretty smart.
1
SPEAKER_02
He s so smart.
1
SPEAKER_02
He said a really big vocab word in there that I was- I didn t even know what it was, looking up in the dictionary.
1
SPEAKER_01
So we re going to get him to review the other two films.
1
SPEAKER_01
I love this.
1
SPEAKER_01
And we ll bring those reviews to you, Flightless Bird listeners.
1
SPEAKER_01
Stay tuned for more Flightless Bird.
1
SPEAKER_01
We ll be right back after a word from our sponsors.
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Support for Flightless Bird comes from Aura Frames.
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We know that you love AuraFrames.
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Your mom loves AuraFrames.
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Every other day I send a fresh photo of me in America to my parents  AuraFrame.
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And because they re not on Facebook and they don t really, like emails are kind of like, eh.
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Whereas if it just magically pops up on their frame, then it s great.
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I had the photo shifting through every half hour and mom demanded that I change it to like 30 seconds.
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She just sat there glued to her frame like the TV.
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Anyway, they re Wi-Fi connected digital picture frames that allow you to share and display unlimited photos.
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It takes about two minutes to set up a frame.
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And honestly, I think it s the perfect gift.
1
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It can be like really earnest and serious, and you can fill it out with beautiful photos, or I often give them to friends and just fill them out with fun silly
1
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Yes, that s great.
1
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The display, it s meticulously calibrated, high resolution, so it s nice.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh yeah, it looks like a frame.
1
SPEAKER_01
Exactly.
1
SPEAKER_01
It s like there s a photo, except in case of my mum, it s like shifting every like 10 seconds.
1
SPEAKER_01
But I like to set them to shift every two hours.
1
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, that s great.
1
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So it s just this beautiful thing in the corner.
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And right now Aura has a great deal for Mother s Day.
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Listeners can save on the perfect gift by visiting AuraFrames.com to get $30 off plus free shipping on their best-selling frame.
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Use code BIRD at checkout to save.
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Terms and conditions apply.
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This show is sponsored by BetterHelp.
1
SPEAKER_02
David.
1
SPEAKER_01
Monica.
2
SPEAKER_02
Have you talked to your therapist about your lump?
2
SPEAKER_02
Does your therapist know where your lump is?
2
SPEAKER_01
I told the therapist about the lump because it was so stressful that week and they said, go to your doctor.
2
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But they did talk me through managing stress and anxiety, because again, I m getting it with this cholesterol issue I ve got at the moment.
2
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And there is something to being able to manage each situation and not feel it spiral out of control in your brain, because our brains love to spiral.
2
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They do.
2
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And then it makes everything worse.
2
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It makes your body completely shut down.
2
SPEAKER_02
So yeah, you refuse to share your lump.
2
SPEAKER_02
with us, but I m glad you did share it with somebody.
2
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Yeah, because therapy is a safe space to get things off your chest and to figure out how to work through whatever s weighing you down without having to tell your friends about it.
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And BetterHelp is amazing because it s entirely online and it s convenient, it s flexible, it s suited to your schedule.
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That s the main thing people say about therapy, like it s too expensive or I just can t make it work.
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With BetterHelp you can because there s so many options.
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So get it off your chest with BetterHelp.
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Visit BetterHelp.com slash Bird today to get 10% off your first month.
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That s BetterHelp, H-E-L-P.com slash Bird.
2
SPEAKER_01
Also big news, just yesterday, they re releasing the Lord of the Rings trilogy to theatres, remastered and extended in America.
2
SPEAKER_01
Okay, so look, I know this isn t a Lord of the Rings podcast, but I just wanted to insert that into the Pies episode, because it s very important.
2
SPEAKER_02
I loved that.
2
SPEAKER_01
Lord of the Rings update.
2
SPEAKER_02
That was so cute.
2
SPEAKER_02
I can t believe you didn t like and subscribe.
2
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, you better like and subscribe to this feed.
2
SPEAKER_01
Okay, Pies.
2
SPEAKER_02
He s so cute, he s so cute.
2
SPEAKER_01
Let s begin our exploration of American Pies.
2
SPEAKER_02
Oh, this is great.
2
SPEAKER_02
Oh, yeah.
2
SPEAKER_01
I guess I first understood how much America loved pie when I watched a movie called American Pie 25 years ago and witnessed an American fucking a pie.
2
SPEAKER_01
Not much has changed, because America still loves pies, as I found out during the Thanksgiving episode of Lightless Bird, where I found myself surrounded by pies.
2
SPEAKER_01
I ve got four big slices of pie.
2
SPEAKER_01
I ve never had this one before.
2
SPEAKER_01
I thought it was a cheesecake, but apparently it s key lime.
2
SPEAKER_01
This is pecan, a famous Thanksgiving treat that I ve never had before.
2
SPEAKER_01
I realized I haven t really learned much about pies since that episode.
2
SPEAKER_01
If I was to be truly American, I needed to understand why Americans are so pie obsessed.
2
SPEAKER_00
My name is Stacey Mayan Fong, and I m a baker and an author of pie cookbooks.
2
SPEAKER_01
The second I d seen Stacey s cookbook sitting on a bookstore shelf, I knew she was the one I needed to talk to for this episode.
2
SPEAKER_01
Her book is called 50 Pies, 50 States, the result of her traveling to each American state to try their favorite pie.
2
SPEAKER_00
So there s 50 pies in the book, one for every state.
2
SPEAKER_00
There is also a pie for D.C.
2
SPEAKER_00
I had to do the nation s capital.
2
SPEAKER_01
Which is what, by the way?
2
SPEAKER_00
The D.C.
2
SPEAKER_00
pie is a cherry pie as an ode to the lore of George Washington cutting that cherry tree down.
2
SPEAKER_01
I also wanted to talk to Stacey because she s a bit like me and that she wasn t born in America.
2
SPEAKER_01
She chose to make it her home.
2
SPEAKER_00
So I have grown up enamored with America from watching American movies and listening to a lot of American music with my dad.
2
SPEAKER_00
My dad loves Simon and Garfunkel, Bread, The Carpenters.
2
SPEAKER_00
I have a big affinity for old country music like John Prine, Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton s my favorite person on the planet.
2
SPEAKER_00
because it s all about storytelling.
2
SPEAKER_00
And I think what s wonderful too about the music, it is country music, but it s storytelling of America.
2
SPEAKER_00
So in my head, America seemed like this really big, wonderful place that you could go on this big road trip.
2
SPEAKER_00
I was born in Singapore and I grew up in Hong Kong, both of which are islands.
2
SPEAKER_00
So any trips we took were all international.
2
SPEAKER_00
All I wanted was to go on this long road trip and eat pie at different diners across America.
2
SPEAKER_00
It just sounded so wonderful to me.
2
SPEAKER_01
Before we got into it, I wanted to make sure we were both on the same page about what pie means, what it consists of.
2
SPEAKER_01
Coming from New Zealand, if you say pie, what you mean there is a meat pie, you never think fruity pie.
2
SPEAKER_01
When you were growing up and you thought pie, what was the thing that would jump to mind?
2
SPEAKER_00
I thought meat pie, because I also grew up playing rugby and netball.
2
SPEAKER_00
And afterwards, you would go to a tuck shop and get a meat pie.
2
SPEAKER_00
Pie for me was only meat.
2
SPEAKER_00
And I didn t know there was so many sweet pies until we would come here on vacation.
2
SPEAKER_00
My dad worked in hotels, and so there would be these buffets of all these different kinds of pies.
2
SPEAKER_00
And I was like, what is going on?
2
SPEAKER_00
Because in my mind, there was only apple pie and then cherry pie because of the music that I d listened to.
2
SPEAKER_00
So I didn t know about any other like grasshopper pie or all these different custard pies.
2
SPEAKER_00
So when I started diving into that, it was so interesting to learn that here pie was a dessert.
2
SPEAKER_00
But for all of us,
2
SPEAKER_00
In British colonies, pie was a full meal.
2
SPEAKER_00
I feel here the only savory pie everybody thinks about is chicken pot pie.
2
SPEAKER_00
That s the only savory one.
2
SPEAKER_01
Once she had moved to New York, Stacey decided to embrace the sweet pies of America.
2
SPEAKER_01
So much so, she ended up becoming an American citizen.
2
SPEAKER_01
It was while waiting for her citizenship that her true pie journey began.
2
SPEAKER_00
While I was doing the laborious amount of paperwork, spending all that money trying to stay in this country, I thought it d be really fun to bake my way through the country as a way to learn about this country.
2
SPEAKER_00
Kind of how you have this podcast to kind of learn about all these nuances.
2
SPEAKER_00
I decided to learn about each state by pie.
2
SPEAKER_00
Because when you travel to all these different countries, like if you go to like Portugal or Italy or Spain, you have a list of things you want to eat from there.
2
SPEAKER_00
I feel like people rarely do that with the United States or even the hometown that they re from.
2
SPEAKER_00
And I thought I would exercise my Nora Ephron, Nancy Meyers, rom-com grand gesture and dedicate each state pie to a person that I know from that state.
2
SPEAKER_00
So like my love letter to this country, I ve decided to call home.
2
SPEAKER_00
So that s how I landed on Pi because even though Pi is very different to you and me, I feel Pi is quintessentially very American or America likes to think it s very quintessentially American.
2
SPEAKER_00
And so Pi seemed like the good blank canvas for me to explore not only the food of this country, but also all the different states and also my little ode to the people that made this place my home.
2
SPEAKER_01
Okay, onto the pies.
2
SPEAKER_01
There are over 50 pies in her cookbook, but we don t have all day.
2
SPEAKER_01
I wanted to know what ones really popped for her, which ones she really recommends.
2
SPEAKER_01
I wanted a top three.
2
SPEAKER_01
Say you re going on a date and you don t know much about the person, but you really know you want to impress them.
2
SPEAKER_01
You don t know where they re from, but you really just want to impress this person that s come over with these three pies.
2
SPEAKER_01
They re going to have these pies and then they go, wow, that was a fucking beautiful pie.
2
SPEAKER_00
My God, this is so hard.
2
SPEAKER_00
I would probably bake the pie I did for Vermont, which is an apple pie with a cheddar cheese crust.
2
SPEAKER_00
I love that pie so much because my buddy Pete s grandpa always used to say, a pie without the cheese is like a kiss without the squeeze.
2
SPEAKER_00
And in Vermont, you traditionally eat an apple pie with a slice of cheddar, which I really like because it s a mix of sweet and salty.
2
SPEAKER_00
So it really amps up the apple flavor.
2
SPEAKER_00
And then another pie I would make would probably be the pie that I ve probably gotten the most contention with that I did for the book would be Minnesota.
2
SPEAKER_00
It is a corndog hot dish pie with savory funnel cakes on top.
2
SPEAKER_00
And then to round out this, because I want it to be a whole meal, I would probably do the pie I did for Washington, which is a rainier cherry pie with a potato chip crumble on top, because I love a mixture of sweet and salty.
2
SPEAKER_00
So I think it would be those three.
2
SPEAKER_00
But I think the pie that would get me a ring on the finger would be the apple one, because everybody loves apple pie.
2
SPEAKER_01
Of course, for this episode, I needed to go and eat some pie, just to start wrapping my taste buds around the idea that pies are my life and no longer meat pies, but sweet pies.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so I got Stacey to advise me on what American pies I should try where I am right now, Los Angeles.
2
SPEAKER_00
Do it.
2
SPEAKER_00
Apple, cherry, and then a lemon meringue, or something that has a floofy top, a big whipped top.
2
SPEAKER_00
See if you can find a lemon meringue.
2
SPEAKER_00
Lemon meringue pies are probably wonderful in LA because you guys have great citrus out there.
2
SPEAKER_01
OK.
2
SPEAKER_01
I had my assignment.
2
SPEAKER_01
Apple, cherry, and lemon meringue.
2
SPEAKER_01
OK, Monica.
2
SPEAKER_01
Cliffhanger?
2
SPEAKER_01
So I bought in an apple, cherry, and a lemon meringue.
3
SPEAKER_02
Lemon meringue.
3
SPEAKER_01
Where are they from?
3
SPEAKER_02
They re from- House of Pies.
3
SPEAKER_02
House of Pies, because it s close.
3
SPEAKER_02
I know it s not the fanciest, but it s kind of iconic.
3
SPEAKER_01
Rob s face.
3
SPEAKER_02
Where would you get your pies from in LA?
3
SPEAKER_02
Where should I go next time for pies part two, when the cholesterol level has dropped?
3
SPEAKER_01
Okay, there s a few.
3
SPEAKER_01
I love Winston s.
3
SPEAKER_02
Winston s, that wasn t really what I said.
3
SPEAKER_01
Winston s is incredible.
3
SPEAKER_01
There s a pie place I got some pies for Thanksgiving.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s downtown.
3
SPEAKER_00
The one that I sent you to, Destroyer?
3
SPEAKER_01
No, I didn t end up getting that.
3
SPEAKER_02
Oh, those were insane.
3
SPEAKER_02
I m just going to, as you talk, I m just going to chop these up on your plate for each of you, a little selection of each.
3
SPEAKER_02
God, didn t you love what she said?
3
SPEAKER_01
Oh, I loved everything.
3
SPEAKER_01
What was that, lime?
3
SPEAKER_01
Fat and flour.
3
SPEAKER_02
A pie without the cheese.
3
SPEAKER_02
So good.
3
SPEAKER_02
A pie without the cheese is like a kiss without the squeeze.
3
SPEAKER_01
I loved that.
3
SPEAKER_00
Did you have Baker s Square in Georgia?
3
SPEAKER_01
No.
3
SPEAKER_00
Is it a chain?
3
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, it s like a diner.
3
SPEAKER_01
We didn t have that.
3
SPEAKER_00
They had really good pie.
3
SPEAKER_00
Oh.
3
SPEAKER_00
They had a French silk pie that was incredible.
3
SPEAKER_01
French silk, okay.
3
SPEAKER_01
French silk is a very elusive pie.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s very hard to find these days.
3
SPEAKER_01
I think they are at cafeterias and stuff originally.
3
SPEAKER_00
Baker Square, that was always my go-to.
3
SPEAKER_00
I d get French silk pie.
3
SPEAKER_01
I do love a chocolate pie.
3
SPEAKER_00
And then there s a really good place, Mindy s Hot Chocolate in Chicago, which we went to.
3
SPEAKER_00
It s now just Mindy s Bakery, but she does insane pies.
3
SPEAKER_01
Did we have pie when we went?
3
SPEAKER_00
I think we had her dessert.
3
SPEAKER_00
We had the burgers and dessert, which that s my favorite burger of all time, too.
3
SPEAKER_01
But it s gone now?
3
SPEAKER_00
She just went back to bakery.
3
SPEAKER_02
And Monica, I m going to pass you over a little slice of each pie.
3
SPEAKER_02
You ve tried all these probably hundreds of times.
3
SPEAKER_01
Well, I want to, before we begin, should I start with my negative thoughts?
3
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, please get those out.
3
SPEAKER_02
Get those out.
3
SPEAKER_01
I like your assignment.
3
SPEAKER_01
I think she was right because citrus in LA, it s good.
3
SPEAKER_01
I just am never getting a lemon meringue pie.
3
SPEAKER_01
I m never picking that.
3
SPEAKER_02
I did notice, I kept it in the fridge.
3
SPEAKER_02
As I drove over here, it has melted a lot.
3
SPEAKER_02
The lemon is very goopy.
3
SPEAKER_02
It wasn t like this when I bought it.
3
SPEAKER_02
It kind of looks like pineapple.
3
SPEAKER_02
But don t you love the meringue-y part?
3
SPEAKER_02
Like the fluff?
3
SPEAKER_02
What s your beef?
3
SPEAKER_01
My beef is, I don t love just lemon-flavored things in general.
3
SPEAKER_01
And then the, yeah, the meringue, it s not for me.
3
SPEAKER_02
It s not for you?
3
SPEAKER_02
Okay, no, fair.
3
SPEAKER_01
But I m gonna try this.
3
SPEAKER_02
Okay, give it a go.
3
SPEAKER_01
I ve never tried- Apple is definitely one of my all-time faves.
3
SPEAKER_02
Okay, I m gonna try the lemon meringue now, based on your- Should we do lemon meringue first?
3
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
3
SPEAKER_02
I feel that cholesterol spiking.
3
SPEAKER_02
Okay, so I m a meringue guy.
3
SPEAKER_02
I m not a lemon guy, but the meringue I enjoy.
3
SPEAKER_02
I like the base.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s very floofy.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s so floofy.
3
SPEAKER_02
It s sort of refreshing having the lemon.
3
SPEAKER_02
Gives the illusion of sort of freshness and health, perhaps.
3
SPEAKER_01
Okay, let me have a small bite of that.
3
SPEAKER_02
Should note Rob s getting very close to the camera, taking photos for this episode.
3
SPEAKER_02
Out of 10?
3
SPEAKER_01
It s actually not as bad as I thought.
3
SPEAKER_02
I m giving this lemon meringue a seven out of 10.
3
SPEAKER_01
But it kind of tastes like a cola.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s very sweet.
3
SPEAKER_02
It s very sweet.
3
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
3
SPEAKER_02
Not good for the diabetes.
3
SPEAKER_02
Okay, cherry next?
3
SPEAKER_01
Okay, yeah, let s do cherry.
3
SPEAKER_01
Also, just throwing out there, I don t ever pick cherry either, but I like a fruit pie in general, so.
3
SPEAKER_02
This is my first ever cherry pie.
3
SPEAKER_02
I like that cherry flavor.
3
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
3
SPEAKER_02
A lot.
3
SPEAKER_01
The crust is nice.
3
SPEAKER_01
This tastes like a Pop-Tart.
3
SPEAKER_02
I ve never had a Pop-Tart.
3
SPEAKER_01
What?
3
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, okay.
3
SPEAKER_02
This is probably another thing I need to do.
3
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, I ve never had one.
3
SPEAKER_01
Oh my God.
3
SPEAKER_02
It s like a bit of toast, but with sweetness.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s not toast.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s more like a pastry, but it s very, it s processed.
3
SPEAKER_02
And you put it in the toaster and it pops up.
3
SPEAKER_02
Okay.
3
SPEAKER_02
I think I ve seen the commercials for it.
3
SPEAKER_01
The big cherry one.
3
SPEAKER_01
And there s like a jam.
3
SPEAKER_02
I d give the cherry one an eight out of 10.
3
SPEAKER_01
Wow, these are high numbers.
3
SPEAKER_01
I wish we had Winston s.
3
SPEAKER_01
Okay, it s okay.
3
SPEAKER_01
I love this.
3
SPEAKER_01
Just because I want you to see the difference.
3
SPEAKER_02
Stay tuned for more Flightless Bird.
3
SPEAKER_02
We ll be right back after a word from our sponsors.
3
SPEAKER_02
Support for Flightless Bird comes from Helix Sleep.
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I ve been sleeping on my Helix mattress for a couple of years now, and I m getting really good sleeps.
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And we were talking about this recently in one of the episodes, the important parts of longevity.
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Yeah, good sleep.
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And a huge part is sleep.
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Mattresses make a huge difference.
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3
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That s helixsleep.com slash bird.
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This is their best offer yet and it won t last long.
3
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With Helix, better sleep starts now.
3
SPEAKER_01
Okay, we re going in for Apple now.
3
SPEAKER_02
Oh, I like this.
3
SPEAKER_01
Right?
3
SPEAKER_02
Mm-mm-mm-mm.
3
SPEAKER_01
Apple pie is so good.
3
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, apple pie is the one, isn t it?
3
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, it is.
3
SPEAKER_01
This is a 10.
3
SPEAKER_01
This doesn t have cheddar, but that s fine.
3
SPEAKER_02
Oh, that blew my mind, having, I didn t know you got cheese involved.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s very Midwestern.
3
SPEAKER_01
Mm, this is nice.
3
SPEAKER_01
The apple s very spiced, which is good.
3
SPEAKER_02
Mm-mm-mm.
3
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, those are, look, I feel more American.
3
SPEAKER_01
So apple was your fave?
3
SPEAKER_02
Apple s my fave, by far.
3
SPEAKER_01
Loved apple.
3
SPEAKER_01
You didn t get any chocolate pies, which is a big part of pies.
3
SPEAKER_02
And pumpkin pie.
3
SPEAKER_02
Have you had pumpkin pie?
3
SPEAKER_02
I had that at Thanksgiving and that was great.
3
SPEAKER_01
And you had tea lime at Thanksgiving.
3
SPEAKER_02
Oh, delicious.
3
SPEAKER_01
Which is great as well.
3
SPEAKER_02
So I have a sweet tooth.
3
SPEAKER_02
I don t think there s a pie that I wouldn t consume, to be honest.
3
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
3
SPEAKER_02
But I am blown away by the creativity America has.
3
SPEAKER_02
I didn t realize there were so many pies and obviously locally people get so excited about their pie.
3
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, my friends, I think I said this on maybe another episode, my friends, Lizzie and Joe, shout out, when they got married, they love pie, and so do I, so they invited me over for pie taste testing for their wedding.
3
SPEAKER_01
Lucky.
3
SPEAKER_01
And it was so amazing, and they had a big array.
3
SPEAKER_02
Oh, and that would be elite pie, that would be like the best of the best, right?
3
SPEAKER_01
They did have some House of Pies options, they had Winston s, they had a couple others, there s some that are
3
SPEAKER_01
Very niche, like you have to go to someone s house and in their backyard, there s like a whole thing and pick it up.
3
SPEAKER_01
There s one that we got that, I think it was peach, strawberry, apple, like it was like a three fruit.
3
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, combo.
3
SPEAKER_01
So good.
3
SPEAKER_02
I feel it s a bit like barbecue where people have their spots to go and their places and their different, yeah, it feels the same sort of levels of passion involved.
3
SPEAKER_01
Do you think you, in general, would like a chocolate pie more or less than a fruit pie?
3
SPEAKER_02
I don t know what you re talking about.
3
SPEAKER_02
No, I understand chocolate, but how do you get chocolate into a pie?
3
SPEAKER_02
Cause pie is a texture.
3
SPEAKER_00
It s like meringue-y.
3
SPEAKER_02
I mean, it depends on the kind.
3
SPEAKER_01
So this is like what French silk looks like.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s more mousse-y.
3
SPEAKER_02
Oh, it looks amazing.
3
SPEAKER_02
I mean, I love chocolate, so it ll be up my alley.
3
SPEAKER_02
I just wasn t sure about the texture.
3
SPEAKER_02
I think I like the chunkiness of fruit.
3
SPEAKER_01
The fruit, yeah.
3
SPEAKER_02
And it s healthy cause it s fruit.
3
SPEAKER_02
What did you think about that Minnesota pie she mentioned that she loved?
3
SPEAKER_02
The corn dog hot dish pie with savory funnel cake.
3
SPEAKER_02
She said that and I felt like I was having a stroke because I didn t really know what any of these things were and they re all apparently in a pie.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s wild.
3
SPEAKER_01
It was wild.
3
SPEAKER_01
I don t know that that one s for me because how can it be a savory funnel cake?
3
SPEAKER_01
You ve had funnel cake though, right?
3
SPEAKER_01
Funnel cake is at amusement parks
3
SPEAKER_02
No, I haven t done funnel cake.
3
SPEAKER_01
Oh my God.
3
SPEAKER_02
We didn t do that one.
3
SPEAKER_02
Was it Disney when we went there?
3
SPEAKER_02
Would I have got it there?
3
SPEAKER_01
They would have had it.
3
SPEAKER_02
I haven t had it.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s an amusement park staple.
3
SPEAKER_01
How would we describe it?
3
SPEAKER_01
Funnel cake.
3
SPEAKER_00
Fried dough with powdered sugar on top.
3
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
3
SPEAKER_02
Oh, that sounds great.
3
SPEAKER_01
It looks like this.
3
SPEAKER_01
Corn dogs.
3
SPEAKER_02
Okay, no, I haven t had that before.
3
SPEAKER_01
But she made it savory, but it s very sweet, so she must be adding pepper.
3
SPEAKER_02
Right, but isn t that just chucking the cheese onto the apple or something?
3
SPEAKER_01
I guess so.
3
SPEAKER_02
Sweet and savory combo?
3
SPEAKER_01
I learned about cheese on apple pie late in life.
3
SPEAKER_01
Right.
3
SPEAKER_01
That wasn t a thing I was exposed to.
3
SPEAKER_01
I don t think I ve ever had an apple pie with the slice of cheese.
3
SPEAKER_01
I want that.
3
SPEAKER_01
I want to try it.
3
SPEAKER_01
Also, I love cheese so much.
3
SPEAKER_01
Oh, I love cheese as well.
3
SPEAKER_02
What s that like for the cholesterol?
3
SPEAKER_02
Bad dairy.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s not great, but just do moderate.
3
SPEAKER_01
If you do it in moderation.
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_02
But I have had apple pie with cheddar cheese in the crust.
4
SPEAKER_01
Oh, yeah.
4
SPEAKER_02
Oh, so good.
4
SPEAKER_01
You done piehole?
4
SPEAKER_01
Piehole s good.
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, I have.
4
SPEAKER_02
I have.
4
SPEAKER_01
Got a really good pecan pie and a Mexican chocolate pie.
4
SPEAKER_02
Mexican chocolate.
4
SPEAKER_03
Oh my God.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s endless.
4
SPEAKER_03
You could die having not eaten all of America s pies.
4
SPEAKER_03
She s gone to every state.
4
SPEAKER_03
I mean, that s why this book is so incredible, because she s sort of been to and eaten all of them.
4
SPEAKER_02
Pecan is really important that you try.
4
SPEAKER_02
Oh, wait, maybe you had it at Thanksgiving.
4
SPEAKER_03
Oh, Thanksgiving.
4
SPEAKER_03
Yeah, it was intense.
4
SPEAKER_02
This is another type of chocolate pie.
4
SPEAKER_02
Chocolate cowgirl from Winston.
4
SPEAKER_02
That photo looks beautiful, I m looking at.
4
SPEAKER_03
Yeah, I got that.
4
SPEAKER_02
It has a rich chocolate filling, a responsibly sourced Ecuadorian chocolate, and a salty oat crust, topped with a drizzle of handmade fresh caramel.
4
SPEAKER_02
Fudge-like texture, with just the right amount of sweetness.
4
SPEAKER_02
It s really nice.
4
SPEAKER_03
Okay.
4
SPEAKER_03
So just quickly, before we go into part two, what s the pie that you have your final meal pie?
4
SPEAKER_02
What are you having?
4
SPEAKER_03
Like right now I m having the apple.
4
SPEAKER_03
I love the apple.
4
SPEAKER_02
Okay.
4
SPEAKER_03
What are you having?
4
SPEAKER_02
I think if I have one pie, oh, I also love the strawberry rhubarb.
4
SPEAKER_02
I think I m going apple as well.
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, it s the simplicity, I think.
4
SPEAKER_02
It is.
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, okay, apple pie.
4
SPEAKER_01
The milk bar pie is insane.
4
SPEAKER_01
They used to call it crack pie.
4
SPEAKER_02
Crack pie.
4
SPEAKER_01
But it s the like caramel, buttery.
4
SPEAKER_01
I ve had it at my house with you.
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, I like that pie.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s so good.
4
SPEAKER_02
Ah, this is, this is yummy.
4
SPEAKER_03
Just like the rest of the episode should just be us listing pies.
4
SPEAKER_02
It kind of does feel like that.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s like going, mmm.
4
SPEAKER_02
I mean, pie is so funny listening to the doc and really realizing, because you mentioned it, but it s hard for me to really wrap my head around the fact that we just really are in our silos, that you hear pie and you don t think of this.
4
SPEAKER_03
Yeah, absolutely.
4
SPEAKER_02
It s so interesting.
4
SPEAKER_03
And there s a few times American friends have come to visit me in New Zealand and I haven t clocked it, because I m like, we re going to get a pie.
4
SPEAKER_03
And they re kind of like, oh, it s a weird thing to get for lunch.
4
SPEAKER_03
Right.
4
SPEAKER_03
And I should point out as well that when I say in New Zealand we re eating meat pies, it s not like the pie you d get in America, this huge thing.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s a little handheld pie.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s tiny.
4
SPEAKER_03
And so you go to New Zealand and most people you see walking around, they ll have one of these little pies in their hand.
4
SPEAKER_02
It s like a Hot Pocket.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s like a Hot Pocket.
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_03
That s what I m talking about.
4
SPEAKER_03
So we re not like feasting on these giant, meaty, massive pies.
4
SPEAKER_02
Because even our chicken pot pie is the shape of a big pie.
4
SPEAKER_03
Right, everything s big.
4
SPEAKER_03
Right, so you d have to slice it up.
4
SPEAKER_02
I mean, they do have individual size pot pies.
4
SPEAKER_03
But it s not typical.
4
SPEAKER_03
A typical meat pie in New Zealand is tiny.
4
SPEAKER_02
Right.
4
SPEAKER_02
Your typical- Pot pie is, you d bake it like a big pie.
4
SPEAKER_02
Oh, I want to make that soon.
4
SPEAKER_02
Alison Roman has a recipe that I ve been wanting to make, a chicken pot pie recipe.
4
SPEAKER_03
I feel like maybe we need to do a chicken pot pie episode, where they came from.
4
SPEAKER_03
I m sure there s an origin story.
4
SPEAKER_02
Well, Marie Callender, frozen food, that s the quintessential pot pie, the frozen pot pie.
4
SPEAKER_02
I mean, I don t know if that s how, it s probably not how it started, but that s just like the Salisbury steak.
4
SPEAKER_02
You should do a frozen foods episode.
4
SPEAKER_03
That s a really good idea.
4
SPEAKER_03
We touched on it briefly in the ice episode, but there s so, that s like a whole world.
4
SPEAKER_02
It s such a world.
4
SPEAKER_02
I love this.
4
SPEAKER_02
And it s a big part of them.
4
SPEAKER_02
Like the Salisbury steak in this, I guess, seventies or maybe fifties.
4
SPEAKER_02
I m not going to times was a huge part of American dinner dining.
4
SPEAKER_03
Oh, I love this because I ve embraced the Trader Joe s frozen meals.
4
SPEAKER_03
Like I think if you re like a sad, alone person, you go to Trader Joe s and like there s these individual, they like market it to people like me.
4
SPEAKER_03
So he lives alone.
4
SPEAKER_03
He doesn t, he hates cooking.
4
SPEAKER_03
Not very talented.
4
SPEAKER_03
Like get this.
4
SPEAKER_02
There s no point in him nourishing himself.
4
SPEAKER_03
Anyway, frozen food s a great episode.
4
SPEAKER_02
Okay, great.
4
SPEAKER_03
Okay.
4
SPEAKER_03
So in the final part of the stock, it actually lines up quite nicely with what we just came to the conclusion of, which is that apple pie is the best pie.
4
SPEAKER_02
Okay.
4
SPEAKER_02
We re going to get some hate.
4
SPEAKER_03
Am I right in thinking the apple pie is the American pie, right?
4
SPEAKER_03
That is the main one.
4
SPEAKER_03
That s America s pie.
4
SPEAKER_00
I think it s because pie is one of those things in American history that they ve always kept on the table in some way.
4
SPEAKER_00
So there s a series of pies that were created here called desperation pies.
4
SPEAKER_00
And these were pies that were made out of not necessarily financial depression, even though there is a pie that was made during the Great Depression, but it was about seasonal depression when you didn t have fresh fruit.
4
SPEAKER_00
So there are all these pies, like the vinegar pie that was created in Appalachia, and that s
4
SPEAKER_00
supposed to mimic the tartness of apples.
4
SPEAKER_00
And the water pie comes from the Great Depression, which it tastes like Krispy Kreme donut glaze in the center of a pie.
4
SPEAKER_00
So what all of this made me think of is the importance of pie in America and keeping it on the table throughout the year or even during times of sadness.
4
SPEAKER_00
The symbol of pie is the symbol of America s abundance.
4
SPEAKER_00
Whenever you see an apple pie, it s a bunch of apples piled high and the crust is big and it s sitting in a window.
4
SPEAKER_00
It s this idyllic vision of what you want America to be.
4
SPEAKER_00
And it might not always be that way.
4
SPEAKER_00
And it definitely isn t.
4
SPEAKER_00
But when you have this symbol of a delicious steaming apple pie, things feel a little less hopeless and a little more hopeful.
4
SPEAKER_03
Is there a pie that you just hate on a personal level?
4
SPEAKER_03
Is there a specific pie that you re like, no, that s not for me?
4
SPEAKER_00
It s pumpkin.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m so sorry to everybody that absolutely loves pumpkin.
4
SPEAKER_00
It s just not for me.
4
SPEAKER_00
Or anything with a jello in it.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m weird about the texture of jello.
4
SPEAKER_03
Statistically, Stacey s an aberration.
4
SPEAKER_03
According to the American Pie Council, pumpkin pie is a big business, especially for Thanksgiving, with over 50 million pumpkin pies eaten every November.
4
SPEAKER_03
Now before I left Stacey, I had one more question.
4
SPEAKER_03
One more question for the pie expert who s explored way more of America than I have.
4
SPEAKER_03
Completely unrelated to the pies, or maybe it is related to the pies, do you have a place you ended up in America that really surprised you or stands out in a positive way?
4
SPEAKER_00
South Dakota completely blew me away.
4
SPEAKER_00
I had never ever been any place like it.
4
SPEAKER_00
It felt like the moon, mainly because there was barely anyone on the roads.
4
SPEAKER_00
I saw an actual tumbleweed, which it was like the most amazing thing in the entire world.
4
SPEAKER_00
And also the culture and the deep rooted food that s available in South Dakota that isn t available anywhere else.
4
SPEAKER_00
And the landscapes.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_00
If you ever get a chance to go to South Dakota, go to South Dakota.
4
SPEAKER_00
It s very beautiful.
4
SPEAKER_00
It ll blow you away.
4
SPEAKER_03
I saw my first tumbleweed in Roswell, New Mexico, and I thought I was hallucinating.
4
SPEAKER_03
They re so big.
4
SPEAKER_03
They re so big.
4
SPEAKER_03
And there were so many of them, and they re on the fucking road.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s actually a whole other topic I needed to do was fucking tumbleweeds.
4
SPEAKER_03
You ve just reminded me.
4
SPEAKER_00
You have to do tumbleweeds.
4
SPEAKER_00
When I saw tumbleweed was like when I was in college here and saw a red solo cup for the first time, it was like, these exist.
4
SPEAKER_00
This is for real.
4
SPEAKER_00
I bought a 12 pack of them back to Hong Kong with me my first break.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I was like, you guys, it s real.
4
SPEAKER_00
Let me teach you beer pong.
4
SPEAKER_03
Future episodes incoming, red cups and tumbleweeds.
4
SPEAKER_03
But for now, I ve got about 47 other pie flavors to try.
4
SPEAKER_03
The red cup thing I thought was just a joke in American comedies.
4
SPEAKER_02
You did.
4
SPEAKER_03
And when I got to America and saw them, I was like, ah, just a thing you do.
4
SPEAKER_02
Okay, you have to do an episode on red solo cups.
4
SPEAKER_02
You can also get blue, but red s the color.
4
SPEAKER_03
Oh my God.
4
SPEAKER_03
50 Pies, 50 States is the book.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s an amazing book.
4
SPEAKER_03
And I should say, so she s also formulated her recipes for that.
4
SPEAKER_03
So she s like an amazing chef.
4
SPEAKER_03
So she, baker chef, I don t know the terminology.
4
SPEAKER_03
So she basically, yeah, she basically has formulated her best recipe.
4
SPEAKER_03
So it s got them all in there.
4
SPEAKER_02
I m excited.
4
SPEAKER_02
I want, I m going to buy it.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s a cool book.
4
SPEAKER_03
I like how she also mentioned that they re always on the table, even through financially difficult times, people will find cheeky ways to still get a delicious pie sitting there to keep everyone happy.
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, because it is such a token of American culture, and like she said, abundance.
4
SPEAKER_02
You need it there to feel some hope.
4
SPEAKER_03
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s hope.
4
SPEAKER_03
It s like there s a sweet treat.
4
SPEAKER_03
And just rewinding to the very beginning of this episode, American Pie, that comedy, is like the beginning of gross-out comedy being big.
4
SPEAKER_03
That was huge in New Zealand.
4
SPEAKER_02
Huge.
4
SPEAKER_03
Is that big here?
4
SPEAKER_03
Huge.
4
SPEAKER_03
It was a time, wasn t it?
4
SPEAKER_02
It was such a time.
4
SPEAKER_03
Eugene Levy made him massive again.
4
SPEAKER_02
Stifler, Stifler s mom.
4
SPEAKER_03
I guess there ll be like kids listening to this who are like, what?
4
SPEAKER_03
Right?
4
SPEAKER_03
Or would they know it?
4
SPEAKER_03
Has it gone into the culture like Forrest Gump did where everyone kind of knows the references?
4
SPEAKER_01
They made 11 of them, so I think it was around for a while.
4
SPEAKER_01
So there s so many, right?
4
SPEAKER_02
I don t know, but like, does Calvin know about it?
4
SPEAKER_02
Will you ask him?
4
SPEAKER_01
Can you watch it?
4
SPEAKER_03
Can we do a review of him?
4
SPEAKER_03
What was he doing to the pie?
4
SPEAKER_03
No, don t do that.
4
SPEAKER_03
That s child abuse.
4
SPEAKER_03
Like and subscribe.
4
SPEAKER_02
Oh, so sweet.
4
SPEAKER_02
This was really fun.
4
SPEAKER_02
And I enjoyed this.
4
SPEAKER_02
I do think you have some other ones you got to try.
4
SPEAKER_03
I ve got a lot of pies I need to try.
4
SPEAKER_03
And I ve got a bonus for you.
4
SPEAKER_03
We ve been recording remotely a few times because we ve been sick
5
SPEAKER_01
and whatnot.
5
SPEAKER_01
Quilting, that quilting episode.
5
SPEAKER_01
So many people have gotten in touch with me wanting to send you, Rob Dax, me quilts.
5
SPEAKER_01
Endless.
5
SPEAKER_02
That s exciting.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I can t like, I can t reply to everyone.
5
SPEAKER_01
So kind that people want to do this, but that blog I write, Webworm, I kind of trust those people.
5
SPEAKER_01
And so I gave one of them my address because they re like, they re nice people and I interact and I know they re lovely.
5
SPEAKER_01
And so she sent
5
SPEAKER_01
A quilt.
5
SPEAKER_01
A quilt.
5
SPEAKER_01
They re here.
5
SPEAKER_01
I bought them in.
5
SPEAKER_01
So my quilt is at home.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s got cats on it.
5
SPEAKER_01
So Susan Marshall sent these in.
5
SPEAKER_01
She just basically said, this is a note for the rest of the crew.
5
SPEAKER_01
I ve been a fan of the show since week one.
5
SPEAKER_01
I know everyone says it, but it s true.
5
SPEAKER_01
I ve always seen photos of the attic and thought making a quilt for guests would be fun.
5
SPEAKER_01
She s been making quilts for her friends and family for 20 years.
5
SPEAKER_01
Wow.
5
SPEAKER_01
She s got an Etsy store.
5
SPEAKER_01
I was inspired to finally make one for all of you when I heard the Flight of the Spirit episode about quilts.
5
SPEAKER_01
Also, when Monica confessed that no one had ever made her a quilt, I knew I had a mission.
5
SPEAKER_01
A lot of people felt sad about that.
5
SPEAKER_01
I think most people haven t had a quilt made for them, but to sound so sad?
5
SPEAKER_01
No one s made me a quilt.
5
SPEAKER_02
No one s even made me a quilt.
5
SPEAKER_01
Monica, your quilt was the hardest, because I know you re a Virgo, meaning you re particular.
5
SPEAKER_00
You mean a Virgo?
5
SPEAKER_00
Oh, what did I say?
5
SPEAKER_00
I say virgin.
5
SPEAKER_00
Virgo.
5
SPEAKER_00
Oh, Virgo.
5
SPEAKER_00
You combined virgin and Virgo.
5
SPEAKER_02
You did.
5
SPEAKER_02
And I was like, she s wrong.
5
SPEAKER_01
She s wrong about that.
5
SPEAKER_01
Okay, a Virgo.
5
SPEAKER_01
A Virgo.
5
SPEAKER_01
I ve never said that out loud.
5
SPEAKER_01
I don t do the stars and the sun and all that stuff.
5
SPEAKER_01
I m really embarrassing myself here.
5
SPEAKER_01
I m bad with astrology.
5
SPEAKER_02
Oh boy.
5
SPEAKER_01
When I saw this fabric about empowering women, I knew it was for you.
5
SPEAKER_01
A few days later, the ding, ding, ding moment came.
5
SPEAKER_01
The Pantone, I m afraid of saying the word now, Pantone colour was announced.
5
SPEAKER_01
Patown.
5
SPEAKER_01
And one of the fabrics was the Pantone color.
5
SPEAKER_02
No way.
5
SPEAKER_02
This is, wow.
5
SPEAKER_01
Okay.
5
SPEAKER_01
Rob and Dax, this one I made to leave in the attic.
5
SPEAKER_01
I m hoping the colors go with the gray blue in the attic.
5
SPEAKER_01
Dax, you never get a cold, but Monica and the guests might use it.
5
SPEAKER_01
Rob, I wanted to make your son a baseball quilt, but I couldn t remember which Chicago baseball team you supported.
5
SPEAKER_01
If you d like one, message me.
5
SPEAKER_02
White Sox.
5
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, it s the White Sox.
5
SPEAKER_01
Right, White Sox.
5
SPEAKER_01
She s frigging kind.
5
SPEAKER_01
That s so sweet.
5
SPEAKER_01
I hope you like these quilts.
5
SPEAKER_01
If not, just give them to the people you love.
5
SPEAKER_01
The fabric s massive, washable and easy to care for.
5
SPEAKER_02
Oh my God, I m so excited to see them.
5
SPEAKER_02
Pantone.
5
SPEAKER_02
Wow.
5
SPEAKER_02
OK, this is pretty.
5
SPEAKER_02
Oh my God.
5
SPEAKER_01
Threw that over the room.
5
SPEAKER_02
Vic, it s a great fabric.
5
SPEAKER_02
Oh, it s comfy.
5
SPEAKER_01
What does the text say?
5
SPEAKER_02
It says empower women.
5
SPEAKER_01
Oh, that s cool.
5
SPEAKER_02
This is so sweet.
5
SPEAKER_02
It s pink.
5
SPEAKER_02
I love pink.
5
SPEAKER_01
And Rob, this is the one for you and Dex.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s soft and beautiful.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s very cuddly.
5
SPEAKER_02
It s really soft.
5
SPEAKER_02
Thank you so much.
5
SPEAKER_02
This is so sweet.
5
SPEAKER_02
What s also interesting, and I like, the one we have from our friend from the episode is such a specific type of quilt.
5
SPEAKER_02
It s so amazing.
5
SPEAKER_02
Wait, did you know that on Armchair Anonymous, one of our guests knows him, Luke, and had one of his quilts up?
5
SPEAKER_01
Oh, that s so weird.
5
SPEAKER_01
Isn t that weird?
5
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, because Luke s stuff is amazingly detailed and like machine driven and your faces are on that thing.
5
SPEAKER_01
These are sort of more like, I don t want to say typical, they re beautiful.
5
SPEAKER_02
No, they re gorgeous.
5
SPEAKER_01
But like the standard shapes and textures and fabrics.
5
SPEAKER_02
But the one we have from Luke is very thin and this one s fluffy and soft.
5
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, that s a winter time in the attic?
5
SPEAKER_01
Wrap yourself up in that.
5
SPEAKER_01
Imagine when guests come in, you and Dax are just like wrapped up in these quilts.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like, what are you doing?
5
SPEAKER_01
So yeah, I know we ve sort of brought quilts and Lord of the Rings back into the Pies episode, but why not?
5
SPEAKER_02
Why not?
5
SPEAKER_01
Let s chock a block.
5
SPEAKER_01
Well, Merry Christmas.
5
SPEAKER_01
Happy New Year.
5
SPEAKER_01
Happy Thanksgiving.
5
SPEAKER_01
What a time.
5
SPEAKER_01
Happy Lord of the Rings release.
5
SPEAKER_02
Happy Pi Day.
5
SPEAKER_01
Happy Pi Day.
5
SPEAKER_02
Callie s birthday is Pi Day, the number, 314.
5
SPEAKER_01
Oh, that s really cute.
5
SPEAKER_01
So Pi Day is on, we ve missed it, it s on January 23rd.
5
SPEAKER_01
So put it in your diary.
5
SPEAKER_01
Next year, eat all the pie you can eat.
5
SPEAKER_01
Apple s the best.
5
SPEAKER_01
All right.
5
SPEAKER_01
I think we re all more American.
5
SPEAKER_01
We are.
5
SPEAKER_01
And my cholesterol is bumped up by half a point.
5
Yeah.